And then James there are all the birds maimed and left to die slow painful deaths by this “sport” as shooting results in high rates of wounding and crippling.
I take some of these maimed birds from bird rescue and rehome them on my pond and wetlands but most don’t survive.
We currently have 5 swans, 3 with a wing missing and two with a leg missing as well as 7 maimed ducks that will never fly again.
It is heart breaking to watch a swan or duck flapping one wing, not being able to fly .
So ask yourself is the harm caused worth it.
Hope you enjoyed winding Ed up this morning.
Indeed some will be wounded. It the majority are killed and eaten.
It is nice to have people like you looking after those that you can.
Regardless it is something that a lot of people enjoy – it gets the duck numbers down (they are a real pain around here) and it puts delicious meat in the freezer.
Some people will always find any kind of killing of animals unacceptable – others don’t have an issue with it (and always try to ensure little to no suffering- I have posed before the lengths we go to with our homekill to look after it).
For the record – whilst I have no issue with duck shooting. I don’t partake – simply because there are too many people out there who shoot once a year and don’t take adequate safety precautions and end up shooting someone.
Luckily I have friends who are kind enough to drop a few around – and duck freezes well so you don’t have waste.
Absolutely sickening that this barbaric activity is considered sport! Worse still, it’s acceptable! I was out walking this morning and heard gunshots. Vile!
We live on an inlet from a lake and this morning, lots of ducks of various species have gathered, obviously for their own protection.
The bad news is communism hasn’t quite taken off like you hoped it would; the good news is the capitalist running dogs are still busily booking their inevitable appointments with the firing squad!
The problem was is that power hungry maniacs got too impatient and wanted to impose it at the point of a gun. Lenin knew that it would take several decades to implement, which is why the New Economic Plan was developed. Moderates in China, such as Deng Xiaoping and Chao En-Lai also favoured a gradual approach, but we’re overruled by Mao.
The problem was that a dictatorship is a dictatorship irrespective of its supposed class base. The concept of the Dictatorship of the Proletarian was in fact Marx’ great brain fart.
Here in Auckland’s west we have been told for decades about how the Trusts make us special, and that this monopoly is in the end worth it for all the benefits that it brings.
Now we see the reality of their commitment to the Living Wage despite it being Chaired by Ross Clow, who is a Labour Councillor on Auckland Council as well.
Between the Trusts management and their politicians, they have a lot to answer for when their governors are Labour-dominated, and those same people are elected to Council as well.
Would be very keen to her of any E Tu members who are aware of the activities mentioned in the article.
Has been an absolute gravy train for the old boy network out west for decades.Even running a virtual monopoly, they struggle to make a good R.O.I.
Spend millions telling ratepayers how they benefit the community,without highlighting the fact that most funds for charities come via poker machines.
Quite surprised that Clow’s salary has been revealed.
Remuneration to management has always been a closely guarded secret.
I live out west, and as a bit of a counter-point I have to say that general public order is noticeably better here than where I previously lived in Sandringham, something I put down largely to the much greater control on the supply of liquor out West that the trust has.
When I lived out that way 10 years ago,no expense was spared on their charm offensive.
Free fire extinguishers,free smoke alarms ,God knows how much they spent on advertising to protect their sinecures.
That cash could be used to fund programs that can make a real difference to West Aucklanders, it all seems to go on stuff like this, or subsidising professional sports.
My point is that for people to make up their own minds, rather than parroting somebody else’s opinion, they need to be properly informed. Your and Millsy’s comments seem to be based on misconceptions as to what the Trusts do with the funds and who the recipients are.
Whether you change your thinking and judgement about the Trusts based on the link I provided is up to you; other people reading this here on TS can at least form an informed opinion.
A petition signed by at least 15 per cent of people who lived in West Auckland would be needed to force a new referendum, according to Auckland Council.
Interesting perspective and unfortunately probably typical of how hospitality staff.
Anyone who thinks you are going to get reliable workers in Auckland and increasingly many parts of NZ on close to minimum wages is dreaming because it would be near impossible to survive on it.
I’d say the standard of hospitality has been going down in NZ over the last decade, that is because they have refused to upgrade to a higher service level, mostly based on the Kiwi ‘low wage’ cut cost at worker levels and the reliance of exploiting migrant workers to keep staff at unliveable wages. The sooner they put minimum wages up to $20p/h the better. For a start it would lower the WFF and other top ups and emergency food parcels, people need to survive as increasingly employers such as these with $14m in the bank are only going to raise wages if they have to. Yep no doubt we will be inundated with crocodile tears, wah, wah, when they have to pay that extra, but the majority can afford it.
I think the idea of the trust to run liquor is a good one, but it sounds like the usual – it’s turned into a little cash cow that has become about maximising profits to themselves and not sharing it to all workers and the community. It’s conditions of the trusts operations that should change, not the concept.
savenz
+1
solkta
Raising to a living wage would be a wake-up call to the moneyed, a first step for the government to enable people to receive a living wage.
It would not solve problems straight away but there is a journey of a thousand steps to traverse here. And uphill all the way because of the long-term latitude to business and the disgraceful way that NZ has been turned into a poverty- ridden copy-cat third-world economy.
Hey, I’m all in favour of raising the minimum wage. What i was objecting to was savenz suggesting that this was a way to effectively cutting WFF. Children are a public as well as a private good. From a left wing perspective, those who choose not to have children or have high incomes should help pay for the costs of raising the next generation.
I notice that during the murder and slaughter of living creatures known as Ducks Season – that no protection is provided for these animals. An animal being roughly 99% human.
The dirty murderers are equipped with all manner of sissy protection but not the other living animals.
Ducks being Living Creatures and 99% human, have as much right to life as any sissy coward with a gun.
I therefore propose that armed drones equipped with Russian Fire Arms (NZ guns are not reliable) fire down on the humans who are doing the slaughtering. The drones equipped with infrared will operate from 32,000 ft.
Having been slaughtered by the drones, – the humans should then be skinned and sent home to their families and with a tag on their cowardly ears. The tag would say “Eat this!” Sissy.
Do you have other suggestions about how the duck population could be controlled? Should we introduce a predator? If we did, would this predator kill them in a more humane way?
Avian botulism has actually reduced by a little the numbers on Hamilton Lake compared the 1970s, but by and large ducks breed too quickly. And a serious predator would probably enjoy (just for a change in menu) a few of our endangered species as well.
So maybe it is a good thing that we have a number of humans stupid enough to see as ‘Man against Nature’ a contest between one of the less intelligent bird species and themselves – less intelligent humans using weapons they themselves did not invent, to prove something to their tender egos.
Observer
I think you are being satirical, ironic, and amusing yourself today. I have the feeling that if not a duck hunter, some of your best friends are. Quack, quack. You have just decided to shoot off your mouth at home and let the others sit in their mai mai in the wet and by the way they can dress, or undress rather, the duck they give to you.
With modern technology, there is no need for people to take a single animal’s life for sport. Having a laser gun that would use a computer to register a ‘hit’ would enable hunters to enjoy their hobby in a human manner.
It was National that kicked off these proposals. Anyway, a bit silly to have charities running these helicopters anyway. Rescue helicopters should really be run as part of the Air Force or Navy.
You’re not talking one or two choppers that have stretchers instead of seats. They’re dedicated machines. To keep one 24/d operational you need two or three actual aircraft (ISTR Southern has three). And they can’t be transferred to other duties or deployed overseas, because we need them here.
So a national organisation might be a good idea, but it needs to be separate to other services, otherwise its resources would be leeched to other dutires under the next tory government.
It certainly will. My grandson was born in Thames a few years back. Unknown to the midwife at the time was the fact that he had transposed major arteries. ie his aorta and pulmonary were transposed. After a perfectly normal birth he began turning blue. He had to be flown to Waikato Base Hospital where the condition was diagonsed and then flown to Starship where a tube was run up into his heart and a small hole made between the two top ventricles so that his blood could become oxygenated. Four days later the surgeons were able to perform open heart surgery and correct the problem.* He is now a strong young lad and very active.
Had there been no air ambulance he would not have survived.
*I understand that this operation is carried out around 4 – 5 times per week at Starship. 30 years ago he would not be alive.
He also said the Coromandel Rescue Helicopter was important for places like Great Barrier Island.
“Whitianga is the closest base to Great Barrier.
“It’s all about time.”
Which it is. Auckland to Gt Barrier is 25 minutes. All I can find for Whitianga to Gt Barrier indicates that it’s about the same or perhaps longer. So, no time benefit there and thus not a selling point.
The permanent base for the Coromandel Rescue Helicopter was funded entirely by the community, he said.
So? Just because the community funds the heli base doesn’t mean that it’s the best option.
He said he could not figure out how removing the rescue helicopter from the area would give them a better service.
That’s actually quite easy to do. Choose your spot and compare flight times as I did above which indicates that Auckland based helicopter service is better for Gt Barrier than a Whitianga based service.
Petition creator Simon O’Neill said it was “necessary to get a bigger movement going that the ministry will have to pay attention to rather than fobbing off small attempts”.
This is something that needs to be done by logistics and not by movements and feelings.
One woman who had used the Coromandel Rescue Helicopter, Jo Burton, said for her, its use “was essential” for getting her to Waikato Hospital.
In January 2015, Burton put her hand through the glass of a window. She required repairs to five tendons and her superficial radial nerve.
“They knew to get me to Waikato Hospital as soon as possible because of the damage.”
She said she has full use of her hand now, but “if I’d been any longer I might not have full use”.
I told you to ignore me if you wanted, I need do no such thing.
But yeah – you don’t shit about the situation about from a brief news synopsis, you’re personal experience doesn’t mean shit either so you are in no position to say it would have been fine when the patient, who was actually there, and the hospital, who looked after injury, say different
What the interwebz says. What does it say about nerve damage? Was there maybe something else not mentioned in the report that cumulatively might have cause actual doctors to say something like that?
A bit like comparing fixed wing flight times from an aerodrome to a dedicated helipad, but whatevs
My bad. I should have looked at that. It seems that some new process has come out in the last few years that helps with the nerve regeneration speed reducing it from months to weeks that’s time dependent.
Here’s how stupid that is. I suffer pancreatitis and have required hospitalization 3 times (alcoholism is a bitch). My dad also suffers pancreatitis but has never been hospitalized.
We both have the same injury but have very different medical needs. Hope this helps
I see Farrar claims he banned some commentators over the PMs partner rumour but the journalist scanned his site and found alit left up. Farrar then said with 2 million comments he cant get to them all.
