Thought I'd get in before the Open Mike adopts its new norm of debate pattern…
Have been walking with a group of mostly rural women and overheard the leading group of three discuss politics. Luxon was described as not up to it and I think the field is open for some headway to be made among rural women who are a bit more centrist than Groundswell-oriented right wingers.
Some of these walkers are not well-informed and have social media and mass media driven misinformation for example about why nurses are emigrating and to what jobs, and the effect of minimum and family wage increases upon the cost of living.
Another told me she hated paradise ducks and believed that they were imported by early colonialists.
Very fit, older women, great walkers and talkers but not open to challenge; so as a new man in the group but known already to be of the Left through my previous public persona I will bite my tongue and wait for inclusion.
Interesting to get those views, though, and also to be receiving the local MPs newsletters which are also a window into the world of the Right.
The latest offering # 95 dismisses Labour's achievements over five years as bumper sticker policies, whereas National's education and electricity reforms will be world beaters.
And they are in big numbers, now in European times, because as herbivores with a taste for seed and grain their native habitat was hugely increased by open field farming. Where I am sitting now I see flocks of starlings in hundreds which fed on the ripening oat crop on the other side of the river, upon the leavings after harvest along with ducks, gulls and now sheep, and then fly off a hundred metres to dine on grapes. I have seen two paradise ducks here to raise a brood of eleven which they proudly paraded past my patio last season, but hundreds of starlings swirling in flocked flight.
Yes, the Paradise Shellducks are very good parents. The ones I know usually fledge as many as they hatch as the male is very aggressive. The main predators of the ducklings are big eels, but if the parents don't put the little ones in the water too early, they tend to be OK.
"Nothing like listening to joe/jill public to make you realize how unengaged and/or thick a lot of them are."
And the task is to persuade enough of them to return a good government in five months time by being educated and reminded enough to see through the miasma of misinformation, the whinging, the lies and the greed.
bwaghorn – As I’ve got older, I’ve come to the conclusion that people who see things differently than how I see things, doesn’t make them thick.
Looking back, when I was 18, I was at “peak intelligence” I knew absolutely everything and I was totally awesome. Then over the years my 6 pack turned into a keg, and I slowly realised that I didn’t know that much at all.
What I do have now is life experience, so what have I’ve learned? That people who believe that they have the answers are generally a walking talking example of Dunning-Kruger. They themselves have no idea how stupid they are, and they inflict their stupidity on others.
When you hear people regurgitate half arsed talking points and blindly belive mistruths, that's thick , having different opinions is is not,
Although one would think that once the written word,and science came into life we would easily be following the what worked best last time this happened method, Of government
That is why I think Labour needs to look at the degree of difficulty on some of its policy statements.
My view is that they may be pitched to an expectation of the general public having more ability to assimilate information and tease out the issues than they really have.
"When you hear people regurgitate half arsed talking points and blindly belive mistruths"
everyone whether they are left, right , center or non aligned does this though… The left , center and right constantly quote half truthes to back up their prejudices.
All Individuals in the general public will believe something that is bullshit and and untrue.
What is concerning is seeing people on the left increasingly unwilling to engage and win over people who believe some shit the left doesn't believe in, because the right is damn well willing to engage and win over people who disagree with them.
They may disagree with the left on how to do it, but Most kiwis don't want austerity, most kiwis want housing to be a human right and want far,far,far far more houses built, most kiwis believe in a minimum gauranteed standard of living, want better transport, far better healthcare and wanna eradicate poverty..
Its crazy that the left fail so often, to focus on engaging with the public on the things the majority agree with us on and instead we focus more on what we disagree with the public on.
Often it seems that the left want to write issues off and they do this by saying that person is alt right or right wing or a Nazi. And for those people on the left who do this, then its game over for that idea, belief, person etc etc. frankly its weak.
Good people Mac1 and good women as I am sure you know. They have their urban counterparts but neither have had the opportunity to hear the other side of the argument. When they do, it does not mean they change their loyalty but rather they have a better understanding of how others are faring and feeling. That is a good start.
Over the years I have had more friendships with women who come from 'the other side' than I have on my own side. When it comes to friendship, politics does not loom large.
So many political pundits saying Jacinda didn’t achieve much on promised policies. I know we’re not supposed to use the Covid word as an excuse anymore. However when the entire government, including the civil service, is consumed for the best part of 3 years dealing with the pandemic, how was the PM supposed to deliver other policies?
And yet, listen to Ardern's valedictory from Wednesday and she enumerated some of her achievements. Policies and positive social action was taken by her government.
For example, around our Grey Power table we mention winter warmth payments, a big rise in Super. We drive with a reduction in fuel taxes. We receive free vaccines and boosters, prescription subsidies, cheaper travel.
Thanks, Anker. There are opportunities for us to get out of our bubbles. For me Grey Power, walking groups, public meetings of all sorts, health support groups, Friday night sessions over a good Imperial Stout, as tonight hopefully will be….
I would be interested in the discussion as to why nurses are emigrating and to what jobs – my feeling is that some is normal wanting to see more of the world; for some wage comparisons are not particularly important, for others they will not allow for the need for medical insurance, or for many service costs being higher due to those higher basic salaries.
Regarding Labour's achievements, it would be good to have more than bumper stickers so that we can give a convincing argument about the real substance of those achievements – there was a good chart illustrating the ''leading the world'' performance in keeping deaths due to Covid lower than anywhere else; but there does not seem to be a repository of such convincing material in a form that can be included in social media or an email.
Nurses are just a subset of the workforce which turns over with the natural occurrences such as overseas experience, as you point out. They leave for pay, conditions and career opportunities.
But we are also suffering from the government not reacting quickly enough to immigration settings. And it was warned.
As for "illustrating the ''leading the world'' performance in keeping deaths due to Covid lower than anywhere else", you might need to think again. In deaths per capita, we sit at 820, which 111th highest in the world out of 229, and are just shy of the world dpc of 877.
[I’ve asked you 2 days ago to provide the URLs and use blockquotes (see Mod note here: https://thestandard.org.nz/go-well-jacinda-2/#comment-1943828). Two of the four embedded hyperlinks in your comment are actually direct quoted text but they are without quote marks. You replied with “Got it, thanks. Apologies.” (https://thestandard.org.nz/go-well-jacinda-2/#comment-1943895). I don’t like having to waste my time and having to ask multiple times. If you say “YES” but mean “NO” then I won’t trust you because I cannot take you on your word here. Do you understand what this means for you? – Incognito]
Blockquotes do start with a rather large quote mark that is very easy to spot:
This is what a blockquote looks like.
Blockquotes start on a new line and add an extra empty line (white space) at the end, which makes them even more distinguishable from the (other) commentary.
Alternatively, you add the quotation marks yourself at the start and end of the quoted text, for example, “this is what a blockquote looks like”.
Embedded links are best for single or combined words, e.g., in Wikipedia when full links would break up the flow of text too much.
Italics (or bold) are good for emphasis of single or a few words, not for highlighting a whole string or block of text.
Other commenters manage without problem.
You did not query this 2 days ago and agreed and apologised – can I take you on your word or not?
Please stick with the programme and stop wasting my time – I’ve been patient with you.
I'm trying to follow, but there are multiple other posts here that are not done in the way you describe, including this one from Peter below https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-07-04-2023/#comment-1944185. I have also posted using this same format (as have others) for a long time, so why the inconsistency?
“Frustrated New Zealand-trained migrant nurses are planning to leave the country because they cannot find an immediate path to residency, just as the government tries to entice foreigners to fill thousands of jobs in hospitals, aged care and clinics.”
For someone who’s of above-average intelligence and capability (based on your extensive track record here and all the info you’ve provided about your activities elsewhere), you seem rather obnoxious following a simple and clear request.
You’ re also arguing with a Mod about someone else, which is begging for self-martyrdom, as is clearly described in this site’s Policy (https://thestandard.org.nz/policy/#banning).
Peter followed what I described: he used manual quotation marks at the start and end of the quoted sentence and even put it as a separate alinea. No embedded link, italics, or change in font colour.
He also provided the full URL starting with “https:// …”. It is an awful title and URL, but that’s on Shayne Currie and NZ Herald.
Peter’s comment did not need modding, but you seem to think that you know better – you don’t and you were not merely asking.
I’ve reached the end of the line on this with you.
I don't have too much sympathy for Garner, after all the station ratings were shite. However, from the outside looking in, the process does seem to have been particularly brutal. There are ways of handling these situations that give the people affected (and I'm talking specifically about people who are not highly paid media 'personalities') more dignity and space to process what is happening.
Mmmm. They only 'lost their jobs in front of the country, live' – because they didn't respect the employment process (a meeting scheduled for midday) – and chose to release this information 'live', earlier.
At that stage there were, I'm sure, staff who didn't know. Garner and Tova O'Brien removed their opportunity to have this information conveyed to them in a way which was 'fair, reasonable, and dignified' (good faith is a totally separate issue)
I understand and accept that they were hurt and distressed by the situation. But they also acted unprofessionally.
It did feel like the Smiling Assassin meeting the Wolf of Wall Street meeting the Apprentice, very cutthroat old school. Behind the scenes, reputations need to be upheld.
How do they expect women to answer the call to get vaccinated before giving birth to protect their baby when NZR keeps exhorting 'pregnant people' to get their jab before giving birth? I am sick of these ridiculous pronouns that cancel women. even the newsreader on the 11am news hesitated before saying it for the second time. Sorry not up yet so can’t link.
Amazing how we got through the entirety of "Blue September" (Prostate Awareness Month) without a single man being referred to as a prostate owner, a testicle bearer, a penis person or an ejaculator.
Just shows that this is all about erasing women for the benefit of gender ideology.
SPC – As a card carrying “bloke” I can assure you that no man would dream of wanting to give birth. From what I’ve been told, it’s an extremely painful process, and to top it off being pregnant is extremely uncomfortable and you’re not allowed to drink for nine months.
In fact the only time that 'trans men" seem to hit the headlines is when they do that most female of all things and give birth. Somehow that "gender dysphoria" does not seem to apply.
My youngest niece has managed to get off side with a clique at her work. She’s pregnant, & she’s been called a pregnant person, and she’s replied that she’s a pregnant woman!
She was called into a meeting with her manager (male) and told that she’s making some people (a transgender women and her 4 or 5 trans allies, all gay or bisexual men by the way) feel unsafe. For the following reasons; she’s 25 & married (so too conservative for her age), pregnant with 4th child (this makes a transgender woman at her work feel uncomfortable), has had a baby shower with the gender of the baby revealed (offensive to transgender women), she’s a European woman married to an Asian man (So she’s taking advantage of a person of colour).
Her manager pointed out that it’s all BS, however he’s obligated to have the discussion with her. The workplace has the Rainbow Tick so he’s basically covering his butt.
Goodness. I do hope she's documenting all of this. Sounds like a PG case for workplace bullying, if it continues. None of the elements revealed have anything to do with her work or workplace – they're her private business (marital status, pregnancy, number/sex of children, race of SO – all prohibited grounds for discrimination)
I'd also be cautious about the meeting with the manager. If it is recorded that she's had a 'counselling' meeting – that goes on her HR record. And, if/when the manager leaves, and a one less in contact with the real world arrives, it could be used against her.
I'd follow up with the union (if she's a member) – and get them to help her draft an email to the manager – basically saying: Thanks for the meeting. At which we agreed that ….. (all the above points), have nothing to do with my work or performance; and that any complaints made about them, have been proven to be groundless.
Does anyone else find it …. ironic…. that the woman is being mis-gendered: her preferred group noun is "women", rather than "people" – with the qualifying adjective 'pregnant' indicating her current gestational status.
If someone tells me their preferred pronoun is ‘her’ – I would be downright rude to refer to her as ‘them’ – just because that’s my preferred pronoun.
I'd also be cautious about the meeting with the manager. If it is recorded that she's had a 'counselling' meeting – that goes on her HR record. And, if/when the manager leaves, and a one less in contact with the real world arrives, it could be used against her.
That kind of thing is not uncommon. I had it happen to me years ago.
Two former senior public servants approached me with a serious allegation. I made it clear to them it was false and since nothing further happened I thought it was the end of the matter. But further down the track – and after a prolonged period of bullying, intimidation and other disturbing incidents – I was to discover the allegation had been placed on record and never rescinded. It ended up causing me a huge amount of trouble and distress.
I later learned a jealous acquaintance (a woman) had made the allegation and the recipients chose to accept it without any attempt to seek verification. My word was apparently not regarded as good enough.
join a union that supports women's sex based rights (Free Speech Union probably)
find a GC lawyer
join or contact Speak Up For Women, they've got experience now with legal issues.
None of the above mean having to take action now, they're insurance. Her boss might be covering his butt, and if push comes to shove he's not going to side with her.
Yeah she is a member of the union, and I believe that she’s casually mentioned that her Dad & older sister are lawyers.
I think this is just one clique defending their turf so to speak. My niece and tall, slim, educated, elegant, private school educated (I’m from the poor side of family), she’s always been very independent and strong willed. So others are drawn to her. I think she has often been excluded from the popular clique, but she’s always developed her own clique, which can be threatening to those with low emotional intelligence.
But she’s working for a bank, well paid, looked after. So definitely doesn’t want to leave.
The only thing I would add to Weka's advice is for her to always have a support person if she's called to a meeting, and to ensure any future meetings are documented. Also, you say that she doesn't want to leave. I get that, but I have seen this scenario play out and there is a good chance her colleagues could make things very unpleasant for her. In that situation, unless she is extremely resilient and thick skinned, it can be better for a person's health just to walk away.
Start with a time lines then flesh this out with copies of emails, texts, updates on group conversations. Keep off site ie not on main bank server/keep copy printed out in locked private drawer.
This is a ghastly sounding case and I may be wrong but I thought there were special provisions about not denigrating a woman because of pregnancy.
Yes thanks Molly….I used to have all this stuff at my finger tips.
When I was working if you made a big P of your self about another's pregnancy and more or less the door was waiting, after a process. When Maternity leave first came in we had a spate of grumpy males thinking that women had just got an advantage…..
You know an advantage to go along with the mostly lower salary starting rates, lower rates all round because of broken service,…….etc etc.
How can a natural process make people feel uncomfortable. It is not as if a pregnancy can be left at the lift door and picked up after leaving work.
There is so much more, loss of good soil land for housing and the NACT Labour agreement to allow urban area development free for all (and end earlier focus on transport spine development – real urban planning).
And lest we forget, the old pre Super City Auckland had plans to prevent building in areas recently flooded …
The woke give Sean Plunket a good hating. In my opinion after reading this article, their cause may have been better served by keeping their gobs shut.(?)
One thing that really worries me about the Trans movement is their possible influence on impressionable youngesters – kids trying to find their way in life, who are having trouble fitting in, who are looking for answers.
The chap in this clip became trans after listening to a podcast and finding enlightenment- he was really a woman. He had that affirmed by all those close to him. Yet under questioning by the speaker his tenuous arguments as to why he's a woman fell apart and he reverted to that great woke talisman of protection, he was feeling unsafe.
The clip unfortunately has Conservative commentary. Sorry about that. Just skip along to different parts.
More bad journalism in my opinion. It went way off track into Maori Trans feeling unsafe with the type of rhetoric Sean was spouting, to colonialism, you name it. There was little focus on the topic.
One person interviewed said he was instrumental ( complained to Twitter) with getting Plunket banned from Twitter. Sean has now been reinstated. Maybe that was one reason to delete the article?
The link is to a talk that a right wing speaker Matt Walsh gave.
