I awoke with that familiar sense of dread…after a nite of intertwined nightmares…featuring Peter's and Seymour…tying me in knots impossible to get out of…and constantly laughing at me ..and not in a nice way..
(Why can I no longer have the nice dreams I used to have..the rapture-ones…?)
To the bathroom…for the head-shave….I wish I hadn't started this bloody look..the upkeep is a killer…but like so much of my life now ..I am trapped ..I think I look like Mr potato-head…
Her indoors has my smoothy green (oh..!..the irony..!) breakfast ready…and the car is waiting..
My first hurdle of the day is meeting with Peter's and Seymour..(or as I call them ..pe-more..)..
God..!!.. it's tiresome…both of them constantly waving their dicks in the air.. trying to clamber on top of each other .. it's unsightly…
And this is my immediate future…
And the ministers they have foisted on me..(!)…have you seen these clowns..?…I wouldn't hire them to load suitcases on planes ..
I am enjoying wreaking tory havoc upon the lefty public servants..but it is those ministers I would like to fire..
And I have to work with them ..(!)
Well…I had the meeting…the usual bullshit went down…(They really loathe each other..)..and a new fear is solidifying within me ..(just what I need..!)
That is that Peter's wanted deputy p.m. job first…'cos he is planning to ensure his enemy has a much truncated go at the job..and he will pull the plug ..when he chooses ..bastard..!
He has this whole 'i've got a secret..vibe about him ..
I trust him as far as I could throw him…
Just got a new poll…it isn't good news…we are tanking..me especially…where is my bloody honeymoon..?..John promised me one..!
At this rate we will only be a one-term government ..and that is not long enough to do what I promised to the backers…(They didn't shell out $10 mill + for nothing..eh..?..they want their pay-day..their mines ..etc..)
Just finished question time…it didn't go well…nobody did what they are meant to..the pe-more ministers were their usual dismal selves…they were drowning..not waving..
(I have two and a half more years of this..?..it could make me wish for Peter's to pull the plug…so I can have another go ..)
And I hope that Parker doesn't take over from hipkins…he is too smart for his own good..with his bloody wealth tax/capital gains tax/land tax aspirations…he is the lefties lefty..and we can't have that..he would nail us…
And that has been my day… would you like it..?
I deserve a bigger pay raise than what I got..given what I have to put up with with pe-more. .
Like a lot of people, I was unimpressed with the government's announced intention of demanding 6.5 % public spending cuts across the board. If anything, some areas need strengthening. For example, we need more ICU capacity in hospitals. If there was a good reason for locking down the entire country, it was our lack of 1st world-level ICU capacity. See here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_hospital_beds
Oh dear, you moved to the country side from the big smoke for some peace and tranquility and now you’re upset with country folks who do country stuff. How about you try to get on with your neighbours, they may reciprocate with roast duck for dinner.
Weka..Duck numbers aren't a problem because of the annual shoot. Without the cull numbers would be a problem. There would be overpopulation and skinny hungry ducks. Its very tightly studied and controlled. Mallards 1 month, parries 2 months, pheasants 3 montgs. And to illustrate overpopulation Canada geese are no longer game birds and can be hunted all year by any means eg rifle or bow and arrow. I've just returned from a morning missing ducks with my two daughters. I think that will be their only 0530 start this season. I think they just wanted to be like their friends who play dress up with mums and dads, take thermos and bacon and egg pie. .its great being outdoors and gives my thumbs a rest from usual weekend trapping mishaps. Next weekend will be quieter for everyone.
Google harridan and you immediately see why. Tender males all over the nation will have absorbed her performance, done a collective shudder at the prospect of contagion, staring down the barrel of a future in which it becomes a fashion trend, like possums frozen in the headlights. You'd expect some females on the committee too though – perhaps they did a runner out of solidarity with the others?
Spinoff's editor spotted the opportunity to be erudite:
Genter walked across the house and stood over Matt Doocey, a National MP who, in addition to being associate transport minister is also the first minister for mental health – a position he pitched partly due to his own struggles. He has been very public about these, in a way which is strikingly copacetic with the Greens’ general “bring your whole self to work” philosophy. To cross the floor like that and stand yelling over anyone was incredibly strange, but Doocey was a particularly poor choice of target.
She was doing dominance/submission, which has always been the core of Nat ethos. Nats always come in two types: the dominant and the toadies. She had him pegged. Obviously he will complain to the privileges committee: "She hectored me, and my name's not Hector!" They will pronounce such othering totally unacceptable.
as far as I can see both the left and the right have hypocrites on this. Genter was wrong in what she did, she knows she was and she has apologised in parliament. I don't know if she has apologised to Doocey.
The lefties implying it's no big deal are doing the left a disservice, because it basically means we have no principles and we can be mean to the people we disagree with politically. What I don't understand is how people think that's going to end. If we establish that it's ok to be mean to those we disagree with, what do we think everyone else is going to do?
Yeah that's the impression created in the public mind. Could be she's been suffering some kind of pressure in her private life that made her slip out of character. The compounding effect though, of her spat with the florist woman, seems ominous.
Hard to see how an electorate MP can survive hostilities with one of her constituents becoming prime-time media feeding frenzy. Either Marama or Chloe ought to go & see the woman to figure out a solution that could prevail over the traffic-planning bureaucrats who created the problem.
The problem I have is they’ve said they’re not disputing the florist’s story and we can’t tell if that’s because of their internal process or because what JAG did was really that bad (the florist’s story reads to me as exaggerated, esp as she is known to be strongly anti-cycling or whatever)
The 'traffic planning bureaucrats' work in the context of political support. Reading some of the comments on TS in recent days from Wellingtonians, and media reports, it sounds as though there are serious problems with the way changes are being rolled out.
The trouble would seem to be that a lot of our city roads were put in place over a hundred years ago when horseback was a major means of transport, and there were very few cars around. The issues that we have today, relating to cycle lanes versus kerbside parking were simply not envisaged in those earlier times.
Absolutely! The street I live in was subdivided in 1905. Mostly villas, but the odd bungalow and "cottage". Sites of 330 to 350m2. Street is steep and narrow with parking on one side only. Many sites have no off street parking, some have only one space. It is a block from a major arterial route and was designed for working class accommodation, and for people who would walk, cycle, bus or tram into the CBD for employment. There was a neighbourhood shopping centre within walking distance.
As it is 1 stage to the CBD by bus we used to be infested with "hide and riders", but a P120 restriction with exemption for residents permits available has fixed that.
There is a cycleway/walkway at the bottom of the road which is part of a wider cycle network and is very well used. It had to be extended a few years ago because it was so popular.
…it sounds as though there are serious problems with the way changes are being rolled out
No doubt. It's hard to see how there couldn't be, especially when trying to retrofit a sane infrastructure to an insanely-designed city (I speak as an Aucklander.)
There's an old saying about breaking eggs to make an omelette. As one would expect, there's a double standard about the importance of different types of egg. A single business owner egg is a precious thing whose breakage is an atrocity that is shouted with horror from the rooftops – usually by the business owner themselves who is platformed assiduously by sympathetic media. But the public servant egg can be cracked in their thousands without much concern and even with glee in some quarters – because the process has been sold to the public as necessary and beneficial.
The politics of change is all about which omelettes get made and which eggs get broken. The CoC is doing this right now through the brutal application of raw power. The Green politics of just transition has to do better than that. It must show greater caritas. In that context, Green MP's blowing their stack is foolish and unhelpful.
Good comments. I am an Aucklander too, and what is happening in this city is anything but a 'just transition'. Consultation with local communities is opaque, at best. I have been to public meetings where people asking reasonable questions are ridiculed by transport planners and even local body politicians. I want to travel a pathway to less congestion, lower emissions and better alternative transport options, but the way this being imposed on Auckland (and from all reports Wellington) is causing deep division.
I'm inclined to agree. Progress can take many forms and for the mayor to ignore vested interests suggests she's aiming to be a one-termer. I normally oppose vested interests too but a local economy is a different context. One must be genuinely pro-people to succeed.
You can't just freeze out businesses in the CBD – that's a form of madness. The Green way is to be inclusive & work together to create a scheme that is win/win all around the table of stakeholders. Seems to me the mayor & Rongotai MP lack that Green authenticity. And from your link: “It was just very odd to be grabbed by a politician.” Any kiwi would feel that way!
So three strikes and she's out. The pattern is too strong to deny. The Greens will have to bite the bullet and create a minimised downside transition asap!
That is the truly ironic thing that the bluster and ramming things through without consultation has turned many of us who initially thought the concept of cycle lanes had something going for it, but lets discuss it further and aim for a win-win for WCC/cyclists and residents/cyclists, into fighting for the survival of our suburbs and the people who live there, who work at many of the jobs we don't do.
We value our little businesses here in the suburbs. They bring human scale and the village concept into our lives. We want them to succeed.
Certainly some of the local body politicians of yore of differing parties have more of the touch that signalled success than the Greens are currently showing.
I am not sure about political parties in local bodies. At the moment the Greens in WCC are using the
'application of raw power. The Green politics of just transition has to do better than that'. From AB
There has been precious little evidence of the concept of 'just transition'. Raw power I think has a fascination and the Greens are dancing so close to this flame that it is going to melt their wings. (just to mix several metaphors and a Greek legend)
I guess at base some of us were hoping for a change, a principled change but we've backed the wrong horses or perhaps the horses were wearing different colours from those we thought they were wearing.
I'm not a Green Party supporter, nor am I from the left of politics. However I have previously held them in high regard as principled and open. But they have morphed into a form of self-righteousness that IMHO is manifest in the recent behaviour of some of its parliamentarians. For all that, they hold a significant level of public support.
"survival of the suburbs and those who live there"
Jesus fucking wept! Hyperbole much?
Yes. I'm sure that a cycleway will cause everyone to either leave or commit mass suicide. Leaving Berhampore a smoking ruin haunted by the shades of lost souls moaning "once we had a car and could roam near and far, never more, never more! Cycle tyres now grind our bones and lycra and spokey dokies fill what once were our homes"
How's that for hyperbole?
Stop talking like you represent everyone in your suburb, it's an intellectually dishonest smoke screen for your desire to maintain the completely unsustainable status quo.
You seem totally oblivious to the enormous structural changes to retailing over the last decade.
You're a big fan of anecdotes, well my friends who run a very successful book store are much more worried about what the enormous loss of public service jobs will mean to their business than cycleways.
