“contributes to a toxic environment for the left here with his incessant fault finding and attack posts against the left”
Very funny – or do you actually believe that?
I only occasionally post here. You and a few others frequently post here, creating a toxic environment of the left, attacking many people you judge to not be suitably left, or something.
You (collectively) deter far more people from voting left than i ever will, because they are not the right sort of left for you, not left enough, or just that you make an ill-informed judgement.
I first came to The Standard thinking it would be a good place to join in the rebuilding of Labour after Clark lost in 2008 and then departed Parliament. I was mistaken. This has been a toxic, small minded, dirty unwelcoming place.
There are good people here, and interesting comments at times, but it has been dominated by persistent petty regulars who burn off anyone deemed some sort of enemy.
It has changed, probably because more moderate centre-ish people have been driven away or can’t be bothered with the toxicity.
What is obvious now that, while there may be a few Labour try-hards, the dirty politics here is now dominated by non-Labour supporters like marty mars, OAB, Robert Guyton, who all regularly and persistently attack anyone deemed some sort of enemy.
It’s pathetic, and it’s counter productive. Even if there is some intent to drive off potential Labour voters that is cutting off your nose to spite your face, and certainly won’t encourage people to vote Green or Mana.
This is a toxic environment without me, I just pop in occasionally to see if anything has changed. Obviously not.
I’ve voted both Green and Labour, but I and I think many others who pass by here certainly wouldn’t encouraged to do so again by the bitter and twisted attack dweebs who dominate threads here.
Ardern and Davis have given the first sign in a decade that Labour may be able to climb back into prominence again. But it looks like they will struggle to get any help here with so much toxic self destruction further to the left going on.
If Labour supporters (and anyone genuinely wanting a change of government) want to do something positive to rebuild the party they should stand up more to the crap perpetuated by a few spoilers here.
thanks pete this is my response on the other thread
“This has been a toxic, small minded, dirty unwelcoming place.”
Is someone forcing your arm up your back and making you post anti left attack comments? No I didn’t think so – that’s all your own work peter – you’ve always been a moaner-fabricator since you started posting way back when you were a United Candidate for parliament. You haven’t changed one bit.
The Standard is a broad left wing space; it’s only to be expected that right wingers will face a headwind. We aren’t here to make it easy for their argument, nor let them derail what is important to us. And if they argue in bad faith or blatantly troll they routinely get hammered by moderation.
But without asking anyone to agree with PG’s style, his sometimes irritating passive-aggressiveness, or any of his political ideas … on this he has a point. There is really no justification for the snide mockery, reflexive hostility and mobbing that is too often dumped on anyone deemed ‘outsider’.
Only a fool counsels perfection; we’ll all fall short of ideal from time to time. But it’s plain that a handful of individuals are taking pleasure in baiting and abusing ‘non-lefties’, and getting away with it because their politics are so pure.
Well that just doesn’t stack up. You cannot demand justice, equity and fairness from others, while dishing out abuse yourself.
“But it’s plain that a handful of individuals are taking pleasure in baiting and abusing outsiders and getting away with it because their politics are so pure.”
I call rubbish on that. You have always pushed that line even after it has been disproved time and time again. sad.
“his sometimes irritating passive-aggressiveness” sometimes!
SOMETIMES????
We’re getting squabbly-as here – let’s blame Pete for that and move on to more productive pastures. Pete’s on holiday, The Greens are polling strongly, Jacinda’s leading Labour and Paula’s been assigned as advance guard for the attack – things are looking relentlessly positive! All we need now is for Todd Barclay to call on Metiria to resign.
Weka – Please be kind, the upcoming election needs a climate of understanding, building bridges and above all – finding common ground. We all have different views on different things. What is it that a social democrat would support in every situation?
Pete gets moderated for his behaviour not his views, as beigely abhorrent as they are. There’s lots of people I disagree with here who have different views, but 95% of the comments don’t even come close to touching my moderator radar.
Like all skilled trolls, Pete mixes together his trolling with his other commentary to make it seem more reasonable. I don’t have too much of a problem with people learning how to skate just under the moderation radar if they can be a net benefit to the site, but the load on moderators is getting higher the closer we get to the election (plus the post-election period is likely to be intense). I’d rather be writing posts or having fun, so there’s less leeway atm. If it makes my job easier to take out a known troll whose been banned multiple times before, and do that early in the day before he gets going, then that’s what I will do.
Besides, I was kind, he only got banned for a week (I was going to make it two then I halved it) 🙂
Hi Weka, fair enough, I did not question your judgement just wondered about why. As an sometimes visitor to this site I saw nothing offensive per se’ but I would certainly ask why Pete would think that people on this site will shoot down others. Perhaps I am not seeing what others see.
Thank you for your response.
That said, look what Pete said in the comments section of his own blog in response to disbelief at Jacinda’s popularity…(go figure!)
““Keep ignoring a phenomenon that is unfolding at your (or National’s) peril.
Unless the current momentum is changed the it looks likely the polling question will be how far into the 30s Labour rise to, and whether National can stay out of the 30s.”
“I’m not ‘buying into the hype’, I’m observing it. I haven’t seen anything like this sort of transformation before, nor this sort of excitement for a campaign before.
It’s happening. Don’t blame me for reporting it.”
“You’re failing to see the facts.
There is a very different vibe coming from the Labour and National camps. You try to talk it away as much as you like but it won’t make it disappear.
National have a major challenge to compete, and they are showing no sign of stepping up yet.
There’s seven weeks to go and things could still change dramatically again, but Labour have little to lose and a lot to gain, if National keep doing little they could lose.”
“Labour appear to have been forced into a very risky leader change but so far it has worked far better than anyone could have predicted.
But how things works is well known by campaign teams. If National don’t find a way of combating Labour’s momentum they could be in trouble.”
Yup. That seems to be the most likely reason for pete doubling-down on a response to a statement that marty mars had already apologised for in the original comment.
”Yes, we are an optimistic nation, but when you work at the coalface of politics and in the communities, as we do, we know and we see every single day that as a country we can do better than this.
”We can be better than this.”
”Relentless positivity will be amongst it and also a really clear vision for New Zealand.”
”I have a very clear view that we can be a much better country than this.”
Apple trees right now, but in the annual vegetables gardens; garlic and shallots are up and growing, peas and broad beans going in to trays in the glasshouse, bok choy and kale as seedlings into the open garden and pumpkins and corn into pottles for the warm window-sills inside of the house. It has been frrrrosty down here all week, though the coming 5 days are to be very warm by comparison, so those seeds will take off. Most of my garden work around now is propagating: cuttings and division of rhizomes and roots; horseradish, mints, elecampane, cardoon etc. I’m still cracking, soaking and planting-out hazelnuts, peach stones and almonds, en mass, preparing for the expansion of my orchard out into the whole wide world 🙂
Nice pics Robert (4). Thanks for sharing. Like to see more of the same posted.
Now I am going to pick your brains. In October we are moving south to central Otago (Cromwell to be exact) from Auckland and want to know what and what does not grow re vegetables. We have always had a productive vegetable garden in Auckland and would like to continue the same if we can at our southern home. Always had silverbeet, broccoli, pumpkins, green beans, bok choy, tomatoes as well as a varied herb garden. Have had conflicting opinions, telling us we can grow this, but can’t grow that, then told something else!
I’d appreciate what we are able to grow in the southern climate please if you don’t mind.
Cheers
Mary
The thing about Central is the late and early frosts. Put in a glasshouse and learn your microclimates. Lots of old school gardeners in that area who will give you very localised gardening advice. I have friends in various parts of Central who grow all the things you name, but opinions will vary on how long you can extend the growing season.
Hi Mary
The best investment you could make would be to buy a Star Garden Guide; they’ve just been reprinted from the original which was composed as a serial for the Star Newspaper back in the day by a gardener who knew his onions. It isn’t “organics-only” as I would wish, but very sound in its recommendations for what and when to plant. As well, you should/could subscribe to the NZ Gardener magazine and read their regular column from their man in Southland 🙂 Great pics accompanying that column as well. Also, there’s Get Growing, on-line, written, every third week, by that same gardener. In a nutshell, though, you’ll be able to grow everything you listed. Lots of sunshine in Cromwell. The soil will be different from what you’re accustomed to though.
Listened to Chris Martenson’s Peak Prosperity weekly news update.
Summary: talking about the loss of biodiversity in Maine or as Chris puts it watching life ebb away; also comments on the ongoing rallies in the stock market.
Oh yeah. During election season, we get more comments. The average comment size get larger as well. While there are a lot of short comments especially when the trolls reappear, everyone else seems to start writing small essays as a counterpoint.
Bit depressing seeing those outages due to cutouts in the CPUs protecting themselves from overheating kicking in on the early part of the month. 4th-12th on this chart. Especially on midweek on 9th when it was down for quite a few hours.
I had to do some shuffling of the machines and refitting of fans on the Saturday 12th. And again last weekend. It had a brief midday outage during the spike, and I had to tweak the fancontrol parameters again.
