"The question all this immediately gives rise to is why does it now take so long to develop critical infrastructure in New Zealand. How was Napier able – 113 years ago – to get a tram service up and running just six months after starting to lay tram tracks, and why, today, in an age of superior technology, is it likely to take several years to lay a not dissimilar length of track, and establish a modern service in Auckland?"
Lots different . Those Napier trams would have been ultra light with short bodies and power lines didnt exist for the streets then.
Modern articulated trams are very heavy and required serious power supply separate from the existing roadside system. All the traffic signals are changed, and no longer safe for passengers to hop on and off in centre of road like it was back in 1905 so pedestrian islands, road layout changes to go with that.
Ive seen in parts of Melbourne where the original tram lines had to be major rebuild as newer and heavier trams came along
Greater Auckland has been very influential in transport issues in recent years, and this has impacted on public discussions on this issue, to the detriment of good solutions. I remember attending a seminar with Patrick Reynolds, proudly answering to a question that he tends to frame posts to identify specific problems and then provide the answer to that framework. From then on, I read the posts with a more critical eye, and saw that this appeared to be true. There was no space for different questions on issues. I only rarely visit that site now, when I was previously a regular reader.
Alongside this, was the closer relationship with AT that has developed, which makes their influence quite alarming given that is is not reflective of actual public consultation but does influence a great number of readers. I read the small print in a recent (last two years) AT Strategy plan that identified that the primary source of determining priority spending was public contact. This can result in a circular pattern that is hard to disrupt with areas in need, but with no high profile or public attention, being ignored while other areas get more and more attention, services and funding.
The justification of light rail and benefits to housing and business only contributes to show how badly some proposals are in terms of cost/benefit analysis.
Im with you on that view . I wish light rail was the answer here but it doesnt seem to be well thought at all for Dominion Rd.
And airports are terrible places to spend vast sums on public transport when they can always create ever bigger carparks which make airports money. When I looked at Sydneys airport rail stations, the on/off boardings is so low to be laughable in the context of Sydneys train system, and the biggest users seem to be passengers transferring between domestic and international terminals. The Traffic numbers are normally buried in the overall suburban line which continues on to the CBD
The so called Westgate light rail might be a better approach
IMHO, NuZull's problem has always been (well at least since No8 wire became dangerous and only to be handled by someone in a flourescent vest) short term thinking.
I'll bet (almost put money on it) that whatever 'loit rail' system is implemented, it'll be different from narrow guage heavy rail. That'll be so that JUST THE POSSIBILITY of existing infrastucture in places won't be possible – such as tramtrains. The reasons it can't be done will already be forming the basis for proposalsn that will be deemed impractical (going forward), and cost-benefit analyses, and consultant's template-driven advice to officials as I write.
Anything using the existing NZTA corridors will be reasonably easy. Beyond that into the suburban network you are into trench warfare – particularly if you are at grade. There are many dead corridor 'improvements' proposed for Dominion Road over the last 20 years that have cost political careers. They will oppose everything that takes away just 1 car park as if their children were being sacrificed to Baal.
Auckland International Airport are deeply motivated to get the NZSuper version underway. The build can integrate with their second runway and integrated terminal. After that they will need to generate a new masterplan.
A tunneled line down Queen Street, after CRL's experience and that of George Street in Sydney, is a whole bunch easier so long as its alignments stays within the public corridor rather than having to buy underground title rights.
Patrick Reynolds is now on the NZTA Board, and as a long time proponent of the AT/NZTA light rail proposal, he will continue to be against the NZSuperFund light rail proposal.
Yes, it appears his self-promotion has been effective. His ability to not consult and consider opinions other than his own probably will remain intact. His social media use after being appointed should not have been required to be monitored or censured.
I do think he has skills to offer, just wary about his being the loudest voice on the board, and also about his influence on decision making. I’m all for less roading, but often Greater Auckland discussed and delivered more for the already served rather than the under-served. I’m concerned that some people are very good at advocating for the sphere that they move in, rather than reflective of the wider community. He strikes me as one of those – unwitting, perhaps – advisors.
Ditto, power generation and supply should be returned to full public ownership.
This particular major privatisation handover, would never have happened if there had not been a massive public infrastructure to prey upon. There is no way the likes of Genesis and the other parasites would have been in a position to build hydro and all the rest of the network.
Dunne really has made an art form of his ability to churn out a so-called political column that has nothing useful to say.
You’d think if he was going to venture an opinion about the delay around the delivery of light rail across the isthmus in Auckland he might have more to say than, well, Napier managed it in short order in 1913 so why not now in Auckland?
You’d hope maybe that he might offer some insights into the complex negotiations between the government and the Super Fund who have stepped in and offered to finance and run the project. And why that might be a very desirable outcome for the government. You’d need to look way back to Labour’s fury at the way the incoming National government in 2008 summarily discontinued contributions to the Cullen Fund and how this and other infrastructure projects could prevent a future National government disrupting the Fund’s funding stream again.
He might have cast an eye over the relationship between the National Party and the National-aligned local politicians and NIMBYs in Mt Eden, Balmoral, Sandringham who are determined to stop light rail along Dominion Road in order to thwart any urban intensification of their lovely, leafy, inner city suburbs. Too bad about anybody else.
He might have paused to wonder why it is that National are so resolutely wedded to the private ICE motor vehicle and what can be done to shift that party’s thinking away from endless road building towards other more sustainable, diverse and resilient transport options for our biggest cities.
Dont let the Super fund step in . Its a rip off private finance play where we pay and pay for decades. They link up with a Tram builder so we pay top dollar for that, plus running costs. And instead of borrowing money as the government can for 2.5% we will pay 9.5% or more to The Super Fund plus their 'partners' costs.
Running a tram service isnt rocket science and itsnt so arcane and difficult that it cant be done ourselves.
This government is spending just under $5 billion to build 3.3 kilometers of rail in Auckland's CBD. That's over $1 billion per kilometer, and they haven't even opened it, or got to the operating costs yet.
Melbourne has the best managed transport system in the southern hemisphere, and the best public transport. Some of it is modern trams, some of it light rail to border suburbs, and some is heavy rail as well to the periphery and outlying towns.
Our mix is different. Auckland public transport usage is now doing just fine with a mix of heavy rail and dedicated busways. Based mostly on buses within dedicated corridors, it's growing in use faster than it ever has.
But don't be fooled into thinking any future government is gong to spend billions more per kilometre on extending heavy rail lines beyond the existing corridors.
No it wont. Far better to have police drug dogs at the entrances to these festivals checking what people are carrying. Too often they catch the drug dealers loaded with their wares
people who take drugs or any harmful substance without knowing what it really is cant offload their lack of care onto others.
I can just laugh at the idea that those pills tested and found to be harmful wont be onsold during the festival to recoup money spent
person gets the drug tested. Drug is safe, or at least contains other drugs so the user can make an informed decision. fine.
The drug is tested and found to be poisonous. So the tester says "we can nix that for you". User takes drug back, supplies it to someone else. Someone else goes to hospital, but there is the possibility that their supplier gets firmly fingered not just as the supplier, but as knowing that the drug was spiked. "Supply" becomes "demonstrable murder".
As opposed to "ooo, supply, but I didn't know the shit was bad".
I would expect so, especially if it was lethal (as opposed to say being cut with a fellow traveller). Especially at gigs it would really get the word out quickly.
Yeah social media would lap up information like this. Been out a lot lately and everything's changed due to everyone having a phone. A venue can be empty then some hipsters turn up take photos and instagram they've arrived next minute the joints hopping. Amazing to see. The information sharing and response today is almost instant.
I filled in the survey in favour of drug testing and I was totally civil with my comment at the end. I'm also of an age which NZ First would consider as voter friendly (I'm not though)
We're well into the realms of fantasy-land now. Trump is calling on China to conduct an investigation into Biden and his son on the grounds they were involved in a corrupt business relationship in China.
He's in the throes of an impeachment process over the Ukraine nonsense and he's doing it again. The mind just boggles:
Mr Trump’s mind anyway–is boggled–in many observers view. Who knows what technical term applies to his behaviour, because no one officially wants to go there!
Republicans/religious zealots enable him because they get the policy they want unhindered. While the rest of us watch uncomfortably, and wonder how the American people could do this to themselves.
Same with the UK. Is it mass hysteria, or early dementia, frontal lobe stuff or whatever? It took off Terry Pratchett, a fine imaginative mind. Perhaps there is a cumulative effect of our polluting effects that have been going into the air and our bodies and mixing for decades.
…The Irish premier said that “all the polls” since Mr Johnson became Prime Minister showed the UK wanted to Remain, but “their political system isn't able to give them that choice”.
The DUP described his comments as “incendiary and outrageous” and said they “exposed the reality” that the Irish government’s true intention was to keep Britain in the EU.
We need to look after our reputation. Now people found we were not 100% Pure environmentally, nor 100% pure in our financial transactions, nor 100% pure in our building methods and materials quality, what will show up next as a stain on the country, and show us to be casual liars?
Radionz have inspected an education outfit advertising on-line since the beginning of the year it seems.
NZQA acting deputy chief executive quality assurance Eve McMahon describes the college as a "purported" provider of education and appears to be taking steps to remove the site.
"NZQA has inquired with the Domain Name Commission and the Department of Internal Affairs regarding this website and will take appropriate action."
The Domain Name Commission has the ability to remove the domain name, effectively removing the site from public access.
