That’s actually scary. The corruption in NZ over the last few years has been of the in our face, don’t care variety and yet still people think we’re the least corrupt?
yes Draco knows much better than those silly fools at the international organisation who utilise their expertise and training in a transparent fashion.
Well I think the finding is highly questionable… Not only was the Serious Fraud Office predicting a huge increase in serious fraud cases, New Zealand has become one of the worlds favourite places for tax evaders to hide their ill-gotten gains.
We also have a largely ineffective system to address various types of fraud and you would be hard pressed to find anybody who hasn’t been affected. Not to mention that this is meant to be an annual report that actually gets trotted out around three or four times a year or whenever National needs some good news.
PS the report says we’re PERCEIVED to be least corrupt not that we are actually least corrupt. So a perception from various institutes with a vested interest and academics from other countries or a perception from New Zealanders… Take your pick.
“Not only was the Serious Fraud Office predicting a huge increase in serious fraud cases”
Fraud =/= corruption
Seriously, if you want to know what proper corruption looks like spend sometime in South Africa. I have spent a lot of time there and have witnessed first hand what institutional corruption looks like and NZ doesn’t have it.
Yes! Fraud is a type of corruption TheContrarian. I’m sure you’re right that South Africa has a lot of corruption, but unless corruption has become a lot worse in other countries at a time corruption in New Zealand has become worse according to the Serious Fraud Office, the perception index is wrong! To argue that NZ doesn’t have any institutional corruption is naive.
This is true, but the survey is of perceptions in relation to other countries.
So rewriting the tax codes to some of the lowest levels in the world is unethical, but as long as the majority of people paid the legally required amount, it’s not “corrupt”.
Whether NZ is more corrupt than it once was is not the metric of the survey.
Here’s some facts from actual research TheContrarian, perhaps you might like to try it yourself sometime:
4% of NZ’ers admit paying a bribe to win business (c.f. 0% Denmark; 1% UK; 2% Australia)
Only 44% of NZX top 50 companies have anti-bribery policies (c.f. 72% UK; 69% USA; 50% Europe)
73% NZ’ers believe corruption is increasing
Despite these numbers that show New Zealand shouldn’t be perceived as the least corrupt country in the world, the actual mechanism of institutional corruption is very hard to quantify, and other studies have found that corrupt, fraudulent, coercive or collusive practices in New Zealand are endemic within our institutional arrangements.
This being the case, and making note of what the actual research shows, I would have to say you’re categorically wrong TheContrarian… But what else is new?
Jackal, all your figures show is that New Zealanders do a lot of business in corrupt countries – I would assume China, Indonesia, and the koha cultures of the Pacific would feature heavily. Not the same thing as New Zealand being particularly corrupt at all. At least that’s what I’m assuming as you haven’t bothered to link to any site that will tell me the context for the data, or even whether you just pulled those numbers out of your arse or not. Cite sources please.
“I would have to say you’re categorically wrong TheContrarian”
Well Jackal I suggest you also send your figures to transparency.org and let them know how wrong they are.
“73% NZ’ers believe corruption is increasing ”
Argumentum ad populum. Logical fallacy.
And yes, sources please.
@Felix:
“100% honest compared to other countries.”
Well yes, it is a comparative scale and no where do they, or I, suggest there is zero corruption in NZ.
Not really, you wouldn’t say because 98% of climatologists agree in Global Warming it is an Argumentum ad populum.
To say “73% NZ’ers believe corruption is increasing” therefore NZ is corrupt is an Argumentum ad populum.
It is the same as saying most of the population believes in some sort of god therefore god exists.
Perhaps I’ve misunderstood what they’re describing.
I thought “perceived” referred to the perceptions of ordinary people as measured by corruption experts, as opposed to the perceptions of the corruption experts themselves.
A comparative study which publicly announces it’s methodology, results and is considered to be relatively accurately in its representation of real world corruption is much less of an argumentum ad populum than Jackal arguing the study is bunk because 76% of NZer’s said so.
I’ll throw my lot in with with well know and well respected international metrics which can be fairly well applied in the real world over Jackal and his unsourced statistics.
And whatever is or isn’t wrong with the 76% stat, you can’t really call it a popularity fallacy, when what you are seeking to find is a perception, even if you do put it in fucking latin.
if what your looking for is a perception, then ‘what people reckon’ is what you are looking for. To call that a fallacy would be a category error of some sort.
This might be news to you Populuxe1, but New Zealand companies do a lot of business within New Zealand. The research would be similar to the percentage difference between foreign business and local business. I believe local trade still makes up the biggest contributor to our GDP.
The statistical source is the Serious Fraud Office. There is other relevant research that backs up my argument btw. Instead of just being a couple of opinionated wankers TheContrarian and Populuxe1, why don’t you look into the matter yourselves?
Claiming that these figures should be sent to transparency.org is entirely stupid. Any research agency would be well versed in such information, and as McFlock succinctly points out it’s a perception index, not the reality of corruption within New Zealand.
If you don’t believe the opinion of the masses is correct, you must also be arguing against a majority voting in a government TheContrarian. Anti-democratic much?
You might note that the figures above the 73% of New Zealanders believing corruption is increasing ie 4% admitting paying bribes and 44% anti-bribery policies, is not Argumentum ad populum. Interesting that the research backs up the New Zealand public perception eh!
The index measures the perception of corruption in the public sector and not the financial sector, but Transparency’s Europe director Anne Koch…
Yeah, yeah. Possibly a deliberate and misleading point at which to cut the quoted text, but hey.
The survey, which was first conducted in 1995, draws on a variety of sources that capture perceptions of corruption, including World Bank and World Economic Forum assessments, the African Development Bank’s governance ratings, and Transparency International’s own Bribe Payers Survey.
Couldn’t bring myself to read the comments at KB, but I have to say that I’m in two minds about men’s clubs. I think it’s fine for different genders to have their own spaces (I’ve worked in feminist collectives where men are not allowed). The problem with men’s clubs historically is that they’ve been the bastions of the old boys who have been running the show and not willing to share that power and privilege with anyone else – hence the original challenges about membership. I’m guessing that women moving in those circles of power needed membership in order to make headway. The problem now is that they’re like to become bastions of the remnants of the old boy’s networks and/or repositories for the misogyny that’s no longer acceptable in open society (think men’s rights groups also).
Not sure what the solution is there, but the law firm in question, if it had any sense of anything, would hold the party somewhere else.
The difference between left and right is quite substantial. This is reflected in the nature of commenting between the standard and kiwiblog. People may appear roughly the same and live in the same types of houses and lead similar lives, but their underlying philosophies and approaches to life are often at opposite and extreme ends of the spectrum. A bit like how two seemingly similar people can live in the same street yet one believes in eternal life and one doesn’t – can’t get more extreme ends of outlook than that.
What would be interesting is to post the same subject on each site at the same time and see how different the comment streams are. And the one linked to by Felix would be a great one to try it out on.
I read a few comments. They don’t seem to get the difference between a single sex sports club or gym and that of an occupational group: the Law Society.
If Mr. Key is not clueless on intelligence and security matters, then the “spy” plane response and his other actions show that along with being contemptuous of those who may seek to hold him to account, he is arrogant, irresponsible, disloyal, mean-spirited and vindictive as well. To which can be added one more trait that has emerged in Mr. Key as of late: callous narcissism.
.
Draco is right above in that corruption is the in your face don’t care type.
Perfect example – get Wyatt Creech, an owner in the dairy industry, to write a fucking bullshit report on the state of water regs in Canterbury and use that to claim that democracy itself needs to be ripped out so the lying dirty business farming pricks who couldn’t achieve their business greed through usual business and democratic processes simply thieve what they want. All the while claiming it is something other than that.
Corrupt.
Liars and thieves – the farmers, the national government, David Carter, Nick Smith, Wyatt Creech, Amy Adams.
What is John Key, Prime Minister of the purportedly (first equal) ‘least corrupt country in the world’ going to do about this one?
WILL NZ PRIME MINISTER STAND DOWN JOHN BANKS AS MINISTER – WHEN BANKS APPEARS IN THE WELLINGTON DISTRICT COURT ON 11 DECEMBER 2012 TO FACE A PRIVATE PROSECUTION FOR ALLEGED ELECTORAL FRAUD? http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/peters-powerless-jettison-horan-parliament-academic-dw-133495#comment-598400
MY COMMENT – yet to be published:
What is NZ Prime Minister John Key going to do when his MMP coalition partner, ACT Leader and MP for Epsom, John Banks, Minister for Small Business and Regulatory Reform, and Associate Minister for Education and Commerce, appears in the Wellington District on Tuesday 11 December 2012 at 1.45pm to face a private prosecution alleging electoral fraud?
Is he going to, as a first step, stand John Banks down as a Minister?
If a Wellington District Court Judge believes there is arguably a case for John Banks to answer – or a summons would not have been issued.
Or is NZ Prime Minister John Key going to continue to defend the indefensible, and politically protect John Banks?
Penny Bright
‘Anti-corruption campaigner’ http://www.dodgyjohnhasgone.com
The potential for fracking to pollute pasture and water supplies in Taranaki isn’t just speculation… Documented evidence shows that fracking fluid blow-down pits at the Kapuni site had polluted the groundwater which was no longer fit for human or stock consumption. The BETX (benzene, ethylbenzene, toluene and xylenes) contaminated water also didn’t meet the criteria for irrigation, meaning it was highly toxic.
Of course Shell Todd Oil Services, which owns Kapuni, and the complicit regional council say there’s no link with the fracking that’s occurred in the area and the groundwater contamination, however BETX has been regularly used in fracking around Taranaki and there’s no other explanation for it to be found in the groundwater other than unsafe storage of well fluids in fracking blow-down pits.
