I have been overseas for the last fortnight or so. While away I saw almost nothing about New Zealand, except for sports, in the news and I was left in a happy state of thinking that the Government was going to bite the bullet and do a proper job on arms control by banning ALL semiautomatic weapons.
Even then it appears that there will be exceptions to the ban.
“The Government plans to ban on military-style semi-automatic (MSSA) weapons and assault rifles, though there would be exemptions for guns commonly used by farmers for pest control, as well as hunters.”.
Why didn’t they have the guts to follow John Howard’s example of 20 years ago and to ban all semiautomatics? There is no need to have any semiautomatic outside the Military and the Police.
This was the chance to do something meaningful and instead they have simply bowed down before the members of the Gun Lobby.
Why have they turned out to be such cowards? Has Tsar Winston simply trod on the other two parties again?
I realise that Lprent coined the description for all such owners but it seems truly appropriate for Kelvin.
I mean to say. What did a schoolteacher need an AK47 equivalent for? Is he so scared of the pupils that he needs to man up like Rambo just to get from the classroom to the staffroom and back each day?
Is it really to late for the Government to actually do something meaningful about guns or is it just another case of “all hat and no cattle” as that wonderful Texas phrase describes it.
Edit.. rubbish, we will have the same as Aussie, currently the law in Aussie is….
Category D – All self-loading centrefire rifles, pump-action or self-loading shotguns that have a magazine capacity of more than 5 rounds, semi-automatic rimfire rifles over 10 rounds, are restricted to government agencies, occupational shooters and primary producers.
And Nash is proposing the same, as far as I’m aware, which is….
“Are any semi-automatic firearms exempted from the changes?
A small number of firearms owners have a legitimate use for weapons with a larger capacity. Semi-automatic firearms which are commonly used for hunting, pest control, stock management on farms, and duck shooting will not be affected. These are:
• Semi-automatic .22 calibre rimfire firearms with a magazine which holds no more than ten rounds
• Semi-automatic and pump action shotguns with a non-detachable tubular magazine which holds no more than five rounds ”
Anyways, discussion in the house tomorrow if you are interested….
“The Arms Amendment Bill will have its first reading tomorrow, and be referred to a Select Committee for a swift public submissions process. It will return to Parliament next week to pass through its remaining stages. It is intended to come into force on 12 April, the day after the Royal Assent.”
The debate is really about what New Zealand is doing.
However there are a few things you should note about what happened in Australia.
When Howard got these reforms through the banned weapons included ALL semiautomatic rifles. That included all rimfire weapons as well. We aren’t doing that.
The seizure/buyback was about 650,000 guns. That was estimated to be 20% of all the privately owned weapons in Australia. https://www.vox.com/2015/8/27/9212725/australia-buyback
We aren’t talking anything like that number.
Howard had, of course,to get the laws accepted and passed by all the states and territories. That is a hell of a lot harder than we have here.
The laws have been eased up in the last 20 years as State Governments bow to the pressures of the Gun Lobby and Howard is no longer around to provide the moral impetus.
For example in NSW we have
“A 2008 amendment to the firearms act, passed by the Labor government and Shooters and Fishers Party, allowed people to enter a gun club and begin shooting without a licence and the previous 28-day background check” https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/gun-control-eroded-since-port-arthur-20160427-gog5u5.html
No, it is no use making excuses. Our Government has the chance to do something meaningful and they have morally collapsed from fear of the Shooting Lobby. Gutless, the lot of them.
They are all talk and no trousers.
No Micky. This is the only chance we have. If all the semi-automatic weapons aren’t banned right now it is never going to happen.
Look at the history of the last 20+ years since the Thorp Report.
Nothing at all from either Labour or National Governments. And as the immediate memory of the affair in Christchurch fades the chances of anything significant happening in the future fades with it.
If the Government can’t find the courage to do it now it will never happen.
Now you’re back in the country, maybe instead of writing about lost nerve on here you write to the men in the linked article.
There are a lot of mental midgets who think they should have all the guns of any type they want. All the pressure in the world mightn’t change their self-obsessed cowboy mentality but is it only Ardern’s job to fight a battle with them. Expect her to have the nerve which we don’t?
You don’t want certain guns here? A childish rant about Kelvin Davis is easy. What else have you got, what constructive things are you going do, or are you “all hat and no cattle”?
“most gun owners were “pretty responsible I would imagine”.”
And there’s the nub.
You’d have been as dumb as a sack of mssa to advocate in print for gun ownership now, when you can’t even be certain gun owners aren’t more than “pretty responsible, I would imagine”.
“but is it only Ardern’s job to fight a battle with them. Expect her to have the nerve which we don’t”.
YES I DO expect her to fight the battle.
She is the Prime Minister. She can do something about it. I’m not an MP. I can only comment on the subject and tell the people who are in office what I want them to do. Well, quite consistently I believe, I have.
Ban all semiautomatic weapons. NOW.
That is about all I can do in response to your question “what constructive things are you going do”. What other options do I have?
If they don’t have the guts to do it now it will never happen.
