The new United States ambassador to Aotearoa is an indigenous rights supporter.
Udall has said some of his "proudest achievements" came through working working with Native American tribal leaders in his state, including progressing tribal self-governance, native language revitalisation and protecting sacred areas.
He was also instrumental in helping secure $8 billion in funding for tribal governments in their Covid-19 responses. Upon stepping down from his post, Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez said Udall had been an "advocate and champion for the Navajo people".
Asked what he'd learned during his work with tribes, he said the importance of sovereignty. "The first thing is, is the indigenous people of New Mexico, the Native Americans really care about the fact that they are nations within the nation, and they care about their sovereignty."
The first thing is, is the indigenous people of New Mexico
Oh dear. Udall is another American double-izzer. There's a growing group of yanks that double the "is" in sentences for no sensible reason. The thing is, is that… The point is, is that… What it is, is that…
This bizarre form of phrasing is spreading like a disease from the US tv channels all around the world. Some TV1 reporters & commentators & presenters have even picked it up & started using it. As have others. Judith Collins was a frequent double-izzer.
I find it amusing (not a worry) when people mangle English & it becomes a “thing” that others just copy & repeat, unthinkingly.
In particular I find it funny that at the same time as TV presenters arecdoing their best to get the pronunciation & grammar right when using Te Reo Māori, they happily abandon correct English grammar & syntax & spout such nonsense.
I’m sleeping better now than I have for years, oddly, given my recent diagnosis.
Are you a user & an advocate of the “double is” usage then?
Why? It actually makes no sense.
I wonder if teachers of English teach that it’s a grammatically valid use of “is”.
English is an evolving language, sure, one only has to look at early writings & spellings from Shakespeare to see how much it has evolved, but some things like this are not so much evolving the language as advertising the user’s laziness or ignorance, imo.
Yes then they could start on 'ahold of' instead of 'hold of'. Was it Winston Churchill/George Bernard Shaw who coined the apt saying of US & English- English
'Two great nations divided by a a common language.'
They need to first eliminate double negatives, imo, because these often logically lead to an absurd positive. Classic example we’ve all heard.
Mant individuals who are stony broke in the US will often say:
“I ain’t got no money.”
Broken down, “ain’t” means haven’t, so the individual is saying:
“I haven’t got no money”.
If you haven’t got ‘no money’, logic says you must have ‘some money’. But they don’t.
They should probably say: “I ain’t got ANY money” but the double negative phrase “ain’t got no” has now been so deeply embedded into American English-speakers’ minds (via movies & tv and music & literature) it’s illogicality is simply ignored & people just interpret it (by context) to mean that the individual is broke.
The thing the plonkers who go on about Grammar Nazis & Spelling Nazis when errors in English are amusedly pointed out forget is that ALL languages have syntax & rules of spelling & postioning & placement etc becos without such forms of common control & usage every language would quickly become unintelligible to others if there weren’t some common agreed rules.
It's just an aside – a side issue I picked up because the writer actually reported the double is. Often they don't.
You seemingly haven't noticed how the thread continues below for anyone that wants to comment on it. Have you anything to say on the thread yourself? Or just that?
I went to the office of the New Zealand prime minister. She, after all, had got this one right – the colour in the Covid response traffic light framework is clear, unambiguous and true: orange. After a delay of some days – were they hiding something? – they came back and confirmed they didn’t focus group the colours. They didn’t do market research.
It was clear they hadn’t consulted sections 3.2 and 3.4 of the Road User Rule or AS/NZS2144:2002 or the South Australian Driver’s Handbook. They’ve got a pandemic to tackle. What they’d done instead is look at traffic lights, noticed that the middle one was orange and written down “Orange”.
I leave the final word to my colleague Natalie, probably the sharpest knife in the office; a person who calls a spade a spade, bullshit bullshit and something that is orange orange. “You’re either an amber gambler or running a late orange,” she said, in response to other colleagues who had shared wrong opinions in our work Slack. “There is no yellow. If there was, Cobb & Co would use pineapple instead of orange juice. End of.”
I recall reading an article in the Christchurch Press about twenty-five years ago or so, reporting how a chap had been pulled over by the police and fined for running an 'orange' light recklessly close, only to contest the charge successfully on the grounds that there was no such thing as an 'orange' traffic light.
The article I read all those years ago did state that the intermediate stage between green and red was 'yellow' or 'amber', but the only official references I've ever seen are to its being yellow.
Frank Nordern and Dennis Muir say 'amber'. Peter Sellers did their script "Balham Gateway to the South", a brilliant spoof of a travel documentary.
"Night falls on Balham. Beneath Quill's Folly, Balham's famous beauty spot, which stands nearly ten feet above sea level, the town is spread below us in a fairyland of glittering lights, changing all the time- green, amber, red and amber and back to green."
A long-overdue regeneration of coastal shipping seems to be in the pipeline:
The amount of domestic freight moved by sea rather than road or rail could double in the future if a new coastal shipping network is set up.
That's one of the key conclusions of a new report on how Waka Kotahi should invest more than $30 million in funding that had been earmarked for coastal shipping in the latest National Land Transport Programme.
The report, commissioned by the transport agency and written by shipping consultants Pacific Marine Management, also finds a new feeder network oriented around hubs in Auckland and Tauranga could improve the resilience of New Zealand's supply chains.
If Sealord's are that keen they should be able to buy their own freight ship. They're just hanging out for needless state subsidy into an imagined service that is never going to come back.
Kiwirail are a never-ending suck-hole of money for marginal network improvements on a shrinking network. Hard to see the Nightcaps or West Coast lines surviving once Fonterra converts to woodwaste boilers.
Minister Wood will consult by pushing that report straight back on the shelf.
"Minister Wood will consult by pushing that report straight back on the shelf"
If only.
Minister Wood will decide that the project is a wonderful idea except that it is not big enough. He will without doubt demand that it get at least a billion dollars. After all he has saved the taxpayer that much by not insisting on the stupid bike bridge across Auckland Harbour so there is plenty of money available for this new white elephant.
Meanwhile he is going to extend the Auckland – Hamilton train service through to Invercargill. The first stage has been enormously successful and we will therefore push ahead with extending it to the whole country.
The article strongly suggests Luxon is a supporter of LGBTQI initiatives & has no issues with the “rainbow community”.
There are many Christians who don’t have a problem with LGBTQIs, and as as those who do are seemingly in the minority in both the community & Parliament they are unlikely to cause any problems for them politically as they’ll be outvoted.
That won’t stop some folk who really like to hate on National & other things from stirring the pot & suggesting dark things with no supporting evidence about Luxon.
ANALYSIS: Shortly after Christopher Luxon was elected leader of the Opposition a rumour that had been swirling for years resurfaced on social media.
The rumour goes: During Luxon’s time in charge at Air New Zealand he axed the popular Mardi Gras “pink flights” because it didn’t align with his Christian views. Much has been said about Luxon’s Christian faith, but he says it has been “misrepresented and portrayed very negatively”.
The pink flights rumour is case in point because, in reality, Air New Zealand made huge progress to promote diversity and support transgender and gay staff under Luxon’s leadership.
… … … A spokesman for Luxon said he did not make any decisions to end the Mardi Gras flights. Luxon was a big supporter of the LGBTQI community, he said.
“Christopher is very proud of Air New Zealand’s record during his time of supporting greater diversity in general and the rainbow community specifically,” the spokesman said.
An unnamed source with knowledge of the situation said the decision to stop the pink flights was an operational one, and such a decision would not have gone all the way to the chief executive.
Craig Featherby, head of the Flight Attendants Association, said he had not heard anything to suggest Luxon made an executive decision to axe the flights.
Featherby, who is gay, worked as a Boeing 787-9 in-flight service manager while Luxon was chief executive. Featherby said the handful of times he met Luxon at Air New Zealand he always came across as accepting of all people. “I certainly never felt uncomfortable under his reign,” Featherby said.
Feathery said Air New Zealand underwent a lot of operational change during Luxon’s time leading the airline, and flight cancellations were exacerbated by the Rolls-Royce engine issues on the airline’s 787-9 Dreamliner over several years.
… … … …
The rest of the article basically just continues on demolishing your grubby rumour-generated conspiracy theory.
1+1 = 2, sure, but correlation does not equal causation, & your “evidence” would be laughed out of a Court. You’ve got nothing proving Luxon instructed those flights should cease because he has a religion-based problem with LGBTQI folk & a mountain of evidence he was a supporter of Air NZ’s positive LGBTQI policies.
There’s no need. You haven’t proven a plausible case.
Within that article are “operational decisions are not within the purview of the CEO” and references to engine problems curtailing some flights. All you’ve got is a runoured conspiracy theory with no direct evidence linking the cancellation of those flights to any decision by Luxon to cancel them.
I’m ending here. Wasted enuf time on you. You carry on rumour mongering & punching at shadows if you like.
'A spokesman for Luxon said he did not make any decisions to end the Mardi Gras'
'An unnamed source with knowledge of the situation said the decision to stop the pink flights was an operational one, '
'Craig Featherby, head of the Flight Attendants Association, said he had not heard anything to suggest Luxon made an executive decision to axe the flights.'
Could not get more unconvincing statements than these.
I like the word enuf. I’m a bit of a fan of finetic spelling. I sometimes spell though as tho, for the same reason.
In fact, I think there’s a lot of merit to the following idea, altho now Britain’a out of the EU, it’s not likely to ever be a starter….
EURO-ENGLISH
The European Commission has just announced an agreement whereby English will be the official language of the EU rather than German which was the other possibility.
As part of the negotiations, Her Majesty’s Government conceded that English spelling had some room for improvement and has accepted a five year phase-in plan that would be known as “Euro-English”.
In the first year, “s” will replace the soft “c”. Sertainly, this will make the sivil servants jump with joy. The hard “c” will be dropped in favour of the “k”. This should klear up konfusion and keyboards kan have 1 less letter.
There will be growing publik enthusiasm in the sekond year, when the troublesome “ph” will be replaced with “f”. This will make words like “fotograf” 20% shorter.
In the 3rd year, publik akseptanse of the new spelling kan be ekspekted to reach the stage where more komplikated changes are possible.
Governments will enkorage the removal of double letters, which have always ben a deterent to akurate speling. Also, al wil agre that the horible mes of the silent “e”s in the language is disgraseful, and they should go away.
By the fourth year, pepl wil be reseptiv to steps such as replasing “th” with “z” and “w” with “v”. During ze fifz year, ze unesesary “o” kan be dropd from vords kontaining “ou” and similar changes vud of kors be aplid to ozer kombinations of leters.
After ze fifz yer, ve vil hav a reli sensibl riten styl. Zer vil be no mor trubl or difikultis and evrivun vil find it ezi to understand ech ozer. Ze drem vil finali kum tru! And zen ze world vil be ourz!
a person who disingenuously expresses concern about an issue with the intention of undermining or derailing genuine discussion.
"he is regarded among climate scientists as a concern troll""
1. I'm not, nor have I ever been, a concern troll. I'm just a non-politically tribal reader & occasional commenter on a left-leaning blog that discusses political & social issues of the day.
2. I'm not motivated by almost pathological hatreds some fortunately few commenters here seem to have for political opponents or their parties. But if you have a go at me, I'm a typical bloke, expect to get a return serve if I think it's worth doing. If you're just blithering crap I might just ignore you.
3. Some of the most offensive commenters here employ the disingenuous tactic of criticising you for the same sins they commit, in the hope of deflecting criticism away from their nastiness. Narcissists & psychopaths do that.
Comprehension 101: nowhere did I name anyone as a concerned troll, I just made a general statement. You may infer I meant you; I couldn’t possibly comment.
So transparently disingenuous I’m embarrassed for you over how pathetically inept that attempt at a clever & sophisticated cheap shot was.
Why not crawl back under the rock you usually hide under & watch tv or something?
The article states that Luxon was international airline General Manager May 2011 to December 2012 so cancellation of international flights may have been in his purview during that time? also rolls royce engine problems seem to have to occurred in 2017 so maybe a red herring?
Look, Jag, don’t get me wrong. I realise that some woebegone, hateful people loathe their political opponents so much that they’ll happily indulge in character assassination on the flimsiest of evidence, especially on blogs or social media.
I generally find it best to avoid these types as they’re often miserable, forever moaning buggers to be around, prone to making various allegations & buying into any conspiracies involving their usual targets.
My comment below explains why I don’t see any evidence yet that confirms Luxon banned Mardi Gras flights because he’s got it in for LGTBQI folk owing to hiscrekigious beliefs. If, in fact, he does – and he did – that evidence will surface eventually.
Until it does, it’s just malicious gossip really. Some people, I realise, really like spreading that. But I’m not one of them.
Unfortunately this is part of the dirt in political life. Clark was subject to it. Mike Williams shot off to Australia to try to dig the dirt on Key. Seriously if being a wealthy, bald, christian male is as bad as it gets, Luxon is going to be dead boring.
"You carry on rumour mongering & punching at shadows if you like."
There's a bit of that around. Luxon seesm to have excited some on the left. it's quite humorous.
In an org the size of Air NZ, & with the number of LGBTQI employees it probably has, any decision by Luxon like that would soon get around & piss them off mightily. Once he left I’d expect one or more of aggrieved individuals (not necessarily just LGBTQIs either) to leak details to the msm or publish on social media to hit back at him.
Hasn’t happened. Why? Because it probably never happened. Time should tell.
The coincidental timing bodes poorly for him, but isn't overtly conclusive. Nor is his pastor's online content allegedly being trimmed indicative of sermons about which NZers might generally not approve.
Things that bode well for Luxon being a more progressive and forgiving christian than one of the conservative, bigoted ones? Not many so far. There are some very inclusive churches around, but there are others that aren't so openminded.
Which path do Luxon's beliefs travel? As you say, time will tell.
If that comment was directed at me, thank you. I can also say that YOU are a commenter I always read because, even though your views are sometimes at odds with the general views of most commenters on this left-leaning blog, you explain & defend your views clearly, you seem honest, & your posts are easy to understand.
There’s not much ambiguity. You also say what you mean and mean ONLY what you say.
You are also, in my view, quite sophisticatedly witty on many occasions. I like commenters with a GSOH.
It speaks volumes that you not only survive here as a regular but that many commenters with who you might sometimes be at odds politically seem to regard you with considerable affection.
For those who can cope with a transcribed interview, this is the Lowy Institute interviewing the White House key advisor on the Asia-Pacific region, Kurt Campbell. He's the guy who gave us the 'pivot to Asia', 'the Quad', and AUKUS.
The density of the exchange with the Lowy Institute and in how he engages about Australia gives a good and quite detailed sense of how important and how deep that White House-Canberra relationship is and will be.
Australia has a deeply significant strategic role play both globally and in the Indo-pacific. It values its partnership in the United States, but does not seek nor act in a way that is simply an adjunct to Washington. That's just so far, from how Australia conducts its independent foreign policy. And I see it every day. And I'm extraordinarily impressed by its dexterity, and its nuance. I fully believe that over time, that China will reengage with Australia. But it will, I believe, re-engage on Australian terms. I think Australia – China's preference would have been too broke, to break Australia. To drive Australia to its knees. And then you know, find a way forward. I don't believe that's going to be the way it's going to play out. I believe that China will engage because it is in its own interest to have a good relationship with Australia. I believe that will happen naturally, and I think that China is a country that deep down, fundamentally respects strength fortitude and resilience. And I can't imagine a country that has demonstrated that more clearly than Australia.
