'Free' counselling

Advice for everybody (except Oswald who never stops) returning to work next week. Read it. After all, you are, in part, paying the salaries of these agony aunts.

Societal self-delusion

Apologies for the quality of this scan but enlarging the image will render it readable. It is an excerpt from a book published in 1977, Social Welfare and New Zealand Society. A series of contributions, this is from Family and Community, and written by A Webster, a (then) Senior Lecturer in Education, Massey and L Williams, a researcher/honorary probation worker.

It is, in a way, quite shocking, especially given the kind of policy they are criticising has developed substantially in the subsequent thirty years, as have the consequences;




And later in the same chapter;




And finally on what type of philosophy should inform policy;

Stupid statist 'solution'

Here's the problem;

A survey in November 2005 found that three out of four British companies actively discriminated against women of child-bearing age who applied for jobs. The report found a growing trend of rejecting women applicants because they might leave to have babies. Recent research suggests that more than a third of employers believe pregnancy is "an undue cost burden" and many pregnant women face pay cuts or hostile treatment on their return to work.

And here's the solution;

Every pregnant woman in Scotland will receive an employment "bill of rights" at her 12-week scan as part of a campaign to stamp out sex discrimination at work, The Scotsman has learned.

The scheme, to be introduced by the Equal Opportunities Commission Scotland early this year, is designed to bolster the rights of pregnant women across the country.

The document will provide a comprehensive guide to an employer's responsibilities, and includes a tear-off section for women to give to their bosses.

It explains how employers must conduct a risk assessment to protect the woman and her unborn baby while at work. She is also guarded against unfair treatment, including dismissal, connected with the pregnancy.

What's a bet the solution compounds the problem. Asinine stuff.

"Beyond the spin-doctoring democracy is at work"

That's the title of this column by Nicky Hager in today's DomPost;


Refusing to financially support Hager I haven't purchased and read his book but have a couple of responses to this.

First, it further serves to highlight the urgent need to find out exactly how Hager got the information on which his book is based. His story continues to strongly contradict National's.

Second, the people who write best about any subject are those passionate about it. I can only think of one writer I can't place politically, whose work I read with interest, Colin James. And even he is now under attack from the left.

'Independence' is actually a construct of Hager's as I pointed out in this letter published earlier in the DomPost ;

That Michael Bassett is such a frank, no-holds-barred writer means we know exactly what he thinks and where he stands. He has long championed the same causes as Don Brash; welfare reform, one law for all, a resolution to the treaty settlement process and free market economics. The man can hardly, then, be accused of some sort of deception because, as Nicky Hager puts it, he presents himself as "an independent writer and commentator". That is a construct of Mr Hager's invented to suit his purposes.

Finally, if Hager's claims about the source of his material are true, and if securing democracy is a goal worthy of theft and deceit, having achieved the end by now justifiable means, why don't those "decent" and "concerned" people reveal themselves?

Let's have gender before merit

If there is one thing I can't stand it's gender politics. National has a new champion of the cause, Jackie Blue. Here she is demanding an answer:

While my heartfelt congratulations goes to all those New Zealanders who received a New Year Honour, I’m personally disappointed that women were under represented says, National's Women's Affairs spokeswoman, Dr Jackie Blue.

"While women make up just over half of the population, a little over one third of the awards went to them. We need to know why this is the case."

Because, whoever compiles the list didn't sit down with a quota saying, give her an award over him for no other reason than we need to dish them out 50/50.

Perhaps this is how National plans to attract women voters from the left.

New Year activities

A Stuff Poll;

How did you spend your New Years?

A few quiet drinks with the family and friends (1152 votes, 40.2%)

Partying up large (319 votes, 11.1%)

In bed (1398 votes, 48.7%)

I started off doing the first early, to accommodate my parents who were off to do the second till late, and I ended up doing the third. No resolutions either. I enjoy my vices.

Digging 'dirt' on dancer

If I say I have sympathy for the subject of this witch hunt I suppose it will be misconstrued as supporting the Far Right. I DO NOT. I do however support people's right to freedom of belief and privacy. This high profile (probably naive) British ballerina has been 'outed' as a member of the British political party, the BNP. What if she was a member of the equally objectionable British Socialist Party? Who would have bothered to uncover that?

