Next, Tony, is the CB poll on One News tonight! If there's no rise for National, time to do something more desperate. Where's Simon Lusk??
Ben Thomas talks about staging:
There’s a persistent myth that the “ordinary people” travellers to North Korea meet during tightly controlled trips into Pyongyang’s underground commuter train or shopping areas are actors paid to profess to foreigners their loyalty to, and love for, whichever great leader is in power at the time. This claim appears to be baseless.
Instead, they are (like most North Koreans) simply polite, well indoctrinated by a national propaganda apparatus, and shy if not suspicious of outsiders.
In the same way, is it correct to say that the National Party supporters lined up at apparently uniform distances along Ponsonby Road, like the parade markings of many Pyongyang public squares, to greet Judith Collins were “fake”? They were real supporters, after all, dedicated enough to participate in the charade.
If that devotion to performance did make them thespians, then yesterday they would probably have most aptly described as crisis actors, as the walkabout spun out of control. The idea the National is coming apart at the seams is overhyped.
Ben's thesis is that we ought to appreciate the Judith: she's a liberal. Roll her, we end up with a fundie christian. I say, what better way to consign the National Party to the dustbin of history? Bring it on!
Ben Thomas — the man to call when you need a band-aid slapped on a gaping chest wound. "It's really not as bad as it looks. Yes, I know we can see her internal organs, but on a positive note, they all look fairly healthy."
heh, I've been on the verge of feeling sorry for her too. It's good to have some capacity for compassion for people who are doing despicable things, it's part of humanity and not being like them 😉
Did you know there's a basis upon which the rightist rabble has coalesced?
ACT, the New Conservatives and the Advance New Zealand Party are all strong opponents of 1080 and that opposition features prominently in their rallies. NZ First has been much more circumspect up to now.
And that's why Winston
is now planning a campaign trip to Waiheke Island on Thursday to show off a predator control project there which does not use 1080. “I just want to be clear that New Zealand First has never been a believer in 1080,” he said.
“We think there should be alternatives and trapping and hunting and all sorts of other range of initiatives should be taking place. “We believe 1080 is dangerous, but it’s very difficult to get control of this issue, even though we negotiated in the coalition agreement to put millions aside for it when it’s in control of some other minister.”
That ”other Minister” is Eugenie Sage, the Minister of Conservation and a Green. But Peters is running out of time to turn his party’s fortunes around. Figures released last night by the Electoral Commission show that so far 271,369 people have already voted; that’s a 76% increase on the number who voted over the first three days of advance voting last election in 2017.
This doesn’t help Peters, and he obviously needs time, so he made a plea. yesterday to people not to vote early. “Wait and find out everything that is in the mix of policies, because there are clangers after clanger after clanger out there being dropped every day now,” he said. “Only a fool tests the water with both feet. “Know all the facts first.”
This idea of Winston's that facts emerge during an election campaign, and they can be known, and furthermore everyone ought to refrain from advance voting until they have all emerged, is so wacky that even conspiracy theorists will be stunned!!
I've talked to 3 people in the last week who like me had top come in 1st or 2nd on the vote compass, none of us intend to vote for them due to the poor polling.
By the way all of us had labour and the greens as the other 2 in the top 3. So this line that top is right wing is bs.
Those polls should not be taken very seriously. They are massively influenced by how the things which seem most relevant to the election (the questions) distribute peoples views which may be not important at all to them. Then there is the problem you identified with TOP where their policy wonk positions are interpreted as economically left wing by the pollster, which is a debatable interpretation at best.
A $250 ubi, a wealth tax on equity and raising taxes on superannuatants who work so that they dont have to raise the retirement age . Not very right wing.
I struggle with taxing unrealized profit in housing but what do I know.
I see the UBI as being a cut in the existing welfare for the most vulnerable (and its not been suggested as complimentary by TOP).
I see the capital tax as an ineffective attempt to leave housing policy to the market, and its not addressing the underlying problem, but from TOPs point of view they largely ignore other policies such as those Labour is attempting.
And the idea of all these retirement policies is to privatise retirement income. I really don't know why Cullen has been given any left wing cred for his parts because at best its just an offshore investment fund and an attempt to privatise social security.
Basically taxes up=left, taxes down=right is a massive charicature of policy positions, and makes for bad economic policy thinking.
The equity tax is not actually a tax on equity, but a tax on equity's yield However it is applied only when that yield is less than 3%: more than 3% and tax would simply be paid in the normal way in any case.
Probably the largest group, that this tax would affect, would be owners of family homes, whose equity in their property attracts no tax at present. Arguably, applying the tax in this case is justified by the fact that the rent that they save, by living in their own home, represents a sort of quasi income which should be taxed.
But they are taken seriously—by the news media. If they didn't have polls to talk about, or cute animal stories—this morning featured a pesky raccoon annoying a CNN reporter—they would have to report on trivia, like the show trials of political dissenters.
[link deleted]
[Link deleted. You’ve already linked to it @ 10, which is the appropriate thing to do, but in this particular thread it could easily act as a detraction and diversion – Incognito]
I found that too. Seems like they are trying to stear away the Labour/Green vote yea it's bs, but no L/G voter will be sucked in, like you they will see through that.
They're not right wing, they're radical centrists. By positioning (they will support a National govt, so you might want to consider that in your voting choices), and by some of their policies (anti-welfare is the on I am most familiar with, but there are others).
I agree about polling though. We'd be much better off without polling in the month before the election. We'd probably have to ban publication of leaked internally polling too.
TOP are neither left wing nor right wing; but neither are they really centrists. I think they are sufficiently unique as to defy categorization.
By the way they are not opposed to welfare. However they would like to see a UBI replace welfare, though in practice top-ups would probably be necessary.
They are welcome to present a more nuanced welfare reform policy at any time, one which acknowledges positive discrimination has benefits. But when they do so they will probably have to explain that the so called 'efficiency' gains of universalism are a fiction.
Until then I will go with how this has worked in other countries where UBI policies have tried to undermine better functioning welfare regimes.
Chary with the truth mikesh but sounding nicely authoritative.
By the way they are not opposed to welfare. However they would like to see a UBI replace welfare, though in practice top-ups would probably be necessary.
After listening to authoritative commenters for long enough one can start hallucinating about double rainbows – what does it mean..
I recall being taught the answer in a physics class long ago. Vaguely recollect it as refraction plus reflection but don't quote me. Light bouncing off the back wall of the droplet after passing thro, then re-entry into atmosphere at a different angle to the primary refracted beam…
Refraction plus reflection – what I get when I read your thoughtful memos, and further refract though my vision is deteriorating. Wow a double rainbow – I sure look for one just now.
Simmons has an ideological commitment to getting rid of welfare. TOP don't have any real policy around top ups or a range of other issues related to welfare, including an adequate policy for disabled people and others who cannot work. When they change all that, I'll stop calling them anti-welfare, but at the moment their policy is dangerous for vulnerable people and those who may end up needing state assistance in the future.
"though in practice top-ups would probably be necessary."
See that's the problem right there, there's no probably about it and that degree of vagueness is just no ok in political work. TOP's UBI policy is defacto discriminatory against people who cannot work. Imagine TOP negotiating with National and ACT, what sort of UBI do you think we would end up with? Do you think that TOP would take a UBI off the table if NACT refused to treat disabled people well, or do you think that TOP would compromise and let welfare be dismantled before anything else was put in place?
"TOP are neither left wing nor right wing; but neither are they really centrists. I think they are sufficiently unique as to defy categorization."
This is probably true, but I think my description stands. They've positioned themselves to be able to work between the left and right dominant parties ie they're in the centre. And their policies can often be understood in left or right terms as well.
They're certainly not left wing. Some of what they do is progressive, and there are some solid ideas there. Some of what they do is regressive. Some of it is conservative.
'Tens of thousands rallied outside the court, holding banners reading "Fascism, Never Again" and "Freedom for the People, Death to Fascism".
"We must send a message to the younger generations, a message against fascism," said 69-year-old Sophia. "It's our duty to democracy to be here today, to show we are standing up against such criminal actions." '
Big shout out to Auckland Central branch of the National Party for giving us all the unexpected delight of hearing the term “Potemkin Village” introduced into the election campaign.
Yeah, and as a semi-resident of Ponsonby (the road starts one short block away and I grew up there for the first few years of my life), let me tell you that I suspect that description alone will cause blow back on to whatshername Mellon(?) the National candidate.
They may be bovine and like that kind of thing in Parnell or Remmers – but it goes down like a sick balloon around here.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potemkin_village The term comes from stories of a fake portable village built solely to impress Empress Catherine II by her former lover Grigory Potemkin, during her journey to Crimea in 1787.
Thanks wikipedia how would I manage without you. Donation coming up.
Amazingly Republican veteran Lindsey Graham is getting outspent and completely outplayed in the South Carolina Senate race. The Cook Political report has moved it into the toss-up column.
‘None Of It Reported’: How Corporate Media Buried The Assange Trial
by DAVID CROMWELL, Media Lens, 7th October 2020
One of the most imposing features of state-corporate propaganda is its incessant, repetitive nature. Over and over again, the ‘mainstream’ media have to convince the public that ‘our’ government prioritises the health, welfare and livelihoods of the general population, rather than the private interests of an elite stratum of society that owns and runs all the major institutions, banks, corporations and media.
We are constantly bombarded by government ministers and their media lackeys telling us that ‘our’ armed forces require huge resources, at public expense, to maintain the country’s ‘peace’ and ‘security’. We do not hear so much about the realpolitik of invading, bombing or otherwise ‘intervening’ in other countries with military force, diplomatic muscle, and bribes of trade and aid deals to carve up natural resources and markets for the benefit of a few.
For those old enough to remember 2002-2003, who can forget the endless repeated rhetoric of the ‘threat’ posed by Iraq’s Saddam Hussein, of how his ‘weapons of mass destruction’ could be launched within 45 minutes of his order, and how ‘we’ simply had to remove him from power? Or how, in 2011, the US, UK and France had to launch ‘humanitarian intervention’ to stop the ‘mass slaughter’ of civilians by Gaddafi’s forces in Libya. And on and on.
Thanks Morrissey that makes the point strongly. Most of us will have noticed this in much of the media, but not seen how widely practised it is. Will read later. Keeping up is time-consuming don't you think!
Umm, it's an extradition hearing, not a trial. Words have actual meanings, and it's helpful to clear communication to use the words that correctly describe a situation. If, on the other hand, your intent is propaganda and disinformation, then misusing words is quite a useful tool.
I won't be surprised if one of Biden's early actions as president will be to make some statement along the lines of 'Discussions with the incoming Attorney General have affirmed the determination made by Obama and Attorney General Holder in 2013 that it is not in the interest of the United States to prosecute Mr Assange, for the reasons that were publicised at the time. We therefore withdraw the extradition proceedings'.
This article is spin. Ben Thomas is a National Party operative—more pleasant than Matthew Hooton but just as ideological. He's a regular guest on RNZ National—usually billed as a representative of the ludicrously mislabelled “centre-right.” He’s desperate to put the best possible interpretation on this embarrassment.
Ben Thomas is arguing that if Collins goes, then we'll get a religious right replacement whereas Judith is a liberal.
Who cares? Such a retreat to the religious right would mean that the National party would split, as it should.
Who cares? This would mean that National are still in opposition with an illiberal leader. More for ordinary folk to dislike.
The only downside is that NZ would lack an effective opposition which good democracy demands, in the absence of a second chamber, a presidential/governor-general veto, and now with a four year term being promoted.
I have had moments of feeling sorry for judith Collins. Pretty humiliating last few days for her.
but then I remember dirty politics orivida and the lies about her visit to their office and subsequent dinner with a border official. Her association with Cameron Slater. And I think of all the dirty tricks National have pulled over the years too many to list.
