Funny how models based on "the science" still seem to be considerably more accurate than models based on "nothing is really changing outside of norms over the history of humanity" or "sunspots".
"Reality has always been overflowing with entities whose essences are baptized in inquiry. We are at a crossroads of understanding and bondage. Who are we? Where on the great journey will we be aligned?"
If current models of the effects of increasing anthropogenic greenhouse gases on atmospheric and ocean temperatures, sea level, et al. are not credible, would you care to hazard a guess as to whether these models are under- or over-estimating the effects/risks?
Guess we'll know soon enough.
"Since all models are wrong the scientist must be alert to what is importantly wrong. It is inappropriate to be concerned about mice when there are tigers abroad."
yep – we all saw how wrong this was and clayton tears are not needed or wanted.
The head of Oranga Tamariki says she has deep regret and is truly sorry about how the Ministry tried to uplift a newborn baby in Hastings, after a review found there were mistakes into how the case was handled.
This follows a release of its practice review into the way staff tried to take the six-day-old baby from his mother at Hawke's Bay Hospital in May.
but
Oranga Tamariki stood by its decision to get involved as it had safety concerns but how it went about it was wrong, Moss said.
As trial began in the case against Roger Stone for charges he threatened a witness and lied about his attempts to contact Wikileaks, up the street other bad faith actors in Trump's orbit took a meeting with an attorney for Julian Assange. pic.twitter.com/LIY9Ddx3PX
At approximately 3pm today Senator Rand Paul's office held a meeting with Gareth Peirce, a celebrated human rights advocate and British lawyer who currently is representing Julian Assange on matters concerning his extradition to the US.
As a solicitor representing a client facing extradition on political charges under the draconian Espionage Act for exposing US war crimes and abuses, Gareth is duty-bound to leave no stone unturned in advocating for her client —but this meeting landed at deeply troubling time.
This week Rand Paul has repeatedly pulled threads at the already threadbare fabric of democratic process by calling on members of the media and others to unmask the identity of the alleged whistleblower.
Whistleblower protection, like source protection, is a foundational tenet in journalistic ethics, and (unless something recently changed) remains paramount within Wikileaks.
Today’s meeting between Julian Assange’s attorney and Rand Paul’s staff was an affront to every core belief once held sacred by Wikileaks supporters. It never should have happened.
To add insult to injury today Rand Paul blocked a resolution reaffirming the Senate's support for whistleblower protections. Protecting the safety of sources is not “fake outrage,” it’s a baseline to due process in these proceedings.
In addition to showing contempt for whistleblowers & sources, Rand Paul has also shown contempt for journalists from the mainstream & alternative media alike, including fighting to revoke the press credentials of @AbbyMartin who once asked him hard questions about US drone policy
mentions The already horrid optics of this meeting are compounded when it is revealed the individual who purportedly brokered the meeting between Julian Assange's lawyer and Rand Paul's office is none other than Roger Stone protege and Alt-Light Palme d'Or, Cassandra Fairbanks.
mentions This meeting did not speak truth to power …it pulled at the pant legs of it.
mentions This meeting did not lift up the ideals that at one time in 2010 made Wikileaks great …it undermined those ideals in a most brutal way.
mentions This meeting couldn't possibly help Julian Assange in his fight against charges for publishing information about US war crimes …instead it conflates them with a partisan spat that is threatening the safety of another whistleblower seeking to hold those in power to account.
I've yet to see any media call out the Repug push to expose the whistleblower for what it really can only be: a blatant attempt to intimidate other potential whistleblowers and scare them away from whistleblowing.
NEW: Rand Paul is on the Senate floor pushing a bill to make Edward Snowden a retroactive whistler blower, and the press gallery erupts: "HE WASN'T A WHISTLE BLOWER!"
Rand Paul is definitely playing a different game to most of the rest of the Repugs, though I'm not ready to guess at what his end-game might be. (No, I don't think he's a Pooteepuppet, though there is likely some convergence of interests)
But people are complicated, even utter assholes can do worthwhile things now and then. Rand Paul's sticking up for Snowden seems to fall into that category, even though it may be in service of some as-yet obscure asshole goal.
Earlier in the year he was quietly boosting foreign oligarchs with his opposition to sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 project. At around the same time he was holding up funding for a 9/11 victims
An opportunist weasel looking to line his own pockets, I reckon.
Rand Paul is one of the few repug politicians I suspect might actually have some pretty strong political principles that he generally sticks to, rather than being primarily interested in feathering his own nest and clawing onto is sinecure.
Touble is that those principles are libertarian, so whatever good he might advocate he approaches fromn the opposite direction. I.e. protecting Snowden is consistent with trying to make government infintesimally small, so it's the same impulse that makes him want to destroy all government healthcare systems (not sure about his ideas on VA – he'd probably want it government funded but privatised).
Whereas even a light socialist would say Snowden deserves a pass because he exposed mass surveillance that preserves nationalistic capitalist hegemony, and that everyone is entitled to healthcare, food, and housing even if capitalism doesn't provide it to them.
maui, your previous evasions notwithstanding, I'm still interested in whether you think it's OK for the president to withhold Congress approved and taxpayer funded aid to try to extort a foreign country into smearing a political opponent of the president?
Go on and pretend it's just a hypothetical if it makes it easier for you to answer. It's a very simple question that only needs a “yes it’s OK” or “no it’s not OK” answer.
Do you know that Trumps IQ is that of Einstein's? He is by far not dumb. Do you know hes a Master Chess player and he taught Barron, Top of the game in the world. Hes playing 4D Chess with people and driving them crazy. Its hilarious. Just so you know, Dumb he is not.
Aw c'mon, give him credit, he's the absolute undisputed master of seagull chess. Y'know, where you flap in squawking loudly, shit all over the board, knock all the pieces over, strut around like you've won, and flap out again still squawking loudly.
I doubt he even knows how each chess piece moves and even if by a miracle he does he'd cheat his arse off like he does in every other aspect of his life from golf to numbers at his parade. He would be good at moving the pieces on one of those magnetic chess sets that are so so small you can hardly hold them, for obvious reasons.
"Despite supporting the bill National have set out several changes to the law that they would make in their first 100 days if elected, including removing the controversial methane target and asking an independent commission to set it."
After the White House cut off military aid to Ukraine, Donald Trump’s top officials scrambled to get it restored but were unable to organise a meeting with the president, in part because his staff were too busy pursuing his interest in buying Greenland, according to newly released congressional testimony.
Today is a Member's Day, probably the second-to-last one of the year, and its a big one, with the Third Reading of David Seymour's End of Life Choice Bill. last Member's Day it was reported back from committee, after MPs voted narrowly to make it subject to a (rules TBA) ...
Climate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change.If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, please send it to climate.change@stuff.co.nzThe growth of the human population over the last 70 ...
by The Council of Disobedient Women In her excellent oral submission to the Abortion reform select committee on 31st October on behalf of Otago University’s Department of Public Health, historian and public health researcher Hera Cook stated: “We would ask that the committee not use the term ‘pregnant persons’ and ...
by Don Franks In 1957, E M Forster wrote, of his greatest work: “The India described in ‘A Passage to India’ no longer exists either politically or socially. Change had begun even at the time the book was published ( 1924) and during the following quarter of a century it ...
The Referendums Framework Bill was due back from select committee today. But there's no report on it. Instead, the bill has been bounced back to the House under Standing order 29593) because the Committee didn't bother to produce one. They probably tried. But given the membership of the committee (which ...
Two years into New Zealand’s Labour-led government, the long-delayed Zero Carbon Bill became law on 7 November. Passed essentially unanimously, the lengthy public debates and political manoeuvring faded away until the final passage was even anticlimactic: Flipping through the @nzstuff@DomPost I was starting to wonder if I’d dreamt ...
Now the Zero Carbon Bill is law, what's next? Obviously, the ETS changes currently before select committee are going to be the next battleground. But we're also going to get a good idea of where we're going, and if the progress the Zero Carbon Act promises is good enough, during ...
