Open mike 08/01/2025

46 comments on “Open mike 08/01/2025 ”

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1. Jenny 1

   8 January 2025 at 6:59 am

   Growing up in New Zealand during the Vietnam war era, my father would not allow us to have Coca Cola as his protest against the war. This habit of eschewing Coca Cola for more healthy branded drinks followed me into adulthood. Which probably accounts for my full perfect set of teeth at age 66.

   Coca Cola the unofficial globally recognised badge of US imperialism.

   Imperialism is not just militaristic and colonialist or neocolonialist system, imperialism is at its core an economic system. Selling things and making money.

   Coca Cola more than any other single licensed product, has come to be the symbol of US economic penetration and domination of the globe.

   'Things go better with coke" including imperialism.

   https://www.historyoasis.com/post/things-go-better-with-coke#:~:text=%C2%A9%20History%20Oasis-,What%20is%20this?,Other%20stars%20included

   Aggressive marketing verging on propaganda, anti-competitive behaviour, resource theft, plastic pollution, when you cut through all the bullshit about its benefits, Coca Cola, apart from rotting your teeth, can even kill you. Pretty much like imperialism itself.

   
   
   

   US imperialism's domination of the world's sugar water market is a side show compared to US imperialism's control and domination of the most profitable global product of all, oil, and US neo-colonial domination of the Middle East the richest oil producing region of the world.

   It was Coca Cola's efforts to distance itself from US imperialism in the Middle East that led to one of Coca Cola's biggest ever advertising disasters.
   • gsays 1.1

     8 January 2025 at 9:01 am

     Then there is the pollution and the recycling myth.

     Coca cola is the world's biggest plastic polluting company by a long way.

     https://www.greenpeace.org/aotearoa/story/unbottling-the-truth-coca-colas-role-in-plastic-pollution/

     Coke pushed the recycling myth too.

     Every single piece of plastic ever made still exists.

     But Coke isn't the problem. Once again we are the problem.

     As you eluded to recently, the silence concerning the genocide of Palestinians is deafening.

     Jordan Peterson points this out in regards Nazi Germany and the Holocaust. Germany wasn't full of rampant racists, it was, like here and elsewhere, populated by folk who could turn a blind eye or easily justify to themselves how it isn't their problem.
     • Subliminal 1.1.1

       8 January 2025 at 3:37 pm

       You hit the nail there. In the past, it was common for people to wonder about the holocaust, " how on earth did people allow this to happen??"

       Well. Now we know. Denial and obfuscation, demonizing the victims and glorifying the perpetrators.

       In his latest piece, Nelson genocide scholar, Kieran Kelly looks at Al Haq's report on the concentrating of civilians in (un)safe zones.

       There should be no official or scholarly doubt over the gravity, lethality, unjustifiability, and criminality of Israel’s acts in Gaza; and above all there should be no denying their intrinsically genocidal nature. Instead there is yet another powerful and heartrending report trying to break through the wall of equivocation that our media, politicians, scholars and civil society create. (By “equivocation” I mean the practice of portraying the most unambiguous issue of our time as being a quagmire of uncertainty and controversy.)

       And on the issue of concentration zones he writes

       In concentration zones structural violence is intensified by the destruction of normal social arrangements that allow for mutual aid and collective self-defence. Victims in concentration zones are stripped naked of all but the most primitive protection and reduced to a status akin to that of livestock unable to resist being herded or separated or ultimately culled.

       And now a group of eight Israeli lawmakers are demanding intensification of the siege across the whole of Gaza.

       They demand three basic points of action, after the “encirclement and evacuation of the population:”

       1. Remote elimination of all energy sources, that is fuel, solar panels and any relevant means (pipes, cables, generators etc.)
       2. Elimination of all food sources including warehouses, water and all relevant means (water pumps etc.)
       3. Remote elimination of anyone who moves in the area and does not exit with a white flag during the days of the effective siege. (although white flags have been largely ineffectual)

       “After these actions and the days of siege upon those who remain, IDF must enter gradually and conduct a full cleansing of the enemy nests.”

