Bitcoin gets a lot of press. But it appears to be nothing more than than a certificate of gratuitously wasted electricity. That waste of electricity appears inherent to blockchain transactions in general, bitcoin is just the largest at the moment. For instance, one bitcoin transaction apparently uses around the same electricity as one American household for one week.
Just how much electricity is wasted by bitcoin mining? Here’s some comparisons to national electricity consumption. For instance, bitcoin mining worldwide now consumes an amount equivalent to about 3/4 of NZ electricity use.
I need enlightening on this bitcoin biz so thanks for cogent info. I will do some exploring to get my mind round it. Like smart meters and other hype stuff will it be useful or has someone found another portal to suck their money vacuum into and both suck and blow up to a nice bubble.
Unless you feel the urge to make untraceable transactions, you have zero practical need for bitcoin or any other cryptocurrency. Hence cryptocurrencies popularity for drug and kiddie porn deals.
Unless gambling your money in extremely-high-risk, potential-high-reward-but-maybe-lose-the-lot scenarios appeals to you, you’ve got zero “investment” reason to get involved in bitcoin or any other cryptocurrency.
There’s no such thing as an untraceable transactions in Bitcoin. It is essentially a ledger of account. You can put a bitcoin laundry between you and another party but there will always be a record of a transaction between two addresses.
I agree there is zero investment reason to get involved. I never got into Bitcoin because for me it isn’t tangible enough. And now, at the prices it is at, it looks like a bubble to me, and the fact it has hit the mainstream with all the accompanying PR hype around it means it’s too late for the average Joe to get in.
Seems to me bitcoin is the ultimate example of something that has value only because a bunch of people decided it has value. There’s absolutely nothing to back it.
Hell, even fiat money is ultimately backed by the issuing state’s powers of compulsion. So it doesn’t become worthless until the issuing government becomes worthless, like say Zimbabwe. And even though gold is relatively useless compared to something genuinely important like platinum, it has some uses to justify some value being placed on it. You could even grow pretty flowers from tulip bulbs. But bitcoin?
Greywarshark…. if you want a good read on what Bitcoin is and how it works, have a look at this series just recently started on Automatic Earth by Dr D:
It’s the first of 5 parts and 2 have been published, so it’s very current. I have some understanding of Bitcoin but this lays it all out, so far, really well.
We saw this used by NZ Power companies as their push was made during the “rollout of smart metering nation wide from 2011 to now, so one wonders now that most regions have had smart meters installed the “wasting of power in NZ has been “arrested”?
At least that is what the Electricty industry tols us would happen after new smart metering was installed.
Maybe that was yet another lie perpurtrated by National and their “corporate raiders and corrupt elite allies.”
Smart metering means no meter readers (outsourcing contract gets canceled) and buckets of data they don’t seem to know what to do with.
As it’s a granular breakdown from what they get out of each sub station throughout already IMO it’s just more of that ‘looking busy’ routine we get from an industry gouging the consumer with such BS as tariffs on people with solar panels (unison) etc
Seems to me smart meters provide some very useful data. I can go to the Genesis website and see a graph of my daily power usage. From this it is easy to estimate what running an electric heater costs me etc.
Yep. Not long ago I noticed the spike of extra power consumption when the hot water timer kicks on at night had got a bit bigger. Turned out to be a leaking pressure relief valve. It would have had to have got a lot worse and wasted a lot more power and water before I would have noticed it in daily or monthly average bills.
That’s interesting on smart meters. It has been hard to get a picture of their worth.
Some people have had meters installed without their say-so which only charge the basic rates and override agreement pricing plans they have entered into. Can the pricing system be changed? How easy is it to get a new system that has all the features the consumer wants? How long does it take from ringing or emailing to getting a satisfactory finish? Does it have to be done over the phone where the consumer is getting charged per minute?
Sorry, I don’t know enough about the different company plans or the nitty-gritty of the different smart meter capabilities to give a useful response.
But the smart meters do enable things like Flick Electric’s plans, where they just pass through all of their costs plus either a small per day or per kWhr charge for their costs and profit. If you’re willing and able to manage your electricity use, say by putting hot water, fridge, fridge, freezer, dishwasher etc on timers so you don’t use them at peak times, you can save quite a bit on your power bill. Powershop offer a much cruder version, with separate pricing for peak and off-peak use.
When smart meters will really make a difference is when they can communicate with the grid and users to manage the demand and smooth out peaks and troughs.
When smart meters will really make a difference is when they can communicate with the grid and users to manage the demand and smooth out peaks and troughs.
A fully cooperative national grid. Pretty much essential in this day and age but something we won’t get as long as we have privatisation and faux competition in the electricity ‘market’.
Some people have had meters installed without their say-so which only charge the basic rates and override agreement pricing plans they have entered into.
The metres don’t do the charging. That’s still done by the retailer entering the info into the computer and if someone’s plan got changed that would be a mistake done by a human.
Can the pricing system be changed?
Of course it can and, if extra has been paid by the customer because of the mistake, a refund organised.
Does it have to be done over the phone where the consumer is getting charged per minute?
Most places have secure websites that people can log into to change account details.
Thanks Andre and DTB. Something to think about when I turn down my next persistent offer of comparing prices with my present provider. What a scam. They can instantly offer a cheaper price for a year or something. I may be paying more but I have a reliable provider and am offered discounts if I pay in time which don’t disappear if it’s a day late. But I could do more perhaps. So now I know a bit more about smart meters workings.
There’s no difference in reliability between providers, they all use the same wires and grid connections. It’s not physically possible for there to actually be a difference in reliability (unless you’re signed up with a provider that’s in the habit of randomly sending someone out disconnect houses). The differences are in the pricing plans, customer service, billing practices etc.
It might not have been the main driver for implementing this technology but that does not mean that the data gathered is not helpful.
Also, gone are the days of estimated power bills where the consumer had to wait until the next actual reading before realising savings from reduced use.
The ” Line charge” for my location is now $2.46 per day including GST, before any power is used, that just happens to round out at $944 annually or $73.8 per month(30Days), again, before any actual power is used, I believe the term “Gouging” of essential services is the correct one, starting to make Solar look like an excellent investment, have lived ion properties with only solar, no problems, except the battery replacement after 10 yrs or so, a 5 kw system is adequate for most if your heating/cooking is gas.
We have previous notified government claiming that the Municipal water supply is taken out of “shallow aquifer bores” while foriegn water bottlers are allowed to sink “deep well extraction” bores hence they get our premium water; while are only left now with the top of aquifer water which is mostly soiled and contaminated from road and land use water runoff.
This ” Dirty NZ drinking water” issue has not even begun to be carefully and properly planned, as we need to stop “deep well ejection” by foriegn ‘free water pirates’ taking our best safe water.
While all NZ households get contaminated water that will be now be “doped” with harsh toxic chemicals including chorine and flouride that will harm weaker older and young almost our society.
This was forced on Municipal authorities who, now will add those chemiicals to kill pathegens and bactaria so our water is now equal to a third world water supply.
[deleted. That was a lot of scrolling to get past on a phone]
[Please don’t post whole tracts or long cut and pastes. You can cut and paste shorter bits to support the point you are trying to make or to give people and idea what the article is about. – weka]
“The solution is not chlorination.
The solution is clean water”
The RMA should be immediately changed to put that as number 1 priority because at the moment ‘The environment court’ is actually ‘the development court’, likewise council consenting. It’s not about proving that new development and consents (aka water extraction) will not impact water and the community – it is about some other person x proving at their own cost that it will NOT impact water and community. That is pretty hard to do.
The onus is on the wrong groups to prove impacts in environment not the one putting in the consents. There no come back or fines if the information in the consents provides to be wrong. It is an incredible dangerous and risky way to be running a consenting process and open to fraud especially with the amount of money involved in these consents.
Are you people losing Mana with the public well its your own fault I tried for negotiation but that’s right you don’t negotiate with a dum broke ass MAORI. KIA KAHA
it’s okay if you are a republican.
you can add Supreme Justice Thomas Clarence to that list have the right to sexually harras women. After all its t he wimminz fault with their poisonous and wily ways raising the lust in their hearts – filthy harlots – even at 14. I mean, really what is a 34 year old man to do when a 14 year old looks at him, or a married man who feels like he has to grab some pussy.
Of course no one’s calling for this pig’s resignation.
Rep. Blake Farenthold, R-Texas, says he promises to pay back taxpayers for funds from a special congressional account he used to pay a harassment settlement back in 2013.
Farenthold told NBC affiliate KRIS6 in Corpus Christi that he “didn’t do anything wrong” but would “do my best” to repay the settlement fee sometime this week, this time taking out a personal loan instead.
[…]
Farenthold is the only sitting House member since 2013 to have used the congressional Office of Compliance account to pay for a sexual harassment claim, in which $84,000 was paid out, CBS News confirmed Friday.
The House Administration Committee revealed Friday that only one sexual harassment claim has been paid through the taxpayer-funded account since 2013. Politico was the first to identify Farenthold as the lawmaker who was accused.
I agree, actually. By all means take their savings, etc, and give them a debt to pay off, but they have 2 children who are innocent and will be the greatest sufferers if they have to give up their home – there are enough families in trouble already without deliberately adding to them
Yes. The article is a bit vague on the house confiscation details but it does appear it’s been taken under the Proceeds of Crime Act. The Judge has ruled that some illegal income may have paid some of the mortgage and consequently ‘tainted’ the property.
If true then everyone who commits any kind of offence involving financial proceeds could potentially lose their home. So much for the punishment fitting the crime.
