Daily review 09/12/2020
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5:30 pm, December 9th, 2020 - 22 comments
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Well, I've been there, sitting in that same chairWhispering that same prayer half a million timesIt's a lie, though buried in disciplesOne page of the Bible isn't worth a lifeThere's nothing wrong with youIt's true, it's trueThere's something wrong with the villageWith the villageSomething wrong with the villageSongwriters: Andrew Jackson ...18 hours ago - Government Forces Universities to Enforce “Free Speech” While Limiting Universities̵...
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The Natural Choice: As a starter for ten percent of the Party Vote, “saving the planet” is a very respectable objective. Young voters, in particular, raised on the dire (if unheeded) warnings of climate scientists, and the irrefutable evidence of devastating weather events linked to global warming, vote Green. After ...2 days ago - Bernard’s last Saturday Soliloquy for 2024
The Government cancelled 60% of Kāinga Ora’s new builds next year, even though the land for them was already bought, the consents were consented and there are builders unemployed all over the place. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMōrena. Long stories short, the six things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political ...2 days ago - Bernard’s Picks ‘n’ Mixes for Saturday, December 21
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Sparse offerings outside a Te Kauwhata church. Meanwhile, the Government is cutting spending in ways that make thousands of hungry children even hungrier, while also cutting funding for the charities that help them. It’s also doing that while winding back new building of affordable housing that would allow parents to ...4 days ago
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In 1998, in the wake of the Paremoremo Prison riot, the Department of Corrections established the "Behaviour Management Regime". Prisoners were locked in their cells for 22 or 23 hours a day, with no fresh air, no exercise, no social contact, no entertainment, and in some cases no clothes and ...6 days ago
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New data released by the Treasury shows that the economic policies of this Government have made things worse in the year since they took office, said NZCTU Economist Craig Renney. “Our fiscal indicators are all heading in the wrong direction – with higher levels of debt, a higher deficit, and ...6 days ago
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At the 2023 election, National basically ran on a platform of being better economic managers. So how'd that turn out for us? In just one year, they've fucked us for two full political terms: The government's books are set to remain deeply in the red for the near term ...6 days ago
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AUSTERITYText within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedMy spreadsheet insists This pain leads straight to glory (File not found) Read more ...6 days ago - Minimum wage ‘increase’ is an effective cut
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This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Bob Henson In this aerial view, fingers of meltwater flow from the melting Isunnguata Sermia glacier descending from the Greenland Ice Sheet on July 11, 2024, near Kangerlussuaq, Greenland. According to the Programme for Monitoring of the Greenland Ice Sheet (PROMICE), the ...6 days ago
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And if there is a GodI know he likes to rockHe likes his loud guitarsHis spiders from MarsAnd if there is a GodI know he's watching meHe likes what he seesBut there's trouble on the breezeSongwriter: William Patrick Corgan Read more ...7 days ago - A Lipstick Government
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Iain Rennie, CNZMSecretary and Chief Executive to the TreasuryDear Secretary, Undue restrictions on restricted briefings This week, the Treasury barred representatives from four organisations, including the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions Te Kauae Kaimahi, from attending the restricted briefing for the Half-Year Economic and Fiscal Update. We had been ...7 days ago
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- Thank You
Hi all,I'm pretty overwhelmed by all your messages and emails today; thank you so very much.As much as my newsletter this morning was about money, and we all need to earn money, it was mostly about world domination if I'm honest. 😉I really hate what’s happening to our country, and ...1 week ago - 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #50
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Hi,“What I love about New Zealanders is that sometimes you use these expressions that as Americans we have no idea what those things mean!"I am watching a 30-something year old American ramble on about how different New Zealanders are to Americans. It’s his podcast, and this man is doing a ...1 week ago - Chris Penk’s Hate Parade
