For some bizarre reason, Espiner uses the opportunity to grill Little about this.
Why not ask some hard questions about Key not fronting, Mr Espiner.
Such a Tory and corporate lackey.
No wonder RNZ is losing listeners.
Little handles Espiner with increasing aplomb these days.
It was interesting to hear Little say he was unaware of the breadth of the surveillance undertaken which seems to suggest that the government is only providing the Leader of the Opposition with the bare minimum of intelligence they can constitutionally get away with.
Pythonesque really – Australia still dealing to Afghanistan.
Sorry people it’s just cricket but it is another case of the Bournemouth gynaecologists versus the Long John Silvers eleven. So Australia made the biggest score of world cup cricket ever. And it’s headline news. Mmmmmm.
yeah had to laugh – I wonder what the money made around the world on these ‘games’ get used for – wouldn’t surprise me if it was a closed loop – weapons cost and so does ammunition and ‘intelligence’.
hi all its kinda crowd source time.
i originally posted this last night but would like to do it here today.
i wish to send a letter to the baywide crew asking a few questions re the payment of fines and accountability issues.
a few questions:
how to word it without it falling into ‘thats an employment issue and its none of yr business…’
to whom to address it.
here is a rough draft, i welcome input from y’all.
(I will use capitals etc in the proper one)
dear so and so,
i wish to seek reassurance that the members/clients of the credit union will not be contributing to the recent fine imposed by the employment tribunal following the ms hammond affair.
i also humbly request an broad indication from you what consequence the people involved can expect. (not intimate details, as i accept following this confidentiality is to be upheld.
i look forward to your response.
my name etc.
Credit Unions are owned by members so technically the members will be paying the fines. Unless the individuals involved are? Can’t remember the details of the decision. Maybe you could be more specific about what you mean by members not paying.
hi weka, upon re reading my missive it is a little vague (i blame the scrumpy and a head of steam).
by members i mean the depositors. i accept that ultimately we will pay as the executives salaries come from the depositors, however i feel the executives should be penalized financially if there is to be a punitive effect to this $168,000 finding.
The members own the credit union, and are the same as the depositors. You can’t have an account without being a member (at least that’s how Credit Union Otago works).
Given that the CU is paying, I would probably phrase it more as an open question.
Dear sir/madam,
As a member of the Baywide CU, I have two questions about the recent HRC case.
Can you please provide an explanation about how the CU is going to pay the fines, and how this will impact on the running of the CU and on the members?
I also humbly request an broad indication from you what consequence the people involved can expect.
yours etc.
Thinking about TRP’s comment and how the CU is structured, it would be interesting to see what role the members have in determining employment policy. I agree attending the AGM is a good idea.
**BREAKING NEWS**
The Chinese have billboards putting forward the RNB as the new world reserve currency. Back on point….perhaps it’s time NZ view the US as a nation who’s time has passed and get into position for the new world leader, China.
89 state homes were bowled and, in their place, a new subdivision named Riverside Gardens was started… Of the 150 new homes, Housing NZ would buy about 20 of them to use as state homes.
It looks great, but I wonder where the other 69 families have gone and why the redevelopment couldn’t have be done for them?
Getting rid of low income Maori/Pasifika families and replacing them with young white middle class professional couples who got their deposit from mummy and daddy.
Drugmakers don’t just compromise doctors; they also undermine top medical journals and skew medical research
But in 2002, the Journal of the American Medical Association flipped the HRT script when it published the unspun results of a Women’s Health Initiative study of 16,000 U.S. women on HRT. The drugs in Premarin and Prempro elevated the risk of the diseases they were intended to prevent, resulting in a 41 percent increase in stroke risk, a 29 percent increase in heart attack risk, a 26 percent increase in the risk of breast cancer, and a 22 percent increase in cardiovascular disease risks. These revelations about the dangers of HRT prompted many doctors to withdraw most of their patients from its drug regimens. However, Wyeth persisted in “educational” efforts, such as seminars directed at defecting doctors—some scripted by the ghostwriters of DesignWrite.
The release of the polio vaccine prompted criticism. In December 1960, a health news magazine called the ‘Herald of Health’ published a crucial report titled ‘The Great Salk Vaccine Fiasco: Misuse of statistics, blackout of vaccine cases, cited by eminent Chicago doctor’ By Ernest B. Zeisler, M.D. (which can be found at http://www.vaclib.org) who disagreed with Dr. Salk’s claims that the vaccine was safe or even useful against polio. Dr. Zeisler wrote a personal note to the publisher of the magazine M. S. Arnoni and told him that “No newspaper, periodical or medical journal will touch this. Many authorities in this field agree with me, and some have written me to say so and to congratulate me for what they call my ‘courage.’But no medical man will agree with me publicly”.
