"He's a snake in the grass, I tell ya guys; he may look dumb but that's just a disguise; he's a mastermind in the ways of espionage." Charlie Daniels, "Uneasy Rider" Are 'enviros' evil,or trying to protect property + reassert control over behemoths? New Zealand Navy + Petrobras vs. Maori fishermen - TT's Lost in Tokyo

Are 'enviros' evil,or trying to protect property + reassert control over behemoths? New Zealand Navy + Petrobras vs. Maori fishermen

A quick show of hands:

  • How many of you think that the recent protests by New Zealand "greens" and Maori fishermen against Government-licensed oil exploration activities by PetroBras is evidence of a blind envirofascist hatred of mankind?
  • How many of you cheer on the "capitalist" exploration and development of government-owned resources by big and state-entanged corporations, over the quaint claims to "fishing rights" by locals?
  • How many of you think that PetroBras and its shareholders are the real victims of these protests?
  • How many think it's a sign of how government "owenership" of public resources leads to zero-sum politicization of decisions, and of decisions that are tilted toward activities that provide revenues to government, while shifting risks to local communities and individuals?
  • Does anybody see any parallels with BP and the Gulf?  With the crony capitalism supporting Tokyo Electric, the operator of the Fukushima nuclear plants?

I posted a few tweets on this topic, which I copy below in chronological order:

 TokyoTom

NZ Navy intervention in oil protest "disgusting" - Maori MPs |     
 
 TokyoTom 
Maori Sovereignty? "Maori feel the pollution risk to the water+fish stocks is too great"   
 
 TokyoTom 
Maori skipper detained by Navy warship for defending ancestral fishing waters from Oil Drilling  
 
 TokyoTom 
Maori fisherman: "We are defending tribal waters+our rights from reckless Govt policies"   
 
 TokyoTom 
“opening up natl parks+our coastline to transnationl corps shows contempt+will face fierce+sustained local resistance”
 
 TokyoTom 
Petrobras protest+Maritime Rules  |clear frm+ tht Gov 'ownership' leads to poor risk mgt+theft frm communities
 
 TokyoTom 
"Gov has awakened some sort of taniwha.We're all virgins at doing this.We never fight"   
 
 TokyoTom 
"April 11: NZ Navy ships+Air Force planes begin monitoring the protest along with police"   
 
 TokyoTom 
"after the licence was given-in what way is that consultation? It isn't, not even close"    
 
 TokyoTom 
Te Karere Ipurangi » Blog Archive » Oil surveys damage sea creatures organs – ECO    
 
 TokyoTom 
MP says it is a disgrace...wrong for NZ citizen to be threatened by Defense for opposing a deal btwn gov+foreign oil co
 
 TokyoTom 
NZ Gov happy w discretion to act unilaterally 2increase Gov revenues+to ignore locals  
 
 TokyoTom 
In NZ as in ,locals trying to exercise community crtl treated as 'terrorists'    
 
 TokyoTom 
Rikirangi Gage to  "We are defending tribal waters+our rights frm reckless Gov policies”  
 
 TokyoTom 
AUDIO:Rikirangi Gage of te Whānau-ā-Apanui vessel radios captain of  oil survey ship  
 
Avatar
Published Wed, Apr 27 2011 9:37 PM by TokyoTom