Ha! Nothing to do with fracking, the water was contaminated in the tank it was being held in, which had been previously used for mixing liquid fertiliser.
Seems its not the fert. But it’s a safe bet it was something in the water. And something pretty potent, at that. Hopefully its not another farmer family jealousy case and just misadventure.
Within the last hour there was a sudden loud thunder clap right above, that made me jump – freaky! Now reports are coming in of storm damage out here in west Auckland, including a tornado not far away in the Hobsonville area.
It seems to be clearing now, with all OK where I am….. but it was pretty scary for a moment. I hope people in the storm damage areas are doing OK.
Ummm some kind of bug showing up in the Cloudflare feature
Mirage/ PRO / BUSINESS / ENTERPRISE/ BETA
Lazy loader: Automatically turns all images into load-on-demand. Images on your site are not loaded until the visitor scrolls to their location.
On a couple of webkit renderer browsers (ie Chrome and Rekong) I started getting jams on loading images – probably a advertising image.
Turned the feature off as it is both beta and doesn’t really seem to speed the page loads.
There’s no question that Dr Norman articulates himself well and is as dedicated as they come to a future government that will reduce GHG emissions to protect our environment. In fact his ability in the house to show National up for their environmental failures is second to none…
Meanwhile, David Cunliffe MP for New Lynn, having checked his own electorate, rather than return to Parliament, is heading out west to check the PM’s electorate for him.
I don’t think the last two comments are in good taste, people have died out there, show just a little humanity, you are meant to be Left and for the “people”
[lprent: Off topic moved to OpenMike.
Hard to see why? ]
I certainly have concern for those who have died, and been injured. I am “out there” and was a little scared in the middle of the storm.
I have yet to see any comment from John Key about his electorate. i have seen comments and/or tweets from Len Brown & David Cunliffe during the afternoon. They are out here checking on people. I was not making that up. Check my link above to one of Cunliffe’s tweets.
Bomber Bradbury is banned, but Garth McVicar is not. What gives?
Susan Couch was the victim of a brutal assault eleven years ago, and it looks like she is now going to be compensated, at long last. Sounds like good news—until you realize that a particularly loathsome jackal has glommed onto her suffering, and milked it shamelessly for his own nefarious ends. I’m sure thousands of Jim’s listeners were dismayed and disgusted to hear Jim Mora interview, sympathetically, the head of the S.S. Trust, Garth “Mac the Knife” McVicar.
I sent Jim Mora the following e-mail….
Any decent organization would make Garth McVicar persona non grata
Dear Jim,
I am concerned to hear you giving a sympathetic forum to the S.S. Trust’s gruesome leader Garth McVicar. Martyn “Bomber” Bradbury was banned from your programme for daring to comment on the morals of a controversial politician; yet Garth McVicar seemingly has open access, no matter how brutal and vicious his statements.
You have repeatedly had Garth McVicar on The Panel and called him, absurdly, a “victims’ advocate”. I know that many, probably most, of your colleagues are appalled at this, yet you persist with it.
Perhaps you could explain on air one day why Bomber Bradbury is banned, yet Garth McVicar is not.
Myth: Auckland isn’t geographically suited to public transport.
I’m not sure where this myth even came from but if I had to guess, it would have been from the 50′s or 60′s, the same time that many of our transport myths originated from those looking to justify building the motorways instead of public transport. The theory goes that cities like Wellington are more suited to public transport, and in particular rail, due to the the geography largely forcing development into a couple of long thin corridors. As such, Auckland which extends out in all sorts of directions is said to be more suited to car based transport.
Great post pointing out how well Auckland is suited to PT.
Good post, DTB. Auckland can use a mixture of water, and land-based public transport. It’s a pity they never made a canal down by the Whau, from one harbour to the other.
Is there a meme developing about Russel Norman not caring about climate change? Where did it originate from?
It seems like a crude and obvious attempt to undercut his credibility – with Green Party members and with the wider public. And the timing of it seems odd: just as he’s getting a lot of notice for being an effective politician. Or is it just me?
I don’t dispute his commitment to climate change. But I am not very happy about the way he his treated these days as the sole leader of the Greens. I feel this undermines the way Turei is very good on social policies – it marginalises that aspect of the Green Party.
Good point. It’s a bit weird: they’re both commenting on areas the National Party are weak on – I’d expect them to both be getting reasonably equal amounts of traction in the media.
Any theories about the reasons behind the disparity?
It’s more likely that Russel Norman simply gets up the noses of the Nats more and they respond, which creates a story. Whereas the Nats try their hardest to ignore Turei, so there’s not so much controversy for the media to latch onto.
I don’t think there’s any bias within the Greens and the bias you see from the media is something the Greens have little control over. Personally I’m just glad the Greens are getting a little bit of media coverage, although I would like to see more focus of social and environmental issues than who will be the next Minister of Finance.
Jenny, a commenter here on the Standard, has been running that line about Norman for the past few weeks. She’s not getting much traction though. Haven’t seen it anywhere else. Where did you pick it up?
I saw Jenny’s comments earlier this week, and then I read The Jackal’s blog-post about ‘Russel Norman – Hero of the Week’. I wondered whether I was seeing the beginnings of a reputational attack, followed by some quickly deployed defence.
Looks like it might be a more isolated thing, though.
I’ve been meaning to write that post for a while. As far as I’m concerned there’s nothing to defend re Jenny’s comments about Russel Norman… They’re entirely ludicrous! Was it a coincidence that the good Doctor was making a speech about climate change on the same day Jenny was saying he never talks about it? Most definitely.
“The reality that New Zealand is actually a corrupt, polluted, tax haven – will be revealed at 11.30am, Friday 7 December 2012 at Sky City Convention Centre by ‘Anti-corruption’ – TPPA ‘stakeholder’ Penny Bright”.
Bright will give her presentation as a TPPA ‘stakeholder’ at Sky City, on Friday 7 December 2012 at 11.30am.
OrganisationWater Pressure Group / Anti-corruption campaigner
Would you like to make a formal presentation?
Yes
Please enter the indicative title of your proposed presentation:
The need for transparency, accountability, and an independent ‘cost-benefit’ analysis of the benefits of ‘free trade’ agreements such as the TPPA, and the need for a ‘corruption-risk’ assessment (particularly the form of grand corruption known as ‘State Capture’) for ‘free trade’ agreements such as the TPPA.
What areas of TPP are you interested in?
Affordable medicines, land, environment (particularly water services) , work rights, the rest of our economy, especially the finance sector, sovereignty. “
“I am really looking forward to giving this ‘whistle-blowing’ presentation, particularly since Transparency International has AGAIN ranked corrupt, polluted, tax haven New Zealand as the first equal ‘least corrupt country in the world’, according to their 2012 Corruption Perception Index.
An entirely predictable blog from journalist and blogger, Tim Watkin, on the debate about blogging vs journalism, focussing on the divergence of opinions about Gower’s (and other msm reportage) of events at the recent the Labour Party Conference.
What caught my eye was this comment:
…..But the complaints still sound disingenuous to me. As best as I can see, Cunliffe got played, out-manouvered. He had ambitions to challenge for the leadership come February. Rather than waiting like a turkey for Christmas, those opposed to him pre-empted the challenge. When Cunliffe was unwilling to say he’d back his leader in a vote in three months’ time, it became a story….
Only, if this was indeed what happened, (that Cunliffe got played), why is Watkins defending msm coverage that it was Cunliffe who tried (unsuccessfully) to ‘play’ the conference. Or are the facts not really as important to “real” journalists as Watkins is claiming in this blog?
Yep, js, that’s what struck me earlier today when I read it. Watkin claimed the MSM journalists go to great lengths to ensure they are not biased. Then he made exactly the point about the conference that many TS posters and commenters made – ie Cunliffe was taken out. So how come most journalists peddled the line that Cunliffe staged a coup? Does that not indicate a bias?
Also Watkin rejects the suggestion by Trotter and RedLogix, that journalists shouldn’t report anonymous comments from politicians. Watkin’s argument is that, it would mean no leaks from politicians…. duh? So what would be so wrong with that? Surely it’s the anonymous leaks from pollies that skewed the main narrative about Cunliffe staging a coup.
Also, Watkin seems to be assuming that many of us bloggers want to replace MSM journalists, or, at least, do journalism better than the MSM. No – many of us just want journalists to be more critical and fulfill their fourth estate role – not just push the current line that is circulating from leaky MPs and from press releases. At the moment, many of us see our role as one of holding the MSM to account.
Frankly I’m stunned at the shallowness of Watkins ‘deconstruction’.
All interviews must be on-the-record. Almost all are. But should a journalist be banned from following a lead gained in more casual conversation?
All interviews, it’s suggested, should be online. Which would mean newsrooms having to hire transcribers rather than more journalists.
Well actually what I had in mind was a simple audio/video recorder and then attached to the online version of the story as a file. No need for transcribers.
All reportage must be fact-checked. If only. The last fact-checkers were being laid off from the Heald when I began there 12 years ago. The few US media who still employ them are the exception. But does that mean they never err? No. Is it reasonable to expect journalists to check their own facts? usually, although a lack of resources and time creates limitations. Are stories still checked? Yes, subs, editors and producers all have such a role.
Well that’s a bad slip up. Watkins selectively quotes me which went on: “and/or open to a right of reply from any participant, person or party mentioned.” … again in an online environment a highly achievable goal without too much extra in the way of staff. And then he goes on to ignore my additional suggestion that journalists could easily lift their game by linking to their references …like bloggers routinely do. None of this is commercially unrealistic or onerous.
