Can someone explain what is going on here? Having been denied access for the past 24 hrs I’m now receiving a not very commenter friendly version of TS. Is it just temporary or what? Thanks.
On my mobile pages are formatting correctly (both mobile and desktop view on Chrome connected through my house wifi), but using firefox, IE11 and Opera 18.0 on Windows 8 it looks like CSS are missing (I’ll have a look using browsers on my kubuntu box a bit later, but I dont expect any difference).
Have cleared cache and cookies on all browsers, no change.
I’m not a web guy, very much a generalist, but thought I might have a look anyway using using Firebug.
My first thought was maybe there was an issue with js resulting in no reference to any css, but I’m able to connect to all the js urls referenced in the in the page source; http://cdn.thestandard.org.nz/wp-content/plugins/wptouch-pro-3/include/js/desktop-switch.js as well as the 3rd party ones like nz.imrworldwide, ajax.cloudflare etc.
Little climate clock is running quite happily as well. No js seems to be ok.
Hope you can isolate the CSS issue shortly Lprent.
Having a look at thestandard stripped of formatting as well as the viewing the source has prompted me to reflect on how far the web has come along in the last few years.
It seems like it was just the other day I was starting to explore the web using lynx. The primary driver for getting connected was to build my first OS, on the first machine I built, Slackware running on an early 386.
After buying all the components I needed, and assembling it, with some advice over the phone from my brother who actually worked with computers (for an actual job, that you could get actual money!). I then bought myself a Slackware book, which came with a single floppy disk.
The disk contained all the tools needed to format the hard drive and connect to one of the slackware ftp sites to download the latest build.
Once I’d done that, configured my settings (manually configuring settings for the video adapter and screen was the most finickity) I recompiled the kernel, and viola! A command prompt.
The next step was to get X-Windows up and running, this was to take longer than all the previous steps combined.
Running Lynx connected me to a fascinating new world, and I immediately found that I was not the only one having trouble with X-Windows.
After reading everything I could find on X-Windows, and finding a group of other folks from around the world who were also learning to hate X-Windows, together we helped solve each others issues, and in a matter of only a few weeks, I was able to get X-Windows running properly, in black and white.
I know it must be almost 20 years ago now, but it feels like it was just the other day.
Macro +100…the Standard seemed to be out of reach yesterday( my partner said it wasnt me and my computer ….the site was down!)…what happened I wonder ?…was it cyber sabotage?
…my only alternative distraction and local political education was my usual the Daily Blog ( David Cunliffe interview was great!)…I refuse to go to those other horrible sites ….Kiwi Blog and Slater”s what- char- ma- call-it ? ( the Devils own territory)
Shows how important ‘ the Standard’ is for a genuine grassroots Left voice!…. imo
smirk to you philip ure….btw my son has given up being a vegan ( thank God)….and is now a mere vegetarian.(and getting fatter)….waiting til he gives up being a vegetarian
I gave up veganism after 1 day, vegetarianism after 2 days… and am now back to eating lovely little lambies, rabbits , beef on the hoof, chicken, fish, eggs, venison…..yum!….I will have to have another incarnation
Thank goodness… I couldn’t get access yesterday or this morning. I felt like I was marooned and cut off from civilisation (apart from the Daily Blog of course).
Macro and Chooky – agree totally. I was wanting to put up some info about our blockade of State Highway One on Thursday (28 Nov) in a more timely fashion, but never mind …. The Standard is now back to normal ! Great.
People from the Hikurangi and Puhipuhi communities have been feeling very frustrated that all attempts to engage with senior Govt Ministers and the PM about their very real worries about mercury being exposed and leaking into our waterways through gold exploratory drilling in the Puhipuhi Hills (about 36 kms north of Whangarei) were not being listened to. We finally got fed up, and organised a peaceful two-hour blockade of SH1. There was a detour route – through a sealed, winding country road with the occasional one-lane bridge along it.
For buses and huge logging trucks, delivery trucks etc we acknowledged this could be a nuisance to them and slow down their delivery times between Whangarei and further north – Kawakawa, Bay of Islands etc. It probably added up to half-an-hour to their journey. This was a cost to business, AND a cost to Government whose various departments had to do the actual stoppage – put up road blocks, monitor the situation constantly, etc etc.
We’ve been told the exploratory gold drilling will be a “minimal” disruption and not cause a nuisance. This is a nonsense ! The drilling involves going down at least 500 metres on each site, starting with a big hole and gradually narrowing, taking out all that soil and rock for sample analysis, and replacing it with a slurry of water, concrete and goodness knows what else. The mining company representative told us these details in person.
What he couldn’t tell us : would any of that drilling hit any of the myriad of underground aquifers which currently feed the water bores people use for personal water use and farm stock ?
This is a really important question. Because the Puhipuhi hills are riddled with mercury throughout its soil and rocks, it has hundreds (if not thousands) of underground aquifers and springs, as well as the surface water in streams and rivers – all of which run directly down via about 50 kms – into the Kaipara Harbour which is the spawning ground for snapper and other fish.
There is documented evidence that disturbing the soil and rocks leads to mercury leaching out into the streams, the roadside ditches, spilling onto vegetation – killing fish species, grasses and vegetation and making farm animals sick.
We’ve come up with a number of feasible alternative economic development concepts – they just need a bit more research, more strategic planning and considerable government funding to make them all into real, environmentally sustainable employment opportunities for people in the north.
But we cannot get the Government to listen. Hence the SH1 blockade last Thursday. We’re now awaiting a response. I guess you could say – watch this space !
Hi Jenny,
Good on you I know exactly the area that you are talking about.
Can I ask, since Northland votes for Hone and anyone dressed in blue are the local farmers either going to actually join the Nacts and get an MP more responsive to their concerns, vote for the same old, or vote with labour and the Greens? To some extent I think the longer term remedy is in their own hands – how many would have to join the local Nacts to control the branch?
…yes Jenny…great summary of the environmentalist action!….I heard on the radio that farmers are also very concerned about mercury leaching into waterways…great they are also joining in and taking action for the environment
This isn’t quite “The Standard” web-site that I was used too. Somewhere in cyberspace is a comment I posted, unless ‘Karol’ didn’t like it. And it’s not the easiest link to get too now.
Conspiracy theories abounds. Who is spying on who ?
What’s the story on David Hay and Greens I read what Danyl had to say overt at Dimpost but like him I also have sources within Greens and get a quite different story from Danyl.
The information flowing through MSM now looks very like someone trying to muddy the waters on the whole imbroglio
Most disappointed in the process they adopted think it could have been handled better
It would seem that there have been a number of ‘issues’ with Mr Hay dating back quite some time, one strand of the rumors is that the ‘leadership challenge’ issued publicly by Hay was a late and ham-fisted attempt at embarrassing the Party in an attempt to stop any disciplinary action it was thinking of taking,
i do not see how the Party could have handled ‘issues’ it had with Hay any differently and it must be remembered that it was Mr Hay who dragged the issue into the public arena in that attempt at embarrassment,
The party seem to have quickly taken the required actions and my opinion is that there is no or minimal damage that will accrue from the actions the Party took,
i find spurious Hay’s claim that only having 3 of it’s current MP’s domiciled in Auckland is ‘hurting’ the Green Party in terms of voting, a quick look at the Party Vote in the Auckland electorates, including National held ones, will tell everyone that in most the Green Party did extremely well in 2011 at times doubling the Party Vote,
Whether David Hay has any large amount of support in the Auckland area that could potentially cause a split in the Party there has yet to be seen, i tho doubt that and it is my belief that most members are more then happy with the current leadership being provided by Metiria and Russell…
Has Labour a policy to bring Private schools down. Christ’s College in Christchurch an elite school for the children of wealthy Cantabrians operates as a registered charity and receives a per pupil grant from the Government. What about a change that would.
1. Eliminate the charitable status retrospectively- ie unless they can prove that they actually are a charity then their tax free status needs to be revoked as far back as possible.
2. Stop funding a separate education system for the elites out of the education funding for all New Zealanders.
Are there any other ways to break these institutions. The thing is what I am suggesting sounds a bit nasty doesn’t it. But the right broke the union movement in New Zealand so it only seems fair for the left to break the institutions that help to create and maintain an elite.
Yep I agree , if they want their elite status they can fund it themselves. And we could look at stripping off some of the other institutions – employer federations for example. They have too big a voice with no competing dialogue
Christ’s College in Christchurch an elite school for the children of wealthy Cantabrians operates as a registered charity
How does that work?
Stop funding a separate education system for the elites out of the education funding for all New Zealanders.
Government funding of private needs to be stopped ASAP. Government funding should only be going to state schools. If people want education outside of that then that’s their choice and their costs.
Are there any other ways to break these institutions.
Don’t need to break them, just stop government funding of them.
