Soimun employs God knows how many ‘experts’ in his office to make attack ads, with unrelenting negativity, for which he gets quite rightly slagged off.
Jacinda fronts for a simple 2 minute (nearly 3 minutes) video of the Coalition’s achievements – and the tweet goes around the world. [Sorry, not tech savvy enough to put up a link.] It must really hack off the Natz party strategists!
Also, I live in Christchurch but I could hear Soimun grinding his teeth in Botany when he congratulated the next leader of the Natz on his selection.
It’s going to be a dirty election campaign next year because that’s all the Natz have got, but first points to the Coalition.
Edit
Are you in UK or NZ quasimodo? Brexit and UK Labour are a topic on their own.
Looking at Corbyn’s speech – free prescriptions, free care for the elderly – both enormously growing costs to the state. He is a bit free with his promises methinks when he wants to appeal to the wide British public:
Thank you for that welcome. Today we are launching the most ambitious and radical campaign our country has ever seen to bring real change to our country.
If you want to live in a society that works for everybody and not just the billionaires, if you want to save our hospitals, schools and public services from Tory cuts and privatisation, if you want to stop the big polluters destroying our environment then this election is your chance to vote for it.
The choice could not be clearer. We put our faith in the British people’s spirit and commitment to community. It’s your country. That’s why we stand with you.
(Notice he refers to ‘British’.)
He will appeal to the simple-minded, innocent and trusting, but people who think about stuff know there have to be boundaries on promises. Otherwise, as Paul Simon says – ‘They’re a pocketful of mumbles’. Labour can’t afford to mumble, as Corbyn says
Are you trying to enforce thematic conformism ? What happened to the cut and thrust of honest debate ? We otherwise have the depressing prospect of Simon swinging at the mercy of self-appointed Nationalist grandees.
Have a look at Corbyn's speech. I don't know who wrote it but it has a great riff near the end .. "whose side are you on ?" Luxton may have cause to ponder.
I am not sure he is Key 2.0 though. He has a lot more baggage. He is an awfully happy clappy God squadder who has already revealed himself as an antediluvian anti-abortionist and he is very unpopular in the provinces due to his decisions at Air New Zealand for example.
And he'll have to step up his game in interviews, RNZ just did a gotcha on him over vaccinations that was so, so easy…
You don't think Luxton will resort to 'convenient Christianity' when he knifes Bridges in the kidneys on his way up? "Yes, we rolled Simon while claiming to support him unequivocally, but it was for the good of the party, and therefore the good of all mankind. Hallelujah!"
He sounded like a cookie cutter right wing business guy from the shallow end of the pool. Fetishising "personal responsibility", ignorantly stating that Key was "the greatest PM ever" , sliding ever so easily into a bit of bene bashing. So all the ingredients he needs to be very successful in this dumbarse village.
I'm fairly certain 'rilly, rilly loverly' men don't join the National Party. Isn't being a self-serving, overly-ambitious arsehole a prerequisite for membership? I still can't get my head around Nikki Kaye. She seems warm, personable and genuine for the most part, but… National. Unless she has multiple personalities, I don't understand how she reconciles being a Bastard Party MP with being, you know, a decent human being.
Lewis Carroll went wandering in his mind and thought up a character very like Michelle Boag. This link has a drawing of Alice and the White Queen and I'm not sure of the character on the right. Great likeness for Michelle on the left though, except that's the wrong side!
Tribal politics I think – brought up on a particular political brand.
In Marilyn Waring's case, she suffered at the hands of Muldoon and she would have learnt what it is like to be discriminated against in general terms – in her case due to sexual orientation. There's nothing like a bit of personal experience to change one's views .
Nikki Kaye is unlikely to have been exposed to the same sort of treatment.
He isn't Key 2.0, and people shouldn't buy into that simplistic label ("coz rich white CEO, same same"). Key's god was Key.
Based on their public statements and (where relevant) votes in Parliament, Luxon is even more conservative than Bridges, who is more conservative than English, who was more conservative than Key, who was "pragmatic" (i.e saw the polls and voted for marriage equality).
A majority of National's own MPs voted for the 1st reading of Abortion Reform Bill. They might not later, after committee, but even going that far is too far for Luxon. If you take all the social issues currently debated (cannabis, euthanasia etc) he is more like a Craig Conservative or the fundies in Dunne's 2002 caucus. He should really be leading a 5% minority party, National's fantasy friend.
Family First have endorsed him enthusiastically. Enough said.
Well observed I think. Is having a male Jenny Shipley what National needs today? The way that National acts (get the pun!) just demonstrates that they have no interest in the country as a whole.
We are of as much interest as the starving Irish people in the second potato famine were to the Brits. The Brits knew about incipient famines because they had provided help with the first, but the second was a bridge too far, and the food production had been contracted out to feed the British Army.
It was collateral damage that the people went without while the plans and wants of the powerful were satisfied. And that is the modus operandi of the Gnats here, suck us dry and feed us words of needing higher productivity and efficiency as an excuse. That sucks!
They are interested in 'me and mine', and the group of wealthies they belong to, aspirational for swimming pools, big houses and grounds, or boutique apartments wherever they wish to visit FTTT. Also well-managed funds with investments in things of destruction or addiction, that people will keep buying even when they have to borrow at 0.8% per day (or 292% p.a.) to get them.
Even people involved in money wealth creation have trouble explaining their work clearly as in this report from interest.co.nz. https://www.interest.co.nz/personal-finance/101502/government-includes-daily-interest-rate-cap-loans-part-bid-crack-down-loan
'In April FinCap chief executive Tim Barnett said the Government’s proposed amendments didn’t hit loan sharks hard enough and called for a cap on interest rates and called for an interest rate cap. The organisation is the umbrella body for New Zealand’s budgeting and financial capability services.'
So thinking about money and arithmetic is riveting, but the RW government's disdainful policies for handling the poor, especially 'the breeders', is just political garbage-work though essential to keep the vermin down. Luxon shows that he is willing to be a good squaddie to get a carriage on the gravy train like John Key did.
Yes, as per this morning on RNZ, WFF recipients will be pleased to hear that in Mr Luxon’s view they will need to vaccinate their kids in order to receive their “in work tax credits”…
Also our shiny domed hero has to play snakes and ladders with Jami Lee Ross before he is an MP, yet alone leader of the NZ National Party–a mere formality of course political experts say.
Wait till the campaign cos if they don't pay off gag JLR he could do significant damage as luxon's another copy/paste corporate executioner with limited charisma.
If I was winnie I'd drop a strong NZF candidate in Botany high enough on their list to still be an MP and have some more fun at natz expense.
IMHO Luxon stands out as Jamie Whyte 2.0 – not Key 2.0. In looks as well as in his views.
My money (Nil) is on him not lasting long – and possibly not even until next year's election.
For anyone wanting them, here are the links to the Morning Report item on Luxon's selection and his MR interview – and also the link to Jami-Lee Ross' interview later in Morning Report. Ross made some good points imo.
Ross might make salient points. They will have less than zero effect on Luxon and his flying in in Botany.
Luxon's views on vaccinating kids in order to receive their “in work tax credits” or anything specific (as mentioned by Tiger Mountain) are irrelevant.
A la Key, Luxon publicly slaying babies would see his Botany vote solidify rather than diminish.
Luxon playing the National PParty divide and conquer play book punish the poor for being poor. Why not stop free education which does not discriminate for those who don't vaccinate.