Please act quickly gummint. We have rorted enough Indians and other trusting people, let's be quick here and clean up our act. And not give other immigrants the idea that they will be in good company if they run rorts here, or rort us by not paying tax as was the case recently.
"We need to look after our reputation. Now people found we were not 100% Pure environmentally, nor 100% pure in our financial transactions, nor 100% pure in our building methods and materials quality, what will show up next as a stain on the country, and show us to be casual liars?"
I had a look at what the Ozzies are doing about CC. The Mulloon Natural Farming Sequence people are still carrying on spreading their message.
This is about a recent meeting; Australia is systematically being made arid and hot by unwise agricultural and land management practices. Chief among these is tree clearing, which breaks the hydrological link, the link between soil and rain. Rain does notfollow the plough, that's an old myth — it follows the trees.
To cool the planet we must work with the dominant greenhouse gas, water vapour. Water governs 95% of the heat dynamics of our planet. We’ve been ignoring its role in climate control for far too long.
Walter Jehne will explain practical ways to restore the hydrological cooling system AND restore the “soil carbon sponge” AND draw down massive amounts of CO2 from the atmosphere AND regenerate our soils AND enhance agricultural productivity.
About the speaker Walter Jehne:
Walter Jehne is a retired scientist with a specialist background in soil micro-biology and plant ecology. He has worked in Australia and overseas, and retired from the CSIRO some 15 years ago to concentrate on regenerating Australia's landscape and improving its agricultural and pastoral sectors. He is also a member of The Mulloon Institute’s Science Advisory Council.
He is passionate about educating farmers, policymakers and others about the “soil carbon sponge” and its crucial role in reversing and mitigating flooding, drought, wildfires, and searing global temperatures. He shows how we can safely cool the climate and restore essential biodiversity by repairing our disrupted hydrological cycles. We thus return excess carbon to the soils, where it can build a sponge that soaks up water and revives the biosphere.
Later this year he has been invited to India to present at a conference on Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF), a promising method of farming which uses no-till, no-chemical methods and only local materials to regenerate the soils.
Mod note above. The general thing is to use your own words to make a point and provide contextual quotes and links. This isn't an absolute, we all like to just cut and paste something we find interesting, but there are limits around length and numbers of links. Formatting matters too.
Yes I just felt it was important to hear all about what is happening there. We have a dearth of factual stuff about wht is happening and such a lot of details about protests. Links are good too. I left them in because we just have to get informed. And Mulloon Farm things are important for Oz and also for us. Please don't start getting too picky about perfection. We get worrying about following exact rules and forget that we are the few who are actually thinking about this. So let us please do it, and bring in our ideas even if they aren't passed by the Central Committee.
Please ban me if you think I am out of order as i spend far too much time here trying to bring matters up and not knowing whether it is read and worthwhile. I get moans about it so if it isn't wanted tell me and I can stop trying with more time to attend to looking after No.1.
links that come with the cut and paste are fine. Links that commenters put into a comment manually need to be part of the comment. Lots of links without a comment aren't necessarily going to get mod attention, but long cut and pastes will. Your comments are ending up in moderation because of the number of links. Probably the ones you are cutting and pasting as much as anything, but it's still something to be aware of.
More of an issue this time was that the formatting was unclear, so I had to use my time to figure out what was going on and it was just easier to delete. This isn't about you, it's about the number of comments like this currently especially from regulars who should know better. It's pretty easy to look at a comment after it's made and then edit it if there's a format issue.
Fwiw, in terms of reading and engagement, I think it's better to make a point in your own words, cut and paste some bits to illustrate what you want to share, and provide a link. This takes more time as a commenter, but there's more reward too in terms of responses. Long walls of text, especially if poorly formatted are less likely to be read.
Water is definitely being undervalued in Climate Change response. No water, no trees. No trees, no water. Earthworks and judicious planting en-masse required!
Hey, Velcro, you stickler! Have a go yourself, at "explaining" to Chloe; I suspect you'd be eviscerated by her and her clarity of thought, but don't be deterred; it'd be great entertainment and a great experience for you; your first in the real world and once you've recovered from your stropping, you might have something worthwhile to add to the conversation!
National school bunk-off day. Tell them please – there is no climate crisis
[weka has already warned you once today about no climate change denial but you seem to wilfully ignore these hints. Perhaps you are angling for a ban, in which case I am happy to oblige – Incognito]
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
It's excellent to see this device working cleaning up the Plastic Waste in Our Pacific Ocean. I have been watching the progress on this device it like any idea /invention one doesn't really know how it's going to work until it tried in Te real. Papatuanuku a few tweets here and there a it working Ka Pai it's a passive device so the device will have a low carbon footprint thanks to Boyan and his team for this Great invention
Ocean cleanup device successfully collects plastic for first time
Floating boom finally retains debris from the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, creator says
A huge floating device designed by Dutch scientists to clean up an island of rubbish in the Pacific Ocean that is three times the size of France has successfully picked up plastic from the high seas for the first time.
Boyan Slat, the creator of the Ocean Cleanup project, tweeted that the 600 metre-long (2,000ft) free-floating boom had captured and retained debris from what is known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.
About 600,000 to 800,000 metric tonnes of fishing gear is abandoned or lost at sea each year. Another 8m tonnes of plastic waste flows in from beaches.
Ocean currents have brought a vast patch of such detritus together halfway between Hawaii and California, where it is kept in rough formation by an ocean gyre, a whirlpool of currents. It is the largest accumulation of plastic in the world’s oceans
We now have a self-contained system in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch that is using the natural forces of the ocean to passively catch and concentrate plastics … This now gives us sufficient confidence in the general concept to keep going on this project.”
The plastic gathered so far will be brought to shore in December for recycling. The project believes there may be a premium market for items that have been made using plastic reclaimed from the ocean.
“I think in a few years’ time when we have the full-scale fleet out there, I think it should be possible to cover the operational cost of the cleanup operation using the plastic harvested,” Slat said.
The plan is to now scale up the device and make it more durable so it can retain plastic for up to a year or possibly longer before collection is necessary
Solar paint this technology has the potential to drastically reduce the cost of solar. We could have our planes painted with all our vehicles builting whare.
Our future is bright we just have to change to clean and green everything
How solar paint is shaking up the renewable energy industry
In 2016, the US solar industry contributed more than $150 billion in economic activity. When that kind of serious cash starts flooding an industry, you know new innovation isn't far behind.
And what sounds more innovative than ‘solar paint’? A paint that can generate electricity, but still works as normal paint? The ability to turn not only a roof, but an entire building into a solar-generating surface? If that doesn't scream innovation, then I don't know what does.
So far, the lifeblood of the solar industry has been traditional photovoltaic solar panels. Solar panels are a well-proven technology that save homeowners a ton of money. However, the hassle and expense of rooftop panel installations often deter people from switching to solar energy.
Now imagine a world where we could simply paint our roofs and walls with a type of paint that can generate electricity. Though we're pretty far off from actually implementing this technology, it's still exciting to think about.
So, what is solar paint? The most important thing to know is that it isn’t a single product; currently there are three different technologies that are referred to as 'solar paint'.
The 3 types of solar paint
The idea of using a paint-like substance to generate electricity has been discussed within the scientific community for many years. Only recently have the potential for real-world applications emerged.
There are three separate innovations that are classified as solar paints. Here we explore what they are and what they might mean for the future of solar energy Ka kite Ano link below.
As far as I'm concerned every bit of data that is linked to the Internet can be hacked. Eco Maori data is being stolen every minute of the day and spread around Te Papatuanuku a lot of my facts are manipulated to make me look bad.
State highway 4 got a big slip on it caused by to much rain that's you no what.
There you go the Royals data being hacked by rotten people.
Know Your Stuff is doing A great Mahi drugs need to be tested at all concerts.
Every one knows my opinion on Bernie.
Its cool that the new radiation machine that can focus radiation treatment on a tumor you see what a good government does invested it technology that helps all people not just the wealth like the last lot
I have learned that Te Kooti was a great Tane he was ripped off his whenua and locked up sent to the Chatham Islands. My first opinion was from a story from someone who had a radu with his Iwi so it was bias against him.
Tipene funerals I watched the show many times.
First Nations Dornie yes the Canadian tangata whenua are being treated badly like Tangata Whenua O Aotearoa is being treated badly Kia Kaha to all Indigenous Tangata. I believe it Eco Maori was not Tangata Whenua this BULLSHIT would not be happening to Me thanks for the Fame.
Esports tangata grab it with both hands it can generate heaps of putea they are basing it on culture values.
This is a great read just a couple of points Eco Maori want to make.
One huge forest canopies created their own environment they hold water in the Papatuanuku they don't dry out there environment they draw in rain clouds.
The other ones quite obvious we should plant 10 trees per person trillion of trees in all the correct places will enhance the local environment just like sun sails do during the hot summer days I'm not going to quote one of my favourite TV series The Big Bang theory. Famous line
If Each of Us Planted a Tree, Would It Slow Global Warming?
Ask a physicist: Just how much carbon could 7.5 billion new trees pull out of the atmosphere?
Here are some self-evident truths: Humans need to produce less carbon dioxide—assuming we care a fig about our children’s well-being. But even that’s no longer enough. CO2 levels in the atmosphere have reached 400 parts per million, a huge increase over historical levels of around 300 ppm. The fact is, we also need to figure out how to remove some of the CO2 that’s already out there.