Then I feel more comfortable with Collins being the casualty. Their chickens coming home to roost. Long overdue.
hope this is causing Key, Joyce and Bennett some pain, but usually psychopathic types feel very little
These type are fame seekers and loosing face is a body blow to their arrogant egotistical narcissism.
Now their reputations have been exposed that's the end of the line National will have to ditch all these Dirty Political players out of a very small caucus given the back stabbing leaks it's going to be a very painful process. ACT being farther to the right in larger numbers will make hard for National to be a centrist party.
National the strong team is shot to pieces driving around rural areas many farmers who would normally have hoardings up in their paddocks haven't bothered ,
They are not impressed with National money for campaigning is down .
After the election blood letting will be the order of they day.
Bloodletting… and then looking for a new job because you've just been chucked out for behaving like a rapacious brigand, or being content to surround yourself with rapacious brigands. I don't wish Collins any ill-will, but this is pure karma. She's spent her career cultivating a different kind of unpleasantness, one not liberally coated in Teflon. Unlike Saint John of Key, things tend to stick to Judith Collins.
Nats going to ACT could be a disadvantage to the left. When there is a group herd mentality of rightists they will encourage each other to greater corruption. National when it had some real democratic principles guiding it acted as a brake on the rapacious specialising in sly selfishness and material display, and disdain for citizen equality. As the saying goes – be careful what you wish for.
good question. with nzfirst looking like not being in parliament ,next term, would presume winston will retire, opens door for many former nats to come in. think nzfirst will survive, and the corpse is worth $$$. who better to pick up a slightly used political party than pissed off cashed up nats? surprised that experts like frankdennis havent pontificated about this possibility. you can bet that people without a real life, like hooten and farrar, have thought about this.
you can call him a Tory cunt (honestly held opinion). You can't make claims of fact about him that might end up with Lynn and Mike in court. Nothing to do with being offended, so fuck off with that bullshit lying about moderation. If you have a problem with the site policy take it up with Lynn and see how you get on.
You put the site at risk with potentially defamatory content and you think the Moderators are in the wrong protecting the site!? You only seem to be concerned about your own wants & needs on this site and cry foul when you’re moderated, screaming “censorship!”. Commenters like you don’t change their behaviour and are a chronic pain in the arse, IMHO.
Ultimately the trust is responsible for comments put on the site and we will act against anyone who puts us at what we perceive as a legal risk.
…
If we and/or our lawyers feel that the the [sic] comment or post oversteps a legal bound, violates good taste, invades the privacy of people outside the public domain, or goes beyond the scope of our site – then and only then will we do something about it.
As guidelines to consider. Publishing facts that are manifestly false is relevant to our decision, but clearly stated opinion is not.
I know the policy incognito – read what I wrote again, and ask yourself what there is defamation under the law.
What I said about Key is public record, his bank of which he is on the board – [deleted] The fact the jumped up prick said this maybe you might want to start connecting some dots.
P.S. have you read this site lately – your moderation and those of others has stimmed conversation to the level of a total limited borish fuck fest. It’s dull, repetitive, and limp. No one can have free thought and discussion when you do what you do. Censorship at its core is the shutting down of ideas, and quite frankly incognito, you do that more often than not.
[6 month ban for ignoring moderation, and picking a fight with mods. You know how it works here, *all you had to do was provide a link backing up your claim. Instead you chose to repeat the defamation and throw shit at moderators.
This is nothing to do with censorship, and everything to do with setting boundaries to 1. protect the site owners, and 2. protect the moderators so we don’t have to waste time on people who think they can spray shit around the place. Had you in the first or second instance made an actual political argument with evidence there would be no moderation – weka]
Her husband, Warwick Jordan, said she was happy to have as many throat swabs as needed and had even had one before she left Europe to be cautious.
She was becoming increasingly distressed at being labelled a test dodger, he said. It was her eighth day staying at the Ibis Hotel isolation facility in Rotorua, and every morning since day three a tester and a person in military uniform had turned up asking her to take a nasal test, he said.
When in Rome do as the Romans do. Old saying that people coming to NZ need to remember; if you want to be here and we let you in, and we have something good you can't get somewhere else (Covid-19 free) then you don't moan and try to organise things to suit yourself you twits. Stay in isolation, and while you are there see if you can find a way to stop your nose bleeding, do some research. Good might come of the time spent inside. (Diet, less warfarin etc.)
government information given to all guests at the Ibis in Rotorua said though the more sensitive nasal swab was preferred, a throat swab was an option for those who could not tolerate one.
From your link, the medical note from her doctor should be enough to warrant the throat swab option being used, and certainly not a case of piling on and victim blaming/shaming.
Well the Romans in this case are saying a throat swab is an option. From your link,
"That was despite official documents given to guests on arrival that say a throat swab is an option if necessary."
Looks like some local level bullshit and I hope the RNZ coverage gets her some better medical treatment. Coercing people into unsafe medical testing is really not ok. But oh look, the MoH not taking any responsibility.
You don't need 'having or showing great knowledge or learning' to see the article contains a valid reason why the woman has a case for medical exemption from a nasal swab, and that quarantining visitors were given the option by authorities to have throat tests in the first place, so yeah, likely it was only the only people who were busy bashing their chin with their patellas who could see a problem and launch an attack.
quarantining visitors were given the option by authorities to have throat tests in the first place
Hmmm. The copy of the "Welcome pack" on the managed isolation and quarantine site doesn't mention throat swabs at all. Closest it gets is in the appendix: "You should let the person taking the swab know if you have any condition that reduces the strength of your skin, affects the ability of your blood to form clots, or if you are on blood thinning medication. If you have any of these conditions they may decide not to proceed with the test as your health is the primary concern."
The RNZ article also seems to be unclear as to what is a quote from the DHB medical officer, and what the journalist is stating as fact.
So this government information that allows travellers to choose which option they want might bear closer examination by whomever distributed it. And the MoH need to sort out whether the online documentation is the same as the documentation actually given in the hand.
I have an open mind on it at the moment – it could easily be a case of multiple comms and policy failures between ministry, DHB, and isolation staff, just like 'the sticker says on the box', as it were.
But equally, it might be over-egged by a media system that loves emotional pain and also loves sticking unattributed "context" of doubtful accuracy right after direct quotes.
Knowing the media's attention span, it'll all be forgotten tomorrow, but regardless of whether the true facts are revealed, I hope the poor woman can get tested in accordance with her doctor's medical advice.
whatever the veracity/spin of the story, it looks like reasonably serious communication fail to me, compounded by the MoH's response to RNZ that the decision was up to the DHB. Meaning that there is a decision to be made rather than there being a blanket policy? I'm hoping they don't mean that each DHB can determine its own policy.
But as Rosemary and I have said, this is pretty standard DHB and MoH MO. I'm just surprised to see it still happening this far into the pandemic.
Unfortunately, it's also standard practise to go to the media when one doesn't like a fair decision that has been made. Especially during election time.
And there's a lot in this story hinging on whether an unnamed piece of "government information" explicitly stated that throat swabs could be chosen by the person in isolation, chosen as a common alternative by the isolation facility's testing provider/funder, might be considered by testing provider under specific circumstances, or even mentioned throat swabs specifically at all (in which case that "government information" wasn't the same "welcome pack" I linked to earlier from the MIQ website). One thing that is consistent is that throat swabs are more likely to give a false negative, and thereby enable another cluster to form.
So I don't know whether this is another campaign by individuals for a bigger slice of the pie, or another example of shite coordination within the health system crunching people into flour.
yep. As I said in the post, I'm less concerned about the extra time in isolation that I am about the communication. Although people who pay for isolation or those that have jobs or kids to get back to, need to know this stuff in advance.
What makes me give RNZ more of the benefit of the doubt than the MoH, and DHB is that I think it's reasonable to assume that RNZ would have fact checked the hotel info that was given out in that specific facility, and this isn't the first time during covid that there have been mixed or contradictory messages from health authorities. They just need to sort it out, not fob it off.
I also think it's entirely possible that the woman has been treated badly. Or she's overegging it for some reason. Who knows, but the story is theoretically credible.
This is one of the things I like about some NZ media websites – they'd have a pdf or photo of the document itself, clearing up the veracity question right there.
The other query is that they apparently don't have a review process on the ground. I mean, they must have doctors available – what if someone screws up the count on their blood pressure meds? Or was it just easiest for the testing tech to roll their eyes and log it as a refusal, when a doc calling the woman's GP could have gotten more background on why it was an issue?
It could even be some bullshit about the lab only getting contracted for the throat swabs, so there's no reason to tell higher ups about the possible reasons for a throat swab instead.
There's some fuckage afoot, we just don't know what it is.
Looks like some local level bullshit and I hope the RNZ coverage gets her some better medical treatment. Coercing people into unsafe medical testing is really not ok. But oh look, the MoH not taking any responsibility.
Sadly, SSDD.
Some meglomaniacal local bureaucrat willy waving. Encountered so many of their ilk in the disability arena. Even when clearly in error, the higher-ups at the Misery almost always back them up.
They'd feel like failures if they displayed either compassion or clinical common sense.
Nothing like a bunch of smart people who know how to do everything sitting sniping on the sidelines. I think there is a DIploma in that at most universities and erudite educational establishments.
The piece of news did say that the woman could stay in isolation for another week if she wishes. They may be tightening up on throat swabs to get reliable stats, have all taken the same way. Can you give other people the benefit of the doubt that they know a bit more than you? Or offer a suggestion for change rather than a thundering condemnation?
I did offer suggestions for change. And I covered what the issues are. You can sit here and try and guess what is going on, my expectation is that the MoH and DHBs communicate much more effectively during a pandemic than they have here.
Nothing like commenters who don't bother reading a post (and who seem to imply that the author has no expertise).
Give it up, mate. Claiming we're all smart with qualifications to be know alls just makes your point that much weaker when, in fact, it would be easier for you to acknowledge you made a boo boo in a rush to judgement.
Yes, the article states she can stay for an extra week, just like it also states the people have volunteered to have as many throat swabs as required, too.
Assuming the woman is one of those now having to pay for quarantine, why should she shoulder the extra costs involved to stay longer when the people in charge are ignorantly going against the rules they themselves gave to arrivals? And she still has a valid medical reason to avoid nasal poking.
I wouldn't worry about those erudite classes if I were you, but I would look into seeing if there are any compassion courses going.
And who hadn't read the policy. Unfortunately, neither had the defence force person apparently. If they had they could have stepped in and said that a throat swab was fine.
John Campbell talked to James Shaw & Shane Jones for 13 mins this morning & it was extremely good viewing – convivial three-way discourse & to the point. Shane at his best for a change. The segment is viewable here:
Thanks. I tested the theory by going to their site, found the share icon below right as you said, clicked on the email icon. It produced an email with the clip-specific link contained within, which I could then copy to use here. Simple!
nice one! This works from quite a few websites that like to control their URLs. It's also good practice to chop the tracking bits off the end of URLs eg FB links. That's everything after the ?
When your own team has spent decades honing their savage attack skills, then they get a wee bit grouchy with you, it's not a good idea to poke them with a stick.
More good background on The Lincoln Project linked below. Note that very few people are endorsing them, or are under the delusion they are anything other than dangerous operatives opposed to everything progressive. Nevertheless, there is still a very temporary alignment of interests as they vainly attempt to wipe the cheeto-tinged skidmark from their image and reputations.
Oh god no, I'm not watching the debate. I'd rather spend the time shoving red-hot needles up under my fingernails. Sorry.
I'm dubious that there's any value whatsoever in these kinds of political debates, beyond a crude sort of lions vs christians entertainment. Let alone my extreme dislike of the way any kind of video or conversational format is deathly slow and inaccurate at conveying actual information, but masks that communication deficit by generating emotional responses.
Lmao!!! I lasted about 2mins listening to it, work was way too busy.
Thanks for posting those tweets, too funny.
