US NEWS: REED CONTINUES TO LEAD MX SERIES

Diposkan oleh Pengetahuan dan Pengalaman on Tuesday, June 30, 2009


Rockstar Makita Suzuki Factory Racing's Chad Reed battled the elevation as well as his competitors at Colorado's Thunder Valley MX Park and came away with his overall championship points lead intact.

The two-time AMA Supercross champion finished in fourth place overall, thanks to third and seventh-placed moto finishes. Rockstar Makita Suzuki team mate Michael Byrne was right there with Reed, finishing in fifth place overall. The Australian rode two impressive motos, bringing home sixth and fourth finishes.

Finally, an injured Mike Alessi attempted to race the first moto but crashed early and was unable to finish. Alessi recently had successful surgery on his broken kneecap and hopes to resume racing full-time as soon as possible.

In the 250 class, Rockstar Makita Suzuki's Ryan Dungey finished with identical results to his 450 class team mate Byrne. In the first moto, Dungey overcame a bad start to go from 21st to sixth place on his Rockstar Makita Suzuki RM-Z250. In the second moto, the Minnesotan fared better on the start and brought home a fourth-place finish. Dungey is currently second overall in the championship points standings.

Chad Reed:

"I got a good start, actually a great start, in the first moto, then I went out and rode like crap out there. It's pretty disappointing. I've been struggling all day long. In the second moto, I was still struggling. I'm dealing with some personal issues that I just have no control over and it's tough. But I've got to say thanks to all the guys at the Rockstar Makita Suzuki team."

Michael Byrne:

"It was a pretty good weekend for us. I had a good practice again this week, which was good for me. I was a little bummed in the first moto because I was in third at one point and then some guys got by me. But I'm still making progress, so I can't be too disappointed. I have to look at where I'm coming from. In the second moto, I rode strong. I just need to work on a little more speed so I can run with the guys at the front."

Mike Alessi:

"I wanted to get back in the championship because there's still a lot of races to go and motos to be raced and the championship isn't out of reach. So I just wanted to try and get some points this weekend. In the first moto, I got a great start - I think I was second or third right off the gate, but a few guys got past and they were running a fast pace. I was trying to stay with them but I went down and my first thought was my knee. I thought about trying to make the second moto, because that's just my mentality - even after I crashed I tried to do a few laps -- but it just hurt too much."

Ryan Dungey:

"It was a tough race and the altitude definitely played a part, but everybody had to deal with it - no excuses. Where I really threw it away was on the starts. I just couldn't get off the line like I wanted to and that set me back. But overall, I came out of this race healthy and I finished both motos, even though I've struggled here in the past. Now I'm just looking toward Red Bud."

AMA Motocross 450 Class Top 10:

1. Ivan Tedesco (Honda)
2. Andrew Short (Honda)
3. Thomas Hahn (Kawasaki)
4. Chad Reed (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
5. Michael Byrne (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
6. Josh Grant (Yamaha)
7. Ricky Dietrich (Kawasaki)
8. James Albertson (Yamaha)
9. Kyle Summers (Yamaha)
10. Jake Moss (Honda)

Championship points: http://www.suzuki-racing.com/championship_points.aspx?SRS_ID=2


AMA Motocross 250 Class Top 10:

1. Jake Weimer (Kawasaki)
2. Christophe Pourcel (Kawasaki)
3. Tommy Searle (KTM)
4. Justin Barcia (Honda)
5. Ryan Dungey (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
6. Broc Tickle (Yamaha)
7. Brett Metcalfe (Honda)
8. Blake Wharton (Honda)
9. Tyla Rattray (Kawasaki)
10. Darryn Durham (Yamaha)
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US NEWS: WIMMER AND GUST DOMINATE MUDDY CREEK

Diposkan oleh Pengetahuan dan Pengalaman

Rockstar Makita Suzuki Racing's Dustin Wimmer and Doug Gust celebrated their first double podium of the season at the weekend's Muddy Creek AMA ATV Motocross National in Blountville in Tennessee.

Wimmer piloted his Rockstar Makita Suzuki QuadRacer R450 to victory while team mate Gust followed him home in second place. This victory is Wimmer's fourth of the 2009 season and he is currently in second place in the overall championship points standings. For Gust, this result marks his third podium finish of the season and he is in fourth place in the overall championship
points standings.

In the GNCC, Rockstar Makita Suzuki Racing's Chris Borich continues his winning ways: The series championship points leader charged hard on his Rockstar Makita Suzuki QuadRacer R450 at the Snowshoe National in West Virginia and picked up his fourth consecutive victory of the season.

As if that weren't impressive enough, this win is also Borich's sixth overall win this season and Borich now heads into the GNCC's two-month summer break with more than 20 points on second place.

Dustin Wimmer - 1st place AMA ATV MX:

"It feels great to be back on top. In the first moto, once I got the track down, I just put my head down and started passing people on my Rockstar Makita Suzuki QuadRacer R450. I had to work hard for the win in the first moto but in moto two, I got a much better start and I was able to take over the lead quickly and just be in cruise control. This win was a real confidence-booster for me. I put in a lot of hard work and it paid off for me this weekend. I'm still only at about 95 per cent but I'll be at 100 per cent for round nine and I'm looking for another win. I'm only about seven points off the lead and I hope to take over that soon and give Suzuki another championship."

Doug Gust - 2nd place AMA ATV MX:

"My Rockstar Makita Suzuki performed really well for me this weekend. It had the power I needed to get good starts and good results. I put in a good charge in the first moto and worked up to second. I've been doing a lot of training in between races and I'll be training hard again because at the next round, I want to win. It's really great when Dustin and I are both on the podium in the number one and two spots like we were this weekend. It's a big confidence-booster for the team when we both do well. I'm in fourth place in the points chase right now, so I'm excited about that."

Chris Borich - 1st place GNCC:

"The track was a little different from the last time I raced here. They added in a 10-mile section so we were doing 20-mile laps. I took it easy on my Rockstar Makita Suzuki QuadRacer R450 on the first lap because I didn't know what to expect. My goal was to keep moving forward. I'm really happy that I have a nice points lead going into the break. It takes a little weight off my shoulders. Over the break, I'm going to take a couple of weeks off to relax, and then I'm going to be training hard again.

"The prospect of taking a championship this year has me really pumped up, but I have to stay grounded and focused. I'm just going to take it one race at a time. I'm hoping for a couple more wins when we come back from the break so I can give Suzuki a championship,"

AMA Pro ATV Motocross Top 10 Finishers:

1. Dustin Wimmer (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
2. Doug Gust (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
3. Chad Wienen (Kawasaki)
4. Jeremy Lawson (Can-Am)
5. Josh Upperman (Honda)
6. Harold Goodman (Honda)
7. Jeremie Warnia (Can-Am)
8. Cody Miller (Can-Am)
9. Joe Byrd (Honda)
10. Thomas Brown (Yamaha)

AMA GNCC XC1 Top 10 Finishers:

1. Chris Borich (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
2. Bill Balance (Yamaha)
3. Brandon Sommers (Yamaha)
4. Jarrod McClure (Yamaha)
5. Bryan Cook (Honda)
6. Donald Ockerman (Yamaha)
7. Chris Bithell (Can-Am)
8. Ryan Lane (Honda)
9. Taylor Kiser (Yamaha)
10. Duane Johnson (Honda)
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Diposkan oleh Pengetahuan dan Pengalaman

Foreshore and seabed law should be scrapped


No surprise. The ministerial review of the Foreshore and Seabed Act found the legislation to be deficient in that it was biased against Maori and failed to recognise property rights. The report is 160-odd pages and I`ll comment on it after I have read it. The Government will take a couple of months to formally respond, no doubt, but Minister Findlayson has said that public access to the beaches is not going to be an issue. Never should have been. Even if Maori customary title was to convert into freehold title, parts of the Foreshore and Seabed would not have to come under Maori control, and public access to beaches would never be restricted. As Tariana Turia has said:
Public access could have been protected previous to this legislation though using the Te Ture Whenua Maori Act and the RMA. We didn’t need to have a piece of legislation that took away the customary rights of hapu to enable people to have those access rights – they are there in law and New Zealanders have right of navigation and access to all areas of the beach.
The press conference with leaders of the Maori Party is here.
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Academics and wasting money


I have a lot of respect for academics like Brian Roper and Andrew Geddes but find it interesting that on one hand they state that the smacking citizens initiated referendum - which has no legal impact whatsoever - is an "absolutely appalling waste of money" and the money should be given to CYFS, but on the other hand the question should be better worded.

