The government is expected to push its three waters reforms – which would put drinking, storm and waste water management in the hands of four organisations – through Parliament this year. Local Government Minister Nanaia Mahuta is set to receive advice from the governance and accountability working group on how to address councils' concerns on Monday, after they were granted a seven-day extension.
The group's terms of reference include bottom-line requirements from the government that the water service entities give effect to Treaty of Waitangi, ensure "good governance" and board selection processes, ensure the entities remain in public ownership, and retain balance sheet separation. The latter is a financial term for the separation of ownership and control over assets being borrowed against, and would enable the water service entities to borrow much larger sums for repairing and improving water infrastructure.
Cabinet documents, from before the legislation was delayed, estimated the bill would take up to nine months. OIA documents show the delays to reform legislation announced in December mean the bill is expected to be introduced in "mid-2022". That would mean the bill would be still undergoing Parliamentary scrutiny during the October local body elections – something Mahuta had hoped to avoid.
"Previous conversations with you and other ministers have indicated a strong desire for the first Bill to be enacted around mid-2022, in advance of the local government elections. To meet this timeframe, we estimate the Bill will need to … be referred to select committee in December 2021, at the latest," a briefing to the Minister stated.
Great question. I think there's a couple out of the 67 who think it's a good idea. Aucklander's overwhelmingly oppose it. So it's not only a bad idea, it's a really unpopular one.
In the days before the invasion, Russian TV broadcast a session of President Putin's 30-member security council. The BBC includes a photo showing the immense distance between the top dog & the underdogs, along with profiles of the top underdogs…
Dr Ian Hyslop explains why it's urgent we address the social and political divisions that enabled the Parliament protest rather than "disparage the feral mob and order another latte"
Them's disparagin’ words, but Hyslop's article is a good read – ta.
However, it is also clear that this protest was about more than vaccination mandates – it was about Covid more generally, perhaps symptomatic of associated fatigue and frustration. It was also about disinformation, misinformation, and experiences or perceptions of social exclusion. The protest gathered an unusual and disparate group including alternative lifestyle adherents, some people affiliated with fundamentalist churches and, at the edges, radical Neo Nazi extremists. The conflation of individual freedom and national identity is reminiscent of the Trump phenomenon in the US and the rise of narrow right-wing populism globally: a populism often cynically supported by private capital.
The meme that this is a "division" rather than a small minority of the stupid, doesn't reflect reality. It gives the idea that they are a far bigger group than they really are.
Why didn't we hear about , "division" during the many times larger anti TPPA, anti AGW and gen zero protests.
Perhaps as those, unlike the Wellington one, were really supported by a significant number of people.
The current Wellington Pro Plague, along with the Pro Polluter protests are extremely noisy and disruptive, but certainly not reflective of the views of the overwhelming majority, who find the foolishness obvious.
By the way. Most of the people objecting to vaccine mandates, and travel restrictions, seem to be rather comfortable middle class Wallies. Workers and the ones at the dirty end of the Neo-Liberal stick, largely seem on side with protecting public health. About 300 to 2 in my workplace voted to make vaccination mandatory.
Democracy!
Blue collar workers, used to working together for the good of their community see the sense in mandates and other public health measures, to protect those close to them.
The there are, entitled brats, who have never had any concern for those around them…….
Is Putin trying to convince us that the Ukrainians are conducting false flag attacks on their own people?
Though Russian allegations of a false flag attacks may have convinced some people in the past over Syria. Putin's useful idiots in the West will have trouble spinning this story.
He is ' an American political scientist and international relations scholar, who belongs to the realist school of thought. He is the R. Wendell Harrison Distinguished Service Professor at the University of Chicago. He has been described as the most influential realist of his generation.
Mearsheimer is best known for developing the theory of offensive realism, which describes the interaction between great powers as being primarily driven by the rational desire to achieve regional hegemony in an anarchic international system. In accordance with his theory, Mearsheimer believes that China's growing power will likely bring it into conflict with the United States. He also holds U.S. interventionist foreign policy responsible for the crisis in Ukraine.'
Why wouldn't Putin try to convince us that the Ukrainians are conducting false flag attacks on their own people? You can be certain some will be convinced what he says is true and that will become The Word.
In the Herald today David Farrier alludes (again) to the weird things being said.
"I documented in real time Billy Te Kahika jnr's Facebook posts over that time (early Covid). Originally supporting Jacinda Ardern's reaction to Covid, within several months Billy became an entirely different beast, spouting conspiracy theories galore. He went into politics, failed miserably, and today is mostly raving about aliens on Facebook. Now Sue Gray — a more accessible, white face to the crazy — screams about dead children and vaccine deaths."
I don't know about Brian Tamaki and his "gangster mates."
Farrier references religious angle on the protest:
"Many of our biggest pentecostal and evangelical churches also drank the Kool-Aid, taking their adherents down an anti-science route that questioned whether Covid was real, or if masks worked. It's one thing for a church to deny evolution, it's another for it to deny modern science that will affect public health outcomes. "All those needles going into the arm, it's like they're trying to wear me down!" said the leader of one megachurch. "We do know it has not been fully approved by the FDA …" he raved on. He was wrong.
The media tended to focus on Destiny Church's Brian Tamaki, as he was the loudest and strangest, but it was City Impact Church pastor Peter Mortlock who drove to the Wellington "protest" to livestream his thoughts."
Tamaki seems to have aligned his cult with the 'Freedom & Rights coalition.' With that he is carrying on his permanent electioneering. The words are 'get rid of the government," the message is "pick me." Covid and vaccinations are merely handy handles.
Gangster mates? I don't know about that. I know a big body of loud motorbikes roaring in canyons of buildings sounds impressive to some. And threatening to others, what with the Headhunters, Mongrel Mob, Hell's Angels and so on references. No-one would believe that Tamaki wouldn't harness whatever is needed to make an impression.
Big guys, black gear, dark sunnies, staunch demeanour? It's like a parody of American gangster movies. It's a wonder Tamaki hasn't paid big bucks (from the people who willingly give him money to buy their way into heaven) to commission the Cohen Brothers to shoot a film about him.
A declaration of war against Europe was narrowly missed yesterday when bombs hit the training centre at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant.
A strike at a Ukrainian nuclear power plant was my worst fear at the start of the invasion.
I have been listening to speech after speech from the UN, Nato and the US. Words will not be enough for Putin.
The situation is dire for the Ukrainians, food shortage, bombed hospitals, the Russian convoy. I am pleased to see that many Polish and German people have taken Ukrainian people into their home, (other near by countries as well). Poland and Germany have faced Russia in the past and will be affected economically and the threat of a nuclear explosion cannot be excluded. Germany and Poland have moved on since 1945 and they are now on the same side and they stand side by side being Nato members.
I suggest that one means of settling the Ukraine invasion would be to have a duel between the leader of the Russian forces and the Mayor of Kyiv. One on one.
Now I realise that David beat Goliath in the Biblical story but I would put my money on the Ukrainian representative in this encounter. His name is Vitali Klitschko. If that doesn't ring a bell try googling the name and see what his previous occupation was.
Hell, I wouldn't go for it if I was in my physical prime and 20 years old.
Actually I did mean the Russian military leader in the country rather than Putin. Not only is Vitali 19 years younger than Vladimir but he must be about 35 cm taller.
yes a fit 70 year black belt judoka would be dangerous to joe average but Kitschko is himself a former professional world champion boxer 20 years his junior.
Alwyn (and myself) indulging in pointless (and amusing) speculation about impossible events in the absence of impacting reality..i suspect.
And 70 year old muscles cant cash cheques written by 30 year old minds….as much as they wish they could.
"Alwyn (and myself) indulging in pointless (and amusing) speculation about impossible events in the absence of impacting reality".
Yes. Vitali, and his brother Wladimir, were both World Heavyweight Boxing Champions. I really doubt that any 70 year old politician, no matter his background would, survive.
And, unfortunately we aren't going to get rid of Putin that way. Still, one can always dream about him getting his comeuppance.
He was a wonderful wrist spinner …he basically won the Adelaide Ashes test single handed when Flintoff was England captain when Australia had no hope of winning.
He was an excellent commentator and everyone seems to agree that despite his huge success as a sportsman he was not up himself….very approachable and helpful
In all the tributes I have heard nobody has mentioned that he was also a very useful batsman….sorry batter.
Didn't hear any reference to him being a drugs cheat banned for 12 months for taking a weight-reducing diuretic either. But hey, lets remember "Warnie", the larrikin. Great cricketer, flawed individual.
Heart attack seems more likely – too soon, imho. A great sportsman and entertainer, I'll remember his appearance as a Shane Warne impersonator who marries Sharon in the Aussie sitcom Kath & Kim.
In August 2021, Warne contracted COVID-19 and was placed on a ventilator "to make sure there were no longer-lasting effects that Covid would have on me". He said he "had a thumping headache and I had one day where I had the shivers, but (was) sweating, like when you have the flu and that Australians 'would have to learn to live with the virus". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shane_Warne
Never a fan but to me, the real leading wicket taker over Muralitharan, despite the record book. Done for his mum's slimming pills but never his action.
Surrogacy is an emotive issue. Particularly for those who are unwillingly childless.
But an ethical and moral discussion has to be had about the wider and long term impacts regarding the 'manufacture' and 'production' of children.
Regarding the Australian couple above:
It has been a difficult journey for the couple to become parents.
"They have been together for 20 years, and after suffering for seven long years of primary infertility, multiple IVF rounds, surgeries and specialists, they began their surrogacy journey and made the decision to employ the help of a surrogacy agency in Ukraine," friend Kara Pangrazio said on a Mycause page set up to help the couple.
"As this situation is changing rapidly it is not yet known logistically how [bringing Alba home] will happen."
Alba, who is the genetic daughter of Jessica and Kevin, is currently in the NICU suffering a small bleed on the brain as well as underdeveloped lungs and intestines.
The surrogate mother is also receiving care in the hospital.
