I am certain the media has played a major role in sustaining 9 years of extreme neoliberal rule over this country.
Just imagine how a neutral press would deal with Key and his gang. We got a brief glimpse he would not have coped from the BBC Hard Talk interview a few years ago.
Then imagine if Key had to face the outright hostility and partisanship of a left wing media. He would not have lasted 6 months.
Who owns the media is a BIG part of the problem
Considering his family history, Trump’s memory loss, lies and confabulation raise the possibility that we’re witnessing early-onset dementia and paint a pretty grim picture regarding his mental competence.
That’s just Trump acting like a shit and a media whore. It’s not evidence of dementia. If school boy behaviour and sense of humour is a sign of dementia there’s a whole bunch of middle aged men out there who need to be put away.
Trump seems pretty on the ball to me…he does shoot from the mouth without engaging brain at times ( like an entertainer)….but his minders have that somewhat under control now…he is a typical shrewd deal maker with his eye on winning the big picture imo …so he will say anything at times to build grassroots support…but ultimately he is a pragmatist realist…and wants Peace for the USA…certainly not more senseless wars in the Middle East or with Russia
…. way better than the systemmic mendacity and war mongering of Hillary and her corporate minders and overseas funders
while being too cowardly to own the bulshit point he was making.
My “free association” path went thusly:
monomaniacal obsessive who’s been inventing and spreading rumours about the health of a candidate he doesn’t like posts random article on a degenerative disease. Sudden cure for his obsession? Unlikely. More likely another smear, this time more cowardly after being ripped into for overtly inventing shit.
And what “agenda” is that, TheExtremist? Remember, Bill Clinton’s DNC Chair has come forward publicly and said that the party needs to consider readying a contingency plan covering Hillary withdrawing due to health reasons.
Amanda Marcotte nails it, again: “Clinton’s health is Obama’s birth certificate all over again: A barely disguised way for conservatives to wallow in bigotry”
Andre, your responses and perspective are barley at an elementary level using your comments for reference
The current POTUS is a war mongering Nobel Peace Prize Laureatte, then the party you appear to favour were exposed for committing a form of electoral fraud to ensure that a physically and mentally ill candidate would ‘prevail’ at ANY cost
My opinion is that perspectives such as yours are a primary reason why The USA is the disaster nation it now is. The ‘average american’ has allowed it to eventuate and are 99% responsible for the national and international wrong doings. The same is true in NZ and elsewhere, the ‘average kiwi’ is perpetuating the problems
Attachmemt to the system, any system is the problem so why are you seemingly comfortable as an American citizen to enable the farce to continue by taking a side?
Ok One Two, here’s a challenge for you. Explain to us why it will be better if Trump gets elected than if Clinton wins. With evidence.
Here’s your incentive. If you persuade me, I’ll have a go at persuading my friends and rellies. There’s around 20 votes I might be able to influence, most of them in swing states.
Go on, show us the power of those higher frequencies you hear that you keep telling us about.
What you the friends and rellies need to be doing is identifying the total disaster that is USA politics, and every system of governance/administration executive branch etc which directly and indirectly hangs from the rotten corpse that’rules the world’
It doesn’t matter who you vote for, the deck is stacked on all sides it makes no difference which broken soul becomes POTUS. Look at the core outcomes it’s all the same and then ask yourself WHY the direction isn’t changing
Detaching from the ‘drama’ is the best course of action because feeding it with energy is to endorse what the status quo represents
“Detaching from the drama” certainly seems attractive while sucking on a bong. But even if I (and my friends and rellies) successfully detach, in late January next year either Clinton or Trump will be inaugurated as POTUS.
Should we choose to, in the real world, we could have a very small influence on which one of those it will be. And despite what your higher frequencies are telling you, the entire world will have a very different future depending on which one of those two becomes POTUS. Just like the world would now almost certainly be a very different place had Gore become POTUS instead of Bush the lesser.
There is literally nothing I or my rellies and friends can realistically do to bring about anything more than incremental reform of the rotten system the real world has delivered us.
If you disagree and think there are actual actions we could realistically do that will bring about actual change, please do tell. Because detaching to listen to the higher frequencies just lets the rotten bastards further consolidate their hold.
Andre I understand your semtiments as well as the desire for influence into the process
There are a number of assumptions in your comment which are not at all “reality’ based
Reality needs to be created, it should not be created for you, because then you are allowing others to create ‘your reality’. Others who already destroy kill and maim as standard practice
Continuing to support the decayed corpse will only serve to prolong its existence to the detriment of all living and life giving systems
The status quo will remain if given oxygen. It can’t and won’t be ‘changed’ by feeding it nor is there time to waste on wishful ‘incrimentalist’ fantasy
I appreciate it’s not an easy concept to wrap ones consciousness around, but failing to do so ensures a rapid decline in human existence along with the natural world
Genuine change will happen outside the systems you belive can be changed from within…staying involved with systems you can’t ever beat ensures that violent outcomes will only increase for ‘all’
Make change make plans make a garden and control the outcomes by creating your own reality
That was an excellent article thanks marty mars. All 10 points are situations we’ve all witnessed, or many of us will have observed.
One thing that jumped out was the “percentage question”. Pakeha just don’t get asked this, as white, we’re seen as just white. Some of us with Celtic roots will talk among one another about our own genealogy , often it turns out our ancestors came from the same areas, and if your family is from the Highlands of Scotland you can almost count on being related. It’s never discussed in a percentage term. Like a piece of maths.
But Maori are.
I grew up with this “percentage” faux fixation because the Pakeha side of the family was always intrigued to see how they could break down the Maori side of family into ethnic units. (It was the 70’s!) What blew that outdated old way of looking at things was a visit to a Robyn Kahukiwa exhibition.
The Maori friend I was with took me over to a female mannequin who had been painted over with lines forming squares and other shapes with numbers and a percentage sign in those marked out areas. My friend said “see, the numbers don’t matter, the woman is still a whole woman”. Visually, the mannequin looked like it was a side of beef about to be carved up. The artist was making a point about how crass and false this speak of percentages is. Good learnings from younger years.
“Victoria University students, Kahu Kutia and Kayla Polamalu talk to Kathryn Ryan about growing up with two different identities in New Zealand, and about the term ‘White Māori’.
They have Māori and Pākehā parentage. Recently Kahu wrote an article for the Victoria University’s magazine, Salient, titled If You’re From Waimana, Why Are You White?…
‘Actor’s love affair with the language’ -Jennifer Ward-Lealand started learning Te Reo Māori by attending weekly night classes
Former “alt right” crazies conspiracy theories on Hillary’s health now mainstream.
Bill Clinton’s DNC Chair from the 1990s says on the record that the party must consider contingency plans on the small chance that Hillary might have to pull out of the presidential race for health reasons.
Story reported by US political MSM website Politico.
+100…and it is amazing how many put their heads in the sand when the official story lines are leaking with inconsistencies, false reports… and lies , lies, lies
…the stooges are always countering and supporting the official story, even when academics and engineers and insiders and impartial observers disagree with the official story ( the stooges denigrate them as Conspiracy theorists or truthers)
“Manuel Barroso will be seen as a lobbyist and is going to have a big problem wielding influence on behalf of the Goldman Sachs, economist and author Keith Boyfield told RT.
The former EU president is to face an ethics inquiry over taking a lucrative role as adviser at US investment bank Goldman Sachs…
Most polls seem to have about a 3% wriggle room clause in them when they get reported to the public. The other day a poll came out, again with a 3% margin of error.
So does that mean the party on 46% could be between 43% and 49% and the party on 2% could be -1% and 5%, or does it mean a 46% party could be between 44.6% and 47.4%
The error bounds indicate how close the observation of the random sample is likely to be to the actual support of the population, based on the arbitrary “confidence” level the pollsters chose. You can’t have “-1” popularity, so the error margin narrows the farther away from the 50% central value you get.
Roughly speaking, if you have a survey has a confidence leval of 95% and the error margin is +-3%, you would expect the actual support in the country to be 47 to 53% 95% of the time, but there’s a 1 in 20 chance that the actual value is outside that 47:53 range. The farther outside that range, the lower the probability though.
However, if a party was much farther away from the center in the survey, say on 5% or 95% support (in a normal distribution it’s symmetrical), the 95% confidence margin for error would be only say 1.4%, so the party’s actual support might be 3.6% to 6.4%, 19 out of 20 times.
proviso: the assumption above is based on random samples from throughout the voting population. In reality, there could well be systemic errors that push the observed results farther away from the actual, e.g. phoning lots of people who just want to talk, while the people who are busy tell the pollsters to go away. The might not get representative samples of young people, or minorities, so they give the respondents they do get from those groups greater weight to estimate what would happen if the socioeconomic distribution of their sample actually matched the population. And so on. It’s slightly better than crystal ball gazing, but often not much.
All of the above is why one survey or datapoint is meaningless – you can’t form an opinion without long term trends over all polls, and by then it’s meaningless because the polls are too far apart and inconsistent. And you sure can’t attribute a single poll result to what happened during the poll period, journalists and pollsters love doing it but it’s fucking stupid. You might be able to look at the trends before and after, and if you’re really lucky you can see a sudden jump/drop in the trend at the same time that the event happened in a vacuum, but those are few and far between and generally only good for academics looking back from a distance.
No. The margin for error exponentially reduces as it approaches the fringes.
A 2% observation might only have an MoE in the ballpark of 0.5% or less, depending on sample size. A 0.5% observation might have an MoE of 0.03%.
The question was specific, as was your answer. Your answer was specifically incorrect. It clarified nothing, and suggested that Mana might be regarded as having as much as 3.5% popularity when it polls a barely-detectable 0.5%.
You were utterly misleading and outright wrong. Saying that you don’t know shit was going light on you, given that this is a secondary-school level error.
Trade rules should move countries together towards sustainability. Instead, they consistently allow multinational corporations to continue polluting.
Free trade deals, and in particular the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), have taken a beating this election season. Most of the noise on trade from Presidential candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton has focused on the loss of jobs linked to the offshoring. Much less attention has been paid to the serious impact the TPP and past trade agreements will have on our ability to respond to climate change.
In a new report on the TPP and climate commitments made by countries as part of the Paris climate agreement, we found that trade rules consistently benefit multinational corporations in high greenhouse gas emitting sectors like agriculture and energy, while creating barriers for governments in setting climate-related policies.
Our analysis found that the Trans Pacific Partnership expands the scope of past trade agreements to harm the climate in three important ways:
As I say, much easier and better to set standards that other countries must meet before we trade with them rather than FTAs that force us to trade with those not up to our standards.
EDIT:
The official signing of the Paris climate treaty is an important first step toward a global response to climate change. But no climate deal will work if it is not supported by other policies. The TPP and the WTO are outdated trade regimes modeled on 19th century ideas. The 21st century demands something very different—trade rules that move countries together towards sustainability, starting with the urgent need to curb greenhouse gas emissions and support adaptations to climate change.
I got an email from Greenpeace this morning. It said,
“Early this morning we travelled to the proposed site of the Ruataniwha irrigation dam in Hawke’s Bay. With a small crane we uplifted the construction site office, put it on the back of a truck and drove it 100kms to Napier. There we left it at the door of the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council (HBRC).”
A hard-headed assessment of Labour’s performance cannot but conclude that the party lacks talent along with basic political competence. Contrast its current frontbench with those that preceded Labour victories in 1984 or 1999.
(Very) Little’s way of dealing with the deadwood of his party has been abject surrender to their demands for status, blocking the promotion of much-needed latent to the front bench. Robertson is the most egregious example, a lazy imbecile with Chronic Backstabbing Disorder, he’s on the front bench because no one in their right mind would let him sit behind them. Now he’s in the spotlight, we can all see just how inadequate he is… when he actually bothers to do anything (which is usually appropriating someone else’s work).
Maybe that’s Little’s cunning plan, but I doubt it. I wouldn’t credit him with that much imagination.
Appeasing the likes of Robertson and Hipkins shows that Labour is still paralysed by its internal politics and prioritises those over its duty as an opposition or government in waiting.
He has ability and is in demand, so he has somewhere to go as well.
That I suppose is the problem Labour has. It’s current frontbenchers are unemployable elsewhere, so they cling to their positions, blocking any rising talent, who become disaffected. Even younger people don’t even see the point in trying for selection if they see that their careers will go nowhere.
The best Little can do in the short term is shine some light on the less senior MPs – give them a chance to speak on issues if not complete portfolios, or pair them with seniors on specific campaigns such as the housing crisis so they get some attention and experience.
I would hope that a Labour-led coalition government could import talent from its partners, but I fear that the deadwood MPs will all demand the plum jobs and LIttle will give in to them, relegating capable members from other parties to roles as Assistant Minister of Tea and Scones and suchlike.
Fortunately opposition(s) talent pool is razor thin so this should not be an issue, finding enough people to fill cabinet will be the biggest concern, it’s not going to happen so again not really anything to worry about Rhino
if we are going to fret upon a lack of front bench talent i submit the following….Hon. Gerry Brownlee, Steven Joyce, Paula Bennet,Jonathan Coleman,Simon Bridges,Hekia Parata, Anne Tolley, Nick Smith, Murray McCully, Judith Collins and Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga.
Key said “if you act in a violent and controlling way, you can change this behaviour. Own the problem. Nothing will get better until you do. Ask for help. There is no shame in that.”
Very good. However, with the sharing of more information coupled with allowing others to apply for protection orders (and with offenders soon being marked as family violence offenders for life) what are the consequences of someone asking for help?
Moreover, will it deter people from willingly coming forward?
Will the sharing of more information result in people becoming less willing to initially share their information?
Information on peoples credit ratings, debt levels, housing histories and the social services they had been provided with to be shared to save the homeless?
Renters may have to endure tenancy sustainment courses.
New policy may force private landlords to provide longer tenure.
Awesome to see the Act party recognise the Treaty of Waitangi & also validating the Settlement process by agreeing with Te Ohu Kaimoana’s beef with the Crown, psycho Nick Smith and the confiscation of property rights over the arbitrary claim of the Kermadec rights to fish by the Crown. Poor ole John Ansell… iwi 1, Rednecks 0?
I’m a little confused on this , I read that Maori have never caught fish there under quota and would shelve the quota if it goes ahead, so why don’t they just in this case agree to a full sanctuary .
@bwaghorn. Its a property rights issue after a “Full & Final Treaty Settlement” …. you wouldn’t like me to pop over your backyard fence and pitch up a tent on it because you weren’t using it would you? You pakeha’s just don’t understand your own legal system. The law is the same for all isn’t it? Shit, I’m starting to sound like John Ansell! Haha!
The Kupapa Party (MP-Tainui Inc) walking away from the Government is as likely to happen as it is Donald Trump winning POTUS! 🙂 I’d luv that nutcase to beat Clinton … Could turnout to be another “Grassy Knoll” President-takeout?
I think the NATs have figured out that the Maori Party will get no satisfaction from Labour on this issue either, but clearly the NATs have gone about this in a rather ham fisted way.
One wonders if the Minister bothered to read the briefing papers properly.
Pre this whole sanctuary shamozzle ( and i think it’s dumb the nats didn’t consult) what were iwi’s rights around the kermadecs under the treaty , were they even included in the treaty.?
The bill is the problem. Not the wording or the many hooks in it or even the sanctuary. The problem is its existence! Even though Smith is a nutjob, he is pretty clever at creating problems deliberately. If the Nats weren’t happy with the amount of shit he’s caused in the public domain mainly around Maori issues, they would of dumped him ages ago. This is all jockeying & shenanigans and manipulation been played out to maneuver parties into awkward positions, like the Greens right now. Who’d of thought a BlueGreen alliance at this stage of the game and the massive implications that it will have on their party and especially party membership? As well as their relationship with Maori? Its a bit of high risk poker that I would of thought the Greens would be against, gambling? NZF not the only Kingmaker next year? The sanctuary isn’t the objective here for the nats I think? They’re playing poker and are doing pretty well with how they’re playing their hand….10 months in the making, I’m guessing there’s a couple of solutions that the parties have already discussed privately. Whatever they are we’ll be the last ones to find out…
I have wondered my self about it just being a pr stunt , as how the hell would we police a sanctuary from 800 kms away. far better to have sanctuaries close in .
I think labour agree with the bogus kermadec idea so no not good for them. This issue is one of those ones which unite Māori imo, against a bigger enemy.
Can do. Also, for those not sitting around the table which could be a bigger group as Nga Puhi haven’t settled their claim and not likely to start for a year or two? They could be looking for political representation once they do get into the negotiation phase. Hone or Kelvin?
Umm actually it wasn’t anything to do with Act recognising the Treaty… more to do with a few fishing companies 5 to be precise:
““This Bill amounts to an uncompensated regulatory taking, likely to cause real harm to the livelihoods of those in the fishing industry,” says ACT Leader David Seymour.”
Analysis of Secret Service and campaign staffer performance at Clinton’s 9/11 health incident.
My question: if your VIP protectee was diagnosed with pneumonia 2 days ago, and then appears to nearly and unexpectedly collapse, why would you take your protectee to her daughter’s apartment instead of to the ER of a top level hospital?
Yeah why?WHY??? What the hell are they trying to achieve? What are they trying to hide? Something is going on here, something is rotten, something smells. I can FEEL the bad vibe here, anyone could if we’re attuned.
If your VIP protectee had just been diagnosed with pneumonia 2 days before then unexpectedly almost collapses for no known reason, it rates as a potential medical emergency.
Unless the support team already knows at the time what the cause of the VIP’s near-collapse is.
Yes, known to them, and everyone else. Because, like, it’s pneumonia.
Meanwhile, all we have on Trump is that he’s only had positive test results. If it were clinton with that statement, you’d be saying that one of those tests was HIV…
If what you say is true cv why haven’t those secret service people been arrested and charged. Their most public client let down!!!! Oh that’s right it’s not true just a boys own fantasy.
Her campaign team has been deliberately concealing her condition.
At the VERY least, her pneumonia diagnosis on Fri, claim from her campaign team at the time of the incident that it was just simple “overheating” (when they clearly knew different), photo-op 2 hrs after outside Chelsea’s apartment with declarations of ‘going great again’ (when they clearly knew different), then a few hours after that, final acknowledgement of the supposed actual diagnosis from the Friday.
If Labour announced a $40 increase in benefit payments across the board (helping to address poverty and all the problems that come along with that, improve inequality and stimulate the economy) would that help give them traction in the polls?
It would help business returns (especially in the struggling regions) as beneficiaries tend to spend most of their income.
It would help encourage those in the lower social economic group that don’t tend to vote partake.
It could be paid for by taxing the very top end of income earners (improving wealth redistribution) coupled by the increase in the GST take and higher business returns.
Depends, those on a benefit would vote for it but those paying the extra tax might think differently
But then the ones on a benefit are less likely to vote National anyway so I suppose it might convince those on a benefit to get out and vote for a left wing party
i supported Labour in the last election when they advocated a Capital Gains Tax, and increase in the min wage to 16.50 (or 16 per hour not so sure anymore) and many many other things. So there is always that.
I largely support a UBI but this will fill the gap in the meantime.
Moreover, this will allow Labour to give voters something of substance that they can resonate with, which will help Labour lift their profile and get over the line.
Talk of a tax working group didn’t create much hype, whereas this would.
“If Labour announced a $40 increase in benefit payments across the board (helping to address poverty and all the problems that come along with that, improve inequality and stimulate the economy) would that help give them traction in the polls?”
Problem is Labour has already signaled a number of policies it will introduce if in Government come 2017, which all cost big $$. They will need to find another few billion $ for this idea as well Chairman.
Yep increasing the tax rate for “rich pricks” is an option, and one that Labour is already factoring in. Having said a “tax working group” will be formed to advise on tax matters etc (once they are in Government).
National has been the only party to increase benefit payments over and above the rate of inflation for decades.
Would it be a vote winner for Labour? No, not to any great extent. Labour need to appeal to middle NZ to form the next Government…even if that grates with many on this blog.
“Problem is Labour has already signaled a number of policies it will introduce if in Government come 2017…”
And one would assume they have a way to pay for them.
“Labour need to appeal to middle NZ”
Are you implying business owners aren’t? Moreover, Labour has been trying to win over the middle for years now and it hasn’t been working out for them.
This covers both ends (middle and lower) therefore has far more potential gain.
National increasing benefits didn’t hurt their support.
“A “tax working group” will be formed to advise on tax matters etc (once they are in Government)”
They got to get into government first, this (my suggestion) would help with that.
If they could build 10,000 houses a year a lot of older house would become cheaper and people that can afford the $600k ones will probably free up rentals and apartments.
Auckland is the largest City in NZ, it is the most populated City in NZ and to expect house prices like in Dunedin is simply simple minded.
IF and when NZ’lers start buying houses not as a thing to flip and make money on, but to buy and to live in and keep in the family like it is done in many old european cities including London, Paris, Rome, Florence and even in US Cities like NY you will see that 600.000$ is very affordable as you can raise several to un-count generations in that very same house.
But the thing is really with you CV is that you are so full of hate towards anything Labour that you rather see some revolution come along that burns everything and makes everyone homeless then support the ones that are full of flaws but are at least trying. And starting to build houses/apartments/units is the very first step to bring prices down.
So yes, 600.000$ for land (cause no one is buying a house, stop deluding yourself here) in the middle of million people City is affordable. Maybe not for one generation, but for two or three. And that is precisely how it is done in many place all over this planet. I mean heck, try to buy a house in Berlin, Rome, Paris, NY, London and tell me how ‘affordable’ that is.
Good morning CV, welcome to the 21 century, let me assure again, the 80’s are long gone, and the only one crying after the good old days are those that remember them.
Why do you keep trying to speak to me like you are my grandma?
By the way, what is “simple minded” are the fools like you who believe that you should keep stuffing Auckland full of people, while small towns and cities throughout the provinces slowly shut down shop.
Fuck your condescending infantalising of long time Kiwis who suffered through that time, who lost their homes, who lost their factories, who lost their careers, who lost their families.
Labour sowed neoliberalism upon our shores, and Labour has deservedly reaped the electoral whirlwind of their actions.
Thank you CV. When the Lange govt was elected almost no-one had the slightest clue what Douglas and his crew of wreckers was about to inflict on us. In the aftermath of Muldoon’s sour and bullying leadership all we wanted was a change. Of course Lange’s charisma, sharp wit and geniality turned out to be a smoke screen.
For quite a few years a large chunk on NZ was completely taken in by Douglas. Including the much younger and naive version of myself. (And in another thirty years time I predict some other dude will ruefully be saying the same thing about John Key). This was all before the internet and most of our political information was filtered through the NZ Herald.
A lot of credit must go to people like Jim Anderton and those within the NZLP who had a much better understanding of what was going on and fought against it as best they could. That’s a whole other story that doesn’t get much airtime these days.
as you can raise several to un-count generations in that very same house.
Yes my family still owns a house in Epsom and on paper it makes us quite well off, but we’re of the same basic notion that we never intend to sell it … so all that paper wealth is fairly meaningless.
Your basic premise is a good one, but most NZ housing is designed around the needs of a single nuclear family and just aren’t suited to multiple generations living in the same home.
That policy area is a complete fabrication, its impossible to achieve a significant influence on Auckland house prices (without causing an unwanted market crash). No govt can keep up with the level of supply and shifts in supply needed to control that.
If we are lucky then Labour goes about achieving a big increase in subsidized social housing in order that people who will not be in a position to own a house can have some assurance that they can have somewhere to live.
But they are not marketing that policy (unless you actually pay attention to what they are planning to do) they are saying that house prices are too high (as a way of signaling to their voter base) and implying they are going to do something about it! But people who vote hoping to see that will be as disappointed as serious Libertarians are by Key’s government.
On the other point, Labour may still have some ideas for working class people but in general have no interest in their political concerns or fixing that relationship.
Pretty much, but plenty of people around here still give Labour’s efforts solid passing grades for some reason.
None of our political leaders seem to have any concept of physical reality, or even on the optimum role of government in ensuring the interests of the people.
Government and Auckland Council have today signed Heads of Agreement on NZ’s most expensive infrastructure project to date: Cit Rail Link. Between $2.5 and $3.4b.
It’s a Crown company not a CCO. Therefore OIA and not LGOIMA applies. Makes reporting less constrained but less public.
Either way, big deal. Very different model to Chch rebuild.
And more to come tomorrow in broader Ak funding package.
Beipaotai China, looks to be in the path of Maranti ?
Looking on Google Earth it looks like a nuclear power plant, like meters from the ocean.
This was a 2009/ 2011 article but it shows several plants being built in the area? http://www.jsm.or.jp/ejam/Vol.1.No.3/GA/6/article.html
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David Farrar writes: Graeme Edgeler wrote in 2017: In the first five years after three strikes came into effect 5248 offenders received a ‘first strike’ (that is, a “stage-1 conviction” under the three strikes sentencing regime), and 68 offenders received a ‘second strike’. In the five years prior to ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has surprised everyone with his ruthlessness in sacking two of his ministers from their crucial portfolios. Removing ministers for poor performance after only five months in the job just doesn’t normally happen in politics. That’s refreshing and will be extremely ...
TL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the two days to 6:06am on Thursday, April 25:Politics: PM Christopher Luxon has set up a dual standard for ministerial competence by demoting two National Cabinet ministers while leaving also-struggling ...
Hi,Today I mainly want to share some of your thoughts about the recent piece I wrote about success and failure, and the forces that seemingly guide our lives. But first, a quick bit of housekeeping: I am doing a Webworm popup in Los Angeles on Saturday May 11 at 2pm. ...
It is hard to see what Melissa Lee might have done to “save” the media. National went into the election with no public media policy and appears not to have developed one subsequently. Lee claimed that she had prepared a policy paper before the election but it had been decided ...
Open access notablesIce acceleration and rotation in the Greenland Ice Sheet interior in recent decades, Løkkegaard et al., Communications Earth & Environment:In the past two decades, mass loss from the Greenland ice sheet has accelerated, partly due to the speedup of glaciers. However, uncertainty in speed derived from satellite products ...
Buzz from the Beehive A statement from Children’s Minister Karen Chhour – yet to be posted on the Government’s official website – arrived in Point of Order’s email in-tray last night. It welcomes the High Court ruling on whether the Waitangi Tribunal can demand she appear before it. It does ...
Mr Bombastic:Ironically, the media the academic experts wanted is, in many ways, the media they got. In place of the tyrannical editors of yesteryear, advancing without fear or favour the interests of the ruling class; the New Zealand news media of today boasts a troop of enlightened journalists dedicated to ...
It's hard times try to make a livingYou wake up every morning in the unforgivingOut there somewhere in the cityThere's people living lives without mercy or pityI feel good, yeah I'm feeling fineI feel better then I have for the longest timeI think these pills have been good for meI ...
In 1974, the US Supreme Court issued its decision in United States v. Nixon, finding that the President was not a King, but was subject to the law and was required to turn over the evidence of his wrongdoing to the courts. It was a landmark decision for the rule ...
Every day now just seems to bring in more fresh meat for the grinder.In their relentlessly ideological drive to cut back on the “excessive bloat” (as they see it) of the previous Labour-led government, on the mountains of evidence accumulated in such a short period of time do not ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Megan Valére SosouMarket gardening site of the Itchèléré de Itagui agricultural cooperative in Dassa-Zoumè (Image credit: Megan Valère Sossou) For the residents of Dassa-Zoumè, a city in the West African country of Benin, choosing between drinking water and having enough ...
Buzz from the Beehive Melissa Lee – as may be discerned from the screenshot above – has not been demoted for doing something seriously wrong as Minister of ...
Morning in London Mother hugs beloved daughter outside the converted shoe factory in which she is living.Afternoon in London Travelling writer takes himself and his wrist down to A&E, just to be sure. Read more ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – The recent announcement of the University Advisory Group, chaired by Sir Peter Gluckman, makes very clear where the Government’s focus and priorities lie. The remit of the Advisory Group is that Group members will consider challenges and opportunities for improvement in the university sector including: ...
Eric Crampton writes – The Reserve Bank of New Zealand desperately wants to find reasons to have workstreams in climate change. It makes little sense. They’ve run another stress test on the banks looking to see if they could find a prudential regulation case. They couldn’t. They ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Pundits from the left and the right are arguing that National’s Fast Track Bill that is designed to speed up infrastructure decisions could end up becoming mired in a cesspool of corruption. Political commentator ...
Looking at the headlines this morning it’s hard to feel anything other than pessimistic about the future of humanity.Note that I’m not speaking about the future of mankind, but the survival of our humanity. The values that we believe in seem to be ebbing away, by the day.Perhaps every generation ...
Swabbing mixed breed baby chicks to test for avian influenzaUh oh. Bird flu – often deadly to humans – is not only being transmitted from infected birds to dairy cows, but is now travelling between dairy cows. As of last Friday, Bloomberg News reports, there were 32 American dairy herds ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
What is it with the mining industry? Its not enough for them to pillage the earth - they apparently can't even be bothered getting resource consent to do so: The proponent behind a major mine near the Clutha River had already been undertaking activity in the area without a ...
Photo # 1 I am a huge fan of Singapore’s approach to housing, as described here two years ago by copying and pasting from The ConversationWhat Singapore has that Australia does not is a public housing developer, the Housing Development Board, which puts new dwellings on public and reclaimed land, ...
Buzz from the Beehive Reactions to news of the government’s readiness to make urgent changes to “the resource management system” through a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) suggest a balanced approach is being taken. The Taxpayers’ Union says the proposed changes don’t go far enough. Greenpeace says ...
I’m starting to wonder if Anna Burns-Francis might be the best political interviewer we’ve got. That might sound unlikely to you, it came as a bit of a surprise to me.Jack Tame can be excellent, but has some pretty average days. I like Rebecca Wright on Newshub, she asks good ...
Chris Trotter writes – Willie Jackson is said to be planning a “media summit” to discuss “the state of the media and how to protect Fourth Estate Journalism”. Not only does the Editor of The Daily Blog, Martyn Bradbury, think this is a good idea, but he has also ...
Graeme Edgeler writes – This morning [April 21], the Wellington High Court is hearing a judicial review brought by Hon. Karen Chhour, the Minister for Children, against a decision of the Waitangi Tribunal. This is unusual, judicial reviews are much more likely to brought against ministers, rather than ...
Both of Parliament’s watchdogs have now ripped into the Government’s Fast-track Approvals Bill. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMy pick of the six newsey things to know from Aotearoa’s political economy and beyond on the morning of Tuesday, April 23 are:The Lead: The Auditor General,John Ryan, has joined the ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Sarah SpengemanPeople wait to board an electric bus in Pune, India. (Image credit: courtesy of ITDP) Public transportation riders in Pune, India, love the city’s new electric buses so much they will actually skip an older diesel bus that ...
The infrastructure industry yesterday issued a “hurry up” message to the Government, telling it to get cracking on developing a pipeline of infrastructure projects.The hiatus around the change of Government has seen some major projects cancelled and others delayed, and there is uncertainty about what will happen with the new ...
Hi,Over the weekend I revisited a podcast I really adore, Dead Eyes. It’s about a guy who got fired from Band of Brothers over two decades ago because Tom Hanks said he had “dead eyes”.If you don’t recall — 2001’s Band of Brothers was part of the emerging trend of ...
Buzz from the Beehive The 180 or so recipients of letters from the Government telling them how to submit infrastructure projects for “fast track” consideration includes some whose project applications previously have been rejected by the courts. News media were quick to feature these in their reports after RMA Reform Minister Chris ...
It would not be a desirable way to start your holiday by breaking your back, your head, or your wrist, but on our first hour in Singapore I gave it a try.We were chatting, last week, before we started a meeting of Hazel’s Enviro Trust, about the things that can ...
Calling all journalists, academics, planners, lawyers, political activists, environmentalists, and other members of the public who believe that the relationships between vested interests and politicians need to be scrutinised. We need to work together to make sure that the new Fast-Track Approvals Bill – currently being pushed through by the ...
Feel worried. Shane Jones and a couple of his Cabinet colleagues are about to be granted the power to override any and all objections to projects like dams, mines, roads etc even if: said projects will harm biodiversity, increase global warming and cause other environmental harms, and even if ...
Bryce Edwards writes- 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. ...
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. ...
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Qh0DElgQq0
Rachel Stewart: New Zealand moving closer to Winston Peters.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/84210902/rachel-stewart-new-zealand-moving-closer-to-winston-peters
After watching the interaction with Winny and Blingish in the house yesterday, I’m feeling even more confident that he won’t go with the nasty nats
But we don’t Winston Trump with us either.
Lets be ambitious for the Left and strive for a Labour/Green government with no NZFirst bigots anywhere near the cabinet room
I see that Key will be winning the next election, as decreed by the Herald.
The Herald.
What a rag.
Lolz I read that propaganda too.
I am certain the media has played a major role in sustaining 9 years of extreme neoliberal rule over this country.
Just imagine how a neutral press would deal with Key and his gang. We got a brief glimpse he would not have coped from the BBC Hard Talk interview a few years ago.
Then imagine if Key had to face the outright hostility and partisanship of a left wing media. He would not have lasted 6 months.
Who owns the media is a BIG part of the problem
FIFY
QFT
Another example of capitalism failing.
Don’t read the Herald. It’s that simple. Reading that crap only encourages them and increases their “readership” .
Some useful information on signs, symptoms, treatment and caring of late stage Parkinsons disease.
It usually takes many years for a case to progress to this stage, and it will be obvious to close friends, family and colleagues.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3038575/
Considering his family history, Trump’s memory loss, lies and confabulation raise the possibility that we’re witnessing early-onset dementia and paint a pretty grim picture regarding his mental competence.
That’s the real health concern in this election.
http://www.alz.org/alzheimers_disease_stages_of_alzheimers.asp
(see, two can play)
I didn’t mention anything about the US Presidential elections or candidates.
Trump is releasing the results of his full medical in a couple of days, and I agree that his data should be fully examined and questioned.
Meanwhile, you need to consider the mounting evidence in front of your nose.
Yes,
hisbluster, confabulation and age regression is plain to anyone who’s witnessed early onset dementia.What is “age regression”?
Behaving like a schoolboy, you know, name calling- Elizabeth Warren and the Pocahontas taunt, imitation and derision of Serge kovaleski, and inappropriate behaviour at the RNC through to the eventual nappy.
That’s just Trump acting like a shit and a media whore. It’s not evidence of dementia. If school boy behaviour and sense of humour is a sign of dementia there’s a whole bunch of middle aged men out there who need to be put away.
Trump seems pretty on the ball to me…he does shoot from the mouth without engaging brain at times ( like an entertainer)….but his minders have that somewhat under control now…he is a typical shrewd deal maker with his eye on winning the big picture imo …so he will say anything at times to build grassroots support…but ultimately he is a pragmatist realist…and wants Peace for the USA…certainly not more senseless wars in the Middle East or with Russia
…. way better than the systemmic mendacity and war mongering of Hillary and her corporate minders and overseas funders
‘The Hillary Doctrine’
https://www.rt.com/shows/crosstalk/358498-clinton-foreign-policy-exeptionalism/
‘The Trump Doctrine’
https://www.rt.com/shows/crosstalk/358759-trump-most-unorthodox-nominee/
Those poor poor yanker bastards really have nobody to vote for.
You actually expect us believe you weren’t making a pointed comment about Clinton?
Consider it an exercise in free association.
Bullshit – it was attempt to again twist the conversation to your agenda
while being too cowardly to own the bulshit point he was making.
My “free association” path went thusly:
monomaniacal obsessive who’s been inventing and spreading rumours about the health of a candidate he doesn’t like posts random article on a degenerative disease. Sudden cure for his obsession? Unlikely. More likely another smear, this time more cowardly after being ripped into for overtly inventing shit.
And what “agenda” is that, TheExtremist? Remember, Bill Clinton’s DNC Chair has come forward publicly and said that the party needs to consider readying a contingency plan covering Hillary withdrawing due to health reasons.
Amanda Marcotte nails it, again: “Clinton’s health is Obama’s birth certificate all over again: A barely disguised way for conservatives to wallow in bigotry”
http://www.salon.com/2016/09/13/clintons-health-is-obamas-birth-certificate-all-over-again-a-barely-disguised-way-for-conservatives-to-wallow-in-bigotry/
That the articles premise appeals to your own fears does not mean ‘it was nailed’
The comparison is a false equivalence
The only way Clintons health is not a serious problem based on the ‘evidence’ available is if the entire situation is a hoax…
Sick or a hoax are the only options Andre!
Pneumonia is almost always easily cured by antibiotics and rest.
What ails Trump and his supporters, no easy remedy.
well – a functioning education system and effective counselling when warning signs are first exhibited, maybe.
Yeah, those work, mostly. But it ain’t easy and it ain’t quick.
Andre, your responses and perspective are barley at an elementary level using your comments for reference
The current POTUS is a war mongering Nobel Peace Prize Laureatte, then the party you appear to favour were exposed for committing a form of electoral fraud to ensure that a physically and mentally ill candidate would ‘prevail’ at ANY cost
My opinion is that perspectives such as yours are a primary reason why The USA is the disaster nation it now is. The ‘average american’ has allowed it to eventuate and are 99% responsible for the national and international wrong doings. The same is true in NZ and elsewhere, the ‘average kiwi’ is perpetuating the problems
Attachmemt to the system, any system is the problem so why are you seemingly comfortable as an American citizen to enable the farce to continue by taking a side?
Doing so lowers your own level
Ok One Two, here’s a challenge for you. Explain to us why it will be better if Trump gets elected than if Clinton wins. With evidence.
Here’s your incentive. If you persuade me, I’ll have a go at persuading my friends and rellies. There’s around 20 votes I might be able to influence, most of them in swing states.
Go on, show us the power of those higher frequencies you hear that you keep telling us about.
Andre you are entirely missing the point…
What you the friends and rellies need to be doing is identifying the total disaster that is USA politics, and every system of governance/administration executive branch etc which directly and indirectly hangs from the rotten corpse that’rules the world’
It doesn’t matter who you vote for, the deck is stacked on all sides it makes no difference which broken soul becomes POTUS. Look at the core outcomes it’s all the same and then ask yourself WHY the direction isn’t changing
Detaching from the ‘drama’ is the best course of action because feeding it with energy is to endorse what the status quo represents
“Detaching from the drama” certainly seems attractive while sucking on a bong. But even if I (and my friends and rellies) successfully detach, in late January next year either Clinton or Trump will be inaugurated as POTUS.
Should we choose to, in the real world, we could have a very small influence on which one of those it will be. And despite what your higher frequencies are telling you, the entire world will have a very different future depending on which one of those two becomes POTUS. Just like the world would now almost certainly be a very different place had Gore become POTUS instead of Bush the lesser.
There is literally nothing I or my rellies and friends can realistically do to bring about anything more than incremental reform of the rotten system the real world has delivered us.
If you disagree and think there are actual actions we could realistically do that will bring about actual change, please do tell. Because detaching to listen to the higher frequencies just lets the rotten bastards further consolidate their hold.
Andre I understand your semtiments as well as the desire for influence into the process
There are a number of assumptions in your comment which are not at all “reality’ based
Reality needs to be created, it should not be created for you, because then you are allowing others to create ‘your reality’. Others who already destroy kill and maim as standard practice
Continuing to support the decayed corpse will only serve to prolong its existence to the detriment of all living and life giving systems
The status quo will remain if given oxygen. It can’t and won’t be ‘changed’ by feeding it nor is there time to waste on wishful ‘incrimentalist’ fantasy
I appreciate it’s not an easy concept to wrap ones consciousness around, but failing to do so ensures a rapid decline in human existence along with the natural world
Genuine change will happen outside the systems you belive can be changed from within…staying involved with systems you can’t ever beat ensures that violent outcomes will only increase for ‘all’
Make change make plans make a garden and control the outcomes by creating your own reality
That is the essence of ‘life’
Good article if you are Māori or have friends that are
https://trintb.wordpress.com/2016/09/12/10-things-i-wish-my-friends-knew-about-being-maori/
That was an excellent article thanks marty mars. All 10 points are situations we’ve all witnessed, or many of us will have observed.
One thing that jumped out was the “percentage question”. Pakeha just don’t get asked this, as white, we’re seen as just white. Some of us with Celtic roots will talk among one another about our own genealogy , often it turns out our ancestors came from the same areas, and if your family is from the Highlands of Scotland you can almost count on being related. It’s never discussed in a percentage term. Like a piece of maths.
But Maori are.
I grew up with this “percentage” faux fixation because the Pakeha side of the family was always intrigued to see how they could break down the Maori side of family into ethnic units. (It was the 70’s!) What blew that outdated old way of looking at things was a visit to a Robyn Kahukiwa exhibition.
The Maori friend I was with took me over to a female mannequin who had been painted over with lines forming squares and other shapes with numbers and a percentage sign in those marked out areas. My friend said “see, the numbers don’t matter, the woman is still a whole woman”. Visually, the mannequin looked like it was a side of beef about to be carved up. The artist was making a point about how crass and false this speak of percentages is. Good learnings from younger years.
The question on what % Maori you are is institutionalised.
RNZ and Kathryn Ryan have done some good interviews lately
‘What does it mean to be ‘White Māori’?’
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon/audio/201814861/what-does-it-mean-to-be-'white-maori‘
“Victoria University students, Kahu Kutia and Kayla Polamalu talk to Kathryn Ryan about growing up with two different identities in New Zealand, and about the term ‘White Māori’.
They have Māori and Pākehā parentage. Recently Kahu wrote an article for the Victoria University’s magazine, Salient, titled If You’re From Waimana, Why Are You White?…
‘Actor’s love affair with the language’ -Jennifer Ward-Lealand started learning Te Reo Māori by attending weekly night classes
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/teahikaa/audio/201815199/actor's-love-affair-with-the-language
Latest Polls Show Nominating Hillary Was A Huge Mistake
“When the people are presented with a Republican, or someone who sounds like a Republican, they choose the Republican every time.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msiBZwqLhzA
Yes didnt those in control of the Democratic Party ( Hillary’s friends) attack Bernie Sanders on account of his age and health?
Former “alt right” crazies conspiracy theories on Hillary’s health now mainstream.
Bill Clinton’s DNC Chair from the 1990s says on the record that the party must consider contingency plans on the small chance that Hillary might have to pull out of the presidential race for health reasons.
Story reported by US political MSM website Politico.
http://www.politico.com/story/2016/09/hillary-clinton-health-replace-contingency-228037
it is almost awe inspiring to recognise how the Deep State working in coordination with the mass media can keep massive secrets from people for years.
And how willing and easily dozens of people are willing to act together to deceive the public in the pursuit of seeking and maintaining power.
Yes CV .Like Kennedy and 9/11.
+100…and it is amazing how many put their heads in the sand when the official story lines are leaking with inconsistencies, false reports… and lies , lies, lies
…the stooges are always countering and supporting the official story, even when academics and engineers and insiders and impartial observers disagree with the official story ( the stooges denigrate them as Conspiracy theorists or truthers)
Deep State has tentacles everywhere
Everywhere except the moon, because they faked the landing…
Corporate corruption in politics ( Brexit was a good thing then?)
‘Time to rethink EU as Manuel Barroso heads to Goldman Sachs’
https://www.rt.com/op-edge/359204-barroso-junker-eu-goldman-sachs/
“Manuel Barroso will be seen as a lobbyist and is going to have a big problem wielding influence on behalf of the Goldman Sachs, economist and author Keith Boyfield told RT.
The former EU president is to face an ethics inquiry over taking a lucrative role as adviser at US investment bank Goldman Sachs…
Please educate me.
Most polls seem to have about a 3% wriggle room clause in them when they get reported to the public. The other day a poll came out, again with a 3% margin of error.
So does that mean the party on 46% could be between 43% and 49% and the party on 2% could be -1% and 5%, or does it mean a 46% party could be between 44.6% and 47.4%
Thanks
Yeah its an absolute +/-3%
So 2% = a range of 0% to 5%
Thanks for that.
They could reduce that margin of error to say +/-2% but they would have to survey a lot more people to achieve that, and you know: money, time.
No, it’s not an “absolute”.
The error bounds indicate how close the observation of the random sample is likely to be to the actual support of the population, based on the arbitrary “confidence” level the pollsters chose. You can’t have “-1” popularity, so the error margin narrows the farther away from the 50% central value you get.
Roughly speaking, if you have a survey has a confidence leval of 95% and the error margin is +-3%, you would expect the actual support in the country to be 47 to 53% 95% of the time, but there’s a 1 in 20 chance that the actual value is outside that 47:53 range. The farther outside that range, the lower the probability though.
However, if a party was much farther away from the center in the survey, say on 5% or 95% support (in a normal distribution it’s symmetrical), the 95% confidence margin for error would be only say 1.4%, so the party’s actual support might be 3.6% to 6.4%, 19 out of 20 times.
check out the bottom of this report from Roy Morgan.
proviso: the assumption above is based on random samples from throughout the voting population. In reality, there could well be systemic errors that push the observed results farther away from the actual, e.g. phoning lots of people who just want to talk, while the people who are busy tell the pollsters to go away. The might not get representative samples of young people, or minorities, so they give the respondents they do get from those groups greater weight to estimate what would happen if the socioeconomic distribution of their sample actually matched the population. And so on. It’s slightly better than crystal ball gazing, but often not much.
All of the above is why one survey or datapoint is meaningless – you can’t form an opinion without long term trends over all polls, and by then it’s meaningless because the polls are too far apart and inconsistent. And you sure can’t attribute a single poll result to what happened during the poll period, journalists and pollsters love doing it but it’s fucking stupid. You might be able to look at the trends before and after, and if you’re really lucky you can see a sudden jump/drop in the trend at the same time that the event happened in a vacuum, but those are few and far between and generally only good for academics looking back from a distance.
ps: CV doesn’t know shit.
I clarified their understanding of the margin of error in 1/20 of the words you used.
I stand by my use of “absolute” +/-3% as opposed to 3% (1/34) of whatever the poll result was.
I admit though yours is the most technically correct answer.
Don’t be so childish. Sticks and stones.
No, you gave a completely incorrect response:
No. The margin for error exponentially reduces as it approaches the fringes.
A 2% observation might only have an MoE in the ballpark of 0.5% or less, depending on sample size. A 0.5% observation might have an MoE of 0.03%.
The question was specific, as was your answer. Your answer was specifically incorrect. It clarified nothing, and suggested that Mana might be regarded as having as much as 3.5% popularity when it polls a barely-detectable 0.5%.
You were utterly misleading and outright wrong. Saying that you don’t know shit was going light on you, given that this is a secondary-school level error.
3 Ways the Trans Pacific Partnership Will Help Corporations—While Ruining the Climate
As I say, much easier and better to set standards that other countries must meet before we trade with them rather than FTAs that force us to trade with those not up to our standards.
EDIT:
This.
I got an email from Greenpeace this morning. It said,
“Early this morning we travelled to the proposed site of the Ruataniwha irrigation dam in Hawke’s Bay. With a small crane we uplifted the construction site office, put it on the back of a truck and drove it 100kms to Napier. There we left it at the door of the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council (HBRC).”
A thoughtful, erudite piece
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/84198470/should-labour-replace-little-it-wont-solve-anything
A hard-headed assessment of Labour’s performance cannot but conclude that the party lacks talent along with basic political competence. Contrast its current frontbench with those that preceded Labour victories in 1984 or 1999.
(Very) Little’s way of dealing with the deadwood of his party has been abject surrender to their demands for status, blocking the promotion of much-needed latent to the front bench. Robertson is the most egregious example, a lazy imbecile with Chronic Backstabbing Disorder, he’s on the front bench because no one in their right mind would let him sit behind them. Now he’s in the spotlight, we can all see just how inadequate he is… when he actually bothers to do anything (which is usually appropriating someone else’s work).
Maybe that’s Little’s cunning plan, but I doubt it. I wouldn’t credit him with that much imagination.
Appeasing the likes of Robertson and Hipkins shows that Labour is still paralysed by its internal politics and prioritises those over its duty as an opposition or government in waiting.
This is also the same place Cunliffe fell over badly.
But according to the UMR poll LAB+GR is clear ahead of NAT right now so they are doing it right?
Never underestimate Labour’s ability to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
I think Kevin Hague did similar maths in his head.
He has ability and is in demand, so he has somewhere to go as well.
That I suppose is the problem Labour has. It’s current frontbenchers are unemployable elsewhere, so they cling to their positions, blocking any rising talent, who become disaffected. Even younger people don’t even see the point in trying for selection if they see that their careers will go nowhere.
The best Little can do in the short term is shine some light on the less senior MPs – give them a chance to speak on issues if not complete portfolios, or pair them with seniors on specific campaigns such as the housing crisis so they get some attention and experience.
I know people will call Quinn a traitor but this line:
“Contrast its current frontbench with those that preceded Labour victories in 1984 or 1999.”
Really should give cause for concern shouldn’t it?
I would hope that a Labour-led coalition government could import talent from its partners, but I fear that the deadwood MPs will all demand the plum jobs and LIttle will give in to them, relegating capable members from other parties to roles as Assistant Minister of Tea and Scones and suchlike.
Fortunately opposition(s) talent pool is razor thin so this should not be an issue, finding enough people to fill cabinet will be the biggest concern, it’s not going to happen so again not really anything to worry about Rhino
if we are going to fret upon a lack of front bench talent i submit the following….Hon. Gerry Brownlee, Steven Joyce, Paula Bennet,Jonathan Coleman,Simon Bridges,Hekia Parata, Anne Tolley, Nick Smith, Murray McCully, Judith Collins and Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga.
Key said “if you act in a violent and controlling way, you can change this behaviour. Own the problem. Nothing will get better until you do. Ask for help. There is no shame in that.”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=11708758
Very good. However, with the sharing of more information coupled with allowing others to apply for protection orders (and with offenders soon being marked as family violence offenders for life) what are the consequences of someone asking for help?
Moreover, will it deter people from willingly coming forward?
Will the sharing of more information result in people becoming less willing to initially share their information?
Elizabeth Banks is amazing, here is piece from her new project Whohaha.
http://whohaha.com/
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x4pez8p_cannabis-moms-club-episode-2-the-nail-party_fun
Peters said MPs should not be “considering their own comforts” at a time when 40,000 people were homeless, and young people struggled to find a home.
He went on to say “claims that Opposition parties backed the plan were “simply not true”.
NZ First made it “very clear’ when approached that it would not sign up to the project.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/84235148/mps-putting-creature-comforts-ahead-of-struggling-families–peters
Where do Labour and the Greens stand on this one?
Information on peoples credit ratings, debt levels, housing histories and the social services they had been provided with to be shared to save the homeless?
Renters may have to endure tenancy sustainment courses.
New policy may force private landlords to provide longer tenure.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/83764609/data-project-expected-to-throw-up-big-ideas-on-tackling-homelessness
Why didn’t you respond, Penny?
http://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/local-news/north-shore-times/84191070/auckland-mayoral-candidates-share-vision-for-north-shore
Phil Goff, independent 🙂
Vic Crony, Independent, sigh.
Bravo to The Queen, Q1 in Parliament today is fantastic, Annette King asking the outgoing PM about Louise Upton and the Chiefs.
Asking if outgoing PM is a good representative for women considering his pony tail pulling. Backed up by the Greens most awesome Jan Logie.
Want to see a bumbling bullying outgoing PM? Watch question one, kudos to the Ladies and Winston. Love your work. Bravo
Q1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhphvkOyj_I
“Hard hitting, in a generic sense” – JK
Awesome to see the Act party recognise the Treaty of Waitangi & also validating the Settlement process by agreeing with Te Ohu Kaimoana’s beef with the Crown, psycho Nick Smith and the confiscation of property rights over the arbitrary claim of the Kermadec rights to fish by the Crown. Poor ole John Ansell… iwi 1, Rednecks 0?
The kermadec issue will distance some Māori from the Greens if they don’t watch out. They being the greens.
I’m a little confused on this , I read that Maori have never caught fish there under quota and would shelve the quota if it goes ahead, so why don’t they just in this case agree to a full sanctuary .
The announcement was made before disussions were held and Māori were told what would happen is my understanding of part of the reason or the anger.
@bwaghorn. Its a property rights issue after a “Full & Final Treaty Settlement” …. you wouldn’t like me to pop over your backyard fence and pitch up a tent on it because you weren’t using it would you? You pakeha’s just don’t understand your own legal system. The law is the same for all isn’t it? Shit, I’m starting to sound like John Ansell! Haha!
This explains it quite well
https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/call-maori-party-seriously-reconsider-relationship-national
The Kupapa Party (MP-Tainui Inc) walking away from the Government is as likely to happen as it is Donald Trump winning POTUS! 🙂 I’d luv that nutcase to beat Clinton … Could turnout to be another “Grassy Knoll” President-takeout?
I think the NATs have figured out that the Maori Party will get no satisfaction from Labour on this issue either, but clearly the NATs have gone about this in a rather ham fisted way.
One wonders if the Minister bothered to read the briefing papers properly.
Pre this whole sanctuary shamozzle ( and i think it’s dumb the nats didn’t consult) what were iwi’s rights around the kermadecs under the treaty , were they even included in the treaty.?
Fill your boots. http://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1992/0121/latest/DLM281433.html and http://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2004/0078/latest/DLM311464.html?search=sw_096be8ed8110abd4_Maori+Fisheries+Act+2004_25_se&p=1&sr=0
http://www.legislation.govt.nz/bill/government/2016/0120/latest/d56e2.html?search=qs_act%40bill%40regulation%40deemedreg_kermadec+treaty_resel_25_h&p=1&sr=1
cheers ,i found this bit interesting , both labour and the greens say there should have been more consultation, will they ever learn , good luck
The bill is the problem. Not the wording or the many hooks in it or even the sanctuary. The problem is its existence! Even though Smith is a nutjob, he is pretty clever at creating problems deliberately. If the Nats weren’t happy with the amount of shit he’s caused in the public domain mainly around Maori issues, they would of dumped him ages ago. This is all jockeying & shenanigans and manipulation been played out to maneuver parties into awkward positions, like the Greens right now. Who’d of thought a BlueGreen alliance at this stage of the game and the massive implications that it will have on their party and especially party membership? As well as their relationship with Maori? Its a bit of high risk poker that I would of thought the Greens would be against, gambling? NZF not the only Kingmaker next year? The sanctuary isn’t the objective here for the nats I think? They’re playing poker and are doing pretty well with how they’re playing their hand….10 months in the making, I’m guessing there’s a couple of solutions that the parties have already discussed privately. Whatever they are we’ll be the last ones to find out…
The idea is greenwash especially when the inaction on climate change is resounding.
I have wondered my self about it just being a pr stunt , as how the hell would we police a sanctuary from 800 kms away. far better to have sanctuaries close in .
Gotta be good for Labour?
I think labour agree with the bogus kermadec idea so no not good for them. This issue is one of those ones which unite Māori imo, against a bigger enemy.
Can do. Also, for those not sitting around the table which could be a bigger group as Nga Puhi haven’t settled their claim and not likely to start for a year or two? They could be looking for political representation once they do get into the negotiation phase. Hone or Kelvin?
I’m Mana Movement and if that is Hone great.
Umm actually it wasn’t anything to do with Act recognising the Treaty… more to do with a few fishing companies 5 to be precise:
““This Bill amounts to an uncompensated regulatory taking, likely to cause real harm to the livelihoods of those in the fishing industry,” says ACT Leader David Seymour.”
Arrrh’m Bullshit! Context. Property Rights. You need a legally binding contract. The Treaty is that vehicle.Need I say anymore?
How do you become US ambassador to NZ like Mark Gilbert did?
Be the 27th biggest donor to the Democratic Party (US$1.4M) total.
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-09-13/how-much-it-costs-get-ambassadorship-guccifer-20-leaks-dnc-pay-play-donor-list
Is trump going to stop this or charge a higher fee as part of the monetization.
lol
You could pretend this is an example of the corruption of the democrats over the republicans.
or you could just use publicly available in formation regarding the last half dozen presidents.
Non-career appointments to ambassadorships:
Obama: 30.4%
GWB: 31.8%
WJC: 28.06%
GHWB: 31.30%
RR: 37.6%
JC: 26.24%
GF: 38.2%
So, yeah – Democrats bad, Republicans consistently worse.
forgot to add – if the guy speaking to (lol) RT reckoned Obama was the worst he’d seen, the guy’s eyes were closed 2001-2008.
Analysis of Secret Service and campaign staffer performance at Clinton’s 9/11 health incident.
My question: if your VIP protectee was diagnosed with pneumonia 2 days ago, and then appears to nearly and unexpectedly collapse, why would you take your protectee to her daughter’s apartment instead of to the ER of a top level hospital?
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-09-13/former-hillary-secret-service-agent-explains-why-her-fainting-video-really-scares-me
Yeah why?WHY??? What the hell are they trying to achieve? What are they trying to hide? Something is going on here, something is rotten, something smells. I can FEEL the bad vibe here, anyone could if we’re attuned.
If your VIP protectee had just been diagnosed with pneumonia 2 days before then unexpectedly almost collapses for no known reason, it rates as a potential medical emergency.
Unless the support team already knows at the time what the cause of the VIP’s near-collapse is.
Yes exactly!!! by the diagnosis 2 DAYS BEFORE!!! The no known reason has a reason.
An older person almost collapsing due to pneumonia is a medical emergency.
Instead of rushing to the nearest top level ER, the Secret Service elects to let their protectee go to her daughters apartment?
oh, piss off.
Known issue, known cause, known treatment, no emergency.
This, exactly.
http://www.shakesville.com/2016/09/breaking-hillary-clinton-is-human-being.html
Yes. I bet the issue and the cause is known to her protection team and her personal staffers.
Yes, known to them, and everyone else. Because, like, it’s pneumonia.
Meanwhile, all we have on Trump is that he’s only had positive test results. If it were clinton with that statement, you’d be saying that one of those tests was HIV…
If what you say is true cv why haven’t those secret service people been arrested and charged. Their most public client let down!!!! Oh that’s right it’s not true just a boys own fantasy.
Agree with CV, there is something odd going on here. Such a trustworthy candidate would always come clean on her medical condition.. right…
Her campaign team has been deliberately concealing her condition.
At the VERY least, her pneumonia diagnosis on Fri, claim from her campaign team at the time of the incident that it was just simple “overheating” (when they clearly knew different), photo-op 2 hrs after outside Chelsea’s apartment with declarations of ‘going great again’ (when they clearly knew different), then a few hours after that, final acknowledgement of the supposed actual diagnosis from the Friday.
If Labour announced a $40 increase in benefit payments across the board (helping to address poverty and all the problems that come along with that, improve inequality and stimulate the economy) would that help give them traction in the polls?
It would help business returns (especially in the struggling regions) as beneficiaries tend to spend most of their income.
It would help encourage those in the lower social economic group that don’t tend to vote partake.
It could be paid for by taxing the very top end of income earners (improving wealth redistribution) coupled by the increase in the GST take and higher business returns.
Would it be a vote winner or not?
Depends, those on a benefit would vote for it but those paying the extra tax might think differently
But then the ones on a benefit are less likely to vote National anyway so I suppose it might convince those on a benefit to get out and vote for a left wing party
Yes, no doubt beneficiaries and a number of business owners would support it.
And no doubt a number at the top end (who are unlikely to vote Labour anyway) would oppose it.
But beneficiaries coupled with a number of business owners would outnumber them.
It would certainly create a buzz and get more people taking note of Labour.
I suppose the next question is, what are you waiting for Labour?
why don’t you ask them?
They sniff around here, therefore I just did.
By the way, do you support it?
Perhaps if we can created a large enough consensus on here, they may take heed.
i supported Labour in the last election when they advocated a Capital Gains Tax, and increase in the min wage to 16.50 (or 16 per hour not so sure anymore) and many many other things. So there is always that.
That’s nice to know, but do you support my suggestion?
And if not why not?
UBI $40 pw for every >16 year old would be better IMO but we can start with existing benefits (incl Super I presume).
I largely support a UBI but this will fill the gap in the meantime.
Moreover, this will allow Labour to give voters something of substance that they can resonate with, which will help Labour lift their profile and get over the line.
Talk of a tax working group didn’t create much hype, whereas this would.
$16.25/hr
“If Labour announced a $40 increase in benefit payments across the board (helping to address poverty and all the problems that come along with that, improve inequality and stimulate the economy) would that help give them traction in the polls?”
Problem is Labour has already signaled a number of policies it will introduce if in Government come 2017, which all cost big $$. They will need to find another few billion $ for this idea as well Chairman.
Yep increasing the tax rate for “rich pricks” is an option, and one that Labour is already factoring in. Having said a “tax working group” will be formed to advise on tax matters etc (once they are in Government).
National has been the only party to increase benefit payments over and above the rate of inflation for decades.
Would it be a vote winner for Labour? No, not to any great extent. Labour need to appeal to middle NZ to form the next Government…even if that grates with many on this blog.
“Problem is Labour has already signaled a number of policies it will introduce if in Government come 2017…”
And one would assume they have a way to pay for them.
“Labour need to appeal to middle NZ”
Are you implying business owners aren’t? Moreover, Labour has been trying to win over the middle for years now and it hasn’t been working out for them.
This covers both ends (middle and lower) therefore has far more potential gain.
National increasing benefits didn’t hurt their support.
“A “tax working group” will be formed to advise on tax matters etc (once they are in Government)”
They got to get into government first, this (my suggestion) would help with that.
Labour’s idea of “middle NZ” is the comfortable middle class 20% swing voting household. Stupid really.
yes.dear.
you’re not my grandmother.
Further, my point is spot on. Like “affordable” $600,000 Auckland houses. Who does that policy target.
Definitely not blue collar waged workers.
If they could build 10,000 houses a year a lot of older house would become cheaper and people that can afford the $600k ones will probably free up rentals and apartments.
Auckland house trickle down, never thought of it like that before
If they arseholed the investors out of the game and slowed the immigration numbers right down it would help to.
although i think we need to shift to a lease hold system with the gov owning the land .
Highest new car sales ever means soon enough damn nice five year old motor vehicles will be available at the right price.
There’s no second hand car crisis, CV.
and plenty of homeless people live out of them.
Auckland is the largest City in NZ, it is the most populated City in NZ and to expect house prices like in Dunedin is simply simple minded.
IF and when NZ’lers start buying houses not as a thing to flip and make money on, but to buy and to live in and keep in the family like it is done in many old european cities including London, Paris, Rome, Florence and even in US Cities like NY you will see that 600.000$ is very affordable as you can raise several to un-count generations in that very same house.
But the thing is really with you CV is that you are so full of hate towards anything Labour that you rather see some revolution come along that burns everything and makes everyone homeless then support the ones that are full of flaws but are at least trying. And starting to build houses/apartments/units is the very first step to bring prices down.
So yes, 600.000$ for land (cause no one is buying a house, stop deluding yourself here) in the middle of million people City is affordable. Maybe not for one generation, but for two or three. And that is precisely how it is done in many place all over this planet. I mean heck, try to buy a house in Berlin, Rome, Paris, NY, London and tell me how ‘affordable’ that is.
Good morning CV, welcome to the 21 century, let me assure again, the 80’s are long gone, and the only one crying after the good old days are those that remember them.
Thats everyone over 50, the demographic which actually votes.
yes, dear.
Why do you keep trying to speak to me like you are my grandma?
By the way, what is “simple minded” are the fools like you who believe that you should keep stuffing Auckland full of people, while small towns and cities throughout the provinces slowly shut down shop.
actually the eighties were pretty crap
i know. i remember them. But then i do not cry after about what happened during them.
Fuck your condescending infantalising of long time Kiwis who suffered through that time, who lost their homes, who lost their factories, who lost their careers, who lost their families.
Labour sowed neoliberalism upon our shores, and Labour has deservedly reaped the electoral whirlwind of their actions.
Thank you CV. When the Lange govt was elected almost no-one had the slightest clue what Douglas and his crew of wreckers was about to inflict on us. In the aftermath of Muldoon’s sour and bullying leadership all we wanted was a change. Of course Lange’s charisma, sharp wit and geniality turned out to be a smoke screen.
For quite a few years a large chunk on NZ was completely taken in by Douglas. Including the much younger and naive version of myself. (And in another thirty years time I predict some other dude will ruefully be saying the same thing about John Key). This was all before the internet and most of our political information was filtered through the NZ Herald.
A lot of credit must go to people like Jim Anderton and those within the NZLP who had a much better understanding of what was going on and fought against it as best they could. That’s a whole other story that doesn’t get much airtime these days.
then it is curious you select them as your example of ‘the good old days”..no?
Hi grandma.
as you can raise several to un-count generations in that very same house.
Yes my family still owns a house in Epsom and on paper it makes us quite well off, but we’re of the same basic notion that we never intend to sell it … so all that paper wealth is fairly meaningless.
Your basic premise is a good one, but most NZ housing is designed around the needs of a single nuclear family and just aren’t suited to multiple generations living in the same home.
That policy area is a complete fabrication, its impossible to achieve a significant influence on Auckland house prices (without causing an unwanted market crash). No govt can keep up with the level of supply and shifts in supply needed to control that.
If we are lucky then Labour goes about achieving a big increase in subsidized social housing in order that people who will not be in a position to own a house can have some assurance that they can have somewhere to live.
But they are not marketing that policy (unless you actually pay attention to what they are planning to do) they are saying that house prices are too high (as a way of signaling to their voter base) and implying they are going to do something about it! But people who vote hoping to see that will be as disappointed as serious Libertarians are by Key’s government.
On the other point, Labour may still have some ideas for working class people but in general have no interest in their political concerns or fixing that relationship.
Pretty much, but plenty of people around here still give Labour’s efforts solid passing grades for some reason.
None of our political leaders seem to have any concept of physical reality, or even on the optimum role of government in ensuring the interests of the people.
Government and Auckland Council have today signed Heads of Agreement on NZ’s most expensive infrastructure project to date: Cit Rail Link. Between $2.5 and $3.4b.
It’s a Crown company not a CCO. Therefore OIA and not LGOIMA applies. Makes reporting less constrained but less public.
Either way, big deal. Very different model to Chch rebuild.
And more to come tomorrow in broader Ak funding package.
Psychopaths in suits
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/better-business/84222286/one-in-five-bosses-is-a-psychopath-research-reveals
We are not inbred ferals!!! I know for a fact that my parents were not related!!!
Not sure why the Green Party aren’t supporting the Government to get the Kermadec Marine Reserve Bill through the House. Seems like an easy win.
National wants those Blue Greens back.
I would like to hear the Green Party’s view on this Bill – I can’t seem to see anything recent.
This could be interesting over the next 24/48 hours,
http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/asia/84251435/Super-Typhoon-Meranti-Earths-most-violent-storm-since-Haiyan-takes-aim-on-Taiwan-and-China
Beipaotai China, looks to be in the path of Maranti ?
Looking on Google Earth it looks like a nuclear power plant, like meters from the ocean.
This was a 2009/ 2011 article but it shows several plants being built in the area? http://www.jsm.or.jp/ejam/Vol.1.No.3/GA/6/article.html
Lovely, a taste of things to come
We see a lot on the Auckland mayoralty race, but almost nothing on other races- mayor or otherwise – from round the country.
Is this due to a lack of info, a lack of interest, or a lack of input by local candidtes?