Duterte wasn't just playing one off against the other, he was looking for a global realignment. He had some pretty good reasons for being as anti-US as he was, but China is encroaching upon his doorstep.
Chauncey De Vega does a good job today with some of the consequences for US minorities and Democrats should Republicans gain Senate majority back next year and White House in 2024.
He quotes historian Ruth Ben-Ghiat, around preparing to leave the country if one is in an oppressed or substantially marginalised US minority:
"So, one answer would be: start exploring your options now if you are in a threatened category of people, as are many of those who write to me. "Better exile than prison," wrote former Italian Prime Minister Francesco Nitti to King Victor Emmanuel III in 1925, explaining why he'd left Italy when the Fascists took power. Nitti worked from abroad to counter authoritarian propaganda about what was happening in his native country, as exiles from Hong Kong, Myanmar, and other places do today.
It's unlikely that Republican rule would mean mass imprisonment for political opponents, the way there is in Erdogan's Turkey. Viktor Orbán, darling of the GOP, has not gone that route. And it's a shame to lose capable people when they are most needed at home — which would be the situation in the USA if Republicans gain more power and if they retake the White House in 2024.
(…)
Each person acts for their own reasons, and each situation is unique. But there is one constant in the history of exile. It means watching from afar the travails of your country, and, for those who desire to return, entering into a state of suspension: waiting for things to get better, waiting for the tyrant to die, waiting for freedoms to be restored."
With so many competent-but-uninspiring Democrat leaders retiring and not a great surge of inspiring leaders replacing them, we may well find more exiles seeking somewhere peaceful and competent to live.
Heres one for you…I'm always unimpressed by how quick the U.S is to label people terrorists,or insurgents or 'bad' people ,when the record shows they are the guiltiest of all those charges.
Absolutely – the US has made all manner of stupid mistakes that it rightly deserves to be heavily criticised for. But the difference is this – you are able to say these things without too much fear of censorship, or being disappeared.
Many people who speak freely in the USA rapidly die from car accidents or jumping out of windows etc etc, especially in the run up to court cases. Move on, nothing to see here. God bless America. Yeah ,right.
I'm sure members of the 200 or so countries the US has invaded, destroyed, rendered a 'failed state' are pleased you have rights that the US took from them.
Incidentally, the US has not made 'stupid mistakes'. Ever action it took against every country it sought to punish was a carefully considered and well thought out plan to destroy, to bring to its knees.
How many countries can you list where the CIA has murdered the incumbent democratically elected head of state or has overthrown the existing government and replaced it with their sycophant regime.
Yet despite the hated US invading, occupying, crushing and colonising more that every single nation on earth there is the peculiar fact that in 2021 the average person is far less likely to die in war than at any time in human history.
US going full fascist has massive implications for other countries, humanity and basically all of life. More so than say Brazil going full fascist. Athough obviously that would be bad for Brazilians and the region, it's not like they have nuclear weapons, an army the size of the US, or the kind of economic and political influence that the US has. Even allowing for the impact of the destruction of Brazil's forests (which they're already doing).
If it's all propaganda the CCP has but to restore her original post to the internet. and let her speak freely and openly in a trusted setting to Western journalists.
After dinner, I was still not willing to have sex. You said you hated me. You said in those seven years, you never forgot about me, and you will treat me well etc… I was terrified and anxious. Taking into consideration the affection I had for you seven years ago, I agreed… yes, we had sex.
She talked for 30 minutes with the IOC, who were satisfied she was ok, not being held captive or coerced.
I'm afraid it's now beyond whether Shuai is well and freely living her life, China's adversaries will not be cheated of an opportunity to rob them of the Games
In the West it would be immediately called out as a 'power imbalance'. And the fact of her post being scrubbed from the local internet is really all we need to know here. Not to mention her prolonged absence that triggered real concern.
Oh and we have a contact here in Brisbane who knows Shuai personally. So there's that as well.
Red, I haven't got a clue what actually happened here.
But neither am I willing to participate in an all out assault on China every time someone writes something on social media.
I feel sorry for Shuai, an absolute storm has broken loose, she may have endangered her beloved sport in her own country, she's been the conduit for a lot of very fierce threats to cancel the Beijing games.
She is now probably under so much pressure from both sides, it's intolerable, and the western media and sports organisations are intensifying it all. Who wouldn't go to ground?And she needs those western tennis associations to continue her career.A great little wedge has been leveraged.
Anyway, maybe you'll be assuaged by the third conversation the IOC has with her, in person next month .
Yes from what I've been told Shuai will be feeling extremely vulnerable from all sides at the moment. Anything she says now will be couched in the most careful terms.
Of course now she has become a symbol for a much larger story about the PRC and it's routine disregard for what you and I take for granted as human rights. She didn't intend this – but this is one of the downsides of being so very well known. (Yes I had heard of her prior.)
And in Tara Reade's case (she was the wrong kind of victim who had the misfortune to have been assaulted by a Democrat candidate) the victim was torn apart by the press.
In a time of me too believe the woman,Tara's reputation was trashed by the very same media affecting deep concern for Peng Shuai and demanding investigation .It's the hypocrisy, partisanship,and crude politicisation of these awful events in women's lives I can't stand .It's yet another cynical abuse of women for political purposes.They don't give a flying fuck when it comes down to it, just another opportunity to land some blows.
Every single Olympics being held in an adversary country has been hounded .The rooms aren't ready, its a total fuckup, the toilets don't work, human rights dictate that we have a boycott, Zika virus is running amok, don't go, there'll be riots, you won't be safe.Now its you tennis girls will be molested, we'll have to cancel
John Ralston Saul suggested all are corporate fascist.
“Now listen to the first three aims of the corporatist movement in Germany, Italy and France during the 1920s. These were developed by the people who went on to become part of the Fascist experience:
(1) shift power directly to economic and social interest groups;
(2) push entrepreneurial initiative in areas normally reserved for public bodies;
(3) obliterate the boundaries between public and private interest — that is, challenge the idea of the public interest.
This sounds like the official program of most contemporary Western governments.”
RL, you'd probably enjoy JRS, especially his book "On Equilibrium" which excoriates extreme ideology in favour of his notion of equilibrium, which he defines as a harmony of "common sense, ethics, creativity, intuition, memory and reason"
Looks interesting – although I don't do Twitter as a matter of principle. Nor FB for that matter.
However I can't help but note that in one breath the US is excoriated for the 'cult of individualism' that puts the individual interest ahead of the public – and in the next it's rotten with 'corporate fascism' that puts crushes the individual in pursuit of it's own state imposed interests.
Seems fairly logical that corporations would use "individualism" to market narcissistic crap and undermine class solidarity. That is far from the Enlightenment vision of elevating the individual human spirit
That is far from the Enlightenment vision of elevating the individual human spirit
Yes and that of course was a time when Christianity informed the basic narrative of society. In it's place we got materialism – which is the name I'd give to what you're speaking to.
Red "I'm always impressed at how people are so ready to yell 'fascist' at the USA, while remaining silent on the actually fascist regimes around the world."
Yeah nah Red, you're out of line in demanding that I comment on all other fascist regimes around the world at the same time as commenting on US fascism. Where on earth do you get that from?
Yes, well maybe.. tho I suspect that is more a result of the view angle from behind your own eyes than anything else ..
And you went and derailed my whole comment by bringing in something that wasn't even in there… jeez…
My comment was around how things might play out if the US instead had a Mandela rather than a Trump. Or how South Africa at the end of apartheid might have gone with a Trump rather than a Mandela. And about genies and bottles, though I have never some across one of those myself…
My comment was around how things might play out if the US instead had a Mandela rather than a Trump. Or how South Africa at the end of apartheid might have gone with a Trump rather than a Mandela.
Interesting counterfactual. The only way I can think to approach an answer is this – if you were an educated black person and given a choice to live in either SA or the USA in 2021 – which would you pick?
yes well you see that has been the problem the whole way through this mini-thread…. i talk about something (people – trump, mandela) and red talks about something else (countries)…
so i answered in the context of what i was talking about (people), not red (countries)…
and which would you go for gezza..? trump ? or mandela ?
If it was just a straight choice of 'who would you prefer as a leader' Trump or Mandela the answer scarcely needs typing out – Mandela. But this is pretty meaningless, because in no real world election was anyone ever going to have that choice.
Instead Americans got a choice between Trump and Clinton – and a majority picked Trump. Hell it's odds on they may pick him a second time.
It might be meaningless in the context you have put my question into but that isn't my intended context
Thinking through the question (which is ‘how would it have turned out’ not ‘who would you choose’) should highlight the importance of the person in charge to how a nation progresses through difficult times. (the question of how they got there is immaterial to this)
Upon completion of said ponderance thought can then turn to the consequences of having such leader (because how they got there is in fact immaterial at this important point).
Upon completion of said ponderance thought can then turn to the consequences of having such leader
Well yes – what were the consequences? And my answer attempted just that and asked which nation would you prefer to live in?
The obvious objection is of course that SA and the USA are very different places – but if leadership matters at all we might conclude that while Mandela was probably the best SA could hope for at that moment, the outcome in the long term is not very promising. And while the USA could certainly have hoped for better than Trump, he wasn't the unmitigated disaster many here would like to paint him as.
And if the answer to a choice between Mandela and Trump is obvious, the answer to a choice between living in SA and the USA is also plain.
What's not mentioned in this pearl clutcher is that the Democrats are on track to not only lose the up coming Senate elections, but the next Presidency as well. Never mind a 'rigged election system' – they simply cannot win on their current polling.
And this article reads as pre-positioning 'a stolen election' narrative all over again. Getting tedious.
Trump is right, the system is rigged. But not in the way that he claimed. Red and Blue teams are just distractions while Wall St pillages the public purse.
Mine got downloaded to my gmail address 3 days ago. When I went to open & save it somewhere on my phone yesterday to show the visiting Occupational Therapist, it had come down with all my particulars missing. It’s just a blank pass.
Bloody shambles. I’ll have to go thru the whole process of requesting it & proving identity again. 😠
So, I assume some kind of system glitch ocurred when the system checked my particulars from my driver’s licence, told me I had successfully applied for my vaccine pass, & that it would be emailed to my gmail address, but all it delivered was a completely blank pass with my particulars name dob vax dates not specified on it.
Just tried 3 times to repeat the process. But couldn’t remember the password I used to register. (I wrote down the 6 digit verification code it sent me originally.)
No problem, thinks I. There’s a standard Forgot password? link underneath the password text field. I’ll just click on that & it’ll offer me the option of entering a new password (that this time I’ll write down!).
Nuh uh. All that does is loop me back constantly to the login email & password fields, which repeatedly tells me the password is incorrect. FFS!
High call volumes, & mass passport extensions, the blank pass & this sort of very obvious screw-up of what is an easy password reset experience everywhere else tells me that incompetence & inadequate testing are unfortunately likely features of the current system.
I downloaded GooglePay as a way to store a persistent copy of the Vaccine Pass on the Android phone. Having an old phone I had to mess around making enough storage space to install GooglePay. I refuse to habitually and expensively upgrade my phone every couple of years to get assorted crap I don't want.
Anyway, it seems to work. Obviously from a speed of development perspective, integrating with existing tools/apps like GooglePay that are already out there is a much faster and smarter way of working than building and testing new stuff. But the whole thing does contain assumptions about how much spare cash people have to splash around on tech. Which sort of fits with all the hype about now being able to go to bars and restaurants in Auckland – who can afford that either except occasionally?
And even odder that we now equate 'freedom' with stuffing our gobs and bellies with expensive slops.
It's a QR code you carry around. Venues will scan it to check your vaccination status.
So it can be saved on your phone (generally in the secure wallet feature, where credit cards reside), or printed out.
Yes it can be easily circumvented. IMO it’s just another bit of pandemic safety theatre to reassure the public. But it will probably help weed out the really obnoxious antisocial types.
The pass is supplied as a PDF file, which isn't the most convenient really (for opening on a phone etc). My household have printed and laminated ours.
There is an app on Google Play for androids, that will verify passes on a phone (my massage-therapist friend downloaded it this morning – was working fine). On scanning a QR code, the verification app simply displays the information that is already shown on the front of the pass and says whether it is valid (i.e. the digital signature is legit). The app doesn't upload or store data to my knowledge.
The app works offline, except for the first scan (this will be when it downloads the encryption public key). Presumably an app for iPhone also, but I wouldn't know.
At the local cafe this morning they scanned it with another app called the "NZ Pass Verifier"
The data is not supposed to be collected or stored. It's only supposed to confirm the customer's vax status.
From the Privacy Policy (IMO technical loopholes are still possible)
NZ Pass Verifier will enable app users to verify a My Vaccine Pass as an authentic record of vaccination or exemption. The app will display the name, date of birth and expiry date recorded in the QR Code of the Pass presented.
You must use any personal information accessed by the app in accordance with the Privacy Act 2020 and in accordance with any Order requirements. The app may only be used in compliance with current Orders, and users are not permitted to collect and/or use information about the presenter of the Pass via the app for any unrelated purpose.
No identifiable information about the user of the device or the Pass is retained by the app.
Basic analytics events are captured to record the number of successful and unsuccessful scans that have occurred. These events do not contain any personal information and are not able to be linked to an individual or location
I am guessing they simply lost the file, nothing to do with the QR code or the pass – could've just as easily lost a word document containing their favourite cake recipes…guessing!
There is a technical explanation here, including a link to even more technical info on Github and the full technical specification. It all is open source so the security can be examined by anyone.
It is not necessarily that easily circumvented, in the sense that it is difficult to produce a fake, verifiable pass with your details. You can produce a fake that visually looks like a legit pass, but it will be rejected by the verifier app.
The pass deploys asymmetric cryptography, which means the MOH has the private key and each QR code is signed so it can be verified with the freely-available public key. It is very difficult (near impossible) to produce a signature that matches the pass plain-text data, without possession of the private key.
Pretty easy to print several copies of a valid pass and share it around with your mates. Most businesses aren't going to double check against another form of ID
Yep, need to check against other (photo) ID to confirm the name matches the person.
Many close-contact businesses know all their customers by name already, and being asked for photo ID at entry of pubs, concerts etc is not unusual.
What I think is unfair and disadvantages poorer people, is the lack of free, easily-accessible photo ID, especially for young people (the vaccine pass requirement applies to everyone over 12 years old). The "kiwi access card" costs $55 and is only for people over 18 years old.
Agree as you say above. A drivers license is acceptable, but again not everyone has one of those. There was some debate a few years ago, as I recall, of the govt issuing an ID card. Lots of people against such a move because – privacy. But you can see that a card would have its uses in such a situation as we are now experiencing.
258 Altering, concealing, destroying, or reproducing documents with intent to deceive
(1)Every one is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years who, with intent to obtain by deception any property, privilege, service, pecuniary advantage, benefit, or valuable consideration, or to cause loss to any other person,—
(a) alters, conceals, or destroys any document, or causes any document to be altered, concealed, or destroyed; or
(b) makes a document or causes a document to be made that is, in whole or in part, a reproduction of any other document.
(2) An offence against subsection (1) is complete as soon as the alteration or document is made with the intent referred to in that subsection, although the offender may not have intended that any particular person should—
(a) use or act upon the document altered or made; or
(b) act on the basis of the absence of the document concealed or destroyed; or
(c)be induced to do or refrain from doing anything.