I really need to write a proper hysteresis routine for them so I can get a better balance between the noise of the fans in my quiet apartment (especially at night) and the need to stop the CPUs cutting off the system to protect themselves.
The 33k the day before was started with your “This is no ordinary election (f*ck the polls)” about the poll with the greens rise and Metiria’s aftershocks.
You should be able to see that google analytics on the dashboard – look under screen options if you can’t
I’d like to comment in the post Lefties on The Standard but I’m unsure about the criteria for participation.
The manoeuvring (incl. MOU) and rhetoric in the next 7 weeks will be aimed at changing the government in the first instance. Paradoxically, in my view, this muddies the more important overarching debate which is how we should move forward in this country and our society. This debate needs to be inclusive and balanced as possible and not hijacked & polarised as is usually the case.
There are two questions related to the criteria as set out:
1) Can I personally adhere to and meet these? In my own eyes rather than in your eyes, for example, if that makes any sense? I don’t think we need to dwell on this here as it is obviously personal.
2) I am not so comfortable, for want of a better word, with the label “left wing” and its associated narrative of (political) dualism. Hence my comment re. being inclusive but it goes deeper than that.
I realise it is an experiment here on TS and I think it is great to try new ways to move things forward. I am also hanging out for real constructive debate; it is rare, fragile, and too easily killed off – a bit like the flightless bird that is our national symbol. Maybe you’re right that it needs to start off in an enclosed and well-protected environment but how & when do we proceed with the ‘release into the wild’? BTW, I believe there have been (other) calls for a left wing ‘think tank’.
Lastly, and perhaps paradoxically, I take your comment as a compliment 🙂
44 south also mentioned that labels do not represent people very well https://thestandard.org.nz/lefties-on-the-standard/#comment-1363547 and I relate to this in ways that confuse me no end – does the label conform to the person or the other way round or both (or neither)?
The thing is we’re aiming for a better future although it remains poorly described. In my view, it will have to be radically different from status quo and thus it cannot be adequately described or defined (‘captured’) with current terminology and it most certainly cannot and won’t fit within the current dominant narratives – the future is open-ended and the associated language and meaning has yet to be developed or evolve.
A longwinded explanation which in no way detracts from your stellar efforts here on TS – I really mean this.
Does that mean there is no way for you to take part in the conversation in the other thread? Seems odd to let semantics deter good discussion. ‘Left wing’ is a just a shorthand to make my job as moderator easier.
I was thinking along similar lines.
If in doubt – try http://www.politicalcompass.org
And yes, these one size fits all “what’s your political bent” are a bit trite – but interesting..
For what it’s worth – I’m bang in the middle of the square of “libertarian/left”. So I suppose that does make me left? – although I have voted national in the past 🙂
MSM and modern technology tend to magnify & amplify all sorts of happenings, good and bad. This almost always comes at the expense of balance and context.
Recently, we have heard a few personal revelations (‘confessions’) and seen a few actions (‘sacrifices’) by politicians. Indeed, these were showing honesty & integrity. However, MSM and others have taken them out of proportion and used them to polarise opinion – the modus operandi of some; some claimed to have seen an Angel while others saw the Devil incarnate (Fallen Angel). There has never been a more powerful narrative and human construct than Good vs. Evil.
I think it’s quite telling that we appear to be so excited, surprised even, when moral virtues and positive values are on display. Why is this? We all value honesty & integrity and we all make personal sacrifices on a daily basis without giving it much thought, it seems.
I think it is time to recalibrate our expectations and corresponding judgements (!) of ourselves as well as of others and reaffirm the values we stand for. With the influence of (organised) religion waning in our society we should not lose sight of the whole of the value system that underpinned it – we cannot deny who we are. Similarly, the role of (moral) authority is disappearing and we now need to look at and in ourselves for guidance and direction.
Agreed. And with love getting a fresh airing by principals as schools grapple with student depression and suicide we are reminded that there are some simple qualities which if neglected leave us poorer regardless of external stimuli. Wordsworth knew about them when he wrote …..
Thanks to the human heart by which we live,
Thanks to its tenderness, its joys, and fears,
To me the meanest flower that blows can give
Thoughts that do often lie too deep for tears.
My meandering monkey mind let me to search on Wordsworth & Buddhism and that unearthed a ‘treasure trove’.
I guess this might feel far-removed from current electioneering and reading of political ‘tea leaves’.
Increases in suicide and depression are clear signs that we’re heading down the wrong path and it is really good to hear that people are aware of this and doing something about it.
Globalisation: the rise and fall of an idea that swept the world
It’s not just a populist backlash – many economists who once swore by free trade have changed their minds, too. How had they got it so wrong? By Nikil Saval
A bit of history of Populism on Melvyn Bragg’s excellent In Our Time
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss what, in C19th America’s Gilded Age, was one of the most significant protest movements since the Civil War with repercussions well into C20th. Farmers in the South and Midwest felt ignored by the urban and industrial elites who were thriving as the farmers suffered droughts and low prices. The farmers were politically and physically isolated. As one man wrote on his abandoned farm, ‘two hundred and fifty miles to the nearest post office, one hundred miles to wood, twenty miles to water, six inches to Hell’. They formed the Populist or People’s Party to fight their cause, put up candidates for President, won several states and influenced policies. In the South, though, their appeal to black farmers stimulated their political rivals to suppress the black vote for decades and set black and poor white farmers against each other, tightening segregation. Aspects of the Populists ideas re-emerged effectively in Roosevelt’s New Deal, even if they are mainly remembered now, if at all, thanks to allegorical references in The Wizard of Oz.
Least we forget:
Today is Hiroshima Day
Spare a thought for the 140,000 innocent people who were killed in a moment of madness.
And wonder at the continued madness of the threat of it happening again.
. In an interview on NPR’s Fresh Air, author Eric Schlosser explains just how inefficient this early nuclear bomb was (skip to 11:13 in the recording).
In the case of Hiroshima, the bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima was an incredibly crude and inefficient weapon. When it exploded, about 99 per cent of the uranium that was supposed to undergo this chain reaction, didn’t. It just blew apart in the air, and a very small percentage, maybe two per cent of the fissile material, actually detonated. And most of it just became other radioactive elements. [. . .] Now to imagine how small an amount that is, seven-tenths of a gram of uranium is about the size of a peppercorn. Seven-tenths of a gram weighs less than a dollar bill. So even though this weapon was unbelievably inefficient, and almost 99 per cent of the uranium had nothing to do with the destruction of Hiroshima, it was a catastrophic explosion.
Today marks the anniversary of the first use of nuclear weapons – the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima by the United States, the only country in the world to ever use nuclear weapons (and on civilian targets). It’s also no coincidence that the atomic bomb was used on Japan and not Germany:
“It’s also no coincidence that the atomic bomb was used on Japan and not Germany”
It is probably also not a coincidence that the first atom bomb was not completed until AFTER the German state had been defeated and they had surrendered.
Just how could they have dropped a bomb that they didn’t actually have on Germany? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trinity_%28nuclear_test%29
Unintended consequences of highly liberal marijuana laws; Marijuana company buys an entire Californian town. I’m sure it happens in Mexico regularly enough, but I’m not sure even Rothmans got that far with taking an entire town.
American Green will spend some $2.5 million in the next 18 months to rebuild Nipton into a stoner’s paradise, according to the company’s release. It plans to expand on the town’s small solar farm and aims to add “CBD and mineral baths, cannabis-product retail outposts, artists-in-residence programs, culinary events, and Bed-and-Breakfast lodging to complete the charming small town experience.”
Dunno if that’s an unintended consequence, really. It’s hardly unheard of in the US for a company to own a town – Disney has at least one community, and coal and steel companies occasionally owned the towns their workers lived in. Tennessee Ernie Ford sung about it.
Did my ears deceive me, did Jessica Mutch on todays Q and A really say in response to kelvin Davis and his criticism of national party hacks “On behalf of the National Party thats a bit unfair” her impartiality is transparent.
The panel was also slanted to the right, and pretty anti-Green Party generally.
Mike Williams said he was opposed to Turei’s old electorate enrollment thing because too many people had been doing that to gain extra votes in marginal electorates – but that’s totally not what Turei did.