Howard had the courage to do it, even with threats to his life. There was at least one meeting where he was persuaded to wear a bullet-proof vest because his life was believed to be in danger. Luckily the people involved were only talking about killing him.
Ardern is the PM right now. I can offer you another Americanism about what she has to do. It is “there is a time when you either have to piss or get off the pot”. Nixon even said it to Eisenhower. Well sorry Jacinda. This is the one and only chance we have to get rid of automatic and semi-automatic weapons in the general public’s hands. Do it NOW.
I like it when some scream, “Do it, do it now, be decisive, have the balls!” And then from the same camp, “Why weren’t we consulted, are we living in a dictatorship and then a rallying call of the next election is about ploughing ahead and doing dictatorially what the electorate didn’t want, ignoring their rights.
Fun politics in Ukraine: “A comedian with no political experience has won the most votes in the first round of Ukraine’s presidential elections, early results indicate.
With half the ballots counted, Volodymyr Zelenskiy – who plays the president on TV – got about 30%, with current leader Petro Poroshenko on 16%.” https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-47767440
“The two – who have expressed largely pro-EU opinions – are set to take part in a run-off election next month. Former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko appears to have been eliminated.”
So now they have to choose whether or not to dump a billionaire. Gee, tough choice?? I doubt it, if they wonder whether to be controlled by an oligarch, or entertained!
“Mr Poroshenko aimed to appeal to conservative Ukrainians through his slogan “Army, Language, Faith”. No, no! That will freak them out! “Mr Poroshenko, a chocolate magnate and one of Ukraine’s wealthiest people, was elected in a snap vote after former pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych was toppled in the February 2014 Maidan Revolution, which was followed by Russia’s annexation of Crimea and a Russian-backed insurgency in the east.” There you go, all he needs to do is offer voters a free chocolate fish each. Election bribes normally work well.
Faced with getting to the stage of having to have my kid wipe my arse and wipe my drool, or (and not to diminish the good work loads of carers do), leave it to a minimum wage employee who may beat me and steal my possessions, rather than be what I would consider to be a burden, I might well take up the option of legally ending my life.
I would never say a woman shouldn’t have the right to choose abortion, likewise it’s not anyone’s business but my own should I opt to end my life when the prognosis is dire and or very painful. Taking any liability away from those assisting me would be a cherry on top of the icing on the cake.
The point isn’t state care, about which I amended in an edit to reflect the good work some wonderful people do, but the fact I would consider it burdensome to be so cared for by family or strangers.
If I thought for one minute I’d get dementia I hope I’d have the fortitude to end it at a time of my choosing with family and friends around me.
It’s a cold heart to deny that to someone whose fate is so awful and condemn them to one worse than death.
“Van Baarsen’s scruples have crystallised in the country’s first euthanasia malpractice case, which prosecutors are now preparing. (Three further cases are currently under investigation.) It involves a dementia sufferer who had asked to be killed when the “time” was “right”, but when her doctor judged this to be the case, she resisted. The patient had to be drugged and restrained by her family before she finally submitted to the doctor’s fatal injection. The doctor who administered the dose – who has not been identified – has defended her actions by saying that she was fulfilling her patient’s request and that, since the patient was incompetent, her protests before her death were irrelevant. Whatever the legal merits of her argument, it hardly changes what must have been a scene of unutterable grimness.”
Obviously it’s a very personal subject, and no doubt there are good arguments on both sides of the divide, but I honestly believe it should be a personal choice to end a life with dignity in the face of a horrible, debilitating ending.
Taking away any stigma and bringing that decision within the law, is in my mind, a compassionate, humane act.
True. At present I would have to send my unhappy family away to have a coffee or such to ensure that they wouldn’t be charged and have to appear in Court as to whether they had helped me or killed me. And I think they would have to sit somewhere in public where they could call on a witness as alibi if needed.
The various concerns raised could be controlled with legislation.
There would be a required model or models to follow to ensure that the matter was done in a responsible way.
Often people who commit suicide are desperately unhappy and want the pain to stop. Temporary pain permanent solution.
Please don’t try to be flippant about the horrendous suicide rates in this country – it is a sign that people are being pushed too far and nothing whatsoever to do with assisted dying.
I don’t think it’s uncalled for, and certainly not flippant. I thought I’d made that quite clear. It’s a valid point.
Besides, I’m sure any law would involve input from medical staff, and the grounds for assisted death would probably include terminal disease as the only criteria, and would exclude suicidal people with mental issues, temporary of otherwise.
We need a good Mental Health System which is compassionate towards people with Mental Health Issues, we did have a Mental Health System which may not have been perfect, but we did have one.
Under the Lange/Douglas Labour Government and the Neoliberal Agenda under Harold Titter an Englishman imported for the job, they dismantled the Mental Health System and released a lot of Mental Health patients back into the community. Then proceeded to sell off the Assets held by the Health Department ?
Erdogan has lost Ankara in the local body elections and his party’s claim to have won Istanbul is being challenged by the opposition. Adds some context to the recent furore over Winston’s trip to Turkey and just what Erdogan was playing at.