Grant PearceThe effects of the current Australian bushfires in New South Wales and Queensland (and also again in California) are devastating and far-reaching. To date, the fires have resulted in several lives being lost and many homes and properties destroyed. Here in New Zealand, the impacts have been only ...
A passing comment in a post the other day about the labour force participation rates of older people prompted me to pull down the fuller data and see what we could see about various participation rates over the decades since the HLFS began in 1986. As it happens, the ...
Distract And Divert: The rise of what we have come to call “Identity Politics” represents the ideological manifestation of the ruling class’s objective need to destroy class politics, and of the middle-class’s subjective need to justify their participation in the process.THE RELIEF of the ruling class can only be imagined. ...
"I saw a newspaper picture,From the political campaignA woman was kissing a child,Who was obviously in pain.She spills with compassion,As that young child'sFace in her hands she gripsCan you imagine all that greed and avariceComing down on that child's lips?" ...
Dr Matt Boyd, Prof Michael Baker, Prof Nick WilsonThe Global Health Security Index which considers pandemic threats has just been published. Unfortunately, NZ scores approximately half marks (54/100), coming in 35th in the world rankings – far behind Australia. This poor result suggests that the NZ Government needs to ...
The Zero Carbon Act is inadequate, with a weak methane target designed to give farmers a free ride. But it turns out it could have been worse: Climate Change Minister James Shaw was so desperate to get National on board, he wanted to gut that target, and leave it in ...
The Herald reprints an Australian story on a couple of tragic deaths in Bali from drinking cocktails that had methanol in them. The story argues that methanol is likely the result of home distillation. But what the young tourists were experiencing was far from a hangover. They’d consumed a toxic cocktail ...
Last month, the police announced a trial of specialist roaming armed units, which would drive round (poor, brown) areas in armoured SUVs, armed to the teeth. When they announced the trial, they told us it was about having armed police "ready to attend major incidents at any time if needed". ...
Spain went to the polls today in the second elections this year, after the Socialists (who had come to power in a confidence vote, then gone to the polls in April) rejected the offer of a coalition with the left-wing PoDemos, and instead decided to gamble n a better outcome ...
A couple of days ago I attended (and spoke at) the University of Waikato’s “LearnFest” event. There were lots of talks and sessions on very diverse aspects of teaching, mostly at tertiary level. One was by Myra Williamson from Te Piringa Faculty of Law here at Waikato, on Contract Cheating ...
There will be a transit of Mercury – the planet Mercury will pass across the face of the Sun – taking place at sunrise in New Zealand on Tuesday, 12th November. It was by observing such an event 250 years ago that James Cook and his scientist colleagues were able ...
Since becoming the world’s first openly transexual mayor and member of parliament, Georgina Beyer has been recognised as a trailblazer for trans rights. Daphna Whitmore talks with her about where she sees the current trans movement We start out talking about legislation the government put on hold that would have ...
If FFNZ really put their faith in “Top Medical Journals” they would now be amending their billboards to recognise new research results. Image from FFNZ but updated to agree with the latest research. ...
National Messiah? Chris Luxon identifies himself as an evangelical Christian. If he is genuine in this self-characterisation, then he will take every opportunity his public office provides to proselytise on behalf of his faith. He will also feel obliged to bear witness against beliefs and practices he believes to be ...
I'm going to make a Reckless Prediction™ that the Tories have 'topped out' in the 'poll of polls' / Britain Elects multipoll tracker at about 38%, and in the next week we will start to see Labour creep up on them.In fact, we might just be seeing the start of ...
by The Council of Disobedient Women Lizzie Marvelly: “I may have missed this… has @afterellen gone all terf-y? Or am I reading something incorrectly? “ https://twitter.com/LizzieMarvelly/status/1191840059105742849 After Ellen is a lesbian website that is unashamedly pro-lesbian, as you’d expect. So why is Ms Marvelly so bothered about lesbians having their ...
Did you know there once was a time when it was illegal to be a gypsy (aka Romani) in Britain?That was between 1530, when the Egyptians Act was passed, and 1856, when it was repealed.Amongst other things, the act forbade the entry of 'Egyptians' into England, ordered those already there ...
Some days I sit and think, “what will I write…?” What do you say when you get to 1000 posts? Maybe you just start where you are, diverge to where this all began, then offer a collection of reader’s favourite posts, and a few of your own? (And throw in ...
Counter-Puncher: The “activists” and “radicals” (his own words) from the Indian community who took such strong exception to Shane Jones’ remarks about Immigration NZ’s treatment of arranged marriages, may end up bitterly regretting their intervention. Jones is not the sort of person who turns the other cheek to his critics.SHANE ...
In the spirit of Remember, remember the fifth of November, let's keep this in mind FOREVER.
Oh dear. Extraordinary interview on PM with Andrew Bridgen and @EvanHD just now. Bridgen was defending Jacob Rees Mogg’s Grenfell comments. Evan asked him if JRM had meant to say he would have left ...
Collision Course? In conditions of ideological white-out, the international bankers’ “Woop-Woop! Pull Up!” warning may have come too late to save global capitalism.WHAT DOES IT MEAN when international bankers are more willing to embrace radical solutions than our politicians and their electors? At both the International Monetary Fund and the ...
Pertussis (whooping cough) is a conundrum. It is a disease that was described hundreds of years ago and the bacteria that causes it (Bordetella pertussis) isolated in 1906. We have had vaccines for about 80 years but this disease is defiant in the face of human immunity. I wanted to ...
The Zero Carbon Bill has just passed its third reading, uanimously. In the end, National supported it - but we all know they'll turn around and gut it the moment they regain power. Meanwhile, I guess ACT's David Seymour didn't even bother to show up. I am on record as ...
Dr Lindsay Robertson, Dr Jerram Bateman, Professor Janet HoekMembers of the public health community hold divergent views on how access to vaping products or electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) products should be arranged. Some believe ENDS should be as widely available as smoked tobacco and argue for liberal ...
When the Police were trying to cover up for the National Party over Dirty Politics, they went all-in with their abuses of power. They illegally search Nicky Hager's house, violating his journalistic privilege and invading his privacy. They unlawfully acquired Hager's bank records. They did the same to left-wing blogger ...
Last month, in response to a wave of protests by Extinction Rebellion, the British government purported to ban their protests from the whole of London. It was a significant interference with the freedoms of expression and assembly, and another sign of the country's decline into tyranny. But now, a court ...
Last year, the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security reported on significant problems with the intelligence warrant system. While they were unwilling to declare any warrant "irregular" (meaning unlawful) due to the recent law change, they were also not willing to give the system a clean bill of health. Now, they've ...
The National Party has come out in support of encouraging greater vaccination uptake. But it sure isn’t the way I’d do it. National’s suggested docking the benefits of those on benefit whose kids aren’t keeping up with their vaccinations. Some in National have suggested extending that to payments under Working ...
Feeding The Flames: It is simply not enough to demand an end to “corruption”, or “inequality”, or the overbearing influence of the authorities in Beijing. These are just “lowest common denominator” demands: the sort of slogans that pull people onto the streets. They are not a plan.WHERE’S THE PLAN? Across ...
The labour market statistics have been released, and unemployment has risen to 4.2%. There are 115,000 unemployed - 11,000 fewer than when Labour took office. In that time the minimum wage has gone up by $2 an hour, which shows that the right's fears about increases causing unemployment are simply ...
The Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee has called for submissions on Andrew Little's tyrannicalTerrorism Suppression (Control Orders) Bill. Normally I encourage participation in the democratic process. I am not doing so in this case. Instead, I encourage all of you to boycott this submissions process, and to post ...
Climate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change.If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, please send it to climate.change@stuff.co.nzIf tiny concentrations of carbon dioxide can hold enough heat ...