By crikey pence is a mess, crusty eyes and a random fly, that will set the conspiracy theorists into a tail spin. This presidential election could well be the weirdest in US history.
Thanks Ric, re Al Jazeera, come to think of it, they will probably be the best news outlet for a breakdown of the debate.
Enough is enough and more is too much, says Dr Jason Hickel, an economic anthropologist at Goldsmiths University of London… He makes his case in his new book Less is More: How DeGrowth Will Save The World. …
The current ecological crisis is systemic, not the result of individual bad behaviour, Hickel says. “It’s ultimately being driven by a system – capitalism – that requires perpetual expansion. “So, we basically become victims of this system and so too does the planet.”
Degrowth and recession are not the same things, he says “A recession is what happens when a growth-oriented economy like capitalism fails to get growth, things fall apart.”…
Much of Europe outperforms the USA with only a third or a half of America’s GDP, he says. “The answer is some countries distribute income more fairly and crucially invest in universal public services like robust education and welfare, affordable housing and public transportation.”
And the growth mantra is fuelling the greatest crisis humanity has faced, he says….
“We’re not really seeing it in our politics yet, except in a few countries, New Zealand being one of them actually where this is a conversation that is happening.”
Hear, hear, here, to this. When do we want it? – We want it now. What did you say? – We want it now. Do we really need it? – Yes we really do!:
“We need economies that can shift into a lower gear without harming people’s lives, so degrowth basically calls for a planned down-shifting of the economy so that we use less fossil fuels, we use less unnecessary resources but at the same time distribute existing income and opportunities more fairly so that people can have access to the things they need to live flourishing lives.”
Well, that's a puzzle! Much mentioned here in recent years by myself & Weka, if not others. But yeah, thanks for posting about that book!
Incidentally, the word just codifies the steady-state economy really, so it's jargon updating the Green alt-economy agenda from almost half a century back…
Mentioned degrowth – yes. Many things have been mentioned over the 20th century and recently but getting everyone to pay attention and then accept and see workable ways of putting the ideas into practice is the task of Sisyphus. Has to go beyond wise guys on political blogs. And by wise guys I mean both the fact of your wisdom, and the flip comment that the general public often makes.
Is it possible to concentrate on getting the election over with left facing parties in and standing shoulder to shoulder in strength and commitment for that and not get onto all the particular wounds we need to address?S Munro?
Haha. Hosking in the Herald says the election is Labour’s to lose and that’s why we’re so nervous. There will be an absolute torrent of this tripe from all the usual suspects over the next few days.
It's OK apparently to scour peoples facebook pages when wanting to employ them – it is time actually that an actual ethical position is taken that it is not. Facebook does not always equal real life.
I can't believe this sort of juvenile memeing/dog-whistling/sexist/racist bull-shit is part of a presentation to employers. But then I can cause having been part of many groups with them involved I have been exposed to their banality. There are good intelligent employers out there but this sought of crap gives them a bad name. And plenty of us baby boomers can't stand Elvis.
Then of course comes the fake apology. The ridiculous we apologise if you were offended. What about just simply saying "we're a bunch of idiots and Ms Sparke is right"
"In a statement, the association (EMA) chief executive Brett O’Riley said the presenter had attempted to “inject some lightness into a complex topic”.
“We apologise if this caused Ms Sparke offence. The deliberately provocative slide of the heavily tattooed and pierced person was used to highlight what employers cannot and must not discriminate against.”
A second slide compared the attitudes of three generations – baby boomers, Gen X and Gen Y – to work, sex, money and other influences.
While baby boomers were shown to be prepared to work their way to the top, Gen X were said to be looking for a shortcut, and Gen Y purportedly threatened to quit unless they were given Saturday off."
I have a feeling they were in the cart for the same/similar presentation a few years back as well.
I would say Ms Sparke comes off extremely well there. I don't doubt the EMA would be pushing some form of group identity narrative if it suites their purpose while continuing to claim Green politics is the divisive force.
Trump is pushing for Amy Coney Barrett to reach the Supreme Court, not because he gives a flying fruitcake about the right to life or any other rights. His powerful donors do, though, and he has to keep them happy if he’s to stay in power.
And Trump was standing on that balcony, touting his virility and strength, but leaving out the one drug that contributed to his recovery: Regeneron.
Perhaps you heard the docs talk about monoclonal antibodies. They worked wonders in fighting back Ebola, and scientists have hope for its use in other diseases, though it’s still experimental in COVID-19.
Here’s the rub. The antibodies come from stem cells recovered from human embryos.
How do I know? Regeneron told me so:
From their website:
“As is the case with many other science-focused biotechnology companies, Regeneron uses a wide variety of research tools and technologies to help discover and develop new therapeutics. Stem cells are one such tool. The stem cells most commonly used at Regeneron are mouse embryonic stem cells and human blood stem cells. Currently, there are limited research efforts employing human-induced pluripotent stem cell lines derived from adult human cells and human embryonic stem cells that are approved for research use by the National Institutes of Health and created solely through in vitro fertilization.”
They further explain in a paper in the journal Science, “The cells were originally isolated …from an aborted human fetus.”
For the West Coast audience, that’s, “…an aborted human fetus.”
A quiet read to take the mind of the hubbub of the present . 'What did we do before the world wars Mum and Dad'? Will we have to consider reshaping our lives to achieve similar?
1870 is the setting for the Lark Rise to Candleford book trilogy summarised below.
Flora Thompson's immortal trilogy, containing "Lark Rise", "Over To Candleford" and "Candleford Green", is a heartwarming portrayal of country life at the close of the 19th century.
This story of three closely related Oxfordshire communities – a hamlet, the nearby village and a small market town – is based on the author's experiences during childhood and youth. It chronicles May Day celebrations and forgotten children's games, the daily lives of farmworkers and craftsmen, friends and relations – all painted with a gaiety and freshness of observation that make this trilogy an evocative and sensitive memorial to Victorian rural England.
The stories are available on Project Gutenberg. But I don't know just how and copyright law for one's own country throws a shadow.
Fuck the Warehouse and its associated brands… healthy profit on the back of the wage subsidies… plenty of cash on hand…and they say without it they would have had a 4 million loss, I say keep the 4 million and hand the other 50 million or so back…
Corporations have taken the pissand are lining their executive and shareholder pockets.
The new govt needs to send Ird into these businesses and assess their actual eligibility and contemplate a Covid Koha tax on these pofitable firms
Well, I accidentally watched the Harris Pence debate. Pence would start an answer with a rabbit hole then start to answer the actual question and run over his allotted 2minutes, looking hard done by for not having enough time to answer. Repeatedly. (God would be clutched in the Pence right fist as he would, if he got the chance, like to carry out the very right agenda. Warning! Warning!)
Harris came across as informed, fluent and answered the questions pretty concisely. Make a good President? Yes. (Reminded me of Jacinda???)
There was a live spaced -out masked audience who were completely silent throughout.
The winner was the black fly sitting on Pence's very white hair.
Image of praying/preying mantis woman in church with plastic bottle. Is it ordinary drinking water, christening water, or hand sanitiser all ready to 'cleanse the spot from my hand' – Shakespeare?
Declaims in voice of doom: Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood clean from my hand?
National's not having the week Judith Collins would have prayed for. After a couple of strong debate performances some MPs were getting hopeful. Then Denise Lee sent an email and Collins went for a walk.
ASA, a regulator unable to enforce decisions. Very postmodern.
Advertising Standards Authority chief executive Hilary Souter said the Authority was a voluntary organisation; it relied on its members (which include most major media, advertising and marketing groupings) to comply with its rulings. "It's disappointing that we've got really good engagement from all the other parties but that Advance NZ have chosen not to engage," she said. "But we don't have any legislative framework behind us – we haven't needed to in the past."
Last night, the party's co-leader Jami-Lee Ross told Newsroom they would not comply with the ruling against using the advertisements again.
"The ASA should not be trying to interfere in election debate and the free speech of political parties," he said. "They have no standing in regulating free speech. The evidence to back up our claims were in the advert in question at the bottom. We stand by the ads' content."
Last year, Justice Minister Andrew Little said he had little confidence in the Authority, after it rejected his complaint against a National Party advertisement.
"I just think they're not equipped to do the quasi-judicial job of ensuring that somebody who asserts in a paid advertisement that it is in fact," Little said. "The test that the Advertising Standards Authority seems to use now is that if the advertiser believes it to be true then it will be true."
The Prime Minister says he's really comfortable with us not knowing the reoffending rate for his boot camp programme.They asked him for it at yesterday’s press conference, and he said, nah, not telling, have to respect people's privacy.Okay I'll bite. Let's say they release this information to us:The rate of ...
Warning 1: There is a Nazi theme at the end of this article related to the disabled community. Warning 2: This article could be boring!One day, last year, I excitedly opened up a Substack post that was about how to fight back, and the answer at the end was disappointing ...
This may be rhetorical but here goes: did any of you invest in the $Libra memecoin endorsed and backed by Argentine president and darling of the global Right Javier Milei (who admitted to being paid a fee for his promotion of the token)? You know, the one that soared above ...
Last week various of the great and good of New Zealand economics and public policy trooped off to Hamilton (of all places) for the annual Waikato Economics Forum, one of the successful marketing drives of university’s Vice-Chancellor. My interest was in the speeches delivered by the Minister of Finance and ...
The Prime Minister says the Government would be open to sending peacekeepers to Ukraine if a ceasefire was reached. The government has announced a $30 million spend on tourism infrastructure and biodiversity projects, including $11m spent to improve popular visitor sites and further $19m towards biodiversity efforts. A New Zealand-born ...
This is a re-post from The Climate Brink by Andrew Dessler “But what about when the sun doesn't shine?!” Ah yes, the energy debate’s equivalent of “The Earth is flat!” Every time someone mentions solar or wind power, some self-proclaimed energy expert emerges from the woodwork to drop this supposedly devastating truth bomb: ...
This post by Nicolas Reid was originally published on Linked in. It is republished here with permission.In this article I look into data on how well the rail network serve New Zealanders, and how many people might be able to travel by train… if we ran more than a ...
Hi,Before we get into Hayden Donnell’s new column about how yes, Donald Trump is definitely the Antichrist, I wanted to touch on something feral that happened in New Zealand last week.Members of Destiny Church pushed and punched their way into an Auckland library, apparently angry it was part of Pride ...
Despite delays, logjams and overcrowding in our emergency departments, funding constraints are limiting the numbers of nurses and doctors being trained. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Tuesday, February 18 are:A NZ Herald investigation ...
Now that the US has ripped up the Atlantic alliance, Europe is more vulnerable now than at any time since the mid-1930s. Apparently, Europe and Ukraine itself will not have a seat at the table in the talks between US President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin that will ...
Olivia and Noah and Hana are going to the library!It is fun to go to the library. It has books and songs and mat time and people who smile at you and say, Hello Olivia, what have you been doing this morning?The library is more fun than the mall. At ...
New World Orders: The challenge facing Christopher Luxon and Chris Hipkins is how to keep their small and vulnerable nation safe and stable in a world whose economic and political climate the forty-seventh American president is changing so profoundly.IT IS, SURELY, the ultimate Millennial revenge fantasy. Calling senior Baby-Boomer and Gen-X ...
“This might surprise you, Laurie, but I reckon Trump’s putting on a bloody impressive performance.”“GOODNESS ME, HANNAH, just look at all those Valentine’s Day cards!”“Occupational hazard, Laurie, the more beer I serve, the more my customers declare their undying love!”“Crikey! I had no idea business was so good.” Laurie squinted ...
In 2005, Labour repealed the long-standing principle of birthright citizenship in Aotearoa. Why? As with everything else Labour does, it all came down to austerity: "foreign mothers" were supposedly "coming to this country to give birth", and this was "put[ting] pressure on hospitals". Then-Immigration Minister George Hawkins explicitly gave this ...
