Obama’s elf
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- Date published:
5:01 pm, February 18th, 2009 - 11 comments
Categories: interweb -
Tags: elf, obama
I’ve tried all day not to post this, now I’m giving in to get a good night’s sleep.
11 comments on “Obama’s elf ”
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- Government provides support to flooded TairÄwhiti communitiesThe Government is making an initial contribution of $150,000 to the Mayoral Relief Fund to help communities in TairÄwhiti following ex-Tropical Cyclone Hale, Minister for Emergency Management Kieran McAnulty announced. âWhile Cyclone Hale has caused widespread heavy rain, flooding and high winds across many parts of the North Island, TairÄwhiti ...3 weeks ago
- PSA: Donât go for a swim in Auckland right now
It has, to put it mildly, been a wet one. After record rainfall caused major flooding events and stormwater issues, Auckland is in crisis. Roads, suburbs, parks and homes have been overwhelmed with floodwater, much of which is âblackwater,â meaning it contains faecal matter and other sewage contaminants. So hereâs ...2 mins ago - Additional $700k in support for flood-hit regionsThe government has unlocked an additional $700,000 in flood relief for regions most badly hit by recent bad weather. That includes Auckland, Waikato, Coromandel, Northland and the Bay of Plenty, with most of the money going toward providing unskilled and semi-skilled jobs for local people who can support the clean-up ...2 mins ago
- Weâre missing opportunities to identify domestic violence perpetrators. This is what needs to chan...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nicola Helps, Research fellow, Monash University Shutterstock Identifying perpetrators of domestic and family violence is critical to ending violence against women. Practitioners across different sectors, including mental health, alcohol and drug services, have a vital opportunity to âscreenâ clients to ...21 mins ago - Age Concern New Zealand Welcomes Ginny Andersen, The New Minister For Seniors.
Age Concern New Zealand would like to extend a warm welcome to new Minister for Seniors, Ginny Andersen, who takes up the Seniors portfolio from the Hon Dr Ayesha Verrall. Karen Billings-Jensen, Chief Executive Age Concern New Zealand, says âWe ...27 mins ago - Fuel subsidy extension about being 'nimble' – Robertson
Continuing fuel subsidies despite official and expert advice urging otherwise is focused on helping New Zealanders in the here and now, the finance minister says. ...35 mins ago - COVID remains a global emergency, the World Health Organization says, but weâre at a transition po...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Hassan Vally, Associate Professor, Epidemiology, Deakin University As we enter the fourth year of living with COVID, we are all asking the predictable question: when will the pandemic be over? To answer this question, itâs worth reminding ourselves that a pandemic involves ...1 hour ago
- Slippery slopes: why the Auckland storm caused so many landslides â and what can be done about itSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Martin Brook, Associate Professor of Applied Geology, University of Auckland Getty Images The January 27 storm that hit Auckland broke all previous rainfall records and has caused widespread damage, mostly from flooding and landslides. But while climate change helps explain ...1 hour ago
- Chris Hipkins says it's 'inane' to rule anything in or outThe new prime minister is taking a different approach to making tough calls to his predecessor. ...2 hours ago
- Photograph of Chris Hipkins pointing at Wayne Brown deleted by mayorâs Twitter accountThe twitter account for the mayor of Auckland, Wayne Brown, has posted and deleted an image showing the prime minister, Chris Hipkins, pointing at Brown, who stares back in a tableau that at first glance appears combative. The tweet, which came with a caption describing a meeting between the two ...2 hours ago
- Princess Anne to visit NZ for military commemorationThe Princess Royal, Princess Anne, will visit New Zealand later this month, taking in the sights of Palmerston North. Prime minister Chris Hipkins announced the royal will attend the 100th anniversary celebrations for the NZ Armyâs Royal New Zealand Corps of Signals, of which she is Colonel in Chief. These ...2 hours ago
- End in sight for Australian deportations denounced as draconian and inhumanePM Anthony Albanese has announced changes to help protect New Zealand-born residents of Australia from deportation, following years of outcry about the toll on so-called â501sâ. Don Rowe looks at why the policy is so widely reviled. A major shift in Australian immigration policy means the government will now consider ...2 hours ago