All professional and personal relationships must be declared. In which we move from ignorance to plain silliness. Conflicts of interest should be declared. But every relationship? How far does that go? Is it just for the gallery or for bloggers and those of us outside Wellington who cover politics? Is it family relationships, whether they’ve played rugby together or does the odd drink count? Should I declare that I once helped Grant Robertson pull a drunk guy out of an NZUSA conference? That Metiria Turei and Gerry Brownlee have both yelled at me? Should Trotter declare every politician he’s ever met? And would REDLOGIX him/herself adhere to that?
No journalist should be able to spend more than six years or 33% of their career in the gallery. Apart from the obvious nonsense of not being able to know how long a young reporter’s career will be, why show such little respect for experience and wisdom? It’s silliness piled on silliness.
Oh dear … strawman piled upon strawman. Everyone in public life knows exactly what ‘declaring your interests’ means. Relationships in which you have either a family, personal relationships (ie who you are sleeping with), business relationships or other plainly beneficial interests. In practise it’s not all that hard to get it right if you want to.
Ignored also is my suggestion that an online personal/professional bio is an entirely reasonably thing to ask of a professional. And by clinging to the outdated mode of thinking that print is primary, and that online is a secondary nuisance … Watkins has made a bunch of pretty elementary errors here.
Yes, it’s a weak defence by Watkin, RL. And I can’t believe he isn’t aware of how poor the NZ MSM and journalism actually is. I’m not peddling some theory of a deliberately orchestrated conspiracy – just aware of how biases and skewed stories can get accepted into the MSM.
Actually, interesting that Watkin made that point about fact checking. I was looking into that around the last time I did a post on the media. I knew facts often aren’t checked. This is a problem of the commercial imperative, keeping down costs etc. But, good journalism really does require fact checking. I don’t know how Watkin can claim journalist go out of their way to be non-biased, if they don’t check their facts.
I was trying to find evidence online of an occurrence a few years ago in Aussie. I saw the guys involved present a conference paper on it. Basically, as a kind of joke, a couple of guys published a story – false. It got picked up by the media. Once one outlet had repeated it, others followed, with none of them checking if it was real. This mis-information got widely circulated, all without the facts being checked. Eventually they had to come clean and say it wasn’t true.
Just shows how something like the content of the whispering campaign against Cunliffe can become accepted as true.
Listening to the alcohol debate in parliament today I keep hearing the same argument.
We must find a way to restrict access to alcohol for the poor, the young, and ethnic minorities because they can’t handle it, while maintaining or increasing access for people like me because we can.
I have heaps more of this indigenous music, it never plays in NZ media, sadly.
This is indio music from Peru, there is heaps more. I will not bother to inundate. Maori are justified to take their stand, ideally they will connect with indeginous peoples all over the world.
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We asked a young gay science student and critic of trans ideology and the trans activists’ assault on women’s and gay rights to outline his views on Redline. Thanks to him for his article. by Cian Ó Catháin Gender identity ideology (Gender ID) is ripping through western society at full ...
The Environment Committee is currently hearing submissions on the Zero Carbon Bill, and Stuff is reporting on the submissions. Today, they're covering yesterday they heard from "NZ" Steel:NZ Steel has told MPs it may be forced to close with the loss of thousands of jobs if changes aren't made to ...
Students are striking against climate change on September 27. And this time, they're asking everyone to join them:Students are taking to the streets, beaches and parks on 27 September, and we're inviting everyone to join us. That's right, this is an intergenerational issue, and you're all invited to put pressure ...
Peter McKenzie has a piece on Newsroom this morning about how local body politics is awash with property developer cash. 70% of all the donations in the 2016 Wellington mayoral election came from property developers. And its pretty obvious what they want in exchange:That’s particularly important in local government, according ...
Source: Unknown, twitter user Recently, I wrote a (relatively) short paper titled as above, to explore what self-determination could like in a practical sense. Maybe I’m a bit of an international trade truther or something, but I absolutely believe trade is at the heart of achieving peace and self-determination. Since ...
In the 1960s, after I had graduated with a first-class Oxford postgraduate law degree, I joined the British Foreign Office as the top entrant of my year. There, I worked for a couple of years on European affairs and was eventually posted to the Embassy in Brussels. After this exposure ...
Alone, Alone. All, All Alone: Will it be a good or a bad thing, when humanity’s bright blue spacecraft is stricken by the civilisation-destroying problem of Climate Change, that no Huston Control will be standing-by to rescue the crew?“WE HAVE A PROBLEM, HUSTON.” These were the words used by the ...
I heard a 45 minute interview with Monica Lewinsky talking to TED’s Chris Anderson on BBC Radio 4 over the weekend, and have listened to it another two times out walking. I recommend it. Highly. Man, I am so impressed with how this woman has integrated her life experiences and ...
Jonathan Haidt and Greg Lukianoff, The Coddling of the American Mind: how good intentions and bad ideas are setting up a generation for failure, London, Penguin, 2019, 352pp; reviewed by Gearóid Ó Loingsigh Jonathan Haidt and Greg Lukianoff’s book The Coddling of the American Mind is a timely book, whose ...
When the Justice Committee reported back on the Administration of Justice (Reform of Contempt of Court) Bill, free speech advocates breathed a sigh of relief. As originally introduced, the Bill reitered the ancient offence of "scandalising the court" - basicly, a special sedition law protecting judges from criticism. The select ...
Eighteen months ago, the government promised to strengthen the Bill of Rights Act, by explicitly affirming the power of the courts to issue declarations of inconsistency and requiring Parliament to formally respond to them. Since then - crickets. Which raises the obvious question: are they actually going to do this, ...
Back in March, the Ministry of Justice conducted a public consultation exercise on whether to hold a review of the Official Information Act. 285 people submitted on it. Now, Stuff has trawled through those submissions, and the case for reform is strong:The Justice Ministry asked Kiwis what they thought was ...
National's prisoner voting ban has gone down as one of the worst laws in New Zealand history. Passed after a farcical debate (including this farcial speech from ACT MP Hilary Calvert), it has subsequently been found to be inconsistent with the Bill of Rights Act by the High Court, Court ...
Divided Loyalties: Can the Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, be relied upon? That’s what the boys and girls at Foggy Bottom and the Pentagon needed to be reassured about. Because, from the perspective of Washington, it’s looking more and more like Jacinda Ardern and her Labour Party comrades are getting ready ...
This handy Queer Theory Glossary is from thetranswidow.com In case you’ve had trouble keeping up with the spate of new queer theory terms, here’s a handy glossary for your reference. Queer – A straight person with an interesting haircut. Non-binary/genderqueer – A chubby young female, typically 16-28, who has ...
by Daphna Whitmore US social psychologist and author Jonathan Haidt spoke on 1 August in Auckland to a crowd of around one thousand people. He is best known for his bookThe Coddling of the American Mind which examines the new climate of trigger warnings and acute sensitivity of Gen Z. ...
What an extraordinarily depressing experience it is to be compelled to watch, at 12,000 miles distance, the contortions and machinations of the British political class as they set about their determined attempt to overturn the decision taken by the British people that they wish to leave the European Union. The ...
The winter grazing issue is becoming a highly sensitised one that I hope will not become so politicised that it delays solutions and results in the suicides of some very stressed farmers.Winter grazing has hit the headlines after a determined campaign, including the release of a video of some very ...
by Don Franks Way back when British guitar virtuoso Joe Brown was a beginning session guy he got to back a visiting American artist. Young Joe was an able technician but had yet to learn some points of professionalism. Part way through “Five foot high and rising” Joe tired of ...
Since scientists started studying climate change, they have warned that it will reduce food production. And now, its happening:The climate crisis is damaging the ability of the land to sustain humanity, with cascading risks becoming increasingly severe as global temperatures rise, according to a landmark UN report compiled by some ...
The Abortion Legislation Bill just passed its first reading, 94-23. Its a far bigger margin than I expected, even allowing for the Winston factor, and it reflects the overwhelming support there is in this country for reform. but that support isn't a new thing - it has existed for literally ...
The Justice Committee has called for submissions on the Referendums Framework Bill. The Bill does what it says on the label - establishes a framework for referenda. Things you may want to address in your submission: Whether the bill should apply only at the 2020 election, or whether it should ...
The Thompson and Clark / MBIE spying scandal continues to result in fallout, this time in the form of a report on the implementation of MBIE's "Operation Exploration", its internal operation to enforce the infamous Anadarko Amendment which criminalised protests against the oil industry. MBIE's enforcement operation was tainted by ...
So, Winston Peters is defending his last-minute demand for a referendum on abortion by claiming he was "blindsided" by the bill. Really? The bill is a government bill. It has been working through the cabinet approval process since December last year. As part of that process, NZ First was consulted, ...
The Green Part has been accused of lack of transparency in two recent situations. The first was the claimed media lockdown during Green's annual conference and the second was Julie Ann Genter's refusal to release a letter she had sent to Phil Twyford.I do get frustrated when journalist's succumb to ...
The Green Part has been accused of lack of transparency in two recent situations. The first was the claimed media lockdown during Green's annual conference and the second was Julie Ann Genter's refusal to release a letter she had sent to Phil Twyford.I do get frustrated when journalist's succumb to ...
Last week, the ongoing democracy protests in Hong Kong saw a pro-Hong Kong student assaulted at the University of Auckland. The Chinese consulate in Auckland followed this up with a press release "express[ing] its appreciation to the students for their spontaneous patriotism" - effectively condoning the assault and inciting further ...
Only those who close their eyes and minds to the evidence can still be in any doubt that we are facing a climate change crisis. The evidence is conclusive that the world is not only getting inexorably hotter, but also that the rising temperatures are creating a number of other ...
