EU is the bad guy in world trade

Latest OECD data on agricultural subsidies shows that by far the greatest culprit is Europe. In 2005, the European Union spent nearly US$134 billion on propping up its agricultural sector. These subsidies generated around one-third of the average farm’s income. Don’t forget most of these are sucked up by large farms, including ones owned by the British Royal Family and others who can hardly start to argue they deserve to money taken from others.
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The United States, typically pointed out to be the bad boy spends LESS THAN ONE-THIRD what the European Union spends, at just short of US$43 billion. This is 44% of the EU’s budget. Although the US is the third biggest agricultural subsidiser, after Japan which spends US$47.4 billion on securing votes for the Liberal Democratic Party by propping up inefficient rice farmers. Fourth is South Korea, spending US$23.3 million on pretty much the same as Japan. Interestingly the only OECD country to significantly increase subsidies since 1988 has been Turkey, which has seen the proportion of farmer’s income supported by subsidies increase from 15% to 25%
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So why doesn’t Oxfam storm Brussels? It does call for reform, but it is muted compared to its call for aid. Why isn’t Bob Geldof and Bono damning France, the primary culprit in this? The Bush Administration is very keen on cutting subsidies as long as it is done multilaterally, and France in the EU says it has “done enough”. No it hasn’t, not by a very long shot.

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It is time for all those give a damn about reducing poverty in developing countries to tell the EU and France in particular to move – to abolish export subsidies, cut subsidies for the “old” EU states by 70%, to the same level now offered the new EU accession countries (Hungary, Poland etc) immediately and abolish non-tariff barriers to agricultural imports. Do that, it would challenge the US to do the same and it would almost certainly wake up the developing world to open up its markets in manufactured goods.

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and yes, New Zealand does have the moral highground on this, as subsidies in New Zealand are comparatively non-existent.

London at 32 degrees celsius

I have the following observations:

1. British media are weather obsessed;
2. Transport is designed for winter, the tube is hot and stinky, Victoria and Bakerloo lines are by far the worst as they are the deep level lines with the worst ventilation and oldest rolling stock. The best thing is, a lot of people know this and are using it less.
3. Women go to work wearing essentially weekend clothes (tanktops dresses and jandals), men wear suits not lava lavas. No shorts, socks and sandals.

4. Combine 2 and 3 and some women get on the tube wearing little – like the 8 inch high shorts, that means from top of the waist to the leg, NOT leg length. Why does this never happen in New Zealand?

5. Homeless people sleep in parks out in the open.

6. The sun comes up between 4 and 4.30 and down at 9pm - bliss!

Blog searches and the World Cup

Weirdest google/blogger search terms finding this blog:

masturbating using toothpaste (someone in India)
French samoan race pictures
Sexy blow yobs
Dirt on rob fyfe
Penis size images (someone in Sioux falls, South Dakota is interested)

OK so now with Germany knocked out, go France...

Celebrate the United States

For me, the 4th of July is a chance to celebrate the founding of the United States. Why? Because it was, in modern history, the most profoundly radical leap forward in human civilisation.
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For today I will ignore the naysayers and those who will point out, many with good reason, the failings of the USA in terms of liberty, the mistakes of the past and those who tarnished the American dream. Today, because this is a chance to celebrate what is great about the United States, and to note why Americans, far more than the British, New Zealanders or Australians, feel pride in the USA. That pride is not a form of tribal knuckle dragging nationalism, of the kind that has left the Balkans dripping with blood, but a pride in a migrant nation of people who fled tyranny, judgment of religion and inherited privilege - to forge something new. 300 years ago many would have laughed at the idea that the migrant colonies in the New World would eventually come to be the greatest military and economic power on the planet. The Cold War saw the USA and its allies demonstrate, profoundly, the difference in both material wealth and personal happiness between capitalism (albeit tarnished) and cold, heartless, authoritarian bullying of the state.

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The US Declaration of Independence was the beginning of this - the unshackling of people from monarchy and feudalism, and changing the nature of government - from something done to people by those who knew better than the people, to something to serve people, to protect their rights from the infringement by each other, and by outsiders. It would form the basis for the US Constitution, and the words "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness". Life being the foundation of all that is humanity, liberty being the oxygen by which humanity lives, grows, learns, invents, discovers and builds and the pursuit of happiness - the purpose of life. This compares to the naysayers, who saw life as being owned by the King, or God, or the tribe - with rulers deciding that men should sacrifice and be sacrificed for some good "greater than they".

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No. America is built on the pursuit of happiness - what could be more glorious than that?

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So today, have a drink and toast "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" - and for a moment think of the thousands who have died for this, and the millions who can not even speak of it.

Transmission Gully not a sure thing by a long shot

Like I said a few days ago, Peter Dunne is full of it on how Transmission Gully is a top priority. Not only is it listed third for unapproved major projects on Transit's State Highway Forecast (after the Dowse to Petone upgrade and Basin Reserve Interchange), but no provision has been made for construction to begin in the next decade.

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Transit's Regional Manager has made this clear in the latest Dominion Post report, where the insane idea of closing the old Paremata Bridge when Transmission Gully is built, is being mooted:

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"Mr Taylor said it had yet to be decided whether Transmission Gully would be built at all. Transit recently won funding for $80 million of preliminary work, which included doing geotechnical surveys of the proposed route, completing road designs and applying for resource consents. Only then would the true cost of Transmission Gully be known and a decision made about whether or not it would go ahead.Mr Taylor said it had yet to be decided whether Transmission Gully would be built at all. "

Quite right too. Only a fool would say built it at any cost or regardless of priorities anywhere else. $1.5 billion, $2 billion, $3 billion? The decision to proceed with a very very expensive investigation and design of Transmission Gully has been done because of a loud campaign by those wanting their property values enhanced by a highly subsidised uneconomic road - backed by National and ACT MPs (and Labour and United Future) who only care for popularity, not economics. Transmission Gully may continue to prove to be not worth it.