Russia is the second largest arms exporter in the world. Every permanent member of the UN Security Council is in the top 10. As far as international law can ban warfare, it has already. Sadly, that’s not enough.
I heard some chap rabbiting on nat radio last week about the legal parameters of war. It was sickening, and it takes a lot to turn mine stomach.. He was going on as if it is acceptable to wipe out large swathes of humanity in certain circumstances using certain means. It was so way up in the clouds it was bizarre. It got me to thinking that war is absolutely the lowest form of human conduct, which everybody knows but for some reason most people accept.
People seem to accept state murder of other state’s citizens – code for killing being acceptable.
It leaves me sick.
New Zealand should stand up and lead the world in banning all forms of warfare, like it did by going nuclear-free.
Particularly liked the reference to Andorra – “Despite not ever having a true organized military, the tiny country of Andorra was bold enough to declare war on Germany in 1914 and join the so called Great War. With a 10-man strong army, the country did not do much and was not taken seriously.
What is worse is that most of the recent conflicts that New Zealand has been involved with have not been legally declared wars. Vietnam was not a declared war for instance which if I remember correctly caused problems with servicemen that were active in that conflict getting disability allowances etc when they returned because under the war pension act they had technically not been to war. Long tine ago now but there was a lot of angry service people trying to get benefits and being given the run around by the Government of the day.
Today, no where. But the military always has to prepare 10 years ahead, and I am guessing that the Pacific is going to be a pretty tense place down the track.
Not if we ban warfare now. It might help. Nothing to lose.
Why don’t you want to do such a thing? Do you support the ban on chemical warfare? Where do you draw the line? Why bother going nuclear free? Why is it so hard to stick a flower in the barrel of a tank? Eh?
@CV…so you would agree with the American gun lobby that it is a citazen’s right to have a gun….just to be prepared 10 years ahead …. in case…. 10 years down the track….when it could be a pretty tense place
…just arguing here and I probably agree with you ….but in theory while these arguments are convincing … in practice people/politicians make mistakes and it can make a situation worse
Thanks Pop, appreciate your effort (I know I get on your goat sometimes..).
But the reason outlined in your post is a rehash of the arguments up and around this already. The how of such a ban is the secondary question, not the primary one. We need to answer the primary one first, before assessing the how, the when, the what-ifs, etc etc.
Just like it is with banning nuclear in NZ.
Just like it is with banning homicide.
Just like it is with banning chemical warfare.
Surely you can see the potential in such a ban. Whether it is workable or not is not the issue, just as is so with all other bans. It is a head space, an aim, a lofty high humanitarian goal. Something we can aspire to. And when humans do this sort of thing humanity gets towed along behind to an extent.
And in the alternative,,, to not so ban is to impliedly condone and employ warfare, in the same manner than debanning homicide or chemical warfare would be such.
I don’t understand why this is so hard.
It has been done with chemical. We did it with nuclear. Lets go the whole hog.
edit: and I do recall that pact now, from dim distant studies…
I’d say it’s worth trying. I’m not sure how it could be done in the immediate future, but wars aren’t good for anything. We’d all be better off without them.
Terrific Leadership Contest meeting in Whangarei last night. All three potential Leaders in good spirits and talking good policy ideas. Over 200 people in audience – heaps of new members signed up.
This is a good sign for resurgence in Labour Party.
It was painful to watch Key bleating about the $68 million he said it would cost the government to implement Labour’s “Living Wage” policy for public employees.
So that’s 0.07% of the annual government budget to give New Zealanders a living wage. Not a very high price to pay to help improve the conditions of the working poor.
That’s if you believe Key’s figures, which I don’t, as opposed to Cunliffe’s $25 million which makes it 0.025%.
For comparison, Key’s just spent $100 million of our money flogging off a decent asset that most of us don’t want sold.
It is exactly like Key and Brownlee refusing to top up the red zoners $12.5million in Christchurch while going about spending $300million on a stadium for rich rugby players to run around on a few times a month.
This shows this government’s priorities.
Rugby is prioritised over people’s homes
Sharebrokers commissions are prioritised over paying above a slave wage for cleaners.
“It was painful to watch Key bleating about the $68 million he said it would cost the government to implement Labour’s “Living Wage” policy for public employees.”
The $68m is for extending it to direct government employees only, it doesn’t include contractors such as cleaners in hospitals.
I would think that there aren’t all that many directly-employed government workers earning less tahn $18.40, which is why the wage figure is only $68m.
Well said Steve. As well as getting their figures wrong sometimes, they make a huge noise about costs that are trivial in the big picture (your example above)that would benefit society, but brush big bad unnecessary costs (ditto your comparison)under the carpet. It’s a very lumpy carpet they’ve got there.
And yes, it is painful. I wish there was some way for Key to vanish, to be forced to resign for some reason, so all this pain could end. (not just the bleating sounds)It would have to happen after the new Labour Leader has been elected though.
Cunliffe, and the Membership at large, are too nice to Grant Robertson.
Grant Robertson is a core part of what has been wrong with the Labour Party for the past five years. Robertson is a core member of the narrow group that created division in the party to protect their own careers. Robertson shaped the shambles that has been Shearer’s Leader’s office for the past 18 months. Shearer/King/Mallard/Robertson attacked the membership and Cunliffe for DARING to vote in favour of more democracy at the Ellerslie Conference.
Robertson has not changed his spots. He is still a natural hoarder of power in the bank office. His instincts are to pay lip service only to the members.
To elect Robertson is to ask for a continuation of the mis-rule of the past five years.
Cunliffe has nothing to apologise for. Robertson is the one that should be called to account.
BS he’s a pathetic human being. I know him personally. He’s a decent guy and deeply committed to justice and fairness for all. Personal attacks like this are just stupid.
@ Tigger ….no matter what you think of Robertson…..if Labour wants to win next year against Key ……Robertson as Leader will not cut the mustard with the average New Zealand voter!!!!….and that is that!
….anyone who says otherwise is self-deluded or mischievous….and is laying Labour and New Zealand out for another Key and Nact win.
Cunliffe is the only Leadership option…. and luckily he is the best option by a long way
@ Alanz….well if Robertson has been a mover and shaker in the ABC club…IMO I think he should be able to take ‘personal attacks’….because that is what has been concertedly dealt to Cunliffe over along period of time ….and quite unwarrantedly and one could be kind in saying they were “pathetic”…certainly pathetic for the Labour Party.
Calling someone a pathetic human being is not a personal attack, in this instance, it is a statement of fact.
I Have first hand interactions with many pathetic human beings who trawl the halls of parliament, with Robertson, being one them. I also have daily interactions with pathetic human beings, but the conversation was not about anyone else.
Your experience, and opinion is fine tigger, and my experience and opinion, different from yours, that’s fine, just don’t pretend it was a personal attack, it is my personal opinion, based on my experiences, and based on what is patently obvious about the feeble personality that man has, you can apply the same to Jones, equally pathetic!
….Rhinocrates …who is in Robertson’s Wellington Central electorate is very disparaging and cutting of Robertson ….and it rings true to me …I met a few of the Robertson machaevellian ‘types’ myself while in the Public Service in Wellington( generally in the wannabe upper echelons, that is how they got there…But this is not to disparage the PS in general)…..and I personally think Louise Wall would be better as Deputy, more attractive to the NZ 50% woman vote and more loyal to Cunliffe
….and Robertson would make a very good Minister of Something…well out of the way
Lolz @ Chris Trotter, the final words of that piece on today’s daily blog are a grand tribute to the use of the English language in all its complexity,
Indeed, when exhausted from talking sense and providing evidence to the Neo-liberal orthodoxy which has shafted the lower end of the economic demographic for the past 30 years in the final analysis as Chris Trotter suggests, we should simply resort to telling them all, go f**k yourself”…
“The Blogosphere will play a significant part in the next election…it’s the Wild West of Journalism…blah, blah,…”- Brian Edwards, looking very sharp on te tele. hee hee.
meanwhile, back in ‘Nam, Charlie’s cutting the wires, no more plagiarizing the press down the paddies.