"Jess and Kev came to the decision of using a Ukrainian surrogacy programme after a lot of careful consideration, including the legality, wait times in years, ethics and costs," Pangrazio wrote on the Mycause page.
It would be good to have a list of those considerations compiled here.
Shulzhynska, a mother of two who used to work as a trolley bus conductor, went to a surrogacy clinic in 2013 because she desperately needed to pay back a bank loan. She was so broke that the clinic sent her money to buy the ticket to Kyiv.
She agreed to carry a baby for an Italian couple, and within two months it turned out she had four living embryos in her womb. The biological family decided to keep only one and the rest were removed surgically. In May 2014 Shulzhynska gave birth to a baby girl, which she gave away to the parents. She received a fee of €9,000.
Seven months later she went to a hospital with severe stomach pain. Doctors diagnosed cervical cancer. It took her almost a year to raise money for surgery. Shulzhynska suspects the cancer was caused by her surrogacy, although there is no proof of this. She has recently ordered crutches because her doctors plan to amputate her left leg, which is now affected by the spreading cancer.
In 2015, Shulzhynska filed a complaint against BioTexCom alleging damage caused to her health, which led to a criminal investigation that is ongoing.
Yuriy Kovalchuk, a former state prosecutor whose office oversaw a series of criminal investigations into BioTexCom in 2018 and 2019, says at least three other women went to law enforcement after having their wombs removed following surrogate pregnancies organised by the company.
From the limited evidence available, the abuse of surrogates and children born from surrogacy is strikingly apparent. To date, developed countries have fueled demand for corrupt and under-regulated surrogacy industries in developing countries around the world. This demand has given rise to powerful corporations that operate without fear of government oversight. As concepts of parentage continue to expand, so must international family law. The Hague Convention’s Experts’ Group is the most qualified international body to champion the regulation of the industry and the protection of women and children.
They – could of course adopt children in their home countries, all these couples that order babies from overseas birthing bodies, but that would then mean that they child is 'not theirs'.
I find it interesting that the only interest is in the babies, never mind the birthing bodies that are left behind in the war region.
But here is Tamati Coffey, 'father' of two babies from a surrogate mother and his bill to make it even easier to buy babies of birthing bodies for as little money as possible. Don't ever say these 'gender woo's' don't know what a women is when they need one. lol
However we can't blame Tamati Coffey for having his priorities straight, maybe there is is a future industry for Rotorua in the making, all the unproductive uteruses of uterus havers (specially the unemployed) can be put to work birthing for 'infertile people' such as he and his husband are as two men together – despite all the myth of those afflicted with gender woo – never conceived a child nor birthed even just one.
Personally i can see a future – a near future at that, where unemployed women could be compelled to 'donate eggs' – as work, be a 'surrgate mother' – as work, i.e. for pay as income, or sell 'surplus' breast milk for money as a form of income.. That and of course then also sex work which is work and thus…….:) its gonna be a lovely future for the things we used to call 'women' adult human female.
Mother-of-three Megan Golub said she and her partner had turned to NeoKare after she had struggled to breastfeed her third son Oliver.
After trying formula, "which was even worse", her partner Robin Gibb attempted to find breast milk from elsewhere.
…
The firm claims to be the only firm in Europe selling 100% breast milk products and said it helped premature babies and mothers with problems breastfeeding.
Marketing officer Jessica Preston defended the cost of what the company sells, with six 50ml bottles priced at a total of £45.
But as usual, the profit margin is greater in other demographics:
Running out of room to store it, the 24-year-old mum started to donate the milk to women who were struggling to produce milk on their own – until men began to approach Lamprou for her milk.
She said: “I then started to get some enquiries from men. It started with men who were interested in bodybuilding. They say it is good for building muscle mass.
“But then I started to get enquiries from men with fetishes.”
After realising there was quite a large market of men looking for breast milk, Lamprou decided to start selling the two litres of milk she was producing a day – and began charging male buyers €1 (89p) per ounce.
…As for the fetish usage of her breast milk, Lamprou said: “It was a bit strange at first giving breast milk to a guy with fetishes but as long as it is just that and not asked to show any part of my body, I don’t mind at all. I am open-minded.”
So open minded she participates in a fetish that reduces women to lactating bovines.
Yes, it already exist, but in my scenario a women aka human female adult (producer of ova ) can be compelled by a helpful Winz drone to get a 'job' in selling breast milk – they can feed their own kids some formula or so, get a job in -surrogacy for some people, they can get a job in selling eggs – its just a wee little surgery no harm done here no not at all, and / or sex work – its work, dignified work yes, it is, cause work is work and if you are able and fit and demand is there why won't you take it, and if you don't take it, here have some sanctions. I give it a few years.
This Bill amends five Acts and two sets of Regulations to simplify surrogacy arrangements, ensure completeness of information recorded on birth certificates (hah!), and provide a mechanism for the enforcement of surrogacy arrangements (the fact that this is necessary shows a fundamental flaw).
New Zealand law does not currently afford any automatic rights to the intending parents of a child born via surrogacy. At the time of birth, the child’s legal parents are the surrogate mother and partner, and a formal adoption process is required to complete the arrangement.(why is this necessary – have there been problems in the past?) This Bill affirms the intending parents’ automatic legal status at the point that custody of the child is transferred. It also enforces the legal obligations of intending parents if they refuse to take custody by making them liable for child support, (why is this necessary – have there been problems in the past?) even if they do not have custody of the child.
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCROC), ratified by New Zealand in 1993, committed New Zealand to implementing the rights set out in the Convention. These include a child’s right from birth to know (all?)their parents and to be cared for by them (Article 7.1) and the right to seek and receive information of all kinds (Article 13(1)). This Bill requires the Registrar to also register information about the identity of the surrogate and any person who donated an embryo or cells for the pregnancy. (This isn't the case?) In this way, the Bill recognises the rights of children to know their genetic origins. (as long as it doesn't conflict with the fluidity that is gender identity?)
"They – could of course adopt children in their home countries".
Not in New Zealand they can't. From the reference below, which is a Government publication and is probably accurate we are told.
"Adoptions reached their highest number in Aotearoa New Zealand in the 1970s, with nearly 4,000 children adopted each year. The number of adoptions in Aotearoa has reduced over time, with only 125 adoptions granted by the New Zealand Family Court in 2020."
I was replying to Sabine, at comment 9.1. The quote in the first line is from Sabine's comment. As such my comment didn't really have anything to do with surrogacy but to the implication in Sabines comment that couples don't have to use surrogacy when they can simply adopt.
I do know a number of people who were adopted. I don't find them to have been any different to anyone else. I don't know any that were born via surrogacy, but that probably has more to do with my age than anything else. Adopting was a standard option when I was the age to be having children and I know people who followed that path. You can't really do it today though. Surrogacy was unheard of.
I understand you were answering Sabine, just wanted to know if you had thoughts on surrogacy. As Sabine linked, there is a bill currently at first reading.
It would be good to have a public discussion on what this really legislates for.
"Surrogacy was unheard of."
Whāngai has always been around, My mother (now in her eighties) and two other siblings were whāngai placements. It still happens, if not so often, with reliable accessible contraception and support.
I believe Sabine has a good grasp of the wider ramifications of surrogacy, and the justifications for it – hence the adoption comment.
Looking at the process for commercial surrogacy the ethical and moral considerations are numerous. I was hoping there would be a discussion around those points. eg. the risk of medication required for implants/egg retrieval causing cancer being borne by the surrogate/provider, the commodification of children, and women's bodies, the emotional and social impact of carrying/ having someone else carry a child, the economic situation that allows this exploitation, etc.
No. Emotionally it seems rather odd to me, but that is just an instantaneous and not a considered response. Neither I, nor anyone in my immediate family had any problems procreating. Mind you my eldest sister took it to extremes. She had 4 children under the age of 3 by the time she had her fourth wedding anniversary.
However I am not able to make any reasoned comment on the topic of surrogacy so I will keep out of the discussion.
"However I am not able to make any reasoned comment on the topic of surrogacy so I will keep out of the discussion."
Thanks, alwyn. I appreciate your reply.
I'm interested in your last statement. I would expect that anyone given information about a situation, would be able to make a 'reasoned comment' albeit with provisos.
I wonder if the emotive nature of childbearing and childlessness, and the obscuring factor of this makes this topic yet another that will not be sufficiently investigated and discussed before passing legislation.
I admit to being bored by the repetitive and circular nature of discussions around the vaccines and protests, and thought there might be some interest in examining another topic that has legislation being considered.
Not sure how adoption is handled in NZ. This article that Molly linked to was about a couple in OZ that bought a pregnancy off a low income women in the Ukraine, and that was what my comment is about.
Disclaimer: I can not have children. Physically am not able to have children. Did not buy a pregnancy of a low income women to make up for the not having children. Did look into adoption, but choose not to go that way. Had a surrogacy offered to me by my best friend, and did not choose to go ahead, mainly for these reasons. A. my genetic material may not interact well with hers. B. nine month pregnancy is a long time on a women and her existing children. C. Pregnancy does things to womens bodies. D. Post Partum Depression is a thing. E. What if something goes wrong and the mother suffers? Just a few of the issues.
Yes, i can see the lease of the reproductive body parts of the human adult female become a thriving business. It already is in India, Ukraine, Russia etc. During the first month of the lockdown there already was a wave of babies not being picked up by their 'parents' etc, and these babies suddenly got stuck with their birthing parents. Suddenly we know what women and mothers are.
It's good to read someone's thought processes about consideration of surrogacy, and the reasons why they decided against it.
Pregnancy is not a neutral body condition. It puts a woman's body under stress, even through good pregnancies, leaches calcium, and as you say makes changes that need to be accommodated during gestation and beyond. The emotional and social costs are harder to articulate, but they do exist even if they are ignored.
It is telling that you had a friend that offered, and also that as a friend, you declined.
I was fortunate enough to be able to have children, and not be in the position of yearning and despair that I can understand in others. I think I would be inclined to think like you, and refuse an offer of surrogacy for some of the reasons you have stated. My partner and I would have to grieve the loss of that role as parents, but along with other life obstacles, we'd have to move on.
