I just find it very uncertain with politics here. A while back, I just read news in England where a Christian middle-age lady bought NZ beef and realized the beef was from an islamic Sharia way of butchering the cows. Hmmm... I leave it to God for the real truth of this. I am a New Zealander I just do not support falsehood.. Should NZ is wrong then it can be justified by further falsehood. However, if NZ is right then it should also be cleared. Truth is losing is value in Politics now.

Some NZ meat has to be slaughtered this way for muslim customers in Iran, Iraq and other countries with significant muslim populations. There are enough muslims in England to warrant selling halal meat there too. I'm assume it has to be labelled to alert customers. Most NZ meat is not slaughtered this way. It started when Iran and Iraq started buying NZ lamb in the 1970s after Britain joined the EEC and NZ exports were stuffed by protectionist policies in the US and Europe. NZ could boost exports to the US by about 40% if it dropped its ''nuclear free zone policy'' and was thus considered by the USA as deserving of a free trade agreement. But the US has nothing to gain from a FTA with NZ. One reason is that NZ already has such a free trade attitude that the US pretty much has free access to NZ already. ( Not that its a big market )

Considering the reaction to Israel for what 2 civilians did and the reaction to a French military strike in New Zealand I would be force to conclude that there is a lot to what the former ambassador said.

Since Arab oil shapes US policy, EECO policy, and much of Asian policy, this "slur" merely points out that NZ is one of the crowd.

Sorry Sam #1, Unfortunately it is true that much of our meat is slaughtered the Islam way and most of our New Zealanders have no idea of this. If you were a true Christian would you want to know the meat you were eating was killed for Allah? And yes, the tremendous fuss Helen Clark made over the Israelis and the two passports they were trying to acquire was out of all proportion with their crime. Strange she said so little when at approximately the same time a Kuwati and an Iraqi were found forging documents and passports involving 16 countries here in our land. One, after a short gaol term was allowed to stay here - Wonder what he is up to now. Phil Goff can do little to defend Helen Clark who is now in a top position in the UN and it is time we realised that the UN is no friend of Israel.

Given what has recently happened in regard to kosher chicken in New Zealand and the Labour party's historical attitude to Israel I would have to say it is likely that this leaked cable is accurate.

It's axiomatic.

... New Zealand hardly matters. Colorado lamb is far better, anyway.

Goff is a light weight politician here in NZ but typical to see him defend the lefty ex-dictator Clark. Still Clark had the perfect qualifications for the UN - blindly hate Israel and be generally anti-semitic (helen Clark = best man for the job). By the way Sarah B - NZ Canterbury lamb leaves your Colarado goat for dead :) Israelis are welcome here anytime.

I have to say that reading the leaked cables from diplomats all over I was very impressed with their objectivity, professionalism, and diplomatic work. I wouldn't have guessed as much from the Foreign Affairs of the US that actually gets reported in the media. In this regard, I consider the leaks a good thing. I also consider it good that those nations who are adversaries of the US and Israel are seen with lots of egg on their faces - like NZ, Gulf Arabs, Iran, and Spain. Goeff has no basis for claiming the US diplomat to NZ was unprofessional and bought his way into the position. But isn't this exactly the reaction of Leftists when the spotlight hits them?

There is always a tempest in this little tea pot, and that a primate by the name of Goff has anything to say is amusing only until you run out of peanuts to toss.

When NZ imprisoned the French agents who blew up the Rainbow Warrior, France got them back by threatening to block NZ butter exports to Europe. France had the power and willingness to cripple the NZ economy. NZ got no moral support from the US or Britain, against France , because NZ was ( and still is ) in the ''naughty chair'' for its stance on nuclear weapons. This stance grew from NZ's opposition to the French testing their nukes in our backyard.

that Israel managed to deteriorate its relations even with New Zealand! New Zealand is a country on the other side of the world away from all problems and has no issues with any country in the world. But Israel didn't hesitate to endanger its relations with New Zealand and conducted identity theft of the New Zealanders. Israel also conducted the same troubled thefts against Britain, Ireland and several other Western states during Mabhouh assasination in Dubai. Israel really needs to rethink its strategy. Israel is harming its friends, its friendly relations with Western states, and its own diplomatic credibilty.

A sad little fact that has bemoaned out civilization - any idiot can print an accusation, repeat it a few times, and it will be referred to as fact from that point on. There is no proof that any forgeries of NZ, UK, Ireland or German passports were at the hands of Mossad. It is widely assumed, but so is Osama Bin Laden works for the CIA (per conspiracy theories on the Arab street). So, despite the anti-Israel sentiment in NZ govt, we are still innocent until proven guilty.