Now the kings and there advisers in NZ are trying to figure out how this lucky uneducated half caste Maori has managed to get this huge internet attention and viewers and how did he figure out he has this attention. And they are trying to replicate
this to try and win this election. YEA RIGHT
For one thing I don’t Believe in LUCK I believe LUCK was invented by some corrupt person people to explain why they had more assets/food to some naive people when in reality the corrupt person was robbing the naive people BLIND.
So I’m not lucky.
I believe in FATE as it was fate that these assholes have been hounding me for so long it was fate that I ended in this place and time it is fate because of these assholes that I scoured the internet for corruptions and posted this information on this website It was fate that I found this website it is fate that Iprent made this wonderful website. It is fate that I took my granddaughter to the doctors and had a conversation with that Kenyan
Doctor and gave him my pseudo name and this website. It was fate that joe90 posted those links on Kenya on this web site so every one could see what I posted was true. So my views on the reality’s of our WORLD are real and original . So I thank all the good people on this site and around the WORLD for there contribution to our fight for a safe fair bright future for every thing in our WORLD
Well I will call it steve looks like what was thrown at him stop lying steve.
That’s the way Hillary and Jack put him in line the neo liberal cheat joyce is
Well it was the Wall Street Journal that compared Jacinda to Trump, on immigration
[lprent: If you want to make an bald assertion about a ‘fact’ – then provide a link or a description about how to find your source. This prevents fuckwits from supplying false facts. I read the WSJ most days and I never saw this. ]
Yeah well, the Muslim comparison is crap. But NZ Labour’s immigration policy is pretty fucked up.
At the time of its release I read it side by side with UKIPs immigration policy and that of UK Labour. Far too consistent with UKIP and a million miles away from U Labour. (A few people hereabouts didn’t appreciate the observations)
Seems I should have just compared it to to the UK Tories whose ideas around limiting low skilled immigrants is causing outrage in the UK if today’s headlines are accurate
So my indentured ancestors would have been buggered. Many of my forbears would not have got in under the new regime. It really does seem to be a pull the ladder up jack policy.
If Chinese (or any other ‘ese’) can come in and run our dairy farms better than New Zealanders (ie without paying their workers peanuts or poisoning town water supplies) then perhaps they should be allowed to.
It looks like free trade means best quality is exported and we get the old fish fried with chip plus a half eaten one coz that’s the level of consumer quality. All the best, fish, meat, milk, fruit, etc goes off shore, and then some, average q uaility, leaving the worst still sellable at world prices by under paid staff who half eat a chip in order to get a feed yet still throw it in with the purchase. Key came into office, opened the doors to dotcomers, English learning students, lowers food quality, mine inspection, diary conversions, there is not one aspect of Keys leadership that has not eroded life in nz… …well okay broadband but that was already… …insulation… ..that was a greens overflow policy…. but the bulk of living standards have fallen and they raised GST too.
Are you sure? Lately I’ve been seriously wondering about who and what you stand for, and who has been tickling your man-fanny. Lately, It appears there’s been a serious lean to the “right”, where your balls are tickled just enough to question your supposedly left leaning values, and your foreskin is in competition with that pompous git that should have an ‘H’ branded on his forehead. Maybe you’ll get what you wish for, but the downside is it’ll come with an ‘H’s proclamation on who it is that should be euthanased.
Actually life for a cow in an open paddock system is not a bed of roses. no shelter, cold wet ground, rain, snow frosts.Long walks on rough gravelled tracks on sore feet because of standing in wet ground, heavy udders swinging, frequently trod on causing horrendous often life treatening injuries. Trying to maintain body weight while producing milk on a grass diet with accompanying explosive diarrhoea.
Dairy cows do better in an enclosed housing system, they adapt well, the revulsion comes from urbanised New Zealanders with a romantic view of how an animal should live.Housing animals makes it easier to control their diet and effulent,no manure trampled into the ground, no leaching of nitrates, composted manure and bedding returned to the soil at a time when heavy rain will not leach it into aquifers or water ways.Potentially a win win situation for cow and the environment.
Absolutely agree that paddocks are cruel environments for animals that naturally live in wooded/forested environments. But then, so is an “enclosed housing system”.
Actually, I doubt if there’s a way to farm animals that doesn’t involve a measure of cruelty. But y’know, we could be much less cruel and far more thoughtful. (But then, why have trees taking up the ground space of potential economic units, hm? 👿 )
Not sure why you think rich people who aren’t Kiwis would be any less greedy than NZers. The responsibility for the wellbeing of NZers and the land here is the governments. It’s not rocket science. Put in good environmental protections and resources into R and D for regenag. Put in good employment law that protects workers rights, and resources that support R and D for ethical business.
The biggest hurdle there, apart from values, is the business models based on perpetual growth. We’re at the limits of growth now, so those models have to exploit people and the earth, because that’s the only way they can now keep growing. Instead we need steady state business models. They exist, which begs the question of why we’re not using them. As far as I can tell that’s down to ignorance, greed, and the need to create. Only the last one is an asset and it could be redirected.
Exactly its ecomonics 101 and the law of diminishing returns combined with greed where a ‘reasonable rate of return’ is ditched for ever increasing profits.
Its cause and effect, newtons third law, with the environment, workers, quality etc amongst those who bear the effect ever increasing profits cause.
Eventually capitalism breaks down as the resources are finite.
That’s why “the practices and rules they’re familiar with” can go take a hike if those practices and rules are inferior to what workers have fought for (at least, those that remain after 30 years of Liberal assault).
Please! Granny Herald. I couldn’t give a fuck about whether Tony Street has a “She-Mullet”, or whether Mike fucks chickens.
If either were to stand for election as our political representatives, I might take a little more notice. Members of a 4th Estate they ain’t. Members of the Legends-in-their-own-Minds Club they are.
Probably the best thing they could do IS ekshully to stand for office. As for those that profess their membership to a MSM 4th Estate, I understand your fear. Don’t try and blame others however for your fuckup – the spin won’t count no matter how many lattes, G&Ts you’ll go without and missed mortgage payments with your wifeys still at home.
Christ! – How did it come to this I sometimes ask. All I can come up with is greed (and in the case of some of them – flatulence)
One wonders how many Super Storms the Gulf states will have to endure before their voters will wake up to the realisation that Global Warming is real and coming to get them. These voters consistently vote for representatives who are paid toadies of the Fossil Fuel cartel. I have little sympathy for them – the science has been clear for years – but either through greed and self interest, or simply wilful ignorance, they have ignored the early warnings of Katrina, and Sandy, and daily flooding in downtown Miami, and continually voted into office, Climate Change denialists, who have obfuscated and delayed for decades, not only US action on reducing GHG emissions, but also Global action. Now they have the ultimate idiot in charge – one wishes them everything they have coming to them.
Well, fossil fuel extraction is quite a large part of Gulf state economies. So I expect wilful ignorance to continue for quite a while yet, since so many paychecks depend on it. Probably up until the point renewables get so cheap there’s no more point in extracting dino-juice from places like offshore in the Gulf of Mexico.
Yep I understand that – however just because they want a job doesn’t give them the right to fuck the whole world – because that is what they have done for the past 20+ years.
The US has never been able to go to a Climate Conference in good faith, because the Senate Reps dominated by McConnell et al (himself heavily funded around $1.9m US by the Fossil Fuel industry) would simply vote down any proposal to which the US agreed.
It’ll be hard to avoid schadenfreude when those economies start feeling the pressure from the switch to renewables. Probably at about the same time that climate change really starts to bite hard there. I won’t shed any tears about Russia and other petro-states feeling the economic pain either.
But it will be billions of people across south asia and in africa that will really pay the price.
Wow. Hurricane #Irma is now expected to *exceed* the theoretical maximum intensity for a storm in its environment. Redefining the rules. https://t.co/e4hPjQt159— Eric Holthaus (@EricHolthaus) September 5, 2017
With minimum central pressure of 916 mb & winds of 185 MPH, Irma is stronger than Cat 5 San Felipe (929mb/160mph) which destroyed PR in 1928 https://t.co/WiVpeRFswI— John Morales (@JohnMoralesNBC6) September 6, 2017
Yep 93% of it goes into the oceans – and its not going to go away any time soon.
Just transfer from one form (heat in oceans) to another (wind) and (water vapour).
I used to use the analogy of heating up a pan of water on a stove. You add energy (heat) the water starts to move faster and faster until it boils.
This is what I was getting at in my original comment Andre – I wonder if some of them will finally fess up and say – “Sorry we were wrong – these storms are unprecedented, and are the result of Global Warming, and maybe it is because humans have been adding GHG at an alarming rate, and maybe the quantum physicists were right when they said GHG’s trapped black body radiation.”
🙁 not good – as always the Islands will wear the brunt. Cuba – the nation with one of the least Carbon footprints – is also going to experience the full force. As always those who are the least culpable are the ones who pay the price.
Will be thinking of your nephew and others in the days ahead.
“Jonathan Coleman said National would increase elective surgeries over the next four years to 200,000 a year.”
Wow. that’s impressive. Increase from what?
McFlock
Merely maintaining the status quo would be a decrease unless the population were also static or declining. Which isn’t the case, and furthermore; not only is the population increasing, but so is the average age (with associated health needs) along with the boomer bulge. The kind of operations being performed is also important (from your link):
when you take out eye injections, skin lesion removals, and other surgeries that could have been performed outside of hospitals… despite a growing population, [health boards] performed fewer surgeries compared with the previous year.
