A plague on both your houses

Written By: - Date published: 10:15 am, November 24th, 2009 - 35 comments
Categories: climate change, Environment, maori party, national, scoundrels - Tags: ,

desert

So, as far as National and Maori leaders are concerned, it’s a done deal: “Maori Party to support ETS – bill to become law in days”. Unless (as suggested by Eddie) some Maori Party MPs remember their principles and vote against it, National’s ETS will be forced through parliament under urgency. NRT weighs in with some comments on the details of the deal, including a list of good opposition amendments that will be quashed with Maori support.

National’s version of the ETS is crap*: the Environment Commissioner says it “will not achieve its stated goal of reducing our greenhouse gas emissions” and does not support it, Treasury refused to endorse a regulatory impact statement. Combined with our inadequate emissions reductions targets for Copenhagen (we are now being internationally mocked for this) it is clear that this government has no intention of seriously addressing climate change.

It really doesn’t matter whether the National and Maori leaders are too stupid to understand the consequences of climate change, or whether they do understand and are simply too callous to care. Either way the end result will be the same. Unless every country does its fair share the world is going to end up with a lot more sand for useless short-sighted politicians to bury their heads in. A lot more sand:

World on course for catastrophic 6° rise, reveal scientists
Wednesday, 18 November 2009

The world is now firmly on course for the worst-case scenario in terms of climate change, with average global temperatures rising by up to 6C by the end of the century, leading scientists said yesterday. Such a rise which would be much higher nearer the poles would have cataclysmic and irreversible consequences for the Earth, making large parts of the planet uninhabitable and threatening the basis of human civilisation.

We are headed for it, the scientists said, because the carbon dioxide emissions from industry, transport and deforestation which are responsible for warming the atmosphere have increased dramatically since 2002, in a way which no one anticipated, and are now running at treble the annual rate of the 1990s. … Although the 6C rise and its potential disastrous effects have been speculated upon before, this is the first time that scientists have said that society is now on a path to meet it.

What does a 6° rise mean for the planet? The same article continues:

Just how dangerous was signalled in 2007 by the science writer Mark Lynas, who combed all the available scientific research to construct a picture of a world with [a 6° increase]. … He said: “It would cause a mass extinction of almost all life and probably reduce humanity to a few struggling groups of embattled survivors clinging to life near the poles.”

Very few species could adapt in time to the abruptness of the transition, he suggested. “With the tropics too hot to grow crops, and the sub-tropics too dry, billions of people would find themselves in areas of the planet which are essentially uninhabitable. This would probably even include southern Europe, as the Sahara desert crosses the Mediterranean. “As the ice-caps melt, hundreds of millions will also be forced to move inland due to rapidly-rising seas. As world food supplies crash, the higher mid-latitude and sub-polar regions would become fiercely-contested refuges.

National, Maori – this is the path that the world is on. This is the path that your short-sighted, stupid and greedy ETS does nothing to turn us aside from. The future will judge you harshly.  A plague on both your houses.

[* Sorry for the blunt language in this post. It is not a topic to be polite about any more.]

35 comments on “A plague on both your houses ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. vto 1
    24 November 2009 at 10:20 am

    This reminds me of the Electoral Finance Act where something very significant is dealt with on partisan terms. Which is just wrong.

    This should be a cross-party deal.

    Pollies again dealing what’s best for their own position instead of whats best for New Zealanders.

    Hate it. Makes me hate them.

  3. micky savage 3
    24 November 2009 at 10:55 am

    Well said rob. Bluntness totally justified.

  4. NickS 4
    24 November 2009 at 10:59 am

    Well, even the 2-3 degree rise wasn’t paradise, there was a bit posted in NewScientist this year on how the world would look, and pretty much the tropic’s were uninhabitable and global population had crashed.

    Also, cue Andrei et al posting something stupid in 5, 4, 3…

    • Andrei 4.1
      24 November 2009 at 12:18 pm

      Also, cue Andrei et al posting something stupid in 5, 4, 3

      So how much has the temperature risen in the past ten years Nick?

      Yesterday at this time the thermometer on my deck hit 30C – today it is only 9C sigh

      What does it all mean?

      It means we live on a planet with chaotic weather systems that we have virtually no control over despite what the ruling elites tell you. Nor are these systems in any respect predictable in the long term – this is in fact basic science – the limits of predictability being quite well studied. and applied to many fields,

      And anyone who believes that reducing productivity and lowering peoples living standards – which is the only possible way of “reducing emissions” needs their head read IMHO.

      The only beneficiaries of ETS schemes will be the ruling class and if you doubt this why do both National and Labour going down this path?

      Their schemes only differ in the detail – the losers remain the same (that is you and I who despite our differences of opinion remain mere peasants), the winners
      might vary slightly but even then not much being drawn from the parasite class who float to the top regardless of political system.

