How To Get There: New Years Day edition

Written By: - Date published: 10:17 am, January 1st, 2020 - 63 comments
Categories: Deep stuff - Tags: , ,

I’ve been thinking about the 2020s as the decade of deep, life affirming change. Tempting to think of it as the do or die decade, but am mindful of Micky’s post yesterday, The Power of Positive Campaigning. He looked at the importance of framing party politics and elections in terms of

positive simple branding and ideas being the cornerstone of any successful campaign. The basic theme is that to win progressives should not move to the middle but should instead seek to persuade through progressive and uplifting campaigns.

Referencing a series of podcasts on progressive wins by Anat Shenker-Osorio, Micky names these key points,

  • inclusive language
  • a good ground game
  • a positive uplifting campaign based on core shared values

Much of what Micky said seems relevant to action on the climate and ecological crises.

I don’t think this means relentless positivity in denial of reality, but that while we have the discussions about the hard stuff we also need to put substantial energy and focus into what makes people feel good, because this helps people change (and prevents turning off).

Human brains are hardwired to perceive threat and react, and there is plenty out there now that is scary as well as the intentional ramping up of our fight/flight response by MSM, social media, politicians, and pop culture. It takes intention to counter that and provide narratives and pathways that offer people a choice of deep, abiding, life affirming change instead of panic and regression into denial or fascism. Some of us like the argument and have a high tolerance for wrangling with the gnarly issues, but most people still respond better to things that bring them relief, peace, and uplift them.

I don’t know how we do this, but I suspect it’s about finding a sweet spot between awareness of the difficult and proactively framing values and deeds that make people feel good.

At the moment it looks like 20/80 would be the good ratio, but then I’m sitting in southern New Zealand in an eerie yellow gloom from the Australian bushfires that’s starting to hurt my sinuses, and trying to work my way out of the apocalyptic imagery that is scrolling through my twitter feed. For people that are still not paying attention, maybe the ratio is more like 50/50.

So here’s to a year where we choose to make the changes we need by effective strategy. We can argue but we can also be kind. We can point out what is wrong and disappointing, and we can move on to highlight what will work instead. Some of us will protest and agitate, and others will tend the garden and make sure we are all well fed. Kia kaha, kia aroha Aotearoa.

In line with our regular Sunday How to Get There posts,

This post is a place for positive discussion of the future.

An Open Mike for ideas, solutions and the discussion of the possible.

The Big Picture, rather than a snapshot of the day’s goings on. Topics rather than topical.

We’d like to think it’s success will be measured in the quality of comments rather than the quantity.

63 comments on “How To Get There: New Years Day edition ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. Sacha 1
    1 January 2020 at 10:31 am

    Love conquers fear.

    The challenge is how we translate that into action.

  2. Billy 2
    1 January 2020 at 10:33 am

    Anat Shenker-Osorio’s advice is best not taken too seriously, in my opinion, but she could prove useful if you need to clean a big chimney.

  4. Anne 4
    1 January 2020 at 11:40 am

    It is to be hoped the out-flow of dust particles from the devastating Aussi fires will finally bring all NZers to their senses about the seriousness of Climate Change. Nothing like a bit of first hand experience to make people sit up and take notice.

    Yesterday afternoon Auckland was blanketed in a thick haze. Driving past the tall trees lining the Takapuna Grammar School perimeter, I could see the dust/smoke laden haze wafting over the tops of the trees . There was a faint smell of smoke which irritated my throat the rest of the night. It doesn't seem so bad this morning – fingers crossed.

    If 2020 marks the start of an all out effort to combat CC… where the dwindling number of deniers are ignored by the media and everybody – farmers, industry, urban dwellers, manufacturers, government officials – pulls their weight, then we will start making headway. As Jacinda Ardern says "we can do it".

    • Anne 4.1
      1 January 2020 at 11:52 am

      Talking of Jacinda Ardern… I'm sure I read somewhere she, Clarke and little Neve were planning a holiday at a seaside location south of Sydney. If they are already there I hope they are safe.

    • weka 4.2
      1 January 2020 at 11:55 am

      It's bad enough in the South Island today to be irritating. I've seen glowing skies before from Aussie bushfires, but not smelt it like this or been negatively affected. It's like there is a farm burn off nearby. Much more visceral and real, I'm also hoping this will bring it home to more people who will then want action. So fortunate to have Ardern a PM, and Greens in government at this time.

      • Heather Grimwood 4.2.1
        1 January 2020 at 12:03 pm

        To Weka at 4.2 : Hear hear ! Hear hear!!!

      • Formerly Ross 4.2.2
        1 January 2020 at 12:18 pm

        Australia accounts for 1.3% of the world's emissions, so I doubt we'll see anything startling in terms of new policies coming out of Australia. In addition, the Environment Minister there says that Australia has been performing relatively well regarding reducing emissions.

        Australian Environment Minister Angus Taylor also noted in The Australian on Tuesday that Australia is outperforming its peers on climate. “Since 2005, Australia’s emissions have fallen 12.9 per cent, even while building the biggest liquefied natural gas industry in the world,” he wrote. “Canada’s emissions have fallen just 2 per cent and New Zealand’s have risen 4 per cent.”

        https://www.vox.com/2019/12/30/21039298/40-celsius-australia-fires-2019-heatwave-climate-change

        • weka 4.2.2.1
          1 January 2020 at 12:28 pm

          that's jiggery pokery with the performance stats. Read what Australian climate scientists, activists and firefighters are saying instead.

          Re % by country, if each smaller emitter didn't do their bit that's a large chunk of GHGs globally not being reduced. Same applies to NZ. You can see this in this chart,

          https://www.visualcapitalist.com/all-the-worlds-carbon-emissions-in-one-chart/

          Which is why climate action requires us all to do our bit.

          All countries need social change before they do the right thing, including NZ and Oz. Oz has specific challenges because of the heavy GHG industry that the economy is dependent on at the moment and how political parties and other bodies (eg unions) are tied into that. But eventually that will have to change, like other places it's a matter of whether they get ahead of the crisis or wait until the crisis forces them.

