nznews

Saturday 5th July 08.   I suggest government starts listening to the people. Their lives are at risk if they don't. Most of us won't lift a finger but there's always the ones who will.

Shoppers with cash to spare stand to gain from a growing retail downturn, as stores discount in droves to lure customers back. Consumers have closed their wallets this year because increased living costs are squeezing household budgets. Retailers have responded by starting their annual winter sales early - and with bargains galore. A Weekend Herald survey found heavy discounting, with savings of up to $1100 for big-ticket items and 50 per cent reductions common in clothing stores.
The offers include $500 off a Sanyo 42-inch LCD TV which would usually sell for $1499 at The Warehouse, an Acer notebook selling for $599 at Bond and Bond, and a Smeg stainless steel range for $2449 - a drop of $1100 - at Kitchen'Things. I don't need a TV or stove. A three litre wine cask will do.                   Article

About 4,400 trucks took part in a stand-off on Friday which slowed down much of New Zealand and blockaded 13 cities and towns around the country in a protest against road-user charges. Police praised motorists for their co-operation during the peak-time protests. Road Transport Forum Chief Executive Officer Tony Friedlander says to have nearly 20% of New Zealand's commercial transport fleet on the road in support of the forum's position is a stunning result. Convoys of trucks drove into town and city centres to demonstrate their anger at the way the government's higher Road User Charges were brought in. Transport operators say the government raised the charges without warning after promising to give them notice. There's a container full of ears arriving at the Beehive. The politicians will need to lean how to use them.         Article

A NZ First staffer likely to face police scrutiny in a test of new electoral laws has received hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars for a job many in his party know almost nothing about. Tommy Gear, a close friend of party leader Winston Peters, is expected to be questioned by police following an alleged breach of the Electoral Finance Act. The case is the first under the controversial new law governing political party advertising to have been referred to police by the Electoral Commission.
Mr Gear is likely to be questioned about NZ First banners that were strung from the remains of his property in Maxwells Rd, Tauranga, in April. Mr Gear has been employed by the Parliamentary Service, which administers Parliament, from as early as 1998. He has occasionally used his black Mercedes to chauffeur Mr Peters and carry his bags - but what else Mr Gear has done for a salary in some years of up to $50,000 is a mystery to many party officials.    Jobs for the boys at the tax payer's expense?    Article

Around two thousand truckies converged on Auckland city today in protest against increased road user charges. Trucks started coming into the city at 7am and circled around Nelson St, Queen St, Hobson St and Symonds St. One truck carried a red car wreck saying “Annett [sic] King lies.”
Many truckies had posted the sign “All good things come by truck” in their cabs. Motorways heading into Auckland were a lot more congested than a usual Friday morning. The Southern motorway was the most jammed with trucks taking up all lanes earlier in the morning and bringing traffic to a crawl.
Sadly, politicians lack the gumption to understand simple logic.                     Article