If the question was better worded, wouldn't the referendum still be a $9 million waste of money if direct democracy has no legal impact?

For that matter, is the Families Commission a waste of money - its budget is $9 million - if it has no legal impact? Have I just identified some reallocation that could go to CYFS so that more real families can be investigated for smacking their kids?

Update
Family First's Bob McCoskrie has the answer. The money can come from the MSD in the first place. It's all budged for. Now all we need to do is fire the nosy CYFS managers who tell their social workers to investigate alleged smacking.
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NATE ADAMS WINS 3RD STAGE OF RED BULL X FIGHTERS

Diposkan oleh Pengetahuan dan Pengalaman on Monday, June 29, 2009


Double Backflip Comes to Cow Town!
American rider Nate Adams claimed victory at the third stop of the Red Bull X-Fighters World Tour 2009 in Fort Worth (Texas, USA) on Saturday night. In the Lone Star State 22,000 fans witnessed an FMX sensation as Cameron Sinclair (AUS) landed two double backflips in competition and rode off with third place.

Red Bull X-Fighters World Tour 2009 / Fort Worth / USA / 2009

FORT WORTH (USA). BIG, BIGGER, TEXAS!

It was a night of intense action on the 4,200 m³ of dirt that made up the huge course comprising 15 different kickers catapulting the riders 15 metres into the air and 40 metres across the arena. At the start of the event the crowd fell silent as Thomas Pagès (FRA) became the first man to attempt a frontflip in competition before losing control of his bike and hitting the ground hard. The Frenchman had to be taken off to have a hip injury examined by the medical team.

While stifling 41-degree heat in Texas got the European riders in particular somewhat hot under the collar, Australian Cameron Sinclair managed to keep cool. The 24-year-old from Melbourne landed two double backflips in the main event. “There has never been a double backflip in competition before. I don’t really care about the fact I was eliminated in the semis – I’m just happy I’m more or less healthy!” The man from Down Under had to be helped off his bike after both tricks as the hard landing from a height of 10 metres had resulted in serious bruising of the Australian’s bones.

Mat Rebeaud (SUI) benefitted from Sinclair’s injury and advanced to the Final where he came up against the man who was ultimately to win the event, Nate Adams, after he had defeated Japanese rider Eigo Sato in his semi-final.

Winner of the last Tour stop in Calgary, Robbie Maddison, showed that Texas is a place for real men. The Australian dislocated a shoulder after landing heavily before then popping it back in himself. “I couldn’t stop. The fans were just phenomenal and I really wanted to show one more trick,” explained the holder of several world records as he finished fifth on the night.

Winner Nate Adams underlined the status of the event: “Red Bull X-Fighters is the very top of FMX. There is nothing like winning against such world-class athletes.”

Eigo Sato now leads the overall standing of the international FMX tour with 215 points, closely followed by Mat Rebeaud (210 points) and Robbie Maddison (145 points). Despite their strong position in the table, both Sato and Rebeaud are still without a win in the 2009 season.

Since the first ever World Tour in 2007 the Red Bull X-Fighters have been kicking up a storm with spectacular tricks in the bullfighting arenas of Mexico City (MEX) and Madrid (ESP) or in the legendary Sambodromo in Rio de Janeiro (BRA). The World Tour 2009 continues in Madrid (ESP/16/17 July 2009) before the season finale in London (GBR/22 August 2009).

Red Bull
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AUS CHAMPS: MERRIMAN BACK TO HIS BEST

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Ballard's Wellard Yamaha's Stefan Merriman displays the skill and determination that has delivered him four career world endurance titles as he easily claimed victory at rounds 5 and 6 of the Yamaha Australian Off Road Championship (AORC) at Murray Bridge on the weekend.

Ballard's Wellard Yamaha's Stefan Merriman displayed the skill and determination that has delivered him four career world endurance titles as he easily claimed victory at rounds 5 and 6 of the Yamaha Australian Off Road Championship (AORC) at Murray Bridge on the weekend.

The result marks his second clean sweep of a dual-round weekend - he won rounds 1 and 2 at the beginning of the season.

A niggling shoulder injury was the only factor threatening to slow his charge on the WR450F, but he fought through the discomfort and relished the challenge of racing a sand-based track in the sprint format.

Merriman made a slow start to the weekend, admittedly struggling early on Saturday morning.

He stayed with the leader and found a rhythm which would help him make back significant ground in the closing stages.

A sub nine-minute lap, some 13 seconds quicker than the second-placed rider, helped to secure the outright round 5 and Pro E2 class wins.

Riding the momentum from Saturday afternoon, Merriman charged away in the opening heat and was never challenged.

He set the quickest time in each of the 8 sprint laps and secured his fourth outright victory of the year by a margin of over a minute.

"I started pretty slowly on Saturday and left myself with a lot of work to do to make up ground," said Merriman. "The bike was awesome, I pushed as hard as I could and found the rhythm to take back the lead before the day was out.

"The sprint format was tough and it was hard work to line up for another 8 laps on Sunday.

"I felt good and got away to a better start, it was then all about keeping the other guys behind me and being consistent.

"Everything worked well this weekend and I'm happy to come away and extend my championship lead."

Another maximum points weekend sees the 35-year-old make solid ground over his closest competition in the race for the 2009 title.

Merriman is now 21 points clear of second place in outright terms, and maintains a similar comfortable lead in the Pro E2 class on his WR450F.

Teammate and fellow Pro E2 frontrunner, Jarrod Bewley endured an uncharacteristic weekend, finishing fifth and sixth outright on Saturday and Sunday respectively.

Bewley enjoyed solid speed and was laying down laps comparable with the top 3, but when a few small mistakes crept in he lost touch with the leaders.

A consistent season to date ensures the New South Welshman is still strongly-placed in the championship standings.

He is now third, with 116 points to his name, and just a single point shy of second place.

"It's disappointing to drop a place but there's still four rounds to go and a lot of racing ahead of us," said Bewley.

"I felt pretty good but wasn't at my fastest on the sand, the WR450F worked well and kept me in the hunt with some good laps along the way.

"I'm looking forward to the next round up in Queensland, it's good to have another new track on the calendar."

Pro E1 class contender, the WR250F-mounted Kirk Hutton delivered two solid second place finishes to retain his position in the championship.

He was quick off the mark on Saturday morning and stayed with class leader Ben Kearney for the opening laps before opting for a more consistent approach to hold down second.

He scored similar results on Sunday to record his fifth consecutive second-place of the season.

The Queenslander is just 12 points off the lead with four rounds remaining.

Josh Ballard was a major improver over the course of the Murray Bridge weekend, coming to grips with the challenging sandy surface and challenging within the Pro E3 top 5 as the event came to a close.

On Saturday he placed eighth, with a few small mistakes putting pay to a potential top 5.

He bounced back on Sunday, charging back up the timesheets on his WR480F to finish a comfortable fifth, a position he maintains on the championship ladder.

After six rounds of competition Ballard has amassed 91 points, and is just 5 points off fourth place with two more weekends remaining.

Geoff Ballard maintained his unbeaten run in the Masters class, clearing out with a series of quick early laps each morning to cruise home for victory.

The majority of his laps were over a minute-and-a-half clear of his closest class rivals, resulting in round wins by over 5 minutes and 8 minutes on Saturday and Sunday respectively.

He has claimed every possible point to date in 2009 and moves to a perfect 150 after round 6.

Ben Burrell's domination of the Junior classes looked set to continue after he took another convincing win on Saturday and another maximum points haul for the round.

A rare mechanical problem saw his run come to an end on Sunday, only able to complete 4 of the 5 laps.

Burrell is still strongly-placed in the outright standings by virtue of his five round wins from six outings.

He is second, just 8 points off the leader with 100 points still up for grabs across the remainder of the season.

Liam Robertson recorded his best dual-round finish of the season, scoring fourth on Saturday and fifth on Sunday.

He is sixth in the Expert outright championship and only single figures shy of the top 4.

Yamaha's domination of the Women's championship continued at Murray Bridge, however it was Jemma Wilson who took the spoils ahead of Alison Parker.

The pairing of WR250F riders have enjoyed an evenly-matched battle to date.

Parker took two from two at the opening event, with Wilson a close runner-up.

Round wins were split at Blayney, and this weekend it was Wilson's turn to stand atop the podium.

Both riders have 141 points after six rounds, with AWED's Jacqui Jones placed third on 120 points.

Dimity Duke recorded another two equal-best round finishes, placing fourth on Saturday and Sunday to move into fourth on the championship ladder.