- King Charles sends condolences, âspecial thoughtsâ to NZ after floodingKing Charles has sent a message to New Zealand following the floods that hit the top of the North Island over the past few days. In a letter shared via the governor general, the monarch said he had been following the news with the âdeepest concernâ and wanted to pass ...2 hours ago
- Auckland flooding: PM Chris Hipkins announces funding, says 'there's no one-size-fits-all ...Chris Hipkins has met Auckland business leaders over the impact of the flooding crisis in the region. Watch the media conference live here. ...2 hours ago
- Group Urges Mayor Radich To Join Sister City In Taking Plant-Based PledgeDunedin â Following news that the Scottish city of Edinburgh has become Europeâs first capital to sign the Plant Based Treaty, animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has sent a letter to the mayor of Edinburghâs ...3 hours ago
- Household living costs up by more than 8% in 2022 â Stats NZNew figures reveal just how much living costs increased for households in 2022. Last year was dominated politically by the cost of living crisis, which has carried over into 2023 with inflation sky high and a looming recession on the horizon. According to Stats NZ, the cost of living for ...3 hours ago
- With or without my reo, I have always been MÄoriRamari Jackson-Paniora is the daughter of one of the main faces of the 1972 MÄori Language Petition â but her relationship with te reo MÄori is more complicated than people may assume. My whÄnauâs journey with reo MÄori is typical of many MÄori whÄnau across Aotearoa. Looking at my parentsâ ...3 hours ago
- A gay All Black is a big dealAfter Monday night, the accepted narrative around rugby, sexuality and masculinity will never be quite the same, writes Sam Brooks. If you tuned into Seven Sharp on Monday night, you probably did so unaware that you were about to watch a history-making interview. After a wholesome segment with two ...3 hours ago
- Wayne Brown regrets âdrongoâ remark, denies gagging councillorsAuckland mayor Wayne Brown has apologised for his âdrongoâ comment about journalists, but defended his decision to stop other councillors speaking out on the night of the devastating floods. In an interview with Newshubâs AM this morning, Brown admitted he shouldnât have called the media drongos, adding that he will ...3 hours ago
- Watch live: Prime Minister Chris Hipkins speaks after meeting Auckland business leadersChris Hipkins has met Auckland business leaders over the impact of the flooding crisis in the region. Watch the media conference live here. ...3 hours ago
- Buller Electricity Pushes Back On Massive Transmission Charge IncreaseBuller Electricity (BEL), the community owned lines network company that supplies the majority of electricity consumers in the Buller district on the South Islandâs West Coast, has lodged a formal legal challenge opposing a 427% price increase in ...3 hours ago
- 'Tough calls' to be made on future of climate-vulnerable communities – Chris HipkinsChris Hipkins says Aotearoa has "some tough calls to make as a country" regarding the future of communities in places vulnerable to extreme weather events. ...4 hours ago
- Business owners see cutting carbon emissions as âthe right thing to doâ, despite the challenges ...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Pii-Tuulia Nikula, Principal Academic, Eastern Institute of Technology GettyImages An increasing number of businesses in Aotearoa New Zealand are changing how they operate to reduce their overall climate impact. These measures, which include reducing carbon emissions, are largely voluntary outside of ...4 hours ago
- Living Costs Increase For All Household GroupsIncreasing prices continued to affect all household groups in the 12 months to December 2022, Stats NZ said today. The cost of living for the average household (as measured by the household living-costs price indexes) increased by 8.2 percent in the 12 months ...4 hours ago
- IrrigationNZ Says RMA Reform Must Enable Critical Water Infrastructure Following Flood DisasterâThe recent flooding in Auckland, Northland and the Bay of Plenty has caused chaos and has put people, homes and businesses at risk. It has also decimated huge crops of fruit and vegetables at a time when we are already paying significantly more than ...5 hours ago
- Auckland needs sustainable transport. Will we get it under Wayne Brown?The devastating deluge has highlighted the need for urgent climate action â but how likely is that under our current mayor? As a proud, unashamed JAFA, the recent floods literally hit home. Sirens blared nonstop all night Friday and all morning Saturday as a mighty torrent raged outside my window. ...5 hours ago