       Since Christmas, six babies under a month old have frozen dead. Makeshift tents leak water and flooding saturates everything. It is winter. No warmth, no heating. No food or water, no Healthcare.

       https://ongenocide.com/2025/01/07/gazas-safe-zone-is-a-concentration-camp/

       https://mondoweiss.net/2025/01/israeli-lawmakers-demand-military-destroy-all-food-and-energy-resources-in-gaza/
       • Jenny 1.1.1.1

         9 January 2025 at 11:24 am

         Subliminal @1.1.1

         8 January 2025 at 3:37 pm

         "….In the past, it was common for people to wonder about the holocaust, " how on earth did people allow this to happen??"

         Well. Now we know. Denial and obfuscation, demonizing the victims and glorifying the perpetrators."

         Demonising the victims and glorifying the perpetrators plays a lesser role, in allowing this to happen, than, denial and obfuscation,

         The primary cause is denial and obfuscation.

         For instance Biden's claim that he had seen photos of babies being beheaded was proved to be completely untrue, the same about the claims of mass rape, but this didn't stop the US sending weapons to actively support Israel to carry out this genocide.

         Encapsulated in the saying, "Evil succeeds when good men do nothing", obfuscation and denial are a causative factor. in every genocide.

         This quote, often attributed to Edmund Burke, means that when good people choose not to take action against injustice or wrongdoing, it allows evil to flourish and succeed without opposition.

         • The core idea is that simply not doing anything to combat evil essentially gives it the green light to thrive.
         • Moral responsibility:

           It emphasizes the responsibility of good people to actively oppose evil, not just stand by and watch it happen.

         • The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing. The greater the power, the more dangerous the abuse…

         Following the genocide known as the Holocaust committed by the Germans in World War II, Representatives of countries from around the world gathered at the newly formed United Nations and vowed "Never Again" An internationally binding convention was codified and signed and ratified. The international representatives of the countries signatories to that convention agreed that their nations would act to punish and prevent the crime of genocide,

         So there can be no denial or misunderstanding as to what constitutes a genocide, this is codified in the convention,

         1/ Destruction of a people, in whole or in part.

         2/ Stated intent by the perpetrator, to destroy a people in whole or in part.

         Both these two codified conditions of what constitutes a genocide to destroy a people in whole or in part contained in the Genocide Convention, have been committed by the armed forces of the state of Israel in Gaza, supported by statements of intent to destroy a people in whole or in part made by decision makers and representatives of Israel.

         Yet this country does nothing to meet our legal international binding obligations to act to prevent or punish the crime of genocide.

         How do we explain this?

         Obfuscation;
         Some people here, I won't say who, claim we have to wait for "the possible assumption of a referral power".

         Denial;
         Some people here, I won't say who, claim the act of genocide "…..is only really provable after the fact".

         This is how I see their excuses for this country’s inaction;

         A young man or woman joins the police force and signs up to a contract or convention to uphold the law against acts of violence.

         The police officer, witnesses a violent event, but decides to do nothing.

         He may do this for several reasons. He feels he doesn't have to act until he gets further orders from the police force or his senior officers.

         He feels he only has to act after the event.

         Or he might know that the perpetrator has very powerful friends, friends who will protect and defend the perpetrator, powerful friends with whom the police force has friendly relations with, which might cause the policeman suffer if he takes action to uphold the contract or convention he signed. So best just to ignore this act of violence is being committed so he doesn't have to act.

         I think society would judge that police officer harshly.

         A people or nation joins the United Nations and signs up to a contract or convention to uphold the law against acts of genocide.

         Those people and nation, witness an act of genocide, but decide to do nothing.

         They may do this for several reasons. they feel their nation doesn't have to act until it gets further orders from the United Nations or its legal bodies.

         They may feel they can only act after the event.

