National voted for the Zero Carbon Bill. Will they now scaremonger, undermine public confidence in the Bill in order to amass votes at the coming election?
Of course they will! And they'll focus on the regions, getting MPs to dog-whistle like demented shepherds, at meetings, in local newspapers and on their many, many billboards, spreading the fear that the Government's climate change plans will bring economic ruin to all of us. Imo. Today's cartoon in The Southland Times captures the situation perfectly. It shows Simon Bridges at the pulpit, declaring, "We take climate change seriously! But we would rather see everyday New Zealanders burn in the fiery hell of global warming than pay money to stop it! Luxton pipes in, "I hear you Brother Simon!"
The issue with OK Boomer I've touched on elsewhere.
"The problem is people, often young people, buying into the right wing meme, of "intergenerational warfare, or theft" used to pit people against each other, and ignore the real cause, the rich and powerful of all generations. No one who sees National's entitled young prats, can think it is "boomers". I'm an enthusiastic supporter of Chloe Swarbrick, but i think her usual deft touch deserted her on this occasion. Lowering to the tone of the National idiot she was replying to".
I agree, the generational-divide is a red-herring in the search for "whodunnit", but Chloe's call was elegantly done, so I'm forgiving of it. The culprit, in my opinion, is the psychological "black hole" we created then fell into over 10 000 years ago and are presently trying to identify and climb out of. It's variously described as "greed" or "civilisation" etc, but however we call it, it's brought us to a dangerous place. Only when we identify it for what it is will we be able to do something about it. Finger-pointing's one thing; humans did bring this on, and when a finger's pointed at you, it's a good idea to explore the charges levelled, but a wide-view has to be taken, lest we end up in-fighting, skirmishing, winning battles but losing the war.
The evidence shows the shape of the curve and 10000 years ago it was flat.
Boomers, and I am one, have to own up to the shit that has happened in our lifetimes, that we have contributed to, that we still contribute to TODAY. Alas not taking responsibility is a trait of our little cohort – easier to blame others or blaming no one is even better – as long as the mirror is put away.
I don't think I said that I was speaking for all boomers – weird you'd get that so wrong. Good distraction from my point though. It is a false duality to go for enemies and friends – the point is acceptance of the reality and that is very hard especially for boomers who have so much justifiable guilt on our hands.
Robert – you and I have both much better things to do than argue in this way. I respect much of what you have done and say and you are an idiot sometimes.
I tend to be a "seek forgiveness rather than ask permission" type of person so I am always seeking forgiveness from others for my transgressions. I use a lot of IMO's (in my opinion) in my comments usually because I only ever want to speak from me and my experience – that's identity politics for ya.
We have rain coming – Tasman at about -19% rainfall for the year and we are even less. Thinking of getting another watertank for rain water as the drought last year was tough and this year I suspect will be even tougher. Also I am enjoying being alive. Have a nice day Robert.
Marty, I think you may have missed the signal sent by the line that begins, "Addicts…"
All groups that find it difficult to "own up to their failings" are addicted to the culture they are part of. Do we require those addicted to substances to "own up" before we help them, or do we recognise the difficultly they may have in doing that and get on with helping them anyway?
"Like much of online culture, “OK Boomer” tells us something about the cultural dominance of upper-middle-class youth. These young people are surrounded by baby boomers who’ve “hoarded all the wealth” and polluted the planet in the process. They haven’t had to witness – or deal with the ramifications of – old age and precarity for millions of working people in that generational cohort. Instead they get to revel without self-reflection in oedipal angst about their elders – many of whom were kind enough to pass them their ill-gotten privileges".
… Furthermore, as an economist I see the word "boom" as having a generally positive connotation.
On the negative side, I worry that those who deploy "OK Boomer" are putting themselves down and signalling their own impotence. I am not arguing for "[Expletive Deleted] Boomer," even though it would have a vitality and rebellious spirit very much reminiscent of the 1960s or 1970s (which of course were quintessential boomer eras).
But when I read or hear "OK Boomer," I start to think there might be something special about baby boomers after all. We boomers may not be different in kind from other generations, but we do seem to inspire rhetorical creativity in our critics.
Marty. I think you are reacting, without trying to understand.
Māori were powerless to do anything about colonization for years. So I don't blame many older Māori for not doing anything. Also I don't blame those in the boomer generation who had no power to change things, either. It is not as though they didn't try. Which was why 1984 Labour only got two terms.
Environmental and economic destruction is hardly the fault of the type of people who spent their lives, opposing both.
I see lots of boomers who did well out of the neolib reforms and were/are uninterested in changing that. But I just don't see millennials as significantly better (eg if they really wanted to make change, then mobilise the vote). Each generation has its share of selfish people and those that will do the mahi to effect good change.
Millennials were raised by people to be more progressive than the previous generation, and they will become more conservative as they grow older, just like every other generation before them (including the radical boomers). I find the whole gen war stupid, and at this point in history it's dangerous.
I agree with you about the elite leading the way and that that is a 'class' issue for want of a better term. I think western countries are in the 'elite' group although groups within that are disadvantaged and vulnerable. The boomer label and ok boomer in particular are just another classification.
It is a bit low bringing colonisation into the argument – boomers PARTICIPATED they weren't dragged kicking and screaming as their culture was ridiculed and attempted to be destroyed.
Ngai Tahu participated, "marrying" off some of their wahine to sealers and whalers, making alignments and alliances through binding Maori and Pakeha into whanau. It was a wise strategy, instigated by tangata whenua. Whenua Hou served as the "melting pot" for many families who live in this part of the world. Holders of mana whenua were not "dragged kicking and screaming" into that relationship. IMO
what the hell would you know – lol – it is irrelevant to the discussion but it appears you have started dirty tactics eh – talk about your own heritage not mine Robert ok.
