Open mike 03/10/2014

Written By: notices and features - Date published: 6:45 am, October 3rd, 2014 - 156 comments
Categories: open mike - Tags:

openmike Open mike is your post.

For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose.

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

Step up to the mike …

156 comments on “Open mike 03/10/2014 ”

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music4menz 1

3 October 2014 at 8:01 am

First post for me on The Standard, but am surprised that Tim Barnett has been able to censor what is and what isn’t posted on this site. Is this an indication of what we are going to see in the future? Not sure that I am comfortable with such suppression of free speech.
- Zorr 1.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 8:34 am
  
  How is it suppression of free speech?
  
  He probably asked nicely and lprent responded by respecting the request. Sounds pretty reasonable all round to me.
- mickysavage 1.2
  
  3 October 2014 at 8:36 am
  
  It was a polite request and lprent decided to take it down. There was no censorship involved.
  - Cancerman 1.2.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 8:40 am
    
    And everyone complains Slater/Farrer are puppets of the National Party. Just more effective puppets it seems.
    - boldsirbrian 1.2.1.1
      
      3 October 2014 at 8:52 am
      
      @ Cancerman (1.2.1)
      
      The concern with Slater and Farrar was that they were working in a clandestine way, receiving privileged information, probably often illegally, attacking other people and politicians.
      
      What the Standard has done is in no way comparable. A request was made to remove information. Lprent has clearly (very clearly) detailed both that request, and his acceptance. If others want to be titillated by a regretted action that has been apologised for, then they are free to use Google or Slater and Farrar.
      
      It’s not really a case of puppets. Those trying to seize the action as yet another example of “Gotcha” politics, are better described as muppets.
      - mickysavage 1.2.1.1.1
        
        3 October 2014 at 8:54 am
        
        Agreed. Strange to equate the unpublishing of a post with the smearing of innocent people using beehive sourced information.
        
        Cancerman 1.2.1.1.1.1
        
        3 October 2014 at 8:58 am
        
        Well the action quite clearly shows influence by the Labour Party over this blog that can not be denied. So who to say that information isn’t past and attacks aren’t made. We just take your word for it I assume?
        
        One Anonymous Bloke …
        
        3 October 2014 at 9:07 am
        
        His word, and the result of the official investigations that are no doubt warranted and you’ll be presenting evidence to. No? No police complaint? Nothing for the SFO to worry about?
        
        Careful, comrades, Beverley Wakem’s about to kick the door down.
        
        Tom Jackson …
        
        3 October 2014 at 10:36 am
        
        If we asked you to stop being an asshole, and you agreed because you thought it was a reasonable request, would that be censorship or influence?
        
        lprent appears to have decided that Barnett made a reasonable request. His autonomy and the autonomy of this blog is in no way compromised by that.
        
        adam …
        
        4 October 2014 at 12:24 am
        
        So being civil and responding positively to a request Cancerman now means that the standard is a labour party blog and involved in dirty politics?
        
        Do you read Cancerman, can you read? I mean what’s my politics – ask any labour person my position?
        
        Have you read anyone else here and their opinions – Oh lets say Karol or Phillip Ure.
        
        How about Iprent himself? Labour party hack you think?
        
        Odd, what an odd comment you have made cancerman – it seem to me to reek of desperation. Of an individual who does not like or struggles with polite or civilised society. Or you’re a person who is feeling a little gun shy about voting for a government actively involved in the perversion of politics, morality and the decent society.
        
        How can it be that a polite request, made to a reasonably fair minded individual, is somehow turned into a grand conspiracy?
        
        Is politeness, now nothing more than something else the right can attack the left on?
    - One Anonymous Bloke 1.2.1.2
      
      3 October 2014 at 9:03 am
      
      Yes, that’s what everyone complains about, isn’t it. No? What’s that you say? In Greymouth?
      
      Now I remember, it isn’t that the National Party has puppets, it’s the things it uses them for that are currently under investigation by at least three independent agencies including the SIS, Ombudsman and Police.
      
      On balance, I think putting the post up in the first place was a mistake: it’s easy to get caught up in the moment, do we really want politicians families to be fair game?
      
      Politics being war by other means I think it’s worth recalling how we treat soldiers who shoot civilians.
      
      PS: yes, yes, I know, we give them medals and a lecture tour, I was speaking hypothetically.
  - Mike 1.2.2
    
    3 October 2014 at 6:43 pm
    
    Polite request…Yeah Right!
- Oh Ho 1.3
  
  3 October 2014 at 9:01 am
  
  You need to remember that Labour was led into the last election by a Statesman. The type of message that was censored is not befitting for a Statesman led party. Please understand that censorship is for your own good
- One Anonymous Bloke 1.4
  
  3 October 2014 at 9:25 am
  
  Music4menz, censorship is when an official agency rules that the publication of certain material is illegal.
  
  No such edict is in force or even enforceable, Open Mike being what it is. No information is suppressed, being in the public domain elsewhere.
  
  In any case, speech at The Standard isn’t “free” – it costs money to host the site and we inhabitants are subject to its rules and our modern Robespierre, Lprent.
  - alwyn 1.4.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 10:25 am
    
    You do remember what happened to Robespierre don’t you?
    Presided over the Reign of Terror and was then deposed and guillotined.
    Surely there is a better comparison? I see him as Christopher Robin, presiding over the residents of the Hundred Acre Wood.
    - Puckish Rogue 1.4.1.1
      
      3 October 2014 at 4:06 pm
      
      I see him more as Kermit the frog presiding over a bunch of …think I’ll leave that bit out, not sure what his sense of humour is like at the moment 🙂
- Murray Olsen 1.5
  
  4 October 2014 at 12:05 am
  
  Where have all the Kactus Kate posts on Whalespew gone? Who censored them and suppressed her free speech?
phillip ure 2

3 October 2014 at 8:23 am

“..If You Stop Eating Beef – But Still Eat a Lot of Dairy – You Won’t Help Climate Change..

..A new study may have you rethinking your eating habits..”

(cont..)

http://www.alternet.org/food/eating-less-meat-more-dairy-climate-change
- The Lone Haranguer 2.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 9:55 am
  
  ..A new study may have you rethinking your eating habits..”
  
  Or not 🙂
  
  Phillip, I cant see that happening at my house anytime in the near or even long distant future.
  
  Im still trying to reconcile the local YMCA gym advertising how bad plastic water bottles are, while they have large vending machines full of the stuff in the front foyer.
  
  And Im not sure if me driving to the gym each day is kosher either. 🙂
  - phillip ure 2.1.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 3:52 pm
    
    @ tlh..
    
    i crack up at the auto-eroticists who drive their bike-laden s.u.v.’s to ponsonby..
    
    ..park up..unload their expensive-toys..
    
    and make their lycra-clad way up and down ‘p’-road…
- weka 2.2
  
  3 October 2014 at 9:56 am
  
  Likewise, eating industrial grains and beans courtesy of Monsanto doesn’t help with AGW either.
  
  It’s not what you eat, it’s how it’s grown that makes the difference.
  - cricko 2.2.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 12:02 pm
    
    Get with the programme weka.
    
    AGW was dropped ages ago, it’s, “climate change” these days.
    
    That’s because the globe is not warming and anyone who has heard of stuff
    like, say, the ice ages for e.g. cannot deny that the climate does change.
    
    People are not sucked into AGW any more.
    Much easier to spook the sheeple with just ‘climate change.’
    
    Do you recall Miss Clark scoffing accross the parliament at the, “Climate change
    deniers.”
    
    This is just as effective in shutting down your opponents as labelling them racists or homophobes and so on.
    - lprent 2.2.1.1
      
      3 October 2014 at 1:01 pm
      
      You have just reminded me that I need to start writing some more posts on climate change. In particular the probable time line and effects of the rapid melting of the WAIS that the drilling over the last few years revealed.
      
      Thank you… Your ignorant stupidity was inspiring
      - karol 2.2.1.1.1
        
        3 October 2014 at 4:28 pm
        
        On climate change: I saw this on Al Jazeera this morning. Thousands of walrus’s corwding on to the shore on Alaska’s coast. usually they seek ice covered places to go ashore, but that is becoming harder for them to find.
        
        The Guardian report on it:
        
        Pacific walrus that can’t find sea ice for resting in Arctic waters are coming ashore in record numbers on a beach in north-west Alaska.
        
        An estimated 35,000 walrus were photographed on Saturday about five miles north of Point Lay, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
        […]
        In recent years, sea ice has receded north beyond shallow continental shelf waters and into Arctic Ocean water, where depths exceed two miles and walrus cannot dive to the bottom.
        
        The World Wildlife Fund said walrus had also been gathering in large groups on the Russian side of the Chukchi Sea.
        
        “It’s another remarkable sign of the dramatic environmental conditions changing as the result of sea ice loss,” said Margaret Williams, managing director of the group’s Arctic program.
        
        “The walruses are telling us what the polar bears have told us and what many indigenous people have told us in the high Arctic, and that is that the Arctic environment is changing extremely rapidly and it is time for the rest of the world to take notice and also to take action to address the root causes of climate change.”
      - cricko 2.2.1.1.2
        
        3 October 2014 at 4:53 pm
        
        Iprent…,
        
        I guess from your post above that you dissagree with me about AGW and climate change.
        
        Thats fine, but why do you need attack me personally ?
        
        Do you find that tactic lends some weight to your opinion ?
        
        Use of childish invective like calling me ignorant and stupid reveals more about your character than anything else.
        
        McFlock 2.2.1.1.2.1
        
        3 October 2014 at 4:58 pm
        
        When someone is insensible to logic, one might as well call them the moron that they are.
        
        It won’t change their opinions or undeserved sense of mental adequacy, but it can be fun.
        
        dv 2.2.1.1.2.2
        
        3 October 2014 at 5:02 pm
        
        I thought Lpent was gentle with you crick
        
        cricko …
        
        3 October 2014 at 5:33 pm
        
        Jeez, looks like I’ve innocently upset a few very thin skins here.
        
        Why do these types personally attack everyone they dissagree with and
        call them names. (Kind of childish way to discuss an issue isn’t it?)
        
        Perhaps any one of you could explain the difference between AGW and
        climate change ?
        
        That is a simple question.
        
        Now I would not call ‘McFlock’, ‘dv’, or even ‘Iprent’ ignorant or stupid so let
        us see if any one of them could prove it and answer that one simple
        question.
        
        By the way. I would have no difficulty to explain the difference and will do
        so for you if none of you are capable.
        
        dv …
        
        3 October 2014 at 5:42 pm
        
        ‘Much easier to spook the sheeple with just ‘climate change.’
        
        ‘This is just as effective in shutting down your opponents as labelling them racists or homophobes and so on.
        
        OH I am sorry those comments were meant as intelligent discussion about a serous issue.
        
        McFlock …
        
        3 October 2014 at 6:12 pm
        
        The fact that you are asking a question to which you claim to already know the answer demonstrates that you are not interested in a genuine discussion.
        
        So I could talk about how AGW is a type of CC, but really you don’t give a shit. Because you’re a moron.
        
        BTW, I don’t personally attack everyone I disagree with. Just fucking morons whose egos write cheques that their braincell can’t cash.
        
        cricko …
        
        3 October 2014 at 6:59 pm
        
        Hi McFlock,
        
        You are right, I do know the answer to that question.
        
        The reason that I asked it was to see if you or dv or Iprent knew the
        answer.
        
        So, according to you, I don’t give a shit, I’m a fucking moron, and a bit of extra abuse regarding my ego and braincell thrown in for extra emphasis.
        
        Charming, You seem to be a real prince.
        
        PS. I’ve never ever personally abused anyone on this blog.
        I did suggest to weka that the term anthropogenic global warming had
        been replaced by climate change and got abused by you and abused and threatened by Iprent for my trouble.
        
        Can any of you answer the question or not ?
        
