Open mike 03/11/2019

Written By: - Date published: 7:00 am, November 3rd, 2019 - 62 comments
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Open mike is your post.

For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose.

The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy).

Step up to the mike …

62 comments on “Open mike 03/11/2019 ”

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  1. Andre 1
    3 November 2019 at 7:58 am

    When presidents were really scandalous …

  2. Sacha 2
    3 November 2019 at 8:41 am

    Is 3 days fast enough to tackle dodgy political adverts? The Advertising Standards Authority's CEO also seems to lack a protective mindset:

    "Differences of political opinion should be openly debated without undue hindrance or interference from authorities such as the Complaints Board."

    If the identity and position of the advertiser were clear, a "liberal interpretation of the Codes" would apply to help ensure political parties, politicians, lobby groups or advocates "are not unnecessarily fettered in promoting their views", Ms Souter said.

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/402263/andrew-little-declares-little-confidence-in-advertising-standards-authority

    • Sacha 2.1
      3 November 2019 at 8:52 am

      Why should we have any confidence the ASA knows the difference between an opinion and a fact?

      • greywarshark 2.1.1
        3 November 2019 at 1:12 pm

        Why should we consider that the Advertising Standards Authority would give a fig for the standards of our democracy and the politics that we use to maintain our wished-for standards. Advertising is to encourage turnover and profits, and the more argument and kerfuffle, the more activity in the commercial market place. Who gives a stuff for authority says Ms Souter and her ilk, who believe in following the White Queen's precept:

        …said the Queen. "When I was your age, I always did it for half-an-hour a day. Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast."

        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Queen_(Through_the_Looking-Glass)

  5. John Clover 5
    3 November 2019 at 9:48 am

    The latest from Muriel Newman at NZCPR question if Labour is soft on welfare and guest writer

    https://www.nzcpr.com/the-road-to-hell-is-paved-with-good-intentions/

    tells us that given all the options somebody on welfare could get around $950pw while if they got a job paying the minimum wage would be only around $700.

    So why would a person give up the welfare for a job. Nobody I would suggest but if we want to reduce the cost of welfare I came up with the following….

    In such a situation the case officer should work out the difference and making allowance for costs involved in doing the job, transport/protective clothing etc, make an adjustment to the welfare payment so that the person is not worse off or better with a small financial advantage when they take the job.

    This would save the country much of the benefit payment while getting somebody into the workforce.

    Sadly I suspect there would be an outcry against such a pragmatic solution though one could hope for common sense prevailing.

    • Sacha 5.1
      3 November 2019 at 9:51 am

      Mentioning 'common sense' and Muriel Newman in the same utterance tells me everything I need to know, thanks.

      • joe90 5.1.1
        3 November 2019 at 10:03 am

        I looked. It's the same old same old from Lindsay fucking Mitchell.

        • greywarshark 5.1.1.1
          3 November 2019 at 12:59 pm

          Not the monkey and organ-grinder again Lindsay Mitchell.

          The person who makes a profile for herself out of the fact that parenting is not regarded as of prime importance to be good parenting requiring training and advice, and an opportunity for a happy parent to be doing part-time work and so role modelling what the pedagogues wish.

          The fact that the RW governments have destroyed the working person's chances of secure employment and a living wage for working during hours that are social norms is given a light mention, if at all.

          The number of people on a jobseeker benefit under this government continues to rise.

          Latest Ministry of Development figures tell us 143,000 get the benefit, up 10,000 on this time last year.

          And not coincidentally, that number has been steadily rising since September 2017.

          The number of hardship assistance grants also skyrocketed, up 225,000 compared to a year ago.

          Welfare researcher Lindsay Mitchell joined Mike Hosking to discuss the figures.

          https://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/on-air/mike-hosking-breakfast/audio/lindsay-mitchell-jobseeker-benefit-increase-continues-to-plague-government/

      • Andre 5.1.2
        3 November 2019 at 10:03 am

        Especially since the link is to a Lindsay Mitchell piece that doesn't even mention Muriel Newman …

        • Sacha 5.1.2.1
          3 November 2019 at 10:13 am

          An even lower bar for 'sense'. Maybe John deliberately left out the name of Muriel's 'guest writer'?