Audit them forensically and then prosecute to the full extent of the law if appropriate.
Fishing and Outdoors editor Graham Carter stood by an article in his paper today which called out Ardern and Police Minister Stuart Nash.
“Our Dumb-as-a-Plank New Zealand Prime Minister and lapdog New Zealand Police Minister have announced a ban on assault rifles that are and have been banned for the last ‘thirty-five years’.
“Comments made by our PM are disingenuous and misleading the general public.”
The article, written by John McNab, goes on to say that it was already illegal to fire any rifle which was “full-auto” even if it was a defence force firearm.
Would you care to expand on what you really mean by your first sentence?
You sound as if you propose to use the IRD as a Government controlled police force who will aim their powers at anyone who says nasty things about members of the Government.
You aren’t serious are you?
I’d like to know that these guys comply totally with the law and all legal requirements in regards to their firearms licence and any weapons they may have. I don’t want someone to kill other people because of hate. These people have put their heads up with their comments therefore they are first in line. Simple enough even for you. I don’t care about their money or whether they pay enough tax – you’re back here now alwyn get up to speed will ya ffs.
End of Life Choice Bill will make New Zealand a ‘dangerous place’ – Sir Bill English…
“It’s worse than a slippery slope… once you start saying ‘we’ll drop the ban on killing, some people can choose to be killed’ – how do you stop more and more and more?”
What else would he say? He is conservative through and through, with his mind totally religion-controlled. NZ will find one excuse after another to avoid any reasoned process on this. And why would more and more rise exponentially? Did he ever worry about the amount of depression in NZ when he was PM and provide better conditions for all people, and for depressed more talking help and widening the scope of therapies? As more people are living longer there may be a growing number wanting to limit the length of the journey – so there may be a growing number. Nothing to worry him though, it’s just a growth in the demographics and I suppose he knows what that means.
We will be fortunate to get compassionate assistance for the terminally ill, or people who are sick of being sick with constant pain. And I would like for myself the ability to organise arrangements with my family for my own death when I want, and also I would talk to my doctor if willing to be called to give a death certificate. I certainly don’t want anyone else to have the burden of deciding for me when ‘the time is right’. I would like a ‘managed demise’. That is all hypothetical anyway, I don’t expect much from NZ legislators now and if I am wrong in that then that will be a nice surprise.
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Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi, and Mema Paremata mō Tāmaki-Makaurau, Takutai Tarsh Kemp, will travel to the Gold Coast to strengthen ties with Māori in Australia next week (15-21 April). The visit, in the lead-up to the 9th Australian National Kapa haka Festival, will be an opportunity for both ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Hon Paula Bennett has been appointed as member and chair of the Pharmac board, Associate Health Minister David Seymour announced today. "Pharmac is a critical part of New Zealand's health system and plays a significant role in ensuring that Kiwis have the best possible access to medicines,” says Mr Seymour. ...
Hundreds of New Zealand families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) will benefit from a new Government focus on prevention and treatment, says Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. “We know FASD is a leading cause of preventable intellectual and neurodevelopmental disability in New Zealand,” Dr Reti says. “Every day, ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges. “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order. “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions. “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today. “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale. “It is good ...
The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
“China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
The protest outside the White House correspondents’ dinner hotel. Image: Anatolu video screenshot APR More than two dozen Palestinian journalists had called for a boycott of the dinner, writing an open letter urging their American colleagues not to attend. “You have a unique responsibility to speak truth to power and ...
“Our exporters should, therefore, be deeply concerned that the Fast-track Approvals Bill was not assessed for consistency with any of our free trade commitments prior to being introduced to the House,” says Gary Taylor, Chief Executive of the Environmental ...
NZCTU President Richard Wagstaff is calling on all political parties to support the new Member’s Bill from Labour’s workplace relations and safety spokesperson Camilla Belich MP that would ensure negligent companies are held accountable when their employees ...
A historian with an uncanny track record of predicting US election winners tells RNZ's Sunday Morning that President Biden looks to be on track for another term, but things could still go very wrong for him. ...
A historian with a track record of predicting US election winners tells RNZ's Sunday Morning that President Biden looks to be on track for another term, but things could still go wrong for him. ...
Ngaio Marsh House is one of Christchurch’s best kept secrets – and contains more than a few mysteries of its own.Trust Ngaio Marsh to leave more than a few mysteries scattered through her house long after her departure. For a start, there’s the curious concrete portal in the garden, ...
Appointment viewing has been lost to the mists of time, but memories of Montana Sunday Theatre can still be conjured by hitting play on a particular piece of classical music. “You’re not going to be able to sell it.” Over 30 years on, Karen Bieleski still recalls how the task ...
Performance Review King Luxon sat behind His massive polished oak desk. It is Performance Review time. There is a knock on the door. “Enter!” says the King. In steps Minister of Disabilities and Carer Pedicures, Penny Simmonds. “I can explain everything …” she begins. “Fine,” says King Luxon, pressing the ...
