TVNZ says:

On Q + A this Sunday:

Guyon Espiner interviews Police & Corrections Minister Judith Collins about guns and prisons. Recent shootings have re-ignited the gun debate. Is it time to clamp down? And as our prison muster hits new heights, are National’s policies making our communities safer?

With unions and bosses at odds once again, Paul Holmes is joined by Council of Trade Unions General Secretary Helen Kelly and Employers & Manufacturers’ boss Alasdair Thompson. Will 90-day trials, union access and more sick notes create jobs and improve productivity or just create more tension in the workplace? How big could this fight get?

Dr Therese Arseneau is joined on the panel by ACT leader and cabinet minister Richard Prebble and Unite Union head Matt McCarten.

Q + A is broadcast live 9-10am Sunday on TV ONE and repeated at 9.10pm on Sunday nights and 10.10am and 2.10pm on Mondays on TVNZ 7.

(TVNZ 7 screens on Freeview Channel 7 and Sky TV Channel 97).

Prebble and McCarten could be an interesting mix on the panel.

We headed down to the Kowloon waterfront for dinner on Friday night.  Felix was booked up, but a local girl recommended Cucina, and we were not disappointed.

Cucina is on the sixth floor of the Marco Polo Hotel, and has a pretty good view. It is an unusual restaurant in that it has two separate kitchens – an Italian kitchen and a Chinese kitchen.

As we were in Asia, we went Chinese and in fact chose the Chinese set menu. This not only well priced, but was superb food ranging from a giant scallop, to baked crab to wonderful soup, over six courses. I thoroughly recommend it.

Quite a nice view at night. At 8 pm they have a light show, which is in all the tourist brochures. Not really anything that special though – a few of the buildings light up, and one of them has a green laser fire from its roof – but only once every couple of minutes.

Not sure what we will do today (Saturday). The flight leaves at 11 pm to Zurich, and check out is at midday. So hopefully find something to look at in the afternoon that involves air conditioning!

The Press reports:

A Government call on dropping the breath-alcohol limit for drivers will go down to the wire, with lobbyists fearing a “scandalous” backdown in a decision that could be announced as soon as Monday.

I don’t have any idea what the Government will do, but they always said that one option is to try and gain more NZ specific research into the impact of driving with a BAC between 0.05 and 0.08.

This is my preferred option. In the last year, only one driver aged over 25 who died in a car crash had a BAC between 0.05 and 0.08.

I’m not 100% against a law change, but I don’t think there is enough information to justify such a change.

But it is understood the proposal has met fierce resistance from some Cabinet ministers.

Good. This is a major change that could criminalise tens of thosuands of New Zealanders.

Within the next couple of weeks – possibly as early as Monday – ministers will have to agree on either lowering the breath-alcohol limit from 80mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood to 50mg, or to allowing police to breath test every driver involved in an accident. The breath tests would provide the “definitive” picture on the effect a lowering of the limit would have, Transport Minister Steven Joyce says.

So the lobbyists (inevitably all taxpayer funded) are against the Government gathering better quality research on the impact of any proposed change. Why? Are they scared that the results may not support their advocacy?

John Armstrong writes:

The left-wing activists who stormed the Sky City Hotel last Sunday in an inevitably futile attempt to force their way into the National Party conference should take a good hard look at themselves.

The noisy fracas with security guards inside Auckland’s Temple to Capitalism certainly got the activists what they wanted – top-of-the-bulletin coverage on that evening’s television news. But if they think such tactics are going to mobilise public opinion against the Government’s just-released package of workplace law reforms then they should think again.

Their actions were widely viewed within the Labour Party as unhelpful, though no one was saying so publicly.

Sue Bradford and John Minto charging a Police line just sends people into the opposite direction.

While others on the left have been quick to label National’s package as a “class war” being waged on the country’s workers, Labour has avoided using such over-the-top language.

When it comes to portraying National’s policy prescription, there is a danger of crying wolf. More so because much of the package is based on National’s 2008 election policy. That prescription pleasantly surprised some left-wing commentators for being so moderate and not a return to the Employment Contracts Act. They cannot now turn around and argue that the package released by Key last Sunday is designed to wage class war.

And many aspects will actually be welcomed by employees such as the ability to trade leave for pay.

Even the 90 day trial period will be popular with many employees I reckon. We’ve all seen new people hired at a workplace and within a week or two it is apparent they are not up to the job. It isn’t just the bosses, but the other employees, who often have to carry them until they finally leave.

Some of the many skyscrapers in Hong Kong.

This is my second visit to Hong Kong. The first one didn’t really count, as I just went drinking with Cactus. We have a two day stop-over here, so decided to do a bit of tourism.