    • Peter 5.2
      3 November 2019 at 10:54 am

      There's enough scope for lots of mileage out of this comment. Surely David Farrar or similar operators can grow it into implication-inference-fact that all beneficiaries are on $950 a week. It would be easy to convince Paula Bennett and Simon Bridges into believing it and start spouting it.

    • Brigid 5.3
      3 November 2019 at 11:27 am

      So you recommend that the employer be subsidised? Why not raise the minimum wage? If the employer cannot pay what the state considers a livable wage i.e. $950, they aren't conducting a viable business.

    • mpledger 5.4
      3 November 2019 at 12:38 pm

      It would just encourage employers to pay low wages because they know the govt will top up the wages to a livable amount.

    • SPC 5.5
      3 November 2019 at 5:54 pm

      Funny they use the MW figure when anyone qualifying for extras on top of the base benefit would also qualify for AS and WFF tax credits etc.

    • greywarshark 5.6
      3 November 2019 at 6:34 pm

      JC The figures given will not be your average bennie and just put a confusing smear over their common problems. It would be better to pay attention to the budget advisory workers who have complete details of people in front of them all the time.

  6. joe90 6
    3 November 2019 at 10:26 am

    Rugged individualism with it's hand out,.

    The Agriculture Department projects that farm incomes will reach $88 billion in 2019 but nearly 40% of that — $33 billion — will come from trade aid, disaster assistance, the farm bill and insurance indemnities, according to a new report by the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF).

    https://www.axios.com/farmers-income-insurance-federal-aid-bankruptcies-5a05b8cb-3348-447b-8bac-ee718fd409fd.html?

  7. David Mac 7
    3 November 2019 at 10:34 am

    The Australian law that allows for the deportation of undesirables for scant reason is legislation numbered 501. The press, politicians and people at large have come to refer to those subjected to the legislation as 501's.

    I wonder if Levi Strauss have degrees of copyright ownership of the term '501'. I've got a pair. Most of us have at some stage in our lives.

  8. Molly 8
    3 November 2019 at 12:51 pm

    There was an article in the Independent about another murder of an indigenous guardian within his own country, in this case, a protector of the Brazilian rainforest.

    Thought to myself, as I read it, that despite ongoing discussion about globalisation and the movement of capital around the globe, these articles fail to indicate where incentives for this type of crime come from.

    So, for those who have the same concern, a couple of recent articles about the multi-nationals whose investments – and returns on investments – fuel not just the fires, but the commission of such crimes against fellow countrymen. While President Jair Bolsonaro justly deserves criticism as a primary actor, we still need to look behind the curtain to see who is directing the play.

    Mighty Earth: The Companies Behind the Burning of the Amazon

    Amazonwatch: The Dirty Dozen Driving Deforestation in the Amazon

    • joe90 9.1
      3 November 2019 at 4:28 pm

      Turns out tRump did instruct his staff to get the emails.Which is pretty much the same as telling his staff to go and collude.And with 85 billion pages up for FOI requests, there's lots more to be revealed.

      "[Rick] Gates recalled a time on the campaign aircraft when candidate Trump said, 'get the emails.' [Michael] Flynn said he could use his intelligence sources to obtain the emails," investigators wrote in a summary of Gates' April 2018 interview with Mueller's team. Flynn was a foreign policy adviser on the campaign and became Trump's first national security adviser.

      https://edition.cnn.com/2019/11/02/politics/mueller-investigation-notes-trump-stolen-emails/index.html

  10. greywarshark 10
    3 November 2019 at 1:33 pm

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/world/402404/german-city-declares-a-nazi-emergency

    Kai Arzheimer, a German politics professor who has written extensively on far-right extremism, said the resolution's main impact was symbolic, but that it could mean that more money would be allocated to programmes combating extremism in the future.