- The Bulletin: Home loan interest rate cuts madeANZ has said it will drop home loan interest rates by up to 55 basis points. It comes after yesterdayâs employment data was released which showed that unemployment rose to 3.4% in the December, and pay did not rise as much as some economists had expected. Bank economists now expect the official cash rate ...5 hours ago
- Robertson defends new fuel levy cuts after criticism itâs âtax cuts for the richâItâs a popular policy â and we are in an election year after all â but the governmentâs decision to extend the fuel tax cuts until the end of June has provoked a fair amount of criticism since being announced. Greenpeace told Today FM that while the government had good ...6 hours ago
- The cost of fixing Auckland nowLikely it be most expensive non-earthquake disaster in New Zealand, a picture is beginning to form about the long term implications of the flooding that will impact the entire country, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoffâs morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full ...6 hours ago
- The worldâs oldest fossils or oily gunk? New research suggests these 3.5 billion-year-old rocks do...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Birger Rasmussen, Adjunct Professor, The University of Western Australia Saul Shepstein, Author provided The Pilbara region of Western Australia is home to one of the most ancient surviving pieces of Earthâs crust, which has been geologically unchanged since its creation ...7 hours ago
- 8 everyday foods you might not realise are ultra processed â and how to spot themSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Dickie, PhD Candidate in Public Health Nutrition, Deakin University Shutterstock For years, the term âjunk foodâ has been used to refer to foods considered bad for you, and not very nutritious. But junk can mean different things to different ...7 hours ago
- The pleasure and pain of cinephilia: what happened when I watched Groundhog Day every day for a yearSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adam Daniel, Tutor / Lecturer in Film and Media Studies, Western Sydney University Columbia Pictures âWhat would you do if you were stuck in one place, and every day was exactly the same, and nothing that you did mattered?â ...7 hours ago
- Government's fuel subsidy extension 'extremely dumb economic policy'"Bonkers" and "extremely dumb" are just some of ways critics are describing the government's U-turn on transport subsidies. ...8 hours ago
- Now might be the time to stop talking about empathy as a nice-to-haveEmpathetic leadership is not some magical superpower â itâs a necessary skill in a time of crisis. Itâs more ironic than rain on your wedding day that weâre having to contemplate the qualities of good leadership two weeks after the formal resignation of Jacinda Ardern. In assessments of the former ...9 hours ago
- 10-year-olds can be charged with murder in NZ. The UN says that should changeAn international human rights group has called on NZ to raise the age of criminal responsibility to at least 14. Don Rowe explains whatâs going on. Whatâs all this then? The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child has criticised the New Zealand government for failing to raise ...9 hours ago
- Behold: The longest Ockham New Zealand Book Awards longlist⊠ever!Books editor Claire Mabey and poetry consultant Louise Wallace analyse this yearâs Ockham New Zealand Book Awards long (really quite long) list. Here are the books longlisted for the 2023 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards (for books published between 1 January 2022 and 31 December 2022). Weâve listed them all ...9 hours ago
- Men: the comeback
Ockham longlist announced Once again the dear old Ockhams are the shockhams. The longlist of the 2023 Ockham New Zealand national book awards was announced this morning and much of it is quite crazy, which is to say adventurous and unusual, as well as showing a commitment to deeply boring ...9 hours ago - Converting waste to environmentally conscious walls
Greater funding overseas has Upcycled wallboard business Saveboard expanding rapidly into Australia. ...10 hours ago - Christopher Luxon absent as Chris Hipkins steps into the floodlights
Without a decisive policy reset, new PM's Cabinet reshuffle will quickly be seen as merely rearranging the deckchairs ...10 hours ago - Jockey, cop, mum – now world cross country runner
Lisa Cross' life has had many twists and turns in her almost 40 years. Now the mum of two says she's never felt better running at the world cross country champs for the first time. When Lisa Cross was an apprentice jockey, she became attuned to the puffs and blows of the ...10 hours ago - Can the egg shortage be cracked?