Have a great day! 🙂
Heh. face is in the book ; learn a lot of interesting stuff there at times, if managed well. Man, do they have some persistent algorithms to ‘hook’ users in to being online if they are unaware of the seduction at play. “Said the spider to the fly…”
So, Seamus Heaney has texted The final Given Note.
Re that Jones’ boy,
22:1 Be tactful and you remain whole; bend and you remain straight. The hollow is filled, the old is renewed. Economy is gain, Excess is confusion..
22:5 Is it empty talk, the old saying that tact keeps you whole? When truthfulness is complete, it still resorts to this.
If one applies at a WINZ interview for assistance with C.V preparation, they can approve a ‘grant’ that pays a ‘consultant to do so. (the charge was $135 for C.V, comes with a data stick in addition to hard-copy and $67 for a ‘cover letter’). Very Helpful!
Mr Jones has got past a corruption allegation and that porn issue.
“Around Aotearoa, I’ve always found that I’ve been very popular with women. I’ve never been at the top of the hit parade with feminists. But the woman I want to appeal to are the women that read the Women’s Weekly, not Germaine Greer,”
He wants to create jobs with more drilling and mining.
“Let’s cut to the chase – I’d rather have the young people of the North with a shovel in their hand [rather than] running around picking locks.”
“I’m not the greatest person for political correctness. But the politically correct thing to do is win power,”
Ew. Just ew.
Paddy Gower ends his glowing ‘the underdog is on fire’ piece with “Jones is the only one who looks real.” Are you joking? I had to wipe myself down after watching the video.
Shane Jones please go join the NAct party where you obviously belong.
Chris Trotter says;
“The Old Guard of Labour’s caucus (Phil Goff, Annette King, Trevor Mallard) realising how much the new Electoral College was likely to undermine their ability to control the direction of the party, did nothing to discourage the media’s misperception of Cunliffe’s intentions. They were desperate to keep David Shearer in place until the reins of government were securely in his (their?) hands.
They were right to be worried. The new system is revolutionary. To grasp just how revolutionary, consider how effectively it would have prevented the takeover of the Labour Party by Roger Douglas and his cronies.”
Read more reason NEVER to let Grant Robertson near the levers of power.
Listening to JIm on RNZ yesterday afternoon and the Swedish road safety dude said there were far too many road signs????
There only used to be one: KEEP LEFT but the chumps in the national party could not handle that and now there is a whole industry telling people what to do and they never do it!
Aye aye, Cap’n. But the worst bloody thing of all is driving thru the night, vision in sync with the conditions, you head for a corner to be stupifyingly blinded by your own lights being reflected back double from the hightech fucking sign pointing to the direction that you should be taking that you haven’t got a hope in hell of making as you need a seeing eye dog for the next 50ks.
“YOU said that.”
Can this train-wreck of a programme get any worse? The Panel, Radio NZ National, Tuesday 3 September 2013
Jim Mora, Mai Chen, Steve McCabe
Often the most interesting part of Jim Mora’s Panel is the fifteen-minute pre-show segment, when the guests are asked to comment on various articles plucked off the internet, grandly billed as “What the World’s Talking About”. Since they don’t have the time to think at length about many of these items, they often don’t say much of any value. They do, however, occasionally reveal a lot about themselves. Regular Panelist Stephen Franks, for instance, a legal counsel for and supporter of those bloodthirsty knife-killing enthusiasts the S.S. Trust, is fond of pontificating about the “wicked” behavior of lower class criminals. Someone else who used to guest regularly was Dr. Michael Bassett, who over the years has degenerated into a muttering, scowling old jackal; on one infamous occasion he crazily snarled that Nicky Hager was a “holocaust-denier”. Another curmudgeonly old fool who used to appear regularly on the Panel is Garth “Gaga” George, who one day learnedly opined that the Australians in the RAMSI task force were “the very worst kind of Australian”. It was on the Panel pre-show that Chris Trotter delivered his windy admonition against those who dared to question the wisdom or morality of the Florida jury that acquitted the killer of Trayvon Martin, where Rosemary McLeod sniffed contemptuously that “those people [Egyptians] don’t WANT democracy”, and dear old Gordon MacLauchlan declared in all seriousness: “Python is brilliant! It leaves Cheers for dead.”
So it’s not unusual to hear stuff on the Panel that’s pompous, silly, stupid, unintentionally funny or (in the case of Bassett and Franks) downright depraved. But when it comes to sheer bloody hypocrisy, mealy-mouthedness and cowardice, it’s hard to go past Jim Mora himself. Look how he behaved during today’s pre-show segment…..
NOELLE McCARTHY: John Kerry says there is definite proof because there are chemical residues in the hair and clothing of the victims, but that’s not good enough for Russia and China! JIM MORA: People are asking how is it so different from killing entire wedding parties with drone strikes. NOELLE McCARTHY: Hmmmm. STEVE McCABE: Personally I can’t see why chemical weapons are so much worse than those other weapons. MORA:[mocking tone] Well it’s a RED LINE that was crossed! STEVE McCABE: It’s a pity the United States did not draw a red line in Vietnam.
A couple of seconds of awkward silence…..
MORA: You mean with Agent Orange?
Further awkward silence….
NOELLE McCARTHY: Hmmmm. MORA: A couple of e-mailers have said what about when Saddam gassed the Kurds in 1988? STEVE McCABE: That was back when Saddam was still our mate. So it was okay.
More Depravity on Radio NZ: On the Radio NZ sports news at 5:30 p.m., Stephen Hewson read out an item about a St. Kilda footballer setting fire to a dwarf entertainer at a “Mad Monday” booze-up. The item included a voice grab of the dwarf, known as “Mr. Big”, describing the footballer’s actions as “just criminal.” At the end of the item, Hewson snickered, snorted and guffawed and said “Back to you Mary”.
i think mccabe might get dropped from the panel-guest-list for that saddam-one..(tho’ it is hardly a controversial observation..nor was the agent orange one..)
..and aside from all the war-mongering lies/pieties from america..
..the hypocrisies are fucken eyewatering..
..america poisoned whole fucken countries..
..and either themselves or thru their sattelite-states (like nz) america continues to rain death down on innocent-civilians worldwide..
..they and their mercenary-states/acolytes are the war-criminals of our times..
@ phillip Ure …even better set up the kids with the $7.2 million trust ….and bring the bodies out…..using unwanted Kapiti Coast Motorway kitty money…..ie ditch the Motorway and bring the bodies out
Key wants nothing to do with The Marshall Islands nuclear testing debacle but is trigger happy with North Korea and Syria.
The muppet is just a puppet!
Morning in London Mother hugs beloved daughter outside the converted shoe factory in which she is living.Afternoon in London Travelling writer takes himself and his wrist down to A&E, just to be sure. Read more ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – The recent announcement of the University Advisory Group, chaired by Sir Peter Gluckman, makes very clear where the Government’s focus and priorities lie. The remit of the Advisory Group is that Group members will consider challenges and opportunities for improvement in the university sector including: ...
Eric Crampton writes – The Reserve Bank of New Zealand desperately wants to find reasons to have workstreams in climate change. It makes little sense. They’ve run another stress test on the banks looking to see if they could find a prudential regulation case. They couldn’t. They ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Pundits from the left and the right are arguing that National’s Fast Track Bill that is designed to speed up infrastructure decisions could end up becoming mired in a cesspool of corruption. Political commentator ...
Looking at the headlines this morning it’s hard to feel anything other than pessimistic about the future of humanity.Note that I’m not speaking about the future of mankind, but the survival of our humanity. The values that we believe in seem to be ebbing away, by the day.Perhaps every generation ...
Swabbing mixed breed baby chicks to test for avian influenzaUh oh. Bird flu – often deadly to humans – is not only being transmitted from infected birds to dairy cows, but is now travelling between dairy cows. As of last Friday, Bloomberg News reports, there were 32 American dairy herds ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
What is it with the mining industry? Its not enough for them to pillage the earth - they apparently can't even be bothered getting resource consent to do so: The proponent behind a major mine near the Clutha River had already been undertaking activity in the area without a ...