As a short-term solution, intrepid climate activist Greta Thunberg suggests we plant more trees. It’s a lovely idea. Who doesn't like trees? While R&D labs struggle to come up with viable carbon-capture technologies, we already have this “magic machine,” as her video says, that “sucks carbon out of the air, cost very little, and builds itself.” And we don't need to wait for craven politicians to get on board
I really want to believe in this. What if every person on Earth took it upon themself to plant a tree. One treetop per child. Just how much carbon dioxide could we hope to scrub out of the atmosphere? Would it help reverse climate change? Let’s do the math!
trees instead of pine trees— you can click the pencil icon to edit it. Click Play to run the calculation.
trees instead of pine trees— you can click the pencil icon to edit it. Click Play to run the calculation.
Hey, that's not bad! This says that if every one of us took a couple of hours this weekend to plant a tree, it would eventually reduce the carbon dioxide level by around 6 percent from the current level
How about one more quick estimation. If everyone planted a tree, how much land would that require? Let's say they’re planted in a square grid, 5 meters apart, so that each tree takes up an area of 25 square meters. With 7.5 billion trees, that requires 1.8 x 1011square meters of land, or 72,000 square miles. That's roughly the size of North Dakota
I think we could do that. And with all due respect, North Dakota could use some more trees. Oh, for comparison, the Amazon rain forest has an area of 2.1 million square miles. Please don't burn it down.
Egmont Fisheries owner is trying to blame the demise of Our Maui Dolphin on cat urine get off the grass. He would rather see our Maui Dolphin go extinct.
He will still be here if the reservation are put in place to protect our Maui Dolphin. If we don't put in proper protection for Our Maui Dolphin they will not be here they will go into our books of extinct wildlife.
He is also lieing about only catching one dolphin in 9 years YEA RIGHT.
Let's look after our Wildlife Taonga so Our mokopuna can be proud of Aotearoa conservation reputation
All the criminal imports from Australia's are joining the local gangs a recruiting young boys they have a different Levels of criminals in Australia coming Here making Tangata Whenua O Aotearoa look bad they are a small minority of Tangata Whenua.
That's great our government is making the health sector healthier how about making there buildings more environmentaly friendly ie get coal out of the heating system of hospitals.
Niki that's a good yarn to try and cover the Eco Maori effect.
Its excellent that KiwiRail New Zealand is transporting more logs its better for our environment roads and tangata using our road safety.
Its good to see people are supportive of a logical move to save our Rangatahi lives there are many factors to why people end up taking that stuff ie some muppet putting it in someone's drink with out them knowing so it will be nice to know that the stuff is tested.
Hone hows the boys on the Rock. The way I see it they see the big man in front of them then duck for cover next minute yellow card.
Cost of living ~1/3 of Kiwis needed help with food as cost of living pressures continue to increase - turning to friends, family, food banks or Work and Income in the past year, to find food. 40% of Kiwis also said they felt schemes offered little or no benefit, according ...
Hi,Perhaps in 2025 it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the CEO and owner of Voyager Internet — the major sponsor of the New Zealand Media Awards — has taken to sharing a variety of Anti-Muslim and anti-Jewish conspiracy theories to his 1.2 million followers.This included sharing a post from ...
In the sprint to deepen Australia-India defence cooperation, navy links have shot ahead of ties between the two countries’ air forces and armies. That’s largely a good thing: maritime security is at the heart of ...
'Cause you and me, were meant to be,Walking free, in harmony,One fine day, we'll fly away,Don't you know that Rome wasn't built in a day?Songwriters: Paul David Godfrey / Ross Godfrey / Skye Edwards.I was half expecting to see photos this morning of National Party supporters with wads of cotton ...
The PSA says a settlement with Health New Zealand over the agency’s proposed restructure of its Data and Digital and Pacific Health teams has saved around 200 roles from being cut. A third of New Zealanders have needed help accessing food in the past year, according to Consumer NZ, and ...
John Campbell’s Under His Command, a five-part TVNZ+ investigation series starting today, rips the veil off Destiny Church, exposing the rot festering under Brian Tamaki’s self-proclaimed apostolic throne. This isn’t just a church; it’s a fiefdom, built on fear, manipulation, and a trail of scandals that make your stomach churn. ...
Some argue we still have time, since quantum computing capable of breaking today’s encryption is a decade or more away. But breakthrough capabilities, especially in domains tied to strategic advantage, rarely follow predictable timelines. Just ...
The political petrified piece of wood, Winston Peters, who refuses to retire gracefully, has had an eventful couple of weeks peddling transphobia, pushing bigoted policies, undertaking his unrelenting war on wokeness and slinging vile accusations like calling Green co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick a “groomer”.At 80, the hypocritical NZ First leader’s latest ...
It's raining in Cockermouth and we're following our host up the stairs. We’re telling her it’s a lovely building and she’s explaining that it used to be a pub and a nightclub and a backpackers, but no more.There were floods in 2009 and 2015 along the main street, huge floods, ...
The National Party’s Minister of Police, Corrections, and Ethnic Communities (irony alert) has stumbled into yet another racist quagmire, proving that when it comes to bigotry, the right wing’s playbook is as predictable as it is vile. This time, Mitchell’s office reposted an Instagram reel falsely claiming that Te Pāti ...
In the week of Australia’s 3 May election, ASPI will release Agenda for Change 2025: preparedness and resilience in an uncertain world, a report promoting public debate and understanding on issues of strategic importance to ...
In a world crying out for empathy, J.K. Rowling has once again proven she’s more interested in stoking division than building bridges. The once-beloved author of Harry Potter has cemented her place as this week’s Arsehole of the Week, a title earned through her relentless, tone-deaf crusade against transgender rights. ...
Health security is often seen as a peripheral security domain, and as a problem that is difficult to address. These perceptions weaken our capacity to respond to borderless threats. With the wind back of Covid-19 ...
Would our political parties pass muster under the Fair Trading Act?WHAT IF OUR POLITICAL PARTIES were subject to the Fair Trading Act? What if they, like the nation’s businesses, were prohibited from misleading their consumers – i.e. the voters – about the nature, characteristics, suitability, or quantity of the products ...
Rod EmmersonThank you to my subscribers and readers - you make it all possible. Tui.Subscribe nowSix updates today from around the world and locally here in Aoteaora New Zealand -1. RFK Jnr’s Autism CrusadeAmerica plans to create a registry of people with autism in the United States. RFK Jr’s department ...
We see it often enough. A democracy deals with an authoritarian state, and those who oppose concessions cite the lesson of Munich 1938: make none to dictators; take a firm stand. And so we hear ...
370 perioperative nurses working at Auckland City Hospital, Starship Hospital and Greenlane Clinical Centre will strike for two hours on 1 May – the same day senior doctors are striking. This is part of nationwide events to mark May Day on 1 May, including rallies outside public hospitals, organised by ...
Character protections for Auckland’s villas have stymied past development. Now moves afoot to strip character protection from a bunch of inner-city villas. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories shortest from our political economy on Wednesday, April 23:Special Character Areas designed to protect villas are stopping 20,000 sites near Auckland’s ...
Artificial intelligence is poised to significantly transform the Indo-Pacific maritime security landscape. It offers unprecedented situational awareness, decision-making speed and operational flexibility. But without clear rules, shared norms and mechanisms for risk reduction, AI could ...
For what is a man, what has he got?If not himself, then he has naughtTo say the things he truly feelsAnd not the words of one who kneelsThe record showsI took the blowsAnd did it my wayLyrics: Paul Anka.Morena folks, before we discuss Winston’s latest salvo in NZ First’s War ...
Britain once risked a reputation as the weak link in the trilateral AUKUS partnership. But now the appointment of an empowered senior official to drive the project forward and a new burst of British parliamentary ...
Australia’s ability to produce basic metals, including copper, lead, zinc, nickel and construction steel, is in jeopardy, with ageing plants struggling against Chinese competition. The multinational commodities company Trafigura has put its Australian operations under ...
There have been recent PPP debacles, both in New Zealand (think Transmission Gully) and globally, with numerous examples across both Australia and Britain of failed projects and extensive litigation by government agencies seeking redress for the failures.Rob Campbell is one of New Zealand’s sharpest critics of PPPs noting that; "There ...
On Twitter on Saturday I indicated that there had been a mistake in my post from last Thursday in which I attempted to step through the Reserve Bank Funding Agreement issues. Making mistakes (there are two) is annoying and I don’t fully understand how I did it (probably too much ...
Indonesia’s armed forces still have a lot of work to do in making proper use of drones. Two major challenges are pilot training and achieving interoperability between the services. Another is overcoming a predilection for ...
The StrategistBy Sandy Juda Pratama, Curie Maharani and Gautama Adi Kusuma
As a living breathing human being, you’ve likely seen the heart-wrenching images from Gaza...homes reduced to rubble, children burnt to cinders, families displaced, and a death toll that’s beyond comprehension. What is going on in Gaza is most definitely a genocide, the suffering is real, and it’s easy to feel ...
Donald Trump, who has called the Chair of the Federal Reserve “a major loser”. Photo: Getty ImagesLong stories shortest from our political economy on Tuesday, April 22:US markets slump after Donald Trump threatens the Fed’s independence. China warns its trading partners not to side with the US. Trump says some ...
Last night, the news came through that Pope Francis had passed away at 7:35 am in Rome on Monday, the 21st of April, following a reported stroke and heart failure. Pope Francis. Photo: AP.Despite his obvious ill health, it still came as a shock, following so soon after the Easter ...
The 2024 Independent Intelligence Review found the NIC to be highly capable and performing well. So, it is not a surprise that most of the 67 recommendations are incremental adjustments and small but nevertheless important ...
This is a re-post from The Climate BrinkThe world has made real progress toward tacking climate change in recent years, with spending on clean energy technologies skyrocketing from hundreds of billions to trillions of dollars globally over the past decade, and global CO2 emissions plateauing.This has contributed to a reassessment of ...
Hi,I’ve been having a peaceful month of what I’d call “existential dread”, even more aware than usual that — at some point — this all ends.It was very specifically triggered by watching Pantheon, an animated sci-fi show that I’m filing away with all-time greats like Six Feet Under, Watchmen and ...
Once the formalities of honouring the late Pope wrap up in two to three weeks time, the conclave of Cardinals will go into seclusion. Some 253 of the current College of Cardinals can take part in the debate over choosing the next Pope, but only 138 of them are below ...
The National Party government is doubling down on a grim, regressive vision for the future: more prisons, more prisoners, and a society fractured by policies that punish rather than heal. This isn’t just a misstep; it’s a deliberate lurch toward a dystopian future where incarceration is the answer to every ...
The audacity of Don Brash never ceases to amaze. The former National Party and Hobson’s Pledge mouthpiece has now sunk his claws into NZME, the media giant behind the New Zealand Herald and half of our commercial radio stations. Don Brash has snapped up shares in NZME, aligning himself with ...
A listing of 28 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 13, 2025 thru Sat, April 19, 2025. This week's roundup is again published by category and sorted by number of articles included in each. The formatting is a ...
“What I’d say to you is…” our Prime Minister might typically begin a sentence, when he’s about to obfuscate and attempt to derail the question you really, really want him to answer properly (even once would be okay, Christopher). Questions such as “Why is a literal election promise over ...
Ruth IrwinExponential Economic growth is the driver of Ecological degradation. It is driven by CO2 greenhouse gas emissions through fossil fuel extraction and burning for the plethora of polluting industries. Extreme weather disasters and Climate change will continue to get worse because governments subscribe to the current global economic system, ...
A man on telly tries to tell me what is realBut it's alright, I like the way that feelsAnd everybody singsWe are evolving from night to morningAnd I wanna believe in somethingWriter: Adam Duritz.The world is changing rapidly, over the last year or so, it has been out with the ...
MFB Co-Founder Cecilia Robinson runs Tend HealthcareSummary:Kieran McAnulty calls out National on healthcare lies and says Health Minister Simeon Brown is “dishonest and disingenuous”(video below)McAnulty says negotiation with doctors is standard practice, but this level of disrespect is not, especially when we need and want our valued doctors.National’s $20bn ...
Chris Luxon’s tenure as New Zealand’s Prime Minister has been a masterclass in incompetence, marked by coalition chaos, economic lethargy, verbal gaffes, and a moral compass that seems to point wherever political expediency lies. The former Air New Zealand CEO (how could we forget?) was sold as a steady hand, ...
Has anybody else noticed Cameron Slater still obsessing over Jacinda Ardern? The disgraced Whale Oil blogger seems to have made it his life’s mission to shadow the former Prime Minister of New Zealand like some unhinged stalker lurking in the digital bushes.The man’s obsession with Ardern isn't just unhealthy...it’s downright ...
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Is climate change a net benefit for society? Human-caused climate change has been a net detriment to society as measured by loss of ...
When the National Party hastily announced its “Local Water Done Well” policy, they touted it as the great saviour of New Zealand’s crumbling water infrastructure. But as time goes by it's looking more and more like a planning and fiscal lame duck...and one that’s going to cost ratepayers far more ...
Donald Trump, the orange-hued oligarch, is back at it again, wielding tariffs like a mob boss swinging a lead pipe. His latest economic edict; slapping hefty tariffs on imports from China, Mexico, and Canada, has the stench of a protectionist shakedown, cooked up in the fevered minds of his sycophantic ...
In the week of Australia’s 3 May election, ASPI will release Agenda for Change 2025: preparedness and resilience in an uncertain world, a report promoting public debate and understanding on issues of strategic importance to ...
One pill makes you largerAnd one pill makes you smallAnd the ones that mother gives youDon't do anything at allGo ask AliceWhen she's ten feet tallSongwriter: Grace Wing Slick.Morena, all, and a happy Bicycle Day to you.Today is an unofficial celebration of the dawning of the psychedelic era, commemorating the ...
It’s only been a few months since the Hollywood fires tore through Los Angeles, leaving a trail of devastation, numerous deaths, over 10,000 homes reduced to rubble, and a once glorious film industry on its knees. The Palisades and Eaton fires, fueled by climate-driven dry winds, didn’t just burn houses; ...
Four eighty-year-old books which are still vitally relevant today. Between 1942 and 1945, four refugees from Vienna each published a ground-breaking – seminal – book.* They left their country after Austria was taken over by fascists in 1934 and by Nazi Germany in 1938. Previously they had lived in ‘Red ...
Good Friday, 18th April, 2025: I can at last unveil the Secret Non-Fiction Project. The first complete Latin-to-English translation of Giovanni Pico della Mirandola’s twelve-book Disputationes adversus astrologiam divinatricem (Disputations Against Divinatory Astrology). Amounting to some 174,000 words, total. Some context is probably in order. Giovanni Pico della Mirandola (1463-1494) ...
National MP Hamish Campbell's pathetic attempt to downplay his deep ties to and involvement in the Two by Twos...a secretive religious sect under FBI and NZ Police investigation for child sexual abuse...isn’t just a misstep; it’s a calculated lie that insults the intelligence of every Kiwi voter.Campbell’s claim of being ...
New Zealand First’s Shane Jones has long styled himself as the “Prince of the Provinces,” a champion of regional development and economic growth. But beneath the bluster lies a troubling pattern of behaviour that reeks of cronyism and corruption, undermining the very democracy he claims to serve. Recent revelations and ...
Give me one reason to stay hereAnd I'll turn right back aroundGive me one reason to stay hereAnd I'll turn right back aroundSaid I don't want to leave you lonelyYou got to make me change my mindSongwriters: Tracy Chapman.Morena, and Happy Easter, whether that means to you. Hot cross buns, ...
New Zealand’s housing crisis is a sad indictment on the failures of right wing neoliberalism, and the National Party, under Chris Luxon’s shaky leadership, is trying to simply ignore it. The numbers don’t lie: Census data from 2023 revealed 112,496 Kiwis were severely housing deprived...couch-surfing, car-sleeping, or roughing it on ...
The podcast above of the weekly ‘Hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers on Thursday night features co-hosts & talking about the week’s news with regular and special guests, including: on a global survey of over 3,000 economists and scientists showing a significant divide in views on green growth; and ...
Simeon Brown, the National Party’s poster child for hubris, consistently over-promises and under-delivers. His track record...marked by policy flip-flops and a dismissive attitude toward expert advice, reveals a politician driven by personal ambition rather than evidence. From transport to health, Brown’s focus seems fixed on protecting National's image, not addressing ...
Open access notables Recent intensified riverine CO2 emission across the Northern Hemisphere permafrost region, Mu et al., Nature Communications:Global warming causes permafrost thawing, transferring large amounts of soil carbon into rivers, which inevitably accelerates riverine CO2 release. However, temporally and spatially explicit variations of riverine CO2 emissions remain unclear, limiting the ...
Once a venomous thorn in New Zealand’s blogosphere, Cathy Odgers, aka Cactus Kate, has slunk into the shadows, her once-sharp quills dulled by the fallout of Dirty Politics.The dishonest attack-blogger, alongside her vile accomplices such as Cameron Slater, were key players in the National Party’s sordid smear campaigns, exposed by Nicky ...
Once upon a time, not so long ago, those who talked of Australian sovereign capability, especially in the technology sector, were generally considered an amusing group of eccentrics. After all, technology ecosystems are global and ...
The ACT Party leader’s latest pet project is bleeding taxpayers dry, with $10 million funneled into seven charter schools for just 215 students. That’s a jaw-dropping $46,500 per student, compared to roughly $9,000 per head in state schools.You’d think Seymour would’ve learned from the last charter school fiasco, but apparently, ...
India navigated relations with the United States quite skilfully during the first Trump administration, better than many other US allies did. Doing so a second time will be more difficult, but India’s strategic awareness and ...
The NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi is concerned for low-income workers given new data released by Stats NZ that shows inflation was 2.5% for the year to March 2025, rising from 2.2% in December last year. “The prices of things that people can’t avoid are rising – meaning inflation is rising ...
Last week, the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment recommended that forestry be removed from the Emissions Trading Scheme. Its an unfortunate but necessary move, required to prevent the ETS's total collapse in a decade or so. So naturally, National has told him to fuck off, and that they won't be ...
China’s recent naval circumnavigation of Australia has highlighted a pressing need to defend Australia’s air and sea approaches more effectively. Potent as nuclear submarines are, the first Australian boats under AUKUS are at least seven ...
In yesterday’s post I tried to present the Reserve Bank Funding Agreement for 2025-30, as approved by the Minister of Finance and the Bank’s Board, in the context of the previous agreement, and the variation to that agreement signed up to by Grant Robertson a few weeks before the last ...