Great to see Fitzsimons stepping up at a crucial point. I’ve often seen her on demonstrations in Auckland in recent times – still an activist. She mentored Turei initially, as I recall, when Turei became an MP.
did u no that if you are classed as Maori and have a criminal record you are not human because that is the way im being treated i tried dairyfarming for 13 years 11 years ago i was assitant manager on a 5000 cow farm we had 18 workers whom have all been displaced by imagrints i managed a farm for one farmer he had 7 workers on 4 farms they have all been repalaced by imagrints these farmers have no compasion for there workers as when you dairyfarm it is more than just a job if they fire you once calfing is over you have to move house iv had the cops called on me twice the first one lied and said i assalted them i went to court the judge was trying to encrouge me to plead gilty even my lawyer was not much help he did not encrouge me to plead not gilty cant have a europeen farmer to look like a lier i pleaeded not gilty i got off next time i was managing the worest farm in nz i was desperate for a job and house as my last boss hired imergrints i took the job the effluent system was a joke the cows were conditishon score av of 2 no shit she had taranaki gates the water was fucked i worked from dawn till dusk for 3 months to fix every thing up ie power the gates as a hungry cows were running the farm free range this farm is right next to the waikato river with a effluent system that was a joke fonterra new about farm because her partner worked for them after 3 months me and my son got the grass cover up to 2500 avrege the production was up 100% no lie my wife was razing the calfs she is a perfectionist healthy well looked after calfs the owner brought some of her calfs to my wifes calf shed they had scoures made my wifes calf sick they had a diseragrement she sacked us me my wife and 2 sons were working for her i was past the ninty day trial she still sacked me my wife did not get payed one of my sons did not get payed my daugter to she owed us all about 8 k i wondered why she had no numbers on her mail box this is why because when we went to the employment courts we could not get any thing trough becaues no one could find her to serve her the documents she was trained by the cop freind that she rang to kick us out of the house lucky my wife was there he jumped out of the cop car as if he was going to asalt me he yelled that we have been fired and had to leave imediately i replied that the house was like a rental an in the contrack we had 2 weeks to move it was dusk he backed off and went away i made a complaint the officer said that wallies had been in trouble before while we were moving to my daugthers house i got a ticket on a road were userly there are no cops he was waiting in the dark i tought nothing of it at the time but now it all ads up i went to wellington to work for Downers after 3 months on a loliepop sign i failed a drug test because i had started smoking weed agian because i was depressted i went to stay with my daugther i got a job relife managing for the first 2 weeks everything was good they liked my work cell count coming down treating lame cows ect one afternoon as i was driveing to work i noticed some guy pretending to read a paper in the boss driveway with a good view of the shed the cops think everyone has no brain the next day everyone was atcaing weard in the end they looked like i was the deviel 2 days before i was offered a full time job manageing a other farm they owned but not any more i notice that i allways had someone following me the police have told lies about me to all the farmers on kokako rd about me son boss acting strange i brought a lawn run in tauranga the cops have contacted all my clints lied to them i emailed the IPCA one of my clints is a judge after three weeks i asked if he could help me he said he would the next week he asked me if i had been arested yet no i said i made a complaint to the IPCA he looked into it the IPCA took up the case but 1 week later the judge said that i was just the lawn man nothing else you and your drugs. the police have put a spin on this the judge dismessed my services 3 weeks ago for no reason the police have lied to allmy nabours my bank staff acountant ect that is why i say if you are maori you have no human rights
the police are harressing me they are using bulling tackticks and have not aressted me there evdince is all lies they are not use to people with a brain
you no what they say a cop has impunity to do anything and the justice system is more worried about the polices image can not have the public no some cops are bad he trained the farm owner to avoied the employment law i tried to get a lawyer to sue for my human rights 4 times first interview they are going to help next they wont anser my call so i use a unlisted number and they anser and clam up
The cops name was not Wallies his name is Dickson just checked email that we sent in
a complaint and the farm is just out of Whakamaru The owner is Colleen Conolly her partner was Jamie Hovind. Never work for these muppets
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Chris Trotter writes – WHY IS THE NATIONAL PARTY doing so much for landlords, property developers, trucking, and construction companies, and so little for everybody who isn’t already pretty well-off? It’s as if protecting landlords’ investments and building apartments and roads now constitute the whole of National’s ...
Bryce Edwards writes – When she was campaigning to be Minister of Finance last year, Nicola Willis pledged that she would resign from the job if she failed to deliver tax cuts in her first Budget. Now, it’s that pledge, along with Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s ...
Robert MacCulloch writes – The Reserve Bank has doubled staff numbers in five years to 510, with personnel costs rising to $80 million in 2023 from $32 million in 2018 – up by a whopping 150%. I guess when you print $50 billion and flood markets with liquidity, ...
The furore. In case you didn’t notice there was a controversy in the weekend involving dolphins in a little town off the South Island. Don’t panic, they haven’t declared independence and resumed whaling, this was simply a sailing event.The problem began when racing was cancelled on the opening day of ...
For 20 years or more, the case for a meaningful capital tax gains has been mulled over and analysed to death, including by the tax working group chaired by Sir Michael Cullen. More than once, the International Monetary Fund has said a CGT would be a good idea for New ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: The Public Health Communications Centre (PHCC) call for urgent preventive action and a risk assessment survey of long covid in this briefing noteLocal scoop: NZ road deaths surpass OECD rates, so why is the govt reversing safety plans? ...
This story was originally published by Grist and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. This story is part of a collaboration with Grist and WABE to demystify the Georgia Public Service Commission, the small but powerful state-elected board that makes critical decisions about everything from raising ...
This is a guest post from Robert McLachlan Global warming is accelerating; 2023 was off the charts. We need to stop burning fossil fuels. In New Zealand, transport accounts for half of all fossil fuels burnt. In the Emissions Reduction Plan, transport emissions fall 41% by 2035. As the ...
Labour productivity has been receding rapidly over the past two years, reversing a post-lockdown rise. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy as at 6:26am on Tuesday, March 26 include:Workers have been treading water in output per hour worked for 12 years, ...
TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 2 include:Today, Parliament resumes sitting at 2pm for the second week of a two-week session. Officials for SIS and GCSB report their annual reviews in public to the Intelligence and Security Select Committee from 5.10pm.Tomorrow, ...
Faced with a barrage of criticism over the promised tax cuts from usually supportive commentators, Finance Minister Nicola Willis yesterday reaffirmed her intention to include them in this year’s Budget. The Government is up against it over the cuts just about every way it turns. Commentators like Fran O’Sullivan, Matthew ...
Here’s my pick of today’s substack posts as of 6:26pm on Monday, March 25: writes via his substack that Market-rate housing will make your city cheaper writes via his substack about the problems talking to double-cab ute (truck) drivers about their vehicles. today about moments of radicalisation in ...
Buzz from the Beehive Just before Christmas, Finance Minister Nicola Willis delivered something that was pitched as a mini-budget and brayed about the decisive action being taken to repair the Government books and support income tax relief in Budget 2024. In a statement headed Fiscal repair job underway. she introduced ...
My sister Belinda asked Dad yesterday what one word would describe Mum best. He said: vivacious.If you only knew her from the photos on the slideshow we've made for today,you might wonder about that, because the camera tended to lie with Mum.If ever she saw a camera pointed at her, she ...
There are two major public consultations closing in the next week, Auckland Council’s Long Term Plan (LTP), and the draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport (GPS). Closing dates and times: LTP closes Thursday 28 February, at 11.59pm – a minute to midnight! GPS closes Tuesday 2 April, at 12pm noon – note that’s ...
From Kiwiblog’s David Farrar – Bryce Wilkinson writes: Senior Fellow Bryce Wilkinson’s analysis reveals that since March 2009, New Zealand has spent $158 billion more overseas than it has earned, but its NIIP has only fallen by $32 billion.Statistics New Zealand shows that receipts from overseas reinsurers have ...
Is she hinting that the Coalition Government will have to back down on key promises it made in Opposition? Brian Easton writes – The Minister of Finance, Nicola Willis, is telling an evolving story about her fiscal challenges. In Opposition she was confident that she could ...
Dear Nicola Willis,Right now you’ve probably got lots of competing demands coming at you. Ministers who’ve inherited quite a mess, or so you’ve told us, looking for money in the budget to improve things. I imagine that’s why they came to parliament - to make things better.You’ll have to make ...
The Local Government, Transport and Auckland Minister hasthreatened councils with intervention if they don’t merge water assets to take them off balance sheet, just as the now-repealed Three Waters plan directed. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My six things of note this morning for Monday, March 25 include:Simeon ...
A listing of 36 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 17, 2024 thru Sat, March 23, 2024. Story of the week Thanks to John Mason having the stamina to sit down to watch "Climate - the Movie" ...
This morning the Q&A programme had Simeon Brown on to talk about National’s replacement for Three Waters. In case anyone’s forgotten the three are - drinking water, waste water, and sewerage. It’s quite important not to get them mixed up. In much the same way that you wouldn’t want to ...
Today’s newsletter comes with a mini-podcast conversation between me and my buddy Liv Tennet, talking about her time as a child actor in Lord of the Rings. It’s a conversation with a lot of giggles as she talks about falling off a horse, and becoming a meme. Read ...
The Desmog Climate Disinformation Database documents, "individuals and organisations that have helped to delay and distract the public and our elected leaders from taking needed action to reduce greenhouse gas pollution and fight global warming." It's a who's who of the organised climate change denial movement, in other words. In ...
Bob Edlin writes – A High Court judge has decided miscreants who have mana – or who claim to have mana – should be treated differently from miscreants who have none. It’s a ruling that suggests indigenous law-breakers have a better chance of securing a discharge without conviction ...
Welcome to the first, and possibly last, edition of Brickbats, Bouquets and Bull’s Wool. In which I’ll take a look at the events of the last week or so, and rate them.In such ratings the numbers usually have more to do with the opinions of the reviewer, than the actual ...