      • NickS 4.1.1
        24 November 2009 at 12:41 pm

        So how much has the temperature risen in the past ten years Nick?

        Yesterday at this time the thermometer on my deck hit 30C today it is only 9C sigh

        What does it all mean?

        Easy.

        You have no idea how to do a statistically valid sample, and instead are relying on only two samples, not controlling for any of the factors normally taken into account with temperature measurement, a mistake that not even a first year statistics student would make. All in a dishonest attempt to prove a fallacious point.

        Or, more simply you’re a moron. Congratulations.

        It means we live on a planet with chaotic weather systems that we have virtually no control over despite what the ruling elites tell you. Nor are these systems in any respect predictable in the long term this is in fact basic science the limits of predictability being quite well studied. and applied to many fields,

        Wait, so as student of science, who will likely end up with a post grad degree, I’m in line to be one of the ruling class? Despite the strong tendency in the developed world to anti-intellectualism, lack of political power and crap pay?

        Wow, that’s some mighty strong stupid.

        Anyhow, you can forecast chaotic systems, and on large scales quite easily predict long term trends. It’s why Hansen et al’s models from the 80’s still have a statistically significant fit to the long term climate trend, despite not being having a time machine to pick up the data from the future and curve fit the model. It’s also why the vast majority of climate scientists accept the long term predictions for climate change, rather than be as utterly f*ckign clueless about it as you are.

        And anyone who believes that reducing productivity and lowering peoples living standards which is the only possible way of “reducing emissions’ needs their head read IMHO.

        /facepalm

        Except you don’t need to reduce standards of living if you boost energy use efficiency and change the way we think about transport and the our bad habits of throw-away consumer culture.

        The only beneficiaries of ETS schemes will be the ruling class and if you doubt this why do both National and Labour going down this path?
        Hello conspiracy theory.

        Or you know, it could be due to international scientific findings indicating that we need to reduce CO2 emissions, along with pressure from our major trading partners not to be so stupid and ignore the science. But then, I suppose delusionaly believing in a shadowy ruling class is so much more comforting that reality right?

        Their schemes only differ in the detail the losers remain the same (that is you and I who despite our differences of opinion remain mere peasants), the winners
        might vary slightly but even then not much being drawn from the parasite class who float to the top regardless of political system.

        It’s like I’m reading something from the torrid depths of mid-20th, paranoid Marxist analysis.

        And I’m now running late for work, so the last bit can wait, or someone else can deal with it… /hint

      • Armchair Critic 4.1.2
        24 November 2009 at 12:58 pm

        “Yesterday at this time the thermometer on my deck hit 30C today it is only 9C sigh
        What does it all mean?”
        According to your atrocious knowledge of statistics, and applying a linear trend, it means that in two weeks the temperature on your deck will be at absolute zero, i.e. -273C.
        Here is a full list of the predicted temperature on your deck up until then.
        25/11 -12C
        26/11 -33C
        27/11 -54C
        28/11 -75C
        29/11 -96C
        30/11 -117C
        1/12 -138C
        2/12 -159C
        3/12 -180C
        4/12 -201C
        5/12 -222C
        6/12 -243C
        7/12 -264C
        8/12 Absolute zero
        According to your theory, it’s going to be a white xmas at your place, Andrei.

        • Andrei 4.1.2.1
          24 November 2009 at 3:15 pm

          According to your atrocious knowledge of statistics, and applying a linear trend, it means that in two weeks the temperature on your deck will be at absolute zero, i.e. -273C.

          My dear friend I applied no analysis statistical or otherwise to those two data points.

          It was you who have

          FYI the thermometer, a cheap warehouse job originating in China now reads 11C – make of that what you will.

          • Con 4.1.2.1.1
            24 November 2009 at 3:45 pm

            FYI the thermometer, a cheap warehouse job originating in China now reads 11C make of that what you will.

            I will make nothing at all of it, then, since it has no statistical significance or even relevance in the slightest.

      • Con 4.1.3
        24 November 2009 at 1:38 pm

        So how much has the temperature risen in the past ten years

        According to this NASA data source, the average global temperature in October this year was 0.35° warmer than 10 years previously.

        So there you are: 0.35 degrees is the answer.

        No doubt you were attempting to make some bogus statistical point, but your pseudo-scientific trolling failed miserably.

        • Andrei 4.1.3.1
          24 November 2009 at 3:20 pm

          This would be the ground based data – no?

          FYI – the same data for February has it 1.6C cooler

          what can it mean?

          I wonder what the satellite data would reveal? Something different that’s for sure

          • Con 4.1.3.1.1
            24 November 2009 at 3:42 pm

            You asked for the last 10 years, not the 10 years prior to last February.

            Of course you can find individual days or even months or years when it is colder, but underlying that fluctuation is a warming trend that is still there.

