It was a message to and for the man himself who’s been chomping at the bit to be allowed back on the field ploughing his favourite tracks. As long as he keeps his tracks straight and narrow, he’ll do just fine here with likeminded ploughers. You’ll be pleased to know he’ll be back tomorrow.
I enjoy Morrissey's 'the panel' rundowns. Yes, he embellishes but more often than not there's a grain of truth in his descriptions.
I gave up on the panel a long time ago because I was fed up with the "bob each way" attitude of the hosts, plus most of their guests. There were some exceptions eg. Joe Bennett who was a breath of fresh air but I don't think he participates any more.
National still whinging about slow vaccine roll out when GSK are saying they are developing a vaccine that will be effective against different variants.
Inadvertently found myself watching TV One's Breakfast show simultaneously with RNZ's Morning report. The currently standard question was wheeled out concerning the vaccine by both outlets – "what about people who refuse?" No mention of the more important problem that will inevitably hit with the vaccine roll-out – premature calls from National and 'business' to open everything up too early, thus putting at risk those still unvaccinated. Countering this coming avalanche of tripe is going to take up all Ardern's time and ability.
On the topic of the vaccination rollout, my tolerance level towards the anti-vaxxers has expired. They are scaring people away from vaccines in general and the Covid vaccines in particular. It's got to stop.
The softly, softly approach involving education and informing them is hogwash. Most of them are beyond rational comprehension.
Now is the time to enforce some form of punishment because they pose a real danger to the community. Denying them employment opportunities on the grounds they refuse to be vaccinated for Covid would be a good starting point.
If someone has been offered a free vaccine and they decline (without good medical reason), then I'd be all for charging them the full cost of all medical expenses incurred in treating them should they subsequently get the disease. Plus all the expenses for those they go on to infect.
For all vaccine-preventable diseases, not just covid.
I think punishment is looking at it the wrong way. There really isn't a problem while we retain strict border controls and MIQ / Isolation. When the vaccination programme is completed there will be a group of people not vaccinated with medical exemption, and a (hopefully small) group who have refused vaccination. As we relax border controls there will be concern about the period of effectiveness of the vaccine, but also concern about the possibility of new strains developing that may be partially resistance to the vaccine. Those who have not been vaccinated are effectively our coalmine canaries – they are more likely to become infected. In that scenario it may be reasonable to require them to be tested – public health experts would need to determine the frequency, but I would expect once a week to be not too intrusive while giving a reasonably early indication of community infection. In the event of community transmission, they may need to be isolated – again health experts would be able to determine such requirements on a scientific basis.. We do need to remember to be kind – most are likely to be victims of mis-information, and if there are now adverse side effects from the vaccine I would expect the number refusing the vaccine to reduce over time.
Some vaccine refusers are on the grounds of the vaccine being an unwanted and perceived to be unnecessary medical procedure. I'll hazard a guess many of those would refuse testing on the same grounds.
I think punishment is looking at it the wrong way.
Rubbish, Ed. Put the refusers up against the wall! Make an example of a few and the others will fall into line quick smart!
We do need to remember to be kind … 'kind' be damned! No room for kindness in this Apocalyptic world! For the Good of Society we must make the hesitant submit!
Interesting, don't you think, that Governments worldwide appear to be channeling Pilate and leaving the mandating of the experimental vaccines for Covid 19 up to employers. I guess Votes count more than actual leadership.
Even here in Godzone much of the discussion is about how NZBORA will protect an individuals right to bodily autonomy when balanced with the Public Good.
A bit silly really, leaving it up to employers to mandate these vaccines, as this is conveniently playing into one of the more extreme narratives of the weird Covid Conspiracy Club that this is all about The Corporations Taking Over.
But what is not being widely discussed is the fact that a considerable number of frontline medical staff are rejecting the Covid 19 vaccines.
A poll released in mid-December caused surprise in Germany — the country that has been at the forefront of the race for a vaccine with biotech company BioNTech — by showing that half of surveyed nurses did not want to be vaccinated, along with a quarter of doctors. Those worries came back to the fore this week when the head of one German state said only a third of healthcare workers in his state were willing to get the jab.
We will not escape this 'irrationality' here, as some of our frontline medical staff already have 'form' in this area.
Luckily we have people like Anne and Andre who will be more than happy to force these very experimental vaccines on their fellow Kiwis who choose the precautionary approach.
The whole point of not rushing out the vaccine is trust. At the moment, trust in the government is sky-high. That is why acceptance rates for the vaccine in NZ are running at 75-80%. Why blow that trust, and risk a European level of distrust (only 40% of French people will have the vaccine shot) if we have the luxury of time to take people with us?
Sabine. How about being the first regular commentator here on TS to ask themselves why a trained medical professional would risk all by refusing a vaccine?
Think about it. Trained medical professionals refusing a common vaccine (like the annual flu jab) and/or a brand new experimental vaccine for a novel viral disease. And trained medical professionals who have spent much of the past year in the Covid trenches.
One third of healthcare staff in a particular German state willing to get the jab.
There are lots of "trained medical professionals" and other super-smart folks who have nutty ideas of one flavour or another. Most of the time these nutty ideas are inconsequential.
There might even be some doctors who still smoke. Does that mean smoking is safe, or the data attributing 90% of lung cancers to smoking is significantly flawed? Nope. But I think you'll find the smoking rate is signficantly lower amongst "trained medical professionals" than the general population.
Likewise, I think you'll find vaccine hesitancy is lower among "trained medical professionals" than in the general population. A tiny minority of people with nutty ideas does not make a consensus of opinion amongst industry professionals, be it medicine or engineering.
The nearly one million New Zealanders who are hesitant about vaccinations should have their fears eased as more information about Covid-19 vaccinations comes to light, experts say.
That's about 20%. One fifth. 1/5.
2/3 of healthcare workers in one German state refused the vaccine.
Of course you will remember the infamous Nigel Murray…DHB CEO extrordinaire? He came down all hard arse when he assumed the mantle of responsibility for the Waikato DHB…just had to raise the 53% flu jab rate from 2014 to the 75% quoted in the article from 2015. Makes a good read…has opinions from doctors, unions and the like about bullying and respecting and valuing staff.
And what was the surveyed hesitancy in the general german pop vs german "medical professionals"?
So it looks like 4 out of roughly 3,000 refused flu jabs, of which only one (who was not a clinician) was fired.
As for the yougov tracker results of 22 Jan (the guardian article), That seems to show Germans overall increasing acceptance of covid vaccines to well over a majority.
Much googling for your "2/3 of healthcare workers in one German state refused the vaccine " seems to have found only tangential references like this:
A poll released in mid-December caused surprise in Germany – the country that has been at the forefront of the race for a vaccine with biotech company BioNTech – by showing that half of surveyed nurses did not want to be vaccinated, along with a quarter of doctors.
Those worries came back to the fore this week when the head of one German state said only a third of healthcare workers in his state were willing to get the jab.
So is it 2/3 of all healthcare workers, or is it half of nurses and a quarter of doctors?
Because it seems that the German-wide results show nurses have about the same hesitancy as the general pop (yougov had it at ~50 in dec, data of the Irishtimes data) and doctors had a hesitancy rate of half that.
Gosh, it's almost as if the more medical knowledge one has, the less likely one is to "refuse" a vaccine.
"How about being the first regular commentator here on TS to ask themselves why a trained medical professional would risk all by refusing a vaccine?"
I have some questions, Rosemary.
I'm presuming you asked yourself that question: what was your answer?
Also, if we are to give credence to those people because they are trained medical professionals, what are we to think of the position taken by the other trained medical professionals; those who believe the vaccine to be necessary?
…why a trained medical professional would risk all by refusing a vaccine?
I know that in relation to the flu vaccine, the incidence of people becoming very ill after having the jab is so high that it has almost a given that a surprisingly high number of recipients will 'get as sick as they have ever been' within days of being vaccinated.
The research to support the safety of the flu vaccine is there for all to read…https://blogs.bmj.com/bmj/2019/03/13/richard-smith-who-is-most-likely-to-have-side-effects-to-flu-vaccination/… (/sarc since you probably won't read the article) and in the absence such hard 'evidence' medical professionals have to fall back on what they know best. Observations of themselves and their colleagues and patients. If you have not met anyone Robert, who can relate a "I'm never having another flu vaccine' tale, then I suspect you have been living a lonely existence in a deep cave. I am close to someone who has been eligible for a free flu shot since forever because of significant physical disability who has never been pressured to avail themselves. Even after having treatment for leukaemia. His GP and other doctors he has seen over the years have never once questioned his flu vaccine free status. I personally have observed at least half the residents of an elder care facility become very ill a few days after a mass flu vaccination session. A ridiculous number died. The oldies who refused the vaccine remained well. And so on.
Of course there are other reasons why nurses refuse flu shots. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5410084/ This makes for a good read…considering they note a 4-40% uptake of flu vaccines in the studied populations.
… if we are to give credence to those people because they are trained medical professionals, what are we to think of the position taken by the other trained medical professionals; those who believe the vaccine to be necessary?
You make a very good and valid point there Mr Guyton. I guess it comes down to personality, life experience and our right to reach our own conclusions based on the same 'evidence' and learnings received by those who choose the other path.