I linked to the extract when a trans medic was not able to answer of what they would do, EMT wise, when confronted with a man who said they were having a miscarriage.
This link is to the concluding parts of the speech he gave
Matt Walsh
There were a number of trans people in the audience tonight and I ended my speech speaking directly to them. The truth is that I’m actually trying to help these people, unlike all of those who “affirm” them
I have commented before that quite bit of the thoughtful work on the trans debate/ideology seems to be coming from the right.
I hope these links are clickable to the actual parts of the speech.
ETA I am coming to the thought that what the trans lobby is doing is actually cruel to the well meaning individuals who spoke. Rather than saying men can be women, ie changing biological sex which is impossible, the call could be better made as an acceptance of the gender that a person wants to be identified as.
The need would then move to accepting people as they want to present themselves rather than trying to force a biological impossibility on the population.
The thing about Matt Walsh is that he speaks simple truth. He appeared on an episode of Dr Phil, and was by far the most coherent voice. This link is to the full video to provide context. The salient exchanges are from 12:30, where Matt debates the definition of woman.
Thanks I have watched the whole speech. He is a great speaker.
I did hesitate to put the link to the trans medic up as it was from a RW commentator. I started putting the links up yesterday including a couple from an, also RW group, called Gays against Grooming.
MW also is an anti-feminist patriarch who wants to roll back women's rights. Who are you trying to convince here? Because progressives will have a hard time believing him once they know who he is (despite his videos being good at explaining the issues).
Matt Walsh has views I don't agree with. Posie Parker has views I don't agree with. There are many people who have views we may not agree with, but speak powerfully into certain issues. I just happen to believe that on this issue, he nails it.
sure, but you're rw, yeah? From the left and for feminists, it's not a matter of 'disagreeing with' him, it's the fact that he actively is seeking to remove womens rights.
I mean, I get it, I was going to write a post with that video in it, but I'd have to spend 600 words pointing out how much of an arsehole he is to women and what that means in the sex/gender wars.
Very annoying that the video does such a good job of showing the issues.
The problem that weka does not want to say out loud is simple and obvious. In very simple terms left wing feminism spent decades telling us that gender roles do not matter and women can do anything men do if they want to.
Then came along the trans crowd who bizarrely insist that biological sex does not matter and men can be women if they want to. Similar logic, just the consequences are reflected back onto women in a way they quite reasonably do not like.
Of course social conservatives never really agreed with either proposition, and that they are the firmest and clearest opponents of trans ideology is only to be expected. That feminists find this very annoying is also very predictable.
Well it turned out that when women obtained access to any traditional male role they liked, it was the largely high status professional, political or physically undemanding roles they had in mind. Dirty, dangerous and unpleasant jobs undertaken in all weathers – like sewerage maintenance for example – were not what they chose at all. Turned out the traditional, patriarchal oppressive male gender roles were not always as wonderful as they were made out to be.
But that is a small matter. More interesting was the idea that males and females were – other than the bare biological essentials – interchangeable in their gender roles as parents, and if women could do anything men could, then logically fatherhood could be generally regarded as optional, or dispensed with altogether.
For most people sex is essentially a private matter, marriage being a public institution intended to protect families – and at root is a social contract between a biological man and woman that was of mutual benefit to both parents and especially their children.
And the further we publicly moved away from this ideal, the less comfortable they became.
My general point being that for most people traditional gender roles still carry real significance – no matter how patriarchal and oppressive the feminists tell us they are.
You might be interested in this blogpost by Maya Forstater, (who won a tribunal case in the UK, which said her statement that sex was binary and immutable was worthy of respect in a democratic society):
…While I recognise the painful split that Jane describes, her division of the two teams into “true feminists” and “gender-critical identitarianism” is off the mark.
I think what we are seeing is the contradictions of a philosophy that does not make sense (it envisages a world where male violence is universal, but not biological; where women and men’s interests are negotiated on a “sex-class” basis; where family can be replaced by collective, and where prosperity exists without capitalism). It is another case of when ideology meets reality.
By contrast, what might be called “Mumsnet feminism” focuses on the messy material reality of mothers, fathers (good and bad, present and absent) and children, who need care and protection. It may be low on theory but it can see gender ideology and queer theory for what it is; an attack on the social structures that protect children (many of which are derided as part of the patriarchy by those who see the world this way).
A key theme running through criticisms of the “populists” in the magazine is disapproval at calling-out the behaviour of male sexual deviants in dresses, and at “othering” people who pretend to be the opposite sex….
Yes that post navigates the perilous shoals of this debate rather well. If I might quibble on some aspects with the author, I would imagine we could at least have a fine constructive conversation on the basis of what she has expressed here.
The idea that we have a soul that regardless of our sex, stands equally alongside all other humans before our creator, should not be so lightly discarded. In my view it is the basis for the claim that all people are equal before the law, to be accorded equal dignity and opportunity, and lies at the core of our common humanity and universal rights.
But this does not mean all humans are equivalent, or equally interchangeable, in every context. While a soul is an essentially immaterial abstraction, our physical bodies are not. And the multitude of ways in which these bodies differ matters a great deal in the way we should treat people in order to be just.
By way of a trivial illustration – if my partner and I take a day trip somewhere, the more art galleries and museums we can pack in the happier she will be. On the other hand if I can find an unexplored bush track I will be happy. Treating us both the same erases these interests and preferences and neither of us will be happy. On the other hand if we mutually respect each other's differences and constructively accommodate them – taking turns at doing art galleries and bush tracks, or somehow combining both – the outcome is more likely to be good for both of us.
All three of your comments are thought provoking and succinct, thank you.
"Of course social conservatives never really agreed with either proposition, and that they are the firmest and clearest opponents of trans ideology is only to be expected. "
This is an especially interesting comment. I am, in many ways, a social conservative, and my position on trans ideology comes from 2 places.
1. Much of the trans ideology is coming from a place of denying objective reality. Trans women are not women. They cannot ever fully understand what it is to be a woman, and accommodating the idea that they can is delusional.
2. I am pro woman. I believe women have a right to establish rules around their own spaces to the exclusion of others if that makes them safe.
Rather than address the issues being faced by the trans community in a meaningful way, we are listening to a small but vocal representation that is increasingly pushing a violent and divisive agenda.
Thanks for your comments RL.
I think you have got the biology/gender stuff a bit confused. This old feminist was always saying that 'women can do anything' -sure some things may be difficult strength-wise but we can do anything or should be given the chance to. We were not fighting on gender grounds as sex/gender were indistinguishable in those days.
My sister, slightly younger than me, still works in a male dominated, physically tough mainly outdoor environment. As she has got older she has looked at mechanical aids mainly in lifting that have been useful.
So useful that the business is now using them across the whole workplace. This is because they protect younger backs as well as older backs, workers do not get so physically tired and are able to really look at the intrinsically valuable areas of work not the manual labour parts. So smaller slighter people of both sexes can be employed and keep on being employed.
I have come across this view that because women made a thing of 'women and girls can do anything' ie not tied to the home or traditional sex role stereotypes that our 'punishment', often described in words like 'irony' is that now we are to put up with the trans community trying to change the meaning of biology,
This is far from ironic to me. It smacks of a barely suppressed glee that women have got 'what they should have known was coming to them, perhaps they/we should have 'known better.'…..I reject this framing.
The patriarchy is reasserting itself. This I have no problem in agreeing with. I can run an argument that seeing as men want to wear dresses and go into women's toilets and changing rooms that this is just 'boys being boys' and nothing to get concerned about.
The other view is that the patriarchy has said 'this is what we want to do so get out of our way'. The patriarchy supports men whether they call/are themselves men or we females call them transwomen.
Of course they have 'handmaidens', who support the idea. Riley Gaines found the handmaidens for the trans community shrieking and pulling at her as she made her way out of SFSU.
Simone de Beauvoir “the oppressor would not be so strong if he did not have accomplices among the oppressed”
While traditional roles or mother (at home), father(at work) children suit many people they do not suit everybody. If it is one thing that has happened is that there is greater flexibility across roles, timing of work etc. I think this has benefited males as well as females.
I don't believe it is useful to frame the concern for women as being only 'feminists' who are concerned. Many of the women I speak to etc were profoundly upset by 25/3 where they saw other women prevented from doing something they wanted to do. Some of these women are, I believe, on the cusp of thinking the election should/could be a single issue women's rights election.
The right has been at the forefront, it seems, of being able to articulate the concerns of women.
So however we got to the dominance of 51% of the population by a despotic 3-5 % of the population, whether the patriarchy is stirring and pushing back etc, the longer the left leaves it the more chance there is of a single issue going with the party that 'sees' women……and it ain't Labout at the moment.
I think you have got the biology/gender stuff a bit confused.
Yes, I generally avoid this topic and accept that others will disagree with my not always fluent efforts at expressing my thoughts on this.
This old feminist was always saying that 'women can do anything' -sure some things may be difficult strength-wise but we can do anything or should be given the chance to.
For certain I have affirmed the right to equal opportunity; but that does not imply everyone will choose equally. Nor should they be forced to.
On average men are more interested in things, bonding in teams while facing challenge, are somewhat more aggressive anda a disagreeable. Women on average are more interested in people, bonding socially while nurturing and are more vulnerable to negative emotion and physical threat.
But there is considerable overlap as well; there are plenty of men with very feminine personality structures, and vice versa. But in general while each sex is broadly capable of doing what the other does, it does not mean they will necessarily want to. Instead diverging gender roles assert themselves, like weeds in a vege garden, no matter how much we officially disapprove of them.
In my view the core mistake- cheered on by the post-modernists- was to argue that this meant all gender roles were an ephemeral social construct that could be engineered into any shape we pleased. Or if erased them altogether a wonderful new utopia would ensue.
So for decades the western world has set about dismantling the 'patriarchy' delivering societies in which women are demonstrably freer to choose their destiny than anywhere else on earth, or in our known history. Yet it is not clear that for all this effort, anyone is much the happier.
While traditional roles or mother (at home), father(at work) children suit many people they do not suit everybody.
And yes most people are willing to allow wiggle room at the margins. If a family chooses this dynamic – and it works for them – then few people might concern themselves with it.
What you write here brings to mind a couple we met at a marina some years back. She was definitely more on the masculine side and was very much the 'skipper', in charge of their boat, it's maintenance and operation, while he was very comfortable looking after finances, provisioning and navigation usually the domain of the woman. For them it worked just fine and no-one else cared a rat's patui about it.
But where people would push back is the activists proposition that somehow this couple were morally superior for having 'smashed the patriarchy'.
But (as always) the question is …how do we develop a social contract (and legal framework) that recognises both gender AND individual differences that is fair WHILE maintaining a functioning society?
Feminism is now claimed by a wide diversity of people holding different and often conflicting views. For me, it holds the same information about someone as calling them left or right-wing. There is no longer a coherent definition of those terms that is universally accepted, so I now try to avoid any of them in conversation and exchanges.
The same is true of the word and concept of "patriachy". Academic feminists have a detailed explanation of the term and concept and how it manifests, to the point where the word is lost in the explanation. Others use it as the whole argument and conclusion, ie. Domestic violence against women is because of the patriachy. When you ask what the definition of patriachy is from those who use it in such a way, you will often have different answers, mostly incoherent.
Female and male bodies are different, and those differences play a part in our experiences and our lives.
"More interesting was the idea that males and females were – other than the bare biological essentials – interchangeable in their gender roles as parents, and if women could do anything men could, then logically fatherhood could be generally regarded as optional, or dispensed with altogether."
That's not an unfounded criticism to my mind. Many forget that everything has costs – whether intended or not. They should be acknowledged – and hopefully mitigated – when celebrating what you see as success. Or alternatively, acknowledged and considered too high a price to pay.
"But there is considerable overlap as well; there are plenty of men with very feminine personality structures, and vice versa. But in general while each sex is broadly capable of doing what the other does, it does not mean they will necessarily want to. Instead diverging gender roles assert themselves, like weeds in a vege garden, no matter how much we officially disapprove of them.
In my view the core mistake- cheered on by the post-modernists- was to argue that this meant all gender roles were an ephemeral social construct that could be engineered into any shape we pleased. Or if erased them altogether a wonderful new utopia would ensue."
I agree with what you have written here. I also believe that alongside this, has come an implied criticism of the conservative family, and those who do choose or find themselves in what others will designate as traditional roles. The demand for neutral acceptance of alternative choices, is often not accompanied by the neutral acceptance of others who make what is seen as traditional choices.
The supposedly benign prefix "cis" is often used as a pejorative. Cis-het, I have only seen used as an insult.
Kellie-Jay Keen is upfront about her concerns and that she will work with anyone who is concerned. Clips of her visit to the Heritage Foundation in America, show that she did not have to inform those she met about her concerns – they were already well informed. That is not often the case with any supposed progressives that deign to meet her. The Heritage Foundation offered to assist in any way that was acceptable to her.
Established feminists in the UK, have reacted very strongly to Kellie Jay Keen’s popularity with women who are not politically identifiable as left-wing.
A concerted and unrelenting campaign of critique and denigration has been active over the last years. Public declarations of distancing, has allowed groups to promulgate the unfounded accusations of Nazism, racism and far-right affiliations along with criticisms of not supporting reproductive rights – without providing evidence. Despite these accusations being debunked many times the declarations – in all their smug pompousness – remain.
The blogpost I linked to was a reply to a series of essays written by a variety of academic feminists who asked for written responses. (Link from the article) Needless to say, they didn't like the one above.
NZ based women – behind the authority of Feminist Named Organisations – but also using the cowardly cloak of anonymity – duplicated both the approach and accusations of such UK feminists.
I personally consider both groups have culpability in the violence that took part in Albert Park against the #LetWomenSpeak event. They repeated what they should know to be unfounded accusations, and provided supposedly legitimate references for others to smear and defame Kelly-Jay Keen Minshull and the event.
(Note: Just for added context. Kellie-Jay Keen is responsible for the first Women – Adult Human Female billboard going up, in Black and White in 2018. She's been merchandising that definition in that form on t-shirts, posters, signs and stickers ever since, and it has become ubiquitous in the movement. However, it is grammatically clumsy – it should be adult female human. When her USA tour was announced, an announcement was also made that the Standing For Women group intended to make a documentary. Within a few months – those who criticised her most publicly had produced a documentary – called "Adult Human Female" with black and white branding, and described it as coincidental. Like the women's organisations who defamed her before her arrival, they are capitalising on the increased attention without giving credit to the person and organisation who created it.)
First I should say thank you for your views. I agree with many of them. Where I soon lose agreement is where I sense that the argument is, this suits most of us so therefore it is the way to go.
Being governed is a matter of consent by those being governed. The current system and many religions give room for most to exist so we accept them. This does not mean it is a perfect system, just that we don't see another that is better.
I call 'the system' the patriarchy and couple it with religion. I don't have the rigorous definition of patriarchy that some have – for me it is broadly the status quo. (the status quo built on eons of similar status quos. Where change is observable but may be barely moving as a way of moving the lives of everyone forward) Of course the status quo is like a breathing animal whose lungs expand and contract. So I wouldn't see the yachting couple as smashing the patriarchy. I think also that the patriarchy is inherently regressive, so that is why I say it is reasserting itself. It feels as if the we are regressing not moving forward. That the beneficiaries of this are male can lead to a thought that if the patriarchy is the status quo, it is possibly regressive ie not suiting the needs of all, in particular not hearing the voices of women then we see the growth of parties for specific parts of our society eg KJM proposed party called Party of Women.
So I believe in families, in stable units to bring up children, and to provide help and stability after those children have gone, so access to good health, education and opportunities for children and their families, no matter how these are made up.
