Open mike 03/03/2022
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- Treasury warns deeper recession worsening Budget deficit
The gift that keeps giving: David Seymour has now opened a split in the coalition over the future of National’s promise to build a new medical school. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / TheKakaKia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and ...6 hours ago - Weekly Roundup 22-November-2024
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Record Numbers: The Hīkoi mō te Tiriti, which began at the tip of the North, and the tail of the South, on 11 November, culminated outside Parliament on Tuesday, 19 November 2024, in one of the largest demonstrations in New Zealand’s political history.ACCORDING TO TE ARA, the Ministry of Culture ...8 hours ago - The Rush To Blame “The Activists”
Activists are such easy scapegoats. The right and center have been conditioned for decades to roll their eyes at all protests. The left are easily aggravated over students leading movements they see as belonging to grownups, who have more important concerns like the economy and whether the trains come on ...8 hours ago - Cutting Through An Inundation of Dipshit Racists
Hi,Watching New Zealand from afar offers a strange perspective. It can be a good thing — distance from Aotearoa helped keep me sane while I reported on abuse at New Zealand’s biggest megachurch over the course of a year. It helps fuel my silly podcast. But it can also be ...8 hours ago - This is bad news
The speech yesterday by Treasury’s Chief Economic Advisor warning that the books are in worse shape than forecasted looks like it’s part of a softening-up process for either more cuts or a longer wait to get back into surplus. The speech was a highly unusual public preview of Treasury’s Half-Yearly ...10 hours ago - Skeptical Science New Research for Week #47 2024
Open access notables Projected increase in the frequency of extremely active Atlantic hurricane seasons, Lopez et al., Science Advances: Future changes to the year-to-year swings between active and inactive North Atlantic tropical cyclone (TC) seasons have received little attention, yet may have great societal implications in areas prone to hurricane ...19 hours ago - Chicken Kiev
Chatting in the supermarket this morning, I found I needed to lunge for the chicken drumsticks.Coping mechanisms: who hasn’t felt a greater need for them lately?When it all gets too much, I turn to demonstrating handy butchery hacks.It wasn’t that she’d said anything wrong, our friend, not at all. We ...22 hours ago - The year is 2024 and it’s 1984
This is written in response to the highly significant open letter from a group of economists that was today addressed to Christopher Luxon. The year is 2024, and it’s 1984. The country is reeling from a record Olympic medal gold haul, while the globe grapples with the choice of the ...23 hours ago - The IPCA has failed
Back in 2022, RNZ took an in-depth look at the "Independent" Police Conduct Authority and its handling of killings by police. These are the most serious test of oversight, and you would expect the police's use of lethal force to receive the most severe scrutiny. But despite the police regularly ...1 day ago - Thursday 21 November 2024
The Hīkoi mō Te Tiriti arrived at Parliament on Tuesday – the size is being debated but estimates range from 42,000 to 100,000. The Prime Minister is defending not attending due to some of the organisers being affiliated with Te Pāti Māori. The national gang patch ban came into force ...1 day ago - ‘These budget cuts are counter-productive and make no sense’
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Nicola Willis’ budget cuts are under fire from economists for having no clear rationale and worsening the recession. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāKia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Thursday, November 21: The news at ...1 day ago
- The end of policing by consent
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- The Treaty Principles Bill: A Who’s Who
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- 27% of kids going hungry, up from 21% in a year
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- Young Maori take over
Neither Wellington nor Parliament has ever seen anything like it before. The Police said there were more than 40,000 but however many there were, yesterday’s Hikoi to Parliament was a monumental event. It was almost three times the Foreshore and Seabed martch of 2004 and many,many times bigger than ...2 days ago
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The government's Treaty Principles Bill is up for its first reading today - bought forward in a rush in a desperate effort to avoid the hikoi which is currently marching on Wellington. But the Prime Minister won’t be there for it – he’s literally running away to Peru! But he ...1 week ago
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Good morning, and I’m sorry I’ve been away for a couple of days.I’ve been focusing on the Hikoi, and also testing out sentiment on the Treaty Principles Bill. It’s complicated, and the Treaty Principles Bill will be debated in the House today. The Government’s own lawyers have told them the ...1 week ago - Government must vote down ACT Members Bill that would undermine workers’ rights
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The Treaty Principles Bill is set to have its First Reading in the House today, as the Hīkoi mō Te Tiriti continues. More than 40 KCs have written to the Prime Minister and Attorney-General outlining their “grave concerns” about the substance of the Treaty Principles Bill, while an academic and ...1 week ago
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...1 week ago
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Kua hinga te manawa kairākau o Te Rua Tekau Ma Waru Tiwhatiwha te po! Kakarauru i te po! Ka rapuhia kei hea koe kua riro! Haere e te Ika a Whiro ki o tini hoa kua ngaro atu ki te Pō ...2 weeks ago
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- Release: Labour, Greens and Te Pāti Māori call on the Prime Minister to block the Treaty Principle...
