Climate change, political heroes, political culture

Written By: - Date published: 8:06 am, April 13th, 2017 - 117 comments
Categories: accountability, activism, climate change, disaster, global warming, Parliament, russel norman - Tags: , , , , ,

How ironic that Parliament is to debate climate change today, as the latest in a torrent of warming-fueled extreme weather events bears down on the country. A good opinion piece on Stuff:

Climate fight requires political heroes

Last year, Victoria University researchers produced a compelling visual of water lapping up to the grounds of Parliament […] It’s an apt image as MPs prepare for a historic parliamentary debate on climate change this afternoon, while New Zealand is recovering from severe floods caused by two tropical cyclones in as many weeks. These are no longer one-in-500-year events.

The subject of the debate is the report Net Zero in New Zealand, by Vivid Economics. This important report looks at transformational pathways for New Zealand to achieve zero net greenhouse gas emissions in the second half of the century, as called for under the Paris Agreement.

While political parties should and undoubtedly will maintain their own mix of distinct policies, it is vital to New Zealand’s long-term interests that we build broad consensus on goals and strategies for decarbonising our economy.The global consequences of inaction are becoming increasingly clear. The floods, drought and wildfires felt around our country over recent months are worrying signs of a new normal.

Further delay and uncertainty will be very costly. Across the ditch, the Australian Energy Council says that political uncertainty has raised power prices by more than if the government had put in a $50 per tonne carbon price.

The wheels are in motion, but in New Zealand, we have frankly spent a decade stuck in second gear. We lack a coherent plan of action. Vivid Economics’ report offers a compelling summary of our potential to become a net zero emission nation. It demonstrates that this is an achievable goal; how we might get there is simply about the choices we make from now on. […] There are multiple viable pathways ahead, requiring us to assess tradeoffs and make strategic choices as a nation.

As citizens (and especially as voters) we must do two things from today. First, we must hold our MPs accountable for building and keeping to a cross-party consensus on a zero emissions future. Second, we must give them permission to step away from any entrenched party positions to make sensible, pragmatic decisions for our future.

* The special parliamentary debate will take place 3-5pm and can be viewed on Parliament TV or at www.bit.ly/2osBwjL

The intent to build a cross-party consensus is of course excellent, and in its service I will not further pursue the points of “A decade stuck in second gear” and “We lack a coherent plan of action”.

The headline of the piece mentions political heroes. We have always had them, we have never treated them well. One of them, Russel Norman, has just literally put his body on the line (and in the sea) in front of a massive oil exploration ship. For this service, he and the other heroes are to be charged by this government under the first application of a law designed to suppress such protest.

Political heroes are necessary but not sufficient. We need a new political culture. A culture that values facts and evidence, and that punishes politicians for ignoring them. A culture that plans for the future. A culture that acknowledges the limits placed on us by physics and the environment. A culture that puts people ahead of money. A culture that the political right will fight quite literally to the death to oppose.

(Prove me wrong in Parliament today! Please?…)

117 comments on “Climate change, political heroes, political culture ”

  1. bwaghorn 1

    Any and all carbon taxs must be spent in nz on science and reduction.
    While the ets was a great idea human nature says it can never work on a global scale , the nats proved that by corrupting it totally .
    Any party that stays with the world wide ets will not get my vote , this is the one single issue i will decide on.
    Also planning for turning nz into a fortress might be a good idea for if things get real rough.

    • solkta 1.1

      I think the green Party policy of using carbon tax income to offset an income tax reduction is the best way forward. Low income people can’t afford to pay more tax. If there is thought a need for more research this should be funded by an increase in the top tax band as this will have a secondary effect of reducing non-essential carbon burning.

      • It’s also the best way to protect the policy from future sabotage if National get back in, because good luck to them repealing a policy that’s effectively an income tax cut.

    • Tamati Tautuhi 1.2

      Any more news on the fake carbon credits purchased by National from Lithuania, did we get a credit for the illegal sale and is there ongoing legal proceedings to recover the money?

  2. Carolyn_nth 2

    So the debate will be at about the time the heart of the storm will be hitting Auckland, and just before the full impact on the Coromandel and Bay of Plenty. Sobering times.

    People, animals and the environment matter and we are all interlinked and inter-dependent.

    And, looking at how CERA managed Christchurch, this from the post is important:

    We need a new political culture. A culture that values facts and evidence, and that punishes politicians for ignoring them. A culture that plans for the future. A culture that acknowledges the limits placed on us by physics and the environment. A culture that puts people ahead of money.

    My bold.

    • Anne 2.1

      Will put this here:

      It looks now like Cook’s centre is further east than anticipated so Auckland should be spared the worst of the weather. Where Auckland and Northland may be in trouble is later today when the “severe” south westerly gales hit.

