Scoop: Top Scoops + Just Politics

Wednesday, 27 October 2004, 4:55 pm
Article: Alastair Thompson

TODAY’S TOP SCOOPS
LEAD STORY: Govt Says OECD Report Marks Positive Trend
Govt. Releases First Official Report Acknowledging Peak Oil
MORE NEW ZEALAND HEADLINES:
Calls For Investigations Into Mass-Suffocation Of 84 Thai Protesters
INTERNATIONAL HEADLINES:
STORY OF THE WEEK: ACT's Letter Analyses Tamihere Situation

SCOOP COLUMNS:
The Latest Inside Oil From Molesworth & Featherston
David Chaston: A Monetary Policy Disconnect
Israelis Respond To Anti-Semitic Charges Against ALP
Hard News & More Is There!
Stateside: Where Rosalea Is Unimpressed With US Democracy
Paul Buchanan On The Faults Of Contemporary US Polling
William Rivers Pitt: Navigational Pointers For American Voters
Greg Palast On The Stealing Of Florida (Again)
American Media Lacks Critical Functionality (Again)
Ivan Eland On American Exceptionalism
Film Review: Bahman Ghobadi’s ''Turtles Can Fly"

OTHER NEWS (Just Politics)
Winston Urges Reserve Bank To Hold Fire On Interest Rates
NZers Working Too Hard Says ILO
Home Care Workers Getting A Bad Deal - Alexander
Brownlee Appeals For Needs Based Welfare Policies (Again)
Greymouth School Leading The Way In Assessment
Banning Smoking In Bars Just A Beginning
Eckhoff Jumps To Fed Farmers Defence On Access
Wellington Afterhours GP Closure Govt's Fault – National
Nick Smith Warns STV "Horror" To Remain Till 2007
English Discovers Secret Report On Teaching Crisis
Greens Welcome Drug Education Efforts
ACC Calls To Raise Vehicle Levy Opposed
Helen Clark Asked To Wade Into River Queen Row

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...TODAY'S PHOTO STORY...

http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PO0410/S00254.htm
Crew of Fishing Boat Located by Orion

LEAD STORY:
Govt Says OECD Report Marks Positive Trend

- The government has welcomed a report by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) that gives a vote of confidence to the Working for Families package of reforms. See... OECD: NZ on track with family-friendly policies [1] ALSO: - ACT - Maharey Must See OECD Report For What It Is [2] - Greens - OECD report a disgrace, says Bradford [3] - United Future - UF has solution to OECD problem [4]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00438.htm
[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00450.htm
[3] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00440.htm
[4] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00443.htm

Govt. Releases First Official Report Acknowledging Peak Oil

- A comprehensive discussion document is released today on the future of sustainable energy in New Zealand. See... Sustainable Energy discussion document released [1] and Pete Hodgson Op-Ed… Eyes on the prize: seeking sustainable energy [2] REACTION: - National - 'Feel-good report' won't answer energy woes [3] - Greens - Energy report: right direction but hurry up [4] - ACT - Disappointing Report Offers No Answers [5]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00448.htm
[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00446.htm
[3] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00454.htm
[4] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00451.htm
[5] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00459.htm

MORE NEW ZEALAND HEADLINES:

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PO0410/S00256.htm
[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PO0410/S00258.htm
[3] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PO0410/S00257.htm
[4] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/CU0410/S00199.htm
[5] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/CU0410/S00197.htm
[6] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/CU0410/S00195.htm

Calls For Investigations Into Mass-Suffocation Of 84 Thai Protesters

– BANGKOK, Thailand -- At least 84 people died, mostly from suffocation so severe their eyes bled, after being arrested and locked inside army trucks in Thailand's Muslim-majority south during clashes with security forces, officials said. See... Mass Suffocations In South Thailand Security Op. [1] and Thailand 78 Demonstrators Suffocate While Detained [2]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0410/S00302.htm
[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/WO0410/S00328.htm

INTERNATIONAL HEADLINES:

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/WO0410/S00343.htm
[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/WO0410/S00324.htm
[3] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/WO0410/S00342.htm
[4] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/WO0410/S00341.htm
[5] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/WO0410/S00336.htm
[6] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/WO0410/S00335.htm
[7] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/WO0410/S00334.htm
[8] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/WO0410/S00333.htm
[9] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/WO0410/S00332.htm

STORY OF THE WEEK: ACT's Letter Analyses Tamihere Situation

- The Letter wishes to unreservedly apologise to Hon John Tamihere for accusing him of taking a golden handshake. We now realise it is all a cultural misunderstanding and the money was koha. See... ACT's The Letter - Tuesday 26 Oct 2004 [1] FOR MUCH MORE SEE... STORY OF THE WEEK: John Tamihere (2) [2] & STORY OF THE WEEK: John Tamihere [3]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00457.htm
[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0410/S00310.htm
[3] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0410/S00235.htm