Aviation is one of the fastest growing sources of greenhouse gas emissions, and within it, one of the fastest sources is elite travel: billionaires flitting around the world in their private jets, spewing excessive pollution into the atmosphere just so they can avoid mixing with us dirty peasants. But in ...
That's what we face if we don't stop climate change, according to a warning from 11,000 scientists:The world’s people face “untold suffering due to the climate crisis” unless there are major transformations to global society, according to a stark warning from more than 11,000 scientists. “We declare clearly and unequivocally ...
by Phil Duncan Here’s just a few of the kind of threats issued day in and day out against gender-critical women – feminists, marxists, etc – overwhelmingly by MEN (albeit men identifying as women). “Kill all Terfs”. “Shoot a Terf today”. “All terfs deserve to be shot in the head”. ...
This is the third of the synopses of parts of the opening chapter of John Smith’s Imperialism in the 21st Century (New York, Monthly Review Press, 2016). The synopsis and commentary below is written by Phil Duncan. Unlike the humble cup of coffee and t-shirt that we looked at in ...
Tom MooreTraditionally a food source and cutting tool, freshwater mussels/kākahi are now widely valued as water filters that help clean our waterbodies and maintain ecosystem health throughout Aotearoa. The improvement they provide in water quality can make it easier for other animals to live in streams and rivers, as ...
And to think he gave all the potential goodwill away with that moronic, cult-like statement (repeated ad nauseam by many National hardliners) that Key is quite simply “the greatest PM we ever had”…Installation complete: this was nothing ...
The Zero Carbon Bill is back in the House today for its second reading. While this isn't the final stage, its still effectively D-Day for the bill. Because today, at around 5pm, is when we're going to find out if it has a majority, whether National will support it or ...
Winston Peters is in court today, suing a bunch of former Minister and civil servants over their pre-election leak of his superannuation repayment. He's characterised the leak as malicious, and said that it is repugnant that his information was passed on to Ministers to use for political advantage. And he's ...
Murray CoxDo I have to finish my favourite genome? That’s an often-asked question. Geneticists generally strive to produce high-quality genomes that sequence every last gene, making full use of the state-of-the-art technologies coming on stream. Sequencing DNA means determining the order of the four chemical building blocks – called ...
Transformative Politics: The idea is to turn each recipient into an unwitting accomplice in their own transformation. From interested observer to hyped-up activist, sharing our messages promiscuously with ‘friends’. You’ll be part of an ever-expanding circulatory system, Jennifer, for the ideas that will win us the election.”JENNIFER SKITTERED her chair ...
The boycott is a fundamental tool of protest. By choosing who we buy from, we can send a message, and hopefully change corporate behaviour. Historically, boycotts have been effective, for example over apartheid in South Africa and Israel, in forcing divestment from Myanmar, and in ending bus segregation in the ...
Jan Rivers spoke at the Abortion Legislation Select Committee in favour of the bill, but in opposition to calls from other submitters to exchange the word ‘woman’ for ‘person’ throughout the bill. Jan is a supporter of the feminist group Speak Up For Women and has recently written an excellent ...
I checked my traffic stats:I was intrigued by 'monica29' - who was this very dedicated individual? I clicked on the link, to be greeted with ...Ho, hum.Spreadin' the word, spreadin' the word. Doesn't matter who hears it, as long as it gets out there. ...
There have been three polls since the election was announced, and I will shamelessly steal YouGov / UK Polling Report's Anthony Wells' summary of them:Survation – CON 34%, LAB 26%, LDEM 19%, BREX 12%, GRN 1% Ipsos MORI – CON 41%, LAB 24%, LDEM 20%, BREX 7%, GRN 3% YouGov ...
The following article is translated from Lutte Ouvrière, the weekly newspaper of the organisation usually known by the same name in France. When, for the second time this year, Chilean President Piñera announced an increase in the price of Metro tickets from 800 to 830 pesos, students in the high ...
Today, a worker contacted me asking if she could go to the police over her employer stealing thousands of dollars from her in unpaid wages. The employer also did not pay this worker’s taxes or student loan which amounts to tax fraud. As a workers rights activist, who founded the ...
Signed, Sealed, Delivered, They're Yours: Is there any person more vulnerable than a jilted lover on the rebound? Or, anything more certain than that the charmer, the predator, the glib spinner of lies and promises will seek such broken people out? Yes, of course, he will love every one of ...
Though Jonathan Romain is a fairly high profile Rabbi, writing in several papers and popping up on TV and the radio, this story doesn't seem to have made it to the Guardian yet, so I'll take the unusual step of linking the Stephen Pollard edited Jewish Chronicle:Rabbi Dr Jonathan Romain ...
There's an election afoot, and that is when noted opinion formers such as myself get to make wild fools of ourselves by pretending we have the faintest idea what will happen.So, here is my absurdly optimistic prediction:Labour - 285Conservative - 262SNP - 53Lib Dems - 20PC - 5Ireland - 18 ...
Image Credit:Increase Social Media Traffic & Website Traffic I notice a few regulars no longer allow public access to the site counters. This may happen accidentally when the blog format is altered. If your ...
Belinda CridgeI was reading my son a story last night. A great tale of derring-do of five mountaineers scaling the Matterhorn for the first time. One in the party had tried six times previously and failed, this was the last attempt before winter closed another season. They tried a ...
As introduced, the Zero Carbon Bill included an expansive secrecy clause, which would have covered virtually all decisions by the Climate Change Commission over our most important policy area. The Ministry for the Environment admitted this was a mistake (or as they put it, an "oversight"), and the select committee ...
Rachael Shaw, Victoria University of WellingtonWhen we think about animals storing food, the image that usually comes to mind is a squirrel busily hiding nuts for the winter. We don’t usually think of a small songbird taking down an enormous invertebrate, tearing it into pieces and hiding these titbits ...
. . NZ First’s success in putting the euthenasia bill to a public referenda may not be the victory they believe it to be. They may even have sounded the death-knell for a second Labour-NZ First-Green coalition. On 23 July this year, NZ First MP, Jenny Marcroft, submitted a Supplementary ...
Interesting contrasting pictures in the Guardian:Corbyn gets the classic positive shot - low angle and a clear background, making him look authoritative (of course, being Corbyn, he doesn't do authoritative very well).Where as Johnson gets pictured with children at some sort of mad-hatters' tea party:Begging the question, who is the ...
Paternalism is contentious. Arguments for state action to protect us from ourselves are fraught. I come down pretty heavily on the anti-paternalism side of the argument, but I’ve heard respectable defences of paternalism. But policy around vaccination is hardly paternalistic. There’s a clear market failure that could be pointed to ...
I’ve been reading Jules Verne’s novel Twenty thousand leagues under the sea, considered as one of the very earliest science fiction stories. In brief, Monsieur Aronnax and a couple of sidekicks are taken prisoner by Captain Nemo and his mysterious crew and treated to an underwater voyage around the world ...
The climate crisis is going to mean some pretty big changes in our country, both from its impacts and the policies required to address them. Most obviously, whole suburbs are going to be underwater by 2100, meaning people and businesses are going to have to relocate to higher ground. But ...
Yesterday a dairy company was fined $483,000 for repeatedly failing to report listeria in its facility. Its a serious fine for a serious crime: listeria is a serious disease, and they were effectively trying to kill people with it. But there's another story hidden in there, and its not a ...
Darroch Ball, Spokesperson for Justice New Zealand First is proud that a key Coalition Agreement commitment which will provide for a more transparent and effective criminal justice system has been realised. Legislation to establish the Criminal Cases Review Commission, an independent body focused on identifying and responding to possible miscarriages of ...
"Today we have made a choice that will leave a legacy... I hope that means that future generations will see that we, in New Zealand, were on the right side of history." - Jacinda Ardern, Third Reading of the Zero Carbon Bill ...