          The opportunity here is that the current bushfire crisis will push a larger number of the population to demand change and more people will then support movements like SS4C, and then the politicians will follow. This is how change happens.

          • Sacha 4.2.2.1.1
            1 January 2020 at 12:36 pm

            And the young people are clear about what needs to happen.

            https://twitter.com/StrikeClimate/status/1211957822717456384

            • weka 4.2.2.1.1.1
              1 January 2020 at 12:48 pm

              Also Scott Morrison, on the day that families were being evacuated off beaches because they were trapped there by bushfires while their town burned,

              “there’s no better place to raise kids anywhere on the planet”.

              Are they polling to get those lines? Because it's almost unbelievable that they have support from the general Australian public on this, but then I guess that's who voted them in.

              SS4C are one of our great hopes. I hope they sweep the likes of Morrison away.

      • Robert Guyton 4.2.3
        1 January 2020 at 2:44 pm

        Everyone I've met here in Southland today is talking about the Australian fires. Tales of what they did last night have been set aside for the more immediate issue.

      • mary_a 4.2.4
        1 January 2020 at 4:00 pm

        Absolutely agree with your sentiments Weka (4.2)

        Woke up this morning in Cromwell to a yellow smokey haze hovering over the town, which is still hanging around getting denser, bringing a smell of smoke with it now. Quite eerie atmospheric conditions, a scary contrast to Cromwell's usual clean, clear, crisp atmosphere.

        A bit wake up call coming I hope re CC, here, in Australia and the rest of the world.

        My sincere heartfelt thoughts are with those affected in Australia by the bush fires. It seems absolute hell over there a the present time. Kia Kaha.

    • Heather Grimwood 4.3
      1 January 2020 at 12:01 pm

      To Anne at 4 : Re realisation of CC…….Been thinking since early morning the same thing Anne….the smoke pervading NZ or at least my home in Dunedin could not go unnoticed. I have experienced milder evidence of Australian fires when a child but nothing like this.

      Guess NZ has been insulated from what has been evident in Amazon, areas between Australia and Asia, Spain etc where fires even if begun by human foolishness or greed, have been accentuated by the increased ambient temperatures due to CC,

    • Sacha 4.4
      1 January 2020 at 12:20 pm

      It is to be hoped the out-flow of dust particles from the devastating Aussi fires will finally bring all NZers to their senses about the seriousness of Climate Change. Nothing like a bit of first hand experience to make people sit up and take notice.

      Storms and flooding have done that already for many New Zealanders. More our future than fires are (though not as pictorially impressive).

      • weka 4.4.1
        1 January 2020 at 12:39 pm

        I suspect that is more true for the North Island. In the South Island fire is going to be an increasing risk. All those pines, gums, kānuka/mānuka, tussock, including where people are living, in a country that has a poor awareness of fire hazard (unlike Australia).

        Also DOC estate. Farmers who are also volunteer firefighters are talking about the problems with transitioning farmland to conservation estate and that land now being much more flammable because vegetation isn't controlled. That added to drought is a potent mix.

        I think fire is the big one we're not paying heed to. We can rebuild houses relatively quickly if we have to. It takes at least 30 years to replace a forest. There's a cycle of land cleared by fire becoming more fire prone in low rainfall areas, reducing soil moisture and fertility, shade and food/other resources for humans, stock and wildlife.

        We have time to address that, but we're not there yet in terms of building that thinking into our planning (eg we're still planting pines to grow money). Thankfully the regenerative people have been practicing and adapting, so we will have some real life examples to build on when the time comes.

        • Robert Guyton 4.4.1.1
          1 January 2020 at 2:49 pm

          Agreed, weka. If we are to replant, we have to replant wisely and strategically. No point in planting fuel for forest fires. WTB has posted repeatedly on using fire-resistant native and exotic trees as natural firebreaks; someone, someone, should, should, make the forestry people aware of this thinking. Someone should be promoting the propagation of these fire-proof trees en masse for the purpose of countering the events we smell unfolding in Australia.

          • weka 4.4.1.1.1
            1 January 2020 at 3:04 pm

            this is my frustration at the moment. People are getting on board with the need to act, but how to act is still constrained by civ/industrial thinking.

            • Robert Guyton 4.4.1.1.1.1
              1 January 2020 at 3:10 pm

              If the thinking corrupts the action; suppresses it or causes it to be mistaken, the greatest need is for the thinking to change. Culture, it's popularly thought, changes at a glacial pace, but when the glaciers are changing at pace, that thinking may be redundant. Imagine if a cultural shift was underway already; our collective heads would swim at the pace of change.

            • adam 4.4.1.1.1.2
              1 January 2020 at 3:19 pm

              Act, by not acting.

        • Pingao 4.4.1.2
          3 January 2020 at 11:40 am

          I was thinking about all the Eucalyptus and pine trees planted in rural areas near power lines (mainly because I know someone who keeps planting gum trees under power lines in a dry valley and want to persuade him to stop) and what might be good to plant under or near power lines in regenerating bush areas and came across this link from Orion.

          https://www.oriongroup.co.nz/safety/time-to-trim-your-trees/trees-to-plant/

  5. Bill 5
    1 January 2020 at 12:12 pm

    Well… I can't rip through the cheap cellophane sky that has me burning main room lights in the early afternoon on a mid-summer day.

    And I can't stop the seas turning ever more acidic or any of the multitude etcs that I won't bother listing.

    We've arrived. Actually, we've been here for quite some time and just haven't recognised it. So how about we recast "how do we get there" as "how do we get away from here"?

    Step one would be to acknowledge all of the things that got us here in the first place so that we can reject them wholesale.

