"The latest International Monetary Fund forecast has global growth dipping to -4.9 per cent." Degrowth is now in the pipeline.
It will probably have to occur for a while until mainstreamers start to notice, and then the media will get over their aversion and start reporting it. Normalcy is a state of mind and operates like conventional wisdom.
Facing a reality not previously encountered takes quite a lot of unconventional wisdom. Like turning the Titanic around, after the fraught consensus-building process of agreeing that the iceberg really is looming dead ahead.
So National & Labour are likely to produce alternative economic plans prior to the impact of the election, but such difficult endeavour takes inordinate time. Not business as usual is a hard thing for both bunches of neoliberals to think about.
Mainstreamers that aren't already out of work, you mean? Media not reporting it? Where'd you get that quote you led off with? When is prior to the impact of the election?
Degrowth. Media mainstreamers are averse to reporting a new reality, in normalcy. The conceptual breakthrough that awaits them is when one of their own succumbs to the `emperor's new clothes' effect. That will happen when the fastest slow learner realises the emperor of economic growth is no longer wearing clothes, interprets the drop in gdp as degrowth, then says so!
When is prior to the impact of the election?
When the election gets so close that the risk of delay becomes greater than the risk of announcing the plan too soon.
It ain't a tortoise & hare race, eh? Think tortoise & tortoise. The plans must gestate in the collective minds & processes of National & Labour until the time seems right to launch them. Remember that they both issued schematics of those plans not long ago, and the media commented on how they seemed identical and equally simplistic. So now the challenge is to differentiate!
Q: how can one bunch of neoliberal drones seem cleverer than another?
Of course not. I conclude that as a result of the consistent pattern of their failure to report it. What, you think I haven't waited long enough already?
Well, how long is a piece of string? I'm impatient by nature. A single failure suffices, for me. But yes, if you must wait until a pattern of degrowth denial by the media is well-established, I trust you will report each failure that you notice to us here, and tag it with the correct number in the sequence, so we can watch the sequence develop until it triggers the threshold of your pattern-recognition.
Don't let your impatience impede your understanding. Wait though, you're not just pretending the media are in denial to suit some point you want to make about your perspicacity are you? That would be a tad sly.
Most of the "political commentariat" are shills for National and to keep banging on with their trumping neoliberal memes shows they're owned and not reporting objectively. Relax though as Hosk will maintain the indignant rants.
Collins and Boag have also done a great wrecking job by reminding everyone how DP and that 'win at all costs' are still very much the playbook with national. They don't give a F about the people and Jude showed NZ over ILG she's into those tactics despite denial.
People aren't that stupid and the polls reflect that IMO. JA deserves to govern alone.
Most of the "political commentariat" are shills for National…
Except for the most of the "political commentariat" who people at Kiwiblog claim are shills for Ardern and for Labour.
I guess the "political commentariat" is people who say things you disagree with, as opposed to the intelligent well reasoned journalists you agree with.
In many people's eyes Ardern does deserve to govern alone, but alas she least needs a few ministers to pad out the Cabinet and to front on the bad news.
Goes beyond any party sympathies. For instance, Malpass is a hardcore libertarian cheerleader who has worked for 'thinktanks' of that persuasion in both NZ and Australia.
Ok Pete Who are these marvelous managers in National? Their “Cabinet” is looking very shabby at present.
You are repeating the meme, "They only have Jacinda" when talking about Labour, with "alas she needs a few ministers to pad out the Cabinet"
Journalists who were "truth tellers became targets during Key's time. It is good to see one vindicated to some degree.
We look at the record and behaviour of these people. When their hyperbole draws the attention of theWorld Press, you can hardly accuse us of only attacking those journalists or commentators we disagree with. That is disingenuous.
As the biggest global event since WW2, it seems entirely reasonable that COVID-19 will lead to some sort of political realignment or shift in democratic societies, as happened in and after the 1930s Depression (eg Roosevelt in US, Savage/Fraser in NZ) and WW2 (eg Labour's election victory in UK in 1945, the NHS etc).
It will be hard for any opposition party to argue for smaller government, tax cuts and especially anything that might be seen to weaken the health system. Hard too for National to attack Labour for carrying out pretty much the same economic policies as the British and Australian conservative governments have done during COVID.
Weak piece from van Beynen which doesn't look at underlying causes. Labour is popular right now because for a period of a few months it has told business what to do and insisted that it behave itself. It has put private power under democratic control in the interests of the health of every citizen. A majority of people love that – it's how their families work.
Sure – as things get back to normal Labour will roll over and let business walk all over it again. But it's been nice while it lasted.
That is a very insightful comment- having business behave itself. In terms of the election frankly I don't expect huge policy gobs ( as everything is in flux) but I would be content with a direction of travel.
At the moment I think it would be fair to say that National represent letting business and overseas actors run all over the country again with zero concern for the bulk of citizens, with a very large side dollop of righteous fundamental holly roller.
Labour will do better long term if they make it clear that they see business as a sector that has to be modified community needs.
The Greens might be better to really focus on business being pushed in the environmental direction and into better redistribution towards the low paid but with more emphasis on the part the international wealthy play in this and the level of competition that the workplace settings play in this.
Funny too how the media demand policy from Labour but give the right a free pass although the right rarely disclose their true agenda anyway.
Restating National’s reason for existence is no easy task. It could start by reminding itself who it really represents, whose interests it is there to protect and promote.
National is there to represent the rich and to make the exploitation of the poor by the rich easier. They know this, they don't have to remind themselves. Their problem is that most people are truly starting to realise this and if they state it openly then they lose even more votes.
It could stand for equality of opportunity rather than equality of outcome. Civility instead of kindness.
Yeah – no. National has never stood for that. In fact, they stand fully against that. They know that the rich have much more opportunity and they're out to keep it that way by keeping everyone else poor.
After all, equal opportunity can only come when everyone has the same access to the same level of resources.
Does it all matter? Would it be the end of the world if National’s failure to re-establish its relevance meant it withered and died.
Yes, it matters because getting rid of the rich is what we need to do to truly become a prosperous nation.
It’s obviously important for our democracy to have a healthy opposition and National is all we have got at this stage.
Its important for democracy that all voices and ideas are heard, debated and those chosen by the people are researched. It's not important for democracy to have an opposition.
Public support for democracy depends on the other team having a reasonable prospect of governing one day.
That is an outright lie.
Public support for democracy comes from people feeling that their say is heard and that the path that the people choose benefits them and their direct family.
The concept of government and opposition actually prevents that.
Social realities get co-created. Conspiracy theories have been escalating in recent decades and having a US president promoting one or more of them ramps their influence up into the top level of politics. Next step: geopolitics! 👽
When theories are promoted as alternative realities, they can become resilient and adaptive. As complex memes, they achieve contagion and currency.
"QAnon does not possess a physical location, but it has an infrastructure, a literature, a growing body of adherents, and a great deal of merchandising… In the face of inconvenient facts, it has the ambiguity and adaptability to sustain a movement of this kind over time. For QAnon, every contradiction can be explained away; no form of argument can prevail against it."
Conspiracy theories are a constant in American history, and it is tempting to dismiss them as inconsequential. But as the 21st century has progressed, such a dismissal has begun to require willful blindness.
Sceptics tend to make greater fools of themselves than conspiracy theorists. The denialism that drives their dismissal makes them seem more pathetic. They deny the evidence that makes the conspiracy theory superficially plausible. So other sceptics who prefer to be grounded in whatever social reality seems profoundly real have to distance themselves from both groups.
This transcendence of the binary creates a triadic structure in society: true-believers, disbelievers, and agnostics. Amongst the agnostics, you get those who are genuinely interested in the theorising, but require a better match with reality than that proposed by the competing binary nutball groups.
The hero myth was identified by mythologist Joseph Campbell in 1949. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hero_with_a_Thousand_Faces) When you combine it with the tyranny/freedom mental axis, to produce Trump as liberator from total control of everyone by the deep state, you get traction in the mass mind.
In its broadest contours, the QAnon belief system looks something like this: Q is an intelligence or military insider with proof that corrupt world leaders are secretly torturing children all over the world; the malefactors are embedded in the deep state; Donald Trump is working tirelessly to thwart them.
Next step is to use the internet to make mass contagion more influential. Memes defeat other memes in the process of social darwinism:
If the internet is one big rabbit hole containing infinitely recursive rabbit holes, QAnon has somehow found its way down all of them, gulping up lesser conspiracy theories as it goes.
Then achieve democratic authenticity by identifying with the will of the people:
To believe Q requires rejecting mainstream institutions, ignoring government officials, battling apostates, and despising the press. One of Q’s favorite rallying cries is “You are the news now.”
Waken everyone! Warn them, about Democrats
promoting “mass hysteria” about the coronavirus for political gain: “What is the primary benefit to keep public in mass-hysteria re: COVID‑19? Think voting. Are you awake yet? Q.”
Meanwhile in the real world …. the interview with Oliver Stone was also interesting. I think the Vietnam experience will be viewed in the future as a more telling moment in history than it is even now. I was a teen at the time and it didn't fully sink in, and watching documentaries now what gets to me is the pure fear in the eyes of the conscripts sent there. Stone nailed the zeitgeist of the time so well, and long may he continue to produce rock the boat documentaries and films.
"Sceptics tend to make greater fools of themselves than conspiracy theorists. The denialism that drives their dismissal makes them seem more pathetic."
Really? Equating skepticism to denial(ism) is just weird – maybe it's a conspiracy
"Scepticism is integral to the scientific process, because most claims turn out to be false. Weeding out the few kernels of wheat from the large pile of chaff requires extensive observation, careful experimentation and cautious inference. Science is scepticism and good scientists are sceptical.
Denial is different. It is the automatic gainsaying of a claim regardless of the evidence for it – sometimes even in the teeth of evidence. Denialism is typically driven by ideology or religious belief, where the commitment to the belief takes precedence over the evidence. Belief comes first, reasons for belief follow, and those reasons are winnowed to ensure that the belief survives intact."
RNZ dropped Vicki Hyde as one of their regular commentators. I suspect her ideologically-driven scepticism was pissing off their audience too much. Nothing wrong with traditional scepticism used as a reality-check in science, as described in your red herring. What goes wrong with sceptics is their natural tendency to elevate scepticism to an ideology, whence their degeneration into denial of evidence emerges from. Been seeing that tendency consistently since the 1970s.
Sceptics are able to make a positive contribution to society & culture as long as they keep an open mind and balanced view of the pros & cons of evidence.
Sadly, many can't. This lot give the others a bad name (the analogy with lawyers comes to mind). To err is human, and one could rationalise their inadequacies accordingly. Me, I'm not so charitable. 😇
"I suspect her [Hyde's] ideologically-driven scepticism was pissing off their audience too much."
You've peaked my curiosity, Dennis – I've met Hyde (who in 2013 was appointed a MNZM for services to science), and would struggle to identify the idealogy that you perceive drives her scepticism. Could you expand on the evidence that informs your suspicion? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vicki_Hyde
"Sceptics are able to make a positive contribution to society & culture as long as they keep an open mind and balanced view of the pros & cons of evidence.
Sadly, many can't."
Yes, it's always sad when an opportunity to make a constructive contribution is lost – those 'patterns of behaviour' are sooo intractable, eh?
"What goes wrong with sceptics is their natural tendency to elevate scepticism to an ideology…" – so many people going wrong!
Conflating denial and scepticism doesn't fly, but, as you say, to err is human.
Pseudoscience as Media Effect
"The popularity of the anti-vax movement in the United States and elsewhere is the cause of new lethal epidemics of diseases that are fully preventable by modern medicine [Benecke and DeYoung, 2019]. Creationism creeps into science classrooms with the aim of undermining the teaching of evolution through legal obligations or school boards’ decisions to present both sides of a debate largely foreign to the scientific community [Taylor, 2017]. And one simply has to turn on the TV and watch so-called science channels to be bombarded with aliens, ghosts, cryptids and miracles as though they are undisputable facts [Prothero, 2012]. Deprecated by its detractors, scientific proof is assimilated to become one opinion among others, if not a mere speculation. Worse, scientific data that challenge partisan positions or economic interests are dismissed as ‘junk science’ and their proponents as ‘shills’ [Oreskes and Conway, 2010]. By echoing such statements, some members of the media, often willing accomplices in conflating denial and scepticism, amplify manufactured controversies and cast growing doubt upon scientific credibility." https://jcom.sissa.it/archive/19/02/JCOM_1902_2020_L01
It’s a big part of their success in the polls sure. But it’s not the only reason. There’s also a growing conviction on the part of voters that the main opposition party is in no shape to bear the responsibilities of office at the moment.
– how dare people use Their money as they see fit, don't they know that Their Kiwi saver AINT theirs to use. How dare they.
People now and then need money. They can borrow it from a bank or go for their savings. If the government is smart it will look at a change in legislation that would allow people to access a certain part of THEIR SAVINGS to start their busienss, pay some healthcare costs, renovate the house, get married, have some childfren et etc etc etc – you know all that stuff that sometimes need money. And besides, 48% of businesses succeed. But then who cares.
I don't think anyone here is considering the No mates party a good steward of anything other then their own bank accounts.
But liberating the Kiwi Safer to their owners would not be a bad idea and should be considered.
Westykev,So, you didn't hear anything about the huge spending on Infrastructure then, the largest spend in NZs history, or the fact they've built more new homes than any Govt since the seventies.
I call that a wish list from a Party that has not delivered big on infrastructure since their elevation to Government. Twyford and team over promised and under delivered on housing and transport.
I hope for New Zealand’s sake they up their game post September.
It's not a wish list, it's an achievement NZ hasn't seen in a decade.
That's why people say Twyford was a failure cos he managed to have more new homes built in NZ than any Govt since the 70s.
In terms of other major Infrastructural projects, there hasn't been anytime in History that NZ has planned and completed the level Infrastructure currently either starting or near completion, roading, rail, Hospitals, Schools.
How many Schools and Hospitals were upgraded under the last Govt?
I think Jacinda and Labour have so far tried to tread a fine line on this. Governments still have to govern right up to election day but most election years haven't been overshadowed by such a crisis and threat.They don't want to be seen to be prioritising election campaigning over the serious business of keeping NZ safe, and if anything went wrong they'd get pilloried for taking their eyes off the ball. On the other hand, they have already got some criticism from media over allegedly treating the upcoming election as a nuisance. Ultimately the best way for a govt to retain power is to be seen to be doing a good job, while also setting out a vision for the future.
Must be why Ardern has an 80% confidence rating, looking after NZ and NZers.
We just happen to be in the luckiest country in the world right now, just there's a few Kiwis that haven't quite recognized that yet, they will in time.
