Welcome back to ‘The Standard’ we missed you yesterday after about 1’30pm when the site was cut, but now now up again thanks to the folks at The Standard.
Must have been some “house cleaning” that was gong on?
cleangreen
I read recently how in late WW2 the Allies were not sorry that Hitler was not killed in the attempted assassination by bomb. They knew him, understood his paranoia and obsessions, and were sure they could match any of his maneouvres, outthink him and eventually win over Germany. They didn’t want someone else with a clear head and new approach taking over and changing the style. Don’t wish Bridges gone,
He is the very model of a modern right-wing national
his intellect is vegetable, integrity ephemeral,
His caucus not dependable, their loyalties transferrable
and prone to many scandals that are publicly relational
[and prone to many scandals that are publicly relational]
[and prone to many scandals that are publicly relational]
[and prone to many scandals that are publicly relational]
their internecine fighting has been eminently recordable
their crises management is far from being laudable
their efforts to deflect reporters now become most laughable
and prone to many scandals that are publicly relational
[and prone to many scandals that are publicly relational]
[and prone to many scandals that are publicly relational]
[and prone to many scandals that are publicly relational]
Excellent McFlock – now write the rest of the soapy opera and you will have a hit. You will be as good as a rock star. It may produce a sellout from the Right, or not but one could hope.
I’m tempted to suggest that it was a test of what the Standard would look like if we ever instituted a paywall model, but I understand it was actually something to do with flies in the server and Lprent had to get out the RAID.
National should get radical and come out as a “champion strong advocate on climate change” .
They can easily argue and suggest that we must restore our rail system as another ‘Land transport option’ for freight and passenger with a” low emission carbon footprint safer transport service”. Last night on Newhub there was a senoir well respected scientist stating that ‘air passenger service’ is the highest carbon footprint service with every single passenger.
Figures shown by University of Wellington Professor James Renwick were showing that a single air passenger trip from Auckland to Wellington showed each passenger uses 145 kgs of carbon, where by rail it was 17kgs, and electric car was 11kgs, and by bus was 22kgs from memory,
Maybe we should each have a shrinking annual allocation of air miles. If you choose not to use them yourself you can sell them to someone else. If you don’t want anyone to use them you can sell them to the government who cancels them. Administrative nightmare of course. But a side benefit would be outraging the likes of wee Mikey Hoskie.
Also people too poor to travel get an extra income stream.
Good on ya, ankerawshark. I think it’s safe to say that the efforts of the team behind TS would mean nothing if we didn’t have contributors like yourself adding comments of real substance to the site. He aha te mea nui o te ao, he tangata he tangata he tangata!
Basically he is dropping the wrong half. Light rail to the west makes a lot of sense. It would be far better to do heavy rail to the airport. The whole Dominion Rd thing looks fraught.
The main problem NZ really has when it comes to transport issues, future proofing public, private and commercial transport is simply the total lack of guts and imagination.
Thus no glory. But for what its worth, non so gutless then National. In nine years in government your boys and girls in parliament have managed to get nothing done. And that is quite something.
A long time ago i watched a debate on TV between John Key – National, Helen Clark – Labour, Jeanette Fitzsimmons – Green. John Key waffled on how he was gonna bring NZ wages to parity with OZ and tax cuts, Helen Clark was protecting her last nine years, and Jeanette Fitzsimmons spoke about how we needed investment in public transport, needed trains, trams and buses to get us everywhere in this country, and the rest is history.
so the last ones to complain about any party doing anything about public transport is National. They have had nine years and literally only have a housing crisis, homelessness and record public debt to show for.
This from the linked NZHerald item: The Government may have to scale back its $6 billion light rail programme for Auckland by scrapping a line from the city centre to west Auckland, says Transport Minister Phil Twyford.
The MP for Te Atatu said it was his strong preference to see light rail built from the city centre to the west and to the airport, but if it is not possible to fund and finance both lines, then light rail to the airport will get priority.
National Party people would have been the ones preventing expenditure on public transport since the year dot. The year dot is when it was being officially talked about. The number of human bodies on the local bodies that could think further than their own pockets, and their next term in power was greater than the co-efficient of whatever. Simple mathematics and a long-term viewpoint were incompatible and me-first maths won.
Now it is important to get something signed up and started now. If National manage to weasel their way in to power we will get more and more simple mathematics. And never get close to coping with our complex problems which can never be actually solved, just understood and ameliorated.
Don’t forget the rundown public services, infrastructure shortages, privatization of assets (THEFT with 300 000 opposing signatures and public opinion polls ignored).
The bashing of poor people, dark people, green people through public media (They’re all wreckers and haters), through police, banks, spy services (who also turned out to be relatively f’n useless).
Don’t forget the war trajectory and you personally and your team dishing out Islamophobia.
Now you reckon you know about trains. You lot sell trains Wayne, you don’t build them so let’s get real.
If there’s no heavy rail to airport on the table right now (and there is not), the sensible move would indeed be to service the airport with already underway light rail first.
Wanye;
I have stated on 2.1 that National needs to show ‘environmental leadership’ on all rail services both freight and passenger services.
2.1 “National should get radical and come out as a “champion strong advocate on climate change” .
They can easily argue and suggest that we must restore our rail system as another ‘Land transport option’ for freight and passenger with a” low emission carbon footprint safer transport service”.
I didn’t talk about Cict rail link did I?
Auckland City is not NZ unless you are an Aucklander.
National were dragged reluctantly into the project what? something like a year later. I’d have to look it up.
Almost certainly because the transport projects that National funded (Roads of significance to National) had appalling business cases. They were so poor that National stopped showing them in public. At the same time the CRL was showing good returns.
Personally I think that the ONLY reason that the Key government approved it was because the hypocrisy levels were getting too high for even Nationals donors as Auckland traffic kept getting worse as National built empty highways.
The motorway projects have way better BCR’s than any public transport project.
It is possible to make any project look good if you don’t bother to include economic costs in the BCR.
For instance that is what appears to have happened with East-West Link, and as far as I can tell it was the case with almost all of the RoNS.
Of course if you over-estimate the economic costs as happened in the CRL assessments by NZLTA, then you get whatever number if deemed to be relevant. Of course it helps if you don’t provide the workings so that they can be criticized by others. There was a rather wide range between the ACC economic assessments and those from NZLTA.
It is possible to make any project look good if you over-estimate the changes in traffic. That appears to be the case with almost all of the RoNS projects that I looked at. For that matter if you look at the extensions to the SH1 motorways
Conversely, if you massively under-estimate the take up of a public transport system you can make public transport look extremely bad. NZLTA BCRs routinely do that.
It has happened with very NZLTA assessment in Auckland that subsequently got built. Including the Northern busway ( right the way through to not requiring a bridge replacement), double tracking and electrification of the Auckland heavy rail and the massive increases in use of PT (and the reduced need to try to increase capacity on our in-city motorways), changes in bus routes, etc…
Basically, unless the NZLTA starts to do public estimates with funding for some public checks on their analysis, I’d say that they’re just a tool of the roading construction companies. Because that is what they look like to me.
Forced on a very reluctant National after their favored business case from NZLTA proved to be completely flawed and after the BCRs for RoNS were lacerated by expert scrutiny.
In May 2011 the Government noted that after reviewing an initial business case for the project, it was unconvinced of the economic benefits of the tunnel. However, Minister of Transport Steven Joyce noted that he would not stand in the way of Auckland continuing planning and route designation work – if Auckland paid for it.[5] In June 2011 Auckland Council voted to approve $2 million for planning and route protection for the tunnel, with Auckland Transport, rather than KiwiRail, undertaking the process.[32]
In March 2012, Auckland Council decided to bring forward spending from the 2012–2013 budget, in order to continue progress protecting the eventual route. $6.3 million was spent on work including geotechnical surveys, utility and building assessments, contaminated site reports and rail operations modelling and $1.7m towards providing a revised business case, requested by the government.[33][34]
“the 1972 Rapid Transit Plan for Auckland. The history of this plan is eerily similar to our current situation in many ways. It was a revolutionary scheme championed by the charismatic mayor of Auckland Dove Myer Robinson (leading to the nickname ‘Robbie’s Rapid Rail’), despite the mayoralty and council not having the means to actually fund the thing independently. They began working on alternate funding solutions such as a targeted land tax but found them impossible to implement without support from Wellington. In the end by the Labour government reluctantly offered an election pledge to fund the proposal, but failed to deliver on that pledge. A wholly unsupportive National government were voted into power in 1975 and in 1976 the plan was cancelled completely.”