    And on that front, this story offers up possibilities for those who are into a bit of lateral thinking. Jordi Casamitjana is looking to establish his vegan world view as a philosophical belief so he can claim the same protections as afforded religious belief. The Guardian does some giggly piss ripping – which is to be expected. The salient point though, is that a few years back a UK court found a worker's take on global warming was a religious belief – meaning the worker was able to use the Human Rights Act to combat discrimination in the workplace (he had been fired for refusing to fly on work business and the original decision may have been appealed – I don't know).

    But you get the point, yes?

    If cases like these stand, then any employer or government etc, asking anyone to partake in any activity that contributes to global warming can be resisted, denied and kicked into touch.

    And that is the moving away from here to there we need to be getting on with. 😉

    • RedLogix 5.1
      1 January 2020 at 12:59 pm

      This morning my partner has been talking with a friend of ours who was on the beach at Mallacoota yesterday afternoon. But for a miraculous wind change at the last few minutes, we could have seen a mass casualty event. There were 4000 people there, not all would have survived if the firestorm had gone over them. It was fucking intense.

      This drama is playing out in many Australian locations this summer and it is changing the underlying way people are thinking. Humans have a lot of conceptual difficulty evaluating long term risk. It's never simple and easy to get wrong. For instance we now know that grinding concrete is a serious health risk; but it took decades of painstaking data and multi-factorial analysis to prove this.

      In terms of bushfire there is no direct link between any one fire and climate change; just as someone with silicosis cannot point to any single kitchen bench and say 'that one killed me'. Bushfires are even more complex, with multiple factors involved, yet this season will be the turning point; at some point their government is going to have to face an explicit political trade off … do we protect a relatively small number of jobs in the coal industry (even if they are politically valuable), or do we let the country burn to the ground? A few years ago they could safely pretend there was no link, today much less so.

      Take a look at today's ABC News front page … at least six major articles on the topic. Things are moving, and humans are adapting. We are remarkably good at that when we have to.

      • Robert Guyton 5.1.1
        1 January 2020 at 2:39 pm

        "it is changing the underlying way people are thinking"

        Yes to that. Those of us already sufficiently startled by events haven't dared hope the rest of humanity might be similarly startled in the short-term, but I think we are seeing that happen right now. This could change everything.

      • Robert Guyton 5.1.2
        1 January 2020 at 2:51 pm

        It's coming to a head this summer…

        • Bill 5.1.2.1
          1 January 2020 at 3:26 pm

          Hmm. Can't deny a growing sense of foreboding. Australian bushfires that would cover…well, there's a graphic through the link laying the area over the N. Island.

          High summer temperatures right now in the middle of winter in the land where I come from.

          A 'thousand and one' little stories with "never seen before" claims within them (though almost always accompanied with some bullshit about 1912 or 1875 as though "still normal")

          • Bill 5.1.2.2.1
            1 January 2020 at 4:31 pm

            ?

            I'm referring to all those stories about rain and heat never experienced before that come with caveats from the metrological record that shows greater flooding occured once in the village of "Wheresit" just over the hill from where the current flooding is.

            Or, and certainly in relation to the UK, forever trying to pull the summer of '76 out the bag when talking about heat and comparing a 1 in 350 year event from 40 odd years ago to whatever current heatwave so as to suggest we are somehow still in the realm of 'normal'.

          • Janet 5.1.2.2.2
            4 January 2020 at 12:41 pm

            “This is catastrophic climate change right now. It's not a problem for future generations, it's our problem and we must change our way of living.”

            Yes exactly, and how many changes has each household made to how they “live” daily in NZ in the last year.. about zero. Have they stopped buying and buying – are they thinking about quality and longevity of what they do buy – Have they even started thinking need as opposed to th’need?

            Has there been government funded advertising to stop people in their tracks and take a look at the extravagant ways they are living?

            What has the government done to turn the population to less wasteful ways? Yes, no plastic bags in supermarket but I notice in Auckland The Herald comes wrapped in a plastic bag every day now, no matter what the weather !

            Has the government regulated to stop short life, poor quality products beinging imported into NZ yet? No they prefer “free trade “ They prefer anti climate change globalised product sourcing and trading rather than building up our self-sufficiency as a nation again.

            Have you like me, got a drawerful of electronic equipment because nothing fits each other, USBs, chargers etc. Has the government done anything to rationalise and standardise things like this.Even my car can recharge at only one of 5 different charging stations due to incompatibility.

            They keep importing more and more people into NZ to create unwanted growth – They keep on with the biggering and biggering of the New Zealand population to keep biggering and biggering NZ to some distant undefined point of collapse !

            Go read Th

      • Anne 5.1.3
        1 January 2020 at 6:36 pm

        I'm looking forward with considerable hope to the Australian nation-wide debate that must surely follow this unprecedented event – in terms of numeracy and ferocity. Can people power turn a government round and force them to face reality? We'll have to wait and see.

    • pat 5.2
      1 January 2020 at 3:16 pm

      sinking lid on oil imports

  6. Puckish Rogue 6
    1 January 2020 at 3:09 pm

    Petition the government to make a law that states that any product in NZ that can be made with recycled products must be made with at least 75% recycled materials and if 75% is too low then increase within reason

    Theres my contribution

  7. Stuart Munro 7
    1 January 2020 at 3:33 pm

    I'd suggest building resilience locally. Typical cities have 3-5 days food reserves. See if you can garden an extra day into that. Swap some seed or cuttings or preserves across the fence. Change a small lawn up to a vigorous garden like edible canna lilies in case things go south. Get some hemp in after the referendum – humans ate it and wore it long before we smoked it. Think about saving a bit of stormwater & making some kind of windbreak.

    • Robert Guyton 7.1
      1 January 2020 at 3:38 pm

      Whadda ya mean, "go south" smiley

      Yes to all your other ideas. Local is it, local it is.

      • Stuart Munro 7.1.1
        1 January 2020 at 4:23 pm

        Well, if I recall, much south of you things get a bit salty – and not too warm. Much as I miss the cod livers and other perks, it's not an ecosystem that needs too much intervention – 'cept maybe where deoxygenated poo-laden runoff is eutrophying estuaries.

