Bernie is hanging in there as an arterial blockage is being dealt to, and perhaps a stint will be placed in his partial blockage as the US media says he is expected to be back in operation before to long so we hope they are correct there.
Elizabeth Warren is rising in the polls and nearing equal to Biden now we hear.
I wouldn't take to much notice of the mainly negative MSM spin on Bernie..I like this by Norman Soloman when talking about some liberal media in regards to it's coverage of Sanders.. "Circus dogs jump when the trainer cracks his whip, but the really well-trained dog is the one that turns his somersault when there is no whip." —George Orwell"
The media seem to have coalesced around Warren now, personally I would be very disappointed if Warren wins the nomination, she would be for the US what Helen Clark was to NZ..nothing much, and even her most ardent supporters couldn't make that case that she was at all transformative…and that is exactly what the world needs right now, and we all know what candidate that is.
The time has long past for the world to sit and wait for the centrist liberal/capitalist project and it's bullshit incrementalism to make any meaningful changes, we all know now that those changes will never happen, we all know now that liberal capitalists would rather lose everything than concede anything on their bottom line or capital gains or any of the power..that is exactly why the unified single chant that can be heard loud and clear from the board rooms of big business, corporate media and establishment political think tanks across the States is…Anyone One But Bernie!, why?.. because he is the only one who threatens them and their system of exploitative extraction of workers, the environment and the planet..not Biden and not Warren, Bernie Sanders.
Get well Bernie…the only transformative candidate in 2020.
"she would be for the US what Helen Clark was to NZ..nothing much,.."
Labour was a minority party during those years…remember MMP was designed to stop big changes from a major party , and its works still.
Sanders would have to try to get separately elected House AND Senate to pass any of his agenda…and you could say he would be in a more difficult situation than Boris Johnson is now and Clark was over a decade ago.
You should really follow US politics more to see how it really works.
Lyndon Johnson was a master legislator – even though he was personally quite corrupt – as he had been the leader of the Senate for some years and knew every trick to get legislators to back him, as happened to the Civil rights laws.
Even Bill Clinton was a well persuader and could work to get things passed by difficult House and Senate.
Sanders is a mediocre legislator based on his record, he has nowhere near the ability or long background of even say Biden or someone like Warren who has had a major impact in her short time.
His committee is Veteran Affairs ….. that changed everything very little
“While sitting down with then-Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), who was meeting with members of his conference one on one during the difficult days in 2009, Sanders told the then-Senate majority leader not to worry: He was going to vote for Obamacare, though he would continue speaking publicly as if he wouldn’t so he could continue to rail against the absence of a public option. https://www.politico.com/story/2016/03/bernies-record-220508
Wow Bernie… be the worst sort of Politician…
Well guess what Sanders made a $10 mill transfer too
"Sanders had raised $46.3 million by the end of the second quarter, according to Federal Election Commission records. That includes $10.1 million transferred from previous campaigns.
Spot the differences..if you can…hahahaha
"Sanders doesn’t hold closed-door fundraisers to solicit high-dollar contributions and doesn’t accept money from corporate PACs or super PACs, or from fossil fuel, drug or insurance companies.
Warren doesn’t hold closed-door fundraisers to solicit high-dollar contributions and doesn’t accept money from federal lobbyists or PACs, or fossil fuel or pharmaceutical executives.
“Time magazine reported in December 2015: “Sanders has hosted at least nine medium- to high-dollar, closed-door fundraisers in New York, Los Angeles and elsewhere to directly fund his own presidential campaign. Even though Sanders’ efforts sometimes have a proletarian flair — he held one $200-per-ticket fundraiser at a dive bar near a grungy Seattle park — some aspects of the Democratic insurgent’s fundraising are similar to the candidates he condemns.”
"For months,(2016) the Federal Election Commission has been writing to the Sanders campaign with warnings that hundreds of his donors have exceeded the $2,700 contribution limit and that hundreds more may be foreign nationals illegally giving Sanders money.
hell $2700 is a huge amount , as that limit applies to everyone. Wheter you are Mark Zuckerberg or of Vera from Vermont.
….doesn’t hold closed-door fundraisers to solicit high-dollar contributions and doesn’t accept money from corporate PACs or super PACs, or from fossil fuel, drug or insurance companies.
….. doesn’t hold closed-door fundraisers to solicit high-dollar contributions and doesn’t accept money from federal lobbyists or PACs, or fossil fuel or pharmaceutical executives.
The maximum individual limit is $2700 and we know that Bernie got plenty of those last time ( and even exceeded it)
However both have used slightly deceptive wording:
..hold closed-door fundraisers to solicit high-dollar contributions..
Which still allows max $ contributions from almost anyone
Well, dreams are free, but accurate predictions they aren't. Neither of those two things will happen, and both, that's so far removed from reality it more like fantasy politics.
Best wishes to Bernie. Hey, Mick Jagger had a heart op and finished the Stones tour, Mr Sanders is ornery and committed enough to do similar. He would likely have one good term in him at least, and make a number of changes future Pressies would find hard to roll back.
hes in hospital with heart issues …havent read any real news?
What Congress changes are you suggesting Sanders will make- Ive said hes a useless legislator and thats based on his record.
Sanders is a prodigious fund raiser, is his only claim to fame, so he should be able to get his campaign themes out there no problem. Yet the primaries where democrats can vote show him as a runner up in 2016 and will happen gain in 2020
her medical records said : hypothyroidism, She takes a prescription blood thinner to guard against clots,fainted four years ago after becoming dehydrated and suffered a concussion
Watch the same play being used against Ardern next year, its because women politicians are susceptible to false rumours of all kinds but medical ones get traction.
Yes that was a good discussion. Hedge's comments starting about 20 minutes in, about the liberal church and christian fascists as represented by Pence, were right on the mark as well.
So Trump who has been accused of using fake news throughout his political meanderings is now accusing others of using fake news to impeach him. What a hoot. What delicious irony.
He wishes to focus on his Tear Ranga Council bid and bizzniss activities?
He seems "passionate" about us and our, and as a "strategic thinker" he might be seeing the writing on the wall.
Or maybe since he had pulled himself up by the bootstraps to "the heights of the Corporate world" ( no doubt with the help of his good lady woif -who also no doubt had to make so many sacrifices), his ambitions lay outside of centril gummint.
Yes the Herald called it "mysterious" but the original release earlier on Politik clearly referred to possible health issues, personal issues etc. Why is it now that the minute details of what may effect someone in this position or similar are open to such innuendo and scrutiny if they are not highly critical to operations of some sort? Things happen to and for people. He had already had clearance weeks back from NZFirst for leave and has reached this decision. The most mysterious thing is NZ media currently, they are determined to make every event an "issue", this is the normal passage of life people encounter.
Degradable – This is a standard plastic with a chemical added that disintegrates the bag into tiny pieces of plastic (called Microplastics)
Biodegradable – This is plastic which will eventually degrade into Microplastics from the action of naturally occurring micro-organisms, with no set time (could be 30+ years!)
Compostable – This is a product that is capable of disintegrating into natural elements in a compost environment, leaving no toxicity or plastic particles in the soil.
Commercially Compostable – This means only compostable in a municipal composting environment; moisture and temperatures of at least 50-65°C required to break down.
Home Compostable – This will compost at lower temperatures, ideally suited to a home compost bin environment (this is what we’ve chosen)
Recyclable – Packaging that can be processed back into reusable materials. This is what our Regular Proper Crisp Bags are, through the Soft Plastics Recycling Scheme.
Helpful stuff weka. So much to get head around. Looking at my blue plastic bag this morning. What can I use that reduces those bits, already less than used to be. Have an idea. Will pursue.
Sorry for the pessimism, but i am very very careful with these sudden 'feel' good 'compostable, natural, etc 'plant based meat' solution that essentially allow us to continue with our bad food habits of eating crap mass produced 'cheap' food, that allow us to continue to mindlessly consume cause its is all 'environmentally friendly' and above all we don't actually have to change a thing we do. Ergo, nothing changes and in a few years time we will learn that the stuff that was sold to us as a miracle solution was neither a miracle nor a solution.
I generally agree. But short of a way to get everyone to change to low consumption in one go and pretty quick, this is a useful step in the right direction. It reduces plastic pollution, and at the same time points to zero waste as well as creating path out of consumption (when we start thinking about home composting, our relationship to the world changes).
2009 is well outdated in terms of the greenwashing issues. We went through all that bollocks about being sold degradable plastics, and we pushed back, likewise industrial compostable, and now we have companies that are working with actually useful plastic replacements instead of trying to hide the pollution.
Fake meat, don't get me started. That's the big one at the moment imo, because so many people who care about climate change don't seem to be making the connections between industrial processes and environmental damage and appear to believe that it's a reductionist issue – replace cow burps with soy and we'll be fine. This misses the issues around consumption, and ignores the vital importance of relocalising food supply.
I don't eat a lot of crisps, but if I am in town and hungry and this is what I can eat to get me through the shopping list until I get home, then I will buy the crisps in the packaging that I can put in the compost. This is a good thing.
'Fake meat, don't get me started. That's the big one at the moment imo, because so many people who care about climate change don't seem to be making the connections between industrial processes and environmental damage and appear to believe that it's a reductionist issue – replace cow burps with soy and we'll be fine. This misses the issues around consumption, and ignores the vital importance of relocalising food supply'
ok..there are two types of fake-meat – one grown in lab – one plant-based – neither of which has soy as an essential ingredient..it cd be used..but is not integral..
and interesting how you reference cows and soy – as 85% of the soy grown on the planet is feed to animals..that are then eaten..so unsure what the point is you are trying to make there..
and of course one of the reasons our animal-extraction industries are threatened..is because both of those fake-meat alternatives can be made locally..no need to ship from other side of world…so that fits with yr 'local' imperative..eh..?
Macdonald's chopped down Amazon rainforest to grow meat patties for their burgers and they'll do the same to grow soy burgers or pea protein fake meat. I support animal welfare, but the idea that going vegan is better for the environment only makes sense if you want a bit less damage instead of doing right by nature.
If you think this is about monsanto soy (or whatever) for vegans, I'm sorry to hear that that is how you eat. I will continue to point out that CC action on food has to be relocalised and regenag, and that best practice food growing can easily include animals as a positive thing. It's not a hard argument to follow.
"going vegan is better for the environment only makes sense if you want a bit less damage"
I’m trying to decrease my consumption of meat and dairy (the dairy is a real struggle), and am interested in this idea that going vegan might be a bit less damaging to the environment. Specifically I'd beinterested to know if there are any estimates of the magnitude of "a bit less", and in particular what range these estimates might span.
