Evangelicals may be only 28% of the US electorate as a whole now, but only 3 House Republicans joined with Democrats last week to vote for the Equality Act which bans discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.
Trump's speech today to CPAC is going to be a theatrical wonder of the tropes these people adore.
20 God spoke, and these were his words: 2 “I am the Lord your God who brought you out of Egypt, where you were slaves.
3 “Worship no god but me.
4 “Do not make for yourselves images of anything in heaven or on earth or in the water under the earth. 5 Do not bow down to any idol or worship it, because I am the Lord your God and I tolerate no rivals. I bring punishment on those who hate me and on their descendants down to the third and fourth generation. 6 But I show my love to thousands of generations[a] of those who love me and obey my laws.
Verses 4 thru to 6 are all part of the 2nd Commandment.
Some of the commandments have extra explanatory verses added – just to make things clear.
I put this up to show just how hypocritical this sector of the American society can be. Some in this sector look upon the chump as a Messiah! And in some sense that is precisely what he is to them. 2000 years ago the Jewish people were also looking for a Messiah. Then, after generations of oppression and exile, it meant God intervening in the world in a way in which the people couldn’t do by themselves. It would be a time of great tribulation, some kind of super-human figure out of Marvel comics would appear, who would remake the world, destroy the hostile powers (there would be a lot of blood shed) and bring down a new Jerusalem from heaven where the dispersed Jews from all over the world could return and gather. Then would follow a new age of peace and goodness that would last forever. Essentially this is how those on the religious right in America perceive the chump.
Now the artist behind the huge statue of Trump – Tommy Zegan – has revealed that the object was made in Mexico; a country that has been the target of much Trump racist abuse over his political career, and somewhere he has literally sought to build a wall against.
“It was made in Mexico,” Zegan told Politico’s Playbook newsletter. Zegan, who lives in Mexico on a permanent resident visa, described the transport of the monument to CPAC in full to Playbook.
Politico reported: “Zegan spent over six months crafting the 200lb fiberglass statue with the help of three men in Rosarito. He transported it to Tampa, Florida, where it was painted in chrome, then hauled it from there to CPAC.”
The PM seemed to acknowledge on RNZ today the difficulties for some people in accessing payment for personal work absence for COVID related reasons.
Surely it is time to let individuals have a go at handling this by quoting their IRD no., and organising their own direct payments through IRD. Company wide issues, such as downturns, layoffs, etc. the employer can handle. Enough employers have shown already what they think of Mr Robertson’s “high trust” model! Though to be fair, a number of prominent employers seem to have taken it more seriously as time elapses.
The NZCTU needs to be much firmer, and make it clear that employees disadvantaged for COVID related absences will be protected, by action if need be, including Employer shame listing. The Mediation Service and Employment Court are still oversubscribed with COVID related cases, according to union organisers I know.
Even though it looks like the business are paying the price for Employees or their families playing silly buggers in lockdown?
lockdown 2 everyone was blaming the business handling frozen food, now business should be caned for working out having to pay for lockdowns 3 & 4?
Some businesses are as reliant on the government as a person who is reliant on a benefit. The employee is reliant on the employer. At some point the employer may require a job seekers benefit.
maybe it is the duty of the Government to look after people that can't work rather then the businesses?
Maybe the Government a year into covid should have set up a webpage solely for wage -replacements and covid – isolation/quarantine payments that are so easy to use that even someone with lacking literacy skills, or less then best english skills can get onto it, fill out the forms and receive a payment if the criteria applies.
In saying that, after April there will be 10 sickdays, and it will be the business costs to pay isolation costs. 10 working days = 14 days.
but sure, lets find some more fault at the majority of businesses that have done right and are doing right by their staff, that are currently trying to continue to do business under less then stellar conditions and who for their own needs were given a 13.000 grand loan to tide them over the plague years – small businesses that is. The big businesses is a different story altogether..
As for your 6000 complaints filed, as per the Government stats in Dec 2020 NZ had 2,734,00 in employment. While that does not undo the hardship that people who laid complaints have suffered, it is a fairly small number compared to he overall number of people employed.
I guess it is easier to pick and blame a business – any business to lay the fault fair and square at their feed, but frankly the valentines lockdown should have never been lifted, and frankly if it would have not been lifted, we might not be where we are today.
The incubation period is 14 – 21 days, so to lift a lockdown 3 days into an outbreak was dumb. I can get where they felt the pressure to lift it, but at this stage any lockdown period for any outbreak should be 14 days at a minimum, and even longer if the new strains behave differently then the initial strain.
And if the government finds that in the poorer areas of our country and in our cities kids go dot work because otherwise the family suffers financially then the government can finally lift benefit levels and make applying for a benefit easier and faster. Cause on that stage the government is an actor who did not show up to play.
And last, what we are also seeing is the idiocy of various governments investing pretty much solely into Auckland and now every time they lock down that one city the rest of the country suffers. Maybe they need to think about decentralizing their populations and their businesses. Just a thought.
There was no need to keep the 3 day lockdown going as all indicators pointed to it being tracked and traced and contained, but some self-entitled dickhead lied, then spread the virus for the best part of a week against all advice. Should 5 million people have their health needs, education, businesses and recreation disrupted without penalty?
Nope there was good need to keep it. Tracking and tracing is after the fact.
As per numerous articles from England, Europe and US this new strain is more contagious, affects childrens and in some cases takes longer to detect.
Track and Trace always comes after the infection. Thus its a good tool to find people after the fact, but as shown it is not a preventive tool at all.
And the 5 million people of this country need to finally understand that this is here to stay.
I had a medical specialist appointment on the 15/2, that i rescheduled for 01/3 🙂 i have now rescheduled it to the 19 April (after easter for business reasons), it is now the 4 time i am rescheduling this thing. The doc and i we will have a glass of bubblies when we finally get this done. We are all depending on the government to do the correct thing, and with this fucking virus the correct thing is 14 days of lockdown plus track n trace to eliminate any misses. And at the very least if that would be set in stone everyone could plan around it. right now it feels like we are still making it up as we go along.
Oh and that self entitled prick who “lied” and spread it could not have done if the lockdown would not have been lifted. We all know that people don’t do what they are supposed to do, heck there are people that don’t believe in this virus…..and then there are all the rich pricks that jump into their fancy cars to travel to fancy batches in the nice areas of the country when the city gets lockdown. …..
Rubbish, the longer and more onerous lockdowns are there will be less compliance even if only in numerous small contacts, and longer lockdowns would almost certainly lead to the spreading of more conspiracy theories and public displays of defiance. It is a very fine balance that the Government is seeming to do very well. But some dickhead who costs every single one of us time, freedom and the ability to earn a living should not get off without any repercussions.
Level 3 lockdown essential workers still need to go to work and childcare could be required. This cannot be excluded. Another bubble is permitted for childcare at level 3.
Honestly i would guess most do already. You know in case they can't work anymore. Are you saying that employers need to take out income protection insurance for their staff too?
edit. Most people that work that i know have it, but it only kicks in if you have no income for three month. So it would not apply to this scenario. But you know that? Right?
Btw, employees in NZ have no way to write anything off – they can’t even write of the cost of going to work, that is for the bosses / self employed only.
And do you really think that the South Auckland Lady that cleans the plague hotel for min wage should take out income protection insurance? Seriously?
And wrong again. Employers and the self employed cannot claim the cost of travel to or from their work, only the costs whilst actually working.
And yes, all employees should. The premium is based on their income level so even the 'South Auckland lady' can afford it.
As regards when it pays out and how much, that is specific to the terms of the contract, just like any other insurance contract.
And why on earth should an employer pay for their employees income insurance? Whilst IPI is deductible for the employee, it is not for the employer (other than for specified 'key person' insurance).
We have it as self employed people, but sadly my partners only kicks in after three month of unemployment. so thanks to your information i will ask him to check this out 🙂
I wonder how much a South Auckland cleaning lady on min wage has left over to spend on such an insurance once she paid rent etc, and also if she can continue to pay for such an insurance should she receive a housing benefit or such.