It will be interesting to see how high National put him on the list. A high spot would give him standing and provide insurance just in case Ross did actually win the seat. But putting him high on the list would play into Ross' point that the voters can have both of them by vote splitting. Is Luxon there to oust Ross or be leader? Strategies for each may conflict.
I really think he could be Key 2.0, and may well prove as successful for the National Party.
There is a lot of discussion about his beliefs, values etc here. If National have proved nothing else – it is that none of that matters. A good sound bite – being "rich / successful", fakely 'relatable' and some sleazy marketing angles pay dividends in the NZ electorate for the right.
Trouble with genuinely-held beliefs is that they can get in the way of saying the most expedient thing. Or their previous expression can contradict what you say now.
Key was a moral vacuum. That's why he could say "whatever it takes" one minute and do fuckall the next.
wft about this trade deal – how does the climate emergency fit with this – seems fucken forgetful to me.
My 12 year old just left for school camp today – I'm pleased he gets to do this.
Jacinda pisses me off but the alternatives are nauseating – bridges, collins, bennett and now this luxon – what a bunch of idiots – imagine them in charge and don't forget that feeling come election time.
We are so smart as a species and so thick – just like every other species except for this shit I think
Twelve billion miles from Earth, there is an elusive boundary that marks the edge of the sun’s realm and the start of interstellar space. When Voyager 2, the longest-running space mission, crossed that frontier more than 40 years after its launch it sent a faint signal from the other side that scientists have now decoded.
…From beyond the heliosphere, the signal from Voyager 2 is still beaming back, taking more than 16 hours to reach Earth. Its 22.4-watt transmitter has a power equivalent to a fridge light, which is more than a billion billion times dimmer by the time it reaches Earth and is picked up by Nasa’s largest antenna, a 70-metre dish.
The two Voyager probes, powered by steadily decaying plutonium, are projected to drop below critical energy levels in the mid-2020s. But they will continue on their trajectories long after they fall silent. “The two Voyagers will outlast Earth,” said Kurth. “They’re in their own orbits around the galaxy for 5bn years or longer. And the probability of them running into anything is almost zero.”
I think most Westerners have still to unpack our own experiences of colonisation, that happened a long time ago and from which we have neither recovered nor even really taken into account. We are so deep now in the split of matter and spirit, or mind and body, or human and nature, that we struggle to even see the problem.
So at the moment the problem is seen as carbon emissions and how to reduce them in a time frame that if we were going to step out of denial will almost certainly require a drop in standard of living for the industrialised world. Instead of seeing climate change as really being about our relationship with nature and then being able to see that all the solutions are there waiting for us from that other, deeper reality.
This is my way of making sense of spending all that tremendous intelligence, technological development, time, energy, intuition, and physical material on space exploration instead of realigning ourselves with nature and getting really good, en masse, at the tech that restores and regenerates.
Thank you! Everyone is always on here sweating the small stuff National, the opposition, are doing or complaining about overseas issuea.
no one is taking stock of the lack of progress this government has made with sustainable housing, public transport and moving the economy to sustainable practices. It’s one announcement it’s been able to triumph about is adding to the neo liberal, emission creating, global economy
[ "But while the review doesn’t address the desire for residence that leaves many workers open to exploitation, several major positives in the review were highlighted by Kaloti and Bela.
They include a unit at MBIE dedicated to combating migrant worker exploitation and measures to help chase employers if they liquidate multiple companies to avoid liability. " ]
I guess small steps are better than no steps and Rome wasn't built in a day. And then there's a decade of NZ's previous junta making sure the whole thing became industrialised.
Industrialising, downsizing staff and replacing with – overseas call centres, technological algorithms replacing staff, less interest in spending money on people first because they are worth it, or second because it makes good long-term sense for a NZ Inc wants to be a well-run enterprise.
Our National Party Junta has a known course and rigid mindset. Will they find support from the previous class-deserting former-worker insurgents? Watch and see as this interesting tale of human endeavour, lost loves and imminent tragedy unfolds.
Interesting paragraph from @Weka at 3.1 above (especially her first paragraph ). Sums it all up nicely really. I always try and avoid the word 'colonisation' precisely because we can't seem to deal with it and its effects.
I was half expecting someone's alter ego (who has commented here on another thread) to respond, with another insular, link-laden response and rant about 'activist media' that don't conform to his world view – could still happen I 'spose.
Btw @greywarshark, now I've looked at things re disappearing comments elsewhere, I think its not as sinister as you may think – maybe more to do with our being caught up in a block-delete of comments that came after yours and/or mine
I think he could be noticing that the Greens think about 'science' and past and new methods of using it, and don't just jump up like a slavering dog woofing with joy at a treat.
FEI –
About Peter Griffin https://petergriffin.co.nz
Sep 15, 2011 – Peter Griffin is a Wellington-based science and technology journalist with 20 years experience in the New Zealand media covering science, technology, media and business. … in 2009 he founded Sciblogs.co.nz, the Australasia’s largest science blog network which is still going strong …
He was Director of the Science Media Centre.
2017 https://thespinoff.co.nz/author/peter-griffin/
Peter Griffin is Director of the Science Media Centre and the founder and editor of Sciblogs. Prior to founding the SMC, he was Technology Editor of the New Zealand Herald. Peter was the 2012 Fulbright-Harkness Fellow and undertook research in the US looking at centres of excellence in public interest journalism.
A man for all seasons:
Tech talk with Peter Griffin | RNZ https://www.rnz.co.nz › national › programmes › afternoons › audio › tec…
Nov 22, 2018 – Peter Griffin takes a look at the kinds of new or old technology that people might be looking to buy for Christmas or in the new year sales and …
Notice that is the 'official' Guardian view, they still will publish lots of personal views of their columnists who hold their nose over Corbyn- those columns are the ones syndicated for re-publishing around the world.
I do wonder about who the Editorial board are talking to when they say phrases like this
"The result was an immiseration of ordinary people and the forced decay of the public realm. "
My guess for whence this eventuates. John McDonell keeps losing economics debates (over his flagship fiscal credibility idea) with factions of UK Labour (who apply their MMT derived understanding of the UK economy). He is probably realising that his present position doesn't ever see him as the Chancellor and is looking to shift from it, at least rhetorically.
Whilst on the sordid topic of the nasty Natz, RNZ website has just announced Maggie Barry is to retire from politics at the 2020 election. More to come.
No doubt Ms Barry has served her 9 years +, during which time she has contributed to creating more suffering and hardship amongst the nation's impoverished and vulnerable. Now after that time, she is able to walk away with a tidy pension and life time perks!
To get rid of the purse-padders should we bring down the terms required to serve to two as MPs? It isn't long I know, but a week in politics can be a game-changer, and six years of pain and suffering to the country's people and flagging economy would be plenty.
Paying up to prevent another 3 years would be a good deal looked at in reality. Picture the unwanted pollie with small hand gun saying "Pay up or I will hang around your neck, ruin your prospects – whatever you have left – and ensure you never get to heaven"! I know what I would choose.
I dont think the gravy train after 9 years works like that anymore
"The travel perk only applies to MPs who served three terms before 1999 and is capped at the cheapest Air New Zealand business class flight to London each year and 12 domestic return flights."
the pension is generous ($2.50 for every $1 put in, plus any investing gains if they ran a personal scheme), but no special deal at the 9 yr stage.