        Reckon you've been doing the horizontal robustness thing for a while – still a good trick though. The self-styled top end have been kind of dragging their feet.

        If you're up for a challenge, this might be worth a crack. A number of folk local to this site would probably love to help.

        • Robert Guyton 7.1.1.1
          1 January 2020 at 5:57 pm

          "not too warm" will be a great selling point soon, Stuart smiley

          Funny you should mention the royals…their new-found conscience and consciousness will move conservative southerners/NZ-landers, subtly, toward change of the sort we need. Citing those folk, Andrew et all, is potentially a powerful catalyst for change where such opinions are regarded highly, and I plan to do just that smiley

          • Stuart Munro 7.1.1.1.1
            1 January 2020 at 6:52 pm

            Good for you – if you need someone to shovel compost, I'm up for it.

            • Robert Guyton 7.1.1.1.1.1
              1 January 2020 at 6:59 pm

              Shovel? We don't "shovel" we … ease…

              You're welcome to ease alongside of us…

  8. Robert Guyton 8
    1 January 2020 at 3:58 pm

    "Meet Amina from Lombok, Indonesia 🇮🇩

    “I’m half Indonesian, half Swiss. After studying entrepreneurship in France, I decided to buy a one-way ticket to Lombok, Indonesia to help my parents with their homestay and organic farm project. I have been here for two years now and started being involved in gardening for about a year.

    In the summer of 2018, we had a series of deadly earthquakes in Lombok. For over a month, we had no electricity, fuel was only allowed for ambulances and military, so of course no more goods were circulating within the North of the island. All the shops and the markets were closed so most of the people relied on donations and help from NGOs or private donors. It was exactly at that moment that I realized how important it is to be able to eat from your garden.

    Having zero knowledge and skills about gardening, I started to study permaculture concepts on my own and tried to figure out how we could grow food in such an extremely dry environment. I read books, visited farms, watched documentaries, talked with other gardeners and experimented a lot of different techniques in our garden (and failed numerous times!).

    I grow food to show that everything is possible! It may not always be easy, especially where we live, but it’s possible as long as you take good care of your soil. Being in a very secluded area of the island, we also do not have access to healthy organic vegetables, so growing food in our own garden makes a lot of sense. For me the biggest reward from gardening is to be able to share the results of my hard work at the family table. Every produce is a victory and nothing tastes better than the food coming from your garden!

    We are located in Loloan Village; in the North of Lombok, Indonesia. We have 1 hectare land. For now our growing space is 230 square meter but we plan to expand slowly to half of the land. When we bought this land, it was an abandoned cashew tree orchard. So we still have cashew trees and we planted various fruit trees in different spaces of our land and in our food forest.

    We plant our vegetables in raised beds. We dig our beds approximately 1 meter deep and add layers using organic matter. We start the bottom layer with big logs that we can find in the forest. The best is to use very old logs which will act like sponges, then we add smaller wood, leaves, green layers (such as kitchen scraps, grass cuttings…). On top of it we put our soil and add some compost. This type of bed should last 5 to 10 years depending on the decomposition speed. Also we never leave our soil naked, which helps in creating a living soil and keeps the soil fresh and humid.

    Being in an arid area, all the excess water is very precious to us. That is why we made different banana circles to recycle grey water from our kitchen and bathrooms. It is a very efficient and easy way to create biomass, to make compost and on top of that you grow more food! We also started a food forest on the back of our land. With this project we hope to build soil, regenerate the landscape and attract more insects, pollinators and birds.

    It’s hard to believe that 30 years ago, where we are now used to be an abundant forest with wild deer and horses and the rivers were flowing all year long. All the trees were cut down for commercial purposes and today all the rivers have dried out and almost no native trees left.

    At our farm, we tried to dig two wells and went 50 meters deep and we still could not find any water. The soil is very poor in nutrients, which is the reason why villagers only plant during rainy season, using a lot of pesticides and monoculture.

    A lot of people come over and ask : why do you grow food here? You don’t have access to water, the soil is very poor, the weather is extremely hot and dry…At Saifana, despite being a farm, our goal isn’t productivity. We don’t aim to sell fresh vegetables in the market. Our purpose here is to be a space of experimentation and exchange, a place where we actually show and demonstrate how it’s possible to grow food with the climate challenges we face today. It’s all about regenerating the soil and using permaculture and agroecology methods which are adapted to your.."

    Read more here:

    https://www.facebook.com/humanswhogrowfood/posts/1039907796355756?__tn__=K-R

  9. Robert Guyton 9
    1 January 2020 at 4:01 pm

    "

    Meet John Moody from Irvington, Kentucky, United States 🇺🇸

    “Had you met me in my teens, you would have said, “He is never, ever going to be a homesteader or farmer.” I had four food groups—sugary breakfast cereals, cookies, eggs (with sugar), and candy. I was a pasty- skinned, video-game-playing, cartoon-watching child of the ’80s. I spent some time outdoors, generally only when my parents made me.

    Had you met me in college, you would have said, “He is never, ever going to be a homesteader or farmer.” I had eight food groups. I still played a lot of video games and watched a fair amount of TV, though I had become very active in sports as well.

    Had you met me in my early twenties, you would still have said, “He is never, ever going to be a homesteader or farmer.” That is, until I developed duodenal ulcers. Pain 24/7, like a small band of traveling dwarves, was mining my insides while holding a Metallica meth-fueled rave. Doctors could only offer me a lifetime of drugs. Instead, my then fiancée and now wife and I went with a radical change to our approach to food. We went from Kroger and Sam’s Club to Wild Oats and Whole Paycheck. We graduated to the farmer’s market, a CSA, and raw milk, and then to starting a food-buying club, the Whole Life Buying Club in Louisville, Kentucky that serves over a hundred families and helps dozens of farmers and artisans connect via local, real foods and products."

    https://www.facebook.com/humanswhogrowfood/posts/1038540719825797?__tn__=K-R

  10. WeTheBleeple 10
    2 January 2020 at 8:53 am

    If you add peaches to rhubarb and stew them with sugar to taste – when you first explore this combo in your mouth the complexity and sumptiousness will for one moment transport you away from the nightmare unfolding in front of us.

