When US President Donald Trump suggested that US service members could open fire at the thousands of migrants currently on their way to the American border, he likely wanted to reach two audiences: voters demanding a hard-line stance on immigration and the migrants making their way through Mexico.
But his words were also heard much farther away from Washington: in Nigeria, where Trump has a higher approval rating than anywhere else in Africa. On Friday (local time), the Nigerian army took to Twitter to defend its decision open fire at Shiite protesters in the capital, Abuja – by citing Trump.
“Please Watch and Make your Deductions,” read the tweet, which included a video clip in which Trump says: “Anybody throwing stones, rocks … we will consider that a firearm because there is not much difference.”
Gun-carrying civilian groups and border vigilantes have heard a call to arms in US President Donald Trump’s warnings about threats to American security posed by caravans of Central American migrants moving through Mexico.
They’re packing coolers and tents, oiling rifles and tuning up aerial drones, with plans to form caravans of their own and trail American troops to the border.
“We’ll observe and report, and offer aid in any way we can,” said Shannon McGauley, a bail bondsman in the Dallas suburbs who is president of the Texas Minutemen. McGauley said he was preparing to head for the Rio Grande in coming days….
,,,,,,,The Rio Grande is less than a mile from Metz’s living room window, and a section of border wall crosses his property. He has watched for years as border-crossers ford the river and walk onto his land, their first step on American soil. The wall has slowed the flow significantly, he said, but between 50 and 100 people a day still cross through the farm next door.
He worries that the caravan, which includes many women and children, will surge through the area, but he doesn’t want armed vigilantes on his farm.
“The militia just needs to stay where they are,” said Metz, a Republican. “We don’t need fanatical people. We don’t need anybody here with guns. Why do they have guns? I have dealt with illegals for 30 years, and all of them have been scared, asking for help. The militias need to stay up north where they belong. We have no use for them here. They might shoot someone or hurt someone.”….
“James Shaw’s progress on our climate change goals, and with the ambition of New Zealand First in the mix, our plan to plant one billion trees is well under way – for those who don’t follow the tree counter as religiously as I do, we are up to 60.6 million”.
It was at least mentioned, fair enough to have missed it though.
And I guess we better ignore the fact that there are many people rather sceptical about the idea that the Emissions Trading Scheme is ever going to be the key to dealing with cataclysmic climate change.
And what exactly did Jacinda mean by “and with the ambition of New Zealand First in the mix”?.
“In the nineteenth century, there was no superannuation or sick leave or paid holidays. People fought so hard to win those rights and now we’re glibly throwing them away.”
“It’s time to bring employment law into the twenty-first century and ensure all employees, gig or salaried have flexible working opportunities, but also the same protections and benefits. This stops arbitrage of hard-won, and necessary, protections,”
“If you wouldn’t wear a T-shirt made in a sweatshop,” don’t take an Uber,
The last time I took a conventional taxi he charged $30 for a 10 minute drive. That’s 1 way Aotea Square to Westmere. The gig I did that night paid the princely sum of $40. The bus in was $2.20 (with student discount).
Then WINZ wanted all manner of paperwork as I, a student, earned fuck all. They added the $40 to an $80 teaching gig and penalized me for the lot refusing to discount travel expenses.
So it was not worth leaving the house if taxis were required.
I attended Tarun Mohanbhai’s Comedy festival show Uber Funny in May this year. It was about his journey to being, and experiences as, an uber driver. Sounded like a total rort on the operators and next to no responsibility for management.
Abandoning Uber wont help the drivers. Closer scrutiny and regulation might.
Uber is a great example of a few people getting very, very rich on the work of lots and lots of other people who don’t actually get enough from their hard work to even pay their way. It’s pure exploitation that sucks wealth and money out of the community while providing SFA.
This is why the capitalists love it so much.
Helping the drivers would be the government setting up similar software that NZ taxi drivers could use that paid for by taxes. This would have it so that the convenience is there for the customers but the drivers actually get to keep all their income rather than having most of it syphoned off to rich bludgers.
It’s way past time to bring employment law into the 21stC – we’re 18 bloody years in!
And one of the big issues to be dealt with is the way corporates and others try to outsource their responsibilities whilst being able to clip the ticket.
It’s taken a change in government for the Labour Inspectorate to get off its chuff and start to take it all seriously (albeit as under-resourced as it has been, although one of its managers was assuring us all that there were sufficient inspectors not long before the last election).
And at least we have some prepared to keep the pressure on:
Congratulations to Teuila Fuatai of Newsroom who is not going to let one instance of it all die: https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2018/11/05/306076/chorus-speaks-out-on-migrant-exploitation and https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2018/10/08/269274/migrant-exploitation-and-the-true-cost-of-ufb
Then there’s the so-called “independent contractors” who are actually DEPENDENT courier drivers. The corporates have shunted their costs onto the subcontractor and bound them through contracts that should (if they are not already) be illegal.
Again, it’s all been working as designed over the past decade.
What we should be asking is
– how long is it going to be before the bloody big shakeup taht’s quite obviously necessary, and
– are the ticket clippers going to be held to account, or will it be another Wellington wet bus ticket approach which will simply result in quite a few being tempted to try it all on again
In regards to the truckies/couriers, John Campbell started looking at this just before he left RNZ.
It would be good if someone followed up on the traction gained.
A similar dodgy practice is construction firms having their apprentices as sub contractors.
We do @Patricia, and they shouldn’t need bloody stab proof vests
( https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/103790349/labour-inspectors-now-wearing-stabproof-vests-but-say-theyre-not-cops ). If ever there were signals that show what their priorities are/ere, that was one of them.
It took MoBIE a while to realise why nobody wanted to come forward to report cases of exploitation and immigration fraud as well.
Many still don’t want to, and its completely understandable why.
Yep @ gsays. I doubt John Campbell will leave it to die. And there are others who I think will try and keep it all alive. (Laura Toupu? from RNZ appears to have left and gone to New Shub, and there are others such as Michael Morrah, Gil Bonnett scattered around the place).
What we (lil ole yeah/nah Nu Zull) did was create a structure and policies which NORMALISED exploitation in the workplace. Passing on costs and driving down wages to small self-employed – often immigrants not entitled to any state benefits (income support, medical support, child care et al), and often so that the only way they could survive and recover from their indebtedness was to rip others off.
(I’ll try and find a link, but several weeks ago – either on NinetoNoon or Saturday, there was a review/author interview of a book I think – whereby an immigrant was confessing to sins he’d never have taken part in till he came here and tried to survive)
I know there are some in here that hold the view that we can’t save the world and that now we’ve created this situation, we should just boot ’em out and start again. My view is that if we don’t take responsibility for the past structure and policies we’re just setting ourselves up for it all to happen again, and as we do, we descend into the 3rd World.
And the worst part about it all is that once the indebted get themselves out of the shit (often through exploitative practices), they’re tempted towards the greedy, just like a lot of others.
NZ had a duty to properly resource agencies such as NZQA, and INZ, and the Labour Inspectorate, AND have them do their fucking job ethically and competently. The good thing is, there are signs they’re getting the message.
As we embraced the rogernomics, so can we formulate and embrace another revolution.
Especially with kindness as one of its central themes.
Sharing needs to be at the core too.
Get profit out of the money system, have the state issue $s.
Take the profit out of landlording.
Part of the frustration I sense here on TS is that with this government the key people and ingredients are in place.
Winnie who has said neo liberalism has failed and must go, a mother Premiere who has repeated kindness as a motto, and a populace young and old ready for radical change.
The Uber-economy f**ks us all: How “permalancers” and “sharer” gigs gut the middle class
The “sharing” economy sounds groovy: politically neutral, anti-consumerist. Wait until it comes for your job
They said education and hard work would set you free, maybe not …award winning qualified people are now scrabbling around to make ends meet as wages are no longer enough or secure enough to survive on …
‘Frederic Larson enjoyed a successful 30-year career as a staff photographer with the San Francisco Chronicle, during which time he won numerous awards, including being a Pulitzer Prize finalist. As Forbes reports, he was downsized during the recession, and needing income he “monetized his assets.” He turned his house into an Airbnb hotel and his spiffy Prius into a Lyft taxi. Now for 12 nights a month—40% of his life—he shutters himself in a rabbit hole inside his own home and showers at the local gym while complete strangers have the run of his place. This award-winning professional photographer has been turned into an innkeeper in his own home and a taxi driver in his own car.’
P>S> That seems to be the future of NZ, but be aware, a friend of mine from Eastern Europe once said there is saying in their country.
“we pretend to work and they pretend to pay us”
Might explain NZ productivity levels.
So is the government’s end game that our wages are so out of line with expenses, that a professional like a teacher does a 8 hour day, then goes home and does a few uber hours to make ends meet, while staying at friends while they rent out their house for a few extra dollars, just to pay for escalating power, housing, rates, insurance, water, food etc costs…. as their job no longer keeps pace with that.
Funny enough, polluting cruise ships are exempt from the paltry tourist taxes though, nice to be a multinational probably domiciled in a tax haven, and have the locals picking up the tab all the time!
And one of the big issues to be dealt with is the way corporates and others try to outsource their responsibilities whilst being able to clip the ticket.
Yes, the corporates and other businesses loved it when 20th century employment laws were taken back to the 19th century. National was, and is still trying, to take those laws even further back to produce more poverty so that the rich can be richer and more powerful.
Then there’s the so-called “independent contractors” who are actually DEPENDENT courier drivers. The corporates have shunted their costs onto the subcontractor and bound them through contracts that should (if they are not already) be illegal.
When I first went to Otago uni I looked for work at a labour temping agency. One of the clauses pretty much prevented me from even looking for work if I’d signed the contract as it prevented me from accepting work from any of the employers in the region who’d used the labour agency.
Completely against anything that could be considered a ‘free-labour market’ as it purposefully constrained what the employee could do.
“pretty much prevented me from even looking for work if I’d signed the contract”
This behavior is or was prevalent in a lot of comedy clubs in the UK 2000’s
Which went something along the lines of, if you do a gig here you can’t play other clubs within x time or x distance or both. Some of them probably still try this crap on. Like they think they own you if they hire you.
Looking at full time jobs today to see what it’s like. Many ask for people who are ‘flexible with hours’ – for ‘working weekends and overtime’. So not enough work or way too much is at their discretion really. They think they own your whole life. I’ve worked for A’holes like this they don’t give a shit about you or your own commitments. Flexibility means be my bitch. And the call for ‘flexibility’ is more common than not.
Employers whinge cos they can’t get good people. Anyone with half a clue, and the slightest choice, would reject that shit.
If you want good people be good people, you twats.
“If you want good people be good people, you twats”
Ae!
It probably still hasn’t dawned on the gNats yet though, or indeed one or two public servants who were angling to set up some kind of Peter Dutton type Border Force with spots on a Joolie Krusty reality TV show.
And Thompson and Clark are probably still pondering the size of their dicks in the realisation they weren’t as big as they imagined.
Deny Uber any IP protection for their apps etc. due to their bad behaviour.
Encourage the drivers to form driver-cooperatives and the like using the same technology.
Exploitative, globalised ticket-clipping because you happen to have invented some shitty little app is a grotesquely disproportionate reward.
National’s Nice Cop, Nasty Cop routine: Paula “Snitch” Bennett,
assisted by Sidekick Simon, goes after Jami-Lee Ross
Monday, Nov. 5, 2018
This is a real, unbowdlerized, transcript of that infamous conversation…..
JAMI-LEE ROSS: So it would be for medical reasons?
PAULA BENNETT: If THAT’s what you want. So you either—I think either medical or family’s your best option.
JAMI-LEE ROSS: Medical’s TRUU-U-UE.
SIMON BRIDGES: Yeah.
PAULA BENNETT: If that’s—
SIMON BRIDGES: Yeah. No that’s RIGHT. That’s RIGHT.
PAULA BENNETT: And—
SIMON BRIDGES: There’s no SHAME in that.
PAULA BENNETT: No. And it mee-e-eans that everyone will back OFF you too – the media and all that sort of stuff. Which I think’s important. …. Just SUCH the lightest option we possibly can in the light of what we’ve got in front of us. And it’s out of respect to the girls.
JAMI-LEE ROSS: You haven’t even TOLD me what I’ve supposedly done. I don’t even KNOW.
PAULA BENNETT: Simon told you ALL ABOUT the disloyalty stuff, Jami-Le-e-ee, and quite frankly if that was put to caucus, that would be enough.
JAMI-LEE ROSS: The stuff around harassing STAFF, which I reject, that is the worst, ‘cos, and I don’t even know what that IS.
PAULA BENNETT: Well you DO know what the disloyalty stuff is, and that’s been put to you really clearly, and if that was put to caucus, that would be enough.
JAMI-LEE ROSS: [exasperated sigh]
PAULA BENNETT: You know? We are trying to give you the LIGHTEST POSSIBLE, um, way out of this.
SIMON BRIDGES: ‘Cos when we’re finished, Jami-Lee, we can get through it. And you can get through it. And you can come out the other side if your attitude, um, after the time out is, is GOOD and POSITIVE, and you can be promoted again. …. I give you my one HUNDRED percent assurance that if you go with the statement along the lines we’ve talked about, I will NEVER badmouth you in relation to this – privately, publicly, in background, off the record in any way. I will do everything within my power to keep the things we talked about last week out of the public [inaudible]. I will do everything.
Hi Antoine, JLR has not become a darling in my eyes, but more a symptom of all that lies beneath in the National party. I am glad its surfacing through him. Again I am unsure of his motivations, what really happened with the women. (we have seen text evidence of behaviour from one of the women he had an affair with though.
I wish anyone suffering from a mental illness all the very best in their recovery.
Oh yes and I do have a small amount of sympathy for Bridges……………..just a very small amount.
Its too early to tell if JLR is a geniune whistle blower or just seeking revenge. Or maybe a bit of both
I believe it in your case but I think others are starting to see him as a martyr. Remember the enemy of your enemy is not your friend. Shades of Kim dot com
A.
Despite all the noise, numerous allegations and speculation…. from what I heard of the tape, JLR clearly sounded di/stressed!
And as MS rightly pointed out in his Post yesterday; “It is noteworthy that the allegations only came out publicly when National decided to counterattack after Ross’s stand up conference in Parliament.
Ross’s mental health was not a significant consideration for them at that time.” (or at anytime!)
Clearly Bridges and Bennett’s behaviour was totally abhorrent!
abhorrent
/əbˈhɒr(ə)nt/
adjective
inspiring disgust and loathing; repugnant.
So OUR commons turned over so individuals can earn more profit. Water is our life and you farmer-capitalists are abusing that resource. Shame on them and the day of reckoning is coming, of that I have no doubt.
A controversial Mackenzie Basin high country station can now turn the irrigators on over a chunk of it – but the situation could have been different if it had applied for consents later, according to Environment Canterbury.
ECan put out a statement on Monday to announce Simons Pass Station could begin irrigating a portion of its land on either side of State Highway 8 in the Mackenzie Basin.
The area covers 700ha of the 9700ha station, but Simons Pass wants to irrigate up to 4500ha – and has the ECan-issued water consents required for that area…
… However, Greenpeace’s agriculture spokesperson Gen Toop said allowing the station to turn on the irrigators was a particularly bad decision because it granted consent without the station even undertaking a baseline ecological survey of the dryland area.
“The irrigators should never be allowed to be turned on,” Toop said.
“It’s an infuriating decision. What we see here is ECan not even following its own rules designed to minimise the impact of conversions in ecologically fragile environments. They’ve just ignored them.”
Toop said it was time for the Government to step in and provide stronger rules for land use in sensitive areas.
“Something has to be done. ECan has served the interest of the irrigation and dairy industries for the last eight years,” she said.
It makes me so angry that the demolition of ECan was done so easily and without undue reaction from we the people. And as Newsroom article says, “Doubts and fears sown in 2010 have bloomed into a concern that ECan is putting irrigation interests ahead of the environment.” https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2018/11/05/307965/council-caves-on-dairy-consent?preview=1
“The seeds were sown eight years ago, critics say. In 2010, the John Key-led Government sacked Canterbury’s regional councillors over “urgent problems with water management”.
David Parker, Minister for the Environment: For the sake of our rivers, our climate and the unique and precious Mackenzie country, I call on you to stop all new dairy conversions and intensification of existing livestock farming by making them both prohibited activities, effective immediately, in the National Policy Statement for Freshwater.
Yes, because saving the environment and the people while living sustainably is so very, very extreme.
National and other RWNJs tell us that we must live within our means while doing everything to prevent us living sustainably so as to boost profits for the capitalists.
As far as I can make out, the entire capitalist edifice that the politicians and most economists promote is complete bollocks. It’s all based upon false assumptions about human behaviour, drives and economics.
Notice Granny is still promoting the deal where rich individuals get free public land worth billions in return for a white elephant Stadium that nobody wants and the poorer folks have no access too aka paid events, even if they could afford the petrol to come into the city centre.
Note any buildings built on wharves cost 7 times more in maintenance, probably more these days.
So not only is there a white elephant Stadium that is being pushed as an agenda that nobody wants, but if it even got built, even BEFORE global warming, it is going to cost 7 times more at least to maintain than MT Eden.
So work harder people, Auckland council is going to need a lot more rates in the future, as we all know money is no object to them.
Auckland council might soon be running a city that has no teachers or Doctors or Police, but full of empty spec homes…and the working poor sleeping in the parks and cars..
But who cares, a few individuals have make a killing developing in MT Eden with free billion dollar land. Now that is capitalism!
Too true,
This council is fixated on every facility and business being in the CBD, at our expense. It is time that they reversed this philosophy and took the facility’s and jobs to the people in the form of satellite towns. It makes no sense to keep shifting people and goods into an ever increasingly populated area until it freezes from lack of maneuverability.