Photo # 1 I am a huge fan of Singapore’s approach to housing, as described here two years ago by copying and pasting from The ConversationWhat Singapore has that Australia does not is a public housing developer, the Housing Development Board, which puts new dwellings on public and reclaimed land, ...
Buzz from the Beehive Reactions to news of the government’s readiness to make urgent changes to “the resource management system” through a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) suggest a balanced approach is being taken. The Taxpayers’ Union says the proposed changes don’t go far enough. Greenpeace says ...
I’m starting to wonder if Anna Burns-Francis might be the best political interviewer we’ve got. That might sound unlikely to you, it came as a bit of a surprise to me.Jack Tame can be excellent, but has some pretty average days. I like Rebecca Wright on Newshub, she asks good ...
Chris Trotter writes – Willie Jackson is said to be planning a “media summit” to discuss “the state of the media and how to protect Fourth Estate Journalism”. Not only does the Editor of The Daily Blog, Martyn Bradbury, think this is a good idea, but he has also ...
Graeme Edgeler writes – This morning [April 21], the Wellington High Court is hearing a judicial review brought by Hon. Karen Chhour, the Minister for Children, against a decision of the Waitangi Tribunal. This is unusual, judicial reviews are much more likely to brought against ministers, rather than ...
Both of Parliament’s watchdogs have now ripped into the Government’s Fast-track Approvals Bill. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMy pick of the six newsey things to know from Aotearoa’s political economy and beyond on the morning of Tuesday, April 23 are:The Lead: The Auditor General,John Ryan, has joined the ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Sarah SpengemanPeople wait to board an electric bus in Pune, India. (Image credit: courtesy of ITDP) Public transportation riders in Pune, India, love the city’s new electric buses so much they will actually skip an older diesel bus that ...
The infrastructure industry yesterday issued a “hurry up” message to the Government, telling it to get cracking on developing a pipeline of infrastructure projects.The hiatus around the change of Government has seen some major projects cancelled and others delayed, and there is uncertainty about what will happen with the new ...
Hi,Over the weekend I revisited a podcast I really adore, Dead Eyes. It’s about a guy who got fired from Band of Brothers over two decades ago because Tom Hanks said he had “dead eyes”.If you don’t recall — 2001’s Band of Brothers was part of the emerging trend of ...
Buzz from the Beehive The 180 or so recipients of letters from the Government telling them how to submit infrastructure projects for “fast track” consideration includes some whose project applications previously have been rejected by the courts. News media were quick to feature these in their reports after RMA Reform Minister Chris ...
It would not be a desirable way to start your holiday by breaking your back, your head, or your wrist, but on our first hour in Singapore I gave it a try.We were chatting, last week, before we started a meeting of Hazel’s Enviro Trust, about the things that can ...
Calling all journalists, academics, planners, lawyers, political activists, environmentalists, and other members of the public who believe that the relationships between vested interests and politicians need to be scrutinised. We need to work together to make sure that the new Fast-Track Approvals Bill – currently being pushed through by the ...
Feel worried. Shane Jones and a couple of his Cabinet colleagues are about to be granted the power to override any and all objections to projects like dams, mines, roads etc even if: said projects will harm biodiversity, increase global warming and cause other environmental harms, and even if ...
Bryce Edwards writes- The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. ...
Michael Bassett writes – If you think there is a move afoot by the radical Maori fringe of New Zealand society to create a parallel system of government to the one that we elect at our triennial elections, you aren’t wrong. Over the last few days we have ...
Without a corresponding drop in interest rates, it’s doubtful any changes to the CCCFA will unleash a massive rush of home buyers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The six things that stood out to me in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, poverty and climate on Monday, April 22 included:The Government making a ...
Sunday was a lazy day. I started watching Jack Tame on Q&A, the interviews are usually good for something to write about. Saying the things that the politicians won’t, but are quite possibly thinking. Things that are true and need to be extracted from between the lines.As you might know ...
In our Weekly Roundup last week we covered news from Auckland Transport that the WX1 Western Express is going to get an upgrade next year with double decker electric buses. As part of the announcement, AT also said “Since we introduced the WX1 Western Express last November we have seen ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 29 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. Stats NZ releases its statutory report on Census 2023 tomorrow.Finance Minister Nicola Willis delivers a pre-Budget speech at ...
A listing of 29 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 14, 2024 thru Sat, April 20, 2024. Story of the week Our story of the week hinges on these words from the abstract of a fresh academic ...
The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. The Government says this will ...
This is a column to say thank you. So many of have been in touch since Mum died to say so many kind and thoughtful things. You’re wonderful, all of you. You’ve asked how we’re doing, how Dad’s doing. A little more realisation each day, of the irretrievable finality of ...
Identifying the engine type in your car is crucial for various reasons, including maintenance, repairs, and performance upgrades. Knowing the specific engine model allows you to access detailed technical information, locate compatible parts, and make informed decisions about modifications. This comprehensive guide will provide you with a step-by-step approach to ...
Introduction: The allure of racing is undeniable. The thrill of speed, the roar of engines, and the exhilaration of competition all contribute to the allure of this adrenaline-driven sport. For those who yearn to experience the pinnacle of racing, becoming a race car driver is the ultimate dream. However, the ...
Introduction Automobiles have become ubiquitous in modern society, serving as a primary mode of transportation and a symbol of economic growth and personal mobility. With countless vehicles traversing roads and highways worldwide, it begs the question: how many cars are there in the world? Determining the precise number is a ...
Maintaining a safe and reliable vehicle requires regular inspections. Whether it’s a routine maintenance checkup or a safety inspection, knowing how long the process will take can help you plan your day accordingly. This article delves into the factors that influence the duration of a car inspection and provides an ...
Mazda Motor Corporation, commonly known as Mazda, is a Japanese multinational automaker headquartered in Fuchu, Aki District, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. The company was founded in 1920 as the Toyo Cork Kogyo Co., Ltd., and began producing vehicles in 1931. Mazda is primarily known for its production of passenger cars, but ...
Your car battery is an essential component that provides power to start your engine, operate your electrical systems, and store energy. Over time, batteries can weaken and lose their ability to hold a charge, which can lead to starting problems, power failures, and other issues. Replacing your battery before it ...
In most states, you cannot register a car without a valid driver’s license. However, there are a few exceptions to this rule. Exceptions to the RuleIf you are under 18 years old: In some states, you can register a car in your name even if you do not ...
Mazda, a Japanese automotive manufacturer with a rich history of innovation and engineering excellence, has emerged as a formidable player in the global car market. Known for its reputation of producing high-quality, fuel-efficient, and driver-oriented vehicles, Mazda has consistently garnered praise from industry experts and consumers alike. In this article, ...
Struts are an essential part of a car’s suspension system. They are responsible for supporting the weight of the car and damping the oscillations of the springs. Struts are typically made of steel or aluminum and are filled with hydraulic fluid. How Do Struts Work? Struts work by transferring the ...
Car registration is a mandatory process that all vehicle owners must complete annually. This process involves registering your car with the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and paying an associated fee. The registration process ensures that your vehicle is properly licensed and insured, and helps law enforcement and other authorities ...
Zoom is a video conferencing service that allows you to share your screen, webcam, and audio with other participants. In addition to sharing your own audio, you can also share the audio from your computer with other participants. This can be useful for playing music, sharing presentations with audio, or ...
Building your own computer can be a rewarding and cost-effective way to get a high-performance machine tailored to your specific needs. However, it also requires careful planning and execution, and one of the most important factors to consider is the time it will take. The exact time it takes to ...
Sleep mode is a power-saving state that allows your computer to quickly resume operation without having to boot up from scratch. This can be useful if you need to step away from your computer for a short period of time but don’t want to shut it down completely. There are ...
Introduction Computer-Assisted Translation (CAT) has revolutionized the field of translation by harnessing the power of technology to assist human translators in their work. This innovative approach combines specialized software with human expertise to improve the efficiency, accuracy, and consistency of translations. In this comprehensive article, we will delve into the ...
In today’s digital age, mobile devices have become an indispensable part of our daily lives. Among the vast array of portable computing options available, iPads and tablet computers stand out as two prominent contenders. While both offer similar functionalities, there are subtle yet significant differences between these two devices. This ...
