DOWN TO THE DOCTOR’S: Polar bears and pissing about

An irreverent look at some of the past week’s headlines, from Libertarianz leader Dr. Richard McGrath.

1. Charge an iPod, kill a polar bear? – Alarmist crap from a group of global warmists that call themselves the International Energy Agency, who are terrified that the rising use of electronic gadgets -- especially by individuals in developing countries – will require massive increases in energy generation. Extrapolating to the year 2030, the IEA suggest 200 extra nuclear power plants (or the equivalent in other energy sources) will be required to power all the extra iPods and other electronic toys. Clearly, the spectre of poor people in developing countries becoming affluent and able to afford iPods is anathema to the IEA, as they believe this will lead to increased CO2 emissions, catastrophic global warming, etc. In fact, it has been demonstrated that the wealthier people become, the more attention they tend to pay to the environment around them. Degradation of the air, waterways and countryside becomes a bigger concern than finding food and shelter to someone who has been elevated from poverty to the middle class.
2. Students Burn NZ Flag – Police are considering charging three students from Victoria University, who allegedly burnt a New Zealand flag. The law that makes such a charge possible is the Flags, Emblems and Names Protection Act, which makes it an offence to damage or destroy the New Zealand flag if the intention is to dishonour it. The police should actually be considering laying charges against the parliamentarians who passed this Act, as it plainly breaches the Bill of Rights Act’s protection of freedom of speech and expression. Because crimes require that objective harm be done to others, the onus should be on the alleged victims to come forward and demonstrate just how they have suffered injury when a flag is incinerated. Let us hope these students also burn their census forms in 2011.
3. Western Ring Road Dooms 365 Houses – Transport Minister Steve Joyce thinks a plan for the state to evict the occupants of 365 houses in the Mt Albert electorate is a “fair balance between the needs of the local community and those of the country and economy”. Evidently, the rights of the owners of those 365 homes don’t come into the equation at all. And at the Mt Albert by-election candidates meeting on Tuesday night, only Libertarianz nominee Julian Pistorius reminded the audience that property rights are important; it is now apparent that the National Party and ACT regard property rights as an impediment to ‘progress’.
4. New Zealand May Reverse Stance On Indigenous Peoples – National are now going somewhere even Helen Clark wouldn’t go – they may endorse the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which on perusal of the document itself appears to legitimize, sanction and protect such quaint practices as female circumcision, slavery and cannabilism. Special taxpayer-funded rights are accorded the so-called ‘indigenous peoples’, all in the name of equality. This is simply disgusting.
5. Bashing The Banks – An opinion piece in the Christchurch Press recognizes that banks are a commercial venture and as such have a right to make a profit for their shareholders. The writer points out the fierce competition in retail banking that is forcing some banks to increase their deposit interest rates in the face of pressure from the Reserve Bank to lower interest rates in order to “stimulate” the economy (as if that was a legitimate government function). The article notes that very few of us have much idea of the financial status of trading banks on a day to day basis, and as author David Hargreaves says, “Who would be happy depositing money with a loss making bank?”. Unfortunately he spoils things at the end by backing the RB’s calls for banks to lower interest rates, when wiser heads have called for the government to leave banks alone and let them manage interest rates in whatever way the banks think is best for their shareholders.

See y’all next week!
Doc McGrath