Also with our record of constructing leaky buildings any building at the mercy of the sea would appear to be an extremely risky venture
“Note any buildings built on wharves cost 7 times more in maintenance, probably more these days.”
This I find difficult to believe
“Stadium that nobody wants”
“pushed as an agenda that nobody wants”
While I don’t live in Auckland so care very little, I think you might be slightly thinking everyone else agrees with you and those you hang out with, when they probably don’t
Yes, Chris T you don’t live in Auckland and therefore have few insights into what people want here, and the last thing on anyone’s minds is wasting money on a white elephant stadium after all the other stupid ideas put upon us like the Supercity.
And yep do some checks and you will find wharf buildings cost 7x more in maintenance and that is before global warming and an idea to sink the stadium into the sea. Costs a lot more to maintain infrastructure underwater, go figure!
I think that a better idea for the Stadium is private practise own it, pay to build it, pay for the land and run it, independent of the council and pay for the maintenance off their ticket sales but we all know that won’t happen because the stadium is going to generate huge costs to the taxpayers and ratepayers and on going loses and private practise want the taxpayers to pay for it. Oh and don’t steal the harbour to do it.
A stadium is great for all those offshore luxury waterfront hotels, probably less fun for the residents of Auckland who live in the centre and a big headache for anyone struggling in Auckland, on a fixed income, or who have just been hit with a petrol tax and higher rates (or rents).
We have sewerage going into the harbour, massive congestion, housing inequity, full hospitals and schools, but the Stadium is where the granny headlines and the council is focused on.
Could stadiums be built in two stages? First get a roof-ready bunch of walls and facilities up, then add a roof – of some sort. In Wellington it would have to withstand regular strong winds. A retractable one then? A canvas one that wouldn’t be a huge loss if torn to ribbons and could be replaced? Something that wouldn’t turn into a flying weapon?
It’s ok. The caketin is what happens when you compromise and end up with something that doesn’t really suit anyone. Athletic Park was much better to watch footy at.
They should have built a rectangular stadium on the waterfront as 80% of sport played at the stadium is on a rectangular field. Then built a large stand at the Basin to increase capacity and there might have been some money leftover to start getting Light Rail to the Basin built.
I don’t think I caught a game at Athletic park. Although I have heard Keith Quinn recall the south stand move in one of the local breezes.
As an outsider, I probably couldn’t tell you how to get there.
Have seen several rugby games there, including Jonah’s last hurricanes game. There isn’t a bad seat in the house.
Coming from the provinces, it’s great.
Drive to Raumati, get on the train, day in Wellys, footy, then train back up the line then home.
I get there are impacts on rate bills, but with a bit of imagination this can be ameliorated. E.g. $1 a ticket for the first 5years goes to the stadium.
Perhaps they could sell the tickets out of the stadium, because there seems to be some fat in the prices ticketec, ticketmaster charge for their services.
It is a total lack of common sense to build yet another public building that will focus thousand of people into the smallest, narrowest part of New Zealand. An area already congested with other public buildings such as the university which already pulls 20,000 people into the same space.
For the same reason the port should not be developed any further either. The sea front of central Auckland should become a beautiful public recreational seafront for all to enjoy.
Get real !
I also totally disagree with the privatisation of the Auckland waterfront (I live in Auckland). And with the current approach to centralising all the city’s main events and corporate activities.
I love the idea of an Auckland version of Brisbane’s south bank as a people’s location for enjoying the waterfront.
Mother Agnes Mariam de la Croix wades into the Syria debate and talks about the phony White Helmets and Russia’s helpful contributions. Thank you Mother Superior.
Oh look, another apologist for the Assad regimes war crimes.
I've informed organizers of @STWuk that I will not participate in their conference if Mother Agnes is on the platform.— jeremy scahill (@jeremyscahill) November 15, 2013
The AMP demutualised some decades ago. Now it is getting out of life insurance and other things and has sold much of its business to a ‘closed book ‘ investor that apparently will just manage the present policies.
Is NZ getting uninsurable? As Ryan asked is it the growing numbers of people who won’t die (of course she didn’t use such stark description), also the earthquake and other risks we face, make us hard to quantify for insurance businesses? There was a mention that we are the second riskiest country in the world.
Something mentioned was that young people are not taking out insurance. That would fit in with the lack of care that many take as they go blindly or optimistically on their way as can be noticed when crossing roads. No look right or left, just step out with your eyes on your Device and whoosh for real.
I’m thinking of hard times earlier when often unions formed welfare societies which have been declining in NZ. This is in line with the idea that we didn’t need these any more as we had a welfare state, and had trustable commitment from government to provide a helpful environment for all citizens and to extend this to those in need. ACC was started under this mindset. And as a rather somnolent accepting society, we have been slow to complain about a decline from this, slow to feel concern even outrage on behalf of other people being badly treated, and of course the decline spreads like a creeping bindweed.
Start looking at deliberately forming local groups that assist in a practical way that are funded from locals for locals, and let us start having education sessions on how to manage our society, making the point that Margaret Thatcher and her ilk were talking ideological BS when saying ‘there is no such thing as society’. Also how to protect ourselves, where needed, what our vision is. Because without that there won’t be time to form a vision, it will be just inadequate immediate disaster relief, and repeat.
Right with you on the local organising.
I assume it is an Amish way, insurance comes from community, someones house, barn burns down, the community rebuilds it.
Your mention of unions reminds me of what we have lost.
My father had a massive stroke at work. He didn’t recover.
Two men knocked on my mother’s door, gave her an envelope.
It was enough for Dads funeral expenses and a little bit more.
Gsays, yes communities where unions were strong helped in bad times. Often it was union money plus a “whip round” with the hat, to top it up. I have always wondered what was done for the families of those forestry workers killed on the job. No union no rights.
The Amish are a cult and it is always dangerous to look at cults as the way to go, though their integrated community helping each other is probably what we need. I understand rural people mid 20th century in some areas of NZ could be a good template for what we need now. Their communal barn raising practice is a good symbol of what could be accomplished with more friendly cohesion.
The Mafia grew cult-like out of a poverty stricken area. The Exclusive Brethren are an example of a tightly bound group, and perhaps some of the Maori gangs are also tightly bound.
But cults or gangs or clans are cohesive and want to hold together. The best ones look out for each other, and that is what i thought we had in NZ but apparently no. And it seems to me that once people get comfortable they get bound up in wealth and its enjoyment and the past of striving is dismissed as another world. So my simple ideas that people would put into community some of what they had and the more they had, the more they could and would give; that is the remainder of a child’s idea.
Community and commitment both start the same way, and are fixed in partnership. So we should keep talking about that, while the sleek predators look to see what they can get hold of and use up majorly for their own benefit.
The clever predator will offer some deal to the community, but they need to check out net gains and look for fish hooks. And sometimes those who would be the most beneficial get overlooked in favour of another idea group which looks better until you unpick it and see the tell-tale lack of commitment to all the people.
I know of two small communities that are organising in case TSHTF.
Asking my friend who is a senior chappie in one of them, ‘post ‘Shit going down’ will you greet a stranger with a hug or a gun?’
He responded that a gun would be the first step back towards this mess we are in now.
The best thing would be to start doing something now before the mess we are in now becomes overwhelming.
I keep being drawn back to John Wyndham’s journey in The Day of the Triffids in which he has the man go from his convalescence in hospital to a temporary sanctuary in a distant rural area, along with a sighted woman partner he rescued from a bunch of blind thugs, and the remaining child of two whose parents, and her brother had been killed by the dangerous triffids. Then with his partner and the teenage girl, they join with a blind pair whose farm they have found sanctuary on, and escape from a dictatorship that has assumed the role of government by the use of arms, outwitting them. They go to an island group that has formed a civilised community which can defend itself and manage to wipe out the triffids there.
But on the way he stops at a large farm that has tried to take in everyone who arrives and is having trouble helping and feeding everyone. A disease spreads quickly and all the able-bodied flee, leaving the man who is a newcomer. He finds a girl still alive who talks to him knowing she is dying and wishes him well. He helps when she asks him for some sleeping tablets and water so she can take her own life when she wishes. There isn’t much he can do as an individual, most others he comes across have joined into the armed dictatorship run by a few hard men using force. He travels on towards an area where he thinks his partner has gone, offers friendship to the girl and they go on with patient determination and wise decision making till they find his partner.
It is rather along the lines of some USA films being made about dislocated people, with zombies rather than triffids as a menace. In them there are problems of food, relationships, trust, guns, wariness and privation. To have food it takes at least a month to grow anything, and whether there is anything that can be utilised like wild plants, berries, meat and fish and simple medications (I believe dock plants are useful), keeping alive would be a problem. I would rather we gathered ourselves together now rather than have to face the hard situations forced on us when resources run out.
I feel that guns and revolution are a last resort. But that trying to be both kind and practical as a guideline will enable people to enjoy a limited life compared to what we have been used to. And we may be able to conserve some of the things we have, think of ways to manage things we can’t influence or control. And I think of Dylan Thomas – he’s enigmatic and so is our future. Rage against the dying of the night, will keep us appreciating each other and our wonderful world, so much taken for granted.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2cgcx-GJTQ
It doesn’t feel grim, as the protagonist manages to solve problems and becomes part of a band of strong-minded, capable, practical people as a little family and they have hope for the future, and are inventive as to how to manage. The young man is not a drug addict or alcoholic, and is able to plan and imagine the outcomes of different scenarios and is capable, a hard worker and kind, brave, honest and true. Too nice to be a human really. /sarc
A few years ago I saw Tama, Dilworth Karaka and Tama Lundon unplugged at the Whanagnui Opera house.
Their set list, harmonies and innate showmanship, Tama’s guitar antics, the opera house acoustics and the crowd made it probably the best show I’d been to since the pub rock events of my youth.
Did anyone consider Jane Pattison’s article NZ Herald on the NZ Labour Conference contrived.
My reaction was Jane wanted to “minimize any impact through faint praise and suggested problems”
Some aspects. “Locked down” “Empty seats” “No fanfare” “No mention of Helen Clarke” “Journalists not allowed to see divisions or blood on the floor during discussions” “One good idea approved by the people”
Jane did you go to the same conference as Micky and Te Reo Putake? You needed to remove your blue tinted glasses.
She’s used to the Nat’s either buying or threatening journalists in order to push a message. She’s used to overhyped X-factor/evangelical-sermon Nat party conferences.
She doesn’t know what to do in the absence of that.
I wasn’t there, but I did attend the famous 2012 conference and saw first hand the way the media distorted, lied and created a mountainous drama from tiny molehills. I saw them hounding and harassing MPs on both sides of the factional divide, and I even saw them hanging around outside the outer door of the men’s loo and pouncing on MPs as they emerged. They couldn’t even go and have a quiet pee.
After that performance is it any wonder they prefer to go into ‘lock-down’ when deliberating on policy matters and issues of the day.
Anne if the journalists had really been razor sharp they would have gone in and done their questioning as they stood side by side doing their business. So they could be said to show a little respect for their victims!
“Did anyone consider Jane Pattison’s article NZ Herald on the NZ Labour Conference contrived.”
???? Jane Patterson is Senior Political Editor for RNZ and does not write for NZ Herald. She does write for the Listener and their online site, Noted, but has not done so on the Conference as yet apparently.
I am not a great fan of Jane’s but personally I did not think her RNZ reports on the Conference were contrived. While they were not over the top “Ra Ra” reports, I thought they were reasonable and I could also not find the terms you quoted above in her articles on the Conference.
Apologies… RNZ not The Herald. My opinion was she was annoyed at being excluded from parts of the conference and wrote accordingly. Audrey did write a reasonable piece. Great picture of Jacinda Neve and Clarke.
Patricia
These phrases that you quoted did indeed seem to intend to diminish and
concentrate on the negative. Were they balanced by positives do you think?
These quoted comments have a weighted negativity about them. Some aspects. “Locked down” “Empty seats” “No fanfare” “No mention of Helen Clarke” “Journalists not allowed to see divisions or blood on the floor during discussions” “One good idea approved by the people”
Yes possibly I felt a little more up beat tenor would have been suitable, however, I must admit Jane was the only ? reporter to note the reaction to the 1080 protesters, that closed the doors when quote “hundreds were lined up”.
Apparently there was a death threat made. The PM discussed it later.
I was just reading a column by Chris Trotter in which he says the Labour Caucus no longer has to comply with the party manifesto after last weekend’s conference but he doesn’t give any links and I can’t find anything on Google. Does anyone have a suitable link about this?
Conference endorsed this change. It’s to allow for flexibility in coalition talks. It’s not a free pass to ignore the manifesto, rather it lets the leadership make practical compromises when forming a Government.
I suggest you do read it, as he deftly connects the event to the last LP conference in Dunedin 30 years ago. I’m often critical of his analyses but this essay lacks any flaw to pounce on, so 9/10. Didn’t see distortion but I’ll leave that judgment to others, here’s the relevant paragraph plus the prior to provide context (literary afficionados may find the shakespearean mythos subtext insufficiently subtle):
” What Harman doesn’t say is that the only reason such political legerdemain is even possible is because Jacinda Ardern is such an extraordinary electoral asset. Single-handed, she has resurrected Labour’s morale; refilled her coffers, boosted her membership, and filled her activist base with confidence and delight. Her “relentlessly positive” personality is like a powerful spotlight, illuminating brilliantly that little part of Labour’s stage upon which she sits and smiles. Meanwhile, in the darkness her brilliance does so much to render impenetrable, the party leadership does all within its power to render a genuine shift to the left impossible.”
“It is fitting, in a way, that the decision to free the caucus from its crucial constitutional obligation to uphold the party’s manifesto – its policy platform – was taken in Dunedin. Justified as a practical and necessary concession to the exigencies of MMP, it nevertheless severs the last of the ties that bind the parliamentary wing to the party organisation. The caucus is now officially “Corbyn proof”. Thirty years after stabbing her in the back, the centrists have finally summoned-up the courage to drive the dagger of pragmatism deep into Labour’s democratic-socialist heart.”
I guess Trotter’s going through the depressive part of his cycle.
True democracy can barely be practiced by contemporary parties. The ‘gotcha’ media hang on every word, and are as likely to go downtown on a policy discussion as the Exclusive Brethren were to sabotage Jeanette Fitzsimons awhile back.
Parties have to nut out policy in camera, not on camera, and the best that we can hope of them is a sincere effort to serve our interests, neither a simple kowtowing to the nonsensus of public opinion, nor an avid pursuit of possible funders.
An ideal democratic party will not follow public opinion, it will try to anticipate it, in the same way an astute business anticipates customer needs and desires. At this stage in the electoral cycle, while the horrors of National misrule are fresh in people’s minds, and the coalition have few or none of their own, it’s not so hard.
Let them lose touch with people though, and like entropy, the Gnats, in some form will be there, carrying out their role as decomposers, preparing the soil for the next round of growth.
I have no knowledge of the actual remit. However, I do agree with the general thrust of Trotter’s post.
My understanding is that Labour Party conference remits in the past, may or may not be picked up in total by the caucus. It does sound like this latest agreed party policy further severs the links between the policies agreed by rank and file members and the caucus.
I don’t agree with the way Trotter and Bradbury are dismissive of so-called “identity politics”. But I do agree with their latest posts in which they argue that the left needs a radical shift to re-instate solid left wing values and policies.
Bradbury argues that it is climate change that will derail incrementalism and the current middle class/centrist focus of the Green Party and Labour.
It’s too soon to tell with the Greens. They were knee-capped during the last election, and Davidson is still finding her feet as co-leader.
I don’t agree it is climate change alone that will derail centrist incrementalism, but it also the current state of effective disenfranchisement of those on low incomes, plus the radical sections of gender, LGBT+ and ethnic politics that will come to the fore.
I agree with Trotter’s summation:
Jacinda Ardern is such an extraordinary electoral asset. Single-handed, she has resurrected Labour’s morale; refilled her coffers, boosted her membership, and filled her activist base with confidence and delight. Her “relentlessly positive” personality is like a powerful spotlight, illuminating brilliantly that little part of Labour’s stage upon which she sits and smiles. Meanwhile, in the darkness her brilliance does so much to render impenetrable, the party leadership does all within its power to render a genuine shift to the left impossible.
Peruvian villagers face murder and intimidation from land traffickers
Invaders continue to seize land within the Chaparrí ecological reserve, one of Peru’s most biodiverse forests
“These killers, potential and actual, will be stopped only by real actions, not virtual ones,” reformist lawmaker Mustafa Nayyem wrote , saying the outpouring of condolences on social media wouldn’t be enough.
“Whether they will continue to drench us with acid, slaughter us in doorways, and shoot us in the back in our own country depends on how and what we do now,” Nayyem added.
In NZ high country foreign? land owner gets to use precious water without having satisfied guardian regulations so that he can irrigate unsuitable areas to make a quick buck while the milk rush is still on. Controlling body ECan is fairly relaxed, as it is still in the control of rich-list or easy-rider fascist interests who replaced locally elected civil government body.
Peru or New Zealand, enabling the phallic rise of the neo liberal man with capital accretion strengthening his mind and body all over the world will be our death knell.
David Seymour had his “Um, what can I say to get in the news today?” moment.
His, “Um, what would be a good populist issue to use” opportunity.
I remember the headlines he garnered when he went crook about John Key and Jonathan Coleman going to England for All Black games in 2015. His public stand, speaking out loud and long when Bill English defended the use of taxpayer dollars, was quite memorable.
For a Parliamentary Under-Secretary and Minister to be so outspoken was quite dramatic.
I made all that last stuff up. David Seymour is playing a pathetic parody of the principled. Again.
Yep the waste of time drongo has outed two troughing fatcats – waste of money – you guys have enough, and your perks and your pensions – pay it back and admit you just abused the priviledge WE, the people, gave you.