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All those tears on your cheeksJust like deja vu flow nowWhen grandmother speaksSo tell me a story (I'll tell you a story)Spell it out, I can't hear (What do you want to hear?)Why you wear black in the morning?Why there's smoke in the air? Songwriter: Greg Johnson.Mōrena all ☀️Something a ...1 week ago
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Returning to the model that was failing for most polytechnics and Institutes of Technology is not the answer. ...3 days ago
- Release: National buries 1019 planned homes
It’s been revealed that National has cancelled 60 percent of its housing projects planned before mid-2025 amidst housing woes. ...3 days ago
- Release: Rule-Czar bill a right-wing power grab
The Government is quietly undertaking consultation on the dangerous Regulatory Standards Bill over the Christmas period to avoid too much attention. ...3 days ago
- Release: Why not both? Luxon shuns Waitangi celebrations
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon is running away from problems of his own creation, with his decision not to go to Waitangi. ...4 days ago
- Govt’s ‘free speech’ legislation stokes fear, not freedom
The Government’s planned changes to the freedom of speech obligations of universities is little more than a front for stoking the political fires of disinformation and fear, placing teachers and students in the crosshairs. ...4 days ago - Release: Nicola Willis spirals country deeper into recession
The economy shrank 1% this quarter and New Zealand has tumbled into the depths of a recession of Nicola Willis’ making. ...4 days ago
- Release: Hikes for company directors but not ordinary Kiwis
Working people are going backwards while company directors are being given huge pay hikes. ...5 days ago
- ECE no place to cut corners
The Ministry of Regulation’s report into Early Childhood Education (ECE) in Aotearoa raises serious concerns about the possibility of lowering qualification requirements, undermining quality and risking worse outcomes for tamariki, whānau, and kaiako. ...5 days ago
- Release: Strengthening Justice Services for New Zealanders
A Bill to modernise the role of Justices of the Peace (JP), ensuring they remain active in their communities and connected with other JPs, has been put into the ballot. ...5 days ago
- Release: Labour will continue fight against destructive projects
Labour will continue to fight unsustainable and destructive projects that are able to leap-frog environment protection under National’s Fast-track Approvals Bill. ...5 days ago
- Green Government will revoke dodgy fast-track projects
The Green Party has warned that a Green Government will revoke the consents of companies who override environmental protections as part of Fast-Track legislation being passed today. ...5 days ago
- Government for the wealthy keeps pushing austerity
The Green Party says the Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update shows how the Government is failing to address the massive social and infrastructure deficits our country faces. ...6 days ago
- Release: Visa changes let migrant workers be paid less
The Government’s latest move to reduce the earnings of migrant workers will not only hurt migrants but it will drive down the wages of Kiwi workers. ...6 days ago
- Release: Nightmare before Christmas for Nicola Willis
With more debt and a larger deficit, Nicola Willis’ reputation is in tatters after her failure to return the Government’s books to surplus. ...6 days ago
- Warning to Fast-Track Applicants – ‘Exploit the Whenua, Face the Consequences’
Te Pāti Māori has this morning issued a stern warning to Fast-Track applicants with interests in mining, pledging to hold them accountable through retrospective liability and to immediately revoke Fast-Track consents under a future Te Pāti Māori government. This warning comes ahead of today’s third reading of the Fast-Track Approvals ...6 days ago
- Release: Govt cuts wages for lowest paid NZers… again
For the second year running, the government has effectively cut wages for the lowest paid workers in New Zealand. ...6 days ago
- Govt’s miserly 1.5% minimum wage will take workers backwards
The Government’s announcement today of a 1.5 per cent increase to minimum wage is another blow for workers, with inflation projected to exceed the increase, meaning it’s a real terms pay reduction for many. ...6 days ago
- Release: Govt shirking responsibility for rate hikes
All the Government has achieved from its announcement today is to continue to push responsibility back on councils for its own lack of action to help bring down skyrocketing rates. ...6 days ago
- Luxon’s ‘localism’ strikes again
The Government has used its final post-Cabinet press conference of the year to punch down on local government without offering any credible solutions to the issues our councils are facing. ...6 days ago