Rural communities are wailing about forestry conversions "taking land out of production" and putting it into locking up carbon. Its driven purely by economics: there's more money and lower costs in carbon than in sheep or beef, and if carbon prices rise, there'll be more net money than dairy even. ...
This week, the government introduced its (underwhelming) Abortion Legislation Bill. And despite having negotiated the text of the bill through the coalition process, Winston Peters is now suggesting that he will demand a referendum on it:NZ First leader Winston Peters has hinted that his party may only support the Government's ...
Blowing-Up The House: Is Winston Peters planning to put himself at the head of all those New Zealanders who refuse to countenance the Coalition Government caving-in to the Ihumatao protesters? The most effective way of doing this would be to issue Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern with an ultimatum. If she ...
Last night the police dramatically incresed their numbers at Ihumātao, shoving over protestors and threatening them with arrest. Despite police talk about the need to maintain "public order" and prevent a "breach of the peace", there appeared to be absolutely no justification for this: the protest camp is, was, and ...
A Cult, that many actors, politicians, and those with a low IQ are joining is sweeping across civilisation, with one main intention – ending humans reign on Earth. Starting as a well meaning though deeply flawed theory, that the Earth was warming due to mankind emitting greenhouse gasses, it was ...
Today's abortion reform announcement is just the latest in a long line of disappointing decisions or outright failures from the Labour government. The 90-day law. KiwiBuild. A capital gains tax. Climate change. Every time they make one of those decisions, we hope for better next time. No repeal of the ...
The Greens used their party conference over the weekend to push for a rent-to-own scheme, where people would be able to work towards home ownership by renting from the government. Its a sensible policy, and one which could make a real difference to home ownership rates. But its also basicly ...
Opportunities to dodge tax are shrinking with the completion of a new tax agreement with Switzerland, Revenue Minister Stuart Nash announced today. Mr Nash and the Swiss Ambassador David Vogelsanger have today signed documents to update the double tax agreement (DTA). The previous DTA was signed in 1980. “Double tax ...
Small Business Minister Stuart Nash says the report of the Small Business Council will help maintain the momentum for innovation and improvements in the sector. Mr Nash has thanked the members of the Small Business Council (SBC) who this week handed over their report, Empowering small businesses to aspire, succeed ...
Jordan Williams, a spokesman for the Auckland Ratepayers’ Alliance and its nationwide sister group the New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union is slamming Auckland Mayor Phil Goff for his comments today that John Tamihere would need the Government’s support to ...
A ‘one size fits all’, inflexible and punitive regulatory regime for water quality just gets backs - and costs - up and most importantly will not work, Federated Farmers says. ...
Mediation yesterday between secondary principals and the government has resulted in a deal that the principals' negotiating team is recommending to its members. ...
Clubs New Zealand welcomes the decision of Justice Minister Andrew Little to put forward a bill amending the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act to allow all licensed premises to remain open for Rugby World Cup matches. ...
The Australia and New Zealand Ministerial Forum on Food Regulation has ordered a review looking at labelling of added sugars in food and drinks. An option under investigation is ‘a pictorial approach applied to sugary beverages / sugar-sweetened beverages’ ...
Labour market data released by Statistics New Zealand today indicates that a gender pay gap persists in New Zealand, despite improvement in some areas. ...
In the midst of the 6th Great Extinction Event the coalition, STOP Trashing Our Planet is urging voters to take full responsibility for the legacy we are leaving our children. ...
LGNZ will carefully consider the proposed National Policy Statement on Urban Development (NPS-UD) to assess if it meets the Government’s aim of enabling urban development or simply adds more red tape to the planning process. ...
Statistics out today from the Government show that the gender wage imbalance, or gap, in the average wage is 11.9%, a strong 2 percentage point improvement from 13.9% last year. The gender pay imbalance in the median wage is 9.3%. ...
Newstalk ZB Drive host and Herald on Sunday columnist Heather du Plessis-Allan is taking on the challenge of keeping 2019 Auckland Mayoral contenders Phil Goff and John Tamihere in line and on point in tonight’s live NZ Herald Newstalk ZB debate. ...
After twenty years Napier residents have endured heavy sleep and health disruptive noise and air pollution from freight trucks gridlock operations to and from the Napier port and other regions. ...
The EMA says much is riding on the board and chief executive of the new National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) announced by Infrastructure Minister Hon Shane Jones today, with a difficult task ahead to deliver on its purpose. ...
The Public Service Association welcomes the introduction of workplace standards by the State Services Commission that make it clear public services should expect positive and safe workplaces. ...
The Financial Services Federation (FSF) - the voice of responsible lenders and leasing companies - and FinCap - working with consumers facing financial hardship - are signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) this Thursday 22 August in Auckland. It will ...
Wellington, 20 August 2019 — Lawyers for Vulnerable New Zealanders (LVNZ) has lent its support to the amendments proposed by MP Chris Penk to better protect vulnerable people from being coerced to end their lives under the End of Life Choice Bill, currently ...
The Government’s decision to establish and independent Parliamentary Budget Office, outside of Treasury, is a taxpayer victory and will improve democracy, says the New Zealand Taxpayers' Union . Taxpayers' Union spokesman Louis Houlbrooke says, “It's ...
The Taxpayers’ Union can reveal that the cost-benefit analysis prepared by Ministry of Transport and used to advise Ministers on the Government’s Clean Car Standard and ‘Feebate’ policies has serious flaws which undermine justifications for the ...
The Aotearoa New Zealand Association of Social Workers (ANZASW) welcomes new proposals for prison reform put forward by the Minister of Corrections and non-government organisations recently. ...
The New Zealand Maori Council has called on the nation to address all forms of racism and not to shy away from an honest conversation about where it’s taking hold. The call comes after the Nelson Club decided to keep a member after his comments became ...
Wellington (20 August 2019): The New Zealand Initiative enthusiastically welcomes the Coalition Government’s announcement of an Independent Parliamentary Budget Office. Finance Minister Grant Robertson and Associate Finance Minister James Shaw ...
Drs Say No agree with Chris Penk’s amendment to protect vulnerable patients from coercion, although the organisation still maintains that no safe euthanasia legislation can ever be drafted and continues to urge MPs to defeat the End of Life Choice Bill. ...
The Chief Ombudsman Peter Boshier says the Northland Regional Corrections Facility is persisting with policies that are preventing it from achieving its full potential. ...
The second national hui in the Māori-led Inquiry into Oranga Tamariki concluded yesterday ahead of schedule after a capacity audience formally ratified the terms of reference that determines the scope and purpose of the independent investigation ...
Forest & Bird says WWF-NZ's plan for protecting Māui dolphins is based on testing unproven methods on a species that is almost extinct, and is urging the Government to reject the proposal. ...
Primary and intermediate school principals have voted to accept a new settlement from the Ministry of Education, which includes entrenched pay parity with secondary principals. ...
Police acknowledge the findings of the Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) report into the 2014 search of a property belonging to Nicky Hager. ...
The Independent Police Conduct Authority has found that the Police's unlawful search of Nicky Hager's property in October 2014 resulted from an unwitting neglect of duty and did not amount to misconduct by any individual officer. Police policy at the ...
Tuesday, August 20: Greenpeace has labeled an overnight announcement by fishing company Sanford as a danger to Māui and Hector’s dolphins, and is calling on the Government to reject the ‘Sanford Plan’ immediately. ...
World Animal Protection describes an overnight announcement (19 August, embargoed until 6am 20 August), by fishing company Sanford as a cynical move to undermine growing support for full habitat protection for Māui and Hector’s dolphins. They called ...
When the combined tax on fuel hits over 50 percent in some parts of the country, it is hypocritical for the Government to blame corporates, says the New Zealand Taxpayers' Union . ...
A leading expert in suicide prevention has urged MPs not to confuse suicide with assisted dying as they consider the second reading of the End of Life Choice Bill. ...
Over the weekend Māoridom arrived in the Waikato for the annual Koroneihana Celebrations. Yesterday almost 300 attended a Hui in Hamilton to continue the Oranga Tamariki Review led by an independent Māori panel to coincide with the Koroneihana. The Hui confirmed ...
The Council of Licenced Firearm Owners (COLFO) says the newly issued ‘price list’ for compensation of banned firearms reveals that haste in preparing the ban has led to an underestimation of the number of affected firearms and their value. ...
Corrections Minister Kelvin Davis has admitted parts of the prison system are “extremely racist” and says that’s why the Government is asking Māori to work with it to make changes. ...
Ongoing drug-test sanctions contradicts Government’s rhetoric on drugs Reports that two-thirds of beneficiaries who fail drug tests are still having their benefit sanctioned contradicts the Government’s so-called health approach to drugs. Auckland ...
An Auckland Homelessness Collective is optimistic extra government support for sustaining tenancies signals a commitment to a multi-pronged approach to tackling homelessness. ...
Wanaka-based trust ONE New Zealand will be hosting six days of talks, workshops and hands-on activities with local and national experts to educate, inspire and enable grassroots action towards a sustainable future. ...
In last week’s episode of Politics in Full Sentences, David, Brooke and Ruwan discussed why Jacinda Ardern has been lecturing our friends overseas, why Andrew Little called ACT's three strikes law “fascism”, whether he will give prisoners the right to ...
“Community safety must be the paramount consideration when releasing an offender, and the only way for that to be achieved is for the offender to acknowledge their crimes.” ...
“District Health Boards are failing to foster a culture of distributed clinical leadership, despite its demonstrated benefits to the sector,” says Ian Powell, Executive Director of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists (ASMS). ...