You would think would be an easy one, NZ public good and risks of aquifer outweigh Chinese majority owned private company getting more water but no… also raised point how consent can change use, but no come back as it was formally Kaputone Wool Scour and was unlikely to have used much of the water it was allocated.
reposted…
“Genevieve Robinson
Christchurch, New Zealand
NOV 5, 2018 —
ECan has received an application from Cloud Ocean Water to take water from their 180m bore.
Ecan is currently considering whether to notify the application.
The Christchurch City Council is concerned that the proposal will put the community water supply at risk.
Aotearoa Water Action is also concerned about the potential environmental effects.
AWA believes that if the application can be considered at all, it must be publicly notified – this is because the aquifer is already fully allocated, and because City Council testing shows the community water supply WILL be adversely affected, which is of huge public interest in the matter.
We believe that ECan needs to hear both the public’s views (including your views) and the evidence of additional experts.
AWA will be speaking at ECans meeting this Thursday, November 8, at 11am – so please add your comments below!
Let’s make sure the whole country gets to weigh in on this!”
Nestle has been doing it for years, they operate in poor areas/countries with few regulations…. or on indigenous people’s land… as being easier targets
“Luster lives in Flint, Michigan, and here, residents believe tap water is good for one thing: to flush the toilet.
“I don’t even water my plants with it,” she said.
Flint became synonymous with lead-poisoned water after government officials, looking to save money, switched the city’s water supply from Detroit city water to water from the corrosive Flint river.
Once the city had switched, the number of children with elevated lead exposure doubled; residents reported unexplained rashes and losing hair. An unpublished study recently found fetal deaths in Flint increased by 58% during the crisis.”
While Flint battles a water crisis, just two hours away the beverage giant pumps almost 100,000 times what an average Michigan resident uses into plastic bottles
Pretty sure that is the NZ designer top (and trousers) that JA wore on her trip to Paris to meet Macron earlier this year (April/May?) when she was about 7 – 8 months’ pregnant.
Today’s is: “I am done talking about Jami-Lee Ross”.
He is not going to talk about yesterday’s audio release and said everything yesterday, and people can now hear the tape and decide for themselves, and he won’t be talking about any other recordings … … …
[Repeat, repeat, repeat, and again, repeat. ]
Somehow, I don’t think people like Barry Soper will just accept that. Bridges may not want to talk about Ross, but in fact the real subject is Bridges and Bennett, and their fitness to be Leader and Deputy Leader of the National Party.
SImon Bridges is keen to point out his role in opposition in holding the government to account” even as he reworks the same questions on fuel taxes ad nauseam in Question TIme.
But he doesn’t seem to want to afford the same role to the media regarding his effectiveness as Leader of the Opposition and as the leader of a major party. His effectiveness has been reduced by disowning an MP, his party is less effective.
The media has a part in this, albeit uncomfortable or downright dangerous to his career as he might feel threatened.
How would he function as PM if this is his current tolerance of media interest?
I don’t even think Trump has managed to get caught on tape, selling donations and entry to MP’s for $100k and thinking 2 Chinese were better than 2 Indians.
They have shown themselves unfit for the job. Imagine the embarrassing nightmare if they were running the country – they make t.rump look like a brainiac.
With over half of New Zealand households cutting back on heating their homes in winter due to the high cost of heating, I was dismayed to hear new Kiwibuild homes won’t be fitted with solar power. Which leads one to ask has solar power for new state owned homes also been overlooked?
A common factor I noticed from reports of people being hospitalised due to cold and damp homes was they couldn’t afford to utilize the heating supplied.
Therefore, while these new homes may be better insulated thus cheaper to heat, one would expect the Government (especially with the Greens in there) would be doing the upmost to keep heating cost at a minimum. Meaning not only would homes be cheaper to heat but heating would also be cheaper to run.
So what do we know? We know we have to reduce energy demand. We know we have to move energy generation away from fossil and bio. We know that heat kills far more readily than cold does. We know the world is warming. Hmm.
Energy performance of Building regulations requirements
Mandatory standards that social housing providers have to achieve, often more ambitious than for the rest of the building stock for the global energy performance of new built dwellings are generally applied to all type of buildings.Thus, from 2020, all new buildings in the EU will have to be nearly zero. In most of the cases this means that not only homes will have to be extremely well insulated, but that they will have to compensate the energy for heating and hot water by using renewable energy or efficient systems like heat pumps.
I’m guessing they are referring to a net zero carbon footprint. But fck it. NZs just fine….NZ doesn’t need any new fangled means of energy generation. Global warming and climate change is “over there”…until it’s over here and some damned heatwave, or weather event accompanying a heatwave, knackers supply in one way or another (resulting in either brown outs or black outs) and people in housing only designed for a cooler 20th C are unable to cool themselves at night.
Mr Twyford told Newshub it’s too expensive at the moment. He says it could’ve added $15,000 in price to each home…
… According to My Solar Quotes New Zealand, the average price to install solar power is $9000.
Mr Twyford has kept the door open for solar in future…
…However, energy efficiency advice was provided in relation to design standards for the homes.
“We’re also at the moment looking at design standards for Kiwibuild that could mean that all Kiwibuild homes will have to be fitted for solar, wired up so that it would be really easy and cost free in the future to install solar panels…
… Despite the Green Party pushing for solar, co-leader Marama Davidson doesn’t seem too upset about it.
“The problem is the provision of solar panels might be better provided at a community collective level rather than an individual house level….
The government could even create a revenue stream for itself by allowing decent rates for power returned to the grid, and then collecting on any excess returned to the grid from HNZ properties. Put those profiteering power companies in their place and let all generators play on the grid.
Sadly the NZ government likes to clip the ticket and price gouge on power, hiding behind “market forces”. Yeah, right. Therefore little incentive to change to solar and not get that lucrative clip of the ticket. Instead they ‘give away’$500 payment to pretend they care . Meanwhile everyone, in particular those under 65 are being ripped off apart from corporate welfare to Tiwai Pt who get million dollar hand outs. Yes it all stems from the Natz, but Labour haven’t exactly been keen to address the power rip offs.
Which leads one to ask has solar power for new state owned homes also been overlooked?
Sounds like it. State houses should have maximum amount of solar PV and solar water heating on them. The people going in to them are in dire straights and so such things that reduce power usage should be mandatory really.
Yes no point making everyone have a heater, if nobody can afford to turn it on. Personally think it’s disgusting especially with all the outages that every new house is not designed to be fitted with solar. It is not an end game but a way for extra power to be generated with the increasing population and with increasing outages and disasters people can at least have some free power when they either can’t afford it or the power is off.
The power companies are talking about importing more oil and gas because the hydro lakes are down!
And NZ unlike the rest of the world they are trying to tax solar so the power companies can maintain their excessive profits and rip offs.
By the way…… does anyone know where @ Wayne is?
Normally he’d be on duty to counter some of the ‘scurrilous’ claims being made on this ‘hard left’ blogsite.
I suppose it is possible that he’s just realised the gNats left a couple of ‘young bucks’ in charge of the chicken coup, and they just shat everywhere.
And that the only thing worth trying to salvage is the manure that could be marketed as an aid to reconditioning the soil they’ve been dumping on for the past ten years.
Ah well, there ya go! That’s real dedication – was that yesterday you say?
Well he could be rehearsing his lines I ‘spose for his next gig on one of those panelistas on the weekend ‘incisive raisin affairs shows’ like New Shub Nayshun or Q+A. OR maybe he’s even slumming it with Jum Mora – I’ll have a listen.
And by the way, has anybody thought about poor old Krus Finalysin? I mean, there goes a rilly rilly decent man. A man that can truly empasoise with all his decent predecessors – loyal to the last man standing as well as to the Caci Clinic’s re-imaging efforts, and with an obvious lerv of leopard skin. WHAT a brick!
Perhaps he went to Japan to watch rugby? Or he has been meeting with his cronies since the year dot to watch the Melbourne races and drink up and talk up how great they are, how great Gnats are.
OMG LMAO lay on the floor kicking my feet upward whilst watching channel 86, and whilst planning how the fuck to get out of here
Maureen Pugh – list Neshnool M Poi, channeling Cilla Black.
Oh fuck! and now the square jawed Chris Penk in a beautiful blue ensemble with a matching spotted toi, and equipped with good intention, and possibly one of a gNatsi ‘good guy ‘ flag for the future (going forward), but with a tonne of Bennett and Bridges effluent immediately above ground.
Which is why your idols are in the state of panic they are now in.
They were never that ‘very’ nice.
Whether it was a Nafe (who’d never inhaled) travelling south stopping off at a Rangoli that’s been one of the most complicit in ripping off immigrants on the Ka Piti, or the next pretender to whatever you think is your self-entitled throne.
(Btw, I actually did due diligence on that Rangoli and there was a shitload of video that went with it, because the oicon John Koi went with it. It IS possible I could resurrect the video
But you know …… next (the next….. these days come thick and fast).
These days as I age, I can’t really be that fucked, because I’ve come to realise that arseholes usually get their just deserts in the end, although I’m up for an @ BM challenge at any time.
I really would like to know what the @ BM post was that I’m not now privy to, but I appreciate this site isn’t a dick measuring pissing contest
Shame you’re not up to putting your mouth where your dick is. I’d be happy to indulge though any time your wankness feels up to the challenge and bearing in mind I’m probably now knocking twice your age.
The Standard though is not the time nor place for this duel So suffice it to say I think you’re a wanker and you’ll resort to whatever softcock response you have in your armoury.
Oh how I would have loved to have been able to test your bullshit.
I you can think of a way – rest assured I’m up for it.
Unfortunately, the likes of you sometimes force people to challenge your wankery.
PLEASE – think of a way.
( I never thought I’d be saying all this, but things must when dickheads think they are prevailing )
ED
I don’t think Once was Tim or other regulars care too much about BM ans his slanted remarks. Just enjoy the show Ed and let the man be BM, or Bloody Morose as his friends call him.
Nothing like a crazy rant eh Tim. I’ve been talking about John Wyndham and his style of writing which he called logical fantasy. Recognising the fantasy, it is logical to let off steam now and then. You will never be as cute as a kitten rolling on its back with its feet in the air though.
I and I would suspect some other regular visitors but irregular posters don’t find him so amusing. A bitter nasty piece of work is a bitter, nasty piece of work.
He/she and a few others of their ilk are the reason I visit here less often.
What is it? When and how did it get there? Who is responsible?
Was it some negligent Kiwi forces armourer who took it home as a souvenir?
It looks expensive. How much is it worth?
There must have been at least one casualty. To do his job so poorly, (it must have been a he), the unnamed journalist covering this story must have died of boredom halfway through writing it up.
One of the ex-army lads will be along to put me right soon I guess, but I would think it is a dummy shell for a field artillery piece. Too small for most naval guns for a shell of that age. Maybe an 18 or 25 pounder?? Looks too old for the light howitzer they were using from the 70’s. Prepared to be corrected by those who know..
It looks to long and skinny for a 25pdr, it could be one of the following a 3.7inch AA, a 20pdr HE round from the old Centurion Tanks or 17pdr AT HE round. But from my understanding is that 17pdr AT gun never enter service in NZ Army, but some were sent out from the UK from testing and evaluation in the 50’s when the NZ Army was structure for fighting in the Middle East up until the late 50’s.
P.S I’ve a feeling it could be an 76mm HE round from the old M-41 Walker Bulldog Tank that was in service during the late 60’s until it was replaced by the CVR(T) Scorpion Tank. Which to was a backwards step as the M41 was still useful in SEA with it’s 76mm gunand it could punch its way through the Jungle at the time due to its weight. All we had to was upgrade the power pack and fire control systems.
Only Navy round I could think of could from the old Dido Class Anti Aircraft Cruisers from the 50’s to 60’s which were armed a 5.5inch semi automatic DP gun and again it look’s to long and skinny to be an 4.5inch HE round from the old Type 12 Frigates. I do know the rounds for the 5inch auto gun on the ANZAC Frigates is long skinny one and I hope it’s one of those or else there might be some please explain WTF going on. But it looks too old for one those by blueing and surface corrosion on the shell, anyway it’s an interesting find.
Were there any old ammunition depots near the find?
It looks far to big to be a 76mm (12 pounder) round (hard to tell though) And anyway, as far as I can recall the only time the RNZN operated 12 pounder (76mm) guns was in WW2 on the 13 Castle Class Minesweepers we had, but they were all out of Naval Service by 1946. Since the round conforms to NATO standard colour markings it is unlikely to be from the late 1940s!
The paint job on that round is deep bronze green – for HE type ammunition – and a white band indicating an illumination round.
Look at this image of a 4.5″ shell casing and note how the shape of the neck of the brass casing is the same –
Yeah I’m starting to think it’s either a 4.5 or possibly a 5.25 inch round since I’ve been pouring over my Naval books this afternoon that I use for build model ships.
The round 76mm gun on M41 Tank is long skinny one, I’m never to sure about what gets written up in the media these days and or what they put up on their news website.
Kia ora The Am Show I agree with Mark the Speaker and Jerry going on a working Holiday to Japan its hard work being a MP nit picking .
Cyber crime is a big issue for NZ I’m experiencing that every couple of weeks .
There you go Idris Elba is voted the world’s most handsome man Time’s are changing some will need a lot of tissues .
Mike some can see the big picture about the mid term elections in America unlike some who cannot see past there Ego’s.
Hone I don’t think some should encourage you to use those word’s on TV te mokopuna’s will be watching 3 of the 4 of my offspring don’t smoke and we never smoke in the same room or car with the mokopuna’s I say a advertising campaign on the bad effects on secondhand smoke and Alcohol .
Did you catch a Taxi to work yesterday.
Can’t you see we have a idiot behaving badly in the world media and it affects other idiots with small———the 1080 threat’s.
There are a few troll’s lined up for the poll today I new the stat’s will start correcting as the morning.
There you got I told everyone Wahine are more intelligent than man I seen it in my raising my children and my moko’s Equality is needed the schooling system does not teach te moko the the skill’s the children need to work out the best way to climb up there ladder’s of life .
Azees I told you the trump trolls have been waiting for your poll.
Eco Maori say’s Ka pai How Taylor Swift turned her Instagram into a get-out-the-vote fan page Americans get out and vote
American leg of her Reputation Tour at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, Taylor Swift announced on Instagram for the first time ever who she’d be voting for: Democrats Phil Bredesen and Jim Cooper.She’s among the most followed people on the social network, with more 112 million followers, link below Ka kite ano
This is what the media can do with a small story spin a mountain out of a mole hill
Jacinda did not say she received death threats this is just another cheating neo liberal capitalist play the actors who are making these treats are there puppets ka kite ano
link is below.
Kia ora Tekaea
its cool That Jacinda is at the Ratana 100 year commemoration ka pai.
Nanaia that is a good start to the Papakainga package $1.7 million .
Mark Dunajtsik has made a huge gift to te tangata a new hospital .
Haunui Waka back in Aotearoa from the Norfolk Islands good experiences for the young Wahine and Tane ka pai Ka kite ano
Kia ora Newshub The House was won by Democrats ka pai its not over say Bernie Sanders
Unemployment has dropped that’s cool to it’s lowest in ten years a bit of positive wairua from the new Coalition Goverment .
I had thought that would be the outcome off the Ross saga a vote for New Zealand First
You will always find someone to find a negative comment from someone anywhere the Ratana commemorations for 100 years and the Labour Party’s delivering to tangata whenua some have a very short memorie .
The weed debate well we know that making it illegal is a dumb and has failed.
Immunization is the best way to stop Meningococcal disease .
Ka kite ano P.S got distracted our offspring were picking up the mokopuna’s car after I fixed it
Kia ora The Crowd Goes Wild James & Wairangi
Thats a very good over 46 for 2020 cricket from Darryl T.
That good that the British League player has a 4 week ban and a small fine its better than nothing .
Lets hope the Football Ferns & there new Coach will get a good wairua going.
Ka kite ano
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This is a guest post by George Weeks, reviewing a book called ‘How to Fly a Horse’ by Kevin AshtonBook review: ‘How to Fly a Horse’ by Kevin Ashton (2015) – and what it means for Auckland. The title of this article might unnerve any Greater Auckland ...
This story was originally published by Capital & Main and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. Within just a week, the sheer devastation of the Los Angeles wildfires has pushed to the fore fundamental questions about the impact of the climate crisis that have been ...
In this world, it's just usYou know it's not the same as it wasSongwriters: Harry Edward Styles / Thomas Edward Percy Hull / Tyler Sam JohnsonYesterday, I received a lovely message from Caty, a reader of Nick’s Kōrero, that got me thinking. So I thought I’d share it with you, ...
In past times a person was considered “unserious” or “not a serious” person if they failed to grasp, behave and speak according to the solemnity of the context in which they were located. For example a serious person does not audibly pass gas at Church, or yell “gun” at a ...
Long stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Thursday, February 13 are:The coalition Government’s early 2024 ‘fiscal emergency’ freeze on funding, planning and building houses, schools, local roads and hospitals helped extend and deepen the economic and jobs recession through calendar ...
For obvious reasons, people feel uneasy when the right to be a citizen is sold off to wealthy foreigners. Even selling the right to residency seems a bit dubious, when so many migrants who are not millionaires get turned away or are made to jump through innumerable hoops – simply ...
A new season of White Lotus is nearly upon us: more murder mystery, more sumptuous surroundings, more rich people behaving badly.Once more we get to identify with the experience of the pampered tourist or perhaps the poorly paid help; there's something in White Lotus for all New Zealanders.And unlike the ...
In 2016, Aotearoa shockingly plunged to fourth place in the Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index. Nine years later, and we're back there again: New Zealand has seen a further slip in its global ranking in the latest Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI). [...] In the latest CPI New Zealand's score ...