This Virus ain't disappearing any time soon, NZ is the Country to follow for procedural excellence, and we're still learning as we go.have we made mistakes, yes, did we learn from mistakes, yes. What more can you ask for.
The National party are complaining about all the money being spent on Quarintine and Isolation without actually recognizing the Huge financial benefits of ploughing all those funds directly into the economy, employing people and keeping businesses operating, it's called good economic management, something NZers aren't used to seeing.
It'll cost them something, maybe the tail end of their list – but the party that spent so much time whining about opening the borders have scarcely established themselves as a credible alternative.
Covid-19 is a game changer on many levels were community transmission to occur. Due to good political management NZ has been fortunate in not being impacted on a social level other than when in level 4 & 3.
I watched the premier of Victoria on TV and the emotion in his eyes told me that there was a long rocky steep road ahead for his state.
There are some situations in isolation where additional support is needed. Ranging from medical requiring methadone to grief support for children and this needs to be provided to minimise breaking isolation.
The paper headline said yesterday/today that Victoria is thinking of a NZ type lockdown. We did it early and so it tracked through well. Victoria seemed to be doing well but it was careless to have guards supposed to be keeping isolated possibly infected apart but then having sex with them. That was a poor connection in the brain of the careless young, but even worse in the minds of planners who need to allow for the little quirks and needs of humans.
So Victoria may have to go beyond what we did and be authoritarian, and the young would hate it, but then that could be limited by showing some kindness and imagination. Set up ways of communicating so people don't get tense about family and personal problems, and loneliness. Let them watch television a lot and perhaps have classes on learning the ukelele, and put a performance on telly at the end of isolation giving kudos to those who gave it a go in the true Aussie spirit, and build citizen-pride and support. And for the ones that like reading have kindle, and then a book discussion between the isolated and outsiders. Try to get them reading, it may prevent them from joining the most illiterate period since 1820 or something, with most spending time watching mummers on TV.
I don't see that as bad, firms would probably give vouchers, be prepared to give something to do for the fortnight, and make a friend and customer from the situation.
When I say opposition, I mean those parties not part of the Government: National and ACT. At the moment the opposition is on 37%. Just seven weeks out from the election the opposition is at 37%.
For context, the poll that saw Andrew Little admit that maybe he wasn't the right person to lead Labour had the opposition of Labour, Greens, and NZFirst actually collectively at 50%.
…
You have to judge each poll against itself. So in the last Colmar Brunton, which was taken when Todd Muller was leader, National was on 38% and ACT on 3%. So 41% for the opposition. Even that is bad, but now it's worse with National shedding 6% and ACT gaining 2%.
If you compare TV3's Reid Research Polls, the opposition went from 32% to 28%, so a slip of 4%. While National went down 5% and ACT went up 2%.
The trends are pretty much the same.
It was a good call when to release the report into Operation Burnham as the National Party poll could have dipped due to the release. The next poll will reflect the reports finding.
There is a trend going on into inquiries involving National Party MPs and when the inquiry is of an historical event which was handled poorly this reflects on the current National Party.
Were it not for Labour exposing the truth using pages from Hager and Stephenson's book, National and the NZDF would have gotten away with concealing the truth.
Yes. They're the ones who may have followed the saga as it wound its way through the mesh of lies denials and (maybe) even read "Hit and Run".
The young are otherwise occupied unless they are in the NZDF and even then its likely they are not much interested as for many it represents what they would see as a bygone era.
I see this election as a massive renewal for the hard right in New Zealand.
Labour has been faced with such extreme events that it has had to expand the state so fast and so far that the more defensive elements of society are getting more and more ticked off.
National has shrunk.
Act looks likely to get above 5%, and bring in 7-8 MPs. Act's stance on guns is well recognised as bringing in those hard core rifle owners in the Waitake and Southland electorates.
The Conservative Party is back, and it will eat away a percentage or two in Mt Roskill and Mangere.
The coalition of weirdos gathered around Jaimie Lee-Ross will suck .5%-1% across from NZFirst and from National.
I'd like to see this splintering continue, to ensure Labour gets a good four terms and sinks the wooden stake through National's heart good and proper.
Whereas on the left, the Greens are imperilled at 5% and may well be dried to a husk under the 5% threshold, leaving a unified and revived left under Ardern. The harder left has simply nowhere to go and doesn't need to. That makes for much more efficient and surefooted government.
Our government has never been more redistributive, or more Keynsean in the scale of its deficit spending, since Muldoon's second term.
It has utterly massive nationwide support, and support within the Labour Party, for a young and charismatic and effective leader. That hasn't occurred since the first term of Helen Clark – if then.
And it's done so while becoming the most popular government in living memory.
Who do you place the blame on if the Greens don't make it over the line?
I like the Greens, I hope they're part of the next Govt, but they can't complain voters don't support them, they need the policies that attract a broader range of punters
We weren't talking about that, but their comms has been weaker in recent years. Only need to secure one on twenty voters though – not the same 'broad' church as Lab or Nat.
I do not see how removing the Greens from parliament builds unity. Seems like FPP thinking.
No, not really, I think its just we've got a Govt that has become extremely popular, a lot of that due to the response to the pandemic, both support parties are struggling to gain traction even though they are part of the solution, its just the voting public aren't associating those support parties with the pandemic policies, they're not seen promoting the policies or involved in the daily announcements.
I agree the Greens need to improve their coms, they've stumbled making announcements about policy, they've allowed the media to control the policy emphasis, rather than making sure the policy is promoted in a way that voters can aspire to.
I give you their Tax policy release as an example, great policy, but the media immediately described it as the Wealth Tax, that ends up as a discouragement, they needed a clear identity for the policy, like, Tax restructuring policy and made sure it couldn't be renamed to something the voters would want to reject.
I'm confident the Greens will make the cut, you only have see how many here will party vote them to help them on their way.
The Greens are essential to parliament because parties need friends to govern. Sure, Labour might be able to govern alone come election 2020, but what about 2023? Monolith parties lower the odds of being in government if they don't have coalition partners.
The right are in trouble not because they have new minor parties fracturing the vote, but because the new minor parties are largely similar in nature (and extremely nutty).
NZ can't support the Greens, the Environment Party, the ZeroCarbon Party, and the OrganicNZ Party. But the Greens should be able to get 5%.
If we lose the Greens this election, to whom will Labour turn when they drop to 45% in 2023?
Even with a majority to Govern alone, I still think the Greens will be part of the next Govt, even if it's just for improved representation, and very good for democracy.
Winston rose from the soft fresh earth lining his crypt that he had been resting in from 2008 to 2011. So Greens missing out this time isn't necessarily permanent. Especially if they take the time to reflect on the relative weight they give to environmental issues versus other issues in relation to the demographics where they draw their support.
Yeah, but Winston's kind of special like that. Dude has come back from the dead so much that Hammer Films want to make movies about him.
I don't think policy weight is the issue for the Greens – I think they just have a same problem as ACT (although significantly more base support). When their natural coalition partner is dipping a bit, they have a bit more room. When their natural coalition partner is super-popular, they get overshadowed.
But I still think their voice is important to have in parliament.
Maybe not policy-weight as the important factor, but people-weight.
I couldn't bring myself to vote for Greens when their highest profile people were the likes of Tanczos, Bradford, Kedgley. Because it really didn't seem to me their hearts were in environmental issues, but that Greens were a stalking horse for other agendas.
Then when there was a bit more heft on the environment side with the likes of Kevin Hague, Kennedy Graham, Russell Norman as well as Hughes, Sage etc, I found it easier to choke down the idea that the likes of Steffan Browning were part of the package. For the coming election, I feel like the environmental substance has been whittled down to Shaw, Sage, Genter – which feels like quite a step down from where things were.
I'm sort of half and half on that one (personal dislike for Tanzcos aside – on at least one occasion he got pissy with doorstaff when the "don't you know who I am" didn't count as a backstage pass).
MPs neglecting a party's platform just to wank on about a single pet issue is a bit shit. But also I'm not sure how a party serious about fundamentally altering how we as a society operate in relation to the environment can do so without looking at social, economic, and post-colonial issues.
From my point of view, the existence of poverty is every bit as much a part of the values of an environmental party as the discussion of whether NZ national parks should be returned as close to a precolonial state as is possible. Poverty is a direct result of capitalism. It's as wasteful to people as clearfelling or overfishing are to "the environment". I have no idea why any group would want dramatic change in one but be opposed to any effort spent on the other.
And generally not getting candidates, and then MPs who are up to representing the place. The place puts very high demands on it's MP and will quickly destroy someone who's not up to the demands of the job. Certainly did the last two in, with style.
The electorate has a very conservative rural part in Southland, combined with a very liberal, go get it, part in Queenstown and Central Otago. It's one or the other with very little cross over, the two parts of the electorate may as well speak completely different languages, really they do.
How does this happen? According to the Herald a woman traveled from NZ to England in January then came home in March just before lockdown and then on July 20 flew to Sydney where she tested positive on arrival .? She must have dual citizenship but how does she test positive 4 1\2 months later when she thinks she may have had it when feeling sick after coming back in March. Did she not get a test then, was it a false neg if she did?
It may be that the test is detecting fragments of dead virus that haven't been finally cleared by the immune system.
It may be a recent infection and her earlier illness wasn't covid.
It may be that the virus somehow persists in someone's body without activating the immune system enough to fully clear it, or it may find a home in some specific tissues where it's hidden from the immune system.
Today's Ministry of Health media release about the two cases who travelled from Auckland to Sydney.
The first involves a woman who transited through Auckland from Los Angeles to Sydney on 6 July. At this point there are not considered to be any close contacts who need to be traced or tested but enquiries continue with both the airline and airport.
The second involves a woman who travelled from Auckland to Sydney on 20 July. We have already talked directly with the person concerned.
At this point, it appears the person may have been a previously unconfirmed case from March and this is likely to have led to the positive test result.
We will continue to fully investigate the circumstances of this positive result, including travel history.
She arrived in Sydney on the 6th July. Quarantine till the 20th. 11 days later or thereabouts a positive test. Might she have picked it up in quarantine? Sydney? Who would know……scary to think she might have picked it up in the UK in January. I traveled to London mid February arrived home on the 28th. Was visiting an unwell relative so didn’t go touristing. Walking freely around local shops. No hint of what was about to come although I was following covid closely. Trip home on edge a little and practising hand hygiene etc…
I've been aware of this issue for a while now, but I'm rather startled at how many people are at risk here:
Normally hundreds of small yachts sail here from the South Pacific each year to wait the cyclone season out, from September to May.
But this year, with the borders closed because of the pandemic, they're stranded with nowhere to go.
Guy Chester is moored at the island of Nuku Hiva in French Polynesia, and is growing increasingly anxious, as the window closes for the yachts to make the voyage here – he says they only have a few weeks left, and still need planning and application time.
He's been appealing to New Zealand's government since April to create a border entry exemption process for those on small yachts in the Pacific to come to New Zealand before the cyclone season starts.
This is straightforward, and very low risk. By the time you've made the 10 day passage from Tonga or Fiji on a small yacht, you've pretty much isolated anyway. And when you do get to Opua, another week on the boat and a couple of tests represents a very low burden on the quarantine system.
These are foreign (i.e. not kiwi) yachties in French Polynesia who pre-covid would have planned on spending the cyclone season in NZ (or Australia). French Poly is relatively safe from cyclones and in fact many European yachties (not under visa restrictions) spend several years there. Any yachties who have to leave French Poly (e.g. for NZ) cannot land in the Cooks, Niue or Tonga making it a 14 to 20 day trip direct, so basically within quarantine timing. Fiji has opened up under strict conditions but is not a safe cyclone season layover. Can't see the NZ government allowing non NZ yachties in yet, at least until after the election (cyclone season doesn't really begin until November) despite the low health risk.
The closing down of borders and constantly changing rules has impacted many people very hard. I recently met a couple who spent 73 days at sea in SE Asia, being bounced from place to place before finally arriving in Darwin with literally no food or water left on board. This is not an uncommon story.
The trade wind sea routes also mean that if you are in the Pacific, your most feasible destinations lie eastward, and this means ultimately landing up in NZ or Australia at some point. If your home nation is Europe or North America, sailing back upwind to get there is not a simple matter. And until very recently even getting back through Panama was not possible.
And in reality for many, their boat is their home, their only significant asset. Abandoning it and catching a plane back to the country they are nominally citizen's of is a highly non-trivial demand to make of them.
NZ has long had a marine industry that has quietly done very well from a steady flow of boats arriving here; now is the time to extend a generous hand when they really need it.
A good accurate description. However having made the passage westwards once myself, the prospect of spending another year in French Polynesia rather than risk the perilous long trip all the way to NZ seems a lot safer and pleasanter. The other issue is that all the foreign boats from last year are still 'stuck' in NZ (and Oz) meaning there is little safe mooring space left in in marinas for another lot.
Normally, yachts would island hop through to Tonga then down to NZ via Minerva lagoon if necessary. But all the islands west of French Polynesia are inaccessible making it a 2000 nautical mile trip from Bora Bora with the worst bit at the end – not sensible even if NZ allows entry
Even before the pandemic, yachties intending to sail to NZ had to inform Customs at least 4 days before arrival with all info about who's on board, where they were sailing from and their health status. They could only go to the Q (quarantine) dock in Opua or Marsden Cove and wouldn't be allowed on land before an inspection by Customs, Biosecurity and Health. If Guy, whoever he is, just turned up he would have been fined heavily and possibly arrested. Dunno what the protocol is now as only NZ citizens and residents are allowed to sail to NZ. Guess they have to work it out before they leave Australia or French Poly with Customs and any days they haven't spent at sea (subtracted from 14) could be spent tied up to one or the other of the Q docks and only released after a negative test (only guessing!).
Ok, so he could set off and he's not going to be sunk on sight as long as he lets people know who's coming and he's prepared to quarantine. Doesn't sound too oppressive.
No it isn't like that at all. If he just turned up without good reason (such as a genuine sailing emergency) there would be heavy fines, and lots of unhappy consequences.
Most sailing people are highly aware of the often complex arrival procedures necessary in every country and do their best to comply responsibly wherever possible.
Authorities are very aware of the Pacific drug smuggling routes, monitor traffic closely and are generally quite good at catching bad actors. Quite a separate issue.
The exit of so many socially liberal women at the same time leaves a gaping hole in the so-called broad church of the National party that will cause it to list to the religious right.
Audrey Young (I bet she was weeping tears of anger and disappointment when writing this) expands on the rise and rise of the MPs who are religious Right. (But Wrong to me.)
Fast forward to Thursday and you saw Kaye and Adams describing with pride their work on the abortion legislation, the euthanasia bill, gay marriage, and other Rainbow issues.