Covid forced them to change their business model and they thrived as result. Something little miss loading zone and yourself could learn from.
As a long standing member of my community and of the Residents Assn, member of many community groups I know that I have more knowledge of the workings of Berhampore as a community than you have. I'm certain of that. The groups I belong to get along well, we rarely tolerate rudeness though we do have and welcome thinkers.
If you look at my record you will note that far from wanting the status quo I am all for projects that will enhance the lives of residents and the environment.
Hence our work to move light industrial, so-called, businesses from Berhampore, to move the montrosity that was Athletic Park from our community, trees in streets, lower speed limits, the pull off lane near the Berhampore shops. We worked on/with height limits to new builds and we have some good looking shops in B'pore as a result. We worked with HNZC on the design of the social housing on Adelaide rd south of B'Pore.
Having been involved in the cycle way planning from earliest times you will need to do a bit better than grandstanding insults (and some pretty good cycle-related descriptors), to convince me that there are benefits to people losing access to close by parking.
The cases I am aware of where people will be affected are especially where they may be reliant on elder care, home cares, Meals on Wheels, living with mobility issues or families working multiple jobs. Not to mention tradies working on our lovely older houses or DIYers expecting the next delivery of Gib board or a bin.
One of the ideas that I gathered info on early on in the planning was the building/use of cycle ways in the planned town of Cromwell (planned by MWD after the inundation as part of the Clyde dam etc.)
At the time this was one of the few towns that had planned cycle ways. These made a point of not using main roads unless there was no option. They were planned specifically to minimise cars and bikes having to share the same space. The best examples were not linked to busy main roads but went along safer routes, including through nearby parks.
Particularly in Berhampore there was work done on off road options to skirt B'pore on the east & west. More practical on the west though
Unfortunately the bike lobby said it MUST, reason/s unknown, go along the narrow main roads despite the knowledge that people would/could lose access to their homes.
I am well aware of the changes to retail and also that communities wish to keep 'their' shops. I fail to see why the cycling lobby should be trying to put local shops out of business when with a bit of forethought/ fewer fixed ideas and goodwill they could remain fulfilling a function into the future.
My next move will be to an electric car as, despite what you say, the move is not to get people out of cars as a mode but to limit the use of fossil fuels. People can still have the benefits of travel but without fossil fuels. I get that batteries disposal is a problem but humans being innovative and creative we will solve this.
Public transport with its ability to move 80 or so people at a time should be getting a lion's share of transport monies. Same with rail for long distance. Move freight off roads back onto rail.
Or is your vision really to do without car-like transport modes? If so I'll probably buy shares in a candle making company as naughty electricity is bound to have you as a detractor. My brother in law will have room on his farm to breed some carthorses and we'll find a wheel-wright somewhere to make the wagon-wheels. Perhaps cyclists pulling wee trolleys like the Kaibosh bins could go around collecting the horse poo for gardens?
Perhaps you could also work on developing long life fresh flowers or convince people they don’t need flowers in their lives. Perhaps a nice bit of metal or a bike pump could be sent to mark graduation. Some long nails, a pump and one recycle scrunched up paper flower could make a great bridal bouquet. These have the benefit of not needing to be delivered in a timely fashion. Sure to catch on, not.
Many people love flowers and receiving them. Why should she be put out of business? What actually do the flower lovers get out of it if she is forced to go?
As you've kicked all this off on the Genter post, lets fucking go…
Especially with your snide little quip about politeness and thinking. You've demonstrated neither quality from the start.
I stand by my comments that you are in fact a grand old dame. You reek of blind privilege and your lack of self awareness is truly astonishing. You remind me of Felicity Wong – The "heritage expert" who decries new builds on aesthetic considerations even though she is legally blind. She admitted that to me when I dealt with her in a professional capacity. It was eye opening – Ha fucking ha!
I have attended many transport consultations and community board meetings throughout New Zealand so I know the demographic that shows up. Pakeha silverbacks with too much time on their hands, wanting to protect their property values and keep their privilege and convenience. Thats how I recognise you for what you are.
You have no understanding of traffic networks or urban planning. You really exposed yourself with the ridiculous comment asking that cyclists take the long way or risk their lives if they want to use arterial routes and the destinations that they connect to. It's no wonder that the local officials don't listen to you – you're ignorant and have no idea what you’re talking about. I'm embarrassed for you.
Buying an electric car are we? Thought the only thing we could afford was a Film Soc membership. Bit of a slip there wasn't it? Oh dear…
Cool little strawman calling me a luddite – allow me to respond.
You don't care if children and adults get killed or injured when cycling for travel or recreation. In fact, you'd like to see more of them killed and injured near the hospital – At least it will be easy to tidy up the mess I guess. Shame about the grief and trauma, but the flowers MUST get through.
You care more for flowers, which will rot, just like you, than people.
I think you're being exploited by little miss private loading bay – She knows a lonely old lady when she sees one and is happy listen to you rabbit on and will say anything to get your money. Are you sure you're not the victim of elder abuse?
Or is she bribing you with flowers to get you on side? Are you corrupt? Bribed with flowers – wouldn't that be a turn up for the books!
Your claims to politeness are a facade. You might say they're compromise-d… get it? Probably not, you don't seem very good at joining the dots – typical kiwi.
Your final comment s fucking hilarious!
Here is an idea – Try another fucking florist! One thats less vile and selfish. Or perhaps pick some wildflowers or grow some yourself – that way you can stick them up your ass whenever you want. Wouldn’t that be memorable!
Couldn't agree more. Another interesting observation is, try emailing any of the councillors who voted for this, and surprise, surprise, not a peep. Not even the decency to acknowledge receipt of said email.
Perhaps the poor dears are feeling overwhelmed by their inboxes overflowing from constituents upset about cycleways and leaking pipes?
WCC is now on a par with central government (of any stripe). Try communicating with a Minister when you have a very valid, major problem. Although, at least you get an auto-reply saying they got your email. And usually, a form follow up from a staffer down the track. If you're lucky, your local MP isn't MIA, like the last Rongotai one was (Eagle). Now the current Rongotai representative might end up MIA.
These politician forget they're public servants, and only have their jobs on the whim of the voting public. To refuse to own what they've done by ignoring the public will more than likely see them voted out.
It's very likely Wellington will shift Right again at the next council elections, and the main reason will be ramming through the cycleways and the total distain the public has been treated with.
As soon as Collin Davis found out his ex-partner was planning to travel to Colorado to have an abortion in late February, the Texas man retained a high-powered antiabortion attorney — who court records show immediately issued a legal threat.
If the woman proceeded with the abortion, even in a state where the procedure remains legal, Davis would seek a full investigation into the circumstances surrounding the abortion and “pursue wrongful-death claims against anyone involved in the killing of his unborn child,” the lawyer wrote in a letter, according to records.
Now, Davis has disclosed his former partner’s abortion to a state district court in Texas, asking for the power to investigate what his lawyer characterizes as potentially illegal activity in a state where almost all abortions are banned.
The previously unreported petition was submitted under an unusual legal mechanism often used in Texas to investigate suspected illegal actions before a lawsuit is filed. The petition claims Davis could sue either under the state’s wrongful-death statute or the novel Texas law known as Senate Bill 8 that allows private citizens to file suit against anyone who “aids or abets” an illegal abortion.
That's not a one off either. I doubt the Auditor General has anywhere near the resources to call out all of the 'sloppy' spending practices that have evolved in NZ in recent years.
Auditor-General John Ryan today published a letter to Inland Revenue Commissioner Peter Mersi voicing concerns the sloppy rollout of the payment did not exhibit good stewardship of public money.
"Ryan noted the scheme was designed to be delivered at speed in a changing environment, but said those circumstances were no excuse for the lack of documentation and the lack of clarity around decisions. Trust and confidence in government depends on transparency and accountability when spending public money," he said."
Auditor General didn't have anything about the work Joyce did, just the lack of appropriate policies and paperwork regarding an un-tendered single provider contract.
So publicly funded entities can spend money on shit, provided they let suppliers compete to supply the shit and keep the paper trail in order. Or have a policy on how to deal with an un-tendered contract, and have the paper trail to show they've followed that policy. Good o
What we've seen so far confirms what we've witnessed for the last couple of years: a wave of electoral annihilation is coming for the Conservative party under Rishi Sunak
[…]
It's early yet in the 2024 local elections. We don't know about most councils yet, or the mayoral contests, or the police and crime commissioners, whatever they are. But what we've seen so far confirms what we've witnessed for the last couple of years: a wave of electoral annihilation is coming for the Conservative party under Rishi Sunak. There are interesting wrinkles in the numbers, telling little phenomena that become visible in the right light. But the basic lesson this morning is the same as it ever was: The Tories are fucked, fucked, fucked. They really are utterly fucked.
The oft-considered idea of introducing a law for corporate manslaughter has been advanced once again with a Labour MP’s Bill, but how much support it will garner is unknown.
The Crimes (Corporate Homicide) Amendment Bill, put into the member’s ballot by Labour’s workplace relations and safety spokesperson Camilla Belich, would create a criminal offence for employers to cause the death of a person.
[…]
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith said National wasn’t interested in the Bill, “Corporate manslaughter laws are not currently on our agenda as I am focused on our coalition commitments to restore law and order.”
A New York Times examination of more than 100 videos from clashes at the University of California, Los Angeles, found that violence ebbed and flowed for nearly five hours, mostly with little or no police intervention. The violence had been instigated by dozens of people who are seen in videos counterprotesting the encampment.
The videos showed counterprotesters attacking students in the pro-Palestinian encampment for several hours, including beating them with sticks, using chemical sprays and launching fireworks as weapons. As of Friday, no arrests had been made in connection with the attack.
To build a timeline of the events that night, The Times analyzed two livestreams, along with social media videos captured by journalists and witnesses.
[…]
Throughout the intermittent violence, officers were captured on video standing about 300 feet away from the area for roughly an hour, without stepping in.
I read the police & campus security retreated & stood back because the counter protesters threw things at them & the police didn't want to get hurt. & this…
"A video showing Annelise Orleck, 65, being taken to the ground intensified criticism of the decision by the college’s president to call in officers."
"Annelise Orleck, a labor historian who has taught at Dartmouth College for more than three decades, was at a protest for Palestinians in Gaza on Wednesday night, when she was knocked to the ground. Dr. Orleck, 65, was zip-tied and was one of 90 people who were arrested, according to the local police."