The next two rounds of the Yamaha AORC will be contested at Cherrabah Resort near Warwick in Queensland on August 15 and 16.

Yamaha AORC Round 5 Outright

1. Stefan Merriman (Yamaha WR450F)
2. Toby Price
3. Peter Boyle
4. AJ Roberts
5. Jarrod Bewley (Yamaha WR450F)
6. Chris Hollis
7. Ben Kearney
8. Ben Grabham
9. Geoff Braico
10. Jehi Willis

Yamaha AORC Round 6 Outright

1. Stefan Merriman (Yamaha WR450F)
2. Toby Price
3. Peter Boyle
4. AJ Roberts
5. Ben Kearney
6. Jarrod Bewley (Yamaha WR450F)
7. Geoff Braico
8. Ben Grabham
9. Chris Hollis
10. Blake Hore

Yamaha AORC Championship Outright

1. Stefan Merriman, 138 (Yamaha WR450F)
2. AJ Roberts, 117
3. Jarrod Bewley, 116 (Yamaha WR450F)
4. Toby Price, 114
5. Ben Grabham, 94
6. Chris Hollis, 90
7. Ben Kearney, 85
8. Peter Boyle, 79
9. Kirk Hutton, 67 (Yamaha WR250F)
10. Geoff Braico, 60

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TRIUMPH'S FIRST PODIUM OF THE MODERN ERA

Diposkan oleh Pengetahuan dan Pengalaman on Sunday, June 28, 2009


One for the Triumph Fans.
WSS'09 Round 9 | Donington Park, race day.
Team ParkinGO Triumph BE1 Racing scores a great result in Triumph's home round with as Garry McCoy puts on great performance to take the first podium for the brand in modern era. It is a historic result for the English manufacturer in their second World Supersport season.

The Australian rider got a good start and took fourth place, a position he maintained until halfway into the race when he managed to overtake Sofuoglu. He then built a substantial advantage and finished on the podium. Nannelli did well too as he finished eighth although he jumped to twentieth place after the first lap. He did however pull off a great recovery and after six laps he was already eleventh. He then engaged in a duel with Veneman, Pitt, Vizziello & Dell'Omo for the sixth place. The tyres eventually worn off in the final part of the race and the Italian passed the checkered flag in eighth place thus improving the Misano result.

After today's results, McCoy is ninth in the riders' standings while Nannelli remains fifteenth.


GARRY McCOY | Triumph Daytona 675 | 3rd : "It feels great to be the first rider to score a podium result with a Triumph. I've been collaborating with the English manufacturer for two seasons now, but with Giuliano Rovelli's team only since the last round. We didn't start the season on the right foot but now we're score great results. I knew that sooner or later I would ride a great race. I have to thank the entire team for a good job done on the machine which is getting better and better. Now we broke the ice but there is still a long way to go in the championship".

GIULIANO ROVELLI - TEAM MANAGER:
"We scored a great result after setting up a great team who worked hard on this project. Garry did the rest today but everybody did a great job. This is the first podium for Triumph but it's a first for me as well and it's really an indescribable feeling. I asked Garry to finish the race before the others because I had a plane to catch and he almost made it...".

Race Standings:
1 35 Crutchlow C. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R6 34'15.876 (154,981 kph)
2 26 Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 5.391
3 24 McCoy G. (AUS) Triumph Daytona 675 14.918
4 54 Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Honda CBR600RR 22.248
5 50 Laverty E. (IRL) Honda CBR600RR 37.054
6 77 Veneman B. (NED) Honda CBR600RR 39.079
7 105 Vizziello G. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 39.978
8 69 Nannelli G. (ITA) Triumph Daytona 675 42.733
9 9 Dell'Omo D. (ITA) Honda CBR600RR 43.030
10 1 Pitt A. (AUS) Honda CBR600RR 47.422
11 4 Westmorland J. (GBR) Triumph Daytona 675 50.207
12 7 Vostárek P. (CZE) Honda CBR600RR 50.474
13 101 Coghlan K. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R6 50.763
14 6 Kennaugh H. (RSA) Yamaha YZF R6 58.147
15 51 Pirro M. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 59.756

Riders Standings:
1 C. Crutchlow GBR 185
2 E. Laverty IRL 157
3 K. Sofuoglu TUR 121
4 J. Lascorz ESP 106
5 A. Pitt AUS 79
6 A. West AUS 75
7 F. Foret FRA 63
8 M. Aitchison AUS 61
9 G. McCoy AUS 55
10 M. Pirro ITA 49
11 M. Roccoli ITA 40
12 B. Veneman NED 40
13 K. Fujiwara JPN 39
14 M. Lagrive FRA 38
15 G. Nannelli ITA 31

Bruno Sandrini
Press | Addetto stampa
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Diposkan oleh Pengetahuan dan Pengalaman on Saturday, June 27, 2009

When divorce is the wiser option


updated
No Right Turn has blogged on a report of a study conducted by Professor Kelly Musick and Dr Ann Meier of Cornell University on warring families whose parents have not yet split up because they still have kids at home - so divorce is the wiser option. Well, The Independent pretty much said that, so he uncritically accepted it. The news report actually said that the research was conducted among parents who stay together for the sake of the kids. "Stop Jimmy's mum and dad splitting, and Jimmy will be more likely to stay in school, on the right side of the law, and off drugs".

The research report - a revised 2008 report initially written in 2006 (which is perhaps why The Independent didn't link it, it's old news), noted that parental conflict does not appear to be associated with college attendance or early cohabitation. The report, Are Both Parents Always Better Than One? Parental Conflict and Young Adult Well-Being never implied that divorce is the wiser option, nor does it state that the parents interviewed were together purely for the sake of the kids.

It was actually a report on parental conflict, and in some instances compared two parent families with sole parent families. It was not research on whether parents plan to divorce because of that conflict. The report did, however say that children in two-parent families in the higher end of the conflict spectrum are often no better off than children in sole parent families. Unlike No Right Turn, the report did not say that these kids were considerably worse off, nor did it suggest that conflicting parents would be better to divorce.

Note to Idiot Savant at No Right Turn: Don't believe everything you read in The Independent, especially when it is opinion. Then you'll be less likely to report it as fact.
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Diposkan oleh Pengetahuan dan Pengalaman on Friday, June 26, 2009

Barnardos asks kids about smacking, and lies about the research


Barnardos have been interviewing children by phone to see what they think about getting smacked. The question they asked
Do you think that adults who are taken to court for hitting a child should be let off if they say they were disciplining the child?
Well, of course they shouldn't unless they were their caregivers. The kids had to push 1 if they should be let off 2 if they think they should not be let off, 3 if they don't know and 4 to hear the question again. Just over half said they should not be let off. Many probably didn't understand what " let off" meant- left off convicting is the assumption.Nor is it clear whether "adults" included strangers.

They interviewed stressed kids who called the Whats Up hotline, a hotline for kids to talk about anything they wish, including abuse. While the kid was waiting to speak to a real person, they were given an automated message with the above question. That's a little like asking turkeys on the 15 December whether they are looking forward to Christmas. There was only a 10% valid response rate.

Barnardos' media release says it asked kids about whether adults should be able to claim a legal defence for assault.

They lied. They asked if adults should be let off.But if these adults are not parents or caregivers of the smacked kid they never had a legal defence, ever. Let off means a case is dropped or they're discharged without conviction - not merely being found not guilty. The release also says:
Importantly, many of the callers suggested that parents should be let off with a warning or community service if they perpetrated low levels of violence against children.
How many? well,just one actually. The report provides all comments provided by the kids - quoting just 10 children, although it does provide some statements that counsellors said the kids had made. But only one said parents should be let off with a warning, and none said parents should be charged, let alone prosecuted or have community service.

Barnardos should really stop lying to the media. Imagine if they had asked this question.
If a child was having a tantrum in the supermarket, knocking down tins in the process, and a parent gave them a smack to cut it out, should that parent be let off if they are taken to court?
My response - which no doubt wouldn't have been one of the options:why should they even be charged and prosecuted let alone taken to court if they haven't broken the law sufficient enough to warrant sanctions?

More here
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THUNDERBIRD WINS BEST CRUISER ACCOLADE

Diposkan oleh Pengetahuan dan Pengalaman on Thursday, June 25, 2009

Triumph's all-new Thunderbird cruiser has been awarded the title of 'Cruiser of the Year' by an influential American motorcycle magazine.


Cycle World, the world's biggest selling monthly motorcycle publication, declared the 1600cc parallel twin as best in class in its annual awards issue.