The pair opened their first fully collaborative exhibition, Nina for Flowers, last Saturday. Gabi Lardies visited their studio to find out who Nina is and what working together was like.‘It didn’t start out like, ‘This is a show about Nina,’” says Josephine Jelicich, gripping a thermos of peppermint tea. ...
Thank you, Dr Maximilian Oskar Bircher-Benner, for your brilliant invention. I’m another mid-20s Kiwi who had an OE last year. I hopped on my bicycle where France meets the Atlantic and cycled east. I pedalled through the Loire Valley, down rivers lined with willows and ancient wisteria-draped chateaus. I relished ...
Asia Pacific Report From France to Australia, university pro-Palestine protests in the United States have now spread to several countries with students pitching on-campus camps. And students at Columbia and other US universities remain defiant as campuses have witnessed the biggest protests since the anti-Vietnam war and anti-apartheid eras in ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards, Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)New Zealand Government’s Fast Track legislation. Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government ...
Tara Ward talks to presenter Naomi Toilalo about the new TV show that turns food waste into a three course feast. Naomi Toilalo is standing in the warehouse at Good Neighbour Tauranga, helping unpack the two-and-a-half tonnes of rejected food that will arrive at the community support hub that day. ...
Scout is our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our What’s Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Scout’s human, Avril, for her support. Dog name: Scout (named after the little girl in To Kill a Mockingbird – she inherited the independent spirit ...
Megan Alatini takes us through her life in TV, including ‘terrible’ daytime TV, the class of Carol Hirschfeld and her most embarrassing TrueBliss moment. When she responded to a vague newspaper ad asking “do you have what it takes to be a popstar?” 25 years ago, Megan Alatini never guessed ...
A new exhibition in Wellington showcases the faces behind your local goods and services. Back in 1977, when I was a fine arts student at the University of Canterbury, I took a series of photographs of Christchurch shopkeepers. The photos were for a calendar – a project for my end ...
Toomaj and his resistance to tyranny through his songs have become an icon for the youth of Iran, so his sentence has hit the nation hard. Toomaj Salehi is not the first artist to pay the price for standing with the people. ...
My cousin Dylan and I spotted these big eels under the bridge that summer. We watched them lounging under the dark weed, facing into the flow of water, their mouths frozen open. Dylan and I couldn’t stop thinking about those eels. The night we went down to the creek, we ...
Newsroom, home of satire. My long-running weekly satirical series The Secret Diary has moved to Newsroom and will appear every Saturday, with Victor Billot’s wildly popular satirical Odes continuing to appear every Sunday. Diaries, Odes – while serious political columnists toil at meaningful opinions and stroke their chins to an ...
Tara Ward unravels the many nuanced layers of a cartoon about talking dogs.This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. It’s not often an episode of a children’s cartoon has adults sobbing into their sleeves, but that’s exactly what happened this week when ...
Working as a doctor in developing countries to help communities achieve better health outcomes is nothing short of a life goal for Jessica Tater. The University of Otago medical student has her sights firmly set on joining the international humanitarian organisation Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) when she qualifies ...
There’s an island in the far reaches of Auckland’s territory, sitting off the tip of the Coromandel Peninsula, 30 minutes by air from the city or four hours on the slow boat. Aotea Great Barrier is off-grid, it has a population of fewer than a thousand people … and most ...
Asia Pacific Report An Australian author and advocate, Jim Aubrey, today led a national symbolic one minute’s silence to mark the “blood debt” owed to Papuan allies during the Second World War indigenous resistance against the invading Japanese forces. “A promise to most people is a promise,” Aubrey said in ...
Asia Pacific Report The Freedom Flotilla is ready to sail to Gaza, reports Kia Ora Gaza. All the required paperwork has been submitted to the port authority, and the cargo has been loaded and prepared for the humanitarian trip to the besieged enclave. However, organisers received word of an “administrative ...
Pacific Media Watch Palestine solidarity protesters today demonstrated at the Auckland headquarters of Television New Zealand, accusing the country’s major TV network of broadcasting “propaganda” backing Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza. About 50 protesters targeted the main entrance to the TVNZ building near Sky Tower and also picketed a side ...
Opinion by Lynley Hood. Forty years on from my 1985 Fulbright Grant, my disquiet over the war in Gaza evoked some troubling questions. The answer to my first question – What is the primary purpose of the Fulbright Programme? – was on the Fulbright NZ website. It says: US Senator, ...
The ministers responsible for green-lighting major projects need to be open about potential conflicts of interest, says Transparency International. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Powell, Professor, Family and Sexual Violence, RMIT University It has been a particularly distressing start to the year. There is little that can ease the current grief of individuals, families and communities who have needlessly lost a loved one to men’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gregory Moore, Senior Research Associate, School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, The University of Melbourne Lichen, the first described example of symbiosis.AdeJ Artventure/Shutterstock Once known only to those studying biology, the word symbiosis is now widely used. Symbiosis is the intimate ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kim Hemsley, Head, Childhood Dementia Research Group, Flinders Health and Medical Research Institute, College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University Olena Ivanova/Shutterstock “Childhood” and “dementia” are two words we wish we didn’t have to use together. But sadly, around 1,400 ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Whiteford, Professor, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University The government’s Economic Inclusion Advisory Committee has just published its second report. It was set up by Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth in 2022 to provide: ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne The Queensland state election will be held in October. A YouGov poll for The Courier Mail, conducted April 9–17 from a sample ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Naeni, PhD candidate at Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation, Deakin University There’s been much talk in recent months about what a possible second Donald Trump presidency in the United States could mean for Europe, Russia’s war in Ukraine, the ...