Not as I was led to believe the proceeds of crimes act would be utilised. I was of the understanding it was to help stamp out profiteering from drugs. I didn’t think it would take long for the law to start using it in other areas. Non payment of parking tickets next? You may laugh.
It doesn’t say specifically the Act was called on, I just assumed from the inference, but the term ‘tainted’ is used in the Act so it probably was.
I just had a read thru Ads link and it says the Act applies to serious offences which are described “an offence punishable by imprisonment for a term of 5 years or more” so I guess parking tickets might not make it (but who knows)
I thought the same, that the act was aimed only at the heavy hitters. Nothing forces them to make these confiscation orders, they don’t have to do it, and I wonder at the thinking & motivations behind them.
Just read the news report on the couple. Admittedly they obtained funds they weren’t entitled to, but the proceeds of crimes act is being stretched to it’s limits confiscating the house. Far exceeds the power. Judge is wrong. As someone else stated, how many white collar criminals have been prosecuted to this degree. No mansions confiscated as far as I’m aware. Most would be in trust though. If they are going to use the POCA for individuals that aren’t big time criminals, there should be no borders, such as trusts, which stop the enacting of the Act against multi-millionaire/dollar fraudsters
Yeah. It looks a bit vigilante-ish. I read the sentencing report Bill linked to below. The judge goes into great detail explaining the penalty he thinks she deserves and proceeds to give it her. And then along come these characters who appear to decide the court ordered sentence isn’t enough so they proceed to take her house as well.
This is bad policy. As JanM says, money should be confiscated and some punishment meted out, and some atonement.
I think there should always be some personal atonement for crime, apart from just handing over money. It could be doing a certain number of hours for the Council on community jobs. As they are done, they would be recorded and if not done, then there is a jail sentence. The life has to be moulded round the reparation time, not the other way round.
But why take away the house while the country is in this situation! What does that help the country and the lawbreaker, her children and partner in the long run. FGS.
You could say that the rich hold the purse, and the purse-lipped among the rich twist the poor for their misdeeds.
I am sure that the Judge regarded this rancid behaviour by a female beneficiary as totally outrageous and went all purse-lipped about it. Hence the serious stripping of all her assets. It is well-known that beneficiaries should not be able to have joy or satisfaction while they are receiving money for their keep from the government or some helping agency. Feckless pleasure and advantages gained are Not Allowed and the highest probity is required from the lowest living.
For you Rod Petricevich had no reparations ordered by the court upon his imprisonment some assets had been forfeited earlier but there was no “he might win lotto order ” or reparations out of his superannuation ordered. He also enjoys significant trust benefits
Is this 1 law for rich criminals and another for poor ones?
It’s a short read. To refer to someone with a gambling addiction as follows kind of beggars belief imo.
The pre-sentence report indicates that there is a significant problem with gambling and poor decision making. That is putting it mildly. Mr Johnson, I think appropriately, lays the genesis of this offending on a gambling problem, although I suspect that there may well have been other issues as well, but this is behaviour that has bedevilled the defendant all of her adult life and she seems to have been a somewhat slow learner as to the undesirability of fuelling this behaviour by access to money which is not hers.
And just to note that the sum she was sentenced on would have been the entire monetary value of her claim and not any proportion deemed to have been gained by dishonesty.
edit – just to note further, that while her face and story is ‘everywhere’, there is nothing bar a side mention of her partner and his tax evasion.
Love the way the crown couldn’t be bothered investigating the complaints against and alleged benefit frauds by Paula B.
I guess the legal and police system is not about innocence or guilt it’s just about having enough power and using the lawyers by the elite so you don’t get investigated properly, let alone caught.
This movement looks like it has a bunch more stamina than Black Lives Matter and Occupy.
Speaking of which, Franken is going to go down now that the Democrat women have pretty much ordered it. Although still looks like Moore will get Alabama.
Speaking of Franken, he had the opportunity to make a difference by resigning when the first allegations came out. He could have made a statement something like “behaviour of the kind I indulged in should be disqualifying for public office. To make that clear, I am now resigning…”.
But if he goes reluctantly as a result of mounting pressure and an increasing list of accusers, he’s just another abuser that still doesn’t get it.
I don’t know about it having more stamina, but it’s absolutely of a different nature.
Black Lives Matter and Occupy challenge structural foundations. ‘Silence breakers” or whatever name is being given to it, is about “bad apples” – at least, that’s the vein in which it’s generally reported.
boys will always be boys no matter how old and how famous, and how rich and how connected and any of the bullshit.
for the women it is
when it bleeds it breeds
beauty must suffer
if you can’t escape it, try to enjoy it
close your eyes and do it for England (insert any other country)
martial duty of the women vs martial right for the man
they are ‘jailbait’
what did she wear
why did she go there
why did she not speak earlier
where was the mother
why did she drink
to the victor go the spoils
she must’ave enticed him
lolita
etc etc etc
btw, the ‘me too’ movement is over ten years old, and was started by a woman of colour.
That’s true. Interestingly it’s black women that are most likely to prevent #metoo from becoming predominantly a liberal agenda, so I see the success of BLM here too. As you say, one has to look past much of the reporting to see the broader effects of what is going on.
now what we need to see is a detailed plan of how its to be achieved…im hoping James Shaw has been very quiet because hes busy formulating that plan for imminent release.
they are still annoyed that the Green Party did not rubber stamp the ‘majority’ of the National Party. How dare they do as they want to instead of doing as they are ordered too.
This fight to preserve jobs and conditions at the Aquatic Centre in Rotorua is winnable, if people rally aorund behind the workers and put maximum pressure on the mayor, CEO and Council.
@ Philip Ferguson, That’s terrible. I bet they could easily save $700,000+ by cutting the Rotorua CEO and executive team down to minimum wages… Some one should do a tally on how much the executive team is being paid and their wage increases. Should be enlightening.
I really hate all this conversion on NZ to a low wage transient economy. It’s such a race to the bottom and it does not save any money because then taxpayers and ratepayers then pay all the wages in work for dole schemes, more wage subsidies like working for families, the courts when people need to turn to crime, etc etc Nobody saves!!!! Not only does it not save money, it actually horribly reduces peoples quality of life and their mental health and wrecks their kids and dependants lives too!
Yeah, Boag is still there. Seems to be there as a lobbyist and you are right, they should be required to make an appointment which is recorded and verifiable.
God knows why supposes of former MPs are still there.
We commented on this some days ago, that is that no one had looked into what exactly Phil Quin did in Rwanda and for whom. We speculated on the information available which was that he worked as a consultant for the Kagame government and specifically the Rwandan Police at one point.
Now someone on Reddit (thats right, Reddit of all places, not the NZ media) posted about Phin Quin’s past and dear bitter old Phil claims it’s a hatchet job!
He does and apology clip (which I can’t bring myself to watch) and seems very concerned he’s burned some bridges with ‘people he respects’. Read ‘contacts’ with which to attack the Labour party with, and ‘clients’ who pay him for attacks on the Labour party.
Phil Quin has been squashed like a snail, good and proper.
I think Phil Q probably needs some ‘wrap around’ services about now – purely from philanthropic sources of course.
Probably the first wrap around service is to assure him is that his dick size is within the bounds of normality, and anyway (as Ms Muldaur once said to the insecure) – it ain’t the meat but the motion anyway
At the end of the linked article Quin says
“and won’t simply trigger another unhelpful round of substance-free nastiness”.
I think he is talking about you Muttonbird.
I didn’t call anyone a genocide denier in a Twitter rant sparking an epic round of hatred for Ghahraman. Quin needs to have a long hard look in the mirror.
Wet houses – a practical answer to the difficulties for blokes and women living on the streets with a booze problem. In this item hopeful Wellington Mayor Justin Lester says he will have talk with the government to get the first NZ one set up there. I wonder if that is progressing?
Wellington mayoral candidate Justin Lester says his plan for the country’s first wet house would help addicts on the road to becoming more independent.
A wet house is a residential facility where alcoholics can continue to drink, and research from Washington University found most of those people would halve their intake while they were there….
Another FFS moment … Natz gobshite Soper still at it. Today it’s Labour taking advantage of National’s initiatives! Getting more ridiculous now. Time to give it a rest.
Soper has an anology about National spreading hayseeds that the Goverment are reaping, any farmer knows that the only seeds to germinate from hay are weeds.
Petition
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern: I ask that you do not approve planned seismic blasting for oil in the newly discovered blue whale habitat off Taranaki, and that you make climate change your “nuclear free moment” by ending offshore oil exploration and drilling in NZ waters and the ‘Block Offer’ process.
well I want to tell her that if she’s worried about the planet she should stop mowing her bloody lawn. Bonus, she wouldn’t have to use a sprinkler to water it.
Some fairly salient comments by Ella Henry and Bernard Hickey on the RNZ ZB Hour (aka ‘The Panel’) re our public service. (It’s in the first 15 minutes thank Christ – i.e. before Mora has the opportunity to start exercising his wisdom and ego – so not too much of a burden to listen to).
The good thing is though, that people are starting to take interest and listen – and when they do (whether DHB’s or Water/health, Ed Jikayshun, Seeyoe’s celeries et al), they are starting to think: mmmmm geeeze Wayne – wtf?
Well, on the one hand I subverted the interpretation of the ‘dwarf’ as a label, a mere cypher, an insult to David Farrar, and gave the dwarf a personal voice, but then I placed the dwarf in a potentially compromising position.
The connection between Farrar and princesses should be familiar to any student of Dirty Politics.
Let me deal with the fat phobia first. Fat phobic comments attack a person from a place of prejudice. There are a whole range of political implications that come from that. Do you think it would be ok to make putdown jokes about someone based on their gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation? I don’t. Nor gratuitous digs at someone because of their body shape.