"As far as I'm concerned my conscience is clear. As for the journalist who spent months snooping around, he'd find more dirt under his fingernails than he'd ever find on me."

Which brings to mind Hager's book and how it was produced. Another case of immoral 'snooping' sanctioned by people who should know better.

(Note the membership fee to join the BNP - wow)

New Year message from Pita Sharples

According to Radio New Zealand,

Maori Party co-leader Pita Sharples has called 2006 "the year of murders" and says all New Zealanders have to turn things around next year.

He says there is too much tolerance of violence in New Zealand society and a tendency to blame other groups for the problem.

Just what is he saying here? As a New Zealander, with a piece of paper to prove it, I must give some thought to who I am not going to murder next year? And I should also stop relaying facts about where most of the violent crime comes from as that could be construed as a "tendency to blame other groups" instead of the obvious culprit - myself?

Did you have a reaction to this admonition?

Welfare Highlights 2006

To wrap for the year, here are a few of the government's welfare highlights;

- Labour convinces a majority of NZers (using their money) that welfare is for everyone - including Ipod and cell phone owners - as opposed to Micky Savage's vision of welfare meeting only the most basic needs

- the unemployment rate stays near the top of the OECD , but 1 in 8 homes has nobody employed

- sickness and invalid benefit numbers don't grow as fast but continue to grow

- the number of 16-19 year-old welfare-dependent single parents creeps up guaranteeing a permanent DPB caseload for decades to come

- the number of people on the DPB drops due to part-time workers moving to a higher welfare subsidy - the 'In Work' payment

- NZ gets its first 'Super Ministry' after MSD remerges with CYFS

- CYFS receives a record number of child abuse and neglect notifications

- The Canadian MSD Deputy Chief Executive finishes his two year stint without causing the government any embarrassment (think Paula Tyler and John Davey)

- The Minister, Benson-Pope, repeatedly shows ignorance of his portfolio and does cause embarrassment (but is a forgiven 'conscientious and hard-working' Minister)

- The Minister, Benson Pope, manages to evade parliamentary questions about how much the Kahui whanau was receiving in benefits and national anxiety about taxpayers being forced to fund murderer's lifestyles eventually recedes

- For a change, WINZ doesn't experience any high profile staff fraud but an Auckland electrician makes up for it big time

- the Maori Party starts their term slamming welfare but are soon asking for more, proving they are still a reliable coalition partner for Labour

- shifting welfare expenditure into the IRD jurisdiction cleverly disguises growing redistribution

- welfare spending reaches an all-time high and receives no criticism



Feel like celebrating?

Transmission resumes

Um. The mysterious ways of blogger.com Unable to publish anything since 25 December, I was just beginning to think I would throw it away. It's so liberating. If no output is required neither is input.

My bones and muscles are aching from the unusual amount of physical activity, the skip is almost full, the steep pathways up behind the house are once more navigable (note to myself worst gardening error ever - don't let a thorny rose go wild), my TAB account is looking very healthy thanks to their computer picking me a trifecta headed by the outsider of the field (note to myself - go and withdraw the winnings today thus avoiding any temptation to reinvest them), a jigsaw is completed (only 9 more to go - what a nightmare - a box of ten jigsaws), the Te Papa Egyptian Exhibition has been seen (and dismissed by son and me as 'crap' - daughter and dad disagreed) and the dog is bathed (what Christmas means to a dog - bugger - a bath)

test

Merry Xmas

...from the girlfriends

Being a snowman sucks

Which is it Ruth?

It's no surprise that a new report says actual child abuse is 3 to 5 times higher than the notification rate. The Christchurch Health and Development Study produced one paper which showed 4 percent of children had been physically abused by age 16.

The problem is simple. Too many people have children they can't or won't look after. Seems like a good idea at the time and not a difficult decision to make when the state is going to pay you to keep them.