A brief round-up of submissions on the controversial proposed law. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week, submissions on the controversial Fast-track Approvals Bill closed just hours after the government released a list of stakeholder organisations who were sent letters advising how they could ...
A poem from Robin Peace’s new collection Detritus of Empire: feather / grass / rock. Cereal giving I see a woman’s hands, see her curious hands break a stalk as she walks through the tall prairie, the savannah, the steppe, wherever it was. See her idly bite the grass that ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Hemingway’s Goblet by Dermot Ross (Mary Egan Publishing, $38)A handsomely produced (debossed cover, lovely ...
The Commissioner's decision validates the longstanding efforts of the local community and ensures that Awataha Marae will be managed to serve the needs of the local community, particularly for hosting tangihanga. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tristan Salles, Associate professor, University of Sydney Examples of Australian landscapes.Unsplash Seventy thousand years ago, the sea level was much lower than today. Australia, along with New Guinea and Tasmania, formed a connected landmass known as Sahul. Around this time – ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Felicity Castagna, Lecturer, Creative Writing, Western Sydney University Day Day Market, ParramattaPhoto: Garry Trinh I live on the edge of Parramatta, Australia’s fastest-growing city, on the kind of old-fashioned suburban street that has 1950s fibros constructed in the post-war housing boom, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Ryan, Teaching Fellow in Economics, University of Waikato GettyImagesfatido/Getty Images There is an ongoing global debate over whether the high inflation seen in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic can be lowered without a recession. New Zealand is not ...
The ‘Wicked Game’ heartthrob is in his late 60s now. That didn’t stop him putting on a lively, goofy and very sparkly show. Apart from ‘Wicked Game’, which graces a sultry playlist of mine simply called 💋, my last sustained Chris Isaak listening session took place when I was about ...
Analysis - Two ministers were stripped of portfolios in a warning to Cabinet, drama broke out at the Waitangi Tribunal, and the gang patch ban bill ran into opposition. ...
Tara Ward makes an impassioned plea for some vital pop culture merch. In April 1999, I became obsessed with a new reality television show called Popstars. Every Tuesday night, five strangers transformed into music royalty before my very eyes as Joe, Keri, Carly, Erika and Megan were chosen to form ...
PNG Post-Courier In the early hours of ANZAC Day, aerial photographs captured an impressive gathering of Australians and Papua New Guineans at Isurava in the Northern (Oro) Province. The solemn dawn service yesterday was held at a site steeped in history, where some of the fiercest battles of World War ...
The PSA is shocked that Oranga Tamariki has used the cost cutting drive to downgrade its commitment to Te Ao Māori and remove many specialist Māori roles. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Kemish, Adjunct Professor, School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry, The University of Queensland There can be no more powerful symbol of the relationship between Australia and Papua New Guinea than the prime ministers of these neighbouring countries walking together on the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sharon Robinson, Distinguished Professor and Deputy Director of ARC Securing Antarctica’s Environmental Future (SAEF), University of Wollongong, University of Wollongong Andrew Netherwood Over the last 25 years, the ozone hole which forming over Antarctica each spring has started to shrink. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Viktoria Kahui, Senior Lecturer in Environmental Economics, University of Otago Getty Images/Amy Toensing Biodiversity is declining at rates unprecedented in human history. This suggests the ways we currently use to manage our natural environment are failing. One emerging concept focuses on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Timothy Colin Bednall, Associate Professor in Management, Swinburne University of Technology marvent/Shutterstock Finding the best person to fill a position can be tough, from drafting a job ad to producing a shortlist of top interview candidates. Employers typically consider information from ...
Wondering where to host your next BYO? Whether its a small gathering or a massive party, we’ve got some recommendations. I was first introduced to the concept of BYOs at Dunedin’s India Gardens, a legendary but sadly defunct establishment, which purveyed enormous quantities of mango chicken to Aotearoa’s drunkest future ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Julien Cooper, Honorary Lecturer, Department of History and Archaeology, Macquarie University Julien Cooper The hyper-arid desert of Eastern Sudan, the Atbai Desert, seems like an unlikely place to find evidence of ancient cattle herders. But in this dry environment, my new ...
The sector says it’s hopeful her replacement Paul Goldsmith will be able to throw it a lifeline, after six months with a minister deemed missing in action, writes Catherine McGregor in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign ...
The government can't just rely on axing public sector jobs and has to do more to cut spending, says the chief economist at a free market think tank. ...
Rock The Vote NZ, known for its advocacy for minor party unity and its role within the Freedoms NZ Coalition during the 2023 General Election, celebrates this merger as a strategic enhancement of its operational strength and outreach. ...