(3)Every person is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years who, without reasonable excuse, sells, transfers, or otherwise makes available any document knowing that—
(a) the document was altered, concealed, or made, in whole or in part, as a reproduction of another document; and
(b)the document was dealt with in the manner specified in paragraph (a) with intent to—
(i) obtain any property, privilege, service, pecuniary advantage, benefit, or valuable consideration; or
(ii)cause loss to any other person.
259 Using altered or reproduced document with intent to deceive
(1)Every one is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years who, knowing any document to have been made or altered in the manner and with the intent referred to in section 258, with intent to obtain by deception any property, privilege, service, pecuniary advantage, benefit, or valuable consideration, or to cause loss to any other person,—
(a) uses, or deals with, or acts upon, the document; or
(b)causes any person to use or deal with, or act upon, the document.
(2) For the purposes of this section, it does not matter that the document was altered or made outside New Zealand.
Not advisable for them. Didn't say you were advising them.
But that's the first bit. Deterrence. That'll stop a few, although admittedly risk assessment is a problem for the potential crowd.
Then there's the fact that the name and date of birth come up. Even without parallel ID checks, if a middle-aged regular called "Charlie" comes up as 23 year old "Tristan", that's another issue altogether. And maybe Charlie is a bit of a dick. That might make someone care.
Is it completely perfect? Nope. Some vendors won't notice or care. But an organised effort has a high likelihood of quickly being identified, and the copied code being blacklisted when vendor apps receive the next update. Or even better, "contact police" coming up when it's tried.
That probably doesn't apply because entering somewhere in breach of Covid orders is not usually intended to gain pecuniary advantage by deception ("service" in that context is paid services, not something like service at a bar). It's a breach of the Covid order however and punishable by a hefty fine.
I'm no lawyer, fair call. But there'd be something dodgy as feck about it beyond the covid regs.
Forgery (s256) has some wider criteria.
I almost hope someone tries it – if it's not a dishonesty offence of some sort, it bloody should be and that might be the incentive for the government to do something about it.
Yes that's it. To display it on your phone you have to first verify that it is you ( the owner of the phone by password or finger print) and the mycovid website verifies that you are the owner of the phone before it initially sends the pass to the phone.
I understand what the QR code is for. I don't understand the various techs being used, and consequently the privacy and security issues (and please, nobody tell me 'trust us it's safe').
The email has a link so if you open the email on your phone, you press that link and it sends the qrcode to the app.
Sorry, it sends the QR code to the "digital wallet" the phone might have.
The only tech that is required is:
the vendor's app so e.g. the cafe knows you're ok
the QR code itself
Everything else is up to the person who gets the pass. They can store it and present it however they want (paper print-out, photo on their phone, digital wallet on their phone, tattoo, stone tablet, literally anything), as long as a vendor's app can read the QR code.
Whether the person who gets the pass is opening themselves up to security issues based on the medium they choose is up to them.
If the vendor is using the official NZGovt app, that spec is online. If the vendor uses a third-party app developed using the spec, the only information that can possibly be compromised is the information about you in the QR code:
If you are using a phone to store your pass the easiest way on an android phone is to have the google pay app. You supposedly can get by, not having that app, but I found I needed to down load it to get past go. The thing is the google pay app is set up so you have to erify that you are the user each time you use it by setting up a PIN or in my case using a fingerprint. That protects your info from being accessed by someone else who may have got hold of your phone for nefarious reasons.
Once you have the google pay app on your phone and set up, the Vaccine pass set up is smooth. You can then set up a shortcut so that you do not have to access google pay – just a touch of a icon – verify you are the correct user, and hey presto there is your pass, as displayed in your photo above.
thanks McFlock. I've probably got a wallet app on my iphone that I don't use for anything else, might use it for this, so good to know the full range of options.
Do most people not have their battery run down on their phone?
two top gender clinicians (who are also both transgender) admit that puberty blockers in some children may lead to the inability to orgasm……….Jazz Jennings the post child for transitioning (had her own reality tv series about it) being a Case in point.
gender ideologists want immediate affirmation and confirmation of young persons gender identity and access to medical transition without question…the idea that puberty blockers are harmless is untrue. They are experimental and we are only realising the harm they do
Under the proposed Conversion Practices Bill counsellors and parents are at risk of a police complaint and up to five years in jail if they query a young person desire to medically transition. It may not be how the law pans out, but I believe and there is some evidence for this, that that is how gender ideology activists want it to be. I base this on the submissions I heard and read to the select committee
Yes Redlogix. Not to mention fertility issues and permanant changes to their presentation e.g facial hair, deep voice, Adam's apple on a biological women who tranistioned then has regrets.
Its sad, but it is outrageous that some adults are enabling this.
Luxon giving stand-up in Auckland. Says the city should be at "green", doesn't want restrictions. Open up, all good.
He seems oblivious to reality.
It's also politically inept. There are many other issues to challenge the gov't on. He (or his advisers) should be saying "leave Covid alone, the polls on that speak for themselves".
I've had a good search and I can't find a single qualified voice (public health, epidimeology etc) who thinks Auckland should simply drop all restrictions, right now.
It's incredible that Luxon would go doolally on this. I suppose he's relying on the "honeymoon" to deflect the obvious Qs.
If Ardern/Bloomfield said what Luxon just did there would be uproar.
Luxon doesn't even need to be serious about Auckland going green light. He knows he can't make that happen so it is a cheap way of getting those who are frustrated with restrictions on board. It is kind of a win win for him.
I agree he is only doing it for show, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's a safe bet.
At this stage it may not hurt him but he doesn't need the Brian Tamaki fan club (1%), he needs the 20% who support the gov't on Covid but not on various other issues.
Statements like this on the record stack up over time.
I agree Observer. Its a strategy that could back fire. But he may still pick up votes from it. And its so easy saying how things should be and please those who want it that way, when you can't deliver.
Maybe he's dangerously emboldened by the rapturous fawning of the Herald/ZB sycophants – and is saying out loud the thing that should only be whispered among friends? Or maybe he reckons no-one's listening, the phone's off the hook and he can say all sorts of dumb sh*t with impunity?
Totally! He's playing up to the Elite and Business class as per Air NZ – but even Air NZ are more responsible than that now.
There are over 6000 active cases of Covid in Auckland. 56 of yesterdays cases were active in the community. It took only 1 unknown case in the community to start this latest outbreak. True over 90% of eligible persons in Auckland are now fully vaccinated, but they are still 10's of thousands including all children under 12 who are not.
National Party leader Christopher Luxon has been in the city's viaduct harbour today, speaking to hospitality business owners. He told reporters that the city should have gone to the orange setting, as the red light is for when the health system is overwhelmed and vaccination rates are low – neither of which is happening in Auckland.
The new leader of the National Party is questioning the government's call to put Auckland into the red setting under the traffic light system, as the city emerges from four months of lockdown today.
Auckland cafes and gyms opened their doors today as New Zealand dropped alert levels and moved into the Covid-19 protection framework.
National Party leader Christopher Luxon has been in the city's viaduct harbour today, speaking to hospitality business owners. He told reporters that the city should have gone to the green setting, as the red light is for when the health system is overwhelmed and vaccination rates are low – neither of which is happening in Auckland.
He says Auckland hospitality businesses are worried about the city emptying over the summer and being hit again in the pocket.
Yes i know the msm are reporting that. But he doesn't actually say that in the video interview as available. Perhaps he answered questions after or issued a press release?
You are quoting the RNZ interpretation of what they are claiming he said. As usual they are misquoting him because the Labour Party provided tax-payer funded grant to RNZ requires them to do so.
What Luxon did was to explain what the traffic light system was meant to represent. In particular Red was for when the health system was overwhelmed and the vaccination rates were low. As he said, and as the Government itself says, the vaccination rates in Auckland are high and there is no threat to overwhelm the hospitals.
If the Government was setting the colours as their system claimed they should then, as he pointed out they should have, following their own defined rules, have been displayed a Green light.
He then pointed out how stupid the traffic light system actually is and why National were opposed to it.
He never once advocated that Auckland should be Green, He simply pointed out that, using the Government explanation of their own system, they would have had to declare it to be Green.
As usual the msm journalists have chosen to misquote those MPs who are not on the left wing of politics. You have chosen to follow the party line.
Why don't you try listening to what he actually said during the question time instead of believing the bs that the reporter has invented?
The Stuff report has also been edited. Originally they said the Luxon had called for the whole city to be in Green. They have corrected it by adding the following,
"Clarification: An earlier version of this article said Luxon wanted Auckland to be in green. He in fact said that hospitality was ready for green, and National was against the traffic-light system. (Amended December 3, 2021, 2:14pm)"
As far as I can see they are the only ones to include the whole statement and answers he gave.
As I commented above he simply pointed out that if the Government had followed the rules they had laid down for what the various colours meant they would have had to call it a Green zone.
So yes he does say to reporters in his opinion Auckland should have gone to green. What is there to misunderstand about that. The only thing you can take away from that sentiment is one of complete callousness or a complete failure to appreciate just how serious the threat of reinfection is. There are 6000 plus active cases in Auckland alone right now. Dozens of cases active in the community every day.
Or have you not had a recent auditory test? Go back and listen carefully this time. His words clearly imply that in his "humble" opinion Auckland should be in green. That is the clear impression he wants to give.
Baldfinger
'He's the man, the man with the Midas touch
A spider's touch
Such a cold finger
Beckons you to enter his web of sin
But don't go in
Golden words he will pour in your ear
But his lies can't disguise what you fear
For a swinging voter knows when he's kissed them
It's the kiss of death from
Mister Baldfinger
Voters beware of this heart of gold
This heart is cold
He loves only gold
Only gold
He loves gold
He loves only gold
Only gold
He loves gold'
Now that would be interesting. I’m not sure if Auckland voters are up for a left wing, Polynesian mayor. He’d win the South and West, might struggle with the isthmus and north of the bridge.
After 50 years of reading the Herald I have cancelled my subscription this morning.There has been no attempt by the paper at even handedness at all.I have had to endure endless carping from Prebble ,Hosking ,the ex national mp Fran O'Sullivan etc etc .Ireland an island has a population of 5million people like us and they have lost 5400 people to covid .I think we have lost 38 or there abouts.Instead of the endless specious arguments we should be celebrating what can only be described as a monumental success.
Agreed TV…when she said 92 at the presser I thought maybe, just maybe, with fierce contact tracing we can keep Covid at very low to negligible numbers…..if we keep MIQ at the borders of course.
But now we have 7-houses saying Auckland should go Green today-he would open the border today too.
Of course if his cobbers had got in in 2017 he wouldn't be opening the border today because faced with the pandemic they would've done things differently across the board. There would've been no lockdowns, no mandates on anything, Simon Thornley would've been their chief expert and everything would've been sweet.
He is all piss-and-wind because he can be and he knows cretinous National supporters will be orgasmic at having a 'sensible man of business' with a handle on covid reality at the helm. Joke.
I'm imagining him organising a cup of tea in Mt Eden with David Seymour. John Key did that to give Act one seat. I wonder if the new master businessman will be trying for a repeat to get the 10 seats back.
luxum will be so busy barking at passing cars, he will miss his appointment with seymour to have a cuppa. luckily ,his handlers will sort that out ,as well as satanising, sorry, sanatising his backstory. expect to see him at next big gay out , and at his local bunnings, backing a trailer in to pick up some handyman type thingies. expect to see his handlers try and put distance between john and notjohn . john in hawiian shirts, notjohn in blue shirts and preworn jeans . to pretend he's one of us, he might even cross the bridge one night and slum it at the speedway . rt wing polies have a habit of using speedway to pretend they are real kiwis. don brash frantically wedging into a midget. blenglish driving a stock car at baypark around the same time he went boxing, collins slumming at te marua(welly) speedway one night, that last one was really cringeworthy(crusher having to be nice to boy(and girl) racers) LOL.
I see the (ex) CEO is calling for Auckland's regime to be reduced to "green lights" forthwith.
Of course that's why he was a CEO and not the Pilot.
The pilot warns that there is a storm ahead and may have to depart from flight plans in order to minimise passenger discomfort and possible damage to the aircraft. The altered route may add a few minutes to the flight time and cost a little more in fuel.
The CEO, on the other hand, sitting in the relative comfort of Business Class, instructs the cabin crew to relay an order, "Sod the passenger discomfort – your instructions are to get this flight to its destination in the quickest and cheapest means possible!"
Enjoyed my first proper cafe visit this morning. Sat in the sunshine and scoffed my croissant. Then back to the salt mines. WFH ain't so bad in Parnell.. probably 20 cafe's in easy walking range
Yes. Support for the Greens is 15.5%, among voters under 50. (That is consistent with other polls on climate change + environment, and the voter demographics).
Pretty clear lesson for National: don't drag your feet (like Labour) or worse, go into reverse. Over to you, Mr Luxon.
I do think we shouldn't be complacent (and am aware I did say the other day that short of the arrival of someone charismatic like Key I couldn't see National winning the next election. ACT on the other hand…)
Also big thanks should be given to the divine Ms Collins for getting National back into the frame for a resounding National victory at the next election
another way to look at the latest poll is ; election is two years away. if we have learnt anything from the last two years(many havent) ,is that anything can happen between now and next election…..
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Long story short: the Government’s austerity policy has driven the economy into a deeper and longer recession that means it will have to borrow $20 billion more over the next four years than it expected just six months ago. Treasury’s latest forecasts show the National-ACT-NZ First Government’s fiscal strategy of ...
Come and join myself and CTU Chief Economist for a pop-up ‘Hoon’ webinar on the Government’s Half Yearly Economic and Fiscal Update (HYEFU) with paying subscribers to The Kākā for 30 minutes at 5 pm today.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream to watch our chat. Don’t worry if ...
In 1998, in the wake of the Paremoremo Prison riot, the Department of Corrections established the "Behaviour Management Regime". Prisoners were locked in their cells for 22 or 23 hours a day, with no fresh air, no exercise, no social contact, no entertainment, and in some cases no clothes and ...
New data released by the Treasury shows that the economic policies of this Government have made things worse in the year since they took office, said NZCTU Economist Craig Renney. “Our fiscal indicators are all heading in the wrong direction – with higher levels of debt, a higher deficit, and ...
At the 2023 election, National basically ran on a platform of being better economic managers. So how'd that turn out for us? In just one year, they've fucked us for two full political terms: The government's books are set to remain deeply in the red for the near term ...
AUSTERITYText within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedMy spreadsheet insists This pain leads straight to glory (File not found) Read more ...
The NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi are saying that the Government should do the right thing and deliver minimum wage increases that don’t see workers fall further behind, in response to today’s announcement that the minimum wage will only be increased by 1.5%, well short of forecast inflation. “With inflation forecast ...
Oh, I weptFor daysFilled my eyesWith silly tearsOh, yeaBut I don'tCare no moreI don't care ifMy eyes get soreSongwriters: Paul Rodgers / Paul Kossoff. Read more ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Bob HensonIn this aerial view, fingers of meltwater flow from the melting Isunnguata Sermia glacier descending from the Greenland Ice Sheet on July 11, 2024, near Kangerlussuaq, Greenland. According to the Programme for Monitoring of the Greenland Ice Sheet (PROMICE), the ...
In August, I wrote an article about David Seymour1 with a video of his testimony, to warn that there were grave dangers to his Ministry of Regulation:David Seymour's Ministry of Slush Hides Far Greater RisksWhy Seymour's exorbitant waste of taxpayers' money could be the least of concernThe money for Seymour ...