         Or they might know that the perpetrator has very powerful friends, friends who will protect and defend the perpetrator, powerful friends with whom their nation has friendly relations with, which might cause the people to suffer if they take action to uphold the contract or convention their nation signed. So best just to ignore this genocide is being committed as an excuse for not acting.

         I think history will judge this people and nation harshly.

         In conclusion:
         Just as civilians don't have enforcement powers of our own, we rely on police to enforce the domestic laws, the United Nations doesn't have enforcement powers of their own, the UN relies on member nations to enforce the international laws and conventions that they sign up to. When nations individually or collectively decide to ignore international law or rules based system the whole system will fall into disrepute.
   • Shanreagh 1.2

     8 January 2025 at 8:01 pm

     Very good points Jenny. Don't forget the United Fruit Corporation as a front for US interests in Central & Southern America. At least bananas are better for us than Coca Cola

     I'm astounded how benign the Trump pondering about Greenland is being written up in some media. Greenland does not belong to the US. The US has no more right to 'save' Greenland, presumably from the Danes /sarc, than they did to go to Vietnam or Afganistan or Iraq etc. The excuse is that there are US bases there. He is also pondering the Panama Canal.

     Undoubtedly there will be rah, rah Americans who will support this but let's hope our US loving PM does not come out in support.

     https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gzn48jwz2o is not so benign.
2. Dennis Frank 2

   8 January 2025 at 7:29 am

   Shane complained: https://www.nzherald.co.nz/kahu/shane-jones-criticises-tikanga-at-dame-tariana-turias-tangi-after-non-maori-speakers-barred/2Z33ABUAYNFBHAC6IELIBCK72A/

   NZ First deputy leader Shane Jones blew up the paepae at Dame Tariana Turia’s tangi when he called on the former MP to “arise and teach your people not to shame your distinguished visitors” after the marae tikanga did not allow English speakers to pay their respects.

   Three prime ministers – Christopher Luxon, Sir Bill English and Chris Hipkins – were unable to speak or allowed the opportunity to speak in English at Whangaehu Marae, near Whanganui.

   Note that the Herald no longer recognises the ex-PM political category! Their editorial process approved their co-reporters' innovation, which they got from the man himself:

   “The three PMs present as manuhiri should have been invited to speak." “So what if they had spoken English – expressions of aroha and sadness are universal.” Despite not speaking at the pōwhiri, Labour leader Hipkins said it was “important to be here”. Spokespeople from the marae did not wish to comment on Jones’ criticism.

   Probably because their discrimination policy would seem racist to enough kiwis already without fanning the flames…
   • tc 2.1

     8 January 2025 at 8:45 am

     Jones signalling to their racist base is what I see there.
     • Dennis Frank 2.1.1

       8 January 2025 at 9:03 am

       People see what they want to see: scientists call it confirmation bias. Depends if you want to live perpetually in a world in which reciprocal racism gets recycled. Transcending racism always seems the best way forward…
       • tc 2.1.1.1

         8 January 2025 at 11:20 am

         Absolutely.

         IMO its why shane has highlighted what appears to a be normal practice with faux outrage for the peeps to lap up.
   • Mac1 2.2

     8 January 2025 at 9:23 am

     “policy would seem racist to enough kiwis already without fanning the flames…”

     ‘Seem” is the operative word here. A quick, gut reaction based on one’s own beliefs is not argument enough.

     How can a policy based on one's language ability be seen as racist? The ability to speak te reo is not race based. Many Māori do not speak te reo.

     Some Pakeha however do. I have spoken in te reo on six marae to help bring onto the marae various groups. Sometimes I asked permission to continue in English. I understood tikanga was that te reo Māori was spoken.

     Te Ara confirms this.

     "Speak in Māori, not English, if giving a speech (unless expressly allowed). Basic marae etiquette – Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand
     • Dennis Frank 2.2.1

       8 January 2025 at 10:20 am

       Yeah, but Shane's point seems to be that a bilingual default is common courtesy. Whilst the locals have a natural to exclude nonlocal speakers, they risk creating the impression of separatism in the minds of neutral observers…
       • Mac1 2.2.1.1

         8 January 2025 at 11:22 am

         Neutral observers run the risk of becoming partisan by pronouncing before investigating.