The scary "book on terrorism" NYPD is using as evidence of criminal intent is an Oxford Press textbook from International Affairs U6387, a course taught this semester at Columbia by Michael E. O’Hanlon, director of research in foreign policy at the Brookings Institution.
Pencils, books, laptops, those are the tools of students and what you expect to find on a college campus. But here’s what the NYPD found in Hamilton Hall at Columbia University after we were able to arrest the protestors and agitators for commandeering and barricading themselves inside the building. Gas masks, ear plugs, helmets, goggles, tape, hammers, knives, ropes, and a book on TERRORISM. These are not the tools of students protesting, these are the tools of agitators, of people who were working on something nefarious. Thankfully, your NYPD was able to prevent whatever they were planning and stop them before they could do it. Continue to peacefully and lawfully protest; but know that if you engage in illegal conduct, the NYPD will hold you responsible and hold you accountable—someone has to.
The 2020s are starting to feel like a repeat performance of the 197Os… spilling into the 80s. The main issues then were the Vietnam War and the proliferation of nuclear weapons. But the response from the respective authorities is the same – turn on the protestors and create the impression they are the baddies.
The issues now are the Israeli/Gaza war and climate change.
The protestors won back then and they will win again.
Edit: and lets not forget… the next generation of leaders is amongst them.
Very long form. Very to the point. The high court should be ashamed at allowing this obviously important information to be allowed to slither away from the Waitangi Tribunal and the ignorant to be comforted by its structural colonial paternalism. The mana of a court is reduced and it isn’t the Waitangi Tribunal.
After Warner Bros took various cost-cutting measures including turning movies into tax write-offs and refused to pay actors & writers for months, David Zaslav’s 2023 pay package is now at $49.7M, a 26.5% increase from 2022. (Source: https://wp.me/pc8uak-1lE1mC)
Oz has had a lot of crimes of violence against women this year and a decision has been made to identify the influence of porn on those under 18 as the reason and require a porn passport.
There is already the means for parents to place a porn block on the devices of their children – so it is about those parents who do not bother to do this being blamed for the violence.
The problem with age based ID online is that it might result in ID theft – and this has consequences (an online crime explosion is the risk here).
The Australian government is expected to spend $6.5 million on a pilot program that will check the age of a person before they enter a pornographic website.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the pilot will be able to identify “available age assurance products”.
The Sydney Morning Herald said the passports will be ‘electronic tokens’ that could also become used for online liquor stores and gambling sites.
Once a system to block on-line sites is established (for those without a "passport"), it is easier to set up the same system to block access to free streaming sites and thus the idea is probably popular with corporate industry sectors (film/TV/sport – content suppliers).
Revolutionary Iran continues its campaign against immodesty in the ME, from elimination of Zionist Jews from the region to domestic suppression of the presence of women not showing signs of fearful compliance to their patriarchy.
Using women against other women is adopting the East German tactic of “informing”. Paying them to do so is based on two factors, rewarding servility and the divide and conquer strategy (to create a risk for those involved in a feminist network).
Social media has the touched up photo and the evolution to deep fake, meanwhile in the real world … .
One wonders, the fate of the poor who cannot afford to present as one of the "class" above – I suppose they could watch Cherry 2000 and claim to be real, rather than a production line knock off.
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Its not often that one has to agree with Judith Collins, but yes, it would indeed cost “hundreds of millions of dollars” (at least) to buy replacement aircraft to fly the Prime Minister on his overseas missions of diplomacy and trade. And yes, the public might well regard that spending ...
A few weeks ago, Auckland Council took another step in the long-running stadium saga, narrowing its shortlist down to two options for which they will now seek feasibility studies. The recommendation to move forward with a feasibility study was carried twenty to one by the council’s Governing Body for the ...
Social Development Minister Louise Upston has defended the Government’s decision to save money by dumping a programme which tops up the pay of disabled workers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: It has emerged the National-ACT-NZ First Government decided to cut wages for disabled workers from the minimum wage to $2 an hour ...
The new Chief Executive of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet (DPMC) yesterday gave a Select Committee a brutally frank outline of the department’s role as the agency right at the centre of power in Wellington. Ben King, formerly a deputy Chief Executive at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs ...
This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Adam Levy. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). Carbon dioxide is the main culprit behind climate change. But in second place is methane: a greenhouse gas stronger than CO2, ...
Oh, take me, take me, take meTo the dreamer's ballI'll be right on time and I'll dress so fineYou're gonna love me when you see meI won't have to worryTake me, take mePromise not to wake me'Til it's morningIt's all been trueEarly morning yesterday, well before dawn, doom-scrolling.Not intentionally, that’s ...
The first widespread survey of consumers and voters since the Budget on May 30 shows a collapse in confidence. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The belt-tightening and tax-cutting Budget delivered on May 30 has not delivered the boost to confidence in the economy the National-ACT-NZ First Government might have ...
The Air Force 757 that broke down with the Prime Minister on board in Port Moresby on Sunday is considered so unreliable that it carries a substantial stock of spare parts when it travels overseas. And the plane also carries an Air Force maintenance team on board ready to make ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
Sometimes you’ll just be so dog-tired, you can only keep yourself awake with a short stab of self-inflicted pain.A quick bite of the lip, for instance.Maybe a slight bite on the tongue or a dig of the nails.But what if you’re needing something a bit more painful?The solution is as ...
After months and months of blocking every attempt by the UN and everyone else to achieve a Gaza ceasefire, US President Joe Biden is now marketing his own three-stage “peace plan” to end the conflict. Like every other contribution by the US since October 7, the Biden initiative is hobbled ...
This is a guest post by Vivian Naylor, who is the Barrier Free Advisor and Educator at CCS Disability Action, Northern Region, the largest disability support and advocacy organisation in Aotearoa New Zealand. She also advises on AT’s Public Transport and Capital Projects Accessibility Groups.Vivian has been advocating and ...
So kiss me and smile for meTell me that you'll wait for meHold me like you'll never let me go'Cause I'm leavin' on a jet planeDon't know when I'll be back againOh babe, I hate to go“The true measure of any society can be found in how it treats its ...
The election promises of ‘better economic management’ are now ringing hollow, as NZ appears to be falling into a deeper recession, while other economies are turning the corner. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The economy and the housing market are slumping back into a deep recession this winter, contrasting ...
Parliament’s new “Scrutiny” process, which is supposed to allow Select Committees to interrogate Ministers and officials in much more depth, has got off to a rocky start. Yesterday was the first day of “Scrutiny Week” which is supposed to see the Government grilled on how it spends taxpayers’ money and ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Barbara GradyIllustration by Samantha Harrington. Photo credits: Justin Lane-Pool/Getty Images, Win McNamee/Getty Images, European Space Agency. In an empty wind-swept field in Richmond, California, next to the county landfill, a company called RavenSr has plotted out land and won ...
Although NZ readers may not be that interested in the subject and in lieu of US Fathers Day missives (not celebrated in NZ), I thought I would lay out some brief thoughts on a political subject being debated in the … Continue reading → ...
TL;DR:Chris Bishop talks up the use of value capture, congestion charging, PPPs, water meters, tolling and rebating GST on building materials to councils to ramp up infrastructure investment in the absence of the Government simply borrowing more to provide the capital.Meanwhile, Christopher Luxon wants to double the number of ...
When I was invited to come aboard and help with Greater Auckland a few months ago (thanks to Patrick!), it was suggested it might be a good idea to write some sort of autobiographical post by way of an introduction. This post isn’t quite that – although I’m sure I’lll ...
On the turning awayFrom the pale and downtroddenAnd the words they say which we won't understandDon't accept that, what's happeningIs just a case of other's sufferingOr you'll find that you're joining inThe turning awayToday’s guest kōrero is from Author Catherine Lea. So without further ado, over to Catherine…I’m so honoured ...
Hi,Tickled was one of the craziest things that ever happened to me (and I feel like a lot of crazy things have happened to me).So ahead of the Webworm popup and Tickled screening in New Zealand on July 13, I thought I’d write about how we made that film and ...
Hi,I’m doing a Webworm merch popup followed by a Tickled screening in Auckland, New Zealand on July 13th — and I’d love you to come. I got the urge to do this while writing this Webworm piece breaking down how we made Tickled, and talking to all the people who ...
One simple statistic said it all: China Premier Li Qiang asked Fonterra CEO Miles Hurrell what percentage of the company’s overall sales were made in China. “Thirty per cent,” said Hurrell. In other words, New Zealand’s largest company is more or less dependent on the Chinese market. But Hurrell is ...
One occasionally runs into the question of what J.R.R. Tolkien would have thought of George R.R. Martin. For years, I had a go-to online answer: we could use a stand-in. Tolkien’s thoughts on E.R. Eddison – that he appreciated the invented world, but thought the invented names were silly, and ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, June 9, 2024 thru Sat, June 15, 2024. Story of the week A glance at this week's inventory of what experts tell us is extreme weather mayhem juiced by ...
After a busy week it’s a good day to relax. Clear blues skies here in Tamaki Makaurau, very peaceful but for my dogs sleeping heavily. In the absence of a full newsletter I thought I’d send out a brief update and share a couple of posts that popped up in ...
Now in the land of Angus beef and the mighty ABsWhere the steaks were juicy and the rivers did run foulIt would often be said,This meal is terrible,andNo, for real this is legit the worst thing I've ever eatenBut this was an thing said only to others at the table,not ...
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. This fact brief was written by Sue Bin Park in collaboration with members from the Skeptical Science team. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Is ocean acidification from human ...
She's not a girl who misses muchDo do do do do do, oh yeahShe's well-acquainted with the touch of the velvet handLike a lizard on a window paneI wouldn’t associate ACT with warmth, other than a certain fabled, notoriously hot, destination where surely they’re heading and many would like them ...
Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past somewhat interrupted week. Still on the move!Share Read more ...
What does Budget 2024 tell us about the current government? Muddle on?Coalition governments are not new. About 50 percent of the time since the first MMP election, there has been a minority government, usually with allied parties holding ministerial portfolios outside cabinets. For 10 percent of the time there was ...
Somewhat surprisingly for what is regarded as a network of professionals, climate science misinformation is getting shared on LinkedIn, joining other channels where this is happening. Several of our recent posts published on LinkedIn have attracted the ire of various commenters who apparently are in denial about human-caused climate change. Based ...