The opposition parties stand united for an Aotearoa that honours Te Tiriti, rather than seeking to rewrite it. Labour, the Greens and Te Pāti Māori are working together against the Government’s divisive Treaty Principles Bill. ...2 weeks ago
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https://twitter.com/davidfarrier/status/1498874128136245249
Perhaps Stewart is saying the people throwing rocks are Antifa-like. Surely projection, if so.
Farrier is right though, it’s further evidence of US style alt-right narrative entering this country.
Yes, but it’s not only the alt right, it’s also true of the left as well.
https://twitter.com/abigail1963/status/1498902107620982785
Rachael Smalley being opportunistic in accusing the PM of being opportunistic.
Shes on Talk Radio now so has to play the shock-jockette card
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/462615/free-rapid-antigen-tests-available-for-home-covid-19-testing
Thi household did exactly that yesterday afternoon. Went onto the website and picked up two packs of 5 within minutes.
It's important to have these available to all, regardless of income, rather than the Key/Luxon model where private profit was the most important consideration.
The worried well will still be able to purchase RATs from retail outlets, and at a reasonable price because they have to compete with the MoH.
Good luck with having anything couriered
Apologies, I wasn't clear. You order on the website with name, address, etc, then you go to a testing centre to physically pick up.
Deliveries to come later, from the article
The Chemist Warehouse had 5 pack for $44.99! I believe Foodstuffs and The Warehouse will be selling for $31.99 (I think that is close to cost price).
Chemist Warehouse were expecting delivery overnight last night because they didn't have any yesterday.
Think I heard New World were selling at cost (plus admin/handling probably). They see it as a public service, but realistically while the govt is rolling out free tests for symptomatic people and household contacts, they can't really do much else.
Be very interested to see if the West follow through with their promise to seize the assets of Russian oligarchs all around the world.
As the worship of capital is a cornerstone of the American Dream,I am very sceptical.
' going after Russian oligarchs with financial attack that will seize billions
Senior US government officials are preparing to dramatically expand the number of Russian oligarchs subject to United States sanctions, aiming to punish the financial elite close to Russian President Vladimir Putin over his invasion of Ukraine, according to three people briefed on internal administration deliberations.
Officials at the White House and Treasury Department are working on producing a list of names that is expected to overlap in part with the line-up of Russian oligarchs who were newly subjected to sanctions by the European Union on Monday, the people said.
For instance, the White House is weighing imposing new sanctions on Alisher Usmanov, the owner of an iron and steel conglomerate who Forbes has estimated to be worth more than US$15 billion (NZ$22bn), the people said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to reflect internal deliberations not yet made public.
Usmanov was placed under sanctions by European Union officials on Monday (local time). The US sanctions would also probably include travel restrictions and the seizure of overseas assets that could run into the billions.'-Stuff.
Bernie opines on the scale of the thieving.
https://twitter.com/BernieSanders/status/1498775884018368514
https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1498775884018368514.html
One of the responses:
https://twitter.com/Cooper36447270/status/1498777450209288193
the Russian invasion i deplore but would note…did the world do the same when the USA and UK invaded Iraq or Afganistan?
No, because US made an effort to contrive an actual justification and false evidence for the invasions. Even so, there was a shedload of opposition to both wars internationally and within the invading nations, and NZ's own participation in Iraq was the final straw that resulted in the shattering and demise of the Alliance Party.
Oh, and there was actually a connection between Afghanistan and a major terrorist attack, so the world was a bit more sympathetic – in the same way the Russian apartment bombings provided a bit more justification for Russia's invasion of Chechnya when they were attributed to Chechens. The FSB guys were just doing a security drill, honest.
Oil, gas, wheat and phosphate fertilisers. Between them Russia and Ukraine supply a substantial fraction of world supply in these major commodities. And they have just gone offline for the foreseeable future.
Keeping the global population alive requires global peace and global supply chains. In this rapidly deglobalising world, that peace and those supply chains are gone forever, and could well result in the death of a billion people by starvation. The future is here. The leading edge of the famines of tomorrow begins in 2022.
This chilling prospect should focus minds.
Dont be silly.
These things will all have sanctions waivers like oil and gas, aluminium, titanium, the noble gases used in computer chip manufacture, etc etc
The list will be endless
Putin has stepped over a line that no-one can tolerate – he has threatened a nuclear first-strike against any nation that interferes with his actions in Ukraine. And so far this had proven a successful strategy, preventing direct EU responses on the ground.
Essentially he has put the West into a bind, if we do nothing the longer run outcome is bad, if we do act the outcome will be immediately worse. This will not be tolerated, Russia will be as hermetically isolated as possible – the political will for this will be immense, any nation or corporation seen funding the Russian war machine will be immediately ostracised.
Putin has lost the plot and needs to be held to account ?
Doubt whether the UN has the gonads to do anything after all the USA has acted ssimilarly with no action taken by the UN ?
Putin has lost the plot and needs to be held to account ?
Yes.
In 2002 I marched down Lambton Quay along with many thousands of others to protest the imminent US invasion of Iraq. While none of us can re-write the past – this is 2022 and Ukrainians are dying as we type.
Your defense of this sickens me.
Given Russia and China have a veto, I’m genuinely curious as to what you think the UN can do?
EU doesnt have an army , thats Nato
Nato made it very clear many months back even that it would not get involved in Ukraine itself. That would shatter the myth of a 'self defence' military alliance
Unusually full of certainties and jingoism today . Must be the caffeine
While NATO, consistent with its purpose as a defensive military alliance has not involved itself, the EU nations have absolutely responded with substantial and increasing economic sanctions.
However there is a list of Eastern European NATO members who reasonably anticipate that after Ukraine they are next. And their military leaderships will be making the case that it will be much easier to stop Putin in Ukraine than on the outskirts of their own cities.
My friend you are making the same logic leap you say Putin is doing.
Building a defensive frontier using somebody elses country.
But its clear to see you are just an old fashioned jingoist after all…tally-ho
I am not your friend.
And your logic erases the crucial matter – that one nation after another in Eastern Europe has actively clamoured to become a member of NATO. And as we are seeing on our news and video feeds, ordinary people are willing to give truth to that European choice with their lives.
You dishonour them with you fake moral equivalences.
The foiling of the attempt to assasinate Kelensky by a Chechen unit was down to the Russian Federations FSB. Is this the first sign of official breaking away from Putin? No wonder he’s hiding in a bunker, now we just need him to do the last step!
The FSB is the Russian internal version of the KGB, patch war going on by any chance?
Its just a social media story. You are really sucked into the 'standard tropes' on these sorts of things
How credible is that story do you think.?
Demonisation propaganda against Russia is full bore in the western media.
I saw the story about the Ukrainian air ace that has supposedly taken out 10 now,Russian jet fighters…straight out of…'Ripley's believe it…or not'!
The World Security Special Forces should be targeting Putin once he is taken out the House of Cards will disintegrate ?
Kiwi business culture going Green shifts up a gear, led by two women:
Too funny . Porsche production in Germany idled because the cars electrical wire harnesses are made in low wage Ukraine. It seems many other are too.
Its hell in a Handbasket
https://www.autoblog.com/2022/03/02/ukraine-invasion-hampers-wire-harness-production-for-automakers/?guccounter=1
Putin’s regime silences an elderly survivor.
https://twitter.com/AlexKokcharov/status/1499080826599919633
Anyone who questions Putin's authority will be dealt with, this is how Gangsters operate same as domestically here in NZ with the Gangs which have been allowed to flourish here in NZ since Muldoon's Era.
Has it begun?
"Prices were also lower with the median selling price declining for the third month in a row to $1,122,500 in February, which is $117,500 lower than its November 2021 peak of $1,240,000.
The average selling price declined for the second month in a row to $1,196,036, down by $82,611 from its December peak of $1,278,647."
https://www.interest.co.nz/property/114621/cooling-auckland-housing-market-means-fewer-sales-and-lower-prices-barfoot-thompson
Couldn't happen soon enough I don't know how people can survive on the minimum wage here in NZ ? Let alone buy a house ?
Maybe Helen Clarke and John Key shouldn't have let all those Asian House Farmers into NZ, where by they could invest $10 Million in Residential Housing and obtain Perminant Residency ?
That's still there although the investing has to be in building new houses for other people to live in, not houses for oneself or one's family/friends.
Those prices are ridiculous. Glad I've always (last 35 years anyway) lived on a boat. The one I live on at the moment cost just over 10% of that median price quoted three years ago. Looking at what's happened to many of the million dollar houses in Brisbane and NE NSW during the last few days climate change affected devastating floods (plus the less than a million dollar houses affected more than once recently in Westport), I've also noted that houses don't float very well!
"…I've also noted that houses don't float very well!"
You would think but apparently one did exactly that in NSW
We can hope. 😉
The commentators all seem to be saying that it's too close to call (one swallow, etc.) – and that the increases are still double-digit year-on-year (so Feb 2021 to Feb 2022 more than 10% increase) – not a sign to break out the bubbly, yet.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/money/2022/03/new-zealand-property-market-asking-prices-plummet-in-some-parts-as-more-houses-available.html
Also that some regions had an increase – so not a consistent trend.
The Omicron outbreak will have had a cooling effect on sales, as has the unintended consequences of the anti-loan-shark legislation (which unintentionally caught mortgages in its scope)
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/127482627/shattered-dreams-as-home-loan-approvals-plunge-after-lending-law-changes
I suspect that the widely signalled interest rate rises (Omicron and now Russia/Ukraine conflict) will be having an impact, too (or, at least, I can't see how it could not have an impact on people's willingness to commit to enormous mortgages)
Keep watching with interest (sorry for the pun) to see how the next couple of months go.
It is more than 'one swallow' however… declines in the major market for 3 months running.
But yes, whether it gathers steam is yet to be seen….listings certainly are growing, interest rates moving up and banks are restricting credit so the conditions are all there.
. Flying in Russia is going to get as risky AF.
https://twitter.com/MikeSchriber/status/1499095225117020164
Referring to the sanctions approved by the bloc, she said: "We ban the sale of all aircraft, spare parts, and equipment to Russian airlines. This will degrade the key sector of Russia's economy and the country's connectivity."
She added: "Three-quarters of Russia's current commercial air fleet was built in the European Union, the US, and Canada. And therefore, they are massively dependent on that."
https://www.businessinsider.com/european-union-ban-russian-flights-airspace-fresh-sanctions-report-2022-2?
Works both ways
'Kevin Michaels, founder of AeroDynamic Advisory and an aerospace supply chain expert, said VSMPO supplies about 35% of the titanium used in structural parts of Boeing airframes, in particular for the 787 and 777 widebody aircraft.'
'The joint venture in Russia “has a 54,000-ton forging press that makes the main struts for the 787 and 777 landing gear,” said Michaels.
It also details that just moving production to another forge could take 3 years because of aviation certification processes.
https://www.seattletimes.com/business/boeing-aerospace/boeing-suspends-moscow-engineering-center-and-halts-support-to-russian-airlines/
Hell in a handbasket Vol 2
OMG that is a problem for the world aviation construction industry.
It would work in 1952 or 1962. But it's 2022, and Russian kids have smart phones.
On March 3, the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation will hold an all-Russian open lesson “Defenders of Peace” for schoolchildren. This was announced on March 2 by the press service of the department.
It will be dedicated to the "liberation mission in Ukraine." You can view it here . Beginning at 12:00 Moscow time.
“During the open lesson, the audience will be told in detail the background of today's events and will be explained what danger NATO poses to our country. The lesson will also help you figure out how to distinguish truth from lies in the flow of information,” the release says.
google translate
https://www.fontanka.ru/2022/03/02/70482635/
Monbiot on a phenomenon that has direct relevance to some of the Putin apologist bs posted here.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/mar/02/russian-propaganda-anti-imperialist-left-vladimir-putin?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
"Both Boeing and Airbus are cutting off support and spare parts to Russia".
So is this also the reason INDIA abstained from voting in the UN today – Worried about spare parts for the huge number of weapons they buy from Russia.
India, China , Brazil, Argentina and various others have been supportive of the Russia/China call for international finance reform over recent years, so their abstention is not necessarily surprising.
Applies to you too.
It certainly was the case the coup in Ukraine originated-instigated in western security services, just as the Syrian Civil war was 'instigated' by western backed Sunni nations aided by a flow of Arms from Libya paid and organised by CIA.
The list of CIA backed coups in various countries since the 1950s is a very long one. One doesnt have to be scohlar to check a few facts ( which isnt your way)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_involvement_in_regime_change
Monbiot is just a left wing version of Hosking , both with Rubrik cubes of self justifying opinions. Its quite silly that you would think he would be credible on some major events. Hes just doing this to avoid being cancelled by The Guardian editos
https://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/21/world/middleeast/cia-said-to-aid-in-steering-arms-to-syrian-rebels.html
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/cia-begins-weapons-delivery-to-syrian-rebels/2013/09/11/9fcf2ed8-1b0c-11e3-a628-7e6dde8f889d_story.html
Ah yes, I remember thinking when marching through London with the Syrian community on an Amnesty organised March in response to Assad’s thugs beating peaceful protestors prior to a single shot being fired in the war “Feels good to be a stooge of American foreign policy”.