Ratepayers around Auckland were spitting out their morning coffees listening to Phil Goff’s incredible claims on breakfast radio today that this election is about ‘honesty’ and that Aucklanders can trust him on his promises. Auckland Ratepayers’ ...
By Michael Andrew Journalists across Papua New Guinea have spoken out in support of EMTV news director Neville Choi after his “unacceptable” termination from a role he had held for six years. A public statement released on Monday listed the reasons for his termination, one of which was his ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Camellia Webb-Gannon, Lecturer, University of Wollongong Last weekend, the Indonesian police took 43 West Papuan students into custody for allegedly disrespecting the Indonesian flag during an independence day celebration (an allegation the students deny). Police stormed the students’ dorm and used teargas ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Natalie Klein, Professor, UNSW Prime Minister Scott Morrison has confirmed that Australia will lend military support to protect shipping in the Middle East. The commitment has been long expected, with Australia sending a frigate, an aircraft and some headquarters staff as part ...
By Johnny Blades of RNZ Pacific Protests are spreading in Indonesia-ruled West Papua in response to harassment of Papuans during explosive incidents in Javanese cities last week. Indonesia’s president has urged calm after some of the protests turned violent, but he’s been criticised for not directly addressing a festering ...
This year marks the 15th anniversary of the karaoke game that introduced an entire generation to the horrors of ‘Downtown’ by Petula Clark. Jordan Hamel ranks all 30 songs from SingStar v1, from worst to best.Before my generation was old enough to get smashed on reasonably priced Merlot and wander ...
After a decade of making music, Sons of Zion are still refusing to settle into a genre. They sit down to talk about the joys of pop music and te reo Māori, and why a “reggae” band can do both.In 2009 Sons of Zion released their debut album, a self-titled ...
The government is directing councils to loosen up their planning rules, allowing cities to grow both up and out, in a bid to solve the housing crisis. ...
New Zealand’s largest construction company and controversial owner of the disputed Ihumātao land near Auckland airport has made a $164m profit, a big turnaround from its losses last year. Business editor Maria Slade analyses what it all means.What has Fletcher Building announced?The construction and building products company with operations on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Australia will commit a frigate, an aircraft and some headquarters staff to an American-led freedom of navigation operation in the Middle East. Scott Morrison, announcing the long-expected commitment at a Canberra news conference on Wednesday, ...
The local sharemarket has taken an unexpected beating this morning driven by investor disappointment about the performance of the top stock - A2 Milk. ...
Sometimes, less is more. Even when it comes to Quentin Tarantino (Warning: Contains mild spoilers).Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is an impressive film. It’s got great acting, stunning visuals, and a twist ending, all laced with the sort of attention to detail you’d expect from the nuttiest of film ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Beeson, Professor of International Politics, University of Western Australia Populism and environmentalism are words seldom seen in the same sentence. One is associated predominantly with nationalists and charismatic leaders of “real people”, the other with broadly-based collective action to address the ...
Who makes up the royal ‘we’? Lana Lopesi reviews a massive show at ST PAUL St Gallery in Auckland that investigates questions of community, culture and conflict.How to Live Together at ST PAUL St Gallery could hardly have been better timed, opening just days before the protection of Ihumātao in ...
The first week of Celebrity Treasure Island had it all – mud, vomit and coconut brassieres. Alex Casey ranks the celebrity contestants vying to win $100,000 for their chosen charity. It’s 2019 and mostly everything is bad, so I am choosing to focus on the positives of Celebrity Treasure Island NZ. ...
The government is directing councils to loosen up their planning rules, allowing cities to grow both up and out, in a bid to solve the housing crisis. ...
Australia's big banks may have to make do with less money from their New Zealand operations, as Australia's banking regulator moves to improve their financial strength. ...
The anti-1080 lobby has made a martyr out of kea, but that ignores another salient fact: kea survival in large part depends on pest control. Dave Hansford explores on the challenge to balance pest control with conservation.In April this year, Zero Invasive Predators (ZIP) announced that two kea had died ...
Fletcher Building has posted a solid full year profit but continues to be dogged by a weak Australian housing market and underperformance in some of its businesses there. ...
Work obsessed drone Alex Braae assesses whether shutting himself up in a dark room will allow some semblance of normality on a day off.It is a sad fact of life that many of us spend alarmingly large chunks of it working. The relationship is like quicksand: as we spend more ...
Inspired by the ethos of food-rescue organisation Kaibosh, chef Kelda Hains looked to the past to champion unloved ingredients and showcase clever waste-minimising techniques at her All Taste, No Waste dinner during Visa Wellington On a Plate. Ever glanced at those supermarket bags of pre-cut broccoli florets and wondered what happens ...
Dr Bryce EdwardsCould the most interesting aspect of the current local government elections turn out to be generational change? At the moment, there is a surge of media and activist focus on younger candidates standing for office. It suddenly seems to be “cool” again to want to be a ...
Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.New Zealand Parliament Buildings, Wellington, New Zealand.Today’s content by Dr Bryce Edwards.Petrol prices Tom Pullar-Strecker (Stuff): Don’t be surprised if petrol study ends in a deal, ...
Jacinda Ardern’s election campaign was high on hope but this Government should remember that those who encourage what cannot be achieved are quickly found out. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Professor Tim Bentley, Director of Research, professor of Work and Organisation, Massey University According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), the workplace can be a positive force for improving mental health. But many workers are exposed to work environments that are damaging ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Denis Muller, Senior Research Fellow in the Centre for Advancing Journalism, University of Melbourne Alan Jones’s political power is to a large extent based on a self-fulfilling prophecy: politicians believe he can shift votes, so they pay homage to him, which adds ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rosemary Stanton, Visiting Fellow, School of Medical Sciences, UNSW Research Checks interrogate newly published studies and how they’re reported in the media. The analysis is undertaken by one or more academics not involved with the study, and reviewed by another, to make ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Associate Professor Ralph Brougham Chapman, Director, Environmental Studies, Victoria University of Wellington CC BY-NDClimate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change.If you have a question you’d ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Salvatore Babones, Associate Professor, University of Sydney Australia’s leading universities are now looking to India in search of new sources of international students. This comes amid worries they may have reached a “China max” – no more room for growth in Chinese ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jen Couch, Senior Lecturer – Youth Work and International Development, Australian Catholic University One of the biggest challenges young people of refugee background face in their new country is finding safe, affordable and appropriate housing. Yet this is central to social inclusion ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christopher Sheil, Visiting Senior Fellow in History, UNSW The results of the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics biennial survey of income and wealth met have met with an uneven response, perhaps in part due to a slipshod press release. Released with the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christina Lee, Senior Lecturer in Literary and Cultural Studies, Curtin University This story contains spoilers for Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. While promoting Once Upon a Time in Hollywood at the Cannes Film Festival, filmmaker Quentin Tarantino was asked why Margot ...
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: National cries foul over parliamentary costing unit idea, Ngawha Prison heavily criticised in report, and fuel market study confirms prices are high.The government have announced a recommendation to create an official, independent parliamentary costing unit, reports the NZ Herald.The aim is to ...
Phil Goff and John Tamihere are into round 10 of 23 debates planned before the mayoral election in October, and they're punching hard, not resting on the ropes or pulling eachother into dull political clinches. ...
