“A special animus, however, was reserved for forms of regional speech, which were closely related to dominant state languages, and which were viewed by the powers that be as needless, subversive irritants. In France, the Republic’s full weight was thrown against Occitan and Provençal in particular. In Spain, General Franco’s educators were pursuing their campaign to liquidate Catalan as late as 1975.
So Ukrainian speakers in Russia were fighting a fight shared by numerous minorities across Europe. In 1917, after the formal recognition of their language, they could be forgiven for believing that a new day was dawning. They could not have imagined the ordeals that awaited.”
Perhaps more relevant for New Zealand is this bit:
In these matters, Tsarist Russians were not uniquely wicked. In 19th Century Europe a widespread, Darwinian belief was that powerful so-called ‘historical languages’ like English, French, or German (and indeed Russian) deserved to flourish while ‘unhistorical languages’ were unfit to survive.
The animus the conservative heartland in NZ has to hearing Maori on the telly is because they think it's an inferior 'unhistorical language'.
Complaints were made to the Otago Regional Council’s pollution hotline following a large vegetation fire in the Cardrona Valley on Saturday (September 24
The blaze began as a controlled burn off and appeared to burn out of control, affecting approximately 150 hectares above the Cardrona Valley, near the Snow Farm.
I wonder if the farm/station owners face ANY consequences? This has been happening for decades. IMO Seems to work out well for them. Oh and FYI I have called ORC about this in the past….not much action. Obviously. : (
There's lots of thing going on that are contributing to this.
All the changes in environmental management, and the reasons for those changes, that led to the GroundSwell movement, along with the influence of the movement, has resulted in an attitude of 'oh bugger, had an accident…'
Add to that the huge increase in on the ground fert prices, in some high country situations 2 – 3 times last season, and burning becomes the only way high country farmers can afford to maintain production. Burning as much as possible is even better.
As for consequences it will depend on how much DOC land got burnt, and the ecological value of what burnt. Mt Crighton has been through tenure review so DOC will be very involved and the Station has a history of poorly controlled burning.
ORC won't do a thing, it's there to facilitate traditional agricultural activities. If you are burning the remains of a 100 year old conifer wind break that QLDC made you chop down because 'wilding seed source' then it's a different story, full enforcement even though it was fully permitted, 'you are spoiling someones view'.
Hope DOC throw the book at them, but it'll only be for the direct costs of putting it out. And that will probably be less than what fert to give the same production would have cost and an evaluation of likely cost vs benefit would have been one before they burnt.
Thankyou Graeme for that considered and detailed reply. It seems pretty much as I thought. ORC useless. Ive been working in both Wanaka and Queenstown when these burnoffs go up. Volcanic is a descriptive image i remember…..
Sad that…'oh bugger, had an accident…'
Anyway, hope they get it put out before any big winds get up again.
Looking at Flight Radar just now the only machine working around Mt Crighton is one doing observation, so presuming it's either out or they've given up and letting it burn up to the snow line
We need to run a book on how may days until a commissioner is appointed.
In Dunstan it’s a complete farmer takeover if Alexa looses her seat, so the over-allocations will just get rolled over, even if it’s just for five years to get it out of Ngai Tahu’s remit. We just got a consent that Ngai Tahu had nixed by going to a six year term.
Can see that sort of thing blowing up in their faces.
A contractor was saved from a fiery end when a helicopter was used to pluck him from an out-of-control scrub fire near Queenstown, which firefighters are still battling — despite hundreds of hectares going up in smoke.
"You literally cannot see any mountains from the town, you can’t even see Walter Peak.
"If there’s this much smoke there’s definitely a big fire," Mr Smith said.
There is reason to believe that the damage to the Kerch bridge may have been from the Russian side rather than the Ukrainian. It is starting to appear that the scorch marks etc point to the explosion coming from the top rather than the bottom, supporting the exploding truck theory.
So, if it was the truck, it points to a very difficult and unlikely operation for the Ukrainian SOF.
Firstly, the truck had come from Russia heading to Crimea.
Thirdly, the driver was a Syrian, with no apparent ties back to Ukraine, and may have not even been aware the truck was loaded with explosives.
So, the alternative explanation is that the Russians organised the attack. The question then is, who in Russia would benefit from this attack. It seems unlikely to be a false flag op organised by Putin as the bridge is his baby, and including an attack on the fuel carriages was unnecessary for that effect, and may have had unpredictable effects on the future viability of the rail bridge.
So, the other possibility is an attempt by Putin adversaries for some reason.
Speculation in this thread about a boat wake under the bridge just prior to the explosion and the truck being in one piece in the moments after the explosion.
Yes, I did point to the boat as well yesterday. Many think it was just a wave due to the weather. And the explosion does look like it comes from a wider area.
I am not saying it isn't the Ukrainians, and if this is the method, then Ukrainians obviously. Just saying, I don't think the truck explanation is viable if Ukrainians are involved.
No – plenty of scorching on the rail bridge where the fuel train caught fire – there are pictures of the 'new launching ramp' where the road has collapsed into the water and there is essentially no damage to the roadway surface a waterborne drone exploding under the bridge would have a large part of its explosive force caught between the water and the underneath section of the bridge thus magnifying its force.. Also
"There is reason to believe that the damage to the Kerch bridge may have been from the Russian side rather than the Ukrainian"…FFS….probably same crew of Russians who blew Nord stream too I guess…as usual logic has to go on the rack and get tortured mercilessly to make any of those stupid conspiracy theories work.
Foreign agent
I hear
Foreign agent
Together now
Foreign agent
Bulletproof argument
For them you're still a
Foreign agent
Didn't know? You're a
Foreign agent
Everyone here is a
Foreign agent:
Diploma, medal, compliment
The Russian justice ministry has declared one of the country’s most popular rappers to be a “foreign agent”, a legal designation that has been used to hound Kremlin critics and journalists.
Oxxxymiron, whose real name is Miron Fyodorov, was added to an updated list of foreign agents alongside four journalists and Dmitry Glukhovsky, a prominent writer.
