Housing Crash - yes the bubble has well and truly popped in New Zealand.
The advent of Peak Oil will probably mean that the market will never truly recover.
The economy's in the poo? Well world wide doom and gloom emanating from the tanking US Economy is becoming our problem.
John Campbell talks to Joseph Stiglitz.
Stiglitz sure makes a lot of sense - although he over states the role of the Iraq war in the price of oil. Yeah sure it has risen - but it would have risen to these levels largely due to advent of Peak Oil.
13th March 2008
It's Thursday 13th of March - the day petrol prices at New Zealand pumps reached their highest ever point.
High petrol prices have a massive flow on effect throughout all sectors of the economy and flows through to all other purchases.
Hang on folks this ride is not over yet!
Inflation - Petrol Prices and you the consumer.
In the past 12 months inflation has reduced your spending power by 3.4%
But without petrol price rises it would only have been 2.5%
Therefore petrol price rises are directly affecting your standard of living.
Supermarket fuel discounts.
18 May 2008
The Soaring price of rice is a world wide problem.
In this 3rd part of a series on the world food crisis, the Philippines is looked at - where a population explosion has meant rice paddies are turning into urban sprawl to house instead of feed the millions of extra people.
Filled up your car recently? Hurts doesn't it! The best part of 2 dollars a litre now. NZ$100 to fill the average family car - and it's only going to get worse.
So why - well it's about supply and demand - one is outstripping the other.
There is a lot of grumbling on the forecourt
The rising price of staple foods is just beginning to hit first world countries like New Zealand, but in the third world countries they are long past hurting - they are dying.
And from what we through was a good cause - biofuels.
An investigation into what is happening in Haiti.
Their corrupt and useless Government of Haiti also has a huge role in the disaster that is Haiti.
It's on the lips of everyone from Supermodels, to Rappers, to OPEC Oil Ministers, and no we don't mean vintage champagne.
We are talking about the the Euro's rise in popularity over the US Dollar.
OK - not quite Peak Oil for New Zealand - BUT... the subprime housing situation that is racking through the USA at present is what is in the future as Peak Oil hits. Economic reality as the cheap easy to get Oil is no longer around.
The man who 20 years ago discovered the hole in the Ozone layer above Antarctica , has returned to the continent and issued another global warning.
Jonathan Shanklin was one of a group of scientists who helped bring about the Montreal Protocol, the international agreement on Ozone control, but he feels that the world is still not moving fast enough
Everywhere you look there is headlines about rising food prices, food shortages, there is hte struggle to pay mortgages - you name it.
Well there is one man who has managed to escape all of that.
He has cut his life to the essentials and he lives on a thousand New Zealand Dollars a year.
That man is Nick Brandon from Taranaki, New Zealand - and he is the EXTREME Green Man.
Filled up your car recently? Hurts doesn't it! The best part of 2 dollars a litre now. NZ$100 to fill the average family car - and it's only going to get worse.
So why - well it's about supply and demand - one is outstripping the other.
There is a lot of grumbling on the forecourt.
Part 2 of 2
Bulk food prices are rising, part of this is due to sheer demand to feed the worlds groaning population, but also the fact that more food production areas are now being used to grow bio-fuel crops.
Did you know that New Zealanders use 22 million plastic bags every week and each of us produces 2.5kg of waste every day.
A Christchurch couple has made an unusual New Year's resolution - to create zero rubbish for 12 months.
What a fantastic effort - go you good thing.
Check them out on the web
www dot rubbishfreeyear dot co dot nz
15 June 2008
A trio of Dunedin Engineers are looking to harness Otago's strong winds to test their unique wind turbine.
The single blade wind turbine can protect itself from being damaged in high winds, and it could even bring a financial windfall for energy efficient households.
The clean green image New Zealand promotes is in danger of becoming false advertising.
An Environment Ministry study has found unacceptable contamination of the water we drink, and the air we breath, and dairy farming is one the big culprits.