Open mike 06/12/2012 
That's the only way to describe the government's plans for a Parliamentary Budget Office to allow opposition parties to get an independent costing of their policies. When the idea was first floated back in 2016 as an office within Treasury, I thought that wasn't independent enough and argued that it ...12 hours ago
Television advertising has a huge impact on our lives. Even if we don’t recognise that, we know it has to be true, since otherwise why would advertisers spend so much on it? Its significance, however, is greater than simply the influence it has on what we purchase and consume. It ...18 hours ago
by Jan Rivers More than 30 years ago a Commission of Inquiry was held in New Zealand to investigate, amongst other things, whether women with cervical cancer were aware that they had been part of a research project and whether they were properly informed of the treatment options ...1 day ago
Everyone Wants To Be Fuhrer: When fascist groups are discussed, the image conjured-up in the minds of most New Zealanders is one of pathetic misfits. This negative impression is reinforced by the latter’s idiotic embrace of the swastika. Even in the second decade of the twenty-first century, the baleful legacy ...2 days ago
In the previous two posts, I laid out the context and set the theoretical framework to answer a question: whether indigenous economies should take the LEAP. This final part outlines ways to conceive of practicing mana motuhake within the existing legal system by carving out special jurisdictions that enable Indigenous ...3 days ago
Fully Informed? Labour’s 2017 promises raised expectations that were little short of revolutionary. Unfortunately, they were never adequately shaken through the fiscal sieve. The hard economic work was not done – and it shows. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s critics have long complained that her grasp of the way the New ...4 days ago
You cannot expect to pound communities into the ground day after day, year after year, decade after decade and just expect them to take it lying down. There’s a point at which the place will explode. And we’re faced with some very big ructions on both sides of the Atlantic ...5 days ago
6 days ago
Going Down? Once truth and propaganda become fused in the minds of one’s followers, debate and discussion become redundant. If one’s opponents are all outrageous liars, then engaging with them in any way is pointless. Rather than waste its time, a political party should, instead, target all its messages at ...6 days ago
We need to fundamentally reframe our systems settings to address the drivers causing and underpinning inequality; structural change in systems especially financial. The Equality Network Hui was held in Wellington on 27 June 2019. The hui covered important topics such as child poverty; a living wage; taxation; public health; mental ...1 week ago
The views-per-page for some of my recent postings:Depressing, isn't it? Provide thoughtful and wise commentary on the mainstream of British politics and no-one notices. Make a passing reference to Tommy DICKHEAD Robinson in a thread title and you get hundreds of views. Write something about anti-Semitism and you get another ...1 week ago
The government has announced plans to move the Treaty of Waitangi and other taonga to a new site. Great news! So where are they going? Right next to the old one:The new plan will see a new 22,000-square-metre archive built on the former site of Defence House - the former ...1 week ago
Back in June, StatsNZ went public about a project to track population data on an hourly level by using people's cellphones. It wasn't as bad as it initially looked - they were receiving no individual data, only counts by suburb - but there was still a huge consent problem, so ...1 week ago
I did an interview on the TVNZ Breakfast Show about the situation in Hong Kong. I tried to frame the issue as a collective action problem between two sides with very different end games. The video is here. Because of time constraints we could not discuss the fact that the ...1 week ago
Image Credit: Wild Rose College A new study reporting the ranges of values for kidney and liver parameters in a healthy population is being actively misrepresented by anti-fluoride campaigners. The Fluoride Action Network’s (FAN) latest ... 1 week ago
Alone, Alone. All, All Alone: Will it be a good or a bad thing, when humanity’s bright blue spacecraft is stricken by the civilisation-destroying problem of Climate Change, that no Huston Control will be standing-by to rescue the crew?“WE HAVE A PROBLEM, HUSTON.” These were the words used by the ...1 week ago
Divided Loyalties: Can the Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, be relied upon? That’s what the boys and girls at Foggy Bottom and the Pentagon needed to be reassured about. Because, from the perspective of Washington, it’s looking more and more like Jacinda Ardern and her Labour Party comrades are getting ready ...1 week ago
This handy Queer Theory Glossary is from thetranswidow.com In case you’ve had trouble keeping up with the spate of new queer theory terms, here’s a handy glossary for your reference. Queer – A straight person with an interesting haircut. Non-binary/genderqueer – A chubby young female, typically 16-28, who has ...2 weeks ago
The winter grazing issue is becoming a highly sensitised one that I hope will not become so politicised that it delays solutions and results in the suicides of some very stressed farmers.Winter grazing has hit the headlines after a determined campaign, including the release of a video of some very ...2 weeks ago
The Green Part has been accused of lack of transparency in two recent situations. The first was the claimed media lockdown during Green's annual conference and the second was Julie Ann Genter's refusal to release a letter she had sent to Phil Twyford.I do get frustrated when journalist's succumb to ...2 weeks ago
Blowing-Up The House: Is Winston Peters planning to put himself at the head of all those New Zealanders who refuse to countenance the Coalition Government caving-in to the Ihumatao protesters? The most effective way of doing this would be to issue Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern with an ultimatum. If she ...2 weeks ago
A Cult, that many actors, politicians, and those with a low IQ are joining is sweeping across civilisation, with one main intention – ending humans reign on Earth. Starting as a well meaning though deeply flawed theory, that the Earth was warming due to mankind emitting greenhouse gasses, it was ...2 weeks ago
Opportunities to dodge tax are shrinking with the completion of a new tax agreement with Switzerland, Revenue Minister Stuart Nash announced today. Mr Nash and the Swiss Ambassador David Vogelsanger have today signed documents to update the double tax agreement (DTA). The previous DTA was signed in 1980. “Double tax ...2 weeks ago
Jordan Williams, a spokesman for the Auckland Ratepayers’ Alliance and its nationwide sister group the New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union is slamming Auckland Mayor Phil Goff for his comments today that John Tamihere would need the Government’s support to ...9 hours ago
By Michael Andrew Journalists across Papua New Guinea have spoken out in support of EMTV news director Neville Choi after his “unacceptable” termination from a role he had held for six years. A public statement released on Monday listed the reasons for his termination, one of which was his ...4 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Camellia Webb-Gannon, Lecturer, University of Wollongong Last weekend, the Indonesian police took 43 West Papuan students into custody for allegedly disrespecting the Indonesian flag during an independence day celebration (an allegation the students deny). Police stormed the students’ dorm and used teargas ...6 hours ago
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NZ Perceived least corrupt 2012
What a great word to use when trying to fill peoples heads with nonsense..
I reckon people are seeing through it these days!
That’s actually scary. The corruption in NZ over the last few years has been of the in our face, don’t care variety and yet still people think we’re the least corrupt?
/facepalm
yes Draco knows much better than those silly fools at the international organisation who utilise their expertise and training in a transparent fashion.
I mean what do these idiots know?
http://www.transparency.org/whoweare/organisation/board_of_directors/1/
Draco’s knows best.
(p.s The report say’s NZ is least corrupt – not that there is no corruption)
Well I think the finding is highly questionable… Not only was the Serious Fraud Office predicting a huge increase in serious fraud cases, New Zealand has become one of the worlds favourite places for tax evaders to hide their ill-gotten gains.
We also have a largely ineffective system to address various types of fraud and you would be hard pressed to find anybody who hasn’t been affected. Not to mention that this is meant to be an annual report that actually gets trotted out around three or four times a year or whenever National needs some good news.
PS the report says we’re PERCEIVED to be least corrupt not that we are actually least corrupt. So a perception from various institutes with a vested interest and academics from other countries or a perception from New Zealanders… Take your pick.
“Not only was the Serious Fraud Office predicting a huge increase in serious fraud cases”
Fraud =/= corruption
Seriously, if you want to know what proper corruption looks like spend sometime in South Africa. I have spent a lot of time there and have witnessed first hand what institutional corruption looks like and NZ doesn’t have it.
Yes! Fraud is a type of corruption TheContrarian. I’m sure you’re right that South Africa has a lot of corruption, but unless corruption has become a lot worse in other countries at a time corruption in New Zealand has become worse according to the Serious Fraud Office, the perception index is wrong! To argue that NZ doesn’t have any institutional corruption is naive.
This is true, but the survey is of perceptions in relation to other countries.
So rewriting the tax codes to some of the lowest levels in the world is unethical, but as long as the majority of people paid the legally required amount, it’s not “corrupt”.
Whether NZ is more corrupt than it once was is not the metric of the survey.
So the metric of the survey is whether people can be duped into thinking New Zealand is the least corrupt country 🙂 Glad we figured that one out.
Well, it might actually be less corrupt than, e.g. Aus, Greece, Russia or the US.
Whether that means we have an objectively honest population is another matter entirely. But at least we’re not as bad as the French.
In comparison to most countries NZ does not have a problem with institutional corruption.
100% honest compared to other countries.
Here’s some facts from actual research TheContrarian, perhaps you might like to try it yourself sometime:
4% of NZ’ers admit paying a bribe to win business (c.f. 0% Denmark; 1% UK; 2% Australia)
Only 44% of NZX top 50 companies have anti-bribery policies (c.f. 72% UK; 69% USA; 50% Europe)
73% NZ’ers believe corruption is increasing
Despite these numbers that show New Zealand shouldn’t be perceived as the least corrupt country in the world, the actual mechanism of institutional corruption is very hard to quantify, and other studies have found that corrupt, fraudulent, coercive or collusive practices in New Zealand are endemic within our institutional arrangements.
This being the case, and making note of what the actual research shows, I would have to say you’re categorically wrong TheContrarian… But what else is new?
Jackal, all your figures show is that New Zealanders do a lot of business in corrupt countries – I would assume China, Indonesia, and the koha cultures of the Pacific would feature heavily. Not the same thing as New Zealand being particularly corrupt at all. At least that’s what I’m assuming as you haven’t bothered to link to any site that will tell me the context for the data, or even whether you just pulled those numbers out of your arse or not. Cite sources please.
“I would have to say you’re categorically wrong TheContrarian”
Well Jackal I suggest you also send your figures to transparency.org and let them know how wrong they are.
“73% NZ’ers believe corruption is increasing ”
Argumentum ad populum. Logical fallacy.
And yes, sources please.
@Felix:
“100% honest compared to other countries.”
Well yes, it is a comparative scale and no where do they, or I, suggest there is zero corruption in NZ.
“Argumentum ad populum. Logical fallacy.”
Doesn’t that apply to the whole thing though? Seeing as it’s only measuring “perceived” corruption?
Not really, you wouldn’t say because 98% of climatologists agree in Global Warming it is an Argumentum ad populum.
To say “73% NZ’ers believe corruption is increasing” therefore NZ is corrupt is an Argumentum ad populum.
It is the same as saying most of the population believes in some sort of god therefore god exists.
(Though I see your point)
Perhaps I’ve misunderstood what they’re describing.
I thought “perceived” referred to the perceptions of ordinary people as measured by corruption experts, as opposed to the perceptions of the corruption experts themselves.
Lets put it this way
A comparative study which publicly announces it’s methodology, results and is considered to be relatively accurately in its representation of real world corruption is much less of an argumentum ad populum than Jackal arguing the study is bunk because 76% of NZer’s said so.
What does “perception” mean?
Hard.
Well, whatever.
I’ll throw my lot in with with well know and well respected international metrics which can be fairly well applied in the real world over Jackal and his unsourced statistics.
Sure, although I don’t actually see a contradiction between those two claims.
i.e. we can be perceived as being less corrupt than others while also perceiving ourselves becoming more corrupt than we were.
Measuring two completely different things, innit.
innit indeed.
And whatever is or isn’t wrong with the 76% stat, you can’t really call it a popularity fallacy, when what you are seeking to find is a perception, even if you do put it in fucking latin.
if what your looking for is a perception, then ‘what people reckon’ is what you are looking for. To call that a fallacy would be a category error of some sort.
This might be news to you Populuxe1, but New Zealand companies do a lot of business within New Zealand. The research would be similar to the percentage difference between foreign business and local business. I believe local trade still makes up the biggest contributor to our GDP.
The statistical source is the Serious Fraud Office. There is other relevant research that backs up my argument btw. Instead of just being a couple of opinionated wankers TheContrarian and Populuxe1, why don’t you look into the matter yourselves?