Finally the fish wrap might be seeing the writing on the wall. Reading it of course is another matter.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12218211
Thanks for the link Kat, that was well worth a read…..
David Cormack: The hopeless week of Simon Bridges
“We want an inspirational leader who can take us there. And we have one. It’s not you.”
LMFAO !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I have been overseas for the last fortnight or so. While away I saw almost nothing about New Zealand, except for sports, in the news and I was left in a happy state of thinking that the Government was going to bite the bullet and do a proper job on arms control by banning ALL semiautomatic weapons.
Instead I arrive back to discover they have completely lost their nerve and are only to ban things like AK47s and the US M4 (or M16) assault weapon equivalents.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=12218242
Even then it appears that there will be exceptions to the ban.
“The Government plans to ban on military-style semi-automatic (MSSA) weapons and assault rifles, though there would be exemptions for guns commonly used by farmers for pest control, as well as hunters.”.
Why didn’t they have the guts to follow John Howard’s example of 20 years ago and to ban all semiautomatics? There is no need to have any semiautomatic outside the Military and the Police.
This was the chance to do something meaningful and instead they have simply bowed down before the members of the Gun Lobby.
Why have they turned out to be such cowards? Has Tsar Winston simply trod on the other two parties again?
Oh well I suppose it will get one soon to be illegal weapon out of “dickhead” Davis’ possession.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12215729
I realise that Lprent coined the description for all such owners but it seems truly appropriate for Kelvin.
I mean to say. What did a schoolteacher need an AK47 equivalent for? Is he so scared of the pupils that he needs to man up like Rambo just to get from the classroom to the staffroom and back each day?
Is it really to late for the Government to actually do something meaningful about guns or is it just another case of “all hat and no cattle” as that wonderful Texas phrase describes it.
Edit.. rubbish, we will have the same as Aussie, currently the law in Aussie is….
Category D – All self-loading centrefire rifles, pump-action or self-loading shotguns that have a magazine capacity of more than 5 rounds, semi-automatic rimfire rifles over 10 rounds, are restricted to government agencies, occupational shooters and primary producers.
And Nash is proposing the same, as far as I’m aware, which is….
“Are any semi-automatic firearms exempted from the changes?
A small number of firearms owners have a legitimate use for weapons with a larger capacity. Semi-automatic firearms which are commonly used for hunting, pest control, stock management on farms, and duck shooting will not be affected. These are:
• Semi-automatic .22 calibre rimfire firearms with a magazine which holds no more than ten rounds
• Semi-automatic and pump action shotguns with a non-detachable tubular magazine which holds no more than five rounds ”
Anyways, discussion in the house tomorrow if you are interested….
“The Arms Amendment Bill will have its first reading tomorrow, and be referred to a Select Committee for a swift public submissions process. It will return to Parliament next week to pass through its remaining stages. It is intended to come into force on 12 April, the day after the Royal Assent.”
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA1904/S00005/tighter-gun-laws-to-enhance-public-safety.htm
The debate is really about what New Zealand is doing.
However there are a few things you should note about what happened in Australia.
When Howard got these reforms through the banned weapons included ALL semiautomatic rifles. That included all rimfire weapons as well. We aren’t doing that.
The seizure/buyback was about 650,000 guns. That was estimated to be 20% of all the privately owned weapons in Australia.
https://www.vox.com/2015/8/27/9212725/australia-buyback
We aren’t talking anything like that number.
Howard had, of course,to get the laws accepted and passed by all the states and territories. That is a hell of a lot harder than we have here.
The laws have been eased up in the last 20 years as State Governments bow to the pressures of the Gun Lobby and Howard is no longer around to provide the moral impetus.
For example in NSW we have
“A 2008 amendment to the firearms act, passed by the Labor government and Shooters and Fishers Party, allowed people to enter a gun club and begin shooting without a licence and the previous 28-day background check”
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/gun-control-eroded-since-port-arthur-20160427-gog5u5.html
No, it is no use making excuses. Our Government has the chance to do something meaningful and they have morally collapsed from fear of the Shooting Lobby. Gutless, the lot of them.
They are all talk and no trousers.
This is the urgent part of the reform. There will be a lot more happen later.
No Micky. This is the only chance we have. If all the semi-automatic weapons aren’t banned right now it is never going to happen.
Look at the history of the last 20+ years since the Thorp Report.
Nothing at all from either Labour or National Governments. And as the immediate memory of the affair in Christchurch fades the chances of anything significant happening in the future fades with it.
If the Government can’t find the courage to do it now it will never happen.
Now you’re back in the country, maybe instead of writing about lost nerve on here you write to the men in the linked article.
There are a lot of mental midgets who think they should have all the guns of any type they want. All the pressure in the world mightn’t change their self-obsessed cowboy mentality but is it only Ardern’s job to fight a battle with them. Expect her to have the nerve which we don’t?
You don’t want certain guns here? A childish rant about Kelvin Davis is easy. What else have you got, what constructive things are you going do, or are you “all hat and no cattle”?
