The outrage and bellicosity that has greeted the fall of the Bauer publications from comfy centrists, neolib and other out of touch media types who are for once in the frontline rather than sniping from the back of an economic crisis is a classic illustration that when tens of thousands of others lose their jobs it is a necessary market correct but when the pampered middle class lose theirs it is a government failure led depression.
One should feel very sorry for the people who have lost their jobs, but I think you can also be permitted to savour a certain delicious irony at watching publications (like the Listener) that long ago transformed themselves into cheerleading journals for the comfy and complacent middle class winners of neoliberalism, globalisation and unfettered foreign ownership of our assets scream for government intervention when the grim reaper of "market forces" comes for them. And let's not get started at how Mediaworks – who consistently argue the government should pull out media altogether because it shows then up and they compete – are bellowing about the need for government help as well now.
Some – most – have taken it on the chin, but others (Lizzie Marvelley's splenetic twitter outbursts would be funny if it wasn't tragic, a snowflake right there) have reacted in a way that kinda confirms the suspicion that quite a few of the chatterati think of themselves as part of the other, pampered class and quite different from Joe and Jane Sixpack on Struggle street.
Then you've got aging types like Chris Trotter, who yearns these days for NZ to be like it was in the 1980s. His reaction is bordering on the hysterical, as trusty mastheads of his youth fall all around him and nothing is certain anymore.
The thing is we can argue all day about the whys and wherefores of this. A wildly angry Wendyl Nissan (so much for the smooth veneer of media objectivity when the abstract becomes the personal) claimed on RNZ yesterday that the Woman's Weekly was making money. Some claim Bauer are clearing out the local opposition ahead of simply bringing it's Australian equivalents. It does seem like COVID-19 has provided a nice cover for Bauer to engage in a bit of disaster capitalism.
But really these titles have gone broke because increasingly no one reads them and nobody wants to advertise in them. Gone with not a bang, but a whimper. The Listener – the biggest of them all I think – nowadays has a "readership" of a couple of hundred thousand. That isn't sales, just what they think the number of people who read an issue is so they can pump their advertising costs. Sure, they may have been turning over a trickle of profit. But their ruthless German publishing masters clearly thought wurst was to come.
the future of how to pay for longform journalism is a conundrum even the media experts don't have an answer for. Perhaps it is time for government subsidies – but the idea that those subsidies should go to obsolescent publications owned by foreign corporations? Hmmm. Not so sure.
For what it is worth, I think it is time for a licence fee – a fee on data usage, collected by ISPs and paid to a state broadcasting entity. According to stats NZ (https://www.stats.govt.nz/news/new-zealand-internet-is-going-unlimited) in 2018 the average unlimited broadband user consumed 150 gigabytes a month and broadband usage was about 280 million gigabytes a month. Imagine NZers used four billion gigabytes of data a year in 2020. A fee of 1.5c a gigabyte would bring in sixty million or so (if my morning maths isn't to wobbly). It would add $27-$30 a year to the cost of that average unlimited broadband connection. Is $30 a year a price New Zealanders are willing to pay to keep a local media? Could that be a way to help fund journalism?
Have the companies pay that. There are people in NZ who can't afford to eat and pay their rent, so I think a set fee on all usage is not the best option.
I am amazed at the lack of solidarity – let alone memory – from those on the left like Sanctuary who saw their communities ripped apart in the 1990s with meatworks closing down, manufacturing industries dying, farmers walking off their land and suiciding, mortgagee sales piling up, and entire generations wrecked and forced into near-perpetual social welfare.
Did we protest at the time for the devastated provincial proletariat?
Hell yes we did. And the "we" includes Chris Trotter and plenty of others with actual functioning memories.
It may well be too much to ask people like you to lift a fucking finger in protest when it happens to the bourgeoisie. But that's just a measure of your integrity.
There will of course be plenty who like you will continue to sneer from their keyboards because they don't like the ideological impurities of the New Zealand Women's Weekly or any of the other media for which it is about to happen – but that just shows how out of touch you are with how many hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders communicate.
And now for the real stuff.
We are losing thousands upon thousands to unemployment by the day right now.
They are from all kinds of industries.
Almost none of it is the fault of the newly unemployed.
Before anyone else like Sanctuary or Alwyn commits to their keyboard again and tries to offload their bile about who is more or less deserving to hold onto a job, do just one thing:
Imagine it happening to you.
Who knows, perhaps you have the memory still to remember a time when it got all a bit too close. When families were devastated, homes were lost, marriages broke down. Like is happening right now.
To avoid derailing Micky's post, what is this "bowl cut" instruction of which you wrote? Not that I'd use it. I do have experience of cutting back my fringe though, with a kind of point cutting.
I haven't seen what he wrote but I imagine he's talking about what we used to call a pudding basin haircut back in the day when you would no more waste money on sending your child to a hairdresser than fly. Your mother cut your hair. Typically the result looked as though she had upturned a pudding basin on your head and cut around it – lol. Traditionally you got one of these when you turned 5 and started school!
Yes. I know what a bowl cut is. My dad used to give my brothers such a cut. My younger bro hated them. Or maybe a slight variation on them. Bowl cuts were something I associated with Brit immigrants.
My dad had clippers that shaved the back and sides – AKA "short back and sides"
A permanent solution, no….as far as I can see all solutions have a limited period of functionality until they cease to work any longer though that period may be decades.
What I do see however is a need for some form of government employment scheme to transition out of the worst of the crisis as wasnt done in the eighties reforms…we cannot leave it all to market forces this time round because we know how that plays out.
Not all of them. For instance my maternal grandfather spent a chunk of the late depression hammering out Scenic Drive in Auckland’s Waitakere ranges pretty much by hand and blasting until they got it flat enough to get a bulldozer in. Even the thought of doing 26 miles of road in a basalt base is enough to make my skin crawl.
I was tempted to gloat about the prospect so many right wing propaganda mongering bene bashing overpaid fools, getting the medicine they are so keen on dishing out to those "lazy, other people".
But. Thinking about it, I don't wish that on anyone, apart from people like Hosking's and Richardson having their monstrous salaries reduced, to their true worth.
There are all the other people in the organisation losing their jobs, printers, delivery people typesetters etc, and the few remaining actual, journalists!
And my mum, who has been reading woman's weekly for near on 80 years.
Its not a case of wishing it upon anyone , or gloating or even indifference…nor is it dismissing the value of the work….it is a recognition of the realities.
There has been much reportage about the 'zombie' companies only surviving due to the low cost of debt and obviously were vulnerable to any revenue shock….this will be far from the last company to close its doors and the government cannot buy them all out.
One should feel very sorry for the people who have lost their jobs, but I think you can also be permitted to savour a certain delicious irony at watching publications (like the Listener) that long ago transformed themselves into cheerleading journals for the comfy and complacent middle class winners of neoliberalism, globalisation and unfettered foreign ownership of our assets scream for government intervention when the grim reaper of "market forces" comes for them.
Did you watch TV1 6pm news yesterday? Did you note the palatial back-grounds of the big names associated with said magazines who were interviewed in their homes?
To suggest he is "lacking solidarity… with those who saw their communities ripped apart in the 1990s…" and is "lacking in human empathy" is reading something into Sanctuary's comments that isn't there.
As a person who was adversely affected at the time, I see no comparison whatsoever to the events of the 1990s and Sanctuary's response to the demise of a bunch of magazines whose time was up, so the owners used the pandemic to close them down.
"Before anyone else like Sanctuary or Alwyn commits to their keyboard again and tries to offload their bile about who is more or less deserving to hold onto a job, do just one thing: "
You really don't get it do you? I don't make any comments, or express any opinions about who is "more or less deserving to hold onto a job". I merely state that if people don't buy printed magazines, and nobody is willing to pay to advertise in them they will die.
Technology becomes redundant. People in jobs within those technologies lose their jobs. I don't make decisions on those matters. Look for example at the computer industry. Remember the days of the punch rooms where a lot of people were occupied in punching data into punched cards to feed the computers of the day? Should we insist that that technology must be restored to recreate those jobs?
Of course not.
If you have access to a map of Australia have a look at the route of the railway line from Perth to Sydney. In particular have a look at the little places between Kalgoorlie and Woomera. Every name on that map was a settlement where people lived in the days when the trains were coal fueled and used water in the bilers.
Soneville, Karonie, Zanthus, Kitchener, Naretha, Rawlinna, Haig, Nurina, Loongana, Forest, Reid, Deakin, Hughes, Denman, Cook, Fisher, O'Malley, Watson, Ooldea, Bates,Wynbring, ……. There are others but I am sick of reading the names in the very small print on my map.
They were all places where people lived and worked. They were needed because a train had to take on coal about every 160 km and water every 80 km,
Well now they have Diesels and they refuel at, I believe, Kalgoorlie and Cook. Cook has a population of 4. Nothing exists of all the other places. All the people who worked there lost their jobs because the steam train was dead. Should we bring them back to recreate the jobs of yesteryear?
Why? And if you won't do it for those jobs why do it for magazines that not many people buy. Why do YOU think you have the power to decide which jobs stay and which go? Because that is the power you are claiming for yourself when you decide that these particular magazines must continue, at taxpayers expense, to be preserved.
.
Well it's hotter 'n blazes and all the long faces
There'll be no oasis for a dry local grazier
There'll be no refreshment for a thirsty jackaroo
From Melbourne to Adelaide on the overlander
With newfangled buffet cars and faster locomotives
The train stopped in Serviceton less and less often
No, there's nothing sadder than a town with no cheer
Vic Rail decided the canteen was no longer necessary there
No spirits, no bilgewater and eighty dry locals
And the high noon sun beats a hundred and four
There's a hummingbird trapped in a closed-down shoe store
This tiny Victorian rhubarb
Kept the watering hole open for sixty-five years
Now it's boilin' in a miserable March twenty-first
Wrapped the hills in a blanket of Patterson's curse
The train smokes down the xylophone, there’ll be no stopping here
All you can be is thirsty in a town with no cheer
No Bourbon, no Branchwater, though the townspeople here
Fought her Vic Rail decree tooth and nail
Now it’s boilin’ in a miserable March twenty-first
Wrapped the hills in a blanket of Patterson’s curse
The train smokes down the xylophone, there’ll be no stopping here
All ya can be is thirsty in a town with no cheer
Town With No Cheer – Tom Waits (Swordfishtrombones)
Nobody wishes the ills that follow job loss upon anyone. But this is a different issue to the problem of what publications like The Listener represent. The ideal situation is that The Listener dies and never again sees the light of day, and the consequences don't include any kind of hardship for anyone. There's an interesting piece on Stuff about a number of things but I think the issue of pointless jobs is its prevailing theme:
My favourite was the tantrum by Bill Ralston looking like something from the Australian outback (is that the new Ponsonby look?) Still can't stop giggling.
Brilliant summation-this'Some claim Bauer are clearing out the local opposition ahead of simply bringing it's Australian equivalents. It does seem like COVID-19 has provided a nice cover for Bauer to engage in a bit of disaster capitalism.'.
"…You know some folk do '…read Farrar for news and opinion.'.."
Maybe once upon a time. Farrar's blog struggles for relevance these days and is regarded as toxic – something he can only blame himself for, as he allows the comments of completely fucking insane nutters to remain up. To put it bluntly, he has inherited the Whaleoil crowd and done nothing about it – and his reputation as a source has suffered accordingly.
To put it bluntly, he has inherited the Whaleoil crowd and done nothing about it – and his reputation as a source has suffered accordingly.
??!!??!!!?
That statement suggests that Farrar's blog has been less toxic and less extreme than Whaleoil's. That's not true, not in the slightest. Farrar's views are as horrible as Cameron Slater's, and the people commenting on his site are no more better informed or humane. Farrar himself is a disgrace: he once wrote about a visit he made to the Occupied Terrritories, and claimed that he had not noticed anything at all to suggest that Palestinians were being oppressed.
Over many years, Farrar has encouraged and/or turned a blind eye to the most ignorant and racist comments outside of a NewstalkZB announcers' barbecue….
I don't think he should be fired (last thing we need right now is a change of Health Minister during a pandemic). But I do think he and Ardern should address this more directly. He needs to own up to having fucked up (the traveling thing, they can deal with the stupid of a sign written car internally) and point out we are all on a learning curve, an apology would be good too.
Unfortunately we have a macho political culture that will try and use that to take Labour down. Labour should still do the right thing.
I'm also mindful that those government people will be full of stress chemicals, and they're going to have to sustain living like that for quite some time. I can understand why he would want and even need to do what he did. It's still a fuck up though.
Wow. Some one on the Standard actually admits Clark made a mistake or a fuck up in your words.
IPrent will ban you! The echo chamber must be preseved at all costs.
[lprent: Or you could be less of a moronic dimwit and listen when a moderator talks to you about your behaviour. Commentary is ok. However this is a forum for debate and that involves dealing with other peoples disagreeing with you, especially when they make reasonable objections to your points. Sticking your head firmly up your arse and ignoring them, which appears to be your childish default behaviour isn’t acceptable. FFS grow up. ]
Not sure how new you are to TS, but most of us have been criticising Labour for a long time. I suggest you take note of Lynn's moderations, because now you just look like a troll.
It would make little to no difference to the pandemic management if the Health Minister is sacked, the bureaucrats in the ministry are effectively directing and running the show at present.
What it would do if he was severely censured is signal that no one in NZ whatever their status is above those impositions being placed on the rest of us.
The names of the MOH bureaucrats might change, but the culture remains.
This government demonstrated its subservience to the Ministry when it allowed the demonstrably incompetent Group Manager of MOH:DSS to closely advise Ministers on disability and carer issues.
I don't think he should be sacked, but certainly hope the PM gives him a kick up the backside.
No, it wasn't terrible, it wasn't near the level of Ministerial misbehaviour in the past, BUT he's just made his own job – and the government's – harder. Not helping.
Hopefully it will highlight the overreach, of banning, all, car travel for exercise, when there are people who cannot get enough exercise while following the distancing rules and keeping safe, without some car travel.
Letting scared people on Facebook,and "past their use by date" Senior cops who got there by attrition, set the rules.
But it won't. And by giving those people a stick to beat the Government with. I was going to say he should go. But maybe this is an opportunity to be more rational about total bans on activities.
Yes, there have been a few changes like that. For instance going from a complete ban on swimming to swimming in a way that is very safe (ie no surfing). These changes are to be expected This is such a novel situation that it would be impossible to be completely right from the get go.
In my neighbourhood people are being very sensible and reasonable. Almost no traffic at all. I wonder if car use will reduce in a more permanent way, even when we can drive freely?
I hope it does Wayne. People have been pushing for less traffic for a long time, seems an ideal opportunity to adopt some new social practices. Less pollution, better for climate mitigation, more liveable urban spaces, more health, lots of benefits.
Agreed on the need to adapt advice over time. Not least because they'd have to wait and see how well people were getting what needed to be done.
I wonder how much of our low community transmission, so far, is due to people thinking for themselves and maintaining their distance, well before the Government required it?
In our previous week before the lockdown, we obviously didn't see many people, but the ones we did were already socialising from several metres away, in their dinghies, the local shop was sanitising the EFTPOS pad between customers and the fuel bowser attendant was cleaning it between fills. People walking on the road were keeping their distance.
Unless it is for essentials, the answer is no. If you have to drive somewhere for a walk, for example, then it is not regarded as local and you’re flouting the rules. I saw a Government clip somewhere yesterday that explained it well but I cannot find it 🙁
if someone needs to drive 4 blocks to the local park so their kids can run around, and this is for the parents' mental health as much as anything, that seems as essential to health as walking round the block next to one's house in terms of personal physical exercise.
As long as people are social distancing, not using jungle gyms, and not taking the piss or socialising, this seems reasonable to me.
If the govt cracks down on that under the current level, it will be because of people doing stupid shit like socialising, not because someone went an extra few blocks.
No. It hasn’t weka @ 2.3.1.1 Those who need to travel by car to get to an area for exercising can do so provided it is within their neighbourhood. I think it was Bush who reiterated this only yesterday. I am one of those affected since I can no longer walk to the beach for exercise because of severely arthritic knees.
In the case of David Clark… I gather he drove 2 kms to get to a motorbike track which was closely associated with his neighbourhood. I think the public pearl clutching over his 'misdemeanour' is being a tad overdone for political reasons.
Anne. Clark drove his electorate vehicle emblazoned with a photo of his physiognomy to a mountain bike track for a spot of between video conferencing mountain biking.
An activity on the 'We 'd rather you not indulge in because of risk of injury' list.
The whole incident smacks of either extraordinary arrogance or extreme tone deafness.
Or both.
This is a fuck up of quite significant proportions and could not have come at a worse time.
He used his electorate vehicle because he could put his bike into it. It was hardly for publicity because there was no one there but himself. Looked like an easy ride – nothing dangerous – and there are few spots he can go to where he can have any privacy.
You've got it in for him as you seem to have a good many people, and you are using it to discredit him. No different from those who are doing it for political reasons.
Why didn't he just ride his bike to the track if it is so close ? Or just ride it around his suburb a few times like people seem to be doing in my neck of the woods ?
Or just ride it around his suburb a few times like people seem to be doing in my neck of the woods ?
I'm a commuter cyclist. So when I ride, I ride as much as possible on cycle paths and only go on the roads when I absolutely have to.
That is because many motorists can be classed as dangerous fuckwits on the road.
They open doors whilst parked without looking in their mirror. That happened to me on Wednesday. Fortunately I was riding a metre out from the parked cars and didn't have truck or SUV trying to pass me.
They change lanes without notice because they expect cyclists to be really slow. That last happened on Tuesday. FFS: I routinely ride my e-bike between 35km/hour and 50km/hour except uphill. The number of time I've had to crash on the brakes to stop crashing into fuckwit driver who jumps into the left lane directly in front of me and then slows down to lok for a park is almost a daily occurrance if I'm on a road.
They (especially now) speed through intersections when the other traffic has a green light because it was orange when they crossed the line. That happened to me yesterday. Which is why I sometimes get a honk from cars behind. The acceleration for an electric bike is such that cars are just slow starters. I have to make sure that there isn't damn fool running a orange light.
Of course there are even more driver who are considerate and not impatient dimwits. But when you have no protection you stick to what you know works and what you have experience with.
It seems unlikely that David Clark is a commuter. He sounds like a recreational mountain biker. Probably doesn't ride on the road because it is too damn dangerous.
I trust that answers your query.
I expect it doesn’t. To me it is apparent that I’d class you as being a ignorant dangerous fuckwit motorist who is too stupid to think through what other road users do.
They (especially now) speed through intersections when the other traffic has a green light because it was orange when they crossed the line
Incidentally I frequently see cyclists (and some scooter user) do the same even when the light is red. Basically police should seize their bikes/scooters and sell them to someone who is less stupid. If they are renting them, then they should inform all hire companies that they should not be able to hire one again. Can't think of anything that is a more stupid behaviour.
