Austerity
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The end of Ruthenasia
Written By: - Date published: 8:03 am, May 21st, 2021 - 61 comments
National presented a particularly glum picture in Parliament yesterday. And it was not only the realisation that Judith Collins is out of her depth. It was because this budget spells the end of Ruthenasia.
UK COVID-19 death toll hits 100,000 and The PM offers an insincere apology.
Written By: - Date published: 6:11 am, January 29th, 2021 - 21 comments
Originally posted on Nick Kelly’s Blog In late March 2020, the medical director of the NHS Stephen Powis said that keeping the UK COVID-19 death toll to under 20,000 would be a good result. Ten months later, almost to the day, the UK’s official death toll from COVID-19 hit 100,000, a few days after an […]
Why UK Labour lost? Part 9: What the party needs to do now.
Written By: - Date published: 10:37 am, January 17th, 2020 - 12 comments
Originally post on Nick Kelly’s blog
The broader context of this defeat is that over the last century, UK Labour has won 8 out of the last 28 general elections. Overall the Labour Party is not a successful electoral force in the UK. What makes the 2019 loss harder, is that the party lost sections of its historical base in the North of England and the Midlands.
Why UK Labour lost? Part 6: New Labour & Blairism
Written By: - Date published: 10:39 am, January 15th, 2020 - 10 comments
Originally posted on Nick Kelly’s blog
Fact is that the world has moved on from the 1980s and 90s. Politics certainly has. The types of 3rd way or centre/centre right positions that Blair and Campbell think will win just won’t anymore.
Brexit – sorry its not getting done anytime soon.
Written By: - Date published: 11:23 am, December 12th, 2019 - 5 comments
Can the Conservatives get brexit done by January 31st as they are promising in the election? The short answer is no. The slogan is catchy, and taps into public sentiment. But it is also pure unadulterated bullshit. If the Conservatives do form the next government these words will haunt them, especially Boris Johnson.
The Missing Millions
Written By: - Date published: 11:18 am, December 12th, 2019 - 18 comments
Millions of people and an entire region of the UK left out of polling calculations….
The NHS and privatisation
Written By: - Date published: 12:14 pm, December 10th, 2019 - 18 comments
The NHS is well loved by the British public. It is seen as something which makes British society decent and civilised. That the NHS is now stretched and badly underfunded is seen as a national outrage. Fears of even further privatisation of the NHS due to a US trade deal has unsurprisingly made the NHS the number one election issue.
Youth and the aspirational centre
Written By: - Date published: 12:20 pm, December 5th, 2019 - 12 comments
In 2017 UK general election, it was predicted that the Conservatives would win by a landslide. Why? Well the polls said so. The polls made various assumptions about turnout and which constituencies were marginal and likely to turn. Also commentators assumed that Labour under Corbyn had moved too far left, and could not win the centre ground and win. All of this commentary and analysis proved to be bullshit.
Austerity – who should pay for the financial crisis?
Written By: - Date published: 10:57 am, November 17th, 2019 - 30 comments
Nick Kelly on UK austerity and who should have paid for the financial crisis.
The 2008 financial crisis casts a long shadow over UK politics
Written By: - Date published: 3:58 am, November 16th, 2019 - 2 comments
Nick Kelly on why the 2008 Global Financial Crisis is still having a dramatic effect on United Kingdom Politics.
Compassionless Conservatives?
Written By: - Date published: 5:32 am, November 14th, 2019 - 6 comments
Nick Kelly summaries the lack of compassion shown by Boris Johnson and Jacob Rees-Mogg during this weeks UK election campaign.
The Liberal Democrats
Written By: - Date published: 11:58 am, November 10th, 2019 - 13 comments
Nick Kelly on the Liberal Democrats’ prospects in the upcoming UK elections.
The UK General Election
Written By: - Date published: 8:07 am, November 4th, 2019 - 10 comments
Nick Kelly is a form NZ trade unionist and NZ Labour activist. He is a co director of Piko Consulting, and currently lives in London expanding Piko into the UK. The below was originally published on Nick Kelly’s blog
Snap election Britain
Written By: - Date published: 10:39 am, October 30th, 2019 - 55 comments
The UK will learn its political fate on Friday 13 December. MPs have voted in a one-line Bill to have an election on Thursday 12 November, in the middle of winter. BoJo’s got his way if not quite the way he wanted. All bets are off.
- Juliet Moses – Arsehole of the Week
5 hours ago - Skeptical Science New Research for Week #24, 2021
A hot budget problem This week's standout article for highlighting is Satellite and Ocean Data Reveal Marked Increase in Earth's Heating Rate (open access). From the two very different perspectives of above the atmosphere and below it, a team of authors led by Norman Loeb (head of NASA's CERES program) and including Gregory Johnson (head ...5 hours ago - Let it die
The fishing industry is complaining in the Herald about their "labour shortage" and lamenting the fact that Young People These Days for some reason don't want to work for six weeks at a time doing hard, dangerous work on a boat in the middle of nowhere, and never seeing their ...6 hours ago - More bigotry in HungaryLast year Hungary ended legal recognition of trans people and banned gay people from adopting children. Now, they've followed that up with a Russian-style "propaganda law", banning "promotion" of homosexuality in schools or on TV: Hungary’s parliament has passed a law banning gay people from featuring in school educational ...11 hours ago
- Institutionally corruptOver thirty years ago private investigator Daniel Morgan was murdered in London. The UK police repeatedly fucked up the investigation so obviously and blatantly that the government was forced to call a public inquiry. Now, after years of obstruction, it has finally reported back, finding the police to be "institutionally ...11 hours ago
- With seas rising, stalled research budgets must also riseThis is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Gary Yohe and Eric Rignot From 1900 to 2000, the ocean along the U.S. East Coast rose at twice the annual rate of the pace in the previous 19 centuries, according to a recent study from Rutgers University. From Miami to New York to ...14 hours ago
- Geoffrey Miller: Worst could be yet to come for New Zealanders’ perceptions of China
New Zealanders’ hostility towards China is growing rapidly – but the worst may be still ahead. International analyst Geoffrey Miller examines the latest survey results on how this country feels about China. The latest “Perceptions of Asia” survey from the Asia New Zealand Foundation, released today, shows a sharp rise ...17 hours ago - Bryce Edwards: Political Roundup – Cash for access to politicians continuesShould anyone have trust in politicians, given the manner in which they solicit money from the wealthy? Probably not, since virtually every party in Parliament in recent times has been found to be involved in flaunting the law or accepting dodgy donations from the rich. News reports of questionable donations ...1 day ago
- Inaction speaks louder than wordsOne of the good things the government has done is implement a proactive release policy, requiring most cabinet papers to be published within 30 working days of a decision being made. Its not a perfect policy (note "most", but also they get to redact them however they want, without oversight), ...1 day ago
- Graham Adams: The dangers of putting media on the government’s payrollAccusations by a journalist that the Prime Minister leads an unusually secretive government don’t tell the whole story about its desire to control information. Graham Adams takes a closer look at the guidelines for the new $55 million journalism fund. Despite widespread cynicism about the Government’s ability to fulfil its ...1 day ago
- David Seymour caught telling liesAct Party Leader David SeymourIt really bothers me when the NZ Herald reports the claims of certain right wing politicians as the truth without any fact checking. Not only do they encourage dishonest politicians to continue to lie, they also degrade the standard of reporting we get in New Zealand.Of ...1 day ago
- To Speak, Or Not To Speak? That Is The Question.
Speaking Rights: The spectacle of the nation’s prime minister being denied the right to speak to her fellow citizens, personally, on New Zealand’s national day would generate massive antagonism among Pakeha of both sexes. A refusal to be guided by the customs of Ngāpuhi, on the other hand, would be ...1 day ago - We discovered what’s killing the world’s rarest penguin – and it could help us make a vaccine
Vartul Sangal, Northumbria University, Newcastle Yellow-eyed penguins are the most endangered penguin species in the world, with just 4,000 left in the wild. Found only in New Zealand and its outlying islands, these birds can grow up to 79cm tall and weigh 8.5kg, which is similar to a one-year-old ...1 day ago - The COVID-19 lab leak theory highlights a glaring lack of global biosecurity regulationAlexander Gillespie, University of Waikato The revived debate over whether COVID-19 could be the result of an accidental release from the Wuhan Institute of Virology may never be adequately resolved. Either way, we risk not seeing the wood for the trees. While the World Health Organization (WHO) reported in ...1 day ago
- Opponents of fluoridation all at sea with new legislation
Image credit: Why Ideology and Science Don’t Mix Opponents of community water fluoridation (CWF) should be supporting the proposed fluoridation legislation instead of organising opposition to it. Think about it. If Fluoride Free NZ (FFNZ) was honest in its claim that they are ...1 day ago- Silent calamity: The health impacts of wildfire smoke
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Bob Henson Articles on U.S. wildfires don’t often show a photo of someone gasping in a hospital bed or felled by a heart attack. Yet an increasing body of evidence suggests that the biggest societal impacts of increasing wildland fire are happening ...2 days ago- Smokefree 2025
The Government’s proposed approach for achieving SmokeFree 2025 is a bit over-the-top. The proposals would restrict tobacco sales to a smaller number of to-be-licenced R18 outlets, which could then be subject to a sinking lid; impose an annual one-year increase in the purchase age for tobacco until full prohibition were ...2 days ago- Update on Long-COVID
Prof John D. Potter* This blog post updates an earlier post on Long-COVID and reports that estimates of prevalence are still wide at about 15 to 65% of those initially infected with the pandemic virus, SARS-CoV-2. As things stand now across the world, we do not yet have systems in ...2 days ago- A long-overdue apology
The New Zealand government is going to formally apologise for the "dawn raids" which targeted Pacific peoples in the 1970's. Good. Terrorising people on the basis of their race was wrong and something which should be a lasting shame to New Zealand. But there's another wrong they need to apologise ...2 days ago- Climate Change: The return of feebate
The government has resurrected its feebate policy to lower transport emissions, taxing dirty vehicles to subsidise clean ones. Good. We've known for a long time that passive measures such as fuel economy ratings and up-front labelling of lifetime costs weren't enough, and neither was the ETS (which adds just a ...2 days ago- National wants to convert farms into pine forests
It really hasn’t been a good time on the opposition benches lately. Not only have we had the various National Party scandals to ensure a decline in their public support, they’ve also entirely misread the room when it comes to the Climate Change Commission’s final report and the Government’s Clean ...2 days ago- Government for sale again
When the National Party ran a "Cabinet Club", selling personal access to Cabinet Ministers in exchange for large donations, I called it Government for Sale. Now the Labour party is doing the same thing: The Labour Party is selling tickets to a “business conference" featuring the prime minister and ...3 days ago- Nobody Owns The Christchurch Tragedy.
Mass Outpourings Of Love And Solidarity: In excess of 20,000 Wellingtonians gathered at the basin Reserve in mid-March 2019 to reaffirm Prime Minister Ardern's "They are Us" response to the Christchurch Mosque Shootings. The opponents of the "They Are Us" movie project would rather the world was not reminded of ...3 days ago- 2021 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #24
Listing of articles linked to on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, June 7, 2021 through Sat, June 12, 2021 This week it was somewhat tricky to identify suitable articles for sharing which is why the list ended up shorter than it usually is. Articles Linked to ...3 days ago- Hoping For Divine Intervention.
By Any Chance, Are These Two Related? Climate Change Commission Chair, Rod Carr, and Michelangelo's Jehovah. Is that the message hidden in the CCC's report? That only divine intervention can save the planet from the effects of anthropogenic global warming?ROD CARR reminds me of God. Seriously, that beard. From a ...4 days ago- Re-Writing The Rules of the Game: Where Chile is Leading, Can Aotearoa-New Zealand Follow?
People Power: Ending neoliberalism requires massive and militant action on the ground. Between 2019 and 2020, the young and the poor made Chile ungovernable. Engaging in running battles with the Police and facing-down the army’s bullets, they rendered the political class and its mainstream media mouthpieces increasingly irrelevant to what ...4 days ago- National is falling apart
You’ve really got to wonder what possessed MP Simon Bridges to blatantly lie about gang violence he claimed to have witnessed yesterday.Perhaps he was just a bit desperate for some attention being that the headlines haven’t be very flattering for the National Party lately.His belief that misleading the public and ...4 days ago- How Are We Progressing with the War on Poverty?
Child Poverty Levels Are only Slowly Coming Down, What Next?Having settled on its macroeconomic settings, the Government then has to decide what to do with its revenue. In the 2021 Budget; it was largely committed to rolling forward existing spending, together with meeting some necessary commitments like dealing with covid ...5 days ago- They Are Us film should be made
Rose Byrne to play Jacinda Ardern in controversial movie ‘They Are Us’Framing is always an important aspect of media reports, especially when it comes to politics. In fact the way a story is framed can often determine whether a topic gains popular support or receives widespread public outrage.That’s been the ...5 days ago- The police lied to Parliament
Earlier today I blogged about the Ombudsman's final opinion on an OIA request for the police's "emissions-free fleet" strategy, in which the Ombudsman found that there never was such a strategy, and that the police repeatedly lied in an effort to hide that fact. But it turns out that I'm ...5 days ago- Spanish and Ukranian translations of The Debunking Handbook 2020
Since its publication last October, The Debunking Handbook 2020 has already been translated into 11 languages. Some of the translations have been created by volunteers who also help with Skeptical Science translations while others have been provided by outside or mixed teams. The Spanish translation was created by ...5 days ago- Tolkien and Anime: A Helm Hammerhand Adaptation
Now this is something I truly was not expecting. Warner Brothers is producing an Anime Movie of the story of Helm Hammerhand, titled The War of the Rohirrim:https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/lord-of-the-rings-anime-movie-in-the-works-from-new-line-warner-animation-group-1234965985/ My first instinct was to check the date. No, not 1st April. This is for real: a Tolkien story – one ...5 days ago- There was never an “emissions-free fleet” strategy
Last month, I did a post about my efforts to excavate the Police's "emissions-free fleet" strategy, and how my OIA request had been extended "for consultations", whizzed past its extended deadline, then refused as it would "soon be publicly available". My complaint to the Ombudsman gained an attempted explanation from ...5 days ago- As more climate migrants cross borders seeking refuge, laws will need to adapt
Katharine M. Donato, Georgetown University; Amanda Carrico, University of Colorado Boulder; and Jonathan M. Gilligan, Vanderbilt University Climate change is upending people’s lives around the world, but when droughts, floods or sea level rise force them to leave their countries, people often find closed borders and little assistance. Part ...5 days ago- Geoffrey Miller: New Zealand’s relationship with Saudi Arabia faces increasing scrutiny
While New Zealand’s problematic but lucrative relationship with China gets lots of attention, there’s another important and similar relationship with Saudi Arabia that gets less attention. International analyst Geoffrey Miller explains why Riyadh is too important for Wellington to ignore. New Zealand’s new ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Barney Riley, ...5 days ago- Research now backs routinely offering pregnant women the mRNA COVID-19 vaccine
Michelle Wise, University of Auckland New Zealand and Australia will now routinely offer the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine to women at any stage of pregnancy, following an update of vaccination advice. This comes as research suggests the risk of severe outcomes from infection is significantly higher for pregnant women compared to ...5 days ago- The Irish lough that offers a window into the deep sea
James Bell, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington; Rob McAllen, University College Cork, and Valerio Micaroni, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington Deeper than most scuba divers can safely work and above where most underwater robots are designed to descend lie some of the most ...5 days ago- The economics of killing Huntly
RNZ reports that Genesis Energy's use of coal has spiked over the past few years, as they use to burn it rather than pay for gas: New Zealand has significantly increased its use of coal in recent years, despite its status as the worst, most polluting fossil fuel on ...5 days ago- Media Link: “A View from Afar” on NZ security strategy and the end of neoliberalism in South Ame...
I have not had much time to blog in recent weeks but continue the weekly series of podcasts with Selwyn Manning. This week we discussed efforts to develop a comprehensive national security strategy for New Zealand that goes beyond Defense White Papers and annual reports from various security agencies, then ...6 days ago- Bryce Edwards: Political Roundup – Reforming the Official Information Act is a democratic test for...
In promising to be New Zealand’s most open and transparent government ever, Labour has one key challenge: reform the Official Information Act. This vital piece of machinery for democracy is in terrible disrepair, and the Government has promised to rewrite it for the modern age, but so far are stalling ...6 days ago- Hard Questions – Hard Answers.
6 days ago- Ian Powell: Lessons for NZ from Cuba, the Covid-19 vaccine powerhouse?
What can New Zealand learn from Cuba about fighting Covid-19? Plenty, especially in terms of producing vaccines, according to Health commentator Ian Powell. As the Medical Director for the Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners Dr Bryan Betty is an important leadership voice for general practitioners. He is also ...6 days ago- Daniel Greene and the Mechanics of Writing Sex Scenes
YouTube fantasy commentator Daniel Greene has weighed in with a discussion of poorly written genre sex scenes: Now, the examples Greene cites are indeed poorly written… but they are not the sort of thing I see in published fantasy literature. Greene’s examples actually smack of fan-fiction, whereas ...6 days ago- Another sign of MBIE’s captivity
When the government asks the public to conserve electricity, its usually because we're on the edge of a supply crisis, and its necessary to ensure our own lights will stay on. And when it does that, people generally buy into it, because they can see the reason. But last month, ...6 days ago- A republic is demographicly irresistable
Via New Zealand Republic: younger kiwis support a republic (where "younger" is basicly "people under 50"): There's a bit more on NewsHub here. This is basicly like the support graph for Scottish independence, which seems to have become demographicly irresistable. Sadly, Jacinda Ardern - who implicitly claims to be ...6 days ago- Good riddance to the Tasman Mill
Last night Norske Skog announced it will close the Tasman Mill at the end of the month, with the loss of 160 jobs. Good. This mill is a major source of emissions, and in 2019 we subsidised it to the tune of 238342 tons - meaning it was about 0.3% ...6 days ago- Speaker: Adventures In Gender Identity
It started during a recent visit to a gynaecologist. Don’t worry, I’m fine. I felt an intense discomfort as I picked up my prescription and I knew immediately that this was gender dysphoria. I’d experienced it many times before but my understanding of it in the past was so narrow and ...7 days ago- Why Indigenous knowledge should be an essential part of how we govern the world’s oceans
Meg Parsons, University of Auckland and Lara Taylor, Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research Our moana (ocean) is in a state of unprecedented ecological crisis. Multiple, cumulative impacts include pollution, sedimentation, overfishing, drilling and climate change. All affect the health of both marine life and coastal communities. To reverse the ...7 days ago- Skeptical Science New Research for Week #23, 2021
LIfe cycle analysis of "Dirk" Life cycle analysis (LCA) is a method used to evaluate the environmental impact of a product through its life cycle encompassing extraction and processing of the raw materials, manufacturing, distribution, use, recycling, and final disposal. From: Journal of Environmental Management, 2010. -- Science Direct Continuing with getting ...1 week ago- Climate Change: Scammed
Reading the Climate Change Commission's final advice, the obvious question is why their budgets are so much higher than those proposed in their draft (by about half a year's emissions over 14 years)? Simple: we're being baseline-scammed. The draft report set its budget based on 2018 emissions: But the ...1 week ago- Musings on J.K. Rowling and That Issue
Oh dear. Today I will tentatively offer some thoughts on that issue that has been rumbling along for some time. J.K. Rowling’s truly… interesting… obsession with transgenderism. I realise that I am coming rather late to the subject, but honestly Rowling’s tendency for outbursts means that the issue will ...1 week ago- A mini-Official Secrets Act for the Reserve Bank
The Finance and Expenditure Committee has reported back on the Reserve Bank of New Zealand Bill. Part of the bill is a new confidentiality clause, restricting publication or disclosure of information obtained using the bank's information-gathering powers. The first-reading version was actually good, with explicit recognition of the OIA. So ...1 week ago- Genomic solutions for a plant taonga: a high-quality rewarewa genome
Illustration credit: “Seven Sisters, Knightia excelsa” Jennifer Duval-Smith By Plant & Food Research High Quality Genomes project co-leader David Chagné The completion of the native rewarewa (Knightia excelsa) tree genome sequence is demonstrating New Zealand is now taking charge of producing genomes on its native species. These are species that ...1 week ago- Climate Change: Committing to failure again
The Climate Change Commission released its final advice to the government today, and the media is full of reports about how "ambitious" it is. Bullshit. Because when you look at the budgets - the only thing in the entire document that actually matters and has legal weight - they tell ...1 week ago- Bryce Edwards: Political Roundup – Jacinda Ardern’s opaque government by PR
One of the most important, and scathing, critiques of Jacinda Ardern’s Government was published this week by senior political journalist Andrea Vance. She reveals how the current administration has become adept and determined at keeping information secret and the public in the dark about crucial issues. You can read her ...1 week ago- Member’s Day
Today is a Member's Day, the first since the Budget. Unfortunately it looks like most of the time will be taken up with boring committee stages. First up is Anahila Kanongata’a-Suisuiki's District Court (Protection of Judgment Debtors with Disabilities) Amendment Bill, followed by Louise Upston's Rights for Victims of Insane ...1 week ago- A Failure of Tone: The National Party’s Week of Woe.
Tone Deaf? From a party-political point of view (and what other point of view should a National Party MP be taking?) Paul Goldsmith’s comments regarding the “benefits” of colonisation merely played into the fast-solidifying narrative of National being a stale white bread party that can’t get out of its own way ...1 week ago- How virus detectives trace the origins of an outbreak – and why it’s so tricky
Marilyn J. Roossinck, Penn State Every time there is a major disease outbreak, one of the first questions scientists and the public ask is: “Where did this come from?” In order to predict and prevent future pandemics like COVID-19, researchers need to find the origin of the viruses that ...1 week ago- Self-inflicted “poverty”
Nurses are going on strike tomorrow in pursuit of better pay and higher staffing levels. So why isn't the "Labour" government paying them properly? Apparently, they're pleading poverty: Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says the nurses’ union wanted a 17 per cent pay increase for all nurses, but the Government ...1 week ago- Surrendered II
Good news on the climate front: OMV's surrender of its exploration permits in the Great South Basin, announced last December, has finally gone through. But there's other good news as well: from the sudden hole in NZPAM's permit map, they've also surrendered a pair of permits - 51906 (Matuku) and ...1 week ago- From smallpox to polio, vaccine rollouts have always had doubters. But they work in the end
David Isaacs, University of Sydney In 2019, before COVID-19, the World Health Organization (WHO) identified vaccine hesitancy as one of the top ten greatest threats to global health. Every year, vaccination saves around 4-5 million lives, although a further 1.5 million lives could be saved annually with improved global ...1 week ago- How much is the Greens’ reputation worth?
$54,000, apparently: The Green Party says it won’t return two five-figure donations from a woman convicted of animal neglect which required several horses to be put down. Three weeks before being sentenced in the District Court for animal neglect described by the SPCA as amongst the worst it had ...1 week ago- What would sustainable tourism really mean for New Zealand? Let’s ask the river
Jason Paul Mika, Massey University and Regina Scheyvens, Massey University Excitement among Cook Islands tourism operators and officials at the opening of quarantine-free travel with Aotearoa New Zealand was understandable. The impact of the pandemic on the island nation’s economy has been massive and will be felt for a ...1 week ago- Power from the ocean: can we use bio-fouling organisms to help extract energy from waves?
Craig Stevens, National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research; Louise Kregting, Queen’s University Belfast, and Vladislav Sorokin, University of Auckland People living near the coast are familiar with the power of ocean waves. What we see when a typical wave breaks on a beach is the endpoint of a global ...1 week ago- Cooling effect of clouds ‘underestimated’ by climate models, says new study
This is a re-post from Carbon Brief by Ayesha Tandon Clouds could have a greater cooling effect on the planet than climate models currently suggest, according to new research. The paper, published in Nature Climate Change, aims to correct a “long-standing” and “unaddressed” problem in climate modelling – namely, that existing models ...1 week ago- Perilous Treasures – accepted
In a good bit of news, I’ve had another short story acceptance. My 1750-word (loose) Historical-Fiction piece, Perilous Treasures, will feature in the upcoming Summer Solstice edition of Eternal Haunted Summer (https://eternalhauntedsummer.com/). This one is a fictional elaboration on an earlier blog post of mine, specifically about ...1 week ago- 2021 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Update #23
Listing of articles linked to on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, May 30, 2021 through Sat, June 6, 2021 This week we included links to some older videos which we think are still valuable because they provide some good basic information about climate science, like Kerry ...1 week ago- The Adventures of Not-Annalax: A D&D Interlude
Session forty-nine. Recall the terrible situation the party was in at the end of the previous session: Annalax and Elknel fleeing for their lives through the forest, with the rest of the party being dragged away by Nightmare Creatures. Well, the DM had a cunning plan on how ...1 week ago- Unpacking Peggy McIntosh’s Knapsack
This article in Quillette by William Ray takes a look at the origins of the concept of white privilege. Ray was a volunteer in an imperialist army in the former Yugoslavia where he saw up close the horrors of identity politics being played out. [White Privilege is] the unquestioned and unearned ...1 week ago- Update of NZ fluoridation review timely and useful
Image credit: Kurt:S/Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0). An updated New Zealand scientific review of community water fluoridation (CWF) finds that CWF in New Zealand is safe and effective. The new review, Fluoridation: an update on evidence, was published by the New Zealand Prime Minister’s Chief Science Advisor Juliet Gerrard FRSNZ HonFRSC. It examines ...2 weeks ago- Who Poses the Bigger Threat: The Far Right, Or the Far Left?
2 weeks ago- Tampering with Tradition: The Regent Booksale On the Move
First Scribes Bookshop closing… now changes are afoot with the famous Regent Booksale. Clearly, second-hand book purchases in Dunedin will never be the same again.
I have written before about my annual midnight visit ... 2 weeks ago- A Boringly Benign Economy or Going Through a Concerning Climacteric?
What was the big change the Treasury saw in its budget 2021 forecasts?For much of the time, an economy is in a boringly benign phase. New Zealand seems to be in one at the moment. This is not the way the commentariat present it. To grab your attention they magnify ...2 weeks ago- Climate Change: Dereliction of duty
Before the pandemic, air travel was one of the fastest growing causes of greenhouse gas emissions. Fully half of those emissions are caused by a global elite of super-emitting frequent flyers, so the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment's proposal in February to discourage it with distance-related departue taxes seems like ...2 weeks ago- We performed magic tricks on birds to see how they perceive the world
Elias Garcia-Pelegrin, University of Cambridge Magic tricks can teach us about how the brain works. Magic capitalises on very specific blind spots in people’s attention and perception so the techniques that magicians use to trick audiences are particularly interesting to psychologists like me. Misdirection, for example, relies on the ...2 weeks ago - Silent calamity: The health impacts of wildfire smoke
- Acting boldly to address the housing crisis so we all thrive
Tēnā koe Minister Woods, ...15 hours ago - Addressing period poverty in schools
Today, we’re taking the next step in our work to support children and young people in poverty, starting to roll out free period products in more than 1,600 schools and kura across New Zealand. ...2 days ago - Dawn Raids apology welcomed, needs to be backed up with amnestyThe Green Party’s Te Mātāwaka Māori and Pasifika Caucus welcomes an announcement today by the Prime Minister to apologise for the Dawn Raids. ...2 days ago
- Making cleaner cars accessible to more KiwisToday, we’re taking action in line with the advice of the Climate Change Commission to reduce our carbon footprint, so future generations have a fair go. Our Clean Car package, announced this morning, delivers on our promise to cut transport emissions. It will make it easier to make the switch ...3 days ago
- Green Party set to deliver open letter to Immigration Minister with 17k signaturesThe Green Party will deliver its open letter asking the Minister for Immigration to fix the broken immigration system next week. ...4 days ago
- Dr Elizabeth Kerekere receives her COVID-19 vaccinationToday, Green Party MP Dr Elizabeth Kerekere received her COVID-19 vaccination from Tamaiti Whāngai COVID-19 vaccination centre, which had its official opening yesterday. ...6 days ago
- Our action on climate changeIn 2019, we established the Climate Change Commission to provide independent advice on climate change action and to hold this Government and future Governments to account. Today, the Commission's final advice was released. It sets out the total amount of global warming pollution Aotearoa must cut by 2035 to be ...1 week ago
- Our action on climate changeIn 2019, we established the Climate Change Commission to provide independent advice on climate change action and to hold this Government and future Governments to account. Today, the Commission's final advice was released. It sets out the total amount of global warming pollution Aotearoa must cut by 2035 to be ...1 week ago
- It’s time to get behind our nursesThe Green Party supports the 30,000 nurses striking today for better pay and safer working conditions. ...1 week ago
- Celebrating our oceansAotearoa New Zealand is surrounded by Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa, the Pacific Ocean. The ocean is central to our identities and to our ecosystems. The Big Blue both isolates us from other countries and connects us to our Pacific neighbours. We have the seventh largest maritime area in the world, ranging from ...1 week ago
- Caring for the land, caring for peopleHere in New Zealand, we have a remarkable natural environment, with unique ecosystems and native species. It’s taken millions of years for Aotearoa to develop this precious environment – and it’s up to us to protect it! In collaboration with communities across the country, we’re doing just that. ...2 weeks ago
- Caring for the land, caring for peopleHere in New Zealand, we have a remarkable natural environment, with unique ecosystems and native species. It’s taken millions of years for Aotearoa to develop this precious environment – and it’s up to us to protect it! In collaboration with communities across the country, we’re doing just that. ...2 weeks ago
- How much do you know about Aotearoa’s unique environment?Test your knowledge this World Environment Day! Think you’re a nature super-fan? Can’t tell a kauri from a kāmahi? To celebrate World Environment Day this week, we’ve put together a quiz to test how much you know about Te Taiao. Flex your nature muscles or learn something new about the ...2 weeks ago
- Green Party MP Golriz Ghahraman receives her COVID-19 vaccinationToday Green Party MP Golriz Ghahraman, who is immunocompromised, received her first COVID-19 vaccination at the Auckland CBD vaccination centre. ...2 weeks ago
- Greens welcome Auckland walking and cycling bridge, call for more climate focusThe Green Party is welcoming the Government’s renewed commitment to safe walking and cycling across the Waitematā Harbour, but warning that new highway investment puts our response to the climate change emergency at risk. ...2 weeks ago
- Greens call for Facebook to be held accountable for role in spreading disinformationThe Green Party is calling on the Government to hold Facebook accountable for its role in enabling behaviour which threatens democracy, by strongly regulating data privacy and the spread of dangerous disinformation. ...2 weeks ago
- Greens call for more protection of native whitebait species at risk of extinctionThe Green Party is pleased to see new whitebaiting measures, announced today, to establish a more consistent management regime across the country, but we must go further, faster, to protect our native taonga. ...2 weeks ago
- Greens’ Māori Caucus Te Mātāwaka call for Matariki Ahunga Nui to be expanded in school curricul...The Green Party are calling for an expansion of the current school curriculum on Matariki, so that a deeper understanding of how it relates to managing and harvesting food is explored. This push comes at the start of the Matariki season, the final year before it is set to become ...2 weeks ago
- Green Party launches petition for publicly-owned public transportThe Green Party is launching a petition calling on the Government to remove legislative barriers to public ownership of our public transport depots, vehicles and services. ...2 weeks ago
- Greens urge Government to stick to no new mines commitment in stewardship land review and reclassifi...The Green Party is urging the Government to stick with its 2017 commitment to no new mines on public conservation land, as the Government speeds up the review and reclassification process for stewardship land, which comprises a third of the public conservation estate. ...3 weeks ago
- Prime Minister mourns passing of Dr Sir Ian Hassall
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is mourning the passing of Dr Sir Ian Hassall, New Zealand’s first Children’s Commissioner and lifelong champion for children and children’s health. As a paediatrician Sir Ian contributed to a major world-first cot death study that has been directly credited with reducing cot deaths in New ...5 hours ago - APEC structural reform meeting a successAPEC ministers have agreed working together will be crucial to ensure economies recover from the impact of COVID-19. Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs David Clark, chaired the virtual APEC Structural Reform Ministerial Meeting today which revolved around the overarching theme of promoting balanced, inclusive, sustainable, innovative and secure growth ...7 hours ago
- Digital hub to boost investment in forestryA new website has been launched at Fieldays to support the forestry sector find the information it needs to plant, grow and manage trees, and to encourage investment across the wider industry. Forestry Minister Stuart Nash says the new Canopy website is tailored for farmers, iwi and other forestry interests, ...8 hours ago
- Government continues support for rangatahi to get into employment, education and trainingOver 230 rangatahi are set to benefit from further funding through four new He Poutama Rangatahi programmes, Minister for Social Development and Employment Carmel Sepuloni announced today. “We’re continuing to secure our economic recovery from COVID by investing in opportunities for rangatahi to get into meaningful employment, education or training ...9 hours ago
- NCEA subjects up for consultationThe education sector, students, their parents, whānau and communities are invited to share their thoughts on a list of proposed NCEA subjects released today, Education Minister Chris Hipkins says. This is a significant part of the Government’s NCEA Change Programme that commenced in 2020 and will be largely implemented by ...11 hours ago
- Major investment in plantain forage programme aims to improve freshwater qualityThe Government is backing a major programme investigating plantain’s potential to help farmers protect waterways and improve freshwater quality, Acting Agriculture Minister Meka Whaitiri announced at Fieldays today. The Sustainable Food and Fibre Futures (SFFF) fund is contributing $8.98 million to the $22.23 million seven-year programme, which aims to deliver ...11 hours ago
- America’s Cup decisionThe Minister responsible for the America’s Cup has confirmed the joint Crown-Auckland Council offer to host the next regatta has been declined by the Board of Team New Zealand. “The exclusive period of negotiation between the Crown, Auckland Council, and Team New Zealand ends tomorrow, 17 June,” said Stuart Nash. ...12 hours ago
- Food and fibres sector making significant strides towards New Zealand’s economic recoveryThe Government is backing the food and fibres sector to lead New Zealand's economic recovery from COVID-19 with targeted investments as part of its Fit for a Better World roadmap, Forestry Minister Stuart Nash said. “To drive New Zealand’s recovery, we launched the Fit for a Better World – Accelerating ...13 hours ago
- Cost of Government Southern Response proactive package releasedThe Government has announced the proactive package for some Southern Response policyholders could cost $313 million if all those eligible apply. In December, the Minister Responsible for the Earthquake Commission, David Clark announced a proactive package for SRES claimants who settled their claims before October 2014. It trailed the judgment ...1 day ago
- New support to reduce emissions from public building and construction projectsGovernment agencies are getting new support to reduce carbon emissions generated by construction of new buildings, with the release of practical guidance to shape decisions on public projects. The Ministers for Building and Construction and for Economic Development say a new Procurement Guide will help government agencies, private sector suppliers, ...1 day ago
- He Whenua Taurikura: New Zealand’s first Hui on Countering Terrorism and Violent ExtremismThe Prime Minister has opened New Zealand’s first hui on Countering Terrorism and Violent Extremism, which is being held in Christchurch over the next two days. The hui delivers on one of the recommendations from the report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the terrorist attack on Christchurch masjidain ...1 day ago
- Speech to inaugural Countering Terrorism HuiE aku nui, e aku rahi, Te whaka-kanohi mai o rātou mā, Ru-ruku-tia i runga i te ngākau whakapono, Ru-ruku-tia i runga i te ngākau aroha, Waitaha, Ngāti Mamoe, Ngai Tahu, nāu rā te reo pohiri. Tena tātou katoa. Ki te kotahi te kakaho ka whati, ki te kapuia, e ...1 day ago
- Campaign shines a light on elder abuseA new campaign is shining a spotlight on elder abuse, and urging people to protect older New Zealanders. Launched on World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, the Office for Seniors’ campaign encourages friends, whānau and neighbours to look for the signs of abuse, which is often hidden in plain sight. “Research suggests ...2 days ago
- Farewelling sports administrator and philanthropist Sir Eion EdgarSport and Recreation Minister Grant Robertson today expressed his sorrow at the passing of Sir Eion Edgar – a leading sports administrator and celebrated philanthropist who has made a significant impact both within and beyond the sport sector. “Sir Eion’s energy, drive and generosity has been truly immense. He leaves ...2 days ago
- Government to apologise for Dawn RaidsThe Government will make a formal apology for the wrongs committed during the Dawn Raids of the 1970’s. Between 1974 and 1976, a series of rigorous immigration enforcement policies were carried out that resulted in targeted raids on the homes of Pacific families. The raids to find, convict and deport overstayers ...2 days ago
- Humanitarian support for Bangladesh and MyanmarForeign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta today announced that New Zealand is providing NZ $8.25 million in humanitarian assistance to support refugees and their host populations in Bangladesh and to support humanitarian need of internally displaced and conflict affected people in Myanmar. “Nearly four years after 900,000 Rohingya crossed the border ...2 days ago
- Poroporoaki: Dame Georgina Kamiria KirbyE Te Kōkō Tangiwai, Te Tuhi Mareikura, Te Kākākura Pokai kua riro i a matou. He toka tū moana ākinga ā tai, ākinga ā hau, ākinga ā ngaru tūātea. Haere atu rā ki te mūrau a te tini, ki te wenerau a te mano. E tae koe ki ngā rire ...2 days ago
- Feedback sought on future of housing and urban developmentNew Zealanders are encouraged to have their say on a long-term vision for housing and urban development to guide future work, the Housing Minister Megan Woods has announced. Consultation starts today on a Government Policy Statement on Housing and Urban Development (GPS-HUD), which will support the long-term direction of Aotearoa ...3 days ago
- Clean car package to drive down emissionsNew rebates for electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles start July 1 with up to $8,625 for new vehicles and $3,450 for used. Electric vehicle chargers now available every 75km along most state highways to give Kiwis confidence. Low Emission Transport Fund will have nearly four times the funding by 2023 ...3 days ago
- Progress towards simpler process for changing sex on birth certificatesThe Government is taking the next step to support transgender, non-binary and intersex New Zealanders, by progressing the Births, Deaths, Marriages and Relationships Registration Bill, Minister of Internal Affairs, Jan Tinetti announced today. “This Government understands that self-identification is a significant issue for transgender, non-binary and intersex New Zealanders, and ...4 days ago
- Crown speeds up engagement with takutai moana applicantsThe Crown is taking a new approach to takutai moana applications to give all applicants an opportunity to engage with the Crown and better support the Māori-Crown relationship, Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations Minister Andrew Little says. Following discussions with applicant groups, the Crown has reviewed the existing takutai moana application ...4 days ago
- Alcohol and Other Drug Treatment (AODT) Court opensThe Minister of Justice, Kris Faafoi, and the Minister for Courts, Aupito William Sio, have welcomed the opening of a new Alcohol and Other Drug Treatment (AODT) Court in Hamilton. The AODT Court (Te Whare Whakapiki Wairua) addresses situations where substance abuse and offending are intertwined. “New Zealanders have told ...5 days ago
- EU and UK FTAs top of list for first ministerial trip since COVID-19Trade and Export Growth Minister Damien O’Connor today announced details of his planned visit to the United Kingdom and European Union next week, where he will hold trade and agriculture discussions to further New Zealand’s economic recovery from COVID-19. The visit will add political weight to ongoing negotiations with both the EU ...5 days ago
- Arihia Bennett to chair Royal Commission Ministerial Advisory GroupTe Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu chief executive Arihia Bennett MNZM has been appointed chair of the newly appointed Ministerial Advisory Group on the Government’s Response to the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the terrorist attack on Christchurch mosques. “Twenty-eight people from diverse backgrounds across Aotearoa have been selected for the ...5 days ago
- Speech to the New Zealand Medical Association General Practitioners' Conference, RotoruaKi ngā pou maha o te whare hauora o Aotearoa, kei te mihiTo the pillars of our health system I acknowledge/thank you Ki te ope hapai hauora o roto o tēnei rūma, kei te mihi To our health force here in the room today, I acknowledge/thank you He taura tangata, ...5 days ago
- Karangahape Road upgrades are streets aheadThe upgrades to Karangahape Road makes the iconic street more pedestrian and cycle-friendly, attractive and environmentally sustainable, Transport Minister Michael Wood and Auckland Mayor Phil Goff said at the formal celebration of the completion of the Karangahape Road Enhancements project. The project included widening footpaths supporting a better outdoor dining ...6 days ago
- Speech to APEC business eventE ngā tumu herenga waka, ākina ā ngaru, ākina ā tai ka whakatere ngā waka ki te whakapapa pounamu, otirā, ki Tamaki o ngā waka Tena koutou katoa… To the great leaders assembled, who guided your waka through turbulent times, challenging waters and you continue to navigate your respective waka ...6 days ago
- Pause on Quarantine Free Travel with Victoria extendedFollowing an assessment of the COVID-19 outbreak in greater Melbourne, New Zealand’s Quarantine Free Travel pause with Victoria will continue for a further seven days, COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins says. There are now 93 cases associated with the outbreak in greater Melbourne, spread over four clusters. Contact tracing efforts ...6 days ago
- Supplier Diversity Aotearoa Summit: Navigate 2021*** Check with delivery *** A mihi to all who have contributed to making today a success – starting with you! As you have explored and navigated government procurement today you will hopefully have reflected on the journey of our people so far – and how you can make a ...6 days ago
- Pukemiro School to closePukemiro Primary School near Huntly will close following years of declining roll numbers, Education Minister Chris Hipkins announced today. “I’ve consulted with the School Commissioner, and this decision acknowledges the fact that the few remaining students from last term are now settled at other nearby schools. “I want to thank ...6 days ago
- Govt acts to protect NZers from harmful contentNew Zealanders will be better protected from harmful or illegal content as a result of work to design a modern, flexible and coherent regulatory framework, Minister of Internal Affairs Jan Tinetti announced today. New Zealand currently has a content regulatory system that is comprised of six different arrangements covering some ...6 days ago
- Consultation on exemption of new builds from proposed tax rulesThe Government has today confirmed new builds will be exempt from planned changes to the tax treatment of residential investment property. Public consultation is now open on details of the proposals, which stop interest deductions being claimed for residential investment properties other than new builds. “The Government’s goal is to ...6 days ago
- Speech for Predator Free 2050 ConferenceIntroduction E ngā mana E ngā reo E ngā iwi Tēnā koutou katoa Ka huri ki ngā mana whenua o te rohe nei. Tēnā koutou He mihi hoki ki a tatou kua tau mai nei i raro i te kaupapa o te rā Ko Ayesha Verrall toku ingoa No ...7 days ago
- New stock exchange to help grow small businessesA new share trading market, designed as a gateway to the NZX for small-to-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), has been granted a licence by the Government. Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister, David Clark said Catalist Markets Ltd will provide a simpler and more affordable ‘stepping stone’ for SMEs to raise capital. “This ...7 days ago
- Visa extensions provide certainty to employers and 10,000 visa holdersChanges to onshore visas will provide employers and visa holders with more certainty, Immigration Minister Kris Faafoi has announced. Around 10,000 Working Holiday visas and Supplementary Seasonal Employment (SSE) work visas due to expire between 21 June 2021 and 31 December 2021 will be extended for another six months to ...7 days ago
- Border class exceptions approved for more farm workers and vetsThe Government has approved border class exceptions for an additional 200 dairy workers and 50 veterinarians to enter New Zealand, Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor announced today. “It is clear from conversations with the dairy and veterinarian sectors that they are facing workforce pressures. These border exceptions will go a long ...7 days ago
- More freezers and South Island hub to support vaccine roll-outA South Island hub and 17 new ultra-low temperature freezers will help further prepare New Zealand for the ramp up of the vaccination programme in the second half of this year, COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins says. The new freezers arrived in New Zealand on 27 May. They’re currently being ...1 week ago
- Speech at the release of Climate Change Commission's final adviceGood morning – and thank you Prime Minister. Over the last three and half years we have been putting in place the foundations for a low-carbon Aotearoa that will be a catalyst for job creation, innovation, and prosperity for decades to come. In that future, many of our everyday tasks ...1 week ago
- Achievable blueprint for addressing climate change releasedReport says Government making good progress on emissions reduction, but more action required Meeting climate targets achievable and affordable with existing technology Economic cost of delaying action higher than taking action now Benefits from climate action include health improvements and lower energy bills All Ministers to help meet climate targets ...1 week ago
- Speech to release of Climate Commission final reportA few years ago in a speech in Auckland, I compared climate change to the nuclear free movement of roughly four decades ago. And I did so for a few reasons. Firstly, because the movement of the 1980s represented a life or death situation for the Pacific, and so does ...1 week ago
- Bryce Edwards: Cash for access to politicians continues
Opinion - News reports of questionable donations and fundraising have been building up over recent years, and this year it only seems to be escalating, Bryce Edwards writes. ...1 hour ago - European Masterpieces from the Met demonstrates art’s power to speak to the human condition
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alastair Blanshard, Paul Eliadis Chair of Classics and Ancient History, The University of Queensland Caravaggio (Michelangelo Merisi) Italy 1571–1610 The Musicians 1597 Oil on canvas 92.1 x 118.4cm Rogers Fund, 1952 / 52.81 Collection: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York The ...2 hours ago - Five burning questions in the NZ v India battle for cricket’s biggest prize
Following a staggering seven-year turnaround in form, the Black Caps have arrived in Southampton to take on India for the World Test Championship final. Michael Appleton has been thinking about it a lot. These questions especially.The inaugural World Test Championship final starts on Friday. It will feature probably the best ...2 hours ago - 'No one's listening': Mike King returns medal, says mental health funding wastedMental health funding has failed - that's the message from mental health advocate and entertainment personality Mike King. ...2 hours ago
- Politics with Michelle Grattan: Acting PM Michael McCormack on net zero 2050 and prospects for a new...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra With Scott Morrison overseas, Nationals leader Michael McCormack has been Acting Prime Minister this week. In this podcast, he speaks about the free trade agreement with the UK, climate change, coal, the Nationals, and China. ...3 hours ago
- Seeing the invisible: tiny crystal films could make night vision an everyday realitySource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rocio Camacho Morales, Postdoctoral fellow, Australian National University Artist’s impression of the view through future night-vision glasses. Lei Xu / NTU, Author provided It’s a familiar vision to anyone who has watched a lot of action movies or played Call of Duty: ...4 hours ago
- Police debacle leaves the McGowan government battling to rebuild public trust in the SafeWA appSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tama Leaver, Professor of Internet Studies, Curtin University QR code contact-tracing apps are a crucial part of our defence against COVID-19. But their value depends on being widely used, which in turn means people using these apps need to be confident their ...4 hours ago
- There’s a lot we don’t know about the UK trade agreement we are about to signSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Patricia Ranald, Honorary research fellow, University of Sydney We’re being told about the new Australia-United Kingdom Free Trade Agreement, but not a lot about most of what’s in it. After an in-principle agreement overnight, Australia released a five-page summary. Australian farmers will ...5 hours ago
- Curious Kids: when a snake sheds its skin, why isn’t it colourful?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Damian Lettoof, PhD Candidate, Curtin University A bush viper slithering out of its skin. Shutterstock When a snake sheds its skin, why isn’t it colourful? Yahya, aged eight Thanks for the question Yahya! Snakes come in all ...5 hours ago
- APEC Structural Reform Ministers Issue Joint Statement
Issued by the 3rd APEC Structural Reform Ministerial Meeting Wellington, New Zealand, 16 June 2021 Ministers responsible for structural reform from APEC member economies issued a joint statement following their virtual meeting on 16 June 2021. The statement ...5 hours ago - Diverse spokespeople and humour: how the government’s next ad campaign could boost COVID vaccine u...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jessica Kaufman, Research Fellow, Vaccine Uptake Group, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute Shutterstock The federal government recently indicated it will launch a new COVID-19 vaccine advertising campaign in July, targeting younger Australians under 40. To date, federal vaccine promotion efforts have ...5 hours ago
- Jamboree is back! The triumphant return of The Spinoff’s gossip columnGossip Week: Six years ago, The Spinoff launched its gossip column. A few weeks later The Spinoff buried its gossip column forever. But, soft: what hand is that reaching out of yonder grave?All week, The Spinoff is taking a look at the role of gossip in Aotearoa’s past, present and ...6 hours ago
- Let’s talk about what each uni does, but don’t make it a choice between teaching or researchSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gwilym Croucher, Melbourne Centre for the Study of Higher Education, The University of Melbourne Shutterstock Federal Education Minister Alan Tudge has called on Australian universities to “start a conversation about how we can support greater differentiation and specialisation in the ...6 hours ago
- Spiders are cloaking Gippsland with stunning webs after the floods. An expert explains whySource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lizzy Lowe, Researcher, Macquarie University Darren Carney Stunning photographs of vast, ghostly spider webs blanketing the flood-affected region of Gippsland in Victoria have gone viral online, prompting many to muse on the wonder of nature. But what’s going on ...6 hours ago
- Friendlyjordies producer arrest: what is the NSW Police Fixated Persons Investigations Unit and when...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Keiran Hardy, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Griffith Criminology Institute, Griffith University (YouTube: Friendlyjordies) A producer for YouTube comedian Friendlyjordies was recently arrested for allegedly stalking and intimidating NSW Deputy Premier John Barilaro, following investigations by the Fixated Persons Investigations Unit (FPIU) ...7 hours ago
- Dannevirke Man Sentenced For Child Sexual Abuse MaterialDannevirke man Bradley Dean Johnson, 43, has today been sentenced to four and a half years in prison on multiple charges relating to the possession of child sexual exploitation material after pleading guilty in the Palmerston North District Court. ...8 hours ago
- As organised crime makes headlines, are bikie gangs the threat they are made out to be?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Terry Goldsworthy, Associate Professor in Criminology, Bond University Victoria Police Organised crime has been front page news after the Australian Federal Police revealed its pivotal role in a multinational sting, three years in the making. Along with drug cartels, ...8 hours ago
- National’s Plan For Corrections Assaults Doesn’t Go Far EnoughThe National Party’s ‘five-point plan’ to curb the rise in inmates assaulting prison officers doesn’t go far enough and continues to ignore the Corrections Association’s plea for the introduction of harsher penalties, says Darroch Ball co-leader of Sensible ...8 hours ago
- In the age of the media mega-merger, the time has come for Platform New ZealandHal Crawford, former MediaWorks head of news, takes a look at the global trend for mega-mergers, what media is becoming, and how New Zealand can lead the world in video streaming.This post is also published on the writer’s Crawford Media newsletter. Sign up here. The primeval goop of global media is ...8 hours ago
- Feds Applauds UK-Australia Free Trade DealNews that Australia and the UK have signed a free trade agreement is a promising step forward in the fight against tariffs and protectionism, Federated Farmers says. "It reinforces the international rules-based trading framework and is important ...8 hours ago
- All the rebate-eligible electric vehicles for every budgetWith the arrival of a new rebate to encourage New Zealanders into EVs, more people than ever are considering trading in their gas-guzzler for a cleaner alternative. So what’s on the market, and how much will it cost you? Joe Canham runs down your options. This weekend the government announced ...9 hours ago
- Cleaning up Christchurch earthquake insurance mess “proactively” could cost the govt (or taxpaye...
Earthquakes, climate change and terrorism were embraced in press statements that flowed from the Beehive yesterday. We learned that cleaning up an insurance mess related to the Christchurch earthquakes – it’s being done through a “proactive package” for some Southern Response policyholders – could cost $313 million if all eligible ...9 hours ago - Office Of The Children's Commissioner Mourns Passing Of Sir Ian HassallThe Commissioner, Assistant Māori Commissioner and all the staff of the Office of the Children’s’ Commissioner mourns the passing of Dr Sir Ian Hassall – the first person appointed Children’s Commissioner for Aotearoa New Zealand. Sir ...10 hours ago
- New Data Shows High Rates Of Violence Experienced By Disabled PeopleNew data giving a more accurate picture of the high rates of interpersonal violence and sexual assault being experienced by disabled people in Aotearoa New Zealand has saddened but not surprised Disability Rights Commissioner Paula Tesoriero. The New ...10 hours ago
- MSD’s Scrutiny Of Wage Subsidy Recipients A Taxpayer VictoryThe New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union has welcomed the Ministry of Social Development’s confirmation that wage subsidy recipients will face renewed scrutiny and potential prosecution over their eligibility. Union spokesman Louis Houlbrooke says, “This ...11 hours ago
- Troy Kingi’s brush with deathThe musician, actor and Masked Singer tells us about a terrifying underwater experience in this week’s episode of FIRST.The Black Rocks, found nine kilometres north of Paihia in the Bay of Islands, were formed over a million years ago by volcanic eruptions. Below the water, the rocks’ network of caves, ...11 hours ago
- Good News: Taxpayers Just Saved $99 MillionResponding to news that Team New Zealand has rejected the Government’s $99 million offer to host the America’s Cup in New Zealand, New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union spokesman Louis Houlbrooke says: “This is sad news for America’s Cup fans, but ...11 hours ago
- Awareness Of Asia’s Importance To New Zealand Grows, Despite ChallengesDespite the impacts of Covid-19, New Zealanders increasingly believe it is important for their country to build ties with Asia, new research from the Asia New Zealand Foundation shows. The latest report in the annual New Zealanders’ Perceptions of ...11 hours ago
- Green light to impose debt-to-income limits on housing investors
Government gives firm direction that new lending limits – if and when they are required – should not apply to home buyers The Finance Minister has approved lending limits for property investors who lack sufficient income to guarantee repayments in tough times. But Grant Robertson wants the new debt-to-income limits targeted at property ...11 hours ago - Summit To Amplify Community Voices And Solutions In Lead Up To World Refugee DayWith World Refugee Day just days away, key agencies from the Auckland resettlement sector are calling for fair and equitable policies, support structures and resources, to enable all forced migrant/former refugees to be self-sufficient and thrive in ...12 hours ago
- How a year of lockdown in London turned me into a gossip fiendGossip Week: After spending almost a year padding around her London flat and communicating only through screens, Elle Hunt is more than ready for a good gossip. All week, The Spinoff is taking a look at the role of gossip in Aotearoa’s past, present and future – read more Gossip Week ...12 hours ago
- Review: Patrick Gower: On P takes stock of the devastation wrought by meth in NZDespite moments of trademark Paddy Gower goofiness, the journalist’s new documentary does an impressive job at getting to the heart of the methamphetamine epidemic, writes Don Rowe.At first glance, “Patrick Gower on P” sounds more like an O-Week costume than a piece of investigative journalism. And as the documentary opens ...13 hours ago
- Red Cross Celebrates Former Refugees Who Helped Bring Aotearoa Together During The Toughest TimesThis World Refugee Day, 20 June, New Zealand Red Cross recognises the invaluable contributions former refugees across Aotearoa have made in bringing our communities together during New Zealand’s toughest times. They are caregivers, community support ...13 hours ago
- Trust Waikato Commits To Action On Equity And Climate ChangeTrust Waikato is excited to announce its commitment to equity and climate change statements, to enable urgent change for our communities and our environment. These commitments will help to achieve the Trust’s vision of vibrant and resilient communities, ...13 hours ago
- Govt Not Accepting Cheques Has Impacted Vulnerable New Zealanders, Says Brain Injury NZBrain Injury NZ is disheartened that government agencies and banks have stopped accepting cheques. This announcement goes alongside banks closing branches or limiting their opening hours. Brain Injury NZ is concerned about the impact on a number of ...13 hours ago
- Not At This Hui, And Not In Our NamesWe, Alternative Jewish Voices , hope for a productive and unifying second day at the Christchurch anti-terrorism hui. Security is something we build together and give each other. A threat may be singular, but our safety is collective. We are ...14 hours ago
- Big Macs drive inflation figures more than mortgages
The all-important CPI includes everything but the household cost that is foremost in most people's minds: mortgage payments ...14 hours ago - New Zealand Families Must Be ProtectedNew Zealand is ranked the worst nation among OECD countries for domestic violence with one in three women estimated to have been a victim of violence in their lifetime. Auckland tech company Jupl has been providing domestic violence protection solutions ...14 hours ago
- Why is everyone so obsessed with going to Mars? Here are some other worlds ripe for explorationSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gail Iles, Senior Lecturer in Physics, RMIT University Cassini Imaging Team, Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute Last month, China successfully landed and deployed the ‘Zhurong’ rover on Mars, becoming the second country ever to set wheels on the surface of ...15 hours ago
- In neglecting the National Archives, the Morrison government turns its back on the futureSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Judith Brett, Emeritus Professor of Politics, La Trobe University Wes Mountain/The Conversation, CC BY-ND Why didn’t the federal government increase funding for the National Archives of Australia in its recent budget? We know it wasn’t because of budget discipline. Money ...15 hours ago
- No, it’s not just a lack of control that makes Australians overweight. Here’s what’s driving o...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gary Sacks, Associate Professor, Deakin University Shutterstock Public health experts have long argued that when it comes to preventing obesity, we need to stop blaming individuals. Our new online tool, released today, confirms we live in an environment where ...15 hours ago
- Home quarantine for vaccinated returned travellers is extremely low risk, and won’t damage their m...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gregory Dore, Scientia Professor, Kirby Institute; Infectious Diseases Physician, St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney, UNSW Matt Dunham/AP/AAP Many thousands of people need to return to Australia, and many at home wish to reunite with partners and family abroad. A move away ...15 hours ago
- Peatlands worldwide are drying out, threatening to release 860 million tonnes of carbon dioxide ever...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Yuanyuan Huang, Research Scientist , CSIRO Shutterstock Peatlands, such as fens, bogs, marshes and swamps, cover just 3% of the Earth’s total land surface, yet store over one-third of the planet’s soil carbon. That’s more than the carbon stored in ...15 hours ago
- Many of us want to take our dogs on public transport, but others shudder at the thought — what’s...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jennifer Kent, Senior Research Fellow in Urbanism, University of Sydney Shutterstock We’ve being looking at the ways people travel with dogs and what it says about attempts to shift towards a more sustainable and healthier transport system. Our research first ...15 hours ago
- How the stunning abstract art of Hilma af Klint opens our eyes to new ways of seeingSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Joanna Mendelssohn, Principal Fellow (Hon), Victorian College of the Arts, University of Melbourne. Editor in Chief, Design and Art of Australia Online, The University of Melbourne Hilma af Klint, Group IX/UW, The dove, no 2. 1915. Oil on canvas, 155.5 x 115.5 ...15 hours ago
- One Canadian’s brave search for a decent plate of poutine in New ZealandFrom Burger Fuel’s ‘Vladimir Poutine’ to the Fed Deli’s ‘Montreal’ offering, NZ’s efforts are missing one crucial element, writes token Canadian and poutine correspondent Justin Giovannetti.Expectations were low when I was handed a take-away container of poutine from Burger Fuel. For starters, the ingredients were very wrong. Amplifying my concern, ...15 hours ago
- Live updates, June 16: Muslim community ‘marginalised’ by counter-terror huiWelcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for June 16, bringing you the latest news updated throughout the day. Get in touch at stewart@thespinoff.co.nz8.00am: Muslim community ‘marginalised’ by counter-terror huiSome in the Muslim community feel “marginalised” by a government-organised hui on counter-terrorism.The hui was one of the key recommendations from the ...15 hours ago
- The Bulletin: Rapid house price inflation continuesGood morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Rapid house price inflation continues, PM wrong about coming availability of grunty EVs, and police reveal other mass shootings around March 15 were foiled.Any hope that government interventions would immediately curb rampant house price inflation have been dashed by new ...16 hours ago
- The debate over transgender athletes’ rights is testing the current limits of science and the lawSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Claire Breen, Professor of Law, University of Waikato www.shutterstock.com The petition presented to parliament last week calling for trans women to be excluded from women’s sport is simply the latest round in a difficult and volatile global debate. Organised by ...16 hours ago
- Aotearoa Lags Behind As EU Moves To Ban Colony CagesLast week the European Parliament urged the European Commission to ban the caging of all farmed animals across the European Union by 2027. The resolution was adopted with overwhelming support from MEPs. It urged the Commission to revise the outdated ...17 hours ago
- Behind tensions at the terror hui
A walkout at a terrorism conference might have grabbed the headlines but what was simmering beneath it? David Williams reports ANALYSIS: The tension in the room was palpable. Christchurch Town Hall’s Limes Room came alive with shouts of “free Palestine!”, prompted by comments about a 2018 rally in Auckland supporting ...17 hours ago - Tayi Tibble, by Jane Ussher and Jordan Hamel
Jordan Hamel (words) and Jane Ussher (portraits) meet poet Tayi Tibble Like all good interviews, this one started late night in the jockeys’ quarters of Tauherenikau racecourse in Featherston, with Tayi reading from her new collection Rangikura after her reading at the Featherston Booktown Established v Emerging Poetry Showdown event. ...17 hours ago - Newsroom daily crossword, Wednesday 16 June
...17 hours ago - Newsroom daily quiz, Wednesday 16 June
Got a good quiz question? Send Newsroom your questions. ...17 hours ago - Memory Games: gymnast's breathless sprint for bronze
In our first Memory Games Q&A with LockerRoom writers who've been to the Olympics, New Zealand's 1988 Seoul Games rhythmic gymnast Angela Walker recalls the moment John Walker became her hero, wearing Mark Todd's gold - and hopes for our first trampolining medal. What was your very first Olympic memory? I was a ...17 hours ago - Newsroom's daily sudoku, Wednesday 16 June
...17 hours ago - Dumping on the Māori world view
A highly controversial dump in the Dome Valley north of Auckland can go ahead, despite huge Māori and Pākehā opposition and a defeat for and dissenting view from the environment panel's chair The rare frogs will be moved. The endangered long-tailed bats will adapt. Neighbours won't smell, see or hear ...17 hours ago - Juliet Moses Attack On Palestine Solidarity Protestors At The Christchurch Counter-terrorism Confere...15 June 2021 The New Zealand Jewish Council spokesperson Juliet Moses should never have been invited to speak at a counter-terrorism conference in the wake of the terror attack against New Zealand Muslims on 15 March 2019. As a mouthpiece for the Israeli ...17 hours ago
- Gossip found a new power in the #MeToo era. Here’s what needs to happen nextGossip Week: Three years ago, Zoe Lawton started an anonymous blog for people in the legal profession to share their stories of sexual harassment. Today, she reflects on the public impact of sharing this private information, and what needs to happen next for the #MeToo movement in Aotearoa.All week, The ...18 hours ago
- Buy now, pay later surging among older online shoppers
Contentious buy now, pay later finance model surges in popularity for over-60s ...18 hours ago - New tools open up world to big-spending population with disabilities
A dragon's den initiative has backed 13 entrepreneurs developing tools to improve access to life for one in four NZers. ...18 hours ago - Small homes, big ambitions
It's not just the big cities suffering from affordable housing issues - but the more remote areas of the country are getting no help, even if they're willing to help themselves. When Chris Bennett told people he wanted to build 100 affordable homes for $150,000 each in Golden Bay in ...18 hours ago - The women winners we don't see
Jo Cribb is uncomfortable with women's leadership awards that are only for some women. She explains why. ...18 hours ago - Government to regulate Facebook
The review announced in an overlooked press release will provide options for regulating social media platforms and issuing guidance in how they moderate content. ...18 hours ago - Boris Johnson overstates Morrison’s climate ambition, as Australia-UK trade agreement reachedSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra British Prime Minister Boris Johnson put Scott Morrison on the spot when he told their joint news conference he thought the Australian PM had “declared for net zero by 2050”. When Johnson made the statement ...22 hours ago
- Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: Cash for access to politicians continuesAnalysis by Bryce Edwards. Should anyone have trust in politicians, given the manner in which they solicit money from the wealthy? Probably not, since virtually every party in Parliament in recent times has been found to be involved in flaunting the law or accepting dodgy donations from the rich. News ...1 day ago
- Word from The Hill: the Biloela Tamil family, G7 and the upcoming parliamentary fortnightSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra As well as Michelle Grattan’s usual interviews with experts and politicians about the news of the day, Politics with Michelle Grattan now includes “Word from The Hill”, where all things political will be ...1 day ago
- Southern Response earthquake claims settlement package estimated at $313mThe package for some Southern Response policyholders could cost $313 million, if all those eligible apply. ...1 day ago
- The end of JobKeeper wasn’t a blip. It might have cost nearly 100,000 jobsSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University MultifacetedGirl/Shutterstock At its peak, more than 3.8 million Australians were on JobKeeper — three in every ten Australian workers. Adding in those workers already employed by government, it ...1 day ago
- Biloela family to be released into community detention – what happens now?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mary Anne Kenny, Associate Professor, School of Law, Murdoch University Federal immigration minister Alex Hawke has exercised his power to allow the Murugappan family from Biloela to live in the Perth community.The Tamil asylum seeker family was ...1 day ago
- Why do Tamil asylum seekers need protection — and why does the Australian government say they don...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Niro Kandasamy, Lecturer, Australian Catholic University Julian Smith/AAP Immigration Minister Alex Hawke has announced the Murugappans will be moved from detention on Christmas Island, to community detention in Perth. This follows mounting public concern for the Tamil family, particularly ...1 day ago- The end of JobKeeper wasn’t a blip. It might have cost 100,000 jobs
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University MultifacetedGirl/Shutterstock At its peak, more than 3.8 million Australians were on JobKeeper — three in every ten Australian workers. Adding in those workers already employed by government, it ...1 day ago- Green space around primary schools may improve students’ academic performance
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alison Carver, Senior Research Fellow, Behaviour Environment and Cognition Program, Mary MacKillop Institute for Health Research, Australian Catholic University Shutterstock Greenery around primary schools may improve students’ academic performance, while traffic pollution may be detrimental, our study shows. With increasing ...1 day ago- US lawmakers are taking a massive swipe at big tech. If it lands, the impact will be felt globally
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katharine Kemp, Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Law & Justice, UNSW, UNSW Kathy Willens/AP Five antitrust laws proposed in the United States aim to aggressively rein in the market power of “big tech” companies and change the way they do business. ...1 day ago- Climate explained: could biofuels replace all fossil fuels in New Zealand?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Troy Baisden, Professor (Environmental Sciences), University of Waikato Aleksandar Malivuk/Shutterstock CC BY-ND Climate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change. If you ...1 day ago - Why do Tamil asylum seekers need protection — and why does the Australian government say they don...
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