Darroch Ball, New Zealand First List MP A Member’s bill has been proposed that would provide income tax exemptions for all New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) personnel while on operational deployment overseas. The Income Tax (Exemption for Salary or Wages of NZDF Members on Active Deployment) Amendment Bill proposed by New Zealand First ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, New Zealand First Leader New Zealand First is proud to have brought common sense to the Climate Change Response (Zero Carbon) Amendment Bill, which passed its final reading in Parliament today. Party Leader Rt Hon Winston Peters says months of hard work went into negotiating a balanced ...
Jenny Marcroft MP, Spokesperson for Health New Zealand First has listened to calls to recognise paramedics as registered health professionals under the Health Practitioners’ Competence Assurance Act (the Act).Today, the Coalition Government announced plans for paramedics to be registered as health practitioners under the Act, and the establishment of a ...
We began the week by commemorating the New Zealand Wars and celebrating a major increase in the number of teachers. Then, we were busy supporting offenders into work and getting our rail back on track after years of underinvestment. And that's just the start! ...
In October I was sworn in as the Mayor of Lower Hutt.It’s the privilege of my life to serve Hutt people as their Mayor. There is something really special to be able to serve the community where I was raised, and where I live. ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Racing Racing Minister Winston Peters met with Korea Racing Authority Chairperson Nak Soon Kim in Seoul today to discuss closer cooperation between the New Zealand and Korean horse racing industries. As part of the visit to the Seoul Racecourse, Mr Peters witnessed ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) is investing $10 million to establish Otago as the centre of New Zealand’s creative digital industry over the next ten years, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones announced today. “The initiative will bring us closer to the vision of ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF)’s skills and employment programme will help young Otago people into long-term forestry careers, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced today. Te Ara Mahi will invest $63,000 in the 2020 school year to support eight 17 and 18 ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) will support local plans to revitalise and stimulate economic development opportunities in Otago, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones has announced. The four Regional Economic Development Ministers have approved an in-principle investment of $19.9 million towards the region’s ...
Mark Patterson, Spokesperson for Primary Industries New Zealand First is pleased to have received the Technical Advisory Group (TAG) report on the Coalition Government’s Mycoplasma bovis eradication efforts, which shows significant progress in the fight against the disease. New Zealand First Spokesperson for Primary Industries, Mark Patterson, says the report’s findings ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development Hon David Parker, Minister for Trade and Export Growth The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) is investing to support economic growth opportunities for Otago’s engineering and manufacturing sectors, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones and Trade and Export Minister David Parker announced today. Almost $20 million ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs Foreign Minister Winston Peters and his South Korean counterpart, Kang Kyung-wha, discussed in Seoul today opportunities to work more closely in the Pacific and the situation on the Korean Peninsula. Mr Peters and Minister Kang confirmed New Zealand and the ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development Hon Nanaia Mahuta, Minister for Māori Development The three marae in the historic Parihaka Pa complex in Taranaki have been upgraded to high speed broadband with the support of the Provincial Growth Fund (PGF), Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced today. “Connecting the ...
Hon Ron Mark, Minister of Defence Minister of Defence Ron Mark will today launch the Advancing Pacific Partnerships 2019 Defence Assessment during a speech at Te Papa. The Assessment outlines how Defence will partner with our Pacific Island neighbours and invest in Pacific regional security architecture. The Plan aligns with the Coalition ...
A new Provincial Growth Fund investment could create about 80 new jobs in Gisborne over the next two years, turning a local small business into a “beacon of employment” in the process. Regional Economic Development Parliamentary Under-Secretary Fletcher Tabuteau said the PGF’s Te Ara Mahi funding stream would provide $1.6m ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters will travel to the Republic of Korea and Japan next week. “The Republic of Korea and Japan are two of New Zealand’s closest partners in the region with whom we share common values and ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced today that New Zealand is leading a police support mission in Bougainville as the region prepares to vote in a non-binding referendum on its political future. “New Zealand has accepted an invitation ...
New Zealand First MP Shane Jones is defending Immigration New Zealand (INZ) after it instructed officials to stop granting visas as an exception to instructions. He has also lashed out at immigrant leaders upset with the tightening of the rules, saying they had an “elevated sense of entitlement”. Members of ...
A change to the End of Life Choice Bill was passed in Parliament, meaning if politicians decide to vote for the law it must be approved by the public first. A binding referendum was a condition insisted on by New Zealand First, and Jenny Marcroft’s supplementary order paper (SOP) successfully ...
Fletcher Tabuteau, Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF), through its skills and employment programme,Te Ara Mahi, is investing a further $1.6m into Tairāwhiti’s workforce development, said Parliamentary Under Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau. “This PGF funding follows on from significant PGF investment earlier this ...
The recently crowned Bird of the Year, the hoiho/yellow eyed penguin, is getting a much needed helping hand alongside more than 168 other community conservation projects announced Minister for Conservation Eugenie Sage today. 168 community conservation projects throughout New Zealand are benefiting from $8 million in government grants, including $500,000 ...
Controls on assault rifles and semi-automatic firearms are to be broadened to include some types of pistols, under changes to a bill currently making its way through Parliament. Police Minister Stuart Nash has tabled a Supplementary Order Paper to the Arms Legislation Bill, which is currently before a Select Committee ...
Minister of Defence Ron Mark will travel to Singapore today to conduct a counterpart visit and to co-chair the third annual Singapore-New Zealand Defence Ministers’ Meeting with his counterpart, Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen. “Singapore is one of our most important defence partners in the region, and our ...
The panel undertaking a comprehensive review of the Resource Management Act has identified the main issues to be addressed and options for reform and is calling for feedback to inform its final report. In July the Government announced the comprehensive review of the resource management system, including the RMA - ...
An important safety valve has been added to New Zealand’s criminal justice system with the third reading of the Criminal Cases Review Commission Bill today. The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) will investigate claimed miscarriages of justice. “We’ve seen how our justice system can very occasionally get things spectacularly wrong, ...
Racing Minister Winston Peters welcomes the tabling of the Racing Industry Transition Agency (RITA) 2019 Annual Report in Parliament today. He says the 2019 Annual Report marks the point when New Zealand’s racing industry’s decline was arrested and a turnaround started. RITA’s 2019 Annual Report recorded an industry net profit ...
The New Zealand Government is today sending 21 firefighters to help fight the ongoing catastrophic Australian bushfires. “The fires in Australia are in some of the toughest, most challenging conditions ever,” says Internal Affairs Minister Tracey Martin. “As of yesterday morning, there were 100 active bushfire-related incidents across Queensland and ...
More frontline support for schools through a new education agency, as part of a redesigned Ministry of Education More support for principals and school boards including through a new centre of leadership and local leadership advisor roles New independent disputes panels for parents and students Management of school property ...
The Government’s reform of the Tomorrow’s Schools system is a watershed moment in education and an opportunity to create meaningful change for ākonga Māori and their whānau, Associate Education Minister Kelvin Davis said today. “Last year through Kōrero Mātauranga | Education Conversation, Māori teachers, parents, ākonga, whānau, hapū and iwi ...
Infrastructure Minister is welcoming the first of many updated project pipelines from the newly established New Zealand Infrastructure Commission today. The New Zealand Infrastructure Commission, Te Waihanga, has released an expanded pipeline of major capital projects – another crucial step towards delivering better infrastructure outcomes. “The first iteration of the ...
Tougher gun laws designed to improve public safety through firearms prohibition orders are proposed in a new document released for public input. Police Minister Stuart Nash says firearms prohibition orders (FPOs) would give new powers to Police to ensure high-risk individuals come nowhere near firearms. “We have already prohibited the ...
Andy Coupe has been confirmed as TVNZ’s new Board Chair. “Mr Coupe has strong commercial and capital markets experience and TVNZ has benefited from his technical knowledge of business and finance, as well as his extensive governance experience,” the Minister of Broadcasting, Communications and Digital Media Kris Faafoi said. Andy ...
