The Nation and Q+A

The Nation
The Scoop is getting as clever as Holmes monologue, Garner is miles better as a host isn't he? Slater is on, gagging him at the conference was just so bloody stupid wasn't it?

Garner is ripping into Federated Farmers for being flat footed with the Chinese. They only want to flog our land off to the Chinese if they can buy Chinese land, nice to see their sense of national sovereignty extends only as far as their wallet can buy externally.

I love how Don gets in National Party sponsored 'small Government' spin mantra during his answers and he manages to attack Chris Trotter as well. If he'd been able to work in a Helen Clark insult he would have gotten a years free milk supply from Fonterra as their weekly 'lefty killer Trifecta' media award.

Chinese ownership is a potential problem in terms of the speed and size with which they could suddenly become a dominant influence, but the reality is that Australia by a massive margin have vastly more ownership in NZ and we should be much more concerned by the Aussie influence, especially in the wake of the mining industry coup.

Crafar saga catches Govt without strategy
It is difficult to pin down exact figures, but China's share (Hong Kong excluded) is around $1.9 billion, which is less than 2 per cent of the total. Australia dominates with 46 per cent, while the United States comes in second on $11.5 billion.

What comes next is the most cringe worthy TV you will ever see in your life. It's a Young Nats interview, and sweet Christ the intellectual vacuum is astounding.

Here were some of their hilarious buzz words - Stronger relationships with China will catch our economy up, Catching up with Australia is all about directing skills, integrating our economy into Australia, incentives, selling our Dairy to China, farming is not an environmental issue because its sustainable.

They are now suggesting handing our technologies over to China and they all laugh at the Crafar Farms news coverage in the way one scoffs at the issues that beguile the peasants.

They love prisons, the unemployed are criminals, the hard edges of the recession have been 'softened', (they are now just reading National Party propaganda straight to camera), why are people on the benefit and should they be on the benefit? Welfare is bad.

The host is unbelievable, she seems to actually be part of the Young Nats group.

The last bit is the most cringe worthy, they are asked in one sentence to explain what it is to be an ambitious young NZer - here is their puke invoking babble words - Hope, exciting future, we can sell, drive, sell, drive, sell, drive, sell, look at us, draw people into this vision, celebrating success, rewarding effort, driving force, lifting, driving, value adding stuff, voice, agriculture, environmental policies whatever, hard yards now, rewards in the future.

It's just beautiful.

Liam McNamara however was a sharp button, he was the highlight.

If this is the future of the National Party, the left shouldn't panic, but keep an eye on Liam.

Bill's up from the National Party conference, some very worrying news about the credit crunch looming with the banks, you can see the stress that is provoking in Bill's face, he knows it's going to get worse, he's trying not to spook the horses. Garner pushes him, it's like the 10 000 pound albino gorilla in the room, the double dip is coming, it's going to get worse, how many lifeboats are there?

Don Nickelson's Federated Farmers position of land swapsies is new and Bill's getting his first bite of that, it's babble babble soft pap, Garner pushes, Bill is forced to define the pap, yes we need to be careful blah blah. Bill interestingly argues the family farm is the economic model and that outsiders coming in find the life hard and so they fade away. I'm not sure if a romanticized view of farming is going to protect NZ from a new resource hungry super power.

Property tax makes his Bills eyes go side to side in the way someones eyes do when they are lying. He says he isn't taking any option on property tax, what he means is 'yep I'm going to include a property tax'.

Asset sales are next, Bills just saying he is stocktaking. You know, the kind of stocktaking you do before you sell everything.

Has Bill muffed mining? Not at all says Bill.

Mike is on with the business news and the CTU chap was pointing out that the double dip is a coming along with all 4 of the horseman of the Apocalypse.

Last word is with Cam, that bloody skype link needs to get better, but he gave a pretty scathing review of the blandness of the conference. It doesn't sound like the free bargaining of ideas by rational individual self preference actors working in the free market and more like a control economy Stalinist empire.

Q+A
Guyon is at the conference, National standards report card, Union busting and gst off healthy food (bloody good line up). Dr Therese Arseneau is joined on the panel by former Labour Party president Mike Williams and Young Nat president Daniel Feilding.

Banks flowers budget gets sent up in the Holmes monologue, turns out Banks sent himself flowers. Paul Holmes monologue delivery now requires cuts to Paul Schafer for laughter shots.

Young Nats President is telling us his big issue is keeping 18 year olds drinking. Great social progress there Daniel. The one who loves Paula Bennett is a real gem.

Damien Christie is talking to wide eyed delegates about how great John Key is, the vacant aspiration is creepy to watch.

Guyon interestingly uses facts and figures to remind the Prime Minister that the economy isn't good, but John Key is optimistic, so no worries. Hilariously Key uses unemployment rates to show how well things are going even though the unemployment figure blew out above where he said he would peak, Guyon points out Key promised aggressive growth out of the recession and we haven't had it.

This ridiculous study being held up to support the 90 day right to to sack is just a joke isn't it? It shows 1 in 5 get dumped and it asked the bosses and not the workers how the policy is going, what a surprise the bosses loved it.

Mining on crown land is up, Guyon pushes Key on mining, it doesn't sound like he is changing his position on mining at all. Watch Key slip around the issue, U-turning on his own definition of the Crown land, the decision discussion on mining tomorrow is going to be bloody interesting.

Key is now dancing around privatization, will he in his tenure as PM privatize assets? He says 'maybe', Guyon pushes him further, he accepts that he is eyeing up 3 or 4 for the chop, he keeps using the term, 'kick the tyres'.

Violent crime went up, Key isn't keeping people safer, he says it's all the way the stats are taken (same excuse Labour uses), Guyon questions the hard line policy crap (which the Police note doesn't help) Key says he is ramming through as much massive draconian legislation as possible.

Guyon asks if Key will try and win Epsom, his answer clearly states that he won't. They have cut a deal with Rodney, it's as open as that. He's cutting a deal with Peter Dunne and he is open to Winston, he is the deal maker. Guyon then asks will he see out the full term next election, interestingly he doesn't rule it in, has he cut himself a deal with the harder right faction to hand the reigns over for the real nasty stuff to come?

To the panel, Therese savages Key over the lack of actual vision. Daniel weakly whimpers how wonderful John Key is (he is out of his league horribly here). The Corrections Monster created by our Sensible Sentencing Trust inspired rabid lynch mob mentality fueled by our if it bleeds it leads ratings driven mainstream news gets attacked. Mike questions why the 90 day right to sack, and I'm telling Mike it's to fund raise from the Auckland Business Mafia who bankrolled that last election and who want hard right policy. Union bashing arouses corporate dollars.

GST off healthy food is up, Phil Goff and Rahui Katene are fronting. I support this 100%, make it happen Phil. The report by Auckland Uni clearly does show people will eat more healthy food via lower prices gets held up as a sensible position. Phil comes across as very welfare focused, this is a good issue for him.