“Walk up Queen Street and see how many people are begging”
You do realise that these aren’t all homeless people.
Some just catch the bus into downtown Auckland to make an extra $50 -$200 a day.
Not a bad little earner on top of the doll.
Excellent OAB
But that would have gone way over his head.
As Glenda Jackson said in her speech about the filth called Thatcher when she died and were debating her death in the commons
“London has become a city Hogarth would have recognised and indeed he would”
This can now be applied to the towns and cities of New Zealand.
I like the speakers ruling at the end when some rightwing fuckwit tries and have a go at Jackson.
Just watched our parliamentary debates on TV. No passion-no intellect..no nuthin’ – none of them
Then Glenda Jackson in Halfcrown’s clip..Wow!
Oh for a for a Glenda Jackson……then maybe the million or so lethargics in NZ might be motivated to vote next time.
I saw that at the time, and was heartened that “right will out” did. Glenda proves wisdom can come with age, and that’s what we could do with a bit more of.
The more we dig the more it becomes obvious that history is not how it’s been taught to us. I blame the patriarchy 🙂
The remains of 14 women believed to be of high status and importance have been found at Stonehenge, the iconic prehistoric monument in Wiltshire, England.
The discovery, along with other finds, supports the theory that Stonehenge functioned, at least for part of its long history, as a cremation cemetery for leaders and other noteworthy individuals, according to a report published in the latest issue of British Archaeology.
During the recent excavation, more women than men were found buried at Stonehenge, a fact that could change its present image.
“In almost every depiction of Stonehenge by artists and TV re-enactors we see lots of men, a man in charge, and few or no women,” archaeologist Mike Pitts, who is the editor of British Archaeology and the author of the book “Hengeworld,” told Discovery News.
“The archaeology now shows that as far as the burials go, women were as prominent there as men. This contrasts with the earlier burial mounds, where men seem to be more prominent.”
Again, the age of magic and mysticism brought with it a far finer understanding of the energies of both nature and of human beings. Modern rational intellectualism cannot deal with that strange shit; it short circuits the narrow modernised brain.
Did I hear Key akshully say…”and there’s the small issue of the flag referendum in March” towards the end of his speech in the house today? I can’t bear to watch it again as he was Mr.Shoutey ++++, well, it’s a lot of money to throw at a “small issue”.
Another question,why do we keep throwing money at a Saudi business man? Did he donate to National at some point? Is it hush money? Cannot for the life of me think of any other reason
To Weka: And later in Ireland women featured.
I was reading about Ireland in 3-4 centuries AD where women could hold any office including being elected King in one or other of the 4 Kingdoms and were free to vote, free to be lawyers and equal. Crimes were usually treated with non violence or punishment but a system of restitution mostly the outcome.
Then the influence of the Roman Catholic Church seeped in and punishment, imprisonment, torture, capital punishment gradually destroyed a society that had been way ahead of its time.
What do you anchor that faith-based comment on, given the real world of highly monied, corporate run, for shareholder profit medical research, that is?
Do you think our society is healthier now with an ethos of rationalism, materialism and commercialism rather than say, ancient celtic belief systems where the energies of humans and nature interact in harmony and co-operation?
Regulators have a responsibility to protect people from fraudulent practices. Any restrictions on access to a given treatment would be on the grounds that it caused harm directly or caused harm by diverting people away from treatment that actually does work.
Referring to CV’s comment – ‘fraudulent practices’ includes fraudulent practices in evidence-based medicine, as well fraudulent practices in traditional health practices not attempting to have any basis in evidence, and straight-up quackery as well.
And CV – I think the average life expectancy now pushing 70+ instead of being in the 20s or 30s speaks to the power of evidence-based practices developing new treatments over many centuries, and in particular the approach to medicine in the last century. Evidential medicine finds out what works, and what doesn’t.
This does not preclude there being vast room in medicine for massive fraud and systematic failings. Additionally, the quality of societal wellbeing is based on far more things than just health care – you noted materialism and commercialism, well, look there for the causes of the malaise you are referring to.
Rationalism is just a term for an intelligent approach to problem solvent – and it can be used to consider solutions to the problems you are alluding to as well.
sorry mate, but I think you are talking from a place of ignorance there. Fair enough you believe what you believe, but that kind of attitude does prevent people from getting good healthcare.
a few points,
Even the mainstream medical system mocks the extreme to which the concept of evidence based medicine has been taken.
Parachute use to prevent death and major trauma related to gravitational challenge: systematic review of randomised controlled trials
Evidence based medicine (EBM) should form the foundation of effective clinical decision making; however, growing unrest—and an awful lot of criticism—suggests the evidence bit of EBM is increasingly part of the problem, and not the solution.
Concerns with quality and rigour in research are leading to a lack of trust in the production, publication, and utilisation of evidence. Des Spence, writing in The BMJ, thinks the situation is so bad that, “Evidence based medicine is broken,” and when an official from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) also reports, “The clinical trial system is broken and it’s getting worse,” you have to acknowledge that there might be problems with the evidence base.
EBM is not something that has to be solely determined by Randomised Controlled Trials, or the medical research elite. There are many ways of assessing efficacy, including empirically based methods that are evidence based but wouldn’t fit with your ideology. But get this, GPs use them all the time. Consider off label prescribing, or the GPs who understand that their patients are better off with kindness and support.
‘Quackery’ is when people intentionally and knowingly mislead people with regards to their health or treatment. The numbers of people that do this is actually quite small. But I suspect that what you really mean is the alternative pracitioners who practice health care that you disapprove of because mainstream science hasn’t figured out how to assess it yet. This is some of the important health care that people miss out on when they are dependent on people with attitudes such as yourself. Not only is this failing based on willful ignorance, but it’s illogical by science’s own methodologies and concepts.
