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Post by strikemaster on Feb 2, 2013 10:06:52 GMT 12
Aussie car production will cease before the end of the decade. Its a done deal, govt can no longer afford to subsidise. What bugs me is that when one industry folds another opens and Dick seems to have trouble seeing that. If he can compete, then good. If not then trying to guilt people into buying his stuff is not a great way to do it. Profits do not just move offshore, they are used to keep things running locally too. I did see a doco a couple of years back (which I can't find) where his arguments were refuted by Arnotts and other manufacturer's and it was obvious he was scaremongering.
A lot of that cash is put back into the local economy. When an industry becomes unprofitable, due to inflated wages, what can you do? I don't think Kiwis and Aussies are winging about the end of the gold rush or Whaling, they just got new jobs in other industries.
NZ is lucky that its wages aren't stupidly high, it keeps the exports churning. Exporting people to Aussie, too. ;D
He may be passionate, but he is also condescending in my book.
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Post by Dave Homewood on Feb 2, 2013 21:46:55 GMT 12
Kiwis should look at their own food industry before they start to criticise others. We have what is reputed as some of the best butter, lamb and other dairy products in the world but a load of stuff that used to be NZ made is now made in China and other outsourced countries. You cannot buy a single brand of peanut butter that was NZ manufactured nowadays, almost all comes from China. The famous kiwi brand Watties that makes all the tinned and frozen products is now owned by foreign giant Heinz and a lot of what used to be NZ produce in their range now comes from Asia but is in the same packaging!
The Aussies now make all the Cadbury products that NZ sells rather than out own factory in Dunedin, including NZ's iconic Moro bar, and none of it seems to be as good as it used to be.
Someone mentioned fresh fish, unless you catch it yourself that is a thing of the past - it's all snap frozen and can be six months between catch date and your plate, but is still legally labelled as "fresh". In fact Chinese fishing boats are catching NZ zone fish, transporting the fish back to China, processing it there, and returning it to NZ where it is sold as NZ fresh fish! Apparently this is somehow cheaper than processing it in NZ.
NZ's dairy industry is screwing a lot of NZ, the waterways are being polluted and the South Island areas that are coverting to dairy bigtime are cutting down trees and draining rivers to create mega farms.
Tomatoes? We never buy them. I grow my own and usually have them fruting from October through till June. This year is different as we had a very cold spring and now a drought so the plants have been screwed, but I would rather go without than buy the crap they sell at the supermarket and call tomatoes.
I hear that commercially grown apples in Australia are rubbish compared to our own. They must be really poor then because NZ supermarket apples are shit. All bred for looks and no taste. Almost every second apple is rotten inside as they have been in a chiller for six months or more. I recall when you could go to a local orchard and pick your own and each time they had a slightly different range as the season progressed and you could get dozens of different varities through the year. And the apples were always very tasty and moorish and crisp and lovely. Now in NZ only ten varities are commercially grown apparently, and all are bred for looks. The best tasting apples are those in private gardens, old varieties that may not look all shiny and perfect size but they have full flavour. I have several favourite apples in Mum's and other friends' gardens. I don't eat commercial apples anymore, they are oversprayed, insipid wastes of space.
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Post by Officer Crabtree on Feb 3, 2013 0:28:42 GMT 12
I can't agree with you about apples Dave. The 'Jazz' apple variety, though a hybrid of different apples, tastes absolutely wonderful and has a great flavour and crispness to it. The other varieties I've tried as of late have been up to standard as well. Then again I haven't the pleasure of picking apples from an orchard or garden. As for peanut butter, a man in Nelson makes his own. It's called Pics and I believe is sold across the country.
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Post by corsair5517 on Feb 3, 2013 0:38:24 GMT 12
A proper, tree ripened Coxs Orange Pippin trumps all other apples as far as I'm concerned, even if they look a little scabby and odd!! Central Otago used to be the Mecca for fresh fruit with the family "doing" a run through there in late January for stonefruit, apples, berryfruit and a little fishing! Of course, all of those beautiful old trees have now been offered up to Lake Dunstan....
The dairy industry in NZ must have some powerful friends as I saw huge super farms being laid out in the Mackenzie basin with all of the attendant irrigation required; there will not be clean water anywhere there in the not too distant future! I lived alongside the Waitaki River for a year and saw a little stream called the Welcome Stream which runs alongside the Waitaki turn from a crystal clear little brook to an algae filled swamp in a year when a dairy conversion was put in upstream....