"One report explores the economic case for changing current food production and consumption habits, estimating that they cause about $12 trillion a year in damage to the environment, human health and development. If countries invested just half of 1 percent of global GDP in carbon-friendly agriculture, food waste reduction, reforestation and prescribing more plant-focused diets, among other measures, the world could sustainably feed itself and reduce the climate-related damage, the authors found."
If "a bit less damage" is code for 'a tiny bit less damage', why bother? If, however, "a bit less damage" turned out to be 'quite a bit less damage', then I would be less dismissive of plant-based diet initiatives.
"What over 9 billion people choose to eat and how they make these choices are at the heart of how our food and land use systems evolve," the report finds, adding: "The right animals, in the right places and raised in the right conditions can continue to play an important role in sustainable food and land use systems."
"So many countries are dealing with under-nourishment. They're going to have to increase food consumption, and accordingly their carbon footprints are going to have to go up," said Keeve Nachman, director of the Food Production and Public Health Program at Johns Hopkins' Center for a Livable Future and one of the report's authors. "We have a responsibility as a global community to make sure they have enough food. What that means is that high-income countries that typically consume more animal products are going to have to more rapidly consider some of these plant-forward dietary shifts."
there's a world of difference between reducing meat/dairy consumption and going vegan. For instance, there are small scale dairy farmers in NZ doing regenerative agriculture. If you reduce your dairy consumption and buy their products instead of Fonterra dairy, then you are helping reduce NZ's methane emissions, supporting local economies, and promoting regenerative ag which has multiple very important ecological benefits including being a carbon sink.
If on the other hand you go vegan, and need to get protein from plant sources alone, what are you planning to eat? Monocropping causes multiple environmental issues, and for NZ a lot of legume protein is imported, thus increasing food miles and GHGs. There are ways around that, but they're not particularly easy and they lead to things like fake animal products with high enviro impacts in cafes because that is easier than them cooking whole legumes. Further, the more people who chose not to eat the regenag dairy, the less conversion to regenag we will see and people will simply choose whatever even if it has high food miles. Transport is significant part of NZ's eco footprint (esp within NZ).
The go vegan messages I see from say the Guardian are based on global industrial food supply chains, which themselves are polluting, and not particularly relevant to NZ eg cattle in NZ are still raised on pastures not in CAFO feed lots. So sure, eat less meat if you can (which really depends on how much you eat now), but eat local whether it's meat, dairy, nuts or beans.
"Better land use, less-meat-intensive diets and eliminating food waste should be priorities to help forestall a climate catastrophe, the authors say."
Yep. Go look up what they mean by better land use. Afaik they're saying regenag (which includes animals).
Again, less meat intensive doesn't mean vegan. Veganism is primarily an animal rights movement where you have to use no animals at all. It prioritises the welfare of certain animals over ecologies and eating local, and it's philosophically against much of the regenag we desperately need.
Mixed farming systems integrating crops, livestock, fisheries and agro-forestry could maintain crop yield in the face of climate change, help the system to adapt to climatic risk, and minimise GHG emissions by increasingly improving the nutrient flow in the system
"there's a world of difference between reducing meat/dairy consumption and going vegan"
Absolutely true at the level of the individual; at a population level not so much, unless (of course) everyone adopts a vegan diet. Can't see that happening in NZ, where the per capita consumption of meat is relatively high. Consumption is reducing though, which is good for almost everything and everyone except perhaps meat farmers.
Doubt I could ever 'go vegan'; even ‘going vegetarian’ would be a challenge. But for those in our relatively healthy and wealthy society who make that choice for themselves, I say 'hear hear, good choice, well done'. And not just NZ society – kudos to Greta Thunberg, and to anyone else with the fortitude and commitment to 'go vegan'.
Bit hypocritical on my part, but every little bit helps – don't lose hope.
“Vegetarians should take some solace from the fact that meat consumption is declining in half of the countries listed above. Between 2002 and 2009 the amount consumed by US residents fell from 124.8 kilos per person to 120.2, for example, in Luxembourg from 141.7 to 107.9, in New Zealand from 142.1 to 106.7 [kilos per person per year] and in Denmark (previously the world’s biggest consumers of meat) from 145.9kg to 95.2kg.”
i don't think it changes everything all this 'feel good environmentally packaging/bullshit'. It changes nothing, worse even it allows us to stay in our little bubble were we can fool ourselfs that we are doing something. LOOK, my packaging is labelled 'biodegradable', 'compostable', 'reusable', LOOK, i am doing my part.
In the meantime we don't actually have any recycling facilities in this country worse calling it 'recycling facilities'. We don't actually properly seperate our rubbish, it all ends up in the same Landfill facility.
We still continue to buy rubbish junk food – albeit 'plant derived'!! YEI, me see how i am saving hte world? \
We still lie to ourself every day in order to continue doing what we do namely stop consuming like mindless idiots, stop eating crap (and that includes chemically derived fibres resembling meat from unidentified plant material), stop living desperate lives so empty that filling it with junk is what we call success.
I'm not sure we do disagree. I mean, I agree with what you are saying there. If it were up to me, and maybe you too, I'd have us powering down (with all the shift in culture that goes with that) so we don't need home compostable packaging for crisps. But we are a small minority and I don't see many progressives yet seeing the need to stop consuming, let alone people in positions of power. There's more than there used to be, but not so many that would commit to doing so now.
I think it's likely we will be forced to powerdown, but in the meantime I'd like capitalism to do less damage.
“We are sitting here every day ready to negotiate, the kamikaze way in which it is being treated by the UK government is not something we have chosen,” one EU diplomat said.
Another said a move “half an inch” from the current proposal to keep open the sensitive border between Ireland and British-ruled Northern Ireland would make a deal difficult.
Brexit kamikaze pilot Boorish! The EU must be watching with sourness and anger as Britain throws its wobbly. All that fighting in WW2 which has settled down to a relatively stable co-operative bloc is to be abandoned. The Irish Troubles and their settlement to a workable system, to be abandoned. Probably because Germany is perceived as doing better than Britain. So Britain wants to turn away from being the UK, and return to the old Britain relying on the USA to be its partner and collaborator. This from this reference repeated below. https://nzhistory.govt.nz/war/battle-of-britain/aftermath
Irresponsible, determinedly ignorant public school boys and girls enveloping the whole country in their persiflage. (Try reading Vintage Stuff and the adventures of Peregrine Clyde-Brown where the type is lampooned by Tom Sharpe.)
I recall thinking of grand action that arose during the Battle FOR Britain. Air Marshall Dowding planned night and day, and was cognisant of all the resources, and ensuring new ones, and conserved what Britain had. And looked at cost efficiency closely both for finances, built resources and humans, pilots and crew in particular. Against his careful implementation of calculated risks and also that of Air Vice Marshall Keith Park, a New Zealander, were the fly-boys who wanted to dash in shouting 'Follow Me Chaps, Death or Glory', (the so-called Big Wing approach, advocated by Air Vice-Marshal Trafford Leigh-Mallory).
Britain was saved from German invasion by Dowding and Park who spoke later – With benefit of experience in later commands, Park was convinced that ‘we would have lost the Battle of Britain if I had adopted the “withholding” tactics of No. 12 Group’. https://nzhistory.govt.nz/war/battle-of-britain/the-battle-september-october
This piece on the aftermath of WW2 points out how in supporting Britain, the USA also gained a stepping stone as a world power. Britain is now advancing that by withdrawing from the EU and 'paling up' with USA, and late-stage, crony capitalism. https://nzhistory.govt.nz/war/battle-of-britain/aftermath
The Battle of Britain was the first serious setback experienced by the Germans during the Second World War. This in itself was significant at a time when the German military forces seemed to be unstoppable, and it gave hope to conquered Europeans. But the long-term significance was even greater: Britain was preserved as a base for offensive action against Germany. Bombers operating from its bases would devastate German industry and infrastructure later in the war. As a springboard for the deployment of American power, it was vital to the eventual liberation of Western Europe.
And now the American power is to be given deference by the UK as an expedient by its hungry capital-accreting Right Wing. Will the ordinary citizens look on bemused and rudderless?
" The Irish Troubles and their settlement to a workable system, to be abandoned. "
No it doesnt. have you even read 1 page of the Good Friday agreement. Its hundred or more pages , hardly mentions the border ( apart from removing military army/police posts)
meanwhile plenty of chapters on the shared power arrangements for the NI Assembly and its 'compulsory coalitions and parallel consent' for both Unionist and Nationalist blocs.
Havent you noticed but the Assembly hasnt been working since Jan 2017.
Has the 'troubles' returned because of this major collapse of the GFA ?
Its a complete nonsense to suggest that a customs border but still retain freedom of movement ( since 1922) between North and South will cause any strife.
Remember Ireland joined Britain outside of the Schengen agreement to retain freedom of movement with UK,
Well the reports finally out, recommends shifting Ports of Auckland to Northland in stages. Would be biggest infrastructure spend in modern NZ history. Great stuff so long as the self interested Auckland politicians dont scuttlebit.
So, lots of new jobs in Northland and the Auckland land stays in Aucklanders' hands, no contracting out to private interests, or wealthy apartment dwellers, who will do everything they can to shut the rest of us out. Happens all the time.
Maybe we can then compete with Wellington's waterfront people spaces.
Yes, Auckland foreshore probably could be the most beautiful recreational space in NZ. And the net benefit Auckland ratepayers will receive would be almost twice as much than the current dividend gives.
Sadly, I doubt it will happen. Too many vested interests in maintaining the status quo.
Auckland has hundreds of miles of foreshore for the public, whether its from Ihumatao or Long Bay.
Its a weird concept pushed by Northland and Jones. They now want of 4 land motorway all the way to Whangarei… so everything can be trucked back to Auckland.
As Tauranga is an export port and Auckland an Import one, what will happen is container ships will make one stop at Mt Maunganui instead of Marsden Pt.
The good news is that its a one sided report so will be ignored like all the others of that ilk
Some fools want people living in the lower half of New Zealand to keep in the dark until after 9am on winter days. School kids walking or cycling to school in the dark!
Sunrise isn't till about 0840NZST in mid-winter in the south and their idea to keep NZDT would have sunrise at 0940 local.
Yep, ridiculous. The likes of Houlbrooke just oppose anything that even slightly smacks of social responsibility, all under the guise of 'personal freedom'.
Such people want what they want to be what we should do. It is obviousthat his way is the best way. Is he a born NZr or a newish one changing a few things in the country to make it perfect for him.
Sensational tagline? perhaps, but news from the u.s warns people not to vape cannabis oil
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has now confirmed a total of 12 deaths, with all of the patients reportedly using e-cigarettes prior to their deaths.