And I just hope that you can forgive usBut everything must goAnd if you need an explanation, nationThen everything must goSongwriters: James Dean Bradfield / Sean Anthony Moore / Nicholas Allen Jones.Today, I’d like to talk about a couple of things that happened over the weekend:Brian Tamaki’s Library Invasion and ...
New reporting highlights how Brooke van Velden refuses to meet with the CTU but is happy to meet with fringe Australian-based unions. Van Velden is pursuing reckless changes to undermine the personal grievance system against the advice of her own officials. Engineering New Zealand are saying that hundreds of engineers ...
The NZCTU strongly supports the Employment Relations (Employee Remuneration Disclosure) Amendment Bill. This Bill represents a positive step towards addressing serious issues around unlawful disparities in pay by protecting workers’ rights to discuss their pay and conditions. This Bill also provides welcome support for helping tackle the prevalent gender and ...
Years of hard work finally paid off last week as the country’s biggest and most important transport project, the City Rail Link reached a major milestone with the first test train making its way slowly though the tunnels for the first time. This is a fantastic achievement and it is ...
Engineers are pleading for the Government to free up funds to restart stalled projects. File Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Monday, February 17 are:Engineering New Zealand CEO Richard Templer said yesterday hundreds of ...
It’s one of New Zealand’s great sustaining myths: the spirit of ANZAC, our mates across the ditch, the spirit of Earl’s Court, Antipodeans united against the world. It is also a myth; it is not reality. That much was clear from a series of speakers, including a former Australian Prime ...
Many people have been unsatisfied for years that things have not improved for them, some as individuals, many more however because their families are clearly putting in more work, for less money – and certainly far less purchase on society. This general discontent has grown exponentially since the GFC. ...
A listing of 34 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, February 9, 2025 thru Sat, February 15, 2025. This week's roundup is again published soleley by category. We are still interested in feedback to hone the categorization, so if ...
The Salvation Army’s State of the Nation report shows worsening food poverty and housing shortages mean more than 400,000 people now need welfare support, the highest level since the 1990s. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in our political economy around housing, climate and ...
You're just too too obscure for meOh you don't really get through to meAnd there's no need for you to talk that wayIs there any less pessimistic things to say?Songwriters: Graeme DownesToday, I thought we’d take a look at some of the most cringe-inducing moments from last week, but don’t ...
Please note: I’ve delayed my “What can we do?” article for this video.The video above shows Destiny Church members assaulting staff and librarians as they pushed through to a room of terrified parents and young children.It was posted to social media last night.But if you read Sinead Boucher’s Stuff, you ...
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Is sea level rise exaggerated? Sea levels are rising at an accelerating rate, not stagnating or decreasing. Warming global temperatures cause land ice ...
Here is a scenario, but first a historical parallel. Hitler and the Nazis could well have accomplished everything that they wanted to do within German borders, including exterminating Jews, so long as they confined their ambitious to Germany itself. After all, the world pretty much sat and watched as the ...
I’ve spent the last couple of days in Hamilton covering Waikato University’s annual NZ Economics Forum, where (arguably) three of the most influential people in our political economy right now laid out their thinking in major speeches about the size and role of Government, their views on for spending, tax ...
Simeon Brown’s Ideology BentSimeon Brown once told Kiwis he tries to represent his deep sense of faith by interacting “with integrity”.“It’s important that there’s Christians in Parliament…and from my perspective, it’s great to be a Christian in Parliament and to bring that perspective to [laws, conversations and policies].”And with ...
Severe geological and financial earthquakes are inevitable. We just don’t know how soon and how they will play out. Are we putting the right effort into preparing for them?Every decade or so the international economy has a major financial crisis. We cannot predict exactly when or exactly how it will ...
Questions1. How did Old Mate Grabaseat describe his soon-to-be-Deputy-PM’s letter to police advocating for Philip Polkinghorne?a.Ill-advisedb.A perfect letterc.A letter that will live in infamyd.He had me at hello2. What did Seymour say in response?a.What’s ill-advised is commenting when you don’t know all the facts and ...
NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi President Richard Wagstaff has called on OJI Fibre Solutions to work with the government, unions, and the community before closing the Kinleith Paper Mill. “OJI has today announced 230 job losses in what will be a devastating blow for the community. OJI needs to work with ...
NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi President Richard Wagstaff is sounding the alarm about the latest attack on workers from Minister of Workplace Relations and Safety Brooke van Velden, who is ignoring her own officials to pursue reckless changes that would completely undermine the personal grievance system. “Brooke van Velden’s changes will ...
Hi,When I started writing Webworm in 2020, I wrote a lot about the conspiracy theories that were suddenly invading our Twitter timelines and Facebook feeds. Four years ago a reader, John, left this feedback under one of my essays:It’s a never ending labyrinth of lunacy which, as you have pointed ...
And if you said this life ain't good enoughI would give my world to lift you upI could change my life to better suit your moodBecause you're so smoothAnd it's just like the ocean under the moonOh, it's the same as the emotion that I get from youYou got the ...
Aotearoa remains the minority’s birthright, New Zealand the majority’s possession. WAITANGI DAY commentary see-saws manically between the warmly positive and the coldly negative. Many New Zealanders consider this a good thing. They point to the unexamined patriotism of July Fourth and Bastille Day celebrations, and applaud the fact that the ...
The podcast above of the weekly ‘Hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers on Thursday night features co-hosts & talking about the week’s news with regular and special guests, including: and on the week in geopolitics, including the latest from Donald Trump’s administration over Gaza and Ukraine; on the ...
Up until now, the prevailing coalition view of public servants was that there were simply too many of them. But yesterday the new Public Service Commissioner, handpicked by the Luxon Government, said it was not so much numbers but what they did and the value they produced that mattered. Sir ...
In a moment we explore the question: What is Andrew Bayly wanting to tell ACC, and will it involve enjoying a small wine tasting and then telling someone to fuck off? But first, for context, a broader one: What do we look for in a government?Imagine for a moment, you ...
As expected, Donald Trump just threw Ukraine under the bus, demanding that it accept Russia's illegal theft of land, while ruling out any future membership of NATO. Its a colossal betrayal, which effectively legitimises Russia's invasion, while laying the groundwork for the next one. But Trump is apparently fine with ...
A ballot for a single member's bill was held today, and the following bill was drawn: Employment Relations (Collective Agreements in Triangular Relationships) Amendment Bill (Adrian Rurawhe) The bill would extend union rights to employees in triangular relationships, where they are (nominally) employed by one party, but ...
This is a guest post by George Weeks, reviewing a book called ‘How to Fly a Horse’ by Kevin AshtonBook review: ‘How to Fly a Horse’ by Kevin Ashton (2015) – and what it means for Auckland. The title of this article might unnerve any Greater Auckland ...
This story was originally published by Capital & Main and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. Within just a week, the sheer devastation of the Los Angeles wildfires has pushed to the fore fundamental questions about the impact of the climate crisis that have been ...
In this world, it's just usYou know it's not the same as it wasSongwriters: Harry Edward Styles / Thomas Edward Percy Hull / Tyler Sam JohnsonYesterday, I received a lovely message from Caty, a reader of Nick’s Kōrero, that got me thinking. So I thought I’d share it with you, ...
In past times a person was considered “unserious” or “not a serious” person if they failed to grasp, behave and speak according to the solemnity of the context in which they were located. For example a serious person does not audibly pass gas at Church, or yell “gun” at a ...
Long stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Thursday, February 13 are:The coalition Government’s early 2024 ‘fiscal emergency’ freeze on funding, planning and building houses, schools, local roads and hospitals helped extend and deepen the economic and jobs recession through calendar ...
For obvious reasons, people feel uneasy when the right to be a citizen is sold off to wealthy foreigners. Even selling the right to residency seems a bit dubious, when so many migrants who are not millionaires get turned away or are made to jump through innumerable hoops – simply ...
A new season of White Lotus is nearly upon us: more murder mystery, more sumptuous surroundings, more rich people behaving badly.Once more we get to identify with the experience of the pampered tourist or perhaps the poorly paid help; there's something in White Lotus for all New Zealanders.And unlike the ...
In 2016, Aotearoa shockingly plunged to fourth place in the Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index. Nine years later, and we're back there again: New Zealand has seen a further slip in its global ranking in the latest Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI). [...] In the latest CPI New Zealand's score ...
1. You’ve started ranking your politicians on how much they respect the rule of law2. You’ve stopped paying attention to those news publications3. You’ve developed a sudden interest in a particular period of history4. More and more people are sounding like your racist, conspiracist uncle.5. Someone just pulled a Nazi ...
Transforming New Zealand: Brian EastonBrian Easton will discuss the above topic at 2/57 Willis Street, Wellington at 5:30pm on Tuesday 26 February at 2/57 Willis Street, WellingtonThe sub-title to the above is "Why is the Left failing?" Brian Easton's analysis is based on his view that while the ...
Salvation Army’s State of the Nation 2025 report highlights falling living standards, the highest unemployment rates since the 1990s and half of all Pacific children going without food. There are reports of hundreds if not thousands of people are applying for the same jobs in the wake of last year’s ...
Mountain Tui is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Correction: On the article The Condundrum of David Seymour, Luke Malpass conducted joint reviews with Bryce Wilkinson, the architect of the Regulatory Standards Bill - not Bryce Edwards. The article ...
Tomorrow the council’s Transport, Resilience and Infrastructure Committee meet and agenda has a few interesting papers. Council’s Letter of Expectation to Auckland Transport Every year the council provide a Letter of Expectation to Auckland Transport which is part of the process for informing AT of the council’s priorities and ...
All around in my home townThey're trying to track me down, yeahThey say they want to bring me in guiltyFor the killing of a deputyFor the life of a deputySongwriter: Robert Nesta Marley.Support Nick’s Kōrero today with a 20% discount on a paid subscription to receive all my newsletters directly ...
Hi,I think all of us have probably experienced the power of music — that strange, transformative thing that gets under our skin and helps us experience this whole life thing with some kind of sanity.Listening and experiencing music has always been such a huge part of my life, and has ...
Business frustration over the stalled economy is growing, and only 34% of voters are confidentNicola Willis can deliver. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, February 12 are:Business frustration is growing about a ...
I have now lived long enough to see a cabinet minister go both barrels on their Prime Minister and not get sacked.It used to be that the PM would have a drawer full of resignations signed by ministers on the day of their appointment, ready for such an occasion. But ...
This session will feature Simon McCallum, Senior Lecturer in Engineering and Computer Science (VUW) and recent Labour Party candidate in the Southland Electorate talking about some of the issues around AI and how this should inform Labour Party policy. Simon is an excellent speaker with a comprehensive command of AI ...
The proposed Waimate garbage incinerator is dead: The company behind a highly-controversial proposal to build a waste-to-energy plant in the Waimate District no longer has the land. [...] However, SIRRL director Paul Taylor said the sales and purchase agreement to purchase land from Murphy Farms, near Glenavy, lapsed at ...
The US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act has been a vital tool in combatting international corruption. It forbids US companies and citizens from bribing foreign public officials anywhere in the world. And its actually enforced: some of the world's biggest companies - Siemens, Hewlett Packard, and Bristol Myers Squibb - have ...
December 2024 photo - with UK Tory Boris Johnson (Source: Facebook)Those PollsFor hours, political poll results have resounded across political hallways and commentary.According to the 1News Verizon poll, 50% of the country believe we are heading in the “wrong direction”, while 39% believe we are “on the right track”.The left ...
A Tai Rāwhiti mill that ran for 30 years before it was shut down in late 2023 is set to re-open in the coming months, which will eventually see nearly 300 new jobs in the region. A new report from Massey University shows that pensioners are struggling with rising costs. ...
As support continues to fall, Luxon also now faces his biggest internal ructions within the coalition since the election, with David Seymour reacting badly to being criticised by the PM. File photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate ...