For instance…two people might attend the exact same degree course in agriculture or horticulture, achieve similar grades and have, after the same amount of time, attained similar levels of success in their subsequent careers.
One farms conventionally using agrichemicals and externally sourced fertilizers and imported feed such as palm kernel. Makes a profit. The other farms organically, perhaps bio -dynamically, and operates a completely self contained system. Also makes a profit.
Both of them 'believe' they are farming correctly.
We could extrapolate this metaphor and discuss the relative sustainability of each system…but maybe another time?
I don't know…and I have given this much thought over the years having come from a medical family. I do know that merely dismissing and disrespecting others for their differing viewpoints is not conducive to progress.
I do know that merely dismissing and disrespecting others for their differing viewpoints is not conducive to progress.
QFT
(/sarc since you probably won't read the article) … If you have not met anyone Robert, …, then I suspect you have been living a lonely existence in a deep cave.
I am sure Mr Guyton won't choose to take it personally. After all, he's proven himself to be perfectly capable of apparent disrespect and dismissiveness when defending his particular point of view. Any one who can spend the best part of a couple of days publicly defending his hero's shameful support of an elitist private school can handle a gentle jibe or two. Surely?
I'm not saying every version of vaccine scepticism is automatically outrageous – but a number are being exploited, notably by the likes of Billy TK, to mislead and radicalize vulnerable people on grounds as specious as nanite tracking devices, Gates or Soros world domination schemes, and apparently pedo rings.
These may be discarded without regret in the same way unsupported allegations are wont to be moderated in this forum.
For anyone looking for actual info on what's been happening in terms of side effects and vaccine reactions, the USA Today piece below is a pretty good summary.
tl;dr At the time the article was written, at least 22 million Americans had received at least one dose of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine. Pfizer and Moderna are both the newfangled mRNA vaccines that have never been used before in either humans or animals AFAIK.
Of direct reactions that can reasonably be directly attributed to the vaccine, the worst were 50 cases of anaphylactic shock, all of whom rapidly recovered.
There are some reports of people getting rare diseases or dying from rare causes shortly after receiving the vaccination, but the rates of these incidences appear to be lower in the week or month after getting the vaccination than the normal background rate of how many random people would be expected to get those diseases in any given week or month. Just like the scare stories of very elderly Norwegian nursing home residents dying shortly after getting vaccinated, but it turns out that if anything, the death rate after vaccination is similar or possibly even lower than the normal death rate of those nursing home residents.
So, 22 million examples of people getting vaccinated against covid and the worst that can reasonably said is 50 cases of anaphylactic shock that rapidly recovered. The close comparison is 27 million Americans diagnosed with covid so far, of whom over 460,000 have died and nobody has even tried to work out how are long term disabled from long covid.
Nor is there even the slightest hint of there being any kind of common vaccination side effect that takes a longer time period to show up.
There is always going to be level of un-vaccinated and there is always going to be at least 10% of those who are vaccinated, who are not protected.
Those people will be at risk when the border opens and consequently people will die.
Closing the borders was Jacinda's easy decision. Reopening them, and with it, exposing at the very least, 10% of our population to the virus and potential death, is going to be a much much bigger decision for her.
I would imagine that incomers who can prove that they have been vaccinated would not need to be quarantined when the borders open. Those who are not vaccinated would still have to quarantine . Right ?
"Unemployment down to 4.9%, underemployment down, more people off benefits, Maori employment up:"
and yet…
"As at the end of December 2020, the number of working-age people on Jobseeker Support increased by 44.1 percent, compared with the December 2019 quarter. The proportion of working-age people receiving JS has been increasing since the December 2017 quarter."
then per Pats link above 12.6 % of working age people receive 'a' benefit of sorts. That would 389.000 odd people in Dec 20 up from Dec 19 which was 314.000 odd people.
As at the end of December 2020, the number of working-age people on Jobseeker Support increased by 44.1 percent, compared with the December 2019 quarter. The proportion of working-age people receiving JS has been increasing since the December 2017 quarter.
It really just depends how one reads these stats….right?
Houses consented ain't houses build. We discussed that already during the Key times when the then government regularly touted the consented builds as a proof of something. How many of these consented buildings will result in affordable houses?
Medsafe approving a vaccine that seems to work is the smartest thing they can do, just because we don't have a full breakdown now, does not mean we will have one in the future. Again, anyone thinking that this is over needs to readjust their thinking. We have just started. So yeah, approve the vaccine, get it in with a bit more urgency and start vaccinating please. As for us not needing it, so far we have been several times lucky that he virus did not escape managed isolation. How many more times do you think we will get lucky?
The labour party riding high today means nothing come election day in 2.5 years. Seriously. Ditto with the Nats. Who will take over from J.A? The same suits that could not win an election before they pushed her out?
Houses consented ain't houses build. We discussed that already during the Key times when the then government regularly touted the consented builds as a proof of something. How many of these consented buildings will result in affordable houses?
Sure, but …
Heslop said that consents indicate an intention to build, and most home construction was completed within a year or two after a consent was granted, although Covid-19 related delays might have affected some construction.
“Typically, high levels of new homes consented are followed by high levels of building activity in following quarters, which has wide benefits for the economy.”
Kiwibank chief economist Jarrod Kerr has estimated that the conversion rate of consents into new dwellings would be between 80 and 90 per cent. [original text is hyperlinked]
But for Westpac senior economist Satish Ranchhod, the data showed consents had continued to defy gravity and indicated a period of strong home building was on the cards over 2021. [my italics]
"Note: Late last year Auckland Council discovered there were serious errors in its reporting system which had the effect of significantly overstating the number of Code Compliance Certificates it was issuing for new dwellings. The errors have now been corrected, but their effect has been that earlier estimates of Auckland's new housing supply were overstated, which meant estimates of the region's housing shortfall were understated. The article above and the graph below are based on the corrected data."
NZ's balance of payments have been recording surpluses during the pandemic, largely due to the halting of international travel and the subsequent stopping the outflow of cash on holidays and jet fuel. meanwhile, unemployment has FALLEN despite the crippled tourism and tertiary education sectors.
So my questions are – has NZ been living beyond it's means with all that cheap travel for the middle class? And would we be better off in terms of our environment and economic resilience if we made international travel a much, much more expensive thing?
Its important to understand what these payment shifts are doing. Its also important to understand that they record aggregate behaviour not the actions of a coherent economic entity.
The balance of payments shift records the NZers working for overseas payments vs those paying for things overseas. This increases income going to NZers. But its the overall increase in GDP which drives unemployment and the major shift in spending is the governments large scale support for the economy which has most supported increased NZ savings rates (savings, like balance of payments, subtract from GDP) with stable employment.
On the other hand was any group living beyond its means, no the people most causing the overseas payments appear to have the ability to pay, and the export sector was not earning enough to make it up was occurring. But that situation can and has occurred to countries for decades and appears economically viable in many cases (including in New Zealand).
Maybe there is a case to be made for less access to air travel, but its not an economic case.
Great news, our family and many others will now benefit as we will no longer need to donate time and services to our local food bank. The Otara budget service, Sallys etc you are now not needed.
Those homeless will now be able to live in a new house consent.
The government can now take a holiday as there is nothing for them to do. 🥳
So today (unclear whether she was actually arrested or appeared via her own means) she was again in the court, the judge established her identity (albeit somewhat informally), and entered a not guilty plea based on previous documentation.
Preliminary appearance out of the way, court date for trial set for a couple of months later, and the system moves inexorably forward.
Hopefully she gets an actual lawyer between now and then.
She's just a 'vessel', huh? Cue Nikes and trackpants for the next comet that swings by. Not sure how to arrange the $5.75 in the pocket in NZ, maybe an American fiver and three quarters will be just fine.
She’s been called everything from a “wack job” to a “fucking bitch,” but only recently did she admit that she gets regular death threats, too.
Ina Vanity Fair cover story, Ocasio Cortez — who is the youngest woman to have ever been elected into Congress — details how she has faced the near-constant threat of danger. According to Vanity Fair, one of her first death threats came barely one month into her first term representing New York’s 14th District. A Coast Guard lieutenant and self-proclaimed white nationalist was arrested hoarding a stockpile of guns with a plot to kill Ocasio-Cortez, vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and others. At the same time, the freshman congresswoman's basic rights to privacy were not respected when a right-wing outlet published paparazzi photos revealing her home address. Only after her office complained did the publication blur her address.
Tax cuts for the wealthy have long drawn support from conservative lawmakers and economists who argue that such measures will "trickle down" and eventually boost jobs and incomes for everyone else. But a new study from the London School of Economics says 50 years of such tax cuts have only helped one group — the rich.
The new paper, by David Hope of the London School of Economics and Julian Limberg of King's College London, examines 18 developed countries — from Australia to the United States — over a 50-year period from 1965 to 2015. The study compared countries that passed tax cuts in a specific year, such as the U.S. in 1982 when President Ronald Reagan slashed taxes on the wealthy, with those that didn't, and then examined their economic outcomes.
Per capita gross domestic product and unemployment rates were nearly identical after five years in countries that slashed taxes on the rich and in those that didn't, the study found.