A computer is an electronic device that can be programmed to carry out a set of instructions. The basic components of a computer are the processor, memory, storage, input devices, and output devices. The Processor The processor, also known as the central processing unit (CPU), is the brain of the ...
Voice Memos is a convenient app on your iPhone that allows you to quickly record and store audio snippets. These recordings can be useful for a variety of purposes, such as taking notes, capturing ideas, or recording interviews. While you can listen to your voice memos on your iPhone, you ...
Laptop screens are essential for interacting with our devices and accessing information. However, when lines appear on the screen, it can be frustrating and disrupt productivity. Understanding the underlying causes of these lines is crucial for finding effective solutions. Types of Screen Lines Horizontal lines: Also known as scan ...
Right-clicking is a common and essential computer operation that allows users to access additional options and settings. While most desktop computers have dedicated right-click buttons on their mice, laptops often do not have these buttons due to space limitations. This article will provide a comprehensive guide on how to right-click ...
Powering up and shutting down your ASUS laptop is an essential task for any laptop user. Locating the power button can sometimes be a hassle, especially if you’re new to ASUS laptops. This article will provide a comprehensive guide on where to find the power button on different ASUS laptop ...
Dell laptops are renowned for their reliability, performance, and versatility. Whether you’re a student, a professional, or just someone who needs a reliable computing device, a Dell laptop can meet your needs. However, if you’re new to Dell laptops, you may be wondering how to get started. In this comprehensive ...
Two-thirds of the country think that “New Zealand’s economy is rigged to advantage the rich and powerful”. They also believe that “New Zealand needs a strong leader to take the country back from the rich and powerful”. These are just two of a handful of stunning new survey results released ...
In today’s digital world, screenshots have become an indispensable tool for communication and documentation. Whether you need to capture an important email, preserve a website page, or share an error message, screenshots allow you to quickly and easily preserve digital information. If you’re an Asus laptop user, there are several ...
A factory reset restores your Gateway laptop to its original factory settings, erasing all data, apps, and personalizations. This can be necessary to resolve software issues, remove viruses, or prepare your laptop for sale or transfer. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to factory reset your Gateway laptop: Method 1: ...
“You talking about me?”The neoliberal denigration of the past was nowhere more unrelenting than in its depiction of the public service. The Post Office and the Railways were held up as being both irremediably inefficient and scandalously over-manned. Playwright Roger Hall’s “Glide Time” caricatures were presented as accurate depictions of ...
Roger Partridge writes – When the Coalition Government took office last October, it inherited a country on a precipice. With persistent inflation, decades of insipid productivity growth and crises in healthcare, education, housing and law and order, it is no exaggeration to suggest New Zealand’s first-world status was ...
Rob MacCulloch writes – In 2022, the Curriculum Centre at the Ministry of Education employed 308 staff, according to an Official Information Request. Earlier this week it was announced 202 of those staff were being cut. When you look up “The New Zealand Curriculum” on the Ministry of ...
Chris Bishop’s bill has stirred up a hornets nest of opposition. Photo: Lynn Grieveson for The KākāTL;DR: The six things that stood out to me in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, poverty and climate from the last day included:A crescendo of opposition to the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill is ...
Monday left me brokenTuesday, I was through with hopingWednesday, my empty arms were openThursday, waiting for love, waiting for loveThe end of another week that left many of us asking WTF? What on earth has NZ gotten itself into and how on earth could people have voluntarily signed up for ...
Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past week’s editions.State of humanity, 20242024, it feels, keeps presenting us with ever more challenges, ever more dismay.Do you give up yet? It seems to ask.No? How about this? Or this?How about this?Full story Share ...
Determining the hardest sport in the world is a subjective matter, as the difficulty level can vary depending on individual abilities, physical attributes, and experience. However, based on various factors including physical demands, technical skills, mental fortitude, and overall accomplishment, here is an exploration of some of the most challenging ...
The allure of sport transcends age, culture, and geographical boundaries. It captivates hearts, ignites passions, and provides unparalleled entertainment. Behind the spectacle, however, lies a fascinating world of financial investment and expenditure. Among the vast array of competitive pursuits, one question looms large: which sport carries the hefty title of ...
Introduction Pickleball, a rapidly growing paddle sport, has captured the hearts and imaginations of millions around the world. Its blend of tennis, badminton, and table tennis elements has made it a favorite among players of all ages and skill levels. As the sport’s popularity continues to surge, the question on ...
Abstract: Soccer, the global phenomenon captivating millions worldwide, has a rich history that spans centuries. Its origins trace back to ancient civilizations, but the modern version we know and love emerged through a complex interplay of cultural influences and innovations. This article delves into the fascinating journey of soccer’s evolution, ...
Tinting car windows offers numerous benefits, including enhanced privacy, reduced glare, UV protection, and a more stylish look for your vehicle. However, the cost of window tinting can vary significantly depending on several factors. This article provides a comprehensive guide to help you understand how much you can expect to ...
The pungent smell of gasoline in your car can be an alarming and potentially dangerous problem. Not only is the odor unpleasant, but it can also indicate a serious issue with your vehicle’s fuel system. In this article, we will explore the various reasons why your car may smell like ...
Tree sap can be a sticky, unsightly mess on your car’s exterior. It can be difficult to remove, but with the right techniques and products, you can restore your car to its former glory. Understanding Tree Sap Tree sap is a thick, viscous liquid produced by trees to seal wounds ...
The amount of paint needed to paint a car depends on a number of factors, including the size of the car, the number of coats you plan to apply, and the type of paint you are using. In general, you will need between 1 and 2 gallons of paint for ...
Jump-starting a car is a common task that can be performed even in adverse weather conditions like rain. However, safety precautions and proper techniques are crucial to avoid potential hazards. This comprehensive guide will provide detailed instructions on how to safely jump a car in the rain, ensuring both your ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
The Government’s newly announced review of methane emissions reduction targets hints at its desire to delay Aotearoa New Zealand’s urgent transition to a climate safe future, the Green Party said. ...
The Government must commit to the Maitai School building project for students with high and complex needs, to ensure disabled students from the top of the South Island have somewhere to learn. ...
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey and his Government colleagues have made a meal of their mental health commitments, showing how flimsy their efforts to champion the issue truly are, says Labour Mental Health spokesperson Ingrid Leary. ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order. “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions. “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today. “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale. “It is good ...
The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
“China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector. "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...
The Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...
Changes to the Resource Management Act will align consenting for coal mining to other forms of mining to reduce barriers that are holding back economic development, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The inconsistent treatment of coal mining compared with other extractive activities is burdensome red tape that fails to acknowledge ...
Trade, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Todd McClay has concluded productive discussions with ministerial counterparts in Beijing today, in support of the New Zealand-China trade and economic relationship. “My meeting with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao reaffirmed the complementary nature of the bilateral trade relationship, with our Free Trade Agreement at its ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kelly Saunders, PhD Candidate, University of Canberra There has been much analysis and praise of Justice Michael Lee’s recent judgement in Bruce Lehrmann’s defamation case against Channel Ten. Many people were openly relieved to read Lee’s “forensic” and “nuanced” application of law ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kathy Gibbs, Program Director for the Bachelor of Education, Griffith University zEdward_Indy/Shutterstock Around one in 20 people has attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). It’s one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders in childhood and often continues into adulthood. ADHD is diagnosed ...
The Fairer Future coalition of anti-poverty groups say Whaikaha must be properly funded going forward, and that to argue that poor financial management of the new Ministry is a red herring by the Prime Minister. ...
The Taxpayers’ Union is today congratulating Hon. Paul Goldsmith on his appointment as Minister for Media and Communications and urges him to rule out state intervention in the private media sector. ...
Asia Pacific Report The West Papuan resistance OPM leader has condemned Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and US President Joe Biden, accusing their countries of “six decades of treachery” over Papuan independence. The open letter was released today by OPM chairman Jeffrey P Bomanak on the eve of ANZAC Day ...
