28 Comments
May 24Liked by Nick Rockel

Gerard is amazing, we had just read that piece and it made us sick to the stomach. Where oh where is the media in all this? Wouldn’t you be really embarrassed to call yourself a journalist and see nothing at all!

Expand full comment

Great point Keith!!

Expand full comment

Thanks G and Nick. This morning I've been spewing over Shane Jone's meeting at Blackball. According to some, workers were given a paid day off to attend by their bosses. But he couldn't stop for a minute to pay respects at the Wheel of Remembrance in Blackball to the 29 dead miners at Pike River. The whole thing was sickening and of course deliberate, given that Blackball is "the home" of the Labour Party where workers fought for meals and rest breaks. Bet he didn't tell those workers (if there were any) in the audience his government is coming after their sick leave, their public holidays and their annual leave via Brooke van Velden. Oh and no sign of Maureen Pugh!

Expand full comment

What is going on with miners on the Coast now??? I've visited the Wheel of Remembrance - it is a very emotional experience to read about the travesties dealt to miners and their families by absent Mine Owners and the various mine disasters numbering in the 100's of miners who have lost their lives. To think that miners now don't vote for or are instructed to vote against Labour. For heavens sake all the health and safety measures they have ( and still need massive improvement ) were at the behest of Labour Governments. No doubt you will be aware of this - https://newsroom.co.nz/2024/02/23/big-coal-company-bought-west-coast-election-campaign/. I'm unsurprised about Jones behaviour and no doubt he is laughing to himself about " using " Blackball for his propaganda show. He needs to be gone.

Expand full comment

Hadn't seen that Newsroom article, so thanks. The mining union these days is E Tu. I suspect their membership is quite small, but don't really know. Long history ; miners union amalgamated with the NZ Workers Union which went bust under the employment contracts act. Then with Electrical Workers, which became CEWU, which also went bust. EPMU (now E Tu) took over a lot of their workers, including Post Office & Telecoms. It's sad to see a once proud union reduced to having workers shepherded off to meetings to be told how to vote in meetings by their bosses. I keep in touch with Sonya Rockhouse and Anna Osborne from Pike and there's a film being made about them. I remember being at the memorial at Greymouth Racecourse, with John Key, Kate Wilkinson and Peter Whittle on the stage, while the families and EPMU were down below. The whole H & S reforms were because of their tragic loss which now that Brooke van Velden seeks to undo. Have to say Damien appears to have released his working class self in opposition ; he's been really good in debates.

Expand full comment
May 25·edited May 25

Thanks Darien. There is a wonderful tribute song to the Pike River men and the tragedy Called " 29 Diamonds " by the late Bernie Griffen - a powerfully moving and wonderful song. I post it every year on 19/11 on my FB page and it always brings tears to the eyes and I think this is a good thing. Damien was possibly the first Labour MP to outright call out Israel for their ongoing Genocide in Gaza...while many others in Labour have been sadly a bit quiet. Good on him - I just loved it when he told Jenna to F... Off when he need to go to the loo. Great stuff indeed.

Expand full comment

Thank you Darien great to have your well informed perspective.

Expand full comment

Probably not invited, as no opposition members were invited either. A closed crooked shop.

Expand full comment

I see else where Forest and Bird were not allowed in.

Expand full comment
May 25Liked by Nick Rockel

Who would have thought the word "corruption" could be applied to Aotearoa politics? I'm in mourning for our lost innocence...

Expand full comment
May 25Liked by Nick Rockel

Good Nick, I also read Gerrard's piece. Corrupt is the term that is usually applied to the USA political system, NZ prided herself in being pretty honest. All this change that has been deliberately engineered over fairly recent time signaled by David Seymore with his Ti Tiriti rhetoric.

Expand full comment

I wondered where the pains in my stomach this year were coming from. It just hit me with another wave. Swallowing rot, that's what's doing it; seeing corruption, reading about corruption. All the rot forced down our throats by this government.

Expand full comment
founding
May 25Liked by Nick Rockel

I wonder if societies get the government they deserve? I think the 1% have what they want but the rest of us not so much.

Expand full comment

We get the Govt WE deserve, if we do not take action, non-violent, but by volume - by the number of people, we can complain, but if we do not act, put our name in the hat, then WE are guilty!