That's why Trumpy gave himself and Bozo and Musky an all, a bigly xmas pressy in 2017 which will trickle down sometime soon. Just like the best amazing and beautiful Health care programme.
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Nanaia Mahuta fell the furthest in the Cabinet reshuffle. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: PM Chris Hipkins unveiled a Cabinet this afternoon he hopes will show wavering voters that a refreshed Labour Government is focused on ‘bread and butter cost of living’ issues, rather than the unpopular, unwieldy and massively centralising ...
Shortly, the absolute state of Wayne Brown. But before that, something I wrote four years ago for the council’s own media machine. It was a day-in-the-life profile of their many and varied and quite possibly unnoticed vital services. We went all over Auckland in 48 hours for the story, the ...
Completed reads for January Lilith, by George MacDonald The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (poem), by Samuel Taylor Coleridge Christabel (poem), by Samuel Taylor Coleridge The Saga of Ragnar Lodbrok, by Anonymous The Lay of Kraka (poem), by Anonymous 1066 and All That, by W.C. Sellar and R.J. ...
Pity the poor Brits. They just can’t catch a break. After years of reporting of lying Boris Johnson, a change to a less colourful PM in Rishi Sunak has resulted in a smooth media pivot to an end-of-empire narrative. The New York Times, no less, amplifies suggestions that Blighty ...
On that day all the springs of the great deep burst forth, and the floodgates of the heavens were opened. And rain fell on the earth.Genesis 6:11-12THE TORRENTIAL DOWNPOURS that dumped a record-breaking amount of rain on Auckland this anniversary weekend will reoccur with ever-increasing frequency. The planet’s atmosphere is ...
Buzz from the Beehive There has been plenty to keep the relevant Ministers busy in flood-stricken Auckland over the past day or two. But New Zealand, last time we looked, extends north of Auckland into Northland and south of the Bombay Hills all the way to the bottom of the ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Jeff Masters When early settlers came to the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers before the California Gold Rush, Indigenous people warned them that the Sacramento Valley could become an inland sea when great winter rains came. The storytellers described water filling the ...
Wayne Brown managed a smile when meeting with Remuera residents, but he was grumpy about having to deal with “media drongos”. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: In my pick of the news links found in my rounds since 4am for paying subscribers below the paywall:Wayne Brown moans about the media and ...
Wayne Brown managed a smile when meeting with Remuera residents, but he was grumpy about having to deal with “media drongos”. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: In my pick of the news links found in my rounds since 4am for paying subscribers below the paywall:Wayne Brown moans about the media and ...
Dr Bryce Edwards writes – Last night’s opinion polls answered the big question of whether a switch of prime minister would really be a gamechanger for election year. The 1News and Newshub polls released at 6pm gave the same response: the shift from Jacinda Ardern to Chris Hipkins ...
Hipkins’ aim this year will be to present a ‘low target’ for those seeking to attack Labour’s policies and spending. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: Anyone dealing with Government departments and councils who wants some sort of big or long-term decision out of officials or politicians this year should brace for ...
Hipkins’ aim this year will be to present a ‘low target’ for those seeking to attack Labour’s policies and spending. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: Anyone dealing with Government departments and councils who wants some sort of big or long-term decision out of officials or politicians this year should brace for ...
Last night’s opinion polls answered the big question of whether a switch of prime minister would really be a gamechanger for election year. The 1News and Newshub polls released at 6pm gave the same response: the shift from Jacinda Ardern to Chris Hipkins has changed everything, and Labour is back ...
Over the last few years, it’s seemed like city after city around the world has become subject to extreme flooding events that have been made worse by impacts from climate change. We’ve highlighted many of them in our Weekly Roundup series. Sadly, over the last few days it’s been Auckland’s ...
And so the first month of the year draws to a close. It rained in Auckland on 21 out of the 31 days in January. Feels like summer never really happened this year. It’s actually hard to believe there were 10 days that it didn’t rain. Was it any better where ...
A ‘small target’ strategy is not going to cut it anymore if National want to win the upcoming election. The game has changed and the game plan needs to change as well. Jacinda Ardern’s abrupt departure from the 9th floor has the potential to derail what looked to be an ...
When Grant Robertson talks about how the economy might change post-covid, one of the things he talks about is what he calls an unsung but interesting white paper on science. “It’s really important,” he says. The Minister in charge of the White Paper — Te Ara Paerangi, Future Pathways ...
The clean up has begun but more rain is on the way. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: Auckland’s floods over the last three days are turning into a macroeconomic event, with losses from Aotearoa’s biggest-ever climate event estimated at around $500 million and Auckland’s schools all closed for a week until ...
The clean up has begun but more rain is on the way. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: Auckland’s floods over the last three days are turning into a macroeconomic event, with losses from Aotearoa’s biggest-ever climate event estimated at around $500 million and Auckland’s schools all closed for a week until ...
The news media were at one ceremony by the looks of things. The Governor-General, the Prime Minister and his deputy were at another. The news media were at a swearing-in ceremony. The country’s leaders were at an appointment ceremony. The New Zealand Gazette record of what transpired says: Appointment of ...
I n some alternative universe, Auckland mayor Efeso Collins readily grasped the scale of Friday’s deluge, and quickly made the emergency declaration that enabled central government to immediately throw its resources behind the rescue and remediation effort. As Friday evening became night, Mayor Collins seemed to be everywhere: talking with ...
They called it an “atmospheric river”, the weather bombardment which hit NZ’s northern region at the weekend. It exacted a terrible toll on metropolitan Auckland and the rest of the region. Few living there may have noted a statement from electricity generator Mercury Energy labelled “WET, WET, WET!” This was ...
I know, that is a pretty corny title but given the circumstances here in the Auckland region, I just had to say it. The more oblique reference embedded in the title is to the leadership failures exhibited by Mayor Wayne Brown and his so-called leadership team when confronted by the ...
How much confidence should the public have in authorities managing natural disasters? Not much, judging by the farcical way in which the civil defence emergence in Auckland has played out. The way authorities dealt with Auckland’s extreme weather on Friday illustrated how hit-and-miss our civil defence emergency system is. In ...
TLDR: Here’s the key news links and useful longer reads I’ve spotted since 4 am this morning, including:calls for a more ‘spongey’ urban infrastructure after Auckland’s floods;demands for an inquiry into Auckland Council’s communications failure;the latest on Chris Hipkins’ plans for Three Waters; inside the PR trainwreck that is Wayne ...
TLDR: Here’s the key news links and useful longer reads I’ve spotted since 4 am this morning, including:calls for a more ‘spongey’ urban infrastructure after Auckland’s floods;demands for an inquiry into Auckland Council’s communications failure;the latest on Chris Hipkins’ plans for Three Waters; inside the PR trainwreck that is Wayne ...
Mayor Wayne Brown, under fire for his communication failures, quietly visited the scene of the fatal Remuera slip on Sunday, with his staff taking photos for social media updates. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: The cleanup and the post-mortem have begun, even though the rain just keeps falling in Auckland after ...
Mayor Wayne Brown, under fire for his communication failures, quietly visited the scene of the fatal Remuera slip on Sunday, with his staff taking photos for social media updates. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: The cleanup and the post-mortem have begun, even though the rain just keeps falling in Auckland after ...
Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.The recent leadership change in the governing Labour party resulted in a very strange response from National’s (current) leader, Christopher Luxon. Mr Luxon berated Labour for it’s change of leader, citing no actual change.As ...
A chronological listing of news articles posted on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Jan 22, 2023 thru Sat, Jan 28, 2023. Story of the Week New Study Reveals Arctic Ice, Tracked Both Above and Below, Is Freezing LaterClimate change is affecting the timing of both ...
We’ve just announced a massive infrastructure investment to kick-start new housing developments across New Zealand. Through our Infrastructure Acceleration Fund, we’re making sure that critical infrastructure - like pipes, roads and wastewater connections - is in place, so thousands more homes can be built. ...
The Green Party is joining more than 20 community organisations to call for an immediate rent freeze in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, after reports of landlords intending to hike rents after flooding. ...
When Chris Hipkins took on the job of Prime Minister, he said bread and butter issues like the cost of living would be the Government’s top priority – and this week, we’ve set out extra support for families and businesses. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to provide direct support to low-income households and to stop subsidising fossil fuels during a climate crisis. ...
The tools exist to help families with surging costs – and as costs continue to rise it is more urgent than ever that we use them, the Green Party says. ...
Over $10 million infrastructure funding to unlock housing in Whangārei The purchase of a 3.279 hectare site in Kerikeri to enable 56 new homes Northland becomes eligible for $100 million scheme for affordable rentals Multiple Northland communities will benefit from multiple Government housing investments, delivering thousands of new homes for ...
A memorial event at a key battle site in the New Zealand land wars is an important event to mark the progress in relations between Māori and the Crown as we head towards Waitangi Day, Minister for Te Arawhiti Kelvin Davis said. The Battle of Ohaeawai in June 1845 saw ...
More Police officers are being deployed to the frontline with the graduation of 54 new constables from the Royal New Zealand Police College today. The graduation ceremony for Recruit Wing 362 at Te Rauparaha Arena in Porirua was the first official event for Stuart Nash since his reappointment as Police ...