Perhaps it is more correct to say it as ‘Does this tie make my gut look slim.’ I don’t know how we are going to poke fun at each other if Health and Safety get too sterile about it. Instead of poking fun we might have to revert to poking someone in the nose.
National used it successfully for at least god knows how many years…but that was with corrupt media support so I guess your correct (not going to say Right)
I think the depth of the problems left behind cannot be turned around in 6-12 months to a point where the forces of 9 years of National’s abject non-governance no longer have an effect on society.
This government have several terms and more to rightly blame the Nats for the housing crisis, and under-planning for infrastructure. Same goes for improvements in educational achievement. Perhaps 18-36 months to get the health ministry and water infrastructure sorted.
Lets face it. National screwed these things up so bad that even an economy in free teenage party mode couldn’t help them win the 2017 GE.
I don’t think they’ll have too, most voted for the coalition knowing all these problems(fires) existed, the only ones that didn’t was the National supporters who probably didn’t care or weren’t interested.
When I was naive I thought our justice systems were like science and that was it is not a fact till it was proven to be fact but not now our justice system will spread lies about anyone they have a beef with. I can prove that everything I have said to he TRUE. If they had one shred evidence that could stand up in our courts we’ll you no what would happen . My great grandmother died when I was 9 an I ended up living with the worst family of all my whano I had been living with them for a week and after drank for 4 days they took me to the post office and got me to sign a withdrawal slip and drew out all the money my great grandmother had me save at my school savings. I found out later that MAMA MY GGMAM had another account that my fathers maintainec was beeping payed into they spent that to the first account had $300 and the second account had $800 they carried on getting my father maintainec till I turned 18 and I had left at 14 and went to work my dad told me he had carried on paying till I turn 18 and I told all the other family members about this and the people who did this don’t like this fact getting out there. I never got any gifts or new clothing I was the little white slave lite the fire chop the wood milk the cow boil the water for a bath. I was 12 and I fix a mower that someone could not get going he gave it away I was sick of carting water so I setup a syphon system to take the water from the tank to the copper and another from the copper to the bathroom I buried the black plastic pipe and put taps on the ends into the copper and the bathroom he got pissed at someone and picked on me and pulled that out every time he got upset he would call me a white honky bustard everyone called me honky when he tried to hit me I would runaway and hide one time I stayed at the neighbours for 2 weeks when I was 13.One week he took my money from cutting ragwort and used it to go to a funeral and left 2 of us home alone for 5 days no food I went to the neighbours. After watching them catch possum I started catching and skinny and drying them I had about 30 skins he said he would sell them for me i never seen a cent. So what these people are doing to me now is not a new feeling I am use to being intimated and bullied its like water off a ducks back. What I did not like was I was very submissive but not now I will protect my family we made. Kia kaha
Sad to hear of the death of Christine Keeler, one of the victims in the Profumo Scandal, although at least she lived to tell the tale, whereas poor Stephen Ward ended up committing suicide.
There you go the state using all its power to try and suppress me I use to be able to find eco Maori by Googleing it not anymore they did the same to a website I found about corruption in the NZ justice systems email the IPCA about it as proof next minute web site vanished they would have paid Google to make it come up in page 1000 in any search. Kia kaha
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Tree sap can be a sticky, unsightly mess on your car’s exterior. It can be difficult to remove, but with the right techniques and products, you can restore your car to its former glory. Understanding Tree Sap Tree sap is a thick, viscous liquid produced by trees to seal wounds ...
The amount of paint needed to paint a car depends on a number of factors, including the size of the car, the number of coats you plan to apply, and the type of paint you are using. In general, you will need between 1 and 2 gallons of paint for ...
Jump-starting a car is a common task that can be performed even in adverse weather conditions like rain. However, safety precautions and proper techniques are crucial to avoid potential hazards. This comprehensive guide will provide detailed instructions on how to safely jump a car in the rain, ensuring both your ...
Graham Adams writes about the $55m media fund — When Patrick Gower was asked by Mike Hosking last week what he would say to the many Newstalk ZB callers who allege the Labour government bribed media with $55 million of taxpayers’ money via the Public Interest Journalism Fund — and ...
Note: this blog post has been put together over the course of the week I followed the happenings at the conference virtually. Should recordings of the Great Debates and possibly Union Symposia mentioned below, be released sometime after the conference ends, I'll include links to the ones I participated in. ...
The following was my submission made on the “Fast Track Approvals Bill”. This potential law will give three Ministers unchecked powers, un-paralled since the days of Robert Muldoon’s “Think Big” projects.The submission is written a bit tongue-in-cheek. But it’s irreverent because the FTAB is in itself not worthy of respect. ...
One Could Reduce Child Poverty At No Fiscal CostFollowing the Richardson/Shipley 1990 ‘redesign of the welfare state’ – which eliminated the universal Family Benefit and doubled the rate of child poverty – various income supplements for families have been added, the best known being ‘Working for Families’, introduced in 2005. ...
Buzz from the Beehive A few days ago, Point of Order suggested the media must be musing “on why Melissa is mute”. Our article reported that people working in the beleaguered media industry have cause to yearn for a minister as busy as Melissa Lee’s ministerial colleagues and we drew ...
1. What was The Curse of Jim Bolger?a. Winston Peters b. Soon after shaking his hand, world leaders would mysteriously lose office or shuffle off this mortal coilc. Could never shake off the Mother of All Budgetsd. Dandruff2. True or false? The Chairman of a Kiwi export business has asked the ...
Jack Vowles writes – New Zealand is said to be suffering from ‘serious populist discontent’. An IPSOS MORI survey has reported that we have an increasing preference for strong leaders, think that the economy is rigged toward the rich and powerful, and political elites are ignoring ‘hard-working people’. ...
Chris Trotter writes – MELISSA LEE should be deprived of her ministerial warrant. Her handling – or non-handling – of the crisis engulfing the New Zealand news media has been woeful. The fate of New Zealand’s two linear television networks, a question which the Minister of Broadcasting, Communications ...
TL;DR: The podcast above features co-hosts and , along with regular guests Robert Patman on Gaza and AUKUS II, and on climate change.The six things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the ...
Policymakers rarely wish to make plain or visible their desire to dismantle environmental policy, least of all to the young. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s the top five news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, and a discussion above between Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent ...
I like to keep an eye on what’s happening in places like the UK, the US, and over the ditch with our good mates the Aussies. Let’s call them AUKUS, for want of a better collective term. More on that in a bit.It used to be, not long ago, that ...
TL;DR: The global economy will be one fifth smaller than it would have otherwise been in 2050 as a result of climate damage, according to a new study by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) and published in the journal Nature. (See more detail and analysis below, and ...
New Zealand is said to be suffering from ‘serious populist discontent’. An IPSOS MORI survey has reported that we have an increasing preference for strong leaders, think that the economy is rigged toward the rich and powerful, and political elites are ignoring ‘hard-working people’. The data is from February this ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters is understood to be planning a major speech within the next fortnight to clear up the confusion over whether or not New Zealand might join the AUKUS submarine project. So far, there have been conflicting signals from the Government. RNZ reported the Prime Minister yesterday in ...
Life throws curveballs, and sometimes, those curveballs necessitate wiping your iPhone clean and starting anew. Whether you’re facing persistent software glitches, preparing to sell your device, or simply wanting a fresh start, knowing how to factory reset iPhone without a computer is a valuable skill. While using a computer with ...
Gone are the days when communication was limited to landline phones and physical proximity. Today, computers have become powerful tools for connecting with people across the globe through voice and video calls. But with a plethora of applications and methods available, how to call someone on a computer might seem ...
Open access notables Glacial isostatic adjustment reduces past and future Arctic subsea permafrost, Creel et al., Nature Communications:Sea-level rise submerges terrestrial permafrost in the Arctic, turning it into subsea permafrost. Subsea permafrost underlies ~ 1.8 million km2 of Arctic continental shelf, with thicknesses in places exceeding 700 m. Sea-level variations over glacial-interglacial cycles control ...
The operating system (OS) is the heart and soul of a computer, orchestrating every action and interaction between hardware and software. But have you ever wondered where on a computer is the operating system generally stored? The answer lies in the intricate dance between hardware and software components, particularly within ...
Laptops have become essential tools for work, entertainment, and communication, offering portability and functionality. However, with rising energy costs and growing environmental concerns, understanding a laptop’s power consumption is more important than ever. So, how many watts does a laptop use? The answer, unfortunately, isn’t straightforward. It depends on several ...
Screen recording has become an essential tool for various purposes, such as creating tutorials, capturing gameplay footage, recording online meetings, or sharing information with others. Fortunately, Dell laptops offer several built-in and external options for screen recording, catering to different needs and preferences. This guide will explore various methods on ...
A cracked or damaged laptop screen can be a frustrating experience, impacting productivity and enjoyment. Fortunately, laptop screen repair is a common service offered by various repair shops and technicians. However, the cost of fixing a laptop screen can vary significantly depending on several factors. This article delves into the ...
Gaming laptops represent a significant investment for passionate gamers, offering portability and powerful performance for immersive gaming experiences. However, a common concern among potential buyers is their lifespan. Unlike desktop PCs, which allow for easier component upgrades, gaming laptops have inherent limitations due to their compact and integrated design. This ...
The annual inventory report of New Zealand's greenhouse gas emissions has been released, showing that gross emissions have dropped for the third year in a row, to 78.4 million tons: All-told gross emissions have decreased by over 6 million tons since the Zero Carbon Act was passed in 2019. ...