1 it is not 2 million comments a day
2 you decided to run a blog
3 after DP you committed to cleaning up your blog
So suspended some but not enough to stop the rumour getting good, long, airing.
Hard to avoid the notion that Farrar tried to tell a porky and a journo investigated rather than just take him at his word. Oops.
Farrar deleted the thread only after Stuff contacted him…not good enough….he really shouldn’t be allowed back on The Panel after this…Jim Mora take note.
Don’t hold your breath @BG. Jim is too busy rehearsing his lines for Monday to ensure he’s able to keep sitting on the fence and remain NZ’s nicest ‘radio bloke’ (going forward).
Of course it’s possible he’ll fuck up and need a locum to fill in – and there’s one or two who’re only too happy to oblige. And generally, they’re a fucking sight easier to listen to when you’re trapped in a lift or on one of the remotest places on Earth craving a bit of western MSM for a bit of a laugh and a Subway roll
Nice to see You. Your ancestors and mine ate according to need and season. Harvested accordingly.
We now have to rid ourselves of those ugly poisonous fungi, called capitalists; called wealthy; called abominable, money afflicted; ruthless; unredemptive and endlessly brutal. Poison is as poison does Ropata.
We will get helicopters when the capitalists are drowned and droned out.
“We now have to rid ourselves of those ugly poisonous fungi, called capitalists; called wealthy; called abominable, money afflicted; ruthless; unredemptive and endlessly brutal”
Which is why we have Representative Democracy actually. The rich were afraid that the rest of us would legislate them out of existence and it was the rich calling the shots at the time.
Thing is, we can now probably start to implement full Participatory Democracy which really wasn’t possible 400 years ago.
Marx taught that the revolution would only come when the oppression of the masses became unbearable. Guillotines worked OK in the past. But I prefer the way of peace. On an individual level we make the world a better place in our own way, Ardern suggests Kindness, and I’m happy to go along with that
I notice that a lot of mention is made of Palestinians directed at me, accusing me of not being interested in the terrible suffering of the Palestinian people at the hands of the Israeli Zionists.
But usually only in relation to my posts on the situation in Syria, and in my opinion only as a diversionary tactic.
Prove me wrong.
To all those people who make these accusations, I challenge you to front up today at the rally in Aotea Square at 2pm in support of the ‘March of Return’.
The ‘Right of Return’ is a right written into international law by UN, for all refugees. But it is a right that is steadfastly denied to the Palestinians by the Zionists, an illegal position in defiance of international law, which the Zionists enforce with state sanctioned racist violence and apartheid like segregation and pass laws.
Rally in support of The Great March of Return – Gaza
May 5 · 2pm · Aotea Square · Auckland, New Zealand
I notice that a lot of mention is made of Palestinians directed at me, accusing me of not being interested in the terrible suffering of the Palestinian people at the hands of the Israeli Zionists.
Really? On this blog? Because I’m pretty sure that would have jumped out at me, and I haven’t noticed anything along those lines. I just did a quick search too. And nothing.
Maybe you could link to the comments that have laid these accusations at your feet Jenny? I suspect this just yet another piece of vacuous nonsense on your part along the same lines as that previous ‘They’ve called me a head-chopper’ accusation that you threw out there.
Hope the rally’s well attended and productive by the way.
I notice that a lot of mention is made of Palestinians directed at me, accusing me of not being interested in the terrible suffering of the Palestinian people at the hands of the Israeli Zionists.
Jenny
Really? On this blog? Because I’m pretty sure that would have jumped out at me, and I haven’t noticed anything along those lines. I just did a quick search too. And nothing.
Bill
I think it was Fransesca or someone, But Bill, in the same vein, weren’t you the one giving support to Ed about me not caring about what is happening to the people of Yemen and Afrin and other such Whataboutery?
In my opinion, you and Ed are only feigning concern for these terrible crimes against humanity committed by the Saudis, Zionists, the US etc. to divert attention away from your support and covering for mass murder committed by the Assad regime.
Hope the rally’s well attended and productive by the way.
Bill
You would know if you had attended Bill. And no it was not well attended, Maybe you would like to show your concern by giving the next rally a headline post. The next rally in support of the ‘March of Return’ will be held on the 19th, same time, same place. Visiting Palestinian scholar and activist Ramzy Baroud will be addressing this rally, prior to the talk he will be giving at the Freeman’s Bay Community Centre the following day. Maybe you would like to give this event a headline post as well. Or maybe not. In which, case do not ever again accuse me of not being concerned about these other cases of injustice and persecution in the world, to divert attention away from your support and propagandising for Syrian fascism and genocide.
[The game a bogey Jenny. If in the future you submit comments that are baseless accusations that constitute attacks other contributors, bans will result] – Bill
I look forward to your post in support of Ramzy Baroud’s New Zealand speaking tour. Especially in light of your good wishes for the rally in support of the ‘March of Return’ last Saturday, because there is another one planned for the 19th same time same place at which Ramzy Baroud will be making an address.
We could be reaching the end of the relatively cheap oil era. Prices of Brent Crude, the global benchmark have been rising for the past seven months, and are tipped by most observers to continue to remain at high levels through 2019. Alarmists are talking of $80-100 a barrel.
Peak oil now again?
Bring back rail.
Rail uses only one fifth the fuel per tonne carried per KM of road transport.
Rail saves us all from climate change.
And road deaths.
Lower rapidly rising cost of road maintenance.
Less trucks in our cities will make public health and air quality better.
Just listened to the Northcote candidates on The Nation.
This bit was a wtf, loololollllz moment for me…..
The national party candidate says something like… “it’s not about national it’s about who is the best person to serve the electorate” crikey…. he’s a party faithful bahahahahahahahahaha. Back your organisation dude, or stand as an independent.
The nat candidate was also quick to shut down any mention of coleman.
I take it that it was just the National Party and Labour Party candidates, Cinny?
ACT and NZF have both announced they won’t be running a candidate.
The Green Party have said that they will be running a candidate but do not yet appear to have selected and announced their candidate although the by-election is only 5 weeks away.
Although this is intended to emphasize that the Greens and Labour are not joined at the hip rather than win the electorate, this is likely to split the left vote and destroy any change of the electorate changing colours.
And when you read through Chris’s collection of groupings behind the yellow-fellow one sees that there is a mighty mountain of unreason to surmount. Same here on a smaller scale.
…It doesn’t matter that Trump’s electoral base is composed of racists, homophobes, misogynists, fundamentalist Christians, Islamophobes and out-and-out fascists; as well as hard-line neoliberals, climate-change sceptics, union-busters, flat-taxers, economic nationalists and Ayn Rand libertarians; so long the dearest hopes and darkest fears of each component of this bizarre coalition continue to be encouraged by their President.
David Klein – Plant Man
From Saturday Morning, 9:43 am today
Listen duration 15′ :17″
David Klein is a science communicator based in Wellington. Last summer he cycled around the country presenting Tour de Science – a show that explained how all the big things in the universe are made of lots of little things. It was performed in more than 50 towns and cities to rave reviews.
More recently Klein has been thinking about what it would like to be a plant – making food from sunlight, dealing with all those bugs, the strong connection to the ground, and time passing really slowly. Plants, he says, aren’t brainy but they are clever and successful.
Klein combines his love of science with his love of storytelling in his new children’s show, Plant Man, which he is performing at the Hutt Stemm Festival – celebrating the multi-million dollar science and innovation industries in Lower Hutt – on May 6.
(Incidentally it is very difficult, impossible so far, for me to find out what STEMM stands for. The love of acronyms and hatred for actually being clear and fully explanatory for those not in the know is again, rife. However there are clever little icons with pictures that probably explain the meanings. We are drifting towards a pictogram-heavy and abbreviations, skeleton-thought basis of written language!)
Thanks Rosemary
My point: Science is definite, correct, informative. So it is unscientific to advertise and advance an educational program under the heading of an acronym without informing what it stands for.
We have enough problems from our economic system making up models which are not totally thorough, without defining them fully, testing them, proving them, spelling out exceptions etc. Having to guess what something means is not scientific. Many problems already are stemming from this tendency in tertiary studies of importance and from people falsely adopting the authority of tertiary studies relied on for excellence by others needing their skills.
I respectfully but also strongly disagree because Science is most definitely not “definitive”! Whether it is correct is a moot point and this appears to be based on a perception that Science can or does somehow unveil The Truth. Yes, Science is informative and useful 😉
Did anyone really believe that Labour would implement their election promises?
National promised and had in fact implemented a scheme that would have meant a $680 increase in the National Super.
Labour then promised to outdo this and would provide a $700/year “heating allowance”.
Except it isn’t, at least not this year. https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/103554971/winter-energy-payment-now-looks-a-lot-less-enticing
Please raise your hand if you still believe the things that this Government said before the election. What, nobody will admit they were that stupid?
Shrug they will see the full amount in 2019 and 2020 – so unlikely to be a problem IMO. National weren’t going to anything for me except probably more demonization and harassment – this winter payment may be a new pair of glasses for me so 🙂
Perhaps they won’t notice.
On the other hand the National payment would have provided you with both a new pair of glasses AND a spare pair in case you broke them.
Keep the faith though comrade. The Party may lie to you but you will still follow them till the end. Marching to the strains of the Internationale will help keep you warm, even if you can’t keep your home warm.
Of the half a million or so that can’t afford to visit their GP, a number of them will also be struggling with their power bills. Hence, how many will fall ill and perhaps die from this shortfall and delay?
The price of Labour’s Budget Responsibility Rules?
Oh well, at least Labour managed to balance the books eh?
Labour, the party the left can count on to let them down.
Which National people are you referring to?
For the umpteenth time I am not now, never have been in the past, and never will be in the future a member of any political party.
I am a pure swinging voter who was quite happy to say that National should be replaced at the last election but was of the belief that there was nobody capable of taking over and providing a stable sensible Government. The last six months have demonstrated the my view was absolutely correct.
A tired National would be better than the current Ship of Fools.
So, my friend, who were you talking about when you posted this reply to me?
Why didn’t you answer my question?
“Which National people are you referring to?”.
I am curious who in National might be offering similar arguments to myself.
Alwyn
Does anyone believe that anything useful will ever result from your memos on this blog? I would put the likelihood of useful from you at 95% against.
Your estimate of 95% is probably about right. I would say that 5% of the questions I ask get an intelligent reply from people who have actually thought about the topic and are willing to provide some reasoned arguments for their views.
