TODAY’S TOP SCOOPS
LEAD STORY: Scoop Report: Lyndon Hood Considers Whether Peters Needs A Lesson In Speech Writing
Police Swoop On Newmarket Bank After Kidnap Tip-Off
Govt Challenges Blumsky To Stand Up For Public Servants
New Zealand Prisons Overflow Into Police Cells
MORE NEW ZEALAND HEADLINES:
Groups Urge Bush Not to Offer Military Assistance to Indonesian President
MORE INTERNATIONAL HEADLINES:
SCOOP COLUMNS:
Who Was Responsible For Terrorist Attack On Casablanca May 17 2003?
Che Guevara Returns To Bolivia
John Gideon: ES Rigs The Voting Technology Market
When The First Ladies Speak Up
MORE SCOOP COMMENTARY:
OTHER NEWS (Just Politics)
Cullen Says Deferred Tax Cuts Vindicated By OECD
Peters Rolls Out The Tried n True Rhetoric
Govt Releases Working For Families Assistance Details
MORE PARLIAMENTARY HEADLINES:
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TODAY’S TOP SCOOPS------------
LEAD STORY:
Scoop Report: Lyndon Hood Considers Whether Peters Needs A Lesson In Speech Writing
I am something of novice reader of parliamentary press releases, but from time to time I see something that I am sure would interest even the most grizzled veteran. For example, I was intrigued to note that Winston Peters had written audience responses… What I feel it lacked was a proper sense of theatre. For one thing, even unprepared audiences are capable of a far larger repertoire of responses than the "Nothing!" and "Yes!" that Peters credits them with. See... Lyndon Hood: On The NZ First Chorus Line [1] ALSO: Peters Speech -“What Makes a Leader?” [2]
Police Swoop On Newmarket Bank After Kidnap Tip-Off
- Four Asian men are assisting Auckland City Police investigating an alleged kidnapping and extortion incident that
came to a head at about 9.25 this morning at a Newmarket bank. Two men say they were kidnapped in New Lynn late last
night and taken to a city hotel where they were held overnight. They say that this morning they were taken in separate
vehicles to two separate banks - a National Bank in Newmarket and an ASB in Otahuhu - and forced to withdraw money.
See... Newmarket bank scene of alleged extortion [1]
Govt Challenges Blumsky To Stand Up For Public Servants
- Wellington Central Labour MP Marian Hobbs has again challenged National Party candidate Mark Blumsky to state where
he stands on his party's plans to slash jobs in the public service. "The people of Wellington Central have a right to
know," Marian Hobbs said. "National has said there are too many ‘useless bureaucrats’. That is an insult to hard working
and dedicated public servants, who loyally serve the government of the day, whoever they are. As MP for Wellington
Central I am proud of the work that public servants are doing." See... Hobbs challenges Blumsky to back public servants [1]
New Zealand Prisons Overflow Into Police Cells
The numbers of prisoners held in New Zealand prisons has exceeded the number of prison beds available. Department of
Corrections Chief Executive Barry Matthews expects the crisis to continue until September-October. He said this morning
this situation places pressure on prisons and Police cells. “We have been working closely with Police and the Ministry
of Justice to manage the forecast increase in prisoner numbers, and we are grateful for their cooperation,” says Mr
Matthews. See... Prisons Overloaded With More Prisoners Than Beds [1]
MORE NEW ZEALAND HEADLINES:
Illegal Ephedrine The Culprit In Drug Death [1] Operation Waiheke Officially Stood Down. [2] Vodafone NZ Heads For 2 Million Customer Mark [3] School of Dance Joins French Polynesia Celebration [4] Dave Dobbyn To Tour NZ's Heartland Towns [5]
Groups Urge Bush Not to Offer Military Assistance to Indonesian President
- May 24 - A wide range of U.S. organizations today urged President Bush not to offer military assistance to Indonesia
when he meets President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono tomorrow. The groups further called on Bush to raise concerns about
ongoing human rights violations and the failure to bring to justice members of Indonesia's security forces responsible
for human rights violations in Timor-Leste and Indonesia. See... Groups Urge Bush Not to Support Indonesia Military [1]
MORE INTERNATIONAL HEADLINES:
Australia's Immigration minister Vanstone Keeps Baby in Detention [1] UN Remains Concerned over Uzbek Refugees Staying in Kyrgyzstan [2] New Website Tracks Pledges for Tsunami Relief [3] Kalahari Bushmen Case: Witness Exposes Botswana [4] Groups Call For End Of Pacific Trade Negotiations [5]
SCOOP COLUMNS:
Who Was Responsible For Terrorist Attack On Casablanca May 17 2003?