Welcome to The Spinoff Books Confessional, in which we get to know the reading habits and quirks of New Zealanders at large. This week: writer and one of Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people of 2024, Lauren Groff.The book I wish I’d writtenIf I wish I’d written a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Fechner, Research Fellow, Social Marketing, Griffith University mavo/Shutterstock Imagine having dinner at a restaurant. The menu offers plant-based meat alternatives made mostly from vegetables, mushrooms, legumes and wheat that mimic meat in taste, texture and smell. Despite being given that ...
“Three Strikes is a dead-end policy proposed by a dead-end government. The Three Strikes law ignores the causes of crime, instead just brutalising people already crushed by the cost of living.” ...
By Don Wiseman, RNZ Pacific senior journalist An Australian-born judge in Kiribati could well face deportation later this week after a tribunal ruling that he should be removed from his post. The tribunal’s report has just been tabled in the Kiribati Parliament and is due to be debated by MPs ...
With its clear mandate for police use, political nuances, and nuanced public trust, Denmark's insights provide valuable considerations for Australia and New Zealand. ...
Books editor Claire Mabey reviews poet Louise Wallace’s debut novel. A famous poet once said to me that he’s always suspicious when a poet publishes a novel. I never really understood why but maybe it’s something to do with cheating on your first form. Louise Wallace is a poet. She’s ...
For a few months at the turn of the millennium, TrueBliss burned bright as the biggest pop stars in the country. Alex Casey chats to two superfans who still hold the flame. During a humble backyard wedding in Nelson, 1999, one of the cordially invited guests had to excuse themselves ...
How will the recent wave of job cuts impact ethnic diversity in the media? In November last year, I was working a very busy day in the newsroom of a large online news site, interviewing whānau about their concerns over the imminent closure of one of the few puna reo ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ruth Knight, Researcher, Queensland University of Technology Have you ever felt sick at work? Perhaps you had food poisoning or the flu. Your belly hurt, or you felt tired, making it hard to concentrate and be productive. How likely would you be ...
Despite heavy criticism and an ongoing select committee process, the Police Minister says the Government will forge ahead with a ban on gang patches. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sam Whiting, Lecturer – Creative Industries, University of South Australia Shutterstock Everyone has a favourite band, or a favourite composer, or a favourite song. There is some music which speaks to you, deeply; and other music which might be the current ...
A new survey says ‘outlook not great’ for those charged with building infrastructure, while RMA changes delight farmers and depress environmentalists, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. First RMA changes announced ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Olli Hellmann, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Waikato Getty Images When New Zealanders commemorate Anzac Day on April 25, it’s not only to honour the soldiers who lost their lives in World War I and subsequent conflicts, but also ...
A leaked document shows the Canterbury/Waitaha arm of health agency Te Whatu Ora is scurrying to save $13.3 million by July. The “financial sustainability target”, which was “allocated” to Waitaha, is consistent with what’s happening in other districts, says Sarah Dalton, executive director of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists. ...
A look at the state of the previous government’s affordable housing scheme, and what could come next.Remind me: What’s KiwiBuild again?First announced in 2012, KiwiBuild was a flagship policy of the Labour Party heading into both its 2014 and 2017 election campaigns. With Jacinda Ardern as prime minister, ...
Labour in opposition will be shocked to learn which party had six years in power but squandered any chance to make real change. Grant Robertson’s valedictory speech was a predictably entertaining trip down memory lane. The acid-tongued incoming Otago University chancellor administered a sick burn to the coalition government. He ...
Taiwan’s semiconductor industry is seen some as its ‘silicon shield’ against invasion – but how will overseas expansion affect that protection? The post The state of Taiwan’s silicon shield appeared first on Newsroom. ...
There’s relief for building owners bending under the weight of earthquake strengthening rules – and costs – that came into force seven years ago. Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk has announced a scheduled 2027 review of the earthquake-prone building regulations will now start this year. Owners will also get ...
Opinion: It has been announced that nine percent of roles at Oranga Tamariki will be disestablished, presumably to help fund the tax cuts promised by the coalition Government. I am reminded of the graphics used to illustrate pandemic events, where five thousand people are standing in a field and then ...
After more than two sleepless days, running through savage terrain, Greig Hamilton didn’t know if he was going to finish one of the most gruelling psychological assaults in sport. He was metres away from the finish line, a yellow gate made famous in a Netflix documentary; a race he’d dreamed ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[quiz],DIV[quiz],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, Wednesday 24 April appeared first on Newsroom. ...
The following interview with former Green Party MP Sue Kedgley came about because she features in the new memoir Hine Toa by activist Ngāhuia te Awekōtuku; the two knew each other at the University of Auckland in the early 70s, when they were both took on leadership roles in the ...
COMMENTARY:By Murray Horton New Zealand needs to get tough with Israel. It’s not as if we haven’t done so before. When NZ authorities busted a Mossad operation in Auckland 20 years ago, the government didn’t say: “Oh well, Israel has the right to defend itself.” No, it arrested, prosecuted, ...
NEWSMAKERS:By Vijay Narayan, news director of FijiVillage Blessed to be part of the University of Fiji (UniFiji) faculty to continue to teach and mentor those who want to join our noble profession, and to stand for truth and justice for the people of the country. I was privileged to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Three weeks from now, some of us will be presented with a mountain of budget papers, and just about all of us will get to hear about them on radio, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dan Lowry, Ice Sheet & Climate Modeller, GNS Science Hugh Chittock/Antarctica New Zealand, CC BY-SA As the climate warms and Antarctica’s glaciers and ice sheets melt, the resulting rise in sea level has the potential to displace hundreds of millions of ...
The government's plan to reintroduce a three strikes regime is being strongly opposed by lawyers, who argue there is no evidence it reduces crime or helps people rehabilitate. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dan Jerker B. Svantesson, Professor specialising in Internet law, Bond University Do Australian courts have the right to decide what foreign citizens, located overseas, view online on a foreign-owned platform? Anyone inclined to answer “yes” to this question should perhaps also ask ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Giovanni E Ferreira, NHMRC Emerging Leader Research Fellow, Institute of Musculoskeletal Health, University of Sydney Last week in a post on X, owner of the platform Elon Musk recommended people look into disc replacement if they’re experiencing severe neck or back pain. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Hayward, Emeritus Professor of Public Policy, RMIT University anek.soowannaphoom/Shutterstock NSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey caught the headlines yesterday, courtesy of a blistering speech condemning the latest GST carve-up. New South Wales, he claimed, would be A$11.9 billion worse off over the ...
While police are "broadly in favour", the government's proposed anti-gang laws are facing pushback from lawyers, rights groups and former gang members. ...
While police are "broadly in favour", the government's proposed anti-gang laws are facing pushback from lawyers, rights groups and former gang members. ...
By Miriam Zarriga in Port Moresby Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has arrived at Kokoda Station, Northern province, at the start of his state visit to Papua New Guinea. Both Albanese and Prime Minister James Marape will meet with the locals and the Northern Provincial government before they begin their ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Chris Wallace, Professor, School of Politics Economics & Society, Faculty of Business Government & Law, University of Canberra Shutterstock An important principle was invoked by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese last week in defence of the government’s Future Made in Australia industry ...
By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk Security forces reinforcements were sent from France ahead of two rival marches in the capital Nouméa today, at the same time and only two streets away one from the other. One march, called by Union Calédonienne party (a component of the ...
A poll last August found that just 16% of New Zealanders oppose bringing back the ‘Three Strikes’ law. The nationwide poll of 1,000 New Zealanders was commissioned by Family First NZ and carried out by Curia Market Research. ...
The solo show from Ana Scotney is both sprawling and intimate, and a must-see, writes Mad Chapman. In the opening moments of Scattergun: After the Death of Rūaumoko, writer and performer Ana Scotney lays out the groundwork, literally. Silently moving around the square stage, Scotney is not so much dancing ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Burridge, Professor of Linguistics, Monash University Who makes the words? Why are trees called trees and why are shoes called shoes and who makes the names? – Elliot, age 5, Eltham, Victoria Good question Elliot! Let’s start with ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Duckett, Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne at amRawpixel.com/Shutterstock Roles of health professionals are still unfortunately often stuck in the past. That is, before the ...