Ukraine’s national postal service to release new stamp with burning Crimean Bridge
SATURDAY, 8 OCTOBER 2022, 12:02
"The morning has never been so good.. On the occasion of the holiday, we are releasing a new stamp with the Crimean Bridge, or, more precisely, with what remains of it." General Director of Ukrposhta [Ukraine Post] Ihor Smilianskyi.
Again, Adrian? Enough with the unsubstantiated comments and snide innuendo on behalf of the Russian aggressor already.
What's wrong with you?
Can't you please give us something tangible for a change. Anything, anything at all will do.
Is it too much to ask for you to provide an occasional URL or a quote. so that we can check that you're not just making things up off the top of your head.
I haven't heard of any accusation of a suicide bomber being involved.
This video seems to prove it wasn't a truck explosion. If you step through the frames, you can see the truck still in tact just as the explosion has started.
As I mentioned above, the truck theory doesn't really make sense if it was a Ukrainian OP. So, either a missile, planted explosions, or a drone boat I think.
The worry for the Russians will be that if the Ukrainians have done it once, they have another go to finish off the job.
Three months ago Russian propaganda claimed the Kerch bridge was impossible to attack. With dozen or more modes to protect it, including military dolphins, it was their Maginot line.
When Russia's enemies want to tickle Moscow's nerves yet again, they say that Ukraine can strike at the Crimean bridge. In Kyiv, almost everyone threatened us with such blows – from the president and the minister of defense to petty political clerks.
[…]
But the Crimean bridge is protected from such attacks – by two S-400 regiments at once. They create a kind of cover dome with a diameter of 400 kilometers. In addition, there is additional multi-stage protection by air defense systems, including Pantsir S-1, Tor and others.
And Kyiv can also send underwater sabotage groups to undermine the bridge pillars. True, this task is extremely difficult. The sabotage group will have to drag half a ton of TNT or gencogen under water. But you need to keep in mind that the bridge has a dense system of anti-sabotage defense (combat swimmers on duty, special boats and electronic sensors on supports). There is also other equipment – the so-called repellers. This is a system of sonar and suppression of saboteurs "Plavnik" – when underwater swimmers (or ordinary divers) are detected at a distance closer than 300 meters from the bridge, an audible signal is turned on with a request to leave the restricted area. If an uninvited guest does not change course and swims closer to the bridge supports than 100 meters, the intensity of the sound signal increases sharply, to the pain threshold, and the person cannot stand it.
On land, the bridge is guarded by units of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and on the water it is protected by the Black Sea Fleet and the coast guard of the FSB Border Service. In addition, the facility is guarded by a special naval brigade of the Russian Guard – its crews patrol the water area on anti-sabotage boats, the personnel are armed with two-medium assault rifles, as well as machine guns, grenade launchers and portable anti-aircraft missile systems.
The Crimean Bridge is also protected by the EW (electronic warfare) service. Drone flights, even on the distant approaches to the bridge, are prohibited.
It said traffic would for now be restricted to crossing between Crimea and the Russian Taman peninsula in alternating directions.
Sergei Aksyonov, the Russian-appointed governor of the Crimean peninsula, which Russia seized from Ukraine in 2014, said on social media that heavy goods vehicles would have to wait to cross by ferry
‘ “……no news of the protests to free Assange on MSM liberal new[s]”Adrian Thornton
Probably, because like you Adrian, Julian Assange is a pro-Russian imperialist, genocide denying, Assad supporting, conspiracy theorist.
Who lost the support of the Left as well as the Liberal Centre.
"We agree with the hospitality industry that removing the qualification requirement for chefs to be hired through an Accredited Employer Work Visa will allow those top-rated chefs who have trained at the coal face to come to NZ."
The changes will take effect from Tuesday, October 18.
Wood said the requirement for chefs to hold a NZ level 4 certificate of cookery or equivalent was initially introduced to reduce risks of wage and job inflation.
"We have heard the industry's concerns that this requirement was limiting their options to recruit chefs who do not hold formal qualifications, including some highly skilled or experienced chefs, at a time when labour market conditions are tight," he said.
"Employers hiring chefs will now only be required to meet the median wage and market rate requirement, enabling employers to recruit from a larger pool of migrant chefs."
I guess Everything I had thought was wrong. Everything I had expected to see was wrong.
I had thought that going into space would be the ultimate catharsis of that connection I had been looking for between all living things—that being up there would be the next beautiful step to understanding the harmony of the universe. In the film “Contact,” when Jodie Foster’s character goes to space and looks out into the heavens, she lets out an astonished whisper, “They should’ve sent a poet.” I had a different experience, because I discovered that the beauty isn’t out there, it’s down here, with all of us. Leaving that that behind made my connection to our tiny planet even more profound.
It was among the strongest feelings of grief I have ever encountered. The contrast between the vicious coldness of space and the warm nurturing of Earth below filled me with overwhelming sadness. Every day, we are confronted with the knowledge of further destruction of Earth at our hands: the extinction of animal species, of flora and fauna . . . things that took five billion years to evolve, and suddenly we will never see them again because of the interference of mankind. It filled me with dread. My trip to space was supposed to be a celebration; instead, it felt like a funeral.
And, for a complete (and rather tasteless contrast) to Nobby Clark giving thanks to Sir Tim for his years of service – here's Wayne Brown singing "Hit the road Goff" at his victory party.
This is a really great initiative – looking at the needs of Mums with young children, who often don't want to, or can't work full-time – and linking them in with employers creative enough to re-imagine how their workforce is staffed.
Yes. Not all Mums. Some have no alternative, but to work full-time. But there are a lot who would be keen to work part-time, but find the part-time jobs offered are simply not worth the pay. (Just look at day-care costs to see why)
I work for a company which has been doing this for over 15 years – deliberately targeting highly-qualified professional women (for very specific and niche roles – so limited numbers ever available) – who want to work part-time (not all Mums, some caring for older relatives or with health issues, or simply reaching the end of their careers and wanting to dial back a little) – and where the major employers (Council and government bureaucracy) simply won't be flexible for them.