      Once again Coromandel and Bay of Plenty are going to be the hardest hit with the storm centre barreling over the top of them.

      http://www.metservice.com/maps-radar/rain-forecast/rain-forecast-3-day

      • Carolyn_nth 2.1.1

        Thanks, Anne. Have been having difficulty accessing the metservice web site.

        My thoughts are with colleagues and family in places like Waiheke and Coromandel.

        Feel fortunate that I am not scheduled to work today as had worked Monday instead, so I don’t need to travel across the harbour bridge.

    • michelle 2.2

      W need a new leader, someone that is inspirational , innovative and not afraid to speak out at the moment we don’t appear to have any and neither do any other countries. The world is lacking good strong leadership its no wonder we see turmoil and civil unrest on a daily basis .
      At the moment we have a leader with no morals or principles and he is the 2nd one his mate was the same rotten to the core talked a load of bull and dumb NZers were falling over themselves.

    • Gosman 2.3

      ” A culture that puts people ahead of money.”

      I think this qualifies as a platitude.

      Can you give me an example of a culture where this is the case?

      • “platitude
        ˈplatɪtjuːd/
        noun
        a remark or statement, especially one with a moral content, that has been used too often to be interesting or thoughtful”.

        “A culture that puts people before money”
        Not interesting or thoughtful, Gosman? The concept of a culture that functions with something other than the acquisition of money as its focus, doesn’t interest you? Is not thoughtful?

        • Gosman 2.3.1.1

          I was thinking more along these lines

          “Platitudes are geared towards presenting a shallow, unifying wisdom over a difficult topic. However, they are too overused and general to be anything more than undirected statements with ultimately little meaningful contribution towards a solution.”

          There is little meaning in the statement “A culture that puts people before money”.

          • Robert Guyton 2.3.1.1.1

            There is little meaning in the sentence, for you, but that’s due to your ideological myopia. If you can’t see anything in there, look elsewhere (myob). Others see a vast landscape of constructive ideas in those few words.

            • Gosman 2.3.1.1.1.1

              Hence why I asked the follow up question – Can you give me an example of a culture where this is the case?

              • r0b gave you plenty, very generously, imo – were they not enough for you? You didn’t respond sensibly to his comment, save some trite dig, so I can’t see value in offering other examples, in expectation of similar treatment.

                • Gosman

                  R0b gave me zero examples

                  • Really?
                    You wanted ” A culture that puts people ahead of money… an example of a culture where this is the case?” and r0b offered (amongst others), ” Within current “western” economies the charitable and volunteer organisations (interesting contemporary example the gift economy and open source movements).”

                    Am I missing something here? Is that not an example of what you asked for?

                    • Gosman

                      Oh so you are stating the charity sector and open source community are a ‘culture’ and not just a sub set of the mainstream. Interesting idea that I disagree with. I was specifically meaning system level culture not a subset of the mainstream. However even those examples place monetary values on what they do. Charities are all about raising cash for the particular cause. Open Source allows people to develop commercial applications and/or services. You can’t avoid money in modern society nowdays.

                    • AB

                      Robert, Gosman knows exactly what the statement means, he just doesnt agree with the sentiments expressed. Or more likely, he’s worried that an ethical re-awakening that results in widespread allegiance to principles such as our obligation to the common good, might not serve his interests particularly well.

                    • Thanks, AB, I see. I was finding Gosman’s evasiveness alluring, but his most recent comment, where he disputes the meaning of “culture” in order to continue his line of argument, is so blatantly disingenuous that I’m now bored with him.

                    • Gosman

                      I’m quite willing to use your definition of culture. I just pointed out it isn’t mine. I stated that even on your definition of culture those groups use money to help drive what they do.

                    • ” I stated that even on your definition of culture those groups use money to help drive what they do.”
                      So?
                      The discussion is around “A culture that puts people before money” (my bold)
                      Your reframing of the debate is what, pointless? evasive? disingenious?
                      Now you’re flapping your strawman around, ” those groups use money to help drive what they do.”

                      Pffffft!

              • Grafton Gully

                An example of a government putting the health of it’s people ahead of money.
                https://indue.com.au/dct/

              • weka

                Pre-colonisation Māori. Most indigenous cultures I’ve looked at.

                “There is little meaning in the statement “A culture that puts people before money”.

                Actually, in some cultures it has distinct meaning, you need to get out more Gosman. But I think you are proving a point, in the dominant culture within NZ now we demonstrably don’t put people before money, that’s the political point.

                • Gosman

                  I’ll call you on that. Name me the culture and how money is somehow not important.

                  • “A culture that puts people before money”.

                    ” …how money is somehow not important.”

                    Pfft! Worse than feeble, Gosman.