    Each drought further depletes the aquifers it's only a matter of time before NZ is parched too. Rainfall is the most precious of resources, and we direct it straight back out to sea. That has to change.

    • Sacha 10.1
      2 January 2020 at 9:03 am

      we direct it straight back out to sea

      Um, doesn't our landscape do that? Not aware of any infrastructure projects piping water from mountains to beaches.

      • Sabine 10.1.1
        2 January 2020 at 10:04 am

        well, every bit of road, drive way, concreted patch etc will cause runoff that goes straight into the strom drains rather.

        But then i guess that is not what some would call ' infrastructure'. 🙂 right?

        • Sacha 10.1.1.1
          2 January 2020 at 10:14 am

          Good point.

          • WeTheBleeple 10.1.1.1.1
            2 January 2020 at 10:29 am

            We drain entire regions and keep the drain networks in place to further exacerbate the problem. Cities and towns are largely impervious surfaces. Farms drain farms, towns drain towns, then drought hits and we fight over water use.

          • weka 10.1.1.1.2
            2 January 2020 at 12:17 pm

            deforestation causes drainage, as does other rural land management eg straightening streams or building canals to divert water for hydro or irrigation. These things prevent normal rainfall from being stored in the land (which is what happens in intact ecosystems, native or non-native).

            Mining water from the aquifers in the way we do is incredibly stupid.

  11. Robert Guyton 11
    2 January 2020 at 8:04 pm

    Attract rain, give it cause to fall, meet it as it falls, with vegetation arrayed as forest, buffer its arrival on the ground with a naturally-formed mattress of leaves and twigs, stitched together with fungal threads, facilitate it's gradual descent below the surface with a network of holes, tunnels and perforations made by tiny living creatures and the spent roots of short-lived plants, secure it with simple carbon molecules reduced from organic materials by bacteria and fungi, creating a subsoil "lake" that's protected from evaporation by the material around and above it and above all, don't poison the well; don't spray pesticide, herbicide, molluscicide, fungicide; biocides of any sort and don't rip it up either; stop digging (we're in a hole, doncha know!).

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    1 day ago
  • Gordon Campbell on the Royal Commission report into abuse in care

    Earlier this week at Parliament, Labour leader Chris Hipkins was applauded for saying that the response to the final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care had to be “bigger than politics.” True, but the fine words, apologies and “we hear you” messages will soon ring ...
    WerewolfBy lyndon
    1 day ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Friday, July 26

    TL;DR: In news breaking this morning:The Ministry of Education is cutting $2 billion from its school building programme so the National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government has enough money to deliver tax cuts; The Government has quietly lowered its child poverty reduction targets to make them easier to achieve;Te Whatu Ora-Health NZ’s ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • Weekly Roundup 26-July-2024

    Kia ora. These are some stories that caught our eye this week – as always, feel free to share yours in the comments. Our header image this week (via Eke Panuku) shows the planned upgrade for the Karanga Plaza Tidal Swimming Steps. The week in Greater Auckland On ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    1 day ago
  • God what a relief

    1. What's not to love about the way the Harris campaign is turning things around?a. Nothingb. Love all of itc. God what a reliefd. Not that it will be by any means easye. All of the above 2. Documents released by the Ministry of Health show Associate Health Minister Casey ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 day ago
  • Trust In Me

    Trust in me in all you doHave the faith I have in youLove will see us through, if only you trust in meWhy don't you, you trust me?In a week that saw the release of the 3,000 page Abuse in Care report Christopher Luxon was being asked about Boot Camps. ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 day ago
  • The Hoon around the week to July 26

    TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking about the Royal Commission Inquiry into Abuse in Care report released this week, and with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on a UN push to not recognise carbon offset markets and ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Friday, July 26

    TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 26, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Transport: Simeon Brown announced $802.9 million in funding for 18 new trains on the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines, which ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • Radical law changes needed to build road

    The northern expressway extension from Warkworth to Whangarei is likely to require radical changes to legislation if it is going to be built within the foreseeable future. The Government’s powers to purchase land, the planning process and current restrictions on road tolling are all going to need to be changed ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    1 day ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #30 2024

    Open access notables Could an extremely cold central European winter such as 1963 happen again despite climate change?, Sippel et al., Weather and Climate Dynamics: Here, we first show based on multiple attribution methods that a winter of similar circulation conditions to 1963 would still lead to an extreme seasonal ...
    Skeptical Science
    2 days ago
  • First they came for the Māori

    Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedFirst they came for the doctors But I was confused by the numbers and costs So I didn't speak up Then they came for our police and nurses And I didn't think we could afford those costs anyway So I ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    2 days ago
  • Join us for the weekly Hoon on YouTube Live

    Photo by Joshua J. Cotten on UnsplashWe’re back again after our mid-winter break. We’re still with the ‘new’ day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when we have our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Will the real PM Luxon please stand up?

    Notes: This is a free article. Abuse in Care themes are mentioned. Video is at the bottom.BackgroundYesterday’s report into Abuse in Care revealed that at least 1 in 3 of all who went through state and faith based care were abused - often horrifically. At least, because not all survivors ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    2 days ago
  • Will debt reduction trump abuse in care redress?

    Luxon speaks in Parliament yesterday about the Abuse in Care report. Photo: Hagen Hopkins/Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:PM Christopher Luxon said yesterday in tabling the Abuse in Care report in Parliament he wanted to ‘do the ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Olywhites and Time Bandits

    About a decade ago I worked with a bloke called Steve. He was the grizzled veteran coder, a few years older than me, who knew where the bodies were buried - code wise. Despite his best efforts to be approachable and friendly he could be kind of gruff, through to ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago
  • Why were the 1930s so hot in North America?