For instance, practices like herbal medicine or acupuncuture have been in use successfully for thousands of years and yet there have been times fairly recently when both have been damned by the people who believe that EBM is the same as RCTs. THe very large irony there is that medical people who think EBM is the be all and end all are often incredibly ignorant about not only the efficacy of those methods but of the research that now supports them.
“Evidential medicine finds out what works, and what doesn’t.”
Read the above links. I think you will be surprised at the big flaws in that argument.
“or caused harm by diverting people away from treatment that actually does work.”
This is a red herring. The Ministry of Health surveys use of complemetary and alternative medicine in NZ (CAM), and finds that the percentage of people that use alternative practitioners as their main go to for health and medical treatment is very small. Further, that of the people that do use CAM, by far the marjority of them do so having already consulted a mainstream doctor. Alternative practitioners confirm this (ie most of their clients have already tried conventional medicine). It’s not a bad leap to surmise that people seek out CAM because conventional medicine has failed them. Or because conventional medicine has intolerable or unwarranted side effects. Many people use CAM alongside conventional medicine.
I think the average life expectancy now pushing 70+ instead of being in the 20s or 30s speaks to the power of evidence-based practices developing new treatments over many centuries, and in particular the approach to medicine in the last century.
Nope. The bigger part of increased longevity is due to increases in standard of living. Medicine does also keep people alive longer, but the advantages are not as clear cut as you make out because much of the late age deaths that are being postponed by medicine are also being created by modern living (eg heart disease, diabetes related illness and probably cancer).
(Btw, it’s a myth that pre-modern medicine most people only lived into their 20s and 30s. High infant mortality brought down the average life expectancy across populations, but many people lived a lot longer than 30.)
Where CAM comes into its own is bringing relief to people with chronic illness, largely because it is better suited to dealing with this than conventional medicine. It’s for this reason that I made the original comment to you. If you seek to deny people access to CAM on the basis that it hasn’t met some arbitrary standard that is already corrupted, then you are doing far more damage than any parts of CAM that are untested (and I do believe there are some dodgy things out there too).
Please do not consider me some unchanging monolith of ignorance. I am a scientist, and with that comes a responsibility to evaluate new ideas, test them, think about them critically, and try to solve problems. And yes, I am aware scientists have a propensity to ignore all of that – I get to come across plenty of atrocious science.
To paraphrase Minchin, “You know what we called alternative medicine that’s been proven to work? Medicine”.
Tonnes of research is done on complementary and alternative medicine. That which works gets picked up by medicine and incorporated into its practice, though indeed slower than it should in many instances, as you relate.
I am well aware of shortcomings in evidence-based medicine, and am well aware of using empyrical evidence also. That doesn’t mean we should throw out reason. Not at all, we should be using rational, reasoned approaches to examine the reasons for the failings in the current system and develop improved approaches.
“‘Quackery’ is when people intentionally and knowingly mislead people with regards to their health or treatment. The numbers of people that do this is actually quite small.”
Nonsense – just take a look at the supplement industry alone. It’s all “supports joint health” this and “assists with digestion” that, because they can’t make any actual claims, because they can’t actually prove anything that they are selling actually works. At best they’ll have some statement of irrelevant crap along the lines of “verisatol extracted from the skin of the avocado lowered taurine by 20% in laboratory studies”
“Nope. The bigger part of increased longevity is due to increases in standard of living. Medicine does also keep people alive longer, but the advantages are not as clear cut as you make out because much of the late age deaths that are being postponed by medicine are also being created by modern living (eg heart disease, diabetes related illness and probably cancer).
(Btw, it’s a myth that pre-modern medicine most people only lived into their 20s and 30s. High infant mortality brought down the average life expectancy across populations, but many people lived a lot longer than 30.)”
Guess what lowered that high infant mortality? Sanitation. Medicine. It required an understanding of concepts of transmissible illness coming from contaminated water and other sources, something that required testing of ideas to understand – i.e. science. Further science allowed us to develop antibiotics and vaccines – the other key factor in reducing untimely deaths from illnesses like cholera, typhoid, TB, syphilis, and eradicating smallpox entirely.
That is why we have to take a scientific approach to problems, and evaluate evidence to determine whether a medical treatment, alternative or otherwise, is effective or not, or if it does more harm than good. An approach of allowing treatment where there is no evidence of its benefits and its detriments, where you are taking things on blind faith that something will work or not, is to negligently abrogate responsibility for the wellbeing of people. That, to me, is not acceptable.
You may or may not want to read this . But the window of opportunity to cut emissions is probably even smaller than we think. And we are in for rapid sea level rise in the not too distant future.
The science is explained well in the link. Newly published work on the Ice sheets of Antarctica.
Just watched most of The Daily Blog’s live stream with “Lisa Owen from TV3’s The Nation as she asks PR man Matthew Hooton, Metro Editor-at-large Simon Wilson, and AUT senior lecturer Ella Henry about the political year ahead.”
Rather fun and good food for thought I thought.
No idea if it is rebroadcast.
“No Name” was doing his usual rant in the House this afternoon – phew can he spew forth when he is cornered and bitchy – methinks he is feeling the heat right now and not coping. Why does he always come across like a spoilt bully who stamps his feet when he feels slighted. The man needs to get a grip and slow down. As I have said before the man is a tosser and not worthy of his position and I sense more people are starting to see the emperor has no clothes – a hollow man.
From the blackboard outside the local and best hardware shop in the country* (always has a very pertinent and surprisingly non-establishment and pithy hand written comment on the issues of the day.) 🙂
“Prepare for a Tsunami of benefits flowing in from the TPPA
*Really it is!
You want a left handed floggle toggle – yep they have one out the back. You want that male or female?)