What I don't believe in is a system so rigid that these are our only concerns. We should be in a society where our lives are measurably different, in a better way, than those who have gone before.
As a result of the current debate I have thought long and hard about the utility of the concept of gender. To me a census question, a very mixed up census question, about gender has great interest from a sociological point of view just as the influence of religion does. Sociologists interrogate this data and make observations on thought trends in our society.
To answer a census question on gender with Moon gender, gives nothing to health, education, super planners.
The key planning-useful questions are
woman, man, male child, female child
age
ethnicity/race
time lived in NZ
where born
All of these can give hard information to planners on the types of facilities we should be providing as we look ahead.
We could ask a question
who do you identify as?
male
female
another question, specify
prefer not to answer
This may give sociologists material and it is possible that coupled with age, women, male (ie biological or born sex) question some interesting ideas could come forward in the movement of thought.
I have read both of your comments immediately above and appreciate both. If I have not anything substantive to add at this moment it is because in the past this topic has often become a messy conversation – and I want to properly consider everyone's contribution, rather than charging in deeper.
(Also my apologies for some of the grammatical horrors in my comments. I have always been a very fast reader, but the downside is that when I am proof-reading inside this very narrow edit box, I am prone to missing or duplicating words at the line returns. I probably should get into the habit of typing in a proper word editor and then pasting over.)
I have always wanted the left to be on the ball in writing/interviewing on this issue.
I have said a couple of times that I have found good explanatory material on the right. I always caveat my links. I explained that Walsh was RW.
I want someone who can explain the issues, no more no less. Surely if we caveat the other aspects then progressives can decide whether or not to open the links.
Ok, then remove the interview I put up please. marshall/walsh.
How do you suggest we cover the points if the left is not generating much thoughtful material and we want to quote from something not from the left.
Yesterday I linked to GAG site and put a link in so people could see where on the political spectrum they come from.
I always thought that a note to say he is not from the left or is from the right was sufficient but am happy to caveat in whichever way you want.
Like Weka I see ‘feminism as women’s liberation’, and for me it is movement of many houses.
It's not that he's RW. There are decent RW people in the world. It's that he is a man with a lot of power that is actively trying to remove women's rights.
I want someone who can explain the issues, no more no less. Surely if we caveat the other aspects then progressives can decide whether or not to open the links.
There are a few problems with this position. One is that the liberals who might be persuaded will be put off again when they find out who Walsh is and what his politics are. A huge part of the war is because progressives want to be kind to trans people and feel good about their own politics, and then they see the counter to their politics coming not just from the right but the far right and fundamentalists, which makes it much harder to accept the ideas.
another problem is that nearly everything MW is saying has already been said in the past by feminists and better. The analogy about humans being bipedal and a one legged person still being human? here's Jane Claire Jones saying it in 2021.
There have been multiple conversations on twitter about categories, how humans use them to make sense of the world, and how to explain this to people running the counter argument about women without a uterus aren't women.
One of the big challenges atm is that the right are getting to set the narrative on gender ideology especially in NZ. If you believe that the war has to be won at any cost then one can ignore this I guess. But Plunket didn't have the rights of women in mind when he asked Hipkins the question. Part of it is that he's trying to undermine the left so they don't win the election. Plunket understands the political significance of the question and what played out in the UK, and I would guess he understands that the left in NZ doesn't get it, yet.
When we use right wing and far right sources to promote our position and do so in such a casual way, we feed the right getting to determine the narrative. And that's not going to serve women in the medium and long term.
I get how tempting it is, it's very easy when MW lays it out so clearly to share the video. But that puts material out there by someone who is strongly in favour of limiting women's rights. And that shifts the overton window away from our rights. We might win on self ID but lose abortion rights.
I had a talk with Australian and NZ feminists on a twitter Space last night, and talked this through because I wanted to write a post using MW's videos, precisely because they were so good at demonstrating the issues. I had this idea that I would write about who Walsh is and why he is such a big problem for feminists, but in the end I was convinced by others that it's not worth it. We should be amplifying the voices of people whose politics we want to see in the world.
ARGHHHH. Just stop it. Do you think humans who lose a leg stop being human? Or do you think humans without two legs mean humans are not bipedal. What about people with six fingers? I guess either they're not human or humans don't have five fingers right??? THIS IS IDIOTIC. https://t.co/Qao8mjsZ0z
Female humans are the class of humans who differentiated down the developmental pathway that leads to be able to perform a certain reproductive function. And the fact that accident, illness or developmental anomaly means some of them can't perform that function doesn't make them 'not female' any more than a mug with a crack in it becomes 'not a mug,' or a car whose engine won't start becomes 'not a car,' or a chair with a broken leg becomes 'not a chair.'
Nor does the fact that a mug has a crack in it make it any other number of things that won't hold liquid, like 'a colander' or 'a sieve.' You may as well be arguing that bc some chairs have broken legs any other thing that you can't sit on, like, say, a pine cone, is a chair.
And now you will turn around and say 'you are evil because you are saying infertile people are broken.' They are not broken as humans. Their reproductive function is not working. That causes a lot of people pain. That pain will not be helped by playing silly ass word games.
The problem now is that MW's video can show the concept without people having to think about it much. They will get it intuitively. He is very good at this.
I'm not saying never use his material. I'm saying do it consciously and with awareness of who he is and what he is going, and make it very clear to others what is going on.
Thank you Weka. I am grateful for the way in which you have enriched my knowledge about these issues. I do appreciate that it is beguiling to read/listen to someone eg Matt Walsh who seems to get it.
One of the big challenges atm is that the right are getting to set the narrative on gender ideology especially in NZ. If you believe that the war has to be won at any cost then one can ignore this I guess.
I don't want this at all. Every time the Nats have got in with their shrinking govt policies etc it has meant hard times. As a superannuitant I have even less $$$ to come and go on than I had as a salaried person.
Many of the women I speak to/know were truly horrified by 25/3 and are coming very close to single issue. They do not like the thought of losing access to women only toilets and changing rooms. Many have children and grandchildren playing sport & see how dangerous it can become……though some sports are moving to protect women on fairness grounds.
It would be so easy for the right to commit to revising this legislation or tightening the safe spaces provisions and many may rush over.
I was talking on Twitter about the possible effects on women's ability to want to go out if all cinema restrooms etc have to be shared with males. Then there are toilets and changing areas in workplaces. If these are all unisex which seems likely then these are not a women friendly solution.
I have worked in two workplaces with these in them and they were awful as the men users did not leave the places as most women would. In fact some women could be found doing general tidy ups in the toilets….others just ducked out to a nearby Dept store that still had a powder room/lounge.
We speculated that if these reactions of not going out for recreation cinemas/sport and then inadequate facilities for women in workplaces then women are home shackled and housebound as badly as the Victorian times.
When women were striving to get ahead in the workforce the pee leash was a great restrictor.
Also I read some correspondence about women in the south of England pushing back against mixed male female changing areas being built as a 'Changing Village' (universal vomiting sounds the world over to this phrase) A few cubicles but mainly open space around the walls.
It is revealing what people do when their leadership jobs end.
Jacinda Ardern signed up with the Speaker Booking Agency for ‘’paid corporate appearances only’’. She is heading overseas to front the Christchurch Call and the Windsors’ royal environment awards. Not child poverty and affordable housing then.
But the article is about health. She lauds the attack on centralisation by Rob Campbell and National (ignores the impact debt had on Health Board finances and capacity and the post code lottery on access to services under that system).
And advocates for private sector funding of hospital and health services building – the old model allowed government funding but boards had to provide a return (the cost of which deterred anyone asking for a new building until they had to). She would just bypass the government funding and has a rent cost for private sector profit (another step to privatisation).
j pagani is a shit stirrer, no friend of the left. here's a more balanced view of politicians subsequent careers. (omits the murky dealings of paula benefit, jami-lee ross and several others)
A few days ago I heard or read, sorry can't remember where, mad-cow you know, an economics commentator was castigating Adrian Orr for punishing us for imported inflation, fuel, machinery etc, etc. I got to thinking about that and realised that he left out an equally valid culprit and that is "exported "inflation. The high price of our high quality meat here is the huge demand for it from the USA most of which ends up minced in hamburgers for MacDonalds, a fact I was unaware of until I was enlightened by a beef farmer mate. The world price for milk is directly responsible for the cost of cheese, baby formula and all kinds of other dairy products including of course milk itself. Many other products such as fish, some veggies and many others probably cause the same problem.
The answer cannot be ringfencing our in -demand products so that they are more affordable locally as that means producers would need to be compensated for the lost earnings and any failure to do so would be politically untenable. In some ways it is already happening as cost of living adjustments to the less well off mask the discrepancy.
God, politics is difficult and not a lot of people know that.
The problem of dairy prices in NZ owes much to Fonterra charging NZers the same prices as their products cost fob on foreign wharves. What little regulation we have never touched the practice – a prime instance of greedflation.
So transactivists destroy a mural to babies who died as a result of shaken baby syndrome (abuse)
Trans activists in France have destroyed a mural for infant victims of 'shaken baby syndrome' – a form of severe brain trauma caused by abuse. The activists reportedly said they had targeted the memorial because it was created by "transphobic feminists."
This is sounding more and more like a book burning, witch finding mob than a movement dedicated to moving society forward.
We need some bonfires, sticks, stocks, pools, inflamed unseeing/unknowing followers and we will be back in the Dark Ages…….oh wait 25/3/23
I ‘hear’, taps side of nose, that people may know the identity of the ‘person’ who punched the 70 year woman in the head fracturing her skull on 25/3.
Obv don’t feel comfortable linking. it may be just speculation.
According to the L’Amazone member, a group of “men and trans women” purporting to advocate for transgender causes and against fascism and islamophobia announced their presence, yelling, “Paris Antifas!” CAP and L’Amazone yelled back, “Male violence, MRAs!” The pro-trans, Antifa organization screamed, “Transphobes!” The L’Amazone member said a huge crowd began chanting over and over: “One TERF, one bullet – social justice.”
Anybody can call themselves "Antifa". It is not like the Boy Scouts, you don't get franchise rights.
In the UK – the black clad masked lads who turn up to shout abuse at women are dubbed "Black Pampers", (Pampers are a brand of nappies) and the ones in Melbourne (average age 17), playing at being Nazis were dubbed the "Black Shorts".
However, it is all the same male aggression and misogyny.
Yes, I understand your point. I am just wondering out loud whether (at least in some instances) the trans movement is being hi-jacked by other agenda's.
LB I don't think the trans agenda is being hi-jacked.
I think the trans agenda is now big enough that it is attracting all sorts of hangers on who may be peripherally attached philosophically to parts of it. Some of these will be pornography adjacent and some will have even less desirable aims. To push the boundaries as it were.
I would not be surprised if we saw moves to lower the age of consent, cater for more bizarre kinks such as Man/Boy love groups. Some are concerned that sexualising children through transitioning may play into the hands of groomers, this is a fear in the USA. I have not seen it here.
Others will be attracted by more common place views, to tag along for the possibility of violence.
As Visubversa says
However, it is all the same male aggression and misogyny.
I think that the human-rights framework is the way to resolve the question of how society should treat people who identify as transgender (respect their basic human rights and liberties, but don’t respect their fantasy).
But how will it resolve the changing rooms, sports etc issues?
Perhaps the human rights for women are those at UN level rather than the 'NZ as a country' human rights level. I don't think the protection of women's safe spaces in NZ legislation is especially immune from legal attack.
This is an excellent article and draws on the ideas of safety and how instinctive markers that women have carried through life may be blunted, confused as if we have been subjected to the effects of rohypnol
One of the biggest obstacles to halting the stampede over women’s rights is pronoun and preferred name ‘courtesy’. People severely underestimate the psychological impact to themselves, and to others, of compliance.
the use of pronouns such as 'she' to describe 'he' (male bodied) can dull our senses
They dull your defences. They change your inhibitions. They’re meant to. You’ve had a lifetime’s experience learning to be alert to ‘him’ and relax to ‘her’. For good reason. This instinctive response keeps you safe. It’s not even a conscious thing. It’s like your hairs standing on end. Your subconscious brain is helping you not get eaten by the sabre tooth tiger that your eyes haven’t noticed yet.
Good read including a couple of exercises, and no these do not give you credits for any exam.
Mainstream discourse is a complete wasteland. @SophRiver (🔒) describes the problem well:
Envy. Entitlement. Destructiveness. This is part of the toxic mix that is bottled inside of the identity activists operating with a licence from elites in NZ.
Most in our MSM then spin the story of 'victims'- cherry picking data, ignoring violence, speaking to one side only.
Also, the univariate fallacy is deployed again and again and again by MSM and spun with a huge conceptual leap of faith into religious nonsense.
eg There is a difference in health outcomes between two groups = health system is racist.
All relevant variables need to be ignored: poverty, lifestyle, quality of housing, jobs, education, diet etc.
These are the variables which would make a difference if addressed. Instead we rinse and repeat on one button.
We seem to have turned from the path of truth and shared humanity where complex issues require complex solutions to one where simplistic rhetoric is deployed on repeat.
That quote from SophRiver certainly resonates with me.
Here is my diagnostic tool rob. I look at the outcomes – if the outcome is more division and exploiting social fault lines to accumulate moral or political power, then I know to avoid associating with them.
If the outcome drives toward unity and a visible, concrete progress toward real-world, universal solutions, then I will cheer them on, and watch to see what lessons can be learned.
Looking at outcomes or consequences is a reasonable rule of thumb that I tend to use as well. However, it has limitations, especially when dealing with wicked problems and social messes. This can be illustrated with metaphors such ‘death by thousand cuts’ or ‘the last drop in the bucket overflowing’, et cetera. Complex multi-dimensional non-linear interactions with time lags cannot be measured or managed by a snapshot in time.
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 27 were:1. The Minister for Ford Rangers strikes againTransport Minister Simeon Brown was again the busiest of the Cabinet ministers this week, announcing an ...
You got a fast carAnd I want a ticket to anywhereMaybe we make a dealMaybe together we can get somewhereAny place is betterYesterday’s newsletter, Trust In Me, on the report of abuse in state care, and by religious organisations, between 1950 and 2019, coupled with the hypocrisy of Christopher Luxon ...
New Zealand is again having to reconcile conflicting pressures from its military and its trade interests. Should we join Pillar Two of AUKUS and risk compromising our markets in China? For a century after New Zealand was founded in 1840, its external security arrangements and external economics arrangements were aligned. ...
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This morning the sky was bright.The birds, in their usual joyous bliss. Nature doesn’t seem to feel the heat of what might angst humans.Their calls are clear and beautiful.Just some random thoughts:MāoriPaul Goldsmith has announced his government will roll back the judiciary’s rulings on Māori Customary Marine Title, which recognises ...
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1. What's not to love about the way the Harris campaign is turning things around?a. Nothingb. Love all of itc. God what a reliefd. Not that it will be by any means easye. All of the above 2. Documents released by the Ministry of Health show Associate Health Minister Casey ...
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TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking about the Royal Commission Inquiry into Abuse in Carereport released this week, and with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on a UN push to not recognise carbon offset markets and ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 26, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Transport: Simeon Brown announced$802.9 million in funding for 18 new trains on the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines, which ...
The northern expressway extension from Warkworth to Whangarei is likely to require radical changes to legislation if it is going to be built within the foreseeable future. The Government’s powers to purchase land, the planning process and current restrictions on road tolling are all going to need to be changed ...
Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedFirst they came for the doctors But I was confused by the numbers and costs So I didn't speak up Then they came for our police and nurses And I didn't think we could afford those costs anyway So I ...
Photo by Joshua J. Cotten on UnsplashWe’re back again after our mid-winter break. We’re still with the ‘new’ day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when we have our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream ...
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Some of the recent announcements from the government have reminded us of posts we’ve written in the past. Here’s one from early 2020. There were plenty of reactions to the government’s infrastructure announcement a few weeks ago which saw them fund a bunch of big roading projects. One of ...
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Hi,I felt a small wet tongue snaking through one of the holes in my Crocs. It explored my big toe, darting down one side, then the other. “He’s looking for some toe cheese,” said the woman next to me, words that still haunt me to this day.Growing up in New ...
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I live my life (woo-ooh-ooh)With no control in my destinyYea-yeah, yea-yeah (woo-ooh-ooh)I can bleed when I want to bleedSo come on, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)You can bleed when you want to bleedYea-yeah, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)Everybody bleed when they want to bleedCome on and bleedGovernments face tough challenges. Selling unpopular decisions to ...
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Given the crackdown on wasteful government spending, it behooves me to point to a high profile example of spending by the Luxon government that looks like a big, fat waste of time and money. I’m talking about the deployment of NZDF personnel to support the US-led coalition in the Red ...
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As I reported about the city centre, Auckland’s rail network is also going through a difficult and disruptive period which is rapidly approaching a culmination, this will result in a significant upgrade to the whole network. Hallelujah. Also like the city centre this is an upgrade predicated on the City ...
Today, a 4 kilogram report will be delivered to Parliament. We know this is what the report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care weighs, because our Prime Minister told us so.Some reporter had blindsided him by asking a question about something done by ...
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This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections Global society may have finally slammed on the brakes for climate-warming pollution released by human fossil fuel combustion. According to the Carbon Monitor Project, the total global climate pollution released between February and May 2024 declined slightly from the amount released during the same ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Tuesday, July 23 are:Deep Dive: Penlink: where tolling rhetoric meets reality BusinessDesk-$$$’sOliver LewisScoop:Te Pūkenga plans for regional polytechs leak out ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Tuesday, July 23, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Health: Shane Reti announcedthe Board of Te Whatu Ora-Health New Zealand was being replaced with Commissioner Lester Levy ...
Health NZ warned the Government at the end of March that it was running over Budget. But the reasons it gave were very different to those offered by the Prime Minister yesterday. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon blamed the “botched merger” of the 20 District Health Boards (DHBs) to create Health ...
Long ReadKey Summary: Although National increased the health budget by $1.4 billion in May, they used an old funding model to project health system costs, and never bothered to update their pre-election numbers. They were told during the Health Select Committees earlier in the year their budget amount was deficient, ...
As a momentous, historic weekend in US politics unfolded, analysts and commentators grasped for precedents and comparisons to help explain the significance and power of the choice Joe Biden had made. The 46th president had swept the Democratic party’s primaries but just over 100 days from the election had chosen ...
TL;DR: I’m casting around for new ideas and ways of thinking about Aotearoa’s political economy to find a few solutions to our cascading and self-reinforcing housing, poverty and climate crises.Associate Professor runs an online masters degree in the economics of sustainability at Torrens University in Australia and is organising ...
The Finance and Expenditure Committee has reported back on National's Local Government (Water Services Preliminary Arrangements) Bill. The bill sets up water for privatisation, and was introduced under urgency, then rammed through select committee with no time even for local councils to make a proper submission. Naturally, national's select committee ...
Some years ago, I bought a book at Dunedin’s Regent Booksale for $1.50. As one does. Vandrad the Viking (1898), by J. Storer Clouston, is an obscure book these days – I cannot find a proper online review – but soon it was sitting on my shelf, gathering dust alongside ...
History is not on the side of the centre-left, when Democratic presidents fall behind in the polls and choose not to run for re-election. On both previous occasions in the past 75 years (Harry Truman in 1952, Lyndon Johnson in 1968) the Democrats proceeded to then lose the White House ...
This is a free articleCoverageThis morning, US President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the Presidential race. And that is genuinely newsworthy. Thanks for your service, President Biden, and all the best to you and yours.However, the media in New Zealand, particularly the 1News nightly bulletin, has been breathlessly covering ...
A homeless person’s camp beside a blocked-off slipped damage walkway in Freeman’s Bay: we are chasing our tail on our worsening and inter-related housing, poverty and climate crises. Photo: Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy ...
What has happened to it all?Crazy, some'd sayWhere is the life that I recognise?(Gone away)But I won't cry for yesterdayThere's an ordinary worldSomehow I have to findAnd as I try to make my wayTo the ordinary worldYesterday morning began as many others - what to write about today? I began ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Monday, July 22 are:Today’s Must Read: Father and son live in a tent, and have done for four years, in a million ...
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Monday, July 22, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:US President Joe Biden announced via X this morning he would not stand for a second term.Multinational professional services firm ...
A listing of 32 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, July 14, 2024 thru Sat, July 20, 2024. Story of the week As reflected by preponderance of coverage, our Story of the Week is Project 2025. Until now traveling ...
This weekend, a friend pointed out someone who said they’d like to read my posts, but didn’t want to pay. And my first reaction was sympathy.I’ve already told folks that if they can’t comfortably subscribe, and would like to read, I’d be happy to offer free subscriptions. I don’t want ...
National: The Party of ‘Law and Order’ IntroductionThis weekend, the Government formally kicked off one of their flagship policy programs: a military style boot camp that New Zealand has experimented with over the past 50 years. Cartoon credit: Guy BodyIt’s very popular with the National Party’s Law and Orderimage, ...
Day one of the solo leg of my long journey home begins with my favourite sound: footfalls in an empty street. 5.00 am and it’s already light and already too warm, almost.If I can make the train that leaves Budapest later this hour I could be in Belgrade by nightfall; ...
Do you remember Y2K, the threat that hung over humanity in the closing days of the twentieth century? Horror scenarios of planes falling from the sky, electronic payments failing and ATMs refusing to dispense cash. As for your VCR following instructions and recording your favourite show - forget about it.All ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts being questioned by The Kākā’s Bernard Hickey.TL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 20 were:1. A strategy that fails Zero Carbon Act & Paris targetsThe National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government finally unveiled ...
Summary:As New Zealand loses at least 12 leaders in the public service space of health, climate, and pharmaceuticals, this month alone, directly in response to the Government’s policies and budget choices, what lies ahead may be darker than it appears. Tui examines some of those departures and draws a long ...
The Minister of Housing’s ambition is to reduce markedly the ratio of house prices to household incomes. If his strategy works it would transform the housing market, dramatically changing the prospects of housing as an investment.Leaving aside the Minister’s metaphor of ‘flooding the market’ I do not see how the ...
As previously noted, my historical fantasy piece, set in the fifth-century Mediterranean, was accepted for a Pirate Horror anthology, only for the anthology to later fall through. But in a good bit of news, it turned out that the story could indeed be re-marketed as sword and sorcery. As of ...
An employee of tobacco company Philip Morris International demonstrates a heated tobacco device. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy on Friday, July 19 are:At a time when the Coalition Government is cutting spending on health, infrastructure, education, housing ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 8:30 am on Friday, July 19 are:Scoop: NZ First Minister Casey Costello orders 50% cut to excise tax on heated tobacco products. The minister has ...
Kia ora, it’s time for another Friday roundup, in which we pull together some of the links and stories that caught our eye this week. Feel free to add more in the comments! Our header image this week shows a foggy day in Auckland town, captured by Patrick Reynolds. ...
TL;DR : Here’s the top six items climate news for Aotearoa this week, as selected by Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer. A discussion recorded yesterday is in the video above and the audio of that sent onto the podcast feed.The Government released its draft Emissions Reduction ...
Save some money, get rich and old, bring it back to Tobacco Road.Bring that dynamite and a crane, blow it up, start all over again.Roll up. Roll up. Or tailor made, if you prefer...Whether you’re selling ciggies, digging for gold, catching dolphins in your nets, or encouraging folks to flutter ...
Waiting In The Wings:For truly, if Trump is America’s un-assassinated Caesar, then J.D. Vance is America’s Octavian, the Republic’s youthful undertaker – and its first Emperor.DONALD TRUMP’S SELECTION of James D. Vance as his running-mate bodes ill for the American republic. A fervent supporter of Viktor Orban, the “illiberal” prime ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 19, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:The PSAannounced the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) had ruled in the PSA’s favour in its case against the Ministry ...
Te Rangi e tu nei (The sky above us) Te Papa e takoto nei (The land beneath us) Tatou katoa te hunga ora (To us all the living) Tena koutou katoa (Greetings) ...
A late change to charter school legislation will cheat educators out of fair pay and negotiating power proving charter schools are just a vehicle to make profit out of our education system. ...
In 2004 te iwi Māori rallied against the Crown’s attempt to confiscate our coastlines and moana with the Foreshore and Seabed Act. This led to the largest hīkoi of a generation and the birth of Te Pāti Māori. 20 years later, history is repeating itself. Today the government has announced ...
It has been five and a half years since the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care was established to investigate the abuse of children, young people, and vulnerable adults within state and faith-based institutions. Yesterday, the final report - Whanaketia through pain and trauma, from darkness to light ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to take action off the back of the International Court of Justice ruling on Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine. ...
On Friday the International Court of Justice reaffirmed what Palestinian’s have been telling us for decades: that the occupation and colonisation of Palestinian lands by Israel is illegal and must end immediately. They also called for reparations for Palestinian’s who have lived under Israeli occupation since it began in 1967. ...
Labour calls on the Government to act after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian Territories is illegal. ...
The 53.7 percent rise in benefit sanctions over the last year is more proof of this Government’s disdain for our communities most in need of support. ...
Aotearoa could be a country where every child grows up feeling safe, loved and with a sense of belonging in their whānau and community. But for some of our children, this is far from reality. Instead, they are trapped in a maze of intergenerational harm that they can’t escape on ...
Te Pāti Māori are calling for David Seymour to resign as Associate Health Minister in response to his call for Pharmac to ignore the Treaty of Waitangi. “This announcement is just another example of the government’s anti-Tiriti, anti-Māori agenda.” Said Co-leader and spokesperson for health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. “Seymour thinks it ...
The soaring price of renting is driving the rise of inflation in this country - with latest figures from Stats NZ showing rents are up 4.8 per cent on average while annual inflation is at 3.3 per cent. ...
National’s Emissions Reduction Plan will take New Zealand further from the economy we need to ensure the next generation has a stable climate and secure livelihoods. ...
Following consultation with named parties and thorough consideration of privacy interests, the Green Party is in a position to release the Executive Summary of the final report from the independent investigation into Darleen Tana. ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon should be asking serious questions of his Minister for Resources Shane Jones now it’s been revealed he misled the public about a dinner with mining companies that he didn’t declare and said wasn’t pre-arranged. ...
Te Pāti Māori have submitted to the Justice Select Committee against the Sentencing (Reinstating Three Strikes) Amendment Bill. The bill will further entrench racism in our justice system and fails to focus on rehabilitation. “Reinstating Three Strikes will empower a systematically racist system and exacerbate the overrepresentation of Māori in ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee is set to make a determination on the Residential Tenancies Amendment (RTA) Bill in the coming weeks. “This legislation will give landlords the power to kick our whānau out onto the street for no reason” said Housing spokesperson, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “Their solution to the housing ...
“National’s campaign was about tackling crime and the best they can do is a two-year long Ministerial Advisory Group,” Labour justice spokesperson Duncan Webb said. ...
“There are more examples of charter schools failing their students than there are success stories. The coalition Government is driving to dismantle our public school system and instead promote a privatised, competitive structure that puts profits before kids,” Jan Tinetti said. ...
“This government is choosing to deliberately mislead and withhold information, keeping our people in the dark about this government’s agenda and the future of our mokopuna,” said co-leader and spokesperson for Health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. The call comes after the demand from the Chief Ombudsman that Associate Minister of Health, Casey ...
“Today’s climate announcement by Simon Watts makes clear the National Government is simply paying lip service to meeting its climate change targets,” Megan Woods said. ...
National is choosing to make life harder for workers by taking away the rights our communities have fought hard for. Here's how they’re taking workers backwards. ...
Australia, Canada and New Zealand today issued the following statement on the need for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza and the risk of expanded conflict between Hizballah and Israel. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The human suffering is unacceptable. It cannot continue. We remain unequivocal in our condemnation of ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today reminded all State and faith-based institutions of their legal obligation to preserve records relevant to the safety and wellbeing of those in its care. “The Abuse in Care Inquiry’s report has found cases where records of the most vulnerable people in State and faith‑based institutions were ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government’s online safety website for children and young people has reached one million page views. “It is great to see so many young people and their families accessing the site Keep It Real Online to learn how to stay safe online, and manage ...
Tēnā tātou katoa, Ngā mihi te rangi, ngā mihi te whenua, ngā mihi ki a koutou, kia ora mai koutou. Thank you for the opportunity to be here and the invitation to speak at this 50th anniversary conference. I acknowledge all those who have gone before us and paved the ...
New Zealand’s payroll providers have successfully prepared to ensure 3.5 million individuals will, from Wednesday next week, be able to keep more of what they earn each pay, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Revenue Minister Simon Watts. “The Government's tax policy changes are legally effective from Wednesday. Delivering this tax ...
An experimental vineyard which will help futureproof the wine sector has been opened in Blenheim by Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson. The covered vineyard, based at the New Zealand Wine Centre – Te Pokapū Wāina o Aotearoa, enables controlled environmental conditions. “The research that will be produced at the Experimental ...
The Coalition Government has confirmed the indicative regional breakdown of North Island Weather Event (NIWE) funding for state highway recovery projects funded through Budget 2024, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Regions in the North Island suffered extensive and devastating damage from Cyclone Gabrielle and the 2023 Auckland Anniversary Floods, and ...
Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, Retno Marsudi, will visit New Zealand next week, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “Indonesia is important to New Zealand’s security and economic interests and is our closest South East Asian neighbour,” says Mr Peters, who is currently in Laos to engage with South East Asian partners. ...
He aha te kai a te rangatira? He kōrero, he kōrero, he kōrero. The government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the aspirations of Ngāti Maniapoto, Minister for Māori Development Tama Potaka says. “My thanks to Te Nehenehenui Trust – Ngāti Maniapoto for bringing their important kōrero to a ministerial ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has thanked outgoing Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority, Janice Fredric, for her service to the board.“I have received Ms Fredric’s resignation from the role of Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority,” Mr Brown says.“On behalf of the Government, I want to thank Ms Fredric for ...
The Government is proposing legislation to overturn a Court of Appeal decision and amend the Marine and Coastal Area Act in order to restore Parliament’s test for Customary Marine Title, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “Section 58 required an applicant group to prove they have exclusively used and occupied ...
Regulation Minister David Seymour says that opposition parties have united in bad faith, opposing what they claim are ‘dangerous changes’ to the Early Childhood Education sector, despite no changes even being proposed yet. “Issues with affordability and availability of early childhood education, and the complexity of its regulation, has led ...
After receiving more than 740 submissions in the first 20 days, Regulation Minister David Seymour is asking the Ministry for Regulation to extend engagement on the early childhood education regulation review by an extra two weeks. “The level of interest has been very high, and from the conversations I’ve been ...
The Coalition Government is investing $802.9 million into the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines as part of a funding agreement with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA), KiwiRail, and the Greater Wellington and Horizons Regional Councils to deliver more reliable services for commuters in the lower North Island, Transport Minister Simeon ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced his intention to appoint a Crown Manager to both Hawke’s Bay Regional and Wairoa District Councils to speed up the delivery of flood protection work in Wairoa."Recent severe weather events in Wairoa this year, combined with damage from Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023 have ...
