Forum Archive Index - December 2002

[ichi@ihug.co.nz]

prhughes@value.net.nz wrote:
> 
> Air NZ was owned by the People of NZ,

What a quaint notion.  I don't recall getting the annual 
report or voting for the directors.  Perhaps you are 
confusing rhetoric with fact?

> however the government of the day sold it 

There we go.  The government owned it.  Nothing to do 
with me afterall.

> to private interests 

Hooray!

> on the premise that they would make a better job of 
> running it. 

On the premise that the government would rather have the
money than the airline.  Very sensible that.

> On the sidelines are as Snoopy said many growers whom are
> dependant on Air NZ to get their products to world markets.
> So someone had to step in and clean up the mess. 

What mess exactly?  The planes were still flying.  The
products were still getting to market.

> This is not economic theory but the real world.

Yeah, the real world is flat.  Any idiot can see that.

> There seems to be a growing feeling that Tranz Rail and 
> Telecom could be turning to the Govt for assistance. 

Sure, why not.  If the government is doling out lollies to 
businesses, you might as well get in the queue.  How much 
was it that the government paid for the Auckland rail 
corridor?  $80 million?  Tranz Rail must have been laughing
all the way to the bank.
    
> What do we do, let them go belly up.

Yup, the sooner the better.  

> Let's suppose Telecom went under

Do you seriously think this is possible?

> do we perhaps wait weeks or months for some other crowd 
> (probably Telstra) to take over. In the meantime the banks 
> have appointed a receiver, whom decides that money can be 
> saved by closing it down immediately
> Many customers of Telecom would be without their telephone

And what if the receivers decide to shut down the supermarkets.  
And the petrol stations.  Then we wouldn't have food or petrol.
The only way to avoid this catastrophe is for the government
to own the supermarkets and the petrol stations.

> Does the Govt of the day sit on their hands, and do nothing? 

Yes indeed.  The market will sort it out.  Usually the
government only makes things worse (as it did in the case
of Air New Zealand).

> I think the economic liberalists would gain more mileage 
> if they questioned the reasons 

I think the economic illiterates would gain more mileage
if they stopped expecting the government to solve all our
problems.

> as to why these previously people owned enterprises when 
> sold to the private sector have run into financial strife.

The only one of these enterprises in real financial strife
was Air New Zealand.  It is unfair to blame the private sector 
for a crisis that was caused by government interference and 
dithering.

> ps  I am of no particular political persuasion..

Yeah right.


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