Glenn Greenwalds analysis of Tucker Carlson quite eye opening considering the view most left wing people would have of him. In fact totally gob smacked by his wider analysis highlighting how little debate or decent there is the Democrat party compared to Republicans.
I would highly recommend sitting down with a nice cup of tea and maybe some chocky bikkies and watching it. Would really like to hear everyone’s view.
His example of Democratic Party conformity, as distinct from diversity within the GOP, is support for the President's foreign policy call for funding aid to Ukraine.
Why not universal opposition from the GOP for the President's economic policy and the Sinema and Manchin providing dissent from his own party?
Then there was the praise for Carlson for criticising the GOP establishment (as per Ukraine) against the neo-liberal establishment (bi-partisan). It was part of their @Fox News support for Trump (who is popular with the audience).
Greenwald is from the historic liberal dissent against the military industrial complex and deep state foreign adventurism stable looking for a match with selfish USA isolationism (abandoning international obligation) and is partnering up with like alt media commentators on Rumble – such as Gubbard and maybe soon Carlson?
Carlson's support for Assange was also connnected to Trump also considering a pardon for Assange.
The irony is that Carlson has a low opinion of Trump (and has recently admitted that his public commentary @ Fox News support was not real) though it would seem he used Trump as cover for his out of right wing step opinions on Ukraine and Assange.
In the context of Glenn’s statements and the leftist views that Tucker Carlson is “Far Right”, (even though he is anti war), I wonder how Jacinda Ardern would assess Glenn / Tucker given her new appointment at Harvard University.
“Former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has been appointed appointed to a fellowship at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society, based at the law school, where she will study ways to improve content standards and platform accountability for extremist content online, and examine artificial intelligence governance and algorithmic harms.” Link given below
I wonder if Jacinda will suffer any cognitive dissonance given she fell in lock step with Democrats supporting the War in Ukraine (offering no diplomatic solution). Current estimates of casualties at 354,000. Link given below.
Would like to hear your opinions…
Do you think Jacinda, Labour, National, Radio NZ, TVNZ, etc might have to self sensor? Or maybe they are all to busy figuring out what the definition of a woman is?
Yes I was just reading that potentially sinister development myself. The application of AI to censor social media platforms will completely destroy any remaining utility they have, except to serve the interests of those who control the algorithms.
Billionaire Twitter owner Elon Musk is again sounding warning bells on the dangers of artificial intelligence to humanity — and claiming that a popular chatbot has a liberal bias that he plans to counter with his own AI creation.
…serve the interests of those who control the algorithms
Which means they will need to be regarded as public utilities serving the common good , i.e. not in private hands and at arms' length from the state with transparent operating principles and democratic accountability.
This is a problem as old as the invention of newspapers, and one that we have never solved satisfactorily. The technology just hugely increases the scale of it.
Anyone who wants peace on NEOCONs terms, is anything but "anti war".
I don't think trying to defend Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity is being pro-war. On the contrary, it's a sign of good sense and clear-headed foreign policy that seeks to preserve the lives and security of millions of people.
There is no "diplomatic solution" to the conflict that doesn't involve seriously undermining Ukraine's ability to function as a sovereign state, or throwing it to the wolves. And if we purport to believe in freedom, justice, and a reasonably fair international order we must be prepared to fight for it.
I am by no means a believer in history being a perfect template to handle the present or future. But there were millions of Britons and Frenchmen in 1938-39 unwilling to die for Danzig. Or Prague.
Sacrificing Czechoslovakia and only half-heartedly supporting Poland to please them simply meant that even more millions died for Paris, London, Moscow, and even Berlin.
Good comments, and 100% agree with you if it were as straightforward as you have laid out. If this was a here comes Hitler moment you’d be spot on.
Unfortunately the situation is more complex and grey.
Its because of this historical complexity and uncertainty my inclination was the Minsk accords were the way to go. The current cost benefit of dead just not worth the fight.
For example and being overly simplistic take just one factor into consideration (remember many were being persecuted by ethnic Ukrainians circa 2014-present:
Russians are the largest ethnic minority in Ukraine. This community forms the largest single Russian community outside of Russia in the world. In the 2001 Ukrainian census, 8,334,100 identified as ethnic Russians (17.3% of the population of Ukraine); this is the combined figure for persons originating from outside of Ukraine and the Ukrainian-born population declaring Russian ethnicity.[1]
I think you'll find the other 83%ish of Ukranians have run their own analysis and firmly decided not being reabsorbed into a revanchist Russian neo-empire is worth the cost.
It's their country. They're the ones fighting and dying for it.
Irridentism isn’t a valid casus belli. But it is a convenient one if you’re a big power with smaller neighbours with sizable ethnic minorities you can come in and “rescue”
If you’re going to sceptical of the west’s motivations, then you should probably ask some questions of the Russians. After all, they’re the ones that actually decided to invade another country.
Hmmmm…. assuming Ukraine being absorbed by the west is a good thing.
Nothing to see there a?
Ukraine’s anti-worker law comes into effect
Law 5371, which strips back labour protections, has been ratified. Is there more to come? On 17…. which removes rights for workers at small and medium-sized companies. It will be effective for as long as the country is under martial law – a qualification added at the last minute, under pressure from trade unions…….
The Ukrainian government has claimed it is trying to alleviate the difficulties faced by companies in wartime. However, it first tried to introduce the new law in 2021.
Zelenskyy spoke during the meeting of the National Association of State Chambers about how “American business can become a locomotive of global economic growth” after the war ends, according to a press release. He specifically thanked BlackRock, JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs for their cooperation with Ukraine in the country’s plans for rebuilding after the war.
Stalin killed millions of ethnic Ukrainians after WW2 he made Hitler look like an Angel, so there was some severe disturbance to the sociological make of Ukraine, not sure on the number of Ukrainians disposed of by Stalin maybe someone on this site could let me know 6 million Plus + ????
And those Russians in the Donbas happen to be there , not because they emigrated there, but because they had always lived there , for generations
It was Lenin who annexed if you like , that part of Russia into Ukraine in an attempt to balance Ukraine , so that it had an industrial base, and then proceeded to develop that industry further ., making Ukraine at the end of the Soviet Union a major producer of machinery and weapons
In the 1920's Ukraine expanded into Russia,.No one ever thought that Ukraine under a new putsch government would start hankering for NATO membership , denying Russian language rights and from 2014 attacking and killing Donbas rebels and citizens.
If only the Minsk agreements had been implemented, in good faith, none of this terrible death would be happening
In the 1920's Stalin controlled everything. I am not sure how this is relevant to 2020.
No one ever thought that Ukraine under a new putsch government
The current President and govt was formed in 2019 by a strong majority in an election widely considered free and fair.
would start hankering for NATO membership
Which is would be the only rational response to Russia invading and annexing Crimea in 2014
denying Russian language rights
Misrepresentation – anyone has the right to speak any language they like in Ukraine. Even Zelensky's native language is Russian. They simply made Ukrainian the official language. Exactly as almost all other nations do.
and from 2014 attacking and killing Donbas rebels and citizens.
Which selectively ignores the 'little green men' and weapons Putin poured over the border in order to ensure conflict. And despite this, after a surge in late 2104 by 2020 the fighting had almost completely died down – so Putin seeing his proxy strategy of using Donbass separatists to gain territory – sent in the Russian military and war criminals like the Wagner thugs to complete the job.
In my view the entire conflict would not have happened if Putin had abided by the 1996 Belgrade Memorandum whereby Russia was obliged to protect Ukraine sovereignty.
Black people: ‘Stop doing black-face in entertainment’
🙎🏻♂️ ‘OK’
Indigenous people: ‘Stop using caricatures of us for Halloween costumes’
🙎🏻♂️ ‘OK’
Women; ‘Stop saying men in dresses are actually women’
🤬 ‘GO TO HELL GENOCIDING HATEFUL TERF BIGOTS!’
This is misogyny, unacknowledged. There’s a lot of critique of drag Queen performance since it moved out of adult entertainment clubs. The principle also applies to AGP males/cross dressers since the shift trans women are literal women.
Calling drag womanface is also a problem because it confuses issues not well understood about black culture, but I think this tweets gets it right in how to make the point,
Floridian Surgeon General caught altering COVID vaccine studies to fit his worldview:
Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo personally altered a state-driven study about Covid-19 vaccines last year to suggest that some doses pose a significantly higher health risk for young men than had been established by the broader medical community, according to a newly obtained document.
Ladapo’s changes, released as part of a public records request, presented the risks of cardiac death to be more severe than previous versions of the study. He later used the final document in October to bolster disputed claims that Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines were dangerous to young men.
…
The newly released draft of the eight-page study, provided by the Florida Department of Health, indicates that it initially stated that there was no significant risk associated with the Covid-19 vaccines for young men. But “Dr. L’s Edits,” as the document is titled, reveal that Ladapo replaced that language to say that men between 18 and 39 years old are at high risk of heart illness from two Covid vaccines that use mRNA technology.
Great to see Ardern getting a decent post at Harvard Uni, but I sure hope PM Hipkins taps her for something more directly in NZ"s interests before her plate fills up.
In her Instagram post, Ardern explained that the role would see her take up the first tech governance leadership fellow at Harvard's Berkman Klein Center and work with its research community.
She will also be involved in work around the growth of generative AI tools.
From the ODT:
"As part of her role, Harvard has revealed Ardern will be studying ways to improve content standards and platform accountability for extremist content online, and also to examine artificial intelligence governance and algorithmic harms.
In her social media post, the former leader said she’d hinted at her plans to do "some speaking, teaching, and learning" alongside her previously announced jobs working as a special envoy to the Christchurch Call and joining the Earthshot board.
"Harvard have been a really important partner in the Christchurch Call work," said Ardern.
"My semester there later this year will also be an opportunity to take up the first tech governance leadership fellowship at the Berkman Klien Center."
Ardern said she will also be sharing her experiences at the historic university campus through her time speaking both in New Zealand and abroad."
Congratulations Jacinda on your appointment. Make sure you are not lost to the service of New Zealand.
Why is this acceptable? The laws must be changed to make taxation fair:
A report prepared on behalf of the Government says high wealth families pay a median effective tax rate of just 8.9%, as they earn significant income from untaxed capital gains.
The High-Wealth Individuals Research Project was conducted by Inland Revenue to fill a data gap in tax records and was released on Wednesday morning.
Revenue Minister David Parker said there was accurate data on the wealth of more than 90% of New Zealand’s population from household surveys, but little information on the total income of the wealthiest families and the taxes they paid.
…
New Zealand has a progressive income tax system, so a person with a taxable income of $50,000 would pay 16% in tax, while someone with $100,000 would pay 24%. However, when you calculate the median effective tax rate of high-wealth families using economic income – which includes capital gains and property ownership benefits – it plunges to just 8.9%.
And when many of us face in real terms diminishing value of homes/ kiwi saver etc, from the destructive impacts of inflation ? caused in part the result of govt policy and Reserve Bank action what then? The govt was warned of what the result of their momentary policy. Still they were happy to feed the beast then without implementing any measures to temper this action at the time. And now we see that they are trying to show some understanding ?? What about the likes of tax creep and other actions, all we hear is the need for the govt to increase the tax take. ?
They have SCREWED the population, and now for a bit of distraction in their attempt into holding power at all costs – And we have some who are being fooled into thinking that they are acting for their benefit. Where is the talk of what portion of the GDP should be captured by the govt by tax, duties etc then how and who pays ??
You talk about making a loss in "real terms" on the value of your house or Kiwisaver.
Did the IRD make their calculation on real terms when they talk about capital gains or have they done in it "nominal terms"? I haven't found where they have actually released the report and have only seen what Parker claims is happening. He isn't saying.
If I owned shares worth $1 million and they paid me a dividend of $20K during the next year and at the end of the year the shares were worth $1.05 million I haven't made anything at all if inflation was 7.2% as it currently is.
I guess you would want to tax me on those spurious capital gains of $50,000 though would you?
"After all interest merely maintains the value of the cash asset … ". That STATEMENT is CRAP. Interest currently for a 12 month term is 5.7%. Less tax depending upon your personal rate say 30% (earning 48-70k) an after tax rate of 4%. Inflation is guessed at to be 7%. So any deposit reduces in relative value !!!
I hope my little involvement has added to you to widen your knowledge 😇
Pretty sad effort at misdirection to score an imaginary point.
Alwyn was objecting to payment of tax on any CG that was lower than the rate of inflation. Yet all interest income is already subject to income tax despite the fact it is lower than the inflation rate.
You made the comment that interest maintains the value- then you comment "Yet all interest income is already subject to income tax despite the fact it is lower than the inflation rate.' the 2 statements do not hold true under current economic conditions, and for the cash to maintain value – And I have shown this is not the case- Yet you are not willing to accept this. Try to be consistent in your comments ??
Someone using that response to the facts about our tax regime, has interests to protect.
I'm guessing multiple property property ownership, and a vote for NACT, to restore the mortgage interest payment as a cost against rent income and to block any chance of a CG/land/wealth taxation.
And proposing an alliance with those on higher incomes who are most advantaged by a tax threshold adjustment and who have private health insurance and schooling (so do not care about underfunded public services).
And cry, blame government for inflation – when it's below the OECD average.
I note your main concern about inflation is that it reduces the value of property in real terms.
Your linked article is dated Feb 2021. Most of the increase in house prices from April 2020 to Dec 2021, occurred after February 2021. The correction in house prices Dec 2021 to March 2023 merely takes us back to Feb 2021.
So property values are still above where they were in March 2020.
History. 1976-1981 5 years of inflation and wage growth and a flatline to property values. We are currently building more houses than any time since the 1970's. So hopefully we can repeat that period and restore connection between incomes and property values. Those with altruism, empathy for others would want housing to become more affordable – not those who do not even want to pay tax on their CG and wealth.
The UK has higher home ownership than us and its increasing, ours is lower and still declining. Which society has a class system now?
the average price nationwide now down 17% from the November 2021 peak but still 17% above March 2020 levels pre-pandemic.
Auckland prices have fallen 22% to sit just 9% up from three years ago. Only Wellington with a 24% decline from the peak sits less above March 2020 with just a 7% gain.
The RBG removed all criteria for borrowing from banks in 2020 and most of 2021 – only restoring them in November 2021.
Current LVR settings were put in place November 2021 when risks were elevated. This followed a period in 2020 and 2021 when they were removed completely.
20% for first home buyers and 40% for investors
The Reserve Bank (RBNZ) is proposing to loosen loan-to-value ratio (LVR) restrictions, which would make it easier for prospective borrowers to get a mortgage.
Increasing from 10 to 15% new mortgage lending to owner-occupiers with deposits of less than 20 per cent.
Increasing from 5 to 10 per cent of a bank’s new mortgage lending to investors with deposits of less than 40 per cent.
If the owners of assets do not want to be taxed on unrealised capital gain they should be forced to sell the asset in question at the value before the unrealised gain was made.
For instance if a second house (not the owners main residence) increases in value from $500k to $1m then a CGT of 25% could apply i.e. CGT of $125k. If the owner chooses not to pay this then legislation should be enacted to force him to sell the house for $500k.
Why are you excluding the main residence as you call it? If you want to have a CGT then you should have it on everything shouldn't you? Or do you own a house and want to avoid paying taxes for your own assets?
According to the (very once-over-lightly) discussion on RNZ this afternoon – it was unrealized (and therefore theoretical) capital gains.
And, almost certainly reflects the skyrocketing property market of the last 5+ years (with the heat still not taken out of it, by the drop in the last few months).
Really, this is not news. Mum and Dad who have owned their own home for the last 20 years, have also 'benefitted' from this skyrocketing notional capital gain. Their standard 3-bedroom-house is worth well north of 1 million.
Of course, if/when they sell (usually to downsize), they'll be buying in the same market – and will have little nest-egg left over (especially if they're going into the retirement village rort).
Given that they're well outside the bright-line test (and also if they live in the house) – their 'capital gain' will also be untaxed when they sell.
A 2020 law change gave IRD new powers to require the wealthiest families to provide their earnings information. After a two-year investigation, the High Wealth Individuals Research Projects found untaxed capital gains from businesses, property and other investments skew the tax system in favour of the country's most wealthy.
Revenue Minister David Parker said this "internationally ground-breaking research" revealed a "large differential between the tax rates ordinary New Zealanders pay on their full income compared with the super-wealthy".
From this article, Parker and the HWIRP are still not clear whether this is an actual capital gain (i.e. the HWI have sold the business, land, property, artwork or shares, and therefore this is 'real' cash in hand); or it is theoretical (the value of the business, land or shares, etc. has theoretically increased – so no actual cash in hand).
[My understanding from the tax expert interviewed on RNZ, is that it is the latter – a theoretical increase in value, rather than actual cash-in-hand]
If you wish to capture the former, then you're looking at a CGT (and, presumably, not just on high wealth individuals). No issue with valuation – the price paid is clear. However, the tax take is lumpy – only taken when the asset is sold.
If you wish to tax the latter, then you're looking at some form of wealth tax – with all the associated valuation issues: who estimates the value? how often? what happens if the value decreases (as house prices have over the last year)? what happens to the asset rich, but cash poor? (granny tax issue), etc.
You will be able to tell the Kiwiblog readers by their trained parrot responses.
DPF taught them to argue that a fair CGT should include the family home (there is no CGT regime in the OECD that includes the family home – because that is both unpopular and also unfair as it lowers equity in the home with every change in location – obstructs movement of labour).
Another one is inflation, and accounting for inflation to enable untaxed compound CG at the rate of inflation, to reduce the amount collected by a CGT.
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Michael Bassett writes – If you think there is a move afoot by the radical Maori fringe of New Zealand society to create a parallel system of government to the one that we elect at our triennial elections, you aren’t wrong. Over the last few days we have ...
Without a corresponding drop in interest rates, it’s doubtful any changes to the CCCFA will unleash a massive rush of home buyers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The six things that stood out to me in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, poverty and climate on Monday, April 22 included:The Government making a ...
Sunday was a lazy day. I started watching Jack Tame on Q&A, the interviews are usually good for something to write about. Saying the things that the politicians won’t, but are quite possibly thinking. Things that are true and need to be extracted from between the lines.As you might know ...
In our Weekly Roundup last week we covered news from Auckland Transport that the WX1 Western Express is going to get an upgrade next year with double decker electric buses. As part of the announcement, AT also said “Since we introduced the WX1 Western Express last November we have seen ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 29 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. Stats NZ releases its statutory report on Census 2023 tomorrow.Finance Minister Nicola Willis delivers a pre-Budget speech at ...
A listing of 29 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 14, 2024 thru Sat, April 20, 2024. Story of the week Our story of the week hinges on these words from the abstract of a fresh academic ...
The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. The Government says this will ...
This is a column to say thank you. So many of have been in touch since Mum died to say so many kind and thoughtful things. You’re wonderful, all of you. You’ve asked how we’re doing, how Dad’s doing. A little more realisation each day, of the irretrievable finality of ...
Identifying the engine type in your car is crucial for various reasons, including maintenance, repairs, and performance upgrades. Knowing the specific engine model allows you to access detailed technical information, locate compatible parts, and make informed decisions about modifications. This comprehensive guide will provide you with a step-by-step approach to ...
Introduction: The allure of racing is undeniable. The thrill of speed, the roar of engines, and the exhilaration of competition all contribute to the allure of this adrenaline-driven sport. For those who yearn to experience the pinnacle of racing, becoming a race car driver is the ultimate dream. However, the ...
Introduction Automobiles have become ubiquitous in modern society, serving as a primary mode of transportation and a symbol of economic growth and personal mobility. With countless vehicles traversing roads and highways worldwide, it begs the question: how many cars are there in the world? Determining the precise number is a ...
Maintaining a safe and reliable vehicle requires regular inspections. Whether it’s a routine maintenance checkup or a safety inspection, knowing how long the process will take can help you plan your day accordingly. This article delves into the factors that influence the duration of a car inspection and provides an ...
Mazda Motor Corporation, commonly known as Mazda, is a Japanese multinational automaker headquartered in Fuchu, Aki District, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. The company was founded in 1920 as the Toyo Cork Kogyo Co., Ltd., and began producing vehicles in 1931. Mazda is primarily known for its production of passenger cars, but ...
Your car battery is an essential component that provides power to start your engine, operate your electrical systems, and store energy. Over time, batteries can weaken and lose their ability to hold a charge, which can lead to starting problems, power failures, and other issues. Replacing your battery before it ...
In most states, you cannot register a car without a valid driver’s license. However, there are a few exceptions to this rule. Exceptions to the RuleIf you are under 18 years old: In some states, you can register a car in your name even if you do not ...
Mazda, a Japanese automotive manufacturer with a rich history of innovation and engineering excellence, has emerged as a formidable player in the global car market. Known for its reputation of producing high-quality, fuel-efficient, and driver-oriented vehicles, Mazda has consistently garnered praise from industry experts and consumers alike. In this article, ...
Struts are an essential part of a car’s suspension system. They are responsible for supporting the weight of the car and damping the oscillations of the springs. Struts are typically made of steel or aluminum and are filled with hydraulic fluid. How Do Struts Work? Struts work by transferring the ...
Car registration is a mandatory process that all vehicle owners must complete annually. This process involves registering your car with the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and paying an associated fee. The registration process ensures that your vehicle is properly licensed and insured, and helps law enforcement and other authorities ...
Zoom is a video conferencing service that allows you to share your screen, webcam, and audio with other participants. In addition to sharing your own audio, you can also share the audio from your computer with other participants. This can be useful for playing music, sharing presentations with audio, or ...
Building your own computer can be a rewarding and cost-effective way to get a high-performance machine tailored to your specific needs. However, it also requires careful planning and execution, and one of the most important factors to consider is the time it will take. The exact time it takes to ...
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 Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
Hundreds of New Zealand families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) will benefit from a new Government focus on prevention and treatment, says Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. “We know FASD is a leading cause of preventable intellectual and neurodevelopmental disability in New Zealand,” Dr Reti says. “Every day, ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges. “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order. “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions. “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today. “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale. “It is good ...
The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
“China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Asia Pacific Report From France to Australia, university pro-Palestine protests in the United States have now spread to several countries with students pitching on-campus camps. And students at Columbia and other US universities remain defiant as campuses have witnessed the biggest protests since the anti-Vietnam war and anti-apartheid eras in ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards, Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)New Zealand Government’s Fast Track legislation. Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government ...
Tara Ward talks to presenter Naomi Toilalo about the new TV show that turns food waste into a three course feast. Naomi Toilalo is standing in the warehouse at Good Neighbour Tauranga, helping unpack the two-and-a-half tonnes of rejected food that will arrive at the community support hub that day. ...
Scout is our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our What’s Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Scout’s human, Avril, for her support. Dog name: Scout (named after the little girl in To Kill a Mockingbird – she inherited the independent spirit ...
Megan Alatini takes us through her life in TV, including ‘terrible’ daytime TV, the class of Carol Hirschfeld and her most embarrassing TrueBliss moment. When she responded to a vague newspaper ad asking “do you have what it takes to be a popstar?” 25 years ago, Megan Alatini never guessed ...
A new exhibition in Wellington showcases the faces behind your local goods and services. Back in 1977, when I was a fine arts student at the University of Canterbury, I took a series of photographs of Christchurch shopkeepers. The photos were for a calendar – a project for my end ...
Toomaj and his resistance to tyranny through his songs have become an icon for the youth of Iran, so his sentence has hit the nation hard. Toomaj Salehi is not the first artist to pay the price for standing with the people. ...
My cousin Dylan and I spotted these big eels under the bridge that summer. We watched them lounging under the dark weed, facing into the flow of water, their mouths frozen open. Dylan and I couldn’t stop thinking about those eels. The night we went down to the creek, we ...
Newsroom, home of satire. My long-running weekly satirical series The Secret Diary has moved to Newsroom and will appear every Saturday, with Victor Billot’s wildly popular satirical Odes continuing to appear every Sunday. Diaries, Odes – while serious political columnists toil at meaningful opinions and stroke their chins to an ...
Tara Ward unravels the many nuanced layers of a cartoon about talking dogs.This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. It’s not often an episode of a children’s cartoon has adults sobbing into their sleeves, but that’s exactly what happened this week when ...
Working as a doctor in developing countries to help communities achieve better health outcomes is nothing short of a life goal for Jessica Tater. The University of Otago medical student has her sights firmly set on joining the international humanitarian organisation Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) when she qualifies ...
There’s an island in the far reaches of Auckland’s territory, sitting off the tip of the Coromandel Peninsula, 30 minutes by air from the city or four hours on the slow boat. Aotea Great Barrier is off-grid, it has a population of fewer than a thousand people … and most ...
Asia Pacific Report An Australian author and advocate, Jim Aubrey, today led a national symbolic one minute’s silence to mark the “blood debt” owed to Papuan allies during the Second World War indigenous resistance against the invading Japanese forces. “A promise to most people is a promise,” Aubrey said in ...
Asia Pacific Report The Freedom Flotilla is ready to sail to Gaza, reports Kia Ora Gaza. All the required paperwork has been submitted to the port authority, and the cargo has been loaded and prepared for the humanitarian trip to the besieged enclave. However, organisers received word of an “administrative ...
Pacific Media Watch Palestine solidarity protesters today demonstrated at the Auckland headquarters of Television New Zealand, accusing the country’s major TV network of broadcasting “propaganda” backing Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza. About 50 protesters targeted the main entrance to the TVNZ building near Sky Tower and also picketed a side ...
Opinion by Lynley Hood. Forty years on from my 1985 Fulbright Grant, my disquiet over the war in Gaza evoked some troubling questions. The answer to my first question – What is the primary purpose of the Fulbright Programme? – was on the Fulbright NZ website. It says: US Senator, ...
The ministers responsible for green-lighting major projects need to be open about potential conflicts of interest, says Transparency International. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Powell, Professor, Family and Sexual Violence, RMIT University It has been a particularly distressing start to the year. There is little that can ease the current grief of individuals, families and communities who have needlessly lost a loved one to men’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gregory Moore, Senior Research Associate, School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, The University of Melbourne Lichen, the first described example of symbiosis.AdeJ Artventure/Shutterstock Once known only to those studying biology, the word symbiosis is now widely used. Symbiosis is the intimate ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kim Hemsley, Head, Childhood Dementia Research Group, Flinders Health and Medical Research Institute, College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University Olena Ivanova/Shutterstock “Childhood” and “dementia” are two words we wish we didn’t have to use together. But sadly, around 1,400 ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Whiteford, Professor, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University The government’s Economic Inclusion Advisory Committee has just published its second report. It was set up by Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth in 2022 to provide: ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne The Queensland state election will be held in October. A YouGov poll for The Courier Mail, conducted April 9–17 from a sample ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Naeni, PhD candidate at Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation, Deakin University There’s been much talk in recent months about what a possible second Donald Trump presidency in the United States could mean for Europe, Russia’s war in Ukraine, the ...
A brief round-up of submissions on the controversial proposed law. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week, submissions on the controversial Fast-track Approvals Bill closed just hours after the government released a list of stakeholder organisations who were sent letters advising how they could ...
A poem from Robin Peace’s new collection Detritus of Empire: feather / grass / rock. Cereal giving I see a woman’s hands, see her curious hands break a stalk as she walks through the tall prairie, the savannah, the steppe, wherever it was. See her idly bite the grass that ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Hemingway’s Goblet by Dermot Ross (Mary Egan Publishing, $38)A handsomely produced (debossed cover, lovely ...
The Commissioner's decision validates the longstanding efforts of the local community and ensures that Awataha Marae will be managed to serve the needs of the local community, particularly for hosting tangihanga. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tristan Salles, Associate professor, University of Sydney Examples of Australian landscapes.Unsplash Seventy thousand years ago, the sea level was much lower than today. Australia, along with New Guinea and Tasmania, formed a connected landmass known as Sahul. Around this time – ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Felicity Castagna, Lecturer, Creative Writing, Western Sydney University Day Day Market, ParramattaPhoto: Garry Trinh I live on the edge of Parramatta, Australia’s fastest-growing city, on the kind of old-fashioned suburban street that has 1950s fibros constructed in the post-war housing boom, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Ryan, Teaching Fellow in Economics, University of Waikato GettyImagesfatido/Getty Images There is an ongoing global debate over whether the high inflation seen in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic can be lowered without a recession. New Zealand is not ...
The ‘Wicked Game’ heartthrob is in his late 60s now. That didn’t stop him putting on a lively, goofy and very sparkly show. Apart from ‘Wicked Game’, which graces a sultry playlist of mine simply called 💋, my last sustained Chris Isaak listening session took place when I was about ...
Analysis - Two ministers were stripped of portfolios in a warning to Cabinet, drama broke out at the Waitangi Tribunal, and the gang patch ban bill ran into opposition. ...
Tara Ward makes an impassioned plea for some vital pop culture merch. In April 1999, I became obsessed with a new reality television show called Popstars. Every Tuesday night, five strangers transformed into music royalty before my very eyes as Joe, Keri, Carly, Erika and Megan were chosen to form ...
PNG Post-Courier In the early hours of ANZAC Day, aerial photographs captured an impressive gathering of Australians and Papua New Guineans at Isurava in the Northern (Oro) Province. The solemn dawn service yesterday was held at a site steeped in history, where some of the fiercest battles of World War ...
The PSA is shocked that Oranga Tamariki has used the cost cutting drive to downgrade its commitment to Te Ao Māori and remove many specialist Māori roles. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Kemish, Adjunct Professor, School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry, The University of Queensland There can be no more powerful symbol of the relationship between Australia and Papua New Guinea than the prime ministers of these neighbouring countries walking together on the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sharon Robinson, Distinguished Professor and Deputy Director of ARC Securing Antarctica’s Environmental Future (SAEF), University of Wollongong, University of Wollongong Andrew Netherwood Over the last 25 years, the ozone hole which forming over Antarctica each spring has started to shrink. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Viktoria Kahui, Senior Lecturer in Environmental Economics, University of Otago Getty Images/Amy Toensing Biodiversity is declining at rates unprecedented in human history. This suggests the ways we currently use to manage our natural environment are failing. One emerging concept focuses on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Timothy Colin Bednall, Associate Professor in Management, Swinburne University of Technology marvent/Shutterstock Finding the best person to fill a position can be tough, from drafting a job ad to producing a shortlist of top interview candidates. Employers typically consider information from ...
Wondering where to host your next BYO? Whether its a small gathering or a massive party, we’ve got some recommendations. I was first introduced to the concept of BYOs at Dunedin’s India Gardens, a legendary but sadly defunct establishment, which purveyed enormous quantities of mango chicken to Aotearoa’s drunkest future ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Julien Cooper, Honorary Lecturer, Department of History and Archaeology, Macquarie University Julien Cooper The hyper-arid desert of Eastern Sudan, the Atbai Desert, seems like an unlikely place to find evidence of ancient cattle herders. But in this dry environment, my new ...
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Love your thoughts peeps
Glenn Greenwald “The Hypocrisy Slayer”, who tweeted this about Tucker Carlson
Tucker was the cable host who most:
https://twitter.com/ggreenwald/status/1650539164440444930
[link added]
We require a link for quotes, please supply the link to the actual tweet, thanks.
Just go to twitter, search Glenn Greenwald and go to the post sent at 04:36 on 25/04/23
Enjoy
[it’s not optional, please supply the link for your quote. The onus is on the commenter to do this, not expect mods or commenters to. Thanks – weka]
mod mote.
Hi Weka,
my apologies… here’s the tweet
https://twitter.com/ggreenwald/status/1650539164440444930
thanks 👍 It also gets better debate because people can see the context (and in this case, the thread).
Glenn Greenwalds analysis of Tucker Carlson quite eye opening considering the view most left wing people would have of him. In fact totally gob smacked by his wider analysis highlighting how little debate or decent there is the Democrat party compared to Republicans.
I would highly recommend sitting down with a nice cup of tea and maybe some chocky bikkies and watching it. Would really like to hear everyone’s view.
https://rumble.com/v2k86j4-system-update-show-77.html
The cheese slid of Greenwald's cracker some time ago.
His example of Democratic Party conformity, as distinct from diversity within the GOP, is support for the President's foreign policy call for funding aid to Ukraine.
Why not universal opposition from the GOP for the President's economic policy and the Sinema and Manchin providing dissent from his own party?
It's not convincing.
Then there was the praise for Carlson for criticising the GOP establishment (as per Ukraine) against the neo-liberal establishment (bi-partisan). It was part of their @Fox News support for Trump (who is popular with the audience).
Greenwald is from the historic liberal dissent against the military industrial complex and deep state foreign adventurism stable looking for a match with selfish USA isolationism (abandoning international obligation) and is partnering up with like alt media commentators on Rumble – such as Gubbard and maybe soon Carlson?
Carlson's support for Assange was also connnected to Trump also considering a pardon for Assange.
The irony is that Carlson has a low opinion of Trump (and has recently admitted that his public commentary @ Fox News support was not real) though it would seem he used Trump as cover for his out of right wing step opinions on Ukraine and Assange.
In the context of Glenn’s statements and the leftist views that Tucker Carlson is “Far Right”, (even though he is anti war), I wonder how Jacinda Ardern would assess Glenn / Tucker given her new appointment at Harvard University.
“Former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has been appointed appointed to a fellowship at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society, based at the law school, where she will study ways to improve content standards and platform accountability for extremist content online, and examine artificial intelligence governance and algorithmic harms.” Link given below
I wonder if Jacinda will suffer any cognitive dissonance given she fell in lock step with Democrats supporting the War in Ukraine (offering no diplomatic solution). Current estimates of casualties at 354,000. Link given below.
Would like to hear your opinions…
Do you think Jacinda, Labour, National, Radio NZ, TVNZ, etc might have to self sensor? Or maybe they are all to busy figuring out what the definition of a woman is?
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/488678/jacinda-ardern-to-take-up-fellowships-at-harvard-university#:~:text=Former%20Prime%20Minister%20Jacinda%20Ardern,the%20Center%20for%20Public%20Leadership.
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ukraine-war-already-with-up-354000-casualties-likely-drag-us-documents-2023-04-12/
Yes I was just reading that potentially sinister development myself. The application of AI to censor social media platforms will completely destroy any remaining utility they have, except to serve the interests of those who control the algorithms.
And you can be certain none of us will be asked.
Redlogix….
Is this what your talking about:
Billionaire Twitter owner Elon Musk is again sounding warning bells on the dangers of artificial intelligence to humanity — and claiming that a popular chatbot has a liberal bias that he plans to counter with his own AI creation.
https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory/elon-musk-hell-create-truthgpt-counter-ai-bias-98654332
Which means they will need to be regarded as public utilities serving the common good , i.e. not in private hands and at arms' length from the state with transparent operating principles and democratic accountability.
This is a problem as old as the invention of newspapers, and one that we have never solved satisfactorily. The technology just hugely increases the scale of it.
" (even though he is anti war)"
Anyone who wants peace on Russia's terms, is anything but "anti war".
" (even though he is anti war)"
Anyone who wants peace on NEOCONs terms, is anything but "anti war".
I don't think trying to defend Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity is being pro-war. On the contrary, it's a sign of good sense and clear-headed foreign policy that seeks to preserve the lives and security of millions of people.
There is no "diplomatic solution" to the conflict that doesn't involve seriously undermining Ukraine's ability to function as a sovereign state, or throwing it to the wolves. And if we purport to believe in freedom, justice, and a reasonably fair international order we must be prepared to fight for it.
I am by no means a believer in history being a perfect template to handle the present or future. But there were millions of Britons and Frenchmen in 1938-39 unwilling to die for Danzig. Or Prague.
Sacrificing Czechoslovakia and only half-heartedly supporting Poland to please them simply meant that even more millions died for Paris, London, Moscow, and even Berlin.
Res Publica,
Good comments, and 100% agree with you if it were as straightforward as you have laid out. If this was a here comes Hitler moment you’d be spot on.
Unfortunately the situation is more complex and grey.
Its because of this historical complexity and uncertainty my inclination was the Minsk accords were the way to go. The current cost benefit of dead just not worth the fight.
For example and being overly simplistic take just one factor into consideration (remember many were being persecuted by ethnic Ukrainians circa 2014-present:
Russians are the largest ethnic minority in Ukraine. This community forms the largest single Russian community outside of Russia in the world. In the 2001 Ukrainian census, 8,334,100 identified as ethnic Russians (17.3% of the population of Ukraine); this is the combined figure for persons originating from outside of Ukraine and the Ukrainian-born population declaring Russian ethnicity.[1]
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russians_in_Ukraine
That’s not even taking into consideration the US/Wests motives
Cheers
I think you'll find the other 83%ish of Ukranians have run their own analysis and firmly decided not being reabsorbed into a revanchist Russian neo-empire is worth the cost.
It's their country. They're the ones fighting and dying for it.
Irridentism isn’t a valid casus belli. But it is a convenient one if you’re a big power with smaller neighbours with sizable ethnic minorities you can come in and “rescue”
If you’re going to sceptical of the west’s motivations, then you should probably ask some questions of the Russians. After all, they’re the ones that actually decided to invade another country.
Hi Res Publica,
Hmmmm…. assuming Ukraine being absorbed by the west is a good thing.
Nothing to see there a?
Ukraine’s anti-worker law comes into effect
Law 5371, which strips back labour protections, has been ratified. Is there more to come? On 17…. which removes rights for workers at small and medium-sized companies. It will be effective for as long as the country is under martial law – a qualification added at the last minute, under pressure from trade unions…….
The Ukrainian government has claimed it is trying to alleviate the difficulties faced by companies in wartime. However, it first tried to introduce the new law in 2021.
https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/odr/ukraine-labour-law-wrecks-workers-rights/
Zelenskyy spoke during the meeting of the National Association of State Chambers about how “American business can become a locomotive of global economic growth” after the war ends, according to a press release. He specifically thanked BlackRock, JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs for their cooperation with Ukraine in the country’s plans for rebuilding after the war.
https://dailycaller.com/2023/01/24/zelenskyy-big-banks-ukraine-financial-support/
Of course no disinformation and misinformation would be spread by the West/USA…. It’s just all about loving your neighbour
Stalin killed millions of ethnic Ukrainians after WW2 he made Hitler look like an Angel, so there was some severe disturbance to the sociological make of Ukraine, not sure on the number of Ukrainians disposed of by Stalin maybe someone on this site could let me know 6 million Plus + ????
And those Russians in the Donbas happen to be there , not because they emigrated there, but because they had always lived there , for generations
It was Lenin who annexed if you like , that part of Russia into Ukraine in an attempt to balance Ukraine , so that it had an industrial base, and then proceeded to develop that industry further ., making Ukraine at the end of the Soviet Union a major producer of machinery and weapons
In the 1920's Ukraine expanded into Russia,.No one ever thought that Ukraine under a new putsch government would start hankering for NATO membership , denying Russian language rights and from 2014 attacking and killing Donbas rebels and citizens.
If only the Minsk agreements had been implemented, in good faith, none of this terrible death would be happening
If only Putin would accept the sovereign right of Ukraine, in good faith, none of this terrible death would be happening.
In the 1920's Stalin controlled everything. I am not sure how this is relevant to 2020.
The current President and govt was formed in 2019 by a strong majority in an election widely considered free and fair.
Which is would be the only rational response to Russia invading and annexing Crimea in 2014
Misrepresentation – anyone has the right to speak any language they like in Ukraine. Even Zelensky's native language is Russian. They simply made Ukrainian the official language. Exactly as almost all other nations do.
Which selectively ignores the 'little green men' and weapons Putin poured over the border in order to ensure conflict. And despite this, after a surge in late 2104 by 2020 the fighting had almost completely died down – so Putin seeing his proxy strategy of using Donbass separatists to gain territory – sent in the Russian military and war criminals like the Wagner thugs to complete the job.
In my view the entire conflict would not have happened if Putin had abided by the 1996 Belgrade Memorandum whereby Russia was obliged to protect Ukraine sovereignty.
This is misogyny, unacknowledged. There’s a lot of critique of drag Queen performance since it moved out of adult entertainment clubs. The principle also applies to AGP males/cross dressers since the shift trans women are literal women.
Calling drag womanface is also a problem because it confuses issues not well understood about black culture, but I think this tweets gets it right in how to make the point,
https://twitter.com/theblackcat02/status/1650927492797005824
Floridian Surgeon General caught altering COVID vaccine studies to fit his worldview:
https://www.politico.com/news/2023/04/24/florida-surgeon-general-covid-vaccine-00093510
Great to see Ardern getting a decent post at Harvard Uni, but I sure hope PM Hipkins taps her for something more directly in NZ"s interests before her plate fills up.
Too high an international player to see gone.
https://www.odt.co.nz/news/national/ardern-announces-new-role-harvard-university
In her Instagram post, Ardern explained that the role would see her take up the first tech governance leadership fellow at Harvard's Berkman Klein Center and work with its research community.
She will also be involved in work around the growth of generative AI tools.
From the ODT:
"As part of her role, Harvard has revealed Ardern will be studying ways to improve content standards and platform accountability for extremist content online, and also to examine artificial intelligence governance and algorithmic harms.
In her social media post, the former leader said she’d hinted at her plans to do "some speaking, teaching, and learning" alongside her previously announced jobs working as a special envoy to the Christchurch Call and joining the Earthshot board.
"Harvard have been a really important partner in the Christchurch Call work," said Ardern.
"My semester there later this year will also be an opportunity to take up the first tech governance leadership fellowship at the Berkman Klien Center."
Ardern said she will also be sharing her experiences at the historic university campus through her time speaking both in New Zealand and abroad."
Congratulations Jacinda on your appointment. Make sure you are not lost to the service of New Zealand.
Why is this acceptable? The laws must be changed to make taxation fair:
https://www.interest.co.nz/personal-finance/120924/revenue-minister-david-parker-says-ird-survey-showing-wealthy-kiwis-pay
And when many of us face in real terms diminishing value of homes/ kiwi saver etc, from the destructive impacts of inflation ? caused in part the result of govt policy and Reserve Bank action what then? The govt was warned of what the result of their momentary policy. Still they were happy to feed the beast then without implementing any measures to temper this action at the time. And now we see that they are trying to show some understanding ?? What about the likes of tax creep and other actions, all we hear is the need for the govt to increase the tax take. ?
They have SCREWED the population, and now for a bit of distraction in their attempt into holding power at all costs – And we have some who are being fooled into thinking that they are acting for their benefit. Where is the talk of what portion of the GDP should be captured by the govt by tax, duties etc then how and who pays ??
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/300223358/reserve-bank-repeatedly-warned-government-money-printing-would-lead-to-house-price-inflation
You talk about making a loss in "real terms" on the value of your house or Kiwisaver.
Did the IRD make their calculation on real terms when they talk about capital gains or have they done in it "nominal terms"? I haven't found where they have actually released the report and have only seen what Parker claims is happening. He isn't saying.
If I owned shares worth $1 million and they paid me a dividend of $20K during the next year and at the end of the year the shares were worth $1.05 million I haven't made anything at all if inflation was 7.2% as it currently is.
I guess you would want to tax me on those spurious capital gains of $50,000 though would you?
Why should tax on CG be any different to tax on interest income?
After all interest merely maintains the value of the cash asset … .
With shares, there is both paid dividends and share value (over time) gain.
"After all interest merely maintains the value of the cash asset … ". That STATEMENT is CRAP. Interest currently for a 12 month term is 5.7%. Less tax depending upon your personal rate say 30% (earning 48-70k) an after tax rate of 4%. Inflation is guessed at to be 7%. So any deposit reduces in relative value !!!
I hope my little involvement has added to you to widen your knowledge 😇
https://www.rbnz.govt.nz/statistics/series/households/household-inflation-expectations
https://www.asb.co.nz/term-investments?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIloHf2_rG_gIVh6GWCh3N2QBqEAAYASAAEgJKrPD_BwE&fm=header:menu:term_investments&ef_id=EAIaIQobChMIloHf2_rG_gIVh6GWCh3N2QBqEAAYASAAEgJKrPD_BwE:G:s&s_kwcid=AL!7833!3!655514953568!e!!g!!asb%20term%20deposit&gclsrc=aw.ds&gad=1
Pretty sad effort at misdirection to score an imaginary point.
Alwyn was objecting to payment of tax on any CG that was lower than the rate of inflation. Yet all interest income is already subject to income tax despite the fact it is lower than the inflation rate.
You made the comment that interest maintains the value- then you comment "Yet all interest income is already subject to income tax despite the fact it is lower than the inflation rate.' the 2 statements do not hold true under current economic conditions, and for the cash to maintain value – And I have shown this is not the case- Yet you are not willing to accept this. Try to be consistent in your comments ??
No, I said
Your parsing out of context, leads to irrelevancy.
Someone using that response to the facts about our tax regime, has interests to protect.
I'm guessing multiple property property ownership, and a vote for NACT, to restore the mortgage interest payment as a cost against rent income and to block any chance of a CG/land/wealth taxation.
And proposing an alliance with those on higher incomes who are most advantaged by a tax threshold adjustment and who have private health insurance and schooling (so do not care about underfunded public services).
And cry, blame government for inflation – when it's below the OECD average.
I note your main concern about inflation is that it reduces the value of property in real terms.
Your linked article is dated Feb 2021. Most of the increase in house prices from April 2020 to Dec 2021, occurred after February 2021. The correction in house prices Dec 2021 to March 2023 merely takes us back to Feb 2021.
So property values are still above where they were in March 2020.
History. 1976-1981 5 years of inflation and wage growth and a flatline to property values. We are currently building more houses than any time since the 1970's. So hopefully we can repeat that period and restore connection between incomes and property values. Those with altruism, empathy for others would want housing to become more affordable – not those who do not even want to pay tax on their CG and wealth.
The UK has higher home ownership than us and its increasing, ours is lower and still declining. Which society has a class system now?
https://www.oneroof.co.nz/news/43472
The RBG removed all criteria for borrowing from banks in 2020 and most of 2021 – only restoring them in November 2021.
20% for first home buyers and 40% for investors
Increasing from 10 to 15% new mortgage lending to owner-occupiers with deposits of less than 20 per cent.
Increasing from 5 to 10 per cent of a bank’s new mortgage lending to investors with deposits of less than 40 per cent.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/rbnz-proposes-easing-banks-mortgage-lending-restrictions/ARZYDVVBQVE35KJXH5I7UIV5S4/
+100
Needs a Standard post on tax all by itself.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/131862801/richest-kiwis-pay-about-half-as-much-tax-on-the-dollar-as-everyone-else
Does that mean unrealised or realised capital gains? (I suspect unrealised gains)
If the owners of assets do not want to be taxed on unrealised capital gain they should be forced to sell the asset in question at the value before the unrealised gain was made.
For instance if a second house (not the owners main residence) increases in value from $500k to $1m then a CGT of 25% could apply i.e. CGT of $125k. If the owner chooses not to pay this then legislation should be enacted to force him to sell the house for $500k.
Second house, rented out. So what do you think would happen to the rents?
Say that gain is over 10yr, 12500$ per year or 240$ extra a week.
Why are you excluding the main residence as you call it? If you want to have a CGT then you should have it on everything shouldn't you? Or do you own a house and want to avoid paying taxes for your own assets?
The only people wealthy under that regime would be the valuers.
Imagine having to re-value every asset annually!
According to the (very once-over-lightly) discussion on RNZ this afternoon – it was unrealized (and therefore theoretical) capital gains.
And, almost certainly reflects the skyrocketing property market of the last 5+ years (with the heat still not taken out of it, by the drop in the last few months).
Really, this is not news. Mum and Dad who have owned their own home for the last 20 years, have also 'benefitted' from this skyrocketing notional capital gain. Their standard 3-bedroom-house is worth well north of 1 million.
Of course, if/when they sell (usually to downsize), they'll be buying in the same market – and will have little nest-egg left over (especially if they're going into the retirement village rort).
Given that they're well outside the bright-line test (and also if they live in the house) – their 'capital gain' will also be untaxed when they sell.
It sort of depends on how they identified "wealthy New Zealanders". I doubt it was home ownership itself.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/488705/wealthiest-paying-tax-at-much-lower-rate-than-most-other-new-zealanders-ird-report
From this article, Parker and the HWIRP are still not clear whether this is an actual capital gain (i.e. the HWI have sold the business, land, property, artwork or shares, and therefore this is 'real' cash in hand); or it is theoretical (the value of the business, land or shares, etc. has theoretically increased – so no actual cash in hand).
[My understanding from the tax expert interviewed on RNZ, is that it is the latter – a theoretical increase in value, rather than actual cash-in-hand]
If you wish to capture the former, then you're looking at a CGT (and, presumably, not just on high wealth individuals). No issue with valuation – the price paid is clear. However, the tax take is lumpy – only taken when the asset is sold.
If you wish to tax the latter, then you're looking at some form of wealth tax – with all the associated valuation issues: who estimates the value? how often? what happens if the value decreases (as house prices have over the last year)? what happens to the asset rich, but cash poor? (granny tax issue), etc.
You will be able to tell the Kiwiblog readers by their trained parrot responses.
DPF taught them to argue that a fair CGT should include the family home (there is no CGT regime in the OECD that includes the family home – because that is both unpopular and also unfair as it lowers equity in the home with every change in location – obstructs movement of labour).
Another one is inflation, and accounting for inflation to enable untaxed compound CG at the rate of inflation, to reduce the amount collected by a CGT.