Roger Partridge writes – My earlier column this month, New Zealand’s highest court could be facing a turning point, prompted a flood of feedback from business readers and lawyers alike. A common query was what Parliament can do to restrain an overreaching judiciary. This week I discuss two steps Parliament ...
TL;DR: In today’s ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.16pm on Friday, March 22: writes about New Zealand's Building Boom—And What the World Must Learn From It over at his substack. challenges the Auckland Council’s use of a 3.8 degrees of warming forecast to oppose a wave-park and data centre project ...
Is she hinting that the Coalition Government will have to back down on key promises it made in Opposition?The Minister of Finance, Nicola Willis, is telling an evolving story about her fiscal challenges. In Opposition she was confident that she could deliver her promised income tax cuts. Appointed minister, she ...
Buzz from the Beehive Ministers of the Crown have drawn attention to one sector of the science sector which is unlikely to be subjected to heavy spending cuts, a state-funded broadcaster which is doing nicely, thank you, and a sporting event that had $5.4 million from the public purse puffed ...
Abbott’s Freestyle Libre sensors allow continuous glucose monitoring (CGM). The sensor is applied to the back of the patient’s arm, with a thin filament under the skin measuring glucose levels constantly. But it costs around $100 per sensor and must be replaced once every 14 days. Photo by BSIP/Universal Images ...
The Inspector General of Intelligence and Security (IGIS) recently released a report in which he exposes the existence of a foreign intelligence partner-controlled technological “capability” inside the headquarters of the GCSB, NZ’s 5 Eyes-affiliated signals intelligence collection and analysis agency. … Continue reading → ...
Peter Dunne writes – Nearly three decades after the introduction of MMP and multiparty governments there should be a greater level of understanding about their finer points than often appears to be the case. The reaction to the despicable outburst from the Deputy Prime Minister at the weekend highlights ...
The sweet kisses from fruit of summerHave slowly been turning dullerYou say, "those times"And "remember the daysWhen we went outside and there still was the shade?"Taking no reason into play…Autumn. Clear, blue days shortening to longer nights, growing colder. Aotearoa.That’s us. The temperature dropping, the looming car crash - so ...
Bryce Edwards writes – “It is often said that behind every great man is a great woman”. This is the pitch by the National Party Botany electorate branch to attend their “Ladies Afternoon Tea with Amanda Luxon”. For $110 including GST, you can turn up on Saturday 20 April ...
David Farrar writes – The Electoral Commission has published the expense returns for political parties for the 2023 election. I’ve put them in a table with how many votes a party got so we can see the spend per vote. National only spent $3.34 for every vote they got, almost ...
Winston Peters’ headline-making actions over the past week may have been a show of political power intended to strengthen his hand in Budget negotiations. It was no accident that his State of the Nation speech was as it was. He made it as New Zealand First Leader, not as Deputy ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:Former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson bowed out of politics this week, giving a series of exit ...
Graham Adams writes — If you love the law or sausages, as the saying goes, best not to look too closely at how they are made. And after watching the orgy of self-pity when Newshub’s closure was announced on February 28, television journalism should definitely be added to the list of those ...
Venerable New Zealand political commentator, Chris Trotter (https://bowalleyroad.blogspot.com/), is a sad creature these days. Once one of the most reliable Leftist writers out there – Economic Left at that – Trotter seems to have absorbed the worldview of Auckland culture-war obsessives. It is not for me to categorise what he ...
The cruelty of short-term memory loss is that each time you ask where she is, you get the fresh shock and grief of the news. That was Dad's day yesterday.Comfortingly, it seems to be less so today. Last night he looked crumpled, today he seems more settled. There's a card ...
Photo by Alvan Nee on UnsplashIt’s that new day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when and I co-host our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm. Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream for our chat about the week’s news ...
Buzz from the Beehive One minister is talking tough while a colleague – whose ministry had acted tough and drawn a barrage of flak – has shown an official softening. Some ministers are doing what Labour was good at, which is distributing public funds to causes regarded as worthy or ...
The Coalition Government’s plan to ‘get Auckland moving’ is a cuts cover-up that will ultimately cost Aucklanders more to move around the city, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Slashing the Ministry of Pacific Peoples by 40% will have a devastating impact on pacific communities and further highlights how little this government cares about anything other than cutting taxes for the wealthiest few. ...
Labour has proposed an urgent inquiry to investigate the ever-increasing profits of supermarkets, aiming to lower costs for shoppers and food producers alike, says Labour Spokesperson for Commerce and Consumer Affairs Arena Williams and Primary Production Spokesperson Cushla Tangaere-Manuel. ...
With 14% of jobs on the line at the Ministry for Ethnic Communities, the responsible Minister Melissa Lee is failing to stand up for the very communities she’s meant to be representing. ...
COURT OF APPEAL: TRIFECTA OF VICTORY FOR NZ FIRST, TRIFECTA OF FAILURE FOR OPPONENTS For the third time since April 2020, New Zealand First has defeated the Serious Fraud Office and all those complicit in a malicious attack against a political party going about its lawful business in a lawful ...
The Green Party stands with people who live in public housing, people in dire housing need, experts and advocates in demanding better than the Government’s archaic approach to housing those who need our support the most. ...
New Zealand has recently lost the hosting rights of some major international sporting events including the America’s Cup, the Rugby Championship, Netball World Cup, and the Wellington Sevens. We are now at a huge risk of losing SailGP as well. And it won’t stop there. The recent issues with SailGP ...
A Member’s Bill drawn this week would modernise insurance law and make things fairer and more transparent for consumers, Christchurch Central MP Duncan Webb said. ...
The Minister for Disability Issues has confirmed she was aware of funding issues in mid-December and did nothing to stop it. On 14 March, she signed off on changes that were announced and implemented on 18 March without any consultation with disability communities. ...
Green Party MP Julie Anne Genter says her members' bill is an opportunity for the coalition government to plug the gap in electric vehicle incentives. ...
The National Government continues to talk about irresponsible tax cuts that will only drive up inflation, despite the country entering a technical recession. ...
The Minister for Disability Issues must act urgently to reinstate flexibility around the funding for disability support and apologise to disabled carers. ...
This story has been initiated by a leftie shill reporter who proactively sought to call a member of a former band, which disbanded twelve years ago, give their biased appraisal of what was said in my speech, and concocted a ham-fisted attempt at a story that does nothing but show ...
The Government has accepted Labour’s change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Many in the mainstream media have taken what was said in New Zealand First’s State of the Nation Speech in Palmerston North on Sunday and deliberately, deceitfully, and ignorantly misrepresented what I said and why I said it. The headlines and commentary on the news stated that I compared ‘co-governance ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
Good afternoon. Thank you for, in your very busy lives, turning up to this meeting today. On October 14th last year New Zealanders overwhelmingly voted for change. That is exactly what this new government is bringing. New Zealand First campaigned to ‘take back our country’ and stop the disastrous economic ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s fast-track legislation. ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesn’t act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed the passing of legislation to move light electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) into the road user charges system from 1 April. “It was always intended that EVs and PHEVs would be exempt from road user charges until they reached two ...
New Zealand is strengthening its ability to combat illegal fishing outside its domestic waters and beef up regulation for its own commercial fishers in international waters through a Bill which had its first reading in Parliament today. The Fisheries (International Fishing and Other Matters) Amendment Bill 2023 sets out stronger ...
Economists Carl Hansen and Professor Prasanna Gai have been appointed to the Reserve Bank Monetary Policy Committee, Finance Minister Nicola Willis announced today. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is the independent decision-making body that sets the Official Cash Rate which determines interest rates. Carl Hansen, the executive director of Capital ...
Apartment owners and buyers will soon have greater protections as further changes to the law on unit titles come into effect, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “The Unit Titles (Strengthening Body Corporate Governance and Other Matters) Amendment Act had already introduced some changes in December 2022 and May 2023, and ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters will travel to Egypt and Europe from this weekend. “This travel will focus on a range of New Zealand’s traditional diplomatic and security partnerships while enabling broad engagement on the urgent situation in Gaza,” Mr Peters says. Mr Peters will attend the NATO Foreign ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown is encouraging all road users to stay safe, plan their journeys ahead of time, and be patient with other drivers while travelling around this Easter long weekend. “Road safety is a responsibility we all share, and with increased traffic on our roads expected this Easter we ...
About 1.4 million New Zealanders will receive cost of living relief through increased government assistance from April 1 909,000 pensioners get a boost to Superannuation, including 5000 veterans 371,000 working-age beneficiaries will get higher payments 45,000 students will see an increase in their allowance Over a quarter of New Zealanders ...
Ensuring social housing is being provided to those with the greatest needs is front of mind as the Government restarts social housing tenancy reviews, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. “Our relentless focus on building a strong economy is to ensure we can deliver better public services such as social ...
The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary will not go ahead, with Cabinet deciding to stop work on the proposed reserve and remove the Bill that would have established it from Parliament’s order paper. “The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary Bill would have created a 620,000 sq km economic no-go zone,” Oceans and Fisheries Minister ...