1. On what subject is Paul Henry even remotely worth giving the time of day?a. The state of our nationb. The state of the ACT partyc. How to freak out potential buyers of your gin palace by baking the remains of your deceased parent into its fittings2. Now that New ...
Last time National was in power, they looted the state, privatising public assets and signing hugely wasteful public-private partnership (PPP) contracts which saw foreign consortiums provide substandard infrastructure while gouging us for profits. You only have to look at the ongoing fiasco of Transmission Gully to see how it was ...
The Democratic Façade Of Local Government: Our district and city councillors are democratically elected to govern their communities on one very strict condition – that they never, ever, under any circumstances, attempt to do so.A DISINTEGRATION OF LOYALTIES on the Wellington City Council has left Mayor Tory Whanau without a ...
I can feel the lowlights coming over meI can feel the lowlights, from the state I’m inI can see the light now even thought it’s dimA little glow on the horizonAnother week of lowlights from our government, with the odd bright spot and a glow on the horizon. The light ...
Another week, another roundup of things that caught our eye on our favourite topics of transport, housing and how to make cities a little bit greater. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday, Connor wrote about Kāinga Ora’s role as an urban development agency Tuesday’s guest post by ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers features co-hosts and talking with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent about the National-ACT-NZ First Government’s moves this week to take farming out of the ETS and encourage more mining and oil and ...
In 2019, Shane Jones addressed the “50 Shades of Green” protest at Parliament: Now he is part of a government giving those farmers a pass on becoming part of the ETS, as well as threatening to lock in offshore oil exploration and mining for decades. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s the ...
Hi,Today’s newsletter is all about how easy it is to get sucked into “rage bait” online, and how easy it is to get played.But first I wanted to share something that elicited the exact opposite of rage in me — something that made me feel incredibly proud, whilst also making ...
Seymour said lower speed limits “drained the joy from life as people were forced to follow rules they knew made no sense.” File Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My six things to note in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Friday, June 14 were:The National/ACT/NZ First ...
It sounded like the best word to describe yesterday’s talks between Chinese Premier Li Qiang and his heavyweight delegation of Ministers and officials and Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and New Zealand Ministers and officials was “frank.” But it was the kind of frankness that friends can indulge in. It ...
Open access notables Wildfire smoke impacts lake ecosystems, Farruggia et al., Global Change Biology:We introduce the concept of the lake smoke-day, or the number of days any given lake is exposed to smoke in any given fire season, and quantify the total lake smoke-day exposure in North America from 2019 ...
Photo by Mathias Elle on UnsplashIt’s that new day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when we have our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream for our chat about the week’s news with special guests:5.00 ...
Don’t put it all at risk. That’s likely to be the take-home message for New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon in his meetings with Li Qiang, the Chinese Premier. Li’s visit to Wellington this week is the highest-ranking visit by a Chinese official since 2017. The trip down under – ...
I know the feelingIt is the real thingThe essence of the soulThe perfect momentThat golden momentI know you feel it tooI know the feelingIt is the real thingYou can't refuse the embraceNo?Sometimes we face the things we most dislike. A phobia or fear that must be confronted so it doesn’t ...
Struth, what a week. Having made sure the rural sector won’t have to pay any time soon for its pollution, PM Christopher Luxon yesterday chose Fieldays 2024 to launch a parliamentary inquiry into rural banking services, to see how the banks have been treating farmers faced with high interest rates. ...
In April, 17,656 people left Aotearoa-NZ to live overseas, averaging 588 a day, with just over half of those likely to have gone to Australia. Photo: Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My six things to note in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Thursday, June 13 ...
Auckland’s draft Regional Land Transport Plan (RLTP) 2024 is open for feedback – and you only have until Monday 17 June to submit. Do it! Join the thousands of Aucklanders who are speaking up for wise strategic investment that will dig us out of traffic and give us easy and ...
Chinese Premier Li Qiang arrives in Wellington today for a three-day visit to the country. The visit will take place amid uncertainty about the future of the New Zealand-China relationship. Li hosted a formal welcome and then lunch for then-Prime Minister Chris Hipkins in Beijing a year ago. The pair ...
We are still in France, getting from A to B.Possibly for only another week, though; Switzerland and Germany are looming now. On we pedal, towards Budapest, at about 20 km per hour.What are are mostly doing is inhaling a country, loving its ways and its food. Rolling, talking, quietly thinking. ...
The big problem with the last Labour government was that they were chickenshits who did nothing with the absolute majority we had given them. They governed as if they were scared of their own shadows, afraid of making decisions lest it upset someone - usually someone who would never have ...
This morning I did something I seldom do, I looked at the Twitter newsfeed. Normally I take the approach of something that I’m not sure is an American urban legend, or genuinely something kids do over there. The infamous bag of dog poo on the front porch, set it on ...
We have some news on the upcoming War of the Rohirrim anime. It will apparently be two and a half hours in length, with Peter Jackson as Executive Producer, and Helm’s daughter Hera will be the main character. Also, pictures: The bloke in the middle picture is Freca’s ...
The cows will keep burping and farting and climate change will keep accelerating - but farmers can stop worrying about being included in the ETS. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My six things to note in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, June 12 were:The ...
This is a guest post by our friend Darren Davis. It originally appeared on his excellent blog, Adventures in Transitland, which features “musings about public transport and other cool stuff in Aotearoa/ New Zealand and around the globe.” With Te Huia now having funding secure through to 2026, now is ...
In some ways, there may be less than meets the eye to the Government announcement yesterday that the He Waka Eke Noa proposal for farmers to pay for greenhouse gas emissions has been scrapped. The spectre of farmers still having to pay at some point in the future remains. That, ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
Since entering office, National has unravelled practically every climate policy, leaving us with no effective way of reducing emissions or meeting our emissions budgets beyond magical thinking around the ETS. And today they've announced another step: removing agriculture entirely. At present, following the complete failure of he waka eka noa, ...
The blue billionaireDistraction no interactionOr movement outside these glazed over eyesThe new great divideFew fight the tide to be glorifiedBut will he be satisfied?Can we accept this without zoom?The elephant in the roomNot much happens in politics on a Monday. Bugger all in fact. Although yesterday Christopher Luxon found he ...
What if New Zealand threw a fossil fuel party, and nobody came? On the weekend, Resources Minister Shane Jones sent out the invitations and strung up the balloons, but will anyone really want to invest big time in resuming oil and gas exploration in our corner of the planet? Yes, ...
This is a guest post by Meredith Dale, senior urban designer and strategist at The Urban Advisory.There’s a saying that goes something like: ‘what you measure is what you value’. An RNZ article last week claimed that Auckland was ‘hurting’ because of a more affordable supply of homes, particularly townhouses ...
A Prime Minister directs his public service to inquire into the actions of the opposition political party which is his harshest critic. Something from Orban's Hungary, or Putin's Russia? No, its happening right here in Aotearoa: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced the Public Service Commission will launch an ...
This is a repost from a Yale Climate Connections article by SueEllen Campbell published on June 3, 2024. The articles listed can help you tell fact from fiction when it comes to solar and wind energy. Some statements you hear about solar and wind energy are just plain false. ...
Politics were going on all around us yesterday, and we barely noticed, rolling along canal paths, eating baguettes. It wasn’t until my mate got to the headlines last night that we learned there had been a dismayingly strong far right result in the EU elections and Macron had called a ...
Respect Existence, Or Expect Resistance? There may well have been 50,000 pairs of feet “Marching For Nature” down Auckland’s Queen Street on Saturday afternoon, but the figure that impresses the Coalition Government is the 1,450,000 pairs of Auckland feet that were somewhere else.IN THE ERA OF DRONES and Artificial Intelligence, ...
Selwyn Manning and I discuss varieties of post colonial blowback and the implications its has for the rise of the Global South. Counties discussed include Palestine/Israel, France/New Caledonia, England/India, apartheid/post-apartheid South Africa and post-colonial New Zealand. It is a bit … Continue reading → ...
Victims of family violence could fall through the gaps in New Zealand, as Police stop responding to some call outs and the Government chooses to prioritise other things. ...
The lack of bids at today’s ETS auction is a sad indictment on this Government's staggering indifference to the climate crisis and their lack of a plan. ...
“I am deeply disappointed in the National Party's budget. Their broken promises and cuts to essential services, including health, education, and support for vulnerable groups, will have long-lasting negative impacts” – Raymor, Auckland ...
Today marks the beginning of Schools Pride Week in New Zealand, an important calendar event largely run by rainbow rangitahi to advocate for safer, more inclusive school environments. ...
The Government’s announcement of a roadshow consultation on work health and safety is a smokescreen for its plan to throw out regulations which keep workers safe. ...
The Government has reportedly scrapped a policy that would have gone far to fix gender and ethnic pay gaps and instead is implementing a watered-down voluntary system. ...
The Government knew its changes to the school lunch programme would risk achievement, attendance, nutrition and wellbeing of New Zealand children, as well as having wider impacts on reducing child poverty, and made the changes anyway, new documents show. ...
Two months have passed since the National Government said it was a question of ”when, not if” New Zealand would recognise Palestine, in response to Labour’s call. ...
Today the coalition government has announced that a select committee inquiry into banking competition will be led by the Finance and Expenditure Select Committee.New Zealand First campaigned to take on foreign owned banks, and we committed to that in our coalition agreement by ensuring the inquiry has a broad ...
The National Government is doing everything it can to delay taking action on climate as it announces that years of work on agricultural emissions will start from scratch. ...
Tens of thousands of people showed up to have their voices heard and march against National’s unpopular Fast Track Approvals Bill in Auckland over the weekend. ...
The Government deciding to lift the oil and gas ban in the middle of a climate crisis is a severe step backwards that will have serious consequences for our future. ...
This week the Justice Select Committee has heard numerous submissions on the removal of Māori Wards. “I am feeling invigorated by the powerful oral submissions that I have heard throughout the week.” Said Local Government spokesperson, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “People from all facets of life: whānau Māori, whānau Pākehā, rangatahi, kaumātua, ...
Today’s March for Nature sends a clear message that our country is deeply against the Fast Track Approvals Bill proceeding because the cost to the environment would be unacceptable. ...
The recent attacks on Te Pāti Māori and its MP’s are part of a continuing narrative of attack on all matters Māori. If we could respond to baseless inuendo we would. If there is any evidence then show us so we have a reason to engage in a conversation. The ...