As for my question to the employers paying, that really was what i understood.
But for what its worth, Employees pay already for an unemployment insurance via their taxes – Paye – and they should rather get unemployment benefits then add another expense to their already meager earnings and high cost of living.
Not so simple on that tax deduction for income protection… yes you can get a deduction for your premium, but only if the payments should you claim are taxable and in many cases the claim payments won't be subject to tax. Individual circumstances will determine which is the better outcome, but sucking it up on the premiums for many will be a far better outcome..
Yes. It seems that people like to forget the inconvenient truth that employees pay their full taxes every week with no way out to minimize that take tax.
And all the support for claiming for a non-working spouse (through disability for instance) was removed years ago. I pay $5,000 more tax per year than two people earning the same amount although I have two people to support and provide for in retirement. I only wish that $5,000 could go towards retirement savings.
even worse when you pay into this scheme – national unemployment insurance via the government – aka unemployment benefit but you are denied unemployment benefits because your spouse has an income that is above an arbitrary threshold, never mind that fact of having paid into the service.
Which is exactly what has happened. Worked in a job where being assaulted for the state was part of her job – not very well paid either for the stress and trauma.
that practice should be illegal as she was clearly charged the full amount of taxes when receiving her pay check.
that literally falls under taxation without representation, and while this also applies to man, i would venture a guess that the vast majority of those in this scenario are women. Cause……
Ignoring the fact that people on middle low incomes are struggling to pay rent let alone insurance, ignoring the fact that heavily mortgaged homeowners are increasingly letting their house insurance lapse etc etc…Lets just talk about the awesomeness of Insurance policies in NZ in general..
"BUSINESS
Could insurance companies lose the right to be unfair?
Questionable insurance contracts may soon be a thing of the past as the Government looks to change the law that allows insurance companies to be exempt from areas of the Fair Trading Act"
They do. It is called, "paying taxes for welfare" including unemployment benefit. Much less costly than private insurance, even if we double the payments.
"None of this is necessary to reduce the risks of a banking collapse. The Reserve Bank’s own stress-testing exercise last year showed the banks could easily handle a 40 per cent fall in house prices. Homeowners are paying a record-low six percent of their disposable incomes in mortgage payments. They could easily handle a doubling of interest rates."
"New Zealand's economy is a housing market with bits tacked on"..exactly right, it has become quite clear that this Liberal Free Market economic ideology, installed without public consent by Labour/Lange in 1984 has turned out to be in effect little more than a ponzi/pyramid scheme for the bulk of NZ citizens, using our homes as it's major currency…it's nothing less a obscenity, and one I am quite sure will be regarded by future generation as one of the most shameful periods in our short history.
Sadly it seems that neither Labour nor National have the vision, let alone the ideological drive to bring any real sanity to bear on this problem (or climate change for that matter).
I guess this is what happens when you live in a country with a ideological duopoly monopolizing the political conversation (with lots of help from a pretty lackluster media).
Bernard Hickey
“This week the idea that New Zealand Inc is just a housing market with appendages rather than real society and body politic graduated to full joke status. It’s official. This is a too-big-to-fail market and every policy, every political ambition and every investment choice must bow down before the great gods of the real estate agencies.
To prove it, the current Government, which railed against an “unsustainable” housing market in crisis while in opposition, has allowed over $200 billion of capital gain since it was elected in late 2017.
The Reserve Bank forecast this week prices are likely to have risen 51 per cent in Labour’s first two terms, delivering an extra $535b to homeowners. Tax-free.”
Multinational tech companies do not share the interests of local communities. We see the damage Airbnb does to the residential rental market, and now they refuse to acknowledge local Covid restrictions.
Time to kick them out of this country. Perfect opportunity to do so before tourism resumes.
One of the more blatant ones is polluter Rio Tinto, does anyone really think they are going to clean up their 8500 tonnes of toxic “ouvea premix” waste in Mataura before buggering off when Governments finally stop pandering to them with taxpayer funds?
Other multinationals shaft the host country in sneakier or less obvious ways–check the Australian owned Banks–one of NZ’s biggest exports remains repatriated profits to offshore owners, particularly since 1984 when Rogernomics ushered in some of the freest in and outflows of capital allowed in the world.
Westpac 30 years ago used to have a 2% margin in borrowing in New Zealand compared to Australia. It was a bit tricky to see at times but if you took the rate of inflation in both countries and then the difference between that and the mortgage interest rate for a 30 year mortgage New Zealand always was paying 2% more.
"Our community needs and deserves to be serviced by our only state-owned bank in a fit-for-purpose way – face-to-face, phone, internet and via an app.
"Kiwibank will need to consider more than just its economic reasons," she said.
"If the prime minister agrees to an inquiry and the inquiry highlights these negative impacts, the government should require that all major commercial banks operating in New Zealand – as part of their licence to operate – be required to provide a level of service that redresses these issues," Stoltz [Gisborne Mayor Rehette Stoltz] said.
Part of bank's value is they are a repository of cash, that handy stuff that you can spend when you have it without running up debts through credit cards, and just adding extra cards and layers of complexity to small transactions. (Cheques are gone by about July.) Society and with it all of us, is being diminished by stealth and our naivety about what is happening and its future effects is appallingly high.
Yes banks should have to provide service levels to get a banking licence ( or maybe pay a big fee if they don't have the coverage) and other banks could then tender to provide. There may even be an argument for the transaction system being operated independently of banks sort of like the ATM net so we each "own" our own bank account number and that is visible to the bank that hands out the mortgage.
Plus it is now just about impossible to transfer one off money to another named party (think tradies bills) without an online account and even with an on line account amounts for individuals are usually capped at a daily amount of around the $700 to $800 level.
Overseas online fraud is endemic ( maybe half a billion ??) in the UK last year? – not sure anyone really knows but us customers are paying for that.
All this when one of the major banks didn't notice an online criminal ring operating under it's nose in Australia.
I'm pretty sure they have like many other companies a tried and true practice of selling to another company just before closure who then goes bust and has no money to clean up.
Multinational fast food chains, retail chains, supermarkets….
There are very few that do have New Zealand's interests at heart.
You then compound that by the fact that many buildings are now owned by out of town lawyers, accountants, property developers who do not have the local communities interests at heart and just see the locals as a means of wealth extraction.
Sigh and then there are all the bastard out of town landlords……….
This myth that New Zealand is made up of small businesses is just bullshit.
think global act local used to be the call. now all good men are required to come to the aid of protecting Robbies Park in the Parnell Rose Gardens. The proposal to ERECT a memorial to the crash of TE 901 is an act of gross vandalism and for some unknown reason is backed by phil goff and richard northey. hunter s. thompson would describe these two as grubby little ward heelers and that is precisely what they are. if this plan goes ahead then history will not treat them and their henchmen pippa coom, cathy casey and the rest of the gang kindly and karma will bite them badly.
Time for reviewing something a bit different. Move over Tolkien adaptations, hello Japanese splatter movie. Specifically, a certain 2009 movie called Vampire Girl vs. Frankenstein Girl. I watched this one a few days ago with some acquaintances, never having seen it before, and not being familiar with the manga ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Jeff Masters, PhD An above-average Atlantic hurricane season is likely in 2021, the Colorado State University (CSU) hurricane forecasting team says in its latest seasonal forecast issued April 8. Led by Dr. Phil Klotzbach, with coauthors Dr. Michael Bell and Jhordanne Jones, the CSU ...
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The melody from the classic movie Wizard of Oz echoes as Jacinta Ruru explains what inspired her to attend university, and her ambition to help create a more just society in Aotearoa. Jacinta, who affiliates to Raukawa and Ngāti Ranginui, specialises in the research areas of indigenous peoples and the law. ...
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Anna Källén, Stockholm University and Daniel Strand, Uppsala University A middle-aged white man raises his sword to the skies and roars to the gods. The results of his genetic ancestry test have just arrived in his suburban mailbox. His eyes fill with tears as he learns that he is “0.012% ...