         One of the blessings of education is that people become aware.

         Hence the teaching of NZ custom and belief, for example in social studies, should have made pupils aware of this tikanga. This is why I support 'civics' as a school curriculum subject.

         A visit to a marae would also help us as a nation to understand what we do, and why.

         'Courtesy' is something given. A visitor to a marae should seek to know what is respectful, as that is also courtesy.

         People should ask, seek information and listen to information given.

         I sailed on a full Cook Strait ferry last night. How many people actually listened to the inportant announcements made at the start of the voyage? How many ignored them and kept on talking, to the point where the announcement became difficult to hear?

         How many would have complained if they had suffered harm consequently?

         "I didn't know. No-one told me. They should have…. "
       • woodart 2.2.1.2

         9 January 2025 at 4:45 pm

         it was someone elses funeral. jones should have shown some mana and kept his mouth shut. but classic narcisist, its always about him.
   • Gillian 2.3

     8 January 2025 at 5:29 pm

     Why should they get to speak ? And who cares what Jones says.

     [You’re trolling again. Last warning – Incognito]
     • Incognito 2.3.1

       8 January 2025 at 5:33 pm

       Mod note
3. Tiger Mountain 3

   8 January 2025 at 7:37 am

   Given that the filthy ACT Party and the White supremacist Hobsons Choice have six months to stir up divisive racism in Aotearoa NZ it is quite justifiable to have an extension for submissions on Treaty Principles Bill as TPM have called for following probs with Govt. www site.

   https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/pressrelease?__eep__=6&__cft__%5B0%5D=AZVLGUu9uG9HYRwFgQTe4zBBbwurVC77ffu1M-fdlikl5vIaxNYxebjm9Jk-n6qXmRLmpXFX3j5wz9GFiAlmiLXTZVcXIyXpcC0fMcJ2DJaAVY9VYe7FQlJQ0F09-auWgaJgHTpDVmiRU2n1mOB4riWyMB923JghOBuDHrqSyaU5fBK_I_ZaG5CY1LMMsCWOM74&__tn__=*NK-R
   • Dennis Frank 3.1

     8 January 2025 at 8:06 am

     Yep, Labour's onto it already: https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/538401/extension-of-treaty-principles-bill-submissions-deadline-called-for

     The Labour Party is calling for an extension to the deadline for online submissions on the Treaty Principles Bill, in light of reports of people encountering error messages on the website on its final day.

     RNZ heard from people trying to submit on Monday night and Tuesday who had faced problems with the portal amid unprecedented numbers. Speaking to RNZ on Tuesday, legal expert Andrew Geddis said Parliament's IT systems should be set up to meet the needs of the people, rather than asking people to change their behaviour.
     • Tiger Mountain 3.1.1

       8 January 2025 at 8:10 am

       
     • alwyn 3.1.2

       8 January 2025 at 11:54 am

       It really is quite a spectacular flip-flop by Willie isn't it?

       Three months ago he was demanding that the bill should be dropped and that no one be allowed to contribute to the debate at all. Now he wants to extend the debate.

       https://www.labour.org.nz/news-release_cabinet_should_stop_the_treaty_principles_bill
       • Craig H 3.1.2.1

         8 January 2025 at 12:13 pm

         Seems straightforward enough to me – don't debate it all, but if Parliament is going to debate, ensure everyone who wants to be heard, is heard.
       • Bearded Git 3.1.2.2

         8 January 2025 at 12:31 pm

         Trolling again Alwyn. Your post is entirely without merit as you know.

         Must try harder not to look like a troll.
       • Ad 3.1.2.3

         8 January 2025 at 1:47 pm

         You don't need any principles in Opposition. They're a hindrance.
       • lprent 3.1.2.4

         9 January 2025 at 1:21 am

         Looks like you can’t read? Your link clearly states…

         “The Prime Minister and National Party Ministers should lead in the best interests of the country, rather than by the interests of a minor coalition partner.

