Top Scoop Stories – 5 December 2008 News Summary
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LEAD STORY------------
Dec. 5 – David Kirk resigned as chief executive of Faifax Media and will leave today, the company said in a statement.
It gave no explanation for the sudden move. Brian McCarthy, who had been Kirk’s deputy, steps up as acting CEO pending a
board meeting on Dec. 10. More »[1]
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NZ POLITICS------------
Change is in the air at Royal New Zealand Air Force Base Ohakea as Number 3 Squadron comes under new command. More »[1]
ALSO:
Lindsay Shelton writes: Less than a week after releasing 79 pages of documents about proposed variations to the District Plan, the Wellington
City Council has approved the changes. More »[1]
Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union national secretary Andrew Little has condemned Business New Zealand's
employment briefing to the incoming government as "anti freedom". More »[1]
A daunting emotional journey awaits new MPs when the 49th New Zealand parliament sits for the first time next week,
according to a Massey researcher. More »[1]
ALSO:
[10] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0812/S00091.htm [10]
[11] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0812/S00103.htm [11]
[12] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0812/S00109.htm [12]
[13] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0812/S00119.htm [13]
[14] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/AK0812/S00092.htm [14]
[20] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0812/S00038.htm [20]
[21] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0812/S00117.htm [21]
[22] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0812/S00055.htm [22]
[24] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0812/S00064.htm [24]
[25] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0812/S00041.htm [25]
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BUSINESS SCIENCE & TECH------------
New Zealand’s government budget for the current fiscal year will provide fiscal stimulus equivalent to 2.8% of gross
domestic product and the government needs to avoid further fueling the economy, according to the Treasury. More »[1]
ALSO:
Hector's dolphins are being killed and mutilated, according to evidence from the Department of Conservation. More »[1]
The Commerce Commission has today released guidelines to businesses that make environmental, or ‘green’, claims in their
marketing. The guidelines are intended to educate businesses about avoiding making misleading or untrue claims. More »[1]
The recent axing of TVNZ’s current affairs programme Agenda has been only the last step in a long decline….The wider
picture is how TVNZ can possibly survive as a public broadcaster. The social charter money has been scrapped. More »[1]
Google today announces the launch of Street View on Google Maps in New Zealand: maps.google.co.nz/streetview. Street
View is a new feature for Google Maps that lets internet users view and navigate 360 degree street-level imagery of New
Zealand's cities, towns, regions and remote areas. More »[1]
ALSO:
The exhibit will include the colossal squid, dramatically lit in its custom-built tank, displays of various body parts
including the orange-sized lens of the eye, models of its beak and tentacle swivel hooks that can be touched and
rotated, as well as a thrilling theatre featurette immersing visitors in the world of the colossal squid in stereoscopic
3D animation! More »[1]
ALSO:
The longer-term outlook is positive for New Zealand’s livestock producers, who are wellplaced to over-come short-term
challenges and weather the storm created by the current financial crisis, audiences in rural New Zealand were told last
week. More »[1]
New Zealand’s most well-known consumer rights advocate David Russell is joining the council of New Zealand’s first
independent telecommunication dispute resolution service, Telecommunication Dispute Resolution (TDR). More »[1]
ALSO:
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COMMENT------------
They just don’t give up, do they? Obama’s win, thumping, at least by American standards, is insufficient to placate
those who question its legitimacy. Yes, so it went to a man who has a name of Hussein (ask Fox News, a network
mesmerized by ... More »[1]
Women of childbearing years represent the most lucrative market for the makers of psychiatric drugs. The knowledge that
infants were being born with birth defects and suffering a withdrawal syndrome when these drugs were used during
pregnancy was... More »[1]
Indeed the historic victory of President-elect Obama has created profound prospect of hope and change that swept through
America. However, for millions across the world who have witnessed devastation, insecurity and chaos resulting from an
imprudent ... More »[1]
ALSO:
In an age when most everyone is bombarded with too much information, noise, and violence, the sound of a gently flowing
stream is not just music to the ears -- it is a healing balm for the heart and soul. More »[1]
Everyone knows that Hollywood is a den of godless, Obama –loving pinko liberals. That being so, New Zealand’s
transformation, post Rings, into a minor hub of Christian movie making seems like…well, a minor miracle. In my
experience... More »[1]
For years it has been more than clear the course US and European Union policy would take towards the progressive
governments of Latin America. Even in December 2006 it was possible to write ''One can only hope Latin America's Spring
endures longer ... More »[1]
Frederick Engels, in an 1875 letter, stated: “The whole Darwinian teaching of the struggle for existence is simply a
transference from society to living nature of Hobbes’s doctrine of bellum omnium contra omnes... More »[1]
Some Obama supporters are wringing their hands over the selection of Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State. Hillary was,
after all, a consistent supporter of the disastrous wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and much more. But Barack Obama's
selection of Reaganite ... More »[1]
One of the top challenges facing Barack Obama’s Justice Department will be striking a balance between fighting terrorism
and protecting individual civil liberties, says a recent memo from the department’s inspector general. More »[1]
Barack Obama is President-Elect, the Democrats have significantly increased their majorities in Congress, the Supreme
Court drift to the right has been halted and may soon be reversed, and the Republican Party is in disgrace and disarray. More »[1]
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LIFESTYLE------------
Fashionistas of the nation trembled with anticipation as New Zealand’s hottest up-and-coming fashion exporter was
announced at a glittering fashion awards show this evening. More »[1]
Last night saw the global launch of the Jaquie Brown Diaries Series One DVD at the Nineteen42, 42BELOW’s brand space on
the edge of Auckland’s fantastic Britomart development. More »[1]
NZ On Air has announced an investment of more than $3 million in six TV comedy programmes, to screen on TV2, TV3 and C4
in 2009. NZ On Air chief executive Jane Wrightson said the funding included a new series of the acclaimed The Jaquie
Brown Diaries for TV3. More »[1]
Santa’s Elves have been busy in Auckland stitching together more than 37,000 magical lights to carry wishes to Santa
this Christmas. The Telecom Tree - a seven-storey high light structure - will shine in Auckland’s Victoria Park this
December and bring magic to the 15 year tradition of Santa Line. More »[1]
ALSO:
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WORLD------------
ALSO:
Representatives of around 100 countries gathered in Oslo, Norway today to sign an historic United Nations-sponsored
treaty formally renouncing the use of cluster bombs, a weapon that frequently kills innocent civilians and cripples
communities for decades ... More »[1]
Somalia’s population faces total destitution next year without more effective aid, a United Nations humanitarian
official cautioned today, as the many problems in the Horn of Africa country are exacerbated by extremely difficult
political and security ... More »[1]
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) today launched a campaign to raise
awareness of the humanitarian implications of climate change, calling for improved disaster preparedness and response
measures in countries ... More »[1]
Increased noises generated by larger numbers of ships, seismic surveys and use of new military sonars are imperiling
creatures such as whales and dolphins, who use sound to communicate and find food, experts said today at a United
Nations Environment ... More »[1]
ALSO:
A famous Rwandan singer and composer has been sentenced by a UN tribunal to 15 years in prison for inciting the murder
of Tutsis through his songs and speeches during the 1994 mass killings in the small African Great Lakes nation. More »[1]
ENDS