        Draco T Bastard …
        
        3 October 2014 at 7:35 pm
        
        You are right, I do know the answer to that question.
        
        No you don’t. That’s obvious from ignorant comments and I’m not going to bother to try and enlighten you as it’s obvious that you’ll continue denying reality because it goes against your beliefs.
        
        McFlock …
        
        3 October 2014 at 9:39 pm
        
        I never said you knew the answer to your question.
        
        If you think treating everybody like fucking morons (by making idiot statements and wanking with passive-aggressive questions that you believe you know the answer to) gives you the moral or intellectual advantage over someone honest enough to point out precisely why you are a fucking idiot and which specific comments you wrote demonstrate that you are patently uninterested in good-faith discussion of an issue, then your compass is broken.
        
        lprent …
        
        3 October 2014 at 9:49 pm
        
        Perhaps any one of you could explain the difference between AGW and
        climate change ?
        
        If you want an answer to simple questions, then why don’t you try wikipedia.
        
        Start here AGW
        
        What you should be looking at is timescales. Most background climate change is done on long time scales.
        
        For instance with the houndreds of millions of years ofcontinental drift of Antarctica into the southern polar region from the Cretaceous to the Quaternary that lead to the formation of the southern polar icecap and the circumAntarticia ocean and atmospheric currents that keep it as a fridge for the globe. Or the Milankovitch orbital cycles that operate over 10s-100s or thousands of years and which appear to be closely related to Quarternary glaciation cycles.
        
        But these are all pretty long cycles. There are shorter climate change events related to plume events from the earths radioactive core causing larger sustained volcanic events (like the Deccan traps).
        
        Similarly short unsustained volcanic events around subduction zones causing ash triggered climate changes, which rarely persist for more than teeny numbers of years – typically 3-4 years.
        
        Of the various very short-term (decades) and long term (hundreds of millions of years) solar cycles.
        
        But AGW refers to climate change that is both short-term and sustained which is highly abnormal in the geological record and typically associated with large diebacks in the biotic parts of the climate system (large meteorite impacts mostly).
        
        For instance the slow cooling of the northern hemisphere in the initial industrial era due to dust (approx 1850-1950) that cause regional effects.
        
        But in less than 150 years we have seen some marked changes in the whole earth’s heat balance that are on the scale of the interglacial changes (they’re warming the entire earth’s oceans) but are happening in a fraction of the usual geological process times. These are (>95% confidence) attributed to changes in the composition of the earth’s atmosphere with the human introduction of greenhouse gases.
        
        So having given you this extremely basic primer for a moron, could you please look down the links and get your useless brain aware of geological timescales. Then it might be worth training you to up to primary school level.
        
        cricko …
        
        3 October 2014 at 10:39 pm
        
        Now, far be it from me to resort to the same level of nasty personal abuse and threats that i have copped from Iprent and others on this site today so…
        
        excuse me if I ask……
        
        Did Tim Barnet OK your 9.49 effort yet Iprent ?
        
        You may have to withdraw it if Tim doesn’t like it.
        
        You still can’t resist calling me a ‘moron’ and referring to my ‘useless brain’
        
        You just can’t help yourself can you.
        
        Quite sad.
        
        McFlock …
        
        3 October 2014 at 10:59 pm
        
        What’s sad is that you keep coming back to make moronic statements and snide innuendo.
        
        weka …
        
        3 October 2014 at 11:14 pm
        
        Cricko: Thats fine, but why do you need attack me personally ? and PS. I’ve never ever personally abused anyone on this blog.
        
        Cricko’s subsequent personal attacks on others:
        
        Thinned skinned
        
        Childish
        
        Sad
        
        Beholden to a Labour party puppet master
        
        etc.
        
        cricko …
        
        4 October 2014 at 12:01 am
        
        I gotta go,
        G’nite all.
        I leave it to all readers of the above to make up their own minds.
        
        PS I do give Iprent a tick for not banning me forever from this site in spite of his threat.
        Onya Iprent 4 that.
        
        Just because he is not able to debate the issue without resorting to personal invective does not mean that he may not have a cogent point. Duh! What !
        
        Thing is, based on the above exchanges…….
        What is his point ?
        The question was always quite simple.
        He will be seeking wise counsel from Tim Barnet for some guidence.
        
        We await a decision from Tim.
        
        infused …
        
        4 October 2014 at 4:00 am
        
        We’re not the ones being muzzled by Labour. Good being their lapdog eh? Sure your brain can get around that.
        
        lprent 2.2.1.1.2.3
        
        3 October 2014 at 5:12 pm
        
        Nope it just expresses what I think about you. It was quite pointed abuse
        
        That you are quite stupid and and obviously quite ignorant on earth sciences is to me perfectly obvious. No more and no less.
        
        I even thanked you for reminding me that I have a role in helping to educate those unfortunates who don’t understand the science. When I read your comment I could the weight of unfulfilled duty from my earth science degree calling to me to clear the weight of your ignorance.
        
        BTW: I’d suggest you read the policy on the site about what is permissible and expected before I get around to doing a moderating sweep. My moderating personality tends to get irritated about people telling other people how they should behave on this site. That is the moderators job.
        
        cricko …
        
        3 October 2014 at 9:30 pm
        
        Hi Draco T Bastard, hope you are having a nice evening.
        
        So, you too jump on the personal abuse wagon and accuse me of ignorance.
        
        And, in your mind I am denying reality . How so ?
        
        Are all the correspondents on this site incapable of discussion ?
        
        I suggested that the term AGW had been superseeded by the term climate change.
        Is that wrong ?
        
        Look at the vituperate reaction that has provoked on this blogsite.
        It’s staggering.
        
        You join in with glee and tell me what I think and that you wont bother to reply to what you think I think. Jeez.
        So why post anything ?
        Why waste your time.
        
        Do you know the answer to the question ?
        
        Are you able to address the question without resorting to childish personal abuse simply because I had the temerity to pose it ?
        
        Here is your chance to show you have something about you.
        
        You have the Open mike. Go for it.
        
        lprent …
        
        3 October 2014 at 9:54 pm
        
        That is because we have seen far too many idiots like yourself coming through who haven’t bothered to examine the evidence. Instead you seem to think that your close examination of your pubic hairs whilst wanking is as important as being less self-indulgent and bothering to learn enough to make intelligent conversation.
        
        Are you getting the point yet? We have heard all this before from other morons. You appear to be both stupid and ignorant. It simply isn’t worth the effort of explaining how and why you are.
        
        Please check out my primer that I carefully wrote and linked for you. Then ask some intelligent questions rather than sending the blood to the wrong organ.
        
        cricko …
        
        4 October 2014 at 12:24 am
        
        One last observation.
        
        Read your risible effort @ 9,54 again.
        
        You cite.
        
        “idiots like you”
        “other morons”
        “examinine your pubic hairs” and
        “wanking”
        “You appear stupid and ignorant”
        ” It simply is not worth the effort explaining”
        
        and yet you can’t help explaining.
        
        Then you call for “intelligent questions”
        
        Just silly.
        
        Maybe a huge intellect like, say, Drako T Bastard
        can explain your point for you.
        
        Go Drako………………eh!
        
        McFlock …
        
        4 October 2014 at 12:41 am
        
        You cite.
        
        [proceeds to list half a dozen examples of personal opinion, not a single example of citation to be seen]
        
        I love it when idiots try to fake intelligence by using words bigger than they are. And then accuse others of being silly.
        
        cricko …
        
        4 October 2014 at 12:54 am
        
        Who needs Drako when you have McFlock ?
        
        See 12.41 am
        
        Gee, McFlock great post, you can really sting. Not.
        
        What was that old saying about comming unarmed to a battle of wits ?
        
        I had great fun tonight,
        hope you did too.
        (and guess what. I did not need to resort to personal invective once to do you like a dogs dinner.)
        
        Calling names….call me an idiot….that the best you have ?
        That your argument ?
        
        Pathetic.
        
        McFlock …
        
        4 October 2014 at 1:00 am
        
        The best I have? Nah.
        But the unadorned truth is sufficient.
        
        Btw, you might want to avoid pwned statements. Even if they are performance-art tributes to the great Surrealists.
  - phillip ure 2.2.2
    
    3 October 2014 at 1:59 pm
    
    “..It’s not what you eat, it’s how it’s grown that makes the difference..”
    
    bullshit..!..complete and utter self-defending/justifying bullshit..
    
    ..did you even read the link..?
    
    ..another ‘green’ totally relaxed about both animal-exploitation/cruelty..
    
    ..and the burning of the planet..
    
    ..just so they can chew on animal-flesh and/or bye-products…
    
    ..can’t interfere with that..!
    
    ..their ‘green’ doesn’t go quite as far as that..
    
    ..i wonder just how..in their own minds..
    
    ..they can consider themselves ‘green’ in any way..
    
    ..animal-eating-green:..the walking-oxymoron..
Saarbo 3

3 October 2014 at 8:33 am

I was listening to the Kathryn Ryan interview with Robbie Deans yesterday, Ive always been a Dean’s fan since the 80’s when he competed with Alan Hewson (who couldn’t tackle to save himself).

Deans reckoned that the critics affect the family/partners the hardest because they have no control, which brought me back to Karen Price’s enlightening tweets on the internal workings of the Labour Party.

But is David Cunliffe the Robbie Deans of NZ politics. Steve Tew (ABD perhaps) is to Robbie Deans what the ABC’s are to David Cunliffe.

Just a thought.
Not a PS Staffer 4

3 October 2014 at 8:40 am

Naughty Colonial Viper!
Upsetting Clare Curran! Butter wouldn’t melt on her mouth.
http://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/318024/curran-alleges-dirty-politics#comment-63063

Will Tim Barnett haul her in for a bollicking for washing clean linen in public?
This abuse of Twitter by the leading light of Robertson’s team will bring the party into disrepute.
- weka 4.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 10:05 am
  
  Good to see someone standing up and doing something, thanks CV.
  
  ”This is dirty tricks and dirty politics in Dunedin South,” she told the Otago Daily Times this week.
  
  Ok, so now ‘dirty politics’ is any time a political opponent opposes you in ways you disapprove of? Thanks Clare, we really needed a career politician on the left to render the concept of Dirty Politics that much less relevant 🙄
  - Puckish Rogue 4.1.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 10:10 am
    
    Not wanting to stae the obvious but its things like this that reinforce the notion that Labour are nowhere near ready to lead the country
    
    You’d think an MP would realise that
  - Chooky 4.1.2
    
    3 October 2014 at 2:19 pm
    
    +100 weka
  - Murray Olsen 4.1.3
    
    4 October 2014 at 12:49 am
    
    Every time I have seen anything from Curran, she has been shooting Labour in the foot. When we actually have an investigative journalist who actually has uncovered real dirty politics, and NAct has tried to change the definition away from their organised filth, why is a Labour MP giving credibility to the NAct story?
    
    Go get her CV. Time for a team that cares about more than their seats in parliament.
- Anne 4.2
  
  3 October 2014 at 10:28 am
  
  Aha… thanks NaPSS. Guyon Espinor mentioned it this morning.
  
  Clare Curran has yet another “moaning, whining, public tanty”.
  