Not since 1988 when Richard Prebble openly criticised David Lange have we seen such a challenge to a Prime Minister as that of David Seymour to Christopher Luxon last night. Prebble suggested Lange had mental health issues during a TV interview and was almost immediately fired. Seymour hasn’t gone quite ...
Three weeks in, and the 24/7 news cycle is not helping anyone feel calm and informed about the second Trump presidency. One day, the US is threatening 25% trade tariffs on its friends and neighbours. The reasons offered by the White House are absurd, such as stopping fentanyl coming in ...
This video includes personal musings and conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Adam Levy. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). Wherever you look, you'll hear headlines claiming we've passed 1.5 degrees of global warming. And while 2024 saw ...
“The ACT Party can’t be bothered putting an MP on one of the Justice subcommittees hearing submissions on their own Treaty Principles Bill,” Labour Justice Spokesperson Duncan Webb said. ...
The Government’s newly announced funding for biodiversity and tourism of $30-million over three years is a small fraction of what is required for conservation in this country. ...
The Government's sudden cancellation of the tertiary education funding increase is a reckless move that risks widespread job losses and service reductions across New Zealand's universities. ...
National’s cuts to disability support funding and freezing of new residential placements has resulted in significant mental health decline for intellectually disabled people. ...
The hundreds of jobs lost needlessly as a result of the Kinleith Mill paper production closure will have a devastating impact on the Tokoroa community - something that could have easily been avoided. ...
Today Te Pāti Māori MP for Te Tai Tokerau, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi, released her members bill that will see the return of tamariki and mokopuna Māori from state care back to te iwi Māori. This bill will establish an independent authority that asserts and protects the rights promised in He Whakaputanga ...
The Whangarei District Council being forced to fluoridate their local water supply is facing a despotic Soviet-era disgrace. This is not a matter of being pro-fluoride or anti-fluoride. It is a matter of what New Zealanders see and value as democracy in our country. Individual democratically elected Councillors are not ...
Nicola Willis’ latest supermarket announcement is painfully weak with no new ideas, no real plan, and no relief for Kiwis struggling with rising grocery costs. ...
Half of Pacific children sometimes going without food is just one of many heartbreaking lowlights in the Salvation Army’s annual State of the Nation report. ...
The Salvation Army’s State of the Nation report is a bleak indictment on the failure of Government to take steps to end poverty, with those on benefits, including their children, hit hardest. ...
New Zealand First has today introduced a Member’s Bill which would restore decision-making power to local communities regarding the fluoridation of drinking water. The ‘Fluoridation (Referendum) Legislation Bill’ seeks to repeal the Health (Fluoridation of Drinking Water) Amendment Act 2021 that granted centralised authority to the Direct General of Health ...
New Zealand First has introduced a Member’s Bill aimed at preventing banks from refusing their services to businesses because of the current “Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Framework”. “This Bill ensures fairness and prevents ESG standards from perpetuating woke ideology in the banking sector being driven by unelected, globalist, climate ...
Erica Stanford has reached peak shortsightedness if today’s announcement is anything to go by, picking apart immigration settings piece by piece to the detriment of the New Zealand economy. ...
Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. The intention was to establish a colony with the cession of sovereignty to the Crown, ...
Te Whatu Ora Chief Executive Margie Apa leaving her job four months early is another symptom of this government’s failure to deliver healthcare for New Zealanders. ...
The Green Party is calling for the Prime Minister to show leadership and be unequivocal about Aotearoa New Zealand’s opposition to a proposal by the US President to remove Palestinians from Gaza. ...
The latest unemployment figures reveal that job losses are hitting Māori and Pacific people especially hard, with Māori unemployment reaching a staggering 9.7% for the December 2024 quarter and Pasifika unemployment reaching 10.5%. ...
Waitangi 2025: Waitangi Day must be community and not politically driven - Shane Jones Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. ...
Despite being confronted every day with people in genuine need being stopped from accessing emergency housing – National still won’t commit to building more public houses. ...
The Green Party says the Government is giving up on growing the country’s public housing stock, despite overwhelming evidence that we need more affordable houses to solve the housing crisis. ...
Before any thoughts of the New Year and what lies ahead could even be contemplated, New Zealand reeled with the tragedy of Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming losing her life. For over 38 years she had faithfully served as a front-line Police officer. Working alongside her was Senior Sergeant Adam Ramsay ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson will return to politics at Waitangi on Monday the 3rd of February where she will hold a stand up with fellow co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick. ...
Te Pāti Māori is appalled by the government's blatant mishandling of the school lunch programme. David Seymour’s ‘cost-saving’ measures have left tamariki across Aotearoa with unidentifiable meals, causing distress and outrage among parents and communities alike. “What’s the difference between providing inedible food, and providing no food at all?” Said ...
The Government is doubling down on outdated and volatile fossil fuels, showing how shortsighted and destructive their policies are for working New Zealanders. ...
Green Party MP Steve Abel this morning joined Coromandel locals in Waihi to condemn new mining plans announced by Shane Jones in the pit of the town’s Australian-owned Gold mine. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to strengthen its just-announced 2030-2035 Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement and address its woeful lack of commitment to climate security. ...
The Government’s commitment to get New Zealand’s roads back on track is delivering strong results, with around 98 per cent of potholes on state highways repaired within 24 hours of identification every month since targets were introduced, Transport Minister Chris Bishop says. “Increasing productivity to help rebuild our economy is ...
The former Cadbury factory will be the site of the Inpatient Building for the new Dunedin Hospital and Health Minister Simeon Brown says actions have been taken to get the cost overruns under control. “Today I am giving the people of Dunedin certainty that we will build the new Dunedin ...
From today, Plunket in Whāngarei will be offering childhood immunisations – the first of up to 27 sites nationwide, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. The investment of $1 million into the pilot, announced in October 2024, was made possible due to the Government’s record $16.68 billion investment in health. It ...
New Zealand’s strong commitment to the rights of disabled people has continued with the response to an important United Nations report, Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston has announced. Of the 63 concluding observations of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), 47 will be progressed ...
Resources Minister Shane Jones has launched New Zealand’s national Minerals Strategy and Critical Minerals List, documents that lay a strategic and enduring path for the mineral sector, with the aim of doubling exports to $3 billion by 2035. Mr Jones released the documents, which present the Coalition Government’s transformative vision ...
Firstly I want to thank OceanaGold for hosting our event today. Your operation at Waihi is impressive. I want to acknowledge local MP Scott Simpson, local government dignitaries, community stakeholders and all of you who have gathered here today. It’s a privilege to welcome you to the launch of the ...
Racing Minister, Winston Peters has announced the Government is preparing public consultation on GST policy proposals which would make the New Zealand racing industry more competitive. “The racing industry makes an important economic contribution. New Zealand thoroughbreds are in demand overseas as racehorses and for breeding. The domestic thoroughbred industry ...
Business confidence remains very high and shows the economy is on track to improve, Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis says. “The latest ANZ Business Outlook survey, released yesterday, shows business confidence and expected own activity are ‘still both very high’.” The survey reports business confidence fell eight points to +54 ...
Enabling works have begun this week on an expanded radiology unit at Hawke’s Bay Fallen Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital which will double CT scanning capacity in Hawke’s Bay to ensure more locals can benefit from access to timely, quality healthcare, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. This investment of $29.3m in the ...
The Government has today announced New Zealand’s second international climate target under the Paris Agreement, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand will reduce emissions by 51 to 55 per cent compared to 2005 levels, by 2035. “We have worked hard to set a target that is both ambitious ...
Nine years of negotiations between the Crown and iwi of Taranaki have concluded following Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/the Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill passing its third reading in Parliament today, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “This Bill addresses the historical grievances endured by the eight iwi ...
As schools start back for 2025, there will be a relentless focus on teaching the basics brilliantly so all Kiwi kids grow up with the knowledge, skills and competencies needed to grow the New Zealand of the future, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “A world-leading education system is a key ...
Housing Minister Chris Bishop and Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson have welcomed Kāinga Ora’s decision to re-open its tender for carpets to allow wool carpet suppliers to bid. “In 2024 Kāinga Ora issued requests for tender (RFTs) seeking bids from suppliers to carpet their properties,” Mr Bishop says. “As part ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today visited Otahuhu College where the new school lunch programme has served up healthy lunches to students in the first days of the school year. “As schools open in 2025, the programme will deliver nutritious meals to around 242,000 students, every school day. On ...
Minister for Children Karen Chhour has intervened in Oranga Tamariki’s review of social service provider contracts to ensure Barnardos can continue to deliver its 0800 What’s Up hotline. “When I found out about the potential impact to this service, I asked Oranga Tamariki for an explanation. Based on the information ...
A bill to make revenue collection on imported and exported goods fairer and more effective had its first reading in Parliament, Customs Minister Casey Costello said today. “The Customs (Levies and Other Matters) Amendment Bill modernises the way in which Customs can recover the costs of services that are needed ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jennifer Stone, Principal Research Fellow, School of Population and Global Health, The University of Western Australia Gorodenkoff/Shutterstock Having dense breasts is a clear risk factor for breast cancer. It can also make cancers hard to spot on mammograms. Yet you ...
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The purpose was to establish the facts and provide an independent assessment of government agency activity in relation to allegations that personal data may have been misused during the 2023 General Election. ...
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Forgive me, lefties, for I have sinned. Well almost but not quite, thank goodness.
I almost felt, for a moment, sorry for Judith.
I’ve been a political observer since before I was able to vote, but I’ve never witnessed a train wreck like this Natz campaign under Judith and Gerry.
I was out of the country in 2002 when English managed an epic low: was his campaign so full of hilarious moments as this one?
Merv from Manurewa!
Goldsmith’s holes!
Leaked emails!
‘Private’ moment of prayer!
Shouty leader insisting we don’t diss Samoa!
Sham stroll!
What have I missed – and more importantly, what’s next?
Next, Tony, is the CB poll on One News tonight! If there's no rise for National, time to do something more desperate. Where's Simon Lusk??
Ben Thomas talks about staging:
Ben's thesis is that we ought to appreciate the Judith: she's a liberal. Roll her, we end up with a fundie christian. I say, what better way to consign the National Party to the dustbin of history? Bring it on!
Ben Thomas — the man to call when you need a band-aid slapped on a gaping chest wound. "It's really not as bad as it looks. Yes, I know we can see her internal organs, but on a positive note, they all look fairly healthy."
heh, I've been on the verge of feeling sorry for her too. It's good to have some capacity for compassion for people who are doing despicable things, it's part of humanity and not being like them 😉
Did you know there's a basis upon which the rightist rabble has coalesced?
And that's why Winston
This idea of Winston's that facts emerge during an election campaign, and they can be known, and furthermore everyone ought to refrain from advance voting until they have all emerged, is so wacky that even conspiracy theorists will be stunned!!
Polls need to be outlawed!
I've talked to 3 people in the last week who like me had top come in 1st or 2nd on the vote compass, none of us intend to vote for them due to the poor polling.
By the way all of us had labour and the greens as the other 2 in the top 3. So this line that top is right wing is bs.
Those polls should not be taken very seriously. They are massively influenced by how the things which seem most relevant to the election (the questions) distribute peoples views which may be not important at all to them. Then there is the problem you identified with TOP where their policy wonk positions are interpreted as economically left wing by the pollster, which is a debatable interpretation at best.
A $250 ubi, a wealth tax on equity and raising taxes on superannuatants who work so that they dont have to raise the retirement age . Not very right wing.
I struggle with taxing unrealized profit in housing but what do I know.
I see the UBI as being a cut in the existing welfare for the most vulnerable (and its not been suggested as complimentary by TOP).
I see the capital tax as an ineffective attempt to leave housing policy to the market, and its not addressing the underlying problem, but from TOPs point of view they largely ignore other policies such as those Labour is attempting.
