Enemy Leader Unknown.

John Key has fumbled through an attempt to name the head of Islamic State, echoing an interview where Australia's Defence Minister had his credibility destroyed by an ABC journalist over the same question. Asked whether he could name the head of ISIS, the Prime Minister struggled to come up with a direct answer.

He actually said:

"Ah look, I'll get it wrong if I actually name his name, it's al-Jabiri something, but yeah, whatever...," Mr Key said. [He looked and sounded like an even bigger idiot than the Australian Minister of Defence…]

This comes after Australia's Defence Minister was ridiculed today when he failed to answer ABC reporter Leigh Sales's questions on the eve of Australia deploying troops to Iraq.

Kevin Andrews continued to return wishy-washy answers as Ms Sales pressed on in last night's 7.30 Report.

"So, sorry, just to be clear, who is the leader and what is the focus on his capture?" Ms Sales asked.

"Well, I'm not going to go into operational matters, obviously, Leigh," Mr Andrews replied.

"I don't think that's operational. I think it's a matter of public record," Ms Sales said.

"Minister, you're responsible for putting Australian men and women in harm's way in the cause of this mission. I'm surprised that you can't tell me the name of Islamic State's leader. The US State Department has a $10 million bounty on his head?"

"Well, as I said, ISIL is a combination of groups, Leigh. [Report ends]

This absolutely clear indicator of the intelligence level of John Key our PM and the easily forgotten Australian Minister of Defence [Kevin Andrews] is displayed in this tiny tit-bit of info put out by PUBLIC Ad-free TV in Australia…thank God they’ve still got public owned TV in Australia…unlike us who have to put up with TV3’s white suited foul-mouthed Australian reject Paul Henry or John Key’s chief cheer leader wee mini-skirted Mike Hosking…

Anyway I thought this proven and uncontestable inability to answer a very simply question like who the leader of ISIS leads us naturally to ask other questions, especially for our esteemed leader. Perhaps John Campbell might agree to could ask the following questions [should TV3's Keys friends agree] such as:

1.     Where is ISIS?

2.     Where is Iraq?

3.     What side is Saudi Arabia on, ours or ISIS’s or both?

4.     What side is the US on Saudi Arabia’s or ISIS or both?

5.     Are we on the same side as the Syrian Dictator, who has murdered hundreds of thousands of his own citizens? and since:

6.     Israel sells arms to Saudi Arabia does the PM support this arms trading?

You might like to add a few questions of your own and even send the questions to the PM or the Nats local list member Jono Naylor, I’m sure he will pass your message on to PM after all what else has he got to do with his time other than supporting his wife with door knocking...

More Gregg O'Connor fairy tales.

Police boss Mike Bush recently suggested that the Police Officers in charge of the Roast Buster case were un-professional in their conduct of the case. But Gregg O’Connor police Association boss feels that is simply not true, so just the other day he pushed the line that his police officers were heroic: Here is a bit of what he said:

 “Police officers are frequently being punched in the face, bitten, head-butted, and kneed in the groin and gouged in the eyes in the line of duty, Police Association President Greg O'Connor says”.

Of course it’s obvious that poor Gregg O’Connor has been under great pressure because of the constant stuff-ups, either intentionally or accidentally by police of which the Roast Busters is simply the latest report [after years of waiting] to hit the headlines and show just how poorly organised and run are some aspects of New Zealand Police operational processes.

Now, staffs appear to be suggesting that their top brass simply blame the junior staff to divert any negative criticism from the bosses…and this could well be the case.

  

Roast Busters officer vents frustration anonymously

A police officer has vented frustration over the handling of the "Roast Busters" saga.

The officer said they were one of five criticised in a recent Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) report into the Roast Busters scandal.

"I feel absolutely gutted with management's response to the report. Since being in police, I have always thought that if you did the best you could and didn't act outside the law, then you would be supported," an unnamed officer wrote in the latest edition of Police News, the New Zealand Police Association Newsletter.

"My main concern is that without senior management acknowledging the blatantly obvious issues; it is only a matter of time before this kind of situation will happen again and again."

READ MORE: Police code revised

This from Stuff media:

The Roast Busters group first emerged in November 2013, with members boasting online about plying underage girls with alcohol and having sex with them.

Last October police said they would not charge group members because they did not have a reasonable chance of getting a conviction.

Last month the IPCA found Roast Busters' victims had been let down by police. 