Thanks for responding. We need the objective views of the reality, as well as the understandably heartfelt entreaties from those who use other women as incubators. That price list, huh?
Families Through Surrogacy, an international non-profit surrogacy organisation, has estimated the approximate average costs in different countries:
Profitable it will be. And if you take in mind that we actively promoting the 'changing' of ones sex, and that that change comes with castration/sterilization it will be a booming business once all these people realize that they can no longer have children.
Never mind the kids that we are going to chemically castrate thanks to puberty blockers and the likes. But they will profit of the good lawmaking of Tamati Coffey and can then offer a womb rental agreement to some ‘uterus haver’ for a child that they can neither father, or in the opposite birth.
And hence the need to legalise and regulate the market as the bill by noted 'father' of two children born to a 'birthing body' via a uterus lease agreement.
Actually for what its worth, Tamati Coffey could have saved himself a lot of work and put forward the Ferengi Rules about womb leases and prices / costs there of.
It is a profitable business. One article above states that couples pay $25,000 (I assume USD) to the business, the surrogate receives up to $10,000.
We have to view these arrangements objectively and dispassionately in order to identify whether they are both moral and ethical. Stripping away all emotive appeals, we are treating a woman's body as a manufacturing plant. Unlike a manufacturing plant, there are no replacement parts, or ways to avoid wear and tear. Also, we ignore the impact of pregnancy on a woman's life, especially one that results in no child for that woman.
Relating stories of euphoric or satisfied commercial surrogates, is the equivalent of using The Happy Hooker as justification for prostitution. The majority of women in commercial surrogacy are being exploited.
The issue of non-commercial surrogacy has other considerations to be discussed, but still – as you mention – carries risks.
Well they missed the chch earthquake memorial as they were more concerned about the lawns and the curtains,and noisy neighbours,and so they could pass urgent legislation in this Brave New world ensuring the sanctity of Freemartins.
The mandates are only as good as those who comply with them.
I expect scanning is down. Probably getting a booster as well. I got boosted late last week and when I left I thought, that better be the last one.
A lot of people would know family who are infected with Covid. Hard because some would want to help those with young children, but cannot risk being infected.
And an interesting perspective over the announced change to legislate for an independent sanctions policy (rather than piggybacking on UN sanctions, which NZ has previously done – of course, the UN security council will never sanction Russia)
Mandates have reached their full potential as far as preventing hospital admissions. Due to high infection rates no mandate is able to stop infections.
A lot of gaps in the papers these days where new stories are supposed to be ( ie they fill them with a link to a story all ready mentioned.
Im not sure of its covid related staffing problems or that the Ukraine situation has sucked all interest out of other stories and they are holding them back
The Society for Evidence Based Gender Medicine (and no, WPATH is not evidence based despite assumptions) have compared the newly released Swedish evidence reviewed policy with the draft of the updated WPATH due for release this year:
The National Academy of Medicine in France has issued a press release in which it cautions medical practitioners that the growing cases of transgender identity in young people are often socially-mediated and that great caution in treatment is needed. The Academy draws attention to the fact that hormonal and surgical treatments carry health risks and have permanent effects, and that it is not possible to distinguish a durable trans identity from a passing phase of an adolescent's development.
The document as a whole shows an "affirming care" approach, at any age or stuation.
It contains many non-evidence based statements:
Puberty blockers are considered to be fully reversible and allow the adolescent time prior to making a decision on starting hormone therapy.
There have been no long term follow up studies on this. Current indications are that there are significant detrimental health outcomes, including bone mineralisation, cardiac health and brain development.
Max Tweedle on the Spinoff denigrates the paltry number (14/yr @ $53k) of gender affirming surgeries for the current annual $748,000 surgery budget, and the $4.23 million as a reason for the Rainbow Ministry. (Government provides support via other ministries to NGOs that aren't quantified).
Detrans support is not mentioned in the article, or indeed on many NGO sites. When it is the bias is clear:
Usually “retransition” is the term that acknowledges that gender identity is a journey of exploration, and that it is possible to transition to a transgender identity or a cisgender identity multiple times.
The word “detransition” is most often used by anti-trans campaigners, who wish to stop people from accessing gender-affirming healthcare – either to affirm a transgender identity or a cisgender one.
Young people receiving 'affirming health care' in NZ are doing so on assumptive, non long-term evidence based data. They will carry the consequences of the failure of adults.
Will we require them to look and create their own support networks, on redditand elsewhere? Or will we recognise the reality that social, medical and/or surgical treatments during childhood and puberty are not benign and adjust treatment accordingly?
It is apparent to me that NZ is not only enthusiastically late to the party, we are going to stay till the hangover is guaranteed.
Thanks for posting this Molly. Good to have the update.
And the fear is with the Conversion Practices Bill, parents and possibly some health professionals may find them self being investigated by the police if they don't affirm/confirm the young persons gender identity.
I can't understand why people are up in arms about this.
"I can't understand why people are up in arms about this."
I have a comment in my head that contains a lot of swear words, but essentially I think they are 'Being Kind' instead of being aware, evidence-based, diligent and responsible.
NBHW emphasized the need to treat gender dysphoric youth with dignity and respect, while providing high quality, evidence-based medical care that prioritizes long-term health. NBHW also emphasized that identity formation in youth is an evolving process, and that the experience of natural puberty is a vital step in the development of the overall identity, as well as gender identity.
In light of above limitations in the evidence base, the ongoing identity formation in youth, and in view of the fact that gender transition has pervasive and lifelong consequences, the NBHW has concluded that, at present, the risks of hormonal interventions for gender dysphoric youth outweigh the potential benefits.
As a result of this determination, the eligibility for pediatric gender transition with puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones in Sweden will be sharply curtailed. Only a minority of gender dysphoric youth—those with the “classic” childhood onset of cross-sex identification and distress, which persist and cause clear suffering in adolescence—will be considered as potentially eligible for hormonal interventions, pending additional, extensive multidisciplinary evaluation.
For all others, including the now-prevalent cohort of youth whose transgender identities emerged for the first time during or after puberty, psychiatric care and gender-exploratory psychotherapy will be offered instead. Exceptions will be made on a case-by-case basis, and the number of clinics providing pediatric gender transition will be reduced to a few highly specialized centralized care centers.
Russia-Ukraine war: The staff members leaving the studio after resigning.
The entire staff of a Russian television channel resigned live on-air after declaring “no to war” in the final telecast. The decision was taken by the staff of TV Rain (Dozhd) after Russian authorities suspended its operations over its coverage of Ukraine war.
Natalia Sindeyeva, one of the channel's founders, said “No to war” in its last telecast as the employees staged a walkout from the studio. The channel later said in a statement that it has suspended the operation "indefinitely".
The video of mass resignation was shared by writer Daniel Abrahams on LinkedIn.
After the dramatic exit of the staff, the channel played the 'Swan Lake' ballet video, which was shown on state-run TV channels in Russia when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. The video has now gone viral on social media.
Really? Not saying men can't be pro-women's rights but surely to be a feminist you have to be active in that particular field.
Of course Chris, who ran an airline in case you didn’t know, brings up said airline as proof of his record as a feminist:
As you look at my record at Air New Zealand where we worked really hard to build women from 16 percent of the top 100 jobs up to 44 percent in a very short period of time
And good on him, this looks like affirmative action on steroids. I wonder if he will do the same for Maori, or will his voting base balk at that.
What is going on with the Covid testing and RAT roll out in Wellington?
"The concerning behaviour ranges from widespread verbal abuse aimed at staff to instances of members of the public striking the walls of testing shelters with staff inside, attempts to steal boxes of RATs, and at least one assault."
It's a surge, mate. It's the surge. This is NZ's worst time in the whole pandemic but here we are complaining about a few queues and some arseholes trying to steal tests to sell on the black market.
Yes we all knew ,so why were they so unprepared? and why open the borders in the growth phase of an epidemic,is it because the government is thick,very thick or total imbeciles?
Opening the borders is something you have been wanting for some time, surely? Not sure why you are questioning it now.
It might look to you they are unprepared because you can't buy a RAT for $50 a pop whenever you feel the need, but given pandemic response in not an exact science, I think they are doing remarkable well. The numbers certainly confirm that.
There is comparatively no disaster here, you seem to enjoy imagining or inventing one though.
I have been consistently arguing to hold the borders,Pandemic response is a known science and there are constraints,Vaccines alone are a losing strategy.This is textbook stuff.
The strategy is called Vaccines plus,it is very workable and cost efficient and has been well signalled.
I need to be very clear: vaccines alone will not get any country out of this crisis. Countries can and must prevent the spread of Omicron with measures that work today. It’s not vaccines instead of masks, it’s not vaccines instead of distancing, it’s not vaccines instead of ventilation or hand hygiene. Do it all. Do it consistently. Do it well.
Yeah, and NZ is doing all those health measures plus vaccines. It's exactly those things we are doing which differs from the rest of he world. It's those things that we are doing which makes the ACT, the far right, the anti-vax, and the anti-mandate people so angry.
All those things are exactly what this government and the country has done so well, but you are bagging them and us for it. I don’t understand.
Personally, I think that Pfizer booster slays Coronavirus. It almost literally knocked me off my feet the next day and my hunch is it turns the Covid lion into a mouse.
My partner's employer (an essential, sorry 'critical' industry) had their order of RAT tests, prioritised to the MoH by the supplier just last week. Not the first time.
The failure of the MoH to order and secure sufficient supply for this outbreak, is apparent.
Images of US students (and others) protesting and setting up tent cities on US university campuses have been broadcast world wide and clearly demonstrate the growing rifts in US society caused by US policy toward Israel and Israel’s prosecution of … Continue reading → ...
Barrie Saunders writes – Dear Paul As the new Minister of Media and Communications, you will be inundated with heaps of free advice and special pleading, all in the national interest of course. For what it’s worth here is my assessment: Traditional broadcasting free to air content through ...
Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government is trying to achieve and its arguments for such a bold reform. ...
Peter Dunne writes – The great nineteenth British Prime Minister, William Gladstone, once observed that “the first essential for a Prime Minister is to be a good butcher.” When a later British Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan, sacked a third of his Cabinet in July 1962, in what became ...
Ele Ludemann writes – New Zealanders had the OECD’s second highest tax increase last year: New Zealanders faced the second-biggest tax raises in the developed world last year, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) says. The intergovernmental agency said the average change in personal income tax ...
We all know something’s not right with our elections. The spread of misinformation, people being targeted with soundbites and emotional triggers that ignore the facts, even the truth, and influence their votes.The use of technology to produce deep fakes. How can you tell if something is real or not? Can ...
This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Simon Clark. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). This year you will be lied to! Simon Clark helps prebunk some misleading statements you'll hear about climate. The video includes ...
It is all very well cutting the backrooms of public agencies but it may compromise the frontlines. One of the frustrations of the Productivity Commission’s 2017 review of universities is that while it observed that their non-academic staff were increasing faster than their academic staff, it did not bother to ...
Buzz from the Beehive Two speeches delivered by Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters at Anzac Day ceremonies in Turkey are the only new posts on the government’s official website since the PM announced his Cabinet shake-up. In one of the speeches, Peters stated the obvious: we live in a troubled ...
1. Which of these would you not expect to read in The Waikato Invader?a. Luxon is here to do business, don’t you worry about thatb. Mr KPI expects results, and you better believe itc. This decisive man of action is getting me all hot and excitedd. Melissa Lee is how ...
…it has a restricted jurisdiction which must not be abused: it is not an inquisitionNOTE – this article was published before the High Court ruled that Karen Chhour does not have to appear before the Waitangi Tribunal Gary Judd writes – The High Court ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – One of reasons Oranga Tamariki exists is to prevent child neglect. But could the organisation itself be guilty of the same?Oranga Tamariki’s statistics show a decrease in the number and age of children in care. “There are less children ...
David Farrar writes: Graeme Edgeler wrote in 2017: In the first five years after three strikes came into effect 5248 offenders received a ‘first strike’ (that is, a “stage-1 conviction” under the three strikes sentencing regime), and 68 offenders received a ‘second strike’. In the five years prior to ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has surprised everyone with his ruthlessness in sacking two of his ministers from their crucial portfolios. Removing ministers for poor performance after only five months in the job just doesn’t normally happen in politics. That’s refreshing and will be extremely ...
TL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the two days to 6:06am on Thursday, April 25:Politics: PM Christopher Luxon has set up a dual standard for ministerial competence by demoting two National Cabinet ministers while leaving also-struggling ...
Hi,Today I mainly want to share some of your thoughts about the recent piece I wrote about success and failure, and the forces that seemingly guide our lives. But first, a quick bit of housekeeping: I am doing a Webworm popup in Los Angeles on Saturday May 11 at 2pm. ...
It is hard to see what Melissa Lee might have done to “save” the media. National went into the election with no public media policy and appears not to have developed one subsequently. Lee claimed that she had prepared a policy paper before the election but it had been decided ...
Open access notablesIce acceleration and rotation in the Greenland Ice Sheet interior in recent decades, Løkkegaard et al., Communications Earth & Environment:In the past two decades, mass loss from the Greenland ice sheet has accelerated, partly due to the speedup of glaciers. However, uncertainty in speed derived from satellite products ...
Buzz from the Beehive A statement from Children’s Minister Karen Chhour – yet to be posted on the Government’s official website – arrived in Point of Order’s email in-tray last night. It welcomes the High Court ruling on whether the Waitangi Tribunal can demand she appear before it. It does ...
Mr Bombastic:Ironically, the media the academic experts wanted is, in many ways, the media they got. In place of the tyrannical editors of yesteryear, advancing without fear or favour the interests of the ruling class; the New Zealand news media of today boasts a troop of enlightened journalists dedicated to ...
It's hard times try to make a livingYou wake up every morning in the unforgivingOut there somewhere in the cityThere's people living lives without mercy or pityI feel good, yeah I'm feeling fineI feel better then I have for the longest timeI think these pills have been good for meI ...
In 1974, the US Supreme Court issued its decision in United States v. Nixon, finding that the President was not a King, but was subject to the law and was required to turn over the evidence of his wrongdoing to the courts. It was a landmark decision for the rule ...
Every day now just seems to bring in more fresh meat for the grinder.In their relentlessly ideological drive to cut back on the “excessive bloat” (as they see it) of the previous Labour-led government, on the mountains of evidence accumulated in such a short period of time do not ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Megan Valére SosouMarket gardening site of the Itchèléré de Itagui agricultural cooperative in Dassa-Zoumè (Image credit: Megan Valère Sossou) For the residents of Dassa-Zoumè, a city in the West African country of Benin, choosing between drinking water and having enough ...
Buzz from the Beehive Melissa Lee – as may be discerned from the screenshot above – has not been demoted for doing something seriously wrong as Minister of ...
Morning in London Mother hugs beloved daughter outside the converted shoe factory in which she is living.Afternoon in London Travelling writer takes himself and his wrist down to A&E, just to be sure. Read more ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – The recent announcement of the University Advisory Group, chaired by Sir Peter Gluckman, makes very clear where the Government’s focus and priorities lie. The remit of the Advisory Group is that Group members will consider challenges and opportunities for improvement in the university sector including: ...
Eric Crampton writes – The Reserve Bank of New Zealand desperately wants to find reasons to have workstreams in climate change. It makes little sense. They’ve run another stress test on the banks looking to see if they could find a prudential regulation case. They couldn’t. They ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Pundits from the left and the right are arguing that National’s Fast Track Bill that is designed to speed up infrastructure decisions could end up becoming mired in a cesspool of corruption. Political commentator ...
Looking at the headlines this morning it’s hard to feel anything other than pessimistic about the future of humanity.Note that I’m not speaking about the future of mankind, but the survival of our humanity. The values that we believe in seem to be ebbing away, by the day.Perhaps every generation ...
Swabbing mixed breed baby chicks to test for avian influenzaUh oh. Bird flu – often deadly to humans – is not only being transmitted from infected birds to dairy cows, but is now travelling between dairy cows. As of last Friday, Bloomberg News reports, there were 32 American dairy herds ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
What is it with the mining industry? Its not enough for them to pillage the earth - they apparently can't even be bothered getting resource consent to do so: The proponent behind a major mine near the Clutha River had already been undertaking activity in the area without a ...
Photo # 1 I am a huge fan of Singapore’s approach to housing, as described here two years ago by copying and pasting from The ConversationWhat Singapore has that Australia does not is a public housing developer, the Housing Development Board, which puts new dwellings on public and reclaimed land, ...
Buzz from the Beehive Reactions to news of the government’s readiness to make urgent changes to “the resource management system” through a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) suggest a balanced approach is being taken. The Taxpayers’ Union says the proposed changes don’t go far enough. Greenpeace says ...
I’m starting to wonder if Anna Burns-Francis might be the best political interviewer we’ve got. That might sound unlikely to you, it came as a bit of a surprise to me.Jack Tame can be excellent, but has some pretty average days. I like Rebecca Wright on Newshub, she asks good ...
Chris Trotter writes – Willie Jackson is said to be planning a “media summit” to discuss “the state of the media and how to protect Fourth Estate Journalism”. Not only does the Editor of The Daily Blog, Martyn Bradbury, think this is a good idea, but he has also ...
Graeme Edgeler writes – This morning [April 21], the Wellington High Court is hearing a judicial review brought by Hon. Karen Chhour, the Minister for Children, against a decision of the Waitangi Tribunal. This is unusual, judicial reviews are much more likely to brought against ministers, rather than ...
Both of Parliament’s watchdogs have now ripped into the Government’s Fast-track Approvals Bill. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMy pick of the six newsey things to know from Aotearoa’s political economy and beyond on the morning of Tuesday, April 23 are:The Lead: The Auditor General,John Ryan, has joined the ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Sarah SpengemanPeople wait to board an electric bus in Pune, India. (Image credit: courtesy of ITDP) Public transportation riders in Pune, India, love the city’s new electric buses so much they will actually skip an older diesel bus that ...
The infrastructure industry yesterday issued a “hurry up” message to the Government, telling it to get cracking on developing a pipeline of infrastructure projects.The hiatus around the change of Government has seen some major projects cancelled and others delayed, and there is uncertainty about what will happen with the new ...
Hi,Over the weekend I revisited a podcast I really adore, Dead Eyes. It’s about a guy who got fired from Band of Brothers over two decades ago because Tom Hanks said he had “dead eyes”.If you don’t recall — 2001’s Band of Brothers was part of the emerging trend of ...
Buzz from the Beehive The 180 or so recipients of letters from the Government telling them how to submit infrastructure projects for “fast track” consideration includes some whose project applications previously have been rejected by the courts. News media were quick to feature these in their reports after RMA Reform Minister Chris ...
It would not be a desirable way to start your holiday by breaking your back, your head, or your wrist, but on our first hour in Singapore I gave it a try.We were chatting, last week, before we started a meeting of Hazel’s Enviro Trust, about the things that can ...
Calling all journalists, academics, planners, lawyers, political activists, environmentalists, and other members of the public who believe that the relationships between vested interests and politicians need to be scrutinised. We need to work together to make sure that the new Fast-Track Approvals Bill – currently being pushed through by the ...
Feel worried. Shane Jones and a couple of his Cabinet colleagues are about to be granted the power to override any and all objections to projects like dams, mines, roads etc even if: said projects will harm biodiversity, increase global warming and cause other environmental harms, and even if ...
Bryce Edwards writes- The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. ...
Michael Bassett writes – If you think there is a move afoot by the radical Maori fringe of New Zealand society to create a parallel system of government to the one that we elect at our triennial elections, you aren’t wrong. Over the last few days we have ...
Without a corresponding drop in interest rates, it’s doubtful any changes to the CCCFA will unleash a massive rush of home buyers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The six things that stood out to me in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, poverty and climate on Monday, April 22 included:The Government making a ...