“The Bank of Japan’s rates decision has prompted fears that after years of monetary easing, central banks have few avenues left to explore to encourage investment and boost growth.”
“We have bad news from Germany — industrial production at the eurozone’s powerhouse economy tumbled by 1.2% in December.
That’s much worse than expected; economists had pencilled in a 0.4% rise in factory output. It suggest the slowdown in emerging markets is now hitting Europe, threatening its fragile recovery since the eurozone crisis.
The fall was driven by a 2.6% slump in the manufacturing of investment goods, while energy production fell by 3% percent and consumer goods output fell 1.4%.
ING economist Carsten Brzeski isn’t prone to exaggeration, but even he is alarmed:”
The world’s financial elite have spent too long gaming the markets at the cost of the real economy and real consumers. Now their games of pretend and extend are coming to a close and the landing with reality is going to be hard.
i believe so….but they are tucking their gains safely away (even if they pay a little for the privilege)
“Yield is the interest rate on a bond. A high yield means a bond is riskier, while safe-haven assets yield less.
Short-term German and Japanese bonds have been negative for a while, reflecting the fact that they’re a solid place to put your money (especially as there are negative interest rates in Japan and the eurozone).
But for a 10-year bond to be negative? That shows investors are pricing in weak economic growth, and turmoil, for some time.”
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Hey, hey, heyJust think, while you've been gettin' down and out about the liarsAnd the dirty, dirty cheats of the worldYou could've been gettin' down to this sick beatSongwriters: Taylor Swift / Shellback / Martin Max. Read more ...
Luxon has once again let National’s junior coalition partner, ACT, set the political agenda, dragging him and National into another politically draining debate. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in our political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, January 29 are:PM Christopher ...
The latest unemployment figures reveal that job losses are hitting Māori and Pacific people especially hard, with Māori unemployment reaching a staggering 9.7% for the December 2024 quarter and Pasifika unemployment reaching 10.5%. ...
Waitangi 2025: Waitangi Day must be community and not politically driven - Shane Jones Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. ...
Despite being confronted every day with people in genuine need being stopped from accessing emergency housing – National still won’t commit to building more public houses. ...
The Green Party says the Government is giving up on growing the country’s public housing stock, despite overwhelming evidence that we need more affordable houses to solve the housing crisis. ...
Before any thoughts of the New Year and what lies ahead could even be contemplated, New Zealand reeled with the tragedy of Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming losing her life. For over 38 years she had faithfully served as a front-line Police officer. Working alongside her was Senior Sergeant Adam Ramsay ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson will return to politics at Waitangi on Monday the 3rd of February where she will hold a stand up with fellow co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick. ...
Te Pāti Māori is appalled by the government's blatant mishandling of the school lunch programme. David Seymour’s ‘cost-saving’ measures have left tamariki across Aotearoa with unidentifiable meals, causing distress and outrage among parents and communities alike. “What’s the difference between providing inedible food, and providing no food at all?” Said ...
The Government is doubling down on outdated and volatile fossil fuels, showing how shortsighted and destructive their policies are for working New Zealanders. ...
Green Party MP Steve Abel this morning joined Coromandel locals in Waihi to condemn new mining plans announced by Shane Jones in the pit of the town’s Australian-owned Gold mine. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to strengthen its just-announced 2030-2035 Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement and address its woeful lack of commitment to climate security. ...
Today marks a historic moment for Taranaki iwi with the passing of the Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill in Parliament. "Today, we stand together as descendants of Taranaki, and our tūpuna, Taranaki Maunga, is now formally acknowledged by the law as a living tūpuna. ...
Labour is relieved to see Children’s Minister Karen Chhour has woken up to reality and reversed her government’s terrible decisions to cut funding from frontline service providers – temporarily. ...
It is the first week of David Seymour’s school lunch programme and already social media reports are circulating of revolting meals, late deliveries, and mislabelled packaging. ...
The Green Party says that with no-cause evictions returning from today, the move to allow landlords to end tenancies without reason plunges renters, and particularly families who rent, into insecurity and stress. ...
The Government’s move to increase speed limits substantially on dozens of stretches of rural and often undivided highways will result in more serious harm. ...
In her first announcement as Economic Growth Minister, Nicola Willis chose to loosen restrictions for digital nomads from other countries, rather than focus on everyday Kiwis. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to stand firm and work with allies to progress climate action as Donald Trump signals his intent to pull out of the Paris Climate Accords once again. ...
The Government’s commitment to get New Zealand’s roads back on track is delivering strong results, with around 98 per cent of potholes on state highways repaired within 24 hours of identification every month since targets were introduced, Transport Minister Chris Bishop says. “Increasing productivity to help rebuild our economy is ...
The former Cadbury factory will be the site of the Inpatient Building for the new Dunedin Hospital and Health Minister Simeon Brown says actions have been taken to get the cost overruns under control. “Today I am giving the people of Dunedin certainty that we will build the new Dunedin ...
From today, Plunket in Whāngarei will be offering childhood immunisations – the first of up to 27 sites nationwide, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. The investment of $1 million into the pilot, announced in October 2024, was made possible due to the Government’s record $16.68 billion investment in health. It ...
New Zealand’s strong commitment to the rights of disabled people has continued with the response to an important United Nations report, Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston has announced. Of the 63 concluding observations of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), 47 will be progressed ...
Resources Minister Shane Jones has launched New Zealand’s national Minerals Strategy and Critical Minerals List, documents that lay a strategic and enduring path for the mineral sector, with the aim of doubling exports to $3 billion by 2035. Mr Jones released the documents, which present the Coalition Government’s transformative vision ...
