Is NZ Labour more ideological than the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party?
January 28th, 2011 at 3:00 pm by David FarrarI’ve made the point in the past that NZ Labour’s insistence that not even a single share of any currently owned crown company can be sold, is way outside the mainstream for not just the centre right but also the centre left. Left wing Governments around the world have seen the merits of allowing the private sector to invest in companies that were once solely state owned.
The latest example we have is in Laos. It is basically a communist dictatorship, and has been since the revolution of 1975. The Lao People’s Revolutionary Party is the only allowable party, and it is a Marxist-Leninist party.
But even in Laos, they move with the times and recognise unrelenting hostility to the private sector is ideological madness. A December 2010 news report states:
A state-owned power company plans to mobilise as much as 930.5 billion kip (US$115.4 million) to build more power plants after putting 25 percent of its shares on sale this week.
The EDL Electricity Generation Company is allowing local and foreign investors to subscribe for shares until December 24, after obtaining permission from the Lao Securities Exchange Commission.
The company will sell about 217 million shares, with about 86.9 million allocated to foreign investors and 119.4 million to local investors, at an initial price of 4,300 kip per share. Some 10.9 million shares will be available for purchase by company employees at 4,000 kip per share. …
The company will use the money it raises from the sale of shares to finance new power projects and maintain existing plants. …
The EDL Electricity Generation Company is the second state-owned enterprise to offer shares for public sale.
Let us hope that one day the NZ Labour Party may become less ideological than the marxist-leninist Lao People’s Revolutionary Party.
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- The 10% cap for SOEs
- Is it the Mana or Marxist party?
- Russel Norman declares he is not a communist!
January 28th, 2011 at 3:15 pm
Let us hope that one day the NZ Labour Party may become less ideological than the marxist-leninist Lao People’s Revolutionary Party.
hahahahaha
they used to sell (fully sell) our assets in the old days when Gaffe was a minister but not now, why is that??
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 3:23 pm
Oh really dpf. You used to be soo much sharper.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 3:27 pm
If Ronnie and dame Maggie had given Phil and co a hand the comparison would be complete.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 3:35 pm
I do not think Labour are being ideological over this issue at all. Labour is desperate and are playing politics. They know the mood of the ignorant masses that vote NZ governments in and out. They know they can play rhetorical games using catchy slogans like “family silver” and it will appeal to the sheeple. The sheeple will not stand for assets sale, partial or otherwise, and Labour know. And there will be no reasoning with these voters either. You just have to see all the media polls and read all the ignorant comments on government media releases to understand this. This issue has given Labour its lifeline or so they think.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 3:38 pm
Why is this a surprise?
The Freedmanites are never around to help a nation build, they just swoop in later, like crows picking the eyes out of new born lambs.
jakarta is coming.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 3:39 pm
Ive been to Lao…very nice place ..but watch where you step.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 3:44 pm
“Oh really dpf. You used to be soo much sharper.” Problem was the lefties couldn’t understand the finer nuances, so he’s resorted to being blunt.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 3:45 pm
I think that if Labour was more ideological, it’d be a bit easier to predict where they’ll stand on various issues before they come up.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 3:50 pm
Next up – Lenin and Stalin killed tens of millions because of the White Russians. Mao killed tens of millions because of Chaing Kai Shek…
Shorter Cha – even when communists kill millions it’s still never their fault or that of their ideology.
In fact, if you’re a wobbly you apparently have no ideological connection to them at all. No wonder Pilger always looks so smug.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 3:53 pm
let’s start a new nationwide drinking/toking game…
..everytime between now and the election that farrar calls the labour party ‘marxists/leninists’…(heh..!..eh…?..)
,,,you have to skull yr drink/smoke a whatever…
..(whoar..!…i’m having a cold war flashback here..!..)
(..kiwiblog..the home of yellow-journalism..)
phil(whoar.co.nz)
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 3:59 pm
Heard that twit Twyford on Willie the lefty Jackson show this afternoon. These leftist scum could bullshit till the cows come home. Twyford was trying to scare the horses by saying if the power companies were sold power prices would go through the roof. This bleeding heart liberal is nothing but a bullshitting sack of shit. Please tell me Mr Twyford what power prices did under the control of your regime, they sure didn’t drop, in fact you bastards were only to quick to pocket the profits. He now comes out on the radio crying crocodile tears that the evil capitalistic pigs will shaft the masses, or his followers, the stupid. Where were the caring and sharing Liarbore party when they were in power for 9 years and fucking us all over, no love for the masses then. These wankers raise hypocrisy to a much higher plane.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 4:02 pm
Yes, it’s political alright. Every post over at Redablurt today is about this issue. The latest is entitled “Sell the Country”.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 4:04 pm
No connection, indeed, sad little country it is.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 4:06 pm
So National is advocating for the Laotian model?