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Samoans went to the polls on Friday, and delivered a stinging blow to Prime Minister Tuilaepa Aiono Sailele Malielegaoi one-party state. Pre-election Malielegaoi's Human Rights Protection Party had controlled 44 of 49 seats in Parliament, while using restrictive standing orders to prevent there from even being a recognised opposition in ...
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Something I missed on Friday: the Māori Party has been referred to police over failure to disclose donations over $30,000. Looking at the updated return of large donations, this is about $320,000 donated to them by three donors - John Tamihere, the National Urban Māori Authority, and Aotearoa Te Kahu ...
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For several decades under Labour and National-led governments New Zealand has claimed to have an independent (and sometimes autonomous) foreign policy. This foreign policy independence is said to be gained by having a “principled but pragmatic” approach to international relations: principled when possible, pragmatic when necessary. More recently NZ foreign ...
This video produced in Seattle looks at the gender identity curriculum used in schools in the US. A thin veneer of pseudoscience is being used to indoctrinate children with an ideology based on scientific and medical inaccuracies. ...
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Whatever the damage, especially to the British economy, Brexit has done us a service by illustrating the complexity of trade.Brexit is the only example we have of two closely integrated sophisticated economies severing trading ties. The European Union and Britain still do not have tariffs or import quotas between them ...
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Kids are striking for the climate today, demanding a decent, liveable future. Meanwhile, the National Party, the reliable servant of the farm lobby and other polluting businesses, is calling for action to be delayed: National has written to Climate Change Minister James Shaw calling for him to extend the ...
Today tens of thousands of schoolkids have walked out of school to strike for a future free from climate change. And tens of thousands of older New Zealanders have joined them. Their demands are clear: eliminate fossil fuels, implement 100% renewable energy with a just transition, and support our Pacific ...
The Gods That Failed.We studied the dialecticRead the whole of ‘Capital’So we could follow youSo we could follow youHow we shoutedHow we scrawledPainted slogans on city wallsOn prison wallsProof we had followed youBut, we still didn’t find what we’re looking forAnd we still haven’t found what we’re looking forWhen they ...
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Red, red whines.That’s all you’ll hear.Not like those glory daysWhen we would cheer. Red, red whines.If it were up to us,We'd make a proper jobOf transforming the world. We would beMore than kind.Offer so much more than spin.Makes us sadWhen we findThere’s so much you won’t begin. Red, red whines.Now ...
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Caitlin Clark, Colorado State UniversityWhether baked as chips into a cookie, melted into a sweet warm drink or molded into the shape of a smiling bunny, chocolate is one of the world’s most universally consumed foods. Even the biggest chocolate lovers, though, might not recognize what this ancient food ...
Since December 2020, I have been working my way through Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s corpus of Sherlock Holmes stories, in order of publication. As of today I have managed to finish this adventure ...
Listing of articles linked to on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Mar 28, 2021 through Sat, Apr 3, 2021 The three apparently most popular posts on our Facebook page this week were John Cook's 23 Ways to Mislead (and how to spot them), Stanton Glantz' blog post ...
The Inward Journey: Indeed, this would appear to constitute the essence of the Gospel of Mary. That the teachings of the Christ are not to be read as a promise of victory over Death; but as an invitation to explore ever more fearlessly the manifold mysteries of Life.THE EASTER STORY is ...
It has never ceased to surprise me that those who profit at the expense of others are so unaware of the harm suffered by those they exploit, and are so convinced that they have a right to do the exploiting and that their profit is a proper and justifiable reward ...
The government’s recent housing package may work; will it do enough?Trick Question: Does New Zealand have a capital gains tax on housing? If you ask the Prime Minister she will say not. It is true that her government is increasing the scope of the ‘bright-line test’ on non-family homes to ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Kristen Pope Trees and other plants have been critical in helping to remove carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere. But newly published scientific findings suggest the clock may be running on vegetation’s forever continuing at the same carbon sink efficiency rate currently ...
Today is the goodest of Fridays. What better way to celebrate a day off work when everything is closed to honour one of the greatest minds ever to nestle his parliamentary buttocks one of those gigantic green seats in the debating chamber. Ladies and gentlement I give you… Mr David ...
Below, for those interested, I copy my submission on the Films, Videos, and Publications Classification (Urgent Interim Classification of Publications and Prevention of Online Harm) Amendment Bill.This is the government bill aiming to create a mandatory Internet filter. The bill is largely unnecessary, but in parts not as bad as people ...
The Green Party supports the open letter released today by a cross-sector coalition calling for the Government to treat all drug use as a health issue, to repeal and replace the Misuse of Drugs Act 1975. ...
Small businesses are not only the heart of our economy – they’re also the heart of our communities. They provide important goods and services, as well as great employment opportunities. They know and love their locals. And after a tough year, they need our support! ...
Green Party spokesperson for Pacific Peoples Teanau Tuiono MP, supports the demand from Pasifika communities fighting for climate action as their homelands are more at risk in the Pacific region. ...
The Green Party supports the six demands for climate action put forward by School Strike for Climate NZ, who are striking across the country today. ...
The Ministry of Justice Māori victimisation report, released today, reinforces what we already know about the impact of systemic racism in Aotearoa and that urgent action is needed. ...
Ricardo Menéndez March’s Members Bill to ensure that disabled New Zealanders do not face discrimination for having a disability assist dog was today pulled from the biscuit tin to be debated in Parliament. ...
More than one million people will be better off from today, thanks to our Government’s changes to the minimum wage, main benefits and superannuation. ...
The Green Party is calling for the Government to do more for New Zealanders who continue to miss out, as main benefits are set to rise by less than $8 a week tomorrow, Thursday 1 April (at the start of the financial year). ...
Sunday 28th March 70 Rongomaiwahine descendants welcomed members of the Green Party’s Māori Caucus, Te Mātāwaka, Dr Elizabeth Kerekere and Teanau Tuiono, to discuss concerns about RocketLab’s operations on the Mahia Peninsula. ...
The Government has introduced the Counter-Terrorism Legislation Bill, designed to boost New Zealand's ability to respond to a wider range of terrorist activities. The Bill strengthens New Zealand’s counter-terrorism legislation and ensures that the right legislative tools are available to intervene early and prevent harm. “This is the Government’s first ...
Coal boiler replacements at a further ten schools, saving an estimated 7,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide over the next ten years Fossil fuel boiler replacements at Southern Institute of Technology and Taranaki DHB, saving nearly 14,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide over the next ten years Projects to achieve a total ...
Attorney-General David Parker today announced the appointment of Cassie Nicholson as Chief Parliamentary Counsel for a term of five years. The Chief Parliamentary Counsel is the principal advisor and Chief Executive of the Parliamentary Counsel Office (PCO). She is responsible for ensuring PCO, which drafts most of New Zealand’s legislation, provides ...
Every part of Government will need to take urgent action to bring down emissions, the Minister for Climate Change, James Shaw said today in response to the recent rise in New Zealand’s greenhouse emissions. The latest annual inventory of New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions shows that both gross and net ...
Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister David Clark says Aotearoa New Zealand has become the first country in the world to introduce a law that requires the financial sector to disclose the impacts of climate change on their business and explain how they will manage climate-related risks and opportunities. The Financial ...
Exceptional employment practices in the primary industries have been celebrated at the Good Employer Awards, held this evening at Parliament. “Tonight’s awards provided the opportunity to celebrate and thank those employers in the food and fibres sector who have gone beyond business-as-usual in creating productive, safe, supportive, and healthy work ...
Applications are now invited from all councils for a slice of government funding aimed at improving tourism infrastructure, especially in areas under pressure given the size of their rating bases. Tourism Minister Stuart Nash has already signalled that five South Island regions will be given priority to reflect that jobs ...
The Construction Skills Action Plan has delivered early on its overall target of supporting an additional 4,000 people into construction-related education and employment, says Minister for Building and Construction Poto Williams. Since the Plan was launched in 2018, more than 9,300 people have taken up education or employment opportunities in ...