Firstly I want to thank OceanaGold for hosting our event today. Your operation at Waihi is impressive. I want to acknowledge local MP Scott Simpson, local government dignitaries, community stakeholders and all of you who have gathered here today. It’s a privilege to welcome you to the launch of the ...
Racing Minister, Winston Peters has announced the Government is preparing public consultation on GST policy proposals which would make the New Zealand racing industry more competitive. “The racing industry makes an important economic contribution. New Zealand thoroughbreds are in demand overseas as racehorses and for breeding. The domestic thoroughbred industry ...
Business confidence remains very high and shows the economy is on track to improve, Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis says. “The latest ANZ Business Outlook survey, released yesterday, shows business confidence and expected own activity are ‘still both very high’.” The survey reports business confidence fell eight points to +54 ...
Enabling works have begun this week on an expanded radiology unit at Hawke’s Bay Fallen Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital which will double CT scanning capacity in Hawke’s Bay to ensure more locals can benefit from access to timely, quality healthcare, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. This investment of $29.3m in the ...
The Government has today announced New Zealand’s second international climate target under the Paris Agreement, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand will reduce emissions by 51 to 55 per cent compared to 2005 levels, by 2035. “We have worked hard to set a target that is both ambitious ...
Nine years of negotiations between the Crown and iwi of Taranaki have concluded following Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/the Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill passing its third reading in Parliament today, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “This Bill addresses the historical grievances endured by the eight iwi ...
As schools start back for 2025, there will be a relentless focus on teaching the basics brilliantly so all Kiwi kids grow up with the knowledge, skills and competencies needed to grow the New Zealand of the future, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “A world-leading education system is a key ...
Housing Minister Chris Bishop and Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson have welcomed Kāinga Ora’s decision to re-open its tender for carpets to allow wool carpet suppliers to bid. “In 2024 Kāinga Ora issued requests for tender (RFTs) seeking bids from suppliers to carpet their properties,” Mr Bishop says. “As part ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today visited Otahuhu College where the new school lunch programme has served up healthy lunches to students in the first days of the school year. “As schools open in 2025, the programme will deliver nutritious meals to around 242,000 students, every school day. On ...
Minister for Children Karen Chhour has intervened in Oranga Tamariki’s review of social service provider contracts to ensure Barnardos can continue to deliver its 0800 What’s Up hotline. “When I found out about the potential impact to this service, I asked Oranga Tamariki for an explanation. Based on the information ...
A bill to make revenue collection on imported and exported goods fairer and more effective had its first reading in Parliament, Customs Minister Casey Costello said today. “The Customs (Levies and Other Matters) Amendment Bill modernises the way in which Customs can recover the costs of services that are needed ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Department of Internal Affairs [the Department] has achieved significant progress in completing applications for New Zealand citizenship. “December 2024 saw the Department complete 5,661 citizenship applications, the most for any month in 2024. This is a 54 per cent increase compared ...
Reversals to Labour’s blanket speed limit reductions begin tonight and will be in place by 1 July, says Minister of Transport Chris Bishop. “The previous government was obsessed with slowing New Zealanders down by imposing illogical and untargeted speed limit reductions on state highways and local roads. “National campaigned on ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis has announced Budget 2025 – the Growth Budget - will be delivered on Thursday 22 May. “This year’s Budget will drive forward the Government’s plan to grow our economy to improve the incomes of New Zealanders now and in the years ahead. “Budget 2025 will build ...
For the Government, 2025 will bring a relentless focus on unleashing the growth we need to lift incomes, strengthen local businesses and create opportunity. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today laid out the Government’s growth agenda in his Statement to Parliament. “Just over a year ago this Government was elected by ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour welcomes students back to school with a call to raise attendance from last year. “The Government encourages all students to attend school every day because there is a clear connection between being present at school and setting yourself up for a bright future,” says Mr ...
The Government is relaxing visitor visa requirements to allow tourists to work remotely while visiting New Zealand, Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis, Immigration Minister Erica Stanford and Tourism Minister Louise Upston say. “The change is part of the Government’s plan to unlock New Zealand’s potential by shifting the country onto ...
The opening of Kāinga Ora’s development of 134 homes in Epuni, Lower Hutt will provide much-needed social housing for Hutt families, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “I’ve been a strong advocate for social housing on Kāinga Ora’s Epuni site ever since the old earthquake-prone housing was demolished in 2015. I ...
Trade and Investment Minister Todd McClay will travel to Australia today for meetings with Australian Trade Minister, Senator Don Farrell, and the Australia New Zealand Leadership Forum (ANZLF). Mr McClay recently hosted Minister Farrell in Rotorua for the annual Closer Economic Relations (CER) Trade Ministers’ meeting, where ANZLF presented on ...
A new monthly podiatry clinic has been launched today in Wairoa and will bring a much-needed service closer to home for the Wairoa community, Health Minister Simeon Brown says.“Health New Zealand has been successful in securing a podiatrist until the end of June this year to meet the needs of ...
The Judicial Conduct Commissioner has recommended a Judicial Conduct Panel be established to inquire into and report on the alleged conduct of acting District Court Judge Ema Aitken in an incident last November, Attorney-General Judith Collins said today. “I referred the matter of Judge Aitken’s alleged conduct during an incident ...
Students who need extra help with maths are set to benefit from a targeted acceleration programme that will give them more confidence in the classroom, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Last year, significant numbers of students did not meet the foundational literacy and numeracy level required to gain NCEA. To ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters has announced three new diplomatic appointments. “Our diplomats play an important role in ensuring New Zealand’s interests are maintained and enhanced across the world,” Mr Peters says. “It is a pleasure to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and ...
Ki te kahore he whakakitenga, ka ngaro te Iwi – without a vision, the people will perish. The Government has achieved its target to reduce the number of households in emergency housing motels by 75 per cent five years early, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. The number of households ...