         “Stop wasting everybody’s time, energy and resources on a Bill that ultimately is not going to pass anyway. Cabinet should end this divisive debate today,” Willie Jackson said.

         It appears that you need to see a doctor or an optometrist. Or possibly a arborist to clean up the shrubs and other vegetation that have been clearly growing in your rocky crevices and causing you to hallucinate like a AI.

         
         • alwyn 3.1.2.4.1

           9 January 2025 at 9:40 am

           Of course it states what your quote says. That is the point of my comment.

           At that point Willie was claiming that we should stop wasting time, drop the bill and forget it. NOW he wants to extend the time to collect submissions and spend a lot more money and time doing so. Well if he still thinks that the bill is just going to be dropped why does he want to spend more time collecting opinions when they will take more time classifying them and we are then gong to dump them in the rubbish anyway?

           Stop wasting time should surely be Willie's opinion shouldn't it, if he still thinks what he did some months ago.

           I do like your collection of fossils by the way. Are they the remnants of you long ago study of Geology or are they the old fossils of the long ago working man's Labour Party?
           • Incognito 3.1.2.4.1.1

             9 January 2025 at 10:35 am

             You don’t get it, do you?

             Jackson is adapting and responding to the changing situation using available (legal) means. For example, he’s not suggesting to cut off power in the House to silence the mikes and dim the lights to stop the debate in its tracks.

             Asking for an extension of the submissions is not asking for an extension of the debate per se, as you falsely claimed. Ironically, however, this is what Hobson’s Pledge appears to be calling for. So, your fossilised brain might find a more natural home with them rather than adding your usual noise and troll dust to TS.

             https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO2501/S00013/large-scale-public-engagement-should-be-celebrated-not-seen-as-a-hindrance-by-select-committee.htm
     • tWig 3.1.3

       8 January 2025 at 2:18 pm

       I had the same problem yesterday, when making my submission from the library computer. However, going back to the start (nothing had been deleted) and working through the form again got it admitted on the second go, about 30 s later.

       Wouldn't be surprised if it was a programmed feature and not a glitch. The message was something about buffers, and non-support of browsers. I wonder if those submitting from their phones would have been able to recapture their input and resend as I did.

       As part of my submission I called for all submissions to the bill be limited to citizens retroactively; and for any ongoing blah blah, such as a Parliamentary petition on the topic, with possible resulting referendum, be also limited to citizens. My reason was that The Treaty is a founding document tied to our nationhood. There is no room for citizens of other countries, or for non-citizen corporate shills to have any electoral power whatsoever regarding issues to do with The Treaty.

       Isn't whatsoever a cute word? Makes me fe4el like I'm wearing a black gown and horsehair wig. Came up in my word-maker ninegram the other day.
       • Dennis Frank 3.1.3.1

         8 January 2025 at 3:00 pm

         OED's earliest evidence for whatsoever is from around 1320, in the Castle of Love. There are eight meanings listed in OED's entry for the word whatsoever, three of which are labelled obsolete. https://www.oed.com/dictionary/whatsoever_pron?tl=true

         Happenstance is also rather cool, eh? With regard to them technoglitches, the RNZ news reporting has featured stuff like "I entered it all, hit the send button, but nothing happened." Debbie N-P then told the govt to pull its socks up, which reminded me of the old socks up to the knee below walk-shorts thing that mainstreamers once exhibited like a uniform.

         I felt it was unfair to file the 3-headed dogster politicians into this category but could be departmental heads still feature that antiquated style.
   • Ad 3.2

     8 January 2025 at 8:42 am

     Willy Jackson did a good job on this on RNZ this morning, and the National Duty Minister simply failed to show.

     Total gift.
   • Obtrectator 3.3

     8 January 2025 at 9:32 am

     We Facebook hold-outs can't access that link in the OP.