    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Jeff Masters and Bob Henson Those who’ve trawled social media during heat waves have likely encountered a tidbit frequently used to brush aside human-caused climate change: Many U.S. states and cities had their single hottest temperature on record during the 1930s, setting incredible heat marks ...
    Skeptical Science
    2 days ago
  • Throwback Thursday – Thinking about Expressways

    Some of the recent announcements from the government have reminded us of posts we’ve written in the past. Here’s one from early 2020. There were plenty of reactions to the government’s infrastructure announcement a few weeks ago which saw them fund a bunch of big roading projects. One of ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    2 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Thursday, July 25

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Thursday, July 25 are:News: Why Electric Kiwi is closing to new customers - and why it matters RNZ’s Susan EdmundsScoop: Government drops ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • The Possum: Demon or Friend?

    Hi,I felt a small wet tongue snaking through one of the holes in my Crocs. It explored my big toe, darting down one side, then the other. “He’s looking for some toe cheese,” said the woman next to me, words that still haunt me to this day.Growing up in New ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    2 days ago
  • Not a story

    Yesterday I happily quoted the Prime Minister without fact-checking him and sure enough, it turns out his numbers were all to hell. It’s not four kg of Royal Commission report, it’s fourteen.My friend and one-time colleague-in-comms Hazel Phillips gently alerted me to my error almost as soon as I’d hit ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Thursday, July 25

    TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Thursday, July 25, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day were:The Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry published its final report yesterday.PM Christopher Luxon and The Minister responsible for ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • A tougher line on “proactive release”?

    The Official Information Act has always been a battle between requesters seeking information, and governments seeking to control it. Information is power, so Ministers and government agencies want to manage what is released and when, for their own convenience, and legality and democracy be damned. Their most recent tactic for ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago
  • 'Let's build a motorway costing $100 million per km, before emissions costs'

    TL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:Transport and Energy Minister Simeon Brown is accelerating plans to spend at least $10 billion through Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) to extend State Highway One as a four-lane ‘Expressway’ from Warkworth to Whangarei ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • Lester's Prescription – Positive Bleeding.

    I live my life (woo-ooh-ooh)With no control in my destinyYea-yeah, yea-yeah (woo-ooh-ooh)I can bleed when I want to bleedSo come on, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)You can bleed when you want to bleedYea-yeah, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)Everybody bleed when they want to bleedCome on and bleedGovernments face tough challenges. Selling unpopular decisions to ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago
  • Casey Costello gaslights Labour in the House

    Please note:To skip directly to the- parliamentary footage in the video, scroll to 1:21 To skip to audio please click on the headphone icon on the left hand side of the screenThis video / audio section is under development. ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    3 days ago
  • Why is the Texas grid in such bad shape?

    This is a re-post from the Climate Brink by Andrew Dessler Headline from 2021 The Texas grid, run by ERCOT, has had a rough few years. In 2021, winter storm Uri blacked out much of the state for several days. About a week ago, Hurricane Beryl knocked out ...
    Skeptical Science
    3 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on a textbook case of spending waste by the Luxon government

    Given the crackdown on wasteful government spending, it behooves me to point to a high profile example of spending by the Luxon government that looks like a big, fat waste of time and money. I’m talking about the deployment of NZDF personnel to support the US-led coalition in the Red ...
    WerewolfBy lyndon
    3 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Wednesday, July 24

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:40 am on Wednesday, July 24 are:Deep Dive: Chipping away at the housing crisis, including my comments RNZ/Newsroom’s The DetailNews: Government softens on asset sales, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • LXR Takaanini

    As I reported about the city centre, Auckland’s rail network is also going through a difficult and disruptive period which is rapidly approaching a culmination, this will result in a significant upgrade to the whole network. Hallelujah. Also like the city centre this is an upgrade predicated on the City ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    3 days ago
  • Four kilograms of pain

    Today, a 4 kilogram report will be delivered to Parliament. We know this is what the report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care weighs, because our Prime Minister told us so.Some reporter had blindsided him by asking a question about something done by ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Wednesday, July 24

    TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Wednesday, July 24, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Beehive: Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced plans to use PPPs to fund, build and run a four-lane expressway between Auckland ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • Luxon gets caught out

    NewstalkZB host Mike Hosking, who can usually be relied on to give Prime Minister Christopher Luxon an easy run, did not do so yesterday when he interviewed him about the HealthNZ deficit. Luxon is trying to use a deficit reported last year by HealthNZ as yet another example of the ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    3 days ago
  • A worrying sign

    Back in January a StatsNZ employee gave a speech at Rātana on behalf of tangata whenua in which he insulted and criticised the government. The speech clearly violated the principle of a neutral public service, and StatsNZ started an investigation. Part of that was getting an external consultant to examine ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Are we fine with 47.9% home-ownership by 2048?

    Renting for life: Shared ownership initiatives are unlikely to slow the slide in home ownership by much. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:A Deloitte report for Westpac has projected Aotearoa’s home-ownership rate will ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Let's Win This

    You're broken down and tiredOf living life on a merry go roundAnd you can't find the fighterBut I see it in you so we gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsWe gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsAnd I'll rise upI'll rise like the dayI'll rise upI'll rise unafraidI'll rise upAnd I'll ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago
  • Waimahara: The Singing Spirit of Water

    There’s been a change in Myers Park. Down the steps from St. Kevin’s Arcade, past the grassy slopes, the children’s playground, the benches and that goat statue, there has been a transformation. The underpass for Mayoral Drive has gone from a barren, grey, concrete tunnel, to a place that thrums ...
    Greater AucklandBy Connor Sharp
    4 days ago
  • A major milestone: Global climate pollution may have just peaked

    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections Global society may have finally slammed on the brakes for climate-warming pollution released by human fossil fuel combustion. According to the Carbon Monitor Project, the total global climate pollution released between February and May 2024 declined slightly from the amount released during the same ...
    Skeptical Science
    4 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Tuesday, July 23

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Tuesday, July 23 are:Deep Dive: Penlink: where tolling rhetoric meets reality BusinessDesk-$$$’s Oliver LewisScoop: Te Pūkenga plans for regional polytechs leak out ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Tuesday, July 23

    TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Tuesday, July 23, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Health: Shane Reti announced the Board of Te Whatu Ora- Health New Zealand was being replaced with Commissioner Lester Levy ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • HealthNZ and Luxon at cross purposes over budget blowout

    Health NZ warned the Government at the end of March that it was running over Budget. But the reasons it gave were very different to those offered by the Prime Minister yesterday. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon blamed the “botched merger” of the 20 District Health Boards (DHBs) to create Health ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    4 days ago
  • 2500-3000 more healthcare staff expected to be fired, as Shane Reti blames Labour for a budget defic...