Should we discount Michael King's and Vincent O'Malley's writings because they aren't of Maori descent but they have written about your heritage and educated us all?
it was a pointed comment and he and I know it – your opinions are yours and bully for you – hint – not everything is as blunt and obvious as you suppose
On Boomers, many PARTICIPATED because they/we were born into the culture. It takes time to unravel that culture, see beyond it and move beyond it, if that's even possible. Are you critical of how boomers behaved when they were children? Do you have a cut-off point at which you expect boomers to reject their culture? And which boomer behaviours do you believe are wrong? All of them? How about altruism? Many boomers are altruistic . Intermarriage? Many boomers are married outside of their race. Environmental sensitivity? Many boomers are actively improving and protecting the wild environment. It's not as simple as requiring that boomers "accept responsibility for their actions". IMO
I think we were. Our culture of fairness, egalitarianism, and equal opportunity, was destroyed. In a very few short years. We did believe in a “fair go” for everyone.
It was like we were colonized by yet another strange culture. In this case the Chicago Boys.
And. Some of the boomers who suffered the most, were fairly prosperous boomer Māori working class, who were absolutely marginalised, along with many others who started work, young. Forced out of jobs like train driving, onto the dole.
We didn't participate, at least I didn't. Kicked and screamed all the way.
Ok boomer. Only stupid old boomers don’t get the meme. It’s not inter-generational warfare, it’s an ironic thank you for the mess the boomer generation left us, yet deny us any of our complaints because apparently things were so amazing in your times and we don’t do what you do. We do what we can in the world you left us, as you dreamily remember the good old days as if it was perfect, with no racism or sexism or misogyny, and feel a stirring in your loins at the outdated hate speech associated with class war.
you Just don’t get it do you? Your boomer mentality sees it as perhaps an age thing, along with the hairy old socialist trying to equate ok boomer as right wing meme so boomers like yourselves can feel above being mocked about being a boomer.
I've always said, "Respect my authoritah!" and having a young whipper-snapper like you speaking out of turn and criticising those who brought you this wonderful way of life is mighty galling!
Generational warfare, IS a right wing meme. To distract from the real problem, which is class.
Are you trying to tell me that the boomers who lost their livelihood in the 80's and never had a decent job since, are the cause of anything. I know many that are entering retirement with absolutely, nothing.
I suggest that many of the University educated commenters on here are somewhat divorced from the reality of the over 40% of boomers entering retirement, without a house in their name.
Particularly galling when it is young upper middle class, who have benefited from all the wrongs that were done, and very often vote for it’s continuation, use it.
'Boomer' is now a cultural group, no longer just a demographic fact.
'OK' is merely what younger-at-heart folk say when tired of responding rationally for the umpeenth time to someone saying they just need to stop eating avocados and do what we did 'in our day'.
Imagine constructing a negating meme around women, or disabled people, and then arguing that those are now cultural groups not just demographics.
That blurring of Boomer as old person and Boomer as selfish, regressive privilege holder is a problem because ageism is a real thing (esp for Pākehā) and we don't have good progressive politics around it. We generally leave it to Grey Power and the chuckle when they do something that's not oldie.
I have less of a problem with Ok Boomer, than I do with lefties and progressives largely ignoring the problems with old ageism in way they'd never tolerate with any other marginalised group and not being willing to bring old ageism into the conversation.
A really good example is the politics around Generation Rent that never talks about what happens to elderly people who are basically on the dole with high rents and shivering in their homes in winter.
I think the right wing has been so successful in pitting the generations against each other that even lefties, who should know better, are adopting it.
I am not so concerned about Chloe because she is a person whose achievements I have considerable respect for, and I think she will come to understand why it is counterproductive to spread RW, rich kid, memes. I am sad that people who should be allies, are blaming each other.
The "selfish boomers" is no more true of a generation, than the "Young mums breeding for a living", "teenage dole bludgers" "Māori ferals", and "Avocado munchers" are of anyone else.. I find all those unthinking stereotypes false and offensive.
Over 80% of the pre boomer generation owned their own homes.
Less than 60% of boomers. And many, like me, are still mortgaged to help our Kids.
I think some like Climaction are a bit confused about who got the 3% loans and land grants, Certainly long gone by my day. Removed by the people in Parliament, who gained from them.
Maybe you should stop running with a pack of idiots? The generation that presided over the greatest increase in wealth and expansion of the middle class, after free education and cheap houses, now approaches retirement with nothing? Don’t look to you her generations for support. You left the world, and obviously your own lives, in a mess we are expected to fix without the benefits you enjoyed.
By the way, Neo-liberalism was bought to us by politicians in the generation before boomers. We tried to vote the buggers out, but there was only a choice of two Neo-liberal parties. Which is why we supported MMP. So the barstards couldn’t do it again. Unfortunately they did, anyway.
Cheap houses? It cost a greater percentage of our weekly wage to buy a house when we bought ours, than it does, now. After scrambling to get 30% deposits while inflation was over 15%.
And we paid 60% top tax rate on moderate incomes, more than you pay in student loans and tax combined, now. so the previous generation could retire at 60 and so 10% of us, the children of the rich, had free tertiary education.