Waitemata police officers who handled the case at the time had failed to pursue positive lines of inquiry, it said.

Investigating staff also failed to properly consider all available offences in deciding whether to prosecute the young men.

Last month Police Commissioner Mike Bush said three of the five officers criticised in the report had been moved to other roles outside the child abuse and adult sexual assault teams, but would remain in the force.

"This is a performance issue and it will be dealt with as such," he said.

A Police News column written by a frontline police officer under the pseudonym I am Keen said the blame was "squarely aimed at lower-ranking police investigators."

"The five officers are stitched up tight and can't possibly afford a High Court review to have their defence claims examined; that's the design of this type of review – innocent or guilty, they're stuffed."

Police Association national president Greg O'Connor said it did not back its officers in every situation, "but in this case it's clear they've been hung out to dry." The complainants were dealt with professionally and with dignity by police, he said. In the end the complainants decided not go to court, so the chances of getting a conviction were slim. "A 12 month enquiry came up with exactly the same result. That's not the actions of slovenly detectives. These officers have been badly maligned; they have been offered nothing and very poorly treated by police."

In a written response to Stuff.co.nz, Waitemata Police's Superintendent Bill Searle said he wouldn't comment on whether the officers involved had been offered retraining as "like any other employer, (police) are obliged to keep matters relating to an individual's employment confidential," but said he took the welfare of officers seriously. "The case has resulted in a number of changes already being made within the Waitemata Police district."

Those included hiring a detective inspector to manage and oversee child protection and adult sexual abuse cases in Waitemata, establishing a weekly audit of all child protection cases and hiring two extra officers for the Child Protection and Adult Sexual Assault teams, with a focus on prevention. [Stuff report ends]

So with these internal eruptions taking place Gregg O’Connor had to divert attention from that of closely inspecting police behaviour to gaining back some respected by going public with the number of assaults against police officers. [Naturally there will be no discussion of police assaults against the public nor behaviour such as that of the ex-cop Mike Sabin types which seem to be hidden by politically minded police chiefs on a weekly basis]

This chart shows a declining number of assaults against police since 2008 until today this has most likely taken place because of the new weapons such as Tasers, pepper spray and access to firearms etc.

But poor lonely Gregg O’Connor claims these declining figures are incorrect he suggests that there are many more assaults that go unrecorded…well, well he suggests that for the police, but he doesn’t accept that for the number of police assaults on the public, especially sexual assaults. The more I read comments from Gregg O’Connor the more I’m convinced he is nothing more than a spin doctor for his association members. 

Drones and their use, some Easter thoughts.

Easter is a time for serious consideration regarding the use of DRONES by both, the US, Israel and their supporters. Read this short item and if you feel that murder by drones should cease, you may like to join with thousands of others in working toward the elimination of this latest weapon of massive destruction.

http://worldbeyondwar.org/television-commercial-in-california-asks-drone-pilots-to-stop-killing/?can_id=482baa8c5edb69af025eb017b6d92d89&source=email-rising-beyond-war&referrer=david-swanson-2&email_referrer=rising-beyond-war 

Matthew Hooton speaks out about Sabin and Key.

Nicky Hager

 This is a straight reproduction of a blog published by the NBR...remember Matthew Hooton is a big fan of and ex-employee of the National Party... In his report he states clearly what is the view of many, many followers of the NZ Political scene.

After reading this you may like to attend the visit of Investigative Journalist and author Nicky Hager at Te Manawa at 6.30 pm on Monday the 30th of March...   

Matthew Hooton wrote:

Matthew Hooton

Of course, National might still win.
Year after year, John Carter’s Northland electorate won internal party plaudits for its huge membership.  For this weekend’s by-election, no less than the economic development, regulatory reform, science and innovation, tertiary education, skills and employment and associate finance minister took full personal control of the campaign.  Pretty much the whole cabinet was whisked in by ministerial limo.
The Public Finance Act was assaulted with election bribes.  John Key cut short his state visit to Japan to hit the mean streets of Moerewa.  Dark stories were told about the risk to Tim Groser’s free-trade agreement with Korea if National were to need the support of UnitedFuture’s Peter Dunne.
Luckily for National, the Labour candidate’s name remains on the ballot paper.  Maybe there’s some methodological flaw in Wednesday’s TV3 Reid Research poll that gave the edge to Winston Peters.