In the interim we got Britomart. Then we tried to connect stuff up…
“Further input was provided by Auckland Transport, which commissioned the study after the Government and the council had arrived at very different conclusions about the rail loop’s return on every dollar invested. Given all that, this study should be the definitive research, not yet another document destined to gather dust. Mr Brown’s task now is to convince Aucklanders that the study is robust and its conclusions are right. If he can, the Government should stand to one side.”
“On 27 January 2016, Prime Minister John Key announced in his state of the nation address that central government funding for main works construction of the CRL had been confirmed and this would allow Auckland Council to start to construct the main works from 2018, with central funds guaranteed to flow from 2020. Commentary at the time reflected an opinion that this was a belated agreement to central government funding of the project by the ruling National Party, while the main opposition parliamentary parties (Labour Party, Greens and NZ First) had all been promising immediate construction timetables which were more closely aligned to the plans of the council.”
Stalling, mucking about, fudging, and dragged kicking and screaming after a myriad of others plans were rejected outright, many of them good plans, that was what National did. Also tried to force the entire bill on Auckland as if transport was not in their portfolio.
Roads of National (party) significance, that was your thing.
i have lived for 20 years now here in NZ, so started under shipley. At that time you had to throw yourself in front of a bus – when one came, never on time – to get it too stop.
Claiming a tunnel being build as their own, while it was done under labour, also Nationals thing.
Auckland is at shambles because your Party did nothing. Absolutely nothing other then build roads that are clogged 24 hours.
Your rammed thousands of people in this city, and gave not one thought to the infrastructure. Cause that is hard work, and your lot is not known for working and certainly not hard work.
National, a Party as usefull as its leader Simon “NO Bridges for Northland’ Bridges.
And believe me, if National would have actually achieved just something of value to the public – and not business interest – we would know by now 🙂
Light Rail down Dominion Rd across the Mangere Bridge to the Airport will be an absolute shambles during the construction phase ?
The roads are already chock a block to the Airport from 6.00am to 6.00pm with 35,000 people currently working at the Airport projected to 55,000 in 5 years time ?
Light Rail down Dominion Rd across the Mangere Bridge to the Airport will be an absolute shambles during the construction phase ?
The roads are already chock a block to the Airport from 6.00am to 6.00pm with 35,000 people currently working at the Airport projected to 55,000 in 5 years time ?
Have a look to the french City of Nice.
Very similar to AKL, one side mountains, other side water, and a large and sprawling city wedged in.
Within three years the whole city got the Tram – light rail, dedicated bus lanes, (train already existed), and the cost of using public transport was initially 1 euro irrespective where you went in the Department Alpes Maritimes – Monaco to Marseille and up the mountains. Now the cost is at 1.50$ per ride.
A lot of people stopped driving the car.
but nice had a choice to make, either die in traffic and of smog or put up with some inconvenience and move to the future.
Really cool were the new archeological finds near la place Massena, the old part of Nice and at the old fish market. they were put under glass during construction and were made open to the public.
It can be done, a bit of guts, a bit of good will, above all political will and it can be done.
The question is has NZ got guts, good will and political good will, or is it just another thing that ‘we can’t do’ cause…………..?
It is hardly comparable with Auckland.
The population is about 340,000 or only about one fifth of Auckland.
It is even smaller than Wellington or Christchurch.
Absolute bollocks Wayne.
Light rail to the west is a total waste of money considering there already is a line to Whangarei via Helensville currrently used by the odd freight train.
A $50,000 fire suppression system fitted for use through the Waitakere tunnel, is all that’s required.
You obviously have no idea Wayne what the people of West Auckland need or want.
From the Trains to Huapai facebook page
“Residents of West Auckland have been calling out for commuter train shuttles to run from Swanson station through the currently unused Waitakere station to Huapai for a number of years. It is the number one most wanted public transport issue commented on in numerous Auckland Transport surveys and consultations. Yet prospects of Trains to Huapai to meet the needs of accelerating housing development now, have been stymied by the government’s unproven long term focus on light rail trams to Kumeu.”
“We are pleased the Government through NZTA is funding twice daily commuter trains from Hamilton to Papakura for around $60 million. However, for less than $4 million the people of Nor-West Auckland could have hourly rail shuttles operating seven days a week from Huapai and Waitakere to Swanson station”
“Twyford admits the promised light rail trams to Kumeu look like not happening for decades.
So why not get the Trains To Huapai? Fact is Phil Twyford (Labour) and Genter(Greens) listen to a self appointed group calling themselves “Greater Auckland” who designed the light rail trams for everywhere map. This small group successfully sold their dream to the Minister of Transport and Mayor Phil Goff.
We are frustrated that a small group of light rail enthusiasts with connections to the light rail industry have robbed Nor West Auckland of commuter trains.
Trams to Kumeu 2049?
Trains to Huapai can be delivered 2019 if there’s political will.”
That’s really interesting. If the figure of $4M is true it’s a pittance for what it would achieve. But surely that doesn’t include the engines, rolling stock, staff…
Is there a business case the group could take to the business communities in these areas? With them on-side the group might have more clout, and maybe match some of the funds?
Great for business. More foot traffic. Better access to greater Auckland and for greater Auckland to get to them. Eases congestion for freight in/out and tradies.
Around $45 subsidy per passenger, 43 passengers per day, that’s nearly $2k a day subsidy. $700k a year subsidy. That was before electrification, there’s be a bit of a headache integrating services between the electrified and non-electrified bits.
They identified some of the issues in that trial (rail in disrepair, no broader connectivity to broader network), wonder if they’ve worked on how to fix them.
I guess as we get a network where population is dense first hopefully providing a feasible base, we have a chance of then hooking up more satellite services. And then that might do what one would hope transport spending does – better access to and from wider Auckland, and easing congestion.
The planet is of course a nice plug for rail too, but only if it is actually pulling vehicles off roads.
Their trial rail service served no one. That’s why is was not patronised. After only a year it was deemed a failure.
Of course it was designed exactly for that result.
The rail service from Helensville to Auckland that ran up until the early 70s was well patronised. I know, I used it. Why, when the population has quadrupled, should public rail transport be not viable in the west.
A perfectly satisfactory line exits FFS! Why should it not be used.
Oddly enough, if that 43 users per day is accurate, then I’m personally acquainted with nearly 5% of the total patronage. Wealthy lifestyle block types, both of them.
It wouldn’t surprise me if it was made to fail. Way back when Dad was an engineer they bought rolling stock that could only run half the pace of the engines to claim trucks were superior for freight.
Kind of as a ‘just as an aside’, I’m picking the whole thing is, and will be another example of short-medium term ‘thinkery’ with various lobbyists pushing their various, and differing barrows.
So far, I bet there are factions with a vushun of light rail options based on their partikyala oseas experiences, and other with opposing views.
ALL peshnit about what they do.
And as things stand, I’ll bet some of the options are already at the stage where they’ve ‘invisiged solutions [going forward’] and, come what may – that is all.
I’d also put money on their ‘solutions [going forward]’ come with minor little details such as their light rail coming with a different line gauge, such that things like train-trams can’t easily be implemented.
Quote; “If you fly the 496km between Auckland and Wellington, you emit around 150kg of carbon dioxide equivalent.
A medium-sized car making the same journey emits about a third less, while a bus, train and electric car all have significantly lower emissions – just under 55kg between all three of them.