Thunderbird, the British company's first offering in the mainstream cruiser market, has been enthusiastically received since its introduction to the media at last month's world press launch in Barcelona, being universally praised for its combination of outstanding dynamics wrapped in a classic cruiser style.


"We're very proud to receive what we hope will be the first of many awards for the Thunderbird," said Paul Stroud, Triumph's Director of Sales and Marketing. "This new model has been eagerly anticipated since being unveiled at our Global Dealer Conference last July and the initial reports confirm what we always felt about the bike: that the Thunderbird sets a new standard in the cruiser class.


"This award is particularly significant as it comes from the biggest publication in the biggest market for this type of motorcycle, which is, of course, the home of the biggest cruiser manufacturer in the world. To be accepted so quickly as a credible alternative to Harley-Davidson is a fantastic boost for everyone involved in the project and vindication of our decision to focus on Triumph's signature qualities, namely the imposing parallel-twin power plant and a dedication to outstanding chassis dynamics."


Triumph has won at least one category in Cycle World's 'Ten Best Bikes' issue every year for the last five years and full details of the 2009 awards can be found in the August edition of the magazine.


The first overseas Thunderbird customers are starting to take delivery of their new motorcycles this month and Triumph's factory in Hinckley, UK, is currently working at maximum capacity to fulfil all pre-orders and deliver bikes to each of its 750 dealers worldwide.


NZ will see the first batch arrive in July if all goes to plan. Australia is expecting its first shipment of Thunderbirds late September early October this year. (Go TNZ!)


Triumph's 'Ten Best Bikes' category winners

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Michael Jackson dies of heart attack


Michael Jackson has died. He was 50.He was rushed to a Los Angeles hospital after suffering a fatal heart attack. More info over here.
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Legal defence for criminal activity


Bob has a child. He is misbehaving. Bob has visitors and the child is yelling and just acting up. Bob can't hear his visitors talk. The boy is told to be quiet and an attempt is made to continue the conversation. But the boy keeps yelling to the point where conversation is getting pointless. As Bob wants to communicate with his visitors, he wants the boy to stop being so disruptive. Telling him to be quiet hasn't worked so he smacks him. The boy stops.

But one of Bob's visitors works for Barnardos, and although she is happy that she can now converse, she later reports the smack to the police who prosecute Bob for assault.

Bob rings you as you are his lawyer. What would you do once you hear Bob's story?

Here's the legislation.
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Diposkan oleh Pengetahuan dan Pengalaman on Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Not exactly a luxurious life


I wouldn’t get too concerned that the government is planning to stick 7000 unemployed people into McDonalds. The scheme is over a five years period, equating to 26 per week on average. That is if the 7000 figure is reached. What if they only get 4000 into McDonalds – that’s about 15 per week.

And that is about how many people are being employed at McDonalds every week anyway, due to the high staff turnover. But this deal is not driven by a desire to get people work. It is driven by a desire not to pay so much money on benefits, as John Key explains:
When we spend a lot on benefits it means there are a lot of New Zealanders not really earning a lot. Life on a benefit is not exactly a luxurious life.
When lots of people work at McDonalds, it means there are a lot of New Zealanders not really earning a lot. Working at McDonalds is not exactly a luxurious life.

What if they were to offer a McDonalds fulltime position - 30 hours a week in WINZ language - to a main unemployed breadwinner with children? If they were to get $15.00 an hour, they`d get $450 a week ($23,400 a year), compared with a benefit payment of $18,850 a year before tax. That's an extra $87.50 a week.

Beneficiaries can earn $80.00 each week and retain the benefit. Effectively squared up. But the person in this example will be spending money on transport to get to work so he is worse off by working at McDonalds.

Would you do it?
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Simple, really


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Diposkan oleh Pengetahuan dan Pengalaman on Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Was Jetstar plane full - and why did it take 30 minutes to fill?


I've been corresponding with Sonny Shaw, an an All Black fan who travels regularly and got on the Jetstar plane that Mike Earley missed on last Saturday. Shaw's details were given to me. He was in seat 12F and noticed no empty seats on the plane. Perhaps the plane was full. If so, who took Mike Earley's seat - and the other seven who missed out?

Shaw said that the passengers started boarding 10 minutes before the time on the boarding pass and the plane left 20 minutes late - after 4pm. He says
I could not understand how we started to board 10 minutes before the time printed on boarding pass and still left 20 minutes late. Five minutes before takeoff the purser made an announcement "this plane is VERY full can you put any small personal items under the front seat so there would be room in the overhead lockers". The hostesses where up and down the aisle I got the impression they were checking how many empty seats were left then they would go to the front and more passengers would arrive.
The purser's announcement was made 15 minutes after scheduled departure time. I asked Shaw why he thought the plane left 20 minutes late. He said that Jetstar kept allowing passengers to board "My feeling was just to make sure the plane was full."

If so, that's concerning, given that some missed out on checking in. Jestar's rules that there is no check ins 30 minutes prior to the scheduled flight time. Furthermore everyone must be ready to board 25 minutes before the scheduled flight time. Is that so they can board early - which is apparently what happened. Assuming those checked in were ready to board, they would have to be in the departure lounge. So why were more passengers getting on the plane 20 minutes after scheduled departure time when they were in the departure lounge for up to 45 minutes?

Meanwhile Jetstar spokeswoman Simone Pregellio acknowledged having issued incorrect information initially about how late some passengers arrived, but insisted they were all too late.

She said they arrived 22 minutes late, and eight minutes before departure time. Now she is saying that they arrived eight minutes late, and 22 minutes before departure. Tomorrow she may say that 22 people arrived eight minutes before the check in deadline.

But if the plane departed 20 minutes late, she is still wrong. Maybe she meant eight people missed out and it left 22 minutes late.

It doesn't take 30 minutes to fill a plane - unless you are Jetstar.
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Mallard gets kicked out of the House, blogs, then deletes comments on his post


Yesterday Trevor Mallard got kicked out the house and was almost named. He was so annoyed he blogged about it here.
I told [John Key] his nose was growing. He lied to the House and quoted me as calling him a liar. Speaker Smith required me to withdraw and apologise for saying something I did not say. To do so would have been to admit saying it. Smith did not allow me to say that I had not made the comments and tossed me out in probably the most blatantly biased decision of the year.
Well, being accused of lying is worse than telling lies.Mallard told Key his nose was growing. It wasn't. So that was a lie. Key said that Mallard accused him of being a liar. Mallard said he didn't. The speaker told him to withdraw and apologise. He didn't. He attacked and defied the speaker instead. That was why he was tossed out. Simple. Then he said 'for gods sake.... that is the worst decision you have ever made".

Mallard is wasting his time calling John Key a liar on his blog post and deleting comments because he doesn't like them. And has effectively repeated his comments outside the house by making it clear that he thinks Key is a liar.Mallard's not just got an anger problem, he has got a bigger nose than Key,too.
Update you can watch the video of Mallard's outburst here.
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Christine Rankin and child abuse


Have been away for a couple of days but was listening to Morning Report this morning. They mentioned that Christine Rankin has spoken up in an Investigate Magazine article against the anti-smacking legislation. How dare she! John Key has said that Rankin was appointed to the Families Commission because she was a good advocate and could speak up on child abuse. John Armstrong says Key's dictum is that Rankin confine her public comments as a Families Commissioner to her expertise on child abuse "and nothing else".

But I'm sure I heard that Jan Pryor, chief families commissioner saying that it is unlikely that Rankin will have a role on the Families Commission that has to do with child abuse. Which begs the question. Rankin was appointed because of her advocacy on child abuse, why is the commission saying that her role will not involve speaking out on child abuse?

update yep. Interview here
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FORTY YEARS OF BMW MOTORCYCLE PRODUCTION IN BERLIN

Diposkan oleh Pengetahuan dan Pengalaman on Sunday, June 21, 2009



Forty Years of BMW Motorcycle Production in Berlin-Spandau.

BMW Plant Berlin, where all BMW motorcycles are built, now looks back at a tradition of no less than forty years, with more than 1,882,400 BMW motorcycles coming off the production lines to date.

What started in 1969 with 400 employees and 30 units of the new BMW /5 model series built per day, had however already contributed through efficient production to the success of the BMW Group in the three preceding decades.

How it All Started - from Aircraft Engines to Motorcycles.

Berlin-Spandau became a BMW AG production plant back in 1939. Up to that time the plant had belonged to Siemens & Halske, which back then had built their new aircraft engine production facility where the BMW Plant is today, producing famous engines such as the Sh-14a radial power unit for the famous German Bücker 133c "Jungmeister" aerobatics biplane.