KJT – "Boomers" is such a nebulous topic that I think some people are unable to discuss it sensibly, whether they are inside or outside of the "Boomer" tent. It's curious. I wonder if, had Chloe said, "Okay Willy Wonker", the candy-producers would be getting a thrashing on the blogs and comments sections of the country's rags
I have lot's of clues. clues from all your "NeO-Luberalism is the enemy" rants that you can't see the problems that face society require a more nuanced and inclusive approach. but being a boomer, you've always had it so easy and you're generation spent so much time culturally colonising the whole world you can't stop spluttering in indigantion when the youth don't like your proscriptions and don't accept your pearls of wisdom are valid.
you may as well work on fox news for all your "Good ol' days with the good ol' union lads" rants are relevant.
Just wondering, Climaction, if you see yourself as representative of Post-Boomers? Typical of them, that is, able to think the way they do, act the way they do, express yourself the way they do?
Funny thing is the yoof, are advocating the policies and progress I've been fighting for all along.
I doubt you are really one of them, though. In fact it seems like the "boomer" mindset you describe describes your position more accurately, than mine.
You’ve been well brainwashed, by right wing propaganda.
Due to our efforts, you can now vote for a non Neo-liberal party, the Greens, where we only had the choice of either of two, Neo-liberal stuffups.
So. FFS. Put your money where your mouth is and vote for them. Non boomers are over 70% of eligible voters. So statistically it looks like you are mostly voting for a continuation of the same policies you reckon are "boomer", stuffups.
" ..the 3% loans… Removed by the people in Parliament, who gained from them." e.g. Wayne Mapp
Our Housing Corp mortgage was initially floating at 7%. Within 5 years it had been sold to ANZ and rose to 18%.
By the mid 1990s (when I was studying) tertiary education was not free. I still owe $40k in student loans.
Incidentally we built our home and changed the head gasket on our 30 yr old cars. The generation that followed us seems unable to change a light bulb for fear being non compliant and having a lack of the no.8 wire mentality.
I belong to the baby boomer demographic.
How much plastic have you bought this week Climaction?
And who the target audience is (and therefore the demographic advertisers believe have the disposable cash in society).
The "ok boomer" thing isn't just about generational war, it is actually about the power dynamics within society. About how the media get clickbait from "dumb millennial" stories, with headlines like "millennials don't know hard work" and then "millennials killed the power lunch".
And most people called "boomer" tend to be of apparent European descent. Could just be my perception, but that hints at maybe another social power dynamic going on as well.
oh dear what a pity – the nazi cowards will be quaking in their jackboots – all those 'respectable' nazis will be so worried and they will be driven into the light where we will all be able to see them and their disguises.
An apparent online leak of materials from influential neo-Nazi website Iron March, which has linked to several murders and acts of extremist terrorism, has the potential to identify hundreds of extremists around the world.
…According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, Iron March was “affiliated with or offered support to at least nine fascist groups in nine different countries”, including Serbia, Greece, Australia and Ukraine. The chats, too, appear to feature users from a range of different countries.
The website was also central to the development of “accelerationist” neo-Nazi ideology – which seeks to destabilize and replace liberal democracy by exacerbating its tensions with violence – and aesthetic of so-called Siege culture, which takes in skull masks and violent and racist memes.
My wife has just finished an appeal hearing in the Whangarei District court. Byrne Vs NZTA, 4-6 nov, 2019. we are awaiting judgment.
During this hearing evidence was produced by nzta that confirmed they were spying on my wife and family,(including our 6yr old son).
They used a male employee to spy on a female employee of a nzta supplier (wsp opus) condoned by senior nzta management, with a special mention under oath for acting ceo of the time, brett gliddon.
They did not inform their supplier wsp opus that they were spying on an employee of theirs.
This male employee has a colourful police history. He also testified that he is spying on other families in our isolated community.
the spying is still continuing, and my wife has had to move away for work.
she fears for her safety from this male employee,
This has been ongoing for almost two years now.
they have spent in excess of $150,000 on this, while offering my wife $7,500 to shut up and go away.
a man from the agency said he was scared of my wife, she is 5; 4" and 45kgs. he is ex military.the nzta believed him and then ordered my wifes dismissal. she is a professional engineer with 20yrs experience. she took them to the era and the era found in nzta favour. my wife appealed and this is the hearing.
This is really a big problem – our society is not giving people what they want or need. So many people are suffering. The canaries in the coalmine are dying in front of our eyes.
A study by the New Zealand Medical Association published in the New Zealand Medical Journal on Friday analysed the number of antidepressants dispensed to those aged 24 and under between 2007 and 2016.
It showed the rate had increased by 83 per cent, from 1361 lots of antidepressants being dispensed to those aged between 13 and 17 for every 100,000 New Zealanders in that age group to 2494 per 100,000 young people.
…Rates were highest among women aged 18 to 24 but had also increased for children aged 12 and under by 15 per cent.
…Young Pākehā were being given antidepressants at nearly twice the rate of Māori and four times the rate of Pasifika and Asians.
No its not. My doctor clinic charges $18.50. The ones that charge $45 plus ARE in well off areas , as the funding is based in socio-economic status of the patients/neighbourhood.
Climaction. Above, has NFA, how devastating the 80's reforms were to so many working class families. Followed of course by Richardsons, welfare cuts, devastating communities even more.
wow – so bad imo – just resign – hasn't even watched the video about her departments utter disgraceful actions wtf?
The attempted removal was captured on film by Newsroom who brought the story to public attention, but Ms Martin and Oranga Tamariki's head questioned the video at the time. However, Ms Martin told Morning Report's Corin Dann she did not believe an apology was required and still had not watched it.
"I personally won't ever accept that trial by social media is the way to do care and protection … I don't need to watch the video."