+1 …agree Plan B…if people want an elite education they should pay for it themselves…..ordinary NZers tax money should go to upgrading the State Education system and Continuing Education
( Continuing Education…. National dismantled and gave the money directly to private schools!…an absolute disgrace and very cruel !…because Continuing Education provided opportunities for learning from all sectors of society, town and country, young and old, successful people and those struggling, new immigrants, those newly moved from another city, those recovering from depression or mental illness, the newly bereaved, the unemployed, the retired …it provided social cohesion, the opportunity to make new friends from all strata of society)
Yes State taxpayers money should be for State Education!
In actual fact if children can get through/stick with the State Education system….. mix it with the hoi polloi (the smokers in the hedges, wild parties, uncouth language etc) and get their NCEA 3 …they statistically do better at university….probably because they haven’t been pampered ,’hot housed’ little plants ….and they are socially more sophisticated
…..also from what I have heard and observed, private schools have their own problems of under-achievment , bullying, drugs ….and in some cases these problems are all the more vicious because they are swept under the carpet.
Agree Plan B and Chooky. Private Schools are decimating our local high school by taking many of the farmers kids away, for some reason most dairy farmers now send their kids to private schools. But to be honest, when I was in high school in the early 80″s, it was the farmers kids who were the biggest bigots, so in some ways it is good to get rid of them…but on the flip side, these kids have no chance of reform if they attend private schools. In public schools they would mix with everyone in the school, sports teams, etc and it was good for them. These private schooled kids eventually come back to take over their family farms, they are not part of the local community, and they seem to struggle to mix socially so they end up being the biggest loser in my opinion.
But to be honest, when I was in high school in the early 80″s, it was the farmers kids who were the biggest bigots, so in some ways it is good to get rid of them…but on the flip side, these kids have no chance of reform if they attend private schools.
Makes you wonder why they’re being sent to private schools? Perhaps their parents don’t want them to know what real life is like.
@ Saarbo and DTB…their parents want the best for them…(and when they are newly very rich dairy farmers they think private schools are the best, even although they may not have had a private education themselves ….but sometimes a private school education is most definitely not the best)….i went to a big co-ed state school with farmers kids and other kids , some were from rich families and some from poorer families …it didnt matter ( whereas I think it matters in Private schools how much money you have)…I know some farmers’ kids and other kids who went to Private schools and absolutely loathed the experience( one came from a very wealthy city family)…so much so they left at the earliest opportunity or switched to a State school
….. It is a misconception that all farmers are wealthy and all students at Private schools come from wealthy families ( some families struggled to send their kids to private boarding schools)…Farmers and farmers kids are a mixed bag like everyone else…..Ernest Rutherford was a farmers kid, as have been many notable scientists and NZers …..In my experience many farmers kids who went to Private schools dont necessarily go on to university …and if they do , they dont necessarily do that well…but that is a personal generalisation
…making the most of education often depends on the education values of the parents…and of course whether the kid is inclined to put in the effort….so State Schools, where some get scholarships to university and some choose to create trouble behind the bike sheds or in the hedges …. are good enough for everyone ….and those who want an elite or special school should pay for it imo
The point I was getting at is that private schools would tend to cement in attitudes that reflect what the “elite” think about the world whereas public schools would change as society and knowledge changes.
@DTB…private schools can do this agreed …and this is what they are meant to do !
….on the other hand given popular music culture ….I think many from private schools want to rebel….. and get out of jail as fast as they can…… and meet the real world head on… fill up the reality gaps in their lives….. and prove to themselves and everyone else they can trash themselves better than the best of them!…in other words they go crazy once they get let out of jail much to the bemusement of their State educated mates, who have seen it all before long ago and are much more cautious….
Re Alwyn’s complaint… reply doesn’t seem to be working for me. Can’t search commenters comments either. What with all this spying caper that’s occurring, you have to wonder if someone out there doesn’t like us. 🙁
Remember that the while the parents get subsidized for their kids private school education those same parents are still paying the taxes to go towards everyone elses public school education
So in effect its cheaper for NZ and gives more resources to everyone else if more kids go private
Also remember Wanganui Collegiate are now receiving subsidies from Government under some form of the Integrated Schools System. I personally think it is time that Integrated Schools was scrapped. In the most it seems a large subsidy to the Catholic Church and a few other denominational schools. Put all the money into state schools and let private schools stand on their own feet
Even if government money is being spent on private schools, if they’re spending $$$$$ for each public school space, and $$ in subsidies for each private school space, that’s still a saving.
How does that work. If there were no private schools receiving subsidies then the money paid to those schools could go to the already existing state schools.
Why pay a subsidy to someone to duplicate the already existing state structure
Er, you can’t just magically fit more children into the existing state schools without increasing funding.
If it costs $$$$$ to educate a child in the state system, and the state pays $$ in the private system, if all of the private schools shut down the government would need to find $$$ extra for each of those children that will now need to go the state schools.
So you are then happy for private medical insurance to have some form of state subsidy? As from my perspective private medical, pension and schooling are the same, and I find it difficult for one to be state supported while the others are not, or am I missing something?
Love to ask Polly’s why this is so and for them to find reason to justify this.
The private medical industry already does have a state subsidy, in the form of them only taking on the easy/profitable surgeries and therapies. All emergency work is done by the public system.
Note that I’m not justifying or saying that the current system is good. Just that it *is* saving the taxpayer’s money compared to what we would be paying if the private schools didn’t exist at all.
I understand your points that have been made, yet if we integrated these private school students would the marginal cost be that great ? Would schools such as kings, st Kent’s etc just close down., if there was no govt assistance many of these and similar schools would still continue to exist.
There is from my observation plenty of new clients to these schools being sourced from the burbs, so the perception is that over the last 10+ years that private is far superior to state! which is supported by govt policy of making these schools more affordable.
You did note the existence of the I think didn’t you?
There’s a few thousand state schools with hundreds of thousands of pupils. There’s a few private schools with a few thousand pupils. Those private school pupils come from across the country. If we then distributed them across the public school system it probably wouldn’t raise pupil numbers beyond what each public school could handle as is. A little more funding would help of course and perhaps some more class rooms.
Now, I call again for you to back up your assertion.
Factor in many of the priviledged hide their family incomes behind trust accounts, etc, and so qualify for student allowances at uni. My lads ended up with $60,000 loans!
I’m using firefox mickysavage and according to naturesong it’s one of those affected. But I’m a pc dummy – don’t know what to do about it. Not even sure what a cookie is…
Btw Redlogix (might as well reply here since my TS settings are way to hell..), my father said exactly the same as your father did re-Muldoon – down to the same words. He also had a few dealings with him many,many years ago.
Generally the schools ‘operating budget’ , ie salaries and annual overheads is paid for from the state. In some senses that’s actually quite fair, every parent pays taxes and every parent regardless of whether their children are in the public or private sector get a benefit from this. The idea that private schooling parents somehow ‘pay twice’ for their children’s education is quite wrong.
The main fiscal difference between public and state sector schooling is where the capital budget comes from, ie land, buildings and facilities.
In the public sector the capital budget is a small fraction of the operating budget, probably around 10% if the following numbers are a guide:
The Minister of Education is responsible for appropriations in Vote Education for the 2012/13 financial
year covering the following:
….
• a total of nearly $6,687 million for educational services from schools (including teacher salaries), early
childhood education providers and other education providers
• a total of just over $21 million for capital expenditure for Crown entities and schools, and
• a total of nearly $631 million for capital expenditure by the Ministry of Education, mainly related to school sector property.
How the private sector spends it’s income is of course far more opaque. What we can assume is that they exercise more choice around using its substantial fee income …on more staff, fancier buildings and facilities, advertising and the like. And that by itself is not a bad thing. Unlike some here on the left I’ve no real problem with various non-state actors in the education system. The Catholic, Steiner and various other alternatives have a legitimate place alongside a healthy public system.
What I do object to is seeing a private sector, targeting the very wealthy, and growing at the expense of the public system, as trend that has been long established in say England, and has rapidly evolved in Australia over the last few decades.
That is nothing more than pure snobbery and elitism. It entrenches social privilege and economic inequality. It is the antithesis of sound education and over generations it enforces the haves and the have-nots. The left soundly rejects it.
I was wondering that too. I met David Hay campaigning in Epsom last election, and he seemed reasonable enough, and had useful things to say in the election debates (which were extremely divisive).
About No. 5 – mining. Just some info on the mining coy De Grey that has right to look at Puhipuhi
minerals. De Grey Mining Limited is a West Australian based public company exploring for high-grade epithermal gold-silver on 4,675 square kilometres in Santa Cruz and Rio Negro Provinces, Argentina.
In Santa Cruz, the Sierra Morena and Pachi Projects are drill ready and the company will test defined targets early in the 2012-2013 field season.
In November 2012, De Grey Mining signed an agreement with Waihi Gold Company Ltd to acquire 100% of the Puhipuhi Project located on the North Island of New Zealand.
– and while I reckon most of you are cheering about whats happening to Cameron Slater at the moment I think the implications are worth considering for everyone, left or right
Oh this is UGLY no matter what browser Ii use FF, Opera, or even Ugg Internet Exploder. The whole site is indented left, with what looks like screwed up carriage returns.