The Government’s move to pour billions into potholes whilst remaining inactive on climate change does nothing to solve our transport system's core problems. ...
“The Government needs to provide leadership for New Zealand’s mental health sector, which appears to have lost out in the Budget despite the promises Minister for Mental Health Matt Doocey made on the campaign trail,” said Labour mental health spokesperson Ingrid Leary. ...
Today’s announcement that would see some workers’ entitlement to sick leave reduce flies in the face of yet another promise National made during the election campaign. ...
Cutting a third of the staff at Ministry for the Environment will undermine years of work to clean up our fresh water and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and leave us unprepared for a changing climate. ...
School attendance data released today shows an increase in the number of students regularly attending school to 61.7 per cent in term one. This compares to 59.5 per cent in term one last year and 53.6 per cent in term four. “It is encouraging to see more children getting to ...
The Government has announced a record 41 per cent increase in indicative funding for public transport services and operations, and confirmed the rollout of the National Ticketing Solution (NTS) that will enable contactless debit and credit card payments starting this year in Auckland, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“This Government is ...
GDP figures for the March quarter reinforce the importance of restoring fiscal discipline to public spending and driving more economic growth, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Data released today by Stats NZ shows GDP has risen 0.2 per cent for the quarter to March. “While today’s data is technically in ...
Women’s representation on public sector boards and committees has reached 50 per cent or above for the fourth consecutive year, with women holding 53.9 per cent of public sector board roles, Acting Minister for Women Louise Upston says. “This is a fantastic achievement, but the work is not done. To ...
The Coalition Government is supporting Māori to boost development and the Māori economy through investment in projects that benefit the regions, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones and Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka say. “As the Regional Development Minister, I am focused on supporting Māori to succeed. The Provincial Growth Fund ...
Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk has announced that the review into better managing the risks of earthquake-prone buildings has commenced. “The terms of reference published today demonstrate the Government’s commitment to ensuring we get the balance right between public safety and costs to building owners,” Mr Penk says. “The Government ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has just finished a successful three-day visit to Japan, where he strengthened political relationships and boosted business links. Mr Luxon’s visit culminated in a bilateral meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio followed by a state dinner. “It was important for me to meet Prime Minister Kishida in person ...
Significant business deals have been closed during the visit of Prime Minister Christopher Luxon to Japan this week, including in the areas of space, renewable energy and investment. “Commercial deals like this demonstrate that we don’t just export high-quality agricultural products to Japan, but also our world-class technology, expertise, and ...
Minasan, konnichiwa, kia ora and good afternoon everyone. Thank you for the invitation to speak to you today and thank you to our friends at the Institute for International Socio-Economic Studies and NEC for making this event possible today. It gives me great pleasure to be here today, speaking with ...
The National Infrastructure Pipeline, which provides a national view of current or planned infrastructure projects, from roads, to water infrastructure, to schools, and more, has climbed above $120 billion, Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop says. “Our Government is investing a record amount in modern infrastructure that Kiwis can rely on as ...
The Government is modernising the Public Works Act to make it easier to build infrastructure, Minister for Land Information Chris Penk announced today. An independent panel will undertake an eight-week review of the Act and advise on common sense changes to enable large scale public works to be built faster and ...
New Zealand will enhance its defence contributions to monitoring violations of sanctions against North Korea, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. The enhancement will see the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) increase its contributions to North Korea sanctions monitoring, operating out of Japan. “This increase reflects the importance New Zealand ...
Good afternoon everyone. It’s great to be with you all today before we wrap up Day One of the annual Safeguard National Health and Safety Conference. Thank you to the organisers and sponsors of this conference, for the chance to talk to you about the upcoming health and safety consultation. ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone for the Ōtaki to north of Levin Road of National Significance (RoNS), following the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) signing interim alliance agreements with two design and construction teams who will develop and ultimately build the new expressway.“The Government’s priority for transport ...
The Department of Internal Affairs [Department] is making a significant upgrade to their Digital Child Exploitation Filtering System, which blocks access to websites known to host child sexual abuse material, says Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden. “The Department will incorporate the up-to-date lists of websites hosting child sexual ...
A vaccine to prevent an infectious disease that costs New Zealand cattle farmers more than $190 million each year could radically improve the health of our cows and boost on-farm productivity, Associate Agriculture Minister Andrew Hoggard says. The Ministry for Primary Industries is backing a project that aims to develop ...
The Government has today announced that it is making it easier for people to build granny flats, Acting Prime Minister Winston Peters and RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop say. “Making it easier to build granny flats will make it more affordable for families to live the way that suits them ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Auckland King’s Counsel Gregory Peter Blanchard as a High Court Judge. Justice Blanchard attended the University of Auckland from 1991 to 1995, graduating with an LLB (Honours) and Bachelor of Arts (English). He was a solicitor with the firm that is now Dentons ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says new data released today shows encouraging growth in the health workforce, with a continued increase in the numbers of doctors, nurses and midwives joining Health New Zealand. “Frontline healthcare workers are the beating heart of the healthcare system. Increasing and retaining our health workforce ...
Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee has today announced a comprehensive programme to reform New Zealand's outdated and complicated firearms laws. “The Arms Act has been in place for over 40 years. It has been amended several times – in a piecemeal, and sometimes rushed way. This has resulted in outdated ...
The coalition Government is delivering record levels of targeted investment in specialist schools so children with additional needs can thrive. As part of Budget 24, $89 million has been ringfenced to redevelop specialist facilities and increase satellite classrooms for students with high needs. This includes: $63 million in depreciation funding ...
A substantial consultation on work health and safety will begin today with a roadshow across the regions over the coming months, says Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden. This the first step to deliver on the commitment to reforming health and safety law and regulations, set out in ...
Forestry Minister Todd McClay, today announced the start of the Government’s plan to restore certainty and confidence in the forestry and wood processing sector. “This government will drive investment to unlock the industry’s economic potential for growth,” Mr McClay says. “Forestry’s success is critical to rebuilding New Zealand’s economy, boosting ...
Annual service charges in the forestry Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) will be cancelled for 2023/24, Forestry Minister Todd McClay says. “The sector has told me the costs imposed on forestry owners by the previous government were excessive and unreasonable and I agree,” Mr McClay says. “They have said that there ...
Introduction Thank you for having me here today and welcome to Wellington, the home of the Hurricanes, the next Super Rugby champions. Infrastructure – the challenge This government has inherited a series of big challenges in infrastructure. I don’t need to tell an audience as smart as this one that ...
Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay and Food Safety Minister Andrew Hoggard welcomed outcomes to boost agricultural and food trade between New Zealand and China. A number of documents were signed today at Government House that will improve the business environment between New Zealand and China, and help reduce barriers, including on infant formula ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay, and China’s Commerce Minister Wang Wentao, today announced the official launch of Negotiations on Services Trade between the two countries. “The Government is focused on opening doors for services exporters to grow the New Zealand’s economy,” Mr McClay says. As part of the 2022 New Zealand-China Free Trade Agreement Upgrade ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon met with Chinese Premier Li Qiang at Government House in Wellington today. “I was pleased to welcome Premier Li to Wellington for his first official visit, which marks 10 years since New Zealand and China established a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership,” Mr Luxon says. “The Premier and ...
The coalition Government is taking action to reduce the gender pay gap in New Zealand through the development of a voluntary calculation tool. “Gender pay gaps have impacted women for decades, which is why we need to continue to drive change in New Zealand,” Acting Minister for Women Louise Upston ...
The coalition Government is boosting funding for Rural Support Trusts to provide more help to farmers and growers under pressure, Rural Communities Minister Mark Patterson announced today. “A strong and thriving agricultural sector is crucial to the New Zealand economy and one of the ways to support it is to ...
Spending on contractors and consultants continues to fall and the size of the Public Service workforce has started to decrease after years of growth, according to the latest data released today by the Public Service Commission. Workforce data for the quarter from 31 December 23 to 31 March 24 shows ...
Thank you to the Law Association for inviting me to speak this morning. As a former president under its previous name — the Auckland District Law Society — I take particular satisfaction in seeing this organisation, and its members, in such good heart. As Attorney-General, I am grateful for these ...
New Zealand is committed to working closely with Timor-Leste to support its prosperity and resilience, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “This year is the 25th anniversary of New Zealand sending peacekeepers to Timor-Leste, who contributed to the country’s stabilisation and ultimately its independence,” Mr Peters says. “A quarter ...
Promoting robust competition in the banking sector is vital to rebuilding the economy, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. “New Zealanders deserve a banking sector that is as competitive as possible. Banking services play an important role in our communities and in the economy. Kiwis rely on access to lending when ...
Regulation Minister David Seymour, Environment Minister Penny Simmonds, and Food Safety Minister Andrew Hoggard have today announced a regulatory sector review on the approval process for new agricultural and horticultural products. “Red tape stops farmers and growers from getting access to products that have been approved by other OECD countries. ...
The Coalition Government will reverse Labour’s blanket speed limit reductions by 1 July 2025 through a new Land Transport Rule released for public consultation today, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. The draft speed limit rule will deliver on the National-ACT coalition commitment to reverse the previous government’s blanket speed limit ...
Minister Paul Goldsmith is making major leadership changes within both his Arts and Media portfolios. “I am delighted to announce Carmel Walsh will be officially stepping into the role of Chair of the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, having been acting Chair since April,” Arts Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “Carmel is ...
Food and fibre export revenue is tipped to reach $54.6 billion this year and hit a record $66.6b in 2028 as the Government focuses on getting better access to markets and cutting red tape, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay and Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones say. “This achievement is testament ...
A new export exemption proposal for food businesses demonstrates the coalition Government’s commitment to reducing regulatory barriers for industry and increasing the value of New Zealand exports, which gets safe New Zealand food to more markets, says Food Safety Minister Andrew Hoggard. “The coalition Government has listened to the concerns ...