She said she did not need to watch the video in order to conduct her job.
When you skim through the report on Oranga Tamariki’s attempted removal of a newborn baby in Hawkes Bay you could be forgiven for thinking it was a governmental introduction to Māori language and culture.There’s smatterings of Māori words and cultural terminology liberally sprinkled throughout. It looks like an attempt to hide behind a façade of Maori culture while completely missing the point of the cultural values it’s trying to co-opt.
Because then there’s the jarring phrases that admit they screwed it up.
Whānau Ora Commissioning Chair Merepeka Raukawa-Tait says a fish rots from the head and Oranga Tamariki leadership needs to take responsibility for its systemic failures – not throw its staff under the bus.
…She said the response by Children’s Minister Tracy Martin and OT CEO Grainne Moss to blame their own social workers’ frontline practices is indicative of the toxic culture that is deeply entrenched and imbued within the failing system.
“The hypocrisy is not lost on us. Here you have a state agency destructively making its own determination on what’s best for whānau riding rough shot without any consideration of the far reaching intergenerational devastating impacts,” Raukawa-Tait says.
“Yet ironically it is perpetuating a violent act which is what it seeks to protect the pēpi from.”
You follow politics , you follow NZ politics to the nth degree, you you still dont follow that the Ministers arent involved in these sort of operational decisions. Nor would they want to.
Why would she resign? Sure if it was a 'process' that required ministerial signoff , sure . It wasnt.
Where was Raukawa Tait of Te Pou Matakana/WOCA when this happened –
“One of three commissioning agencies, Te Pou Matakana receives around $40 million in Whānau Ora funding each year.
Yes I do follow politics ta Ministers can resign for all sorts of reasons such as this example
On 30 May 1996 Denis Marshall resigned as minister of conservation as an 'expression of sorrow' for the Cave Creek tragedy of the previous year, in which 14 people had been killed when a Department of Conservation viewing platform collapsed. He had chosen not to resign at the time, but to stay on and rectify matters in his department – an interpretation of ministerial vicarious responsibility that had some support from other politicians. However, some of those affected by the tragedy, and members of the public, felt he should have resigned earlier.
The minister today can't even watch the recording of the events which led to the inquiry and severe reprimand for her department – so severe that practices of staff have been changed immediately!!! She should go imo.
Capital is hard to find in NZ. No. Not the hidden away city at the bottom of the N.Island. No, financing businesses. Seems that if we advantage capital gain it sucks investment capital for other projects. Labour have said No. National think benefitaries can get us back, yeah like a few hundred beanies if only they were in work… ..no, the problem is our parliament is hidden away on a fault line waiting to be moved to S. Auckland. Next big shake…
12% business interest rates, when overseas competitors are paying less than 3% is a big margin to make up. Unless you are buying land for capital gains tax free farming, of course.
Well. The ChCh shake sure paved the way for some well overdue development investment in the area.
I keep spare, fresh drinking water in the shed and in a wardrobe in the house just in case. And I live within walking distance of a fresh water river.
A small burner, a lighter, a torch and a sealed plastic box full of long life basic beverage additives (cordial, tea, coffee, whatever and some sugar) may not seem much day to day. But you may really need it after a major event.
[lprent: Just what every useless unsafe dimwit needs – right? Along with vitamin deficiencies and bad breath and other hygiene issues.
*sigh* – Any irresponsible dickhead who says something like that is someone who should never hold a firearms license or a weapon. At the very least they need to gets some arms training, and some socialisation training in how to deal with people without waving a surrogate penis as if it was magic talisman. Clearly their parents failed in the socialisation, hygiene or installation of common sense. ]
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The labour market statistics have been released, and unemployment has risen to 4.2%. There are 115,000 unemployed - 11,000 fewer than when Labour took office. In that time the minimum wage has gone up by $2 an hour, which shows that the right's fears about increases causing unemployment are simply ...
The Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee has called for submissions on Andrew Little's tyrannicalTerrorism Suppression (Control Orders) Bill. Normally I encourage participation in the democratic process. I am not doing so in this case. Instead, I encourage all of you to boycott this submissions process, and to post ...
Climate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change.If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, please send it to climate.change@stuff.co.nzIf tiny concentrations of carbon dioxide can hold enough heat ...
Aviation is one of the fastest growing sources of greenhouse gas emissions, and within it, one of the fastest sources is elite travel: billionaires flitting around the world in their private jets, spewing excessive pollution into the atmosphere just so they can avoid mixing with us dirty peasants. But in ...
That's what we face if we don't stop climate change, according to a warning from 11,000 scientists:The world’s people face “untold suffering due to the climate crisis” unless there are major transformations to global society, according to a stark warning from more than 11,000 scientists. “We declare clearly and unequivocally ...
by Phil Duncan Here’s just a few of the kind of threats issued day in and day out against gender-critical women – feminists, marxists, etc – overwhelmingly by MEN (albeit men identifying as women). “Kill all Terfs”. “Shoot a Terf today”. “All terfs deserve to be shot in the head”. ...
This is the third of the synopses of parts of the opening chapter of John Smith’s Imperialism in the 21st Century (New York, Monthly Review Press, 2016). The synopsis and commentary below is written by Phil Duncan. Unlike the humble cup of coffee and t-shirt that we looked at in ...
Tom MooreTraditionally a food source and cutting tool, freshwater mussels/kākahi are now widely valued as water filters that help clean our waterbodies and maintain ecosystem health throughout Aotearoa. The improvement they provide in water quality can make it easier for other animals to live in streams and rivers, as ...