The field trial itself had violated the cardinal principles of scientific procedure. As said by Brownlee in the Journal of the American Statistical Association:
“. . . 59 per cent of the trial was worthless because of the lack of adequate controls. The remaining 41 per cent may be all right but contains internal evidence of bias in favor of the vaccinated. .. The reviewer . . . would point out that gamma globulin was triumphantly proclaimed effective by the National Foundation after a similar trial . .
As an aside, polio vaccinations are far less effective in nations where children are distressed and malnourished. Even multiple doses will sometimes fail to provide any significant protection to those children.
No surprise that the immune system can’t respond adequately if it is being starved.
Or that research done on well off white kids in well off suburbs don’t pick things like this up. As I say – each vaccination has to be judged on its own merits, and within its own context. Any blanket up or down perspective is an unscientific perspective.
There is a poorly understood ‘intestinal barrier’ to successful immunization of people in less developed countries who receive oral vaccines.
It is posited that diminished immune responses in these areas (particularly two northern states in India) are correlated with poor sanitation, a high prevalence of diarrheal illness at the time of vaccination, competing enteric viruses and competition of type 2 with types 1 and 3 vaccine viruses.
The most accessible overview of polio vaccination and the possible elimination of polio and cessation of immunisation is covered in the article below.
Yeah I predicted Molly Hughes would throw his feathers in the nest. He does anger Key and Joyce for some strange reason. He should have contested the By-Election since there already is cut throating.
Good article in the ODT by David Fisher on Snowden’s files showing NZ spying on its friendliest neighbours. GCSB going into full take collection, and article raises issues of NZers living in Pacific countries given GCSB isn’t supposed to spy on NZ citizens. The NZ PM and chief spy tell predictable lies at the end. Had to laugh at the spook saying they are subject to independent oversight.
In the USA the FISA courts and Senate/House intelligence committees set up decades ago after the Church commission were supposed to provide “independent oversight.”
They’ve been utterly compromised by the intelligence services and are now into the realms of “secret interpretations” of laws, which even law makers don’t know about and never intended.
According to Bill Binney, Nancy Pelosi as a ranking member of one of those intelligence committees was briefed by the NSA on its mass collection programme sometime soon after 2001 and raised no substantial objections.
Secret committees cannot provide democratic oversight.
I look forward to Labour candidate Willow-Jean Prime, building Labour’s profile and electorate base in the Northland by-election.
More importantly, (for the best interests of the majority of New Zealanders, in my opinion) I look forward to Labour supporters exercising political maturity and understanding of ‘strategic’ voting under MMP, by ‘doing an Epsom’ and voting Winston Peters, in order to take Northland off National.
Which will leave National with only 59 out of 121 MPs – and make it FAR more difficult to pass their pro-corporate / anti- worker / pro-WAR on the POOR legislation.
I do hope Labour Party supporters in Northland are a lot more politically astute than some Labour Party supporters who ‘opine’ on this blog?
Meant in a deadly serious, but caring way …..
Penny Bright
(Whom, arguably would have got FAR more ‘electorate’ votes when she stood against John Key in Helensville, had the ‘left’ understood ‘strategic’ voting under MMP?)
For those interested in May 7th’s historic, and possibly last, UK of GB & NI General Election the pollster Ashcroft has published his latest findings.
Labour and Tories neck and neck giving the SNP the balance of power.
Scottish Labour will have the Last Rites read on election night.
Radionz headline – NZ $ soars against …… Oh great. Just what we need. Slowly going down would be most efficacious and useful. Fat chance while the fat cats play amongst themselves.
Radionz this a.m. http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/player/20169683
Are we heading towards a cashless society? ( 16′ 20″ )
09:34 The head of the Australian National University’s School of Economics, Professor Rabee Tourkey believes physical cash will be phased out within a decade. He says it will likely be replaced by a government issued digital currency, similar to bitcoin, but fully centralised.