Dam safety regulations are being amended so that smaller dams won’t be subject to excessive compliance costs, Minister for Building and Construction Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on reducing costs and removing unnecessary red tape so we can get the economy back on track. “Dam safety regulations ...
The coalition Government is expanding the medium-scale adverse event classification to parts of the North Island as dry weather conditions persist, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced today. “I have made the decision to expand the medium-scale adverse event classification already in place for parts of the South Island to also cover the ...
The passing of legislation giving effect to coalition Government tax commitments has been welcomed by Finance Minister Nicola Willis. “The Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill will help place New Zealand on a more secure economic footing, improve outcomes for New Zealanders, and make our tax system ...
Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins and Tertiary Education and Skills Minister Penny Simmonds today announced plans to transform our science and university sectors to boost the economy. Two advisory groups, chaired by Professor Sir Peter Gluckman, will advise the Government on how these sectors can play a greater ...
The Budget will deliver urgently-needed tax relief to hard-working New Zealanders while putting the government’s finances back on a sustainable track, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The Finance Minister made the comments at the release of the Budget Policy Statement setting out the Government’s Budget objectives. “The coalition Government intends ...
The coalition Government will look at options to address a zoning issue that limits how much financial support Queenstown residents can get for accommodation. Cabinet has agreed on a response to the Petitions Committee, which had recommended the geographic information MSD uses to determine how much accommodation supplement can be ...
Cabinet has agreed to a short extension to the final reporting timeframe for the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care from 28 March 2024 to 26 June 2024, Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden says. “The Royal Commission wrote to me on 16 February 2024, requesting that I consider an ...
The coalition Government is delivering an $18 million boost to New Zealanders needing to travel for specialist health treatment, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says. “These changes are long overdue – the National Travel Assistance (NTA) scheme saw its last increase to mileage and accommodation rates way back in 2009. ...
The Government is recognising the innovative and rising talent in New Zealand’s growing space sector, with the Prime Minister and Space Minister Judith Collins announcing the new Prime Minister’s Prizes for Space today. “New Zealand has a growing reputation as a high-value partner for space missions and research. I am ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed New Zealand’s concerns about cyber activity have been conveyed directly to the Chinese Government. “The Prime Minister and Minister Collins have expressed concerns today about malicious cyber activity, attributed to groups sponsored by the Chinese Government, targeting democratic institutions in both New ...
Independent Reviewers appointed for School Property Inquiry Education Minister Erica Stanford today announced the appointment of three independent reviewers to lead the Ministerial Inquiry into the Ministry of Education’s School Property Function. The Inquiry will be led by former Minister of Foreign Affairs Murray McCully. “There is a clear need ...
State Highway 1 across the Brynderwyns will be open for Easter weekend, with work currently underway to ensure the resilience of this critical route being paused for Easter Weekend to allow holiday makers to travel north, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Today I visited the Brynderwyn Hills construction site, where ...
Introduction Good morning to you all, and thanks for having me bright and early today. I am absolutely delighted to be the Minister for Infrastructure alongside the Minister of Housing and Resource Management Reform. I know the Prime Minister sees the three roles as closely connected and he wants me ...
New Zealand stands with the United Kingdom in its condemnation of People’s Republic of China (PRC) state-backed malicious cyber activity impacting its Electoral Commission and targeting Members of the UK Parliament. “The use of cyber-enabled espionage operations to interfere with democratic institutions and processes anywhere is unacceptable,” Minister Responsible for ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Defence Minister Judith Collins today announced New Zealand will provide logistics support for the upcoming Solomon Islands election. “We’re sending a team of New Zealand Defence Force personnel and two NH90 helicopters to provide logistics support for the election on 17 April, at the request ...
The European Union Free Trade Agreement Legislation Amendment Bill received Royal Assent today, completing the process for New Zealand’s ratification of its free trade agreement with the European Union. “I am pleased to announce that today, in a small ceremony at the Beehive, New Zealand notified the European Union ...
Public consultation on the terms of reference for the Royal Commission into COVID-19 Lessons has concluded, Internal Affairs Minister Hon Brooke van Velden says. “I have been advised that there were over 11,000 submissions made through the Royal Commission’s online consultation portal.” Expanding the scope of the Royal Commission of ...
Hardworking families are set to benefit from a new credit to help them meet their early childcare education (ECE) costs, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. From 1 July, parents and caregivers of young children will be supported to manage the rising cost of living with a partial reimbursement of their ...
A specialised Independent Technical Advisory Group (ITAG) tasked with preparing and publishing independent non-binding advice on the design of a "green" (sustainable finance) taxonomy rulebook is being established, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “Comprising experts and market participants, the ITAG's primary goal is to deliver comprehensive recommendations to the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins has thanked the Chief of Army, Major General John Boswell, DSD, for his service as he leaves the Army after 40 years. “I would like to thank Major General Boswell for his contribution to the Army and the wider New Zealand Defence Force, undertaking many different ...
25 March 2024 Minister to meet Australian counterparts and Manufacturing Industry Leaders Small Business, Manufacturing, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly will travel to Australia for a series of bi-lateral meetings and manufacturing visits. During the visit, Minister Bayly will meet with his Australian counterparts, Senator Tim Ayres, Ed ...
Government commits almost $3 million for period products in schools The Coalition Government has committed $2.9 million to ensure intermediate and secondary schools continue providing period products to those who need them, Minister of Education Erica Stanford announced today. “This is an issue of dignity and ensuring young women don’t ...
Good morning, it’s great to be here. First, I would like to acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of Building Surveyors and thank you for the opportunity to be here this morning. I would like to use this opportunity to outline the Government’s ambitious plan and what we hope to ...
Minister for Pacific Peoples Dr Shane Reti has announced the Government’s commitment to the Auckland Secondary Schools Māori and Pacific Islands Cultural Festival, more commonly known as Polyfest. “The Ministry for Pacific Peoples is a longtime supporter of Polyfest and, as it celebrates 49 years in 2024, I’m proud to ...
Before moving onto the substance of today’s address, I want to recognise the very significant and ongoing contribution the Breast Cancer Foundation makes to support the lives of New Zealand women and their families living with breast cancer. I very much enjoy working with you. I also want to recognise ...
New Zealand has notched up a first with the launch of University of Canterbury research to the International Space Station, Science, Innovation and Technology and Space Minister Judith Collins says. The hardware, developed by Dr Sarah Kessans, is designed to operate autonomously in orbit, allowing scientists on Earth to study ...
Introduction Thank you for inviting me to speak with you today and I’m sorry I can’t be there in person. Yesterday I started in Wellington for Breakfast TV, spoke to a property conference in Auckland, and finished the day speaking to local government in Christchurch, so it would have been ...
The Coalition Government is contributing more than $1 million to support the establishment of an emergency multi-agency coordination centre in Northland. Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell announced the contribution today during a visit of the Whangārei site where the facility will be constructed. “Northland has faced a number ...
New Zealanders have enjoyed a broader range of voices telling the story of Aotearoa thanks to the creation of Whakaata Māori 20 years ago, says Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka. The minister spoke at a celebration marking the national indigenous media organisation’s 20th anniversary at their studio in Auckland on ...
Commercial catch limits for some fisheries have been increased following a review showing stocks are healthy and abundant, Ocean and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The changes, along with some other catch limit changes and management settings, begin coming into effect from 1 April 2024. "Regular biannual reviews of fish ...
Analysis by Keith Rankin. Keith Rankin, trained as an economic historian, is a retired lecturer in Economics and Statistics. He lives in Auckland, New Zealand. My earlier article – Can ‘Good’ be the Greater Evil? – looked at the issue of how wars should end, and how Good versus Evil ...
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 AMMA by Saraid de Silva (Moa Press, $38)A stunning debut novel reviewed by Brannavan ...
From Steve Martin to Ricky Stanicky, a pick’n’mix of things worth watching and listening to this long weekend. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. If you’re at a loss for something to occupy yourself with this Easter, don’t panic: The Spinoff’s got ...
Jesus had dinner with his 12 disciples right before he died. Noted historian Madeleine Chapman finds out who really deserved to be there.First published in 2018 but let’s be honest, the subject is timeless. As you sit on your couch this Easter Sunday, eating a chocolate egg you know ...
The newly-promoted Northern League club is on a mission to return to the National League for the first time in two decades. Plenty about domestic football in New Zealand has changed in that time – but the sense that this amateur competition is not an entirely level playing field remains. ...
Comment: Every year on February 2, a dozen men in tuxedos and top hats approach the burrow of a groundhog in Gobbler’s Knob, Pennsylvania and entice the beaver-like rodent to emerge and predict the weather. If the groundhog, named Punxsutawney Phil, sees its own shadow when it is summoned, legend ...
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Auckland Council has put a deadline on new weather-impacted property owners applying for categorisation as government funding looks set to run out. Councillors have voted to support a deadline of September 30 for property owners who haven’t accessed support to come forward and engage with the council’s recovery office. It ...