    Long ReadKey Summary: Although National increased the health budget by $1.4 billion in May, they used an old funding model to project health system costs, and never bothered to update their pre-election numbers. They were told during the Health Select Committees earlier in the year their budget amount was deficient, ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    4 days ago
  • Might Kamala Harris be about to get a 'stardust' moment like Jacinda Ardern?

    As a momentous, historic weekend in US politics unfolded, analysts and commentators grasped for precedents and comparisons to help explain the significance and power of the choice Joe Biden had made. The 46th president had swept the Democratic party’s primaries but just over 100 days from the election had chosen ...
    PunditBy Tim Watkin
    5 days ago
  • Solutions Interview: Steven Hail on MMT & ecological economics

    TL;DR: I’m casting around for new ideas and ways of thinking about Aotearoa’s political economy to find a few solutions to our cascading and self-reinforcing housing, poverty and climate crises.Associate Professor runs an online masters degree in the economics of sustainability at Torrens University in Australia and is organising ...
    The KakaBy Steven Hail
    5 days ago
  • Reported back

    The Finance and Expenditure Committee has reported back on National's Local Government (Water Services Preliminary Arrangements) Bill. The bill sets up water for privatisation, and was introduced under urgency, then rammed through select committee with no time even for local councils to make a proper submission. Naturally, national's select committee ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Vandrad the Viking, Christopher Coombes, and Literary Archaeology

    Some years ago, I bought a book at Dunedin’s Regent Booksale for $1.50. As one does. Vandrad the Viking (1898), by J. Storer Clouston, is an obscure book these days – I cannot find a proper online review – but soon it was sitting on my shelf, gathering dust alongside ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell On The Biden Withdrawal

    History is not on the side of the centre-left, when Democratic presidents fall behind in the polls and choose not to run for re-election. On both previous occasions in the past 75 years (Harry Truman in 1952, Lyndon Johnson in 1968) the Democrats proceeded to then lose the White House ...
    WerewolfBy lyndon
    5 days ago
  • Joe Biden's withdrawal puts the spotlight back on Kamala and the USA's complicated relatio...

    This is a free articleCoverageThis morning, US President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the Presidential race. And that is genuinely newsworthy. Thanks for your service, President Biden, and all the best to you and yours.However, the media in New Zealand, particularly the 1News nightly bulletin, has been breathlessly covering ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    5 days ago
  • Why we have to challenge our national fiscal assumptions

    A homeless person’s camp beside a blocked-off slipped damage walkway in Freeman’s Bay: we are chasing our tail on our worsening and inter-related housing, poverty and climate crises. Photo: Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Existential Crisis and Damaged Brains

    What has happened to it all?Crazy, some'd sayWhere is the life that I recognise?(Gone away)But I won't cry for yesterdayThere's an ordinary worldSomehow I have to findAnd as I try to make my wayTo the ordinary worldYesterday morning began as many others - what to write about today? I began ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • A speed limit is not a target, and yet…

    This is a guest post from longtime supporter Mr Plod, whose previous contributions include a proposal that Hamilton become New Zealand’s capital city, and that we should switch which side of the road we drive on. A recent Newsroom article, “Back to school for the Govt’s new speed limit policy“, ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    5 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Monday, July 22

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Monday, July 22 are:Today’s Must Read: Father and son live in a tent, and have done for four years, in a million ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Monday, July 22

    TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Monday, July 22, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:US President Joe Biden announced via X this morning he would not stand for a second term.Multinational professional services firm ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #29

    A listing of 32 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, July 14, 2024 thru Sat, July 20, 2024. Story of the week As reflected by preponderance of coverage, our Story of the Week is Project 2025. Until now traveling ...
    Skeptical Science
    6 days ago
  • I'd like to share what I did this weekend

    This weekend, a friend pointed out someone who said they’d like to read my posts, but didn’t want to pay. And my first reaction was sympathy.I’ve already told folks that if they can’t comfortably subscribe, and would like to read, I’d be happy to offer free subscriptions. I don’t want ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    6 days ago
  • For the children – Why mere sentiment can be a misleading force in our lives, and lead to unex...

    National: The Party of ‘Law and Order’ IntroductionThis weekend, the Government formally kicked off one of their flagship policy programs: a military style boot camp that New Zealand has experimented with over the past 50 years. Cartoon credit: Guy BodyIt’s very popular with the National Party’s Law and Order image, ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    6 days ago
  • A friend in uncertain times

    Day one of the solo leg of my long journey home begins with my favourite sound: footfalls in an empty street. 5.00 am and it’s already light and already too warm, almost.If I can make the train that leaves Budapest later this hour I could be in Belgrade by nightfall; ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago
  • The Chaotic World of Male Diet Influencers

    Hi,We’ll get to the horrific world of male diet influencers (AKA Beefy Boys) shortly, but first you will be glad to know that since I sent out the Webworm explaining why the assassination attempt on Donald Trump was not a false flag operation, I’ve heard from a load of people ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago
  • It's Starting To Look A Lot Like… Y2K

    Do you remember Y2K, the threat that hung over humanity in the closing days of the twentieth century? Horror scenarios of planes falling from the sky, electronic payments failing and ATMs refusing to dispense cash. As for your VCR following instructions and recording your favourite show - forget about it.All ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • Bernard’s Saturday Soliloquy for the week to July 20

    Climate Change Minister Simon Watts being questioned by The Kākā’s Bernard Hickey.TL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 20 were:1. A strategy that fails Zero Carbon Act & Paris targetsThe National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government finally unveiled ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Pharmac Director, Climate Change Commissioner, Health NZ Directors – The latest to quit this m...