  There’s a clear pattern developing here. The moaners and attackers bellowing to the media are former ABCers. What does it mean? Is someone coordinating them, or are they merely copying the ‘Dirty Politics’ meme – that is, accuse those who you attack… of doing the attacking!
  - karol 4.2.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 10:31 am
    
    Giving it back double.
  - Bill Drees 4.2.2
    
    3 October 2014 at 10:54 am
    
    We should all write to the Gen Sec asking that she gets some form of “counselling”. Perhaps she should be asked to pay Tat’s Labour membership fees for the next ten years?
- Bill 4.3
  
  3 October 2014 at 10:31 am
  
  As a well intentioned Labour Party member with a history of effective community activism…yup…get in touch and count me as ‘in’ Tat. Cheers.
  - left for dead 4.3.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 11:01 am
    
    Ditto.
    - Colonial Viper 4.3.1.1
      
      3 October 2014 at 1:26 pm
      
      Will do.
      - Roflcopter 4.3.1.1.1
        
        3 October 2014 at 2:17 pm
        
        Good luck CV, always a struggle swimming against the Curran
      - Not a PS Staffer 4.3.1.1.2
        
        3 October 2014 at 2:59 pm
        
        Poor Clare is getting a trouncing on-line at the OTD (Otago Daily times).
        http://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/318024/curran-alleges-dirty-politics#comment-63063
        
        I wonder if she is calling on the Editor of the OTD to practice the same type of leadership that she exercised when in control (with Grant R) of the Red Alert?
        
        There is a very sexy picture of Tat there also. A real vote catching photo!
        
        greywarbler 4.3.1.1.2.1
        
        3 October 2014 at 3:12 pm
        
        @ Not a PS Staffer
        That’s interesting. Oh good new people joining up to the Party. Ooh the Party in Dunedin didn’t know if they really wanted them. Joining up like that theywould presumably have also been able to vote for the leader. Tat Loo definitely has a good head for strategy and policy. Not one to stay sitting on the whoopee cushion, though he might play a trick with it on one of the other sitting MPs.
travellerev 5

3 October 2014 at 9:00 am

I hope that some of you will enjoy this awesome lecture from John Perkins about the secret history of American Empire. John Perkins wrote “Confessions of an economic hitman” and in this lecture given at the Marlboro College in 2009 he tells his student audience about the history of the World Bank and the IMF and how they perform their “Duties”. It is part of my series about the Washington consensus and how John Key and ex-World Bank second in command Graeme Wheeler fit into the system and also how it connects with the policies put into place here in New Zealand.

The Washington Consensus, A Backgrounder And Yes, It Is Being Implemented In New Zealand Right Now http://wp.me/p638n-4w8
- thatguynz 5.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 10:57 am
  
  +1 Ev
boldsirbrian 6

3 October 2014 at 9:09 am

Lets be honest. The Robertson and Cunliffe debate is simply personality politics. Call it for what it is, and vote accordingly.

It’s really nothing to do with “left” and “centrist” and “core values” and “neo-liberal” and “traitorous”. And I can confidently assert this, because the debate is all about these labels and not about policy substance.
- anker 6.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 9:22 am
  
  6@ boldsirbrian………….
  
  I am not sure there is anything simple about the situation Labour is currently finding itself in in terms of Labour’s caucus.
  
  Likely there is a component of “personality politics.
  
  What I have been reminded of is how powerful the phenomena of “group think” is. How people feel uncomfortable when they don’t concur with the dominant opinion that a group appears to hold.
  
  And given the issues that some in the Labour caucus are so vocal about I can’t help but wonder if this isn’t what is going on around DC.
  
  A personal anecdote to illustrate. Some twenty years ago or so I was the leader of a smallish team in a work place of 30. I had to select a small group of colleagues to attend a conference. We travelled to the conference and all bar one of them bunked off virtually for the whole event. I expressed my displeasure to one on the plane going home. When I next went into work (I was part time) out of the staff of 30 (ish) only two people spoke to me.
  
  They then sabotage everything I tried to do. It was a very unpleasant experience. Fortunately I left and when on to a much, much better job and career wise I have never looked back.
  
  I hope people on this site will forgive me for a personal anecdote, but I can’t help beut wonder (and it is only speculation) that a similar thing hasn’t happened to DC.
  - boldsirbrian 6.1.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 9:43 am
    
    .
    @anker (6.1)
    
    I am not sure there is anything simple about the situation Labour is currently finding itself in in terms of Labour’s caucus.
    
    and ……. What I have been reminded of is how powerful the phenomena of “group think” is
    
    Yes. Great post; Relevant anecdote
    
    However, looking at the above quotes together ………
    
    Labour Caucus. It’s easy to throw stones there
    Bloggers at the Standard. It’s harder to self reflect here
    - weka 6.1.1.1
      
      3 October 2014 at 10:07 am
      
      “It’s really nothing to do with “left” and “centrist” and “core values” and “neo-liberal” and “traitorous”. And I can confidently assert this, because the debate is all about these labels and not about policy substance.”
      
      Do you mean the debate here? Because there was been lots around left vs neoliberal. Or do you mean between DC and GR?
      
      It’s unfortunate that most of the MSM seem focussed on the invidivuals rather than what this represents in terms of left and neoliberal.
      
      I guess the time is coming for DC to stand up and declare where he really intends to head (if he wins). Second chance won’t become a third one. Make or break time.
- anker 6.2
  
  3 October 2014 at 9:22 am
  
  6@ boldsirbrian………….
  
  I am not sure there is anything simple about the situation Labour is currently finding itself in in terms of Labour’s caucus.
  
  Likely there is a component of “personality politics.
  
  What I have been reminded of is how powerful the phenomena of “group think” is. How people feel uncomfortable when they don’t concur with the dominant opinion that a group appears to hold.
  
  And given the issues that some in the Labour caucus are so vocal about I can’t help but wonder if this isn’t what is going on around DC.
  
  A personal anecdote to illustrate. Some twenty years ago or so I was the leader of a smallish team in a work place of 30. I had to select a small group of colleagues to attend a conference. We travelled to the conference and all bar one of them bunked off virtually for the whole event. I expressed my displeasure to one on the plane going home. When I next went into work (I was part time) out of the staff of 30 (ish) only two people spoke to me.
  
  They then sabotaged everything I tried to do. It was a very unpleasant experience. Fortunately I left and went on to a much, much better job and career wise I have never looked back.
  
  I hope people on this site will forgive me for a personal anecdote, but I can’t help beut wonder (and it is only speculation) that a similar thing hasn’t happened to DC.
  
  I have always been aware of how “group think” operates and I speak up and resist it everytime I get a sniff of it.
  - Jim 6.2.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 10:28 am
    
    I think that most are buying into a presidential like system as promoted by the main stream media. David Cunliffe did in my opinion do a reasonable job during the election campaign, as would have any of the other candidates for labour leadership in the last few years. There does how ever seem to be a disconnect between the labour party hierarchy and the caucus. Before we deal with the more important issues of party structures and personnel, this leadership issue needs to be resolved to get the media to change focus.
    - boldsirbrian 6.2.1.1
      
      3 October 2014 at 11:30 am
      
      @ Jim (6.2.1)
      
      That’s a really good point Jim.
      
      Why do political parties (and I’m talking all of them here) buy into the “Presidential” system that suits the MSM?
      
      For some parties there is no alternative (WinstonFirst, DunneFirst, ActFirst and ConservyLoons). Another Party (DirtyJohn) has one orator who outshines everybody else in the caucus, and they gain advantage in keeping the less able away from public scrutiny.
      
      But Labour , could, if it so chose, set it’s own path during an election. Refuse to make the Leader the sole spokesperson. Refuse to participate in Leader’s debates, if these are the only Air time available (They actually told us nothing, apart from the fact that Cunliffe is a very good debater, and Key is lovable or hateable depending on your political views.)
      
      Bring out, and emphasise the team. Less convenient for MSM, but make that their problem. Bring out the Shadow Minister of Health to talk health issues, Education to talk Education issues, and the Finance spokesperson to provide the “gotcha” details on Fringe Benefit Tax. Show the Leader of the Party as exactly that …..somebody who can lead a competent team. Rather than someone simply selected as the best debater.
      
      I suggest that this may work well for either Cunliffe or Robertson, or actually any other leader.
      
      It’s an idea anyway?
- phillip ure 6.3
  
  3 October 2014 at 9:54 am
  
  you are wrong brave-brian..
  
  ..it is entirely about the battle for the direction of the labour party..
  
  ..does it..under robertson..continue to cling to the neo-liberal policies of the last 30 yrs..
  
  ..or does it..under cunnliffe..
  
  ..embrace progressive-polices focusing on poverty-busting etc..
  
  ..the personality stuff is just a distraction..
  
  ..and the right/corporate-media know what a crossroads this is..
  
  ..(hence their vicious-firestorm of a hate-campaign against cunnlife..
  
  ..they are terrified of the idea of a real labour party..
  
  ..one shed of its’ neo-liberal aberrations..)
  
  ..and they also know what they want..
  
  ..and that is robertson..and neo-lib..
  
  ..and just that fact should be enough to disqualify robertson..
  
  ..(and i have figured out why a joke like nash is there..he is there to make robertson look less neo-lib than he is..)
  - boldsirbrian 6.3.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 11:12 am
    
    .
    @ phillip ure (6.3)
    
    Thank you for your post, for you provide an excellent example of what the debate is unfortunately about. And which leaves me to conclude it’s not really of substance and more about the personalities of the contenders.
    
    I’ll look further into your statements. Full of emotion, but basically a lot of hot air. I assume, suspect, you’ve got some ideas of substance lurking underneath, but until Labour activists start articulating what those are, instead of throwing around labels, the movement is doomed to not achieve what is possible.
    
    ~~~~
    
    ..it is entirely about the battle for the direction of the labour party.. ..does it..under robertson..continue to cling to the neo-liberal policies of the last 30 yrs..
    ..or does it..under cunnliffe…embrace progressive-polices focusing on poverty-busting etc..
    
    “clinging to” emotive bullshit
    “neo-liberal policies of the last 30 years” meaningless claptrap, needing substance
    “embrace progressive policies” emotive bullshit
    “focussing on poverty-busting” Wow. The nearest we have come to something of substance. But still absolutely no details. No evidence of what your hero has done, or said he will do, that your villain will not also do.
    
    I personally think that inequality and doing something about poverty are issues that are of the highest priority. The very highest. But if anybody is trying to persuade me that one candidate is better than another on the basis of one being good (“embraces progressive”) and not bad (“clinging to neo-liberal”) I’d suggest a course in Sales 101. It’s not that your answer is necessarily wrong. It’s just the justification that is absent. Totally missing in action.
    
    ~~~~
    
    ..the personality stuff is just a distraction…….and the right/corporate-media know what a crossroads this is………(hence their vicious-firestorm of a hate-campaign against cunnlife………they are terrified of the idea of a real labour party……
    ..one shed of its’ neo-liberal aberrations..)………and they also know what they want………and that is robertson..and neo-lib……….and just that fact should be enough to disqualify robertson..
    
    Please just read this again, and again, and again. It’s absolute nonsense. At it’s very best, it’s drivel. It’s easier to say nothing with blank lines. It’s like a TV advertisement for hair shampoo. Trying to convey something?? by repetition. But repetition of a pile of crap, simply makes a bigger pile.
    
    If these are reasons why you have a hero, and the other one is a villain, I suggest you change shampoos. Or preferably work at a shampoo factory for a week, to get the real detail on the ingredients in each shampoo.
    
    ~~~~
    
    ….(and i have figured out why a joke like nash is there..he is there to make robertson look less neo-lib than he is..)
    
    When two people sit around, and have a common understanding of a problem, it’s ok to chew the fat, and say what you think. But all I understand from this statement (and I understand it well) is that you dislike Nash (intently). And that gets us where, precisely? Is this meant to be another argument that your hero should be elected, and your villain not be elected? I don’t think so.
    - anker 6.3.1.1
      
      3 October 2014 at 12:21 pm
      
      Re my earlier comment about group think and the “personality issues”. I think this is (ie. group think) probably a factor, but just one factor.
      
      I think the other issues are, Who will best represent the party? Who is geniune and capable about reversing policies that have hurt so many NZders, particularly Labour constitutiuants? Rogernomics or call it what you will has been so damaging for so many in NZ. My vote will go to someone who I believe has the will, the determination and knowledge to reverse this.
      
