I’ve been in Christchurch since lastTtuesday night. It is certainly a shadow of its former self but you can see as you drive around the progress that is being made and the city it will become.
Two areas, traditionally (and still) working class have seen an influx of new (relocated businesses), Woolston and Hornby.
As an Aucklander the road works and associated traffic hold ups are nothing new but I know from my previous trips over the years and a period living there that CHCHCH residents will find it tough.
I tip my hat to the people of Christchurch for their perserverance and optimistic outlook. Most have no choice but to stay and persevere but no one said you had to do it with a smile on your face, so kudos to you all.
You certainly deserve better than this
” Affordable housing is being pushed out of reach for most of Christchurch’s most vulnerable residents as the number of pricey rentals across the city soars.
Fairfax Media has compared the number of rentals in different price ranges using Census data from 2006 and 2013.
It showed the high end of the Christchurch rental market has expanded dramatically, while the bottom end of the market collapsed.
Across the city, the percentage of rentals in the $200 to $299 price range fell from 40 per cent of all homes in 2006 to 26 per cent in 2013.
The percentage of homes in the $300 to $399 range rose from 12 per cent to 32 per cent, and from 3 per cent to 11 per cent in the $400 to $499.
The number of rentals costing more than $500 a week skyrocketed city-wide, especially in the more affluent suburbs.
In Linwood, the number of rentals in the $100 to $199 price range decreased from 729 to 258 between 2006 and 2013.
The number in the $300 to $399 bracket increased from 69 to 225.
Aranui’s rentals in the $300 to $399 price range rose from nine to 114 – a 1167 per cent increase. ”
and this
” The earthquake recovery minister’s Christmas card said the challenges of life in Christchurch continued this year but the “light at the end of the tunnel” was a little more evident.
It read: “2014 I’m sure will be brighter. I hope you enjoy the festive season and wish you well for 2014 which will be a big year for National.” G Brownlee former head of Ministry responsible for Pike River
Yep felt it too – short and sharp equals nearby. Then there was another a few minutes later. Reminded me of times when we use to get three in a row with the third being the wallop. Luckily it didn’t come…
Can’t believe the nanny state term is still used by Tory politicians …after Pike River, forestry deaths and the CTV building collapse.
That’s right Tony you and your obscene government’s refusal to care for people’s safety at work costs lives.
And you have the nerve to gibber on about nanny state.
Revolting.
“New Zealand is getting fatter – with three in every 10 adults now regarded as obese.
A leading diabetes researcher has called the new figures alarming and has accused the Government of failing to take the problem seriously.
However, Health Minister Tony Ryall has rejected “nanny state” measures, instead arguing that providing information and support to people is enough.
“In the end, the Government can pass all the laws it likes but unless people eat less and exercise more, things won’t change,” Mr Ryall said yesterday in response to the new figures.”
Well, ya know Paul, we don’t want to regulate now, that might interfere with corporate foods’ right to a profit.
There are so many facets to our deteriorating health stats but the free run that corporates have in the market has to be a contributor towards poor health – IMO.
.
One example might be the abundance of jumbo packs of junk food constantly on special. 3 X 150 gm bags of fat and msg laden chippies for $5. Chocolate as an everyday cheap commodity.(ethical issue here too with child labour being used in the production of some brands) Booze easily available 24/7 in some areas. Soft drinks, litres of the stuff that take up half an aisle.
We had a New World open up in our neighbourhood recently. It’s more like a glorified dairy selling convenience food rather than a place to go and get healthy ingredients.
Think back 35+ years to what supermarket shelves looked like, ok maybe less variety, all rather meat and 3 vege stylez but there wasn’t the abundance of junk food. I remember as a kid in the 70’s chippies and ‘fizzy’ were a treat for birthdays and Xmas. All biscuits and cakes were home made and treat only. Did we worry about type 2 diabetes then?
Our govt exists to serve the corporates, not society.
and lets not forget people are working longer hours than ever and are too tired to cook decent healthy meals, and can’t afford good ingredients anyway – convenience food manufacturers benefit from a poorly regulated labour force?
Ultimately Governments have a hand in the health of the population. Tony Ryall is wrong.
“Our govt exists to serve the corporates, not society.”
Quite, and we might want to consider that obesity is being defined by a fairly useless indicator (the BMI) and who benefits from that? Big pharma is making shit loads of money from poor health. The MoH can wax lyrical about diet and exercise all it wants, but until structural changes are made, money will go straight from the tax payer to corporate via health.
I was a child of the 70s and ate plenty of sweet things 😉 There is an issue with type 2 diabetes increasing, and the reason it is showing up now is because the generation that ate all those lollies in the 1970 and 80s is now reaching the age where type two kicks in. Worse, the age at which type 2 kicks in will get lower with each generation now.
Diet and exercise are big factors in this, but the mainstream health advice is probably causing more problems than its fixing: dietary fat doesn’t cause diabetes, refined carbs do (or rather insulin resistance does, so you have to figure out why the individual is on a track to that, and its usually related to blood sugar). When you tell people to eat a low fat diet, you achieve two things: one is that you create a diet deficient in fat-soluble vitamins that are critical to health (especially hormonal and brain), and two, you force people to eat more carbs (got to get energy for metabolism from somewhere). High carb diets create the blood sugar conditions to create insulin resistance, which eventually causes type 2 diabetes and other diseases.
The other issue here is that the other illnesses associated with insulin resistance eg heart disease are being targeted by big pharma. Statins is the classic, where the ‘normal’ range for cholesterols has been shifted so that now younger and younger people are being put on statins ‘preventatively’ despite the research showing this has dubious health outcomes across the population. Statins also come with significant side effects and guess how those are treated and who makes money from them?
Sometimes when I hit health professionals and their food advice, I find myself thinking of Orwell’s ‘Animal Farm’ and the mindlessly repeated slogan ‘Two legs bad, four legs good’ and the later ‘Two legs good, four legs bad’.
Hi weka. The low fat approach gets a lot of air time but like you I’d look to refined carbs and sugars as one of the main contributors to type 2 diabetes and it’s precursor, insulin resistance. (No I’m not a nutritionist but I know folks who are).
And yes, cutting out all fats or minimising then severely mean you lose out on valuable nutrition from seeds and nuts, and dare I say dairy products with their fat soluble vitamins, a + d. Vitamin d is important for calcium uptake. (with apologies to the vegans, I know I know, unhulled tahini……) Trim milk is a con.
Big Pharma: Went to a fascinating lecture many years ago entitled “The cholesterol juggernaut”. The premise was that cholesterol, even the “bad” ldl type isn’t the problem, and to a certain degree is important for immune health but scarring within the arteries is the problem. The cholesterol “catches” on the scars and builds up in the artery, leading to the old clogged arteries scenario. The lecturer proposed that homocysteine, an amino acid found in red meat was the cause of the scarring and spent ages railing against trans fatty acids too. It’s now commonly known that trans fats are bad for our health. Trans fats, found in those cheap as chips chippies!
At the same time I respect there is a need, and time and place for cholesterol lowering drugs and I’m no expert on the topic. Coming from a family with high rates of heart disease on both sides, and my Father dying when he was only 54 I tend to be hyper alert to heart issues and learn what I can and have been known to ignore the cardiologist’s advice to go on statins – there was nothing wrong with my cholesterol levels 6 years ago and there isn’t today either, so I’ll take my chances.
Final word, because I’ve got to dash, I always remember what John Campbell said in regard to an article they had about child poverty, in particular children going hungry for hours and eating only highly refined cheap foods because that’s all they had access to. He said (approximately) “that is a type 2 diabetes epidemic waiting in the wings!” and suggested it was the governments role to intervene to help these children immediately but also to prevent a costly public health burden later. I agree.
The classic tory hands off approach to public health is a lose lose.
How do sumo wrestlers put on all the weight their sport demands? They eat copious amounts of rice. How do they shed the excess weight when their career is over? They stop eating copious amounts of rice.
How do you go about sustaining energy for long periods of physical exertion or extended periods of time? Eat or drink carbohydrates. What do you think happens if you don’t burn them off or continually ‘top up’?
Spread marg, munch pasta and pop dietary pills…don’t eat meat, drink milk or spread butter. Smash your eggs… and remember there is no difference between 10 teaspoons of cane sugar and 10 teaspoons of fruit sugars (that orange is just as unhealthy as that coke – honest)
And, one size fits all! All people metabolise food in the same way, so you should all eat what we say. We know best! Even if you have no money you can still exercise. Even if you don’t know how to cook, you can still eat raw veges. Even if you don’t have enough money to buy food, you can still not eat fat. There is no excuse, if you are unwell it’s all your own fault 🙂 But wait, it’s ok, because we have these magic pills for you…
As someone who does grow their own veges, or to be more exact, my wife does, it is not a cheaper option on the whole, and not viable for those without much money up front.
When you have a tiny plot, where the developer has left an inch of topsoil, and you don’t have the money up front for fertilizer, soil, seeds and tools, a vege garden is not an easy, or even cheaper, option.
The advantages are they are much nicer and healthier, but it is still cheaper just buying them.
It is very noticeable how much trying to buy only healthy foods, adds to your grocery bill. Especially fruit.
The fact is, it costs the poor much more to live because they do not have access to the bulk buying, finance and spreading your cost, options, you have on a higher income.
“When you have a tiny plot, where the developer has left an inch of topsoil, and you don’t have the money up front for fertilizer, soil, seeds and tools, a vege garden is not an easy, or even cheaper, option”
Exactly. And don’t you get sick of talk back types complaining about the poor and working poor not eating enough fruit and vege saying glib and predictable things like “they can always grow their own free food”. Sigh.
Some neighbourhoods have set up communal gardens where folks have access to a plot but even so, potting mix may need to purchased for raised gardens, or compost to mix into topsoil if it’s a standard plot and then theres the cost of seedlings unless some clever person with time on their side has been able to raise seed. And then their patch gets raided! Hungry people are everywhere.
Hi Roguey! Up here, above you! No reply button. (I also grow my own cups of tea, in pots, we live on rock)
Hunger on many levels. Hungry for change. But in terms of hungry for food, I have heard of the local community garden getting plundered, and they had to do a fundraiser to put up lockable fencing. Kinda sad. Other folks I know who run similar gardens in other parts of the city have experienced the same.
They don’t mind sharing with non gardeners if those people requiring their food can’t afford to buy, they just want them to ask and they will provide it. The whole idea is community connectedness and resilience in a world facing pending food shortages. (And tasty fresh food. Om nom nom!)
yes, to conversations that I have been privy to just this past week; somebody I know sharing they take cabbages / caulis from the community garden I work in (I not mind, they are really poor) and another chappie sharing about the gathering of kaimoana, and live-stock.
you can try pallet gardens, some companies will give away a couple of heat treated pallets if you say you are making a garden… BUT you are correct that even a pallet for small spaces requires painti, cloth, wire for baskets, soil, seeds or plants.
Thats why the initiative in ashburton is so very call. The hand over a Hundy. I dont believe in knighthoods but the woman who started this deserves one… as opposed to bob jones, richard hadlee, Susan devoy, owen glenn and so on.
Rosie
I think that what should be tried is bucket gardens in places with half inch top soil. Nurture your bucket, keep away from public areas and urinating dogs, cats looking for dirt boxes etc. The gardeners life may be complicated.
Tub buckets with holes in the bottom can grow a lettuce and small ones coming on, silver beet, spinach, boky choy grow tallish, and perhaps a courgette which is a very good veg that can be eaten at any size and taste like anything you want it to. It’s a start. You can handpick off the green veg bugs, and spray with baking soda and water to keep down powdery mildew. It takes a while to get a system that suits you but more green leafy vegs seem to be the thing that is often most needed, and they are easy to keep growing, just cutting a few leaves off.
Interesting link, thanks Tracey. I’m just trying to look up if sumo wrestlers have poorer health outcomes. It looks like they don’t at the time they are wrestling, but can’t tell what happens later in life. ie the obesity isn’t the problem. Some fat people get Syndrome X (heart disease, type 2 diabetes etc from insulin resistance) and some don’t. Some thin people get insulin resistant. We’re looking in the wrong place when we focus on obesity.
The negative health effects of the sumo lifestyle can become apparent later in life. Sumo wrestlers have a life expectancy of between 60 and 65, more than 10 years shorter than the average Japanese male. Many develop diabetes, high blood pressure, and are prone to heart attacks. The excessive intake of alcohol can lead to liver problems and the stress on their joints can cause arthritis. Recently, the standards of weight gain are becoming less strict, in an effort to improve the overall health of the wrestlers.
ihon Eiseigaku Zasshi. 1995 Aug;50(3):730-6.
[Risk factors for mortality and mortality rate of sumo wrestlers].
[Article in Japanese]
Hoshi A, Inaba Y.
Author information
Abstract
We compared the mortality rate of sumo wrestlers with that of the contemporaneous Japanese male population, and inferred the usefulness of an index for predicting longevity in sumo wrestlers. The standardized mortality ratios (SMR) for sumo wrestlers were very high in each period, and also high for ages from 35 to 74. Cox’s proportional hazards model analysis revealed that the variables in “nyuumaku” entry year and BMI were statistically significant (p < 0.05) factors in mortality. In the survival curves, the lower BMI group had good life expectancy compared with the higher BMI group. In conclusion, the higher rate of mortality in sumo wrestlers seems to be due to the markedly higher rate of mortality from 35 to 74 years old. In sumo wrestlers, also, this study provides evidence that the higher overweight groups have substantially higher risks for mortality.
Hi Rosie, thanks, that’s interesting. The way I understand it is that higher cholesterol is a sign of chronic inflammation in the body ie it’s a symptom not a cause.
Re statins, it’s always such a personal thing. AFAIK the statin research doesn’t show an overal descrease in mortality, just a decrease in death by heart attack (ie people die of other things instead). There are definitely people who need statins, but not whole swathes of the population, and the use prophylactically is especially dubious given the side effects.
Transfats… I think we need to differentiate between transfats in whole, traditional foods (meat), and transfats in highly processed foods like margarine or fast food oils.
I agree re child poverty. It’s pretty hard to improve public health when you don’t fix poverty first. We are so criminally negligent in this respect (and Labour is better but not that much).
AFAIK the statin research doesn’t show an overal descrease in mortality, just a decrease in death by heart attack (ie people die of other things instead)
Next to no improvement if you are under 60 and high cholesterol is the only thing you have going on.
It’s mainly caused by eating more calories than you expend in a day of work/exercise, with other primary causes being medication, mental health (comfort eating) and medical conditions. With ethnicity coming into play when the ethnic group involved wasn’t heavily into agriculture, and thus subject to feast and famine conditions. And having lots of cheap, easy to digest calories doesn’t help either.
However, obesity by itself isn’t that statistically good an indicator of health risks, as you need to take into account exercise levels and general fitness, as sufficient exercise leads to only small statistical differences in risk to otherwise healthy populations. While ironically, for the elderly, low body fat is associated with higher morbidity.
Slippery-ism’s, the re-definition of the English language by a Prime Minister displaying all the intellectual depth of a puddle, making the ravings of the average village idiot seem akin to divine enlightenment,
On RadioNZ National, a discussion of ‘the Referendum’ with sound-bites from the PM one of which claims National won the 2011 election in a ‘Landslide’, give the bloke His due as a sometimes quite amusing comic in the sense that He is a clown doing a stand-up routine in ‘serious’,
Think the word He was looking for was a ‘back-slide’…
Hooton and various Tory trolls have, of course, tried to argue over recent days that “National voters simply didn’t turnout as much as Labour voters” in the referendum.
Their strategy includes the claim that turnout was either:
(1) greater in Labour-held seats OR
(2) “fairly even throughout the country” (Hooton).
But, according to a quick bit of number-crunching on my part, they appear to be rather tragically mistaken.
I’ve used the Party-Vote (specifically, which Bloc – Left or Right – won) as the basis for determining the political complexion for each seat. (A few days ago, CV linked to a very impressive series of referendum result tables – Here http://imgur.com/a/qn7Pg#0 – but unfortunately they used the Candidate-Vote as the basis for colour-coding each seat).
If we look at the 20 seats with the HIGHEST turnout – we find that no less than 17 were won by the RIGHT in 2011 (And, what’s more, I’d classify only 1 of those 17 as MARGINAL RIGHT, the rest were either STRONG or FAIRLY STRONG RIGHT).
Of the 20 seats with the LOWEST turnout, 14 were won by the LEFT in 2011, 6 by the RIGHT. (And every single one of the 10 LOWEST-turnout seats were LEFT-leaning).
My first comment appears to be in moderation. Presumably, people can’t read it – thus rendering my second comment (2:32 pm) completely devoid of any context. (the “upshot” of what ?).
Meanwhile, dear old TightyRighty (sent off to board at an exclusive Prep-School at the age of 3) projecting his own vacuous lifestyle onto CV.
Er, actually CV was explicitly talking about John Banks, and so I specifically replied about John Banks.
You do understand how threading works in an online forum, yes? And that the purpose of it is to allow people to take conversations in different directions without derailing the entire discussion?
The purpose of the inquiry was to investigate any potential misuse of resources re: Bevan Chuang. He said there had been no such misuses, and that’s exactly what the inquiry showed.
In the referendum discussions I see everyone still calling it the “anti smacking” bill which I think came from the right wing religious spin.
How about, at least on TS we call it what it is “anti child assault” and leave the old spin behind. Kids got the same legal protection against assault that adults already had. I just don’t get people who want to hit someone smaller than themselves.
Any party advocating repeal of S59 should be portrayed accurately as “large people get the right to hit small people” and “politicians for increasing child abuse and domestic violence statistics.”
The MSM should also think over their somewhat two faced position on both these issues.
The misinformation around this change to the Crimes Act was staggering and harmful.
A person disciplining a child can no longer invoke the subjective test of believing it to be justified for disciplinary purposes. Such as the father who beat his child with a steel pipe but a jury found him not guilty because the father genuinely believe it was justified for discipline.
” justified in using force by way
of correction towards a child if that force
is reasonable in the circumstances”
Parents ought never see placing their hands on their child as their primary method of discipline. The port of first call if you will. To do so is lazy and speaks volumes about the parent in question. If parents cannot be bothered learning different ways to discipline their children, of correcting their behaviour, perhaps they ought not be parents?
You are quite correct Tracey; what physical violence delivered onto their children says about parents is very concerning if not for the purposes permitted by the current law.
The first person I heard call it “the anti-smacking bill” was Sue Bradford.
There were already laws against assaulting children.
You could equally call it the “bill to give police more power to harass poor people bill, because that has been its main noticeable effect.
Mind you, it has been a good distraction from addressing the really pervasive violence against children and their parents. Poverty.
Helping desperate people without hope to a better life, and a real “brighter future” will do more to prevent child abuse than any number of “tinkering with the symptoms” laws.
Most of the people I have seen lashing out at those around them, apart from the family fist type nutters, are more in need of help, than comfortable middle class condemnation.
The same as I have noted a distinct change in police attitude to me, when I go into bat for the local teenagers they are harassing, since I moved from the “big white house on the hill” to an ordinary house in the suburbs.
Police putting people in cells for the night, or giving someone a hard time, without charges, does not come up in the statistics.
Has the rate of child abuse gone down, since the bill, Tracey?
Gone up with the increase in impoverished children and parents, however.
sending a message that children are not property, that children can be difficult but parents need to learn about parenting/discipline s a good first step to valuing children.
I believe ANy law change has to be accompanied by community-wide education. No one is borne knowing how to be a parent, we, as a society, need to help. But we dont.
People still murder, even though we have a law against it, but the message the law sends is an important one.
Any party advocating repeal of S59 should be portrayed accurately as “large people get the right to hit small people” and “politicians for increasing child abuse and domestic violence statistics.”
Sue Bradford’s bill was the repeal of s59 and thus removing the legal protections that allowed child abusers to get off serious assault charges. But you’re right, people advocating to keep or reinstate s59 should be portrayed as people who want to increase child abuse.
Quite right DTB, ended up with the opposite of what I meant.Rushing to work. Thanks for the fix.
Oh and BTW it isn’t only poor people that hit their kids. Just better lawyered up at the rich end of town.
“There is a significant gap between the
prevailing message from research, which
suggests harsh physical punishment has
a negative outcome for children, and
public opinion, which argues that physical
punishment, when reasonable, is an
acceptable means of disciplining children. “
Spanking children can cause long-term developmental damage and may even lower a child’s IQ, according to a new Canadian analysis that seeks to shift the ethical debate over corporal punishment into the medical sphere.
That doesn’t explain the many parents who have no desire at all to even smack their kids, but know that a smack is better than a child who is burnt, electrocuted or run over.
The bill was changed to say that was permissible,. After the referendum. Which means of course no one has been convicted for trying to prevent a child from harming them selves.
By the way, if a hysterical adult was trying to run into the ” burning building”, I would use force if necessary to prevent them hurting themselves also. Including a slap in the face, if that is what it took. No different.
KJT – can you explain the relationship between hitting the child and preventing accidents.
The beating comes after the accident in these cases – a bit pointless.
A child can be shown that a hot element, dangerous road, or electrical fitting is dangerous through explanation. You should try it … it works. On the other hand if individuals have children who want to act dangerously out of spite or devilment – then I would suggest that their relationship with their toddlers may have partially broken down already and needs addressing.
“…A child can be shown that a hot element, dangerous road, or electrical fitting is dangerous through explanation.”
You do not appear to have addressed this point at all KJT.
(Just for starters, depending on the age of the toddler as to how deeply you can reason, a hot element or fire place, can be easily demonstrated as being dangerous – the slap on the hand indicates that the child is being defiant and there is very little communication happening.
You are showing a lack of understanding of the circumstances, my child and our continuous efforts to keep an impulsive, curious and very intelligent child, safe.
Maybe it has something to do with the fact that physical sanction has been used in human society since forever pretty much, so unless we think that today we are the most advanced and civilised of all civilisations then it is we who are out of synch with history and human conduct. Our systems are the anomaly. Maybe we have it wrong in banishing physical sanction to the bin.
It also has less long term damaging effect than psychological sanction.
Will do, but it is all coming out in French…… he he
I also note re the use of physical sanction in our society that the sole permitted use of such is by the State, and we allow that, so where is the consistency. And let’s not even get started on war and what people think about it then…. most people are quite happy to go about killing other people then. How do people justify killing people then but not using the physical in other situations?
“It also has less long term damaging effect than psychological sanction.”
Maybe, but those aren’t the only two skill sets available, now or in the past.
I thought section 59 was about removing the defense of discipline in the case of beating children. There is evidence that many cultures historically have disapproved of child beating and had other strategies for raising children.
btw, we don’t apply to the ‘we’ve always done this’ rationale to lots of things.
The research actually said, and one was the NZ longitudinal study, is that “mild” physical sanctions, like a smack on the backside, which were fair and appropriate, made for slightly better outcomes than parents who only used verbal sanctions.
I have seen it several times recently, that parents who pride themselves in not smacking their kids, have often substituted much crueler mental manipulation. I like to suggest a “positive parenting course” for some more ideas.
I was happy about the defense of “discipline” as an excuse” for beating children was removed.
I was not so happy with the idea that I may go to police cells, for physically restraining my behaviorally and mentally challenged child from hurting someone.
Or smacking my daughter on the hand, when all else failed, to stop her fascination with fire and power points. And before we get some smart arse retort. We tried all the obvious and less obvious ways of stopping them first. Many times. In the end we had to go with what worked, to keep them safe.
Most of the majority, who voted against section 59a were not voting to “beat their children”.
smacked my daughter’s bottom, maybe half a dozen times until she reached the age of about four; yes meant yes (and they were by far the majority), no meant no. I had already studied human development by then though, and education is a great help if it is applied.
You need to read what I am saying. Instead of writing me off, along with the majority who were dubious about the original bill, as one of those “child bashers”.
It was much improved after the referendum, from the original bill.
But some of the wording is still rather ambiguous, and it still, like much of our legislation leaves too much to police discretion. Discretion which police too often abuse.
I am reading. I am not writing you off. I am trying to understand your objections. I know the difference between the bill as first proposed and the Act.
I just havent been able to find the abuse of discretion that you have encountered. I am NOT saying it hasnt happened, I wont deny your personal experience. I just havent seen evidence despite looking hard for it.
For example a few people get wrongly accused of rape, but we dont remove the rape laws, we dont remove the message that women are not property to be own and used at will by adults.
What I am saying is that the referendum wasn’t ignored.
The law as finally written took account of the objections.
Because of the referendum we got as much better law than the one originally written. which would have made physically restraining my child from attacking others. illegal.
And there was already a law against assaulting children.
Section 59a in the end did remove some ambiguous interpretation. Where some people got acquitted from what was, clearly, assault.
As I said, I am largely happy with how it ended up.
Due in part to public concern about the original draft.
Too much of our law, is however, ambiguous, hurriedly and poorly written and open to too much police interpretation.
Something which happens far less often in Switzerland, where referenda are, binding.
“A more recent study (Gravitas Research
and Strategy, 2005) found that 51% of all
parents and 21% of caregivers used physical
punishment, albeit relatively infrequently
and mostly when other forms of discipline
had been tried: “Physical discipline is
commonly used because parents and
caregivers consider it to be a required and/or
justified response to the child’s behaviour”
(p. 4). This approach was also acknowledged
by children who, while they highlighted the
negative consequences of being smacked,
also accepted “it as a parental right or fact of
life” (Dobbs cited in Smith, Gollop, Taylor &
Marshall, 2004, p. 28)”
“If we take the stance that minor smacking
on a child’s bottom is acceptable, then
Larzelere’s 1996 review of research on
nonabusive spanking shows that there
should still be some concern about how
effective even this form of discipline is. In
his review of 35 studies that examined the
effects of nonabusive spanking on children
by parents, “Thirty-four per cent of the
studies found negative effects on children,
26% found positive effects, and 40%
showed no net positive or negative effect.
Nonabusive spanking appears to be more
effective or have neutral effect on children
younger than 13 compared to teenagers.
Grounding appears to be more effective than
spanking in older children. Spanking appears
to be most effective when done sparingly,
non-violently, and within the context of a
healthy parent child relationship.”
Believing the only reason your children are “still alive” is because you used physical violence against them definitely makes me take you seriously as an objective commenter.
Frakking Lefties. 250,000 kids live in poverty day to day and all the Lefties have to moan about are bullshit legal and moral niceties. Which at the end of the day still haven’t been shown to do sweet FA in actually reducing the incidence of child physical abuse in society since they have been enacted.
In contrast I’m pretty fucking sure that if child poverty (and with it family poverty) were eliminated, it would measurably reduce the incidence of child physical abuse quickly and substantially.
Because what people see is a Left distracted by multitudes of bullshit academic, abstract, unpopular issues that not only garner no widespread support, but which everyone realises will make no practical difference to the lives that the Left says it is focussed on. And which people will never support en masse.
Again plenty of well off people hit their kids too. Well off can equate with self centred behaviour and an overwhelming sense of entitlement , and justifies “anything goes” in getting comliance from others. FFS DV doesn’t just happen at the poor end of town.
Because what people see is a Left distracted by multitudes of bullshit academic, abstract, unpopular issues that not only garner no widespread support, but which everyone realises will make no practical difference to the lives that the Left says it is focussed on. And which people will never support en masse.
riiiiiiiight, you just keep blaming other issues for “the Left’s” inability to argue economics persuasively.
If we could argue and campaign for a living wage and workers’ rights half as effectivey as we can campaign against domestic violence and discrimination, key would be sulking in hawaii after a dismal failure in 2008 and electoral ostracism.
RedbaronCV: agree with you entirely re: DV. Veitch wasn’t a pauper was he.
But I don’t care about a total solution, I care about solutions which will make a difference to a lot of people even if it’s not everyone, and s59 cost a lot politically to achieve fuck all of next to nothing on the ground.
McFlock
riiiiiiiight, you just keep blaming other issues for “the Left’s” inability to argue economics persuasively.
Nope I’m blaming the Left’s focus on abstract academic intellectually pretty bullshit which costs shit loads of rare political capital and makes negligible difference to the bottom 50% of society.
BTW I’m all for abstract academic intellectually pretty bullshit which makes a big difference to the bottom 50% of society.
Nope I’m blaming the Left’s focus on abstract academic bullshit which costs shit loads of rare political capital and makes no difference to anyone on the ground.
but but but even if people could only concentrate on one single issue over thirty years, surely YOU haven’t been distracted by “abstract academic bullshit”?
By the way, failing to convict parents who beat a child with a rubber hose or riding crop is neither “abstract” nor “academic”.
Oh? So how many prosecutions have got put through so far because of the new law which wouldn’t have otherwise? How much has the rate of physical child abuse been reduced since the new law?
Love him, or hate him, you gotta love McFlock.
as an aside, caught an article on RNZ today just before Midday (from the Tech Review chap) suggesting that the continuim of digitalizing life, from selfies through google glass, through to time-lapsed ongoing filming (yep, occurring, very trendy) is deteriorating the development of memory. What say you old boy? Eh? 😀
We keep falling into this weird and unhelpful binary trap in our thinking – for my money I think CV is right; and at the same time I think the S59 reform was a necessary step along the way.
A lot of people here would be surprised at some of the places I’ve lived – my partner and I are quite well-off, but we’ve lived in places where the reality of poverty was just over the fence.
We’ve seen all the things that go wrong in their lives; we’ve despaired at our sense of impotence around ‘fixing it’. We’re vividly aware that our middle-class pretensions and sensibilities have little place in their lives.
Just throwing money at them usually makes things worse.
Yet it is their inability to access money and security on their own terms which is the defining factor in their poverty. Crucially it is the inability of so many young men to find stable work that enables them to form stable families which perpetuates the cycle.
CV is right – this is a plain, real-life challenge. The solutions will not come out of a University department. The actions that will change things are not complex or terribly abstract; most of what is needed is already well known.
But the only people who will make any difference are the natural leaders who have come out of this world themselves, who understand the culture and who get listened to when they speak. All they need is a network and real support.
the continuim of digitalizing life, from selfies through google glass, through to time-lapsed ongoing filming (yep, occurring, very trendy) is deteriorating the development of memory. What say you old boy?
To a degree. But a blank-slate google search is qualitatively different, imo, from using it as a memory aid or locator for source documents (or even just getting a quick handle on adjacent fields of expertise – the crossover between AI, philosophy of mind, and experimental psychology, for example).
yes, the interviewer, K.Ryan I believe, headed down the “where is it all heading…” path 😉 yet neither her or the techie guy were aware of , or raised, the singularity thesis, which was discussed on TS earlier this year, from memory 😉 ; More important than memories Flockie, where do the actual years go as we get older? So in the flow , ideally, they just whizz by.
with respect, to me that smacks of the trite tryptic variation “A: …; B: get leader, networks and popular support; C: victory!”
Yes we can see the problems, and even largely agree on the solutions/desired-outcomes, but the problem we have is communicating it and gaining the support of the 47% of voters who supported national, and even the 30-odd% of Labour voters and 12-odd% of green voters. Without them, chances of getting anywhere are pretty much non-existent.
Alternatively, saturate the bureaucracy over 30 years despite it and nact’s best efforts, and hope for bureaucratic capture like lab4. If we have decades to spare (we don’t, and it would be of doubtful success probability).
If we look at the work of one person who has done a lot to address the problem of child poverty, Bryan Bruce has made two documentaries that used academia to prove there is a problem, people on the ground to show the reality, and a mixture of both to show what he sees as real solutions. I firmly believe that we need this sort of broad front to achieve change. We’re getting there – I keep the Child poverty Monitor in my hip pocket (cellphone 🙂 ) for arguments, and it was valuable if dry. Now the commissioner has put out infographics that are much more clear than the academic works some people are so hostile towards, but the information is backed up by the solid research. “Defense in depth”, if you will.
I think that the real divison on the left is in economics (the extent of safe inflationary financing that then likely affects the viability of UBI, for example), which is why we’re shit at arguing it – and therefore shit at getting support for it. If we can’t broadly persuade ourselves, what can we expect to achieve in the electorate?
I’m with RL in thinking that s59 was a necessary step “along the way” i.e. one tiny step on a journey of a thousand miles, so let’s keep it in that perspective.
Love your stats McFlock, looks like a National Govt has been quite able to reduce harm to children.
Love your stats McFlock, looks like a National Govt has been quite able to reduce harm to children.
credit where credit’s due.
Must be their massive efforts in reducing inequality, doubling of the numbers of social workers and parenting classes, and general overwhelming improvement in conditions for poorer families. /sarc
“The research actually said, and one was the NZ longitudinal study, is that “mild” physical sanctions, like a smack on the backside, which were fair and appropriate, made for slightly better outcomes than parents who only used verbal sanctions.”
What are the verbal sanctions being studied though? As with physical force, there are different kinds and degrees of ‘verbal sanctions’, so how can we compare? And why compare physical with mental manipulation? There are plenty of non-physical discipline styles that don’t require being mean to a child. And are we talking about teaching a child about boundaries, or are we talking about punishment?
I don’t have an problem with physically restraining a child that is out of control and hurting itself, someone else, or doing something damage that is beyond acceptable. But then I’m of the generation where my peers raised their kids excessively liberally and so have spent too much time around unmannered brats 😉 They have to learn boundaries sooner or later, better to learn them young than as a teenager I reckon. There is of course a big difference between physically restraining a child (or picking it up and carrying it against its will to another room) and hitting it.
“Most of the majority, who voted against section 59a were not voting to “beat their children”.”
I’d say most had never read the act and were voting according to how the MSM misrepresented the legislation.
Are you suggesting that most people who voted in the referendum had read the Act?
What did most of them make of the wording of the referendum and how it related to the Act? (from memory I spoiled my voting paper, because how could you answer properly?).
I think most people were aware that the bill, as originally written, removed options which most of us are aware are sometimes required.
The amendments, a consequence of the discussion around the referendum, which I was fine with, allowed physical force to prevent harm and or to prevent law breaking.
Including a smack, as an alternative to, say, putting a child’s hand in the fire to get the message across that you don’t play with fire.
I don’t believe that a majority of the population wanted to “bring back the cane”.
I also don’t think they were stupid enough to believe the extremes, on both sides of the argument.
That would be wrong vto, there are many societies through history that have never used violence against children. The present Western Civilisation that covers the world seems to be one of the more violent ones.
Xox
Suggestions (links) for current independent, quality news site(s) for New Zealanders? Have given up on Herald and Dom Post. TVNZ is a frivolous joke, not to mention Jim Mora ‘ s lala chuckle session on RNZ’s ‘Afternoons’.
I take it you watch “Breakfast” for the same reasons I sometimes watch Fox News @ phill?
(It’s the only way I can find do drum up feelings of pity for the deluded, and its some of the best comedy there is on TV these days)
ALWAYS save Phill as you go about your electronic bizznus.
I was discussing the benefits of this just this morning. Do so as frequently as possible.
The disk cleaners providing a level of comfort by overwriting, the algoritms in play allocating ‘space’ on disk, the way in which a delete doesn’t actually delete but makes space available for subsequent storage – yea – save and overwrite.
But THEN ‘clean’
But – long story short, I’ll spend the next week watching a Rawdon and his prop-up blonde what’s-her-thing (both doing their best to convince us they’re hard-hitting, ‘incisive’ journalists) for a laugh. (After all, Rawdon used to work for the BBC dontcha know!)
Tossers in, Xhosas out
Local mourners have to make way for the likes of Richard Branson
If you have any kind of a conscience, you will be well and truly glutted with the obscene parade of arm-waving impostors [1], insincere sentimental posturing [2], murderously hypocritical “tributes” [3] and mindless “celebrities” [4] that has hijacked the mourning for Nelson Mandela.
Many people who were disgusted with that farce in Johannesburg believed, or hoped against hope, that some sense of decency would be restored when the great leader was finally laid to rest in his home town in the Eastern Cape.
On this morning’s news on Al Jazeera, however, it was immediately apparent that, while the impostors, war criminals and democracy-suppressors at least were not there for the final send-off, there was still an infestation of irritating “celebrities” present. Prominent in the front row at the church were former Blair cheerleader “Sir” Richard Branson, the Obama-cult high priestess Oprah Winfrey and The Rev. Jesse Jackson. The last-named at least has some credentials to justify his presence there—but Branson and Winfrey?
What really was heartbreaking, though, was the forlorn sight of the local people of Qunu, herded behind fences, excluded from the funeral service because of “security” concerns.
Still, on the bright side, at least the main speakers were South Africans this time and, in contrast to those that “led the mourners” in last week’s horror show, were not the sort of people that would have persecuted and defamed Mandela thirty years ago .
John Key, Steven Joyce, et al. Picking winners. I wish I was that f**king rich. Pity the poor, the infirm, the poverty stricken, the children, the low paid, and other marginalized folks in New Zealand who don’t qualify for John Key’s “hand up, not hand out”. Yeah right.
So once again the rank and file tax payer gets to subsidize the rich, our deficit has rocketed from $10 billion in 2008 to over $70 billion now. Welcome to Planet Key/National/Act.
Midday Report:
Government will increase the baseline tax rebate for film production brought to NZ to 20% and up to 25% for the next three ‘Avatar’ films which are likely to be made here.
“Almost singlehandedly, Colin Craig has neutralised one of the Key government’s most potent tactical weapons in the next election. Without Craig, National might have been able to run a credible scare campaign next year around the prospect of the Greens – those scary socialist enviro-extremist boogey men – being part of any government led by Labour’s David Cunliffe. Yet anytime next year that John Key, Steven Joyce or the captains of industry do try to raise the Greens spectre, they’ll need to explain their own reliance on Craig, the far more visible loose wheel on their own wagon.”
Nicely put, and important to remember – anytime some right-winger tries to spook the horses about the Greens, ask them why Key is trying to buddy up with Crazy Craig.
After reading it, I think he’s a little irritated that Hone got treated with more respect than he did (getting to go and perform a haka at the private ceremony) and he didn’t manage to get in on the selfie with his best buds Obama.
2 snubs in one trip – it’s more than the egotistical narcissist can handle!
The reporter didn’t say just what Hone did on his Speaker approved “junket”.
Was it “getting to go and perform a haka at the private ceremony” as you say Zorr?
What was that? Could have been a sincere real moment for Hone who actually fronted the 81 protest, as opposed to the hypocritical performance by some undeserving MP bludgers with very dodgy memories.
I hate to say it – but has Key truly devalued the office of PM to the point that every time I hear that he has said something, my immediate response is can he shut up and stop embarrassing us as a nation. We need to stop reporting on him like he is somehow still connected to reality.
Just heard him comment on RadioNZ. Fucking fucked is what it is. Hone went ‘on a jolly’!!!? JK had picked a representative cross section to attend!!!!?
All that came to my mind was that image of John Key and David Cameron laughing at some fuck knows what and my strong suspicion that JK couldn’t have given a flying monkey’s fuck about the guy who’s memorial he was attending .
Just like he doesn’t give a flying monkey’s fuck about reality. All that matters is spin and power and control. And probably wringing every last cent out of NZ while he’s still got the chance (his paymasters probably have a bonus system in place).
Spot on Zorr. Gauche arsehole. Devalues the brand of Kiwi akshully.
Farcical. In 1981 Bolger a minister in Muldoon’s cabinet and McKinnon the Junior Government Whip. Active supporters at the highest level of the apartheid regime. Then there’s the Prime Mournister. Who believes he wasn’t reflexively with them ? The people who DIDN’T bring a ray of sunshine into the cells of Robbin Island.
They all get their costs paid. Hone gets his costs paid and we have the Prime Mournister shrieking offensively about a “jolly”.
My God the vulgar, barefaced hypocrisy. Pathological. Borderline.
How would you feel if a right-wing politician secretly took $39,000* from a casino company to cheat on his wife while he was lobbying to have the law changed to benefit that casino company and then lied about it to the public?
I don’t know, but it is bit ironic when the ACTiod types get in a tizz about the effects of the Auckland Dictatorship, they deliberately created, so that Banks could steal Aucklander’s assets.
Is this one of your usual drop and run comments or are you actually here to debate?
By the way, you seem obsessed with the Brown story. You seem to have the same news priorities as Slater.
Another centre-left Presidente in South America. Michelle Bachelet is back and she has caned it 62% versus 38% to the centre-right candidate in the run-off vote for Chile’s president.
Great interview with socialist Brian Roper from Otago Uni on RNZ. Time to disband Treasury he says, and farm out the functions to different Departments.
Its a law like gravity: whenever a right-wing government is elected, they start attacking democracy. And now, after talking to their Republican and Tory and Fidesz chums at the International Democracy Union forum in Wellington, National is doing it here, announcing plans to remove election-day enrolment. Or, to put it ...
Yesterday Winston Peters focussed his attention on the important matter at hand. Tweeting. Like the former, and quite possibly next, orange POTUS, from whom he takes much of his political strategy, Winston is an avid X’er.His message didn’t resemble an historic address this time. In fact it was more reminiscent ...
Buzz from the Beehive A significant decline in natural gas production has given Resources Minister Shane Jones an opportunity to reiterate his enthusiasm for the mining and burning of coal. For good measure, he has praised an announcement from Genesis Energy that it will resume importing coal. He and Energy ...
“Follow the money” is the classic directive to journalists trying to understand where power and influence lie in society. In terms of uncovering who influences various New Zealand political parties and governments, it therefore pays to look at who is funding them. The political parties are legally obliged to make ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Here is my subjective ranking on a “most-left” to “most-right” scale of most of our major NZ Universities, with some anecdotal (and at times amusing) evidence to back up the claim.Extreme Left Auckland University of TechnologyEvidenceThe ...
Eric Crampton writes – I hadn’t thought about this one until a helpful email showed up in my inbox.It’s pretty obvious that income tax thresholds should automatically index with inflation – whether to anchor the thresholds in percentiles of the income distribution, or to anchor against a real ...
Jacqui Van Der Kaay writes – Parliament’s speaker had no option but to refer Green MP Julie Anne Genter to the Privileges Committee for her behaviour in the House last Wednesday evening. The incident, in which she crossed the floor to wave a book and yell at National ...
Gary Judd writes – The Dean of the law school at the Auckland University of Technology is someone called Khylee Quince. I have been sent her social media posting in which she has, over the LawNews headline “Senior King’s Counsel files complaint about compulsory tikanga Maori studies for ...
Cleo Paskal writes – WASHINGTON, D.C.: ‘Many of us have received phone calls from [the opposing camp] telling them if they join the camp they will be given projects for their wards and $300,000 [around US$35,000] each’, says former Malaita Premier Daniel Suidani. The elections in Solomon Islands aren’t ...
With hindsight, it was inevitable that (a) Hamas would agree to the ceasefire deal brokered by Egypt and Qatar and that ( b) Israel would then immediately launch attacks on Rafah, regardless. We might have hoped the concessions made by Hamas would cause Israel to desist from slaughtering thousands more ...
Placards and mourners outside the Kilbirnie Mosque following the Christchurch terror attack: MSD has terminated the Kaiwhakaoranga service, which has been used by 415 families since the attacks. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The Government’s pledge to only cut ‘back office’ staff rather than ‘frontline’ services is on increasingly shaky ground, with ...
There’s been a few smaller public transport announcements over the last week or so that I thought I’d cover in a single post. Fareshare I’ve long called for Auckland Transport to offer a way to enable employer-subsidised public transport options. The need for this took on even more importance ...
Parliament’s speaker had no option but to refer Green MP Julie Anne Genter to the Privileges Committee for her behaviour in the House last Wednesday evening. The incident, in which she crossed the floor to wave a book and yell at National Minister Matt Doocey, reflects poorly on Genter and ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
Who likes being sneered at? Nobody. Worse yet, when the sneerer has their facts all wrong, and might well be an idiot.The sneer in question is The adults are in charge now, and it is a sneer offered in retort to criticism of this new Government, no matter how well ...
When in government, Labour pushed to extend the Parliamentary term to four years, to reduce accountability and our ability to vote out a bad government. And now, they're trying to do it through the member's ballot, with a Four-Year Parliamentary Term Legislation Bill. The bill at least requires a referendum ...
A ballot for a single Member's Bill was held today, and the following bill was drawn: Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill (Hūhana Lyndon) The bill would prevent the government from stealing Māori land in breach of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. It ...
Simeon Brown, alongside Wayne Brown, is favouring a political figleaf now in exchange for loading up tens of millions in extra interest costs on Auckland ratepayers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Ratings agency Standard & Poor’s is pushing back hard at suggestions from Local Government Minister Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown ...
Buzz from the Beehive One headline-grabber from the Beehive yesterday was the OECD’s advice that the government must bring the Budget deficit under control or face higher interest rates. Another was the announcement of a $1.9 billion “investment” in Corrections over the next four years. In the best interests of ...
Chris Trotter writes – Had Zheng He’s fleet sailed east, not west, in the early Fifteenth Century, how different our world would be. There is little reason to suppose that the sea-going junks of the Ming Dynasty, among the largest and most sophisticated sailing vessels ever constructed, would have failed ...
David Farrar writes – Two articles give a useful contrast in balance. Both seek to be neutral explainer articles. This one in the Herald on Social Investment covers the pros and cons nicely. It links to critical pieces and talks about aspects that failed and aspects that are more ...
The tikanga regulations will compel law students to be taught that a system which does not conform with the rule of law is nevertheless law which should be observed and applied…Gary Judd KC writes – I have made a complaint to Parliament’s Regulation ...
The future of Te Huia, the train between Hamilton and Auckland, has been getting a lot of attention recently as current funding for it is only in place till the end of June. The government initially agreed to a five year trial, through to April 2026, but that was subject ...
TL;DR: Hamas has just agreed to Israel’s ceasefire plan. Nelson hospital’s rebuild has been cut back to save money. The OECD suggests New Zealand break up network monopolies, including in electricity. PM Christopher Luxon’s news conference on a prison expansion announcement last night was his messiest yet.Here’s my top six ...
A homicide in Ponsonby, a manhunt with a killer on the run. The nation’s leader stands before a press conference reassuring a frightened nation that he’ll sort it out, he’ll keep them safe, he’ll build some new prison spaces.Sorry what? There’s a scary dude on the run with a gun ...
Hi,I know it’s been awhile since there’s been any Webworm merch — and today that all changes!Over the last four months, I’ve been working with New Zealand artist Jess Johnson to create a series of t-shirts, caps and stickers that are infused with Webworm DNA — and as of right ...
The OECD’s chief economist yesterday laid it on the line for the new Government: bring the deficit under control or face higher Reserve Bank interest rates for longer. And to bring the deficit under control, she meant not borrowing for tax cuts. But there was more. Without policy changes—introducing a ...
After a hiatus of over four months Selwyn Manning and I finally got it together to re-start the “A View from Afar” podcast series. We shall see how we go but aim to do 2 episodes per month if possible. … Continue reading → ...
In 2008, the UK Parliament passed the Climate Change Act 2008. The law established a system of targets, budgets, and plans, with inbuilt accountability mechanisms; the aim was to break the cycle of empty promises and replace it with actual progress towards emissions reduction. The law was passed with near-universal ...
Buzz from the Beehive Local Water Done Well – let’s be blunt – is a silly name, but the first big initiative to put it into practice has gone done well. This success is reflected in the headline on an RNZ report:District mayors welcome Auckland’s new water deal with ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate ConnectionsA farmworker cleans the solar panels of a solar water pump in the village of Jagadhri, Haryana Country, India. (Photo credit: Prashanth Vishwanathan/ IWMI) Decisions made in India over the next few years will play a key role in global ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – The Children’s Minister, Karen Chhour, intends to repeal Section 7AA from the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989 because it creates conflict between claimed Crown Treaty obligations and the child’s best interests. In her words, “Oranga Tamariki’s governing principles and its act should be colour ...
Geoffrey Miller writes – The gloves are off. That might seem to be the undertone of surprisingly tough talk from New Zealand’s foreign and trade ministers. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, may be facing legal action after making allegations about former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr on Radio New Zealand. ...
Brian Easton writes – This is about the time that the Treasury will be locking up its economic forecasts to be published in the 2024 Budget Economic and Fiscal Update (BEFU) on budget day, 30 May. I am not privy to what they will be (I will report on them ...
TL;DR:Winston Peters is reported to have won a budget increase for MFAT. David Seymour wanted his Ministry of Regulation to be three times bigger than the Productivity Commission. Simeon Brown is appointing a Crown Monitor to Watercare to protect the Claytons Crown Guarantee he had to give ratings agencies ...
The gloves are off. That might seem to be the undertone of surprisingly tough talk from New Zealand’s foreign and trade ministers. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, may be facing legal action after making allegations about former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr on Radio New Zealand. Carr had made highly ...
I could be a florist'Round the corner from Rye LaneI'll be giving daisies to craziesBut, baby, I'll wrap you up real safe Oh, I can give you flowers At the end of every dayFor the center of your table, a rainbowIn case you have people 'round to stay Depending on ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to May 12 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. Finance Minister Nicola Willis will give a pre-budget speech on Thursday.Parliament sits from Question Time at 2pm on ...
The price of the foreign affairs “reset” is now becoming apparent, with Defence set to get a funding boost in the Budget. Finance Minister Nicola Willis has confirmed that it will be one of the few votes, apart from Health and Education and possibly Police, which will get an increase ...
A listing of 26 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 28, 2024 thru Sat, May 4, 2024. Story of the week "It’s straight out of Big Tobacco’s playbook. In fact, research by John Cook and his colleagues ...
Yesterday I received come lovely feedback following my Star Wars themed newsletter. A few people mentioned they’d enjoyed reading the personal part at the beginning.I often begin newsletters with some memories, or general thoughts, before commencing the main topic. This hopefully sets the mood and provides some context in which ...
April 30 was going to be the day we’d be calling Mum from London to wish her a happy birthday. Then it became the day we would be going to St. Paul's at Evensong to remember her. The aim of the cathedral builders was to find a way to make their ...
Rob MacCulloch writes – Can’t remember the last book by a Kiwi author you read? Think the NZ government should spend less on the arts in favor of helping the homeless? If so, as far as Newsroom is concerned, you probably deserve to be called a cultural ignoramus ...
Eric Crampton writes – Grudges are bad. Better to move on. But it can be fun to keep a couple of really trivial ones, so you’re not tempted to have other ones. For example, because of the rootkit fiasco of 2005, no Sony products in our household. ...
A new report warns an estimated third of the adult population have unmet need for health care.Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāHere’s the six key things I learned about Aotaroa’s political economy this week around housing, climate and poverty:Politics - Three opinion polls confirmed support for PM Christopher Luxon ...
Today is May the fourth. Which was just a regular day when my mother took me to see the newly released Star Wars at the Odeon in Rotorua. The queue was right around the corner. Some years later this day became known as Star Wars Day, the date being a ...
Buzz from the Beehive Much more media attention is being paid to something Winston Peters said about former Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr than to a speech he delivered to the New Zealand China Council. One word is missing from the speech: AUKUS. But AUKUS loomed large in his considerations ...
Is the economy in another long stagnation? If so, why?This is about the time that the Treasury will be locking up its economic forecasts to be published in the 2024 Budget Economic and Fiscal Update (BEFU) on budget day, 30 May. I am not privy to what they will be ...
The annual list of who's been bribing our politicians is out, and journalists will no doubt be poring over it to find the juiciest and dirtiest bribes. The government's fast-track invite list is likely to be a particular focus, and we already know of one company on the list which ...
In the weeks after the October 7 Hamas attacks on Southern Israel I wrote about the possible 2nd, 3rd and even 4th order effects of the conflict. These included new fronts being opened in the West Bank (with Hamas), Golan … Continue reading → ...
Peter Dunne writes – It is one of the oldest truisms that there is never a good time for MPs to get a pay rise. This week’s announcement of pay raises of around 2.8% backdated to last October could hardly have come at a worse time, with the ...
David Farrar writes – Newshub reports: Newshub can reveal a fresh allegation of intimidation against Green MP Julie-Anne Genter. Genter is subject to a disciplinary process for aggressively waving a book in the face of National Minister Matt Doocey in the House – but it’s not the first time ...
The Treasury has published a paper today on the global productivity slowdown and how it is playing out in New Zealand: The productivity slowdown: implications for the Treasury’s forecasts and projections. The Treasury Paper examines recent trends in productivity and the potential drivers of the slowdown. Productivity for the whole economy ...
Winston Peters’ comments about former Australian foreign minister look set to be an ongoing headache for both him and Luxon. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for subscribers features co-hosts and , along with regular guests on Gaza and ...
These puppet strings don't pull themselvesYou're thinking thoughts from someone elseHow much time do you think you have?Are you prepared for what comes next?The debating chamber can be a trying place for an opposition MP. What with the person in charge, the speaker, typically being an MP from the governing ...
The land around Lyme Regis, where Meryl Streep once stood, in a hood, on the Cobb, is falling into the sea.MerylThe land around Lyme Regis, around the Cobb that made it rich, has always been falling slowly but surely into the sea. Read more ...
Buzz from the Beehive Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters was bound to win headlines when he set out his thinking about AUKUS in his speech to the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. The headlines became bigger when – during an interview on RNZ’s Morning Report today – he criticised ...
The Post reports on how the government is refusing to release its advice on its corrupt Muldoonist fast-track law, instead using the "soon to be publicly available" refusal ground to hide it until after select committee submissions on the bill have closed. Fast-track Minister Chris Bishop's excuse? “It's not ...
As pressure on it grows, the livestock industry’s approach to the transition to Net Zero is increasingly being compared to that of fossil fuel interests. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / Getty ImagesTL;DR: Here’s the top five news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, and a discussion above ...
The New Zealand Herald reports – Stats NZ has offered a voluntary redundancy scheme to all of its workers as a way to give staff some control over their “future” amidst widespread job losses in the public sector. In an update to staff this morning, seen by the Herald, Statistics New Zealand ...
On Werewolf/Scoop, I usually do two long form political columns a week. From now on, there will be an extra column each week about music and movies. But first, some late-breaking political events:The rise in unemployment numbers for the March quarter was bigger than expected – and especially sharp ...
David Farrar writes – The Herald reports: TVNZ says it is dealing with about 50 formal complaints over its coverage of the latest 1News-Verian political poll, with some viewers – as well as the Prime Minister and a former senior Labour MP – critical of the tone of the 6pm report. ...
Muriel Newman writes – When Meridian Energy was seeking resource consents for a West Coast hydro dam proposal in 2010, local Maori “strenuously” objected, claiming their mana was inextricably linked to ‘their’ river and could be damaged. After receiving a financial payment from the company, however, the Ngai Tahu ...
Alwyn Poole writes – “An SEP,’ he said, ‘is something that we can’t see, or don’t see, or our brain doesn’t let us see, because we think that it’s somebody else’s problem. That’s what SEP means. Somebody Else’s Problem. The brain just edits it out, it’s like a ...
Our trust in our political institutions is fast eroding, according to a Maxim Institute discussion paper, Shaky Foundations: Why our democracy needs trust. The paper – released today – raises concerns about declining trust in New Zealand’s political institutions and democratic processes, and the role that the overuse of Parliamentary urgency ...
David Seymour has failed to get the sweeping cuts he wanted to the free and healthy school lunch programme, Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
Hon Willie Jackson has been invited by the Oxford Union to debate the motion “This House Believes British Museums are not Very British’ on May 23rd. ...
Green Party MP Hūhana Lyndon says her Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill is an opportunity to right some past wrongs around the alienation of Māori land. ...
A senior, highly respected King’s Counsel with decades of experience in our law courts, Gary Judd KC, has filed a complaint about compulsory tikanga Māori studies for law students - highlighting the utter depths of absurdity this woke cultural madness has taken our society. The tikanga regulations will compel law ...
The Government needs to be clear with the people of the Nelson Marlborough region about the changes it is considering for the Nelson Hospital rebuild, Labour health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall said. ...
Ministers must front up about which projects it will push through under its Fast Track Approvals legislation, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
The Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...
With Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...
The Labour Party is saddened to learn of the death of Sir Robert Martin, a globally renowned disability advocate who led the way for disability rights both in New Zealand and internationally. ...
Labour is calling for the Government to urgently rethink its coalition commitment to restart live animal exports, Labour animal welfare spokesperson Rachel Boyack said. ...
Today’s Financial Stability Report has once again highlighted that poverty and deep inequality are political choices - and this Government is choosing to make them worse. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to do more for our households in most need as unemployment rises and the cost of living crisis endures. ...
Unemployment is on the rise and it’s only going to get worse under this Government, Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said. Stats NZ figures show the unemployment rate grew to 4.3 percent in the March quarter from 4 percent in the December quarter. “This is the second rise in unemployment ...
The New Zealand Labour Party welcomes the entering into force of the European Union and New Zealand free trade agreement. This agreement opens the door for a huge increase in trade opportunities with a market of 450 million people who are high value discerning consumers of New Zealand goods and ...
The National-led Government continues its fiscal jiggery pokery with its Pharmac announcement today, Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall says. “The government has increased Pharmac funding but conceded it will only make minimal increases in access to medicine”, said Ayesha Verrall “This is far from the bold promises made to fund ...
This afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...
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. ...
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. ...
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. ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop, today released his decision on twenty recommendations referred to him by the Wellington City Council relating to its Intensification Planning Instrument, after the Council rejected those recommendations of the Independent Hearings Panel and made alternative recommendations. “Wellington notified its District Plan on ...
Rape Awareness Week (6-10 May) is an important opportunity to acknowledge the continued effort required by government and communities to ensure that all New Zealanders can live free from violence, say Ministers Karen Chhour and Louise Upston. “With 1 in 3 women and 1 in 8 men experiencing sexual violence ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government will be delivering a more efficient Healthy School Lunches Programme, saving taxpayers approximately $107 million a year compared to how Labour funded it, by embracing innovation and commercial expertise. “We are delivering on our commitment to treat taxpayers’ money ...
New research on the impacts of extreme weather on coastal marine habitats in Tairāwhiti and Hawke’s Bay will help fishery managers plan for and respond to any future events, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. A report released today on research by Niwa on behalf of Fisheries New Zealand ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters will lead a broad political delegation on a five-stop Pacific tour next week to strengthen New Zealand’s engagement with the region. The delegation will visit Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, and Tuvalu. “New Zealand has deep and ...
There has been a material decline in gas production according to figures released today by the Gas Industry Co. Figures released by the Gas Industry Company show that there was a 12.5 per cent reduction in gas production during 2023, and a 27.8 per cent reduction in gas production in the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins tonight announced the recipients of the Minister of Defence Awards of Excellence for Industry, saying they all contribute to New Zealanders’ security and wellbeing. “Congratulations to this year’s recipients, whose innovative products and services play a critical role in the delivery of New Zealand’s defence capabilities, ...
Welcome to you all - it is a pleasure to be here this evening.I would like to start by thanking Greg Lowe, Chair of the New Zealand Defence Industry Advisory Council, for co-hosting this reception with me. This evening is about recognising businesses from across New Zealand and overseas who in ...
It is a pleasure to be speaking to you as the Minister for Digitising Government. I would like to thank Akolade for the invitation to address this Summit, and to acknowledge the great effort you are making to grow New Zealand’s digital future. Today, we stand at the cusp of ...
New Zealand is urging both Israel and Hamas to agree to an immediate ceasefire to avoid the further humanitarian catastrophe that military action in Rafah would unleash, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The immense suffering in Gaza cannot be allowed to worsen further. Both sides have a responsibility to ...
A new online data dashboard released today as part of the Government’s school attendance action plan makes more timely daily attendance data available to the public and parents, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. The interactive dashboard will be updated once a week to show a national average of how ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced Rosemary Banks will be New Zealand’s next Ambassador to the United States of America. “Our relationship with the United States is crucial for New Zealand in strategic, security and economic terms,” Mr Peters says. “New Zealand and the United States have a ...
The Government is considering creating a new tier of minerals permitting that will make it easier for hobby miners to prospect for gold. “New Zealand was built on gold, it’s in our DNA. Our gold deposits, particularly in regions such as Otago and the West Coast have always attracted fortune-hunters. ...
Minister for Trade Todd McClay today announced that New Zealand and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will commence negotiations on a free trade agreement (FTA). Minister McClay met with his counterpart UAE Trade Minister Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi in Dubai, where they announced the launch of negotiations on a ...
New Zealand Sign Language Week is an excellent opportunity for all Kiwis to give the language a go, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. This week (May 6 to 12) is New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) Week. The theme is “an Aotearoa where anyone can sign anywhere” and aims to ...
Six tertiary students have been selected to work on NASA projects in the US through a New Zealand Space Scholarship, Space Minister Judith Collins announced today. “This is a fantastic opportunity for these talented students. They will undertake internships at NASA’s Ames Research Center or its Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), where ...
New Zealanders will be safer because of a $1.9 billion investment in more frontline Corrections officers, more support for offenders to turn away from crime, and more prison capacity, Corrections Minister Mark Mitchell says. “Our Government said we would crack down on crime. We promised to restore law and order, ...
The OECD’s latest report on New Zealand reinforces the importance of bringing Government spending under control, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The OECD conducts country surveys every two years to review its members’ economic policies. The 2024 New Zealand survey was presented in Wellington today by OECD Chief Economist Clare Lombardelli. ...
The Government has delivered on its election promise to provide a financially sustainable model for Auckland under its Local Water Done Well plan. The plan, which has been unanimously endorsed by Auckland Council’s Governing Body, will see Aucklanders avoid the previously projected 25.8 per cent water rates increases while retaining ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters discussed the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and enhanced cooperation in the Pacific with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock during her first official visit to New Zealand today. "New Zealand and Germany enjoy shared interests and values, including the rule of law, democracy, respect for the international system ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop today released his decision on four recommendations referred to him by the Western Bay of Plenty District Council, opening the door to housing growth in the area. The Council’s Plan Change 92 allows more homes to be built in existing and new ...
Thank you, John McKinnon and the New Zealand China Council for the invitation to speak to you today. Thank you too, all members of the China Council. Your effort has played an essential role in helping to build, shape, and grow a balanced and resilient relationship between our two ...
The Government is modernising insurance law to better protect Kiwis and provide security in the event of a disaster, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly announced today. “These reforms are long overdue. New Zealand’s insurance law is complicated and dated, some of which is more than 100 years old. ...
The coalition Government is refreshing its approach to supporting pay equity claims as time-limited funding for the Pay Equity Taskforce comes to an end, Public Service Minister Nicola Willis says. “Three years ago, the then-government introduced changes to the Equal Pay Act to support pay equity bargaining. The changes were ...
Structured literacy will change the way New Zealand children learn to read - improving achievement and setting students up for success, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Being able to read and write is a fundamental life skill that too many young people are missing out on. Recent data shows that ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay says Canada’s refusal to comply in full with a CPTPP trade dispute ruling in our favour over dairy trade is cynical and New Zealand has no intention of backing down. Mr McClay said he has asked for urgent legal advice in respect of our ‘next move’ ...
The rights of our children and young people will be enhanced by changes the coalition Government will make to strengthen oversight of the Oranga Tamariki system, including restoring a single Children’s Commissioner. “The Government is committed to delivering better public services that care for our most at-risk young people and ...
The Government is making it easier for minor changes to be made to a building consent so building a home is easier and more affordable, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on making it easier and cheaper to build homes so we can ...
New Zealand lost a true legend when internationally renowned disability advocate Sir Robert Martin (KNZM) passed away at his home in Whanganui last night, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. “Our Government’s thoughts are with his wife Lynda, family and community, those he has worked with, the disability community in ...
Good evening – Before discussing the challenges and opportunities facing New Zealand’s foreign policy, we’d like to first acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. You have contributed to debates about New Zealand foreign policy over a long period of time, and we thank you for hosting us. ...
From today, passengers travelling internationally from Auckland Airport will be able to keep laptops and liquids in their carry-on bags for security screening thanks to new technology, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Creating a more efficient and seamless travel experience is important for holidaymakers and businesses, enabling faster movement through ...
People with an interest in the health of Northland’s marine ecosystems are invited to a public meeting to discuss how to deal with kina barrens, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones will lead the discussion, which will take place on Friday, 10 May, at Awanui Hotel in ...
Kiwi exporters are $100 million better off today with the NZ EU FTA entering into force says Trade Minister Todd McClay. “This is all part of our plan to grow the economy. New Zealand's prosperity depends on international trade, making up 60 per cent of the country’s total economic activity. ...
There are heartening signs that the extractive sector is once again becoming an attractive prospect for investors and a source of economic prosperity for New Zealand, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The beginnings of a resurgence in extractive industries are apparent in media reports of the sector in the past ...
The return of the historic Ō-Rākau battle site to the descendants of those who fought there moved one step closer today with the first reading of Te Pire mō Ō-Rākau, Te Pae o Maumahara / The Ō-Rākau Remembrance Bill. The Bill will entrust the 9.7-hectare battle site, five kilometres west ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has announced 25 new high-speed EV charging hubs along key routes between major urban centres and outlined the Government’s plan to supercharge New Zealand’s EV infrastructure. The hubs will each have several chargers and be capable of charging at least four – and up to 10 ...
The coalition Government will not proceed with the previous Government’s plans to regulate residential property managers, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “I have written to the Chairperson of the Social Services and Community Committee to inform him that the Government does not intend to support the Residential Property Managers Bill ...
The Government has announced an independent review into the disability support system funded by the Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha. Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston says the review will look at what can be done to strengthen the long-term sustainability of Disability Support Services to provide disabled people and ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith has attended the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva and outlined the Government’s plan to restore law and order. “Speaking to the United Nations Human Rights Council provided us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while responding to issues and ...
The Government and Rotorua Lakes Council are committed to working closely together to end the use of contracted emergency housing motels in Rotorua. Associate Minister of Housing (Social Housing) Tama Potaka says the Government remains committed to ending the long-term use of contracted emergency housing motels in Rotorua by the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Debbie Passey, Digital Health Research Fellow, The University of Melbourne Algorithms have become integral to our lives. From social media apps to Netflix, algorithms learn your preferences and prioritise the content you are shown. Google Maps and artificial intelligence are nothing without ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Josephine Barbaro, Associate Professor, Principal Research Fellow, Psychologist, La Trobe University Unsplash We’ve come a long way in terms of understanding that everyone thinks, interacts and experiences the world differently. In the past, autistic people, people with attention deficit hyperactive disorder ...
PNG Post-Courier Papua New Guinea’s deputy opposition leader James Nomane has accused the government of “reckless economic management” that has forced devaluation to manage loan repayments in foreign currency and placate the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Prime Minister James Marape “must stop lying to the people of Papua New Guinea”, ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards – Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. “Follow the money” is the classic directive to journalists trying to understand where power and influence lie in society. In terms of uncovering who influences various New Zealand political parties and governments, it therefore pays to ...
RNZ News As Israel presses ahead with strikes in Rafah and seizing the Rafah crossing from Egypt, aid agencies are sounding the alarm of a “catastrophic humanitarian situation”. Rafah was “significant” because it was the only part in Gaza that had not been terribly damaged by the conflict, United Nations ...
With funding set to be scrapped for the Hamilton-Auckland commuter train, Te Huia enthusiast Georgie Dansey argues for it to be thrown a lifeline. It’s 5.45am and the chain of my crappy old bike falls off slugging up the one hill in Hamilton. I contemplate yeeting the bike into the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anna Cooke, Honorary Fellow, School of the Environment, The University of Queensland We feel ecological grief when we lose places, species or ecosystems we value and love. These losses are a growing threat to mental health and wellbeing globally. We all see ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Shauna Brail, Associate Professor, Institute for Management & Innovation, University of Toronto A shift to hybrid and remote work continues to affect worker presence in Toronto’s downtown.(Shutterstock) Downtown Toronto, the core of Canada’s largest city, continues to reel from the lingering ...
Responding to an Auditor-General's report slamming failures in the administration of the 2023 General Election, Taxpayers’ Union Policy and Public Affairs Manager, James Ross, said: ...
Productivity apps now make up a big chunk of the software market. But do they work? And why do they all have AI integrations?Despite being firmly on the record as a physical planner fan, I sometimes dream of something better than my pretty diary and its scrawled, ugly, interior ...
The Taxpayers’ Union says the Beehive need to lead by example, following reports of more than $50,000 spent upgrading video conferencing equipment and furniture in the Prime Minister’s office. Taxpayers’ Union Campaign Manager, Connor Molloy, ...
An objective list of the 50 most powerful people in New Zealand, as judged by the Spinoff Editorial Board. It’s power list season, baby, and we want in on the action. Sure, there’s the rich list and the powerful “c-suite” list and the young people with power (hmmm) but here, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Thalia Anthony, Professor of Law, University of Technology Sydney ShutterstockThis article contains information on deaths in custody and the names of deceased people, and describes ongoing colonial violence towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. First Nations people in Australia ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alex Simpson, Senior Lecturer in Criminology, Macquarie University Netflix Baby Reindeer’s phenomenal success has much to do with its writer and lead, Richard Gadd, who plays Donny in a tender semi-autobiographical account of sexual abuse, harassment and stalking. Gadd’s story has ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Collins, Laureate Professor in Nutrition and Dietetics, University of Newcastle KarolinaGrabowska/Pexels If you didn’t have food allergies as a child, is it possible to develop them as an adult? The short answer is yes. But the reasons why are much ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Paul Moon, Professor of History, Auckland University of Technology Ans Westra, self-portrait, c. 1963. National Library ref AWM-0705-F They try but invariably fail – those writers who believe they are capable of encapsulating in prose or verse the essence of ...
Stewart Sowman-Lund looks at the growing concern around the world in this extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. What’s all this? When Covid-19 arrived on our shores in early 2020, some argued we were too slow, or crucially, ill-prepared for a pandemic. So ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Franco Montalto, Professor of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering and Director, Sustainable Water Resource Engineering Laboratory, Drexel University Water runs into a storm drain in a Los Angeles alley on Aug. 19, 2023, during Tropical Storm Hilary.Citizen of the Planet/Universal Images ...
The inquest into the death of Gore toddler Lachlan Jones has turned up a new witness who says he saw two teenagers and a small child in a high vis vest in the area where the boy’s body was found the day he died. Lachie’s body was discovered face up ...
Stories from the tenancy trenches, featuring spider infestations, cupboard rats and same-sex discrimination. Lucy’s brother was living in a damp 1930s building in Mt Eden where “he had to tie the cupboard doors closed so the rats didn’t get in”. Although he shared custody of his six-year-old son, his property ...
Simeon Brown, Chris Luxon, and Wayne Brown climbed into a hole and announced a plan to solve Auckland’s water woes. This is how it’ll work. New Zealand’s pipes are munted. They’re cracked and leaking, and struggling to handle all the extra poos excreted by our rising population. It’s a big, ...
I knew Taika Waititi quite well when he was a kid. His mother lived in a tall narrow house in Aro St, and my youngest sister had a similar house two doors along. They were both single mums, they each had a son aged seven. Taika and my nephew Stepan ...
Opinion: “As time passes, knowledge of the circumstances of the August 2016 outbreak will fade and its immediate impact will be lost.” This statement is from the 2017 report of the Official Inquiry into the Havelock North campylobacteriosis outbreak. The then National-led government established the inquiry after the outbreak left ...
Opinion: Nicholas Khoo looks at two key points in the high-stakes foreign policy pact debate – and asks if NZ can engage with as little drama as possible. The post Where to next for the Aukus ruckus? appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A,DIV,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, Wednesday 8 May appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Opinion: ‘Reference-class forecasting’ is at the heart of improving pricing a project and identifying the expected timeframe but it doesn’t appear to be in use here The post ‘Think fast and act slowly’ is failing big projects appeared first on Newsroom. ...
What do a sombrero in Argentina and cognitive driving tests have in common? Don’t worry, we’re not setting up a bad joke. Hinengaro Clinic dementia clinician Gregory Winkelman has the answer on today’s episode of The Detail. “We ask a patient’s spouse or son or daughter: If you went to ...
Wellington long jumper Phoebe Edwards is back and she’s having fun again. Until this year, Edwards, a top athlete in her teens, had never competed as a senior athlete in New Zealand. In March, the 26-year-old won a national long jump title in a lifetime best of 6.28m after ...
After replacing a fifth of their caucus in just four months, the Greens’ opportunity to reset, reshuffle and refocus on the Government is quickly slipping away The post Persistent Green Party scandals delay caucus reset appeared first on Newsroom. ...
ANALYSIS:By Olli Hellmann, University of Waikato When New Zealanders commemorate Anzac Day today on April 25, it’s not only to honour the soldiers who lost their lives in World War I and subsequent conflicts, but also to mark a defining event for national identity. The battle of Gallipoli against ...
By Robin Martin, RNZ News reporter A New Zealand local authority, Whanganui District Council, has passed a motion calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, condemnation of all acts of violence and terror against civilians on both sides of the conflict and the immediate return of hostages. It comes as ...
Asia Pacific Report The Aotearoa chapter of the Women’s International league for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) has appealed to the New Zealand government to call out Israel over the “cruel and barbaric use of force” in Gaza and demand a permanent ceasefire. The league’s open letter was sent to Prime ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The Albanese government will invest $566 million over a decade on data, maps and other tools to promote exploration and development in Australia’s resources industry. The project will fund “the first comprehensive map of what’s ...
Asia Pacific Report Following an open letter by Auckland University academics speaking out in support of their students’ right to protest against the genocidal Israeli war on Gaza, a group of academics at Otago University have today also called on New Zealand academic institutions to “repair colonial violence” and end ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Linda J. Graham, Professor and Director of the Centre for Inclusive Education, Queensland University of Technology Ryan Tauss/ Unsplash, CC BY Two male students have been expelled from a Melbourne private school for their involvement in a list ranking female students. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University The Reserve Bank is now assuming Australians will see no interest rate cuts this year – and quite possibly none before the next federal election, due next May. That’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Hayward, Emeritus Professor of Public Policy, RMIT University The Victorian budget offered more of the same on Tuesday, with the only change being how the budget papers were packaged. The usual shrink wrap was gone, hinting at savings in the pages ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The Coalition is demanding extensive amendments to the government’s legislation targeting non-citizens who refuse to co-operate with their removal. In a dissenting report to the senate inquiry into the legislation, the Coalition says it ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Vanita Yadav, Senior Research Fellow, Urban Transformations Research Centre, Western Sydney University Brett Boardman/Belvoir The complex and grappling issue of violence against women takes centre stage in the soul-stirring solo dance drama Nayika: A Dancing Girl. During a dinner conversation ...
Disruption to patient care from a nationwide junior doctors strike is bordering on unsafe, a senior doctor claims, despite what health officials say. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Diepstraten, Senior Research Officer, Blood Cells and Blood Cancer Division, Walter and Eliza Hall Institute Ground Picture/Shutterstock The anti-cancer drug abemaciclib (also known as Vernezio) has this month been added to the Australian Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) to treat certain ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dominic McAfee, Postdoctoral researcher, marine ecology, University of Adelaide Robbie Porter, OzFish Unlimited Around Australia, hundreds of people are coming together to help a once-prized, but decimated and largely forgotten marine ecosystem. They’re busy restoring Australia’s native oyster and mussel reefs. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sara Webb, Lecturer, Centre for Astrophysics and Supercomputing, Swinburne University of Technology Austin Human/Unsplash How does Earth stop meteors from hitting Earth and hurting people? –Asher, 6 years 11 months, New South Wales Alright, let’s embark on a meteor ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rory Mulcahy, Associate Professor of Marketing, University of the Sunshine Coast Professional sports organisations regularly promote and develop initiatives to support diversity, equity and inclusion. While sport has the power to change attitudes by sparking conversations about political issues and social ...
Comment: The weekly Monday post-Cabinet press conference is a useful forum for observing Christopher Luxon and how he is developing into the job of Prime Minister. He attempts to convey the impression of a man of action, speaking fast, delivering memorised National Party strategies in a connect-the-slogans kind of way, ...
Double votes, missing ballot boxes, tired tech and stressed staff: how tick-tallying went astray at last year’s election. Cast your mind back to November 2023, that bleary-eyed post-election period duringwhichwewaited, andwaited, for a coalition deal to be hammered out. A distraction from the hotel-hopping of our ...
International audiences are starting to discover what New Zealand already knew about After the Party.When After the Party aired in New Zealand last year, the response was fast and furious. In his preview for Rec Room, Duncan Greive said it was a “gritty, wrenching and highly confronting” series. By ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Shahram Akbarzadeh, Convenor of the Middle East Studies Forum (MESF), and Acting Director the Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation, Deakin University Iran’s leadership has been a direct beneficiary of the months-long war in Gaza. With every missile that Israel fires ...
Claire Mabey reviews the haunting and sexy debut novel from Sinéad Gleeson, who is about to touch down in Aotearoa for a string of live events.When Irish writer Sinéad Gleeson was in Aotearoa in 2018 with her spectacular collection of essays, Constellations, she told me she was working on ...
PNG Post-Courier Bougainville Affairs Minister Manasseh Makiba has described the Post-Courier’s front page story yesterday regarding a meeting between Bougainville and national government leaders as “sensationalised” and without substance. The Autonomous Bougainville Government (AGB) had warned it might use “other avenues to gain its independence” should the PNG government “continue ...
Where some saw the worst press conference given by the government to date, Anna Rawhiti-Connell recognised girl maths game.Nicola Willis, recently exasperated by comparisons to Ruth Richardson, said she was “a bit sick of being compared with every female finance minister that’s ever been out there.”Some think that’s ...
The March results are reported against forecasts based on the Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update 2023 (HYEFU 2023), published on 20 December 2023 and the results for the same period for the previous year. ...
The feed on the Transport Blog won’t have as much history as usual. It started feeding comments through into their post RSS feed.
Seems ok after I purged what we have stored and reloaded
I’ve been in Christchurch since lastTtuesday night. It is certainly a shadow of its former self but you can see as you drive around the progress that is being made and the city it will become.
Two areas, traditionally (and still) working class have seen an influx of new (relocated businesses), Woolston and Hornby.
As an Aucklander the road works and associated traffic hold ups are nothing new but I know from my previous trips over the years and a period living there that CHCHCH residents will find it tough.
I tip my hat to the people of Christchurch for their perserverance and optimistic outlook. Most have no choice but to stay and persevere but no one said you had to do it with a smile on your face, so kudos to you all.
You certainly deserve better than this
” Affordable housing is being pushed out of reach for most of Christchurch’s most vulnerable residents as the number of pricey rentals across the city soars.
Fairfax Media has compared the number of rentals in different price ranges using Census data from 2006 and 2013.
It showed the high end of the Christchurch rental market has expanded dramatically, while the bottom end of the market collapsed.
Across the city, the percentage of rentals in the $200 to $299 price range fell from 40 per cent of all homes in 2006 to 26 per cent in 2013.
The percentage of homes in the $300 to $399 range rose from 12 per cent to 32 per cent, and from 3 per cent to 11 per cent in the $400 to $499.
The number of rentals costing more than $500 a week skyrocketed city-wide, especially in the more affluent suburbs.
In Linwood, the number of rentals in the $100 to $199 price range decreased from 729 to 258 between 2006 and 2013.
The number in the $300 to $399 bracket increased from 69 to 225.
Aranui’s rentals in the $300 to $399 price range rose from nine to 114 – a 1167 per cent increase. ”
and this
” The earthquake recovery minister’s Christmas card said the challenges of life in Christchurch continued this year but the “light at the end of the tunnel” was a little more evident.
It read: “2014 I’m sure will be brighter. I hope you enjoy the festive season and wish you well for 2014 which will be a big year for National.” G Brownlee former head of Ministry responsible for Pike River
Did you enjoy the little shake yesterday?
That one had the feeling like it was going to get bigger. All my family that felt it (in different areas of the city) thought the same.
Yep felt it too – short and sharp equals nearby. Then there was another a few minutes later. Reminded me of times when we use to get three in a row with the third being the wallop. Luckily it didn’t come…
Can’t believe the nanny state term is still used by Tory politicians …after Pike River, forestry deaths and the CTV building collapse.
That’s right Tony you and your obscene government’s refusal to care for people’s safety at work costs lives.
And you have the nerve to gibber on about nanny state.
Revolting.
“New Zealand is getting fatter – with three in every 10 adults now regarded as obese.
A leading diabetes researcher has called the new figures alarming and has accused the Government of failing to take the problem seriously.
However, Health Minister Tony Ryall has rejected “nanny state” measures, instead arguing that providing information and support to people is enough.
“In the end, the Government can pass all the laws it likes but unless people eat less and exercise more, things won’t change,” Mr Ryall said yesterday in response to the new figures.”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11173055
Well, ya know Paul, we don’t want to regulate now, that might interfere with corporate foods’ right to a profit.
There are so many facets to our deteriorating health stats but the free run that corporates have in the market has to be a contributor towards poor health – IMO.
.
One example might be the abundance of jumbo packs of junk food constantly on special. 3 X 150 gm bags of fat and msg laden chippies for $5. Chocolate as an everyday cheap commodity.(ethical issue here too with child labour being used in the production of some brands) Booze easily available 24/7 in some areas. Soft drinks, litres of the stuff that take up half an aisle.
We had a New World open up in our neighbourhood recently. It’s more like a glorified dairy selling convenience food rather than a place to go and get healthy ingredients.
Think back 35+ years to what supermarket shelves looked like, ok maybe less variety, all rather meat and 3 vege stylez but there wasn’t the abundance of junk food. I remember as a kid in the 70’s chippies and ‘fizzy’ were a treat for birthdays and Xmas. All biscuits and cakes were home made and treat only. Did we worry about type 2 diabetes then?
Our govt exists to serve the corporates, not society.
and lets not forget people are working longer hours than ever and are too tired to cook decent healthy meals, and can’t afford good ingredients anyway – convenience food manufacturers benefit from a poorly regulated labour force?
Ultimately Governments have a hand in the health of the population. Tony Ryall is wrong.
For the past 30 years.
“Our govt exists to serve the corporates, not society.”
Quite, and we might want to consider that obesity is being defined by a fairly useless indicator (the BMI) and who benefits from that? Big pharma is making shit loads of money from poor health. The MoH can wax lyrical about diet and exercise all it wants, but until structural changes are made, money will go straight from the tax payer to corporate via health.
I was a child of the 70s and ate plenty of sweet things 😉 There is an issue with type 2 diabetes increasing, and the reason it is showing up now is because the generation that ate all those lollies in the 1970 and 80s is now reaching the age where type two kicks in. Worse, the age at which type 2 kicks in will get lower with each generation now.
Diet and exercise are big factors in this, but the mainstream health advice is probably causing more problems than its fixing: dietary fat doesn’t cause diabetes, refined carbs do (or rather insulin resistance does, so you have to figure out why the individual is on a track to that, and its usually related to blood sugar). When you tell people to eat a low fat diet, you achieve two things: one is that you create a diet deficient in fat-soluble vitamins that are critical to health (especially hormonal and brain), and two, you force people to eat more carbs (got to get energy for metabolism from somewhere). High carb diets create the blood sugar conditions to create insulin resistance, which eventually causes type 2 diabetes and other diseases.
The other issue here is that the other illnesses associated with insulin resistance eg heart disease are being targeted by big pharma. Statins is the classic, where the ‘normal’ range for cholesterols has been shifted so that now younger and younger people are being put on statins ‘preventatively’ despite the research showing this has dubious health outcomes across the population. Statins also come with significant side effects and guess how those are treated and who makes money from them?
Sometimes when I hit health professionals and their food advice, I find myself thinking of Orwell’s ‘Animal Farm’ and the mindlessly repeated slogan ‘Two legs bad, four legs good’ and the later ‘Two legs good, four legs bad’.
We’re being farmed by various industries, that’s for sure.
Hi weka. The low fat approach gets a lot of air time but like you I’d look to refined carbs and sugars as one of the main contributors to type 2 diabetes and it’s precursor, insulin resistance. (No I’m not a nutritionist but I know folks who are).
And yes, cutting out all fats or minimising then severely mean you lose out on valuable nutrition from seeds and nuts, and dare I say dairy products with their fat soluble vitamins, a + d. Vitamin d is important for calcium uptake. (with apologies to the vegans, I know I know, unhulled tahini……) Trim milk is a con.
Big Pharma: Went to a fascinating lecture many years ago entitled “The cholesterol juggernaut”. The premise was that cholesterol, even the “bad” ldl type isn’t the problem, and to a certain degree is important for immune health but scarring within the arteries is the problem. The cholesterol “catches” on the scars and builds up in the artery, leading to the old clogged arteries scenario. The lecturer proposed that homocysteine, an amino acid found in red meat was the cause of the scarring and spent ages railing against trans fatty acids too. It’s now commonly known that trans fats are bad for our health. Trans fats, found in those cheap as chips chippies!
At the same time I respect there is a need, and time and place for cholesterol lowering drugs and I’m no expert on the topic. Coming from a family with high rates of heart disease on both sides, and my Father dying when he was only 54 I tend to be hyper alert to heart issues and learn what I can and have been known to ignore the cardiologist’s advice to go on statins – there was nothing wrong with my cholesterol levels 6 years ago and there isn’t today either, so I’ll take my chances.
Final word, because I’ve got to dash, I always remember what John Campbell said in regard to an article they had about child poverty, in particular children going hungry for hours and eating only highly refined cheap foods because that’s all they had access to. He said (approximately) “that is a type 2 diabetes epidemic waiting in the wings!” and suggested it was the governments role to intervene to help these children immediately but also to prevent a costly public health burden later. I agree.
The classic tory hands off approach to public health is a lose lose.
How do sumo wrestlers put on all the weight their sport demands? They eat copious amounts of rice. How do they shed the excess weight when their career is over? They stop eating copious amounts of rice.
How do you go about sustaining energy for long periods of physical exertion or extended periods of time? Eat or drink carbohydrates. What do you think happens if you don’t burn them off or continually ‘top up’?
Spread marg, munch pasta and pop dietary pills…don’t eat meat, drink milk or spread butter. Smash your eggs… and remember there is no difference between 10 teaspoons of cane sugar and 10 teaspoons of fruit sugars (that orange is just as unhealthy as that coke – honest)
lolz.
And, one size fits all! All people metabolise food in the same way, so you should all eat what we say. We know best! Even if you have no money you can still exercise. Even if you don’t know how to cook, you can still eat raw veges. Even if you don’t have enough money to buy food, you can still not eat fat. There is no excuse, if you are unwell it’s all your own fault 🙂 But wait, it’s ok, because we have these magic pills for you…
“growing your own veges and flowers (and cups of tea) is like printing your own money”. 😀
🙂
As someone who does grow their own veges, or to be more exact, my wife does, it is not a cheaper option on the whole, and not viable for those without much money up front.
When you have a tiny plot, where the developer has left an inch of topsoil, and you don’t have the money up front for fertilizer, soil, seeds and tools, a vege garden is not an easy, or even cheaper, option.
The advantages are they are much nicer and healthier, but it is still cheaper just buying them.
It is very noticeable how much trying to buy only healthy foods, adds to your grocery bill. Especially fruit.
The fact is, it costs the poor much more to live because they do not have access to the bulk buying, finance and spreading your cost, options, you have on a higher income.
Unhealthy foods are usually the cheapest option.
“When you have a tiny plot, where the developer has left an inch of topsoil, and you don’t have the money up front for fertilizer, soil, seeds and tools, a vege garden is not an easy, or even cheaper, option”
Exactly. And don’t you get sick of talk back types complaining about the poor and working poor not eating enough fruit and vege saying glib and predictable things like “they can always grow their own free food”. Sigh.
Some neighbourhoods have set up communal gardens where folks have access to a plot but even so, potting mix may need to purchased for raised gardens, or compost to mix into topsoil if it’s a standard plot and then theres the cost of seedlings unless some clever person with time on their side has been able to raise seed. And then their patch gets raided! Hungry people are everywhere.
it is interesting you mention the hunger that is so prevalent in our society Rosie; certainly another country.
Hi Roguey! Up here, above you! No reply button. (I also grow my own cups of tea, in pots, we live on rock)
Hunger on many levels. Hungry for change. But in terms of hungry for food, I have heard of the local community garden getting plundered, and they had to do a fundraiser to put up lockable fencing. Kinda sad. Other folks I know who run similar gardens in other parts of the city have experienced the same.
They don’t mind sharing with non gardeners if those people requiring their food can’t afford to buy, they just want them to ask and they will provide it. The whole idea is community connectedness and resilience in a world facing pending food shortages. (And tasty fresh food. Om nom nom!)
yes, to conversations that I have been privy to just this past week; somebody I know sharing they take cabbages / caulis from the community garden I work in (I not mind, they are really poor) and another chappie sharing about the gathering of kaimoana, and live-stock.
I wonder if the allotment idea of the uk could work here…
I know many community gardens which willingly teach people the tricks of the trade in return for labour and a share of the spoils…
you can try pallet gardens, some companies will give away a couple of heat treated pallets if you say you are making a garden… BUT you are correct that even a pallet for small spaces requires painti, cloth, wire for baskets, soil, seeds or plants.
Thats why the initiative in ashburton is so very call. The hand over a Hundy. I dont believe in knighthoods but the woman who started this deserves one… as opposed to bob jones, richard hadlee, Susan devoy, owen glenn and so on.
http://handoverahundy.org.nz/
Rosie
I think that what should be tried is bucket gardens in places with half inch top soil. Nurture your bucket, keep away from public areas and urinating dogs, cats looking for dirt boxes etc. The gardeners life may be complicated.
Tub buckets with holes in the bottom can grow a lettuce and small ones coming on, silver beet, spinach, boky choy grow tallish, and perhaps a courgette which is a very good veg that can be eaten at any size and taste like anything you want it to. It’s a start. You can handpick off the green veg bugs, and spray with baking soda and water to keep down powdery mildew. It takes a while to get a system that suits you but more green leafy vegs seem to be the thing that is often most needed, and they are easy to keep growing, just cutting a few leaves off.
Have you ever thought of taking up dancing, KJT? When I come back, I want to try it.
that was wonderfully inspiring Murray Olsen; coincidentally, now I’m settled, I’ve been putting materials on the garden to block light to weeds.
VERY cool
sumo wrestler’s diet
http://japanese.lingualift.com/blog/what-sumo-eat-wrestlers-diet/
Interesting link, thanks Tracey. I’m just trying to look up if sumo wrestlers have poorer health outcomes. It looks like they don’t at the time they are wrestling, but can’t tell what happens later in life. ie the obesity isn’t the problem. Some fat people get Syndrome X (heart disease, type 2 diabetes etc from insulin resistance) and some don’t. Some thin people get insulin resistant. We’re looking in the wrong place when we focus on obesity.
The negative health effects of the sumo lifestyle can become apparent later in life. Sumo wrestlers have a life expectancy of between 60 and 65, more than 10 years shorter than the average Japanese male. Many develop diabetes, high blood pressure, and are prone to heart attacks. The excessive intake of alcohol can lead to liver problems and the stress on their joints can cause arthritis. Recently, the standards of weight gain are becoming less strict, in an effort to improve the overall health of the wrestlers.
wikipedia
http://reedyoung.com/retired-sumo-wrestlers/reed-young-sumo-konishiki-yasokichi/
ihon Eiseigaku Zasshi. 1995 Aug;50(3):730-6.
[Risk factors for mortality and mortality rate of sumo wrestlers].
[Article in Japanese]
Hoshi A, Inaba Y.
Author information
Abstract
We compared the mortality rate of sumo wrestlers with that of the contemporaneous Japanese male population, and inferred the usefulness of an index for predicting longevity in sumo wrestlers. The standardized mortality ratios (SMR) for sumo wrestlers were very high in each period, and also high for ages from 35 to 74. Cox’s proportional hazards model analysis revealed that the variables in “nyuumaku” entry year and BMI were statistically significant (p < 0.05) factors in mortality. In the survival curves, the lower BMI group had good life expectancy compared with the higher BMI group. In conclusion, the higher rate of mortality in sumo wrestlers seems to be due to the markedly higher rate of mortality from 35 to 74 years old. In sumo wrestlers, also, this study provides evidence that the higher overweight groups have substantially higher risks for mortality.
Hi Rosie, thanks, that’s interesting. The way I understand it is that higher cholesterol is a sign of chronic inflammation in the body ie it’s a symptom not a cause.
Re statins, it’s always such a personal thing. AFAIK the statin research doesn’t show an overal descrease in mortality, just a decrease in death by heart attack (ie people die of other things instead). There are definitely people who need statins, but not whole swathes of the population, and the use prophylactically is especially dubious given the side effects.
Transfats… I think we need to differentiate between transfats in whole, traditional foods (meat), and transfats in highly processed foods like margarine or fast food oils.
I agree re child poverty. It’s pretty hard to improve public health when you don’t fix poverty first. We are so criminally negligent in this respect (and Labour is better but not that much).
Next to no improvement if you are under 60 and high cholesterol is the only thing you have going on.
mmm, butter spread on split weet-bix, not ‘Praise” the margarine .
Obesity results from malnutrition. When you are unable to get the right kind of food.
🙄
Elder things save me from the utterly ignorant.
It’s mainly caused by eating more calories than you expend in a day of work/exercise, with other primary causes being medication, mental health (comfort eating) and medical conditions. With ethnicity coming into play when the ethnic group involved wasn’t heavily into agriculture, and thus subject to feast and famine conditions. And having lots of cheap, easy to digest calories doesn’t help either.
However, obesity by itself isn’t that statistically good an indicator of health risks, as you need to take into account exercise levels and general fitness, as sufficient exercise leads to only small statistical differences in risk to otherwise healthy populations. While ironically, for the elderly, low body fat is associated with higher morbidity.
Slippery-ism’s, the re-definition of the English language by a Prime Minister displaying all the intellectual depth of a puddle, making the ravings of the average village idiot seem akin to divine enlightenment,
On RadioNZ National, a discussion of ‘the Referendum’ with sound-bites from the PM one of which claims National won the 2011 election in a ‘Landslide’, give the bloke His due as a sometimes quite amusing comic in the sense that He is a clown doing a stand-up routine in ‘serious’,
Think the word He was looking for was a ‘back-slide’…
Cunliffe was excellent today on Morning Report on the asset sales referendum-just before 8 o’clock.
Hooton and various Tory trolls have, of course, tried to argue over recent days that “National voters simply didn’t turnout as much as Labour voters” in the referendum.
Their strategy includes the claim that turnout was either:
(1) greater in Labour-held seats OR
(2) “fairly even throughout the country” (Hooton).
But, according to a quick bit of number-crunching on my part, they appear to be rather tragically mistaken.
I’ve used the Party-Vote (specifically, which Bloc – Left or Right – won) as the basis for determining the political complexion for each seat. (A few days ago, CV linked to a very impressive series of referendum result tables – Here http://imgur.com/a/qn7Pg#0 – but unfortunately they used the Candidate-Vote as the basis for colour-coding each seat).
(see next comment)
So, the upshot…
If we look at the 20 seats with the HIGHEST turnout – we find that no less than 17 were won by the RIGHT in 2011 (And, what’s more, I’d classify only 1 of those 17 as MARGINAL RIGHT, the rest were either STRONG or FAIRLY STRONG RIGHT).
Of the 20 seats with the LOWEST turnout, 14 were won by the LEFT in 2011, 6 by the RIGHT. (And every single one of the 10 LOWEST-turnout seats were LEFT-leaning).
So, NZ is basically a socialist leaning country, from top to bottom. Which are our socialist leaning political parties, please.
Huh? writing that as you sit by the pool in your father in laws gated house quaffing champagne? nice “socialism”
new zealand is capitalist through and through, despite the best efforts of all the “progressive” hurdles to success
My first comment appears to be in moderation. Presumably, people can’t read it – thus rendering my second comment (2:32 pm) completely devoid of any context. (the “upshot” of what ?).
Meanwhile, dear old TightyRighty (sent off to board at an exclusive Prep-School at the age of 3) projecting his own vacuous lifestyle onto CV.
Socialism for the Rich! (And especially for the banking and investment classes)
Capitalism for the Poor!
That’s only if you think that stealing assets from your fellow citizens equals “success”.
The age of crony capitalism and ponzi innovation.
And while TightyRighty’s father in law won’t even let him on the property. Life can be so hard, but try to be a better person. Or maybe just a person.
NZ governments go along with socialist policies though try to remove them whenever they have a chance, despite this harming the economy.
Very telling and interesting analysis thank you swordfish.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11173003
Why would this very, very honest man refuse to pay?
Why would anyone really give a big fat one???
Why do you care so much? You seem obsessed.
Why should he pay?
Why? Because he’s a douche of the highest order.
So how much does Banksy owe for all the court and judge time he’s used so far?
He’s likely to miss out on a few months of salary once his seat is vacated, which will save the taxpayers a bit of coin.
[deleted]
[lprent: Already banned. Another IP for autospam. ]
Er, actually CV was explicitly talking about John Banks, and so I specifically replied about John Banks.
You do understand how threading works in an online forum, yes? And that the purpose of it is to allow people to take conversations in different directions without derailing the entire discussion?
Nothing I’ve seen indicates that Brown is corrupt although there’s serious questions to be asked about him accepting free rooms from SkyCity.
why would this very, very honest man keep racing up the lies?
http://thestandard.org.nz/an-honest-man/
Most recently telling the public the books were a “mess” when he came to power and he has turned them around.
I don’t think he should pay.
The purpose of the inquiry was to investigate any potential misuse of resources re: Bevan Chuang. He said there had been no such misuses, and that’s exactly what the inquiry showed.
+1
In the referendum discussions I see everyone still calling it the “anti smacking” bill which I think came from the right wing religious spin.
How about, at least on TS we call it what it is “anti child assault” and leave the old spin behind. Kids got the same legal protection against assault that adults already had. I just don’t get people who want to hit someone smaller than themselves.
Any party advocating repeal of S59 should be portrayed accurately as “large people get the right to hit small people” and “politicians for increasing child abuse and domestic violence statistics.”
The MSM should also think over their somewhat two faced position on both these issues.
+1
The misinformation around this change to the Crimes Act was staggering and harmful.
A person disciplining a child can no longer invoke the subjective test of believing it to be justified for disciplinary purposes. Such as the father who beat his child with a steel pipe but a jury found him not guilty because the father genuinely believe it was justified for discipline.
” justified in using force by way
of correction towards a child if that force
is reasonable in the circumstances”
Parents ought never see placing their hands on their child as their primary method of discipline. The port of first call if you will. To do so is lazy and speaks volumes about the parent in question. If parents cannot be bothered learning different ways to discipline their children, of correcting their behaviour, perhaps they ought not be parents?
Interesting article here
http://ir.canterbury.ac.nz/bitstream/10092/670/1/12602518_Section%2059%20crimes%20act%201961.pdf
You are quite correct Tracey; what physical violence delivered onto their children says about parents is very concerning if not for the purposes permitted by the current law.
+1
Challenge the lingo and spin at EVERY opportunity (going forward)!
The first person I heard call it “the anti-smacking bill” was Sue Bradford.
There were already laws against assaulting children.
You could equally call it the “bill to give police more power to harass poor people bill, because that has been its main noticeable effect.
Mind you, it has been a good distraction from addressing the really pervasive violence against children and their parents. Poverty.
Helping desperate people without hope to a better life, and a real “brighter future” will do more to prevent child abuse than any number of “tinkering with the symptoms” laws.
Most of the people I have seen lashing out at those around them, apart from the family fist type nutters, are more in need of help, than comfortable middle class condemnation.
Link required to a credible source for
“You could equally call it the “bill to give police more power to harass poor people bill, because that has been its main noticeable effect.”
Personal observation.
The same as I have noted a distinct change in police attitude to me, when I go into bat for the local teenagers they are harassing, since I moved from the “big white house on the hill” to an ordinary house in the suburbs.
Police putting people in cells for the night, or giving someone a hard time, without charges, does not come up in the statistics.
Has the rate of child abuse gone down, since the bill, Tracey?
Gone up with the increase in impoverished children and parents, however.
sending a message that children are not property, that children can be difficult but parents need to learn about parenting/discipline s a good first step to valuing children.
I believe ANy law change has to be accompanied by community-wide education. No one is borne knowing how to be a parent, we, as a society, need to help. But we dont.
People still murder, even though we have a law against it, but the message the law sends is an important one.
Most of us already had that message.
But, I suppose the law change made people feel like they were doing something.
this is thought-provoking RedBaron
Sue Bradford’s bill was the repeal of s59 and thus removing the legal protections that allowed child abusers to get off serious assault charges. But you’re right, people advocating to keep or reinstate s59 should be portrayed as people who want to increase child abuse.
Quite right DTB, ended up with the opposite of what I meant.Rushing to work. Thanks for the fix.
Oh and BTW it isn’t only poor people that hit their kids. Just better lawyered up at the rich end of town.
And while I’m feeling riled about this. Why do these people personally get satisfaction from wanting to hit others?
“There is a significant gap between the
prevailing message from research, which
suggests harsh physical punishment has
a negative outcome for children, and
public opinion, which argues that physical
punishment, when reasonable, is an
acceptable means of disciplining children. “
Research says, as you would expect, that “harsh” physical or mental punishment harms children.
Actually, the research shows that any physical punishment harms children.
That one was also ambiguous about the effects of a smack on the butt, in a fair context..
No, it wasn’t – there are no fair contexts. Smacking causes harm.
So does jumping into the fireplace.
Breathing oxygen causes harm as well. So you’re going to have to do better than that, mate.
I think 20+ years of research is better than that.
20 years of research does not wholly agree with you, DTB.
Tracey showed some above.
because for a brief moment they feel a sense of power in a world they otherwise feel powerless. many were hit themsleves. Monkey see, monkey do.
That doesn’t explain the many parents who have no desire at all to even smack their kids, but know that a smack is better than a child who is burnt, electrocuted or run over.
and out of all the parents who have slapped or grabbed a child for that purpose, how many have been convicted of it as a crime under s59a/
The bill was changed to say that was permissible,. After the referendum. Which means of course no one has been convicted for trying to prevent a child from harming them selves.
By the way, if a hysterical adult was trying to run into the ” burning building”, I would use force if necessary to prevent them hurting themselves also. Including a slap in the face, if that is what it took. No different.
KJT – can you explain the relationship between hitting the child and preventing accidents.
The beating comes after the accident in these cases – a bit pointless.
A child can be shown that a hot element, dangerous road, or electrical fitting is dangerous through explanation. You should try it … it works. On the other hand if individuals have children who want to act dangerously out of spite or devilment – then I would suggest that their relationship with their toddlers may have partially broken down already and needs addressing.
Don’t you think we didn’t try all the other available options first.
More than a few.
A smack on the butt is not a beating, for starters.
And better than the other option, letting them continue to try and get at the fire.
A toddler does not know it is dangerous or hurts, unless you can show or tell them FFS.
Waiting until after they have learn’t the lesson the really hard way, is cruel!
“…A child can be shown that a hot element, dangerous road, or electrical fitting is dangerous through explanation.”
You do not appear to have addressed this point at all KJT.
(Just for starters, depending on the age of the toddler as to how deeply you can reason, a hot element or fire place, can be easily demonstrated as being dangerous – the slap on the hand indicates that the child is being defiant and there is very little communication happening.
You are showing a lack of understanding of the circumstances, my child and our continuous efforts to keep an impulsive, curious and very intelligent child, safe.
Take them to sea, challenging waters make for good sailors.
Yep. One of my best memories is my daughter, as a baby in her high chair in the cockpit, chortling every time we went over a wave.
Maybe it has something to do with the fact that physical sanction has been used in human society since forever pretty much, so unless we think that today we are the most advanced and civilised of all civilisations then it is we who are out of synch with history and human conduct. Our systems are the anomaly. Maybe we have it wrong in banishing physical sanction to the bin.
It also has less long term damaging effect than psychological sanction.
have a read of the article I posted a link to above vto. It makes interesting reading about the impacts (or not) of physical punishment.
Will do, but it is all coming out in French…… he he
I also note re the use of physical sanction in our society that the sole permitted use of such is by the State, and we allow that, so where is the consistency. And let’s not even get started on war and what people think about it then…. most people are quite happy to go about killing other people then. How do people justify killing people then but not using the physical in other situations?
😉 @ french
Like the SAS guy convicted of theft… yet imagine what he may have done sanctioned by the state. It’s a crazy world.
“It also has less long term damaging effect than psychological sanction.”
Maybe, but those aren’t the only two skill sets available, now or in the past.
I thought section 59 was about removing the defense of discipline in the case of beating children. There is evidence that many cultures historically have disapproved of child beating and had other strategies for raising children.
btw, we don’t apply to the ‘we’ve always done this’ rationale to lots of things.
The research actually said, and one was the NZ longitudinal study, is that “mild” physical sanctions, like a smack on the backside, which were fair and appropriate, made for slightly better outcomes than parents who only used verbal sanctions.
I have seen it several times recently, that parents who pride themselves in not smacking their kids, have often substituted much crueler mental manipulation. I like to suggest a “positive parenting course” for some more ideas.
I was happy about the defense of “discipline” as an excuse” for beating children was removed.
I was not so happy with the idea that I may go to police cells, for physically restraining my behaviorally and mentally challenged child from hurting someone.
Or smacking my daughter on the hand, when all else failed, to stop her fascination with fire and power points. And before we get some smart arse retort. We tried all the obvious and less obvious ways of stopping them first. Many times. In the end we had to go with what worked, to keep them safe.
Most of the majority, who voted against section 59a were not voting to “beat their children”.
smacked my daughter’s bottom, maybe half a dozen times until she reached the age of about four; yes meant yes (and they were by far the majority), no meant no. I had already studied human development by then though, and education is a great help if it is applied.
Ad: “ Praising Alone ” 😀
and were you arrested?
It was before section 59a.
And, as I said, the ACT as eventually passed allows a degree of physical force to prevent harm.
exactly, I am confused about what you object to about it in its current form.
You need to read what I am saying. Instead of writing me off, along with the majority who were dubious about the original bill, as one of those “child bashers”.
It was much improved after the referendum, from the original bill.
But some of the wording is still rather ambiguous, and it still, like much of our legislation leaves too much to police discretion. Discretion which police too often abuse.
I was happy about the defense of “discipline” as an excuse” for beating children was removed.
I am reading. I am not writing you off. I am trying to understand your objections. I know the difference between the bill as first proposed and the Act.
I just havent been able to find the abuse of discretion that you have encountered. I am NOT saying it hasnt happened, I wont deny your personal experience. I just havent seen evidence despite looking hard for it.
For example a few people get wrongly accused of rape, but we dont remove the rape laws, we dont remove the message that women are not property to be own and used at will by adults.
What I am saying is that the referendum wasn’t ignored.
The law as finally written took account of the objections.
Because of the referendum we got as much better law than the one originally written. which would have made physically restraining my child from attacking others. illegal.
And there was already a law against assaulting children.
Section 59a in the end did remove some ambiguous interpretation. Where some people got acquitted from what was, clearly, assault.
As I said, I am largely happy with how it ended up.
Due in part to public concern about the original draft.
Too much of our law, is however, ambiguous, hurriedly and poorly written and open to too much police interpretation.
Something which happens far less often in Switzerland, where referenda are, binding.
Didn’t we have a discussion a few days ago about the police abuse of discretion, with legally protesting demonstrators.
Why do you think that some of them, far too many, are any better on other occasions.
Though, to be fair, you get some, it may even be the majority who are there for the right reasons and do an excellent job in trying circumstances..
@ KJT …
16 December 2013 at 12:11 pm
Thanks for the clarification because I did NOT get that was where you were coming from. Thank you.
“A more recent study (Gravitas Research
and Strategy, 2005) found that 51% of all
parents and 21% of caregivers used physical
punishment, albeit relatively infrequently
and mostly when other forms of discipline
had been tried: “Physical discipline is
commonly used because parents and
caregivers consider it to be a required and/or
justified response to the child’s behaviour”
(p. 4). This approach was also acknowledged
by children who, while they highlighted the
negative consequences of being smacked,
also accepted “it as a parental right or fact of
life” (Dobbs cited in Smith, Gollop, Taylor &
Marshall, 2004, p. 28)”
“If we take the stance that minor smacking
on a child’s bottom is acceptable, then
Larzelere’s 1996 review of research on
nonabusive spanking shows that there
should still be some concern about how
effective even this form of discipline is. In
his review of 35 studies that examined the
effects of nonabusive spanking on children
by parents, “Thirty-four per cent of the
studies found negative effects on children,
26% found positive effects, and 40%
showed no net positive or negative effect.
Nonabusive spanking appears to be more
effective or have neutral effect on children
younger than 13 compared to teenagers.
Grounding appears to be more effective than
spanking in older children. Spanking appears
to be most effective when done sparingly,
non-violently, and within the context of a
healthy parent child relationship.”
26% showed positive effects.
Did for my kids. They are still alive!
Believing the only reason your children are “still alive” is because you used physical violence against them definitely makes me take you seriously as an objective commenter.
I sort of knew that the holier than though would come to the fore.
Now we just need some words from the nuts on the other extreme. Family fist!
Both extremes just want the debate to shut down.
Frakking Lefties. 250,000 kids live in poverty day to day and all the Lefties have to moan about are bullshit legal and moral niceties. Which at the end of the day still haven’t been shown to do sweet FA in actually reducing the incidence of child physical abuse in society since they have been enacted.
In contrast I’m pretty fucking sure that if child poverty (and with it family poverty) were eliminated, it would measurably reduce the incidence of child physical abuse quickly and substantially.
Exactly.
Yeah, ‘cos none of us care about child poverty or try and do anything about it.
That’s almost totally irrelevant, weka.
Because what people see is a Left distracted by multitudes of bullshit academic, abstract, unpopular issues that not only garner no widespread support, but which everyone realises will make no practical difference to the lives that the Left says it is focussed on. And which people will never support en masse.
Again plenty of well off people hit their kids too. Well off can equate with self centred behaviour and an overwhelming sense of entitlement , and justifies “anything goes” in getting comliance from others. FFS DV doesn’t just happen at the poor end of town.
riiiiiiiight, you just keep blaming other issues for “the Left’s” inability to argue economics persuasively.
If we could argue and campaign for a living wage and workers’ rights half as effectivey as we can campaign against domestic violence and discrimination, key would be sulking in hawaii after a dismal failure in 2008 and electoral ostracism.
RedbaronCV: agree with you entirely re: DV. Veitch wasn’t a pauper was he.
But I don’t care about a total solution, I care about solutions which will make a difference to a lot of people even if it’s not everyone, and s59 cost a lot politically to achieve fuck all of next to nothing on the ground.
McFlock
Nope I’m blaming the Left’s focus on abstract academic intellectually pretty bullshit which costs shit loads of rare political capital and makes negligible difference to the bottom 50% of society.
BTW I’m all for abstract academic intellectually pretty bullshit which makes a big difference to the bottom 50% of society.
but but but even if people could only concentrate on one single issue over thirty years, surely YOU haven’t been distracted by “abstract academic bullshit”?
By the way, failing to convict parents who beat a child with a rubber hose or riding crop is neither “abstract” nor “academic”.
Oh? So how many prosecutions have got put through so far because of the new law which wouldn’t have otherwise? How much has the rate of physical child abuse been reduced since the new law?
well, if we’re being pointlessly vacuous, you tell me.
Love him, or hate him, you gotta love McFlock.
as an aside, caught an article on RNZ today just before Midday (from the Tech Review chap) suggesting that the continuim of digitalizing life, from selfies through google glass, through to time-lapsed ongoing filming (yep, occurring, very trendy) is deteriorating the development of memory. What say you old boy? Eh? 😀
Love him, or hate him, you gotta love McFlock.
Both, but glad he’s here.
We keep falling into this weird and unhelpful binary trap in our thinking – for my money I think CV is right; and at the same time I think the S59 reform was a necessary step along the way.
A lot of people here would be surprised at some of the places I’ve lived – my partner and I are quite well-off, but we’ve lived in places where the reality of poverty was just over the fence.
We’ve seen all the things that go wrong in their lives; we’ve despaired at our sense of impotence around ‘fixing it’. We’re vividly aware that our middle-class pretensions and sensibilities have little place in their lives.
Just throwing money at them usually makes things worse.
Yet it is their inability to access money and security on their own terms which is the defining factor in their poverty. Crucially it is the inability of so many young men to find stable work that enables them to form stable families which perpetuates the cycle.
CV is right – this is a plain, real-life challenge. The solutions will not come out of a University department. The actions that will change things are not complex or terribly abstract; most of what is needed is already well known.
But the only people who will make any difference are the natural leaders who have come out of this world themselves, who understand the culture and who get listened to when they speak. All they need is a network and real support.
To a degree. But a blank-slate google search is qualitatively different, imo, from using it as a memory aid or locator for source documents (or even just getting a quick handle on adjacent fields of expertise – the crossover between AI, philosophy of mind, and experimental psychology, for example).
yes, the interviewer, K.Ryan I believe, headed down the “where is it all heading…” path 😉 yet neither her or the techie guy were aware of , or raised, the singularity thesis, which was discussed on TS earlier this year, from memory 😉 ; More important than memories Flockie, where do the actual years go as we get older? So in the flow , ideally, they just whizz by.
@RedLogix:
with respect, to me that smacks of the trite tryptic variation “A: …; B: get leader, networks and popular support; C: victory!”
Yes we can see the problems, and even largely agree on the solutions/desired-outcomes, but the problem we have is communicating it and gaining the support of the 47% of voters who supported national, and even the 30-odd% of Labour voters and 12-odd% of green voters. Without them, chances of getting anywhere are pretty much non-existent.
Alternatively, saturate the bureaucracy over 30 years despite it and nact’s best efforts, and hope for bureaucratic capture like lab4. If we have decades to spare (we don’t, and it would be of doubtful success probability).
If we look at the work of one person who has done a lot to address the problem of child poverty, Bryan Bruce has made two documentaries that used academia to prove there is a problem, people on the ground to show the reality, and a mixture of both to show what he sees as real solutions. I firmly believe that we need this sort of broad front to achieve change. We’re getting there – I keep the Child poverty Monitor in my hip pocket (cellphone 🙂 ) for arguments, and it was valuable if dry. Now the commissioner has put out infographics that are much more clear than the academic works some people are so hostile towards, but the information is backed up by the solid research. “Defense in depth”, if you will.
I think that the real divison on the left is in economics (the extent of safe inflationary financing that then likely affects the viability of UBI, for example), which is why we’re shit at arguing it – and therefore shit at getting support for it. If we can’t broadly persuade ourselves, what can we expect to achieve in the electorate?
@rogue
The years don’t rush by, we just become more adept at ignoring them 🙂
I’m with RL in thinking that s59 was a necessary step “along the way” i.e. one tiny step on a journey of a thousand miles, so let’s keep it in that perspective.
Love your stats McFlock, looks like a National Govt has been quite able to reduce harm to children.
credit where credit’s due.
Must be their massive efforts in reducing inequality, doubling of the numbers of social workers and parenting classes, and general overwhelming improvement in conditions for poorer families. /sarc
“The research actually said, and one was the NZ longitudinal study, is that “mild” physical sanctions, like a smack on the backside, which were fair and appropriate, made for slightly better outcomes than parents who only used verbal sanctions.”
What are the verbal sanctions being studied though? As with physical force, there are different kinds and degrees of ‘verbal sanctions’, so how can we compare? And why compare physical with mental manipulation? There are plenty of non-physical discipline styles that don’t require being mean to a child. And are we talking about teaching a child about boundaries, or are we talking about punishment?
I don’t have an problem with physically restraining a child that is out of control and hurting itself, someone else, or doing something damage that is beyond acceptable. But then I’m of the generation where my peers raised their kids excessively liberally and so have spent too much time around unmannered brats 😉 They have to learn boundaries sooner or later, better to learn them young than as a teenager I reckon. There is of course a big difference between physically restraining a child (or picking it up and carrying it against its will to another room) and hitting it.
“Most of the majority, who voted against section 59a were not voting to “beat their children”.”
I’d say most had never read the act and were voting according to how the MSM misrepresented the legislation.
I suggest, like National, you have a contempt for the intelligence of the majority.
Are you suggesting that most people who voted in the referendum had read the Act?
What did most of them make of the wording of the referendum and how it related to the Act? (from memory I spoiled my voting paper, because how could you answer properly?).
I think most people were aware that the bill, as originally written, removed options which most of us are aware are sometimes required.
The amendments, a consequence of the discussion around the referendum, which I was fine with, allowed physical force to prevent harm and or to prevent law breaking.
Including a smack, as an alternative to, say, putting a child’s hand in the fire to get the message across that you don’t play with fire.
I don’t believe that a majority of the population wanted to “bring back the cane”.
I also don’t think they were stupid enough to believe the extremes, on both sides of the argument.
I would rather concentrate my efforts on the real causes of child abuse.
Including the ongoing abuse of over 200 000 children by our Government.
And helping all of us become better parents.
That would be wrong vto, there are many societies through history that have never used violence against children. The present Western Civilisation that covers the world seems to be one of the more violent ones.
Xox
Suggestions (links) for current independent, quality news site(s) for New Zealanders? Have given up on Herald and Dom Post. TVNZ is a frivolous joke, not to mention Jim Mora ‘ s lala chuckle session on RNZ’s ‘Afternoons’.
You know this one Philj?
http://www.scoop.co.nz
oh, and for overseas news don’t forgot http://www.democracynow.org/ and there’s Al Jazeera on channel 16 on freeview
AlterNet
Real News
Truth Out
Information Clearing House
the lip-balm emergency-crew @ tvone just had to be called in..
..after rawdon ‘ron burgandy’ christies final arse-kissing/reaming-out of john key for the year..
..christie resurfaced looking severely chapped..
..key was glowing/purring in/with delight..
..phillip ure..
I take it you watch “Breakfast” for the same reasons I sometimes watch Fox News @ phill?
(It’s the only way I can find do drum up feelings of pity for the deluded, and its some of the best comedy there is on TV these days)
shit..a long/considered reply to above..push publish..just vanished..
..left with header and blank white page..
..w.t.f..!
..this is not the first time this has happened..
(should we copy/save before hitting publish @ the standard..?..)
phillip ure..
ALWAYS save Phill as you go about your electronic bizznus.
I was discussing the benefits of this just this morning. Do so as frequently as possible.
The disk cleaners providing a level of comfort by overwriting, the algoritms in play allocating ‘space’ on disk, the way in which a delete doesn’t actually delete but makes space available for subsequent storage – yea – save and overwrite.
But THEN ‘clean’
But – long story short, I’ll spend the next week watching a Rawdon and his prop-up blonde what’s-her-thing (both doing their best to convince us they’re hard-hitting, ‘incisive’ journalists) for a laugh. (After all, Rawdon used to work for the BBC dontcha know!)
NZ’s media was bought a long time ago.
The owners of New Zealand need people like Christie to repeat their message.
Isn’t Labour barbeque season fantastic fun with all the leadership stuff done and full of political success?
Do you think Mallard has learned anything form the vote of the membership?
Is Annette King knitting woolen socks for DC’s christmas gift?
If ANYONE thinks they can revive any aspect of the Goff/Shearer era they should be put on top of the BBQ!
Stop being sarcastic. A leader without the support of caucus and a failed referendum does not constitute success.
Clearly we have to invite you to the right barbeques.
Gee Fisi do you mean that Key does not have the support of his caucus?
@ Fisiani,
Yes there must be a lot of discontent in National over the details you provide about Key and the policy failure indicated by the referendum
[snap Mickey Savage]
this is a useful best-of list..
http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/dec/15/50-best-apps-2013-iphone-android-observer
phillip ure..
Tossers in, Xhosas out
Local mourners have to make way for the likes of Richard Branson
If you have any kind of a conscience, you will be well and truly glutted with the obscene parade of arm-waving impostors [1], insincere sentimental posturing [2], murderously hypocritical “tributes” [3] and mindless “celebrities” [4] that has hijacked the mourning for Nelson Mandela.
Many people who were disgusted with that farce in Johannesburg believed, or hoped against hope, that some sense of decency would be restored when the great leader was finally laid to rest in his home town in the Eastern Cape.
On this morning’s news on Al Jazeera, however, it was immediately apparent that, while the impostors, war criminals and democracy-suppressors at least were not there for the final send-off, there was still an infestation of irritating “celebrities” present. Prominent in the front row at the church were former Blair cheerleader “Sir” Richard Branson, the Obama-cult high priestess Oprah Winfrey and The Rev. Jesse Jackson. The last-named at least has some credentials to justify his presence there—but Branson and Winfrey?
What really was heartbreaking, though, was the forlorn sight of the local people of Qunu, herded behind fences, excluded from the funeral service because of “security” concerns.
Still, on the bright side, at least the main speakers were South Africans this time and, in contrast to those that “led the mourners” in last week’s horror show, were not the sort of people that would have persecuted and defamed Mandela thirty years ago .
[1] http://cdn1.independent.ie/world-news/article29829821.ece/ALTERNATES/h342/PANews_bfce2d94-f4ec-4d75-b069-6d5218eab9d2_I1.jpg
[2] http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/hard-news-mandela/?p=302690#post302690
[3] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJwU_Uz8YT8#t=0
[4] http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/qFLMAoRCtZ43k7k137JUGw–/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTQyMTtweG9mZj01MDtweW9mZj0wO3E9NzU7dz03NDk-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/afp.com/74c9e12e6485715eb9ed284a478d28b25d1584a0.jpg
It’s clear they weren’t popular
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/11/nelson-mandela-anc-jacob-zuma-boo
Why didn’t they boo Obama?
And other fools there who show no respect
http://news.sky.com/story/1180483/cameron-and-obamas-selfie-at-mandela-service
Probably wise not to in case there’s a missile armed reaper drone or two keeping an eye on them.
Excellent article on Polity about Asset Sales
http://polity.co.nz/content/turnout-referendum
Chorus shortfall : services could deline, further
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11173023
Departing FMA watchdog concerned about NZ investment patterns
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11173019
Avatar sequels to be filmed in NZ!
http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/film/9522695/Avatar-sequels-to-be-made-in-NZ
All hail the Great Leader John Key.
Is that what you want people to say?
Probably not. It’s what they think but not what they say.
Fisiani, you really are a True Believer. Most people are embarrassed by Key. Or angry at him.
That referendum, and especially his arrogant dismissal of it, spelled out his doom.
Source?
John Key, Steven Joyce, et al. Picking winners. I wish I was that f**king rich. Pity the poor, the infirm, the poverty stricken, the children, the low paid, and other marginalized folks in New Zealand who don’t qualify for John Key’s “hand up, not hand out”. Yeah right.
So once again the rank and file tax payer gets to subsidize the rich, our deficit has rocketed from $10 billion in 2008 to over $70 billion now. Welcome to Planet Key/National/Act.
John Key kowtows to movie execs and gives them lots of other peoples, specifically NZ taxpayers, money – again.
Midday Report:
Government will increase the baseline tax rebate for film production brought to NZ to 20% and up to 25% for the next three ‘Avatar’ films which are likely to be made here.
ooh, a ‘Paul’ sandwich.
Great article from Gordon Campbell on Scoop today.
http://werewolf.co.nz/2013/12/the-blank-slate-boy/
“Almost singlehandedly, Colin Craig has neutralised one of the Key government’s most potent tactical weapons in the next election. Without Craig, National might have been able to run a credible scare campaign next year around the prospect of the Greens – those scary socialist enviro-extremist boogey men – being part of any government led by Labour’s David Cunliffe. Yet anytime next year that John Key, Steven Joyce or the captains of industry do try to raise the Greens spectre, they’ll need to explain their own reliance on Craig, the far more visible loose wheel on their own wagon.”
Nicely put, and important to remember – anytime some right-winger tries to spook the horses about the Greens, ask them why Key is trying to buddy up with Crazy Craig.
On the ninth day of Christmas, my true love said to me ….
3 Avatars pending ….
etc,
Christ they’re getting desperate!
John key says Hone Harawira took a “jolly” to south africa and here is a quote from him
“”He has to stand up to his own constituents, but I for one don’t support what he’s done.””
I have tried to find where he has stated he doesnt support what Mr Banks has done (not read a form before signing etc)… interesting
After reading it, I think he’s a little irritated that Hone got treated with more respect than he did (getting to go and perform a haka at the private ceremony) and he didn’t manage to get in on the selfie with his best buds Obama.
2 snubs in one trip – it’s more than the egotistical narcissist can handle!
The reporter didn’t say just what Hone did on his Speaker approved “junket”.
Was it “getting to go and perform a haka at the private ceremony” as you say Zorr?
What was that? Could have been a sincere real moment for Hone who actually fronted the 81 protest, as opposed to the hypocritical performance by some undeserving MP bludgers with very dodgy memories.
And I heard Mr Key commenting on Hone’s absence in the House. I thought it was unlawful for MPs to refer to a MPs absence in the House.
Key…lawful?
In the same sentence ha ha
“He performed a haka at the side of Mandela’s casket with the blessing of Mandela’s grandson. His wife performed a karanga mate or lament”
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/9523270/PM-slams-Harawira-trip
I hate to say it – but has Key truly devalued the office of PM to the point that every time I hear that he has said something, my immediate response is can he shut up and stop embarrassing us as a nation. We need to stop reporting on him like he is somehow still connected to reality.
Key’s breathless slamming is bizarre, especially given that it’s bumped Avatar from top news spot.
Just heard him comment on RadioNZ. Fucking fucked is what it is. Hone went ‘on a jolly’!!!? JK had picked a representative cross section to attend!!!!?
All that came to my mind was that image of John Key and David Cameron laughing at some fuck knows what and my strong suspicion that JK couldn’t have given a flying monkey’s fuck about the guy who’s memorial he was attending .
Just like he doesn’t give a flying monkey’s fuck about reality. All that matters is spin and power and control. And probably wringing every last cent out of NZ while he’s still got the chance (his paymasters probably have a bonus system in place).
Should have to wear sponsors jerseys, like some suggested for the US Congress.
At least we would know who is paying them.
Spot on Zorr. Gauche arsehole. Devalues the brand of Kiwi akshully.
Farcical. In 1981 Bolger a minister in Muldoon’s cabinet and McKinnon the Junior Government Whip. Active supporters at the highest level of the apartheid regime. Then there’s the Prime Mournister. Who believes he wasn’t reflexively with them ? The people who DIDN’T bring a ray of sunshine into the cells of Robbin Island.
They all get their costs paid. Hone gets his costs paid and we have the Prime Mournister shrieking offensively about a “jolly”.
My God the vulgar, barefaced hypocrisy. Pathological. Borderline.
[deleted]
[lprent: Already banned. Another IP for autospam. ]
Really?
Fact checking needed.
Repeating stuff from WO and DPF does not amount to critical analysis.
+1 karol.
Reading Lynn’s comment, does anyone know if Labour or the GP intend to fix the mess that is the Local Govt Act ammendment?
I don’t know, but it is bit ironic when the ACTiod types get in a tizz about the effects of the Auckland Dictatorship, they deliberately created, so that Banks could steal Aucklander’s assets.
It was part of Labour policy before the last election for Auckland.. I have no idea what it is now.
Is this one of your usual drop and run comments or are you actually here to debate?
By the way, you seem obsessed with the Brown story. You seem to have the same news priorities as Slater.
Another centre-left Presidente in South America. Michelle Bachelet is back and she has caned it 62% versus 38% to the centre-right candidate in the run-off vote for Chile’s president.
Very nice. South Americans learnt the hard way from many decades (centuries) of western colonialism and control.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/unemployed-told-to-leave-ireland-in-desperate-move-to-slash-welfare-costs-9002720.html
Oh Dear, and 1 in 4 under 25 still unemployed; EU banks are rubbing their hands though (stupid paddies they’ll be thinking).
Great interview with socialist Brian Roper from Otago Uni on RNZ. Time to disband Treasury he says, and farm out the functions to different Departments.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/player/2580119
I have benefited from hearing and reading Brian Roper. (actually one of my fb ‘friends’; good feeds).