MickyS – I couldn’t do a reply this time either. Managed it earlier in the day though.
To Grey Warbler @ 19 – thanks for the De Grey Mining info. We’ve picked up most of that, but didn’t realise they were drill ready on their Argentina sites. Our govt has allowed them to delay their actual drilling here (Puhipuhi) until April 2014. So far this is the third extension of time they’ve been granted. We’re not sure if they’ve run out of cash for the job, or if the Argentina work is holding them up.
I am very happy I can still put a post up despite what the site looks like. And I wonder about lprent trying to work his way through the various paradigms and puzzles of what to do for the best. Its a dynamic world out there. So we’re thinking about you Lynn. Have fun. (Ironic!)
NZ (Key) has been invited to the G20 in Brisbane, 15-16 November 2014.
That’s the ‘top table’ summit, with Obama and co. Pictures of the PM in the Queensland sunshine, chatting with world leaders, handshakes and smiles for the telly.
gobsmacked
I think you could be right. Key could advance himself in this foreign forum, and leave his lieutenants to keep the ball in the air here. One has to look at the bigger picture, the most advantageous use of opportunity cost time etc for the key to understanding his NZ campaign.
If by “TS” you mean The Standard? I, along with many others (but apparently not everyone) had massive Cloudflare problems yesterday. For me it got resolved around 9:00 or so, in that I could (sporadically) access the site, but the display was all broken; lots of plain text, blue links on a white background. Had a little bit of that this morning, but it’s cleared up now.
So if you’re seeing that, I suspect it may resolve itself for you in due course.
Be nice if we got some response from Lynn as to what went wrong.
Had that a few times over the last day or so. That, the comment errors and the fact that the site was going really slow finally had me stop looking/posting yesterday. Been good for me today though.
Mike Williams just repeated a very cute quote on Col Craig (sounds more manly than Colin). It is the one mentioned below in bold in Bryce Edwards 27/11 extensive piece on him and the possibility of a deal over Poorer Benefit’s electorate seat. The Standard Coat-tail comment is also referred to –
Bryce Edwards: Political roundup: Winning at the 2014 general election. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11163647
The latest must-read feature about Colin Craig and his policies is Andrea Vance’s Conservative Party: Crazy or credible?. This comprehensive piece also includes a list of 10 of the Conservatives’ ‘more interesting policy platforms’ compiled by Steve Kilgallon. Complimenting this is Vance’s own opinion piece, Craig politics – nice and nutty, which features the memorable line: ‘So far, all the signals point to him being nuttier than squirrel poo’.
Transmission Gully is underway and yet this is what the NZ Herlad has to say about PPPs It is very damming and a bit amazing for a mainstream media outlet to come right out and say it.
Cargo-cult mystique of funding through private sector deals blurs burden of risk for public. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=11…
PPPs are like renting the same car every day for 25 years , you get to pay a lot of money (many times the actual cost of a car) and at then end of it you get to keep the 25 year old bomb of a car, which is of course clapped out. Brilliant.
Open access notablesIce 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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Megan Valére SosouMarket gardening site of the Itchèléré de Itagui agricultural cooperative in Dassa-Zoumè (Image credit: Megan Valère Sossou) For the residents of Dassa-Zoumè, a city in the West African country of Benin, choosing between drinking water and having enough ...
Buzz from the Beehive Melissa Lee – as may be discerned from the screenshot above – has not been demoted for doing something seriously wrong as Minister of ...
Morning in London Mother hugs beloved daughter outside the converted shoe factory in which she is living.Afternoon in London Travelling writer takes himself and his wrist down to A&E, just to be sure. Read more ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – The recent announcement of the University Advisory Group, chaired by Sir Peter Gluckman, makes very clear where the Government’s focus and priorities lie. The remit of the Advisory Group is that Group members will consider challenges and opportunities for improvement in the university sector including: ...
Eric Crampton writes – The Reserve Bank of New Zealand desperately wants to find reasons to have workstreams in climate change. It makes little sense. They’ve run another stress test on the banks looking to see if they could find a prudential regulation case. They couldn’t. They ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Pundits from the left and the right are arguing that National’s Fast Track Bill that is designed to speed up infrastructure decisions could end up becoming mired in a cesspool of corruption. Political commentator ...
Looking at the headlines this morning it’s hard to feel anything other than pessimistic about the future of humanity.Note that I’m not speaking about the future of mankind, but the survival of our humanity. The values that we believe in seem to be ebbing away, by the day.Perhaps every generation ...
Swabbing mixed breed baby chicks to test for avian influenzaUh oh. Bird flu – often deadly to humans – is not only being transmitted from infected birds to dairy cows, but is now travelling between dairy cows. As of last Friday, Bloomberg News reports, there were 32 American dairy herds ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
What is it with the mining industry? Its not enough for them to pillage the earth - they apparently can't even be bothered getting resource consent to do so: The proponent behind a major mine near the Clutha River had already been undertaking activity in the area without a ...
Photo # 1 I am a huge fan of Singapore’s approach to housing, as described here two years ago by copying and pasting from The ConversationWhat Singapore has that Australia does not is a public housing developer, the Housing Development Board, which puts new dwellings on public and reclaimed land, ...
Buzz from the Beehive Reactions to news of the government’s readiness to make urgent changes to “the resource management system” through a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) suggest a balanced approach is being taken. The Taxpayers’ Union says the proposed changes don’t go far enough. Greenpeace says ...
I’m starting to wonder if Anna Burns-Francis might be the best political interviewer we’ve got. That might sound unlikely to you, it came as a bit of a surprise to me.Jack Tame can be excellent, but has some pretty average days. I like Rebecca Wright on Newshub, she asks good ...
Chris Trotter writes – Willie Jackson is said to be planning a “media summit” to discuss “the state of the media and how to protect Fourth Estate Journalism”. Not only does the Editor of The Daily Blog, Martyn Bradbury, think this is a good idea, but he has also ...
Graeme Edgeler writes – This morning [April 21], the Wellington High Court is hearing a judicial review brought by Hon. Karen Chhour, the Minister for Children, against a decision of the Waitangi Tribunal. This is unusual, judicial reviews are much more likely to brought against ministers, rather than ...
Both of Parliament’s watchdogs have now ripped into the Government’s Fast-track Approvals Bill. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMy pick of the six newsey things to know from Aotearoa’s political economy and beyond on the morning of Tuesday, April 23 are:The Lead: The Auditor General,John Ryan, has joined the ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Sarah SpengemanPeople wait to board an electric bus in Pune, India. (Image credit: courtesy of ITDP) Public transportation riders in Pune, India, love the city’s new electric buses so much they will actually skip an older diesel bus that ...
The infrastructure industry yesterday issued a “hurry up” message to the Government, telling it to get cracking on developing a pipeline of infrastructure projects.The hiatus around the change of Government has seen some major projects cancelled and others delayed, and there is uncertainty about what will happen with the new ...
Hi,Over the weekend I revisited a podcast I really adore, Dead Eyes. It’s about a guy who got fired from Band of Brothers over two decades ago because Tom Hanks said he had “dead eyes”.If you don’t recall — 2001’s Band of Brothers was part of the emerging trend of ...
Buzz from the Beehive The 180 or so recipients of letters from the Government telling them how to submit infrastructure projects for “fast track” consideration includes some whose project applications previously have been rejected by the courts. News media were quick to feature these in their reports after RMA Reform Minister Chris ...
It would not be a desirable way to start your holiday by breaking your back, your head, or your wrist, but on our first hour in Singapore I gave it a try.We were chatting, last week, before we started a meeting of Hazel’s Enviro Trust, about the things that can ...
Calling all journalists, academics, planners, lawyers, political activists, environmentalists, and other members of the public who believe that the relationships between vested interests and politicians need to be scrutinised. We need to work together to make sure that the new Fast-Track Approvals Bill – currently being pushed through by the ...
Feel worried. Shane Jones and a couple of his Cabinet colleagues are about to be granted the power to override any and all objections to projects like dams, mines, roads etc even if: said projects will harm biodiversity, increase global warming and cause other environmental harms, and even if ...
Bryce Edwards writes- The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. ...
Michael Bassett writes – If you think there is a move afoot by the radical Maori fringe of New Zealand society to create a parallel system of government to the one that we elect at our triennial elections, you aren’t wrong. Over the last few days we have ...
Without a corresponding drop in interest rates, it’s doubtful any changes to the CCCFA will unleash a massive rush of home buyers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The six things that stood out to me in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, poverty and climate on Monday, April 22 included:The Government making a ...
Sunday was a lazy day. I started watching Jack Tame on Q&A, the interviews are usually good for something to write about. Saying the things that the politicians won’t, but are quite possibly thinking. Things that are true and need to be extracted from between the lines.As you might know ...
In our Weekly Roundup last week we covered news from Auckland Transport that the WX1 Western Express is going to get an upgrade next year with double decker electric buses. As part of the announcement, AT also said “Since we introduced the WX1 Western Express last November we have seen ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 29 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. Stats NZ releases its statutory report on Census 2023 tomorrow.Finance Minister Nicola Willis delivers a pre-Budget speech at ...