A surprising number of people do not realise that Hong Kong is not just Hong Kong Island, but also a fair bit of territory on the mainland.

Also while the area has a very high population density, only 25% of the land is developed and 40% is effectively conservation land.

This is the entry to the Chuk Lam Sim Yuen monastery. We picked a good day to go out as it was only 27 degrees.

The monastery is famous for its three large golden Buddhas.

One of the four warriors protecting the Buddhas. His job is to distract you with his music.

I noticed the swastika on the Buddha. Their use of its predates the Nazis by around 1,000 years. It is also a mirror reverse of the Nazi one, to help distinguish it.

This one has four heads, originating from Thailand.

As I said, only 25% of Hong Kong is developed. Despite that they are the 4th most dense populations on Earth – with an average 6,300 people per square km. To compare NZ is 16 and Australia is 3.

This is a lookout from near the top of Tai Mo Shan. One can actually see a Chinese city from here.

An old martial arts training building in the old Shui Tau village. We did a “Hidden Oasis” half day tour which included a visit to the village, parts of which are 900 years old.

I loved this huge banyan tree which has actually swallowed up the remains of this old house.

A fellow tourist from Colombia shows how large the cavity in the tree roots is.

Some nice large limes growing in the village.

We then went off to the Kadoorie Farm & Botanic Garden. Mum snapped this photo of a couple of the bats.

A couple of boars sleeping happily.

This little critter literally strolled past us.  You can mingle with them easily.

Whale Oil relaxing after getting into a scrap with some journalists. Remember the old maxim, if you wrestle with pigs in mud, you just get really dirty and the pigs really enjoy it!

Off to dinner tonight, and hope to see the light show from the harbour.

The Dom Post reports:

A Carterton pensioner is facing jail time after stealing cash from a charitable organisation to feed Nigerian scammers.

David Patrick Mullany, 68, who was treasurer-secretary of the Wairarapa A&P Society, admits he siphoned money after being caught up in three Nigerian internet scams.

Mullany pleaded guilty in Masterton District Court yesterday to stealing $48,356 from the society over three years to pay people in London and Nigeria, believing he was in line to receive more than $46 million.

I’m really amazed that people still fall for such scams. Even if you have not heard of Nigerian scams specifically, how about the old maxim that if it is too good to be true, it isn’t.

The number of stupid/gullible people out there sometimes makes me wonder whether being a criminal fraudster isn’t a logical career choice 🙂

The NZ Herald editorial:

The way in which the National and Labour parties slapped down a welcome entrance by Don Brash into the vexed issue of superannuation did them absolutely no credit.

The Deputy Prime Minister, Bill English, and Labour’s deputy leader, Annette King, were guilty of burying their heads even further in the sand as they insisted, in effect, that there was no problem.

Both said there was no need to change either the qualifying age or payment levels of NZ Superannuation.

And they are both wrong. The changes don’t need to be made today, but they do need to be made by 2025 (in my opinion) and the earlier we do it, the easier the transition period is.

Now Dr Brash has offered a further alternative. He suggests, as have many others, that the age of entitlement should be raised from 65 to 67. But he would also allow people to retire earlier or later on different superannuation rates.

Under Dr Brash’s scheme, people who chose to take the pension early would be paid at a lower rate over the rest of their lifetimes compared to those who claimed it later.

This would not directly reduce the cost of NZ Superannuation – the amount paid out would be equivalent to drawing the pension at the age of eligibility – but it would encourage people to continue working longer, and to continue paying tax.

Don’s proposal has some interesting aspects to it.

As Maori have lower life expectancy than non-Maori, the option to retire earlier at 60 could be appealing to many Maori. If you are likely to be dead by 70, would you rather than ten years on a pension at a lower rate or five years at a higher rate?

On the other hand, if you are in good health and reckon you will be okay until 80, you might well be happy to not claim superannuation until you are 70, if it means then a higher pension for the rest of your life.

There are challenges with Don’s proposal also. But it is a debate worth having.

Marcus Ganley is Phil Goff’s policy director. The Dom Post reports today that he is also standing for election in the Lambton Ward for Wellington City Council.

Lambton Ward is normally heavily contested, so no predictions yet from me as to who is likely to win through. STV makes it a bit harder to predict also.

What I did find interesting is that Ganley, if elected, will carry on as director of policy as a part-time staffer. I would have thought the role (especially in election year) was one needing full-time attention.

What some readers thought they saw!

What the headline actually was.

The Herald reports:

Campaign members had gone through submissions to the committee and found that 80 per cent recommended spending caps.

The current bill contains no limit on advertising spending for the referendum. Dr Grey suggested a cap of $350,000.