Willis is expected to have to reveal the bitter fiscal fruits of her austerity strategy in the HYEFU later today. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/TheKakaMōrena. Long stories short, the six things that matter in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Tuesday, December 17 in The Kākā’s Dawn Chorus podcast ...
On Friday the government announced it would double the number of toll roads in New Zealand as well as make a few other changes to how toll roads are used in the country. The real issue though is not that tolling is being used but the suggestion it will make ...
The Prime Minister yesterday engaged in what looked like a pre-emptive strike designed to counter what is likely to be a series of depressing economic statistics expected before the end of the week. He opened his weekly post-Cabinet press conference with a recitation of the Government’s achievements. “It certainly has ...
This whooping cough story from south Auckland is a good example of the coalition government’s approach to social need – spend money on urging people to get vaccinated but only after you’ve cut the funding to where they could get vaccinated. This has been the case all year with public ...
And if there is a GodI know he likes to rockHe likes his loud guitarsHis spiders from MarsAnd if there is a GodI know he's watching meHe likes what he seesBut there's trouble on the breezeSongwriter: William Patrick Corgan Read more ...
Here’s a quick round up of today’s political news:1. MORE FOOD BANKS, CHARITIES, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SHELTERS AND YOUTH SOCIAL SERVICES SET TO CLOSE OR SCALE BACK AROUND THE COUNTRY AS GOVT CUTS FUNDINGSome of Auckland's largest foodbanks are warning they may need to close or significantly reduce food parcels after ...
Iain Rennie, CNZMSecretary and Chief Executive to the TreasuryDear Secretary, Undue restrictions on restricted briefings This week, the Treasury barred representatives from four organisations, including the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions Te Kauae Kaimahi, from attending the restricted briefing for the Half-Year Economic and Fiscal Update. We had been ...
This is a guest post by Tim Adriaansen, a community, climate, and accessibility advocate.I won’t shut up about climate breakdown, and whenever possible I try to shift the focus of a climate conversation towards solutions. But you’ll almost never hear me give more than a passing nod to ...
A grassroots backlash has forced a backdown from Brown, but he is still eyeing up plenty of tolls for other new roads. And the pressure is on Willis to ramp up the Government’s austerity strategy. Photo: Getty ImagesMōrena. Long stories short, the six things that matter in Aotearoa’s political economy ...
Hi all,I'm pretty overwhelmed by all your messages and emails today; thank you so very much.As much as my newsletter this morning was about money, and we all need to earn money, it was mostly about world domination if I'm honest. 😉I really hate what’s happening to our country, and ...
A listing of 23 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, December 8, 2024 thru Sat, December 14, 2024. Listing by Category Like last week's summary this one contains the list of articles twice: based on categories and based on ...
I started writing this morning about Hobson’s Pledge, examining the claims they and their supporters make, basically ripping into them. But I kept getting notifications coming through, and not good ones.Each time I looked up, there was another un-subscription message, and I felt a bit sicker at the thought of ...
Once, long before there was Harry and Meghan and Dodi and all those episodes of The Crown, they came to spend some time with us, Charles and Diana. Was there anyone in the world more glamorous than the Princess of Wales?Dazzled as everyone was by their company, the leader of ...
The collective right have a problem.The entire foundation for their world view is antiscientific. Their preferred economic strategies have been disproven. Their whole neoliberal model faces accusations of corporate corruption and worsening inequality. Climate change not only definitely exists, its rapid progression demands an immediate and expensive response in order ...
Just ten days ago, South Korea's president attempted a self-coup, declaring martial law and attempting to have opposition MPs murdered or arrested in an effort to seize unconstrained power. The attempt was rapidly defeated by the national assembly voting it down and the people flooding the streets to defend democracy. ...
National has only been in power for a year, but everywhere you look, its choices are taking New Zealand a long way backwards. In no particular order, here are the National Government's Top 50 Greatest Misses of its first year in power. ...
The Government is quietly undertaking consultation on the dangerous Regulatory Standards Bill over the Christmas period to avoid too much attention. ...
The Government’s planned changes to the freedom of speech obligations of universities is little more than a front for stoking the political fires of disinformation and fear, placing teachers and students in the crosshairs. ...
The Ministry of Regulation’s report into Early Childhood Education (ECE) in Aotearoa raises serious concerns about the possibility of lowering qualification requirements, undermining quality and risking worse outcomes for tamariki, whānau, and kaiako. ...
A Bill to modernise the role of Justices of the Peace (JP), ensuring they remain active in their communities and connected with other JPs, has been put into the ballot. ...
Labour will continue to fight unsustainable and destructive projects that are able to leap-frog environment protection under National’s Fast-track Approvals Bill. ...
The Green Party has warned that a Green Government will revoke the consents of companies who override environmental protections as part of Fast-Track legislation being passed today. ...
The Green Party says the Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update shows how the Government is failing to address the massive social and infrastructure deficits our country faces. ...
The Government’s latest move to reduce the earnings of migrant workers will not only hurt migrants but it will drive down the wages of Kiwi workers. ...
Te Pāti Māori has this morning issued a stern warning to Fast-Track applicants with interests in mining, pledging to hold them accountable through retrospective liability and to immediately revoke Fast-Track consents under a future Te Pāti Māori government. This warning comes ahead of today’s third reading of the Fast-Track Approvals ...
The Government’s announcement today of a 1.5 per cent increase to minimum wage is another blow for workers, with inflation projected to exceed the increase, meaning it’s a real terms pay reduction for many. ...
All the Government has achieved from its announcement today is to continue to push responsibility back on councils for its own lack of action to help bring down skyrocketing rates. ...
The Government has used its final post-Cabinet press conference of the year to punch down on local government without offering any credible solutions to the issues our councils are facing. ...
The Government has failed to keep its promise to ‘super charge’ the EV network, delivering just 292 chargers - less than half of the 670 chargers needed to meet its target. ...
The Green Party is calling for the Government to stop subsidising the largest user of the country’s gas supplies, Methanex, following a report highlighting the multi-national’s disproportionate influence on energy prices in Aotearoa. ...
The Green Party is appalled with the Government’s new child poverty targets that are based on a new ‘persistent poverty’ measure that could be met even with an increase in child poverty. ...
New independent analysis has revealed that the Government’s Emissions Reduction Plan (ERP) will reduce emissions by a measly 1 per cent by 2030, failing to set us up for the future and meeting upcoming targets. ...
The loss of 27 kaimahi at Whakaata Māori and the end of its daily news bulletin is a sad day for Māori media and another step backwards for Te Tiriti o Waitangi justice. ...
Yesterday the Government passed cruel legislation through first reading to establish a new beneficiary sanction regime that will ultimately mean more households cannot afford the basic essentials. ...
Today's passing of the Government's Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill–which allows landlords to end tenancies with no reason–ignores the voice of the people and leaves renters in limbo ahead of the festive season. ...
After wasting a year, Nicola Willis has delivered a worse deal for the Cook Strait ferries that will end up being more expensive and take longer to arrive. ...
Green Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick has today launched a Member’s Bill to sanction Israel for its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, as the All Out For Gaza rally reaches Parliament. ...
After years of advocacy, the Green Party is very happy to hear the Government has listened to our collective voices and announced the closure of the greyhound racing industry, by 1 August 2026. ...
In response to a new report from ERO, the Government has acknowledged the urgent need for consistency across the curriculum for Relationship and Sexuality Education (RSE) in schools. ...
The Green Party is appalled at the Government introducing legislation that will make it easier to penalise workers fighting for better pay and conditions. ...
Thank you for the invitation to speak with you tonight on behalf of the political party I belong to - which is New Zealand First. As we have heard before this evening the Kinleith Mill is proposing to reduce operations by focusing on pulp and discontinuing “lossmaking paper production”. They say that they are currently consulting on the plan to permanently shut ...
Auckland Central MP, Chlöe Swarbrick, has written to Mayor Wayne Brown requesting he stop the unnecessary delays on St James Theatre’s restoration. ...
Kiwis planning a swim or heading out on a boat this summer should remember to stop and think about water safety, Sport & Recreation Minister Chris Bishop and ACC and Associate Transport Minister Matt Doocey say. “New Zealand’s beaches, lakes and rivers are some of the most beautiful in the ...
The Government is urging Kiwis to drive safely this summer and reminding motorists that Police will be out in force to enforce the road rules, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“This time of year can be stressful and result in poor decision-making on our roads. Whether you are travelling to see ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says Health New Zealand will move swiftly to support dozens of internationally-trained doctors already in New Zealand on their journey to employment here, after a tripling of sought-after examination places. “The Medical Council has delivered great news for hardworking overseas doctors who want to contribute ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has appointed Sarah Ottrey to the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC). “At my first APEC Summit in Lima, I experienced firsthand the role that ABAC plays in guaranteeing political leaders hear the voice of business,” Mr Luxon says. “New Zealand’s ABAC representatives are very well respected and ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced four appointments to New Zealand’s intelligence oversight functions. The Honourable Robert Dobson KC has been appointed Chief Commissioner of Intelligence Warrants, and the Honourable Brendan Brown KC has been appointed as a Commissioner of Intelligence Warrants. The appointments of Hon Robert Dobson and Hon ...
Improvements in the average time it takes to process survey and title applications means housing developments can progress more quickly, Minister for Land Information Chris Penk says. “The government is resolutely focused on improving the building and construction pipeline,” Mr Penk says. “Applications to issue titles and subdivide land are ...
The Government’s measures to reduce airport wait times, and better transparency around flight disruptions is delivering encouraging early results for passengers ahead of the busy summer period, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Improving the efficiency of air travel is a priority for the Government to give passengers a smoother, more reliable ...
The Government today announced the intended closure of the Apollo Hotel as Contracted Emergency Housing (CEH) in Rotorua, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. This follows a 30 per cent reduction in the number of households in CEH in Rotorua since National came into Government. “Our focus is on ending CEH in the Whakarewarewa area starting ...
The Government will reshape vocational education and training to return decision making to regions and enable greater industry input into work-based learning Tertiary Education and Skills Minister, Penny Simmonds says. “The redesigned system will better meet the needs of learners, industry, and the economy. It includes re-establishing regional polytechnics that ...
The Government is taking action to better manage synthetic refrigerants and reduce emissions caused by greenhouse gases found in heating and cooling products, Environment Minister Penny Simmonds says. “Regulations will be drafted to support a product stewardship scheme for synthetic refrigerants, Ms. Simmonds says. “Synthetic refrigerants are found in a ...
People travelling on State Highway 1 north of Hamilton will be relieved that remedial works and safety improvements on the Ngāruawāhia section of the Waikato Expressway were finished today, with all lanes now open to traffic, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“I would like to acknowledge the patience of road users ...
Tertiary Education and Skills Minister, Penny Simmonds, has announced a new appointment to the board of Education New Zealand (ENZ). Dr Erik Lithander has been appointed as a new member of the ENZ board for a three-year term until 30 January 2028. “I would like to welcome Dr Erik Lithander to the ...
The Government will have senior representatives at Waitangi Day events around the country, including at the Waitangi Treaty Grounds, but next year Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has chosen to take part in celebrations elsewhere. “It has always been my intention to celebrate Waitangi Day around the country with different ...
Two more criminal gangs will be subject to the raft of laws passed by the Coalition Government that give Police more powers to disrupt gang activity, and the intimidation they impose in our communities, Police Minister Mark Mitchell says. Following an Order passed by Cabinet, from 3 February 2025 the ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Justice Christian Whata as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Whata’s appointment as a Judge of the Court of Appeal will take effect on 1 August 2025 and fill a vacancy created by the retirement of Hon Justice David Goddard on ...
The latest economic figures highlight the importance of the steps the Government has taken to restore respect for taxpayers’ money and drive economic growth, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Data released today by Stats NZ shows Gross Domestic Product fell 1 per cent in the September quarter. “Treasury and most ...
Tertiary Education and Skills Minister Penny Simmonds and Associate Minister of Education David Seymour today announced legislation changes to strengthen freedom of speech obligations on universities. “Freedom of speech is fundamental to the concept of academic freedom and there is concern that universities seem to be taking a more risk-averse ...
Police Minister, Mark Mitchell, and Internal Affairs Minister, Brooke van Velden, today launched a further Public Safety Network cellular service that alongside last year’s Cellular Roaming roll-out, puts globally-leading cellular communications capability into the hands of our emergency responders. The Public Safety Network’s new Cellular Priority service means Police, Wellington ...
State Highway 1 through the Mangamuka Gorge has officially reopened today, providing a critical link for Northlanders and offering much-needed relief ahead of the busy summer period, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“The Mangamuka Gorge is a vital route for Northland, carrying around 1,300 vehicles per day and connecting the Far ...
The Government has welcomed decisions by the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) and Ashburton District Council confirming funding to boost resilience in the Canterbury region, with construction on a second Ashburton Bridge expected to begin in 2026, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Delivering a second Ashburton Bridge to improve resilience and ...
The Government is backing the response into high pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in Otago, Biosecurity Minister Andrew Hoggard says. “Cabinet has approved new funding of $20 million to enable MPI to meet unbudgeted ongoing expenses associated with the H7N6 response including rigorous scientific testing of samples at the enhanced PC3 ...
Legislation that will repeal all advertising restrictions for broadcasters on Sundays and public holidays has passed through first reading in Parliament today, Media Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “As a growing share of audiences get their news and entertainment from streaming services, these restrictions have become increasingly redundant. New Zealand on ...
Today the House agreed to Brendan Horsley being appointed Inspector-General of Defence, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “Mr Horsley’s experience will be invaluable in overseeing the establishment of the new office and its support networks. “He is currently Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security, having held that role since June 2020. ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government has agreed to the final regulations for the levy on insurance contracts that will fund Fire and Emergency New Zealand from July 2026. “Earlier this year the Government agreed to a 2.2 percent increase to the rate of levy. Fire ...
The Government is delivering regulatory relief for New Zealand businesses through changes to the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act. “The Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Amendment Bill, which was introduced today, is the second Bill – the other being the Statutes Amendment Bill - that ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed further progress on the Hawke’s Bay Expressway Road of National Significance (RoNS), with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) Board approving funding for the detailed design of Stage 1, paving the way for main works construction to begin in late 2025.“The Government is moving at ...
The Government today released a request for information (RFI) to seeking interest in partnerships to plant trees on Crown-owned land with low farming and conservation value (excluding National Parks) Forestry Minister Todd McClay announced. “Planting trees on Crown-owned land will drive economic growth by creating more forestry jobs in our regions, providing more wood ...
Court timeliness, access to justice, and improving the quality of existing regulation are the focus of a series of law changes introduced to Parliament today by Associate Minister of Justice Nicole McKee. The three Bills in the Regulatory Systems (Justice) Amendment Bill package each improve a different part of the ...
A total of 41 appointments and reappointments have been made to the 12 community trusts around New Zealand that serve their regions, Associate Finance Minister Shane Jones says. “These trusts, and the communities they serve from the Far North to the deep south, will benefit from the rich experience, knowledge, ...
The Government has confirmed how it will provide redress to survivors who were tortured at the Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital Child and Adolescent Unit (the Lake Alice Unit). “The Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care found that many of the 362 children who went through the Lake Alice Unit between 1972 and ...
It has been a busy, productive year in the House as the coalition Government works hard to get New Zealand back on track, Leader of the House Chris Bishop says. “This Government promised to rebuild the economy, restore law and order and reduce the cost of living. Our record this ...
“Accelerated silicosis is an emerging occupational disease caused by unsafe work such as engineered stone benchtops. I am running a standalone consultation on engineered stone to understand what the industry is currently doing to manage the risks, and whether further regulatory intervention is needed,” says Workplace Relations and Safety Minister ...
Mehemea he pai mō te tangata, mahia – if it’s good for the people, get on with it. Enhanced reporting on the public sector’s delivery of Treaty settlement commitments will help improve outcomes for Māori and all New Zealanders, Māori Crown Relations Minister Tama Potaka says. Compiled together for the ...
Mr Roger Holmes Miller and Ms Tarita Hutchinson have been appointed to the Charities Registration Board, Community and Voluntary Sector Minister Louise Upston says. “I would like to welcome the new members joining the Charities Registration Board. “The appointment of Ms Hutchinson and Mr Miller will strengthen the Board’s capacity ...
More building consent and code compliance applications are being processed within the statutory timeframe since the Government required councils to submit quarterly data, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “In the midst of a housing shortage we need to look at every step of the build process for efficiencies ...
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey is proud to announce the first three recipients of the Government’s $10 million Mental Health and Addiction Community Sector Innovation Fund which will enable more Kiwis faster access to mental health and addiction support. “This fund is part of the Government’s commitment to investing in ...
New Zealand is providing Vanuatu assistance following yesterday's devastating earthquake, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. "Vanuatu is a member of our Pacific family and we are supporting it in this time of acute need," Mr Peters says. "Our thoughts are with the people of Vanuatu, and we will be ...
The Government welcomes the Commerce Commission’s plan to reduce card fees for Kiwis by an estimated $260 million a year, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says.“The Government is relentlessly focused on reducing the cost of living, so Kiwis can keep more of their hard-earned income and live a ...
Regulation Minister David Seymour has welcomed the Early Childhood Education (ECE) regulatory review report, the first major report from the Ministry for Regulation. The report makes 15 recommendations to modernise and simplify regulations across ECE so services can get on with what they do best – providing safe, high-quality care ...
The Government‘s Offshore Renewable Energy Bill to create a new regulatory regime that will enable firms to construct offshore wind generation has passed its first reading in Parliament, Energy Minister Simeon Brown says.“New Zealand currently does not have a regulatory regime for offshore renewable energy as the previous government failed ...
A separate passport, citizenship and membership of the United Nations are only available to fully independent nations, Winston Peters' office says. ...
By Emma Andrews, Henare te Ua Māori Journalism Intern at RNZ News The New Zealand fuel company Z Energy is swapping out street names for “correct” kupu on service stops around the country, with the help of local hapū. When Z took over 226 fuel sites from Shell in 2010, ...
Summer reissue: Was it a false measurement, a full-blown conspiracy or just some mild incompetence? Mad Chapman uncovers the truth of Maddi Wesche’s final throw. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter and ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Julie Old, Associate Professor, Biology, Zoology, Animal Science, Western Sydney University Dmitry Chulov, Shutterstock At this time of year, images of reindeer are everywhere. I’ve had a soft spot for reindeer ever since I was a little girl. Doesn’t everyone? ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Grozdana Manalo, Career Services Manager (Education), University of Sydney hedgehog94/Shutterstock Getting casual work over summer, or a part-time job that you might continue once your tertiary course starts, can be a great way to get workplace experience and earn some extra ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ty Ferguson, Research associate in exercise, nutrition and activity, University of South Australia Peera_Stockfoto/Shutterstock It’s never been easier to stay connected to work. Even when we’re on leave, our phones and laptops keep us tethered. Many of us promise ourselves we ...
The NZ Media Council upheld the complaint under principle four: comment and fact On 5 September 2024, The Spinoff published a brief article titled Made in Palestine, found in 1970s Hastings, which highlighted an upcoming art exhibition featuring photographs of vintage cosmetic products labelled “Made in Palestine.” The piece, described ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kasey Symons, Lecturer of Communication, Sports Media, Deakin University We are well and truly in cricket season. The Australian men’s cricket team is taking centre stage against India in the Border Gavaskar Trophy series while the Big Bash League is underway, as ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Woods, Lecturer, Nursing, Faculty of Health, Southern Cross University FTiare/Shutterstock Summer is here and for many that means going to the beach. You grab your swimmers, beach towel and sunscreen then maybe check the weather forecast. Did you think to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Saman Khalesi, Senior Lecturer and Discipline Lead in Nutrition, School of Health, Medical and Applied Sciences, CQUniversity Australia Dean Clarke/Shutterstock The holiday season can be a time of joy, celebration, and indulgence in delicious foods and meals. However, for many, it ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ari Mattes, Lecturer in Communications and Media, University of Notre Dame Australia Late Night With The Devil. Maslow Entertainment Marketing is critical to the success of commercial films, and companies will often spend half as much again on top of the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Francisco Jose Testa, Lecturer in Earth Sciences (Mineralogy, Petrology & Geochemistry), University of Tasmania The Conversation As a kid, it was tough for me to grasp the massive time scale of Earth’s history. Now, with nearly two decades of experience as ...
Te Pāti Māori has had to adopt a new way of debating, operating and even thinking in Parliament in response to the Government’s “onslaught” against te ao Māori, co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer says.In an end-of-year interview with Newsroom, the Te Tai Hauauru MP reflected on how 2024 has differed from her ...
Opinion: The latest Trends in International Mathematics and Science report was announced earlier this month, yet it didn’t get the flurry of media attention and political hand-wringing that typically accompanies these announcements. This might be because it presented good news, or you could argue, no news; the results paint a ...
NewsroomBy Dr Lisa Darragh, Dr Raewyn Eden and Dr David Pomeroy
At long last, The Spinoff shells out for a nut ranking. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter and sign up to be a member today.It recently came to The Spinoff’s attention ...
I was one of hundreds of people who lost my government job this week. Here’s exactly how it played out. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter and sign up to be a ...
Summer reissue: One anxiously attentive passenger pays attention to an in-flight safety video, and wonders ‘Why can’t I pick up my own phone?’ The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter and sign up ...
Summer reissue: Why do those Lange-Douglas years cast such a long shadow 40 years on? The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter and sign up to be a member today. First published June ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp');Got a good quiz question?Send Newsroom your questions.The post Newsroom daily quiz, Monday 23 December appeared first on Newsroom. ...
The Government’s social housing agency has backed out of a billion-dollar infrastructure alliance that would have built about 6000 new homes in Auckland – less than 18 months after signing a five-year extension.Labour says the decision to rip up the contract and sell off existing state houses could lead to ...
An unrelenting faith in “swift transition” has driven Tauranga Whai to their first Tauihi Basketball Aotearoa championship. At a boisterous Queen Elizabeth Youth Centre, the visiting Tokomanawa Queens were blown away 90-71 in the final.Whai led by 20 points at halftime as their urgent movement and unflinching faith in three-point shooting from anywhere ...
ByKoroi Hawkins, RNZ Pacific editor New Zealand’s Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) says impending bad weather for Port Vila is now the most significant post-quake hazard. A tropical low in the Coral Sea is expected to move into Vanuatu waters, bringing heavy rainfall. Authorities have issued warnings to people ...
Cosmic CatastropheThe year draws to a close.King Luxon has grown tired of the long eveningsListening to the dreary squabbling of his Triumvirate.He strolls up to the top floor of the PalaceTo consult with his Astronomer Royal.The Royal Telescope scans the skies,And King Luxon stares up into the heavensFrom the terrestrial ...
Spinoff editor Mad Chapman and books editor Claire Mabey debate Carl Shuker’s new novel about… an editor. Claire: Hello Mad, you just finished The Royal Free – overall impressions? Mad: Hi Claire, I literally just put the book down and I would have to say my immediate impression is ...
Christmas and its buildup are often lonely, hard and full of unreasonable expectations. Here’s how to make it to Jesus’s birthday and find the little bit of joy we all deserve. Have you found this year relentless? Has the latest Apple update “fucked up your life”? Have you lost two ...
Despite overwhelming public and corporate support, the government has stalled progress on a modern day slavery law. That puts us behind other countries – and makes Christmas a time of tragedy rather than joy, argues Shanti Mathias. Picture the scene on Christmas Day. Everyone replete with nice things to eat, ...
Asia Pacific Report “It looks like Hiroshima. It looks like Germany at the end of World War Two,” says an Israeli-American historian and professor of holocaust and genocide studies at Brown University about the horrifying reality of Gaza. Professor Omer Bartov, has described Israel’s ongoing war on Gaza as an ...
The New Zealand government coalition is tweaking university regulations to curb what it says is an increasingly “risk-averse approach” to free speech. The proposed changes will set clear expectations on how universities should approach freedom of speech issues. Each university will then have to adopt a “freedom of speech statement” ...
Report by Dr David Robie – Café Pacific. – COMMENTARY: By Caitlin Johnstone New York prosecutors have charged Luigi Mangione with “murder as an act of terrorism” in his alleged shooting of health insurance CEO Brian Thompson earlier this month. This news comes out at the same time as ...
Pacific Media Watch The union for Australian journalists has welcomed the delivery by the federal government of more than $150 million to support the sustainability of public interest journalism over the next four years. Combined with the announcement of the revamped News Bargaining Initiative, this could result in up to ...
MONDAY“Merry Xmas, and praise the Lord,” said Sheriff Luxon, and smiled for the camera. There was a flash of smoke when the shutter pressed down on the magnesium powder. The sheriff had arranged for a photographer from the Dodge Gazette to attend a ceremony where he handed out food parcels to ...
It’s a little under two months since the White Ferns shocked the cricketing world, deservedly taking home the T20 World Cup. Since then the trophy has had a tour around the country, five of the squad have played in the WBBL in Australia while most others have returned to domestic ...
The new United States ambassador to Aotearoa is an indigenous rights supporter.
The first thing is, is the indigenous people of New Mexico
Oh dear. Udall is another American double-izzer. There's a growing group of yanks that double the "is" in sentences for no sensible reason. The thing is, is that… The point is, is that… What it is, is that…
This bizarre form of phrasing is spreading like a disease from the US tv channels all around the world. Some TV1 reporters & commentators & presenters have even picked it up & started using it. As have others. Judith Collins was a frequent double-izzer.
Where will it end? 😳 😀
Oh no!…Grammar Nazis will never get to sleep at…night.
This is…a crisis.
Says … Mr Ellipsis.
People have always used, abused and mangled English since the start of whenever.
That "becomes a “thing” that others just copy & repeat, unthinkingly" and it becomes part of the evolving the language.
Are you a user & an advocate of the “double is” usage then?
Why? It actually makes no sense.
I wonder if teachers of English teach that it’s a grammatically valid use of “is”.
English is an evolving language, sure, one only has to look at early writings & spellings from Shakespeare to see how much it has evolved, but some things like this are not so much evolving the language as advertising the user’s laziness or ignorance, imo.
The thing is, is that the Americans have to get rid of "off of" first.
Yes then they could start on 'ahold of' instead of 'hold of'. Was it Winston Churchill/George Bernard Shaw who coined the apt saying of US & English- English
'Two great nations divided by a a common language.'
They need to first eliminate double negatives, imo, because these often logically lead to an absurd positive. Classic example we’ve all heard.
Mant individuals who are stony broke in the US will often say:
“I ain’t got no money.”
Broken down, “ain’t” means haven’t, so the individual is saying:
“I haven’t got no money”.
If you haven’t got ‘no money’, logic says you must have ‘some money’. But they don’t.
They should probably say: “I ain’t got ANY money” but the double negative phrase “ain’t got no” has now been so deeply embedded into American English-speakers’ minds (via movies & tv and music & literature) it’s illogicality is simply ignored & people just interpret it (by context) to mean that the individual is broke.
The thing the plonkers who go on about Grammar Nazis & Spelling Nazis when errors in English are amusedly pointed out forget is that ALL languages have syntax & rules of spelling & postioning & placement etc becos without such forms of common control & usage every language would quickly become unintelligible to others if there weren’t some common agreed rules.
grandma nazis are a pain, neelee as bad as spelleng nazis.
Gezza just demonstrated how to derail a thread!
It's just an aside – a side issue I picked up because the writer actually reported the double is. Often they don't.
You seemingly haven't noticed how the thread continues below for anyone that wants to comment on it. Have you anything to say on the thread yourself? Or just that?
"…progressing tribal self-governance, native language revitalisation and protecting sacred areas…."
Somebody give him a copy of He Puapua to take back home when he goes.
He'll also enjoy browsing Te Tiriti o Waitangi documents and commentaries and might have some valuable perspectives to offer around those.
He sounds like a worthwhile person to have visit Aotearoa 🙂
Robert ,,,,But will they/he/she visit Te Wai Pounamu, where we live.
The umpteenth case of prominent media person in the USA campaigning against getting vaccinated, then getting Covid and … you can guess what happened:
https://www.npr.org/2021/12/01/1060699340/marcus-lamb-daystar-television-network-dies-covid
Strangely, I'd never realised our bureaucrats can't tell the difference between orange and yellow. Toby Manhire noticed: https://thespinoff.co.nz/covid-19/02-12-2021/excuse-me-what-colour-is-this
I recall reading an article in the Christchurch Press about twenty-five years ago or so, reporting how a chap had been pulled over by the police and fined for running an 'orange' light recklessly close, only to contest the charge successfully on the grounds that there was no such thing as an 'orange' traffic light.
I haven’t read the article but isn’t in Amber light?
Bugger. 😠 Let me start again.
I haven’t read the article but isn’t it an Amber light
The article I read all those years ago did state that the intermediate stage between green and red was 'yellow' or 'amber', but the only official references I've ever seen are to its being yellow.
Frank Nordern and Dennis Muir say 'amber'. Peter Sellers did their script "Balham Gateway to the South", a brilliant spoof of a travel documentary.
"Night falls on Balham. Beneath Quill's Folly, Balham's famous beauty spot, which stands nearly ten feet above sea level, the town is spread below us in a fairyland of glittering lights, changing all the time- green, amber, red and amber and back to green."
A long-overdue regeneration of coastal shipping seems to be in the pipeline:
If Sealord's are that keen they should be able to buy their own freight ship. They're just hanging out for needless state subsidy into an imagined service that is never going to come back.
Kiwirail are a never-ending suck-hole of money for marginal network improvements on a shrinking network. Hard to see the Nightcaps or West Coast lines surviving once Fonterra converts to woodwaste boilers.
Minister Wood will consult by pushing that report straight back on the shelf.
"Minister Wood will consult by pushing that report straight back on the shelf"
If only.
Minister Wood will decide that the project is a wonderful idea except that it is not big enough. He will without doubt demand that it get at least a billion dollars. After all he has saved the taxpayer that much by not insisting on the stupid bike bridge across Auckland Harbour so there is plenty of money available for this new white elephant.
Meanwhile he is going to extend the Auckland – Hamilton train service through to Invercargill. The first stage has been enormously successful and we will therefore push ahead with extending it to the whole country.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/127179360/te-huia-train-service-has-earned-300000-and-cost-3m-but-councillor-confident-itll-get-back-on-track
Only double ? Thats not nearly enough !
So under Fyfes leadership the popular Mardi Gras flights went ahead.
As soon as Christopher took over ,they were cancelled,and when he left they were reinstated.
Clearly nothing to do with…him!
Air NZ's support for rainbow community reached new heights under Christopher Luxon's watch | Stuff.co.nz
Luxon's "Upper Room" involvement suggests he's not an admirer of rainbows, imo.
His spokesman (in the link Blazer supplied) says otherwise.
Christophers PR team…'neutralise this quicksmart…find someone gay at Air to quote and soften this up'.
'executive decisions' are made by executives when they have a positive perception and by 'junior staffers',people who have left or FIIK….if negative.
My feeling also. The fact that the "pink flights" cancellation coincided with Luxon's tenure is neither here
nor
there…
The article strongly suggests Luxon is a supporter of LGBTQI initiatives & has no issues with the “rainbow community”.
There are many Christians who don’t have a problem with LGBTQIs, and as as those who do are seemingly in the minority in both the community & Parliament they are unlikely to cause any problems for them politically as they’ll be outvoted.
That won’t stop some folk who really like to hate on National & other things from stirring the pot & suggesting dark things with no supporting evidence about Luxon.
evidence-1+1=2
'So under Fyfes leadership the popular Mardi Gras flights went ahead.
As soon as Christopher took over ,they were cancelled,and when he left they were reinstated.'
You can refute this with evidence as to WHY these flights, that were always booked out were cancelled ,specifically in Christophers time at Air.
ANALYSIS: Shortly after Christopher Luxon was elected leader of the Opposition a rumour that had been swirling for years resurfaced on social media.
The rumour goes: During Luxon’s time in charge at Air New Zealand he axed the popular Mardi Gras “pink flights” because it didn’t align with his Christian views. Much has been said about Luxon’s Christian faith, but he says it has been “misrepresented and portrayed very negatively”.
The pink flights rumour is case in point because, in reality, Air New Zealand made huge progress to promote diversity and support transgender and gay staff under Luxon’s leadership.
… … …
A spokesman for Luxon said he did not make any decisions to end the Mardi Gras flights. Luxon was a big supporter of the LGBTQI community, he said.
“Christopher is very proud of Air New Zealand’s record during his time of supporting greater diversity in general and the rainbow community specifically,” the spokesman said.
An unnamed source with knowledge of the situation said the decision to stop the pink flights was an operational one, and such a decision would not have gone all the way to the chief executive.
Craig Featherby, head of the Flight Attendants Association, said he had not heard anything to suggest Luxon made an executive decision to axe the flights.
Featherby, who is gay, worked as a Boeing 787-9 in-flight service manager while Luxon was chief executive. Featherby said the handful of times he met Luxon at Air New Zealand he always came across as accepting of all people. “I certainly never felt uncomfortable under his reign,” Featherby said.
Feathery said Air New Zealand underwent a lot of operational change during Luxon’s time leading the airline, and flight cancellations were exacerbated by the Rolls-Royce engine issues on the airline’s 787-9 Dreamliner over several years.
… … … …
The rest of the article basically just continues on demolishing your grubby rumour-generated conspiracy theory.
1+1 = 2, sure, but correlation does not equal causation, & your “evidence” would be laughed out of a Court. You’ve got nothing proving Luxon instructed those flights should cease because he has a religion-based problem with LGBTQI folk & a mountain of evidence he was a supporter of Air NZ’s positive LGBTQI policies.
All you have done is repost the content of my original link.
You have not been able to overcome the circumstantial evidence with a plausible explanation of WHY the flights were cancelled…have you?
I’m ending here. Wasted enuf time on you. You carry on rumour mongering & punching at shadows if you like.
You must be very naive….'
'A spokesman for Luxon said he did not make any decisions to end the Mardi Gras'
'An unnamed source with knowledge of the situation said the decision to stop the pink flights was an operational one, '
'Craig Featherby, head of the Flight Attendants Association, said he had not heard anything to suggest Luxon made an executive decision to axe the flights.'
Could not get more unconvincing statements than these.
Pure sanitising…spin.
Wonder how many LGBT members the Upper Room has!
"Wonder how many LGBT members the Upper Room has!"
My guess, "several" but none willing to declare; won't want to ruin the atmosphere 🙂
Evidence, as we know, is not the same thing as proof. You were asked for evidence, Blazer, and you provided that elegantly, imo.
"An unnamed source with knowledge of the situation said…"
Hahahaha!
The article fair oozes truthiness!
Gezza, why do you consistently misspell enough?
Is it because you don't care about the correct spelling of English words?
Or do you genuinely don't know how to spell this word?
Could it be you think 'enuf' has now become a 'thing', and therefore is now acceptable.
I like the word enuf. I’m a bit of a fan of finetic spelling. I sometimes spell though as tho, for the same reason.
In fact, I think there’s a lot of merit to the following idea, altho now Britain’a out of the EU, it’s not likely to ever be a starter….
EURO-ENGLISH
The European Commission has just announced an agreement whereby English will be the official language of the EU rather than German which was the other possibility.
As part of the negotiations, Her Majesty’s Government conceded that English spelling had some room for improvement and has accepted a five year phase-in plan that would be known as “Euro-English”.
In the first year, “s” will replace the soft “c”. Sertainly, this will make the sivil servants jump with joy. The hard “c” will be dropped in favour of the “k”. This should klear up konfusion and keyboards kan have 1 less letter.
There will be growing publik enthusiasm in the sekond year, when the troublesome “ph” will be replaced with “f”. This will make words like “fotograf” 20% shorter.
In the 3rd year, publik akseptanse of the new spelling kan be ekspekted to reach the stage where more komplikated changes are possible.
Governments will enkorage the removal of double letters, which have always ben a deterent to akurate speling. Also, al wil agre that the horible mes of the silent “e”s in the language is disgraseful, and they should go away.
By the fourth year, pepl wil be reseptiv to steps such as replasing “th” with “z” and “w” with “v”. During ze fifz year, ze unesesary “o” kan be dropd from vords kontaining “ou” and similar changes vud of kors be aplid to ozer kombinations of leters.
After ze fifz yer, ve vil hav a reli sensibl riten styl. Zer vil be no mor trubl or difikultis and evrivun vil find it ezi to understand ech ozer. Ze drem vil finali kum tru! And zen ze world vil be ourz!
This will be known in five hundred years as Ze Grat Konsonantal Shift.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Vowel_Shift
Vry drol
Complete change to no vowels? Back to the future with cartouches?
Write like an Egyptian? Ppl n th Stndrd Ptrc? Wk? Gzz? lol
"finetic" spelling is idiomatic fonetik spelling but with the great Nu Zulund monovowel.
Gezza has an unfortunate tendency for double standards .
Name calling,perjoratives are verboten unless he makes them.
Same rules for spelling and grammar.
He is a nice person however.
I'm not sure I think concern trolls are nice people.
"concern troll noun
DEROGATORY•INFORMAL
a person who disingenuously expresses concern about an issue with the intention of undermining or derailing genuine discussion.
"he is regarded among climate scientists as a concern troll""
1. I'm not, nor have I ever been, a concern troll. I'm just a non-politically tribal reader & occasional commenter on a left-leaning blog that discusses political & social issues of the day.
2. I'm not motivated by almost pathological hatreds some fortunately few commenters here seem to have for political opponents or their parties. But if you have a go at me, I'm a typical bloke, expect to get a return serve if I think it's worth doing. If you're just blithering crap I might just ignore you.
3. Some of the most offensive commenters here employ the disingenuous tactic of criticising you for the same sins they commit, in the hope of deflecting criticism away from their nastiness. Narcissists & psychopaths do that.
Comprehension 101: nowhere did I name anyone as a concerned troll, I just made a general statement.
You may infer I meant you; I couldn't possibly comment.
Comprehension 101: nowhere did I name anyone as a concerned troll, I just made a general statement. You may infer I meant you; I couldn’t possibly comment.
So transparently disingenuous I’m embarrassed for you over how pathetically inept that attempt at a clever & sophisticated cheap shot was.
Why not crawl back under the rock you usually hide under & watch tv or something?
The article states that Luxon was international airline General Manager May 2011 to December 2012 so cancellation of international flights may have been in his purview during that time? also rolls royce engine problems seem to have to occurred in 2017 so maybe a red herring?
Look, Jag, don’t get me wrong. I realise that some woebegone, hateful people loathe their political opponents so much that they’ll happily indulge in character assassination on the flimsiest of evidence, especially on blogs or social media.
I generally find it best to avoid these types as they’re often miserable, forever moaning buggers to be around, prone to making various allegations & buying into any conspiracies involving their usual targets.
My comment below explains why I don’t see any evidence yet that confirms Luxon banned Mardi Gras flights because he’s got it in for LGTBQI folk owing to hiscrekigious beliefs. If, in fact, he does – and he did – that evidence will surface eventually.
Until it does, it’s just malicious gossip really. Some people, I realise, really like spreading that. But I’m not one of them.
Unfortunately this is part of the dirt in political life. Clark was subject to it. Mike Williams shot off to Australia to try to dig the dirt on Key. Seriously if being a wealthy, bald, christian male is as bad as it gets, Luxon is going to be dead boring.
"You carry on rumour mongering & punching at shadows if you like."
There's a bit of that around. Luxon seesm to have excited some on the left. it's quite humorous.
He is a gift to humour….short,bald,relies on a collection of tired cliches…and doesn't even play ..golf..AFAIK.
More remarks about his looks.
He's reposted it because clearly you didn't read it!
Surely 1 minus 1 = 0 plus 1 = 1
Fyfe instituted the flights; Luxon removed them then replaced after he left ….
Where’s the evidence Luxon removed them?
In an org the size of Air NZ, & with the number of LGBTQI employees it probably has, any decision by Luxon like that would soon get around & piss them off mightily. Once he left I’d expect one or more of aggrieved individuals (not necessarily just LGBTQIs either) to leak details to the msm or publish on social media to hit back at him.
Hasn’t happened. Why? Because it probably never happened. Time should tell.
' any decision by Luxon like that would soon get around & piss them off mightily.'
That's what happened….now time for damage control.
As the CEO ,he has the final say.
People working there now ,want to stay working there and not upset the directors who usually have very right wing leanings.
Time will indeed tell.
The coincidental timing bodes poorly for him, but isn't overtly conclusive. Nor is his pastor's online content allegedly being trimmed indicative of sermons about which NZers might generally not approve.
Then there's Luxon saying he'll support safe zones around abortion services, after voting against them on the first reading.
Things that bode well for Luxon being a more progressive and forgiving christian than one of the conservative, bigoted ones? Not many so far. There are some very inclusive churches around, but there are others that aren't so openminded.
Which path do Luxon's beliefs travel? As you say, time will tell.
@ Puckish Rogue
.https://thestandard.org.nz/chris-luxon-is-not-nationals-messiah/#comment-1838559
If that comment was directed at me, thank you. I can also say that YOU are a commenter I always read because, even though your views are sometimes at odds with the general views of most commenters on this left-leaning blog, you explain & defend your views clearly, you seem honest, & your posts are easy to understand.
There’s not much ambiguity. You also say what you mean and mean ONLY what you say.
You are also, in my view, quite sophisticatedly witty on many occasions. I like commenters with a GSOH.
It speaks volumes that you not only survive here as a regular but that many commenters with who you might sometimes be at odds politically seem to regard you with considerable affection.
Keep up the good work 😀
Tip of the hat to you sir
For those who can cope with a transcribed interview, this is the Lowy Institute interviewing the White House key advisor on the Asia-Pacific region, Kurt Campbell. He's the guy who gave us the 'pivot to Asia', 'the Quad', and AUKUS.
In Conversation: Kurt Campbell, White House Indo-Pacific Coordinator (lowyinstitute.org)
The density of the exchange with the Lowy Institute and in how he engages about Australia gives a good and quite detailed sense of how important and how deep that White House-Canberra relationship is and will be.
Got to the nub of it here:
Scomo goes where Duterte fears to tread…
‘Want trouble? You first!’ Philippines’ Duterte dares US to bring its fleet & declare war on China — RT World News
Might want to update Duterte's positioning. China wasn't the great ally he'd hoped for.
A common policy ,even in the Pacific…play one off against the other.
And no one from either side would have much confidence in…Duterte.
It does not alter the original link that he suggested the U.S wanted the Philipines to engage with China.
Doesn't alter it, just makes it out of date.
Duterte wasn't just playing one off against the other, he was looking for a global realignment. He had some pretty good reasons for being as anti-US as he was, but China is encroaching upon his doorstep.
Chauncey De Vega does a good job today with some of the consequences for US minorities and Democrats should Republicans gain Senate majority back next year and White House in 2024.
He quotes historian Ruth Ben-Ghiat, around preparing to leave the country if one is in an oppressed or substantially marginalised US minority:
If America really surrenders to fascism, then what? Painful questions lie ahead | Salon.com
"So, one answer would be: start exploring your options now if you are in a threatened category of people, as are many of those who write to me. "Better exile than prison," wrote former Italian Prime Minister Francesco Nitti to King Victor Emmanuel III in 1925, explaining why he'd left Italy when the Fascists took power. Nitti worked from abroad to counter authoritarian propaganda about what was happening in his native country, as exiles from Hong Kong, Myanmar, and other places do today.
It's unlikely that Republican rule would mean mass imprisonment for political opponents, the way there is in Erdogan's Turkey. Viktor Orbán, darling of the GOP, has not gone that route. And it's a shame to lose capable people when they are most needed at home — which would be the situation in the USA if Republicans gain more power and if they retake the White House in 2024.
(…)
Each person acts for their own reasons, and each situation is unique. But there is one constant in the history of exile. It means watching from afar the travails of your country, and, for those who desire to return, entering into a state of suspension: waiting for things to get better, waiting for the tyrant to die, waiting for freedoms to be restored."
With so many competent-but-uninspiring Democrat leaders retiring and not a great surge of inspiring leaders replacing them, we may well find more exiles seeking somewhere peaceful and competent to live.
The US needs a Ghandi, or a Mandela.
Instead it has a Trump…
Imagine South Africa at the end of apartheid if it instead had a Trump..
…
It is all over bar the shouting in the US.. imo there is no way the fascist genie will go back in the bottle.. it now has to play itself out…
I'm always impressed at how people are so ready to yell 'fascist' at the USA, while remaining silent on the actually fascist regimes around the world.
I think people are yelling F****d, rather than F*****t.
Uncle Sams staunchest defender with a deflection.
Heres one for you…I'm always unimpressed by how quick the U.S is to label people terrorists,or insurgents or 'bad' people ,when the record shows they are the guiltiest of all those charges.
Absolutely – the US has made all manner of stupid mistakes that it rightly deserves to be heavily criticised for. But the difference is this – you are able to say these things without too much fear of censorship, or being disappeared.
Good point…
Assange and Snowden really have nothing to…fear!
And I will stand on my long record here both defending Assange and Snowden – and deploring the US govt's extremely bad faith actions in these cases.
'But the difference is this – you are able to say these things without too much fear of censorship, or being disappeared.'
So you concede there is in fact….no difference.Very good.
And yet here you are still speaking freely. Amazing.
Many people who speak freely in the USA rapidly die from car accidents or jumping out of windows etc etc, especially in the run up to court cases. Move on, nothing to see here. God bless America. Yeah ,right.
I'm sure members of the 200 or so countries the US has invaded, destroyed, rendered a 'failed state' are pleased you have rights that the US took from them.
Incidentally, the US has not made 'stupid mistakes'. Ever action it took against every country it sought to punish was a carefully considered and well thought out plan to destroy, to bring to its knees.
How many countries can you list where the CIA has murdered the incumbent democratically elected head of state or has overthrown the existing government and replaced it with their sycophant regime.
@Brigid
Yet despite the hated US invading, occupying, crushing and colonising more that every single nation on earth there is the peculiar fact that in 2021 the average person is far less likely to die in war than at any time in human history.
Weird.
Which countries did you have in mind?
US going full fascist has massive implications for other countries, humanity and basically all of life. More so than say Brazil going full fascist. Athough obviously that would be bad for Brazilians and the region, it's not like they have nuclear weapons, an army the size of the US, or the kind of economic and political influence that the US has. Even allowing for the impact of the destruction of Brazil's forests (which they're already doing).
You know the list of countries as well as I do. But let me offer one name – Peng Shuai.
Oh please don't tell me you've swallowed the Peng Shuai cool aid.
Please don't let your sinophobia rot your brain any more with this latest laughable propaganda.
Straight under the bus.
If it's all propaganda the CCP has but to restore her original post to the internet. and let her speak freely and openly in a trusted setting to Western journalists.
Leave her alone
She doesn't have to account to you or your western journalists, who, as you well know, have quite a habit of telling lies.
Weasel.
The actual transcript does seem to describe some degree of coercion, (verbal?) who knows it's actually hard to gauge, in the end it's consensual
"I agreed"
I regret to say after some endless badgering I've agreed to have sex at times just to get it over with ,I think it's not that uncommon
.More than than anything it's a sad complaint that the man doesn't want to see her anymore and denies the relationship
https://www.reddit.com/r/tennis/comments/qmn69a/full_translation_of_peng_shuais_weibo_post/
In the West it would be immediately called out as a 'power imbalance'. And the fact of her post being scrubbed from the local internet is really all we need to know here. Not to mention her prolonged absence that triggered real concern.
Oh and we have a contact here in Brisbane who knows Shuai personally. So there's that as well.
Red, I haven't got a clue what actually happened here.
But neither am I willing to participate in an all out assault on China every time someone writes something on social media.
I feel sorry for Shuai, an absolute storm has broken loose, she may have endangered her beloved sport in her own country, she's been the conduit for a lot of very fierce threats to cancel the Beijing games.
She is now probably under so much pressure from both sides, it's intolerable, and the western media and sports organisations are intensifying it all. Who wouldn't go to ground?And she needs those western tennis associations to continue her career.A great little wedge has been leveraged.
Anyway, maybe you'll be assuaged by the third conversation the IOC has with her, in person next month .
Yes from what I've been told Shuai will be feeling extremely vulnerable from all sides at the moment. Anything she says now will be couched in the most careful terms.
Of course now she has become a symbol for a much larger story about the PRC and it's routine disregard for what you and I take for granted as human rights. She didn't intend this – but this is one of the downsides of being so very well known. (Yes I had heard of her prior.)
sorry ,I've bungled that ,didn't mean to subject anyone to so much text
No problem from me – I was aware that this was not a simple matter and the open text of the post in question clarifies matters.
That translation seems to suggest the classic woman scorned scenario.
Almost a Monica Lewinsky situation.
Powerful,rich,famous men can do anything, even grab their 'pussy',according to ex leader of the free world-D.Trump.
And in Tara Reade's case (she was the wrong kind of victim who had the misfortune to have been assaulted by a Democrat candidate) the victim was torn apart by the press.
In a time of me too believe the woman,Tara's reputation was trashed by the very same media affecting deep concern for Peng Shuai and demanding investigation .It's the hypocrisy, partisanship,and crude politicisation of these awful events in women's lives I can't stand .It's yet another cynical abuse of women for political purposes.They don't give a flying fuck when it comes down to it, just another opportunity to land some blows.
Every single Olympics being held in an adversary country has been hounded .The rooms aren't ready, its a total fuckup, the toilets don't work, human rights dictate that we have a boycott, Zika virus is running amok, don't go, there'll be riots, you won't be safe.Now its you tennis girls will be molested, we'll have to cancel
So, so predictable
Yes. I completely agree with you here – the political weaponisation of 'always believe the women' was both predictable and deplorable.
And once turned into a weapon it was always going to be selectively used to suit the agenda – as you rightly say in the Tara Reade case.
John Ralston Saul suggested all are corporate fascist.
JRS needs a cold Coke Zero and a lie down
aren't those two things relatively incompatible?
It’s not just JRS’s definition:
https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/1221518-fascism-should-more-appropriately-be-called-corporatism-because-it-is
Well that does encompass the PRC more than any other nation I can think of other than say North Korea.
RL, you'd probably enjoy JRS, especially his book "On Equilibrium" which excoriates extreme ideology in favour of his notion of equilibrium, which he defines as a harmony of "common sense, ethics, creativity, intuition, memory and reason"
https://twitter.com/roblogic_/status/1332155870503866368?s=20
Looks interesting – although I don't do Twitter as a matter of principle. Nor FB for that matter.
However I can't help but note that in one breath the US is excoriated for the 'cult of individualism' that puts the individual interest ahead of the public – and in the next it's rotten with 'corporate fascism' that puts crushes the individual in pursuit of it's own state imposed interests.
It's all a bit incoherent.
Seems fairly logical that corporations would use "individualism" to market narcissistic crap and undermine class solidarity. That is far from the Enlightenment vision of elevating the individual human spirit
That is far from the Enlightenment vision of elevating the individual human spirit
Yes and that of course was a time when Christianity informed the basic narrative of society. In it's place we got materialism – which is the name I'd give to what you're speaking to.
please supply a link.
Its a book from JRS lectures.
https://www.johnralstonsaul.com/non-fiction-books/the-unconscious-civilization/
Sure, but I don't think this is what RL meant 😉
Red "I'm always impressed at how people are so ready to yell 'fascist' at the USA, while remaining silent on the actually fascist regimes around the world."
Yeah nah Red, you're out of line in demanding that I comment on all other fascist regimes around the world at the same time as commenting on US fascism. Where on earth do you get that from?
Listening to some regulars here you'd imagine the USA is the sole source of all evil in the world.
Yes, well maybe.. tho I suspect that is more a result of the view angle from behind your own eyes than anything else ..
And you went and derailed my whole comment by bringing in something that wasn't even in there… jeez…
My comment was around how things might play out if the US instead had a Mandela rather than a Trump. Or how South Africa at the end of apartheid might have gone with a Trump rather than a Mandela. And about genies and bottles, though I have never some across one of those myself…
My comment was around how things might play out if the US instead had a Mandela rather than a Trump. Or how South Africa at the end of apartheid might have gone with a Trump rather than a Mandela.
Interesting counterfactual. The only way I can think to approach an answer is this – if you were an educated black person and given a choice to live in either SA or the USA in 2021 – which would you pick?
Mandela
🤔 Whereabouts is there a country named Mandela? 😳
yes well you see that has been the problem the whole way through this mini-thread…. i talk about something (people – trump, mandela) and red talks about something else (countries)…
so i answered in the context of what i was talking about (people), not red (countries)…
and which would you go for gezza..? trump ? or mandela ?
does highlight such importance it does
If it was just a straight choice of 'who would you prefer as a leader' Trump or Mandela the answer scarcely needs typing out – Mandela. But this is pretty meaningless, because in no real world election was anyone ever going to have that choice.
Instead Americans got a choice between Trump and Clinton – and a majority picked Trump. Hell it's odds on they may pick him a second time.
It might be meaningless in the context you have put my question into but that isn't my intended context
Thinking through the question (which is ‘how would it have turned out’ not ‘who would you choose’) should highlight the importance of the person in charge to how a nation progresses through difficult times. (the question of how they got there is immaterial to this)
Upon completion of said ponderance thought can then turn to the consequences of having such leader (because how they got there is in fact immaterial at this important point).
Upon completion of said ponderance thought can then turn to the consequences of having such leader
Well yes – what were the consequences? And my answer attempted just that and asked which nation would you prefer to live in?
The obvious objection is of course that SA and the USA are very different places – but if leadership matters at all we might conclude that while Mandela was probably the best SA could hope for at that moment, the outcome in the long term is not very promising. And while the USA could certainly have hoped for better than Trump, he wasn't the unmitigated disaster many here would like to paint him as.
And if the answer to a choice between Mandela and Trump is obvious, the answer to a choice between living in SA and the USA is also plain.
What's not mentioned in this pearl clutcher is that the Democrats are on track to not only lose the up coming Senate elections, but the next Presidency as well. Never mind a 'rigged election system' – they simply cannot win on their current polling.
And this article reads as pre-positioning 'a stolen election' narrative all over again. Getting tedious.
Trump is right, the system is rigged. But not in the way that he claimed. Red and Blue teams are just distractions while Wall St pillages the public purse.
Yes Mr De Vega is getting in the catastrophising early, and agree it's parallel to the Republican catastrophising.
The uncommitted in either MSM viewers or Party affiliation are however very, very small so the drive to extremes is pretty apparent.
I like Biden but it's hard to see the next Democratic President coming through.
Watching Zeihan you have to remember he makes a living by presenting geopolitics in an entertaining fashion – but here's his take on the US:
Thanks Red I'll book that for later viewing.
My vaccine passport disappeared so I had to reload it. Thanks google !
Keep an eye on that folks as tech 'upgrades' occur without asking for permission often.
Go to your Chemist and get a hard copy, then get it laminated Cheers. $2
Mine got downloaded to my gmail address 3 days ago. When I went to open & save it somewhere on my phone yesterday to show the visiting Occupational Therapist, it had come down with all my particulars missing. It’s just a blank pass.
Bloody shambles. I’ll have to go thru the whole process of requesting it & proving identity again. 😠
So, I assume some kind of system glitch ocurred when the system checked my particulars from my driver’s licence, told me I had successfully applied for my vaccine pass, & that it would be emailed to my gmail address, but all it delivered was a completely blank pass with my particulars name dob vax dates not specified on it.
Just tried 3 times to repeat the process. But couldn’t remember the password I used to register. (I wrote down the 6 digit verification code it sent me originally.)
No problem, thinks I. There’s a standard Forgot password? link underneath the password text field. I’ll just click on that & it’ll offer me the option of entering a new password (that this time I’ll write down!).
Nuh uh. All that does is loop me back constantly to the login email & password fields, which repeatedly tells me the password is incorrect. FFS!
High call volumes, & mass passport extensions, the blank pass & this sort of very obvious screw-up of what is an easy password reset experience everywhere else tells me that incompetence & inadequate testing are unfortunately likely features of the current system.
My vaccine passport disappeared so I had to reload it. Thanks google !
Thanks for that just checked mine and it's gone. My son said to look in google pay it mite be in there. But I don't have google pay.
I downloaded GooglePay as a way to store a persistent copy of the Vaccine Pass on the Android phone. Having an old phone I had to mess around making enough storage space to install GooglePay. I refuse to habitually and expensively upgrade my phone every couple of years to get assorted crap I don't want.
Anyway, it seems to work. Obviously from a speed of development perspective, integrating with existing tools/apps like GooglePay that are already out there is a much faster and smarter way of working than building and testing new stuff. But the whole thing does contain assumptions about how much spare cash people have to splash around on tech. Which sort of fits with all the hype about now being able to go to bars and restaurants in Auckland – who can afford that either except occasionally?
And even odder that we now equate 'freedom' with stuffing our gobs and bellies with expensive slops.
Has anyone been able to supply an explanation of what the My Vaccine Pass is exactly? (technically, for those that don't have one yet).
It's a QR code you carry around. Venues will scan it to check your vaccination status.
So it can be saved on your phone (generally in the secure wallet feature, where credit cards reside), or printed out.
Yes it can be easily circumvented. IMO it’s just another bit of pandemic safety theatre to reassure the public. But it will probably help weed out the really obnoxious antisocial types.
Ok, have I got this right?
The pass is supplied as a PDF file, which isn't the most convenient really (for opening on a phone etc). My household have printed and laminated ours.
There is an app on Google Play for androids, that will verify passes on a phone (my massage-therapist friend downloaded it this morning – was working fine). On scanning a QR code, the verification app simply displays the information that is already shown on the front of the pass and says whether it is valid (i.e. the digital signature is legit). The app doesn't upload or store data to my knowledge.
The app works offline, except for the first scan (this will be when it downloads the encryption public key). Presumably an app for iPhone also, but I wouldn't know.
yep, yep.
At the local cafe this morning they scanned it with another app called the "NZ Pass Verifier"
The data is not supposed to be collected or stored. It's only supposed to confirm the customer's vax status.
From the Privacy Policy (IMO technical loopholes are still possible)
As it's open source it may only be a matter of time before someone comes up with a custom version with a backdoor to pilfer your personal information.
You could certainly write an alternative app that harvested / stored / published on facebook all the data. There is nothing stopping this technically.
I expect this would be illegal of course, same as gathering and publishing your customer's private information by any other means.
In light of that, can you please also explain what this means from TC above?
I am guessing they simply lost the PDF file, possibly from a cloud storage service (e.g. google drive, gmail or something).
You can just get another one emailed to you from MOH.
ah, so "tech 'upgrades' occur without asking for permission often." is probably unrelated to the QR code?
I am guessing they simply lost the file, nothing to do with the QR code or the pass – could've just as easily lost a word document containing their favourite cake recipes…guessing!
There is a technical explanation here, including a link to even more technical info on Github and the full technical specification. It all is open source so the security can be examined by anyone.
It is not necessarily that easily circumvented, in the sense that it is difficult to produce a fake, verifiable pass with your details. You can produce a fake that visually looks like a legit pass, but it will be rejected by the verifier app.
The pass deploys asymmetric cryptography, which means the MOH has the private key and each QR code is signed so it can be verified with the freely-available public key. It is very difficult (near impossible) to produce a signature that matches the pass plain-text data, without possession of the private key.
Pretty easy to print several copies of a valid pass and share it around with your mates. Most businesses aren't going to double check against another form of ID
Yep, need to check against other (photo) ID to confirm the name matches the person.
Many close-contact businesses know all their customers by name already, and being asked for photo ID at entry of pubs, concerts etc is not unusual.
What I think is unfair and disadvantages poorer people, is the lack of free, easily-accessible photo ID, especially for young people (the vaccine pass requirement applies to everyone over 12 years old). The "kiwi access card" costs $55 and is only for people over 18 years old.
Agree as you say above. A drivers license is acceptable, but again not everyone has one of those. There was some debate a few years ago, as I recall, of the govt issuing an ID card. Lots of people against such a move because – privacy. But you can see that a card would have its uses in such a situation as we are now experiencing.
Easy. Not advisable:
I am not advising fraud or false declarations in any of my comments. Just thinking of possible weaknesses of the system.
Not advisable for them. Didn't say you were advising them.
But that's the first bit. Deterrence. That'll stop a few, although admittedly risk assessment is a problem for the potential crowd.
Then there's the fact that the name and date of birth come up. Even without parallel ID checks, if a middle-aged regular called "Charlie" comes up as 23 year old "Tristan", that's another issue altogether. And maybe Charlie is a bit of a dick. That might make someone care.
Is it completely perfect? Nope. Some vendors won't notice or care. But an organised effort has a high likelihood of quickly being identified, and the copied code being blacklisted when vendor apps receive the next update. Or even better, "contact police" coming up when it's tried.
That probably doesn't apply because entering somewhere in breach of Covid orders is not usually intended to gain pecuniary advantage by deception ("service" in that context is paid services, not something like service at a bar). It's a breach of the Covid order however and punishable by a hefty fine.