Some action is being taken by McDonalds to stop? injecting antibiotics into chickens as an automatic part of their rearing. The practice of using antibiotics as prophylactics started around 1958. Concern about antibiotic resistance has been around for a long time. It takes a long time to get a hearing about a necessary restraint or ban and then a dangerous lag before any reasonable, practical action is started.
@ Cklemgeopin
I heard McDonalds and then I heard about chickens. So not sure whether I am right. But the takeaways all tend to have chicken wings etc now so could be McDonalds. For versimilitude? it would pay to check it oneself as I am trying to multi-taks and not being efficient at it!.
Interested in the plight of women who seem to receive les respect than cows?
Tomorrow on Radionz there is an interesting interview.
Coming Up on Nine To Noon
10:05 am Friday 6 March: Sonia Faleiro
In her latest book, 13 Men, award-winning Indian-born journalist and author, Sonia Faleiro investigates one of her country’s high profile rape cases, in which it was alleged a 20-year-old was gang raped under orders of the village council for falling in love with an outsider.
Sonia Faleiro travelled to the isolated village in West Bengal and interviewed the victim as well as local villagers and the village council and found the media coverage of the story had been in many cases wrong, and the issues were far more complex than many realised.
Sonia Faleiro has previously delved into the murky world of Bombay’s dance bars and has written for Vogue India, India Today and the New York Times. She a co-founder of Deca, a global journalists cooperative that creates long-form stories to read on mobile devices
Quite frankly, in my considered opinion, neither you lprent nor Chris Trotter actually understand MMP and ‘strategic’ voting?
I REALLY hope that Northland ‘ordinary left-leaning’ voters ‘get it’ and vote strategically for Winston Peters, whom, in my considered opinion, has the best chance of taking Northland off National.
Because it seems, in my opinion, you folk are unable or unwilling to do the VERY basic maths?
If National lose Northland – they will have only 59 out of 121 MPs – thus be ‘wing-clipped’ in the House, regarding the passage of legislation, for which they need 61 MPs?
It’s not complicated.
Why on earth would you not support giving this potential outcome – the best chance of success?
By promoting voting Winston Peters for Northland?
The Labour Party arguably can’t do / say that – but YOU could?
So – why aren’t you – if you’re really opposed to this John Key led National Government?
Quite frankly, in my considered opinion, neither you lprent nor Chris Trotter actually understand MMP and ‘strategic’ voting?
The point that you don’t seem to understand is that strategic voting is a choice for voters. Parties shouldn’t be involved in subverting MMP for their party by reducing the choices offered to voters. That is a processs that is called “machine politics” and is basically a way of rorting voters.
MMP is about providing choice to voters. That was what they voted for in 1993. What you and others fail to see is that you clearly don’t understand MMP from the voters perspective. You and others just seem to always want to screw the voters by removing their choices. It shows a singular ability to respect voters.
If Winston and you clearly manage to explain those choices to the voters and convince them it is worthwhile, then they may vote that way. If they vote elsewhere as they did in the Te Tai Tokerau election, then the voters have made their choice and you and the other fantasy election fools should respect that.
The Press Wednesday 25 February 2015 Section B1.
Reports about refugees many from Syria, and their despair. in Greece and Italy. A quote from an Italian RW politician ‘Let them drown’. They are being deluged by desperate people. What assistance are such recipient governments being given by the world’s big war spenders which are causing much of the problem.
The world can’t cope with the devastation, displacement and disruption of wars.
Then there is the camel problem in Australia. They were imported then abandoned when cars took over. Instead of them being a source of revenue, manufactured goods and meat the various states seem to have done little intelligent resource planning and business development. Numbers estimated a decade ago were 500,000. They have attempted to control camel numbers, but haven’t succeeded and when camels started mobbing and damaging infrastructure in search of food and water a decade ago a mass cull killed 100,000.
Now the camels are crazed by the increasingly hot weather and lack of water and ripping up irrigation, smashing Aboriginal people’s camps. They are in groups of 200, big and desperate, so scary. ‘They crashed through our troughs last week, buckled all the pipes, let the water out of the tanks, and ripped up fences.” That is on a 2.5 million hectare Mt Weld cattle station.
The world can’t cope intelligently with the d..d…d.. above caused by climate change.
Is it any wonder that some people are getting impatient even angry as others continue inaction, orate on lovely theories or sit around comparing each other’s belly fluff.
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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. ...
The Government must commit to the Maitai School building project for students with high and complex needs, to ensure disabled students from the top of the South Island have somewhere to learn. ...
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey and his Government colleagues have made a meal of their mental health commitments, showing how flimsy their efforts to champion the issue truly are, says Labour Mental Health spokesperson Ingrid Leary. ...
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, ...
Changes to the Resource Management Act will align consenting for coal mining to other forms of mining to reduce barriers that are holding back economic development, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The inconsistent treatment of coal mining compared with other extractive activities is burdensome red tape that fails to acknowledge ...
Trade, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Todd McClay has concluded productive discussions with ministerial counterparts in Beijing today, in support of the New Zealand-China trade and economic relationship. “My meeting with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao reaffirmed the complementary nature of the bilateral trade relationship, with our Free Trade Agreement at its ...
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 ...
A leaked document shows the Canterbury/Waitaha arm of health agency Te Whatu Ora is scurrying to save $13.3 million by July. The “financial sustainability target”, which was “allocated” to Waitaha, is consistent with what’s happening in other districts, says Sarah Dalton, executive director of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists. ...
A look at the state of the previous government’s affordable housing scheme, and what could come next.Remind me: What’s KiwiBuild again?First announced in 2012, KiwiBuild was a flagship policy of the Labour Party heading into both its 2014 and 2017 election campaigns. With Jacinda Ardern as prime minister, ...
Labour in opposition will be shocked to learn which party had six years in power but squandered any chance to make real change. Grant Robertson’s valedictory speech was a predictably entertaining trip down memory lane. The acid-tongued incoming Otago University chancellor administered a sick burn to the coalition government. He ...
Taiwan’s semiconductor industry is seen some as its ‘silicon shield’ against invasion – but how will overseas expansion affect that protection? The post The state of Taiwan’s silicon shield appeared first on Newsroom. ...
There’s relief for building owners bending under the weight of earthquake strengthening rules – and costs – that came into force seven years ago. Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk has announced a scheduled 2027 review of the earthquake-prone building regulations will now start this year. Owners will also get ...
Opinion: It has been announced that nine percent of roles at Oranga Tamariki will be disestablished, presumably to help fund the tax cuts promised by the coalition Government. I am reminded of the graphics used to illustrate pandemic events, where five thousand people are standing in a field and then ...
After more than two sleepless days, running through savage terrain, Greig Hamilton didn’t know if he was going to finish one of the most gruelling psychological assaults in sport. He was metres away from the finish line, a yellow gate made famous in a Netflix documentary; a race he’d dreamed ...
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The following interview with former Green Party MP Sue Kedgley came about because she features in the new memoir Hine Toa by activist Ngāhuia te Awekōtuku; the two knew each other at the University of Auckland in the early 70s, when they were both took on leadership roles in the ...
COMMENTARY:By Murray Horton New Zealand needs to get tough with Israel. It’s not as if we haven’t done so before. When NZ authorities busted a Mossad operation in Auckland 20 years ago, the government didn’t say: “Oh well, Israel has the right to defend itself.” No, it arrested, prosecuted, ...
NEWSMAKERS:By Vijay Narayan, news director of FijiVillage Blessed to be part of the University of Fiji (UniFiji) faculty to continue to teach and mentor those who want to join our noble profession, and to stand for truth and justice for the people of the country. I was privileged to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Three weeks from now, some of us will be presented with a mountain of budget papers, and just about all of us will get to hear about them on radio, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dan Lowry, Ice Sheet & Climate Modeller, GNS Science Hugh Chittock/Antarctica New Zealand, CC BY-SA As the climate warms and Antarctica’s glaciers and ice sheets melt, the resulting rise in sea level has the potential to displace hundreds of millions of ...
The government's plan to reintroduce a three strikes regime is being strongly opposed by lawyers, who argue there is no evidence it reduces crime or helps people rehabilitate. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dan Jerker B. Svantesson, Professor specialising in Internet law, Bond University Do Australian courts have the right to decide what foreign citizens, located overseas, view online on a foreign-owned platform? Anyone inclined to answer “yes” to this question should perhaps also ask ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Giovanni E Ferreira, NHMRC Emerging Leader Research Fellow, Institute of Musculoskeletal Health, University of Sydney Last week in a post on X, owner of the platform Elon Musk recommended people look into disc replacement if they’re experiencing severe neck or back pain. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Hayward, Emeritus Professor of Public Policy, RMIT University anek.soowannaphoom/Shutterstock NSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey caught the headlines yesterday, courtesy of a blistering speech condemning the latest GST carve-up. New South Wales, he claimed, would be A$11.9 billion worse off over the ...
John Key really has destroyed our independent foreign policy.
We send our soldiers to fight for the US in Iraq to be part of their club.
And we spy on our friends and neighbours and pass on all that information to Key’s US masters.
Sneaky spying. That required guts, Mr Key.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11411730
The PM declined to be interviewed on RNZ.
Gutless.
For some bizarre reason, Espiner uses the opportunity to grill Little about this.
Why not ask some hard questions about Key not fronting, Mr Espiner.
Such a Tory and corporate lackey.
No wonder RNZ is losing listeners.
Little handles Espiner with increasing aplomb these days.
It was interesting to hear Little say he was unaware of the breadth of the surveillance undertaken which seems to suggest that the government is only providing the Leader of the Opposition with the bare minimum of intelligence they can constitutionally get away with.
Thanks Paul.
TBH my response to John Key is that he living down to my expectations.
But I get a positive burst of admiration for those involved: Glenn Greenwald, Edward Snowden and Nicky Hager and David Fisher.
+100 Molly
Pythonesque really – Australia still dealing to Afghanistan.
Sorry people it’s just cricket but it is another case of the Bournemouth gynaecologists versus the Long John Silvers eleven. So Australia made the biggest score of world cup cricket ever. And it’s headline news. Mmmmmm.
Better for the capitalist media to talk about that than stuff that really matters.
That might make people question what is going on…..
yeah had to laugh – I wonder what the money made around the world on these ‘games’ get used for – wouldn’t surprise me if it was a closed loop – weapons cost and so does ammunition and ‘intelligence’.
Another day, another fawning, vomit-inducing article on Key. Also showing students as superficial, shallow, money-chasing monkeys. Gah!
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/66968082/selfies-in-vogue-as-pm-calls-on-oweek-crowd
Narcissism.
Key’s ally.
From the link:
* And he found plenty of fans when he stopped in to O-Week festivities at the University of Waikato.
“Doing good, cuz. Good job running the country, John,” a student called.
It wasn’t long before other students realised the prime minister had arrived, and flocked to him for a photo.
National supporter Jamie Braithwaite, 18, was stoked to meet Key for the first time – and get the photo to prove it.
“I support National so it was really cool meeting him,” she said. “I was like ‘Oh hi’ but then I got really nervous.”
Rajbir Singh, 22, also managed to get herself a shot with Key.
“It’s pretty exciting. He came to little old Hamilton . . . It’s a good way to interact with him.”
Key told the students:
—————–
* The mass of smartphone selfies was a big difference from Key’s uni years at Canterbury.
“We weren’t taking a lot of selfies because we didn’t have phones that were capable – in fact we didn’t have phones,” he said.
—————
* When Key made it to the mic at the centre of O-Week festivities for a brief speech,
he told the students
“you’ve got the best rugby team in the country” and assured them the Government was working to deliver a strong economy.
—————
“* The mass of smartphone selfies was a big difference from Key’s uni years at Canterbury.
“We weren’t taking a lot of selfies because we didn’t have phones that were capable – in fact we didn’t have phones,” he said.”
I’m amazed he can remember such detail from his uni days considering that he can’t remember the fricking SPRINGBOK TOUR.
hi all its kinda crowd source time.
i originally posted this last night but would like to do it here today.
i wish to send a letter to the baywide crew asking a few questions re the payment of fines and accountability issues.
a few questions:
how to word it without it falling into ‘thats an employment issue and its none of yr business…’
to whom to address it.
here is a rough draft, i welcome input from y’all.
(I will use capitals etc in the proper one)
dear so and so,
i wish to seek reassurance that the members/clients of the credit union will not be contributing to the recent fine imposed by the employment tribunal following the ms hammond affair.
i also humbly request an broad indication from you what consequence the people involved can expect. (not intimate details, as i accept following this confidentiality is to be upheld.
i look forward to your response.
my name etc.
Credit Unions are owned by members so technically the members will be paying the fines. Unless the individuals involved are? Can’t remember the details of the decision. Maybe you could be more specific about what you mean by members not paying.
hi weka, upon re reading my missive it is a little vague (i blame the scrumpy and a head of steam).
by members i mean the depositors. i accept that ultimately we will pay as the executives salaries come from the depositors, however i feel the executives should be penalized financially if there is to be a punitive effect to this $168,000 finding.
Looking at TRP’s comments in this link, it seems that the CU is paying not the employees. So yes, members are paying.
http://thestandard.org.nz/dim-post-on-that-168k-cake-story/#comment-979713
The members own the credit union, and are the same as the depositors. You can’t have an account without being a member (at least that’s how Credit Union Otago works).
Given that the CU is paying, I would probably phrase it more as an open question.
Dear sir/madam,
As a member of the Baywide CU, I have two questions about the recent HRC case.
Can you please provide an explanation about how the CU is going to pay the fines, and how this will impact on the running of the CU and on the members?
I also humbly request an broad indication from you what consequence the people involved can expect.
yours etc.
Thinking about TRP’s comment and how the CU is structured, it would be interesting to see what role the members have in determining employment policy. I agree attending the AGM is a good idea.
**BREAKING NEWS**
The Chinese have billboards putting forward the RNB as the new world reserve currency. Back on point….perhaps it’s time NZ view the US as a nation who’s time has passed and get into position for the new world leader, China.
http://www.sovereignman.com/trends/the-chinese-have-put-out-billboard-ads-announcing-the-renminbi-as-the-new-world-currency-16318/
Some good examples from across the ditch of the kind of workers’ resistance we need a lot more of here: https://rdln.wordpress.com/2015/03/05/workers-in-control-some-good-examples-from-across-the-ditch/
Phil
Carter Holt Harvey cladding – the disaster continues: today’s Herald article.
Housing Corp redevelopment
It looks great, but I wonder where the other 69 families have gone and why the redevelopment couldn’t have be done for them?
Getting rid of low income Maori/Pasifika families and replacing them with young white middle class professional couples who got their deposit from mummy and daddy.
Ethnic cleansing without the guns.
https://theamericanscholar.org/flacking-for-big-pharma
Drugmakers don’t just compromise doctors; they also undermine top medical journals and skew medical research
But in 2002, the Journal of the American Medical Association flipped the HRT script when it published the unspun results of a Women’s Health Initiative study of 16,000 U.S. women on HRT. The drugs in Premarin and Prempro elevated the risk of the diseases they were intended to prevent, resulting in a 41 percent increase in stroke risk, a 29 percent increase in heart attack risk, a 26 percent increase in the risk of breast cancer, and a 22 percent increase in cardiovascular disease risks. These revelations about the dangers of HRT prompted many doctors to withdraw most of their patients from its drug regimens. However, Wyeth persisted in “educational” efforts, such as seminars directed at defecting doctors—some scripted by the ghostwriters of DesignWrite.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/31/business/31drug.html?_r=0
No more ‘goodies’ for Doctors from drug makers
+100 The Murphey
The Jonas Salk Polio Vaccine: A Medical Breakthrough or a Propaganda Campaign for Big Pharma?
The release of the polio vaccine prompted criticism. In December 1960, a health news magazine called the ‘Herald of Health’ published a crucial report titled ‘The Great Salk Vaccine Fiasco: Misuse of statistics, blackout of vaccine cases, cited by eminent Chicago doctor’ By Ernest B. Zeisler, M.D. (which can be found at http://www.vaclib.org) who disagreed with Dr. Salk’s claims that the vaccine was safe or even useful against polio. Dr. Zeisler wrote a personal note to the publisher of the magazine M. S. Arnoni and told him that “No newspaper, periodical or medical journal will touch this. Many authorities in this field agree with me, and some have written me to say so and to congratulate me for what they call my ‘courage.’But no medical man will agree with me publicly”.
The field trial itself had violated the cardinal principles of scientific procedure. As said by Brownlee in the Journal of the American Statistical Association:
“. . . 59 per cent of the trial was worthless because of the lack of adequate controls. The remaining 41 per cent may be all right but contains internal evidence of bias in favor of the vaccinated. .. The reviewer . . . would point out that gamma globulin was triumphantly proclaimed effective by the National Foundation after a similar trial . .
As an aside, polio vaccinations are far less effective in nations where children are distressed and malnourished. Even multiple doses will sometimes fail to provide any significant protection to those children.
No surprise that the immune system can’t respond adequately if it is being starved.
Or that research done on well off white kids in well off suburbs don’t pick things like this up. As I say – each vaccination has to be judged on its own merits, and within its own context. Any blanket up or down perspective is an unscientific perspective.
There is a poorly understood ‘intestinal barrier’ to successful immunization of people in less developed countries who receive oral vaccines.
It is posited that diminished immune responses in these areas (particularly two northern states in India) are correlated with poor sanitation, a high prevalence of diarrheal illness at the time of vaccination, competing enteric viruses and competition of type 2 with types 1 and 3 vaccine viruses.
The most accessible overview of polio vaccination and the possible elimination of polio and cessation of immunisation is covered in the article below.
http://rstb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/368/1623/20120140
must be why my polio’s acting up again /sarc
A medical breakthrough.
A thought provoking poignant story.
One-in-a-million-baby-girl
http://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/life/66965628/One-in-a-million-baby-girl
https://nz.news.yahoo.com/a/-/top-stories/26522702/gareth-hughes-puts-hand-up-for-green-leadership/ Will he win?
Yeah I predicted Molly Hughes would throw his feathers in the nest. He does anger Key and Joyce for some strange reason. He should have contested the By-Election since there already is cut throating.
Good article in the ODT by David Fisher on Snowden’s files showing NZ spying on its friendliest neighbours. GCSB going into full take collection, and article raises issues of NZers living in Pacific countries given GCSB isn’t supposed to spy on NZ citizens. The NZ PM and chief spy tell predictable lies at the end. Had to laugh at the spook saying they are subject to independent oversight.
In the USA the FISA courts and Senate/House intelligence committees set up decades ago after the Church commission were supposed to provide “independent oversight.”
They’ve been utterly compromised by the intelligence services and are now into the realms of “secret interpretations” of laws, which even law makers don’t know about and never intended.
According to Bill Binney, Nancy Pelosi as a ranking member of one of those intelligence committees was briefed by the NSA on its mass collection programme sometime soon after 2001 and raised no substantial objections.
Secret committees cannot provide democratic oversight.
I agree with my very good friend, State Housing tenant, and State Housing advocate Sue Henry – who says:
“The key thing in life is to BE EFFECTIVE”
Couldn’t agree more.
Which is why I invested 4 hours last night – putting up anti-TPPA posters where THOUSANDS of people will see them.
Penny Bright
Go for it Penny. Putting your Mahi where your mouth is.
I look forward to Labour candidate Willow-Jean Prime, building Labour’s profile and electorate base in the Northland by-election.
More importantly, (for the best interests of the majority of New Zealanders, in my opinion) I look forward to Labour supporters exercising political maturity and understanding of ‘strategic’ voting under MMP, by ‘doing an Epsom’ and voting Winston Peters, in order to take Northland off National.
Which will leave National with only 59 out of 121 MPs – and make it FAR more difficult to pass their pro-corporate / anti- worker / pro-WAR on the POOR legislation.
I do hope Labour Party supporters in Northland are a lot more politically astute than some Labour Party supporters who ‘opine’ on this blog?
Meant in a deadly serious, but caring way …..
Penny Bright
(Whom, arguably would have got FAR more ‘electorate’ votes when she stood against John Key in Helensville, had the ‘left’ understood ‘strategic’ voting under MMP?)
+100 Penny …” voting Winston Peters, in order to take Northland off National.”
For those interested in May 7th’s historic, and possibly last, UK of GB & NI General Election the pollster Ashcroft has published his latest findings.
Labour and Tories neck and neck giving the SNP the balance of power.
Scottish Labour will have the Last Rites read on election night.
http://lordashcroftpolls.com/2015/03/campaign-state-play-plus-latest-marginals/
i’m beginning to agree with Chris Trotter more and more. Is this a good thing?
http://bowalleyroad.blogspot.co.nz/2015/03/sorry-winston-why-labour-needs-to-stand.html
No. It’s a bad thing to think that Trotter puts forward a coherent view. It changes week by week.
Radionz headline – NZ $ soars against …… Oh great. Just what we need. Slowly going down would be most efficacious and useful. Fat chance while the fat cats play amongst themselves.
Radionz this a.m.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/player/20169683
Are we heading towards a cashless society? ( 16′ 20″ )
09:34 The head of the Australian National University’s School of Economics, Professor Rabee Tourkey believes physical cash will be phased out within a decade. He says it will likely be replaced by a government issued digital currency, similar to bitcoin, but fully centralised.
just in case anyone wants/needs some culture
http://www.maoritelevision.com/tv/shows/te-matatini-2015/S01E001/te-matatini-2015-live-web-stream-air
Some action is being taken by McDonalds to stop? injecting antibiotics into chickens as an automatic part of their rearing. The practice of using antibiotics as prophylactics started around 1958. Concern about antibiotic resistance has been around for a long time. It takes a long time to get a hearing about a necessary restraint or ban and then a dangerous lag before any reasonable, practical action is started.
Are you sure your are talking about McDonalds and not KFC?
@ Cklemgeopin
I heard McDonalds and then I heard about chickens. So not sure whether I am right. But the takeaways all tend to have chicken wings etc now so could be McDonalds. For versimilitude? it would pay to check it oneself as I am trying to multi-taks and not being efficient at it!.
Interested in the plight of women who seem to receive les respect than cows?
Tomorrow on Radionz there is an interesting interview.
Coming Up on Nine To Noon
10:05 am Friday 6 March: Sonia Faleiro
In her latest book, 13 Men, award-winning Indian-born journalist and author, Sonia Faleiro investigates one of her country’s high profile rape cases, in which it was alleged a 20-year-old was gang raped under orders of the village council for falling in love with an outsider.
Sonia Faleiro travelled to the isolated village in West Bengal and interviewed the victim as well as local villagers and the village council and found the media coverage of the story had been in many cases wrong, and the issues were far more complex than many realised.
Sonia Faleiro has previously delved into the murky world of Bombay’s dance bars and has written for Vogue India, India Today and the New York Times. She a co-founder of Deca, a global journalists cooperative that creates long-form stories to read on mobile devices
Quite frankly, in my considered opinion, neither you lprent nor Chris Trotter actually understand MMP and ‘strategic’ voting?
I REALLY hope that Northland ‘ordinary left-leaning’ voters ‘get it’ and vote strategically for Winston Peters, whom, in my considered opinion, has the best chance of taking Northland off National.
Because it seems, in my opinion, you folk are unable or unwilling to do the VERY basic maths?
If National lose Northland – they will have only 59 out of 121 MPs – thus be ‘wing-clipped’ in the House, regarding the passage of legislation, for which they need 61 MPs?
It’s not complicated.
Why on earth would you not support giving this potential outcome – the best chance of success?
By promoting voting Winston Peters for Northland?
The Labour Party arguably can’t do / say that – but YOU could?
So – why aren’t you – if you’re really opposed to this John Key led National Government?
You are – aren’t you?
Just asking ….
Penny Bright
The point that you don’t seem to understand is that strategic voting is a choice for voters. Parties shouldn’t be involved in subverting MMP for their party by reducing the choices offered to voters. That is a processs that is called “machine politics” and is basically a way of rorting voters.
MMP is about providing choice to voters. That was what they voted for in 1993. What you and others fail to see is that you clearly don’t understand MMP from the voters perspective. You and others just seem to always want to screw the voters by removing their choices. It shows a singular ability to respect voters.
If Winston and you clearly manage to explain those choices to the voters and convince them it is worthwhile, then they may vote that way. If they vote elsewhere as they did in the Te Tai Tokerau election, then the voters have made their choice and you and the other fantasy election fools should respect that.
But I suspect that isn’t going to happen.
The Press Wednesday 25 February 2015 Section B1.
Reports about refugees many from Syria, and their despair. in Greece and Italy. A quote from an Italian RW politician ‘Let them drown’. They are being deluged by desperate people. What assistance are such recipient governments being given by the world’s big war spenders which are causing much of the problem.
The world can’t cope with the devastation, displacement and disruption of wars.
Then there is the camel problem in Australia. They were imported then abandoned when cars took over. Instead of them being a source of revenue, manufactured goods and meat the various states seem to have done little intelligent resource planning and business development. Numbers estimated a decade ago were 500,000. They have attempted to control camel numbers, but haven’t succeeded and when camels started mobbing and damaging infrastructure in search of food and water a decade ago a mass cull killed 100,000.
Now the camels are crazed by the increasingly hot weather and lack of water and ripping up irrigation, smashing Aboriginal people’s camps. They are in groups of 200, big and desperate, so scary. ‘They crashed through our troughs last week, buckled all the pipes, let the water out of the tanks, and ripped up fences.” That is on a 2.5 million hectare Mt Weld cattle station.
The world can’t cope intelligently with the d..d…d.. above caused by climate change.
Is it any wonder that some people are getting impatient even angry as others continue inaction, orate on lovely theories or sit around comparing each other’s belly fluff.