Sunday was a lazy day. I started watching Jack Tame on Q&A, the interviews are usually good for something to write about. Saying the things that the politicians won’t, but are quite possibly thinking. Things that are true and need to be extracted from between the lines.As you might know ...
In our Weekly Roundup last week we covered news from Auckland Transport that the WX1 Western Express is going to get an upgrade next year with double decker electric buses. As part of the announcement, AT also said “Since we introduced the WX1 Western Express last November we have seen ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 29 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. Stats NZ releases its statutory report on Census 2023 tomorrow.Finance Minister Nicola Willis delivers a pre-Budget speech at ...
A listing of 29 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 14, 2024 thru Sat, April 20, 2024. Story of the week Our story of the week hinges on these words from the abstract of a fresh academic ...
The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. The Government says this will ...
This is a column to say thank you. So many of have been in touch since Mum died to say so many kind and thoughtful things. You’re wonderful, all of you. You’ve asked how we’re doing, how Dad’s doing. A little more realisation each day, of the irretrievable finality of ...
Identifying the engine type in your car is crucial for various reasons, including maintenance, repairs, and performance upgrades. Knowing the specific engine model allows you to access detailed technical information, locate compatible parts, and make informed decisions about modifications. This comprehensive guide will provide you with a step-by-step approach to ...
Introduction: The allure of racing is undeniable. The thrill of speed, the roar of engines, and the exhilaration of competition all contribute to the allure of this adrenaline-driven sport. For those who yearn to experience the pinnacle of racing, becoming a race car driver is the ultimate dream. However, the ...
Introduction Automobiles have become ubiquitous in modern society, serving as a primary mode of transportation and a symbol of economic growth and personal mobility. With countless vehicles traversing roads and highways worldwide, it begs the question: how many cars are there in the world? Determining the precise number is a ...
Maintaining a safe and reliable vehicle requires regular inspections. Whether it’s a routine maintenance checkup or a safety inspection, knowing how long the process will take can help you plan your day accordingly. This article delves into the factors that influence the duration of a car inspection and provides an ...
Mazda Motor Corporation, commonly known as Mazda, is a Japanese multinational automaker headquartered in Fuchu, Aki District, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. The company was founded in 1920 as the Toyo Cork Kogyo Co., Ltd., and began producing vehicles in 1931. Mazda is primarily known for its production of passenger cars, but ...
Your car battery is an essential component that provides power to start your engine, operate your electrical systems, and store energy. Over time, batteries can weaken and lose their ability to hold a charge, which can lead to starting problems, power failures, and other issues. Replacing your battery before it ...
In most states, you cannot register a car without a valid driver’s license. However, there are a few exceptions to this rule. Exceptions to the RuleIf you are under 18 years old: In some states, you can register a car in your name even if you do not ...
Mazda, a Japanese automotive manufacturer with a rich history of innovation and engineering excellence, has emerged as a formidable player in the global car market. Known for its reputation of producing high-quality, fuel-efficient, and driver-oriented vehicles, Mazda has consistently garnered praise from industry experts and consumers alike. In this article, ...
Struts are an essential part of a car’s suspension system. They are responsible for supporting the weight of the car and damping the oscillations of the springs. Struts are typically made of steel or aluminum and are filled with hydraulic fluid. How Do Struts Work? Struts work by transferring the ...
Car registration is a mandatory process that all vehicle owners must complete annually. This process involves registering your car with the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and paying an associated fee. The registration process ensures that your vehicle is properly licensed and insured, and helps law enforcement and other authorities ...
Zoom is a video conferencing service that allows you to share your screen, webcam, and audio with other participants. In addition to sharing your own audio, you can also share the audio from your computer with other participants. This can be useful for playing music, sharing presentations with audio, or ...
Building your own computer can be a rewarding and cost-effective way to get a high-performance machine tailored to your specific needs. However, it also requires careful planning and execution, and one of the most important factors to consider is the time it will take. The exact time it takes to ...
Sleep mode is a power-saving state that allows your computer to quickly resume operation without having to boot up from scratch. This can be useful if you need to step away from your computer for a short period of time but don’t want to shut it down completely. There are ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi, and Mema Paremata mō Tāmaki-Makaurau, Takutai Tarsh Kemp, will travel to the Gold Coast to strengthen ties with Māori in Australia next week (15-21 April). The visit, in the lead-up to the 9th Australian National Kapa haka Festival, will be an opportunity for both ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
Hundreds of New Zealand families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) will benefit from a new Government focus on prevention and treatment, says Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. “We know FASD is a leading cause of preventable intellectual and neurodevelopmental disability in New Zealand,” Dr Reti says. “Every day, ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges. “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order. “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions. “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today. “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale. “It is good ...
The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
“China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
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The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Asia Pacific Report From France to Australia, university pro-Palestine protests in the United States have now spread to several countries with students pitching on-campus camps. And students at Columbia and other US universities remain defiant as campuses have witnessed the biggest protests since the anti-Vietnam war and anti-apartheid eras in ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards, Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)New Zealand Government’s Fast Track legislation. Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government ...
Tara Ward talks to presenter Naomi Toilalo about the new TV show that turns food waste into a three course feast. Naomi Toilalo is standing in the warehouse at Good Neighbour Tauranga, helping unpack the two-and-a-half tonnes of rejected food that will arrive at the community support hub that day. ...
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Megan Alatini takes us through her life in TV, including ‘terrible’ daytime TV, the class of Carol Hirschfeld and her most embarrassing TrueBliss moment. When she responded to a vague newspaper ad asking “do you have what it takes to be a popstar?” 25 years ago, Megan Alatini never guessed ...
A new exhibition in Wellington showcases the faces behind your local goods and services. Back in 1977, when I was a fine arts student at the University of Canterbury, I took a series of photographs of Christchurch shopkeepers. The photos were for a calendar – a project for my end ...
Toomaj and his resistance to tyranny through his songs have become an icon for the youth of Iran, so his sentence has hit the nation hard. Toomaj Salehi is not the first artist to pay the price for standing with the people. ...
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There’s an island in the far reaches of Auckland’s territory, sitting off the tip of the Coromandel Peninsula, 30 minutes by air from the city or four hours on the slow boat. Aotea Great Barrier is off-grid, it has a population of fewer than a thousand people … and most ...
Working as a doctor in developing countries to help communities achieve better health outcomes is nothing short of a life goal for Jessica Tater. The University of Otago medical student has her sights firmly set on joining the international humanitarian organisation Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) when she qualifies ...
Asia Pacific Report An Australian author and advocate, Jim Aubrey, today led a national symbolic one minute’s silence to mark the “blood debt” owed to Papuan allies during the Second World War indigenous resistance against the invading Japanese forces. “A promise to most people is a promise,” Aubrey said in ...
Asia Pacific Report The Freedom Flotilla is ready to sail to Gaza, reports Kia Ora Gaza. All the required paperwork has been submitted to the port authority, and the cargo has been loaded and prepared for the humanitarian trip to the besieged enclave. However, organisers received word of an “administrative ...
Pacific Media Watch Palestine solidarity protesters today demonstrated at the Auckland headquarters of Television New Zealand, accusing the country’s major TV network of broadcasting “propaganda” backing Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza. About 50 protesters targeted the main entrance to the TVNZ building near Sky Tower and also picketed a side ...
Opinion by Lynley Hood. Forty years on from my 1985 Fulbright Grant, my disquiet over the war in Gaza evoked some troubling questions. The answer to my first question – What is the primary purpose of the Fulbright Programme? – was on the Fulbright NZ website. It says: US Senator, ...
The ministers responsible for green-lighting major projects need to be open about potential conflicts of interest, says Transparency International. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Powell, Professor, Family and Sexual Violence, RMIT University It has been a particularly distressing start to the year. There is little that can ease the current grief of individuals, families and communities who have needlessly lost a loved one to men’s ...
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A brief round-up of submissions on the controversial proposed law. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week, submissions on the controversial Fast-track Approvals Bill closed just hours after the government released a list of stakeholder organisations who were sent letters advising how they could ...
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The Commissioner's decision validates the longstanding efforts of the local community and ensures that Awataha Marae will be managed to serve the needs of the local community, particularly for hosting tangihanga. ...
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The government can't just rely on axing public sector jobs and has to do more to cut spending, says the chief economist at a free market think tank. ...
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You can’t have missed the Gallipoli story as the movies, documentaries, essays and books capture what it was like for New Zealand troops in their eight-month campaign on the Peninsula. But this Anzac Day the Auckland War Memorial Museum has published a book that sheds light on a little-known aspect of the ...
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Asia Pacific Report Chief Mandla Mandela, a member of the National Assembly of South Africa and Nelson Mandela’s grandson, has joined the Freedom Flotilla in istanbul as the ships prepare to sail for Gaza, reports Kia Ora Gaza. Mandela is also the ambassador for the Global Campaign to Return to ...
Media alert: Kim Hill has a selection of worthy topics today! I'm going for these
8.10 Emerson T Brooking: combatting Russia’s disinformation campaign
9.05 Michael Schur: The Good Place creator's quest to be perfect
10.05 David Wengrow: rewriting the history of humanity
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/saturday
I wonder if Kim will invite John Mearsheimer on her show one week.
She managed Nils Melzer a few weeks ago, on the political persecution of Julian Assange.
I doubt Mearsheimer would be permitted under the current tidal wave of pro-west propaganda.
Update on Labour's big play for this year:
Poor policy, deceptive spin, dishonest consultation. 3 waters has it all.
And Councils?
Great question. I think there's a couple out of the 67 who think it's a good idea. Aucklander's overwhelmingly oppose it. So it's not only a bad idea, it's a really unpopular one.
Yet I believe rates will become untenable as they do catch-up.
In the days before the invasion, Russian TV broadcast a session of President Putin's 30-member security council. The BBC includes a photo showing the immense distance between the top dog & the underdogs, along with profiles of the top underdogs…
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-60573261
The guy is suffering from paranoia imo.
Some good analysis of the whole anti mandate protests.