Sigh of relief

Ex-cop Mike Sabin

At the time of writing, National had also been spared the full story becoming public about the resignation of former MP Mike Sabin.  Those close to Mr Peters suggested he would return to Wellington before the by-election to reveal all under parliamentary privilege.  Instead, the NZ First leader elected to stay in Northland talking about his proposal to expand the port at Marsden Point, a referendum on cannabis and his forthcoming bill to remove name suppression from alleged paedophiles if victims say they don’t want it and to launch a register for parents to check there are no sex offenders in their neighbourhood.
No doubt there was a sigh of relief at National Party Headquarters.  But that may be short-sighted.
Arguably it would be better for National had the full Sabin story become known well before by-election day.
Fragments are on the public record: that Mr Sabin has been under police investigation since August, that Mr Key was “happy” for him to remain chairman of the law and order select committee overseeing the police budget while that investigation was under way, and that Mr Sabin resigned “due to personal issues … best dealt with outside Parliament.”
Mr Sabin himself is no longer that important: the police and any other relevant arms of government will now deal with him as they see fit. 
But Mr Key’s government stands accused of somehow covering up after Mr Sabin, with Labour leader Andrew Little going so far as to say he believes Mr Key is lying.
That is not entirely implausible.  Although NBR has been unable to substantiate allegations the National Party top brass knew all about Mr Sabin as far back as before the 2011 election, police commissioner Mike Bush has made clear that he and his officers did not “drop the ball” when it came to informing the Beehive about the Sabin investigation in August.
Mr Bush has not commented further.

Anne Tolley

The Beehive line is that Mr Bush told police minister Anne Tolley about the investigation in August – and her successor Michael Woodhouse after the election – but didn’t name the MP concerned. Nor, we are meant to believe, did Ms Tolley or Mr Woodhouse ask.
The Beehive will not answer questions about whether or not either passed this information to Mr Key or his office. Answering such questions, according to chief of staff Wayne Eagleson, would violate the privacy of natural persons.
Public duties
If the Beehive’s account of the Sabin matter is true, then Mr Key’s government has become deeply dysfunctional.  Reflect on the type of conversation we are being asked to believe happened, just weeks before a general election:
“Minister,” says Mr Bush, “you need to know that we’re investigating an MP for assault.”
“Cheers,” says Ms Tolley. “Thanks for letting me know.”
Given the proximity to the election, Ms Tolley in fact had a public duty to ask the commissioner who was involved.  Was it Mr Key or David Cunliffe, the candidates for prime minister?  Was it Bill English, David Parker or Russel Norman, the candidates for finance minister?  Or Murray McCully, David Shearer or Mr Peters, the candidates for foreign minister?  Maybe Judith Collins or Mr Little, the candidates for justice minister?
Even if Ms Tolley neglected her duties to the public, is it plausible her political duty to the prime minister didn’t lead her to inquire?  “Please god, let it be Cunliffe!” she would surely have thought.
Mr Woodhouse’s story is just as odd. When briefed by Mr Bush after the election, we’re told he too ignored his public and political duties to inquire further.
Perhaps even more incredible is Mr Eagleson’s claim that, when he was contacted on November 26 by Labour’s chief of staff Matt McCarten about the Sabin situation – which he says he already knew about from others – he waited until the following week to mention it to the prime minister, who remained, he claims, utterly ignorant until December 1.
“Prime Minister,” the Beehive says Mr Eagleson or his underlings never said, “we have a problem.  We’ve just been called by the opposition, which has some serious dirt on Sabin, and it’s all around town because we’ve heard about it from others a while ago.  You might be asked questions about it as soon as today.”
Are such calls from the opposition really so routine they don’t get escalated?
The risk for Mr Key is that if the full Sabin story becomes known in a week, a month, six months or a year, it will look as if his government covered it up not just through a general election campaign but then again through the by-election as well.  The clock keeps ticking.

A day or two in the life of Bill English.

State Housing  stuff-up…

Finance [supposed] whiz-kid Bill English, while in the shower one Thursday [that’s the day he never goes to Parliament] had a brain-storm, to help get into surplus he would sell off around 4000 state houses…this would win him Brownie points with the PM and aid the policy of selling off state assets…without actually asking permission to do so. His second thought was, ‘Salvation Army…they are a wealthy cash cow, they love the down pressed, they help the poor, they play musical instruments and shout ‘hallelujah’ from time to time. So he’d make them an offer they couldn’t refuse…and turn them into the biggest landlord in the country. He was so elated by his wonderful idea that he leaped out of the shower and shouted to his wife…”eureka…I’m brilliant… His wife shouted back, you’re not; your bloody naked and not a pleasant sight, for god sake get a towel…

All this took place some months ago…Old Bill…set the plan in motion amid an up roar of those working in the social housing field…and with those living in State housing. He was a hero amongst the super right-wingers as well as many, local council’s like the Palmerston North City Council who believed they too could cast off the odious role of running social housing stock.