Australia’s bid to co-host the 31st international climate negotiations (COP31) with Pacific island countries in late 2026 is directly in our national interest. But success will require consultation with the Pacific. For that reason, no ...
Old and outdated buildings being demolished at Wellington Hospital in 2018. The new infrastructure being funded today will not be sufficient for future population size and some will not be built by 2035. File photo: Lynn GrievesonLong stories short from our political economy on Thursday, April 17:Simeon Brown has unveiled ...
Thousands of senior medical doctors have voted to go on strike for 24 hours overpay at the beginning of next month. Callaghan Innovation has confirmed dozens more jobs are on the chopping block as the organisation disestablishes. Palmerston North hospital staff want improved security after a gun-wielding man threatened their ...
The introduction of AI in workplaces can create significant health and safety risks for workers (such as intensification of work, and extreme surveillance) which can significantly impact workers’ mental and physical wellbeing. It is critical that unions and workers are involved in any decision to introduce AI so that ...
Donald Trump’s return to the White House and aggressive posturing is undermining global diplomacy, and New Zealand must stand firm in rejecting his reckless, fascist-driven policies that are dragging the world toward chaos.As a nation with a proud history of peacekeeping and principled foreign policy, we should limit our role ...
Sunday marks three months since Donald Trump’s inauguration as US president. What a ride: the style rude, language raucous, and the results rogue. Beyond manners, rudeness matters because tone signals intent as well as personality. ...
There are any number of reasons why anyone thinking of heading to the United States for a holiday should think twice. They would be giving their money to a totalitarian state where political dissenters are being rounded up and imprisoned here and here, where universities are having their funds for ...
Taiwan has an inadvertent, rarely acknowledged role in global affairs: it’s a kind of sponge, soaking up much of China’s political, military and diplomatic efforts. Taiwan soaks up Chinese power of persuasion and coercion that ...
The Ukraine war has been called the bloodiest conflict since World War II. As of July 2024, 10,000 women were serving in frontline combat roles. Try telling them—from the safety of an Australian lounge room—they ...
Following Canadian authorities’ discovery of a Chinese information operation targeting their country’s election, Australians, too, should beware such risks. In fact, there are already signs that Beijing is interfering in campaigning for the Australian election ...
The Government must support Northland hapū who have resorted to rakes and buckets to try to control a devastating invasive seaweed that threatens the local economy and environment. ...
New Zealand First has today introduced a Member’s Bill that would ensure the biological definition of a woman and man are defined in law. “This is not about being anti-anyone or anti-anything. This is about ensuring we as a country focus on the facts of biology and protect the ...
After stonewalling requests for information on boot camps, the Government has now offered up a blog post right before Easter weekend rather than provide clarity on the pilot. ...
More people could be harmed if Minister for Mental Health Matt Doocey does not guarantee to protect patients and workers as the Police withdraw from supporting mental health call outs. ...
The Green Party recognises the extension of visa allowances for our Pacific whānau as a step in the right direction but continues to call for a Pacific Visa Waiver. ...
The Government yesterday released its annual child poverty statistics, and by its own admission, more tamariki across Aotearoa are now living in material hardship. ...
Today, Te Pāti Māori join the motu in celebration as the Treaty Principles Bill is voted down at its second reading. “From the beginning, this Bill was never welcome in this House,” said Te Pāti Māori Co-Leader, Rawiri Waititi. “Our response to the first reading was one of protest: protesting ...
The Green Party is proud to have voted down the Coalition Government’s Treaty Principles Bill, an archaic piece of legislation that sought to attack the nation’s founding agreement. ...
A Member’s Bill in the name of Green Party MP Julie Anne Genter which aims to stop coal mining, the Crown Minerals (Prohibition of Mining) Amendment Bill, has been pulled from Parliament’s ‘biscuit tin’ today. ...
Labour MP Kieran McAnulty’s Members Bill to make the law simpler and fairer for businesses operating on Easter, Anzac and Christmas Days has passed its first reading after a conscience vote in Parliament. ...
Nicola Willis continues to sit on her hands amid a global economic crisis, leaving the Reserve Bank to act for New Zealanders who are worried about their jobs, mortgages, and KiwiSaver. ...
Coal mine expansion into the West Coast’s Denniston plateau attracted more than 70 protesters over the Easter weekend. Climate activists say this is only the first step in resisting the Bathurst mining company. “Oh yeah – right there is where we’re digging trenches to keep tents from getting flooded,” said ...
The Department of Internal Affairs buys and replaces these cars for ex PMs and/or spouses, with the exception of Chris Hipkins, who wasn’t in the job more than two years, and John Key, who declined the entitlement. ...
Te Pūkenga divisions are going to be trusted to take new apprentices and trainees but the ones they currently care for and teach are going to be ripped away from them in a messy transition. ...
The strike is part of a growing rebellion by health workers internationally against attacks by capitalist governments, led by the US Trump administration, on public health services. ...
Alex Casey talks to Aaron Yap, the New Zealander behind the viral interview format adored by movie fans worldwide. For the last few years, the showbiz publicity circuit has become dominated by novelty interview formats. Celebrities now answer questions while eating increasingly spicy chicken wings, or playing with puppies, or ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nazia Pathan, PhD, Postdoctoral Researcher, Population Health Research Institute, McMaster University Biobanks have become some of the most transformative tools in medical research, enabling scientists to study the relationships between genes, health and disease on an unprecedented scale(Piqsels/Siyya) If there’s a ...
I’ve just realised that I dislike one of my friends. What do I do? Want Hera’s help? Email your problem to helpme@thespinoff.co.nzHi Hera, I have figured out that I just… don’t like someone in my extended friend group. They’re the kind of person who comes with the warning label, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christopher Laurikainen Gaete, PhD Candidate, University of Wollongong Chris Laurikainen Gaete Large kangaroos today roam long distances across the outback, often surviving droughts by moving in mobs to find new food when pickings are slim. But not all kangaroos have ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Simone McCarthy, Postdoctoral Research Fellow – Commercial Determinants of Health, Deakin University Wpadington/Shutterstock Whatever the code, whatever the season, Australian sports fans are bombarded with gambling ads. Drawing on Australians’ passion, loyalty and pride for sport, the devastating health ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Carol Johnson, Emerita Professor, Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Adelaide “Women’s” issues are once again playing a significant role in the election debate as Labor and the Liberals trade barbs over which parties’ policies will benefit women most. In ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Benjamin Scrivener, PhD Candidate, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Kateryna Kon/Shutterstock Imagine suddenly losing the ability to move a limb, walk or speak. You would probably recognise this as a medical emergency and get ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Garritt C. Van Dyk, Senior Lecturer in History, University of Waikato Australian Comforts Fund buffet in Longueval, France, 1916.Australian War Memorial The Anzac biscuit is a cultural icon, infused with mythical value, representing the connection between women on the home front ...
The flag is half-masted by first raising it to the top of the mast and then immediately lowering it slowly to the half-mast position. The half-mast position will depend on the size of the flag and the length of the flagpole. ...
All 15 recommendations from a review of ECE regulations have been accepted, with the government promising a simpler, cheaper system for providers, writes Catherine McGregor in today’s extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here.Big changes for early childhood education approved Cabinet has ...
"He has a rather Winston way of communicating with media where he's going to push back on journalists, as is his right to do so," Christopher Luxon says. ...
The tech sector is New Zealand's third biggest source of exports behind meat and dairy, the prime minister has told those attending an event in London. ...
The call has sent ripples through the veteran community — but behind the protest lies a deeper story of neglect, frustration and a system many say has failed those it was meant to serve.Every year on April 25, politicians and dignitaries stand before the nation, flanked by medals and ...
From real-terms minimum wage cuts to watering down health and safety, the government is subtly chipping away at pay, conditions and many of the other things that make work life-giving, writes Max Rashbrooke. Frogs, it turns out, do notice when they’re being boiled. For years the favourite metaphor for people’s ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp');Got a good quiz question?Send Newsroom your questions.The post Newsroom daily quiz, Thursday 24 April appeared first on Newsroom. ...
NZ tracks far below the OECD average when it comes to investing in research and science and attempts to catch up just haven’t worked The post NZ’s long-standing R&D target scrapped appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Speaker of the House Gerry Brownlee says he believes Te Pāti Māori’s Treaty Principles Bill haka showed “huge disrespect for the Parliament itself”, and disrespect for “some aspects of the Treaty”.Brownlee cannot influence the committee considering potential disciplinary actions against the three Te Pāti Māori MPs who left their seats ...
On a tattered Red Cross map, four nearly-straight pencil lines track north from Capua, near Naples, to Chavari then Ubine. From here, over the border to Breslau in what was then German-occupied Poland, then on to Lübeck, north-east of Hamburg. Above each line a single handwritten word – “Train”, “Train”, ...
After weeks of turmoil in the global markets, economists and commentators have used words like ‘bloodbath’ and ‘carnage’ to describe the world’s financial situation.And while New Zealand often feels relatively cushioned, what happens in the US is inextricably linked to the rest of the world.“It will impact us to some ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra This election has been lacklustre, without the touch of excitement of some past campaigns. Through the decades, campaigning has changed dramatically, adopting new techniques and technologies. This time, we’ve seen politicians try to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra A re-elected Albanese government will take the unprecedented step of buying or obtaining options over key critical minerals to protect Australia’s national interest and boost its economic resilience. The move follows US President Donald Trump’s ...