And the idea of all these retirement policies is to privatise retirement income. I really don't know why Cullen has been given any left wing cred for his parts because at best its just an offshore investment fund and an attempt to privatise social security.
Basically taxes up=left, taxes down=right is a massive charicature of policy positions, and makes for bad economic policy thinking.
but what do I know.
Not much, it seems.
The equity tax is not actually a tax on equity, but a tax on equity's yield However it is applied only when that yield is less than 3%: more than 3% and tax would simply be paid in the normal way in any case.
Probably the largest group, that this tax would affect, would be owners of family homes, whose equity in their property attracts no tax at present. Arguably, applying the tax in this case is justified by the fact that the rent that they save, by living in their own home, represents a sort of quasi income which should be taxed.
Those polls should not be taken very seriously.
But they are taken seriously—by the news media. If they didn't have polls to talk about, or cute animal stories—this morning featured a pesky raccoon annoying a CNN reporter—they would have to report on trivia, like the show trials of political dissenters.
[link deleted]
[Link deleted. You’ve already linked to it @ 10, which is the appropriate thing to do, but in this particular thread it could easily act as a detraction and diversion – Incognito]
Nice meiosis.
Pesky Raccoon 2020!
See my Moderation note @ 9:03 AM.
I found that too. Seems like they are trying to stear away the Labour/Green vote yea it's bs, but no L/G voter will be sucked in, like you they will see through that.
"So this line that top is right wing is bs."
They're not right wing, they're radical centrists. By positioning (they will support a National govt, so you might want to consider that in your voting choices), and by some of their policies (anti-welfare is the on I am most familiar with, but there are others).
I agree about polling though. We'd be much better off without polling in the month before the election. We'd probably have to ban publication of leaked internally polling too.
TOP are neither left wing nor right wing; but neither are they really centrists. I think they are sufficiently unique as to defy categorization.
By the way they are not opposed to welfare. However they would like to see a UBI replace welfare, though in practice top-ups would probably be necessary.
They are welcome to present a more nuanced welfare reform policy at any time, one which acknowledges positive discrimination has benefits. But when they do so they will probably have to explain that the so called 'efficiency' gains of universalism are a fiction.
Until then I will go with how this has worked in other countries where UBI policies have tried to undermine better functioning welfare regimes.
Chary with the truth mikesh but sounding nicely authoritative.
By the way they are not opposed to welfare. However they would like to see a UBI replace welfare, though in practice top-ups would probably be necessary.
After listening to authoritative commenters for long enough one can start hallucinating about double rainbows – what does it mean..
what does it mean
I recall being taught the answer in a physics class long ago. Vaguely recollect it as refraction plus reflection but don't quote me. Light bouncing off the back wall of the droplet after passing thro, then re-entry into atmosphere at a different angle to the primary refracted beam…
Refraction plus reflection – what I get when I read your thoughtful memos, and further refract though my vision is deteriorating. Wow a double rainbow – I sure look for one just now.
Simmons has an ideological commitment to getting rid of welfare. TOP don't have any real policy around top ups or a range of other issues related to welfare, including an adequate policy for disabled people and others who cannot work. When they change all that, I'll stop calling them anti-welfare, but at the moment their policy is dangerous for vulnerable people and those who may end up needing state assistance in the future.
"though in practice top-ups would probably be necessary."
See that's the problem right there, there's no probably about it and that degree of vagueness is just no ok in political work. TOP's UBI policy is defacto discriminatory against people who cannot work. Imagine TOP negotiating with National and ACT, what sort of UBI do you think we would end up with? Do you think that TOP would take a UBI off the table if NACT refused to treat disabled people well, or do you think that TOP would compromise and let welfare be dismantled before anything else was put in place?
"TOP are neither left wing nor right wing; but neither are they really centrists. I think they are sufficiently unique as to defy categorization."
This is probably true, but I think my description stands. They've positioned themselves to be able to work between the left and right dominant parties ie they're in the centre. And their policies can often be understood in left or right terms as well.
They're certainly not left wing. Some of what they do is progressive, and there are some solid ideas there. Some of what they do is regressive. Some of it is conservative.
golden dawn…nazis convicted. Awesome !
'Tens of thousands rallied outside the court, holding banners reading "Fascism, Never Again" and "Freedom for the People, Death to Fascism".
"We must send a message to the younger generations, a message against fascism," said 69-year-old Sophia. "It's our duty to democracy to be here today, to show we are standing up against such criminal actions." '
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/world/427834/greece-s-far-right-golden-dawn-declared-a-criminal-group
Big shout out to Auckland Central branch of the National Party for giving us all the unexpected delight of hearing the term “Potemkin Village” introduced into the election campaign.
Yeah, and as a semi-resident of Ponsonby (the road starts one short block away and I grew up there for the first few years of my life), let me tell you that I suspect that description alone will cause blow back on to whatshername Mellon(?) the National candidate.
They may be bovine and like that kind of thing in Parnell or Remmers – but it goes down like a sick balloon around here.
“Potemkin Village
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potemkin_village The term comes from stories of a fake portable village built solely to impress Empress Catherine II by her former lover Grigory Potemkin, during her journey to Crimea in 1787.
Thanks wikipedia how would I manage without you. Donation coming up.
Lynn, can you please have a look at that comment in Pending.
The PM is heading to East Cape today to give Kiri Allan’s already good chances of taking this seat a further push.
Amazingly Republican veteran Lindsey Graham is getting outspent and completely outplayed in the South Carolina Senate race. The Cook Political report has moved it into the toss-up column.
https://cookpolitical.com/analysis/senate/south-carolina-senate/south-carolina-senate-moves-toss
All sorts of murmuring about who might have what to hold over that broken reed.
New post debate, post Trump Covid diagnosis Quinnipiac Poll
FLORIDA: Biden 51%, Trump 40%
PENNSYLVANIA: Biden 54%, Trump 41%
IOWA: Biden 50%, Trump 45%
Looks good. We need a landslide to render any electoral f*ckery by the Republican machine ineffectual.
Likely Milestone coming up:
–Labour– hitting the 1 mill+ mark for the first time ever.
They came so close yet so far in 2005 (935k) & 2017 (956k).
–Nats–, meanwhile, are likely to fall below 1 mill for the first time since they hit that particular milestone way back in 2008.
🙂 That is good news.
BTW: I like the way you used the colours..
Wow Yahoo!!! I am one of that million !!You go Jacinda and team.
‘None Of It Reported’: How Corporate Media Buried The Assange Trial
by DAVID CROMWELL, Media Lens, 7th October 2020
One of the most imposing features of state-corporate propaganda is its incessant, repetitive nature. Over and over again, the ‘mainstream’ media have to convince the public that ‘our’ government prioritises the health, welfare and livelihoods of the general population, rather than the private interests of an elite stratum of society that owns and runs all the major institutions, banks, corporations and media.
We are constantly bombarded by government ministers and their media lackeys telling us that ‘our’ armed forces require huge resources, at public expense, to maintain the country’s ‘peace’ and ‘security’. We do not hear so much about the realpolitik of invading, bombing or otherwise ‘intervening’ in other countries with military force, diplomatic muscle, and bribes of trade and aid deals to carve up natural resources and markets for the benefit of a few.
For those old enough to remember 2002-2003, who can forget the endless repeated rhetoric of the ‘threat’ posed by Iraq’s Saddam Hussein, of how his ‘weapons of mass destruction’ could be launched within 45 minutes of his order, and how ‘we’ simply had to remove him from power? Or how, in 2011, the US, UK and France had to launch ‘humanitarian intervention’ to stop the ‘mass slaughter’ of civilians by Gaddafi’s forces in Libya. And on and on.
Read more…
https://www.medialens.org/2020/none-of-it-reported-how-corporate-media-buried-the-assange-trial/
Thanks Morrissey that makes the point strongly. Most of us will have noticed this in much of the media, but not seen how widely practised it is. Will read later. Keeping up is time-consuming don't you think!
Frankly, the current hearings are just a preamble.
Not matter the outcome, the losing party will appeal, and the losing party of that will appeal, and so on up to the UK Supreme Court. Again.
Unless the US gets a sane potus, in which case they might drop it.
There are some and I wish more, people would tell him to get off the pot-us.
I'm struggling to think of a good call the current oaf has made.
He's probably only going for extradition because Obama's office reckoned it was too close to the 1st amendment to try.
Umm, it's an extradition hearing, not a trial. Words have actual meanings, and it's helpful to clear communication to use the words that correctly describe a situation. If, on the other hand, your intent is propaganda and disinformation, then misusing words is quite a useful tool.
I won't be surprised if one of Biden's early actions as president will be to make some statement along the lines of 'Discussions with the incoming Attorney General have affirmed the determination made by Obama and Attorney General Holder in 2013 that it is not in the interest of the United States to prosecute Mr Assange, for the reasons that were publicised at the time. We therefore withdraw the extradition proceedings'.
Nats are now officially in save-the-furniture mode as the house burns down
https://thespinoff.co.nz/politics/08-10-2020/keen-to-see-judith-collins-jettisoned-careful-what-you-wish-for/
This article is spin. Ben Thomas is a National Party operative—more pleasant than Matthew Hooton but just as ideological. He's a regular guest on RNZ National—usually billed as a representative of the ludicrously mislabelled “centre-right.” He’s desperate to put the best possible interpretation on this embarrassment.
Ben Thomas is arguing that if Collins goes, then we'll get a religious right replacement whereas Judith is a liberal.
Who cares? Such a retreat to the religious right would mean that the National party would split, as it should.
Who cares? This would mean that National are still in opposition with an illiberal leader. More for ordinary folk to dislike.
The only downside is that NZ would lack an effective opposition which good democracy demands, in the absence of a second chamber, a presidential/governor-general veto, and now with a four year term being promoted.
I have had moments of feeling sorry for judith Collins. Pretty humiliating last few days for her.
but then I remember dirty politics orivida and the lies about her visit to their office and subsequent dinner with a border official. Her association with Cameron Slater. And I think of all the dirty tricks National have pulled over the years too many to list.
Then I feel more comfortable with Collins being the casualty. Their chickens coming home to roost. Long overdue.
hope this is causing Key, Joyce and Bennett some pain, but usually psychopathic types feel very little
These type are fame seekers and loosing face is a body blow to their arrogant egotistical narcissism.
Now their reputations have been exposed that's the end of the line National will have to ditch all these Dirty Political players out of a very small caucus given the back stabbing leaks it's going to be a very painful process. ACT being farther to the right in larger numbers will make hard for National to be a centrist party.
National the strong team is shot to pieces driving around rural areas many farmers who would normally have hoardings up in their paddocks haven't bothered ,
They are not impressed with National money for campaigning is down .
After the election blood letting will be the order of they day.
Bloodletting… and then looking for a new job because you've just been chucked out for behaving like a rapacious brigand, or being content to surround yourself with rapacious brigands. I don't wish Collins any ill-will, but this is pure karma. She's spent her career cultivating a different kind of unpleasantness, one not liberally coated in Teflon. Unlike Saint John of Key, things tend to stick to Judith Collins.
Nats going to ACT could be a disadvantage to the left. When there is a group herd mentality of rightists they will encourage each other to greater corruption. National when it had some real democratic principles guiding it acted as a brake on the rapacious specialising in sly selfishness and material display, and disdain for citizen equality. As the saying goes – be careful what you wish for.
@Morrissey 11.1
I think most people will have no trouble sifting through the spin and desperation on this one.
How real is the possibility that the National Party could splinter into seperate entities a la Labour post Douglas?
good question. with nzfirst looking like not being in parliament ,next term, would presume winston will retire, opens door for many former nats to come in. think nzfirst will survive, and the corpse is worth $$$. who better to pick up a slightly used political party than pissed off cashed up nats? surprised that experts like frankdennis havent pontificated about this possibility. you can bet that people without a real life, like hooten and farrar, have thought about this.