     I wouldn’t be surprised if the extension were allowed – it would encourage people to go on concentrating on opposition to the TPB instead of the much more dangerous Regulatory Standards Bill.
     • Drowsy M. Kram 3.3.1

       8 January 2025 at 1:13 pm

       … instead of the much more dangerous Regulatory Standards Bill.

       The Regulatory Standards Bill is a major threat to evidence-based impartial regulation. If (when) the bill progresses to select committee, I recommend that committee be given at least six months to consider its 'merits'.

       Consultation on the Regulatory Standards Bill ends on January 13. No special expertise is required to make a submission on this bill.

       However, the reality can fall short of the ideal, so much so on some occasions that the regulatory approach is considered to have failed and a new ideal is articulated. This pattern of optimism followed by disappointment followed by optimism can be observed over time and across different regulatory areas. It can also be observed in pendulum swings between different regulatory approaches, which often take the form of slogans – such as ‘light-handed’ versus ‘heavy-handed’, ‘prescriptive’ versus ‘principles’ or ‘more’ versus ‘less’ government.

       https://ojs.victoria.ac.nz/pq/article/view/4389/3882

       The leaky homes debacle, and unsafe levels of nitrate in drinking water, are examples of 'disappointment' – for a few dollars more

       https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-07-01-2025/#comment-2020728
4. Dennis Frank 4

   8 January 2025 at 8:58 am

   Meta MAGA makeover moment: https://edition.cnn.com/2025/01/07/media/mark-zuckerberg-meta-fact-checking-analysis/index.html

   Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is making sweeping changes to the social internet, all in line with the desires of President-elect Donald Trump and his supporters. Out with the fact-checkers that conservatives deride. In with more permissive rules for posting conservative opinions.

   The recent elections “feel like a cultural tipping point towards once again prioritizing speech,” Zuckerberg said in his announcement, justifying relaxed new content moderation rules on Facebook, Instagram and Threads.

   Zappa & the Mothers of Invention did a song about the Brain Police in the '60s, in the vanguard of the rebellion. Bit of a puzzle why the left has been so keen to revive the practice of controlling the thoughts of others, but no doubt someone here will have a go at accounting for political correctness. Or not, as usual. The CNN analyst doesn't like the implications of truthiness…

   “Governments and legacy media have pushed to censor more and more,” Zuckerberg said, repeating a right-wing talking point used to undermine fact checking.

   Whilst I agree that rightists are often delusional in the media, to the point of even asserting alternative facts, it all depends on the old question of balance. Both sides of any story need airing to form an holistic view. Often commentators are highly selective when it comes to citing relevant facts, so others need to counter-balance them.
   • Kay 4.1

     8 January 2025 at 9:50 am

     He said that removing some restrictions on content on topics such as gender and immigration would “make sure that people can share their beliefs and experiences on our platforms” and he said the focus of filters that scan posts for policy violations would be shifted to only tackling illegal and high severity violations with Meta, relying on users to report lower severity violations before it takes action.

     https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/jan/07/meta-facebook-instagram-threads-mark-zuckerberg-remove-fact-checkers-recommend-political-content

     In other words, give the transphobes and xenophobes and every other phobe carte blanche to have a field day, and we all know that actual facts will not come into it, and any attempts to provide 'balance' will result in nothing but a massive pile-on.

     In reality, I have no idea about how people who weren't at all interested in certain topics find xyz random posts in their threads, which sends the really gullible down the rabbit hole.

     My experience with FB is being an administrator of a well moderated health-related group, (a positive side for the site, as it's the only way for people to connect with others over a shared condition) and needing it as the only way to make contact with businesses who won't respond via normal channels, but seem to very quickly via FB. I have a false account.
   • Incognito 4.2

     8 January 2025 at 4:38 pm

     Zuckerberg and you seem to be confused about fact-checking vs. censorship. In Zuckerberg’s case, it’s politically (and financially) motivated, but what’s your excuse, this time?

     https://efcsn.com/news/2025-01-07_efcsn-disappointed-by-end-to-metas-third-party-fact-checking-program-in-the-us-condemns-statements-linking-fact-checking-to-censorship/

     Bit of a puzzle why the left has been so keen to revive the practice of controlling the thoughts of others, but no doubt someone here will have a go at accounting for political correctness. Or not, as usual.