“and bill’s given us 170,000 new jobs…”
They keep on saying that but to balance that we have to take off the 169,999 jobs that have disappeared or been reclassified. But it looks good; unless you are one of the ones who can’t get a job.
Here we go – BEWARE BEWARE Federated Farmers pulling on their Brethren cardies and leading the scaremongering this time round:
“Let’s tax this. What are we in for, Labour?
Source: Federated Farmers
—
On the cusp of the election, voters are still in the dark about what taxes they
might be hit with if Labour is part of the next government.
A tax (“royalty”) on water is confirmed. But Jacinda Ardern has refused to rule out
a capital gains tax, a land value tax, and an asset and wealth tax – other than to
say the family home is exempt.
“For Labour to say they’re not able to be more explicit about what they have in mind
until they have recommendations from the yet-to-be-named members of a tax panel is
something of a cop-out, and certainly doesn’t help voters,” Federated Farmers
Vice-President Andrew Hoggard says.
For farmers, their home and surrounding land also happens to be their business and
livelihood. “Even if an exemption applied to the farmhouse, they’ll cop it from new
taxes far more than their urban cousins.”
The prospect of a land tax in particular is alarming to the rural sector, in that it
would have a severe impact on land extensive businesses and others that are
so-called ‘asset rich and income poor’.
The last time a land tax was considered (2010), the agricultural taxable land base
was $105 billion, meaning a 0.5% land tax would cost farmers $525 million per annum
– a massive hit on the sector, and thus on regional economies and rural towns.
“Farmers already pay whacking rates bills in many parts of the country, often
disproportionate to the services they are delivered or actually use,” Mr Hoggard
said.
“Labour delivered more detailed information on their water tax proposal when pushed
into it by Federated Farmers, Irrigation NZ and other groups.
“Voters deserve more details on Labour’s preferences for other taxes before they go
to the polls.”
ENDS
For more information contact:
Andrew Hoggard, Federated Farmers of NZ Vice-President
Phone: 027 230 7363
Simon Edwards | Communications Advisor, Federated Farmers
Email: sedwards@fedfarm.org.nz, Mobile: +64 (0)21 408 672
I don’t seem to recall the farmers being concerned with all the detrimental effects of all reforms that benefited them. In fact, they seem to have been getting it all their own way since forever.
I think it’s time they stopped whinging and got on with doing the right thing for society.
We all no that bills brother was head of that outfit a couple of years ago .
So the English strings are still on the puppets that lead that outfit and what a coincidence that federated farmers got a good spokes person just before the election.
Well I don’t believe in coincidences as there is usually something sinister that causes those coincidences .
Now I have nothing against farmers that are compliant with our rules to protected our environment.
Is it a coincident that Willy Leferink was on 7 sharp tonight to smooth it over for federated farmers propaganda .
Now i will say it again Jacinda is not going to over tax any industry as thats fucken stupid and Jacinda would not be were she is if she was fucken stupid.
So the labour party is not neo liberals so they are not going to look you people in the face and lie.
They are going tailor there taxes so everyone is paying there fair shear so our country can function in a economically and environmentally sustainable way Cemmon.
Hope my actions did not cause you to much trouble Iprent apologies if It did.
Any effort to even put modest restrictions on farming activities that are detrimental to the environment are looked upon by FF as Stalinist agriculture collectivization, with fears of Ardern sending truckloads of armed agriculture commissars to every family farm in New Zealand to seize at gunpoint.
This drivel goes for six and a half minutes. Here’s a transcript of the first 4 minutes and 23 seconds….
MORA: Ah, Megan Whelan, Story of the Day! MEGAN WHELAN: So Google has released, ahhmmm, its most searched “How To” questions globally, ahhh, which gives us an insight into the things that people struggle with day to day. So the most searched How-To question globally—does anyone want to take a guess? MORA: Oh look. Go on, have a go.
Silence….
MEGAN WHELAN: Anyone? PETER FA’AFIU: No you’re good. MORA: No, all right— VICTORIA STEWART: No, no. MORA: It is hard, it’s hard, it’s hard, actually. MEGAN WHELAN: I thought it would have been something like “How to cook rice”, or something like that. MORA: Oh yeah. VICTORIA STEWART: Ohh yeah. MEGAN WHELAN: Um, that is sort of second. “How to tie a tie”—- MORA:[with mock dismissiveness] No-o! VICTORIA STEWART: Ahhhhh… MEGAN WHELAN: Which I find fascinating! Because not all of the population has to do it, but apparently it’s a thing that those people who do, frequently forget. MORA:[affecting a tone of incredulity] “How to tie a tie” is number ONE!?!? MEGAN WHELAN: “How to tie a tie” is number one! It’s the most searched “How To” question in the world. Ah, “How to kiss” is in second place. MORA: Ahhh! MEGAN WHELAN: Which makes me worry a little bit about the future of humanity. MORA: Ha! VICTORIA STEWART: Ha ha! MEGAN WHELAN: As does number three, which is “How to get pregnant”. MORA: Yes! VICTORIA STEWART: Ooh goodness. PETER FA’AFIU:[snickering] Kkk-k-k-k! MEGAN WHELAN: Number four: “How to lose weight.” MORA: Yeah. PETER FA’AFIU: Oh yeah. MORA: I would’ve thought that’d be RIGHT up the top. MEGAN WHELAN: “How to draw”. MORA: “How to DRAAWW”? MEGAN WHELAN: “How to make money.” VICTORIA STEWART: Ha ha. MEGAN WHELAN: Ha ha. And then sort of “How to cook rice”—“how to make pancakes”. MORA:[very softly, in a tone of bemused wonderment] Pancakes. VICTORIA STEWART: “How to write a cover letter” AND “How to cook French toast.” Ahhhmmm…. MORA: What?!?!? VICTORIA STEWART: Followed by “How to lose belly fat”. Ah, so, ho, we’re very worried about losing weight but also having good breakfasts! MORA: What a STRANGE list! MEGAN WHELAN: Isn’t that a strange list! PETER FA’AFIU: Just trying to figure out how many of those I’ve, uh, ha ha ha ha! MORA: Okay, you can tie a tie. PETER FA’AFIU: Pancakes, yeah. Tie…. MORA: Pancakes? You know how to make money? PETER FA’AFIU: Yeah. MORA: Do you know how to write a cover letter? PETER FA’AFIU: Yes. MORA: Ahh, do you know how to lose fat around your tummy? PETER FA’AFIU: No. MORA: Okay. I won’t ask you the REST! PETER FA’AFIU: Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! I know how to kiss. I know how to kiss. MEGAN WHELAN: So Simon Rogers, Google’s data editor, one of the things he mentioned is that these “How To” searches have increased a hundred and forty per cent—so more than doubled—since two thousand and FOUR, and MUCH of that interest is directed at how to sort of FIX things, so oftentimes it’s how to fix a lightbulb or replace your window or fix your washing-machine or even the toilet. So I had a look at Google Trends, ahhh, which is how you can search some of this stuff yourself, for New Zealand for the past twelve months— MORA: Aah! MEGAN WHELAN: So related searches, our ones, so this is not the exact data that THAT list is, the global list is, ‘cos it’s not broken down in the same way, but searching “How To” and getting related searches for that for New Zealand, we searched “How to draw”, “How to screenshot”— MORA: Oh yeah. MEGAN WHELAN: And someone has texted in to say that when THEY searched it, they got the auto complete, so often when you google something “how to” it will fill in the sentence for you? They got “How to make SLIME”, which is number THREE in New Zealand. We also searched “How to make slime without borax”, which seems a VERY specific thing—- PETER FA’AFIU: A ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! MORA: Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! MEGAN WHELAN: “How to proNOUNCE” is number four—- MORA: “How to pronounce”? MEGAN WHELAN: “How to pronounce”. So, presumably, there is another word following that one. “How to lose weight”, “How to make money”, “How to tie a tie”, then that’s the slime without borax. How to-o-o-o-o-o, oh, er, break a —I can’t read my own HANDWRITING!—I think it was something like “break an iPhone”? Ummmmmm—- VICTORIA STEWART: Easily—- MEGAN WHELAN: Ha ha ha ha! VICTORIA STEWART:—is the way I think of that. Drop it! MEGAN WHELAN: Ha ha. And then, LASTLY, in our New Zealand related searches taught you “How to delete Instagram accounts”. I’m a little bit worried what New Zealanders have been doing on their Instagram accounts that they feel the need to delete them! PETER FA’AFIU: Hyunhh, hyunnhh. MORA: Yeah, exactly. MEGAN WHELAN: Yeahhhh! MORA: The slime thing will be children, ‘cos our twins make slime. MEGAN WHELAN: Yes! PETER FA’AFIU: Same. For me. MEGAN WHELAN: Has that been quite a thing in the last twelve months? MORA: Yeah it has recently. Yeah. MEGAN WHELAN: Right. MORA: So THAT’ll be a current thing, the slime thing. I didn’t know, they don’t know about the borax. MEGAN WHELAN: Yeahhh. MORA: So, we search for the most trivial things as well, don’t we. VICTORIA STEWART: Yes. I think a lot of this is about the sentence construction? So you might find that people searching for recipes aren’t searching—so for me, I wouldn’t google “How to cook pancakes”, I would google “Pancake recipe”— PETER FA’AFIU: Mmmm. VICTORIA STEWART: “EASY pancake recipes”. Ha ha! MEGAN WHELAN: Yeah. Or something like that. Or a specific pancake recipe, which is my favorite pancake recipe, but, errr, so, but I might search “How to tie a tie”, ‘cos that sentence makes more sense than “pancake recipe.” Yeah. MORA: Okay, but, there’s um, very little of, uh, “How can I be nicer?” or “What is the meaning of life?” or those [with mock sententiousness] profound questions…. MEGAN WHELAN: “How can I be nicer?” Okaaayyy….