This is a must watch for Government MP’s flying from Auckland today for parliament tomorrow in Wellington.
Hear this Phil Twyford, – ‘take a train passenger service to Wellington with Jacinda and lower your carbon footprint’s too.’.
A bloody good start in reducing the amount of flying our MPs do would be to require all the List MPs to move to Wellington when they get elected. Then we wouldn’t need to pay for them to have accommodation provided in Wellington either, or to have to move their families backward and forward at tax-payer expense.
This would not apply of course to the Electorate MPs. They actually need to travel to and from their electorates as they actually have work to do there.
Having the Green Party leader drop out of his position as the biggest single user of overseas travel would be nice as well.
Then he might have time to spend on the fiasco that is his Statistics Department.
As if child poverty and the growing working poor aren’t bad enough, NZ Capitalism Ltd is now delivering growing pensioner poverty. Given the falling rates of home ownership pensioner poverty is like to expand over the coming generation.
Labour are shackled by the -bean counters and the right wing roger douglas brigade side of their caucus sadly.
These right wingers will hold onto our public purse so very tightly even though they promised so much and never have delivered now.
So the clock countdown now begins to the election, – as they have less than half their term left now.
Transport minister is in hiding and needs to come out in the budget to explain why our rail has not been revived yet around all our provinces. The road toll is worse than when he took over so he needs to provide a safe regional rail freight and passenger service to save lives, and our health and wellbeing.
Labour are basically ideologically driven, getting the doing part going is the hard part, they talk a big game but do not have the skills to get things done as most of them have very little real world practical experience, National are not much better IMHO ?
It is all about getting re-elected most politican’s in all the Political Parties would not have a clue, as they have no real world experience, it is all about celebrity politics and who MSM want elected. There is very little difference between Labour & National ?
Instead of JAQing off, how about you do the research yourself.
But there’s one thing I’m confident you won’t find: outbreaks in highly vaccinated populations. To get outbreaks like the measles outbreaks bursting out all over the place at the moment, you need significant portions of the population to be unvaccinated.
If those outbreaks only affected the fuckwits that choose to refuse vaccinations for themselves, I’d take a Darwinian view of it. Sadly, the ones that bear the brunt of the outbreaks are those that shouldn’t be vaccinated for genuine medical reasons (such as the immunocompromised), the too young, those unfortunate few for whom the vaccination is ineffective … and the really really unfortunate ones whose fuckwit parents refused the vaccine and didn’t tell them.
Bring on the lawsuits to hold accountable those who refuse vaccines without genuine medical reason, that then go on to get sick and infect others.
Since there’s no actual content in all of that, it’s kinda hard to respond to.
But I gotta know; a while back you called me the very worst commenter on The Standard. Am I still number 1? If not, who do I hafta take down to get my crown back?
Ha not do fast young sir. I know I irritate the old one two a lot and often he is left in a quivering, slobbering, impotent rage after one of my comments. He can’t even reply coherently such is his distress just a mumble of words as if spilt from a very large soup bowl of alphabet soup. They appear to be words but, well, who can tell.
Andre, in a number of ways you are one of the ‘worst’…name calling, uninformed in the extreme…especially on this subject…
Yet, in other ways and on some subject matter, your comments are informative and knowledgeable…as you are aware…I appreciate that…as I let you know recently…
I do hold back on this particular subject and do not seek to reignite the discussion…but will always respond if it is started up…
There is a casm of misunderstanding on your part…there is also a plethora of scholarly articles readily available with a simple search regarding outbreaks in highly vaccinated populations…
By the way . Outbreak = 3 according to CDC…
Not just failing and waning measles (MMR) vaccine…but many others…in fact almost all vaccines…they fail..have failed and are failing…
Branch out..I’m certain you’re capable…perhaps you’re fearful of what you’ll find….
Start with the question I posed…it is root cause…starting point…
Everything which follows, stemming from and including pre-licensure…is a fraud..
As I’ve said before, I regard you as a supercilious spouter of arcane claptrap with an inflated sense of your own ability and I regard your woo-beliefs on vaccination as a malignant threat to public health.
I’ve been following the videos and life of a talented young Czechoslovakian man Adam Celadine …. he’s a world record holder and world champion in some aspects of knife throwing ….
in a large part thanks to his tutorial videos, I’ve taken up a new hobby.
Anyway this young man was struck down and made seriously ill with metastasizing cancer …. I know a little bit about cancer and was very concerned for him.
The good news is he has now tested clear …. and he has some good advice in his short Video announcing his path back to good health
Hell that looks dangerous and reminds me of a Roald Dahl story about being to light a ligher in 20 consecutive attempts …. or lose your finger … yikes ! :O
This young lady knows how to chuck a knife …. and she has good safety tips …. like wearing safety glasses etc .
The wind flutter in the video disappears shortly into it …..
lol at one job I could goof off and practise throwing a work knife (wrong knife for it – short, handle heavy lock knife). All good fun until the ricochet comes flying back at me point first lol. Good for one’s reflexes 🙂
Free speech “purists” say that we should let these racists be racist loudly and publicly, and then laugh or ridicule their ideas. Those people who say that are often white and male. Not always, but often. And they have the privilege to laugh and ridicule those ideas because they are usually ideas that don’t threaten their existence. However if you’re from an often oppressed group – Māori, Muslim, Rainbow, Jewish, or even female – those words that we’re told to laugh at and ridicule aren’t funny. They’re words that make your life uncomfortable and unpleasant to live through. They’re words that frighten and degrade you. They are words of hate.
And just as nice @ MM, the latest ‘Listening Post’ special on Aljazeera – especially when they cover all those ‘reality TV’ type “Border Force” programmes …. almost like the poor man’s pornography.
We’ll reserve a cameo spot for James Casson in the next series (as if he hasn’t already got his jollies from being a party to it all already).
it was 1-2 with a different avatar. Didn’t think much of it until my comment ended up at the bottom as a whole number, and the fool was back to the usual avatar.
A Mysterious Infection, Spanning the Globe in a Climate of Secrecy
The rise of Candida auris embodies a serious and growing public health threat: drug-resistant germs.
Pro tip for plonkers: if you want to reply to someone, hit the reply button in the box around the comment you want to reply to, not the next comment.
Why is there no vaccine against candida auris? Dunno, could be lots of reasons.
Might be because it’s a kind of organism that’s very difficult to develop a vaccine against. Off the top of my head I can’t think of any yeast diseases we actually do have a vaccine against. Most successful vaccines are against viral diseases. Organisms that are more complex are generally harder to develop vaccines against. Hence no effective vaccines against malaria or giardia or guinea worm or gonorrhea or syphilis or ….
Might be because it hasn’t been a big enough threat (and market) to get the attention of vaccine developers.
Might be because its emergence has been recent enough there just hasn’t been enough time.
Might be any combo or all of the above or other factors I haven’t mentioned. Asking why there isn’t a specific vaccine reminds of the CEO who once asked why we couldn’t develop something to spray on the outside of golf club shafts to tune the flex characteristics. I had to tell him the only unobtainium mine in the world had shut down cause there was an explosion. (Shortly thereafter I was seeking alternative employment)
Yeah, if I was only trying to respond to cleangreen I probably would have left it there. Or probably not bothered at all, the question was so self-evidently ridiculous. I’m well aware that many commenters here are neither persuadable nor educable.
But when I respond to nutters, it’s usually because there may be something in that topic of interest to a broader audience of silent but interested readers so a fuller answer might be worthwhile. Or sometimes I’ll respond just for the lolz.
I manually input my credentials into the name and email fields, as a simple security measure to not have sign in data cached on devices…
At times, due to the email address, which you can’t see , a character becomes inverted…leading to the creation of a new avatar…
At least two possibly three avatars are in the system…
Nothing in it, McFlock…keep throwing your childish comments …
What’s the failure rate of the flu shot you like to talk about getting?
