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Written By: IrishBill - Date published: 7:23 am, August 31st, 2010 - 8 comments
The Herald’s top story today screams “Strikers’ Helpless Victims”.
But it turns out that staff have been suspended.
I guess that doesn’t fit the Herald’s class war perspective.
Written By: Zetetic - Date published: 9:53 am, August 28th, 2010 - 36 comments
1) Did the PM declare his conflict of interest when the alcohol reforms were debated at Cabinet?
2) Aren’t these exactly the reforms you would expect from a guy who owns a high end winery? No extra excise. No controls on advertising. Demonise the kids.
3) Has National or any of its MPs recieved donations from alcohol sellers? Like Tony Astle, for example?
Written By: Eddie - Date published: 11:10 am, August 24th, 2010 - 47 comments
The government’s alcohol reforms are so typical of this government: criminalise someone to be seen to be doing something, while ignoring the root causes of the problem. This is a government that would rather make a criminal of a good parent who lets their son’s mate have a beer at a BBQ than make it harder for booze barons to hook kids into drinking.
Written By: Marty G - Date published: 10:57 am, August 24th, 2010 - 19 comments
It was only at the protest on the weekend that I learned about the Nats’ plan to make us get sick notes if we take a day off work for ourselves or to look after a sick family member. This would be an insult to workers and a huge waste of medical resources from a government that has no understanding of efficient use of scarce resources and thinks that workers are all scumbags who need a good kicking.
Written By: Guest post - Date published: 1:15 pm, August 22nd, 2010 - 86 comments
The other day, National Party pollster David Farrar had a rant against alcohol experts that boiled down to ‘who cares what the science says! We’re in charge now and booze barons are on our side. Go back to your books, dorks!’.
Big Dog responds:
Written By: IrishBill - Date published: 10:22 pm, August 12th, 2010 - 24 comments
Tony Ryall’s been running significant health-cuts under the radar for a while now.
But with the heat going on down south he’s breaking out the “spot check” story to show he’s in touch.
He’s a slippery old bugger…
Written By: Dancr - Date published: 3:35 pm, August 6th, 2010 - 13 comments
What’s going on in our health care system when the well respected head of a DHB resigns, saying he cannot cut costs any further without undermining patient care. The Dom Post is reporting: Ken Whelan (chief executive of Capital & Coast District Health Board) announced his resignation yesterday as chief executive of Capital & Coast …
Written By: Marty G - Date published: 10:50 am, August 4th, 2010 - 60 comments
A survey by ASH backs up one by UMR back in May showing that 60% of Kiwis back an end to commercial tobacco sales by 2020. I’m surprised by how strong the public mood for a ban is and not quite sure whether I agree.
Written By: Marty G - Date published: 2:31 pm, July 21st, 2010 - 34 comments
The country is short about 10,000 houses and many of the houses we do have (mostly privately owned rentals) are unhealthy. The housing shortage was a driver of the last housing boom and is still keeping house prices excessively high, while poor quality housing means higher health costs, more sick days, and kids that are sick so often it disrupts their education. It would be sensible on every level to build the extra houses we need, and the government should take the lead role.
Written By: Zetetic - Date published: 11:48 am, July 14th, 2010 - 30 comments
Should be no surprise to anyone that the Nats and Maori Party are cutting help for tobacco addicts while upping the cost of their ciggies. They don’t care about better health. Don’t care about helping poor people get off an expensive habit. It’s all about sopping the poor and give aways for the rich. But you know who did grind my gears? Those tabacco execs the other week.
Written By: Marty G - Date published: 2:44 pm, July 5th, 2010 - 53 comments
Paula Bennett in a letter to Tariana Turia: “Because of that sort of addiction it can be really tough on them and you see, certainly, financial hardship being increased and I think also with that sort of stress you can look at domestic violence,”. I don’t think that sentence would pass the national standard.
Written By: r0b - Date published: 11:30 am, July 1st, 2010 - 101 comments
I was neutral in the debate on lowering the drinking age back in 1999. There were arguments on both sides. But ten years later it is clear that the experiment has failed. There have been several recent calls to raise the drinking age and take other effective action to restrict the damage that alcohol causes in NZ. Come on Key – show some leadership.
Written By: Marty G - Date published: 9:17 pm, June 28th, 2010 - 61 comments
I’m supportive of the government’s move to end smoking in prisons. I think the real winners will actually be the two thirds of prisoners who smoke. They will be forced to break their addiction. I don’t think there’s any serious justification for concerns that banning smokes could lead to more trouble in jails or that the prospect of not getting any ciggies will be enough to deter crime.
Written By: Marty G - Date published: 12:22 pm, June 21st, 2010 - 9 comments
Tony Ryall, like Anne Tolley, is facing a big fight over wages. The health budget is chock-full of cuts as it is and Ryall says there simply isn’t any money to give doctors pay rises as they and other workers face nearly 6% inflation next year. The government can find billions for tax cuts for the rich but not to pay doctors and teachers. Priorities.
Written By: Guest post - Date published: 10:20 am, June 8th, 2010 - 24 comments
According to a new report: “New Zealand is a great place for children if their parents have a good income, live in a warm dry house and are well educated.”
However if you’re not born into a privileged household, then death and disease “is worse than that of all but two [developed] countries, Mexico and Turkey.”