COMMENTARY:By Malcolm Evans Last week’s leaked New York Times staff directive, as to what words can and cannot be used to describe the carnage Israel is raining on Palestinians, is proof positive, since those reports are published verbatim here in New Zealand, that our understanding of the conflict is ...
In the case of New Zealand, the results confirm that there is no popular support for the vicious austerity program being imposed by the National Party-led government, which is backed in all fundamental respects by the opposition Labour Party. ...
The ‘Vampire’ singer has never visited our part of the world, but that might all be about to change. We assess the evidence.Olivia Rodrigo’s Guts World Tour is pulling in massive crowds as it whips around the US and Europe, even helping to catapult regular supporting act Chappell Roan ...
Testing of drinking water in rural Canterbury over the weekend by Greenpeace revealed that several public town supplies were reaching levels of nitrate above 5 mg/L - the threshold which a growing body of scientific evidence has linked to increased ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rohan Fisher, Information Technology for Development Researcher, Charles Darwin University It may come as a surprise to hear 2023 was Australia’s biggest bushfire season in more than a decade. Fires burned across an area eight times as big as the 2019–20 Black ...
Responding to the Government’s announcement of changes to resource management laws, Taxpayers’ Union Executive Director, Jordan Williams, said: “These changes are a step in the right direction in terms of removing ideological and unworkable ...
More than two years after the Human Rights Council called for the establishment of a national human rights commission, such a body has yet to be formed. ...
Comment:An emergency management system with wide variations in performance, significant capability gaps, funding shortfalls and above all a setup that is not meeting the needs of New Zealanders at times of crisis. The Government’s inquiry into the response to Cyclone Gabrielle and other severe weather events in the North ...
Welcome to the whirring wonders of one brain trying to align its actions with its beliefs within a system it thinks is evil. My brain has been spiralling in a woke conundrum ever since I found out a bookshop I’ve never been to was shutting down. Good Books, a bookshop ...
We repeat our call for criminal justice policy to be based on evidence, something the three strikes regime neglects to recognise – with no evidence that it either reduces crime or assists with rehabilitation. ...
By Koroi Hawkins, RNZ Pacific editor in Honiara With only four more seats in the 50-member Parliament yet to be officially declared, there is no outright winner in the Solomon Islands elections. As of Monday, the two largest blocs in the winner’s circle, independents and the incumbent Prime Minister Manasseh ...
Two/fiftyseven is a multi-purpose space hidden in the heart of Wellington that is paving a way for sustainable building and responsible landlording in Aotearoa and beyond.By 2060 the world is predicted to double its entire building stock, which equates to building an entire New York City every 34 days, ...
Popstars wasn’t just a reality television revolution, it was also a huge moment for Y2K fashion.It’s 25 years since girl group TrueBliss was formed on New Zealand national television, breaking new ground for both the reality television industry and the shiny clothing industry. With the first episode on NZ ...
So who’s up for it?
Ban conventional and nuclear warfare in the same manner that chemical warfare is banned.
It is just an extension of the smacking ban after all.
‘
Can’t ban conventional warfare – the entire US economy would grind to a halt in less than a week.
and Russia’s
Russia will be fine. US, China and the UK, I’m not so sure.
Russia is the second largest arms exporter in the world. Every permanent member of the UN Security Council is in the top 10. As far as international law can ban warfare, it has already. Sadly, that’s not enough.
Thanks. Per capita it looks to me like Russia is way ahead of the US as an arms exporter.
I heard some chap rabbiting on nat radio last week about the legal parameters of war. It was sickening, and it takes a lot to turn mine stomach.. He was going on as if it is acceptable to wipe out large swathes of humanity in certain circumstances using certain means. It was so way up in the clouds it was bizarre. It got me to thinking that war is absolutely the lowest form of human conduct, which everybody knows but for some reason most people accept.
People seem to accept state murder of other state’s citizens – code for killing being acceptable.
It leaves me sick.
New Zealand should stand up and lead the world in banning all forms of warfare, like it did by going nuclear-free.
All forms.
+1.
Worthwhile reading for the interest value in the same vein: 10 countries without military forces.
Particularly liked the reference to Andorra – “Despite not ever having a true organized military, the tiny country of Andorra was bold enough to declare war on Germany in 1914 and join the so called Great War. With a 10-man strong army, the country did not do much and was not taken seriously.
What is worse is that most of the recent conflicts that New Zealand has been involved with have not been legally declared wars. Vietnam was not a declared war for instance which if I remember correctly caused problems with servicemen that were active in that conflict getting disability allowances etc when they returned because under the war pension act they had technically not been to war. Long tine ago now but there was a lot of angry service people trying to get benefits and being given the run around by the Government of the day.
And what would you do about those that would seek to attack us?
Draco, surely you realise that you should never answer the premier question with answers to the secondary questions.
First, ban all such warfare. Second, work out how to make that happen, among other things.
So, how about it? Are you in? Looks like you might be the only taker which leaves me pretty disappointed in Les Standardistas.
Like, Draco, I am a supporter of a strong multi-role NZDF, including both offensive and defensive warfighting capabilities.
Sure, me too (on my limited understanding), but you are ignoring the call to a full ban on its use….
@CV…where is NZDF offensive warfighting justified?
Today, no where. But the military always has to prepare 10 years ahead, and I am guessing that the Pacific is going to be a pretty tense place down the track.
Not if we ban warfare now. It might help. Nothing to lose.
Why don’t you want to do such a thing? Do you support the ban on chemical warfare? Where do you draw the line? Why bother going nuclear free? Why is it so hard to stick a flower in the barrel of a tank? Eh?
I think it’ll be as successful as banning homicide…
homicide is banned and it prevents more homicides.
chemical warfare is banned and it prevents more chemical warfare.
you keep avoiding the issue and sliding off it. I know you can see its clarity…. Why are you avoiding saying “I would support banning all warfare”?
@CV…so you would agree with the American gun lobby that it is a citazen’s right to have a gun….just to be prepared 10 years ahead …. in case…. 10 years down the track….when it could be a pretty tense place
…just arguing here and I probably agree with you ….but in theory while these arguments are convincing … in practice people/politicians make mistakes and it can make a situation worse
+1vto…those who attack us is a separate question…then we are defending
24 hours !
And this is sort of why I don’t think that would work:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molotov%E2%80%93Ribbentrop_Pact
Thanks Pop, appreciate your effort (I know I get on your goat sometimes..).
But the reason outlined in your post is a rehash of the arguments up and around this already. The how of such a ban is the secondary question, not the primary one. We need to answer the primary one first, before assessing the how, the when, the what-ifs, etc etc.
Just like it is with banning nuclear in NZ.
Just like it is with banning homicide.
Just like it is with banning chemical warfare.
Surely you can see the potential in such a ban. Whether it is workable or not is not the issue, just as is so with all other bans. It is a head space, an aim, a lofty high humanitarian goal. Something we can aspire to. And when humans do this sort of thing humanity gets towed along behind to an extent.
And in the alternative,,, to not so ban is to impliedly condone and employ warfare, in the same manner than debanning homicide or chemical warfare would be such.
I don’t understand why this is so hard.
It has been done with chemical. We did it with nuclear. Lets go the whole hog.
edit: and I do recall that pact now, from dim distant studies…
I’d say it’s worth trying. I’m not sure how it could be done in the immediate future, but wars aren’t good for anything. We’d all be better off without them.
Terrific Leadership Contest meeting in Whangarei last night. All three potential Leaders in good spirits and talking good policy ideas. Over 200 people in audience – heaps of new members signed up.
This is a good sign for resurgence in Labour Party.
If new folks are signing up does that mean the meetings are open to non members?
If they sign up as members they are entitled to attend but only existing members or those renewing a fairly recent membership can vote.
(do we all know that john key is an acolyte of ayn rand..?..)
http://whoar.co.nz/2013/comment-john-key-follows-the-teachings-of-his-guru-defends-the-fact-that-the-person-who-cleans-his-office-earns-a-small-fraction-above-the-minimum-wage/
(excerpt..)
“..ed:..of course the building of this low-wage economy is a pillar of the teachings of keys’ guru..ayn rand..
..just about everything john key does/advocates..
..can be drawn back to the vile/poisonous teachings/prescriptions of rand..”
phillip ure..