Edit:
Were you able to understand the earlier question…if you read all available vaccine package inserts (FDA site) you can get the answer to the question…
lol okay, whatevs. You screwed up your ID because you’re paranoid that people will really give a crap about who you are.
You’re not that much of a threat to the system, neo.
As for vaccines, the proof is in the pudding. Maybe they guessed wrong this year, meaning the models were off and its the wrong strains in the shot. But frankly a sore arm with one in a million odds of a serious adverse reaction… hell, I’d take a 90% failure rate. No harm, no foul. But I seem to recall flu vaccines tend to be a few times that – nowhere near 90% like with some other conditions, but good enough to completely protect a lot of people and lessen the symptoms in others. It’s biggest advantage is to lower the burden on the health system from avoidable illness. I.e. fewer people plonked in ED hallways.
But I can’t be bothered doing your homework for you. Besides, I’d be surprised if they measured efficacy against placebo outright each and every time – the ethics of denying someone healthcare like that, even with consent, are long and debatable. They probably just compare with previous strains (and you might be able to follow that testing chain back to the original placebo trials), and do after-market evaluation of cases, prevalence, immunisation status, and of course any adverse events.
Yep weeze and poos has finally lost it. Really when analysed they had very little to add or offer anyway save insults puffed by rhetoric. Ah well onwards and upwards lol
Hang on, that’s very interesting. For it to appear and then get deleated (for my reply to end up on the floor), the comment must have had a wrong email, gone into moderation, and been released inside ten minutes, for onetwo to be able to then delete it and rewrite it with the correct email.
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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 ...
This is a guest post by Oscar Simms who is a housing activist, volunteer for the Coalition for More Homes, and was the Labour Party candidate for Auckland Central at the last election. ...
Turning what Labour called the “holiday highway” into a four-lane expressway from Auckland to Whangarei could bring at least an economic benefit of nearly two billion a year for Northland each year. And it could help bring an end to poverty in one of New Zealand’s most deprived regions. The ...
Tonight’s six-stack includes: launching his substack with a bunch of his previous documentaries, including this 1992 interview with Dame Whina Cooper. and here crew give climate activists plenty to do, including this call to submit against the Fast Track Approvals bill. writes brilliantly here on his substack ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
You're in the mall when you hear it: some kind of popping sound in the distance, kids with fireworks, maybe. But then a moment of eerie stillness is followed by more of the fireworks sound and there’s also screaming and shrieking and now here come people running for their lives.Does ...
Karl du Fresne writes – There’s a crisis in the news media and the media are blaming it on everyone except themselves. Culpability is being deflected elsewhere – mainly to the hapless Minister of Communications, Melissa Lee, and the big social media platforms that are accused of hoovering ...
I don’t normally send out two newsletters in a day but I figured I’d say something about… the news. If two newsletters is a bit much then maybe just skip one, I don’t want to overload people. Alternatively if you’d be interested in sometimes receiving multiple, smaller updates from me, ...
Buzz from the Beehive David Seymour and Winston Peters today signalled that at least two ministers of the Crown might be in Wellington today. Seymour (as Associate Minister of Education) announced the removal of more red tape, this time to make it easier for new early learning services to be ...
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. Our political system is suffering from the ...
David Farrar writes – The Broadcasting Standards Authority ruled: Comments by radio host Kate Hawkesby suggesting Māori and Pacific patients were being prioritised for surgery due to their ethnicity were misleading and discriminatory, the Broadcasting Standards Authority has found. It is a fact such patients are prioritised. ...
PRC and its proxies in Solomons have been preparing for these elections for a long time.A lot of money, effort and intelligence have gone into ensuring an outcome that won’t compromise Beijing’s plans. Cleo Paskall writes – On April 17th the Solomon Islands, a country of ...
Is speeding up the trip to and from Wellington airport by 12 minutes worth spending up more than $10 billion? Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The six news items that stood out to me in the last day to 8:26 am today are:The Lead: Transport Minister Simeon Brownannounced ...
You're a fraud, and you know itBut it's too good to throw it all awayAnyone would do the sameYou've got 'em goingAnd you're careful not to show itSometimes you even fool yourself a bitIt's like magicBut it's always been a smoke and mirrors gameAnyone would do the sameForty six billion ...
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. ...
Changes to minimum wage and benefit indexation means many New Zealanders will get less this year, as the Government gives a big tax break to landlords instead. ...
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 ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced further New Zealand cooperation with the United States in the Pacific Islands region through $16.4 million in funding for initiatives in digital connectivity and oceans and fisheries research. “New Zealand can achieve more in the Pacific if we work together more urgently and ...
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 ...
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Welcome back to ‘The Standard’ we missed you yesterday after about 1’30pm when the site was cut, but now now up again thanks to the folks at The Standard.
Must have been some “house cleaning” that was gong on?
Over on “the AM show’ I see that the last death throws coming from ‘dead man walking’ – ‘Simon Bridges’
As he is beating his gums on the AM show today, complaining about the ‘Statistician not releasing the latest stats on our ‘happiness’.
If he retired from politics we all perhaps then be far more full of ‘happiness’.
cleangreen
I read recently how in late WW2 the Allies were not sorry that Hitler was not killed in the attempted assassination by bomb. They knew him, understood his paranoia and obsessions, and were sure they could match any of his maneouvres, outthink him and eventually win over Germany. They didn’t want someone else with a clear head and new approach taking over and changing the style. Don’t wish Bridges gone,
greywarshark.
Good call there,
Best keep Bridges in front of National as the ‘village idiot’ eh?
Pardon me! He is not an idiot – he is a perfect example of a modern Right Wing Major-National.
Ha ha.
He is the very model of a modern right-wing national
his intellect is vegetable, integrity ephemeral,
His caucus not dependable, their loyalties transferrable
and prone to many scandals that are publicly relational
[and prone to many scandals that are publicly relational]
[and prone to many scandals that are publicly relational]
[and prone to many scandals that are publicly relational]
their internecine fighting has been eminently recordable
their crises management is far from being laudable
their efforts to deflect reporters now become most laughable
and prone to many scandals that are publicly relational
[and prone to many scandals that are publicly relational]
[and prone to many scandals that are publicly relational]
[and prone to many scandals that are publicly relational]
Excellent McFlock – now write the rest of the soapy opera and you will have a hit. You will be as good as a rock star. It may produce a sellout from the Right, or not but one could hope.
I’m tempted to suggest that it was a test of what the Standard would look like if we ever instituted a paywall model, but I understand it was actually something to do with flies in the server and Lprent had to get out the RAID.
It wasn’t that naughty black cat pushing the red button then?
Nope.
However I must post a photo of the cat proofing protection that the servers now have.
Perhaps we could enlarge the system, design it to control for rats instead, and put it round the Labour Coalition.
Bridges is a bit like a lost sheep these days, or a dog barking at car tyres, I am not sure which ?
The Natzi’s appear to be vision less these days especially after the resignation of their fearless leader Hone Shonkey ?
National should get radical and come out as a “champion strong advocate on climate change” .
They can easily argue and suggest that we must restore our rail system as another ‘Land transport option’ for freight and passenger with a” low emission carbon footprint safer transport service”. Last night on Newhub there was a senoir well respected scientist stating that ‘air passenger service’ is the highest carbon footprint service with every single passenger.
Figures shown by University of Wellington Professor James Renwick were showing that a single air passenger trip from Auckland to Wellington showed each passenger uses 145 kgs of carbon, where by rail it was 17kgs, and electric car was 11kgs, and by bus was 22kgs from memory,
Staggering result that was.
https://www.icao.int/environmental-protection/CarbonOffset/Pages/default.aspx
Maybe we should each have a shrinking annual allocation of air miles. If you choose not to use them yourself you can sell them to someone else. If you don’t want anyone to use them you can sell them to the government who cancels them. Administrative nightmare of course. But a side benefit would be outraging the likes of wee Mikey Hoskie.
