Felix Marwick from ZB breaks down the weird circumstances behind Peter Thiel’s citizenship deal…

…remember, the blue green Spin blog was giving platform to defend Peter Thiel buying his citizenship here. The author of that, Eric Crampton , just happens to work for the far right think tank, NZ Institute.

So Thiel didn’t live here before he applied, didn’t intend to be here until he gained citizenship, didn’t even have to come to NZ to be sworn in and he was granted this based on his paying money into various NZ projects.

The big question however is whether or not the security agencies of NZ became involved. Thiel owns Palantir which has offices in Wellington and is interwoven with the 5 Eyes mass surveillance programs…

TDB Recommends NewzEngine.com

There Already Is Something Like a Muslim Registry, and Peter Thiel Owns it Although he talked about the idea a number of times during the election campaign, Donald Trump hasn’t said whether he is actually planning a “Muslim registry,” or some other way of tracking immigrants with an Islamic background. But according to some recently released documents, the underpinnings of such a system may already exist, thanks to a company called Palantir. Palantir is a highly secretive and somewhat controversial startup founded and controlled by Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel, now a senior adviser to the next president. Named after the far-seeing orbs used by wizards in the Lord of the Rings stories, Palantir is a data-analytics company that does work for agencies like the NSA and the FBI. According to documents obtained by the Electronic Privacy Information Center, the $20 billion company is already working closely with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency on a system that tracks citizens and determines whether they are a risk.

…somehow the entire mainstream media in New Zealand WILL NOT look into the Palantir connection. At no stage is anyone noting that this guy runs one of the most powerful private spying companies on the planet.

Look at this 2013 NBR article on Palantir…

Are Palantir spooks? Many in the tech community would have shared Mr Drury’s annoyance that Norman was having a ding at Peter Thiel, the Californian entrepreneur who has invested millions in local startups, and often boosted New Zealand as a centre of innovation. But at the same time, the evidence seems pretty clear that Palantir has tight ties to the intelligence community. And Prime Minister John Key’s refusal to comment on any “operational matters”, and Palantir’s reticence on the point, leaves the question open of what the software company’s Wellington office actually does. (Mr Key has acknowledged he’s met with Peter Thiel several times, but that’s barely surprising given the entrepreneur has put $15 million toward the Crown-backed NZVIF fund, among other local investments.)

…so it’s not impossible for the NZ media to connect Thiel to Palantir, yet 4 years later all the mainstream media seem to have a total memory blackout.

Thief bought his residency, that much is clear, but the real reason is because his private spying corporation helps process mass surveillance for the 5 Eyes.

Unfortunately NZ shrugged when shown Key was lying about mass surveillance, so we welcome with open arms our new corporate spying overlords.

You can lead a Kiwi to slaughter, but you can’t make them think.

If you’re not angered by all of this, then you’re part of the problem.