A listing of 29 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 14, 2024 thru Sat, April 20, 2024. Story of the week Our story of the week hinges on these words from the abstract of a fresh academic ...
The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. The Government says this will ...
This is a column to say thank you. So many of have been in touch since Mum died to say so many kind and thoughtful things. You’re wonderful, all of you. You’ve asked how we’re doing, how Dad’s doing. A little more realisation each day, of the irretrievable finality of ...
Identifying the engine type in your car is crucial for various reasons, including maintenance, repairs, and performance upgrades. Knowing the specific engine model allows you to access detailed technical information, locate compatible parts, and make informed decisions about modifications. This comprehensive guide will provide you with a step-by-step approach to ...
Introduction: The allure of racing is undeniable. The thrill of speed, the roar of engines, and the exhilaration of competition all contribute to the allure of this adrenaline-driven sport. For those who yearn to experience the pinnacle of racing, becoming a race car driver is the ultimate dream. However, the ...
Introduction Automobiles have become ubiquitous in modern society, serving as a primary mode of transportation and a symbol of economic growth and personal mobility. With countless vehicles traversing roads and highways worldwide, it begs the question: how many cars are there in the world? Determining the precise number is a ...
Maintaining a safe and reliable vehicle requires regular inspections. Whether it’s a routine maintenance checkup or a safety inspection, knowing how long the process will take can help you plan your day accordingly. This article delves into the factors that influence the duration of a car inspection and provides an ...
Mazda Motor Corporation, commonly known as Mazda, is a Japanese multinational automaker headquartered in Fuchu, Aki District, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. The company was founded in 1920 as the Toyo Cork Kogyo Co., Ltd., and began producing vehicles in 1931. Mazda is primarily known for its production of passenger cars, but ...
Your car battery is an essential component that provides power to start your engine, operate your electrical systems, and store energy. Over time, batteries can weaken and lose their ability to hold a charge, which can lead to starting problems, power failures, and other issues. Replacing your battery before it ...
In most states, you cannot register a car without a valid driver’s license. However, there are a few exceptions to this rule. Exceptions to the RuleIf you are under 18 years old: In some states, you can register a car in your name even if you do not ...
Mazda, a Japanese automotive manufacturer with a rich history of innovation and engineering excellence, has emerged as a formidable player in the global car market. Known for its reputation of producing high-quality, fuel-efficient, and driver-oriented vehicles, Mazda has consistently garnered praise from industry experts and consumers alike. In this article, ...
Struts are an essential part of a car’s suspension system. They are responsible for supporting the weight of the car and damping the oscillations of the springs. Struts are typically made of steel or aluminum and are filled with hydraulic fluid. How Do Struts Work? Struts work by transferring the ...
Car registration is a mandatory process that all vehicle owners must complete annually. This process involves registering your car with the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and paying an associated fee. The registration process ensures that your vehicle is properly licensed and insured, and helps law enforcement and other authorities ...
Zoom is a video conferencing service that allows you to share your screen, webcam, and audio with other participants. In addition to sharing your own audio, you can also share the audio from your computer with other participants. This can be useful for playing music, sharing presentations with audio, or ...
Building your own computer can be a rewarding and cost-effective way to get a high-performance machine tailored to your specific needs. However, it also requires careful planning and execution, and one of the most important factors to consider is the time it will take. The exact time it takes to ...
Sleep mode is a power-saving state that allows your computer to quickly resume operation without having to boot up from scratch. This can be useful if you need to step away from your computer for a short period of time but don’t want to shut it down completely. There are ...
Introduction Computer-Assisted Translation (CAT) has revolutionized the field of translation by harnessing the power of technology to assist human translators in their work. This innovative approach combines specialized software with human expertise to improve the efficiency, accuracy, and consistency of translations. In this comprehensive article, we will delve into the ...
In today’s digital age, mobile devices have become an indispensable part of our daily lives. Among the vast array of portable computing options available, iPads and tablet computers stand out as two prominent contenders. While both offer similar functionalities, there are subtle yet significant differences between these two devices. This ...
A computer is an electronic device that can be programmed to carry out a set of instructions. The basic components of a computer are the processor, memory, storage, input devices, and output devices. The Processor The processor, also known as the central processing unit (CPU), is the brain of the ...
Voice Memos is a convenient app on your iPhone that allows you to quickly record and store audio snippets. These recordings can be useful for a variety of purposes, such as taking notes, capturing ideas, or recording interviews. While you can listen to your voice memos on your iPhone, you ...
Laptop screens are essential for interacting with our devices and accessing information. However, when lines appear on the screen, it can be frustrating and disrupt productivity. Understanding the underlying causes of these lines is crucial for finding effective solutions. Types of Screen Lines Horizontal lines: Also known as scan ...
Right-clicking is a common and essential computer operation that allows users to access additional options and settings. While most desktop computers have dedicated right-click buttons on their mice, laptops often do not have these buttons due to space limitations. This article will provide a comprehensive guide on how to right-click ...
Powering up and shutting down your ASUS laptop is an essential task for any laptop user. Locating the power button can sometimes be a hassle, especially if you’re new to ASUS laptops. This article will provide a comprehensive guide on where to find the power button on different ASUS laptop ...
Dell laptops are renowned for their reliability, performance, and versatility. Whether you’re a student, a professional, or just someone who needs a reliable computing device, a Dell laptop can meet your needs. However, if you’re new to Dell laptops, you may be wondering how to get started. In this comprehensive ...
Two-thirds of the country think that “New Zealand’s economy is rigged to advantage the rich and powerful”. They also believe that “New Zealand needs a strong leader to take the country back from the rich and powerful”. These are just two of a handful of stunning new survey results released ...
In today’s digital world, screenshots have become an indispensable tool for communication and documentation. Whether you need to capture an important email, preserve a website page, or share an error message, screenshots allow you to quickly and easily preserve digital information. If you’re an Asus laptop user, there are several ...
A factory reset restores your Gateway laptop to its original factory settings, erasing all data, apps, and personalizations. This can be necessary to resolve software issues, remove viruses, or prepare your laptop for sale or transfer. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to factory reset your Gateway laptop: Method 1: ...
“You talking about me?”The neoliberal denigration of the past was nowhere more unrelenting than in its depiction of the public service. The Post Office and the Railways were held up as being both irremediably inefficient and scandalously over-manned. Playwright Roger Hall’s “Glide Time” caricatures were presented as accurate depictions of ...
Roger Partridge writes – When the Coalition Government took office last October, it inherited a country on a precipice. With persistent inflation, decades of insipid productivity growth and crises in healthcare, education, housing and law and order, it is no exaggeration to suggest New Zealand’s first-world status was ...
Rob MacCulloch writes – In 2022, the Curriculum Centre at the Ministry of Education employed 308 staff, according to an Official Information Request. Earlier this week it was announced 202 of those staff were being cut. When you look up “The New Zealand Curriculum” on the Ministry of ...
Chris Bishop’s bill has stirred up a hornets nest of opposition. Photo: Lynn Grieveson for The KākāTL;DR: The six things that stood out to me in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, poverty and climate from the last day included:A crescendo of opposition to the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill is ...
Monday left me brokenTuesday, I was through with hopingWednesday, my empty arms were openThursday, waiting for love, waiting for loveThe end of another week that left many of us asking WTF? What on earth has NZ gotten itself into and how on earth could people have voluntarily signed up for ...
Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past week’s editions.State of humanity, 20242024, it feels, keeps presenting us with ever more challenges, ever more dismay.Do you give up yet? It seems to ask.No? How about this? Or this?How about this?Full story Share ...
Determining the hardest sport in the world is a subjective matter, as the difficulty level can vary depending on individual abilities, physical attributes, and experience. However, based on various factors including physical demands, technical skills, mental fortitude, and overall accomplishment, here is an exploration of some of the most challenging ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
The Government’s newly announced review of methane emissions reduction targets hints at its desire to delay Aotearoa New Zealand’s urgent transition to a climate safe future, the Green Party said. ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions. “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today. “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale. “It is good ...
The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
“China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector. "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...
The Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra In the free-for-all between the Australian government and Big Tech boss Elon Musk this week, the government had to be on a winner. Most people would have little sympathy with Musk’s vociferous opposition to ...
Asia Pacific Report Chief Mandla Mandela, a member of the National Assembly of South Africa and Nelson Mandela’s grandson, has joined the Freedom Flotilla in istanbul as the ships prepare to sail for Gaza, reports Kia Ora Gaza. Mandela is also the ambassador for the Global Campaign to Return to ...
Pacific Media Watch Journalists who report on environmental issues are encountering growing difficulties in many parts of the world, reports Reporters Without Borders. According to the tally kept by RSF, 200 journalists have been subjected to threats and physical violence, including murder, in the past 10 years because they were ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards, Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. 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 ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Hawkins, Senior Lecturer, Canberra School of Politics, Economics and Society, University of Canberra BagzhanSadvakassov/Upsplash, CC BY-SA Australia’s inflation rate has fallen for the fifth successive quarter, and it’s now less than half of what it was back in late 2022. ...