Also people too poor to travel get an extra income stream.
I’ve just spotted that TS has posted 1.5 million approved comments.
Congrats and a digital chocolate fish to …. drum roll … ankerawshark, who crossed the line here
Shit.. That came around fast.
mmm Looks like the last half million comments averaged 399.36 comments per day
https://thestandard.org.nz/more-than-a-million-comments/
or
https://thestandard.org.nz/quarter-of-a-million-comments-soon/
Te Reo Putake! Being the 1.5 millionth person to post gave me a real thrill! Wow.
Thanks to you, Iprent and all who make it possible!
Good on ya, ankerawshark. I think it’s safe to say that the efforts of the team behind TS would mean nothing if we didn’t have contributors like yourself adding comments of real substance to the site. He aha te mea nui o te ao, he tangata he tangata he tangata!
Talibangelicals say the darnedest things.
https://twitter.com/mattduss/status/1114958765470769157
Reich wing christianity.
just call them Christo Fascist or American Taliban. That way you don’t have to try to make a German English hybrid that does not mean anything.
just my inner germans two cents.
Evungelicals?
Americans must be so used to the normalising of killing by drone that this would pass with little concern.
“Thou shalt not kill!”
I believe someone important said that once, but I can’t for the life of me remember who…
I suspect Pat’s memory has degraded over time too, along with his morals and sanity.
“I’m old enough to remember when this guy was the craziest guy on earth. Now he’s not even in the top 100.”
Twyford’s first start at a tourniquet of the massively injured Auckland light rail project: dump the whole western Auckland half of it:
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12220122
Basically he is dropping the wrong half. Light rail to the west makes a lot of sense. It would be far better to do heavy rail to the airport. The whole Dominion Rd thing looks fraught.
The main problem NZ really has when it comes to transport issues, future proofing public, private and commercial transport is simply the total lack of guts and imagination.
Thus no glory. But for what its worth, non so gutless then National. In nine years in government your boys and girls in parliament have managed to get nothing done. And that is quite something.
A long time ago i watched a debate on TV between John Key – National, Helen Clark – Labour, Jeanette Fitzsimmons – Green. John Key waffled on how he was gonna bring NZ wages to parity with OZ and tax cuts, Helen Clark was protecting her last nine years, and Jeanette Fitzsimmons spoke about how we needed investment in public transport, needed trains, trams and buses to get us everywhere in this country, and the rest is history.
so the last ones to complain about any party doing anything about public transport is National. They have had nine years and literally only have a housing crisis, homelessness and record public debt to show for.
So true Sabine.
This from the linked NZHerald item:
The Government may have to scale back its $6 billion light rail programme for Auckland by scrapping a line from the city centre to west Auckland, says Transport Minister Phil Twyford.
The MP for Te Atatu said it was his strong preference to see light rail built from the city centre to the west and to the airport, but if it is not possible to fund and finance both lines, then light rail to the airport will get priority.
National Party people would have been the ones preventing expenditure on public transport since the year dot. The year dot is when it was being officially talked about. The number of human bodies on the local bodies that could think further than their own pockets, and their next term in power was greater than the co-efficient of whatever. Simple mathematics and a long-term viewpoint were incompatible and me-first maths won.
Now it is important to get something signed up and started now. If National manage to weasel their way in to power we will get more and more simple mathematics. And never get close to coping with our complex problems which can never be actually solved, just understood and ameliorated.
Accurately well said Sabine.
Don’t forget the rundown public services, infrastructure shortages, privatization of assets (THEFT with 300 000 opposing signatures and public opinion polls ignored).
The bashing of poor people, dark people, green people through public media (They’re all wreckers and haters), through police, banks, spy services (who also turned out to be relatively f’n useless).
Don’t forget the war trajectory and you personally and your team dishing out Islamophobia.
Now you reckon you know about trains. You lot sell trains Wayne, you don’t build them so let’s get real.
If there’s no heavy rail to airport on the table right now (and there is not), the sensible move would indeed be to service the airport with already underway light rail first.
But if your job is to:
Do nothing AND whinge about what others do
Job well done. Carry on.
WTB
Yes I would agree with that too.
Sabine, cleangreen and greywarshark,
You all seem to have completely forgotten that the largest single construction project in New Zealand, the CRL, was started by National.
Wanye;
I have stated on 2.1 that National needs to show ‘environmental leadership’ on all rail services both freight and passenger services.
2.1 “National should get radical and come out as a “champion strong advocate on climate change” .
They can easily argue and suggest that we must restore our rail system as another ‘Land transport option’ for freight and passenger with a” low emission carbon footprint safer transport service”.
I didn’t talk about Cict rail link did I?
Auckland City is not NZ unless you are an Aucklander.
https://www.cityraillink.co.nz/
Bullshit.
Started by Auckland Council.
National were dragged reluctantly into the project what? something like a year later. I’d have to look it up.
Almost certainly because the transport projects that National funded (Roads of significance to National) had appalling business cases. They were so poor that National stopped showing them in public. At the same time the CRL was showing good returns.
Personally I think that the ONLY reason that the Key government approved it was because the hypocrisy levels were getting too high for even Nationals donors as Auckland traffic kept getting worse as National built empty highways.
Well, you would say that, but you would also be wrong. The motorway projects have way better BCR’s than any public transport project.
Just to remind you (yet again), the CRL is almost twice as large as any motorway project. Not started by Labour, started by National in 2014.
If you want the government wants to pay a bigger share to the Council, then the government can. Labour/Green are after all the government.
It is possible to make any project look good if you don’t bother to include economic costs in the BCR.
For instance that is what appears to have happened with East-West Link, and as far as I can tell it was the case with almost all of the RoNS.
Of course if you over-estimate the economic costs as happened in the CRL assessments by NZLTA, then you get whatever number if deemed to be relevant. Of course it helps if you don’t provide the workings so that they can be criticized by others. There was a rather wide range between the ACC economic assessments and those from NZLTA.
It is possible to make any project look good if you over-estimate the changes in traffic. That appears to be the case with almost all of the RoNS projects that I looked at. For that matter if you look at the extensions to the SH1 motorways
Conversely, if you massively under-estimate the take up of a public transport system you can make public transport look extremely bad. NZLTA BCRs routinely do that.
It has happened with very NZLTA assessment in Auckland that subsequently got built. Including the Northern busway ( right the way through to not requiring a bridge replacement), double tracking and electrification of the Auckland heavy rail and the massive increases in use of PT (and the reduced need to try to increase capacity on our in-city motorways), changes in bus routes, etc…
Basically, unless the NZLTA starts to do public estimates with funding for some public checks on their analysis, I’d say that they’re just a tool of the roading construction companies. Because that is what they look like to me.
FFS: Not started by National. Started by the Auckland council.
Forced on a very reluctant National after their favored business case from NZLTA proved to be completely flawed and after the BCRs for RoNS were lacerated by expert scrutiny.
Lprent yes thanks for that.
So National didnt even plan for the CRL at all, – but tried too take the credit for it;$%^&OP{}|!!!!!
Well isn’t that just like National making false claims again.
National = have no credibility.
Some origin story:
“the 1972 Rapid Transit Plan for Auckland. The history of this plan is eerily similar to our current situation in many ways. It was a revolutionary scheme championed by the charismatic mayor of Auckland Dove Myer Robinson (leading to the nickname ‘Robbie’s Rapid Rail’), despite the mayoralty and council not having the means to actually fund the thing independently. They began working on alternate funding solutions such as a targeted land tax but found them impossible to implement without support from Wellington. In the end by the Labour government reluctantly offered an election pledge to fund the proposal, but failed to deliver on that pledge. A wholly unsupportive National government were voted into power in 1975 and in 1976 the plan was cancelled completely.”
https://www.greaterauckland.org.nz/2011/12/02/an-auckland-that-could-have-been-the-1972-auckland-rapid-rail-transit-plan/
In the interim we got Britomart. Then we tried to connect stuff up…
“Further input was provided by Auckland Transport, which commissioned the study after the Government and the council had arrived at very different conclusions about the rail loop’s return on every dollar invested. Given all that, this study should be the definitive research, not yet another document destined to gather dust. Mr Brown’s task now is to convince Aucklanders that the study is robust and its conclusions are right. If he can, the Government should stand to one side.”