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 4:07 pm
Philu 3.53 One of your better ideas. Can we also add pinkos, commie scum, arseholes, bullshit artists, lying sacks of shit, progressive pullers, wankers and assorted tossers. If the answer is affirmative I may have to restock the cellar.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 4:09 pm
It’s alright Cha – as a supporter of the 1979 Vietnamese invasion of Cambodia to take out the Khmer Rouge I very much appreciated the support of Pilger and yourself in the 2003 US invasion of Iraq to take out Saddam.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 4:09 pm
Gosh, you’re spinning hard – I think this is your 4th post on asset sales in 3 days. You must be really worried that Labour are going to gain traction on this. Can’t help that the likes of Bernard Hickey have come out against it.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 4:31 pm
Labours policy of NO asset sales ever, IS a bizarre one. And it doesnt have anything to do with their side of the political spectrum, as shown above.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 4:32 pm
jakarta is coming.
Fuck they must be slow buggers! You’ve been saying that for a year now and they still aren’t here!
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 4:37 pm
Gosh, you’re spinning hard – I think this is your 4th post on asset sales in 3 days.
http://thestandard.org.nz/the-sell-off-begins/
http://thestandard.org.nz/nationals-impending-swingeing-cuts/
http://thestandard.org.nz/6-quick-reasons-why-asset-sales-suck/
http://thestandard.org.nz/nats-start-the-election-campaign/
http://thestandard.org.nz/political-courage/
http://thestandard.org.nz/why-selling-assets-wont-solve-our-debt-problem/
http://thestandard.org.nz/slash-sell-%e2%80%a6-then-crash/
http://thestandard.org.nz/debt-an-excuse-for-enriching-the-elite/
http://thestandard.org.nz/ireland/
http://thestandard.org.nz/welcome-to-election-year/
http://thestandard.org.nz/selling-assets-vs-revoking-tax-cuts-for-richest-1/
Who’s getting the dizziest?
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 4:39 pm
Wow, is your argument on this whole issue is that blown to bits that name calling is the best you can do? In the words of the internet: fucking lol
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 4:39 pm
Nick R
Well it is a topic of considerable interest so i don’t think one post and then move on is an option.
As an aside you might want to look at the The Standard – they have wall to wall postings on the subject – entirely fictional I might add. I think on the day of the announcement they had about 4 or 5 excitbale postings.
They seem to have forgotten Phils “excellent” state of the nation speech already.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 4:49 pm
smttc @ 3:35, I quite agree.
Labour long ago, since Lange, found traction with the selfish-rich theme that dominates their economic rhetoric. It resonated for some reason. Perhaps it was exacerbated by what happened in 1987. It was an amazing time 1984-87 wasn’t it, then it crashed. Many people who’d invested for the very first time in their life, worse sometimes by going into debt as well, lost a lot, some lost everything. I think that had a lot to do with it, together with the outrageous excesses of people like the GoldCorp guy, Ray someone; Fay, and Richwhite, over their “Chinese walls” (yeah, right); Alan Hawkins, Alan Bond, that Aussie who skipped the country, the guy who knocked down that Auckland heritage mall/theatre then bought that mansion in Epsom, was that Kerridge? etc.
Liarbore have associated the phrase “the failed policies of the 90′s” with that pain so it’s turned into a pavlovian signal now. It’s engrained and that’s because those times were emotional for many and that gives them traction beyond just an objective thought, triple that when its pain and not pleasure because we’ll run a mile from pain.
That’s whats happened I think and it’s difficult to think how to change it because something like this never has and never will, responded to mere intellectual arguments: i.e., the facts.
What you need is a counter-emotional argument that hits them emotionally, positively instead of negatively, and where the heck is that going to come from?