Claiming that these figures should be sent to transparency.org is entirely stupid. Any research agency would be well versed in such information, and as McFlock succinctly points out it’s a perception index, not the reality of corruption within New Zealand.
If you don’t believe the opinion of the masses is correct, you must also be arguing against a majority voting in a government TheContrarian. Anti-democratic much?
You might note that the figures above the 73% of New Zealanders believing corruption is increasing ie 4% admitting paying bribes and 44% anti-bribery policies, is not Argumentum ad populum. Interesting that the research backs up the New Zealand public perception eh!
Yeah, yeah. Possibly a deliberate and misleading point at which to cut the quoted text, but hey.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/greece-most-corrupt-eu-country-survey-reveals-8386456.html
Jeebers. Any ladies thinking of voting National should probably have a squiz at this thread and see what they really think of you: http://www.kiwiblog.co.nz/2012/12/men_only_clubs.html
Troglodytes.
http://redwing.hutman.net/~mreed/warriorshtm/troglodyte.htm
Couldn’t bring myself to read the comments at KB, but I have to say that I’m in two minds about men’s clubs. I think it’s fine for different genders to have their own spaces (I’ve worked in feminist collectives where men are not allowed). The problem with men’s clubs historically is that they’ve been the bastions of the old boys who have been running the show and not willing to share that power and privilege with anyone else – hence the original challenges about membership. I’m guessing that women moving in those circles of power needed membership in order to make headway. The problem now is that they’re like to become bastions of the remnants of the old boy’s networks and/or repositories for the misogyny that’s no longer acceptable in open society (think men’s rights groups also).
Not sure what the solution is there, but the law firm in question, if it had any sense of anything, would hold the party somewhere else.
Trust me weka, most of the comments had very little to do with men’s clubs.
And yep, the issue is with the attitude of the Law Society, not with the rules of the club.
I had to give up.
There is only so much ‘sex advice for Pete George from someone dumber than Pete Geroge’ I can take.
But there were lolz.
Oh come on, you have to link to that now Pb.
It all starts about half way through the thread felix linked to.
You were warned. *shudders*
The difference between left and right is quite substantial. This is reflected in the nature of commenting between the standard and kiwiblog. People may appear roughly the same and live in the same types of houses and lead similar lives, but their underlying philosophies and approaches to life are often at opposite and extreme ends of the spectrum. A bit like how two seemingly similar people can live in the same street yet one believes in eternal life and one doesn’t – can’t get more extreme ends of outlook than that.
What would be interesting is to post the same subject on each site at the same time and see how different the comment streams are. And the one linked to by Felix would be a great one to try it out on.
Done…. Apart from the same time part.
You mean i didn’t go far enough last time ? Aaaaahhhgggggg.
I read a few comments. They don’t seem to get the difference between a single sex sports club or gym and that of an occupational group: the Law Society.
Well, it looks as though the spam filter at work has a low tolerence for troglodytes:
Access to http://www.kiwiblog.co.nz has been restricted.
Reason: Based on a content scan of this URL, it is suspected this site may contain offensive material.
URL: http://www.kiwiblog.co.nz/2012/12/men_only_clubs.html
LOL! Good job. Doubly funny because Farrar often gets on his high horse about sites that are blocked… Now he can add Kiwibog to the list.
Great to see on DF some of the RW trolls seen here FTTT. It is a good thing to have DF’s blog – gives the blowflies a place to hover and deposit.
Pablo on Dear Leader.
If Mr. Key is not clueless on intelligence and security matters, then the “spy” plane response and his other actions show that along with being contemptuous of those who may seek to hold him to account, he is arrogant, irresponsible, disloyal, mean-spirited and vindictive as well. To which can be added one more trait that has emerged in Mr. Key as of late: callous narcissism.
http://www.kiwipolitico.com/2012/12/familiarity-becomes-contempt/
.
Draco is right above in that corruption is the in your face don’t care type.
Perfect example – get Wyatt Creech, an owner in the dairy industry, to write a fucking bullshit report on the state of water regs in Canterbury and use that to claim that democracy itself needs to be ripped out so the lying dirty business farming pricks who couldn’t achieve their business greed through usual business and democratic processes simply thieve what they want. All the while claiming it is something other than that.
Corrupt.
Liars and thieves – the farmers, the national government, David Carter, Nick Smith, Wyatt Creech, Amy Adams.
They should all just fuck off to Zimbabwe
What is John Key, Prime Minister of the purportedly (first equal) ‘least corrupt country in the world’ going to do about this one?
WILL NZ PRIME MINISTER STAND DOWN JOHN BANKS AS MINISTER – WHEN BANKS APPEARS IN THE WELLINGTON DISTRICT COURT ON 11 DECEMBER 2012 TO FACE A PRIVATE PROSECUTION FOR ALLEGED ELECTORAL FRAUD?
http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/peters-powerless-jettison-horan-parliament-academic-dw-133495#comment-598400
MY COMMENT – yet to be published:
What is NZ Prime Minister John Key going to do when his MMP coalition partner, ACT Leader and MP for Epsom, John Banks, Minister for Small Business and Regulatory Reform, and Associate Minister for Education and Commerce, appears in the Wellington District on Tuesday 11 December 2012 at 1.45pm to face a private prosecution alleging electoral fraud?
Is he going to, as a first step, stand John Banks down as a Minister?
If a Wellington District Court Judge believes there is arguably a case for John Banks to answer – or a summons would not have been issued.
Or is NZ Prime Minister John Key going to continue to defend the indefensible, and politically protect John Banks?
Penny Bright
‘Anti-corruption campaigner’
http://www.dodgyjohnhasgone.com
Farmers should oppose fracking
The potential for fracking to pollute pasture and water supplies in Taranaki isn’t just speculation… Documented evidence shows that fracking fluid blow-down pits at the Kapuni site had polluted the groundwater which was no longer fit for human or stock consumption. The BETX (benzene, ethylbenzene, toluene and xylenes) contaminated water also didn’t meet the criteria for irrigation, meaning it was highly toxic.
Of course Shell Todd Oil Services, which owns Kapuni, and the complicit regional council say there’s no link with the fracking that’s occurred in the area and the groundwater contamination, however BETX has been regularly used in fracking around Taranaki and there’s no other explanation for it to be found in the groundwater other than unsafe storage of well fluids in fracking blow-down pits.
And http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/disbelief-120-cows-drop-dead-5265162
“No Evidence Fracking harms ground water” …. yeah right M8!
Ha! Nothing to do with fracking, the water was contaminated in the tank it was being held in, which had been previously used for mixing liquid fertiliser.
Yeah heard that , didn’t strike me as being true, calling vets, good looking animals and he couldn’t be bothered cleaning his water tanker?
More likely he got the water from a local stream…
Seems its not the fert. But it’s a safe bet it was something in the water. And something pretty potent, at that. Hopefully its not another farmer family jealousy case and just misadventure.
True, it’ll be interesting to see the analysis of the water.
Jackal. Cue for some dissidents=
“The existence of fracking is all David Shearer’s fault. Why didn’t he stop fracking!!!” 👿
R.I.P Dave. Thanks for the link geoff.
Thanks geoff. Forever a classic!
Within the last hour there was a sudden loud thunder clap right above, that made me jump – freaky! Now reports are coming in of storm damage out here in west Auckland, including a tornado not far away in the Hobsonville area.
It seems to be clearing now, with all OK where I am….. but it was pretty scary for a moment. I hope people in the storm damage areas are doing OK.
Now we have reports of fatalities, with warnings to stay indoors, maybe more stormy weather about to hit.
Cunliffe tweet about his west Auckland staff:
Deeply concerned by tornado and injury reports in West Auckland. My staff can pass damage reports to Civil Defence. Phone (09) 827 3062.
Today in history: 1st Labour Government takes office, 6 December 1935.
Ummm some kind of bug showing up in the Cloudflare feature
On a couple of webkit renderer browsers (ie Chrome and Rekong) I started getting jams on loading images – probably a advertising image.
Turned the feature off as it is both beta and doesn’t really seem to speed the page loads.
Russel Norman – Hero of the Week
There’s no question that Dr Norman articulates himself well and is as dedicated as they come to a future government that will reduce GHG emissions to protect our environment. In fact his ability in the house to show National up for their environmental failures is second to none…
Our PM’s electorate!!!! Thankfully he’s never there, he could have been injured!
[lprent: Off topic moved to OpenMike. ]
“A spokeswoman for Prime Minister John Key – the MP for Helensville, which includes Hobsonville – said he is being kept informed of the situation.
“Emergency services are currently responding. People are being advised to remain indoors and to avoid the area, if possible.”
She added: “The Prime Minister will continue to assess the situation as information becomes available throughout the day.”
Later the PM called for a map and was shown where Hobsonville is.
“Oh” he said” I rememebr now, I used to go to the hot pools at paratai when I was a kid.”
[lprent: Off topic moved to OpenMike. ]
Meanwhile, David Cunliffe MP for New Lynn, having checked his own electorate, rather than return to Parliament, is heading out west to check the PM’s electorate for him.
Oh dear, you’ve upset the baby farmer.
Thanks, Lynn. I was thinking to try to do that myself, but was a bit nervous I’d do some damage.
I don’t think the last two comments are in good taste, people have died out there, show just a little humanity, you are meant to be Left and for the “people”
[lprent: Off topic moved to OpenMike.
Hard to see why? ]
Fuck off Raymond, tracey was simply passing comment on the laziness of a politician.
You, on the other hand, are trying to politicise a tragedy.
I’m not sure what the baby farmer comment meant.