ACT's Rural Communities and Veterans spokesman Mark Cameron responds to cancellations and protests of ANZAC Day commemorations in Wellington. He says, "These pitiful attempts to detract from ANZAC Day are not at all indicative of the feelings of mainstream ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Meighen McCrae, Associate Professor of Strategic & Defence Studies, Australian National University American and Australian stretcher bearers working together near the front line during the Battle of Hamel in 1918.Australian War Memorial While the AUKUS alliance is new, the Australian-American partnership ...
Pōneke based peace activists staged a silent protest at the ANZAC day service to highlight New Zealand’s complicity in war and genocide, and urge the government to take concrete steps to stop the genocide in Palestine. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Magdalena M.E. Bunbury, Postdoctoral Researcher, James Cook University Burial with a horse at the Rákóczifalva site, Hungary (8th century AD).Sándor Hegedűs, Hungarian National Museum, CC BY How do we understand past societies? For centuries, our main sources of information have been ...
Amanda Thompson doesn’t really do Anzac Day. But what she does do is remember the people she knew who had a lifetime to remember stuff they didn’t really want to, because of a war they didn’t ask for. And she does make Anzac biscuits.First published in 2021.All my ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kathryn Willis, Postdoctoral Researcher, CSIRO Xavier Boulenger/Shutterstock In the two decades to 2019, global plastic production doubled. By 2040, plastic manufacturing and processing could consume as much as 20% of global oil production and use up 15% of the annual carbon ...
With our collective remembrance, and steadfast belief in our common humanity, we strengthen our hope and resolve to do what we can to foster dialogue and understanding, and to heal divisions in our pursuit of peace. ...
Principal reasons for the opposition is the loss of the public’s democratic right to have “a fair say” and the vital need for a government free from corruption, said Casey Cravens of Dunedin, president of the New Zealand Federation of Freshwater ...
Never mind the scoreboard – in the 2000 Bledisloe Cup decider, the real trans-Tasman battle was won before kickoff.First published in 2016. The dawn of the new millennium was a dark time for the All Blacks. Their final game pre-Y2K was a 22-18 loss to South Africa in the ...
I’m on the wrong side of 40, I never pursued creative work and now my job is killing my soul. Help! Want Hera’s help? Email your problem to helpme@thespinoff.co.nzDear Hera,May I start with the least original conversation opener you’re likely to hear around the motu at the moment, particularly in Wellington: ...
“Never again - No AUKUS” was the message of the wreath laid at this morning’s national ANZAC Day commemorative service at Pukeahu National War Memorial Park this morning by the Stop AUKUS group. ...
Until this month, Auckland swimmer Hazel Ouwehand had never met a qualifying time in an Olympic event for a New Zealand team, even as a junior. Now she’s very likely off to the Paris Olympics after swimming well under the qualifying standard in the 100m butterfly twice – both in ...
While Anzac Day has experienced a resurgence in recent years, our other day of remembrance has slowly faded from view.The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand. Original illustrations by Hope McConnell.First published in 2022.The high school’s head girl and ...
Australian and New Zealand volunteers fought together in the Waikato War, yet still its place in the Anzac tradition is unacknowledged by our defence forces or Returned Services Association.First published in 2018.When I was a boy cub I attended Anzac Day services in the South Auckland suburb of ...
A poem by Wellington writer Tayi Tibble.Hoki Mai She kisses him goodbye with her eyes still wet and alight from their last swim in the Awatere river. At the train station celebration, she leads the Kapa Haka but her voice keeps breaking under and over itself like waves. ...
A poem from Bill Manhire’s 2017 book of verse Some Things to Place in a Coffin.My World War I Poem Inside each trench, the sound of prayer. Inside each prayer, the sound of digging. Image courtesy of Auckland War Memorial Museum. ...
There are three books I have wolfed down in one sitting over the last two years. Colleen Maria Lenihan’s gorgeous and sad debut Kōhine, Noelle McCarthy’s memoir Grand about becoming her mother and then unbecoming her, and now Hine Toa, a staunch yet gentle self-portrait by living legend Ngāhuia te ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[quiz],DIV[quiz],A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp'); Got a good quiz question?Send Newsroom your questions. The post Newsroom daily quiz, Thursday 25 April appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Asia Pacific Report Students and activist staff at Australia’s University of Sydney (USyd) have set up a Gaza solidarity encampment in support of Palestinians and similar student-led protests in the United States. The camp was pitched as mass graves, crippled hospitals, thousands of civilian deaths and the near-total destruction of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James B. Dorey, Lecturer in Biological Sciences, University of Wollongong Australian teddy bear bees are cute and fluffy, but get a look at that massive (unbarbed) stinger! James Dorey Photography Most of us have been stung by a bee and we ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jen Roberts, Senior Lecturer, School of Humanities and Social Inquiry, University of Wollongong Aussie~mobs/FlickrVictor Farr, a private in the 1st Infantry Battalion, was among the first to land at Anzac Cove just before dawn on April 25 1915. Victor Farr ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gregory Moore, Senior Research Associate, School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, The University of Melbourne Gregory Moore I had the good fortune to care for the sugar gum at The University of Melbourne’s Burnley Gardens in Victoria where I worked for ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Hawkins, Senior Lecturer, Canberra School of Politics, Economics and Society, University of Canberra BagzhanSadvakassov/Upsplash, CC BY-SA Australia’s inflation rate has fallen for the fifth successive quarter, and it’s now less than half of what it was back in late 2022. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rachel Ong ViforJ, ARC Future Fellow & Professor of Economics, Curtin University Just when we think the price of rentals could not get any worse, this week’s Rental Affordability Snapshot by Anglicare has revealed low-income Australians are facing a housing crisis like ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Meighen McCrae, Associate Professor of Strategic & Defence Studies, Australian National University American and Australian stretcher bearers working together near the front line during the Battle of Hamel in 1918.Australian War Memorial While the AUKUS alliance is new, the Australian-American partnership ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tracey Holmes, Professorial Fellow in Sport, University of Canberra When the news broke last weekend that 23 Chinese swimmers had tested positive to a banned drug in early 2021 and were allowed to compete at the Tokyo Olympic Games six months later ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Cally Jetta, Senior Lecturer and Academic Lead; College for First Nations, University of Southern Queensland Australian War MemorialAboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised this article contains names and images of deceased people, as well as sensitive historical information ...
RNZ News Melissa Lee has been ousted from New Zealand’s coalition cabinet and stripped of the Media portfolio, and Penny Simmonds has lost the Disability Issues portfolio in a reshuffle. Climate Change and Revenue Minister Simon Watts will take Lee’s spot in cabinet. Simmonds was a minister outside of cabinet. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Lindenmayer, Professor, Fenner School of Environment and Society, Australian National University laurello/Shutterstock Some reports and popular books, such as Bill Gammage’s Biggest Estate on Earth, have argued that extensive areas of Australia’s forests were kept open through frequent burning by ...
Analysis - Christopher Luxon framing the demotion of two ministers as the portfolios getting "too complex" is a charitable way of saying they weren't up to the job. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra With Jim Chalmers’s third budget on May 14, Australians will be looking for some more cost-of-living relief – beyond the tax cuts – although they have been warned extra measures will be modest. As ...
Analysis: Melissa Lee has lost the media portfolio and her spot in Cabinet after multiple failed attempts to find solutions for a media industry in crisis. On Wednesday, the Prime Minister announced Lee would be losing her spot in Cabinet along with her media and communications ministerial portfolio. The job ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Simon Wilmot, Senior Lecturer, Film, Deakin University Among the many Australian who served during the second world war, there is a small group of people whose stories remain largely untold. These are the Muslim men and women who, while small in number, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kelly Saunders, PhD Candidate, University of Canberra There has been much analysis and praise of Justice Michael Lee’s recent judgement in Bruce Lehrmann’s defamation case against Channel Ten. Many people were openly relieved to read Lee’s “forensic” and “nuanced” application of law ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kathy Gibbs, Program Director for the Bachelor of Education, Griffith University zEdward_Indy/Shutterstock Around one in 20 people has attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). It’s one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders in childhood and often continues into adulthood. ADHD is diagnosed ...
The Fairer Future coalition of anti-poverty groups say Whaikaha must be properly funded going forward, and that to argue that poor financial management of the new Ministry is a red herring by the Prime Minister. ...
The Taxpayers’ Union is today congratulating Hon. Paul Goldsmith on his appointment as Minister for Media and Communications and urges him to rule out state intervention in the private media sector. ...
Asia Pacific Report The West Papuan resistance OPM leader has condemned Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and US President Joe Biden, accusing their countries of “six decades of treachery” over Papuan independence. The open letter was released today by OPM chairman Jeffrey P Bomanak on the eve of ANZAC Day ...
