New Generation

The moral outrage by David "Fartman" Parker,Lianne Dalzeil and the Labour Party over Contact Energy today announcing power prices rises leaves me more than a little confused:

"However we will be asking Cabinet on Monday to consider whether a broader inquiry is needed into whether these price increases are evidence of a lack of competition and market power being used to ratchet up prices," the ministers said.

Ms Dalziel said she could not see how the increases could be justified.

"The latest price increases, especially for residential consumers, follow a worrying trend of price rises in excess of general inflation, and I intend to ensure that the market is not being manipulated by electricity retailers."

NZ Herald

The facts are that Contact is putting up power prices because Labour have not allowed enough new generation to be built because of the global warming myth and are set to pile more cost on to consumers power bills through their dodgy climate change policies. David Parker has got his sticky little socialist fingerprints all over the mess.

Restrict generation, ipso facto power prices rise-well duh!

Contact Energy had to run a diesel power station at full blast for most of 2008 because of the lack of power generation for goodness sake.

Parker's inexperience shows in this quote from him today:

"The gap between residential and industrial charges was difficult to understand"

What the fuck?!

David if you are a industrial power user you generally use more power and like any other product or service you will be able to negotiate a lower price for bulk usage.

That is the way any market works and is general practice with power companies. Perhaps you could talk to a couple instead of grandstanding weeks before an election.

This collective is overseeing the energy portfolio and the Carbon Credit tax scam.

We should be worried.

Related reading

Carbon Credit trading puts markets at extreme risk

Contact Energy looks bright during dark times

c Political Animal 2008

VIDEO: Sept 29 Debate of $700 billion bailout in Congress

Arrrrr me bucko!

With all the seriousness surrounding us with a meltdown on the Dow this morning and a hopeless collection of toss pots up for the 2008 election, I just don't feel the need to be serious lately.

With that in mind lets have a look at some attempts at livening up the advertising during the election race. From Radio Live

Pirate pimping your Prime Minister

 

We want a fun election, so if you see any billboards that have been 'bad-touched in a good way', then we want to see them. The best will go on the website, just like the beauty above.

 

During last year's Mayoral Elections, Sideshow Bob Parker won the public vote. Look and see why.

 

  

 

I like the Simpson's related billboard myself, it is the level of mentality of most pollies and lest face it you can probably trust Homer Simpson above Helen Clark any day.

Helen Clark's modified billboard looks more like her than her real one.

c Political Animal 2008

700 Billion bailout fails to pass in lower house

From Share Investor Blog

News just in that the 700 billion bailout has just failed a vote in the House:

The fate of a controversial $700 billion financial bailout plan was in doubt Monday as a House vote turned against it.

The next steps were not immediately clear but supporters were scrambling to put it up for another vote.

What was supposed to be a 15-minute vote stretched past the half-hour mark as leadership scrambled for support. Investors who had been counting on the rescue plan sent the Dow Jones industrial average down as much as 700 points while watching the measure come up short of the necessary support, before rebounding slightly. The key stock reading was down more than 500 points.

The measure needs 218 votes for passage. Democrats voted 141 to 94 in favor of the plan, while Republicans voted 65 to 133 against. That left the measure with 206 votes for and 227 against.

CNN Money

It doesn't mean the rescue package is necessarily over, it will probably go back to the house in a modified way but it does mean that markets are reacting badly and are in a worse position than they would if a rescue package wasn't announced.

This is because if anything else, apart from the actual dire situation the financial sector is in, markets hate uncertainty.

The DOW is down 710 points as a result as at 8.33 am(NZ Time)

I expected a bigger plunge but the market still has 27 minutes of trading before close.

c Share Investor & Political Animal 2008