I certainly have concern for those who have died, and been injured. I am “out there” and was a little scared in the middle of the storm.
I have yet to see any comment from John Key about his electorate. i have seen comments and/or tweets from Len Brown & David Cunliffe during the afternoon. They are out here checking on people. I was not making that up. Check my link above to one of Cunliffe’s tweets.
Tony doesn’t like people saying mean things about jonky
http://keepingstock.blogspot.co.nz/2012/12/setting-low-standard.html
Bomber Bradbury is banned, but Garth McVicar is not. What gives?
Susan Couch was the victim of a brutal assault eleven years ago, and it looks like she is now going to be compensated, at long last. Sounds like good news—until you realize that a particularly loathsome jackal has glommed onto her suffering, and milked it shamelessly for his own nefarious ends. I’m sure thousands of Jim’s listeners were dismayed and disgusted to hear Jim Mora interview, sympathetically, the head of the S.S. Trust, Garth “Mac the Knife” McVicar.
I sent Jim Mora the following e-mail….
Any decent organization would make Garth McVicar persona non grata
Dear Jim,
I am concerned to hear you giving a sympathetic forum to the S.S. Trust’s gruesome leader Garth McVicar. Martyn “Bomber” Bradbury was banned from your programme for daring to comment on the morals of a controversial politician; yet Garth McVicar seemingly has open access, no matter how brutal and vicious his statements.
You have repeatedly had Garth McVicar on The Panel and called him, absurdly, a “victims’ advocate”. I know that many, probably most, of your colleagues are appalled at this, yet you persist with it.
Perhaps you could explain on air one day why Bomber Bradbury is banned, yet Garth McVicar is not.
Yours sincerely,
Morrissey Breen
Northcote Point
Myth Busting: Aucklands Geography
Great post pointing out how well Auckland is suited to PT.
Good post, DTB. Auckland can use a mixture of water, and land-based public transport. It’s a pity they never made a canal down by the Whau, from one harbour to the other.
NOAA has released the 2012 Arctic report card.
ffs. in one of the pdf docs, it looks like the max volume of winter ice (2012) now more or less equals what used to be the summer min (2007).
Is there a meme developing about Russel Norman not caring about climate change? Where did it originate from?
It seems like a crude and obvious attempt to undercut his credibility – with Green Party members and with the wider public. And the timing of it seems odd: just as he’s getting a lot of notice for being an effective politician. Or is it just me?
Not seen anything credible on it.
I don’t dispute his commitment to climate change. But I am not very happy about the way he his treated these days as the sole leader of the Greens. I feel this undermines the way Turei is very good on social policies – it marginalises that aspect of the Green Party.
Hi karol,
Good point. It’s a bit weird: they’re both commenting on areas the National Party are weak on – I’d expect them to both be getting reasonably equal amounts of traction in the media.
Any theories about the reasons behind the disparity?
It’s more likely that Russel Norman simply gets up the noses of the Nats more and they respond, which creates a story. Whereas the Nats try their hardest to ignore Turei, so there’s not so much controversy for the media to latch onto.
I don’t think there’s any bias within the Greens and the bias you see from the media is something the Greens have little control over. Personally I’m just glad the Greens are getting a little bit of media coverage, although I would like to see more focus of social and environmental issues than who will be the next Minister of Finance.
Jenny, a commenter here on the Standard, has been running that line about Norman for the past few weeks. She’s not getting much traction though. Haven’t seen it anywhere else. Where did you pick it up?
Hi weka,
I saw Jenny’s comments earlier this week, and then I read The Jackal’s blog-post about ‘Russel Norman – Hero of the Week’. I wondered whether I was seeing the beginnings of a reputational attack, followed by some quickly deployed defence.
Looks like it might be a more isolated thing, though.
I’ve been meaning to write that post for a while. As far as I’m concerned there’s nothing to defend re Jenny’s comments about Russel Norman… They’re entirely ludicrous! Was it a coincidence that the good Doctor was making a speech about climate change on the same day Jenny was saying he never talks about it? Most definitely.
http://www.pundit.co.nz/content/bloggers-v-journalists-why-cant-we-all-get-along
An entirely predictable blog from journalist and blogger, Tim Watkin, on the debate about blogging vs journalism, focussing on the divergence of opinions about Gower’s (and other msm reportage) of events at the recent the Labour Party Conference.
What caught my eye was this comment:
…..But the complaints still sound disingenuous to me. As best as I can see, Cunliffe got played, out-manouvered. He had ambitions to challenge for the leadership come February. Rather than waiting like a turkey for Christmas, those opposed to him pre-empted the challenge. When Cunliffe was unwilling to say he’d back his leader in a vote in three months’ time, it became a story….
Only, if this was indeed what happened, (that Cunliffe got played), why is Watkins defending msm coverage that it was Cunliffe who tried (unsuccessfully) to ‘play’ the conference. Or are the facts not really as important to “real” journalists as Watkins is claiming in this blog?
Yep, js, that’s what struck me earlier today when I read it. Watkin claimed the MSM journalists go to great lengths to ensure they are not biased. Then he made exactly the point about the conference that many TS posters and commenters made – ie Cunliffe was taken out. So how come most journalists peddled the line that Cunliffe staged a coup? Does that not indicate a bias?
Also Watkin rejects the suggestion by Trotter and RedLogix, that journalists shouldn’t report anonymous comments from politicians. Watkin’s argument is that, it would mean no leaks from politicians…. duh? So what would be so wrong with that? Surely it’s the anonymous leaks from pollies that skewed the main narrative about Cunliffe staging a coup.
Also, Watkin seems to be assuming that many of us bloggers want to replace MSM journalists, or, at least, do journalism better than the MSM. No – many of us just want journalists to be more critical and fulfill their fourth estate role – not just push the current line that is circulating from leaky MPs and from press releases. At the moment, many of us see our role as one of holding the MSM to account.
Frankly I’m stunned at the shallowness of Watkins ‘deconstruction’.
All interviews must be on-the-record. Almost all are. But should a journalist be banned from following a lead gained in more casual conversation?
All interviews, it’s suggested, should be online. Which would mean newsrooms having to hire transcribers rather than more journalists.
Well actually what I had in mind was a simple audio/video recorder and then attached to the online version of the story as a file. No need for transcribers.
All reportage must be fact-checked. If only. The last fact-checkers were being laid off from the Heald when I began there 12 years ago. The few US media who still employ them are the exception. But does that mean they never err? No. Is it reasonable to expect journalists to check their own facts? usually, although a lack of resources and time creates limitations. Are stories still checked? Yes, subs, editors and producers all have such a role.
Well that’s a bad slip up. Watkins selectively quotes me which went on: “and/or open to a right of reply from any participant, person or party mentioned.” … again in an online environment a highly achievable goal without too much extra in the way of staff. And then he goes on to ignore my additional suggestion that journalists could easily lift their game by linking to their references …like bloggers routinely do. None of this is commercially unrealistic or onerous.
All professional and personal relationships must be declared. In which we move from ignorance to plain silliness. Conflicts of interest should be declared. But every relationship? How far does that go? Is it just for the gallery or for bloggers and those of us outside Wellington who cover politics? Is it family relationships, whether they’ve played rugby together or does the odd drink count? Should I declare that I once helped Grant Robertson pull a drunk guy out of an NZUSA conference? That Metiria Turei and Gerry Brownlee have both yelled at me? Should Trotter declare every politician he’s ever met? And would REDLOGIX him/herself adhere to that?
No journalist should be able to spend more than six years or 33% of their career in the gallery. Apart from the obvious nonsense of not being able to know how long a young reporter’s career will be, why show such little respect for experience and wisdom? It’s silliness piled on silliness.
Oh dear … strawman piled upon strawman. Everyone in public life knows exactly what ‘declaring your interests’ means. Relationships in which you have either a family, personal relationships (ie who you are sleeping with), business relationships or other plainly beneficial interests. In practise it’s not all that hard to get it right if you want to.
Ignored also is my suggestion that an online personal/professional bio is an entirely reasonably thing to ask of a professional. And by clinging to the outdated mode of thinking that print is primary, and that online is a secondary nuisance … Watkins has made a bunch of pretty elementary errors here.
Meanwhile.. back at the ranch.
Yes, it’s a weak defence by Watkin, RL. And I can’t believe he isn’t aware of how poor the NZ MSM and journalism actually is. I’m not peddling some theory of a deliberately orchestrated conspiracy – just aware of how biases and skewed stories can get accepted into the MSM.
Actually, interesting that Watkin made that point about fact checking. I was looking into that around the last time I did a post on the media. I knew facts often aren’t checked. This is a problem of the commercial imperative, keeping down costs etc. But, good journalism really does require fact checking. I don’t know how Watkin can claim journalist go out of their way to be non-biased, if they don’t check their facts.
I was trying to find evidence online of an occurrence a few years ago in Aussie. I saw the guys involved present a conference paper on it. Basically, as a kind of joke, a couple of guys published a story – false. It got picked up by the media. Once one outlet had repeated it, others followed, with none of them checking if it was real. This mis-information got widely circulated, all without the facts being checked. Eventually they had to come clean and say it wasn’t true.
Just shows how something like the content of the whispering campaign against Cunliffe can become accepted as true.
Listening to the alcohol debate in parliament today I keep hearing the same argument.
That is what happens when politics comes down to managing people rather than representing them.
Yup, that is pretty much the raison d’etre of the neo-temperance movement.
I have heaps more of this indigenous music, it never plays in NZ media, sadly.
This is indio music from Peru, there is heaps more. I will not bother to inundate. Maori are justified to take their stand, ideally they will connect with indeginous peoples all over the world.
Interesting developments!
Further to that: