"Meridian and Contact say they are seriously considering building a plant which would convert about 12 per cent of the country’s total electricity generation into green hydrogen. The plant would be based in Southland as an alternative user of the energy the Tiwai aluminium smelter uses, should it close as scheduled at the end of 2024."
"Meridian and Contact’s first feasibility report suggests New Zealand is well placed to be a leading green hydrogen producer; its high proportion of renewable electricity meaning it could export as well as meeting domestic needs."
I suspect the devil is in the detail of how exactly hydrogen would be exported – is tank tech sufficiently secure yet? I wonder if export in liquid form would be feasible.
"On the export front, the Government already has agreements of co-operation with Japan and Singapore to research production and explore New Zealand’s export potential. A letter of intent was also signed some years ago between a New Zealand private consortium and several South Korean companies to explore hydrogen exporting, although MBIE says it has yet to progress. There is also the research alliance with Germany, which has already committed to moving to green hydrogen."
"According to the report, the investment in a green hydrogen economy could generate one-time benefits of $0.6 billion to $0.8 billion, and thousands of jobs, with ongoing benefits of $350 million to $450m per annum and hundreds of jobs. Some of those benefits might include attracting high tech talent and money from large sustainable investment funds, or chemical, fertiliser and other industries set up alongside the plant… Standards New Zealand has convened a hydrogen standards advisory group, and the Government will begin developing a hydrogen roadmap this year to examine the issue in more detail."
Probably depends on the business case, eh? Or, to be more precise, the various competing business cases involved. So cabinet will have a plethora of input (refined by relevant ministers before it gets tabled) to eventually consider…
renewable, climate-saving power generation as a capitalist lottery rather than say a strategic asset core to how we transition and get through the next century.
Well, it is how the cabinet is likely to decide. Jacinda being High Priestess of Neoliberalism – eventually to go down in history as St Jacinda the Neoliberal and featuring as such in the publications of next-century historians.
If Labour were to ditch muddle thro the middle and form a govt with the Greens with formal sustainability/resilience focus, your scenario would apply.
It's a contemporary variation on trickle-down theory. Instead of wealth trickling down from profit-driven enterprises, this time it will be salvational technology. God knows – but they may be right. Because we have spent 35 years eviscerating the State of both the will and the capacity to do much, this may be all we are left with.
I suspect the future road map will have a mix of EV's and hydrogen. Both have their distinct optimal use cases and it will be interesting to see how this plays out. EV's definitely have a head start, but there is reason to think hydrogen could play a very large role in some contexts.
The other aspect is using hydrogen for the direct (carbon free) conversion of iron ore to steel. One of my colleagues right now is an expert in this field and I'm impressed at what a big game changer this will be. Expect major plant startups using this technology within this decade.
"Meridian and Contact say they are seriously considering building a plant which would convert about 12 per cent of the country’s total electricity generation into green hydrogen……
…….New Zealand has convened a hydrogen standards advisory group, and the Government will begin developing a hydrogen roadmap this year to examine the issue in more detail."
Could the 'green hydrogen', proposed to be produced at Tiwai, be used to re-energise spent powdered iron fuel on an industrial scale?
Unburnt (un-oxidised) iron powder has a higher energy density than coal and even petrol.
For obvious reasons it can't burnt in Internal Combustion Engines, but it can be burnt in External Combustion Engines. That's right the good 'ol steam engine to you and me.
Once burnt the only remains from the combustion of Iron powder, (Fe), is FeO2. That's right, good 'ol rust to you and me. (also in the form of a powder).
To separate the O2 from the depleted iron, heated Hydrogen is passed over the powdered iron oxide to combine with the Oxygen to produce H2O which is vented as a vapour. The iron powder is ready to be burnt again. Repeatedy.
If the Hydrogen is produced from a renewable source, which would be the case at Tiwai, then the whole cycle is completely carbon free.
The energy from the hydrogen imbedded in the iron powder, can be stored for months and even years. Without the need for expensive pressure vessels, subject to leaks and explosions.
The only downside of iron powder as a fuel is its weight, (another reason why it will never be a suitable replacement fuel for cars trucks and aeroplanes).
In big surface vessels, ships and trains, where weight bearing is not such a big issue, iron powder is the perfect replacement for fossil fuels, especially the very dirty heavy bunker fuel oil used in ships.
Iron powder could also be burnt in base load power stations, (Huntly could stay open).
Iron powder could replace coal as a source of industrial heat, in bakeries and breweries and brick kilns, and for drying milk powder in dairy factories. And its non-toxic, did i mention that. (unlike oil and coal).
We could bring back the Kingston flyer as a test bed for this new technology.
(The Steampunks might have been on to something)
The following article from Popular Mechanics claims that iron fuel is the fuel of the future.
But is it?
What is the draw back?
it sounds too good to be true.
Where is the fly in the ointment?
Can anyone tell me?
Burning Iron for Fuel Sounds Crazy. It's Also the Future.
The most surprising renewable yet could power plenty of industries.
Caroline Delbert Popular Mechanics, NOV 9, 2020
A brewery in the Netherlands is making environmental history by using a cycle of renewable iron as fuel for its furnace.
Royal Swinkels Family Brewers is working with Eindhoven University of Technology and a technology think tank calledMetal Poweron the circular economy of iron burning. “The iron acts as a kind of clean battery for combustion processes, charging up via one of a number of means including electrolysis, and discharging in flames and heat,”New Atlas reports.
Here’s how it works: Iron is burned in furnaces, fulfilling a key industry requirement for high heat that isn’t covered by many other renewables. Then, the resulting oxidized rust waste is recycled back into newly re-burnable iron fuel using electrical energy that can be from clean sources…..
Will this be one of the issues that the hydrogen standards advisory group, and the Government will begin examining in more detail?
With me it happened in primers 1,2 & 3. Come primer 4, I no longer needed to do it. But I gather the education system has slid steadily down the hill since the 1950s, so there may indeed be a real need for the techies here to come to your rescue.
Dyslexia is a very real problem in Aotearoa/New Zealand,most folk in prison struggle with it an it excludes a large number of people pitisapating in DEBATE.thanks to Solkta advise,I've got my self a new dictionary.It may suit some for others not too ingauge,but I will keep trying even though it might take twenty minutes to write this.
Oh and too find the word can be difficuted,Phonics might help but that dictionary has disappeared.
I don't know much about dyslexia but can imagine the frustration. A trick that might or might not work is just to write the consonants – t's srprsng hw qckly txt wrttn ths wy cn b ndrstd! Hp ths hlps?
Too be fair,I've always tried to spell out the word as I found txt languque a slippery slop.. but trust me I've tried many options. I see it as exclustionary,back to the dictionary,,exclusionery ,not there,Damn
My daughter has a form of dyslexia. We realised that there was no way she was going to cope in the public school system, and so we decided that we would try an alternative education for her at around the age of 9. We had been reading to her every day as she was unable to read at that time even the most basic text. The new school saw that she had a problem with connections between left brain and right brain. They began a series of curative eurythmy for her. Astoundingly, within 3 months she was able to read the first Harry Potter, and is now an avid reader, and writer. She still has difficulty with correct spelling on some of the more tricky English words.
As you will be well aware "dyslexia" does not mean "unintelligent". There have been many advances in human knowledge and understanding and outstanding achievements made by persons with dyslexia. A cousin of mine was unable to complete school certificate because of his poor scores in English, yet he became a Professional Member of the NZ Royal Society. It was my task to proof read the papers he was about to send for publication in scientific journals to check the English.
Macro, the science behind the "Wobble board" is interesting. It is used in education to assist with the practice of using both right and left brain to assist learning. The brain, the new frontier.
@Macro
Thanks and yes. hope your daughter is going well,intelligents has very little too do as you say,but jokingly with my self I wonder sometimes,Ha.the thing is i can speak well enough and understand what most words mean,may get out of order but hey-ho,just the print and lack of coninuity,which make a narritive difficult.I have made boo-bo's here more than once,cheers for your input.
DF Why bother to reply with only a sarky patronising response. If you can't help, don't want to, it's no help to get negatives from the self-consciously smart.
Tbh, I was actually trying to help. Seemed like everyone ignored the problem yesterday, so I figured replying would draw attention to the request, thus raising the probability of a tech solution…
What? Are you lobbying for the style police position at TS yet again?? Last time resulted in a collective slap-down, I seem to recall, but full marks for dogged perseverance anyway!
Technically, it would be ignorant – since I had to google word blindness to discover that it is an established cultural term that I'd not previously encountered. Rude is intentional behaviour, where the intent is to offend the other person.
When aghast at the tendency of postmodernism to accelerate the evolution of language, conservatives seek solace in a cuppaT & lie-down. This method may not work for progressives – however a switch of focus from trivia to essentials usually does.
If, instead, you actually get off on picking nits, I'll try to generate a few more for you…
[Sure, if you want to make up shit to suit yourself then accept the consequences without trying to put blame on others. If you don’t like to be called rude then don’t be rude and start acting all victimized because we don’t understand that you operate at a higher dimension than we do or we didn’t receive the same education as you did or because we are dyslexic, for example. Just to avoid any post-modern confusion, stop your post-modern BS and maybe apologize to make up for your unintentional rudeness; it won’t kill you – Incognito]
I actually didn't blame anyone for anything – so why pretend that I did??
[actually, you did shift it to others and even the education system but you seem to ignore this, how convenient for you. Your comment @ 2.1.4.1.1.1 was a sly put down and avoiding taking responsibility too. I told you to stop your post-modern BS and will add to this your tendency to gaslight. In case it is not clear to you, your comments are being moderated and digging in is not smart. Maybe you keep quiet and take heed of the notes, yes – Incognito]
Since when has a "sly put down" been unacceptable? I see them here from others all the time. The about page doesn't forbid them, right? Gaslight is not a term I'm familiar with. I think you're just trying to bully me by operating a double standard. I'm puzzled as to why you are…
[You ask:
Since when has a “sly put down” been unacceptable?
Since it is used as deflecting blame and responsibility for your own commenting behaviour, which you still haven’t accepted, I note, and you’re still digging in.
Google “gaslighting” and you will enrich your post-modern vocabulary.
Not smart at all to argue back to a Moderator and accusing them of bullying you.
In any case, not all context is the same, which might come as a surprise to you; different comments and commenters are treated differently depending on a wide range of reasons.
Since you seem to think that perception and interpretation are everything, so for your information, from the Policy:
What we’re not prepared to accept are pointless personal attacks, or tone or language that has the effect of excluding others. [my italics]
…
We don’t really want to ban anyone. If you’re borderline we’ll probably warn you first.
…
Generally wasting a moderators time is just not a good idea. We’re there to deal with isolated problems. People persistently sucking up our voluntary time won’t like the results.
…
Arguing with moderation is a trait requiring darwinian winnowing that usually results in a rapid education about who runs the site …
…
Finally, the moderators may put you into moderation for what they consider is bad behaviour, while they get around to having a look at your patterns of behaviour.
Please don’t try to argue your way out of Moderation, as it won’t work and you simply end up wasting more Moderator time. I have given you two warnings for something quite minor, but you opted to escalate it and this is your last warning. Take heed and STFU or take a ban – Incognito]
Am happy to bring this up with Lynn again. Do you mean you want a spell check in the comment box? What do you need? Mis-spelled words are underlined, do you want to be able to click on them for the correct spelling?
Yes, it's a long standing issue on TS, and as Sacha says I think it's browser/OS dependent. Seem to remember we had a discussion about this a while back, I'll see if I can find it.
It's not browser or OS dependent. If it was it would occur on all other website comment boxes and it doesn't.
Besides spellcheck is commonly the default. That the word is underlined shows that the browser recognises the incorrect spelling but for some reason doesn't initiate the next correct option. i.e. the list of possible words.
I'm using Firefox and occasionally Chrome on Ubuntu.
Yup, Lprent can do a lot on this site but he cannot control people’s devices and browsers and settings unless he hacks them, which he tends to not do 😉
Brigid
I'm on Firefox but probably behind with updates. Do you notice that the spellchecker frequently underlines an s and seems to want me to put z. I think my English speller has a US bias or something. It is quite 'aggressive' about this.
Yes. Insisting on 'z' rather than 's' is common. That's because the spell checker default is set to American spelling. You can choose 'add to dictionary' to teach the damned thing that we aren't all American. Hopefully it wont be underlined next time you use it.
Yes the words are underlined but right click just shows paste,and I can not see how I could use that,so yes is their a spell check but not on my lap top. I have most things including replys etc. regards Al
If you're on a laptop, a temporary work-around might be to use a word processor (e.g. libreoffice on linux) to draft things up and then paste them into the comment box.
I tend to do that with longer pieces or important emails.
I'm on gmail and find it useful sometimes to draft using the Compose window which has a useful set of gadgets to manage the text. Then I just copy it and paste it in TS. And my Compose window is set for frequent saves so it's virtually idiot proof.
Dr. Stella Immanuel, a Texas doctor who spoke at the press conference insisted that cysts were caused by people having sex with demons and witches.
Dr. Simone Gold, a doctor and lawyer in Los Angeles, founded the group and previously appeared on Fox News when Donald Trump was president. Gold also has connections to the Tea Party Patriots Foundation. Gold was also at the Washington riot on January 6, when Trump supporters stormed the Capitol building in an attempt to stop the certification of 2020's election results that made Joe Biden president. Gold even made a speech a day earlier calling the covid-19 vaccine an “experimental, biological agent deceptively named a vaccine,” according to the Washington Post.
‘Ridiculous’: Vaccine myths cripple U.S. uptake as delta surges
By Josh Wingrove, Kristen V. Brown and Daniael Zuidijk
BLOOMBERG, Jul 22, 2021
…..Unvaccinated Americans cite a litany of myths to explain their hesitance to get shots, confounding local health officials battling yet another surge of coronavirus cases fueled by the more transmissible delta variant……
“Everything from Bill Gates putting a microchip in it — I’ve heard everything. It’s ridiculous,” said Tom Keller, chief executive officer of Ozarks Health Care in southern Missouri, a region with low vaccination rates that’s an epicenter of the U.S. delta outbreak.
“People are listening to social media instead of listening to their docs,” he said. “Somebody who has a million followers all of the sudden becomes the expert on not getting the vaccine.”
Just as the Biden administration appeared on the verge of snuffing out COVID-19 in the U.S., a shadow pandemic of disinformation threatens to prolong the crisis. Promulgated virus-like itself through social media platforms, a miasma of uncertainties, anecdotes and outright lies has seized the imaginations of Americans hesitant to be vaccinated, slowing the U.S. campaign to inoculate its population.
…..A political divide has also emerged, with Republicans far more likely to be unvaccinated than Democrats, polls show. Conservative media and some Republican officeholders have in some cases amplified disinformation, or have tacitly supported vaccine hesitancy by refusing to get shots themselves — or admit they have.
This doctor's account on the ground in Alabama makes pretty sad reading (I found the days old article linked via a Guardian story today):
Dr. Brytney Cobia said Monday that all but one of her COVID patients in Alabama did not receive the vaccine. The vaccinated patient, she said, just needed a little oxygen and is expected to fully recover. Some of the others are dying… “One of the last things they do before they’re intubated is beg me for the vaccine. I hold their hand and tell them that I’m sorry, but it’s too late.”…
“I hug their family members and I tell them the best way to honor their loved one is to go get vaccinated and encourage everyone they know to do the same.”
“They cry. And they tell me they didn’t know. They thought it was a hoax. They thought it was political. They thought because they had a certain blood type or a certain skin color they wouldn’t get as sick. They thought it was ‘just the flu’. But they were wrong. And they wish they could go back. But they can’t. So they thank me and they go get the vaccine. And I go back to my office, write their death note, and say a small prayer that this loss will save more lives.”…
“All these kids are about to go back to school. No mask mandates are in place at all, 70% of Alabama is unvaccinated. Of course, no kids are vaccinated for the most part because they can’t be,” Cobia said. “So it feels like impending doom, basically.”…
‘Why haven’t you gotten the vaccine?’ And I’ll just ask it point blank, in the least judgmental way possible,” she said. “And most of them, they’re very honest, they give me answers. ‘I talked to this person, I saw this thing on Facebook, I got this email, I saw this on the news,’ you know, these are all the reasons that I didn’t get vaccinated.
“And the one question that I always ask them is, did you make an appointment with your primary care doctor and ask them for their opinion on whether or not you should receive the vaccine? And so far, nobody has answered yes to that question.”
Maybe they could go all 'old school' trade unionism on him, and threaten to go on strike, until he gets his jab, or the organisers agree to ban him.
Tokyo Olympics: 'Foolish, selfish' US swimmer slammed for refusing Covid-19 vaccine
Phil Lutton 17:40, Jul 22 2021
American swimmer Michael Andrew has been vocal about his refusal to have a vaccine before the Tokyo Games. Now, as the reality of the Covid-19 situation at the Olympics starts to hit, former US swimmers are calling him out for putting the health of the powerhouse Team USA squad in peril……
“He sounded proud as he spoke, proud of his selfish, foolish ways. Proud to be a hindrance to his teammates, a worry to all. Proud to be doing whatever the heck he wants, no matter how it affects anyone else,…..”
Prominent USA Today columnist Christien Brennan.
“That Michael would make a decision that puts even a bit of risk on his teammates for his own perceived well-being frustrates me,”
Fellow US Swim Team member, backstroke gold medallist, Maya DiRado
Reading about US swimmer Michael Andrew's 'vocal' and 'proud sounding' refusal to be vaccinated, reminded me of an incident I had occasion to be involved in at a large unionised South Auckland workplace back in the good old days before the anti union Employment Contracts Act.
The workers had one of the best shop floor delegates that I ever met. Indefatigueable and fearless in confronting the boss on her workmates behalf. Naturally she was well loved and respected..
One day, (outside of work hours), she was involved in a bad car accident that left her with hand injuries and unable to work.
As a sign of respect and in recognition of her advocacy on their behalf, the workers took a vote to each garner their wages by $20 a week for one month to help their delegate's recovery. In those days all decisions on any collective action was decided by a vote of 60 to 40. I can't remember the winning percentage, but the vote was carried by the needed margin.
After a week I was contacted by the stand-in acting job delegate, who informed me there was a problem. Two women had point blank refused to give the delegate their $20, and it was creating some dissention among the rest. "Really? I was surpirsed. "Who are they?". She told me their names. I recognised one name. she was a new immigrant who I knew had been helped in the past by the injured delegate.
I told the acting delegate I would sort it out.
At lunch time both women were sitting together at a table in a corner of the canteen. They both recognised me as I approached. The woman I didn't know had a deeply lined face and a pinched expression and just glared at me. The other woman who I knew looked glad to see me. I sat down. "Do you you remember", I began, "when you first came to this country and this was your first job in New Zealand?"
"Do you remember that it created a fuss when everyone found out the employer had hired you on less than the agreed rate.?"
She nodded. "Then you would remember that time in the carpark where the delegate made you all wait outside while she went in to see the boss on your behalf." She nodded again. "Then you will remember when she came back and said the employer has agreed to pay you the full rate".
"What you mightn't know" i continued, "Is that the manager initially refused to increase your rate, saying he had no legal obligation to do so, as your qualifications weren't recognised in this country. The delegate told the boss, "I don't care where she comes from she is doing the same work as the rest of us, therefore she gets the going rate". The employer then told the delegate if she insisted that you be paid the same rate as the rest, he would have to let you go. The delelgate then threatened to call a strike, unless he relented.
"That was more than three years ago, I have my New Zealand registration now."
"Yes but for a long time you worked on the full rate, even without your New Zealand qualification. If it hadn't been for your delegate, you could have been working here for a lot less, or even not working here at all."
"I also know that with the extra money you made, you and your husband were able to scrape up enough between you to put a deposit on a house". (It was much easier in those days).
"So how about it? Will you agree to pay the levy?"
She said she would.
As I got up to leave, I remember the shocked blank look on the face of her friend, even the deep lines on her face had seemed to plump out.
Some would call that exerting undue influence, or even coercion.
I would call it democracy.
But what would I know. I am just an ignorant old working person from South Auckland.
P.S.
A week later I checked in with the acting delegate. "Is that worker paying the levy?" "Yes" she replied. "What about the other one?" "Yes, she is paying it too."
I accept that mpledger but it is not an insurmountable problem. I doubt anyone is suggesting lots of little vaccination clinics but rather one or two well placed pharmacies/GP clinics per region who have the skills, capacity and the desire to be involved in the project.
An example is my region – the North Shore. We have one large clinic in Birkenhead which covers an area stretching from Devonport in the south to Rodney in the North. It also stretches west into suburbs nominally considered to be part of West Auckland. That is a huge area and they are doing a tremendous job. I went there for my first jab and witnessed it for myself.
The main problem is that some elderly and vulnerable folk do not have the capacity (for whatever reason) to get to this clinic. Setting aside retirement villages and rest homes, there are significant numbers in this category who have not had their first jab yet. A local pharmacy or GP clinic with the skills required – plus easy access – in the south of the region and another in the north would see a lot more category 3 people coming forward for vaccination.
GPs also handle other vaccinations already and have trained nurses and appropriate storage. They are more trusted by some people than strangers in a big vax centre. Yet some DHBs seem unable to walk and chew gum at the same time. No wonder they are for the chop.
Hmmm… I know 2 ladies at age 88 and 93 and both have no phone or computer which seem to be the pre requisite to get anything going. Both still live in their own home and it should be their GP that should contact them so that they have certainty.
I am pretty certain that these 2 ladies are not he only ones who will forever be kept on the waiting list.
Dec.11/20 How New Zealand's film industry boomed during the pandemic
…Thanks to its handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, the country is enjoying an unprecedented boom in film production, with directors seeking safe conditions, and that most elusive thing this year – a normal life.
International blockbusters including James Cameron's Avatar sequels, Amazon's Lord of the Rings series and Jane Campion's The Power of the Dog – starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Kirsten Dunst – all managed complex film shoots in New Zealand this year.
The country's home-grown movies have also received a boost at the box office by Kiwis supporting their industry, leading one local filmmaker to joke that they're now living in "the Hollywood of the Pacific".
…According to the New Zealand Ministry of Culture and Heritage, the industry supports about 21,000 local jobs and contributes $NZ 2.7 billion (£1.4bn) to its GDP every year. The government has also announced a NZ$50 million (£26million) production grant that Annabelle Sheehan hopes “will lead to a surge in New Zealand led stories.”
She also reports “about a doubling” of international inquiries for filming in the country in 2021.
I read a lot of Anne Perry and see that she has shifted from Scotland to the West Coast USA and I think that movie/s are under discussion. What about making some here. She is a very sensitive writer about people, and gets cliff-hanging plots, with strong characters. A lot are set in London, with one character being in the River Police, and another more to do with society foibles. But there is a WW1 series that are good. Just an idea.
This sounds like an Israeli intelligence coup. And after reading I see it as similar to arms dealers selling arms to both sides of a conflict, and if they know all about the two countries' weaknesses (through covert intelligence) then they know how to inflame them, and reap the benefit of selling them arms to fight it out. Perhaps we should go back to primitive bare knuckling, men or women, perhaps we should be gender free, or turn our trans men into national heroes.
why has our minister not led the conservation and gone bush ? One reason could be he has been placed in this position because the govt doesn’t want debate and he is incapable to (promoted to fail, I know a bit Machiavellian ) Sure there are some who have taken over the role in this matter (posts on TS) but it is the govt to take control, if they cannot enter into coheriant conversation it says alot and not very complementary . https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/447500/silence-over-hate-speech-laws-has-allowed-misinformation-in-minorities-say
Water , honey and a little red food colouring all in a happily and well enjoyed (now) empty bottle of wine and a dish . The bottle upended and framed on a wooden stand with a platform for the birds to stand on. There are a few tui's around, have not sighted a kereru since the initial lock down, last April. Then the number of native birds seen was very uplifting. But city life appears to have sent them back to a more peaceful area.
"The Cyberspace Administration of China — a powerful internet watchdog with Chinese Community Party links that trace all the way up to President Xi Jinping — banned Didi from app stores days after its initial public offering. The CAC, which has accused Didi of illegally collecting and using personal information, also joined several other government agencies, including ministries in charge of public and state security, in visiting the Beijing-based company to review its cybersecurity."
"The watchdog, whose influence has ballooned since Xi set the agency up in 2014, is also setting its sights on curtailing overseas listings. It recently proposed thatany company with data on more than one million users must seek the agency's approval before listing its shares overseas."
"Things are looking pretty dire for Chinese tech right now, especially firms that have been considering overseas listings as a way to raise money. The chill created by tensions, both within China's borders and with its greatest rival, could bring overseas investment in Chinese tech to a grinding halt. Investors are already rattled. China's unprecedented tech crackdown has wiped$1 trillion off the value of overseas-listed Chinese tech stocks since February — one of the worst sell-offs in history, Goldman Sachs analysts said in a research report last week."
"Goldman estimated that China's digital economy accounts for 40% of the country's GDP, and that the tech sector represented some 40% of the MSCI China Index, which is widely followed by global equity investors as a major benchmark."
"US investors now hold about $1 trillion in Chinese stocks. That includes about $590 billion worth of exposure in Hong Kong, $330 billion in the United States, and $135 billion in mainland China, according to a recent estimate by Goldman Sachs."
Looks like the reef fish just got shifted into flight mode, eh? Another crisis of capitalism may ensue – aversion to melt-down likely to be motivating central bankers all round the world, crisis meetings for contingency planning…
A new word has popped up in news stories about the MIQ booking nightmare – script. It's the key to Ietting a highly contested space in managed isolation.
Jon Brewer was offered this kind of high-tech help to get out of Singapore where he has been living with his wife.
But he says it is cheating and he refuses to break the terms and conditions of the MIQ booking system.
He's taking his fight to the Ombudsman and if that doesn't work he'll hire a lawyer.
"I want them to compel MBIE (Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment) to solve the problem. I went to them (the Ombudsman) because I complained to MBIE through their process that I was unable to interact with the site in a way that would allow me to get a booking the way that they have required me to use the site.
This public service announcement is a succinct 1 minute video push by every previous President (except Trump), and including 96-year old Jimmy Carter, urging all to get vaccinated.
Once we get to the hard-to-reach and moronic who don't want the vaccine, it would be time for all of our previous Prime Ministers still around to do the same on video, and they are: Palmer, Bolger, Shipley, Clark, Key, and English.
We need cross-Party leadership to assist in this nationwide effort.
Fortunately we in NZ have mostly avoided making the vaccine a political identity issue the way the Donnie One-Term cultists have. Who aren't likely to be influenced by Shrub's endorsement in any case. So I have doubts any of our former PMs would be influential among those that would need to be influenced.
The political 'leaders' we would need to get on board here in NZ include the likes of Billy Te Kookiha, Sue Kedgley etc. Good luck with that.
Good that someone's pointed this out. McClay's despicably disingenuous response reeked of the same desperation that runs throughout the national party at the moment.
What's important, though, is that the government keeps in the front of its mind what Coffey referred to, which is that all of this emergency and transitional housing malarkey is a temporary fix. This is easy to say but hard to execute. It's easy to see emergency and transitional housing getting a permanent spot within our wider social welfare system. Just look at what food banks have become. They were talked about as a temporary measure back around the time of the 1991 benefit cuts. Now the bloody Ministry of Social Development even funds them. An extremely sad state of affairs things have come to this, but it's nothing new because it's something that affects only the poor so nobody really gives a fuck, which is the only reason this has been allowed to happen, of course. The same thing will happen to emergency and transitional housing unless there are a clear and deliberate efforts to avoid it.
Can booze be used as anti-freeze? Did you ever hear that story about film star David Niven out skiing who noticed numbness in his vitals and found brandy helped?
Yes, ethanol is a very effective antifreeze. In water it lowers the freezing point progressively with increasing concentration all the way to about 93% by weight where it freezes at about -115C. Which is why it is about major ingredient in windscreen washer fluid in cold climates.
David Niven may have thought the brandy helped, but what it actually did was open up the capillaries near his skin which gives the sensation of warmth, but actually increases heat flow away from his vitals.
The rivers of rain we are getting are obviously an effect of climate change.
Should this be a concern for those Wellingtonians who live on the sides of steep hills. And from memory there are a lot of them. Perhaps planning has already taken this hillside/slippage/mud slide thing into consideration.
DHB board chair Sharon Shea first saw it on Thursday night, was offended and found it wrong, she said in a statement.
“Since last night, I have been informed it was designed by a Māori artist, and had input from Māori marketing specialists and it had gone through an approval process, including consultation with some local iwi,” she said.
I notice that many males ride on bikes in a way similar to how they would drive. Then there are ones in the twilight and dark all dressed in black, no brightness to show up, and they possibly won't have a light either. They don't indicate and they go through red lights relying on being nippy and thinking that cars can see them. They don't realise if they are in front of headlights that they are invisible.
Drivers have to wait at busy inter-sections longer because in the middle of the only space for half a minute is a cyclist, slower, vulnerable and defenceless. Then when they choose to ride on the footpath they can woosh by and then the pedestrian gets stressed out. It's mostly males, used to getting what they want, who have started the footpath stunt for adults, okay for children though they can be fast. Because it is males who are most vociferous, they are catered to without spending on a needed division on the footpath so both wheels and feet have their own space. Happy people intermingling on coloured mock-ups for council publicity mock reality about safety and ease for walkers.
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 ...
This article was prepared for publication yesterday. More ministerial announcements have been posted on the government’s official website since it was written. We will report on these later today …. Buzz from the BeehiveThere we were, thinking the environment is in trouble, when along came Jones. Shane Jones. ...
New Zealand now has the fourth most depressed construction sector in the world behind China, Qatar and Hong Kong. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 8:46am on Thursday, May 2:The Lead: ...
Hi,I am just going to state something very obvious: American police are fucking crazy.That was a photo gracing the New York Times this morning, showing New York City police “entering Columbia University last night after receiving a request from the school.”Apparently in America, protesting the deaths of tens of thousands ...
Winston Peters’ much anticipated foreign policy speech last night was a work of two halves. Much of it was a standard “boilerplate” Foreign Ministry overview of the state of the world. There was some hardening up of rhetoric with talk of “benign” becoming “malign” and old truths giving way to ...
Graham Adams assesses the fallout of the Cass Review — The press release last Thursday from the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls didn’t make the mainstream news in New Zealand but it really should have. The startling title of Reem Alsalem’s statement — “Implementation of ‘Cass ...
This open-for-business, under-new-management cliché-pockmarked government of Christopher Luxon is not the thing of beauty he imagines it to be. It is not the powerful expression of the will of the people that he asserts it to be. It is not a soaring eagle, it is a malodorous vulture. This newest poll should make ...
The latest labour market statistics, showing a rise in unemployment. There are now 134,000 unemployed - 14,000 more than when the National government took office. Which is I guess what happens when the Reserve Bank causes a recession in an effort to Keep Wages Low. The previous government saw a ...
Three opinion polls have been released in the last two days, all showing that the new government is failing to hold their popular support. The usual honeymoon experienced during the first year of a first term government is entirely absent. The political mood is still gloomy and discontented, mainly due ...
National's Finance Minister once met a poor person.A scornful interview with National's finance guru who knows next to nothing about economics or people.There might have been something a bit familiar if that was the headline I’d gone with today. It would of course have been in tribute to the article ...
Rob MacCulloch writes – Throughout the pandemic, the new Vice-Chancellor-of-Otago-University-on-$629,000 per annum-Can-you-believe-it-and-Former-Finance-Minister Grant Robertson repeated the mantra over and over that he saved “lives and livelihoods”.As we update how this claim is faring over the course of time, the facts are increasingly speaking differently. NZ ...
Chris Trotter writes – IT’S A COMMONPLACE of political speeches, especially those delivered in acknowledgement of electoral victory: “We’ll govern for all New Zealanders.” On the face of it, the pledge is a strange one. Why would any political leader govern in ways that advantaged the huge ...
Bryce Edwards writes – The list of former National Party Ministers being given plum and important roles got longer this week with the appointment of former Deputy Prime Minister Paula Bennett as the chair of Pharmac. The Christopher Luxon-led Government has now made key appointments to Bill ...
TL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 10:06am on Wednesday, May 1:The Lead: Business confidence fell across the board in April, falling in some areas to levels last seen during the lockdowns because of a collapse in ...
Over the past 36 hours, Christopher Luxon has been dong his best to portray the centre-right’s plummeting poll numbers as a mark of virtue. Allegedly, the negative verdicts are the result of hard economic times, and of a government bravely set out on a perilous rescue mission from which not ...
Auckland Transport have started rolling out new HOP card readers around the network and over the next three months, all of them on buses, at train stations and ferry wharves will be replaced. The change itself is not that remarkable, with the new readers looking similar to what is already ...
Completed reads for April: The Difference Engine, by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling Carnival of Saints, by George Herman The Snow Spider, by Jenny Nimmo Emlyn’s Moon, by Jenny Nimmo The Chestnut Soldier, by Jenny Nimmo Death Comes As the End, by Agatha Christie Lord of the Flies, by ...
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 ...
Have a story to share about St Paul’s, but today just picturesPopular novels written at this desk by a young man who managed to bootstrap himself out of father’s imprisonment and his own young life in a workhouse Read more ...
The list of former National Party Ministers being given plum and important roles got longer this week with the appointment of former Deputy Prime Minister Paula Bennett as the chair of Pharmac. The Christopher Luxon-led Government has now made key appointments to Bill English, Simon Bridges, Steven Joyce, Roger Sowry, ...
Newsroom has a story today about National's (fortunately failed) effort to disestablish the newly-created Inspector-General of Defence. The creation of this agency was the key recommendation of the Inquiry into Operation Burnham, and a vital means of restoring credibility and social licence to an agency which had been caught lying ...
Holding On To The Present:The moment a political movement arises that attacks the whole idea of social progress, and announces its intention to wind back the hands of History’s clock, then democracy, along with its unwritten rules, is in mortal danger.IT’S A COMMONPLACE of political speeches, especially those delivered in ...
Stuck In The Middle With You:As Christopher Luxon feels the hot breath of Act’s and NZ First’s extremists on the back of his neck and, as he reckons with the damage their policies are already inflicting upon a country he’s described as “fragile”, is there not some merit in reaching out ...
The unpopular coalition government is currently rushing to repeal section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act. The clause is Oranga Tamariki's Treaty clause, and was inserted after its systematic stealing of Māori children became a public scandal and resulted in physical resistance to further abductions. The clause created clear obligations ...
Buzz from the Beehive The government’s official website – which Point of Order monitors daily – not for the first time has nothing much to say today about political happenings that are grabbing media headlines. It makes no mention of the latest 1News-Verian poll, for example. This shows National down ...
It Takes A Train To Cry:Surely, there is nothing lonelier in all this world than the long wail of a distant steam locomotive on a cold Winter’s night.AS A CHILD, I would lie awake in my grandfather’s house and listen to the traffic. The big wooden house was only a ...
Packing A Punch: The election of the present government, including in its ranks politicians dedicated to reasserting the rights of the legislature in shaping and determining the future of Māori and Pakeha in New Zealand, should have alerted the judiciary – including its anomalous appendage, the Waitangi Tribunal – that its ...
Dead Woman Walking: New Zealand’s media industry had been moving steadily towards disaster for all the years Melissa Lee had been National’s media and communications policy spokesperson, and yet, when the crisis finally broke, on her watch, she had nothing intelligent to offer. Christopher Luxon is a patient man - but he’s not ...
Chris Trotter writes – New Zealand politics is remarkably easy-going: dangerously so, one might even say. With the notable exception of John Key’s flat ruling-out of the NZ First Party in 2008, all parties capable of clearing MMP’s five-percent threshold, or winning one or more electorate seats, tend ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Polling shows that Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau has the lowest approval rating of any mayor in the country. Siting at -12 per cent, the proportion of constituents who disapprove of her performance outweighs those who give her the thumbs up. This negative rating is ...
Luxon will no doubt put a brave face on it, but there is no escaping the pressure this latest poll will put on him and the government. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political ...
This is a re-post from The Climate Brink by Andrew Dessler In the wake of any unusual weather event, someone inevitably asks, “Did climate change cause this?” In the most literal sense, that answer is almost always no. Climate change is never the sole cause of hurricanes, heat waves, droughts, or ...
Something odd happened yesterday, and I’d love to know if there’s more to it. If there was something which preempted what happened, or if it was simply a throwaway line in response to a journalist.Yesterday David Seymour was asked at a press conference what the process would be if the ...
Hi,From time to time, I want to bring Webworm into the real world. We did it last year with the Jurassic Park event in New Zealand — which was a lot of fun!And so on Saturday May 11th, in Los Angeles, I am hosting a lil’ Webworm pop-up! I’ve been ...
Education Minister Erica Standford yesterday unveiled a fundamental reform of the way our school pupils are taught. She would not exactly say so, but she is all but dismantling the so-called “inquiry” “feel good” method of teaching, which has ruled in our classrooms since a major review of the New ...
Exactly where are we seriously going with this government and its policies? That is, apart from following what may as well be a Truss-Lite approach on the purported economic “plan“, and Victorian-era regression when it comes to social policy.Oh it’ll work this time of course, we’re basically assured, “the ...
Hey Uncle Dave, When the Poms joined the EEC, I wasn't one of those defeatists who said, Well, that’s it for the dairy job. And I was right, eh? The Chinese can’t get enough of our milk powder and eventually, the Poms came to their senses and backed up the ute ...
Polling shows that Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau has the lowest approval rating of any mayor in the country. Siting at -12 per cent, the proportion of constituents who disapprove of her performance outweighs those who give her the thumbs up. This negative rating is higher than for any other mayor ...
Buzz from the Beehive Pharmac has been given a financial transfusion and a new chair to oversee its spending in the pharmaceutical business. Associate Health Minister David Seymour described the funding for Pharmac as “its largest ever budget of $6.294 billion over four years, fixing a $1.774 billion fiscal cliff”. ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government is trying to achieve and its ...
TL;DR: Here’s my top 10 ‘pick ‘n’ mix of links to news, analysis and opinion articles as of 10:10am on Monday, April 29:Scoop: The children's ward at Rotorua Hospital will be missing a third of its beds as winter hits because Te Whatu Ora halted an upgrade partway through to ...
span class=”dropcap”>As hideous as David Seymour can be, it is worth keeping in mind occasionally that there are even worse political figures (and regimes) out there. Iran for instance, is about to execute the country’s leading hip hop musician Toomaj Salehi, for writing and performing raps that “corrupt” the nation’s ...
Yesterday marked 10 years since the first electric train carried passengers in Auckland so it’s a good time to look back at it and the impact it has had. A brief history The first proposals for rail electrification in Auckland came in the 1920’s alongside the plans for earlier ...
Right now, in Aotearoa-NZ, our ‘animal spirits’ are darkening towards a winter of discontent, thanks at least partly to a chorus of negative comments and actions from the Government Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on ...
You make people evil to punish the paststuck inside a sequel with a rotating castThe following photos haven’t been generated with AI, or modified in any way. They are flesh and blood, human beings. On the left is Galatea Young, a young mum, and her daughter Fiadh who has Angelman ...
April has been a quiet month at A Phuulish Fellow. I have had an exceptionally good reading month, and a decently productive writing month – for original fiction, anyway – but not much has caught my eye that suggested a blog article. It has been vaguely frustrating, to be honest. ...
A listing of 31 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 21, 2024 thru Sat, April 27, 2024. Story of the week Anthropogenic climate change may be the ultimate shaggy dog story— but with a twist, because here ...
Hi,I spent about a year on Webworm reporting on an abusive megachurch called Arise, and it made me want to stab my eyes out with a fork.I don’t regret that reporting in 2022 and 2023 — I am proud of it — but it made me angry.Over three main stories ...
The new Victoria University Vice-Chancellor decided to have a forum at the university about free speech and academic freedom as it is obviously a topical issue, and the Government is looking at legislating some carrots or sticks for universities to uphold their obligations under the Education and Training Act. They ...
Do you remember when Melania Trump got caught out using a speech that sounded awfully like one Michelle Obama had given? Uncannily so.Well it turns out that Abraham Lincoln is to Winston Peters as Michelle was to Melania. With the ANZAC speech Uncle Winston gave at Gallipoli having much in ...
She was born 25 years ago today in North Shore hospital. Her eyes were closed tightly shut, her mouth was silently moving. The whole theatre was all quiet intensity as they marked her a 2 on the APGAR test. A one-minute eternity later, she was an 8. The universe was ...
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. This fact brief was written by Sue Bin Park in collaboration with members from our Skeptical Science team. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Is Antarctica gaining land ice? ...
Images of US students (and others) protesting and setting up tent cities on US university campuses have been broadcast world wide and clearly demonstrate the growing rifts in US society caused by US policy toward Israel and Israel’s prosecution of … Continue reading → ...
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. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi, and Mema Paremata mō Tāmaki-Makaurau, Takutai Tarsh Kemp, will travel to the Gold Coast to strengthen ties with Māori in Australia next week (15-21 April). The visit, in the lead-up to the 9th Australian National Kapa haka Festival, will be an opportunity for both ...
The 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 ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay heads overseas today for high-level trade talks in the Gulf region, and a key OECD meeting in Paris. Mr McClay will travel to Riyadh to meet with counterparts from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). “New Zealand’s goods and services exports to the Gulf region ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford has outlined six education priorities to deliver a world-leading education system that sets Kiwi kids up for future success. “I’m putting ambition, achievement and outcomes at the heart of our education system. I want every child to be inspired and engaged in their learning so they ...
The new NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) App is a secure ‘one stop shop’ to provide the services drivers need, Transport Minister Simeon Brown and Digitising Government Minister Judith Collins say. “The NZTA App will enable an easier way for Kiwis to pay for Vehicle Registration and Road User Charges (RUC). ...
Whānau with tamariki growing up in emergency housing motels will be prioritised for social housing starting this week, says Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka. “Giving these whānau a better opportunity to build healthy stable lives for themselves and future generations is an essential part of the Government’s goal of reducing ...
Racing Minister Winston Peters has paid tribute to an icon of the industry with the recent passing of Dave O’Sullivan (OBE). “Our sympathies are with the O’Sullivan family with the sad news of Dave O’Sullivan’s recent passing,” Mr Peters says. “His contribution to racing, initially as a jockey and then ...
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"Meridian and Contact say they are seriously considering building a plant which would convert about 12 per cent of the country’s total electricity generation into green hydrogen. The plant would be based in Southland as an alternative user of the energy the Tiwai aluminium smelter uses, should it close as scheduled at the end of 2024."
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/125828691/the-hydrogen-problem-how-much-electricity-will-make-it-worthwhile
"Meridian and Contact’s first feasibility report suggests New Zealand is well placed to be a leading green hydrogen producer; its high proportion of renewable electricity meaning it could export as well as meeting domestic needs."
I suspect the devil is in the detail of how exactly hydrogen would be exported – is tank tech sufficiently secure yet? I wonder if export in liquid form would be feasible.
"On the export front, the Government already has agreements of co-operation with Japan and Singapore to research production and explore New Zealand’s export potential. A letter of intent was also signed some years ago between a New Zealand private consortium and several South Korean companies to explore hydrogen exporting, although MBIE says it has yet to progress. There is also the research alliance with Germany, which has already committed to moving to green hydrogen."
"According to the report, the investment in a green hydrogen economy could generate one-time benefits of $0.6 billion to $0.8 billion, and thousands of jobs, with ongoing benefits of $350 million to $450m per annum and hundreds of jobs. Some of those benefits might include attracting high tech talent and money from large sustainable investment funds, or chemical, fertiliser and other industries set up alongside the plant… Standards New Zealand has convened a hydrogen standards advisory group, and the Government will begin developing a hydrogen roadmap this year to examine the issue in more detail."
oh, so the Tiwai power isn't going to EVs now?
Probably depends on the business case, eh? Or, to be more precise, the various competing business cases involved. So cabinet will have a plethora of input (refined by relevant ministers before it gets tabled) to eventually consider…
renewable, climate-saving power generation as a capitalist lottery rather than say a strategic asset core to how we transition and get through the next century.
Well, it is how the cabinet is likely to decide. Jacinda being High Priestess of Neoliberalism – eventually to go down in history as St Jacinda the Neoliberal and featuring as such in the publications of next-century historians.
If Labour were to ditch muddle thro the middle and form a govt with the Greens with formal sustainability/resilience focus, your scenario would apply.
It's a contemporary variation on trickle-down theory. Instead of wealth trickling down from profit-driven enterprises, this time it will be salvational technology. God knows – but they may be right. Because we have spent 35 years eviscerating the State of both the will and the capacity to do much, this may be all we are left with.
I suspect the future road map will have a mix of EV's and hydrogen. Both have their distinct optimal use cases and it will be interesting to see how this plays out. EV's definitely have a head start, but there is reason to think hydrogen could play a very large role in some contexts.
The other aspect is using hydrogen for the direct (carbon free) conversion of iron ore to steel. One of my colleagues right now is an expert in this field and I'm impressed at what a big game changer this will be. Expect major plant startups using this technology within this decade.
Could the 'green hydrogen', proposed to be produced at Tiwai, be used to re-energise spent powdered iron fuel on an industrial scale?
Unburnt (un-oxidised) iron powder has a higher energy density than coal and even petrol.
For obvious reasons it can't burnt in Internal Combustion Engines, but it can be burnt in External Combustion Engines. That's right the good 'ol steam engine to you and me.
Once burnt the only remains from the combustion of Iron powder, (Fe), is FeO2. That's right, good 'ol rust to you and me. (also in the form of a powder).
To separate the O2 from the depleted iron, heated Hydrogen is passed over the powdered iron oxide to combine with the Oxygen to produce H2O which is vented as a vapour. The iron powder is ready to be burnt again. Repeatedy.
If the Hydrogen is produced from a renewable source, which would be the case at Tiwai, then the whole cycle is completely carbon free.
The energy from the hydrogen imbedded in the iron powder, can be stored for months and even years. Without the need for expensive pressure vessels, subject to leaks and explosions.
The only downside of iron powder as a fuel is its weight, (another reason why it will never be a suitable replacement fuel for cars trucks and aeroplanes).
In big surface vessels, ships and trains, where weight bearing is not such a big issue, iron powder is the perfect replacement for fossil fuels, especially the very dirty heavy bunker fuel oil used in ships.
Iron powder could also be burnt in base load power stations, (Huntly could stay open).
Iron powder could replace coal as a source of industrial heat, in bakeries and breweries and brick kilns, and for drying milk powder in dairy factories. And its non-toxic, did i mention that. (unlike oil and coal).
We could bring back the Kingston flyer as a test bed for this new technology.
(The Steampunks might have been on to something)
The following article from Popular Mechanics claims that iron fuel is the fuel of the future.
But is it?
What is the draw back?
it sounds too good to be true.
Where is the fly in the ointment?
Can anyone tell me?
Will this be one of the issues that the hydrogen standards advisory group, and the Government will begin examining in more detail?
You forgot the linky-tinky again.
Here it is, for everybody’s convenience: https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/green-tech/a34597615/burning-iron-powder-fuel-renewable/
My apologies. It was late, I was tired. Thanks for looking it up.
so a perpetual motion machine…..the energy required to convert and reinstate the iron is greater than the energy produced
We must have more energy than we know what to do with.
Spell check,anyone ! or are we not done with the hand wringing yet.?
With me it happened in primers 1,2 & 3. Come primer 4, I no longer needed to do it. But I gather the education system has slid steadily down the hill since the 1950s, so there may indeed be a real need for the techies here to come to your rescue.
@ Dennis
Dyslexia is a very real problem in Aotearoa/New Zealand,most folk in prison struggle with it an it excludes a large number of people pitisapating in DEBATE.thanks to Solkta advise,I've got my self a new dictionary.It may suit some for others not too ingauge,but I will keep trying even though it might take twenty minutes to write this.
Oh and too find the word can be difficuted,Phonics might help but that dictionary has disappeared.
Okay, thanks for that explanation. I hope the techies get onto your case.
I don't know much about dyslexia but can imagine the frustration. A trick that might or might not work is just to write the consonants – t's srprsng hw qckly txt wrttn ths wy cn b ndrstd! Hp ths hlps?
Thanks u.
Too be fair,I've always tried to spell out the word as I found txt languque a slippery slop.. but trust me I've tried many options. I see it as exclustionary,back to the dictionary,,exclusionery ,not there,Damn
My daughter has a form of dyslexia. We realised that there was no way she was going to cope in the public school system, and so we decided that we would try an alternative education for her at around the age of 9. We had been reading to her every day as she was unable to read at that time even the most basic text. The new school saw that she had a problem with connections between left brain and right brain. They began a series of curative eurythmy for her. Astoundingly, within 3 months she was able to read the first Harry Potter, and is now an avid reader, and writer. She still has difficulty with correct spelling on some of the more tricky English words.
As you will be well aware "dyslexia" does not mean "unintelligent". There have been many advances in human knowledge and understanding and outstanding achievements made by persons with dyslexia. A cousin of mine was unable to complete school certificate because of his poor scores in English, yet he became a Professional Member of the NZ Royal Society. It was my task to proof read the papers he was about to send for publication in scientific journals to check the English.
Macro, the science behind the "Wobble board" is interesting. It is used in education to assist with the practice of using both right and left brain to assist learning. The brain, the new frontier.
@Macro
Thanks and yes. hope your daughter is going well,intelligents has very little too do as you say,but jokingly with my self I wonder sometimes,Ha.the thing is i can speak well enough and understand what most words mean,may get out of order but hey-ho,just the print and lack of coninuity,which make a narritive difficult.I have made boo-bo's here more than once,cheers for your input.
Thank you. So long as I can understand the other person I really do not care about how they spell. I'd rather hear what they say.
@Sacha
Yes true that,online is a different kettle of fish.
I don't see how just writing consonants would help with sdxl.
DF Why bother to reply with only a sarky patronising response. If you can't help, don't want to, it's no help to get negatives from the self-consciously smart.
Tbh, I was actually trying to help. Seemed like everyone ignored the problem yesterday, so I figured replying would draw attention to the request, thus raising the probability of a tech solution…
Well just say so, Most of your reply was circumlocution. Is that spelt right? And amazingly I dd fnd mslf ndstndg.
What? Are you lobbying for the style police position at TS yet again?? Last time resulted in a collective slap-down, I seem to recall, but full marks for dogged perseverance anyway!
DF BS
Hmmm, I guess "bureaucrats" wasn't on the spelling list then.
Some people suffer word blindness Dennis. Your comment is rude.
Technically, it would be ignorant – since I had to google word blindness to discover that it is an established cultural term that I'd not previously encountered. Rude is intentional behaviour, where the intent is to offend the other person.
I see that have joined others in redefining the meaning of words to suit your narrative.
When aghast at the tendency of postmodernism to accelerate the evolution of language, conservatives seek solace in a cuppaT & lie-down. This method may not work for progressives – however a switch of focus from trivia to essentials usually does.
If, instead, you actually get off on picking nits, I'll try to generate a few more for you…
[Sure, if you want to make up shit to suit yourself then accept the consequences without trying to put blame on others. If you don’t like to be called rude then don’t be rude and start acting all victimized because we don’t understand that you operate at a higher dimension than we do or we didn’t receive the same education as you did or because we are dyslexic, for example. Just to avoid any post-modern confusion, stop your post-modern BS and maybe apologize to make up for your unintentional rudeness; it won’t kill you – Incognito]
See my Moderation note @ 1:40 pm.
I actually didn't blame anyone for anything – so why pretend that I did??
[actually, you did shift it to others and even the education system but you seem to ignore this, how convenient for you. Your comment @ 2.1.4.1.1.1 was a sly put down and avoiding taking responsibility too. I told you to stop your post-modern BS and will add to this your tendency to gaslight. In case it is not clear to you, your comments are being moderated and digging in is not smart. Maybe you keep quiet and take heed of the notes, yes – Incognito]
See my Moderation note @ 2:58 pm.
Since when has a "sly put down" been unacceptable? I see them here from others all the time. The about page doesn't forbid them, right? Gaslight is not a term I'm familiar with. I think you're just trying to bully me by operating a double standard. I'm puzzled as to why you are…
[You ask:
Since it is used as deflecting blame and responsibility for your own commenting behaviour, which you still haven’t accepted, I note, and you’re still digging in.
Google “gaslighting” and you will enrich your post-modern vocabulary.
Not smart at all to argue back to a Moderator and accusing them of bullying you.
In any case, not all context is the same, which might come as a surprise to you; different comments and commenters are treated differently depending on a wide range of reasons.
Since you seem to think that perception and interpretation are everything, so for your information, from the Policy:
Please don’t try to argue your way out of Moderation, as it won’t work and you simply end up wasting more Moderator time. I have given you two warnings for something quite minor, but you opted to escalate it and this is your last warning. Take heed and STFU or take a ban – Incognito]
See my Moderation note @ 3:36 pm.
Am happy to bring this up with Lynn again. Do you mean you want a spell check in the comment box? What do you need? Mis-spelled words are underlined, do you want to be able to click on them for the correct spelling?
What devices are you using?
I think they may mean this.
When a word is misspelt in the comment box, right clicking on it doesn't give the list of various possible correct spellings but a 'paste' option.
Might depend on browser settings as well.
yep, that it does to me.
solution, post the comment, hit edit and then the red underlined words are ok to be spell checked.
desktop/chrome
Yes, it's a long standing issue on TS, and as Sacha says I think it's browser/OS dependent. Seem to remember we had a discussion about this a while back, I'll see if I can find it.
It's not browser or OS dependent. If it was it would occur on all other website comment boxes and it doesn't.
Besides spellcheck is commonly the default. That the word is underlined shows that the browser recognises the incorrect spelling but for some reason doesn't initiate the next correct option. i.e. the list of possible words.
I'm using Firefox and occasionally Chrome on Ubuntu.
On my iPhone I have the ability to click on an underlined in red word and be offered options. Mobile version.
I mean that the way @lprent has implemented it here may behave differently on browsers. Or not. It was a maybe..
Yup, Lprent can do a lot on this site but he cannot control people’s devices and browsers and settings unless he hacks them, which he tends to not do 😉
There are always limits to what components like these can do.
Some devices are smarter than others.
Brigid
I'm on Firefox but probably behind with updates. Do you notice that the spellchecker frequently underlines an s and seems to want me to put z. I think my English speller has a US bias or something. It is quite 'aggressive' about this.
Yes. Insisting on 'z' rather than 's' is common. That's because the spell checker default is set to American spelling. You can choose 'add to dictionary' to teach the damned thing that we aren't all American. Hopefully it wont be underlined next time you use it.
Hello Weka,
Yes the words are underlined but right click just shows paste,and I can not see how I could use that,so yes is their a spell check but not on my lap top. I have most things including replys etc. regards Al
Oh Weka i think it is Ubuntu 1804.5 LTS
If you're on a laptop, a temporary work-around might be to use a word processor (e.g. libreoffice on linux) to draft things up and then paste them into the comment box.
I tend to do that with longer pieces or important emails.
Ta, I'll see if that works and me working it.
I'm on gmail and find it useful sometimes to draft using the Compose window which has a useful set of gadgets to manage the text. Then I just copy it and paste it in TS. And my Compose window is set for frequent saves so it's virtually idiot proof.
@ Grey,
Cheers. Idiot proof for me,it will need to be.
left for deadshark.
This works on a phone too, on an iPhone Notes will allow predictive text and correction as well as post-typing spell check.
Hello Weka,
Ubuntu 18.04.5 LTS
I don't know whether to laugh or cry
https://gizmodo.com/pro-trump-group-files-motion-against-fda-to-stop-covid-1847325556
Why not do both at the same time?
Where do such doctors do their training in the USA? They need to get certification somewhere as sane persons capable of helping their fellow citizens?
On a more serious note:
This doctor's account on the ground in Alabama makes pretty sad reading (I found the days old article linked via a Guardian story today):
https://www.al.com/news/2021/07/im-sorry-but-its-too-late-alabama-doctor-on-treating-unvaccinated-dying-covid-patients.html
'
How should his team mates deal with this guy?
Maybe they could go all 'old school' trade unionism on him, and threaten to go on strike, until he gets his jab, or the organisers agree to ban him.
How should we deal with vaccine hesitancy?
Reflections on democracy;
(debate carried over from Freedom Day)
Democracy has been described as the dictatorship of the majority over the minority.
I have had the honour and privilege to have had my political views about democracy shaped by my experience in the grass roots trade union movement…..
https://thestandard.org.nz/freedom-day/#comment-1804430
Reading about US swimmer Michael Andrew's 'vocal' and 'proud sounding' refusal to be vaccinated, reminded me of an incident I had occasion to be involved in at a large unionised South Auckland workplace back in the good old days before the anti union Employment Contracts Act.
The workers had one of the best shop floor delegates that I ever met. Indefatigueable and fearless in confronting the boss on her workmates behalf. Naturally she was well loved and respected..
One day, (outside of work hours), she was involved in a bad car accident that left her with hand injuries and unable to work.
As a sign of respect and in recognition of her advocacy on their behalf, the workers took a vote to each garner their wages by $20 a week for one month to help their delegate's recovery. In those days all decisions on any collective action was decided by a vote of 60 to 40. I can't remember the winning percentage, but the vote was carried by the needed margin.
After a week I was contacted by the stand-in acting job delegate, who informed me there was a problem. Two women had point blank refused to give the delegate their $20, and it was creating some dissention among the rest. "Really? I was surpirsed. "Who are they?". She told me their names. I recognised one name. she was a new immigrant who I knew had been helped in the past by the injured delegate.
I told the acting delegate I would sort it out.
At lunch time both women were sitting together at a table in a corner of the canteen. They both recognised me as I approached. The woman I didn't know had a deeply lined face and a pinched expression and just glared at me. The other woman who I knew looked glad to see me. I sat down. "Do you you remember", I began, "when you first came to this country and this was your first job in New Zealand?"
"Do you remember that it created a fuss when everyone found out the employer had hired you on less than the agreed rate.?"
She nodded. "Then you would remember that time in the carpark where the delegate made you all wait outside while she went in to see the boss on your behalf." She nodded again. "Then you will remember when she came back and said the employer has agreed to pay you the full rate".
"What you mightn't know" i continued, "Is that the manager initially refused to increase your rate, saying he had no legal obligation to do so, as your qualifications weren't recognised in this country. The delegate told the boss, "I don't care where she comes from she is doing the same work as the rest of us, therefore she gets the going rate". The employer then told the delegate if she insisted that you be paid the same rate as the rest, he would have to let you go. The delelgate then threatened to call a strike, unless he relented.
"That was more than three years ago, I have my New Zealand registration now."
"Yes but for a long time you worked on the full rate, even without your New Zealand qualification. If it hadn't been for your delegate, you could have been working here for a lot less, or even not working here at all."
"I also know that with the extra money you made, you and your husband were able to scrape up enough between you to put a deposit on a house". (It was much easier in those days).
"So how about it? Will you agree to pay the levy?"
She said she would.
As I got up to leave, I remember the shocked blank look on the face of her friend, even the deep lines on her face had seemed to plump out.
Some would call that exerting undue influence, or even coercion.
I would call it democracy.
But what would I know. I am just an ignorant old working person from South Auckland.
P.S.
A week later I checked in with the acting delegate. "Is that worker paying the levy?" "Yes" she replied. "What about the other one?" "Yes, she is paying it too."
Perhaps his teammates can force his personal medical choices on him… Although not all of us want to relive some kind of facist society.
If he feels so strongly about it, he can always quit. It's a free world afterall.
Maybe he could trade his celebrity/notoriety for a job in the Donald Trump re-election team.
The Qanon movement need a hard done by martyr, maybe he could apply for the position.
Ostracise him, isolate him and leave him on his tod to deal with the consequences of his bone-headed dogma.
Thread.
https://twitter.com/ggreeneva/status/1418217446121512960
https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1418217446121512960.html
Just another Right Wing Superspreader-individualistic-covid-19-atrocious-expelia-docious
Don’t shove your infection down our throat.
(And into our lungs).
Idiot!
Link for that quote?
see comment at 3 they were replying to
It's from the gizmodo piece linked in Jenny's comment directly above it.
Snap
Ta
I think some DHBs don't like their little fiefdoms being penetrated by GPs and pharmacies. Sheesh!
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/checkpoint/audio/2018805111/pharmacies-underutilised-in-covid-19-vaccine-rollout
It takes a lot more administrative effort to run lots of little vaccination clinics then one big clinic.
I accept that mpledger but it is not an insurmountable problem. I doubt anyone is suggesting lots of little vaccination clinics but rather one or two well placed pharmacies/GP clinics per region who have the skills, capacity and the desire to be involved in the project.
An example is my region – the North Shore. We have one large clinic in Birkenhead which covers an area stretching from Devonport in the south to Rodney in the North. It also stretches west into suburbs nominally considered to be part of West Auckland. That is a huge area and they are doing a tremendous job. I went there for my first jab and witnessed it for myself.
The main problem is that some elderly and vulnerable folk do not have the capacity (for whatever reason) to get to this clinic. Setting aside retirement villages and rest homes, there are significant numbers in this category who have not had their first jab yet. A local pharmacy or GP clinic with the skills required – plus easy access – in the south of the region and another in the north would see a lot more category 3 people coming forward for vaccination.
GPs also handle other vaccinations already and have trained nurses and appropriate storage. They are more trusted by some people than strangers in a big vax centre. Yet some DHBs seem unable to walk and chew gum at the same time. No wonder they are for the chop.
"Labtests NZ" collection centres too, but only two on the shore.
Hmmm… I know 2 ladies at age 88 and 93 and both have no phone or computer which seem to be the pre requisite to get anything going. Both still live in their own home and it should be their GP that should contact them so that they have certainty.
I am pretty certain that these 2 ladies are not he only ones who will forever be kept on the waiting list.
But hopefully not if their GPs make sure they get vaccinated
edit
Good things happened in the NZ film business during Covid19, now we have proved to the world that we are up to it.
https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-55272486
Dec.11/20 How New Zealand's film industry boomed during the pandemic
…Thanks to its handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, the country is enjoying an unprecedented boom in film production, with directors seeking safe conditions, and that most elusive thing this year – a normal life.
International blockbusters including James Cameron's Avatar sequels, Amazon's Lord of the Rings series and Jane Campion's The Power of the Dog – starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Kirsten Dunst – all managed complex film shoots in New Zealand this year.
The country's home-grown movies have also received a boost at the box office by Kiwis supporting their industry, leading one local filmmaker to joke that they're now living in "the Hollywood of the Pacific".
…According to the New Zealand Ministry of Culture and Heritage, the industry supports about 21,000 local jobs and contributes $NZ 2.7 billion (£1.4bn) to its GDP every year. The government has also announced a NZ$50 million (£26million) production grant that Annabelle Sheehan hopes “will lead to a surge in New Zealand led stories.”
She also reports “about a doubling” of international inquiries for filming in the country in 2021.
I read a lot of Anne Perry and see that she has shifted from Scotland to the West Coast USA and I think that movie/s are under discussion. What about making some here. She is a very sensitive writer about people, and gets cliff-hanging plots, with strong characters. A lot are set in London, with one character being in the River Police, and another more to do with society foibles. But there is a WW1 series that are good. Just an idea.
https://thedailyblog.co.nz/2021/07/22/the-pegasus-proclivity-on-recent-revelations-of-israeli-international-espionage/
This sounds like an Israeli intelligence coup. And after reading I see it as similar to arms dealers selling arms to both sides of a conflict, and if they know all about the two countries' weaknesses (through covert intelligence) then they know how to inflame them, and reap the benefit of selling them arms to fight it out. Perhaps we should go back to primitive bare knuckling, men or women, perhaps we should be gender free, or turn our trans men into national heroes.
why has our minister not led the conservation and gone bush ? One reason could be he has been placed in this position because the govt doesn’t want debate and he is incapable to (promoted to fail, I know a bit Machiavellian ) Sure there are some who have taken over the role in this matter (posts on TS) but it is the govt to take control, if they cannot enter into coheriant conversation it says alot and not very complementary .
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/447500/silence-over-hate-speech-laws-has-allowed-misinformation-in-minorities-say
"led the conservation and gone bush" lol
think you mean conversation….
Must have been my subconscious taking over as I was about to attach a liquid bird feeder to a tree out in the backyard 😉
I read that they are great once the birds take confidence that they are safe to feed from.
What would be the liquid you,d be feeding them Herodotus just out of interest ?
Water , honey and a little red food colouring all in a happily and well enjoyed (now) empty bottle of wine and a dish . The bottle upended and framed on a wooden stand with a platform for the birds to stand on. There are a few tui's around, have not sighted a kereru since the initial lock down, last April. Then the number of native birds seen was very uplifting. But city life appears to have sent them back to a more peaceful area.
https://www.selwyncomed.school.nz/courses/1627-make-your-own-birdfeeder/
Capitalists vs Controllers saga happening in China: "Beijing's sweeping tech crackdown has rocked firms from Alibaba and Ant Group to Meituan and Pinduoduo. And its efforts to control the sector spread even further this month." https://edition.cnn.com/2021/07/22/investing/china-us-ipos-intl-hnk/index.html
"The Cyberspace Administration of China — a powerful internet watchdog with Chinese Community Party links that trace all the way up to President Xi Jinping — banned Didi from app stores days after its initial public offering. The CAC, which has accused Didi of illegally collecting and using personal information, also joined several other government agencies, including ministries in charge of public and state security, in visiting the Beijing-based company to review its cybersecurity."
"The watchdog, whose influence has ballooned since Xi set the agency up in 2014, is also setting its sights on curtailing overseas listings. It recently proposed that any company with data on more than one million users must seek the agency's approval before listing its shares overseas."
"Things are looking pretty dire for Chinese tech right now, especially firms that have been considering overseas listings as a way to raise money. The chill created by tensions, both within China's borders and with its greatest rival, could bring overseas investment in Chinese tech to a grinding halt. Investors are already rattled. China's unprecedented tech crackdown has wiped $1 trillion off the value of overseas-listed Chinese tech stocks since February — one of the worst sell-offs in history, Goldman Sachs analysts said in a research report last week."
"Goldman estimated that China's digital economy accounts for 40% of the country's GDP, and that the tech sector represented some 40% of the MSCI China Index, which is widely followed by global equity investors as a major benchmark."
"US investors now hold about $1 trillion in Chinese stocks. That includes about $590 billion worth of exposure in Hong Kong, $330 billion in the United States, and $135 billion in mainland China, according to a recent estimate by Goldman Sachs."
Looks like the reef fish just got shifted into flight mode, eh? Another crisis of capitalism may ensue – aversion to melt-down likely to be motivating central bankers all round the world, crisis meetings for contingency planning…
https://www.rnz.co.nz/programmes/the-detail/story/2018804920/the-miq-nightmare
Today's Acronyms of note: MIQ and MoBIE
A new word has popped up in news stories about the MIQ booking nightmare – script. It's the key to Ietting a highly contested space in managed isolation.
Jon Brewer was offered this kind of high-tech help to get out of Singapore where he has been living with his wife.
But he says it is cheating and he refuses to break the terms and conditions of the MIQ booking system.
He's taking his fight to the Ombudsman and if that doesn't work he'll hire a lawyer.
"I want them to compel MBIE (Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment) to solve the problem. I went to them (the Ombudsman) because I complained to MBIE through their process that I was unable to interact with the site in a way that would allow me to get a booking the way that they have required me to use the site.
This public service announcement is a succinct 1 minute video push by every previous President (except Trump), and including 96-year old Jimmy Carter, urging all to get vaccinated.
Once we get to the hard-to-reach and moronic who don't want the vaccine, it would be time for all of our previous Prime Ministers still around to do the same on video, and they are: Palmer, Bolger, Shipley, Clark, Key, and English.
We need cross-Party leadership to assist in this nationwide effort.
Fortunately we in NZ have mostly avoided making the vaccine a political identity issue the way the Donnie One-Term cultists have. Who aren't likely to be influenced by Shrub's endorsement in any case. So I have doubts any of our former PMs would be influential among those that would need to be influenced.
The political 'leaders' we would need to get on board here in NZ include the likes of Billy Te Kookiha, Sue Kedgley etc. Good luck with that.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/125834890/labour-list-mp-tamati-coffey-hits-back-at-81m-rotorua-motel-purchase-critics
Good that someone's pointed this out. McClay's despicably disingenuous response reeked of the same desperation that runs throughout the national party at the moment.
What's important, though, is that the government keeps in the front of its mind what Coffey referred to, which is that all of this emergency and transitional housing malarkey is a temporary fix. This is easy to say but hard to execute. It's easy to see emergency and transitional housing getting a permanent spot within our wider social welfare system. Just look at what food banks have become. They were talked about as a temporary measure back around the time of the 1991 benefit cuts. Now the bloody Ministry of Social Development even funds them. An extremely sad state of affairs things have come to this, but it's nothing new because it's something that affects only the poor so nobody really gives a fuck, which is the only reason this has been allowed to happen, of course. The same thing will happen to emergency and transitional housing unless there are a clear and deliberate efforts to avoid it.
+100 Chris
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/whoseatingnewzealand/447490/booze-tops-new-zealand-exports-to-antarctica
Can booze be used as anti-freeze? Did you ever hear that story about film star David Niven out skiing who noticed numbness in his vitals and found brandy helped?
Yes, ethanol is a very effective antifreeze. In water it lowers the freezing point progressively with increasing concentration all the way to about 93% by weight where it freezes at about -115C. Which is why it is about major ingredient in windscreen washer fluid in cold climates.
David Niven may have thought the brandy helped, but what it actually did was open up the capillaries near his skin which gives the sensation of warmth, but actually increases heat flow away from his vitals.
Helps you feel better about freezing to death, I guess. And who doesn't like a St Bernard? 🙂
Have enough of it, and you won't be freezing to death.
I seem to remember that Niven applied it externally, dunkin' donut style.
McMurdo Station is dry.
The rivers of rain we are getting are obviously an effect of climate change.
Should this be a concern for those Wellingtonians who live on the sides of steep hills. And from memory there are a lot of them. Perhaps planning has already taken this hillside/slippage/mud slide thing into consideration.
Any geologists out there?
Race relations commissioner Meng Foon told Newshub the booklet is "racist to the core".
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2021/07/absolutely-culturally-ignorant-bay-of-plenty-dhb-covid-19-vaccine-booklet-withdrawn-from-circulation.html
Hold my beer.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/pou-tiaki/125840147/covid19-mori-artist-created-offensive-pamphlet-design-with-moko-on-cartoon-virus
DHB board chair Sharon Shea first saw it on Thursday night, was offended and found it wrong, she said in a statement.
“Since last night, I have been informed it was designed by a Māori artist, and had input from Māori marketing specialists and it had gone through an approval process, including consultation with some local iwi,” she said.
Ah. Thanks for that factual piece of info with links Robbie Wgtn.
Also on sensitive topics – women's prison study.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/programmes/re_covering/story/2018804704/03-guyon-espiner-auckland-women-s-prison
I guess that is what you call and own goal! What a waste of money. So Maori are being racist and offending themselves?
to be fair, in the article it seems that no one asked the people involved in the design what they thought.
maybe that will be in another article?
My god where reaching peak offence stipidity at any moment, people's heads are actually going to start popping soon.
bw How will we tell what the signs are?
Bulging eyes and head jerking?
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/447445/how-ordinary-kiwi-cyclists-started-being-seen-as-elitist
I notice that many males ride on bikes in a way similar to how they would drive. Then there are ones in the twilight and dark all dressed in black, no brightness to show up, and they possibly won't have a light either. They don't indicate and they go through red lights relying on being nippy and thinking that cars can see them. They don't realise if they are in front of headlights that they are invisible.
Drivers have to wait at busy inter-sections longer because in the middle of the only space for half a minute is a cyclist, slower, vulnerable and defenceless. Then when they choose to ride on the footpath they can woosh by and then the pedestrian gets stressed out. It's mostly males, used to getting what they want, who have started the footpath stunt for adults, okay for children though they can be fast. Because it is males who are most vociferous, they are catered to without spending on a needed division on the footpath so both wheels and feet have their own space. Happy people intermingling on coloured mock-ups for council publicity mock reality about safety and ease for walkers.
I've not noticed this. Where is it happening? Ninja cyclists will very quickly become ex ninja ex cyclists.
Remember when when we thought the internet would help the world become a smarter, more informed place. Unfortunately, we got morons by the gross.
https://twitter.com/vanbadham/status/1418795177217568769
What's even scarier is that people like that are allowed to vote. !!