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10855434
“On 27 January 2016, Prime Minister John Key announced in his state of the nation address that central government funding for main works construction of the CRL had been confirmed and this would allow Auckland Council to start to construct the main works from 2018, with central funds guaranteed to flow from 2020. Commentary at the time reflected an opinion that this was a belated agreement to central government funding of the project by the ruling National Party, while the main opposition parliamentary parties (Labour Party, Greens and NZ First) had all been promising immediate construction timetables which were more closely aligned to the plans of the council.”
https://www.beehive.govt.nz/speech/speech-auckland-chamber-commerce-0
Stalling, mucking about, fudging, and dragged kicking and screaming after a myriad of others plans were rejected outright, many of them good plans, that was what National did. Also tried to force the entire bill on Auckland as if transport was not in their portfolio.
Roads of National (party) significance, that was your thing.
i have lived for 20 years now here in NZ, so started under shipley. At that time you had to throw yourself in front of a bus – when one came, never on time – to get it too stop.
Claiming a tunnel being build as their own, while it was done under labour, also Nationals thing.
Auckland is at shambles because your Party did nothing. Absolutely nothing other then build roads that are clogged 24 hours.
Your rammed thousands of people in this city, and gave not one thought to the infrastructure. Cause that is hard work, and your lot is not known for working and certainly not hard work.
National, a Party as usefull as its leader Simon “NO Bridges for Northland’ Bridges.
And believe me, if National would have actually achieved just something of value to the public – and not business interest – we would know by now 🙂
National was as reluctant to start this project as a teenage boy responding to a Paternity Order after he gets his teenage girlfriend pregnant.
Light Rail down Dominion Rd across the Mangere Bridge to the Airport will be an absolute shambles during the construction phase ?
The roads are already chock a block to the Airport from 6.00am to 6.00pm with 35,000 people currently working at the Airport projected to 55,000 in 5 years time ?
This will be a Monumental F%#K UP IMHO ?
Shit here’s me agreeing with Wayne Mapp.
Better go and wash my mouth out with carbolic soap.
All rail should be ‘multi-purpose for passenger and freight and that means heavy rail.
‘ Light rail’ is dumb, -and is just throwing ‘good money after bad’.
Light Rail down Dominion Rd across the Mangere Bridge to the Airport will be an absolute shambles during the construction phase ?
The roads are already chock a block to the Airport from 6.00am to 6.00pm with 35,000 people currently working at the Airport projected to 55,000 in 5 years time ?
This will be a Monumental F%#K UP IMHO ?
Have a look to the french City of Nice.
Very similar to AKL, one side mountains, other side water, and a large and sprawling city wedged in.
Within three years the whole city got the Tram – light rail, dedicated bus lanes, (train already existed), and the cost of using public transport was initially 1 euro irrespective where you went in the Department Alpes Maritimes – Monaco to Marseille and up the mountains. Now the cost is at 1.50$ per ride.
A lot of people stopped driving the car.
but nice had a choice to make, either die in traffic and of smog or put up with some inconvenience and move to the future.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nice_tramway
Really cool were the new archeological finds near la place Massena, the old part of Nice and at the old fish market. they were put under glass during construction and were made open to the public.
It can be done, a bit of guts, a bit of good will, above all political will and it can be done.
The question is has NZ got guts, good will and political good will, or is it just another thing that ‘we can’t do’ cause…………..?
It is hardly comparable with Auckland.
The population is about 340,000 or only about one fifth of Auckland.
It is even smaller than Wellington or Christchurch.
Absolute bollocks Wayne.
Light rail to the west is a total waste of money considering there already is a line to Whangarei via Helensville currrently used by the odd freight train.
A $50,000 fire suppression system fitted for use through the Waitakere tunnel, is all that’s required.
You obviously have no idea Wayne what the people of West Auckland need or want.
From the Trains to Huapai facebook page
“Residents of West Auckland have been calling out for commuter train shuttles to run from Swanson station through the currently unused Waitakere station to Huapai for a number of years. It is the number one most wanted public transport issue commented on in numerous Auckland Transport surveys and consultations. Yet prospects of Trains to Huapai to meet the needs of accelerating housing development now, have been stymied by the government’s unproven long term focus on light rail trams to Kumeu.”
“We are pleased the Government through NZTA is funding twice daily commuter trains from Hamilton to Papakura for around $60 million. However, for less than $4 million the people of Nor-West Auckland could have hourly rail shuttles operating seven days a week from Huapai and Waitakere to Swanson station”
“Twyford admits the promised light rail trams to Kumeu look like not happening for decades.
So why not get the Trains To Huapai? Fact is Phil Twyford (Labour) and Genter(Greens) listen to a self appointed group calling themselves “Greater Auckland” who designed the light rail trams for everywhere map. This small group successfully sold their dream to the Minister of Transport and Mayor Phil Goff.
We are frustrated that a small group of light rail enthusiasts with connections to the light rail industry have robbed Nor West Auckland of commuter trains.
Trams to Kumeu 2049?
Trains to Huapai can be delivered 2019 if there’s political will.”
Twitford needs to start engaging his brain IMHO ?
That’s really interesting. If the figure of $4M is true it’s a pittance for what it would achieve. But surely that doesn’t include the engines, rolling stock, staff…
Is there a business case the group could take to the business communities in these areas? With them on-side the group might have more clout, and maybe match some of the funds?
Great for business. More foot traffic. Better access to greater Auckland and for greater Auckland to get to them. Eases congestion for freight in/out and tradies.
They trialled a Helensville service in 08 -09. It was discontinued end of December 09.
https://www.greaterauckland.org.nz/2009/11/10/goodbye-helensville-train-service/
Around $45 subsidy per passenger, 43 passengers per day, that’s nearly $2k a day subsidy. $700k a year subsidy. That was before electrification, there’s be a bit of a headache integrating services between the electrified and non-electrified bits.
Thanks.
They identified some of the issues in that trial (rail in disrepair, no broader connectivity to broader network), wonder if they’ve worked on how to fix them.
I guess as we get a network where population is dense first hopefully providing a feasible base, we have a chance of then hooking up more satellite services. And then that might do what one would hope transport spending does – better access to and from wider Auckland, and easing congestion.
The planet is of course a nice plug for rail too, but only if it is actually pulling vehicles off roads.
Their trial rail service served no one. That’s why is was not patronised. After only a year it was deemed a failure.
Of course it was designed exactly for that result.
The rail service from Helensville to Auckland that ran up until the early 70s was well patronised. I know, I used it. Why, when the population has quadrupled, should public rail transport be not viable in the west.
A perfectly satisfactory line exits FFS! Why should it not be used.
Oddly enough, if that 43 users per day is accurate, then I’m personally acquainted with nearly 5% of the total patronage. Wealthy lifestyle block types, both of them.
And?
Just a random observation.
It wouldn’t surprise me if it was made to fail. Way back when Dad was an engineer they bought rolling stock that could only run half the pace of the engines to claim trucks were superior for freight.
If they’re on the oil teat, lies will arise.
Like + 100%
Fixing the Rail to Kumeu is a No Brainer and must be done immediately it is commonsense IMHO, can someone suggest it to Twitford perhaps ?
Ah
I do believe it has been suggested to Twyford numerous times, via every media imaginable, perhaps even in multiple languages.
Kind of as a ‘just as an aside’, I’m picking the whole thing is, and will be another example of short-medium term ‘thinkery’ with various lobbyists pushing their various, and differing barrows.
So far, I bet there are factions with a vushun of light rail options based on their partikyala oseas experiences, and other with opposing views.
ALL peshnit about what they do.
