SHADBOLT OR PRENTICE

We still watch Southland from afar.. And for us its a no brainer. Shadbolt is tired and divisive. Time for a change. We have known the Prentice family over the years. So we are more than happy to endorse her. So goooo Suzanne!

BIG TEETH OR BIG VOICE

We will be keeping a close eye on what is shaping up to be the second most interesting mayoral battle  in the country. 

It's the one between  Tim  Shadbolt and Suzanne Prentice.  We have never liked Shadbolt that much  - He has  done some good for the south though - his constant attention seeking has meant that the South has enjoyed a reasonable media profile. 

After all Tim is famous for being famous. 

Suzanne is a business woman who also knows the art of  promotion and  her first foray into local body politics as a sitting member of the Invercargill Licensing Trust has obviously whetted her appetite for a wack at the Southern Local body crown. 

The South, despite its conservative streak, has been kind to women local body aspirants. They voted in Eve Poole , one of the best and most formidible Mayors of Invercargill and ex kindy teach Frana Cardno has become, as Southalnd District Councils Mayor of long standing, its best cheeleader. 

So Suzanne's tilt will come as no surprise. She is independently wealthy enough that the job is not about the money  - for her it will be about making a difference.

Its a different story for Shadbolt though - the best he can do is go back to pouring concrete. He has never done much else  - He is humourous enough that perhaps he can do the country pub circuit and spin a few yarns but thats about it. 

So for him, he has everything to lose.  He isn't above fighting dirty and and he has made some very significant enemies in the south. 

The ex driving instructor Neil Boniface  and current deputy Mayor is the other possible contender for the Mayoral chains and there is no love lost between he and Shadbolt. He is also a career politician. He is a nice enough bloke but not Mayoral material. 

So our money is on Suzanne. She is a sensible, smart  savvy and loves Southland.  Just what the South needs . 

HAS SHADBOLT SHOT HIS BOLT?

Tim Shadbolt probably faces his toughest local body election for some time next year. He presides over a fractured Invercargill City council and it seems he feels undermined and uninformed.

Personally we think Shadbolt is a dickhead and a sifty dickhead at that. Invercargill could do much better than having a seedy old shit like Shadbolt as their Mayor.. Time for new blood.

We reckon Suzanne Prentice is the gal for the South..

HOMETOWN HORRORS

This is a shameful story and I am appalled how the authorities are handling it - they want to discuss the issue with the skinheads. They are the most loathesome of all the gangs and they are a gang - normally the lickspittles of the bigger white power biker based gangs but with all the creed that goes with this insidious culture.



Shame on you Southland for letting this happen to new migrants.



These people will help our economy grow - learn from them and respect them and treat them as you would your own...









This from the Southland Times



Complaints about foreign students being abused in the streets have prompted two Invercargill leaders to plan meetings with skinheads to discuss the problem.
Two Indian students had already decided to return home this year after they were abused by a carload of youths, Southern Institute of Technology chief executive Penny Simmonds said at a Venture Southland meeting yesterday.
Other Southland leaders cited instances of mothers being ignored at day care centres, 6-year-olds uttering racist remarks and migrants in rural areas feeling so isolated they visited the library simply to talk to someone.
SIT spent hundreds of thousands of dollars attracting foreign students to the region and acts of racism in the city were undermining its efforts, Ms Simmonds said. In a bid to tackle the problem, she and Invercargill Mayor Tim Shadbolt were arranging meetings with Invercargill skinheads to discuss the issue.
Mr Shadbolt said a designated student area with a hostel needed to be established away from the central business district because anyone walking through the city at night faced the risk of being abused "even if you go out with a police patrol" .
"I'd hate to be wearing a turban walking up (the street in) Invercargill," he said.
Southland District Mayor Frana Cardno said she had heard of migrants going into early childhood centres and being ignored and cited an example of a 6-year-old coming out with a racist statement. Council chief executive Dave Adamson said some migrants in rural areas were so isolated the library was the only place they could speak to someone outside their immediate family. National MP Eric Roy said he had heard of skilled migrants leaving Southland because they felt threatened.