Clean and green? I don't think so!
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Post by phil82 on Feb 3, 2013 4:44:37 GMT 12
New Zealand milk is pretty bloody good.......... I'll bet it's not as good as the milk sold up here which is bottled on the farm where it's made; it's like the milk I remember inn NZ as a kid and I was most pleased to find it!! If tomatoes and apples are all you blokes can come up with, then I think you're in trouble!! ;D Dick Smith seems, at my remove, to be passionate about keeping jobs in Australia and is putting his money where his mouth is; good on him! It's nice to see the kiwi knocking machine is still alive and functioning.... Quite! Is this about Dick Smith, or the love hate relationship between NZ and Australia. Dave , you're up first! I don't know where you live, and I would have thought there were Farmers' Markets around Cambridge wher you can by home grown/made stuff. I take you comment about cold storage of apples, but they are seasonal yet people demand "fresh" all the year round. I have twice returned apples to Countdown of late because they were simply not marketable quality. As for NZ apples into Oz, they're still playing the underam game over there because of fear! NZ apples are far superior, and the politicians want to protect their own, without realising the sales would actually boost Australian apple production because Kiwis per capita eat more than the Aussies do. Apples that is! Tomatoes are the same, tasteless rubbish, unless you get them from Nelson! Now to your fish Dave, and I'm afraid I'm going to disagree a tad! There are dozens of fresh fish outlets here in Wellington, selling fish caught by the guys selling it. I know of at least three or four places wher you can buy that rarest of fish, Blue Cod, At my local riverbank carpark market here in Lower Hutt, there are fishermen selling their own catch, caught that morning, so unless you catch it yourself, it don't come fresher! I'll let you into a little secret about fresh fish: if it's truly fresh, it doesn't smell like fish! There are few better things to enjoy than a late evening meal in Darling Harbour with a plate of Baramundi and a bottle of good Aussie Viognier! Dick Smith? Never met the guy, but I've always regarded him as a typical Aussie battler, and good on 'im!
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Post by kiwithrottlejockey on Feb 3, 2013 10:59:25 GMT 12
The Aussies now make all the Cadbury products that NZ sells rather than out own factory in Dunedin, including NZ's iconic Moro bar, and none of it seems to be as good as it used to be. That's easily fixed.
Boycott Cadbury and purchase Whittakers chocolate instead.
Family-owned and made in Porirua.
They used to be the major sponsor of Wings Over Wairarapa during the early years of the airshow — the airshow was actually called "Whittakers Wings Over Wairarapa".
And the sponsor used to have people handing out free samples of their chocolate products throughout the aerodrome.
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Post by Dave Homewood on Feb 3, 2013 11:12:03 GMT 12
Yes, Whittakers all the way. Cadbury used to be great when it was a British company. Hersheys have ruined it.
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Post by mit on Feb 3, 2013 12:10:07 GMT 12
The Aussies now make all the Cadbury products that NZ sells rather than out own factory in Dunedin, including NZ's iconic Moro bar, and none of it seems to be as good as it used to be. That's easily fixed.
Boycott Cadbury and purchase Whittakers chocolate instead.
Family-owned and made in Porirua.
They used to be the major sponsor of Wings Over Wairarapa during the early years of the airshow — the airshow was actually called "Whittakers Wings Over Wairarapa".
And the sponsor used to have people handing out free samples of their chocolate products throughout the aerodrome.Not to mention ZK-BAT was in Whittakers paint
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Post by strikemaster on Feb 3, 2013 15:36:15 GMT 12
Aussie Cadbury is rubbish, even Nestle blows them to the weeds. Which isn't saying much. Seems the best Oranges I have had of late are from California and the best apples...... local. Aussie grown Pink Ladies. In season they are brilliant but not cheap.
I haven't had a Moro in ages. For a while I was eating the new ones and wondering why they taste like shit, then I read the label and that was that. Mum sends Whitakers stuff over from time to time, still nice. I have to confess that Aussie Peanut butter is pretty good too, and I'm pretty sure its still made here.
You can definitely by fresh fish here, you just have to avoid the supermarkets.