Associate Minister of Transport Julie Anne Genter today officially opened a separated pathway, following the completion of the Kaiwharawhara Stream bridge, which will improve safety for cyclists and pedestrians along Hutt Road. The $6.8m Hutt Road project provides a separated path for cycling and pedestrians, the replacement of informal parking ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters today announced the appointment of career diplomat Si’alei van Toor as New Zealand’s next Ambassador to Russia. “I’m pleased to appoint Ms van Toor to this position. She brings a wealth of experience to the role having previously served as Senior Trade Adviser to the ...
The Treasury’s 2019 Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update (HYEFU) will be released on Wednesday December 11, Finance Minister Grant Robertson says. The Coalition Government will publish the 2020 Budget Policy Statement at the same time, outlining the priorities for Budget 2020. Further details on arrangements for the release will ...
A new initiative to better support small businesses through hands-on mentoring and advice has been launched by the Minister for Small Business. The first event in the Kiwi Business Boost series of regional workshops and online tools has been launched in Wairoa by Stuart Nash. “The Business Boost initiative combines ...
The latest Quarterly Connectivity Report shows that more and more New Zealanders are moving to Ultra-fast Broadband (UFB), with Rolleston having the highest uptake at 74 per cent, as at the end of September. “This means that nearly three quarters of Rolleston’s households and businesses have moved to ultra-fast services. ...
The passing of the Climate Change Response (Zero Carbon) Amendment Bill will help ensure a safe planet for our kids and grandkids, the Minister for Climate Change James Shaw said today. The landmark legislation which provides a framework to support New Zealanders to prepare for, and adapt to, the effects ...
The review of Oranga Tamariki practice around the planned uplift of a Hastings baby in May shows significant failings by the Ministry and that the planned and funded changes to shift from a child crisis service to a proper care and protection service need to be accelerated, Children’s Minister Tracey ...
Education Minister Chris Hipkins has wished students the best of luck for this year’s NCEA and New Zealand Scholarship exams which start tomorrow. Around 140,000 students will have participated in 119 NCEA and New Zealand Scholarship exams by the end of the exam period on 3 December. “I want to ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters today announced the appointment of Bede Corry as New Zealand’s next High Commissioner to the United Kingdom. “The appointment of a senior diplomat to this important role underlines the significance New Zealand places on our relationship with the United Kingdom,” said Mr Peters. “The United ...
An innovative approach to boosting the number of frontline Police has seen 20 new officers graduate from one of the uncommon training wings in Auckland. Police Minister Stuart Nash says the graduation of 20 constables today means that 1,765 new Police officers have been deployed since the coalition government took ...
Corrections Minister Kelvin Davis says the 1.2 million hours of community work completed by offenders in the last financial year has helped local communities right across the country. “Community work sentences are a great way for people to pay something positive back to society. There is a massive benefit to ...
"A pathway for Police in leadership with Iwi Māori, to achieve the aspirations of Māori whānau." Police launch of Te Huringa o Te Tai, Pipitea Marae, Thorndon Quay, Wellington Nau mai, haere mai. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, ka nui te mihi, ki a koutou. Hello everyone, warm greetings to you all. ...
Working New Zealanders are getting more in their back pockets under the Coalition Government’s economic plan. Stats NZ data today shows average weekly ordinary time earnings are up by $83 since the Government took office. This shows that working New Zealanders are getting higher take-home pay, and that employers are ...
The Government is supporting schools to cut down their energy consumption and reduce environmental impacts, with a quarter of all schools having their lights replaced with LEDs, a sustainability contestable fund and a plan to improve the environmental sustainability of all schools in the future. Education Minister Chris Hipkins and ...
Tourism Minister Kelvin Davis heads to China on Friday to lead the New Zealand Government presence at the China-New Zealand Year of Tourism closing ceremony. The ceremony will take place at Canton Tower in Guangzhou on Sunday 10 November. “The Year of Tourism has been mutually beneficial for both New ...
Should we plan for drought or deluge and how is CO2 released from the ocean’s floor? Several climate change projects were given a boost in the latest Marsden Fund investment of $83.6 million, Research, Science and Innovation Minister Megan Woods said today. “Climate change is long-term challenge that requires out-of-the-box ...
Leaders of 16 countries negotiating the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) have announced the completion of negotiation on the text as well as agreement on virtually all market access issues between 15 countries. The leaders said they will work with India to resolve its outstanding concerns in a way that ...
Civil Defence Minister Hon Peeni Henare says World Tsunami Awareness Day today (5 November) is a chance for all New Zealanders to learn more about the tsunami risk in our regions and the right actions to take to stay safe. “All of New Zealand’s coastline is at risk of tsunami. ...
New Zealand’s more than 1000 paramedics are to have their role as key frontline health professionals formally recognised and regulated in the same way as doctors and nurses, Health Minister David Clark says. The Government has agreed to regulate paramedics under the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003. “Paramedic leaders ...
Changes to insolvency law announced by the Government today will include requirements to honour up to 50 per cent of the value of gift cards or vouchers held by consumers, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Kris Faafoi says. “When a business is insolvent, these consumers are often left out of ...
Six New Zealanders tonight received medals for their meritorious work in the frontline public service. The Public Service Medal, established by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, is awarded annually. “For the second year this Government has recognised public servants who have made a real difference to the lives of New ...
Minister for Trade and Export Growth David Parker heads to Shanghai today for the China International Import Expo and meetings focused on reforming the WTO. Over 90 New Zealand companies will be exhibiting at the second China International Import Expo (CIIE), which runs from 5-10 November. “China is one of New Zealand’s ...
Drivers holding a current five-year learner or restricted car or motorbike licence, expiring between 1 December 2019 and 1 December 2021, will receive an automatic two-year extension, Associate Transport Minister Julie Anne Genter announced today. Over 144,000 drivers’ time-limited licences are due to expire in the next two years; 67,000 ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Minister for Trade and Export Growth David Parker have announced the conclusion of negotiations to upgrade New Zealand’s existing free trade agreement with China. “This ensures our upgraded free trade agreement will remain the best that China has with any country,” Jacinda Ardern said. She ...
Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau congratulates the Ten Kiwi organisations who have been recognised for their outstanding contribution to the wellbeing and the prosperity of their communities. Economic Development New Zealand (EDNZ), announced the awards at its annual conference in Blenheim last weekend. “A special congratulations to ...
Minister for Building and Construction Jenny Salesa has welcomed the record high of 13,000 building and construction apprentices in active training with main provider the Building and Construction Industry Training Organisation (BCITO). “We are committed to reversing the long-term decline in trades training and it’s excellent to see more people ...
PHARMAC’s decision to fund a new leukaemia treatment means three new cancer medicines have now been funded so far this year, Health Minister David Clark says. From 1 December venetoclax (Venclexta) will be funded for people living with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia. Just last month funding was also confirmed for alectinib ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today formally gifted a white horse to Toshogu Shrine in Nikko, Japan in front of thousands of attendees at a ceremony conducted by Chief Priest Inaba. The horse named Kōmaru, which means ‘sheltered’ in Maori and ‘shining’ in Japanese, is a white 12-year-old purebred Andalusian ...
One journalist’s quest for a silly answer leads to a desperate search for the truth behind the most bizarre news story. A woman was reading a book, her husband was driving, and their son was asleep in the back seat when an axe flew through the windscreen. The short-handled axe – ...
The Earthquake Commission’s Annual Report 2018-19 has been tabled in Parliament today. The Annual Report summarises progress being made on EQC’s mission “to reduce the impact on people and property when natural disasters occur.” ...
The country's biggest listed transport company, Mainfreight, has had a 6 percent lift in profit as better trading in overseas markets has offset the slower growth in local markets. ...
The catastrophic bushfires in Australia are framed very differently depending on which media you consume, writes Duncan Greive from Sydney.The horizon started the day crisp and clear, the bushfires out there but not palpable. A group of 60 or so media from across Australia and New Zealand, all holed up ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jane Tiller, Ethical, Legal & Social Adviser – Public Health Genomics, Monash University In the past week, news has spread of a Florida judge’s decision to grant a warrant allowing police to search one of the world’s largest online DNA databases, for ...