"I expect it doesn’t. To me it is apparent that I’d class you as being a ignorant dangerous fuckwit motorist who is too stupid to think through what other road users do."
Perhaps you haven't noticed the vast decrease in traffic on the road at the moment ? This is making it vastly easier for cyclists to get out and about without worrying nearly as much about motorists.
Please continue with your specious rant it's most amusing.
A friend, homeless and forced to live in a campground and share facilities with a swag of overseas backpacker types, drives her wee van out of the camp ground and down the road to a near deserted beach to allow her aged and grass averse dog to walk on sand and in soothing seawater.
No risk. No harm. And believe me, her fragile state means that the whole social distancing thing has been her way of life for years.
She gets tailed by the local cops in a marked car who park right behind her. They don't approach her in a community friendly manner. Just intimidate by their close presence. Later, when she is driving out of the camp for another dog walk and soul repair session she gets told by the camp managers she's going out too often.
Now. Do you think that Dr. (of god only knows) Clark will intervene and allow my highly stressed friend a pass to indulge in an activity that is causing harm to no one and benefiting her and her wee dog immeasurably?
Of course not. Don't be silly.
But bet you we get a call or a text sometime today when she reads about Clark's little lapse.
Her fingernails are ragged enough already.
But what does that matter so long as we all abide by the New Way and allow our Minister of Health in time of a pandemic to openly and loudly flout the rules he demands we plebs follow?
And while you're there Anne and making this personal…who ate these "…good many people…" I have it in for?
I think Jacinda's conversation with David Clark will probably start with, "David. What the actual fuck?!"
Unless he's oblivious to everything going on around him, I struggle to comprehend how he thought doing what he did was in any way a good idea. And taking a van. With your fucking face painted on it. Christ on a bike, man!
I guess he was hoping everyone was at home and no one would notice. But the Blue Team are watching. The Blue Team are always watching…
Speaking of the Blue Team, I see Joyce and English have slithered out from whatever rocks they've been hiding under to throw handfuls of muck at the government. Armchair generals are the very best kind after all.
and "Jesus Christ on a fucking chariot" were my first comments last night when I read it on Stuff.
And Farrar, Blue to his core, had the breathtaking audacity to dig up the putrid corpse of Ryall and state categorically that 'he would never do such a thing…'
Ryall was a numpty of outstanding proficiency who accepted bucketsloads of absolute bullshit from his trusted advisors at the Ministry of Health. Outstanding he was. Set a whole new standard for fuckwittedness of Ministers of Health.
This is of course from the point of view of a family carer of a MOH:DSS client with very high support needs who still hasn't managed to remove the knife in my back planted there by Ryall and driven home by subsequent Ministers, including the current incumbent.
I agree totally. He's made a dumb mistake and even Willie Jackson couldn't defend him this morning. Its probably not sack able but does undermine the govt. Jacinda will have a talking to him. Anyway, shouldn't really question on this blog as you are not allowed to debate or disagree according to IPrent below. – Goodbye.
More and more it looks to me like a situation with no good outcome. Such are our times.
But yep, people need to be able to make personalised decisions within the rules. Otherwise we will have rules designed for middle of the bell curve people that cause problems for others.
Don't be silly Rosemary. He was 0.3km outside the 2km limit-hardly a hanging offence. It is possible the bike track was on the way to or near his local supermarket-have you thought about this? I have to drive 19km to my local supermarket which opens up no end of biking/walking opportunities.
It appears the Health Minister followed all other self-isolation criteria. Media I have read/listened too (Stuff/RNZ) have not given this story any oxygen at all.
Here in Wanaka groups of people are congregating on bridges and jumping into the Clutha River, ignoring all of the s-i rules-these are the people the police should be chasing.
I do sympathise with some of the comment on Kiwiblog criticising the fact that people seem to be getting away with biking, including mountain-biking, all over the place. Mountain biking is more dangerous than skiing in terms of injuries suffered. Meanwhile I am not allowed to take my sailing boat out in light winds with reefed sails, which is safer than both.
"He was 0.3km outside the 2km limit-hardly a hanging offence"
If he was Joe Bloggs, it wouldn't matter. He's the Minister of Health and has a perception/messaging issue to deal with now. Hoping it blows over, but it does leave the problem of the perception that we can bend the rules.
Yes, a senior Minister should grasp the basics of perception.
We know (and he should have) that the PM will be asked about it at the press conference today. She is now obliged to say …
either "No biggie, not bothered", which she can't then combine with her usual messaging. She can't switch seamlessly from a shrug to a call for sacrifice.
or (more likely) "The Minister got it wrong".
Ardern's tough-but-kind persona is very effective in this crisis, and she doesn't need that undermined. More importantly, the country doesn't.
Yes it is about perception – rightly or wrongly people in the public eye are held to a higher standard of behaviour whether they like it or not! Silly man!!!
Its not so much that he was 0.3km out of range, its the fact that its a deserted bike trail that the general public are not using as they've been told not to do those sort of activities, but Clark decides that rule only applies to the plebs not him. What if he had an accident somewhere along the trail?
you should read the link though, tracks aren't closed, it's the huts and campsites that are. Obviously they're also telling people to not go into the back country and to use tracks in the neighbourhood (they also say don't drive to them).
Yes but point being we are all told not to go surfing, hunting, sailing, swimming? or anything else and slightly dangerous. So now the general public stuck at home with time on their hands will say if its ok for him (and he makes the rules) its ok for us.
Yes, which is why he has apologised, and everyone is reiterating stay home, don't drive unless it's necessary, get some exercise, wash your hands and practice physical distancing.
"For everyone’s safety, at Alert Level 4 people must not to head into the backcountry or remote areas, nor should they undertake outdoor activities (such as adventure sports or hunting) that would expose them to higher levels of risk." https://www.doc.govt.nz/news/issues/covid-19/
Clark wasn't in a remote area, nor was he partaking in an adventure sport. Nor was he even in a DOC area to start with.
Then that's great. We can all head out to the parks.
Did you notice in the photo the car park was empty so the public was actually staying away!
[lprent: Read my note please – rather than your current career of being a dimwitted repetitive troll who never listens. I’ll release one more comment, otherwise I’ll get ride of you as stupid time wasting problem with a brain of stone and clogged up ‘ears’ that need a pneumatic drill to clear them. ]
There seems to be people, and different branches of Government, making up ad-hoc rules all over the place.
Not even sure myself, where we were at in the "driving to exercise" rules, and I've been going on the Government Covid website every day.
They are not, helping.
Why does it matter how far I walk, for example, when the only thing I touch on the entire walk is my front gate, and all of us on every walk, are keeping, so far, several metres apart.
I am refraining from sailing in the harbour ,, even though I can do that without going within 20metres of anyone, and my coastal capable boat, is extremely unlikely to require help, where I can almost walk ashore, as much not to bother the cop who has to tell me off, as much as any other reason.
I would rather they spent their time, talking to the few, that are really doing things that endanger other people.
If everyone tries to follow the principal, "act as though you have it", and keep away from people outside your bubble, we will not, have community transmission. Whether someone drove 2.174km or 1.999km, away from home is not going to change that.
Some people like the reassurance of, rules, or the power kick from forcing others to follow them. But arbitrary, detailed and confusing rules, treating people like children, don't work.
My only thought about the whole thing is why didn't he just bike to the start of the trail? At 2.3km away, it would have taken bugger-all longer than the time needed to load and unload his bike into the van.
If you aren't used to riding on the road, most cyclists won't if they have any choice. It is frigging dangerous.
I've only started since I don't have a bike path between me and work from december (they moved). Even now, during my daily exercise during the lockdown, I'm still getting close to having idiot car driver caused accidents most days. I’m road riding now because it is an ideal time to get more experience at avoid the dipshit motorists. I normally ignore main roads, riding on footpaths by preference because it is safer for me and not that dangerous to pedestrians (I just wait at slow speeds until they move over).
Most mountain bikers who do trails don’t ride on roads. They don’t have the road skills and their bikes don’t have all of the lights, reflectors and other crap like highlighted clothes and road level helmets that road cyclists routinely have.
I bike because I can't walk far due to a pad wearing out between my right big toe and the foot bones.
I avoid road riding around Dorkland, it's no fun at all and scary AF. And I'm the kind of person that needs a bit of adrenaline with my exercise, whether it's on a bike or kayak or skis. But right now in lockdown it might be ok.
When it comes to the specific ride in question, supposedly David's home is in Opoho. The roads to and from the Logan Park High School carpark don't look like the kind of hazards our Orcland roads are. Or better yet, do a loop to the carpark, over the Big Easy, then back home via Signal Hill Rd.
I did my MBA in Dunedin from 1985 and was there for while afterwards until the end of 1988 while my partner at the time finished her dual degrees.
We had bikes the entire time that I was there and never rode them around the city. The main reason was because compared to Auckland the streets were quite narrow (more like the rabbit warren cart track streets in the water side of Ponsonby or Kingsland) and the parked cars made them too dangerous. Instead we walked most of the time or took a car.
Where we used the bikes was where there were no parked cars and the roads were pretty wide – riding around most of the West Coast for instance.
I think that the roads are wider further out from the centre of Dunedin from what I saw this Xmas at least on the flat. Once you get into those hills however they looked like single way cart tracks winding their way up and down. The danger on bikes is mostly proximity to cars.
I can’t remember much about Opoho, but generally I regard any route as dangerous if at any point you get to effectively single lane with even occasional parked cars. Which is why I never road there. All of the roads around where I lived were like that.
While there are lot of roads that are like that in Auckland, there are usually routes that allow you to avoid them here. Less so in Wellington or Dunedin. Whereas riding in Christchurch or Invercargill is just so damn easy.
"We had bikes the entire time that I was there and never rode them around the city."
At that same time I commuted via bike from Maryhill to work at the bottom of MacClaggan Street. One morning I rode (with feet sliding) all the way down down High Street in snow.
My point wasn’t really about snow or the shape of roads – it was about bloody motorists.
I grew up in Mt Albert in Auckland. We used to ride everywhere all of the time. But the traffic went from being not a problem in the late 60s to bleeding dangerous by the early 80s as the population went up markedly and the quality of the drivers dropped.
In the late 70s and early 80s I’d had several accidents on pushbikes and motor scooters, all the fault of drivers. The worst was riding down a shallow slope on morningside drive by St Lukes Mall and having a car abruptly turn right in front of me to go into the mall. Or having a car pull out of a parking space on the side of the road obviously without having looked in their wing mirror.
Problem is that with a bike of any kind you’re reliant on dimwits in cars. After a few accidents caused by motorists you become a really defensive rider very fast. Dunedin city drivers really didn’t impress me with the care that they took looking around.
Of course I could just have high standards…
I’d point out that in my entire car driving career, I’ve only had a few accidents. One where another car turned right into me (I still have no idea how they could have missed an burnt orange peugeot). One where a tire blew out after running into the end of someones exhaust dropped in the southern motorway – it was evening and I didn’t see the pipe on the road until too late. And one on the bridge evening commuter shuffle when an idiot talking to the female passenger (I’d be watching him in the mirror) behind me ran straight into my arse.
Oh and I slid a long wheel base land rover off a track once, while I was trying to get around a slip in the clay road.
…why didn't he just bike to the start of the trail?
Riding mountain bikes on the road is a pain in the arse with those fat, knobby tyres. You'd have to be very determined or a glutton for punishment to choose to do it.
Not as much a pain in the arse as riding skinny road tyres around a mountain bike trail. Or snow, for that matter. I was a product development engineer at Trek in Wisconsin for a year. I've ridden some weird shit and seen a lot of even weirder shit happen on bikes.
In San Diego I lived about 4km from some primo trails. I almost always rode there and back, it just felt wrong to drive there. It helped to pump up the tyres a bit for the road and let them down for the trails. Not locking out the shocks on the road was good for dialling in smooth pedalling technique.
I don't know where in Opoho he lives but that's the suburb with Dunedins steepest streets (Baldwin for eg, like excessively steep), to get to Logan Park you'd have to use the high windy narrow road through the Botanical Gardens, or go the long way (bout 5-6 kms) through the university.
This is mountain biking we're talking here. Steepness and hills are kinda the point.
Baldwin street is overrated. Hell, my driveway here in Titirangi is steeper. For about ten metres or so, anyways. Was down there in November and my twins on their learners permit wanted to drive up it to see what the big deal was. It was a letdown for them.
Shoulda made them do a three point turn at the steepest bit.
Baldwin Street is further up North East Valley and doesn't link to Opoho, but there are other steep-ish streets from NEV up to Opoho Like Blacks Road, which on paper links to the Big Easy (down a gully). Clark will live at about 100m which isn't much in Dunedin.
Funny thing is he drove down from Opoho to near Logan Park at near sea level (at what was Pelichet Bay before it was reclaimed). Then the Big Easy track heads up the Opoho Creek gully to closer to where he lives. There's walking track access from Opoho, but I don't know if there's bike access.
But the driving a couple of km to the track isn't what the PM told him off for, it was for doing risky recreation which has clearly been officially discouraged for ordinary people.
Presumably some people would get a bit grumpy if the Minister of Health ended up crocked up in hospital right now.
From trail ratings I've read, Big Easy does not qualify as risky recreation. As lprent says, even with reduced lockdown traffic riding the streets is riskier.
He would have been told off for the "not a good look" of getting sprung for doing something we've all been sorta kinda instructed to not do.
I'm good with trusting people to make decisions in their own location. But we do need the govt to be seen to doing the right thing here, because now people will be going oh, it's ok to drive to my local bike track. I wish he'd taken a plain car.
But perception is everything. Regardless of the rights or wrongs of what he did, he's the health minister. At a time when the message is stay at home what he did means there'll be people who'll think 'what's good for the goose' then find themselves being confronted by the cops. It's a time when the government needs the support and cooperation of citizens, which in turn means the respect of citizens. Without that we're stuffed. Clark should've known that and have acted accordingly.
Reminded me of when I was a kid at a friends house for dinner, and they all prayed, I didn't as I had no idea what they were doing, anyway, one of the other kids told their dad I hadn't prayed and the dad said "how did you know? were you not praying too?". Just the person who took the photograph was a couple kms away from wherever they lived too (I know the area).
But ignoring all that – it goes against what we are being asked to do. If everybody acted in the same way as the minister of health did in this circumstance the whole isolation 'thing' would be nowhere as effective and people will die.
No they're not. They are telling us not to go swimming in clusters and to keep the full 2 metre distance from one another. That did not happen in Mission Bay, Auckland for example, so they shooed the lot of them off the beach. Since then they appear to have eased the rules and if people are acting sensibly… going for a swim by themselves or in pairs and keeping a good distance from one another they are being left alone. That is what is happening at my local beach anyway.
Your political bias is shining through. Knew it wouldn’t take long before the rwnj’s were back to normal. In fact they’ve been strangely absent here up until now.
Justify it anyhow you like……Clark was an idiot. He is obviously above the rules for us plebs.
[lprent: You appear to be reluctant to actually deal with the objections to your pre-written scenario. That does not constitute robust debate. That just makes you look like a fucking useless and ignorant idiot troll. I suggest that you engage or leave before I make the decision for you. ]
Yes. It was mistake to go in his electorate van. His bad luck that a Nat – who was also 2 km away from his residence – happened to spot him and took a photo and dropped him into it. Someone should trace the source of the photo and see who it was, and what he/she was doing in the area too.
So it would've been okay to go in his private car without the identifying stuff on the side of it? Why then wouldn't it have been okay for the photographer to have been there?
Perhaps the photographer lived across the road and was going for a quick walk alone for a bit of exercise? There's certainly nothing to suggest the photographer was mountain biking, either.
So you're saying, mcflock, that the photographer had no business being there? The point is that their presence may have been well within the common understanding of the limits of the lock down.
No, I'm saying that there are no houses "just across the road".
If the photographer thought being there was fine for them, why would anyone think Clark's presence was camera-worthy? You're coming up with imaginings to defend rank hypocrisy.
The carpark is down a long dead end track behind the school, so the photographer must have been in there for a specific reason. Maybe going for a ride themselves, dropping someone off or picking them up, or maybe had seen the van and followed it in.
"If the photographer thought being there was fine for them, why would anyone think Clark's presence was camera-worthy? You're coming up with imaginings to defend rank hypocrisy."
Even if there aren't 'houses across the road', my point is the photographer may have been there within the limits of the lock down. Clark clearly wasn't. It hasn't been established the photographer had no business being there. If the photographer was there legitimately there's no hypocrisy. Your logic is lacking.
McFlock, that's your stomping ground isn't it? The Oddity says the van was parked at Logan Park school, other reports say it was at Signal Hill. Do you recognise from the photo which carpark it was?
edit: never mind, Pete seems pretty definite it was Logan Park school.
Thanks Pete. I couldn't match up what was in the news photo with what was in the google maps satellite photo, but there's a pin there for the carpark in an open field. S'pose the carpark has been developed since the satellite photo.
Wouldn't catch me anywhere near a cycle track lol.
But you can see from the stuff pic and pete's link the start of the track as a V and the position of individual trees that it's at the lower carpark next to LPHS.
Oh, and if you look at the map, Clark lives in Ohopo and he parked at the Signal Hill reserve carpark. The way the crow flies this is probably about 500m, certainly well under 1km, let alone 2km!!!
The only way to get to Signal Hill lookout is by car or bike, no one walks that road, if you did walk it would take maybe 40 mins, an hour? There are no houses near there, it's a tourist spot normally.
The Nat-voting numpty who ratted on Clark at what is a time of major pressure would have known exactly where the minister lived and they would have known exactly what they were doing when they went public.
I’ve imagined myself in the same position and I wouldn’t breathlessly go to the media. But Nat voters are venal like that.
The car park is behind Logan Park High School at the bottom of the track. It may be 500m by bike but there's no direct route by car, via Lovelock Track it's 2.4km.
But according to the PM the distance isn't the issue.
Hi Anne – hope you are well. I'm really not that concerned about him using his electorate van. The guys probably working his ass off at the moment, and I don't begrudge him some 'me' time at all. I think the issue is the nature of the activity – mountain biking. https://covid19.govt.nz/help-and-advice/for-everyone/leaving-your-house/ says this:
Help our emergency services by only doing safe activities, such as going for a walk.
Don’t go swimming, surfing, hunting or tramping.
Anyone giving Clark flack for having a break is being a dick. But IMHO he should not have been mountain biking.
All that said, I'm loooking out over the upper harbour towards TeAtatu and gee it's tempting to put my little boat in. We're all human after all!
Nice one Paddington. Of course he made a mistake and he has admitted as much.