1. You’ve started ranking your politicians on how much they respect the rule of law2. You’ve stopped paying attention to those news publications3. You’ve developed a sudden interest in a particular period of history4. More and more people are sounding like your racist, conspiracist uncle.5. Someone just pulled a Nazi ...
Transforming New Zealand: Brian EastonBrian Easton will discuss the above topic at 2/57 Willis Street, Wellington at 5:30pm on Tuesday 26 February at 2/57 Willis Street, WellingtonThe sub-title to the above is "Why is the Left failing?" Brian Easton's analysis is based on his view that while the ...
Salvation Army’s State of the Nation 2025 report highlights falling living standards, the highest unemployment rates since the 1990s and half of all Pacific children going without food. There are reports of hundreds if not thousands of people are applying for the same jobs in the wake of last year’s ...
Mountain Tui is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Correction: On the article The Condundrum of David Seymour, Luke Malpass conducted joint reviews with Bryce Wilkinson, the architect of the Regulatory Standards Bill - not Bryce Edwards. The article ...
Tomorrow the council’s Transport, Resilience and Infrastructure Committee meet and agenda has a few interesting papers. Council’s Letter of Expectation to Auckland Transport Every year the council provide a Letter of Expectation to Auckland Transport which is part of the process for informing AT of the council’s priorities and ...
All around in my home townThey're trying to track me down, yeahThey say they want to bring me in guiltyFor the killing of a deputyFor the life of a deputySongwriter: Robert Nesta Marley.Support Nick’s Kōrero today with a 20% discount on a paid subscription to receive all my newsletters directly ...
Hi,I think all of us have probably experienced the power of music — that strange, transformative thing that gets under our skin and helps us experience this whole life thing with some kind of sanity.Listening and experiencing music has always been such a huge part of my life, and has ...
Business frustration over the stalled economy is growing, and only 34% of voters are confidentNicola Willis can deliver. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, February 12 are:Business frustration is growing about a ...
I have now lived long enough to see a cabinet minister go both barrels on their Prime Minister and not get sacked.It used to be that the PM would have a drawer full of resignations signed by ministers on the day of their appointment, ready for such an occasion. But ...
This session will feature Simon McCallum, Senior Lecturer in Engineering and Computer Science (VUW) and recent Labour Party candidate in the Southland Electorate talking about some of the issues around AI and how this should inform Labour Party policy. Simon is an excellent speaker with a comprehensive command of AI ...
The proposed Waimate garbage incinerator is dead: The company behind a highly-controversial proposal to build a waste-to-energy plant in the Waimate District no longer has the land. [...] However, SIRRL director Paul Taylor said the sales and purchase agreement to purchase land from Murphy Farms, near Glenavy, lapsed at ...
The US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act has been a vital tool in combatting international corruption. It forbids US companies and citizens from bribing foreign public officials anywhere in the world. And its actually enforced: some of the world's biggest companies - Siemens, Hewlett Packard, and Bristol Myers Squibb - have ...
December 2024 photo - with UK Tory Boris Johnson (Source: Facebook)Those PollsFor hours, political poll results have resounded across political hallways and commentary.According to the 1News Verizon poll, 50% of the country believe we are heading in the “wrong direction”, while 39% believe we are “on the right track”.The left ...
A Tai Rāwhiti mill that ran for 30 years before it was shut down in late 2023 is set to re-open in the coming months, which will eventually see nearly 300 new jobs in the region. A new report from Massey University shows that pensioners are struggling with rising costs. ...
As support continues to fall, Luxon also now faces his biggest internal ructions within the coalition since the election, with David Seymour reacting badly to being criticised by the PM. File photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate ...
Not since 1988 when Richard Prebble openly criticised David Lange have we seen such a challenge to a Prime Minister as that of David Seymour to Christopher Luxon last night. Prebble suggested Lange had mental health issues during a TV interview and was almost immediately fired. Seymour hasn’t gone quite ...
Three weeks in, and the 24/7 news cycle is not helping anyone feel calm and informed about the second Trump presidency. One day, the US is threatening 25% trade tariffs on its friends and neighbours. The reasons offered by the White House are absurd, such as stopping fentanyl coming in ...
This video includes personal musings and conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Adam Levy. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). Wherever you look, you'll hear headlines claiming we've passed 1.5 degrees of global warming. And while 2024 saw ...
Photo by Heather M. Edwards on UnsplashHere’s the key news, commentary, reports and debate around Aotearoa’s politics and economy in the week to Feb 10 below. That’s ahead of live chats on the Substack App and The Kākā’s front page on Substack at 5pm with: on his column in The ...
Is there anyone in the world the National Party loves more than a campaign donor? Why yes, there is! They will always have the warmest hello and would you like to slip into something more comfortable for that great god of our age, the High Net Worth Individual.The words the ...
Waste and fraud certainly exist in foreign aid programs, but rightwing celebration of USAID’s dismantling shows profound ignorance of the value of soft power (as opposed to hard power) in projecting US influence and interests abroad by non-military/coercive means (think of “hearts and minds,” “hugs, not bullets,” “honey versus vinegar,” ...
Health New Zealand is proposing to cut almost half of its data and digital positions – more than 1000 of them. The PSA has called on the Privacy Commissioner to urgently investigate the cuts due to the potential for serious consequences for patients. NZNO is calling for an urgent increase ...
We may see a few more luxury cars on Queen Street, but a loosening of rules to entice rich foreigners to invest more here is unlikely to “turbocharge our economic growth”. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate ...
Let us not dance daintily around the elephant in the room. Our politicians who serve us in the present are not honest, certainly not as honest as they should be, and while the right are taking out most of the trophies for warping narratives and literally redefining “facts”, the kiwi ...
A few weeks ago I took a look at public transport ridership in 2024. In today’s post I’m going to be looking a bit deeper at bus ridership. Buses make up the vast majority of ridership in Auckland with 70 million boardings last year out of a total of 89.4 ...
Oh, you know I did itIt's over and I feel fineNothing you could say is gonna change my mindWaited and I waited the longest nightNothing like the taste of sweet declineSongwriters: Chris Shiflett / David Eric Grohl / Nate Mendel / Taylor Hawkins.Hindsight is good, eh?The clarity when the pieces ...
Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on UnsplashHere’s what we’re watching in the week to February 16 and beyond in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty:Monday, February 10The Kākā’s weekly wrap-up of news about politics and the economy is due at midday, followed by webinar for paying subscribers in Substack’s ...
A listing of 23 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, February 2, 2025 thru Sat, February 8, 2025. This week's roundup is again published soleley by category. We are still interested in feedback to hone the categorization, so if ...
Today, I stumbled across a Twitter Meme: the ending of The Lord of the Rings as a Chess scenario: https://x.com/mellon_heads/status/1887983845917564991 It gets across the basic gist. Aragorn and Gandalf offering up ‘material’ at the Morannon allows Frodo and Samwise to catch Sauron unawares – fair enough. But there are a ...
Last week, Kieran McAnulty called out Chris Bishop and Nicola Willis for their claims that Kāinga Ora’s costs were too high.They had claimed Kāinga Ora’s cost were 12% higher than market i.e. private devlopersBut Kāinga Ora’s Chair had already explained why last year:"We're not building to sell, so we'll be ...
Stuff’s Political Editor Luke Malpass - A Fellow at New Zealand IniativeLast week I half-joked that Stuff / The Post’s Luke Malpass1 always sounded like he was auditioning for a job at the New Zealand Initiative.Mountain Tui is a reader-supported publication. For a limited time, subscriptions are 20% off. Thanks ...
At a funeral on Friday, there were A4-sized photos covering every wall of the Dil’s reception lounge. There must have been 200 of them, telling the story in the usual way of the video reel but also, by enlargement, making it more possible to linger and step in.Our friend Nicky ...
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. This fact brief was written by Sue Bin Park from the Gigafact team in collaboration with members from our team. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Is methane the ...
The Government’s idea is that the private sector and Community Housing Providers will fund, build and operate new affordable housing to address our housing crisis. Meanwhile, the Government does not know where almost half of the 1,700 children who left emergency housing actually went. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong ...
Oh, home, let me come homeHome is wherever I'm with youOh, home, let me come homeHome is wherever I'm with youSongwriters: Alexander Ebert / Jade Allyson CastrinosMorena,I’m on a tight time frame this morning. In about an hour and a half, I’ll need to pack up and hit the road ...
This is a post about the Mountain Tui substack, and small tweaks - further to the poll and request post the other day. Please don’t read if you aren’t interested in my personal matters. Thank you all.After oohing-and-aahing about how to structure the Substack model since November, including obtaining ...
This transcript of a recent conversation between the Prime Minister and his chief economic adviser has not been verified.We’ve announced we are the ‘Yes Government’. Do you like it?Yes, Prime Minister.Dreamed up by the PR team. It’s about being committed to growth. Not that the PR team know anything about ...
The other day, Australian Senator Nick McKim issued a warning in the Australian Parliement about the US’s descent into fascim.And of course it’s true, but I lament - that was true as soon as Trump won.What we see is now simply the reification of the intention, planning, and forces behind ...
Among the many other problems associated with Musk/DOGE sending a fleet of teenage and twenty-something cultists to remove, copy and appropriate federal records like social security, medicaid and other supposedly protected data is the fact that the youngsters doing the data-removal, copying and security protocol and filter code over-writing have ...
Jokerman dance to the nightingale tuneBird fly high by the light of the moonOh, oh, oh, JokermanSong by Bob Dylan.Morena folks, I hope this fine morning of the 7th of February finds you well. We're still close to Paihia, just a short drive out of town. Below is the view ...
It’s been an eventful week as always, so here’s a few things that we have found interesting. We also hope everyone had a happy and relaxing Waitangi Day! This week in Greater Auckland We’re still running on summer time, but provided two chewy posts: On Tuesday, a guest ...
Queuing on Queen St: the Government is set to announce another apparently splashy growth policy on Sunday of offering residence visas to wealthy migrants. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in our political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Friday, February 7:PM Christopher ...
The fact that Waitangi ended up being such a low-key affair may mark it out as one of the most significant Waitangi Days in recent years. A group of women draped in “Toitu Te Tiriti” banners who turned their backs on the politicians’ powhiri was about as rough as it ...
Hi,This week’s Flightless Bird episode was about “fake seizure guy” — a Melbourne man who fakes seizures in order to get members of the public to sit on him.The audio documentary (which I have included in this newsletter in case you don’t listen to Flightless Bird) built on reporting first ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Karin Kirk The 119th Congress comes with a price tag. The oil and gas industry gave about $24 million in campaign contributions to the members of the U.S. House and Senate expected to be sworn in January 3, 2025, according to a ...
Early morning, the shadows still long, but you can already feel the warmth building. Our motel was across the road from the historic homestead where Henry Williams' family lived. The evening before, we wandered around the gardens, reading the plaques and enjoying the close proximity to the history of the ...
Thanks folks for your feedback, votes and comments this week. I’ll be making the changes soon. Appreciate all your emails, comments and subscriptions too. I know your time is valuable - muchas gracias.A lot is happening both here and around the world - so I want to provide a snippets ...
Data released today by Statistics NZ shows that unemployment rose to 5.1%, with 33,000 more people out of work than last year said NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi Economist Craig Renney. “The latest data shows that employment fell in Aotearoa at its fastest rate since the GFC. Unemployment rose in 8 ...
National’s cuts to disability support funding and freezing of new residential placements has resulted in significant mental health decline for intellectually disabled people. ...
The hundreds of jobs lost needlessly as a result of the Kinleith Mill paper production closure will have a devastating impact on the Tokoroa community - something that could have easily been avoided. ...
Today Te Pāti Māori MP for Te Tai Tokerau, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi, released her members bill that will see the return of tamariki and mokopuna Māori from state care back to te iwi Māori. This bill will establish an independent authority that asserts and protects the rights promised in He Whakaputanga ...
The Whangarei District Council being forced to fluoridate their local water supply is facing a despotic Soviet-era disgrace. This is not a matter of being pro-fluoride or anti-fluoride. It is a matter of what New Zealanders see and value as democracy in our country. Individual democratically elected Councillors are not ...
Nicola Willis’ latest supermarket announcement is painfully weak with no new ideas, no real plan, and no relief for Kiwis struggling with rising grocery costs. ...
Half of Pacific children sometimes going without food is just one of many heartbreaking lowlights in the Salvation Army’s annual State of the Nation report. ...
The Salvation Army’s State of the Nation report is a bleak indictment on the failure of Government to take steps to end poverty, with those on benefits, including their children, hit hardest. ...
New Zealand First has today introduced a Member’s Bill which would restore decision-making power to local communities regarding the fluoridation of drinking water. The ‘Fluoridation (Referendum) Legislation Bill’ seeks to repeal the Health (Fluoridation of Drinking Water) Amendment Act 2021 that granted centralised authority to the Direct General of Health ...
New Zealand First has introduced a Member’s Bill aimed at preventing banks from refusing their services to businesses because of the current “Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Framework”. “This Bill ensures fairness and prevents ESG standards from perpetuating woke ideology in the banking sector being driven by unelected, globalist, climate ...
Erica Stanford has reached peak shortsightedness if today’s announcement is anything to go by, picking apart immigration settings piece by piece to the detriment of the New Zealand economy. ...
Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. The intention was to establish a colony with the cession of sovereignty to the Crown, ...
Te Whatu Ora Chief Executive Margie Apa leaving her job four months early is another symptom of this government’s failure to deliver healthcare for New Zealanders. ...
The Green Party is calling for the Prime Minister to show leadership and be unequivocal about Aotearoa New Zealand’s opposition to a proposal by the US President to remove Palestinians from Gaza. ...
The latest unemployment figures reveal that job losses are hitting Māori and Pacific people especially hard, with Māori unemployment reaching a staggering 9.7% for the December 2024 quarter and Pasifika unemployment reaching 10.5%. ...
Waitangi 2025: Waitangi Day must be community and not politically driven - Shane Jones Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. ...
Despite being confronted every day with people in genuine need being stopped from accessing emergency housing – National still won’t commit to building more public houses. ...
The Green Party says the Government is giving up on growing the country’s public housing stock, despite overwhelming evidence that we need more affordable houses to solve the housing crisis. ...
Before any thoughts of the New Year and what lies ahead could even be contemplated, New Zealand reeled with the tragedy of Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming losing her life. For over 38 years she had faithfully served as a front-line Police officer. Working alongside her was Senior Sergeant Adam Ramsay ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson will return to politics at Waitangi on Monday the 3rd of February where she will hold a stand up with fellow co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick. ...
Te Pāti Māori is appalled by the government's blatant mishandling of the school lunch programme. David Seymour’s ‘cost-saving’ measures have left tamariki across Aotearoa with unidentifiable meals, causing distress and outrage among parents and communities alike. “What’s the difference between providing inedible food, and providing no food at all?” Said ...
The Government is doubling down on outdated and volatile fossil fuels, showing how shortsighted and destructive their policies are for working New Zealanders. ...
Green Party MP Steve Abel this morning joined Coromandel locals in Waihi to condemn new mining plans announced by Shane Jones in the pit of the town’s Australian-owned Gold mine. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to strengthen its just-announced 2030-2035 Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement and address its woeful lack of commitment to climate security. ...
Today marks a historic moment for Taranaki iwi with the passing of the Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill in Parliament. "Today, we stand together as descendants of Taranaki, and our tūpuna, Taranaki Maunga, is now formally acknowledged by the law as a living tūpuna. ...
Labour is relieved to see Children’s Minister Karen Chhour has woken up to reality and reversed her government’s terrible decisions to cut funding from frontline service providers – temporarily. ...
It is the first week of David Seymour’s school lunch programme and already social media reports are circulating of revolting meals, late deliveries, and mislabelled packaging. ...
The Green Party says that with no-cause evictions returning from today, the move to allow landlords to end tenancies without reason plunges renters, and particularly families who rent, into insecurity and stress. ...
The Government’s commitment to get New Zealand’s roads back on track is delivering strong results, with around 98 per cent of potholes on state highways repaired within 24 hours of identification every month since targets were introduced, Transport Minister Chris Bishop says. “Increasing productivity to help rebuild our economy is ...
The former Cadbury factory will be the site of the Inpatient Building for the new Dunedin Hospital and Health Minister Simeon Brown says actions have been taken to get the cost overruns under control. “Today I am giving the people of Dunedin certainty that we will build the new Dunedin ...
From today, Plunket in Whāngarei will be offering childhood immunisations – the first of up to 27 sites nationwide, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. The investment of $1 million into the pilot, announced in October 2024, was made possible due to the Government’s record $16.68 billion investment in health. It ...
New Zealand’s strong commitment to the rights of disabled people has continued with the response to an important United Nations report, Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston has announced. Of the 63 concluding observations of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), 47 will be progressed ...
Resources Minister Shane Jones has launched New Zealand’s national Minerals Strategy and Critical Minerals List, documents that lay a strategic and enduring path for the mineral sector, with the aim of doubling exports to $3 billion by 2035. Mr Jones released the documents, which present the Coalition Government’s transformative vision ...
Firstly I want to thank OceanaGold for hosting our event today. Your operation at Waihi is impressive. I want to acknowledge local MP Scott Simpson, local government dignitaries, community stakeholders and all of you who have gathered here today. It’s a privilege to welcome you to the launch of the ...
Racing Minister, Winston Peters has announced the Government is preparing public consultation on GST policy proposals which would make the New Zealand racing industry more competitive. “The racing industry makes an important economic contribution. New Zealand thoroughbreds are in demand overseas as racehorses and for breeding. The domestic thoroughbred industry ...
Business confidence remains very high and shows the economy is on track to improve, Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis says. “The latest ANZ Business Outlook survey, released yesterday, shows business confidence and expected own activity are ‘still both very high’.” The survey reports business confidence fell eight points to +54 ...