It's been a great success for the women (I'm one of them)- and the employer has benefited from a high-skilled, creative and motivated workforce, with a deep well of loyalty to the company.
Similar numbers here with regard to total excess deaths,due to the overweighted rate of deaths in the elderly it is highly likely we will see a decrease in the expected life expectancy in NZ as well.
"All of a sudden, though, the IMF saw the liberal establishment’s lost capacity to stabilize capitalism reflected in rising economic inequality. So the last thing the markets needed, the fund’s technocrats realized, was more socialism for the wealthy. But it would take a feat of wishful thinking to interpret the IMF’s panic-driven reaction as a sincere conversion to economic redistribution and social democracy. A warning against an act of elite self-harm was the extent of it"
April has been a quiet month at A Phuulish Fellow. I have had an exceptionally good reading month, and a decently productive writing month – for original fiction, anyway – but not much has caught my eye that suggested a blog article. It has been vaguely frustrating, to be honest. ...
A listing of 31 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 21, 2024 thru Sat, April 27, 2024. Story of the week Anthropogenic climate change may be the ultimate shaggy dog story— but with a twist, because here ...
Hi,I spent about a year on Webworm reporting on an abusive megachurch called Arise, and it made me want to stab my eyes out with a fork.I don’t regret that reporting in 2022 and 2023 — I am proud of it — but it made me angry.Over three main stories ...
The new Victoria University Vice-Chancellor decided to have a forum at the university about free speech and academic freedom as it is obviously a topical issue, and the Government is looking at legislating some carrots or sticks for universities to uphold their obligations under the Education and Training Act. They ...
Do you remember when Melania Trump got caught out using a speech that sounded awfully like one Michelle Obama had given? Uncannily so.Well it turns out that Abraham Lincoln is to Winston Peters as Michelle was to Melania. With the ANZAC speech Uncle Winston gave at Gallipoli having much in ...
She was born 25 years ago today in North Shore hospital. Her eyes were closed tightly shut, her mouth was silently moving. The whole theatre was all quiet intensity as they marked her a 2 on the APGAR test. A one-minute eternity later, she was an 8. The universe was ...
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. This fact brief was written by Sue Bin Park in collaboration with members from our Skeptical Science team. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Is Antarctica gaining land ice? ...
Images of US students (and others) protesting and setting up tent cities on US university campuses have been broadcast world wide and clearly demonstrate the growing rifts in US society caused by US policy toward Israel and Israel’s prosecution of … Continue reading → ...
Barrie Saunders writes – Dear Paul As the new Minister of Media and Communications, you will be inundated with heaps of free advice and special pleading, all in the national interest of course. For what it’s worth here is my assessment: Traditional broadcasting free to air content through ...
Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government is trying to achieve and its arguments for such a bold reform. ...
Peter Dunne writes – The great nineteenth British Prime Minister, William Gladstone, once observed that “the first essential for a Prime Minister is to be a good butcher.” When a later British Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan, sacked a third of his Cabinet in July 1962, in what became ...
Ele Ludemann writes – New Zealanders had the OECD’s second highest tax increase last year: New Zealanders faced the second-biggest tax raises in the developed world last year, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) says. The intergovernmental agency said the average change in personal income tax ...
We all know something’s not right with our elections. The spread of misinformation, people being targeted with soundbites and emotional triggers that ignore the facts, even the truth, and influence their votes.The use of technology to produce deep fakes. How can you tell if something is real or not? Can ...
This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Simon Clark. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). This year you will be lied to! Simon Clark helps prebunk some misleading statements you'll hear about climate. The video includes ...
It is all very well cutting the backrooms of public agencies but it may compromise the frontlines. One of the frustrations of the Productivity Commission’s 2017 review of universities is that while it observed that their non-academic staff were increasing faster than their academic staff, it did not bother to ...
Buzz from the Beehive Two speeches delivered by Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters at Anzac Day ceremonies in Turkey are the only new posts on the government’s official website since the PM announced his Cabinet shake-up. In one of the speeches, Peters stated the obvious: we live in a troubled ...
1. Which of these would you not expect to read in The Waikato Invader?a. Luxon is here to do business, don’t you worry about thatb. Mr KPI expects results, and you better believe itc. This decisive man of action is getting me all hot and excitedd. Melissa Lee is how ...
…it has a restricted jurisdiction which must not be abused: it is not an inquisitionNOTE – this article was published before the High Court ruled that Karen Chhour does not have to appear before the Waitangi Tribunal Gary Judd writes – The High Court ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – One of reasons Oranga Tamariki exists is to prevent child neglect. But could the organisation itself be guilty of the same?Oranga Tamariki’s statistics show a decrease in the number and age of children in care. “There are less children ...
David Farrar writes: Graeme Edgeler wrote in 2017: In the first five years after three strikes came into effect 5248 offenders received a ‘first strike’ (that is, a “stage-1 conviction” under the three strikes sentencing regime), and 68 offenders received a ‘second strike’. In the five years prior to ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has surprised everyone with his ruthlessness in sacking two of his ministers from their crucial portfolios. Removing ministers for poor performance after only five months in the job just doesn’t normally happen in politics. That’s refreshing and will be extremely ...
TL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the two days to 6:06am on Thursday, April 25:Politics: PM Christopher Luxon has set up a dual standard for ministerial competence by demoting two National Cabinet ministers while leaving also-struggling ...
Hi,Today I mainly want to share some of your thoughts about the recent piece I wrote about success and failure, and the forces that seemingly guide our lives. But first, a quick bit of housekeeping: I am doing a Webworm popup in Los Angeles on Saturday May 11 at 2pm. ...
It is hard to see what Melissa Lee might have done to “save” the media. National went into the election with no public media policy and appears not to have developed one subsequently. Lee claimed that she had prepared a policy paper before the election but it had been decided ...