Thats not true . Read the article again…the only person getting a car is former PMs. Salary is for 3 months after election, and not connected to 9 yrs service.
"she is able to walk away with a tidy pension and life time perks! "
She will get no such thing. The fabled pension and perks for retiring MPs were abolished a long, long time ago. The only current MPs who will receive life time pensions when they retire are Nick Smith and Jacinda Ardern.
Nick because he was an MP elected in 1990 and Jacinda because she has been PM for 2 years. There are no continuing perks for anyone else except for the free trip to Wellington to clean out their office and the 3 months pay they get after Election day.
The subsidy rate for any Super scheme is generous but certainly not that far out of line. They can contribute up to 8% of their basic back bench MP salary and it will be matched at 2.5 times their contribution.
That is good but not way out of step with other organisations. In the last full time job I held. with a large Australian company in the mid 1990's I could put 6% of my salary into Super and they would match it at a 14% rate. That wasn't all that different and it covered all my salary, not just the portion that the basic minimum level available to an MP represents.
Incidentally you may be interested to know that everybody's favourite bogeyman among the MPs who have left Parliament in the last couple of years, Stephen Joyce, never took advantage of the scheme. He was, as far as I know, the only MP in the last Parliament who never collected the 20% extra available to him. Everyone else took it because they could. Greedy little buggers weren't they?
Heritage New Zealand is considering giving the land at Ihumātao the highest level of heritage recognition, but it won't change the consent for the Fletcher housing development.
Now, new global research shows the virus is even more dangerous than first realised because it destroys immunity to other diseases.
So our carelessness under easy-peasy no regulations, little public health support for the poor, is coming home not so much to us but to bite another more vulnerable country.
We need to pass a law that gives immediate attention and full support to Western Samoa and ensures that continues for a full year, and then continues for another five years at half the budget of the first year for four years. We can afford it, if we aren't prepared to spend some of the theoretical credits in our own country, then it won't be a waste of money to help Western Samoa, and give us street cred as well.
"affect on Samoa of measles which infection can be laid squarely at NZs door."
Thats absurd . Measles is a contagious disease , it spreads naturally. The measles epidemic arrived in NZ from overseas too- they say it was 12 separate outbreaks here based on the virus analysis, and they spread to people connected to those 12 original originators. One of those infected visited Samoa, nothing to do 'with NZ'
Samoa has direct flights NZ , Fiji, Pago Pago and Brisbane, so would have arrived by air anyway
Mars Petcare announces closure of Whanganui factory in late 2020
The Whanganui road going down the hill wouldn't have helped. They are going to Thailand. World ownership of business will suck us dry, set up do okay, then oh dear we can only stay if you drop wages, drop electricity price. Nothing is certain these days, but having overseas giants own us is certainly more uncertain than if we owned it ourselves and ran a viable concern.
"When the world witnessed the “Arab Spring” it waited in fervent hope for an Arab Summer that never came. The young, middle-class Egyptians who crowded into Cairo’s Tahrir Square demanded democracy. But, when they got it, the answer it provided to the question: “Who are the people, and what do they want?” was not at all to their liking. Within months, the soldiers were back in charge, and the people’s choice, the Muslim Brotherhood, were back in jail – or dead. In politics, as in no other human activity, people should be very careful what they wish for.
Planning for the future will always produce a richer harvest than merely wishing away the present. Protest, if it is to be effective, has to make more than noise – it has to make sense."
This is why it is almost impossible to get pragmatic practical steps to tackle climate change at these conferences. They become magnets for groups like this who then help turn it in to a talk fest about "intersectional challenges" blah blah.
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
Luxon playing the National PParty divide and conquer play book punish the poor for being poor. Why not stop free education which does not discriminate for those who don't vaccinate.
It's preemptive really – the poor have the most reason to indict National for their egregious failures. Let the poor find their voice and the Gnats and their dodgy backers are history.
Overseas Investment Office (OIO) decisions made in September and released today show the sales total more than 2200 hectares of land previously owned by New Zealanders, in Gisborne, Wairoa and Whangarei.
The new owners plan to plant 1600 hectares of the land as commercial forests.
Austrian count Johannes Trauttmansdorff-Weinsberg, who purchased two other sheep and beef farms for forestry conversion in August, is the purchaser of two of the latest properties. Another Austrian, Wolfgang Leitner, and a Swiss-German company, Kauri Forestry LP, have bought the other land.
At least one of Mr Trautmansdorff-Weinsberg's deals was brokered through veteran forestry consultant Roger Dickie, who was found to have breached OIO rules earlier this year over a similar deal.
[Verse 2]
Daddy's gone, my brother's out hunting in the mountains
Big John's been drinking since the river took Emmy-Lou
v
So the powers that be
left me here
to do the thinkin'
And I just turned twenty-two
I was wonderin' what to do
And the closer they got,
The more those feelings grew.
Daddy's rifle in my hand
felt reassurin'
He told me,
Red means run, son,
numbers add up to nothin'
But when the first shot
hit the docks I saw it comin'
Raised my rifle to my eye
Never stopped to wonder why.
Then I saw black,
And my face splashed in the sky.
Shelter me from the powder
and the finger
Cover me with the thought
that pulled the trigger
Think of me
as one you'd never figured
Would fade away so young
With so much left undone
Remember me to my love
Shelter me from the powder
and the finger
Cover me with the thought
that pulled the trigger
Think of me
as one you'd never figured
Would fade away so young
With so much left undone
Remember me to my love,
I know I'll miss her.
And unless your weka or some other biased online hustler… you aint got a show. Id suggest you be more careful in future yourself, as the Greens seem quite disposed towards certain practices. Crawl out of your cave and get real . Even the USA which you choose to malign because of Trump has modernized.
So get off wanker, … grow a pair and name who you are as a mod.
No one gives a shit about who you want to pretend you are, and no one seriously gives you a flying shit.
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
[I’ve pushed a number of comments to Trash, in large part because of the aggressive and spammy nature of your posting tonight. A 24 time out so you can settle down seems warranted. I’ll put your comments in premod after that, so I can keep an eye on them. Please reread the Policy, about not using language or tone that has the effect of excluding others – weka]
The greatest insult you could deliver was to murder some poor bastard the night before, cook him in a hangi , then shit out his remains the next morning after.
That was common in Europe as well as New Zealand. Stop pulling the monumental porkies.
Just dont.
We all, have read up on the subject.
You cant hide whats in plain sight.
There was a story of Cook and his men inviting a group of Maori warriors aboard,… an old warrior offered the remains of a skull to the sailors… they were nauseous… the remains of a young warrior were cooked and contained in kiti bags… but the brains were the best part according to the old warrior…
Such was cannibalism and the insult of shitting out the remains of a warrior the next morning considered.
What is it with you soft cocks that you cant accept history???
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New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Government’s key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
“I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
.“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
“It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet – is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
Bob Edlin writes – And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ HeraldThomas CoughlanSimeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
TL;DR:Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it: We want our country to be a ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading → ...
Ele Ludemann writes – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
What was that judge thinking?Peter Williams writes – That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop:Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
Buzz from the BeehiveThe text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary. It can be quickly analysed ...