                    • Gosman

                      But that is why it is meaningless. How do you determine if a culture is putting money before people? If I have a child that requires treatment costing 1 billion dollars a year following your logic they should get the treatment. However then there is likely to be no money for the 100,000 children who need treatment only costing 1000 dollars a year. Unless you magic up more money you can’t pay for both and pretending you have a system that can is disingenuous.

                    • weka

                      if anyone here thought you were genuinely interested they’d probably go to the trouble of explaining. But to me it looks like you are just bored and arguing from a pretty stupid position of not only ignorance about how traditional cultures work, but how nonsense arguments that keep changing the goal posts to suit yourself.

                    • Agreed, weka. He’s toying for his own amusement.
                      Ho hum.

                  • Incognito

                    “Name me the culture and how money is somehow not important.”

                    You’ve already twisted the question to suit you, haven’t you?

                    • Gosman

                      But as soon as you place ANY importance on money you acknowledge it’s inherent scarcity and the opportunity costs involved with using it. A culture that places people before money would have to break out of that trap.

                  • weka

                    I’ve already named one culture, and no-one has said that money is somehow not important, but interesting that you think “A culture that puts people before money” = “money is not important”. You really are showing a pretty low social intelligence here Gosman, but I guess it does reflect your politics quite well. Money is da bomb.

                    • Gosman

                      Money is but a reflection of value. When it comes to value stating that you put people above value makes no sense. If you state money is no object then you place no value on money at all and it will lead to a situation of hyperinflation like in Venezuela, Zimbabwe, Serbia and Weimar Germany.

                    • weka

                      no-one is saying those things, but by all means keep on arguing with yourself.

                  • Incognito

                    @ Gosman at 3:10 pm:

                    Indeed, you have twisted the question to suit yourself.

                    I don’t follow your reasoning why importance=inherent scarcity, especially not the adjective. So, I don’t see that “trap” of yours but keep digging 😉

                    • Gosman

                      It is quite simple. If you acknowledge money has importance then you acknowledge the concept that you can not use it for all the things you want to do. Hence why you will be forced to make a decision about what it should and shouldn’t be spent on. As soon as that happens you end up making decisions that can be described as “Putting money before people”

        • Bruce 2.3.1.2

          Akha, Lahu are a couple of cultures Ive met that don’t care about money . Seem to be doing ok.

      • r0b 2.3.2

        Historically, cultures that created welfare states. Currently, cultures with high taxation and comparatively low inequality. Culturally, tribal forms of social organisation. Within current “western” economies the charitable and volunteer organisations (interesting contemporary example the gift economy and open source movements).

        • Gosman 2.3.2.1

          We have a quite generous welfare state in NZ. You may want it to be more generous but that is a different matter.

          • DoublePlusGood 2.3.2.1.1

            Given our levels of poverty and that welfare is below subsistence levels we don’t have anything remotely resembling a ‘quite generous welfare state’

            • Gosman 2.3.2.1.1.1

              Welfare is below subsistence levels is it? Where is the actual evidence for this then considering a number of people have been living on welfare on a long term basis.

              • weka

                subsistence doesn’t mean most people die Gosman, it means they exist at a level where they can never get ahead. Some beneficiaries are at subsistence, others are below that.

                It’s pretty well known that base benefit rates are set below what is considered liveable, that was deliberate. It’s why there are supplementary benefits, and the administration of those is what makes the current welfare punitive not generous. Plus Labour cut the hardship grant in the 2000s that basically ensures poverty long term. None of that is in contention.

                • Gosman

                  And you have evidence that people on long term benefits never get ahead?

                  • weka

                    I didn’t say that no long term bene ever gets ahead. I said that in general that’s the situation because the system was designed that way. IME the ones that get ahead have assistance and luck. Generally that comes from outside of the system. Sometimes it comes from within the system because amazingly despite the intention of Nact, there are still compassionate and resourceful people working with the system. The odds are stacked against that though.

          • weka 2.3.2.1.2

            “We have a quite generous welfare state in NZ. You may want it to be more generous but that is a different matter.”

            Speaking of meaningless statements.

            NZ runs a punitive welfare state now. It’s been a while since I would describe our welfare as generous even in stingy RW terms. We’re way past that point.

          • Skeptic 2.3.2.1.3

            What part of NZ are you living in where there’s this “quite generous welfare state”? Compared to pre-1991 benefit levels, the current levels hardly qualify for the word “welfare” – subsistence is more appropriate. The current benefit levels/superannuation levels are so far behind the livable wage level worked out by household budget experts, you could triple them and still not get there – no wonder poverty and third world diseases are rife in the country that once lead the world in looking after it’s citizens. As for comparatively low inequality – well, best not go there – not on this site.

            • Gosman 2.3.2.1.3.1

              If you think a welfare state is restricted to benefits then you don’t really understand the term.