Mr Speaker, this is a day that many New Zealanders who were abused in State care never thought would come. It’s the day that this Parliament accepts, with deep sorrow and regret, the Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care. At the heart of this report are the ...
For the first time, the Government is formally acknowledging some children and young people at Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital experienced torture. The final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care “Whanaketia – through pain and trauma, from darkness to light,” was tabled in Parliament ...
The Government has acknowledged the nearly 2,400 courageous survivors who shared their experiences during the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State and Faith-Based Care. The final report from the largest and most complex public inquiry ever held in New Zealand, the Royal Commission Inquiry “Whanaketia – through ...
With a week to go before hard-working New Zealanders see personal income tax relief for the first time in fourteen years, 513,000 people have used the Budget tax calculator to see how much they will benefit, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis. “Tax relief is long overdue. From next Wednesday, personal income ...
Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says a bill that has passed its first reading will improve parental leave settings and give non-biological parents more flexibility as primary carer for their child. The Regulatory Systems Amendment Bill (No3), passed its first reading this morning. “It includes a change ...
Two Bills designed to improve regulation and make it easier to do business have passed their first reading in Parliament, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. The Regulatory Systems (Economic Development) Amendment Bill and Regulatory Systems (Immigration and Workforce) Amendment Bill make key changes to legislation administered by the Ministry ...
New legislation paves the way for greater competition in sectors such as banking and electricity, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says. “Competitive markets boost productivity, create employment opportunities and lift living standards. To support competition, we need good quality regulation but, unfortunately, a recent OECD report ranked New ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says lotteries for charitable purposes, such as those run by the Heart Foundation, Coastguard NZ, and local hospices, will soon be allowed to operate online permanently. “Under current laws, these fundraising lotteries are only allowed to operate online until October 2024, after which ...
The Coalition Government is accelerating work on the new four-lane expressway between Auckland and Whangārei as part of its Roads of National Significance programme, with an accelerated delivery model to deliver this project faster and more efficiently, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “For too long, the lack of resilient transport connections ...
Sir Don McKinnon will travel to Viet Nam this week as a Special Envoy of the Government, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “It is important that the Government give due recognition to the significant contributions that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made to New Zealand-Viet Nam relations,” Mr ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says newly appointed Commissioner, Grant Illingworth KC, will help deliver the report for the first phase of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into COVID-19 Lessons, due on 28 November 2024. “I am pleased to announce that Mr Illingworth will commence his appointment as ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters travels to Laos this week to participate in a series of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-led Ministerial meetings in Vientiane. “ASEAN plays an important role in supporting a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” Mr Peters says. “This will be our third visit to ...
Construction of a new mental health facility at Te Nikau Grey Hospital in Greymouth is today one step closer, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey says. “This $27 million facility shows this Government is delivering on its promise to boost mental health care and improve front line services,” Mr Doocey says. ...
New Zealand is committing nearly $50 million to a package supporting sustainable Pacific fisheries development over the next four years, Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones announced today. “This support consisting of a range of initiatives demonstrates New Zealand’s commitment to assisting our Pacific partners ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour says proposed changes to the Education and Training Amendment Bill will ensure charter schools have more flexibility to negotiate employment agreements and are equipped with the right teaching resources. “Cabinet has agreed to progress an amendment which means unions will not be able to initiate ...
In response to serious concerns around oversight, overspend and a significant deterioration in financial outlook, the Board of Health New Zealand will be replaced with a Commissioner, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti announced today. “The previous government’s botched health reforms have created significant financial challenges at Health NZ that, without ...
Minister for Space and Science, Innovation and Technology Judith Collins will travel to Adelaide tomorrow for space and science engagements, including speaking at the Australian Space Forum. While there she will also have meetings and visits with a focus on space, biotechnology and innovation. “New Zealand has a thriving space ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts will travel to China on Saturday to attend the Ministerial on Climate Action meeting held in Wuhan. “Attending the Ministerial on Climate Action is an opportunity to advocate for New Zealand climate priorities and engage with our key partners on climate action,” Mr Watts says. ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is travelling to the Solomon Islands tomorrow for meetings with his counterparts from around the Pacific supporting collective management of the region’s fisheries. The 23rd Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Committee and the 5th Regional Fisheries Ministers’ Meeting in Honiara from 23 to 26 July ...
The Government today launched the Military Style Academy Pilot at Te Au rere a te Tonga Youth Justice residence in Palmerston North, an important part of the Government’s plan to crackdown on youth crime and getting youth offenders back on track, Minister for Children, Karen Chhour said today. “On the ...
The Government has welcomed news the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has begun work to replace nine priority bridges across the country to ensure our state highway network remains resilient, reliable, and efficient for road users, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“Increasing productivity and economic growth is a key priority for the ...
Acting Prime Minister David Seymour has been in contact throughout the evening with senior officials who have coordinated a whole of government response to the global IT outage and can provide an update. The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet has designated the National Emergency Management Agency as the ...
New Zealand and Japan will continue to step up their shared engagement with the Pacific, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “New Zealand and Japan have a strong, shared interest in a free, open and stable Pacific Islands region,” Mr Peters says. “We are pleased to be finding more ways ...
New developments in the heart of North Island forestry country will reinvigorate their communities and boost economic development, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones visited Kaingaroa and Kawerau in Bay of Plenty today to open a landmark community centre in the former and a new connecting road in ...
President Adeang, fellow Ministers, honourable Diet Member Horii, Ambassadors, distinguished guests. Minasama, konnichiwa, and good afternoon, everyone. Distinguished guests, it’s a pleasure to be here with you today to talk about New Zealand’s foreign policy reset, the reasons for it, the values that underpin it, and how it ...
Last summer when Matairangi burned, Ginny and Tom stood at the window of their lounge, watching kākā shoot skyward from the burning trees. From the distance, they looked to Ginny like pages torn from books and thrown into a bonfire. It was Tom, voice tight, who told her it was ...
Opinion: The Canadian short story writer Alice Munro – winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2013 – died in May at the age of 92. Her work was about “the damage people inflict on one another in the name of love”, Deborah Treisman wrote in the New Yorker. ...
This month marks two years since the most powerful telescope ever built sent its first pictures back to earth. From its lofty vantage point, beyond the moon in orbit around the sun, the James Webb Space Telescope was tuned to observe the first stars and galaxies being born soon after ...
Comment: After Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ preview several weeks ago, I had some optimism about the Government’s emissions reduction plan. Now I’ve read the discussion document, that hope has been dashed. How can the Government propose a plan that wants to take New Zealand taxpayers’ hard-earned money, and spend ...
Christopher Luxon: hurdles The little man from National jumps hurdles in his sleep. He’s quite good at it in his dreams and even though the reality doesn’t quite match up you have to give him credit for getting up every morning and crashing into the very first hurdle of the ...
Comment: It was a good two hours into the conversation when Tyrone Marks raised the most basic of questions when I first spoke to him in 2017. “They didn’t explain the things they did to me. They never told me why. And they still haven’t. There’s no explanation for it. ...
Madeleine Chapman rounds out Death Week on The Spinoff with a final recommendation. You can read all of our Death Week coverage here. Nothing forces you to reflect on your life and relationships quite like proximity to death. For those whose nearest and dearest have died, there are reasonably obvious ...
Whitney Greene takes us through her life in television, including the TV character she’d like to plan a funeral for and her cow lung catastrophe on The Traitors NZ. “If the phone rings, I have to answer it,” Whitney Greene from The Traitors NZ warns as we begin our My ...
Maddie Ballard reviews the debut essay collection of Pōneke writer Flora Feltham.In ‘The Raw Material’, the longest essay in Flora Feltham’s dazzling debut collection, the author heads out for a run after hours of weaving and sees the world turn to textile. “Pounding along the Parade, I saw the ...
Andy Christiansen, one half of the experimental rock-pop duo TRiPS, shares the tunes inspiring the band’s perfect weekend and new release. “Good speakers, good food, good music, no distractions”: that’s all you need to enjoy the psychedelic stylings of TRiPS, a new band formed by Fly My Pretties’ Barnaby Weir ...
Celebrating our quadrennial opportunity to become experts in a bunch of sports we never normally watch.The games of the XXXIII Olympiad are upon us. Paris will host this year’s showcase of sporting and athletic prowess, which means some late-night and early-morning viewing for us in Aotearoa.But what sports ...
The photograph is striking and beautiful, but also disturbing – a reminder that my love for John was often entangled in shame.The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.In the spring of 1980, in Dunedin, shortly before his death, someone took a photograph ...
Get to know Babushka, our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our What’s Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Babu’s humans, Jo and Isabel, for their support. Dog name: Babushka (Babu for short) Age: 2Breed: Border Collie X poodleIf rescued, ...
Pacific Media Watch A Lebanese photojournalist who was severely wounded during an Israeli air strike in south Lebanon carried the Olympic torch in Paris this week in honour of her peers who have been wounded and killed in the field — especially in Gaza and Lebanon. Christina Assi of Agence ...
The first report in a five-part web series focused on the 15th Triennial Conference of Pacific Women taking place in the Marshall Islands this week.SPECIAL REPORT:By Netani Rika in Majuro Women continue to fight for justice 70 years after the first nuclear tests by the United States caused ...
Christopher Luxon has joined with Australia and Canada's leaders in voicing support for US President Joe Biden's ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The 2022 election brought the “teal wave” into parliament. The next election will test whether teals, who occupy what were Liberal seats, and other independents can maintain their momentum. Joining us on the Podcast ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Musgrave, Senior lecturer in Pharmacology, University of Adelaide Pixavri/Shutterstock A major Federal Court class action has been dismissed this week after Justice Michael Lee ruled there was not enough evidence to prove the weedkiller Roundup causes cancer. Plaintiff Kelvin ...
In The Week in Politics: politicians have to decide what to do about child abuse, Health NZ is booked in for major surgery and Darleen Tana returns. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Corbould, Associate Professor, Contemporary Histories Research Group, Deakin University Mainstream media are surprisingly muted at the prospect of the world’s most powerful nation being led for the first time by a woman – specifically a woman of colour, Vice President Kamala ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rebecca Bennett, PhD Student, Associate Research Fellow, Deakin University Last week, a drone delivery company called Wing (owned by Google’s parent company, Alphabet) started operating in Melbourne. Some 250,000 residents in parts of the city’s eastern suburbs can now order food from ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonathan Foo, Lecturer, Physiotherapy, Monash University pikselstock/Shutterstock In the next 40 years in Australia, it’s predicted the number of Australians aged 65 and over will more than double, while the number of people aged 85 and over will more than triple. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katrina Grant, Research Associate, Power Institute for Arts and Visual Culture, University of Sydney Jonas Åkerström’s 1790 work, Session of the Accademia dell’Arcadia on August 17 1788.Nationalmuseum/Cecilia Heisser Ever wondered whether you’d have a better chance at winning an Olympic gold ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexandra Jones, Program Lead, Food Governance, George Institute for Global Health wavebreakmedia/Shutterstock On Thursday, Australian and New Zealand food ministers at state, federal and national levels met to thrash out what’s next for health star ratings on packaged foods. Now, after ...
The Abuse in Care report found many Pacific survivors lost their connections to their culture and language, resulting in trauma that has been carried from generation to generation. ...
In the regulatory review, ECC intends to suggest that ERO focus on curriculum delivery reviews rather than the Ministry, because it’s not efficient or effective to have two agencies with radically different approaches climbing over each other. ...
Te Rūnanga Nui o Ngā Kura Kaupapa Māori invites the current government to work in partnership with them to develop a pathway forward, including the development of a parallel pathway and meaningful policy and strategy for Kura Kaupapa Māori ...
If you haven’t started watching yet, Tara Ward begs you to reconsider. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. In the world of New Zealand reality television, we have many gems in our crown. There’s the delicious second season of the Celebrity Treasure ...
A new poem by Fiona Kidman. The clothes of the dead I did not keep my mother’s furry red beret for long nor the stringy scarves that adorned the necks of my aunts, although I have kept tag ends of gold, the rings and trinkets they wore, the brooches no ...
The government’s announcement that it will re-open the foreshore and seabed controversy by changing the rules on recognising centuries-old Māori customary title for a third time goes against the rule of law and New Zealand values,” Mr Tipa says. ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Lioness by Emily Perkins (Bloomsbury, $25) Roarrrr! Perkins’ brilliant, award-winning, Marian-Keyes anointed, darkly funny, long ...
The 2004 Act vested ownership of the foreshore and seabed in the Crown, extinguishing any Māori claims to ownership and causing widespread outrage and protests among Māori communities. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Antje Deckert, Associate Professor (Criminology), Auckland University of Technology Getty Images Despite the connection between institutional harm and gang membership made clear in this week’s mammoth royal commission abuse-in care report, the government seems unlikely to soften its “get tough on ...
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Thought I'd get in before the Open Mike adopts its new norm of debate pattern…
Have been walking with a group of mostly rural women and overheard the leading group of three discuss politics. Luxon was described as not up to it and I think the field is open for some headway to be made among rural women who are a bit more centrist than Groundswell-oriented right wingers.
Some of these walkers are not well-informed and have social media and mass media driven misinformation for example about why nurses are emigrating and to what jobs, and the effect of minimum and family wage increases upon the cost of living.
Another told me she hated paradise ducks and believed that they were imported by early colonialists.
Very fit, older women, great walkers and talkers but not open to challenge; so as a new man in the group but known already to be of the Left through my previous public persona I will bite my tongue and wait for inclusion.
Interesting to get those views, though, and also to be receiving the local MPs newsletters which are also a window into the world of the Right.
The latest offering # 95 dismisses Labour's achievements over five years as bumper sticker policies, whereas National's education and electricity reforms will be world beaters.
Nothing like listening to joe/jill public to make you realize how unengaged and or thick alot if them are.
And paradise ducks are a barstard in big numbers
And they are in big numbers, now in European times, because as herbivores with a taste for seed and grain their native habitat was hugely increased by open field farming. Where I am sitting now I see flocks of starlings in hundreds which fed on the ripening oat crop on the other side of the river, upon the leavings after harvest along with ducks, gulls and now sheep, and then fly off a hundred metres to dine on grapes. I have seen two paradise ducks here to raise a brood of eleven which they proudly paraded past my patio last season, but hundreds of starlings swirling in flocked flight.
Yes, the Paradise Shellducks are very good parents. The ones I know usually fledge as many as they hatch as the male is very aggressive. The main predators of the ducklings are big eels, but if the parents don't put the little ones in the water too early, they tend to be OK.
I'm glad the bloody starlings are all over at your place this season Mac!
"Nothing like listening to joe/jill public to make you realize how unengaged and/or thick a lot of them are."
And the task is to persuade enough of them to return a good government in five months time by being educated and reminded enough to see through the miasma of misinformation, the whinging, the lies and the greed.
Your farm wife mates will vote national, no matter who's leading it,
Yes as 'they' say at the Southland farm of my sister & bro in law.
'If you stood a sheepdog on a mailbox with a blue ribbon around its neck many in Southland would vote for it. '
Many don't have a good choice of printed newsmedia which is still very popular, as internet connections are still not as reliable.
bwaghorn – As I’ve got older, I’ve come to the conclusion that people who see things differently than how I see things, doesn’t make them thick.
Looking back, when I was 18, I was at “peak intelligence” I knew absolutely everything and I was totally awesome. Then over the years my 6 pack turned into a keg, and I slowly realised that I didn’t know that much at all.