Welcome to The Spinoff Books Confessional, in which we get to know the reading habits and quirks of New Zealanders at large. This week: writer and one of Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people of 2024, Lauren Groff.The book I wish I’d writtenIf I wish I’d written a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Fechner, Research Fellow, Social Marketing, Griffith University mavo/Shutterstock Imagine having dinner at a restaurant. The menu offers plant-based meat alternatives made mostly from vegetables, mushrooms, legumes and wheat that mimic meat in taste, texture and smell. Despite being given that ...
“Three Strikes is a dead-end policy proposed by a dead-end government. The Three Strikes law ignores the causes of crime, instead just brutalising people already crushed by the cost of living.” ...
By Don Wiseman, RNZ Pacific senior journalist An Australian-born judge in Kiribati could well face deportation later this week after a tribunal ruling that he should be removed from his post. The tribunal’s report has just been tabled in the Kiribati Parliament and is due to be debated by MPs ...
With its clear mandate for police use, political nuances, and nuanced public trust, Denmark's insights provide valuable considerations for Australia and New Zealand. ...
Books editor Claire Mabey reviews poet Louise Wallace’s debut novel. A famous poet once said to me that he’s always suspicious when a poet publishes a novel. I never really understood why but maybe it’s something to do with cheating on your first form. Louise Wallace is a poet. She’s ...
For a few months at the turn of the millennium, TrueBliss burned bright as the biggest pop stars in the country. Alex Casey chats to two superfans who still hold the flame. During a humble backyard wedding in Nelson, 1999, one of the cordially invited guests had to excuse themselves ...
How will the recent wave of job cuts impact ethnic diversity in the media? In November last year, I was working a very busy day in the newsroom of a large online news site, interviewing whānau about their concerns over the imminent closure of one of the few puna reo ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ruth Knight, Researcher, Queensland University of Technology Have you ever felt sick at work? Perhaps you had food poisoning or the flu. Your belly hurt, or you felt tired, making it hard to concentrate and be productive. How likely would you be ...
Despite heavy criticism and an ongoing select committee process, the Police Minister says the Government will forge ahead with a ban on gang patches. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sam Whiting, Lecturer – Creative Industries, University of South Australia Shutterstock Everyone has a favourite band, or a favourite composer, or a favourite song. There is some music which speaks to you, deeply; and other music which might be the current ...
A new survey says ‘outlook not great’ for those charged with building infrastructure, while RMA changes delight farmers and depress environmentalists, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. First RMA changes announced ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Olli Hellmann, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Waikato Getty Images When New Zealanders commemorate Anzac Day on April 25, it’s not only to honour the soldiers who lost their lives in World War I and subsequent conflicts, but also ...
Welcome Back!
Can someone explain what is going on here? Having been denied access for the past 24 hrs I’m now receiving a not very commenter friendly version of TS. Is it just temporary or what? Thanks.
Is still not well, looks to be having a formatting problem now, corrupt CSS somewhere?
On my mobile pages are formatting correctly (both mobile and desktop view on Chrome connected through my house wifi), but using firefox, IE11 and Opera 18.0 on Windows 8 it looks like CSS are missing (I’ll have a look using browsers on my kubuntu box a bit later, but I dont expect any difference).
Have cleared cache and cookies on all browsers, no change.
Same.
Issue is no CSS.
I’m not a web guy, very much a generalist, but thought I might have a look anyway using using Firebug.
My first thought was maybe there was an issue with js resulting in no reference to any css, but I’m able to connect to all the js urls referenced in the in the page source; http://cdn.thestandard.org.nz/wp-content/plugins/wptouch-pro-3/include/js/desktop-switch.js as well as the 3rd party ones like nz.imrworldwide, ajax.cloudflare etc.
Little climate clock is running quite happily as well. No js seems to be ok.
Hope you can isolate the CSS issue shortly Lprent.
Having a look at thestandard stripped of formatting as well as the viewing the source has prompted me to reflect on how far the web has come along in the last few years.
It seems like it was just the other day I was starting to explore the web using lynx. The primary driver for getting connected was to build my first OS, on the first machine I built, Slackware running on an early 386.
After buying all the components I needed, and assembling it, with some advice over the phone from my brother who actually worked with computers (for an actual job, that you could get actual money!). I then bought myself a Slackware book, which came with a single floppy disk.
The disk contained all the tools needed to format the hard drive and connect to one of the slackware ftp sites to download the latest build.
Once I’d done that, configured my settings (manually configuring settings for the video adapter and screen was the most finickity) I recompiled the kernel, and viola! A command prompt.
The next step was to get X-Windows up and running, this was to take longer than all the previous steps combined.
Running Lynx connected me to a fascinating new world, and I immediately found that I was not the only one having trouble with X-Windows.
After reading everything I could find on X-Windows, and finding a group of other folks from around the world who were also learning to hate X-Windows, together we helped solve each others issues, and in a matter of only a few weeks, I was able to get X-Windows running properly, in black and white.
I know it must be almost 20 years ago now, but it feels like it was just the other day.
Macro +100…the Standard seemed to be out of reach yesterday( my partner said it wasnt me and my computer ….the site was down!)…what happened I wonder ?…was it cyber sabotage?
…my only alternative distraction and local political education was my usual the Daily Blog ( David Cunliffe interview was great!)…I refuse to go to those other horrible sites ….Kiwi Blog and Slater”s what- char- ma- call-it ? ( the Devils own territory)
Shows how important ‘ the Standard’ is for a genuine grassroots Left voice!…. imo
It seems, from a couple of conversations I had on Twitter, that Cloudflare was having issues.
“..my only alternative distraction and local political education ..
ahem..!
phillip ure..
smirk to you philip ure….btw my son has given up being a vegan ( thank God)….and is now a mere vegetarian.(and getting fatter)….waiting til he gives up being a vegetarian
I gave up veganism after 1 day, vegetarianism after 2 days… and am now back to eating lovely little lambies, rabbits , beef on the hoof, chicken, fish, eggs, venison…..yum!….I will have to have another incarnation
….and the little piggies taste best of all!…yum yum
Thank goodness… I couldn’t get access yesterday or this morning. I felt like I was marooned and cut off from civilisation (apart from the Daily Blog of course).
Macro and Chooky – agree totally. I was wanting to put up some info about our blockade of State Highway One on Thursday (28 Nov) in a more timely fashion, but never mind …. The Standard is now back to normal ! Great.
People from the Hikurangi and Puhipuhi communities have been feeling very frustrated that all attempts to engage with senior Govt Ministers and the PM about their very real worries about mercury being exposed and leaking into our waterways through gold exploratory drilling in the Puhipuhi Hills (about 36 kms north of Whangarei) were not being listened to. We finally got fed up, and organised a peaceful two-hour blockade of SH1. There was a detour route – through a sealed, winding country road with the occasional one-lane bridge along it.
For buses and huge logging trucks, delivery trucks etc we acknowledged this could be a nuisance to them and slow down their delivery times between Whangarei and further north – Kawakawa, Bay of Islands etc. It probably added up to half-an-hour to their journey. This was a cost to business, AND a cost to Government whose various departments had to do the actual stoppage – put up road blocks, monitor the situation constantly, etc etc.
We’ve been told the exploratory gold drilling will be a “minimal” disruption and not cause a nuisance. This is a nonsense ! The drilling involves going down at least 500 metres on each site, starting with a big hole and gradually narrowing, taking out all that soil and rock for sample analysis, and replacing it with a slurry of water, concrete and goodness knows what else. The mining company representative told us these details in person.
What he couldn’t tell us : would any of that drilling hit any of the myriad of underground aquifers which currently feed the water bores people use for personal water use and farm stock ?
This is a really important question. Because the Puhipuhi hills are riddled with mercury throughout its soil and rocks, it has hundreds (if not thousands) of underground aquifers and springs, as well as the surface water in streams and rivers – all of which run directly down via about 50 kms – into the Kaipara Harbour which is the spawning ground for snapper and other fish.
There is documented evidence that disturbing the soil and rocks leads to mercury leaching out into the streams, the roadside ditches, spilling onto vegetation – killing fish species, grasses and vegetation and making farm animals sick.
We’ve come up with a number of feasible alternative economic development concepts – they just need a bit more research, more strategic planning and considerable government funding to make them all into real, environmentally sustainable employment opportunities for people in the north.
But we cannot get the Government to listen. Hence the SH1 blockade last Thursday. We’re now awaiting a response. I guess you could say – watch this space !
Yes, saw you on TV3 news Jenny, well done.
With TS down I managed to read a few more pages of The Luminaries than I otherwise would have…
Hi Jenny,
Good on you I know exactly the area that you are talking about.
Can I ask, since Northland votes for Hone and anyone dressed in blue are the local farmers either going to actually join the Nacts and get an MP more responsive to their concerns, vote for the same old, or vote with labour and the Greens? To some extent I think the longer term remedy is in their own hands – how many would have to join the local Nacts to control the branch?
Well, I’m not Nact, RedBaronCV so I don’t know about that, but I would hope by now some of the Nat voters in the area are waking up.