Their work has been strongly opposed by a group of hardcore Christian colleagues, mainly first-term MPs, who include Hipango, Loheni, Simeon Brown, Chris Penk and Paulo Garcia, along with more experienced MPs Simon O'Connor and Alfred Ngaro, who briefly flirted with the idea of starting a Christian Party.
The religious conservatives in National have been more visible this term than before because of three factors: greater numbers of MPs, more issues around which to organise, and the fact the party did not have a strong liberal leader like John Key.
His departure gave the right greater freedom, permission if you like, to speak out with impunity.
Simon Bridges and Todd Muller are not part of the more zealous group although, as conservatives and Christians, would also have given heart to the hardliners.
It is not yet clear what the balance will be when the votes fall after September 19 and it is yet to be seen how some of the new MPs such as Christopher Luxon will project their Christian views on others.
The chances are there will not be the surplus of polarising issues there have been this term.
But the exit of a swag of social liberals means keeping a balance between liberal and conservative within National is expected be a greater focus for the party's board particularly in its list ranking.
When the Christian Party demised many years ago, I seem to remember a plan to not bother with a Party but instead get individual strong Christians elected to operate from the inside rather than the outside. Maybe they have succeeded?
Yes Draco. Since God is on their side they will mightily hew down those who would defy the Chosen Path to Rightliness and Judith will blossom shrouded in iridescent halos. Alleluya!
If the current govt could get their collective shit together for long enough and not let people in isolation rock off to Countdown every 5 minutes it should be alright
We tend to propose economic policies without thinking of their wider repercussions. It is just so easy to say ‘we should do this’ and ignore the consequences. This was nicely, and sadly, illustrated by a recent controversy between Keith Woodford, retired professor of agribusiness at Lincoln University, and the NZIER, which wrote a report on the contribution of agriculture to the economy. It argued that the sector’s contribution was small (4 to 5 percent of GDP); Woodford argued that the estimate was misleading about the significance of the farm contribution.
Bryan [Philpott] would have been irate, because the analytic framework the NZIER report was so limited. It seemed to be saying that the farm sector was so small we could almost neglect it. That would encourage those who want to diminish or even close down the agricultural sector.
The problem, of course, is that economists have been giving bad advice for decades and, even after the lessons of the GFC, don't seem to have any other advice.
DracoTD, the NZ scene has a significant national body collective? It was a long fought effort to be recognised; now not only receiving charitable funding but receiving significant funding from MSD and ACC.
The body's agencies are working on the ground addressing an overwhelming workload of needs.
Each of the client coming into different agents nation wide, IS the expert on their own lives. The goals for 'remedy' come from their own voices. Support is multi faceted for all dimensions of a person's story and needs; not just abuse issues either nor ironically a single gender or ethnicity, exclusive place. New agencies are underway still spreading into further locales. There is enormous support from a wide collective of grass roots and NGO's all working collaboratively to affect change .( And no, Paula despite your claim in your valedictory speech, you never visited- and in a funding round- nor another high profile dissenter, ' never mind them' pollie. https://malesurvivor.nz/our-organisation/
Australia's Covid 19 toll has doubled in the last two weeks since they had effectively eliminated.
Watching the conversations of resident Victorians around the place it's clear they and their government have no idea about proper pandemic response. This can be applied nationally too. The mixed massages and concessions which led to this horrible 'second wave' (it's not a second wave, it's just a first wave not dealt with properly) are still front and centre of policy there.
For instance, did you know that construction was, is and apparently always will be classed as an essential service? Did you know all Australians were allowed to go to work, even during their highest level of lockdown, if they were unable to work from home?
It's clear the Victorian people and government have no intention of doing what is required and they are now reduced to managing the unmanageable.
The Victorian and federal Australian governments' botched response gives us a very clear picture of what life would be like in New Zealand had the National Party been in charge here.
In the beginning, the Australian state Govts started their own lockdowns as the Fed Govt was missing in action, they finally came to the party and literally copied the NZ system and Morrison was even mimicking Ardern and her demeanor, I remember watching him thinking he must have had a brain transplant, speaking more softly and with emotion, must have taken a fair bit of training.
The state's Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton on Friday confirmed a New Zealand-style lockdown was being explored – restrictions which saw all businesses closed except for essential services.
The VIC authorities are doing themselves and everyone else a disservice by claiming the situation the find themselves in now is due to one single quarantine lapse.
I just don't buy that and what it does is minimise the considerable flaws in the rest of their approach which, left unfixed, will result in many, many more deaths.
We should not forget National and business and universities jumping up and down demanding we open the borders before it was safe. Strange isn't it, they have gone pretty quiet about that these days. They were also saying Australia was doing better than we were!
But we must not get complacent. Daughter in Australia says too many people there were selfish idiots.
Daughter in Australia says too many people there were selfish idiots.
It's true, but where does the complacency come from? It comes from complacent and compromised leadership.
Those conversations I mentioned above show the Australian federal government’s relief packages were unwieldy, slow and hard to access. Wage subsidies in NZ were central to the calmness with which we all approached the very well thought out lockdown. Clear and compassionate leadership from JA got us all on board.
Muttonbird, true. It was very clear here, apart from some initial issues about what was or was not essential and untidy issues were quickly tidied up. The daily PM and DG briefings kept us well informed and they reminded us what was expected of us. It became essential viewing. I don't think daughter in Australia had that level of clarity.
He'd certainly want to spellcheck their copy, before publishing.
And peruse the leader’s room for contradictory clues like hats before giving a stump speech
"I think they now have a terrific team who has a good chance of winning the election, or at least can ensure the National Party will remain a broad church after 19 September."
"At least" …
Translation: Campaign strategist expects defeat. I don't think any Lab/Nat person in the leader's office has done this publicly since 1990. Nobody ever does. That's how bad things are on the good ship National.
“I’m pleased to have contributed to getting some of National’s basic messaging done, including the standard sump speech, and also to have helped kickstart the A to Z policy process again.”
One of the first cruise ships in the world to resume sailing since the coronavirus-caused worldwide halt to departures in March is experiencing an outbreak of the illness that has already sent people to the hospital.
Norwegian expedition cruise company Hurtigruten late Friday said four crew members from the 535-passenger Roald Amundsen were admitted to the University Hospital of North Norway in Tromsø, Norway, earlier in the day after the vessel docked in the city.
"Former Defence Minister Wayne Mapp just told @manidunlop on Midday Report he "completely forgot" about a briefing which said civilians were possibly killed during Operation Burnham."
Today chief press secretary Janet Wilson confirmed to the Herald that Hooton and National Party leader Judith Collins had agreed it was time for his work to come to an end.
"It's all very happy," Wilson told the Herald. "We all agreed his work was done."
I am not a criminologist or organisational sociologist, so I cannot offer a data-driven opinion on the effectiveness of military-syle so-called ‘boot camps” when it comes to rehabilitating juvenile delinquents and youth offenders. They are popular in the US and … Continue reading → ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 27 were:1. The Minister for Ford Rangers strikes againTransport Minister Simeon Brown was again the busiest of the Cabinet ministers this week, announcing an ...
You got a fast carAnd I want a ticket to anywhereMaybe we make a dealMaybe together we can get somewhereAny place is betterYesterday’s newsletter, Trust In Me, on the report of abuse in state care, and by religious organisations, between 1950 and 2019, coupled with the hypocrisy of Christopher Luxon ...
New Zealand is again having to reconcile conflicting pressures from its military and its trade interests. Should we join Pillar Two of AUKUS and risk compromising our markets in China? For a century after New Zealand was founded in 1840, its external security arrangements and external economics arrangements were aligned. ...
The ‘50 Shades of Green’ farmers’ protest in 2019 was heavy on climate change denial, but five years on, scepticism and criticism about the idea that pine forests can save us is growing across the board. File photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s the top six news items of note in climate ...
This morning the sky was bright.The birds, in their usual joyous bliss. Nature doesn’t seem to feel the heat of what might angst humans.Their calls are clear and beautiful.Just some random thoughts:MāoriPaul Goldsmith has announced his government will roll back the judiciary’s rulings on Māori Customary Marine Title, which recognises ...
In 2003, the Court of Appeal delivered its decision in Ngati Apa v Attorney-General, ruling that Māori customary title over the foreshore and seabed had not been universally extinguished, and that the Māori Land Court could determine claims and confirm title if the facts supported it. This kicked off the ...
Earlier this week at Parliament, Labour leader Chris Hipkins was applauded for saying that the response to the final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care had to be “bigger than politics.” True, but the fine words, apologies and “we hear you” messages will soon ring ...
TL;DR: In news breaking this morning:The Ministry of Education is cutting $2 billion from its school building programme so the National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government has enough money to deliver tax cuts; The Government has quietly lowered its child poverty reduction targets to make them easier to achieve;Te Whatu Ora-Health NZ’s ...
Kia ora. These are some stories that caught our eye this week – as always, feel free to share yours in the comments. Our header image this week (via Eke Panuku) shows the planned upgrade for the Karanga Plaza Tidal Swimming Steps. The week in Greater Auckland On ...
1. What's not to love about the way the Harris campaign is turning things around?a. Nothingb. Love all of itc. God what a reliefd. Not that it will be by any means easye. All of the above 2. Documents released by the Ministry of Health show Associate Health Minister Casey ...
Trust in me in all you doHave the faith I have in youLove will see us through, if only you trust in meWhy don't you, you trust me?In a week that saw the release of the 3,000 page Abuse in Care report Christopher Luxon was being asked about Boot Camps. ...
TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking about the Royal Commission Inquiry into Abuse in Carereport released this week, and with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on a UN push to not recognise carbon offset markets and ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 26, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Transport: Simeon Brown announced$802.9 million in funding for 18 new trains on the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines, which ...
The northern expressway extension from Warkworth to Whangarei is likely to require radical changes to legislation if it is going to be built within the foreseeable future. The Government’s powers to purchase land, the planning process and current restrictions on road tolling are all going to need to be changed ...
Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedFirst they came for the doctors But I was confused by the numbers and costs So I didn't speak up Then they came for our police and nurses And I didn't think we could afford those costs anyway So I ...
Photo by Joshua J. Cotten on UnsplashWe’re back again after our mid-winter break. We’re still with the ‘new’ day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when we have our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream ...
Notes: This is a free article. Abuse in Care themes are mentioned. Video is at the bottom.BackgroundYesterday’s report into Abuse in Care revealed that at least 1 in 3 of all who went through state and faith based care were abused - often horrifically. At least, because not all survivors ...
Luxon speaks in Parliament yesterday about the Abuse in Care report. Photo: Hagen Hopkins/Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:PM Christopher Luxon said yesterday in tabling the Abuse in Carereport in Parliament he wanted to ‘do the ...
About a decade ago I worked with a bloke called Steve. He was the grizzled veteran coder, a few years older than me, who knew where the bodies were buried - code wise. Despite his best efforts to be approachable and friendly he could be kind of gruff, through to ...
Some of the recent announcements from the government have reminded us of posts we’ve written in the past. Here’s one from early 2020. There were plenty of reactions to the government’s infrastructure announcement a few weeks ago which saw them fund a bunch of big roading projects. One of ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Thursday, July 25 are:News: Why Electric Kiwi is closing to new customers - and why it matters RNZ’s Susan EdmundsScoop: Government drops ...
Hi,I felt a small wet tongue snaking through one of the holes in my Crocs. It explored my big toe, darting down one side, then the other. “He’s looking for some toe cheese,” said the woman next to me, words that still haunt me to this day.Growing up in New ...
Yesterday I happily quoted the Prime Minister without fact-checking him and sure enough, it turns out his numbers were all to hell. It’s not four kg of Royal Commission report, it’s fourteen.My friend and one-time colleague-in-comms Hazel Phillips gently alerted me to my error almost as soon as I’d hit ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Thursday, July 25, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day were:The Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquirypublished its final report yesterday.PM Christopher Luxon and The Minister responsible for ...
The Official Information Act has always been a battle between requesters seeking information, and governments seeking to control it. Information is power, so Ministers and government agencies want to manage what is released and when, for their own convenience, and legality and democracy be damned. Their most recent tactic for ...
TL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:Transport and Energy Minister Simeon Brown is accelerating plans to spend at least $10 billion through Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) to extend State Highway One as a four-lane ‘Expressway’ from Warkworth to Whangarei ...
I live my life (woo-ooh-ooh)With no control in my destinyYea-yeah, yea-yeah (woo-ooh-ooh)I can bleed when I want to bleedSo come on, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)You can bleed when you want to bleedYea-yeah, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)Everybody bleed when they want to bleedCome on and bleedGovernments face tough challenges. Selling unpopular decisions to ...
Please note:To skip directly to the- parliamentary footage in the video, scroll to 1:21 To skip to audio please click on the headphone iconon the left hand side of the screenThis video / audio section is under development. ...
Given the crackdown on wasteful government spending, it behooves me to point to a high profile example of spending by the Luxon government that looks like a big, fat waste of time and money. I’m talking about the deployment of NZDF personnel to support the US-led coalition in the Red ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:40 am on Wednesday, July 24 are:Deep Dive: Chipping away at the housing crisis, including my comments RNZ/Newsroom’s The DetailNews: Government softens on asset sales, ...
As I reported about the city centre, Auckland’s rail network is also going through a difficult and disruptive period which is rapidly approaching a culmination, this will result in a significant upgrade to the whole network. Hallelujah. Also like the city centre this is an upgrade predicated on the City ...
Today, a 4 kilogram report will be delivered to Parliament. We know this is what the report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care weighs, because our Prime Minister told us so.Some reporter had blindsided him by asking a question about something done by ...
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Wednesday, July 24, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Beehive:Transport Minister Simeon Brownannounced plans to use PPPs to fund, build and run a four-lane expressway between Auckland ...
NewstalkZB host Mike Hosking, who can usually be relied on to give Prime Minister Christopher Luxon an easy run, did not do so yesterday when he interviewed him about the HealthNZ deficit. Luxon is trying to use a deficit reported last year by HealthNZ as yet another example of the ...
Back in January a StatsNZ employee gave a speech at Rātana on behalf of tangata whenua in which he insulted and criticised the government. The speech clearly violated the principle of a neutral public service, and StatsNZ started an investigation. Part of that was getting an external consultant to examine ...
Renting for life: Shared ownership initiatives are unlikely to slow the slide in home ownership by much. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:A Deloittereport for Westpac has projected Aotearoa’s home-ownership rate will ...
You're broken down and tiredOf living life on a merry go roundAnd you can't find the fighterBut I see it in you so we gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsWe gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsAnd I'll rise upI'll rise like the dayI'll rise upI'll rise unafraidI'll rise upAnd I'll ...