What I do have now is life experience, so what have I’ve learned? That people who believe that they have the answers are generally a walking talking example of Dunning-Kruger. They themselves have no idea how stupid they are, and they inflict their stupidity on others.
"Looking back, when I was 18, I was at “peak intelligence”
Wow. You were ahead of me. I didn't reach peak intelligence until my mid 20s.
I wouldn't say we were Dunning Kruger sufferers – just had more growing up to do.![smiley smiley](https://cdn2.thestandard.org.nz/wp-content/plugins/ark-wysiwyg-comment-editor/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/regular_smile.png?x42494)
Well said, Anne. I am not sure if my intelligence ever peaked at all, but would also opt for mid-20s if obliged.
The Dunning Kruger effect may be important, but I think we should not underestimate the Homer Simpson "D'oh" effect..
When you hear people regurgitate half arsed talking points and blindly belive mistruths, that's thick , having different opinions is is not,
Although one would think that once the written word,and science came into life we would easily be following the what worked best last time this happened method, Of government
I was in the bottom of a bottle fro 18 to 30 odd so knew little cared less
Tend to agree with this bwaghorn.
That is why I think Labour needs to look at the degree of difficulty on some of its policy statements.
My view is that they may be pitched to an expectation of the general public having more ability to assimilate information and tease out the issues than they really have.
"When you hear people regurgitate half arsed talking points and blindly belive mistruths"
everyone whether they are left, right , center or non aligned does this though… The left , center and right constantly quote half truthes to back up their prejudices.
All Individuals in the general public will believe something that is bullshit and and untrue.
What is concerning is seeing people on the left increasingly unwilling to engage and win over people who believe some shit the left doesn't believe in, because the right is damn well willing to engage and win over people who disagree with them.
They may disagree with the left on how to do it, but Most kiwis don't want austerity, most kiwis want housing to be a human right and want far,far,far far more houses built, most kiwis believe in a minimum gauranteed standard of living, want better transport, far better healthcare and wanna eradicate poverty..
Its crazy that the left fail so often, to focus on engaging with the public on the things the majority agree with us on and instead we focus more on what we disagree with the public on.
Often it seems that the left want to write issues off and they do this by saying that person is alt right or right wing or a Nazi. And for those people on the left who do this, then its game over for that idea, belief, person etc etc. frankly its weak.
As always the question is how…something the (modern) left appear to struggle with
Good people Mac1 and good women as I am sure you know. They have their urban counterparts but neither have had the opportunity to hear the other side of the argument. When they do, it does not mean they change their loyalty but rather they have a better understanding of how others are faring and feeling. That is a good start.
Over the years I have had more friendships with women who come from 'the other side' than I have on my own side. When it comes to friendship, politics does not loom large.
Yes, Anne. "Good people Mac1 and good women as I am sure you know." They show support, compassion, and hospitality but there are 'sides'.
So true Anne, I grew up in the city and would sometimes go and stay on Great aunt & uncles farm for school holidays.
I many respects the country folk were more open minded in some than the left wing managerial class I grew up with.
So many political pundits saying Jacinda didn’t achieve much on promised policies. I know we’re not supposed to use the Covid word as an excuse anymore. However when the entire government, including the civil service, is consumed for the best part of 3 years dealing with the pandemic, how was the PM supposed to deliver other policies?
And yet, listen to Ardern's valedictory from Wednesday and she enumerated some of her achievements. Policies and positive social action was taken by her government.
For example, around our Grey Power table we mention winter warmth payments, a big rise in Super. We drive with a reduction in fuel taxes. We receive free vaccines and boosters, prescription subsidies, cheaper travel.
A bit more than bumper stickers, that!
Thanks, Anker. There are opportunities for us to get out of our bubbles. For me Grey Power, walking groups, public meetings of all sorts, health support groups, Friday night sessions over a good Imperial Stout, as tonight hopefully will be….
I would be interested in the discussion as to why nurses are emigrating and to what jobs – my feeling is that some is normal wanting to see more of the world; for some wage comparisons are not particularly important, for others they will not allow for the need for medical insurance, or for many service costs being higher due to those higher basic salaries.
Regarding Labour's achievements, it would be good to have more than bumper stickers so that we can give a convincing argument about the real substance of those achievements – there was a good chart illustrating the ''leading the world'' performance in keeping deaths due to Covid lower than anywhere else; but there does not seem to be a repository of such convincing material in a form that can be included in social media or an email.
Oz has a shortage of nurses and is offering "locum" type rates for short term contract hires.
https://www.1news.co.nz/2023/04/03/nearly-5000-nz-nurses-have-registered-to-work-in-oz-since-august/
I know one kids are , grown escapes nz every winter to the northern oz warmth.
But the press will always boil it down to a whinge about $ government
Nurses are just a subset of the workforce which turns over with the natural occurrences such as overseas experience, as you point out. They leave for pay, conditions and career opportunities.
But we are also suffering from the government not reacting quickly enough to immigration settings. And it was warned.
New Zealand is losing nurses because of immigration rules that make them feel "unwelcome and in a permanent state of temporariness", the Government has been warned – a situation that piles pressure on a workforce contending with thousands of vacancies during a pandemic.
Frustrated New Zealand-trained migrant nurses are planning to leave the country because they cannot find an immediate path to residency, just as the government tries to entice foreigners to fill thousands of jobs in hospitals, aged care and clinics.
As for "illustrating the ''leading the world'' performance in keeping deaths due to Covid lower than anywhere else", you might need to think again. In deaths per capita, we sit at 820, which 111th highest in the world out of 229, and are just shy of the world dpc of 877.
[I’ve asked you 2 days ago to provide the URLs and use blockquotes (see Mod note here: https://thestandard.org.nz/go-well-jacinda-2/#comment-1943828). Two of the four embedded hyperlinks in your comment are actually direct quoted text but they are without quote marks. You replied with “Got it, thanks. Apologies.” (https://thestandard.org.nz/go-well-jacinda-2/#comment-1943895). I don’t like having to waste my time and having to ask multiple times. If you say “YES” but mean “NO” then I won’t trust you because I cannot take you on your word here. Do you understand what this means for you? – Incognito]
Mod note
Isn't it good enough that the links are embedded hyperlinks and are in italics? What are 'block quotes'?
Edit – I’ve just looked up the definition of ‘block quotes’ at https://www.scribbr.com/working-with-sources/block-quote/. Block quotes don’t contain quote marks. Can you clarify which it is please.
Mod note cont.:
I’ve already given the answer in my previous Mod note 2 days ago: https://thestandard.org.nz/faq/comment-formatting/#quoting.
Blockquotes do start with a rather large quote mark that is very easy to spot:
Blockquotes start on a new line and add an extra empty line (white space) at the end, which makes them even more distinguishable from the (other) commentary.
Alternatively, you add the quotation marks yourself at the start and end of the quoted text, for example, “this is what a blockquote looks like”.
Embedded links are best for single or combined words, e.g., in Wikipedia when full links would break up the flow of text too much.
Italics (or bold) are good for emphasis of single or a few words, not for highlighting a whole string or block of text.
Other commenters manage without problem.
You did not query this 2 days ago and agreed and apologised – can I take you on your word or not?
Please stick with the programme and stop wasting my time – I’ve been patient with you.
I'm trying to follow, but there are multiple other posts here that are not done in the way you describe, including this one from Peter below https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-07-04-2023/#comment-1944185. I have also posted using this same format (as have others) for a long time, so why the inconsistency?
Nurses plan to leave NZ over residency rules: 'I can't wait any more' | RNZ News
Got it (I think), thanks.
Mod note cont.:
For someone who’s of above-average intelligence and capability (based on your extensive track record here and all the info you’ve provided about your activities elsewhere), you seem rather obnoxious following a simple and clear request.
You’ re also arguing with a Mod about someone else, which is begging for self-martyrdom, as is clearly described in this site’s Policy (https://thestandard.org.nz/policy/#banning).
Peter followed what I described: he used manual quotation marks at the start and end of the quoted sentence and even put it as a separate alinea. No embedded link, italics, or change in font colour.
He also provided the full URL starting with “https:// …”. It is an awful title and URL, but that’s on Shayne Currie and NZ Herald.
Peter’s comment did not need modding, but you seem to think that you know better – you don’t and you were not merely asking.
I’ve reached the end of the line on this with you.
Our rate is below every nation in the EU/Europe and North America. Only Norway is close.
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/#countries
Relevance? We are certainly not "''leading the world'' performance in keeping deaths due to Covid lower than anywhere else""
https://fortune.com/2023/04/05/end-of-capitalism-inflation-greedflation-societe-generale-corporate-profits/
Greedflation!!
How to combat it , price controlling is risky imho.
Being yanks the thought of tax and redistribute didn't enter their tiny mind
One little part in Shayne Currie's article about the closing of Today FM struck me. A quote from Duncan Garner.
“It’s appalling. We lost our jobs in front of the country, live. How that’s fair, reasonable, dignified and done in good faith is beyond me.”
Garner who with Judith Collins saw to the end of the political career Iain Lees-Galloway in front of the country, live.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/justin-marshall-misses-selection-for-sky-rugby-world-cup-team-in-france-stuff-newsroom-gong-concerns-and-the-leaked-slack-messages-rnzs-ethical-dilemma-over-kiri-allan-speech-today-fm-staff-call-in-lawyers-media-insider-with-shayne-currie/MA3TB25ARJEGFBDVVIEGOQ574Q/
I don't have too much sympathy for Garner, after all the station ratings were shite. However, from the outside looking in, the process does seem to have been particularly brutal. There are ways of handling these situations that give the people affected (and I'm talking specifically about people who are not highly paid media 'personalities') more dignity and space to process what is happening.
Mmmm. They only 'lost their jobs in front of the country, live' – because they didn't respect the employment process (a meeting scheduled for midday) – and chose to release this information 'live', earlier.
At that stage there were, I'm sure, staff who didn't know. Garner and Tova O'Brien removed their opportunity to have this information conveyed to them in a way which was 'fair, reasonable, and dignified' (good faith is a totally separate issue)
I understand and accept that they were hurt and distressed by the situation. But they also acted unprofessionally.
I agree about Garner and O'Brien, but doesn't that make the process even more poorly managed? How did they find out before other staff? If Bradbury is correct, and "the decision to kill off Today FM has been made and discussed weeks ago.", then the company has made a hash of this IMHO
It did feel like the Smiling Assassin meeting the Wolf of Wall Street meeting the Apprentice, very cutthroat old school. Behind the scenes, reputations need to be upheld.
How do they expect women to answer the call to get vaccinated before giving birth to protect their baby when NZR keeps exhorting 'pregnant people' to get their jab before giving birth? I am sick of these ridiculous pronouns that cancel women. even the newsreader on the 11am news hesitated before saying it for the second time. Sorry not up yet so can’t link.
Amazing how we got through the entirety of "Blue September" (Prostate Awareness Month) without a single man being referred to as a prostate owner, a testicle bearer, a penis person or an ejaculator.
Just shows that this is all about erasing women for the benefit of gender ideology.
don't mention the AGPs.
The funny thing is, if someone does give birth while identifying as a transgender man – TVNZ would do a story about it.
SPC – As a card carrying “bloke” I can assure you that no man would dream of wanting to give birth. From what I’ve been told, it’s an extremely painful process, and to top it off being pregnant is extremely uncomfortable and you’re not allowed to drink for nine months.
Meh, it would be by C-section anyway. A natural birth, OTOH, now that would be a story!
Those born female and who then identify as transgender men and give birth to children is not that rare overseas (numbers).
https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/trans-dads-tell-doctors-you-can-be-man-have-baby-n1006906
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/apr/20/the-dad-who-gave-birth-pregnant-trans-freddy-mcconnell
In fact the only time that 'trans men" seem to hit the headlines is when they do that most female of all things and give birth. Somehow that "gender dysphoria" does not seem to apply.
My youngest niece has managed to get off side with a clique at her work. She’s pregnant, & she’s been called a pregnant person, and she’s replied that she’s a pregnant woman!
She was called into a meeting with her manager (male) and told that she’s making some people (a transgender women and her 4 or 5 trans allies, all gay or bisexual men by the way) feel unsafe. For the following reasons; she’s 25 & married (so too conservative for her age), pregnant with 4th child (this makes a transgender woman at her work feel uncomfortable), has had a baby shower with the gender of the baby revealed (offensive to transgender women), she’s a European woman married to an Asian man (So she’s taking advantage of a person of colour).
Her manager pointed out that it’s all BS, however he’s obligated to have the discussion with her. The workplace has the Rainbow Tick so he’s basically covering his butt.
Goodness. I do hope she's documenting all of this. Sounds like a PG case for workplace bullying, if it continues. None of the elements revealed have anything to do with her work or workplace – they're her private business (marital status, pregnancy, number/sex of children, race of SO – all prohibited grounds for discrimination)
I'd also be cautious about the meeting with the manager. If it is recorded that she's had a 'counselling' meeting – that goes on her HR record. And, if/when the manager leaves, and a one less in contact with the real world arrives, it could be used against her.
I'd follow up with the union (if she's a member) – and get them to help her draft an email to the manager – basically saying: Thanks for the meeting. At which we agreed that ….. (all the above points), have nothing to do with my work or performance; and that any complaints made about them, have been proven to be groundless.
I'd find a company that isn't full of idjits and go work there
it as a shocking story.
unfortunately there's a good chance her union won't support her because what she said is considered transphobic.
Free Speech Union might be the go.
Does anyone else find it …. ironic…. that the woman is being mis-gendered: her preferred group noun is "women", rather than "people" – with the qualifying adjective 'pregnant' indicating her current gestational status.
If someone tells me their preferred pronoun is ‘her’ – I would be downright rude to refer to her as ‘them’ – just because that’s my preferred pronoun.
This is why gender ideology is inherently sexist and regressive. Trans people are allowed to define their own selves, women aren't.
I use they as the default now.
That kind of thing is not uncommon. I had it happen to me years ago.
Two former senior public servants approached me with a serious allegation. I made it clear to them it was false and since nothing further happened I thought it was the end of the matter. But further down the track – and after a prolonged period of bullying, intimidation and other disturbing incidents – I was to discover the allegation had been placed on record and never rescinded. It ended up causing me a huge amount of trouble and distress.
I later learned a jealous acquaintance (a woman) had made the allegation and the recipients chose to accept it without any attempt to seek verification. My word was apparently not regarded as good enough.
Some of her options:
None of the above mean having to take action now, they're insurance. Her boss might be covering his butt, and if push comes to shove he's not going to side with her.
Yeah she is a member of the union, and I believe that she’s casually mentioned that her Dad & older sister are lawyers.
I think this is just one clique defending their turf so to speak. My niece and tall, slim, educated, elegant, private school educated (I’m from the poor side of family), she’s always been very independent and strong willed. So others are drawn to her. I think she has often been excluded from the popular clique, but she’s always developed her own clique, which can be threatening to those with low emotional intelligence.
But she’s working for a bank, well paid, looked after. So definitely doesn’t want to leave.
The only thing I would add to Weka's advice is for her to always have a support person if she's called to a meeting, and to ensure any future meetings are documented. Also, you say that she doesn't want to leave. I get that, but I have seen this scenario play out and there is a good chance her colleagues could make things very unpleasant for her. In that situation, unless she is extremely resilient and thick skinned, it can be better for a person's health just to walk away.
Also document, document, document.
Start with a time lines then flesh this out with copies of emails, texts, updates on group conversations. Keep off site ie not on main bank server/keep copy printed out in locked private drawer.