Enabling works have begun this week on an expanded radiology unit at Hawke’s Bay Fallen Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital which will double CT scanning capacity in Hawke’s Bay to ensure more locals can benefit from access to timely, quality healthcare, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. This investment of $29.3m in the ...
The Government has today announced New Zealand’s second international climate target under the Paris Agreement, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand will reduce emissions by 51 to 55 per cent compared to 2005 levels, by 2035. “We have worked hard to set a target that is both ambitious ...
Nine years of negotiations between the Crown and iwi of Taranaki have concluded following Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/the Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill passing its third reading in Parliament today, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “This Bill addresses the historical grievances endured by the eight iwi ...
As schools start back for 2025, there will be a relentless focus on teaching the basics brilliantly so all Kiwi kids grow up with the knowledge, skills and competencies needed to grow the New Zealand of the future, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “A world-leading education system is a key ...
Housing Minister Chris Bishop and Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson have welcomed Kāinga Ora’s decision to re-open its tender for carpets to allow wool carpet suppliers to bid. “In 2024 Kāinga Ora issued requests for tender (RFTs) seeking bids from suppliers to carpet their properties,” Mr Bishop says. “As part ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today visited Otahuhu College where the new school lunch programme has served up healthy lunches to students in the first days of the school year. “As schools open in 2025, the programme will deliver nutritious meals to around 242,000 students, every school day. On ...
Minister for Children Karen Chhour has intervened in Oranga Tamariki’s review of social service provider contracts to ensure Barnardos can continue to deliver its 0800 What’s Up hotline. “When I found out about the potential impact to this service, I asked Oranga Tamariki for an explanation. Based on the information ...
A bill to make revenue collection on imported and exported goods fairer and more effective had its first reading in Parliament, Customs Minister Casey Costello said today. “The Customs (Levies and Other Matters) Amendment Bill modernises the way in which Customs can recover the costs of services that are needed ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Department of Internal Affairs [the Department] has achieved significant progress in completing applications for New Zealand citizenship. “December 2024 saw the Department complete 5,661 citizenship applications, the most for any month in 2024. This is a 54 per cent increase compared ...
Reversals to Labour’s blanket speed limit reductions begin tonight and will be in place by 1 July, says Minister of Transport Chris Bishop. “The previous government was obsessed with slowing New Zealanders down by imposing illogical and untargeted speed limit reductions on state highways and local roads. “National campaigned on ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis has announced Budget 2025 – the Growth Budget - will be delivered on Thursday 22 May. “This year’s Budget will drive forward the Government’s plan to grow our economy to improve the incomes of New Zealanders now and in the years ahead. “Budget 2025 will build ...
For the Government, 2025 will bring a relentless focus on unleashing the growth we need to lift incomes, strengthen local businesses and create opportunity. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today laid out the Government’s growth agenda in his Statement to Parliament. “Just over a year ago this Government was elected by ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour welcomes students back to school with a call to raise attendance from last year. “The Government encourages all students to attend school every day because there is a clear connection between being present at school and setting yourself up for a bright future,” says Mr ...
The Government is relaxing visitor visa requirements to allow tourists to work remotely while visiting New Zealand, Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis, Immigration Minister Erica Stanford and Tourism Minister Louise Upston say. “The change is part of the Government’s plan to unlock New Zealand’s potential by shifting the country onto ...
The opening of Kāinga Ora’s development of 134 homes in Epuni, Lower Hutt will provide much-needed social housing for Hutt families, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “I’ve been a strong advocate for social housing on Kāinga Ora’s Epuni site ever since the old earthquake-prone housing was demolished in 2015. I ...
Trade and Investment Minister Todd McClay will travel to Australia today for meetings with Australian Trade Minister, Senator Don Farrell, and the Australia New Zealand Leadership Forum (ANZLF). Mr McClay recently hosted Minister Farrell in Rotorua for the annual Closer Economic Relations (CER) Trade Ministers’ meeting, where ANZLF presented on ...
By Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific Presenter/Bulletin editor France’s top diplomat in the Pacific region says talks around the “unfreezing” of New Caledonia’s highly controversial electoral roll are back on the table. The French government intended to make a constitutional amendment that would lift restrictions prescribed under the Nouméa Accord, which ...
By bringing these global voices to the fight for free expression in New Zealand, we’ll continue to protect and expand our culture of free speech, says Nathan Seiuli, the Free Speech Union's Events Manager. ...
The issue is no longer a hypothetical one. US President Donald Trump will not explicitly suggest death camps, but he has already consented to Israel’s continuing a war that is not a war but rather a barbaric assault on a desolate stretch of land. From there, the road to annihilation is ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Cecelia Cmielewski, Research Fellow, Institute for Culture and Society, Western Sydney University To be selected as the artist and curator team to represent Australia at the Venice Biennale is considered the ultimate exhibition for an artistic team. To have your selection rescinded, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Steve Turton, Adjunct Professor of Environmental Geography, CQUniversity Australia Severe Tropical Cyclone Zelia is bearing down on the northwest coast of Australia and is likely to make landfall early Friday evening. It’s a monster storm of great concern to Western Australia. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Danielle Ireland-Piper, Associate Professor, ANU National Security College, Australian National University A Victorian government decision to allow dingo culling in the state’s east until 2028 has reignited debate over what has been dubbed Australia’s most controversial animal. Animals Australia, an animal welfare ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Hassan Vally, Associate Professor, Epidemiology, Deakin University Overnight, Robert F. Kennedy Jr was confirmed as the secretary of the US Health and Human Services Department. Put simply, this makes him the most influential figure in overseeing the health and wellbeing of more ...
Everything you missed from day five of the Treaty principles bill hearings, when the Justice Committee heard eight hours of submissions.Read our recaps of the previous hearings here.It was another work from home day for the Justice Committee, the only people in Room 3 being security guards, committee ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Milad Haghani, Associate Professor & Principal Fellow in Urban Risk & Resilience, The University of Melbourne Juris Teivans/Shutterstock In Australia, fatal road crashes are climbing again, especially since the pandemic, and despite years of attempts to reduce road trauma, the numbers ...
In its eagerness to appease supporters of Israel, the media is happy to ride roughshod over due process and basic rights. It’s damaging Australia’s (and New Zealand’s?) democracy.COMMENTARY:By Bernard Keane Two moments stand out so far from the Federal Court hearings relating to Antoinette Lattouf’s sacking by the ...
“The reality is we’re getting poorer. The government this year is leaning heavy on chasing economic growth, which is absolutely the right thing to do.” ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 The Vegetarian by Han Kang (Granta, $28) Han Kang’s astounding novel was based on an ...
This new docuseries about two single comedians looking for love is also a joyful celebration of female friendship. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. “How many people do you think are boning right now?” Kura Forrester asks Brynley Stent as the bright ...
A new poem by Freya Turnbull. Hunger Song – After Kaveh Akbar (Untitled With Hunger And Matcheads) I hold my age in ripped fishnet hold an empty vessel oldyoung body cracks like gunshot like killa i was a father ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dominik Koll, Honorary Lecturer, Australian National University View of the Pacific Ocean from the International Space Station.NASA Earth must have experienced something exceptional 10 million years ago. Our study of rock samples from the floor of the Pacific Ocean has found ...
Troy Rawhiti-Connell reviews Kia Tupu Te Ara, a documentary chronicling the meteoric rise of Aotearoa’s groundbreaking metal band. “Two brothers attempt to storm the world of thrash metal with the Māori language, despite the fact they’re both still teenagers,” reads the synopsis of Kent Belcher’s documentary, Kia Tupu Te Ara. ...
Three freelance writers have been awarded grants to work on their ambitious journalism projects. In January, The Spinoff announced the Vince Geddes In-Depth Journalism Fund, supported by the Auckland Radio Trust (ART). The fund was established to provide much-needed financial and editorial support to talented freelance journalists, empowering them to ...
By Caleb Fotheringham, RNZ Pacific journalist in Avarua, Rarotonga China has confirmed details of its meeting with Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown for the first time, saying Beijing “stands ready to have an in-depth exchange” with the island nation. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun told reporters during his ...
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Our parliamentary throuple may be the longest running in the country, but cracks are showing. Gabi Lardies wonders if differing attachment styles may be to blame. Though no one ever anticipated happiness or roses in the three-way coalition, the relationship has wobbled on for over a year without breaking up. ...
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Careful Draco, this is a safe space, we can’t let people’s feelings be hurt
[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.]
The Syrianisation of the World
Nigerian army defends shooting protesters by citing Trump’s migrant caravan remarks
Rick Noack – November 3, 2018
Armed American militias heed Trump and head south to confront caravan
Mary Lee Grant & Nick – November 5, 2018
…..or the original when America used to be great again
Just remember corporate media – just don’t mention climate change….then it’s not happening, is it?
https://i.stuff.co.nz/national/108363183/get-your-fan-out-its-about-to-get-really-hot-parts-of-nz-could-reach-30c
Was there any mention, at the Labour Party conference?
Yes. Read the speech.
Was there any other mention, by anyone?
“James Shaw’s progress on our climate change goals, and with the ambition of New Zealand First in the mix, our plan to plant one billion trees is well under way – for those who don’t follow the tree counter as religiously as I do, we are up to 60.6 million”.
It was at least mentioned, fair enough to have missed it though.
And I guess we better ignore the fact that there are many people rather sceptical about the idea that the Emissions Trading Scheme is ever going to be the key to dealing with cataclysmic climate change.
And what exactly did Jacinda mean by “and with the ambition of New Zealand First in the mix”?.
“In the nineteenth century, there was no superannuation or sick leave or paid holidays. People fought so hard to win those rights and now we’re glibly throwing them away.”
“It’s time to bring employment law into the twenty-first century and ensure all employees, gig or salaried have flexible working opportunities, but also the same protections and benefits. This stops arbitrage of hard-won, and necessary, protections,”
“If you wouldn’t wear a T-shirt made in a sweatshop,” don’t take an Uber,
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=12154870
Uber is fantastic!!!!! So much better than the old taxi model. Use it in the city all the time
Uber eats is sadly not out our way – but whenever travelling for work I use it most nights.
But I have no idea where my t-shirt comes from other than Rod and gun.
James without scruples? Surely not? (sarc)
Yes James we know you don’t care.
As long James get what James wants , he doesn’t care a hoot for others.
Sweatshop workers, Uber drivers, Child Labourers, …..
Of course, if James doesn’t get what he wants, he’ll throw a tantrum.
Pretty much because everything that he wants should be the price he wants to pay rather than what it actually costs.
This is the problem with believing that the price should be what you want to pay as told us by politicians and economists.
Lemme guess: when you’re not baiting low-self-control commenters here, you get your kicks shooting fish in a barrel.
LOL……..Rod & Gun (sic)!
busted
The last time I took a conventional taxi he charged $30 for a 10 minute drive. That’s 1 way Aotea Square to Westmere. The gig I did that night paid the princely sum of $40. The bus in was $2.20 (with student discount).
Then WINZ wanted all manner of paperwork as I, a student, earned fuck all. They added the $40 to an $80 teaching gig and penalized me for the lot refusing to discount travel expenses.
So it was not worth leaving the house if taxis were required.
I attended Tarun Mohanbhai’s Comedy festival show Uber Funny in May this year. It was about his journey to being, and experiences as, an uber driver. Sounded like a total rort on the operators and next to no responsibility for management.
Abandoning Uber wont help the drivers. Closer scrutiny and regulation might.
I’m not ‘abandoning ‘ them.
I just don’t use them.
Uber is a great example of a few people getting very, very rich on the work of lots and lots of other people who don’t actually get enough from their hard work to even pay their way. It’s pure exploitation that sucks wealth and money out of the community while providing SFA.
This is why the capitalists love it so much.
Helping the drivers would be the government setting up similar software that NZ taxi drivers could use that paid for by taxes. This would have it so that the convenience is there for the customers but the drivers actually get to keep all their income rather than having most of it syphoned off to rich bludgers.
It’s way past time to bring employment law into the 21stC – we’re 18 bloody years in!
And one of the big issues to be dealt with is the way corporates and others try to outsource their responsibilities whilst being able to clip the ticket.
It’s taken a change in government for the Labour Inspectorate to get off its chuff and start to take it all seriously (albeit as under-resourced as it has been, although one of its managers was assuring us all that there were sufficient inspectors not long before the last election).
And at least we have some prepared to keep the pressure on:
Congratulations to Teuila Fuatai of Newsroom who is not going to let one instance of it all die: https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2018/11/05/306076/chorus-speaks-out-on-migrant-exploitation and https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2018/10/08/269274/migrant-exploitation-and-the-true-cost-of-ufb
Then there’s the so-called “independent contractors” who are actually DEPENDENT courier drivers. The corporates have shunted their costs onto the subcontractor and bound them through contracts that should (if they are not already) be illegal.
Again, it’s all been working as designed over the past decade.
What we should be asking is
– how long is it going to be before the bloody big shakeup taht’s quite obviously necessary, and
– are the ticket clippers going to be held to account, or will it be another Wellington wet bus ticket approach which will simply result in quite a few being tempted to try it all on again
In regards to the truckies/couriers, John Campbell started looking at this just before he left RNZ.
It would be good if someone followed up on the traction gained.
A similar dodgy practice is construction firms having their apprentices as sub contractors.
Businesses with all workers as subcontractors. We need more inspectors with teeth and the ability to enforce orders.
We do @Patricia, and they shouldn’t need bloody stab proof vests
( https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/103790349/labour-inspectors-now-wearing-stabproof-vests-but-say-theyre-not-cops ). If ever there were signals that show what their priorities are/ere, that was one of them.
It took MoBIE a while to realise why nobody wanted to come forward to report cases of exploitation and immigration fraud as well.
Many still don’t want to, and its completely understandable why.
Yep @ gsays. I doubt John Campbell will leave it to die. And there are others who I think will try and keep it all alive. (Laura Toupu? from RNZ appears to have left and gone to New Shub, and there are others such as Michael Morrah, Gil Bonnett scattered around the place).
What we (lil ole yeah/nah Nu Zull) did was create a structure and policies which NORMALISED exploitation in the workplace. Passing on costs and driving down wages to small self-employed – often immigrants not entitled to any state benefits (income support, medical support, child care et al), and often so that the only way they could survive and recover from their indebtedness was to rip others off.
(I’ll try and find a link, but several weeks ago – either on NinetoNoon or Saturday, there was a review/author interview of a book I think – whereby an immigrant was confessing to sins he’d never have taken part in till he came here and tried to survive)
I know there are some in here that hold the view that we can’t save the world and that now we’ve created this situation, we should just boot ’em out and start again. My view is that if we don’t take responsibility for the past structure and policies we’re just setting ourselves up for it all to happen again, and as we do, we descend into the 3rd World.
And the worst part about it all is that once the indebted get themselves out of the shit (often through exploitative practices), they’re tempted towards the greedy, just like a lot of others.
NZ had a duty to properly resource agencies such as NZQA, and INZ, and the Labour Inspectorate, AND have them do their fucking job ethically and competently. The good thing is, there are signs they’re getting the message.
As we embraced the rogernomics, so can we formulate and embrace another revolution.
Especially with kindness as one of its central themes.
Sharing needs to be at the core too.
Get profit out of the money system, have the state issue $s.
Take the profit out of landlording.
Part of the frustration I sense here on TS is that with this government the key people and ingredients are in place.
Winnie who has said neo liberalism has failed and must go, a mother Premiere who has repeated kindness as a motto, and a populace young and old ready for radical change.
The Uber-economy f**ks us all: How “permalancers” and “sharer” gigs gut the middle class
The “sharing” economy sounds groovy: politically neutral, anti-consumerist. Wait until it comes for your job
https://www.salon.com/2015/10/31/the_uber_economy_fks_us_all_how_permalancers_and_sharer_gigs_guts_the_middle_class/
They said education and hard work would set you free, maybe not …award winning qualified people are now scrabbling around to make ends meet as wages are no longer enough or secure enough to survive on …
‘Frederic Larson enjoyed a successful 30-year career as a staff photographer with the San Francisco Chronicle, during which time he won numerous awards, including being a Pulitzer Prize finalist. As Forbes reports, he was downsized during the recession, and needing income he “monetized his assets.” He turned his house into an Airbnb hotel and his spiffy Prius into a Lyft taxi. Now for 12 nights a month—40% of his life—he shutters himself in a rabbit hole inside his own home and showers at the local gym while complete strangers have the run of his place. This award-winning professional photographer has been turned into an innkeeper in his own home and a taxi driver in his own car.’
https://www.salon.com/2015/12/29/the_sharing_economy_partner/
P>S> That seems to be the future of NZ, but be aware, a friend of mine from Eastern Europe once said there is saying in their country.
“we pretend to work and they pretend to pay us”
Might explain NZ productivity levels.
So is the government’s end game that our wages are so out of line with expenses, that a professional like a teacher does a 8 hour day, then goes home and does a few uber hours to make ends meet, while staying at friends while they rent out their house for a few extra dollars, just to pay for escalating power, housing, rates, insurance, water, food etc costs…. as their job no longer keeps pace with that.
meanwhile our councils are increasing rates, extra charges and petrol taxes, while spending it on Stadiums and Billion dollar yacht races…? and extra charges, don’t forget they fully want to extract that share of that ‘shared’ economy https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/363069/airbnb-hosts-angered-by-auckland-council-s-bed-tax
Funny enough, polluting cruise ships are exempt from the paltry tourist taxes though, nice to be a multinational probably domiciled in a tax haven, and have the locals picking up the tab all the time!
Go figure that one out.
Yes, the corporates and other businesses loved it when 20th century employment laws were taken back to the 19th century. National was, and is still trying, to take those laws even further back to produce more poverty so that the rich can be richer and more powerful.
