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.
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 27 were:1. The Minister for Ford Rangers strikes againTransport Minister Simeon Brown was again the busiest of the Cabinet ministers this week, announcing an ...
You got a fast carAnd I want a ticket to anywhereMaybe we make a dealMaybe together we can get somewhereAny place is betterYesterday’s newsletter, Trust In Me, on the report of abuse in state care, and by religious organisations, between 1950 and 2019, coupled with the hypocrisy of Christopher Luxon ...
New Zealand is again having to reconcile conflicting pressures from its military and its trade interests. Should we join Pillar Two of AUKUS and risk compromising our markets in China? For a century after New Zealand was founded in 1840, its external security arrangements and external economics arrangements were aligned. ...
The ‘50 Shades of Green’ farmers’ protest in 2019 was heavy on climate change denial, but five years on, scepticism and criticism about the idea that pine forests can save us is growing across the board. File photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s the top six news items of note in climate ...
This morning the sky was bright.The birds, in their usual joyous bliss. Nature doesn’t seem to feel the heat of what might angst humans.Their calls are clear and beautiful.Just some random thoughts:MāoriPaul Goldsmith has announced his government will roll back the judiciary’s rulings on Māori Customary Marine Title, which recognises ...
In 2003, the Court of Appeal delivered its decision in Ngati Apa v Attorney-General, ruling that Māori customary title over the foreshore and seabed had not been universally extinguished, and that the Māori Land Court could determine claims and confirm title if the facts supported it. This kicked off the ...
Earlier this week at Parliament, Labour leader Chris Hipkins was applauded for saying that the response to the final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care had to be “bigger than politics.” True, but the fine words, apologies and “we hear you” messages will soon ring ...
TL;DR: In news breaking this morning:The Ministry of Education is cutting $2 billion from its school building programme so the National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government has enough money to deliver tax cuts; The Government has quietly lowered its child poverty reduction targets to make them easier to achieve;Te Whatu Ora-Health NZ’s ...
Kia ora. These are some stories that caught our eye this week – as always, feel free to share yours in the comments. Our header image this week (via Eke Panuku) shows the planned upgrade for the Karanga Plaza Tidal Swimming Steps. The week in Greater Auckland On ...
1. What's not to love about the way the Harris campaign is turning things around?a. Nothingb. Love all of itc. God what a reliefd. Not that it will be by any means easye. All of the above 2. Documents released by the Ministry of Health show Associate Health Minister Casey ...
Trust in me in all you doHave the faith I have in youLove will see us through, if only you trust in meWhy don't you, you trust me?In a week that saw the release of the 3,000 page Abuse in Care report Christopher Luxon was being asked about Boot Camps. ...
TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking about the Royal Commission Inquiry into Abuse in Carereport released this week, and with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on a UN push to not recognise carbon offset markets and ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 26, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Transport: Simeon Brown announced$802.9 million in funding for 18 new trains on the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines, which ...
The northern expressway extension from Warkworth to Whangarei is likely to require radical changes to legislation if it is going to be built within the foreseeable future. The Government’s powers to purchase land, the planning process and current restrictions on road tolling are all going to need to be changed ...
Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedFirst they came for the doctors But I was confused by the numbers and costs So I didn't speak up Then they came for our police and nurses And I didn't think we could afford those costs anyway So I ...
Photo by Joshua J. Cotten on UnsplashWe’re back again after our mid-winter break. We’re still with the ‘new’ day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when we have our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream ...
Notes: This is a free article. Abuse in Care themes are mentioned. Video is at the bottom.BackgroundYesterday’s report into Abuse in Care revealed that at least 1 in 3 of all who went through state and faith based care were abused - often horrifically. At least, because not all survivors ...
Luxon speaks in Parliament yesterday about the Abuse in Care report. Photo: Hagen Hopkins/Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:PM Christopher Luxon said yesterday in tabling the Abuse in Carereport in Parliament he wanted to ‘do the ...
About a decade ago I worked with a bloke called Steve. He was the grizzled veteran coder, a few years older than me, who knew where the bodies were buried - code wise. Despite his best efforts to be approachable and friendly he could be kind of gruff, through to ...
Some of the recent announcements from the government have reminded us of posts we’ve written in the past. Here’s one from early 2020. There were plenty of reactions to the government’s infrastructure announcement a few weeks ago which saw them fund a bunch of big roading projects. One of ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Thursday, July 25 are:News: Why Electric Kiwi is closing to new customers - and why it matters RNZ’s Susan EdmundsScoop: Government drops ...
