After the interim order is given or not, the case will go to a full hearing. Germany has filed a declaration with the World Court to intervene in this hearing in support of Israel.
Why is Namibia furious at Germany's ICJ intervention supporting Israel?
Aljazeera host of "Counting The Cost" Adrian Finighan
@1:33 minutes
"….in 2021 Berlin acknowledged committing genocide in Namibia"
"..shouldn't a country responsible for two genocides be actively looking to prevent a third?"
@4:35 minutes
"Absolutely Adrian I cannot agree more with you….
…..particularly problematic is the way that they framed South Africa's complaint as an instrumentalization of the international court of justice. Which means basically it [Germany] thinks it's an illegitimate suit, it's something that should not happen.
After all we've heard during the pleadings in the past days last week. That is quite a strong statement. Therefore, I'm absolutely not surprised by the reaction on the on the side of Namibia…."
Namibia has requested that Germany withdraw their intervention in support of Israel at the World Court. Personally speaking, I would have thought that Germany would be the last country that would be trying to stop a court looking into a case of alleged genocide.
The people of Namibia suffered a genocide at the hands of the German colonial empire. Germany has admitted to it.
Germany has zero right to be supporting the slaughter of another indigenous people, at the hand of another occupying colonial power.
32 states intervened in the case of Ukraine vs. Russia, to argue the merits of Ukraine's case against Russia alleging Ukraine committed genocide in the Donbas.
But only one state, Germany, has put its name down to intervene in support of Israel at the United Nations International Court of Justice, the ICJ, also known as the World Court. Not even the US, Israel's biggest backer, has put up their hand to support Israel in the World Court.
Why is that?
The state of Israel was founded after WWII with the connivance of the US who were trying to form a counterweight to the power and influence of the British Empire in the Middle East.
At the end of the war, displaced Jewish refugees favoured destination of choice was America. As well as making it hard for displaced persons to enter the US. The US authorities gave Zionists access to the displaced persons camps in the US zone of control in Europe to gather recruits to go to Palestine. The British imperialists tried to resist the founding of the state of Israel and interned the Jewish refugees that the US had incited to go to Israel on the island of Cypress.
The Zionists have always been a proxy force for American imperialism in the Middle East.
The last gasp of the British Empire in the Middle East, was the Suez Crisis. After that the US became the dominant Western imperialist power in the region. Israel became US imperialism's unsinkable aircraft carrier threatening any Arab country that dared step out of line.
While the victorious super powers were squabbling over the spoils of war, what about the defeated imperialist powers Germany, Italy, Japan? They became junior partners to the new global hegemon.
When you can't do dirty work yourself you get someone else to do it.
Both Germany and Japan have been called on to put pressure on the World Court to to make sure their judges on the ICJ vote the way the US wants.
Shame on those countries that have chosen to do it.
Footnote:
If anyone thinks I am picking on Germany and Germans, I am not. Every capitalist country wants to expand its influence, every capitalist country aspires to be an imperialist, or junior imperialist, even lil'ol New Zealand.
Growth expansion imperialism, colonialism is written into the DNA of capitalism, every imperialist country commits massacres and genocides to maintain their rule.
Historic guilt of empire is irrelevant to this, as is the status of Jews as a past victim of empire themselves (Christian, Moslem and German). This is now. Post 1945 and the UN of member states and related international law.
Whether Palestinians (Arabic language and cultural order came with Islam after 600CE – before then most locals were Christians) are indigenous or Jews is irrelevant (they each have similar DNA northern Semite) and both are Semitic cultures.
Everyone knows the case of genocide will not succeed and is merely an attempt to get a interim order for a cease-fire.
This is not even a case of ethnic cleansing (the case of this in WB is far stronger).
There is a case for war crimes, and to prevent further loss of civilian life, this is a device to realise a cease-fire.
And given Russia ignored an interim order of this court (and others before them), as per Ukraine, if Israel does so will depend on other factors (guess why USA is not involved).
How very arrogant of you. It is plain that "everyone" does not agree. Have you even bothered to look at the heros welcome when the ICJ team arrived back in SA? There is historically huge support between SA and Palestinians.
I've no idea what you're talking about. Its a reference to your support of Maersk profits against Palestinian lives. I would add that obviously, the relationship is an inverse one.
They pass on costs to those who use their ships to transport goods to market, and they to consumers.
As for the impact of that inflation, a lot would be even higher cost for fertilizer and food out of south east Europe to Asia and maybe electronics and EV's between Asia and Europe.
Look SPC, I can be a bit dim but a light just illuminated in my head that said for you to be upset at a comment directed at yourself with the phrase "people like you" , and call me antisemitic, you may be an Israeli. If this is the case, I unreservedly apologise and regardless, will only address your comments in future.
[Stop playing the man. This is your warning – Incognito]
Once upon a time, if you criticised American policy you were called anti-American, a fellow traveller with the commie left or this century terrorists (and probably still). Some of us were visited by local police as suspects in the "threat" to the visiting golfer Tiger Woods most likely because some CIA agent thought manipulating them to act that way was both funny and a way to get our public opinion and government onto their Iraq regime change play.
Once upon a time, if you supported a two state solution that made one a Zionist or an anti-Zionist depending on who responded (and probably still). And that could mean all sorts of stuff to them and all sorts of language gets used, because all those Zionists or anti-Zionists are * and or **.
I was just wondering what "your own inflation adjusted values of life" was about, as it did not seem to make any sense. If I think something is anti-semitic I will say so.
‘ SPC @1.1 "Everyone knows the case of genocide will not succeed and is merely an attempt to get a interim order for a cease-fire."
Nobody knows. But if I were to guess, I would guess that it would be the other way round. The interim order for a ceasefire in Gaza will fail. The charge of genocide will be proved.
My guess is based on 'Realpolitik', especially as it is practiced in international affaires.
My guess based on realpolitik, is South Africa's attempt to get an interim order for a cease-fire in Gaza will fail. The political pressure from the US and its allied states on the judges of the ICJ will is too great.
Many years from now, the allegation of genocide will eventually be proven. The 84 page mountain of evidence of genocidal acts and statements of intent to commit genocide contained in the Brief by South Africa is damning, I am certain that even more damning evidence will be revealed with the passing of time.
Even the current available evidence is overwhelming, but by the time a final judgment is made, it will all be academic, and too late to make a difference.
Realpolitik:
Is the International Court of Justice Biased?
Abstract
…..We test the charge of bias using statistical methods. We find strong evidence that (1) judges favor the states that appoint them….
Only MMP would allow anywhere power a party of lying nincompoops with such a frankly partisan, grubby agenda to try and create a voting base out of bad policy.
It's interesting to consider though whether NZ would be struggling to find competent Ministers and MPs at this point in time if it was still under FPP.
Under FPP – as the result of the 2023 election you would have an overwhelming National Party government (having won a substantial majority of the electorates) – possibly in coalition with the 2 ACT MPs – but with no NZF representation. You'd have a few GP electorate MPs and the 5 TPM ones – in opposition, along with a pretty tiny Labour Party.
While there would be no NZF representation – you would have a centre-right government which would regard itself as having an overwhelming mandate (since they would hold well over 2/3 of the seats).
Characterizing MMP as a failure because it hasn't (on this occasion) given you the government you wanted – is pretty short-sighted.
I don't feel that the record of the last year inclines me to believe in the competence of the Labour Ministers in the previous government.
Any new government, coming in after a spell in opposition, is going to consist of predominantly inexperienced MPs.
The Conservative Party has a big majority under FPP – soon to be history, the majority, not FPP – and yet small radical splitter groups (some can be considered "lunatic") appear to drive policies:
ERG (European Research Group)
Common Sense Group
The New Conservatives
No Turning Back
…
I can't see much of a difference to MMP coalition(s).
"Especially because the absolute worst part of the past three months has been how common it’s become to casually slag off Māori. There’s a noticeable swell in hate, division, racism, crazy talk and an all round sulphuric nastiness"
It is disgusting how manipulative the players in parliament have become. We have a elected government and the crowd that screams the loudest or plays games like in high school seems to propose to do away with democracy. All the hallmarks are there of a toppling of the legal government. No willingness to uphold the other side of the constitution. Show your colors and don't hide behind insults. The ones slagging off anybody are hailed as doing the right thing, go figure. Give those who are caught in the middle a chance to rearrange their affairs and move to a safer country.
I guess so, which is why there’s a handy Reply button for convenient nesting/threading of comment threads. If there are technical issues then it would be good to let Lprent know about it.
It's staining the world of science and education as well;
"Do I need to emphasize once again that there are no “indigenous ways of knowing” beyond the ways that modern science “knows” things. To be frank, indigenous “ways of knowing” are inferior to modern science, which has a whole armamentarium for determining what counts as “knowledge” (experimentation, controls, replication, hypothesis-testing, pervasive doubt, and so on). In contrast, indigenous ways of knowing invariably come down to simple observation of natural phenomena or assertions (say, about the efficacy of plants as medicines) that aren’t tested using blind studies. And without verification and replication and testing, you don’t have knowledge; you have claims."
my eyes glazed over as soon as I saw the words 'Jerry Coyne'. A rationalist who exhibits irrational behaviour each time he opens his keyboard on anything to do with indigenous knowledge.
There’s no such thing as “crystalline armour of science-thinking”, as it would imply that it is pure, hard & sharp, and symmetrical, and some kind of protection or defence [against what?].
Science that isn’t shared with people and that has no impact on people and society is less than a tree in a Zen forest. This sharing and influencing, not just in terms of ‘pure’ thinking but also in knowledge transfer and technological advancement is a bi-directional & mutual and dynamic process.
That’s futile because the Dark Arts are inside the science fortress as much as they’re on the outside. Rationalism in isolation is an exercise in futility. Rationalism as a ‘great purifier’ of science and mankind is a mug’s game.
n contrast, indigenous ways of knowing invariably come down to simple observation of natural phenomena or assertions (say, about the efficacy of plants as medicines) that aren’t tested using blind studies. And without verification and replication and testing, you don’t have knowledge; you have claims."
Any halfwit who has gardened for a length of time knows how to test whether something works or not. The man needs to get out more.
Two peoples in one land, should we send David Seymour to re-write the principles of he state of Israel, the PA and the Oslo Accord peace process?
Let our first nation to see each days dawn enlighten them, or not make it any worse here or there?
Mr Barak is alarmed Israel is “losing legitimacy” and clearly worried for the next generation. “Statesmanship is missing. There is a vacuum in the overall running of the war,” he says. “We need to do something about it because time is running out. There are two clocks ticking at a different pace. The clock of legitimacy is ticking very fast; the clock of achieving the objective is ticking very slow. It is the basic role of the senior command to make sure these two clocks become synchronised.”
"The government has confirmed a document about the government's proposed Treaty Principles bill is a leaked draft memo from the Ministry of Justice"
The screenshot showed commentary from the report's author saying they expected the Bill would be "highly contentious".
..a full copy of the leaked report, which it said warned the proposal's key points were "at odds with what the Treaty of Waitangi actually says".
Now by what I see is that, whoever was the "author" – no one seem to name the person – is not really authorized.
However, what concerns me most is that, the public service is to stay neutral as they are employed to do the job no matter who is in government and hence have to stir away from any bias. This is difficult – true, but a pre requisite to make sure that corruption does not have an entry door.
How is making the media and thus the public being aware of something any form of corruption – more likely to be otherwise.
Many suspect that the leak was to aid the major party in the new government, give it more reason to dampen down expectation of its supporting a second reading (and embolden NZF to say they would not do so).
I really have no interest as to the motivation of the person but rather the institution of government and its employees obligation to adhere to protocol and impartiality. The country needs to be able to rely on its government for stability, economically and defence. Undermining it is actually treason.
"Public sector chief executives and board chairs are responsible for the integrity and conduct of their agencies and maintaining the agency’s political neutrality. This includes during the election period"
This would be speculation as the document was a draft held at the ministry of justice (no less!) and no reading has taken place as far as reported to date. On those grounds the person had an agenda and hence should be dismissed – ungracefully.
Equally, it is a duty of any party/govt employee to make sure that such leaked document is not a spurious placed for publication intended to fan emotions in the current environment.
It is in essence inciting perceptions that can lead to violence. One should not forget that, not all people approach this issue with an academic mind and zest of evidence based discussion. In that sense it is a treasonous act to incite willingly and knowingly discontent.
The sad part is that, if the Maori Party has taken this aboard and now "wants to held a government to account" and call a rightfully elected government "white supremacist". This is adding fuel to this without actually checking facts. On that basis their integrity and adherence to parliamentary protocol is questionable.
What is the basis of your assertion that the TPM "integrity and adherence to parliamentary protocol is questionable"?
In that sense it is a treasonous act to incite willingly and knowingly discontent.
No, it is not an act of treason to incite discontent (not under any democratic government).
That would lead to censorship of media and as someone once said he would rather have no elections, than no independent media.
Equally, it is a duty of any party/govt employee to make sure that such leaked document is not a spurious placed for publication intended to fan emotions in the current environment.
It is the objective of the Americans to block whistleblowing, and of all governments into covering up stuff to keep the public ignorant, passive and compliant.
….A children’s clothes seller from Gaza standing unarmed among a group of Palestinian men holding a white flag, was shot dead minutes after speaking to an ITV cameraman.
A report aired by the British public service broadcaster showed the events unfolding as the group of five Palestinian men tried to reach family members stranded in a house inside and active combat zone….
Minutes before being shot dead, the middle-aged, English-speaking Palestinian man told ITV: “Nowhere is safe in Gaza. Everywhere you find the Israeli Army. They shoot at us at home, in any building and in the street….
With an Israeli imposed telecommunications blackout over most of Gaza, footage like this is rare. But it would seem to confirm many Palestinian accounts that unarmed civilians in Gaza are being killed in what the IDF call "field executions".
South Africa has alleged in the World Court that Israel is committing atrocities and war crimes in Gaza amounting to genocide. As more and more evidence like the above comes out, linked to the genocidal statements by Israeli lawmakers and military leaders, it seems almost inevitable that this Friday, the ICJ will announce their order on Israel to stop their assault on Gaza.
The great "Kumera of the North" Shane Jones says "we should not be afraid of discussing the Treaty Principles". in his speech at Ratana.
It is not discussion we are afraid of, it is "Bad Actors" who come with an agenda to undermine belittle and divide, to get control of Maori treasures, water medicines and minerals.
I understand medicines, minerals but water is not a possession but a right of any and all people to have available. You can survive 3 days without food, but you die after 3 days without water. Fact.
I see that there is no objection to large Corps pumping millions of gallons of drinking water to sell overseas or filling those floating cities called Cruise ships with tones of drinking water. For money of cause! 🙄
The majority of New Zealand’s bottled water is drawn from Blue Spring in Putaruru , where Coca-Cola Amatil has a bottling factory.
The spring is world-renowned for its color and clarity, and is classified as a natural Taonga, or treasure.
Meanwhile, all of NZlands piping system has fallen in disrepair because of those "look at me, I want to be in the History books" projects and a failure of planning and charging proportionally. This despite the need to maintain the supply system being well known for decades.
So, water… if there is any sincerity by all parties concerned than the first issue is repairing pipes so that every person residing here has drinkable water. Followed by securing water sources into the future and not prioritising Large Corporations or interests that only have one benefactor.
Is not spring water a taonga or treasure claim of the iwi? There should a royalty. And their consent for any export.
Rivers are a taonga and treasure in relation to Maori customary activity dependent on water flow (fishing/eels etc). There is an issue here about water taken from the river that has an impact on this.
Rivers as a catchment that allows collection and storage (hydro, irrigation or water use dams) is a land asset of an iwi. It's not just rain that flows to the sea that has value to those in chieftainship of their land.
In the ECAN area water has been gathered for irrigation for use (dairying) in ways that pollute (nitrate) the underground aquifer.
I understand your argument but still do not agree to any "ownership" of drinking water. If this is the case the person/party holding ownership essentially own me or any person whose life depends on it. No way would I ever agree to that!
How about a foreign corporate owning water supply assets and charging you for it (as councils do now)?
I wonder if the Herald will do a look at the access of farmers to water, as per cost to ratepayers, industrial/business and farm users (and no cost to bottlers)?
The human right to water and sanitation. On 28 July 2010, through Resolution 64/292, the United Nations General Assembly explicitly recognized the human right to water and sanitation and acknowledged that clean drinking water and sanitation are essential to the realisation of all human rights.
The NZ Government has to apply the rules and laws. There is a difference between personal and commercial use. Farmers do need water to meet the second need to survival – food. Supermarkets on the other hand…..
Well, the health service across the country is very much in need of more staff and resources.
Some first hand experience:
Just recently, when my husband was admitted via ambulance to the ER with suspicion of a heart attack I was somewhat taken aback by the way the process works. Whilst the nurse did an ECG straight away, comparative troponin tests are needed to ascertain any wider issues. From the time we made the first call to the waiting of the vital lab result 8.5 hours passed – and it could have been my husband not just the hours. On asking how far that is away: Receptions response was to make a note for the nurse. We decided to go home in the early hours of the morning without having seen the lab report. I think this is a dangerous situation that we have no means to change in any shape or form.
Another patient was in pain and a person also being in the waiting room for hours explained that this chap has been waiting for 10 hours now – yes, in pain.
There were some 20 people waiting, most for almost the same time as we are.
By what I saw, there were 2 nurses and 1 doctor available. I saw 3 ambulances arrivingin that time we were there.
All those affected were pakeha and this, in my experience, shows that there is an issue across the board. Nothing to do with race.
it's in a dire state for sure. In some rural areas you can't even get A/E services.
Re ethnicity, the racism that might happen (I said might) would be if the system treated a Māori man differently from your husband. Maybe had to wait longer, maybe there were communication issues/barriers, maybe the staff had conscious or unconscious racism.
Another example that is also well known is when people turn up in A/E wanting pain relief and are suspected of being addicts. Or they are registered in the system as an addict and turn up in pain. A whole bunch of biases against them can kick in eg staff assume they're lying about the pain to get access to drugs.
I don't really understand why these are difficult things to talk about. I've been learning about cultural bias in healthcare since the 90s. I think things have improved, but there are still issues.
It's not going to take away anything from non-Māori to address these issues. And if the system does start taking away from non-Māori, then the solution isn't to take away from Māori again, it's to sort it out so it is done fairly and well.
My observation was not that anything is necessary based on race, it could be incidental. More to the point was the lack of staff. Those professionals who were there also had to look after those arriving by ambulance. This increased the waiting time exponentially. The chap in pain looked like to have something on his leg (broken?) but I am not a doctor.
It was a frightening experience for me as I wasn't sure how bad the situation is without those tests. I lost two of my closest relatives due to a heart attack and it was not really foreseeable.
thanks for clarifying. I agree it is frightening. Might be worth talking to your GP about it to see if there is anything else that could be done in that situation.
One thing for all of the socially conscious left to watch for in David Seymours' insidious plan is the pathway to the referendum question. He'll try to lock in the referendum before the question we are to be asked is proposed. Make no mistake, the plan to referendum and the question is already being formulated.
A bit like Jong Khee's flag debacle except more organised, more funded, and certainly more evil.
For so long, you identified as Libertarian. What changed?
I completely have not used the word Libertarian in describing myself since I got an email during lockdown where a person from a Libertarian organization wrote to me and said, “We’re doing an anti-mask demonstration in Vegas, and obviously we’d like you to head it.” I looked at that email and I went, “The fact they sent me this email is something I need to be very ashamed of, and I need to change.”
[…]
Many times when I identified as Libertarian, people said to me, “It’s just rich white guys that don’t want to be told what to do,” and I had a zillion answers to that — and now that seems 100 percent accurate.
"Insanity wasn’t in our genes — we humans had gone off the rails because our culture had lost its source of external significance. We were so completely colonized by the belief that all meaning came down to economics and private consumption that it no longer even felt like a belief. We’d forgotten the fact that, in Gaylor Nelson’s great phrase, “the economy is a wholly owned subsidiary of the environment, and not the other way around.”"
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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 → ...
Barrie Saunders writes – Dear Paul As the new Minister of Media and Communications, you will be inundated with heaps of free advice and special pleading, all in the national interest of course. For what it’s worth here is my assessment: Traditional broadcasting free to air content through ...
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 ...
Assalaamu alaikum, greetings to you all. Eid Mubarak, everyone! I want to extend my warmest wishes to you and everyone celebrating this joyous occasion. It is a pleasure to be here. I have enjoyed Eid celebrations at Parliament before, but this is my first time joining you as the Minister ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced Pharmac’s largest ever budget of $6.294 billion over four years, fixing a $1.774 billion fiscal cliff. “Access to medicines is a crucial part of many Kiwis’ lives. We’ve committed to a budget allocation of $1.774 billion over four years so Kiwis are ...
Hon Paula Bennett has been appointed as member and chair of the Pharmac board, Associate Health Minister David Seymour announced today. "Pharmac is a critical part of New Zealand's health system and plays a significant role in ensuring that Kiwis have the best possible access to medicines,” says Mr Seymour. ...
Hundreds of New Zealand families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) will benefit from a new Government focus on prevention and treatment, says Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. “We know FASD is a leading cause of preventable intellectual and neurodevelopmental disability in New Zealand,” Dr Reti says. “Every day, ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges. “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
A week that began in triumph ended in an all-too-familiar disaster for the Green Party. Duncan Greive asks if there’s something in the mission that breaks its best and brightest. A long, strange week for the Green party began with a fantastic poll result. On one level this is hardly ...
By Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific journalist Vanuatu’s former prime minister and opposition MP Ishmael Kalsakau has stepped down — just two days after he confirmed he was the rightful opposition leader. Kalsakau, MP for Port Vila, confirmed to ABC’s Pacific Beat, and the Vanuatu Daily Post on Thursday that he ...
What’s to blame for the coalition’s choppy start? Six months in, and the mojo meter is in the doldrums. A new poll would put National out of power and sees its leader, Chris Luxon, sliding in popularity. How much is it about policy, how much coalition management and a perception ...
The striking report goes far beyond the proposed repeal of the Oranga Tamariki Act’s Treaty of Waitangi provision, and its impact should be felt far beyond the unique circumstances of the claim it addresses. Earlier this week, the Waitangi Tribunal released an interim report on the government’s proposed repeal of ...
The world has been experiencing a productivity slowdown, from which New Zealand has not been exempt. COVID-19 temporarily boosted labour productivity, but more recently, productivity has retreated. The overall trend since 2007 has been one of slow productivity ...
What’s more wasteful than spending $315k on syrup and machine maintenance? Trying to drum up a controversy about it.Cast your mind back to the pre-pandemic idylls of 2019. A “rat” was a disgusting rodent and not a self-administered plague test; the sixth Labour government was in power; and the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Fitz-Gibbon, Professor of Social Sciences, Faculty of Arts, Monash University, Monash University Ken stocker/Shutterstock In the wake of numerous killings of women allegedly by men’s violence in 2024, thousands of Australians have joined rallies across the country to demand action ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Henry Cutler, Professor and Director, Macquarie University Centre for the Health Economy, Macquarie University Oleg Ivanov IL/Shutterstock Waiting times for public hospital elective surgery have been in the news ahead of this year’s federal budget. That’s the type of non-emergency surgery ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Konstantine Panegyres, McKenzie Postdoctoral Fellow, Historical and Philosophical Studies, The University of Melbourne Amna Artist/Shutterstock One of the earliest descriptions of someone with cancer comes from the fourth century BC. Satyrus, tyrant of the city of Heracleia on the Black Sea, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Rose, Professor of Sustainable Future Transport, University of Sydney LanaElcova/Shutterstock Electric vehicles are often seen as the panacea to cutting emissions – and air pollution – from transport. Is this view correct? Yes – but only once uptake accelerates. Despite the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Giselle Natassia Woodley, Researcher and Phd Candidate, Edith Cowan University There is widespread agreement Australia needs to do better when it comes to gender-based violence. Anger and frustration at the numbers of women being killed saw national rallies over the weekend and ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James Graham, Lecturer in Economics, University of Sydney Mark and Anna Photography/Shutterstock As home ownership moves further out of reach for many Australians, “rentvesting” is being touted as a lifesaver. Rentvesting is the practice of renting one property to live ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sukhmani Khorana, Associate Professor, Faculty of Arts, Design and Architecture, UNSW Sydney Netflix The new season of Heartbreak High is garnering mixed reviews. Critics are writing about the racy story lines, comparing it to other coming-of-age series about teenage relationships and ...
Bob Carr intends to launch legal action against Winston Peters and Julie Anne Genter is facing a second allegation of bullying. Both sucked the air out of an announcement on education, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in ...
In 1995, Sally Clark went out on her own in a bold and unorthodox attempt to join an illustrious group of equestrian riders conquering the world. In the days of glovebox road maps, brick cell phones, and the hit song How Bizarre, Clark refused to follow Sir Mark Todd, Blyth ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ben Beaglehole, Senior Lecturer, Department of Psychological Medicine, University of Otago niphon/Getty Images The number of people accessing medication for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in Aotearoa New Zealand increased significantly between 2006 and 2022. But the disorder is still under-diagnosed and ...
To celebrate the start of New Zealand music month, we look back at the best local tuneage that managed to weasel its way into Hollywood productions. There’s nothing quite like the thrilling zap of recognition when New Zealand weasels its way into a glamorous Hollywood production. Crack open a Tui ...
People trust other people more than institutions. So how can the media gain that trust through journalists without losing what’s important about the institution? Anna Rawhiti-Connell reflects on two years of curating the news for The Bulletin.Amonth ago, armed cops descended on my neighbourhood as calls to “lock your ...
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News out of South Africa is that the ICJ will be releasing their ruling for an interim order on Israel to stop the war on Gaza.
https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/south-africa-expects-icj-judgment-gaza-emergency-measures-friday-news24-cites-2024-01-24/
After the interim order is given or not, the case will go to a full hearing. Germany has filed a declaration with the World Court to intervene in this hearing in support of Israel.
Why is Namibia furious at Germany's ICJ intervention supporting Israel?
Aljazeera host of "Counting The Cost" Adrian Finighan
@1:33 minutes
"….in 2021 Berlin acknowledged committing genocide in Namibia"
"..shouldn't a country responsible for two genocides be actively looking to prevent a third?"
@4:35 minutes
"Absolutely Adrian I cannot agree more with you….
…..particularly problematic is the way that they framed South Africa's complaint as an instrumentalization of the international court of justice. Which means basically it [Germany] thinks it's an illegitimate suit, it's something that should not happen.
After all we've heard during the pleadings in the past days last week. That is quite a strong statement. Therefore, I'm absolutely not surprised by the reaction on the on the side of Namibia…."
Namibia has requested that Germany withdraw their intervention in support of Israel at the World Court. Personally speaking, I would have thought that Germany would be the last country that would be trying to stop a court looking into a case of alleged genocide.
The people of Namibia suffered a genocide at the hands of the German colonial empire. Germany has admitted to it.
Germany has zero right to be supporting the slaughter of another indigenous people, at the hand of another occupying colonial power.
32 states intervened in the case of Ukraine vs. Russia, to argue the merits of Ukraine's case against Russia alleging Ukraine committed genocide in the Donbas.
But only one state, Germany, has put its name down to intervene in support of Israel at the United Nations International Court of Justice, the ICJ, also known as the World Court. Not even the US, Israel's biggest backer, has put up their hand to support Israel in the World Court.
Why is that?
The state of Israel was founded after WWII with the connivance of the US who were trying to form a counterweight to the power and influence of the British Empire in the Middle East.
At the end of the war, displaced Jewish refugees favoured destination of choice was America. As well as making it hard for displaced persons to enter the US. The US authorities gave Zionists access to the displaced persons camps in the US zone of control in Europe to gather recruits to go to Palestine. The British imperialists tried to resist the founding of the state of Israel and interned the Jewish refugees that the US had incited to go to Israel on the island of Cypress.
The Zionists have always been a proxy force for American imperialism in the Middle East.
The last gasp of the British Empire in the Middle East, was the Suez Crisis. After that the US became the dominant Western imperialist power in the region. Israel became US imperialism's unsinkable aircraft carrier threatening any Arab country that dared step out of line.
While the victorious super powers were squabbling over the spoils of war, what about the defeated imperialist powers Germany, Italy, Japan? They became junior partners to the new global hegemon.
When you can't do dirty work yourself you get someone else to do it.
Both Germany and Japan have been called on to put pressure on the World Court to to make sure their judges on the ICJ vote the way the US wants.
https://www.icj-cij.org/home#:~:text=LATEST%20NEWS&text=On%2011%20January%202024%2C%20HE,Peace%20Palace%20in%20The%20Hague.
Shame on those countries that have chosen to do it.
Footnote:
If anyone thinks I am picking on Germany and Germans, I am not. Every capitalist country wants to expand its influence, every capitalist country aspires to be an imperialist, or junior imperialist, even lil'ol New Zealand.
Growth expansion imperialism, colonialism is written into the DNA of capitalism, every imperialist country commits massacres and genocides to maintain their rule.
New Zealand is no exception.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/the-spoiling-of-samoa/HEDXHCD4LKX7MEWD7AZ5H6TGMQ/
https://nzhistory.govt.nz/black-saturday-nz-police-open-fire-on-mau-protestors-in-apia-nine-samoans-killed
https://natlib.govt.nz/records/23143678
Historic guilt of empire is irrelevant to this, as is the status of Jews as a past victim of empire themselves (Christian, Moslem and German). This is now. Post 1945 and the UN of member states and related international law.
Whether Palestinians (Arabic language and cultural order came with Islam after 600CE – before then most locals were Christians) are indigenous or Jews is irrelevant (they each have similar DNA northern Semite) and both are Semitic cultures.
Everyone knows the case of genocide will not succeed and is merely an attempt to get a interim order for a cease-fire.
This is not even a case of ethnic cleansing (the case of this in WB is far stronger).
There is a case for war crimes, and to prevent further loss of civilian life, this is a device to realise a cease-fire.
And given Russia ignored an interim order of this court (and others before them), as per Ukraine, if Israel does so will depend on other factors (guess why USA is not involved).
How very arrogant of you. It is plain that "everyone" does not agree. Have you even bothered to look at the heros welcome when the ICJ team arrived back in SA? There is historically huge support between SA and Palestinians.
https://www.aljazeera.com/program/newsfeed/2024/1/15/south-african-genocide-case-legal-team-returns-to-heroes-welcome-2
Just another example of the inability of people like yourself to empathise outside the comfort zone of your own inflation adjusted values of life
Is that some sort of code, a sly anti-semitic trope?
I've no idea what you're talking about. Its a reference to your support of Maersk profits against Palestinian lives. I would add that obviously, the relationship is an inverse one.
They pass on costs to those who use their ships to transport goods to market, and they to consumers.
As for the impact of that inflation, a lot would be even higher cost for fertilizer and food out of south east Europe to Asia and maybe electronics and EV's between Asia and Europe.
Look SPC, I can be a bit dim but a light just illuminated in my head that said for you to be upset at a comment directed at yourself with the phrase "people like you" , and call me antisemitic, you may be an Israeli. If this is the case, I unreservedly apologise and regardless, will only address your comments in future.
[Stop playing the man. This is your warning – Incognito]
Meh.
Once upon a time, if you criticised American policy you were called anti-American, a fellow traveller with the commie left or this century terrorists (and probably still). Some of us were visited by local police as suspects in the "threat" to the visiting golfer Tiger Woods most likely because some CIA agent thought manipulating them to act that way was both funny and a way to get our public opinion and government onto their Iraq regime change play.
Once upon a time, if you supported a two state solution that made one a Zionist or an anti-Zionist depending on who responded (and probably still). And that could mean all sorts of stuff to them and all sorts of language gets used, because all those Zionists or anti-Zionists are * and or **.
I was just wondering what "your own inflation adjusted values of life" was about, as it did not seem to make any sense. If I think something is anti-semitic I will say so.
Mod note
‘
SPC @1.1
"Everyone knows the case of genocide will not succeed and is merely an attempt to get a interim order for a cease-fire."
Nobody knows. But if I were to guess, I would guess that it would be the other way round. The interim order for a ceasefire in Gaza will fail. The charge of genocide will be proved.
My guess is based on 'Realpolitik', especially as it is practiced in international affaires.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Realpolitik#:~:text=Realpolitik%20(German%3A%20%5B%CA%81e%CB%88a%CB%90lpoli%CB%8Cti%CB%90k%5D,%2C%20moral%2C%20or%20ethical%20premises.
My guess based on realpolitik, is South Africa's attempt to get an interim order for a cease-fire in Gaza will fail. The political pressure from the US and its allied states on the judges of the ICJ will is too great.
Many years from now, the allegation of genocide will eventually be proven. The 84 page mountain of evidence of genocidal acts and statements of intent to commit genocide contained in the Brief by South Africa is damning, I am certain that even more damning evidence will be revealed with the passing of time.
Even the current available evidence is overwhelming, but by the time a final judgment is made, it will all be academic, and too late to make a difference.
Realpolitik:
By the end of Friday in the Hague we will know if Realpolitik or Justice is the winner
Germany was always closely aligned to the US (since the 1600's).
They seem to also have a collective paranoia to be seen anti semitic since the WWII.
The position taken by the representative at the UN does not necessary reflect the opinion of the general population.
The ordinary folk is often left at the sidelines of political agendas, in Germany and many other states.
I do like your article. We also have to be careful not to be the "handmaiden" of any party at play.
https://www.iamexpat.de/expat-info/german-expat-news/history-between-usa-and-germany
I've always enjoyed reading Verity Johnson for some lighter reading. Her latest opinion piece is excellent and weightier than many previous ones.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/politics/350156501/why-we-need-fight-treaty-waitangi
MMP is a failure.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/in-depth/507471/official-documents-suggest-a-nz-first-minister-wants-to-freeze-excise-tax-on-cigarettes-but-she-denies-it
Only MMP would allow anywhere power a party of lying nincompoops with such a frankly partisan, grubby agenda to try and create a voting base out of bad policy.
Seems evil, this vein of duplicity that runs through this Government.
wouldn't that still have to go through cabinet?
It's interesting to consider though whether NZ would be struggling to find competent Ministers and MPs at this point in time if it was still under FPP.
Under FPP – as the result of the 2023 election you would have an overwhelming National Party government (having won a substantial majority of the electorates) – possibly in coalition with the 2 ACT MPs – but with no NZF representation. You'd have a few GP electorate MPs and the 5 TPM ones – in opposition, along with a pretty tiny Labour Party.
While there would be no NZF representation – you would have a centre-right government which would regard itself as having an overwhelming mandate (since they would hold well over 2/3 of the seats).
Characterizing MMP as a failure because it hasn't (on this occasion) given you the government you wanted – is pretty short-sighted.
You'd also have a national Government with an awful lot of new, inexperienced, and going on recent selection successes, grossly incompetent MPs.
Similar, and probably much worse, to the current mess
I don't feel that the record of the last year inclines me to believe in the competence of the Labour Ministers in the previous government.
Any new government, coming in after a spell in opposition, is going to consist of predominantly inexperienced MPs.
But as a counter point, under FPP governments don't have to pander to a lunatic fringe in order to gain/retain power.
One voter's leader of a lunatic fringe is another's acting PM – hang in there Luxon.
The point needs to be made that Luxon didn't have to pander to any lunatic fringe!
Where were Winnie and David going to go if he'd (Luxon) had any real negotiating skills and told them to shove their wanky and racist policies?
At worse, he might have triggered another election, but he could have blamed Seymour and Peters and may well have got some sympathy!
Instead, he caved in and gave them (Winnie and David) everything they wanted!
Hipkins can be justly criticised for the poor Labour showing, but at least he, on a matter of principle, ruled out working with NZFirst!
Did you follow the UK in recent years?
The Conservative Party has a big majority under FPP – soon to be history, the majority, not FPP – and yet small radical splitter groups (some can be considered "lunatic") appear to drive policies:
I can't see much of a difference to MMP coalition(s).
See also Guardian – Anatomy of a party in turmoil: the Conservative factions in the spotlight
"Especially because the absolute worst part of the past three months has been how common it’s become to casually slag off Māori. There’s a noticeable swell in hate, division, racism, crazy talk and an all round sulphuric nastiness"
It is disgusting how manipulative the players in parliament have become. We have a elected government and the crowd that screams the loudest or plays games like in high school seems to propose to do away with democracy. All the hallmarks are there of a toppling of the legal government. No willingness to uphold the other side of the constitution. Show your colors and don't hide behind insults. The ones slagging off anybody are hailed as doing the right thing, go figure. Give those who are caught in the middle a chance to rearrange their affairs and move to a safer country.
Was your stand-alone comment intended as a reply to https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-25-01-2024/#comment-1986558 @ 2?
Well it is where the quote comes from.
I guess so, which is why there’s a handy Reply button for convenient nesting/threading of comment threads. If there are technical issues then it would be good to let Lprent know about it.
My apologies for the confusion. I had to attend to an issue and pressed the button without checking.
It's staining the world of science and education as well;
"Do I need to emphasize once again that there are no “indigenous ways of knowing” beyond the ways that modern science “knows” things. To be frank, indigenous “ways of knowing” are inferior to modern science, which has a whole armamentarium for determining what counts as “knowledge” (experimentation, controls, replication, hypothesis-testing, pervasive doubt, and so on). In contrast, indigenous ways of knowing invariably come down to simple observation of natural phenomena or assertions (say, about the efficacy of plants as medicines) that aren’t tested using blind studies. And without verification and replication and testing, you don’t have knowledge; you have claims."
https://pointofordernz.wordpress.com/2024/01/24/illegal-in-the-us-maybe-but-it-flourishes-in-nz-and-it-strikes-a-blow-against-western-science-so-canada-has-imported-it/
Sort of, but do not discount the ability of big pharma to block natural medicine or appropriate it and patent.
The medical science version of Monsanto.
The motivated players in the science.v. matauranga Māori argument are the money-makers?
Goodness!
Big Pharma do all the testing before products go to market. Scientific method, really?
Should GE companies have the same right?
my eyes glazed over as soon as I saw the words 'Jerry Coyne'. A rationalist who exhibits irrational behaviour each time he opens his keyboard on anything to do with indigenous knowledge.
Can such a person ever take the leap and experience the very thing they argue so bluntly against?
Does gradual exposure to indigenous thinking wear away the crystalline armour of science-thinking?
I've seen "hanging out with manawhenua" have this effect on a group of people for whom "te mana o te wai" was dismissed out of hand/confusion.
what kind of changes did you see?
The opening of hearts through realising that ideas are genuinely embedded in people and culture and are as valid as their own embedded ideas.
There’s no such thing as “crystalline armour of science-thinking”, as it would imply that it is pure, hard & sharp, and symmetrical, and some kind of protection or defence [against what?].
Science that isn’t shared with people and that has no impact on people and society is less than a tree in a Zen forest. This sharing and influencing, not just in terms of ‘pure’ thinking but also in knowledge transfer and technological advancement is a bi-directional & mutual and dynamic process.
"…some kind of protection or defence [against what?]."
Well, the Dark Arts, obviously.
That’s futile because the Dark Arts are inside the science fortress as much as they’re on the outside. Rationalism in isolation is an exercise in futility. Rationalism as a ‘great purifier’ of science and mankind is a mug’s game.
Agreed.
Any halfwit who has gardened for a length of time knows how to test whether something works or not. The man needs to get out more.
Do halfwits garden?
They pull & spray perceived weeds and use a robotic lawnmower to maintain the monoculture grass at a fixed strictly standardised low height.
Greenkeepers?
Hole in one
There is a hole (o) in one.
It's well known.
even monoculturists know how to replicate something to make it work.
Ahhh, Wanaka.
Aue, Wanaka!
Two peoples in one land, should we send David Seymour to re-write the principles of he state of Israel, the PA and the Oslo Accord peace process?
Let our first nation to see each days dawn enlighten them, or not make it any worse here or there?
https://www.stuff.co.nz/world-news/350154692/israel-will-sink-gaza-mud-years-netanyahu-power-warns-former-prime-minister
"The government has confirmed a document about the government's proposed Treaty Principles bill is a leaked draft memo from the Ministry of Justice"
The screenshot showed commentary from the report's author saying they expected the Bill would be "highly contentious".
..a full copy of the leaked report, which it said warned the proposal's key points were "at odds with what the Treaty of Waitangi actually says".
Now by what I see is that, whoever was the "author" – no one seem to name the person – is not really authorized.
However, what concerns me most is that, the public service is to stay neutral as they are employed to do the job no matter who is in government and hence have to stir away from any bias. This is difficult – true, but a pre requisite to make sure that corruption does not have an entry door.
How is making the media and thus the public being aware of something any form of corruption – more likely to be otherwise.
Many suspect that the leak was to aid the major party in the new government, give it more reason to dampen down expectation of its supporting a second reading (and embolden NZF to say they would not do so).
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/507090/government-confirms-leaked-document-was-a-ministry-treaty-principles-bill-memo
I really have no interest as to the motivation of the person but rather the institution of government and its employees obligation to adhere to protocol and impartiality. The country needs to be able to rely on its government for stability, economically and defence. Undermining it is actually treason.
"Public sector chief executives and board chairs are responsible for the integrity and conduct of their agencies and maintaining the agency’s political neutrality. This includes during the election period"
https://www.publicservice.govt.nz/guidance/general-election-guidance-2023/responsibilities-of-public-sector-agencies/
The person who leaked a draft memo should be sacked as he/she etc. shows ulterior motives and fanning of discontent without facts.
Maybe someone in government thought the coalition agreement, as per the Treaty principles debate and first reading, posed some risk to stability?
Because what Seymour was saying about the Treaty was fact free and would lead to division
And gave that advice. It is part of their public service role to do that.
The only issue is leaking something and that appears not of any agenda against the government (given 2 of the 3 partners oppose it).
This would be speculation as the document was a draft held at the ministry of justice (no less!) and no reading has taken place as far as reported to date. On those grounds the person had an agenda and hence should be dismissed – ungracefully.
Equally, it is a duty of any party/govt employee to make sure that such leaked document is not a spurious placed for publication intended to fan emotions in the current environment.
It is in essence inciting perceptions that can lead to violence. One should not forget that, not all people approach this issue with an academic mind and zest of evidence based discussion. In that sense it is a treasonous act to incite willingly and knowingly discontent.
The sad part is that, if the Maori Party has taken this aboard and now "wants to held a government to account" and call a rightfully elected government "white supremacist". This is adding fuel to this without actually checking facts. On that basis their integrity and adherence to parliamentary protocol is questionable.
What facts are you referring to?
What is the basis of your assertion that the TPM "integrity and adherence to parliamentary protocol is questionable"?
No, it is not an act of treason to incite discontent (not under any democratic government).
That would lead to censorship of media and as someone once said he would rather have no elections, than no independent media.
It is the objective of the Americans to block whistleblowing, and of all governments into covering up stuff to keep the public ignorant, passive and compliant.
Please include a link when you quote text or even single words.
Palestinian man shot and killed by IDF sniper after talking to the media.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/palestine-gaza-itv-report-israel-shot-dead-live-tv-b2483877.html
With an Israeli imposed telecommunications blackout over most of Gaza, footage like this is rare. But it would seem to confirm many Palestinian accounts that unarmed civilians in Gaza are being killed in what the IDF call "field executions".
Latest in Israel's long list of attrocities: IDF Field Executions – YouTube
South Africa has alleged in the World Court that Israel is committing atrocities and war crimes in Gaza amounting to genocide. As more and more evidence like the above comes out, linked to the genocidal statements by Israeli lawmakers and military leaders, it seems almost inevitable that this Friday, the ICJ will announce their order on Israel to stop their assault on Gaza.
The shooting of unarmed civilians is obviously a war crime.
It is sufficient cause for the US POTUS to allow a UNSC Resolution condemning it and calling for an end to military action if it does not stop.
It reminds one of the shootings of those by the Gaza fence back in 2018.
Great to see Jon Stewart returning to The Daily Show in time for this US election season. The acid has been needed.
Tis the season for Monday morning quarter-backs.
The great "Kumera of the North" Shane Jones says "we should not be afraid of discussing the Treaty Principles". in his speech at Ratana.
It is not discussion we are afraid of, it is "Bad Actors" who come with an agenda to undermine belittle and divide, to get control of Maori treasures, water medicines and minerals.
I understand medicines, minerals but water is not a possession but a right of any and all people to have available. You can survive 3 days without food, but you die after 3 days without water. Fact.
I see that there is no objection to large Corps pumping millions of gallons of drinking water to sell overseas or filling those floating cities called Cruise ships with tones of drinking water. For money of cause! 🙄
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/ratepayers-charged-500-times-more-for-water-than-bottling-companies/FWYMZBUZIVX27XLWWLDPTS4CNE/
"Water bottling companies are paying an average 500 times less than ratepayers for each litre of water they're allowed to use"
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/mar/27/new-zealand-anger-as-pristine-lakes-tapped-for-bottled-water-market
The majority of New Zealand’s bottled water is drawn from Blue Spring in Putaruru , where Coca-Cola Amatil has a bottling factory.
The spring is world-renowned for its color and clarity, and is classified as a natural Taonga, or treasure.
Meanwhile, all of NZlands piping system has fallen in disrepair because of those "look at me, I want to be in the History books" projects and a failure of planning and charging proportionally. This despite the need to maintain the supply system being well known for decades.
So, water… if there is any sincerity by all parties concerned than the first issue is repairing pipes so that every person residing here has drinkable water. Followed by securing water sources into the future and not prioritising Large Corporations or interests that only have one benefactor.
Is not spring water a taonga or treasure claim of the iwi? There should a royalty. And their consent for any export.
Rivers are a taonga and treasure in relation to Maori customary activity dependent on water flow (fishing/eels etc). There is an issue here about water taken from the river that has an impact on this.
Rivers as a catchment that allows collection and storage (hydro, irrigation or water use dams) is a land asset of an iwi. It's not just rain that flows to the sea that has value to those in chieftainship of their land.
In the ECAN area water has been gathered for irrigation for use (dairying) in ways that pollute (nitrate) the underground aquifer.
I understand your argument but still do not agree to any "ownership" of drinking water. If this is the case the person/party holding ownership essentially own me or any person whose life depends on it. No way would I ever agree to that!
How about a foreign corporate owning water supply assets and charging you for it (as councils do now)?
I wonder if the Herald will do a look at the access of farmers to water, as per cost to ratepayers, industrial/business and farm users (and no cost to bottlers)?
This is what I mentioned at 9.1
Having access to drinking water is a human right.
https://www.un.org/waterforlifedecade/human_right_to_water.shtml#:~:text=The%20human%20right%20to%20water%20and%20sanitation&text=On%2028%20July%202010%2C%20through,realisation%20of%20all%20human%20rights.
The human right to water and sanitation. On 28 July 2010, through Resolution 64/292, the United Nations General Assembly explicitly recognized the human right to water and sanitation and acknowledged that clean drinking water and sanitation are essential to the realisation of all human rights.
The NZ Government has to apply the rules and laws. There is a difference between personal and commercial use. Farmers do need water to meet the second need to survival – food. Supermarkets on the other hand…..
Judith Collins.
Chrome test
You'll never leak alone.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/kahu/a-leaked-letter-to-health-minister-shane-reti-that-i-can-neither-confirm-nor-deny-rob-campbell/RNK3MFPLAZDIXFQ6GCZXSU2VXA/
Well, the health service across the country is very much in need of more staff and resources.
Some first hand experience:
Just recently, when my husband was admitted via ambulance to the ER with suspicion of a heart attack I was somewhat taken aback by the way the process works. Whilst the nurse did an ECG straight away, comparative troponin tests are needed to ascertain any wider issues. From the time we made the first call to the waiting of the vital lab result 8.5 hours passed – and it could have been my husband not just the hours. On asking how far that is away: Receptions response was to make a note for the nurse. We decided to go home in the early hours of the morning without having seen the lab report. I think this is a dangerous situation that we have no means to change in any shape or form.
Another patient was in pain and a person also being in the waiting room for hours explained that this chap has been waiting for 10 hours now – yes, in pain.
There were some 20 people waiting, most for almost the same time as we are.
By what I saw, there were 2 nurses and 1 doctor available. I saw 3 ambulances arriving in that time we were there.
All those affected were pakeha and this, in my experience, shows that there is an issue across the board. Nothing to do with race.
it's in a dire state for sure. In some rural areas you can't even get A/E services.
Re ethnicity, the racism that might happen (I said might) would be if the system treated a Māori man differently from your husband. Maybe had to wait longer, maybe there were communication issues/barriers, maybe the staff had conscious or unconscious racism.
Another example that is also well known is when people turn up in A/E wanting pain relief and are suspected of being addicts. Or they are registered in the system as an addict and turn up in pain. A whole bunch of biases against them can kick in eg staff assume they're lying about the pain to get access to drugs.
I don't really understand why these are difficult things to talk about. I've been learning about cultural bias in healthcare since the 90s. I think things have improved, but there are still issues.
It's not going to take away anything from non-Māori to address these issues. And if the system does start taking away from non-Māori, then the solution isn't to take away from Māori again, it's to sort it out so it is done fairly and well.
To your last Sentence:
My observation was not that anything is necessary based on race, it could be incidental. More to the point was the lack of staff. Those professionals who were there also had to look after those arriving by ambulance. This increased the waiting time exponentially. The chap in pain looked like to have something on his leg (broken?) but I am not a doctor.
It was a frightening experience for me as I wasn't sure how bad the situation is without those tests. I lost two of my closest relatives due to a heart attack and it was not really foreseeable.
thanks for clarifying. I agree it is frightening. Might be worth talking to your GP about it to see if there is anything else that could be done in that situation.
This guy is horrible!
"A separate health system ‘by Maori for Maori’ that’s a duplication and indulgence. "
https://pointofordernz.wordpress.com/2024/01/25/lindsay-mitchell-the-danger-of-the-treaty-debate-wearing-us-down/
Lindsay Mitchell has been researching and commenting on welfare since 2001.
She is also on
https://www.bassettbrashandhide.com
One wonders who influenced her change of focus to this issue.
John Keys' war on meth went well:
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/crime/child-abuse-sentencing-kurtis-innes-blames-wheelchair-fall-for-babys-more-than-60-injuries/7Z6B4QNVGRGQJNY6377YHHFLMY/
“Yo Christopher” and “Where’s your hair at?!”
Wouldn't get away with that here!
https://www.stuff.co.nz/politics/350157533/three-headed-taniwha-government-enemy-maori-ratana-criticism-should-give-pm
Melanie Nelson is da bomb! 🙂
https://open.spotify.com/episode/2tp5FBhqdp77r6yJWmqIwZ
One thing for all of the socially conscious left to watch for in David Seymours' insidious plan is the pathway to the referendum question. He'll try to lock in the referendum before the question we are to be asked is proposed. Make no mistake, the plan to referendum and the question is already being formulated.
A bit like Jong Khee's flag debacle except more organised, more funded, and certainly more evil.
So, not such a great idea.
For so long, you identified as Libertarian. What changed?
I completely have not used the word Libertarian in describing myself since I got an email during lockdown where a person from a Libertarian organization wrote to me and said, “We’re doing an anti-mask demonstration in Vegas, and obviously we’d like you to head it.” I looked at that email and I went, “The fact they sent me this email is something I need to be very ashamed of, and I need to change.”
[…]
Many times when I identified as Libertarian, people said to me, “It’s just rich white guys that don’t want to be told what to do,” and I had a zillion answers to that — and now that seems 100 percent accurate.
https://www.cracked.com/article_40871_penn-jillette-wants-to-talk-it-all-out.html
Reminds me of Verity Johnson's mea culpa today.
Ponder this:
"Insanity wasn’t in our genes — we humans had gone off the rails because our culture had lost its source of external significance. We were so completely colonized by the belief that all meaning came down to economics and private consumption that it no longer even felt like a belief. We’d forgotten the fact that, in Gaylor Nelson’s great phrase, “the economy is a wholly owned subsidiary of the environment, and not the other way around.”"
https://www.themarginalian.org/2022/06/26/richard-powers-bewilderment/
Direct action. Don't you love to see it?
Poor old James Cook lying on the grass like he was on holiday in Hawaii that time…
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-01-25/melbourne-captain-cook-queen-victoria-statues-vandalised/103386996
Few statues here which could become headless.