Expand full comment
May 25Liked by Nick Rockel

Thanks Nick, for letting us see Gs revealing summary of the evil in our midst, and for your own, always appreciated, daily contributions to our sanity….🍀❤️

Expand full comment

Yes we need to keep supporting the likes of Nick and Gerrad

Expand full comment
May 25Liked by Nick Rockel

Feeling sick to my stomach and powerless. Where is decent journalism.

Expand full comment
May 25Liked by Nick Rockel

Meanwhile, behind the scenes, what is Shonkey Donkey up to? He can only be the puppet master for Luxon et al for so long.......

Expand full comment

Shonkey has been quiet since some shareholders of one of the companies he is a director of have place sued him for insider trading last week. However his hand and others are certainly about in this puppet coalition team. Shonkey's link to Panama papers and the link to money laundering while he was PM was probably the beginning of the awakening to corruption at high levels.

This coalition government seems totally overt in its cronyism and advocacy of its sponsors desires and products. It is a daily dose of wtf moments. It is indeed sickening. Shane and David are overt in their vendettas against perceived past wrongs. So yes thank you Nick & G for the time you spend assisting us to see the big picture of what's going down.

Expand full comment
May 25·edited May 25

It would make my year for Shonkey and his cronies to be found to have been involved in a little book cooking. What they're accused of isn't, unfortunately, a criminal action but it might just be enough to sow the seeds of doubt in the minds of those who voted the coalition into Government. Fingers crossed!!

Expand full comment

Faint hope, I fear... but hey he has always been a crooked as the day is long

Expand full comment
May 25·edited May 25

Thanks Nick. I am an avid follower of G News and recommend that everyone reads his extensive analysis and breakdown of what really is going on in Aotearoa. HIs deep and thorough research into everything we don't hear from the MSM is admirable and highly recommended reading. Along with yourself, Brian Bruce and Gordon Campbell there is a barren wasteland of truth or left leaning news out there. Occasionally Newsroom will do an expose of some of the corrupt practices going on at what seems an ever increasing and alarming rate. It is going to take years to fix what this Coalition is ( un ) doing. Progressive changes that have taken years and years to achieve, fixing the damage, and underfunding of vital social services that National Governments have previously inflicted on this country. I don't know what you get after things go from Bad to Worse but we are achieving that at incredible pace ( sorry for the Eggism ).

Expand full comment

Thank you for sharing this utterly depressing summary of what has happened after just 6 months Nick. After watching Thomas Mead interview Rob Penney I wondered why other reporters don't question our MP's with the same level of scrutiny. That is the only way a wider audience will understand the level of corruption that is being perpetrated.

Expand full comment

Seems like this government take their lead from the USA & look at that shit show I'm really concerned their going to sign up to AUKUS huge bloody mistake.

Expand full comment

I get the impression there is a lot of synchronous thinking "Floating" in the air, for NZ and the World? Keep it up please Nick it is gaining momentum I feel sure. Of our 3-headed PM, I had the thought, one despised, one unqualified, and one discounted, could be a competition question?

A Burgess economic advisor for LL, but he said he knew it all! Why do we still use the Cost of Living misinformation phrase, it is actually an Inequality crisis! Then, the blaring Conflict of Interest, that is a Civil Law issue, not police, not parliament, (they may investigate, but they will do nothing as they are the very people at fault)! The Wolf guarding the chicken house. People can take on the MP's with a Civil Action case, 40% of the voting population putting $5 each would be $6 million, a substantial legal challenge. Might even get into the news, and support from some other parties.

Expand full comment

Very nasty smell in politics at the moment. It has the whiff of rotten dirty profiteering and privatization. So many sly snouts in the trough and meddling with legislation (except for Shame Jones who is so arrogant he fails to cover his tracks and opens his big mouth because he's under the illussion hes some great orator). Also please remember to support both Gerard and Nick!

Expand full comment

Thanks for sharing G news Nick, will definitely be checking in. It seems the subscription model is now the only way we can access truth and accuracy but so many won’t/can’t pay for journalism. I would love to see a subscription drive for The Guardian who could in turn feature a ‘NZ Desk’.. a double page from contributors such as yourself and me Otto. I totally get how some are being made sick from “swallowing the rot” from this CoC (that word) government and the smug supercilious way they are going about tearing the place down. So utterly dumb and reckless, and there for all to see.. surely those swing voters see it too

Expand full comment