NONFICTION 1 BBQ Economics by Liam Dann (Penguin Random House, $40) “It’s official,” wrote Dann nine days ago in the Herald, where he works as business editor at large, “we’re in recession.” Yeah, great. He delivered the bad stats: “GDP fell 0.1 percent in the December 2023 quarter, compared with ...
By Anneke Smith, RNZ News political reporter A petition urging the New Zealand government to provide urgent humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people has been tabled in the House. More than 200 people gathered on Parliament’s forecourt today and they were met by MPs from Labour, the Greens and Te ...
Pacific Media Watch The Paris-based global media freedom watchdog RSF (Reporters Without Borders) has appealed for information about the “disappearance” of Palestinian journalist Bayan Abusultan. She was reportedly last seen on March 19 among people “sequestered” in this week’s raid and siege of Al Shifa hospital by Israeli troops in ...
EDITORIAL:The Jakarta Post It happens again and again; indigenous Papuans fall victim to Indonesian soldiers. This time, we have photographic evidence for the brutality, with videos on social media showing a Papuan man being tortured by a group of plainclothes men alleged to be the Indonesian Military (TNI) members. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robyn J. Whitaker, Director of the Wesley Centre for Theology, Ethics, and Public Policy & Associate Professor, New Testament, Pilgrim Theological College, University of Divinity A strange and eclectic range of activities takes place across these few weeks of the year. Some ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Panizza Allmark, Professor Visual & Cultural Studies, Edith Cowan University It’s Easter weekend, which means many of us will be kicking back with the greatest hits on repeat. But whether you’re a boomer, or an ‘80s or ’90s kid, you might be ...
RNZ Pacific Fiji’s Acting Public Prosecutor has filed an appeal against the sentences of former prime minister Voreqe Bainimarama and suspended police chief Sitiveni Qiliho in their corruption case. Bainimarama was granted an absolute discharge for attempting to pervert the course of justice while Qiliho received a conditional discharge with ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Arosha Weerakoon, Senior Lecturer and General Dentist, School of Dentistry, The University of Queensland Casezy idea/Shutterstock How does toothpaste work? What did people use before toothpaste was invented? – Amelia, age 7, Meanjin (Brisbane) Thanks for your ...
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I think it’s worth repeating this here, a response to marty mars:
“contributes to a toxic environment for the left here with his incessant fault finding and attack posts against the left”
Very funny – or do you actually believe that?
I only occasionally post here. You and a few others frequently post here, creating a toxic environment of the left, attacking many people you judge to not be suitably left, or something.
You (collectively) deter far more people from voting left than i ever will, because they are not the right sort of left for you, not left enough, or just that you make an ill-informed judgement.
I first came to The Standard thinking it would be a good place to join in the rebuilding of Labour after Clark lost in 2008 and then departed Parliament. I was mistaken. This has been a toxic, small minded, dirty unwelcoming place.
There are good people here, and interesting comments at times, but it has been dominated by persistent petty regulars who burn off anyone deemed some sort of enemy.
It has changed, probably because more moderate centre-ish people have been driven away or can’t be bothered with the toxicity.
What is obvious now that, while there may be a few Labour try-hards, the dirty politics here is now dominated by non-Labour supporters like marty mars, OAB, Robert Guyton, who all regularly and persistently attack anyone deemed some sort of enemy.
It’s pathetic, and it’s counter productive. Even if there is some intent to drive off potential Labour voters that is cutting off your nose to spite your face, and certainly won’t encourage people to vote Green or Mana.
This is a toxic environment without me, I just pop in occasionally to see if anything has changed. Obviously not.
I’ve voted both Green and Labour, but I and I think many others who pass by here certainly wouldn’t encouraged to do so again by the bitter and twisted attack dweebs who dominate threads here.
Ardern and Davis have given the first sign in a decade that Labour may be able to climb back into prominence again. But it looks like they will struggle to get any help here with so much toxic self destruction further to the left going on.
If Labour supporters (and anyone genuinely wanting a change of government) want to do something positive to rebuild the party they should stand up more to the crap perpetuated by a few spoilers here.
No. It wasn’t.
Yes dear
thanks pete this is my response on the other thread
“This has been a toxic, small minded, dirty unwelcoming place.”
Is someone forcing your arm up your back and making you post anti left attack comments? No I didn’t think so – that’s all your own work peter – you’ve always been a moaner-fabricator since you started posting way back when you were a United Candidate for parliament. You haven’t changed one bit.
The Standard is a broad left wing space; it’s only to be expected that right wingers will face a headwind. We aren’t here to make it easy for their argument, nor let them derail what is important to us. And if they argue in bad faith or blatantly troll they routinely get hammered by moderation.
But without asking anyone to agree with PG’s style, his sometimes irritating passive-aggressiveness, or any of his political ideas … on this he has a point. There is really no justification for the snide mockery, reflexive hostility and mobbing that is too often dumped on anyone deemed ‘outsider’.
Only a fool counsels perfection; we’ll all fall short of ideal from time to time. But it’s plain that a handful of individuals are taking pleasure in baiting and abusing ‘non-lefties’, and getting away with it because their politics are so pure.
Well that just doesn’t stack up. You cannot demand justice, equity and fairness from others, while dishing out abuse yourself.
“But it’s plain that a handful of individuals are taking pleasure in baiting and abusing outsiders and getting away with it because their politics are so pure.”
I call rubbish on that. You have always pushed that line even after it has been disproved time and time again. sad.
Yes dear.
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-06082017/#comment-1363452
means nothing – your point is?
“his sometimes irritating passive-aggressiveness”
sometimes!
SOMETIMES????
We’re getting squabbly-as here – let’s blame Pete for that and move on to more productive pastures. Pete’s on holiday, The Greens are polling strongly, Jacinda’s leading Labour and Paula’s been assigned as advance guard for the attack – things are looking relentlessly positive! All we need now is for Todd Barclay to call on Metiria to resign.
No. It wasn’t.
Pete gearing up his arch-trollery for the election I see. What a surprise.
From your post:
Your post, your rules obviously, but that seems a bit contradictory. As does your comment here.
[1 week ban. I don’t care how carefully you couch your trolling, you don’t get to criticise this author – weka]
Weka – Please be kind, the upcoming election needs a climate of understanding, building bridges and above all – finding common ground. We all have different views on different things. What is it that a social democrat would support in every situation?
Pete gets moderated for his behaviour not his views, as beigely abhorrent as they are. There’s lots of people I disagree with here who have different views, but 95% of the comments don’t even come close to touching my moderator radar.
Like all skilled trolls, Pete mixes together his trolling with his other commentary to make it seem more reasonable. I don’t have too much of a problem with people learning how to skate just under the moderation radar if they can be a net benefit to the site, but the load on moderators is getting higher the closer we get to the election (plus the post-election period is likely to be intense). I’d rather be writing posts or having fun, so there’s less leeway atm. If it makes my job easier to take out a known troll whose been banned multiple times before, and do that early in the day before he gets going, then that’s what I will do.
Besides, I was kind, he only got banned for a week (I was going to make it two then I halved it) 🙂
I thought your giving ol’ Pet the heave-ho was elegant, weka. I cried no tears at all.
Hi Weka, fair enough, I did not question your judgement just wondered about why. As an sometimes visitor to this site I saw nothing offensive per se’ but I would certainly ask why Pete would think that people on this site will shoot down others. Perhaps I am not seeing what others see.
Thank you for your response.
PG has a long history of boring the crap out of us with his presence of being even handed. When he is an authoritarian follower of the establishment.
You know when the thugs render their victim unconscious with a chloroform-soaked rag? Pete.
(And I reckon you meant “pretense”, KJT 🙂
Yes
In fairness to everyone concerned, I have to ask: is one week long enough? Seriously, that’s only 7 days.
🙂
That said, look what Pete said in the comments section of his own blog in response to disbelief at Jacinda’s popularity…(go figure!)
““Keep ignoring a phenomenon that is unfolding at your (or National’s) peril.
Unless the current momentum is changed the it looks likely the polling question will be how far into the 30s Labour rise to, and whether National can stay out of the 30s.”
“I’m not ‘buying into the hype’, I’m observing it. I haven’t seen anything like this sort of transformation before, nor this sort of excitement for a campaign before.
It’s happening. Don’t blame me for reporting it.”
“You’re failing to see the facts.
There is a very different vibe coming from the Labour and National camps. You try to talk it away as much as you like but it won’t make it disappear.
National have a major challenge to compete, and they are showing no sign of stepping up yet.
There’s seven weeks to go and things could still change dramatically again, but Labour have little to lose and a lot to gain, if National keep doing little they could lose.”
“Labour appear to have been forced into a very risky leader change but so far it has worked far better than anyone could have predicted.
But how things works is well known by campaign teams. If National don’t find a way of combating Labour’s momentum they could be in trouble.”
Thanks weka. I always scroll down past his comments. He is so fucking boring.
Well said, very concise.
arch-trollery.
Yup. That seems to be the most likely reason for pete doubling-down on a response to a statement that marty mars had already apologised for in the original comment.
A welcome switch to more positive politics:
Not just Labour, we will all benefit by a more positive approach to politics. I hope some of Ardern’s positivity rubs off on others.