The Government is unlocking an additional $700,000 in support for regions that have been badly hit by the recent flooding and storm damage in the upper North Island. “We’re supporting the response and recovery of Auckland, Waikato, Coromandel, Northland, and Bay of Plenty regions, through activating Enhanced Taskforce Green to ...
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has welcomed the announcement that Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal, Princess Anne, will visit New Zealand this month. “Princess Anne is travelling to Aotearoa at the request of the NZ Army’s Royal New Zealand Corps of Signals, of which she is Colonel in Chief, to ...
A new Government and industry strategy launched today has its sights on growing the value of New Zealand’s horticultural production to $12 billion by 2035, Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor said. “Our food and fibre exports are vital to New Zealand’s economic security. We’re focussed on long-term strategies that build on ...
25 cents per litre petrol excise duty cut extended to 30 June 2023 – reducing an average 60 litre tank of petrol by $17.25 Road User Charge discount will be re-introduced and continue through until 30 June Half price public transport fares extended to the end of June 2023 saving ...
The strong economy has attracted more people into the workforce, with a record number of New Zealanders in paid work and wages rising to help with cost of living pressures. “The Government’s economic plan is delivering on more better-paid jobs, growing wages and creating more opportunities for more New Zealanders,” ...
The Government is providing a further $1 million to the Mayoral Relief Fund to help communities in Auckland following flooding, Minister for Emergency Management Kieran McAnulty announced today. “Cabinet today agreed that, given the severity of the event, a further $1 million contribution be made. Cabinet wishes to be proactive ...
The new Cabinet will be focused on core bread and butter issues like the cost of living, education, health, housing and keeping communities and businesses safe, Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has announced. “We need a greater focus on what’s in front of New Zealanders right now. The new Cabinet line ...
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins will travel to Canberra next week for an in person meeting with Australian Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese. “The trans-Tasman relationship is New Zealand’s closest and most important, and it was crucial to me that my first overseas trip as Prime Minister was to Australia,” Chris Hipkins ...
The Government is providing establishment funding of $100,000 to the Mayoral Relief Fund to help communities in Auckland following flooding, Minister for Emergency Management Kieran McAnulty announced. “We moved quickly to make available this funding to support Aucklanders while the full extent of the damage is being assessed,” Kieran McAnulty ...
As the Mayor of Auckland has announced a state of emergency, the Government, through NEMA, is able to step up support for those affected by flooding in Auckland. “I’d urge people to follow the advice of authorities and check Auckland Emergency Management for the latest information. As always, the Government ...
Ka papā te whatitiri, Hikohiko ana te uira, wāhi rua mai ana rā runga mai o Huruiki maunga Kua hinga te māreikura o te Nota, a Titewhai Harawira Nā reira, e te kahurangi, takoto, e moe Ka mōwai koa a Whakapara, kua uhia te Tai Tokerau e te kapua pōuri ...
Carmel Sepuloni, Minister for Social Development and Employment, has activated Enhanced Taskforce Green (ETFG) in response to flooding and damaged caused by Cyclone Hale in the Tairāwhiti region. Up to $500,000 will be made available to employ job seekers to support the clean-up. We are still investigating whether other parts ...
The 2023 General Election will be held on Saturday 14 October 2023, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced today. “Announcing the election date early in the year provides New Zealanders with certainty and has become the practice of this Government and the previous one, and I believe is best practice,” Jacinda ...
Jacinda Ardern has announced she will step down as Prime Minister and Leader of the Labour Party. Her resignation will take effect on the appointment of a new Prime Minister. A caucus vote to elect a new Party Leader will occur in 3 days’ time on Sunday the 22nd of ...
The Government is maintaining its strong trade focus in 2023 with Trade and Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor visiting Europe this week to discuss the role of agricultural trade in climate change and food security, WTO reform and New Zealand agricultural innovation. Damien O’Connor will travel tomorrow to Switzerland to attend the ...
The Government has extended its medium-scale classification of Cyclone Hale to the Wairarapa after assessing storm damage to the eastern coastline of the region. “We’re making up to $80,000 available to the East Coast Rural Support Trust to help farmers and growers recover from the significant damage in the region,” ...
After four years, executive director Max Tweedie has stepped down from Auckland Pride. He tells Sam Brooks about shepherding the festival through a tumultuous few years, and where he’s going from here.This year’s Auckland Pride Festival is set to be the biggest one yet. Over the course of more ...
A flailing mayor was only the public face of a multifaceted flooding communications failure. Duncan Greive examines the mess, and asks what can be done to improve it.It’s a chilling timeline. Stuff’s Kelly Dennett catalogued, beat-by-beat, the 12 hours in which Auckland was pummelled by a catastrophic deluge, interspersing ...
The Dunedin branch of the Green Party has selected Francisco Hernandez as its candidate for the Dunedin electorate in this year’s general election. Francisco Hernandez was the Otago University Students Association President in 2013. He has held a number ...
Waitangi organisers are trying to push political leaders to the side at Sunday's pōwhiri, but Labour's deputy leader says it's not for them to decide who speaks. Te Tai Tokerau MP and Labour’s deputy leader, Kelvin Davis, says the Prime Minister will speak at Sunday’s pōwhiri at Waitangi, in defiance of local ...
Every weekday, The Detail makes sense of the big news stories. This week, we spoke to an aid worker who had made the trip to the war zone in Ukraine, looked at why Carmel Sepuloni was picked to be the new deputy prime minister, visited the flood-torn streets of Titirangi in West ...
Schools play an integral but often unrecognised and unacknowledged role in helping communities respond to and recover from disastersOpinion: Schools in Auckland and other flood-affected areas are about to re-open after a delayed start to the new school year. Students will return to school having experienced wide-ranging impacts. While some ...
A very short story for Waitangi weekend The pā is a lonely place nowadays. Gorse has marched on it like the British troops of old, consuming the hills and leaving the marae looking a bald patch on the head of the earth mother herself. Even the roads have worn thin, ...
This is The Detail's Long Read - one in-depth story read by us every weekend. This week, it's The School Away From School written by Bill Morris and published in NZ Geographic's January/February 2023 issue. You can find the entire article, with photos from Lottie Hedley, on the NZ Geographic website. One hundred years since its ...
COMMENTARY:By Kayt Davies in Perth I wasn’t good at French in my final year of high school. My classmates had five years of language studies behind them. I had three. As a result of my woeful grip on the language, I wrote a terribly bad essay in my final ...
RNZ Pacific Journalist Victor Mambor, who is the chief editor of the West Papuan newspaper and websiteJubi, has received the Oktovianus Pogau Award from the Indonesian-based Pantau Foundation for courage in journalism. The foundation’s Andreas Harsono said Mambor’s decision to return to his father’s homeland and defend the rights ...
RNZ News Green Party MP Chlöe Swarbrick is brushing off concerns a temporary rent freeze in flood-hit Auckland would just see landlords hike rents even more when the controls were lifted — arguing they should stay permanently. More than 20 organisations have signed a letter urging Minister for Auckland Michael ...
Iwi leaders have accused National and ACT of "fanning the flames of racism", urging the prime minister to be brave and not walk away from partnership on three waters. ...
About this time last week it had become apparent that Auckland was in for a bit more than just a wet Friday. While the state of emergency remains in place for another seven days, it appears the worst should now be behind us. Last night, Niwa shared a fascinating thread ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Hawkins, Senior Lecturer, Canberra School of Politics, Economics and Society, University of Canberra ShutterstockIndigenous Australians are respectfully advised that the following includes the names and images of some people who are now deceased. The Reserve Bank of Australia ...
The government has confirmed the money will be spent in Northland, including unlocking greenfields land and transport upgrades like a new bridge in Kamo. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gabrielle Appleby, Professor, UNSW Law School, UNSW Sydney Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed that sometime between August and November this year, the Australian people will go to a referendum for the first time since 1999. We’ll be asked whether we support ...
Viewers across the United States were today shown a slice of New Zealand, with a reporter for Good Morning America broadcasting live from Rotorua. Robin Roberts, a co-anchor for the popular morning TV show, has been touring the country this week. During her visit to Rotorua’s Te Puia centre, she ...
They can be environmentally unsound and are a symbol used to shame millennials, but everyone still loves an avo. I love avocados, always have, always will. The buttery golden-green flesh from a perfectly ripe avocado is a culinary blessing. Today I’d love to simply wax poetic about twisting open a ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin (Penguin Press, $50) The beautiful ...
A new poem by Robin Peace. To the kahikatea I see from my bed Thinking inside the square, the ellipse, the round of what life is, I only see the trees. Not only as if that were the only thing I see, but only as if the tree matters more. ...
A week ago, Elton John’s first Auckland show was called off at the last minute. What was it like getting there, being there, and trying to return home afterwards?Elton John has long been a blessing for our ears, but in recent years his Auckland shows have been cursed. His ...
For Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown, sorry seems to be the hardest word to say The mayoral chains must have been heavy this week for Auckland’s Wayne Brown, as his response to last week’s flood garnered its own veritable torrent of scandals and media scrutiny. Almost exactly one week on from ...
For Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown, sorry seems to be the hardest word to say The mayoral chains must have been heavy this week for Auckland’s Wayne Brown, as his response to last week’s flood garnered its own veritable torrent of scandals and media scrutiny. Almost exactly one week on from ...
Ours Not Mines is cautiously excited about reporting that the Government is drafting legislation to ban new mines on conservation land. The anti-mining group's spokesperson, Morgan Donoghue says: "The Government has been promising us some action for ...
People who enjoy the outdoors for recreation, fishing and hunting will lose rights under the Natural and Built Environments Bill. Fish & Game New Zealand chief executive Corina Jordan says the proposed replacement for the Resource Management ...
Auckland mayor Wayne Brown has conceded he “dropped the ball” during last Friday’s major flooding event. The state of emergency in the super city has today been extended for a further seven days, though Brown said he expects it will be lifted early. After a week of defensiveness over his ...
As the reality TV juggernaut returns for a new season, Tara Ward steps into the minds of the show’s relationship experts to assess the compatibility of this year’s brides and grooms. Married at First Sight: Australia returns on Monday night, and by season ten, you’d think the show’s relationship experts ...
Auckland’s state of emergency is expected to be extended for another seven days, according to the Herald. It was due to expire overnight after being declared a week ago, the day of the worst flooding in the super city. While weather conditions have improved, the city is continuing to experience ...
Proposed pay equity claim settlements for school librarians and science technicians have been reached between the Ministry of Education and NZEI Te Riu Roa, Secretary for Education, Iona Holsted and NZEI Te Riu Roa president, Mark Potter, announced ...
Members of NZEI Te Riu Roa negotiating on behalf of school librarians, library assistants and science technicians are excited to announce that proposed pay equity settlements are ready to be voted on by their colleagues. They include pay increases of up to ...
The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) is calling for Michael Wood, the Minister of Transport, and now Auckland, to cancel the light rail project immediately. Auckland Light Rail was never going to happen, as our group has repeatedly said dozens of ...
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has been asked to intervene following confirmation today that the Government plans to implement a ban on all extractive sector activities on the conservation estate. Wayne Scott, CEO of the Aggregate and Quarry Association, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexander Gillespie, Professor of Law, University of Waikato Getty Images The heated (and often confused) debate about “co-governance” in Aotearoa New Zealand inevitably leads back to its source, Te Tiriti o Waitangi. But, as its long-contested meanings demonstrate, very little ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Hunter, Lecturer in Art and Performance, Deakin University Jodie Hutchinson/Red StitchReview: Wittenoom, directed by Susie Dee, Red Stitch Deep in the remote Pilbara region of Western Australia, the town of Wittenoom lies empty, desolate … and contaminated. Wittenoom ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Oliver Bown, Postdoctoral fellow, UNSW Sydney Shutterstock The past few years have seen an explosion in applications of artificial intelligence to creative fields. A new generation of image and text generators is delivering impressiveresults. Now AI has also found ...
New Zealand’s egg shortage is hitting cruise ships too – forcing the crew of one vessel to hatch a poaching plan. This story was first published on Stuff. On the hunt for eggs, a crew from a luxury cruise ship got cracking and hatched a cunning plan. Earlier this week, Stuff ...
Now demolished, the First Church of Christ Scientist was a masterclass of architectural imagination. Kate Linzey visits the site on which it once stood, to learn more. The object is delicate and small. Small enough to sit in the palm of my hand and weighing less than 300 grams. It ...
When your food parcel arrives before the emergency alert, you know something’s not working properly.This is an excerpt from our weekly food newsletter, The Boil Up. I’ve spent the last week desperately and at times fruitlessly attempting to drain and then sweep my whānau home of knee-deep water, pull up ...
Drongo-gate continues for another day with the Herald reporting that Auckland’s mayor has been caught out using the slang term for a second time. It comes this time from a former minor mayoral candidate, Mike Kampkes, who said he received a message from Brown in response to a media release ...
How does Aotearoa stop relying so heavily on agriculture to prop up our economy? Online tax and accounting service Hnry just raised $35m to grow its software on-demand service across the globe. Bernard Hickey talks with AirTree partner Jackie Vullinghs about how venture capitalists are funding Aotearoa’s fastest growing, least-polluting ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adam Guastella, Professor and Clinical Psychologist, Michael Crouch Chair in Child and Youth Mental Health, University of Sydney Shutterstock With childcare and schools starting the new year, parents might be anxiously wondering how their child will adapt in a new ...
I am delighted to announce the appointment of John Price ONZM as the new Director Civil Defence Emergency Management and Deputy Chief Executive Emergency Management for the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA). John has been a member of the ...
Coromandel Watchdog of Hauraki are calling on the new Prime Minister and new Minister of Conservation Willow Jean Prime to immediately implement the 2017 promise to ban new mining activity on conservation lands. “ The mining industry group Straterra ...
How does Aotearoa stop relying so heavily on agriculture to prop up our economy? Online tax and accounting service Hnry just raised $35m to grow its software on-demand service across the globe. In the latest episode of When the Facts Change, Bernard Hickey talks with AirTree partner Jackie Vullinghs about how ...
There’s a fear that highlighting menopause will undermine women, especially at work. But what have centuries of secrecy achieved for us? Are you sick of hearing about menopause? Kim Hill is. The living legend of Aotearoa broadcasting told actor Robyn Malcolm (also a legend) on her Saturday Morning show on RNZ ...
Dunedin city council has reached an agreement to save Foulden Maar from commercial mining. The maar is the site of a crater lake from 23 million years ago with the diatomite of the lake preserving fossils and a climate record covering 100,000 years from that period. It is fantastic news for Otago University ...
Some are speculating whether the Auckland Mayor's leadership is circling the drain. James Elliott hopes they're right. There’s never been a week quite like it. It was the week when the rains came. All of them. Even the rain from Spain that was supposed to fall mainly on the plain, came. ...
The Bus and Coach Association supports the Government’s decision to continue half-price fares on public transport services. The fare reduction was set to expire on 31 March 2023, but will now continue to 30 June 2023. “Half-price fares have cost ten-times ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards. Political Roundup: Hipkins’ bread and butter reshufflePolitical scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. Prime Minister Chris Hipkins continues to be the new broom in Government, re-setting his Government away from its problem areas in his Cabinet reshuffle yesterday, and trying to convince voters that Labour is focused ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards. Political Roundup: Chris Hipkins hires a lobbyist to run the BeehiveNew Zealand Prime Minister, Chris Hipkins, speaking when Minister of Education, at NZEI Te Riu Roa strike rally on the steps of the New Zealand Parliament, 15th August 2018. Image; Wiki Commons. New Zealand is ...
New Zealand Politics Daily is a collation of the most prominent issues being discussed in New Zealand. It is edited by Dr Bryce Edwards of The Democracy Project. Items of interest and importance todayCO-GOVERNANCE, WAITANGI, THREE WATERS Chris Trotter (Daily Blog): Blowing Off The Froth: Why Chris Hipkins Must Ditch ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brian Tweed, Senior lecturer, Massey University Shutterstock/Renata Apanaviciene As we approach another Waitangi Day, we should be thinking again about what Te Tiriti o Waitangi means. As the late Moana Jackson commented, the meaning of Te Tiriti will be ...
Even prime ministers get caught in bad weather. It’s a week on from the devastating flooding that hit Auckland and Northland and Chris Hipkins has been forced to drive north for the start of Waitangi weekend commemorations after his plan was turned away from Kerikeri airport (twice). Today will see ...
Less than a year ago, co-governance had a future, at least as potentially accepted terminology. Now some iwi leaders want the label removed and replaced, 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. ...
“The decision by the Reserve Bank of Australia to not replace the late Queen with Charles on the Aussie $5 note should indicate to our Reserve Bank that it’s time to change the NZ $20 note” said Lewis Holden, campaign chair of New ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christian Wolf, Associate Professor, Astronomy & Astrophysics, Australian National University Somchat Parkaythong/Shutterstock Black holes are bizarre things, even by the standards of astronomers. Their mass is so great, it bends space around them so tightly that nothing can escape, even ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laura Revell, Associate Professor in Environmental Physics, University of Canterbury Getty Images The ozone layer is on track to heal within four decades, according to a recent UN report, but this progress could be undone by an upsurge in rocket ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Clune, Honorary Associate, Government and International Relations, University of Sydney At the New South Wales election on March 25 a 12-year-old Coalition government will be seeking re-election. Hoping to return as premier is Liberal leader Dominic Perrottet – a political conservative ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James Trauer, Associate Professor, Monash University Anastelfy/Shutterstock The XBB.1.5 subvariant, known informally as “Kraken”, is the latest in a menagerie of Omicron subvariants to dominate the headlines, following increasing detection in the United States and United Kingdom. But there ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Madeline Combe, Doctoral student, University of Technology Sydney Shutterstock As the economist Herman Daly pithily said, the economy is a wholly owned subsidiary of the environment – not the reverse. Nature makes our lives possible through what scientists call ecosystem ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Jefferson, Lecturer in Education, Edith Cowan University Shutterstock Grit. Don’t quit. That’s the mantra many parents may have in mind when they, like me, spend what feels like years ferrying children to a seemingly endless variety of sports and ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Humphery-Jenner, Associate Professor of Finance, UNSW Sydney Sam Shere/Wikimedia Commons A few weeks ago, Gautam Adani was indisputably India’s richest man. Now his fortune is slipping away as the stocks of his many companies crash, thanks to the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Divna Haslam, Senior Research Fellow, Queensland University of Technology Shutterstock Have you ever found yourself scrolling through social media and noticed you felt a bit down? Maybe a little envious? Why aren’t you on a yacht? Running a startup? Looking ...