    Summary:As New Zealand loses at least 12 leaders in the public service space of health, climate, and pharmaceuticals, this month alone, directly in response to the Government’s policies and budget choices, what lies ahead may be darker than it appears. Tui examines some of those departures and draws a long ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    1 week ago
  • Flooding Housing Policy

    The Minister of Housing’s ambition is to reduce markedly the ratio of house prices to household incomes. If his strategy works it would transform the housing market, dramatically changing the prospects of housing as an investment.Leaving aside the Minister’s metaphor of ‘flooding the market’ I do not see how the ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    1 week ago
  • A Voyage Among the Vandals: Accepted (Again!)

    As previously noted, my historical fantasy piece, set in the fifth-century Mediterranean, was accepted for a Pirate Horror anthology, only for the anthology to later fall through. But in a good bit of news, it turned out that the story could indeed be re-marketed as sword and sorcery. As of ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    1 week ago
  • The Kākā's Chorus for Friday, July 19

    An employee of tobacco company Philip Morris International demonstrates a heated tobacco device. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy on Friday, July 19 are:At a time when the Coalition Government is cutting spending on health, infrastructure, education, housing ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Friday, July 19

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 8:30 am on Friday, July 19 are:Scoop: NZ First Minister Casey Costello orders 50% cut to excise tax on heated tobacco products. The minister has ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Weekly Roundup 19-July-2024

    Kia ora, it’s time for another Friday roundup, in which we pull together some of the links and stories that caught our eye this week. Feel free to add more in the comments! Our header image this week shows a foggy day in Auckland town, captured by Patrick Reynolds. ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    1 week ago
  • Weekly Climate Wrap: A market-led plan for failure

    TL;DR : Here’s the top six items climate news for Aotearoa this week, as selected by Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer. A discussion recorded yesterday is in the video above and the audio of that sent onto the podcast feed.The Government released its draft Emissions Reduction ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Tobacco First

    Save some money, get rich and old, bring it back to Tobacco Road.Bring that dynamite and a crane, blow it up, start all over again.Roll up. Roll up. Or tailor made, if you prefer...Whether you’re selling ciggies, digging for gold, catching dolphins in your nets, or encouraging folks to flutter ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • Trump’s Adopted Son.

    Waiting In The Wings: For truly, if Trump is America’s un-assassinated Caesar, then J.D. Vance is America’s Octavian, the Republic’s youthful undertaker – and its first Emperor.DONALD TRUMP’S SELECTION of James D. Vance as his running-mate bodes ill for the American republic. A fervent supporter of Viktor Orban, the “illiberal” prime ...
    Bowalley Road
    1 week ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Friday, July 19

    TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 19, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:The PSA announced the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) had ruled in the PSA’s favour in its case against the Ministry ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago

  • Joint statement from the Prime Ministers of Canada, Australia and New Zealand

    Australia, Canada and New Zealand today issued the following statement on the need for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza and the risk of expanded conflict between Hizballah and Israel. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The human suffering is unacceptable. It cannot continue.  We remain unequivocal in our condemnation of ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    18 hours ago
  • AG reminds institutions of legal obligations

    Attorney-General Judith Collins today reminded all State and faith-based institutions of their legal obligation to preserve records relevant to the safety and wellbeing of those in its care. “The Abuse in Care Inquiry’s report has found cases where records of the most vulnerable people in State and faith‑based institutions were ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    21 hours ago
  • More young people learning about digital safety

    Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government’s online safety website for children and young people has reached one million page views.  “It is great to see so many young people and their families accessing the site Keep It Real Online to learn how to stay safe online, and manage ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    22 hours ago
  • Speech to the Conference for General Practice 2024

    Tēnā tātou katoa,  Ngā mihi te rangi, ngā mihi te whenua, ngā mihi ki a koutou, kia ora mai koutou. Thank you for the opportunity to be here and the invitation to speak at this 50th anniversary conference. I acknowledge all those who have gone before us and paved the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    24 hours ago
  • Employers and payroll providers ready for tax changes

    New Zealand’s payroll providers have successfully prepared to ensure 3.5 million individuals will, from Wednesday next week, be able to keep more of what they earn each pay, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Revenue Minister Simon Watts.  “The Government's tax policy changes are legally effective from Wednesday. Delivering this tax ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Experimental vineyard futureproofs wine industry

    An experimental vineyard which will help futureproof the wine sector has been opened in Blenheim by Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson. The covered vineyard, based at the New Zealand Wine Centre – Te Pokapū Wāina o Aotearoa, enables controlled environmental conditions. “The research that will be produced at the Experimental ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Funding confirmed for regions affected by North Island Weather Events

    The Coalition Government has confirmed the indicative regional breakdown of North Island Weather Event (NIWE) funding for state highway recovery projects funded through Budget 2024, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Regions in the North Island suffered extensive and devastating damage from Cyclone Gabrielle and the 2023 Auckland Anniversary Floods, and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Indonesian Foreign Minister to visit

    Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, Retno Marsudi, will visit New Zealand next week, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced.   “Indonesia is important to New Zealand’s security and economic interests and is our closest South East Asian neighbour,” says Mr Peters, who is currently in Laos to engage with South East Asian partners. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Strengthening partnership with Ngāti Maniapoto

    He aha te kai a te rangatira? He kōrero, he kōrero, he kōrero. The government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the aspirations of Ngāti Maniapoto, Minister for Māori Development Tama Potaka says. “My thanks to Te Nehenehenui Trust – Ngāti Maniapoto for bringing their important kōrero to a ministerial ...
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    2 days ago
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