At that point, I reached the point of maximum disgust, and could take no more of this drivel. The inanity, the determined triviality of this chatter, the complete and utter contempt for the listeners are bad enough, but what really angered me was that last statement by Jim Mora. His suggestion that he cares about “profound questions” is disproven by the subject matter and the tenor of the discussions on his show. And as for “How can I be nicer?”—well, let’s have a look at a few instances of how “nice” Jim Mora is….
Excellent piece by Gordon Campbell that neatly counters Nationals scare tactics…should be required reading before entering the polling booth
‘Its not a new thing. Remember when John Key used to describe Working For Families as “communism by stealth”? Now WFF is core National policy. And Kiwisaver? (Key : “It won’t work. It’s a glorified Christmas Club.”) Now, Kiwisaver too is core National policy. Remember when climate change was just a fanciful notion of those wacky, scary Greens? Now National’s deputy is proudly proclaiming National’s commitment to the Paris agreement.”
i’ve spent a bit of time thinking about the legacy the last labour party left and what the nats legacy is (thinking positive as even the nats can’t be totally useless )
labour ; kiwisaver ,kiwibank . wwf (still would prefer proper wages) ,cullin fund,
china fta.
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This is a must watch, and puts on brilliant and practical display the implications and mechanics of fast-track law corruption and weakness.CLICK HERE: LINK TO WATCH VIDEOOur news media as it is set up is simply not equipped to deal with the brazen disinformation and corruption under this right wing ...
NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi Acting Secretary Erin Polaczuk is welcoming the announcement from Minister of Workplace Relations and Safety Brooke van Velden that she is opening consultation on engineered stone and is calling on her to listen to the evidence and implement a total ban of the product. “We need ...
The Government has announced a 1.5% increase in the minimum wage from 1 April 2025, well below forecast inflation of 2.5%. Unions have reacted strongly and denounced it as a real terms cut. PSA and the CTU are opposing a new round of staff cuts at WorkSafe, which they say ...
The decision to unilaterally repudiate the contract for new Cook Strait ferries is beginning to look like one of the stupidest decisions a New Zealand government ever made. While cancelling the ferries and their associated port infrastructure may have made this year's books look good, it means higher costs later, ...
Hi there! I’ve been overseas recently, looking after a situation with a family member. So apologies if there any less than focused posts! Vanuatu has just had a significant 7.3 earthquake. Two MFAT staff are unaccounted for with local fatalities.It’s always sad to hear of such things happening.I think of ...
Today is a special member's morning, scheduled to make up for the government's theft of member's days throughout the year. First up was the first reading of Greg Fleming's Crimes (Increased Penalties for Slavery Offences) Amendment Bill, which was passed unanimously. Currently the House is debating the third reading of ...
We're going backwardsIgnoring the realitiesGoing backwardsAre you counting all the casualties?We are not there yetWhere we need to beWe are still in debtTo our insanitiesSongwriter: Martin Gore Read more ...
Willis blamed Treasury for changing its productivity assumptions and Labour’s spending increases since Covid for the worsening Budget outlook. Photo: Getty ImagesMōrena. Long stories short, the six things that matter in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, December 18 in The Kākā’s Dawn Chorus podcast above ...
Today the Auckland Transport board meet for the last time this year. For those interested (and with time to spare), you can follow along via this MS Teams link from 10am. I’ve taken a quick look through the agenda items to see what I think the most interesting aspects are. ...
Hi,If you’re a New Zealander — you know who Mike King is. He is the face of New Zealand’s battle against mental health problems. He can be loud and brash. He raises, and is entrusted with, a lot of cash. Last year his “I Am Hope” charity reported a revenue ...
Probably about the only consolation available from yesterday’s unveiling of the Half-Yearly Economic and Fiscal Update (HYEFU) is that it could have been worse. Though Finance Minister Nicola Willis has tightened the screws on future government spending, she has resisted the calls from hard-line academics, fiscal purists and fiscal hawks ...
The right have a stupid saying that is only occasionally true:When is democracy not democracy? When it hasn’t been voted on.While not true in regards to branches of government such as the judiciary, it’s a philosophy that probably should apply to recently-elected local government councillors. Nevertheless, this concept seemed to ...
Long story short: the Government’s austerity policy has driven the economy into a deeper and longer recession that means it will have to borrow $20 billion more over the next four years than it expected just six months ago. Treasury’s latest forecasts show the National-ACT-NZ First Government’s fiscal strategy of ...
Come and join myself and CTU Chief Economist for a pop-up ‘Hoon’ webinar on the Government’s Half Yearly Economic and Fiscal Update (HYEFU) with paying subscribers to The Kākā for 30 minutes at 5 pm today.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream to watch our chat. Don’t worry if ...
In 1998, in the wake of the Paremoremo Prison riot, the Department of Corrections established the "Behaviour Management Regime". Prisoners were locked in their cells for 22 or 23 hours a day, with no fresh air, no exercise, no social contact, no entertainment, and in some cases no clothes and ...
New data released by the Treasury shows that the economic policies of this Government have made things worse in the year since they took office, said NZCTU Economist Craig Renney. “Our fiscal indicators are all heading in the wrong direction – with higher levels of debt, a higher deficit, and ...
At the 2023 election, National basically ran on a platform of being better economic managers. So how'd that turn out for us? In just one year, they've fucked us for two full political terms: The government's books are set to remain deeply in the red for the near term ...
AUSTERITYText within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedMy spreadsheet insists This pain leads straight to glory (File not found) Read more ...
The NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi are saying that the Government should do the right thing and deliver minimum wage increases that don’t see workers fall further behind, in response to today’s announcement that the minimum wage will only be increased by 1.5%, well short of forecast inflation. “With inflation forecast ...
Oh, I weptFor daysFilled my eyesWith silly tearsOh, yeaBut I don'tCare no moreI don't care ifMy eyes get soreSongwriters: Paul Rodgers / Paul Kossoff. Read more ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Bob HensonIn this aerial view, fingers of meltwater flow from the melting Isunnguata Sermia glacier descending from the Greenland Ice Sheet on July 11, 2024, near Kangerlussuaq, Greenland. According to the Programme for Monitoring of the Greenland Ice Sheet (PROMICE), the ...
In August, I wrote an article about David Seymour1 with a video of his testimony, to warn that there were grave dangers to his Ministry of Regulation:David Seymour's Ministry of Slush Hides Far Greater RisksWhy Seymour's exorbitant waste of taxpayers' money could be the least of concernThe money for Seymour ...
Willis is expected to have to reveal the bitter fiscal fruits of her austerity strategy in the HYEFU later today. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/TheKakaMōrena. Long stories short, the six things that matter in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Tuesday, December 17 in The Kākā’s Dawn Chorus podcast ...
On Friday the government announced it would double the number of toll roads in New Zealand as well as make a few other changes to how toll roads are used in the country. The real issue though is not that tolling is being used but the suggestion it will make ...
The Prime Minister yesterday engaged in what looked like a pre-emptive strike designed to counter what is likely to be a series of depressing economic statistics expected before the end of the week. He opened his weekly post-Cabinet press conference with a recitation of the Government’s achievements. “It certainly has ...
This whooping cough story from south Auckland is a good example of the coalition government’s approach to social need – spend money on urging people to get vaccinated but only after you’ve cut the funding to where they could get vaccinated. This has been the case all year with public ...
And if there is a GodI know he likes to rockHe likes his loud guitarsHis spiders from MarsAnd if there is a GodI know he's watching meHe likes what he seesBut there's trouble on the breezeSongwriter: William Patrick Corgan Read more ...
Here’s a quick round up of today’s political news:1. MORE FOOD BANKS, CHARITIES, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SHELTERS AND YOUTH SOCIAL SERVICES SET TO CLOSE OR SCALE BACK AROUND THE COUNTRY AS GOVT CUTS FUNDINGSome of Auckland's largest foodbanks are warning they may need to close or significantly reduce food parcels after ...
Iain Rennie, CNZMSecretary and Chief Executive to the TreasuryDear Secretary, Undue restrictions on restricted briefings This week, the Treasury barred representatives from four organisations, including the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions Te Kauae Kaimahi, from attending the restricted briefing for the Half-Year Economic and Fiscal Update. We had been ...
This is a guest post by Tim Adriaansen, a community, climate, and accessibility advocate.I won’t shut up about climate breakdown, and whenever possible I try to shift the focus of a climate conversation towards solutions. But you’ll almost never hear me give more than a passing nod to ...
A grassroots backlash has forced a backdown from Brown, but he is still eyeing up plenty of tolls for other new roads. And the pressure is on Willis to ramp up the Government’s austerity strategy. Photo: Getty ImagesMōrena. Long stories short, the six things that matter in Aotearoa’s political economy ...
Hi all,I'm pretty overwhelmed by all your messages and emails today; thank you so very much.As much as my newsletter this morning was about money, and we all need to earn money, it was mostly about world domination if I'm honest. 😉I really hate what’s happening to our country, and ...
A listing of 23 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, December 8, 2024 thru Sat, December 14, 2024. Listing by Category Like last week's summary this one contains the list of articles twice: based on categories and based on ...