In 1936 the Siemens Aircraft Engine Plant was transformed into the independent company Brandenburgische Motoren Werke GmbH, which also built aircraft engines now under the name "Bramo". In 1939 Bramo became part of BMW AG and served until the end of the war as the production plant for BMW aircraft engines including the nine-cylinder radial power units for the legendary Junkers JU 52.

After the war the plant in Berlin-Spandau - like other factories and production facilities in Germany - was dismantled by the Allies. But in May 1945 some 100 employees at the plant were already producing various utensils for daily use, and after the currency reform the Berlin Plant began to build tools for BMW AG in Munich.

Production of motorcycles components for the BMW's Main Plant in Munich started in 1949 as the first step in gradually moving motorcycle production from the River Isar in Munich to the River Spree in Berlin. And as of 1958, BMW car components were also built to an increasing extent in Berlin-Spandau.

Motorcycle Production Moves from Munich to Berlin.

When BMW's managers in Munich started to consider the option to move motorcycle production from Munich in the mid-60s due to the significant increase in car production, Berlin with its well-trained workforce was an obvious choice. So in 1969 the Berlin Plant started production of the all-new BMW /5 Series, a completely new design and construction following a modular principle all the way from the suspension to the flat-twin power unit.

BMW Motorrad started out back then with three new models in the market: the 32-hp R 50/5 intended especially for the authorities such as the police, the R 60/5 very popular among touring riders with its 42-hp power unit, and, ultimately, the R 75/5 featuring a 50-hp flat-twin for sporting riding dynamics, a top speed of 175 km/h or 109 mph, and outstanding sales success in the international market.

With the motorcycle - which, in the 1960s, had been almost forced out of the market by the automobile - starting to re-gain popularity in the early 1970s, production figures at BMW Plant Berlin began to increase rapidly. In 1970 no less than 12,287 units came off the production line and by July 1973, when the /5 model series reached the end of production, a significant volume of 68,956 motorcycles had left the Berlin Plant, production increasing five-fold within just three years. Another highlight celebrated at the time was the completion of the 500,000th BMW motorcycle in the history of the Company.

The new /6 model series upgraded in numerous features and, as a particular highlight, the legendary BMW R 90 S, were presented on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of BMW Motorrad in autumn 1973. Displacing 898 cc, the flat-twin power unit featured in this most powerful BMW by far delivered maximum output of 67 hp, sufficient for a top speed of 200 km/h (124 mph) and very sporting riding dynamics, without missing out on the all-round and touring qualities so typical of a BMW.

Rapid Growth - from 0 to 100,000 in Six Years.

The 100,000th BMW built in Berlin-Spandau comes off the production line in January 1975, the famous BMW Boxer flat-twins reaching a new level of development just one year later marked by the introduction of the /7 model series. Apart from the R 60/7 and the R 75/7, BMW Motorrad also introduces the R 100/7, living up to the general trend to build larger motorcycles with a full litre engine capacity. And launching the R 100 RS, BMW also presents the world's first production motorcycle with full fairing able to reach a top speed of 200 km/h or 124 mph with its 70-hp power unit while at the same time offering protection from wind and weather never seen before.

This new model series again achieved outstanding success in sales, making it imperative to enlarge the Plant in Berlin-Spandau. A new Assembly Hall was therefore built to expand the production facilities, construction work starting in a symbolic ceremony in the presence of Walter Scheel, at the time the President of the Federal Republic of Germany. The purpose of the DM 200-million investment is to build up to 60,000 BMW motorcycles a year in Berlin-Spandau from now on, creating new jobs in the process.

In 1978 BMW Motorrad again enlarges its model range through the introduction of the R 100 RT, a full-fairing motorcycle closely related to the R 100 RS, but focusing fully on the needs of the touring rider in terms of aerodynamics, ergonomics and comfort. At the same time the so-called "small Boxer Series" makes its entry into the market in the guise of the R 45 and the R 65, once again boosting both production and sales figures.

The BMW Motorcycle Plant in Berlin-Spandau also helps to use synergies within the BMW Group, taking over the production of brake discs for BMW cars in 1979 as another major activity.

BMW Motorcycles from Berlin-Spandau - Innovation in Technology and Superior Quality.

The 250,000th BMW motorcycle built in Berlin comes off the production line in 1980 - a special machine built for the palace motorcycle escort of King Hussein of Jordan. In the same year Rolf Witthöft brings home the European Offroad Championship on an 800-cc BMW, and shortly thereafter the R 80 G/S makes its debut with relatively modest 50 hp engine output. Combining innovative suspension technology weighing just 186 kg or 410 lb, the R 80 G/S offers outstanding qualities not only in offroad riding, but also in everyday use and as an ideal partner on motorcycle tours.

A particular innovation hitting the headlines at the time is the single swinging arm or BMW Monolever on the rear wheel. The biggest enduro motorcycle at its time in terms of engine size soon sets the foundation for a brand-new segment in the market, the large-capacity Grand Touring Enduro.

Yet a further milestone in the history of BMW Plant Berlin-Spandau is the introduction of the new BMW K Series with its water-cooled straight-four power unit fitted flat within the frame and featuring fuel injection for the first time. This new machine also marks the start of the new Assembly Line and the new Machining Shop, a DM 500-million investment serving to integrate modern industrial production facilities in the buildings protected by the government as national monuments.

Seeking for ongoing innovation in technology, BMW Motorrad subsequently launches the BMW K1 in 1988, a truly outstanding machine offering a whole range of highlights in technology. This is the first production motorcycle from BMW to feature four valves per cylinder, maximum output of 100 hp and sophisticated aerodynamics providing a top speed of 240 km/h or 149 mph. The most important feature, however, is the introduction of ABS anti-lock brakes for the first time ever on a motorcycle as a world-first achievement. To this day, in fact, BMW Motorrad remains the leader in riding safety also through the use of sophisticated ABS technology.

To an increasing extent BMW motorcycles not only have an excellent reputation worldwide in terms of quality, riding dynamics and comfort, but also make a substantial contribution to the image of the BMW brand. Many celebrities enjoy Sheer Riding Pleasure on a BMW, US actor Peter Fonda, for example, very well known to motorcyclists at the latest after his famous film Easy Rider, visiting the BMW Plant in Berlin on 23 February 1990 on the occasion of his 50th birthday.

Reaching Seven Digits in 1992 - the 1,000,000th BMW Comes off the Production Line.

Just one year later the 1,000,000th BMW motorcycle comes off the production line in Berlin-Spandau, with the production of BMW motorcycles in Berlin in the course of the last 22 years now exceeding the mark of 500,000 units.

The introduction of a fundamentally new design and construction principle following the concept and configuration typical of BMW marks the 70th birthday of the BMW Boxer in 1993, the 90-hp BMW R 1100 RS making its debut with a top speed of 215 km/h (133 mph) and full fairing to the benefit of the rider. The flat-twin power unit now comes with chain-driven crankshafts positioned half-way up the engine, four valves per cylinder, and fuel injection.

To this day this construction principle sets the foundation for all BMW Boxers.

The R 1100 RS also introduces outstanding innovations in terms of its suspension and running gear, becoming the world's first production motorcycle to feature the Telelever, a ball-joint longitudinal arm fork separating the spring/damping functions, on the one hand, from the process of wheel guidance, on the other, and thus clearly standing out from the conventional telescopic fork. Indeed, this opens up a new dimension in terms of response and smooth handling, at the same time ensuring very well-balanced brake performance with automatic anti-dive.

The new Boxer series again proves highly successful, BMW Motorrad building and selling more than 50,000 motorcycles for the first time in 1995. A large number of these machines are BMW GS models consistently developed not only in technical terms since their introduction in 1980 and therefore acknowledged the world over as "the" grand touring enduro.

The last BMW with the "old" flat-twin engine comes off the production line in 1996, the R 80 GS Basic concluding the highly successful chapter of BMW's two-valve Boxers after 27 years of production.

Always a Step Ahead - also in Terms of Quality of Work and Environmental Protection.

The innovative power and clear focus on the future of BMW Motorrad is not limited to the Company's two-wheel products alone. On the contrary, quality of work and environmental protection are likewise indispensable parts of the Company's philosophy. So it is no surprise that in 1997 BMW Plant Berlin is acknowledged as the first motorcycle plant in the world to fulfil the international standards for labour and environmental management, after having switched over the in-house supply of energy from oil to gas just one year before.

With the F 650 GS, BMW Motorrad introduces its third model series in 1999, supplementing the Boxer and the K Series. In all the Company invests DM 4.5 million in the expansion of the new Assembly Line for this single-cylinder built in Berlin-Spandau, with more models to follow in future.

