Archive for August, 2017
This is why we need the Greens in government
Written By: - Date published: 7:15 am, August 4th, 2017 - 247 comments
Metiria Turei speaks from the heart about how hard it is to be on welfare, and the need for a more compassionate, caring welfare system.
Don’t expect the impossible of Ardern
Written By: - Date published: 7:01 am, August 4th, 2017 - 29 comments
I enjoy a ray of hope as much as the next leftie, and Jacinda Ardern is off to an incredible start, but let’s not burden her with impossible expectations.
No Right Turn: Dealing with ghost homes
Written By: - Date published: 6:23 am, August 4th, 2017 - 11 comments
“we want houses to be homes for people to live in, not gold bars for the rich”
Open Mike 04/08/2017
Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, August 4th, 2017 - 125 comments
Open mike is your post.
For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy).
Step up to the mike …
Daily Review 03/08/2017
Written By: - Date published: 5:30 pm, August 3rd, 2017 - 141 comments
Daily review is also your post. This provides Standardistas the opportunity to review events of the day. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Don’t forget to be kind to each other …
“It’s still the same Labour Party”
Written By: - Date published: 12:28 pm, August 3rd, 2017 - 58 comments
Steven Joyce wouldn’t front yesterday, but today National have worked out their attack lines. Leave popular Jacinda alone and attack Labour as tired and lacking in new ideas (projection, much?). Labour has a raft of new policy, to go with needed older one’s like 2013’s Kiwibuild of 100,000 affordable homes. Journos need to learn their policy so they don’t let National’s fake news through…
Women, know your place!
Written By: - Date published: 12:11 pm, August 3rd, 2017 - 54 comments
What decade are we in again?
The big mo #LetsDoThis
Written By: - Date published: 8:19 am, August 3rd, 2017 - 18 comments
Jacinda Ardern’s ascension to Labour’s leadership appears to have given the Party that most important of campaign phenomena, momentum.
The Ardern effect – and why this leadership change was different
Written By: - Date published: 7:01 am, August 3rd, 2017 - 60 comments
With donations and volunteers flooding in, I think it’s fair to say that reaction to Jacinda Ardern has exceeded all expectations. Why was this leadership change different? Two reasons…
Paula Bennett’s problems not over
Written By: - Date published: 6:38 am, August 3rd, 2017 - 28 comments
Not seeing very much of Paula Bennett about at the moment are we. Her lawyers shut down certain allegations against her, but it seems that they are not going away. Perhaps Bennett should get it all out in the open and clear her name. Nothing to hide, nothing to fear?
Open Mike 03/08/2017
Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, August 3rd, 2017 - 166 comments
Open mike is your post.
For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy).
Step up to the mike …
Daily Review 02/08/2017
Written By: - Date published: 5:30 pm, August 2nd, 2017 - 72 comments
Daily review is also your post. This provides Standardistas the opportunity to review events of the day. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Don’t forget to be kind to each other …
Lifeline funding cut
Written By: - Date published: 1:10 pm, August 2nd, 2017 - 58 comments
Funding to Lifeline has been cut in favour of an organisation with a family link to Bill English. It may be completely innocent as all the interested parties claim. But it’s not a good look to be destroying Lifeline, an organisation doing world class work in an area of desperate need. You don’t easily replace that experience.
She ain’t no show pony
Written By: - Date published: 10:27 am, August 2nd, 2017 - 123 comments
“She’s got charm, she’s warm, she’s funny, she’s incredibly intelligent, her values are rock solid. I think you are looking at someone there who is going to change the fortunes of the Labour Party, lift the vote, and change the government.” – James Shaw.
What was English up to with his Barclay text storm?
Written By: - Date published: 8:47 am, August 2nd, 2017 - 43 comments
Peters claims that English sent over 450 text messages to Barclay’s then staffer Glenys Dickson “many early in the morning and late at night” in the months before she resigned. English is in this mess up to his eyeballs. What was going on?
Solidarity forever
Written By: - Date published: 7:23 am, August 2nd, 2017 - 65 comments
Andrew Little has stood aside for Jacinda Ardern because he thought the Labour movement needed fresh legs. Time to acknowledge him and support her.
Acclaim for Jacinda Ardern
Written By: - Date published: 6:30 am, August 2nd, 2017 - 119 comments
Changing leaders this close to an election was a political gamble for Labour, but it has already paid off. The commentary is almost universally positive, the reviews for Ardern are glowing. Donations are flowing in. Activists are energised and people are talking.
Open Mike 02/08/2017
Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, August 2nd, 2017 - 60 comments
Open mike is your post.
For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy).
Step up to the mike …
Helen Clark burns Matthew Hooton
Written By: - Date published: 6:20 pm, August 1st, 2017 - 65 comments
Matthew Hooton has been incinerated by a former leader of the Labour Party.
Daily Review 01/08/2017
Written By: - Date published: 5:30 pm, August 1st, 2017 - 72 comments
Daily review is also your post. This provides Standardistas the opportunity to review events of the day. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Don’t forget to be kind to each other …
Trying to bury bad news
Written By: - Date published: 5:06 pm, August 1st, 2017 - 29 comments
It’s a busy news day, so… Government axes Lifeline contract. Yes, we still top the western world on youth suicide. We still have regular stories like this today. So what does the Government do? Cancel the money that Lifeline uses to train thousands in suicide prevention. $800,000 – a massive amount to Lifeline and the […]
So NZ Labour wanted the Headlines.
Written By: - Date published: 3:29 pm, August 1st, 2017 - 50 comments
Well, now they have them. But…
Greens and the Māori Party on the new Labour leaders
Written By: - Date published: 12:57 pm, August 1st, 2017 - 27 comments
Coalition partners in the wings, game on for the left.
Labour leadership announcement – livestream
Written By: - Date published: 11:44 am, August 1st, 2017 - 49 comments
The livestream is over. A very impressive performance from Jacinda Ardern.
Thank you Andrew – go well Jacinda!
Written By: - Date published: 11:13 am, August 1st, 2017 - 54 comments
Unlike lprent I am not discouraged by Little stepping down. New leadership is a real opportunity for Labour. Little: “As leader, I must take responsibility for these results. I do take responsibility and believe that Labour must have an opportunity to perform better under new leadership through to the election.”
Ok, I’m pissed off with the Labour caucus again. Time to switch
Written By: - Date published: 10:44 am, August 1st, 2017 - 129 comments
I think that Andrew Little standing down was a mistake. I can’t think of anyone in the Labour caucus capable of doing anything much between now and the election. Labour should have just stayed the course and worked harder to get rid of National out of government.
Little gone
Written By: - Date published: 10:10 am, August 1st, 2017 - 187 comments
Andrew Little has stepped down – expects Jacinda to replace him.
ACT in blue – gives up all pretense
Written By: - Date published: 10:04 am, August 1st, 2017 - 10 comments
Labour leadership meeting
Written By: - Date published: 8:33 am, August 1st, 2017 - 169 comments
At 10:30 this morning there is a Labour caucus meeting where the subject of the leadership will be discussed. If Andrew Little decides to step down rumours suggest that a Jacinda Ardern / Kelvin Davis ticket is being considered.
Trump to Scaramucci – you’re fired!
Written By: - Date published: 7:23 am, August 1st, 2017 - 4 comments
The media is reporting that Anthony Scaramucci has been fired after only ten days in the job as White House communications director.
NZF members are lefties – will they get a say in choosing government?
Written By: - Date published: 7:03 am, August 1st, 2017 - 19 comments
Current polls leave National/minor and Labour/Green both short of majority. The chances of NZF determining the shape of the next government are increasing. I’ve always assumed that Peters would go with National, but maybe not, if NZF members get a say.
- When and where does a ‘bach’ become a ‘crib’?
Summer reissue: Alex Casey goes on a linguistic journey to find the true difference between who’s using ‘bach’ and ‘crib’ across our fair nation. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter and sign ...2 weeks ago - ‘Everything I do in life, I do it for my donor’: Inside Aotearoa’s struggling organ donation s...
Summer reissue: We don’t have enough organ donors in New Zealand. The Spinoff investigates the problem – and how we might fix it. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter and sign up ...2 weeks ago
- Newsroom daily quiz, Monday 30 December
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp');Got a good quiz question? Send Newsroom your questions.The post Newsroom daily quiz, Monday 30 December appeared first on Newsroom. ...2 weeks ago - Daily crossword, Monday 30 December
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- An ode to the weird bach DVD collection
Summer reissue: There’s no better feeling than arriving at a bach and seeing that dusty little pile of random DVDs beneath the television, writes Alex Casey. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter ...2 weeks ago
- In defence of Sally Rooney’s skinny protagonists
Summer reissue: If you want to read a book that makes you feel good about your body, I beg you to look elsewhere. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter and sign up ...2 weeks ago
- Does The Bear suck now? A hater and an enthusiast argue about season three
Summer reissue: Season three of the critically-acclaimed darling The Bear was released in late June. Two fans of the show watched the full season over the weekend – only one emerged still a fan. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these ...2 weeks ago
- Seizure of Cook Islands-registered ship over alleged sabotage ‘creates a bad look’ for N...
"Everyone associates the Cook Islands with New Zealand", so a Cooks vessel possibly aiding Russia's shadow fleet isn't ideal, international law professor Al Gillespie says. ...2 weeks ago - Meet the unsung icon behind the primary school hit ‘Fish and Chips’
Summer reissue: Play it at breakfast, lunch or tea, the song ‘Fish and Chips’ is almost as famous in Aotearoa as the dish itself. So why is the woman who wrote it virtually unknown? First published October 7, 2024. Update, December 27: Claudia Mushin, 78, died peacefully and surrounded ...2 weeks ago
- Should I buy the murder house?
Summer reissue: Realising she can afford to buy a house, but only one that contained meth use or murder, Kristin Kelly reflects on the true value of a home. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read ...2 weeks ago
- Newsroom daily quiz, Sunday 29 December
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp');Got a good quiz question? Send Newsroom your questions.The post Newsroom daily quiz, Sunday 29 December appeared first on Newsroom. ...2 weeks ago
- Daily crossword, Sunday 29 December
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- Black Ferns Sevens coach learns more from his players
When Cory Sweeney was named coach of the year at the New Zealand Rugby Awards he equalled Sir Steve Hansen as a five-time winner of that honour.The Black Ferns Sevens coach successfully defended the Olympic title won in Toyko in 2021 in Paris in July. Recently the 46-year-old celebrated his ...2 weeks ago
- My robot waiter reminds us what really matters
Comment: Those who have been reading or listening to my commentaries in recent months will note that I have a pretty bleak view of the immediate future. The New Zealand economy is struggling to grow, the economy of our major export market is not doing much better, we have wars ...2 weeks ago
- New Zealand not responsible for ship seized by Finland – MFAT
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade says New Zealand is not responsible for a Cook Islands-registered vessel carrying Russian oil seized in Finland. ...2 weeks ago
- Government Coy On Police Plan To Target ‘At Risk’ Children For Social Investment
The "prevention support" would be targeted at primary school-age children, but the police minister will not say if the idea is being progressed. ...2 weeks ago - Hui, protests, kōtahitanga, and a new Kuini – A historic year for Māoridom
A hīkoi, a haka, and the rise of a new generation - RNZ unpacks a contentious and momentous year for Māoridom. ...2 weeks ago
- There are lots of reasons to eat insects. Will we ever overcome the ‘yuck’ factor?
Summer reissue: Insects have been the ‘next big thing’ in food for the last decade, but will we ever have an appetite for them? Shanti Mathias investigates – and tastes some bugs. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of ...2 weeks ago
- ‘I’ve never lived it down’: The Breakfast live cross that still haunts Jack Tame
Summer reissue: The TVNZ broadcaster reflects on his life in television, including a full circle moment with David Attenborough, his favourite politicians to interview and why he’ll never watch Game of Thrones. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of ...2 weeks ago
- The mystery of the killer bike lane
Summer reissue: A chain of three cafes closed down and the owner blamed cycleways. But none of the cafes were anywhere near one. What is happening? Joel MacManus investigates. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read ...2 weeks ago
- The beginning of a book
Summer reissue: Claire Mabey’s early brush with evangelical Christianity sparked a life’s fascination with the power of stories – and the fuel to write her own. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open ...2 weeks ago
- A treat within a treat: How the Trumpet got its chocolate tip
Alex Casey uncovers the story behind that perfect final bite. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter and sign up to be a member today. In the first episode of Snackmasters NZ, in ...2 weeks ago
- Newsroom daily quiz, Saturday 28 December
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- Daily crossword, Saturday 28 December
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- Time to get off the literacy lobotomy train
Opinion: A few months ago, The Times of London reported that an Oxford professor of English, Shakespearean scholar Sir Jonathan Bate, warned that his present-day students had trouble reading long books. A Kiwi perspective was added a few weeks later, when a sociologist at the University of Canterbury, Mike Grimshaw, told ...2 weeks ago
- The Secret Diary of .. 2024
Twas very heaven in 2024 to write as a satirist. Credit where credit is due: Christopher Luxon just got funnier and funnier, more determinedly ridiculous, a David Brent for our times, the embarrassing boss who is at once inept and bombastic. Stuff writer Verity Johnson came up with a widely ...2 weeks ago
- School support staff work through holidays to make ends meet
On an average weekday Jan Monds drives into the carpark at Knighton Normal School, in Hamilton, just before 7.30am to run a pre-school programme for students. This wraps up at 8.45am, when she heads from the hall to the main part of the school to start her primary job as a ...2 weeks ago
- Black Saturday Protest At Devonport Naval Base, Tāmaki Makaurau, 28 December 2024
The protest action isn't only to mark the historical acts of violence the NZ govt has enacted against Sāmoans but also to highlight the responsibility this current govt and navy have for the environmental and societal impacts of the Manawanui shipwreck. ...2 weeks ago
- ‘One hell of a shock’: Why not everyone wants flowers from David Lomas
Alex Casey chats to David Lomas about the art of finding needles in haystacks. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter and sign up to be a member today. There are around 100 ...2 weeks ago
- What I write about when I write about mermaids
Summer reissue: Megan Dunn’s mer-moir, The Mermaid Chronicles, is an immersive, moving and funny search for the meaning of mermaids and the anchors of interests and family in the ebb and flow of life. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these ...2 weeks ago
- Reviewing the very first episode of bro’Town, 20 years on
Summer reissue: The groundbreaking show has had mixed reviews over the past two decades. Madeleine Chapman revisits a classic. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter and sign up to be a member ...2 weeks ago
- Can NYC ever live up to the hype?
Summer reissue: After three decades of inhaling American-dominated, disproportionately New York-based media, Sharon Lam’s first time in the city became a traipse through a collage of movie sets rather than any real place. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds ...2 weeks ago
- Selling security, delivering anxiety: The rise of home surveillance cameras
Summer reissue: Why do so many of us install security cameras – and are they breaching other people’s rights? The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter and sign up to be a member ...2 weeks ago
- Newsroom daily quiz, Friday 27 December
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp');Got a good quiz question? Send Newsroom your questions.The post Newsroom daily quiz, Friday 27 December appeared first on Newsroom. ...2 weeks ago
- Daily crossword, Friday 27 December
The post Daily crossword, Friday 27 December appeared first on Newsroom. ...2 weeks ago
- Hopes versus expectations for ALL survivors
This year has been a big one for me personally and professionally. The firm won the Litigation and Disputes Resolution Firm of the year award on November 28 and I was an Excellence Finalist in the category of firm leader for a firm with under 100 staff. I was also ...2 weeks ago
- 2024, the year of the election
Opinion: In 2024, 64 countries were scheduled to hold different types of national elections this year for an array of offices.Some of these, of course, were more democratic than others, but it made for a bumper year for election nerds like me.Incumbents had a bad year – more than three ...2 weeks ago
- All 29 road tunnels in New Zealand ranked from worst to best
Summer reissue: From the unstable and drippy to the hi-tech and pretty, here’s our ranking of all the tunnels you can drive through in this country. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter ...2 weeks ago
- A life story
Summer reissue: David Hill remembers an old friend, who you’ve probably never heard of. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter and sign up to be a member today. Doug (I’ll call him ...2 weeks ago
- ‘The mission is clearly possible’: On watching every single Tom Cruise movie ever made
Summer reissue: I watched all 46 of Tom Cruise’s films over the past 12 months. The question on everyone’s lips: why? The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter and sign up to be ...2 weeks ago
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