Of those, three quarters said they had used a vape containing THC (cannabis) oil.
The CDC is investigating, and has recommended people steer clear of vaping products containing THC, and no one substance has yet been identified in all of the tested samples.
NZ experts, however, suggest caution not concern.
Dr Penny Truman, Massey University School of Health Sciences
"New Zealand vapers using nicotine (or the nicotine-free equivalent) should not be concerned by the problems in the USA," Dr Truman said.
"People have been vaping as a smoking cessation tool with no obvious problems for around 10 years now all around the world.
"In contrast, the lung damage that is appearing in the USA develops over a very short time-frame, is localised as to where it is happening and is almost certainly related to vaping cannabis.
As Dr Truman says, ten years so far without obvious problems, so another decade to quit nicotine sounds good to me.
Actually I've just been researching how to make those cannabis vape liquids, and as there are no doubt tens of thousands of legit vaping users in the states, and mostly medical by the looks, having this crop of deaths does point to the batches used or a badly made product at fault and not the delivery device in itself.
Ten years is pretty tight to even measure the negative effects of smoking, and I haven't seen any studies at close to the scale of many of the smoking harm studies.
Even when things like the doctor's study were delivering their results, that was based on the observed outcome after 40 years of endemic smoking. I'e' they had a lot of 60y.o. doctors who had been smoking all their lives, rather than everyone only having started ten years ago.
But the short term harm, as you point out, looks like being the joys of unregulated capitalism rather than a problem with vaping itself. Contrast would be the immediate and sustained effects of crack or meth, which are shit products even without unregulated capitalism.
Well the media hysteria over vaping we saw after the first deaths in the u.s is somewhat put to bed (not that vapers didn't know it was mostly bs), and despite the caution, which I also share as anything but fresh air in your lungs isn't good, vaping is still much safer than actually lighting up and inhaling toxic smoke.
In some respects, it likely is. ~0ppm tar, for example. But until the long term data comes in, we won't know by how much. If it's only a quarter (or even a sixteenth) as harmful as smoking, would we have been better off trying to suppress vaping as well as smoking? A rhetorical question to illustrate the public health balancing act.
All depends on what the math turns out to be. Even for the smokers, if the vape plateau that stops them actually addressing their addiction ends up in significantly fewer people stopping their nicotine use, that might offset the benefit of fewer people actually smoking. Whereas the clear harm of smoking is an incentive to break the habit.
But we don't even know that vaping is actually safer, yet. It's a fair guess, but surprises happen.
It's true I wouldn't ever go back to smoking if vapes were banned, though I did read one reason for wanting to get rid of them is that a number of kids go on to cigarettes after vaping, which I find really odd.
Gordon Campbell looking at the swing in the world back to government involvement in infrastructure spending to kickstart a sluggish economy.
(And other matters.)
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A Statement on Abortion Law Reform by the Council of Disobedient Women On the eve of bringing an end to antiquated, anti-women abortion laws Green MP Jan Logie intends to write women out of the Bill. With a stroke of the pen, the woke are aiming for total erasure ...
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Freedom Of Speech? The Säuberung (cleansing by fire) was the work of the German Student Union which, on 10 May 1933, under the watchful eye of the Nazi Reichminister for Propaganda, Joseph Goebbels, consigned 25,000 books to the flames in a ritual exorcism of “un-German thought”. According to the logic of the ...
“There can be no such thing as kaupapa Māori political parties or politics in Aotearoa” (Willie Jackson, Labour Party (2017). Māori TV, General/List Election Special) I begin with that claim because at the time, I was confounded at first that it fell out of Willie Jackson’s mouth, and then ...
New Zealand’s media is doing its part in Japan, reassuring those in the path of the storm that they won’t miss any rugby while away from their flooded homes. New Zealand sports reporters stationed in Japan for the Rugby World Cup have had the rare and heartwarming opportunity to inform ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones is the only Cabinet member in favour of putting it all on green. As Finance Minister Grant Robertson finds himself with an enormous $7.5 billion surplus, the Government has begun intense, at times contentious conversations about whether to put the money on red or black at ...
by Susanne Kemp At the start of September close to 100,000 school teachers went on strike in Jordan. They demanded a 50% pay rise. A pay rise actually agreed to by the regime back in 2014. In early October, however, in the face of government repression and threats, the teachers’ ...
Back in 2011, journalist Nicky Hager published Other People's Wars, an expose on NZDF's activities over the previous decade of the "war on terror". NZDF didn't like this, and especially didn't like the fact that it was base don leaks from their own. So, they had the SIS investigate him ...
The Zero Carbon Bill is due back from select committee in two weeks, and will likely pass its final stages in November. So naturally, farmers are planning a hate-march against it. But they're not just demanding lower methane targets so they can keep on destroying the planet; they're also demanding ...
Last year, California burned. This year, to stop it happening again (or rather, to stop themselves from being found liable if it happens again), Pacific Gas and Electric is cutting power to half the state for a week:Schools are closed. Traffic lights down. Tunnels dark. Businesses unopened. Hospitals running on ...
The Best Way: Missing from the on-line voting debate is any reference to the voting system that produces turn-out figures ranging from 77 to 93 percent of registered voters. The voting system used to collect and count the votes cast in our parliamentary elections. The system that involves citizens making ...
Among the great new bunch of political friends we have been making recently is the excellent Australian-based Marxist gender-critical site, Freer Lives. So we asked the comrade who set up that blog to write something for Redline on the blog, himself, his analysis of the rise of gender politics and ...
by Don Franks The Auckland City Mission is struggling with a 40 percent increase in demand for food parcels this year. A total of 23,020 were needed by June. Last month Missioner Chris Farrelly told the Herald the “cupboards are bare” and without an emergency food drive, he can’t see ...
by The Council of Disobedient Women Massey Wellington Student Association had a sit-in today. Imagine a sit-in. On a campus. Against a women’s rights meeting. Did the ’60s really happen or did we fucking dream it? They gathered in the student square, an echo chamber. Sitting on soft pillows ...
For some reasons, my post about the mystery message from inside the Downing Street bunker seemed to catch people's attention. Quite a lot of hits from NZ (unsurprisingly) and the USA (a bit more puzzlingly, but hi there, USAians!!) and 76 views from the Ukraine.I've celebrated my Ukrainian readers in ...
First, almost a score of Labour MPs seem to have sent a letter to the EU basically begging them to accept a deal - any deal - just so Britain can get the Heck on with Brexiting instead of being trapped in limbo:
by Phil Duncan In 2016 the National-led government suspended the Parent Visa Category, through which migrants were able to bring their parents into New Zealand. Since then over 5,700 people have been in immigration limbo, stuck on the visa wait list. Labour is now bringing back the scheme. Well, sort ...
The following was released yesterday (Tues, October 8) by the women’s liberation organisation Speak Up for Women. On 23 September Speak Up For Women announced that we would be holding an event at the Massey University Theaterette in Wellington. The event is called Feminism 2020. The intention of the event ...
The government is currently consulting on plans to improve freshwater quality. So naturally, farmers oppose it:South Taranaki farmers are preparing to fight proposed national freshwater changes that some fear will bankrupt them. The Government's proposed National Environment Standard on Freshwater Management, released in September, rated the Waingongoro River as one ...
Yesterday was the last day for (reliably) posting your vote away in local body elections. Turnouts are mostly much lower than the equivalent time last year (Palmerston North is down 2.3%), and so naturally people are pushing their online-voting snake oil again. Because the online census worked so well, lets ...
This essay, on the political legacy of the eugenics movement, by Kenan Malik was originally published in the Observer on 6 October 2019, under the headline ‘The spirit of eugenics is still with us, as immigrants know to their cost’. Birth control. Intelligence tests. Town planning. Immigration controls. It’s striking how ...
Another year, and the government has announced another enormous government "surplus". And just like last year, its nothing of the sort. When we have people homeless and sick and hungry, when we have schools and hospitals still falling down, when we have underpaid public servants and infrastucture unmaintained or unbuilt, ...
James Forsyth at The Spectator (I know, I know) has tapped one of his contacts inside Number Ten for an insight into the Johnson administration's thinking and strategy.It is fascinating, unsettling and quite, quite mad. Some key points:Negotiations have stalled and the Johnson administration are keen to blame the EU: ...
Fatal Contact: With the arrival of captain James Cook in October 1769, the islands of what would become New Zealand ceased to be the preserve of Polynesian navigators and settlers and became a part of both the world’s map and the world’s history.THE MAORI NATIONALIST assault upon the historical meaning ...
Another round of tactical talks about forming a Government of National Unity have come to nothing with the Liberal Democrats still refusing countenance putting Jeremy Corbyn into Downing Street:Opposition talks on Monday made little headway over when to try and vote down Boris Johnson's government and who might succeed him as ...
by Nick Rogers The debate around the meaning of sex and gender made an appearance at this year’s British Labour Party conference in Brighton. Women’s Place UK – an organisation that questions the demand that biological males who self-identify as woman should have access to women’s spaces, to all-women shortlists, ...
Yesterday I went down to Wellington to participate in the Extinction Rebellion protest. Its part of the latest global wave of XR actions, with actions happening all over the world. Some of those protests are massively disruptive: in Canada, XR is blocking major bridges, stopping people from getting to work. ...
The Workshop is a charitable trust for public good. The Workshop undertake research to find ways of communicating that will build support for the solutions that work to solve complex social and environmental problems. See their Report on Talking about Poverty and Welfare Reform below. ...
Being and Being Bought (Spinifex Press, 2013) by Kajsa Ekis Ekman A synopsis and commentary of Chapters 1-2 by Daphna Whitmore Ekman, a Swedish journalist and critic, brings together a Marxist and feminist analysis of prostitution and surrogacy in this groundbreaking book She opens the discussion with a definition of ...
I make no claims to having much legal knowledge, so I defer to those trained in this area.I am very much enjoying this twitter stream from m'learned friend in Edinburgh, deciphering the legal arguments around the Scottish court challenge to Boris Johnson, based on the charmingly obscure principle of Nobile ...
Ivory Folly? The University of Auckland’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Stuart McCutcheon, upheld the right of the radical nationalist group, Action Zealandia to exercise their freedom of speech – not matter how distasteful that speech might be. A wiser community of students and scholars would have nodded their agreement and moved on. ...
If you are not convinced terrorist Organisation ‘Extinction Rebellion’ is very, very dangerous – watch this video at one of their recent meetings. Not only is this obviously mentally ill Woman begging the other terrorists to promote killing and “eating” babies and children, if you watch carefully other members nod ...