SCOOP COLUMNS:
The Latest Inside Oil From Molesworth & Featherston

- Labour’s lead grows in the exclusive rolling poll of polls. A new report on work-life balance will recommend cutting DPB. We summarise the current odds and State watchlist for the US Presidential election and we ask why the Reserve Bank is still signaling higher interest rates … all in this week’s exclusive intelligence update. See... Molesworth & Featherston – 26 October 2004 [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0410/S00300.htm

David Chaston: A Monetary Policy Disconnect

- On Thursday this week, Dr Alan Bollard will raise the OCR by 0.25% to 6.50% - so says every economist polled by the newswires. See... Is The RBNZ Impotent? Are Banks Undermining It? [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0410/S00293.htm

Israelis Respond To Anti-Semitic Charges Against ALP

- A compilation of the various responses to Barry Cohen's opinion piece in the Age "The Anti-Semitic Labor Party" . The first five letters were published in the Age. The rest are as yet unpublished. See... Responses To Ages' 'The Anti-Semitic Labor Party' [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0410/S00297.htm

Hard News & More Is There!

- Hope to be taking home a new iMac G5 before Christmas? Don't leave the shop without a Firewire cable - not if you're a current MacOS X user anyway. I uplifted my machine from Magnum Mac's first shipment of 17 (yes, being a journalist helps) on Friday ... See... Public Address 27/10/04 - Sweet And Sad [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0410/S00307.htm

Stateside: Where Rosalea Is Unimpressed With US Democracy

- Pardon my cynicism, but you get like that in the US once you realize what a crock this ''model democracy'' is. How convenient for diverting the focus of the election from Iraq and the economy is the sudden news of Justice Rehnquist's thyroid cancer. See... Stateside: What (Or Was) The Doctor Ordered? [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0410/S00304.htm

Paul Buchanan On The Faults Of Contemporary US Polling

- The worst mistake a political analyst can make is to offer predictions about future events. The study of politics is nowhere close to being an exact science, and in fact makes meteorology look downright precise. See... The Nonscientific Reality Behind US Election Polls [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0410/S00303.htm

William Rivers Pitt: Navigational Pointers For American Voters

- The Presidential election of 2004 is finally upon us. After a thousand days of fear, doubt, anger and set-jawed patriotism in the face of everything we as a nation have been forced to deal with, we are down to a single week in which to consider our place and position, a single week to decide where we go from here, a single week to remember where we have been. See... William Rivers Pitt: Promises to Keep [1] MORE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION COMMENTARY: - Mary Pitt - Pre-Emptive, Pie-Hole Policy Not An Option [2] - Suzan Mazur - Bush And The Mormons [3] - John Cory - I Need a President - Again [4] - Doug Giebel - The Religion Of George W. Bush [5]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0410/S00305.htm
[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0410/S00294.htm
[3] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0410/S00296.htm
[4] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0410/S00299.htm
[5] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0410/S00298.htm

Greg Palast On The Stealing Of Florida (Again)

- A secret document obtained from inside Bush campaign headquarters in Florida suggests a plan - possibly in violation of US law - to disrupt voting in the state's African-American voting districts, a BBC Newsnight investigation reveals. See... Greg Palast: BBC Reveals New Florida Vote Scandal [1] RELATED - John W. Dean: The Coming Post-Election Chaos [2] - William Rivers Pitt: Desperate Measures [3] See also... SCOOP FEATURE: A VERY AMERICAN COUP [4]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0410/S00308.htm
[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0410/S00280.htm
[3] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0410/S00237.htm
[4] - http://scoop.co.nz/mason/features/?s=usacoup

American Media Lacks Critical Functionality (Again)

- George W. Bush's new claims about Kerry ''flip-flopping'' on the war in Afghanistan quickly moved yesterday from the campaign trail to the nightly news. See... Fair.Org: Bush's Kerry Comments Go Unchecked [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0410/S00306.htm

Ivan Eland On American Exceptionalism

- Many Americans, like the citizens of dominant nations of the past, believe that their way of life is superior and should be shared with other peoples—often at gunpoint. Lately, this American exceptionalism has assumed even more pernicious forms. See... Ivan Eland: American Exceptionalism [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0410/S00301.htm

Film Review: Bahman Ghobadi’s ''Turtles Can Fly"

- The narrative focuses on the Kurdish children of Kanibo – a village on the border of northern Iraq and Turkey. It is March 2003, just before the US-led invasion of Iraq. Ghobadi shows the final scene, and then the entire film is about the chains of events which lead to the cliff-edge. Film Review and Analysis: Turtles Can Fly [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0410/S00295.htm