The opening of Palmerston North’s biggest social housing development will have a significant impact for whānau in need of safe, warm, dry housing, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. The minister visited the development today at North Street where a total of 50 two, three, and four-bedroom homes plus a ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced the new membership of the Public Advisory Committee on Disarmament and Arms Control (PACDAC), who will serve for a three-year term. “The Committee brings together wide-ranging expertise relevant to disarmament. We have made six new appointments to the Committee and reappointed two existing members ...
Ka nui te mihi kia koutou. Kia ora, good morning, talofa, malo e lelei, bula vinaka, da jia hao, namaste, sat sri akal, assalamu alaikum. It’s so great to be here and I’m ready and pumped for 2025. Can I start by acknowledging: Simon Bridges – CEO of the Auckland ...
The Government has unveiled a bold new initiative to position New Zealand as a premier destination for foreign direct investment (FDI) that will create higher paying jobs and grow the economy. “Invest New Zealand will streamline the investment process and provide tailored support to foreign investors, to increase capital investment ...
Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins today announced the largest reset of the New Zealand science system in more than 30 years with reforms which will boost the economy and benefit the sector. “The reforms will maximise the value of the $1.2 billion in government funding that goes into ...
Turbocharging New Zealand’s economic growth is the key to brighter days ahead for all Kiwis, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says. In the Prime Minister’s State of the Nation Speech in Auckland today, Christopher Luxon laid out the path to the prosperity that will affect all aspects of New Zealanders’ lives. ...
The latest set of accounts show the Government has successfully checked the runaway growth of public spending, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. “In the previous government’s final five months in office, public spending was almost 10 per cent higher than for the same period the previous year. “That is completely ...
The Government’s welfare reforms are delivering results with the number of people moving off benefits into work increasing year-on-year for six straight months. “There are positive signs that our welfare reset and the return consequences for job seekers who don't fulfil their obligations to prepare for or find a job ...
Jon Kroll and Aimee McCammon have been appointed to the New Zealand Film Commission Board, Arts Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “I am delighted to appoint these two new board members who will bring a wealth of industry, governance, and commercial experience to the Film Commission. “Jon Kroll has been an ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis has hailed a drop in the domestic component of inflation, saying it increases the prospect of mortgage rate reductions and a lower cost of living for Kiwi households. Stats NZ reported today that inflation was 2.2 per cent in the year to December, the second consecutive ...
Two new appointed members and one reappointed member of the Employment Relations Authority have been announced by Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden today. “I’m pleased to announce the new appointed members Helen van Druten and Matthew Piper to the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) and welcome them to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jenny Allen, Postdoctoral research associate, Griffith University A humpback whale mother and calf on the New Caledonian breeding grounds.Mark Quintin All known human languages display a surprising pattern: the most frequent word in a language is twice as frequent as ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Justin Keogh, Associate Dean of Research, Faculty of Health Sciences and Medicine, Bond University Jordan Mailata is an Australian-born NFL star who plays for the Philadelphia Eagles as an offensive left tackle. This position favours very tall, heavy and strong athletes who ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nigel Tucker, Research Associate in Environment and Sustainability, James Cook University TREAT volunteers planting treesTREAT Like ferns and the tides, community conservation groups come and go. Many achieve their goal. Volunteers restore a local wetland or protect a patch of urban ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Karyn Healy, Honorary Principal Research Fellow in Psychology, The University of Queensland Rawpixel.com/Shutterstock The start of the school year means new classes, routines, after-school activities and sometimes even a new school. This can be a really exciting time for ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kerrie Sadiq, Professor of Taxation, QUT Business School, and ARC Future Fellow, Queensland University of Technology The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) released a discussion paper this week on investment tax breaks. The study looks at whether tax incentives, such as instant ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Naomi Zouwer, Visual Artist and Lecturer in Teacher Education, University of Canberra Galleries and art museums can be intimidating and alienating even for adults. Imagine it from a child’s point of view. Stern security guards in uniforms stationed the doors, bags checked, ...
Political aspects of Waitangi week may be moved in 2026, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell for The Bulletin.To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. Celebration and on-the-ground politics For the third year in a row, I have returned from Waitangi full of food and deep regrets about not ...
Arriving at Ōnuku Marae, it was easy to see why Prime Minister Christopher Luxon chose the venue to mark Waitangi Day.Kayakers paddled around Akaroa Harbour under clear blue skies, with the marae barely a stone’s throw from the shore.Luxon’s decision to skip traditional events at the Waitangi Treaty Grounds this ...
Thanks to increased operating costs and new fare structures, many public transport users in Auckland are now paying more for trains, buses and ferries. Shanti Mathias explains what’s behind the changes. Schools are back around the country, but in Auckland, kids aren’t the only ones to have returned to a ...
In a special Waitangi edition of Gone By Lunchtime, Ātea editor Liam Rātana and politics reporter Lyric Waiwiri-Smith recap a politically charged few days at the Treaty Grounds. Our Waitangi 2025 coverage is possible because of the 13,000-plus Spinoff members who regularly pay to support our work. If you aren’t a member ...
Analysis: Waitangi Day belongs to Māori first, as mana motuhake and tino rangatiratanga take centre stage.Our Waitangi 2025 coverage is possible because of the 13,000-plus Spinoff members who regularly pay to support our work. If you aren’t a member yet, now is the time.Walking around the treaty grounds, te reo Māori ...
Chart 1: An unfortunate starting pointComment: Far from fighting fit, the economy limps into 2025 carrying some baggage. Two years of rolling recessions have left per capita output 4.8 percent below the 2022 peak. That’s as at September. The December quarter is looking flattish.A return to growth beckons this year. ...