I started writing this morning about Hobson’s Pledge, examining the claims they and their supporters make, basically ripping into them. But I kept getting notifications coming through, and not good ones.Each time I looked up, there was another un-subscription message, and I felt a bit sicker at the thought of ...
Once, long before there was Harry and Meghan and Dodi and all those episodes of The Crown, they came to spend some time with us, Charles and Diana. Was there anyone in the world more glamorous than the Princess of Wales?Dazzled as everyone was by their company, the leader of ...
The collective right have a problem.The entire foundation for their world view is antiscientific. Their preferred economic strategies have been disproven. Their whole neoliberal model faces accusations of corporate corruption and worsening inequality. Climate change not only definitely exists, its rapid progression demands an immediate and expensive response in order ...
Just ten days ago, South Korea's president attempted a self-coup, declaring martial law and attempting to have opposition MPs murdered or arrested in an effort to seize unconstrained power. The attempt was rapidly defeated by the national assembly voting it down and the people flooding the streets to defend democracy. ...
Hi,“What I love about New Zealanders is that sometimes you use these expressions that as Americans we have no idea what those things mean!"I am watching a 30-something year old American ramble on about how different New Zealanders are to Americans. It’s his podcast, and this man is doing a ...
What Chris Penk has granted holocaust-denier and equal-opportunity-bigot Candace Owens is not “freedom of speech”. It’s not even really freedom of movement, though that technically is the right she has been granted. What he has given her is permission to perform. Freedom of SpeechIn New Zealand, the right to freedom ...
All those tears on your cheeksJust like deja vu flow nowWhen grandmother speaksSo tell me a story (I'll tell you a story)Spell it out, I can't hear (What do you want to hear?)Why you wear black in the morning?Why there's smoke in the air? Songwriter: Greg Johnson.Mōrena all ☀️Something a ...
National has only been in power for a year, but everywhere you look, its choices are taking New Zealand a long way backwards. In no particular order, here are the National Government's Top 50 Greatest Misses of its first year in power. ...
The Government is quietly undertaking consultation on the dangerous Regulatory Standards Bill over the Christmas period to avoid too much attention. ...
The Government’s planned changes to the freedom of speech obligations of universities is little more than a front for stoking the political fires of disinformation and fear, placing teachers and students in the crosshairs. ...
The Ministry of Regulation’s report into Early Childhood Education (ECE) in Aotearoa raises serious concerns about the possibility of lowering qualification requirements, undermining quality and risking worse outcomes for tamariki, whānau, and kaiako. ...
A Bill to modernise the role of Justices of the Peace (JP), ensuring they remain active in their communities and connected with other JPs, has been put into the ballot. ...
Labour will continue to fight unsustainable and destructive projects that are able to leap-frog environment protection under National’s Fast-track Approvals Bill. ...
The Green Party has warned that a Green Government will revoke the consents of companies who override environmental protections as part of Fast-Track legislation being passed today. ...
The Green Party says the Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update shows how the Government is failing to address the massive social and infrastructure deficits our country faces. ...
The Government’s latest move to reduce the earnings of migrant workers will not only hurt migrants but it will drive down the wages of Kiwi workers. ...
Te Pāti Māori has this morning issued a stern warning to Fast-Track applicants with interests in mining, pledging to hold them accountable through retrospective liability and to immediately revoke Fast-Track consents under a future Te Pāti Māori government. This warning comes ahead of today’s third reading of the Fast-Track Approvals ...
The Government’s announcement today of a 1.5 per cent increase to minimum wage is another blow for workers, with inflation projected to exceed the increase, meaning it’s a real terms pay reduction for many. ...
All the Government has achieved from its announcement today is to continue to push responsibility back on councils for its own lack of action to help bring down skyrocketing rates. ...
The Government has used its final post-Cabinet press conference of the year to punch down on local government without offering any credible solutions to the issues our councils are facing. ...
The Government has failed to keep its promise to ‘super charge’ the EV network, delivering just 292 chargers - less than half of the 670 chargers needed to meet its target. ...
The Green Party is calling for the Government to stop subsidising the largest user of the country’s gas supplies, Methanex, following a report highlighting the multi-national’s disproportionate influence on energy prices in Aotearoa. ...
The Green Party is appalled with the Government’s new child poverty targets that are based on a new ‘persistent poverty’ measure that could be met even with an increase in child poverty. ...
New independent analysis has revealed that the Government’s Emissions Reduction Plan (ERP) will reduce emissions by a measly 1 per cent by 2030, failing to set us up for the future and meeting upcoming targets. ...
The loss of 27 kaimahi at Whakaata Māori and the end of its daily news bulletin is a sad day for Māori media and another step backwards for Te Tiriti o Waitangi justice. ...
Yesterday the Government passed cruel legislation through first reading to establish a new beneficiary sanction regime that will ultimately mean more households cannot afford the basic essentials. ...
Today's passing of the Government's Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill–which allows landlords to end tenancies with no reason–ignores the voice of the people and leaves renters in limbo ahead of the festive season. ...
After wasting a year, Nicola Willis has delivered a worse deal for the Cook Strait ferries that will end up being more expensive and take longer to arrive. ...
Green Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick has today launched a Member’s Bill to sanction Israel for its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, as the All Out For Gaza rally reaches Parliament. ...
After years of advocacy, the Green Party is very happy to hear the Government has listened to our collective voices and announced the closure of the greyhound racing industry, by 1 August 2026. ...
In response to a new report from ERO, the Government has acknowledged the urgent need for consistency across the curriculum for Relationship and Sexuality Education (RSE) in schools. ...
The Green Party is appalled at the Government introducing legislation that will make it easier to penalise workers fighting for better pay and conditions. ...
Thank you for the invitation to speak with you tonight on behalf of the political party I belong to - which is New Zealand First. As we have heard before this evening the Kinleith Mill is proposing to reduce operations by focusing on pulp and discontinuing “lossmaking paper production”. They say that they are currently consulting on the plan to permanently shut ...
Auckland Central MP, Chlöe Swarbrick, has written to Mayor Wayne Brown requesting he stop the unnecessary delays on St James Theatre’s restoration. ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says Health New Zealand will move swiftly to support dozens of internationally-trained doctors already in New Zealand on their journey to employment here, after a tripling of sought-after examination places. “The Medical Council has delivered great news for hardworking overseas doctors who want to contribute ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has appointed Sarah Ottrey to the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC). “At my first APEC Summit in Lima, I experienced firsthand the role that ABAC plays in guaranteeing political leaders hear the voice of business,” Mr Luxon says. “New Zealand’s ABAC representatives are very well respected and ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced four appointments to New Zealand’s intelligence oversight functions. The Honourable Robert Dobson KC has been appointed Chief Commissioner of Intelligence Warrants, and the Honourable Brendan Brown KC has been appointed as a Commissioner of Intelligence Warrants. The appointments of Hon Robert Dobson and Hon ...
Improvements in the average time it takes to process survey and title applications means housing developments can progress more quickly, Minister for Land Information Chris Penk says. “The government is resolutely focused on improving the building and construction pipeline,” Mr Penk says. “Applications to issue titles and subdivide land are ...
The Government’s measures to reduce airport wait times, and better transparency around flight disruptions is delivering encouraging early results for passengers ahead of the busy summer period, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Improving the efficiency of air travel is a priority for the Government to give passengers a smoother, more reliable ...
The Government today announced the intended closure of the Apollo Hotel as Contracted Emergency Housing (CEH) in Rotorua, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. This follows a 30 per cent reduction in the number of households in CEH in Rotorua since National came into Government. “Our focus is on ending CEH in the Whakarewarewa area starting ...
The Government will reshape vocational education and training to return decision making to regions and enable greater industry input into work-based learning Tertiary Education and Skills Minister, Penny Simmonds says. “The redesigned system will better meet the needs of learners, industry, and the economy. It includes re-establishing regional polytechnics that ...
The Government is taking action to better manage synthetic refrigerants and reduce emissions caused by greenhouse gases found in heating and cooling products, Environment Minister Penny Simmonds says. “Regulations will be drafted to support a product stewardship scheme for synthetic refrigerants, Ms. Simmonds says. “Synthetic refrigerants are found in a ...
People travelling on State Highway 1 north of Hamilton will be relieved that remedial works and safety improvements on the Ngāruawāhia section of the Waikato Expressway were finished today, with all lanes now open to traffic, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“I would like to acknowledge the patience of road users ...
Tertiary Education and Skills Minister, Penny Simmonds, has announced a new appointment to the board of Education New Zealand (ENZ). Dr Erik Lithander has been appointed as a new member of the ENZ board for a three-year term until 30 January 2028. “I would like to welcome Dr Erik Lithander to the ...
The Government will have senior representatives at Waitangi Day events around the country, including at the Waitangi Treaty Grounds, but next year Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has chosen to take part in celebrations elsewhere. “It has always been my intention to celebrate Waitangi Day around the country with different ...
Two more criminal gangs will be subject to the raft of laws passed by the Coalition Government that give Police more powers to disrupt gang activity, and the intimidation they impose in our communities, Police Minister Mark Mitchell says. Following an Order passed by Cabinet, from 3 February 2025 the ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Justice Christian Whata as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Whata’s appointment as a Judge of the Court of Appeal will take effect on 1 August 2025 and fill a vacancy created by the retirement of Hon Justice David Goddard on ...
