An idea for Dr Cullen

Given he is buying not only Toll Rail's business and trains, but also the monopoly of track usage that the government let Toll keep when it bought the tracks, the report in the Dominion Post of a private company (Manning Group) willing (apparently) to invest in running new trains on the Wellington-Auckland line is promising.

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It shows that, perhaps, the right approach would be to sell track access to whoever is willing to pay to run trains, it may be on an exclusive franchise arrangement. In other words, private companies paying to use the otherwise worthless tracks. It does mean Dr. Cullen sharing his train set with others though. Now I don't think the Manning Group's idea makes good business sense at all, I can think of better ways to invest money that in a transport mode that takes 9 hours, when three companies fly you in an hour, but if it is their money and their track access isn't subsidised AND it stops Dr. Cullen paying for new trains to replace the Overlander, bring it on! I'm convinced that entrepreneurs can do better than the state.

The dangers of collective thinking

The Dominion Post reports on a study from Massey University that claims that migrants from the Pacific Islands are a drain on the economy. It makes a number of claims such as:

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- Pacific Islanders are more likely to be unemployed;

- Pacific Islanders are less likely to start businesses and be self employed;

- Pacific Islanders have proportionately higher rates of prosecutions and convictions;

- Pacific Islanders are more likely to be victims of violent crime;

- Pacific Islanders are more likely to need welfare including housing subsidies;

- Pacific Islanders on average perform poorly at education.

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The author Dr. Greg Clydesdale also suggest that "because of high fertility and current immigration levels, New Zealand will have a significant population that can contribute little to economic growth".

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Now such a study is probably meant to indicate there are problems, somewhat cultural around crime, business and education, that Pacific Island communities ought to address if they wish to perform better. This is not something the state can do, and it would be wise for Pacific Island community leaders to listen and consider what value this study may bring. Greater belief in education, confidence to establish businesses and a rejection of welfarism could do a world of good, and I am sure quite a few Pacific Islanders already do that.

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However, it will be jumped upon by collectivists of the left and right to condemn and throw blame, when in fact it ignores one simple point - many other New Zealanders are criminals, unemployed, lazy, poorly educated and "contribute little to economic growth", and many Pacific Islanders work hard, and live quiet lives not bothering other people.

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Collectivists on the left will blame "society" or "government" for not doing enough for Pacific Islanders, it will claim some don't understand criminal law, some don't get enough welfare or help from the state. The Labour Party sits nicely in that category. Some on the left may call the study racist, dismiss that Pacific Islanders are to blame for their fate and say it is up to everyone else to address it - in other words, Pacific Islanders are on average poorer and committing crimes because they have been failed by others.

Collectivists on the right will say migrants are a drain, there should be less of them and they are "not like us" and we shouldn't "let them take our jobs and money". This may well be Winston Peters and NZ First. Interesting that he keeps Labour in power too.

What I say is simple. Pacific Islanders should be seen as welcome, as are other migrants. However, they are responsible for abiding by crminal laws in New Zealand, and one of the first reforms of the welfare state should be to deny new migrants access to subsidised housing or welfare. Migrants should not come to New Zealand expecting to live off the state.

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You see it doesn't MATTER if Pacific Islanders or anyone doesn't "contribute to economic growth" as long as they don't live off of the state. They don't exist to contribute to ANYTHING, other than their own happiness, and as long as they don't expect everyone else to be forced to pay for them, then it shouldn't be anyone else's business.

Dr Cullen thinks it's inflationary if you spend your money but not him

According to the NZ Herald Dr Cullen continues to trot out the bizarre belief that a tax cut could be inflationary and reckless, but HIM spending YOUR money can't be. Sorry?

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So buying a railway business at a price well beyond its market price isn't inflationary? Oh no, of course not - given the money goes to an Australian company.

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Dr Cullen, the money you spend wasn't earnt by you, wasn't created by your effort. A majority of New Zealanders want some of it back, that is why it is highly likely you wont be Finance Minister at the end of the year. The big question is by how much will the Nats help voters out.

Advance auction of stolen goods

It's up to virtually NZ$4 billion from Labour and NZ$1.6 billion from National so far according to the NZ Herald, and keep counting.

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That's YOUR money they are promising to spend, to bribe you for your vote. Of course, odds are you wont benefit from much of it, but a few of you will benefit a lot.

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That's what the election is primarily about, Dr Cullen/Helen Clark and John Key/Bill English trying to convince you that they can buy more of what they think you want, whilst planning to pilfer it from your back pocket in the first place. Ask yourself why those who benefit from government spending SHOULDN'T pay for these things themselves and if they couldn't afford it, what if they got some of their taxes back? If then they wont pay, then maybe they don't want it that much?

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Now there is the hope they both will have an auction of giving you your money back, but think how much more you could get back if they weren't auctioning the spending too.

Using Koran as target practice

This widely reported story raises some simple points:
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1. It's a book, those who get upset about it happily ban and burn books themselves.
2. Notwithstanding that, it was not a clever thing to do in a predominantly Muslim country.
3. However, it's telling how upset so many Muslims get about this, but don't get agitated about honour killings, rape victims being executed, sentencing teenagers to death for having consensual sex, or death for adultery. Yes, the priorities of far too many Muslims are - book first, lives second (sorry I mean female lives third).
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Oh and if anyone wonders how i'd feel if a copy of The Fountainhead was used as target practice? Well if it was by a US soldier, I'd say he was an idiot, but it's his right to free speech. If it was the Bible I wouldn't care less, but I suspect many in the US would be calling for his head.
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You see as much as I know how it isn't clever to deliberately insult others for the hell of it, it is more important to realise that nobody has a right to not be offended. I find all the points I listed in "3" above to be infinitely more important than any single book - I'd like to hear from Muslims who agree.