“We don’t think freedom of speech is about allowing everyone freedom to spend on advertising and to spend freely on advertising.”

Challenged on how a spending cap could be administered, she said it would be best for it to apply to campaigning for each option: Mixed-Member Proportional, First Past the Post, Preferential Voting, Single Transferable Vote and Supplementary Member.

She conceded it would be much harder to have a cap of $350,000 per group or individual, as a group could simply splinter into smaller groups if it wanted to spend more.

A spending cap on each option would be a horrendous breach of the right of freedom to speech.

Let us say you wish to spend $500 in your local newspaper promoting STV. But alas the “Campaign for STV” groups has already spent $350,000 on promoting STV. That means that even though you have nothing to do with that group, their spending means you are banned from being able to spend any money promoting your views.

If you go the other option, of a spending cap per group – then it is trivial to get around it through said splintering.

I wish people would devote more energy to the pros and cons of the various options, that the spending cap debate. As it happens, I suspect there will be very little spent by any third party as the Internet will be a major source of information and debate this time around – unlike in 1993 when you had to spend lots of money to get your view heard.

The Herald reports:

A homestay host wants the Education Ministry to issue guidelines on sexual matters after catching his 45-year-old wife having sex with a teenage foreign student the couple were hosting.

The North Shore man – who did not want to be named – said he had contacted police after his wife’s encounter with the 19-year-old South American, but was told they were powerless to help as the student was legally an adult.

Ummm, I think he need guidelines for his wife, not for the homestay students!

I mean one could tell homestay students that it is a bad idea to have sex with the wife of the host you are staying with. But I figured he knew that.

The man said he had faced issues in the past, where international students he hosted sneaked friends into the house late at night for sex.

“We really need to know what we can do in such situations, and I’ve suggested they add it to their pastoral care code. Is this something international students should be allowed to get away with?”

Well if you don’t let them smuggle their friends in for sex, then they end up having sex with your wife, so personally I’d let them bring home friends.

The Herald reports:

An embarrassing leak to Australian media of a high-level New Zealand diplomatic cable has jeopardised future discussions between the two countries, Labour leader Phil Goff says.

The Government is investigating how the report, which details the takeover of the Australian prime ministership by Julia Gillard, fell into the hands of the Australian newspaper, which published parts of it yesterday.

Yeah this is almost as bad as that leak, where notes of confidential discussions with US Senators was leaked – jeopardising MFAT being allowed to sit in on any future discussions.

Now who leaked those again? Oh, yes, a Mt P Goff.

Mr Goff, a former Foreign Minister, called it a serious breach of protocol that undermined the integrity and credibility of the foreign service.

“It’s extraordinary that a confidential diplomatic cable could have found its way into the hands of the news media, and that could be potentially damaging to the relationship between New Zealand and Australia.

“Any confidential briefing likely to be given to New Zealand diplomats in Canberra is now likely to be withheld.”

Maybe the diplomats thought they were following the lead of that other P Goff?

Incidentally I agree it is a bad thing that confidential memo got leaked.

Here’s a nice shot taken low, of a crocodile swimming towards me

Clicking on the image will bring up a larger version.

This animal was about 3 metres long and the photo was taken on the Mary River.
I liked this shot for the relatively light colouring of the scales, and the reflective effect in the water.

The Nation TV3 Saturday 11am, Sunday 8am

Don Brash on why we should be panicking about our looming pension crisis

The growing presence and influence of ethnic media

All Whites coach Ricki Herbert on building a winning team

A performance from Stephen Sondheim’s musical, The Assassins

Panel:  Chris Trotter and Noelle McCarthy

Blogger: Scott Yorke from Imperatorfish

Good to see a focus on the unsustainability of superannuation.

UPDATE: The Nation has also announced that Sean Plunket has been hired as the new host.  This is a significant coup.

The Press reports:

North Canterbury farmer Mark Stafford Feary has been fined $20,000 after being found guilty of threatening to kill the Prime Minister.

Judge Raoul Neave said he was not sending Feary to prison because he had “no intention of making a martyr of him”.

Feary, who calls himself  All Means All, had threatened to go on a hunger strike if he was jailed.

The 53-year-old was found guilty in June of 14 charges of threatening to kill or cause grievous bodily harm to the Prime Minister and government officials.

It followed a long-running battle with officials over a 1780-hectare Mt Oxford farm that has been in his family since the 1920s.

His threats included a fax sent in February last year to Key saying “it’s killing time” and threatening letters sent by post to Wellington between September and December 2008.

Feary told the jury his  family, including two teenage children, knew that if sent  to jail he would not eat “the corrupt government’s food and I will not drink the corrupt government’s water”.