I find it interesting that Ruth Dyson is now making noises about too much state interference being "unhelpful" and even "damaging, as families step back from their responsibilities and say 'that's the state's job.' "

Well, Ruth, it is left-wing ideology that got us into this mess. Do you believe in the almighty state or don't you?

There has always been a degree of child abuse but since we turned our backs on adoption and started paying completely inadequate mothers to keep their babies, established cases of abuse or neglect have increased fifty fold, at least.

It should have been me!

Fifth Columnist of the Year – Michael Bassett

In 'The Hollow Men' - a book filled with skull-duggery and political intrigue Fairfax's former supposedly independent columnist Michael Bassett certainly stands out. When the good Dr Bassett is not sticking the knife into then National leader Bill English whilst advising the man gunning for his job Dr Don Brash, he's off busily attempting to make life miserable for New Zealand's poorest citizens. According to Mr Hager's tome Dr Bassett added inflammatory phrases to Dr Brash's Orewa II speech regarding beneficiaries 'ripping off the system' and using 'stand-over tactics' to get benefits. For this Dr Bassett receives a special additional honour:

Louis 17th medal For Hatred of the Poor – Michael Bassett

Hey. That's not fair. I deserved that award. I mean, Michael might be more widely read them me but I blog everyday about the exploitation and failure of welfare!! I mean, I wasn't even invited to accept it on his behalf!

Look. I know people who are 'ripping off the system' and I am not going to describe them in any other terms. It doesn't follow that I hate them. If I did I would dob them in. Neither does it mean I have to approve of them abusing the system. Is that what Scoop wants from writers? Craven, chickenshit platitudes? PC politeness or worse - peddling the old Kiwi me-tooism - everybody does it mate, so what's the fuss?

What a pathetic attempt at a putdown. Whoever dreamt up this award deserves their own for mental mediocrity. Wake up.

....and the rest

Stuff reports from 1996 to 2005, total crime committed by youths remained static at about 31,000 recorded offences according to the report titled Conviction and Sentencing of Offenders in New Zealand.



The Stuff figure obviously omits 'child' crime, that committed by under 14 year-olds. Current youth and child offences number around 48,000 per year and that is only what the Police resolve (resolution rate is 44%)

(BTW. Any 'old' blogger not able to access their blog, use the 'new' blogger link. It has only taken me 24 hours to figure this out:-()

Bad legislation

The NZ Law Society has slammed the amendments to Sue Bradford's repeal of section 59 bill saying they create more uncertainty and appear to be a hasty political compromise.

Making the meth problem worse

The government's having a hard time solving the meth problem because the government helped create it.

So says Radley Balko of Reason in this piece from Fox News

(Some of the measures adopted in the US are also in place here.)

Too fat to father

China has imposed new restrictions on prospective foreign adopters. They can't be too old, too fat, too depressed or too ugly. (It's a shame Americans can't or are unable to adopt some of their own hapless babies).

Stretching it

Reading about the proposed ban on party pills on the front page of the DomPost I learn that they are used by one in five New Zealanders.

Oh really. That's over 800,000 people. The population aged 15-29 is only 813,618. Sure, there will be people older than that (and a few younger) using party pills but I figure the concentration of use will be in that age group.

Where did these figures come from? Let's see. Massey University researchers.

The survey consisted of a random national household sample of 2,010 people aged 13-45 years old collected using the Centre for Social and Health Outcomes Research and Evaluation (SHORE) and Whariki’s in-house computer assisted telephone interviewing (CATI) system.

Prevalence and patterns of use
One in five (20.3%; 18.4-22.3) of the sample had ever tried legal party pills, and one in seven (15.3%; 13.6-17.1) had used legal party pills in the preceding 12 months. Levels of last year use of legal party pills were highest among the 18-24 year old age range with 33.9% (25.3-43.6) of 18-19 year olds and 38.0% (31.3-45.2) of 20-24 year olds having used legal party pills in the preceding year.

So run that past me again. One in five surveyed 13-45 year-olds had tried party pills at some time, has become, one in five New Zealanders use party pills. Brilliant.

Fantastic....if you are looking for alarmist figures to persuade the gullible that they must be banned.

(Xmas just came right on time for the Mob.)