The Kiwi throttle jockey is right, don't like it, don't buy it. The power of capitalism. I'm sure most people just enjoy crap, not sure why.
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Post by Dave Homewood on Feb 3, 2013 17:51:48 GMT 12
A friend of mine pointed out the peanut butter thing some time back. He was looking at the jars in the supermarket and noticed all the kiwi and Aussie brands had made in China on them (even Sanitarium). The only one that didn't was Kraft, from Aussie and made there from 100% Australian produce. Knowing that Aussie's food standards are about the same level as ours, and well above China's, I switched from Sanitarium to Kraft there and then. But then some time later, maybe a year, when unpacking the groceries I detected a slight change in their label and it now says Made in Australia from local and imported ingredients. So it too is on the slippery slope....
Regarding the fish, yes I was talking about supermarket and fish and chip shop fish. If you can get it straight form the boat and it was caught that day, that's fresh. But the bigger boats are at sea for literally months, and none of their fish is fresh when you buy it.
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Post by strikemaster on Feb 3, 2013 18:40:33 GMT 12
Thats pretty much the norm, for sea fish. I lived for 20 years on Trout farms and can't buy it from the Supermarkets, its old leathery looking crap most of the time. Not that it is much of a worry in NZ. :-)
Just checked the Peanut butter, Kraft, same as yours, Dave. I don't think it tastes any differnt though, maybe it has Kiwi butter in it. Heh.
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Post by kiwithrottlejockey on Feb 3, 2013 21:29:10 GMT 12
Regarding the fish, yes I was talking about supermarket and fish and chip shop fish. The fish and chip shop just down the road and around the corner from me in Masterton (Mac's Takaways) definitely only has fresh fish. I know the fishermen (locals based in Wairarapa) who supply them. They have about fifteen different varieties of fish up on their menu (with each available either battered or crumbed) and they have a little "tick" marker next to each variety which is actually available on any given day, depending upon what they have been able to purchase fresh off the fishermen who supply them.
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Post by Dave Homewood on Feb 4, 2013 0:05:29 GMT 12
Who have had the fish in their ship's hold for months, frozen. Believe me, fishermen don't make a living these days going in and out every day to fish, it's impossible. They snap freeze it, as Mike says above. But the shops still call it "fresh". Freshly thawed is what it is.
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Post by kiwithrottlejockey on Feb 5, 2013 20:52:38 GMT 12
Maybe they do it that way in Waikato and Auckland, but that's not how they do it in Wellington and Wairarapa.
You can go down to the wharf at Days Bay on the eastern side of Wellington Harbour most days and purchase fresh fish from local fishermen who go out early each morning, then return with their catch and sell directly to the public, as well as to restaurants, etc.
And likewise, local Wairarapa fishermen also go out very early each day from places such as Ngawi, Flat Point, Castlepoint, and many other places, then sell their fish from their trucks on the side of the road as well as supplying local fish and chip shops, restaurants, etc. My next door neighbour did that for many years until he sold his boat (and truck) and retired a couple of years ago. He often used to drop off freshly-caught fish at my place as a treat, as well as crayfish which were still very much alive and kicking (he had a lot of crayfish quota and pots all over the place). He used to head off to work around 3:00am 3-4 days each week, and he'd be back mid-afternoon with a refrigerated truck full of the day's catch.
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Post by kiwithrottlejockey on Feb 5, 2013 20:53:46 GMT 12
Ten reasons why we're better than AustraliaCOLIN ESPINER: BULL DUST!STUFF - Fairfax NZ | 1:23PM - Tuesday, 05 February 2013WE'VE always being told the grass is greener across The Ditch. The sky's always blue, the sun always shines, you'll earn more money and have more fun.
We're also constantly told that thousands of Kiwis leave our shores every year searching for a better life in Australia. What we don't hear about so often is that many of those come back again.
I was one of them.
Don't get me wrong — Australia is a fantastic country. I loved living there. It's a huge, wealthy, beautiful, warm and yes, good fun.
After two years working in Sydney my partner and I did a four-month road trip across the sunburnt continent. It was one of the best things I've ever done.
I wrote a blog about our experience, and called it Bull Dust, after the ubiquitous red Aussie dust that gets under your nails, into your clothes and under your skin. I kept the name for my new blog here on STUFF.