      At the leadership campaign meeting I went to last year when the candidates were asked what they would like to be known for, DC that was what he wanted to be known for, i.e reversing Rogernomics.
      - boldsirbrian 6.3.1.1.1
        
        3 October 2014 at 1:22 pm
        
        @anker (6.3.1.1)
        
        Thoughtful comment.
        
        Another significant issue is of course “Who will best achieve election success for the Party?” (Although your “Who will best represent the Party?” possibly covers this.)
        
        My concern is that the leader may represent the party’s objectives very well, but his (or her) personal characteristics may turn voters off. I’m not thinking homosexuality here as much as perceptions of sincerity, drive, arrogance, empathy etc. These are all valid concerns along with the issues that you have raised.
        
        And I appreciate your reference to policies.
        
        A reference to a NZ Herald article, by Dita de Boni, has already been made – Time for Labour to embrace the left
        
        Dita starts off with frustrating references to “progressive” values. (Everybody in the Labour Party probably has a reasonable understanding of the term, in their own heads at least. The label may even mean the same thing to most in the Party, but possibly not. But outside the Party in Voter-land, it probably means little.)
        
        But then Dita immediately redeems herself, and actually starts specifying what progressive means. She picks issues such as “free basic education, a fairer tax system, protecting our ecosystem, better workers and human rights, and a strong health system that does not discriminate between rich and poor”
        
        These are the things that will appeal to potential voters. They are not detailed policies, but they are a clear vision… She promotes a path: “In following the path of defining a set of core values and sticking with them even when the prevailing conservative chorus is decrying them” She gives good specific advice on how to work with other parties who have specific policies in common.
        
        Good stuff. Worth reading the full article.
        
        phillip ure 6.3.1.1.1.1
        
        3 October 2014 at 2:21 pm
        
        shit..!..bold-brian..
        
        ..apologies for not presenting a full poverty-busting poverty-program..
        
        ..but hey..!..a financial transaction tax on the banksters wd be a good start..
        
        ..to get that poverty-busting (’emotive’ i know..but there you go..!..)..to get that underway..
        
        …heard of that..?
        
        ..can i suggest you google ‘neo-liberal-‘…?..(that may help enlighten you there..)
        
        ..’shampoo-references pass me by..
        
        ..i am part of the shampoo-free movement..
        
        ..haven’t piled that muck on my hair for years..
        
        (and yes..thick/luxuriant/shiny enough to make dunne turn green with envy..)
        
        ..and seeing as you ask..
        
        ..and aide from nash being such good buddy/buddies with the denizens of the far-right..as in slater/lusk etc..
        
        ..(you quite relaxed about that..?..)
        
        ..there is the small fact that he is currently walking around trying to peddle the bullshit that he won the seat of napier because of his all-round skills..
        
        ..(going so fucken far as to offer to show other labour candidates ‘how’..(!)..)
        
        ..whereas the facts of the matter are that nash got no more votes in ’14 than he did in ’11..
        
        ..and the only reason he won napier..
        
        ..is because garth mcvicar stood for the conservatives..
        
        ..and hived over 4,500 votes from the national candidate..
        
        ..had he not done that..nash wd have lost..
        
        ..so yes..that he seems to be basing everything ‘good’ about him on what is a pile of stinking/steaming bullshit..
        
        ..i will yell out alarms about him..
        
        ..and point out what a joke he is..
        
        boldsirbrian …
        
        3 October 2014 at 3:28 pm
        
        @ phillip ure (6.3.1.1.1.1)
        
        shit..!..bold-brian..
        
        Would Mr. Botany (B.) be more politically correct?
        
        ~~~
        
        ..apologies for not presenting a full poverty-busting poverty-program…..
        ..but hey..!..a financial transaction tax on the banksters wd be a good start..
        ..to get that poverty-busting (‘emotive’ i know..but there you go..!..)..to get that underway..…heard of that..?..
        
        I did not claim that “poverty-busting” was emotive. In fact I singled what you wrote there as the best part of your whole post. Seems like we (may) share a common vision of what we think has to be achieved?
        
        ~~~~
        
        ..and the only reason he (Nash) won napier….is because garth mcvicar stood for the conservatives….and hived over 4,500 votes from the national candidate….had he not done that..nash wd have lost….
        
        Yes.
        
        Cheers,
        Mr. Botany (B.)
yeshe 7

3 October 2014 at 9:16 am

More lies from Key and Joyce around their Convention Centre deal… bet their own blind trusts are filled with Sky City shares … even Herald allows it to seem suspect as a hotel “slips” on to land for convention centre only …

The public purse ripped off by sale of TVNZ land for peanuts below commercial value; lovingly sponsored by Key and Joyce .. now the truth outs .. and it seems Joyce lied in the House as well … ho hum, just another day at the office …

Corrupt crims, all of them.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11335925
Rosie 8

3 October 2014 at 9:18 am

A light at the end of the tunnel?

(Apologies if this has already been discussed) From yesterday’s Gordon Campbell article on Scoop:

“…………the chances of the TPP countries pulling a deal together in the next three years are slim. One chronic reason being, the Obama administration has no authority to conclude this deal even if member countries could agree on the content – which they don’t. The US currently lacks the Trade Promotion Authority for Obama to clinch the terms of the deal.”

http://gordoncampbell.scoop.co.nz/2014/10/01/gordon-campbell-on-the-last-rites-for-the-tpp/

So if the TPP is really on it’s last legs as the article suggests, we do at least have three years grace at best, with our pro TPP government sidelined perhaps?
- Chooky 8.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 10:12 am
  
  yes great news Rosie!…i heard it the other day on the radio i think…and was relieved at the reprieve…but you can never rule them out pulling something out of the hat at any moment when you least expect it
  - boldsirbrian 8.1.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 12:43 pm
    
    @ Chooky (8.1)
    
    I agree. Great news. (with your reservations).
    Almost what I feared most from this Government.
    
    The TPPA almost seemed to be the price “we” are being asked to pay, simply to permit another photo opportunity for Dirty John on the golf course.
- Lanthanide 8.2
  
  3 October 2014 at 10:45 am
  
  It’s been on the rocks for at least the last 2 years. That hasn’t stopped various countries and governments from parroting on that they’re working towards the agreement, though.
  
  Basically it just seems like a waste of taxpayer funds and an excuse to go on overseas trips.
  - Rosie 8.2.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 11:23 am
    
    I have heard such comment previously Lanthanide but was reluctant to focus too much energy on it, for the reason Chooky gives above:
    
    “but you can never rule them out pulling something out of the hat at any moment when you least expect it”.
    
    All those overseas trips you mention had to be justified so perhaps governments put on a brave fake face in an effort to avoid embarrassment. These are the cowboys of the wild new frontier of global corporate control, taking it further than ever before, they’ve got a reputation to protect. Just a thought.
    - Kiwiri 8.2.1.1
      
      3 October 2014 at 12:45 pm
      
      Lots of airpoints and hotel reward points accummulated for those overseas jetsetting negotiations can now be used to take the family on holiday. Nice job if you can get it.
      - travellerev 8.2.1.1.1
        
        3 October 2014 at 1:18 pm
        
        Wow, people really believe it’s off the table? 🙄
        
        Chooky 8.2.1.1.1.1
        
        3 October 2014 at 2:24 pm
        
        so what is their next move in your opinion?…is this just a pretend “off the table”…while they regroup covertly and present us all with a fait accompli ?
        
        Kiwiri 8.2.1.1.1.2
        
        3 October 2014 at 2:25 pm
        
        TPP won’t go away, and the accummulation of airports and hotel reward points won’t end.
        
        TPP will keep coming back, again and again. And it must be opposed again and again. It was being pushed at us as the MAI more than ten years ago. Now, we are battling against the TPP and it won’t stop coming at us more strongly, with another acronym change if that is what it takes to try to dupe people again.
        
        Rosie 8.2.1.1.1.3
        
        3 October 2014 at 3:41 pm
        
        travellerev. There’s really no need for the rolly eyes. Truth is, I don’t really know what to “believe”.
        
        I don’t think anyone can relax until it’s well and truly buried. I think if it does go then as Kiwiri suggests, it’s will come back again and again – just in a different format. I’m sure the global corporate powers have many masks and disguises for their intentions.
Whateva next? 9

3 October 2014 at 9:25 am

People can say what they like, just not under the banner of a Labour supporting site.
Reactionary posts are not supporting Labour, if anything they support National by dividing people……very convenient for National that the left do feel free to have robust debates, when done on Twitter or blogs too easy to misconstrue, escalate by MSM and cause fractures.
For people to suggest this is supression is worrying, almost looking for another battle, rather than focussing on issues that matter?
- boldsirbrian 9.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 10:07 am
  
  @ Whateva next? (9)
  
  If a “Labour Supporting Site” is simply an extension of the official Labour Party site, it becomes simply a propaganda site. That’s fine, but contributions would quickly dry up
  
  Robust debates are, or should be, the life blood of all political parties. The benefits far outweigh the possible concerns that others may misconstrue from such discussions. This is politics after all: Those on the other side of every fence are only too keen to misconstrue.
  
  Ideas are born of robust debate. The strength of this site, that I quickly discovered, is the relative tolerance to such robustness (I’ve been labelled a troll on a couple of occasions here; a badge I’ll wear with pride, as it seems to me the unsupported labelling was more a reflection of the accuser than anything else)
  
  The discussions here have substance …. and a common vision with intelligent disagreement can only be respected.
  
  If you want to reflect on alternatives, have a quick look at the drivel that takes place in the discussions on kiwiblog. Lots and lots of comments, but childish substance. Even Farrar is desperately trying to get more intelligent discussion by promoting extra “assistance” and saying that he will accept guest posts from those who disagree with him. (It will never work for Farrar, unless he actually relinquishes most of his personal power, and adopts a format more similar to the Standard)
  - whateva next? 9.1.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 2:26 pm
    
    “Ideas are born of robust debate” absobloodyluetely, in an environment that seeks to generate growth and meetings of minds, which social media is not, especially in a tribal climate generated and supported by a right wing MSM
    - boldsirbrian 9.1.1.1
      
      3 October 2014 at 2:49 pm
      
      @ whateva next? (9.1.1)
      
      Lots of truth there. But social media is here, and to stay. I envisage that as time goes on, social media will become more mature and effective, as people learn what works best and what doesn’t.
      
      Social media does provide an environment where there is “robust” discussion (One or three of my posts have been very blunt). Far more “robust” than in a face to face meeting would ever generate. I can see both advantages and disadvantages with that. It also allows for the participation of many more people with ideas
      
      I wasn’t too sure about your comment on social media debate being influenced by a right wing MSM. The discussion here is very different than MSM news and opinion, and seems to have formed it’s own style reasonably independently?
philj 10

3 October 2014 at 9:46 am

xox
I used to give credibility to Dr Bryce Edwards blog but he seems to have lost his ‘ balance’ the closer he gets to the MSM. Funny that. Do others at TS feel the same?
- phillip ure 10.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 9:59 am
  
  in my time of observing edwards-the-younger he has said one thing only that made sense..
  
  ..he said that labour policy was national-lite..
  
  ..and that labour need to move more left..
  
  ..most of the time he is a craven apologist for the status quo..
  
  ..and one whose ambition to be a talking-head on media is palpable..
  
  ..it almost throbs…that ambition,.
- Puckish Rogue 10.2
  
  3 October 2014 at 10:08 am
  
  Translation: Hes written something I don’t agree with
- Paul 10.3
  
  3 October 2014 at 10:52 am
  
  Yes he’s changed.
  The job at the Herald has had an effect.
greywarbler 11

3 October 2014 at 10:10 am

On the trail of active businesses keeping the NZ economy going and what sector, there is an Insight on Sunday on Radionz with Wallace Chapman on the thoroughbred industry. I heard a trailer this morning and I think they feel neglected, not taken seriously and they employ 33,000 people. Let’s hear it for the gee gees!
Sunday 5/10 at 8.12 a.m. http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/insight

The heady days when horse racing was king, are gone.
People are discovering new ways to spent their entertainment dollar and the thoroughbred industry is now having to share the gambling pie with others like lotto and the casinos.
Racing, along with greyhounds and trotting, still manages turnover nearing two billion dollars and contributes to about one percent of the country’s gross domestic product, but many in the industry say it is getting harder to make a living.

