The Wise Professor Asks …

Posted on by under Economic issues, education, History, Political commentary, Re-blogs

Our friend Professor Taboo usually has answers, but today he asks a question instead …

How Is This Possible?

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17 thoughts on “The Wise Professor Asks …”

  1. What you see is totally dependant upon the place from which you view it. So funny to think that if you believe that the fools are in charge then the fools are in charge. Especially so in those that snicker at those who believe in a mythical sky being.

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  2. 21 shutdowns in 47 years? I shudder at the thought. One day neither side is gong to be the first to blink/compromise…

    I know Americans like to think the have the oldest democracy, and using the criteria they use, Aotearoa is the third oldest democracy (170 years old, and after the US and Switzerland) but if one defines a democracy as one in which all adult citizens, regardless of gender, race, or property ownership can vote, then we are the oldest democracy (130 years old and the US only 58 years old). In our entire history as a democracy the government has never been forced to go into any form of lockdown nor have they had to face to possibility of a lockdown.

    Two reasons, I believe: (1) the procedure itself, and (2) what happens if the procedure should break down.

    It typically takes about four months for a budget to be approved after it has been presented to the NZ parliament. This is because the Appropriation (Estimates) Bill, which contains the details of the government’s spending plans, needs, by law, to be passed within four months of Budget Day. Budget Day is usually the third Thursday in May. During this time, the Bill goes through several stages of parliamentary scrutiny, including select committee examination (where public submissions are received and considered), second reading, committee of the whole House, and third reading. From 1 July until the Bill becomes law, the government must continue to operate and spend public money under the authority of the Imprest Supply Act, which allows the government to incur expenses and capital expenditure in advance of appropriation. The Imprest Supply Act is usually passed before Budget Day and expires at the end of June of the following year.

    The reason why this procedure works so well is that unlike in America, we have maximum term governments instead of fixed term, and a government can exist only when it has the confidence of the legislature (Parliament). Failure to pass the Imprest Supply Act by 1 July or the Appropriation bill within 4 months of Budget Day would be deemed as the legislature having lost confidence in the government, forcing it to resign. While it might be possible to form a new government, the most likely scenario would be the dissolving of Parliament and new General elections called. That’s a very risky option as the public has a dim view of unstable governments and is likely to severely punish whichever party or parties it deems at fault when they cast their vote. So it’s in the interest of all parties to ensure stability around the budget.

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    • Dang I must go get my grandson and dig a hole. The founders were men streeped in cognitive dissidence and distrust. The disfunction you see is not a bug but a feature. 🙂

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    • Also, as we get closer and closer to Election 2024 I want to remind voters the REAL source/cause of two straight years of (hyper?) inflation and no DEflation in sight—like THAT would ever happen from the corporate sector—from my April 2023 blog-post:

      Inflation: The Real Source

      And WHY mainstream media and news agencies never bring this up is killing Biden in Approval Ratings. Why do so few Americans and the 30-sec 1-min snippet news agencies won’t get into these REAL sources/causes is beyond my comprehension. Sad.

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      • Professor they own the mainstream media and most of the alternative media as well. You only know the stories that you are told.

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        • Ryinger77, you are indeed correct when talking also (by default) America’s mainstream media’s and some alternative media’s audiences which primarily the former swallows hook, line, and sinker with little critical-analysis on their part. I personally think, though, there’s some hope to be had with the latter audiences. At least they show the capability and wherewithal of seeking out MORE context, contrasts, and comparisons, if you will. They at least do more legwork, more homework, yes? 🙂

          A good example of my suggestion is/was in 2003 when Knight Ridder DC Bureau (an alternative source) published counter reports to mainstream news outlets like The New York Times and Washington Post, two big dogs in D.C., about the “purported intelligence” (fabricated) linking Saddam Hussein with WMD’s and Al-Qaeda. As it turned out, Knight Ridder, Jonathan Landay, and Warren Strobel along with significant assistance by Joe Galloway (Vietnam correspondent).

          Nevertheless, you are certainly right about mainstream media and its “mainstream” (lazy) viewers/readers/listeners. 👍

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        • Sorry. Was interrupted and forgot to go back and finish this sentence/thought… “by Joe Galloway (Vietnam correspondent)…” …all got it RIGHT about the Second Iraqi War being justified by fabricated intelligence and carried out more as “show of strength” likened to the Wizard of Oz behind his green curtain, BUT at the expense of American soldiers and untold pain & loss for their families. And is Iraq better off today?

          That was a rhetorical question everyone. 😉

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