- Release: Govt breaks promise on EV chargers
The Government has failed to keep its promise to ‘super charge’ the EV network, delivering just 292 chargers - less than half of the 670 chargers needed to meet its target. ...7 days ago
- Greens call for end to subsidies for Methanex
The Green Party is calling for the Government to stop subsidising the largest user of the country’s gas supplies, Methanex, following a report highlighting the multi-national’s disproportionate influence on energy prices in Aotearoa. ...7 days ago
- Govt child poverty targets allow for increase in poverty
The Green Party is appalled with the Government’s new child poverty targets that are based on a new ‘persistent poverty’ measure that could be met even with an increase in child poverty. ...1 week ago
- Release: Four weeks annual leave under threat
The Government’s attack on workers continues with news it is scrapping work on the Holidays Act. ...1 week ago
- Govt’s emissions plan for measly 1% reduction
New independent analysis has revealed that the Government’s Emissions Reduction Plan (ERP) will reduce emissions by a measly 1 per cent by 2030, failing to set us up for the future and meeting upcoming targets. ...1 week ago
- Greens stand in solidarity with Whakaata Māori on sad day
The loss of 27 kaimahi at Whakaata Māori and the end of its daily news bulletin is a sad day for Māori media and another step backwards for Te Tiriti o Waitangi justice. ...1 week ago
- Sanctions regime to create more hardship for families
Yesterday the Government passed cruel legislation through first reading to establish a new beneficiary sanction regime that will ultimately mean more households cannot afford the basic essentials. ...1 week ago
- Govt gifts renters housing anxiety for Christmas
Today's passing of the Government's Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill–which allows landlords to end tenancies with no reason–ignores the voice of the people and leaves renters in limbo ahead of the festive season. ...1 week ago
- Release: National Party urged to support modern slavery legislation
Labour is urging the Prime Minister to walk the talk and support legislation combating modern slavery. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Labour has lost confidence in the Speaker
The Speaker of the New Zealand Parliament made an unprecedented decision on the government amendment to the Fast Track Approvals Bill last night. ...2 weeks ago
- One year on, still no progress on new ferries
Today’s announcement from the Government on its plan for new ferries throws more uncertainty on the future of the country’s rail network. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Nicola Willis’ smaller ferries will cost more
After wasting a year, Nicola Willis has delivered a worse deal for the Cook Strait ferries that will end up being more expensive and take longer to arrive. ...2 weeks ago
- Bill to sanction unlawful occupation of Palestine
Green Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick has today launched a Member’s Bill to sanction Israel for its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, as the All Out For Gaza rally reaches Parliament. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Labour fully supports greyhound racing ban
The Government has done the right thing in moving to ban greyhound racing. ...2 weeks ago
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A fitting near-end to a shitty year I suppose:
https://www.windy.com/?2020-12-18-00,-28.401,173.716,5
Probably hit NZ about 3 to 4 days before Xmas.
Here is another view on an issue we have heard a lot about.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/opinion-analysis/300179049/an-open-letter-to-my-boss-in-the-new-zealand-fruitpicking-industry
I was just going to post that. Thank you.
it shows what greedy exploitive bastards most of them are..
..and their constant whining/bleating…
'we want more cheap workers we can exploit to the max..'
the sad fact is they will get them
Something that needs to come to the fore, and not just left heating on the stove till it boils over. Just seeing those eternal glossy advertisements for retirement homes, with laughing, grey haired people in expensive chairs with spotless surroundings and manicured gardens could drive the young and struggling parents to acts of anger and despair.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/business/432458/wealth-gap-between-young-and-old-growing-anz-report
We could show the reality for many elderly instead.
Not the fortunate few.
Yeah, Exactly
indeed..!
Yes, the ad is aimed at the fortunate few.
I cringe every time I hear the falsetto laughter and think to myself… what a boring bunch of human specimens.
heh..!
sort of another version of a cruise ship..from hell..
With the same people all the time..
where you only dock again when you kick the bucket..
I consider that to be pretty grim..