RadioLive, in two minutes time, talking (positively) about what to plant in the almost-Spring vegetable garden.
What are you planting down south Robert?
Apple trees right now, but in the annual vegetables gardens; garlic and shallots are up and growing, peas and broad beans going in to trays in the glasshouse, bok choy and kale as seedlings into the open garden and pumpkins and corn into pottles for the warm window-sills inside of the house. It has been frrrrosty down here all week, though the coming 5 days are to be very warm by comparison, so those seeds will take off. Most of my garden work around now is propagating: cuttings and division of rhizomes and roots; horseradish, mints, elecampane, cardoon etc. I’m still cracking, soaking and planting-out hazelnuts, peach stones and almonds, en mass, preparing for the expansion of my orchard out into the whole wide world 🙂
Do you wait for last frost to plant out the broad beans, or just more warm days?
I’ve had some in for a while now; they don’t care about frosts. Don’t leave them too late.
I’ve posted two pretty photos on my blog; one scene from last evening and one from this morning. Someone might enjoy seeing them.
https://robertguyton.blogspot.co.nz/2017/08/evening-and-morning.html
Nice pics Robert (4). Thanks for sharing. Like to see more of the same posted.
Now I am going to pick your brains. In October we are moving south to central Otago (Cromwell to be exact) from Auckland and want to know what and what does not grow re vegetables. We have always had a productive vegetable garden in Auckland and would like to continue the same if we can at our southern home. Always had silverbeet, broccoli, pumpkins, green beans, bok choy, tomatoes as well as a varied herb garden. Have had conflicting opinions, telling us we can grow this, but can’t grow that, then told something else!
I’d appreciate what we are able to grow in the southern climate please if you don’t mind.
Cheers
Mary
The thing about Central is the late and early frosts. Put in a glasshouse and learn your microclimates. Lots of old school gardeners in that area who will give you very localised gardening advice. I have friends in various parts of Central who grow all the things you name, but opinions will vary on how long you can extend the growing season.
Better yet, plant a food forest 😀
Hi Mary
The best investment you could make would be to buy a Star Garden Guide; they’ve just been reprinted from the original which was composed as a serial for the Star Newspaper back in the day by a gardener who knew his onions. It isn’t “organics-only” as I would wish, but very sound in its recommendations for what and when to plant. As well, you should/could subscribe to the NZ Gardener magazine and read their regular column from their man in Southland 🙂 Great pics accompanying that column as well. Also, there’s Get Growing, on-line, written, every third week, by that same gardener. In a nutshell, though, you’ll be able to grow everything you listed. Lots of sunshine in Cromwell. The soil will be different from what you’re accustomed to though.
Weka (4.1.1) & Robert Guyton (4.1.2) … hey thanks for the useful info. Much appreciated.
It’s going to be a whole new ball game for us. However I look forward to some productive gardening in central Otago in the very near future 🙂
Listened to Chris Martenson’s Peak Prosperity weekly news update.
Summary: talking about the loss of biodiversity in Maine or as Chris puts it watching life ebb away; also comments on the ongoing rallies in the stock market.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwiNKK-E27s
Oh it is election season. Waking up on a sunday morning to the sound of case fans winding up as the load goes on the server..
Well you can see the last 30 days yourself.
Updated:
Looks like the same at The Daily Blog as well at about half magnitude.
I notice it in the number of comments already on TS by the time I get up in the morning. Or the numbers commenting on Daily Review in the evenings.
Oh yeah. During election season, we get more comments. The average comment size get larger as well. While there are a lot of short comments especially when the trolls reappear, everyone else seems to start writing small essays as a counterpoint.
Bit depressing seeing those outages due to cutouts in the CPUs protecting themselves from overheating kicking in on the early part of the month. 4th-12th on this chart. Especially on midweek on 9th when it was down for quite a few hours.
I had to do some shuffling of the machines and refitting of fans on the Saturday 12th. And again last weekend. It had a brief midday outage during the spike, and I had to tweak the fancontrol parameters again.
I really need to write a proper hysteresis routine for them so I can get a better balance between the noise of the fans in my quiet apartment (especially at night) and the need to stop the CPUs cutting off the system to protect themselves.
What was the 40K spike about?
That was the Labour leader roll(over) of Little and its subsequent election of Jacinda at the start of the week.
Ah you’re becoming a hardened election season moderator. On the weekend it is very hard to remember the start of the week.
https://thestandard.org.nz/page/2/ look down until you see “Labour leadership meeting”.
The 33k the day before was started with your “This is no ordinary election (f*ck the polls)” about the poll with the greens rise and Metiria’s aftershocks.
You should be able to see that google analytics on the dashboard – look under screen options if you can’t
More on RNZ using Hooton as a commenter, and Hooton’s lie about Helen Clark.
https://twitter.com/Zagzigger2/status/893710919317954560
And Mediawatch – having a go at our short supply of long term professional pundits, from Trotter to Hooton – but special scathing mentions of Mike Hosking’s assembly line of reckons.
More diversity indeed … when all of them are white, middle-class, males.
That’s a hard listen for all the Hosking audio 😉
Sir John Key: “Helen abolished knighthoods, I reinstalled them”.
ABC interview 30th July 2017
http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/sundayextra/2017-07-30/8749862?utm_source=sfmc
I’d like to comment in the post Lefties on The Standard but I’m unsure about the criteria for participation.
The manoeuvring (incl. MOU) and rhetoric in the next 7 weeks will be aimed at changing the government in the first instance. Paradoxically, in my view, this muddies the more important overarching debate which is how we should move forward in this country and our society. This debate needs to be inclusive and balanced as possible and not hijacked & polarised as is usually the case.
What was unclear about the criteria?
(you’re LW as far as I can tell, so go for it).
Hi weka,
I tend to overthink things – an understatement.
There are two questions related to the criteria as set out:
1) Can I personally adhere to and meet these? In my own eyes rather than in your eyes, for example, if that makes any sense? I don’t think we need to dwell on this here as it is obviously personal.
2) I am not so comfortable, for want of a better word, with the label “left wing” and its associated narrative of (political) dualism. Hence my comment re. being inclusive but it goes deeper than that.
I realise it is an experiment here on TS and I think it is great to try new ways to move things forward. I am also hanging out for real constructive debate; it is rare, fragile, and too easily killed off – a bit like the flightless bird that is our national symbol. Maybe you’re right that it needs to start off in an enclosed and well-protected environment but how & when do we proceed with the ‘release into the wild’? BTW, I believe there have been (other) calls for a left wing ‘think tank’.
Lastly, and perhaps paradoxically, I take your comment as a compliment 🙂
Would progressive rather than, or in addition to, left wing have made a difference?
No, not really, sorry.
44 south also mentioned that labels do not represent people very well https://thestandard.org.nz/lefties-on-the-standard/#comment-1363547 and I relate to this in ways that confuse me no end – does the label conform to the person or the other way round or both (or neither)?
Lately, I’ve been reading the comments by Carolyn_nth with great interest, e.g. this one referring to Sue Bradford https://thestandard.org.nz/messages-for-the-left/#comment-1363782
The thing is we’re aiming for a better future although it remains poorly described. In my view, it will have to be radically different from status quo and thus it cannot be adequately described or defined (‘captured’) with current terminology and it most certainly cannot and won’t fit within the current dominant narratives – the future is open-ended and the associated language and meaning has yet to be developed or evolve.
A longwinded explanation which in no way detracts from your stellar efforts here on TS – I really mean this.
Does that mean there is no way for you to take part in the conversation in the other thread? Seems odd to let semantics deter good discussion. ‘Left wing’ is a just a shorthand to make my job as moderator easier.
I was thinking along similar lines.
If in doubt – try http://www.politicalcompass.org
And yes, these one size fits all “what’s your political bent” are a bit trite – but interesting..
For what it’s worth – I’m bang in the middle of the square of “libertarian/left”. So I suppose that does make me left? – although I have voted national in the past 🙂
Yes, that makes you left 😉
You too, Labour.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CkYDFghWwOU&feature=youtu.be
MSM and modern technology tend to magnify & amplify all sorts of happenings, good and bad. This almost always comes at the expense of balance and context.
Recently, we have heard a few personal revelations (‘confessions’) and seen a few actions (‘sacrifices’) by politicians. Indeed, these were showing honesty & integrity. However, MSM and others have taken them out of proportion and used them to polarise opinion – the modus operandi of some; some claimed to have seen an Angel while others saw the Devil incarnate (Fallen Angel). There has never been a more powerful narrative and human construct than Good vs. Evil.
I think it’s quite telling that we appear to be so excited, surprised even, when moral virtues and positive values are on display. Why is this? We all value honesty & integrity and we all make personal sacrifices on a daily basis without giving it much thought, it seems.
I think it is time to recalibrate our expectations and corresponding judgements (!) of ourselves as well as of others and reaffirm the values we stand for. With the influence of (organised) religion waning in our society we should not lose sight of the whole of the value system that underpinned it – we cannot deny who we are. Similarly, the role of (moral) authority is disappearing and we now need to look at and in ourselves for guidance and direction.
Agreed. And with love getting a fresh airing by principals as schools grapple with student depression and suicide we are reminded that there are some simple qualities which if neglected leave us poorer regardless of external stimuli. Wordsworth knew about them when he wrote …..
Thanks to the human heart by which we live,
Thanks to its tenderness, its joys, and fears,
To me the meanest flower that blows can give
Thoughts that do often lie too deep for tears.
Most interesting and very apt, thank you.
My meandering monkey mind let me to search on Wordsworth & Buddhism and that unearthed a ‘treasure trove’.
I guess this might feel far-removed from current electioneering and reading of political ‘tea leaves’.
Increases in suicide and depression are clear signs that we’re heading down the wrong path and it is really good to hear that people are aware of this and doing something about it.
Sunday reading from The Grauniad:
Globalisation: the rise and fall of an idea that swept the world
It’s not just a populist backlash – many economists who once swore by free trade have changed their minds, too. How had they got it so wrong? By Nikil Saval
Text version:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jul/14/globalisation-the-rise-and-fall-of-an-idea-that-swept-the-world
Podcast version:
https://www.theguardian.com/news/audio/2017/jul/31/globalisation-the-rise-and-fall-of-an-idea-that-swept-the-world-podcast
A bit of history of Populism on Melvyn Bragg’s excellent In Our Time
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss what, in C19th America’s Gilded Age, was one of the most significant protest movements since the Civil War with repercussions well into C20th. Farmers in the South and Midwest felt ignored by the urban and industrial elites who were thriving as the farmers suffered droughts and low prices. The farmers were politically and physically isolated. As one man wrote on his abandoned farm, ‘two hundred and fifty miles to the nearest post office, one hundred miles to wood, twenty miles to water, six inches to Hell’. They formed the Populist or People’s Party to fight their cause, put up candidates for President, won several states and influenced policies. In the South, though, their appeal to black farmers stimulated their political rivals to suppress the black vote for decades and set black and poor white farmers against each other, tightening segregation. Aspects of the Populists ideas re-emerged effectively in Roosevelt’s New Deal, even if they are mainly remembered now, if at all, thanks to allegorical references in The Wizard of Oz.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08tbf4g
Least we forget:
Today is Hiroshima Day
Spare a thought for the 140,000 innocent people who were killed in a moment of madness.
And wonder at the continued madness of the threat of it happening again.
A peppercorn.
.
In an interview on NPR’s Fresh Air, author Eric Schlosser explains just how inefficient this early nuclear bomb was (skip to 11:13 in the recording).
https://www.gizmodo.com.au/2014/09/less-than-two-percent-of-the-hiroshima-bombs-uranium-actually-detonated/
72 years ago.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLjb2dEHhN4
Today marks the anniversary of the first use of nuclear weapons – the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima by the United States, the only country in the world to ever use nuclear weapons (and on civilian targets). It’s also no coincidence that the atomic bomb was used on Japan and not Germany:
https://rdln.wordpress.com/2013/08/07/the-pacific-war-racism-and-hiroshima/
“It’s also no coincidence that the atomic bomb was used on Japan and not Germany”
It is probably also not a coincidence that the first atom bomb was not completed until AFTER the German state had been defeated and they had surrendered.
Just how could they have dropped a bomb that they didn’t actually have on Germany?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trinity_%28nuclear_test%29
Yes, Germany surrendered in May, and the first bomb was exploded in the Nevada desert in July… Bit of a problem there, PF
Unintended consequences of highly liberal marijuana laws; Marijuana company buys an entire Californian town. I’m sure it happens in Mexico regularly enough, but I’m not sure even Rothmans got that far with taking an entire town.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/marijuana-company-buys-nipton-california_us_5985e9bce4b041356ec00bbd?ncid=inblnkushpmg00000009
American Green will spend some $2.5 million in the next 18 months to rebuild Nipton into a stoner’s paradise, according to the company’s release. It plans to expand on the town’s small solar farm and aims to add “CBD and mineral baths, cannabis-product retail outposts, artists-in-residence programs, culinary events, and Bed-and-Breakfast lodging to complete the charming small town experience.”
Clearly the price was not too high.
Dunno if that’s an unintended consequence, really. It’s hardly unheard of in the US for a company to own a town – Disney has at least one community, and coal and steel companies occasionally owned the towns their workers lived in. Tennessee Ernie Ford sung about it.
Did my ears deceive me, did Jessica Mutch on todays Q and A really say in response to kelvin Davis and his criticism of national party hacks “On behalf of the National Party thats a bit unfair” her impartiality is transparent.
The panel was also slanted to the right, and pretty anti-Green Party generally.
Mike Williams said he was opposed to Turei’s old electorate enrollment thing because too many people had been doing that to gain extra votes in marginal electorates – but that’s totally not what Turei did.
Live Green Party environment Q & A between James Shaw and Jeanette Fitzimmons on FB 6.30pm tonight.
https://www.facebook.com/nzgreenparty/posts/10154615034241372:0
Great to see Fitzsimons stepping up at a crucial point. I’ve often seen her on demonstrations in Auckland in recent times – still an activist. She mentored Turei initially, as I recall, when Turei became an MP.
did u no that if you are classed as Maori and have a criminal record you are not human because that is the way im being treated i tried dairyfarming for 13 years 11 years ago i was assitant manager on a 5000 cow farm we had 18 workers whom have all been displaced by imagrints i managed a farm for one farmer he had 7 workers on 4 farms they have all been repalaced by imagrints these farmers have no compasion for there workers as when you dairyfarm it is more than just a job if they fire you once calfing is over you have to move house iv had the cops called on me twice the first one lied and said i assalted them i went to court the judge was trying to encrouge me to plead gilty even my lawyer was not much help he did not encrouge me to plead not gilty cant have a europeen farmer to look like a lier i pleaeded not gilty i got off next time i was managing the worest farm in nz i was desperate for a job and house as my last boss hired imergrints i took the job the effluent system was a joke the cows were conditishon score av of 2 no shit she had taranaki gates the water was fucked i worked from dawn till dusk for 3 months to fix every thing up ie power the gates as a hungry cows were running the farm free range this farm is right next to the waikato river with a effluent system that was a joke fonterra new about farm because her partner worked for them after 3 months me and my son got the grass cover up to 2500 avrege the production was up 100% no lie my wife was razing the calfs she is a perfectionist healthy well looked after calfs the owner brought some of her calfs to my wifes calf shed they had scoures made my wifes calf sick they had a diseragrement she sacked us me my wife and 2 sons were working for her i was past the ninty day trial she still sacked me my wife did not get payed one of my sons did not get payed my daugter to she owed us all about 8 k i wondered why she had no numbers on her mail box this is why because when we went to the employment courts we could not get any thing trough becaues no one could find her to serve her the documents she was trained by the cop freind that she rang to kick us out of the house lucky my wife was there he jumped out of the cop car as if he was going to asalt me he yelled that we have been fired and had to leave imediately i replied that the house was like a rental an in the contrack we had 2 weeks to move it was dusk he backed off and went away i made a complaint the officer said that wallies had been in trouble before while we were moving to my daugthers house i got a ticket on a road were userly there are no cops he was waiting in the dark i tought nothing of it at the time but now it all ads up i went to wellington to work for Downers after 3 months on a loliepop sign i failed a drug test because i had started smoking weed agian because i was depressted i went to stay with my daugther i got a job relife managing for the first 2 weeks everything was good they liked my work cell count coming down treating lame cows ect one afternoon as i was driveing to work i noticed some guy pretending to read a paper in the boss driveway with a good view of the shed the cops think everyone has no brain the next day everyone was atcaing weard in the end they looked like i was the deviel 2 days before i was offered a full time job manageing a other farm they owned but not any more i notice that i allways had someone following me the police have told lies about me to all the farmers on kokako rd about me son boss acting strange i brought a lawn run in tauranga the cops have contacted all my clints lied to them i emailed the IPCA one of my clints is a judge after three weeks i asked if he could help me he said he would the next week he asked me if i had been arested yet no i said i made a complaint to the IPCA he looked into it the IPCA took up the case but 1 week later the judge said that i was just the lawn man nothing else you and your drugs. the police have put a spin on this the judge dismessed my services 3 weeks ago for no reason the police have lied to allmy nabours my bank staff acountant ect that is why i say if you are maori you have no human rights
the police are harressing me they are using bulling tackticks and have not aressted me there evdince is all lies they are not use to people with a brain
it is all true a personal vandeter from a bad cop from Tokoroa
you no what they say a cop has impunity to do anything and the justice system is more worried about the polices image can not have the public no some cops are bad he trained the farm owner to avoied the employment law i tried to get a lawyer to sue for my human rights 4 times first interview they are going to help next they wont anser my call so i use a unlisted number and they anser and clam up
The cops name was not Wallies his name is Dickson just checked email that we sent in
a complaint and the farm is just out of Whakamaru The owner is Colleen Conolly her partner was Jamie Hovind. Never work for these muppets