What I take objection to is the over-reactions largely by those who are indulging in political point scoring. Interestingly, these types have been strangely silent on this blog for weeks now, then suddenly when a cabinet minister makes a wee mistake – and let anyone name a minister of any political persuasion who hasn't – and they all turn up for the kill.
Their motivations are crystal clear for all to see.
I'm not so "silly" as to read the comments from Farrar's Ferals, my primary interest is following what various platforms are choosing to highlight by way of posts and opinion pieces.
I have a particular and very personal interest in all things Ministry of Health and especially the relationship between the Ministry and the Minister.
And although, despite his Higher Education, Clark was clearly unsuited from day one to be the Minister in Charge of the Transformation of Kindness (after the much need high colonic) promised by Our Leaders he has outdone even my low expectations of him.
Heavens to Betsy BG, he gave the lot if us in Lockdown a very emphatic FU.
If what David Clark did was a general member of the public it would have likely gone unnoticed, and if the police had discovered them they would probably have been 'educated'.
But Clark isn't just an ordinary member of the public.
So this doesn't look good for Clark nor for the Government, on an issue that is annoying many people due to open abuses and borderline cases and in particular a lack of clarity (that has to be rectified quickly). Clark has made it appear that anyone can decide for themselves what they do.
Possible more importantly, Clark has what must be one of the most important jobs in the country, in the biggest issue facing health in probably a hundred years.
So why is he working from home and not in Wellington?
The Prime Minister has seen fit to work from Wellington. The Minister of Finance and the Director-General of Health and the Commissioner of Police and the Director of Civil Defence and Emergency Management are all in Wellington dealing with an unprecedented crisis.
I can understand Clark preferring to be at home for personal and family reasons, but he can't be as effective from home asd he could be working with the other key personnel and his Ministry of Health in Wellington.
Unless he is unofficially but deliberately sidelined .
I'm self-isolating to protect myself and others including a vulnerable person. I haven't left my property for nearly two weeks.
But it's obvious from media and social media coverage that many people are doing a wide range of activities away from home. This is likely to keep creeping to more activities and more risks.
In case you hadn’t noticed ( *sigh* ) all Ministers and MPs, apart from Jacinda Ardern and Grant Robertson, are working from where ever their home is. The reason why these two are required to be at the centre is because they need to use their actual hands to formally and legally sign things – like requests to use powers granted by the ‘crown’ like asking to use the armed forces and expending money from the treasury.
Everyone else is remote..
Ministers don’t need to be in Wellington. After all they don’t exactly have bits of hardware like bodies or sewerage systems that they’re working on. Most of their ‘hands’ are part of the bureaucracy or at the coalface. They just need to be able to communicate with those that they are responsible for and working with all around the country.
This includes the epidemic response committee which arguably is as important or more important as a frigging minister of cabinet.
The only requirement in our system for MPs to be together otherwise is pass legislation with even a token presence. Which they did before stage 4 when parliament shut itself down for a time.
You're right about that. I do most of my work remotely from Dunedin. I've been working in Timaru, Auckland and the UK today from home. But for big and critical jobs we like to do site visits, there are things you can miss from not being on site dealing with key people face to face and seeing a bigger picture.
All the other key leaders seem to be involved in person, they have appeared in various combinations in media conferences (keeping appropriate distances to set a good example) so must have a safe bubble to work in.
Keep in touch with what the Government doesn't want you to do when in isolation, or when in a key ministerial position?
Remote conferencing is good for many things, but it isn't as good as face to face for important discussions and decision making.
Face-to-face meetings allow for clearer communication. In addition to being able to read facial expressions, body language, and inflection, in-person meetings often end up being more positive, and considered more credible than online or virtual conversations.
In a face-to-face meeting, participants can see the reactions of others, recognizing body language and gestures. Those nonverbal signs help participants and meeting leaders to know if others understand the points they are making.
Ardern: “People can go outside to get fresh air and drive short distances if needed, but we have asked people to avoid activities where there is a higher risk of injury, and the Minister should have followed this guidance.”
The latest Daily COVID-19 update from the New Zealand Government (just received by email):
Answers to common questions
Q. I want to get some fresh air in my neighbourhood this weekend. How can I stay safe?
A. You might be tempted to leave the house this weekend, particularly if the weather is nice. Remember, staying home is the best thing you can do to stop the spread of COVID-19. But you can leave the house to buy groceries or to get some fresh air in your neighbourhood.
If you do leave the house this weekend, here are some do’s and don’ts to remember:
Keep a 2 metre distance from other people at all times.
Stay local if you go out for exercise and stay close to home.
Keep it solitary when going out, just by yourself or with the people you live with.
If you're exercising in your neighbourhood and it's too busy, go home. Go out later.
Help our emergency services by only doing safe activities, such as going for a walk.
Don’t go swimming, surfing, hunting or tramping.
Don’t touch surfaces others may have touched and avoid park benches or playgrounds.
Don’t travel far from home, especially not to baches or second homes.
Clark has apologised for doing something a bit risky (riding a bike on a dirt track). But sometimes driving a short distance for exercise seems to be within the rules from what I can tell. The guidance is to avoid unnecessary travel.
I do video conferencing all of the time. Kind of have to with my current project team being in the UK, aussie, parts of the US and now locked down here. It isn’t any worse or better than when we all did the same thing around a meeting room table with or without video links to outliers as I did it a decade ago. Or when doing it via chat rooms and version control systems as I did 20 years ago.
Or as programmers do it these days; via slack, jira, confluence, stash and jenkins or their equivalents. We seldom use video conferencing except to deal with the unskilled (like managers and customer), because we’ve been doing this kind of remote stuff forever and we’re efficient doing it.
These days we just layer all of those together depending on who the audience is.
It is like everything else – you get better at it the more you do it.
I don't think it's fair or correct to sack Clark for anything in particular. He's clearly an idiot so blame shouldn't come into it. He should just be sacked for general incompetence.
Liz Craig would be very appropriate but this is her first term so it could be a bit soon. She wasn't even appointed to the Epidemic Response Committee.
There is a very funny picture leading Brian Easton's column on Pundit re Trump masking. I can't copy and paste it but it can be seen on https://www.pundit.co.nz/
The PM will likely address the Minister of Health’s brain fade at her press conference today. Hopefully anyway, and use him as an example of what not to do. He should apologise profusely. Jacinda did not need this at this time. She has to keep well and get enough sleep and not be kept awake at night by such stupidity.
Jacinda is a very weak leader re staff. Twyford, Lees-Galloway and Clark (and NZ First MP's) often embarrass her but she will not fire anyone. The talent pool is too shallow we all know that. She also only acted on Clare Curran and Meka Whaitiri as she was forced to.
She needs to take a leaf out of Helen Clarks' playbook.
Like many others, Jimmy is still tuned in to "politics as usual".
Previous cases are irrelevant here. Firings have always been based more on the importance of the sinner than the sin (Murray McCully broke more rules than there are in the book, but survived, because he was Murray McCully and knew where the bodies were buried).
The PM won't fire Clark because she is dealing with an extraordinary challenge, and the health system doesn't need a newbie learning the name tags. That is vastly more important than playing the Beehive games which made headlines on a slow news day, but are entirely irrelevant now.
I have to agree with you on Jacinda's communication (and not just this Covid-19 thing), it is always very good. Just wish she would put some of her MP's in their place when the do absolutely dumb things like this that embarrass them.
Gee the leader of the of a labour party (the party that try's to make workers lifes better) doesnt believe in pulling their metaphorical penis out and sacking people to prove they’re the bees knees.
She was none of those things Chris. OK maybe a bit duplicitous in a political sense but you name a prominent politician who isn't. But she was from broadly the same generation and Presbyterian background as I came from. We were brought up not to show our emotions on our sleeve. It was often mistaken for coldness and lack of empathy. It was neither of those things.
Helen Clark was certainly no idiot. But I knew her personally. She was none of the other things.
I disagreed with her simply calling a hiatus to the Neo-liberal onslaught. “New Zealand is tired of changes”, But doubt anyone could have achieved much more at the time, in that direction.
Male politicians with similar characteristics, would have been credited with much more positive descriptions.
The only brain fade was using a marked van. In his defence a chance to get away on his own and do a bit of clear thinking is probably invaluable considering how many are yapping in his ear. I once had a job that required a bit of clear headed thinking on occasion and I used to drive a few kms away and park-up and think without distraction for 5 or 10 minutes.
It seems COVID-19 deaths in Europe are being way under-reported. For instance, in France and Spain, retirement home deaths apparently aren't included in reported totals.
Every morning Bill de Blasio, mayor of NY does a presser.
This morning he is advising all NYer's to wear a 'face covering'. People may carry the virus yet have no symptoms, so they just spread it, asymptomatic . He does not want people using surgical masks, as those need to be saved for those on the 'front line'. Instead encouraging people to make their own or wear a bandana.
It must be horrendous in NY, he's asking for the military to mobilize and for any medical people to come to NY to help.
The Presidential presser yesterday started off with an astonishing electioneering session. They didn't want to talk about the new milestones or the number of deaths and infected so went full out on war.
The navy is going to sort out the drug cartels. This is war. Iran is going to be sorted out, this is war. 'We are not sleeping, no-one should think that while we're distracted we're not ready." The navy is ready, they're ready to go. As of today they're …
And all those saying how great the Leader is. The election is the week before Veterans Day. I wonder if the troops and rockets and bowing and scraping experts will be ready for the parade in Washington.
Great piece here from the NYTimes about the demise of advertising-funded print media. Perhaps a few of the loud mouthed media commentators here in NZ should read it and have a deeper look at the reasons their industry is headed the same way as the dinosaurs. Apologies if it’s paywalled, an online sub to the NYT is the same price as the NZHerald though and about a million times better.
Maybe contact Mitre 10 and ask them to have it included in their list of essential items? I under stand they had to submit such a list to the government?
In anticipation of a resolution of our current homeless/NFA situation I eagerly went online seeking 5ol heavy duty storage crates with lids. The crates I originally packed our books in have not fared well in the shed they are stored in. They will not survive being trucked to our prospective home.
Got the same NO CAN SELL message.
Played the phone tag game for a while, but life is short.
In a small clinical trial just granted approval, about 30 COVID-19 patients at Karolinska University Hospital may soon begin to receive blood plasma from people who have recovered from the disease. Sweden's Ethical Review Authority has approved the trial treatment, and its effectiveness will be evaluated in a study by researchers at Karolinska Institutet and the Karolinska University Hospital.
Several seriously ill covid-19 patients in Sweden have been treated with chlorikin, the active substance in malaria medicine – something praised by researchers in other parts of the world. Now comes alarming reports that the drug on the contrary can be dangerous. – That is why we have decided in Gothenburg and in Västra Götaland that we do not use it, says Magnus Gisslén, chief physician at the Eastern Hospital.
The idiot US President has some other idiot on there talking about the big learnings to come out of the current situation. Apparently relying on other countries for essential things is bad. Stuff is being made overseas because of cheap labour is bad.
Hello? Globalisation has been good for scores of years when American companies decamped production off shore for cheap labour so they could make a killing. Now essential medical needs should be manufactured at home? How about making everything at home?
Whingeing about their sacred capitalist system not working how they want it to work when the going gets tough? Just another effect of the virus I suppose.
Why the hell is it all Trump, Pence, and Jared Kushner? Where are the DOCTORS? Why do the press corps just sit there like dummies and accept this evil farce?
Many main stream are considering not covering these publicly funded "election rallies", despite the fact that people are anxious to find out the latest information regarding the pandemic, and are thinking about simply reporting the key "take way" messages, after they have been clarified by WH staff.
President Trump is a ratings hit, and some journalists and public health experts say that could be a dangerous thing.
Whoa! Just looked up from my laptop, glanced out my window. A couple of PO-licemen in the front yard of neighbour, talking to neighbour – same place there was a loud altercation a couple of evenings' back.
I guess I'm becoming a curtain twitcher under lock down.
No one wearing PPE and no handcuffs, pepperspray or tasers.
At one stage four members of the household were in the back of the ambulance and were then joined by a thin mask wearing paramedic.
All but the Man of The House exited said ambulance and it went on it's way.
The constables spent some time in deep conversation with an Older Gentleman who had arrived earlier in the day. Possibly to hold the a-frame ladder while the man of the house perched atop so he could remove crud from his spouting and hurl it hither and thither.
Mildly interesting, but I was busy, so I detached from this timeless suburban pursuit with a dismissive…'silly bugger's going to fall and break his neck' to my partner.
Total relief when I saw them all walking in and out of the ambulance.
We have to get right down and personal and help NZs stuck overseas and not just keep repeating that refrain that's almost a threnody, stay in place for the duration. That's economic thinking, we say it and turn it into reality without concern for the implementation. These people need money and need it now. And to be advised of any transport available, and they need a 24 hour line with people who have a budget to facilitate things now. Not save money or supplies up for a possible greater need tomorrow.
NZ Government – support our people. You have been in globalisation mode for quite a while now – but the other side of it is that everyone needs a home, not in the globe in general, but on some definite ground which is here in NZ. Bring them home, or support them until they can get here.
The federal government has explicit powers under the Defense Production Act to take control of this, order companies to produce what's needed and set the price at cost plus a reasonable margin, and coordinate sending product to where it's most needed. But it's not doing that with the bilious fake-bronze baboon preferring to just sit back and fire off twitter insults against those trying to fight the problem.
Given the atrocious way the CCP have treated the Falun Gong, this should be unsurprising. The CCP's relationship with all religious traditions has varied from overbearing and oppressive, to hostile and murderous.
I don't know a great deal about Falun Gong, but whatever the propaganda from either side says, it's clear that nothing good has happened.
Then look at the Uighur situation for another example of totalitarian oppression.
Then listen to what many of the Christian Churches say, forced to operate underground or work with severe restrictions such as not being allowed to teach their own children their faith. Or compelled to register with State bodies that ensure compliance with state dictates.
Or just go back to the Maoist destruction of China's own indigenous religious and cultural traditions during the Cultural Revolution.
Yes there is a lot of propaganda from all sides, and with the language barrier plus our social remove none of us are in a position to make much sense of it all. Yet one thing is clear, the CCP is not merely a political party; it represents a totalitarian ideology that brooks no serious competitors.
My mainland born SIL reckons it's China's Chernobyl. Local officials minimised and prevaricated, things were out of control long before Beijing was aware of the severity of the situation and from then on it's only ever been a face saving exercise.
But this time there was no radiation to be detected so we'll never know how widespread the disease was let alone how many deaths occurred.
"Countries may have good reasons to change the way they collect data as circumstances change, but it apparently happens often enough that the World Health Organisation feels that they have to ask countries to notify them when they do it. Famously, China did so earlier in the epidemic, but others do too: in complying with the WHO’s request, Australia has noted that it has changed its definition of a Covid-19 “case” (and therefore a Covid-19 “death”) at least 12 times since 23 January.
As for the number of urns delivered to funeral homes in Hubei after the quarantine was lifted one has also to consider the number of regular death. Hubei province has some sixty million inhabitants. The regular mortality rate in China is 726 per 100.000 inhabitants per year. The regular expected number of death from January 1 to March 31 in Hubei province without the epidemic was 108.900. In Wuhan, which has 14 million inhabitants, the expected number was 25.410. Photos that show the delivery of a few thousands of urns to large funeral homes in Wuhan are thereby not a sign for a higher Covid-19 death rate. To claim such is propaganda nonsense."
Really some of the crap coming out of American Trump and Bannon wannabes is laughable .Pravda redux.
I think it's far more insidious than pravda. Pravda was one outlet, not a conglomeration of corporate media outlets always singing from the same song book and from the page they have been told to turn to by (usually) anonymous western "Intelligence Sources".
Throw on top of that the fact that most people (it seems) continue to labour under the notion that there's a "vibrant free press" comprised of competing outlets and mediums bent on providing facts and discovering truths.
That's not provocative. It's just a reflection of who and what you are.
I already provided a lengthy article that covered the propaganda of the Wuhan urns – that article "outed" the source of the story and much else besides and you didn't challenge a word of it. But for anyone who might be stumbling across this bile for the first time, below is the relevant passage from the article I already provided to you.
And for those who don't know, the source for the story – RFA is Radio Free Asia – " a US government news agency created during the Cold War as part of a “Worldwide Propaganda Network Built by the CIA”, according to the New York Times."
And, of course, versions of the urn story are being carried uncritically by multiple western outlets (google "chinese urns" for a partial run down), because that's what they do – "follow the script" that's fed to them – China being an "official enemy" and all….
Oddly, none of the social media posts RFA referred to were quoted in its article.
RFA’s “estimates” are based on morbid speculation regarding the cremation capacity of Wuhan’s funeral homes. RFA cites a story by the Chinese media outlet Caixin on funeral arrangements being made by Wuhan residents during the crisis. On March 26, Caixin reported that 5,000 cremation urns had arrived at a mortuary in Wuhan over a two-day period. This is treated as nefarious evidence of Chinese government deception solely because it exceeds the official death total in Wuhan.
RFA completely ignores the fact that residents have continued to die from other causes during the pandemic, as well as the backlog in funerals and cremations caused by the city’s several month long lockdown. In 2019, approximately 56,000 cremations took place in Wuhan, according to the city’s official statistics.
That means that roughly 4600 residents died per month, a figure that was likely higher during the winter months and with Wuhan’s health care system overwhelmed by the outbreak. With Wuhan under lockdown since January 23, a substantial increase in the use of funeral homes and crematoriums should have been expected.
The university was pulling the business as usual card up until a day before it locked its doors.
It constantly couches everything, especially publicly, in concern for safety and wellbeing, but then put the onus on staff to demonstrate why they should be able to stay home, tried to implement some BS "working from home" leave request that required above-department signoff, and generally shows a lack of human consideration worthy of a nat blogger.
Plus everything in the Critic opinion piece.
A month or two back (who can tell these days) the uni decided to improve morale by telling us to consider what we could do to make our colleagues happier. Telling colleagues that everyone in the top rungs of the hierarchy was retiring would cheer a lot of people up.
Skegg was pretty good, as I recall. People were quite optimistic about Hayne, as another practising academic rather than academic-turned professional university administrator.
Shame it turned out this way. She's possibly even worse than Fogelberg was, and he was a total wanker as VC. In those days we could get 2,000 people outside his office chanting exactly that 🙂
Given the events of the last few weeks, anyone else think the grim reaper of New Zealand, David Seymour, will have trouble with his legalised murder bill in the upcoming referendum?
Adam Schlesinger died from Covid-19 on 1 April in New York (aged 52). He was a singer-songwriter, record producer, guitarist, keyboardist, and frontman for several bands including "Fountains of Wayne".
It makes me very sad, but I just wanted to remember him and share one of his bands popular songs released in 2003.