The Ombudsman has been surveying people about their knowledge of the OIA and the right to information. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem that widespread:The Chief Ombudsman says too many New Zealanders were in the dark over their right to access official information. Peter Boshier said an independent survey released yesterday on ...
In the wake of last Friday's climate strike, Peter McKenzie had an article in The Spinoff about protest strategies. The school strike movement is "polite" and cooperates with those in power because that's its kaupapa - its led by schoolkids who understandably don't want to risk arrest. But there's more ...
So, the latest ruminations on the gnews from Westminster (Again, sorry; I'll stop making that pun right now). This follows on from, and likely repeats bits of, my last post, on the suggestion that a Government of National Unity (GNU) should be set up and then oversee a referendum before ...
New Zealand likes to think of itself as not a racist country (despite being founded on the racist dispossession and subjugation of Maori). But for years, we've had a racist refugee policy, which basicly excludes refugees from Africa and the Middle East unless they already have relatives here. Now, the ...
Several people have asked me whether a particular repeat litigant could be declared a vexatious litigant, in light of their recent decision to appeal an adverse High Court ruling. My nascent tweet thread was getting ridiculously long, so it became this blog post instead.The short answer is: no. The particular ...
Appealing To The Past: Action Zealandia, like so many of the organisations springing up on the far-Right, across what they call the “Anglosphere”, is born out of the profound confusion over what a man is supposed to be in the twenty-first century and, more importantly, what he is supposed to do.THE STATUE OF ...
The attempts of anti-democratic transactivists to (often violently) disrupt women’s rights organising is largely ignored by those sections of the left most prone to misogyny and authoritarianism in New Zealand. In Britain, however, scores of trade union and left activists added their names to a letter in July, defending ...
The Justice Committee has reported back on the Criminal Cases Review Commission Bill. The Bill would establish an independent, quasi-judicial body to investigate and review potential miscarriages of justice, and refer them back to the Court of appeal if required. It would be a vital backstop to our judiciary, help ...
by The Spark On September 14, a total of 22 drones and cruise missiles struck two oil installations in Saudi Arabia, the Abqaiq processing facility and the Khurais oil field. Abqaiq is the largest oil production facility in the world. For a few days afterwards, Saudi Aramco, the Saudi national ...
How much will NeoLiberal irregulation of the building sector and subsequent leaky homes crisis cost us? $47 billion, according to a new book:The total cost to fix all of New Zealand's leaky homes would be $47 billion, probably. The estimate comes from a new book, Rottenomics written by journalist Peter ...
Below is the start of another excellent article on the Freer Lives blog. Click onto the link at the end of this extract to read the full article. The punch-a-terf, kill-a-terf message pervades social media, always righteously delivered, chin held high. By contrast, the dehumanised “terfs” themselves, that is gender-critical ...
The Reserve Bank is currently planning tighter banking regulation, requiring banks to hold enough local capital to survive a 1-in-200 year financial crisis in order to protect consumers. The big Aussies banks, those foreign leeches who suck $5 billion in profit out of our economy every year, don't like that, ...
Its the usual story: a police officer beats a handcuffed suspect so hard they break one of their own fingers. The IPCA investigates and concludes that the use of force was unlawful. And the police refuse to do anything about it:A man punched repeatedly in the face by a police ...
From time to time we add links to our blogroll. The latest blog we have added is Freer Lives. This is a Marxist gender-critical blog, based in Melbourne, Australia. On it you will find a bunch of excellent articles which use the tools of Marxist analysis to critique the rise ...
Last Friday say the largest protest in a generation, as 170,000 people joined the school strike and marched to demand real action on climate change. The demands of the school strike were simple and clear: declare a climate emergency, set a climate target of net-zero by 2040, impose a total ...
Labour is a rather middle of the road capitalist party and earlier this year we discussed how far from being ‘transformative’, Ardern’s government is. An article published this week in the Guardian, by Bryce Edwards (political scientist and commentator at Victoria University), looks at Ardern’s business as usual performance. Where ...
In the hours since my last interminable wittering about the possibility of a Government of National Unity (GNU) in Britain, there has been a slight maybe development:A Corbyn-led caretaker government could then sit for several months while it enacted and delivered a referendum with the support of smaller parties and ...
Jeremy Clarkson says much like Greta Thunberg, Anne Frank “didn’t like what was going on”, but “she didn’t have a tantrum about it.” Former Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson has offered praise to historical figure Anne Frank, comparing her favourably to 16-year-old climate activist Greta Thunberg, who he attacked in ...
Press release by Speak Up For Women Lesbians from women’s rights group Speak Up For Women are furious at reports that Rainbow Tick are threatening Massey University with the removal of their ‘tick’ if they let the group’s event go ahead. The group has been under attack from trans ...
By Duncan Garner Before you jump down my throat, nobody cares about the environment more than me. I have a garden, and since my wife and I broke up, I’ve let it grow wildly out of control, so please don’t tell me I’m not doing enough for plants. They’re ten ...
Local government elections are upon us again. It is a fair bet that, when they are over, we will have all the usual complaints that, despite their undoubted importance, the turnout was depressingly low. So, why do local elections attract so little attention and involvement from the general public? I ...
We want every New Zealander to be happy, safe, and healthy. To do this, we need to support strong, safe communities, and a robust and efficient health system. ...
Defence Minister Ron Mark has used his powers to overrule a noise complaint ruling against Whenuapai airbase on the grounds of "national security". The Environment Court last month released a ruling in favour of a private developer, declaring the Auckland airbase had to comply with noise restrictions when it performs ...
New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has opened fire against "unreconstructed morons" after NZ First MP Shane Jones was photographed on holiday holding an AR-15 rifle. Mr Peters is defending Mr Jones, telling Magic Talk host Peter Williams that his MP was just having fun "like most people do". "The ...
New Zealand First Deputy Leader and Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau was in attendance during the morning blessing of the Rotorua Lakefront development project. Around 60 people gathered on the shores of Lake Rotorua, including city mayor Steve Chadwick and deputy Dave Donaldson. The Lakefront development is a ...
Forestry Minister Shane Jones is considering reining in on conversions of farmland to forestry, and also issued a warning to foreign-owned forestry companies that make up nearly 75 per cent of the industry. He said too many foreign companies had not provided enough access for domestic processors to get timber. ...
Speaking to Radio NZ, New Zealand First leader Winston Peters said the tightening of the parental category visa is a direct result of the Party’s coalition negotiations with the Labour Party. He said the new changes switch the financial onus from the parent moving to New Zealand to the child ...
The Coalition Government is set to cut red tape in the building and construction sector in an effort to allow more houses to be built, including prefabricated houses. The changes will enable the mass factory production of "high quality" buildings, slash the likely number of building inspections for factory produced ...
Since coming into Government, we’ve worked hard to tackle homelessness and make sure everyone has a warm, dry home. And today, on World Homeless Day, we want to report back and update you on our progress so far. ...
New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has hit back at National Party leader Simon Bridges who criticized the Coalition Government’s approach to crime, and said that the latter isn't credible in his attack on the Government over gang recruitment. "We've got as massive drug problem in this country. It is ...
New Zealand Mānuka honey exporters have welcomed an initiative by the Coalition Government to help secure the term “mānuka honey” to be used exclusively by Kiwi exporters, ensuring that our multimillion-dollar industry is protected. Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones had recently announced that a Provincial Growth Funding of $5.7 ...
Political commentator Mike Hosking has labelled New Zealand First leader Winston Peters as “the voice of reason in a government soft on drugs”, for the Party’s stance on drug testing at music festivals. “If common sense is worth a vote, Winston Peters is quids in,” Mr Hosking said. The Labour ...
Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau has announced Provincial Growth Funding to ensure work opportunities in Turangi and Whanganui, through its skills and employment programme, Te Ara Mahi. A fund of $500,000 will go to Rafting NZ in Turangi for a 16-week river guide training course to train ...
Treasury has shown that the Coalition Government has a $7.5 billion surplus, which is $4 billion higher than what was expected in the 2019 Budget unveiled last May. It is also $2 billion higher than the actual surplus unveiled this time last year, and at a size that has not ...
Official Information Act figures released to NZME show there were 350 assaults on officers in the year to the end of June, 79 more than the year before. The increase in attacks have sparked calls for more legal protection for first responders to be enacted. The assaults included officers being ...
“Nobody wants to see babies uplifted”, this was the pronouncement of Minister for Children Hon. Tracey Martin as her department, Oranga Tamariki, faces multiple inquiries into the number of babies being taken from their families. “But a baby can die with a single punch, “the Minister continued. “So sometimes, Oranga ...
We're making progress on tackling the long-term challenges: from homelessness, to strengthening border security, to bringing banking back New Zealand's small towns. ...
Associate Transport Minister Shane Jones has backed the ambitious plan to move Auckland’s port to Northport, at Whangarei harbour, which he says will be the “King Kong of infrastructure”. The plan is part of the recommendations of a six-person independent working group, which has recommended the Ports of Auckland be ...
A six-member independent working group selected the option of moving Auckland’s port to Northport, in Whangarei, ahead of other options. In what could be New Zealand’s most ambitious infrastructure project yet, a major expansion of the Marsden Point port could happen within 15 years. The project, officially called the “Upper ...
The final Electricity Price Review recommended prohibiting prompt payment discounts but allowing “reasonable” late fees. The findings of this review was welcomed by the Coalition Government, but they hope companies will follow through with its recommendations without regulations needed to be passed. Meridian Energy had already stopped prompt payment discounts, ...
Fletcher Tabuteau, Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF)through its skills and employment programme, Te Ara Mahi,will invest nearly $600,000 to ensure work opportunities for locals in Turangia and Whanganui, Parliamentary Under Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau announced today. “I’m pleased to announce the PGF ...
An export-led economy is one of New Zealand First’s key principles, and our commitment to achieving this is shown by the continuing skyrocketing demand for our beef and sheep meat exports. Beef + Lamb New Zealand's New Season Outlook 2019-20 report forecasts beef, lamb and mutton prices to lift from ...
Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced today in Gisborne an investment of $17.27m into bringing “world-leading” food-growing technology and the creation of more than 100 new jobs in the East Coast city. The funding comes from the Provincial Growth Fund, and included a $15 million loan to LeaderBrand, a ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development More than 100 people in Tairāwhiti’s Tolaga Bay will benefit from two employment initiatives supported by the Provincial Growth Fund, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones and Employment Minister Willie Jackson announced today. “Tolaga Bay is an incredibly tight-knit community, but one in ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) is supporting Gisborne business Leaderbrand to produce salad vegetables year round and create more jobs in the Tairāwhiti region, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced today. “Our support for Leaderbrand will help them build large greenhouses ...