Hi,I felt a small wet tongue snaking through one of the holes in my Crocs. It explored my big toe, darting down one side, then the other. “He’s looking for some toe cheese,” said the woman next to me, words that still haunt me to this day.Growing up in New ...
Yesterday I happily quoted the Prime Minister without fact-checking him and sure enough, it turns out his numbers were all to hell. It’s not four kg of Royal Commission report, it’s fourteen.My friend and one-time colleague-in-comms Hazel Phillips gently alerted me to my error almost as soon as I’d hit ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Thursday, July 25, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day were:The Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquirypublished its final report yesterday.PM Christopher Luxon and The Minister responsible for ...
The Official Information Act has always been a battle between requesters seeking information, and governments seeking to control it. Information is power, so Ministers and government agencies want to manage what is released and when, for their own convenience, and legality and democracy be damned. Their most recent tactic for ...
TL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:Transport and Energy Minister Simeon Brown is accelerating plans to spend at least $10 billion through Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) to extend State Highway One as a four-lane ‘Expressway’ from Warkworth to Whangarei ...
I live my life (woo-ooh-ooh)With no control in my destinyYea-yeah, yea-yeah (woo-ooh-ooh)I can bleed when I want to bleedSo come on, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)You can bleed when you want to bleedYea-yeah, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)Everybody bleed when they want to bleedCome on and bleedGovernments face tough challenges. Selling unpopular decisions to ...
Please note:To skip directly to the- parliamentary footage in the video, scroll to 1:21 To skip to audio please click on the headphone iconon the left hand side of the screenThis video / audio section is under development. ...
Given the crackdown on wasteful government spending, it behooves me to point to a high profile example of spending by the Luxon government that looks like a big, fat waste of time and money. I’m talking about the deployment of NZDF personnel to support the US-led coalition in the Red ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:40 am on Wednesday, July 24 are:Deep Dive: Chipping away at the housing crisis, including my comments RNZ/Newsroom’s The DetailNews: Government softens on asset sales, ...
As I reported about the city centre, Auckland’s rail network is also going through a difficult and disruptive period which is rapidly approaching a culmination, this will result in a significant upgrade to the whole network. Hallelujah. Also like the city centre this is an upgrade predicated on the City ...
Today, a 4 kilogram report will be delivered to Parliament. We know this is what the report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care weighs, because our Prime Minister told us so.Some reporter had blindsided him by asking a question about something done by ...
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Wednesday, July 24, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Beehive:Transport Minister Simeon Brownannounced plans to use PPPs to fund, build and run a four-lane expressway between Auckland ...
NewstalkZB host Mike Hosking, who can usually be relied on to give Prime Minister Christopher Luxon an easy run, did not do so yesterday when he interviewed him about the HealthNZ deficit. Luxon is trying to use a deficit reported last year by HealthNZ as yet another example of the ...
Back in January a StatsNZ employee gave a speech at Rātana on behalf of tangata whenua in which he insulted and criticised the government. The speech clearly violated the principle of a neutral public service, and StatsNZ started an investigation. Part of that was getting an external consultant to examine ...
Renting for life: Shared ownership initiatives are unlikely to slow the slide in home ownership by much. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:A Deloittereport for Westpac has projected Aotearoa’s home-ownership rate will ...
You're broken down and tiredOf living life on a merry go roundAnd you can't find the fighterBut I see it in you so we gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsWe gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsAnd I'll rise upI'll rise like the dayI'll rise upI'll rise unafraidI'll rise upAnd I'll ...
There’s been a change in Myers Park. Down the steps from St. Kevin’s Arcade, past the grassy slopes, the children’s playground, the benches and that goat statue, there has been a transformation. The underpass for Mayoral Drive has gone from a barren, grey, concrete tunnel, to a place that thrums ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections Global society may have finally slammed on the brakes for climate-warming pollution released by human fossil fuel combustion. According to the Carbon Monitor Project, the total global climate pollution released between February and May 2024 declined slightly from the amount released during the same ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Tuesday, July 23 are:Deep Dive: Penlink: where tolling rhetoric meets reality BusinessDesk-$$$’sOliver LewisScoop:Te Pūkenga plans for regional polytechs leak out ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Tuesday, July 23, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Health: Shane Reti announcedthe Board of Te Whatu Ora-Health New Zealand was being replaced with Commissioner Lester Levy ...
Health NZ warned the Government at the end of March that it was running over Budget. But the reasons it gave were very different to those offered by the Prime Minister yesterday. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon blamed the “botched merger” of the 20 District Health Boards (DHBs) to create Health ...
Long ReadKey Summary: Although National increased the health budget by $1.4 billion in May, they used an old funding model to project health system costs, and never bothered to update their pre-election numbers. They were told during the Health Select Committees earlier in the year their budget amount was deficient, ...