Stacy's Mom by Fountains of Wayne (Live In Chicago).
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
TL;DR: In today’s ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Tuesday, March 19:Kāinga Ora’s dry rot The Spinoff DailyBill McKibben on ‘Climate Superfunds’ making Big Oil pay for climate damage The Crucial YearsPreston Mui on returning to 1980s-style productivity growth NoahpinionAndy Boenau on NIMBYs needing unusual bedfellows Urbanism SpeakeasyNed Resnikoff's case ...
Negative yesterday, negative today. Negative all year, according to one departing reader telling me I’ve grown strident and predictable. Fair enough. If it’s any help, every time I go to write about a certain topic that begins with C and ends with arrrrs, I do brace myself and ask: Again? Are ...
Bryce Edwards writes – It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support ...
Inspirational: The Family of Man is a glorious hymn to human equality, but, more than that, it is a clarion call to human freedom. Because equality, unleavened by liberty, is a broken piano, an unstrung harp; upon which the songs of fraternity will never be played.“Somebody must have been telling lies about ...
Tax Lawyer Barbara Edmonds vs Emperor Justinian I- Nolo Contendere: False historical explanations of pivotal events are very far from being inconsequential.WHEN BARBARA EDMONDS made reference to the Roman Empire, my ears pricked up. It is, lamentably, very rare to hear a politician admit to any kind of familiarity ...
It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support for the various parties in ...
Buzz from the Beehive Housing Minister Chris Bishop delivered news – packed with the ingredients to enflame political passions – worthy of supplanting Winston Peters in headline writers’ priorities. He popped up at the post-Cabinet press conference to promise a crackdown on unruly and antisocial state housing tenants. His ...
Ele Ludemann writes – The Reserve Bank is advertising for a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion advisor. The Bank has one mandate – to keep inflation between one and three percent. It has failed in that and is only slowly getting inflation back down to the upper limit. Will it ...
Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency Waka KotahiThe fact that a ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Gavin Jacobson talks to Thomas Piketty 10 years on from Capital in the 21st CenturyThe SalvoLocal scoop: Green MP’s business being investigated over migrant exploitation claims StuffSteve KilgallonLocal deep-dive: The commercial contractors making money from School ...
It’s a home - but Kāinga Ora tenants accused of “abusing the privilege” may lose it. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Government announced a crackdown on Kāinga Ora tenants who were unruly and/or behind on their rent, with Housing Minister Chris Bishop saying a place in a state ...
This is a guest post by Connor Sharp of Surface Light Rail Light rail in Auckland: A way forward sooner than you think With the coup de grâce of Auckland Light Rail (ALR) earlier this year, and the shift of the government’s priorities to roads, roads, and more roads, it ...
Note: As a paid-up Webworm member, I’ve recorded this Webworm as a mini-podcast for you as well. Some of you said you liked this option - so I aim to provide it when I get a chance to record! Read more ...
TL;DR: In my ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Monday, March 18:IKEA is accused of planting big forests in New Zealand to green-wash; REDD-MonitorA City for People takes a well-deserved victory lap over Wellington’s pro-YIMBY District Plan votes; A City for PeopleSteven Anastasiou takes a close look at the sticky ...
Buzz from the Beehive Here’s hoping for a lively post-cabinet press conference when the PM and – perhaps – some of his ministers tell us what was discussed at their meeting today. Until then, Point of Order has precious little Beehive news to report after its latest monitoring of the ...
David Farrar writes – We now have almost all 2023 data in, which has allowed me to update my annual table of how labour went against its promises. This is basically their final report card. The promiseThe result Build 100,000 affordable homes over 10 ...
I’m a bit worried that I’ve started a previous newsletter with the words “just when you think they couldn’t get any worse…” Seems lately that I could begin pretty much every issue with that opening. Such is the nature of our coalition government that they seem to be outdoing each ...
Geoffrey Miller writes – Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. ...
Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture ...
Last week Transport Minster Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre. The new train control centre will see teams from KiwiRail, Auckland Transport and Auckland One Rail working more closely together to improve train services across the city. The Auckland Rail Operations Centre in ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in an exit interview with Q+A yesterday the Government can and should sustain more debt to invest in infrastructure for future generations. Elsewhere in the news in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 6:36am: Read more ...
Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. It is more than just a happy ...
TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to March 18 include:China’s Foreign Minister visiting Wellington today;A post-cabinet news conference this afternoon; the resumption of Parliament on Tuesday for two weeks before Easter;retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson gives his valedictory speech in Parliament; ...
New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Government’s key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
“I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
.“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
“It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet – is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
Bob Edlin writes – And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ HeraldThomas CoughlanSimeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
TL;DR:Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it: We want our country to be a ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading → ...
Ele Ludemann writes – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
What was that judge thinking?Peter Williams writes – That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop:Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
Buzz from the BeehiveThe text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary. It can be quickly analysed ...
For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
Questions need to be asked on both sides of the worldPeter Williams writes – The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop:The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
TL;DR:Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
Bob Edlin writes – The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
The Government has accepted Labour’s change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s fast-track legislation. ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesn’t act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
The New Zealand public voted for a change in direction at the 2023 general election and that is exactly what this coalition government has been delivering in its first 100 days. There was an immediate focus on the economy, easing the cost of living, cracking down on law and order ...
The Government has left the health system as an afterthought, announcing half-baked targets at the last minute of their 100-day plan, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
Kiwis are still waiting for their promised cost of living support after 100 days of a National Government that is taking us backwards, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
100 days of National taking NZ backwardsThe National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
The Government must commit to funding free and healthy school lunches, as thousands of people sign the petition to keep them, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti says. ...
If the Government was serious about moving families into public housing, they would build more houses so there is actually somewhere for people to go. ...
The free and healthy school lunches programme feeds our kids, helps them to learn, and saves families money – but it is at risk under this Government, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
The Government’s proposed changes to Firearms Prohibition Orders (FPO) add almost nothing new and are merely an attempt to distract from its plans to loosen gun laws, police spokesperson Ginny Andersen and justice spokesperson Dr Duncan Webb said. ...
The great Victorian era English politician Lord Macauley stood in the British House of Parliament and said, "The gallery in which the reporters sit has become a fourth estate of the realm".He understood and outlined even way back then, the significant role and influence media have in a democracy. ...
"The Government is moving quickly to realise an additional $46 million in tariff savings in the EU market this season for Kiwi exporters,” Minister for Trade and Agriculture, Todd McClay says. Parliament is set, this week, to complete the final legislative processes required to bring the New Zealand – European ...
New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April. ...
Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand. Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships. “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland Acknowledgements and opening Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says. “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024 Acknowledgements and opening Morena, Nga Mihi Nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country. “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week. “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee. “Over the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today. “The Amendment Paper represents ...
Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).“As it stands, SNAs ...
Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has classified the drought conditions in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts as a medium-scale adverse event, acknowledging the challenging conditions facing farmers and growers in the district. “Parts of Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts are in the grip of an intense dry spell. I know ...
The Government is helping farmers eradicate the significant impact of facial eczema (FE) in pastoral animals, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “A $20 million partnership jointly funded by Beef + Lamb NZ, the Government, and the primary sector will save farmers an estimated NZD$332 million per year, and aims to ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has completed a successful visit to India, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level. “We have laid a strong foundation for the Coalition Government’s priority of enhancing New Zealand-India relations to generate significant future benefit for both countries,” says Mr Peters, ...
Cabinet has agreed to provide $7 million to ensure the 2024 ski season can go ahead on the Whakapapa ski field in the central North Island but has told the operator Ruapehu Alpine Lifts it is the last financial support it will receive from taxpayers. Cabinet also agreed to provide ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Lower fruit and vegetable prices are welcome news for New Zealanders who have been doing it tough at the supermarket, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ reported today the price of fruit and vegetables has dropped 9.3 percent in the 12 months to February 2024. “Lower fruit and vege ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the sixty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
The coalition Government is supporting farmers to enhance land management practices by investing $3.3 million in locally led catchment groups, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “Farmers and growers deliver significant prosperity for New Zealand and it’s vital their ongoing efforts to improve land management practices and water quality are supported,” ...
Good evening everyone and thank you for that lovely introduction. Thank you also to the Honourable Simon Bridges for the invitation to address your members. Since being sworn in, this coalition Government has hit the ground running with our 100-day plan, delivering the changes that New Zealanders expect of us. ...
Recommendations from the Climate Change Commission for New Zealand on the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auction and unit limit settings for the next five years have been tabled in Parliament, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “The Commission provides advice on the ETS annually. This is the third time the ...
The coalition Government is beginning its fight to lower building costs and reduce red tape by exempting minor building work from paying the building levy, says Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk. “Currently, any building project worth $20,444 including GST or more is subject to the building levy which is ...
Proposed changes to tax legislation to prevent the over-taxation of low-earning trusts are welcome, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The changes have been recommended by Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee following consideration of submissions on the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill. “One of the ...
Assalaamu alaikum. السَّلَام عليكم In light of the holy month of Ramadan, I want to extend my warmest wishes to our Muslim community in New Zealand. Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, renewed devotion, perseverance, generosity, and forgiveness. It’s a time to strengthen our bonds and appreciate the diversity ...
Former Transport Minister and CEO of the Auckland Business Chamber Hon Simon Bridges has been appointed as the new Board Chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) for a three-year term, Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced today. “Simon brings extensive experience and knowledge in transport policy and governance to the role. He will ...
Good morning all, it is a pleasure to be here as Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology. It is fantastic to see how connected and collaborative the life science and biotechnology industry is here in New Zealand. I would like to thank BioTechNZ and NZTech for the invitation to address ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says he is looking forward to the day when three key water projects in Northland are up and running, unlocking the full potential of land in the region. Mr Jones attended a community event at the site of the Otawere reservoir near Kerikeri on Friday. ...
Associate Finance Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government has agreed to restore deductibility for mortgage interest on residential investment properties. “Help is on the way for landlords and renters alike. The Government’s restoration of interest deductibility will ease pressure on rents and simplify the tax code,” says ...
Sport and Recreation Minister Chris Bishop will travel to Switzerland today to attend an Executive Committee meeting and Symposium of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Mr Bishop will then travel on to London where he will attend a series of meetings in his capacity as Infrastructure Minister. “New Zealanders believe ...
Pacific Media Watch Earthwise hosts Lois and Martin Griffiths. Earthwise presenters Lois and Martin Griffiths on Plains FM 96.9 community radio talk to Dr David Robie, a New Zealand author, independent journalist and media educator with a passion for the Asia-Pacific region. David talks about the struggle to raise awareness ...
Pacific Media Watch Ismail al-Ghoul, an Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent who was held for 12 hours at Gaza’s al-Shifa hospital, says Israeli forces rounded up Palestinian journalists at the facility and made them kneel on the ground for hours, while naked and blindfolded. “The occupation forces handcuffed and blindfolded us ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tony Wood, Program Director, Energy, Grattan Institute chinasong, Shutterstock Electricity customers in four Australian states can breathe a sigh of relief. After two years in a row of 20% price increases, power prices have finally stabilised. In many places they’re ...
Chumbawamba have reportedly issued the deputy PM a cease-and-desist notice after he used their song 'Tubthumping' before his state of the nation speech. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Deborah Lupton, SHARP Professor, Vitalities Lab, Centre for Social Research in Health and Social Policy Centre, and the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society, UNSW Sydney kitzcorner/Shutterstock The assertion from Queensland’s chief health officer John Gerrard that ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Shutterstock Why are musicians so keen to get played on the radio? It can’t be because of the money. In Australia they are paid at rates so low they ...
"Farmers make a point not to tell our urban cousins how to live, yet Chlöe from central Auckland is hell-bent on having her say about farmers," says ACT Rural Communities spokesman Mark Cameron. “On her first day in the House as Green ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards – Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Curran, Associate Professor of Ecology, Lincoln University, New Zealand Getty Images/Gerald Corsi In the latest move to reform environmental laws in New Zealand, the coalition government has introduced a bill to fast-track consenting processes for projects deemed to ...
Uber has argued it does not have as much control over drivers as the unions suggest, and wants a judgment ruling that drivers are employees and not contractors set aside and sent back to the Employment Court. The 2022 ruling followed a three-week hearing in which four drivers sought to ...
What can and can’t be purchased by disabled people or their carers has been slashed in an effort by the Ministry of Disabled People Whaikaha to save money. The purchasing guidelines, a set of rules that sets out what can be purchased using the various streams of Government disability funding, ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Tod Wright and Hien Nguyen, Fiscal incidence in New Zealand: The effects of taxes and benefits on household incomes in tax year 2018/19 . Analyses of the distributional impact of taxation and government ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Cory Davis, Boston Hart and Benjamin Stubbing, Household cost-of-living impacts from the Emissions Trading Scheme and using transfers to mitigate regressive outcomes . This Analytical Note ...
A coalition of public transport and climate organisations, united as ‘Transport for All’, is actively opposing the government’s transport proposals. The draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) includes plans for higher fares for public transport, ...
Greater Wellington is inviting feedback on proposed changes to its Revenue and Financing Policy. The Revenue and Financing Policy covers the Council’s various sources of funding, and how the cost of services is shared across the region. This includes ...
Labour has conceded it could have done more to deal with disruptive state housing tenants while in government but says the current coalition is going too far. ...
The band has asked their record label to issue a cease and desist to stop the NZ First leader using their 1997 hit to support his ‘misguided political views’. “I get knocked down, but I get up again,” blared through the speakers on Sunday as Winston Peters took the stage ...
By Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific journalist Food rationing is underway in remote areas in Papua New Guinea’s Highlands following torrential rain and flash flooding. More than 20 people have been reported dead in Chimbu Province. In nearby Enga Province, the centre of last month’s massacre, a 15-year-old boy has been ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Hughes, Lecturer, Research School of Management, Australian National University After months of debate and intrigue, the AFL’s 19th and newest team, the Tasmania Devils, finally launched its jumper, logo and colours in Devonport this week. The Devils will wear green, ...
Brannavan Gnanalingam reviews the debut novel by Saraid de Silva.One of the most baffling things for children who move to a new country is what their parents’ (or grandparents’) lives were like prior to moving – for kids in particular, they’re too busy trying to fit in in their ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Gaunson, Associate Professor in Cinema Studies, RMIT University Narelle Portanier/Binge “If you don’t know who your mob are, you don’t know who you are,” Detective Andrea “Andie” Whitford (played by Leah Purcell) is told early into the new crime ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elise Klein, Associate professor, Australian National University It’s commonly accepted that women do the vast majority of caregiving in Australian society. But less appreciated is that Indigenous women do larger amounts of unpaid care than any other group. Working with the Aboriginal ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne Joe Biden and Donald Trump have both secured their parties’ nominations for the November 5 United States general election by winning a ...
Comment: There has been a striking contrast in trans-Tasman interest about Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi’s visit to New Zealand and Australia. While the Australian press has been full of articles about the visit – including his curious decision to meet with former prime minister and China booster Paul Keating ...
After years of pressuring banks and other institutions to stop investing in fossil fuels, climate campaigners are making some progress. So how does divestment work?For years, climate activists have been pushing banks and other big institutions to divest from fossil fuels. New research from climate advocacy group 350 Aotearoa ...
For Boba, Ethan and Ashley, K-pop is a place to belong, a way to express themselves, and a bridge to connect with others. The three young Polynesians are part of a K-pop fan community in Tāmaki Makaurau. It’s one of many that have sprung up worldwide as K-pop has gone ...
For Boba, Ethan and Ashley, K-pop is a place to belong, a way to express themselves, and a bridge to connect with others. This one-off documentary presents three intimate portraits of young Polynesians who are pulled into a Korean cultural phenomenon. K-POLYS is directed by Litia Tuiburelevu, Produced by Hex ...
There’s ample evidence demonstrating free school lunch programmes provide wide benefits across schools, households and communities according to public health researchers. ACT Minister David Seymour wants to reduce the spending on Aotearoa New Zealand’s ...
By Wata Shaw in Suva Fiji is facing an exodus of Fijians as many are leaving for overseas seeking employment and education and others are migrating, says Opposition MP Viliame Naupoto. Speaking in Parliament, he said: “His Excellency’s speech (Ratu Wiliame Katonivere) comes after a little over one year of ...
The Taxpayers’ Union is welcoming comments from Christopher Luxon this morning recommitting to ‘no new taxes’ as part of Budget 2024. “Mr Luxon’s refusal at the Post-Cabinet press conference yesterday to repeat the ‘no new taxes’ promise ...
SAFE is urgently calling on the Environment Committee to reject the Government’s Fast-Track Approvals Bill, and is urging New Zealanders to rally behind the call. The proposed Bill, currently under consideration with the Environment select committee, ...
Teammates who spend all their time picking fights with spectators are only helpful for the other team, writes Madeleine Chapman. Anyone who has ever played a team sport competitively, particularly as a child and particularly, for some reason, basketball, will know that there’s a lot of politics involved. While there ...
The long-running Wellington music festival is too focused on the Jim Beam-ness and not enough on the Homegrown-ness.There is something about Homegrown that’s difficult to place. A barely perceptible-ness. Like feeling a ghost is watching you from the corner of the room but when you look, there’s nothing there. ...
The latest Ipsos New Zealand Issues Monitor reveals that fewer New Zealanders believe crime / law and order is one of the top issues facing our country. In 2018, Ipsos New Zealand started tracking the key issues facing New Zealand. In this wave ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Griffiths, Deputy Program Director, Budgets and Government, Grattan Institute Australia’s political donations rules are woefully inadequate, but donations reform is finally on the agenda. The federal government has signalled its interest in reform and will soon begin briefing MPs on its ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Patrick Taylor, Chief Environmental Scientist, EPA Victoria; Honorary Professor, School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University Naiyana Somchitkaeo/Shutterstock A recent study published in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine has linked microplastics with risk to human health. The study ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Albert Van Dijk, Professor, Water and Landscape Dynamics, Fenner School of Environment & Society, Australian National University Global climate records were shattered in 2023, from air and sea temperatures to sea-level rise and sea-ice extent. Scores of countries recorded their hottest year ...
As part of our series exploring how New Zealanders live and our relationship with money, a teacher explains why he and his partner are in frugal mode – and how they’re making it work. Gender: Male Age: 35Ethnicity: Pākehā Role: I am an intermediate school teacher and my partner is ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Bendall, Senior Lecturer, Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences, Australian Catholic University Binge Mary & George, the new British television drama series, depicts the real-life story of Mary Villiers and her son George, and their social climbing at the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jason Nassios, Associate Professor, Centre of Policy Studies, Victoria University This article is part of The Conversation’s series examining the housing crisis. Read the other articles in the series here. Australian state and federal governments spend money in many ways to ...
The finance minister is denying that there’s a $5.6b shortfall in paying for the government’s campaign promises, including tax cuts. At his post-cabinet press conference yesterday, the PM refused to rule out new taxes to pay for the cuts, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s ...
Kāinga Ora tenants abused by their neighbours are doubting the government's crackdown on disruptive tenants will make a difference on their behaviour. ...
Kāinga Ora is New Zealand’s biggest residential landlord, housing more than 180,000 vulnerable people in more than 67,000 properties. Yesterday the government announced a crackdown on its tenants who fall behind on rent. One longtime Kāinga Ora tenant shares her experience.For 18 years I lived in a 1960s standalone ...
Why does this myth persist, and what’s the real reason our skin is suffering?It’s one of the biggest international grievances New Zealanders hold, up there with the sinking of the Rainbow Warrior and 1981’s underarm incident. We’re quick to tell international travellers that the world’s pollution led to the ...
Bob’s relationship with certain members of Lincoln’s academic staff continued to deteriorate in the 1990s. Others supported him publicly, though articles such as Roland Clark’s 1993 piece in Growing Today cannot have pleased the university management. Clark wrote that Bob was selling onions from the Biological Husbandry Unit to a ...
SailGP’s races feature in-your-face action, with agile, hydro-foiling catamarans tacking and jibing for the title over several days. However, public comments ahead of the global series’ return to New Zealand have left this past year’s controversy in the shadows, as a key appointment attracts criticism from dolphin advocates. A year ...
Opinion: We are fast approaching a fundamental change in prisons. As the number of people on custodial remand looks set to overtake the number of sentenced prisoners, the main function of prisons in New Zealand may become incarcerating un-sentenced people who may not be guilty of offending. We have already ...
A huge seven months lies in store for the White Ferns, beginning this week with the visit of England and culminating with the T20 World Cup in Bangladesh in September and October. Starting on Tuesday in Dunedin, the world ranked No. 2 visitors will play five T20s and three ODIs, ...
Opinion: In a move that has shocked road safety advocates across the country, the new Minister of Transport, Simeon Brown, is poised to abandon the previous government’s speed limit reduction policy, particularly around schools. Even more alarmingly, he wants school speed limits to be variable rather than full-time, arguing ...
Auckland Council is opposing a fast-track development backed by Sir John Kirwan and Spark NZ, because it doesn’t meet stringent new climate adaptation requirements The post Surf-data centre faces new 3.8C climate warming rules appeared first on Newsroom. ...
When the Criminal Proceeds (Recovery) Act was introduced in 2009 it was firmly targeted at gangs and drugs. The legislation means police no longer need a conviction to seize assets that criminals can’t prove were paid for legitimately, as long as their alleged offences are punishable by more than a ...
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The letters, which were published last week, were addressed to Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) Chairperson Megawati Sukarnoputri, National Democrat Party (NasDem) Chairperson Surya Paloh, National Awakening Party (PKB) Chairperson Muhaimin Iskandar, Justice and Prosperity Party (PKS) President Ahmad Syaikhu and United Development Party (PPP) Chairperson Muhammad Mardiono. In ...
Evicting more people from state housing is ignorant to the consequences of poverty, the Greens say, but the Housing Minister says it's a privilege that can be taken away if abused. ...
Evicting more people from state housing is ignorant to the consequences of poverty, the Greens say, but the Housing Minister says it's a privilege that can be taken away if abused. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emerald L King, Lecturer in Humanities, University of Tasmania IMDB Between Netflix’s 2023 live-action version of One Piece, and its latest take on Avatar: The Last Airbender, fans are once again asking: why are live-action anime adaptations so tricky to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emerald L King, Lecturer in Humanities, University of Tasmania IMDB Between Netflix’s 2023 live-action version of One Piece, and its latest take on Avatar: The Last Airbender, fans are once again asking: why are live-action anime adaptations so tricky to ...
The government says it still intends to deliver tax cuts by July, but will not lock them in until they have got them past their coalition partners. ...
The outrage and bellicosity that has greeted the fall of the Bauer publications from comfy centrists, neolib and other out of touch media types who are for once in the frontline rather than sniping from the back of an economic crisis is a classic illustration that when tens of thousands of others lose their jobs it is a necessary market correct but when the pampered middle class lose theirs it is a government failure led depression.
One should feel very sorry for the people who have lost their jobs, but I think you can also be permitted to savour a certain delicious irony at watching publications (like the Listener) that long ago transformed themselves into cheerleading journals for the comfy and complacent middle class winners of neoliberalism, globalisation and unfettered foreign ownership of our assets scream for government intervention when the grim reaper of "market forces" comes for them. And let's not get started at how Mediaworks – who consistently argue the government should pull out media altogether because it shows then up and they compete – are bellowing about the need for government help as well now.
Some – most – have taken it on the chin, but others (Lizzie Marvelley's splenetic twitter outbursts would be funny if it wasn't tragic, a snowflake right there) have reacted in a way that kinda confirms the suspicion that quite a few of the chatterati think of themselves as part of the other, pampered class and quite different from Joe and Jane Sixpack on Struggle street.
Then you've got aging types like Chris Trotter, who yearns these days for NZ to be like it was in the 1980s. His reaction is bordering on the hysterical, as trusty mastheads of his youth fall all around him and nothing is certain anymore.
The thing is we can argue all day about the whys and wherefores of this. A wildly angry Wendyl Nissan (so much for the smooth veneer of media objectivity when the abstract becomes the personal) claimed on RNZ yesterday that the Woman's Weekly was making money. Some claim Bauer are clearing out the local opposition ahead of simply bringing it's Australian equivalents. It does seem like COVID-19 has provided a nice cover for Bauer to engage in a bit of disaster capitalism.
But really these titles have gone broke because increasingly no one reads them and nobody wants to advertise in them. Gone with not a bang, but a whimper. The Listener – the biggest of them all I think – nowadays has a "readership" of a couple of hundred thousand. That isn't sales, just what they think the number of people who read an issue is so they can pump their advertising costs. Sure, they may have been turning over a trickle of profit. But their ruthless German publishing masters clearly thought wurst was to come.
the future of how to pay for longform journalism is a conundrum even the media experts don't have an answer for. Perhaps it is time for government subsidies – but the idea that those subsidies should go to obsolescent publications owned by foreign corporations? Hmmm. Not so sure.
For what it is worth, I think it is time for a licence fee – a fee on data usage, collected by ISPs and paid to a state broadcasting entity. According to stats NZ (https://www.stats.govt.nz/news/new-zealand-internet-is-going-unlimited) in 2018 the average unlimited broadband user consumed 150 gigabytes a month and broadband usage was about 280 million gigabytes a month. Imagine NZers used four billion gigabytes of data a year in 2020. A fee of 1.5c a gigabyte would bring in sixty million or so (if my morning maths isn't to wobbly). It would add $27-$30 a year to the cost of that average unlimited broadband connection. Is $30 a year a price New Zealanders are willing to pay to keep a local media? Could that be a way to help fund journalism?
Have the companies pay that. There are people in NZ who can't afford to eat and pay their rent, so I think a set fee on all usage is not the best option.
I am amazed at the lack of solidarity – let alone memory – from those on the left like Sanctuary who saw their communities ripped apart in the 1990s with meatworks closing down, manufacturing industries dying, farmers walking off their land and suiciding, mortgagee sales piling up, and entire generations wrecked and forced into near-perpetual social welfare.
Did we protest at the time for the devastated provincial proletariat?
Hell yes we did. And the "we" includes Chris Trotter and plenty of others with actual functioning memories.
It may well be too much to ask people like you to lift a fucking finger in protest when it happens to the bourgeoisie. But that's just a measure of your integrity.
There will of course be plenty who like you will continue to sneer from their keyboards because they don't like the ideological impurities of the New Zealand Women's Weekly or any of the other media for which it is about to happen – but that just shows how out of touch you are with how many hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders communicate.
And now for the real stuff.
We are losing thousands upon thousands to unemployment by the day right now.
They are from all kinds of industries.
Almost none of it is the fault of the newly unemployed.
Before anyone else like Sanctuary or Alwyn commits to their keyboard again and tries to offload their bile about who is more or less deserving to hold onto a job, do just one thing:
Imagine it happening to you.
Who knows, perhaps you have the memory still to remember a time when it got all a bit too close. When families were devastated, homes were lost, marriages broke down. Like is happening right now.
That thing called human empathy.
Good comment. A post would be good. Hint. Hint.
Mickey has a post on it already up.
To avoid derailing Micky's post, what is this "bowl cut" instruction of which you wrote? Not that I'd use it. I do have experience of cutting back my fringe though, with a kind of point cutting.
I haven't seen what he wrote but I imagine he's talking about what we used to call a pudding basin haircut back in the day when you would no more waste money on sending your child to a hairdresser than fly. Your mother cut your hair. Typically the result looked as though she had upturned a pudding basin on your head and cut around it – lol. Traditionally you got one of these when you turned 5 and started school!
Yes. I know what a bowl cut is. My dad used to give my brothers such a cut. My younger bro hated them. Or maybe a slight variation on them. Bowl cuts were something I associated with Brit immigrants.
My dad had clippers that shaved the back and sides – AKA "short back and sides"
Enjoy.
https://www.google.co.nz/search?q=bowl+cuts&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwip1-3c78roAhVj7nMBHahTDcsQ_AUoAXoECBIQAw&biw=1733&bih=982
😊
It could become the new trend for 2020-2021.
I understand the lock downs internationally are cause some despair among young trendees with undercuts.
"Imagine it happening to you. "
For many of us its not a case of imagining….its a case of remembering.
4 times in the 80s and twice more in the 90s
Exactly. That's why I started my response that way.
Then you will know that protesting wont change it.
Do you know what changes it?
are you referring to this specific case or employment in general?
As general as possible 🙂
lol…not much to ask.
A permanent solution, no….as far as I can see all solutions have a limited period of functionality until they cease to work any longer though that period may be decades.
What I do see however is a need for some form of government employment scheme to transition out of the worst of the crisis as wasnt done in the eighties reforms…we cannot leave it all to market forces this time round because we know how that plays out.
The thing is most make work projects are just nave work hard and uninspiring.
It worked in the depression but it wont now with a benefit backstop.
Not all of them. For instance my maternal grandfather spent a chunk of the late depression hammering out Scenic Drive in Auckland’s Waitakere ranges pretty much by hand and blasting until they got it flat enough to get a bulldozer in. Even the thought of doing 26 miles of road in a basalt base is enough to make my skin crawl.
Pat 11.03am Rational and wise – let's do it for the good of society and those who are left bereft without work and a way to go.
@bwaghorn
some define a 'depression' by an unemployment rate of 25% or more
or a prolonged decline in GDP of greater than 10%.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-QHha1zko1A&ab_channel=LittleBig
I was tempted to gloat about the prospect so many right wing propaganda mongering bene bashing overpaid fools, getting the medicine they are so keen on dishing out to those "lazy, other people".
But. Thinking about it, I don't wish that on anyone, apart from people like Hosking's and Richardson having their monstrous salaries reduced, to their true worth.
There are all the other people in the organisation losing their jobs, printers, delivery people typesetters etc, and the few remaining actual, journalists!
And my mum, who has been reading woman's weekly for near on 80 years.
Its not a case of wishing it upon anyone , or gloating or even indifference…nor is it dismissing the value of the work….it is a recognition of the realities.
There has been much reportage about the 'zombie' companies only surviving due to the low cost of debt and obviously were vulnerable to any revenue shock….this will be far from the last company to close its doors and the government cannot buy them all out.
We will adapt….because the alternative is not to.
I agree, that the Government cannot support companies which were on their way under anyway..
Especially when they take the opportunity to close down companies, when they can pretend that it was Covid 19, not them.
Supporting the staff into new industries, that do have a future, is something I've always advocated, as a legitimate role of the Government.
Good and varied Journalism is an essential infrastructure, in my book. The recipes and knitting patterns serve a purpose as well.
Noting that the Government agrees. They did offer support to keep those staff employed.
Sanctuary @ 1
Did you watch TV1 6pm news yesterday? Did you note the palatial back-grounds of the big names associated with said magazines who were interviewed in their homes?
To suggest he is "lacking solidarity… with those who saw their communities ripped apart in the 1990s…" and is "lacking in human empathy" is reading something into Sanctuary's comments that isn't there.
As a person who was adversely affected at the time, I see no comparison whatsoever to the events of the 1990s and Sanctuary's response to the demise of a bunch of magazines whose time was up, so the owners used the pandemic to close them down.
"Before anyone else like Sanctuary or Alwyn commits to their keyboard again and tries to offload their bile about who is more or less deserving to hold onto a job, do just one thing: "
You really don't get it do you? I don't make any comments, or express any opinions about who is "more or less deserving to hold onto a job". I merely state that if people don't buy printed magazines, and nobody is willing to pay to advertise in them they will die.
Technology becomes redundant. People in jobs within those technologies lose their jobs. I don't make decisions on those matters. Look for example at the computer industry. Remember the days of the punch rooms where a lot of people were occupied in punching data into punched cards to feed the computers of the day? Should we insist that that technology must be restored to recreate those jobs?
Of course not.
If you have access to a map of Australia have a look at the route of the railway line from Perth to Sydney. In particular have a look at the little places between Kalgoorlie and Woomera. Every name on that map was a settlement where people lived in the days when the trains were coal fueled and used water in the bilers.
Soneville, Karonie, Zanthus, Kitchener, Naretha, Rawlinna, Haig, Nurina, Loongana, Forest, Reid, Deakin, Hughes, Denman, Cook, Fisher, O'Malley, Watson, Ooldea, Bates,Wynbring, ……. There are others but I am sick of reading the names in the very small print on my map.
They were all places where people lived and worked. They were needed because a train had to take on coal about every 160 km and water every 80 km,
Well now they have Diesels and they refuel at, I believe, Kalgoorlie and Cook. Cook has a population of 4. Nothing exists of all the other places. All the people who worked there lost their jobs because the steam train was dead. Should we bring them back to recreate the jobs of yesteryear?
Why? And if you won't do it for those jobs why do it for magazines that not many people buy. Why do YOU think you have the power to decide which jobs stay and which go? Because that is the power you are claiming for yourself when you decide that these particular magazines must continue, at taxpayers expense, to be preserved.
.
Well it's hotter 'n blazes and all the long faces
There'll be no oasis for a dry local grazier
There'll be no refreshment for a thirsty jackaroo
From Melbourne to Adelaide on the overlander
With newfangled buffet cars and faster locomotives
The train stopped in Serviceton less and less often
No, there's nothing sadder than a town with no cheer
Vic Rail decided the canteen was no longer necessary there
No spirits, no bilgewater and eighty dry locals
And the high noon sun beats a hundred and four
There's a hummingbird trapped in a closed-down shoe store
This tiny Victorian rhubarb
Kept the watering hole open for sixty-five years
Now it's boilin' in a miserable March twenty-first
Wrapped the hills in a blanket of Patterson's curse
The train smokes down the xylophone, there’ll be no stopping here
All you can be is thirsty in a town with no cheer
No Bourbon, no Branchwater, though the townspeople here
Fought her Vic Rail decree tooth and nail
Now it’s boilin’ in a miserable March twenty-first
Wrapped the hills in a blanket of Patterson’s curse
The train smokes down the xylophone, there’ll be no stopping here
All ya can be is thirsty in a town with no cheer
Town With No Cheer – Tom Waits (Swordfishtrombones)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-GJpdDU7ps
Come, come. Be more cheerful. Always look on the bright side of life.
They may have called it Patterson's Curse in your part of Australia but it was better known in South Australia as Salvation Jane.
How the same plant could be regarded as a poisonous scourge in one place and a suitable feed for livestock in another was totally beyond me.
I hope you'll forgive me for thinking that listening to this once, and I did listen to all of it, is enough for my lifetime.
LOL
Nobody wishes the ills that follow job loss upon anyone. But this is a different issue to the problem of what publications like The Listener represent. The ideal situation is that The Listener dies and never again sees the light of day, and the consequences don't include any kind of hardship for anyone. There's an interesting piece on Stuff about a number of things but I think the issue of pointless jobs is its prevailing theme:
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/120728480/what-will-the-world-be-like-after-coronavirus-four-possible-futures
My favourite was the tantrum by Bill Ralston looking like something from the Australian outback (is that the new Ponsonby look?) Still can't stop giggling.
Brilliant summation-this'Some claim Bauer are clearing out the local opposition ahead of simply bringing it's Australian equivalents. It does seem like COVID-19 has provided a nice cover for Bauer to engage in a bit of disaster capitalism.'.
What should happen today is the Minister of Health is fired.
He shouldn't be allowed to resign.
Ardern should fire him.
Publicly.
Primarily for gifting the Right more ground from which to sling shit.
Making it too easy for Farrar's Mob.
If you read Farrar for news and opinion? Jesus wept.
Sanctuary.
You know some folk do '…read Farrar for news and opinion.'
Just like folk come to TS and go to TDB.
Or, one just might see an article in the mainstream news and then find out where that particular news item is being discussed.
Ignoring our problems does not make them go away dear.
"…You know some folk do '…read Farrar for news and opinion.'.."
Maybe once upon a time. Farrar's blog struggles for relevance these days and is regarded as toxic – something he can only blame himself for, as he allows the comments of completely fucking insane nutters to remain up. To put it bluntly, he has inherited the Whaleoil crowd and done nothing about it – and his reputation as a source has suffered accordingly.
To put it bluntly, he has inherited the Whaleoil crowd and done nothing about it – and his reputation as a source has suffered accordingly.
??!!??!!!?
That statement suggests that Farrar's blog has been less toxic and less extreme than Whaleoil's. That's not true, not in the slightest. Farrar's views are as horrible as Cameron Slater's, and the people commenting on his site are no more better informed or humane. Farrar himself is a disgrace: he once wrote about a visit he made to the Occupied Terrritories, and claimed that he had not noticed anything at all to suggest that Palestinians were being oppressed.
Over many years, Farrar has encouraged and/or turned a blind eye to the most ignorant and racist comments outside of a NewstalkZB announcers' barbecue….
https://www.kiwiblog.co.nz/2016/11/general_debate_3_november_2016.html/comment-page-1#comment-1810551
I don't think he should be fired (last thing we need right now is a change of Health Minister during a pandemic). But I do think he and Ardern should address this more directly. He needs to own up to having fucked up (the traveling thing, they can deal with the stupid of a sign written car internally) and point out we are all on a learning curve, an apology would be good too.
Unfortunately we have a macho political culture that will try and use that to take Labour down. Labour should still do the right thing.
I'm also mindful that those government people will be full of stress chemicals, and they're going to have to sustain living like that for quite some time. I can understand why he would want and even need to do what he did. It's still a fuck up though.
Wow. Some one on the Standard actually admits Clark made a mistake or a fuck up in your words.