Radio New Zealand’s Waikato reporter, Andrew McRae talks to all parts of the thoroughbred racing industry from trainers and owners, through to the breeders and jockeys about how it can try to keep pace with its competitors.

I tried to get some stats on employment in dairying but it’s hard to find for a newbie. There are more details from the dairy companies on cows, opportunities finance, yield of milk and money. Simple employment does not rate highly.

Some of the pdfs don’t convert to my old Firefox very well. There are all sorts of symbols in the headings.

Stats NZ is like following a will of the whisp. Every time I got into an area which I think could answer the simple? question of the annual count of employment in the dairy industry. I was directed to some program that would provide it if I pressed this button and spent 10 minutes reading about it.

And of course there is the proviso of how they changed the employment count in 2003 to give a broad brush over all employment presumably.
Until 2003, statistics used full-time equivalent (FTE) persons engaged as the business-size measure. From 2003 onwards, FTE was replaced by employee count (EC). Business demography statistics showing EC are available for 2000 onwards.
I think this means in reality, in use, that they can then count someone doing 1 paid hour per week in employment statistics, but that will require probably an hour’s study on how to use their tables and find definitions.

An interesting statistic from Min for Primary Industries: New Zealand dairy production has risen 77 percent over the past 20 years … Sources: Statistics New Zealand, DairyNZ, Fonterra Co-operative Group, and MPI. … The parties to the Accord agreed to work together to achieve clean healthy …
Puckish Rogue 12

3 October 2014 at 10:36 am

http://www.stuff.co.nz/blogs/opinion/10573887/Left-rendered-irrelevant

– A good, thought-provoking piece
- BM 12.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 10:58 am
  
  I agree with everything he write.
  
  The left is completely out of touch with middle NZ and there’s nothing any party on the left can do to remedy that.
  
  The problems are far too systemic.
  - Puckish Rogue 12.1.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 11:49 am
    
    I suspect the problem has more to do with employment and earnings. When you look at the Labour MPs most of them would struggle to earn 70k a year let alone what an MP makes
    
    So these MPs are making more money then they ever have before so its only natural that they want to protect the money because they know when they leave they won’t have the same power, unfluence or pay packet
    
    I mean would T. Mallard or C. Curran get paid in the private market anything like they’re getting now?
    - BM 12.1.1.1
      
      3 October 2014 at 12:21 pm
      
      I see the main issue with the left is that they’re creating policies that appeal to the party members not the public.
      
      Great if you want to be a niche party, not so good if you want to be a major party.
      
      I agree with you about the labour Mps, which is why they’re so hard to pry off the trough, politics is as good as it gets so they’re not going anywhere without a fight.
      - Kiwiri 12.1.1.1.1
        
        3 October 2014 at 12:32 pm
        
        they’re creating policies that appeal to the party members not the public
        
        hahaha. try again. your framing there is misleading, mischievous as well as malicious.
        
        let’s see what those policies are that appeal to party members not the public? abandoning the call for GST to be removed from fresh fruit and vegetables? increasing the super age?
      - Puckish Rogue 12.1.1.1.2
        
        3 October 2014 at 12:41 pm
        
        I wonder if maybe the answer is to dro the pay down to 70K for MPs and 150K for the PM
        
        Take the money out of it and you’ll get people doing it for and staying in longer for the right reasons…maybe
        
        Kiwiri 12.1.1.1.2.1
        
        3 October 2014 at 2:27 pm
        
        Or give them the kind of National golden parachutes to kamikaze their parliamentary careers.
        
        Puckish Rogue …
        
        3 October 2014 at 2:31 pm
        
        Who in all seriousness would take on on Labours dead wood? Goff maybe but thats about it
    - Murray Olsen 12.1.1.2
      
      4 October 2014 at 1:33 am
      
      How much would Paula Bennett be able to earn? She’s pretty much as useless as Mallard or Curran, as are plenty of other Tories. The only way any of them make heaps is when they’re appointed to bullshit positions as a political reward.
- phillip ure 12.2
  
  3 October 2014 at 2:25 pm
  
  warning..!.it is far-right foamer..du fresne…
Pat O'Dea 13

3 October 2014 at 10:56 am

‘

“Dear Matafele Peinem, we won’t let you down”

Just in

In a victory for local residents opposed to the mine and Auckland Coal Action, The proposed excavation of the Mangatangi coal mine by Glen Coal ltd. just south of the city, at Mangatawhiri has been put on indefinite hold.
- blue leopard 13.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 12:35 pm
  
  Excellent to hear some good news, thanks Pat.
Paul 14

3 October 2014 at 10:57 am

Dita de Boni
‘Time for Labour to embrace the left.

Instead of trying to appeal to ‘middle New Zealand’, the party should proudly stand by progressive values…….
I am convinced that the Labour party of today has the same problem. And the advice from well-wishers and nefarious right-wing commentators alike – to “appeal to middle New Zealanders” – is, I believe, misguided.
The fact of the matter is that “middle New Zealand” currently prefers John Key. They want tax cuts, they want a prime minister they could have a beer with. God alone knows why, but their ideal female politician is Judith Collins, Hekia Parata and Maggie Barry (the “Hyacinth Bucket” model).
And they don’t care that dirty politics seeps out of every pore of the current administration.
So be it. Labour, at present, cannot sway these people and is not in good enough shape to take on the right-wing smear machine. But to my mind, it doesn’t have to – right now. It needs to reclaim and reaffirm that it stands for genuine left-wing values and ignore the critics – critics that are often non-voters, or non-Labour voters, egged on by opponents.’

Read the rest.
A great article.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=466&objectid=11335076
- Tautoko Viper 14.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 12:19 pm
  
  Dita has absolutely nailed it.
- phillip ure 14.2
  
  3 October 2014 at 2:27 pm
  
  @ paul..
  
  ..”Maggie Barry (the “Hyacinth Bucket” model)..”
  
  (heh..!..)
- Murray Olsen 14.3
  
  4 October 2014 at 2:16 am
  
  John Key is the type of person I least like having a beer with. He would insist on being the centre of attention and make puerile wisecracks. He’s the sort of guy who would have been better off not drinking in a public bar when they had heavy glass jugs. Something has changed drastically with middle NZ, and I don’t like it. Some people say that social attitudes have changed for the better, but when you see the Rawshark emails and chats, you realise that for a lot of movers and shakers on the right, this is only lip service.
Pat O'Dea 15

3 October 2014 at 11:05 am

This is what victory looks like

http://aucklandcoalaction.org/
greywarbler 16

3 October 2014 at 1:09 pm

AN ALERT – Lecture coming up 15 October Auckland.
Wednesday 15 October, 6.30pm
Maidment Theatre
Alfred Street
The University of Auckland
The Maidment Bar will open from 5.30pm

The 2014 Bruce Jesson Lecture
Mike Joy – Paradise Squandered; New Zealand’s Environmental Asset Stripping

New Zealand’s lakes, rivers and most of our groundwater are in a critical state. Decades of misguided regulation and a free-for-all on diffuse pollution have encouraged agricultural intensification and driven our increasing reliance on imported feed and fertiliser.
The inevitable consequences have been devastating environmental impacts as well as increasing economic and biosecurity risks.
The solutions are many but require a paradigm shift; a move away from dependence on imported feed and fertiliser to keeping nutrients on farm and adding value to products, and strong leadership to move away from short-term thinking that accepts the massive ecological debt we are running up.

Mike Joy MSc(Hons), PhD in Ecology is a Senior Lecturer in Ecology and Environmental Science at the Ecology Group-Institute of Agriculture and Environment, Massey University, Palmerston North. He has received a number of awards, including the Ecology in Action award from the New Zealand Ecological Society; an Old Blue award from the Royal Forest and Bird protection Society; Environmental New Zealander of the Year from North and South magazine and the Manawatu Evening Standard Person of the Year.
Presented by Politics and International Relations and the Bruce Jesson Foundation
Wednesday 15 October, 6.30pm
Maidment Theatre
Alfred Street
The University of Auckland
The Maidm
- Chooky 16.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 2:27 pm
  
  thanks greywarbler
Te Reo Putake 17

3 October 2014 at 2:28 pm

ACT: another one bites the dust.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/10576531/ACTs-Jamie-Whyte-quits-as-leader
- Puckish Rogue 17.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 2:32 pm
  
  Yep ACT got a poor result and the leader quits and doesn’t try to run again…theres a lesson there somewhere
  - Te Reo Putake 17.1.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 2:40 pm
    
    Cool. In your world, 0.7% and being forced onto welfare is merely a “bad” result.
    - Puckish Rogue 17.1.1.1
      
      3 October 2014 at 2:44 pm
      
      Its better then 10% and no MPs in government (and none in nearly 25 years since being formed)
      - Te Reo Putake 17.1.1.1.1
        
        3 October 2014 at 2:53 pm
        
        Um, 10% gets you 12 or so MP’s. But that’s not going to be an issue for National’s Epsom franchise cum charity outreach program anytime soon 🙂
        
        edit ; I see what you did there! Colour me green with envy at your sly wit.
        
        Puckish Rogue 17.1.1.1.1.1
        
        3 October 2014 at 2:58 pm
        
        Except that ACTs currently in power and has been in power previously whereas the Greens have never been in power, in fact they’re the only party that’ve never had an mp in government
        
        Fact is the Greens are nothing less then a disapointment
- Rosie 17.2
  
  3 October 2014 at 3:55 pm
  
  Wow. Rimmer will now get an extra $155,700 as party leader, seeing as he has taken over. (Based on 2011 figures)
  
  http://www.legislation.govt.nz/regulation/public/2011/0410/latest/DLM4148103.html
  
  Both him and Dunne were reported as being over the $500K mark on Campbell live once all their perks and bonus salaries were added up. Nice work if you can get it. Over a million dollars for one party that polled 0.22% and one that polled 0.7%.
  - Puckish Rogue 17.2.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 4:04 pm
    
    You can get it, you just need enough people to think your party is worth voting for
    - Draco T Bastard 17.2.1.1
      
      3 October 2014 at 4:17 pm
      
      In the case of Act and UF neither party got enough votes because no one thought that they were worth voting for but they still got it.
      - Puckish Rogue 17.2.1.1.1
        
        3 October 2014 at 4:20 pm
        
        I’d say the Greens could learn something from them but I think they prefer to be martyrs rather then try to ackshully get something done for their voters
Puckish Rogue 18

3 October 2014 at 2:47 pm

http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/better-business/10576464/R-D-grants-stupid-taxpayer-subsidies-Sam-Morgan

– Morgan reiterated that profitable companies did not need grants, and if a company was not profitable, it had no prospect of paying tax.

But he then confessed his companies Xero, Sonar6 and Outsmart had also received grants.

“Maybe I should just shut-up.,” he tweeted.

“Seems like this grant lark is actually awesome for me.”

Or don’t accept the grants instead?
- Draco T Bastard 18.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 4:02 pm
  
  Or we could just be far more open about the fact that private success comes only with government subsidies.
  - Puckish Rogue 18.1.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 4:09 pm
    
    He just seems like an ungreatful prat and as loopy as his old man…
Mark 19

3 October 2014 at 2:56 pm

Chris Trotter’s latest missive stopped me in my tracks. I felt like I could have written the article from start to finish. ( If I could write)
A brilliant summary of how people like me still haven’t forgiven or forgotten.

http://bowalleyroad.blogspot.co.nz/
- Puckish Rogue 19.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 3:31 pm
  
  Trotters perceptive
- Draco T Bastard 19.2
  
  3 October 2014 at 4:03 pm
  
  Actual link
boldsirbrian 20

3 October 2014 at 3:44 pm

I wonder where Jason Ede and Cathy Odgers are? Have they eloped? Are they helping out at Whaleoil? Or the new “moderators” at kiwiblog? I hope their disappearance is not creating any sort of holdup on the inquiries that have started.