“Nobody wants to see babies uplifted”, this was the pronouncement of Minister for Children Hon. Tracey Martin as her department, Oranga Tamariki, faces multiple inquiries into the number of babies being taken from their families. “But a baby can die with a single punch, “the Minister continued. “So sometimes, Oranga ...
Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones has praised the promise by New Zealand’s biggest banks not to close any provincial branches while the Coalition Government trials regional banking hubs across the country. The Minister said the announce was the “first sign of hope for regional communities”, many of which have ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, New Zealand First Leader New Zealand First is proud to have delivered an upgrade of the SuperGold Card website and a new smartphone app, which will help unlock the full benefits of the SuperGold Card for 750,000 New Zealand seniors.Party Leader Rt Hon Winston Peters, ...
Delivering a key election campaign promise, New Zealand First is proud to have accomplished a long overdue upgrade of the SuperGold Card today. At an event in Auckland, New Zealand First leader Winston Peters joined Minister for Seniors Hon. Tracey Martin in unveiling the new website and smartphone app which ...
Another busy week, from speaking with world leaders on the world stage about climate change, to equipping our school leavers with everything they need to get ahead in life. ...
New Zealand First MP Shane Jones says Air New Zealand has "an obligation to look after Kiwis", and urged the national carrier not to hike up their prices after Jetstar airline announced their withdrawal from regional flights this week. The Provincial Champion also expressed his disappointment at Jetstar’s decision on ...
Fletcher Tabuteau, Under Secretary for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) will help fund a new dredge for the Port of Greymouth to ensure the regional fishing fleet have a reliable and productive harbour, Parliamentary Undersecretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau announced today “Last year the movements of ...
Ladies and gentlemen, NZCTU President Richard Wagstaff, members of respective unions – thank you for the invitation to speak to you today. This might be preaching to the choir, but the importance of trade unions in New Zealand’s historical arch is difficult to understate. And it is my belief that ...
"Let’s start by acknowledging that it has been a huge year. " Police Association Annual Conference James Cook Grand Chancellor Hotel Wellington Nau mai, haere mai. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, ka nui te mihi, ki a koutou katoa. President of the Police Association, Chris Cahill; Members of the Association and ...
Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters and Minister of Defence Ron Mark have announced the New Zealand Government’s decision to again deploy a Royal New Zealand Air Force P-3K2 (P-3) maritime patrol aircraft to support the implementation of United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions imposing sanctions against North Korea. New ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters says New Zealand continues to have serious concerns for peace and stability in north-east Syria. “Recent reports that hundreds of ISIS-affiliated families have fled from a camp are deeply concerning from a humanitarian and security perspective”, Mr Peters says. “While we acknowledge Turkey’s domestic security ...
Biosecurity Minister Damien O’Connor is warning travelling Kiwis to be vigilant as the high-season for the crop-eating brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB) is under way. “We’re on high alert to stop BMSB arriving in NZ. The high season runs until April 30 and we’ve strengthened our measures to stop stink ...
The Government is moving swiftly to change the law to improve the welfare and pastoral care of students living in university halls of residence and other tertiary hostels. Cabinet has agreed to several changes, including creating a new mandatory Code of Practice that sets out the duty of pastoral care ...
The Minister for Conservation Eugenie Sage has launched a new comprehensive trapping guide for community trappers to help them protect our native birds, plants and other wildlife, at Zealandia in Wellington today. ‘A practical guide to trapping’, has been developed by the Department of Conservation (DOC), and was launched during ...
Associate Health Minister Julie Anne Genter welcomes PHARMAC’s move to improve access to long-acting reversible contraception (LARCs). PHARMAC has today announced it will fund the full cost of Mirena and Jaydess for anyone seeking long term contraception, lifting previous restrictions on access to Mirena. “I welcome women having greater choices ...
The Government has approved the next stage of a major redevelopment of Taranaki Base Hospital, which will deliver new and improved facilities for patients. Health Minister Dr David Clark has announced details of a $300 million dollar project to build a new East Wing at the New Plymouth hospital. It ...
Extra funding will allow Rural Support Trusts to help farming families, says Minister for Rural Communities and Agriculture Damien O’Connor. “I know that rural families are worried about some of the challenges facing them, including the ongoing uncertainty created by the Mycoplasma bovis outbreak. “Those concerns sit alongside ongoing worries ...
Thank you for the opportunity to be here to present certificates to the 16 graduates who have completed a beekeeping course delivered by the Howard League. Let us start by acknowledging Auckland Prison’s Deputy Prison Director Tom Sherlock, and Acting Assistant Regional Commissioner of Corrections Northern Region Scott Walker - ...
Finance Minister Grant Robertson leaves this weekend to attend the APEC Finance Ministers meeting in Santiago, Chile. Discussions between APEC Finance Ministers at the meeting will include the effects of the current global economic uncertainty, risks for APEC economies and sustainable development of the region. While at APEC Grant Robertson ...
The Minister for Pacific Peoples Aupito William Sio says for Pacific people, language can be a source of strength. It can help ground us and give us confidence. When we speak them, our languages provide us with an immediate and intimate access to our identity and our story - and ...
The Coalition Government has announced an action plan to improve the wellbeing of disabled New Zealanders by addressing inequalities in play, active recreation and sport. The initiative includes training to develop a workforce that understands the needs of children and young people with a range of impairments, advocacy for fit ...
The construction sector is being freed up to allow more homes to be built more quickly as the Government cuts through some of the red tape of the Building Act. “Every New Zealander deserves a warm, dry, safe home and old inefficiencies in the Building Act make building slow and ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has welcomed further details on the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall’s visit to New Zealand next month. Their Royal Highnesses will visit New Zealand from 17-23 November – their third joint visit to New Zealand and first in four years. They arrive in Auckland ...
Minister of State for Trade and Export Growth and Minister of Agriculture, Damien O’Connor, heads to Thailand today to attend the final Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Ministerial meeting, as negotiations enter their final stages. “The RCEP Agreement would anchor New Zealand in a regional agreement that covers 16 countries, ...
Pacific young people living in the Hawke’s Bay, Southland and Otago regions will have access to support services that have proved successful in helping young people find new earning and learning opportunities. “Tupu Aotearoa is about changing Pacific young peoples’ lives. Our young people are talented, they are smart, they ...
Introduction As the Minister for ACC I thank you all for the work that you do supporting New Zealanders in their literally most vulnerable moments. From those who hold people’s lives in their hands, to the people who research technique, technology and trends, your work is highly valued. A special ...
Notes prepared for speeches in Christchurch – Wednesday 9 October 2019 Today’s topic, “trends and opportunities for the New Zealand economy,” is certainly one getting a great deal of commentary at the moment. Looking across the media landscape lately you’ll notice we aren’t the only ones having this discussion. There ...
Minister of Health Dr David Clark and Associate Minister of Health Peeni Henare say this year’s World Mental Health Day theme is a reminder of why the Government’s work on mental health is so important. “This year the World Federation for Mental Health has made suicide prevention the main theme ...
Associate Arts, Culture and Heritage Minister Carmel Sepuloni will represent the government at Australia’s Meeting of Cultural Ministers in Adelaide this week. “This year’s meeting is special because New Zealand is expected to become an International Member of the Meeting of Cultural Ministers at this Australian forum,” Carmel Sepuloni said. “The meeting is an opportunity to ...
The Greater Christchurch Claims Resolution Service has resolved 608 insurance and EQC claims in its first year in operation, Minister Megan Woods has announced. The government service, which celebrates its first birthday today, provides a one stop shop to help Cantabrians still battling to get their homes repaired or rebuilt ...
Today’s topic, “trends and opportunities for the New Zealand economy,” is certainly one getting a great deal of commentary at the moment. Looking across the media landscape lately you’ll notice we aren’t the only ones having this discussion. There has been an increasing amount of attention paid to the outlook ...
The Government is acting swiftly to strengthen NZTA’s regulatory role following a review into the Transport Agency, and Ministry of Transport’s performance as its monitor, Transport Minister Phil Twyford said today. An independent review by Martin Jenkins has found NZTA failed to properly regulate the transport sector under the previous ...
The Netherlands and New Zealand have a long-standing and close relationship based on many shared interests and values. We value the rule of law, our democracies, and multilateralism. And we value our environment – at home and globally. Right now there are major global challenges in all of these areas – ...
The Government is putting right a decade’s worth of underpayment to nurses, doctors and other health workers, says Health Minister Dr David Clark. Initial sampling of District Health Boards payroll records has found that around $550-$650 million is owed to DHB staff to comply with the Holidays Act. It’s expected ...
A strong surplus and low debt show the economy is performing well, and means the Government is in a good position to meet the challenges of global economic uncertainty. “The surplus and low levels of debt show the economy is in good shape. This allows the Government to spend more ...
New applications from mining company OceanaGold to purchase land in Waihi for new tailings ponds associated with its gold mines have been approved. Minister of Finance Grant Robertson and Associate Minister of Finance David Parker considered the applications under the Overseas Investment Act. Earlier this year, applications from OceanaGold to ...
New Zealanders in Tūranganui-a-Kiwa / Poverty Bay will witness Māori, Pākehā and Pacific voyaging traditions come together today as the Tuia 250 Voyage flotilla assembles for the first time, Māori Crown Relations: Te Arawhiti Minister Kelvin Davis says. “Tuia 250 is a national commemoration and an opportunity for honest conversations ...
Minister for Trade and Export Growth David Parker leaves tomorrow for Dubai, London and Berlin for a series of meetings to advance New Zealand’s trade interests. In Dubai he will visit New Zealand’s Pavilion at Expo 2020 where construction is underway. There he will meet Minister of State for International Cooperation, Her ...
Confirmation that PHARMAC will fund two new cancer drugs is further evidence of the good progress the Government is making to improve the treatment of New Zealand’s leading cause of death, Health Minister David Clark says. From 1 December PHARMAC will fund alectinib (Alecensa) for ALK positive advanced non-small cell ...
An additional $2.7 million has been announced for the Government Strategy for Women and Girls in Sport and Active Recreation on the first anniversary of the strategy’s launch. Sport and Recreation Minister Grant Robertson gave the opening address to the first Sport NZ Women + Girls Summit in Wellington today, ...
As part of its work to ensure businesses can get the skilled workers they need, the Coalition Government is re-opening and re-setting the Parent Category visa programme, Immigration Minister Iain Lees-Galloway says. The move will: support skilled migrants who help fill New Zealand’s skills gaps by providing a pathway for ...
Minister of Defence Ron Mark has today announced Major General Evan Williams of the New Zealand Defence Force has been selected as the commander of a significant, longstanding peacekeeping mission in the Middle East. In December, Major General Williams takes over as Force Commander for the Multinational Force and Observers ...