Val Smith reckons if you knew her in her 20s, she’d be the last woman you’d imagine taking up lawn bowls.Yet here she is, three decades later, retiring from the international game after playing an astounding 667 internationals for the BlackJacks.One of the true greats in New Zealand bowls history, ...
If you want to be a famous sport writer in New Zealand, you probably shouldn’t specialise in football.The beautiful game usually takes a back seat here … but that could all be changing.With two teams now in the Australian football league, vocal and growing crowds, and some fantastic players looking ...
Analysis: The international rules-based order has come under increasing stress and strain over the last decade and looks likely to continue on the same rocky path for the foreseeable future. In the Pacific, political tensions and competition between powerful states – the United States and its allies, and China – ...
Analysis: Growth trumps everything was the message from Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s recent state of the nation address. His declaration came on the heels of similar announcements calling for growth at all costs from the new president of the USA and from many other world leaders. As usual news media ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The battle to contain antisemitism in Australia finds both sides of politics embracing measures they’d otherwise abhor. Spectacularly, the government capitulated this week to include mandatory minimum sentences of between one and six years ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Henry Cutler, Professor and Director, Macquarie University Centre for the Health Economy, Macquarie University This week, the federal government announced it will pay states and territories an extra, one-off, A$1.7 billion for public hospitals. This has been billed as a way ...
From the dawn ceremony to the numerous local performances and powerful words, Waitangi Day 2025 was one to remember, but a highlight would have to be the record turn-out of waka. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Joshua Black, Visitor, School of History, Australian National University The Albanese government is trying once more to legislate wide-ranging changes to the way federal elections are administered. The 200-page Electoral Reform Bill, if passed, would transform the electoral donation rules by ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lorana Bartels, Professor of Criminology, Australian National University Shutterstock Weeks after Opposition Leader Peter Dutton announced his support for mandatory minimum jail terms for antisemitic offences, the government has legislated such laws. Minister for Home Affairs Tony Burke stated the federal ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Moninya Roughan, Professor in Oceanography, UNSW Sydney Australia’s sea surface temperatures were the warmest on record last year, according to a snapshot of the nation’s climate which underscores the perilous state of the world’s oceans. The Bureau of Meteorology on Thursday released ...
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Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mandy Hagstrom, Senior Lecturer, Exercise Physiology. School of Health Sciences, UNSW Sydney Sokirlov/Shutterstock Callisthenics is a type of training where you do bodyweight exercises to build strength. It’s versatile, low cost, and easy to start. Classic callisthenics moves include: ...
The Mood of the Workforce survey, conducted annually by the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions Te Kauae Kaimahi, lays bare the brutal reality of life under capitalism in Aotearoa New Zealand. ...
Walk up Queen Street and see how many people are begging.
Neoliberalism is failing a lot of people.
“Walk up Queen Street and see how many people are begging”
You do realise that these aren’t all homeless people.
Some just catch the bus into downtown Auckland to make an extra $50 -$200 a day.
Not a bad little earner on top of the doll.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/9701074/Hustlers-make-200-a-day
Aren’t you that guy from the Hogarth print?
Excellent OAB
But that would have gone way over his head.
As Glenda Jackson said in her speech about the filth called Thatcher when she died and were debating her death in the commons
“London has become a city Hogarth would have recognised and indeed he would”
This can now be applied to the towns and cities of New Zealand.
I like the speakers ruling at the end when some rightwing fuckwit tries and have a go at Jackson.
Just watched our parliamentary debates on TV. No passion-no intellect..no nuthin’ – none of them
Then Glenda Jackson in Halfcrown’s clip..Wow!
Oh for a for a Glenda Jackson……then maybe the million or so lethargics in NZ might be motivated to vote next time.
I saw that at the time, and was heartened that “right will out” did. Glenda proves wisdom can come with age, and that’s what we could do with a bit more of.
that article supports what Paul said not what you are saying.
Is that you Paddy?
what doll exactly?
Is that how tories make their money? On top of dolls?
Heartless.
“Heartless.”
Naive.
Some facts.
http://www.childpoverty.co.nz/
http://nzccss.org.nz/work/poverty/facts-about-poverty/
https://www.unicef.org.nz/learn/our-work-in-new-zealand/Child-Poverty-in-New-Zealand
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Child_poverty_in_New_Zealand
http://www.occ.org.nz/assets/Uploads/EAG/Working-papers/Statistics-NZ-Measuring-Child-Poverty-final.pdf
Jealous and hateful of destitute people being bled dry by an elaborate ponzi scheme. What a winner.
Shameful.
The funny thing is that idiots like Naki man are only a few months of illness and bad luck away from being totally destitute as well.
The more we dig the more it becomes obvious that history is not how it’s been taught to us. I blame the patriarchy 🙂
http://news.discovery.com/history/archaeology/powerful-women-buried-at-stonehenge-160203.htm
Again, the age of magic and mysticism brought with it a far finer understanding of the energies of both nature and of human beings. Modern rational intellectualism cannot deal with that strange shit; it short circuits the narrow modernised brain.
True, but not a conversation likely to be had here 😉
Did I hear Key akshully say…”and there’s the small issue of the flag referendum in March” towards the end of his speech in the house today? I can’t bear to watch it again as he was Mr.Shoutey ++++, well, it’s a lot of money to throw at a “small issue”.
Another question,why do we keep throwing money at a Saudi business man? Did he donate to National at some point? Is it hush money? Cannot for the life of me think of any other reason
To Weka: And later in Ireland women featured.
I was reading about Ireland in 3-4 centuries AD where women could hold any office including being elected King in one or other of the 4 Kingdoms and were free to vote, free to be lawyers and equal. Crimes were usually treated with non violence or punishment but a system of restitution mostly the outcome.