Written By: Marty G - Date published: 2:44 pm, May 19th, 2010 - 4 comments
We already know that National’s big economic plan this budget is a tax swap from working Kiwis to the rich that will not affect growth but will increase inequality. There’s some money for science and Kiwirail, which is good but only partially reverses the cuts that National imposed last year. The two big items in the budget that the Nats have control over (assuming no cuts to benefits or super) are education and health. The increases in these two sectors are the things to watch.
Written By: Marty G - Date published: 10:10 am, April 29th, 2010 - 48 comments
I’m not against rising the excise on tobacco but everyone knows that if this government was serious about reducing the harm from tobacco this isn’t the best way to go about it. The best thing to do would be to ban tobacco displays. Upping the excise takes more money out of the pockets of the poor but it has only a minor effect on reducing smoking.
Written By: r0b - Date published: 12:45 pm, April 26th, 2010 - 31 comments
Comment from an international expert reported in The Herald today reminded me that National Standards aren’t the only ideologically driven folly that Tolley is forcing down the throats of schools. She’s also doing her bit to contribute to a major health problem…
Written By: Marty G - Date published: 10:04 pm, April 12th, 2010 - 20 comments
How dumb was John Carter to use his speech at the Grey Power National Conference to have a cry because Grey Power’s participating in an inquiry into aged care by Labour, the Greens, and the Progressives? You don’t try to bully Grey Power with its 100,000 members. The grey voters will be leaving National in droves.
Written By: Marty G - Date published: 10:30 am, March 23rd, 2010 - 36 comments
It has taken nearly a year and cost President Obama a lot of his popularity, thanks to the spineless behaviour of many House Democrats, but the final barrier has been passed to the US getting universal health-care. Obama’s health reform bill passed the House yesterday by a narrow margin. It now needs to win a …
Written By: Marty G - Date published: 10:37 am, March 6th, 2010 - 6 comments
Fran O’Sullivan is a pro-business liberal or libertarian, David Garrett is a knuckle brain conservative. But actually, they’re not so far apart. It seems both believe in freedom for the rich and control over the poor. Incredibly O’Sullivan goes into bat for Garrett over his sterilisation comments.
Written By: Zetetic - Date published: 1:15 pm, February 22nd, 2010 - 15 comments
No chance some gang f#ckwits would be deterred by longer sentences.
What happened to that plan of Key’s to end whaling?
How do we get a high wage economy when National opposes each and every wage rise?
Written By: r0b - Date published: 1:30 pm, February 8th, 2010 - 29 comments
I don’t recall the date or anything, but I remember the exact moment I decided to get politically active. Rob Muldoon was called by some brave journalist on the fact that National seemed to be ignoring all its election manifesto promises. Muldoon just grunted, and said that manifesto promises were dreamed up by advertisers, and …
Written By: Zetetic - Date published: 10:41 am, January 26th, 2010 - 140 comments
Rahui Katene is worried that people who can’t afford stomach staplings here (which supposedly cures diabetes, although the evidence is mixed) are getting unsafe surgeries done overseas. The problem is the private health industry. A private stomach stapling costs $28,000. Well beyond the reach of most. Only the well-off can afford it. The result: allocation …
Written By: Marty G - Date published: 7:30 am, January 26th, 2010 - 46 comments
Tariana Turia got her stomach stapled to tackle her diabetes and it seems to have worked. She wants more people to get the operation. If stomach stapling is a cost-effective way to treat diabetes and will prevent the need for other medical care I think that’s great. What I don’t want to see happen is …
Written By: Eddie - Date published: 1:05 pm, January 23rd, 2010 - 25 comments
This is how Health Minister Tony Ryall announced the Government would be appealing the court decision to try to get out of paying people for caring for disabled children: - – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – Better support for family caregivers recommended Press …
Written By: Eddie - Date published: 10:35 am, January 15th, 2010 - 7 comments
Last year, Tony Ryall announced health reforms (ironically, an additional layer of beaurcracy) that he claimed would save $700 million over five years, about 1% of the health budget. Now, Labour has revealed, that estimate is at the high end of a range and the low-end is just $350 million. Worse, this isn’t even an official government figure, …
Written By: Eddie - Date published: 7:36 am, November 18th, 2009 - 25 comments
Yesterday John Key indicated that he might be willing to dismantle PHARMAC if it gets us a better free trade deal with the US*. We’re lucky to have a few great institutions in New Zealand that deliver for everyone at a lower cost than other countries – ACC is one, PHARMAC is another. both are …
Written By: Zetetic - Date published: 2:41 pm, October 8th, 2009 - 57 comments
Under new laws proposed by John Key we’re going to need a prescription to get any cold medicine with pseudoephedrine in it. Anyone who has found themselves coming down with a flu or cold as they run up to an important deadline will tell you there’s nothing like pseudoephedrine to get you across the line. …
Written By: Guest post - Date published: 10:32 am, October 1st, 2009 - 82 comments
I’m a vegetarian and today, October 1st, is the worldwide day to celebrate the benefits of not eating meat and the healthy contribution to a better society vegetarianism makes. The personal is political. My choice to eschew meat for 30 years has exposed me to abuse from chefs, sexually coded remarks from ‘red blooded’ men, …
Written By: r0b - Date published: 9:21 am, September 26th, 2009 - 8 comments
The health care debate going on in America is a very serious debate, and who wins it has important implications for what kind of direction America takes from here (more in a later post perhaps). The Republican / Conservative / talk back radio framing of the debate is as dishonest as it is predictable. This …
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