Does he also refuse to drive on the corrupt Government’s roads?

During its deliberations, the jury had returned  to court to ask a question about Feary’s state of mind. The judge told them there was no doubt about his fitness to plead, and he did not fall foul of the Criminal Procedures (Mentally Impaired Persons) Act provisions.

In others words, not nuts enough.

The Herald reports:

A Wellington landlord incensed by a meter reader who defecated in a bag and left it on his apartment doorstep has had his claim for compensation knocked back from $200,000 to $800.

$200,000 was always rather optimistic. You don’t get that much for losing a limb, so you certainly won’t get it because a bag of crap is left on your doorstep.

Genesis Energy said the meter reader was caught short while at the apartment and could not access the toilet, so “with a lack of judgment” used a supermarket bag and “unfortunately” left it behind.

Unfortunate is an under-statement.

The company apologised to the female tenant who found the unwanted parcel when she returned home and described the incident as “very serious and regrettable”.

She accepted the apology and a gift and sought no further action.

However apartment owner Errol Anderson, who lives in Australia, pursued the matter and lodged a claim with Genesis for $130,000 compensation.

Ha – he didn’t even have to smell the crap.

Genesis public affairs manager Richard Gordon said when this was not accepted by Genesis, Mr Anderson increased his claim to $150,000 and then, days later, to $200,000.

God loves a trier.

What a great neighbour!

A couple of months ago a newspaper quoted a concerned parent who was unhappy with national standards. They were in fact an NZEI employee.

Now earlier this month, we had another concerned parent attack national standards. A Steve O’Connor in the ODT.

Now I may be wrong, but I reckon he is the same Steve O’Connor who is on Grassroots Labour. Nothing wrong with that, but when you write op eds attacking the Government, you and the newspaper should disclose political affiliations.

I also guess Mr O’Connor, is the same one who worked for Clare Curran.

It makes you wonder how many of these concerned parents and citizens always quoted by the media, have strong party affiliations and involvement they they never disclose.

The Press reports:

A Christchurch man has claimed he was sacked from a coaching job at a Christchurch Christian school because he is gay.

The 28-year-old man told The Star newspaper he was employed at Middleton Grange School to coach one of the girls’ netball teams in February.

However, he was later told by the principal that the school’s Board of Trustees has decided his homosexuality was a problem and he could not continue in the position.

The newspaper reports today that the decision was made based on Christian beliefs that homosexuality is a sin.

It is understood the school has been ordered to apologise to the 28-year-old and pay him compensation. He now has a coaching job at another school.

How strange. If I was on a school board I would much rather have a young gay man coaching a women’s netball team, than a young heterosexual man, who will probably end up sleeping with one ore more of the students!

Have just flown out of Auckland for a family holiday with my olds. Most of the time overseas will be in Austria, where my father was born. I’ve never been there, so am really looking forward to seeing where he grew up, plus all the other great sights around Vienna.

We have a couple of days in Hong Kong as a stop over, and then a week in London catching up with friends. After that it is Vienna and Salzburg for a couple of weeks, and then back home via a stop over in Japan.

I’ve been using foursquare for a week or two. It’s a fun location based service for your mobile, which detects where you are, offers you specials on businesses nearby, and allows you to share your location with your friends.

I’ve only been allowing a couple of dozen people to receive location updates from me, as not even I want 1,000 people able to trace my every step in Wellington.

But while I am overseas, I figure it will be quite fun to have the location updates appear on my Facebook and Twitter feeds, so friends can see where I am. So I’m turning on the synchronisation during the time away. I live in an apartment block with 80 nosy neighbours (and my main item of value – the laptop – travels with me) so am comfortable with the security issues.

But will definitely be turning it off when I get home again.

As usual, blogging frequency and times may be affected. The guest posters may pop up a bit also.

Saint Jim announces:

MP for Wigram and Progressive Party leader, Jim Anderton, today announced he is handing over the role of opposition agriculture spokesperson.

“I want to give someone else the opportunity to get up to speed before next year’s election, given that I won’t be standing again,” Jim Anderton said.

“In my time remaining as an MP, I have decided to prioritise workable models for affordable dental treatment and the reform of alcohol legislation.”

Wow that sounds like a 40 hour a week job. Not.

Jim is in fact prioritising his taxpayer funded campaign to become Mayor of Christchurch, so he can then become a triple dipper.

Labour have appointed Damien O’Connor as their agriculture spokesperson. This is well overdue. Many in the primary production sector had wondered why on earth Labour would not have a spokesperson on agriculture and leave it all to Jim Anderton who has no influence on Labour party policy.