But the very best thing about being a Kiwi in Australia is not having to decide whether or not to live there forever (the worst thing is homesickness and getting teased about your accent). Unlike most nationalities, we get to pick and choose. To come and go. It's the best of both worlds.
Granted, heading back against the general tide raised a few eyebrows. Many Australians were frankly incredulous that we would pack up and turn our backs on the Lucky Country.
So as we celebrate our national day — or at least what passes for it — here are my 10 reasons why New Zealand is a better place to live than Australia.
1. We're more friendly. Everyone comments on this. It starts the moment you get off the plane, and continues every time you walk into a store, sit down for a coffee, or pass someone on the street. In Sydney, you don't acknowledge anyone you might meet unless you already know them. Even smiling at a stranger is considered odd. Here, you're practically smothered with affection.
2. Small is beautiful. Australia is every bit as beautiful as New Zealand. It's just a shame you have to travel thousands of kilometres between sights. Take it from someone who drove 23,000kms in four months — and that was only between Sydney and Perth. Here, you only have to pop round the corner for the scenery to change.
3. Our houses are cheaper. OK, there are people in some Auckland suburbs who may disagree with this, but for the most part, it's cheaper to buy a home here than it is in Australia. Sydney is unbelievably expensive. Anyone who isn't a millionaire or a major CEO can't afford to buy an actual house unless it's some 80km west of the CBD. And forget about a garden unless you earn well into six figures.
4. Our food and drink is better. Yes, a big call I know. Australia markets itself very effectively as a gourmand's paradise. But for my money, our produce is fresher, our meat tastier, our ice cream creamier and our fish, er, fishier. If you're a beer connoisseur you'll be sadly disappointed in Australia unless you're a fan of freezing cold, mass-produced lager. Granted, they make a decent drop of red, but their white wine is rubbish. And we've got way better lollies.
5. We love our indigenous culture. You've got to leave New Zealand to fully appreciate this, but our Maori heritage is an immense asset. I'm as white as the driven snow, but I treasure what Maoridom and Pacific Island culture has done for New Zealand. It makes us proud, strong, independent, and interesting. By contrast white Australia all but ignores its Aboriginal roots.
6. We're not so uptight. Big-city Australians are wound as tight as watch springs. Out in the bush it's better, but Kiwis are world-beaters at laconic, she'll be right laid-backness. And she normally is right. No point having a heart attack, is there?
7. We're more entrepreneurial. Australia may have a bigger economy, but we're lighter on our feet. Because we have a small, educated, enthusiastic population of early adopters, New Zealand is a great place to start a business, further your career, or do something different from the herd. And because there's only 4.5 million of us, it's easier for our voice to be heard. Hardly surprising that we've invented so much more stuff than the Aussies ever have.
8. There's fewer things that can hurt or kill you. Don't underestimate this. Australia is home to all ten species of the world's most poisonous snakes. Then there's spiders the size of your hand, sharks cruising the beaches, scorpions, sting-rays … oh yes, and the world's most dangerous reptile, the crocodile. We've got, um, stinging nettle. And wekas can give you a nasty peck.
9. Our TV's better. Hard to believe, I know, but it's true. We may all grumble about the box, but Aussie television is truly dire. Between The Block, The Project, Bondi Vet and Border Patrol, there's Lara Bingle!, The Shire, and re-runs of Prisoner. It's just a shame they export most of those shows over here. Next to this lot, Seven Sharp looks like hard-hitting current affairs. Plus, we've got John Campbell.
10. The weather. Australia's either too hot, too cold, or too wet. Thanks to climate change, Sydney alternates between floods and bush fires. Queensland suffers increasingly volatile storms. The Outback and Western Australia simply fries. We enjoy a temperate climate with plenty of sunshine and rain.
Well there's my top ten. What have I missed? Who else has headed across the Ditch but came home again? Who's reading this in Australia and would love to come home? What's stopping you?
I sometimes think all Kiwis should leave New Zealand at least once. Only then will they know what they're missing.
Happy Waitangi Day, everyone.www.stuff.co.nz/national/blogs/bull-dust/8264842/Ten-reasons-why-we-re-better-than-Australia
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Post by strikemaster on Feb 5, 2013 21:16:12 GMT 12
1. Go to rural Aussie, the same applies. Everyone in cities are weird, and that includes Auckland.
2. Given.
3. The Bay of Plenty, definitely cheaper than Melb. BUT Queenstown is more expensive than Melbourne last time I looked.
4. Not everything, but Dairy, yes, meats and fish, yes. Mass produced Aussie lager isn't that great either.
5. Kiwi's don't get a choice. That's not love.
6. For the most part, yup.
7. Probably, most Aussies fall into the she'll be right category. Not that there is anything wrong with that, see point 6.
