Top Scoop Stories - 20 July 2007 News Summary

Friday, 20 July 2007, 1:59 pm
Article: The Scoop Editor

Today's Top Scoops - July 20, 2007

LEAD STORY:

Public Service: The Bureaucrats Are Restless

NZ POLITICS:

QUESTIONS OF THE DAY: [1] [2] [3]
Politics: Blown Millions Not An 'Investment'
Education: Minister back-peddles over porn-site teacher
McCully.co.nz: Humble MP Denies Burgling Boss
Foreign Affairs: Street Theatre And Maryan Street At Falun Gong Protest

BUSINESS SCIENCE & TECH:

Internet: What Do Women Really Want?
Statistics: Kiwi's Enjoying Record Numbers Of Overseas Trips
Media: HT Comes Back For Rest Of MediaWorks
Biosecurity: MAF Swoops On GM Aquarium Fish

WORLD:

Australian Minister for Defense: Australian and New Zealand Defence Ministers Meet
UN Report: President Bush Meets with Ban-Ki-Moon
ITF: Brazil air crash an 'accident waiting to happen'
Scoop News: Photo Essay: Recent Floods in Chongqing, China

COMMENT:

Freedom Rider: Nazis Attack Iran
Congo and Darfur: A Tale of Two Genocides -
Robert Parry: If the Democrats Want to Win -
Marjorie Cohn: Reining In an Out-of-Control Executive

LIFESTYLE:

World Cup 2007: Calls For Kiwis To Get Hairy
Spare Room: Ticketmaster Beats Scalpers At Their Own Game
Rememberance: Poppy Pack remembers New Zealand’s worst disaster
Fashion: Call for Fresh Faces for Style Pasifika

Public Service: The Bureaucrats Are Restless - The PSA remains concerned that people who have a relationship with someone who is politically active will find it difficult getting a job in the public service, despite a reassurance from the State Services Commissioner that this is not the case. The Commissioner, Mark Prebble, has today provided details of the case in which Madeleine Setchell lost her job as a head of communications at the Environment Ministry after three days. This was due to what was seen as a potential conflict of interest because her partner is the press secretary of National Party leader, John Key. More >> [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0707/S00236.htm

QUESTIONS OF THE DAY:

• Questions And Answers - Thursday, 19 July 2007 [1]
• Questions And Answers - Wednesday, 18 July 2007 [2]
• Questions and Answers - Tuesday, 17 July 2007 [3]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0707/S00334.htm
[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0707/S00302.htm
[3] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0707/S00273.htm

Politics: Blown Millions Not An 'Investment' - New Zealanders should be extremely concerned that Finance Minister Dr Michael Cullen is now trying to justify blowing over $100 million of taxpayers' money trying to play the foreign exchange market by calling it a long-term investment in New Zealand, ACT New Zealand Deputy Leader Heather Roy said. More>> [1]

ALSO:

• ANZ Bank - ANZ Bank Analyses The Reserve Bank [2]
• Auckland Chamber of Commerce - To Economists: Unblock Barriers to Progress [3]
• Business Roundtable - Monetary Policy Credibility Must be Restored [4]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0707/S00326.htm
[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0707/S00392.htm
[3] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0707/S00389.htm
[4] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0707/S00383.htm

Education: Minister back-peddles over porn-site teacher - It is no wonder that the Education Minister is distancing himself from the recent decision of the Teachers Council Disciplinary Tribunal to allow a teacher who posted hard-core pornographic pictures of himself and two women on internet sex sites to continue teaching, says National’s Education spokeswoman Katherine Rich. “The decision is utterly indefensible." More >> [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0707/S00293.htm

McCully.co.nz: Humble MP Denies Burgling Boss - The TVNZ item then ended by stating that Mr Key blamed drug users for the break-in. Unfortunately, at these points, the wallpaper pictures TVNZ selected for the purposes of illustration were file pictures of the humble Member for East Coast Bays exiting the iron security gate at the Key Parnell establishment. More >> [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0707/S00340.htm

Foreign Affairs: Street Theatre And Maryan Street At Falun Gong Protest - This afternoon Wellingtonians were treated to some extreme theatre during a rally organised to protest human rights abuses in China. Various actors portraying members of the banned (in China) Falun Gong movement were busy being tormented on flat deck trucks while other unfortunates were having their organs harvested - possibly without anaesthetic. More >> [1]

ALSO:

• Scoop Report - Dissident Slams NZ Govt's Relationship With China [2]
• Amnesty International - "Human Rights are Not For Sale" [3]
• Amnesty International - Rally Highlights Chinese Abuses [4]
• Indonesian Human Rights Committee - Letter to Clark - re meeting with Indonesian Pres [5]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0707/S00269.htm
[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0707/S00256.htm
[3] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0707/S00221.htm
[4] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0707/S00177.htm
[5] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0707/S00210.htm

Internet: What Do Women Really Want? – The top ten channels in Nielsen//NetRatings' Market Intelligence showing the sites that attract the highest percentage of women, aged 25-34, for the month of June 2007. The results show the websites which have the greatest affinity for women in their late twenties. More >> [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0707/S00388.htm

Statistics: Kiwi's Enjoying Record Numbers Of Overseas Trips - New Zealand residents departed on 208,300 short-term trips in June 2007, up 20,500 (11 percent) on the 187,800 departures in June 2006, Statistics New Zealand said today. This is a record number of departures for any month. More >> [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0707/S00386.htm

Media: HT Comes Back For Rest Of MediaWorks - 19 July 2007: HT Media Limited (HT Media) today announced its intention to make an offer to acquire all the shares it does not own in MediaWorks NZ Limited (MediaWorks) at a price of $2.68 per share. HT Media successfully acquired an 82.6% shareholding in MediaWorks through its previous takeover offer of $2.33 per share (excluding the 10 cents per share special dividend). More >> [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0707/S00378.htm

Biosecurity: MAF Swoops On GM Aquarium Fish - MAF Biosecurity New Zealand (MAFBNZ) yesterday entered four Christchurch premises in response to information that people at those addresses were breeding and/or selling genetically modified aquarium fish. More >> [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/SC0707/S00043.htm

Australian Minister for Defense: Australian and New Zealand Defence Ministers Meet - Australian and New Zealand Defence Ministers Meet in Sydney The Minister for Defence, Dr Brendan Nelson, met with his New Zealand counterpart, the Hon Phil Goff, in Sydney today to discuss key priorities for cooperation in an historically close and enduring defence partnership. More >> [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0707/S00269.htm

UN Report: President Bush Meets with Ban-Ki-Moon - PRESIDENT BUSH: Mr. Secretary General, welcome; thanks for coming. We've just had a wide-ranging and full discussion on a lot of issues. First, Mr. Secretary General, I appreciate you, one, taking on this job; two, working extremely hard; and, three, doing a fine job. I admire the values you hold dear to your heart and I appreciate the chance to share some thoughts with you. More >> [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0707/S00276.htm

ITF: Brazil air crash an 'accident waiting to happen' - The ITF today warned that Tuesday’s horrific São Paulo plane crash was an avoidable tragedy that could easily be repeated if obvious and already known problems are not urgently addressed. The Federation also backed Ifatca and Ifalpa in their warning that the crash proves that the problem of runway lengths must be urgently examined. More >> [1]

ALSO:

• NFCAW of Brazil - Brazilian Civil Aviation Workers Shocked [2]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0707/S00268.htm
[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0707/S00267.htm

Scoop News: Photo Essay: Recent Floods in Chongqing, China - Photographer Bert Felt shares images of the recently flooded Chongqing, China. Chongqing is located on the edge of the Yungui Plateau and intersects the Jialing River and the upper part of the river Yangtze.More >> [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0707/S00266.htm

Freedom Rider: Nazis Attack Iran - The Americans think it is ridiculous and libelous to accuse them of acting like Nazis - and then they do. The planned attack on Iran, a people we know no better than we knew the Iraqis, will be a slaughter for which the world will hold the American people... More >> [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0707/S00261.htm

Congo and Darfur: A Tale of Two Genocides - - As many as five million people have died in the Democratic Republic of Congo. A quarter million or so have perished in Darfur, western Sudan. Both are abominations, genocides, crimes against humanity, but only Darfur rates coverage in the U.S. corporate media... More >> [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0707/S00260.htm

Robert Parry: If the Democrats Want to Win - - If the Democrats really want to prevail over George W. Bush on the Iraq War and on his authoritarian vision of presidential powers, they would put back on the table two options that their leaders have removed: a cut-off of war funding and impeachment... More >> [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0707/S00249.htm

Marjorie Cohn: Reining In an Out-of-Control Executive - Our Founding Fathers created three separate but co-equal branches of government to check and balance each other so no one branch would become all powerful. Indeed, James Madison wrote in the Federalist Papers, “The preservation of liberty requires that the three great departments of power should be separate and distinct.” Madison warned, “The accumulation of all powers, legislative, executive, and judiciary in the same hands ... may justly be pronounced the very definition of tyranny.” More than 200 years later, we have another King George More >> [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0707/S00247.htm

World Cup 2007: Calls For Kiwis To Get Hairy - Hayman's Beard, the group calling on All Black prop Carl Hayman to grow back his beard, have now made a call for national unity, urging all kiwis to grow beards between now and the World Cup to show their support for the All Blacks. A poll on their blog indicates that 92% of voters agree that Hayman’s Beard is crucial to the success of the All Blacks at the Rugby World Cup. More >> [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/CU0707/S00199.htm

Spare Room: Ticketmaster Beats Scalpers At Their Own Game - How much would you pay to see The Police live at Western Springs? The sky’s now the limit, according to the latest email from Ticketmaster, who have announced Ticketmaster Auctions [1] for their Auckland concert next year. More >>

[1] - http://www.ticketmaster.co.nz/ticketauctions

Rememberance: Poppy Pack remembers New Zealand’s worst disaster - All New Zealanders, including those travelling to cheer on the All Blacks in Europe later this year, are being urged to buy a commemorative Poppy Pack, launched today (19 July), to mark the 90th anniversary of the worst disaster in New Zealand’s history. More >> [1]

ALSO:

• NZ Govt - WWI Casualty Forms Presented To Minister [2]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/CU0707/S00194.htm
[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0707/S00306.htm

Fashion: Call for Fresh Faces for Style Pasifika - For one day only the producers of Westfield Style Pasifika will be auditioning fresh new faces for what is New Zealand's premiere fashion award and entertainment spectacular - and anyone who is an excellent performer is welcome to audition. More >> [1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/CU0707/S00189.htm

ENDS

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