A record number of nurses are now working to deliver health services to New Zealanders as the Government’s increased funding and new initiatives rebuild key workforces start to show results, Health Minister Dr David Clark says. • 1458 more DHB nurses since the Government took office • 106 more midwives ...
Farmer and former Nuffield scholar Mel Poulton has been appointed New Zealand’s Special Agricultural Trade Envoy, Minister for Trade and Export Growth, David Parker, and Minister of Agriculture, Damien O’Connor, announced today. The position supports key Government objectives, including raising the value of New Zealand agricultural goods and services. Mel is ...
New Zealand’s Pacific and Māori voyaging heritage is acknowledged and celebrated today as waka of the Tuia 250 voyage flotilla arrive in Tūranga / Gisborne. “Today we celebrate Tangata Whenua, the first people of Aotearoa, and the triumphs of the voyaging tradition that brought our ancestors here from Polynesia 1000 ...
“Fijian Language Week starts on Sunday and the theme reminds us how important it is that we each have something to anchor ourselves to, something that can help us pause and feel in control in a rapidly changing world,” says Minister for Pacific Peoples Aupito William Sio. “Family, culture, faith, ...
The Government is establishing an Airspace Integration Trials Programme to support the safe testing and development of advanced unmanned aircraft and accelerate their integration into the aviation system, Research, Science and Innovation Minister Megan Woods announced today. The Government will work with leading, innovative aviation industry partners to test and ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The last PM shock jock Alan Jones slapped down was Jacinda Ardern. His language was particularly offensive, advertisers deserted his program and he apologised to New Zealand’s leader. But at least Ardern didn’t have to ...
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Open mike 03/10/2019 
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BREAKING NEWS: Bernie Sanders Hospitalized
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2019/10/2/1889514/-BREAKING-Bernie-Sanders-hospitalized-in-Vegas
as a longtime 'bernie-boy' – all i can say is 'bugger..!'…
and to wish him a speedy recovery..
one of the main reasons i like bernie is that he will not take financial support from the billionaire class..(warren and the others..?..not so much..)
and yet in the last fundraising quarter he pulled in the most of any democrat contendor..($25+ million..)
the average size of those donations was $18..
he truly is a man of the people…
and i am still holding out for my international 'dream'-scenario..
bernie in the white house..
and corbyn leading britain…
Bernie is hanging in there as an arterial blockage is being dealt to, and perhaps a stint will be placed in his partial blockage as the US media says he is expected to be back in operation before to long so we hope they are correct there.
Elizabeth Warren is rising in the polls and nearing equal to Biden now we hear.
I think Sanders is doing just fine in this election cycle….
"Bernie Sanders announces massive $25.3 million third quarter fundraising haul"
https://edition.cnn.com/2019/10/01/politics/bernie-sanders-25-million-fundraising-third-quarter-2019/index.html
Bernie Sanders hits 1 million donors
https://www.politico.com/story/2019/09/19/bernie-sanders-1-million-donors-1504970
I wouldn't take to much notice of the mainly negative MSM spin on Bernie..I like this by Norman Soloman when talking about some liberal media in regards to it's coverage of Sanders.. "Circus dogs jump when the trainer cracks his whip, but the really well-trained dog is the one that turns his somersault when there is no whip." —George Orwell"
The media seem to have coalesced around Warren now, personally I would be very disappointed if Warren wins the nomination, she would be for the US what Helen Clark was to NZ..nothing much, and even her most ardent supporters couldn't make that case that she was at all transformative…and that is exactly what the world needs right now, and we all know what candidate that is.
The time has long past for the world to sit and wait for the centrist liberal/capitalist project and it's bullshit incrementalism to make any meaningful changes, we all know now that those changes will never happen, we all know now that liberal capitalists would rather lose everything than concede anything on their bottom line or capital gains or any of the power..that is exactly why the unified single chant that can be heard loud and clear from the board rooms of big business, corporate media and establishment political think tanks across the States is…Anyone One But Bernie!, why?.. because he is the only one who threatens them and their system of exploitative extraction of workers, the environment and the planet..not Biden and not Warren, Bernie Sanders.
Get well Bernie…the only transformative candidate in 2020.
"she would be for the US what Helen Clark was to NZ..nothing much,.."
Labour was a minority party during those years…remember MMP was designed to stop big changes from a major party , and its works still.
Sanders would have to try to get separately elected House AND Senate to pass any of his agenda…and you could say he would be in a more difficult situation than Boris Johnson is now and Clark was over a decade ago.
You should really follow US politics more to see how it really works.
Lyndon Johnson was a master legislator – even though he was personally quite corrupt – as he had been the leader of the Senate for some years and knew every trick to get legislators to back him, as happened to the Civil rights laws.
Even Bill Clinton was a well persuader and could work to get things passed by difficult House and Senate.
Sanders is a mediocre legislator based on his record, he has nowhere near the ability or long background of even say Biden or someone like Warren who has had a major impact in her short time.
His committee is Veteran Affairs ….. that changed
everythingvery little“While sitting down with then-Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), who was meeting with members of his conference one on one during the difficult days in 2009, Sanders told the then-Senate majority leader not to worry: He was going to vote for Obamacare, though he would continue speaking publicly as if he wouldn’t so he could continue to rail against the absence of a public option.
https://www.politico.com/story/2016/03/bernies-record-220508
Wow Bernie… be the worst sort of Politician…
Monmouth and Economist/Yougov polls from 2/10 have Warren ahead in both.
Warren 28, Biden 25, Saunders 15
Warren 28, Biden 22, Saunders 13
+100
( that +100 to Phillip)
Warren also is reported as not taking the 'big money' either.
Biden as well says his 'average' is $46.
Its about 2 weeks to go when the full details are made public. So we can see the 'mean' and see what the big donors numbers are.
As those terrible debate rules that rules out some candidates last month ?
Gabbard makes this debate Oct 12 under the rules , which have been getting progressively harder , so some of the minnows will be dropped for the Nov debate
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/us/politics/democratic-debate-lineup.html
"Warren also is reported as not taking the 'big money' either."
Everything is not quite as it seems there…
"Don’t Trust Elizabeth Warren’s Big-Donor Ban"
https://jacobinmag.com/2019/09/elizabeth-warren-2020-big-donor-ban-bernie-sanders-corporate-money
Well guess what Sanders made a $10 mill transfer too
"Sanders had raised $46.3 million by the end of the second quarter, according to Federal Election Commission records. That includes $10.1 million transferred from previous campaigns.
Spot the differences..if you can…hahahaha
"Sanders doesn’t hold closed-door fundraisers to solicit high-dollar contributions and doesn’t accept money from corporate PACs or super PACs, or from fossil fuel, drug or insurance companies.
Warren doesn’t hold closed-door fundraisers to solicit high-dollar contributions and doesn’t accept money from federal lobbyists or PACs, or fossil fuel or pharmaceutical executives.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2019/09/30/are-sanders-warren-grassroots-funded/
You werent being balanced Adrian
“Time magazine reported in December 2015: “Sanders has hosted at least nine medium- to high-dollar, closed-door fundraisers in New York, Los Angeles and elsewhere to directly fund his own presidential campaign. Even though Sanders’ efforts sometimes have a proletarian flair — he held one $200-per-ticket fundraiser at a dive bar near a grungy Seattle park — some aspects of the Democratic insurgent’s fundraising are similar to the candidates he condemns.”
i don't have the link but i have seen the names of the billionaires all the candidates (even my fave for v.p. – tulsi gabbard) have taken money from..
and bernie is not on that list – he is the only one..
and heh..!..a '$200 fundraising dinner'…well..they will all own him won't they..
is that the worst you can sling at bernie..?..'$200 dinner'….heh..!..that's fucken funny..!
the man who terrifies both the republicans – and the democrat establishment..
'cos he owes both nothing – he owes vested-interests nothing..
and they know he will remake america more than roosevelt did with his new deal..
bring it on..!..bernie..!
get well soon.!..buddy..!
(this is why it matters that bernie is the candidate..)
and really..!..a.b.b…eh..?..anyone but biden..
we don't need another war-criminal in the white house..
we/the world – needs bernie sanders…
@phillip ure..+1
Those 'little' Bernie Donations last time
"For months,(2016) the Federal Election Commission has been writing to the Sanders campaign with warnings that hundreds of his donors have exceeded the $2,700 contribution limit and that hundreds more may be foreign nationals illegally giving Sanders money.
hell $2700 is a huge amount , as that limit applies to everyone. Wheter you are Mark Zuckerberg or of Vera from Vermont.
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/05/the-bernie-sanders-donors-who-are-giving-too-much/482418/
I bet he is still saying 4 years later " my average donation is $27"
Hasn't Warren already stated that if given the nomination she will accept money from anyone?
Spot the difference and who said what ?
….doesn’t hold closed-door fundraisers to solicit high-dollar contributions and doesn’t accept money from corporate PACs or super PACs, or from fossil fuel, drug or insurance companies.
….. doesn’t hold closed-door fundraisers to solicit high-dollar contributions and doesn’t accept money from federal lobbyists or PACs, or fossil fuel or pharmaceutical executives.
The maximum individual limit is $2700 and we know that Bernie got plenty of those last time ( and even exceeded it)
However both have used slightly deceptive wording:
..hold closed-door fundraisers to solicit high-dollar contributions..
Which still allows max $ contributions from almost anyone
Well, dreams are free, but accurate predictions they aren't. Neither of those two things will happen, and both, that's so far removed from reality it more like fantasy politics.
Best wishes to Bernie. Hey, Mick Jagger had a heart op and finished the Stones tour, Mr Sanders is ornery and committed enough to do similar. He would likely have one good term in him at least, and make a number of changes future Pressies would find hard to roll back.
"make a number of changes future Pressies would find hard to roll back."
Look what happened to Obamas executive actions – Trump just rolled them back like you seem to think wont happen.
What can stick is legislation passed in Congress , and Sanders doesnt have much of a record working on that while in Congress and Senate.
The Person with the most legislative experience is Biden…but having a 'history; is supposed to be a bad thing.
i am talking about congressional changes..
and yes – biden has a 'history'..of being owned by the establishment/vested-interests..
and of course you wd support biden – no surprises there…
after all he is one of your crew..eh..?
bernie is fit – physically and mentally..and cd well see out two terms..
but with gabbard as v.p..she wd then be able to step up in 2024..if needed…
and yes…the changes he will bring will be massive..and largely unable to be rolled back..
universal healthcare for americans being just one of a brace of seachange policies…
hes in hospital with heart issues …havent read any real news?
What Congress changes are you suggesting Sanders will make- Ive said hes a useless legislator and thats based on his record.