I'm no lawyer, fair call. But there'd be something dodgy as feck about it beyond the covid regs.
Forgery (s256) has some wider criteria.
I almost hope someone tries it – if it's not a dishonesty offence of some sort, it bloody should be and that might be the incentive for the government to do something about it.
The personal information in the pass is printed in plaintext on the front, and is in the QR code also. It is only:
– full name
– date of birth
– pass start date
– pass expiry date
thank-you!
found a pic too
Yes that's it. To display it on your phone you have to first verify that it is you ( the owner of the phone by password or finger print) and the mycovid website verifies that you are the owner of the phone before it initially sends the pass to the phone.
It is linked to your email address, not a device. Or in my case it was.
True, but if you want to register your phone as well they want to verify that as well obviously.
wait, what? So I can't just take a photo of the printed or emailed PDF and use that? How do they verify the paper copies?
Wait, what? I thought it was being emailed? Are you saying it's also an option to send it straight to a phone? How?
The email has a link so if you open the email on your phone, you press that link and it sends the qrcode to the app.
The medium (paper, photo, app, email) is irrelevant. All that matters is the QR code.
The QR code contains all the information required to both state whether you're vaccinated and to internally verify that the code is genuine.
I understand what the QR code is for. I don't understand the various techs being used, and consequently the privacy and security issues (and please, nobody tell me 'trust us it's safe').
What app?
I appreciate all the answers 👍 Just odd that there's no simple, all in one place explanation.
Sorry, it sends the QR code to the "digital wallet" the phone might have.
The only tech that is required is:
Everything else is up to the person who gets the pass. They can store it and present it however they want (paper print-out, photo on their phone, digital wallet on their phone, tattoo, stone tablet, literally anything), as long as a vendor's app can read the QR code.
Whether the person who gets the pass is opening themselves up to security issues based on the medium they choose is up to them.
If the vendor is using the official NZGovt app, that spec is online. If the vendor uses a third-party app developed using the spec, the only information that can possibly be compromised is the information about you in the QR code:
If you are using a phone to store your pass the easiest way on an android phone is to have the google pay app. You supposedly can get by, not having that app, but I found I needed to down load it to get past go. The thing is the google pay app is set up so you have to erify that you are the user each time you use it by setting up a PIN or in my case using a fingerprint. That protects your info from being accessed by someone else who may have got hold of your phone for nefarious reasons.
Once you have the google pay app on your phone and set up, the Vaccine pass set up is smooth. You can then set up a shortcut so that you do not have to access google pay – just a touch of a icon – verify you are the correct user, and hey presto there is your pass, as displayed in your photo above.
Macro, how is that easier than taking a photo and keeping that in a notes app?
I someone steals my phone I think them using my vax pass is the least of my worries.
thanks McFlock. I've probably got a wallet app on my iphone that I don't use for anything else, might use it for this, so good to know the full range of options.
Do most people not have their battery run down on their phone?
Weka Jacinda had a print of hers laminated and on the back of her phone. Cute.
Yes, she said on 7 Sharp she did that because she wasn’t very “techie” – or something along those lines.
that's cool.
Pass start date has been revoked so won't be on new passes.
https://abigailshrier.substack.com/p/why-marci-matters?
Ok so it’s all starting to come out now……
two top gender clinicians (who are also both transgender) admit that puberty blockers in some children may lead to the inability to orgasm……….Jazz Jennings the post child for transitioning (had her own reality tv series about it) being a Case in point.
gender ideologists want immediate affirmation and confirmation of young persons gender identity and access to medical transition without question…the idea that puberty blockers are harmless is untrue. They are experimental and we are only realising the harm they do
Under the proposed Conversion Practices Bill counsellors and parents are at risk of a police complaint and up to five years in jail if they query a young person desire to medically transition. It may not be how the law pans out, but I believe and there is some evidence for this, that that is how gender ideology activists want it to be. I base this on the submissions I heard and read to the select committee
I can only imagine the profound and bitter regrets these people will go through in later life.
Yes Redlogix. Not to mention fertility issues and permanant changes to their presentation e.g facial hair, deep voice, Adam's apple on a biological women who tranistioned then has regrets.
Its sad, but it is outrageous that some adults are enabling this.
This mania for de-sexing people is the akin to lobotomies and leeching. Bizarre social contagion.
Luxon giving stand-up in Auckland. Says the city should be at "green", doesn't want restrictions. Open up, all good.
He seems oblivious to reality.
It's also politically inept. There are many other issues to challenge the gov't on. He (or his advisers) should be saying "leave Covid alone, the polls on that speak for themselves".
https://twitter.com/nealejones/status/1466538219298721797
But good for business (big end of town!)
I've had a good search and I can't find a single qualified voice (public health, epidimeology etc) who thinks Auckland should simply drop all restrictions, right now.
It's incredible that Luxon would go doolally on this. I suppose he's relying on the "honeymoon" to deflect the obvious Qs.
If Ardern/Bloomfield said what Luxon just did there would be uproar.
Luxon doesn't even need to be serious about Auckland going green light. He knows he can't make that happen so it is a cheap way of getting those who are frustrated with restrictions on board. It is kind of a win win for him.
I agree he is only doing it for show, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's a safe bet.
At this stage it may not hurt him but he doesn't need the Brian Tamaki fan club (1%), he needs the 20% who support the gov't on Covid but not on various other issues.
Statements like this on the record stack up over time.
I agree Observer. Its a strategy that could back fire. But he may still pick up votes from it. And its so easy saying how things should be and please those who want it that way, when you can't deliver.
Maybe he's dangerously emboldened by the rapturous fawning of the Herald/ZB sycophants – and is saying out loud the thing that should only be whispered among friends? Or maybe he reckons no-one's listening, the phone's off the hook and he can say all sorts of dumb sh*t with impunity?
Consistently irresponsible like Collins etc as expected.
Seriously!!! That's wacky
Totally! He's playing up to the Elite and Business class as per Air NZ – but even Air NZ are more responsible than that now.
There are over 6000 active cases of Covid in Auckland. 56 of yesterdays cases were active in the community. It took only 1 unknown case in the community to start this latest outbreak. True over 90% of eligible persons in Auckland are now fully vaccinated, but they are still 10's of thousands including all children under 12 who are not.
Not according to RNZ:
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/457097/live-updates-traffic-light-system-operational-aucklanders-emerge-from-lockdown
I watched Luxon speak live. So did Stuff.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/300469396/national-leader-christopher-luxon-says-auckland-should-be-in-green-traffic-light-setting-now
The Herald was listening too. There is no doubt about what he said:
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/new-national-leader-christopher-luxon-says-auckland-should-be-in-green-setting/XDBNMH3T52JLBGXE3GEPFWBDMQ/
I just listened to it three times and i could not find where he used the word "green".
The RNZ link you posted above has now been edited:
"He told reporters that the city should have gone to the green setting"
I can't account for your hearing, I'm afraid. Are you listening to the whole stand-up or just clips?
I've been watching the one on stuff which is the only video of his statement in the three links.
(my bold)
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/457097/live-updates-traffic-light-system-operational-aucklanders-emerge-from-lockdown
Yes i know the msm are reporting that. But he doesn't actually say that in the video interview as available. Perhaps he answered questions after or issued a press release?
You are quoting the RNZ interpretation of what they are claiming he said. As usual they are misquoting him because the Labour Party provided tax-payer funded grant to RNZ requires them to do so.
What Luxon did was to explain what the traffic light system was meant to represent. In particular Red was for when the health system was overwhelmed and the vaccination rates were low. As he said, and as the Government itself says, the vaccination rates in Auckland are high and there is no threat to overwhelm the hospitals.
If the Government was setting the colours as their system claimed they should then, as he pointed out they should have, following their own defined rules, have been displayed a Green light.
He then pointed out how stupid the traffic light system actually is and why National were opposed to it.
He never once advocated that Auckland should be Green, He simply pointed out that, using the Government explanation of their own system, they would have had to declare it to be Green.
As usual the msm journalists have chosen to misquote those MPs who are not on the left wing of politics. You have chosen to follow the party line.
Why don't you try listening to what he actually said during the question time instead of believing the bs that the reporter has invented?
The Stuff report has also been edited. Originally they said the Luxon had called for the whole city to be in Green. They have corrected it by adding the following,
"Clarification: An earlier version of this article said Luxon wanted Auckland to be in green. He in fact said that hospitality was ready for green, and National was against the traffic-light system. (Amended December 3, 2021, 2:14pm)"
As far as I can see they are the only ones to include the whole statement and answers he gave.
I never understand why people do this in online debate … make a claim and hope that nobody knows how to Google.
https://www.1news.co.nz/2021/12/02/live-stream-nationals-luxon-speaks-to-media-on-auckland-visit/
As I commented above he simply pointed out that if the Government had followed the rules they had laid down for what the various colours meant they would have had to call it a Green zone.
So yes he does say to reporters in his opinion Auckland should have gone to green. What is there to misunderstand about that. The only thing you can take away from that sentiment is one of complete callousness or a complete failure to appreciate just how serious the threat of reinfection is. There are 6000 plus active cases in Auckland alone right now. Dozens of cases active in the community every day.
You didn't bother to listen to it did you?
You can't find him saying that can you?
I"m sorry my ears must have deceived me.
Or have you not had a recent auditory test? Go back and listen carefully this time. His words clearly imply that in his "humble" opinion Auckland should be in green. That is the clear impression he wants to give.
He's the devil !
The overall best scene:
The scene that never fails to make me laugh:
Luxon gone by Christmas time.
What a complete tosser.
Out of the frypan into the fire.
Own goal .
Looks like he is trying to win votes back from ACT but leak more votes to Labour.
Conehead alien out of his depth.
Not cone head thanks, that just encourages name calling.
Yep Luxon sounds like a moaner and whinger already.
He's making a great…start.
apologies to the original composers
Baldfinger
'He's the man, the man with the Midas touch
A spider's touch
Such a cold finger
Beckons you to enter his web of sin
But don't go in
Golden words he will pour in your ear
But his lies can't disguise what you fear
For a swinging voter knows when he's kissed them
It's the kiss of death from
Mister Baldfinger
Voters beware of this heart of gold
This heart is cold
He loves only gold
Only gold
He loves gold
He loves only gold
Only gold
He loves gold'
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/127175300/councillor-efeso-collins-puts-name-forward-in-aucklands-mayoral-race
Now that would be interesting. I’m not sure if Auckland voters are up for a left wing, Polynesian mayor. He’d win the South and West, might struggle with the isthmus and north of the bridge.
I think you might be surprised. We are ready for tis.
After 50 years of reading the Herald I have cancelled my subscription this morning.There has been no attempt by the paper at even handedness at all.I have had to endure endless carping from Prebble ,Hosking ,the ex national mp Fran O'Sullivan etc etc .Ireland an island has a population of 5million people like us and they have lost 5400 people to covid .I think we have lost 38 or there abouts.Instead of the endless specious arguments we should be celebrating what can only be described as a monumental success.
Just watching the 1pm presser with Grant Robertson.
With dropping cases and NZers embracing vaccination in overwhelming numbers, the questions are quite low key and amicable. Even Barry Soper was civil.
The Natz have an uphill task trying to fault this governments' world-leading response to Covid 19.
On top of that, the session only lasted about 40 minutes!
Agreed TV…when she said 92 at the presser I thought maybe, just maybe, with fierce contact tracing we can keep Covid at very low to negligible numbers…..if we keep MIQ at the borders of course.
But now we have 7-houses saying Auckland should go Green today-he would open the border today too.
He is saying he would open the border today.
Of course if his cobbers had got in in 2017 he wouldn't be opening the border today because faced with the pandemic they would've done things differently across the board. There would've been no lockdowns, no mandates on anything, Simon Thornley would've been their chief expert and everything would've been sweet.
He is all piss-and-wind because he can be and he knows cretinous National supporters will be orgasmic at having a 'sensible man of business' with a handle on covid reality at the helm. Joke.
I'm imagining him organising a cup of tea in Mt Eden with David Seymour. John Key did that to give Act one seat. I wonder if the new master businessman will be trying for a repeat to get the 10 seats back.
Heavens above. I thought he’d have had enuf sense to keep a low profile now until he’s announced his spokespeople allocations.
Looks like barking at every passing car in the hope of scoring some (old, already-committed National voters’) votes each time might be the strategy.
luxum will be so busy barking at passing cars, he will miss his appointment with seymour to have a cuppa. luckily ,his handlers will sort that out ,as well as satanising, sorry, sanatising his backstory. expect to see him at next big gay out , and at his local bunnings, backing a trailer in to pick up some handyman type thingies. expect to see his handlers try and put distance between john and notjohn . john in hawiian shirts, notjohn in blue shirts and preworn jeans . to pretend he's one of us, he might even cross the bridge one night and slum it at the speedway . rt wing polies have a habit of using speedway to pretend they are real kiwis. don brash frantically wedging into a midget. blenglish driving a stock car at baypark around the same time he went boxing, collins slumming at te marua(welly) speedway one night, that last one was really cringeworthy(crusher having to be nice to boy(and girl) racers) LOL.
if the Nats were in charge they would fudge the numbers and privatise the health system
The difference in roles in an airline.
I see the (ex) CEO is calling for Auckland's regime to be reduced to "green lights" forthwith.
Of course that's why he was a CEO and not the Pilot.
The pilot warns that there is a storm ahead and may have to depart from flight plans in order to minimise passenger discomfort and possible damage to the aircraft. The altered route may add a few minutes to the flight time and cost a little more in fuel.
The CEO, on the other hand, sitting in the relative comfort of Business Class, instructs the cabin crew to relay an order, "Sod the passenger discomfort – your instructions are to get this flight to its destination in the quickest and cheapest means possible!"
Enjoyed my first proper cafe visit this morning. Sat in the sunshine and scoffed my croissant. Then back to the salt mines. WFH ain't so bad in Parnell.. probably 20 cafe's in easy walking range
Interesting Roy Morgan poll today
Yes. Support for the Greens is 15.5%, among voters under 50. (That is consistent with other polls on climate change + environment, and the voter demographics).
Pretty clear lesson for National: don't drag your feet (like Labour) or worse, go into reverse. Over to you, Mr Luxon.
Here's a link
http://www.roymorgan.com/findings/8869-nz-national-voting-intention-november-2021-202112020109
If this keeps going it won’t be NAct…it’ll be ACTional !!
Or, L/G, Mp (49.5) are well ahead of NACT (44).
All depends on how one spins it 😉
I do think we shouldn't be complacent (and am aware I did say the other day that short of the arrival of someone charismatic like Key I couldn't see National winning the next election. ACT on the other hand…)
Its the trend darling
Also big thanks should be given to the divine Ms Collins for getting National back into the frame for a resounding National victory at the next election
Without Judith at the helm though, it would be a hollow victory.
I know there will be tears in the Rogue family home.
I weep manly tears at the thought of Jude the Captivating not fixing the woes of the country
I suspect she is too.
Another way to look at the latest CB Poll is
Labour 36.0%
NOTlabour 64.0%
Elections here are usually lost not won
another way to look at the latest poll is ; election is two years away. if we have learnt anything from the last two years(many havent) ,is that anything can happen between now and next election…..
a) it's not the latest CB poll, and b) we've had MMP for 25 years.
But I look forward to your idea of an ACT-National-NZF-Greens-TPM-TOP-NewCons coalition.
CB => Complete B…S
Get with the progrom!
Yep A multi-party coalition may well have a few stability problems …..