The humble egg is in short supply - The Detail looks at the reasons why it's so hard to get your hands on a carton Online auctions for chickens have attracted double the usual number of clicks in recent weeks, amid a nationwide egg shortage. Supermarket shelves have been empty and ...10 hours ago - We must protect what the cats drag in
'Where once the Karepiro chenier hosted dotterel and oystercatcher nests there could soon be sandcastles, and how many cats?' Pat Baskett looks at our ongoing contribution to the Sixth Extinction. Itâs tempting to describe this breeding season of the tĆ«turiwhatu (NZ dotterel) at Karepiro Bay on Aucklandâs North Shore as a ...10 hours ago - The future must use less energy and have more of the things that really matter
We need to reduce our energy consumption and embrace 'degrowthâ, in which we redesign the economy to put human and environmental wellbeing at its centre Opinion: In years gone by, you may have heard the words âpeak oilâ, often intoned with a sense of foreboding, warning us that before long oil ...10 hours ago - Stormwaters' inclusion in Three Waters reforms will worsen flood risks
Bad planning is the root cause of the flooding we have seen â and yes, climate change makes the consequences a lot worse ...10 hours ago - Investigation underway over concerns pokie trusts cooking the books
There are concerns funds have been mis-spent ...10 hours ago - Comms crucial, not optional, in an emergency
Wayne Brown's repeated defences of the radio silence from council offices on Friday night miss the point that communications is a fundamental part of an emergency response. ...10 hours ago - Newsroom daily quiz, Thursday 2 February
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...11 hours ago - Treasure Island: Fans v Faves recap, week oneItâs the biggest week in Real Pod history! Jane made her debut in Treasure Island: Fans v Faves and we grill her all about the drama from week one. Why did she put up Micah? How brutal was the wrestling challenge IRL? And what were her concerns about joining Lanceâs ...16 hours ago
- Treasure Island: Fans v Faves rankings, week one: My kingdom for a meat packTreasure Island is back, baby, and so are our power rankings. Tara Ward recaps all the big plays from the dramatic first week of Fans v Faves. Treasure Island: Fans v Faves has finally washed ashore, and after hoovering down the first three action-packed episodes, Iâm fuller than a weatherman ...16 hours ago
- Future of Fijiâs democracy at stake over coalition, warns RatuvaBy Felix Chaudhary in Suva New Zealand-based Fijian academic Professor Steven Ratuva says that if the coalition government is strong, resilient and lasts, âthis will reflect well as a future model for coalitions in Fijiâ. âItâs a learning process for a new government and a new democracy and we expect ...16 hours ago
- Flash flood impacted Pasifika communities in NZ on alertBy Finau Fonua, RNZ Pacific journalist Many Pasifika families affected by the flash floods and torrential rainfall that have lashed New Zealandâs North Island over the past few days were braced for more bad weather overnight. With four people dead and hundreds forced out of their homes over the weekend ...16 hours ago
- Sort out the uncertain Fiji military constitutional role, says professorRNZ Pacific A New Zealand-based professor in comparative politics says the Fiji constitution needs to clear up the role of the military. Dr Jon Fraenkel of Victoria University, formerly of the University of the South Pacific, says the 2013 constitution revived the provision that existed in the 1990 constitution which ...16 hours ago
- âNo secretâ that Fijiâs media law is target for free press review soonBy Repeka Nasiko in Lautoka Fijiâs Media Industry Development Act will soon be reviewed over the next few weeks. Speaking to The Fiji Times in Lautoka on Monday, Minister for Communications Manoa Kamikamica said the review was one of the main objectives of the coalition government when it came to ...16 hours ago
- Chris Hipkinsâ first question time as PM â will he âwin the Houseâ?ANALYSIS: By Peter Wilson, political commentator for RNZ News Tuesday, February 7, at 2pm. Thatâs when New Zealandâs new Prime Minister Chris Hipkinsâ parliamentary year begins and he faces National leader Christopher Luxon in the debating chamber for the first question time of 2023. He needs to âWin the Houseâ, ...17 hours ago