For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
Questions need to be asked on both sides of the worldPeter Williams writes – The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop:The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
TL;DR:Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
Bob Edlin writes – The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
The Government has accepted Labour’s change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s fast-track legislation. ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesn’t act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
The New Zealand public voted for a change in direction at the 2023 general election and that is exactly what this coalition government has been delivering in its first 100 days. There was an immediate focus on the economy, easing the cost of living, cracking down on law and order ...
The Government has left the health system as an afterthought, announcing half-baked targets at the last minute of their 100-day plan, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
Kiwis are still waiting for their promised cost of living support after 100 days of a National Government that is taking us backwards, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
100 days of National taking NZ backwardsThe National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
The Government must commit to funding free and healthy school lunches, as thousands of people sign the petition to keep them, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti says. ...
If the Government was serious about moving families into public housing, they would build more houses so there is actually somewhere for people to go. ...
The free and healthy school lunches programme feeds our kids, helps them to learn, and saves families money – but it is at risk under this Government, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
The Government’s proposed changes to Firearms Prohibition Orders (FPO) add almost nothing new and are merely an attempt to distract from its plans to loosen gun laws, police spokesperson Ginny Andersen and justice spokesperson Dr Duncan Webb said. ...
The great Victorian era English politician Lord Macauley stood in the British House of Parliament and said, "The gallery in which the reporters sit has become a fourth estate of the realm".He understood and outlined even way back then, the significant role and influence media have in a democracy. ...
"The Government is moving quickly to realise an additional $46 million in tariff savings in the EU market this season for Kiwi exporters,” Minister for Trade and Agriculture, Todd McClay says. Parliament is set, this week, to complete the final legislative processes required to bring the New Zealand – European ...
New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April. ...
Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand. Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships. “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland Acknowledgements and opening Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says. “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024 Acknowledgements and opening Morena, Nga Mihi Nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country. “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week. “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee. “Over the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today. “The Amendment Paper represents ...
Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).“As it stands, SNAs ...
Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has classified the drought conditions in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts as a medium-scale adverse event, acknowledging the challenging conditions facing farmers and growers in the district. “Parts of Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts are in the grip of an intense dry spell. I know ...
The Government is helping farmers eradicate the significant impact of facial eczema (FE) in pastoral animals, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “A $20 million partnership jointly funded by Beef + Lamb NZ, the Government, and the primary sector will save farmers an estimated NZD$332 million per year, and aims to ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has completed a successful visit to India, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level. “We have laid a strong foundation for the Coalition Government’s priority of enhancing New Zealand-India relations to generate significant future benefit for both countries,” says Mr Peters, ...
Cabinet has agreed to provide $7 million to ensure the 2024 ski season can go ahead on the Whakapapa ski field in the central North Island but has told the operator Ruapehu Alpine Lifts it is the last financial support it will receive from taxpayers. Cabinet also agreed to provide ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Lower fruit and vegetable prices are welcome news for New Zealanders who have been doing it tough at the supermarket, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ reported today the price of fruit and vegetables has dropped 9.3 percent in the 12 months to February 2024. “Lower fruit and vege ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the sixty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
The coalition Government is supporting farmers to enhance land management practices by investing $3.3 million in locally led catchment groups, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “Farmers and growers deliver significant prosperity for New Zealand and it’s vital their ongoing efforts to improve land management practices and water quality are supported,” ...
Good evening everyone and thank you for that lovely introduction. Thank you also to the Honourable Simon Bridges for the invitation to address your members. Since being sworn in, this coalition Government has hit the ground running with our 100-day plan, delivering the changes that New Zealanders expect of us. ...
Recommendations from the Climate Change Commission for New Zealand on the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auction and unit limit settings for the next five years have been tabled in Parliament, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “The Commission provides advice on the ETS annually. This is the third time the ...
The coalition Government is beginning its fight to lower building costs and reduce red tape by exempting minor building work from paying the building levy, says Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk. “Currently, any building project worth $20,444 including GST or more is subject to the building levy which is ...
Proposed changes to tax legislation to prevent the over-taxation of low-earning trusts are welcome, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The changes have been recommended by Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee following consideration of submissions on the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill. “One of the ...
Assalaamu alaikum. السَّلَام عليكم In light of the holy month of Ramadan, I want to extend my warmest wishes to our Muslim community in New Zealand. Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, renewed devotion, perseverance, generosity, and forgiveness. It’s a time to strengthen our bonds and appreciate the diversity ...
Former Transport Minister and CEO of the Auckland Business Chamber Hon Simon Bridges has been appointed as the new Board Chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) for a three-year term, Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced today. “Simon brings extensive experience and knowledge in transport policy and governance to the role. He will ...
Good morning all, it is a pleasure to be here as Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology. It is fantastic to see how connected and collaborative the life science and biotechnology industry is here in New Zealand. I would like to thank BioTechNZ and NZTech for the invitation to address ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says he is looking forward to the day when three key water projects in Northland are up and running, unlocking the full potential of land in the region. Mr Jones attended a community event at the site of the Otawere reservoir near Kerikeri on Friday. ...
Associate Finance Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government has agreed to restore deductibility for mortgage interest on residential investment properties. “Help is on the way for landlords and renters alike. The Government’s restoration of interest deductibility will ease pressure on rents and simplify the tax code,” says ...
Sport and Recreation Minister Chris Bishop will travel to Switzerland today to attend an Executive Committee meeting and Symposium of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Mr Bishop will then travel on to London where he will attend a series of meetings in his capacity as Infrastructure Minister. “New Zealanders believe ...
Pacific Media Watch Earthwise hosts Lois and Martin Griffiths. Earthwise presenters Lois and Martin Griffiths on Plains FM 96.9 community radio talk to Dr David Robie, a New Zealand author, independent journalist and media educator with a passion for the Asia-Pacific region. David talks about the struggle to raise awareness ...
Pacific Media Watch Ismail al-Ghoul, an Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent who was held for 12 hours at Gaza’s al-Shifa hospital, says Israeli forces rounded up Palestinian journalists at the facility and made them kneel on the ground for hours, while naked and blindfolded. “The occupation forces handcuffed and blindfolded us ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tony Wood, Program Director, Energy, Grattan Institute chinasong, Shutterstock Electricity customers in four Australian states can breathe a sigh of relief. After two years in a row of 20% price increases, power prices have finally stabilised. In many places they’re ...
Chumbawamba have reportedly issued the deputy PM a cease-and-desist notice after he used their song 'Tubthumping' before his state of the nation speech. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Deborah Lupton, SHARP Professor, Vitalities Lab, Centre for Social Research in Health and Social Policy Centre, and the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society, UNSW Sydney kitzcorner/Shutterstock The assertion from Queensland’s chief health officer John Gerrard that ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Shutterstock Why are musicians so keen to get played on the radio? It can’t be because of the money. In Australia they are paid at rates so low they ...
"Farmers make a point not to tell our urban cousins how to live, yet Chlöe from central Auckland is hell-bent on having her say about farmers," says ACT Rural Communities spokesman Mark Cameron. “On her first day in the House as Green ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards – Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Curran, Associate Professor of Ecology, Lincoln University, New Zealand Getty Images/Gerald Corsi In the latest move to reform environmental laws in New Zealand, the coalition government has introduced a bill to fast-track consenting processes for projects deemed to ...
Uber has argued it does not have as much control over drivers as the unions suggest, and wants a judgment ruling that drivers are employees and not contractors set aside and sent back to the Employment Court. The 2022 ruling followed a three-week hearing in which four drivers sought to ...
What can and can’t be purchased by disabled people or their carers has been slashed in an effort by the Ministry of Disabled People Whaikaha to save money. The purchasing guidelines, a set of rules that sets out what can be purchased using the various streams of Government disability funding, ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Tod Wright and Hien Nguyen, Fiscal incidence in New Zealand: The effects of taxes and benefits on household incomes in tax year 2018/19 . Analyses of the distributional impact of taxation and government ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Cory Davis, Boston Hart and Benjamin Stubbing, Household cost-of-living impacts from the Emissions Trading Scheme and using transfers to mitigate regressive outcomes . This Analytical Note ...
A coalition of public transport and climate organisations, united as ‘Transport for All’, is actively opposing the government’s transport proposals. The draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) includes plans for higher fares for public transport, ...
Greater Wellington is inviting feedback on proposed changes to its Revenue and Financing Policy. The Revenue and Financing Policy covers the Council’s various sources of funding, and how the cost of services is shared across the region. This includes ...
Labour has conceded it could have done more to deal with disruptive state housing tenants while in government but says the current coalition is going too far. ...
The band has asked their record label to issue a cease and desist to stop the NZ First leader using their 1997 hit to support his ‘misguided political views’. “I get knocked down, but I get up again,” blared through the speakers on Sunday as Winston Peters took the stage ...
By Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific journalist Food rationing is underway in remote areas in Papua New Guinea’s Highlands following torrential rain and flash flooding. More than 20 people have been reported dead in Chimbu Province. In nearby Enga Province, the centre of last month’s massacre, a 15-year-old boy has been ...
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After years of pressuring banks and other institutions to stop investing in fossil fuels, climate campaigners are making some progress. So how does divestment work?For years, climate activists have been pushing banks and other big institutions to divest from fossil fuels. New research from climate advocacy group 350 Aotearoa ...
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There’s ample evidence demonstrating free school lunch programmes provide wide benefits across schools, households and communities according to public health researchers. ACT Minister David Seymour wants to reduce the spending on Aotearoa New Zealand’s ...
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The Taxpayers’ Union is welcoming comments from Christopher Luxon this morning recommitting to ‘no new taxes’ as part of Budget 2024. “Mr Luxon’s refusal at the Post-Cabinet press conference yesterday to repeat the ‘no new taxes’ promise ...
SAFE is urgently calling on the Environment Committee to reject the Government’s Fast-Track Approvals Bill, and is urging New Zealanders to rally behind the call. The proposed Bill, currently under consideration with the Environment select committee, ...
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The long-running Wellington music festival is too focused on the Jim Beam-ness and not enough on the Homegrown-ness.There is something about Homegrown that’s difficult to place. A barely perceptible-ness. Like feeling a ghost is watching you from the corner of the room but when you look, there’s nothing there. ...
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Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Griffiths, Deputy Program Director, Budgets and Government, Grattan Institute Australia’s political donations rules are woefully inadequate, but donations reform is finally on the agenda. The federal government has signalled its interest in reform and will soon begin briefing MPs on its ...
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Ah, the delicious irony!
Soimun employs God knows how many ‘experts’ in his office to make attack ads, with unrelenting negativity, for which he gets quite rightly slagged off.
Jacinda fronts for a simple 2 minute (nearly 3 minutes) video of the Coalition’s achievements – and the tweet goes around the world. [Sorry, not tech savvy enough to put up a link.] It must really hack off the Natz party strategists!
Also, I live in Christchurch but I could hear Soimun grinding his teeth in Botany when he congratulated the next leader of the Natz on his selection.
It’s going to be a dirty election campaign next year because that’s all the Natz have got, but first points to the Coalition.
You can't fake star power.
Corbyn: 'the future is ours to make'.
https://labourlist.org/2019/10/the-future-is-ours-to-make-together-corbyns-campaign-launch-speech/
Edit
Are you in UK or NZ quasimodo? Brexit and UK Labour are a topic on their own.
Looking at Corbyn’s speech – free prescriptions, free care for the elderly – both enormously growing costs to the state. He is a bit free with his promises methinks when he wants to appeal to the wide British public:
Thank you for that welcome. Today we are launching the most ambitious and radical campaign our country has ever seen to bring real change to our country.
If you want to live in a society that works for everybody and not just the billionaires, if you want to save our hospitals, schools and public services from Tory cuts and privatisation, if you want to stop the big polluters destroying our environment then this election is your chance to vote for it.
The choice could not be clearer. We put our faith in the British people’s spirit and commitment to community. It’s your country. That’s why we stand with you.
(Notice he refers to ‘British’.)
He will appeal to the simple-minded, innocent and trusting, but people who think about stuff know there have to be boundaries on promises. Otherwise, as Paul Simon says – ‘They’re a pocketful of mumbles’. Labour can’t afford to mumble, as Corbyn says
Are you trying to enforce thematic conformism ? What happened to the cut and thrust of honest debate ? We otherwise have the depressing prospect of Simon swinging at the mercy of self-appointed Nationalist grandees.
Uh? I don't have your advantage of looking down from a high place. I am just down here at the grassroots.
Have a look at Corbyn's speech. I don't know who wrote it but it has a great riff near the end .. "whose side are you on ?" Luxton may have cause to ponder.
Ol' Luxton is totally after Simon's job.
I am not sure he is Key 2.0 though. He has a lot more baggage. He is an awfully happy clappy God squadder who has already revealed himself as an antediluvian anti-abortionist and he is very unpopular in the provinces due to his decisions at Air New Zealand for example.
And he'll have to step up his game in interviews, RNZ just did a gotcha on him over vaccinations that was so, so easy…
Just listened to that interview – conclusion: I've got to question Luxton's political judgement – "We've got an outstanding leader in Simon Bridges."
Talked with an airhostess from Air New Zealand – not at all happy with Luxton's leadership or management style. Perhaps he may be Key 2.0.
Oh, but I agree, Simon Bridges stands out alright.
"We've got an outstanding leader in Simon Bridges."
Let's see if he takes 'personal responsibility' for that when the knives come out. They're being sharpened this very moment
It's likely to be painful – none of the Gnats can hold much of an edge – they're essentially blunt instruments.
You don't think Luxton will resort to 'convenient Christianity' when he knifes Bridges in the kidneys on his way up? "Yes, we rolled Simon while claiming to support him unequivocally, but it was for the good of the party, and therefore the good of all mankind. Hallelujah!"
Umm John Luxton retired from parliament some years ago now. I think this newbie is Luxon, without the 't'. Or am I wrong?
No, you're quite right. Well spotted.
I can see that Christopher Luxon will have to change his surname to Luxton if commenters are going to continue to use that name.
He sounded like a cookie cutter right wing business guy from the shallow end of the pool. Fetishising "personal responsibility", ignorantly stating that Key was "the greatest PM ever" , sliding ever so easily into a bit of bene bashing. So all the ingredients he needs to be very successful in this dumbarse village.
Just like John Key, another personal vanity project.
And he has a wife who thinks she is NZ's equivalent to the Duchess of Cambridge – better know as Kate Middleton.
Yeah… a bit of bitching but it's true.
Oh and that ‘dowager’ duchess, Michelle Boag reckons he’s a :
rilly, rilly loverly maaan.
That’s enough to send shivers down one’s spine.
I'm fairly certain 'rilly, rilly loverly' men don't join the National Party. Isn't being a self-serving, overly-ambitious arsehole a prerequisite for membership? I still can't get my head around Nikki Kaye. She seems warm, personable and genuine for the most part, but… National. Unless she has multiple personalities, I don't understand how she reconciles being a Bastard Party MP with being, you know, a decent human being.
Lewis Carroll went wandering in his mind and thought up a character very like Michelle Boag. This link has a drawing of Alice and the White Queen and I'm not sure of the character on the right. Great likeness for Michelle on the left though, except that's the wrong side!
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2016/05/10/from-trump-to-brexit-here-are-six-previously-impossible-things-f/
I felt the same about Marilyn Waring. Do you think it could be naivete ?
Tribal politics I think – brought up on a particular political brand.
In Marilyn Waring's case, she suffered at the hands of Muldoon and she would have learnt what it is like to be discriminated against in general terms – in her case due to sexual orientation. There's nothing like a bit of personal experience to change one's views .
Nikki Kaye is unlikely to have been exposed to the same sort of treatment.
Well….probably as much baggage. It's just that Key manages to bury his, and Luxton wears his like a badge of honour. Both as bad as each other
He isn't Key 2.0, and people shouldn't buy into that simplistic label ("coz rich white CEO, same same"). Key's god was Key.
Based on their public statements and (where relevant) votes in Parliament, Luxon is even more conservative than Bridges, who is more conservative than English, who was more conservative than Key, who was "pragmatic" (i.e saw the polls and voted for marriage equality).
A majority of National's own MPs voted for the 1st reading of Abortion Reform Bill. They might not later, after committee, but even going that far is too far for Luxon. If you take all the social issues currently debated (cannabis, euthanasia etc) he is more like a Craig Conservative or the fundies in Dunne's 2002 caucus. He should really be leading a 5% minority party, National's fantasy friend.
Family First have endorsed him enthusiastically. Enough said.
Well observed I think. Is having a male Jenny Shipley what National needs today? The way that National acts (get the pun!) just demonstrates that they have no interest in the country as a whole.
We are of as much interest as the starving Irish people in the second potato famine were to the Brits. The Brits knew about incipient famines because they had provided help with the first, but the second was a bridge too far, and the food production had been contracted out to feed the British Army.
It was collateral damage that the people went without while the plans and wants of the powerful were satisfied. And that is the modus operandi of the Gnats here, suck us dry and feed us words of needing higher productivity and efficiency as an excuse. That sucks!
They are interested in 'me and mine', and the group of wealthies they belong to, aspirational for swimming pools, big houses and grounds, or boutique apartments wherever they wish to visit FTTT. Also well-managed funds with investments in things of destruction or addiction, that people will keep buying even when they have to borrow at 0.8% per day (or 292% p.a.) to get them.
Even people involved in money wealth creation have trouble explaining their work clearly as in this report from interest.co.nz. https://www.interest.co.nz/personal-finance/101502/government-includes-daily-interest-rate-cap-loans-part-bid-crack-down-loan
'In April FinCap chief executive Tim Barnett said the Government’s proposed amendments didn’t hit loan sharks hard enough and called for a cap on interest rates and called for an interest rate cap. The organisation is the umbrella body for New Zealand’s budgeting and financial capability services.'
So thinking about money and arithmetic is riveting, but the RW government's disdainful policies for handling the poor, especially 'the breeders', is just political garbage-work though essential to keep the vermin down. Luxon shows that he is willing to be a good squaddie to get a carriage on the gravy train like John Key did.
Yes, as per this morning on RNZ, WFF recipients will be pleased to hear that in Mr Luxon’s view they will need to vaccinate their kids in order to receive their “in work tax credits”…
Also our shiny domed hero has to play snakes and ladders with Jami Lee Ross before he is an MP, yet alone leader of the NZ National Party–a mere formality of course political experts say.
Wait till the campaign cos if they don't
pay offgag JLR he could do significant damage as luxon's another copy/paste corporate executioner with limited charisma.If I was winnie I'd drop a strong NZF candidate in Botany high enough on their list to still be an MP and have some more fun at natz expense.
IMHO Luxon stands out as Jamie Whyte 2.0 – not Key 2.0. In looks as well as in his views.
My money (Nil) is on him not lasting long – and possibly not even until next year's election.
For anyone wanting them, here are the links to the Morning Report item on Luxon's selection and his MR interview – and also the link to Jami-Lee Ross' interview later in Morning Report. Ross made some good points imo.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/2018720736/inside-the-national-party-s-botany-selection-meeting
.https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/2018720739/luxon-wins-botany-spot
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/2018720752/jami-lee-ross-responds-to-christopher-luxon-s-selection
Ross might make salient points. They will have less than zero effect on Luxon and his flying in in Botany.
Luxon's views on vaccinating kids in order to receive their “in work tax credits” or anything specific (as mentioned by Tiger Mountain) are irrelevant.
A la Key, Luxon publicly slaying babies would see his Botany vote solidify rather than diminish.
Luxon playing the National PParty divide and conquer play book punish the poor for being poor. Why not stop free education which does not discriminate for those who don't vaccinate.
It will be interesting to see how high National put him on the list. A high spot would give him standing and provide insurance just in case Ross did actually win the seat. But putting him high on the list would play into Ross' point that the voters can have both of them by vote splitting. Is Luxon there to oust Ross or be leader? Strategies for each may conflict.
Do you seriously believe Luxon needs the insurance of a high place in case Ross actually wins the seat?
There is as much chance of Ross winning the seat as there is of Walter Nash winning back the Hutt electorate next year.
ha – it wasn't Whyte who came to my mind so much as Don Brash.
Nats seem to regard these chosen men are a bit like a gambler looks at a lucky number: they recall the one big streak, but forget all the losers.
I really think he could be Key 2.0, and may well prove as successful for the National Party.
There is a lot of discussion about his beliefs, values etc here. If National have proved nothing else – it is that none of that matters. A good sound bite – being "rich / successful", fakely 'relatable' and some sleazy marketing angles pay dividends in the NZ electorate for the right.
Trouble with genuinely-held beliefs is that they can get in the way of saying the most expedient thing. Or their previous expression can contradict what you say now.
Key was a moral vacuum. That's why he could say "whatever it takes" one minute and do fuckall the next.
I doubt Luxon has a shortage of moral vacuum – but yes, perhaps he has some inconvenient values.
a pondering
wft about this trade deal – how does the climate emergency fit with this – seems fucken forgetful to me.
My 12 year old just left for school camp today – I'm pleased he gets to do this.
Jacinda pisses me off but the alternatives are nauseating – bridges, collins, bennett and now this luxon – what a bunch of idiots – imagine them in charge and don't forget that feeling come election time.
We are so smart as a species and so thick – just like every other species except for this shit I think
I think most Westerners have still to unpack our own experiences of colonisation, that happened a long time ago and from which we have neither recovered nor even really taken into account. We are so deep now in the split of matter and spirit, or mind and body, or human and nature, that we struggle to even see the problem.
So at the moment the problem is seen as carbon emissions and how to reduce them in a time frame that if we were going to step out of denial will almost certainly require a drop in standard of living for the industrialised world. Instead of seeing climate change as really being about our relationship with nature and then being able to see that all the solutions are there waiting for us from that other, deeper reality.
This is my way of making sense of spending all that tremendous intelligence, technological development, time, energy, intuition, and physical material on space exploration instead of realigning ourselves with nature and getting really good, en masse, at the tech that restores and regenerates.
Inspiring words weka.
thanks grey.
Thank you! Everyone is always on here sweating the small stuff National, the opposition, are doing or complaining about overseas issuea.
no one is taking stock of the lack of progress this government has made with sustainable housing, public transport and moving the economy to sustainable practices. It’s one announcement it’s been able to triumph about is adding to the neo liberal, emission creating, global economy
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2019/11/05/895405/migrant-exploitation-review-a-government-chasing-its-tail
Exactery!
[ "But while the review doesn’t address the desire for residence that leaves many workers open to exploitation, several major positives in the review were highlighted by Kaloti and Bela.
They include a unit at MBIE dedicated to combating migrant worker exploitation and measures to help chase employers if they liquidate multiple companies to avoid liability. " ]
I guess small steps are better than no steps and Rome wasn't built in a day. And then there's a decade of NZ's previous junta making sure the whole thing became industrialised.
Industrialising, downsizing staff and replacing with – overseas call centres, technological algorithms replacing staff, less interest in spending money on people first because they are worth it, or second because it makes good long-term sense for a NZ Inc wants to be a well-run enterprise.
Our National Party Junta has a known course and rigid mindset. Will they find support from the previous class-deserting former-worker insurgents? Watch and see as this interesting tale of human endeavour, lost loves and imminent tragedy unfolds.
Interesting paragraph from @Weka at 3.1 above (especially her first paragraph ). Sums it all up nicely really. I always try and avoid the word 'colonisation' precisely because we can't seem to deal with it and its effects.
I was half expecting someone's alter ego (who has commented here on another thread) to respond, with another insular, link-laden response and rant about 'activist media' that don't conform to his world view – could still happen I 'spose.
Btw @greywarshark, now I've looked at things re disappearing comments elsewhere, I think its not as sinister as you may think – maybe more to do with our being caught up in a block-delete of comments that came after yours and/or mine
Ta, where would we be without something to wonder/worry about. Probably in the in-firm-ary.
Gangster in Chief.
https://twitter.com/tburages/status/1191405984444551169
https://twitter.com/tburages/status/1191405996914163714
https://i.stuff.co.nz/opinion/117051213/greens-have-a-tenuous-relationship-with-science
This young falla reckons the greens are anti science if it doesn't suit their ideology.
I think he could be noticing that the Greens think about 'science' and past and new methods of using it, and don't just jump up like a slavering dog woofing with joy at a treat.
FEI –
About Peter Griffin https://petergriffin.co.nz
Sep 15, 2011 – Peter Griffin is a Wellington-based science and technology journalist with 20 years experience in the New Zealand media covering science, technology, media and business. … in 2009 he founded Sciblogs.co.nz, the Australasia’s largest science blog network which is still going strong …
He was Director of the Science Media Centre.
2017 https://thespinoff.co.nz/author/peter-griffin/
Peter Griffin is Director of the Science Media Centre and the founder and editor of Sciblogs. Prior to founding the SMC, he was Technology Editor of the New Zealand Herald. Peter was the 2012 Fulbright-Harkness Fellow and undertook research in the US looking at centres of excellence in public interest journalism.
A man for all seasons:
Tech talk with Peter Griffin | RNZ https://www.rnz.co.nz › national › programmes › afternoons › audio › tec…
Nov 22, 2018 – Peter Griffin takes a look at the kinds of new or old technology that people might be looking to buy for Christmas or in the new year sales and …
For once The Guardian is not locked to neoliberalism and the usual economic fallacies – and appears to back Jeremy Corbyn!!
Maybe there is hope.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/nov/04/the-guardian-view-on-labours-radical-plans-fix-the-economy-and-democracy
Notice that is the 'official' Guardian view, they still will publish lots of personal views of their columnists who hold their nose over Corbyn- those columns are the ones syndicated for re-publishing around the world.
I do wonder about who the Editorial board are talking to when they say phrases like this
"The result was an immiseration of ordinary people and the forced decay of the public realm. "
My guess for whence this eventuates. John McDonell keeps losing economics debates (over his flagship fiscal credibility idea) with factions of UK Labour (who apply their MMT derived understanding of the UK economy). He is probably realising that his present position doesn't ever see him as the Chancellor and is looking to shift from it, at least rhetorically.
Whilst on the sordid topic of the nasty Natz, RNZ website has just announced Maggie Barry is to retire from politics at the 2020 election. More to come.
No doubt Ms Barry has served her 9 years +, during which time she has contributed to creating more suffering and hardship amongst the nation's impoverished and vulnerable. Now after that time, she is able to walk away with a tidy pension and life time perks!
To get rid of the purse-padders should we bring down the terms required to serve to two as MPs? It isn't long I know, but a week in politics can be a game-changer, and six years of pain and suffering to the country's people and flagging economy would be plenty.
Paying up to prevent another 3 years would be a good deal looked at in reality. Picture the unwanted pollie with small hand gun saying "Pay up or I will hang around your neck, ruin your prospects – whatever you have left – and ensure you never get to heaven"! I know what I would choose.
Exactly, troughs assured now sling the hook as there will be more. expect a dan Bidois clone or a demographic box tick candidate.
Most likely a pre purchased indian or Chinese candidate. $100K gets a list spot ! One wonders what a safe electorate costs.
I dont think the gravy train after 9 years works like that anymore
"The travel perk only applies to MPs who served three terms before 1999 and is capped at the cheapest Air New Zealand business class flight to London each year and 12 domestic return flights."
the pension is generous ($2.50 for every $1 put in, plus any investing gains if they ran a personal scheme), but no special deal at the 9 yr stage.
This is informative for an overview.
Former MPs and their perks – salary, free travel and taxpayer-funded car Sept 2017
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11927540
Thats not true . Read the article again…the only person getting a car is former PMs. Salary is for 3 months after election, and not connected to 9 yrs service.
"she is able to walk away with a tidy pension and life time perks! "
She will get no such thing. The fabled pension and perks for retiring MPs were abolished a long, long time ago. The only current MPs who will receive life time pensions when they retire are Nick Smith and Jacinda Ardern.
Nick because he was an MP elected in 1990 and Jacinda because she has been PM for 2 years. There are no continuing perks for anyone else except for the free trip to Wellington to clean out their office and the 3 months pay they get after Election day.
The government contributes to the pension scheme of their own choice too, some use Kiwisaver, but at a much more generous rate than ordinary workers.
national MPs seem to prefer their own private super scheme, which they choose the investments , often property
The subsidy rate for any Super scheme is generous but certainly not that far out of line. They can contribute up to 8% of their basic back bench MP salary and it will be matched at 2.5 times their contribution.
That is good but not way out of step with other organisations. In the last full time job I held. with a large Australian company in the mid 1990's I could put 6% of my salary into Super and they would match it at a 14% rate. That wasn't all that different and it covered all my salary, not just the portion that the basic minimum level available to an MP represents.
Incidentally you may be interested to know that everybody's favourite bogeyman among the MPs who have left Parliament in the last couple of years, Stephen Joyce, never took advantage of the scheme. He was, as far as I know, the only MP in the last Parliament who never collected the 20% extra available to him. Everyone else took it because they could. Greedy little buggers weren't they?
Would this be called a Claytons move? Or is it a wise first step out of the conundrum?
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/402550/occupied-ihumatao-land-could-be-granted-highest-heritage-status
Heritage New Zealand is considering giving the land at Ihumātao the highest level of heritage recognition, but it won't change the consent for the Fletcher housing development.
In legal terms classifying a property has no direct effect.
"Entry on the List:
https://www.heritage.org.nz/the-list/about-the-list
Maggie Barry retiring continues the cleanout of Amy Adams supporters from caucus
The rough support groups described here at the time
national party has more in common with the Politburo than you might think
Someone the other day was almost in tears about the affect on Samoa of measles which infection can be laid squarely at NZs door.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/402548/samoa-measles-epidemic-suspected-cases-could-be-tip-of-iceberg
Now, new global research shows the virus is even more dangerous than first realised because it destroys immunity to other diseases.
So our carelessness under easy-peasy no regulations, little public health support for the poor, is coming home not so much to us but to bite another more vulnerable country.
We need to pass a law that gives immediate attention and full support to Western Samoa and ensures that continues for a full year, and then continues for another five years at half the budget of the first year for four years. We can afford it, if we aren't prepared to spend some of the theoretical credits in our own country, then it won't be a waste of money to help Western Samoa, and give us street cred as well.
"affect on Samoa of measles which infection can be laid squarely at NZs door."
Thats absurd . Measles is a contagious disease , it spreads naturally. The measles epidemic arrived in NZ from overseas too- they say it was 12 separate outbreaks here based on the virus analysis, and they spread to people connected to those 12 original originators. One of those infected visited Samoa, nothing to do 'with NZ'
Samoa has direct flights NZ , Fiji, Pago Pago and Brisbane, so would have arrived by air anyway
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12282326&ref=clavis
Mars Petcare announces closure of Whanganui factory in late 2020
The Whanganui road going down the hill wouldn't have helped. They are going to Thailand. World ownership of business will suck us dry, set up do okay, then oh dear we can only stay if you drop wages, drop electricity price. Nothing is certain these days, but having overseas giants own us is certainly more uncertain than if we owned it ourselves and ran a viable concern.
"When the world witnessed the “Arab Spring” it waited in fervent hope for an Arab Summer that never came. The young, middle-class Egyptians who crowded into Cairo’s Tahrir Square demanded democracy. But, when they got it, the answer it provided to the question: “Who are the people, and what do they want?” was not at all to their liking. Within months, the soldiers were back in charge, and the people’s choice, the Muslim Brotherhood, were back in jail – or dead. In politics, as in no other human activity, people should be very careful what they wish for.
Planning for the future will always produce a richer harvest than merely wishing away the present. Protest, if it is to be effective, has to make more than noise – it has to make sense."
https://thedailyblog.co.nz/2019/11/05/global-protests-rage-on-but-slogans-are-not-plans/
Fail to plan, plan to fail
This is why it is almost impossible to get pragmatic practical steps to tackle climate change at these conferences. They become magnets for groups like this who then help turn it in to a talk fest about "intersectional challenges" blah blah.
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
Luxon playing the National PParty divide and conquer play book punish the poor for being poor. Why not stop free education which does not discriminate for those who don't vaccinate.
It's preemptive really – the poor have the most reason to indict National for their egregious failures. Let the poor find their voice and the Gnats and their dodgy backers are history.
31 October 2019 on forestry which we are too weak and useless to do for ourselves which we did last century. The Green Rush series on Radionz.
Forestry conversions rules 'totally out of control'
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/in-depth/402225/forestry-conversions-rules-totally-out-of-control
Overseas Investment Office (OIO) decisions made in September and released today show the sales total more than 2200 hectares of land previously owned by New Zealanders, in Gisborne, Wairoa and Whangarei.
The new owners plan to plant 1600 hectares of the land as commercial forests.
Austrian count Johannes Trauttmansdorff-Weinsberg, who purchased two other sheep and beef farms for forestry conversion in August, is the purchaser of two of the latest properties. Another Austrian, Wolfgang Leitner, and a Swiss-German company, Kauri Forestry LP, have bought the other land.
At least one of Mr Trautmansdorff-Weinsberg's deals was brokered through veteran forestry consultant Roger Dickie, who was found to have breached OIO rules earlier this year over a similar deal.
https://youtu.be/ETOIIWot-3Y?t=199https://youtu.be/ETOIIWot-3Y?t=199https://youtu.be/ETOIIWot-3Y?t=199
https://youtu.be/e8CPc4MAL1c?t=3https://youtu.be/e8CPc4MAL1c?t=3https://
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
I don't do or support pot… but pot is the 2019 equivalent to moonshine…
Hear these words.
Its the truth.
Look out, Mama, there's a white boat coming up the river
With a big red beacon, and a flag, and a man on the rail
I think you'd better call John
Because it don't look like they're here to deliver the mail
And it's less than a mile away
I hope they didn't come to stay
It's got numbers on the side and a gun
And it's making big waves
[Verse 2]
Daddy's gone, my brother's out hunting in the mountains
Big John's been drinking since the river took Emmy-Lou
v
So the powers that be
left me here
to do the thinkin'
And I just turned twenty-two
I was wonderin' what to do
And the closer they got,
The more those feelings grew.
Daddy's rifle in my hand
felt reassurin'
He told me,
Red means run, son,
numbers add up to nothin'
But when the first shot
hit the docks I saw it comin'
Raised my rifle to my eye
Never stopped to wonder why.
Then I saw black,
And my face splashed in the sky.
Shelter me from the powder
and the finger
Cover me with the thought
that pulled the trigger
Think of me
as one you'd never figured
Would fade away so young
With so much left undone
Remember me to my love
Shelter me from the powder
and the finger
Cover me with the thought
that pulled the trigger
Think of me
as one you'd never figured
Would fade away so young
With so much left undone
Remember me to my love,
I know I'll miss her.
Mate- its open mike.
And unless your weka or some other biased online hustler… you aint got a show. Id suggest you be more careful in future yourself, as the Greens seem quite disposed towards certain practices. Crawl out of your cave and get real . Even the USA which you choose to malign because of Trump has modernized.
So get off wanker, … grow a pair and name who you are as a mod.
No one gives a shit about who you want to pretend you are, and no one seriously gives you a flying shit.
What… they were the embodiment of pacifism and world peace?
Piss off.
Paraihaka my arse.
Get a load of reality and stop filling peoples heads with bullshit, a – holes.
Ancient Celtic New Zealand
http://www.celticnz.co.nzv
Get a grip on yourselves.
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
[I’ve pushed a number of comments to Trash, in large part because of the aggressive and spammy nature of your posting tonight. A 24 time out so you can settle down seems warranted. I’ll put your comments in premod after that, so I can keep an eye on them. Please reread the Policy, about not using language or tone that has the effect of excluding others – weka]
The greatest insult you could deliver was to murder some poor bastard the night before, cook him in a hangi , then shit out his remains the next morning after.
That was common in Europe as well as New Zealand. Stop pulling the monumental porkies.
Just dont.
We all, have read up on the subject.
You cant hide whats in plain sight.
There was a story of Cook and his men inviting a group of Maori warriors aboard,… an old warrior offered the remains of a skull to the sailors… they were nauseous… the remains of a young warrior were cooked and contained in kiti bags… but the brains were the best part according to the old warrior…
Such was cannibalism and the insult of shitting out the remains of a warrior the next morning considered.
What is it with you soft cocks that you cant accept history???