55 Comments
Aug 13Liked by Nick Rockel

Tax Cuts were not for us. Ours if we got one, was a token. The largess went to those who are landlords or those who consider they should have more as an entitlement by way of already being rich.

The realisation of what has been "taken away" echoes loudly in the comments. Which means the last Government did a lot. Not as quickly as we wanted, so we turned on them, believing the lies and spin. Not all of us, just enough to bring this awful Coc in. Let us join together, and chuck them out.

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author

Well said! That's a great summation of what happened.

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Aug 14Liked by Nick Rockel

Agree with you Patricia. The thing that distresses me the most is that no one appears to be very upset by this continual onslaught.

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I think we're being worn down, Patricia. Every day, some fresh horror.

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Yes Patricia, we need to join together & chuck them out.

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Yes indeed Patricia!!

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Aug 13Liked by Nick Rockel

I would rather everybody's tax cuts had gone towards ensuring that hospital Accident and Emergency departments can actually deal with accidents and emergencies. Or any of a long list of other shortcomings in the health service.

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Aug 13Liked by Nick Rockel

I am pretty sure that the ‘we team’ unanimously support more useful spending on the important things the government should be doing, rather than an increase in our pocket money. Bilbo is only partly correct, racism was just a nice side hustle for smashing Three Waters, keeping the privatisation door open is the big goal.

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How insightful you are Keith! I agree!

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Super increased by a whopping $4.30 per fortnight...and there was me hoping to take up smoking again!

Last night I (along with about 99 others) attended a meeting in Whakatū to support the Top of the South team at Family Start.

Karen Chhour has cut funding to this incredible organisation that works to capacity on the smell of an oily rag. They are the ONLY organisation that has eyes on the babies in at-risk families. These cuts mean that their client base will drop by 44 families.....at risk, vulnerable families!! They have a wait list...so no 'underutilisation' here!

They also lose funding to travel to the further reaches of their area (Bainham, Murchison etc) to visit rural and isolated families. They also lose funding for interpreter services for migrant and refugee families.

Without Family Start babies are going to be at more risk from harm and mortality. Across the country 107 social workers could lose their jobs!

Chhour says that Oranga Tamariki contracts have been a 'cash cow' for many community organisations. For fuck's sake!!

So.......a bit of a segue there...but HOW DARE they not fund this organisation and chortle smugly about my $4.30 fortnightly increase.

Off to email Chhour!

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Chhour is obviously way out of her depth, and relates everything to her own negative experience. She is rather a sad case, and like so many others in this Coalition, lacks even a shred of empathy or understanding.

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Stay strong! Love your attitude Katie!!

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Aug 13Liked by Nick Rockel

My pension increased by $4.30 per fortnight. My first thought was a mad spending spree, then head overruled heart and I thought if I save it, with compound interest, I'll double my money in 14 years. YIPPEE

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Aug 13Liked by Nick Rockel

Just checked Luxon’s Facebook page and most people are thoroughly pissed off with the meagre tax relief. Everyone is hurting. My husband and I are both 72, I work part time and he works 4 days a week as we couldn’t live on the pension alone. We are both retiring at the end of the year and we will have to sell up and relocate to survive.

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very sorry you have to do that.....

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Good luck Marilynn!

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Aug 13Liked by Nick Rockel

My $4.30 a fortnight is no recompense for the daily shower of bad news I have to ensure from this government every day. Their promise to make meaningful additions to our back pockets was nothing but a hooked chip on a string to catch gulls.

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Aug 13Liked by Nick Rockel

I got $2.15 aweek. I had to clean my glasses to see it.

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Aug 13Liked by Nick Rockel

But I assume all the Newstalk ZB folk are ecstatic? NZF voter base seem awfully quiet? And I guess all the deprived/depraved ACT supporters are still overseas enjoying their European summer to bother contacting their accountants...

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Meanwhile Luxon is gonna get a sweet $600k capital gain from selling a rental property in Onehunga. Tax the rich!

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Thats coming with the next Government, may it be sooner than later.

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I pay provisional tax which is based on last years income so nada for me unless I get a refund next July, which i doubt. Willis keeps going on about hard working families getting relief which pisses me right off, like the rest of us don’t mean shit. Regardless I want our doctors, nurses, teachers and police paid properly and don’t give a flying about a $20 tax cut.

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I was pondering last night in that space where you are falling asleep ...........after having watched news and think'n about all the schmuckery in the world, including this shite government..........I was thinking about what this new era that the world seems to be existing in............what would we call it or it be called by history. Law means nothing, money talks, justice seems like a dream, the wrong characters get to do what they like on the world stage...................we the people duped by rules and processes have no voice or one dimminished.................we have fools in power........making huge decisions that impact the future................you know the names and situations at home and worldwide that apply here..........................so what will this age we live in be called in hindsight..........coz what worked and was right before..................taint necessarily so any more. Long time gone. Anyone else out there on terra firma wonder bout this...........

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Me also although when trying to go off to sleep it's harmful to dwell too much on how much we've lost our way as a once communal species because of being duped by selfish soulless clan "leaders"! (the US hopefully may right itself come November but horribly we've got another 3 years of our own clusterf...ck to endure!) ... to your question - perhaps it could be called "The Age of Toxic Neoliberalism"

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Good call Vicky......I must look up the definition of that. Have a vague idea, have heard it for yonks.

The other question to, associated with what this time will come to be labelled as................the other question is ......what will the next period be known as........what will it be? How will the pendulum swing?

All this makes sense as to why in the face of no man/human being an island..........I just keep to myself, stay home, create and work on being.............but in these places I am a keyboard warrior......but not all day....and still off FB......ain't going back.

Thanks for engaging Vicky. Hope other peeps have thoughts too.

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Yes I'm always wondering about that & not to comfortable about it every where you look there's too much power in the wrong hands 😦😦 😦

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founding

My wife got 5.20 more per fortnight in her pension, no change for mine, but my full time salary went up 20 per week. So the winners are those on 180k plus. The very ones who don't need it got it. Freaking madness. The economy works better if more money goes the poor than the rich. Not rocket science

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Yep, got $4.32 (fortnight) and a hefty rates increase as well - I'd far rather pay a bit more tax so that we have a functioning health and education system.

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Aug 13Liked by Nick Rockel

My super this fortnight was exactly the same as last time. What's that about??

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So was mine. I do still work part time and my pay from that job increased by $3.34 a fortnight so I’m assuming that’s my tax cut. I had every intention of donating mine to Kids Can but it’s such a small amount it almost seems like an insult

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founding

I think he’s just milking his little present and hoping for applause…it started on 31 July.

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Agree with all of those who would rather have seen the tax cuts used for so many other social supports. Reading your posts Nick is always a great boost to my positive feelings for the day because of all the like minded readers and their comments. However I have a real concern that until the MSM are hurt in some way by this COC then the messages getting to the majority out there are not those you post. This horrible lot could be re-elected by those who like punishing beneficiaries and believe tough on crime rhetoric, amongst other awful policies, because of a lack of challenge and fact checking by our so called journalists. Really hope I am wrong though.

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