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 ...
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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 ...
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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 ...
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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 ...
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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 ...
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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 ...
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Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
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. ...
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Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
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. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
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. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
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. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi, and Mema Paremata mō Tāmaki-Makaurau, Takutai Tarsh Kemp, will travel to the Gold Coast to strengthen ties with Māori in Australia next week (15-21 April). The visit, in the lead-up to the 9th Australian National Kapa haka Festival, will be an opportunity for both ...
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. ...
Hon Paula Bennett has been appointed as member and chair of the Pharmac board, Associate Health Minister David Seymour announced today. "Pharmac is a critical part of New Zealand's health system and plays a significant role in ensuring that Kiwis have the best possible access to medicines,” says Mr Seymour. ...
Hundreds of New Zealand families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) will benefit from a new Government focus on prevention and treatment, says Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. “We know FASD is a leading cause of preventable intellectual and neurodevelopmental disability in New Zealand,” Dr Reti says. “Every day, ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges. “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
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 ...
Asia Pacific Report A score of Palestine solidarity protesters draped themselves in white shrouds with mock blood in a sombre “die-in” demonstration at Te Komitanga Square — the heart of Auckland, New Zealand’s largest city — today as speakers urged people to take a stronger boycott against Israeli products. The ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Tackling violence against women will be the sole agenda item for a national cabinet meeting Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has convened for Wednesday. The meeting, held remotely, follows thousands of Australians attending rallies across ...
The protest outside the White House correspondents’ dinner hotel. Image: Anatolu video screenshot APR More than two dozen Palestinian journalists had called for a boycott of the dinner, writing an open letter urging their American colleagues not to attend. “You have a unique responsibility to speak truth to power and ...
“Our exporters should, therefore, be deeply concerned that the Fast-track Approvals Bill was not assessed for consistency with any of our free trade commitments prior to being introduced to the House,” says Gary Taylor, Chief Executive of the Environmental ...
NZCTU President Richard Wagstaff is calling on all political parties to support the new Member’s Bill from Labour’s workplace relations and safety spokesperson Camilla Belich MP that would ensure negligent companies are held accountable when their employees ...
A historian with an uncanny track record of predicting US election winners tells RNZ's Sunday Morning that President Biden looks to be on track for another term, but things could still go very wrong for him. ...
A historian with a track record of predicting US election winners tells RNZ's Sunday Morning that President Biden looks to be on track for another term, but things could still go wrong for him. ...
Ngaio Marsh House is one of Christchurch’s best kept secrets – and contains more than a few mysteries of its own.Trust Ngaio Marsh to leave more than a few mysteries scattered through her house long after her departure. For a start, there’s the curious concrete portal in the garden, ...
Appointment viewing has been lost to the mists of time, but memories of Montana Sunday Theatre can still be conjured by hitting play on a particular piece of classical music. “You’re not going to be able to sell it.” Over 30 years on, Karen Bieleski still recalls how the task ...
Performance Review King Luxon sat behind His massive polished oak desk. It is Performance Review time. There is a knock on the door. “Enter!” says the King. In steps Minister of Disabilities and Carer Pedicures, Penny Simmonds. “I can explain everything …” she begins. “Fine,” says King Luxon, pressing the ...
The pair opened their first fully collaborative exhibition, Nina for Flowers, last Saturday. Gabi Lardies visited their studio to find out who Nina is and what working together was like.‘It didn’t start out like, ‘This is a show about Nina,’” says Josephine Jelicich, gripping a thermos of peppermint tea. ...
Thank you, Dr Maximilian Oskar Bircher-Benner, for your brilliant invention. I’m another mid-20s Kiwi who had an OE last year. I hopped on my bicycle where France meets the Atlantic and cycled east. I pedalled through the Loire Valley, down rivers lined with willows and ancient wisteria-draped chateaus. I relished ...
Asia Pacific Report From France to Australia, university pro-Palestine protests in the United States have now spread to several countries with students pitching on-campus camps. And students at Columbia and other US universities remain defiant as campuses have witnessed the biggest protests since the anti-Vietnam war and anti-apartheid eras in ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards, Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)New Zealand Government’s Fast Track legislation. Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government ...
Tara Ward talks to presenter Naomi Toilalo about the new TV show that turns food waste into a three course feast. Naomi Toilalo is standing in the warehouse at Good Neighbour Tauranga, helping unpack the two-and-a-half tonnes of rejected food that will arrive at the community support hub that day. ...
Scout is our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our What’s Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Scout’s human, Avril, for her support. Dog name: Scout (named after the little girl in To Kill a Mockingbird – she inherited the independent spirit ...
Megan Alatini takes us through her life in TV, including ‘terrible’ daytime TV, the class of Carol Hirschfeld and her most embarrassing TrueBliss moment. When she responded to a vague newspaper ad asking “do you have what it takes to be a popstar?” 25 years ago, Megan Alatini never guessed ...
A new exhibition in Wellington showcases the faces behind your local goods and services. Back in 1977, when I was a fine arts student at the University of Canterbury, I took a series of photographs of Christchurch shopkeepers. The photos were for a calendar – a project for my end ...
Toomaj and his resistance to tyranny through his songs have become an icon for the youth of Iran, so his sentence has hit the nation hard. Toomaj Salehi is not the first artist to pay the price for standing with the people. ...
My cousin Dylan and I spotted these big eels under the bridge that summer. We watched them lounging under the dark weed, facing into the flow of water, their mouths frozen open. Dylan and I couldn’t stop thinking about those eels. The night we went down to the creek, we ...
Newsroom, home of satire. My long-running weekly satirical series The Secret Diary has moved to Newsroom and will appear every Saturday, with Victor Billot’s wildly popular satirical Odes continuing to appear every Sunday. Diaries, Odes – while serious political columnists toil at meaningful opinions and stroke their chins to an ...
Tara Ward unravels the many nuanced layers of a cartoon about talking dogs.This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. It’s not often an episode of a children’s cartoon has adults sobbing into their sleeves, but that’s exactly what happened this week when ...
Working as a doctor in developing countries to help communities achieve better health outcomes is nothing short of a life goal for Jessica Tater. The University of Otago medical student has her sights firmly set on joining the international humanitarian organisation Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) when she qualifies ...
There’s an island in the far reaches of Auckland’s territory, sitting off the tip of the Coromandel Peninsula, 30 minutes by air from the city or four hours on the slow boat. Aotea Great Barrier is off-grid, it has a population of fewer than a thousand people … and most ...
Asia Pacific Report An Australian author and advocate, Jim Aubrey, today led a national symbolic one minute’s silence to mark the “blood debt” owed to Papuan allies during the Second World War indigenous resistance against the invading Japanese forces. “A promise to most people is a promise,” Aubrey said in ...
Asia Pacific Report The Freedom Flotilla is ready to sail to Gaza, reports Kia Ora Gaza. All the required paperwork has been submitted to the port authority, and the cargo has been loaded and prepared for the humanitarian trip to the besieged enclave. However, organisers received word of an “administrative ...
Pacific Media Watch Palestine solidarity protesters today demonstrated at the Auckland headquarters of Television New Zealand, accusing the country’s major TV network of broadcasting “propaganda” backing Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza. About 50 protesters targeted the main entrance to the TVNZ building near Sky Tower and also picketed a side ...
Opinion by Lynley Hood. Forty years on from my 1985 Fulbright Grant, my disquiet over the war in Gaza evoked some troubling questions. The answer to my first question – What is the primary purpose of the Fulbright Programme? – was on the Fulbright NZ website. It says: US Senator, ...
The ministers responsible for green-lighting major projects need to be open about potential conflicts of interest, says Transparency International. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Powell, Professor, Family and Sexual Violence, RMIT University It has been a particularly distressing start to the year. There is little that can ease the current grief of individuals, families and communities who have needlessly lost a loved one to men’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gregory Moore, Senior Research Associate, School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, The University of Melbourne Lichen, the first described example of symbiosis.AdeJ Artventure/Shutterstock Once known only to those studying biology, the word symbiosis is now widely used. Symbiosis is the intimate ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kim Hemsley, Head, Childhood Dementia Research Group, Flinders Health and Medical Research Institute, College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University Olena Ivanova/Shutterstock “Childhood” and “dementia” are two words we wish we didn’t have to use together. But sadly, around 1,400 ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Whiteford, Professor, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University The government’s Economic Inclusion Advisory Committee has just published its second report. It was set up by Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth in 2022 to provide: ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne The Queensland state election will be held in October. A YouGov poll for The Courier Mail, conducted April 9–17 from a sample ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Naeni, PhD candidate at Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation, Deakin University There’s been much talk in recent months about what a possible second Donald Trump presidency in the United States could mean for Europe, Russia’s war in Ukraine, the ...
A brief round-up of submissions on the controversial proposed law. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week, submissions on the controversial Fast-track Approvals Bill closed just hours after the government released a list of stakeholder organisations who were sent letters advising how they could ...
A poem from Robin Peace’s new collection Detritus of Empire: feather / grass / rock. Cereal giving I see a woman’s hands, see her curious hands break a stalk as she walks through the tall prairie, the savannah, the steppe, wherever it was. See her idly bite the grass that ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Hemingway’s Goblet by Dermot Ross (Mary Egan Publishing, $38)A handsomely produced (debossed cover, lovely ...
The Commissioner's decision validates the longstanding efforts of the local community and ensures that Awataha Marae will be managed to serve the needs of the local community, particularly for hosting tangihanga. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tristan Salles, Associate professor, University of Sydney Examples of Australian landscapes.Unsplash Seventy thousand years ago, the sea level was much lower than today. Australia, along with New Guinea and Tasmania, formed a connected landmass known as Sahul. Around this time – ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Felicity Castagna, Lecturer, Creative Writing, Western Sydney University Day Day Market, ParramattaPhoto: Garry Trinh I live on the edge of Parramatta, Australia’s fastest-growing city, on the kind of old-fashioned suburban street that has 1950s fibros constructed in the post-war housing boom, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Ryan, Teaching Fellow in Economics, University of Waikato GettyImagesfatido/Getty Images There is an ongoing global debate over whether the high inflation seen in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic can be lowered without a recession. New Zealand is not ...
The ‘Wicked Game’ heartthrob is in his late 60s now. That didn’t stop him putting on a lively, goofy and very sparkly show. Apart from ‘Wicked Game’, which graces a sultry playlist of mine simply called 💋, my last sustained Chris Isaak listening session took place when I was about ...
Analysis - Two ministers were stripped of portfolios in a warning to Cabinet, drama broke out at the Waitangi Tribunal, and the gang patch ban bill ran into opposition. ...
Tara Ward makes an impassioned plea for some vital pop culture merch. In April 1999, I became obsessed with a new reality television show called Popstars. Every Tuesday night, five strangers transformed into music royalty before my very eyes as Joe, Keri, Carly, Erika and Megan were chosen to form ...
PNG Post-Courier In the early hours of ANZAC Day, aerial photographs captured an impressive gathering of Australians and Papua New Guineans at Isurava in the Northern (Oro) Province. The solemn dawn service yesterday was held at a site steeped in history, where some of the fiercest battles of World War ...
The PSA is shocked that Oranga Tamariki has used the cost cutting drive to downgrade its commitment to Te Ao Māori and remove many specialist Māori roles. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Kemish, Adjunct Professor, School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry, The University of Queensland There can be no more powerful symbol of the relationship between Australia and Papua New Guinea than the prime ministers of these neighbouring countries walking together on the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sharon Robinson, Distinguished Professor and Deputy Director of ARC Securing Antarctica’s Environmental Future (SAEF), University of Wollongong, University of Wollongong Andrew Netherwood Over the last 25 years, the ozone hole which forming over Antarctica each spring has started to shrink. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Viktoria Kahui, Senior Lecturer in Environmental Economics, University of Otago Getty Images/Amy Toensing Biodiversity is declining at rates unprecedented in human history. This suggests the ways we currently use to manage our natural environment are failing. One emerging concept focuses on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Timothy Colin Bednall, Associate Professor in Management, Swinburne University of Technology marvent/Shutterstock Finding the best person to fill a position can be tough, from drafting a job ad to producing a shortlist of top interview candidates. Employers typically consider information from ...
Wondering where to host your next BYO? Whether its a small gathering or a massive party, we’ve got some recommendations. I was first introduced to the concept of BYOs at Dunedin’s India Gardens, a legendary but sadly defunct establishment, which purveyed enormous quantities of mango chicken to Aotearoa’s drunkest future ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Julien Cooper, Honorary Lecturer, Department of History and Archaeology, Macquarie University Julien Cooper The hyper-arid desert of Eastern Sudan, the Atbai Desert, seems like an unlikely place to find evidence of ancient cattle herders. But in this dry environment, my new ...
The sector says it’s hopeful her replacement Paul Goldsmith will be able to throw it a lifeline, after six months with a minister deemed missing in action, writes Catherine McGregor in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign ...
The government can't just rely on axing public sector jobs and has to do more to cut spending, says the chief economist at a free market think tank. ...
For those of us who are interested in how language affects geopolitical affairs.
https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/does-ukrainian-exist-
“A special animus, however, was reserved for forms of regional speech, which were closely related to dominant state languages, and which were viewed by the powers that be as needless, subversive irritants. In France, the Republic’s full weight was thrown against Occitan and Provençal in particular. In Spain, General Franco’s educators were pursuing their campaign to liquidate Catalan as late as 1975.
So Ukrainian speakers in Russia were fighting a fight shared by numerous minorities across Europe. In 1917, after the formal recognition of their language, they could be forgiven for believing that a new day was dawning. They could not have imagined the ordeals that awaited.”
Perhaps more relevant for New Zealand is this bit:
The animus the conservative heartland in NZ has to hearing Maori on the telly is because they think it's an inferior 'unhistorical language'.
this is a very good explanation of what is going on
https://twitter.com/helensaxby11/status/1578668921426960384
Excellent bit of clarity there, thanks Weka.
I guess it goes the other way too, with 'conservatives' raising concerns about 2 when they're against 1.
Queenstown…and Wanaka
So.."controlled" burnoff really means….a soon UNcontrolled raging inferno.
I wonder if the farm/station owners face ANY consequences? This has been happening for decades. IMO Seems to work out well for them. Oh and FYI I have called ORC about this in the past….not much action. Obviously. : (
There's lots of thing going on that are contributing to this.
All the changes in environmental management, and the reasons for those changes, that led to the GroundSwell movement, along with the influence of the movement, has resulted in an attitude of 'oh bugger, had an accident…'
Add to that the huge increase in on the ground fert prices, in some high country situations 2 – 3 times last season, and burning becomes the only way high country farmers can afford to maintain production. Burning as much as possible is even better.
As for consequences it will depend on how much DOC land got burnt, and the ecological value of what burnt. Mt Crighton has been through tenure review so DOC will be very involved and the Station has a history of poorly controlled burning.
ORC won't do a thing, it's there to facilitate traditional agricultural activities. If you are burning the remains of a 100 year old conifer wind break that QLDC made you chop down because 'wilding seed source' then it's a different story, full enforcement even though it was fully permitted, 'you are spoiling someones view'.
Hope DOC throw the book at them, but it'll only be for the direct costs of putting it out. And that will probably be less than what fert to give the same production would have cost and an evaluation of likely cost vs benefit would have been one before they burnt.
Thankyou Graeme for that considered and detailed reply. It seems pretty much as I thought. ORC useless. Ive been working in both Wanaka and Queenstown when these burnoffs go up. Volcanic is a descriptive image i remember…..
Sad that…'oh bugger, had an accident…'
Anyway, hope they get it put out before any big winds get up again.
it will blow until the front comes through bringing rain in a day or so.
https://www.metvuw.com/forecast/forecast.php?type=rain®ion=nzsi&noofdays=7
The sad thing with ORC is that it is controlled by farmers because only farmers, and a few engaged townies, vote in the election.
The number of blank / informal voting papers in yesterday's election was staggering. Would be very interesting to find out why people didn't vote in the ORC election, but voted in the district or city polls.
Looking at Flight Radar just now the only machine working around Mt Crighton is one doing observation, so presuming it's either out or they've given up and letting it burn up to the snow line
What's your view on the composition of the ORC now?
We need to run a book on how may days until a commissioner is appointed.
In Dunstan it’s a complete farmer takeover if Alexa looses her seat, so the over-allocations will just get rolled over, even if it’s just for five years to get it out of Ngai Tahu’s remit. We just got a consent that Ngai Tahu had nixed by going to a six year term.
Can see that sort of thing blowing up in their faces.
I hope that at the very least… DOC will get stuck in. 230 hectares burnt to a crisp….Because of idiots
Low-tech, no-tech interview with Kim Hill; excellent.
Listen for the human-power segement.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/audio/player?audio_id=2018861850&fbclid=IwAR0RG7tB0CALcmpQ9TzP3A1vsvRB9M3XOvK4Pv3UBzexz2OgIx6sR-pAgNo
that was a treat!
Human-power! That's muscle-power, fuelled by food. Photosynthesis (solar-power) is the other vital one.
I loved the suggestions around hot-water bottle use 🙂
There is reason to believe that the damage to the Kerch bridge may have been from the Russian side rather than the Ukrainian. It is starting to appear that the scorch marks etc point to the explosion coming from the top rather than the bottom, supporting the exploding truck theory.
So, if it was the truck, it points to a very difficult and unlikely operation for the Ukrainian SOF.
Firstly, the truck had come from Russia heading to Crimea.
Secondly, trucks are apparently scanned for explosives etc before going on to the bridge. So the Ukrainians would have had to find a way to avoid that checking.
Thirdly, the driver was a Syrian, with no apparent ties back to Ukraine, and may have not even been aware the truck was loaded with explosives.
So, the alternative explanation is that the Russians organised the attack. The question then is, who in Russia would benefit from this attack. It seems unlikely to be a false flag op organised by Putin as the bridge is his baby, and including an attack on the fuel carriages was unnecessary for that effect, and may have had unpredictable effects on the future viability of the rail bridge.
So, the other possibility is an attempt by Putin adversaries for some reason.
Speculation in this thread about a boat wake under the bridge just prior to the explosion and the truck being in one piece in the moments after the explosion.
https://twitter.com/christogrozev/status/1578679085269626881
https://www.coffeeordie.com/ukraine-kamikaze-drone-boats
Yes, I did point to the boat as well yesterday. Many think it was just a wave due to the weather. And the explosion does look like it comes from a wider area.
I am not saying it isn't the Ukrainians, and if this is the method, then Ukrainians obviously. Just saying, I don't think the truck explanation is viable if Ukrainians are involved.
With the attack on the sea bridge linking Crimea to Russia and Ukraine's advances into Kherson threatening to cut off the land bridge as well.
Many people in Crimea will be quietly renewing their Ukrainian passports.
No – plenty of scorching on the rail bridge where the fuel train caught fire – there are pictures of the 'new launching ramp' where the road has collapsed into the water and there is essentially no damage to the roadway surface a waterborne drone exploding under the bridge would have a large part of its explosive force caught between the water and the underneath section of the bridge thus magnifying its force.. Also
https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidhambling/2022/09/22/mystery-vessel-may-be-new-ukrainian-attack-drone/?sh=19061b7b7a77
Because someone had to.
"There is reason to believe that the damage to the Kerch bridge may have been from the Russian side rather than the Ukrainian"…FFS….probably same crew of Russians who blew Nord stream too I guess…as usual logic has to go on the rack and get tortured mercilessly to make any of those stupid conspiracy theories work.
No conspiracy theory involved as it happens.
Crimean Bridge Update — Unusual Objects Under the Bridge – YouTube
The water level objects appeared to be moving from the north – ie the Azov Sea rather than the Black Sea.
But don't let the facts get in the way of your support-Putin-at-all-costs reflex.
Russian anti-war rapper Oxxxymiron's reaction to being declared a foreign agent.
Although he did see it coming.
https://twitter.com/norimyxxxo/status/1578479472281804808
Oxxxymiron – Агент (Agent) 2021
The Russian justice ministry has declared one of the country’s most popular rappers to be a “foreign agent”, a legal designation that has been used to hound Kremlin critics and journalists.
Oxxxymiron, whose real name is Miron Fyodorov, was added to an updated list of foreign agents alongside four journalists and Dmitry Glukhovsky, a prominent writer.
The rapper has called the Kremlin’s Ukraine offensive a “catastrophe and a crime”. He cancelled a scheduled Russian tour in protest at the invasion, subsequently left Russia and gave a series of concerts in Turkey, Britain and Germany entitled “Russians Against The War”.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/oct/07/russia-declares-popular-rapper-and-writer-foreign-agents
Special message to philatelists
Get in quick.
Make sure you don't miss out. These stamps will be collectibles, worth quite a bit in decades to come.
turns out celebrating suicide bombers killing themselves and innocent civilians is quite ok for imperialist liberals now…why am I not surprised.
Again, Adrian? Enough with the unsubstantiated comments and snide innuendo on behalf of the Russian aggressor already.
What's wrong with you?
Can't you please give us something tangible for a change. Anything, anything at all will do.
Is it too much to ask for you to provide an occasional URL or a quote. so that we can check that you're not just making things up off the top of your head.
I haven't heard of any accusation of a suicide bomber being involved.
What's your source?
Your fascistic Besties are at it again, Adrian.
https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/several-blasts-in-kyiv-day-after-putin-blames-ukraine-for-bridge-explosion-3417300
This video seems to prove it wasn't a truck explosion. If you step through the frames, you can see the truck still in tact just as the explosion has started.
As I mentioned above, the truck theory doesn't really make sense if it was a Ukrainian OP. So, either a missile, planted explosions, or a drone boat I think.
The worry for the Russians will be that if the Ukrainians have done it once, they have another go to finish off the job.
The official line is that the Kerch rail link hasn't been destroyed, merely damaged, and traffic is slow but still moving. But they would say that.
However, if both rail links to the southern front are out?
https://twitter.com/EuromaidanPress/status/1578651113745952769
TFW when you fail.
Three months ago Russian propaganda claimed the Kerch bridge was impossible to attack. With dozen or more modes to protect it, including military dolphins, it was their Maginot line.
When Russia's enemies want to tickle Moscow's nerves yet again, they say that Ukraine can strike at the Crimean bridge. In Kyiv, almost everyone threatened us with such blows – from the president and the minister of defense to petty political clerks.
[…]
But the Crimean bridge is protected from such attacks – by two S-400 regiments at once. They create a kind of cover dome with a diameter of 400 kilometers. In addition, there is additional multi-stage protection by air defense systems, including Pantsir S-1, Tor and others.
And Kyiv can also send underwater sabotage groups to undermine the bridge pillars. True, this task is extremely difficult. The sabotage group will have to drag half a ton of TNT or gencogen under water. But you need to keep in mind that the bridge has a dense system of anti-sabotage defense (combat swimmers on duty, special boats and electronic sensors on supports). There is also other equipment – the so-called repellers. This is a system of sonar and suppression of saboteurs "Plavnik" – when underwater swimmers (or ordinary divers) are detected at a distance closer than 300 meters from the bridge, an audible signal is turned on with a request to leave the restricted area. If an uninvited guest does not change course and swims closer to the bridge supports than 100 meters, the intensity of the sound signal increases sharply, to the pain threshold, and the person cannot stand it.
On land, the bridge is guarded by units of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and on the water it is protected by the Black Sea Fleet and the coast guard of the FSB Border Service. In addition, the facility is guarded by a special naval brigade of the Russian Guard – its crews patrol the water area on anti-sabotage boats, the personnel are armed with two-medium assault rifles, as well as machine guns, grenade launchers and portable anti-aircraft missile systems.
The Crimean Bridge is also protected by the EW (electronic warfare) service. Drone flights, even on the distant approaches to the bridge, are prohibited.
https://www.kp.ru/daily/27390/4584149/
google translate
You first, Uncle Vova.
https://twitter.com/Osinttechnical/status/1578819548345950208
The Kerch bridge is the RU force's main supply route for military materiel destined for the southern front.
https://twitter.com/bayraktar_1love/status/1578695421224157184
Sounds like propaganda. Photos show 2 intact and useable lanes, backed up by:
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/limited-road-traffic-resumes-intact-133605863.html
Yup, the bridge is just fine.
/
Of course no news of the protests to free Assange on MSM liberal new….why am I not surprised…
Thanks Adrian. Hadn't seen this.
‘
“……no news of the protests to free Assange on MSM liberal new[s]” Adrian Thornton
Probably, because like you Adrian, Julian Assange is a pro-Russian imperialist, genocide denying, Assad supporting, conspiracy theorist.
Who lost the support of the Left as well as the Liberal Centre.
https://www.rt.com/news/314852-assange-wikileaks-us-syria/
Well, another ill-thought out solution to a badly defined problem:
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/immigration-minister-michael-wood-qualification-requirement-to-hire-migrant-chefs-dropped/6MO5D6LHXG2OWY6T5IRSYNZO3E/
Surprise, surprise….not.
When Captain Kirk went to space.
I guess Everything I had thought was wrong. Everything I had expected to see was wrong.
I had thought that going into space would be the ultimate catharsis of that connection I had been looking for between all living things—that being up there would be the next beautiful step to understanding the harmony of the universe. In the film “Contact,” when Jodie Foster’s character goes to space and looks out into the heavens, she lets out an astonished whisper, “They should’ve sent a poet.” I had a different experience, because I discovered that the beauty isn’t out there, it’s down here, with all of us. Leaving that that behind made my connection to our tiny planet even more profound.
It was among the strongest feelings of grief I have ever encountered. The contrast between the vicious coldness of space and the warm nurturing of Earth below filled me with overwhelming sadness. Every day, we are confronted with the knowledge of further destruction of Earth at our hands: the extinction of animal species, of flora and fauna . . . things that took five billion years to evolve, and suddenly we will never see them again because of the interference of mankind. It filled me with dread. My trip to space was supposed to be a celebration; instead, it felt like a funeral.
https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/william-shatner-space-boldly-go-excerpt-1235395113/
All the evidence collected so far point towards the conclusion that apart from this small corner of it, the universe is as inanimate as it is vast.
William Shatner the actor gets it.
And, for a complete (and rather tasteless contrast) to Nobby Clark giving thanks to Sir Tim for his years of service – here's Wayne Brown singing "Hit the road Goff" at his victory party.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/who-is-wayne-brown-meet-aucklands-new-mayor-a-banjo-playing-grandfather-from-northland/6PSSAAAAHUX6YAP6NSL2W73ZYI/?c_id=1&objectid=12557490&ref=rss
Not exactly gracious in victory – especially as Goff had retired, rather than been defeated.
Wrong thread I would have thought.
Well, I don't mind shifting it…..
Crass just like his comment about the journalist.
This is a really great initiative – looking at the needs of Mums with young children, who often don't want to, or can't work full-time – and linking them in with employers creative enough to re-imagine how their workforce is staffed.
Yes. Not all Mums. Some have no alternative, but to work full-time. But there are a lot who would be keen to work part-time, but find the part-time jobs offered are simply not worth the pay. (Just look at day-care costs to see why)
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/calling-on-stay-at-home-mums-auckland-start-ups-move-to-combat-labour-shortage/WUCGVMD6PJ2ICE7CXVGK2QR2II/?c_id=3&objectid=12556608&ref=rss
I work for a company which has been doing this for over 15 years – deliberately targeting highly-qualified professional women (for very specific and niche roles – so limited numbers ever available) – who want to work part-time (not all Mums, some caring for older relatives or with health issues, or simply reaching the end of their careers and wanting to dial back a little) – and where the major employers (Council and government bureaucracy) simply won't be flexible for them.
It's been a great success for the women (I'm one of them)- and the employer has benefited from a high-skilled, creative and motivated workforce, with a deep well of loyalty to the company.
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/Dod9AWz8Rp4Svdpof/why-i-think-there-s-a-one-in-six-chance-of-an-imminent
Australian Actuaries release analysis for first 6 months excess mortality.
Excess death rate 13% with projections for Covid to be Australia's third leading cause of death (behind dementia and Ischaemic heart disease)
https://twitter.com/KarenCutter4/status/1577796504604930048?cxt=HHwWgMCjjffjuuUrAAAA
Similar numbers here with regard to total excess deaths,due to the overweighted rate of deaths in the elderly it is highly likely we will see a decrease in the expected life expectancy in NZ as well.
And a really nice article about Kiwis doing regenag in the UK
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/300705964/the-good-soil-kiwis-make-regenerative-farming-strides-overseas
Tax cuts??
"All of a sudden, though, the IMF saw the liberal establishment’s lost capacity to stabilize capitalism reflected in rising economic inequality. So the last thing the markets needed, the fund’s technocrats realized, was more socialism for the wealthy. But it would take a feat of wishful thinking to interpret the IMF’s panic-driven reaction as a sincere conversion to economic redistribution and social democracy. A warning against an act of elite self-harm was the extent of it"
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/10/imf-uk-tax-cuts-inequality-neoliberalism/671651/
None so blind