Riding pleasure, quality and the image of BMW motorcycles remain appealing to celebrities everywhere, German actor Götz George, to this day a passionate BMW motorcycle rider, visiting BMW motorcycle production in his home city Berlin in the late '90s.

Focusing on the Future - Innovations and Investments.

With the success of BMW Motorrad and BMW Plant Berlin continuing unabated, the foundation stone for a new Production Hall, Building 7 completed just two years later, is laid in May 2001. In all BMW invests Euro 280 million in the new Assembly Hall, an automated Paintshop and new machining facilities from 1999 - 2003, thus making a clear commitment to the Berlin-Spandau Plant as the Group's motorcycle production facility. A BMW R 1100 RT for the Red Cross comes off the production line in the same year as the 500,000th BMW with ABS anti-lock brakes.

In the years to come, not only motorcycles, but also production conditions continue to shape the destiny of BMW Plant Berlin. A new, environmentally friendly Paintshop, for example, is opened in 2004, followed by the introduction of environmentally-friendly one-way and recyclable motorcycle packaging just one year later.

The first version of BMW Motorrad's new, fourth model series - the F 800 GS - comes off the production line for the first time in 2006, featuring a water-cooled straight-two power unit (the parallel-twin) and setting the foundation for future models with this drive concept.

Also in 2006 BMW Plant Berlin for the first time builds more than 100,000 BMW motorcycles within one calendar year - and the introduction of hydro-clear water-based paint in 2008 again confirms the clear commitment of the BMW Motorcycle Plant to the cause of environmental protection.

The 500,000 BMW bearing the famous model designation "GS", a BMW R 1200 GS, comes off the production line on 12 May 2009, with production of the new BMW S 1000 RR, the first supersports from BMW Motorrad, also starting this year.

Bikedeadline
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Diposkan oleh Pengetahuan dan Pengalaman on Saturday, June 20, 2009

Jetstar rules


This post has been updated
No, Jetstar does not rule. But it does have rules.

Many people have been complaining that they have booked flights with Jetstar and the airline is not letting anyone check in 30 minutes before boarding time. But these are the rules, and the rules are on every ticket,including mine.

The problem is that the ticket discusses arrival time.
If you are not checked in at least 30 minutes before the scheduled departure, you will not be able to check in for your flight. Arrival after this time may result in you forfeiting the entire fare paid.
Arrival where? To the airport, check in, queue to the check in? What if you "arrive" at the queue 35 minutes before the scheduled departure time and there is a six minute queue at the checkin?

You don't fly. Nor do you get a refund.Legally, I believe you should get a refund, if you have "arrived" after "this time." i.e. stood in a queue 30 minutes before scheduled departure. I also happen to believe that if you arrive before that time you should also be checked in.

Jetstar needs to get its administration into gear to effectively administer these rules in such a way that everyone gets on the plane. Given their recommendations that everyone aims to check in 1 hour prior to scheduled departure, this means checking everyone in during a 30 minute period.

If they can't do that, the rules are worthless, and their recommendations meaningless. I suspect that people are turning up 10 minutes before the check in deadline - which they can do. Jetstar should up its administration and/or staff levels quick smart so it can meet its own rules and check everyone in 30 minutes before departure if that's what it wants to do.Or else not be so stringent and maintain that everybody must be at the boarding gate 25 minutes prior to departure merely to sit around and wait. This means that if you are last at the checkin you must be able to get to the boarding gate within five minutes. Hope you don't want to go to the toilet. But Jetstar has had problems in Aussie, too as A QC writes in Crikey: "Jetstar: They lied and stole my money".

Anyway, was in contact with Mike Earley, the subject of the highest rating story in today's Herald. He was the one who kicked up a fuss and got on Twitter. He has told me that a middle aged man who was behind his group in the queue was served - perhaps it was deadline time and it was easier to get an older man on before the deadline than checking in a group of young people - or else the airline had overbooked people. Earley has already complained to the Commerce Commission.
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Jetstar: All day, every day, waiting in transit - after changing your flight times before you get to the airport


I'm supposed to be flying to Auckland with Jetstar in the not too distant future after it offered really cheap flights - perfect for students. I've already had two e-mails instructing that my flight times have been changed.

Of course, the idea of cheaper flights is that you get to your destination as well. I am wondering if I`ll be able to check in let alone board on time after reading this.

I decided against Flying Pacific Blue after I got to my destination at 2:30am because the flight was delayed by several hours, but Jetstar passengers have been turned away from their flights. Mike Earley was one. He threatened to go to the media, so Jetstar dared him to, so he did and you can read the report here. But Earley was also twittering about it . When Jetstar realised he was taking pics they called the cops and wanted to ban this one from becoming public.

But I find that more than half of Jetstar - should be Jesters - flights have departed late. But although my flight is a couple of months away, Jetstar sent me an email changing my flight time and asking me to confirm that time on their website and then instructing me not to contact them. Then the same thing happened again. Another email advising the flight time was changed. I checked and it was changed to the same time it was initially changed to. But I had to confirm it again on Jetstars website and not ring them. I might just have to. I might also have to join this Facebook page after being invited last week.

I guess the publicity means that fewer people will be flying Jetstar. Must check to see if my flight is full- and whether it will actually leave. Or change airlines.

Update They did this last weekend too. They cut off boarding half an hour before the flight, including stopping serving people who had been in the queue. The plane just flies off half-full but with everyone's money.
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Diposkan oleh Pengetahuan dan Pengalaman on Friday, June 19, 2009

Did Goff lie or was he deceitful?

Last week I wrote a post detailing a conversation a talkback caller had with Phil Goff on Radio Live last week in which he denied all knowledge of wannabe Labour MP Neelam Choudary's immigation scam, for which her husband was subsequently convicted. You can listen to the interview here or over here. The following is the transcript:
Caller: Look Phil, the NZ Herald reports that, um, Labour Party member and, and, your friend Neelam Choudhary contacted you prior to her first meeting with Dr Richard Worth…
Goff: That’s correct.
Caller: ...at Sylvia Park on the 26th of November of last year. You advised her to take someone along to that meeting, she did so and took her husband along who sat out in the carpark, while she had the meeting. Why did you gave her this advice? Did you know that her husband was facing serious immigration scam charges in the court and in fact he was convicted the next week…
Goff The answer to that is no I didn’t know at that point that that was the case, why did I give her that advice, because, if, ah , you know, I suppose, uh, along with most other New Zealanders, ah, if the minister wants to have a private meeting and is offering a job to someone that he knows is in the oppositions camp, ah, I though, ah , fairly early on that there might be an ulterior motive, didn’t have any evidence for that, but I suggested that – actually I would have suggested that she took someone else into the meeting with her unfortunately she didn’t do that, ah, I think it was for her own protection that I made that recommendation
We have about as much evidence as the deleted texts that Worth offered Choudary two jobs.Although Choudary said that Worth offered her a job at the cafe meeting, Goff said he offered advice as Worth was to offer her a job. But how did Goff know that, given the offer had not been made? Did he know he was going to offer her two jobs, as Choudary has claimed?[ Incidentally how well does he know Richard Worth's "korean friend"]

Surely Goff knew of Choudary's husband's immigration case. He certainly knew 12 days after the Worth meeting when he read this in the paper. And on 5 June - when most National insiders knew the nameless immigrant was Choudary - Goff he said he had kept in contact with the woman and her husband last year - when the texts started happening.

Five days later Goff said that he had met Choudary's husband just once, implying the one contact.That was the day this blog was one of two that outed the identity of Choudhary, and Goff may have know that she'd be on the TV news that evening.

The weird thing about this whole saga is that Neelam Choudhary claimed that Richard Worth offered her jobs that she didn't take up, while the following week her husband was convicted for sending out letters offering jobs that didn't exist. But it was also Neelam Choudary that reportedly received money for the scam. I wondered why she was always dressed so nicely.

But it wasn't until 6 May months after Goff was aware of the texts - that he phoned John Key and told him he "had a problem, a woman had come with a complaint that she had been offered particular positions under the portfolio of Dr Worth... that the offer of those positions was as the basis to developing a sexual relationship".

Like, five months later he's just been told a Minister has been texting a woman "dozens and dozens" of times to develop a sexual relationship and it's such a problem he has to suddenly ring the PM at 9:30pm and tell him right away, purely because the poor Indian migrant had only been in New Zealand long enough to get approval of her application to be a member of the Labour Party.
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Sue Bradford's smacking dilemma solved


Green MP Sue Bradford says some parents who are about to be asked a question in a referendum, "Should a smack as part of good parental correction be a criminal offence in New Zealand" are facing a dilemma. What if they don't think a smack is part of good parental correction and also should not be a criminal offence? Do they answer Yes or NO?