RNZ Pacific Despite calls from women’s groups urging the government to implement policies to address the underrepresentation of women in politics, the introduction of temporary special measures (TSM) to increase women’s political representation in Fiji remains a distant goal. This week, leader of the Social Democratic Liberal Party (Sodelpa), Cabinet ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra A re-elected Albanese government will take the unprecedented step of buying or obtaining options over key critical minerals to protect Australia’s national interest and boost its economic resilience. The move follows US President Donald Trump’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Appiah Takyi, Senior Lecturer, Department of Planning, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) Urban flooding is a major problem in the global south. In west and central Africa, more than 4 million people were affected by flooding in 2024. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Layton, Visiting Fellow, Strategic Studies, Griffith University Just as voting has begun in this year’s federal election, the Coalition has released its long-awaited defence policy platform. The main focus, as expected, is a boost in defence spending to 3% of Australia’s ...
"The question all this immediately gives rise to is why does it now take so long to develop critical infrastructure in New Zealand. How was Napier able – 113 years ago – to get a tram service up and running just six months after starting to lay tram tracks, and why, today, in an age of superior technology, is it likely to take several years to lay a not dissimilar length of track, and establish a modern service in Auckland?"
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2019/10/04/840483/stop-bickering-start-building
Why indeed
Lots different . Those Napier trams would have been ultra light with short bodies and power lines didnt exist for the streets then.
Modern articulated trams are very heavy and required serious power supply separate from the existing roadside system. All the traffic signals are changed, and no longer safe for passengers to hop on and off in centre of road like it was back in 1905 so pedestrian islands, road layout changes to go with that.
Ive seen in parts of Melbourne where the original tram lines had to be major rebuild as newer and heavier trams came along
Like the CRL and other recent projects, they also have to shift and rebuild lots of pipes and cable lines at the same time.
I'm actually not in favour of the light rail option, and have a lot of time for Mike Lee who has been involved with looking at transport in Auckland for many years.
Greater Auckland has been very influential in transport issues in recent years, and this has impacted on public discussions on this issue, to the detriment of good solutions. I remember attending a seminar with Patrick Reynolds, proudly answering to a question that he tends to frame posts to identify specific problems and then provide the answer to that framework. From then on, I read the posts with a more critical eye, and saw that this appeared to be true. There was no space for different questions on issues. I only rarely visit that site now, when I was previously a regular reader.
Alongside this, was the closer relationship with AT that has developed, which makes their influence quite alarming given that is is not reflective of actual public consultation but does influence a great number of readers. I read the small print in a recent (last two years) AT Strategy plan that identified that the primary source of determining priority spending was public contact. This can result in a circular pattern that is hard to disrupt with areas in need, but with no high profile or public attention, being ignored while other areas get more and more attention, services and funding.
The justification of light rail and benefits to housing and business only contributes to show how badly some proposals are in terms of cost/benefit analysis.
Im with you on that view . I wish light rail was the answer here but it doesnt seem to be well thought at all for Dominion Rd.
And airports are terrible places to spend vast sums on public transport when they can always create ever bigger carparks which make airports money. When I looked at Sydneys airport rail stations, the on/off boardings is so low to be laughable in the context of Sydneys train system, and the biggest users seem to be passengers transferring between domestic and international terminals. The Traffic numbers are normally buried in the overall suburban line which continues on to the CBD
The so called Westgate light rail might be a better approach
IMHO, NuZull's problem has always been (well at least since No8 wire became dangerous and only to be handled by someone in a flourescent vest) short term thinking.
I'll bet (almost put money on it) that whatever 'loit rail' system is implemented, it'll be different from narrow guage heavy rail. That'll be so that JUST THE POSSIBILITY of existing infrastucture in places won't be possible – such as tramtrains. The reasons it can't be done will already be forming the basis for proposalsn that will be deemed impractical (going forward), and cost-benefit analyses, and consultant's template-driven advice to officials as I write.
Anything using the existing NZTA corridors will be reasonably easy. Beyond that into the suburban network you are into trench warfare – particularly if you are at grade. There are many dead corridor 'improvements' proposed for Dominion Road over the last 20 years that have cost political careers. They will oppose everything that takes away just 1 car park as if their children were being sacrificed to Baal.
Auckland International Airport are deeply motivated to get the NZSuper version underway. The build can integrate with their second runway and integrated terminal. After that they will need to generate a new masterplan.
A tunneled line down Queen Street, after CRL's experience and that of George Street in Sydney, is a whole bunch easier so long as its alignments stays within the public corridor rather than having to buy underground title rights.
Patrick Reynolds is now on the NZTA Board, and as a long time proponent of the AT/NZTA light rail proposal, he will continue to be against the NZSuperFund light rail proposal.
Yes, it appears his self-promotion has been effective. His ability to not consult and consider opinions other than his own probably will remain intact. His social media use after being appointed should not have been required to be monitored or censured.
I do think he has skills to offer, just wary about his being the loudest voice on the board, and also about his influence on decision making. I’m all for less roading, but often Greater Auckland discussed and delivered more for the already served rather than the under-served. I’m concerned that some people are very good at advocating for the sphere that they move in, rather than reflective of the wider community. He strikes me as one of those – unwitting, perhaps – advisors.
As stupid as comparing Riverton to Los Angeles.
is this setting a new benchmark in delayed-reforms/incrementalism..?
we are gouged by the power companies..
(that much is a given – so urgent reform is needed..of this there is no doubt..)
but the minister sez that any reforms wd kick in in a labour 3rd term in gummint…?
you could ask – is she kidding..?
but no…five years it is…
and get this..!…the minister is selling it as a positive…
(why am i suddenly feeling weary…?..)
oh..!..and i nearly forgot – after these reforms..old people/low-users on fixed rates will be the losers..
they will pay more for their power..
isn't neoliberal-incrementalist reform just bloody brilliant…eh..?
personally – i'd re-nationalise the profiteering bastards – and be done with it..
Ditto, power generation and supply should be returned to full public ownership.
This particular major privatisation handover, would never have happened if there had not been a massive public infrastructure to prey upon. There is no way the likes of Genesis and the other parasites would have been in a position to build hydro and all the rest of the network.
to me it is one of the latest examples/iterations of the taking of the commons from us…
and i wd argue that the re-taking back of that commons is going to become one of the issues in the near future..
for aside from putting right that historical/ongoing theft from the rest of us..
any coherent/effective measures against climate-change – must entail the taking back of the commons – by the people…
and re-nationalising electric power is the low-hanging fruit in that process..
so let's do it..!
Never mind there are a pair of “safe hands” about to be available soon as he relinquishes his position on the ANZ bank board?
Johnny Key may need to leave his cushy spot on a rouge ANZ bank.
https://www.odt.co.nz/business/john-key-may-have-relinquish-banking-role
Friday, 4 October 2019
John Key may have to relinquish banking role
Dunne really has made an art form of his ability to churn out a so-called political column that has nothing useful to say.
You’d think if he was going to venture an opinion about the delay around the delivery of light rail across the isthmus in Auckland he might have more to say than, well, Napier managed it in short order in 1913 so why not now in Auckland?
You’d hope maybe that he might offer some insights into the complex negotiations between the government and the Super Fund who have stepped in and offered to finance and run the project. And why that might be a very desirable outcome for the government. You’d need to look way back to Labour’s fury at the way the incoming National government in 2008 summarily discontinued contributions to the Cullen Fund and how this and other infrastructure projects could prevent a future National government disrupting the Fund’s funding stream again.
He might have cast an eye over the relationship between the National Party and the National-aligned local politicians and NIMBYs in Mt Eden, Balmoral, Sandringham who are determined to stop light rail along Dominion Road in order to thwart any urban intensification of their lovely, leafy, inner city suburbs. Too bad about anybody else.
He might have paused to wonder why it is that National are so resolutely wedded to the private ICE motor vehicle and what can be done to shift that party’s thinking away from endless road building towards other more sustainable, diverse and resilient transport options for our biggest cities.
Dont let the Super fund step in . Its a rip off private finance play where we pay and pay for decades. They link up with a Tram builder so we pay top dollar for that, plus running costs. And instead of borrowing money as the government can for 2.5% we will pay 9.5% or more to The Super Fund plus their 'partners' costs.
Running a tram service isnt rocket science and itsnt so arcane and difficult that it cant be done ourselves.
light rail is a con. If it’s not rocket science how Come it hasn’t been done yet?
heavy rail north to south and east to west with full time bus corridors on all major arterial roads.
Light rail makes traffic worse as cars still have to use the same space a la melbourne
This government is spending just under $5 billion to build 3.3 kilometers of rail in Auckland's CBD. That's over $1 billion per kilometer, and they haven't even opened it, or got to the operating costs yet.
Melbourne has the best managed transport system in the southern hemisphere, and the best public transport. Some of it is modern trams, some of it light rail to border suburbs, and some is heavy rail as well to the periphery and outlying towns.
Our mix is different. Auckland public transport usage is now doing just fine with a mix of heavy rail and dedicated busways. Based mostly on buses within dedicated corridors, it's growing in use faster than it ever has.