     Nice straw man there to have a go at ‘the left’, which is one of your favourite targets. Don’t you ever get tired of taking potshots at the same old targets time after time?
5. Ad 5

   8 January 2025 at 9:26 am

   Austria's Freedom Party have been invited to form a government.

   https://www.dw.com/en/austrias-far-right-freedom-party-asked-to-form-government/a-71228157

   That's a pretty big steer for Germany's President if AfD gets to 20% or more in the March German Federal elections.

   It is another knell for Ukraine and millions of Ukrainian and Syrian refugees holed up in Austria. Also a pretty good chance that the US and Austria will start mass deportations of undocumented or refugee people at the same time.

   Also a very big signal for the Balkan states and Hungary to start mass deportations of their own.
6. Stephen D 6

   8 January 2025 at 10:42 am

   https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gzn48jwz2o

   ”US President-elect Donald Trump has ramped up threats to seize control of the Panama Canal and Greenland, calling both critical to US national security.

   Asked on Tuesday if he would rule out using military or economic force in order to take over the Danish territory or the Panama Canal, he responded: "I'm not going to commit to that."

   Would Denmark invoke Article 5 of the NATO Treaty?? They would be entitled to.

   We do live in interesting times.
   • Dennis Frank 6.1

     8 January 2025 at 10:59 am

     He also tossed this in:

     windmills are "driving the whales crazy".

     Whilst the continual mass beaching of whales suggests something is driving that behaviour, I'm as sceptical of causation by windmills as by those UFOs using bases on the bottom of the ocean that we used to hear about.

     Panama is “ripping off” the US with “ridiculous” fees to use the interoceanic waterway and principal conduit for global commerce. As Trump sees it, the Central American country’s behaviour is especially objectionable “knowing the extraordinary generosity that has been bestowed to Panama by the US”. https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2025/1/2/donald-trump-and-the-great-panama-canal-tantrum

     Narcissist leaders are real good at generating media headlines. Doesn't matter what they say, since it's all just about them really, but tantalising possibilities are liable to catch the fancy of the public regardless. Same principle as the circus in ancient Rome.
     • Mac1 6.1.1

       8 January 2025 at 12:24 pm

       "He also tossed this in:" Well, he is a tosser. Well spotted, Dennis.

       The Roman analogy is good. The Roman elite used slavery, patronage and war to make millions and then gave some back as bread and circuses to curry favour with the masses.

       An American billionaire here in NZ owns several vineyards and a football team. He knows how to work that system…….
   • Bearded Git 6.2

     8 January 2025 at 12:34 pm

     Trump is also saying he is going to rename the Gulf of Mexico and call it the Gulf of America. Bring on the men in the white coats.

     
   • Anne 6.3

     8 January 2025 at 4:10 pm

     He doesn't rule out military intervention if Denmark and Panama won't play ball. Someone else did that back in the day only it wasn't Greenland and Panama but most of Europe.

     So, would the US military comply or would they conduct their own form of insurrection and refuse to comply?
7. Stephen D 7

   8 January 2025 at 12:53 pm

   Unfortunately his maga base will lap it up. The msm will murmur mild warnings, but go along for the clicks.
8. tWig 8

   8 January 2025 at 2:27 pm

   Following up on my post the other day on software to optimise rental income, via cartel pricing strategies, unprovoked evictions, etc, I read in comments under a Guardian article the other day that rents in the UK have risen 30% in the last three years. The rents along my PN street have jumped from the high $200's to $600 pw in that last 8 years. Oz, the US, all follow a similar trend.

   If people must sacrifice the majority of their income on rent, then all other economic woes derive from that. In turn, inflated rent prices create inflated house prices, with banks encouraging larger and larger lending amounts for purchase, as landlords charge more and more.