An innovative new Youth Justice residence designed in partnership with Māori will provide prevention, healing, and rehabilitation services for both young people and their whānau, Children’s Minister Kelvin Davis announced today. Whakatakapokai is located in South Auckland and will provide care and support for up to 15 rangatahi remanded or ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern today expressed New Zealand’s sorrow at the death of His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. “Our thoughts are with Her Majesty The Queen at this profoundly sad time. On behalf of the New Zealand people and the Government, I would like to express ...
We, the Home Affairs, Interior, Security and Immigration Ministers of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States of America (the ‘Five Countries’) met via video conference on 7/8 April 2021, just over a year after the outbreak of the COVID-19 global pandemic. Guided by our shared ...
Arts, Culture and Heritage Minister Carmel Sepuloni has today announced the opening of the first round of Ngā Puninga Toi ā-Ahurea me ngā Kaupapa Cultural Installations and Events. “Creating jobs and helping the arts sector rebuild and recover continues to be a key part of the Government’s COVID-19 response,” Carmel ...
Interim legislation that is already proving to keep people safer from drugs will be made permanent, Health Minister Andrew Little says. Research by Victoria University, on behalf of the Ministry of Health, shows that the Government’s decision in December to make it legal for drug-checking services to operate at festivals ...
Public consultation launched on ways to improve behaviour and reduce damage Tighter rules proposed for either camping vehicles or camping locations Increased penalties proposed, such as $1,000 fines or vehicle confiscation Rental companies may be required to collect fines from campers who hire vehicles Public feedback is sought on proposals ...
The Government is continuing to support Air New Zealand while aviation markets stabilise and the world moves towards more normal border operations. The Crown loan facility made available to Air New Zealand in March 2020 has been extended to a debt facility of up to $1.5 billion (an additional $600 ...
Christchurch’s Richmond suburb will soon have a new community hub, following the gifting of a red-zoned property by Land Information New Zealand (LINZ) to the Richmond Community Gardens Trust. The Minister for Land Information, Damien O’Connor said that LINZ, on behalf of the Crown, will gift a Vogel Street house ...
Minister for Pacific Peoples Aupito William Sio says the reopening of the Ministry for Pacific Peoples’ (MPP) Languages Funding in 2021 will make sure there is a future for Pacific languages. “Language is the key to the wellbeing for Pacific people. It affirms our identity as Pasifika and ...
It is a pleasure to be here tonight. Thank you Cameron for the introduction and thank you for ERANZ for also hosting this event. Last week in fact, we had one of the largest gatherings in our sector, Downstream 2021. I have heard from my officials that the discussion on ...
Research, Science and Innovation Minister Megan Woods has today announced the 16 projects that will together get $3.9 million through the 2021 round of Te Pūnaha Hihiko: Vision Mātauranga Capability Fund, further strengthening the Government’s commitment to Māori knowledge in science and innovation. “We received 78 proposals - the highest ...
The Government is delivering on a key election commitment to tackle climate change, by banning new low and medium temperature coal-fired boilers and partnering with the private sector to help it transition away from fossil fuels. This is the first major announcement to follow the release of the Climate Commission’s ...
Six projects, collectively valued at over $70 million are delivering new schools, classrooms and refurbished buildings across Central Otago and are helping to ease the pressure of growing rolls in the area, says Education Minister Chris Hipkins. The National Education Growth Plan is making sure that sufficient capacity in the ...
Two more schools are now complete as part of the Christchurch Schools Rebuild Programme, with work about to get under way on another, says Education Minister Chris Hipkins. Te Ara Koropiko – West Spreydon School will welcome students to their new buildings for the start of Term 2. The newly ...
The Government is acting to ensure decisions on responding to the next phase of the COVID-19 pandemic are informed by the best available scientific evidence and strategic public health advice. “New Zealand has worked towards an elimination strategy which has been successful in keeping our people safe and our economy ...
Six Māori scholars have been awarded Ngārimu VC and the 28th (Māori) Battalion Memorial scholarships for 2021, Associate Education Minister and Ngārimu Board Chair, Kelvin Davis announced today. The prestigious Manakura Award was also presented for the first time since 2018. “These awards are a tribute to the heroes of the 28th ...
New Zealand’s aerospace industry is getting a boost through the German Aerospace Centre (DLR), to grow the capability of the sector and potentially lead to joint space missions, Research, Science and Innovation Minister Megan Woods has announced. 12 New Zealand organisations have been chosen to work with world-leading experts at ...
The Government is backing more initiatives to boost New Zealand’s food and fibre sector workforce, Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor announced today. “The Government and the food and fibres sector have been working hard to fill critical workforce needs. We've committed to getting 10,000 more Kiwis into the sector over the ...
Minister for Social Development and Employment Carmel Sepuloni has welcomed the first reading of the Social Security (Subsequent Child Policy Removal) Amendment Bill in the House this evening. “Tonight’s first reading is another step on the way to removing excessive sanctions and obligations for people receiving a Main Benefit,” says ...
The Government has taken a significant step towards delivering on its commitment to improve the legislation around mental health as recommended by He Ara Oranga – the report of the Government Inquiry into Mental Health and Addiction, Health Minister Andrew Little says. The Mental Health (Compulsory Assessment and Treatment) Amendment ...
Local Government Minister Nanaia Mahuta has welcomed the Local Government (Rating of Whenua Māori) Amendment Bill passing its third reading today. “After nearly 100 years of a system that was not fit for Māori and did not reflect the partnership we have come to expect between Māori and the Crown, ...
New Zealand’s successful management of COVID means quarantine-free travel between New Zealand and Australia will start on Monday 19 April, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced today. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins confirmed the conditions for starting to open up quarantine free travel with Australia have ...
Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations Andrew Little welcomed ngā uri o Ngāti Hinerangi to Parliament today to witness the third reading of their Treaty settlement legislation, the Ngāti Hinerangi Claims Settlement Bill. “I want to acknowledge ngā uri o Ngāti Hinerangi and the Crown negotiations teams for working tirelessly ...
Minister of Police Poto Williams has announced the members of the Ministers Arms Advisory Group, established to ensure balanced advice to Government on firearms that is independent of Police. “The Ministers Arms Advisory Group is an important part of delivering on the Government’s commitment to ensure we maintain the balance ...
Kiri Allan, Minister of Conservation and Emergency Management will undertake a leave of absence while she undergoes medical treatment for cervical cancer, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced today. “I consider Kiri not just a colleague, but a friend. This news has been devastating. But I also know that Kiri is ...
Excellent progress has been made at the new prison development at Waikeria, which will boost mental health services and improve rehabilitation opportunities for people in prison, Corrections Minister Kelvin Davis says. Kelvin Davis was onsite at the new build to meet with staff and see the construction first-hand, following a ...
To reduce the trauma of road crashes caused by drug impaired drivers, an Independent Expert Panel on Drug Driving has proposed criminal limits and blood infringement thresholds for 25 impairing drugs, Minister of Police Poto Williams and Transport Minister Michael Wood announced today. The Land Transport (Drug Driving) Amendment Bill ...
Temporary COVID-19 immigration powers will be extended to May 2023, providing continued flexibility to support migrants, manage the border, and help industries facing labour shortages, Immigration Minister Kris Faafoi announced today. “Over the past year, we have had to make rapid decisions to vary visa conditions, extend expiry dates, and ...
Temporary COVID-19 immigration powers will be extended to May 2023, providing continued flexibility to support migrants, manage the border, and help industries facing labour shortages, Immigration Minister Kris Faafoi announced today. “Over the past year, we have had to make rapid decisions to vary visa conditions, extend expiry dates, and ...
The Government is expanding its Pregnancy and Parenting Programme so more women and whānau can access specialist support to minimise harm from alcohol and other drugs, Health Minister Andrew Little says. “We know these supports help improve wellbeing and have helped to reduce addiction, reduced risk for children, and helped ...
*** Please check against delivery *** It’s an honour to be here in Rūātoki today, a rohe with such a proud and dynamic history of resilience, excellence and mana. Tūhoe moumou kai, moumou taonga, moumou tangata ki te pō. The Ahuwhenua Trophy competition is the legacy of a seed planted ...
The economic recovery from COVID-19 continues to be reflected in the Government’s books, which are again better than expected. The Crown accounts for the eight months to the end of February 2021 showed both OBEGAL and the operating balance remain better than forecast in the Half Year Economic and Fiscal ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Scott Morrison will hold twice-weekly meetings of the national cabinet for the “foreseeable future”, as the government battles to get its slow and problem-laden vaccine rollout back on course. The Prime Minister says he has ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra A wronged woman with a razor-sharp mind and meticulous records is a dangerous creature. Especially when delivering a counter punch to a prime minister who’d denounced her in the bully pit of parliament when he ...
Analysis by Bryce Edwards Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. How seriously does the Māori Party take issues of corruption and the untoward influence of big money in politics? Not very, based on how it’s handling a political finance scandal in which three large donations were kept hidden from the public. ...
Government ministers are confident no taxpayer money was caught up in donations to the Māori Party that have been referred to police for not being declared in time. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jamie Triccas, Professor of Medical Microbiology, University of Sydney As AstraZeneca is no longer the preferred vaccine for Australian adults under 50, attention is turning to what other COVID-19 vaccine options are in our arsenal. The federal government has ordered 40 million ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Scully, Senior Meteorologist, Australian Bureau of Meteorology Across most of Australia this week, people have woken up and thought “Goodness, it’s cold.” Summer doonas are being changed to winter doonas. Heaters are being switched on. Ugg boots are being dug out ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Scully, Senior Meteorologist, Australian Bureau of Meteorology Across most of Australia this week, people have woken up and thought “Goodness, it’s cold.” Summer doonas are being changed to winter doonas. Heaters are being switched on. Ugg boots are being dug out ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Daniel Palmer, Professor, RMIT University Review: Small Business, published by M.33, Melbourne, 2021 David Wadelton understands that photography is a form of time travel. Small Business, his new book of photographs, transports us to Melbourne’s vanishing architecture of interior workplaces created by ...
The Council of Trade Unions wants the government to do more to improve working lives for New Zealanders. CTU President Richard Wagstaff will tonight address Minister of Workplace Relations Michael Wood, other Labour and Green Party Members of Parliament, ...
Comedian Janaye Henry is on a theatre tour of Aotearoa teaching teens about sex, and is writing us a non-Tourism NZ-approved diary of her travels. This week she’s in Ōtepoti Dunedin.I arrived in Ōtepoti Dunedin wide-eyed and itching to explore. My roommate was itchy too, although it wasn’t until the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University It’s tempting to think home prices are soaring because there aren’t enough homes. But that can’t explain the sudden takeoff from about the year 2000, the sudden takeoff from about ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael O’Neil, Executive Director, SA Centre for Economic Studies, University of Adelaide Wiping off Whyalla has become something of a macabre sport. All manner of things have been said to be about to destroy the steelworks town, including (briefly) the 2012-2014 carbon ...
Jonthan Cotton speaks to the people behind a programme teaching modern authentic leadership about what makes a great leader in 2021. When it comes to making change, humankind has historically looked to its most exceptional and extroverted people to lead us through its most challenging problems. Plato had a few opinions ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Quigley, Associate Professor of Earthquake Science, The University of Melbourne Timor-Leste is reeling after heavy rain caused severe floods and landslides over the Easter weekend, killing at least 42 people. Rates of COVID-19 in Timor-Leste are also on the rise. Together, ...
Whoopee – another first for our nation. According to the headline on a Beehive press statement, NZ becomes first in world for climate reporting. This drew attention to the announcement that New Zealand has become the first country in the world to introduce a law that requires the financial sector ...
Everyone has their own take on the best era for culture. Some think music was better in the ’70s, or theatre was better in the ’90s – but when did gaming peak? Exactly 20 years ago, argues Sam Brooks.Gaming is bigger than it’s ever been right now. Through the device ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tony Walker, Vice-chancellor’s fellow, La Trobe University When China’s ambassador to Australia, Cheng Jingye, summoned journalists to the Chinese embassy last week, this was not an occasion for polite exchanges on a troubled relationship between Beijing and Canberra. Cheng was intent on ...
“The Speaker’s attempt to pitch a new Parliamentary palace as a ‘ wooden office block ’ will not fly with taxpayers,” says Taxpayers’ Union spokesman Louis Houlbrooke. “Fundamentally, you can’t trust politicians with property projects. ...
Does New Zealand have a contemporary foreign policy, let alone a defence policy? Some of our nearest and dearest are beginning to wonder. Ambassadors in Wellington are among the world’s most discreet but word is beginning to trickle out. What is the government up to? Why does it move at ...
Six dogs have suffered broken legs at New Zealand greyhound races in the past two weeks. On Sunday, in a video broadcast by the TAB, in Race 3 at Auckland, greyhound All Day Long suffered a harrowing fall and broken leg. On the same day, at the same ...
The latest inventory of New Zealand's climate pollution shows, yet again, that the Government must take urgent action to make farming part of the climate solution, says Greenpeace. The Ministry for the Environment today released its 2019 inventory ...
Māori activist Mike Smith’s chainsaw attack on the lone pine tree atop Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill was one of the most memorable New Zealand news stories of the 1990s. In this episode of The Single Object, he explains why he did it.Late one October night in 1994, nearby residents ...
The latest cohort of school students took to the streets last week to demand climate change action. In Wellington, several thousand strikers marched to Parliament.Izzy Cook, one of the organisers, said they had their own list of demands.“Investing in a just transition to a sustainable future, reducing agricultural ...
In the latest episode of The Spinoff’s media podcast The Fold, Duncan Greive is joined by broadcasting and media minister Kris Fa’afoi to talk about the media transition and what a ‘sexy’ new public media entity might look like. Kris Faafoi is one of those rare ministers who has actually ...
Despite Aotearoa gaining international praise for its COVID-19 response, two independent reports commissioned by Te Pūtea Whakatupu Trust have found that Māori vulnerability and resilience to these large-scale crises remain largely unchanged for the past ...
The health minister’s stonewalling of any attempt to fix our woeful drug laws doesn’t only fly in the face of overseas trends, but what’s currently happening in and around our own parliament.Yesterday, more than two dozen health and social service organisations, including the NZMA, the Public Health Association and the ...
Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage. Click here to subscribe to Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup and New Zealand Politics Daily. Today’s contentMaori Party referred to Police over donations Henry Cooke (Stuff): Māori Party referred to police over ...
Covid-19 lockdowns resulted in a rise in online gambling. Kiwibank has given customers the option to block gambling transactions if they need help. A year ago, when an entire country went home and stayed home for lockdown, most of us were grappling with some kind of anxiety: about health, money, or ...
Source: Council on Hemispheric Affairs – Analysis-Reportage Laura IesueFrom Miami, Florida On March 29, 2020, Guatemala’s President Giammattei implemented an eight-day, country-wide curfew to stop the spread of COVID-19.[1] Ultimately, this lockdown would continue until October 1, 2020, as the virus continued to travel across communities.[2] While ...
Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for April 13, bringing you the latest news throughout the day. Get in touch at stewart@thespinoff.co.nzThe Spinoff can’t exist without our members. If you want to help us stay curious and keep our team across New Zealand’s breaking stories, please donate today. 7.50am: ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Deborah Gleeson, Associate Professor in Public Health, La Trobe University COVAX, the global initiative to coordinate the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines in an equitable way, is crucial for bringing the pandemic under control. But COVAX’s aim of delivering 2 billion doses to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Luise Kazda, PhD candidate, University of Sydney During my daughter’s challenging first year of school, we discovered how much effort it took her to sit and learn. She was the youngest in her class, placing her at higher risk of being diagnosed ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Cheryl Durrant, Adjunct Associate Professor, UNSW Climate change is a hot topic in Australian security circles, as it poses an emerging threat to our national resilience and way of life. As a new report from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) last ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jim Stanford, Economist and Director, Centre for Future Work, Australia Institute; Honorary Professor of Political Economy, University of Sydney Fewer than 2% of Australian employees work for the minimum wage (now $19.84 an hour). But the federal Fair Work Commission’s annual decision ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrea Waling, ARC DECRA Senior Research Fellow in Sex & Sexuality, La Trobe University The Netflix drama The One centres around a geneticist who invents a new matchmaking service. It uses DNA to help people find their romantic and sexual match: their ...