8. Not quite true. There are no volcanoes, no earthquakes (much), no avalanches.... etc, etc.
9. TV sucks in both countries for the most part.
10. I'm sweating my nuts off, so I will concede that one. And I do miss the permafrost.
11. You can go hunting in NZ and not have to drive for hours to do it.
Happy Waitangi day, E hoa.
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Post by Dave Homewood on Feb 5, 2013 23:12:49 GMT 12
Quoting Strikemasters' response
1. Go to rural Aussie, the same applies. Everyone in cities are weird, and that includes Auckland.
Go to rural anywhere and you'll probably find the same applies (except maybe the south of the USA)
2. Given.
That is what makes Cambridge so great
3. The Bay of Plenty, definitely cheaper than Melb. BUT Queenstown is more expensive than Melbourne last time I looked.
Christchurch is now the most expensive place in NZ to buy/own a house, apparently, for some reason
4. Not everything, but Dairy, yes, meats and fish, yes. Mass produced Aussie lager isn't that great either.
A lot of NZ-made beer is not that great either
5. Kiwi's don't get a choice. That's not love.
Well put. Whilst I have great respect and affection for many individual Maori people, I certainly have no love for, nor very little interest in, Maori culture or language, both of which seem to be overridingly forced on us these days by the media and pandering official circles. Such forced culture is totally negating the fact that each individual kiwi has his or her own cultural background and heritage that could and should be embraced and celebrated too, but gets completely ignored...
6. For the most part, yup.
Yup
7. Probably, most Aussies fall into the she'll be right category. Not that there is anything wrong with that, see point 6.
Aussie entrepreneurship is mostly the claiming of kiwi ideas (and recipes) ;D
8. Not quite true. There are no volcanoes, no earthquakes (much), no avalanches.... etc, etc.
Um, does Thredboe ring any bells to you?
9. TV sucks in both countries for the most part.
And getting worse by the minute.
10. I'm sweating my nuts off, so I will concede that one. And I do miss the permafrost.
We have Aussie weather right now. Hot, dry, dead grass, bush fires, skinny sheep, millions of flies.
11. You can go hunting in NZ and not have to drive for hours to do it.
That depends on what you are hunting for.
Happy Waitangi day, E hoa
I think you'll find that it is now officially known as Harawira Day, they seem to have claimed ownership of our National Day and the media has embraced that pack of idiots as the spokespeople for the country's most pointless holiday.
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Post by kiwithrottlejockey on Feb 6, 2013 0:01:24 GMT 12
Speaking about the Harawiras...
In November last year, I was on an Air NZ A320 on a flight from Wellington to Auckland. I had an aisle seat, and Titiwhai Harawira had the aisle seat in the next row in front and on the opposite side of the aisle. She charmed the pants off the cabin crew from the time she boarded until the time she got off the aeroplane in Auckland (walking with the aid of her two walking sticks) and the cabin crew reciprocated by treating her like she was the Queen. She was the total opposite than what you usually see on the TV when she is acting up. I think Titiwhai puts on different personalities depending upon where she is and what she is up to.
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Post by ngatimozart on Feb 6, 2013 14:44:00 GMT 12
Having met Titiwhai & Hone, she is an evil old woman who is giving Ngāpuhi a bad name and Hone is an out and out racist. She increases Harawira mana but she's reducing Ngāpuhi mana. There is a price to pay for that and I wonder if Titiwhai is willing to pay that price. Hone don't like white people fullstop, nor does he have much time for Māori who have truk with the Pākehā. He told his daughters never to bring a white boy home. I am Ngātiwai but I do have Ngāpuhi blood and just to annoy the Hariwiras it is higher up the traditional Ngāpuhi chain than theirs. It really annoys the crap out of the Hariwiras because I've got real white skin.
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Post by saratoga on Feb 6, 2013 17:22:03 GMT 12
Titiwhai's most likely Bi Polar, just needs some meds to sort her out ...
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