Experiencing a locked computer can be frustrating, especially when you need access to your files and applications urgently. The methods to unlock your computer will vary depending on the specific situation and the type of lock you encounter. This guide will explore various scenarios and provide step-by-step instructions on how ...
While the world has largely transitioned to digital communication, faxing still holds relevance in certain industries and situations. Fortunately, gone are the days of bulky fax machines and dedicated phone lines. Today, you can easily send and receive faxes directly from your computer, offering a convenient and efficient way to ...
In our increasingly digital world, home computers have become essential tools for work, communication, entertainment, and more. However, this increased reliance on technology also exposes us to various cyber threats. Understanding these threats and taking proactive steps to protect your home computer is crucial for safeguarding your personal information, finances, ...
In the ever-evolving world of technology, server-based computing has emerged as a cornerstone of modern digital infrastructure. This article delves into the concept of server-based computing, exploring its various forms, benefits, challenges, and its impact on the way we work and interact with technology. Understanding Server-Based Computing: At its core, ...
The absolute brass neck of this guy.We want more medical doctors, not more spin doctors, Luxon was saying a couple of weeks ago, and now we’re told the guy has seven salaried adults on TikTok duty. Sorry, doing social media. The absolute brass neck of it. The irony that the ...
Buzz from the Beehive Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones relishes spatting and eagerly takes issue with environmentalists who criticise his enthusiasm for resource development. He relishes helping the fishing industry too. And so today, while the media are making much of the latest culling in the public service to ...
Having written, taught and worked for the US government on issues involving unconventional warfare and terrorism for 30-odd years, two things irritate me the most when the subject is discussed in public. The first is the Johnny-come-lately academics-turned-media commentators who … Continue reading → ...
Eric Crampton writes – Kainga Ora is the government’s house building agency. It’s been building a lot of social housing. Kainga Ora has its own (but independent) consenting authority, Consentium. It’s a neat idea. Rather than have to deal with building consents across each different territorial authority, Kainga Ora ...
Muriel Newman writes – The Coalition Government says it is moving with speed to deliver campaign promises and reverse the damage done by Labour. One of their key commitments is to “defend the principle that New Zealanders are equal before the law.” To achieve this, they have pledged they “will not advance ...
Chris Trotter writes – The absence of anything resembling a fightback from the public servants currently losing their jobs is interesting. State-sector workers’ collective fatalism in the face of Coalition cutbacks indicates a surprisingly broad acceptance of impermanence in the workplace. Fifty years ago, lay-offs in the thousands ...
Mariupol, on the Azov Sea coast, was one of the first cities to suffer almost complete destruction after the start of the Ukraine War started in late February 2022. We remember the scenes of absolute destruction of the houses and city structures. The deaths of innocent civilians – many of ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – Ten years ago, I wrote the following in a Listener column: Every year around one in five new-born babies will be reliant on their caregivers benefit by Christmas. This pattern has persisted from at least 1993. For Maori the number jumps to over one in three. ...
Climate change is expected to generate more and more extreme events, delivering a sort of structural shock to inflation that central banks will have to react to as if they were short-term cyclical issues. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMy pick of the six newsey things to know from Aotearoa’s ...
It’s a simple deal. We pay taxes in order to finance the social services we want and need. The carnage now occurring across the public sector though, is breaking that contract. Over 3,000 jobs have been lost so far. Many are in crucial areas like Education where the impact of ...
Hi,A friend had their 40th over the weekend and decided to theme it after Curb Your Enthusiasm fashion icon Susie Greene. Captured in my tiny kitchen before I left the house, I ending up evoking a mix of old lesbian and Hillary Clinton — both unintentional.Me vs Hillary ClintonIf you’re ...
This is a re-post from Andrew Dessler at the Climate Brink blogIn 2023, the Earth reached temperature levels unprecedented in modern times. Given that, it’s reasonable to ask: What’s going on? There’s been lots of discussions by scientists about whether this is just the normal progression of global warming or if something ...
The schools are on holiday and the sun is shining in the seaside village and all day long I have been seeing bunches of bikes; Mums, Dads, teens and toddlers chattering, laughing, happy, having a bloody great time together. Cheers, AT, for the bits of lane you’ve added lately around the ...
Today in our National-led authoritarian nightmare: Shane Jones thinks Ministers should be above the law: New Zealand First MP Shane Jones is accusing the Waitangi Tribunal of over-stepping its mandate by subpoenaing a minister for its urgent hearing on the Oranga Tamariki claim. The tribunal is looking into the ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Politicians across the political spectrum are implicated in the New Zealand media’s failing health. Either through neglect or incompetent interventions, successive governments have failed to regulate, foster, and allow a healthy Fourth Estate that can adequately hold politicians and the powerful to account. ...
Citizen Science writes – Last week saw two significant developments in the debate over the treatment of trans-identifying children and young people – the release in Britain of the final report of Dr Hilary Cass’s review into gender healthcare, and here in New Zealand, the news that the ...
One night while sleeping in my bed I had a beautiful dreamThat all the people of the world got together on the same wavelengthAnd began helping one anotherNow in this dream, universal love was the theme of the dayPeace and understanding and it happened this wayAfter such an eventful day ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
The Government’s newly announced review of methane emissions reduction targets hints at its desire to delay Aotearoa New Zealand’s urgent transition to a climate safe future, the Green Party said. ...
The Government must commit to the Maitai School building project for students with high and complex needs, to ensure disabled students from the top of the South Island have somewhere to learn. ...
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey and his Government colleagues have made a meal of their mental health commitments, showing how flimsy their efforts to champion the issue truly are, says Labour Mental Health spokesperson Ingrid Leary. ...
Māori are yet to see anything from this Government except cuts, reversals and taking our people backwards, Māori Development spokesperson Willie Jackson said. ...
The Coalition Government’s refusal to commit to ongoing funding for social housing is seeing the sector pull back on developments and families watch their dreams of securing a home fade away, says Labour Housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty. ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector. "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...
The Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...
Changes to the Resource Management Act will align consenting for coal mining to other forms of mining to reduce barriers that are holding back economic development, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The inconsistent treatment of coal mining compared with other extractive activities is burdensome red tape that fails to acknowledge ...
Trade, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Todd McClay has concluded productive discussions with ministerial counterparts in Beijing today, in support of the New Zealand-China trade and economic relationship. “My meeting with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao reaffirmed the complementary nature of the bilateral trade relationship, with our Free Trade Agreement at its ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today paid tribute to Singapore’s outgoing Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Meeting in Singapore today immediately before Prime Minister Lee announced he was stepping down, Prime Minister Luxon warmly acknowledged his counterpart’s almost twenty years as leader, and the enduring legacy he has left for Singapore and South East ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. While in Singapore as part of his visit to South East Asia this week, Prime Minister Luxon also met with Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and will meet with Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has made further appointments to the Board of Antarctica New Zealand as part of a continued effort to ensure the Scott Base Redevelopment project is delivered in a cost-effective and efficient manner. The Minister has appointed Neville Harris as a new member of the Board. Mr ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis will travel to the United States on Tuesday to attend a meeting of the Five Finance Ministers group, with counterparts from Australia, the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. “I am looking forward to meeting with our Five Finance partners on how we can work ...
The coalition Government has today announced purrfect and pawsitive changes to the Residential Tenancies Act to give tenants with pets greater choice when looking for a rental property, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Pets are important members of many Kiwi families. It’s estimated that around 64 per cent of New ...
State Highway 1 (SH1) through Wellington City is heavily congested at peak times and while planning continues on the duplicate Mt Victoria Tunnel and Basin Reserve project, the Government has also asked NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) to consider and provide advice on a Long Tunnel option, Transport Minister Simeon Brown ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Foreign Minister Winston Peters have condemned Iran’s shocking and illegal strikes against Israel. “These attacks are a major challenge to peace and stability in a region already under enormous pressure," Mr Luxon says. "We are deeply concerned that miscalculation on any side could ...
Hundreds of people in little over a week have turned out in Northland to hear Regional Development Minister Shane Jones speak about plans for boosting the regional economy through infrastructure. About 200 people from the infrastructure and associated sectors attended an event headlined by Mr Jones in Whangarei today. Last ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti has today thanked outgoing Health New Zealand – Te Whatu Ora Chair Dame Karen Poutasi for her service on the Board. “Dame Karen tendered her resignation as Chair and as a member of the Board today,” says Dr Reti. “I have asked her to ...
The NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has signalled their proposed delivery approach for the Government’s 15 Roads of National Significance (RoNS), with the release of the State Highway Investment Proposal (SHIP) today, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Boosting economic growth and productivity is a key part of the Government’s plan to ...
New Zealand is renewing its connections with a world facing urgent challenges by pursuing an active, energetic foreign policy, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “Our country faces the most unstable global environment in decades,” Mr Peters says at the conclusion of two weeks of engagements in Egypt, Europe and the United States. “We cannot afford to sit back in splendid ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced the Australian Governor-General, His Excellency General The Honourable David Hurley and his wife Her Excellency Mrs Linda Hurley, will make a State visit to New Zealand from Tuesday 16 April to Thursday 18 April. The visit reciprocates the State visit of former Governor-General Dame Patsy Reddy ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced that Medsafe has approved 11 cold and flu medicines containing pseudoephedrine. Pharmaceutical suppliers have indicated they may be able to supply the first products in June. “This is much earlier than the original expectation of medicines being available by 2025. The Government recognised ...
New Zealand and the United States have recommitted to their strategic partnership in Washington DC today, pledging to work ever more closely together in support of shared values and interests, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The strategic environment that New Zealand and the United States face is considerably more ...