IPrent will ban you! The echo chamber must be preseved at all costs.
[lprent: Or you could be less of a moronic dimwit and listen when a moderator talks to you about your behaviour. Commentary is ok. However this is a forum for debate and that involves dealing with other peoples disagreeing with you, especially when they make reasonable objections to your points. Sticking your head firmly up your arse and ignoring them, which appears to be your childish default behaviour isn’t acceptable. FFS grow up. ]
Not sure how new you are to TS, but most of us have been criticising Labour for a long time. I suggest you take note of Lynn's moderations, because now you just look like a troll.
As far as I can tell since 8 June 2018 so ignorance is no excuse.
It would make little to no difference to the pandemic management if the Health Minister is sacked, the bureaucrats in the ministry are effectively directing and running the show at present.
What it would do if he was severely censured is signal that no one in NZ whatever their status is above those impositions being placed on the rest of us.
Same as it has been for the past two decades.
The names of the MOH bureaucrats might change, but the culture remains.
This government demonstrated its subservience to the Ministry when it allowed the demonstrably incompetent Group Manager of MOH:DSS to closely advise Ministers on disability and carer issues.
SSDD
I don't think he should be sacked, but certainly hope the PM gives him a kick up the backside.
No, it wasn't terrible, it wasn't near the level of Ministerial misbehaviour in the past, BUT he's just made his own job – and the government's – harder. Not helping.
Hopefully it will highlight the overreach, of banning, all, car travel for exercise, when there are people who cannot get enough exercise while following the distancing rules and keeping safe, without some car travel.
Letting scared people on Facebook,and "past their use by date" Senior cops who got there by attrition, set the rules.
But it won't. And by giving those people a stick to beat the Government with. I was going to say he should go. But maybe this is an opportunity to be more rational about total bans on activities.
Has car travel for exercise been banned?
As I said not sure.
My son says it was on the Covid website from the 30th, but if it was, I missed it.
The Police Commissioner was saying one thing about it one day, and something different the next.
I see the "car travel to exercise" has been removed from the Unite against Covid 19 website.
"Essential purposes only".
which I take to me: please don't drive to exercise if you can avoid it, but people need to make their own decisions based on need and location.
i.e. not a ban.
Yes, there have been a few changes like that. For instance going from a complete ban on swimming to swimming in a way that is very safe (ie no surfing). These changes are to be expected This is such a novel situation that it would be impossible to be completely right from the get go.
In my neighbourhood people are being very sensible and reasonable. Almost no traffic at all. I wonder if car use will reduce in a more permanent way, even when we can drive freely?
I hope it does Wayne. People have been pushing for less traffic for a long time, seems an ideal opportunity to adopt some new social practices. Less pollution, better for climate mitigation, more liveable urban spaces, more health, lots of benefits.
Agreed on the need to adapt advice over time. Not least because they'd have to wait and see how well people were getting what needed to be done.
I wonder how much of our low community transmission, so far, is due to people thinking for themselves and maintaining their distance, well before the Government required it?
In our previous week before the lockdown, we obviously didn't see many people, but the ones we did were already socialising from several metres away, in their dinghies, the local shop was sanitising the EFTPOS pad between customers and the fuel bowser attendant was cleaning it between fills. People walking on the road were keeping their distance.
Yeah in general it's been really good for a couple of weeks now.
Nah, I walked through the uni here in Dunedin during and after St Patricks day (coz my work) & there were 100s of people like any other day.
Unless it is for essentials, the answer is no. If you have to drive somewhere for a walk, for example, then it is not regarded as local and you’re flouting the rules. I saw a Government clip somewhere yesterday that explained it well but I cannot find it 🙁
if someone needs to drive 4 blocks to the local park so their kids can run around, and this is for the parents' mental health as much as anything, that seems as essential to health as walking round the block next to one's house in terms of personal physical exercise.
As long as people are social distancing, not using jungle gyms, and not taking the piss or socialising, this seems reasonable to me.
If the govt cracks down on that under the current level, it will be because of people doing stupid shit like socialising, not because someone went an extra few blocks.
People on twitter are saying it's in the daily briefings, which is not much use for those of us that don't watch them.
No. It hasn’t weka @ 2.3.1.1 Those who need to travel by car to get to an area for exercising can do so provided it is within their neighbourhood. I think it was Bush who reiterated this only yesterday. I am one of those affected since I can no longer walk to the beach for exercise because of severely arthritic knees.
In the case of David Clark… I gather he drove 2 kms to get to a motorbike track which was closely associated with his neighbourhood. I think the public pearl clutching over his 'misdemeanour' is being a tad overdone for political reasons.
Anne. Clark drove his electorate vehicle emblazoned with a photo of his physiognomy to a mountain bike track for a spot of between video conferencing mountain biking.
An activity on the 'We 'd rather you not indulge in because of risk of injury' list.
The whole incident smacks of either extraordinary arrogance or extreme tone deafness.
Or both.
This is a fuck up of quite significant proportions and could not have come at a worse time.
BS.
He used his electorate vehicle because he could put his bike into it. It was hardly for publicity because there was no one there but himself. Looked like an easy ride – nothing dangerous – and there are few spots he can go to where he can have any privacy.
You've got it in for him as you seem to have a good many people, and you are using it to discredit him. No different from those who are doing it for political reasons.
Why didn't he just ride his bike to the track if it is so close ? Or just ride it around his suburb a few times like people seem to be doing in my neck of the woods ?
Why doesn't Anne walk on the beach?
I'm a commuter cyclist. So when I ride, I ride as much as possible on cycle paths and only go on the roads when I absolutely have to.
That is because many motorists can be classed as dangerous fuckwits on the road.
Of course there are even more driver who are considerate and not impatient dimwits. But when you have no protection you stick to what you know works and what you have experience with.
It seems unlikely that David Clark is a commuter. He sounds like a recreational mountain biker. Probably doesn't ride on the road because it is too damn dangerous.
I trust that answers your query.
I expect it doesn’t. To me it is apparent that I’d class you as being a ignorant dangerous fuckwit motorist who is too stupid to think through what other road users do.
Incidentally I frequently see cyclists (and some scooter user) do the same even when the light is red. Basically police should seize their bikes/scooters and sell them to someone who is less stupid. If they are renting them, then they should inform all hire companies that they should not be able to hire one again. Can't think of anything that is a more stupid behaviour.
Squished cyclist is unpleasant for everyone.
"I expect it doesn’t. To me it is apparent that I’d class you as being a ignorant dangerous fuckwit motorist who is too stupid to think through what other road users do."
Perhaps you haven't noticed the vast decrease in traffic on the road at the moment ? This is making it vastly easier for cyclists to get out and about without worrying nearly as much about motorists.
Please continue with your specious rant it's most amusing.
Anne.
A friend, homeless and forced to live in a campground and share facilities with a swag of overseas backpacker types, drives her wee van out of the camp ground and down the road to a near deserted beach to allow her aged and grass averse dog to walk on sand and in soothing seawater.
No risk. No harm. And believe me, her fragile state means that the whole social distancing thing has been her way of life for years.
She gets tailed by the local cops in a marked car who park right behind her. They don't approach her in a community friendly manner. Just intimidate by their close presence. Later, when she is driving out of the camp for another dog walk and soul repair session she gets told by the camp managers she's going out too often.
Now. Do you think that Dr. (of god only knows) Clark will intervene and allow my highly stressed friend a pass to indulge in an activity that is causing harm to no one and benefiting her and her wee dog immeasurably?
Of course not. Don't be silly.
But bet you we get a call or a text sometime today when she reads about Clark's little lapse.
Her fingernails are ragged enough already.
But what does that matter so long as we all abide by the New Way and allow our Minister of Health in time of a pandemic to openly and loudly flout the rules he demands we plebs follow?
And while you're there Anne and making this personal…who ate these "…good many people…" I have it in for?
That'll be why the Bush police have no time to check up on self isolating travellers. I thought they were too busy playing with their guns.
I think Jacinda's conversation with David Clark will probably start with, "David. What the actual fuck?!"
Unless he's oblivious to everything going on around him, I struggle to comprehend how he thought doing what he did was in any way a good idea. And taking a van. With your fucking face painted on it. Christ on a bike, man!
I guess he was hoping everyone was at home and no one would notice. But the Blue Team are watching. The Blue Team are always watching…
Speaking of the Blue Team, I see Joyce and English have slithered out from whatever rocks they've been hiding under to throw handfuls of muck at the government. Armchair generals are the very best kind after all.
"What the actual fucking fuck."
and "Jesus Christ on a fucking chariot" were my first comments last night when I read it on Stuff.
And Farrar, Blue to his core, had the breathtaking audacity to dig up the putrid corpse of Ryall and state categorically that 'he would never do such a thing…'
Ryall was a numpty of outstanding proficiency who accepted bucketsloads of absolute bullshit from his trusted advisors at the Ministry of Health. Outstanding he was. Set a whole new standard for fuckwittedness of Ministers of Health.
This is of course from the point of view of a family carer of a MOH:DSS client with very high support needs who still hasn't managed to remove the knife in my back planted there by Ryall and driven home by subsequent Ministers, including the current incumbent.
Jesus the axes at your place must be really blunt, given the amount of time you spend on grinding them.
I agree totally. He's made a dumb mistake and even Willie Jackson couldn't defend him this morning. Its probably not sack able but does undermine the govt. Jacinda will have a talking to him. Anyway, shouldn't really question on this blog as you are not allowed to debate or disagree according to IPrent below. – Goodbye.
More and more it looks to me like a situation with no good outcome. Such are our times.
But yep, people need to be able to make personalised decisions within the rules. Otherwise we will have rules designed for middle of the bell curve people that cause problems for others.
Don't be silly Rosemary. He was 0.3km outside the 2km limit-hardly a hanging offence. It is possible the bike track was on the way to or near his local supermarket-have you thought about this? I have to drive 19km to my local supermarket which opens up no end of biking/walking opportunities.
It appears the Health Minister followed all other self-isolation criteria. Media I have read/listened too (Stuff/RNZ) have not given this story any oxygen at all.
Here in Wanaka groups of people are congregating on bridges and jumping into the Clutha River, ignoring all of the s-i rules-these are the people the police should be chasing.
I do sympathise with some of the comment on Kiwiblog criticising the fact that people seem to be getting away with biking, including mountain-biking, all over the place. Mountain biking is more dangerous than skiing in terms of injuries suffered. Meanwhile I am not allowed to take my sailing boat out in light winds with reefed sails, which is safer than both.
there's safety statistically, and there's safety individually, and then there's plain bad luck.
Where does it say 2km is the limit?
"He was 0.3km outside the 2km limit-hardly a hanging offence"
If he was Joe Bloggs, it wouldn't matter. He's the Minister of Health and has a perception/messaging issue to deal with now. Hoping it blows over, but it does leave the problem of the perception that we can bend the rules.
Yes, a senior Minister should grasp the basics of perception.
We know (and he should have) that the PM will be asked about it at the press conference today. She is now obliged to say …
either "No biggie, not bothered", which she can't then combine with her usual messaging. She can't switch seamlessly from a shrug to a call for sacrifice.
or (more likely) "The Minister got it wrong".
Ardern's tough-but-kind persona is very effective in this crisis, and she doesn't need that undermined. More importantly, the country doesn't.
Yes it is about perception – rightly or wrongly people in the public eye are held to a higher standard of behaviour whether they like it or not! Silly man!!!
Its not so much that he was 0.3km out of range, its the fact that its a deserted bike trail that the general public are not using as they've been told not to do those sort of activities, but Clark decides that rule only applies to the plebs not him. What if he had an accident somewhere along the trail?
The general public has been told to stop using easy bike trails like "The Big Easy" ??
Yes. Most bike trails are closed. Why do you think the car park is deserted?
That ones normally busy
"Most bike trails are closed."
Citation please.
DOC website. When you go on web site a covid-19 window comes up saying "stay at home, All DOC facilities are closed"
https://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-recreation/things-to-do/mountain-biking/
you should read the link though, tracks aren't closed, it's the huts and campsites that are. Obviously they're also telling people to not go into the back country and to use tracks in the neighbourhood (they also say don't drive to them).
Yes but point being we are all told not to go surfing, hunting, sailing, swimming? or anything else and slightly dangerous. So now the general public stuck at home with time on their hands will say if its ok for him (and he makes the rules) its ok for us.
Yes, which is why he has apologised, and everyone is reiterating stay home, don't drive unless it's necessary, get some exercise, wash your hands and practice physical distancing.
"For everyone’s safety, at Alert Level 4 people must not to head into the backcountry or remote areas, nor should they undertake outdoor activities (such as adventure sports or hunting) that would expose them to higher levels of risk." https://www.doc.govt.nz/news/issues/covid-19/
Clark wasn't in a remote area, nor was he partaking in an adventure sport. Nor was he even in a DOC area to start with.
Then that's great. We can all head out to the parks.
Did you notice in the photo the car park was empty so the public was actually staying away!
[lprent: Read my note please – rather than your current career of being a dimwitted repetitive troll who never listens. I’ll release one more comment, otherwise I’ll get ride of you as stupid time wasting problem with a brain of stone and clogged up ‘ears’ that need a pneumatic drill to clear them. ]
Otago Rail Trail = Open.
Trails in the Queenstown area = Open
Where did this 2km limit come from?
There seems to be people, and different branches of Government, making up ad-hoc rules all over the place.
Not even sure myself, where we were at in the "driving to exercise" rules, and I've been going on the Government Covid website every day.
They are not, helping.
Why does it matter how far I walk, for example, when the only thing I touch on the entire walk is my front gate, and all of us on every walk, are keeping, so far, several metres apart.
I am refraining from sailing in the harbour ,, even though I can do that without going within 20metres of anyone, and my coastal capable boat, is extremely unlikely to require help, where I can almost walk ashore, as much not to bother the cop who has to tell me off, as much as any other reason.
I would rather they spent their time, talking to the few, that are really doing things that endanger other people.
If everyone tries to follow the principal, "act as though you have it", and keep away from people outside your bubble, we will not, have community transmission. Whether someone drove 2.174km or 1.999km, away from home is not going to change that.
Some people like the reassurance of, rules, or the power kick from forcing others to follow them. But arbitrary, detailed and confusing rules, treating people like children, don't work.
East Germany tried that!
There is not a 2 km limit. There is in Ireland and there is talk about local limits.
Call me biased but the incident fills me with "meh". He drove to a carpark near his home where there was no one and got some exercise.
Hardly a hanging offence.
You and I can say "meh".
But the PM can't. That's the point.
She can say, what's your problem with this?
My only thought about the whole thing is why didn't he just bike to the start of the trail? At 2.3km away, it would have taken bugger-all longer than the time needed to load and unload his bike into the van.
If you aren't used to riding on the road, most cyclists won't if they have any choice. It is frigging dangerous.
I've only started since I don't have a bike path between me and work from december (they moved). Even now, during my daily exercise during the lockdown, I'm still getting close to having idiot car driver caused accidents most days. I’m road riding now because it is an ideal time to get more experience at avoid the dipshit motorists. I normally ignore main roads, riding on footpaths by preference because it is safer for me and not that dangerous to pedestrians (I just wait at slow speeds until they move over).
Most mountain bikers who do trails don’t ride on roads. They don’t have the road skills and their bikes don’t have all of the lights, reflectors and other crap like highlighted clothes and road level helmets that road cyclists routinely have.
I bike because I can't walk far due to a pad wearing out between my right big toe and the foot bones.
I avoid road riding around Dorkland, it's no fun at all and scary AF. And I'm the kind of person that needs a bit of adrenaline with my exercise, whether it's on a bike or kayak or skis. But right now in lockdown it might be ok.
When it comes to the specific ride in question, supposedly David's home is in Opoho. The roads to and from the Logan Park High School carpark don't look like the kind of hazards our Orcland roads are. Or better yet, do a loop to the carpark, over the Big Easy, then back home via Signal Hill Rd.
https://www.wildthings.club/trails/otago/dunedin/signal-hill-big-easy/
In normal times I won't ride on the road in Wellington. The drivers actively try to kill you.
Better in Auckland. They are just unaware of your existence.
I did my MBA in Dunedin from 1985 and was there for while afterwards until the end of 1988 while my partner at the time finished her dual degrees.
We had bikes the entire time that I was there and never rode them around the city. The main reason was because compared to Auckland the streets were quite narrow (more like the rabbit warren cart track streets in the water side of Ponsonby or Kingsland) and the parked cars made them too dangerous. Instead we walked most of the time or took a car.
Where we used the bikes was where there were no parked cars and the roads were pretty wide – riding around most of the West Coast for instance.
I think that the roads are wider further out from the centre of Dunedin from what I saw this Xmas at least on the flat. Once you get into those hills however they looked like single way cart tracks winding their way up and down. The danger on bikes is mostly proximity to cars.
I can’t remember much about Opoho, but generally I regard any route as dangerous if at any point you get to effectively single lane with even occasional parked cars. Which is why I never road there. All of the roads around where I lived were like that.
While there are lot of roads that are like that in Auckland, there are usually routes that allow you to avoid them here. Less so in Wellington or Dunedin. Whereas riding in Christchurch or Invercargill is just so damn easy.
"We had bikes the entire time that I was there and never rode them around the city."
At that same time I commuted via bike from Maryhill to work at the bottom of MacClaggan Street. One morning I rode (with feet sliding) all the way down down High Street in snow.
My point wasn’t really about snow or the shape of roads – it was about bloody motorists.
I grew up in Mt Albert in Auckland. We used to ride everywhere all of the time. But the traffic went from being not a problem in the late 60s to bleeding dangerous by the early 80s as the population went up markedly and the quality of the drivers dropped.
In the late 70s and early 80s I’d had several accidents on pushbikes and motor scooters, all the fault of drivers. The worst was riding down a shallow slope on morningside drive by St Lukes Mall and having a car abruptly turn right in front of me to go into the mall. Or having a car pull out of a parking space on the side of the road obviously without having looked in their wing mirror.
Problem is that with a bike of any kind you’re reliant on dimwits in cars. After a few accidents caused by motorists you become a really defensive rider very fast. Dunedin city drivers really didn’t impress me with the care that they took looking around.
Of course I could just have high standards…
I’d point out that in my entire car driving career, I’ve only had a few accidents. One where another car turned right into me (I still have no idea how they could have missed an burnt orange peugeot). One where a tire blew out after running into the end of someones exhaust dropped in the southern motorway – it was evening and I didn’t see the pipe on the road until too late. And one on the bridge evening commuter shuffle when an idiot talking to the female passenger (I’d be watching him in the mirror) behind me ran straight into my arse.
Oh and I slid a long wheel base land rover off a track once, while I was trying to get around a slip in the clay road.
So he could have used his legs and pushed the damned thing.
…why didn't he just bike to the start of the trail?
Riding mountain bikes on the road is a pain in the arse with those fat, knobby tyres. You'd have to be very determined or a glutton for punishment to choose to do it.
Not as much a pain in the arse as riding skinny road tyres around a mountain bike trail. Or snow, for that matter. I was a product development engineer at Trek in Wisconsin for a year. I've ridden some weird shit and seen a lot of even weirder shit happen on bikes.
In San Diego I lived about 4km from some primo trails. I almost always rode there and back, it just felt wrong to drive there. It helped to pump up the tyres a bit for the road and let them down for the trails. Not locking out the shocks on the road was good for dialling in smooth pedalling technique.
I don't know where in Opoho he lives but that's the suburb with Dunedins steepest streets (Baldwin for eg, like excessively steep), to get to Logan Park you'd have to use the high windy narrow road through the Botanical Gardens, or go the long way (bout 5-6 kms) through the university.
This is mountain biking we're talking here. Steepness and hills are kinda the point.
Baldwin street is overrated. Hell, my driveway here in Titirangi is steeper. For about ten metres or so, anyways. Was down there in November and my twins on their learners permit wanted to drive up it to see what the big deal was. It was a letdown for them.
Shoulda made them do a three point turn at the steepest bit.
Baldwin Street is further up North East Valley and doesn't link to Opoho, but there are other steep-ish streets from NEV up to Opoho Like Blacks Road, which on paper links to the Big Easy (down a gully). Clark will live at about 100m which isn't much in Dunedin.
Funny thing is he drove down from Opoho to near Logan Park at near sea level (at what was Pelichet Bay before it was reclaimed). Then the Big Easy track heads up the Opoho Creek gully to closer to where he lives. There's walking track access from Opoho, but I don't know if there's bike access.
But the driving a couple of km to the track isn't what the PM told him off for, it was for doing risky recreation which has clearly been officially discouraged for ordinary people.
Presumably some people would get a bit grumpy if the Minister of Health ended up crocked up in hospital right now.
Come on Pete. Admit you have been camped outside Minister Clark's house watching his movements for the last week.
I hope that's a stupid attempt at a joke.
I haven't been away from home since Saturday two weeks ago – I had decided to go into isolation before we had to.
You do seem to know a lot about his movements, Pete…
From trail ratings I've read, Big Easy does not qualify as risky recreation. As lprent says, even with reduced lockdown traffic riding the streets is riskier.
He would have been told off for the "not a good look" of getting sprung for doing something we've all been sorta kinda instructed to not do.
This "incident" is a Pete George "magic moment" – his glee is palpable!
I say (again), ho hum.
I'm good with trusting people to make decisions in their own location. But we do need the govt to be seen to doing the right thing here, because now people will be going oh, it's ok to drive to my local bike track. I wish he'd taken a plain car.
But perception is everything. Regardless of the rights or wrongs of what he did, he's the health minister. At a time when the message is stay at home what he did means there'll be people who'll think 'what's good for the goose' then find themselves being confronted by the cops. It's a time when the government needs the support and cooperation of citizens, which in turn means the respect of citizens. Without that we're stuffed. Clark should've known that and have acted accordingly.
Well said.
Reminded me of when I was a kid at a friends house for dinner, and they all prayed, I didn't as I had no idea what they were doing, anyway, one of the other kids told their dad I hadn't prayed and the dad said "how did you know? were you not praying too?". Just the person who took the photograph was a couple kms away from wherever they lived too (I know the area).
I do not believe there is a 2km limit that you are referring to. But there are guidelines that dont support the actions he did (https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/120613766/coronavirus-mountain-bike-trails-close-as-cyclists-asked-to-ride-local)
But ignoring all that – it goes against what we are being asked to do. If everybody acted in the same way as the minister of health did in this circumstance the whole isolation 'thing' would be nowhere as effective and people will die.
So – should his behaviour be ignored?
As you can see from the car park, the place was deserted. What if Clark had had an accident and needed rescuing somewhere on the track?
They are telling us not to go swimming and surfing but idiot Clark goes on a bike trail!
Also telling us to keep away from other people!
They are telling us not to go swimming.
No they're not. They are telling us not to go swimming in clusters and to keep the full 2 metre distance from one another. That did not happen in Mission Bay, Auckland for example, so they shooed the lot of them off the beach. Since then they appear to have eased the rules and if people are acting sensibly… going for a swim by themselves or in pairs and keeping a good distance from one another they are being left alone. That is what is happening at my local beach anyway.
Your political bias is shining through. Knew it wouldn’t take long before the rwnj’s were back to normal. In fact they’ve been strangely absent here up until now.
Justify it anyhow you like……Clark was an idiot. He is obviously above the rules for us plebs.
[lprent: You appear to be reluctant to actually deal with the objections to your pre-written scenario. That does not constitute robust debate. That just makes you look like a fucking useless and ignorant idiot troll. I suggest that you engage or leave before I make the decision for you. ]
Yes. It was mistake to go in his electorate van. His bad luck that a Nat – who was also 2 km away from his residence – happened to spot him and took a photo and dropped him into it. Someone should trace the source of the photo and see who it was, and what he/she was doing in the area too.
That sounds a bit like sour grapes. You are allowed out but you are not supposed to do "dangerous"activities else I would go surfing!
Please read my note to you about your behaviour at 2.4.6.2.1
So it would've been okay to go in his private car without the identifying stuff on the side of it? Why then wouldn't it have been okay for the photographer to have been there?
In which case, why did the photographer consider it photo-worthy?
Perhaps the photographer lived across the road and was going for a quick walk alone for a bit of exercise? There's certainly nothing to suggest the photographer was mountain biking, either.
"lived across the road".
He got papped by the wilderpeople living in the green belt. Much lols
So you're saying, mcflock, that the photographer had no business being there? The point is that their presence may have been well within the common understanding of the limits of the lock down.
No, I'm saying that there are no houses "just across the road".
If the photographer thought being there was fine for them, why would anyone think Clark's presence was camera-worthy? You're coming up with imaginings to defend rank hypocrisy.
The carpark is down a long dead end track behind the school, so the photographer must have been in there for a specific reason. Maybe going for a ride themselves, dropping someone off or picking them up, or maybe had seen the van and followed it in.
"If the photographer thought being there was fine for them, why would anyone think Clark's presence was camera-worthy? You're coming up with imaginings to defend rank hypocrisy."
Even if there aren't 'houses across the road', my point is the photographer may have been there within the limits of the lock down. Clark clearly wasn't. It hasn't been established the photographer had no business being there. If the photographer was there legitimately there's no hypocrisy. Your logic is lacking.
McFlock, that's your stomping ground isn't it? The Oddity says the van was parked at Logan Park school, other reports say it was at Signal Hill. Do you recognise from the photo which carpark it was?
edit: never mind, Pete seems pretty definite it was Logan Park school.
There's a car park called Signal Hill Reserve Carpark in behind the school. That's different to the lookout carpark at the top of the bike tracks.
Thanks Pete. I couldn't match up what was in the news photo with what was in the google maps satellite photo, but there's a pin there for the carpark in an open field. S'pose the carpark has been developed since the satellite photo.
This DCC rates map is more up to date and shows the formed car park behind the school..
https://dunedin.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=759c35fd91ee487e8e7ac3c9581b17b6
Wouldn't catch me anywhere near a cycle track lol.
But you can see from the stuff pic and pete's link the start of the track as a V and the position of individual trees that it's at the lower carpark next to LPHS.
First of all you identify the person taking the photo as a "Nat" and then state that they were also over 2km away from their residence.
Anything to back that up?
No? funny that.
It'll be Pete George, won't it?
An ACT voter in fact 🙂
Oh, and if you look at the map, Clark lives in Ohopo and he parked at the Signal Hill reserve carpark. The way the crow flies this is probably about 500m, certainly well under 1km, let alone 2km!!!
The only way to get to Signal Hill lookout is by car or bike, no one walks that road, if you did walk it would take maybe 40 mins, an hour? There are no houses near there, it's a tourist spot normally.
Quite.
Er, just saying he wasn't 2.3km from his house 🙂
It was almost literally his own back yard.
The Nat-voting numpty who ratted on Clark at what is a time of major pressure would have known exactly where the minister lived and they would have known exactly what they were doing when they went public.
I’ve imagined myself in the same position and I wouldn’t breathlessly go to the media. But Nat voters are venal like that.
It was political…
The car park is at the bottom near Logan Park High School, not up at the lookout.
Ok, so you're making dirty false insinuations.
I've never voted for ACT.
The car park is behind Logan Park High School at the bottom of the track. It may be 500m by bike but there's no direct route by car, via Lovelock Track it's 2.4km.
But according to the PM the distance isn't the issue.
I feel my family is a lot safer knowing Pete is all over this. Never know when Ministers of the Crown are going to recklessly drive out of their zone.
are there any residences within 2km of the car park?
https://twitter.com/five15design/status/1245880004723916802/photo/3
Yes, it's within 1km of a lot of university flats and accommodation.
See if you can see from this link:
https://www.google.co.nz/maps/place/Logan+Park+High+School/@-45.8588339,170.5290984,1770m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0xa82eac5b1186b223:0x759b80f37df43f00!8m2!3d-45.8619093!4d170.5288774
Clark lives somewhere near the Presbyterian Church in Opoho.
Funny coincidence, there's an Arden Street House nearby.
Hi Anne – hope you are well. I'm really not that concerned about him using his electorate van. The guys probably working his ass off at the moment, and I don't begrudge him some 'me' time at all. I think the issue is the nature of the activity – mountain biking. https://covid19.govt.nz/help-and-advice/for-everyone/leaving-your-house/ says this:
Anyone giving Clark flack for having a break is being a dick. But IMHO he should not have been mountain biking.
All that said, I'm loooking out over the upper harbour towards TeAtatu and gee it's tempting to put my little boat in. We're all human after all!
If there was an issue with the nature of the activity, the website would probably say don't go mountain biking as well.
The last time I tried it, mountain biking was dangerous!
Nice one Paddington. Of course he made a mistake and he has admitted as much.
What I take objection to is the over-reactions largely by those who are indulging in political point scoring. Interestingly, these types have been strangely silent on this blog for weeks now, then suddenly when a cabinet minister makes a wee mistake – and let anyone name a minister of any political persuasion who hasn't – and they all turn up for the kill.
Their motivations are crystal clear for all to see.
What gets me is the ignorance and outright stupidity of some of them…
It is like they just ignored the events and discussion going into stage 4.
I guess it is what people say – being conservatives makes people into wishful thinkers.
I'm not so "silly" as to read the comments from Farrar's Ferals, my primary interest is following what various platforms are choosing to highlight by way of posts and opinion pieces.
I have a particular and very personal interest in all things Ministry of Health and especially the relationship between the Ministry and the Minister.
And although, despite his Higher Education, Clark was clearly unsuited from day one to be the Minister in Charge of the Transformation of Kindness (after the much need high colonic) promised by Our Leaders he has outdone even my low expectations of him.
Heavens to Betsy BG, he gave the lot if us in Lockdown a very emphatic FU.
Perhaps Clark’s god can help us?
Clark's certainly not going to set the world on fire.
Agreed.
If what David Clark did was a general member of the public it would have likely gone unnoticed, and if the police had discovered them they would probably have been 'educated'.
But Clark isn't just an ordinary member of the public.
So this doesn't look good for Clark nor for the Government, on an issue that is annoying many people due to open abuses and borderline cases and in particular a lack of clarity (that has to be rectified quickly). Clark has made it appear that anyone can decide for themselves what they do.
Possible more importantly, Clark has what must be one of the most important jobs in the country, in the biggest issue facing health in probably a hundred years.
So why is he working from home and not in Wellington?
The Prime Minister has seen fit to work from Wellington. The Minister of Finance and the Director-General of Health and the Commissioner of Police and the Director of Civil Defence and Emergency Management are all in Wellington dealing with an unprecedented crisis.
I can understand Clark preferring to be at home for personal and family reasons, but he can't be as effective from home asd he could be working with the other key personnel and his Ministry of Health in Wellington.
Unless he is unofficially but deliberately sidelined .
"… on an issue that is annoying many people due to open abuses and borderline cases …"
You are self isolating to do the right thing, it isn't a competition. Do your bit and concentrate on what you can control.
You could follow your own advice.
I'm self-isolating to protect myself and others including a vulnerable person. I haven't left my property for nearly two weeks.
But it's obvious from media and social media coverage that many people are doing a wide range of activities away from home. This is likely to keep creeping to more activities and more risks.
In case you hadn’t noticed ( *sigh* ) all Ministers and MPs, apart from Jacinda Ardern and Grant Robertson, are working from where ever their home is. The reason why these two are required to be at the centre is because they need to use their actual hands to formally and legally sign things – like requests to use powers granted by the ‘crown’ like asking to use the armed forces and expending money from the treasury.
Everyone else is remote..
Ministers don’t need to be in Wellington. After all they don’t exactly have bits of hardware like bodies or sewerage systems that they’re working on. Most of their ‘hands’ are part of the bureaucracy or at the coalface. They just need to be able to communicate with those that they are responsible for and working with all around the country.
This includes the epidemic response committee which arguably is as important or more important as a frigging minister of cabinet.
The only requirement in our system for MPs to be together otherwise is pass legislation with even a token presence. Which they did before stage 4 when parliament shut itself down for a time.
There was an interesting RNZ article on the legal issues from last month.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/the-house/audio/2018738161/how-to-run-a-country-in-a-pandemic
Please avoid straw man arguments based on a ignorant and rather stupid spurious premise.
I think they have phones down in Dunedin. Correct me if I'm wrong.
You're right about that. I do most of my work remotely from Dunedin. I've been working in Timaru, Auckland and the UK today from home. But for big and critical jobs we like to do site visits, there are things you can miss from not being on site dealing with key people face to face and seeing a bigger picture.
Are you suggesting that the Health Minister should be doing face to face meetings? Or going to sites? Why?
All the other key leaders seem to be involved in person, they have appeared in various combinations in media conferences (keeping appropriate distances to set a good example) so must have a safe bubble to work in.
Six key people (see Lynn's explanation) are working in Wellington. Some of those for obvious reasons (eg press conferences).
What can Clark do in Wellington that he can't do from Dunedin?
Ride his mountain bike?
Keep in touch with what the Government doesn't want you to do when in isolation, or when in a key ministerial position?
Remote conferencing is good for many things, but it isn't as good as face to face for important discussions and decision making.
https://medium.com/@shannonkelly_80469/steve-jobs-on-the-importance-of-face-to-face-meetings-even-in-the-age-of-iphones-a5a4b83621a6
https://smallbusiness.chron.com/longdistance-meetings-vs-facetoface-meetings-35427.html
Clark seems to have not properly understood Ardern's stay-at-home related advice.
So you are suggesting that he does face to face meetings, despite all work places being told to work from home where possible.
"Clark seems to have not properly understood Ardern's stay-at-home related advice."
I can't see anything that Clark needs to be face to face for for the month, and no-one seems to be able to be specific on this.
How so? We're allowed out to exercise.
Ardern: “People can go outside to get fresh air and drive short distances if needed, but we have asked people to avoid activities where there is a higher risk of injury, and the Minister should have followed this guidance.”
The latest Daily COVID-19 update from the New Zealand Government (just received by email):
Answers to common questions
Q. I want to get some fresh air in my neighbourhood this weekend. How can I stay safe?
A. You might be tempted to leave the house this weekend, particularly if the weather is nice. Remember, staying home is the best thing you can do to stop the spread of COVID-19. But you can leave the house to buy groceries or to get some fresh air in your neighbourhood.
If you do leave the house this weekend, here are some do’s and don’ts to remember:
Clark has apologised for doing something a bit risky (riding a bike on a dirt track). But sometimes driving a short distance for exercise seems to be within the rules from what I can tell. The guidance is to avoid unnecessary travel.
Hey that is just crap.
I do video conferencing all of the time. Kind of have to with my current project team being in the UK, aussie, parts of the US and now locked down here. It isn’t any worse or better than when we all did the same thing around a meeting room table with or without video links to outliers as I did it a decade ago. Or when doing it via chat rooms and version control systems as I did 20 years ago.
Or as programmers do it these days; via slack, jira, confluence, stash and jenkins or their equivalents. We seldom use video conferencing except to deal with the unskilled (like managers and customer), because we’ve been doing this kind of remote stuff forever and we’re efficient doing it.
These days we just layer all of those together depending on who the audience is.
It is like everything else – you get better at it the more you do it.
'We' might need to get over 'ourselves'.
Did Clark's actions actually threaten anyone with Covid-19? No.
Media beat-up. They are desperate to tarnish the gold that is Jacinda (and Robertson).
I don't think it's fair or correct to sack Clark for anything in particular. He's clearly an idiot so blame shouldn't come into it. He should just be sacked for general incompetence.
Who should be Minister of Health?
I don't know. Louisa Wall? Liz Craig? I’m liking Chloe Swarbrick more and more.
Liz Craig would be very appropriate but this is her first term so it could be a bit soon. She wasn't even appointed to the Epidemic Response Committee.
Bit of a joke that last bit, given her CV.
Out of interest, have you seen Farrar's post from yesterday about the Covid-19 comittee members? He makes the same point about Liz Craig.
Farrars mob?
Haven't they been wishing for someone more like bill english in a crisis?
John Hopkins just ticked over a million reported cases. Took 8 days to double from half a million.
There is a very funny picture leading Brian Easton's column on Pundit re Trump masking. I can't copy and paste it but it can be seen on https://www.pundit.co.nz/
Seem to remember that picture heading one of the posts on here recently…..and the article is as good as the picture
No..wasnt here…mustve been somewhere else
Ha!
Direct link to image:
https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/5c19a371aa49a150fcfe2851/1585805622387-U9K4J4WNMX8LWPUO2DCC/ET_NX18WoAUPp39.jpg?content-type=image%2Fjpeg
The PM will likely address the Minister of Health’s brain fade at her press conference today. Hopefully anyway, and use him as an example of what not to do. He should apologise profusely. Jacinda did not need this at this time. She has to keep well and get enough sleep and not be kept awake at night by such stupidity.
Jacinda is a very weak leader re staff. Twyford, Lees-Galloway and Clark (and NZ First MP's) often embarrass her but she will not fire anyone. The talent pool is too shallow we all know that. She also only acted on Clare Curran and Meka Whaitiri as she was forced to.
She needs to take a leaf out of Helen Clarks' playbook.
Like many others, Jimmy is still tuned in to "politics as usual".
Previous cases are irrelevant here. Firings have always been based more on the importance of the sinner than the sin (Murray McCully broke more rules than there are in the book, but survived, because he was Murray McCully and knew where the bodies were buried).
