Archive for 2020

Is Progress Real?

Written By: - Date published: 2:41 pm, December 31st, 2020 - 65 comments

It’s hard to overstate the extraordinary merging of events in Europe that led to the Industrial Revolution exploding in the mid-1800’s. There was of course at least 200 years of prior scene setting, across the sciences, philosophy and political arena’s. In say the year 1600 the so-called Renaissance was really the project of barely a […]

Open mike 31/12/2020

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, December 31st, 2020 - 38 comments

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Parihaka

Written By: - Date published: 11:09 am, December 30th, 2020 - 8 comments

A post reflecting on the history of the Parihaka settlement, how local Taranaki Iwi were treated appallingly by the Crown and the Government, and how the settlement amount paid is but a miniscule amount of the damage actually caused.

Open mike 30/12/2020

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, December 30th, 2020 - 24 comments

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An Introvert’s Guide to Spending Money*

Written By: - Date published: 1:38 pm, December 29th, 2020 - 30 comments

Don’t waste your money on shit, spend it on good shit.

Open mike 29/12/2020

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, December 29th, 2020 - 26 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 …

Chris Bishop goes woof woof on variant ‘B.1.1.7’

Written By: - Date published: 1:26 pm, December 28th, 2020 - 43 comments

I realise that this would normally be our silly season, but it seems a bit macabre with the northern winter death toll. But nothing really excuses Chris Bishop for being a complete dickhead in barking for immediate offshore testing for travellers from the UK. It is pointless. The government are a bit more sensible. They’re instituting an extra test at our border.

Open mike 28/12/2020

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, December 28th, 2020 - 15 comments

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Trump pardons buddies

Written By: - Date published: 10:24 am, December 27th, 2020 - 13 comments

Donald trump has in the past couple of days issued a number of pardons to people including former members of his campaign team, Jared Kushner’s father, a group of contractors involved in the massacre of 14 Iraqi civilians including a 14 year old boy and Ben Carson’s best friend.

Open mike 27/12/2020

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, December 27th, 2020 - 20 comments

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Plan B activists still think NZ should be like Sweden

Written By: - Date published: 11:50 am, December 26th, 2020 - 171 comments

In a letter published in the Royal New Zealand College of Medical Practitioners journal Plan B academics have criticised the Government’s Covid elimination strategy because of the economic effects at the same time that recently announced growth figures show the economy grew in the past 12 months despite Covid.

Open mike 26/12/2020

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, December 26th, 2020 - 3 comments

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Meri Kirihimete ki a koe me te whānau

Written By: - Date published: 10:12 am, December 25th, 2020 - 5 comments

Meri Kirihimete ki a koe me te whānau.

Open mike 25/12/2020

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, December 25th, 2020 - 6 comments

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Daily review 24/12/2020

Written By: - Date published: 5:30 pm, December 24th, 2020 - 2 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 …

Words of Outrage or Outrageous Action?

Written By: - Date published: 7:00 am, December 24th, 2020 - 30 comments

Do you reward rage with rage or do you ignore it and walk away quietly?

Open mike 24/12/2020

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, December 24th, 2020 - 41 comments

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Daily review 23/12/2020

Written By: - Date published: 5:30 pm, December 23rd, 2020 - 10 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 …

A Few Good Green Wins

Written By: - Date published: 8:37 am, December 23rd, 2020 - 22 comments

There is always plenty of bad news when it comes to nature in New Zealand, but this year has had an accumulation of good.

Open mike 23/12/2020

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, December 23rd, 2020 - 32 comments

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Daily review 22/12/2020

Written By: - Date published: 5:30 pm, December 22nd, 2020 - 2 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 …

Open mike 22/12/2020

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, December 22nd, 2020 - 123 comments

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Daily review 21/12/2020

Written By: - Date published: 5:45 pm, December 21st, 2020 - 2 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 …

Beefing up the border – expensive and essential

Written By: - Date published: 11:31 am, December 21st, 2020 - 30 comments

From a few days ago (it seems like an eternity), RNZ reported “Govt to pump almost $3 billion into its Covid-19 response after report identified failings”. There were several points I’d make about the border controls and generally with our border and the long slow years in constraining this pandemic. But the Sydney outbreak and the UK Xmas Grinch appear to be making them for me already.

Open mike 21/12/2020

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, December 21st, 2020 - 63 comments

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The Malthusian Spectre

Written By: - Date published: 10:52 am, December 20th, 2020 - 46 comments

Population has always been a critical driver of events and prior to the Industrial Revolution we lived in a zero sum world, with energy and resources effectively limited to that which could be harvested from photosynthesis, one person’s gain was at the limit, always someone else’s loss. Very low density hunter gather populations could thrive […]

Must New Zealand Pay Back All This Public Debt?

Written By: - Date published: 9:34 am, December 20th, 2020 - 22 comments

Without much fanfare, Minister Robertson has used 2020’s crisis to bury the historic scourge of monetarism and within it the excuses of the governments that used it as a pretext to sell off our key government income generators.

Operation warped

Written By: - Date published: 9:05 am, December 20th, 2020 - 30 comments

Donald Trump has spent the past week stuffing up the vaccine roll out in some states, fighting attempts to cancel the Trump wall and blaming China for Russian hacks on American institutions and corporations.

Open mike 20/12/2020

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, December 20th, 2020 - 32 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 …

Open mike 19/12/2020

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, December 19th, 2020 - 58 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 18/12/2020

Written By: - Date published: 5:30 pm, December 18th, 2020 - 28 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 …

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