New Zealand and Philippines are continuing to elevate our relationship, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The leaders of New Zealand and Philippines agreed in April 2024 to lift our relationship to a Comprehensive Partnership by 2026,” Mr Peters says. “Our visit to Manila this week has been an excellent ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Chris Kirkland, Professor of Geochronology, Curtin University Lukas Gojda / Shutterstock Our planet was born around 4.5 billion years ago. To understand this mind-bendingly long history, we need to study rocks and the minerals they are made of. The oldest rocks ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra No one doubts Peter Dutton has a huge task to sell his radical nuclear plan, with many experts throwing buckets of cold water over it. But on Thursday the opposition leader received some welcome backing. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jordana Hunter, School Education Program Director, Grattan Institute The Victorian Auditor-General has just released an audit of Victoria’s A$1.2 billion tutoring program designed to help struggling students post-COVID. The report found the program “did not significantly improve students’ learning compared to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Marta Khomyn, Lecturer, University of Adelaide Jonathan Borba/Pexels The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) has just seen the listing of its first bitcoin spot exchange-traded fund – “ETF” for short. Issued by investment management firm VanEck, the new investment product is ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alana Lentin, Professor in Cultural and Social Analysis, Western Sydney University Prudence Upton/Sydney Theatre Company Anchuli Felicia King’s new one-performer piece, American Signs, written for the talented Catherine Văn-Davies, thrusts us into the world of a campus hire at “The Firm”, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Parmeter, Research Scholar, Centre for Arab and Islamic Studies, Australian National University Among the many sayings attributed to Winston Churchill is, “Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” This sentiment seems appropriate as Israel potentially appears ...
New Zealand Nurses Organisation Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa (NZNO) have voiced concerns about Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora restricting the employment of graduate nurses into their workforce due to budget constraints. ...
The NZCTU is slamming a decision by the Government in Budget 2024 to cut a programme which ensured that disabled workers are paid the minimum wage. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Lowe, Emeritus Professor, School of Environment and Science, Griffith University Martin Lisner/Shutterstock It is very difficult to take Opposition Leader Peter Dutton’s nuclear announcement seriously. His proposal for seven nuclear power stations is, at present, legally impossible, technically improbable, economically ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Milad Haghani, Senior Lecturer of Urban Mobility, Public Safety & Disaster Risk, UNSW Sydney Each year, millions of Muslims from across the world embark on the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia. The mass migration is unparalleled in scale, and pilgrims ...
The Committee has recommended that the Bill be passed with minor amendments. The bill will create 12 new high protection areas, 5 new seafloor protection areas and 2 extensions to existing marine reserves. ...
“The Green Party campaigned on protecting 30 percent of our oceans. We will continue to fight for our marine environment so it can be enjoyed across future generations,” says Marama Davidson. ...
We asked public organisations for an update on their response to the recommendations in our 2022 report Improving value through better Crown entity monitoring. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra After beating a first-term South Australian Liberal government in 2022, Labor premier Peter Malinauskas has gone on to be a reform advocate on issues including social media and politcal donations. His government is looking ...
The economy keeps limping along, and people keep getting poorer. GDP per capita has fallen yet again, and it's now been in freefall for well over a year. ...
Alex Casey and Tara Ward look back at the best and brightest New Zealanders to appear in the greatest reality franchise of all time. It’s the hugely addictive reality show with a little bit of everything. “It’s got the high octane Hell’s Kitchen action in the chef’s galley, the nouveau ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Galloway, Professor of Law and Social Justice, Australian Catholic University Commonwealth Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus has announced that the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) would review the Native Title Act to “rectify any inefficacy, inequality or unfairness”. The purpose of the ...
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Steve Braunias, always a good Saturday morning read, now at Newsroom. Nails it:
The Secret Diary of .. Coalition Sheriff Luxon (newsroom.co.nz)
Brilliant. Nice to have access to Braunias again. No way was I ever going to pay for a Herald subscription.
Steve hits my nail on the head and hopefully nails the lid on the Luxon coffin.
(here's my go..)satire…
My day by Christopher (n.b.!) luxon .
I awoke with that familiar sense of dread…after a nite of intertwined nightmares…featuring Peter's and Seymour…tying me in knots impossible to get out of…and constantly laughing at me ..and not in a nice way..
(Why can I no longer have the nice dreams I used to have..the rapture-ones…?)
To the bathroom…for the head-shave….I wish I hadn't started this bloody look..the upkeep is a killer…but like so much of my life now ..I am trapped ..I think I look like Mr potato-head…
Her indoors has my smoothy green (oh..!..the irony..!) breakfast ready…and the car is waiting..
My first hurdle of the day is meeting with Peter's and Seymour..(or as I call them ..pe-more..)..
God..!!.. it's tiresome…both of them constantly waving their dicks in the air.. trying to clamber on top of each other .. it's unsightly…
And this is my immediate future…
And the ministers they have foisted on me..(!)…have you seen these clowns..?…I wouldn't hire them to load suitcases on planes ..
I am enjoying wreaking tory havoc upon the lefty public servants..but it is those ministers I would like to fire..
And I have to work with them ..(!)
Well…I had the meeting…the usual bullshit went down…(They really loathe each other..)..and a new fear is solidifying within me ..(just what I need..!)
That is that Peter's wanted deputy p.m. job first…'cos he is planning to ensure his enemy has a much truncated go at the job..and he will pull the plug ..when he chooses ..bastard..!
He has this whole 'i've got a secret..vibe about him ..
I trust him as far as I could throw him…
Just got a new poll…it isn't good news…we are tanking..me especially…where is my bloody honeymoon..?..John promised me one..!
At this rate we will only be a one-term government ..and that is not long enough to do what I promised to the backers…(They didn't shell out $10 mill + for nothing..eh..?..they want their pay-day..their mines ..etc..)
Just finished question time…it didn't go well…nobody did what they are meant to..the pe-more ministers were their usual dismal selves…they were drowning..not waving..
(I have two and a half more years of this..?..it could make me wish for Peter's to pull the plug…so I can have another go ..)
And I hope that Parker doesn't take over from hipkins…he is too smart for his own good..with his bloody wealth tax/capital gains tax/land tax aspirations…he is the lefties lefty..and we can't have that..he would nail us…
And that has been my day… would you like it..?
I deserve a bigger pay raise than what I got..given what I have to put up with with pe-more. .
Like a lot of people, I was unimpressed with the government's announced intention of demanding 6.5 % public spending cuts across the board. If anything, some areas need strengthening. For example, we need more ICU capacity in hospitals. If there was a good reason for locking down the entire country, it was our lack of 1st world-level ICU capacity. See here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_hospital_beds
But, there is some good news, in that cuts are now being more targeted on government entities of doubtful utility. I'm pleasantly surprised to learn the Pay Equity Taskforce is being disbanded: https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/515831/pay-equity-taskforce-disbanded-no-longer-required-minister
Of course it won't be the end of the "gender pay-gap" grift, but at least there is now one less taxpayer-funded body pumping out activist propaganda.
Yet more stunning insight from Dolomedes the turd.
You want greater medical capacity, but don't want the nursing profession, dominated by women, to receive the appropriate pay for their skilled work.
Top pay rates for nursing following pay equity adjustments.
https://www.tewhatuora.govt.nz/for-health-providers/pay-equity-settlements/nurses-pay-equity/
Meanwhile, in Australia where they are actively recruiting our nursing staff.
https://www.medshop.com.au/pages/nursing-salary-guide
So which is it genuis? Pay people appropriately for their equivalently skilled work, or yet further degradation of our health system?
Also, got any proof for your claim it's a grift? Thought not…
Didn't you claim you used to be a teacher? Any wonder the kids are such pricks nowadays.
I am semi-rural..
Today I have the soundtrack of r-soles running around with guns…
…trying to blow birds out of the sky…
..as I said…r-soles….
Oh dear, you moved to the country side from the big smoke for some peace and tranquility and now you’re upset with country folks who do country stuff. How about you try to get on with your neighbours, they may reciprocate with roast duck for dinner.
'country stuff'…like wholesale uncaring cruelties done to animals..?
Yeah…I noticed…
What predator are we going to release that will contain the explosion of introduced animals ,hooked and feathered, that will happen if Noone hunts.
are duck numbers a problem?
Not sure what would happen to mallards but Canada geese are an increasing problem.
Weka..Duck numbers aren't a problem because of the annual shoot. Without the cull numbers would be a problem. There would be overpopulation and skinny hungry ducks. Its very tightly studied and controlled. Mallards 1 month, parries 2 months, pheasants 3 montgs. And to illustrate overpopulation Canada geese are no longer game birds and can be hunted all year by any means eg rifle or bow and arrow. I've just returned from a morning missing ducks with my two daughters. I think that will be their only 0530 start this season. I think they just wanted to be like their friends who play dress up with mums and dads, take thermos and bacon and egg pie. .its great being outdoors and gives my thumbs a rest from usual weekend trapping mishaps. Next weekend will be quieter for everyone.
I googled to see who would pronounce the fate of JAG next week & the govt website told me "no items were found". So they've done a runner.
https://www.parliament.nz/en/pb/sc/scl/privileges/tab/mp
Google harridan and you immediately see why. Tender males all over the nation will have absorbed her performance, done a collective shudder at the prospect of contagion, staring down the barrel of a future in which it becomes a fashion trend, like possums frozen in the headlights. You'd expect some females on the committee too though – perhaps they did a runner out of solidarity with the others?
Spinoff's editor spotted the opportunity to be erudite:
She was doing dominance/submission, which has always been the core of Nat ethos. Nats always come in two types: the dominant and the toadies. She had him pegged. Obviously he will complain to the privileges committee: "She hectored me, and my name's not Hector!" They will pronounce such othering totally unacceptable.
as far as I can see both the left and the right have hypocrites on this. Genter was wrong in what she did, she knows she was and she has apologised in parliament. I don't know if she has apologised to Doocey.
The lefties implying it's no big deal are doing the left a disservice, because it basically means we have no principles and we can be mean to the people we disagree with politically. What I don't understand is how people think that's going to end. If we establish that it's ok to be mean to those we disagree with, what do we think everyone else is going to do?
Yeah that's the impression created in the public mind. Could be she's been suffering some kind of pressure in her private life that made her slip out of character. The compounding effect though, of her spat with the florist woman, seems ominous.
Hard to see how an electorate MP can survive hostilities with one of her constituents becoming prime-time media feeding frenzy. Either Marama or Chloe ought to go & see the woman to figure out a solution that could prevail over the traffic-planning bureaucrats who created the problem.
it's a no win situation for the Greens.
The problem I have is they’ve said they’re not disputing the florist’s story and we can’t tell if that’s because of their internal process or because what JAG did was really that bad (the florist’s story reads to me as exaggerated, esp as she is known to be strongly anti-cycling or whatever)
The 'traffic planning bureaucrats' work in the context of political support. Reading some of the comments on TS in recent days from Wellingtonians, and media reports, it sounds as though there are serious problems with the way changes are being rolled out.