There’s been a change in Myers Park. Down the steps from St. Kevin’s Arcade, past the grassy slopes, the children’s playground, the benches and that goat statue, there has been a transformation. The underpass for Mayoral Drive has gone from a barren, grey, concrete tunnel, to a place that thrums ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections Global society may have finally slammed on the brakes for climate-warming pollution released by human fossil fuel combustion. According to the Carbon Monitor Project, the total global climate pollution released between February and May 2024 declined slightly from the amount released during the same ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Tuesday, July 23 are:Deep Dive: Penlink: where tolling rhetoric meets reality BusinessDesk-$$$’sOliver LewisScoop:Te Pūkenga plans for regional polytechs leak out ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Tuesday, July 23, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Health: Shane Reti announcedthe Board of Te Whatu Ora-Health New Zealand was being replaced with Commissioner Lester Levy ...
Health NZ warned the Government at the end of March that it was running over Budget. But the reasons it gave were very different to those offered by the Prime Minister yesterday. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon blamed the “botched merger” of the 20 District Health Boards (DHBs) to create Health ...
Long ReadKey Summary: Although National increased the health budget by $1.4 billion in May, they used an old funding model to project health system costs, and never bothered to update their pre-election numbers. They were told during the Health Select Committees earlier in the year their budget amount was deficient, ...
As a momentous, historic weekend in US politics unfolded, analysts and commentators grasped for precedents and comparisons to help explain the significance and power of the choice Joe Biden had made. The 46th president had swept the Democratic party’s primaries but just over 100 days from the election had chosen ...
TL;DR: I’m casting around for new ideas and ways of thinking about Aotearoa’s political economy to find a few solutions to our cascading and self-reinforcing housing, poverty and climate crises.Associate Professor runs an online masters degree in the economics of sustainability at Torrens University in Australia and is organising ...
The Finance and Expenditure Committee has reported back on National's Local Government (Water Services Preliminary Arrangements) Bill. The bill sets up water for privatisation, and was introduced under urgency, then rammed through select committee with no time even for local councils to make a proper submission. Naturally, national's select committee ...
Some years ago, I bought a book at Dunedin’s Regent Booksale for $1.50. As one does. Vandrad the Viking (1898), by J. Storer Clouston, is an obscure book these days – I cannot find a proper online review – but soon it was sitting on my shelf, gathering dust alongside ...
History is not on the side of the centre-left, when Democratic presidents fall behind in the polls and choose not to run for re-election. On both previous occasions in the past 75 years (Harry Truman in 1952, Lyndon Johnson in 1968) the Democrats proceeded to then lose the White House ...
This is a free articleCoverageThis morning, US President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the Presidential race. And that is genuinely newsworthy. Thanks for your service, President Biden, and all the best to you and yours.However, the media in New Zealand, particularly the 1News nightly bulletin, has been breathlessly covering ...
A homeless person’s camp beside a blocked-off slipped damage walkway in Freeman’s Bay: we are chasing our tail on our worsening and inter-related housing, poverty and climate crises. Photo: Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy ...
What has happened to it all?Crazy, some'd sayWhere is the life that I recognise?(Gone away)But I won't cry for yesterdayThere's an ordinary worldSomehow I have to findAnd as I try to make my wayTo the ordinary worldYesterday morning began as many others - what to write about today? I began ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Monday, July 22 are:Today’s Must Read: Father and son live in a tent, and have done for four years, in a million ...
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Monday, July 22, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:US President Joe Biden announced via X this morning he would not stand for a second term.Multinational professional services firm ...
A listing of 32 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, July 14, 2024 thru Sat, July 20, 2024. Story of the week As reflected by preponderance of coverage, our Story of the Week is Project 2025. Until now traveling ...
This weekend, a friend pointed out someone who said they’d like to read my posts, but didn’t want to pay. And my first reaction was sympathy.I’ve already told folks that if they can’t comfortably subscribe, and would like to read, I’d be happy to offer free subscriptions. I don’t want ...
National: The Party of ‘Law and Order’ IntroductionThis weekend, the Government formally kicked off one of their flagship policy programs: a military style boot camp that New Zealand has experimented with over the past 50 years. Cartoon credit: Guy BodyIt’s very popular with the National Party’s Law and Orderimage, ...
Day one of the solo leg of my long journey home begins with my favourite sound: footfalls in an empty street. 5.00 am and it’s already light and already too warm, almost.If I can make the train that leaves Budapest later this hour I could be in Belgrade by nightfall; ...
Do you remember Y2K, the threat that hung over humanity in the closing days of the twentieth century? Horror scenarios of planes falling from the sky, electronic payments failing and ATMs refusing to dispense cash. As for your VCR following instructions and recording your favourite show - forget about it.All ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts being questioned by The Kākā’s Bernard Hickey.TL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 20 were:1. A strategy that fails Zero Carbon Act & Paris targetsThe National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government finally unveiled ...
Summary:As New Zealand loses at least 12 leaders in the public service space of health, climate, and pharmaceuticals, this month alone, directly in response to the Government’s policies and budget choices, what lies ahead may be darker than it appears. Tui examines some of those departures and draws a long ...
The Minister of Housing’s ambition is to reduce markedly the ratio of house prices to household incomes. If his strategy works it would transform the housing market, dramatically changing the prospects of housing as an investment.Leaving aside the Minister’s metaphor of ‘flooding the market’ I do not see how the ...
As previously noted, my historical fantasy piece, set in the fifth-century Mediterranean, was accepted for a Pirate Horror anthology, only for the anthology to later fall through. But in a good bit of news, it turned out that the story could indeed be re-marketed as sword and sorcery. As of ...
An employee of tobacco company Philip Morris International demonstrates a heated tobacco device. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy on Friday, July 19 are:At a time when the Coalition Government is cutting spending on health, infrastructure, education, housing ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 8:30 am on Friday, July 19 are:Scoop: NZ First Minister Casey Costello orders 50% cut to excise tax on heated tobacco products. The minister has ...
Kia ora, it’s time for another Friday roundup, in which we pull together some of the links and stories that caught our eye this week. Feel free to add more in the comments! Our header image this week shows a foggy day in Auckland town, captured by Patrick Reynolds. ...
TL;DR : Here’s the top six items climate news for Aotearoa this week, as selected by Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer. A discussion recorded yesterday is in the video above and the audio of that sent onto the podcast feed.The Government released its draft Emissions Reduction ...
Save some money, get rich and old, bring it back to Tobacco Road.Bring that dynamite and a crane, blow it up, start all over again.Roll up. Roll up. Or tailor made, if you prefer...Whether you’re selling ciggies, digging for gold, catching dolphins in your nets, or encouraging folks to flutter ...
Waiting In The Wings:For truly, if Trump is America’s un-assassinated Caesar, then J.D. Vance is America’s Octavian, the Republic’s youthful undertaker – and its first Emperor.DONALD TRUMP’S SELECTION of James D. Vance as his running-mate bodes ill for the American republic. A fervent supporter of Viktor Orban, the “illiberal” prime ...
Te Rangi e tu nei (The sky above us) Te Papa e takoto nei (The land beneath us) Tatou katoa te hunga ora (To us all the living) Tena koutou katoa (Greetings) ...
A late change to charter school legislation will cheat educators out of fair pay and negotiating power proving charter schools are just a vehicle to make profit out of our education system. ...
In 2004 te iwi Māori rallied against the Crown’s attempt to confiscate our coastlines and moana with the Foreshore and Seabed Act. This led to the largest hīkoi of a generation and the birth of Te Pāti Māori. 20 years later, history is repeating itself. Today the government has announced ...
It has been five and a half years since the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care was established to investigate the abuse of children, young people, and vulnerable adults within state and faith-based institutions. Yesterday, the final report - Whanaketia through pain and trauma, from darkness to light ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to take action off the back of the International Court of Justice ruling on Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine. ...
On Friday the International Court of Justice reaffirmed what Palestinian’s have been telling us for decades: that the occupation and colonisation of Palestinian lands by Israel is illegal and must end immediately. They also called for reparations for Palestinian’s who have lived under Israeli occupation since it began in 1967. ...
Labour calls on the Government to act after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian Territories is illegal. ...
The 53.7 percent rise in benefit sanctions over the last year is more proof of this Government’s disdain for our communities most in need of support. ...
Aotearoa could be a country where every child grows up feeling safe, loved and with a sense of belonging in their whānau and community. But for some of our children, this is far from reality. Instead, they are trapped in a maze of intergenerational harm that they can’t escape on ...
Te Pāti Māori are calling for David Seymour to resign as Associate Health Minister in response to his call for Pharmac to ignore the Treaty of Waitangi. “This announcement is just another example of the government’s anti-Tiriti, anti-Māori agenda.” Said Co-leader and spokesperson for health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. “Seymour thinks it ...
The soaring price of renting is driving the rise of inflation in this country - with latest figures from Stats NZ showing rents are up 4.8 per cent on average while annual inflation is at 3.3 per cent. ...
National’s Emissions Reduction Plan will take New Zealand further from the economy we need to ensure the next generation has a stable climate and secure livelihoods. ...
Following consultation with named parties and thorough consideration of privacy interests, the Green Party is in a position to release the Executive Summary of the final report from the independent investigation into Darleen Tana. ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon should be asking serious questions of his Minister for Resources Shane Jones now it’s been revealed he misled the public about a dinner with mining companies that he didn’t declare and said wasn’t pre-arranged. ...
Te Pāti Māori have submitted to the Justice Select Committee against the Sentencing (Reinstating Three Strikes) Amendment Bill. The bill will further entrench racism in our justice system and fails to focus on rehabilitation. “Reinstating Three Strikes will empower a systematically racist system and exacerbate the overrepresentation of Māori in ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee is set to make a determination on the Residential Tenancies Amendment (RTA) Bill in the coming weeks. “This legislation will give landlords the power to kick our whānau out onto the street for no reason” said Housing spokesperson, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “Their solution to the housing ...
“National’s campaign was about tackling crime and the best they can do is a two-year long Ministerial Advisory Group,” Labour justice spokesperson Duncan Webb said. ...
“There are more examples of charter schools failing their students than there are success stories. The coalition Government is driving to dismantle our public school system and instead promote a privatised, competitive structure that puts profits before kids,” Jan Tinetti said. ...
“This government is choosing to deliberately mislead and withhold information, keeping our people in the dark about this government’s agenda and the future of our mokopuna,” said co-leader and spokesperson for Health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. The call comes after the demand from the Chief Ombudsman that Associate Minister of Health, Casey ...
“Today’s climate announcement by Simon Watts makes clear the National Government is simply paying lip service to meeting its climate change targets,” Megan Woods said. ...
National is choosing to make life harder for workers by taking away the rights our communities have fought hard for. Here's how they’re taking workers backwards. ...
Australia, Canada and New Zealand today issued the following statement on the need for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza and the risk of expanded conflict between Hizballah and Israel. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The human suffering is unacceptable. It cannot continue. We remain unequivocal in our condemnation of ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today reminded all State and faith-based institutions of their legal obligation to preserve records relevant to the safety and wellbeing of those in its care. “The Abuse in Care Inquiry’s report has found cases where records of the most vulnerable people in State and faith‑based institutions were ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government’s online safety website for children and young people has reached one million page views. “It is great to see so many young people and their families accessing the site Keep It Real Online to learn how to stay safe online, and manage ...
Tēnā tātou katoa, Ngā mihi te rangi, ngā mihi te whenua, ngā mihi ki a koutou, kia ora mai koutou. Thank you for the opportunity to be here and the invitation to speak at this 50th anniversary conference. I acknowledge all those who have gone before us and paved the ...
New Zealand’s payroll providers have successfully prepared to ensure 3.5 million individuals will, from Wednesday next week, be able to keep more of what they earn each pay, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Revenue Minister Simon Watts. “The Government's tax policy changes are legally effective from Wednesday. Delivering this tax ...
An experimental vineyard which will help futureproof the wine sector has been opened in Blenheim by Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson. The covered vineyard, based at the New Zealand Wine Centre – Te Pokapū Wāina o Aotearoa, enables controlled environmental conditions. “The research that will be produced at the Experimental ...
The Coalition Government has confirmed the indicative regional breakdown of North Island Weather Event (NIWE) funding for state highway recovery projects funded through Budget 2024, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Regions in the North Island suffered extensive and devastating damage from Cyclone Gabrielle and the 2023 Auckland Anniversary Floods, and ...
Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, Retno Marsudi, will visit New Zealand next week, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “Indonesia is important to New Zealand’s security and economic interests and is our closest South East Asian neighbour,” says Mr Peters, who is currently in Laos to engage with South East Asian partners. ...
He aha te kai a te rangatira? He kōrero, he kōrero, he kōrero. The government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the aspirations of Ngāti Maniapoto, Minister for Māori Development Tama Potaka says. “My thanks to Te Nehenehenui Trust – Ngāti Maniapoto for bringing their important kōrero to a ministerial ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has thanked outgoing Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority, Janice Fredric, for her service to the board.“I have received Ms Fredric’s resignation from the role of Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority,” Mr Brown says.“On behalf of the Government, I want to thank Ms Fredric for ...
The Government is proposing legislation to overturn a Court of Appeal decision and amend the Marine and Coastal Area Act in order to restore Parliament’s test for Customary Marine Title, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “Section 58 required an applicant group to prove they have exclusively used and occupied ...
Regulation Minister David Seymour says that opposition parties have united in bad faith, opposing what they claim are ‘dangerous changes’ to the Early Childhood Education sector, despite no changes even being proposed yet. “Issues with affordability and availability of early childhood education, and the complexity of its regulation, has led ...
After receiving more than 740 submissions in the first 20 days, Regulation Minister David Seymour is asking the Ministry for Regulation to extend engagement on the early childhood education regulation review by an extra two weeks. “The level of interest has been very high, and from the conversations I’ve been ...
The Coalition Government is investing $802.9 million into the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines as part of a funding agreement with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA), KiwiRail, and the Greater Wellington and Horizons Regional Councils to deliver more reliable services for commuters in the lower North Island, Transport Minister Simeon ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced his intention to appoint a Crown Manager to both Hawke’s Bay Regional and Wairoa District Councils to speed up the delivery of flood protection work in Wairoa."Recent severe weather events in Wairoa this year, combined with damage from Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023 have ...
Mr Speaker, this is a day that many New Zealanders who were abused in State care never thought would come. It’s the day that this Parliament accepts, with deep sorrow and regret, the Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care. At the heart of this report are the ...
For the first time, the Government is formally acknowledging some children and young people at Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital experienced torture. The final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care “Whanaketia – through pain and trauma, from darkness to light,” was tabled in Parliament ...
