Daily Review 18/12/2018

Written By: notices and features - Date published: - 27 comments
Categories: Daily review

Daily review is also your post.

This provides Standardistas the opportunity to review events of the day.

The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy).

Don’t forget to be kind to each other …

27 comments on “Daily Review 18/12/2018”

Comment numbers have changed to permanent references. Older quoted numbers may no longer identify the same comment.

  1. 1

    “Multiple government departments have breached the State Services code of conduct according to an investigation into 131 departments and their use of external security consultants.”

    https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/378521/thompson-and-clark-spied-on-earthquake-victims-inquiry-finds

    Time for some people to lose their jobs.

    “The investigation also looked into Thompson and Clark’s reporting to government agencies on “issue motivated groups” which treated these groups as a security threat.

    Among the groups were Greenpeace, the Mana Movement and some iwi groups in Northland, the East Coast and Taranaki.”

    Yep always the same ones being targeted – shows the utter racism and incompetence of the individuals and teams hiring this firm.

      1. 1.1.1

        Yeah, Thomson and Clark are just like the Ministry of State Security that detained an estimated 250,000 East Germans as political prisoners and arrested, interrogated, beat, tortured and drugged countless thousands more deemed obstructive to the regime and it’s masters in Moscow.

        Idiot.

      1. 1.2.1

        yep Andrea is pretty clear

        Physically, sexually and psychologically abused in state care, two brothers sought legal redress and damages from the Government.

        Rather than take responsibility and show contrition, the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) and Crown Law hired private investigators to dig up dirt on witnesses.

        This is one of the most shocking findings of an inquiry into the use of external security consultants by government agencies, like Crown Law and MSD….

        … They eventually lost their claim – known as the White case – against MSD on a technicality. It had dragged on for more than seven years.

        MSD’s boss at the time was Peter Hughes. He is now head of the entire state service…

        …Thompson & Clark have been painted as the villains in this scandal. They will face a police investigation over the use of an unlicensed investigator against earthquake insurance claimants and likely will lose much of their business.

        But although they took advantage, Thompson & Clark aren’t responsible for public service culture and the undermining of democratic rights.

        That lies with Peter Hughes. For public confidence to be fully restored, the public service must demonstrate accountability and accept culpability, starting from the top down.

          2. 1.2.1.1.2

            Still needs to be investigated.

            Stepping down should not stop investigations into wrong doing nor charges if wrong doing is found.

  4. 4

    mark mitchell mp – just who is this dude

    He was in the New Zealand Police for thirteen years from 1989 to 2002.

    Mitchell worked for eight years as a private security contractor and spent time in Iraq, including the siege of the Italian-run An Nasiriyah compound in Southern Iraq by the Mahdi militia in 2004.[4][6]

    Mitchell voted against the Marriage (Definition of Marriage) Amendment Bill, a bill allowing same-sex couples to marry in New Zealand.[8]

    In 2014, Nicky Hager’s book Dirty Politics presented evidence which suggested that Mitchell had hired political strategist Simon Lusk during the National Party selection process for the Rodney electorate. Lusk appeared to have collaborated with blogger Cameron Slater to discredit Mitchell’s opponents, particularly Brent Robinson.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Mitchell_(politician)

    “During an appearance on the AM Show yesterday, Mitchell said that after a stint with the police, he headed “overseas, formed my own company, which I was very proud of. I became chairman and CEO of that. And then came home and wanted to get back into public service and then ran for parliament.” So just where was this “overseas”? And what was this company? Overseas was Iraq, and Mitchell’s company provided private military and security services. Mitchell’s period away from public service saw him build a multimillion-dollar business in a highly lucrative and globally competitive commodity – war.”

    https://thespinoff.co.nz/politics/21-02-2018/why-aspiring-national-leader-mark-mitchells-war-for-profit-past-matters/

    I am concerned about this member – I don’t like him or his attitudes or the things he has done.

    1. 4.1

      Telling text on Evening Checkpoint tonight after discussion about the Petition to review the driving punishment..
      “I signed the petition thinking it was an issue worth speaking up about. But then I found it was a Political plan from the National Party and Mark Mitchell. If I had known that I would never have signed it.” (Paraphased)

      And also the girl was not from a privileged background and was driving a mercedes with the owner beside her. The victim had gone through a red light on his bike. A bit scary that Mitchell can whip up such a storm on misinformation.

      And now the girl is facing death threats. (Of course it is terribly sad for the boy and his family.)

      1. 5.1.1

        pride goes before the fall. And while he has a lean and hungry look, Judith is far more experienced at weathering scandals and replying with her own backstabbing. As soon as he looks like a competitor, she’ll knobble him somehow. Maybe “someone” will invent a juicy war crime story and spread it on a blogsite of the tory faithful – impossible to verify, enough accuracy to make denial difficult…

  6. 6

    George Galloway notes.

    “Under Gaddafi, Libya’s debt was 3% of GDP, after Gaddafi, it’s over 40%, mostly owed to EU & US. Libya had free health care, free education, free housing and subsidies. All Libyans had Jobs and even imported workers from other parts of Africa. Now over 50% are jobless.”

    Now they have slavery.
    And extremist Jihadis.

    Thanks Clinton and Cameron.

    2. 6.2

      Thank you Ed. Pilger talks about the “Uncorking of Africa” and the mass migration flows into Europe once Gaddafi was ousted. Also Mark Curtis speaks in a recent interview about how the perpatrators of Europe’s recent terrorist attacks were all trained in ISIS camps in Libya post-Gaddafi. Truly awful.

    1. 7.1

      We’re seeing shit like this all over the world. Governments contracts out to the private sector in one way or another and then the business goes broke due to mismanagement and the government is left in hock.

      Governments should not be subject to market forces brought about by failing private business. It’s simply too friggen important. That’s why we had the MoW, Telecom, and state power and many other that got sold off or indirectly privatised and now we’re paying for it.

      Time for some serious re-nationalisation.

      1. 7.1.1

        +1000 long overdue. Shonky couldn’t tell enough porkys to flog off the generators knowing it’s a good deal for the investors and a bad one for the consumers and the state.

Comments are closed.