Congratulations 48%

[shrub]

What would you have done? Let the rail network be rendered unusable? What would that have done to the economy? And when it was bought back, why couldn't we buy it back for $1 if it was in such a bad condition?

What people forget is that in the medium and long term not having a good rail network would damn near cripple NZ. Oil prices are rising which is making road transport increasingly expensive, whereas rail can not only be electric but even with diesel is a lot cheaper per tonne of freight. We can barely afford to maintain our existing roads, yet the cost of maintaining a rail network is a fraction the cost of maintaining a road, and I understand that building a railway line costs about the same as a good two lane highway.

And as a biker, the less trucks on the road the better for me. They fuck the surface and how many times have you come flying round a corner at the beginning of a beautiful set of corners to find a big old A train grinding along at 60 kmh? Imagine if that truck was parked in a depot somewhere because the freight was on that train you passed earlier?

I think the only reason the right hate rail is because Labour bought it back.

[mashman]

Like you said i would have brought it back for a dollar, at the most paid scrape value.
As to why they didn't, well only Helen will know that one.

Could it be that the owners didn't have to sell? and that they could afford to let the railways be run down?

[BoristheBiter]

It's all a little more discreet than simple subsidies or tax breaks. A key raw material used by the modern NZ dairy industry is water because dairy has moved from the traditional areas with good rainfall (Waikato etc) to places like the Canterbury Plains and Central Otago that need irrigation. The water to do that costs the farmer nothing despite that water being a finite resource. If I run a factory and i have waste materials, I pay someone to take those wastes away and put them in a landfill, whereas a farmer doesn't have that problem. When his cow pisses or shits (waste product from his business) that waste usually finds it's way into the water system which is why so many of our rivers and lakes are fucked. Who pays to clean those lakes? The taxpayer who is subsidising the farmer. And if a factory emits carbon they pay for that carbon, whereas a farmer doesn't.

this shows what farmers pay for their water and this does not inlude the cost of the irrigation systems themselves.

http://www.fedfarm.org.nz/n2178.html

Then there is the waste water charges imposed by council via the rates.

[Oscar]

I prefer arrogant to pompous, but then I also prefer big boned to fat and high forehead to bald.

If he is sick of "supercilious ‎pseudo-intellectuals who confuse personal attacks with cogent ‎argument", then why doesn't he present a cogent argument to support his position or challenge what us "pseudo-intellectuals" say? And yes, I called him a muppet (hard not to really), but apart from that if you look at my posts almost every single one of them presents a reasoned response to what someone else says, although I openly admit that sometimes I am a little sarcastic. However you called me a "pompous cunt" and a "supercilious ‎pseudo-intellectual" - is that, despite being distressingly accurate, a personal attack or a cogent argument?

And if Boris is so keen on cogent argument and so sick of personal attack, why did he call people who disagree with him "whining wankers" and "moaning know all cunts"? Or was that OK because it was a general attack, not a personal attack?

It certainly was a personal attack, and my excuse is that you started it (which I admit is ‎probably disingenuous and/or supercilious in itself). In respect of cogent argument, I ‎have absolutely no proof as to your resemblance to female genitalia, but I think on re-‎reading your post to Mr. Crasher, in your heart of hearts, you'd have to allow that it ‎was pompous.‎

[shrub]

Who said i was sick of personal attacks? some of you guys come up with some good'ns. Makes KB more enjoyable.

When Oscar said you were sick of personal attacks you said "Thanks Oscar. Saved me saying it!". If it saved you saying it, then you intended to say it.

[BoristheBiter]

What people forget is that in the medium and long term not having a good rail network would damn near cripple NZ. Oil prices are rising which is making road transport increasingly expensive, whereas rail can not only be electric but even with diesel is a lot cheaper per tonne of freight. We can barely afford to maintain our existing roads, yet the cost of maintaining a rail network is a fraction the cost of maintaining a road, and I understand that building a railway line costs about the same as a good two lane highway.

And as a biker, the less trucks on the road the better for me. They fuck the surface and how many times have you come flying round a corner at the beginning of a beautiful set of corners to find a big old A train grinding along at 60 kmh? Imagine if that truck was parked in a depot somewhere because the freight was on that train you passed earlier?

I think the only reason the right hate rail is because Labour bought it back.

Could it be that the owners didn't have to sell? and that they could afford to let the railways be run down?

I think it should have never been sold in the first place. But i think we all agree that the price they paid to get it back was way to high.
Also 13hrs to get from AKL to WGTN is a bit of a joke.

[mashman]

When Oscar said you were sick of personal attacks you said "Thanks Oscar. Saved me saying it!". If it saved you saying it, then you intended to say it.

t'was Crasher mate. Much better at articulating himself than Oscar imho

[BoristheBiter]

When Oscar said you were sick of personal attacks you said "Thanks Oscar. Saved me saying it!". If it saved you saying it, then you intended to say it.

I think you should go back and read it again.
It was CFWB who posted that.

[mashman]

I think it should have never been sold in the first place. But i think we all agree that the price they paid to get it back was way to high.
Also 13hrs to get from AKL to WGTN is a bit of a joke.

I wasn't here when it was sold, but I agree that the price seemed pretty feckin high when they bought it back... although had it had been the Nats, we would have paid double. 13hrs seriously??? fecknell

[Crasherfromwayback]

When Oscar said you were sick of personal attacks you said "Thanks Oscar. Saved me saying it!". If it saved you saying it, then you intended to say it.

Who's the 'muppet' now Knobjob? At least I know who I'm insulting.

[shrub]

I think on re-‎reading your post to Mr. Crasher, in your heart of hearts, you'd have to allow that it ‎was pompous.‎

No, on re-reading my post i think it was pretty accurate and even amusing. It also wound you guys up, so it did it's job.

[BoristheBiter]

I wasn't here when it was sold, but I agree that the price seemed pretty feckin high when they bought it back... although had it had been the Nats, we would have paid double. 13hrs seriously??? fecknell

It stops for 45min at Nat park for lunch.

[mashman]

It stops for 45min at Nat park for lunch.

so a Nat lunch of 45 mins would really be, erm, carry the one add 2 divide by Pi, 4.5 hours?

[shrub]

Who's the 'muppet' now Knobjob? At least I know who I'm insulting.

My apologies, but you basically say the same things as each other, so it's hard to find a difference between you two.

[Oscar]

No, on re-reading my post i think it was pretty accurate and even amusing. It also wound you guys up, so it did it's job.

Accurate? I can’t really comment (‘cause I’d have to go back and read all the posts ‎and frankly, I’d rather stick needles in my eyes). It was definitely pompous, because ‎it inferred that Mr. Crasher was hanging on your every pronouncement and lacked the ‎mental capacity to argue them.‎

As for you winding me up, that’s a tiny bit arrogant, as you haven’t really said ‎anything worth getting wound up about. ‎