The science of ‘event attribution’ is growing, with researchers working to accelerate their assessments. A leading NZ climate scientist tells Toby Manhire how it works, how climate change impacted the ‘off the chart’ weekend downpours, and why we can’t put a number on it tomorrow. Brutal, unexpected, record-breaking, destructive, tragic. ...
Those lockdown vibes are back – and maybe they never really went away. We were supposed to be organised. For a while there, we were. A uniform, purchased across a frenzied weekend dashing between specialist stores, was spread out over our son’s bed. Tags removed, shirts folded, socks in balls, ...
Establishing a Truth, Reconciliation and Justice Commission and recognising Māori tino rangatiratanga are among several recommendations in two pivotal reports released today (Friday 3 February) by Te Kāhui Tika Tangata Human Rights Commission. The ...
James Shaw says his Labour colleagues need to work with him to plug the emissions gap created by extending the fuel tax cuts Less than a week after a climate-fuelled storm laid waste to wide swathes of Auckland, the Government resurrected fossil fuel subsidies in the form of an extension ...
Jacinda Ardern was treated like royalty at Waitangi with people coming from near and far to see her every February. Newly minted Prime Minister Chris Hipkins isn’t a familiar face in the Far North and will have his work cut out this weekend, writes political editor Jo Moir.Analysis: About ...
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Morrissey will be re-connected to Aotearoa-New Zealand as of tomorrow. Oh boy, how we have missed him!
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/124138004/aucklands-northcote-point-ferry-services-resume-after-two-and-a-half-year-wharf-closure
Yes we do, it's always nice have a little more balance in the conversation, which many find him good for encouraging.
It was a message to and for the man himself who’s been chomping at the bit to be allowed back on the field ploughing his favourite tracks. As long as he keeps his tracks straight and narrow, he’ll do just fine here with likeminded ploughers. You’ll be pleased to know he’ll be back tomorrow.
I enjoy Morrissey's 'the panel' rundowns. Yes, he embellishes but more often than not there's a grain of truth in his descriptions.
I gave up on the panel a long time ago because I was fed up with the "bob each way" attitude of the hosts, plus most of their guests. There were some exceptions eg. Joe Bennett who was a breath of fresh air but I don't think he participates any more.
We have.
And if one finds his linking to his own blog tiresome there's never any compulsion on anyone to read it.
His bullshit metre is far more attuned than many I believe.
I should, um, be so lucky as to have Morrissey's sense of humour and, ahhh, fun.
Hur, hur, hur, hur…
You may want to read the Policy, particularly the section on link-spamming. In addition, there’s case history that you seem to be unaware of.
National still whinging about slow vaccine roll out when GSK are saying they are developing a vaccine that will be effective against different variants.
Inadvertently found myself watching TV One's Breakfast show simultaneously with RNZ's Morning report. The currently standard question was wheeled out concerning the vaccine by both outlets – "what about people who refuse?" No mention of the more important problem that will inevitably hit with the vaccine roll-out – premature calls from National and 'business' to open everything up too early, thus putting at risk those still unvaccinated. Countering this coming avalanche of tripe is going to take up all Ardern's time and ability.
On the topic of the vaccination rollout, my tolerance level towards the anti-vaxxers has expired. They are scaring people away from vaccines in general and the Covid vaccines in particular. It's got to stop.
The softly, softly approach involving education and informing them is hogwash. Most of them are beyond rational comprehension.
Now is the time to enforce some form of punishment because they pose a real danger to the community. Denying them employment opportunities on the grounds they refuse to be vaccinated for Covid would be a good starting point.
If someone has been offered a free vaccine and they decline (without good medical reason), then I'd be all for charging them the full cost of all medical expenses incurred in treating them should they subsequently get the disease. Plus all the expenses for those they go on to infect.
For all vaccine-preventable diseases, not just covid.
Yes – beat me to it Andre.
I think punishment is looking at it the wrong way. There really isn't a problem while we retain strict border controls and MIQ / Isolation. When the vaccination programme is completed there will be a group of people not vaccinated with medical exemption, and a (hopefully small) group who have refused vaccination. As we relax border controls there will be concern about the period of effectiveness of the vaccine, but also concern about the possibility of new strains developing that may be partially resistance to the vaccine. Those who have not been vaccinated are effectively our coalmine canaries – they are more likely to become infected. In that scenario it may be reasonable to require them to be tested – public health experts would need to determine the frequency, but I would expect once a week to be not too intrusive while giving a reasonably early indication of community infection. In the event of community transmission, they may need to be isolated – again health experts would be able to determine such requirements on a scientific basis.. We do need to remember to be kind – most are likely to be victims of mis-information, and if there are now adverse side effects from the vaccine I would expect the number refusing the vaccine to reduce over time.
Some vaccine refusers are on the grounds of the vaccine being an unwanted and perceived to be unnecessary medical procedure. I'll hazard a guess many of those would refuse testing on the same grounds.
I think punishment is looking at it the wrong way.
Rubbish, Ed. Put the refusers up against the wall! Make an example of a few and the others will fall into line quick smart!
We do need to remember to be kind … 'kind' be damned! No room for kindness in this Apocalyptic world! For the Good of Society we must make the hesitant submit!
Interesting, don't you think, that Governments worldwide appear to be channeling Pilate and leaving the mandating of the experimental vaccines for Covid 19 up to employers. I guess Votes count more than actual leadership.
Even here in Godzone much of the discussion is about how NZBORA will protect an individuals right to bodily autonomy when balanced with the Public Good.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/435569/covid-19-strong-argument-for-mandatory-vaccination-for-some-workers-law-expert
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/2018782231/air-nz-boss-reflects-on-tumultuous-year-in-charge
At around 4.26 minutes Foran is asked about the vaccine and whether Air NZ would demand employees be vaccinated. He hedges.
Retirement industry leader has no such qualms. Even in the complete absence of an available vaccine… .https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/retirement-village-operator-arvida-group-adopts-strict-new-covid-jab-hiring-policy/ATKEJO5FL7PFYMQGLRL753A4PA/ … confirmed anyone joining the workforce in any of its 32 facilities across the country would need to consent to be inoculated against the deadly virus.
A bit silly really, leaving it up to employers to mandate these vaccines, as this is conveniently playing into one of the more extreme narratives of the weird Covid Conspiracy Club that this is all about The Corporations Taking Over.
But what is not being widely discussed is the fact that a considerable number of frontline medical staff are rejecting the Covid 19 vaccines.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jan/10/coronavirus-covid-19-vaccine-hesitancy-us-health-workers
Not just in the US… https://www.ft.com/content/c576e15f-e5b1-4369-a5f0-073b4466036f [deleted spurious text that included an e-mail address, FFS – Incognito]
A poll released in mid-December caused surprise in Germany — the country that has been at the forefront of the race for a vaccine with biotech company BioNTech — by showing that half of surveyed nurses did not want to be vaccinated, along with a quarter of doctors. Those worries came back to the fore this week when the head of one German state said only a third of healthcare workers in his state were willing to get the jab.
We will not escape this 'irrationality' here, as some of our frontline medical staff already have 'form' in this area.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/unvaccinated-nurses-who-refused-flu-jabs-sent-home/PGLBECDRJ2VRG3R2QFH7CWJNNQ/
Luckily we have people like Anne and Andre who will be more than happy to force these very experimental vaccines on their fellow Kiwis who choose the precautionary approach.
MedSafe has now approved the Pfizer vaccine as safe.
No rush to roll it out, since we are in about the best pandemic position in the world.
The whole point of not rushing out the vaccine is trust. At the moment, trust in the government is sky-high. That is why acceptance rates for the vaccine in NZ are running at 75-80%. Why blow that trust, and risk a European level of distrust (only 40% of French people will have the vaccine shot) if we have the luxury of time to take people with us?
actually i don't have an issue with a nurse who refuses to get a work mandated jab to be sent home.
She gets the right to refuse a jab, and her workplace gets the right to refuse unjabbed people at the work place.
See, both have a choice. As for the nurse, she can always try and get a job where vaccinations are not required.
Sabine. How about being the first regular commentator here on TS to ask themselves why a trained medical professional would risk all by refusing a vaccine?
Think about it. Trained medical professionals refusing a common vaccine (like the annual flu jab) and/or a brand new experimental vaccine for a novel viral disease. And trained medical professionals who have spent much of the past year in the Covid trenches.
One third of healthcare staff in a particular German state willing to get the jab.
Think about that.
That just shows how effective scaremongering can be. Even when all the facts and evidence shows there's negligible risk to be concerned about.
What is it about 'trained medical professionals' you are not understanding Andre?
These are not the ignorant and uneducated hoi polloi (although as a supposed Leftie that group should be your first consideration
).
