Open mike 01/04/2024
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6:00 am, April 1st, 2024 - 186 comments
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- Some Reader Feedback For Your Weekend
Hi,I think we all made it through another week — congratulations. I’ve been digesting the new Arab Strap record, which is astonishing. In other news, I’m going to be doing a Webworm popup in Auckland, New Zealand on Saturday July 13. I’ll bring a bunch of merch, and some other ...1 hour ago - Thinking About the Property Rights in Resource Decisions As Well As Transaction Costs.
The Fast-Track Approvals Bill enables cabinet ministers to circumvent key environmental planning and protection processes for infrastructure projects. Its difficulties have been well canvassed. This column suggests a different way of thinking about the proposal. I am going to explore the Bill from the perspective of its proponents with their ...11 hours ago - Bryce Edwards: Can Shane Jones be trusted in making Fast-track decisions?
New Zealand First Cabinet Minister Shane Jones has become the best advertisement against the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill. In selling the radical new resource consenting processes, in which ministers can green light any mine, dam, or other major development, Jones seems to be shooting the proposal in the foot. ...13 hours ago - Seymour appeals to PPTA to call off meetings on charter schools – but does he seriously believe he...
Buzz from the Beehive Associate Education Minister David Seymour is urging the PostPrimary Teachers Association to put learning ahead of ideology. He wants the union leaders to call off their teachers meetings around the country where they hope to muster the strength to undo the government’s plans to establish several ...14 hours ago - Police don’t fight crime
What are police for? "Fighting crime" is the obvious answer. If there's a burglary, they should show up and investigate. Ditto if there's a murder or sexual assault. Speeding or drunk or dangerous driving is a crime, so obviously they should respond to that. And obviously, they should respond to ...15 hours ago - Two central banks
Michael Reddell writes – I got curious yesterday about how the Australia/New Zealand real exchange rate had changed over the last decade, and so dug out the data on the changes in the two countries’ CPIs. Over the 10 years from March 2014 to March 2024, New Zealand’s ...16 hours ago - TVNZ hīkoi documentary needs a sequel
Graham Adams writes that 20 years after the land march, judges are quietly awarding a swathe of coastal rights to iwi. Early this month, an hour-long documentary was released by TVNZ to mark the 20th anniversary of the land-rights march to oppose Helen Clark’s Foreshore and Seabed Act. The account ...16 hours ago - The missing Green MPDavid Farrar writes – The Herald reports: Suspended Green MP Darleen Tana has passed an unpleasant milestone: she has now been absent for as many parliamentary sitting days as she has been present for this year. Tana is on full pay while she is suspended, and will benefit from a ...16 hours ago
- The contest for the future heart and soul of the Labour PartyPeter Dunne writes – It is no coincidence that two Labour should-have-been MPs are making the most noise about public sector cuts. As assistant general secretary of the Public Service Association, Fleur Fitzsimons has been at the forefront of revealing where the next round of state sector job ...17 hours ago
- Lobbying for Waikato’s Medical School causing problems for the GovtBryce Edwards writes – It’s becoming a classic case study for why lobbying deals with politicians need greater scrutiny. Former National Minister Steven Joyce runs a lobbying company with a major client – the University of Waikato. The University desperately wants $300m+ of taxpayer funding to establish a ...17 hours ago
- Gordon Campbell on the psychological horror film Possession
This is one of the (extra) weekly columns on music or movies. Plenty of solid analyses of Possession exist online and most of them – inevitably – contain spoilers. This column is more in the way of a first-timer’s aid to getting your initial bearings. You don’t need to have ...18 hours ago - Portrait of a Man.
I am painting in oil, a portrait of a manWho has taken all the heart aches,And all the pain he can stand.I am using all the colors of blue,I have here on my stand.I am painting in oil, a portrait of a man.This has been an interesting week for me. ...21 hours ago - The Hoon around the week to May 17Helen Clark joins the Hoon as a special guest talking whether Aotearoa should join Aukus II, and her views on the fast track legislation and how Luxon and the new Government are performing. File Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for subscribers features co-hosts ...21 hours ago
- Weekly Roundup 17-May-2024
We’re at the end of another week. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked if the Herald’s poor journalism will cost lives On Tuesday Matt covered Wayne Brown’s proposal for public transport in the Long ...21 hours ago - Rishi’s relaunch
With an election due in less than nine months, Britain’s embattled PM, Rishi Sunak, gave a useful speech earlier this week. He made a substantial case for his government, perhaps as compelling as is possible in the current environment. Quite an achievement. His overall theme was security, first pulling ...1 day ago - Skeptical Science New Research for Week #20 2024
Open access notables Publicly expressed climate scepticism is greatest in regions with high CO2 emissions, Pearson et al., Climatic Change: We analysed a recently released corpus of climate-related tweets to examine the macro-level factors associated with public declarations of climate change scepticism. Analyses of over 2 million geo-located tweets in the U.S. showed that climate ...1 day ago - The thrilling possibilities of charter schools
You can be all negative about these charter schools if you want, but I’m here to accentuate the positive. You can get all worked up, if you want to, by the contradiction of Luxon saying We’re going to make sure that every school in the country is teaching exactly the same ...2 days ago - This Unreasonable Government.
Losing The Room: One can only speculate about what has persuaded the Coalition Government that it will pay no electoral price for unreasonably pushing ahead with policies that are so clearly against the national interest. They seem quite oblivious to the risk that by doing so they will convince an increasing ...2 days ago - Supreme Court weighs in on name suppression
Name suppression decisions can be tough sometimes. No matter your views on free speech, you have to be hard-hearted not to be torn by the tug of the competing arguments. I think you can feel the Supreme Court wrestling with that in M v The King. The case for ...2 days ago - Is This A “Merchants” Government?The Merchants of Menace: The Coalition Government has convinced itself that the “Brahmins’” emollient functions have become much too irksome and expensive. Those who see themselves as the best hope of rebuilding New Zealand’s ailing capitalist system, appear to have convinced themselves that a little bit of blunt trauma is what their mollycoddled ...2 days ago
- This is what corruption looks likeWhen National first proposed its Muldoonist "fast-track" law, they were warned that it would inevitably lead to corruption. And that is exactly what has happened, with Resources Minister Shane Jones taking secret meetings with potential applicants: On Tuesday, in a Newsroom story, questions were raised about a dinner Jones ...2 days ago
- Take that, Vladimir – and be warned: we have plenty more sanctions (at least, we hope so) in our ...Buzz from the Beehive One day – hopefully – we will push that Russian rascal, Vladimir Putin, beyond breaking point. Perhaps it will happen today, when he learns that Foreign Minister Winston Peters is again tightening the thumbscrews. Peters announced further sanctions, this time on 28 individuals and 14 entities ...2 days ago
- More Harm Than Good.How Labour’s and National’s failure to move beyond neoliberalism has brought New Zealand to the brink of economic and cultural chaos.TO START LOSING, so soon after you won, requires a special kind of political incompetence. At the heart of this Coalition Government’s failure to retain, and build upon, the public ...2 days ago
- The Ombudsman fails againIn 2020, the Operation Burnham inquiry reported back, finding that NZDF had lied to Ministers and the New Zealand public about its actions in Afghanistan. The inquiry saw a large number of documents declassified and released, which raised another problem: whether they had also lied to the Ombudsman in his ...2 days ago
- No Time To Think: Ageing Boomers, Laurie & Les, Talk Politics.“Members of Parliament don’t work for us, they represent us, an entirely different thing. As with so much that has turned out badly, the re-organising of MPs’ responsibilities began with the Fourth Labour Government. That’s when they began to be treated like employees – public servants – whose diaries had ...2 days ago
- Bryce Edwards: Lobbying for Waikato’s Medical School causing problems for the GovtIt’s becoming a classic case study for why lobbying deals with politicians need greater scrutiny. Former National Minister Steven Joyce runs a lobbying company with a major client – the University of Waikato. The University desperately wants $300m+ of taxpayer funding to establish a third medical school in New Zealand, ...2 days ago
- Picking Sides.2 days ago
- Universities offer course in self-serving cowardiceHenry Ergas writes – When in Randall Jarrell’s Pictures from an Institution, a college president is accused of being a hypocrite, the novel’s narrator retorts that the description is grossly unfair. After all, the man is still far from the stage of moral development at which the charge ...2 days ago
- The teacher trainee challengeDavid Farrar writes – Radio NZ reports: The Education Review Office says too many new teachers feel poorly prepared for their jobs. In a report published on Monday, the review office said 60 percent of the principals it interviewed said their new teachers were not ready. ...2 days ago
- Words and (in)actionsNew Zealand’s economic performance and the PM’s vision Michael Reddell writes – When I wrote yesterday morning’s post, highlighting how poorly both New Zealand and its Anglo peer countries have been doing in respect of productivity in recent times (ie, in the case of New ...2 days ago
- What do you hope for/fear from the budget?
Hi all,Firstly - thank you! You guys are awesome. The response I’ve received to last night’s mail has been quite overwhelming. It’s a ghastly day outside, but there are no clouds in here.In case you didn’t read my email and are wondering what on earth I’m talking about you can ...2 days ago - Gordon Campbell on ACT’s charter schools experimentIf there was still any doubt as to who is actually running this government – and it isn’t the buffoon from Botany – then this week’s announcement of a huge spend up on charter schools has settled the matter. While jobs and public services continue to be cut in the ...2 days ago
- Drought fuels wildfire concerns as Canada braces for another intense summerThis is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Gaye Taylor As widespread drought raises expectations for a repeat of last year’s ferocious wildfire season, response teams across Canada are grappling with the rapidly changing face of fire in a warming climate. No longer quenched by winter, nor quelled by the ...2 days ago
- Bernard’s Dawn Chorus and pick ‘n’ mix for Thursday, May 16
Half of Christchurch City Holdings Ltd’s directors and its chair resigned en masse last night in protest at Christchurch City Council’s demand to front-load dividends File Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The chair of Christchurch City Council’s investment company and four of its independent directors resigned in protest last ...2 days ago - Controversial proposal could threaten coalitionThe University of Waikato has reworded an advertisement that begins the tender process for its new $300 million-plus medical school even though the Government still needs to approve it. However, even the reworded ad contains an architect’s visualisations of what the school might look like. ACT leader David Seymour told ...2 days ago
- Of Rings of Power Annatar, Dramatic Irony, and Disguises
As a follow-up to the Rings of Power trailer discussion, I thought I needed to add something. There has been some online mockery about the use of the same actor for both the Halbrand and Annatar incarnations of Sauron. The reasoning is that Halbrand with a shave and a new ...2 days ago - The future of Nick's Kōrero.
This isn’t quite as dramatic as the title might suggest. I’m not going anywhere, but there is something I wanted to talk to you about.Let’s start with a typical day.Most days I send out a newsletter in the morning. If I’ve written a lot the previous evening it might be ...2 days ago - The PM promises tax relief in the Budget – but will it be enough to satisfy the Taxpayers’ Union...Buzz from the Beehive The promise of tax relief loomed large in his considerations when the PM delivered a pre-Budget speech to the Auckland Business Chamber. The job back in Wellington is getting government spending back under control, he said, bandying figures which show that in per capita terms, the ...3 days ago
- Fucking uselessYesterday de facto Prime Minister David Seymour announced that his glove puppet government would be re-introducing charter schools, throwing $150 million at his pet quacks, donors and cronies and introducing an entire new government agency to oversee them (the existing Education Review Office, which actually knows how to review schools, ...3 days ago
- Setting things straight.
Seeing that, in order to discredit the figures and achieve moral superiority while attempting to deflect attention away from the military assault on Rafa, Israel supporters in NZ have seized on reports that casualty numbers in Gaza may be inflated … Continue reading ...3 days ago - Far too light a sentenceDavid Farrar writes – Newstalk ZB report: The man responsible for a horror hit and run in central Wellington last year was on a suspended licence and was so drunk he later asked police, “Did I kill someone?” Jason Tuitama injured two women when he ran a red ...3 days ago
- Unwinding Labour’s AgendaMuriel Newman writes – Former US President Ronald Reagan once said, “Freedom is a fragile thing and it’s never more than one generation away from extinction. It is not ours by way of inheritance; it must be fought for and defended constantly by each generation.” The fight for ...3 days ago
- Sequel to “Real reason Waitangi Tribunal could not summons Chhour”Why Courts should have said Waitangi Tribunal could not summons Karen Chhour Gary Judd writes – In the High Court, Justice Isacs declined to uphold the witness summons issued by the Waitangi Tribunal to compel Minister for Children, Karen Chhour, to appear before it to be ...3 days ago
- The Govt’s Fast-Track is being demolished by submissions to ParliamentBryce Edwards writes – The number of voices raising concerns about the Government’s Fast-Track Approvals Bill is rapidly growing. This is especially apparent now that Parliament’s select committee is listening to submissions from the public to evaluate the proposed legislation. Twenty-seven thousand submissions have been made to Parliament ...3 days ago
- A generation is leaving at a rate of one A320-load per day3 days ago
- NZUP RORS back to lifeThe government has made it abundantly clear they’re addicted to the smell of new asphalt. On Tuesday they introduced a new term to the country’s roading lexicon, the Roads of Regional Significance (RoRS), a little brother for the Roads of National (Party) Significance (RoNS). Driving ahead with Roads of Regional ...3 days ago
- School Is Out.
School is outAnd I walk the empty hallwaysI walk aloneAlone as alwaysThere's so many lucky penniesLying on the floorBut where the hell are all the lucky peopleI can't see them any moreYesterday morning, I’d just sent out my newsletter on Tama Potaka, and I was struggling to make the coffee. ...3 days ago - How Are You Doing?
Hi,I wanted to check in and ask how you’re doing.This is perhaps a selfish act, of attempting to find others feeling a similar way to me — that is to say, a little hopeless at the moment.Misery loves company, that sort of deal.Some context.I wish I could say I got ...3 days ago - The Rings of Power: Season Two Teaser Trailer
I have hitherto been fairly quiet on the new season of Rings of Power, on the basis that the underwhelming first season did not exactly build excitement – and the rumours were fairly daft. The only real thing of substance to come out has been that they have re-cast Adar ...3 days ago - At a glance – What ended the Little ice Age?On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...3 days ago
- Talking Reo with the PM
“The thing is,” Chris Luxon says, leaning forward to make his point, “this has always been my thing.”“This goes all the way back to the first multinational I worked for. I was saying exactly the same thing back then. The name of our business needs to be more clear; people ...4 days ago - Waitangi Tribunal’s authority in Chhour case is upheld – but bill’s introduction to Parliament...Buzz from the Beehive It’s been a momentous few days for Children’s Minister Karen Chhour. The Court of Appeal has overturned a High Court decision which blocked a summons order from the Waitangi Tribunal for her. And today she has announced the Government is putting children first by introducing to ...4 days ago
- Australia jails another whistleblowerIn 2014 former Australian army lawyer David McBride leaked classified military documents about Australian war crimes to the ABC. Dubbed "The Afghan Files", the documents led to an explosive report on Australian war crimes, the disbanding of an entire SAS unit, and multiple ongoing prosecutions. The journalist who wrote the ...4 days ago
- Some “scrutiny”!Back in February I blogged about another secret OIA "consultation" by the Ministry of Justice. This one was on Aotearoa's commitment in its Open Government Partnership Action Plan to "strengthen scrutiny of Official Information Act exemption clauses in legislation" (AKA secrecy clauses). Their consultation paper on the issue focused on ...4 days ago
- TVNZ is loss-making, serves no public service due to bias, and should be liquidatedRob MacCulloch writes – According to the respected Pew Research Centre, “In seven of eight [European] countries surveyed, the most trusted news outlet asked about is the public news organization in each country”. For example, “in Sweden, an overwhelming majority (90%) say they trust the public broadcaster SVT”. ...4 days ago
- The conflicted Covid ChairDavid Farrar writes – Kata MacNamara reports: Details of Tony Blakely’s involvement in the New Zealand Government’s response to the pandemic raise serious questions about the work of the Covid-19 Royal Commission of Inquiry over which he presides. It has long been clear that Blakely, a ...4 days ago
- Attacking the smartest and most resilient people in the room is never a good ideaChris Trotter writes – Are you a Brahmin or a Merchant? Or, are you merely one of those whose lives are profoundly influenced by the decisions of Brahmins and Merchants? Those are the questions that are currently shaping the politics of New Zealand and the entire West. ...4 days ago
- A fortune-telling failure, surely, if the tarot cards can’t see a bulldozer comingRNZ reports – It’s supposed to be a haven of healing and spiritual awakening but residents of the Kawai Purapura community say they’ve been hurt and deceived. It’s the successor to the former Centrepoint commune, and has been on the bush block opposite Albany shopping centre since 2008. It ...4 days ago
- The climate battleground heats up
TL;DR : Here’s the top six items climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, as selected by Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer. Usually we have a video chat to go with this wrap, but were unable to do one this week. We’ll be back next week.Several reports ...4 days ago - Bernard’ s Dawn Chorus & Pick ‘n’ Mix for Tuesday, May 14The Transport Minister has set a hard 'fiscal envelope' of $6.54 billion for transport capital spending. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The economy is settling into a state of suspended animation as the Government’s funding freezes and job cuts chill confidence and combine with stubbornly high interest rates to ...4 days ago
- Gordon Campbell on why anti-Zionism is not anti-SemiticTo be precise, the term “anti- Zionism” refers to (a) criticism of the political movement that created a modern Jewish state on the historical land of Israel, and to (b)the subjugation of Palestinians by the Israeli state. By contrast, the term “anti-Semitism” means bigotry and racism directed at Jewish people, ...4 days ago
- Climate change is making hurricanes more destructiveThis is a re-post from the Climate Brink by Andrew Dessler Because hurricanes are one of the big-ticket weather disasters that humanity has to face, climate misinformers spend a lot of effort muddying the waters on whether climate change is making hurricanes more damaging. With the official start to the hurricane ...4 days ago
- Wayne Brown’s PT PlanYesterday the Mayor released what he calls his “plan to save public transport” which is part of his final proposal for the Council’s Long Term Plan (LTP). This comes following consultation on the draft version that occurred in March which showed, once again, that people want more done on transport, especially ...4 days ago
- Potaka's Private Universe.
And it's a pleasure that I have knownAnd it's a treasure that I have gainedAotearoa’s coalition government is fragile. It’s held together by the obsequious sycophancy of Christopher Luxon, who willingly contorts his party into the fringe positions of his junior coalition partners and is unwilling to contradict them. The ...4 days ago - Our slow regional councilsThe Select Committee hearing submissions on the fast-track consenting legislation is starting to become a beat-up of regional councils. The inflexibility and slow workings of the Councils were prominent in two submissions yesterday. One, from the Coromandel Marine Farmers Association, simply said that the Waikato Regional Council’s planning decisions were ...4 days ago
- Ministers are not above the law after allBack in April, the High Court surprised everyone by ruling that Ministers are above the law, at least as far as the Waitangi Tribunal is concerned. The reason for this ruling was "comity" - the idea that the different branches of government shouldn't interfere with each other's functions. Which makes ...5 days ago
- NZTA takes the wheel after govt gives it the road map for regional roads (and puts a speed governor ...Buzz from the Beehive Tolling was mentioned when Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced the government was re-introducing the Roads of National Significance (RoNS) programme, with 15 “crucial” projects to support economic growth and regional development across New Zealand. All RoNS would be four-laned, grade-separated highways, and all funding, financing, and ...5 days ago
- Change in Catalonia?or the past 14 years, ever since the Spanish government cheated on an autonomy deal, Catalonia has reliably given pro-independence parties a majority of seats in their regional parliament. But now that seems to be over. Catalans went to the polls yesterday, and stripped the Catalan parties of their majority. ...5 days ago
- Having an enrolment date is not depriving anyone of a voteDavid Farrar writes – Radio NZ report: Labour Party leader Chris Hipkins said the Electoral Commission should make sure the system ran smoothly and “taking away the right of thousands of people to vote” was not the answer. “Thousands of people enroled and voted on the day. If ...5 days ago
- Perhaps house prices don’t always go upDon Brash writes – There was a rather revealing headline in the Herald on Sunday today (12 May). It read “One in 8 Auckland homes on market were bought during boom, may now sell for loss”. The first line of text noted that “New data shows one in ...5 days ago
- Can’t read, can’t write, can’t comprehend – and won’t think…?Mike Grimshaw writes – At a time when universities are understandably nervous regarding the establishment of the University Advisory Group (UAG) and the Science System Advisory Group (SSAG) it may seem strange – or even fool-hardy – to state that there are long-standing issues in the tertiary sector ...5 days ago
- Time for some perspectiveLindsay Mitchell writes – A lack of perspective can make something quite large or important seem small or irrelevant. Against a backdrop of high-profile, negative statistics it is easy to overlook the positive. For instance, the fact that 64 percent of Maori are employed is rarely reported. For ...5 days ago
- Will NZ Herald’s ‘poor journalism’ cost lives?Earlier this year, the Herald ran a series of articles amounting to a sustained campaign against raised pedestrian crossings, by reporter Bernard Orsman. A key part of that campaign concerned the raised crossings being installed as part of the Pt Chevalier to Westmere project, with at least 10 articles over ...5 days ago
- The Kaka’s diary for the week to May 19 and beyond
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to May 19 include:PM Christopher Luxon is expected to hold his weekly post-cabinet news conference at 4:00pm on Monday.Parliament is not sitting this week. It resumes next week for a two-week sitting session up to and ...5 days ago - Webworm Popup Photos!
Hi,Thanks to all the beautiful Worms who came to the LA Webworm popup on Saturday.It was a way to celebrate the online store we launched last week — and it was super special.As I talk about a lot, I really value our community here — and it was a BLAST ...5 days ago
- Release: 4,500 jobs lost – and counting
More than 4,500 jobs are set to go as the National Government continues its deep cuts to services to pay for irresponsible and ill-timed tax cuts. ...21 hours ago - No-cause evictions leave no hope for renters
The Government’s introduction of legislation that would enable landlords to end tenancies with no reason marks a dark day for the 1.4 million people who rent their home in Aotearoa. ...1 day ago - Release: National winding back mental health workThe Minister for Mental Health has found the Suicide Prevention Office and mental health support for 111 calls slipping through his fingers, says Labour spokesperson for Mental Health Ingrid Leary. ...3 days ago
- Government ignorant of evidence in neglect of tamarikiToday’s justification from the Minister for Children for scrapping protections for our tamariki was either a case of ignorance or deliberate deception. ...4 days ago
- Gang policy setting communities up for failureThe Green Party says the Government’s misguided policy on gangs will fail, following the announcement of the establishment of a national gang unit and district gang disruption units to target gang activities. ...4 days ago
- Statement from police spokesperson Ginny Andersen“With Police pay negotiations still unresolved after six months in Government, Mark Mitchell has today rolled the Commissioner out for a rebrand of their approach to gang crime,” Labour police spokesperson Ginny Andersen said. ...4 days ago
- Charter schools not a serious solutionWe need serious investment and solutions into our education system, not a vanity project from David Seymour. ...4 days ago
- Release: Ideological charter schools won’t increase achievementThe Government bringing back 50 charter schools will not increase achievement and is a distraction from the core mission of the education system, Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...4 days ago
- Release: Visas needed for Palestinians with family in New ZealandThe Government must show some compassion and create a special visa to allow Palestinians with family in New Zealand to be reunited with them here. ...4 days ago
- Release: Govt’s stubbornness will harm Māori childrenGovernment has remained stubborn and is ramming its Bill into the House today, which the Waitangi Tribunal has said will hurt vulnerable children. ...5 days ago
- ‘Lucky dip’ process too casual for hearing critical submissions on Fast Track approvals billTe Pāti Māori is showing extreme concern over the Environment Select Committees adoption of a lucky dip draw to determine hearings for the Fast Track Approvals bill. Of the 27,000 submissions, 2,900 requested to present. All organisations will be heard; however, the remaining 2,350 submitters will be subject to a ...5 days ago
- New Zealand First Member’s Bill to protect women’s spaces
Today New Zealand First will introduce a Member’s Bill that will protect women’s spaces. The ‘Fair Access to Bathrooms Bill’ will require, primarily in the interest and safety of women and girls, that all new non-domestic publicly accessible buildings provide separate, clearly demarcated, unisex and single sex bathrooms. This Bill ...1 week ago - Release: Support for climate adaptation inquiryLabour supports a Notice of Motion in the House today to move the Finance and Expenditure Committee to conduct an inquiry on climate adaptation. ...1 week ago
- Greens welcome cross-party approach to climate adaptationThe Green Party is welcoming Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ continuation of Hon. James Shaw’s cross-party work on climate adaptation, now in the form of a Finance and Expenditure Committee Inquiry. ...1 week ago
- Release: Sexual violence prevention among hundreds of job cuts at ACCThe National Government plans to cut 390 jobs at ACC, including roles in the areas of prevention of sexual violence, road safety and workplace safety. ...1 week ago
- Government shows allergy to evidence in benefits crackdownThe Government has been caught in opposition to evidence once again as it looks to usher in tried, tested and failed work seminar obligations for job-seeking beneficiaries. ...1 week ago
- Minister of Finance reheats austerity politicsThis morning’s pre-Budget speech from the Minister of Finance offered no “meaningful” news on the Government’s trickle-down economics based plans. ...1 week ago
- A win for Wellington – Greens welcome more housingThe Green Party is welcoming the announcement by the Minister Responsible for RMA Reform Chris Bishop to approve most of the Wellington City Council’s District Plan recommendations. ...1 week ago
- Release: Backtrack on school lunches a win for Kiwi kidsDavid Seymour has failed to get the sweeping cuts he wanted to the free and healthy school lunch programme, Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...1 week ago
- Release: Hon Willie Jackson to debate at the Prestigious Oxford UnionHon Willie Jackson has been invited by the Oxford Union to debate the motion “This House Believes British Museums are not Very British’ on May 23rd. ...1 week ago
- Members Bill will prevent Māori land confiscationsGreen Party MP Hūhana Lyndon says her Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill is an opportunity to right some past wrongs around the alienation of Māori land. ...2 weeks ago
- TIKANGA IS NOT LAW. IT IS CULTURAL INDOCTRINATION.A senior, highly respected King’s Counsel with decades of experience in our law courts, Gary Judd KC, has filed a complaint about compulsory tikanga Māori studies for law students - highlighting the utter depths of absurdity this woke cultural madness has taken our society. The tikanga regulations will compel law ...2 weeks ago
- Release: National won’t commit to full Nelson Hospital upgradeThe Government needs to be clear with the people of the Nelson Marlborough region about the changes it is considering for the Nelson Hospital rebuild, Labour health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall said. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Labour calls for fast track list to be releasedMinisters must front up about which projects it will push through under its Fast Track Approvals legislation, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: National gaslights women fighting for equal payNational has scrapped the pay equity taskforce that fights for equal pay for women and looks at ethnic pay gaps. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: More job cuts, fewer houses under NationalThe Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Children fall deeper through the cracks in Govt cutsWith Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Labour honours memory of Sir Robert MartinThe Labour Party is saddened to learn of the death of Sir Robert Martin, a globally renowned disability advocate who led the way for disability rights both in New Zealand and internationally. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: 130,000 cattle saved from live exportLabour is calling for the Government to urgently rethink its coalition commitment to restart live animal exports, Labour animal welfare spokesperson Rachel Boyack said. ...2 weeks ago
- Central Bank makes clear Government is pouring fuel on housing crisis fireToday’s Financial Stability Report has once again highlighted that poverty and deep inequality are political choices - and this Government is choosing to make them worse. ...2 weeks ago
- New unemployment figures paint bleak pictureThe Green Party is calling on the Government to do more for our households in most need as unemployment rises and the cost of living crisis endures. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: National’s job cuts already starting to bite as unemployment risesUnemployment is on the rise and it’s only going to get worse under this Government, Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said. Stats NZ figures show the unemployment rate grew to 4.3 percent in the March quarter from 4 percent in the December quarter. “This is the second rise in unemployment ...2 weeks ago
- Release: National hiking transport costs for families and young New ZealandersWeekly expenses will grow for more than 1.6 million New Zealanders as the Government ends free and half price public transport fares tomorrow. ...3 weeks ago
- Release: Labour welcomes EU free trade agreementThe New Zealand Labour Party welcomes the entering into force of the European Union and New Zealand free trade agreement. This agreement opens the door for a huge increase in trade opportunities with a market of 450 million people who are high value discerning consumers of New Zealand goods and ...3 weeks ago
- Surprise: Landlord tax cuts don’t trickle downThe Green Party is renewing its call for rent controls following reports of rental prices hitting an all-time high. ...3 weeks ago
- Release: $1.7b for no increase in access to medicineThe National-led Government continues its fiscal jiggery pokery with its Pharmac announcement today, Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall says. “The government has increased Pharmac funding but conceded it will only make minimal increases in access to medicine”, said Ayesha Verrall “This is far from the bold promises made to fund ...3 weeks ago
- Release: National should heed Tribunal warning and scrap coalition commitment with ACTThis afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...3 weeks ago
- Release: More accountability for preventable workplace deaths this Workers’ Memorial DayLabour is calling for more accountability for preventable workplace deaths because everybody who goes to work deserves to come home safely. ...3 weeks ago
- DJ Fred Again – Assurance report received
"On the 27th of March, I sought assurances from the Chief Executive, Department of Internal Affairs, that the Department’s correct processes and policies had been followed in regards to a passport application which received media attention,” says Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden. “I raised my concerns after being ...13 hours ago - District Court Judges appointedAttorney-General Judith Collins has announced the appointment of three new District Court Judges, to replace Judges who have recently retired. Peter James Davey of Auckland has been appointed a District Court Judge with a jury jurisdiction to be based at Whangarei. Mr Davey initially started work as a law clerk/solicitor with ...17 hours ago
- Unions should put learning ahead of ideologyAssociate Education Minister David Seymour is calling on the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) to put ideology to the side and focus on students’ learning, in reaction to the union holding paid teacher meetings across New Zealand about charter schools. “The PPTA is disrupting schools up and down the ...18 hours ago
- Craig Stobo appointed as chair of FMACommerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly today announced the appointment of Craig Stobo as the new chair of the Financial Markets Authority (FMA). Mr Stobo takes over from Mark Todd, whose term expired at the end of April. Mr Stobo’s appointment is for a five-year term. “The FMA plays ...18 hours ago
- Budget 2024 invests in lifeguards and coastguardSurf Life Saving New Zealand and Coastguard New Zealand will continue to be able to keep people safe in, on, and around the water following a funding boost of $63.644 million over four years, Transport Minister Simeon Brown and Associate Transport Minister Matt Doocey say. “Heading to the beach for ...20 hours ago
- New Zealand and Tuvalu reaffirm close relationshipNew Zealand and Tuvalu have reaffirmed their close relationship, Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters says. “New Zealand is committed to working with Tuvalu on a shared vision of resilience, prosperity and security, in close concert with Australia,” says Mr Peters, who last visited Tuvalu in 2019. “It is my pleasure ...2 days ago
- New Zealand calls for calm, constructive dialogue in New CaledoniaNew Zealand is gravely concerned about the situation in New Caledonia, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The escalating situation and violent protests in Nouméa are of serious concern across the Pacific Islands region,” Mr Peters says. “The immediate priority must be for all sides to take steps to de-escalate the ...2 days ago
- New Zealand welcomes Samoa Head of StatePrime Minister Christopher Luxon met today with Samoa’s O le Ao o le Malo, Afioga Tuimalealiifano Vaaletoa Sualauvi II, who is making a State Visit to New Zealand. “His Highness and I reflected on our two countries’ extensive community links, with Samoan–New Zealanders contributing to all areas of our national ...2 days ago
- Island Direct eligible for SuperGold Card fundingTransport Minister Simeon Brown has announced that he has approved Waiheke Island ferry operator Island Direct to be eligible for SuperGold Card funding, paving the way for a commercial agreement to bring the operator into the scheme. “Island Direct started operating in November 2023, offering an additional option for people ...2 days ago
- Further sanctions against RussiaForeign Minister Winston Peters today announced further sanctions on 28 individuals and 14 entities providing military and strategic support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. “Russia is directly supported by its military-industrial complex in its illegal aggression against Ukraine, attacking its sovereignty and territorial integrity. New Zealand condemns all entities and ...2 days ago
- One year on from Loafers LodgeA year on from the tragedy at Loafers Lodge, the Government is working hard to improve building fire safety, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “I want to share my sincere condolences with the families and friends of the victims on the anniversary of the tragic fire at Loafers ...2 days ago
- Pre-Budget speech to Auckland Business ChamberKa nui te mihi kia koutou. Kia ora and good afternoon, everyone. Thank you so much for having me here in the lead up to my Government’s first Budget. Before I get started can I acknowledge: Simon Bridges – Auckland Business Chamber CEO. Steve Jurkovich – Kiwibank CEO. Kids born ...3 days ago
- New Zealand and Vanuatu to deepen collaborationNew Zealand and Vanuatu will enhance collaboration on issues of mutual interest, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “It is important to return to Port Vila this week with a broad, high-level political delegation which demonstrates our deep commitment to New Zealand’s relationship with Vanuatu,” Mr Peters says. “This ...3 days ago
- Penk travels to Peru for trade meetingsMinister for Land Information, Chris Penk will travel to Peru this week to represent New Zealand at a meeting of trade ministers from the Asia-Pacific region on behalf of Trade Minister Todd McClay. The annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Ministers Responsible for Trade meeting will be held on 17-18 May ...3 days ago
- Minister attends global education conferencesMinister of Education Erica Stanford will head to the United Kingdom this week to participate in the 22nd Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers (CCEM) and the 2024 Education World Forum (EWF). “I am looking forward to sharing this Government’s education priorities, such as introducing a knowledge-rich curriculum, implementing an evidence-based ...3 days ago
- Education Minister thanks outgoing NZQA ChairMinister of Education Erica Stanford has today thanked outgoing New Zealand Qualifications Authority Chair, Hon Tracey Martin. “Tracey Martin tendered her resignation late last month in order to take up a new role,” Ms Stanford says. Ms Martin will relinquish the role of Chair on 10 May and current Deputy ...3 days ago
- Joint statement of Christopher Luxon and Emmanuel Macron: Launch of the Christchurch Call FoundationNew Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and President Emmanuel Macron of France today announced a new non-governmental organisation, the Christchurch Call Foundation, to coordinate the Christchurch Call’s work to eliminate terrorist and violent extremist content online. This change gives effect to the outcomes of the November 2023 Call Leaders’ Summit, ...4 days ago
- Panel announced for review into disability servicesDistinguished public servant and former diplomat Sir Maarten Wevers will lead the independent review into the disability support services administered by the Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha. The review was announced by Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston a fortnight ago to examine what could be done to strengthen the ...4 days ago
- Minister welcomes Police gang unitToday’s announcement by Police Commissioner Andrew Coster of a National Gang Unit and district Gang Disruption Units will help deliver on the coalition Government’s pledge to restore law and order and crack down on criminal gangs, Police Minister Mark Mitchell says. “The National Gang Unit and Gang Disruption Units will ...4 days ago
- New Zealand expresses regret at North Korea’s aggressive rhetoricForeign Minister Winston Peters has today expressed regret at North Korea’s aggressive rhetoric towards New Zealand and its international partners. “New Zealand proudly stands with the international community in upholding the rules-based order through its monitoring and surveillance deployments, which it has been regularly doing alongside partners since 2018,” Mr ...4 days ago
- New Chief of Defence Force appointedAir Vice-Marshal Tony Davies MNZM is the new Chief of Defence Force, Defence Minister Judith Collins announced today. The Chief of Defence Force commands the Navy, Army and Air Force and is the principal military advisor to the Defence Minister and other Ministers with relevant portfolio responsibilities in the defence ...4 days ago
- Government puts children first by repealing 7AALegislation to repeal section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act has been introduced to Parliament. The Bill’s introduction reaffirms the Coalition Government’s commitment to the safety of children in care, says Minister for Children, Karen Chhour. “While section 7AA was introduced with good intentions, it creates a conflict for Oranga ...4 days ago
- Defence Minister to meet counterparts in UK, ItalyDefence Minister Judith Collins will this week travel to the UK and Italy to meet with her defence counterparts, and to attend Battles of Cassino commemorations. “I am humbled to be able to represent the New Zealand Government in Italy at the commemorations for the 80th anniversary of what was ...4 days ago
- Charter schools to lift educational outcomesThe upcoming Budget will include funding for up to 50 charter schools to help lift declining educational performance, Associate Education Minister David Seymour announced today. $153 million in new funding will be provided over four years to establish and operate up to 15 new charter schools and convert 35 state ...4 days ago
- COVID-19 Inquiry terms of reference consultation results received“The results of the public consultation on the terms of reference for the Royal Commission into COVID-19 Lessons has now been received, with results indicating over 13,000 submissions were made from members of the public,” Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden says. “We heard feedback about the extended lockdowns in ...4 days ago
- The Pacific family of nations – the changing security outlookForeign Minister, Defence Minister, other Members of Parliament Acting Chief of Defence Force, Secretary of Defence Distinguished Guests Defence and Diplomatic Colleagues Ladies and Gentlemen, Good afternoon, tēna koutou, apinun tru It’s a pleasure to be back in Port Moresby today, and to speak here at the Kumul Leadership ...4 days ago
- NZ and Papua New Guinea to work more closely togetherHealth, infrastructure, renewable energy, and stability are among the themes of the current visit to Papua New Guinea by a New Zealand political delegation, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “Papua New Guinea carries serious weight in the Pacific, and New Zealand deeply values our relationship with it,” Mr Peters ...5 days ago
- Driving ahead with Roads of Regional SignificanceThe coalition Government is launching Roads of Regional Significance to sit alongside Roads of National Significance as part of its plan to deliver priority roading projects across the country, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The Roads of National Significance (RoNS) built by the previous National Government are some of New Zealand’s ...5 days ago
- New Zealand congratulates new Solomon Islands governmentA high-level New Zealand political delegation in Honiara today congratulated the new Government of Solomon Islands, led by Jeremiah Manele, on taking office. “We are privileged to meet the new Prime Minister and members of his Cabinet during his government’s first ten days in office,” Deputy Prime Minister and ...5 days ago
- New Zealand supports UN Palestine resolutionNew Zealand voted in favour of a resolution broadening Palestine’s participation at the United Nations General Assembly overnight, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The resolution enhances the rights of Palestine to participate in the work of the UN General Assembly while stopping short of admitting Palestine as a full ...1 week ago
- Speech to the 2024 Infrastructure SymposiumIntroduction Good morning. It’s a great privilege to be here at the 2024 Infrastructure Symposium. I was extremely happy when the Prime Minister asked me to be his Minister for Infrastructure. It is one of the great barriers holding the New Zealand economy back from achieving its potential. Building high ...1 week ago
- $571 million for Defence pay and projectsDefence Minister Judith Collins today announced the upcoming Budget will include new funding of $571 million for Defence Force pay and projects. “Our servicemen and women do New Zealand proud throughout the world and this funding will help ensure we retain their services and expertise as we navigate an increasingly ...1 week ago
- Climate change – mitigating the risks and costsNew Zealand’s ability to cope with climate change will be strengthened as part of the Government’s focus to build resilience as we rebuild the economy, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “An enduring and long-term approach is needed to provide New Zealanders and the economy with certainty as the climate ...1 week ago
- Getting new job seekers on the pathway to workJobseeker beneficiaries who have work obligations must now meet with MSD within two weeks of their benefit starting to determine their next step towards finding a job, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “A key part of the coalition Government’s plan to have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker ...1 week ago
- Accelerating Social InvestmentA new standalone Social Investment Agency will power-up the social investment approach, driving positive change for our most vulnerable New Zealanders, Social Investment Minister Nicola Willis says. “Despite the Government currently investing more than $70 billion every year into social services, we are not seeing the outcomes we want for ...1 week ago
- Getting Back on TrackCheck against delivery Good morning. It is a pleasure to be with you to outline the Coalition Government’s approach to our first Budget. Thank you Mark Skelly, President of the Hutt Valley Chamber of Commerce, together with your Board and team, for hosting me. I’d like to acknowledge His Worship ...1 week ago
- NZ – European Union ties more critical than everYour Excellency Ambassador Meredith, Members of the Diplomatic Corps and Ambassadors from European Union Member States, Ministerial colleagues, Members of Parliament, and other distinguished guests, Thank you everyone for joining us. Ladies and gentlemen - In diplomacy, we often speak of ‘close’ and ‘long-standing’ relations. ...1 week ago
- Therapeutic Products Act to be repealedThe Therapeutic Products Act (TPA) will be repealed this year so that a better regime can be put in place to provide New Zealanders safe and timely access to medicines, medical devices and health products, Associate Health Minister Casey Costello announced today. “The medicines and products we are talking about ...1 week ago
- Decisions on Wellington City Council’s District PlanThe Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop, today released his decision on twenty recommendations referred to him by the Wellington City Council relating to its Intensification Planning Instrument, after the Council rejected those recommendations of the Independent Hearings Panel and made alternative recommendations. “Wellington notified its District Plan on ...1 week ago
- Rape Awareness Week: Government committed to action on sexual violenceRape Awareness Week (6-10 May) is an important opportunity to acknowledge the continued effort required by government and communities to ensure that all New Zealanders can live free from violence, say Ministers Karen Chhour and Louise Upston. “With 1 in 3 women and 1 in 8 men experiencing sexual violence ...1 week ago
- Tourists trapped by New Caledonia unrest feel ‘abandoned’ by NZ
By Lauren Crimp , RNZ News reporter New Zealanders stuck among riots and civil unrest in New Caledonia’s capital say they feel abandoned by their own country, having received little help from the government. Nouméa descended into chaos on Monday, with clashes between indigenous Kanak pro-independence protesters and French security ...3 hours ago - Kanaky in flames: Five takeaways from the New Caledonia independence riotsANALYSIS: By David Robie, editor of Asia Pacific Report Jean-Marie Tjibaou, a revered Kanak visionary, was inspirational to indigenous Pacific political activists across Oceania, just like Tongan anthropologist and writer Epeli Hao’ofa was to cultural advocates. Tragically, he was assassinated in 1989 by an opponent within the independence movement during ...6 hours ago
- When body positivity becomes problematic
Forget thin is in, apparently now bigger is better … or is it? After over a decade of body positivity, girls, teens and women are even more confused about what body positivity actually is. The movement began with women confronting unrealistic expectations of how their bodies should look. But sub-strands ...7 hours ago - Short story: Ruin, by Ockham winner Emma HislopGrace always sat at the bar at the back of The Cambridge, where she could watch who came in. A huge mirror ran the length of the pub, so you could sometimes watch people without them knowing. The mirror made the place seem a lot bigger than it really was. ...7 hours ago
- The Secret Diary of .. Sheriff Mark MitchellMONDAY Sheriff Mark Mitchell rose at dawn. He had a long day’s ride ahead of him. He was headed for Waikeria. Waikeria! Even the name itself stirred his blood, and set root in his imagination. There was nothing and no one in Waikeria. But he would bend it to his ...7 hours ago
- The Boy in the Water: A forensic examination, at lastThe first phase of the inquest into the death of Gore toddler Lachlan Jones finished this week, turning up plenty of revelations and few answers. But through all the confusion, heartbreak and antipathy on display, the simple fact at the heart of this case remains: if little Lachie’s body had ...7 hours ago
- How Many Public Sector Roles Are Going, And From Where?
Public servants' jobs are on the chopping block as the sector scrambles to meet the Finance Minister's cost-cutting targets. ...10 hours ago - Can you control your image? Gina Rinehart, King Charles and ‘moral portraits’Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Roger Benjamin, Professor in Art History, University of Sydney “She’s no oil painting”. Those were the unkind words of a colleague commenting on the subject of Vincent Namatjira’s acrylic painting, Gina. Every one of the prominent Australians and cultural heroes in Namatjira’s ...10 hours ago
- Government plans for Māori wards breach The Treaty of Waitangi -Tribunal
Government plans to require local councils hold a referendum on whether to have Māori wards breaches the Treaty of Waitangi, a Waitangi Tribunal report has found. ...10 hours ago - Threatened species have declined 2% a year since 2000. Nature positive? Far from it.Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Megan C Evans, Senior Lecturer, Public Sector Management, School of Business, UNSW Sydney Martin Tobias Aakesson/Shutterstock Our government has great aspirations. It has committed to end extinctions and expand our protected areas to cover 30% of every Australian ecosystem by 2030. ...11 hours ago
- Rugby league in Perth and Papua New Guinea? Here’s what could be next for the NRLSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Harcourt, Industry Professor and Chief Economist, University of Technology Sydney This year the National Rugby League (NRL) opened its season in Las Vegas. It was an audacious move by the league’s ambitious head honcho Peter V’Landys to showcase the game in ...13 hours ago
- The budget has earmarked $8.6 million for live music. Is it enough to save the flailing industry?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Catherine Strong, Associate Professor, Music Industry, RMIT University Leading music organisations have praised the federal budget for its investment in the live music sector. The budget includes A$8.6 million for a program called Revive Live: to provide essential support to ...13 hours ago
- The Week in Politics: Charter schools, special police units and a tricky problem for the governmentThe Week in Politics: ACT brings back a signature policy, while NZ First mulls how to fulfil a promise. ...13 hours ago
- There’s $110 million for Indigenous education in the budget. But where’s the evidence it will wo...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Marnee Shay, Associate Professor, Principal Research Fellow, The University of Queensland The 2024 federal budget contains A$110 million for Indigenous education. This includes funding for various different organisations to represent and help Indigenous people as well as scholarships in a bid to ...14 hours ago
- New Caledonia’s Nouméa airport closed until Tuesday, says Air New ZealandAir New Zealand has confirmed Nouméa’s Tontouta International airport in New Caledonia is closed until Tuesday. The airline earlier told RNZ it would update customers as soon as it could. Earlier today, Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters told RNZ Morning Report government officials had been working on an “hourly basis” ...14 hours ago
- Cameras reveal wombat burrows can be safe havens after fire and waterholes after rainSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Grant Linley, PhD Candidate in Ecology, Charles Sturt University Grant Linley Australia’s unprecedented Black Summer bushfires in 2019–20 created ideal conditions for misinformation to spread, from the insidious to the absurd. It was within this context that a bizarre story ...14 hours ago
- ChatGPT is now better than ever at faking human emotion and behaviourSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Marcel Scharth, Lecturer in Business Analytics, University of Sydney OpenAI executive Mira Murati launching GPT-4o. OpenAI Earlier this week OpenAI launched GPT-4o (“o” for “omni”), a new version of the artificial intelligence (AI) system powering the popular ChatGPT chatbot. GPT-4o is promoted ...15 hours ago
- Menopause can bring increased cholesterol levels and other heart risks. Here’s why and what to do ...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Treasure McGuire, Assistant Director of Pharmacy, Mater Health SEQ in conjoint appointment as Associate Professor of Pharmacology, Bond University and as Associate Professor (Clinical), The University of Queensland Speedkingz/Shutterstock Menopause is a natural biological process that marks the end of a ...15 hours ago
- The Friday Poem: ‘Xiāng’ by Hannah Patterson
A new poem by Hannah Patterson. Xiāng There’s a pear tree in our backyard And Xiāng tells me She can’t eat them anymore Not after some things that have happened in her life. She tells me, in Mandarin The word for pear sounds the same as the word for disassociation ...15 hours ago - Cycle lanes are good for business, actually‘Cycling Works’ aims to show business support for citywide cycle infrastructure. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week, supermarket giant Foodstuffs lost its attempt to block the construction of a cycle lane outside Thorndon New World in Wellington. The Spinoff’s Wellington editor ...15 hours ago
- The Unity Books bestseller chart for the week ending May 17The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington. AUCKLAND 1 Slow Productivity by Cal Newport (Penguin, $40) Taking out the top spot in Auckland this ...15 hours ago
- Nuclear subs are coming to Australia. Now the Coalition wants reactors, too. We’re not ready for i...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Lowe, Emeritus Professor, School of Environment and Science, Griffith University For decades, Australia has exported uranium – but not used it, other than in the Lucas Heights research reactor. But change is coming. We now face a rapidly deepening commitment to ...16 hours ago
- After 180 years, new clues are revealing just how general anaesthesia works in the brainSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adam D Hines, Research fellow, Queensland University of Technology Sergey Mironov/Shutterstock Over 350 million surgeries are performed globally each year. For most of us, it’s likely at some point in our lives we’ll have to undergo a procedure that needs general ...16 hours ago
- 'I can do much better': Green MP Julie Anne Genter promises to improve conduct"In future I should walk away," Green MP Julie Anne Genter says after complaints over an exchange in Parliament and from two members of the public. ...16 hours ago
- Call to protect asylum seekers who may arrive in New Zealand by boatA group of more than 40 refugees, charities and advocates want better protections for asylum seekers arriving by boat. ...16 hours ago
- Homo Pentecostus: on queer intimacies, religion, ancestry and the human need for connectionSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonathan Graffam, PhD Candidate in Theatre, Monash University Gianna Rizzo/Malthouse Music pumps; lights pulsate; two sweaty bodies sway together, touching, breathing in each other’s scent. A male body framed by downlight restlessly shifts between stances and gestures. He undresses. The intensity ...17 hours ago
- Want to be buried on your own land, at sea or in a forest? A guide to unconventional send-offsSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sandra van der Laan, Professor of Accounting, University of Sydney Mtaya/Shutterstock At some point, you or someone else will need to make a decision about your “send-off”. Most Australians die in an institution, such as a hospital or aged care facility. ...17 hours ago
- Vanuatu, MSG chief reaffirms support for FLNKS, blames France over unrestAsia Pacific Report Vanuatu Prime Minister Charlot Salwai — who is also Chairman of the Melanesian Spearhead Group — has reaffirmed MSG’s support of the pro-independence umbrella group Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front (FLNKS) stance opposing the French government’s constitutional bill “unfreezing” the New Caledonia Electoral Roll. It is ...17 hours ago
- Blazing a trail: the Leonard family legacy in Māori televisionProducer Susan Leonard remembers her father Ernie, a pioneer of Māori television, and how his legacy lives on in Pathfinders. My father was a fabulous man. His name was Ernie Leonard and he started in TV in the 1970s when it was still glamorous – when TVNZ made behind the ...17 hours ago
- Home detention for New Caledonia’s unrest ringleaders, Tiktok bannedBy Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk, and Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific journalist The suspected ringleaders of the unrest in New Caledonia have been placed in home detention and the social network TikTok has been banned as French security forces struggle to restore law and order. The French ...18 hours ago
- Review finds big increase in multi-year government spends, use not always justifiedMulti-year appropriations - which give the government authority to spend money without reapplying annually - are loosening Parliament's control of the public purse, auditor-general says. ...18 hours ago
- $63.6m for Surf Life Saving and Coastguard in Budget 2024"New Zealand has a tragically high drowning toll," Transport Minister Simeon Brown said at the announcement. ...19 hours ago
- Dr. Eric Chuah Standing For Mayor Of TaurangaDr. Eric Chuah who stood for a centrist NZ political party in the October 2023 NZ Elections for Maungakiekie Auckland will stand as a candidate for Tauranga City Council Ward of Matua-=Otumoetai and Mayor of Tauranga. ...19 hours ago
- How to enjoy a comedy festival in your own loungeIf you can’t get to the comedy fest, let us bring the comedy fest to you. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. The New Zealand International Comedy Festival is in full swing at the moment, with a veritable smorgasboard of comedy treats ...19 hours ago
- Poll Shows Three Quarters Of Wellingtonians Oppose Airport SaleA new poll commissioned by Unions Wellington shows an overwhelming majority of Wellingtonians oppose the Council’s plan to sell the 34% public stake in Wellington Airport. ...19 hours ago
- $63.6m boost for Surf Life Saving and Coastguard in Budget 2024"New Zealand has a tragically high drowning toll," Transport Minister Simeon Brown said at the announcement. ...20 hours ago
- Nearly 1300 homes on hold amid government reviewNewly released documents show building has been paused on 690 KiwiBuild homes and 593 market homes. ...20 hours ago
- At the heart of the budget is the sad truth the economy is weak. That’s one reason inflation will ...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Aruna Sathanapally, Chief Executive, Grattan Institute, Grattan Institute A central focus of this week’s budget is the treasury’s forecast for inflation. By this time next year, inflation is projected to be back within the Reserve Bank’s 2-3% target range. Inflation has ...20 hours ago
- Denser housing can be greener too – here’s how NZ can build better for biodiversitySource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Yolanda van Heezik, Professor of Ecology, University of Otago Getty Images Cities across Aotearoa New Zealand are trying to solve a housing crisis, with increasing residential density a key solution. But not everyone is happy about the resulting loss of natural ...20 hours ago
- Clean energy slump – why Australia’s renewables revolution is behind schedule, and how to fix itSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alison Reeve, Deputy Program Director, Energy and Climate Change, Grattan Institute WDG Photo/Shutterstock For years, the electricity sector has been the poster child for emissions cuts in Australia. The sector achieved a stunning 26% drop in emissions over the past 15 ...20 hours ago
- It’s OK to ask a loved one if they’re feeling suicidalIt’s often the last thing people want to do, but asking someone if they’re having suicidal thoughts is a critical first step to helping them. Content warning: this story discusses suicide and suicidal ideation. For a list of resources that can help if you or someone you know is feeling ...20 hours ago
- Watch live: Transport Minister makes pre-Budget announcementSimeon Brown and Matt Doocey are set to reveal another bit of next week's budget. ...20 hours ago
- We mapped a lost branch of the Nile River – which may be the key to a longstanding mystery of the ...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Timothy J. Ralph, Associate Professor, Macquarie University The pyramids at Giza, like dozens of others, are located several kilometres west of the current path of the Nile. Alex Cimbal / Shutterstock The largest field of pyramids in Egypt – consisting of 31 ...21 hours ago
- If I’m diagnosed with one cancer, am I likely to get another?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Diepstraten, Senior Research Officer, Blood Cells and Blood Cancer Division, Walter and Eliza Hall Institute ABO PHOTOGRAPHY/Shutterstock Receiving a cancer diagnosis is life-changing and can cause a range of concerns about ongoing health. Fear of cancer returning is one ...21 hours ago
- All options being considered to help New Zealanders in New Caledonia – Winston PetersGovernment looking at all options for helping New Zealanders who want to leave New Caledonia as death toll rises. ...22 hours ago
- Rebuke issued in stoush over volume of on-bus announcements for blind passengersAnd how a union boss ruined a regional councillor's morning. ...22 hours ago
- Nearly 1300 Kāinga Ora homes on hold amid government reviewNewly released documents show building has been paused on 690 KiwiBuild homes and 593 market homes. ...22 hours ago
- What’s happening in New Caledonia and Vanuatu, and why it matters to NZWinston Peters has been on tour around the Pacific while two unrelated crises unfolded, explains Stewart Sowman-Lund in this extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. Two separate ...22 hours ago
- Charter schools might increase government costs, deliver marginal benefits – Cabinet papersCharter schools will likely get higher per-student funding than most state schools, and evidence of their efficacy is mixed. ...23 hours ago
- Charter schools might increase government costs, deliver only marginal benefits, Cabinet papers showCharter schools will likely get higher per-student funding than most state schools, and evidence of their efficacy is mixed. ...23 hours ago
- Fake bacon, ranked from worst to bestThis is the Mount Everest of artificial meatcraft. Ah, bacon. Pig’s gold. Toast’s consolation. Dawn’s savoury embrace. If meat was a currency, bacon would be the Benjamin Franklin. Or if you’re feeling patriotic, the Lord Rutherford. When it comes to fake bacon, the obvious question is: why bother? In the ...1 day ago
- Milking it: The man behind New Zealand’s weirdest legal casesFrom illegal milk to sprinkler bans and airplane ticket scams, Tyrone Barugh is on a one-man mission through New Zealand’s most obscure legal loopholes. I’m deep undercover, investigating Wellington’s criminal underworld. Inside this store, I’ve been told there is a million-dollar trade in illicit substances. A man dressed in black ...1 day ago
- Daily crossword, Friday 17 MayThe post Daily crossword, Friday 17 May appeared first on Newsroom. ...1 day ago
- Dear minister, military families need your helpDear Hon Judith Collins, Minister of Defence, and Hon Christopher Penk, Associate Minister of Defence I have written to you, to attempt to give you an insight into the incredible hardship of being an NZDF family. Whilst I cannot speak on behalf of serving personnel, I can speak from my ...1 day ago
- Wayne Brown, a man with a planAnalysis: What a difference a year makes. In mid 2023, Wayne Brown the Auckland Mayor was a politician diminished by a calamitous response to the region’s Anniversary Weekend storm emergency and later forced against his preference into a half sale only of the city’s airport shares. His demeanour among his ...1 day ago
- Ohakea base upgrades delayed amid defence estate concernsWork to replace ‘not fit-for-purpose’ living quarters at one critical air base faces further delays The post Ohakea base upgrades delayed amid defence estate concerns appeared first on Newsroom. ...1 day ago
- Iwi pledges to use only te reo Māori to communicate with GovtThe move comes after the government departments began to prioritise their English names and the finance minister questioned agencies funding te reo lessons for staff The post Iwi pledges to use only te reo Māori to communicate with Govt appeared first on Newsroom. ...1 day ago
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I have tried very hard to understand where certain commentators here have been coming from with their trans comments. I've read them, followed some links to see where it stems from.
But I am always thinking of my friend, Alexandra. She's a wonderful human being, a very talented artist, and just happens to be a trans woman. And the latter to me is completely irrelevant to who she is as a person. Alex takes so much crap and blatant bigotry and discrimination on a daily basis because of society in general, and it's being made a hell of a lot worse since it's become politicised via the 'culture wars.' She's survived suicide attempts- not because she's ashamed of who she is, but because of everyone else. Many of her peers didn't survive.
A question to all those who wish to continually rave on about how her existence is some sort of threat, and won't someone think of the children- have you ever met a trans person? Have you ever sat down with them and learned about their lives? If you haven't, then you have absolutely no right to define who you think is a 'woman', bathroom, pay rates, etc etc.
This 'not allowed to have the conversation' thing is only because there is nothing to have a conversation about. These attempts to, and a lot of what I'm reading and hearing, are nothing more than prejudice and bigotry under the guise of 'discussion' and an attempt to be academic about it, rather than in your face, a la Destiny. At least they're open about it.
Once upon a time this same thing was happening to gay people, and also to disabled. Remember when parents didn't want disabled kids in schools, because their little darlings 'might catch something?' And remember when all gay men were automatically paedophiles? As for public toilets, it wouldn't bother me in the least if Alex or one of her peers were in the stall next to me. In my life, I've been harmed by straight males, never gay or trans. I've felt unsafe around other women in some public toilets. So your point is?
Alex is a person, she's a human being, yet there is a group of her fellow citizens who behave like she isn't, and are politicising her existence for their own agenda. And it's disgusting. I know you won't necessarily agree with anything I've said, but this site is for challenging ideas and opinions, so that's what I'm doing.
I hope you had a good sleep last night, Kay, and a hearty breakfast – this could be a long day 🙂
I support your heart-felt comments and hope nobody responds by demanding that you explain what "No Debate" means, or links to any unpleasant tabloid articles in the UK, or posts nsfw images on today's Open Mike 🙂
Thank you Robert. I've had my porridge and pills
Like I said, just challenging opinions. But I'm well aware I probably won't change any.
Bravo Kay. Thank-you for your honesty. I met Georgina Beyer when she was a well respected Labour MP and found her intelligent, gracious and very empathetic – vastly superior to some of the hate filled 'ranters' that seem to exist today.
I expect you will be challenged by those who allege superior knowledge on the subject. Some will know what they are talking about, others will not.
Nick Rockel must've been pondering overnight as well 🙂
"A segment of our society is still unsure about the whole trans thing. They wonder is it real or are people just making choices? Are they just pretending? Can’t they just behave like the rest of us?
And that’s the same argument people used a while back for gay people, and no doubt before that other groups too. Back when those other forms of prejudice didn’t seem so ridiculous."
We like Nick here on The Standard, right?
https://nickrockel.substack.com/p/love-is-love
A segment of our society is still unsure about the whole women's rights thing. They wonder is it real or are women just making a fuss? Are they just pretending because they're bigots? Can’t they just behave like the rest of us?
I occasionally read Rockel, and did read the one you link to .Within that was a description of what happened at MT Albert.
Total denial of the elderly woman punched in the face 3 times.So I tend to take his writing with a pinch of salt
please link directly to where that quote is from.
https://nickrockel.substack.com/p/a-posie-parker-postscript-what-have
Tbf, that quote was written a day after the LWS in Auckland. Unless someone was following GC accounts on SM, it's unlikely they would have known what actually happened.
This is why we are sticklers for links with quotes, and backing up with evidence when asked. Context matters.
If on the other hand Nick still believes what he wrote he is at best another leftie dude pontificating without regard for women's rights. It would be hard not to see that as intentional giving how much video evidence there is.
Rather a rush to publish then, before the dust had settled .I have yet to see a follow up acknowledging that omission
Rush to publish?
He publishes regularly and often.
And has he retracted his mis-statement – in his regular and often publishing schedule?
"If on the other hand…"
Well? Does he?
Here he flat out denies that KJK was assaulted apart from the tomato juice assault.
https://nickrockel.substack.com/p/a-posie-parker-postscript-what-have
There are multiple first and second hand accounts of women being assaulted that day. I'd classify this as an assault on KJK. Because of the political context, it's also terrorism. The liberal left won't condemn it because it would harm their political position. Which is another reason so many people not only don't trust the left but actively hate it.
https://youtu.be/uxTXEy5OFBk?si=ehKORcynz5oOy-SZ
Did the judge judge that Posie was assaulted?
No. According to the National Herald the case was held over from the judge deciding not to dismiss charges last October to 26 Feb for a trial call-over. I can't find any online reference as to whether a trial date has been set.
stephttps://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/posie-parker-assault-case-tomato-juice-protester-eli-rubashkyn-fails-in-bid-to-have-charges-dropped/5BT76CBC3RCM3CVTDYXGA6DLWI/
"An activist who acknowledged dousing controversial British speaker Posie Parker with tomato juice during a raucous speaking event and counter-protest in Auckland earlier this year has failed to have her charges dismissed."
Posie Parker assault case: Tomato juice protester Eli Rubashkyn fails in bid to have charges dropped – NZ Herald
Do you think that dousing someone with tomato juice is assault? Or is that behaviour you think is perfectly reasonable?
I wondered how the judge judged, that's all.
I’ve read your line of questioning. I’m asking you what you think.
Being doused with tomato sauce can be described in many ways; assault probably being being one of them but I don't know the exact definition or application in law; I'd wait till a judge made that decision before declaring on the matter. As to it being perfectly reasonable, is that the same as reasonable? The pourer of the sauce will have had their reasons, I suppose. Political protest often involves actions that seem unreasonable to some people: stopping traffic with a bridge-full of bicycles, dropping bags of flour on a rugby field, throwing yourself under a galloping horse…
Having a reason is not the same as being reasonable. Being reasonable has a sense of good judgement, not extreme or excessive. Reasonable Definition & Meaning – Merriam-Webster
The rest of your answer sounds like obfuscation to me.
being doused with tomato sauce. an be described in many ways. However the issue here is how dousing someone with tomato sauce is understood in law (see the difference?).
Throwing things at people is covered by assault law in NZ.
https://communitylaw.org.nz/community-law-manual/chapter-33-common-crimes/assault/
Afaik, the process in NZ is: police, Crown prosecutor, jury trial, judge and sentencing.
A judge as already ruled the case will go to trial, afaik Rubashkyn is charged with two counts of assault (against KJK and another woman), and after EB applied to have the charges dismissed, the judge has said there is a case to answer.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/300996811/protester-who-threw-tomato-juice-over-posie-parker-to-face-trial
I think it’s fair to say that throwing a substance in that context is considered an assault. What is at issue is whether EB is guilty and that is up the jury.
I agree that political protest has lines it can cross, and in this instance I don’t particularly have a problem with it. The problem is the paying mob which made it dangerous for KJK and others to leave and that led to the serious assault on Hobson. I also think that if protestors are going to cross this line they need to be aware of the consequences. Interesting to compare with the climate activists using different tactics but who have been not convicted because the judge accepted that they were protecting society (or something to that effect). The judge in the EB dismissal hearing didn’t accept that this was a defence sufficient to dismiss the charges.
quite hard to arrest a mob I imagine.
Can you provide the quote please, weka?
You also wrote:
"There are multiple first and second hand accounts of women being assaulted that day. I'd classify this as an assault on KJK."
That sounds nonsensical, weka: are you sure you meant to write that? Assaults on people who are not Posie = assaults on Posie?
Quite a stretch, imo.
the quote is in Francesca's comment that I was replying to.
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-01-04-2024/#comment-1994504
Did you watch the video? There were assaults on multiple women that day, including KJK.
"There are multiple first and second hand accounts of women being assaulted that day. I'd classify this as an assault on KJK. "
Do you stand by the second sentence of this statement, weka?
Yes. I think when KJK was mobbed, that was an assault on her. She was terrified and had to be physically protected by multiple people for her safety.
What do you think?
Well, it reads as though you believe that the assaults on women-other-than-Posie equal assault on Posie. You didn't refer to the mobbing of Posie. I doubt a judge would consider "mobbing" as assault, but perhaps…
Maybe just untidy expression.
multiple women were assaulted in that mob, one of those women was KJK.
There were also individual assaults, most notably Judith Hobson.
Nick Rockel
Mar 26, 2023
https://nickrockel.substack.com/p/a-posie-parker-postscript-what-have
"You omit the rest of the quote by NR, a refusal to admit that the person who poured the juice over K K-M was later assaulted?"
I'm not a columnist writing an opinion piece on the event. I'm commenting on what Nick actually wrote. That's a big difference.
Nick denied that an "elderly woman (was) punched in the face 3 times"?
I didn't see that.
Did you?
Did you see Nick acknowledge that an elderly woman was assaulted by a trans activist?
His quoted words from the link above:
Claiming that the only people assaulted were Davidson and Rubashkyn – is flat-out ignoring the other very-well-documented assault.
Or is lying by omission OK when he does it?
He certainly claimed that on the day , as far as he knew , only two people were assaulted .Neither of them were the elderly woman He most probably didnt know about it on the day , we'll give him that benefit of the doubt shall we?….possibly the day after,….? and didn't mention it on subsequent days.How he could not know about it baffles me.Wilful ignorance?
No, he didn't, Francesca, deny. You are twisting the story to suit your narrative.
Not fair to Nick, imo.
how is it that on the day we all knew there were women assaulted but Nick didn't?
Seems Nick didn't.
Nor did he deny.
Francesca is making it up.
You're accusing me now of lying?
Read my words
Total denial of the elderly woman being punched etc…
I stand by what I wrote
Where did I say "Nick denied ..etc"
You twisted that for your own purposes
You wrote,
"Total denial of the elderly woman punched in the face 3 times."
francesca1.2.2
1 April 2024 at 10:23 am
Am I wrong, Francesca?
Thats exactly what I wrote…as I have just pointed out to you
In that piece there was no reference to the elderly woman's assault
In other words …total denial of that fact
There is a different meaning ascribed to "Nick denied"….
That would suggest he knew about it but denied it
If Nick didn't have all the facts , that's a reason why I take his writing with a pinch of salt
Were you ever a teacher…of the old order?
You have a hectoring streak
I will not respond or interact with you any longer
Robert, since no other bloke is going to say this to you, I will. Do you have a problem with women?
And I mean actual women.
Whenever there has been any discussion about trans issues, particularly mentioning the degenerate granny basher, you seem to take the side of blokes who bash women, or at the very least blokes who put on a frock and demand that the whole of femininity must revolve around them. It’s kinda disturbing, at my age I’ve been around a lot, seen plenty of disturbing things. But I’m always surprised at how some strange little man pops up and says weird stuff about the Sheila's & certainly leaves me with the impression that he considers woman nothing more than a second class human. Personally I’m getting sick of this shit, & dealing with the fallout of women being abused by a man.
If you’re on the side of blokes who bash women, you’re on the wrong side.
Seriously I’m beginning to think that the whole transgender issue is being pushed by the right to troll the left.
No, David, but I do have an issue with pillocks.
Well I’m wondering why you, as a bloke, are so determined to minimise the violence against an elderly woman. I’m also wondering why so many men acted so violently in shutting down the posie parker event. Was it because some women dared to define what a woman is, to the exclusion of men?
You are wrong, Francesca. Denial requires refusal. Refusal is an active decision. You cannot justifiable claim that Nick refused to mention something.
You are wrong to accuse him of that.
David wrote:
"Well I’m wondering why you, as a bloke, are so determined to minimise the violence against an elderly woman."
Shouldn't all blokes be determined to minimise violence against an elderly woman?
Your arguments are sloppily presented, in my opinion, and your thinking is faulty. In particular, you make sweeping claims and assumptions that don't interface with reality reliably.
Yes, they should. But they’re not. Which is a specific problem in the context of women’s sex based rights and thus this thread/
David's declared that I'm one of the good guys then 🙂
he’s asking why you spend so much time arguing support for an ideological movement that led to an elderly woman being punched in the face three times by a young man, and the people in that same movement then largely refused to condemn the violence against that woman. And other women.
Hi Weka, Yeah I’m really confused as to why Robert seems to be spending so much time either defending or minimising the violence from men, directed at women and specifically defending the bloke who punched an elderly woman. It just seems too much, it’s one thing to support the whole transgender thing, but it’s still okay to acknowledge that there was violence directed at women that day, and it was unacceptable.
Reading his latest comments today, has taken me right back to relative who was in a violent relationship. Despite audio recordings, and video recordings of her husband very seriously verbally abusing, then physically assaulting his wife and young children, the guy just minimised what happened, he came up with all sorts of convoluted excuses and scenarios, and then he introduced his “superior” intelligence to bolster his self image, unbeknown to him, he was unwittingly exposing himself to his family and friends for what he really was, a pathetic, ugly, self loathing, spiteful man whose only pleasure could come from the abuse and pain he could inflict upon others, and in doing so he hated himself further. His now grown children along with the rest of his family have and want nothing more to do with him.
Is he. Then he has confused himself and misunderstands my position, despite my having dutifully responded to questions from him and others. He has the wrong end of the stick and his characterisation of me is way off.
What I feel I am doing is testing the claims made here. I see a willingness to declare, rather than debate. If someone notices a flaw in the accepted story, they ought to be able to pop in a genuine question, without being stropped-up for doing so 🙂
it looks to me like you are both supporting the movement that is passively sanctioning violence against women, and also minimising assaults on women that are being discussed. This doesn’t preclude testing claims, we all do that. It’s in how you do it, and the absence of taking a stance on violence against women generally and in this context specific assaults.
it’s reasonable because of that to question your position on those things, especially in light of you most often refusing to explain your thinking.
weka – SPC notes that the sauce-pourer was assaulted; do you know by whom? I ask because you have watched the videos.
I don’t know what SPC is meaning, because they didn’t say.
this is the best place to find video of Albert Park. Scroll back to March 2023
https://www.youtube.com/@SimonRAnderson/videos
EB’s assault on KJK and what happened immediately afterwards is in the second video on this page
https://www.1news.co.nz/2023/03/25/posie-parker-rally-protester-explains-tomato-juice-throw/
"Denial requires refusal. Refusal is an active decision. "
I'd suggest you look more closely at the definition of denial.
Denial Definition & Meaning – Merriam-Webster
Denial can be an act of omission, a simple refusal to admit to reality of something.
For there to be an wilful act of omission requires there to be knowledge of something.
The matter first came to attention by online video before it went to MSM and then a police investigation and charge weeks later.
Hi Traveller – you've used the word, "refusal" to counter my explanation, which revolves around refusal.. If you, or anyone, can show that Nick refused to write about some aspect of the event, I'd take notice. As it is, you (and they) are guessing/projecting, which doesn't seem fair to Nick. As an aside, I find myself defending someone who is quite capable of defending himself – perhaps you could ask Nick on his blog? I can't speak for him.
Robert, I see that you’re still attempting to minimise the violence directed at women during the posy parker counter demonstration.
What does it matter if a man punched a woman once, twice, three times, or half a dozen times? Surely once is bad enough?
[deleted]
All men know that you never hit a woman, well at least those of us who are grown up. Unfortunately there are still some [deleted] who let the mask drop, usually when it’s just us blokes around and you find out how much they really dislike women.
As for nick rockel (hope I’ve got the name right) and almost any other left wing commentator, there has been a denial of any violence occurring, then a minimisation of the level and effect of the violence on the women present, to something approaching the women deserved it.
Its a pretty clear message to women, there are still blokes out there looking for an excuse to give the bitch the bash.
[deleted]
Violence is not good full stop. But sexual violence is far worse. I’ve seen the effects on people who I love.
In this case, if you’re supporting or minimising the violence directed at women, then you’re on the wrong side.
I may well be a pillock Robert, and from the likes of you, I’ll take that as a compliment. [deleted]
I know enough about women’s issues to keep my nose out of it. If women are concerned about their safety, it’s not my place as a man to contradict them. But when a bloke puts on a frock and declares himself a woman, and starts to mansplain [deleted] what a woman is to actual women, all I see is a male bully behaving like a man to bully women.
[I’ve removed parts of you comment that were inflammatory and potentially defamatory. You cannot post defamatory content on this site that puts the site owners at risk. Mods also take a dim view of personalised comments designed to aggravate, this is flaming, leads to flame wars and we tend to stomp on them early on because they destroy good debate and commenters and readers then leave. Please keep your comments focused on the politics rather than personally attacking other commenters. – weka]
mod note. Please reply to me letting me know you have read and understood.
Hi Weka, yeah fair enough. I can be fairly blunt, which has made me unpopular with certain people. I guess I’m emotionally driven when issues of violence come up. But that is the toxic nature of violence, one side minimises the effects of violence, the other side feels a pent up frustration of not being heard or their feelings brushed aside as if they don’t count. Maybe we should be less forgiving, violent and domestic abusers are experts at deflecting criticism and place blame on to others while they carry on with their abuse. But it was wrong of me to suggest that Robert is one of them, certainly that was a generalisation that was not warranted.
She accepted it was possible he did not know about the blatant assault captured in the video at the time of the blog post.
Her mistake was claiming, not mentioning it later, was a calculated or deliberate omission.
We all write posts on topics and then do not change them, or write about the new developments, when they emerge.
She has not written here about the recent attacks on power supply in Ukraine …
And there are fewer posts now about Gaza (more attention than the civil war in Ethiopia and famine there and the earlier famine in Yemen in the Trump years) and none about the re-turn to the same old in south Sudan …
"If you, or anyone, can show that Nick refused to write about some aspect of the event, I'd take notice."
I posted a link to a definition of refusal that includes this:
" refusal to admit the truth or reality of something (such as a statement or charge)"
Nick admitted knowing about the throwing of the tomato juice at the time he wrote his article. I quote from A Posie Parker Postscript, what have we learned? (substack.com)
"There were more headlines, claims Ms Parker had been assaulted. Which was curious because there was no assault, we all saw the pictures. There was a throwing of a tomato based beverage but that was it. Much of the media, as well as Ms Parker and JK Rowling repreated the lie."
Like you, Nick denies the seriousness of pouring a substance over someone.
He then goes on to say this:
"So far as I’m aware the only people actually assaulted were Marama Davidson, Green Party co-leader, who was ridden into by a motorbike in what looked like a deliberate act of aggression."
Note he wrote that on March 26th. This was previously pointed out to you above by Belladonna. The granny basher attack was circulating on social media by the time Nick wrote his piece. He could and should have had least acknowledged the accounts. Instead he refused to admit the reality of them.
Nick (possibly) and I (certainly) wouldn't like to have tomato sauce poured on his/my head, but serious?
Seriously??
You omit the rest of the quote by NR, a refusal to admit that the person who poured the juice over K K-M was later assaulted?
A few people were removed from the rotunda area by force (security guards doing their jobs etc) as well.
But this was still no less violence, than being "mob crushed" upon leaving under protected escort.
As we noted when debating this back then, "kettling" is a problem at protest events (public safety) – heckling has been part of politics and protest since before Beyonce grew up as a cowgirl, but the use of sound to drown out speakers is also a problem for free speech.
We disagree about what is serious violence.
The inclination to infer guilt on liberal commentators for what they do not say is noted.
Who assaulted Rubashkyn after they poured tomato juice over KJK?
That comes under the category of who assaulted K K-M when the escort group she was within was being jostled by those surrounding them.
I would presume those who acted in response afterwards to restrain and remove.
what is your source for the idea that Rubashkyn was assaulted after assaulting KJK?
nevermind, found it.
https://nickrockel.substack.com/p/a-posie-parker-postscript-what-have
So rather than it being the case that EB was assaulted, they are claiming that they were. This is entirely possible, but you made it sound as if this had been established. The only thing I’ve seen about this is a MSM report on the dismissal hearing where the claim was made that EB was assaulted by the security guard who removed them. I’m doubtful this would be considered assault given the circumstances.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2023/03/transgender-activist-who-doused-posie-parker-speaks-out-claims-they-were-beaten-spat-on-at-weekend-rally.html
weka wrote/quoted:
"She said she was then bitten and beaten by Keen-Minshull supporters."
weka also wrote:
"it looks to me like you are both supporting the movement that is passively sanctioning violence against women, and also minimising assaults on women that are being discussed"
Hmmm… are you supporting the movement that (allegedly) bit and beat Rubashkyn and by their omission/denial, sanctioning violence?
No. Because what I actually said (not your selected quote) was,
Unlike you who have had many opportunities to condemn the assaults on women, this is the first time in a long time that EB has come up. If someone asks me what I think I will tell them (again, unlike you)
In my opinion, EB is a loose unit, so I take their account with a grain of salt. Not so much in the sense of them lying but in the sense I’ve seen them spin a lot of stories. It’s entirely possible they were assaulted (as I already said), it’s also possible they were but are referring to the security guards as “Parker’s supporters” because calling them what they actually were, security guards, undermines EB’s narrative.
Rubashkyn also said they were beaten by Parker’s supporters after throwing the tomato juice.
“They took me over, dropped me to the floor. As I was getting down somebody beat me in the head and then they started spitting on me… and somebody was stepping on me,” Rubashkyn said.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2023/03/transgender-activist-who-doused-posie-parker-speaks-out-claims-they-were-beaten-spat-on-at-weekend-rally.html
In the video of after the assault on KJK, the guard holds EB and it looks to me like rather than dropping them to the floor, EB drops themselves to the floor, but hard to tell, it could be either. Once on the ground, it’s entirely believable that they were knocked around and stood on, impossible to tell if that was intentional. Like I said both are possible.
We don’t know what happened after the second security guard took over, but he appears in the video without EB a few seconds later, so anything that happened after that point wasn’t about the guards and could have been other assaults off the rotunda. Feel free to do the research finding the evidence for what happened. There is a lot of video around and there may be first person accounts.
https://www.1news.co.nz/2023/03/25/posie-parker-rally-protester-explains-tomato-juice-throw/
I don’t think the security guards assaulted them, because afaik there is defence in the Crimes Act for when providing security for people in dangerous situations. It’s also why bouncers can physically remove people from pubs. Someone else can look that up, I’ve done enough of the research heavy lifting today.
The reason I am confident that women were assaulted at Albert Park is because there is video showing that they were. There are also multiple first person accounts of people being assaulted or seeing other assaulted around the same time. I don’t find it credible to believe they were all making that up.
If, as you said, it’s entirely possible they were assaulted, surely commenters here who decry others for not denouncing assaults, potential and/or real, ought to feel awkward at their own hypocrisy?
did you miss this bit?
Most people here will say what they think when asked or prompted.
also going to add that this is yet another deflection. You still haven’t said what you think about the assaults on Hobson, KJK, and other women that day.
I didn't miss that at all. It's irksome to be asked, repeatedly, to say I abhor something, when I've made it very clear many times. The irksome bit, is the implication from those demanding repeated confirmation of my position, is their implication or bald claim, that I believe the opposite. I read ossification of thinking into that. It's peculiar to this issue.
Ok, you didn’t miss it, you just ignored it, which is something you tend to do.
There are people in this conversation over the past few days, and readers, who won’t have seen previous conversations. Most of us will restate our position on things when prompted, just like I did about EB before.
You take a position of not clarifying, explaining, or restating, apparently on principle. That’s fine but you can’t complain when people then continue to read into your comments what they do.
I don’t recall seeing you responding to questions by repeatedly saying you abhor the violence against the women at Albert Park. Maybe it’s a communication style thing? You think you are saying something but others hear it a different way. Maybe instead of blaming them and making out they are deficient, you could just tell us what you think. You don’t have to, but again you can’t then very well complain about being misunderstood.
you could also link to where you have said it in the past few days.
In any case, weka, WHY should anyone have to declare their position on a specific event? The thread was kicked off by Kay who didn't even allude to the Parker event. Does every discussion about trans people, or about women for that matter, have to begin with a series of disclaimers?? Talk about overkill.
As to asking me to link, you’re doubling down on something I expressed a passionate lack of interest in doing. Your suggestion is unreasonable, imo, especially given you wrote, “You take a position of not clarifying, explaining, or restating, apparently on principle. That’s fine…” I’m not complaining about being misunderstood, I’m just mentioning it when it happens.
ok.
Thanks for being so understanding, weka – I know my thinking can be difficult to follow at times 🙂
Oh, and David, thanks also for your response to weka – fyi, I am surrounded (in a good way) by wonderful, powerful women; in my home, my extended family/whanau, my community of volunteers, my places of work and everywhere else really. They seem to think I'm okay.
"Seriously??"
Yes, actually. Some forms of protest merge into a form of terror…this is close to that. It's designed to generate fear. It's the idea that the perpetrator can get that close, can engage at such a base level of behaviour that anything goes. I don't expect you to understand.
I count that as terrorism. Part of the point is to tell women what will happen if they do this again. The dude who turned up with armour on his forearms tells us a lot.
I also accept that there were many others there who intended a non-violent protest (I don't think the noise intention could be classified as peaceful). And there were protestors there who tried to stop the violence. But once you are in a mob, many have a choice to stay there or get out. Many chose to stay.
I feel reasonably confident that if the situation were reversed, if it had been trans people on the rotunda surrounded by a baying mob, the left would have been outraged.
So it comes down to the liberal left deciding which protest is legitimate and which isn't depending on whether people agree with the politics. Just like painting over the rainbows, or the occupation of parliament grounds. There is a great danger here in that the liberals appear to not understand why the ability to protest is central to a democracy.
Did you regard the Steven Joyce/dildo event "terrorism"?
Seriously?
He didn't.
was Joyce surrounded by a mob of hundreds of people making loud noises and unable to leave without bodyguards? Was there a history of similar events where people were assaulted and this appeared to be escalating?
Sounds like you don’t understand what terrorism is.
"Did you regard the Steven Joyce/dildo event "terrorism"?"
You're just not getting it, are you. This is pertinent (from my comment):
"It's the idea that the perpetrator can get that close, can engage at such a base level of behaviour that anything goes."
So, I'll be more direct. As Weka put it "Part of the point is to tell women what will happen if they do this again". Like this What is Acid Violence? – RISE (risecoalition.org).
and this video, showing what's been going on in lots of places. It's not a secret that the violence is part of an intentional strategy to make women shut the fuck up. We don't though.
https://youtu.be/RLzoYNuJxoo?si=mLxsSIuaTc4iO93a
weka – I presume you will take David's comment down immediately and apply an appropriate sanction to him.
His accusations and implications are scurrilous and actionable, I'd have thought.
if you mean the last comment, I won't take it down, but I will moderate because I agree he has stepped over a line. I will probably delete bits, just need to have a proper read through shortly.
Robert, Too many times over my adult life I have known women who have been bashed, raped, abused by the man in their life. A couple of the women have been in my family. I’m dealing with the fallout from this and how it has affected some of the younger generation in my family.
You certainly have a bee in your bonnet about this issue, and it is obvious to me, and probably others as well. I’m guessing here, but you would be receiving more pushback if it were not for the current transgender ideology.
As a bloke, I’ve spent a lot of time around other blokes, in settings where it’s just us blokes. It’s always interesting how after a couple of beers, a certain type of bloke starts saying shitty things about women. So after years of experience, let’s just say my comments are qualified privilege
If you’re offended (and any decent bloke would be) maybe you should reflect on how you have been commenting on this issue.
But attacking me for what I’ve said is just further exposing toxic behaviour of men who abuse women.
Its quite often the types of men who you would least expect, at least in the white middle class people in the world I live in.
BTW, sorry Weka, but this whole issue really upsets me. People who I love and care for deeply have been hurt deeply by not just domestic violence, but by men who have it in their belief system that abusing women is acceptable.
Wot Kay said…
I think most of your comment is admirable. You obviously have a lot of aroha and compassion for your friend.
This is a political blog, so I am going to point out some politics.
One thing I would like to know is how you feel about the women you don't know who have been raped because they were forced to share a women's prison with a trans identified man.
I'd also like to know if you can imagine what it is like for women to be housed in women's prisons with men who have raped and murdered before they were imprisoned?
I was listened to a Scottish woman the other day who served a 6 year sentence, and there were male prisoners there when she was there. She said she had no idea that there were people outside trying to stop men from being put in women's prison, because she had zero contact with the outside world apart from a short visitor session once a month. Can you imagine what that would be like?
My final question is why you believe that your personal experiences should form policy and law for all women? eg that women's toilets that were formerly single sex should now allow men. Do you think there is no risk to women from this? Or do you think that the risk is worth it to accommodate trans women? I'd really like to understand this.
I agree there is certainly a problem when it comes to incarceration of trans people, due to the nature of prisons and a lot of their occupants. A person's gender identity never precludes them from violence, or other criminal acts as per the rest of the population. And yes, I have a lot of sympathy for incarcerated women who find themselves in that situation. And for the trans women attacked in male prisons.
I don't know what the solution is, that doesn't involve some extra money that no government will ever fork out (even though they have a bottomless pit to fork out to build more prisons).
I will take your word for it about toilets not being single sex. Are you referring to those that are a stand-alone single cubicle only, or a bigger block of stalls (eg like at an airport) I've used plenty of the former, which pose no threat to anyone, but I've yet to encounter the latter anywhere. Maybe some workplaces have them? No, I would not be happy with men and women sharing non self-contained toilets, and I can't think of many women who would be.
I'm happy to be challenged on this Weka, and hear what the concerns are, it really is a difficult situation. Personally, I'd be more freaked out by having to share toilet facilities with a straight male than I would a trans women. I'm also well aware that many trans people don't go out, or keep themselves dehydrated if they do, to avoid toilets altogether, which is no way to live.
I'm not sure the prison one is that hard to solve. Firstly, TW are male and should never be housed with women. Possibly exemptions for post-op TW, but there are still serious problems with this.
TW aren't the only males who are at risk in male prisons. Gay men, effeminate men, weak men, men with disabilities. Male prisons are bastions of male violence. There is a prison in the US that is for gay men and trans identified males. Can we not create wings in prisons for them in other places?
Self ID is a huge problem, as it is how rapists have accessed women's prisons. The default shouldn't be what convicted men are saying they want and people captured by an ideology agreeing against all sense.
This is why we bang on about the ideology. It's not your friend's fault, it's a problem caused by lobby groups and backed by the liberal left. All those people could have spent the last ten years lobbying to change how men's prisons are run.
Underlying that is that some TW have a great need to be affirmed as a woman, so even where there are no safety concerns, the push is to let males into women's spaces. This is just flat out wrong.
I was meaning that women's toilets, which were female only, are now open to any man who says he is a woman. Those toilets are no longer single sex. You can google Planet Fitness for the latest iteration of that mess.
People still seem to think that 'trans woman' = transsexuals like Georgina Beyer. But self-ID means that trans woman is a very broad category. There are AGP men as well as predatory men, both of whom pose a risk to women just like other men. The reason we have women's spaces is because women can't tell which of the men are the predatory ones. You know and trust your friend, but we can't apply that to women and men generally.
Yeah, prisons should be safe places for all concerned.
Let's get that sorted immediately.
I made some similar comments the other day and put some of my context around it.
Fortunately while there is a whole lot of people arguing at the extremes there are another group just enjoying the diversity that human beings bring.
This whole area is difficult. I know for instance a person who has dressed as a women for decades and used women's toilets all that time with no problems (as opposed to getting beaten up in men's toilets) who now barely goes out now because they get abused in women's toilets now as well. They would not harm a fly and never have.
https://thestandard.org.nz/daily-review-25-03-2024/#comment-1994222
and there are women who now self-exclude from places for similar reasons, along with the women who don’t have a choice eg women in prison where trans identified males who rapists are also housed. Women have been raped, some get pregnant, others live in stress or terror.
There was a time when many GC women were saying fully transitioned TW weren’t an issue and that we could share some spaces like public toilets with them. Those GC women were pilloried, ostracised, deplatformed and fired. Those days are gone and now there are many more women involved and many don’t have progressive values, they’re just really angry at having their rights removed.
All the people in this thread saying what about the transsexual women?, you had a chance to help us resolve the conflict of rights between transsexual males and women, but the liberal left either stood around and let women take the hits or actively joined in.
My main thought reading the comments today is that the pro-genderists are making arguments from 5 years ago. Those arguments were lost when Stonewall UK and other lobby groups insisted that a TW is any man that says he is a woman at any time and we must treat him as one for all purposes. Talking about transsexuals in the face of that is like talking about BAU that just doesn’t exist any more. I do feel for those transsexuals and you can see in Visubversas post how they used to be more easily part of society. But anyone who thinks this is about TW like Georgina Beyer is just really really out of the loop as to what is going on.
I supported kay in calls for tolerance in her initial comment..
..does this make me a 'pro-genderist'..?
And what is a pro-genderist..?
(And speaking to you in your role as moderator..
Could you please tell me why my ability to comment is sporadic at best..thank you..)
yes Phil, you seem pro-genderist in that you support gender identity ideology over women's rights.
I don't know what is happening with your comments. Perhaps you could explain what is going on and then someone can look at it.
It is random…the curser does not appear..
Btw..I couldn't answer your pro-genderist comment here..so it is tacked on the end of 31/3..
Now can’t comment on 31/3..
And what is feminism..if it is not women’s rights..?
what device and OS are you using?
Oppo phone.. whatever OS that is..it has always worked fine..
I never used to get the full front page/comments..now I do..
And it is the random nature of it that is puzzling…
are you using the mobile or desktop version on the phone? If you're not sure, describe the colour scheme for me.
I also have an Oppo phone and have experienced the same thing.
Sometimes I try and comment and likewise the comment screen remains blank.
I use Opera and have shortcut to the Standard on the home screen. I don't use the desktop version.
wait, you are using the mobile version on your phone? Is this the bug where the cursor won't appear? Or you can't type? Or what?
Umm. With a Oppo phone check which browser it is using by default.
https://www.techbone.net/oppo/user-manual/default-browser
It could have a different browser installed or even be using an older version.
//—
This could also be due to a bug that I have done some work on recently. We were getting delays loading the javascript for the comment screen. The effect was a blank area where the comment box would have been. If it failed to load the some of the browsers failed to display it at all and timed out on the javascript.
This was most noticeable when doing the reply to someone elses comment. Because then it moved the box and attempted to rerun the javascript each time. It would often timeout fetching the uncached javascript.
I've pushed most of the site basics to preload to the CDN with much longer caching times – now 60 minutes rather than 10 minutes and that carries through to the browser cache.
This should reduce the issue. It has while I have been testing it.
If you read my comment from the other day I'm pretty clear that there is a whole group of men who should not be anywhere near women's spaces.
At the same time I can clearly see that there are men who seem to have some sort of fetish / desire to abuse who are strident and violent in there misuse of the LGBT and transgender population and acceptance. I am also aware of one instance where a religious arse has deliberately done this to give transgender people a bad name – he is definitely a deliberate bad actor. Bit like this idiot.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12467071/Trans-teacher-Kayla-Lemieux-MAN-no-breasts-scruffy-beard.html
Yet you seem to ignore people like Kim Workman who has long advocated for separate prisons for transgender inmates. I've never heard him suggest they should be in women's prisons.
Here back in 2012.
The director of the organisation Rethinking Crime and Punishment, Kim Workman, says that approach is wrong.
"Certainly it's a breach of human rights and it just puts that prisoner at considerable risk but also they're going to probably be segregated which is not of their making, it's something that's imposed on them."
Mr Workman says a facility that caters for transgender people is required.
Prison reformer Peter Williams QC says the Department of Corrections is failing in its job of keeping prisoners safe as a big proportion of jails are now controlled by gangs.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/123901/transgender-prison-decision-'a-breach-of-rights'
Peter Williams mentioned here is another. The recently deceased Pat Magill another. Kiran Foster yet another.
No Pride in Prisons is was an organisation that also called for this.
It just isn't true that left wing men have absent from this fight.
Sorry I didn't reply to your comment the other day. I did read it, but have been working on a couple of complicated posts and didn't feel I had the head space.
I didn't know about Workman, so that was an interesting piece. That was 2012. As I said earlier, the liberal left could have been working on this issue for 12 years. Why didn't they? Because they think that TW are literal women and inmates should be in women's prisons.
Btw, I'm not saying the left. I'm using the term liberal left deliberately, to talk about people that have lost track of class analysis and see social just predominantly through a neoliberal, identity lens. I wouldn't assume you are liberal left. There are lots of leftist people who are socially liberal who I wouldn't call liberal left.
it sounds like No Pride in Prisons favours trans people being in the prison of their choice ie TW in women's prisons including those who haven't transitioned.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/287712/are-trans-inmates-safe-in-prison
That seems a shift from when they were first set up. But having a look at recent stuff it seems they have had a name change and it does seem they have dropped asking for separate prison services. Maybe they have given up, thinking it just won't happen.
Kim Workman is great. Have heard him speak a few times. He was The Family Commissioner for a while as well. Well worth touching base. I deliberately used an old reference to show it is not just a recent push.
excellent, thanks.
Well put Kay
. Many of us have family and friends in the rainbow community, and the outright or sneaky bigots do real harm.
You know that gender critical feminists get assault, sacked, abused, threatened with rape and death, and called bigot nazi terfs and blamed for male violence against trans people, right?
Some of us not only have family and friends but are under the rainbow umbrella.
Best comment Ive ever seen on here, nice work Kay
"But I am always thinking of my friend, Alexandra. She's a wonderful human being, a very talented artist, and just happens to be a trans woman. And the latter to me is completely irrelevant to who she is as a person."
Unfortunately, transwomen are adult male humans, and the category 'adult male human' includes a huge number of people who are very much not wonderful human beings. There are situations where it matters a lot whether someone is male or female: women's prisons, women's changing rooms, women's sports, basically any space, event or service with the words "women's" or "girls'" in the name.
You might think it's irrelevant if your friend uses these services. He is a wonderful human being, after all. However, there are two problems:
1. How do we distinguish between a "transwoman" and a "cis man?" Gender identity is a matter of belief, and there's no way to know if someone genuinely believes something they claim to believe. For example, we're now seeing a lot of "court-onset gender dysphoria," in which male sex offenders suddenly discover when facing a prison sentence that they've always been a woman inside themselves and so should serve their time in a women's prison.
2. If we normalise the idea that a subset of adult male humans are allowed participation in female-only events, spaces etc, we trash the social contract. If a man walks into your changing room while you're getting undressed and the law says transwomen are women, can you challenge his presence there? Overseas experience says that if you do, it's you who'll be trespassed from the facility.
TL/DR: there are situations where it matters a lot what sex we are, and in those situations it makes no difference whether we're a wonderful human being or a violent criminal. Our sex is what counts.
Thanks, Psycho Milt.
I only occasionally return to TS these days, and felt that Kay's comment deserved the discussion she was seeking, but realise it was belated and may have missed the open discussion boat.
Yours was much briefer and to the point.
Do you feel, Molly, that your response to Kay's, shallow "performative outrage", might come across as a little condescending?
You'd know "condescending" Robert.
So I'll defer that judgement to you.
Okay, thanks.
It does.
Yeah, for you it does.
"I have tried very hard to understand where certain commentators here have been coming from with their trans comments. I've read them, followed some links to see where it stems from."
Try harder, Kay – because from this introduction to your comment, I suspect you are going to show how shallowly you have considered many of the concerns that have been brought up about the legislational and institutional capture of gender ideology and queer theory and the harms thereof…
"But I am always thinking of my friend, Alexandra. "
Suspicion correct.
"She's a wonderful human being, a very talented artist, and just happens to be a trans woman. And the latter to me is completely irrelevant to who she is as a person. Alex takes so much crap and blatant bigotry and discrimination on a daily basis because of society in general, and it's being made a hell of a lot worse since it's become politicised via the 'culture wars.'"
Alexandra can be a wonderful human being, without dispute. What he is not, is a woman. That is all. He is a man who is a wonderful human being, and a very talented artist. Sex is often irrelevant to people in regards to platonic relationships, but sometimes is relevant in terms of societal provisions, statistics, body changes, vulnerability, medical treatment etc. Be specific about the "crap and blatant bigotry and discrimination", else you may be using this to say – 'people consider him to be a man and I don't like it.'
"She's survived suicide attempts- not because she's ashamed of who she is, but because of everyone else. Many of her peers didn't survive."
This suicide narrative is one of the most coercive and damaging that I have ever come across, as a substitute for good faith engagement. It is a precarious state of being, to spend your life pretending to be what you are emphatically not. It takes only one dissenter – one truth teller – to expose the fallacy. However, unlike you, I will not assume to give a reason " because of everyone else" about his suicide attempts, because such simplistic answers are often wrong.
"A question to all those who wish to continually rave on about how her existence is some sort of threat, and won't someone think of the children- have you ever met a trans person? Have you ever sat down with them and learned about their lives? "
This sentence shows the level of thinking and research you have done on this topic. It is a familiar substitute offered for those who have avoided both. Most concerns are not about whether your friend is a threat, insofar as any male in a designated single-sex female space is a threat.
It is about the legislative and institutional changes that are based on an incoherent gender ideology, which abandons safeguards in multiple areas, medical, prison estates, single-sex provisions, language, political recognition, education and children. Not only have multiple impacts been recognised, and identified they are dismissed as "bigotry".
"Have you ever sat down with them and learned about their lives? If you haven't, then you have absolutely no right to define who you think is a 'woman', bathroom, pay rates, etc etc."
How is this a logical conclusion?
The only universal shared experience of women and girls is the physical inhabitance of a female body. This material reality will have an effect on the societal and cultural environment that females live in, which will have an influence on how they are treated. This leads to statistical differences in many aspects of lives: sexual violence, career choices, etc. However, the material reality of biological sex in itself has lifelong consequences, which affect physical strength differentials, the majority burden of reproduction and unplanned pregnancies, hormonal fluctuations, menopause, medical response to treatment, etc. These are not insignificant, and so, without bias or bigotry, provisions have been made to accommodate those specific differences after many years of advocacy and work.
I can easily define a woman – an adult human who inhabits a body evolutionarily designed to develop along the Mullerian pathway to produce large gametes.
That last sentence is not an earned right.
It is a accurate definition of a woman.
Your performative outrage, obscures the fact that you do not provide a coherent alternative.
You just assume that the word woman now includes a group of men. Man, men and male are not derogatory terms. Man, men and male are also not bigoted or discriminatory terms, unless you have untethered your use from all connection to sex, which makes them meaningless.
"This 'not allowed to have the conversation' thing is only because there is nothing to have a conversation about. These attempts to, and a lot of what I'm reading and hearing, are nothing more than prejudice and bigotry under the guise of 'discussion' and an attempt to be academic about it, rather than in your face, a la Destiny. At least they're open about it."
Many examples of (mostly women) being shut down from speaking – even amongst themselves – of their concerns have been taking place in New Zealand, and you seem to be ignoring the prime example of Albert Park last year. However, it is not my job to educate you, it is your responsibility to ensure that what you state is not easily disproven, lest you seem spectacularly uninformed.
"Once upon a time this same thing was happening to gay people, and also to disabled. Remember when parents didn't want disabled kids in schools, because their little darlings 'might catch something?' And remember when all gay men were automatically paedophiles? "
Gay people wanted to be recognised for who they were. Disabled people required – and still – require adequate provision for their disabilities.
The comparison is poor.
Also, not all people with gender identities demand to be recognised as the sex they are not, nor demand for the use of opposite sex provisions.
Those that accommodate such demands, do so without consideration for the impact it has on others – most particularly females. They consider the breaking of established boundaries progressive, and deliberately do not consider the failure of established safeguarding practices when they do so.
"As for public toilets, it wouldn't bother me in the least if Alex or one of her peers were in the stall next to me. In my life, I've been harmed by straight males, never gay or trans. I've felt unsafe around other women in some public toilets. So your point is?"
Provision of single-sex spaces are based on safeguarding risk assessments that use statistical data to REDUCE the likelihood of harm, uphold dignity and consent.
Your personal judgement is a small data point, not conclusive evidence.
Many of us know men that would not bother us personally in the least to have "in the stall next to me". However, we do not hold the arrogance or lack the capacity to know that not all women hold this personal knowledge, and cannot rely on our personal judgement to admit ANY man into a single-sex provision for women.
I am beginning to think that those that make such poor statements regarding public facilities have a very regressive notion about men and women, and are unable to fully accept men that claim a gender identity within the variations of men, despite that being the case. It's an interesting phenomenon to witness from so-called progressives.
"Alex is a person, she's a human being, yet there is a group of her fellow citizens who behave like she isn't, and are politicising her existence for their own agenda. And it's disgusting. I know you won't necessarily agree with anything I've said, but this site is for challenging ideas and opinions, so that's what I'm doing."
Alex is a person, who happens to be a man.
I have yet to read a comment on this site that says those with gender identities are not humans, but I read many – like yours – that put that statement out there without supporting evidence it has occurred.
I find that disingenuous, however, apart from those misdirections – find little in your comment to disagree with because it actually doesn't make very many salient points.
In a nutshell: You have a friend you love, and have concerns about how they navigate the world. Because of your care for this individual: men are women.
No, they are not.
"I can easily define a woman – an adult human who inhabits a body evolutionarily designed to develop along the Mullerian pathway to produce large gametes."
Fair slips off the tongue, doesn't it!
Every politician should memorise that pithy one-liner; the ol' "Mullerian pathway" will have the audience mesmerised.
Hi Robert – I just knew I'd find you here….
Now, it's not because I "hate" you, but only because I don't rate you, that I will not often be responding directly to your replies to me.
I've come to this decision due to a vast amount of previous experience, and personal experimentation involving drying paint.
As this is a personal decision, which has been reached without consensus with you, you are – of course – free to continue to respond in any way you like.
"Fair slips off the tongue, doesn't it!
Every politician should memorise that pithy one-liner; the ol' "Mullerian pathway" will have the audience mesmerised."
Damn, in my reminiscing of previous conversations I recalled this TS conversation from last year where the more succinct – "Adult Human Female" became a time-vampire sucking the life out of a reasonable conversation on this very topic:
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-04-04-2023/#comment-1943944
In this case, I thought it worth pointing out the dedication with which some avoid brevity.
Particularly when that thread involves pearlers such as this:
"Thanks for your explanation, weka. Could you also explain to me, what would be the status of a girl who medically delayed or avoided permanently, menarche, yet went on to become an adult? Or of a girl who by some action of nature, matured but avoided menarche?
Thanks."
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-04-04-2023/#comment-1943989
You keep a file of my comments?
blushes
Search function.
You search for my past comments?
blushes again
You probably would remain red in the face if you knew the search terms.
On that topic – you've had a year- have you got a definition yet for woman that doesn't involve "young girls" and "menarche", or their "status"?
Copied and pasted yours – it'll do.
Have you watched this yet? Time stamped to Boghossian's lead in to the question, but the whole thing is interesting. I haven't watched Dansky in video before.
Well I'm sick to death of the whole thing too.There seems to be a wilful refusal to understand the varied positions people are coming from .It all gets swept into a hold all bag for "bigots"
For instance , if I have qualms about the damage done to young girls in particular, as laid out by the recent WPATH exposures, I'm a bigot .Shall we discuss the WPATH report?It seems not .The latest findings on puberty blockers? Ditto
If I believe sex matters , medically and politically ,and trumps the ever changing slippery societal mores on gender, I'm a bigot .
I believe that there have always been trans people, most of whom merged successfully, who knew that surgeries and hormones did not magically change them into functioning women , but allowed them to" pass," and feel more comfortable in their skins ,versus the latest iterations of trans who fully believe they experience periods and insist they are biological women who should have all the rights accorded to women (but possibly not the downsides).This is where I balk , and I will always balk.
Paradoxically , because Georgina Beyer never claimed to be a woman , was always respectful, was utterly charming and honest , had no pretensions, knew exactly who she was and owned it,I have nothing but love for her and would have welcomed her into female spaces .But I do draw the line at entitled males who demand these rights, and even attempt to take away the language that is specific to biological women .I will not be neutered, and I'm done with appeasing men who won't take no for an answer, and who presume to tell me what a woman is.
So I'm a bigot?
OK , end of discussion.
Acecptance without exception said Stonewall UK. I will put up some photos when I get the chance, so people can see what gender identity ideology means in real terms.
As always, the problem isn't trans people, it's the ideology and its activists.
We had a 2018 WPATH position but there is now cognisance of Swedish research – and the UK Tavistock review …
https://syhpanz.co.nz/gender-affirming-healthcare/
Below shows developments since 2018
2023
https://www.health.govt.nz/system/files/documents/information-release/h2023031263_response.pdf
2022
https://www.rnz.co
you know who called out the NZ MoH on its position on puberty blockers so that they eventually changed the statement on their website? Terfs. Women who have been treated heinously including by the liberal left. And now the liberal left is scratching its head over the support for removing rainbow crossings.
[deleted]
What was deleted??
I can't see a problem??
I didn't see your deleted comment Robert so I can't pass judgement, but I must say that things are unpleasant at times on this site. A real pity.
I'm at a loss. I'm as careful as possible, imo.
It seems to me there is a level of 'misunderstanding of intention' occurring. We are allowed to have differing views because there is rarely any one view that is all encompassing.
I have the impression some regular commenters are leaving this site and that is what I mean when I say "a real pity."
I remembered, Anne. I made a joke about a hotel in my childhood hometown that was called "The Turf". It was an anodyne comment.
"Deleted" is a really wild response, imo.
women have been leaving the site for years Anne. They stayed when there were feminists authors and conversations they could be involved with that weren't so much hard work.
Post up about resilience planning and the aftermath of Gabrielle
https://thestandard.org.nz/a-year-on-from-gabrielle-are-we-any-further-on/
Thames Water is a private water utility.
No longer a safe place for the rowing race?
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-68701486
Product alert:
A can of sprite contains 33 grams of sugar ..
(Nearly one and one quarter ounces of sugar..)
Imagine what that does to a child's brain…
Setting maximum amounts of sugar allowed in food/drink..is the only effective way of tackling our serious obesity issues..
Anything else is more an exercise in auto-eroticism..than actually addressing the problem..
Stuff is being achieved
https://www.fgc.org.nz/heart-foundation-supports-food-companies-to-remove-tonnes-of-sugar-from-staple-low-cost-foods/
But there is still too much canned food high in salt and sugar (such as beans, other ready to eat meals and soups), often the cheaper ones with lack of flavour (spices etc).
They should ban adding cane sugar to drinks – adding it to milk when flavouring with chocolate is an abomination. As is watering fruit juice and adding cane sugar to reduce cost (and yet maintain sugar content).
That is great that the heart foundation is on this case..
My only issue is that reading the link shows success in getting some companies to reduce their sugar content by a bit (20%)..in some products..
But I would submit that since the amounts of sugar prevalent in so much is so high..that 20% reductions from these levels are nowhere near enough…and could be viewed as an exercise in incrementalism…
I really think that setting maximum levels will solve the problem in one fell swoop..
+100 Phillip
So what's your solution? Ban the sale of these highly sugared drinks in NZ? Because otherwise, you have no way of knowing that they aren't being given to children…
Or ban them for everyone (good luck in getting that one through parliament – given the success that we’ve had with tobacco)
As a parent – we were bombarded with this information 15-years ago when I had a pre-schooler. We all know what were healthy foods, and that the highly-sugared options were treats (certainly not every day, and probably not every week, but the occasional consumption wasn't going to kill off our kids).
So all responsible parents know this.
No primary school in NZ has soda in the school tuckshop (if, indeed they still have one). And many have teachers who write home judgy notes to parents if the lunchbox doesn't meet up to standards. Most of the lower decile schools (still using the old terminology) have free school lunches – which are all low sugar.
So what does that leave? Irresponsible parents. Do you make soft-drinks illegal to buy on the food vouchers issued by WINZ? Do you have OT raid the homes of all kids who have a dental downcheck – to see what their parents are feeding them?
Note: it's not really the high-sugar items that are contributing to the obesity epidemic. It's the combination of high-refined carb, high fat food, with lack of exercise. Lots of sugar isn't good for you – but lots of refined carbs and fat, is a lot worse.
I would argue for setting limits..and putting the onus back on the manufacturers..
A way to make this happen could be setting those limits..and then progressively taxing products that exceed those limits..
And then watch how fast those manufacturers adjust their products to avoid being taxed..
And something that must be enacted is honesty in advertising..and sugar content informed in a clear and open manner..
I refer back to the 'nice'biscuits I profiled..they are a textbook example of doing just the opposite..calling a serving..two biscuits .and cramming a quarter of an ounce of sugar in those two biscuits..
And what I would advocate is for compulsory warnings..nasty outcomes from consuming the product..much as has been done to cigarette packaging…
So..take your pick from them…mix/match as you like..
But what we can't afford to do…is nothing..
The ballooning long-term health costs for both people and medical system from letting this obesity crisis continue to balloon..is something nobody needs..
What would you argue for there..?..b.d..?
And as for the fat/carbs you cite..go vegan..and go easy on the bread..eh..?
And sugar kills the cellulose in the skin..it gives ya wrinkles..eh..?
Which is why all those fat people have wrinkly skin? /sarc/
There is such a thing as over-doing your argument.
We already know (from tobacco) that health warnings don't affect most people. No one reads them….
Mandatory prominent labelling of food products with % of sugar – might work – but only where shoppers are actively comparing products. Most people just buy their standard brand, and don't even look at the nutritional components. [I had a recent experience of this, when I was looking for a high protein yoghurt brand – and reading all of the nutritional panels – and realised what a rare experience this was – even for me, who's a fairly dedicated nutritional-value shopper] This might work better for 'hidden' sugar (in baked beans, for example) – rather than biscuits – which everyone expects to be high in sugar anyway.
We could price sugar up (as we did with tobacco). But sugar tax was highly unpopular with most Kiwis: as soon as they realized that their morning breakfast jam, or packet of chocolate thins was affected – they quickly cooled on the idea. 'Tax is to punish those 'bad' people over there, not my reasonable consumption')
And, to be clear, most of the people over-consuming sugar (to the point where it affects their health), are the low socio-economic groups in society. I don't know that we need to make their current grocery shop even more expensive…. And, any government doing so, is going to take a significant popularity strike (presumably why the previous government didn't pass a sugar tax)
[NB: I'd be really interested in a study on the effects of sugar tax, which looks at what people spend their money on. Some of the studies show lower levels of purchasing – but don't show what those people not buying sugary drinks, are buying instead.]
Which leaves 'mandatory' limits, on products. My prediction is that this would result in greater consumption of products. To use your packet of biscuits as an example. If the sugar level is cut in half, then people are more likely to eat 4 biscuits to get the same level of sugar hit. Consuming the same amount of sugar, but double the carbs and fat.
Incentives to replace sugar with alternatives (e.g. stevia) is another option. People with a real sweet-tooth, find it hard to quit eating sweet things (even with dire medical warnings over their personal health from their own GP or Specialist).
The whole 'obesity epidemic' is a very complex issue. Sugar is just one component. Over-consumption of highly processed carbs and fat are just as big a contributor. As is lack of exercise (with lots of factors: lifestyle, motivation, time-constraints, etc.) And, poverty, which makes people less able to choose highly nutritional foods (because they can't afford them, can't cook them, or can't store them).
If one has a diet cognisant of the salt and sugar content of food, some foods are off limits (cheap and nasty – using salt and sugar for flavour, sustaining addictions to unhealthy food).
It is standard for the nutritional content to be on labels. Once one assimilates the information it is easy to buy better.
But there should be a minimum standards for products (salt and sugar maximums – and codes of practice for various food groups).
@ b.d..
Can I suggest you do some basic knowledge gathering on the subject of what sugar does to skin..
A start could be asking google just that…
It could well silence your scoffing..
PU. Suggest you look at some pictures of fat people – not a wrinkle in sight.
You have your story Kay, and I have mine. My story goes back some 50 years to Wellington in the 1970's. As a young lesbian, I was very much involved with the Gay community. I helped run a Lesbian Club which sublet premises from Carmen on a Sunday night. I would go to Carmen's Coffee Bar to pick up the key.
In those days, the Trans people were very much part of the Gay community – they – like us were same sex attracted. They were mostly effeminate young men who were sexually attracted to men at a time when that was unlawful and had limited society approval. They internalised their homophobia and "transed away the Gay".
However, there has always been another variety of men who liked to wear women's clothes. They were known then as transvestites. They were not sexually attracted to other men, they often had wives and children. They are now identified as autogynephiacs – men who are sexually aroused by the thought of themselves as women. For a long time, they denied that they had anything to do with Gay people. They were not homosexual.
With more enlightened times of the 1980's and the response to the AIDS pandemic, Gay Liberation achieved a lot more legal and social rights and acceptance. The organisations which we had set up to support our struggle began to be more concerned with those who identified as Trans, and with Post Modernist philosophy – the concept of Gender Ideology has been developed. Belief in a "gendered soul" has now become as required as belief in an "immortal soul" was in the days before the separation of Church and State.
This enables any person who opens their mouth and utters the magical incantation "I identify as" to immediately have the right to be treated as if they were actually that thing. It enables the men who get off on the idea that they are women to demand the validation that they seek from every organisation that involves women. They are particularly interested in groups that involve Lesbians.
In Australia, Lesbian groups are back to meeting in secret like we were in the 1970's. We are not permitted to have dating sites that exclude "Transbians" and women only websites are under attack. Lesbian sports teams are bullied and blackmailed into accepting men who say that they are both women and lesbian.
Carmen. Georgina, Jackie, Niccole etc were busy running a business or earning a living. They were not demanding admission into every women's organisation. They certainly were not interested in our Lesbian club. They were (and those living still are) sexually interested in men. They were homosexual – same sex attracted.
These days, the very words "homosexual" and "same sex attracted" are described by Gender ideologists as "Transphobic dog whistles".
There lies a lot of the difference between the Trans people of the past and the Trans people of the present. Trans is now a new belief system and it is just as homophobic and misogynistic as most of the other religious ideologies. They are all about male power and men's rights.
That is my understanding about why women are concerned (and many men) as well.
There are a whole group of others getting caught up in the middle and a whole lot of teens at a sexually confusing time being pushed too hard in a particular direction at times aided and abetted by medical experts. This last part is in my view very concerning. Youth development doesn't fully finish to 24-25. I'm not sure we should be doing any gender reassignment before then (from a non-medical common-sense point of view.)
The religious objections from biblical points of view adds to the confusion as well as does the manipulation of the whole issue through absolute deliberate disinformation as well.
Thank you, very interesting background.
I’m trying to understand where my friend fits into all of this. She doesn’t give a damn about belief systems or politics she just wants to be who she is. Her biggest concern has been trying to save for reassignment surgery overseas, since it’ll never happen here. All I can see here is a small group of people ruining it for everyone else (as happens with just about every group you can think of).
Kay, your friend should have a good look at the complications rate for these sorts of surgeries. And also the more recent statistics about the satisfaction (or lack thereof) in the longer term, of those who have undertaken it.
I support your suggestion. Iatrogenic harm is best avoided if possible.
A recent documentary that gives space to young men to share their experiences is here:
https://youtu.be/AaiicS2HXW4?si=7V-VyXDJaK5Iz4UW
The goal has to be a world that contains no contradiction between your story and Kay's. Everyone should be safe no matter how they view and express their true selves – except for those who set out to control, demean and harm others.
As someone fairly clueless about all this, I found that very interesting and helpful, thanks.
Man whose church was responsible for the Inquisition, Crusades and easing Hitler’s path to power by standing their political party aside, thereby causing millions of deaths, pontificates….
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/world/2024/04/pope-francis-calls-for-gaza-ceasefire-in-easter-address.html
The church has never opposed replacing democracy with right wing government, if that means keeping the "secular" left out of power. Putin poses as Christian and is certainly a right wing authoritarian social conservative.
It fits with Trump who has found no authoritarian on the right to oppose and who cares not for a democratic Ukraine, or Europe.
He knows that this means they have to buy more weapons, sans a security guarantee.
Similarly a stand off with China over Taiwan is GOP policy and is designed to ensure other nations spend more on defence – India, Japan and Oz to contain a "threat" with most of the cost offloaded.
He showed no interest in a Korean peace (N Korea with missiles and warheads that can hit the US mainland) or resolving the Taiwan impasse. Or managing Ukraine-Russia (2014 issue) while POTUS.
…plus the church that aided and abetted Franco's fascist regime in Spain and legitimised Pinochet’s fascist regime in Chile:
“The Junta was offended by having the Allende regime placed on equal terms. In fact, it was being legitimated by the Church. The savages who had destroyed all of Chile’s most cherished institutions, killed thousands, expelled thousands, imprisoned thousands, driven hundreds of thousands from their jobs, were acknowledged to be as legitimate a government as the one the people had chosen for itself in free elections.”
https://www.commonwealmagazine.org/chiles-silent-church
Just to be clear, you're not objecting to his message (in fact, you probably agree with him in his call for ceasefire in Gaza now) – you just don't think that he should be making it?
Which political or religious leaders do you think should be making statements? Because the log in everyone's eye (in historical terms) is pretty substantial.
Wot b.d. said..
Plus wot b.g. said..
Of course MPI will be all over this…
/
The FDA is investigating the spread of "a highly contagious and often deadly" bird flu to dairy cows in Texas, Kansas and Michigan, the agency said on Friday.
The big picture: The bird flu was detected in unpasteurized milk samples and swabs from two dairy herds in Texas and Kansas and one in Michigan, but federal authorities said in an online Q&A there is "no concern" about the safety of the U.S. milk supply.
https://www.axios.com/2024/03/30/cattle-bird-flu-texas-michigan-kansas
https://www.farmersweekly.co.nz/politics/biosecurity-to-bear-brunt-of-mpi-job-cuts-psa/
Pedestrian bricks, an aid for pedestrian safety whilst crossing busy street. A Vancouver trial (maybe not that offical…)
https://twitter.com/M_WrenchGang/status/1774501591254511956
Looking at the date – and knowing what we do about Vancouver drivers – it is certainly the crossing by the Granville Market – but probably not official – and definitely not needed.
We found Vancouver drivers to be extremely courteous and considerate to pedestrians. The law seems to be that pedestrians have the right of way. Even where there is not a pedestrian crossing, drivers will give way to people who are crossing the road.
We were waiting at an ordinary T junction wishing to cross by the "Give Way" sign. There was no traffic to which the driver was required to stop for, but the driver stopped for us. We found exactly the same thing on our return journey.
In the CBD, there are a lot of service lanes which go behind buildings and have access from the main roads. The drivers of the trucks will wait for the pedestrians to all clear from the egress before they attempt to drive out.
We had to cross the Granville Bridge and get across two slip lanes and the 4 lane main arterial route. They had pedestrian crossings, but not lights. We were quite hesitant as we approached the first slip lane, but the oncoming traffic just all stopped the minute we made our intention clear.
So, it their is any city on the planet where pedestrians need the help of bricks to cross the road – it is certainly not Vancouver.
While I too found drivers in Canada very courteous to pedestrians, that is not the case everywhere. The bricks system is likely an ironic take on the flags made available in some places on that continent.
Just a few years ago NZ consulted on a range of changes to our road rules that included giving pedestrians right of way at side street intersections. Sadly the resulting recommendations were shuffled endlessly within Waka Kotahi and will likely never be implemented, certainly not with the current minister.
Just waiting for the said bricks to be hefted through windows of cars by young hooligans… Or taken to smash the windows of parked cars, either for theft or wanton destruction.
If you're so concerned about being seen on a pedestrian crossing – take your own flag (rainbow or otherwise)
I see that today the government has announced that it is banning walking in most public places.
https://www.greaterauckland.org.nz/2024/04/01/nz-government-announces-ban-on-walking/
Part of the rationale is that it would do away with pedestrian crossings and therefore pedestrian crossing lights which Winston Peters sees as being 'woke' and I suggest are also virtue signalling would be not necessary.
Moves are also afoot to change the colours of traffic lights. The GO colour is to be changed to Blue by National and flashing as a warning to gang members, and STOP will remain red. New Zealand First wanted the current yellow slow down signal to be a black light until it was pointed out that a black light would never be seen. ACT of course wanted there to be no lights at all and that truck drivers would rule supreme. The Greens wanted all traffic signals to be solar powered, even at night.
Labour thought it was all foolish but would argue for the red light to be on top. The Christian parties did not want their churches located in a red light district, preferring star light above all.
The rainbow community is yet to put in their/its/ his/her submissions.
Gang members use pedestrian crossings?
Voters who vote National walk?
If Winston rose from his cryptic sleep this morning, would you say he woke?
Important questions, in my mind.
Q1 Gang members use pedestrian crossings for burn outs and white paint jobs.
Q2 National voters creep, swagger and perambulate.
Q3 Peters awake is a moot point….
Ah!
I see now…
But no Nat voter I've known, perambulates. That's something sensitive progressives do. Similar to peregrinate – we do that; they holiday (in Bali, etc.)
Plans are also afoot to change certain famous place names like Milford Sound, Hanmer Springs plus other places…
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/lifestyle/2024/04/walking-ban-mcmilford-sound-and-iconic-tourism-spot-changing-its-name-kiwis-jump-on-april-fool-s-day-jokes.html
Perhaps we should ban April the first since it seems to be a source of misinformation and fake news. April could instead start tomorrow, and we could the give the liberated day to February, a month which seems to be forever short of a day.
Not a couple of weeks ago I predicted that the political right would start a campaign of propaganda supporting landlords who don't want to pass on their reduced costs to their tenants now the interest rebate has been reinstated.
It has begun. This story was originally from the granny Herald.
http://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/513142/landlords-1-point-3-million-out-of-pocket-in-unpaid-rent-for-first-two-months-of-2024
It is a carefully constructed slab of propaganda, designed to make New Zealanders believe that landlords are entitled to the extra profits and it would be unreasonable to expect them to pass on the savings.
"One Auckland tenant owed a whopping $33,000 for falling behind in rent over just 21 days…"
I knew Auckland rents were high, but that's quite something.
How dare a tenant do this?
I can't believe they published that, not the way they did.
Next of kin have no legal obligations to the debts of relatives. That bit of legal stupidity mostly died in commonwealth law by the end of the 19th century. It was the cause of so much misery as relatives were thrown in debtors prisons for the debts of family members, despite them not even knowing of the debt or having contracted to it. The latter is why you get very cautious about debt held jointly.
The correct place would have been to make a claim on the estate of the deceased – which you usually find via the lawyers or executors or the estate. There you stand in line. Usually something like
https://www.mactodd.co.nz/news-and-views/inherited-debt-what-if-your-parents-die-broke/
Grey Lynn villa on TradeMe for $6,995 per/week.
Perhaps the Dotcom Mansion might attract $11K+ per/week!
Well outside the experience of most Kiwis…..
Yeah, I'd describe that as being a problem with the rate of rent (and the landlord not keeping on top of receiving it).
If you were expecting to get $11k/week, then there should have been a bond to recover such losses. Clearly there was not.
It reads like a really dumb landlord. Generally you'd demand security up-front (or a credit card or something). Usually a bond for rent. Hotels are different again.
Probably the landlord didn't want to register one because they were trying to avoid or evade tax.
Some heartening news (for once) from Turkey:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/31/turkey-local-elections-istanbul-mayor-ekrem-imamoglu-recep-tayyip-erdogan