- Two years ago, bombings blasted Casablanca killing 45 people, including the 12 assailants. The targets included a
hotel, two restaurants, and a cemetery. Tarek Cherkaoui examines the terror attack and considers who could have carried
out this operation. See... Sirocco in the Kingdom of Morocco [1]
Che Guevara Returns To Bolivia
- In 1967, Che Guevara died at the hands of CIA-backed Bolivian soldiers while attempting to lead a guerrilla struggle
in Bolivia. In the small town where his body was uncovered 30 years later, graffiti is scrawled declaring: “Che: Alive
as they never wanted you to be.” See... Federico Fuentes: New Uprising In Bolivia [1] MORE: Narconews - A Time of War in Bolivia [2] Narconews - Narconews: A Fast, Dramatic Day in La Paz [3]
John Gideon: ES Rigs The Voting Technology Market
- Refusing to demo its product to the largest market in the United States, reducing the commission paid to salespeople
who sell the product, minimizing publicity about the product's successes, increasing the product price as the size of
the contract increases are these marketing techniques designed to take advantage of a business bonanza or are they
evidence that ES is trying to decide where and whether Americans will be voting on paper? See... Does ES Really Want To Sell Automark Machines? [1]
When The First Ladies Speak Up
- "In the U.S., if there's a terrible report, people don't riot and kill other people. And you can't excuse what they
did because of the mistake - you know, you can't blame it all on Newsweek," said Laura Bush at the start of her trip to
prop up the world's sagging opinion of America.What can you say about so uninformed a statement? Could it just be
dishonest? We all know the Newsweek story was not a rumor. See... John Chuckman: It Runs In The Family [1]
MORE SCOOP COMMENTARY:
Russell Brown - Public Address 25/05/05 - Foreign Kool [1] Ernest Partridge - What a Friend We Have in Jesus! [2] William Rivers Pitt - Take the Long Way Home [3] Marjorie Cohn - Marjorie Cohn: The Vietnam War is Over [4] Ivan Eland - The Harvest of Messianic Foreign Policy [5] Kamala Sarup - Kamala Sarup: Peace Process Needed in Nepal [6]
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OTHER NEWS (JUST POLITICS)------------
Cullen Says Deferred Tax Cuts Vindicated By OECD
- Finance Minister Michael Cullen has welcomed the latest OECD Economic Outlook on the New Zealand economy saying it
brought a “refreshing dose of reality” into the tax debate. “The OECD could not be clearer. Any additional fiscal
stimulus beyond that already planned could put the projected soft landing at risk and would need to be offset by higher
interest rates in order to bring the economy back onto a sustainable growth path. See... OECD could not be clearer [1] ALSO: Nats - OECD report confirms rampant Labour spending [2] Brash - The Budget and Fiscal Irresponsibility [3] Brash - Labour is irresponsible and out of touch [4] Govt -Rich from Brash [5] ACT - OECD points finger at Cullen as inflation culprit [6]
Peters Rolls Out The Tried n True Rhetoric
- Leadership is the missing factor in this country and leadership failure has unfortunately cancelled out all our other
advantages such as our productive land and sea and our ingenious people. You may have seen a story in yesterday’s New
Zealand Herald which illustrates both my point about this country’s lack of leadership, and my concern about the
standard of journalism. See... Peters Speech: “What Makes a Leader?” [1]
Govt Releases Working For Families Assistance Details
Around 200,000 families are already receiving extra help as a result of the 1 April Working for Families increases in
family income assistance, Social Development and Employment Minister Steve Maharey said. See... Working for Families uptake figures released [1]
MORE PARLIAMENTARY HEADLINES:
Govt - Cullen: Opening Address to NZ Fixed Income Forum [1] Govt - Competition to design homes of the future launched [2] Brash - Don Brash Writes No. 59, 25 May 2005 [3] Nats - Labour Govt overrides $200 million commission [4] ACT - Labour loses Control of Health [5] ACT - Maharey's Working for Families spin [6] Greens - Do you take your tea with human rights? [7] Greens - Greens offer brighter thinking on energy [8] United - Nandor should welcome parliamentary scrutiny [9]
ENDS