- Chris Hipkins' first question time as PM: Will he 'win the House'?Analysis - Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has had a dream start with polls showing Labour ahead of National, but now he has to prove himself in Parliament and quickly deliver on his promises. ...19 hours ago
- Chris Hipkins appoints new chief of staffAndrew Kirton has been appointed the prime ministerâs staff by Chris Hipkins. He begins the role on February 8, replacing Raj Nahna, who has resigned. Nahna become Jacinda Ardernâs chief of staff after Mike Munro resigned for health reasons in 2019. A former Helen Clark staffer, Labour Party general secretary ...21 hours ago
- Hybrid future? Interbreeding can make heat-averse species more resilient to climate changeSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Luciano Beheregaray, Matthew Flinders Professor of Biodiversity Genomics, Flinders University Shutterstock As the climate heats up rapidly, many species will struggle to avoid extinction. If they had time, they could evolve to the new environmental conditions. But they donât. Thatâs ...21 hours ago
- Labour Selects Sarah Pallett To Contest IlamThe Labour Party has selected Sarah Pallett as its candidate for the Ilam electorate in the 2023 general election. Sarah has been the MP for Ilam since the 2020 General Election. She currently sits on two Select Committees, is the Chair of the Labour ...21 hours ago
- I study how radiation interacts with the environment â and the capsule lost in WA is a whole new b...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Madison Williams-Hoffman, PhD Candidate in Environmental Radioactivity, Edith Cowan University WA Department of Fire and Emergency Services By now, youâve probably heard about a tiny radioactive capsule that went missing from the back of a truck somewhere in Western Australia. ...22 hours ago
- New ministers sworn in following Chris Hipkins' Cabinet shuffleThe government's new ministers have been officially sworn in at a ceremony at Government House. ...22 hours ago
- Wayne Brown welcomes schools reopening â and blue skyAuckland mayor Wayne Brown has welcomed the news that schools will be allowed to reopen from tomorrow morning. The Ministry of Education backtracked on its initial decision to keep schools closed until next week. In a statement, Brown also welcomed the blue sky that had replaced clouds across the super ...22 hours ago
- The rebirth of Auckland PrideAuckland Pride has quietly become one of the most culturally and economically important festivals in the country. Jade Winterburn writes about what it means to her as a queer Aucklander and her hopes for its future. It took some encouragement from a friend to get me out to see my ...22 hours ago
- It rains down on Wayne Brown: New Gone By Lunchtime podcastAs Auckland begins a big dry following record rainfall and devastating floods, the official response from Mayor Wayne Brown and others has come under scrutiny. In The Spinoffâs politics podcast Gone By Lunchtime, Toby Manhire, Annabelle Lee-Mather and Ben Thomas debate the deluge ...22 hours ago
- Blame it on the WayneHow has Chris Hipkins performed in his first big tests as prime minister? Toby Manhire, Annabelle Lee-Mather and Ben Thomas debate the deluge aftermath, as well as assessing Wayne Brownâs emergency response, and a pair of polls that show an election year in the balance. ...22 hours ago
- Australia is finally getting a last-chance view of a green comet not seen for 50,000 yearsSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonti Horner, Professor (Astrophysics), University of Southern Queensland Alessandro Bianconi/Edu INAF/Flickr , CC BY-SA Over the past few weeks, social media has been abuzz with excited posts about the green comet that is currently âwhizzingâ or âflying through the skyâ. ...22 hours ago
- Why the violence between Israel and the Palestinians may be entering a devastating new phaseSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Susan de Groot Heupner, Senior Research Fellow, Griffith University US Secretary of State Antony Blinken rushed to the Middle East this week to make yet another push for a negotiated settlement between Israel and the Palestinians following yet another dramatic escalation in ...23 hours ago
- Humanising capitalism: Jim Chalmers designs a new version of an old Labor projectSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Carol Johnson, Emerita Professor, Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Adelaide Mick Tsikas/AAP Treasurer Jim Chalmers begins his Monthly essay âCapitalism After the Crisesâ with a quote from the ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus: âNo man ever steps in ...23 hours ago