This is a ghastly sounding case and I may be wrong but I thought there were special provisions about not denigrating a woman because of pregnancy.
Is this it?
Human Rights Act (1993) – Prohibited grounds of discrimination
https://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1993/0082/latest/DLM304475.html
First entry:
21 Prohibited grounds of discrimination
(1) For the purposes of this Act, the prohibited grounds of discrimination are—
(a) sex, which includes pregnancy and childbirth:
Yes thanks Molly….I used to have all this stuff at my finger tips.
When I was working if you made a big P of your self about another's pregnancy and more or less the door was waiting, after a process. When Maternity leave first came in we had a spate of grumpy males thinking that women had just got an advantage…..
You know an advantage to go along with the mostly lower salary starting rates, lower rates all round because of broken service,…….etc etc.
How can a natural process make people feel uncomfortable. It is not as if a pregnancy can be left at the lift door and picked up after leaving work.
Thanks for posting about this Terry.
Its shows the insanity of the trans rights movement.
Can somebody explain why human resources doesn't always have a standard policy which avoids being suborned into bullying employees?
An EQC person wants better decision-making as to where we build.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/opinion/131707548/we-need-to-be-smarter-about-planning-where-we-build
There is so much more, loss of good soil land for housing and the NACT Labour agreement to allow urban area development free for all (and end earlier focus on transport spine development – real urban planning).
And lest we forget, the old pre Super City Auckland had plans to prevent building in areas recently flooded …
The woke give Sean Plunket a good hating. In my opinion after reading this article, their cause may have been better served by keeping their gobs shut.(?)
https://www.stuff.co.nz/pou-tiaki/131689488/motivation-behind-broadcaster-sean-plunkets-define-a-woman-question-challenged
One thing that really worries me about the Trans movement is their possible influence on impressionable youngesters – kids trying to find their way in life, who are having trouble fitting in, who are looking for answers.
The chap in this clip became trans after listening to a podcast and finding enlightenment- he was really a woman. He had that affirmed by all those close to him. Yet under questioning by the speaker his tenuous arguments as to why he's a woman fell apart and he reverted to that great woke talisman of protection, he was feeling unsafe.
The clip unfortunately has Conservative commentary. Sorry about that. Just skip along to different parts.
that link is broken, can you please find the right one.
Sorry, Weka. I checked the link twice before posting. It worked fine. Just delete the clip.
it's not the clip it's the Stuff link. Looks like it’s been deleted by Stuff.
Yes. I'm not surprised.
was it defamatory or just really bad journalism?
More bad journalism in my opinion. It went way off track into Maori Trans feeling unsafe with the type of rhetoric Sean was spouting, to colonialism, you name it. There was little focus on the topic.
One person interviewed said he was instrumental ( complained to Twitter) with getting Plunket banned from Twitter. Sean has now been reinstated. Maybe that was one reason to delete the article?
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/sean-plunket-thanks-piers-morgan-posie-parker-after-twitter-ban-lifted/DZTMSYRF4BFPNCJCSU2S7VYKBY/
It was a once over lightly and critiqued Sean Plunket on his actions, full of speculations but did not once interview SP to get his side.
It was also full of borderline weird stuff to say that asking what a woman was is racist/homophobic.
????????
Interesting. Also this
https://twitter.com/psycho_milt/status/1644185102250053639
The link is to a talk that a right wing speaker Matt Walsh gave.
I linked to the extract when a trans medic was not able to answer of what they would do, EMT wise, when confronted with a man who said they were having a miscarriage.
Matt Walsh
3:08 PM · Apr 5, 2023
This link is to the concluding parts of the speech he gave
Matt Walsh
@MattWalshBlog
·
Apr 5
3:33 AM · Apr 7, 2023
Here is the link, below, to the sad interview he had with the man who was saying he was a woman.
2:27 PM · Apr 5, 2023
I have commented before that quite bit of the thoughtful work on the trans debate/ideology seems to be coming from the right.
I hope these links are clickable to the actual parts of the speech.
ETA I am coming to the thought that what the trans lobby is doing is actually cruel to the well meaning individuals who spoke. Rather than saying men can be women, ie changing biological sex which is impossible, the call could be better made as an acceptance of the gender that a person wants to be identified as.
The need would then move to accepting people as they want to present themselves rather than trying to force a biological impossibility on the population.
One of my links is broken…..aaaah
The concluding remarks from Matt Walsh
3:47 PM · Apr 5, 2023
The thing about Matt Walsh is that he speaks simple truth. He appeared on an episode of Dr Phil, and was by far the most coherent voice. This link is to the full video to provide context. The salient exchanges are from 12:30, where Matt debates the definition of woman.
Thanks I have watched the whole speech. He is a great speaker.
I did hesitate to put the link to the trans medic up as it was from a RW commentator. I started putting the links up yesterday including a couple from an, also RW group, called Gays against Grooming.
Oh oh
A great interviewer Winston Marshall interviews Matt Walsh, above
MW also is an anti-feminist patriarch who wants to roll back women's rights. Who are you trying to convince here? Because progressives will have a hard time believing him once they know who he is (despite his videos being good at explaining the issues).
Matt Walsh has views I don't agree with. Posie Parker has views I don't agree with. There are many people who have views we may not agree with, but speak powerfully into certain issues. I just happen to believe that on this issue, he nails it.
sure, but you're rw, yeah? From the left and for feminists, it's not a matter of 'disagreeing with' him, it's the fact that he actively is seeking to remove womens rights.
I mean, I get it, I was going to write a post with that video in it, but I'd have to spend 600 words pointing out how much of an arsehole he is to women and what that means in the sex/gender wars.
Very annoying that the video does such a good job of showing the issues.
Yes I'm from the political right. And I'm pro-woman. I would like to think I'm a feminist, but I don't even know what that word means any more.![sad sad](https://cdn2.thestandard.org.nz/wp-content/plugins/ark-wysiwyg-comment-editor/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/sad_smile.png?x42494)
I'm a fan of feminism as women's liberation
The problem that weka does not want to say out loud is simple and obvious. In very simple terms left wing feminism spent decades telling us that gender roles do not matter and women can do anything men do if they want to.
Then came along the trans crowd who bizarrely insist that biological sex does not matter and men can be women if they want to. Similar logic, just the consequences are reflected back onto women in a way they quite reasonably do not like.
Of course social conservatives never really agreed with either proposition, and that they are the firmest and clearest opponents of trans ideology is only to be expected. That feminists find this very annoying is also very predictable.
Except that in many respects 'girls can do anything'….if by that you mean (exclusion from) historical male occupations.
Whether society allows them to however is another question altogether.
@pat
Well it turned out that when women obtained access to any traditional male role they liked, it was the largely high status professional, political or physically undemanding roles they had in mind. Dirty, dangerous and unpleasant jobs undertaken in all weathers – like sewerage maintenance for example – were not what they chose at all. Turned out the traditional, patriarchal oppressive male gender roles were not always as wonderful as they were made out to be.
But that is a small matter. More interesting was the idea that males and females were – other than the bare biological essentials – interchangeable in their gender roles as parents, and if women could do anything men could, then logically fatherhood could be generally regarded as optional, or dispensed with altogether.
For most people sex is essentially a private matter, marriage being a public institution intended to protect families – and at root is a social contract between a biological man and woman that was of mutual benefit to both parents and especially their children.
And the further we publicly moved away from this ideal, the less comfortable they became.
My general point being that for most people traditional gender roles still carry real significance – no matter how patriarchal and oppressive the feminists tell us they are.
You might be interested in this blogpost by Maya Forstater, (who won a tribunal case in the UK, which said her statement that sex was binary and immutable was worthy of respect in a democratic society):
On Gender-critical disputes
@Molly.
Yes that post navigates the perilous shoals of this debate rather well. If I might quibble on some aspects with the author, I would imagine we could at least have a fine constructive conversation on the basis of what she has expressed here.
The idea that we have a soul that regardless of our sex, stands equally alongside all other humans before our creator, should not be so lightly discarded. In my view it is the basis for the claim that all people are equal before the law, to be accorded equal dignity and opportunity, and lies at the core of our common humanity and universal rights.
But this does not mean all humans are equivalent, or equally interchangeable, in every context. While a soul is an essentially immaterial abstraction, our physical bodies are not. And the multitude of ways in which these bodies differ matters a great deal in the way we should treat people in order to be just.
By way of a trivial illustration – if my partner and I take a day trip somewhere, the more art galleries and museums we can pack in the happier she will be. On the other hand if I can find an unexplored bush track I will be happy. Treating us both the same erases these interests and preferences and neither of us will be happy. On the other hand if we mutually respect each other's differences and constructively accommodate them – taking turns at doing art galleries and bush tracks, or somehow combining both – the outcome is more likely to be good for both of us.
All three of your comments are thought provoking and succinct, thank you.
"Of course social conservatives never really agreed with either proposition, and that they are the firmest and clearest opponents of trans ideology is only to be expected. "
This is an especially interesting comment. I am, in many ways, a social conservative, and my position on trans ideology comes from 2 places.
1. Much of the trans ideology is coming from a place of denying objective reality. Trans women are not women. They cannot ever fully understand what it is to be a woman, and accommodating the idea that they can is delusional.
2. I am pro woman. I believe women have a right to establish rules around their own spaces to the exclusion of others if that makes them safe.
Rather than address the issues being faced by the trans community in a meaningful way, we are listening to a small but vocal representation that is increasingly pushing a violent and divisive agenda.
FRANCE: Violent Trans Activists Force Cancellation Of Symposium Supporting Afghan And Iranian Women – Reduxx
Thanks for your comments RL.
I think you have got the biology/gender stuff a bit confused. This old feminist was always saying that 'women can do anything' -sure some things may be difficult strength-wise but we can do anything or should be given the chance to. We were not fighting on gender grounds as sex/gender were indistinguishable in those days.
My sister, slightly younger than me, still works in a male dominated, physically tough mainly outdoor environment. As she has got older she has looked at mechanical aids mainly in lifting that have been useful.
So useful that the business is now using them across the whole workplace. This is because they protect younger backs as well as older backs, workers do not get so physically tired and are able to really look at the intrinsically valuable areas of work not the manual labour parts. So smaller slighter people of both sexes can be employed and keep on being employed.
I have come across this view that because women made a thing of 'women and girls can do anything' ie not tied to the home or traditional sex role stereotypes that our 'punishment', often described in words like 'irony' is that now we are to put up with the trans community trying to change the meaning of biology,
This is far from ironic to me. It smacks of a barely suppressed glee that women have got 'what they should have known was coming to them, perhaps they/we should have 'known better.'…..I reject this framing.
The patriarchy is reasserting itself. This I have no problem in agreeing with. I can run an argument that seeing as men want to wear dresses and go into women's toilets and changing rooms that this is just 'boys being boys' and nothing to get concerned about.
The other view is that the patriarchy has said 'this is what we want to do so get out of our way'. The patriarchy supports men whether they call/are themselves men or we females call them transwomen.
Of course they have 'handmaidens', who support the idea. Riley Gaines found the handmaidens for the trans community shrieking and pulling at her as she made her way out of SFSU.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/riley-gaines-ambushed-physically-hit-after-saving-womens-sports-speech-san-francisco-state
Simone de Beauvoir “the oppressor would not be so strong if he did not have accomplices among the oppressed”
While traditional roles or mother (at home), father(at work) children suit many people they do not suit everybody. If it is one thing that has happened is that there is greater flexibility across roles, timing of work etc. I think this has benefited males as well as females.
I don't believe it is useful to frame the concern for women as being only 'feminists' who are concerned. Many of the women I speak to etc were profoundly upset by 25/3 where they saw other women prevented from doing something they wanted to do. Some of these women are, I believe, on the cusp of thinking the election should/could be a single issue women's rights election.
The right has been at the forefront, it seems, of being able to articulate the concerns of women.
So however we got to the dominance of 51% of the population by a despotic 3-5 % of the population, whether the patriarchy is stirring and pushing back etc, the longer the left leaves it the more chance there is of a single issue going with the party that 'sees' women……and it ain't Labout at the moment.
@Shanreagh
Yes, I generally avoid this topic and accept that others will disagree with my not always fluent efforts at expressing my thoughts on this.
For certain I have affirmed the right to equal opportunity; but that does not imply everyone will choose equally. Nor should they be forced to.
On average men are more interested in things, bonding in teams while facing challenge, are somewhat more aggressive anda a disagreeable. Women on average are more interested in people, bonding socially while nurturing and are more vulnerable to negative emotion and physical threat.
But there is considerable overlap as well; there are plenty of men with very feminine personality structures, and vice versa. But in general while each sex is broadly capable of doing what the other does, it does not mean they will necessarily want to. Instead diverging gender roles assert themselves, like weeds in a vege garden, no matter how much we officially disapprove of them.
In my view the core mistake- cheered on by the post-modernists- was to argue that this meant all gender roles were an ephemeral social construct that could be engineered into any shape we pleased. Or if erased them altogether a wonderful new utopia would ensue.
So for decades the western world has set about dismantling the 'patriarchy' delivering societies in which women are demonstrably freer to choose their destiny than anywhere else on earth, or in our known history. Yet it is not clear that for all this effort, anyone is much the happier.
And yes most people are willing to allow wiggle room at the margins. If a family chooses this dynamic – and it works for them – then few people might concern themselves with it.
What you write here brings to mind a couple we met at a marina some years back. She was definitely more on the masculine side and was very much the 'skipper', in charge of their boat, it's maintenance and operation, while he was very comfortable looking after finances, provisioning and navigation usually the domain of the woman. For them it worked just fine and no-one else cared a rat's patui about it.
But where people would push back is the activists proposition that somehow this couple were morally superior for having 'smashed the patriarchy'.
All reasonable points.
But (as always) the question is …how do we develop a social contract (and legal framework) that recognises both gender AND individual differences that is fair WHILE maintaining a functioning society?
A problem for the ages.
@RedLogix
Feminism is now claimed by a wide diversity of people holding different and often conflicting views. For me, it holds the same information about someone as calling them left or right-wing. There is no longer a coherent definition of those terms that is universally accepted, so I now try to avoid any of them in conversation and exchanges.
The same is true of the word and concept of "patriachy". Academic feminists have a detailed explanation of the term and concept and how it manifests, to the point where the word is lost in the explanation. Others use it as the whole argument and conclusion, ie. Domestic violence against women is because of the patriachy. When you ask what the definition of patriachy is from those who use it in such a way, you will often have different answers, mostly incoherent.
Female and male bodies are different, and those differences play a part in our experiences and our lives.
That's not an unfounded criticism to my mind. Many forget that everything has costs – whether intended or not. They should be acknowledged – and hopefully mitigated – when celebrating what you see as success. Or alternatively, acknowledged and considered too high a price to pay.
I agree with what you have written here. I also believe that alongside this, has come an implied criticism of the conservative family, and those who do choose or find themselves in what others will designate as traditional roles. The demand for neutral acceptance of alternative choices, is often not accompanied by the neutral acceptance of others who make what is seen as traditional choices.
The supposedly benign prefix "cis" is often used as a pejorative. Cis-het, I have only seen used as an insult.
Kellie-Jay Keen is upfront about her concerns and that she will work with anyone who is concerned. Clips of her visit to the Heritage Foundation in America, show that she did not have to inform those she met about her concerns – they were already well informed. That is not often the case with any supposed progressives that deign to meet her. The Heritage Foundation offered to assist in any way that was acceptable to her.