…yes Jenny…great summary of the environmentalist action!….I heard on the radio that farmers are also very concerned about mercury leaching into waterways…great they are also joining in and taking action for the environment
I don’t seem to be able to reply to any comments.
When I click on the “Reply” the message “Error on page” comes up.
Can anyone reply to a comment?
It is working for me alwyn.
This isn’t quite “The Standard” web-site that I was used too. Somewhere in cyberspace is a comment I posted, unless ‘Karol’ didn’t like it. And it’s not the easiest link to get too now.
Conspiracy theories abounds. Who is spying on who ?
No sign of it in spam will. Maybe the internet ate it?
What’s the story on David Hay and Greens I read what Danyl had to say overt at Dimpost but like him I also have sources within Greens and get a quite different story from Danyl.
The information flowing through MSM now looks very like someone trying to muddy the waters on the whole imbroglio
Most disappointed in the process they adopted think it could have been handled better
It would seem that there have been a number of ‘issues’ with Mr Hay dating back quite some time, one strand of the rumors is that the ‘leadership challenge’ issued publicly by Hay was a late and ham-fisted attempt at embarrassing the Party in an attempt to stop any disciplinary action it was thinking of taking,
i do not see how the Party could have handled ‘issues’ it had with Hay any differently and it must be remembered that it was Mr Hay who dragged the issue into the public arena in that attempt at embarrassment,
The party seem to have quickly taken the required actions and my opinion is that there is no or minimal damage that will accrue from the actions the Party took,
i find spurious Hay’s claim that only having 3 of it’s current MP’s domiciled in Auckland is ‘hurting’ the Green Party in terms of voting, a quick look at the Party Vote in the Auckland electorates, including National held ones, will tell everyone that in most the Green Party did extremely well in 2011 at times doubling the Party Vote,
Whether David Hay has any large amount of support in the Auckland area that could potentially cause a split in the Party there has yet to be seen, i tho doubt that and it is my belief that most members are more then happy with the current leadership being provided by Metiria and Russell…
Has Labour a policy to bring Private schools down. Christ’s College in Christchurch an elite school for the children of wealthy Cantabrians operates as a registered charity and receives a per pupil grant from the Government. What about a change that would.
1. Eliminate the charitable status retrospectively- ie unless they can prove that they actually are a charity then their tax free status needs to be revoked as far back as possible.
2. Stop funding a separate education system for the elites out of the education funding for all New Zealanders.
Are there any other ways to break these institutions. The thing is what I am suggesting sounds a bit nasty doesn’t it. But the right broke the union movement in New Zealand so it only seems fair for the left to break the institutions that help to create and maintain an elite.
Yep I agree , if they want their elite status they can fund it themselves. And we could look at stripping off some of the other institutions – employer federations for example. They have too big a voice with no competing dialogue
How does that work?
Government funding of private needs to be stopped ASAP. Government funding should only be going to state schools. If people want education outside of that then that’s their choice and their costs.
Don’t need to break them, just stop government funding of them.
+1 …agree Plan B…if people want an elite education they should pay for it themselves…..ordinary NZers tax money should go to upgrading the State Education system and Continuing Education
( Continuing Education…. National dismantled and gave the money directly to private schools!…an absolute disgrace and very cruel !…because Continuing Education provided opportunities for learning from all sectors of society, town and country, young and old, successful people and those struggling, new immigrants, those newly moved from another city, those recovering from depression or mental illness, the newly bereaved, the unemployed, the retired …it provided social cohesion, the opportunity to make new friends from all strata of society)
Yes State taxpayers money should be for State Education!
In actual fact if children can get through/stick with the State Education system….. mix it with the hoi polloi (the smokers in the hedges, wild parties, uncouth language etc) and get their NCEA 3 …they statistically do better at university….probably because they haven’t been pampered ,’hot housed’ little plants ….and they are socially more sophisticated
…..also from what I have heard and observed, private schools have their own problems of under-achievment , bullying, drugs ….and in some cases these problems are all the more vicious because they are swept under the carpet.
Agree Plan B and Chooky. Private Schools are decimating our local high school by taking many of the farmers kids away, for some reason most dairy farmers now send their kids to private schools. But to be honest, when I was in high school in the early 80″s, it was the farmers kids who were the biggest bigots, so in some ways it is good to get rid of them…but on the flip side, these kids have no chance of reform if they attend private schools. In public schools they would mix with everyone in the school, sports teams, etc and it was good for them. These private schooled kids eventually come back to take over their family farms, they are not part of the local community, and they seem to struggle to mix socially so they end up being the biggest loser in my opinion.
Makes you wonder why they’re being sent to private schools? Perhaps their parents don’t want them to know what real life is like.
@ Saarbo and DTB…their parents want the best for them…(and when they are newly very rich dairy farmers they think private schools are the best, even although they may not have had a private education themselves ….but sometimes a private school education is most definitely not the best)….i went to a big co-ed state school with farmers kids and other kids , some were from rich families and some from poorer families …it didnt matter ( whereas I think it matters in Private schools how much money you have)…I know some farmers’ kids and other kids who went to Private schools and absolutely loathed the experience( one came from a very wealthy city family)…so much so they left at the earliest opportunity or switched to a State school
….. It is a misconception that all farmers are wealthy and all students at Private schools come from wealthy families ( some families struggled to send their kids to private boarding schools)…Farmers and farmers kids are a mixed bag like everyone else…..Ernest Rutherford was a farmers kid, as have been many notable scientists and NZers …..In my experience many farmers kids who went to Private schools dont necessarily go on to university …and if they do , they dont necessarily do that well…but that is a personal generalisation
…making the most of education often depends on the education values of the parents…and of course whether the kid is inclined to put in the effort….so State Schools, where some get scholarships to university and some choose to create trouble behind the bike sheds or in the hedges …. are good enough for everyone ….and those who want an elite or special school should pay for it imo
The point I was getting at is that private schools would tend to cement in attitudes that reflect what the “elite” think about the world whereas public schools would change as society and knowledge changes.
@DTB…private schools can do this agreed …and this is what they are meant to do !
….on the other hand given popular music culture ….I think many from private schools want to rebel….. and get out of jail as fast as they can…… and meet the real world head on… fill up the reality gaps in their lives….. and prove to themselves and everyone else they can trash themselves better than the best of them!…in other words they go crazy once they get let out of jail much to the bemusement of their State educated mates, who have seen it all before long ago and are much more cautious….
Hi mickeysavage.
Re Alwyn’s complaint… reply doesn’t seem to be working for me. Can’t search commenters comments either. What with all this spying caper that’s occurring, you have to wonder if someone out there doesn’t like us. 🙁
Hi Anne
It is working fine for me but there are a few issues obviously …
What browser are you using?
Remember that the while the parents get subsidized for their kids private school education those same parents are still paying the taxes to go towards everyone elses public school education
So in effect its cheaper for NZ and gives more resources to everyone else if more kids go private
But when private schools ALSO receive substantial funding from the state, your argument disappears up it’s own fundament.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/education/3309627/Private-schools-fail-to-keep-lid-on-fees
Most parents are paying more for private schools this year despite a $35 million government funding boost to make them more affordable.- why are we spending public money to make private schools more affordable ?
http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/private-schools-could-receive-taxpayer-funding-increase-5411270
Using this logic perhaps private Heath care should be treated in a similar manner ???
Also remember Wanganui Collegiate are now receiving subsidies from Government under some form of the Integrated Schools System. I personally think it is time that Integrated Schools was scrapped. In the most it seems a large subsidy to the Catholic Church and a few other denominational schools. Put all the money into state schools and let private schools stand on their own feet
+1
The state isn’t there to prop up private businesses.
This government is!
Well, true but it’s still up to us to disabuse them of the notion.
Even if government money is being spent on private schools, if they’re spending $$$$$ for each public school space, and $$ in subsidies for each private school space, that’s still a saving.
How does that work. If there were no private schools receiving subsidies then the money paid to those schools could go to the already existing state schools.
Why pay a subsidy to someone to duplicate the already existing state structure
Er, you can’t just magically fit more children into the existing state schools without increasing funding.
If it costs $$$$$ to educate a child in the state system, and the state pays $$ in the private system, if all of the private schools shut down the government would need to find $$$ extra for each of those children that will now need to go the state schools.
So you are then happy for private medical insurance to have some form of state subsidy? As from my perspective private medical, pension and schooling are the same, and I find it difficult for one to be state supported while the others are not, or am I missing something?
Love to ask Polly’s why this is so and for them to find reason to justify this.
The private medical industry already does have a state subsidy, in the form of them only taking on the easy/profitable surgeries and therapies. All emergency work is done by the public system.
Note that I’m not justifying or saying that the current system is good. Just that it *is* saving the taxpayer’s money compared to what we would be paying if the private schools didn’t exist at all.
Also mess ups caused from within the private system always end up back in the public system to be patched up.
Same with any cosmetic surgery from Thailand. Cheap price for the punter, but when it gets infected back here, the NZ tax payer takes the hit.