I view them more as the condemned ..than the 'fortunate' ones..
I'll have to be pretty much horizontal/about to check out..to go to one of those..
+100
The people you are talking about contribute indirectly to the support of less wealthy by getting out of their individual houses and thereby increasing supply, by dividends to shareholders in the retirement industry, putting cash into private hands to be taxed, saved or spent and by employing all the cleaners, cooks, carers, drivers, maintenance and grounds staff that go with a retirement village. They also concentrate the elderly so feeding and caring for them brings economies of scale. Furthermore, they are out of the suburban social network and not impeding social evolution with whining about the good old days and penny pinching conservatism. Most of the carers are new immigrants and more hungry to get ahead than the average local, so that's a plus too.
That's the theory. If they want to be sure their houses go to the young people who need them, they had better hold back and only sell to a young family at a price they can afford.
And no-one feels as sorry for old people as they do themselves. Having been helped by society to live to an old age, they then complain about stuff, have the cheek to get alzheimers and are then not able to have a completely normal life, spend years being coddled in rest homes etc.
I am breaking the cooing consensus that favours older people no matter what. Like by living to an old age you become worthier and valuable like antique furniture. Unfortunately with humans, there are so many more that supply outstrips demand. And I am 78 but still have all my marbles and though I got rose-tinted lens in my glasses once I didn't like the effect, it made my eyes look as if I had been crying. I can cry all right without glasses as I look at the sentimental rubbish that replaces thought and consideration for the vulnerable young, which I would have expected responsible oldies to feel.
we just aren't grateful enough.. are we..?
bring back forelock-tugging to our betters..
..I reckon..
Just watched on TV 1 news, the story of a motor racer who will travel 92,000 kms this year!
Have we learned nothing from the covid crisis, or has it just driven the climate crisis from the headlines.
Not only is he an ICE driver, but nearly 100,000 kms???
Frankly, I despair for the human race!
Human SPECIES many races and the races that know how to survive on little by cunning, inherited knowledge and belief systems will survive the years ahead and preserve the species. It won't be the anthropomorphised pet adoring concrete pourers (like that cunt Shadbolt) and deck builders over fertile land either,.
Simply put we need to stop racing. All those marathon runners, it's a waste of energy when they could go to some devastated country with groups organised to do rebuilding and support and funding a festival as well. All would get something out of that, not just a mindless pushing on trying to force the body to its limits. People were just in time after WW2 to find some still alive that hadn't been pushed beyond their limits. Why repeat the process in peace time? Sport tends to be very single-minded, and the 21st century needs minds meeting to achieve human-kindly things.
edit
Questions – How many criminals have been involved in this case? And who cares about women's freedom to be unmolested? And when females go blithely out with stranger (strangler?) males when tourists, do they confirm hidden ideas in some male minds that women don't care about standards of behaviour towards them, secretly it's anything goes?
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/in-depth/432348/revealed-sis-failed-to-report-nz-s-fritzl-ronald-van-der-plaat
There now needs to be some legal action taken against the SIS by the survivor.
Do the SIS think that it is now ACCs job to have a settlement?
I am following the Mariya Taylor case and it has now come down to ACC legislation, a hearing think in the Court of Appeal.
It is not hard to see how organisational failure compounds a mental injury.
An ACC specialist lawyer needs to explain what exemplary damages, ex gratia payment, in some cases sexual assault prior to the 1974 ACC Act the person can sue, and how the time limit for taking action by the claimant prevents the claimant from being able to settle. And legal aid needs to be ramped up.
Supreme Court not Court of Appeal.
"Zack Labe, a postdoctoral researcher at Colorado State University, said the Arctic is “yelling at us to pay attention”. He added: “Unless we slow global warming by systematically reducing our greenhouse gas emissions, the chances of our first ‘ice-free’ Arctic summer will continue to increase. This rapid climate change in the Arctic will continue to have consequences for the entire Earth system.”
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/dec/08/arctic-report-climate-crisis-wildfires-ice-loss
And still we dither