- 'Kiwis are getting quite good at this': Hipkins tours a water-logged Auckland
New Prime Minister Chris Hipkins followed up an announcement of new cost of living measures on Wednesday with a visit to a North Shore Marae The clouds parted and a tableau of brilliant blue rushed in to fill the void as the fledgling Prime Minister made his rounds of Auckland ...23 hours ago - Macular diseases cause blindness and treatment costs millions. Here is how to look after yoursSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Justine R. Smith, Professor of Eye & Vision Health, Flinders University Shutterstock The single most expensive drug for the Australian government today, costing more than A$400 million per year, is one called aflibercept. It stops the growth and âleakinessâ of ...23 hours ago
- Climate change is transforming Australiaâs cultural life â so why isnât it mentioned in the ne...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Catherine Strong, Associate professor, Music Industry, RMIT University In its new national cultural policy, the Australian government grapples with issues extending well beyond the creative arts. The policy document places issues like First Nations representation, work and wages, technological upheaval, discrimination ...23 hours ago
- Morningside Live Blockparty to go ahead â Spinoff stage a scratch owing to floodsMorningside Live Blockparty will proceed this Sunday February 5 as scheduled, and at this point sunshine is forecast. Severe weather over the weekend and last night, however, has seen the location of The Spinoff Carpet Club stage (a basement below The Carpet Court) flooded and unusable for the event taking ...24 hours ago
- Ministry U-turns on blanket Auckland school closuresAuckland schools will be able to open their doors to students from tomorrow. Thatâs despite the Ministry of Education announcing late on Monday afternoon that all learning facilities, including kura and universities, must close until after the Waitangi long weekend. Schools have been notified today that the blanket directive to ...1 day ago
- Whatâs new to Netflix NZ, Neon and other streaming services in FebruaryWhat are you going to be watching in February? We round up everything coming to streaming services this month, including Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+, Apple TV+, Neon and TVNZ+. The biggies You (season four, part one on Netflix from February 9) When we last left murder-curious hipster Joe Goldberg, ...1 day ago
- Big money was spent on the 2022 election â but the party with the deepest pockets didnât winSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Griffiths, Deputy Program Director, Grattan Institute Lukas Coch/AAP Nine months after the 2022 federal election, voters finally get a look at how much the parties spent and who funded their campaigns. Data released today reveal Australiaâs political parties collectively ...1 day ago
- Right Call To End Blanket Auckland School ClosureThe Taxpayersâ Union has welcomed the decision to lift the Ministry of Educationâs directive on Auckland schools and other learning facilities, which means schools can open from tomorrow at their discretion. Taxpayersâ Union Campaigns Manager, ...1 day ago
LOL!
The elf thing is always good for silliness. Cf. this digital mock-up of a poster my mate Hemi doctored in 1996 or so: http://feayn.org/~lewis/elf.jpg
L
Ha
that is the best ever thing on the interwebs.
this is also pretty damn funny http://www.mspaintadventures.com/
I don’t often laugh out loud – my wife thinks I’m doing something strange and nasty – thank you
Poor Eric Carmen. First they give a South Park character a name so close to his, and now this. “Boats Against the Current” still nestles somewhere in my vinyl collection.
Lew: That’s gold. Finally something to hurl at pretentious Nirvana fans!!
Captcha: line-item smaller. It’s channelling John Key!!!
Too damn funny. At least you can sleep now…
heh.. I enjoyed that.
That song’s never going to be the same!
NX: That song’s never going to be the same!
Yep, it’s going to be infinitely more enjoyable from today on. Nice one ayb.
Glad you enjoyed it đ
heh – good, but not as good as the Karl Rove animated rap.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0JasZkxCkk&feature=related