Winston Urges Reserve Bank To Hold Fire On Interest Rates

- Rt Hon Winston Peters is appealing to the Reserve Bank not to increase its interest rates this week. Mr Peters has said that the Reserve Bank’s continually rising interest rates are completely unnecessary and will strangle the economy. See... Rising Interest Rates Have Got To Stop [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00435.htm

NZers Working Too Hard Says ILO

- An International Labour Organisation (ILO) report out this week showing New Zealanders work the longest hours, and the OECD report on Babies and Bosses out yesterday, together show we still have some work to do on bringing work-life balance to New Zealanders, Progressive Deputy Leader Matt Robson said. See... Still more work to do on work-life balance [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00455.htm

Home Care Workers Getting A Bad Deal - Alexander

- Care workers looking after the nation's elderly both in their own homes and in institutions are getting a raw deal - and as a result the elderly themselves are suffering and will suffer more, United Future's Marc Alexander said today. See... All care, no responsibility and very little dosh [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00456.htm

Brownlee Appeals For Needs Based Welfare Policies (Again)

- "Maori who need Government help should get it, not because they are Maori but because they need it," says National Party Maori Affairs spokesman Gerry Brownlee. See... National says Maori who need help should get it [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00453.htm

Greymouth School Leading The Way In Assessment

- Karoro School students and teachers are leading the way in the use of a groundbreaking new assessment tool that gives parents in-depth information about students' progress, Education Minister Trevor Mallard said today. See... Karoro School, Greymouth leads the way [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00452.htm

Banning Smoking In Bars Just A Beginning

- As restaurants, bars and workplaces prepare to go smokefree on December 10, a major report's been released detailing further plans to tackle smoking harm in New Zealand. See... Clearing the smoke – a five year plan [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00449.htm

Eckhoff Jumps To Fed Farmers Defence On Access

- Rural Affairs Minister Jim Sutton's vitriolic attack on Federated Farmers, simply because of its opposition to Labour's land access proposals, is outrageous, and proves he no longer has empathy for the farming community he purports to represent, ACT New Zealand Rural Affairs Spokesman Gerry Eckhoff said today. See... Sutton's Federated Farmers Attack Outrageous [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00447.htm

Wellington Afterhours GP Closure Govt's Fault – National

- The closure of Wellington’s only after-hours clinic is a sign of things to come around the country as flaws in Labour’s Primary Health Organisations become apparent, says National’s Health spokeswoman, Judith Collins. See... Govt creates crisis in after-hours care [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00445.htm

Nick Smith Warns STV "Horror" To Remain Till 2007

- “Communities frustrated with the debacle over the counting of STV votes will be horrified to learn that Labour’s local electoral law requires them to keep the system in 2007,” says National’s Local Government spokesman, Nick Smith. See... Government locks councils into STV for 2007 [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00442.htm

English Discovers Secret Report On Teaching Crisis

- A secret report on the supervision of trainee teachers shows the Government has glossed over serious problems with the Teachers Council, says National’s Education spokesman, Bill English. See... Teacher training in crisis [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00441.htm

Greens Welcome Drug Education Efforts

- The launch of the school-based drug education scheme marks a significant turning point in efforts to reduce the harm caused by drug abuse, Green Party MP Nandor Tanczos said today. See... Greens hail new resource for school drug education [1] - United Future - Drug ed handbook shows Green influence waning [2] - Govt. - Schools to receive handbook on drug education [3]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00439.htm
[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00444.htm
[3] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00432.htm

ACC Calls To Raise Vehicle Levy Opposed

- ACT New Zealand ACC Spokesman Heather Roy today urged ACC and Labour to quit its highway robbery and leave motorists alone, in light of ACC's calls to increase the costs of annual vehicle licensing. See... ACC And Labour's Highway Robbery [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00437.htm

Helen Clark Asked To Wade Into River Queen Row

- The Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage, Helen Clark, needs to front up to taxpayers and reassure them that their investment in the film River Queen isn't about to be flushed down the river, National MP Georgina te Heuheu says. See... Minister must say if River Queen to fly or sink [1] . See also.. Govt Plays Roulette With Taxpayers' Money [2]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00434.htm
[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0410/S00427.htm

ENDS

© Scoop Media

Alastair Thompson

Scoop Publisher

Alastair Thompson is the co-founder of Scoop. He is of Scottish and Irish extraction and from Wellington, New Zealand. Alastair has 24 years experience in the media, at the Dominion, National Business Review, North & South magazine, Straight Furrow newspaper and online since 1997. He is the winner of several journalism awards for business and investigative work.

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