“At the end of the day when you commit a brutal act such as murder a ‘difficult upbringing’ will never explain why someone chose to take another’s life.” ...
The Department of Corrections is marking World Kindness Day today (13 November) by acknowledging the work Good Bitches Baking does spreading kindness through baked goods to those who need it most. ...
The spat between Labour and New Zealand First ministers over Indian arranged marriages may have moved behind closed doors -but is no closer to resolution. ...
Emily Writes provides an essential guide through the vast world of sex toys and finds something for everyone. Sex toys have well and truly become mainstream. When you buy a toy you’re taking control of your sex life and fully celebrating your body and how wonderful it is. These days, there ...
United against David Seymour’s euthanasia and assisted suicide bill, representatives from all walks of life will gather peacefully on Parliament's lawn on Wednesday 13 November between 12 and 2 pm. Over 39,000 submissions have been written and heard. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Whitehouse, Bennett Chair of Autism, Telethon Kids Institute, University of Western Australia It’s 25 years since the fourth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-IV) was published. The manual is the clinical “bible” that defines the criteria for the diagnosis ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Frédérik Saltré, Research Fellow in Ecology, Flinders University For more than 3.5 billion years, living organisms have thrived, multiplied and diversified to occupy every ecosystem on Earth. The flip side to this explosion of new species is that species extinctions have also ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Petterson, Professor of Geology, Auckland University of Technology CC BY-NDClimate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change.If you have a question you’d like an expert ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Glen Fuller, Associate Professor Communications and Media, University of Canberra Once upon a time when something was simple to do we said: “It’s as easy as riding a bike.” But switching from driving a car to riding a bike as one’s main ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Kinsella, Professor of Literature and Environment, Curtin University I start with a disclaimer: I am a UWA Publishing poet. I have published a book of poetry with them (as well as a novel), and have two books forthcoming with them in ...
Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.New Zealand Parliament Buildings, Wellington, New Zealand.Today’s content by Dr Bryce Edwards.Education Audrey Young (Herald): Why Education Minister Hipkins has shot to the top of the ...
Jacinda Ardern says she doesn’t see Ports of Auckland's future as ‘necessarily being political’; and call for urgent review of foreign forestry investment. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Humphery-Jenner, Associate Professor of Finance, UNSW Myer is the in the clear, sort of, after Australia’s first judicial ruling on a securities class action. It centred around allegations that Myer misled the market about its projected earnings. The court found Myer ...
Health Minister David Clark has told the House the overall District Health Board deficit is actually almost $170 million higher than the Government had previously admitted. ...
The education ministry's decision not to investigate a teacher sex case in Marlborough means the victim children and parents have been short-changed, argues Victoria University of Wellington's Michael Macaulay ...
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Big changes coming for how schools are run, highly anticipated OCR decision coming today, and a clear-eyed look at the protests up Ōwairaka/Mt Albert.The government has set up a fight with a dangerous political constituency – highly involved parents at affluent ...
Lawyers acting for those being sued by Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters over his supernannuation overpayment say he has failed to present any evidence to back his sweeping public comments on the issue. ...
Winston Peters' case in the High Court reminds us that NZ Super is chickenfeed to wealthy people. So why don't we recover the pension through more progressive taxation? ...
Black Ferns fullback Selica Winiata is aiming to achieve a rare double - refereeing international rugby while still playing the game at the highest level. ...
A protest against the felling of non-native trees on one of Auckland’s maunga has erupted this week. Ben Thomas says they’re behaving like brats and ignoring the rights of iwi.Letting go can be hard, even if it’s for the best.This is not to say that a few dozen angry residents ...
The trial of the man accused of Grace Millane’s murder is unlike any other in New Zealand history, recounted in micro-beats, each one tweeted and push-notified. Anna Connell asks what it’s doing to justice.It was a story that horrified New Zealand. In December last year, the news of the death ...
Housing advocate Jade Kake has been working with her hapū to increase engagement in the ongoing Ngāpuhi settlement and Tūhono process. Dissatisfied with the media’s preoccupation with the rūnanga leadership, she writes here about the real work and healing that has been, and is still to be, done.Ko Jade Kake tōku ...
Emergency cash injections for DHBs are a symptom of a woefully inadequate budget planning process that is increasingly an exercise in futility, Association of Salaried Medical Specialists Executive Director Ian Powell says. ...
Source: Council on Hemispheric Affairs – Analysis-Reportage By Danny Shaw Yesterday, Sunday November the 10th, at approximately 4pm (eastern standard time) the democratically elected president and vice president of Bolivia, Evo Morales and Álvaro García respectively, were forced to resign from power. This was no voluntary resignation as CNN, ...
In the second part of a new event series looking at the future of Auckland, The Spinoff and Auckland Council host In My Backyard: Glen Innes, to ask what the suburb can teach the rest of the city about housing. Throughout its history, Glen Innes has had the highest density of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rachel Badlan, Postdoctoral Researcher, Atmospheric Dynamics, UNSW As the east coast bushfire crisis unfolds, New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian and Rural Fire Service operational officer Brett Taylor have each warned residents bushfires can create their own weather systems. This is not ...
Iran has announced the discovery of a new oilfield containing 53 billion barrels of crude. So what does that say about the NZ government’s move to be a world leader in shutting down the issue of new permits for oil and gas exploration – a move which Jacinda Ardern characterised ...
A wild, hilly spear, studded with brilliant beaches and thrilling bush, the Coromandel Peninsula is a magic geographical cul-de-sac. Here’s how to explore this stunning part of our backyard.If you’ve got friends or relatives visiting Aotearoa, top of their list should be sorting out their NZeTA (New Zealand Electronic Travel ...
12 November 2019 Water and infrastructure professionals from across the public and private sectors attended a panel discussion on 4 November, focused on the Government’s proposed water reforms and most particularly the potential impacts on our urban environments. ...
Fifteen years on, Sam Brooks looks at Gwen Stefani’s wet, weird, wild and wonderful debut album Love. Angel. Music. Baby.The first thing we hear on Love. Angel. Music. Baby. – No Doubt frontwoman Gwen Stefani’s first album – is applause and cheering.Then a piano. Then Stefani warbling, sweetly, mournfully, almost ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Coral Gartner, Associate Professor, School of Public Health, The University of Queensland More than 2,000 people in the United States have developed serious lung damage in a poisoning outbreak associated with the use of vaping devices this year. At least 39 people ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Maggie Ivanova, Senior Lecturer, Drama, Creative and Performing Arts, Flinders University Review: The Dark Master and Totes Adorbs Hurricane, OzAsia Festival, Adelaide, 22 October – 8 November In theatre, the play text tends to drive the storytelling. The interpretation of this ...
Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee has made key amendments to the Credit Contracts Legislation Amendment Bill, giving borrowers more protection from harmful high cost consumer credit contracts. The changes indicate that the Select Committee ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Janet Stanley, Associate professor/Principal Research Fellow, Melbourne Sustainable Society Institute, University of Melbourne Fires of unprecedented number and ferocity are today raging in New South Wales and Queensland. Residents in some regions woke to news that the fire danger was “catastrophic”. Rural ...
The government’s reform of 1989’s Tomorrow’s Schools legislation has been announced today, and it’s promising changes for students, teachers, principals and boards.What is “Tomorrow’s Schools”?In 1989, the government introduced the Tomorrow’s Schools reforms, which meant all schools became much more independent, giving Boards power over almost all school ...
The Council of Licenced Firearms Owners (COLFO) is urging politicians to heed evidence from respected international experts on why a proposed firearms registry in New Zealand is doomed to fail. ...
Go Bus drivers in Auckland will be taking full strike action from tomorrow as relations reach a new low with their employer following a week where the company has cancelled regular wage bargaining, arbitrarily suspended union-affiliated drivers, rejected ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By William Peterson, Associate Professor, Flinders University Review: OzAsia Festival, Adelaide, 22 October – 8 November The most exciting work at OzAsia cuts across genres, styles, and cultures to create something distinctive and new: a work of art that could not exist without ...