Then the influence of the Roman Catholic Church seeped in and punishment, imprisonment, torture, capital punishment gradually destroyed a society that had been way ahead of its time.
Lots of interesting things to learn from those cultures (and ones closer to home).
The Celts of the day had strong beliefs in magic, mysticism and spirituality.
Modern day intellectual rationalists can’t cope with that strange shit.
Yes, we can. Strange shit is great. We just don’t base important things like medical treatment on them.
What do you anchor that faith-based comment on, given the real world of highly monied, corporate run, for shareholder profit medical research, that is?
Do you think our society is healthier now with an ethos of rationalism, materialism and commercialism rather than say, ancient celtic belief systems where the energies of humans and nature interact in harmony and co-operation?
“We just don’t base important things like medical treatment on them.”
Good for you. Just don’t try and limit my access to health care on the basis of your personal world view.
Regulators have a responsibility to protect people from fraudulent practices. Any restrictions on access to a given treatment would be on the grounds that it caused harm directly or caused harm by diverting people away from treatment that actually does work.
Referring to CV’s comment – ‘fraudulent practices’ includes fraudulent practices in evidence-based medicine, as well fraudulent practices in traditional health practices not attempting to have any basis in evidence, and straight-up quackery as well.
And CV – I think the average life expectancy now pushing 70+ instead of being in the 20s or 30s speaks to the power of evidence-based practices developing new treatments over many centuries, and in particular the approach to medicine in the last century. Evidential medicine finds out what works, and what doesn’t.
This does not preclude there being vast room in medicine for massive fraud and systematic failings. Additionally, the quality of societal wellbeing is based on far more things than just health care – you noted materialism and commercialism, well, look there for the causes of the malaise you are referring to.
Rationalism is just a term for an intelligent approach to problem solvent – and it can be used to consider solutions to the problems you are alluding to as well.
sorry mate, but I think you are talking from a place of ignorance there. Fair enough you believe what you believe, but that kind of attitude does prevent people from getting good healthcare.
a few points,
Even the mainstream medical system mocks the extreme to which the concept of evidence based medicine has been taken.
Parachute use to prevent death and major trauma related to gravitational challenge: systematic review of randomised controlled trials
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC300808/ (originally published in the British Medical Journal).
On a more serious note,
Evidence based medicine (EBM) should form the foundation of effective clinical decision making; however, growing unrest—and an awful lot of criticism—suggests the evidence bit of EBM is increasingly part of the problem, and not the solution.
Concerns with quality and rigour in research are leading to a lack of trust in the production, publication, and utilisation of evidence. Des Spence, writing in The BMJ, thinks the situation is so bad that, “Evidence based medicine is broken,” and when an official from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) also reports, “The clinical trial system is broken and it’s getting worse,” you have to acknowledge that there might be problems with the evidence base.
http://blogs.bmj.com/bmj/2014/12/04/carl-heneghan-evidence-based-medicine-on-trial/
EBM is not something that has to be solely determined by Randomised Controlled Trials, or the medical research elite. There are many ways of assessing efficacy, including empirically based methods that are evidence based but wouldn’t fit with your ideology. But get this, GPs use them all the time. Consider off label prescribing, or the GPs who understand that their patients are better off with kindness and support.
‘Quackery’ is when people intentionally and knowingly mislead people with regards to their health or treatment. The numbers of people that do this is actually quite small. But I suspect that what you really mean is the alternative pracitioners who practice health care that you disapprove of because mainstream science hasn’t figured out how to assess it yet. This is some of the important health care that people miss out on when they are dependent on people with attitudes such as yourself. Not only is this failing based on willful ignorance, but it’s illogical by science’s own methodologies and concepts.
For instance, practices like herbal medicine or acupuncuture have been in use successfully for thousands of years and yet there have been times fairly recently when both have been damned by the people who believe that EBM is the same as RCTs. THe very large irony there is that medical people who think EBM is the be all and end all are often incredibly ignorant about not only the efficacy of those methods but of the research that now supports them.
“Evidential medicine finds out what works, and what doesn’t.”
Read the above links. I think you will be surprised at the big flaws in that argument.
“or caused harm by diverting people away from treatment that actually does work.”
This is a red herring. The Ministry of Health surveys use of complemetary and alternative medicine in NZ (CAM), and finds that the percentage of people that use alternative practitioners as their main go to for health and medical treatment is very small. Further, that of the people that do use CAM, by far the marjority of them do so having already consulted a mainstream doctor. Alternative practitioners confirm this (ie most of their clients have already tried conventional medicine). It’s not a bad leap to surmise that people seek out CAM because conventional medicine has failed them. Or because conventional medicine has intolerable or unwarranted side effects. Many people use CAM alongside conventional medicine.
I think the average life expectancy now pushing 70+ instead of being in the 20s or 30s speaks to the power of evidence-based practices developing new treatments over many centuries, and in particular the approach to medicine in the last century.
Nope. The bigger part of increased longevity is due to increases in standard of living. Medicine does also keep people alive longer, but the advantages are not as clear cut as you make out because much of the late age deaths that are being postponed by medicine are also being created by modern living (eg heart disease, diabetes related illness and probably cancer).
(Btw, it’s a myth that pre-modern medicine most people only lived into their 20s and 30s. High infant mortality brought down the average life expectancy across populations, but many people lived a lot longer than 30.)
Where CAM comes into its own is bringing relief to people with chronic illness, largely because it is better suited to dealing with this than conventional medicine. It’s for this reason that I made the original comment to you. If you seek to deny people access to CAM on the basis that it hasn’t met some arbitrary standard that is already corrupted, then you are doing far more damage than any parts of CAM that are untested (and I do believe there are some dodgy things out there too).