              • Skeptic

                Grew up in NZ welfare state sonny!!! – saw it dismantled by greedy bastards – same pricks who are in power at the moment. Am doing my bit to put something back so my grand kids have some semblance of a chance. = What’s your excuse for undermining the intent of this website with stupid petty remarks like that one?

                • Gosman

                  What was the size of government social spending as a percentage of GDP when you were a kid and what is it now? I’ll give you a clue, it is probably higher now.

                  http://www.theglobaleconomy.com/New-Zealand/Government_size/

                  • Skeptic

                    Spoken like a true ACT Party member – get off this website you right wing troll!!

                    • Gosman

                      Can you not answer the question? It seems quite easy for you to find out. How much of GDP was spent on social spending when you were a child and how much is spent now?

                    • One Anonymous Bloke

                      “Social spending” is the same as “government spending”.

                      The fact that Gosman tries to make a separate distinction here is informative. He means the “undeserving”, but he thinks he’s being clever.

                      Let’s play along 😈

                  • One Anonymous Bloke

                    It was ~33% in 1999. It was ~33% in 2008. It is now ~30%.

                    That’s for “government spending to gdp”, not “government social spending” because “government social” is a tautology.

                    I say lift it back up to ~33-34% so that social services can be properly funded, and smash the SOE model with extreme prejudice: let civil servants serve rather than pretending they’re entrepreneurs.

                    • Skeptic

                      Here’s another stat for you Gosman.

                      Prior to 1991 – the year the Employment Contracts Act was rammed through by your mates, NZ had the highest per capita rate of voluntary sector workers – by voluntary I mean everything from social services, church support, surf life saving, sports coaching, organised working bee, Lions, Jaycees, etc – roughly 1.2m of us (The total workforce at the time was roughly 1.75m), Again roughly, two-thirds were male. Guess how many there were after your “market forces ” mates had finished fucking up NZ internal economy and fairly equitable wealth/income ratio? Just over 50,000 – not a stat you can be proud of eh!

                      If you really are interested in just how badly those “Knights of the Round Table” did stuff this country up – go read Hansard – the Parliamentary reports done about a decade or so later documenting fully the decline of NZ voluntary sector and the countless billions it saved the taxpayer – gone for good – oh jolly well done you clever bastards – all in the name of “market forces will provide any necessary solutions”. Yeah right! Well it didn’t – not by a long shot. It never has and never will because it’s based on greed and selfishness.

                      Guess what else Gosman – Adam Smith noted the exact same fact when he wrote Theory of Moral Sentiments a year after he wrote Wealth of Nations. It’s as true today as it was in 1777. I guess your mate Milton Friedman forgot that when he wrote Free to Choose – but then American education has always been a bit deficient on social history – and economists -especially dogmatic economists, are the worst.

                      So you can take your GDP percentages which in no way fully count all the factors that run a country and shove them where the sun don’t shine, because they’re irrelevant – especially to climate change – which by the way is the topic for discussion.

          • left_forward 2.3.2.1.4

            ‘…quite generous welfare state in NZ’.
            A dubious opinion, particularly given we are certainly a country with very high inequality.

            • Gosman 2.3.2.1.4.1

              Our inequality levels are actually around the average for the OECD. They certainly are not high by World standards.

              http://www.oecd.org/social/inequality.htm

              • left_forward

                You forgot to mention the associated narrative:

                over the past few years, income inequality levels have remained at historically high levels. Across OECD countries, the average Gini coefficient of disposable household income reached 0.318 in 2014, compared to 0.315 in 2010. This is the highest value on record, since the mid-1980s.”

                More spurious than dubious now.

                • Gosman

                  Yeah, we have higher inequality than we did in the 1980’s. So what? Was our economy better off? Did we have lower crime rates? Was our society more inclusive and dynamic. I think the answer to those questions are no?

                  • left_forward

                    Thanks for the concession – but your indifference to inequalities is a little sad, but explains why you are ‘on a different tangent’ to the people who engage on this site, who are generally passionate about reducing inequalities.

                    The economy isn’t an organism is it? Its a man-made system (a process for the exchange of goods) – its not alive or dead.
                    So how can it be any better or worse off?

                    • Gosman

                      Let me put it this way. The economy in places like Zimbabwe and Vennezuela (where they generally practice policies like the ones you support) are worse off than NZ’s. So yes, an economy can be better or worse off.

                    • One Anonymous Bloke

                      @Gosman: Let me put it this way: why don’t you link to an example of the sort of “policy” you’re talking about, then link to an example of Left_forward supporting that policy.

                      Put up or shut up Gosman.

                    • Gosman

                      https://oxfamblogs.org/fp2p/venezuela-latin-americas-inequality-success-story/

                      Inequality being reduced under Chavez.