[deleted]
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12371339
[deleted]
[please don’t post potentially defamatory comments, it puts the site owners at risk – weka]
Key promised to wipe the scourge of P from NZ [deleted]
Cutting police numbers by 880 while the population increased by 20% played right into the Drug Barrons hands.
Crushless Collins and pullya Benefit were police ministers administering cuts, while pretending to be tough on Crime.
[please don’t post potentially defamatory comments, it puts the site owners at risk – weka]
mod note
The worst part weka is you left the link which without comment, which makes it totally fubar.
Key is a Tory cunt and needs to be called out for his shitfuckery, but no. Can't say that, someone will get offended.
you can call him a Tory cunt (honestly held opinion). You can't make claims of fact about him that might end up with Lynn and Mike in court. Nothing to do with being offended, so fuck off with that bullshit lying about moderation. If you have a problem with the site policy take it up with Lynn and see how you get on.
mod note.
Fuck off weka, read some news for fuck sake.
https://www.icij.org/investigations/fincen-files/
Key has his hands all over this shit, along with all the other Aussie banks and their bosses.
Totally fucked off with your censorship, it’s fucking tiresome from you and the other moderators.
You put the site at risk with potentially defamatory content and you think the Moderators are in the wrong protecting the site!? You only seem to be concerned about your own wants & needs on this site and cry foul when you’re moderated, screaming “censorship!”. Commenters like you don’t change their behaviour and are a chronic pain in the arse, IMHO.
https://thestandard.org.nz/policy/
I know the policy incognito – read what I wrote again, and ask yourself what there is defamation under the law.
What I said about Key is public record, his bank of which he is on the board – [deleted] The fact the jumped up prick said this maybe you might want to start connecting some dots.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2015/feb/25/new-zealand-troops-iraq-isis-john-key-parliament-video
P.S. have you read this site lately – your moderation and those of others has stimmed conversation to the level of a total limited borish fuck fest. It’s dull, repetitive, and limp. No one can have free thought and discussion when you do what you do. Censorship at its core is the shutting down of ideas, and quite frankly incognito, you do that more often than not.
[6 month ban for ignoring moderation, and picking a fight with mods. You know how it works here, *all you had to do was provide a link backing up your claim. Instead you chose to repeat the defamation and throw shit at moderators.
This is nothing to do with censorship, and everything to do with setting boundaries to 1. protect the site owners, and 2. protect the moderators so we don’t have to waste time on people who think they can spray shit around the place. Had you in the first or second instance made an actual political argument with evidence there would be no moderation – weka]
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/427849/authorities-insist-on-nasal-swab-despite-woman-s-bleeding-risk
Her husband, Warwick Jordan, said she was happy to have as many throat swabs as needed and had even had one before she left Europe to be cautious.
She was becoming increasingly distressed at being labelled a test dodger, he said. It was her eighth day staying at the Ibis Hotel isolation facility in Rotorua, and every morning since day three a tester and a person in military uniform had turned up asking her to take a nasal test, he said.
When in Rome do as the Romans do. Old saying that people coming to NZ need to remember; if you want to be here and we let you in, and we have something good you can't get somewhere else (Covid-19 free) then you don't moan and try to organise things to suit yourself you twits. Stay in isolation, and while you are there see if you can find a way to stop your nose bleeding, do some research. Good might come of the time spent inside. (Diet, less warfarin etc.)
From your link, the medical note from her doctor should be enough to warrant the throat swab option being used, and certainly not a case of piling on and victim blaming/shaming.
Who is the victim? If any at all, NZ is. Always under attack no matter what we do, and how good the outcomes are.
Well the Romans in this case are saying a throat swab is an option. From your link,
"That was despite official documents given to guests on arrival that say a throat swab is an option if necessary."
Looks like some local level bullshit and I hope the RNZ coverage gets her some better medical treatment. Coercing people into unsafe medical testing is really not ok. But oh look, the MoH not taking any responsibility.
You think people would actually read the articles they link to, eh?
Would save an awful lot of knee jerking injuries.
Anyone looking at the article could draw conclusions from it. Not everyone is as erudite as yourself TA.
You don't need 'having or showing great knowledge or learning' to see the article contains a valid reason why the woman has a case for medical exemption from a nasal swab, and that quarantining visitors were given the option by authorities to have throat tests in the first place, so yeah, likely it was only the only people who were busy bashing their chin with their patellas who could see a problem and launch an attack.
Hmmm. The copy of the "Welcome pack" on the managed isolation and quarantine site doesn't mention throat swabs at all. Closest it gets is in the appendix: "You should let the person taking the swab know if you have any condition that reduces the strength of your skin, affects the ability of your blood to form clots, or if you are on blood thinning medication. If you have any of these conditions they may decide not to proceed with the test as your health is the primary concern."
The RNZ article also seems to be unclear as to what is a quote from the DHB medical officer, and what the journalist is stating as fact.
So this government information that allows travellers to choose which option they want might bear closer examination by whomever distributed it. And the MoH need to sort out whether the online documentation is the same as the documentation actually given in the hand.
Just going from the text in the rnz link at 16 – Part of which I quoted in 16.1
If the info is incorrect I'll retract it as soon as they do, but I will cede to your more informed piece as you appear to have delved in to it.
I have an open mind on it at the moment – it could easily be a case of multiple comms and policy failures between ministry, DHB, and isolation staff, just like 'the sticker says on the box', as it were.
But equally, it might be over-egged by a media system that loves emotional pain and also loves sticking unattributed "context" of doubtful accuracy right after direct quotes.
Knowing the media's attention span, it'll all be forgotten tomorrow, but regardless of whether the true facts are revealed, I hope the poor woman can get tested in accordance with her doctor's medical advice.
I hope she gets help dealing with isolation and that the staff make it clear that she's not being blamed for refusing that particular test.
whatever the veracity/spin of the story, it looks like reasonably serious communication fail to me, compounded by the MoH's response to RNZ that the decision was up to the DHB. Meaning that there is a decision to be made rather than there being a blanket policy? I'm hoping they don't mean that each DHB can determine its own policy.
But as Rosemary and I have said, this is pretty standard DHB and MoH MO. I'm just surprised to see it still happening this far into the pandemic.
Unfortunately, it's also standard practise to go to the media when one doesn't like a fair decision that has been made. Especially during election time.
And there's a lot in this story hinging on whether an unnamed piece of "government information" explicitly stated that throat swabs could be chosen by the person in isolation, chosen as a common alternative by the isolation facility's testing provider/funder, might be considered by testing provider under specific circumstances, or even mentioned throat swabs specifically at all (in which case that "government information" wasn't the same "welcome pack" I linked to earlier from the MIQ website). One thing that is consistent is that throat swabs are more likely to give a false negative, and thereby enable another cluster to form.
So I don't know whether this is another campaign by individuals for a bigger slice of the pie, or another example of shite coordination within the health system crunching people into flour.
yep. As I said in the post, I'm less concerned about the extra time in isolation that I am about the communication. Although people who pay for isolation or those that have jobs or kids to get back to, need to know this stuff in advance.
What makes me give RNZ more of the benefit of the doubt than the MoH, and DHB is that I think it's reasonable to assume that RNZ would have fact checked the hotel info that was given out in that specific facility, and this isn't the first time during covid that there have been mixed or contradictory messages from health authorities. They just need to sort it out, not fob it off.
I also think it's entirely possible that the woman has been treated badly. Or she's overegging it for some reason. Who knows, but the story is theoretically credible.
This is one of the things I like about some NZ media websites – they'd have a pdf or photo of the document itself, clearing up the veracity question right there.
The other query is that they apparently don't have a review process on the ground. I mean, they must have doctors available – what if someone screws up the count on their blood pressure meds? Or was it just easiest for the testing tech to roll their eyes and log it as a refusal, when a doc calling the woman's GP could have gotten more background on why it was an issue?
It could even be some bullshit about the lab only getting contracted for the throat swabs, so there's no reason to tell higher ups about the possible reasons for a throat swab instead.
There's some fuckage afoot, we just don't know what it is.
Looks like some local level bullshit and I hope the RNZ coverage gets her some better medical treatment. Coercing people into unsafe medical testing is really not ok. But oh look, the MoH not taking any responsibility.
Sadly, SSDD.
Some meglomaniacal local bureaucrat willy waving. Encountered so many of their ilk in the disability arena. Even when clearly in error, the higher-ups at the Misery almost always back them up.
They'd feel like failures if they displayed either compassion or clinical common sense.
Looked like classic health system bullshit to me too.
I put up a post.
https://thestandard.org.nz/is-this-woman-being-coerced-into-unsafe-healthcare-by-the-dhbs-handling-of-covid-testing/
Nothing like a bunch of smart people who know how to do everything sitting sniping on the sidelines. I think there is a DIploma in that at most universities and erudite educational establishments.
The piece of news did say that the woman could stay in isolation for another week if she wishes. They may be tightening up on throat swabs to get reliable stats, have all taken the same way. Can you give other people the benefit of the doubt that they know a bit more than you? Or offer a suggestion for change rather than a thundering condemnation?
I did offer suggestions for change. And I covered what the issues are. You can sit here and try and guess what is going on, my expectation is that the MoH and DHBs communicate much more effectively during a pandemic than they have here.
Nothing like commenters who don't bother reading a post (and who seem to imply that the author has no expertise).
Give it up, mate. Claiming we're all smart with qualifications to be know alls just makes your point that much weaker when, in fact, it would be easier for you to acknowledge you made a boo boo in a rush to judgement.
Yes, the article states she can stay for an extra week, just like it also states the people have volunteered to have as many throat swabs as required, too.
Assuming the woman is one of those now having to pay for quarantine, why should she shoulder the extra costs involved to stay longer when the people in charge are ignorantly going against the rules they themselves gave to arrivals? And she still has a valid medical reason to avoid nasal poking.
I wouldn't worry about those erudite classes if I were you, but I would look into seeing if there are any compassion courses going.
And who hadn't read the policy. Unfortunately, neither had the defence force person apparently. If they had they could have stepped in and said that a throat swab was fine.
Sounds like a nondecision made by some jobsworth really. Nagging her about it is just the sort of institutional sadism those people get off on.
There's a bit of that about true.
Five minor party leaders in TVNZ's multi-party debate tonight: https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/minor-party-leaders-go-head-in-tvnzs-multi-debate-tonight
In our High Court yesterday the New Conservative party lost its bid to be included :
Political editor Jessica Mutch McKay will moderate, runs 7-8pm on One.
John Campbell talked to James Shaw & Shane Jones for 13 mins this morning & it was extremely good viewing – convivial three-way discourse & to the point. Shane at his best for a change. The segment is viewable here:
https://www.tvnz.co.nz/shows/breakfast/clips/james-shaw-and-shane-jones-talk-politics-with-general-election-less-than-two-weeks-away
[fixed the link]
use the share button Dennis. Click on one of them and then cut and past the URL from that. The main Breakfast URL just reverts back to TVNZ.
share button
Where is it?? I put the cursor over all the icons above the reply window & none identified as such…
bottom right, in line with the play button. It's the three dots and two lines in a shape like this <
It will give you a number of options, which might depend on if you have an account with FB, twitter etc, but the email one should work.
Thanks. I tested the theory by going to their site, found the share icon below right as you said, clicked on the email icon. It produced an email with the clip-specific link contained within, which I could then copy to use here. Simple!
nice one! This works from quite a few websites that like to control their URLs. It's also good practice to chop the tracking bits off the end of URLs eg FB links. That's everything after the ?
When your own team has spent decades honing their savage attack skills, then they get a wee bit grouchy with you, it's not a good idea to poke them with a stick.
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/10/7/1984433/–Trump-Goes-Decides-To-Go-Up-Against-Steve-Schmidt-Bad-Move
Result is kinda like:
More good background on The Lincoln Project linked below. Note that very few people are endorsing them, or are under the delusion they are anything other than dangerous operatives opposed to everything progressive. Nevertheless, there is still a very temporary alignment of interests as they vainly attempt to wipe the cheeto-tinged skidmark from their image and reputations.
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/10/12/inside-the-lincoln-projects-war-against-trump
Jesus. That was brutal. Entertaining, but brutal.
https://twitter.com/latelateshow/status/1313673445188620288
that was probably mccartneys best ever song. too good to be given the weird al treatment. get the original and play it LOUD!
Andre, are you going to watch the debate today between Karmala and pence? I'm going to try and listen to it at work.
Would be really interested to know your thoughts about it later on.
Here's a link for a stream if anyone is interested, the debate starts in 14 mins
Oh god no, I'm not watching the debate. I'd rather spend the time shoving red-hot needles up under my fingernails. Sorry.
I'm dubious that there's any value whatsoever in these kinds of political debates, beyond a crude sort of lions vs christians entertainment. Let alone my extreme dislike of the way any kind of video or conversational format is deathly slow and inaccurate at conveying actual information, but masks that communication deficit by generating emotional responses.
It's on Al Jazeera now (2.20pm)
The consensus of commentator opinion seems to be that the fly won it. By being the most interesting character of the evening.
Not wasting time.
https://twitter.com/JoeBiden/status/1314031047013732352
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/mike-pence-fly-vice-presidential-debate_n_5f7e775fc5b6e48b16832ed4
And the runner-up by general acclamation seems to be the overboiled cauliflower's pink left eye.
https://twitter.com/JReinerMD/status/1314021309333090305
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/mike-pences-eye-becomes-hot-topic-on-social-media-during-vp-debate
Lmao!!! I lasted about 2mins listening to it, work was way too busy.
Thanks for posting those tweets, too funny.
By crikey pence is a mess, crusty eyes and a random fly, that will set the conspiracy theorists into a tail spin. This presidential election could well be the weirdest in US history.
Thanks Ric, re Al Jazeera, come to think of it, they will probably be the best news outlet for a breakdown of the debate.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/10/8/pence-harris-face-off-in-vp-debate-us-election-news
Awesome
Degrowth. Degrowth. DEGROWTH. Trying the word out for size, to get familiarity with it. Not heard it before. How would this be helpful for us?
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/afternoons/audio/2018766960/jason-hickel-how-degrowth-will-save-the-world
Enough is enough and more is too much, says Dr Jason Hickel, an economic anthropologist at Goldsmiths University of London…
He makes his case in his new book Less is More: How DeGrowth Will Save The World. …
The current ecological crisis is systemic, not the result of individual bad behaviour, Hickel says.
“It’s ultimately being driven by a system – capitalism – that requires perpetual expansion.
“So, we basically become victims of this system and so too does the planet.”
Degrowth and recession are not the same things, he says
“A recession is what happens when a growth-oriented economy like capitalism fails to get growth, things fall apart.”…
Much of Europe outperforms the USA with only a third or a half of America’s GDP, he says.
“The answer is some countries distribute income more fairly and crucially invest in universal public services like robust education and welfare, affordable housing and public transportation.”
And the growth mantra is fuelling the greatest crisis humanity has faced, he says….
“We’re not really seeing it in our politics yet, except in a few countries, New Zealand being one of them actually where this is a conversation that is happening.”
Hear, hear, here, to this. When do we want it? – We want it now.
What did you say? – We want it now.
Do we really need it? – Yes we really do!:
😀
Not heard it before.
Well, that's a puzzle! Much mentioned here in recent years by myself & Weka, if not others. But yeah, thanks for posting about that book!
Incidentally, the word just codifies the steady-state economy really, so it's jargon updating the Green alt-economy agenda from almost half a century back…
Mentioned degrowth – yes. Many things have been mentioned over the 20th century and recently but getting everyone to pay attention and then accept and see workable ways of putting the ideas into practice is the task of Sisyphus. Has to go beyond wise guys on political blogs. And by wise guys I mean both the fact of your wisdom, and the flip comment that the general public often makes.
Granny wheels out some fluff copy for shonky john to slap his moniker against about how great Jude's going.
Then shonky john gets to tell everyone why he's voting no on cannabis reform. Zero surprises from the tobacco and alcohol party.
Is it possible to concentrate on getting the election over with left facing parties in and standing shoulder to shoulder in strength and commitment for that and not get onto all the particular wounds we need to address?S Munro?
Haha. Hosking in the Herald says the election is Labour’s to lose and that’s why we’re so nervous. There will be an absolute torrent of this tripe from all the usual suspects over the next few days.
That will have hurt Horeskin to admit but.
The election is on and the world also turns.
Think piece by Yanis Varoufakis:
https://www.yanisvaroufakis.eu/2020/10/06/how-progressives-could-still-win-the-21st-century-the-correspondent/
Slavoj Zizek – how lucky those of us who are isolated can regard ourselves.
.
Julian Assange – https://www.theguardian.com/media/2020/sep/30/us-intelligence-sources-discussed-poisoning-julian-assange-court-told
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julian_Assange
Employers still being dinosaurs.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/123020092/ema-under-fire-over-gross-employment-presentation
It's OK apparently to scour peoples facebook pages when wanting to employ them – it is time actually that an actual ethical position is taken that it is not. Facebook does not always equal real life.
I can't believe this sort of juvenile memeing/dog-whistling/sexist/racist bull-shit is part of a presentation to employers. But then I can cause having been part of many groups with them involved I have been exposed to their banality. There are good intelligent employers out there but this sought of crap gives them a bad name. And plenty of us baby boomers can't stand Elvis.
Then of course comes the fake apology. The ridiculous we apologise if you were offended. What about just simply saying "we're a bunch of idiots and Ms Sparke is right"
"In a statement, the association (EMA) chief executive Brett O’Riley said the presenter had attempted to “inject some lightness into a complex topic”.
“We apologise if this caused Ms Sparke offence. The deliberately provocative slide of the heavily tattooed and pierced person was used to highlight what employers cannot and must not discriminate against.”
A second slide compared the attitudes of three generations – baby boomers, Gen X and Gen Y – to work, sex, money and other influences.
While baby boomers were shown to be prepared to work their way to the top, Gen X were said to be looking for a shortcut, and Gen Y purportedly threatened to quit unless they were given Saturday off."
I have a feeling they were in the cart for the same/similar presentation a few years back as well.
I would say Ms Sparke comes off extremely well there. I don't doubt the EMA would be pushing some form of group identity narrative if it suites their purpose while continuing to claim Green politics is the divisive force.
But he's pro-life!
But riddle me this.
Trump is pushing for Amy Coney Barrett to reach the Supreme Court, not because he gives a flying fruitcake about the right to life or any other rights. His powerful donors do, though, and he has to keep them happy if he’s to stay in power.
And Trump was standing on that balcony, touting his virility and strength, but leaving out the one drug that contributed to his recovery: Regeneron.
Perhaps you heard the docs talk about monoclonal antibodies. They worked wonders in fighting back Ebola, and scientists have hope for its use in other diseases, though it’s still experimental in COVID-19.
Here’s the rub. The antibodies come from stem cells recovered from human embryos.
How do I know? Regeneron told me so:
From their website:
“As is the case with many other science-focused biotechnology companies, Regeneron uses a wide variety of research tools and technologies to help discover and develop new therapeutics. Stem cells are one such tool. The stem cells most commonly used at Regeneron are mouse embryonic stem cells and human blood stem cells. Currently, there are limited research efforts employing human-induced pluripotent stem cell lines derived from adult human cells and human embryonic stem cells that are approved for research use by the National Institutes of Health and created solely through in vitro fertilization.”
They further explain in a paper in the journal Science, “The cells were originally isolated …from an aborted human fetus.”
For the West Coast audience, that’s, “…an aborted human fetus.”
https://medium.com/illumination/the-state-of-the-nation-hypocrisy-version-8f8ff98bcefa
oooh, that's a bit of a pickle isn't it?
Nobel Peace Prize announced 10pm Friday.
How did the Nobel Committee know that was one week before the New Zealand general election?
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/world/2020/10/what-jacinda-ardern-will-receive-if-she-wins-the-2020-nobel-peace-prize.html
As long as trump doesn't get it, that's the main thing 🙂
If they gave it to him in exchange for him immediately resigning, I'd be good with that.
A quiet read to take the mind of the hubbub of the present . 'What did we do before the world wars Mum and Dad'? Will we have to consider reshaping our lives to achieve similar?
1870 is the setting for the Lark Rise to Candleford book trilogy summarised below.
About it: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lark_Rise
Flora Thompson's immortal trilogy, containing "Lark Rise", "Over To Candleford" and "Candleford Green", is a heartwarming portrayal of country life at the close of the 19th century.
This story of three closely related Oxfordshire communities – a hamlet, the nearby village and a small market town – is based on the author's experiences during childhood and youth. It chronicles May Day celebrations and forgotten children's games, the daily lives of farmworkers and craftsmen, friends and relations – all painted with a gaiety and freshness of observation that make this trilogy an evocative and sensitive memorial to Victorian rural England.
The stories are available on Project Gutenberg. But I don't know just how and copyright law for one's own country throws a shadow.
This is the Australian entry relating to Gutenberg and the law.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Gutenberg_Australia
This is the general info about project Gutenberg.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Gutenberg
These sites are newly available.
https://www.gutenberg.org/help/new_website.html
https://www.gutenberg.org/
Unprecedented recommendation from New England Journal of Medicine to vote Trump out of office
https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMe2029812?fbclid=IwAR1ItqGusykclxzEVo8EmRlWA0H5MNtGfSoxk0RidlrNCaaBsxG074UlUtg
Hoo boy. The cult that SCOTUS nominee Barrett belongs to may literally have been the inspiration for "The Handmaid's Tale".
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/amy-coney-barrett-handmaid-people-of-praise_n_5f7dfbd6c5b6fc1dec78c952
Fuck the Warehouse and its associated brands… healthy profit on the back of the wage subsidies… plenty of cash on hand…and they say without it they would have had a 4 million loss, I say keep the 4 million and hand the other 50 million or so back…
Corporations have taken the pissand are lining their executive and shareholder pockets.
The new govt needs to send Ird into these businesses and assess their actual eligibility and contemplate a Covid Koha tax on these pofitable firms
Well, I accidentally watched the Harris Pence debate. Pence would start an answer with a rabbit hole then start to answer the actual question and run over his allotted 2minutes, looking hard done by for not having enough time to answer. Repeatedly. (God would be clutched in the Pence right fist as he would, if he got the chance, like to carry out the very right agenda. Warning! Warning!)
Harris came across as informed, fluent and answered the questions pretty concisely. Make a good President? Yes. (Reminded me of Jacinda???)
There was a live spaced -out masked audience who were completely silent throughout.
The winner was the black fly sitting on Pence's very white hair.
You don't see white doggy doo so much these days.
Pence is like a male fox terrier who has been nutted. The one from the litter behind all the others who missed out on an allocation of 'character'.
Spaced-out. Lol.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/programmes/caucus/story/2018767507/collins-and-peters-on-thin-ice-as-ardern-finds-her-feet
Image of praying/preying
mantiswoman in church with plastic bottle. Is it ordinary drinking water, christening water, or hand sanitiser all ready to 'cleanse the spot from my hand' – Shakespeare?Declaims in voice of doom: Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood clean from my hand?
It's just possible that Codger's prayers are being answered but not the way she'd like.
The image I refer to might not be in above link.
So –
Collins, Peters on thin ice as Ardern finds her feet about 1 hour ago
National's not having the week Judith Collins would have prayed for. After a couple of strong debate performances some MPs were getting hopeful. Then Denise Lee sent an email and Collins went for a walk.
ASA, a regulator unable to enforce decisions. Very postmodern.
Expert practitioners of postmodernism then, the ASA. ANZ & JLR, expert practitioners of truthiness. Each group deserves the other…