   I can see that affordable housing as a human right, with rent control (and forced reductions), plus breaking rental market cartel-pricing MUST be a cornerstone election issue for lw parties from now on. Expose the 'free' market for what it really is.

   Luxon’s rent-decrease promises were empty, of course, because no landlord or property manager will decrease rent when their costs go down.
9. tWig 9

   8 January 2025 at 2:50 pm

   An interesting Guardian comment pointing out the effect of the UK's "poorly-thought out" online safety law, which is causing the shutdown of small websites.

   Implementation "includes registering a “senior person”… who will be held accountable should Ofcom decide your site isn’t safe enough…moderation teams need to be fully staffed with quick response times if bad (loosely defined) content is found on the site…[and] need to take proactive measures to protect children. While all of this may make sense for larger sites, it’s impossible for a small one-person passion project forum.. these requirements are not just burdensome, but existential."

   "When you regulate the internet as if it’s all just Facebook, all that will be left is Facebook. Policymakers have repeatedly brushed off warnings about these consequences, insisting that concerns are overblown or merely fear-mongering from big tech companies looking to avoid regulation. But it’s not. And we’re seeing the impact already."
10. tWig 10

    8 January 2025 at 2:56 pm

    And a lovely article on annual awards given for the most blatant health-care exploitation practices in the US.
11. Descendant Of Smith 11

    8 January 2025 at 5:27 pm

    Both sides of any story need airing to form an holistic view.

    FFS so not true. Mainly the right promote such a notion in order to get their non-sensical bullshit across. Fact checking as opposed to censorship helps mitigate people spouting shit.

    You form a holistic view by incorporating broad evidence i.e. the woods instead of just focusing on the trees. Adding into the mix that pile of random dogshit sitting in a paddock adds nothing to looking at the wood and just creates confusion and unnecessary distraction.

    False balance is a bias which usually stems from an attempt to avoid bias and gives unsupported or dubious positions an illusion of respectability. It creates a public perception that some issues are scientifically contentious, though in reality they are not, therefore creating doubt about the scientific state of research. This can be exploited by interest groups such as corporations like the fossil fuel industry or the tobacco industry, or ideologically motivated activists such as vaccination opponents or creationists.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_balance#:~:text=False%20balance%2C%20known%20colloquially%20as,viewpoints%20than%20the%20evidence%20supports.
    • Dennis Frank 11.1

      8 January 2025 at 5:45 pm

      Perhaps my generalisation doesn't apply too well in politics, huh? I agree that the false balance media posturing was a problem for years in climate change advocacy. I was generalising a common sense tradition though: weighing the pros & cons of an issue to inform a decision. People have always done it to optimise the effect of their deciding.

      So when confronted with the tendency of the right & left to cite only the evidence that supports their partisan views, a sensible person does what Odysseus did on the way home from Troy: sailed midway between cliff and whirlpool in the Straits of Messina.
12. SPC 12

    8 January 2025 at 8:03 pm

    Before the election

    In October, less than a month before the US presidential election, the Biden administration sent a letter to the Israeli government demanding it act to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza within 30 days or risk violating US laws governing foreign military assistance, suggesting US military aid could be in jeopardy.

    Now

    $8 billion in arms to Israel.

    —

    There was no improvement in the humanitarian situation, it has got worse because more food aid, fuel for generators and vehicles, heating oil and medical supplies was needed for winter.

    Israel is considering limiting humanitarian aid to Gaza after Donald Trump comes into office later this month in a bid to deprive Hamas of resources, according to an Israeli official familiar with the matter.

    Limiting aid from what, not enough to a more obvious breach of the ICC determination that blocking aid?

    The ICJ found it plausible that Israel’s acts could amount to genocide and issued six provisional measures, ordering Israel to take all measures within its power to prevent genocidal acts, including preventing and punishing incitement to genocide, ensuring aid and services reach Palestinians under siege in Gaza, and preserving evidence of crimes committed in Gaza.

    https://edition.cnn.com/2025/01/04/middleeast/israel-gaza-aid-limits-trump-intl/index.html

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