These are those professionals who have been in the Covid trenches for a year now.
Refusing the vaccine.
You must be able to do better than merely trotting out the same tired, old lines.
Or do you believe that almost half of the doctors and nurses working in Germany are ignorant fuckwits?
Steve Brandenburg is a trained medical professional.
/
https://lawandcrime.com/crime/pharmacist-who-sabotaged-covid-19-vaccines-allegedly-believed-sky-was-shield-to-stop-people-from-seeing-god-fbi/
Of course! That proves it then! Almost half of the medical professionals in Germany are nutbars!
(Rolls eyes. Beats head on desk. Despairs of any reasoned or rational conversation to be had on this issue.)
meh.
There are lots of "trained medical professionals" and other super-smart folks who have nutty ideas of one flavour or another. Most of the time these nutty ideas are inconsequential.
There might even be some doctors who still smoke. Does that mean smoking is safe, or the data attributing 90% of lung cancers to smoking is significantly flawed? Nope. But I think you'll find the smoking rate is signficantly lower amongst "trained medical professionals" than the general population.
Likewise, I think you'll find vaccine hesitancy is lower among "trained medical professionals" than in the general population. A tiny minority of people with nutty ideas does not make a consensus of opinion amongst industry professionals, be it medicine or engineering.
I think you'll find vaccine hesitancy is lower among "trained medical professionals" than in the general population
I provided actual links McFlock. Perhaps you could trouble yourself to support your assertions?
For example… https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/124119830/coronavirus-vaccine-hesitancy-will-fade-as-more-information-comes-to-light–experts
The nearly one million New Zealanders who are hesitant about vaccinations should have their fears eased as more information about Covid-19 vaccinations comes to light, experts say.
That's about 20%. One fifth. 1/5.
2/3 of healthcare workers in one German state refused the vaccine.
Go figure. Please.
4 out of how many nurses refused the flu jab in your article?
And what was the surveyed hesitancy in the general german pop vs german "medical professionals"?
@McFlock. In the absence of a reply button.
4 out of how many nurses refused the flu jab in your article?
Must be a real handicap…not being able to look stuff up for yourself. However…https://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/worker-fired-over-hospitals-hardline-vaccination-policy/E52E2A3Z2NXGKJBMKYBW4YSKXE/
Of course you will remember the infamous Nigel Murray…DHB CEO extrordinaire? He came down all hard arse when he assumed the mantle of responsibility for the Waikato DHB…just had to raise the 53% flu jab rate from 2014 to the 75% quoted in the article from 2015. Makes a good read…has opinions from doctors, unions and the like about bullying and respecting and valuing staff.
And what was the surveyed hesitancy in the general german pop vs german "medical professionals"?
You poor thing McFlock…so, well, incapable.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jan/22/covid-vaccine-acceptance-rising-across-europe-but-falling-in-parts-of-asia
(There's a graph with colour and everything.
)
So it looks like 4 out of roughly 3,000 refused flu jabs, of which only one (who was not a clinician) was fired.
As for the yougov tracker results of 22 Jan (the guardian article), That seems to show Germans overall increasing acceptance of covid vaccines to well over a majority.
Much googling for your "2/3 of healthcare workers in one German state refused the vaccine " seems to have found only tangential references like this:
So is it 2/3 of all healthcare workers, or is it half of nurses and a quarter of doctors?
Because it seems that the German-wide results show nurses have about the same hesitancy as the general pop (yougov had it at ~50 in dec, data of the Irishtimes data) and doctors had a hesitancy rate of half that.
Gosh, it's almost as if the more medical knowledge one has, the less likely one is to "refuse" a vaccine.
Is that cos they've already caught it?
"How about being the first regular commentator here on TS to ask themselves why a trained medical professional would risk all by refusing a vaccine?"
I have some questions, Rosemary.
I'm presuming you asked yourself that question: what was your answer?
Also, if we are to give credence to those people because they are trained medical professionals, what are we to think of the position taken by the other trained medical professionals; those who believe the vaccine to be necessary?
Thanks.
…why a trained medical professional would risk all by refusing a vaccine?
I know that in relation to the flu vaccine, the incidence of people becoming very ill after having the jab is so high that it has almost a given that a surprisingly high number of recipients will 'get as sick as they have ever been' within days of being vaccinated.
The research to support the safety of the flu vaccine is there for all to read…https://blogs.bmj.com/bmj/2019/03/13/richard-smith-who-is-most-likely-to-have-side-effects-to-flu-vaccination/… (/sarc since you probably won't read the article) and in the absence such hard 'evidence' medical professionals have to fall back on what they know best. Observations of themselves and their colleagues and patients. If you have not met anyone Robert, who can relate a "I'm never having another flu vaccine' tale, then I suspect you have been living a lonely existence in a deep cave. I am close to someone who has been eligible for a free flu shot since forever because of significant physical disability who has never been pressured to avail themselves. Even after having treatment for leukaemia. His GP and other doctors he has seen over the years have never once questioned his flu vaccine free status. I personally have observed at least half the residents of an elder care facility become very ill a few days after a mass flu vaccination session. A ridiculous number died. The oldies who refused the vaccine remained well. And so on.
Of course there are other reasons why nurses refuse flu shots. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5410084/ This makes for a good read…considering they note a 4-40% uptake of flu vaccines in the studied populations.
… if we are to give credence to those people because they are trained medical professionals, what are we to think of the position taken by the other trained medical professionals; those who believe the vaccine to be necessary?
You make a very good and valid point there Mr Guyton. I guess it comes down to personality, life experience and our right to reach our own conclusions based on the same 'evidence' and learnings received by those who choose the other path.
For instance…two people might attend the exact same degree course in agriculture or horticulture, achieve similar grades and have, after the same amount of time, attained similar levels of success in their subsequent careers.
One farms conventionally using agrichemicals and externally sourced fertilizers and imported feed such as palm kernel. Makes a profit. The other farms organically, perhaps bio -dynamically, and operates a completely self contained system. Also makes a profit.
Both of them 'believe' they are farming correctly.
We could extrapolate this metaphor and discuss the relative sustainability of each system…but maybe another time?
I don't know…and I have given this much thought over the years having come from a medical family. I do know that merely dismissing and disrespecting others for their differing viewpoints is not conducive to progress.
QFT
Nice one, respectful and not at all dismissive.
I am sure Mr Guyton won't choose to take it personally. After all, he's proven himself to be perfectly capable of apparent disrespect and dismissiveness when defending his particular point of view. Any one who can spend the best part of a couple of days publicly defending his hero's shameful support of an elitist private school can handle a gentle jibe or two. Surely?
i have.
and i stand by my comment.
she does not have to get jab, and her boss does not have to keep her hired.
Punishment has been shown to be a poor incentive and wont address the problem.
In fact the threat of punishment will have the anti vaxers screaming from the hill tops that their civil rights have been infringed.
You don't shut them down or threaten them, you make sure you're louder than they are.
Actually I think you do shut them down – better not to let their stupidity infect others, or pretend that their position is tenable.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/opinion/114832273/jim-hubbard-cartoons
How can you tell who is anti-vax? Just say something critical about anti-vaxxers and wait for all the people to claim they're "not anti-vax, but … "
I'm not saying every version of vaccine scepticism is automatically outrageous – but a number are being exploited, notably by the likes of Billy TK, to mislead and radicalize vulnerable people on grounds as specious as nanite tracking devices, Gates or Soros world domination schemes, and apparently pedo rings.
These may be discarded without regret in the same way unsupported allegations are wont to be moderated in this forum.
For anyone looking for actual info on what's been happening in terms of side effects and vaccine reactions, the USA Today piece below is a pretty good summary.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2021/01/28/covid-19-vaccines-cdc-safety-data-pfizer-moderna-coronavirus/4281434001/
tl;dr At the time the article was written, at least 22 million Americans had received at least one dose of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine. Pfizer and Moderna are both the newfangled mRNA vaccines that have never been used before in either humans or animals AFAIK.
Of direct reactions that can reasonably be directly attributed to the vaccine, the worst were 50 cases of anaphylactic shock, all of whom rapidly recovered.
There are some reports of people getting rare diseases or dying from rare causes shortly after receiving the vaccination, but the rates of these incidences appear to be lower in the week or month after getting the vaccination than the normal background rate of how many random people would be expected to get those diseases in any given week or month. Just like the scare stories of very elderly Norwegian nursing home residents dying shortly after getting vaccinated, but it turns out that if anything, the death rate after vaccination is similar or possibly even lower than the normal death rate of those nursing home residents.
So, 22 million examples of people getting vaccinated against covid and the worst that can reasonably said is 50 cases of anaphylactic shock that rapidly recovered. The close comparison is 27 million Americans diagnosed with covid so far, of whom over 460,000 have died and nobody has even tried to work out how are long term disabled from long covid.
Nor is there even the slightest hint of there being any kind of common vaccination side effect that takes a longer time period to show up.
how do you tell the anti-vaxxers from other people who don't vaccinate? Or remove livelihoods from all?
There is always going to be level of un-vaccinated and there is always going to be at least 10% of those who are vaccinated, who are not protected.
Those people will be at risk when the border opens and consequently people will die.