The PM won't fire Clark because she is dealing with an extraordinary challenge, and the health system doesn't need a newbie learning the name tags. That is vastly more important than playing the Beehive games which made headlines on a slow news day, but are entirely irrelevant now.
Really? I've never sacked anyone either.
Told a few, including myself, "I hope you have bloody well learned from this, and will do better next time".
Works much better than shooting people for their cockups.
You just end up replacing them with another fallible human, who you have to train to avoid the mistakes, the previous one learned from.
Some people are promoted beyond their capabilities. Clark, Curran, ILG and Twyford are examples in Labour IMO.
Nick Smith, Paula Bennett are examples in National also IMO.
I still have an open mind about which of them were, "promoted beyond their capabilities" and which are learning a huge job, on the trot.
It remains to be seen.
National were in long enough to make it obvious.
Jacinda Adern has done an excellent job, of communicating, which is her role, so far, as have many others.
I have to agree with you on Jacinda's communication (and not just this Covid-19 thing), it is always very good. Just wish she would put some of her MP's in their place when the do absolutely dumb things like this that embarrass them.
Some people are promoted beyond their capabilities.
IMO, Simon Bridges.
Gee the leader of the of a labour party (the party that try's to make workers lifes better) doesnt believe in pulling their metaphorical penis out and sacking people to prove they’re the bees knees.
Who woulda thunk it.?
I'm simply saying Helen Clark would not have put up with this shit from her MP's.
Yeah well Clark was a 90s poly and the first elected female PM Nz was still dragging its knuckles then some are trying to walk upright nowadays
Oh look. Jimmy was almost certainly calling Helen Clark an idiot – and a few other names no doubt – when she was PM.
It is Helen Clark's playbook by the way. Just a little grammar lesson for you.
Did you get out of the wrong side of someone's bed Anne?
No I did very well under the Clark government and she certainly surrounded herself with much more competent people. But also did not suffer fools.
But thanks for the grammar lesson….I must admit I'm not a good typist.
Helen Clark was no idiot. Cold, uncaring, heartless, calculating, unkind, at times even duplicitous – but she was no idiot.
Some (…) would call that a backhanded compliment, others would call it a character assassination.
Like her or loathe her (Helen that is), she was a good politician and PM.
She was none of those things Chris. OK maybe a bit duplicitous in a political sense but you name a prominent politician who isn't. But she was from broadly the same generation and Presbyterian background as I came from. We were brought up not to show our emotions on our sleeve. It was often mistaken for coldness and lack of empathy. It was neither of those things.
Helen Clark was certainly no idiot. But I knew her personally. She was none of the other things.
I disagreed with her simply calling a hiatus to the Neo-liberal onslaught. “New Zealand is tired of changes”, But doubt anyone could have achieved much more at the time, in that direction.
Male politicians with similar characteristics, would have been credited with much more positive descriptions.
The only brain fade was using a marked van. In his defence a chance to get away on his own and do a bit of clear thinking is probably invaluable considering how many are yapping in his ear. I once had a job that required a bit of clear headed thinking on occasion and I used to drive a few kms away and park-up and think without distraction for 5 or 10 minutes.
It seems COVID-19 deaths in Europe are being way under-reported. For instance, in France and Spain, retirement home deaths apparently aren't included in reported totals.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/official-coronavirus-figures-dont-reveal-the-true-scale-of-the-pandemic_n_5e846d7ac5b6a1bb76507da7
Same in Italy
The poms hadn't been counting deaths outside hospital.
https://youtu.be/WimbyL_25Nw
If only David Clark had listened to Randy Rainbow.
Every morning Bill de Blasio, mayor of NY does a presser.
This morning he is advising all NYer's to wear a 'face covering'. People may carry the virus yet have no symptoms, so they just spread it, asymptomatic . He does not want people using surgical masks, as those need to be saved for those on the 'front line'. Instead encouraging people to make their own or wear a bandana.
It must be horrendous in NY, he's asking for the military to mobilize and for any medical people to come to NY to help.
If your interested, I usually watch it on this link, comes on around 9.30-10am.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cU8SPervUD4
Meanwhile, agent orange has just started his daily presser…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcMJutiXTak
The Presidential presser yesterday started off with an astonishing electioneering session. They didn't want to talk about the new milestones or the number of deaths and infected so went full out on war.
The navy is going to sort out the drug cartels. This is war. Iran is going to be sorted out, this is war. 'We are not sleeping, no-one should think that while we're distracted we're not ready." The navy is ready, they're ready to go. As of today they're …
And all those saying how great the Leader is. The election is the week before Veterans Day. I wonder if the troops and rockets and bowing and scraping experts will be ready for the parade in Washington.
Bit of a dilemma for the trumpskyites, is it still ok to rip veils off muslims.
Great piece here from the NYTimes about the demise of advertising-funded print media. Perhaps a few of the loud mouthed media commentators here in NZ should read it and have a deeper look at the reasons their industry is headed the same way as the dinosaurs. Apologies if it’s paywalled, an online sub to the NYT is the same price as the NZHerald though and about a million times better.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/29/business/coronavirus-journalists-newspapers.html?searchResultPosition=9
NYT gives you some free articles before you hit the paywall.
Well worth it though. IMHO.
http://archive.li/9pRUw
On the lighter side. Walked past a couple of women, several metres apart, sitting on their respective front lawns, drinking wine.
Told us they were practising their "social" distancing.
Oh joy Mitre 10 can sell padlocks online – pity I have a broken exterior door lock – which they stock
BUT CAN'T BLOODY SELL ME!
Maybe contact Mitre 10 and ask them to have it included in their list of essential items? I under stand they had to submit such a list to the government?
Got through to their customer service centre – transferred to a supervisor… left message on his answerphone – wish me luck
Good. 👍
Good luck!
In anticipation of a resolution of our current homeless/NFA situation I eagerly went online seeking 5ol heavy duty storage crates with lids. The crates I originally packed our books in have not fared well in the shed they are stored in. They will not survive being trucked to our prospective home.
Got the same NO CAN SELL message.
Played the phone tag game for a while, but life is short.
Papiere Bitte!
https://twitter.com/profkarolsikora/status/1244566715251515395
https://twitter.com/bbckamal/status/1245800546893774850
https://www.businessinsider.com.au/uk-plans-coronavirus-immunity-passports-so-brits-can-leave-lockdown-2020-4?
Hoping this leads to something…
https://twitter.com/TXMedCenter/status/1245037270605889538
In a small clinical trial just granted approval, about 30 COVID-19 patients at Karolinska University Hospital may soon begin to receive blood plasma from people who have recovered from the disease. Sweden's Ethical Review Authority has approved the trial treatment, and its effectiveness will be evaluated in a study by researchers at Karolinska Institutet and the Karolinska University Hospital.
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-04-green-trial-blood-plasma-recovered.html
..and this quackery is done.
Several seriously ill covid-19 patients in Sweden have been treated with chlorikin, the active substance in malaria medicine – something praised by researchers in other parts of the world. Now comes alarming reports that the drug on the contrary can be dangerous. – That is why we have decided in Gothenburg and in Västra Götaland that we do not use it, says Magnus Gisslén, chief physician at the Eastern Hospital.
(google translate)
https://www.svt.se/nyheter/lokalt/vast/malariamedicin-provas-pa-sjuka-infektionslakaren-dumt
The idiot US President has some other idiot on there talking about the big learnings to come out of the current situation. Apparently relying on other countries for essential things is bad. Stuff is being made overseas because of cheap labour is bad.
Hello? Globalisation has been good for scores of years when American companies decamped production off shore for cheap labour so they could make a killing. Now essential medical needs should be manufactured at home? How about making everything at home?
Whingeing about their sacred capitalist system not working how they want it to work when the going gets tough? Just another effect of the virus I suppose.
What happens when you displease Dear Leader by telling the truth,
https://twitter.com/NBCNews/status/1245812219633377281
And people criticise the Chinese.
Not that one baby killing lying murderous Government, is any better than the other.
People also criticise the yankers you know.
Horror Show, Live
Why the hell is it all Trump, Pence, and Jared Kushner? Where are the DOCTORS? Why do the press corps just sit there like dummies and accept this evil farce?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1y9KOesF6w&feature=emb_logo
Because as far as he is concerned it is all about Trump. As has been the case all his life. It's not going to change even for 100,000+ lives.
True enough, Trump is more heinous than anyone could have predicted. But the real problem here is the deferential, compliant press corps.
Many main stream are considering not covering these publicly funded "election rallies", despite the fact that people are anxious to find out the latest information regarding the pandemic, and are thinking about simply reporting the key "take way" messages, after they have been clarified by WH staff.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/25/business/media/trump-coronavirus-briefings-ratings.html
and
https://deadline.com/2020/03/coronavirus-chris-hayes-don-lemon-1202896531/
Whoa! Just looked up from my laptop, glanced out my window. A couple of PO-licemen in the front yard of neighbour, talking to neighbour – same place there was a loud altercation a couple of evenings' back.
I guess I'm becoming a curtain twitcher under lock down.
Same here yesterday.
Ambulance first. Then cop car.
No one wearing PPE and no handcuffs, pepperspray or tasers.
At one stage four members of the household were in the back of the ambulance and were then joined by a thin mask wearing paramedic.
All but the Man of The House exited said ambulance and it went on it's way.
The constables spent some time in deep conversation with an Older Gentleman who had arrived earlier in the day. Possibly to hold the a-frame ladder while the man of the house perched atop so he could remove crud from his spouting and hurl it hither and thither.
Mildly interesting, but I was busy, so I detached from this timeless suburban pursuit with a dismissive…'silly bugger's going to fall and break his neck' to my partner.
Total relief when I saw them all walking in and out of the ambulance.
Oh happy days.
Yes. All these little dramas in the residential areas. I take an interest for a minute or 2 and go back to what I am doing.
Mostly my hood is pretty quiet. No illegal or risky behaviours as far as I know. Probably just some stressed people with short fuses.
Maybe people don't have much imagination, or maybe I have too much, but the last place I would want to be right now is in traction in a hospital.
These days you're more likely to be fitted up with an external fixator and sent home to suffer.
that would suit me. But you take my point.
Yup. Not a great time to be hospitalised
Help! What are we doing for these people. Our people overseas, now needing help in all parts of the globe.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/world/413303/kiwis-stuck-in-new-dehli-call-for-help-from-the-government
We have to get right down and personal and help NZs stuck overseas and not just keep repeating that refrain that's almost a threnody, stay in place for the duration. That's economic thinking, we say it and turn it into reality without concern for the implementation. These people need money and need it now. And to be advised of any transport available, and they need a 24 hour line with people who have a budget to facilitate things now. Not save money or supplies up for a possible greater need tomorrow.
NZ Government – support our people. You have been in globalisation mode for quite a while now – but the other side of it is that everyone needs a home, not in the globe in general, but on some definite ground which is here in NZ. Bring them home, or support them until they can get here.
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fXnRf3TQcpk
Bring Him Home from Les Miserables
Bring him peace, bring him joy
He is young, he is only a boy
You can take, you can give
Let him be, let him live…
Bring him home
Bring him home
Bring him home
Worth a laugh, funny news
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KfIsuMmncm0&ab_channel=SomeMoreNews
Here's a good illustration of the kind of price gouging and profiteering going on right now in the US.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/new-york-medical-equipment-payments_n_5e863fd7c5b6d302366cf992
The federal government has explicit powers under the Defense Production Act to take control of this, order companies to produce what's needed and set the price at cost plus a reasonable margin, and coordinate sending product to where it's most needed. But it's not doing that with the bilious fake-bronze baboon preferring to just sit back and fire off twitter insults against those trying to fight the problem.
More who love the market model. Coming up with some altruistic crap about loving America and doing things for America.
People do things for money. That's how it works. More money, quicker money. Donald Trump would be happy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YsmKvC7RpEQ
White power Tucker's pissed off because 3M is selling what is rightfully the tRump crime family's PPE to foreigners.
/
https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/1245852517474295809
https://twitter.com/blogboynick/status/1245878819791101953
I am, I admit, being a little provocative here: a link for bill. The first 20 minutes worth watching.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1WP2xcV97Nk
Tedros of WHO a member of the Maoist Party of Ethiopia?
Yeah, Falun Gong don't like the CCP.
Given the atrocious way the CCP have treated the Falun Gong, this should be unsurprising. The CCP's relationship with all religious traditions has varied from overbearing and oppressive, to hostile and murderous.
I don't know a great deal about Falun Gong, but whatever the propaganda from either side says, it's clear that nothing good has happened.
Then look at the Uighur situation for another example of totalitarian oppression.
Then listen to what many of the Christian Churches say, forced to operate underground or work with severe restrictions such as not being allowed to teach their own children their faith. Or compelled to register with State bodies that ensure compliance with state dictates.
Or just go back to the Maoist destruction of China's own indigenous religious and cultural traditions during the Cultural Revolution.
Yes there is a lot of propaganda from all sides, and with the language barrier plus our social remove none of us are in a position to make much sense of it all. Yet one thing is clear, the CCP is not merely a political party; it represents a totalitarian ideology that brooks no serious competitors.
My mainland born SIL reckons it's China's Chernobyl. Local officials minimised and prevaricated, things were out of control long before Beijing was aware of the severity of the situation and from then on it's only ever been a face saving exercise.
But this time there was no radiation to be detected so we'll never know how widespread the disease was let alone how many deaths occurred.
What has transpired is too big to be left to individual countries. Particularly closed-off and authoritarian ones.
Doctors and health officials need an independent global body which to report to the next time this happens.
We can't go through this shit again.
Well, who does.
https://www.moonofalabama.org/2020/04/china-did-not-deceive-us-counting-death-during-an-epidemic-is-really-difficult.html#more
an excerpt:
As for the number of urns delivered to funeral homes in Hubei after the quarantine was lifted one has also to consider the number of regular death. Hubei province has some sixty million inhabitants. The regular mortality rate in China is 726 per 100.000 inhabitants per year. The regular expected number of death from January 1 to March 31 in Hubei province without the epidemic was 108.900. In Wuhan, which has 14 million inhabitants, the expected number was 25.410. Photos that show the delivery of a few thousands of urns to large funeral homes in Wuhan are thereby not a sign for a higher Covid-19 death rate. To claim such is propaganda nonsense."
Really some of the crap coming out of American Trump and Bannon wannabes is laughable .Pravda redux.
Pravda redux.
I think it's far more insidious than pravda. Pravda was one outlet, not a conglomeration of corporate media outlets always singing from the same song book and from the page they have been told to turn to by (usually) anonymous western "Intelligence Sources".
Throw on top of that the fact that most people (it seems) continue to labour under the notion that there's a "vibrant free press" comprised of competing outlets and mediums bent on providing facts and discovering truths.
It's truly horrible.
That's not provocative. It's just a reflection of who and what you are.
I already provided a lengthy article that covered the propaganda of the Wuhan urns – that article "outed" the source of the story and much else besides and you didn't challenge a word of it. But for anyone who might be stumbling across this bile for the first time, below is the relevant passage from the article I already provided to you.
And for those who don't know, the source for the story – RFA is Radio Free Asia – " a US government news agency created during the Cold War as part of a “Worldwide Propaganda Network Built by the CIA”, according to the New York Times."
And, of course, versions of the urn story are being carried uncritically by multiple western outlets (google "chinese urns" for a partial run down), because that's what they do – "follow the script" that's fed to them – China being an "official enemy" and all….
Oddly, none of the social media posts RFA referred to were quoted in its article.
RFA’s “estimates” are based on morbid speculation regarding the cremation capacity of Wuhan’s funeral homes. RFA cites a story by the Chinese media outlet Caixin on funeral arrangements being made by Wuhan residents during the crisis. On March 26, Caixin reported that 5,000 cremation urns had arrived at a mortuary in Wuhan over a two-day period. This is treated as nefarious evidence of Chinese government deception solely because it exceeds the official death total in Wuhan.
RFA completely ignores the fact that residents have continued to die from other causes during the pandemic, as well as the backlog in funerals and cremations caused by the city’s several month long lockdown. In 2019, approximately 56,000 cremations took place in Wuhan, according to the city’s official statistics.
That means that roughly 4600 residents died per month, a figure that was likely higher during the winter months and with Wuhan’s health care system overwhelmed by the outbreak. With Wuhan under lockdown since January 23, a substantial increase in the use of funeral homes and crematoriums should have been expected.
Critic banned.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/120800211/university-of-otago-cuts-off-studentrun-critic-magazine-over-coronavirus-article
Critic can be a bit of a loose unit at times.
The editorial's not even that bad. Just accurate.
The university was pulling the business as usual card up until a day before it locked its doors.
It constantly couches everything, especially publicly, in concern for safety and wellbeing, but then put the onus on staff to demonstrate why they should be able to stay home, tried to implement some BS "working from home" leave request that required above-department signoff, and generally shows a lack of human consideration worthy of a nat blogger.
Plus everything in the Critic opinion piece.
A month or two back (who can tell these days) the uni decided to improve morale by telling us to consider what we could do to make our colleagues happier. Telling colleagues that everyone in the top rungs of the hierarchy was retiring would cheer a lot of people up.
Universities seem to have had the worst of incompetent, chair polishing managerialism inflicted on them. Since they have been "run like a business".
Skegg was pretty good, as I recall. People were quite optimistic about Hayne, as another practising academic rather than academic-turned professional university administrator.
Shame it turned out this way. She's possibly even worse than Fogelberg was, and he was a total wanker as VC. In those days we could get 2,000 people outside his office chanting exactly that 🙂
I'm staggered by the numbers of overseas tourists still in NZ.
12,000 Germans have registered for repatriation from NZ.
Thats a lot of rentals opened up. Every cloud…
Given the events of the last few weeks, anyone else think the grim reaper of New Zealand, David Seymour, will have trouble with his legalised murder bill in the upcoming referendum?
The robber barons never went away.
https://twitter.com/joshtpm/status/1245932633864863747
https://twitter.com/ricardo_de_anda/status/1245940075734732801
Adam Schlesinger died from Covid-19 on 1 April in New York (aged 52). He was a singer-songwriter, record producer, guitarist, keyboardist, and frontman for several bands including "Fountains of Wayne".
It makes me very sad, but I just wanted to remember him and share one of his bands popular songs released in 2003.
Stacy's Mom by Fountains of Wayne (Live In Chicago).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKVf6ey64DI
Sesame Street for Adults:
Brought to you by the letters W T and F
Two weeks ago bus driver Jason Hargrove posted a video on FB saying he was worried about coronavirus transmission after a woman coughed on his bus.
He's died after contracting coronavirus.
https://www.facebook.com/1242205136/videos/10222496193013898/
https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/detroit/2020/04/02/detroit-bus-drivers-dead-covid-19/5115450002/