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/convoy-politics-and-barbarians-at-the-gate?utm_source=Friends+of+the+Newsroom&utm_campaign=5534e58305-Week+In+Review+05.03.2022&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_71de5c4b35-5534e58305-47886425
Dr Ian Hyslop explains why it's urgent we address the social and political divisions that enabled the Parliament protest rather than "disparage the feral mob and order another latte"
Them's disparagin’ words, but Hyslop's article is a good read – ta.
The meme that this is a "division" rather than a small minority of the stupid, doesn't reflect reality. It gives the idea that they are a far bigger group than they really are.
Why didn't we hear about , "division" during the many times larger anti TPPA, anti AGW and gen zero protests.
Perhaps as those, unlike the Wellington one, were really supported by a significant number of people.
The current Wellington Pro Plague, along with the Pro Polluter protests are extremely noisy and disruptive, but certainly not reflective of the views of the overwhelming majority, who find the foolishness obvious.
By the way. Most of the people objecting to vaccine mandates, and travel restrictions, seem to be rather comfortable middle class Wallies. Workers and the ones at the dirty end of the Neo-Liberal stick, largely seem on side with protecting public health. About 300 to 2 in my workplace voted to make vaccination mandatory.
Democracy!
The Blue Collar Workers are accepting the mandates as they have to work and put food on the table and pay the rent.
The White Collar Workers have houses, assets and cash flow they are the ones jumping up and down and screaming.
That was them in the protest at Parliament right?
All those asset owners, jumping up and down screaming.
Maybe some of the "asset owning classes" were happy to finance aspects of it rather than "get their hands dirty"
"After all I didn't where I am today by getting my hands dirty" (hat tip to Reggie Perrin)
Blue collar workers, used to working together for the good of their community see the sense in mandates and other public health measures, to protect those close to them.
The there are, entitled brats, who have never had any concern for those around them…….
The divisions are divided.
please take this discussion to the Convoy post.
World leader who has ordered his nuclear forces to "High Combat Alert", loses touch with reality.
Really?
Is Putin trying to convince us that the Ukrainians are conducting false flag attacks on their own people?
Though Russian allegations of a false flag attacks may have convinced some people in the past over Syria. Putin's useful idiots in the West will have trouble spinning this story.
John Mearsheimer is not a 'useful idiot'.
He is ' an American political scientist and international relations scholar, who belongs to the realist school of thought. He is the R. Wendell Harrison Distinguished Service Professor at the University of Chicago. He has been described as the most influential realist of his generation.
Mearsheimer is best known for developing the theory of offensive realism, which describes the interaction between great powers as being primarily driven by the rational desire to achieve regional hegemony in an anarchic international system. In accordance with his theory, Mearsheimer believes that China's growing power will likely bring it into conflict with the United States. He also holds U.S. interventionist foreign policy responsible for the crisis in Ukraine.'
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Mearsheimer
I have no idea who John Mearsheimer is. Or what he has to do with anything.
Apart from the glittering academic career which you have written of in your comment.
But it brings to mind a quote I once read;
As to whether, John Mearsheimer, (whoever he is), is a useful idiot, or a useless one, I have no idea.
Does he support war and oppression in foreign lands?
Why wouldn't Putin try to convince us that the Ukrainians are conducting false flag attacks on their own people? You can be certain some will be convinced what he says is true and that will become The Word.
In the Herald today David Farrier alludes (again) to the weird things being said.
"I documented in real time Billy Te Kahika jnr's Facebook posts over that time (early Covid). Originally supporting Jacinda Ardern's reaction to Covid, within several months Billy became an entirely different beast, spouting conspiracy theories galore. He went into politics, failed miserably, and today is mostly raving about aliens on Facebook. Now Sue Gray — a more accessible, white face to the crazy — screams about dead children and vaccine deaths."
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/david-farrier-5g-911-kiwis-sucked-in-by-conspiracy-theories/LBHDWH7W3JCNBIV3JFORMNIB3M/
It is undeniable that Billy Te Kahika Jnr and Sue Gray are believed, their stuff accepted as truth.
Peter what's the story on Brian Tamaki and all his Gangster Mates ?
I don't know about Brian Tamaki and his "gangster mates."
Farrier references religious angle on the protest:
"Many of our biggest pentecostal and evangelical churches also drank the Kool-Aid, taking their adherents down an anti-science route that questioned whether Covid was real, or if masks worked. It's one thing for a church to deny evolution, it's another for it to deny modern science that will affect public health outcomes. "All those needles going into the arm, it's like they're trying to wear me down!" said the leader of one megachurch. "We do know it has not been fully approved by the FDA …" he raved on. He was wrong.
The media tended to focus on Destiny Church's Brian Tamaki, as he was the loudest and strangest, but it was City Impact Church pastor Peter Mortlock who drove to the Wellington "protest" to livestream his thoughts."
Tamaki seems to have aligned his cult with the 'Freedom & Rights coalition.' With that he is carrying on his permanent electioneering. The words are 'get rid of the government," the message is "pick me." Covid and vaccinations are merely handy handles.
Gangster mates? I don't know about that. I know a big body of loud motorbikes roaring in canyons of buildings sounds impressive to some. And threatening to others, what with the Headhunters, Mongrel Mob, Hell's Angels and so on references. No-one would believe that Tamaki wouldn't harness whatever is needed to make an impression.
Big guys, black gear, dark sunnies, staunch demeanour? It's like a parody of American gangster movies. It's a wonder Tamaki hasn't paid big bucks (from the people who willingly give him money to buy their way into heaven) to commission the Cohen Brothers to shoot a film about him.
Sad people, some misogyny?
Every faction/side in Ukrania needs to take responsibility to ensure a nuclear power plant is not hit or damaged due to the conflict.
A declaration of war against Europe was narrowly missed yesterday when bombs hit the training centre at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant.
A strike at a Ukrainian nuclear power plant was my worst fear at the start of the invasion.
I have been listening to speech after speech from the UN, Nato and the US. Words will not be enough for Putin.
The situation is dire for the Ukrainians, food shortage, bombed hospitals, the Russian convoy. I am pleased to see that many Polish and German people have taken Ukrainian people into their home, (other near by countries as well). Poland and Germany have faced Russia in the past and will be affected economically and the threat of a nuclear explosion cannot be excluded. Germany and Poland have moved on since 1945 and they are now on the same side and they stand side by side being Nato members.
Words don't mean jack shit to Putin he knows the UN and NATO are limp wristed.
I suggest that one means of settling the Ukraine invasion would be to have a duel between the leader of the Russian forces and the Mayor of Kyiv. One on one.
Now I realise that David beat Goliath in the Biblical story but I would put my money on the Ukrainian representative in this encounter. His name is Vitali Klitschko. If that doesn't ring a bell try googling the name and see what his previous occupation was.
Steroids or not Putin is almost 70….dont think he'd go for it
Hell, I wouldn't go for it if I was in my physical prime and 20 years old.
Actually I did mean the Russian military leader in the country rather than Putin. Not only is Vitali 19 years younger than Vladimir but he must be about 35 cm taller.
lol…Putin a black belt judoka so in his younger years he might have given it a go….guess it depends on the size of the ego
A Black Belt at 70 years old and in good shape would still be dangerous.
Black Belt is not to be taken lightly.
Depends on the weight class.
yes a fit 70 year black belt judoka would be dangerous to joe average but Kitschko is himself a former professional world champion boxer 20 years his junior.
Alwyn (and myself) indulging in pointless (and amusing) speculation about impossible events in the absence of impacting reality..i suspect.
And 70 year old muscles cant cash cheques written by 30 year old minds….as much as they wish they could.
"Alwyn (and myself) indulging in pointless (and amusing) speculation about impossible events in the absence of impacting reality".
Yes. Vitali, and his brother Wladimir, were both World Heavyweight Boxing Champions. I really doubt that any 70 year old politician, no matter his background would, survive.
And, unfortunately we aren't going to get rid of Putin that way. Still, one can always dream about him getting his comeuppance.
Nope…but if he is using steroids theres always heart attack
A dance-off, live before a studio audience, to give Zelinskyy a chance at winning.
The question is what would they wear?
dancing Kozaks?
oMG Shane Warne has died aged 52. A real shock.
I didn’t follow cricket when he was playing, but a great cricket commentator.
Also the wicket keeper Rodney Marsh.
https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2022/mar/04/rod-marsh-the-baggy-green-brigadier-and-keeper-of-australian-test-cricket-culture
He was a wonderful wrist spinner …he basically won the Adelaide Ashes test single handed when Flintoff was England captain when Australia had no hope of winning.
He was an excellent commentator and everyone seems to agree that despite his huge success as a sportsman he was not up himself….very approachable and helpful
In all the tributes I have heard nobody has mentioned that he was also a very useful batsman….sorry batter.
Didn't hear any reference to him being a drugs cheat banned for 12 months for taking a weight-reducing diuretic either. But hey, lets remember "Warnie", the larrikin. Great cricketer, flawed individual.
Shane Warne died of being a terminal asshole.
Heart attack seems more likely – too soon, imho. A great sportsman and entertainer, I'll remember his appearance as a Shane Warne impersonator who marries Sharon in the Aussie sitcom Kath & Kim.
And, lest we forget, "I'm regrowing my own hair… Yeah Yeah!"
Given the suggested link between (long) COVID and impaired cardiovascular health, I wonder if the virus played a hand.
Nailed the race to the bottom today, and real classy with it, too.
Have some sense of decorum. Think of his kids.
Have some sense of decorum. Think of his kids. Ad
Too much hard living, covid statistic ?
NEWSFLASH: Autopsy reveals Shane Warne mostly cocaine.
Never a fan but to me, the real leading wicket taker over Muralitharan, despite the record book. Done for his mum's slimming pills but never his action.
52 is no age.
After recent stories of parents' distress on their babies trapped in the Ukraine – https://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/aussie-parents-desperate-journey-to-reach-their-premature-baby-daughter-in-ukraine/NRLR564ON3CDLCRQAFSVKYGCRE/
https://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/four-irish-babies-born-to-surrogate-mothers-in-kyiv-evacuated-from-ukraine-1.4817766
https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/we-feel-blessed-relief-for-irish-couple-as-they-arrive-home-safe-from-ukraine-with-surrogate-newborn-baby-41384634.html
– I wondered why is the Ukraine used for surrogacy, and discovered around 2,000 – 2,500 babies are born to foreign couples each year. It's an industry.
Surrogacy is an emotive issue. Particularly for those who are unwillingly childless.
But an ethical and moral discussion has to be had about the wider and long term impacts regarding the 'manufacture' and 'production' of children.
Regarding the Australian couple above:
It would be good to have a list of those considerations compiled here.
The Guardian had a 2020 article on the difficulty that arose from 'products' being stuck during the first months of the pandemic.
Princeton has published a paper on international commercial surrogacy that concludes:
On the horizon we have tech solutions, that come with their own mountain of unexplored ethical and moral considerations. As Dr Hanna says @00:45:
Culturally, we have whangai, which may arise from either an intentional or unintentional pregnancy. Akin to non commercial surrogacy.
What re the thoughts here on TS regarding surrogacy?
The more I look into commercial surrogacy, the more exploitative and short-sighted it seems.
Not sure the same holds true for non-commercial surrogacy, but there's still wider impacts than birth.
They – could of course adopt children in their home countries, all these couples that order babies from overseas birthing bodies, but that would then mean that they child is 'not theirs'.
I find it interesting that the only interest is in the babies, never mind the birthing bodies that are left behind in the war region.
But here is Tamati Coffey, 'father' of two babies from a surrogate mother and his bill to make it even easier to buy babies of birthing bodies for as little money as possible. Don't ever say these 'gender woo's' don't know what a women is when they need one. lol
https://www.parliament.nz/en/pb/bills-and-laws/bills-proposed-laws/document/BILL_115955/improving-arrangements-for-surrogacy-bill
However we can't blame Tamati Coffey for having his priorities straight, maybe there is is a future industry for Rotorua in the making, all the unproductive uteruses of uterus havers (specially the unemployed) can be put to work birthing for 'infertile people' such as he and his husband are as two men together – despite all the myth of those afflicted with gender woo – never conceived a child nor birthed even just one.
Personally i can see a future – a near future at that, where unemployed women could be compelled to 'donate eggs' – as work, be a 'surrgate mother' – as work, i.e. for pay as income, or sell 'surplus' breast milk for money as a form of income.. That and of course then also sex work which is work and thus…….:) its gonna be a lovely future for the things we used to call 'women' adult human female.
Good to see you back Sabine. Missed your commentary.
Human breast milk is already a commercial product.
Of course, it's all for a good cause:
But as usual, the profit margin is greater in other demographics:
https://www.wired.com/2011/05/ff-milk/
https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/mother-selling-breast-milk-men-online-body-builders-fetishes-rafaela-lamprou-cyprus-a8237161.html
So open minded she participates in a fetish that reduces women to lactating bovines.
https://www.vice.com/en/article/d3599y/inside-hucow-the-fetish-that-imagines-women-as-cows
https://screenshot-media.com/visual-cultures/internet-culture/hucow-fetish-explained/
Read it and weep.
Yes, it already exist, but in my scenario a women aka human female adult (producer of ova ) can be compelled by a helpful Winz drone to get a 'job' in selling breast milk – they can feed their own kids some formula or so, get a job in -surrogacy for some people, they can get a job in selling eggs – its just a wee little surgery no harm done here no not at all, and / or sex work – its work, dignified work yes, it is, cause work is work and if you are able and fit and demand is there why won't you take it, and if you don't take it, here have some sanctions. I give it a few years.
"I give it a few years."
I'd like to say I think you are wrong, but given the current climate, I can see it happening.
(BTW, Hi Sabine!)
As for that bill:
My comments in bold italics.
"They – could of course adopt children in their home countries".
Not in New Zealand they can't. From the reference below, which is a Government publication and is probably accurate we are told.
"Adoptions reached their highest number in Aotearoa New Zealand in the 1970s, with nearly 4,000 children adopted each year. The number of adoptions in Aotearoa has reduced over time, with only 125 adoptions granted by the New Zealand Family Court in 2020."
https://www.justice.govt.nz/assets/Documents/Publications/Adoption-in-NZ-Summary-English.pdf
So no, I can't see it becoming a thriving industry.
alwyn, do you have a comment on surrogacy?
(Outcomes for standard adopted children are below average, independent of the adoptive family, which is another discussion in itself.)
I was replying to Sabine, at comment 9.1. The quote in the first line is from Sabine's comment. As such my comment didn't really have anything to do with surrogacy but to the implication in Sabines comment that couples don't have to use surrogacy when they can simply adopt.
I do know a number of people who were adopted. I don't find them to have been any different to anyone else. I don't know any that were born via surrogacy, but that probably has more to do with my age than anything else. Adopting was a standard option when I was the age to be having children and I know people who followed that path. You can't really do it today though. Surrogacy was unheard of.
I understand you were answering Sabine, just wanted to know if you had thoughts on surrogacy. As Sabine linked, there is a bill currently at first reading.
It would be good to have a public discussion on what this really legislates for.
"Surrogacy was unheard of."
Whāngai has always been around, My mother (now in her eighties) and two other siblings were whāngai placements. It still happens, if not so often, with reliable accessible contraception and support.
I believe Sabine has a good grasp of the wider ramifications of surrogacy, and the justifications for it – hence the adoption comment.
Looking at the process for commercial surrogacy the ethical and moral considerations are numerous. I was hoping there would be a discussion around those points. eg. the risk of medication required for implants/egg retrieval causing cancer being borne by the surrogate/provider, the commodification of children, and women's bodies, the emotional and social impact of carrying/ having someone else carry a child, the economic situation that allows this exploitation, etc.
"Thoughts on surrogacy".
No. Emotionally it seems rather odd to me, but that is just an instantaneous and not a considered response. Neither I, nor anyone in my immediate family had any problems procreating. Mind you my eldest sister took it to extremes. She had 4 children under the age of 3 by the time she had her fourth wedding anniversary.
However I am not able to make any reasoned comment on the topic of surrogacy so I will keep out of the discussion.
"However I am not able to make any reasoned comment on the topic of surrogacy so I will keep out of the discussion."
Thanks, alwyn. I appreciate your reply.
I'm interested in your last statement. I would expect that anyone given information about a situation, would be able to make a 'reasoned comment' albeit with provisos.
I wonder if the emotive nature of childbearing and childlessness, and the obscuring factor of this makes this topic yet another that will not be sufficiently investigated and discussed before passing legislation.
I admit to being bored by the repetitive and circular nature of discussions around the vaccines and protests, and thought there might be some interest in examining another topic that has legislation being considered.
Not sure how adoption is handled in NZ. This article that Molly linked to was about a couple in OZ that bought a pregnancy off a low income women in the Ukraine, and that was what my comment is about.
Disclaimer: I can not have children. Physically am not able to have children. Did not buy a pregnancy of a low income women to make up for the not having children. Did look into adoption, but choose not to go that way. Had a surrogacy offered to me by my best friend, and did not choose to go ahead, mainly for these reasons. A. my genetic material may not interact well with hers. B. nine month pregnancy is a long time on a women and her existing children. C. Pregnancy does things to womens bodies. D. Post Partum Depression is a thing. E. What if something goes wrong and the mother suffers? Just a few of the issues.
Yes, i can see the lease of the reproductive body parts of the human adult female become a thriving business. It already is in India, Ukraine, Russia etc. During the first month of the lockdown there already was a wave of babies not being picked up by their 'parents' etc, and these babies suddenly got stuck with their birthing parents. Suddenly we know what women and mothers are.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jun/15/the-stranded-babies-of-kyiv-and-the-women-who-give-birth-for-money
here from 2014 even with prices. lol
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-28679020
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2020/jul/29/up-to-1000-babies-born-to-surrogate-mothers-stranded-in-russia
Thanks, Sabine.
It's good to read someone's thought processes about consideration of surrogacy, and the reasons why they decided against it.
Pregnancy is not a neutral body condition. It puts a woman's body under stress, even through good pregnancies, leaches calcium, and as you say makes changes that need to be accommodated during gestation and beyond. The emotional and social costs are harder to articulate, but they do exist even if they are ignored.
It is telling that you had a friend that offered, and also that as a friend, you declined.
I was fortunate enough to be able to have children, and not be in the position of yearning and despair that I can understand in others. I think I would be inclined to think like you, and refuse an offer of surrogacy for some of the reasons you have stated. My partner and I would have to grieve the loss of that role as parents, but along with other life obstacles, we'd have to move on.
Thanks for responding. We need the objective views of the reality, as well as the understandably heartfelt entreaties from those who use other women as incubators. That price list, huh?
While I sympathize with the Ukraine we don't hear much about what the USA & Israel are doing in Palestine do we and that's been going on since 1948.
All right. I'll bite.
What has the USA been doing in Palestine. Just the USA and just Palestine.
Facts please, and supported by evidence.
Guessing this is on the wrong thread?
Children as a manufactured commodity has to be the most disgusting industry yet invented by humans.
Yet NZ is looking to legislate for it, without discussing or considering the wider ramifications.
Poor democracy practice.
Profitable it will be. And if you take in mind that we actively promoting the 'changing' of ones sex, and that that change comes with castration/sterilization it will be a booming business once all these people realize that they can no longer have children.
Never mind the kids that we are going to chemically castrate thanks to puberty blockers and the likes. But they will profit of the good lawmaking of Tamati Coffey and can then offer a womb rental agreement to some ‘uterus haver’ for a child that they can neither father, or in the opposite birth.
And hence the need to legalise and regulate the market as the bill by noted 'father' of two children born to a 'birthing body' via a uterus lease agreement.
Actually for what its worth, Tamati Coffey could have saved himself a lot of work and put forward the Ferengi Rules about womb leases and prices / costs there of.
https://memory-beta.fandom.com/wiki/Womb_rental_agreement
It is a profitable business. One article above states that couples pay $25,000 (I assume USD) to the business, the surrogate receives up to $10,000.
We have to view these arrangements objectively and dispassionately in order to identify whether they are both moral and ethical. Stripping away all emotive appeals, we are treating a woman's body as a manufacturing plant. Unlike a manufacturing plant, there are no replacement parts, or ways to avoid wear and tear. Also, we ignore the impact of pregnancy on a woman's life, especially one that results in no child for that woman.
Relating stories of euphoric or satisfied commercial surrogates, is the equivalent of using The Happy Hooker as justification for prostitution. The majority of women in commercial surrogacy are being exploited.
The issue of non-commercial surrogacy has other considerations to be discussed, but still – as you mention – carries risks.
Live long and prosper, Sabine.
So is 18,000 new infections per day as a rolling average the trigger to reverse the vaccine mandates?
Or is it the deaths per day?
Or maybe it's the limits to hospital ICU capacity, even without the strike?
Or is it how many minutes of national tax will be required to restore a child's slide on the parliamentary forecourt?
When will Ardern be able to set out specifically what the measures are by which the vaccine mandate will be determined that it can be removed?
We have 10 days left before the commemoration of the Christchurch massacre, and 20 days before ANZAC Day.
Get a wriggle on Government and show you can do more than emote.
'Are we there yet !?'
At 20,00 a day average the answer is … we don't even know where we are going.
I don't think so Barfly. Keep your head down. We are, for at least 6 weeks.
Agreed
The infection rate is probably underdone,due to the use of RATS and under reporting as say Dunedin or australia experienced.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/covid-19-omicron-outbreak-20-residents-tested-positive-at-dunedin-aged-care-facility/J52V45MHZPNBQEJZ73S6HLGNXI/
The sharp drop of cases overseas is also a good example with the CDC only using PCR tests in its figures.
Here the death toll is now 73,and may exceed the road and workplace fatalities combined,with around a busload of fatalities a week to Anzac day.
Australia is tracking to exceed the death toll of Gallipoli by Anzac day,(in a shorter time period)
The government needs to start to look coherent again by the time the Christchurch and ANZAC memorials come around.
I'm glad I'm not in the Labour caucus right now. It must be miserable.
Well they missed the chch earthquake memorial as they were more concerned about the lawns and the curtains,and noisy neighbours,and so they could pass urgent legislation in this Brave New world ensuring the sanctity of Freemartins.
Polls dont reflect you 'concerns' Mr Ad
The curia one which I watch because it comes out every month has seen a rise every month since the Nov dip ( covid lockdowns) from 44.8 in Oct
But we know you just want to fluff Luxons pillows but dont dare do so here
You should try the New Zealand First caucus.
The mandates are only as good as those who comply with them.
I expect scanning is down. Probably getting a booster as well. I got boosted late last week and when I left I thought, that better be the last one.
A lot of people would know family who are infected with Covid. Hard because some would want to help those with young children, but cannot risk being infected.
By Matariki anyone who even mentions 'Vaccine Mandate' will have 18 skyrockets strapped to them and sent towards the Pleiades.
The 20+ thousand a day is our testing limit. Take it at that and do what you will with it.
As I once heard Muldoon say "You win some – you loose some"
Now that Apple has left Russia, Apple Maps has put Crimea back in Ukraine
ROFL
Interesting that Switzerland has abandoned 200 years of neutrality, and come out in support of Ukraine.
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/neutral-swiss-adopt-sanctions-against-russia-2022-02-28/
And an interesting perspective over the announced change to legislate for an independent sanctions policy (rather than piggybacking on UN sanctions, which NZ has previously done – of course, the UN security council will never sanction Russia)
https://thediplomat.com/2022/03/russias-invasion-of-ukraine-will-change-new-zealands-foreign-policy/
Reply to Ad @ 10.3.1
Omicron does not give a rats arse about mandates.
Mandates have reached their full potential as far as preventing hospital admissions. Due to high infection rates no mandate is able to stop infections.
Governance mechanisms in water management don't usually attract this degree of analysis from the NZHerlad.
Three waters reform: Working group frustrated by government bottom lines – NZ Herald
The TLDR version is:
8 October local government election car crash.
It was done by RNZ and they just reprinted it
A lot of gaps in the papers these days where new stories are supposed to be ( ie they fill them with a link to a story all ready mentioned.
Im not sure of its covid related staffing problems or that the Ukraine situation has sucked all interest out of other stories and they are holding them back
The Society for Evidence Based Gender Medicine (and no, WPATH is not evidence based despite assumptions) have compared the newly released Swedish evidence reviewed policy with the draft of the updated WPATH due for release this year:
https://twitter.com/SEGMtweets/status/1498842485908463629
France has also updated their protocol, following the Netherlands, Finland, Denmark and Sweden.
And where are we?
https://patha.nz/Guidelines
The document as a whole shows an "affirming care" approach, at any age or stuation.
It contains many non-evidence based statements:
There have been no long term follow up studies on this. Current indications are that there are significant detrimental health outcomes, including bone mineralisation, cardiac health and brain development.
Max Tweedle on the Spinoff denigrates the paltry number (14/yr @ $53k) of gender affirming surgeries for the current annual $748,000 surgery budget, and the $4.23 million as a reason for the Rainbow Ministry. (Government provides support via other ministries to NGOs that aren't quantified).
Detrans support is not mentioned in the article, or indeed on many NGO sites. When it is the bias is clear:
Young people receiving 'affirming health care' in NZ are doing so on assumptive, non long-term evidence based data. They will carry the consequences of the failure of adults.
Will we require them to look and create their own support networks, on redditand elsewhere? Or will we recognise the reality that social, medical and/or surgical treatments during childhood and puberty are not benign and adjust treatment accordingly?
It is apparent to me that NZ is not only enthusiastically late to the party, we are going to stay till the hangover is guaranteed.
Thanks for posting this Molly. Good to have the update.
And the fear is with the Conversion Practices Bill, parents and possibly some health professionals may find them self being investigated by the police if they don't affirm/confirm the young persons gender identity.
I can't understand why people are up in arms about this.
"I can't understand why people are up in arms about this."
I have a comment in my head that contains a lot of swear words, but essentially I think they are 'Being Kind' instead of being aware, evidence-based, diligent and responsible.
'Affirming health care' is a solution looking for a problem and creating one. The new Swedish guidelines states their approach clearly:
I wonder about reposting this week day early on in the day. Any chance of this
Despite state repression and censorship.
Anti-war feeling in Russia is growing.
The war in the Ukraine will be won/lost in Russia
Any alternative view or not towing the state line your life is put in danger.
Lost a comment.
Too many links?
yep. You can put some links in a reply.
Comment is visible now.
Sorry. Thanks for that.
Really? Not saying men can't be pro-women's rights but surely to be a feminist you have to be active in that particular field.
Of course Chris, who ran an airline in case you didn’t know, brings up said airline as proof of his record as a feminist:
And good on him, this looks like affirmative action on steroids. I wonder if he will do the same for Maori, or will his voting base balk at that.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2022/03/christopher-luxon-absolutely-a-feminist-wants-more-diversity-and-inclusion-in-national.html
What is going on with the Covid testing and RAT roll out in Wellington?
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/covid-19-omicron-outbreak-testing-staff-abused-assaulted-amid-rats-desperation/SPEGT6ZLS545BZ6SJ4MS2WMJYA/?c_id=1&objectid=12508734&ref=rss
Just a symptom of a large scale testing stuff up, Hipkins and Verall need to be stood down.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/127944619/covid19-gobsmacking-queues-at-christchurchs-rat-collection-site
It's a surge, mate. It's the surge. This is NZ's worst time in the whole pandemic but here we are complaining about a few queues and some arseholes trying to steal tests to sell on the black market.
Big fucking deal.
Do you remember what happened in other counties?
Yes we all knew ,so why were they so unprepared? and why open the borders in the growth phase of an epidemic,is it because the government is thick,very thick or total imbeciles?
Opening the borders is something you have been wanting for some time, surely? Not sure why you are questioning it now.
It might look to you they are unprepared because you can't buy a RAT for $50 a pop whenever you feel the need, but given pandemic response in not an exact science, I think they are doing remarkable well. The numbers certainly confirm that.
There is comparatively no disaster here, you seem to enjoy imagining or inventing one though.
I have been consistently arguing to hold the borders,Pandemic response is a known science and there are constraints,Vaccines alone are a losing strategy.This is textbook stuff.
https://twitter.com/WmHaseltine/status/1492529219905200128?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1492529219905200128%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fpublish.twitter.com%2F%3Fquery%3Dhttps3A2F2Ftwitter.com2FWmHaseltine2Fstatus2F1492529219905200128widget%3DTweet
The strategy is called Vaccines plus,it is very workable and cost efficient and has been well signalled.
https://www.bmj.com/content/376/bmj.o1
Yeah, and NZ is doing all those health measures plus vaccines. It's exactly those things we are doing which differs from the rest of he world. It's those things that we are doing which makes the ACT, the far right, the anti-vax, and the anti-mandate people so angry.
All those things are exactly what this government and the country has done so well, but you are bagging them and us for it. I don’t understand.
Personally, I think that Pfizer booster slays Coronavirus. It almost literally knocked me off my feet the next day and my hunch is it turns the Covid lion into a mouse.
Here let me put it another way.
https://twitter.com/DGBassani/status/1499845795918589952?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1499847526769467393%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es2_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fpublish.twitter.com%2F%3Fquery%3Dhttps3A2F2Ftwitter.com2FDGBassani2Fstatus2F1499847526769467393widget%3DTweet
My partner's employer (a
n essential, sorry 'critical' industry) had their order of RAT tests, prioritised to the MoH by the supplier just last week. Not the first time.The failure of the MoH to order and secure sufficient supply for this outbreak, is apparent.
What a surprise. National Party members were inside the protest meeting with the anti-vax rabble. Maureen Pugh knows all about it.
Luxon knew nothing, of course.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/462799/national-mp-party-members-were-meeting-with-parliament-protesters