April 11, 2024 Joint Declaration by United States Secretary of State the Honorable Antony J. Blinken and New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs the Right Honourable Winston Peters We met today in Washington, D.C. to recommit to the historic partnership between our two countries and the principles that underpin it—rule ...
Headline: The moment of friction. – 36th Parallel Assessments In strategic studies “friction” is a term that it is used to describe the moment when military action encounters adversary resistance. “Friction” is one of four (along with an unofficial fifth) “F’s” in military strategy, which includes force (kinetic mass), ...
The Fast-track Bill, if passed, would allow three Ministers, unchallenged and unchecked, to approve the immediate extraction and exhaustion of one-off resources. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Duckett, Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne iamharin/Shutterstock For many people, the term “bulk billed” refers to a GP visit they don’t have to pay ...
Emmas Hislop, Sidnam and Wehipeihana discuss what’s in a name. Emma Sidnam: Hello Emmas! Thank you so much for agreeing to do this with me. My first question for you is related to what’s been on my mind for a while. It’s very important. You see we’ve recently had some ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Sievers, Research Fellow, Global Wetlands Project, Australia Rivers Institute, Griffith University Chris Brown Humans love the coast. But we love it to death, so much so we’ve destroyed valuable coastal habitat – in the case of some types of habitat, ...
Josh Thomson on the 80s milk ad jingle he can’t stop singing, the beauty of The Simpsons, why Jersey Shore is as good as Shakespeare and more. For someone who spends a lot of time on our screens, popping up in everything from 7 Days to Taskmaster, Educators to Good ...
In apparent defiance of the Biden administration, the Netanyahu government has now initiated missile strikes against Iran. Last Saturday night (Sunday morning in New Zealand) Iran launched more than 300 drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles against Israeli military targets. With the assistance of US, UK and possibly French forces, ...
Māori representation brings a perspective that encompasses not only the interests of Māori communities but also a broader, holistic approach to environmental stewardship and community well-being, principles deeply embedded in Te Ao Māori (the Māori ...
This week in Auckland, a group of young people took over the microphone at a ministerial press conference, to explain why they oppose the Fast-Track Approvals Bill. One young woman said, ‘We’re here because we love Aotearoa New Zealand. We want to raise our children in an environment that’s thriving, ...
The summer was wonderful. Evie was wonderful, too; finally a teenager, finally worthy of long, hot days. She shaved her legs for the first time and bought cut-off shorts from the op-shop that made them look long. She got a Warehouse singlet so tight on her new shape that her ...
When Thomas James was on his solo camp as part of Outward Bound, the keen outdoorsman didn’t find it too challenging, as others often do. In what might just be the perfect illustration of his character, he saw it as a great opportunity to solve a few problems. “I thought, ...
From the unstable and drippy to the hi-tech and pretty, here’s our ranking of all the tunnels you can drive through in this country. The first tunnel seems to have been built in 2200BC in Babylonia, kicking off a global phenomenon for digging holes in order to get places more ...
Lucinda Bennett on the art of being greedy but resourceful. This is an excerpt from our weekly food newsletter, The Boil Up. When I picture the market, it is always this time of year. Crisp air, dripping nose, counting coins with cold fingers. Sunlight pale, filtered through specks of dew still ...
Zoë Colling’s favourite piece in the ‘That’s So Last Century’ collection is a lubrication chart for a sewing machine from the ’60s. It’s about the size of a postcard, and carefully maintained. “I like it that this piece of ephemera highlights that manual and technical side of the skill involved ...
Kia Ora Gaza A passionate haka reverberated through Auckland International Airport as a medical team of three New Zealand doctors received an emotional farewell from a big crowd of supporters before flying to Turkey to join the international Freedom Flotilla to Gaza. The doctors, who left Auckland yesterday, hope to ...
With submissions closing today, Macassey-Pickard says groups around the country have been supporting a huge range of people to make their submissions. ...
Our response to the new legislation is informed by targeted conversations with practitioners working in the system and through an implementation lens. ...
The new ‘Fast-track Approvals Bill’ would give just three Ministers the power to approve or deny development projects. They would avoid the usual checks and balances that are in place to protect rivers, land, the ocean, and communities. ...
COMMENTARY:By Eugene Doyle Helen Clark, how I miss you. The former New Zealand Prime Minister — the safest pair of hands this country has had in living memory — gave a masterclass on the importance of maintaining an independent foreign policy when she spoke at an AUKUS symposium held ...
The government's released the list of organisations provided with information on how to apply - just hours before public submissions on the bill close. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Milton Speer, Visiting Fellow, School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, University of Technology Sydney Before climate change really got going, eastern Australia’s flash floods tended to concentrate on our coastal regions, east of the Great Dividing Range. But that’s changing. Now ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elizabeth Finkel, Vice-Chancellor’s Fellow, La Trobe University Sia Duff / South Australian Museum In February, the South Australian Museum “re-imagined” itself. In the face of rising costs and inadequate government funds, CEO David Gaimster, who took the reins last June, declared ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alan Pearce, Professor, School of Allied Heath, Human Services & Sport, La Trobe University, La Trobe University This week, Collingwood AFL player Nathan Murphy announced his retirement, brought on by his concussion history and ongoing issues. The 24-year-old’s seemingly sudden retirement, ...
The Mental Health Foundation provides support and resources for those facing the loss of their job, so it’s wrong in the very week the Government adds another 1000 jobs to its tally of cuts, that this is happening. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexander Howard, Senior Lecturer, Discipline of English and Writing, University of Sydney Daniel Boud/Sydney Theatre Company Decay, terror, revulsion. These are three of the central themes of Thomas Bernhard’s rarely performed play The President. The Austrian is one of the greatest ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says threats by ministers Shane Jones and David Seymour to reform or close down the Waitangi Tribunal were “ill-considered”, as legal experts say the ministers may have breached Cabinet Manual conventions. “I think those comments are ill-considered and we expect all ministers to actually exercise good ...
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Bitcoin gets a lot of press. But it appears to be nothing more than than a certificate of gratuitously wasted electricity. That waste of electricity appears inherent to blockchain transactions in general, bitcoin is just the largest at the moment. For instance, one bitcoin transaction apparently uses around the same electricity as one American household for one week.
http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2017/12/climatedesk-bitcoin-is-really-bad-for-the-environment/
Just how much electricity is wasted by bitcoin mining? Here’s some comparisons to national electricity consumption. For instance, bitcoin mining worldwide now consumes an amount equivalent to about 3/4 of NZ electricity use.
https://powercompare.co.uk/bitcoin/
I need enlightening on this bitcoin biz so thanks for cogent info. I will do some exploring to get my mind round it. Like smart meters and other hype stuff will it be useful or has someone found another portal to suck their money vacuum into and both suck and blow up to a nice bubble.
Unless you feel the urge to make untraceable transactions, you have zero practical need for bitcoin or any other cryptocurrency. Hence cryptocurrencies popularity for drug and kiddie porn deals.
Unless gambling your money in extremely-high-risk, potential-high-reward-but-maybe-lose-the-lot scenarios appeals to you, you’ve got zero “investment” reason to get involved in bitcoin or any other cryptocurrency.
There’s no such thing as an untraceable transactions in Bitcoin. It is essentially a ledger of account. You can put a bitcoin laundry between you and another party but there will always be a record of a transaction between two addresses.
I agree there is zero investment reason to get involved. I never got into Bitcoin because for me it isn’t tangible enough. And now, at the prices it is at, it looks like a bubble to me, and the fact it has hit the mainstream with all the accompanying PR hype around it means it’s too late for the average Joe to get in.
Seems to me bitcoin is the ultimate example of something that has value only because a bunch of people decided it has value. There’s absolutely nothing to back it.
Hell, even fiat money is ultimately backed by the issuing state’s powers of compulsion. So it doesn’t become worthless until the issuing government becomes worthless, like say Zimbabwe. And even though gold is relatively useless compared to something genuinely important like platinum, it has some uses to justify some value being placed on it. You could even grow pretty flowers from tulip bulbs. But bitcoin?
It has ‘value’ because the ‘goods’ and services that are traded do.
Kiddie porn? !!
I might be out of date with that comment, there’s a good chance they’ve moved on to something else for their nasty deals.
https://www.cnbc.com/2016/07/06/blockchain-start-up-elliptic-aims-to-catch-people-using-bitcoin-to-pay-for-child-porn-online.html
Bitcoin – sounds like a teething ring for a rich kid.
Greywarshark…. if you want a good read on what Bitcoin is and how it works, have a look at this series just recently started on Automatic Earth by Dr D:
https://www.theautomaticearth.com/2017/12/bitcoin-doesnt-exist-1/
It’s the first of 5 parts and 2 have been published, so it’s very current. I have some understanding of Bitcoin but this lays it all out, so far, really well.
Thanks for this Andre,
We saw this used by NZ Power companies as their push was made during the “rollout of smart metering nation wide from 2011 to now, so one wonders now that most regions have had smart meters installed the “wasting of power in NZ has been “arrested”?
At least that is what the Electricty industry tols us would happen after new smart metering was installed.
Maybe that was yet another lie perpurtrated by National and their “corporate raiders and corrupt elite allies.”
Smart metering means no meter readers (outsourcing contract gets canceled) and buckets of data they don’t seem to know what to do with.
As it’s a granular breakdown from what they get out of each sub station throughout already IMO it’s just more of that ‘looking busy’ routine we get from an industry gouging the consumer with such BS as tariffs on people with solar panels (unison) etc
Seems to me smart meters provide some very useful data. I can go to the Genesis website and see a graph of my daily power usage. From this it is easy to estimate what running an electric heater costs me etc.
