via littlemisswife.com

NASA believes the value of minerals on the asteroid belt exceeds USD600,000,000,000,000,000,000. (source)

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Good Evening, welcome to the daily Whaleoil Backchat.

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Dover Samuels says the dud judge who let off the royal ratbag with a discharge without conviction has ‘cultural hypnosis’.

A judge who discharged the Maori King’s son without conviction is suffering from “cultural hypnosis”, former Maori Affairs Minister Dover Samuels says.

Korotangi Paki, 19, pleaded guilty in the Auckland District Court yesterday to drink driving, two counts of burglary and one of theft.

Judge Philippa Cunningham discharged Paki without conviction on all charges but imposed a special condition that he provide the court evidence he did not have an alcohol problem or if he did, that he had addressed it with counselling.

Paki’s lawyer, Paul Wicks QC, told the court a conviction would impede his ability to accede to the throne.

Samuels told Radio New Zealand this morning the judge’s decision should not have taken into account Paki’s royal status. Read more »

With the Labour party Congress on this weekend and with Trevor Mallard running amok off message, they could really do with a similar rule to the one just implemented in the NRL.

The NRL’s salary cap changes for next year include a “no dickheads policy” that allows clubs to sack misbehaving players without being financially penalised for doing so.

Cronulla had to make the agonising decision to get rid of their star playmaker, Todd Carney, after he was embroiled in another controversy, this time a lewd photo that went viral.

The NRL’s salary cap changes, which were announced a month ago, will not take effect in time to benefit the embattled Sharks. However, clubs are less likely to tolerate abhorrent behaviour from next year, knowing the funds allocated for terminated players can be spent rebuilding their roster.    Read more »

I don’t know how Bernard Osman doesn’t have his intestines leap up and and strangle him to protect his brain from further hurt inflicted by the Auckland Council.  Check this out

The sale of synthetic drugs could be banned in poor suburbs such as Otara, Mangere and Henderson and small residential shopping centres under a policy being developed by Auckland Council.

The council is drawing up rules where retail outlets of psychoactive substances can operate, including a ban within 300m of a high school, 100m of a primary school and 500m of an existing store.

It is hoped the rules will be in place by the time synthetic drugs are due back on sale next year.

The Government made an emergency law change in May stopping the sale of all party pills and synthetic cannabis until a rigorous testing regime is in place.

Under the Psychoactive Substances Act 2013, councils can produce a “local approved product policy” to regulate where legal highs can be sold.

Under the draft policy approved by the regional strategy and policy committee yesterday, retail licences cannot be granted in areas of high deprivation

For this to work, the Council will have to officially declare what areas are included and excluded from these “high deprivation” areas.  Now, I don’t want to be coy, we know where the good streets and the bad ones are, but this is just good intention fraught with unintended consequences.   Read more »