Large and small scale and Māori foresters say the 50 Shades of Green march on parliament on Thursday (eds 14 November) highlights deliberately created confusion about the true nature and recent scope of forestry expansion. ...
Where do we watch content, what do we want from it, and how do we view New Zealand news? Here’s what we learned from NZ On Air’s latest survey on identity, culture and the media. We still like to watch free-to-view TVDespite the lingering doom and gloom around linear television, almost ...
The candidates to tackle Donald Trump are very keen on the New Zealand prime minister.It could be because Vogue called her “the anti-Trump”. It could be the desperate shortage of tolerable left-leaning leaders in the Anglosphere. Or it could be because everyone knows it’s illegal to be mean about people ...
Responding to the launch of Massey University's new policy and code regarding free speech and external speaker, Free Speech Coalition spokesman Dr David Cumin says: ...
The Government is creating a new division of the Education Ministry in an overhaul that will strip schools of the right to manage their enrolment zones and their property. ...
Making Northport Auckland’s main port will require massive investment in rail and road and will increase carbon emissions and the cost of goods says National Road Carriers Association CEO David Aitken. ...
Tuesday, November 12: After months of mounting pressure, the Environmental Protection Authority has now publicly released oil giant OMV’s application to drill a high risk oil well off the Otago Coast. ...
Simon Day eats a burger and considers becoming a vegetarian (again). For two years in my 20s, I was vegetarian. It was a choice based on the idea that it’s a much more efficient and much less environmentally invasive way to feed the world. I used to habitually roll out a ...
Ahead of TVNZ1’s new wildlife documentary Serengeti, Tara Ward presents the best animals that make up the juiciest drama on the plains.If you love nature docos filled with argy-bargy and love triangles, jealous siblings and power struggles, then TVNZ’s new wildlife documentary series Serengeti is a dream come true. The ...
Daily review 07/11/2019 
Today is a Member's Day, probably the second-to-last one of the year, and its a big one, with the Third Reading of David Seymour's End of Life Choice Bill. last Member's Day it was reported back from committee, after MPs voted narrowly to make it subject to a (rules TBA) ...16 mins ago
Climate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, please send it to climate.change@stuff.co.nz The growth of the human population over the last 70 ...2 hours ago
by The Council of Disobedient Women In her excellent oral submission to the Abortion reform select committee on 31st October on behalf of Otago University’s Department of Public Health, historian and public health researcher Hera Cook stated: “We would ask that the committee not use the term ‘pregnant persons’ and ...16 hours ago
Distract And Divert: The rise of what we have come to call “Identity Politics” represents the ideological manifestation of the ruling class’s objective need to destroy class politics, and of the middle-class’s subjective need to justify their participation in the process.THE RELIEF of the ruling class can only be imagined. ...1 day ago
1 day ago
If FFNZ really put their faith in “Top Medical Journals” they would now be amending their billboards to recognise new research results. Image from FFNZ but updated to agree with the latest research. ... 3 days ago
by Phil Duncan Here’s just a few of the kind of threats issued day in and day out against gender-critical women – feminists, marxists, etc – overwhelmingly by MEN (albeit men identifying as women). “Kill all Terfs”. “Shoot a Terf today”. “All terfs deserve to be shot in the head”. ...1 week ago
And to think he gave all the potential goodwill away with that moronic, cult-like statement (repeated ad nauseam by many National hardliners) that Key is quite simply “the greatest PM we ever had”…
Installation complete: this was nothing ... 1 week ago
Today, a worker contacted me asking if she could go to the police over her employer stealing thousands of dollars from her in unpaid wages. The employer also did not pay this worker’s taxes or student loan which amounts to tax fraud. As a workers rights activist, who founded the ...2 weeks ago
Image Credit: Increase Social Media Traffic & Website Traffic I notice a few regulars no longer allow public access to the site counters. This may happen accidentally when the blog format is altered. If your ... 2 weeks ago
. . NZ First’s success in putting the euthenasia bill to a public referenda may not be the victory they believe it to be. They may even have sounded the death-knell for a second Labour-NZ First-Green coalition. On 23 July this year, NZ First MP, Jenny Marcroft, submitted a Supplementary ...2 weeks ago
Darroch Ball, Spokesperson for Justice New Zealand First is proud that a key Coalition Agreement commitment which will provide for a more transparent and effective criminal justice system has been realised. Legislation to establish the Criminal Cases Review Commission, an independent body focused on identifying and responding to possible miscarriages of ...3 hours ago
"Today we have made a choice that will leave a legacy... I hope that means that future generations will see that we, in New Zealand, were on the right side of history." - Jacinda Ardern, Third Reading of the Zero Carbon Bill ...5 days ago
The recently crowned Bird of the Year, the hoiho/yellow eyed penguin, is getting a much needed helping hand alongside more than 168 other community conservation projects announced Minister for Conservation Eugenie Sage today. 168 community conservation projects throughout New Zealand are benefiting from $8 million in government grants, including $500,000 ...33 mins ago
ACT leader David Seymour is confident his End of Life Choice Bill will pass its third reading in Parliament this evening. ...50 mins ago
One journalist’s quest for a silly answer leads to a desperate search for the truth behind the most bizarre news story. A woman was reading a book, her husband was driving, and their son was asleep in the back seat when an axe flew through the windscreen. The short-handled axe – ...53 mins ago
Infratil has reported a profit drop after making large investments, including buying a half stake in telecommunications company Vodafone. ...54 mins ago
The Earthquake Commission’s Annual Report 2018-19 has been tabled in Parliament today. The Annual Report summarises progress being made on EQC’s mission “to reduce the impact on people and property when natural disasters occur.” ...54 mins ago
The country's biggest listed transport company, Mainfreight, has had a 6 percent lift in profit as better trading in overseas markets has offset the slower growth in local markets. ...1 hour ago
National's education plans has some good stuff, but the promises that will resonate most could have come from Labour. ...2 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jane Tiller, Ethical, Legal & Social Adviser – Public Health Genomics, Monash University In the past week, news has spread of a Florida judge’s decision to grant a warrant allowing police to search one of the world’s largest online DNA databases, for ...2 hours ago
Auckland’s Mayor is fuming at a report recommending moving the city’s port to Northland, and he’s not the only one with questions. ...2 hours ago
The National Party has suggested scrapping the fees-free policy and replacing it with a scheme like KiwiSaver to pay for tertiary education. ...3 hours ago
Jacinda Ardern says she doesn’t see Ports of Auckland's future as ‘necessarily being political’; and call for urgent review of foreign forestry investment. ...4 hours ago
Health Minister David Clark has told the House the overall District Health Board deficit is actually almost $170 million higher than the Government had previously admitted. ...4 hours ago
The education ministry's decision not to investigate a teacher sex case in Marlborough means the victim children and parents have been short-changed, argues Victoria University of Wellington's Michael Macaulay ...5 hours ago
Could Shane Jones have unwittingly provided an opportunity to avoid the cycle of damaging populist politics sweeping the world? ...6 hours ago
Lawyers acting for those being sued by Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters over his supernannuation overpayment say he has failed to present any evidence to back his sweeping public comments on the issue. ...6 hours ago
A surprise speech made by a high school student at an EPA event led to an apology letter labelled inappropriate and unnecessary. ...7 hours ago
A remarkable personal essay by Westport novelist Becky Manawatu on her sister who married a gang member. ...7 hours ago
Winston Peters' case in the High Court reminds us that NZ Super is chickenfeed to wealthy people. So why don't we recover the pension through more progressive taxation? ...7 hours ago
Black Ferns fullback Selica Winiata is aiming to achieve a rare double - refereeing international rugby while still playing the game at the highest level. ...7 hours ago
A bit of saliva in a tube can reveal through DNA that your world is not what you thought it was. ...7 hours ago
A new "pipeline" arrives as the consensus around the need for more infrastructure has never been stronger, ...16 hours ago
It's being labelled a backdown but a closer look shows the principles of the Govt's education overhaul remain. ...18 hours ago
Word out of MediaWorks is that there is more interest in buying the company’s loss-making TV arm than expected - maybe as many as five. ...18 hours ago
Iran has announced the discovery of a new oilfield containing 53 billion barrels of crude. So what does that say about the NZ government’s move to be a world leader in shutting down the issue of new permits for oil and gas exploration – a move which Jacinda Ardern characterised ...19 hours ago
Power company Mercury will spend another $208 million building the country's largest wind farm near Palmerston North. ...21 hours ago
The finalised outcomes of the Tomorrow's Schools review look suspiciously like the first round of proposals. ...22 hours ago
The Government is creating a new division of the Education Ministry in an overhaul that will strip schools of the right to manage their enrolment zones and their property. ...23 hours ago
Hoiho is Bird of the Year, but what are the most important things that need to happen to give the species a better chance of surviving? ...24 hours ago
Congratulations to all the people who have worked so hard for so long to get the Zero Carbon Act across the line.