And now there's another one. Wellington business owner Nicola Cranfield claims Green MP Julie Anne Genter grabbed her – NZ Herald
The trouble would seem to be that a lot of our city roads were put in place over a hundred years ago when horseback was a major means of transport, and there were very few cars around. The issues that we have today, relating to cycle lanes versus kerbside parking were simply not envisaged in those earlier times.
Absolutely! The street I live in was subdivided in 1905. Mostly villas, but the odd bungalow and "cottage". Sites of 330 to 350m2. Street is steep and narrow with parking on one side only. Many sites have no off street parking, some have only one space. It is a block from a major arterial route and was designed for working class accommodation, and for people who would walk, cycle, bus or tram into the CBD for employment. There was a neighbourhood shopping centre within walking distance.
As it is 1 stage to the CBD by bus we used to be infested with "hide and riders", but a P120 restriction with exemption for residents permits available has fixed that.
There is a cycleway/walkway at the bottom of the road which is part of a wider cycle network and is very well used. It had to be extended a few years ago because it was so popular.
No doubt. It's hard to see how there couldn't be, especially when trying to retrofit a sane infrastructure to an insanely-designed city (I speak as an Aucklander.)
There's an old saying about breaking eggs to make an omelette. As one would expect, there's a double standard about the importance of different types of egg. A single business owner egg is a precious thing whose breakage is an atrocity that is shouted with horror from the rooftops – usually by the business owner themselves who is platformed assiduously by sympathetic media. But the public servant egg can be cracked in their thousands without much concern and even with glee in some quarters – because the process has been sold to the public as necessary and beneficial.
The politics of change is all about which omelettes get made and which eggs get broken. The CoC is doing this right now through the brutal application of raw power. The Green politics of just transition has to do better than that. It must show greater caritas. In that context, Green MP's blowing their stack is foolish and unhelpful.
Good comments. I am an Aucklander too, and what is happening in this city is anything but a 'just transition'. Consultation with local communities is opaque, at best. I have been to public meetings where people asking reasonable questions are ridiculed by transport planners and even local body politicians. I want to travel a pathway to less congestion, lower emissions and better alternative transport options, but the way this being imposed on Auckland (and from all reports Wellington) is causing deep division.
I'm inclined to agree. Progress can take many forms and for the mayor to ignore vested interests suggests she's aiming to be a one-termer. I normally oppose vested interests too but a local economy is a different context. One must be genuinely pro-people to succeed.
You can't just freeze out businesses in the CBD – that's a form of madness. The Green way is to be inclusive & work together to create a scheme that is win/win all around the table of stakeholders. Seems to me the mayor & Rongotai MP lack that Green authenticity. And from your link: “It was just very odd to be grabbed by a politician.” Any kiwi would feel that way!
So three strikes and she's out. The pattern is too strong to deny. The Greens will have to bite the bullet and create a minimised downside transition asap!
That is the truly ironic thing that the bluster and ramming things through without consultation has turned many of us who initially thought the concept of cycle lanes had something going for it, but lets discuss it further and aim for a win-win for WCC/cyclists and residents/cyclists, into fighting for the survival of our suburbs and the people who live there, who work at many of the jobs we don't do.
We value our little businesses here in the suburbs. They bring human scale and the village concept into our lives. We want them to succeed.
Certainly some of the local body politicians of yore of differing parties have more of the touch that signalled success than the Greens are currently showing.
I am not sure about political parties in local bodies. At the moment the Greens in WCC are using the
There has been precious little evidence of the concept of 'just transition'. Raw power I think has a fascination and the Greens are dancing so close to this flame that it is going to melt their wings. (just to mix several metaphors and a Greek legend)
I guess at base some of us were hoping for a change, a principled change but we've backed the wrong horses or perhaps the horses were wearing different colours from those we thought they were wearing.
@Dennis Frank
@ Shanreagh
Good comments, both.
I'm not a Green Party supporter, nor am I from the left of politics. However I have previously held them in high regard as principled and open. But they have morphed into a form of self-righteousness that IMHO is manifest in the recent behaviour of some of its parliamentarians. For all that, they hold a significant level of public support.
"survival of the suburbs and those who live there"
Jesus fucking wept! Hyperbole much?
Yes. I'm sure that a cycleway will cause everyone to either leave or commit mass suicide. Leaving Berhampore a smoking ruin haunted by the shades of lost souls moaning "once we had a car and could roam near and far, never more, never more! Cycle tyres now grind our bones and lycra and spokey dokies fill what once were our homes"
How's that for hyperbole?
Stop talking like you represent everyone in your suburb, it's an intellectually dishonest smoke screen for your desire to maintain the completely unsustainable status quo.
You seem totally oblivious to the enormous structural changes to retailing over the last decade.
You're a big fan of anecdotes, well my friends who run a very successful book store are much more worried about what the enormous loss of public service jobs will mean to their business than cycleways.
Covid forced them to change their business model and they thrived as result. Something little miss loading zone and yourself could learn from.
As a long standing member of my community and of the Residents Assn, member of many community groups I know that I have more knowledge of the workings of Berhampore as a community than you have. I'm certain of that. The groups I belong to get along well, we rarely tolerate rudeness though we do have and welcome thinkers.
If you look at my record you will note that far from wanting the status quo I am all for projects that will enhance the lives of residents and the environment.
Hence our work to move light industrial, so-called, businesses from Berhampore, to move the montrosity that was Athletic Park from our community, trees in streets, lower speed limits, the pull off lane near the Berhampore shops. We worked on/with height limits to new builds and we have some good looking shops in B'pore as a result. We worked with HNZC on the design of the social housing on Adelaide rd south of B'Pore.
Having been involved in the cycle way planning from earliest times you will need to do a bit better than grandstanding insults (and some pretty good cycle-related descriptors), to convince me that there are benefits to people losing access to close by parking.
The cases I am aware of where people will be affected are especially where they may be reliant on elder care, home cares, Meals on Wheels, living with mobility issues or families working multiple jobs. Not to mention tradies working on our lovely older houses or DIYers expecting the next delivery of Gib board or a bin.
One of the ideas that I gathered info on early on in the planning was the building/use of cycle ways in the planned town of Cromwell (planned by MWD after the inundation as part of the Clyde dam etc.)
At the time this was one of the few towns that had planned cycle ways. These made a point of not using main roads unless there was no option. They were planned specifically to minimise cars and bikes having to share the same space. The best examples were not linked to busy main roads but went along safer routes, including through nearby parks.
Particularly in Berhampore there was work done on off road options to skirt B'pore on the east & west. More practical on the west though
Unfortunately the bike lobby said it MUST, reason/s unknown, go along the narrow main roads despite the knowledge that people would/could lose access to their homes.
I am well aware of the changes to retail and also that communities wish to keep 'their' shops. I fail to see why the cycling lobby should be trying to put local shops out of business when with a bit of forethought/ fewer fixed ideas and goodwill they could remain fulfilling a function into the future.
My next move will be to an electric car as, despite what you say, the move is not to get people out of cars as a mode but to limit the use of fossil fuels. People can still have the benefits of travel but without fossil fuels. I get that batteries disposal is a problem but humans being innovative and creative we will solve this.
Public transport with its ability to move 80 or so people at a time should be getting a lion's share of transport monies. Same with rail for long distance. Move freight off roads back onto rail.
Or is your vision really to do without car-like transport modes? If so I'll probably buy shares in a candle making company as naughty electricity is bound to have you as a detractor. My brother in law will have room on his farm to breed some carthorses and we'll find a wheel-wright somewhere to make the wagon-wheels. Perhaps cyclists pulling wee trolleys like the Kaibosh bins could go around collecting the horse poo for gardens?![wink wink](https://cdn2.thestandard.org.nz/wp-content/plugins/ark-wysiwyg-comment-editor/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/wink_smile.png)
Perhaps you could also work on developing long life fresh flowers or convince people they don’t need flowers in their lives. Perhaps a nice bit of metal or a bike pump could be sent to mark graduation. Some long nails, a pump and one recycle scrunched up paper flower could make a great bridal bouquet. These have the benefit of not needing to be delivered in a timely fashion. Sure to catch on, not.
Many people love flowers and receiving them. Why should she be put out of business? What actually do the flower lovers get out of it if she is forced to go?
As you've kicked all this off on the Genter post, lets fucking go…
Especially with your snide little quip about politeness and thinking. You've demonstrated neither quality from the start.
I stand by my comments that you are in fact a grand old dame. You reek of blind privilege and your lack of self awareness is truly astonishing. You remind me of Felicity Wong – The "heritage expert" who decries new builds on aesthetic considerations even though she is legally blind. She admitted that to me when I dealt with her in a professional capacity. It was eye opening – Ha fucking ha!
I have attended many transport consultations and community board meetings throughout New Zealand so I know the demographic that shows up. Pakeha silverbacks with too much time on their hands, wanting to protect their property values and keep their privilege and convenience. Thats how I recognise you for what you are.
You have no understanding of traffic networks or urban planning. You really exposed yourself with the ridiculous comment asking that cyclists take the long way or risk their lives if they want to use arterial routes and the destinations that they connect to. It's no wonder that the local officials don't listen to you – you're ignorant and have no idea what you’re talking about. I'm embarrassed for you.
Buying an electric car are we? Thought the only thing we could afford was a Film Soc membership. Bit of a slip there wasn't it? Oh dear…
Cool little strawman calling me a luddite – allow me to respond.
You don't care if children and adults get killed or injured when cycling for travel or recreation. In fact, you'd like to see more of them killed and injured near the hospital – At least it will be easy to tidy up the mess I guess. Shame about the grief and trauma, but the flowers MUST get through.
You care more for flowers, which will rot, just like you, than people.
I think you're being exploited by little miss private loading bay – She knows a lonely old lady when she sees one and is happy listen to you rabbit on and will say anything to get your money. Are you sure you're not the victim of elder abuse?
Or is she bribing you with flowers to get you on side? Are you corrupt? Bribed with flowers – wouldn't that be a turn up for the books!
Your claims to politeness are a facade. You might say they're compromise-d… get it? Probably not, you don't seem very good at joining the dots – typical kiwi.
Your final comment s fucking hilarious!
Here is an idea – Try another fucking florist! One thats less vile and selfish. Or perhaps pick some wildflowers or grow some yourself – that way you can stick them up your ass whenever you want. Wouldn’t that be memorable!