Notwithstanding, I think intellectual arguments: i.e. facts, are still worth promulgating and I just don’t get why the Nats insist on staying silent time after time as Liarbore makes these false allegations which reinforce those feelings. I don’t get it. Why don’t they counter, at all?
I mean, where are the emotive counter-slogans of which there are many potential: e.g. “Labour’s policies will mortgage your child’s future by this much [pic of child growing up with anchor chains with bigger and bigger weights with dollar numbers on them]. (Personally if I were the Nat’s political marketing consultants I’d also be recommending guerilla marketing such as encouraging young Nats to put up vampire posters of Phil sucking the blood out of poor workers, imagine what Campbell Live would do, he’d go ballistic, what great publicity.)
Seriously, where are the Nats and where have they been for years, on this critical ideological battleground, which has been exclusively Liarbore’s to do what they will, for almost three decades now?
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 4:50 pm
Gosh, you’re spinning hard – I think this is your 4th post on asset sales in 3 days.
http://blog.labour.org.nz/index.php/2011/01/26/a-clear-dividing-line/
Vote:http://blog.labour.org.nz/index.php/2011/01/27/isnt-it-strange/
http://blog.labour.org.nz/index.php/2011/01/27/mums-dads-and-other-spin/
http://blog.labour.org.nz/index.php/2011/01/27/sell-the-donkey/
http://blog.labour.org.nz/index.php/2011/01/28/key-approach-to-housing-sell-the-home-live-on-the-street/
http://blog.labour.org.nz/index.php/2011/01/28/business-leader-opposes-asset-sales/
http://blog.labour.org.nz/index.php/2011/01/28/selling-our-country/
January 28th, 2011 at 4:52 pm
It is the only issue – the question being: not if national will lose votes, but will they lose too many so they’re unable to govern alone? That leads to the next question: whats the health of their current coalition parties???
its a big gamble by Mr Key – but that’s how he made his millions.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 4:54 pm
So the Laos Marxist Govt is less hard-line than NZ Labour on state asset sales, provided you ignore the minor detail that they are a dictatorship?
You’re on the beers already aren’t you DPF?
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 5:03 pm
RRM how do you explain the coincidences between Soviet propaganda principles and practices of the 50′s and 60′s and Liarbore’s practices of those very same principles in 2011?
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 5:08 pm
the “family silverware” phrase is being copied all over the place .. NZ Herald FB page had shit loads of it in the comments part recently .. the term was mixed between txt language which has me fkd.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 5:11 pm
reid – I don’t know.
Who cares?
How do YOU explain the use of 18th-century European string instruments in The Verve’s 1997 hit Bittersweet Symphony? Eh? EH??
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 5:16 pm
Well I care RRM. The reason is, one is beautiful and taps into the human essence of life itself and the other is a wretched withered poisoned enervating way to behave and guess which is which?
As I’ve said before, I have no idea how lefties sleep straight at night.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 5:19 pm
I’ve always loved the way leftists invert the meaning of words and phrases -war is peace and so forth.
For example, describing the large burning hole in the backyard that is KiwiRail as the “family silver”.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 5:22 pm
Essý Tino Back to the 80′s!! Cutting Govt spending inevitably means cuts to front line public services…. Bring back Labour I say!!!! Labour 2011
)) .. this moron thinks the asset sales in the 80′s was done by a Nat Govt.
Vote:Chris Pringuer Correct me if Im wrong.. I thought John Key was going to resign from parliament before selling state assetts?
Wednesday at 12:36pm · LikeUnlike · … this dipshit can’t read
Myra Mckay I don’t wanna read his stupid speech. He is NOT a man of the people .. he’s a man who takes from the people .. oh dear
Matt Habershon Surprise Surprise,
John and Bill got us into debt now have a nice plan to get us out. Of course we pay the cost while there mates get richers … oh my god, a super moron
there are many more but you get the drift
January 28th, 2011 at 5:24 pm
The reason you don’t “sell off the family silver” is the significant sentimental value you place on family heirlooms (which I highly doubt is similarly strong for something so detached as state ownership). If we’re going to be using household analogies, we should realise that households sell assets all the time, and quite sensibly so. What do we call people who refuse to let go of assets under any circumstances? Compulsive hoarders.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 5:27 pm
NZ is quite unique in the PM has to put his butt on the line to float power companies, is there a single country in the developed world where the state owns the power companies ? The only one I could find was Russia and they have announced 50 billion of asset sales.