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12218204
OK guys, what about this – I found it totally gobsmacking, just putting it out there.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12218204
“most gun owners were “pretty responsible I would imagine”.”
And there’s the nub.
You’d have been as dumb as a sack of mssa to advocate in print for gun ownership now, when you can’t even be certain gun owners aren’t more than “pretty responsible, I would imagine”.
Someone’s lacking a laser (in)sight.
“but is it only Ardern’s job to fight a battle with them. Expect her to have the nerve which we don’t”.
YES I DO expect her to fight the battle.
She is the Prime Minister. She can do something about it. I’m not an MP. I can only comment on the subject and tell the people who are in office what I want them to do. Well, quite consistently I believe, I have.
Ban all semiautomatic weapons. NOW.
That is about all I can do in response to your question “what constructive things are you going do”. What other options do I have?
If they don’t have the guts to do it now it will never happen.
Howard had the courage to do it, even with threats to his life. There was at least one meeting where he was persuaded to wear a bullet-proof vest because his life was believed to be in danger. Luckily the people involved were only talking about killing him.
Ardern is the PM right now. I can offer you another Americanism about what she has to do. It is “there is a time when you either have to piss or get off the pot”. Nixon even said it to Eisenhower. Well sorry Jacinda. This is the one and only chance we have to get rid of automatic and semi-automatic weapons in the general public’s hands. Do it NOW.
Thanks for the reply. I get it.
I like it when some scream, “Do it, do it now, be decisive, have the balls!” And then from the same camp, “Why weren’t we consulted, are we living in a dictatorship and then a rallying call of the next election is about ploughing ahead and doing dictatorially what the electorate didn’t want, ignoring their rights.
https://edition.cnn.com/2019/03/29/asia/new-zealand-guns-intl/index.html
Fun politics in Ukraine: “A comedian with no political experience has won the most votes in the first round of Ukraine’s presidential elections, early results indicate.
With half the ballots counted, Volodymyr Zelenskiy – who plays the president on TV – got about 30%, with current leader Petro Poroshenko on 16%.”
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-47767440
“The two – who have expressed largely pro-EU opinions – are set to take part in a run-off election next month. Former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko appears to have been eliminated.”
So now they have to choose whether or not to dump a billionaire. Gee, tough choice?? I doubt it, if they wonder whether to be controlled by an oligarch, or entertained!
“Mr Poroshenko aimed to appeal to conservative Ukrainians through his slogan “Army, Language, Faith”. No, no! That will freak them out! “Mr Poroshenko, a chocolate magnate and one of Ukraine’s wealthiest people, was elected in a snap vote after former pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych was toppled in the February 2014 Maidan Revolution, which was followed by Russia’s annexation of Crimea and a Russian-backed insurgency in the east.” There you go, all he needs to do is offer voters a free chocolate fish each. Election bribes normally work well.
may pay to consider the last TV personality to be elected President….and reflect
Happy to agree with Bingles here. He’s even borrowed from our Prime Minister.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2019/04/end-of-life-choice-bill-will-make-new-zealand-a-dangerous-place-sir-bill-english.html
Can you point to the bit in the proposed legislation that bans offering kindness and replaces it with killing people? Specific clauses, please.
+1
You well know you can’t legislate for kindness nor against it. The law is impersonal like that. People do kindness and people withhold kindness.
Then why bleat about kindness when referring to legislation?
The legislation wouldn’t ‘ban’ kindness but it does offer to kill people.
Like a majority of Kiwis I just worry that very ill people’s lives will be seen as burdensome. You can’t safeguard against that in the legislation.
Faced with getting to the stage of having to have my kid wipe my arse and wipe my drool, or (and not to diminish the good work loads of carers do), leave it to a minimum wage employee who may beat me and steal my possessions, rather than be what I would consider to be a burden, I might well take up the option of legally ending my life.
I would never say a woman shouldn’t have the right to choose abortion, likewise it’s not anyone’s business but my own should I opt to end my life when the prognosis is dire and or very painful. Taking any liability away from those assisting me would be a cherry on top of the icing on the cake.
I’m not sure state care not being good enough is a good reason to introduce assisted dying.
I do think a shrinking of state care services is high on the list of outcomes for the member who introduced this bill. He has form in this area.
The point isn’t state care, about which I amended in an edit to reflect the good work some wonderful people do, but the fact I would consider it burdensome to be so cared for by family or strangers.
If I thought for one minute I’d get dementia I hope I’d have the fortitude to end it at a time of my choosing with family and friends around me.
It’s a cold heart to deny that to someone whose fate is so awful and condemn them to one worse than death.
A big long article worth reading on this subject.
“Van Baarsen’s scruples have crystallised in the country’s first euthanasia malpractice case, which prosecutors are now preparing. (Three further cases are currently under investigation.) It involves a dementia sufferer who had asked to be killed when the “time” was “right”, but when her doctor judged this to be the case, she resisted. The patient had to be drugged and restrained by her family before she finally submitted to the doctor’s fatal injection. The doctor who administered the dose – who has not been identified – has defended her actions by saying that she was fulfilling her patient’s request and that, since the patient was incompetent, her protests before her death were irrelevant. Whatever the legal merits of her argument, it hardly changes what must have been a scene of unutterable grimness.”
https://www.theguardian.com/news/2019/jan/18/death-on-demand-has-euthanasia-gone-too-far-netherlands-assisted-dying
That’s sad, but like I wrote, I hope I’d get to make that call before I was incapacitated or deemed incapable.
Just think what it would do for the property market.
Thanks Allen for putting up points relating to assisted dying. It is a
hard one with numbers of different needs, ideas and ideals to consider.
Of
Obviously it’s a very personal subject, and no doubt there are good arguments on both sides of the divide, but I honestly believe it should be a personal choice to end a life with dignity in the face of a horrible, debilitating ending.
Taking away any stigma and bringing that decision within the law, is in my mind, a compassionate, humane act.
True. At present I would have to send my unhappy family away to have a coffee or such to ensure that they wouldn’t be charged and have to appear in Court as to whether they had helped me or killed me. And I think they would have to sit somewhere in public where they could call on a witness as alibi if needed.
The various concerns raised could be controlled with legislation.
There would be a required model or models to follow to ensure that the matter was done in a responsible way.
I fully get that.
“This law will make New Zealand a dangerous place for people who are young and suicidal or old and think they’re a burden”
We’ve all seen the horrendous rates of suicide in NZ. 100% not being insensitive, but clearly these people don’t need an assisted dying law.
Uncalled for that.
Often people who commit suicide are desperately unhappy and want the pain to stop. Temporary pain permanent solution.
Please don’t try to be flippant about the horrendous suicide rates in this country – it is a sign that people are being pushed too far and nothing whatsoever to do with assisted dying.
I don’t think it’s uncalled for, and certainly not flippant. I thought I’d made that quite clear. It’s a valid point.
Besides, I’m sure any law would involve input from medical staff, and the grounds for assisted death would probably include terminal disease as the only criteria, and would exclude suicidal people with mental issues, temporary of otherwise.
Great you know it all.
To your edited out comment…
I hear you, I just disagree with your understanding and interpretation of what I’ve written. No biggie
To the edited version…
Without the bill in front of us, everything in conjecture.
It is a challenging subject.
Very confronting, for sure.
We need a good Mental Health System which is compassionate towards people with Mental Health Issues, we did have a Mental Health System which may not have been perfect, but we did have one.
Under the Lange/Douglas Labour Government and the Neoliberal Agenda under Harold Titter an Englishman imported for the job, they dismantled the Mental Health System and released a lot of Mental Health patients back into the community. Then proceeded to sell off the Assets held by the Health Department ?
Bill English has no right to bleat about kindness when his track record is anything but ‘kind’.
Erdogan has lost Ankara in the local body elections and his party’s claim to have won Istanbul is being challenged by the opposition. Adds some context to the recent furore over Winston’s trip to Turkey and just what Erdogan was playing at.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/apr/01/erdogan-party-loses-ankara-in-turkish-local-elections-blow
so funny
https://www.theguardian.com/global/video/2019/apr/01/the-cures-robert-smith-offers-blunt-response-to-overzealous-tv-host-video
From that I’d almost swear he’s a high functioning Aspie.
Audit them forensically and then prosecute to the full extent of the law if appropriate.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12218204
Would you care to expand on what you really mean by your first sentence?
You sound as if you propose to use the IRD as a Government controlled police force who will aim their powers at anyone who says nasty things about members of the Government.
You aren’t serious are you?
I’d like to know that these guys comply totally with the law and all legal requirements in regards to their firearms licence and any weapons they may have. I don’t want someone to kill other people because of hate. These people have put their heads up with their comments therefore they are first in line. Simple enough even for you. I don’t care about their money or whether they pay enough tax – you’re back here now alwyn get up to speed will ya ffs.
End of Life Choice Bill will make New Zealand a ‘dangerous place’ – Sir Bill English…
“It’s worse than a slippery slope… once you start saying ‘we’ll drop the ban on killing, some people can choose to be killed’ – how do you stop more and more and more?”
What else would he say? He is conservative through and through, with his mind totally religion-controlled. NZ will find one excuse after another to avoid any reasoned process on this. And why would more and more rise exponentially? Did he ever worry about the amount of depression in NZ when he was PM and provide better conditions for all people, and for depressed more talking help and widening the scope of therapies? As more people are living longer there may be a growing number wanting to limit the length of the journey – so there may be a growing number. Nothing to worry him though, it’s just a growth in the demographics and I suppose he knows what that means.
We will be fortunate to get compassionate assistance for the terminally ill, or people who are sick of being sick with constant pain. And I would like for myself the ability to organise arrangements with my family for my own death when I want, and also I would talk to my doctor if willing to be called to give a death certificate. I certainly don’t want anyone else to have the burden of deciding for me when ‘the time is right’. I would like a ‘managed demise’. That is all hypothetical anyway, I don’t expect much from NZ legislators now and if I am wrong in that then that will be a nice surprise.