Closing the borders was Jacinda's easy decision. Reopening them, and with it, exposing at the very least, 10% of our population to the virus and potential death, is going to be a much much bigger decision for her.
I would imagine that incomers who can prove that they have been vaccinated would not need to be quarantined when the borders open. Those who are not vaccinated would still have to quarantine . Right ?
After all those in NZ that want to be vaccinated have been vaccinated, yes, that would be a reasonable position IMO.
That's probably a good solution. It will still be exposing 10% of the population to the virus
"6.8 percent of the working-age population receiving JS as at the end of December 2020"
https://www.msd.govt.nz/documents/about-msd-and-our-work/publications-resources/statistics/benefit/2020/benefit-fact-sheets/benefit-fact-sheets-snapshot-december-2020.pdf
Another day in New Zealand 2021:
Unemployment down to 4.9%, underemployment down, more people off benefits, Maori employment up:
https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA2102/S00014/employment-rises-on-back-of-strong-economy.htm
A record number of new houses consented in the last quarter:
https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU2102/S00052/record-number-of-new-homes-consented-in-december-quarter-media-release.htm
The dairy payout is going for $7 per kilo of milk solids:
https://www.ruralnewsgroup.co.nz/rural-news/rural-general-news/dream-start-for-dairy-prices
Medsafe have approved the Pfizer vaccine, even though we're in such good public health condition that there's no pressure to roll it out:
https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA2102/S00019/pfizer-vaccine-good-news-but-where-is-it.htm
The Climate Commission's proposals are welcomed as good for us, achievable and affordable:
https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA2101/S00095/climate-change-targets-achievable-and-affordable-experts-say.htm
And while the National Party still struggle to rebuild themselves, this Labour government continues to ride high:
https://www.roymorgan.com/findings/8629-nz-national-voting-intention-january-2021-202102010459
"Unemployment down to 4.9%, underemployment down, more people off benefits, Maori employment up:"
and yet…
"As at the end of December 2020, the number of working-age people on Jobseeker Support increased by 44.1 percent, compared with the December 2019 quarter. The proportion of working-age people receiving JS has been increasing since the December 2017 quarter."
https://www.msd.govt.nz/documents/about-msd-and-our-work/publications-resources/statistics/benefit/2020/benefit-fact-sheets/benefit-fact-sheets-snapshot-december-2020.pdf
Think a Mark Twain quote is in order
For women the unemployment % is 5.4 % vs men 4.5%. An increase of 0.9%. But i guess its ok.
In the year to the December 2020 quarter, there were 25,000 more unemployed people:
https://www.stats.govt.nz/information-releases/labour-market-statistics-december-2020-quarter
then per Pats link above 12.6 % of working age people receive 'a' benefit of sorts. That would 389.000 odd people in Dec 20 up from Dec 19 which was 314.000 odd people.
As at the end of December 2020, the number of working-age people on Jobseeker Support increased by 44.1 percent, compared with the December 2019 quarter. The proportion of working-age people receiving JS has been increasing since the December 2017 quarter.
It really just depends how one reads these stats….right?
Houses consented ain't houses build. We discussed that already during the Key times when the then government regularly touted the consented builds as a proof of something. How many of these consented buildings will result in affordable houses?
Medsafe approving a vaccine that seems to work is the smartest thing they can do, just because we don't have a full breakdown now, does not mean we will have one in the future. Again, anyone thinking that this is over needs to readjust their thinking. We have just started. So yeah, approve the vaccine, get it in with a bit more urgency and start vaccinating please. As for us not needing it, so far we have been several times lucky that he virus did not escape managed isolation. How many more times do you think we will get lucky?
The labour party riding high today means nothing come election day in 2.5 years. Seriously. Ditto with the Nats. Who will take over from J.A? The same suits that could not win an election before they pushed her out?
Sure, but …
https://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/homed/real-estate/124150087/record-building-consents-reaching-levels-that-could-surpass-their-1970s-heyday
The Medsafe approval is provisional.
This may be of interest
"Note: Late last year Auckland Council discovered there were serious errors in its reporting system which had the effect of significantly overstating the number of Code Compliance Certificates it was issuing for new dwellings. The errors have now been corrected, but their effect has been that earlier estimates of Auckland's new housing supply were overstated, which meant estimates of the region's housing shortfall were understated. The article above and the graph below are based on the corrected data."
https://www.interest.co.nz/property/108816/more-1000-new-homes-month-were-built-auckland-year-november-and-numbers-are-rising
And are we still issuing work visas for such skilled occupations as call centre workers?
Dont know but we are for readylawn layers
NZ's balance of payments have been recording surpluses during the pandemic, largely due to the halting of international travel and the subsequent stopping the outflow of cash on holidays and jet fuel. meanwhile, unemployment has FALLEN despite the crippled tourism and tertiary education sectors.
So my questions are – has NZ been living beyond it's means with all that cheap travel for the middle class? And would we be better off in terms of our environment and economic resilience if we made international travel a much, much more expensive thing?
Its important to understand what these payment shifts are doing. Its also important to understand that they record aggregate behaviour not the actions of a coherent economic entity.
The balance of payments shift records the NZers working for overseas payments vs those paying for things overseas. This increases income going to NZers. But its the overall increase in GDP which drives unemployment and the major shift in spending is the governments large scale support for the economy which has most supported increased NZ savings rates (savings, like balance of payments, subtract from GDP) with stable employment.
On the other hand was any group living beyond its means, no the people most causing the overseas payments appear to have the ability to pay, and the export sector was not earning enough to make it up was occurring. But that situation can and has occurred to countries for decades and appears economically viable in many cases (including in New Zealand).
Maybe there is a case to be made for less access to air travel, but its not an economic case.
Great news, our family and many others will now benefit as we will no longer need to donate time and services to our local food bank. The Otara budget service, Sallys etc you are now not needed.
Those homeless will now be able to live in a new house consent.
The government can now take a holiday as there is nothing for them to do. 🥳
The name Justin Bergman will be known as one of the stupidest people in NZ.
Justin Bergman accused of invading race track at Wellington Cup Day – NZ Herald
I would have liked to see the jockeys giving him a good thrashing on their way past.
No name suppression for this chap. Wonder why? Hasn't even entered a plea.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/124054407/alleged-hell-hacker-accused-of-cracking-online-pizza-ordering-website
No name suppression for the bloke in my comment 6 above either.
But…. permanent name suppression and no conviction when guilty of killing someone.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/124138932/businessman-escapes-conviction-after-fatal-crash-that-killed-north-canterbury-father
Justice is blind. Yeah, right
A sequel to [day before] yesterday's court appearance by someone who claims to not be a legal entity, lol.
So today (unclear whether she was actually arrested or appeared via her own means) she was again in the court, the judge established her identity (albeit somewhat informally), and entered a not guilty plea based on previous documentation.
Preliminary appearance out of the way, court date for trial set for a couple of months later, and the system moves inexorably forward.
Hopefully she gets an actual lawyer between now and then.
She's just a 'vessel', huh? Cue Nikes and trackpants for the next comet that swings by. Not sure how to arrange the $5.75 in the pocket in NZ, maybe an American fiver and three quarters will be just fine.
Awesome to get another public holiday next year. Big ups there Prime Minister.
And also great to see that like Easter it will be set around its own calendar rather than the Gregorian.
Nice to have the PM grant a public holiday on ones birthday! Feel rather honoured.
All class.
/
Also need to know that AOC has been the subject of many death threats.
Who knew.
Tax cuts for the wealthy have long drawn support from conservative lawmakers and economists who argue that such measures will "trickle down" and eventually boost jobs and incomes for everyone else. But a new study from the London School of Economics says 50 years of such tax cuts have only helped one group — the rich.
The new paper, by David Hope of the London School of Economics and Julian Limberg of King's College London, examines 18 developed countries — from Australia to the United States — over a 50-year period from 1965 to 2015. The study compared countries that passed tax cuts in a specific year, such as the U.S. in 1982 when President Ronald Reagan slashed taxes on the wealthy, with those that didn't, and then examined their economic outcomes.
Per capita gross domestic product and unemployment rates were nearly identical after five years in countries that slashed taxes on the rich and in those that didn't, the study found.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/tax-cuts-rich-50-years-no-trickle-down/
Goddamned reality and its well-known liberal bias…
Clearly the tax cuts have not been big enough.
Exactly!
That's why Trumpy gave himself and Bozo and Musky an all, a bigly xmas pressy in 2017 which will trickle down sometime soon. Just like the best amazing and beautiful Health care programme.
It appears that Labour is on a path to transform Education in NZ to become more generalist, which is a good thing, in my opinion. However, it may be culling too much of the good stuff in their zest. The consultation process seems flawed according to some stakeholders and indeed, I seem to have missed the critical political debate. What’s going on?
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/education/124143562/in-an-age-of-digital-disinformation-dropping-level-1-media-studies-in-high-schools-is-a-big-mistake
According to some, one of the problems is a lack of “curriculum leadership” but not surprisingly, the MoE disputes this.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/435774/experts-urge-overhaul-of-school-system-following-falling-student-achievement
Changes to the history curriculum are the topic of Micky’s post today.