Actually Rodney Hide, leader of ACT, gave a speech to students the previous day, outside the Union Café, to a very positive crowd. I don't think he was even told about the OUSA forum.

To say ACT (and others) "don't care" about students just because we missed one meeting we never knew about is pretty sloppy reasoning.

ACT does care about students. We won't make completely undeliverable promises about "free" education, but we will do our best to ensure that graduates stay in New Zealand by ensuring them fair taxes, higher incomes, and a thriving economy to work in.
 

Get real Doug. Hide is on a hiding to nothing. Despite his vast cash resources paid for by the corporates, he still can't convince people to turn over their lives to be happy wage slaves for the rulers.

I want to live in a society that cares for people, not a casino where those who aren't born into wealth will face an uphill battle from day one.

ACT simply wants to replace "big Government" with a plutocracy – a setup where Government is totally under the control of big business and the super-rich, and does whatever they want.

People have little say over the Government, and they will have absolutely no say over what the corporates will do when you hand over control to them.

If people can't afford power, they will freeze to death. That's how the "market" works. It's a system with no morality, no human kindness, just a power and control system run for the benefit of a few.

Do you actually know what would happen to people under your plan?

In a capitalist, free market economy, power and wealth is rapidly concentrated at the top. The big lie of "freedom" and "choice" means freedom and choice – for those who can pay.

Because large corporations and their shareholders have no interest apart from their profits.

They attack wages and conditions of workers.

They pollute the environment and then conspire to work against any attempts to protect our planet from their rape and pillage. Just look at what has happened to New Zealand fish stocks – wiped out by short term greed. Disgusting. The system is out of control, big business needs to be stopped before it destroys our environment.

Wars are started over resources like oil in order to bolster up

They manipulate children through brain washing, high-powered ads to get them hooked on a consumer society before they have a chance to think.

They encourage the values of selfishness, arrogance, shallowness and venality, leading to a situation where we no longer have any sense of community or solidarity with other human beings.

The people should control the main public assets of any society – real democracy, real freedom, where everyone has an equal say, not just those with a big chequebook.

We won't live in a "thriving economy" under ACT simply because the system you advocate exploits and manipulates people, and is turning our world into a vast open sewer filled with toxic sludge.

I believe anyone who genuinely thinks that ACT policies can help must be a screw loose.

If every country in the world started to consume as many resources and pollute as much as the United States, the world environment would collapse in a few days.

The destruction of the ecological systems and or human communities is being driven by private profit.

Wake up before its too late.

The alternative is a democratic system where peoples needs and our common planet are put first. We are very short of time.

Don't be a stooge for the fat cats, come and join the Alliance and work for an equal, sustainable system which gives everyone dignity and justice.