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Parties under pressure over undeclared donations, more emerges on exports to murderous militaries, and National refusing to back Climate Commission draft plans.Both the Māori Party and National are in trouble over donations that weren’t declared in time, but one of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brendan Duffy, Lecturer in Applied Geoscience, The University of Melbourne Most people know that Mount Everest is the tallest mountain but I want to know for how long it has been the tallest, and for how long in the future it ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Claire Breen, Professor of Law, University of Waikato Recent media coverage of women not being able to get treatment for birth injuries highlights yet another example of gender bias in healthcare in New Zealand. Following a policy review, the Accident Compensation Corporation ...
News highlights: Majority of experts expect rents to increase due to higher investor costs 57% disagree with extending the bright-line test All experts predict the OCR to hold at 0.25% in April Experts are concerned that tenants will cop higher rents ...
When local authorities tighten gambling regulations, player losses at the pokie machines are reduced. Around 10 percent of the New Zealand population is impacted by problem gambling. Those impacts include poor health, psychological distress, financial ...
From humble beginnings in Siberia, Taupo teenager Annabel Francis has taken the New Zealand showjumping world by storm and is on the verge of her first Olympics. There’s a couple of things which make Annabel Francis stand out in her world of showjumping. The first is physical. As her coach, ...
The government's move to make it mandatory for all testing of border workers to be recorded in a central register is being derided as months too late. ...
The future of Samoa’s next government remains in the balance as the final election votes are counted, with a weeks-long wait for a definitive result - or a legal challenge - among the possible outcomes After 39 years of one-party rule, Samoan voters may - just - have finally looked ...
Eden Park thanks Auckland councillors for their supposed 'support' for concerts at the venue, offering them free hospitality to watch the first concert. But the invite hasn't gone down well with some, as Matthew Scott reports.An offer of a free ticket for councillors to the first concert at Eden ...
We resume our series on Charlotte Grimshaw's memoir. Today: ReadingRoom literary editor Steve Braunias on navigating a friendship The fact that I'm friends with Charlotte Grimshaw as well as her parents Karl and Kay Stead, who she lovingly, persistently and ferociously hauls over the coals in her new memoir The ...
WATCH: Silver Ferns manager Esther Molloy talks about the stem cell transplant that saved her young daughter's life. Esther Molloy's dedication to the Silver Ferns is second only to her devotion to her family. And she knows the Silver Ferns always have Team Molloy's back, especially through the very tough times. ...
As QAnon adherents and Donald Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol, officials in New Zealand kept a close eye on how our alt-right community was responding and sharing content Government officials closely monitored the online activity of New Zealand's alt-right community as their American counterparts stormed the US Capitol building, as ...
Basic information on is missing, our screening programmes aren't up to scratch, and people are dying unnecessarily. Dr Peter Saxton lays out the problems with sexual health in this country. Sexual health has been making headlines. The spotlight has been on human papillomavirus (HPV), our most common sexually transmitted infection ...
Vaccinations are up and running, but are they happening fast enough, why haven’t all frontline workers had their first shot, and what about the stats? Justin Giovannetti outlines the concerns being aired.While New Zealand’s Covid-19 vaccination programme is under way, it’s already hitting some bumps on the road to July ...
News of the travel suspension on flights from India resurrects uncomfortable memories for Melanie Sharma-Barrow – and other women of Indian descent like her, she writes.Twenty-two years ago, at university, I studied “citizenship and ideology”, a course exploring how ideology feeds the principles underpinning citizenship. When I learned about the ...
COMMENT: The Royals have repeatedly indicated NZ’s constitutional future is a matter for NZ to decide. They are not afraid of the conversation – but we are. The Public Trust Office constantly reminds us of the importance of leaving our affairs in order. Can the same be said of New Zealand, as ...
While some Green MPs are enjoying their newfound political freedom, co-leader Marama Davidson is fighting the restraints that come with holding ministerial office. ...
No one would argue against a Child Protection Act - but is a register for child sex abusers actually protecting children? Urgent changes to the law on the child sex offender register mean that hundreds of convicted offenders are back on the list. But one justice rights advocate says it doesn't ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonathan Nott, Professor of Physical Geography, James Cook University Tropical Cyclone Seroja battered parts of Western Australia’s coast on Sunday night, badly damaging buildings and leaving thousands of people without power. While the full extent of the damage caused by the Category ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tamasailau Suaalii Sauni, Associate Professor in Criminology Programme, University of Auckland Samoan politics is on a knife edge. After the country voted in general elections on April 9, counting so far has resulted in a dead heat between the two major parties. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robert Wellington, Senior Lecturer, Art History and Visual Culture, Australian National University In this series we pay tribute to the art we wish could visit — and hope to see once travel restrictions are lifted. If you are a country house fanatic ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jane E Frawley, NHMRC Research Fellow, University of Technology Sydney The federal government’s recommendation last week that the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine is now the preferred vaccine for adults under 50 has shaken public confidence in the COVID-19 vaccine rollout. The Australian Technical ...
Health Minister Andrew Little has shot down calls for a swift overhaul of drug laws, saying any major change would first have to go back to a referendum. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bela Stantic, Professor, Director of Big data and smart analytics lab – IIIS, Griffith University Australia’s COVID-19 vaccination rollout has hit yet another crossroads. Public confidence has wavered following the federal government’s announcement last week that the Pfizer vaccine was the preferred ...
“It’s unacceptable the Government won’t play hardball with unions and force those employees unwilling to get a COVID vaccine to vacate MIQ premises for another 18 days,” says ACT Leader David Seymour. “Stop pussyfooting about and take the ...
A year after MIQ was established, 86 percent of workers there have been vaccinated, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says, while also signalling a state memorial service for Prince Philip. ...
New Zealand’s Ministerial engagement in the Trans Tasman GE Food Standards approval process has been silenced. The Conran review of the Council of Australian Governments COAG fora has recommended the dismantling of the Food Standards Australia New Zealand ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is about to give an update following a Cabinet meeting this afternoon as more cases emerge from an Auckland managed isolation facility. ...
Our Beehive bulletin Has anyone been keeping tabs on the number of race-based “partnerships” established by the Ardern government? Another one popped up today, proudly announced by Children’s Minister Kelvin Davis. It’s an “innovative’ as well as new Youth Justice residence “designed in partnership with Māori” to provide “prevention, healing, ...
WTB often talked about the need to understand the value of fire-resistant plants. Here's a recent piece in support of that thinking.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/rural/2021/02/how-different-plant-species-can-reduce-the-risk-of-fire-on-farm.html
This is a nice succinct analysis of the powerful grip that white evangelical Christians have over the US Republican Party.
https://edition.cnn.com/2021/02/28/politics/white-evangelicals-gop-trump/index.html
Evangelicals may be only 28% of the US electorate as a whole now, but only 3 House Republicans joined with Democrats last week to vote for the Equality Act which bans discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.
Trump's speech today to CPAC is going to be a theatrical wonder of the tropes these people adore.
And yet!
But they will punish women who have abortions and take birth control. Cause….God!
Is number 4 considered a stand alone commandment of the bible?
Or is it mixed into 5?
Seems like number 4 is very anti-photography and art and etc etc
Verses 4 thru to 6 are all part of the 2nd Commandment.
Some of the commandments have extra explanatory verses added – just to make things clear.
I put this up to show just how hypocritical this sector of the American society can be. Some in this sector look upon the chump as a Messiah! And in some sense that is precisely what he is to them. 2000 years ago the Jewish people were also looking for a Messiah. Then, after generations of oppression and exile, it meant God intervening in the world in a way in which the people couldn’t do by themselves. It would be a time of great tribulation, some kind of super-human figure out of Marvel comics would appear, who would remake the world, destroy the hostile powers (there would be a lot of blood shed) and bring down a new Jerusalem from heaven where the dispersed Jews from all over the world could return and gather. Then would follow a new age of peace and goodness that would last forever. Essentially this is how those on the religious right in America perceive the chump.
Too funny.
Now the artist behind the huge statue of Trump – Tommy Zegan – has revealed that the object was made in Mexico; a country that has been the target of much Trump racist abuse over his political career, and somewhere he has literally sought to build a wall against.
“It was made in Mexico,” Zegan told Politico’s Playbook newsletter. Zegan, who lives in Mexico on a permanent resident visa, described the transport of the monument to CPAC in full to Playbook.
Politico reported: “Zegan spent over six months crafting the 200lb fiberglass statue with the help of three men in Rosarito. He transported it to Tampa, Florida, where it was painted in chrome, then hauled it from there to CPAC.”
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/feb/27/golden-trump-statue-mexico-cpac
The PM seemed to acknowledge on RNZ today the difficulties for some people in accessing payment for personal work absence for COVID related reasons.
Surely it is time to let individuals have a go at handling this by quoting their IRD no., and organising their own direct payments through IRD. Company wide issues, such as downturns, layoffs, etc. the employer can handle. Enough employers have shown already what they think of Mr Robertson’s “high trust” model! Though to be fair, a number of prominent employers seem to have taken it more seriously as time elapses.
The NZCTU needs to be much firmer, and make it clear that employees disadvantaged for COVID related absences will be protected, by action if need be, including Employer shame listing. The Mediation Service and Employment Court are still oversubscribed with COVID related cases, according to union organisers I know.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/covid-19-coronavirus-6000-complaints-filed-against-bosses-since-first-lockdown/3RL5XL7SXAXI5ZKN3LTACU2RUM/
Even though it looks like the business are paying the price for Employees or their families playing silly buggers in lockdown?
lockdown 2 everyone was blaming the business handling frozen food, now business should be caned for working out having to pay for lockdowns 3 & 4?
Some businesses are as reliant on the government as a person who is reliant on a benefit. The employee is reliant on the employer. At some point the employer may require a job seekers benefit.
maybe it is the duty of the Government to look after people that can't work rather then the businesses?
Maybe the Government a year into covid should have set up a webpage solely for wage -replacements and covid – isolation/quarantine payments that are so easy to use that even someone with lacking literacy skills, or less then best english skills can get onto it, fill out the forms and receive a payment if the criteria applies.
In saying that, after April there will be 10 sickdays, and it will be the business costs to pay isolation costs. 10 working days = 14 days.
but sure, lets find some more fault at the majority of businesses that have done right and are doing right by their staff, that are currently trying to continue to do business under less then stellar conditions and who for their own needs were given a 13.000 grand loan to tide them over the plague years – small businesses that is. The big businesses is a different story altogether..
As for your 6000 complaints filed, as per the Government stats in Dec 2020 NZ had 2,734,00 in employment. While that does not undo the hardship that people who laid complaints have suffered, it is a fairly small number compared to he overall number of people employed.
I guess it is easier to pick and blame a business – any business to lay the fault fair and square at their feed, but frankly the valentines lockdown should have never been lifted, and frankly if it would have not been lifted, we might not be where we are today.
The incubation period is 14 – 21 days, so to lift a lockdown 3 days into an outbreak was dumb. I can get where they felt the pressure to lift it, but at this stage any lockdown period for any outbreak should be 14 days at a minimum, and even longer if the new strains behave differently then the initial strain.
And if the government finds that in the poorer areas of our country and in our cities kids go dot work because otherwise the family suffers financially then the government can finally lift benefit levels and make applying for a benefit easier and faster. Cause on that stage the government is an actor who did not show up to play.
And last, what we are also seeing is the idiocy of various governments investing pretty much solely into Auckland and now every time they lock down that one city the rest of the country suffers. Maybe they need to think about decentralizing their populations and their businesses. Just a thought.
There was no need to keep the 3 day lockdown going as all indicators pointed to it being tracked and traced and contained, but some self-entitled dickhead lied, then spread the virus for the best part of a week against all advice. Should 5 million people have their health needs, education, businesses and recreation disrupted without penalty?
Nope there was good need to keep it. Tracking and tracing is after the fact.
As per numerous articles from England, Europe and US this new strain is more contagious, affects childrens and in some cases takes longer to detect.
Track and Trace always comes after the infection. Thus its a good tool to find people after the fact, but as shown it is not a preventive tool at all.
And the 5 million people of this country need to finally understand that this is here to stay.
I had a medical specialist appointment on the 15/2, that i rescheduled for 01/3 🙂 i have now rescheduled it to the 19 April (after easter for business reasons), it is now the 4 time i am rescheduling this thing. The doc and i we will have a glass of bubblies when we finally get this done. We are all depending on the government to do the correct thing, and with this fucking virus the correct thing is 14 days of lockdown plus track n trace to eliminate any misses. And at the very least if that would be set in stone everyone could plan around it. right now it feels like we are still making it up as we go along.
Oh and that self entitled prick who “lied” and spread it could not have done if the lockdown would not have been lifted. We all know that people don’t do what they are supposed to do, heck there are people that don’t believe in this virus…..and then there are all the rich pricks that jump into their fancy cars to travel to fancy batches in the nice areas of the country when the city gets lockdown. …..
Rubbish, the longer and more onerous lockdowns are there will be less compliance even if only in numerous small contacts, and longer lockdowns would almost certainly lead to the spreading of more conspiracy theories and public displays of defiance. It is a very fine balance that the Government is seeming to do very well. But some dickhead who costs every single one of us time, freedom and the ability to earn a living should not get off without any repercussions.
Level 3 lockdown essential workers still need to go to work and childcare could be required. This cannot be excluded. Another bubble is permitted for childcare at level 3.
How about employees take a little self responsibilty and take out income protection insurance? Very cheap and tax deductible. A no brainer.
Honestly i would guess most do already. You know in case they can't work anymore. Are you saying that employers need to take out income protection insurance for their staff too?
edit. Most people that work that i know have it, but it only kicks in if you have no income for three month. So it would not apply to this scenario. But you know that? Right?
Btw, employees in NZ have no way to write anything off – they can’t even write of the cost of going to work, that is for the bosses / self employed only.
And do you really think that the South Auckland Lady that cleans the plague hotel for min wage should take out income protection insurance? Seriously?
Wrong. Employees can get a tax deduction for income protection insurance and for the cost of tax return preparation.
https://www.ird.govt.nz/income-tax/income-tax-for-individuals/types-of-individual-expenses
And wrong again. Employers and the self employed cannot claim the cost of travel to or from their work, only the costs whilst actually working.
And yes, all employees should. The premium is based on their income level so even the 'South Auckland lady' can afford it.
As regards when it pays out and how much, that is specific to the terms of the contract, just like any other insurance contract.
And why on earth should an employer pay for their employees income insurance? Whilst IPI is deductible for the employee, it is not for the employer (other than for specified 'key person' insurance).
That is great as i have never heard of this.
We have it as self employed people, but sadly my partners only kicks in after three month of unemployment. so thanks to your information i will ask him to check this out 🙂
I wonder how much a South Auckland cleaning lady on min wage has left over to spend on such an insurance once she paid rent etc, and also if she can continue to pay for such an insurance should she receive a housing benefit or such.
As for my question to the employers paying, that really was what i understood.
But for what its worth, Employees pay already for an unemployment insurance via their taxes – Paye – and they should rather get unemployment benefits then add another expense to their already meager earnings and high cost of living.
Not so simple on that tax deduction for income protection… yes you can get a deduction for your premium, but only if the payments should you claim are taxable and in many cases the claim payments won't be subject to tax. Individual circumstances will determine which is the better outcome, but sucking it up on the premiums for many will be a far better outcome..
and thanks for that bit of information too.
so you can not write of the monthly payments unless you get a payout on which you would be paying taxes? Am i understanding this correctly?
Your accountant seems to be having another bad day Sabine.
I think Peter chch is correct.
Honey, that is why I have an accountant. He is good at this shit.
It's called "PAYE".
Yes. It seems that people like to forget the inconvenient truth that employees pay their full taxes every week with no way out to minimize that take tax.
And all the support for claiming for a non-working spouse (through disability for instance) was removed years ago. I pay $5,000 more tax per year than two people earning the same amount although I have two people to support and provide for in retirement. I only wish that $5,000 could go towards retirement savings.
even worse when you pay into this scheme – national unemployment insurance via the government – aka unemployment benefit but you are denied unemployment benefits because your spouse has an income that is above an arbitrary threshold, never mind that fact of having paid into the service.
Which is exactly what has happened. Worked in a job where being assaulted for the state was part of her job – not very well paid either for the stress and trauma.
that practice should be illegal as she was clearly charged the full amount of taxes when receiving her pay check.
that literally falls under taxation without representation, and while this also applies to man, i would venture a guess that the vast majority of those in this scenario are women. Cause……
Except there will be an exclusion that covers natural disasters, wars, insurrection and pandemic. Standard on all business insurance.
By your comment you obviously don't have any business insurance yourself.
Ignoring the fact that people on middle low incomes are struggling to pay rent let alone insurance, ignoring the fact that heavily mortgaged homeowners are increasingly letting their house insurance lapse etc etc…Lets just talk about the awesomeness of Insurance policies in NZ in general..
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2019/07/01/661910/could-insurance-companies-lose-the-right-to-be-unfair
Has this actually happened yet? Or are 'we' still reviewing the options?
Personally I wouldn't call any insurance policy a "no brainer"…..do your research…and then do it again…
Employees have income protection insurance by default…its called jobseeker
They do. It is called, "paying taxes for welfare" including unemployment benefit. Much less costly than private insurance, even if we double the payments.
Also there needs to be protections for staff who get dropped from rosters rather than being given leave (or after getting leave, as a punishment)
yes, good point
The trap of viewing the world in aggregate…
"None of this is necessary to reduce the risks of a banking collapse. The Reserve Bank’s own stress-testing exercise last year showed the banks could easily handle a 40 per cent fall in house prices. Homeowners are paying a record-low six percent of their disposable incomes in mortgage payments. They could easily handle a doubling of interest rates."
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/opinion-analysis/124385961/new-zealands-economy-is-a-housing-market-with-bits-tacked-on
6% of disposable household income equates to around $95 per week….much of what Mr Hickey says is true except unfortunately his conclusions.
Thanks for that link.
"New Zealand's economy is a housing market with bits tacked on"..exactly right, it has become quite clear that this Liberal Free Market economic ideology, installed without public consent by Labour/Lange in 1984 has turned out to be in effect little more than a ponzi/pyramid scheme for the bulk of NZ citizens, using our homes as it's major currency…it's nothing less a obscenity, and one I am quite sure will be regarded by future generation as one of the most shameful periods in our short history.
Sadly it seems that neither Labour nor National have the vision, let alone the ideological drive to bring any real sanity to bear on this problem (or climate change for that matter).
I guess this is what happens when you live in a country with a ideological duopoly monopolizing the political conversation (with lots of help from a pretty lackluster media).
Bernard Hickey
“This week the idea that New Zealand Inc is just a housing market with appendages rather than real society and body politic graduated to full joke status. It’s official. This is a too-big-to-fail market and every policy, every political ambition and every investment choice must bow down before the great gods of the real estate agencies.
To prove it, the current Government, which railed against an “unsustainable” housing market in crisis while in opposition, has allowed over $200 billion of capital gain since it was elected in late 2017.
The Reserve Bank forecast this week prices are likely to have risen 51 per cent in Labour’s first two terms, delivering an extra $535b to homeowners. Tax-free.”
Turn Labour Left!
Multinational tech companies do not share the interests of local communities. We see the damage Airbnb does to the residential rental market, and now they refuse to acknowledge local Covid restrictions.
Time to kick them out of this country. Perfect opportunity to do so before tourism resumes.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/travel/auckland-airbnb-hosts-told-to-ignore-covid-alert-levels-or-face-fines/BNDM6BVRJCXXKDZVZIQ4GBK5CQ/
+1
+1,"Multinational tech companies do not share the interests of local communities." add to that list multinational banks, oil companies etc.
One of the more blatant ones is polluter Rio Tinto, does anyone really think they are going to clean up their 8500 tonnes of toxic “ouvea premix” waste in Mataura before buggering off when Governments finally stop pandering to them with taxpayer funds?
Other multinationals shaft the host country in sneakier or less obvious ways–check the Australian owned Banks–one of NZ’s biggest exports remains repatriated profits to offshore owners, particularly since 1984 when Rogernomics ushered in some of the freest in and outflows of capital allowed in the world.
Westpac 30 years ago used to have a 2% margin in borrowing in New Zealand compared to Australia. It was a bit tricky to see at times but if you took the rate of inflation in both countries and then the difference between that and the mortgage interest rate for a 30 year mortgage New Zealand always was paying 2% more.
New Zealand was seen as a cash cow.
I suspect it hasn't changed much.
Banks shutting down in small towns, Kiwibank also which seemed to copy the big boys, afraid of anything different.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/ldr/437420/mayors-nationwide-call-on-pm-for-inquiry-into-bank-closures
"Our community needs and deserves to be serviced by our only state-owned bank in a fit-for-purpose way – face-to-face, phone, internet and via an app.
"Kiwibank will need to consider more than just its economic reasons," she said.
"If the prime minister agrees to an inquiry and the inquiry highlights these negative impacts, the government should require that all major commercial banks operating in New Zealand – as part of their licence to operate – be required to provide a level of service that redresses these issues," Stoltz [Gisborne Mayor Rehette Stoltz] said.
Part of bank's value is they are a repository of cash, that handy stuff that you can spend when you have it without running up debts through credit cards, and just adding extra cards and layers of complexity to small transactions. (Cheques are gone by about July.) Society and with it all of us, is being diminished by stealth and our naivety about what is happening and its future effects is appallingly high.
Yes banks should have to provide service levels to get a banking licence ( or maybe pay a big fee if they don't have the coverage) and other banks could then tender to provide. There may even be an argument for the transaction system being operated independently of banks sort of like the ATM net so we each "own" our own bank account number and that is visible to the bank that hands out the mortgage.
Plus it is now just about impossible to transfer one off money to another named party (think tradies bills) without an online account and even with an on line account amounts for individuals are usually capped at a daily amount of around the $700 to $800 level.
Overseas online fraud is endemic ( maybe half a billion ??) in the UK last year? – not sure anyone really knows but us customers are paying for that.
All this when one of the major banks didn't notice an online criminal ring operating under it's nose in Australia.
I'm pretty sure they have like many other companies a tried and true practice of selling to another company just before closure who then goes bust and has no money to clean up.
The Patea Freezing works were the cautionary tale in this space.
In regards to Rio Tinto, what makes me annoyed is the Environment Minister is devolving responsibility to the council.
Leaving the locals to take on a multi national corporation does not sound like a fair fight.
Perhaps the government is afraid of repercussions from the TPPA (or whatever it is called now).
Multinational fast food chains, retail chains, supermarkets….
There are very few that do have New Zealand's interests at heart.
You then compound that by the fact that many buildings are now owned by out of town lawyers, accountants, property developers who do not have the local communities interests at heart and just see the locals as a means of wealth extraction.
Sigh and then there are all the bastard out of town landlords……….
This myth that New Zealand is made up of small businesses is just bullshit.
Twitter's brutal, anti-democratic censorship regime is a menace to free speech
Why on earth would this post earn a "potentially sensitive content" warning?
think global act local used to be the call. now all good men are required to come to the aid of protecting Robbies Park in the Parnell Rose Gardens. The proposal to ERECT a memorial to the crash of TE 901 is an act of gross vandalism and for some unknown reason is backed by phil goff and richard northey. hunter s. thompson would describe these two as grubby little ward heelers and that is precisely what they are. if this plan goes ahead then history will not treat them and their henchmen pippa coom, cathy casey and the rest of the gang kindly and karma will bite them badly.