That's simple. If they don't think a smack is part of good parental correction, they will concentrate on whether it should be a criminal offence, because the question is asking an opinion of legislators who have the power to decide on such matters. Otherwise they`ll effectively be answering, "Should a smack be part of good parental correction?", and their answer to that is NO.

If they don't think a smack is part of good parental correction, they`ll answer NO.

If they don't think smacking should be a criminal offence, they`ll also answer NO.

Sue Bradford has just given people two reasons to vote NO. And after this interview.
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Neelam Choudary is in hiding

Phil Goff's strikingly beautiful confident migrant is too scared to show her face, thanks to Phil Goff, after he advised her, used her, and churned her out.

After Goff's pimping, not only is Choudary's Facebook page down, she has taken all her photos off the Grassroots Labour site and taken down her profile photo. Only her personal email address and cellphone numbers are public. I`ll have more on Choudary and Goff this weekend.
Wonder who that guy in the photo is...
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50 THUNDERBIRDS ARE GO

Diposkan oleh Pengetahuan dan Pengalaman on Thursday, June 18, 2009



Was down at TriumphNZ today and the news is that there are 50 Triumph Thunderbirds dispatched ex-factory and on the way to New Zealand right now.

Every one of them is spoken for too. Some are earmarked for dealer demos and a press bike. The rest have deposits and names pinned on them already.

There will be a second shipment with dealer stock to follow shortly and sales are strong on those too - so if you are interested in the bike, now is the time to contact a Triumph Dealer.

Can't wait to take it for a spin. There will be a launch as soon as they get here and we'll keep you posted.

Looks like a really interesting bike.

http://www.triumph.co.uk/uk/Thunderbird.aspx


BD
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Smoking and smacking


Person A: Advocates the decriminalistion of light drugs such as cannabis (although not heroin), so that people who possess a light amount of drugs are not prosecuted.

Person B: Advocates for criminilisation of light smacking such as a tap on the bum (although not child abuse), so that under law parents who lightly smack are criminals and can be prosecuted.

What if Person A was also Person B?

Now, take a minute to look at the Green Party policies.
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Diposkan oleh Pengetahuan dan Pengalaman on Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Man helps woman to see in dark kitchen


The wife wondered why the light wasn't working in the kitchen. She asked me if the the light bulb could be blown? Could I change it?

I changed it the previous day so it surely can't be the bulb. Could the light socket be stuffed? I suggested that a good idea may be to turn on the light switch relevant to the said bulb.

Problem was that the kitchen has three light switches and she was unsure which one to turn on. I switched on the one that was relevant to the said lightbulb. Guess what. It worked! Problem solved. Lucky I was home.

Thank God for males.
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Today's questions


If you break the law, are you committing a criminal offence?
If you are in possession of cannabis, are you breaking the law?
If you commit a criminal offence, are you a criminal?

Update: Replace "in possession of cannabis" with "smacking your kids", ask the questions again, but don't ask Sue Bradford for a straight answer.

Why? As she told Sean Plunket this morning if you give your kid light tap on the bum you are a criminal, meaning you have broken the law.

Initially she said smacking is not a [criminal] offence (so it can't be against the law - so why are you a criminal if you smack?).

But she also said smacking is outlawed (so it IS a criminal offence).

Then she implied that a very light smack is not illegal (so it's not a criminal offence, but you are a criminal if you do it because it is outlawed, although not illegal ).

She also said a person who gives their kid a light tap on the bum was a criminal (now I'm REALLY confused, given that she just said it wasn't an offence, because it wasn't illegal, although outlawed ).

But she then implied the law is "very clear".

All in a couple of minutes.

If Sue Bradford can't explain the implications of her own law, how does she expect anyone else to?

[More on the referendum over here.]
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KIMMY'S OPEN THIS WEEKEND

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News in from Kimmy's:
Hi everyone.
Dust off the bikes, the Moto-X Track has been groomed.
The Enduro Track will be good training for the Tarawera.
Mention KIWIRIDER and you will get a discount.
Regards
Kimmy
Kimmy's Moto X Park
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Diposkan oleh Pengetahuan dan Pengalaman on Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Greens draw up their own anti silly questions bill


The Greens are designing a bill that will stop citizens having silly questions approved in referendums,in line with Green MP Sue Bradford's demands.

Ms Bradford says her bill will amend the Citizens Initiated Referenda Act 1993, legislation that condones the use of silly questions for referenda.

"We want to end the situation where there is a legal right to have silly questions approved for referenda."

Ms Bradford said she was deeply concerned that people would be answering referenda questions against her wishes. New Zealand has not changed the law which allows people to have silly questions approved for referenda..

Ms Bradford said today citizens have used the Citizens Initiated Referenda Act to get away with not only writing silly questions, but misleading and ambiguous questions as well.

"I can't understand why the Government does not want to do anything about the Citizen's Initiated Referenda Act at all. The integrity of our democracy is too important to put on hold."

Ms Bradford, Green Citizens Initiated Referenda Spokesperson, said it was the inalienable right of referenda to be free from any form of silly questions.

"Citizens are supposed write good questions, not silly questions and, and should feel totally safe in signing petitions based on good questions. the Citizens Initiated Referenda Act 1993 adds to the whole culture of abuse of referenda that is still so rampant in New Zealand society."

[With reference to this]

The bill is available here. Spot the glaring error. If the Green Party is going to draft bills, it should at least get its facts and wording correct.There are at least three errors in the explanatory note alone.
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GOOD FINANCIAL NEWS FOR TRIUMPH

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This will be welcome news for clan Bloor on the back of some bad press for the parent company in the Times last week.

From Bikedeadline.
Triumph Motorcycles Group Announce 2008 Financial Results

Triumph Motorcycles Group has announced its financial results for the year to 30th June 2008, demonstrating a solid performance.

Group turnover increased by 29% from £220 million in 2007 to £284 million and unit sales of motorcycles increased 19% from 41,125 to 48,929. This volume increase in sales has been attributed to new model introductions and new export markets.

The operating profit before interest and tax grew by 16% from £12.5 million to £14.5 million.



Tue Mantoni, Chief Executive Officer, says, "We are however, cautiously optimistic when it comes to Triumph's performance. New models are extremely important to driving growth and we are very pleased with the reception of the recently launched Thunderbird, a 1600cc parallel-twin cruiser. Our global retail network and the enthusiast press have all been impressed with the distinctive styling and excellent performance of this important new model, and we have already built a promising deposit bank, which will give our retailers a strong platform for launching this new model."

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HAMPTON DOWNS TRACK UPDATE

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from Darren Sweetman - Hampton Downs Ride Days.

A week is a long time in construction - particularly when you are
waiting for a new racetrack to open! The site has progressed
well. The metal base layer onto which the seal is laid, is going
down well, with about 1/3 of the 2.8 km National circuit now done.
The pit paddock is also looking a lot flatter and the lime stabiliser
application is progressing well in that area. In addition, the
stabilising process is well under way on the car park areas.
Rain. There is no way that this update cannot mention the rain as
a substantial amount of the stuff has decided to visit the venue
over the last week. It is poor weather that is holding up the
opening of the facility. An opening date cannot be confirmed at
this stage but once the seal is down Hampton Downs Ride Days
will be under way shortly thereafter.
Please contact us to confirm your place on this historic event.
Rider Safety
In the USA, the California Superbike School is training an
incredibly talented 125 GP rider who won 5 national titles in 2008,
holds the lap record at one circuit, and has a race brain that
many racers would envy. This rider has just turned 12 years old,
his name is Peter Lenz. (www.peterlenz.com)
A few weeks ago, Peter had a mechanical failure on his bike that
resulted in him hitting a tyre wall at speed. Peter suffered multiple
broken bones, a severed nerve in his arm and the usual bruising
and abrasions. These injuries would have been substantially
worse had Peter not been wearing all the right safety equipment.
A new fitted Arai helmet every season and quality leathers with
body armour saved him from more severe injuries. Peter’s body
armour had impact marks in it that proved that the armour had
done its job.
The hire gear that is available for use at both Hampton Downs
Ride Days and The California Superbike School, meets the
highest safety standards. Arai helmets, Teknic leathers with CE
certified armour and Alpinestar boots and gloves are our brands
of choice when it comes to safety gear. So if you want to try
some of the best safety gear available, please give us a call.