I understand your points that have been made, yet if we integrated these private school students would the marginal cost be that great ? Would schools such as kings, st Kent’s etc just close down., if there was no govt assistance many of these and similar schools would still continue to exist.
There is from my observation plenty of new clients to these schools being sourced from the burbs, so the perception is that over the last 10+ years that private is far superior to state! which is supported by govt policy of making these schools more affordable.
I think you’ll find that the state schools could easily take in the all the pupils in private schools and require very little extra funding to do so.
[citation needed]
You did note the existence of the I think didn’t you?
There’s a few thousand state schools with hundreds of thousands of pupils. There’s a few private schools with a few thousand pupils. Those private school pupils come from across the country. If we then distributed them across the public school system it probably wouldn’t raise pupil numbers beyond what each public school could handle as is. A little more funding would help of course and perhaps some more class rooms.
Now, I call again for you to back up your assertion.
[citation needed]
Factor in many of the priviledged hide their family incomes behind trust accounts, etc, and so qualify for student allowances at uni. My lads ended up with $60,000 loans!
Please explain to me how this works?
I’m using firefox mickysavage and according to naturesong it’s one of those affected. But I’m a pc dummy – don’t know what to do about it. Not even sure what a cookie is…
Btw Redlogix (might as well reply here since my TS settings are way to hell..), my father said exactly the same as your father did re-Muldoon – down to the same words. He also had a few dealings with him many,many years ago.
I think its more cost effective but if you have some figures that show otherwise I’d be interested in seeing them
Generally the schools ‘operating budget’ , ie salaries and annual overheads is paid for from the state. In some senses that’s actually quite fair, every parent pays taxes and every parent regardless of whether their children are in the public or private sector get a benefit from this. The idea that private schooling parents somehow ‘pay twice’ for their children’s education is quite wrong.
The main fiscal difference between public and state sector schooling is where the capital budget comes from, ie land, buildings and facilities.
In the public sector the capital budget is a small fraction of the operating budget, probably around 10% if the following numbers are a guide:
http://www.treasury.govt.nz/budget/2012/estimates/est12educ.pdf
How the private sector spends it’s income is of course far more opaque. What we can assume is that they exercise more choice around using its substantial fee income …on more staff, fancier buildings and facilities, advertising and the like. And that by itself is not a bad thing. Unlike some here on the left I’ve no real problem with various non-state actors in the education system. The Catholic, Steiner and various other alternatives have a legitimate place alongside a healthy public system.
What I do object to is seeing a private sector, targeting the very wealthy, and growing at the expense of the public system, as trend that has been long established in say England, and has rapidly evolved in Australia over the last few decades.
That is nothing more than pure snobbery and elitism. It entrenches social privilege and economic inequality. It is the antithesis of sound education and over generations it enforces the haves and the have-nots. The left soundly rejects it.
Is david hay related to sir keith hay and his son david hay.
I was wondering that too. I met David Hay campaigning in Epsom last election, and he seemed reasonable enough, and had useful things to say in the election debates (which were extremely divisive).
LPrent,
Was it a javascript issue?
About No. 5 – mining. Just some info on the mining coy De Grey that has right to look at Puhipuhi
minerals.
De Grey Mining Limited is a West Australian based public company exploring for high-grade epithermal gold-silver on 4,675 square kilometres in Santa Cruz and Rio Negro Provinces, Argentina.
In Santa Cruz, the Sierra Morena and Pachi Projects are drill ready and the company will test defined targets early in the 2012-2013 field season.
In November 2012, De Grey Mining signed an agreement with Waihi Gold Company Ltd to acquire 100% of the Puhipuhi Project located on the North Island of New Zealand.
Saw him on tv last night jayman. I wonder because the older david hay was a bit of an idiot…
great piece by steve braunias today.
This is sir keiths son
http://m.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=383859
Judging by his latest media release (see Scoop feed at right of screen) he has now lost the plot. Sad.
http://openparachute.wordpress.com/2013/10/01/september-13-nz-blogs-sitemeter-ranking/
– and while I reckon most of you are cheering about whats happening to Cameron Slater at the moment I think the implications are worth considering for everyone, left or right
I have no idea what’s happening to that oik, nor do I care.
Left wing bloggers in general already know they shouldn’t get down in the sewer and make stuff up. Blubber Boy needs to learn.
Oh this is UGLY no matter what browser Ii use FF, Opera, or even Ugg Internet Exploder. The whole site is indented left, with what looks like screwed up carriage returns.
It is fine for me David. Do you want to clear your cache and cookies and try again?
MickyS – I couldn’t do a reply this time either. Managed it earlier in the day though.
To Grey Warbler @ 19 – thanks for the De Grey Mining info. We’ve picked up most of that, but didn’t realise they were drill ready on their Argentina sites. Our govt has allowed them to delay their actual drilling here (Puhipuhi) until April 2014. So far this is the third extension of time they’ve been granted. We’re not sure if they’ve run out of cash for the job, or if the Argentina work is holding them up.
I am very happy I can still put a post up despite what the site looks like. And I wonder about lprent trying to work his way through the various paradigms and puzzles of what to do for the best. Its a dynamic world out there. So we’re thinking about you Lynn. Have fun. (Ironic!)
Great article in the Sydney Morning Herald.
http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-opinion/inequality-at-the-heart-of-rejection-of-gonski-program-20131130-2yi54.html
Pencil in the election date:
NZ (Key) has been invited to the G20 in Brisbane, 15-16 November 2014.
That’s the ‘top table’ summit, with Obama and co. Pictures of the PM in the Queensland sunshine, chatting with world leaders, handshakes and smiles for the telly.
So the election will be held 1-2 weeks after.
Would he really want to be out of the country during the election campaign?
No he would not, he would not take a couple of days out of the campaign at that stage, let alone a week
It’s not a week, it’s a couple of days and it’s from the campaigning playbook. Image is all, see Reagan (D-day 1984)), Thatcher (Moscow 1987), etc.
You think Key wants to stay home and discuss issues?
Clark or Cunliffe wouldn’t go, but Key would (will).
Those events had considerably more import than a fucking G20 meeting that we don’t have any real business attending.
Key couldn’t get any concessions from Australia to help NZ citizens. But he did get ball tickets for the G20 from Abbott. Swell.
gobsmacked
I think you could be right. Key could advance himself in this foreign forum, and leave his lieutenants to keep the ball in the air here. One has to look at the bigger picture, the most advantageous use of opportunity cost time etc for the key to understanding his NZ campaign.
I pray this TS format improves…
If by “TS” you mean The Standard? I, along with many others (but apparently not everyone) had massive Cloudflare problems yesterday. For me it got resolved around 9:00 or so, in that I could (sporadically) access the site, but the display was all broken; lots of plain text, blue links on a white background. Had a little bit of that this morning, but it’s cleared up now.
So if you’re seeing that, I suspect it may resolve itself for you in due course.
Be nice if we got some response from Lynn as to what went wrong.
reply not working..
phillip ure..
even difficult to ‘reply’ appropriately Lanth.
THANK YOU LANTH. (been talking to others through fb; yes, that is how TS is for moi at present)
LA-Innnnnnnn, Lynn, Are you there? 🙂
and, yes, cleared cache and cookies etc on both browsers; Woe is me…
This browser (IE) pops out the ‘debugging’ box all the time, identifying errors.
Everything seems to be working fine in Chrome
At the moment the problem is with Kiwiblog.
Well the site’s loading properly again, thank god, but now I can’t reply to comments, boo.
The Standard currently looks like this for me in Chrome, anyone else experiencing this or is it just me… http://i.imgur.com/kvatW0Y.png
Had that a few times over the last day or so. That, the comment errors and the fact that the site was going really slow finally had me stop looking/posting yesterday. Been good for me today though.
All good for me today too.
Yes the site looks like that for me with Firefox on Ubuntu. So I guess the site is at fault.
Also this reply went in the wrong place.
Mike Williams just repeated a very cute quote on Col Craig (sounds more manly than Colin). It is the one mentioned below in bold in Bryce Edwards 27/11 extensive piece on him and the possibility of a deal over Poorer Benefit’s electorate seat. The Standard Coat-tail comment is also referred to –
Bryce Edwards: Political roundup: Winning at the 2014 general election.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11163647
The latest must-read feature about Colin Craig and his policies is Andrea Vance’s Conservative Party: Crazy or credible?. This comprehensive piece also includes a list of 10 of the Conservatives’ ‘more interesting policy platforms’ compiled by Steve Kilgallon. Complimenting this is Vance’s own opinion piece, Craig politics – nice and nutty, which features the memorable line: ‘So far, all the signals point to him being nuttier than squirrel poo’.
Transmission Gully is underway and yet this is what the NZ Herlad has to say about PPPs It is very damming and a bit amazing for a mainstream media outlet to come right out and say it.
Cargo-cult mystique of funding through private sector deals blurs burden of risk for public.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=11…
PPPs are like renting the same car every day for 25 years , you get to pay a lot of money (many times the actual cost of a car) and at then end of it you get to keep the 25 year old bomb of a car, which is of course clapped out. Brilliant.