Mr. Botany (B.)
McFlock 21

3 October 2014 at 5:05 pm

lol Jamie Whyte’s resigned.

I would say “good riddance”, but he was active for such a short time and had such little effect that nobody will really notice.
- Te Reo Putake 21.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 5:57 pm
  
  Yep, despite his strong appeal to the incest demographic, it turned out not to be all Whyte on the night.
  - adam 21.1.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 11:47 pm
    
    +1 Te Reo Putake. Ouch, now my side hurts.
weka 22

3 October 2014 at 6:17 pm

Fuck Russel Norman (I say that as a long time GP member and voter). “Crazies”? Really?

“I mean we had enough trouble with John Key standing up every day telling all his nonsense about us and on the other had we had to deal with these crazies. Having them on the radio and tv all the time talking their nonsense, it was like ‘Oh god,’ it did make it incredibly difficult to change the Government at that point because a lot of people who might have voted for Labour went ‘Oh god, if a vote for Labour means a vote for Dotcom and Harre, I’m not going to do that,'” he says

http://www.waateanews.com/waateanews?story_id=ODAwNg%3D%3D
- Chooky 22.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 11:39 pm
  
  i think the Greens lost votes in the last week because it was said by a television reporter ( rightly or wrongly) that Norman was making overtures and was seeking a coalition with Nactional !
  
  …Unconscionable!…people were confused and shocked…it seemed like an opportunistic betrayal by the Greens who were signalling Labour would not win in their opinion ,so they were ready to do deals with the Nactional which represents BIG BUSINESS and is the biggest violator of the environment!
  - Clemgeopin 22.1.1
    
    4 October 2014 at 12:26 am
    
    +1
    Good comment Chooky. Sometimes I think we the ordinary people here have a more honest and clearer view of things than some of these stupid ego driven smart arse dumb political ‘leaders’.
- Murray Olsen 22.2
  
  4 October 2014 at 2:28 am
  
  +1
  You can take the boy out of Brisbane, but you can’t take Brisbane out of the boy. I have to wonder how much his growing up in a white supremacist monoculture made him unable to understand Maori at all. I can’t think why else he would call them crazies, especially when they have a similar political alignment to his party.
  
  I also think he can go and fuck himself, and Metiria should speak for the Greens. I was going off Norman anyway, with all his talk of fiscal responsibility.
Draco T Bastard 23

3 October 2014 at 7:25 pm

Advice from Starbucks veteran:

But unless I am checking a new store off my list, I would not go there for the coffee.

And this guy would know after having:

travelled over 150,000 miles visiting 11,733 coffee shops and spending over $100,000.
- Chooky 23.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 11:30 pm
  
  lol…Starbucks is disgusting
  - McFlock 23.1.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 11:38 pm
    
    the one in dunedin gave away free coffees when it opened.
    It lost a bunch of prospective customers that way.
    - Chooky 23.1.1.1
      
      3 October 2014 at 11:48 pm
      
      lol….unfortunately for Starbucks New Zealanders have gotten used to good coffee….only young teenagers and Americans like Starbucks
      
      my friend took me to Palm Beach and I was shocked to find only a Starbucks coffee shop….i refused to drink the coffee she bought me ….but bought her a cake with green icing …she refused to eat her cake….she reckoned the cakes were made from ingredients in rocketry (she looked up the listed ingredients of Starbucks cakes on her laptop and pronounced they were also used in rocket fuel or some such)….ONLY IN USA!
Clemgeopin 24

3 October 2014 at 8:11 pm

Just received via email:

PRIME TIME WITH SEAN PLUNKET
TONIGHT AT 10 30

With speculation mounting that he will contest Labour’s leadership, Napier MP STUART NASH will go one on one with Sean Plunket tonight.

PLEASE NOTE — TONIGHT’S SHOW WILL BE AT THE LATER TIME OF 10 30.

And we’re surrendering. Tonight we have pundits! BILL RALSTON and BRIAN EDWARDS to take an informed but light hearted look back at the campaign.
(And yes, we know Brian is a friend of David Cunliffe and a long time Labour advisor and supporter and we also know that Bill worked on the National campaign. That’s why we invited them!)
- Paul 24.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 8:26 pm
  
  If Nash leads the Labour Party, it will have officially become a neoliberal party.
  - adam 24.1.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 11:41 pm
    
    What makes you think it is not at present?
    - Paul 24.1.1.1
      
      4 October 2014 at 12:21 am
      
      Fair point.
    - Clemgeopin 24.1.1.2
      
      4 October 2014 at 12:38 am
      
      It most definitely is not!
      Just take a look at their policies. Which of these do you honestly think are ‘neo liberal’ policies?
      
      *100,000 new, affordable homes
      *Free healthcare to under 13s, pregnant women and over 65s
      *Raising the minimum wage to $16.25
      *Ensure every rental is warm and dry
      *Everything paid for, plus we’re in surplus
      *Ensure all Kiwis under 20 are in work, education or training
      *Best Start for Kiwi kids
      *Reduce unemployment to 4% in our first term
      *Lower class sizes
      *Extend paid paternal leave to 26 weeks
      *Ensure that all our rivers and lakes are clean
      *Lowering power bills
      *Convert the dole to apprenticeships
      *Protecting our land from speculators
      *Christchurch recovery policy
      *Capital gains tax excluding family home
      *Increase tax to 36c/$ for incomes above $150,000
      * investments to upgrade regional economies and create jobs
      *Auckland and Christchurch city Rail Link
      *Public Service Television Station
      *Ban shark finning , animal testing of cosmetics, synthetic highs.
      * New ministry for children
      *Restore Adult and community education
      *Kiwi assure insurance
      *Marine reserves
      *Abolition of secondary tax
      *Inquiry into wages and collective bargaining
      *Review of spy laws.
AmaKiwi 25

3 October 2014 at 10:06 pm

Bryce Edwards confirms my suspicions: Like Labour, The Greens had a disastrous election result (along with Maori, Mana, and Internet parties).

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=466&objectid=11336457

I think it is time the Left recognized we need a single Left party. It will require a huge amount of compromise on policies and organization. Can we do it or do we individually prefer to remain in the political wilderness?
- weka 25.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 10:19 pm
  
  why bother with MMP then? A single left party would homogenise left wing politics and disenfranchise more people. It might win Labour the govt, but what would be the point?
  - AmaKiwi 25.1.1
    
    3 October 2014 at 10:40 pm
    
    Because the Right is doing it and burying us.
    
    What a different election it would have been if instead of just National there was a farmers party, a small business party, and a real estate developers party.
    - weka 25.1.1.1
      
      3 October 2014 at 10:57 pm
      
      with one monolithic left wing party we’d have a left version of National, locking NZ into a centrist/rightist govt long term. So again, what would be the point? Power at all costs?
      
      Here’s another idea. How about Labour try being a left wing party and seeing if the non-vote comes out again. We’re running out of time though, because not voting will become a hard habit to break.
boldsirbrian 26

3 October 2014 at 10:24 pm

Today’s Leunig.

Seems appropriate with Australia entering the war in Syria and Iraq, and John Key trying to work out how we can get involved.

Leunig – Today’s Recipe: Cult Pie
- AmaKiwi 26.1
  
  3 October 2014 at 10:44 pm
  
  The rich countries like these kinds of wars: defense companies get richer as expensive ordinance gets blown up. But no troops on the ground to come home in coffins.
  
  Sorry, Key. We are cannon fodder so if you send our SAS, send body bags, too.
Penny Bright 27

3 October 2014 at 11:13 pm

Hi folks!

Seen this?

FRIDAY, OCT 3, 2014 10:25 AM NZDT
The great charter school rip-off: Finally, the truth catches up to education “reform” phonies
Fraud, financial mismanagement, lousy results: Reports highlight awful charter schools and people are catching on

JEFF BRYANT

http://www.salon.com/2014/10/02/the_great_charter_school_rip_off_finally_the_truth_catches_up_to_education_reform_

______________________________________________________________________________________

Penny Bright

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Maori push for parallel government structures
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Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
3 days ago

An announcement about an announcement
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 ...
The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
3 days ago

All the Green Tech in China.
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 ...
Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
3 days ago

Western Express Success
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 ...
Greater AucklandBy Matt L
3 days ago

Bernard’s pick ‘n’ mix of the news links at 7:16am on Monday, April 22
TL;DR: These six news links stood out in the last 24 hours to 7:16am on Monday, April 22:Labour says Kiwis at greater risk from loan sharks as Govt plans to remove borrowing regulations NZ Herald Jenee TibshraenyHow did the cost of moving two schools blow out to more than $400m?A ...
The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
3 days ago

The Kaka’s diary for the week to April 29 and beyond
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 ...
The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
3 days ago

2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #16
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 ...
Skeptical Science
4 days ago

Bryce Edwards: The Government’s new fast-track invitation to corruption
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 ...
Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
4 days ago

Thank you
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 ...
More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
4 days ago

Determining the Engine Type in Your Car
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

How to Become a Race Car Driver: A Comprehensive Guide
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

How Many Cars Are There in the World in 2023? An Exploration of Global Automotive Statistics
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

How Long Does It Take for Car Inspection?
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

Who Makes Mazda Cars?
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

How Often to Replace Your Car Battery A Comprehensive Guide
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

Can You Register a Car Without a License?
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 Rule If you are under 18 years old: In some states, you can register a car in your name even if you do not ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

Mazda: A Comprehensive Evaluation of Reliability, Value, and Performance
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, ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

What Are Struts on a Car?
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

What Does Car Registration Look Like: A Comprehensive Guide
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

How to Share Computer Audio on Zoom
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

How Long Does It Take to Build a Computer?
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

How to Put Your Computer to Sleep
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

What is Computer-Assisted Translation (CAT)?
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

iPad vs. Tablet Computers A Comprehensive Guide to Differences
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

How Are Computers Made?
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

How to Add Voice Memos from iPhone to Computer
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

Why My Laptop Screen Has Lines on It: A Comprehensive Guide
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

How to Right-Click on a Laptop
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

Where is the Power Button on an ASUS Laptop?
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

How to Start a Dell Laptop: A Comprehensive Guide
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

Bryce Edwards: Serious populist discontent is bubbling up in New Zealand
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 ...
Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
5 days ago

How to Take a Screenshot on an Asus Laptop A Comprehensive Guide with Detailed Instructions and Illu...
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

How to Factory Reset Gateway Laptop A Comprehensive Guide
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: ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

The Folly Of Impermanence.
“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 ...
Bowalley Road
5 days ago

A crisis of ambition
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 ...
Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
5 days ago

Have 308 people in the Education Ministry’s Curriculum Development Team spent over $100m on a 60-p...
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 ...
Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
5 days ago

'This bill is dangerous for the environment and our democracy'
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 ...
The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
5 days ago

The Bank of our Tamariki and Mokopuna.
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 ...
Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
5 days ago

The worth of it all
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 ...
More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
5 days ago

What is the Hardest Sport in the World?
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

What is the Most Expensive Sport?
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

Pickleball On the Cusp of Olympic Glory
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 ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
5 days ago

Release: Working together on consistent support for veterans this Anzac Day
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Labour Blog
22 hours ago

Release: Penny drops – but what about Seymour and Peters?
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. ...
Labour Blog
23 hours ago

Release: Budget blunder shows Nicola Willis could cut recovery funding
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. ...
Labour Blog
2 days ago