  5. Chris 5
    24 November 2009 at 11:23 am

    “breaking” is my captcha and it’s apt as it encapsulates everything that is wrong with National and the Maori Party.

    Breaking our childrens’ future. Our souls. The lives of countless animals and plants around the world that will be made extinct (think Hector’s dolphin for example and yes, shame on Jim Anderton for not standing up for them, and shame on what’s his name – the national minister for (selling, mining our) conservation – shame on them both).

    Good on you r0b for saying what needs to be said. It’s not chicken little stuff – it’s real and its here.

  6. Zorr 6
    24 November 2009 at 11:36 am

    The thing I don’t understand is why a lot of the CCDers seem to think that somehow those of us that support this side of the argument somehow WANT this. You know what I want more than anything? I want the view that my parents had back in the 70s and 80s when they were growing up, when there wasn’t the threat of peak oil and climate change. Where petrol was cheap and CO2 hadn’t been invented yet. But wishing doesn’t make it so and we need to live in the world we have, not the world we may want.

    • Bored 6.1
      24 November 2009 at 1:08 pm

      Hi Zorr, I love the idea of the view your parents had in the 70s/ 80s. My wish (on a good day when dark brooding over a bleak future hasn’t become too oppressive) is for the younger generations to envisage a non utopian non materialistic world where inclusiveness involves doing something useful to save and enhance the planet. This at the same time has the added benefit of delivering a good life to future generations. Not too much to ask is it?

      • Zorr 6.1.1
        24 November 2009 at 2:20 pm

        I agree that we should be aiming toward it. My point merely was that CCDers seem to argue that because I am on this side of the fence that I actually want bad stuff to be happening. It seems ridiculous to assume that climate change scientists might have something to gain from saying the world is in peril. Nobody ever gained anything from toting “End Of The World is Nigh” signs when it wasn’t going to happen.

        Responsible, sustainable living makes as much sense as teaching our 2 year old to clean up after himself. It should be a common sense issue (you would hope).

  7. Bored 7
    24 November 2009 at 11:45 am

    Got to agree with VTO that this is a non partisan situation, it’s a war we have to win as one. Unfortunately we have as a species the same nature as a frog in a pot of warming water. The temperature warms slowly, the frog takes no notice till he passes out, and then it’s boiling, too late.

    As mentioned previously, we cannot wait for Nick Smith, the Maori Party or other self interested twerps, we all have to do something collectively to change our habits. Catch the bus, walk to the dairy, buy food without packaging and processing, give up consumer shopping, turn off appliances, share car rides etc etc a lot of little actions comprise a lot of change. Do a Gandhi with the moral imperative. Most importantly raise awareness.

    Stations my captcha…take the train.

  8. tc 8
    24 November 2009 at 12:39 pm

    Nice post Rob and maybe just maybe the MP’s in Maori who don’t have the comfy do nothing portfolios and limos (i.e. not the leaders) will see their political future on the line over this and vote accordingly to not pass it.

    Hide on RNZ this morning was scathing about the ‘lazy’ govt…..yes Wodney that govt that you’re a part of but again showed how he’s equally not bothered which is no surprise as it requires morals and standards to be bothered by this shambles.

    Gwynn Dyers ‘Climate wars’ should be compulsory reading for any climate denial monkeys as the science is compelling and irrefutable now……unless the sand is deep enough to fit your head into.

    It is nice to see JK following his ‘How to be a single term goverment for dummies guide’ to the letter though….the stupidity of this is even concerning some true blues I know.

  9. Tigger 9
    24 November 2009 at 1:14 pm

    Nice piece in the Guardian. How much longer will Key bother with this Tourism portfolio. The wider the gap between our ‘image’ and reality becomes the more he walks a tightrope here.

  10. Bill 10
    24 November 2009 at 1:24 pm

    Said before, saying again.

    We can have capitalism or we can have a future.

    Problem. Politicians think we can have both.
    Problem. Far too many of us are locked within a framework of reference that is dominated by or hemmed in by a capitalist perspective.

    An under reported story from Britain ( I just can’t imagine why!) does offer some light and interesting possibilities.

    “Employees who raise concerns about their company’s environmental practices won the right to legal redress yesterday after a judge ruled that green beliefs deserved the same protection in the workplace as religious convictions.”

    Could a similar precedent be won in NZ whereby a philosophical belief based on science was treated in the same manner as religion in relation to discrimination?

    If so, then a question that comes to mind is this. If I am engaged in a job activity that contributes directly to the endangerment of a life, am I legally protected should I decide to withdraw my labour? What if many lives are endangered? How many lives need to be endangered before I am looking at complicity in a crime against humanity?

    I like the idea of non participation with production techniques that contribute to climate change being won as a legal right.

    Anyway, my point is that no parliamentary party nor any business entity is ever going to offer a serious challenge to the status quo. Waiting for such a thing is akin to waiting for the Catholic Church to preach atheism. Not happening.

    Our present framework of reference constitutes nothing less than a gallows for the future to hang from. That’s our framework of reference. That’s our future. Which means that any change is down to us both individually and collectively…. not some politician, monkey, ape, god, saviour or whatever entity you want to conjure up….just us.

  11. Matt Andrews 11
    24 November 2009 at 1:31 pm

    I disagree with your criticism of the Maori Party.
    They are taking a deal that has been offered to them.

    The party in the wrong here is National, which never should have offered the deal.

    • r0b 11.1
      24 November 2009 at 2:11 pm

      They are taking a deal that has been offered to them.

      So, what – the Maori Party have no free will?

      They know what they are doing is wrong – see their minority report on the ETS. They know exactly what they are doing, and they’re doing it anyway. They are just as guilty as National.

  12. mickysavage 12
    24 November 2009 at 1:36 pm

    To the climate change deniers who think the temperature is stable the following article from the Herald caught my attention.

    “More than 100 Antarctic icebergs – and possibly even hundreds of them – are floating towards New Zealand.

    An Australian Antarctic Division glaciologist, Neal Young, said yesterday that the ice chunks, spotted in satellite photos, had passed the Auckland Islands and were heading towards the South Island, 450km northeast.

    He said more than 100 icebergs – some more than 200m across – were seen in just one cluster, indicating there could be hundreds more.

    Dr Young said they were the remains of a massive ice floe which split from Antarctica in rising sea and air temperatures resulting from global warming. “

    Wave goodbye as you see the South Pole sail past your bedroom window,

  13. Draco T Bastard 13
    24 November 2009 at 2:13 pm

    As the ice-caps melt, hundreds of millions will also be forced to move inland due to rapidly-rising seas. As world food supplies crash, the higher mid-latitude and sub-polar regions would become fiercely-contested refuges.

    This is the part that scares the crap out of me. We’re only a small country and under AGW/Peak Oil we’ll have difficulty in supporting the number of people we have here already never mind the AGW refugees that are going to try to come here.

  14. Peter Wilson 14
    24 November 2009 at 2:18 pm

    Scary indeed. What I am interested is if that study factored in peak oil and peak coal. As in, if it just extrapolated current emission rates increasing then it may not be right. If the carbon simply isn’t there to burn, and this applies to coal as well as oil (as the oil price goes up, it becomes harder to get the coal out of the ground, and there isn’t as much there as we once thought).

    It’s a very disturbing thing indeed to hope that energy scarcity arrives as soon as possible. But right now, with the current state of political leadership, a bit of geological reality that no National, ACT or Maori Party deniers can conjure their way out of might be quite welcome.

    • Bored 14.1
      24 November 2009 at 4:35 pm

      I suspect the additional carbon fuel reserves are factored in, we probably have from what I have read only recently peaked oil and coal is nowhere near peak which is frightening. The rate the ecosphere can filter this out is extemely slow (centuries) by comparison to rate of carbon release. Put bluntly, we are in the gun.

      PS The so called scientific debate you see here from deniers makes me wince, as a degreed fluvial morphologist and geologist (many years ago and much memory loss later) it makes me cringe.

  15. Killinginthenameof 15
    24 November 2009 at 2:20 pm

    So originally the data apparently showed there was no climate change, then somehow that same data showed that there is no climate change and magically also shows that if there was humans aren’t causing it. Now apparently, all the data is false which you guessed it, means there is no climate change.

    Not a hell of rigor to their method huh?

    If [anything] then “There is no climate change”

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    2 days ago

  • Pinning down climate change's role in extreme weather
    This is a re-post from The Climate Brink by Andrew Dessler In the wake of any unusual weather event, someone inevitably asks, “Did climate change cause this?” In the most literal sense, that answer is almost always no. Climate change is never the sole cause of hurricanes, heat waves, droughts, or ...
    Skeptical Science
    2 days ago

  • Serving at Seymour's pleasure.
    Something odd happened yesterday, and I’d love to know if there’s more to it. If there was something which preempted what happened, or if it was simply a throwaway line in response to a journalist.Yesterday David Seymour was asked at a press conference what the process would be if the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago

  • Webworm LA Pop-Up
    Hi,From time to time, I want to bring Webworm into the real world. We did it last year with the Jurassic Park event in New Zealand — which was a lot of fun!And so on Saturday May 11th, in Los Angeles, I am hosting a lil’ Webworm pop-up! I’ve been ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    2 days ago

  • “Feel good” school is out
    Education Minister Erica Standford yesterday unveiled a fundamental reform of the way our school pupils are taught. She would not exactly say so, but she is all but dismantling the so-called “inquiry” “feel good” method of teaching, which has ruled in our classrooms since a major review of the New ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    2 days ago

  • 6 Months in, surely our Report Card is “Ignored all warnings: recommend dismissal ASAP”?
    Exactly where are we seriously going with this government and its policies? That is, apart from following what may as well be a Truss-Lite approach on the purported economic “plan“, and Victorian-era regression when it comes to social policy. Oh it’ll work this time of course, we’re basically assured, “the ...
    exhALANtBy exhalantblog
    3 days ago

  • Bread, and how it gets buttered
    Hey Uncle Dave, When the Poms joined the EEC, I wasn't one of those defeatists who said, Well, that’s it for the dairy job. And I was right, eh? The Chinese can’t get enough of our milk powder and eventually, the Poms came to their senses and backed up the ute ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago

  • Bryce Edwards: Why Tory Whanau has the lowest approval rating in the country
    Polling shows that Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau has the lowest approval rating of any mayor in the country. Siting at -12 per cent, the proportion of constituents who disapprove of her performance outweighs those who give her the thumbs up. This negative rating is higher than for any other mayor ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    3 days ago

  • Justice for Gaza?
    The New York Times reports that the International Criminal Court is about to issue arrest warrants for Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, over their genocide in Gaza: Israeli officials increasingly believe that the International Criminal Court is preparing to issue arrest warrants for senior government officials on ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago

  • If there has been any fiddling with Pharmac’s funding, we can count on Paula to figure out the fis...
    Buzz from the Beehive Pharmac has been given a financial transfusion and a new chair to oversee its spending in the pharmaceutical business. Associate Health Minister David Seymour described the funding for Pharmac as “its largest ever budget of $6.294 billion over four years, fixing a $1.774 billion fiscal cliff”. ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago

  • FastTrackWatch – The case for the Government’s Fast Track Bill
    Bryce Edwards writes – Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government is trying to achieve and its ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago

  • Bernard’s pick 'n' mix for Monday, April 29
    TL;DR: Here’s my top 10 ‘pick ‘n’ mix of links to news, analysis and opinion articles as of 10:10am on Monday, April 29:Scoop: The children's ward at Rotorua Hospital will be missing a third of its beds as winter hits because Te Whatu Ora halted an upgrade partway through to ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell on Iran killing its rappers, and searching for the invisible Dr. Reti
    span class=”dropcap”>As hideous as David Seymour can be, it is worth keeping in mind occasionally that there are even worse political figures (and regimes) out there. Iran for instance, is about to execute the country’s leading hip hop musician Toomaj Salehi, for writing and performing raps that “corrupt” the nation’s ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    3 days ago

  • Auckland Rail Electrification 10 years old
    Yesterday marked 10 years since the first electric train carried passengers in Auckland so it’s a good time to look back at it and the impact it has had. A brief history The first proposals for rail electrification in Auckland came in the 1920’s alongside the plans for earlier ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    3 days ago

  • Coalition's dirge of austerity and uncertainty is driving the economy into a deeper recession
    Right now, in Aotearoa-NZ, our ‘animal spirits’ are darkening towards a winter of discontent, thanks at least partly to a chorus of negative comments and actions from the Government Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago

  • Disability Funding or Tax Cuts.
    You make people evil to punish the paststuck inside a sequel with a rotating castThe following photos haven’t been generated with AI, or modified in any way. They are flesh and blood, human beings. On the left is Galatea Young, a young mum, and her daughter Fiadh who has Angelman ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago

  • Of the Goodness of Tolkien’s Eru
    April has been a quiet month at A Phuulish Fellow. I have had an exceptionally good reading month, and a decently productive writing month – for original fiction, anyway – but not much has caught my eye that suggested a blog article. It has been vaguely frustrating, to be honest. ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    3 days ago

  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #17
    A listing of 31 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 21, 2024 thru Sat, April 27, 2024. Story of the week Anthropogenic climate change may be the ultimate shaggy dog story— but with a twist, because here ...
    Skeptical Science
    4 days ago

  • Pastor Who Abused People, Blames People
    Hi,I spent about a year on Webworm reporting on an abusive megachurch called Arise, and it made me want to stab my eyes out with a fork.I don’t regret that reporting in 2022 and 2023 — I am proud of it — but it made me angry.Over three main stories ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    4 days ago

  • Vic Uni shows how under threat free speech is
    The new Victoria University Vice-Chancellor decided to have a forum at the university about free speech and academic freedom as it is obviously a topical issue, and the Government is looking at legislating some carrots or sticks for universities to uphold their obligations under the Education and Training Act. They ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago

  • Winston remembers Gettysburg.
    Do you remember when Melania Trump got caught out using a speech that sounded awfully like one Michelle Obama had given? Uncannily so.Well it turns out that Abraham Lincoln is to Winston Peters as Michelle was to Melania. With the ANZAC speech Uncle Winston gave at Gallipoli having much in ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago

  • 25
    She was born 25 years ago today in North Shore hospital. Her eyes were closed tightly shut, her mouth was silently moving. The whole theatre was all quiet intensity as they marked her a 2 on the APGAR test. A one-minute eternity later, she was an 8.  The universe was ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago

  • Fact Brief – Is Antarctica gaining land ice?
    Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. This fact brief was written by Sue Bin Park in collaboration with members from our Skeptical Science team. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Is Antarctica gaining land ice? ...
    Skeptical Science
    5 days ago

  • Policing protests.
    Images of US students (and others) protesting and setting up tent cities on US university campuses have been broadcast world wide and clearly demonstrate the growing rifts in US society caused by US policy toward Israel and Israel’s prosecution of … Continue reading → ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    5 days ago

  • Open letter to Hon Paul Goldsmith
    Barrie Saunders writes – Dear Paul As the new Minister of Media and Communications, you will be inundated with heaps of free advice and special pleading, all in the national interest of course. For what it’s worth here is my assessment: Traditional broadcasting free to air content through ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago

  • Bryce Edwards: FastTrackWatch – The Case for the Government’s Fast Track Bill
    Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government is trying to achieve and its arguments for such a bold reform. ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    5 days ago

  • Luxon gets out his butcher’s knife – briefly
    Peter Dunne writes –  The great nineteenth British Prime Minister, William Gladstone, once observed that “the first essential for a Prime Minister is to be a good butcher.” When a later British Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan, sacked a third of his Cabinet in July 1962, in what became ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago

  • More tax for less
    Ele Ludemann writes – New Zealanders had the OECD’s second highest tax increase last year: New Zealanders faced the second-biggest tax raises in the developed world last year, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) says. The intergovernmental agency said the average change in personal income tax ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago

  • Real News vs Fake News.
    We all know something’s not right with our elections. The spread of misinformation, people being targeted with soundbites and emotional triggers that ignore the facts, even the truth, and influence their votes.The use of technology to produce deep fakes. How can you tell if something is real or not? Can ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago

  • Another way to roll
    Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past week’s editions.Share ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago

  • Simon Clark: The climate lies you'll hear this year
    This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Simon Clark. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). This year you will be lied to! Simon Clark helps prebunk some misleading statements you'll hear about climate. The video includes ...
    Skeptical Science
    5 days ago

  • Cutting the Public Service
    It is all very well cutting the backrooms of public agencies but it may compromise the frontlines. One of the frustrations of the Productivity Commission’s 2017 review of universities is that while it observed that their non-academic staff were increasing faster than their academic staff, it did not bother to ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    6 days ago

  • Luxon’s demoted ministers might take comfort from the British politician who bounced back after th...
    Buzz from the Beehive Two speeches delivered by Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters at Anzac Day ceremonies in Turkey are the only new posts on the government’s official website since the PM announced his Cabinet shake-up. In one of the speeches, Peters stated the obvious:  we live in a troubled ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago

  • This is how I roll over
    1. Which of these would you not expect to read in The Waikato Invader?a. Luxon is here to do business, don’t you worry about thatb. Mr KPI expects results, and you better believe itc. This decisive man of action is getting me all hot and excitedd. Melissa Lee is how ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago

  • The Waitangi Tribunal is not “a roving Commission”…
    …it has a restricted jurisdiction which must not be abused: it is not an inquisition   NOTE – this article was published before the High Court ruled that Karen Chhour does not have to appear before the Waitangi Tribunal Gary Judd writes –  The High Court ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago

  • Is Oranga Tamariki guilty of neglect?
    Lindsay Mitchell writes – One of reasons Oranga Tamariki exists is to prevent child neglect. But could the organisation itself be guilty of the same? Oranga Tamariki’s statistics show a decrease in the number and age of children in care. “There are less children ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago

  • Three Strikes saw lower reoffending
    David Farrar writes: Graeme Edgeler wrote in 2017: In the first five years after three strikes came into effect 5248 offenders received a ‘first strike’ (that is, a “stage-1 conviction” under the three strikes sentencing regime), and 68 offenders received a ‘second strike’. In the five years prior to ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago

  • Luxon’s ruthless show of strength is perfect for our angry era
    Bryce Edwards writes – Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has surprised everyone with his ruthlessness in sacking two of his ministers from their crucial portfolios. Removing ministers for poor performance after only five months in the job just doesn’t normally happen in politics. That’s refreshing and will be extremely ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago

  • 'Lacks attention to detail and is creating double-standards.'
    TL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the two days to 6:06am on Thursday, April 25:Politics: PM Christopher Luxon has set up a dual standard for ministerial competence by demoting two National Cabinet ministers while leaving also-struggling ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago

  • One Night Only!
    Hi,Today I mainly want to share some of your thoughts about the recent piece I wrote about success and failure, and the forces that seemingly guide our lives. But first, a quick bit of housekeeping: I am doing a Webworm popup in Los Angeles on Saturday May 11 at 2pm. ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago

  • What did Melissa Lee do?
    It is hard to see what Melissa Lee might have done to “save” the media. National went into the election with no public media policy and appears not to have developed one subsequently. Lee claimed that she had prepared a policy paper before the election but it had been decided ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    6 days ago

  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #17 2024
    Open access notables Ice acceleration and rotation in the Greenland Ice Sheet interior in recent decades, Løkkegaard et al., Communications Earth & Environment: In the past two decades, mass loss from the Greenland ice sheet has accelerated, partly due to the speedup of glaciers. However, uncertainty in speed derived from satellite products ...
    Skeptical Science
    7 days ago

  • Maori Party (with “disgust”) draws attention to Chhour’s race after the High Court rules on Wa...
    Buzz from the Beehive A statement from Children’s Minister Karen Chhour – yet to be posted on the Government’s official website – arrived in Point of Order’s email in-tray last night. It welcomes the High Court ruling on whether the Waitangi Tribunal can demand she appear before it. It does ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    7 days ago

  • Who’s Going Up The Media Mountain?
    Mr Bombastic: Ironically, the media the academic experts wanted is, in many ways, the media they got. In place of the tyrannical editors of yesteryear, advancing without fear or favour the interests of the ruling class; the New Zealand news media of today boasts a troop of enlightened journalists dedicated to ...
    Bowalley Road
    7 days ago

  • “That's how I roll”
    It's hard times try to make a livingYou wake up every morning in the unforgivingOut there somewhere in the cityThere's people living lives without mercy or pityI feel good, yeah I'm feeling fineI feel better then I have for the longest timeI think these pills have been good for meI ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago

  • “Comity” versus the rule of law
    In 1974, the US Supreme Court issued its decision in United States v. Nixon, finding that the President was not a King, but was subject to the law and was required to turn over the evidence of his wrongdoing to the courts. It was a landmark decision for the rule ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    1 week ago

  • Aotearoa: a live lab for failed Right-wing socio-economic zombie experiments once more…
    Every day now just seems to bring in more fresh meat for the grinder. In their relentlessly ideological drive to cut back on the “excessive bloat” (as they see it) of the previous Labour-led government, on the mountains of evidence accumulated in such a short period of time do not ...
    exhALANtBy exhalantblog
    1 week ago

  • Minister acknowledges passing of Sir Robert Martin (KNZM)
    New Zealand lost a true legend when internationally renowned disability advocate Sir Robert Martin (KNZM) passed away at his home in Whanganui last night, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. “Our Government’s thoughts are with his wife Lynda, family and community, those he has worked with, the disability community in ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    16 hours ago

  • Speech to New Zealand Institute of International Affairs, Parliament – Annual Lecture: Challenges ...
    Good evening –   Before discussing the challenges and opportunities facing New Zealand’s foreign policy, we’d like to first acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. You have contributed to debates about New Zealand foreign policy over a long period of time, and we thank you for hosting us.  ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    16 hours ago

  • Accelerating airport security lines
    From today, passengers travelling internationally from Auckland Airport will be able to keep laptops and liquids in their carry-on bags for security screening thanks to new technology, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Creating a more efficient and seamless travel experience is important for holidaymakers and businesses, enabling faster movement through ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    18 hours ago

  • Community hui to talk about kina barrens
    People with an interest in the health of Northland’s marine ecosystems are invited to a public meeting to discuss how to deal with kina barrens, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones will lead the discussion, which will take place on Friday, 10 May, at Awanui Hotel in ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    23 hours ago

  • Kiwi exporters win as NZ-EU FTA enters into force
    Kiwi exporters are $100 million better off today with the NZ EU FTA entering into force says Trade Minister Todd McClay. “This is all part of our plan to grow the economy. New Zealand's prosperity depends on international trade, making up 60 per cent of the country’s total economic activity. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    24 hours ago

  • Mining resurgence a welcome sign
    There are heartening signs that the extractive sector is once again becoming an attractive prospect for investors and a source of economic prosperity for New Zealand, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The beginnings of a resurgence in extractive industries are apparent in media reports of the sector in the past ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago

  • Ō-Rākau Remembrance Bill passes first reading
    The return of the historic Ō-Rākau battle site to the descendants of those who fought there moved one step closer today with the first reading of Te Pire mō Ō-Rākau, Te Pae o Maumahara / The Ō-Rākau Remembrance Bill. The Bill will entrust the 9.7-hectare battle site, five kilometres west ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Government to boost public EV charging network
    Energy Minister Simeon Brown has announced 25 new high-speed EV charging hubs along key routes between major urban centres and outlined the Government’s plan to supercharge New Zealand’s EV infrastructure.  The hubs will each have several chargers and be capable of charging at least four – and up to 10 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Residential Property Managers Bill to not progress
    The coalition Government will not proceed with the previous Government’s plans to regulate residential property managers, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “I have written to the Chairperson of the Social Services and Community Committee to inform him that the Government does not intend to support the Residential Property Managers Bill ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Independent review into disability support services
    The Government has announced an independent review into the disability support system funded by the Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha. Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston says the review will look at what can be done to strengthen the long-term sustainability of Disability Support Services to provide disabled people and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Justice Minister updates UN on law & order plan
    Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith has attended the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva and outlined the Government’s plan to restore law and order. “Speaking to the United Nations Human Rights Council provided us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while responding to issues and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Ending emergency housing motels in Rotorua
    The Government and Rotorua Lakes Council are committed to working closely together to end the use of contracted emergency housing motels in Rotorua. Associate Minister of Housing (Social Housing) Tama Potaka says the Government remains committed to ending the long-term use of contracted emergency housing motels in Rotorua by the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Trade Minister travels to Riyadh, OECD, and Dubai
    Trade Minister Todd McClay heads overseas today for high-level trade talks in the Gulf region, and a key OECD meeting in Paris. Mr McClay will travel to Riyadh to meet with counterparts from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). “New Zealand’s goods and services exports to the Gulf region ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Education priorities focused on lifting achievement
    Education Minister Erica Stanford has outlined six education priorities to deliver a world-leading education system that sets Kiwi kids up for future success. “I’m putting ambition, achievement and outcomes at the heart of our education system. I want every child to be inspired and engaged in their learning so they ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • NZTA App first step towards digital driver licence
    The new NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) App is a secure ‘one stop shop’ to provide the services drivers need, Transport Minister Simeon Brown and Digitising Government Minister Judith Collins say.  “The NZTA App will enable an easier way for Kiwis to pay for Vehicle Registration and Road User Charges (RUC). ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Supporting whānau out of emergency housing
    Whānau with tamariki growing up in emergency housing motels will be prioritised for social housing starting this week, says Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka. “Giving these whānau a better opportunity to build healthy stable lives for themselves and future generations is an essential part of the Government’s goal of reducing ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Tribute to Dave O'Sullivan
    Racing Minister Winston Peters has paid tribute to an icon of the industry with the recent passing of Dave O’Sullivan (OBE). “Our sympathies are with the O’Sullivan family with the sad news of Dave O’Sullivan’s recent passing,” Mr Peters says. “His contribution to racing, initially as a jockey and then ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Speech – Eid al-Fitr
    Assalaamu alaikum, greetings to you all. Eid Mubarak, everyone! I want to extend my warmest wishes to you and everyone celebrating this joyous occasion. It is a pleasure to be here. I have enjoyed Eid celebrations at Parliament before, but this is my first time joining you as the Minister ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Government saves access to medicines
    Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced Pharmac’s largest ever budget of $6.294 billion over four years, fixing a $1.774 billion fiscal cliff.    “Access to medicines is a crucial part of many Kiwis’ lives. We’ve committed to a budget allocation of $1.774 billion over four years so Kiwis are ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Pharmac Chair appointed
    Hon Paula Bennett has been appointed as member and chair of the Pharmac board, Associate Health Minister David Seymour announced today. "Pharmac is a critical part of New Zealand's health system and plays a significant role in ensuring that Kiwis have the best possible access to medicines,” says Mr Seymour. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Taking action on Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder
    Hundreds of New Zealand families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) will benefit from a new Government focus on prevention and treatment, says Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. “We know FASD is a leading cause of preventable intellectual and neurodevelopmental disability in New Zealand,” Dr Reti says.  “Every day, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • New sports complex opens in Kaikohe
    Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Diplomacy needed more than ever
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges.    “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Anzac Commemorative Address, Buttes New British Cemetery Belgium
    Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service.  It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago

  • Anzac Commemorative Address – NZ National Service, Chunuk Bair
    Distinguished guests -   It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders.   Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago

  • Anzac Commemorative Address – Dawn Service, Gallipoli, Türkiye
    Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia.   Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago

  • PM announces changes to portfolios
    Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • New catch limits for unique fishery areas
    Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Minister welcomes hydrogen milestone
    Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Urgent changes to system through first RMA Amendment Bill
    The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Overseas decommissioning models considered
    Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Release of North Island Severe Weather Event Inquiry
    Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Justice Minister to attend Human Rights Council
    Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order.  “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Patterson reopens world’s largest wool scouring facility
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  • Speech to the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective Summit, 18 April 2024
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