The Government has acknowledged the nearly 2,400 courageous survivors who shared their experiences during the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State and Faith-Based Care. The final report from the largest and most complex public inquiry ever held in New Zealand, the Royal Commission Inquiry “Whanaketia – through ...
With a week to go before hard-working New Zealanders see personal income tax relief for the first time in fourteen years, 513,000 people have used the Budget tax calculator to see how much they will benefit, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis. “Tax relief is long overdue. From next Wednesday, personal income ...
Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says a bill that has passed its first reading will improve parental leave settings and give non-biological parents more flexibility as primary carer for their child. The Regulatory Systems Amendment Bill (No3), passed its first reading this morning. “It includes a change ...
Two Bills designed to improve regulation and make it easier to do business have passed their first reading in Parliament, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. The Regulatory Systems (Economic Development) Amendment Bill and Regulatory Systems (Immigration and Workforce) Amendment Bill make key changes to legislation administered by the Ministry ...
New legislation paves the way for greater competition in sectors such as banking and electricity, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says. “Competitive markets boost productivity, create employment opportunities and lift living standards. To support competition, we need good quality regulation but, unfortunately, a recent OECD report ranked New ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says lotteries for charitable purposes, such as those run by the Heart Foundation, Coastguard NZ, and local hospices, will soon be allowed to operate online permanently. “Under current laws, these fundraising lotteries are only allowed to operate online until October 2024, after which ...
The Coalition Government is accelerating work on the new four-lane expressway between Auckland and Whangārei as part of its Roads of National Significance programme, with an accelerated delivery model to deliver this project faster and more efficiently, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “For too long, the lack of resilient transport connections ...
Sir Don McKinnon will travel to Viet Nam this week as a Special Envoy of the Government, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “It is important that the Government give due recognition to the significant contributions that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made to New Zealand-Viet Nam relations,” Mr ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says newly appointed Commissioner, Grant Illingworth KC, will help deliver the report for the first phase of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into COVID-19 Lessons, due on 28 November 2024. “I am pleased to announce that Mr Illingworth will commence his appointment as ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters travels to Laos this week to participate in a series of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-led Ministerial meetings in Vientiane. “ASEAN plays an important role in supporting a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” Mr Peters says. “This will be our third visit to ...
Construction of a new mental health facility at Te Nikau Grey Hospital in Greymouth is today one step closer, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey says. “This $27 million facility shows this Government is delivering on its promise to boost mental health care and improve front line services,” Mr Doocey says. ...
New Zealand is committing nearly $50 million to a package supporting sustainable Pacific fisheries development over the next four years, Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones announced today. “This support consisting of a range of initiatives demonstrates New Zealand’s commitment to assisting our Pacific partners ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour says proposed changes to the Education and Training Amendment Bill will ensure charter schools have more flexibility to negotiate employment agreements and are equipped with the right teaching resources. “Cabinet has agreed to progress an amendment which means unions will not be able to initiate ...
In response to serious concerns around oversight, overspend and a significant deterioration in financial outlook, the Board of Health New Zealand will be replaced with a Commissioner, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti announced today. “The previous government’s botched health reforms have created significant financial challenges at Health NZ that, without ...
Minister for Space and Science, Innovation and Technology Judith Collins will travel to Adelaide tomorrow for space and science engagements, including speaking at the Australian Space Forum. While there she will also have meetings and visits with a focus on space, biotechnology and innovation. “New Zealand has a thriving space ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts will travel to China on Saturday to attend the Ministerial on Climate Action meeting held in Wuhan. “Attending the Ministerial on Climate Action is an opportunity to advocate for New Zealand climate priorities and engage with our key partners on climate action,” Mr Watts says. ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is travelling to the Solomon Islands tomorrow for meetings with his counterparts from around the Pacific supporting collective management of the region’s fisheries. The 23rd Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Committee and the 5th Regional Fisheries Ministers’ Meeting in Honiara from 23 to 26 July ...
The Government today launched the Military Style Academy Pilot at Te Au rere a te Tonga Youth Justice residence in Palmerston North, an important part of the Government’s plan to crackdown on youth crime and getting youth offenders back on track, Minister for Children, Karen Chhour said today. “On the ...
The Government has welcomed news the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has begun work to replace nine priority bridges across the country to ensure our state highway network remains resilient, reliable, and efficient for road users, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“Increasing productivity and economic growth is a key priority for the ...
Acting Prime Minister David Seymour has been in contact throughout the evening with senior officials who have coordinated a whole of government response to the global IT outage and can provide an update. The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet has designated the National Emergency Management Agency as the ...
New Zealand and Japan will continue to step up their shared engagement with the Pacific, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “New Zealand and Japan have a strong, shared interest in a free, open and stable Pacific Islands region,” Mr Peters says. “We are pleased to be finding more ways ...
New developments in the heart of North Island forestry country will reinvigorate their communities and boost economic development, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones visited Kaingaroa and Kawerau in Bay of Plenty today to open a landmark community centre in the former and a new connecting road in ...
President Adeang, fellow Ministers, honourable Diet Member Horii, Ambassadors, distinguished guests. Minasama, konnichiwa, and good afternoon, everyone. Distinguished guests, it’s a pleasure to be here with you today to talk about New Zealand’s foreign policy reset, the reasons for it, the values that underpin it, and how it ...
RNZ News New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s security detail has cut a media briefing short over protesters in Auckland. He was holding a press conference yesterday after a walkabout with police to discuss concerns with businesses in the CBD. Luxon was talking with media when one of his security ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Austin, Lecturer in Theatre, The University of Melbourne There has never been an opening ceremony quite like it. For the first time in Olympic Games history, the ceremony took place outside a stadium arena. Despite a rainy and miserable Paris ...
This month marks two years since the most powerful telescope ever built sent its first pictures back to earth. From its lofty vantage point, beyond the moon in orbit around the sun, the James Webb Space Telescope was tuned to observe the first stars and galaxies being born soon after ...
Comment: After Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ preview several weeks ago, I had some optimism about the Government’s emissions reduction plan. Now I’ve read the discussion document, that hope has been dashed. How can the Government propose a plan that wants to take New Zealand taxpayers’ hard-earned money, and spend ...
Christopher Luxon: hurdles The little man from National jumps hurdles in his sleep. He’s quite good at it in his dreams and even though the reality doesn’t quite match up you have to give him credit for getting up every morning and crashing into the very first hurdle of the ...
Comment: It was a good two hours into the conversation when Tyrone Marks raised the most basic of questions when I first spoke to him in 2017. “They didn’t explain the things they did to me. They never told me why. And they still haven’t. There’s no explanation for it. ...
Last summer when Matairangi burned, Ginny and Tom stood at the window of their lounge, watching kākā shoot skyward from the burning trees. From the distance, they looked to Ginny like pages torn from books and thrown into a bonfire. It was Tom, voice tight, who told her it was ...
Opinion: The Canadian short story writer Alice Munro – winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2013 – died in May at the age of 92. Her work was about “the damage people inflict on one another in the name of love”, Deborah Treisman wrote in the New Yorker. ...
Madeleine Chapman rounds out Death Week on The Spinoff with a final recommendation. You can read all of our Death Week coverage here. Nothing forces you to reflect on your life and relationships quite like proximity to death. For those whose nearest and dearest have died, there are reasonably obvious ...
Whitney Greene takes us through her life in television, including the TV character she’d like to plan a funeral for and her cow lung catastrophe on The Traitors NZ. “If the phone rings, I have to answer it,” Whitney Greene from The Traitors NZ warns as we begin our My ...
Maddie Ballard reviews the debut essay collection of Pōneke writer Flora Feltham.In ‘The Raw Material’, the longest essay in Flora Feltham’s dazzling debut collection, the author heads out for a run after hours of weaving and sees the world turn to textile. “Pounding along the Parade, I saw the ...
Andy Christiansen, one half of the experimental rock-pop duo TRiPS, shares the tunes inspiring the band’s perfect weekend and new release. “Good speakers, good food, good music, no distractions”: that’s all you need to enjoy the psychedelic stylings of TRiPS, a new band formed by Fly My Pretties’ Barnaby Weir ...
Celebrating our quadrennial opportunity to become experts in a bunch of sports we never normally watch.The games of the XXXIII Olympiad are upon us. Paris will host this year’s showcase of sporting and athletic prowess, which means some late-night and early-morning viewing for us in Aotearoa.But what sports ...
The photograph is striking and beautiful, but also disturbing – a reminder that my love for John was often entangled in shame.The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.In the spring of 1980, in Dunedin, shortly before his death, someone took a photograph ...
Get to know Babushka, our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our What’s Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Babu’s humans, Jo and Isabel, for their support. Dog name: Babushka (Babu for short) Age: 2Breed: Border Collie X poodleIf rescued, ...
Pacific Media Watch A Lebanese photojournalist who was severely wounded during an Israeli air strike in south Lebanon carried the Olympic torch in Paris this week in honour of her peers who have been wounded and killed in the field — especially in Gaza and Lebanon. Christina Assi of Agence ...
The first report in a five-part web series focused on the 15th Triennial Conference of Pacific Women taking place in the Marshall Islands this week.SPECIAL REPORT:By Netani Rika in Majuro Women continue to fight for justice 70 years after the first nuclear tests by the United States caused ...
Christopher Luxon has joined with Australia and Canada's leaders in voicing support for US President Joe Biden's ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The 2022 election brought the “teal wave” into parliament. The next election will test whether teals, who occupy what were Liberal seats, and other independents can maintain their momentum. Joining us on the Podcast ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Musgrave, Senior lecturer in Pharmacology, University of Adelaide Pixavri/Shutterstock A major Federal Court class action has been dismissed this week after Justice Michael Lee ruled there was not enough evidence to prove the weedkiller Roundup causes cancer. Plaintiff Kelvin ...
In The Week in Politics: politicians have to decide what to do about child abuse, Health NZ is booked in for major surgery and Darleen Tana returns. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Corbould, Associate Professor, Contemporary Histories Research Group, Deakin University Mainstream media are surprisingly muted at the prospect of the world’s most powerful nation being led for the first time by a woman – specifically a woman of colour, Vice President Kamala ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rebecca Bennett, PhD Student, Associate Research Fellow, Deakin University Last week, a drone delivery company called Wing (owned by Google’s parent company, Alphabet) started operating in Melbourne. Some 250,000 residents in parts of the city’s eastern suburbs can now order food from ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonathan Foo, Lecturer, Physiotherapy, Monash University pikselstock/Shutterstock In the next 40 years in Australia, it’s predicted the number of Australians aged 65 and over will more than double, while the number of people aged 85 and over will more than triple. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katrina Grant, Research Associate, Power Institute for Arts and Visual Culture, University of Sydney Jonas Åkerström’s 1790 work, Session of the Accademia dell’Arcadia on August 17 1788.Nationalmuseum/Cecilia Heisser Ever wondered whether you’d have a better chance at winning an Olympic gold ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexandra Jones, Program Lead, Food Governance, George Institute for Global Health wavebreakmedia/Shutterstock On Thursday, Australian and New Zealand food ministers at state, federal and national levels met to thrash out what’s next for health star ratings on packaged foods. Now, after ...
The Abuse in Care report found many Pacific survivors lost their connections to their culture and language, resulting in trauma that has been carried from generation to generation. ...
In the regulatory review, ECC intends to suggest that ERO focus on curriculum delivery reviews rather than the Ministry, because it’s not efficient or effective to have two agencies with radically different approaches climbing over each other. ...
Te Rūnanga Nui o Ngā Kura Kaupapa Māori invites the current government to work in partnership with them to develop a pathway forward, including the development of a parallel pathway and meaningful policy and strategy for Kura Kaupapa Māori ...
If you haven’t started watching yet, Tara Ward begs you to reconsider. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. In the world of New Zealand reality television, we have many gems in our crown. There’s the delicious second season of the Celebrity Treasure ...
A new poem by Fiona Kidman. The clothes of the dead I did not keep my mother’s furry red beret for long nor the stringy scarves that adorned the necks of my aunts, although I have kept tag ends of gold, the rings and trinkets they wore, the brooches no ...
The government’s announcement that it will re-open the foreshore and seabed controversy by changing the rules on recognising centuries-old Māori customary title for a third time goes against the rule of law and New Zealand values,” Mr Tipa says. ...
The 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.AUCKLAND1 Lioness by Emily Perkins (Bloomsbury, $25) Roarrrr! Perkins’ brilliant, award-winning, Marian-Keyes anointed, darkly funny, long ...
The 2004 Act vested ownership of the foreshore and seabed in the Crown, extinguishing any Māori claims to ownership and causing widespread outrage and protests among Māori communities. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Antje Deckert, Associate Professor (Criminology), Auckland University of Technology Getty Images Despite the connection between institutional harm and gang membership made clear in this week’s mammoth royal commission abuse-in care report, the government seems unlikely to soften its “get tough on ...
From Lewis Clareburt in the swimming to the start of the rowing – the first seven days of Paris 2024 promise to be big for New Zealand. There are few events that bring the country together quite like an Olympic Games. Nothing quite matches the excitement of getting up in ...
Groundbreaking local science just showed up in the most surprising of places: the season finale of The Kardashians. In the season five finale of The Kardashians last night, several members of the family gathered together in one of their signature empty, cream-coloured rooms to hear test results that had been ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Saikal, Emeritus professor of Middle Eastern and Central Asian Studies, Australian National University The Middle East is on the brink of a possibly devastating regional war, with hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah reaching an extremely dangerous level. Washington has engaged in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laura Elizabeth Eades, Rheumatologist, Monash University Lupus is an inflammatory autoimmune illness, where the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks itself. Lupus can affect virtually any part of the body, although it most commonly affects the skin, joints and kidneys. The symptoms ...
A law firm that specialises in working with survivors of abuse in State care is disappointed that the Government fails to recognise that its boot camps can be directly compared to previous boot camps from the 1990s and 2000s. ...
Dying is a natural part of life, like updating your Wof or seeing your hairdresser, but without the word-of-mouth recs that help guarantee a good service. What if we changed that? Dying Reviews received by The Spinoff have had the names of organisations redacted while Hospice NZ collects further data. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonti Horner, Professor (Astrophysics), University of Southern Queensland Mike Lewinski/Flickr, CC BY On any clear night, if you gaze skywards long enough, chances are you’ll see a meteor streaking through the sky. Some nights, however, are better than others. At ...
Despite having no bars or other designated spaces for lesbians, Auckland boasts a small but mighty lesbian museum. So how did it get here? The past 18 months has brought increasing hostility towards the queer community across Aotearoa. Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull’s anti-trans rally in Tamaki Makaurau last March led to a ...