Sanctuary was bang on about this site last week.
Couldn't agree more. Another interesting observation is, try emailing any of the councillors who voted for this, and surprise, surprise, not a peep. Not even the decency to acknowledge receipt of said email.
Perhaps the poor dears are feeling overwhelmed by their inboxes overflowing from constituents upset about cycleways and leaking pipes?
WCC is now on a par with central government (of any stripe). Try communicating with a Minister when you have a very valid, major problem. Although, at least you get an auto-reply saying they got your email. And usually, a form follow up from a staffer down the track. If you're lucky, your local MP isn't MIA, like the last Rongotai one was (Eagle). Now the current Rongotai representative might end up MIA.
These politician forget they're public servants, and only have their jobs on the whim of the voting public. To refuse to own what they've done by ignoring the public will more than likely see them voted out.
It's very likely Wellington will shift Right again at the next council elections, and the main reason will be ramming through the cycleways and the total distain the public has been treated with.
Forced-birthers have a new strategy.
//
As soon as Collin Davis found out his ex-partner was planning to travel to Colorado to have an abortion in late February, the Texas man retained a high-powered antiabortion attorney — who court records show immediately issued a legal threat.
If the woman proceeded with the abortion, even in a state where the procedure remains legal, Davis would seek a full investigation into the circumstances surrounding the abortion and “pursue wrongful-death claims against anyone involved in the killing of his unborn child,” the lawyer wrote in a letter, according to records.
Now, Davis has disclosed his former partner’s abortion to a state district court in Texas, asking for the power to investigate what his lawyer characterizes as potentially illegal activity in a state where almost all abortions are banned.
The previously unreported petition was submitted under an unusual legal mechanism often used in Texas to investigate suspected illegal actions before a lawsuit is filed. The petition claims Davis could sue either under the state’s wrongful-death statute or the novel Texas law known as Senate Bill 8 that allows private citizens to file suit against anyone who “aids or abets” an illegal abortion.
https://archive.li/OlbkK (wapo)
https://www.teaonews.co.nz/2024/05/03/auditor-general-criticises-way-university-of-waikato-contracted-steven-joyce/
Pretty legal I expect. !!
That is Joyce's nickname..
Stephen 'pretty legal' Joyce..
..intimates call him p.l…
Joyce was what by fellow inm…
Sorry checking your spelling there?
That's not a one off either. I doubt the Auditor General has anywhere near the resources to call out all of the 'sloppy' spending practices that have evolved in NZ in recent years.
Auditor-General John Ryan today published a letter to Inland Revenue Commissioner Peter Mersi voicing concerns the sloppy rollout of the payment did not exhibit good stewardship of public money.
Jacinda Ardern fronts post-Cabinet press conference after Auditor-General criticises cost-of-living rollout – NZ Herald
"Ryan noted the scheme was designed to be delivered at speed in a changing environment, but said those circumstances were no excuse for the lack of documentation and the lack of clarity around decisions. Trust and confidence in government depends on transparency and accountability when spending public money," he said."
Auditor-General finds failings in $290m tourism support scheme | RNZ News
The letter is here:
https://www.oag.parliament.nz/2024/university-of-waikato
Auditor General didn't have anything about the work Joyce did, just the lack of appropriate policies and paperwork regarding an un-tendered single provider contract.
So publicly funded entities can spend money on shit, provided they let suppliers compete to supply the shit and keep the paper trail in order. Or have a policy on how to deal with an un-tendered contract, and have the paper trail to show they've followed that policy. Good o
The worst is paying millions there while cutting courses and staff, frontline staff in the current nomenclature.
@IanDunt has good news.
.
What we've seen so far confirms what we've witnessed for the last couple of years: a wave of electoral annihilation is coming for the Conservative party under Rishi Sunak
[…]
It's early yet in the 2024 local elections. We don't know about most councils yet, or the mayoral contests, or the police and crime commissioners, whatever they are. But what we've seen so far confirms what we've witnessed for the last couple of years: a wave of electoral annihilation is coming for the Conservative party under Rishi Sunak. There are interesting wrinkles in the numbers, telling little phenomena that become visible in the right light. But the basic lesson this morning is the same as it ever was: The Tories are fucked, fucked, fucked. They really are utterly fucked.
https://iandunt.substack.com/p/elections-2024-the-tory-day-of-reckoning
The Tories are fucked, fucked, fucked. They really are utterly fucked.
God, let's hope so. Especially on behalf of my English friends with disabilities who have been lucky to survive them. No exaggeration.
Anyone who tells you they want a 4 year term should immediately set off your warning bells.
The Tories have had two years of extra governing since they became clear lame ducks.
And they’ve got the HoL at least as something of a check on BS like these Rwanda flights.
Law and order is for poor people. Pricks.
/
The oft-considered idea of introducing a law for corporate manslaughter has been advanced once again with a Labour MP’s Bill, but how much support it will garner is unknown.
The Crimes (Corporate Homicide) Amendment Bill, put into the member’s ballot by Labour’s workplace relations and safety spokesperson Camilla Belich, would create a criminal offence for employers to cause the death of a person.
[…]
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith said National wasn’t interested in the Bill, “Corporate manslaughter laws are not currently on our agenda as I am focused on our coalition commitments to restore law and order.”
https://newsroom.co.nz/2024/05/02/new-push-for-corporate-killing-laws/
Well it would be rather embarrassing having to put their donors behind bars, wouldn't it?
Rich pricks, biggest gang in the country.
Oh well said Kay. Short, sweet and brilliant.![smiley smiley](https://cdn2.thestandard.org.nz/wp-content/plugins/ark-wysiwyg-comment-editor/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/regular_smile.png)
NYT freebie about the violent counter-protest at the University of California, Los Angeles.
(tl;dr acab)
A New York Times examination of more than 100 videos from clashes at the University of California, Los Angeles, found that violence ebbed and flowed for nearly five hours, mostly with little or no police intervention. The violence had been instigated by dozens of people who are seen in videos counterprotesting the encampment.
The videos showed counterprotesters attacking students in the pro-Palestinian encampment for several hours, including beating them with sticks, using chemical sprays and launching fireworks as weapons. As of Friday, no arrests had been made in connection with the attack.
To build a timeline of the events that night, The Times analyzed two livestreams, along with social media videos captured by journalists and witnesses.
[…]
Throughout the intermittent violence, officers were captured on video standing about 300 feet away from the area for roughly an hour, without stepping in.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/05/03/us/ucla-protests-encampment-violence.html?unlocked_article_code=1.pU0.ajl7.HGC4_MSwNCOu&smid=url-share
I read the police & campus security retreated & stood back because the counter protesters threw things at them & the police didn't want to get hurt. & this…
"A video showing Annelise Orleck, 65, being taken to the ground intensified criticism of the decision by the college’s president to call in officers."
"Annelise Orleck, a labor historian who has taught at Dartmouth College for more than three decades, was at a protest for Palestinians in Gaza on Wednesday night, when she was knocked to the ground. Dr. Orleck, 65, was zip-tied and was one of 90 people who were arrested, according to the local police."
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/03/us/dartmouth-professor-police-protests.html
Coast to coast cowardice and stupidity.
Timothy Burke
@bubbaprog
The scary "book on terrorism" NYPD is using as evidence of criminal intent is an Oxford Press textbook from International Affairs U6387, a course taught this semester at Columbia by Michael E. O’Hanlon, director of research in foreign policy at the Brookings Institution.
https://twitter.com/bubbaprog/status/1786480486593774021
The 2020s are starting to feel like a repeat performance of the 197Os… spilling into the 80s. The main issues then were the Vietnam War and the proliferation of nuclear weapons. But the response from the respective authorities is the same – turn on the protestors and create the impression they are the baddies.
The issues now are the Israeli/Gaza war and climate change.
The protestors won back then and they will win again.
Edit: and lets not forget… the next generation of leaders is amongst them.
They won a fight. Fifty years on and we're yet to win the war.
Why we need journalists. It’s funny when it’s the art spokesperson. Other vital portfolios not so much:
https://newsroom.co.nz/2024/05/03/the-crown-versus-maori-children/
Very long form. Very to the point. The high court should be ashamed at allowing this obviously important information to be allowed to slither away from the Waitangi Tribunal and the ignorant to be comforted by its structural colonial paternalism. The mana of a court is reduced and it isn’t the Waitangi Tribunal.
I guess Newshub had to go.
/
@DiscussingFilm
After Warner Bros took various cost-cutting measures including turning movies into tax write-offs and refused to pay actors & writers for months, David Zaslav’s 2023 pay package is now at $49.7M, a 26.5% increase from 2022. (Source: https://wp.me/pc8uak-1lE1mC)
https://twitter.com/DiscussingFilm/status/1781373865421054326
Vulture Capitalism, explanation ….
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/business/515987/nobody-s-coming-to-save-us-how-capitalism-became-a-vulture
https://www.rnz.co.nz/audio/player?audio_id=2018936954
Oz has had a lot of crimes of violence against women this year and a decision has been made to identify the influence of porn on those under 18 as the reason and require a porn passport.
There is already the means for parents to place a porn block on the devices of their children – so it is about those parents who do not bother to do this being blamed for the violence.
The problem with age based ID online is that it might result in ID theft – and this has consequences (an online crime explosion is the risk here).
Once a system to block on-line sites is established (for those without a "passport"), it is easier to set up the same system to block access to free streaming sites and thus the idea is probably popular with corporate industry sectors (film/TV/sport – content suppliers).
https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/350264837/australia-trials-porn-passport-what-it-and-should-we-try-it-too
Revolutionary Iran continues its campaign against immodesty in the ME, from elimination of Zionist Jews from the region to domestic suppression of the presence of women not showing signs of fearful compliance to their patriarchy.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/world-news/350267543/iran-hires-hijab-enforcers-snitch-women-breaking-strict-clothing-rules
Using women against other women is adopting the East German tactic of “informing”. Paying them to do so is based on two factors, rewarding servility and the divide and conquer strategy (to create a risk for those involved in a feminist network).
Social media has the touched up photo and the evolution to deep fake, meanwhile in the real world … .
One wonders, the fate of the poor who cannot afford to present as one of the "class" above – I suppose they could watch Cherry 2000 and claim to be real, rather than a production line knock off.
https://www.1news.co.nz/2024/05/01/are-we-all-going-to-end-up-with-the-same-face/