And as things stand, I’ll bet some of the options are already at the stage where they’ve ‘invisiged solutions [going forward’] and, come what may – that is all.
I’d also put money on their ‘solutions [going forward]’ come with minor little details such as their light rail coming with a different line gauge, such that things like train-trams can’t easily be implemented.
Lower carbon footprint Labour please.
Auckland professor says Kiwis should quit air travel to protect the environment
07/04/2019
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/travel/2019/04/auckland-professor-says-kiwis-should-quit-air-travel-to-protect-the-environment.html
Quote; “If you fly the 496km between Auckland and Wellington, you emit around 150kg of carbon dioxide equivalent.
A medium-sized car making the same journey emits about a third less, while a bus, train and electric car all have significantly lower emissions – just under 55kg between all three of them.
This is a must watch for Government MP’s flying from Auckland today for parliament tomorrow in Wellington.
Hear this Phil Twyford, – ‘take a train passenger service to Wellington with Jacinda and lower your carbon footprint’s too.’.
A bloody good start in reducing the amount of flying our MPs do would be to require all the List MPs to move to Wellington when they get elected. Then we wouldn’t need to pay for them to have accommodation provided in Wellington either, or to have to move their families backward and forward at tax-payer expense.
This would not apply of course to the Electorate MPs. They actually need to travel to and from their electorates as they actually have work to do there.
Having the Green Party leader drop out of his position as the biggest single user of overseas travel would be nice as well.
Then he might have time to spend on the fiasco that is his Statistics Department.
As if child poverty and the growing working poor aren’t bad enough, NZ Capitalism Ltd is now delivering growing pensioner poverty. Given the falling rates of home ownership pensioner poverty is like to expand over the coming generation.
https://rdln.wordpress.com/2019/04/04/pensioner-poverty/
Phillip.
Labour are shackled by the -bean counters and the right wing roger douglas brigade side of their caucus sadly.
These right wingers will hold onto our public purse so very tightly even though they promised so much and never have delivered now.
So the clock countdown now begins to the election, – as they have less than half their term left now.
Transport minister is in hiding and needs to come out in the budget to explain why our rail has not been revived yet around all our provinces. The road toll is worse than when he took over so he needs to provide a safe regional rail freight and passenger service to save lives, and our health and wellbeing.
“The proof is in the pudding” Mr Twyford!!!!!
Labour are basically ideologically driven, getting the doing part going is the hard part, they talk a big game but do not have the skills to get things done as most of them have very little real world practical experience, National are not much better IMHO ?
The moral instincts of conservatives tell them that people with insufficient money aren’t proper humans.
AB I think most politicians have low moral compass or fortitude.
Serried complex = One rotten apple in a barrel makes all apples rotten, dad told me often in the 1950’s.
It is all about getting re-elected most politican’s in all the Political Parties would not have a clue, as they have no real world experience, it is all about celebrity politics and who MSM want elected. There is very little difference between Labour & National ?
I now have to grudgingly agree with you now Skunk Weed.
Not much to cling onto believing that we are having a “transformative” government here sadly.
This piece from ThinkProgress has the best graphical illustration I’ve ever seen of just how astonishingly effective vaccinations are.
https://thinkprogress.org/measles-outbreaks-vaccines-exemptions-6dce41092040/
What about the graph of outbreaks in highly vaccinated populations, Andre…
You should stick to what you know about…like engineering…
This subject is not for you…the links you post illustrate it unequivocally…
So while you’re looking to start this up…again…try hang around longer than J90 did…he ran off…after a single response I made…simple question…Joe ran…
Edit. Simple question for you..
How many FDA approved and currently scheduled (CDC) vaccines, were tested against an inert placebo control in pre licensure testing?
Instead of JAQing off, how about you do the research yourself.
But there’s one thing I’m confident you won’t find: outbreaks in highly vaccinated populations. To get outbreaks like the measles outbreaks bursting out all over the place at the moment, you need significant portions of the population to be unvaccinated.
If those outbreaks only affected the fuckwits that choose to refuse vaccinations for themselves, I’d take a Darwinian view of it. Sadly, the ones that bear the brunt of the outbreaks are those that shouldn’t be vaccinated for genuine medical reasons (such as the immunocompromised), the too young, those unfortunate few for whom the vaccination is ineffective … and the really really unfortunate ones whose fuckwit parents refused the vaccine and didn’t tell them.
Bring on the lawsuits to hold accountable those who refuse vaccines without genuine medical reason, that then go on to get sick and infect others.
Andre, your comment is top to bottom logical fallacies, and an unbelievable low understanding of’vaccines’…
I responded to you because I already knew what your response was going to be…
That you have used the word ‘confident’ to describe your position, surrounded that with highly misinformed commentary…is unsurprising…
You, Andre…need to do some more reading…not at sources you link or comment from…
In repeat posting such uninformed and misinformed commentary on this subject…it is actually you who is j*ing off…
But you don’t understand…your commemts say you don’t…and you should stop now…
Since there’s no actual content in all of that, it’s kinda hard to respond to.
But I gotta know; a while back you called me the very worst commenter on The Standard. Am I still number 1? If not, who do I hafta take down to get my crown back?
Ha not do fast young sir. I know I irritate the old one two a lot and often he is left in a quivering, slobbering, impotent rage after one of my comments. He can’t even reply coherently such is his distress just a mumble of words as if spilt from a very large soup bowl of alphabet soup. They appear to be words but, well, who can tell.
Andre, in a number of ways you are one of the ‘worst’…name calling, uninformed in the extreme…especially on this subject…
Yet, in other ways and on some subject matter, your comments are informative and knowledgeable…as you are aware…I appreciate that…as I let you know recently…
I do hold back on this particular subject and do not seek to reignite the discussion…but will always respond if it is started up…
There is a casm of misunderstanding on your part…there is also a plethora of scholarly articles readily available with a simple search regarding outbreaks in highly vaccinated populations…
By the way . Outbreak = 3 according to CDC…
Not just failing and waning measles (MMR) vaccine…but many others…in fact almost all vaccines…they fail..have failed and are failing…
Branch out..I’m certain you’re capable…perhaps you’re fearful of what you’ll find….
Start with the question I posed…it is root cause…starting point…
Everything which follows, stemming from and including pre-licensure…is a fraud..
As I’ve said before, I regard you as a supercilious spouter of arcane claptrap with an inflated sense of your own ability and I regard your woo-beliefs on vaccination as a malignant threat to public health.
I am not concerned how you regard my comments Joe..if you had half a clue you might understand them…
So…answer the question I asked you about ‘scum’… Joe…
And while you’re at it..
How many FDA approved and currently scheduled (CDC) vaccines, were tested against an inert placebo control in pre licensure testing?
Then see if you can figure out the ramifications regarding claimed figures of efficacy and safety…
Go on…don’t run…
Poor Joe must be feeling absolutely crushed that a comments-thread blowhard has such a low opinion of him.
Death by a thousand dots …
lols
RCT of vaccinated vs placebo vs “homeopathic nosodes”.
And the winner is…
Vaccines work, placebos don’t, and homeopathy is as ineffective as a placebo.
This will revolutionise immunology lol
No, McFlock…
You’ve not even understood the question…
Can you read?
I don’t care about your question.
How about you answer it yourself and provide a source? And then everyone with a brain can laugh at you some more.
A good news story …..
I’ve been following the videos and life of a talented young Czechoslovakian man Adam Celadine …. he’s a world record holder and world champion in some aspects of knife throwing ….
in a large part thanks to his tutorial videos, I’ve taken up a new hobby.
Anyway this young man was struck down and made seriously ill with metastasizing cancer …. I know a little bit about cancer and was very concerned for him.
The good news is he has now tested clear …. and he has some good advice in his short Video announcing his path back to good health
🙂 🙂 🙂
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RdySBkx7ehQ
That should have been Celadin ….. Adam Celadin
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SThz_pIUggA
When is the mine re-entry going to happen??????