As a momentous, historic weekend in US politics unfolded, analysts and commentators grasped for precedents and comparisons to help explain the significance and power of the choice Joe Biden had made. The 46th president had swept the Democratic party’s primaries but just over 100 days from the election had chosen ...
TL;DR: I’m casting around for new ideas and ways of thinking about Aotearoa’s political economy to find a few solutions to our cascading and self-reinforcing housing, poverty and climate crises.Associate Professor runs an online masters degree in the economics of sustainability at Torrens University in Australia and is organising ...
The Finance and Expenditure Committee has reported back on National's Local Government (Water Services Preliminary Arrangements) Bill. The bill sets up water for privatisation, and was introduced under urgency, then rammed through select committee with no time even for local councils to make a proper submission. Naturally, national's select committee ...
Some years ago, I bought a book at Dunedin’s Regent Booksale for $1.50. As one does. Vandrad the Viking (1898), by J. Storer Clouston, is an obscure book these days – I cannot find a proper online review – but soon it was sitting on my shelf, gathering dust alongside ...
History is not on the side of the centre-left, when Democratic presidents fall behind in the polls and choose not to run for re-election. On both previous occasions in the past 75 years (Harry Truman in 1952, Lyndon Johnson in 1968) the Democrats proceeded to then lose the White House ...
This is a free articleCoverageThis morning, US President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the Presidential race. And that is genuinely newsworthy. Thanks for your service, President Biden, and all the best to you and yours.However, the media in New Zealand, particularly the 1News nightly bulletin, has been breathlessly covering ...
A homeless person’s camp beside a blocked-off slipped damage walkway in Freeman’s Bay: we are chasing our tail on our worsening and inter-related housing, poverty and climate crises. Photo: Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy ...
What has happened to it all?Crazy, some'd sayWhere is the life that I recognise?(Gone away)But I won't cry for yesterdayThere's an ordinary worldSomehow I have to findAnd as I try to make my wayTo the ordinary worldYesterday morning began as many others - what to write about today? I began ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Monday, July 22 are:Today’s Must Read: Father and son live in a tent, and have done for four years, in a million ...
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Monday, July 22, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:US President Joe Biden announced via X this morning he would not stand for a second term.Multinational professional services firm ...
A listing of 32 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, July 14, 2024 thru Sat, July 20, 2024. Story of the week As reflected by preponderance of coverage, our Story of the Week is Project 2025. Until now traveling ...
This weekend, a friend pointed out someone who said they’d like to read my posts, but didn’t want to pay. And my first reaction was sympathy.I’ve already told folks that if they can’t comfortably subscribe, and would like to read, I’d be happy to offer free subscriptions. I don’t want ...
National: The Party of ‘Law and Order’ IntroductionThis weekend, the Government formally kicked off one of their flagship policy programs: a military style boot camp that New Zealand has experimented with over the past 50 years. Cartoon credit: Guy BodyIt’s very popular with the National Party’s Law and Orderimage, ...
Day one of the solo leg of my long journey home begins with my favourite sound: footfalls in an empty street. 5.00 am and it’s already light and already too warm, almost.If I can make the train that leaves Budapest later this hour I could be in Belgrade by nightfall; ...
Do you remember Y2K, the threat that hung over humanity in the closing days of the twentieth century? Horror scenarios of planes falling from the sky, electronic payments failing and ATMs refusing to dispense cash. As for your VCR following instructions and recording your favourite show - forget about it.All ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts being questioned by The Kākā’s Bernard Hickey.TL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 20 were:1. A strategy that fails Zero Carbon Act & Paris targetsThe National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government finally unveiled ...
Summary:As New Zealand loses at least 12 leaders in the public service space of health, climate, and pharmaceuticals, this month alone, directly in response to the Government’s policies and budget choices, what lies ahead may be darker than it appears. Tui examines some of those departures and draws a long ...
The Minister of Housing’s ambition is to reduce markedly the ratio of house prices to household incomes. If his strategy works it would transform the housing market, dramatically changing the prospects of housing as an investment.Leaving aside the Minister’s metaphor of ‘flooding the market’ I do not see how the ...
As previously noted, my historical fantasy piece, set in the fifth-century Mediterranean, was accepted for a Pirate Horror anthology, only for the anthology to later fall through. But in a good bit of news, it turned out that the story could indeed be re-marketed as sword and sorcery. As of ...
An employee of tobacco company Philip Morris International demonstrates a heated tobacco device. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy on Friday, July 19 are:At a time when the Coalition Government is cutting spending on health, infrastructure, education, housing ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 8:30 am on Friday, July 19 are:Scoop: NZ First Minister Casey Costello orders 50% cut to excise tax on heated tobacco products. The minister has ...