Yep. Not long ago I noticed the spike of extra power consumption when the hot water timer kicks on at night had got a bit bigger. Turned out to be a leaking pressure relief valve. It would have had to have got a lot worse and wasted a lot more power and water before I would have noticed it in daily or monthly average bills.
That’s interesting on smart meters. It has been hard to get a picture of their worth.
Some people have had meters installed without their say-so which only charge the basic rates and override agreement pricing plans they have entered into. Can the pricing system be changed? How easy is it to get a new system that has all the features the consumer wants? How long does it take from ringing or emailing to getting a satisfactory finish? Does it have to be done over the phone where the consumer is getting charged per minute?
Sorry, I don’t know enough about the different company plans or the nitty-gritty of the different smart meter capabilities to give a useful response.
But the smart meters do enable things like Flick Electric’s plans, where they just pass through all of their costs plus either a small per day or per kWhr charge for their costs and profit. If you’re willing and able to manage your electricity use, say by putting hot water, fridge, fridge, freezer, dishwasher etc on timers so you don’t use them at peak times, you can save quite a bit on your power bill. Powershop offer a much cruder version, with separate pricing for peak and off-peak use.
When smart meters will really make a difference is when they can communicate with the grid and users to manage the demand and smooth out peaks and troughs.
A fully cooperative national grid. Pretty much essential in this day and age but something we won’t get as long as we have privatisation and faux competition in the electricity ‘market’.
The metres don’t do the charging. That’s still done by the retailer entering the info into the computer and if someone’s plan got changed that would be a mistake done by a human.
Of course it can and, if extra has been paid by the customer because of the mistake, a refund organised.
Thanks Andre and DTB. Something to think about when I turn down my next persistent offer of comparing prices with my present provider. What a scam. They can instantly offer a cheaper price for a year or something. I may be paying more but I have a reliable provider and am offered discounts if I pay in time which don’t disappear if it’s a day late. But I could do more perhaps. So now I know a bit more about smart meters workings.
If you’re interested in comparing price, Consumer have this handy website: https://www.powerswitch.org.nz/
There’s no difference in reliability between providers, they all use the same wires and grid connections. It’s not physically possible for there to actually be a difference in reliability (unless you’re signed up with a provider that’s in the habit of randomly sending someone out disconnect houses). The differences are in the pricing plans, customer service, billing practices etc.
In other words a huge bureaucracy that costs heaps but achieves nothing.
For the convenience and benefit of the consumer…
Is not why smart meters or most any technology is rolled out
High Speed Broadband
Smart Meters
‘Internet of Things’
It might not have been the main driver for implementing this technology but that does not mean that the data gathered is not helpful.
Also, gone are the days of estimated power bills where the consumer had to wait until the next actual reading before realising savings from reduced use.
The ” Line charge” for my location is now $2.46 per day including GST, before any power is used, that just happens to round out at $944 annually or $73.8 per month(30Days), again, before any actual power is used, I believe the term “Gouging” of essential services is the correct one, starting to make Solar look like an excellent investment, have lived ion properties with only solar, no problems, except the battery replacement after 10 yrs or so, a 5 kw system is adequate for most if your heating/cooking is gas.
We have previous notified government claiming that the Municipal water supply is taken out of “shallow aquifer bores” while foriegn water bottlers are allowed to sink “deep well extraction” bores hence they get our premium water; while are only left now with the top of aquifer water which is mostly soiled and contaminated from road and land use water runoff.
This ” Dirty NZ drinking water” issue has not even begun to be carefully and properly planned, as we need to stop “deep well ejection” by foriegn ‘free water pirates’ taking our best safe water.
While all NZ households get contaminated water that will be now be “doped” with harsh toxic chemicals including chorine and flouride that will harm weaker older and young almost our society.
This was forced on Municipal authorities who, now will add those chemiicals to kill pathegens and bactaria so our water is now equal to a third world water supply.
https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/345570/new-zealand-s-drinking-water-a-mess
[deleted. That was a lot of scrolling to get past on a phone]
[Please don’t post whole tracts or long cut and pastes. You can cut and paste shorter bits to support the point you are trying to make or to give people and idea what the article is about. – weka]
Please do not paste an entire article you have linked to.
moderation note above, please respond so I know you have seen it, thanks.
This is what happens when you put profit above people.
A destroyed environment.
Undrinkable water.
The solution is not chlorination.
The solution is clean water.
Abandon unsustainable dairy farming.
Abandon neoliberalism.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11954491
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/345616/clean-water-it-s-the-communities-that-have-to-pay
Ageed 100%.
When did we learn that term “you cant get blood out of a stone”???
Our Elders knew this would happen that was the reason for the term.
Now we get get back to our former cleangreen country, or something close to representing the words of our dreams and asperations.?
You got it in one ED,
“The solution is not chlorination.
The solution is clean water”
The RMA should be immediately changed to put that as number 1 priority because at the moment ‘The environment court’ is actually ‘the development court’, likewise council consenting. It’s not about proving that new development and consents (aka water extraction) will not impact water and the community – it is about some other person x proving at their own cost that it will NOT impact water and community. That is pretty hard to do.
The onus is on the wrong groups to prove impacts in environment not the one putting in the consents. There no come back or fines if the information in the consents provides to be wrong. It is an incredible dangerous and risky way to be running a consenting process and open to fraud especially with the amount of money involved in these consents.
This disgusting water policy of the National Party and its farmer friends….
https://resources.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/l/f/i/z/s/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620×349.1lfi0o.png/1504501119377.jpg
Are you people losing Mana with the public well its your own fault I tried for negotiation but that’s right you don’t negotiate with a dum broke ass MAORI. KIA KAHA
Senator Al Franken is officially toast:
http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/363543-women-in-senate-call-for-franken-to-resign
Toast:
Bill Clinton
Al Franken
John Conyers
Harvey Weinstein
Louis CK
Matt Lauer
Kevin Spacey
Jeremy Piven
Brett Ratner
Not toast:
Roy Moore
Donald Trump
it’s okay if you are a republican.
you can add Supreme Justice Thomas Clarence to that list have the right to sexually harras women. After all its t he wimminz fault with their poisonous and wily ways raising the lust in their hearts – filthy harlots – even at 14. I mean, really what is a 34 year old man to do when a 14 year old looks at him, or a married man who feels like he has to grab some pussy.
Of course no one’s calling for this pig’s resignation.
Rep. Blake Farenthold, R-Texas, says he promises to pay back taxpayers for funds from a special congressional account he used to pay a harassment settlement back in 2013.
Farenthold told NBC affiliate KRIS6 in Corpus Christi that he “didn’t do anything wrong” but would “do my best” to repay the settlement fee sometime this week, this time taking out a personal loan instead.
[…]
Farenthold is the only sitting House member since 2013 to have used the congressional Office of Compliance account to pay for a sexual harassment claim, in which $84,000 was paid out, CBS News confirmed Friday.
The House Administration Committee revealed Friday that only one sexual harassment claim has been paid through the taxpayer-funded account since 2013. Politico was the first to identify Farenthold as the lawmaker who was accused.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/rep-blake-farenthold-says-hell-repay-taxpayers-for-harassment-settlement/
# IOIYAR
This is bad…..
“Benefit fraudster Leticia Drake and her partner lose home, savings and insurance payouts ”
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/99589505/benefit-fraudster-leticia-drake-and-her-partner-lose-home-savings-and-insurance-payouts
There’s a disturbing vindictiveness from ‘The Crown’ there and the ruling has sinister implications.
I agree, actually. By all means take their savings, etc, and give them a debt to pay off, but they have 2 children who are innocent and will be the greatest sufferers if they have to give up their home – there are enough families in trouble already without deliberately adding to them
Yes. The article is a bit vague on the house confiscation details but it does appear it’s been taken under the Proceeds of Crime Act. The Judge has ruled that some illegal income may have paid some of the mortgage and consequently ‘tainted’ the property.
If true then everyone who commits any kind of offence involving financial proceeds could potentially lose their home. So much for the punishment fitting the crime.
Funny enough they don’t seem to take the houses/assets of larger white collar criminals or corporate criminals like Banks.
Exactly! Mind you they will have all their assets tied up in trusts and have expensive lawyers
If they are having a crack under the Proceeds of Crime Act, the Court can grant relief to a third party:
http://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1991/0120/latest/whole.html#DLM251081
Not as I was led to believe the proceeds of crimes act would be utilised. I was of the understanding it was to help stamp out profiteering from drugs. I didn’t think it would take long for the law to start using it in other areas. Non payment of parking tickets next? You may laugh.
It doesn’t say specifically the Act was called on, I just assumed from the inference, but the term ‘tainted’ is used in the Act so it probably was.
I just had a read thru Ads link and it says the Act applies to serious offences which are described “an offence punishable by imprisonment for a term of 5 years or more” so I guess parking tickets might not make it (but who knows)
I thought the same, that the act was aimed only at the heavy hitters. Nothing forces them to make these confiscation orders, they don’t have to do it, and I wonder at the thinking & motivations behind them.
Just read the news report on the couple. Admittedly they obtained funds they weren’t entitled to, but the proceeds of crimes act is being stretched to it’s limits confiscating the house. Far exceeds the power. Judge is wrong. As someone else stated, how many white collar criminals have been prosecuted to this degree. No mansions confiscated as far as I’m aware. Most would be in trust though. If they are going to use the POCA for individuals that aren’t big time criminals, there should be no borders, such as trusts, which stop the enacting of the Act against multi-millionaire/dollar fraudsters
Yeah. It looks a bit vigilante-ish. I read the sentencing report Bill linked to below. The judge goes into great detail explaining the penalty he thinks she deserves and proceeds to give it her. And then along come these characters who appear to decide the court ordered sentence isn’t enough so they proceed to take her house as well.
