Destiny City

"Bishop" Brain Tamaki is planning to build a "city" on an 8ha plot in south Auckland for church members to live and worship in. Plans include a school and a marae. more here

I think another four lettered word beginning with C might be a more appropriate description.

This church and its leader's attitudes and opinions is has done Christianity in New Zealand a huge disservice.

Sally's guide to the minor parties

We all know which two parties will grab most of the votes. We mostly know the six other parties that have managed to either win one electorate seat or 5% of the party votes on 2005.

However there are going to be more than eight options on the ballot paper for our party vote just as there are a plethora of hoardings from groups we have never heard of.

So who are these minnows?

First up would like to be the party of choice for all the friends of Mary Jane, lovers of wacky baccy and growers of electric puha, Coromandel grass etc. Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party

I have to guess what the Direct Democracy Party is standing for. Their website was down when I looked, possibly still under construction. This close to the election I have to wonder how seriously they want your vote. No connection to the old Social Credit party.

Then there is the party for all those who believe that the free market and a free society is so desirable that they have littered the local landscape with hoardings. So if the right wing is where you want us to be the LibertariaNZ party would really like your vote. They have a more in depth policy than most of these one trick ponies to prove it.

New World Order are a registered party but no website so just how new their idea of order is I have no idea. I half expected google to find an on line supermarket when I searched. They don't seem to want your vote.

Again no website that I could find for the New Zealand Pacific Party but if you are a fan of disgraced former Labour MP Taito Philip Feild and don't live in Mangere he would like you to put your tick here.

Residents Action Movement are the party that want to take GST off food. The word free makes more appearances in their short list of policies than that of the Libertarianz but in a totally different way.

Alliance have been around since 1993. I think this is what is left of the party that once included Jim Anderton's New Labour Party (Progressives) and the Green Party.

The Bill and Ben Party is this years answer to McGillicuddy Serious. A must for all Pulp Sport fans and those who want a dose of comidy.

The Family Party seem to be just what they say they are and have a list of "family friendly" policies. No obvious connection to the often strangely crackpot Families First lobby group that I have been able to find.

If you were wondering were the Christians had got to this election I have found them. The Kiwi Party doesn't seem to be as blatant about it as past christian parties, their stand supporting recreational hunting and fishing is more obvious at first look than their pro christain stand. This is the only party on this list that currently has an MP in shape of Gordon Copeland. He is standing up against Labour's Annette King in Rongotai.

The New Zealand Democratic Party for Social Credit are trying to revive their fortunes to recapture the relative success they enjoyed as Social Credit, the only minor party to consistently win one or two seats under the first pass the post electoral system.

The Republic of New Zealand Party for "Democracy the way it should be". Yes really lol. Very short on details unless you want to sit through a 9½ minute you tube clip. Thanks to my slow connection, I didn't.

Workers Party of New Zealand, communists? maybe, socialists? definitely. Possibly the polar opposite to Libertarianz.

Of course there are other parties but since, like me, they aren't registered so not on the ballot paper.

15% GST in 5 years

'15 per cent GST' danger within five years
By Audrey Young

A tax expert predicts GST could have to rise to 15 per cent within five years, to dig the country out of deficits delivered by the worsening world economy - and big election promises.
John Shewan, a specialist tax partner and chairman of PricewaterhouseCoopers New Zealand, said last night that GST could hit 15 per cent and the top personal tax rate increase to 45 per cent.

Here are 5 sorry 4 reasons why it won't happen

1. 10% is 1/10, 12.5% is 1/8, 15% is 1/6.66666666666666666667 rounded. In other words a big increase in the time required to work it out.
2. To work out GST on any inclusive item at present just divide the inclusive figure by 9, easily done in the head. When it was 10% we just had to divide by 11. If it is 15% we would have to divide by... err... 7 ... that isn't quite right ... ahhh ... pass the calculator ... and round it ... um is that close enough?
3. GST as it stands is a very simple and inexpensive tax to implement. Adding any exceptions or increasing to a fraction of a fraction will change that very quickly!
4. Increasing GST to non user friendly number instead of just increasing taxes elsewhere just seems like a dumb idea.

Seriously do we need any more reasons why it is a bad idea?

Here's an idea, how about knocking GST down to 10% and giving us all an income tax increase instead?

Hang on, have we been there before?

Next the 'experts' will be promoting user pays

mmm...

Been there before as well.

That Leaders Debate

OK, who watched and did it help you decide who to vote for?

Normally this sort of thing is a Helen Clark cake walk but this time John Key proved he could dish it out with the best.

Not that I managed to catch all of it. The howl of protest from the living room armchair when HC commented that Physics, Biology and English poetry were not favourite subjects for today's youth drowned out just about everything said afterwards.

It seems these are high among the favourite subjects of the household teenager. I am not sure whether that means HC is out of touch or whether my teen aged flatmate is weird. Miss 13½ was watching the leaders debate after all.

Meanwhile what was Nationals policy on climate change again? - beyond the fact they believe climate change exists.

Score wise definitely a draw.

Hi De Hi campers

Hat tip to Sideswipe

For those who recall that British sitcom set in a holiday camp run by yellow coats.

Excellence has been achieved

Vandel report - can do better

At last the lure of election hoardings and school holidays has had an effect, on the hoardings in Glenfeild anyway.

The greatly airbrushed Helen with speech bubble.

grade - not achieved. Would be graded higher if we could read what it said.

The greatly airbrushed Helen has been joined by a rather crudely spray painted phallus.

grade - achieved but only just

Addition of Hitler moustache to both Helen and John on several hoardings

grade - achieved. More imagination required for a higher grade.

Jim Anderton's Sharpie drawn Hitler haircut and moustache.

grade - merit. The result is more makeover than vandalism. Jim should probably seriously consider this as a fashion statement if he isn't going to go on the Rodney Hyde style weight loss regimen. The result greatly improved his looks -and I am not being tongue in cheek. Pity about the Nazi overtones.

Oddly enough I have yet to see any alterations to most National or any Green, Act, Family First or Liberanz hoardings.

An indication of the way the votes will go perhaps?

.

.

P.S.

To receive an excellence grade the alteration would have to be on a par with this little gem from 2005.

Whack a poll

Go on, relieve a few frustrations.

Winston Peters and other minor party leaders are inexplicable absent but what the hey?

Have fun.