Kia ora, it’s time for another Friday roundup, in which we pull together some of the links and stories that caught our eye this week. Feel free to add more in the comments! Our header image this week shows a foggy day in Auckland town, captured by Patrick Reynolds. ...
TL;DR : Here’s the top six items climate news for Aotearoa this week, as selected by Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer. A discussion recorded yesterday is in the video above and the audio of that sent onto the podcast feed.The Government released its draft Emissions Reduction ...
Save some money, get rich and old, bring it back to Tobacco Road.Bring that dynamite and a crane, blow it up, start all over again.Roll up. Roll up. Or tailor made, if you prefer...Whether you’re selling ciggies, digging for gold, catching dolphins in your nets, or encouraging folks to flutter ...
Waiting In The Wings:For truly, if Trump is America’s un-assassinated Caesar, then J.D. Vance is America’s Octavian, the Republic’s youthful undertaker – and its first Emperor.DONALD TRUMP’S SELECTION of James D. Vance as his running-mate bodes ill for the American republic. A fervent supporter of Viktor Orban, the “illiberal” prime ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 19, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:The PSAannounced the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) had ruled in the PSA’s favour in its case against the Ministry ...
Te Rangi e tu nei (The sky above us) Te Papa e takoto nei (The land beneath us) Tatou katoa te hunga ora (To us all the living) Tena koutou katoa (Greetings) ...
A late change to charter school legislation will cheat educators out of fair pay and negotiating power proving charter schools are just a vehicle to make profit out of our education system. ...
In 2004 te iwi Māori rallied against the Crown’s attempt to confiscate our coastlines and moana with the Foreshore and Seabed Act. This led to the largest hīkoi of a generation and the birth of Te Pāti Māori. 20 years later, history is repeating itself. Today the government has announced ...
It has been five and a half years since the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care was established to investigate the abuse of children, young people, and vulnerable adults within state and faith-based institutions. Yesterday, the final report - Whanaketia through pain and trauma, from darkness to light ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to take action off the back of the International Court of Justice ruling on Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine. ...
On Friday the International Court of Justice reaffirmed what Palestinian’s have been telling us for decades: that the occupation and colonisation of Palestinian lands by Israel is illegal and must end immediately. They also called for reparations for Palestinian’s who have lived under Israeli occupation since it began in 1967. ...
Labour calls on the Government to act after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian Territories is illegal. ...
The 53.7 percent rise in benefit sanctions over the last year is more proof of this Government’s disdain for our communities most in need of support. ...
Aotearoa could be a country where every child grows up feeling safe, loved and with a sense of belonging in their whānau and community. But for some of our children, this is far from reality. Instead, they are trapped in a maze of intergenerational harm that they can’t escape on ...
Te Pāti Māori are calling for David Seymour to resign as Associate Health Minister in response to his call for Pharmac to ignore the Treaty of Waitangi. “This announcement is just another example of the government’s anti-Tiriti, anti-Māori agenda.” Said Co-leader and spokesperson for health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. “Seymour thinks it ...
The soaring price of renting is driving the rise of inflation in this country - with latest figures from Stats NZ showing rents are up 4.8 per cent on average while annual inflation is at 3.3 per cent. ...
National’s Emissions Reduction Plan will take New Zealand further from the economy we need to ensure the next generation has a stable climate and secure livelihoods. ...
Following consultation with named parties and thorough consideration of privacy interests, the Green Party is in a position to release the Executive Summary of the final report from the independent investigation into Darleen Tana. ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon should be asking serious questions of his Minister for Resources Shane Jones now it’s been revealed he misled the public about a dinner with mining companies that he didn’t declare and said wasn’t pre-arranged. ...
Te Pāti Māori have submitted to the Justice Select Committee against the Sentencing (Reinstating Three Strikes) Amendment Bill. The bill will further entrench racism in our justice system and fails to focus on rehabilitation. “Reinstating Three Strikes will empower a systematically racist system and exacerbate the overrepresentation of Māori in ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee is set to make a determination on the Residential Tenancies Amendment (RTA) Bill in the coming weeks. “This legislation will give landlords the power to kick our whānau out onto the street for no reason” said Housing spokesperson, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “Their solution to the housing ...
“National’s campaign was about tackling crime and the best they can do is a two-year long Ministerial Advisory Group,” Labour justice spokesperson Duncan Webb said. ...
“There are more examples of charter schools failing their students than there are success stories. The coalition Government is driving to dismantle our public school system and instead promote a privatised, competitive structure that puts profits before kids,” Jan Tinetti said. ...
“This government is choosing to deliberately mislead and withhold information, keeping our people in the dark about this government’s agenda and the future of our mokopuna,” said co-leader and spokesperson for Health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. The call comes after the demand from the Chief Ombudsman that Associate Minister of Health, Casey ...
“Today’s climate announcement by Simon Watts makes clear the National Government is simply paying lip service to meeting its climate change targets,” Megan Woods said. ...
National is choosing to make life harder for workers by taking away the rights our communities have fought hard for. Here's how they’re taking workers backwards. ...
Australia, Canada and New Zealand today issued the following statement on the need for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza and the risk of expanded conflict between Hizballah and Israel. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The human suffering is unacceptable. It cannot continue. We remain unequivocal in our condemnation of ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today reminded all State and faith-based institutions of their legal obligation to preserve records relevant to the safety and wellbeing of those in its care. “The Abuse in Care Inquiry’s report has found cases where records of the most vulnerable people in State and faith‑based institutions were ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government’s online safety website for children and young people has reached one million page views. “It is great to see so many young people and their families accessing the site Keep It Real Online to learn how to stay safe online, and manage ...
Tēnā tātou katoa, Ngā mihi te rangi, ngā mihi te whenua, ngā mihi ki a koutou, kia ora mai koutou. Thank you for the opportunity to be here and the invitation to speak at this 50th anniversary conference. I acknowledge all those who have gone before us and paved the ...
New Zealand’s payroll providers have successfully prepared to ensure 3.5 million individuals will, from Wednesday next week, be able to keep more of what they earn each pay, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Revenue Minister Simon Watts. “The Government's tax policy changes are legally effective from Wednesday. Delivering this tax ...
An experimental vineyard which will help futureproof the wine sector has been opened in Blenheim by Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson. The covered vineyard, based at the New Zealand Wine Centre – Te Pokapū Wāina o Aotearoa, enables controlled environmental conditions. “The research that will be produced at the Experimental ...
The Coalition Government has confirmed the indicative regional breakdown of North Island Weather Event (NIWE) funding for state highway recovery projects funded through Budget 2024, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Regions in the North Island suffered extensive and devastating damage from Cyclone Gabrielle and the 2023 Auckland Anniversary Floods, and ...
Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, Retno Marsudi, will visit New Zealand next week, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “Indonesia is important to New Zealand’s security and economic interests and is our closest South East Asian neighbour,” says Mr Peters, who is currently in Laos to engage with South East Asian partners. ...
He aha te kai a te rangatira? He kōrero, he kōrero, he kōrero. The government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the aspirations of Ngāti Maniapoto, Minister for Māori Development Tama Potaka says. “My thanks to Te Nehenehenui Trust – Ngāti Maniapoto for bringing their important kōrero to a ministerial ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has thanked outgoing Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority, Janice Fredric, for her service to the board.“I have received Ms Fredric’s resignation from the role of Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority,” Mr Brown says.“On behalf of the Government, I want to thank Ms Fredric for ...
The Government is proposing legislation to overturn a Court of Appeal decision and amend the Marine and Coastal Area Act in order to restore Parliament’s test for Customary Marine Title, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “Section 58 required an applicant group to prove they have exclusively used and occupied ...
Regulation Minister David Seymour says that opposition parties have united in bad faith, opposing what they claim are ‘dangerous changes’ to the Early Childhood Education sector, despite no changes even being proposed yet. “Issues with affordability and availability of early childhood education, and the complexity of its regulation, has led ...
After receiving more than 740 submissions in the first 20 days, Regulation Minister David Seymour is asking the Ministry for Regulation to extend engagement on the early childhood education regulation review by an extra two weeks. “The level of interest has been very high, and from the conversations I’ve been ...
The Coalition Government is investing $802.9 million into the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines as part of a funding agreement with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA), KiwiRail, and the Greater Wellington and Horizons Regional Councils to deliver more reliable services for commuters in the lower North Island, Transport Minister Simeon ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced his intention to appoint a Crown Manager to both Hawke’s Bay Regional and Wairoa District Councils to speed up the delivery of flood protection work in Wairoa."Recent severe weather events in Wairoa this year, combined with damage from Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023 have ...
Mr Speaker, this is a day that many New Zealanders who were abused in State care never thought would come. It’s the day that this Parliament accepts, with deep sorrow and regret, the Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care. At the heart of this report are the ...
For the first time, the Government is formally acknowledging some children and young people at Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital experienced torture. The final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care “Whanaketia – through pain and trauma, from darkness to light,” was tabled in Parliament ...
The Government has acknowledged the nearly 2,400 courageous survivors who shared their experiences during the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State and Faith-Based Care. The final report from the largest and most complex public inquiry ever held in New Zealand, the Royal Commission Inquiry “Whanaketia – through ...
With a week to go before hard-working New Zealanders see personal income tax relief for the first time in fourteen years, 513,000 people have used the Budget tax calculator to see how much they will benefit, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis. “Tax relief is long overdue. From next Wednesday, personal income ...
Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says a bill that has passed its first reading will improve parental leave settings and give non-biological parents more flexibility as primary carer for their child. The Regulatory Systems Amendment Bill (No3), passed its first reading this morning. “It includes a change ...
Two Bills designed to improve regulation and make it easier to do business have passed their first reading in Parliament, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. The Regulatory Systems (Economic Development) Amendment Bill and Regulatory Systems (Immigration and Workforce) Amendment Bill make key changes to legislation administered by the Ministry ...
New legislation paves the way for greater competition in sectors such as banking and electricity, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says. “Competitive markets boost productivity, create employment opportunities and lift living standards. To support competition, we need good quality regulation but, unfortunately, a recent OECD report ranked New ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says lotteries for charitable purposes, such as those run by the Heart Foundation, Coastguard NZ, and local hospices, will soon be allowed to operate online permanently. “Under current laws, these fundraising lotteries are only allowed to operate online until October 2024, after which ...
The Coalition Government is accelerating work on the new four-lane expressway between Auckland and Whangārei as part of its Roads of National Significance programme, with an accelerated delivery model to deliver this project faster and more efficiently, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “For too long, the lack of resilient transport connections ...
Sir Don McKinnon will travel to Viet Nam this week as a Special Envoy of the Government, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “It is important that the Government give due recognition to the significant contributions that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made to New Zealand-Viet Nam relations,” Mr ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says newly appointed Commissioner, Grant Illingworth KC, will help deliver the report for the first phase of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into COVID-19 Lessons, due on 28 November 2024. “I am pleased to announce that Mr Illingworth will commence his appointment as ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters travels to Laos this week to participate in a series of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-led Ministerial meetings in Vientiane. “ASEAN plays an important role in supporting a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” Mr Peters says. “This will be our third visit to ...
Construction of a new mental health facility at Te Nikau Grey Hospital in Greymouth is today one step closer, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey says. “This $27 million facility shows this Government is delivering on its promise to boost mental health care and improve front line services,” Mr Doocey says. ...
New Zealand is committing nearly $50 million to a package supporting sustainable Pacific fisheries development over the next four years, Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones announced today. “This support consisting of a range of initiatives demonstrates New Zealand’s commitment to assisting our Pacific partners ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour says proposed changes to the Education and Training Amendment Bill will ensure charter schools have more flexibility to negotiate employment agreements and are equipped with the right teaching resources. “Cabinet has agreed to progress an amendment which means unions will not be able to initiate ...
In response to serious concerns around oversight, overspend and a significant deterioration in financial outlook, the Board of Health New Zealand will be replaced with a Commissioner, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti announced today. “The previous government’s botched health reforms have created significant financial challenges at Health NZ that, without ...
Minister for Space and Science, Innovation and Technology Judith Collins will travel to Adelaide tomorrow for space and science engagements, including speaking at the Australian Space Forum. While there she will also have meetings and visits with a focus on space, biotechnology and innovation. “New Zealand has a thriving space ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts will travel to China on Saturday to attend the Ministerial on Climate Action meeting held in Wuhan. “Attending the Ministerial on Climate Action is an opportunity to advocate for New Zealand climate priorities and engage with our key partners on climate action,” Mr Watts says. ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is travelling to the Solomon Islands tomorrow for meetings with his counterparts from around the Pacific supporting collective management of the region’s fisheries. The 23rd Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Committee and the 5th Regional Fisheries Ministers’ Meeting in Honiara from 23 to 26 July ...
The Government today launched the Military Style Academy Pilot at Te Au rere a te Tonga Youth Justice residence in Palmerston North, an important part of the Government’s plan to crackdown on youth crime and getting youth offenders back on track, Minister for Children, Karen Chhour said today. “On the ...
The Government has welcomed news the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has begun work to replace nine priority bridges across the country to ensure our state highway network remains resilient, reliable, and efficient for road users, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“Increasing productivity and economic growth is a key priority for the ...
Acting Prime Minister David Seymour has been in contact throughout the evening with senior officials who have coordinated a whole of government response to the global IT outage and can provide an update. The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet has designated the National Emergency Management Agency as the ...
New Zealand and Japan will continue to step up their shared engagement with the Pacific, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “New Zealand and Japan have a strong, shared interest in a free, open and stable Pacific Islands region,” Mr Peters says. “We are pleased to be finding more ways ...
New developments in the heart of North Island forestry country will reinvigorate their communities and boost economic development, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones visited Kaingaroa and Kawerau in Bay of Plenty today to open a landmark community centre in the former and a new connecting road in ...
President Adeang, fellow Ministers, honourable Diet Member Horii, Ambassadors, distinguished guests. Minasama, konnichiwa, and good afternoon, everyone. Distinguished guests, it’s a pleasure to be here with you today to talk about New Zealand’s foreign policy reset, the reasons for it, the values that underpin it, and how it ...
Christopher Luxon: hurdles The little man from National jumps hurdles in his sleep. He’s quite good at it in his dreams and even though the reality doesn’t quite match up you have to give him credit for getting up every morning and crashing into the very first hurdle of the ...
Comment: It was a good two hours into the conversation when Tyrone Marks raised the most basic of questions when I first spoke to him in 2017. “They didn’t explain the things they did to me. They never told me why. And they still haven’t. There’s no explanation for it. ...
Last summer when Matairangi burned, Ginny and Tom stood at the window of their lounge, watching kākā shoot skyward from the burning trees. From the distance, they looked to Ginny like pages torn from books and thrown into a bonfire. It was Tom, voice tight, who told her it was ...
Opinion: The Canadian short story writer Alice Munro – winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2013 – died in May at the age of 92. Her work was about “the damage people inflict on one another in the name of love”, Deborah Treisman wrote in the New Yorker. ...
This month marks two years since the most powerful telescope ever built sent its first pictures back to earth. From its lofty vantage point, beyond the moon in orbit around the sun, the James Webb Space Telescope was tuned to observe the first stars and galaxies being born soon after ...
Comment: After Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ preview several weeks ago, I had some optimism about the Government’s emissions reduction plan. Now I’ve read the discussion document, that hope has been dashed. How can the Government propose a plan that wants to take New Zealand taxpayers’ hard-earned money, and spend ...
Madeleine Chapman rounds out Death Week on The Spinoff with a final recommendation. You can read all of our Death Week coverage here. Nothing forces you to reflect on your life and relationships quite like proximity to death. For those whose nearest and dearest have died, there are reasonably obvious ...
Whitney Greene takes us through her life in television, including the TV character she’d like to plan a funeral for and her cow lung catastrophe on The Traitors NZ. “If the phone rings, I have to answer it,” Whitney Greene from The Traitors NZ warns as we begin our My ...
Maddie Ballard reviews the debut essay collection of Pōneke writer Flora Feltham.In ‘The Raw Material’, the longest essay in Flora Feltham’s dazzling debut collection, the author heads out for a run after hours of weaving and sees the world turn to textile. “Pounding along the Parade, I saw the ...
Andy Christiansen, one half of the experimental rock-pop duo TRiPS, shares the tunes inspiring the band’s perfect weekend and new release. “Good speakers, good food, good music, no distractions”: that’s all you need to enjoy the psychedelic stylings of TRiPS, a new band formed by Fly My Pretties’ Barnaby Weir ...
Celebrating our quadrennial opportunity to become experts in a bunch of sports we never normally watch.The games of the XXXIII Olympiad are upon us. Paris will host this year’s showcase of sporting and athletic prowess, which means some late-night and early-morning viewing for us in Aotearoa.But what sports ...
The photograph is striking and beautiful, but also disturbing – a reminder that my love for John was often entangled in shame.The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.In the spring of 1980, in Dunedin, shortly before his death, someone took a photograph ...
Get to know Babushka, our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our What’s Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Babu’s humans, Jo and Isabel, for their support. Dog name: Babushka (Babu for short) Age: 2Breed: Border Collie X poodleIf rescued, ...
Pacific Media Watch A Lebanese photojournalist who was severely wounded during an Israeli air strike in south Lebanon carried the Olympic torch in Paris this week in honour of her peers who have been wounded and killed in the field — especially in Gaza and Lebanon. Christina Assi of Agence ...
The first report in a five-part web series focused on the 15th Triennial Conference of Pacific Women taking place in the Marshall Islands this week.SPECIAL REPORT:By Netani Rika in Majuro Women continue to fight for justice 70 years after the first nuclear tests by the United States caused ...
Christopher Luxon has joined with Australia and Canada's leaders in voicing support for US President Joe Biden's ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The 2022 election brought the “teal wave” into parliament. The next election will test whether teals, who occupy what were Liberal seats, and other independents can maintain their momentum. Joining us on the Podcast ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Musgrave, Senior lecturer in Pharmacology, University of Adelaide Pixavri/Shutterstock A major Federal Court class action has been dismissed this week after Justice Michael Lee ruled there was not enough evidence to prove the weedkiller Roundup causes cancer. Plaintiff Kelvin ...
In The Week in Politics: politicians have to decide what to do about child abuse, Health NZ is booked in for major surgery and Darleen Tana returns. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Corbould, Associate Professor, Contemporary Histories Research Group, Deakin University Mainstream media are surprisingly muted at the prospect of the world’s most powerful nation being led for the first time by a woman – specifically a woman of colour, Vice President Kamala ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rebecca Bennett, PhD Student, Associate Research Fellow, Deakin University Last week, a drone delivery company called Wing (owned by Google’s parent company, Alphabet) started operating in Melbourne. Some 250,000 residents in parts of the city’s eastern suburbs can now order food from ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonathan Foo, Lecturer, Physiotherapy, Monash University pikselstock/Shutterstock In the next 40 years in Australia, it’s predicted the number of Australians aged 65 and over will more than double, while the number of people aged 85 and over will more than triple. ...
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Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexandra Jones, Program Lead, Food Governance, George Institute for Global Health wavebreakmedia/Shutterstock On Thursday, Australian and New Zealand food ministers at state, federal and national levels met to thrash out what’s next for health star ratings on packaged foods. Now, after ...
The Abuse in Care report found many Pacific survivors lost their connections to their culture and language, resulting in trauma that has been carried from generation to generation. ...
In the regulatory review, ECC intends to suggest that ERO focus on curriculum delivery reviews rather than the Ministry, because it’s not efficient or effective to have two agencies with radically different approaches climbing over each other. ...
Te Rūnanga Nui o Ngā Kura Kaupapa Māori invites the current government to work in partnership with them to develop a pathway forward, including the development of a parallel pathway and meaningful policy and strategy for Kura Kaupapa Māori ...
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A new poem by Fiona Kidman. The clothes of the dead I did not keep my mother’s furry red beret for long nor the stringy scarves that adorned the necks of my aunts, although I have kept tag ends of gold, the rings and trinkets they wore, the brooches no ...
The government’s announcement that it will re-open the foreshore and seabed controversy by changing the rules on recognising centuries-old Māori customary title for a third time goes against the rule of law and New Zealand values,” Mr Tipa says. ...
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The 2004 Act vested ownership of the foreshore and seabed in the Crown, extinguishing any Māori claims to ownership and causing widespread outrage and protests among Māori communities. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Antje Deckert, Associate Professor (Criminology), Auckland University of Technology Getty Images Despite the connection between institutional harm and gang membership made clear in this week’s mammoth royal commission abuse-in care report, the government seems unlikely to soften its “get tough on ...
From Lewis Clareburt in the swimming to the start of the rowing – the first seven days of Paris 2024 promise to be big for New Zealand. There are few events that bring the country together quite like an Olympic Games. Nothing quite matches the excitement of getting up in ...
Groundbreaking local science just showed up in the most surprising of places: the season finale of The Kardashians. In the season five finale of The Kardashians last night, several members of the family gathered together in one of their signature empty, cream-coloured rooms to hear test results that had been ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Saikal, Emeritus professor of Middle Eastern and Central Asian Studies, Australian National University The Middle East is on the brink of a possibly devastating regional war, with hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah reaching an extremely dangerous level. Washington has engaged in ...
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A law firm that specialises in working with survivors of abuse in State care is disappointed that the Government fails to recognise that its boot camps can be directly compared to previous boot camps from the 1990s and 2000s. ...
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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.![smiley smiley](https://cdn2.thestandard.org.nz/wp-content/plugins/ark-wysiwyg-comment-editor/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/regular_smile.png?x42494)
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.
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 !?'![angry angry](https://cdn2.thestandard.org.nz/wp-content/plugins/ark-wysiwyg-comment-editor/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/angry_smile.png?x42494)
At 20,00 a day average the answer is … we don't even know where we are going.
Agreed![yes yes](https://cdn2.thestandard.org.nz/wp-content/plugins/ark-wysiwyg-comment-editor/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/thumbs_up.png?x42494)
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![devil devil](https://cdn2.thestandard.org.nz/wp-content/plugins/ark-wysiwyg-comment-editor/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/devil_smile.png?x42494)
ROFL![surprise surprise](https://cdn2.thestandard.org.nz/wp-content/plugins/ark-wysiwyg-comment-editor/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/omg_smile.png?x42494)
![cheeky cheeky](https://cdn2.thestandard.org.nz/wp-content/plugins/ark-wysiwyg-comment-editor/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/tongue_smile.png?x42494)
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