Scoop Top 30 Daily Ratings December 20 2008

Sunday, 21 December 2008, 3:36 pm
Article: Scoop Daily Ratings

1: State Of It: Police SIG Unit Wasted On Tag-Busting

STATE OF IT by Selwyn Manning

Scoop co-editor Selwyn Manning writes that investigations into the Police special investigations groups reveal that it had used a complaint of tagging to dig into the private life of a peace advocate, political groups, and a US owned defence company.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0812/S00364.htm

2: PBuchanan: Brief On Informants In Intel Operations

Paul G. Buchanan - A Word From Afar

A Word From Afar: Paul Buchanan writes that some argue that infiltration of legitimate anti-status quo organizations is anti-democratic and intimidatory. They may well be correct in that assessment. But he says there is a backdrop to this issue.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0812/S00358.htm

3: There is no Humane Way to Kill a Whale at Sea

WSPA New Zealand

As Japan prepares to hunt once again in the Southern Ocean, the world’s largest alliance of animal protection groups has highlighted remarks from a Japanese whaling-based association to show there is simply no humane way to kill a whale.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0812/S00455.htm

4: Air New Zealand purchases Boeing 787 and 777-300 s

Air New Zealand

Air New Zealand has purchased Boeing 787 and Boeing 777-300 full-flight simulators to be based at its Auckland simulator centre. The Boeing 777 simulator will be delivered in 2010 to coincide with the arrival of Air New Zealand’s new 777-300 aircraft ...
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0812/S00423.htm

5: Maori Party Angered by loss of NZ Maori

The Maori Party

The decision by the NZ Rugby Union to cast aside the NZ Maori team in their effort to cut costs, has been greeted with dismay by Maori Party sports and recreation spokesperson, Te Ururoa Flavell.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0812/S00243.htm

6: UN Launches Year-Long Campaign

United Nations

The United Nations today launched a year-long advocacy campaign to help scores of millions of internally displaced persons (IDPs), focusing on mitigating the impact of conflict and natural disasters that drive so many people from their homes within ...
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0812/S00458.htm

7: Canadian Man Accused of Sex Crimes in Thailand

Richard S. Ehrlich

BANGKOK, Thailand -- A Canadian who allegedly arranged for Americans to sexually abuse "prepubescent" boys in his home for payment, while he taught at a prestigious school in Bangkok, was arrested in London by the U.S. Justice Department ...
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0812/S00361.htm

8: Ongoing Darfur Conflict Threatens UN Mission

United Nations

Violent clashes between the warring factions in conflict-ravaged Darfur threaten humanitarian work and the joint United Nations-African Union peacekeeping operation in the Sudanese region, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warns in his latest report ...
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0812/S00459.htm

9: Red Cross Responds To Horn Of Africa Emergency

NZ Red Cross

As millions of vulnerable people across the Horn of Africa face a life threatening battle for food, New Zealand Red Cross has committed $30,000 to assist with relief operations.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0812/S00457.htm

10: Gays, Lesbians Must Be Treated As Equals

United Nations

The top United Nations human rights official lamented today that there are still too many countries that criminalize sexual relations between consenting adults of the same sex and that some 10 States still have laws making homosexual activity punishable ...
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0812/S00456.htm

11: Police Name Woman In Avon

New Zealand Police

Police have identified the woman found in the Avon River in the early hours of this morning.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/AK0812/S00285.htm

12: Former BNZ Chief Needs Funny Bone Transplant

Progressive Party

"This man needs a funny bone transplant," was the response of Kiwibank founder Jim Anderton to the recent description by former BNZ chairman Kerry McDonald of the Kiwibank 'join the resistance' advertising campaign as 'reprehensible' and 'outrageous'.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0812/S00245.htm

13: Parents are not being criminalised

Barnardos

Barnardos New Zealand welcomes the latest Police report on the Crimes (Substituted Section 59) Act 2007, confirming yet again that the law is working well and the impact on the Police activity remains minimal.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0812/S00274.htm

14: Police Confirm Prosecutions For Smacking

Family First Lobby.