Vote:The wierdest opposition comes from Bernard Hickey, fancy running a website that deals with economics and touting we are better off with the government running commercial businesses. Mind you he screams for higher taxes too, perhaps he should go back and do a stint at the FT to remind himself capitalism is alive and well.
The only group who seem to oppose asset sales around the globe are the greens.
January 28th, 2011 at 5:54 pm
OMFG, hooray. Thanks JK; honesty, openness, transparency. “We will consider doing this.” Not just do it without a mandate – Labour, are you listening? – with so many asset sales for truly laughable prices under their belts, they then turn and criticise this openness – to discuss and consider, not just to do – knowing their stupid followers will get shocked.
What a bunch of demented and hypocritical morons. And still the pussy whipped Goofy (Oh Phil change your hair colour, and please make sure the carpet matches the curtains (sorry to visual folk) says Mrs Phil – what next, Phil sporting a Brazilian? God, please, no) bangs on about how National wants to flog our farms to foreigners – how much land did the administration you were part of sell overseas Phil, you inconsequential toad? How the fuck do you lie straight in bed at night???
Sigh. Nothing else for it but to get tanked in the Koru Lounge before flying home, and hope the great risk aware JK has called it right – I think he has – like comedy, timing is everything, and I think he’s got it right.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 5:56 pm
Didn’t Labour introduce asset sales and GST?
Then when National want to “tweak” these Labour innovations, Labour can shout about right wing ,anti worker “rich pricks” while failing to take credit for introducing the fire sales and a very regressive form of tax,which is what GST is.
I’d say it’s not Laotian, it’s Orwellian ,straight out of 1984. Labourites tend to ignore the fact that book was a warning and use it as a manual.
Hey who’d have a currency named the “kip”? zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 7:06 pm
Please tell me Mr Twyford what power prices did under the control of your regime, they sure didn’t drop, in fact you bastards were only to quick to pocket the profits.
..increased by 70% over 9 years under liarbors watch.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 8:08 pm
DPF
Accept Key stuffed up. Potentially an election loser idea. Live with it
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 8:39 pm
Bernard Hickey is a light weight, only the Hearld would pay for his opinions. What he writes about is only minor fluffy stuff that most people can make their own mind up about. The media are always 3-6 months behind any financial trend, and even most economists are slow in seeing what is coming.
Vote:Roger Douglas was the person who made such a hash of asset sales that it has left a lasting scar on the brains of most NZ’ders. When people recover, if ever, from that trauma is anyone’s guess. I wouldn’t hold my breath.
January 28th, 2011 at 8:39 pm
if this policy costs national the election.. then i believe there is no hope for us.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 8:42 pm
if this policy costs national the election.. then i believe there is no hope for us.
If it does, I predict a mass exodus to Australia of the countries best and brightest.
Join us dime – the hookers are way hotter over here!
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 8:49 pm
Dime
This policy is the first sign that Key is moving in the right direction, however, as you say it is risky.
Key will probably still have the numbers to govern after the election but what this policy will do is offer immense bargaining power to the racist party (which is why it is vital that Hone is not part of the racist party come Nov 2011)
It will also bring back Winston into the house, sadly there are enough stupid knuckle dragger’s out there who will swallow Winston’s racist crap.
Personally, I think Key should have said nothing until after the election and then just gone ahead and sold the bloody things off, that is what the socialists would have done, I fail to see why we are the only ones who have to play by the rules.
Vote:January 28th, 2011 at 9:21 pm
Accept Key stuffed up. Potentially an election loser idea. Live with it
Key is well aware it could lose the election, it’s far to soon to tell if he’s “stuffed up” (and the country’s stuffed) , and if he succeeds you will have to live with it, and there’s a good chance of that outcome.
It’s refreshing to see someone taking a calculated risk and not just pandering to the demographic of the day.
Vote:January 29th, 2011 at 12:36 am
I don’t think the people on the left realise how popular this policy is.
Vote:January 29th, 2011 at 12:46 am
When I was paying my massive power bill the other day, I stopped to remember the rail network, and specifically the midland line.
You see, after the line was sold to private interests it was run into the ground and was very nearly shut all together, but solid energy (a state owned enterprise) had to get that coal out to lyttleton so the tax payer had to front up with the cash.
Privatisation does not work in this country the same as it may in other countries.
I am astonished that people here are so stupid as to think that NZ is not unique and our requirements are completely different.
And for the record, Solid energy has had no problems in working with private enterprise on specific projects, Spring Creek mine is an example.
How the hell you guys can ignore the blindingly obvious is beyond me, it has to be ideology induced blindness at least as bad as anything the left has been afflicted with.
National is throwing away their political capital, big flip flop coming up or political suicide, it’s their choice I guess.
Vote:January 29th, 2011 at 1:16 am
Shunda. Dare I correct your history. The Midland line was declared in 1982 to be unprofitable, and enjoyed direct subsidies from the state for seven years, as the then State Coal Mines wanted to use a slurry pipeline to export coal directly from Westport instead of using rail. The NZRC negotiated a deal with Ministers and the newly formed Coal Corporation to commercially run the Midland line to undertake exports. This has been the case ever since. Solid Energy did nothing more than establish a long term contract with NZRC/NZ Rail/Tranzrail as it changed over the years. It was never run into the ground under private enterprise, in fact it had been gold plated for some years. Booz Allen Hamilton wrote in 1984 about the extent to which the rail network had been overmaintained to standards exceeding what was appropriate given levels of use, in the 1990s less maintenance was done because it was not needed, although some lines certainly warranted being run into the ground.
On Labour, it was more than happy to part privatise Air NZ to Qantas, its biggest competitor. Quite how it can oppose part privatisation now, but warmly support it then – even when it was going to severely damage consumers (and was rightly stopped by the Commerce Commission), is remarkable.
Vote:January 29th, 2011 at 7:42 am
The Government had better make a better job of “selling” this policy than they did of mining. The mining policy did not really matter as minerals are like money in the bank and you only get to sell them once. We can borrow money instead which is what we are doing. Partial privitisation can work as a policy and be potentially quite popular. So far the Government appears to have NO strategy to market the policy and have left the field to the Labour Party saying “this will be the asset sales election”.
Vote:January 29th, 2011 at 8:13 am
National will have been well aware of the likely Labour reaction to the asset sale proposal, I doubt they are panicking yet, more likely they are just ticking off the expected. It will be difficult for Labour to sustain their knee jerk noise all year – especially as National roll out other policy proposals.
Labour already have an image of negative reaction by slogan, that is being reinforced in large doses at the moment. The hair dye was as artificial as Goff’s enthusiasm fronting Labour’s pandering policies.
Vote:January 29th, 2011 at 10:24 am
Pete is right. You don’t start marketing 9 months out. You announce a direction, then sit back and listen. Let Labour stir it up get the press and find the sensitive areas. Then once it fuse down tweak it andvsell it. Meanwhile just keep feeding out the policies keeping Labour busy. Partial privatization is VERY easy sell to middle New Zealand come election time. Try this:
Labour sold the crown jewels cheaply we are keeping control and only selling 25% (I think it will be 40%)
we are selling only to New Zealanders
Under Labour billions were lost from retirement funds by finance companies failing and leaving a few select Labour supporting rich pricks with all the money (who knows what Hotchins et al vote, doesn’t matter as they got rich under labour). National want to ive those people a safe investment for their retirement (just look at the mix, all safe profitable and needed).
We gave ridden out the financial crisis and now need money to improve infrastructure, we can borrow more or partially sell some assets to raise cash for transmission gully, Waikato expressway, second crossing, pohio to wellsford, and any South Island ones.
It’s easy to explain that good roads generate economic benefit (and stop loved ones dying), it’s hard to justify borrowing billions more for them. Partial asset sales (releasing equity) from the public purse to reinvest is easy to sell especially when you tie it to retaining control and giving ordinary NZers something good to invest in for their retirement (win win win). Hell I will be buying shares to add to my retirement portfolio so is guess it’s already got them one vote they didn’t get at the last election.
Vote:January 29th, 2011 at 1:02 pm
And there i was thinking that NZ was one of the most privatised and corporate-dominated countries in the world. You would think that if NZ labour were so ideologically rigid, this situation would have changed in the 9 years in power.
But this isn’t about having a rational debate. This is about silly propaganda that anyone can see, if only they know the facts.
Vote:January 29th, 2011 at 1:16 pm
Indeed. Perhaps “they” will think some more when they realise that the NZ government is:
But apparently this is still not big enough for the NZ left.
Vote:January 29th, 2011 at 1:23 pm
@ Pete George
Point taken. Are you suggesting that DPF is taking his orders from National in the same way as the Standard take theirs from Labour
Vote:January 29th, 2011 at 1:29 pm
tom predator – that’s some nice cherry picking. In the international context it’s National that’s relatively more ideological than Labour. Even the Aussies are smart enough to know that the profit motive does not always mix with public good.
The kiwiblog right would try to convince us that we should let peados run our primary schools. The old fox in control of the hen-house analogy seems to go right over their heads.
Vote:January 29th, 2011 at 1:39 pm
Your derogatory comment doesn’t go unnoticed, but please tell me, what do you understand by “public good”?
Vote:January 29th, 2011 at 1:48 pm
lol – don’t be so PC Mansolo. The public good. Think prioritising equality of opportunity along with maximisation of efficiency. You have to strike a balance to be fair and equitable. Privatisation of essential industries doesn’t help us achieve either.
Vote:January 29th, 2011 at 1:49 pm
Brain-dead soundbite….
crashes into fact ….
… with the result that magic bullet changes tack to “cherry picking” and “peados” in schools.
Vote:January 29th, 2011 at 1:54 pm
Right. Sell the whole lot and let the market work it out and decide.
Vote:Easy.
January 29th, 2011 at 2:09 pm
Apparently Investment of
SOE
in % of total
investment
1978-1991
In NZ was 3.7%, by far the lowest available in the OECD – and things only got worse after 1991.
So – I am right. Tom Hunter looks like a noob (again) and National continues its propaganda offensive.
http://www.cesifo-group.de/portal/page/portal/DocBase_Content/ZS/ZS-CESifo_DICE_Report/zs-dice-2003/zs-dice-2003-3/dicereport3-03-research-reports-1.pdf
Vote:January 29th, 2011 at 2:16 pm
You might want to consider subsequent events. The Lao govt had to quickly place a limit on foreign ownership ( 10% ) in January this year, because of over-subscription by foreign companies. How long before the Lao politicians want more money and sell more?..
Vote:http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/361494,limits-foreign-ownership-shares.html
January 29th, 2011 at 2:41 pm
The whole article cited is about the comparative degrees of privatisation around the world in recent decades. In other words the amounts of money raised by governments when they privatised the SOE’s – not the amount they had invested in them as a % of GDP or in comparison to all the money invested in listed companies
Since the period in column 10 runs from 1978 to 1991 it covers only about three years when SOE’s were actually being privatised, starting in the late 1980′s. So naturally it’s only 3.7% of total investment, it would be higher for the 1990′s as the ball got rolling.
But even so – that’s merely the % of total investment in a given period – which is not the same thing as the proportion of assets and capital owned by the government in the economy. That’s less now than in the past, but still nowhere near the levels that would justify the claim that that NZ was one of the most privatised and corporate-dominated countries in the world., not to mention that the article itself lists many countries that privatised more than NZ did.
I take it as read that your qualifications do not include finance or economics
Vote:January 29th, 2011 at 2:58 pm
Yo Tom – keep those spindles weaving but I can see through the web you construct. Looks like a black-widow’s from here. What an odious and insidious black-hearted hollow man you’ve turned out to be.
A bit of advice – get a fucking soul before you die.
Vote:January 29th, 2011 at 3:10 pm
I think you mean feel your way through, since you appear to be both blind and deaf (I suggest you add being mute for the trifecta).
Hey, I’m a capitalist, so I’ll just buy one. Not yours though, it looks like one of those toys that come with the meal – cheap and shoddy with a big heart symbol on it and the words I care.
Vote:January 29th, 2011 at 7:34 pm
Human beings sell their assets all the time, silver and otherwise. That’s what Trademe is founded on. That’s how lots of us buy stuff. Imagine if nobody ever sold any of their “family silver”. What a weird world that would be.
Vote:February 5th, 2011 at 11:41 pm
I’m sure selling SOE power companies would also be more palatable to the NZ public if they were doing as Laos is and using that money to expand electrical capacity thus increasing the states asset base in total once those plants are built rather than as Key apparently appears to be planning to do here and sell them to pay off debt which has a lower interest rate than their annual profit.
Vote: