health
Categories under health
- covid-19 (322)
- long covid (11)
- vaccines (11)
National’s many and varied Covid border policies
Written By: - Date published: 7:31 am, September 24th, 2020 - 12 comments
On Tuesday National announced the fifth variation of its Covid border policy this year.
National’s lolly scramble tax cuts
Written By: - Date published: 8:34 am, September 19th, 2020 - 55 comments
Despite claiming that the PREFU figures were catastrophic and despite stating a month ago that it would not do this National has come out with a policy of temporary tax cuts favouring the rich. They must be desperate.
Choosing ‘enough’ rather than ‘more’
Written By: - Date published: 6:05 am, September 18th, 2020 - 104 comments
A brief look at steady state economics and the values of enough rather than more.
Qanon is here
Written By: - Date published: 7:37 am, September 14th, 2020 - 132 comments
While a few in the media leapt at the opportunity to vilify a small evangelical community at the latest COVID 19 spread, the really big COVID 19-conspiracy story landed by the thousand this weekend. It’s overdue we woke up to QAnon here.
Covid, the US President and the Evangelical churches
Written By: - Date published: 8:30 am, September 10th, 2020 - 123 comments
There has been disturbing local news that some members of a local evangelical church, influenced by American equivalents, refused to accept the threat posed by the virus. And in America a new book from Bob Woodward suggests strongly that Donald Trump knew how big a threat Covid would be but chose for political reasons to downplay the risk.
Covid – New Zealand has similar levels of freedom to Sweden
Written By: - Date published: 1:41 pm, September 6th, 2020 - 83 comments
Simon Thornley is claiming that New Zealand’s covid response is a failure and we should be more like Sweden. But it appears that in more recent times Sweden has toughened its stringency tests so that they are similar to New Zealand’s.
Will our cities revive?
Written By: - Date published: 7:00 am, September 5th, 2020 - 43 comments
Our cities are the nation’s lungs; they recycle and accelerate external goods and transform them internally into faster circulation. Auckland and Christchurch have had tens of billions invested in them over successive local and central governments, but has this improved our strength or wealth as a country at all?
The Herald’s idea of balance
Written By: - Date published: 6:30 am, September 2nd, 2020 - 43 comments
The Herald yesterday posted a story suggesting that Aucklanders were split over the second lockdown when the actual reality was the vast majority were supportive. And a subsequent article pointing out how positive the result was does not clear the perception of negative bias.
Kia kaha Greens
Written By: - Date published: 9:06 am, August 29th, 2020 - 304 comments
The Green Party is facing major push back from members relating to a decision to give shovel ready funding to a private school involved in education about the environment.
The election campaign and the sponsored Herald article
Written By: - Date published: 8:42 am, August 25th, 2020 - 58 comments
Radius Chair and NBR rich lister Brien Cree has a sponsored article in the Herald this morning that is critical of the Government’s Covid response.
Is New Zealand or the United States the Covid cot case?
Written By: - Date published: 9:39 am, August 22nd, 2020 - 28 comments
This week Donald Trump has defended the US’s abysmal handling of Covid 19 by claiming that the disease is out of control in New Zealand. And National’s rhetoric continues to match what he is saying.
Here comes the vaccine
Written By: - Date published: 7:00 am, August 21st, 2020 - 46 comments
Australian Prime Minister Scott Malcom has indicated he’s getting close to the deal of a lifetime for Australians with a letter of intent from Astra Zenica, who are in third stage clinical trials. Will New Zealand benefit?
Yale does socialist medicine with new covid test
Written By: - Date published: 11:07 am, August 20th, 2020 - 15 comments
Yale have developed a covid saliva test that is not only effective but will be intentionally cheap and easily available.
The Covid Court Case
Written By: - Date published: 8:18 am, August 20th, 2020 - 30 comments
The High Court has ruled that for technical reasons during the first nine days of the lockdown statements that New Zealanders were legally required to remain at home were incorrect.
What Might A Democratic Party-Dominated U.S. Foreign Policy Do?
Written By: - Date published: 1:02 pm, August 19th, 2020 - 24 comments
Inasmuch as tiny, distant New Zealand need worry about the foreign policy of the United States, it’s worth a drill into what a Democratic Party dominated United States foreign policy might look like.
What does Judith do about Gerry?
Written By: - Date published: 9:32 am, August 19th, 2020 - 113 comments
Gerry Brownlee has chosen to not only repeat his conspiracy theories involving Ashley Bloomfield but also claim that the media is against National. Both claims have no factual foundation.
Why we need to get on with the election
Written By: - Date published: 8:23 am, August 17th, 2020 - 114 comments
A coalition of losers has appeared demanding that the election is be delayed. Update: Ardern has announced a short deferral of election day to October 17.
Covid-19 vs 1918 influenza
Written By: - Date published: 5:29 pm, August 15th, 2020 - 67 comments
Reading a number of articles in the NZ Herald in recent days calling for change in how we handle outbreaks of covid-19 in NZ. The implied precept is the damage covid-19 poses to the population of NZ over time is less than the immediate economic damage. That covid-19 is like the flu and results in herd immunity. However it is far worse than the influenza pandemic of 1918, much longer lasting and we probably won’t reach herd immunity naturally for generations.
The top seven things Covid has changed
Written By: - Date published: 7:45 am, August 14th, 2020 - 47 comments
Covid has fundamentally changed society for the better in surprising ways.
TheY aRe onlY aSKing qUestiOns
Written By: - Date published: 8:32 am, August 13th, 2020 - 112 comments
Yesterday National suggested a wide based and interesting conspiracy theory involving the Government and the Ministry of Health and all of the Health Boards suppressing news of community spread of Covid 19 for political advantage while at the same time complaining that the Government should be consulting with them on decisions.
Will National politicise the new Covid outbreak? *
Written By: - Date published: 12:38 pm, August 12th, 2020 - 182 comments
*Rhetorical question. Of course they will.
Well that is a bit shit. Auckland level 3. Rest of NZ level 2
Written By: - Date published: 10:14 pm, August 11th, 2020 - 48 comments
Four cases of community transmission from the same family – presumably without an obvious cause. Lock down for 3 days in the Auckland super city area at level 3 starting noon Wednesday. Level 2 for everywhere else outside of Auckland. Allows time for contact tracing and a later decision once facts are known. Good response.
Why you should vote Labour this election
Written By: - Date published: 7:00 am, August 11th, 2020 - 146 comments
Four very good reasons why you should vote Labour in this election.
IT doESN’t aDD up
Written By: - Date published: 7:49 am, August 10th, 2020 - 57 comments
For a few days now Gerry Brownlee has been peddling this dog whistle conspiracy campaign that the Government is hiding bad news about Covid and we should all be really concerned.
Covid recovery and bouncing forward
Written By: - Date published: 6:05 am, August 10th, 2020 - 21 comments
Central to the Transition movement from the outset has been the idea of resilience. Usually framed as the ability to ‘bounce back’, it is seen in the Transition movement as being better imagined as the capacity to ‘bounce forward’, i.e. to use it as the opportunity to move forward to something better. How then to ‘bounce forward’ from COVID-19 in such a way that we also move to a way of doing things consistent with the scale of the climate crisis?
The return of John Key
Written By: - Date published: 11:10 am, August 7th, 2020 - 110 comments
In a sign of desperation National has trotted out John Key to campaign that the country’s success in containing Covid should be put to risk because of a misguided perception that it would be good for the economy.
The Covid election
Written By: - Date published: 7:40 am, August 6th, 2020 - 73 comments
I normally do not do this, tempting fate and all that. But the forces behind this election are so strong that it would take a really dramatic event to change current momentum.
The Heron Report
Written By: - Date published: 8:38 am, July 31st, 2020 - 35 comments
The Heron Report has been released and reinforces the public perception that this was a cynical misuse of confidential information by National for political purposes and a clusterfuck of epic proportions.
Quarantine costs – critics fruitlessly whine
Written By: - Date published: 9:13 am, July 30th, 2020 - 28 comments
I’m reasonably happy with where the coalition wound up on the quarantine cost recovery. It sends a clear economic signal to businesses and the fools who want to travel during a global pandemic. It will discourage some of the stupidity of the travel addicted. It also balances the legal position. Something that most of the critics clearly aren’t thinking through and cause them to whine without realistic alternatives
Pandemic: a flourishing enterprise. Business needs to get real.
Written By: - Date published: 9:49 am, July 28th, 2020 - 40 comments
A few weeks ago we were at 14 million cumulative confirmed cases of Covid-19 worldwide. A million more cases in just 4 days. Now a few weeks later, we are at 16 million confirmed cases worldwide. The lobbyists and business groups affected by our blocked borders need to get real. We won’t be opening our borders until we get a widely used vaccine later next year (at the earliest). It is too expensive to do so.
COVID-19: A human adapted virus
Written By: - Date published: 9:30 am, July 24th, 2020 - 23 comments
It has been obvious about COVID-19 that it is very well adapted to humans. It has evolved a good entry system to the humans, often has mild symptoms, long pre-symptomatic infectious period, and doesn’t kill many of its hosts. What has been less obvious is where it came from. It looks more like South East Asia rather than China.
- Communities swamped by torrent of new water reforms
Without the fire and fanfare of the previous Govt’s three waters reforms, the coalition has this week quietly introduced a 100,000-word whale of a water services bill The post Communities swamped by torrent of new water reforms appeared first on Newsroom. ...2 weeks ago - From elusive principles to the year’s biggest loser – 2024 had it all
A lighthearted celebration: Newsroom’s political team awards the coveted annual political prizes – from Biggest Loser to Teen Choice The post From elusive principles to the year’s biggest loser – 2024 had it all appeared first on Newsroom. ...2 weeks ago
- National Iwi Chairs Forum Open Letter To King Charles
Signatories hope the letter will resonate with King Charles’s sense of justice and intervene to support a peaceful resolution to the damage this government is creating across communities. ...2 weeks ago - The world in 2024, in one sentence
From ‘testing’ to ‘tiring’, there’s a clear theme. As 2024 draws to a close, we asked our pantheon of politics watchers to describe the world this year in one sentence, or even a single word. Here’s what they came up with. Madeleine Chapman (editor, The Spinoff) Relentless. Eric Crampton (chief ...2 weeks ago - The inside story of Auckland’s Korean culinary boom
From fried chicken and franchises to fusion and fine dining, Korean cuisine has taken over Tāmaki Makaurau, fuelled by the same ‘soft power’ that made K-pop go global and mukbang go viral. Jihee Junn charts the rise. In 1991, Il Mee on Auckland’s Queen Street became the first Korean ...2 weeks ago
- The finalised second Emissions Reduction Plan is out – what’s in it and what’s not?
New Zealand’s second Emissions Reduction Plan has just been finalised, with eight key policies and a ‘technology-led’ approach. Shanti Mathias takes a look. This is an updated version of a piece that was published in July, when the draft Emissions Reduction Plan was released OK, so… what’s an Emissions Reduction ...2 weeks ago
- Newsroom daily quiz, Thursday 12 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, Thursday 12 December appeared first on Newsroom. ...2 weeks ago
- Hopes for grand coalition on modern slavery law
Can Labour and National put aside their differences to take action on a growing concern? The post Hopes for grand coalition on modern slavery law appeared first on Newsroom. ...2 weeks ago
- Daily crossword, Thursday 12 December
The post Daily crossword, Thursday 12 December appeared first on Newsroom. ...2 weeks ago
- Xmas: Best novels of 2024
Issues and personal identities of race were at the absolute foreground of five of the best works of fiction of the year, each by writers of colour; the Pākehā authors of the other five outstanding works of fiction skirted the issue by largely avoiding having anything to do with Māori ...2 weeks ago
- NZ at a crossroads, where ‘back on track’ could easily be the wrong track
Opinion: As the 2024 political year draws to a close, New Zealand stands uncertainly at a series of crossroads. When the year began, there was some resonance with the new coalition Government’s commitment to get New Zealand “back on track”, but now, the polls say increasing numbers of people think ...2 weeks ago
- People can’t be measured on a balance sheet
Opinion: Recent discussions on proposals to exclude humanities and social sciences from future Marsden Fund grants have raised widespread concern. Yet this controversy has also sparked an overdue conversation about the value of the humanities and social sciences.These discussions pose fundamental questions:Can the importance of research outcomes always be measured ...2 weeks ago
- New roles a ‘Christmas miracle’ for redundancy casualties
Just two hours after Nicola Segal left the final-stage job interview, she received a call offering her the role – and asking if she could start immediately. Segal, a sales and marketing manager, had been out of work for more than four months after taking voluntary redundancy from her previous company, ...2 weeks ago
- Closing the gender pay gap, one disclosure at a time
The gender pay gap remains a persistent and prickly issue in New Zealand, but the Government is attempting to address it by amending a Bill and introducing a new calculator.As of late 2024, the gap is about 8.2 percent, meaning women earn on average 8.2 percent less than men for ...2 weeks ago
- Govt prioritises new rules for dietary supplement exports
Analysis: A little while back, in reporting for my podcast series Powder Keg, I paid a visit to NZ’s biggest gym, Les Mills in Auckland. I talked with young gym-goers arriving for their workouts.Most used some ... 2 weeks ago - Final Emissions Reduction Plan ‘Woefully Inadequate’ – WWF-New Zealand
WWF-New Zealand’s CEO, Dr Kayla Kingdon-Bebb, says the utter lack of ambition in the plan shows the Government is not serious about tackling emissions in line with New Zealand’s international commitments and the Prime Minister’s own ‘performance ...2 weeks ago
- Council Urges Government To Drop Treaty Principles Bill
The Council has particular concerns that the Bill would negatively impact the trust and collaboration underpinning its long-standing relationship with Ngāi Tahu. ...2 weeks ago
- ‘A sick wish fulfilment fantasy, so badly written’: Harry Ricketts’ biggest book regret
Welcome to The Spinoff Books Confessional, in which we get to know the reading habits of Aotearoa writers, and guests. This week: Harry Ricketts – poet, literary scholar and author of memoir First Things and around 30 other books. The book I wish I’d written Byron’s comic verse-novel Don Juan. ...2 weeks ago
- Pure SEO Report Reveals Carbon Footprint Of New Zealand MPs
The critical analysis of MPs’ travel emissions reveals inefficiencies and discrepancies across all major parties. National leads in both expenses and emissions, with Labour close behind, reflecting the significant environmental impact of the dominant parties. ...2 weeks ago
- Kirihimete gift guide 2024: cool stuff from Māori and Pasifika-led brands
Our legendary guide is back to help you through another silly season. Note: When we first published this guide six years ago, it was about finding the small labels and makers out there and pointing hungry shoppers in their direction. Since then, there has been huge and exciting growth in ...2 weeks ago
- Five classic summer road trips, with burgers to match
Lollies and chips can only sustain you so far. Here are five of our favourite New Zealand road trips, with burger pairings to enjoy along the way. Auckland to Northland I know not everyone is a fan of new roads being built, but the drive from Auckland to Northland is ...2 weeks ago
- Stuff ‘consciously uncouples’ into two separate digital and print businesses
Exclusive: Leaked emails and documents show that the media giant will soon be two legal entities – opening up a range of options for owner Sinead Boucher. Duncan Greive analyses the move. News media giant Stuff will soon be two separate businesses, as it splits into one built around the ...2 weeks ago
- With its daily news bulletin scrapped, what’s next for Whakaata Māori?
With funding stagnant since 2008, the broadcaster is racing to adapt to a digital world – and a hard pivot might be the key to ensuring its survival. Last week, Whakaata Māori announced the end of its flagship daily news bulletin, Te Ao Māori News, which has been a fixture ...2 weeks ago
- PSA Takes Legal Action To Stop Govt Cutting Working From Home Arrangements
The PSA has filed a claim with the Employment Relations Authority to stop the Government restricting flexible workplace practices, including the recent directive on working from home. "The PSA is firmly of the view that the Government is unable to do ...2 weeks ago
- Greyhound racing sprints toward the finish line
Some in the industry say a small number of negligent trainers ‘buggered it’ for everyone else, writes Stewart Sowman-Lund for The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. ...2 weeks ago
- Furious minister calls ‘please explain’ meeting over Lake Alice payments
Survivors of torture in state care say they’re being shortchanged by the Health Ministry, a situation that has left Cabinet Minister Erica Stanford “incandescent”.In October, Stanford, the minister in charge of the Crown’s response to the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care, announced the Government had set aside $2.6 million ...2 weeks ago
- Calls for inquiry into billion dollar Kiwi dietary supplement
The US Food and Drug Administration reveals it’s received 118 adverse event reports this year alone, for users of a supplement marketed by big-name influencers as ‘made in NZ’.In particular, there are 30-plus reports of elevated hepatic enzymes and related symptoms of liver harm in 2023 and 2024. Scientists and ...2 weeks ago
- Auckland Council opposes new housing because motorists won’t be able to see a hill
Over the motorway from Sylvia Park is Mutukāroa / Hamlins Hill Regional Park. Parts of it can be seen from the motorway and Auckland Council is fighting to keep that view sacred. If there’s one rule for being a safe driver, it’s keeping your eyes on the road. That may ...2 weeks ago
- How does New Zealand produce so many successful child actors?
Alex Casey takes a look back at the long history of Aotearoa’s child stars shining on the world stage and asks: are they our greatest export? If you too feel as if your sense of national pride is sinking into oblivion like a pavlova left outside in the forthcoming hottest ...2 weeks ago
- Daily crossword, Wednesday 11 December
The post Daily crossword, Wednesday 11 December appeared first on Newsroom. ...2 weeks ago
- How NZ businesses can find offshore success
As a small country at the bottom of the world, opportunities for New Zealand businesses to bring in offshore revenue at scale can be few and far between. But a sector that transcends borders – the technology industry – has shown an ability to do so and do so at ...2 weeks ago
- The most electric place in Auckland this year? Penrose 1061
A much maligned old friend is reborn as a field of dreams. In a year with too few causes to celebrate, in a city that still feels a few chips short of a scoop, one beacon shone bright and long and radiant. In the perfunctory suburb of Penrose, postcode 1061, ...2 weeks ago
- A Historic Victory For Greyhounds In New Zealand
"This is a huge win for greyhounds across New Zealand and sets a powerful precedent on the global stage," says Danette Wereta, spokesperson for the Animal Justice Party. "There are so many amazing ways to have fun that don’t harm animals or put them ...2 weeks ago
- No More Complicity! Aotearoa National Rally For Palestine
For over a year, thousands of New Zealanders have joined the millions across the world in taking to the streets to call for an end to the genocide in Gaza. ...2 weeks ago
- PSA Demand End To Sexist Pay Discrimination
"Thousands more women employed or funded by government are moving through the pay equity process to address the undervaluation of their work," Davies said. ...2 weeks ago
- Stand Tū Māia Sues Children’s Ministry For Breach Of Contract
Chief Executive Dr Fiona Inkpen said the Trust had been forced to bring court action to hold the Children’s Ministry to its contractual obligations and prevent the Ministry from acting as though the contract has been cancelled. ...2 weeks ago
- The Spinoff’s best NZ books of 2024
The best local books published this year, as selected by books editor Claire Mabey and a panel of experts. Welcome to the first of four best-of-books lists for 2024. These are the New Zealand books, for both children and adults, published in 2024, that stuck with our panel of writers, ...2 weeks ago
- PSA Calls On Minister To Reverse Cold-hearted Cuts To Children’s Charity Funding
Children’s charity Stand Tū Māia is today taking urgent legal action against Oranga Tamariki for unilaterally reneging on a three-year $21 million contract after only six months. ...2 weeks ago
- Review: Ram Raid Mums provides a blueprint for breaking the cycle
With youth crime dominating headlines and the government doubling down on punitive measures, Ram Raid Mums offers a powerful, humanising alternative. Liam Rātana reviews. It’s easy to say that all criminals should be locked up. That we should throw the book at people who break the law in an attempt ...2 weeks ago
- A close reading of the United Healthcare CEO suspect Luigi Mangione’s Goodreads account
Last week, the CEO of United Healthcare was shot and killed in New York. Today, we assess the suspect’s reading habits. Disclaimer: There is a slight possibility that someone with the same name and same face also has a Goodreads account and an interest in environmentalism and the healthcare industry. ...2 weeks ago
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