The rest are like you. You come out with comments without any justification at all for making them. When questioned on the reason for the statement you either ignore the question or complain that anyone who dares to question your views should be banned.
C’est la vie. At least I can try and make you see the error of your ways.
They interviewed two Kiwi workers and apart from their take home pay of $600 pw clearly rattling the interviewer they hypothesized that the growers were pleading shortage of staff to i gain an increase in the number of RSE workers…who it appears are cheaper.
The other segment looked at organic vegie growers….the brother gave up his work as a contractor on ‘conventional’ farms after a head injury but noted that some of his previous clients would not eat their own commercially grown carrots because of the agrichemicals used in the growing.
Ad; – “Labour could lose the election in 2020 with the tilt of just a few retired people.”
My response is;
‘Labour/NZF had better make all our oldies health better during this time’ as we need to be alive in 2020 to vote for them again otherwise this 74yr old and our senior comrades will perhaps not be around then to save the labour/NZF parties then, and give us subsided dental please..
And give us all old, terminally ill, or limited for life and wanting a demise option the benefit of chosen euthanasia from options properly drawn up with wide consultation with those having thought through its use, and after considering arguments against are dealt with.
I see the 104 year old eminent fully capable australian has to travel to Switzerland with his family to carry out his wish of a legal death of his own choice amongst loved ones.
We older NZs trying to be rational, good citizens doing the right thing for us and limiting our otherwise mounting health costs just to keep us alive and breathing, become targets for police raids as if we were under authoritarian rule. By the way we aren’t are we? Perhaps it has been quietly announced and I missed the death sentence to democratic respect and individual choice in the news that day.
Good to see a number of commentators (in the comments section following the article) telling him what’s what.
I’m with manifest: “Cutting out the corporate welfare projects like the film museum, convention centre and indoor arena unless they provide a realistic return would be sounder economic policy.”
Consider selling?
They shouldn’t need any time to do that. “Just do it”.
Wellington is cursed with Local Body politicians who are really only interested in their feel-good exercises. That and pretending that they are only in it for the public good.
Our current mayor announced that he didn’t need a Council supplied, and ratepayer paid for car for his use.
That’s fine if he believes in it and it should certainly save the ratepayer money. The problem is that he didn’t not spend the money. He gave it as a grant to his arty-crafty friends. Then to get around he uses another Council owned car which is no longer available for Council employees doing useful work. So he ends up costing us more than if he hadn’t gone in for his grandstanding and taken the car in the first place.
Meanwhile we still have no emergency water supply for the Hospital and if there is an earthquake the Hospital will be shut down completely within about 3 days. To supply a reservoir would be something useful you see and our Council doesn’t do useful things. Spending $40,000 painting a patch of Cuba Street in bright colours is much more their style.
The first thing they could do is stop borrowing.
At the moment they plan to increase borrowing by around $600 million over the next 10 years. That is about $3,500 per resident. https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/102599229/wellington-city-council-set-to-double-debt-to-pay-for-big-projects
Then they could repay the existing debt. Then they could spend it on necessary infrastructure, which does not, in my opinion, include restoring the old town hall. Let’s face it. I was closed in 2013, will probably not reopen until 2023 and I don’t think anyone has missed the old barn.
How is that lot for a start.
The average rates bill in Wellington on a house is about $3,500/year.
National Super for a couple is about $35,500/year before tax or about $32,000 if taxed at the lowest rate. A lot of the elderly live on that pension and nothing else.
At the 2013 Census the median income for people over 65 was only about $20,900. At hat time the New Zealand Super for a person living alone was $21,300/year. It was about $16,100 each for a couple. Those were pre-tax numbers. About 90% of the people over 65 got National Super so you can see roughly how many have very little else
Figures from the latest Census are not available and accurate ones covering the whole population may never surface.
What do you think is a reasonable rates bill Mr Plutocrat? Would you think 20% of your pre-tax income would be about right?
The average rates bill in Wellington on a house is about $3,500/year.
National Super for a couple is about $35,500/year before tax or about $32,000 if taxed at the lowest rate. A lot of the elderly live on that pension and nothing else.
And a lot of them are free-hold and so the rates bill is all they’re paying.
Compared to, say, an unemployed person on 12000 (including accommodation) and who’s paying $6000/year in rent.
Which do you think I have more sympathy for?
What do you think is a reasonable rates bill Mr Plutocrat?
Somebody a few years ago calculated that the amount we pay in rates is, across all of us, was about 1.5%. So, maybe 3%?
But, of course, there would still need to be the lease charge of ‘owning’ the land which should be set at a square metre rate. $1/m^2 sounds about right.
No, a lot of the issues we have is because they’re not spending enough as they do stuff on the cheap which results in a shit job which, inevitably, results in costing more (see Leaky Buildings, Leaky Hospitals, Rena grounding, the list goes on).
Depends what they are borrowing for. Nice to haves can wait till we can afford them.
Additionally, borrowing can help spread costs out reducing the quarterly burden on ratepayers.
The return the airport generates can help to pay of debt or reduces the need for it. Thus, if they sold it to fully pay off their debt they’d lose that ongoing revenue stream going forward. As the airport is largely a monopoly, it’s a good investment to hold onto.
DTB
Don’t forget to put the /sarc in when you are being ironic. We have a number of deadheads here who would take your wry comment at face value.
It is amazing that in the 21st century with so many loose brains haring off into space or creating avatars AI algorithms etc., we still have the same sort of comments that would have been uttered when NZ was young. I am sure that The Chairman and Alwyn would have said similar when Vogel was going to raise money for the NZ railway project in colonial NZ.
We have the example of living dinosaurs coming on TS all puffed-up and pompous while we try to face a future that will become ever more problematic. I have been reading about Thomas Hobbes thinking in his book Leviathan that we will have to give up our individuality under the iron stamp of a despotic sovereign.
And here is an item from The Statesman showing some who illustrate how short and brutal life can be. https://www.thestatesman.com/opinion/citizenship-tangle-1502631775.html
Are we on the way to that life with people being hounded to work where there is no work, forced to sleep in virtual caves (garages etc) while surrounded by houses, forbidden to ask for food from agencies whose work of providing food aid is limited and controlled by government. Is it Hobbes that has an answer, does Kafka’s view of twisted bureaucracy tell us anything?
The economist Hayek had a number of ideas: He used the term catallaxy to describe a “self-organizing system of voluntary co-operation”. Hayek’s research into this argument was specifically cited by the Nobel Committee in its press release awarding Hayek the Nobel prize. That seems a good word or bone for the busyheads to chew on. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catallaxy
We are so clever, but can’t find a thoughtful, kind and practical way to handle old, basic problem, trying a method that looks at physical remedies that suit, and then forms a theory to explain the method. Perhaps we don’t want to find an answer, we enjoy the argumentation while the needy wait sadly. Would we rather spend our time doing puzzles? Kindness is limited in much of the discussion on politics it seems.
“The Northcote by-election is an opportunity for the Green Party to promote our early successes in Government while highlighting our points of difference,” Green Party Co-leader Marama Davidson said.
Did the Nation snub the Greens today?
Hard to promote successes and points of difference when one isn’t given (or fails to utilise) the air time.
Good God, I’ve just watched a Hudson Institute discussion on Chinese policy in Xinjiang!
We should not be doing business with China! The information given is bloody frightening,
A long watch, but disturbing, very disturbing! 1 hr 40 minutes.
For instance, blood testing of all Uyghurs for organ matching with countries along the road of the One Belt, One Road – feeding China’s organ harvesting industry.
The new Director of the CIA has form for torture in Thailand.
Giving head in Bangkok to get ahead in the company
Getting ahead by inducing confessions
Inducing confessions by puting people to sleep
Living the dream of rendition to the land of the Green Card
Will all future directors require this on their resume, will it be the new normal for promotion to this level of leadership?
Austerity is a failure, Keynes showed that governments ought to run deficits to keep the wider economy afloat. National wasted the opportunity to take advantage of very favourable conditions for borrowing instead cutting contributions to Kiwisaver and cutting services. Government surplus = social deficit.
(We won’t even need to run deficits if we implement positive money)
Completed reads for April: The Difference Engine, by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling Carnival of Saints, by George Herman The Snow Spider, by Jenny Nimmo Emlyn’s Moon, by Jenny Nimmo The Chestnut Soldier, by Jenny Nimmo Death Comes As the End, by Agatha Christie Lord of the Flies, by ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
Have a story to share about St Paul’s, but today just picturesPopular novels written at this desk by a young man who managed to bootstrap himself out of father’s imprisonment and his own young life in a workhouse Read more ...
The list of former National Party Ministers being given plum and important roles got longer this week with the appointment of former Deputy Prime Minister Paula Bennett as the chair of Pharmac. The Christopher Luxon-led Government has now made key appointments to Bill English, Simon Bridges, Steven Joyce, Roger Sowry, ...
Newsroom has a story today about National's (fortunately failed) effort to disestablish the newly-created Inspector-General of Defence. The creation of this agency was the key recommendation of the Inquiry into Operation Burnham, and a vital means of restoring credibility and social licence to an agency which had been caught lying ...
Holding On To The Present:The moment a political movement arises that attacks the whole idea of social progress, and announces its intention to wind back the hands of History’s clock, then democracy, along with its unwritten rules, is in mortal danger.IT’S A COMMONPLACE of political speeches, especially those delivered in ...
Stuck In The Middle With You:As Christopher Luxon feels the hot breath of Act’s and NZ First’s extremists on the back of his neck and, as he reckons with the damage their policies are already inflicting upon a country he’s described as “fragile”, is there not some merit in reaching out ...
The unpopular coalition government is currently rushing to repeal section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act. The clause is Oranga Tamariki's Treaty clause, and was inserted after its systematic stealing of Māori children became a public scandal and resulted in physical resistance to further abductions. The clause created clear obligations ...
Buzz from the Beehive The government’s official website – which Point of Order monitors daily – not for the first time has nothing much to say today about political happenings that are grabbing media headlines. It makes no mention of the latest 1News-Verian poll, for example. This shows National down ...
It Takes A Train To Cry:Surely, there is nothing lonelier in all this world than the long wail of a distant steam locomotive on a cold Winter’s night.AS A CHILD, I would lie awake in my grandfather’s house and listen to the traffic. The big wooden house was only a ...
Packing A Punch: The election of the present government, including in its ranks politicians dedicated to reasserting the rights of the legislature in shaping and determining the future of Māori and Pakeha in New Zealand, should have alerted the judiciary – including its anomalous appendage, the Waitangi Tribunal – that its ...
