the headlights get bigger

The pressure on John Key is showing as it does for all liars that get caught. He is starting to slide down the rabbit hole now, and funny as that is, it has awful consequences for some groups in our society. The Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) has been naughty. They have illegally spied on NZ citizens because they didn't agree with the legislation that governed them or they just interpreted the very clear words incorrectly. The Kitteridge Report has shown how low things have got to. Changes have to be made says key so he is going to make their illegal spying legal and then it will all be good. And now he has come out with the most pathetic excuse - WMD's - weapons of mass destruction!!!

TVNZ

there have been covert attempts to acquire New Zealand science and technology for programmes relating to weapons of mass destruction or weapons delivery systems.

Terrorists!!!

While the terrorism threat in New Zealand has remained low, there are people within our country who have links to off-shore terrorist groups

OMG!!! key has just rattled off the same lying meme that killed so many in their wars.

But it isn't funny because middle NZ will believe him. They will lap it all up and ask for more because it suits their often do-nothing, selfish attitude. They won't remember the last time the terrorism word was used in anger and the devastation to community, to peoples lives, to the innocent charged and dragged before the court system and to the political prisoners who did their time as a protest against the system that wrongfully imprisoned them. They forget but we don't forget, because the groups that will be spied on are us, they are Māori, and all others who oppose so much that is happening - those against the mining, the political corruption, the dirty TPPA deal. Those groups who care, include indigenous rights activists, fighters against poverty, injustice, inequality and fight for the disadvantaged and the environment. These are the people who get spied on for all sorts of reasons, very few of them valid. The branding of terrorist will begin and the sullying of reputations will begin and the eternal battle for mana will continue. All of this nastiness began because John Key is trying to hide and bluster his way out of his lies. And yes, he really is that low.

positive movement

Can a bad/useless/corrupt/putwhatyoulikehere government do good things? Can a bad person do good things? 

Obviously this has been a point of discussion around other areas and putting value judgements of what ‘bad’ is aside I want to thank finlayson (I don’t think he’s ‘bad’), personally and as a representative of the government, for saying these things

Stuff

“Ngai Tuhoe’s history shows clearly why it is so important to settle genuine historic Treaty grievances,” Finalyson said.

“The conditions in Te Urewera, which contains some of our most deprived and isolated communities, show the very real and continued effects of the Crown’s Treaty breaches on the daily lives of Ngai Tuhoe people in the present.”

Huge areas of Tuhoe land were wrongly confiscated and more purchased unjustly, Finlayson said.

“Military campaigns against Tuhoe prisoners and civilians were described even at the time as extermination and the Crown employed a scorched earth policy in Tuhoe settlements.”

This settlement is a strong step towards mana motuhake for Ngāi Tuhoe and I congratulate them.

It is not perfect but it is a step in the right direction and as Tuhoe negotiator Tamati Kruger has said, “he believed the tribe had ultimately won what it was seeking, which was control over the park.” 

I wonder about the figure of 170M – is that figure used for relativity or do they calculate it some other way?

that tongue is forked

So John Key, the Prime Minister of this country, at the opening of the Rugby World Cup, chose not to say kia ora and acknowledge tangata whenua. He has admitted he just decided not to, even though, for the most generally part he does, and he is sure that most people know he can. He didn't think it was important or necessary. 

Stuff

"I could have of course, and for the most part I generally do, but I decided not to on that occasion." 

The occasion was his big showpiece of this country - if that isn't an appropriate occasion then what is? But he most parts generally does so what are we to take from all this. He could have but didn't and for no good reason. He just doesn't give a shit? he doesn't have much between the ears? or he astucually wanted to make a point - that tangata whenua should be happy to allow our culture to be used as window dressing for the grand illusion and when the dust has all settled it will be back to business, back to pretending to care about Mäori whilst dismantling everything Mäori care about.

This going round sums it up

"Miss half a game of rugby because a train breaks down: personal apology from John Key and compensation up for discussion.

Have your doors kicked in, automatic rifles pointed at your kids, and four years of your life stolen because of police incompetence. Apology and compensation immediately ruled out."

The charges have been dropped but the hurt is still there, not just for those free but for the four still facing charges and for the Tuhoe people. The police came for terror and terror is what they created just as they planned but their plans have finally been just about stopped and the truth, while smothered in supression orders, will come out eventually. Thank you to all concerned who have helped and fought for the truth and thank to to all who continue that struggle. A great post from Joshua called Reflections on the invasion of Te Urewera.

Tuhoe states all will be welcome

Confirmation of what we already knew - Tuhoe have stated their views around Te Urewera and the rest of the country and their view is of sharing and not keeping people out. As the headline states this iwi won't practice apartheid (the Afrikaans word meaning ‘separation’).

From Stuff

"Mr Kruger said Prof Anaya, the UN's special rapporteur on human rights and indigenous peoples, was keen to talk about the breakdown of treaty negotiations brought about by Prime Minister John Key's sudden decision in May that the Government could not live with a settlement handing ownership of the 212,000-hectare park back to Tuhoe.

Mr Kruger said Prof Anaya "delved into" the issue of mana motuhake - the concept of separate Maori identity and autonomy sought by Tuhoe.

"I took from his questions that he wanted to satisfy himself that this was not apartheid dressed up.

"He asked whether we were going to kick out all the non-Tuhoe people. He wanted to know whether this was evolving democratically, or whether it was racially motivated.

"We assured him it was not exclusive."

Prof Anaya asked about the "logic and workability" of Tuhoe achieving self-government within the remnants of its homeland.

On the park itself, Prof Anaya wanted to know whether Tuhoe would share it with other New Zealanders.

Mr Kruger said the delegation, which also comprised Tame Iti, Huka Williams, Patrick McGarvey and Kirsti Luke, assured him other New Zealanders would be welcomed.

Well it doesn't get clearer than that - of course some may think that Tuhoe are just saying whatever they want to and they will reverse their statements if when Te Urewera was is returned to them - but those people know nothing of mana.