May third?
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL1903/S00079/pike-river-families-spokesperson-quits-group.htm
The minister responsible for Pike River re-entry, Andrew Little, announced earlier this week the re-entry is scheduled for 3 May.
Knife tricks, huh..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZ04qRn8na0
@thesamurider
Hell that looks dangerous and reminds me of a Roald Dahl story about being to light a ligher in 20 consecutive attempts …. or lose your finger … yikes ! :O
This young lady knows how to chuck a knife …. and she has good safety tips …. like wearing safety glasses etc .
The wind flutter in the video disappears shortly into it …..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCX4bFrN844
lol at one job I could goof off and practise throwing a work knife (wrong knife for it – short, handle heavy lock knife). All good fun until the ricochet comes flying back at me point first lol. Good for one’s reflexes 🙂
As your replying to me cleangreen …. are you suggesting we throw knives at Peter Whittall or something 😉
https://thespinoff.co.nz/society/21-08-2018/some-things-pike-rivers-peter-whittall-could-feel-guilt-over/
Obviously I’m just kidding …. and this video is for the sword enthusiasts who were posting here the other day
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFQ1gTpSjgE
Easy peasy everyone seems to be able to do that. Even a child of five could do it? – Send for a child of five. (Groucho Marx)
I’m an engineer – give me technology any day.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdnA-ESWcPs
Ha ha ‘reason.
Thanks for the laugh; – I needed that on this gloomy dark sky day.
Whittle wasn’t worth consideration there,
Whittle should be sent down a mineshaft to live and shovel safety for the rest of his days now, as he needs to be made an example of.
Nice article
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12220366
And just as nice @ MM, the latest ‘Listening Post’ special on Aljazeera – especially when they cover all those ‘reality TV’ type “Border Force” programmes …. almost like the poor man’s pornography.
We’ll reserve a cameo spot for James Casson in the next series (as if he hasn’t already got his jollies from being a party to it all already).
lol comment this replied to got deleted because fool got his sockpuppet accounts confused.
You’re such a tease.
it was 1-2 with a different avatar. Didn’t think much of it until my comment ended up at the bottom as a whole number, and the fool was back to the usual avatar.
Bit of a laugh, really.
Andre; Hey where’s the ‘miracle’ vaccine for the new global disease known as ‘incurable’ Auris candida??????
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/06/health/drug-resistant-candida-auris.html?module=inline
DEADLY GERMS, LOST CURES
A Mysterious Infection, Spanning the Globe in a Climate of Secrecy
The rise of Candida auris embodies a serious and growing public health threat: drug-resistant germs.
I’m not andre, fool.
Where’s the “alternative therapy” for it?
Pro tip for plonkers: if you want to reply to someone, hit the reply button in the box around the comment you want to reply to, not the next comment.
Why is there no vaccine against candida auris? Dunno, could be lots of reasons.
Might be because it’s a kind of organism that’s very difficult to develop a vaccine against. Off the top of my head I can’t think of any yeast diseases we actually do have a vaccine against. Most successful vaccines are against viral diseases. Organisms that are more complex are generally harder to develop vaccines against. Hence no effective vaccines against malaria or giardia or guinea worm or gonorrhea or syphilis or ….
Might be because it hasn’t been a big enough threat (and market) to get the attention of vaccine developers.
Might be because its emergence has been recent enough there just hasn’t been enough time.
Might be any combo or all of the above or other factors I haven’t mentioned. Asking why there isn’t a specific vaccine reminds of the CEO who once asked why we couldn’t develop something to spray on the outside of golf club shafts to tune the flex characteristics. I had to tell him the only unobtainium mine in the world had shut down cause there was an explosion. (Shortly thereafter I was seeking alternative employment)
Most successful vaccines are against viral diseases.
That alone was enough to answer Cleangreen’s ridiculous question, which was on a par with “If you’re so smart, how come you haven’t cured cancer yet?”
Yeah, if I was only trying to respond to cleangreen I probably would have left it there. Or probably not bothered at all, the question was so self-evidently ridiculous. I’m well aware that many commenters here are neither persuadable nor educable.
But when I respond to nutters, it’s usually because there may be something in that topic of interest to a broader audience of silent but interested readers so a fuller answer might be worthwhile. Or sometimes I’ll respond just for the lolz.
1. It’s not incurable.
2. To the best of my knowledge no vaccines have been developed against fungal infections.
I manually input my credentials into the name and email fields, as a simple security measure to not have sign in data cached on devices…
At times, due to the email address, which you can’t see , a character becomes inverted…leading to the creation of a new avatar…
At least two possibly three avatars are in the system…
Nothing in it, McFlock…keep throwing your childish comments …
What’s the failure rate of the flu shot you like to talk about getting?
Edit:
Were you able to understand the earlier question…if you read all available vaccine package inserts (FDA site) you can get the answer to the question…
lol okay, whatevs. You screwed up your ID because you’re paranoid that people will really give a crap about who you are.
You’re not that much of a threat to the system, neo.
As for vaccines, the proof is in the pudding. Maybe they guessed wrong this year, meaning the models were off and its the wrong strains in the shot. But frankly a sore arm with one in a million odds of a serious adverse reaction… hell, I’d take a 90% failure rate. No harm, no foul. But I seem to recall flu vaccines tend to be a few times that – nowhere near 90% like with some other conditions, but good enough to completely protect a lot of people and lessen the symptoms in others. It’s biggest advantage is to lower the burden on the health system from avoidable illness. I.e. fewer people plonked in ED hallways.
But I can’t be bothered doing your homework for you. Besides, I’d be surprised if they measured efficacy against placebo outright each and every time – the ethics of denying someone healthcare like that, even with consent, are long and debatable. They probably just compare with previous strains (and you might be able to follow that testing chain back to the original placebo trials), and do after-market evaluation of cases, prevalence, immunisation status, and of course any adverse events.
You screwed up your ID because you’re paranoid that people will really give a crap about who you are
How would inverting email field characters give away who I am ?
You saw the handle name..no change…
And if you reckon I use an identifiable email address…well you don’t understand digital security…or vaccines…eh
Edit.
Keep replying and I’ll break down your uninformed comments one at a time…
Or run off…like Joe and Andre…
We live in your head, dude.
Yep weeze and poos has finally lost it. Really when analysed they had very little to add or offer anyway save insults puffed by rhetoric. Ah well onwards and upwards lol
Post the certs of your kids vaccinations…
Or just admit you were mouthing off…
You still are…
Got caught sockpuppeting but so useless can’t even front up – so surprising lol
Front up…for what, marty?
Explain how I am using sock puppet accounts…under thr same handle…
And admit that you’re full of shit…or post the certs…
Go on…
Wouldn’t an incorrectly entered email address result in the post going to moderation?
Correct…and that did happen the first time…and was released…I’d guess because the mods see the inverted characters..
So now if the same email field characters are inverted when I manually enter it…the other avatar appears…
Fair enough it seems like a mistake rather than deliberate. Sorry if you were offended by my comment.
Hang on, that’s very interesting. For it to appear and then get deleated (for my reply to end up on the floor), the comment must have had a wrong email, gone into moderation, and been released inside ten minutes, for onetwo to be able to then delete it and rewrite it with the correct email.
Gosh, how efficient the mods were that time.
Joe…you’re really lost…I’ll explain for you..
You ran away… I repeat that statement that you ran away…and you reply..again..
3rd time at least…avoiding the question…still..
I’m in your head…that’s why you keep coming back…
Such and angry and unhealthy little group…you guys are…
Thank you One Two.
Why are you worried about digital security at TS? Anyone tracking you IRL already knows you’re a fucking nutbar.
Digital security is not limited to a single instance or web-site…broaden your view …bro…
Lashing out as you do is base level, sandpit behaviour…childish really…
All highly toxic…abusive, innefective…failing…
Just like vaccines…eh!
“Just like vaccines” lols
you base that on what, el paranoico