The American #LetWomenSpeak tour documentary can be found here: https://youtu.be/QLkUQH81Tts
Established feminists in the UK, have reacted very strongly to Kellie Jay Keen’s popularity with women who are not politically identifiable as left-wing.
A concerted and unrelenting campaign of critique and denigration has been active over the last years. Public declarations of distancing, has allowed groups to promulgate the unfounded accusations of Nazism, racism and far-right affiliations along with criticisms of not supporting reproductive rights – without providing evidence. Despite these accusations being debunked many times the declarations – in all their smug pompousness – remain.
The blogpost I linked to was a reply to a series of essays written by a variety of academic feminists who asked for written responses. (Link from the article) Needless to say, they didn't like the one above.
NZ based women – behind the authority of Feminist Named Organisations – but also using the cowardly cloak of anonymity – duplicated both the approach and accusations of such UK feminists.
I personally consider both groups have culpability in the violence that took part in Albert Park against the #LetWomenSpeak event. They repeated what they should know to be unfounded accusations, and provided supposedly legitimate references for others to smear and defame Kelly-Jay Keen Minshull and the event.
(Note: Just for added context. Kellie-Jay Keen is responsible for the first Women – Adult Human Female billboard going up, in Black and White in 2018. She's been merchandising that definition in that form on t-shirts, posters, signs and stickers ever since, and it has become ubiquitous in the movement. However, it is grammatically clumsy – it should be adult female human. When her USA tour was announced, an announcement was also made that the Standing For Women group intended to make a documentary. Within a few months – those who criticised her most publicly had produced a documentary – called "Adult Human Female" with black and white branding, and described it as coincidental. Like the women's organisations who defamed her before her arrival, they are capitalising on the increased attention without giving credit to the person and organisation who created it.)
https://youtu.be/y8nViKYmEhU
@ Redlogix
First I should say thank you for your views. I agree with many of them. Where I soon lose agreement is where I sense that the argument is, this suits most of us so therefore it is the way to go.
Being governed is a matter of consent by those being governed. The current system and many religions give room for most to exist so we accept them. This does not mean it is a perfect system, just that we don't see another that is better.
I call 'the system' the patriarchy and couple it with religion. I don't have the rigorous definition of patriarchy that some have – for me it is broadly the status quo. (the status quo built on eons of similar status quos. Where change is observable but may be barely moving as a way of moving the lives of everyone forward) Of course the status quo is like a breathing animal whose lungs expand and contract. So I wouldn't see the yachting couple as smashing the patriarchy. I think also that the patriarchy is inherently regressive, so that is why I say it is reasserting itself. It feels as if the we are regressing not moving forward. That the beneficiaries of this are male can lead to a thought that if the patriarchy is the status quo, it is possibly regressive ie not suiting the needs of all, in particular not hearing the voices of women then we see the growth of parties for specific parts of our society eg KJM proposed party called Party of Women.
So I believe in families, in stable units to bring up children, and to provide help and stability after those children have gone, so access to good health, education and opportunities for children and their families, no matter how these are made up.
What I don't believe in is a system so rigid that these are our only concerns. We should be in a society where our lives are measurably different, in a better way, than those who have gone before.
As a result of the current debate I have thought long and hard about the utility of the concept of gender. To me a census question, a very mixed up census question, about gender has great interest from a sociological point of view just as the influence of religion does. Sociologists interrogate this data and make observations on thought trends in our society.
To answer a census question on gender with Moon gender, gives nothing to health, education, super planners.
The key planning-useful questions are
woman, man, male child, female child
age
ethnicity/race
time lived in NZ
where born
All of these can give hard information to planners on the types of facilities we should be providing as we look ahead.
We could ask a question
who do you identify as?
male
female
another question, specify
prefer not to answer
This may give sociologists material and it is possible that coupled with age, women, male (ie biological or born sex) question some interesting ideas could come forward in the movement of thought.
@Molly and Shanreagh
I have read both of your comments immediately above and appreciate both. If I have not anything substantive to add at this moment it is because in the past this topic has often become a messy conversation – and I want to properly consider everyone's contribution, rather than charging in deeper.
(Also my apologies for some of the grammatical horrors in my comments. I have always been a very fast reader, but the downside is that when I am proof-reading inside this very narrow edit box, I am prone to missing or duplicating words at the line returns. I probably should get into the habit of typing in a proper word editor and then pasting over.)
100% Liberty Belle
I have always wanted the left to be on the ball in writing/interviewing on this issue.
I have said a couple of times that I have found good explanatory material on the right. I always caveat my links. I explained that Walsh was RW.
I want someone who can explain the issues, no more no less. Surely if we caveat the other aspects then progressives can decide whether or not to open the links.
Ok, then remove the interview I put up please. marshall/walsh.
How do you suggest we cover the points if the left is not generating much thoughtful material and we want to quote from something not from the left.
Yesterday I linked to GAG site and put a link in so people could see where on the political spectrum they come from.
I always thought that a note to say he is not from the left or is from the right was sufficient but am happy to caveat in whichever way you want.
Like Weka I see ‘feminism as women’s liberation’, and for me it is movement of many houses.
It's not that he's RW. There are decent RW people in the world. It's that he is a man with a lot of power that is actively trying to remove women's rights.
if we're talking liberation of women, MW not only opposed dismantling of the patriarchy, he is seeking to reinforce it and make it stronger.
There are a few problems with this position. One is that the liberals who might be persuaded will be put off again when they find out who Walsh is and what his politics are. A huge part of the war is because progressives want to be kind to trans people and feel good about their own politics, and then they see the counter to their politics coming not just from the right but the far right and fundamentalists, which makes it much harder to accept the ideas.
another problem is that nearly everything MW is saying has already been said in the past by feminists and better. The analogy about humans being bipedal and a one legged person still being human? here's Jane Claire Jones saying it in 2021.
https://twitter.com/janeclarejones/status/1439503748796190728
There have been multiple conversations on twitter about categories, how humans use them to make sense of the world, and how to explain this to people running the counter argument about women without a uterus aren't women.
One of the big challenges atm is that the right are getting to set the narrative on gender ideology especially in NZ. If you believe that the war has to be won at any cost then one can ignore this I guess. But Plunket didn't have the rights of women in mind when he asked Hipkins the question. Part of it is that he's trying to undermine the left so they don't win the election. Plunket understands the political significance of the question and what played out in the UK, and I would guess he understands that the left in NZ doesn't get it, yet.
When we use right wing and far right sources to promote our position and do so in such a casual way, we feed the right getting to determine the narrative. And that's not going to serve women in the medium and long term.
I get how tempting it is, it's very easy when MW lays it out so clearly to share the video. But that puts material out there by someone who is strongly in favour of limiting women's rights. And that shifts the overton window away from our rights. We might win on self ID but lose abortion rights.
I had a talk with Australian and NZ feminists on a twitter Space last night, and talked this through because I wanted to write a post using MW's videos, precisely because they were so good at demonstrating the issues. I had this idea that I would write about who Walsh is and why he is such a big problem for feminists, but in the end I was convinced by others that it's not worth it. We should be amplifying the voices of people whose politics we want to see in the world.
another way to think about this is, how can we change the narrative on the gender/sex war so that it is progressive and feminist?
to that end, here's the whole thread from JCJ,
The problem now is that MW's video can show the concept without people having to think about it much. They will get it intuitively. He is very good at this.
I'm not saying never use his material. I'm saying do it consciously and with awareness of who he is and what he is going, and make it very clear to others what is going on.
Thank you Weka. I am grateful for the way in which you have enriched my knowledge about these issues. I do appreciate that it is beguiling to read/listen to someone eg Matt Walsh who seems to get it.
I don't want this at all. Every time the Nats have got in with their shrinking govt policies etc it has meant hard times. As a superannuitant I have even less $$$ to come and go on than I had as a salaried person.
Many of the women I speak to/know were truly horrified by 25/3 and are coming very close to single issue. They do not like the thought of losing access to women only toilets and changing rooms. Many have children and grandchildren playing sport & see how dangerous it can become……though some sports are moving to protect women on fairness grounds.
It would be so easy for the right to commit to revising this legislation or tightening the safe spaces provisions and many may rush over.
I was talking on Twitter about the possible effects on women's ability to want to go out if all cinema restrooms etc have to be shared with males. Then there are toilets and changing areas in workplaces. If these are all unisex which seems likely then these are not a women friendly solution.
I have worked in two workplaces with these in them and they were awful as the men users did not leave the places as most women would. In fact some women could be found doing general tidy ups in the toilets….others just ducked out to a nearby Dept store that still had a powder room/lounge.
We speculated that if these reactions of not going out for recreation cinemas/sport and then inadequate facilities for women in workplaces then women are home shackled and housebound as badly as the Victorian times.
When women were striving to get ahead in the workforce the pee leash was a great restrictor.
Also I read some correspondence about women in the south of England pushing back against mixed male female changing areas being built as a 'Changing Village' (universal vomiting sounds the world over to this phrase) A few cubicles but mainly open space around the walls.
Thank you again Weka.
Snarky column by J. Pagani …
This sort of nails the tone
But the article is about health. She lauds the attack on centralisation by Rob Campbell and National (ignores the impact debt had on Health Board finances and capacity and the post code lottery on access to services under that system).
And advocates for private sector funding of hospital and health services building – the old model allowed government funding but boards had to provide a return (the cost of which deterred anyone asking for a new building until they had to). She would just bypass the government funding and has a rent cost for private sector profit (another step to privatisation).
https://www.stuff.co.nz/opinion/131711380/josie-pagani–yes-minister-health-is-in-crisis
j pagani is a shit stirrer, no friend of the left. here's a more balanced view of politicians subsequent careers. (omits the murky dealings of paula benefit, jami-lee ross and several others)
https://twitter.com/attackcartoonz/status/1643832246854643712?s=20
Very grateful that I'm spending my Easter break at home – rather than trying to leave Auckland
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/easter-traffic-barely-moving-delays-for-aucklanders-escaping-city-in-both-north-and-south-directions/YXQOEWC3FBG75PBJUXXBPGXZ2M/
same. we should make our homes and neighbourhoods attractive so people don't feel the need to get out of them so much.
A few days ago I heard or read, sorry can't remember where, mad-cow you know, an economics commentator was castigating Adrian Orr for punishing us for imported inflation, fuel, machinery etc, etc. I got to thinking about that and realised that he left out an equally valid culprit and that is "exported "inflation. The high price of our high quality meat here is the huge demand for it from the USA most of which ends up minced in hamburgers for MacDonalds, a fact I was unaware of until I was enlightened by a beef farmer mate. The world price for milk is directly responsible for the cost of cheese, baby formula and all kinds of other dairy products including of course milk itself. Many other products such as fish, some veggies and many others probably cause the same problem.
The answer cannot be ringfencing our in -demand products so that they are more affordable locally as that means producers would need to be compensated for the lost earnings and any failure to do so would be politically untenable. In some ways it is already happening as cost of living adjustments to the less well off mask the discrepancy.
God, politics is difficult and not a lot of people know that.
The problem of dairy prices in NZ owes much to Fonterra charging NZers the same prices as their products cost fob on foreign wharves. What little regulation we have never touched the practice – a prime instance of greedflation.
They are everywhere. No heresy is permitted.
https://reduxx.info/france-violent-trans-activists-force-cancellation-of-symposium-supporting-afghan-and-iranian-women/?fbclid=IwAR0cO7Xpd9m5VH9q0eKnQvxrgjpqRSLrCU1mTTz3wk75Bc_N7_FTCLJ01ZE
Oh heavens this is frightening Visubversa.
So transactivists destroy a mural to babies who died as a result of shaken baby syndrome (abuse)
This is sounding more and more like a book burning, witch finding mob than a movement dedicated to moving society forward.
We need some bonfires, sticks, stocks, pools, inflamed unseeing/unknowing followers and we will be back in the Dark Ages…….oh wait 25/3/23
I ‘hear’, taps side of nose, that people may know the identity of the ‘person’ who punched the 70 year woman in the head fracturing her skull on 25/3.
Obv don’t feel comfortable linking. it may be just speculation.
https://www.womenarehuman.com/trans-activists-ratchet-up-violent-attacks-against-women-in-france-spain-for-international-womens-day-2021/
Antifa? Maybe there’s something else going on here? A bit of anarchy, with trans people just pawns?
Anybody can call themselves "Antifa". It is not like the Boy Scouts, you don't get franchise rights.
In the UK – the black clad masked lads who turn up to shout abuse at women are dubbed "Black Pampers", (Pampers are a brand of nappies) and the ones in Melbourne (average age 17), playing at being Nazis were dubbed the "Black Shorts".
However, it is all the same male aggression and misogyny.
Yes, I understand your point. I am just wondering out loud whether (at least in some instances) the trans movement is being hi-jacked by other agenda's.
LB I don't think the trans agenda is being hi-jacked.
I think the trans agenda is now big enough that it is attracting all sorts of hangers on who may be peripherally attached philosophically to parts of it. Some of these will be pornography adjacent and some will have even less desirable aims. To push the boundaries as it were.
I would not be surprised if we saw moves to lower the age of consent, cater for more bizarre kinks such as Man/Boy love groups. Some are concerned that sexualising children through transitioning may play into the hands of groomers, this is a fear in the USA. I have not seen it here.
Others will be attracted by more common place views, to tag along for the possibility of violence.
As Visubversa says
Thanks, Shanreagh.
I had thought
Here is a good starting point from Maya Forstater (Molly's post above)
7 April 2023 at 9:10 pm
But how will it resolve the changing rooms, sports etc issues?
Perhaps the human rights for women are those at UN level rather than the 'NZ as a country' human rights level. I don't think the protection of women's safe spaces in NZ legislation is especially immune from legal attack.
I had found this article earlier on and see that it is referenced in the Maya Forstater article as well…..thank you Molly.
It deals with the pronouns issue ( I think Incognito said he has already taken his out)
https://fairplayforwomen.com/pronouns/
This is an excellent article and draws on the ideas of safety and how instinctive markers that women have carried through life may be blunted, confused as if we have been subjected to the effects of rohypnol
the use of pronouns such as 'she' to describe 'he' (male bodied) can dull our senses
Good read including a couple of exercises, and no these do not give you credits for any exam.![smiley smiley](https://cdn2.thestandard.org.nz/wp-content/plugins/ark-wysiwyg-comment-editor/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/regular_smile.png?x42494)
This is why I am stepping back from the gender wars. Will speak about principles now and then but it's tiresome getting tangled in the weeds
https://twitter.com/caitoz/status/1643253627937767429?s=20
Mainstream discourse is a complete wasteland. @SophRiver (🔒) describes the problem well:
That quote from SophRiver certainly resonates with me.
Here is my diagnostic tool rob. I look at the outcomes – if the outcome is more division and exploiting social fault lines to accumulate moral or political power, then I know to avoid associating with them.
If the outcome drives toward unity and a visible, concrete progress toward real-world, universal solutions, then I will cheer them on, and watch to see what lessons can be learned.
Looking at outcomes or consequences is a reasonable rule of thumb that I tend to use as well. However, it has limitations, especially when dealing with wicked problems and social messes. This can be illustrated with metaphors such ‘death by thousand cuts’ or ‘the last drop in the bucket overflowing’, et cetera. Complex multi-dimensional non-linear interactions with time lags cannot be measured or managed by a snapshot in time.
do you have permission to share those tweets from behind a locked account? If not, can you please check with her that it's ok.
Will do.
Permission granted.![yes yes](https://cdn2.thestandard.org.nz/wp-content/plugins/ark-wysiwyg-comment-editor/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/thumbs_up.png?x42494)
thank-you!