When I first went to Otago uni I looked for work at a labour temping agency. One of the clauses pretty much prevented me from even looking for work if I’d signed the contract as it prevented me from accepting work from any of the employers in the region who’d used the labour agency.
Completely against anything that could be considered a ‘free-labour market’ as it purposefully constrained what the employee could do.
“pretty much prevented me from even looking for work if I’d signed the contract”
This behavior is or was prevalent in a lot of comedy clubs in the UK 2000’s
Which went something along the lines of, if you do a gig here you can’t play other clubs within x time or x distance or both. Some of them probably still try this crap on. Like they think they own you if they hire you.
Looking at full time jobs today to see what it’s like. Many ask for people who are ‘flexible with hours’ – for ‘working weekends and overtime’. So not enough work or way too much is at their discretion really. They think they own your whole life. I’ve worked for A’holes like this they don’t give a shit about you or your own commitments. Flexibility means be my bitch. And the call for ‘flexibility’ is more common than not.
Employers whinge cos they can’t get good people. Anyone with half a clue, and the slightest choice, would reject that shit.
If you want good people be good people, you twats.
“If you want good people be good people, you twats”
Ae!
It probably still hasn’t dawned on the gNats yet though, or indeed one or two public servants who were angling to set up some kind of Peter Dutton type Border Force with spots on a Joolie Krusty reality TV show.
And Thompson and Clark are probably still pondering the size of their dicks in the realisation they weren’t as big as they imagined.
Deny Uber any IP protection for their apps etc. due to their bad behaviour.
Encourage the drivers to form driver-cooperatives and the like using the same technology.
Exploitative, globalised ticket-clipping because you happen to have invented some shitty little app is a grotesquely disproportionate reward.
+111
Uber is a great example of capitalism and it’s rentier MO.
National’s Nice Cop, Nasty Cop routine: Paula “Snitch” Bennett,
assisted by Sidekick Simon, goes after Jami-Lee Ross
Monday, Nov. 5, 2018
This is a real, unbowdlerized, transcript of that infamous conversation…..
JAMI-LEE ROSS: So it would be for medical reasons?
PAULA BENNETT: If THAT’s what you want. So you either—I think either medical or family’s your best option.
JAMI-LEE ROSS: Medical’s TRUU-U-UE.
SIMON BRIDGES: Yeah.
PAULA BENNETT: If that’s—
SIMON BRIDGES: Yeah. No that’s RIGHT. That’s RIGHT.
PAULA BENNETT: And—
SIMON BRIDGES: There’s no SHAME in that.
PAULA BENNETT: No. And it mee-e-eans that everyone will back OFF you too – the media and all that sort of stuff. Which I think’s important. …. Just SUCH the lightest option we possibly can in the light of what we’ve got in front of us. And it’s out of respect to the girls.
JAMI-LEE ROSS: You haven’t even TOLD me what I’ve supposedly done. I don’t even KNOW.
PAULA BENNETT: Simon told you ALL ABOUT the disloyalty stuff, Jami-Le-e-ee, and quite frankly if that was put to caucus, that would be enough.
JAMI-LEE ROSS: The stuff around harassing STAFF, which I reject, that is the worst, ‘cos, and I don’t even know what that IS.
PAULA BENNETT: Well you DO know what the disloyalty stuff is, and that’s been put to you really clearly, and if that was put to caucus, that would be enough.
JAMI-LEE ROSS: [exasperated sigh]
PAULA BENNETT: You know? We are trying to give you the LIGHTEST POSSIBLE, um, way out of this.
SIMON BRIDGES: ‘Cos when we’re finished, Jami-Lee, we can get through it. And you can get through it. And you can come out the other side if your attitude, um, after the time out is, is GOOD and POSITIVE, and you can be promoted again. …. I give you my one HUNDRED percent assurance that if you go with the statement along the lines we’ve talked about, I will NEVER badmouth you in relation to this – privately, publicly, in background, off the record in any way. I will do everything within my power to keep the things we talked about last week out of the public [inaudible]. I will do everything.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2018/11/new-leaked-recording-suggests-simon-bridges-paula-bennett-planned-jami-lee-ross-cover-up.html
Police wont press charges – why?
https://i.stuff.co.nz/sport/108321403/horse-trainer-michael-breslin-sexually-assaulted-woman-but-penalty-not-tough-enough
A deep insight into mental illness by journalist Virginia Winder who talks about her journey with bipolar disorder.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/107864708/this-is-a-story-about-how-to-save-your-own-life
In this context, it is appropriate to quote from I Am a Strange Loop, a book by Douglas Hofstadter:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Am_a_Strange_Loop
Thank you Incognito. Real food for thought. JLR has been used imo. He is fighting back.
I find it bizarre that JLR is becoming the new darling of the left
A.
Hi Antoine, JLR has not become a darling in my eyes, but more a symptom of all that lies beneath in the National party. I am glad its surfacing through him. Again I am unsure of his motivations, what really happened with the women. (we have seen text evidence of behaviour from one of the women he had an affair with though.
I wish anyone suffering from a mental illness all the very best in their recovery.
Oh yes and I do have a small amount of sympathy for Bridges……………..just a very small amount.
Its too early to tell if JLR is a geniune whistle blower or just seeking revenge. Or maybe a bit of both
No, not at all. Just used and abused.
This was to Antoine
I believe it in your case but I think others are starting to see him as a martyr. Remember the enemy of your enemy is not your friend. Shades of Kim dot com
A.
“I find it bizarre that JLR is becoming the new darling of the left”
Yep JLR is a delusional sleaze bag, It shows how one eyed many on the left are when suddenly they become a fanboy of low-lifes like Ross and Slater.
True Nastiman, but Pullya and Slick are major arseholes and would sell their grannies for organ transplants.
Oh, well JLR must be nice then
A.
Except that he hasn’t.
What he has shown is the corruption that is inherent in the National Party.
Despite all the noise, numerous allegations and speculation…. from what I heard of the tape, JLR clearly sounded di/stressed!
And as MS rightly pointed out in his Post yesterday; “It is noteworthy that the allegations only came out publicly when National decided to counterattack after Ross’s stand up conference in Parliament.
Ross’s mental health was not a significant consideration for them at that time.” (or at anytime!)
Clearly Bridges and Bennett’s behaviour was totally abhorrent!
abhorrent
/əbˈhɒr(ə)nt/
adjective
inspiring disgust and loathing; repugnant.
synonyms: detestable, detested, hateful, hated, loathsome, loathed, despicable, despised, abominable, abominated, execrable, execrated, repellent, repugnant, repulsive, revolting, disgusting, distasteful, horrible, horrid, horrifying, awful, heinous, reprehensible, obnoxious, odious, nauseating, offensive, contemptible
Just like the 9 years of their tenure
As above!
Yes, I agree.
So OUR commons turned over so individuals can earn more profit. Water is our life and you farmer-capitalists are abusing that resource. Shame on them and the day of reckoning is coming, of that I have no doubt.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/timaru-herald/news/108361446/greenpeace-lashes-out-at-infuriating-irrigation-decision-in-mackenzie
It makes me so angry that the demolition of ECan was done so easily and without undue reaction from we the people. And as Newsroom article says, “Doubts and fears sown in 2010 have bloomed into a concern that ECan is putting irrigation interests ahead of the environment.”
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2018/11/05/307965/council-caves-on-dairy-consent?preview=1
IMO, the whole point of National’s canning of ECan was to put the interests of the irrigators above everyone else and the environment.
“The seeds were sown eight years ago, critics say. In 2010, the John Key-led Government sacked Canterbury’s regional councillors over “urgent problems with water management”.
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2018/11/05/307965/council-caves-on-dairy-consent
snap!
But it could be worser …
https://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/105202179/ecan-elections-may-be-very-dangerous-if-extremists-elected-warns-farming-leader
But what if they elect farmer extremists?
Exactly!
Sign the PETITION; (its going Nuts!)
David Parker, Minister for the Environment: For the sake of our rivers, our climate and the unique and precious Mackenzie country, I call on you to stop all new dairy conversions and intensification of existing livestock farming by making them both prohibited activities, effective immediately, in the National Policy Statement for Freshwater.
https://act.greenpeace.org/page/23869/petition/1?locale=en-NZ&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=agriculture&utm_content=ecan+consent
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/108049548/Ng-i-Tahu-Farming-replaces-forestry-with-14-000-cows-at-Eyrewell
Yes, because saving the environment and the people while living sustainably is so very, very extreme.
National and other RWNJs tell us that we must live within our means while doing everything to prevent us living sustainably so as to boost profits for the capitalists.
https://larspsyll.wordpress.com/2018/11/04/solow-on-the-non-existence-of-a-natural-rate-of-unemployment/
Robert Solow explains that NZs main economic policy initiative for several decades (the OCR and inflation targeting) is based on fiction.
As far as I can make out, the entire capitalist edifice that the politicians and most economists promote is complete bollocks. It’s all based upon false assumptions about human behaviour, drives and economics.
Notice Granny is still promoting the deal where rich individuals get free public land worth billions in return for a white elephant Stadium that nobody wants and the poorer folks have no access too aka paid events, even if they could afford the petrol to come into the city centre.
Note any buildings built on wharves cost 7 times more in maintenance, probably more these days.
So not only is there a white elephant Stadium that is being pushed as an agenda that nobody wants, but if it even got built, even BEFORE global warming, it is going to cost 7 times more at least to maintain than MT Eden.
So work harder people, Auckland council is going to need a lot more rates in the future, as we all know money is no object to them.
Auckland council might soon be running a city that has no teachers or Doctors or Police, but full of empty spec homes…and the working poor sleeping in the parks and cars..
But who cares, a few individuals have make a killing developing in MT Eden with free billion dollar land. Now that is capitalism!
Too true,
This council is fixated on every facility and business being in the CBD, at our expense. It is time that they reversed this philosophy and took the facility’s and jobs to the people in the form of satellite towns. It makes no sense to keep shifting people and goods into an ever increasingly populated area until it freezes from lack of maneuverability.
Also with our record of constructing leaky buildings any building at the mercy of the sea would appear to be an extremely risky venture
“Note any buildings built on wharves cost 7 times more in maintenance, probably more these days.”
This I find difficult to believe
“Stadium that nobody wants”
“pushed as an agenda that nobody wants”
While I don’t live in Auckland so care very little, I think you might be slightly thinking everyone else agrees with you and those you hang out with, when they probably don’t
Yes, Chris T you don’t live in Auckland and therefore have few insights into what people want here, and the last thing on anyone’s minds is wasting money on a white elephant stadium after all the other stupid ideas put upon us like the Supercity.
And yep do some checks and you will find wharf buildings cost 7x more in maintenance and that is before global warming and an idea to sink the stadium into the sea. Costs a lot more to maintain infrastructure underwater, go figure!
I think that a better idea for the Stadium is private practise own it, pay to build it, pay for the land and run it, independent of the council and pay for the maintenance off their ticket sales but we all know that won’t happen because the stadium is going to generate huge costs to the taxpayers and ratepayers and on going loses and private practise want the taxpayers to pay for it. Oh and don’t steal the harbour to do it.
A stadium is great for all those offshore luxury waterfront hotels, probably less fun for the residents of Auckland who live in the centre and a big headache for anyone struggling in Auckland, on a fixed income, or who have just been hit with a petrol tax and higher rates (or rents).
We have sewerage going into the harbour, massive congestion, housing inequity, full hospitals and schools, but the Stadium is where the granny headlines and the council is focused on.
Is an underwater stadium a good idea christy?
FWIW, the caketin in Wellys is a great regional asset.
Shoulda put a roof on it…
Did they thinh it needed a cap on the cost?
Could stadiums be built in two stages? First get a roof-ready bunch of walls and facilities up, then add a roof – of some sort. In Wellington it would have to withstand regular strong winds. A retractable one then? A canvas one that wouldn’t be a huge loss if torn to ribbons and could be replaced? Something that wouldn’t turn into a flying weapon?
Scrap the roof and everyone brings a raincoat?
It might come to that when TSHTF.
It’s ok. The caketin is what happens when you compromise and end up with something that doesn’t really suit anyone. Athletic Park was much better to watch footy at.
They should have built a rectangular stadium on the waterfront as 80% of sport played at the stadium is on a rectangular field. Then built a large stand at the Basin to increase capacity and there might have been some money leftover to start getting Light Rail to the Basin built.
I don’t think I caught a game at Athletic park. Although I have heard Keith Quinn recall the south stand move in one of the local breezes.
As an outsider, I probably couldn’t tell you how to get there.
Have seen several rugby games there, including Jonah’s last hurricanes game. There isn’t a bad seat in the house.
Coming from the provinces, it’s great.
Drive to Raumati, get on the train, day in Wellys, footy, then train back up the line then home.
I get there are impacts on rate bills, but with a bit of imagination this can be ameliorated. E.g. $1 a ticket for the first 5years goes to the stadium.
Perhaps they could sell the tickets out of the stadium, because there seems to be some fat in the prices ticketec, ticketmaster charge for their services.
It is a total lack of common sense to build yet another public building that will focus thousand of people into the smallest, narrowest part of New Zealand. An area already congested with other public buildings such as the university which already pulls 20,000 people into the same space.
For the same reason the port should not be developed any further either. The sea front of central Auckland should become a beautiful public recreational seafront for all to enjoy.
Get real !
Well it seems money does not buy brain power or common sense… apparently approx 50% of the rates money is spend on paying themselves…
Auckland Council wages bill nearing $1 billion
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12142579
Sounds like you channelling Penny’s bright ideas RIP.
Lived in Auckland for a number of years, including post and prior Americas Cup.
That new development proposed sounds epic. Am imagining a type of ‘south bank brisbane’, now that would be wonderful for Auckland city.
The Auckland waterfront should be developed for all to enjoy.
Build a stadium somewhere else.
I also totally disagree with the privatisation of the Auckland waterfront (I live in Auckland). And with the current approach to centralising all the city’s main events and corporate activities.
I love the idea of an Auckland version of Brisbane’s south bank as a people’s location for enjoying the waterfront.
Mother Agnes Mariam de la Croix wades into the Syria debate and talks about the phony White Helmets and Russia’s helpful contributions. Thank you Mother Superior.
Oh look, another apologist for the Assad regimes war crimes.
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
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A tweet from 2013 that came off the back of a campaign mounted by Pulse media – known liberal interventionists.
She withdrew from the conference. Jones later said he withdrew on the basis that Scahill had withdrawn.
Now, maybe Mother Agnes is the evil critter that Pulse Media say she is (conspiring in the murder of journalists and refugees). Or then again….
The AMP demutualised some decades ago. Now it is getting out of life insurance and other things and has sold much of its business to a ‘closed book ‘ investor that apparently will just manage the present policies.
Is NZ getting uninsurable? As Ryan asked is it the growing numbers of people who won’t die (of course she didn’t use such stark description), also the earthquake and other risks we face, make us hard to quantify for insurance businesses? There was a mention that we are the second riskiest country in the world.
I think this move will bring an important matter to our attention. All thinking people who visit this blog should listen to this interview and get a worms eye view of what is going on. Later we can aim for a birds eye view but we need to investigate the ground situation of insurance here and what we will need to do.
https://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon/audio/2018669955/impact-of-amp-s-life-insurance-exit
Something mentioned was that young people are not taking out insurance. That would fit in with the lack of care that many take as they go blindly or optimistically on their way as can be noticed when crossing roads. No look right or left, just step out with your eyes on your Device and whoosh for real.
I’m thinking of hard times earlier when often unions formed welfare societies which have been declining in NZ. This is in line with the idea that we didn’t need these any more as we had a welfare state, and had trustable commitment from government to provide a helpful environment for all citizens and to extend this to those in need. ACC was started under this mindset. And as a rather somnolent accepting society, we have been slow to complain about a decline from this, slow to feel concern even outrage on behalf of other people being badly treated, and of course the decline spreads like a creeping bindweed.
Start looking at deliberately forming local groups that assist in a practical way that are funded from locals for locals, and let us start having education sessions on how to manage our society, making the point that Margaret Thatcher and her ilk were talking ideological BS when saying ‘there is no such thing as society’. Also how to protect ourselves, where needed, what our vision is. Because without that there won’t be time to form a vision, it will be just inadequate immediate disaster relief, and repeat.
Right with you on the local organising.
I assume it is an Amish way, insurance comes from community, someones house, barn burns down, the community rebuilds it.
Your mention of unions reminds me of what we have lost.
My father had a massive stroke at work. He didn’t recover.
Two men knocked on my mother’s door, gave her an envelope.
It was enough for Dads funeral expenses and a little bit more.
Gsays, yes communities where unions were strong helped in bad times. Often it was union money plus a “whip round” with the hat, to top it up. I have always wondered what was done for the families of those forestry workers killed on the job. No union no rights.
The Amish are a cult and it is always dangerous to look at cults as the way to go, though their integrated community helping each other is probably what we need. I understand rural people mid 20th century in some areas of NZ could be a good template for what we need now. Their communal barn raising practice is a good symbol of what could be accomplished with more friendly cohesion.
The Mafia grew cult-like out of a poverty stricken area. The Exclusive Brethren are an example of a tightly bound group, and perhaps some of the Maori gangs are also tightly bound.
But cults or gangs or clans are cohesive and want to hold together. The best ones look out for each other, and that is what i thought we had in NZ but apparently no. And it seems to me that once people get comfortable they get bound up in wealth and its enjoyment and the past of striving is dismissed as another world. So my simple ideas that people would put into community some of what they had and the more they had, the more they could and would give; that is the remainder of a child’s idea.
Community and commitment both start the same way, and are fixed in partnership. So we should keep talking about that, while the sleek predators look to see what they can get hold of and use up majorly for their own benefit.
The clever predator will offer some deal to the community, but they need to check out net gains and look for fish hooks. And sometimes those who would be the most beneficial get overlooked in favour of another idea group which looks better until you unpick it and see the tell-tale lack of commitment to all the people.
I know of two small communities that are organising in case TSHTF.
Asking my friend who is a senior chappie in one of them, ‘post ‘Shit going down’ will you greet a stranger with a hug or a gun?’
He responded that a gun would be the first step back towards this mess we are in now.
The best thing would be to start doing something now before the mess we are in now becomes overwhelming.
I keep being drawn back to John Wyndham’s journey in The Day of the Triffids in which he has the man go from his convalescence in hospital to a temporary sanctuary in a distant rural area, along with a sighted woman partner he rescued from a bunch of blind thugs, and the remaining child of two whose parents, and her brother had been killed by the dangerous triffids. Then with his partner and the teenage girl, they join with a blind pair whose farm they have found sanctuary on, and escape from a dictatorship that has assumed the role of government by the use of arms, outwitting them. They go to an island group that has formed a civilised community which can defend itself and manage to wipe out the triffids there.
But on the way he stops at a large farm that has tried to take in everyone who arrives and is having trouble helping and feeding everyone. A disease spreads quickly and all the able-bodied flee, leaving the man who is a newcomer. He finds a girl still alive who talks to him knowing she is dying and wishes him well. He helps when she asks him for some sleeping tablets and water so she can take her own life when she wishes. There isn’t much he can do as an individual, most others he comes across have joined into the armed dictatorship run by a few hard men using force. He travels on towards an area where he thinks his partner has gone, offers friendship to the girl and they go on with patient determination and wise decision making till they find his partner.
It is rather along the lines of some USA films being made about dislocated people, with zombies rather than triffids as a menace. In them there are problems of food, relationships, trust, guns, wariness and privation. To have food it takes at least a month to grow anything, and whether there is anything that can be utilised like wild plants, berries, meat and fish and simple medications (I believe dock plants are useful), keeping alive would be a problem. I would rather we gathered ourselves together now rather than have to face the hard situations forced on us when resources run out.
I feel that guns and revolution are a last resort. But that trying to be both kind and practical as a guideline will enable people to enjoy a limited life compared to what we have been used to. And we may be able to conserve some of the things we have, think of ways to manage things we can’t influence or control. And I think of Dylan Thomas – he’s enigmatic and so is our future. Rage against the dying of the night, will keep us appreciating each other and our wonderful world, so much taken for granted.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2cgcx-GJTQ
I have a vague memory of day of the triffids movie from my youth.
Your synopsis reminds me of Cormac McCarthy’s The Road.
A very grim affair.
It doesn’t feel grim, as the protagonist manages to solve problems and becomes part of a band of strong-minded, capable, practical people as a little family and they have hope for the future, and are inventive as to how to manage. The young man is not a drug addict or alcoholic, and is able to plan and imagine the outcomes of different scenarios and is capable, a hard worker and kind, brave, honest and true. Too nice to be a human really. /sarc
true.. happening in Island communities with Chinese money.
The community is the insurance.
But, of course, if it’s done that way then the capitalists can’t make a profit from doing nothing.
The wonderful Tama Renata has passed.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKK3sjJhm0g
https://www.waateanews.com/waateanews/x_news/MjA1MDU/Tears-shed-for-shredder-Renata
RIP Tama.
So evocative that tune.
So gut thumping that movie.
A few years ago I saw Tama, Dilworth Karaka and Tama Lundon unplugged at the Whanagnui Opera house.
Their set list, harmonies and innate showmanship, Tama’s guitar antics, the opera house acoustics and the crowd made it probably the best show I’d been to since the pub rock events of my youth.
joe90
It would be great if someone had recorded or videoed that. I wonder….
Did anyone consider Jane Pattison’s article NZ Herald on the NZ Labour Conference contrived.
My reaction was Jane wanted to “minimize any impact through faint praise and suggested problems”
Some aspects. “Locked down” “Empty seats” “No fanfare” “No mention of Helen Clarke” “Journalists not allowed to see divisions or blood on the floor during discussions” “One good idea approved by the people”
Jane did you go to the same conference as Micky and Te Reo Putake? You needed to remove your blue tinted glasses.
She’s used to the Nat’s either buying or threatening journalists in order to push a message. She’s used to overhyped X-factor/evangelical-sermon Nat party conferences.
She doesn’t know what to do in the absence of that.
I wasn’t there, but I did attend the famous 2012 conference and saw first hand the way the media distorted, lied and created a mountainous drama from tiny molehills. I saw them hounding and harassing MPs on both sides of the factional divide, and I even saw them hanging around outside the outer door of the men’s loo and pouncing on MPs as they emerged. They couldn’t even go and have a quiet pee.
After that performance is it any wonder they prefer to go into ‘lock-down’ when deliberating on policy matters and issues of the day.
Anne if the journalists had really been razor sharp they would have gone in and done their questioning as they stood side by side doing their business. So they could be said to show a little respect for their victims!
I think the male journos would understand trickle down theory and also the nature of slashing comments from males who cannot multi-task………..
Razor sharp mac1
Unfortunately half of them were female. 😐
Patricia, I read a little of Jane’s article and the headline and thought it was an attempt to make it look lackluster to say the least.
I take it nothing about queues of people who couldn’t get in for her speech????? Also thought Q and A did a very pedestrian report…………………………………….
Jane was the one who had a go at Marion Hobbs around the time of the Claire Curran affair…………….2+2 =
“Did anyone consider Jane Pattison’s article NZ Herald on the NZ Labour Conference contrived.”
???? Jane Patterson is Senior Political Editor for RNZ and does not write for NZ Herald. She does write for the Listener and their online site, Noted, but has not done so on the Conference as yet apparently.
I am not a great fan of Jane’s but personally I did not think her RNZ reports on the Conference were contrived. While they were not over the top “Ra Ra” reports, I thought they were reasonable and I could also not find the terms you quoted above in her articles on the Conference.
https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/on-the-inside/370223/labour-party-conference-relatively-locked-down-low-key-affair
https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/370182/600-new-support-roles-for-kids-with-special-needs-govt
https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/370139/wellbeing-budget-to-give-mental-health-focus-it-deserves
https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/370127/labour-s-president-says-national-s-sense-of-entitlement-on-display
Perhaps you have confused her with someone else?
Re NZ Herald, Audrey Young was their main reporter there, but again I did not think her reports were too bad, despite Young’s leanings.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12154399
IMO Tracey Watkins at Stuff also did not do too bad a job on reporting either.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/opinion/108349572/Jacinda-Arderns-message-to-the-party-faithful-we-can-t-do-it-all
Apologies… RNZ not The Herald. My opinion was she was annoyed at being excluded from parts of the conference and wrote accordingly. Audrey did write a reasonable piece. Great picture of Jacinda Neve and Clarke.
Patricia
These phrases that you quoted did indeed seem to intend to diminish and
concentrate on the negative. Were they balanced by positives do you think?
These quoted comments have a weighted negativity about them.
Some aspects. “Locked down” “Empty seats” “No fanfare” “No mention of Helen Clarke” “Journalists not allowed to see divisions or blood on the floor during discussions” “One good idea approved by the people”
Reading her article I think you are being over sensitive
The empty seats you have taken out of context. She talks about the 1080 protester risk being the cause, so not even a crtiticism
Helen Clark not being mentioned is note worthy as she is her mentor and the only other female Labour PM
Fan Fare and the blood bit aren’t even in the article on the web, so not sure what you were reading
Is it something different to this
https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/on-the-inside/370223/labour-party-conference-relatively-locked-down-low-key-affair
Yes possibly I felt a little more up beat tenor would have been suitable, however, I must admit Jane was the only ? reporter to note the reaction to the 1080 protesters, that closed the doors when quote “hundreds were lined up”.
Apparently there was a death threat made. The PM discussed it later.
I was just reading a column by Chris Trotter in which he says the Labour Caucus no longer has to comply with the party manifesto after last weekend’s conference but he doesn’t give any links and I can’t find anything on Google. Does anyone have a suitable link about this?
Conference endorsed this change. It’s to allow for flexibility in coalition talks. It’s not a free pass to ignore the manifesto, rather it lets the leadership make practical compromises when forming a Government.
So Trotter is exaggerating? again?
Not sure, haven’t read his article. It wasn’t controversial at conference and it would be a shame if Trotter is trying to distort the intention.
I suggest you do read it, as he deftly connects the event to the last LP conference in Dunedin 30 years ago. I’m often critical of his analyses but this essay lacks any flaw to pounce on, so 9/10. Didn’t see distortion but I’ll leave that judgment to others, here’s the relevant paragraph plus the prior to provide context (literary afficionados may find the shakespearean mythos subtext insufficiently subtle):
” What Harman doesn’t say is that the only reason such political legerdemain is even possible is because Jacinda Ardern is such an extraordinary electoral asset. Single-handed, she has resurrected Labour’s morale; refilled her coffers, boosted her membership, and filled her activist base with confidence and delight. Her “relentlessly positive” personality is like a powerful spotlight, illuminating brilliantly that little part of Labour’s stage upon which she sits and smiles. Meanwhile, in the darkness her brilliance does so much to render impenetrable, the party leadership does all within its power to render a genuine shift to the left impossible.”
“It is fitting, in a way, that the decision to free the caucus from its crucial constitutional obligation to uphold the party’s manifesto – its policy platform – was taken in Dunedin. Justified as a practical and necessary concession to the exigencies of MMP, it nevertheless severs the last of the ties that bind the parliamentary wing to the party organisation. The caucus is now officially “Corbyn proof”. Thirty years after stabbing her in the back, the centrists have finally summoned-up the courage to drive the dagger of pragmatism deep into Labour’s democratic-socialist heart.”
http://bowalleyroad.blogspot.com/2018/11/labours-dunedin-conference-returning-to.html
I guess Trotter’s going through the depressive part of his cycle.
True democracy can barely be practiced by contemporary parties. The ‘gotcha’ media hang on every word, and are as likely to go downtown on a policy discussion as the Exclusive Brethren were to sabotage Jeanette Fitzsimons awhile back.
Parties have to nut out policy in camera, not on camera, and the best that we can hope of them is a sincere effort to serve our interests, neither a simple kowtowing to the nonsensus of public opinion, nor an avid pursuit of possible funders.
An ideal democratic party will not follow public opinion, it will try to anticipate it, in the same way an astute business anticipates customer needs and desires. At this stage in the electoral cycle, while the horrors of National misrule are fresh in people’s minds, and the coalition have few or none of their own, it’s not so hard.
Let them lose touch with people though, and like entropy, the Gnats, in some form will be there, carrying out their role as decomposers, preparing the soil for the next round of growth.
https://thedailyblog.co.nz/2018/11/06/labours-dunedin-conference-returning-to-the-scene-of-the-crime/
thanks
https://thedailyblog.co.nz/2018/11/06/labours-dunedin-conference-returning-to-the-scene-of-the-crime/
I have no knowledge of the actual remit. However, I do agree with the general thrust of Trotter’s post.
My understanding is that Labour Party conference remits in the past, may or may not be picked up in total by the caucus. It does sound like this latest agreed party policy further severs the links between the policies agreed by rank and file members and the caucus.
I don’t agree with the way Trotter and Bradbury are dismissive of so-called “identity politics”. But I do agree with their latest posts in which they argue that the left needs a radical shift to re-instate solid left wing values and policies.
Bradbury argues that it is climate change that will derail incrementalism and the current middle class/centrist focus of the Green Party and Labour.
https://thedailyblog.co.nz/2018/11/05/this-is-why-the-current-nz-political-spectrum-will-snap/
It’s too soon to tell with the Greens. They were knee-capped during the last election, and Davidson is still finding her feet as co-leader.
I don’t agree it is climate change alone that will derail centrist incrementalism, but it also the current state of effective disenfranchisement of those on low incomes, plus the radical sections of gender, LGBT+ and ethnic politics that will come to the fore.
I agree with Trotter’s summation:
“I was just reading a column by Chris Trotter in which he says the Labour Caucus no longer has to comply with the party manifesto…”
The Greens talked of doing similar at their last AGM, allowing their MPs more freedom to act without consulting members on every decision.
Ukraine activist Kateryna Handzyuk dies from acid attack
Campaigner’s death sparks protests and EU concern about violence against civil society
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/nov/05/ukraine-activist-kateryna-handzyuk-dies-from-acid-attack
Peruvian villagers face murder and intimidation from land traffickers
Invaders continue to seize land within the Chaparrí ecological reserve, one of Peru’s most biodiverse forests
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/sep/03/peruvian-villagers-face-and-intimidation-from-land-traffickers
“These killers, potential and actual, will be stopped only by real actions, not virtual ones,” reformist lawmaker Mustafa Nayyem wrote , saying the outpouring of condolences on social media wouldn’t be enough.
“Whether they will continue to drench us with acid, slaughter us in doorways, and shoot us in the back in our own country depends on how and what we do now,” Nayyem added.
https://www.rferl.org/a/ukrainian-activist-death-triggers-calls-for-ouster-of-law-enforcement-officials/29584083.html
The horrific acid attack that led to Handzyuk’s death is merely one of several dozen attacks against Ukrainian activists in the past year.
Re-upping this – another tragic story of a Ukrainian activist murdered while fighting for justice.
https://www.rferl.org/a/tragedy-on-sunshine-street/29318285.html
In NZ high country foreign? land owner gets to use precious water without having satisfied guardian regulations so that he can irrigate unsuitable areas to make a quick buck while the milk rush is still on. Controlling body ECan is fairly relaxed, as it is still in the control of rich-list or easy-rider fascist interests who replaced locally elected civil government body.
Peru or New Zealand, enabling the phallic rise of the neo liberal man with capital accretion strengthening his mind and body all over the world will be our death knell.
Well that is something that doesn’t happen often.
David Seymour says something I tend to agree with.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA1811/S00042/mallard-brownlee-should-repay-cost-of-junket.htm
David Seymour had his “Um, what can I say to get in the news today?” moment.
His, “Um, what would be a good populist issue to use” opportunity.
I remember the headlines he garnered when he went crook about John Key and Jonathan Coleman going to England for All Black games in 2015. His public stand, speaking out loud and long when Bill English defended the use of taxpayer dollars, was quite memorable.
For a Parliamentary Under-Secretary and Minister to be so outspoken was quite dramatic.
I made all that last stuff up. David Seymour is playing a pathetic parody of the principled. Again.
Yep the waste of time drongo has outed two troughing fatcats – waste of money – you guys have enough, and your perks and your pensions – pay it back and admit you just abused the priviledge WE, the people, gave you.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/108389082/mps-attacked-for-watching-all-blacks-on-taxpayerfunded-trade-junket-to-japan
You would think would be an easy one, NZ public good and risks of aquifer outweigh Chinese majority owned private company getting more water but no… also raised point how consent can change use, but no come back as it was formally Kaputone Wool Scour and was unlikely to have used much of the water it was allocated.
reposted…
“Genevieve Robinson
Christchurch, New Zealand
NOV 5, 2018 —
ECan has received an application from Cloud Ocean Water to take water from their 180m bore.
Ecan is currently considering whether to notify the application.
The Christchurch City Council is concerned that the proposal will put the community water supply at risk.
Aotearoa Water Action is also concerned about the potential environmental effects.
AWA believes that if the application can be considered at all, it must be publicly notified – this is because the aquifer is already fully allocated, and because City Council testing shows the community water supply WILL be adversely affected, which is of huge public interest in the matter.
We believe that ECan needs to hear both the public’s views (including your views) and the evidence of additional experts.
AWA will be speaking at ECans meeting this Thursday, November 8, at 11am – so please add your comments below!
Let’s make sure the whole country gets to weigh in on this!”
It doesn’t matter if it’s the Chinese, English or Antarcticans – NO to taking our water I say.
Nestle has been doing it for years, they operate in poor areas/countries with few regulations…. or on indigenous people’s land… as being easier targets
“Luster lives in Flint, Michigan, and here, residents believe tap water is good for one thing: to flush the toilet.
“I don’t even water my plants with it,” she said.
Flint became synonymous with lead-poisoned water after government officials, looking to save money, switched the city’s water supply from Detroit city water to water from the corrosive Flint river.
Once the city had switched, the number of children with elevated lead exposure doubled; residents reported unexplained rashes and losing hair. An unpublished study recently found fetal deaths in Flint increased by 58% during the crisis.”
While Flint battles a water crisis, just two hours away the beverage giant pumps almost 100,000 times what an average Michigan resident uses into plastic bottles
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/sep/29/nestle-pays-200-a-year-to-bottle-water-near-flint-where-water-is-undrinkable
“You would think would be an easy one, NZ public good and risks of aquifer outweigh Chinese majority owned private company getting more water but no…”
Could the impact of this (link below) be why the decision isn’t so easy?
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/108379364/serious-storm-clouds-threaten-nz-democracy–report
And the big question on every ones mind…….
Will simon ask about fuel prices in question time today?
Or why is Iain Lees-Galloway still Minister of Immigration?
[Or should that be an “And/Or”?]
He certainly will not be talking about JLR… See 20 below. Not a happy chappy. LOLZ!
Just noticed Bridges has two questions to the PM today – Q1 and Q4. Both the usual
” Does she stand by all of her Government’s statements and actions?”
https://www.parliament.nz/en/pb/order-paper-questions/list-of-oral-questions/oral-questions-6-november-2018/
Also I see a certain female MP is in the House today after two weeks away. Must not name.
Lmao !!! V.V you called that one big time 🙂
Yes it was immigration and Iain.
Wonder if fuel will be Q4?
It’s like groundhog day again.
simon, nothing about fuel? Too much excitement out there about electric trains huh?
Meanwhile Jacinda’s blouse is gorgeous, kudos to the creators, beautiful sleeves, love the wide cuffs and cowl neck line.
Pretty sure that is the NZ designer top (and trousers) that JA wore on her trip to Paris to meet Macron earlier this year (April/May?) when she was about 7 – 8 months’ pregnant.
Yes – here is a link and photo.
https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/355269/ardern-hails-trade-vision-france-s-macron-to-visit-nz
And of course, I then needed to find who the designer was!
Here it is – Harman Grubiša .
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/104309838/prime-minister-jacinda-ardern-seeks-advice-on-designers-use-of-her-image-to-promote-brands
Hate to say it, I don’t actually like it. Too fussy for my taste but each to their own. Sorry ….
O.O Thanking you very much V.V.
It might not be your style of garment, but still you went out of your way to find the name of the fashion house, which is very much appreciated.
You are awesome V.V, thanks again.
Harman Grubiša, love, love your work ladies, keep it up.
Simon Bridges’ Daily Theme
Today’s is: “I am done talking about Jami-Lee Ross”.
He is not going to talk about yesterday’s audio release and said everything yesterday, and people can now hear the tape and decide for themselves, and he won’t be talking about any other recordings … … …
[Repeat, repeat, repeat, and again, repeat. ]
Somehow, I don’t think people like Barry Soper will just accept that. Bridges may not want to talk about Ross, but in fact the real subject is Bridges and Bennett, and their fitness to be Leader and Deputy Leader of the National Party.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/national-video/news/video.cfm?c_id=1503075&gal_cid=1503075&gallery_id=200274
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/108384318/simon-bridges-im-done-talking-about-jamilee-ross
SImon Bridges is keen to point out his role in opposition in holding the government to account” even as he reworks the same questions on fuel taxes ad nauseam in Question TIme.
But he doesn’t seem to want to afford the same role to the media regarding his effectiveness as Leader of the Opposition and as the leader of a major party. His effectiveness has been reduced by disowning an MP, his party is less effective.
The media has a part in this, albeit uncomfortable or downright dangerous to his career as he might feel threatened.
How would he function as PM if this is his current tolerance of media interest?
I don’t even think Trump has managed to get caught on tape, selling donations and entry to MP’s for $100k and thinking 2 Chinese were better than 2 Indians.
They have shown themselves unfit for the job. Imagine the embarrassing nightmare if they were running the country – they make t.rump look like a brainiac.
With over half of New Zealand households cutting back on heating their homes in winter due to the high cost of heating, I was dismayed to hear new Kiwibuild homes won’t be fitted with solar power. Which leads one to ask has solar power for new state owned homes also been overlooked?
A common factor I noticed from reports of people being hospitalised due to cold and damp homes was they couldn’t afford to utilize the heating supplied.
Therefore, while these new homes may be better insulated thus cheaper to heat, one would expect the Government (especially with the Greens in there) would be doing the upmost to keep heating cost at a minimum. Meaning not only would homes be cheaper to heat but heating would also be cheaper to run.
So what do we know? We know we have to reduce energy demand. We know we have to move energy generation away from fossil and bio. We know that heat kills far more readily than cold does. We know the world is warming. Hmm.
From the EU
Energy performance of Building regulations requirements
Mandatory standards that social housing providers have to achieve, often more ambitious than for the rest of the building stock for the global energy performance of new built dwellings are generally applied to all type of buildings.Thus, from 2020, all new buildings in the EU will have to be nearly zero. In most of the cases this means that not only homes will have to be extremely well insulated, but that they will have to compensate the energy for heating and hot water by using renewable energy or efficient systems like heat pumps.
I’m guessing they are referring to a net zero carbon footprint. But fck it. NZs just fine….NZ doesn’t need any new fangled means of energy generation. Global warming and climate change is “over there”…until it’s over here and some damned heatwave, or weather event accompanying a heatwave, knackers supply in one way or another (resulting in either brown outs or black outs) and people in housing only designed for a cooler 20th C are unable to cool themselves at night.
That’ll be fun.
Good article on it.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2018/10/solar-panels-weren-t-considered-for-kiwibuild.amp.html
Absolutely.
The government could even create a revenue stream for itself by allowing decent rates for power returned to the grid, and then collecting on any excess returned to the grid from HNZ properties. Put those profiteering power companies in their place and let all generators play on the grid.
Sadly the NZ government likes to clip the ticket and price gouge on power, hiding behind “market forces”. Yeah, right. Therefore little incentive to change to solar and not get that lucrative clip of the ticket. Instead they ‘give away’$500 payment to pretend they care . Meanwhile everyone, in particular those under 65 are being ripped off apart from corporate welfare to Tiwai Pt who get million dollar hand outs. Yes it all stems from the Natz, but Labour haven’t exactly been keen to address the power rip offs.
Sounds like it. State houses should have maximum amount of solar PV and solar water heating on them. The people going in to them are in dire straights and so such things that reduce power usage should be mandatory really.
Yes no point making everyone have a heater, if nobody can afford to turn it on. Personally think it’s disgusting especially with all the outages that every new house is not designed to be fitted with solar. It is not an end game but a way for extra power to be generated with the increasing population and with increasing outages and disasters people can at least have some free power when they either can’t afford it or the power is off.
The power companies are talking about importing more oil and gas because the hydro lakes are down!
And NZ unlike the rest of the world they are trying to tax solar so the power companies can maintain their excessive profits and rip offs.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/opinion/102708888/way-to-be-cleared-for-big-electricity-players-to-prey-on-lowincome-households
I tuned into Question Time to be again entertained by Paula Bennet’s facial contortions, but alas so far she has been subdued almost normal. Damn.
She has been very restrained for the last two weeks. Wonder why?
Xanax for the Natz?
By the way…… does anyone know where @ Wayne is?
Normally he’d be on duty to counter some of the ‘scurrilous’ claims being made on this ‘hard left’ blogsite.
I suppose it is possible that he’s just realised the gNats left a couple of ‘young bucks’ in charge of the chicken coup, and they just shat everywhere.
And that the only thing worth trying to salvage is the manure that could be marketed as an aid to reconditioning the soil they’ve been dumping on for the past ten years.
He did have something on TS yesterday I think.
Ah well, there ya go! That’s real dedication – was that yesterday you say?
Well he could be rehearsing his lines I ‘spose for his next gig on one of those panelistas on the weekend ‘incisive raisin affairs shows’ like New Shub Nayshun or Q+A. OR maybe he’s even slumming it with Jum Mora – I’ll have a listen.
And by the way, has anybody thought about poor old Krus Finalysin? I mean, there goes a rilly rilly decent man. A man that can truly empasoise with all his decent predecessors – loyal to the last man standing as well as to the Caci Clinic’s re-imaging efforts, and with an obvious lerv of leopard skin. WHAT a brick!
Perhaps he went to Japan to watch rugby? Or he has been meeting with his cronies since the year dot to watch the Melbourne races and drink up and talk up how great they are, how great Gnats are.
OMG LMAO lay on the floor kicking my feet upward whilst watching channel 86, and whilst planning how the fuck to get out of here
Maureen Pugh – list Neshnool M Poi, channeling Cilla Black.
Oh fuck! and now the square jawed Chris Penk in a beautiful blue ensemble with a matching spotted toi, and equipped with good intention, and possibly one of a gNatsi ‘good guy ‘ flag for the future (going forward), but with a tonne of Bennett and Bridges effluent immediately above ground.
How the Hell did it come to this!
[Deleted. You should know better – MS]
Is that necessary?
It’s the only conclusion I can come to, that post is really ticking all the unhinged/batshit crazy boxes.
Which is why your idols are in the state of panic they are now in.
They were never that ‘very’ nice.
Whether it was a Nafe (who’d never inhaled) travelling south stopping off at a Rangoli that’s been one of the most complicit in ripping off immigrants on the Ka Piti, or the next pretender to whatever you think is your self-entitled throne.
(Btw, I actually did due diligence on that Rangoli and there was a shitload of video that went with it, because the oicon John Koi went with it. It IS possible I could resurrect the video
But you know …… next (the next….. these days come thick and fast).
These days as I age, I can’t really be that fucked, because I’ve come to realise that arseholes usually get their just deserts in the end, although I’m up for an @ BM challenge at any time.
I really would like to know what the @ BM post was that I’m not now privy to, but I appreciate this site isn’t a dick measuring pissing contest
Don’t worry old fella, it was a rather mundane comment about you not taking your medication.
In these rather sensitive, sparkle pony dominated times obviously considered unacceptable, so was purged.
Shame you’re not up to putting your mouth where your dick is. I’d be happy to indulge though any time your wankness feels up to the challenge and bearing in mind I’m probably now knocking twice your age.
The Standard though is not the time nor place for this duel So suffice it to say I think you’re a wanker and you’ll resort to whatever softcock response you have in your armoury.
Oh how I would have loved to have been able to test your bullshit.
I you can think of a way – rest assured I’m up for it.
Unfortunately, the likes of you sometimes force people to challenge your wankery.
PLEASE – think of a way.
( I never thought I’d be saying all this, but things must when dickheads think they are prevailing )
> Shame you’re not up to putting your mouth where your dick is. I’d be happy to indulge
Please save it for the bedroom guys!
A.
ED
I don’t think Once was Tim or other regulars care too much about BM ans his slanted remarks. Just enjoy the show Ed and let the man be BM, or Bloody Morose as his friends call him.
Nothing like a crazy rant eh Tim. I’ve been talking about John Wyndham and his style of writing which he called logical fantasy. Recognising the fantasy, it is logical to let off steam now and then. You will never be as cute as a kitten rolling on its back with its feet in the air though.
Not as cute as racoons
Check out the cheeky little bastard at the 1-minute mark
I and I would suspect some other regular visitors but irregular posters don’t find him so amusing. A bitter nasty piece of work is a bitter, nasty piece of work.
He/she and a few others of their ilk are the reason I visit here less often.
Unfortunately @ BM – I missed your reply. I’d love to have been privy to it.
Don’t start us on privies. You know my humour can drop to low depths.
This must be the most unsatisfyingly slipshod and poorly reported news story of all time.
We sometimes gets stories of unexploded ordinance from the Land wars, which peaked my interest in this story.
Metre-long live naval shell found by contractors at a Te Puke address
Waikato Times, November 06 2018
This is not 19th C it looks more like a 20th C piece of ordinance.
However on earth did it get there? And When? Is it a World War II piece?
I am no expert but it looks more modern than that.
Whatever happened to the ABC of journalism, What When Why Who and how.
What is it? When and how did it get there? Who is responsible?
Was it some negligent Kiwi forces armourer who took it home as a souvenir?
It looks expensive. How much is it worth?
There must have been at least one casualty. To do his job so poorly, (it must have been a he), the unnamed journalist covering this story must have died of boredom halfway through writing it up.
One of the ex-army lads will be along to put me right soon I guess, but I would think it is a dummy shell for a field artillery piece. Too small for most naval guns for a shell of that age. Maybe an 18 or 25 pounder?? Looks too old for the light howitzer they were using from the 70’s. Prepared to be corrected by those who know..
3″ anti aircraft gun?
It looks to long and skinny for a 25pdr, it could be one of the following a 3.7inch AA, a 20pdr HE round from the old Centurion Tanks or 17pdr AT HE round. But from my understanding is that 17pdr AT gun never enter service in NZ Army, but some were sent out from the UK from testing and evaluation in the 50’s when the NZ Army was structure for fighting in the Middle East up until the late 50’s.
P.S I’ve a feeling it could be an 76mm HE round from the old M-41 Walker Bulldog Tank that was in service during the late 60’s until it was replaced by the CVR(T) Scorpion Tank. Which to was a backwards step as the M41 was still useful in SEA with it’s 76mm gunand it could punch its way through the Jungle at the time due to its weight. All we had to was upgrade the power pack and fire control systems.
Only Navy round I could think of could from the old Dido Class Anti Aircraft Cruisers from the 50’s to 60’s which were armed a 5.5inch semi automatic DP gun and again it look’s to long and skinny to be an 4.5inch HE round from the old Type 12 Frigates. I do know the rounds for the 5inch auto gun on the ANZAC Frigates is long skinny one and I hope it’s one of those or else there might be some please explain WTF going on. But it looks too old for one those by blueing and surface corrosion on the shell, anyway it’s an interesting find.
Were there any old ammunition depots near the find?
One of these? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/QF_3-inch_20_cwt
If you use the bic pen in the picture as a reference I’d say it looks like a 3″ calibre or close to that.
You could be right IRT it being a 3inch round? It been a while since I’ve mucked around with Big Spud Guns such as these.
Here is the
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/QF_3.7-inch_AA_gun
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/QF_4.5_inch_Mk_I_%E2%80%93_V_naval_gun
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/QF_5.25_inch_Mark_I_naval_gun
And the M41 Bulldog Tank https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/M41_Walker_Bulldog
The 20pdr Gun
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ordnance_QF_20-pounder
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ordnance_QF_17-pounder and the the good old Centurion tank that became to be like “Granddads old axe” over the years.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centurion_tank
The top 3 as they were used in Senior Service.
It looks far to big to be a 76mm (12 pounder) round (hard to tell though) And anyway, as far as I can recall the only time the RNZN operated 12 pounder (76mm) guns was in WW2 on the 13 Castle Class Minesweepers we had, but they were all out of Naval Service by 1946. Since the round conforms to NATO standard colour markings it is unlikely to be from the late 1940s!
The paint job on that round is deep bronze green – for HE type ammunition – and a white band indicating an illumination round.
Look at this image of a 4.5″ shell casing and note how the shape of the neck of the brass casing is the same –
http://www.deactivated-guns.co.uk/militaria/inert-rare-pre-falklands-war-british-navy-4-5-inch-practice-round/prod_6427.html
Therefore to me it looks like a 4.5″ Illumination round from a Type 12 or Leander class frigate.
Yeah I’m starting to think it’s either a 4.5 or possibly a 5.25 inch round since I’ve been pouring over my Naval books this afternoon that I use for build model ships.
The round 76mm gun on M41 Tank is long skinny one, I’m never to sure about what gets written up in the media these days and or what they put up on their news website.
Kia ora The Am Show I agree with Mark the Speaker and Jerry going on a working Holiday to Japan its hard work being a MP nit picking .
Cyber crime is a big issue for NZ I’m experiencing that every couple of weeks .
There you go Idris Elba is voted the world’s most handsome man Time’s are changing some will need a lot of tissues .
Mike some can see the big picture about the mid term elections in America unlike some who cannot see past there Ego’s.
Hone I don’t think some should encourage you to use those word’s on TV te mokopuna’s will be watching 3 of the 4 of my offspring don’t smoke and we never smoke in the same room or car with the mokopuna’s I say a advertising campaign on the bad effects on secondhand smoke and Alcohol .
Did you catch a Taxi to work yesterday.
Can’t you see we have a idiot behaving badly in the world media and it affects other idiots with small———the 1080 threat’s.
There are a few troll’s lined up for the poll today I new the stat’s will start correcting as the morning.
There you got I told everyone Wahine are more intelligent than man I seen it in my raising my children and my moko’s Equality is needed the schooling system does not teach te moko the the skill’s the children need to work out the best way to climb up there ladder’s of life .
Azees I told you the trump trolls have been waiting for your poll.
Ka kite ano
Eco Maori say’s Ka pai How Taylor Swift turned her Instagram into a get-out-the-vote fan page Americans get out and vote
American leg of her Reputation Tour at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, Taylor Swift announced on Instagram for the first time ever who she’d be voting for: Democrats Phil Bredesen and Jim Cooper.She’s among the most followed people on the social network, with more 112 million followers, link below Ka kite ano
.https://edition.cnn.com/2018/11/06/politics/taylor-swift-instagram-gotv/index.html
Eco Maori Music for the minute.
There was a sunset rainbow in Washington on Election DayAs Washington, D.C. voters left polling places on Tuesday evening, they were treated to the unexpected view of a rainbow set against a scarlet sunset. Ka kite ano link below
https://dynaimage.cdn.cnn.com/cnn/livestory/w_900/442b6648-0690-48be-a49e-f30b6bb299ed.jpg
Beyoncé endorses Texas Democrat Beto O’Rourke: ‘When we are truly united we are unstoppable’ ka kite ano.Link below.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=12156030
This is what the media can do with a small story spin a mountain out of a mole hill
Jacinda did not say she received death threats this is just another cheating neo liberal capitalist play the actors who are making these treats are there puppets ka kite ano
link is below.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/nov/07/jacinda-ardern-receives-death-threat-as-pesticide-row-grows
Kia ora Tekaea
its cool That Jacinda is at the Ratana 100 year commemoration ka pai.
Nanaia that is a good start to the Papakainga package $1.7 million .
Mark Dunajtsik has made a huge gift to te tangata a new hospital .
Haunui Waka back in Aotearoa from the Norfolk Islands good experiences for the young Wahine and Tane ka pai Ka kite ano
Kia ora Newshub The House was won by Democrats ka pai its not over say Bernie Sanders
Unemployment has dropped that’s cool to it’s lowest in ten years a bit of positive wairua from the new Coalition Goverment .
I had thought that would be the outcome off the Ross saga a vote for New Zealand First
You will always find someone to find a negative comment from someone anywhere the Ratana commemorations for 100 years and the Labour Party’s delivering to tangata whenua some have a very short memorie .
The weed debate well we know that making it illegal is a dumb and has failed.
Immunization is the best way to stop Meningococcal disease .
Ka kite ano P.S got distracted our offspring were picking up the mokopuna’s car after I fixed it
Kia ora The Crowd Goes Wild James & Wairangi
Thats a very good over 46 for 2020 cricket from Darryl T.
That good that the British League player has a 4 week ban and a small fine its better than nothing .
Lets hope the Football Ferns & there new Coach will get a good wairua going.
Ka kite ano