This is bad policy. As JanM says, money should be confiscated and some punishment meted out, and some atonement.
I think there should always be some personal atonement for crime, apart from just handing over money. It could be doing a certain number of hours for the Council on community jobs. As they are done, they would be recorded and if not done, then there is a jail sentence. The life has to be moulded round the reparation time, not the other way round.
But why take away the house while the country is in this situation! What does that help the country and the lawbreaker, her children and partner in the long run. FGS.
Law grinds the poor, and rich men rule the law. Oliver Goldsmith
Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/oliver_goldsmith_403444
You could say that the rich hold the purse, and the purse-lipped among the rich twist the poor for their misdeeds.
I am sure that the Judge regarded this rancid behaviour by a female beneficiary as totally outrageous and went all purse-lipped about it. Hence the serious stripping of all her assets. It is well-known that beneficiaries should not be able to have joy or satisfaction while they are receiving money for their keep from the government or some helping agency. Feckless pleasure and advantages gained are Not Allowed and the highest probity is required from the lowest living.
Great job – the tax payer will be getting their stolen money back.
I have no issue with this – or any other criminals having assets sold to pay back stolen money.
So you’d kick a person when they’re down huh James. Why does that not surprise me.
“So you’d kick a person when they’re down huh James”
They are not “down” they were “caught”.
@ James
What if the value of the house (or other assets) taken far exceed the amount stolen and fine (if any) given?
They should sell all the items until the money is re-paid and give back the remaining items to the fraudster.
“I have no issue with this”
James declares his position and it’s that of a pretzel.
I agree with you James, they did the crime, time to pay the consequences.
James
For you Rod Petricevich had no reparations ordered by the court upon his imprisonment some assets had been forfeited earlier but there was no “he might win lotto order ” or reparations out of his superannuation ordered. He also enjoys significant trust benefits
Is this 1 law for rich criminals and another for poor ones?
Do you have any input on this?
Cheers Barfly
Gone quiet so apparently not. James probably has a headache from trying to formulate a response.
Nothing if not consistent.
Erm. Here’s the sentencing document. Note the date? The judgement was on the 16th of May last year – 18 months ago.
It’s a short read. To refer to someone with a gambling addiction as follows kind of beggars belief imo.
And just to note that the sum she was sentenced on would have been the entire monetary value of her claim and not any proportion deemed to have been gained by dishonesty.
edit – just to note further, that while her face and story is ‘everywhere’, there is nothing bar a side mention of her partner and his tax evasion.
Love the way the crown couldn’t be bothered investigating the complaints against and alleged benefit frauds by Paula B.
I guess the legal and police system is not about innocence or guilt it’s just about having enough power and using the lawyers by the elite so you don’t get investigated properly, let alone caught.
Time Magazine’s Person of the Year goes to ….
Silence-breakers against sexual harrassment:
http://time.com/
http://www.dw.com/en/time-names-the-silence-breakers-person-of-the-year/a-41675559
This movement looks like it has a bunch more stamina than Black Lives Matter and Occupy.
Speaking of which, Franken is going to go down now that the Democrat women have pretty much ordered it. Although still looks like Moore will get Alabama.
Speaking of Franken, he had the opportunity to make a difference by resigning when the first allegations came out. He could have made a statement something like “behaviour of the kind I indulged in should be disqualifying for public office. To make that clear, I am now resigning…”.
But if he goes reluctantly as a result of mounting pressure and an increasing list of accusers, he’s just another abuser that still doesn’t get it.
So when is Trump going to resign?
And why did Nancy Pelosi, that great defender of civil rights, not say a word about Bill Clinton?
https://www.nbcnews.com/meet-the-press/video/nancy-pelosi-nobody-was-proud-of-president-clinton-s-behavior-at-the-time-1103782467514
Republicans are immune from any of this.
It’s in the law.
I don’t know about it having more stamina, but it’s absolutely of a different nature.
Black Lives Matter and Occupy challenge structural foundations. ‘Silence breakers” or whatever name is being given to it, is about “bad apples” – at least, that’s the vein in which it’s generally reported.
boys will always be boys no matter how old and how famous, and how rich and how connected and any of the bullshit.
for the women it is
when it bleeds it breeds
beauty must suffer
if you can’t escape it, try to enjoy it
close your eyes and do it for England (insert any other country)
martial duty of the women vs martial right for the man
they are ‘jailbait’
what did she wear
why did she go there
why did she not speak earlier
where was the mother
why did she drink
to the victor go the spoils
she must’ave enticed him
lolita
etc etc etc
btw, the ‘me too’ movement is over ten years old, and was started by a woman of colour.
Pretty sure if you relied on reporting for an understanding of BLM and Occupy you wouldn’t get the challenge to structural foundations either 😉
That’s true. And my comment was badly worded.
What I was trying to get at is that some stuff just doesn’t get reported on and some other stuff gets reported in a way that renders it “safe.
That’s true. Interestingly it’s black women that are most likely to prevent #metoo from becoming predominantly a liberal agenda, so I see the success of BLM here too. As you say, one has to look past much of the reporting to see the broader effects of what is going on.
Lovely article on New Zealand emissions, a proper plan for reducing them, and some hope that the Green Party will start to re-address this issue:
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1712/S00054/a-fresh-start-for-climate-change-mitigation-in-new-zealand.htm
now what we need to see is a detailed plan of how its to be achieved…im hoping James Shaw has been very quiet because hes busy formulating that plan for imminent release.
Why do you always come out with lies about the Green party?
As you well know, climate change and emissions have always been part of the Greens policies.
The Green Party are in charge of actual implementation. as per their agreement with Labour. “Re-address” is covered in the article cited.
Waiting for Shaw to show he will hold up his part of the 100-day plan. It’s their only action.
they are still annoyed that the Green Party did not rubber stamp the ‘majority’ of the National Party. How dare they do as they want to instead of doing as they are ordered too.
Farrar’s lost his keys to parliament.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/99552731/speaker-reviews-list-of-approved-visitors-with-access-to-parliament-for-the-first-time
That on its own will go a long way to cleaning up the place.
This fight to preserve jobs and conditions at the Aquatic Centre in Rotorua is winnable, if people rally aorund behind the workers and put maximum pressure on the mayor, CEO and Council.
https://rdln.wordpress.com/2017/12/06/workers-resist-redundancies-outsourcing-and-cuts-at-rotorua-aquatic-centre/
@ Philip Ferguson, That’s terrible. I bet they could easily save $700,000+ by cutting the Rotorua CEO and executive team down to minimum wages… Some one should do a tally on how much the executive team is being paid and their wage increases. Should be enlightening.
I really hate all this conversion on NZ to a low wage transient economy. It’s such a race to the bottom and it does not save any money because then taxpayers and ratepayers then pay all the wages in work for dole schemes, more wage subsidies like working for families, the courts when people need to turn to crime, etc etc Nobody saves!!!! Not only does it not save money, it actually horribly reduces peoples quality of life and their mental health and wrecks their kids and dependants lives too!
https://www.facebook.com/Rotorua-Aquatics-SOS-Save-Our-Staff-136776193653037/
“I should have shut my fat face”
Hit that nail right on the head, Mr Quin.
Where’d he say that?
http://www.philquin.com/blog/2017/12/6/on-opining
He’s no longer going to do revenge porn on the Labour party. Thank god for that.
Farrar has been locked out of parliament and Quin has had an epiphany. What a great day!
An epiphany. Sounds serious. Is it a heart condition? Does it require surgery?
It’s when he suddenly realised his pay checks have dried up.
“Farrar has been locked out of parliament”
Wait, what?
He’s had his swipe card taken off him. He was on this list yesterday, but not today.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/99552731/speaker-reviews-list-of-approved-visitors-with-access-to-parliament-for-the-first-time
thanks, that was interesting.
How did you know about Farrar? (not in the link)
His name isn’t on the list of approved visitors to parliament.
where is the list?
Mid-page in Muttonbird’s stuff link.
https://screenshots.firefoxusercontent.com/images/0559d7eb-1ba8-41d4-bd0e-b38458ee082f.png
https://screenshots.firefoxusercontent.com/images/0dbcebae-3312-4350-8560-b149b957e53c.png
I remembered this story from a few weeks ago when there were 93 on the access list and you can see Farrar, David Curia Market Research Ltd is there.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/98473124/list-of-lobbyists-with-access-to-parliament-to-be-reviewed-by-new-speaker
On today’s list he’s not there. He’ll be devastated as it’s a status thing for him.
Interesting there were 15 on the list when it was first made public in 2012 climbing to 93 by 2017. Carter just handed them out to anyone it seems.
Morticia is still on it though. And what’s with spouses of former MPs?
Lobbyists (and Morticia) should have to make an appointment like anyone else.
Yeah, Boag is still there. Seems to be there as a lobbyist and you are right, they should be required to make an appointment which is recorded and verifiable.
God knows why supposes of former MPs are still there.
Spouses.
And now this.
http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2017/12/ghahraman-accuser-phil-quin-denies-he-was-part-of-the-rwandan-government-pr-machine.html
We commented on this some days ago, that is that no one had looked into what exactly Phil Quin did in Rwanda and for whom. We speculated on the information available which was that he worked as a consultant for the Kagame government and specifically the Rwandan Police at one point.
Now someone on Reddit (thats right, Reddit of all places, not the NZ media) posted about Phin Quin’s past and dear bitter old Phil claims it’s a hatchet job!