Sanders is a prodigious fund raiser, is his only claim to fame, so he should be able to get his campaign themes out there no problem. Yet the primaries where democrats can vote show him as a runner up in 2016 and will happen gain in 2020
He had two arterial stents put in. This is about as basic as it gets for heart surgery.
It's the precursor to a death knell for his campaign, as are Biden's frequent and growing tally of gaffs.
you neolibs are terrified of sanders..eh..?
between him and corbyn – yr pox of an (there-is-no-alternative) ideology cd well end in the garbage bin..eh..?
and sanders has always been..like corbyn – an outsider in those neoliberal decades we have just passed thru..
he is a member of no party – he is an independent..
an independent in both thought and action…
so this congressional record you keep citing as some evidence of incompetence on his part..is just more neolib bullshit..eh..?
Fortunately, he hasn't got pneumonia.
/
And the rest:
Aphasia
Autism
Brain cancer
Heart disease
Multiple sclerosis
Obesity, diabetes and hypertension
Parkinson's disease
Post-concussion syndrome
Radiation poisoning
Seizures- said zerohedge
Stroke
Tongue cancer
her medical records said : hypothyroidism, She takes a prescription blood thinner to guard against clots,fainted four years ago after becoming dehydrated and suffered a concussion
ttps://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/08/23/a-guide-to-hillary-clintons-many-illnesses-as-diagnosed-in-the-conservative-media/
Watch the same play being used against Ardern next year, its because women politicians are susceptible to false rumours of all kinds but medical ones get traction.
Good debate on impeachment..
"To Impeach or Not to Impeach? Chris Hedges & John Bonifaz Debate What Congress Should Do Next"
Yes that was a good discussion. Hedge's comments starting about 20 minutes in, about the liberal church and christian fascists as represented by Pence, were right on the mark as well.
So Trump who has been accused of using fake news throughout his political meanderings is now accusing others of using fake news to impeach him. What a hoot. What delicious irony.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12273218
Whats's up Doc?
He wishes to focus on his Tear Ranga Council bid and bizzniss activities?
He seems "passionate" about us and our, and as a "strategic thinker" he might be seeing the writing on the wall.
Or maybe since he had pulled himself up by the bootstraps to "the heights of the Corporate world" ( no doubt with the help of his good lady woif -who also no doubt had to make so many sacrifices), his ambitions lay outside of centril gummint.
Next
Not standing for Council
Thank God for that
Yes the Herald called it "mysterious" but the original release earlier on Politik clearly referred to possible health issues, personal issues etc. Why is it now that the minute details of what may effect someone in this position or similar are open to such innuendo and scrutiny if they are not highly critical to operations of some sort? Things happen to and for people. He had already had clearance weeks back from NZFirst for leave and has reached this decision. The most mysterious thing is NZ media currently, they are determined to make every event an "issue", this is the normal passage of life people encounter.
Good to see more and more companies using packaging that is home compostable (not just compostable in an industrial facility)
http://www.propercrisps.co.nz/giving-back
Helpful stuff weka. So much to get head around. Looking at my blue plastic bag this morning. What can I use that reduces those bits, already less than used to be. Have an idea. Will pursue.
Sorry for the pessimism, but i am very very careful with these sudden 'feel' good 'compostable, natural, etc 'plant based meat' solution that essentially allow us to continue with our bad food habits of eating crap mass produced 'cheap' food, that allow us to continue to mindlessly consume cause its is all 'environmentally friendly' and above all we don't actually have to change a thing we do. Ergo, nothing changes and in a few years time we will learn that the stuff that was sold to us as a miracle solution was neither a miracle nor a solution.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/environment/104220912/compostable-packaging-could-do-more-harm-than-good
http://theconversation.com/why-compostable-plastics-may-be-no-better-for-the-environment-100016
or from 2009
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/cif-green/2009/jun/18/greenwash-biodegradeable-plastic-bags
I generally agree. But short of a way to get everyone to change to low consumption in one go and pretty quick, this is a useful step in the right direction. It reduces plastic pollution, and at the same time points to zero waste as well as creating path out of consumption (when we start thinking about home composting, our relationship to the world changes).
2009 is well outdated in terms of the greenwashing issues. We went through all that bollocks about being sold degradable plastics, and we pushed back, likewise industrial compostable, and now we have companies that are working with actually useful plastic replacements instead of trying to hide the pollution.
Fake meat, don't get me started. That's the big one at the moment imo, because so many people who care about climate change don't seem to be making the connections between industrial processes and environmental damage and appear to believe that it's a reductionist issue – replace cow burps with soy and we'll be fine. This misses the issues around consumption, and ignores the vital importance of relocalising food supply.
I don't eat a lot of crisps, but if I am in town and hungry and this is what I can eat to get me through the shopping list until I get home, then I will buy the crisps in the packaging that I can put in the compost. This is a good thing.
@ weka…
'Fake meat, don't get me started. That's the big one at the moment imo, because so many people who care about climate change don't seem to be making the connections between industrial processes and environmental damage and appear to believe that it's a reductionist issue – replace cow burps with soy and we'll be fine. This misses the issues around consumption, and ignores the vital importance of relocalising food supply'
ok..there are two types of fake-meat – one grown in lab – one plant-based – neither of which has soy as an essential ingredient..it cd be used..but is not integral..
and interesting how you reference cows and soy – as 85% of the soy grown on the planet is feed to animals..that are then eaten..so unsure what the point is you are trying to make there..
and of course one of the reasons our animal-extraction industries are threatened..is because both of those fake-meat alternatives can be made locally..no need to ship from other side of world…so that fits with yr 'local' imperative..eh..?
hope that clarifies those three points for you..
(knowledge is a wonderful thing..eh…?..)
Macdonald's chopped down Amazon rainforest to grow meat patties for their burgers and they'll do the same to grow soy burgers or pea protein fake meat. I support animal welfare, but the idea that going vegan is better for the environment only makes sense if you want a bit less damage instead of doing right by nature.
If you think this is about monsanto soy (or whatever) for vegans, I'm sorry to hear that that is how you eat. I will continue to point out that CC action on food has to be relocalised and regenag, and that best practice food growing can easily include animals as a positive thing. It's not a hard argument to follow.
what did you not understand about 85% of soy is grown for animal-feed..?
that is an irrefutable fact..not an opinion..
how does yr alarmist soy claim make any sense..?
and you 'support animal wefare'..but you eat them..
you cannot see the incongruities in yr 'welfare' claim..?
(and..)
'the idea that going vegan is better for the environment only makes sense if you want a bit less damage instead of doing right by nature.'
i have read that several times..and i cannot understand what you are saying..i cannot make it make any sense..
and who mentioned monsanto..??
and actually the suffering of those animals you claim to care about – doesn't bother you in the slightest..does it..?
"going vegan is better for the environment only makes sense if you want a bit less damage"
I’m trying to decrease my consumption of meat and dairy (the dairy is a real struggle), and am interested in this idea that going vegan might be a bit less damaging to the environment. Specifically I'd be interested to know if there are any estimates of the magnitude of "a bit less", and in particular what range these estimates might span.
If "a bit less damage" is code for 'a tiny bit less damage', why bother? If, however, "a bit less damage" turned out to be 'quite a bit less damage', then I would be less dismissive of plant-based diet initiatives.
And we would've gotten away with it if it weren't for those meddling UN activists… https://www.ipcc.ch/report/srccl/
there's a world of difference between reducing meat/dairy consumption and going vegan. For instance, there are small scale dairy farmers in NZ doing regenerative agriculture. If you reduce your dairy consumption and buy their products instead of Fonterra dairy, then you are helping reduce NZ's methane emissions, supporting local economies, and promoting regenerative ag which has multiple very important ecological benefits including being a carbon sink.
If on the other hand you go vegan, and need to get protein from plant sources alone, what are you planning to eat? Monocropping causes multiple environmental issues, and for NZ a lot of legume protein is imported, thus increasing food miles and GHGs. There are ways around that, but they're not particularly easy and they lead to things like fake animal products with high enviro impacts in cafes because that is easier than them cooking whole legumes. Further, the more people who chose not to eat the regenag dairy, the less conversion to regenag we will see and people will simply choose whatever even if it has high food miles. Transport is significant part of NZ's eco footprint (esp within NZ).
The go vegan messages I see from say the Guardian are based on global industrial food supply chains, which themselves are polluting, and not particularly relevant to NZ eg cattle in NZ are still raised on pastures not in CAFO feed lots. So sure, eat less meat if you can (which really depends on how much you eat now), but eat local whether it's meat, dairy, nuts or beans.
"Better land use, less-meat-intensive diets and eliminating food waste should be priorities to help forestall a climate catastrophe, the authors say."
Yep. Go look up what they mean by better land use. Afaik they're saying regenag (which includes animals).
Again, less meat intensive doesn't mean vegan. Veganism is primarily an animal rights movement where you have to use no animals at all. It prioritises the welfare of certain animals over ecologies and eating local, and it's philosophically against much of the regenag we desperately need.
https://www.ipcc.ch/site/assets/uploads/2019/08/2f.-Chapter-5_FINAL.pdf
If you scroll up from that section you can read the bit about agroecology.
Monocropping grains and legumes is one of the least resilient options we have in climate change scenarios.
"there's a world of difference between reducing meat/dairy consumption and going vegan"
Absolutely true at the level of the individual; at a population level not so much, unless (of course) everyone adopts a vegan diet. Can't see that happening in NZ, where the per capita consumption of meat is relatively high. Consumption is reducing though, which is good for almost everything and everyone except perhaps meat farmers.
Doubt I could ever 'go vegan'; even ‘going vegetarian’ would be a challenge. But for those in our relatively healthy and wealthy society who make that choice for themselves, I say 'hear hear, good choice, well done'. And not just NZ society – kudos to Greta Thunberg, and to anyone else with the fortitude and commitment to 'go vegan'.
https://www.livekindly.co/greta-thunberg-esther-wonder-pig-save-the-world/
Bit hypocritical on my part, but every little bit helps – don't lose hope.
“Vegetarians should take some solace from the fact that meat consumption is declining in half of the countries listed above. Between 2002 and 2009 the amount consumed by US residents fell from 124.8 kilos per person to 120.2, for example, in Luxembourg from 141.7 to 107.9, in New Zealand from 142.1 to 106.7 [kilos per person per year] and in Denmark (previously the world’s biggest consumers of meat) from 145.9kg to 95.2kg.”
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/maps-and-graphics/world-according-to-meat-consumption/
@
weka…
3 October 2019 at 11:35 pm
this i agree with
+1
see this is where you and i disagree,
i don't think it changes everything all this 'feel good environmentally packaging/bullshit'. It changes nothing, worse even it allows us to stay in our little bubble were we can fool ourselfs that we are doing something. LOOK, my packaging is labelled 'biodegradable', 'compostable', 'reusable', LOOK, i am doing my part.
In the meantime we don't actually have any recycling facilities in this country worse calling it 'recycling facilities'. We don't actually properly seperate our rubbish, it all ends up in the same Landfill facility.
We still continue to buy rubbish junk food – albeit 'plant derived'!! YEI, me see how i am saving hte world? \
We still lie to ourself every day in order to continue doing what we do namely stop consuming like mindless idiots, stop eating crap (and that includes chemically derived fibres resembling meat from unidentified plant material), stop living desperate lives so empty that filling it with junk is what we call success.
I'm not sure we do disagree. I mean, I agree with what you are saying there. If it were up to me, and maybe you too, I'd have us powering down (with all the shift in culture that goes with that) so we don't need home compostable packaging for crisps. But we are a small minority and I don't see many progressives yet seeing the need to stop consuming, let alone people in positions of power. There's more than there used to be, but not so many that would commit to doing so now.
I think it's likely we will be forced to powerdown, but in the meantime I'd like capitalism to do less damage.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/environment/climate-news/116265851/climate-lessons-how-creative-science-can-be
This is the sort of thing any carbon tax should be spent on.
Edit
Latest comment on Brexit. Good report from Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-eu/pm-johnson-to-submit-brexit-grand-bargain-but-ireland-sceptical-idUSKBN1WG309
Johnson says that if possible he wants to secure an amended agreement at an EU summit on Oct. 17-18, and that both sides are keen on a deal to allow an orderly Brexit. Many EU diplomats doubt a breakthrough is possible by the summit.
“We are sitting here every day ready to negotiate, the kamikaze way in which it is being treated by the UK government is not something we have chosen,” one EU diplomat said.
Another said a move “half an inch” from the current proposal to keep open the sensitive border between Ireland and British-ruled Northern Ireland would make a deal difficult.
Brexit kamikaze pilot Boorish! The EU must be watching with sourness and anger as Britain throws its wobbly. All that fighting in WW2 which has settled down to a relatively stable co-operative bloc is to be abandoned. The Irish Troubles and their settlement to a workable system, to be abandoned. Probably because Germany is perceived as doing better than Britain. So Britain wants to turn away from being the UK, and return to the old Britain relying on the USA to be its partner and collaborator. This from this reference repeated below. https://nzhistory.govt.nz/war/battle-of-britain/aftermath
Irresponsible, determinedly ignorant public school boys and girls enveloping the whole country in their persiflage. (Try reading Vintage Stuff and the adventures of Peregrine Clyde-Brown where the type is lampooned by Tom Sharpe.)
I recall thinking of grand action that arose during the Battle FOR Britain. Air Marshall Dowding planned night and day, and was cognisant of all the resources, and ensuring new ones, and conserved what Britain had. And looked at cost efficiency closely both for finances, built resources and humans, pilots and crew in particular. Against his careful implementation of calculated risks and also that of Air Vice Marshall Keith Park, a New Zealander, were the fly-boys who wanted to dash in shouting 'Follow Me Chaps, Death or Glory', (the so-called Big Wing approach, advocated by Air Vice-Marshal Trafford Leigh-Mallory).
Britain was saved from German invasion by Dowding and Park who spoke later – With benefit of experience in later commands, Park was convinced that ‘we would have lost the Battle of Britain if I had adopted the “withholding” tactics of No. 12 Group’. https://nzhistory.govt.nz/war/battle-of-britain/the-battle-september-october
This piece on the aftermath of WW2 points out how in supporting Britain, the USA also gained a stepping stone as a world power. Britain is now advancing that by withdrawing from the EU and 'paling up' with USA, and late-stage, crony capitalism. https://nzhistory.govt.nz/war/battle-of-britain/aftermath
The Battle of Britain was the first serious setback experienced by the Germans during the Second World War. This in itself was significant at a time when the German military forces seemed to be unstoppable, and it gave hope to conquered Europeans.
But the long-term significance was even greater: Britain was preserved as a base for offensive action against Germany. Bombers operating from its bases would devastate German industry and infrastructure later in the war.
As a springboard for the deployment of American power, it was vital to the eventual liberation of Western Europe.
And now the American power is to be given deference by the UK as an expedient by its hungry capital-accreting Right Wing. Will the ordinary citizens look on bemused and rudderless?
" The Irish Troubles and their settlement to a workable system, to be abandoned. "
No it doesnt. have you even read 1 page of the Good Friday agreement. Its hundred or more pages , hardly mentions the border ( apart from removing military army/police posts)
meanwhile plenty of chapters on the shared power arrangements for the NI Assembly and its 'compulsory coalitions and parallel consent' for both Unionist and Nationalist blocs.
Havent you noticed but the Assembly hasnt been working since Jan 2017.
Has the 'troubles' returned because of this major collapse of the GFA ?
Its a complete nonsense to suggest that a customs border but still retain freedom of movement ( since 1922) between North and South will cause any strife.
Remember Ireland joined Britain outside of the Schengen agreement to retain freedom of movement with UK,
Well the reports finally out, recommends shifting Ports of Auckland to Northland in stages. Would be biggest infrastructure spend in modern NZ history. Great stuff so long as the self interested Auckland politicians dont scuttlebit.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=12273168
So, lots of new jobs in Northland and the Auckland land stays in Aucklanders' hands, no contracting out to private interests, or wealthy apartment dwellers, who will do everything they can to shut the rest of us out. Happens all the time.
Maybe we can then compete with Wellington's waterfront people spaces.
Yes, Auckland foreshore probably could be the most beautiful recreational space in NZ. And the net benefit Auckland ratepayers will receive would be almost twice as much than the current dividend gives.
Sadly, I doubt it will happen. Too many vested interests in maintaining the status quo.
Auckland has hundreds of miles of foreshore for the public, whether its from Ihumatao or Long Bay.
Its a weird concept pushed by Northland and Jones. They now want of 4 land motorway all the way to Whangarei… so everything can be trucked back to Auckland.
As Tauranga is an export port and Auckland an Import one, what will happen is container ships will make one stop at Mt Maunganui instead of Marsden Pt.
The good news is that its a one sided report so will be ignored like all the others of that ilk
Some fools want people living in the lower half of New Zealand to keep in the dark until after 9am on winter days. School kids walking or cycling to school in the dark!
Sunrise isn't till about 0840NZST in mid-winter in the south and their idea to keep NZDT would have sunrise at 0940 local.
Stupid, and then I read this: "Houlbrooke worked for Seymour before taking on his current role at the Taxpayers' Union" so it figures.
https://twitter.com/TakeBackClocks/status/1179467150899040256
Yep, ridiculous. The likes of Houlbrooke just oppose anything that even slightly smacks of social responsibility, all under the guise of 'personal freedom'.
Such people want what they want to be what we should do. It is obviousthat his way is the best way. Is he a born NZr or a newish one changing a few things in the country to make it perfect for him.
A good law exam question:
https://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/116288238/law-lecturer-outs-himself-as-subject-of-unjustified-harassment-complaint
Vaping cannabis kills eight people
Sensational tagline? perhaps, but news from the u.s warns people not to vape cannabis oil
NZ experts, however, suggest caution not concern.
Dr Penny Truman, Massey University School of Health Sciences
Well, unregulated cannabis extracts cut with vitamin E acetate. There are hipsters all over the world, not just a loose area of continental US.
I figure we've got another ten years at least before we can start calling the long term effects of vaping with/without cannabis.
As Dr Truman says, ten years so far without obvious problems, so another decade to quit nicotine sounds good to me.
Actually I've just been researching how to make those cannabis vape liquids, and as there are no doubt tens of thousands of legit vaping users in the states, and mostly medical by the looks, having this crop of deaths does point to the batches used or a badly made product at fault and not the delivery device in itself.
Ten years is pretty tight to even measure the negative effects of smoking, and I haven't seen any studies at close to the scale of many of the smoking harm studies.
Even when things like the doctor's study were delivering their results, that was based on the observed outcome after 40 years of endemic smoking. I'e' they had a lot of 60y.o. doctors who had been smoking all their lives, rather than everyone only having started ten years ago.
But the short term harm, as you point out, looks like being the joys of unregulated capitalism rather than a problem with vaping itself. Contrast would be the immediate and sustained effects of crack or meth, which are shit products even without unregulated capitalism.
But I'm still pretty cautious about vaping.
Well the media hysteria over vaping we saw after the first deaths in the u.s is somewhat put to bed (not that vapers didn't know it was mostly bs), and despite the caution, which I also share as anything but fresh air in your lungs isn't good, vaping is still much safer than actually lighting up and inhaling toxic smoke.
In some respects, it likely is. ~0ppm tar, for example. But until the long term data comes in, we won't know by how much. If it's only a quarter (or even a sixteenth) as harmful as smoking, would we have been better off trying to suppress vaping as well as smoking? A rhetorical question to illustrate the public health balancing act.
Well I wouldn't promote it to anyone other than a smoker because even a rhetorical 25% better is still better, and there's the cost savings too.
All depends on what the math turns out to be. Even for the smokers, if the vape plateau that stops them actually addressing their addiction ends up in significantly fewer people stopping their nicotine use, that might offset the benefit of fewer people actually smoking. Whereas the clear harm of smoking is an incentive to break the habit.
But we don't even know that vaping is actually safer, yet. It's a fair guess, but surprises happen.
It's true I wouldn't ever go back to smoking if vapes were banned, though I did read one reason for wanting to get rid of them is that a number of kids go on to cigarettes after vaping, which I find really odd.
Gordon Campbell looking at the swing in the world back to government involvement in infrastructure spending to kickstart a sluggish economy.
(And other matters.)
he IMF paper attributes the sluggish response of investment to the prevalence of market power. The authors find that investment rose less for companies with higher price mark-ups — a standard measure of a company’s power to dominate a market. This fits with the thesis that monopoly power is increasingly making the U.S. economy unresponsive to standard market forces. The benefit of corporate tax cuts might simply be one more piece of conventional economic wisdom that no longer applies. In any case, Trump’s tax cut looks like it underperformed in 2018. The effect in the long run might be more positive, but given the drag from the trade war and other events, that will be hard to know. The most reasonable conclusion seems to be that corporate tax cuts are not a particularly powerful tool for boosting economic growth in the U.S. The Trump tax cuts should be the last piece of evidence needed to end the illusion of supply-side economics.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL1910/S00021/gordon-campbell-on-british-apologies-and-interest-rates.htm