                      Here is a link to an article claiming Zimbabwe is doing the same

                      http://www.chronicle.co.zw/zimbabwe-a-rich-country-tackling-inequalities-unlocking-wealth/

                      I believe that is a policy left_forward supports isn’t it? The following certainly suggest he or she is

                      “Thanks for the concession – but your indifference to inequalities is a little sad, but explains why you are ‘on a different tangent’ to the people who engage on this site, who are generally passionate about reducing inequalities.”

                    • One Anonymous Bloke

                      Sorry Gosman, I gave you far too much wiggle room.

                      Link to an example of a specific act passed into law by Venezuela’s Parliament, and also link to Left_forward supporting it.

                      Stop being so lazy. New Zealand is not Venezuela. The NZ Left has a better economic track record than the National Party.

                      Lift your tiresome lame game.

      • Incognito 2.3.3

        Bhutan

  3. Carolyn_nth 3

    NZ should be very well placed for more renewable sources of energy. People who have wind and solar power in their homes and community should be able to feed that into the national grid, for compensation and not be penalised by the powercos.

    Re-nationalise the power companies in the national interest.

    Build energy efficient homes and cut out the investor and speculator profiteering.

    A comprehensive national strategy to favour mass transit development, electric powering of transport, more rail services and sea transport for freight. More water transport using, in part, wind power (sails). More support for walk and cycle ways for short journeys.

    Change the culture from one focused on endless variations of shiny new, constantly updated toys. Develop a culture of things built to last; and community sources for leisure and recreation, rather than it being so individualist and privatised.

    • Gosman 3.1

      Why won’t any political party commit to renationalisation of the energy sector do you think?

      • left_forward 3.1.1

        A very destructive RW, neo-liberal agenda that will be very expensive for the country to put right. Can’t just make a law and fix it – these former assets are now of course in private hands.

        • Gosman 3.1.1.1

          Just but them back. It isn’t difficult. Use taxpayers money to do so. If you offer enough then people will be glad to sell.

          • left_forward 3.1.1.1.1

            By golly you’re right! – greed will always prevail.

            • Gosman 3.1.1.1.1.1

              You think they are worth more than what they are in private hands so it seems like a no brainer to me. Buy them back from their current owbers and set up some sort of Energy super social agency. For some reason no political party is pushing that idea though.

              • left_forward

                Excellent LW policy Gossman!
                Lets you and I go hand in hand to the Ngats HQ and show them our shared aspiration for a fairer and more rational social policy (you don’t have energy shares yourself do you?).

    • left_forward 3.2

      Drat – got distracted by Gosman again –
      I meant to say – I completely agree with you – well said Carolyn.

  4. esoteric pineapples 4

    “A decade stuck in second gear”

    More like reverse

  5. Anne 5

    Some nice twitters and images here.

    Like this one:
    Everyone make sure you stock up on canned spaghetti, pineapple and pizza bases…

  6. Heather Grimwood 6

    The final plea of your quote Anthony resounds with me!
    Also though, I agree wholeheartedly that we need heroes/heroines who are NOT afraid to stand up against bullies on many fronts to enable survival of the planet. What use being on it if we don’t value and support these people, or indeed join their ranks so producing the desired political culture.

  7. Ad 7

    So long as Labour and the Greens don’t overdo ghoulish ambulance-chaser, Cyclone Cook could win them the election.

    • weka 7.1

      I’ve been wondering about that too. Maybe not this one event, but a series of things now that are creating disquiet.

    • DoublePlusGood 7.2

      Large scale wrecking just means that the government gets to announce fancy looking (but useless) rebuild projects, so I doubt it.
      It takes time for the full scale of total incompetence to be felt, so the government will probably be ok until after the election. After all, they’ve utterly bungled the Christchurch rebuild and it hasn’t adversely affected their votes in Christchurch, barring maybe a small change in Christchurch East.
      Edgecumbe will still go heavily for National in this election (46% at the one polling booth on the day last election).

      • Ad 7.2.1

        I don’t wish disaster on anyone.
        But election year media is all politics.

        This is English’s first proper test as PM. High stakes.

  8. So, sort of low-key ghoulish ambulance chaser would do it?

    If it looks like Cyclone Cook will win the election for the Left, Bill and his Dirty Crew will denounce it as a a screaming left-wing conspiracy theorist and raid its home while it’s away.

  9. Gosman 9

    I’ll give an example of why the term “A culture that puts people ahead of money” is a platitude.

    Take a plan to create a mine in an area of ecological sensitivity but one in which has been economically depressed for a very long time (Much like the West Coast). The idea of a culture that puts people ahead of money would seem to lead to a no brainer decision to deny that plan. But what about the people who are desperate for work? Surely providing them meaningful work is putting their needs first. Maybe these people would be better off moving to someplace else though but then the area becomes devoid of people which I thought we were trying to put first. Then how about we pay them to stay put and create jobs in some sort of ecologically sound way? But to pay for that you need to raise taxes on other people who you should be thinking of putting first. Suddenly you are in a situation where you are putting the needs of one group of people over the needs of another group to get the money to help achieve your goals.

    • One Anonymous Bloke 9.1

      Your example is drivel.

      Settlements don’t happen by random chance. The environment itself dictates where they arise.

      What are all the people in your example doing before becoming miners? Apart from getting lectures from the likes of you about how they should move to somewhere there’s more work, that is.

    • Ad 9.2

      NZ is close to weaning itself off the quarry-enclave economy that kept it settled and prosperous for a century.

  10. Michael 10

    This is weather, isn’t it, just like the Wahine storm? I believe anthropomorphic climate change is an operating cause on our planet’s weather but it is important not to overplay one’s hand. It might be better to say that we’ll probably see events like this more often in coming years and decades.

    • One Anonymous Bloke 10.1

      I prefer to take Kevin Trenberth’s word for it:

      The answer to the oft-asked question of whether an event is caused by climate change is that it is the wrong question. All weather events are affected by climate change because the environment in which they occur is warmer and moister than it used to be.

      Note the difference between “caused by” and “affected by”.

    • weka 10.2

      how many floods in the NI in the past 6 weeks?

  11. Bruce 11

    I hear the spin on reports of this storm , similar to the one in 1968, its happened before therefore no climate change.

    • No climate change before 1968, ’cause no factories, cars, agriculture, aircraft in those far, far off days.

      Lordy!

    • Skeptic 11.2

      “no climate change” – oh really? –

      Why is it then that out of the roughly 1.2 scientist involved with oceanography. climatology, atmospherics etc, etc and so on, about 98% have convincing and unequivocal proof that Earth’s climate is changing rapidly and severely with extreme weather becoming worse by the year. And why is it that this 98% agree that it will continue to do so until at least 2050 – provided we all take action now in certain areas? And further warn that a tipping point from which there is no return is 6 degrees temperature rise?

      And the other 2% are bought and paid for by the fossil fuel industries.

      Sorry Bruce, but your spin is sadly outweighed by facts. I read an interesting article a while ago saying that for $1 we don’t spend on combating climate change today, our children will pay $10, our grandchildren $100 and our great-grandchildren $1000 each. There are categories for this expenditure broken down into direct costs, indirect costs, and research costs, covering everything from disaster relief, increased insurance premiums, relocation costs, infrastructure costs, new medicines, new crops, new diets etc.

      Interestingly the article concludes that if we do nothing now, those of us who campaigned will be remembered (electronic records are forever) as heroes, while climate deniers will be disowned by their descendants, (in much the same way anyone called Hitler changed their name by Deed Poll) and their graves visited to deposit some unmentionable material after their gravestones have been kicked over and smashed up.

      Still want to be a climate change denier Brucey?

  12. Bruce 12

    sorry was being sarcastic. my comment was about how the media by quoting the 1968 storm was making out that things have not changed.
    The brucey bit i dont appreciate . you could buy some bugsolutely cricket pasta and do something affirmative to counter cimate change.
    cheers

    • Cheers, Bruce. Mistakes like that are easily made. Your comment about the spin you detected was a good one as is your pasta advice 🙂

    • Skeptic 12.2

      Yeah – add my apologies for going off the deep end too. Still even if it was sarc – it was certainly an excellent chain yank – got me going. Nice one

  13. Tamati Tautuhi 13

    Why do we keep feeding the Troll-Gosman just ignore him and he will go away.

    PLEASE STOP FEEDING THE TROLLS-VERY UNPLEASANT READING-HURTS THE BRAIN.

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    TL;DR: In today’s ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Tuesday, March 19:Kāinga Ora’s dry rot The Spinoff DailyBill McKibben on ‘Climate Superfunds’ making Big Oil pay for climate damage The Crucial YearsPreston Mui on returning to 1980s-style productivity growth NoahpinionAndy Boenau on NIMBYs needing unusual bedfellows Urbanism SpeakeasyNed Resnikoff's case ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 hours ago
  • Relentlessly negative
    Negative yesterday, negative today. Negative all year, according to one departing reader telling me I’ve grown strident and predictable. Fair enough. If it’s any help, every time I go to write about a certain topic that begins with C and ends with arrrrs, I do brace myself and ask: Again? Are ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 hours ago
  • Scoring 4.6 out of 10, the new Government is struggling in the polls
    Bryce Edwards writes –  It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 hours ago
  • Promiscuous Empathy: Chris Trotter Replies To His Critics.
    Inspirational: The Family of Man is a glorious hymn to human equality, but, more than that, it is a clarion call to human freedom. Because equality, unleavened by liberty, is a broken piano, an unstrung harp; upon which the songs of fraternity will never be played. “Somebody must have been telling lies about ...
    5 hours ago
  • Don’t run your business like a criminal enterprise
    The Detail this morning highlights the police's asset forfeiture case against convicted business criminal Ron Salter, who stands to have his business confiscated for systemic violations of health and safety law. Business are crying foul - but not for the reason you'd think. Instead of opposing the post-conviction punishment and ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 hours ago
  • Misremembering Justinian’s Taxes.
    Tax Lawyer Barbara Edmonds vs Emperor Justinian I - Nolo Contendere: False historical explanations of pivotal events are very far from being inconsequential.WHEN BARBARA EDMONDS made reference to the Roman Empire, my ears pricked up. It is, lamentably, very rare to hear a politician admit to any kind of familiarity ...
    6 hours ago
  • Bryce Edwards: Scoring 4.6 out of 10, the new Government is struggling in the polls
    It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support for the various parties in ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    7 hours ago
  • Bishop scores headlines with crackdown on unwelcome tenants – but Peters scores, too, as tub-thump...
    Buzz from the Beehive Housing Minister Chris Bishop delivered news – packed with the ingredients to enflame political passions – worthy of supplanting Winston Peters in headline writers’ priorities. He popped up at the post-Cabinet press conference to promise a crackdown on unruly and antisocial state housing tenants. His ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    8 hours ago
  • Will it make the boat go faster?
    Ele Ludemann writes – The Reserve Bank is advertising for a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion advisor. The Bank has one mandate – to keep inflation between one and three percent. It has failed in that and is only slowly getting inflation back down to the upper limit. Will it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    11 hours ago
  • Bryce Edwards: Is Simon Bridges’ NZTA appointment a conflict of interest?
    Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi The fact that a ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    11 hours ago
  • Is Simon Bridges’ NZTA appointment a conflict of interest?
    Bryce Edwards writes – Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    11 hours ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' at 10:10am on Tuesday, March 19
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Gavin Jacobson talks to Thomas Piketty 10 years on from Capital in the 21st Century The SalvoLocal scoop: Green MP’s business being investigated over migrant exploitation claims Stuff Steve KilgallonLocal deep-dive: The commercial contractors making money from School ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    11 hours ago
  • Bernard's six newsy things on Tuesday, March 19
    It’s a home - but Kāinga Ora tenants accused of “abusing the privilege” may lose it. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Government announced a crackdown on Kāinga Ora tenants who were unruly and/or behind on their rent, with Housing Minister Chris Bishop saying a place in a state ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    13 hours ago
  • New Life for Light Rail
    This is a guest post by Connor Sharp of Surface Light Rail  Light rail in Auckland: A way forward sooner than you think With the coup de grâce of Auckland Light Rail (ALR) earlier this year, and the shift of the government’s priorities to roads, roads, and more roads, it ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    14 hours ago
  • Why Are Bosses Nearly All Buffoons?
    Note: As a paid-up Webworm member, I’ve recorded this Webworm as a mini-podcast for you as well. Some of you said you liked this option - so I aim to provide it when I get a chance to record! Read more ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    16 hours ago
  • Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6.06 pm on March 18
    TL;DR: In my ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Monday, March 18:IKEA is accused of planting big forests in New Zealand to green-wash; REDD-MonitorA City for People takes a well-deserved victory lap over Wellington’s pro-YIMBY District Plan votes; A City for PeopleSteven Anastasiou takes a close look at the sticky ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • Peters holds his ground on co-governance, but Willis wriggles on those tax cuts and SNA suspension l...
    Buzz from the Beehive Here’s hoping for a lively post-cabinet press conference when the PM and – perhaps – some of his ministers tell us what was discussed at their meeting today. Until then, Point of Order has precious little Beehive news to report after its latest monitoring of the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 day ago
  • Labour’s final report card
    David Farrar writes –  We now have almost all 2023 data in, which has allowed me to update my annual table of how  went against its promises. This is basically their final report card. The promise The result Build 100,000 affordable homes over 10 ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • “Drunk Uncle at a Wedding”
    I’m a bit worried that I’ve started a previous newsletter with the words “just when you think they couldn’t get any worse…” Seems lately that I could begin pretty much every issue with that opening. Such is the nature of our coalition government that they seem to be outdoing each ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 day ago
  • Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Geoffrey Miller writes – Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • Gordon Campbell on Dune 2, and images of Islam
    Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture ...
    1 day ago
  • New Rail Operations Centre Promises Better Train Services
    Last week Transport Minster Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre. The new train control centre will see teams from KiwiRail, Auckland Transport and Auckland One Rail working more closely together to improve train services across the city. The Auckland Rail Operations Centre in ...
    2 days ago
  • Bernard's six newsy things at 6.36am on Monday, March 18
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in an exit interview with Q+A yesterday the Government can and should sustain more debt to invest in infrastructure for future generations. Elsewhere in the news in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 6:36am: Read more ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. It is more than just a happy ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    2 days ago
  • The Kaka’s diary for the week to March 25 and beyond
    TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to March 18 include:China’s Foreign Minister visiting Wellington today;A post-cabinet news conference this afternoon; the resumption of Parliament on Tuesday for two weeks before Easter;retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson gives his valedictory speech in Parliament; ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Bitter and angry; Winston First
    New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Government’s key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    2 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    2 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    2 days ago
  • Out of Touch.
    “I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • The bewildering world of Chris Luxon – Guns for all, not no lunch for kids
    .“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
    Frankly SpeakingBy Frank Macskasy
    3 days ago
  • Expert Opinion: Ageing Boomers, Laurie & Les, Talk Politics.
    It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
    3 days ago
  • Manufacturing The Truth.
    Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet –  is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
    3 days ago
  • A Powerful Sensation of Déjà Vu.
    Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
    3 days ago
  • Can you guess where world attention is focussed (according to Greenpeace)? It’s focussed on an EPA...
    Bob Edlin writes –  And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago
  • Further integrity problems for the Greens in suspending MP Darleen Tana
    Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago
  • Jacqui Van Der Kaay: Greens’ transparency missing in action
    For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s Dawn Chorus with six newsey things at 6:46am for Saturday, March 16
    TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ Herald Thomas Coughlan Simeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • How Did FTX Crash?
    What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    4 days ago
  • Elections in Russia and Ukraine
    Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s six stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15
    TL;DR: Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it:  We want our country to be a ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • National’s clean car tax advances
    The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Government funding bailouts
    Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Two offenders, different treatments.
    See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    4 days ago
  • Treaty references omitted
    Ele Ludemann writes  – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • The Ghahraman Conflict
    What was that judge thinking? Peter Williams writes –  That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 15
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop: Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • The day Wellington up-zoned its future
    Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Weekly Roundup 15-March-2024
    It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    5 days ago
  • That Word.
    Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • The Hoon around the week to March 15
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Labour’s policy gap
    It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #11 2024
    Open access notables A Glimpse into the Future: The 2023 Ocean Temperature and Sea Ice Extremes in the Context of Longer-Term Climate Change, Kuhlbrodt et al., Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society: In the year 2023, we have seen extraordinary extrema in high sea surface temperature (SST) in the North Atlantic and in ...
    5 days ago
  • Melissa remains mute on media matters but has something to say (at a sporting event) about economic ...
     Buzz from the Beehive   The text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary.  It can be quickly analysed ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago
  • The return of Muldoon
    For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Will the rental tax cut improve life for renters or landlords?
    Bryce Edwards writes –  Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: What Saudi Arabia’s rapid changes mean for New Zealand
    Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    5 days ago
  • Racism’s double standards
    Questions need to be asked on both sides of the world Peter Williams writes –   The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • It’s not a tax break
    Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • The Plastic Pig Collective and Chris' Imaginary Friends.
    I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Who is responsible for young offenders?
    Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on National’s fantasy trip to La La Landlord Land
    How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
    5 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 14
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop: The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • No, Prime Minister, rents don’t rise or fall with landlords’ costs
    TL;DR: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • Cartoons: ‘At least I didn’t make things awkward’
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
    6 days ago
  • Solving traffic congestion with Richard Prebble
    The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    6 days ago
  • I Think I'm Done Flying Boeing
    Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago
  • Invoking Aristotle: Of Rings of Power, Stones, and Ships
    The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
    6 days ago
  • Van Velden brings free-market approach to changing labour laws – but her colleagues stick to distr...
    Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • Why Newshub failed
    Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • Māori Party on the warpath against landlords and seabed miners – let’s see if mystical creature...
    Bob Edlin writes  –  The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they  follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago

  • Government moves to quickly ratify the NZ-EU FTA
    "The Government is moving quickly to realise an additional $46 million in tariff savings in the EU market this season for Kiwi exporters,” Minister for Trade and Agriculture, Todd McClay says. Parliament is set, this week, to complete the final legislative processes required to bring the New Zealand – European ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 hours ago
  • Positive progress for social worker workforce
    New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    9 hours ago
  • Minister confirms reduced RUC rate for PHEVs
    Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April.  ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    11 hours ago
  • Trade access to overseas markets creates jobs
    Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand.  Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    12 hours ago
  • NZ and Chinese Foreign Ministers hold official talks
    Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Kāinga Ora instructed to end Sustaining Tenancies
    Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
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    1 day ago
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