And to think he gave all the potential goodwill away with that moronic, cult-like statement (repeated ad nauseam by many National hardliners) that Key is quite simply “the greatest PM we ever had”…Installation complete: this was nothing ...
The Zero Carbon Bill is back in the House today for its second reading. While this isn't the final stage, its still effectively D-Day for the bill. Because today, at around 5pm, is when we're going to find out if it has a majority, whether National will support it or ...
Winston Peters is in court today, suing a bunch of former Minister and civil servants over their pre-election leak of his superannuation repayment. He's characterised the leak as malicious, and said that it is repugnant that his information was passed on to Ministers to use for political advantage. And he's ...
Murray CoxDo I have to finish my favourite genome? That’s an often-asked question. Geneticists generally strive to produce high-quality genomes that sequence every last gene, making full use of the state-of-the-art technologies coming on stream. Sequencing DNA means determining the order of the four chemical building blocks – called ...
Transformative Politics: The idea is to turn each recipient into an unwitting accomplice in their own transformation. From interested observer to hyped-up activist, sharing our messages promiscuously with ‘friends’. You’ll be part of an ever-expanding circulatory system, Jennifer, for the ideas that will win us the election.”JENNIFER SKITTERED her chair ...
The boycott is a fundamental tool of protest. By choosing who we buy from, we can send a message, and hopefully change corporate behaviour. Historically, boycotts have been effective, for example over apartheid in South Africa and Israel, in forcing divestment from Myanmar, and in ending bus segregation in the ...
Jan Rivers spoke at the Abortion Legislation Select Committee in favour of the bill, but in opposition to calls from other submitters to exchange the word ‘woman’ for ‘person’ throughout the bill. Jan is a supporter of the feminist group Speak Up For Women and has recently written an excellent ...
I checked my traffic stats:I was intrigued by 'monica29' - who was this very dedicated individual? I clicked on the link, to be greeted with ...Ho, hum.Spreadin' the word, spreadin' the word. Doesn't matter who hears it, as long as it gets out there. ...
There have been three polls since the election was announced, and I will shamelessly steal YouGov / UK Polling Report's Anthony Wells' summary of them:Survation – CON 34%, LAB 26%, LDEM 19%, BREX 12%, GRN 1% Ipsos MORI – CON 41%, LAB 24%, LDEM 20%, BREX 7%, GRN 3% YouGov ...
The following article is translated from Lutte Ouvrière, the weekly newspaper of the organisation usually known by the same name in France. When, for the second time this year, Chilean President Piñera announced an increase in the price of Metro tickets from 800 to 830 pesos, students in the high ...
Today, a worker contacted me asking if she could go to the police over her employer stealing thousands of dollars from her in unpaid wages. The employer also did not pay this worker’s taxes or student loan which amounts to tax fraud. As a workers rights activist, who founded the ...
Signed, Sealed, Delivered, They're Yours: Is there any person more vulnerable than a jilted lover on the rebound? Or, anything more certain than that the charmer, the predator, the glib spinner of lies and promises will seek such broken people out? Yes, of course, he will love every one of ...
Though Jonathan Romain is a fairly high profile Rabbi, writing in several papers and popping up on TV and the radio, this story doesn't seem to have made it to the Guardian yet, so I'll take the unusual step of linking the Stephen Pollard edited Jewish Chronicle:Rabbi Dr Jonathan Romain ...
There's an election afoot, and that is when noted opinion formers such as myself get to make wild fools of ourselves by pretending we have the faintest idea what will happen.So, here is my absurdly optimistic prediction:Labour - 285Conservative - 262SNP - 53Lib Dems - 20PC - 5Ireland - 18 ...
Image Credit:Increase Social Media Traffic & Website Traffic I notice a few regulars no longer allow public access to the site counters. This may happen accidentally when the blog format is altered. If your ...
Belinda CridgeI was reading my son a story last night. A great tale of derring-do of five mountaineers scaling the Matterhorn for the first time. One in the party had tried six times previously and failed, this was the last attempt before winter closed another season. They tried a ...
As introduced, the Zero Carbon Bill included an expansive secrecy clause, which would have covered virtually all decisions by the Climate Change Commission over our most important policy area. The Ministry for the Environment admitted this was a mistake (or as they put it, an "oversight"), and the select committee ...
Rachael Shaw, Victoria University of WellingtonWhen we think about animals storing food, the image that usually comes to mind is a squirrel busily hiding nuts for the winter. We don’t usually think of a small songbird taking down an enormous invertebrate, tearing it into pieces and hiding these titbits ...
. . NZ First’s success in putting the euthenasia bill to a public referenda may not be the victory they believe it to be. They may even have sounded the death-knell for a second Labour-NZ First-Green coalition. On 23 July this year, NZ First MP, Jenny Marcroft, submitted a Supplementary ...
Interesting contrasting pictures in the Guardian:Corbyn gets the classic positive shot - low angle and a clear background, making him look authoritative (of course, being Corbyn, he doesn't do authoritative very well).Where as Johnson gets pictured with children at some sort of mad-hatters' tea party:Begging the question, who is the ...
Paternalism is contentious. Arguments for state action to protect us from ourselves are fraught. I come down pretty heavily on the anti-paternalism side of the argument, but I’ve heard respectable defences of paternalism. But policy around vaccination is hardly paternalistic. There’s a clear market failure that could be pointed to ...
I’ve been reading Jules Verne’s novel Twenty thousand leagues under the sea, considered as one of the very earliest science fiction stories. In brief, Monsieur Aronnax and a couple of sidekicks are taken prisoner by Captain Nemo and his mysterious crew and treated to an underwater voyage around the world ...