It was painful to watch Key bleating about the $68 million he said it would cost the government to implement Labour’s “Living Wage” policy for public employees.
That’s right a whopping $68 million out of a annual government spend of 92.7 billion (annual government spending year ending June2012).
So that’s 0.07% of the annual government budget to give New Zealanders a living wage. Not a very high price to pay to help improve the conditions of the working poor.
That’s if you believe Key’s figures, which I don’t, as opposed to Cunliffe’s $25 million which makes it 0.025%.
For comparison, Key’s just spent $100 million of our money flogging off a decent asset that most of us don’t want sold.
The hypocrisy stinks
Agreed.
It is exactly like Key and Brownlee refusing to top up the red zoners $12.5million in Christchurch while going about spending $300million on a stadium for rich rugby players to run around on a few times a month.
This shows this government’s priorities.
Rugby is prioritised over people’s homes
Sharebrokers commissions are prioritised over paying above a slave wage for cleaners.
pitooey in their face. pigs.
“It was painful to watch Key bleating about the $68 million he said it would cost the government to implement Labour’s “Living Wage” policy for public employees.”
The $68m is for extending it to direct government employees only, it doesn’t include contractors such as cleaners in hospitals.
I would think that there aren’t all that many directly-employed government workers earning less tahn $18.40, which is why the wage figure is only $68m.
The other thing is….
It doesn’t cost the country anything. The money stays entirely within New Zealand and if anything spins a little faster..
It costs nothing.
And you my man, win the prize for today’s heterodox economics and monetary theory understanding.
Exactly, only $68 million, so why is Key bleating about it?
For the record I’d tend to believe Labour’s costing of $25m.
Well said Steve. As well as getting their figures wrong sometimes, they make a huge noise about costs that are trivial in the big picture (your example above)that would benefit society, but brush big bad unnecessary costs (ditto your comparison)under the carpet. It’s a very lumpy carpet they’ve got there.
And yes, it is painful. I wish there was some way for Key to vanish, to be forced to resign for some reason, so all this pain could end. (not just the bleating sounds)It would have to happen after the new Labour Leader has been elected though.
Just a fantasy that I’ve harboured since ’08.
I want to see the son-of-a-bitch lose the election.
Me too Linz, and I expect he will lose in a grand fashion. Out with a bang. But waiting another year is unbearable.
Cunliffe, and the Membership at large, are too nice to Grant Robertson.
Grant Robertson is a core part of what has been wrong with the Labour Party for the past five years. Robertson is a core member of the narrow group that created division in the party to protect their own careers. Robertson shaped the shambles that has been Shearer’s Leader’s office for the past 18 months. Shearer/King/Mallard/Robertson attacked the membership and Cunliffe for DARING to vote in favour of more democracy at the Ellerslie Conference.
Robertson has not changed his spots. He is still a natural hoarder of power in the bank office. His instincts are to pay lip service only to the members.
To elect Robertson is to ask for a continuation of the mis-rule of the past five years.
Cunliffe has nothing to apologise for. Robertson is the one that should be called to account.
+1
You are correct, Grant is a pathetic human being, his sold out soul hangs bare for all to see.
Adern, no better!
Yep!
Bang on!
BS he’s a pathetic human being. I know him personally. He’s a decent guy and deeply committed to justice and fairness for all. Personal attacks like this are just stupid.
@ Tigger ….no matter what you think of Robertson…..if Labour wants to win next year against Key ……Robertson as Leader will not cut the mustard with the average New Zealand voter!!!!….and that is that!
….anyone who says otherwise is self-deluded or mischievous….and is laying Labour and New Zealand out for another Key and Nact win.
Cunliffe is the only Leadership option…. and luckily he is the best option by a long way
@ Chooky
Tigger is discouraging personal attacks and is encouraging people to look at the merits of the candidates.
Fyi – Tigger’s choice has been stated:
http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-30082013/#comment-688611
@ Alanz….well if Robertson has been a mover and shaker in the ABC club…IMO I think he should be able to take ‘personal attacks’….because that is what has been concertedly dealt to Cunliffe over along period of time ….and quite unwarrantedly and one could be kind in saying they were “pathetic”…certainly pathetic for the Labour Party.
Calling someone a pathetic human being is not a personal attack, in this instance, it is a statement of fact.
I Have first hand interactions with many pathetic human beings who trawl the halls of parliament, with Robertson, being one them. I also have daily interactions with pathetic human beings, but the conversation was not about anyone else.
Your experience, and opinion is fine tigger, and my experience and opinion, different from yours, that’s fine, just don’t pretend it was a personal attack, it is my personal opinion, based on my experiences, and based on what is patently obvious about the feeble personality that man has, you can apply the same to Jones, equally pathetic!
Not a PS Staffer…+100
….Rhinocrates …who is in Robertson’s Wellington Central electorate is very disparaging and cutting of Robertson ….and it rings true to me …I met a few of the Robertson machaevellian ‘types’ myself while in the Public Service in Wellington( generally in the wannabe upper echelons, that is how they got there…But this is not to disparage the PS in general)…..and I personally think Louise Wall would be better as Deputy, more attractive to the NZ 50% woman vote and more loyal to Cunliffe
….and Robertson would make a very good Minister of Something…well out of the way
As well as Trotters latest at TDB there is this by Wayne Hope, two excellent articles well worth checking out.
Lolz @ Chris Trotter, the final words of that piece on today’s daily blog are a grand tribute to the use of the English language in all its complexity,
Indeed, when exhausted from talking sense and providing evidence to the Neo-liberal orthodoxy which has shafted the lower end of the economic demographic for the past 30 years in the final analysis as Chris Trotter suggests, we should simply resort to telling them all, go f**k yourself”…
Chris Trotter suggests, we should simply resort to telling them all, go f**k yourself”…
Correct Chris is, and it is about f*k*n time we did so.
“The Blogosphere will play a significant part in the next election…it’s the Wild West of Journalism…blah, blah,…”- Brian Edwards, looking very sharp on te tele. hee hee.
meanwhile, back in ‘Nam, Charlie’s cutting the wires, no more plagiarizing the press down the paddies.
Have a great day! 🙂
and, from our man in the Middle East
The Armagideon Times
…and…a great way to save money.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zw5Lda06iK0#t=21
yet, not as many lives in developing countries.
Why did Robertson outright lie on Seven Sharp last night regarding the whereabouts of his Partner Alf?
we reflected on his credibility perception ourselves; truth will out.
anyway, as, Zarathustra spoke, we should be grateful to the slippery adder that has afflicted us so.
(or, was that love )
Seven Sharp is so crap I can’t watch it. Could you outline the “lie”.
Is this the same Alf ?
gotta love that old time rock and roll!
electrify’s my soul
(just a little ‘Duet’ ; been travelin’ near and far).
All the best fenders do.
😉
Nice.., about time you showed your face again….you have been missed!
Heh. face is in the book ; learn a lot of interesting stuff there at times, if managed well. Man, do they have some persistent algorithms to ‘hook’ users in to being online if they are unaware of the seduction at play. “Said the spider to the fly…”
So, Seamus Heaney has texted The final Given Note.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=7_qkG9gqhA8
Silly to lie about it, but I can understand why Alf would rather avoid having to become public “property”.
Fair enough. But he (Robertson) should just say so!
Agreed, a simple “Alf would rather not become a minor celebrity at this stage” would have been a better strategy.
I heard John Tamahere say on RNZ that if Shane Jones won the selection he would get more involved in the LP. There goes the women’s vote totally.
no doubt hordes of Waitakere Men will suddenly vote Labour. Provided they’ve learned tool use and fire-starting, first.
these are regressive times. 😀
My thoughts exactly: we’re front-bums and geldings according to those two dinosaurs.
A good reason to vote against Jones then.
Re that Jones’ boy,
22:1 Be tactful and you remain whole; bend and you remain straight. The hollow is filled, the old is renewed. Economy is gain, Excess is confusion..
22:5 Is it empty talk, the old saying that tact keeps you whole? When truthfulness is complete, it still resorts to this.