Dead Woman Walking: New Zealand’s media industry had been moving steadily towards disaster for all the years Melissa Lee had been National’s media and communications policy spokesperson, and yet, when the crisis finally broke, on her watch, she had nothing intelligent to offer. Christopher Luxon is a patient man - but he’s not ...
Chris Trotter writes – New Zealand politics is remarkably easy-going: dangerously so, one might even say. With the notable exception of John Key’s flat ruling-out of the NZ First Party in 2008, all parties capable of clearing MMP’s five-percent threshold, or winning one or more electorate seats, tend ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Polling shows that Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau has the lowest approval rating of any mayor in the country. Siting at -12 per cent, the proportion of constituents who disapprove of her performance outweighs those who give her the thumbs up. This negative rating is ...
Luxon will no doubt put a brave face on it, but there is no escaping the pressure this latest poll will put on him and the government. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political ...
This is a re-post from The Climate Brink by Andrew Dessler In the wake of any unusual weather event, someone inevitably asks, “Did climate change cause this?” In the most literal sense, that answer is almost always no. Climate change is never the sole cause of hurricanes, heat waves, droughts, or ...
Something odd happened yesterday, and I’d love to know if there’s more to it. If there was something which preempted what happened, or if it was simply a throwaway line in response to a journalist.Yesterday David Seymour was asked at a press conference what the process would be if the ...
Hi,From time to time, I want to bring Webworm into the real world. We did it last year with the Jurassic Park event in New Zealand — which was a lot of fun!And so on Saturday May 11th, in Los Angeles, I am hosting a lil’ Webworm pop-up! I’ve been ...
Education Minister Erica Standford yesterday unveiled a fundamental reform of the way our school pupils are taught. She would not exactly say so, but she is all but dismantling the so-called “inquiry” “feel good” method of teaching, which has ruled in our classrooms since a major review of the New ...
Exactly where are we seriously going with this government and its policies? That is, apart from following what may as well be a Truss-Lite approach on the purported economic “plan“, and Victorian-era regression when it comes to social policy.Oh it’ll work this time of course, we’re basically assured, “the ...
Hey Uncle Dave, When the Poms joined the EEC, I wasn't one of those defeatists who said, Well, that’s it for the dairy job. And I was right, eh? The Chinese can’t get enough of our milk powder and eventually, the Poms came to their senses and backed up the ute ...
Polling shows that Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau has the lowest approval rating of any mayor in the country. Siting at -12 per cent, the proportion of constituents who disapprove of her performance outweighs those who give her the thumbs up. This negative rating is higher than for any other mayor ...
Buzz from the Beehive Pharmac has been given a financial transfusion and a new chair to oversee its spending in the pharmaceutical business. Associate Health Minister David Seymour described the funding for Pharmac as “its largest ever budget of $6.294 billion over four years, fixing a $1.774 billion fiscal cliff”. ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government is trying to achieve and its ...
TL;DR: Here’s my top 10 ‘pick ‘n’ mix of links to news, analysis and opinion articles as of 10:10am on Monday, April 29:Scoop: The children's ward at Rotorua Hospital will be missing a third of its beds as winter hits because Te Whatu Ora halted an upgrade partway through to ...
span class=”dropcap”>As hideous as David Seymour can be, it is worth keeping in mind occasionally that there are even worse political figures (and regimes) out there. Iran for instance, is about to execute the country’s leading hip hop musician Toomaj Salehi, for writing and performing raps that “corrupt” the nation’s ...
Yesterday marked 10 years since the first electric train carried passengers in Auckland so it’s a good time to look back at it and the impact it has had. A brief history The first proposals for rail electrification in Auckland came in the 1920’s alongside the plans for earlier ...
Right now, in Aotearoa-NZ, our ‘animal spirits’ are darkening towards a winter of discontent, thanks at least partly to a chorus of negative comments and actions from the Government Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on ...
You make people evil to punish the paststuck inside a sequel with a rotating castThe following photos haven’t been generated with AI, or modified in any way. They are flesh and blood, human beings. On the left is Galatea Young, a young mum, and her daughter Fiadh who has Angelman ...
April has been a quiet month at A Phuulish Fellow. I have had an exceptionally good reading month, and a decently productive writing month – for original fiction, anyway – but not much has caught my eye that suggested a blog article. It has been vaguely frustrating, to be honest. ...
A listing of 31 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 21, 2024 thru Sat, April 27, 2024. Story of the week Anthropogenic climate change may be the ultimate shaggy dog story— but with a twist, because here ...
Hi,I spent about a year on Webworm reporting on an abusive megachurch called Arise, and it made me want to stab my eyes out with a fork.I don’t regret that reporting in 2022 and 2023 — I am proud of it — but it made me angry.Over three main stories ...
The new Victoria University Vice-Chancellor decided to have a forum at the university about free speech and academic freedom as it is obviously a topical issue, and the Government is looking at legislating some carrots or sticks for universities to uphold their obligations under the Education and Training Act. They ...
Do you remember when Melania Trump got caught out using a speech that sounded awfully like one Michelle Obama had given? Uncannily so.Well it turns out that Abraham Lincoln is to Winston Peters as Michelle was to Melania. With the ANZAC speech Uncle Winston gave at Gallipoli having much in ...
She was born 25 years ago today in North Shore hospital. Her eyes were closed tightly shut, her mouth was silently moving. The whole theatre was all quiet intensity as they marked her a 2 on the APGAR test. A one-minute eternity later, she was an 8. The universe was ...
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. This fact brief was written by Sue Bin Park in collaboration with members from our Skeptical Science team. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Is Antarctica gaining land ice? ...
Images of US students (and others) protesting and setting up tent cities on US university campuses have been broadcast world wide and clearly demonstrate the growing rifts in US society caused by US policy toward Israel and Israel’s prosecution of … Continue reading → ...
Barrie Saunders writes – Dear Paul As the new Minister of Media and Communications, you will be inundated with heaps of free advice and special pleading, all in the national interest of course. For what it’s worth here is my assessment: Traditional broadcasting free to air content through ...
Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government is trying to achieve and its arguments for such a bold reform. ...
Peter Dunne writes – The great nineteenth British Prime Minister, William Gladstone, once observed that “the first essential for a Prime Minister is to be a good butcher.” When a later British Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan, sacked a third of his Cabinet in July 1962, in what became ...
Ele Ludemann writes – New Zealanders had the OECD’s second highest tax increase last year: New Zealanders faced the second-biggest tax raises in the developed world last year, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) says. The intergovernmental agency said the average change in personal income tax ...
We all know something’s not right with our elections. The spread of misinformation, people being targeted with soundbites and emotional triggers that ignore the facts, even the truth, and influence their votes.The use of technology to produce deep fakes. How can you tell if something is real or not? Can ...
This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Simon Clark. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). This year you will be lied to! Simon Clark helps prebunk some misleading statements you'll hear about climate. The video includes ...
It is all very well cutting the backrooms of public agencies but it may compromise the frontlines. One of the frustrations of the Productivity Commission’s 2017 review of universities is that while it observed that their non-academic staff were increasing faster than their academic staff, it did not bother to ...
Buzz from the Beehive Two speeches delivered by Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters at Anzac Day ceremonies in Turkey are the only new posts on the government’s official website since the PM announced his Cabinet shake-up. In one of the speeches, Peters stated the obvious: we live in a troubled ...
1. Which of these would you not expect to read in The Waikato Invader?a. Luxon is here to do business, don’t you worry about thatb. Mr KPI expects results, and you better believe itc. This decisive man of action is getting me all hot and excitedd. Melissa Lee is how ...
…it has a restricted jurisdiction which must not be abused: it is not an inquisitionNOTE – this article was published before the High Court ruled that Karen Chhour does not have to appear before the Waitangi Tribunal Gary Judd writes – The High Court ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – One of reasons Oranga Tamariki exists is to prevent child neglect. But could the organisation itself be guilty of the same?Oranga Tamariki’s statistics show a decrease in the number and age of children in care. “There are less children ...
David Farrar writes: Graeme Edgeler wrote in 2017: In the first five years after three strikes came into effect 5248 offenders received a ‘first strike’ (that is, a “stage-1 conviction” under the three strikes sentencing regime), and 68 offenders received a ‘second strike’. In the five years prior to ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has surprised everyone with his ruthlessness in sacking two of his ministers from their crucial portfolios. Removing ministers for poor performance after only five months in the job just doesn’t normally happen in politics. That’s refreshing and will be extremely ...
TL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the two days to 6:06am on Thursday, April 25:Politics: PM Christopher Luxon has set up a dual standard for ministerial competence by demoting two National Cabinet ministers while leaving also-struggling ...
Hi,Today I mainly want to share some of your thoughts about the recent piece I wrote about success and failure, and the forces that seemingly guide our lives. But first, a quick bit of housekeeping: I am doing a Webworm popup in Los Angeles on Saturday May 11 at 2pm. ...
It is hard to see what Melissa Lee might have done to “save” the media. National went into the election with no public media policy and appears not to have developed one subsequently. Lee claimed that she had prepared a policy paper before the election but it had been decided ...
Open access notablesIce acceleration and rotation in the Greenland Ice Sheet interior in recent decades, Løkkegaard et al., Communications Earth & Environment:In the past two decades, mass loss from the Greenland ice sheet has accelerated, partly due to the speedup of glaciers. However, uncertainty in speed derived from satellite products ...
Buzz from the Beehive A statement from Children’s Minister Karen Chhour – yet to be posted on the Government’s official website – arrived in Point of Order’s email in-tray last night. It welcomes the High Court ruling on whether the Waitangi Tribunal can demand she appear before it. It does ...
Mr Bombastic:Ironically, the media the academic experts wanted is, in many ways, the media they got. In place of the tyrannical editors of yesteryear, advancing without fear or favour the interests of the ruling class; the New Zealand news media of today boasts a troop of enlightened journalists dedicated to ...
It's hard times try to make a livingYou wake up every morning in the unforgivingOut there somewhere in the cityThere's people living lives without mercy or pityI feel good, yeah I'm feeling fineI feel better then I have for the longest timeI think these pills have been good for meI ...
In 1974, the US Supreme Court issued its decision in United States v. Nixon, finding that the President was not a King, but was subject to the law and was required to turn over the evidence of his wrongdoing to the courts. It was a landmark decision for the rule ...
Every day now just seems to bring in more fresh meat for the grinder.In their relentlessly ideological drive to cut back on the “excessive bloat” (as they see it) of the previous Labour-led government, on the mountains of evidence accumulated in such a short period of time do not ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Megan Valére SosouMarket gardening site of the Itchèléré de Itagui agricultural cooperative in Dassa-Zoumè (Image credit: Megan Valère Sossou) For the residents of Dassa-Zoumè, a city in the West African country of Benin, choosing between drinking water and having enough ...
Buzz from the Beehive Melissa Lee – as may be discerned from the screenshot above – has not been demoted for doing something seriously wrong as Minister of ...
Morning in London Mother hugs beloved daughter outside the converted shoe factory in which she is living.Afternoon in London Travelling writer takes himself and his wrist down to A&E, just to be sure. Read more ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – The recent announcement of the University Advisory Group, chaired by Sir Peter Gluckman, makes very clear where the Government’s focus and priorities lie. The remit of the Advisory Group is that Group members will consider challenges and opportunities for improvement in the university sector including: ...
Eric Crampton writes – The Reserve Bank of New Zealand desperately wants to find reasons to have workstreams in climate change. It makes little sense. They’ve run another stress test on the banks looking to see if they could find a prudential regulation case. They couldn’t. They ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Pundits from the left and the right are arguing that National’s Fast Track Bill that is designed to speed up infrastructure decisions could end up becoming mired in a cesspool of corruption. Political commentator ...
Looking at the headlines this morning it’s hard to feel anything other than pessimistic about the future of humanity.Note that I’m not speaking about the future of mankind, but the survival of our humanity. The values that we believe in seem to be ebbing away, by the day.Perhaps every generation ...
Swabbing mixed breed baby chicks to test for avian influenzaUh oh. Bird flu – often deadly to humans – is not only being transmitted from infected birds to dairy cows, but is now travelling between dairy cows. As of last Friday, Bloomberg News reports, there were 32 American dairy herds ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
What is it with the mining industry? Its not enough for them to pillage the earth - they apparently can't even be bothered getting resource consent to do so: The proponent behind a major mine near the Clutha River had already been undertaking activity in the area without a ...
Photo # 1 I am a huge fan of Singapore’s approach to housing, as described here two years ago by copying and pasting from The ConversationWhat Singapore has that Australia does not is a public housing developer, the Housing Development Board, which puts new dwellings on public and reclaimed land, ...
This afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi, and Mema Paremata mō Tāmaki-Makaurau, Takutai Tarsh Kemp, will travel to the Gold Coast to strengthen ties with Māori in Australia next week (15-21 April). The visit, in the lead-up to the 9th Australian National Kapa haka Festival, will be an opportunity for both ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
The return of the historic Ō-Rākau battle site to the descendants of those who fought there moved one step closer today with the first reading of Te Pire mō Ō-Rākau, Te Pae o Maumahara / The Ō-Rākau Remembrance Bill. The Bill will entrust the 9.7-hectare battle site, five kilometres west ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has announced 25 new high-speed EV charging hubs along key routes between major urban centres and outlined the Government’s plan to supercharge New Zealand’s EV infrastructure. The hubs will each have several chargers and be capable of charging at least four – and up to 10 ...
The coalition Government will not proceed with the previous Government’s plans to regulate residential property managers, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “I have written to the Chairperson of the Social Services and Community Committee to inform him that the Government does not intend to support the Residential Property Managers Bill ...
The Government has announced an independent review into the disability support system funded by the Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha. Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston says the review will look at what can be done to strengthen the long-term sustainability of Disability Support Services to provide disabled people and ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith has attended the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva and outlined the Government’s plan to restore law and order. “Speaking to the United Nations Human Rights Council provided us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while responding to issues and ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay heads overseas today for high-level trade talks in the Gulf region, and a key OECD meeting in Paris. Mr McClay will travel to Riyadh to meet with counterparts from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). “New Zealand’s goods and services exports to the Gulf region ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford has outlined six education priorities to deliver a world-leading education system that sets Kiwi kids up for future success. “I’m putting ambition, achievement and outcomes at the heart of our education system. I want every child to be inspired and engaged in their learning so they ...
The new NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) App is a secure ‘one stop shop’ to provide the services drivers need, Transport Minister Simeon Brown and Digitising Government Minister Judith Collins say. “The NZTA App will enable an easier way for Kiwis to pay for Vehicle Registration and Road User Charges (RUC). ...
Whānau with tamariki growing up in emergency housing motels will be prioritised for social housing starting this week, says Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka. “Giving these whānau a better opportunity to build healthy stable lives for themselves and future generations is an essential part of the Government’s goal of reducing ...
Racing Minister Winston Peters has paid tribute to an icon of the industry with the recent passing of Dave O’Sullivan (OBE). “Our sympathies are with the O’Sullivan family with the sad news of Dave O’Sullivan’s recent passing,” Mr Peters says. “His contribution to racing, initially as a jockey and then ...
Assalaamu alaikum, greetings to you all. Eid Mubarak, everyone! I want to extend my warmest wishes to you and everyone celebrating this joyous occasion. It is a pleasure to be here. I have enjoyed Eid celebrations at Parliament before, but this is my first time joining you as the Minister ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced Pharmac’s largest ever budget of $6.294 billion over four years, fixing a $1.774 billion fiscal cliff. “Access to medicines is a crucial part of many Kiwis’ lives. We’ve committed to a budget allocation of $1.774 billion over four years so Kiwis are ...
Hon Paula Bennett has been appointed as member and chair of the Pharmac board, Associate Health Minister David Seymour announced today. "Pharmac is a critical part of New Zealand's health system and plays a significant role in ensuring that Kiwis have the best possible access to medicines,” says Mr Seymour. ...
Hundreds of New Zealand families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) will benefit from a new Government focus on prevention and treatment, says Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. “We know FASD is a leading cause of preventable intellectual and neurodevelopmental disability in New Zealand,” Dr Reti says. “Every day, ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges. “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order. “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
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New Zealand wakes up to the noise of the wholesale slaughter of ducks.
You do know that it’s the best way to get free range duck for the table.
http://www.bite.co.nz/collections/2231/Duck-recipes/
And then James there are all the birds maimed and left to die slow painful deaths by this “sport” as shooting results in high rates of wounding and crippling.
I take some of these maimed birds from bird rescue and rehome them on my pond and wetlands but most don’t survive.
We currently have 5 swans, 3 with a wing missing and two with a leg missing as well as 7 maimed ducks that will never fly again.
It is heart breaking to watch a swan or duck flapping one wing, not being able to fly .
So ask yourself is the harm caused worth it.
Hope you enjoyed winding Ed up this morning.
http://safe.org.nz/duck-shooting-myths
Indeed some will be wounded. It the majority are killed and eaten.
It is nice to have people like you looking after those that you can.
Regardless it is something that a lot of people enjoy – it gets the duck numbers down (they are a real pain around here) and it puts delicious meat in the freezer.
Some people will always find any kind of killing of animals unacceptable – others don’t have an issue with it (and always try to ensure little to no suffering- I have posed before the lengths we go to with our homekill to look after it).
For the record – whilst I have no issue with duck shooting. I don’t partake – simply because there are too many people out there who shoot once a year and don’t take adequate safety precautions and end up shooting someone.
Luckily I have friends who are kind enough to drop a few around – and duck freezes well so you don’t have waste.
Yeah ducks can be a real pain there’s that extra chance of soiling one’s boat shoes on the way to the marina boardwalk.
there are a lot of wet lands fenced off mainly because of some peoples love of shooting ducks ,
Agree with you Ed (1).
Absolutely sickening that this barbaric activity is considered sport! Worse still, it’s acceptable! I was out walking this morning and heard gunshots. Vile!
We live on an inlet from a lake and this morning, lots of ducks of various species have gathered, obviously for their own protection.
Happy 200th birthday Karl Marx!
The bad news is communism hasn’t quite taken off like you hoped it would; the good news is the capitalist running dogs are still busily booking their inevitable appointments with the firing squad!
Was he a proponent on Communism?
The problem was is that power hungry maniacs got too impatient and wanted to impose it at the point of a gun. Lenin knew that it would take several decades to implement, which is why the New Economic Plan was developed. Moderates in China, such as Deng Xiaoping and Chao En-Lai also favoured a gradual approach, but we’re overruled by Mao.
The problem was that a dictatorship is a dictatorship irrespective of its supposed class base. The concept of the Dictatorship of the Proletarian was in fact Marx’ great brain fart.
The good news is that he remains till this day the greatest mind to have ever studied human society.
He nailed in minute detail exactly what was wrong with capitalism.
The use of the thesis/antithesis/synthesis as a way to figure out how the problems would be solved was a bit bonkers, though.
This is a really good longish article about how the west Auckland licensing Trusts treat their thousands of workers.
https://millennialposse.wordpress.com/2018/05/04/in-greed-we-trust-how-the-trusts-in-west-auckland-are-exploiting-their-workers-and-breaking-the-law/
Here in Auckland’s west we have been told for decades about how the Trusts make us special, and that this monopoly is in the end worth it for all the benefits that it brings.
Now we see the reality of their commitment to the Living Wage despite it being Chaired by Ross Clow, who is a Labour Councillor on Auckland Council as well.
Between the Trusts management and their politicians, they have a lot to answer for when their governors are Labour-dominated, and those same people are elected to Council as well.
Would be very keen to her of any E Tu members who are aware of the activities mentioned in the article.
Has been an absolute gravy train for the old boy network out west for decades.Even running a virtual monopoly, they struggle to make a good R.O.I.
Spend millions telling ratepayers how they benefit the community,without highlighting the fact that most funds for charities come via poker machines.
Quite surprised that Clow’s salary has been revealed.
Remuneration to management has always been a closely guarded secret.
I live out west, and as a bit of a counter-point I have to say that general public order is noticeably better here than where I previously lived in Sandringham, something I put down largely to the much greater control on the supply of liquor out West that the trust has.
It’s less troubled because places like Glen Eden and Te Atatu are not nightlife destinations. 🙂
It doesn’t look like the licencing trusts are doing a very good job of justifying their existence.
There is a referendum on whether they have the mandate to continue as a monopoly, held every few years.
I suspect they have a bit of work to do if they are to retain it.
When I lived out that way 10 years ago,no expense was spared on their charm offensive.
Free fire extinguishers,free smoke alarms ,God knows how much they spent on advertising to protect their sinecures.
That cash could be used to fund programs that can make a real difference to West Aucklanders, it all seems to go on stuff like this, or subsidising professional sports.
You may want to inform yourself on how the money is “given back” to the community: https://www.thetrusts.co.nz/giving-back/
What’s your point?
Drill down and you will find pokie profits ,not profits from a liqour monopoly fund all the charities.
My point is that for people to make up their own minds, rather than parroting somebody else’s opinion, they need to be properly informed. Your and Millsy’s comments seem to be based on misconceptions as to what the Trusts do with the funds and who the recipients are.
Whether you change your thinking and judgement about the Trusts based on the link I provided is up to you; other people reading this here on TS can at least form an informed opinion.
That’s my point, thank you.
Last referendum was in 2003.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/local-news/western-leader/102287203/west-auckland-community-shows-support-for-referendum-on-the-trusts?rm=m
https://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/local-news/western-leader/103388569/west-auckland-group-to-organise-petition-to-vote-on-the-trusts
Interesting perspective and unfortunately probably typical of how hospitality staff.
Anyone who thinks you are going to get reliable workers in Auckland and increasingly many parts of NZ on close to minimum wages is dreaming because it would be near impossible to survive on it.
I’d say the standard of hospitality has been going down in NZ over the last decade, that is because they have refused to upgrade to a higher service level, mostly based on the Kiwi ‘low wage’ cut cost at worker levels and the reliance of exploiting migrant workers to keep staff at unliveable wages. The sooner they put minimum wages up to $20p/h the better. For a start it would lower the WFF and other top ups and emergency food parcels, people need to survive as increasingly employers such as these with $14m in the bank are only going to raise wages if they have to. Yep no doubt we will be inundated with crocodile tears, wah, wah, when they have to pay that extra, but the majority can afford it.
I think the idea of the trust to run liquor is a good one, but it sounds like the usual – it’s turned into a little cash cow that has become about maximising profits to themselves and not sharing it to all workers and the community. It’s conditions of the trusts operations that should change, not the concept.
But if the minimum wage was raised that much without WFF being adjusted then a lot of families would be no better off.
savenz
+1
solkta
Raising to a living wage would be a wake-up call to the moneyed, a first step for the government to enable people to receive a living wage.
It would not solve problems straight away but there is a journey of a thousand steps to traverse here. And uphill all the way because of the long-term latitude to business and the disgraceful way that NZ has been turned into a poverty- ridden copy-cat third-world economy.
Hey, I’m all in favour of raising the minimum wage. What i was objecting to was savenz suggesting that this was a way to effectively cutting WFF. Children are a public as well as a private good. From a left wing perspective, those who choose not to have children or have high incomes should help pay for the costs of raising the next generation.
Great to see Chloe Ann-King’s writing promoted here. She’s an absolute champion as far as advocacy for hospitality workers, the precariously employed and beneficiaries is concerned, and her activism spreads into other areas also. This piece of hers from 2016 is timely:
https://millennialposse.wordpress.com/2016/02/28/why-dont-you-just-get-a-better-job-and-other-dumb-shit-people-say-to-low-income-earners-stuck-in-precarious-work/
Who ya gunna call?….
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2018/may/04/breast-cancer-screening-hotline-staffed-by-people-with-only-an-hours-training
The tories are working on it..
http://eveningharold.com/2018/05/02/iain-duncan-smith-270-breast-screening-early-deaths-chicken-feed/
Ducking for cover
I notice that during the murder and slaughter of living creatures known as Ducks Season – that no protection is provided for these animals. An animal being roughly 99% human.
The dirty murderers are equipped with all manner of sissy protection but not the other living animals.
Ducks being Living Creatures and 99% human, have as much right to life as any sissy coward with a gun.
I therefore propose that armed drones equipped with Russian Fire Arms (NZ guns are not reliable) fire down on the humans who are doing the slaughtering. The drones equipped with infrared will operate from 32,000 ft.
Having been slaughtered by the drones, – the humans should then be skinned and sent home to their families and with a tag on their cowardly ears. The tag would say “Eat this!” Sissy.
I would say that’s one of your more rational post.
Ducks might be 99% like you or people you know – but I think most people would agree there is quite a difference.
Yeah and I know that most creatures share a high %age of DNA.
My ancestors didn’t fight, scratch and claw their way to the top of the food chain just to eat veggies. We are apex predators
I live near a protected wetlands. In the last week the duck numbers have swelled. Enormously.
@OT
You are a traitor to your own species!
A.
@A
Let’s tar & feather the traitor!
I.
Do you have other suggestions about how the duck population could be controlled? Should we introduce a predator? If we did, would this predator kill them in a more humane way?
Does the duck population need to be controlled?
Avian botulism has actually reduced by a little the numbers on Hamilton Lake compared the 1970s, but by and large ducks breed too quickly. And a serious predator would probably enjoy (just for a change in menu) a few of our endangered species as well.
So maybe it is a good thing that we have a number of humans stupid enough to see as ‘Man against Nature’ a contest between one of the less intelligent bird species and themselves – less intelligent humans using weapons they themselves did not invent, to prove something to their tender egos.
Ok. Now, is it actually the hunting that’s keeping the numbers down?
Observer
I think you are being satirical, ironic, and amusing yourself today. I have the feeling that if not a duck hunter, some of your best friends are. Quack, quack. You have just decided to shoot off your mouth at home and let the others sit in their mai mai in the wet and by the way they can dress, or undress rather, the duck they give to you.
With modern technology, there is no need for people to take a single animal’s life for sport. Having a laser gun that would use a computer to register a ‘hit’ would enable hunters to enjoy their hobby in a human manner.
Thanks for telling us how other people can enjoy themselves in a manner that suits you.
Co2 levels over 410mm.
And we prevaricate to close down the fossil fuel industry.
http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2018/05/coromandel-community-rallies-as-govt-tries-to-axe-rescue-helicopter.html
Way to stand up coromandel. Like Taupo they need a rescue helicopter. Not having one in these regions will cost lives (even if they are 99% duck)
It was National that kicked off these proposals. Anyway, a bit silly to have charities running these helicopters anyway. Rescue helicopters should really be run as part of the Air Force or Navy.
If it was National that started this – I would still be against it.
and I agree with the Air Force or Navy running them – same with coastguard.
Civil Defence would probably be the better option.
No – it is an ambulance service so it should be run by a Nation wide ambulance service.
But one with a fairly limited demand and Civil defence needs heli’s available for other emergencies.
Airforce and army should have dedicated medical heli’s as well so areas around those bases won’t need civilian craft for it.
It’s a case of getting the most use out of them while also having them available when needed.
I live in Thames and we have the Westpac chopper in almost on a daily basis. The local ambulance here is also in constant demand.
Which has nothing do to with who’s operating it.
It sort of does.
You’re not talking one or two choppers that have stretchers instead of seats. They’re dedicated machines. To keep one 24/d operational you need two or three actual aircraft (ISTR Southern has three). And they can’t be transferred to other duties or deployed overseas, because we need them here.
So a national organisation might be a good idea, but it needs to be separate to other services, otherwise its resources would be leeched to other dutires under the next tory government.
Probably part of the funding cuts that National did to health.
Hopefully, this government will do something about it. We most definitely should not have private company advertising on government services.
It certainly will. My grandson was born in Thames a few years back. Unknown to the midwife at the time was the fact that he had transposed major arteries. ie his aorta and pulmonary were transposed. After a perfectly normal birth he began turning blue. He had to be flown to Waikato Base Hospital where the condition was diagonsed and then flown to Starship where a tube was run up into his heart and a small hole made between the two top ventricles so that his blood could become oxygenated. Four days later the surgeons were able to perform open heart surgery and correct the problem.* He is now a strong young lad and very active.
Had there been no air ambulance he would not have survived.
*I understand that this operation is carried out around 4 – 5 times per week at Starship. 30 years ago he would not be alive.
this is interesting:
Which it is. Auckland to Gt Barrier is 25 minutes. All I can find for Whitianga to Gt Barrier indicates that it’s about the same or perhaps longer. So, no time benefit there and thus not a selling point.
So? Just because the community funds the heli base doesn’t mean that it’s the best option.
That’s actually quite easy to do. Choose your spot and compare flight times as I did above which indicates that Auckland based helicopter service is better for Gt Barrier than a Whitianga based service.
This is something that needs to be done by logistics and not by movements and feelings.
Actually, a couple of days would have been fine.
I’m sure webmd knows better about the woman’s injuries that she or the hospital does.
Next time I’m bleeding from an injury I’ll be sure to check with you before calling an ambulance.
(What I’m trying to say is you don’t know shit about what kind of care she needed)
Weren’t you doing me the favour of ignoring me? I’m certainly ignoring you.
And what the medics are saying is that tendon repair can be left for 24 to 48 hours so time wasn’t an issue.
BTW, I had the same injury.
I told you to ignore me if you wanted, I need do no such thing.
But yeah – you don’t shit about the situation about from a brief news synopsis, you’re personal experience doesn’t mean shit either so you are in no position to say it would have been fine when the patient, who was actually there, and the hospital, who looked after injury, say different
What the interwebz says. What does it say about nerve damage? Was there maybe something else not mentioned in the report that cumulatively might have cause actual doctors to say something like that?
A bit like comparing fixed wing flight times from an aerodrome to a dedicated helipad, but whatevs
My bad. I should have looked at that. It seems that some new process has come out in the last few years that helps with the nerve regeneration speed reducing it from months to weeks that’s time dependent.
“BTW – I had the same injury”
Here’s how stupid that is. I suffer pancreatitis and have required hospitalization 3 times (alcoholism is a bitch). My dad also suffers pancreatitis but has never been hospitalized.
We both have the same injury but have very different medical needs. Hope this helps
I see Farrar claims he banned some commentators over the PMs partner rumour but the journalist scanned his site and found alit left up. Farrar then said with 2 million comments he cant get to them all.
1 it is not 2 million comments a day
2 you decided to run a blog
3 after DP you committed to cleaning up your blog
So suspended some but not enough to stop the rumour getting good, long, airing.
Hard to avoid the notion that Farrar tried to tell a porky and a journo investigated rather than just take him at his word. Oops.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/103559016/Where-did-the-false-Clarke-Gayford-rumours-came-from
Farrar deleted the thread only after Stuff contacted him…not good enough….he really shouldn’t be allowed back on The Panel after this…Jim Mora take note.
Don’t hold your breath @BG. Jim is too busy rehearsing his lines for Monday to ensure he’s able to keep sitting on the fence and remain NZ’s nicest ‘radio bloke’ (going forward).
Of course it’s possible he’ll fuck up and need a locum to fill in – and there’s one or two who’re only too happy to oblige. And generally, they’re a fucking sight easier to listen to when you’re trapped in a lift or on one of the remotest places on Earth craving a bit of western MSM for a bit of a laugh and a Subway roll
@ Ropata
Nice to see You. Your ancestors and mine ate according to need and season. Harvested accordingly.
We now have to rid ourselves of those ugly poisonous fungi, called capitalists; called wealthy; called abominable, money afflicted; ruthless; unredemptive and endlessly brutal. Poison is as poison does Ropata.
We will get helicopters when the capitalists are drowned and droned out.
“We now have to rid ourselves of those ugly poisonous fungi, called capitalists; called wealthy; called abominable, money afflicted; ruthless; unredemptive and endlessly brutal”
And how do you intend to do that ?
Democratically.
Which is why we have Representative Democracy actually. The rich were afraid that the rest of us would legislate them out of existence and it was the rich calling the shots at the time.
Thing is, we can now probably start to implement full Participatory Democracy which really wasn’t possible 400 years ago.
Marx taught that the revolution would only come when the oppression of the masses became unbearable. Guillotines worked OK in the past. But I prefer the way of peace. On an individual level we make the world a better place in our own way, Ardern suggests Kindness, and I’m happy to go along with that
I notice that a lot of mention is made of Palestinians directed at me, accusing me of not being interested in the terrible suffering of the Palestinian people at the hands of the Israeli Zionists.
But usually only in relation to my posts on the situation in Syria, and in my opinion only as a diversionary tactic.
Prove me wrong.
To all those people who make these accusations, I challenge you to front up today at the rally in Aotea Square at 2pm in support of the ‘March of Return’.
The ‘Right of Return’ is a right written into international law by UN, for all refugees. But it is a right that is steadfastly denied to the Palestinians by the Zionists, an illegal position in defiance of international law, which the Zionists enforce with state sanctioned racist violence and apartheid like segregation and pass laws.
Teleport please.
Thinking of all who are able to go and show their support, with you in spirit.
Plus 1
I notice that a lot of mention is made of Palestinians directed at me, accusing me of not being interested in the terrible suffering of the Palestinian people at the hands of the Israeli Zionists.
Really? On this blog? Because I’m pretty sure that would have jumped out at me, and I haven’t noticed anything along those lines. I just did a quick search too. And nothing.
Maybe you could link to the comments that have laid these accusations at your feet Jenny? I suspect this just yet another piece of vacuous nonsense on your part along the same lines as that previous ‘They’ve called me a head-chopper’ accusation that you threw out there.
Hope the rally’s well attended and productive by the way.
I think it was Fransesca or someone, But Bill, in the same vein, weren’t you the one giving support to Ed about me not caring about what is happening to the people of Yemen and Afrin and other such Whataboutery?
In my opinion, you and Ed are only feigning concern for these terrible crimes against humanity committed by the Saudis, Zionists, the US etc. to divert attention away from your support and covering for mass murder committed by the Assad regime.
https://forward.com/opinion/400384/the-left-only-cares-about-palestinians-when-it-can-blame-israel/
You would know if you had attended Bill. And no it was not well attended, Maybe you would like to show your concern by giving the next rally a headline post. The next rally in support of the ‘March of Return’ will be held on the 19th, same time, same place. Visiting Palestinian scholar and activist Ramzy Baroud will be addressing this rally, prior to the talk he will be giving at the Freeman’s Bay Community Centre the following day. Maybe you would like to give this event a headline post as well. Or maybe not. In which, case do not ever again accuse me of not being concerned about these other cases of injustice and persecution in the world, to divert attention away from your support and propagandising for Syrian fascism and genocide.
https://kiaoragaza.wordpress.com/2018/05/01/ramzy-barouds-new-zealand-speaking-tour/
[The game a bogey Jenny. If in the future you submit comments that are baseless accusations that constitute attacks other contributors, bans will result] – Bill
For the sake of drawing your attention to the above Jenny.
Hi Bill,
I look forward to your post in support of Ramzy Baroud’s New Zealand speaking tour. Especially in light of your good wishes for the rally in support of the ‘March of Return’ last Saturday, because there is another one planned for the 19th same time same place at which Ramzy Baroud will be making an address.
https://kiaoragaza.wordpress.com/2018/05/01/ramzy-barouds-new-zealand-speaking-tour/
Cheers Jenny
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL1805/S00031/gordon-campbell-on-petrol-pricing-and-the-midwives-march.htm
We could be reaching the end of the relatively cheap oil era. Prices of Brent Crude, the global benchmark have been rising for the past seven months, and are tipped by most observers to continue to remain at high levels through 2019. Alarmists are talking of $80-100 a barrel.
Peak oil now again?
Bring back rail.
Rail uses only one fifth the fuel per tonne carried per KM of road transport.
Rail saves us all from climate change.
And road deaths.
Lower rapidly rising cost of road maintenance.
Less trucks in our cities will make public health and air quality better.
Whats not to like about that?
And, if electrified, doesn’t even use that.
Getting all the traffic off our roads will do wonders for us. More cycling and walking will (apparently) make us all younger.
Just listened to the Northcote candidates on The Nation.
This bit was a wtf, loololollllz moment for me…..
The national party candidate says something like… “it’s not about national it’s about who is the best person to serve the electorate” crikey…. he’s a party faithful bahahahahahahahahaha. Back your organisation dude, or stand as an independent.
The nat candidate was also quick to shut down any mention of coleman.
My thoughts…. Northcote will change colours.
A potential waka-jumper?
I take it that it was just the National Party and Labour Party candidates, Cinny?
ACT and NZF have both announced they won’t be running a candidate.
The Green Party have said that they will be running a candidate but do not yet appear to have selected and announced their candidate although the by-election is only 5 weeks away.
Although this is intended to emphasize that the Greens and Labour are not joined at the hip rather than win the electorate, this is likely to split the left vote and destroy any change of the electorate changing colours.
Chris Trotter in The Daily Blog on Friday on Trump. He gains oxygen from all the hullabaloo is I think Chris’s point.
https://thedailyblog.co.nz/2018/05/04/giving-trump-enough-rope/
And when you read through Chris’s collection of groupings behind the yellow-fellow one sees that there is a mighty mountain of unreason to surmount. Same here on a smaller scale.
…It doesn’t matter that Trump’s electoral base is composed of racists, homophobes, misogynists, fundamentalist Christians, Islamophobes and out-and-out fascists; as well as hard-line neoliberals, climate-change sceptics, union-busters, flat-taxers, economic nationalists and Ayn Rand libertarians; so long the dearest hopes and darkest fears of each component of this bizarre coalition continue to be encouraged by their President.
Interesting idea – a breath of fresh air from an entrepreneur educationalist.
science education
9:43 am today
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/saturday/audio/2018643593/david-klein-plant-man
David Klein – Plant Man
From Saturday Morning, 9:43 am today
Listen duration 15′ :17″
David Klein is a science communicator based in Wellington. Last summer he cycled around the country presenting Tour de Science – a show that explained how all the big things in the universe are made of lots of little things. It was performed in more than 50 towns and cities to rave reviews.
More recently Klein has been thinking about what it would like to be a plant – making food from sunlight, dealing with all those bugs, the strong connection to the ground, and time passing really slowly. Plants, he says, aren’t brainy but they are clever and successful.
Klein combines his love of science with his love of storytelling in his new children’s show, Plant Man, which he is performing at the Hutt Stemm Festival – celebrating the multi-million dollar science and innovation industries in Lower Hutt – on May 6.
(Incidentally it is very difficult, impossible so far, for me to find out what STEMM stands for. The love of acronyms and hatred for actually being clear and fully explanatory for those not in the know is again, rife. However there are clever little icons with pictures that probably explain the meanings. We are drifting towards a pictogram-heavy and abbreviations, skeleton-thought basis of written language!)
STEMM
Science Technology Engineering Mathematics …trying to find out what the other “M” stands for.
There you go…http://www.huttstemm.nz/
Manufacturing.
Resident scientist tells me this is about ‘hard’ as opposed to ‘soft’ subjects and encouraging students towards the same.
Thanks Rosemary
My point: Science is definite, correct, informative. So it is unscientific to advertise and advance an educational program under the heading of an acronym without informing what it stands for.
We have enough problems from our economic system making up models which are not totally thorough, without defining them fully, testing them, proving them, spelling out exceptions etc. Having to guess what something means is not scientific. Many problems already are stemming from this tendency in tertiary studies of importance and from people falsely adopting the authority of tertiary studies relied on for excellence by others needing their skills.
I respectfully but also strongly disagree because Science is most definitely not “definitive”! Whether it is correct is a moot point and this appears to be based on a perception that Science can or does somehow unveil The Truth. Yes, Science is informative and useful 😉
Did anyone really believe that Labour would implement their election promises?
National promised and had in fact implemented a scheme that would have meant a $680 increase in the National Super.
Labour then promised to outdo this and would provide a $700/year “heating allowance”.
Except it isn’t, at least not this year.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/103554971/winter-energy-payment-now-looks-a-lot-less-enticing
Please raise your hand if you still believe the things that this Government said before the election. What, nobody will admit they were that stupid?
That’s a good hit from Janine Starks.
Labour could lose the election in 2020 with the tilt of just a few retired people.
Very interested in the budget commentary from the Minister of Finance on that one.
Shrug they will see the full amount in 2019 and 2020 – so unlikely to be a problem IMO. National weren’t going to anything for me except probably more demonization and harassment – this winter payment may be a new pair of glasses for me so 🙂
Perhaps they won’t notice.
On the other hand the National payment would have provided you with both a new pair of glasses AND a spare pair in case you broke them.
Keep the faith though comrade. The Party may lie to you but you will still follow them till the end. Marching to the strains of the Internationale will help keep you warm, even if you can’t keep your home warm.
Of the half a million or so that can’t afford to visit their GP, a number of them will also be struggling with their power bills. Hence, how many will fall ill and perhaps die from this shortfall and delay?
The price of Labour’s Budget Responsibility Rules?
Oh well, at least Labour managed to balance the books eh?
Labour, the party the left can count on to let them down.
Not fair is it wynny. Next thing you know, someone might notice that people who are still working don’t need handouts.
Funny how National are running two attack lines at the same time.
The winter payment was not means tested/the amount is less than National’s tax cuts in the first year.
Which National people are you referring to?
For the umpteenth time I am not now, never have been in the past, and never will be in the future a member of any political party.
I am a pure swinging voter who was quite happy to say that National should be replaced at the last election but was of the belief that there was nobody capable of taking over and providing a stable sensible Government. The last six months have demonstrated the my view was absolutely correct.
A tired National would be better than the current Ship of Fools.
So, my friend, who were you talking about when you posted this reply to me?
ha ha, a third term government is tired, but there is/was no one better to take over is what someone part of stream b would say on a pro left blog.
Why didn’t you answer my question?
“Which National people are you referring to?”.
I am curious who in National might be offering similar arguments to myself.
Alwyn
Does anyone believe that anything useful will ever result from your memos on this blog? I would put the likelihood of useful from you at 95% against.
Your estimate of 95% is probably about right. I would say that 5% of the questions I ask get an intelligent reply from people who have actually thought about the topic and are willing to provide some reasoned arguments for their views.
The rest are like you. You come out with comments without any justification at all for making them. When questioned on the reason for the statement you either ignore the question or complain that anyone who dares to question your views should be banned.
C’est la vie. At least I can try and make you see the error of your ways.
Natrad’s Country Life outdid itself this morning with a follow up of the ‘growers unable to find enough pickers’ item from an earlier program.
https://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/countrylife/audio/2018643490/the-apple-gang-and-apple-grower
They interviewed two Kiwi workers and apart from their take home pay of $600 pw clearly rattling the interviewer they hypothesized that the growers were pleading shortage of staff to i gain an increase in the number of RSE workers…who it appears are cheaper.
The other segment looked at organic vegie growers….the brother gave up his work as a contractor on ‘conventional’ farms after a head injury but noted that some of his previous clients would not eat their own commercially grown carrots because of the agrichemicals used in the growing.
https://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/countrylife/audio/2018643491/the-farmer-and-the-filmmaker
Ad; – “Labour could lose the election in 2020 with the tilt of just a few retired people.”
My response is;
‘Labour/NZF had better make all our oldies health better during this time’ as we need to be alive in 2020 to vote for them again otherwise this 74yr old and our senior comrades will perhaps not be around then to save the labour/NZF parties then, and give us subsided dental please..
And give us all old, terminally ill, or limited for life and wanting a demise option the benefit of chosen euthanasia from options properly drawn up with wide consultation with those having thought through its use, and after considering arguments against are dealt with.
I see the 104 year old eminent fully capable australian has to travel to Switzerland with his family to carry out his wish of a legal death of his own choice amongst loved ones.
We older NZs trying to be rational, good citizens doing the right thing for us and limiting our otherwise mounting health costs just to keep us alive and breathing, become targets for police raids as if we were under authoritarian rule. By the way we aren’t are we? Perhaps it has been quietly announced and I missed the death sentence to democratic respect and individual choice in the news that day.
John Milford, Chief Exec Wellington Chamber of Commerce is advocating for Wellington to consider selling its stake in the city’s airport.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/103598008/john-milford-wellington-should-consider-selling-its-stake-in-the-airport
Good to see a number of commentators (in the comments section following the article) telling him what’s what.
I’m with manifest: “Cutting out the corporate welfare projects like the film museum, convention centre and indoor arena unless they provide a realistic return would be sounder economic policy.”
Consider selling?
They shouldn’t need any time to do that. “Just do it”.
Wellington is cursed with Local Body politicians who are really only interested in their feel-good exercises. That and pretending that they are only in it for the public good.
Our current mayor announced that he didn’t need a Council supplied, and ratepayer paid for car for his use.
That’s fine if he believes in it and it should certainly save the ratepayer money. The problem is that he didn’t not spend the money. He gave it as a grant to his arty-crafty friends. Then to get around he uses another Council owned car which is no longer available for Council employees doing useful work. So he ends up costing us more than if he hadn’t gone in for his grandstanding and taken the car in the first place.
Meanwhile we still have no emergency water supply for the Hospital and if there is an earthquake the Hospital will be shut down completely within about 3 days. To supply a reservoir would be something useful you see and our Council doesn’t do useful things. Spending $40,000 painting a patch of Cuba Street in bright colours is much more their style.
Why do you think they should just do it, alwyn?
Where do you think the money would be better invested?
The first thing they could do is stop borrowing.
At the moment they plan to increase borrowing by around $600 million over the next 10 years. That is about $3,500 per resident.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/102599229/wellington-city-council-set-to-double-debt-to-pay-for-big-projects
Then they could repay the existing debt. Then they could spend it on necessary infrastructure, which does not, in my opinion, include restoring the old town hall. Let’s face it. I was closed in 2013, will probably not reopen until 2023 and I don’t think anyone has missed the old barn.
How is that lot for a start.
Selling their shares in the airport would immediately increase the councils borrowing. It’s the nature of removing an income stream.
Which tells us that they’re not charging enough in rates.
The average rates bill in Wellington on a house is about $3,500/year.
National Super for a couple is about $35,500/year before tax or about $32,000 if taxed at the lowest rate. A lot of the elderly live on that pension and nothing else.
At the 2013 Census the median income for people over 65 was only about $20,900. At hat time the New Zealand Super for a person living alone was $21,300/year. It was about $16,100 each for a couple. Those were pre-tax numbers. About 90% of the people over 65 got National Super so you can see roughly how many have very little else
Figures from the latest Census are not available and accurate ones covering the whole population may never surface.
What do you think is a reasonable rates bill Mr Plutocrat? Would you think 20% of your pre-tax income would be about right?
And a lot of them are free-hold and so the rates bill is all they’re paying.
Compared to, say, an unemployed person on 12000 (including accommodation) and who’s paying $6000/year in rent.
Which do you think I have more sympathy for?
Somebody a few years ago calculated that the amount we pay in rates is, across all of us, was about 1.5%. So, maybe 3%?
But, of course, there would still need to be the lease charge of ‘owning’ the land which should be set at a square metre rate. $1/m^2 sounds about right.
“Which tells us that they’re not charging enough in rates.”
Or they are spending far too much.
No, a lot of the issues we have is because they’re not spending enough as they do stuff on the cheap which results in a shit job which, inevitably, results in costing more (see Leaky Buildings, Leaky Hospitals, Rena grounding, the list goes on).
“The first thing they could do is stop borrowing”
Depends what they are borrowing for. Nice to haves can wait till we can afford them.
Additionally, borrowing can help spread costs out reducing the quarterly burden on ratepayers.
The return the airport generates can help to pay of debt or reduces the need for it. Thus, if they sold it to fully pay off their debt they’d lose that ongoing revenue stream going forward. As the airport is largely a monopoly, it’s a good investment to hold onto.
Yes, because making the city worse off so that some rich bludgers can be richer is such a Good Thing™ to do.
DTB
Don’t forget to put the /sarc in when you are being ironic. We have a number of deadheads here who would take your wry comment at face value.
It is amazing that in the 21st century with so many loose brains haring off into space or creating avatars AI algorithms etc., we still have the same sort of comments that would have been uttered when NZ was young. I am sure that The Chairman and Alwyn would have said similar when Vogel was going to raise money for the NZ railway project in colonial NZ.
We have the example of living dinosaurs coming on TS all puffed-up and pompous while we try to face a future that will become ever more problematic. I have been reading about Thomas Hobbes thinking in his book Leviathan that we will have to give up our individuality under the iron stamp of a despotic sovereign.
And here is an item from The Statesman showing some who illustrate how short and brutal life can be. https://www.thestatesman.com/opinion/citizenship-tangle-1502631775.html
Are we on the way to that life with people being hounded to work where there is no work, forced to sleep in virtual caves (garages etc) while surrounded by houses, forbidden to ask for food from agencies whose work of providing food aid is limited and controlled by government. Is it Hobbes that has an answer, does Kafka’s view of twisted bureaucracy tell us anything?
The economist Hayek had a number of ideas: He used the term catallaxy to describe a “self-organizing system of voluntary co-operation”. Hayek’s research into this argument was specifically cited by the Nobel Committee in its press release awarding Hayek the Nobel prize. That seems a good word or bone for the busyheads to chew on. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catallaxy
We are so clever, but can’t find a thoughtful, kind and practical way to handle old, basic problem, trying a method that looks at physical remedies that suit, and then forms a theory to explain the method. Perhaps we don’t want to find an answer, we enjoy the argumentation while the needy wait sadly. Would we rather spend our time doing puzzles? Kindness is limited in much of the discussion on politics it seems.
Well, here was a problem that was exercising the brains of the intelligent throughout the 1700s and didn’t finish until 1882.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Squaring_the_circle
Our globe-totting media darling of a prime minister should go there too.
http://normanfinkelstein.com/2018/05/03/will-bernie-go-to-gaza/
“The Northcote by-election is an opportunity for the Green Party to promote our early successes in Government while highlighting our points of difference,” Green Party Co-leader Marama Davidson said.
Did the Nation snub the Greens today?
Hard to promote successes and points of difference when one isn’t given (or fails to utilise) the air time.
You do realise that the Greens have not yet nominated their candidate, yes?
Good God, I’ve just watched a Hudson Institute discussion on Chinese policy in Xinjiang!
We should not be doing business with China! The information given is bloody frightening,
A long watch, but disturbing, very disturbing! 1 hr 40 minutes.
For instance, blood testing of all Uyghurs for organ matching with countries along the road of the One Belt, One Road – feeding China’s organ harvesting industry.
We should be BLOODY SCARED OF CHINA!
Well, I guess it’s a bit scary to take splab from the Hudson Institute seriously 🙂
Well, I didn’t know all that about the Hudson Institute and I agree, funding from the Koch Brothers is a big red flag.
However, much of what is talked about is corroborated by Radio Free Asia and other sources.
With a Chinese spy inside the Nats and in our parliament, we should be scared of China!
Not a great recovery your last paragraph probably did more damage to your arguement than Bill questioning your source
Likewise leave the light on if your scared of China 😊
Are you not scared because you are the Chinese spy Bewildered?
The new Director of the CIA has form for torture in Thailand.
Giving head in Bangkok to get ahead in the company
Getting ahead by inducing confessions
Inducing confessions by puting people to sleep
Living the dream of rendition to the land of the Green Card
Will all future directors require this on their resume, will it be the new normal for promotion to this level of leadership?
Austerity is a failure, Keynes showed that governments ought to run deficits to keep the wider economy afloat. National wasted the opportunity to take advantage of very favourable conditions for borrowing instead cutting contributions to Kiwisaver and cutting services. Government surplus = social deficit.
(We won’t even need to run deficits if we implement positive money)