The climate crisis is going to mean some pretty big changes in our country, both from its impacts and the policies required to address them. Most obviously, whole suburbs are going to be underwater by 2100, meaning people and businesses are going to have to relocate to higher ground. But ...
Yesterday a dairy company was fined $483,000 for repeatedly failing to report listeria in its facility. Its a serious fine for a serious crime: listeria is a serious disease, and they were effectively trying to kill people with it. But there's another story hidden in there, and its not a ...
Gay men see the excesses of trans activism and are increasingly speaking out. A new Facebook group addressing ‘gender identity’ and contemporary trans activism has been set up for gay men, by gay men. The following is the group’s Statement of Intent, Group Rules, and link to the group for ...
Criminal Enterprises: Gangs are not welfare institutions. Nor are they a substitute for the family their members never had. They are ruthless, violent, criminal money-making machines. That is all.OKAY, first-things-first. Gangs exist for one purpose – and only one. They are a sure-fired, time-tested institution for making crime pay – ...
Prof Nick Wilson, A/Prof George Thomson, A/Prof Simon Hales, Prof Michael BakerThe NZ Ministry for the Environment has produced a valuable discussion document with many good ideas for improving the health of waterways in New Zealand. But there are important gaps. In this blog we consider three big-ticket items ...
Finding reality needs more than wishful thinking. The problem is that statistical arguments often provide a jargon to confirm biases. Image credit:Accurate Thinking Versus Wishful Thinking in Gambling I worry at the way some ...
"Today we have made a choice that will leave a legacy... I hope that means that future generations will see that we, in New Zealand, were on the right side of history." - Jacinda Ardern, Third Reading of the Zero Carbon Bill ...
Darroch Ball, New Zealand First List MP A Member’s bill has been proposed that would provide income tax exemptions for all New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) personnel while on operational deployment overseas. The Income Tax (Exemption for Salary or Wages of NZDF Members on Active Deployment) Amendment Bill proposed by New Zealand First ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, New Zealand First Leader New Zealand First is proud to have brought common sense to the Climate Change Response (Zero Carbon) Amendment Bill, which passed its final reading in Parliament today. Party Leader Rt Hon Winston Peters says months of hard work went into negotiating a balanced ...
Jenny Marcroft MP, Spokesperson for Health New Zealand First has listened to calls to recognise paramedics as registered health professionals under the Health Practitioners’ Competence Assurance Act (the Act).Today, the Coalition Government announced plans for paramedics to be registered as health practitioners under the Act, and the establishment of a ...
We began the week by commemorating the New Zealand Wars and celebrating a major increase in the number of teachers. Then, we were busy supporting offenders into work and getting our rail back on track after years of underinvestment. And that's just the start! ...
In October I was sworn in as the Mayor of Lower Hutt.It’s the privilege of my life to serve Hutt people as their Mayor. There is something really special to be able to serve the community where I was raised, and where I live. ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Racing Racing Minister Winston Peters met with Korea Racing Authority Chairperson Nak Soon Kim in Seoul today to discuss closer cooperation between the New Zealand and Korean horse racing industries. As part of the visit to the Seoul Racecourse, Mr Peters witnessed ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) is investing $10 million to establish Otago as the centre of New Zealand’s creative digital industry over the next ten years, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones announced today. “The initiative will bring us closer to the vision of ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF)’s skills and employment programme will help young Otago people into long-term forestry careers, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced today. Te Ara Mahi will invest $63,000 in the 2020 school year to support eight 17 and 18 ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) will support local plans to revitalise and stimulate economic development opportunities in Otago, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones has announced. The four Regional Economic Development Ministers have approved an in-principle investment of $19.9 million towards the region’s ...
Mark Patterson, Spokesperson for Primary Industries New Zealand First is pleased to have received the Technical Advisory Group (TAG) report on the Coalition Government’s Mycoplasma bovis eradication efforts, which shows significant progress in the fight against the disease. New Zealand First Spokesperson for Primary Industries, Mark Patterson, says the report’s findings ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development Hon David Parker, Minister for Trade and Export Growth The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) is investing to support economic growth opportunities for Otago’s engineering and manufacturing sectors, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones and Trade and Export Minister David Parker announced today. Almost $20 million ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs Foreign Minister Winston Peters and his South Korean counterpart, Kang Kyung-wha, discussed in Seoul today opportunities to work more closely in the Pacific and the situation on the Korean Peninsula. Mr Peters and Minister Kang confirmed New Zealand and the ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development Hon Nanaia Mahuta, Minister for Māori Development The three marae in the historic Parihaka Pa complex in Taranaki have been upgraded to high speed broadband with the support of the Provincial Growth Fund (PGF), Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced today. “Connecting the ...
Hon Ron Mark, Minister of Defence Minister of Defence Ron Mark will today launch the Advancing Pacific Partnerships 2019 Defence Assessment during a speech at Te Papa. The Assessment outlines how Defence will partner with our Pacific Island neighbours and invest in Pacific regional security architecture. The Plan aligns with the Coalition ...
A new Provincial Growth Fund investment could create about 80 new jobs in Gisborne over the next two years, turning a local small business into a “beacon of employment” in the process. Regional Economic Development Parliamentary Under-Secretary Fletcher Tabuteau said the PGF’s Te Ara Mahi funding stream would provide $1.6m ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters will travel to the Republic of Korea and Japan next week. “The Republic of Korea and Japan are two of New Zealand’s closest partners in the region with whom we share common values and ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced today that New Zealand is leading a police support mission in Bougainville as the region prepares to vote in a non-binding referendum on its political future. “New Zealand has accepted an invitation ...
New Zealand First MP Shane Jones is defending Immigration New Zealand (INZ) after it instructed officials to stop granting visas as an exception to instructions. He has also lashed out at immigrant leaders upset with the tightening of the rules, saying they had an “elevated sense of entitlement”. Members of ...
A change to the End of Life Choice Bill was passed in Parliament, meaning if politicians decide to vote for the law it must be approved by the public first. A binding referendum was a condition insisted on by New Zealand First, and Jenny Marcroft’s supplementary order paper (SOP) successfully ...
Fletcher Tabuteau, Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF), through its skills and employment programme,Te Ara Mahi, is investing a further $1.6m into Tairāwhiti’s workforce development, said Parliamentary Under Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau. “This PGF funding follows on from significant PGF investment earlier this ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, New Zealand First Leader New Zealand First Leader Rt Hon Winston Peters says the Government’s steps to reduce farm livestock emissions are necessary and timely. Today the Government and farming leaders announced a plan to measure and price emissions at the farm level by 2025. “Many farmers ...
Racing Minister Winston Peters welcomes the tabling of the Racing Industry Transition Agency (RITA) 2019 Annual Report in Parliament today. He says the 2019 Annual Report marks the point when New Zealand’s racing industry’s decline was arrested and a turnaround started. RITA’s 2019 Annual Report recorded an industry net profit ...
The New Zealand Government is today sending 21 firefighters to help fight the ongoing catastrophic Australian bushfires. “The fires in Australia are in some of the toughest, most challenging conditions ever,” says Internal Affairs Minister Tracey Martin. “As of yesterday morning, there were 100 active bushfire-related incidents across Queensland and ...
More frontline support for schools through a new education agency, as part of a redesigned Ministry of Education More support for principals and school boards including through a new centre of leadership and local leadership advisor roles New independent disputes panels for parents and students Management of school property ...
The Government’s reform of the Tomorrow’s Schools system is a watershed moment in education and an opportunity to create meaningful change for ākonga Māori and their whānau, Associate Education Minister Kelvin Davis said today. “Last year through Kōrero Mātauranga | Education Conversation, Māori teachers, parents, ākonga, whānau, hapū and iwi ...
Infrastructure Minister is welcoming the first of many updated project pipelines from the newly established New Zealand Infrastructure Commission today. The New Zealand Infrastructure Commission, Te Waihanga, has released an expanded pipeline of major capital projects – another crucial step towards delivering better infrastructure outcomes. “The first iteration of the ...
Tougher gun laws designed to improve public safety through firearms prohibition orders are proposed in a new document released for public input. Police Minister Stuart Nash says firearms prohibition orders (FPOs) would give new powers to Police to ensure high-risk individuals come nowhere near firearms. “We have already prohibited the ...
Andy Coupe has been confirmed as TVNZ’s new Board Chair. “Mr Coupe has strong commercial and capital markets experience and TVNZ has benefited from his technical knowledge of business and finance, as well as his extensive governance experience,” the Minister of Broadcasting, Communications and Digital Media Kris Faafoi said. Andy ...
Associate Minister of Transport Julie Anne Genter today officially opened a separated pathway, following the completion of the Kaiwharawhara Stream bridge, which will improve safety for cyclists and pedestrians along Hutt Road. The $6.8m Hutt Road project provides a separated path for cycling and pedestrians, the replacement of informal parking ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters today announced the appointment of career diplomat Si’alei van Toor as New Zealand’s next Ambassador to Russia. “I’m pleased to appoint Ms van Toor to this position. She brings a wealth of experience to the role having previously served as Senior Trade Adviser to the ...
The Treasury’s 2019 Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update (HYEFU) will be released on Wednesday December 11, Finance Minister Grant Robertson says. The Coalition Government will publish the 2020 Budget Policy Statement at the same time, outlining the priorities for Budget 2020. Further details on arrangements for the release will ...
A new initiative to better support small businesses through hands-on mentoring and advice has been launched by the Minister for Small Business. The first event in the Kiwi Business Boost series of regional workshops and online tools has been launched in Wairoa by Stuart Nash. “The Business Boost initiative combines ...
The latest Quarterly Connectivity Report shows that more and more New Zealanders are moving to Ultra-fast Broadband (UFB), with Rolleston having the highest uptake at 74 per cent, as at the end of September. “This means that nearly three quarters of Rolleston’s households and businesses have moved to ultra-fast services. ...
The passing of the Climate Change Response (Zero Carbon) Amendment Bill will help ensure a safe planet for our kids and grandkids, the Minister for Climate Change James Shaw said today. The landmark legislation which provides a framework to support New Zealanders to prepare for, and adapt to, the effects ...
The review of Oranga Tamariki practice around the planned uplift of a Hastings baby in May shows significant failings by the Ministry and that the planned and funded changes to shift from a child crisis service to a proper care and protection service need to be accelerated, Children’s Minister Tracey ...
Education Minister Chris Hipkins has wished students the best of luck for this year’s NCEA and New Zealand Scholarship exams which start tomorrow. Around 140,000 students will have participated in 119 NCEA and New Zealand Scholarship exams by the end of the exam period on 3 December. “I want to ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters today announced the appointment of Bede Corry as New Zealand’s next High Commissioner to the United Kingdom. “The appointment of a senior diplomat to this important role underlines the significance New Zealand places on our relationship with the United Kingdom,” said Mr Peters. “The United ...