Flag Marshals
We will require flag marshals for our
Hampton Downs track events. If you are
interested in helping out and riding on the day,
please let us know and we can give you the
details.

hamptondownsridedays.co.nz
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MEAD 6th, BIRCH 8th AT ERZBERG

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HATTRICK FOR TADDY BLAZUSIAK
Red Bull Hare Scramble, 14 June 2009, Erzberg

Harder than ever, merciless like always - however the winner is again Taddy Blazusiak from Poland. In a red-hot battle the 26-year old becomes the first for 15 years to win the Red Bull Hare Scramble three times in a row. With the winning time 01:41:46 he leads the elite, who still manages to survive on the mountain, with a respectable distance. Only 21 participants out of 500 manage to cross the finishing line on the Erzberg in Styria.



'That’s the limit, even harder is not possible! I am completely exhausted, but also unbelievably happy', says a totally outspent Taddy Blazusiak (POL, KTM) in relation to his unique triumph on the iron giant and while passing the finishing line receives the confirmation of the extension of his KTM factory contract. The Pole, who came out of the blue on the Erzberg in 2007, is at the head of the starter group for more than 40 minutes, though he is physically not a 100% fit. After his start in the third starting row Graham Jarvis (GBR, Sherco) manages to finish 2nd; when passing the finishing line you can tell the inhuman struggle is written in his face as well as in the face of the German Andreas Lettenbichler (BMW), who reaches the winner trio only a couple of minutes later.



From a local point of view Seppi Fally, a young Styrian, can assure his prologue victory and the number one for today’s finale, the four-hour offroad-martyrdom Red Bull Hare Scramble. During the almost 40 kilometers and 20 checkpoints with funny names such as water pipes, bath tube, lunar landscape, ammunition dump, Carl’s Dinner, Roof, court’s ditch or magic forest he had to pass on the place to the best Austrian to twelve times trial champion Erich Brandauer who finishes 13th.



Hard, harder, Erzberg – was the motto at the 15th edition of the most brutal and notorious off-road race in the world. The starting signal for the first of ten rows in the starting position was given at 12.00 am, as usually. Accidents, unwanted slidings, material damage and exhausting pushing passages were the things that followed, as everyone expected. Six no-help zones, huge piles of scree and loose stones were the spices for the anyway exuberant Sunday menu. Boiling coolers, smoking carbs and litres of sweat received a big applause from the audience. The 2009 additional challenge: brooding heat of more than 30° Celsius forced many riders to give in, not even some pro riders’ circulation could stand these stresses and strains. Almost two dozens invincibles passed the redemptive finishing line within the fixed time. After the fours hours race it was clear to the riders that the jubilee edition in 2009 was the hardest Red Bull Hare Scramble ever over hedge and ditch and rocks. And though there were only few to pass the finishing line – there were still 500 winners.



1. Taddy Blazusiak (POL, KTM) 1:41:46
2. Graham Jarvis (UK, Sherco) 2:22:05
3. Andreas Lettenbichler (GER, BMW) 2:25:17
4. Ben Hemingway (UK, Gas Gas) 3:27:48
5. Cory Graffunder (CAN, KTM) 3:37:50
6. Rory Mead (NZL, Yamaha) 3:38:02
7. Dan Hemingway UK, KTM) 3:54:24
8. Chris Birch (NZL. KTM) 3:55:01
9. Gerhard Forster (GER, BMW) 3:58:21
10. Kyle Redmond (USA, Yamaha) 4:08:16

Red Bull

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Diposkan oleh Pengetahuan dan Pengalaman on Monday, June 15, 2009

The question " Should a smack as part of good parental correction be a criminal offence in New Zealand"


Is now officially irrelevant.
The Government is unlikely to change the child-discipline law regardless of the result of a $9million referendum, Prime Minister John Key says.
What Key wants to do is not shut down debate, but send hints for a low response rate. Key would prefer that nobody returned their referendum papers. He would prefer that because then he`d be able to say he is listening to the people and the people didn't want a referendum.

This also gives a message to parents: The Government's position is that it is OK for you to smack your kids even though it is against the law. Just don't pressure it to change the law - or its sanctions - so you can abide by it. Democracy and representation don't have a bearing. What you think about this issue is irrelevant to the Government.

In opposition Key said this:
The Labour Government has shown utter contempt for New Zealanders and the democratic process with its plan to railroad the anti-smacking bill through Parliament. The Labour-led Government knows the measure is deeply unpopular, so it plans to act against the wishes of the majority of Kiwis and ram the bill through under urgency. This is a deeply cynical abuse of power.

Now, not content with riding over the top of the wishes of some of her MPs, she wants to ride over the top of the wishes of the majority of New Zealanders...
The Prime Minister also knows that she has been caught out saying one thing about the smacking ban before the election, and giving a different answer afterwards.
This is arrogant and cynical government at its very worst.
Representation means acting for the interests of the represented in a manner responsive to their wishes. Key wants to be responsive to the wishes of voters only if it is not politically inconvenient. In this case, although it does not reflect public wishes, the government thinks it is in the public interest for people to disobey the law if they want to lightly smack their kids in this country. So does the opposition.
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Chris Knox II


For those who want to keep up with progress on musician Chris Knox, who suffered a stroke last week, there a blog set up here.
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Diposkan oleh Pengetahuan dan Pengalaman on Sunday, June 14, 2009

NO Right Turn is truly an idiot today, and way off the mark


The anonymous blogger at NO Right Turn does not appear to have had a decent coffee after getting up this afternoon. He has a few clues on most things, and is one of the better bloggers around, but on the subject of the upcoming referendum on physical discipline he is just plain pig-ignorant, and lets himself down.

Why? He claims that people like Jimmy Mason, who punched his kid in the face, and a person who beat her young son with a soup ladle – and not only beat her, but bruised him all over his body would have been able to successfully claim a reasonable force defence had the law on parental discipline not been changed.

This is just a stupid claim to make. Never mind that, like most irrational people, he does not see the difference between a beating when a kid is cowering on the floor and a light smack for correction. But you think he’d criticise CYFS for supporting bail for the parent. But no, he doesn’t.

Furthermore, he says that anybody who supports a defence of reasonable force for correction are people who wish to abuse children themselves. It is irrelevant to him that any defence – if used - would fail in cases like this every time and that no lawyer would even suggest such a defence.

I don’t particularly like the referendum question, and was very tempted to cross out both options or not vote at all, but this kind of misinformation has made me determined to vote NO.

So, after reading this post I have today decided that I am going to vote NO at the referendum next month. I encourage you to read the post at NO Right Turn too and vote NO also.

The forms should be out this week. I’m voting NO not because I think a smack as part of good parental correction should not be a criminal offence in New Zealand, not because parents should have a choice in whether to lightly smack naughty kids, but because I am making a stand against misinformation from people who should know better.
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Media provides clues to the identity of Richard Worth's Korean woman


Not too long ago, the NZ Herald may well have inadvertently provided a clue as to the identity of the Korean woman who spent the night with Richard Worth and, I was told, apparently had a karaoke session with him at A Taste of Korea.

This report notes that the Korean woman was part-owner of several companies. One of these companies was put into liquidation this year, at the request of creditors who were owed $245,000 A private investigation firm had wanted to serve court documents on the woman relating to mortgage non-payment to the Bank of New Zealand for four homes, each valued at around $600,000. That's well over $2 million.

The woman was also a subject of an investigation after a run in with another man, a Korean business leader. This news was reported in a Korean newspaper at the time. The Korean newspaper also published this article on the Worth hotel liaison the same weekend as the NZ Herald article and mentioned her surname and the fact that her friend went the the police station with her to lodge a complaint, and according to this report, also went to National list MP Tau Henare so he could inform John Key. Worth subsequently resigned as a minister and then from parliament.

A check of the Companies Office records under the woman's surname as listed in the Korean article provides a record of a certain businesswoman who is part-owner in a number of companies, one of which was put into liquidation in February of this year with arrears to a number of suppliers. I was advised that this woman's business partner is apparently fairly well-known in the Indian community. His last known address is a pretty comfy place; but two, not one, of his companies were placed in liquidation - one last year as he was unable to pay a $1 million loan and an $800,000 liability. He was the sole director of the trust that held the shares in both companies.Both him and his female Korean business partner are currently running companies.

To date nobody has publicly named the woman. Neither will I. Its not in the public interest. But Richard Worth seems to get involved with some dodgy people.....

update .... like Labour activist Neelam Choudhary, who with her husband also owned companies - one of which the latter signed off as director after he got convicted, but David Farrar has covered this.
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