But don't be fooled into thinking any future government is gong to spend billions more per kilometre on extending heavy rail lines beyond the existing corridors.
https://twitter.com/publicaddress/status/1179822676178653186
if there is one preventable death – it will be on their heads/by their hands…..
and y'know..!..alcohol-sodden old men – who celebrate their sodden-ness..
saying: 'just don't do it..!..and if you do do it..and die..that's yr own fault..!'..to young people..
stretches the boundaries of irony..to breaking point..
(is that 'polite' enough..?..asking for a friend..)
" it will be on their heads/by their hands…."
No it wont. Far better to have police drug dogs at the entrances to these festivals checking what people are carrying. Too often they catch the drug dealers loaded with their wares
people who take drugs or any harmful substance without knowing what it really is cant offload their lack of care onto others.
I can just laugh at the idea that those pills tested and found to be harmful wont be onsold during the festival to recoup money spent
But that's one advantage:
person gets the drug tested. Drug is safe, or at least contains other drugs so the user can make an informed decision. fine.
The drug is tested and found to be poisonous. So the tester says "we can nix that for you". User takes drug back, supplies it to someone else. Someone else goes to hospital, but there is the possibility that their supplier gets firmly fingered not just as the supplier, but as knowing that the drug was spiked. "Supply" becomes "demonstrable murder".
As opposed to "ooo, supply, but I didn't know the shit was bad".
Can the tester also put out the word that there's a bad batch of E or whatever on the site (and what it looks like)?
I would expect so, especially if it was lethal (as opposed to say being cut with a fellow traveller). Especially at gigs it would really get the word out quickly.
Yeah social media would lap up information like this. Been out a lot lately and everything's changed due to everyone having a phone. A venue can be empty then some hipsters turn up take photos and instagram they've arrived next minute the joints hopping. Amazing to see. The information sharing and response today is almost instant.
I filled in the survey in favour of drug testing and I was totally civil with my comment at the end. I'm also of an age which NZ First would consider as voter friendly (I'm not though)
We're well into the realms of fantasy-land now. Trump is calling on China to conduct an investigation into Biden and his son on the grounds they were involved in a corrupt business relationship in China.
He's in the throes of an impeachment process over the Ukraine nonsense and he's doing it again. The mind just boggles:
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/oct/03/trump-biden-china-investigation-demand
Mr Trump’s mind anyway–is boggled–in many observers view. Who knows what technical term applies to his behaviour, because no one officially wants to go there!
Republicans/religious zealots enable him because they get the policy they want unhindered. While the rest of us watch uncomfortably, and wonder how the American people could do this to themselves.
a person who i follow on twitter – who worked closely with him on all of his television shows..
sez he has an adderral and a cocaine habit..
we are told he crushes up and snorts the adderall during the day – and moves onto the cocaine in the evening..this is/was his habit/pattern..
(it does help explain the cascades of tweets he does – late into the nite..)
he also sez that the crew on those shows – to a man/woman – loathed the orange ball of pus…
and that he treated them as badly as you may imagine..
TM
Same with the UK. Is it mass hysteria, or early dementia, frontal lobe stuff or whatever? It took off Terry Pratchett, a fine imaginative mind. Perhaps there is a cumulative effect of our polluting effects that have been going into the air and our bodies and mixing for decades.
Something to watch out for at biosecurity at the border. It was found in Australia, so could spread.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/10/03/brain-shrinking-killer-fungus-cannot-touched-found-australia/?li_source=LI&li_medium=li-recommendation-widget
It will need to move on from Aus pretty fast due to a lack of viable hosts.
Rainforest dweller! Uh oh.
When will the UK Labour Israel-activists stop their whiteanting?
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2019/10/03/jeremy-corbyn-urged-intervene-labour-members-table-confidence/
The Irish Premier Leo Varadkar is hitting back at Boris Johnson. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2019/10/03/brexit-latest-news-brexit-news-latest-deal-boris-johnson-northern/ Leo Varadkar accused of attempting to derail Brexit deal by claiming Britain wants to stay in the EU
…The Irish premier said that “all the polls” since Mr Johnson became Prime Minister showed the UK wanted to Remain, but “their political system isn't able to give them that choice”.
The DUP described his comments as “incendiary and outrageous” and said they “exposed the reality” that the Irish government’s true intention was to keep Britain in the EU.
We need to look after our reputation. Now people found we were not 100% Pure environmentally, nor 100% pure in our financial transactions, nor 100% pure in our building methods and materials quality, what will show up next as a stain on the country, and show us to be casual liars?
Radionz have inspected an education outfit advertising on-line since the beginning of the year it seems.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/400282/the-invisible-college-that-wants-your-cash
NZQA acting deputy chief executive quality assurance Eve McMahon describes the college as a "purported" provider of education and appears to be taking steps to remove the site.
"NZQA has inquired with the Domain Name Commission and the Department of Internal Affairs regarding this website and will take appropriate action."
The Domain Name Commission has the ability to remove the domain name, effectively removing the site from public access.
Please act quickly gummint. We have rorted enough Indians and other trusting people, let's be quick here and clean up our act. And not give other immigrants the idea that they will be in good company if they run rorts here, or rort us by not paying tax as was the case recently.
Well said Greywarshark 100% correct.
"We need to look after our reputation. Now people found we were not 100% Pure environmentally, nor 100% pure in our financial transactions, nor 100% pure in our building methods and materials quality, what will show up next as a stain on the country, and show us to be casual liars?"
I had a look at what the Ozzies are doing about CC. The Mulloon Natural Farming Sequence people are still carrying on spreading their message.
This is about a recent meeting; Australia is systematically being made arid and hot by unwise agricultural and land management practices. Chief among these is tree clearing, which breaks the hydrological link, the link between soil and rain. Rain does notfollow the plough, that's an old myth — it follows the trees.
To cool the planet we must work with the dominant greenhouse gas, water vapour. Water governs 95% of the heat dynamics of our planet. We’ve been ignoring its role in climate control for far too long.
Walter Jehne will explain practical ways to restore the hydrological cooling system AND restore the “soil carbon sponge” AND draw down massive amounts of CO2 from the atmosphere AND regenerate our soils AND enhance agricultural productivity.
About the speaker Walter Jehne:
Walter Jehne is a retired scientist with a specialist background in soil micro-biology and plant ecology. He has worked in Australia and overseas, and retired from the CSIRO some 15 years ago to concentrate on regenerating Australia's landscape and improving its agricultural and pastoral sectors. He is also a member of The Mulloon Institute’s Science Advisory Council.
He is passionate about educating farmers, policymakers and others about the “soil carbon sponge” and its crucial role in reversing and mitigating flooding, drought, wildfires, and searing global temperatures. He shows how we can safely cool the climate and restore essential biodiversity by repairing our disrupted hydrological cycles. We thus return excess carbon to the soils, where it can build a sponge that soaks up water and revives the biosphere.
His ideas are gaining international attention. In 2017 he took part in an invitation-only United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization conference in Paris aimed at bringing soil into the next Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report.
Later this year he has been invited to India to present at a conference on Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF), a promising method of farming which uses no-till, no-chemical methods and only local materials to regenerate the soils.
https://themullooninstitute.org/events/2019/9/18/walter-jehne-cooling-the-climate
.
Also some more points and a video available.
https://www.slowfoodcanberra.com/coming-events
Conversations from the edge. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iD2DXBERTeg
[deleted the bits where it wasn’t clear who had said them or where they were from – weka]
Mod note above. The general thing is to use your own words to make a point and provide contextual quotes and links. This isn't an absolute, we all like to just cut and paste something we find interesting, but there are limits around length and numbers of links. Formatting matters too.
Yes I just felt it was important to hear all about what is happening there. We have a dearth of factual stuff about wht is happening and such a lot of details about protests. Links are good too. I left them in because we just have to get informed. And Mulloon Farm things are important for Oz and also for us. Please don't start getting too picky about perfection. We get worrying about following exact rules and forget that we are the few who are actually thinking about this. So let us please do it, and bring in our ideas even if they aren't passed by the Central Committee.
Please ban me if you think I am out of order as i spend far too much time here trying to bring matters up and not knowing whether it is read and worthwhile. I get moans about it so if it isn't wanted tell me and I can stop trying with more time to attend to looking after No.1.
links that come with the cut and paste are fine. Links that commenters put into a comment manually need to be part of the comment. Lots of links without a comment aren't necessarily going to get mod attention, but long cut and pastes will. Your comments are ending up in moderation because of the number of links. Probably the ones you are cutting and pasting as much as anything, but it's still something to be aware of.
More of an issue this time was that the formatting was unclear, so I had to use my time to figure out what was going on and it was just easier to delete. This isn't about you, it's about the number of comments like this currently especially from regulars who should know better. It's pretty easy to look at a comment after it's made and then edit it if there's a format issue.
Fwiw, in terms of reading and engagement, I think it's better to make a point in your own words, cut and paste some bits to illustrate what you want to share, and provide a link. This takes more time as a commenter, but there's more reward too in terms of responses. Long walls of text, especially if poorly formatted are less likely to be read.
Water is definitely being undervalued in Climate Change response. No water, no trees. No trees, no water. Earthworks and judicious planting en-masse required!
They give good tips in Lebanon. US$16 million!
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/30/world/middleeast/lebanon-hariri-model.html
Will someone please explain to Chloe – THERE IS NO CLIMATE CRISIS
[no climate change denial under my posts – weka]
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
mod note for you.