    "I don't think that any other German city has declared a 'Nazi emergency'. Resolutions against right-wing extremism are not so uncommon, however," he said.

    What is Dresden's connection to the far-right?
    Dresden has long been known for its links to the far right.
    In the early 1990s, neo-Nazi groups began staging rallies there to remember what they called "the bombing Holocaust", when the city was bombed by British and American forces in 1945, Mr Arzheimer said. These groups went on to become active in surrounding areas and in southern Saxony.

  11. joe90 11
    3 November 2019 at 4:32 pm

    These people have lost their fucking minds.

    A majority of voters in England, Wales and Scotland believe that the possibility of some level of violence against MPs is a “price worth paying” in order to get their way on Brexit, an academic survey has found.

    The poll from Cardiff University and the University of Edinburgh asked respondents what they would be prepared to see happen in order to leave or remain within the European Union.

    This included a question on whether achieving their desired political outcome was worth the risk of violence being directed against MPs.

    Most leave voters who took part in the Future of England study thought such a possibility was a “price worth paying” for Brexit to be delivered – 71% in England, 60% in Scotland and 70% in Wales.

    The majority of remain voters felt that the risk of violence towards MPs was worth it if it meant we would stay in the EU – 58% in England, 53% in Scotland and 56% in Wales.

    https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/oct/24/majority-of-voters-think-violence-against-mps-is-price-worth-paying-for-brexit

    • A 11.1
      3 November 2019 at 5:07 pm

      Disturbing stuff. What the heck is going on over there that things would get to this point? I knew some industries were suffering due to the EU but this is next level shit

    • Incognito 11.2
      3 November 2019 at 5:45 pm

      War is the continuation of politics by other means.

      Carl von Clausewitz

  12. greywarshark 12
    3 November 2019 at 4:34 pm

    Alnazeeras take on Brexit –

    A day ago –
    UK political morass deepens as Farage threatens Johnson
    Leader of Brexit Party wants UK PM Johnson to join hands with him, as suggested by US President Trump.
    https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/11/uk-political-morass-deepens-farage-threatens-johnson-191101152724847.html
    .

    21 hours ago –
    UK Brexit Party offers PM Johnson backing in upcoming election
    Nigel Farage says his party will only help if Boris Johnson withdraws deal with EU.
    https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/11/uk-brexit-party-offers-pm-johnson-backing-upcoming-election-191102060107738.html

  13. joe90 13
    3 November 2019 at 4:44 pm

    Lock the terrorist up!

    An anti-vaccination mother took to social media on Wednesday to share her decision to give out tainted lollipops for Halloween.

    The Australian mother, who identifies herself online as Sarah Walker RN, shared in the private Facebook group "Stop Mandatory Vaccination" that her son, whose name has been redacted, contracted chickenpox and that she planned to "help" other children in the community by spreading the virus through candy.

    "So my beautiful son [redacted] has the chickenpox at the moment and we've both decided to help others with natural immunity this Halloween!" Walker wrote. "We have the packaging open and closing down pat and can't wait to help others in our community."

    https://www.yahoo.com/news/anti-vaxx-mom-says-she-153902456.html?

  14. greywarshark 14
    3 November 2019 at 4:54 pm

    What is the EU thinking on Brexit? In April 2019:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/apr/04/leaked-file-shows-stark-contrasts-for-britons-in-eu-after-no-deal-brexit

    784,900 British citizens were living abroad in the EU, excluding Ireland, in January 2017

    A leaked EU document lays bare for the first time the differences in how British nationals will be treated by the bloc’s member states after a no-deal Brexit, with two countries emphasising that requests to stay could be rejected on public order and security grounds.

    The European commission paper presents a hotchpotch of attitudes among the EU27, Iceland, Norway, Lichtenstein and Switzerland, to the Britons living in their territory should the UK leave without a negotiated deal.

  16. A 16
    3 November 2019 at 5:12 pm

    Well I think most people know the USD is on the way out, but according to Max Keiser the trapdoor is about to be opened by China to hasten the dollar demise.