Further environmental mismanagement on the cards
The Government’s resource management reforms will add to the heavy and ever-growing burden this Government is loading on to our environment. ...
Greens
2 days ago

Release: RMA changes will be a disaster for environment
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 Blog
2 days ago

Release: Labour supports urgent changes to emergency management system
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. ...
Labour Blog
2 days ago

Release: Labour calls for New Zealand to recognise Palestine
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. ...
Labour Blog
3 days ago

Release: Three strikes law political posturing of worst kind
The Government is bringing back a law that has little evidential backing just to look tough, Labour justice spokesperson Duncan Webb said. ...
Labour Blog
3 days ago

Release: Government cuts unbelievably target child exploitation, violent extremism, ports and airpor...
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. ...
Labour Blog
3 days ago

Three strikes has failed before and will fail again
Resurrecting the archaic three-strikes legislation is an unwelcome return to a failed American-style approach to justice. ...
Greens
3 days ago

Release: Environmental protection vital, not ‘onerous’
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. ...
Labour Blog
3 days ago

Release: Govt cuts doctors and nurses in hiring freeze
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. ...
Labour Blog
6 days ago

Fast-track submissions period must be extended
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. ...
Greens
6 days ago

Release: Progress on climate will be undone by Govt
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. ...
Labour Blog
6 days ago

Release: Dark day for Kiwi kids as a third of Govt cuts affect them
News that 1000 jobs at the Ministry of Education and Oranga Tamariki could go is devastating for future generations of New Zealanders. ...
Labour Blog
1 week ago

Release: Alarm as Government signals further blow to school lunches
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. ...
Labour Blog
1 week ago

Release: Quick, submit – stop Govt’s dodgy approvals bill
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. ...
Labour Blog
1 week ago

Government throws coal on the climate crisis fire
The Government’s policy announced today to ease consenting for coal mining will have a lasting impact across generations. ...
Greens
1 week ago

Release: Public transport costs to double as National looks at unaffordable roading project instead
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. ...
Labour Blog
1 week ago

Release: Cost of living in Auckland still not a priority
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. ...
Labour Blog
1 week ago

Greens look to fast-track submissions on harmful law
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. ...
Greens
2 weeks ago

Release: Govt should stop making people’s lives harder and build more homes
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. ...
Labour Blog
2 weeks ago

Release: Melissa Lee missing in action on media
The action Melissa Lee promised to protect democracy and the media sector is missing, Media and Communications spokesperson Willie Jackson said. ...
Labour Blog
2 weeks ago

Landlord Government leaves little hope for renters
The Government’s announcement on tenancy rules prove that it does not care about renters. ...
Greens
2 weeks ago

Opportunity to build a more sustainable economy
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. ...
Greens
2 weeks ago

Significant step forward in fixing cruel and unjust past
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. ...
Greens
2 weeks ago

Missed opportunity but NZ will surely one day recognise the right to a sustainable environment
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. ...
Greens
2 weeks ago

Release: Don’t cut our lunches – clear message sent to Government
Tens of thousands of people are demanding the Government commits to fully funding free and healthy school lunches. ...
Labour Blog
2 weeks ago

Release: Govt makes U-turn on Suicide Prevention Office
Labour welcomes the Government’s U-turn on the closure of the Suicide Prevention Office, says Labour Mental Health spokesperson Ingrid Leary. ...
Labour Blog
2 weeks ago

CCC issues warning over further climate delay
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. ...
Greens
2 weeks ago

Luxon targets lame and lousy example of leadership
If talk is cheap, Chris Luxon’s “targets” are bankrupt. ...
Greens
2 weeks ago

Luxon targets are lousy example of leadership
If talk is cheap, Chris Luxon’s “targets” are bankrupt. ...
Greens
2 weeks ago

Release: Commitment to disability communities missing from Govt priorities
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. ...
Labour Blog
2 weeks ago

Methane target review is dangerous duplication
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. ...
Greens
3 weeks ago

Release: Government must commit to school building project for disabled students
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. ...
Labour Blog
3 weeks ago

PM announces changes to portfolios
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 day ago

New catch limits for unique fishery areas
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 day ago

Minister welcomes hydrogen milestone
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
2 days ago

Urgent changes to system through first RMA Amendment Bill
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
2 days ago

Overseas decommissioning models considered
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
2 days ago

Release of North Island Severe Weather Event Inquiry
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
2 days ago

Justice Minister to attend Human Rights Council
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
3 days ago

Patterson reopens world’s largest wool scouring facility
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
3 days ago

Speech to the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective Summit, 18 April 2024
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
3 days ago

Government to introduce revised Three Strikes law
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
3 days ago

New diplomatic appointments
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
3 days ago

Humanitarian support for Ethiopia and Somalia
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
3 days ago

Arts Minister congratulates Mataaho Collective
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
4 days ago

Supporting better financial outcomes for Kiwis
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
4 days ago

Trade relationship with China remains strong
“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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
4 days ago

PM’s South East Asia mission does the business
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
5 days ago

$41m to support clean energy in South East Asia
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
6 days ago

Minister releases Fast-track stakeholder list
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
6 days ago

Judicial appointments announced
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
6 days ago

Education Minister heads to major teaching summit in Singapore
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
6 days ago

Value of stopbank project proven during cyclone
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
6 days ago

Anzac commemorations, Türkiye relationship focus of visit
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
6 days ago

Minister to Europe for OECD meeting, Anzac Day
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
6 days ago

Comprehensive Partnership the goal for NZ and the Philippines
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
7 days ago

Government commits $20m to Westport flood protection
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
7 days ago

Taupō takes pole position
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
7 days ago

Cost of living support for low-income homeowners
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

Government backing mussel spat project
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 - ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

Government focused on getting people into work
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

Clean energy key driver to reducing emissions
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

Earthquake-prone buildings review brought forward
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

Thailand and NZ to agree to Strategic Partnership
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

Government consults on extending coastal permits for ports
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

Inflation coming down, but more work to do
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

School attendance restored as a priority in health advice
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

Unnecessary bureaucracy cut in oceans sector
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

Patterson promoting NZ’s wool sector at International Congress
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

Removing red tape to help early learners thrive
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, ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

RMA changes to cut coal mining consent red tape
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

McClay reaffirms strong NZ-China trade relationship
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 ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

Ancient nomads you’ve probably never heard of disappeared from Europe 1,000 years ago. Now, DNA an...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Magdalena M.E. Bunbury, Postdoctoral Researcher, James Cook University Burial with a horse at the Rákóczifalva site, Hungary (8th century AD). Sándor Hegedűs, Hungarian National Museum, CC BY How do we understand past societies? For centuries, our main sources of information have been ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
3 hours ago

Don’t mention the war: On grandparents and Anzac biscuits
Amanda Thompson doesn’t really do Anzac Day. But what she does do is remember the people she knew who had a lifetime to remember stuff they didn’t really want to, because of a war they didn’t ask for. And she does make Anzac biscuits. First published in 2021. All my ...
The SpinoffBy Amanda Thompson
3 hours ago

If plastic manufacturing goes up 10%, plastic pollution goes up 10% – and we’re set for a huge ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kathryn Willis, Postdoctoral Researcher, CSIRO Xavier Boulenger/Shutterstock In the two decades to 2019, global plastic production doubled. By 2040, plastic manufacturing and processing could consume as much as 20% of global oil production and use up 15% of the annual carbon ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
3 hours ago

Governor-General's Anzac Day Dawn Service Address
With our collective remembrance, and steadfast belief in our common humanity, we strengthen our hope and resolve to do what we can to foster dialogue and understanding, and to heal divisions in our pursuit of peace. ...
Scoop politics
3 hours ago

Angling-Conservation Group Sees Fast Track Bill As Undemocratic
Principal reasons for the opposition is the loss of the public’s democratic right to have “a fair say” and the vital need for a government free from corruption, said Casey Cravens of Dunedin, president of the New Zealand Federation of Freshwater ...
Scoop politics
4 hours ago

Remembering the great TrueBliss vs Bardot national anthem sing-off
Never mind the scoreboard – in the 2000 Bledisloe Cup decider, the real trans-Tasman battle was won before kickoff. First published in 2016. The dawn of the new millennium was a dark time for the All Blacks. Their final game pre-Y2K was a 22-18 loss to South Africa in the ...
The SpinoffBy Jamie Wall
4 hours ago

Help Me Hera: Do I even want the public sector job I might be about to lose?
I’m on the wrong side of 40, I never pursued creative work and now my job is killing my soul. Help! Want Hera’s help? Email your problem to helpme@thespinoff.co.nz Dear Hera, May I start with the least original conversation opener you’re likely to hear around the motu at the moment, particularly in Wellington: ...
The SpinoffBy Hera Lindsay Bird
5 hours ago

ANZAC Day Wreath Calls For No Future Deaths From AUKUS
“Never again - No AUKUS” was the message of the wreath laid at this morning’s national ANZAC Day commemorative service at Pukeahu National War Memorial Park this morning by the Stop AUKUS group. ...
Scoop politics
6 hours ago

Swimmer does everything and more to get to Paris
Until this month, Auckland swimmer Hazel Ouwehand had never met a qualifying time in an Olympic event for a New Zealand team, even as a junior. Now she’s very likely off to the Paris Olympics after swimming well under the qualifying standard in the 100m butterfly twice – both in ...
NewsroomBy Dave Crampton
8 hours ago

Seize the day
While Anzac Day has experienced a resurgence in recent years, our other day of remembrance has slowly faded from view. The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand. Original illustrations by Hope McConnell. First published in 2022. The high school’s head girl and ...
The SpinoffBy David Hill
9 hours ago

The first, forgotten Anzacs, more than 50 years before Gallipoli
Australian and New Zealand volunteers fought together in the Waikato War, yet still its place in the Anzac tradition is unacknowledged by our defence forces or Returned Services Association. First published in 2018. When I was a boy cub I attended Anzac Day services in the South Auckland suburb of ...
The SpinoffBy Scott Hamilton
9 hours ago

Poem for Anzac Day: ‘Hoki Mai’ by Tayi Tibble
A poem by Wellington writer Tayi Tibble. Hoki Mai She kisses him goodbye with her eyes still wet and alight from their last swim in the Awatere river. At the train station celebration, she leads the Kapa Haka but her voice keeps breaking under and over itself like waves. ...
The SpinoffBy Tayi Tibble
9 hours ago

Poem for Anzac Day: ‘My World War I Poem’ by Bill Manhire
A poem from Bill Manhire’s 2017 book of verse Some Things to Place in a Coffin. My World War I Poem Inside each trench, the sound of prayer. Inside each prayer, the sound of digging. Image courtesy of Auckland War Memorial Museum. ...
The SpinoffBy Bill Manhire
9 hours ago

Book of the Week: Talia Marshall on living legend Ngāhuia Te Awekōtuku
There are three books I have wolfed down in one sitting over the last two years. Colleen Maria Lenihan’s gorgeous and sad debut Kōhine, Noelle McCarthy’s memoir Grand about becoming her mother and then unbecoming her, and now Hine Toa, a staunch yet gentle self-portrait by living legend Ngāhuia te ...
NewsroomBy Talia Marshall
9 hours ago

Newsroom daily quiz, Thursday 25 April
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NewsroomBy Newsroom Puzzles
9 hours ago

Daily crossword, Thursday 25 April
The post Daily crossword, Thursday 25 April appeared first on Newsroom. ...
NewsroomBy Newsroom Puzzles
9 hours ago

High Court overturns Waitangi Tribunal summons to Minister for Children Karen Chhour
The minister was due to give evidence on Friday regarding the government's plans to repeal section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act ...
Radio NZ – political
17 hours ago

Sydney University students set up Gaza solidarity camp as war marks 200 days
Asia Pacific Report Students and activist staff at Australia’s University of Sydney (USyd) have set up a Gaza solidarity encampment in support of Palestinians and similar student-led protests in the United States. The camp was pitched as mass graves, crippled hospitals, thousands of civilian deaths and the near-total destruction of ...
Evening ReportBy Asia Pacific Report
18 hours ago