He does and apology clip (which I can’t bring myself to watch) and seems very concerned he’s burned some bridges with ‘people he respects’. Read ‘contacts’ with which to attack the Labour party with, and ‘clients’ who pay him for attacks on the Labour party.
Phil Quin has been squashed like a snail, good and proper.
Had to laugh.
I think Phil Q probably needs some ‘wrap around’ services about now – purely from philanthropic sources of course.
Probably the first wrap around service is to assure him is that his dick size is within the bounds of normality, and anyway (as Ms Muldaur once said to the insecure) – it ain’t the meat but the motion anyway
Its a good backgrounder.
It’s a shame Garner and other msm oiks are shit useless at research and instead parrot reckons from the dwarf at kiwiblog
https://www.reddit.com/r/newzealand/comments/7hmhgt/dirty_politics_the_disturbing_context_behind_phil/
At the end of the linked article Quin says
“and won’t simply trigger another unhelpful round of substance-free nastiness”.
I think he is talking about you Muttonbird.
I didn’t call anyone a genocide denier in a Twitter rant sparking an epic round of hatred for Ghahraman. Quin needs to have a long hard look in the mirror.
Quin should be looking to himself, first.
Last week he was pegged on TS as an apologist for the current regime.
https://thestandard.org.nz/phil-quin-our-medias-goto-dogwhistling-aussie/#comment-1420543
Wet houses – a practical answer to the difficulties for blokes and women living on the streets with a booze problem. In this item hopeful Wellington Mayor Justin Lester says he will have talk with the government to get the first NZ one set up there. I wonder if that is progressing?
Wellington mayoral candidate Justin Lester says his plan for the country’s first wet house would help addicts on the road to becoming more independent.
A wet house is a residential facility where alcoholics can continue to drink, and research from Washington University found most of those people would halve their intake while they were there….
If he were to become mayor, he said the council would lobby the government more strongly to solve homelessness, and would also push for tenants in council housing to be eligible for the Income-Related Rent Subsidy.
5/9/2016 https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/312534/%27wet-house%27-plan-to-tackle-wellington-homelessness @m_cropp michael.cropp@notrnz.com
https://www.rehabs.com/are-wet-house-facilities-really-helping-alcoholics/
More on progress for the Wet House in Wellington after talks with Phil Twyford.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/99529102/government-backs-wellington-city-councils-plans-for-a-capital-housing-strategy
And it got great support from a group of musicians.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/music/99065678/wellington-musicians-highlight-frontline-services-for-the-homeless
And this housing initiative. I hadn’t got wind of it. Sounds like a good start.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/education/98664506/first-prisonerbuilt-house-for-rimutaka-earns-inmates-skills
A useful discussion around uncertainties and transparency in science, and how vested interests and politicians misuse them to further their agendas.
https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-easiest-way-to-dismiss-good-science-demand-sound-science/
And if you followed that link, here is a link where you can down-load the vaccine for your new virus: http://www.go-read-a-book.com
Another FFS moment … Natz gobshite Soper still at it. Today it’s Labour taking advantage of National’s initiatives! Getting more ridiculous now. Time to give it a rest.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11954555
Stop reading that drivel Mary_a! It just keeps their ratings up! Boycott them!
Soper has an anology about National spreading hayseeds that the Goverment are reaping, any farmer knows that the only seeds to germinate from hay are weeds.
Yes I purposely avoid reading anything from soper and his missus.
Petition
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern: I ask that you do not approve planned seismic blasting for oil in the newly discovered blue whale habitat off Taranaki, and that you make climate change your “nuclear free moment” by ending offshore oil exploration and drilling in NZ waters and the ‘Block Offer’ process.
https://act.greenpeace.org/page/15809/petition/1?ea.tracking.id=facebook_promotion&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=climate&utm_term=seismicwhalesfb003&utm_content=paid_promo
and that you make climate change your “nuclear free moment”
You didn’t actually believe that bullshit. she only said because Labour wanted to get back all those ex-labour voters who moved over to the greens.
Psychic now are you BM ?
If your traveling SH1 south of AKL, warning, “don’t look up”.
Persistent condensation trails again.
pfft..sprinklers are the new contrail…
/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_c6HsiixFS8
only made the first 45 secs, but please tell me that’s satire.
Isn’t it scary that nobody will ever know…
well I want to tell her that if she’s worried about the planet she should stop mowing her bloody lawn. Bonus, she wouldn’t have to use a sprinkler to water it.
Having debunked the God conspiracy, the good young Bolshevik was confident he would never need to look upward ever again.
“Rainbows – this can not be natural.”
That’s some pretty good shit.
Loath as I am to endorse right wing policy, it has to be said: the National Party threw money at a problem and there was a slight improvement.
It’s definitely worth trying this National Party policy some more.
Some fairly salient comments by Ella Henry and Bernard Hickey on the RNZ ZB Hour (aka ‘The Panel’) re our public service. (It’s in the first 15 minutes thank Christ – i.e. before Mora has the opportunity to start exercising his wisdom and ego – so not too much of a burden to listen to).
The good thing is though, that people are starting to take interest and listen – and when they do (whether DHB’s or Water/health, Ed Jikayshun, Seeyoe’s celeries et al), they are starting to think: mmmmm geeeze Wayne – wtf?
“Does this tie make my gut look fat?”
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
[no fat phobia please – weka]
Aw come on you let me get away with a dwarfist jibe
Which I hope I redeemed, and not in a good way.
not quite getting that (was there a particular meaning in princess?)
Well, on the one hand I subverted the interpretation of the ‘dwarf’ as a label, a mere cypher, an insult to David Farrar, and gave the dwarf a personal voice, but then I placed the dwarf in a potentially compromising position.
The connection between Farrar and princesses should be familiar to any student of Dirty Politics.
Ah. I thought the off camera bit was funny. Missed the princess bit, I’ll blame the hot weather.
Let me deal with the fat phobia first. Fat phobic comments attack a person from a place of prejudice. There are a whole range of political implications that come from that. Do you think it would be ok to make putdown jokes about someone based on their gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation? I don’t. Nor gratuitous digs at someone because of their body shape.
Perhaps it is more correct to say it as ‘Does this tie make my gut look slim.’ I don’t know how we are going to poke fun at each other if Health and Safety get too sterile about it. Instead of poking fun we might have to revert to poking someone in the nose.
Jeez, there’s some nasty surprises left by National under the rocks overturned today with the Minister briefings release.
Housing, water, health, education. All the things we’ve known about for some years but denied by National and their greedy RWNJ hangers-on.
beware of the it’s nationals fault cry , its valid for 6 months or a year tops.
National used it successfully for at least god knows how many years…but that was with corrupt media support so I guess your correct (not going to say Right)
I think the depth of the problems left behind cannot be turned around in 6-12 months to a point where the forces of 9 years of National’s abject non-governance no longer have an effect on society.
This government have several terms and more to rightly blame the Nats for the housing crisis, and under-planning for infrastructure. Same goes for improvements in educational achievement. Perhaps 18-36 months to get the health ministry and water infrastructure sorted.
Lets face it. National screwed these things up so bad that even an economy in free teenage party mode couldn’t help them win the 2017 GE.
I don’t think they’ll have too, most voted for the coalition knowing all these problems(fires) existed, the only ones that didn’t was the National supporters who probably didn’t care or weren’t interested.
When I was naive I thought our justice systems were like science and that was it is not a fact till it was proven to be fact but not now our justice system will spread lies about anyone they have a beef with. I can prove that everything I have said to he TRUE. If they had one shred evidence that could stand up in our courts we’ll you no what would happen . My great grandmother died when I was 9 an I ended up living with the worst family of all my whano I had been living with them for a week and after drank for 4 days they took me to the post office and got me to sign a withdrawal slip and drew out all the money my great grandmother had me save at my school savings. I found out later that MAMA MY GGMAM had another account that my fathers maintainec was beeping payed into they spent that to the first account had $300 and the second account had $800 they carried on getting my father maintainec till I turned 18 and I had left at 14 and went to work my dad told me he had carried on paying till I turn 18 and I told all the other family members about this and the people who did this don’t like this fact getting out there. I never got any gifts or new clothing I was the little white slave lite the fire chop the wood milk the cow boil the water for a bath. I was 12 and I fix a mower that someone could not get going he gave it away I was sick of carting water so I setup a syphon system to take the water from the tank to the copper and another from the copper to the bathroom I buried the black plastic pipe and put taps on the ends into the copper and the bathroom he got pissed at someone and picked on me and pulled that out every time he got upset he would call me a white honky bustard everyone called me honky when he tried to hit me I would runaway and hide one time I stayed at the neighbours for 2 weeks when I was 13.One week he took my money from cutting ragwort and used it to go to a funeral and left 2 of us home alone for 5 days no food I went to the neighbours. After watching them catch possum I started catching and skinny and drying them I had about 30 skins he said he would sell them for me i never seen a cent. So what these people are doing to me now is not a new feeling I am use to being intimated and bullied its like water off a ducks back. What I did not like was I was very submissive but not now I will protect my family we made. Kia kaha
I had been shown how to smoke tabbco in 2 weeks WTF
Sad to hear of the death of Christine Keeler, one of the victims in the Profumo Scandal, although at least she lived to tell the tale, whereas poor Stephen Ward ended up committing suicide.
https://rdln.wordpress.com/2014/06/12/the-profumo-affair-a-moral-panic-between-austerity-britain-and-the-swinging-sixties/
There you go the state using all its power to try and suppress me I use to be able to find eco Maori by Googleing it not anymore they did the same to a website I found about corruption in the NZ justice systems email the IPCA about it as proof next minute web site vanished they would have paid Google to make it come up in page 1000 in any search. Kia kaha