Funny how the ‘Russia were justified as Assad was just responding to a civil war in which he was the least worst operative’ have erased all that from history Orwell style.
You truly are morally bankrupt, but then what should one expect from that Avatar or is it meant to be ‘ironic’. The double standard is funny, as a Hitler avatar would unsurprisingly be a non starter.
Syria's on that wikipedia list, fair call.
Ukraine isn't, though. And the US involvement in the downfall of Yanukovich (public and diplomatic comments, sanctions when violence started) seems to be far short of the US actions against Assad described in your links (sanctions, weapons & training to rebels)
You don't spend 5 Billion and expect nothing in return.
7:30: “Since Ukrainian’s independence in 1991 the United States has supported Ukranians as they build democratic skills and institutions as they promote civil participation and good goverments all over which are pre conditions to achieve its European aspirations. We’ve invested over 5 billion dollars to assist Ukraine in these and other goals that will assure and secure a prosperous and democratic Ukraine”
coolcool.
So, worst possible interpretations at the ready, US bribed Ukraine with international aid, Ukrainians aligned to the US and revolted when Yanukovich tried to pivot to Russia, so Russia launched a military invasion.
Is that your summary of the last 35 years of Ukrainian foreign relations? If not, could you please clearly state what your position actually is?
Innuendo and titillating fragments do not make your assertions identifiable.
My assertion is quite clear. Money talks.
People can judge for themselves exactly what she means when she says "civil participation" and "good goverments"
Could explain why a fringe neo-nazi clique got so much power and helped formed a government right after the maidan revolt in 2014.
So US is bad because it uses aid money to bolster democratic institutions that Ukrainian people stand up to support?
What does that make Russia, which outright invades Ukraine against the wishes of Ukrainians?
As the world reacts to Russian actions of late, many countries have imposed sanctions eg freezing their assets. Yet I now read Roman Abramovich is now contemplating selling his football team and for these $$billions of funds to be placed into his charity. Am I a little skeptical, or is he trying to liquify some of his assets while he can 🤫, especially as he has historic ties to Putin. ps Well done Liverpool last week 11-10
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/01/roman-abramovich-hastily-selling-uk-properties-mp-claims
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/02/26/roman-abramovich-russia-sanctions/
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/mar/02/two-uk-based-russian-oligarchs-have-shares-in-22bn-conglomerate-frozen
YNWA.
Current Covid cases (presumably mostly Omicron) at 23K today.
Not that I think that's anything to celebrate.
But, overseas rates have cases doubling every 3 or so days.
https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/omicron-cases-doubling-15-3-days-areas-with-local-spread-who-2021-12-18/
And that's not been the pattern observed here. A couple of jumps (which may be attributable to the PCR testing delays) – but certainly not the doubling that's been described overseas, and predicted in the modelling here.
[Sorry, this is only current to the 1st March – can't find a nice graphic incorporating the last 2 days – but the numbers aren't enormously greater than 1/3 – around 23K for all 3 days]
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/in-depth/450874/covid-19-data-visualisations-nz-in-numbers
Why? Is the high vaccination rate having a significant slowing effect? Is it just a statistical anomaly (and we'll get a big spike in cases early next week)?
I'm not complaining! But would like to understand what's going on.
It seems the RATS tests will be slow in identifying a positive result (slower viral load build up compared to delta variant). So people will remain active while infectious because initial test results will be negative.
In terms of medical treatment it would appear important that the old and the health compromised get priority for PCR tests to identify infection early, so early anti-viral use keeps them out of hospital.
I wish that were happening, but I don't think it is. System is still working out the kinks.
https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2022/01/23/1074978193/rapid-covid-tests-omicron
test. Can you please let me know if you can see the video in this comment?
https://www.facebook.com/661042032/videos/492239455679916
https://www.facebook.com/661042032/videos/492239455679916
Works here, MS Edge on PC.
It works for me, Chrome browser on PC.
ta, I can see it now too.
Flu is back up north.
Just did a Google search – and it seems 98% of last months flu types in the USA were A(H3N2) and the same for January in Europe. It's a flu strain that results in more hospitalisations (impacts on the aged).
The number of cases is still lower than in most pre coronavirus pandemic years but higher than since 2019-2020 as community activity increases (and will now include us as border barriers come down).
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/return-flu-eu-faces-threat-prolonged-twindemic-2022-01-17/
https://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/index.htm
In a truly medieval response, a new power has joined the Ukrainian side, gaining instant popularity and supporting pro-Ukrainian charities abroad.
Ukraine war: St Javelin and the missile that has become a symbol of Ukrainian resistance | Euronews