Most bees don’t die after stinging – and other surprising bee facts
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James B. Dorey, Lecturer in Biological Sciences, University of Wollongong Australian teddy bear bees are cute and fluffy, but get a look at that massive (unbarbed) stinger! James Dorey Photography Most of us have been stung by a bee and we ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
19 hours ago

How Anzac deaths changed the way we mourn to this day
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jen Roberts, Senior Lecturer, School of Humanities and Social Inquiry, University of Wollongong Aussie~mobs/Flickr Victor Farr, a private in the 1st Infantry Battalion, was among the first to land at Anzac Cove just before dawn on April 25 1915. Victor Farr ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
19 hours ago

Sugar gums have a reputation as risky branch-droppers but they’re important to bees, parrots and p...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gregory Moore, Senior Research Associate, School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, The University of Melbourne Gregory Moore I had the good fortune to care for the sugar gum at The University of Melbourne’s Burnley Gardens in Victoria where I worked for ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
19 hours ago

Inflation is slowly falling, while student debt is climbing: 6 graphs that explain today’s CPI
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Hawkins, Senior Lecturer, Canberra School of Politics, Economics and Society, University of Canberra BagzhanSadvakassov/Upsplash, CC BY-SA Australia’s inflation rate has fallen for the fifth successive quarter, and it’s now less than half of what it was back in late 2022. ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
19 hours ago

Our housing system is broken and the poorest Australians are being hardest hit
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rachel Ong ViforJ, ARC Future Fellow & Professor of Economics, Curtin University Just when we think the price of rentals could not get any worse, this week’s Rental Affordability Snapshot by Anglicare has revealed low-income Australians are facing a housing crisis like ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
19 hours ago

‘It bucked our lads up wonderfully’: the lightning-quick WWI battle that marked the birth of the...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Meighen McCrae, Associate Professor of Strategic & Defence Studies, Australian National University American and Australian stretcher bearers working together near the front line during the Battle of Hamel in 1918. Australian War Memorial While the AUKUS alliance is new, the Australian-American partnership ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
19 hours ago

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tracey Holmes, Professorial Fellow in Sport, University of Canberra When the news broke last weekend that 23 Chinese swimmers had tested positive to a banned drug in early 2021 and were allowed to compete at the Tokyo Olympic Games six months later ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
19 hours ago

First Nations Anzacs sacrificed life and limb for Country. Why aren’t their stories shown onscreen...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Cally Jetta, Senior Lecturer and Academic Lead; College for First Nations, University of Southern Queensland Australian War Memorial Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised this article contains names and images of deceased people, as well as sensitive historical information ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
19 hours ago

NZ’s Media Minister Melissa Lee demoted after Newshub crisis
RNZ News Melissa Lee has been ousted from New Zealand’s coalition cabinet and stripped of the Media portfolio, and Penny Simmonds has lost the Disability Issues portfolio in a reshuffle. Climate Change and Revenue Minister Simon Watts will take Lee’s spot in cabinet. Simmonds was a minister outside of cabinet. ...
Evening ReportBy Asia Pacific Report
19 hours ago

Our tall, wet forests were not open and park-like when colonists arrived – and we shouldn’t be b...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Lindenmayer, Professor, Fenner School of Environment and Society, Australian National University laurello/Shutterstock Some reports and popular books, such as Bill Gammage’s Biggest Estate on Earth, have argued that extensive areas of Australia’s forests were kept open through frequent burning by ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
20 hours ago

Aces in their places: Luxon plays coy over ministers' competence
Analysis - Christopher Luxon framing the demotion of two ministers as the portfolios getting "too complex" is a charitable way of saying they weren't up to the job. ...
Radio NZ – political
20 hours ago

Politics with Michelle Grattan: Economist Chris Richardson on an ‘ugly’ inflation result and the...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra With Jim Chalmers’s third budget on May 14, Australians will be looking for some more cost-of-living relief – beyond the tax cuts – although they have been warned extra measures will be modest. As ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
20 hours ago

Melissa Lee’s media Hail Mary comes up short
Analysis: Melissa Lee has lost the media portfolio and her spot in Cabinet after multiple failed attempts to find solutions for a media industry in crisis. On Wednesday, the Prime Minister announced Lee would be losing her spot in Cabinet along with her media and communications ministerial portfolio. The job ...
NewsroomBy Laura Walters
20 hours ago

Northland council continues four-year Māori ward fight in face of government changes
A council that played a key role in getting Māori ward polling removed is now lobbying against government plans to reinstate binding referendums. ...
Radio NZ – political
20 hours ago

Education Ministry cuts: Roles providing support for disabled kids among those proposed to be axed
Leaked documents show which divisions will bear the brunt of hundreds of proposed job cuts at the Ministry of Education. ...
Radio NZ – political
21 hours ago

Land Information New Zealand proposes 57 job cuts
It is the latest department to announce job cuts as part of the government's cost-cutting measures. ...
Radio NZ – political
21 hours ago

Watch: Government's 'wheels are falling off already', Hipkins says, after ministers d...
The Labour leader says the demotion of two ministers today shows the PM "didn't have particularly good judgement". ...
Radio NZ – political
22 hours ago

The stories of Australia’s Muslim Anzacs have long been forgotten. It’s time we honour them
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Simon Wilmot, Senior Lecturer, Film, Deakin University Among the many Australian who served during the second world war, there is a small group of people whose stories remain largely untold. These are the Muslim men and women who, while small in number, ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
22 hours ago

National emergency response facing 26 separate inquiries: What have we learned
The country's emergency response is besieged by inquiries, despite years of reviews and efforts to make laws that deliver. ...
Radio NZ – political
22 hours ago

Sexual assault victims give evidence in court, but alleged perpetrators don’t have to. Bruce Lehrm...
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 ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
23 hours ago

What’s the difference between ADD and ADHD?
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 ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
23 hours ago

Watch: Government's 'wheels are falling off already', Hipkins says, after minsters de...
The Labour leader says the demotion of two ministers today shows the PM "didn't have particularly good judgement". ...
Radio NZ – political
23 hours ago

Anti-Poverty Groups Urge New Minister For Disability Issues To Reverse Funding Cuts
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. ...
Scoop politics
24 hours ago

New Media Minister Must Rule Out State Intervention In Private Media
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. ...
Scoop politics
24 hours ago

OPM leader’s open letter condemns Australia’s ‘treachery’ over Papua
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 ...
Evening ReportBy Asia Pacific Report
24 hours ago

‘Emily Dickinson made me into a writer’: Lauren Groff on the power of reading
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 written If I wish I’d written a ...
The SpinoffBy The Spinoff Review of Books
1 day ago

Watch live: Chris Hipkins speaks after ministers Melissa Lee, Penny Simmonds lose portfolios
The Labour leader speaks from Parliament after the prime minister's sudden Cabinet reshuffle. ...
Radio NZ – political
1 day ago

What kind of diner are you? 6 types of diners who avoid plant-based meat dishes
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 ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
1 day ago

Auckland University Criminologist Slams ‘Racist’ Three Strikes Law
“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.” ...
Scoop politics
1 day ago

Australia-born judge facing potential deportation from Kiribati
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 ...
Evening ReportBy Asia Pacific Report
1 day ago

Can Body-Worn Cameras Work In Australia And New Zealand? Lessons From Milestone’s Denmark Survey
With its clear mandate for police use, political nuances, and nuanced public trust, Denmark's insights provide valuable considerations for Australia and New Zealand. ...
Scoop politics
1 day ago

Media Minister Melissa Lee demoted from Cabinet, Penny Simmonds stripped of portfolio
Melissa Lee has been stripped of the Media portfolio, while Penny Simmonds has lost the Disability Issues role. Follow as the PM explains. ...
Radio NZ – political
1 day ago

Climate change and human rights: how a landmark legal victory in Europe could affect NZ
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Vernon Rive, Associate Professor of Law, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Getty Images A seven-year campaign by a group of over 2,000 Swiss women – average age 73 – recently ended with a European Court of Human Rights decision variously ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
1 day ago

Page-turning rural gothic: Ash by Louise Wallace, reviewed
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 ...
The SpinoffBy Claire Mabey
1 day ago

Lower catch limits in force for Fiordland, Chatham Islands
New catch limits in Fiordland mean recreational fishers will only be able to take much smaller bags of finfish and shellfish. ...
Radio NZ – political
1 day ago

New emergency management legislation delayed after bill pulled by Government
The bill was introduced by the previous government in June last year. ...
Radio NZ – political
1 day ago

‘It was my Eras tour’: Meet the world’s biggest TrueBliss fans
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 ...
The SpinoffBy Alex Casey
1 day ago

No more Census forms? Stats NZ mulls form of future surveys
The traditional Census form could become a thing of the past, as Stats NZ starts to rely more heavily on administrative data. ...
Radio NZ – political
1 day ago

The voices that vanish in a decimated newsroom
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 ...
The SpinoffBy Eda Tang
1 day ago

Half our colleagues suffer pain and discomfort from periods. But they’re still a taboo subject at ...
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 ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
1 day ago

'We're going to be banning gang patches' – Police Minister adamant
Despite heavy criticism and an ongoing select committee process, the Police Minister says the Government will forge ahead with a ban on gang patches. ...
Radio NZ – political
1 day ago

Is it possible to ‘objectively’ judge music? We asked 5 experts
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 ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
1 day ago

Gloomy vibe from infrastructure sector as RMA changes unveiled
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 ...
The SpinoffBy Anna Rawhiti-Connell
1 day ago

From Gallipoli to Gaza: remembering the Anzacs not as a ‘coming of age’ tale but as a lesson for...
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 ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
1 day ago

The end of the Census? Stats NZ to look at whether survey is still needed
The traditional Census survey could become a thing of the past as Stats NZ starts to rely more heavily on administrative data. ...
Radio NZ – political
1 day ago

Leaked document reveals millions of dollars of cuts at Te Whatu Ora
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. ...
NewsroomBy David Williams
1 day ago

Hiring freeze leaves Oranga Tamariki with no lawyers in Gisborne or Southland
The ministry's lawyers work with vulnerable children across the country, often in the youth and family courts. ...
Radio NZ – political
1 day ago

Is KiwiBuild finally on its last legs?
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, ...
The SpinoffBy Stewart Sowman-Lund
1 day ago

Labour has forgotten it was in government
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 ...
The SpinoffBy Hayden Donnell
1 day ago

Lessons identified must become lessons learned for emergency preparedness
Opinion: It cost too much, apparently, to implement a ‘common operational picture’ The post Lessons identified must become lessons learned for emergency preparedness appeared first on Newsroom. ...
NewsroomBy Lianne Dalziel
1 day ago

The state of Taiwan’s silicon shield
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. ...
NewsroomBy Sam Sachdeva
1 day ago

Quake rules in for a shake-up
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 ...
NewsroomBy Tom Kitchin
1 day ago

Kiwis are learning how to fight climate change – polls
Bucking a common misconception, NZers no longer say recycling is the most effective action they can take to reduce climate pollution The post Kiwis are learning how to fight climate change – polls appeared first on Newsroom. ...
NewsroomBy Marc Daalder
1 day ago

Daily crossword, Wednesday 24 April
The post Daily crossword, Wednesday 24 April appeared first on Newsroom. ...
NewsroomBy Newsroom Puzzles
1 day ago

Child protection decimation a ‘callous razor gang response’
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 ...
NewsroomBy Dr Ian Hyslop
1 day ago

‘Lesser Spotted Kiwi’ survives one of world’s toughest races
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 ...
NewsroomBy Eugene Bingham
1 day ago

Newsroom daily quiz, Wednesday 24 April
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. ...
NewsroomBy Newsroom Puzzles
1 day ago

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