    BIG claims he makes is that China is about to announce it has 20 tonnes of gold and a new blockchain based Chinese currency.

  17. SPC 17
    3 November 2019 at 6:00 pm

    There is a parallel between singularity and failure, whether growth via immigration or basing a rugby teams approach to offloads at the gain-line.

  19. greywarshark 19
    3 November 2019 at 6:32 pm

    A troubling medical story about a child in pain for an extended period. One that is reported because she is the daughter of a Senior executive at stuff.

    'Her parents say Auckland District Health Board's repeated failure to perform a scan sooner caused Becky harm. However, the DHB maintains that Becky was scanned at the appropriate time.'

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/116768674/starship-hospital-didnt-scan-girl-writhing-in-agony-with-abdominal-pain-for-six-weeks

    Starship hospital didn't scan girl writhing in agony with abdominal pain for six weeks

    Becky Rose was taken to Starship hospital seven times in six weeks in agony due to abdominal pain. Two weeks ago she ended up in a critical condition, which her parents say could have been avoided.

    …In August, Becky was diagnosed with Crohn's disease, an inflammatory bowel condition which causes abdominal pain, severe diarrhoea, weight loss and malnutrition.

    On September 3 Becky started screaming and complaining of pain in her pelvis. It was different to any pain she'd experienced with her Crohn's. She was also experiencing intense discomfort when passing urine. …

    She was given heavy-duty painkillers morphine and tramadol. Doctors gave her an ultrasound looking into the possibility she might have an appendicitis or a flare up relating to Crohn's.

    After five days in hospital, including her 10th birthday, Becky and her family were sent home without a solid answer….

    On October 3, Becky received her first treatment for Crohn's at Starship, called Humira. Shortly after, she fell to the floor in agony…

    Then, on October 16, Tali said: "everything in her body broke down".

    Becky had been vomiting for hours when, almost unconscious, when she was wheeled to the resuscitation room in Starship ED. Doctors worked for an hour to stabilise her, including emptying her stomach, Rose said…

    During the ordeal an ultrasound showed fluid in her pelvis and finally a CT scan was ordered. This scan showed Becky's bowel was perforated. …

    There were intermittent radiographers strikes between Sept 30th and October 3rd which meant the child's scans were put off then, but if when she was in for five days from September 3rd she had had both ultrasound and a CAT scan, she would have been treated in a timely fashion. The MRI was not needed in the end.

    It seems very poor treatment for a very sick patient. I find that the comment about treatment from the specialist is wooden, it sounds as if based on a template of 'best practice' and unresponsive to the needs of the patient.

    Becky received MRI and CT scans within the "appropriate clinical timeframe", he said. [Starship's director of child health Mike Shepherd.]

    Perforations and bowel obstructions are known complications of Crohn's disease and can occur at any time. They are difficult to predict, difficult to prevent, and do not always show on scans, Shepherd said…

    Shepherd said it was not unusual for clinicians to be treating children in severe pain caused by conditions such as Crohn’s.
    (But first they have to do the scans to see what shows! And not just pass the crippling pain as a frequent occurrence that can be expected blah blah.)

    The organisation of Starship management seems strange. Dr Mike Shepherd seems to be employed by a clinic, and he works in other hospitals and even countries.

    Dr Shepherd is involved in the development of simulation-based education and is a board member and course director for Advanced Paediatric LifeSupport (APLS) NZ. He has a strong educational focus delivering clinical education to a wide range of health workers, including recent visits to Samoa and the Cook Islands.

    Dr Shepherd also has a strong interest in injury prevention and is currently completing a Masters of Public Health focusing on paediatric injury prevention. http://www.healthspecialists.co.nz/index.php/our-consultants.html

    Do the children get the best treatment at Starship, or is the position of Starship's Director of Child Health being filled by an agency doctor on contract, as part of a lucrative circle of appointments and opportunities around the Pacific, a stepping stone to some highly paid position in another country such as the USA?