Sadly poor wee Bill English dropped into a pool of crap when the Salvation Army turned down his sneaky, unworthy and shameless effort to sell them a rotten apple… While the Salvation Army may shout hallelujahs from time to time, they are wise when it comes to rotten business deals. Anyway after being given the news, Wee Bill climbed back into the shower and turned on the cold tap…    

This from the NZ Herald…

The Salvation Army has decided against buying state homes off the Government, a blow the Labour Party says is "hugely embarrassing".

The decision came after a study to test its capacity to become a major social housing landlord.

Prime Minister John Key confirmed earlier plans to go through the transfer in January. The plan is to transfer more of the responsibility for housing low-income and vulnerable tenants by selling a portion of housing stock to community providers such as churches, iwi and non-government organisations.

But Major Campbell Roberts, of the Salvation Army, says the church organisation does not believe "the lives of tenants would be sufficiently improved by such a transfer".

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11421462

This is from someone who was involved in repairing state housing stock…his comments give balance as we need to recognise how short-sighted it is to let maintenance slip to such an extent.  

“I am very pleased for the Sallies that they have seen the offer for what it is. All they would be getting for their Hard Earned would be a bunch of old, out dated wooden houses, in very poor condition from a maintenance point of view, which would cost telephone numbers to restore to even a basic minimum living standard. It only takes a short drive through any State Housing area to see the numbers of houses in serious need of repainting. What they are like inside is anybody’s guess.

I worked for a couple of clowns some years ago, ostensibly refurbishing elderly houses. Everything was done to a minimum standard. Sure, in some cases new baths were installed. But in other areas it was a different story. In the kitchens I had to replace drawer runners that with years of usage had become hopelessly worn out. Not only was that, but the bottoms of the drawers themselves completely worn out and for the best possible result, the drawer would have needed to be machined and a new runner fixed to restore it to its correct standard. That just didn’t happen.

In the lounges and bedrooms the damage to the wall linings was a revelation. In one bedroom I repaired 17 small holes in the walls. In some cases the damage required a cut out in the lining and insertion of a patch and replastering, a slow, time consuming, job. Many of those houses were approaching sixty years of age and long past their useful use by dates. All were built mainly of OB Rimu (Ordinary Building) a timber very prone to borer attack. The supposition promulgated by Estate Agents that by buying a State House you would be getting a SOLID home is a complete fable. What you in fact get is a heap of rubbish well past its ‘use by’ date!

What the Government has done, is to have surveyed the entire scene and decided the levels of deferred maintenance represent a cost, that as the nation’s biggest housing provider, is a cost it is not prepared to envisage, hoping instead to flick those liabilities to some other poor mug, who due to greed and ignorance would be prepared to add utter liabilities to their rental portfolios. I doubt very much if any of the houses I worked on were scheduled for repainting.

It is an unwritten rule in this country that any timber house must enjoy a five year painting cycle for maximum preservation of the asset.

Not only that but repainting of the interiors should be on a ten year painting cycle. It goes without saying that the range of interior damage I witnessed would need to be addressed during that stage. Only then could those houses be considered to be maintained to a reasonable standard. A feature of weatherboards which clad most of the houses is that when paint perishes with age the effect of the sun is to dry out the timber and cause hairline cracks in the surface. Which even if painted caused the paint to fracture along the cracks as the timber proceeds to expand and contract with the normal action of the weather, causing accelerated paint breakdown.

The kitchens, which can be considered the action centre of every house, were modern sixty years ago, but hopelessly out-dated in this day and age. As a minimum every house should have been fitted with a modern kitchen doing away with the hopeless cupboards, pushed hard up to the eight foot high ceilings, which saw the top shelves, in most instances, never used. With that they would have been a slightly more saleable proposition and drawing possible purchaser’s attention away from the other defects, outlined here". Comments end.

Bill English was a flop as leader of the National Party, and it would appear that the same title can be used in regard to his effort as Finance Minister...but he is ideal for John Key, one because he never argues with the boss and secondly he never lets the truth spoil his behaviour.