Standing ovation!
And yet…
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2019/11/duncan-garner-james-shaw-butt-heads-over-climate-change-emergency-declaration.html
You gotta watch the stupid to believe it.
I'm referring to D Garner.
Pardon me if this is already up, but sea level rise is likely more imminent than previously believed.
Did Al Gore revise his prediction?
Who knows – never followed him.
Computer modelling revisions.
Likely.
Perhaps you should listen to the link – it's a sampling, not a modelling error.
It is computer modeled. All of it.
I'd read the nature article which serves only to illustrate, graphically how the science has been and continues to be inaccurate.
That is. Not credible.
Funny how models based on "the science" still seem to be considerably more accurate than models based on "nothing is really changing outside of norms over the history of humanity" or "sunspots".
Comparison is: The Science versus The Science.
The Science has been wildly inaccurate. Therefore is not credible.
Also not credible. Dragging in that funny irrelevance of a comparison.
"Reality has always been overflowing with entities whose essences are baptized in inquiry. We are at a crossroads of understanding and bondage. Who are we? Where on the great journey will we be aligned?"
If current models of the effects of increasing anthropogenic greenhouse gases on atmospheric and ocean temperatures, sea level, et al. are not credible, would you care to hazard a guess as to whether these models are under- or over-estimating the effects/risks?
Guess we'll know soon enough.
yep – we all saw how wrong this was and clayton tears are not needed or wanted.
but
Yeah that shows the sincerity of the apology – luckily we have more inquiries to get the truth out.
I'd call the changes made as a result of this a win. Gotta take what you can get unfortunately.
“The “but” is where the shit comes out”, – Richard Bandler
Pretty weak attitude imo
Shit gets weirder and weirder.
At approximately 3pm today Senator Rand Paul's office held a meeting with Gareth Peirce, a celebrated human rights advocate and British lawyer who currently is representing Julian Assange on matters concerning his extradition to the US.
As a solicitor representing a client facing extradition on political charges under the draconian Espionage Act for exposing US war crimes and abuses, Gareth is duty-bound to leave no stone unturned in advocating for her client —but this meeting landed at deeply troubling time.
This week Rand Paul has repeatedly pulled threads at the already threadbare fabric of democratic process by calling on members of the media and others to unmask the identity of the alleged whistleblower.
Whistleblower protection, like source protection, is a foundational tenet in journalistic ethics, and (unless something recently changed) remains paramount within Wikileaks.
Today’s meeting between Julian Assange’s attorney and Rand Paul’s staff was an affront to every core belief once held sacred by Wikileaks supporters. It never should have happened.
To add insult to injury today Rand Paul blocked a resolution reaffirming the Senate's support for whistleblower protections. Protecting the safety of sources is not “fake outrage,” it’s a baseline to due process in these proceedings.
In addition to showing contempt for whistleblowers & sources, Rand Paul has also shown contempt for journalists from the mainstream & alternative media alike, including fighting to revoke the press credentials of @AbbyMartin who once asked him hard questions about US drone policy
mentions The already horrid optics of this meeting are compounded when it is revealed the individual who purportedly brokered the meeting between Julian Assange's lawyer and Rand Paul's office is none other than Roger Stone protege and Alt-Light Palme d'Or, Cassandra Fairbanks.
mentions This meeting did not speak truth to power …it pulled at the pant legs of it.
mentions This meeting did not lift up the ideals that at one time in 2010 made Wikileaks great …it undermined those ideals in a most brutal way.
mentions This meeting couldn't possibly help Julian Assange in his fight against charges for publishing information about US war crimes …instead it conflates them with a partisan spat that is threatening the safety of another whistleblower seeking to hold those in power to account.
https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1192160499670106112.html
I've yet to see any media call out the Repug push to expose the whistleblower for what it really can only be: a blatant attempt to intimidate other potential whistleblowers and scare them away from whistleblowing.
Or something else..
Rand Paul is definitely playing a different game to most of the rest of the Repugs, though I'm not ready to guess at what his end-game might be. (No, I don't think he's a Pooteepuppet, though there is likely some convergence of interests)
But people are complicated, even utter assholes can do worthwhile things now and then. Rand Paul's sticking up for Snowden seems to fall into that category, even though it may be in service of some as-yet obscure asshole goal.
Earlier in the year he was quietly boosting foreign oligarchs with his opposition to sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 project. At around the same time he was holding up funding for a 9/11 victims
An opportunist weasel looking to line his own pockets, I reckon.
Rand Paul is one of the few repug politicians I suspect might actually have some pretty strong political principles that he generally sticks to, rather than being primarily interested in feathering his own nest and clawing onto is sinecure.
Touble is that those principles are libertarian, so whatever good he might advocate he approaches fromn the opposite direction. I.e. protecting Snowden is consistent with trying to make government infintesimally small, so it's the same impulse that makes him want to destroy all government healthcare systems (not sure about his ideas on VA – he'd probably want it government funded but privatised).
Whereas even a light socialist would say Snowden deserves a pass because he exposed mass surveillance that preserves nationalistic capitalist hegemony, and that everyone is entitled to healthcare, food, and housing even if capitalism doesn't provide it to them.
Yeah, but his defenses of fake-tan fuhrer make it look like he doesn't understand that libertarian is not the same thing as libertine.
fair call
Leaking a phone call between world leaders so the Dems have an excuse for impeachment is not whistleblowing.
maui, your previous evasions notwithstanding, I'm still interested in whether you think it's OK for the president to withhold Congress approved and taxpayer funded aid to try to extort a foreign country into smearing a political opponent of the president?
Go on and pretend it's just a hypothetical if it makes it easier for you to answer. It's a very simple question that only needs a “yes it’s OK” or “no it’s not OK” answer.
Nope, not satire.
http://archive.li/3KBar#selection-326.1-411.20
Aw c'mon, give him credit, he's the absolute undisputed master of seagull chess. Y'know, where you flap in squawking loudly, shit all over the board, knock all the pieces over, strut around like you've won, and flap out again still squawking loudly.
I doubt he even knows how each chess piece moves and even if by a miracle he does he'd cheat his arse off like he does in every other aspect of his life from golf to numbers at his parade. He would be good at moving the pieces on one of those magnetic chess sets that are so so small you can hardly hold them, for obvious reasons.
"Despite supporting the bill National have set out several changes to the law that they would make in their first 100 days if elected, including removing the controversial methane target and asking an independent commission to set it."
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/117244331/national-will-support-climate-change-zero-carbon-bill
It would appear that Russel Norman was right
What did Norman say? That getting National on board wasn't worth it?
Pretty much….will see if I can find the quote
cheers, I'd like to read some good analysis of this position.
Magic undie drawers are a thing.
https://www.thepoke.co.uk/2019/04/09/writer-shared-invisible-work-friend-husband-never-noticed-fair-say-struck-chord/
The rabid hole goes deep