Latest figures on police activity following the anti-smacking law confirm that police are wasting valuable police time and resources investigating unwarranted complaints against parents, but they also confirm that they are prosecuting parents for smacking.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0812/S00275.htm

15: Gaza: The Untold Story

Ramzy Baroud

It’s incomprehensible that a region such as the Gaza Strip, so rich with history, so saturated with defiance, can be reduced to a few blurbs, sound bites and reductionist assumptions, convenient but deceptive, vacant of any relevant meaning, or even true ...
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0812/S00372.htm

16: Electricity Commission to decline NAaN proposal

Electricity Commission

The Electricity Commission has given notice that it intends to decline Transpower’s proposal to upgrade the transmission grid from Auckland to Albany.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0812/S00434.htm

17: Uri Avnery: Tzipi’s Nation-State

Uri Avnery

In this tale, an American politician gets up and declares: The United States was founded by British Protestants who were persecuted in Europe for their Puritan beliefs. Therefore, the United States is an Anglo-Saxon Protestant state.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0812/S00370.htm

18: Patients get better access to anti-acne drug

Royal NZ College of General Practitioners

Patients will benefit from a Pharmac decision to allow specialist GPs to prescribe a drug to treat the most severe cases of acne, College of GPs President Dr Jonathan Fox said today.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/GE0812/S00104.htm

19: Court Of Appeal Finds In Favour Of AMHA

AMHA

The Court of Appeal today dismissed a challenge by Watson & Sons Ltd which was aimed at stopping the Active Manuka Honey Association (AMHA) from making inquiries into labeling issues relating to UMF® products sold by the company in the United ...
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0812/S00431.htm

20: Competition Will Bring ACC Costs Down Faster

Wellnz

ACC definitely does need a change away from its “cost plus” culture but competition will bring ACC costs down quickest, and increased productivity will boost New Zealand‘s overall business performance.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0812/S00273.htm

21: Auckland’s electric train fleet purchase begins

Auckland Regional Council

The process for the purchase of Auckland’s electric train fleet has begun, the Auckland Regional Council (ARC) and Auckland Regional Transport Authority (ARTA) announced today.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/AK0812/S00286.htm

22: NZ can’t afford AgResearch redundancies

PSA

The Public Service Association says today’s announcement that AgResearch is making nine scientific and technical staff redundant is sad news for the workers just before Christmas and a waste of their skills and knowledge.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0812/S00433.htm

23: Business Support Awards 2009 – finalists announced

Vero Excellence in Business Support Awards

Better business support is improving the lot of thousands of Kiwi companies, helping them ride through the world economic crisis.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0812/S00429.htm

24: Rio Tinto rating cut one notch to BBB

Content.net

Dec. 19 - Rio Tinto’s credit rating was lowered by one notch to BBB on expectation the downturn in commodities in a shrinking global economy will hurt profits and weaken its balance sheet.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0812/S00367.htm

25: Slew of credit rating downgrades

Content.net

Dec. 19 – The global economic slump is producing a slew of credit rating downgrades as agencies play catch-up to a deteriorating global economic outlook.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0812/S00369.htm

26: Supreme Court Order A Blow To Climate

Greenpeace New Zealand

Friday 19 December 2008 – A serious blow has been dealt to the climate with a Supreme Court decision just handed down in the Genesis Energy/ Greenpeace case.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0812/S00277.htm

27: 2008 Westpac Emerging Talent Finalists Named

Westpac

Auckland, 19 December 2008 – A young Kiwi surf sensation who has been making waves abroad in pro-women’s events and a junior world rowing champion are among the four finalists in the running to win a $25,000 Westpac sporting scholarship next year.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0812/S00428.htm

28: Make a green New Year resolution

WWF

Conservation groups are reporting that 2009 is set to be a pivotal year in New Zealand's sustainable revolution. Green living has now gone mainstream, and it's everyday people that are leading it.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0812/S00276.htm

29: Aylwin v New Zealand Police

NZ Supreme Court

Mr Aylwin was charged under the Land Transport Act 1998 with failing to accompany an enforcement officer when required to do so and with driving with excess breath alcohol. On Mr Aylwin’s appeal to this Court, the issue was whether those offences ...
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0812/S00271.htm

30: Scoop Top 30 Daily Ratings December 19 2008

Scoop Daily Ratings

Yesterday's top 30 rating items on Scoop were...
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0812/S00373.htm

ENDS

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