If one applies at a WINZ interview for assistance with C.V preparation, they can approve a ‘grant’ that pays a ‘consultant to do so. (the charge was $135 for C.V, comes with a data stick in addition to hard-copy and $67 for a ‘cover letter’). Very Helpful!
http://www.3news.co.nz/Shane-Jones-says-he-can-beat-John-Key/tabid/1607/articleID/311599/Default.aspx'
Shane Jones:
Mr Jones has got past a corruption allegation and that porn issue.
“Around Aotearoa, I’ve always found that I’ve been very popular with women. I’ve never been at the top of the hit parade with feminists. But the woman I want to appeal to are the women that read the Women’s Weekly, not Germaine Greer,”
He wants to create jobs with more drilling and mining.
“Let’s cut to the chase – I’d rather have the young people of the North with a shovel in their hand [rather than] running around picking locks.”
“I’m not the greatest person for political correctness. But the politically correct thing to do is win power,”
Ew. Just ew.
Paddy Gower ends his glowing ‘the underdog is on fire’ piece with “Jones is the only one who looks real.” Are you joking? I had to wipe myself down after watching the video.
Shane Jones please go join the NAct party where you obviously belong.
But the woman I want to appeal to are the women that read the Women’s Weekly, not Germaine Greer
Oddly enough, his use of the “I don’t hate bitches, I just hate uppity bitches” strategy has not endeared him to me.
I just watched that TV clip sthn.Jeff. I had to watch it twice to make sure I actually saw what I thought I did. How could he blatantly lie like that?
I realise it was just a meaningless piece of Fluff on a Crap TV programme, but just dumb dumb dumb!
almost as slippery with the truth as Mr Key i fear… 🙂
Chris Trotter says;
“The Old Guard of Labour’s caucus (Phil Goff, Annette King, Trevor Mallard) realising how much the new Electoral College was likely to undermine their ability to control the direction of the party, did nothing to discourage the media’s misperception of Cunliffe’s intentions. They were desperate to keep David Shearer in place until the reins of government were securely in his (their?) hands.
They were right to be worried. The new system is revolutionary. To grasp just how revolutionary, consider how effectively it would have prevented the takeover of the Labour Party by Roger Douglas and his cronies.”
Read more reason NEVER to let Grant Robertson near the levers of power.
http://thedailyblog.co.nz/2013/09/02/democratic-distempers-how-labours-leadership-election-is-unsettling-the-neoliberal-establishment/
Listening to JIm on RNZ yesterday afternoon and the Swedish road safety dude said there were far too many road signs????
There only used to be one: KEEP LEFT but the chumps in the national party could not handle that and now there is a whole industry telling people what to do and they never do it!
“..but the chumps in the national party could not handle that..”
heh..!
phillip ure..
Aye aye, Cap’n. But the worst bloody thing of all is driving thru the night, vision in sync with the conditions, you head for a corner to be stupifyingly blinded by your own lights being reflected back double from the hightech fucking sign pointing to the direction that you should be taking that you haven’t got a hope in hell of making as you need a seeing eye dog for the next 50ks.
Quotes from Slippery
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/j/john_key_2.html
bob jones has mounted a rear-guard action against any idea/plans for a capital-gains tax..
..and in the process..has shot himself in both (tax)-feet..heh..!
http://whoar.co.nz/2013/bob-jones-mounts-a-rearguard-action-against-the-clamours-for-a-capital-gains-tax-from-the-mob-ed-i-think-he-really-wanted-to-say-peasants-eh-and-in-the-process-makes-a-wildwacky/
phillip ure..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_qkG9gqhA8
I’m prepared to call it: Cunliffe will be the next leader of the opposition
What was Robertson thinking?
“YOU said that.”
Can this train-wreck of a programme get any worse?
The Panel, Radio NZ National, Tuesday 3 September 2013
Jim Mora, Mai Chen, Steve McCabe
Often the most interesting part of Jim Mora’s Panel is the fifteen-minute pre-show segment, when the guests are asked to comment on various articles plucked off the internet, grandly billed as “What the World’s Talking About”. Since they don’t have the time to think at length about many of these items, they often don’t say much of any value. They do, however, occasionally reveal a lot about themselves. Regular Panelist Stephen Franks, for instance, a legal counsel for and supporter of those bloodthirsty knife-killing enthusiasts the S.S. Trust, is fond of pontificating about the “wicked” behavior of lower class criminals. Someone else who used to guest regularly was Dr. Michael Bassett, who over the years has degenerated into a muttering, scowling old jackal; on one infamous occasion he crazily snarled that Nicky Hager was a “holocaust-denier”. Another curmudgeonly old fool who used to appear regularly on the Panel is Garth “Gaga” George, who one day learnedly opined that the Australians in the RAMSI task force were “the very worst kind of Australian”. It was on the Panel pre-show that Chris Trotter delivered his windy admonition against those who dared to question the wisdom or morality of the Florida jury that acquitted the killer of Trayvon Martin, where Rosemary McLeod sniffed contemptuously that “those people [Egyptians] don’t WANT democracy”, and dear old Gordon MacLauchlan declared in all seriousness: “Python is brilliant! It leaves Cheers for dead.”
So it’s not unusual to hear stuff on the Panel that’s pompous, silly, stupid, unintentionally funny or (in the case of Bassett and Franks) downright depraved. But when it comes to sheer bloody hypocrisy, mealy-mouthedness and cowardice, it’s hard to go past Jim Mora himself. Look how he behaved during today’s pre-show segment…..
NOELLE McCARTHY: John Kerry says there is definite proof because there are chemical residues in the hair and clothing of the victims, but that’s not good enough for Russia and China!
JIM MORA: People are asking how is it so different from killing entire wedding parties with drone strikes.
NOELLE McCARTHY: Hmmmm.
STEVE McCABE: Personally I can’t see why chemical weapons are so much worse than those other weapons.
MORA: [mocking tone] Well it’s a RED LINE that was crossed!
STEVE McCABE: It’s a pity the United States did not draw a red line in Vietnam.
A couple of seconds of awkward silence…..
MORA: You mean with Agent Orange?
Further awkward silence….
NOELLE McCARTHY: Hmmmm.
MORA: A couple of e-mailers have said what about when Saddam gassed the Kurds in 1988?
STEVE McCABE: That was back when Saddam was still our mate. So it was okay.
Brief, very tense silence….
MORA: [sighing] YOU said that.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
More Depravity on Radio NZ: On the Radio NZ sports news at 5:30 p.m., Stephen Hewson read out an item about a St. Kilda footballer setting fire to a dwarf entertainer at a “Mad Monday” booze-up. The item included a voice grab of the dwarf, known as “Mr. Big”, describing the footballer’s actions as “just criminal.” At the end of the item, Hewson snickered, snorted and guffawed and said “Back to you Mary”.
i think mccabe might get dropped from the panel-guest-list for that saddam-one..(tho’ it is hardly a controversial observation..nor was the agent orange one..)
..and aside from all the war-mongering lies/pieties from america..
..the hypocrisies are fucken eyewatering..
..america poisoned whole fucken countries..
..and either themselves or thru their sattelite-states (like nz) america continues to rain death down on innocent-civilians worldwide..
..they and their mercenary-states/acolytes are the war-criminals of our times..
..phillip ure..
.re pike river..
i am as anti-pretty much everything this govt does..
..and there is no difference here..
..for the life of me..!..i can understand the emotions involved here..
..but this is bloody madness..!..$7.2 million pissed up against the wall..and for what..?
..were the body recoveries guaranteed..?..maybe..maybe..
..but when they aren’t..?
..f.f.s..!
..why not use that money to form a trust for the children of those killed..?
..i mean..surely this is what their dead parents would want..?
..to set their children up for education/w.h.y. costs taken care of..
..to possibly set them up for life..
..rather than this exercise in futility..?
phillip ure..
@ phillip Ure …even better set up the kids with the $7.2 million trust ….and bring the bodies out…..using unwanted Kapiti Coast Motorway kitty money…..ie ditch the Motorway and bring the bodies out
Key wants nothing to do with The Marshall Islands nuclear testing debacle but is trigger happy with North Korea and Syria.
The muppet is just a puppet!