The latest economic figures highlight the importance of the steps the Government has taken to restore respect for taxpayers’ money and drive economic growth, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Data released today by Stats NZ shows Gross Domestic Product fell 1 per cent in the September quarter. “Treasury and most ...
Tertiary Education and Skills Minister Penny Simmonds and Associate Minister of Education David Seymour today announced legislation changes to strengthen freedom of speech obligations on universities. “Freedom of speech is fundamental to the concept of academic freedom and there is concern that universities seem to be taking a more risk-averse ...
Police Minister, Mark Mitchell, and Internal Affairs Minister, Brooke van Velden, today launched a further Public Safety Network cellular service that alongside last year’s Cellular Roaming roll-out, puts globally-leading cellular communications capability into the hands of our emergency responders. The Public Safety Network’s new Cellular Priority service means Police, Wellington ...
State Highway 1 through the Mangamuka Gorge has officially reopened today, providing a critical link for Northlanders and offering much-needed relief ahead of the busy summer period, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“The Mangamuka Gorge is a vital route for Northland, carrying around 1,300 vehicles per day and connecting the Far ...
The Government has welcomed decisions by the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) and Ashburton District Council confirming funding to boost resilience in the Canterbury region, with construction on a second Ashburton Bridge expected to begin in 2026, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Delivering a second Ashburton Bridge to improve resilience and ...
The Government is backing the response into high pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in Otago, Biosecurity Minister Andrew Hoggard says. “Cabinet has approved new funding of $20 million to enable MPI to meet unbudgeted ongoing expenses associated with the H7N6 response including rigorous scientific testing of samples at the enhanced PC3 ...
Legislation that will repeal all advertising restrictions for broadcasters on Sundays and public holidays has passed through first reading in Parliament today, Media Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “As a growing share of audiences get their news and entertainment from streaming services, these restrictions have become increasingly redundant. New Zealand on ...
Today the House agreed to Brendan Horsley being appointed Inspector-General of Defence, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “Mr Horsley’s experience will be invaluable in overseeing the establishment of the new office and its support networks. “He is currently Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security, having held that role since June 2020. ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government has agreed to the final regulations for the levy on insurance contracts that will fund Fire and Emergency New Zealand from July 2026. “Earlier this year the Government agreed to a 2.2 percent increase to the rate of levy. Fire ...
The Government is delivering regulatory relief for New Zealand businesses through changes to the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act. “The Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Amendment Bill, which was introduced today, is the second Bill – the other being the Statutes Amendment Bill - that ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed further progress on the Hawke’s Bay Expressway Road of National Significance (RoNS), with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) Board approving funding for the detailed design of Stage 1, paving the way for main works construction to begin in late 2025.“The Government is moving at ...
The Government today released a request for information (RFI) to seeking interest in partnerships to plant trees on Crown-owned land with low farming and conservation value (excluding National Parks) Forestry Minister Todd McClay announced. “Planting trees on Crown-owned land will drive economic growth by creating more forestry jobs in our regions, providing more wood ...
Court timeliness, access to justice, and improving the quality of existing regulation are the focus of a series of law changes introduced to Parliament today by Associate Minister of Justice Nicole McKee. The three Bills in the Regulatory Systems (Justice) Amendment Bill package each improve a different part of the ...
A total of 41 appointments and reappointments have been made to the 12 community trusts around New Zealand that serve their regions, Associate Finance Minister Shane Jones says. “These trusts, and the communities they serve from the Far North to the deep south, will benefit from the rich experience, knowledge, ...
The Government has confirmed how it will provide redress to survivors who were tortured at the Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital Child and Adolescent Unit (the Lake Alice Unit). “The Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care found that many of the 362 children who went through the Lake Alice Unit between 1972 and ...
It has been a busy, productive year in the House as the coalition Government works hard to get New Zealand back on track, Leader of the House Chris Bishop says. “This Government promised to rebuild the economy, restore law and order and reduce the cost of living. Our record this ...
“Accelerated silicosis is an emerging occupational disease caused by unsafe work such as engineered stone benchtops. I am running a standalone consultation on engineered stone to understand what the industry is currently doing to manage the risks, and whether further regulatory intervention is needed,” says Workplace Relations and Safety Minister ...
Mehemea he pai mō te tangata, mahia – if it’s good for the people, get on with it. Enhanced reporting on the public sector’s delivery of Treaty settlement commitments will help improve outcomes for Māori and all New Zealanders, Māori Crown Relations Minister Tama Potaka says. Compiled together for the ...
Mr Roger Holmes Miller and Ms Tarita Hutchinson have been appointed to the Charities Registration Board, Community and Voluntary Sector Minister Louise Upston says. “I would like to welcome the new members joining the Charities Registration Board. “The appointment of Ms Hutchinson and Mr Miller will strengthen the Board’s capacity ...
More building consent and code compliance applications are being processed within the statutory timeframe since the Government required councils to submit quarterly data, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “In the midst of a housing shortage we need to look at every step of the build process for efficiencies ...
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey is proud to announce the first three recipients of the Government’s $10 million Mental Health and Addiction Community Sector Innovation Fund which will enable more Kiwis faster access to mental health and addiction support. “This fund is part of the Government’s commitment to investing in ...
New Zealand is providing Vanuatu assistance following yesterday's devastating earthquake, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. "Vanuatu is a member of our Pacific family and we are supporting it in this time of acute need," Mr Peters says. "Our thoughts are with the people of Vanuatu, and we will be ...
The Government welcomes the Commerce Commission’s plan to reduce card fees for Kiwis by an estimated $260 million a year, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says.“The Government is relentlessly focused on reducing the cost of living, so Kiwis can keep more of their hard-earned income and live a ...
Regulation Minister David Seymour has welcomed the Early Childhood Education (ECE) regulatory review report, the first major report from the Ministry for Regulation. The report makes 15 recommendations to modernise and simplify regulations across ECE so services can get on with what they do best – providing safe, high-quality care ...
The Government‘s Offshore Renewable Energy Bill to create a new regulatory regime that will enable firms to construct offshore wind generation has passed its first reading in Parliament, Energy Minister Simeon Brown says.“New Zealand currently does not have a regulatory regime for offshore renewable energy as the previous government failed ...
Legislation to enable new water service delivery models that will drive critical investment in infrastructure has passed its first reading in Parliament, marking a significant step towards the delivery of Local Water Done Well, Local Government Minister Simeon Brown and Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly say.“Councils and voters ...
New Zealand is one step closer to reaping the benefits of gene technology with the passing of the first reading of the Gene Technology Bill, Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins says. "This legislation will end New Zealand's near 30-year ban on gene technology outside the lab and is ...
Cosmic CatastropheThe year draws to a close.King Luxon has grown tired of the long eveningsListening to the dreary squabbling of his Triumvirate.He strolls up to the top floor of the PalaceTo consult with his Astronomer Royal.The Royal Telescope scans the skies,And King Luxon stares up into the heavensFrom the terrestrial ...
Spinoff editor Mad Chapman and books editor Claire Mabey debate Carl Shuker’s new novel about… an editor. Claire: Hello Mad, you just finished The Royal Free – overall impressions? Mad: Hi Claire, I literally just put the book down and I would have to say my immediate impression is ...
Christmas and its buildup are often lonely, hard and full of unreasonable expectations. Here’s how to make it to Jesus’s birthday and find the little bit of joy we all deserve. Have you found this year relentless? Has the latest Apple update “fucked up your life”? Have you lost two ...
Despite overwhelming public and corporate support, the government has stalled progress on a modern day slavery law. That puts us behind other countries – and makes Christmas a time of tragedy rather than joy, argues Shanti Mathias. Picture the scene on Christmas Day. Everyone replete with nice things to eat, ...
Asia Pacific Report “It looks like Hiroshima. It looks like Germany at the end of World War Two,” says an Israeli-American historian and professor of holocaust and genocide studies at Brown University about the horrifying reality of Gaza. Professor Omer Bartov, has described Israel’s ongoing war on Gaza as an ...
The New Zealand government coalition is tweaking university regulations to curb what it says is an increasingly “risk-averse approach” to free speech. The proposed changes will set clear expectations on how universities should approach freedom of speech issues. Each university will then have to adopt a “freedom of speech statement” ...
Report by Dr David Robie – Café Pacific. – COMMENTARY: By Caitlin Johnstone New York prosecutors have charged Luigi Mangione with “murder as an act of terrorism” in his alleged shooting of health insurance CEO Brian Thompson earlier this month. This news comes out at the same time as ...
Pacific Media Watch The union for Australian journalists has welcomed the delivery by the federal government of more than $150 million to support the sustainability of public interest journalism over the next four years. Combined with the announcement of the revamped News Bargaining Initiative, this could result in up to ...
MONDAY“Merry Xmas, and praise the Lord,” said Sheriff Luxon, and smiled for the camera. There was a flash of smoke when the shutter pressed down on the magnesium powder. The sheriff had arranged for a photographer from the Dodge Gazette to attend a ceremony where he handed out food parcels to ...
It’s a little under two months since the White Ferns shocked the cricketing world, deservedly taking home the T20 World Cup. Since then the trophy has had a tour around the country, five of the squad have played in the WBBL in Australia while most others have returned to domestic ...
Comment: If we say the word ‘dementia’, many will picture an older person struggling to remember the names of their loved ones, maybe a grandparent living out their final years in an aged care facility. Dementia can also occur in people younger than 65, but it can take time before ...
Piracy is a reality of modern life – but copyright law has struggled to play catch-up for as long as the entertainment industry has existed. As far back as 1988, the House of Lords criticised copyright law’s conflict with the reality of human behaviour in the context of burning cassette ...
As he makes a surprise return to Shortland Street, actor Craig Parker takes us through his life in television. Craig Parker has been a fixture on television in Aotearoa for nearly four decades. He had starring roles in iconic local series like Gloss, Mercy Peak and Diplomatic Immunity, featured in ...
The Ōtautahi musician shares the 10 tracks he loves to spin, including the folk classic that cured him of a ‘case of the give-ups’. When singer-songwriter Adam McGrath returns to Kumeu’s Auckland Folk Festival from January 24-27, he’s not planning on simply idling his way through – he wants the late ...
Alex Casey spends an afternoon on the job with River, the rescue dog on a mission to spread joy to Ōtautahi rest homes.Almost everyone says it is never enough time. But River the rescue dog, a jet black huntaway border collie cross, has to keep a tight pace to ...
Asia Pacific Report Fiji activists have recreated the nativity scene at a solidarity for Palestine gathering in Fiji’s capital Suva just days before Christmas. The Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre and Fijians for Palestine Solidarity Network recreated the scene at the FWCC compound — a baby Jesus figurine lies amidst the ...
By 1News Pacific correspondent Barbara Dreaver and 1News reporters A number of Kiwis have been successfully evacuated from Vanuatu after a devastating earthquake shook the Pacific island nation earlier this week. The death toll was still unclear, though at least 14 people were killed according to an earlier statement from ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Richard Scully, Professor in Modern History, University of New England Bunker.Image courtesy of Michael Leunig, CC BY-NC-SA Michael Leunig – who died in the early hours of Thursday December 19, surrounded by “his children, loved ones, and sunflowers” – was the ...
The House - On Parliament's last day of the year, there was the rare occurrence of a personal (conscience) vote on selling booze over the Easter weekend. While it didn't have the numbers to pass, it was a chance to get a rare glimpse of the fact ...
A new poem by Holly Fletcher. bejeweled log i was dreaming about wasps / wee darlings that followed me / ducking under objects / that i was fated to pickup / my fingers seeking / and meeting with tiny proboscis’s / but instead / i wake up / roll sideways ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Flora Hui, Research Fellow, Centre for Eye Research Australia and Honorary Fellow, Department of Surgery (Ophthalmology), The University of Melbourne Versta/Shutterstock Australians are exposed to some of the highest levels of solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation in the world. While we ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Terry, Professor of Business Regulation, University of Sydney Michael von Aichberger/Shutterstock Even if you’ve no idea how the business model underpinning franchises works, there’s a good chance you’ve spent money at one. Franchising is essentially a strategy for cloning ...
If something big is going to happen in Ferndale, it’s going to happen at Christmas. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. If there’s one episode of Shortland Street you should watch each year, it’s the annual Christmas cliffhanger. The final episode of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By William A. Stoltz, Lecturer and expert Associate, National Security College, Australian National University US President-elect Donald Trump has named most of the members of his proposed cabinet. However, he’s yet to reveal key appointees to America’s powerful cyber warfare and intelligence institutions. ...
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Now the kings and there advisers in NZ are trying to figure out how this lucky uneducated half caste Maori has managed to get this huge internet attention and viewers and how did he figure out he has this attention. And they are trying to replicate
this to try and win this election. YEA RIGHT
For one thing I don’t Believe in LUCK I believe LUCK was invented by some corrupt person people to explain why they had more assets/food to some naive people when in reality the corrupt person was robbing the naive people BLIND.
So I’m not lucky.
I believe in FATE as it was fate that these assholes have been hounding me for so long it was fate that I ended in this place and time it is fate because of these assholes that I scoured the internet for corruptions and posted this information on this website It was fate that I found this website it is fate that Iprent made this wonderful website. It is fate that I took my granddaughter to the doctors and had a conversation with that Kenyan
Doctor and gave him my pseudo name and this website. It was fate that joe90 posted those links on Kenya on this web site so every one could see what I posted was true. So my views on the reality’s of our WORLD are real and original . So I thank all the good people on this site and around the WORLD for there contribution to our fight for a safe fair bright future for every thing in our WORLD
Well I will call it steve looks like what was thrown at him stop lying steve.
That’s the way Hillary and Jack put him in line the neo liberal cheat joyce is
We were told by our PM that 60% of tenants get support from the Accomodation Supplement, so I infer that 60% of landlords have their “investment” incomes toped up by the government. Think of that next time Andrew King from the Property Investors Assoc espouses why any change in a govt policy and we get his standard scaremongering of increase in rents. And if rents should rise does that not mean that the govt will be paying these increases and not the tenant ?
In a healthy growing economy should not wage increases reduced the need for Accomodation Supplements NOT for Nat to increase this ?
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/95651463/insulation-standards-fewer-capital-gains-may-combine-to-hit-tenants-in-the-pocket
https://www.landlords.co.nz/article/6245/nzpif-opposes-wellington-rental-wof
https://www.odt.co.nz/business/labour-housing-policy-flawed-federation-says
JDS watch #1, first in what will be a long series:
– Farrar is now comparing Jacinda to Trump.
Well it was the Wall Street Journal that compared Jacinda to Trump, on immigration
[lprent: If you want to make an bald assertion about a ‘fact’ – then provide a link or a description about how to find your source. This prevents fuckwits from supplying false facts. I read the WSJ most days and I never saw this. ]
A tweet from the Wall Street Journal, which was not even fact checked.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/96519787/wall-street-journal-compares-labour-leader-jacinda-ardern-to-donald-trump
Desperate stuff from Tory idiots.
Yeah well, the Muslim comparison is crap. But NZ Labour’s immigration policy is pretty fucked up.
At the time of its release I read it side by side with UKIPs immigration policy and that of UK Labour. Far too consistent with UKIP and a million miles away from U Labour. (A few people hereabouts didn’t appreciate the observations)
Seems I should have just compared it to to the UK Tories whose ideas around limiting low skilled immigrants is causing outrage in the UK if today’s headlines are accurate
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/sep/05/leaked-document-reveals-uk-brexit-plan-to-deter-eu-immigrants.
So my indentured ancestors would have been buggered. Many of my forbears would not have got in under the new regime. It really does seem to be a pull the ladder up jack policy.
http://www.labour.org.nz/immigration
Trotter, quoted in the Wall Street Journal says that he “disagreed with the Wall Street Journal comparison”.
Give it up, Dirk.
If Chinese (or any other ‘ese’) can come in and run our dairy farms better than New Zealanders (ie without paying their workers peanuts or poisoning town water supplies) then perhaps they should be allowed to.
I don’t think NZers want to see cows in crates, not being allowed to walk around a fucking paddock. That was intended by at least one Chinese group.
Better is such a subjective term.
Such ‘operations’ already exist in NZ. My understanding is it’s in order to produce ‘marbled’ beef.
It looks like free trade means best quality is exported and we get the old fish fried with chip plus a half eaten one coz that’s the level of consumer quality. All the best, fish, meat, milk, fruit, etc goes off shore, and then some, average q uaility, leaving the worst still sellable at world prices by under paid staff who half eat a chip in order to get a feed yet still throw it in with the purchase. Key came into office, opened the doors to dotcomers, English learning students, lowers food quality, mine inspection, diary conversions, there is not one aspect of Keys leadership that has not eroded life in nz… …well okay broadband but that was already… …insulation… ..that was a greens overflow policy…. but the bulk of living standards have fallen and they raised GST too.
FarrowFresh and Moore Wilson’s still have the good stuff.
Are you sure? Lately I’ve been seriously wondering about who and what you stand for, and who has been tickling your man-fanny. Lately, It appears there’s been a serious lean to the “right”, where your balls are tickled just enough to question your supposedly left leaning values, and your foreskin is in competition with that pompous git that should have an ‘H’ branded on his forehead. Maybe you’ll get what you wish for, but the downside is it’ll come with an ‘H’s proclamation on who it is that should be euthanased.
I’m sure.
Since you’re not used to dealing with complex positioning, let me be clear that im not interested in your online abuse.
Do not ever respond to me again.
Actually life for a cow in an open paddock system is not a bed of roses. no shelter, cold wet ground, rain, snow frosts.Long walks on rough gravelled tracks on sore feet because of standing in wet ground, heavy udders swinging, frequently trod on causing horrendous often life treatening injuries. Trying to maintain body weight while producing milk on a grass diet with accompanying explosive diarrhoea.
Dairy cows do better in an enclosed housing system, they adapt well, the revulsion comes from urbanised New Zealanders with a romantic view of how an animal should live.Housing animals makes it easier to control their diet and effulent,no manure trampled into the ground, no leaching of nitrates, composted manure and bedding returned to the soil at a time when heavy rain will not leach it into aquifers or water ways.Potentially a win win situation for cow and the environment.
Absolutely agree that paddocks are cruel environments for animals that naturally live in wooded/forested environments. But then, so is an “enclosed housing system”.
Actually, I doubt if there’s a way to farm animals that doesn’t involve a measure of cruelty. But y’know, we could be much less cruel and far more thoughtful. (But then, why have trees taking up the ground space of potential economic units, hm? 👿 )
Not sure why you think rich people who aren’t Kiwis would be any less greedy than NZers. The responsibility for the wellbeing of NZers and the land here is the governments. It’s not rocket science. Put in good environmental protections and resources into R and D for regenag. Put in good employment law that protects workers rights, and resources that support R and D for ethical business.
The biggest hurdle there, apart from values, is the business models based on perpetual growth. We’re at the limits of growth now, so those models have to exploit people and the earth, because that’s the only way they can now keep growing. Instead we need steady state business models. They exist, which begs the question of why we’re not using them. As far as I can tell that’s down to ignorance, greed, and the need to create. Only the last one is an asset and it could be redirected.
Exactly its ecomonics 101 and the law of diminishing returns combined with greed where a ‘reasonable rate of return’ is ditched for ever increasing profits.
Its cause and effect, newtons third law, with the environment, workers, quality etc amongst those who bear the effect ever increasing profits cause.
Eventually capitalism breaks down as the resources are finite.
And if they feel culturally safer employing compatriots and applying the employment practices and rules they’re familiar with, then why not.
Workers died to win whatever rights we have.
That’s why “the practices and rules they’re familiar with” can go take a hike if those practices and rules are inferior to what workers have fought for (at least, those that remain after 30 years of Liberal assault).
+ 100 to Bill and Weka
They can’t. We really do seem to be the best at farming. Which is probably why China allows Fonterra to have farms in China.
Yes Obama is calling out that neo liberal dick head that is why Obama is on my list of people I admire
and aspire to.
Please! Granny Herald. I couldn’t give a fuck about whether Tony Street has a “She-Mullet”, or whether Mike fucks chickens.
If either were to stand for election as our political representatives, I might take a little more notice. Members of a 4th Estate they ain’t. Members of the Legends-in-their-own-Minds Club they are.
Probably the best thing they could do IS ekshully to stand for office. As for those that profess their membership to a MSM 4th Estate, I understand your fear. Don’t try and blame others however for your fuckup – the spin won’t count no matter how many lattes, G&Ts you’ll go without and missed mortgage payments with your wifeys still at home.
Christ! – How did it come to this I sometimes ask. All I can come up with is greed (and in the case of some of them – flatulence)
One wonders how many Super Storms the Gulf states will have to endure before their voters will wake up to the realisation that Global Warming is real and coming to get them. These voters consistently vote for representatives who are paid toadies of the Fossil Fuel cartel. I have little sympathy for them – the science has been clear for years – but either through greed and self interest, or simply wilful ignorance, they have ignored the early warnings of Katrina, and Sandy, and daily flooding in downtown Miami, and continually voted into office, Climate Change denialists, who have obfuscated and delayed for decades, not only US action on reducing GHG emissions, but also Global action. Now they have the ultimate idiot in charge – one wishes them everything they have coming to them.
Well, fossil fuel extraction is quite a large part of Gulf state economies. So I expect wilful ignorance to continue for quite a while yet, since so many paychecks depend on it. Probably up until the point renewables get so cheap there’s no more point in extracting dino-juice from places like offshore in the Gulf of Mexico.
Yep I understand that – however just because they want a job doesn’t give them the right to fuck the whole world – because that is what they have done for the past 20+ years.
The US has never been able to go to a Climate Conference in good faith, because the Senate Reps dominated by McConnell et al (himself heavily funded around $1.9m US by the Fossil Fuel industry) would simply vote down any proposal to which the US agreed.
It’ll be hard to avoid schadenfreude when those economies start feeling the pressure from the switch to renewables. Probably at about the same time that climate change really starts to bite hard there. I won’t shed any tears about Russia and other petro-states feeling the economic pain either.
But it will be billions of people across south asia and in africa that will really pay the price.
Here is a list of the Senators and their most recent funding by Fossil Fuel industry:
http://www.iflscience.com/environment/republicans-urged-trump-exit-paris-funded-fossil-fuel-companies/
Off the chart.
There is no category 6… Seem like they might have to add one.
Yep – and its heading straight for the Gulf States clipping Southern Florida on the way.
FEMA is expected to run out of money this week as Hurricane Irma approaches. The Disaster Relief Fund has just $1.01 billion on hand, less than half of the $2.14 billion that was there last Thursday morning – a spend rate of $9.3 million an hour.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-09-05/fema-is-almost-out-of-money-as-hurricane-irma-threatens-florida
All that missing heat.
http://firsthandweather.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/sst.png
Yep 93% of it goes into the oceans – and its not going to go away any time soon.
Just transfer from one form (heat in oceans) to another (wind) and (water vapour).
I used to use the analogy of heating up a pan of water on a stove. You add energy (heat) the water starts to move faster and faster until it boils.
“Mother of All Storms” by Barnes is starting to look a little less like fiction and a little more like science.
This is what I was getting at in my original comment Andre – I wonder if some of them will finally fess up and say – “Sorry we were wrong – these storms are unprecedented, and are the result of Global Warming, and maybe it is because humans have been adding GHG at an alarming rate, and maybe the quantum physicists were right when they said GHG’s trapped black body radiation.”
I find it touching that you seem to think southern repugs might retain even a vestigial sense of shame and responsibility.
With a nephew living and working in the Turks and Caicos Islands, this is all getting a bit worrisome.
🙁 not good – as always the Islands will wear the brunt. Cuba – the nation with one of the least Carbon footprints – is also going to experience the full force. As always those who are the least culpable are the ones who pay the price.
Will be thinking of your nephew and others in the days ahead.
My question is simple, is it because they are Muslims, is that we are not talking about it?
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/sep/02/rohingya-fleeing-myanmar-tales-ethnic-cleansing
Probably not.
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-05092017/#comment-1379111
https://thestandard.org.nz/search/Rohingya+/?search_comments=true
Thanks joe90, that makes me feel a little better.
Not completely, because no one commented on your post *sigh*
The Karen aren’t regularly commented about, either.
Much happening in Chechnya or North Ossetia lately? Everyone happy in North Korea? Eritrea?
Lots of places in the world where people are being shat on in large numbers.
Joyce isn’t the only one being caught lying with dodgy figures.
Our Minister of Health, Jonathan Coleman, has been caught promising to raise elective surgery numbers to a level he claimed we achieved last year.
“Jonathan Coleman said National would increase elective surgeries over the next four years to 200,000 a year.”
Wow. that’s impressive. Increase from what?
” Last year, we planned to deliver 186,000 surgeries; we actually delivered 200,000.“
The National party: calling the status quo an increase.
McFlock
Merely maintaining the status quo would be a decrease unless the population were also static or declining. Which isn’t the case, and furthermore; not only is the population increasing, but so is the average age (with associated health needs) along with the boomer bulge. The kind of operations being performed is also important (from your link):
nah, it’s an increase, Coleman said so. And Joyce spotted $11b hole in Labour’s budget, and bill’s given us 170,000 new jobs…/sarc 🙁
“and bill’s given us 170,000 new jobs…”
They keep on saying that but to balance that we have to take off the 169,999 jobs that have disappeared or been reclassified. But it looks good; unless you are one of the ones who can’t get a job.
Yeah, but they ain’t rich so national doesn’t care.
Ardern’s anger at Trump comparison will push English off TVNZ front slot, which takes English’s policy announcement to 2nd slot.
Mean play but good game.
Here we go – BEWARE BEWARE Federated Farmers pulling on their Brethren cardies and leading the scaremongering this time round:
“Let’s tax this. What are we in for, Labour?
Source: Federated Farmers
—
On the cusp of the election, voters are still in the dark about what taxes they
might be hit with if Labour is part of the next government.
A tax (“royalty”) on water is confirmed. But Jacinda Ardern has refused to rule out
a capital gains tax, a land value tax, and an asset and wealth tax – other than to
say the family home is exempt.
“For Labour to say they’re not able to be more explicit about what they have in mind
until they have recommendations from the yet-to-be-named members of a tax panel is
something of a cop-out, and certainly doesn’t help voters,” Federated Farmers
Vice-President Andrew Hoggard says.
For farmers, their home and surrounding land also happens to be their business and
livelihood. “Even if an exemption applied to the farmhouse, they’ll cop it from new
taxes far more than their urban cousins.”
The prospect of a land tax in particular is alarming to the rural sector, in that it
would have a severe impact on land extensive businesses and others that are
so-called ‘asset rich and income poor’.
The last time a land tax was considered (2010), the agricultural taxable land base
was $105 billion, meaning a 0.5% land tax would cost farmers $525 million per annum
– a massive hit on the sector, and thus on regional economies and rural towns.
“Farmers already pay whacking rates bills in many parts of the country, often
disproportionate to the services they are delivered or actually use,” Mr Hoggard
said.
“Labour delivered more detailed information on their water tax proposal when pushed
into it by Federated Farmers, Irrigation NZ and other groups.
“Voters deserve more details on Labour’s preferences for other taxes before they go
to the polls.”
ENDS
For more information contact:
Andrew Hoggard, Federated Farmers of NZ Vice-President
Phone: 027 230 7363
Simon Edwards | Communications Advisor, Federated Farmers
Email: sedwards@fedfarm.org.nz, Mobile: +64 (0)21 408 672
Should Labour get in, they choose which lobbyists they ever see. Passes revoked, frozen out, no invites or facetime, no policy initiatives.
Standard stuff for The Terrace.
I don’t seem to recall the farmers being concerned with all the detrimental effects of all reforms that benefited them. In fact, they seem to have been getting it all their own way since forever.
I think it’s time they stopped whinging and got on with doing the right thing for society.
I’m meeting with them on Friday. I’ll pass on your view, Draco, if you wish 🙂
Go for it.
We all no that bills brother was head of that outfit a couple of years ago .
So the English strings are still on the puppets that lead that outfit and what a coincidence that federated farmers got a good spokes person just before the election.
Well I don’t believe in coincidences as there is usually something sinister that causes those coincidences .
Now I have nothing against farmers that are compliant with our rules to protected our environment.
Is it a coincident that Willy Leferink was on 7 sharp tonight to smooth it over for federated farmers propaganda .
Now i will say it again Jacinda is not going to over tax any industry as thats fucken stupid and Jacinda would not be were she is if she was fucken stupid.
So the labour party is not neo liberals so they are not going to look you people in the face and lie.
They are going tailor there taxes so everyone is paying there fair shear so our country can function in a economically and environmentally sustainable way Cemmon.
Hope my actions did not cause you to much trouble Iprent apologies if It did.
Fonterra will have to get more value for there products man I bet they wish they brought Nestle when they had the chance .
Any effort to even put modest restrictions on farming activities that are detrimental to the environment are looked upon by FF as Stalinist agriculture collectivization, with fears of Ardern sending truckloads of armed agriculture commissars to every family farm in New Zealand to seize at gunpoint.
NewstalkZB is shallow, trivial, and nasty radio.
But is it any worse than Jim Mora’s light chat show?
The Panel preshow, RNZ National, Tuesday 5 September 2017
Jim Mora, Peter Fa’afiu, Victoria Stewart, Megan Whelan
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/thepanel/audio/201857382/the-panel-pre-show-for-5-september-2017
This drivel goes for six and a half minutes. Here’s a transcript of the first 4 minutes and 23 seconds….
MORA: Ah, Megan Whelan, Story of the Day!
MEGAN WHELAN: So Google has released, ahhmmm, its most searched “How To” questions globally, ahhh, which gives us an insight into the things that people struggle with day to day. So the most searched How-To question globally—does anyone want to take a guess?
MORA: Oh look. Go on, have a go.
Silence….
MEGAN WHELAN: Anyone?
PETER FA’AFIU: No you’re good.
MORA: No, all right—
VICTORIA STEWART: No, no.
MORA: It is hard, it’s hard, it’s hard, actually.
MEGAN WHELAN: I thought it would have been something like “How to cook rice”, or something like that.
MORA: Oh yeah.
VICTORIA STEWART: Ohh yeah.
MEGAN WHELAN: Um, that is sort of second. “How to tie a tie”—-
MORA: [with mock dismissiveness] No-o!
VICTORIA STEWART: Ahhhhh…
MEGAN WHELAN: Which I find fascinating! Because not all of the population has to do it, but apparently it’s a thing that those people who do, frequently forget.
MORA: [affecting a tone of incredulity] “How to tie a tie” is number ONE!?!?
MEGAN WHELAN: “How to tie a tie” is number one! It’s the most searched “How To” question in the world. Ah, “How to kiss” is in second place.
MORA: Ahhh!
MEGAN WHELAN: Which makes me worry a little bit about the future of humanity.
MORA: Ha!
VICTORIA STEWART: Ha ha!
MEGAN WHELAN: As does number three, which is “How to get pregnant”.
MORA: Yes!
VICTORIA STEWART: Ooh goodness.
PETER FA’AFIU: [snickering] Kkk-k-k-k!
MEGAN WHELAN: Number four: “How to lose weight.”
MORA: Yeah.
PETER FA’AFIU: Oh yeah.
MORA: I would’ve thought that’d be RIGHT up the top.
MEGAN WHELAN: “How to draw”.
MORA: “How to DRAAWW”?
MEGAN WHELAN: “How to make money.”
VICTORIA STEWART: Ha ha.
MEGAN WHELAN: Ha ha. And then sort of “How to cook rice”—“how to make pancakes”.
MORA: [very softly, in a tone of bemused wonderment] Pancakes.
VICTORIA STEWART: “How to write a cover letter” AND “How to cook French toast.” Ahhhmmm….
MORA: What?!?!?
VICTORIA STEWART: Followed by “How to lose belly fat”. Ah, so, ho, we’re very worried about losing weight but also having good breakfasts!
MORA: What a STRANGE list!
MEGAN WHELAN: Isn’t that a strange list!
PETER FA’AFIU: Just trying to figure out how many of those I’ve, uh, ha ha ha ha!
MORA: Okay, you can tie a tie.
PETER FA’AFIU: Pancakes, yeah. Tie….
MORA: Pancakes? You know how to make money?
PETER FA’AFIU: Yeah.
MORA: Do you know how to write a cover letter?
PETER FA’AFIU: Yes.
MORA: Ahh, do you know how to lose fat around your tummy?
PETER FA’AFIU: No.
MORA: Okay. I won’t ask you the REST!
PETER FA’AFIU: Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! I know how to kiss. I know how to kiss.
MEGAN WHELAN: So Simon Rogers, Google’s data editor, one of the things he mentioned is that these “How To” searches have increased a hundred and forty per cent—so more than doubled—since two thousand and FOUR, and MUCH of that interest is directed at how to sort of FIX things, so oftentimes it’s how to fix a lightbulb or replace your window or fix your washing-machine or even the toilet. So I had a look at Google Trends, ahhh, which is how you can search some of this stuff yourself, for New Zealand for the past twelve months—
MORA: Aah!
MEGAN WHELAN: So related searches, our ones, so this is not the exact data that THAT list is, the global list is, ‘cos it’s not broken down in the same way, but searching “How To” and getting related searches for that for New Zealand, we searched “How to draw”, “How to screenshot”—
MORA: Oh yeah.
MEGAN WHELAN: And someone has texted in to say that when THEY searched it, they got the auto complete, so often when you google something “how to” it will fill in the sentence for you? They got “How to make SLIME”, which is number THREE in New Zealand. We also searched “How to make slime without borax”, which seems a VERY specific thing—-
PETER FA’AFIU: A ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!
MORA: Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!
MEGAN WHELAN: “How to proNOUNCE” is number four—-
MORA: “How to pronounce”?
MEGAN WHELAN: “How to pronounce”. So, presumably, there is another word following that one. “How to lose weight”, “How to make money”, “How to tie a tie”, then that’s the slime without borax. How to-o-o-o-o-o, oh, er, break a —I can’t read my own HANDWRITING!—I think it was something like “break an iPhone”? Ummmmmm—-
VICTORIA STEWART: Easily—-
MEGAN WHELAN: Ha ha ha ha!
VICTORIA STEWART:—is the way I think of that. Drop it!
MEGAN WHELAN: Ha ha. And then, LASTLY, in our New Zealand related searches taught you “How to delete Instagram accounts”. I’m a little bit worried what New Zealanders have been doing on their Instagram accounts that they feel the need to delete them!
PETER FA’AFIU: Hyunhh, hyunnhh.
MORA: Yeah, exactly.
MEGAN WHELAN: Yeahhhh!
MORA: The slime thing will be children, ‘cos our twins make slime.
MEGAN WHELAN: Yes!
PETER FA’AFIU: Same. For me.
MEGAN WHELAN: Has that been quite a thing in the last twelve months?
MORA: Yeah it has recently. Yeah.
MEGAN WHELAN: Right.
MORA: So THAT’ll be a current thing, the slime thing. I didn’t know, they don’t know about the borax.
MEGAN WHELAN: Yeahhh.
MORA: So, we search for the most trivial things as well, don’t we.
VICTORIA STEWART: Yes. I think a lot of this is about the sentence construction? So you might find that people searching for recipes aren’t searching—so for me, I wouldn’t google “How to cook pancakes”, I would google “Pancake recipe”—
PETER FA’AFIU: Mmmm.
VICTORIA STEWART: “EASY pancake recipes”. Ha ha!
MEGAN WHELAN: Yeah. Or something like that. Or a specific pancake recipe, which is my favorite pancake recipe, but, errr, so, but I might search “How to tie a tie”, ‘cos that sentence makes more sense than “pancake recipe.” Yeah.
MORA: Okay, but, there’s um, very little of, uh, “How can I be nicer?” or “What is the meaning of life?” or those [with mock sententiousness] profound questions….
MEGAN WHELAN: “How can I be nicer?” Okaaayyy….
At that point, I reached the point of maximum disgust, and could take no more of this drivel. The inanity, the determined triviality of this chatter, the complete and utter contempt for the listeners are bad enough, but what really angered me was that last statement by Jim Mora. His suggestion that he cares about “profound questions” is disproven by the subject matter and the tenor of the discussions on his show. And as for “How can I be nicer?”—well, let’s have a look at a few instances of how “nice” Jim Mora is….
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-16022015/#comment-969675
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-14062013/#comment-648511
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-12122014/#comment-939112
Excellent piece by Gordon Campbell that neatly counters Nationals scare tactics…should be required reading before entering the polling booth
‘Its not a new thing. Remember when John Key used to describe Working For Families as “communism by stealth”? Now WFF is core National policy. And Kiwisaver? (Key : “It won’t work. It’s a glorified Christmas Club.”) Now, Kiwisaver too is core National policy. Remember when climate change was just a fanciful notion of those wacky, scary Greens? Now National’s deputy is proudly proclaiming National’s commitment to the Paris agreement.”
http://gordoncampbell.scoop.co.nz/2017/09/06/gordon-campbell-on-nationals-fake-news-onslaught/#more-4932
i’ve spent a bit of time thinking about the legacy the last labour party left and what the nats legacy is (thinking positive as even the nats can’t be totally useless )
labour ; kiwisaver ,kiwibank . wwf (still would prefer proper wages) ,cullin fund,
china fta.
nats ; seriously i got nothing ,