Hey, Velcro, you stickler! Have a go yourself, at "explaining" to Chloe; I suspect you'd be eviscerated by her and her clarity of thought, but don't be deterred; it'd be great entertainment and a great experience for you; your first in the real world and once you've recovered from your stropping, you might have something worthwhile to add to the conversation!
National school bunk-off day. Tell them please – there is no climate crisis
[weka has already warned you once today about no climate change denial but you seem to wilfully ignore these hints. Perhaps you are angling for a ban, in which case I am happy to oblige – Incognito]
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
See my Moderation note @ 5:36 PM.
It's excellent to see this device working cleaning up the Plastic Waste in Our Pacific Ocean. I have been watching the progress on this device it like any idea /invention one doesn't really know how it's going to work until it tried in Te real. Papatuanuku a few tweets here and there a it working Ka Pai it's a passive device so the device will have a low carbon footprint thanks to Boyan and his team for this Great invention
Ocean cleanup device successfully collects plastic for first time
Floating boom finally retains debris from the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, creator says
A huge floating device designed by Dutch scientists to clean up an island of rubbish in the Pacific Ocean that is three times the size of France has successfully picked up plastic from the high seas for the first time.
Boyan Slat, the creator of the Ocean Cleanup project, tweeted that the 600 metre-long (2,000ft) free-floating boom had captured and retained debris from what is known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.
About 600,000 to 800,000 metric tonnes of fishing gear is abandoned or lost at sea each year. Another 8m tonnes of plastic waste flows in from beaches.
Ocean currents have brought a vast patch of such detritus together halfway between Hawaii and California, where it is kept in rough formation by an ocean gyre, a whirlpool of currents. It is the largest accumulation of plastic in the world’s oceans
We now have a self-contained system in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch that is using the natural forces of the ocean to passively catch and concentrate plastics … This now gives us sufficient confidence in the general concept to keep going on this project.”
The plastic gathered so far will be brought to shore in December for recycling. The project believes there may be a premium market for items that have been made using plastic reclaimed from the ocean.
“I think in a few years’ time when we have the full-scale fleet out there, I think it should be possible to cover the operational cost of the cleanup operation using the plastic harvested,” Slat said.
The plan is to now scale up the device and make it more durable so it can retain plastic for up to a year or possibly longer before collection is necessary
Ka kite Ano link below below.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/oct/03/ocean-cleanup-device-successfully-collects-plastic-for-first-time
Solar paint this technology has the potential to drastically reduce the cost of solar. We could have our planes painted with all our vehicles builting whare.
Our future is bright we just have to change to clean and green everything
How solar paint is shaking up the renewable energy industry
In 2016, the US solar industry contributed more than $150 billion in economic activity. When that kind of serious cash starts flooding an industry, you know new innovation isn't far behind.
Spray-on solar cells. Image source: wonderfulengineering.com
And what sounds more innovative than ‘solar paint’? A paint that can generate electricity, but still works as normal paint? The ability to turn not only a roof, but an entire building into a solar-generating surface? If that doesn't scream innovation, then I don't know what does.
So far, the lifeblood of the solar industry has been traditional photovoltaic solar panels. Solar panels are a well-proven technology that save homeowners a ton of money. However, the hassle and expense of rooftop panel installations often deter people from switching to solar energy.
Now imagine a world where we could simply paint our roofs and walls with a type of paint that can generate electricity. Though we're pretty far off from actually implementing this technology, it's still exciting to think about.
So, what is solar paint? The most important thing to know is that it isn’t a single product; currently there are three different technologies that are referred to as 'solar paint'.
The 3 types of solar paint
The idea of using a paint-like substance to generate electricity has been discussed within the scientific community for many years. Only recently have the potential for real-world applications emerged.
There are three separate innovations that are classified as solar paints. Here we explore what they are and what they might mean for the future of solar energy Ka kite Ano link below.
https://www.solar-estimate.org/news/solar-paint-hydrogen-quantum-dot-perovskite-solar-cells
Kia Ora Newshub
As far as I'm concerned every bit of data that is linked to the Internet can be hacked. Eco Maori data is being stolen every minute of the day and spread around Te Papatuanuku a lot of my facts are manipulated to make me look bad.
State highway 4 got a big slip on it caused by to much rain that's you no what.
There you go the Royals data being hacked by rotten people.
Know Your Stuff is doing A great Mahi drugs need to be tested at all concerts.
Every one knows my opinion on Bernie.
Its cool that the new radiation machine that can focus radiation treatment on a tumor you see what a good government does invested it technology that helps all people not just the wealth like the last lot
Ka kite Ano
Kia Ora Te Ao Maori News.
I have learned that Te Kooti was a great Tane he was ripped off his whenua and locked up sent to the Chatham Islands. My first opinion was from a story from someone who had a radu with his Iwi so it was bias against him.
Tipene funerals I watched the show many times.
First Nations Dornie yes the Canadian tangata whenua are being treated badly like Tangata Whenua O Aotearoa is being treated badly Kia Kaha to all Indigenous Tangata. I believe it Eco Maori was not Tangata Whenua this BULLSHIT would not be happening to Me thanks for the Fame.
Esports tangata grab it with both hands it can generate heaps of putea they are basing it on culture values.
Ka kite Ano
https://youtu.be/qQfetkoGrpU
This is a great read just a couple of points Eco Maori want to make.
One huge forest canopies created their own environment they hold water in the Papatuanuku they don't dry out there environment they draw in rain clouds.
The other ones quite obvious we should plant 10 trees per person trillion of trees in all the correct places will enhance the local environment just like sun sails do during the hot summer days I'm not going to quote one of my favourite TV series The Big Bang theory. Famous line
If Each of Us Planted a Tree, Would It Slow Global Warming?
Ask a physicist: Just how much carbon could 7.5 billion new trees pull out of the atmosphere?
Here are some self-evident truths: Humans need to produce less carbon dioxide—assuming we care a fig about our children’s well-being. But even that’s no longer enough. CO2 levels in the atmosphere have reached 400 parts per million, a huge increase over historical levels of around 300 ppm. The fact is, we also need to figure out how to remove some of the CO2 that’s already out there.
As a short-term solution, intrepid climate activist Greta Thunberg suggests we plant more trees. It’s a lovely idea. Who doesn't like trees? While R&D labs struggle to come up with viable carbon-capture technologies, we already have this “magic machine,” as her video says, that “sucks carbon out of the air, cost very little, and builds itself.” And we don't need to wait for craven politicians to get on board
I really want to believe in this. What if every person on Earth took it upon themself to plant a tree. One treetop per child. Just how much carbon dioxide could we hope to scrub out of the atmosphere? Would it help reverse climate change? Let’s do the math!
trees instead of pine trees— you can click the pencil icon to edit it. Click Play to run the calculation.
trees instead of pine trees— you can click the pencil icon to edit it. Click Play to run the calculation.
Hey, that's not bad! This says that if every one of us took a couple of hours this weekend to plant a tree, it would eventually reduce the carbon dioxide level by around 6 percent from the current level
How about one more quick estimation. If everyone planted a tree, how much land would that require? Let's say they’re planted in a square grid, 5 meters apart, so that each tree takes up an area of 25 square meters. With 7.5 billion trees, that requires 1.8 x 1011square meters of land, or 72,000 square miles. That's roughly the size of North Dakota
I think we could do that. And with all due respect, North Dakota could use some more trees. Oh, for comparison, the Amazon rain forest has an area of 2.1 million square miles. Please don't burn it down.
Ka kite Ano link below.
https://www.wired.com/story/plant-a-tree-for-climate-change/
North Dakota natural environment is grasslands not forests like you suggest, as its known as a Prairie state.
Egmont Fisheries owner is trying to blame the demise of Our Maui Dolphin on cat urine get off the grass. He would rather see our Maui Dolphin go extinct.
He will still be here if the reservation are put in place to protect our Maui Dolphin. If we don't put in proper protection for Our Maui Dolphin they will not be here they will go into our books of extinct wildlife.
He is also lieing about only catching one dolphin in 9 years YEA RIGHT.
Let's look after our Wildlife Taonga so Our mokopuna can be proud of Aotearoa conservation reputation
Ka kite Ano.
Kia Ora Newshub.
More Alcohol related problems for our Rangatahi.
I have warned people about going to Countrys that are not a safe as Aotearoa and Australia be careful we you travel.
Was alcohol involved in that shooting in America that's a good reason to restrict people who have guns no guns no-one gets shot.
Ka kite Ano
Kia Ora Te Ao Maori News
All the criminal imports from Australia's are joining the local gangs a recruiting young boys they have a different Levels of criminals in Australia coming Here making Tangata Whenua O Aotearoa look bad they are a small minority of Tangata Whenua.
That's great our government is making the health sector healthier how about making there buildings more environmentaly friendly ie get coal out of the heating system of hospitals.
Ka kite Ano
Sounds like the sports commentator for the Rugby is selling PEE with all his wize cracks he thinks it's a joke it ain't no joke muppet.
Kia Ora The Am Show.
Niki that's a good yarn to try and cover the Eco Maori effect.
Its excellent that KiwiRail New Zealand is transporting more logs its better for our environment roads and tangata using our road safety.
Its good to see people are supportive of a logical move to save our Rangatahi lives there are many factors to why people end up taking that stuff ie some muppet putting it in someone's drink with out them knowing so it will be nice to know that the stuff is tested.
Hone hows the boys on the Rock. The way I see it they see the big man in front of them then duck for cover next minute yellow card.
Bully
Ka kite Ano