Poneke Antifascist Coalition has invited Wellingtonians to stand in solidarity with the Kanak people at 12pm today outside the French Embassy in Wellington. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Layton, Visiting Fellow, Strategic Studies, Griffith University Drones are the signature technology of the Ukraine war. A few miniature aircraft designs were used in the war’s early days, but an incredible array of drones have now evolved. There are different types, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Slee, Associate Professor, Clinical Academic Neurologist, Flinders University Francisco Gonzelez/Unsplash Migraine is many things, but one thing it’s not is “just a headache”. “Migraine” comes from the Greek word “hemicrania”, referring to the common experience of migraine being predominantly ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lee White, Senior Lecturer and Horizon Fellow, School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Sydney Australia was slow to introduce minimum building standards for energy efficiency. The Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS) only came into force in 2003. Older homes ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Steven Sherwood, Professor of Atmospheric Sciences, Climate Change Research Centre, UNSW Sydney The past century of human-induced warming has increased rainfall variability over 75% of the Earth’s land area – particularly over Australia, Europe and eastern North America, new research shows. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tony Heynen, Program Coordinator, Sustainable Energy, The University of Queensland A temporary stadium in the Champ-de-Mars, ParisEkaterina Pokrovsky/Shutterstock As Paris prepares to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the sustainability of the event is coming under scrutiny. The organisers have promoted ...
A night of karaoke and community in a pub that feels like a memory. You’d barely even notice it, unless you knew to look. Tucked away behind a liquor store on busy Constable Street is the capital’s last great pub. Newtown Sports Bar is an emblem of the pub culture ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Wright, Professor in Marine Geology, University of Canterbury Louise Corcoran/Getty Images The decline in the number of doctoral candidates at New Zealand universities is a worrying sign for the country’s effort to build a knowledge-based economy. Aotearoa New Zealand’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laurie Berg, Associate Professor, University of Technology Sydney defotoberg/Shutterstock Migrant worker exploitation is entrenched in workplaces across Australia. Tragically, a deep fear of immigration consequences means most unlawful employer conduct goes unreported. On Wednesday, however, the government officially launched a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Vaughan Cruickshank, Senior Lecturer in Health and Physical Education, University of Tasmania Paris is about to host its third summer Olympics. While we don’t yet know what the legacy of this year’s games will be, let’s take the opportunity to reflect on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Hugh Breakey, Deputy Director, Institute for Ethics, Governance & Law, Griffith University In the wake of the assassination attempt on former US President Donald Trump, there were calls from bothsides of US politics, as well as internationally, to reduce the brutal, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Keith Rathbone, Senior Lecturer, Modern European History and Sports History, Macquarie University Two high-profile assaults on Australians in Paris have raised concerns about security ahead of the Olympic Games. On Saturday evening, a young woman was allegedly sexually assaulted by a ...
Dying is inevitable and, so it seems, is it costing a lot, writes Stewart Sowman-Lund in today’s extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here.The cost of dying ...
The government took Joyce Harris's first baby and sent her off to a girls' home. Half a century on - and out of oceans of hurt - it asked her to be a mother figure. ...
Martin Van Beynen. How the National Party’s default settings are just so wrong for the times we live in.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/opinion/122295535/nationals-identity-crisis-is-bad-for-nzs-democracy
And finally, painfully it seems that the political commentariat are realising the scale of the political realignment that’s likely at this election. Every published poll since May has had Jacinda Ardern and Labour heading for a majority.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/opinion/122310902/election-2020-how-do-you-run-against-elimination
"The latest International Monetary Fund forecast has global growth dipping to -4.9 per cent." Degrowth is now in the pipeline.
It will probably have to occur for a while until mainstreamers start to notice, and then the media will get over their aversion and start reporting it. Normalcy is a state of mind and operates like conventional wisdom.
Facing a reality not previously encountered takes quite a lot of unconventional wisdom. Like turning the Titanic around, after the fraught consensus-building process of agreeing that the iceberg really is looming dead ahead.
So National & Labour are likely to produce alternative economic plans prior to the impact of the election, but such difficult endeavour takes inordinate time. Not business as usual is a hard thing for both bunches of neoliberals to think about.
Mainstreamers that aren't already out of work, you mean? Media not reporting it? Where'd you get that quote you led off with? When is prior to the impact of the election?
Where'd you get that quote you led off with?
I took it from Scott's second link.
Media not reporting it?
Degrowth. Media mainstreamers are averse to reporting a new reality, in normalcy. The conceptual breakthrough that awaits them is when one of their own succumbs to the `emperor's new clothes' effect. That will happen when the fastest slow learner realises the emperor of economic growth is no longer wearing clothes, interprets the drop in gdp as degrowth, then says so!
When is prior to the impact of the election?
When the election gets so close that the risk of delay becomes greater than the risk of announcing the plan too soon.
It ain't a tortoise & hare race, eh? Think tortoise & tortoise. The plans must gestate in the collective minds & processes of National & Labour until the time seems right to launch them. Remember that they both issued schematics of those plans not long ago, and the media commented on how they seemed identical and equally simplistic. So now the challenge is to differentiate!
Q: how can one bunch of neoliberal drones seem cleverer than another?
A: fakery
So you conclude the media aren't reporting something from a media report?
Of course not. I conclude that as a result of the consistent pattern of their failure to report it. What, you think I haven't waited long enough already?
Well, how long is a piece of string? I'm impatient by nature. A single failure suffices, for me. But yes, if you must wait until a pattern of degrowth denial by the media is well-established, I trust you will report each failure that you notice to us here, and tag it with the correct number in the sequence, so we can watch the sequence develop until it triggers the threshold of your pattern-recognition.
Don't let your impatience impede your understanding. Wait though, you're not just pretending the media are in denial to suit some point you want to make about your perspicacity are you? That would be a tad sly.
Nope, it's elementary. Media denial is proven by lack of contrary evidence. Even you ought to be able to figure that out. Try harder.
Lack of evidence is conclusive proof of sweet fuckall. Very disingenuous of you.
Malpass is not a 'media mainstreamer'; he is a doctrinaire rightie.
Most of the "political commentariat" are shills for National and to keep banging on with their trumping neoliberal memes shows they're owned and not reporting objectively. Relax though as Hosk will maintain the indignant rants.
Collins and Boag have also done a great wrecking job by reminding everyone how DP and that 'win at all costs' are still very much the playbook with national. They don't give a F about the people and Jude showed NZ over ILG she's into those tactics despite denial.
People aren't that stupid and the polls reflect that IMO. JA deserves to govern alone.
Except for the most of the "political commentariat" who people at Kiwiblog claim are shills for Ardern and for Labour.
I guess the "political commentariat" is people who say things you disagree with, as opposed to the intelligent well reasoned journalists you agree with.
In many people's eyes Ardern does deserve to govern alone, but alas she least needs a few ministers to pad out the Cabinet and to front on the bad news.
Goes beyond any party sympathies. For instance, Malpass is a hardcore libertarian cheerleader who has worked for 'thinktanks' of that persuasion in both NZ and Australia.
Look at the story Scott linked to in #1, bearing that in mind: https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/opinion/122310902/election-2020-how-do-you-run-against-elimination
Ok Pete Who are these marvelous managers in National? Their “Cabinet” is looking very shabby at present.
You are repeating the meme, "They only have Jacinda" when talking about Labour, with "alas she needs a few ministers to pad out the Cabinet"
Journalists who were "truth tellers became targets during Key's time. It is good to see one vindicated to some degree.
We look at the record and behaviour of these people. When their hyperbole draws the attention of theWorld Press, you can hardly accuse us of only attacking those journalists or commentators we disagree with. That is disingenuous.
As the biggest global event since WW2, it seems entirely reasonable that COVID-19 will lead to some sort of political realignment or shift in democratic societies, as happened in and after the 1930s Depression (eg Roosevelt in US, Savage/Fraser in NZ) and WW2 (eg Labour's election victory in UK in 1945, the NHS etc).
It will be hard for any opposition party to argue for smaller government, tax cuts and especially anything that might be seen to weaken the health system. Hard too for National to attack Labour for carrying out pretty much the same economic policies as the British and Australian conservative governments have done during COVID.
Weak piece from van Beynen which doesn't look at underlying causes. Labour is popular right now because for a period of a few months it has told business what to do and insisted that it behave itself. It has put private power under democratic control in the interests of the health of every citizen. A majority of people love that – it's how their families work.
Sure – as things get back to normal Labour will roll over and let business walk all over it again. But it's been nice while it lasted.
That is a very insightful comment- having business behave itself. In terms of the election frankly I don't expect huge policy gobs ( as everything is in flux) but I would be content with a direction of travel.
At the moment I think it would be fair to say that National represent letting business and overseas actors run all over the country again with zero concern for the bulk of citizens, with a very large side dollop of righteous fundamental holly roller.
Labour will do better long term if they make it clear that they see business as a sector that has to be modified community needs.
The Greens might be better to really focus on business being pushed in the environmental direction and into better redistribution towards the low paid but with more emphasis on the part the international wealthy play in this and the level of competition that the workplace settings play in this.
Funny too how the media demand policy from Labour but give the right a free pass although the right rarely disclose their true agenda anyway.
Quoting first link:
National is there to represent the rich and to make the exploitation of the poor by the rich easier. They know this, they don't have to remind themselves. Their problem is that most people are truly starting to realise this and if they state it openly then they lose even more votes.
Yeah – no. National has never stood for that. In fact, they stand fully against that. They know that the rich have much more opportunity and they're out to keep it that way by keeping everyone else poor.
After all, equal opportunity can only come when everyone has the same access to the same level of resources.
Yes, it matters because getting rid of the rich is what we need to do to truly become a prosperous nation.
Its important for democracy that all voices and ideas are heard, debated and those chosen by the people are researched. It's not important for democracy to have an opposition.
That is an outright lie.
Public support for democracy comes from people feeling that their say is heard and that the path that the people choose benefits them and their direct family.
The concept of government and opposition actually prevents that.
Impotus Americanus, most corrupt of all Oompus Loompitica.
Oh well, i guess the swamp is drained now?
Yep. So now we have full view of the noisome creatures that lurk in the muck at the bottom and how they get their jollies down there.
Kim Hill is interviewing the author of this examination of Qanon (on RNZ): https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2020/06/qanon-nothing-can-stop-what-is-coming/610567/
Social realities get co-created. Conspiracy theories have been escalating in recent decades and having a US president promoting one or more of them ramps their influence up into the top level of politics. Next step: geopolitics! 👽
When theories are promoted as alternative realities, they can become resilient and adaptive. As complex memes, they achieve contagion and currency.
Sceptics tend to make greater fools of themselves than conspiracy theorists. The denialism that drives their dismissal makes them seem more pathetic. They deny the evidence that makes the conspiracy theory superficially plausible. So other sceptics who prefer to be grounded in whatever social reality seems profoundly real have to distance themselves from both groups.
This transcendence of the binary creates a triadic structure in society: true-believers, disbelievers, and agnostics. Amongst the agnostics, you get those who are genuinely interested in the theorising, but require a better match with reality than that proposed by the competing binary nutball groups.
The hero myth was identified by mythologist Joseph Campbell in 1949. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hero_with_a_Thousand_Faces) When you combine it with the tyranny/freedom mental axis, to produce Trump as liberator from total control of everyone by the deep state, you get traction in the mass mind.
Next step is to use the internet to make mass contagion more influential. Memes defeat other memes in the process of social darwinism:
Then achieve democratic authenticity by identifying with the will of the people:
Waken everyone! Warn them, about Democrats
Meanwhile in the real world …. the interview with Oliver Stone was also interesting. I think the Vietnam experience will be viewed in the future as a more telling moment in history than it is even now. I was a teen at the time and it didn't fully sink in, and watching documentaries now what gets to me is the pure fear in the eyes of the conscripts sent there. Stone nailed the zeitgeist of the time so well, and long may he continue to produce rock the boat documentaries and films.
Really? Equating skepticism to denial(ism) is just weird – maybe it's a conspiracy![laugh laugh](https://cdn.ckeditor.com/4.11.3/full-all/plugins/smiley/images/teeth_smile.png)
RNZ dropped Vicki Hyde as one of their regular commentators. I suspect her ideologically-driven scepticism was pissing off their audience too much. Nothing wrong with traditional scepticism used as a reality-check in science, as described in your red herring. What goes wrong with sceptics is their natural tendency to elevate scepticism to an ideology, whence their degeneration into denial of evidence emerges from. Been seeing that tendency consistently since the 1970s.
Sceptics are able to make a positive contribution to society & culture as long as they keep an open mind and balanced view of the pros & cons of evidence.
Sadly, many can't. This lot give the others a bad name (the analogy with lawyers comes to mind). To err is human, and one could rationalise their inadequacies accordingly. Me, I'm not so charitable. 😇
"I suspect her [Hyde's] ideologically-driven scepticism was pissing off their audience too much."
You've peaked my curiosity, Dennis – I've met Hyde (who in 2013 was appointed a MNZM for services to science), and would struggle to identify the idealogy that you perceive drives her scepticism. Could you expand on the evidence that informs your suspicion? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vicki_Hyde
Yes, it's always sad when an opportunity to make a constructive contribution is lost – those 'patterns of behaviour' are sooo intractable, eh?
"What goes wrong with sceptics is their natural tendency to elevate scepticism to an ideology…" – so many people going wrong!
Conflating denial and scepticism doesn't fly, but, as you say, to err is human.![wink wink](https://cdn.ckeditor.com/4.11.3/full-all/plugins/smiley/images/wink_smile.png)
If I was in labour I would be doubling security at the quarantine hotels and toughing up at the boarders .
We have to keep covid out .
And itll cost them an easy win if it gets back in .
Both outcomes would piss me off .
Especially true when Labour’s campaign so far is about Covid-19
You ain't paying attention if you believe that .!
But it certainly is the biggest issue so rightly is front and center.
It’s the central reason for theIr success in recent polls.
It’s a big part of their success in the polls sure. But it’s not the only reason. There’s also a growing conviction on the part of voters that the main opposition party is in no shape to bear the responsibilities of office at the moment.
What's your point?
Yes but do they even have an election campaign yet, as such?
Have they actually got enough people left to run for something?
I thought he was talking about Labour? Small-target strategy and all.
i thought you were talking about National 'have they got an election campaing'. 🙂
Cash in some kiwi saver invest in a small business that has a 58% risk of failing in the first year.
That's Nationals plan.
Building roads 10 yrs from now.
Saying they are better managers when they can't even manage their caucus
– how dare people use Their money as they see fit, don't they know that Their Kiwi saver AINT theirs to use. How dare they.
People now and then need money. They can borrow it from a bank or go for their savings. If the government is smart it will look at a change in legislation that would allow people to access a certain part of THEIR SAVINGS to start their busienss, pay some healthcare costs, renovate the house, get married, have some childfren et etc etc etc – you know all that stuff that sometimes need money. And besides, 48% of businesses succeed. But then who cares.
I don't think anyone here is considering the No mates party a good steward of anything other then their own bank accounts.
But liberating the Kiwi Safer to their owners would not be a bad idea and should be considered.
Westykev,So, you didn't hear anything about the huge spending on Infrastructure then, the largest spend in NZs history, or the fact they've built more new homes than any Govt since the seventies.
I suppose people only hear what they want.
I call that a wish list from a Party that has not delivered big on infrastructure since their elevation to Government. Twyford and team over promised and under delivered on housing and transport.
I hope for New Zealand’s sake they up their game post September.
It's not a wish list, it's an achievement NZ hasn't seen in a decade.
That's why people say Twyford was a failure cos he managed to have more new homes built in NZ than any Govt since the 70s.
In terms of other major Infrastructural projects, there hasn't been anytime in History that NZ has planned and completed the level Infrastructure currently either starting or near completion, roading, rail, Hospitals, Schools.
How many Schools and Hospitals were upgraded under the last Govt?
I think Jacinda and Labour have so far tried to tread a fine line on this. Governments still have to govern right up to election day but most election years haven't been overshadowed by such a crisis and threat.They don't want to be seen to be prioritising election campaigning over the serious business of keeping NZ safe, and if anything went wrong they'd get pilloried for taking their eyes off the ball. On the other hand, they have already got some criticism from media over allegedly treating the upcoming election as a nuisance. Ultimately the best way for a govt to retain power is to be seen to be doing a good job, while also setting out a vision for the future.
Must be why Ardern has an 80% confidence rating, looking after NZ and NZers.
We just happen to be in the luckiest country in the world right now, just there's a few Kiwis that haven't quite recognized that yet, they will in time.
This Virus ain't disappearing any time soon, NZ is the Country to follow for procedural excellence, and we're still learning as we go.have we made mistakes, yes, did we learn from mistakes, yes. What more can you ask for.
The National party are complaining about all the money being spent on Quarintine and Isolation without actually recognizing the Huge financial benefits of ploughing all those funds directly into the economy, employing people and keeping businesses operating, it's called good economic management, something NZers aren't used to seeing.
WestyKev…..Is that you Paula?
And itll cost them an easy win if it gets back in
It'll cost them something, maybe the tail end of their list – but the party that spent so much time whining about opening the borders have scarcely established themselves as a credible alternative.
Covid-19 is a game changer on many levels were community transmission to occur. Due to good political management NZ has been fortunate in not being impacted on a social level other than when in level 4 & 3.
I watched the premier of Victoria on TV and the emotion in his eyes told me that there was a long rocky steep road ahead for his state.
There are some situations in isolation where additional support is needed. Ranging from medical requiring methadone to grief support for children and this needs to be provided to minimise breaking isolation.
The paper headline said yesterday/today that Victoria is thinking of a NZ type lockdown. We did it early and so it tracked through well. Victoria seemed to be doing well but it was careless to have guards supposed to be keeping isolated possibly infected apart but then having sex with them. That was a poor connection in the brain of the careless young, but even worse in the minds of planners who need to allow for the little quirks and needs of humans.
So Victoria may have to go beyond what we did and be authoritarian, and the young would hate it, but then that could be limited by showing some kindness and imagination. Set up ways of communicating so people don't get tense about family and personal problems, and loneliness. Let them watch television a lot and perhaps have classes on learning the ukelele, and put a performance on telly at the end of isolation giving kudos to those who gave it a go in the true Aussie spirit, and build citizen-pride and support. And for the ones that like reading have kindle, and then a book discussion between the isolated and outsiders. Try to get them reading, it may prevent them from joining the most illiterate period since 1820 or something, with most spending time watching mummers on TV.
Hot security guards at a hotel was tempting for a few.
Spot prizes, grocery and book vouchers, smart phones and ipads, gardening tools and plants…
I don't see that as bad, firms would probably give vouchers, be prepared to give something to do for the fortnight, and make a friend and customer from the situation.
Personally, I'd prefer to see the army doing security rather than a private firm. I really believe that would make a difference.
100% agree Cinny, we don’t want a Victoria like outbreak here.
Yes, a military run operation would be much better as it is required to save lives.
The Army might like to be seen being good and reliable, people to look up to when they try.
(In a brief free access post), David Cormack analyses the latest polls the right way – by bloc, not party: https://www.patreon.com/posts/39896413
It was a good call when to release the report into Operation Burnham as the National Party poll could have dipped due to the release. The next poll will reflect the reports finding.
There is a trend going on into inquiries involving National Party MPs and when the inquiry is of an historical event which was handled poorly this reflects on the current National Party.
Were it not for Labour exposing the truth using pages from Hager and Stephenson's book, National and the NZDF would have gotten away with concealing the truth.
I do wonder which groups of voters pay attention to matters military.
No one specific group of voters and probably those with connections to the NZDF.
I thought maybe older voters?
Yes. They're the ones who may have followed the saga as it wound its way through the mesh of
liesdenials and (maybe) even read "Hit and Run".The young are otherwise occupied unless they are in the NZDF and even then its likely they are not much interested as for many it represents what they would see as a bygone era.
And manboys with a hardon for armymen.
I see this election as a massive renewal for the hard right in New Zealand.
Labour has been faced with such extreme events that it has had to expand the state so fast and so far that the more defensive elements of society are getting more and more ticked off.
National has shrunk.
Act looks likely to get above 5%, and bring in 7-8 MPs. Act's stance on guns is well recognised as bringing in those hard core rifle owners in the Waitake and Southland electorates.
The Conservative Party is back, and it will eat away a percentage or two in Mt Roskill and Mangere.
The coalition of weirdos gathered around Jaimie Lee-Ross will suck .5%-1% across from NZFirst and from National.
I'd like to see this splintering continue, to ensure Labour gets a good four terms and sinks the wooden stake through National's heart good and proper.
Whereas on the left, the Greens are imperilled at 5% and may well be dried to a husk under the 5% threshold, leaving a unified and revived left under Ardern. The harder left has simply nowhere to go and doesn't need to. That makes for much more efficient and surefooted government.
Really?
Really.
Our government has never been more redistributive, or more Keynsean in the scale of its deficit spending, since Muldoon's second term.
It has utterly massive nationwide support, and support within the Labour Party, for a young and charismatic and effective leader. That hasn't occurred since the first term of Helen Clark – if then.
And it's done so while becoming the most popular government in living memory.
That's lovely but how does removing the Green party from government make the left either unified or revived?
Don stop at Government, the Greens might well be ‘removed’ from Parliament altogether. United we stand, divided we fall.
And parliament is not the only avenue of influence for the left either.
Who do you place the blame on if the Greens don't make it over the line?
I like the Greens, I hope they're part of the next Govt, but they can't complain voters don't support them, they need the policies that attract a broader range of punters
We weren't talking about that, but their comms has been weaker in recent years. Only need to secure one on twenty voters though – not the same 'broad' church as Lab or Nat.
I do not see how removing the Greens from parliament builds unity. Seems like FPP thinking.
No, not really, I think its just we've got a Govt that has become extremely popular, a lot of that due to the response to the pandemic, both support parties are struggling to gain traction even though they are part of the solution, its just the voting public aren't associating those support parties with the pandemic policies, they're not seen promoting the policies or involved in the daily announcements.
I agree the Greens need to improve their coms, they've stumbled making announcements about policy, they've allowed the media to control the policy emphasis, rather than making sure the policy is promoted in a way that voters can aspire to.
I give you their Tax policy release as an example, great policy, but the media immediately described it as the Wealth Tax, that ends up as a discouragement, they needed a clear identity for the policy, like, Tax restructuring policy and made sure it couldn't be renamed to something the voters would want to reject.
I'm confident the Greens will make the cut, you only have see how many here will party vote them to help them on their way.
MMP giveth, MMP taketh away.
The Greens are essential to parliament because parties need friends to govern. Sure, Labour might be able to govern alone come election 2020, but what about 2023? Monolith parties lower the odds of being in government if they don't have coalition partners.
The right are in trouble not because they have new minor parties fracturing the vote, but because the new minor parties are largely similar in nature (and extremely nutty).
NZ can't support the Greens, the Environment Party, the ZeroCarbon Party, and the OrganicNZ Party. But the Greens should be able to get 5%.
If we lose the Greens this election, to whom will Labour turn when they drop to 45% in 2023?
Exactly, very good point.
I think Labour recognizes that too.
Even with a majority to Govern alone, I still think the Greens will be part of the next Govt, even if it's just for improved representation, and very good for democracy.
Winston rose from the soft fresh earth lining his crypt that he had been resting in from 2008 to 2011. So Greens missing out this time isn't necessarily permanent. Especially if they take the time to reflect on the relative weight they give to environmental issues versus other issues in relation to the demographics where they draw their support.
Yeah, but Winston's kind of special like that. Dude has come back from the dead so much that Hammer Films want to make movies about him.
I don't think policy weight is the issue for the Greens – I think they just have a same problem as ACT (although significantly more base support). When their natural coalition partner is dipping a bit, they have a bit more room. When their natural coalition partner is super-popular, they get overshadowed.
But I still think their voice is important to have in parliament.
Maybe not policy-weight as the important factor, but people-weight.
I couldn't bring myself to vote for Greens when their highest profile people were the likes of Tanczos, Bradford, Kedgley. Because it really didn't seem to me their hearts were in environmental issues, but that Greens were a stalking horse for other agendas.
Then when there was a bit more heft on the environment side with the likes of Kevin Hague, Kennedy Graham, Russell Norman as well as Hughes, Sage etc, I found it easier to choke down the idea that the likes of Steffan Browning were part of the package. For the coming election, I feel like the environmental substance has been whittled down to Shaw, Sage, Genter – which feels like quite a step down from where things were.
I'm sort of half and half on that one (personal dislike for Tanzcos aside – on at least one occasion he got pissy with doorstaff when the "don't you know who I am" didn't count as a backstage pass).
MPs neglecting a party's platform just to wank on about a single pet issue is a bit shit. But also I'm not sure how a party serious about fundamentally altering how we as a society operate in relation to the environment can do so without looking at social, economic, and post-colonial issues.
From my point of view, the existence of poverty is every bit as much a part of the values of an environmental party as the discussion of whether NZ national parks should be returned as close to a precolonial state as is possible. Poverty is a direct result of capitalism. It's as wasteful to people as clearfelling or overfishing are to "the environment". I have no idea why any group would want dramatic change in one but be opposed to any effort spent on the other.
Ad the hard right has always been here. Put a moustache on the Act Leader.History repeating?
Little man, big ideas, gathering all the malcontents together for what? What Policy/Vision is he offering?
While we battle the virus he is planning. He has been attached to National, but now is trying to relevant in his own right (Pun intended)
We laughed at the twerking… "Nek Minnit"…….??
I am not sure if there is a Clutha electorate Act candidate. If there is, this would be competition on and the National voters might split their vote.
Low end for Seymour is 5 seats and high end is 10 seats.
Basil Walker was ACT candidate for Southland but he resigned and is now standing as an independent in Invercargill, he's also put in an audacious bid for the Tiwai smelter
So looks like ACT are going to be looking for a candidate in Southland too
What is it with the Clutha seat that the electorate MPs tarnish and potential candidates do a runner?
Queenstown
And generally not getting candidates, and then MPs who are up to representing the place. The place puts very high demands on it's MP and will quickly destroy someone who's not up to the demands of the job. Certainly did the last two in, with style.
The electorate has a very conservative rural part in Southland, combined with a very liberal, go get it, part in Queenstown and Central Otago. It's one or the other with very little cross over, the two parts of the electorate may as well speak completely different languages, really they do.
How does this happen? According to the Herald a woman traveled from NZ to England in January then came home in March just before lockdown and then on July 20 flew to Sydney where she tested positive on arrival .? She must have dual citizenship but how does she test positive 4 1\2 months later when she thinks she may have had it when feeling sick after coming back in March. Did she not get a test then, was it a false neg if she did?
Stranger and stranger.
It may be that the test is detecting fragments of dead virus that haven't been finally cleared by the immune system.
It may be a recent infection and her earlier illness wasn't covid.
It may be that the virus somehow persists in someone's body without activating the immune system enough to fully clear it, or it may find a home in some specific tissues where it's hidden from the immune system.
https://medium.com/microbial-instincts/the-covid-19-virus-can-last-for-months-why-efb8314b2b98
There are still many many important things we have yet to learn about this pathogen.
Or a false positive? Or was she tested for antibodies?
Two cases now: https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12352798
Today's Ministry of Health media release about the two cases who travelled from Auckland to Sydney.
The first involves a woman who transited through Auckland from Los Angeles to Sydney on 6 July. At this point there are not considered to be any close contacts who need to be traced or tested but enquiries continue with both the airline and airport.
The second involves a woman who travelled from Auckland to Sydney on 20 July. We have already talked directly with the person concerned.
At this point, it appears the person may have been a previously unconfirmed case from March and this is likely to have led to the positive test result.
We will continue to fully investigate the circumstances of this positive result, including travel history.
https://www.health.govt.nz/news-media/media-releases/2-new-cases-covid-19-12
I've been aware of this issue for a while now, but I'm rather startled at how many people are at risk here:
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/422509/stranded-boaties-in-dire-situation-appeal-for-new-zealand-s-help
This is straightforward, and very low risk. By the time you've made the 10 day passage from Tonga or Fiji on a small yacht, you've pretty much isolated anyway. And when you do get to Opua, another week on the boat and a couple of tests represents a very low burden on the quarantine system.
These are foreign (i.e. not kiwi) yachties in French Polynesia who pre-covid would have planned on spending the cyclone season in NZ (or Australia). French Poly is relatively safe from cyclones and in fact many European yachties (not under visa restrictions) spend several years there. Any yachties who have to leave French Poly (e.g. for NZ) cannot land in the Cooks, Niue or Tonga making it a 14 to 20 day trip direct, so basically within quarantine timing. Fiji has opened up under strict conditions but is not a safe cyclone season layover. Can't see the NZ government allowing non NZ yachties in yet, at least until after the election (cyclone season doesn't really begin until November) despite the low health risk.
i don't disagree with you but
they had all year to get back to their home countries and did not?
Or is that a point we don't want to discuss?
The closing down of borders and constantly changing rules has impacted many people very hard. I recently met a couple who spent 73 days at sea in SE Asia, being bounced from place to place before finally arriving in Darwin with literally no food or water left on board. This is not an uncommon story.
The trade wind sea routes also mean that if you are in the Pacific, your most feasible destinations lie eastward, and this means ultimately landing up in NZ or Australia at some point. If your home nation is Europe or North America, sailing back upwind to get there is not a simple matter. And until very recently even getting back through Panama was not possible.
And in reality for many, their boat is their home, their only significant asset. Abandoning it and catching a plane back to the country they are nominally citizen's of is a highly non-trivial demand to make of them.
NZ has long had a marine industry that has quietly done very well from a steady flow of boats arriving here; now is the time to extend a generous hand when they really need it.
ah, that makes sense.
Thanks for the clarification.
A good accurate description. However having made the passage westwards once myself, the prospect of spending another year in French Polynesia rather than risk the perilous long trip all the way to NZ seems a lot safer and pleasanter. The other issue is that all the foreign boats from last year are still 'stuck' in NZ (and Oz) meaning there is little safe mooring space left in in marinas for another lot.
Immigration approvals are just a mess.
We've seen it even for the America's Cup teams.
It's the World War Z of immigration policies.
Some yachts do the Tonga-NZ trip in 7 days.
Normally, yachts would island hop through to Tonga then down to NZ via Minerva lagoon if necessary. But all the islands west of French Polynesia are inaccessible making it a 2000 nautical mile trip from Bora Bora with the worst bit at the end – not sensible even if NZ allows entry
So what happens if Guy just sails here regardless?
Even before the pandemic, yachties intending to sail to NZ had to inform Customs at least 4 days before arrival with all info about who's on board, where they were sailing from and their health status. They could only go to the Q (quarantine) dock in Opua or Marsden Cove and wouldn't be allowed on land before an inspection by Customs, Biosecurity and Health. If Guy, whoever he is, just turned up he would have been fined heavily and possibly arrested. Dunno what the protocol is now as only NZ citizens and residents are allowed to sail to NZ. Guess they have to work it out before they leave Australia or French Poly with Customs and any days they haven't spent at sea (subtracted from 14) could be spent tied up to one or the other of the Q docks and only released after a negative test (only guessing!).
Ok, so he could set off and he's not going to be sunk on sight as long as he lets people know who's coming and he's prepared to quarantine. Doesn't sound too oppressive.
No it isn't like that at all. If he just turned up without good reason (such as a genuine sailing emergency) there would be heavy fines, and lots of unhappy consequences.
Most sailing people are highly aware of the often complex arrival procedures necessary in every country and do their best to comply responsibly wherever possible.
What about a yacht used for drug smuggling?
The smugglers are not going to say we picked up 50 kg of meth from a dingy and the person loading the drug had a cold.
If ligit bad time for yacht sailing between countries.
Authorities are very aware of the Pacific drug smuggling routes, monitor traffic closely and are generally quite good at catching bad actors. Quite a separate issue.
Audrey Young (I bet she was weeping tears of anger and disappointment when writing this) expands on the rise and rise of the MPs who are religious Right. (But Wrong to me.)
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12352480
(paywalled)
From Audrey:
I suspect the hardcore christian members will be emboldened by their new leader Christ-opher Luxon when he takes over from Crushed Collins.
When the Christian Party demised many years ago, I seem to remember a plan to not bother with a Party but instead get individual strong Christians elected to operate from the inside rather than the outside. Maybe they have succeeded?
So, National has now become the Christian Party?
Yes Draco. Since God is on their side they will mightily hew down those who would defy the Chosen Path to Rightliness and Judith will blossom shrouded in iridescent halos. Alleluya!
Might go the other way for Collins not being a good fit for the leader of the National Christian Party due to her unchristian values.
A lack of christian values doesn't seem to be any barrier to banging on about christian values and inflicting them on everyone else.
Exactly.
All the Christians that I meet have the same values as Collins.
Basically, they're all bludgers.
Thanks, Ian.
oops
https://twitter.com/AlxThomp/status/1289325268918661122
https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/07/31/karen-bass-vp-candidate-los-angeles-388430
Is Thompson trying to undermine Bass, joe90 ?
It's this one on Thompson's feed that's a crackup.
Trump having a Covid party at Tampa today using AF1 for covert campaign.
The crowds…..
"Billie Jean is not my lover She's just a girl who claims that I am the one But the kid is not my son.”
https://twitter.com/meridithmcgraw/status/1289295452416827392
its like a horror movie
this virus pounding at the doors
trying to get in
scratching at the handle, in through the lock, under the door
screeching "let us in, let us in…"
"Is that you again Judith?"
Judith doesn't need to attack the door. She is born to rule with the words, "Don't you know who I am?"
She was inside the house all along..
It kind of isn't really.
Our boarders are pretty much closed.
If the current govt could get their collective shit together for long enough and not let people in isolation rock off to Countdown every 5 minutes it should be alright
I know right, that skyrocketing community transmission is proof they aren't keeping many of them in there. Wish we were more like the Strayans.
Is this a conspiracy theory that has worked on our economic system?
Economist Brian Easton says a fellow economist had the good oil but was scuttled by the econo-nasties.
https://www.pundit.co.nz/content/the-holistic-perspective-of-bryan-philpott
We tend to propose economic policies without thinking of their wider repercussions. It is just so easy to say ‘we should do this’ and ignore the consequences. This was nicely, and sadly, illustrated by a recent controversy between Keith Woodford, retired professor of agribusiness at Lincoln University, and the NZIER, which wrote a report on the contribution of agriculture to the economy. It argued that the sector’s contribution was small (4 to 5 percent of GDP); Woodford argued that the estimate was misleading about the significance of the farm contribution.
Bryan [Philpott] would have been irate, because the analytic framework the NZIER report was so limited. It seemed to be saying that the farm sector was so small we could almost neglect it. That would encourage those who want to diminish or even close down the agricultural sector.
Economists on the run
The problem, of course, is that economists have been giving bad advice for decades and, even after the lessons of the GFC, don't seem to have any other advice.
DracoTD, the NZ scene has a significant national body collective? It was a long fought effort to be recognised; now not only receiving charitable funding but receiving significant funding from MSD and ACC.
The body's agencies are working on the ground addressing an overwhelming workload of needs.
Each of the client coming into different agents nation wide, IS the expert on their own lives. The goals for 'remedy' come from their own voices. Support is multi faceted for all dimensions of a person's story and needs; not just abuse issues either nor ironically a single gender or ethnicity, exclusive place. New agencies are underway still spreading into further locales. There is enormous support from a wide collective of grass roots and NGO's all working collaboratively to affect change .( And no, Paula despite your claim in your valedictory speech, you never visited- and in a funding round- nor another high profile dissenter, ' never mind them' pollie.
https://malesurvivor.nz/our-organisation/
Today is the third anniversary of Jacinda Arderns elevation to Leader of the Labour Party.
Andrew Little has said he never regretted passing over the reins, the rest is history.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12352809
Andrew deserves our thanks and gratitude, as he was big enough to acknowledge her.
This was the beginning of a remarkable Leadership example from both of them.
Jacinda Ardern is seen as a shining example of sound Leadership.
I wish her "Good luck and health" in these demanding times, may she lead for years.
Yes Patricia, and we'll all be able to thank him on election day.
Australia's Covid 19 toll has doubled in the last two weeks since they had effectively eliminated.
Watching the conversations of resident Victorians around the place it's clear they and their government have no idea about proper pandemic response. This can be applied nationally too. The mixed massages and concessions which led to this horrible 'second wave' (it's not a second wave, it's just a first wave not dealt with properly) are still front and centre of policy there.
For instance, did you know that construction was, is and apparently always will be classed as an essential service? Did you know all Australians were allowed to go to work, even during their highest level of lockdown, if they were unable to work from home?
It's clear the Victorian people and government have no intention of doing what is required and they are now reduced to managing the unmanageable.
The Victorian and federal Australian governments' botched response gives us a very clear picture of what life would be like in New Zealand had the National Party been in charge here.
In the beginning, the Australian state Govts started their own lockdowns as the Fed Govt was missing in action, they finally came to the party and literally copied the NZ system and Morrison was even mimicking Ardern and her demeanor, I remember watching him thinking he must have had a brain transplant, speaking more softly and with emotion, must have taken a fair bit of training.
I don't believe they got close to what we did.
Another example is our bubble concept. Here, we knew very well we were to not mix with anyone outside or family unit – for five weeks.
In Australia, as far as I can tell, you could mix with anyone as long as you were in a group of no more than two people.
Update:
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/300071763/coronavirus-australias-covid19-death-toll-passes-200-after-three-victoria-deaths
Let's hope they get it right this time.
How much is it going to hurt their economy?
Remember when the right was arguing that we should already have the Borders open, aren't we lucky they weren't in charge.
It won't.
The economy has never been the finances.
Very. Because if they'd been in charge they would have destroyed the economy to keep the rich rich.
But then, that's what National always does.
The mixed massages certainly must have had a big affect on the rising number of cases in Victoria.
Lol.
The VIC authorities are doing themselves and everyone else a disservice by claiming the situation the find themselves in now is due to one single quarantine lapse.
I just don't buy that and what it does is minimise the considerable flaws in the rest of their approach which, left unfixed, will result in many, many more deaths.
TikTok is regularly used as a platform to pillory and satirise Trump.
So he bans it.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=12352875
We should not forget National and business and universities jumping up and down demanding we open the borders before it was safe. Strange isn't it, they have gone pretty quiet about that these days. They were also saying Australia was doing better than we were!
But we must not get complacent. Daughter in Australia says too many people there were selfish idiots.
It's true, but where does the complacency come from? It comes from complacent and compromised leadership.
Those conversations I mentioned above show the Australian federal government’s relief packages were unwieldy, slow and hard to access. Wage subsidies in NZ were central to the calmness with which we all approached the very well thought out lockdown. Clear and compassionate leadership from JA got us all on board.
Muttonbird, true. It was very clear here, apart from some initial issues about what was or was not essential and untidy issues were quickly tidied up. The daily PM and DG briefings kept us well informed and they reminded us what was expected of us. It became essential viewing. I don't think daughter in Australia had that level of clarity.
My son in Australia and many others tuned into Jacinda and Ashley's reports, as the advice was universal and clear.
Others did crazy things, like 3000 gathering for a party.
Hooton quit, 70 or so days…
& laughing arse off at NZ First attack ads against the Greens, apparently if I vote Greens I get a Unicorn!!!
So, you're definitely going to vote Greens and not expect the unicorn?
Hoots continues his work outside the mothership. https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/422543/political-lobbyist-matthew-hooton-resigns-as-national-party-staffer
He sure is NOT living in the land of reality. But then it has been my observation that he hasn't for a long, long time.
Yes Anne, Hooten is inclined to get hysterical.
What I like is we have confirmed where some people's political "Hat" will be hung.
Conservatives don't live in reality.
That's been true since forever.
Winston's imported brexiteers sure are providing some strange campaign advertising guidance..
https://twitter.com/danxduran/status/1289390478249431040
Vote NZFist, Get Orcs.
Whose votes are they going for with this?
I don't think they quite get MMP – this ad is just weird.
The standard conservative votes who are all delusional.
English voters, with the hedge and the unicorn and all. #oops
Mathew Hooton has resigned from the National Party and has stated that National have a good chance at winning the upcoming election.
I will say no more.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2020/08/lobbyist-matthew-hooton-leaving-national-party-months-after-being-hired.html
Go easy on the guy Just Is. Afterall, he wrote, quote the rnz version " the standard sump speech "
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stump_speech
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/422543/political-lobbyist-matthew-hooton-resigns-as-national-party-staffer
YesPaddy. A sump speech will be down the drain I expect. But will Matthew be welcome back as a National Spokesman with NZR?
He'd certainly want to spellcheck their copy, before publishing.
And peruse the leader’s room for contradictory clues like hats before giving a stump speech
They might need to take a honkpill at rnz
Or gosh it might have been in Matty's lil media release, if more than one outlet ran the same error.. https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-01-08-2020/#comment-1736678
Well he got that right.
The Herald quote is priceless:
"I think they now have a terrific team who has a good chance of winning the election, or at least can ensure the National Party will remain a broad church after 19 September."
"At least" …
Translation: Campaign strategist expects defeat. I don't think any Lab/Nat person in the leader's office has done this publicly since 1990. Nobody ever does. That's how bad things are on the good ship National.
Odd decision just before an election but for a reason only known to Hooton. Maybe he cannot work with Collins or he jumped before he was pushed.
Turns out those gnatsys are just a bunch of anarchosyndicalist marxist commies. Hootie had to get out while he was still pure.
Hooton has resigned from his party job. https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/300071836/matthew-hooton-resigns-as-national-party-staffer
Friday: Hager wins.
Saturday: Hooton loses.
The dark side does not always triumph.
We all watched Star Wars and we know that the Dark Side always loses – even if it is after millions of deaths that weren't necessary.
Story really went downhill once Disney bought it.
If my 'rithmetic is correct, that lasted 6.0 Scaramuccis.
"“I can’t justify the impact on my family and other personal and professional responsibilities for seven weeks."
Whaaaa????
Amazing how many Tories suddenly want to spend more time with their family.
To conservatives family is all important – unless you're more than a generation away in which case you're nothing.
https://youtu.be/Fm0hOex4psA
heh
https://twitter.com/NatGeo/status/1289024330068897792
Wonder if that really unnatural blotchy orange colouring is photoshopped or just bad lighting.
You couldn't make this shit up.
On second thought, maybe it was too soon.
One of the first cruise ships in the world to resume sailing since the coronavirus-caused worldwide halt to departures in March is experiencing an outbreak of the illness that has already sent people to the hospital.
Norwegian expedition cruise company Hurtigruten late Friday said four crew members from the 535-passenger Roald Amundsen were admitted to the University Hospital of North Norway in Tromsø, Norway, earlier in the day after the vessel docked in the city.
https://thepointsguy.com/news/covid-outbreak-hurtigruten-norway/
Political lobbyist Matthew Hooton resigns as National Party staffer
https://www.msn.com/en-nz/news/national/political-lobbyist-matthew-hooton-resigns-as-national-party-staffer/ar-BB17rqkS?li=BBqdg4K
I wonder if him and Judith could not get along or there is somthing more?
"Former Defence Minister Wayne Mapp just told @manidunlop on Midday Report he "completely forgot" about a briefing which said civilians were possibly killed during Operation Burnham."
Hey, Hoots has resigned. Spread the word.
Jumped or pushed?
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=12352882
What's she on? Silly woman.
A healthy retainer 🙂
brilliant Oz headline ….
James Murdoch resigns to spend less time with family
Great Belgian headline!
Moonshot brings back fromage