Please do not consider me some unchanging monolith of ignorance. I am a scientist, and with that comes a responsibility to evaluate new ideas, test them, think about them critically, and try to solve problems. And yes, I am aware scientists have a propensity to ignore all of that – I get to come across plenty of atrocious science.
To paraphrase Minchin, “You know what we called alternative medicine that’s been proven to work? Medicine”.
Tonnes of research is done on complementary and alternative medicine. That which works gets picked up by medicine and incorporated into its practice, though indeed slower than it should in many instances, as you relate.
I am well aware of shortcomings in evidence-based medicine, and am well aware of using empyrical evidence also. That doesn’t mean we should throw out reason. Not at all, we should be using rational, reasoned approaches to examine the reasons for the failings in the current system and develop improved approaches.
“‘Quackery’ is when people intentionally and knowingly mislead people with regards to their health or treatment. The numbers of people that do this is actually quite small.”
Nonsense – just take a look at the supplement industry alone. It’s all “supports joint health” this and “assists with digestion” that, because they can’t make any actual claims, because they can’t actually prove anything that they are selling actually works. At best they’ll have some statement of irrelevant crap along the lines of “verisatol extracted from the skin of the avocado lowered taurine by 20% in laboratory studies”
“Nope. The bigger part of increased longevity is due to increases in standard of living. Medicine does also keep people alive longer, but the advantages are not as clear cut as you make out because much of the late age deaths that are being postponed by medicine are also being created by modern living (eg heart disease, diabetes related illness and probably cancer).
(Btw, it’s a myth that pre-modern medicine most people only lived into their 20s and 30s. High infant mortality brought down the average life expectancy across populations, but many people lived a lot longer than 30.)”
Guess what lowered that high infant mortality? Sanitation. Medicine. It required an understanding of concepts of transmissible illness coming from contaminated water and other sources, something that required testing of ideas to understand – i.e. science. Further science allowed us to develop antibiotics and vaccines – the other key factor in reducing untimely deaths from illnesses like cholera, typhoid, TB, syphilis, and eradicating smallpox entirely.
That is why we have to take a scientific approach to problems, and evaluate evidence to determine whether a medical treatment, alternative or otherwise, is effective or not, or if it does more harm than good. An approach of allowing treatment where there is no evidence of its benefits and its detriments, where you are taking things on blind faith that something will work or not, is to negligently abrogate responsibility for the wellbeing of people. That, to me, is not acceptable.
You may or may not want to read this . But the window of opportunity to cut emissions is probably even smaller than we think. And we are in for rapid sea level rise in the not too distant future.
The science is explained well in the link. Newly published work on the Ice sheets of Antarctica.
and its fiddles for everyone
Pretty much all over red rover.
Just watched most of The Daily Blog’s live stream with “Lisa Owen from TV3’s The Nation as she asks PR man Matthew Hooton, Metro Editor-at-large Simon Wilson, and AUT senior lecturer Ella Henry about the political year ahead.”
Rather fun and good food for thought I thought.
No idea if it is rebroadcast.
“No Name” was doing his usual rant in the House this afternoon – phew can he spew forth when he is cornered and bitchy – methinks he is feeling the heat right now and not coping. Why does he always come across like a spoilt bully who stamps his feet when he feels slighted. The man needs to get a grip and slow down. As I have said before the man is a tosser and not worthy of his position and I sense more people are starting to see the emperor has no clothes – a hollow man.
Marama Davidson
Describing the TPPA.
This crappy deal”
http://www.inthehouse.co.nz/video/41362
and a bit tipsy too?
I wondered that, too. Red-faced and slurring. Could be usual speech patterns and just back from a sunny holiday, though.
even more today, can hardly enunciate, he is so much of a rush to get to the punchline
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/296113/focus-on-gang-gun-violence-challenged
Dodgy stats underpin another subtle step towards a police state
From the blackboard outside the local and best hardware shop in the country* (always has a very pertinent and surprisingly non-establishment and pithy hand written comment on the issues of the day.) 🙂
“Prepare for a Tsunami of benefits flowing in from the TPPA
*Really it is!
You want a left handed floggle toggle – yep they have one out the back. You want that male or female?)
http://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/feb/09/panic-situation-as-asian-stocks-tumble-amid-fears-of-new-global-recession
“The Bank of Japan’s rates decision has prompted fears that after years of monetary easing, central banks have few avenues left to explore to encourage investment and boost growth.”
“We have bad news from Germany — industrial production at the eurozone’s powerhouse economy tumbled by 1.2% in December.
That’s much worse than expected; economists had pencilled in a 0.4% rise in factory output. It suggest the slowdown in emerging markets is now hitting Europe, threatening its fragile recovery since the eurozone crisis.
The fall was driven by a 2.6% slump in the manufacturing of investment goods, while energy production fell by 3% percent and consumer goods output fell 1.4%.
ING economist Carsten Brzeski isn’t prone to exaggeration, but even he is alarmed:”
The world’s financial elite have spent too long gaming the markets at the cost of the real economy and real consumers. Now their games of pretend and extend are coming to a close and the landing with reality is going to be hard.
i believe so….but they are tucking their gains safely away (even if they pay a little for the privilege)
“Yield is the interest rate on a bond. A high yield means a bond is riskier, while safe-haven assets yield less.
Short-term German and Japanese bonds have been negative for a while, reflecting the fact that they’re a solid place to put your money (especially as there are negative interest rates in Japan and the eurozone).
But for a 10-year bond to be negative? That shows investors are pricing in weak economic growth, and turmoil, for some time.”
It’s electronic numbers entered by keyboard in electronic accounts which exist only on electronic records.
When it all goes wrong and it all gets deleted that “wealth” is finally going to be shown as the illusion that it is right now.