An innovative approach to boosting the number of frontline Police has seen 20 new officers graduate from one of the uncommon training wings in Auckland. Police Minister Stuart Nash says the graduation of 20 constables today means that 1,765 new Police officers have been deployed since the coalition government took ...
Corrections Minister Kelvin Davis says the 1.2 million hours of community work completed by offenders in the last financial year has helped local communities right across the country. “Community work sentences are a great way for people to pay something positive back to society. There is a massive benefit to ...
"A pathway for Police in leadership with Iwi Māori, to achieve the aspirations of Māori whānau." Police launch of Te Huringa o Te Tai, Pipitea Marae, Thorndon Quay, Wellington Nau mai, haere mai. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, ka nui te mihi, ki a koutou. Hello everyone, warm greetings to you all. ...
Working New Zealanders are getting more in their back pockets under the Coalition Government’s economic plan. Stats NZ data today shows average weekly ordinary time earnings are up by $83 since the Government took office. This shows that working New Zealanders are getting higher take-home pay, and that employers are ...
The Government is supporting schools to cut down their energy consumption and reduce environmental impacts, with a quarter of all schools having their lights replaced with LEDs, a sustainability contestable fund and a plan to improve the environmental sustainability of all schools in the future. Education Minister Chris Hipkins and ...
Tourism Minister Kelvin Davis heads to China on Friday to lead the New Zealand Government presence at the China-New Zealand Year of Tourism closing ceremony. The ceremony will take place at Canton Tower in Guangzhou on Sunday 10 November. “The Year of Tourism has been mutually beneficial for both New ...
Should we plan for drought or deluge and how is CO2 released from the ocean’s floor? Several climate change projects were given a boost in the latest Marsden Fund investment of $83.6 million, Research, Science and Innovation Minister Megan Woods said today. “Climate change is long-term challenge that requires out-of-the-box ...
Leaders of 16 countries negotiating the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) have announced the completion of negotiation on the text as well as agreement on virtually all market access issues between 15 countries. The leaders said they will work with India to resolve its outstanding concerns in a way that ...
Civil Defence Minister Hon Peeni Henare says World Tsunami Awareness Day today (5 November) is a chance for all New Zealanders to learn more about the tsunami risk in our regions and the right actions to take to stay safe. “All of New Zealand’s coastline is at risk of tsunami. ...
New Zealand’s more than 1000 paramedics are to have their role as key frontline health professionals formally recognised and regulated in the same way as doctors and nurses, Health Minister David Clark says. The Government has agreed to regulate paramedics under the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003. “Paramedic leaders ...
Changes to insolvency law announced by the Government today will include requirements to honour up to 50 per cent of the value of gift cards or vouchers held by consumers, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Kris Faafoi says. “When a business is insolvent, these consumers are often left out of ...
Six New Zealanders tonight received medals for their meritorious work in the frontline public service. The Public Service Medal, established by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, is awarded annually. “For the second year this Government has recognised public servants who have made a real difference to the lives of New ...
Minister for Trade and Export Growth David Parker heads to Shanghai today for the China International Import Expo and meetings focused on reforming the WTO. Over 90 New Zealand companies will be exhibiting at the second China International Import Expo (CIIE), which runs from 5-10 November. “China is one of New Zealand’s ...
Drivers holding a current five-year learner or restricted car or motorbike licence, expiring between 1 December 2019 and 1 December 2021, will receive an automatic two-year extension, Associate Transport Minister Julie Anne Genter announced today. Over 144,000 drivers’ time-limited licences are due to expire in the next two years; 67,000 ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Minister for Trade and Export Growth David Parker have announced the conclusion of negotiations to upgrade New Zealand’s existing free trade agreement with China. “This ensures our upgraded free trade agreement will remain the best that China has with any country,” Jacinda Ardern said. She ...
Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau congratulates the Ten Kiwi organisations who have been recognised for their outstanding contribution to the wellbeing and the prosperity of their communities. Economic Development New Zealand (EDNZ), announced the awards at its annual conference in Blenheim last weekend. “A special congratulations to ...
Minister for Building and Construction Jenny Salesa has welcomed the record high of 13,000 building and construction apprentices in active training with main provider the Building and Construction Industry Training Organisation (BCITO). “We are committed to reversing the long-term decline in trades training and it’s excellent to see more people ...
PHARMAC’s decision to fund a new leukaemia treatment means three new cancer medicines have now been funded so far this year, Health Minister David Clark says. From 1 December venetoclax (Venclexta) will be funded for people living with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia. Just last month funding was also confirmed for alectinib ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today formally gifted a white horse to Toshogu Shrine in Nikko, Japan in front of thousands of attendees at a ceremony conducted by Chief Priest Inaba. The horse named Kōmaru, which means ‘sheltered’ in Maori and ‘shining’ in Japanese, is a white 12-year-old purebred Andalusian ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has named diplomat Martin Harvey as New Zealand’s next High Commissioner to Canada. “Canada is one of New Zealand’s closest and longstanding international partners,” said Mr Peters. “Our close friendship is underpinned by our shared democratic values, history and our parliamentary traditions. As Commonwealth countries and ...
Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Kris Faafoi has today announced the appointment of Jane Wrightson as Retirement Commissioner. “Jane has strong leadership, management and governance skills which will help champion improved financial capability for all New Zealanders and provide advice on retirement income policy issues,” Kris Faafoi said. Jane Wrightson ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters and his Japanese counterpart Toshimitsu Motegi announced a plan last night to cooperate more closely in the Pacific, as part of the strong and ambitious relationship between the two countries. “Japan is one of New Zealand’s most important partners and closest friends. My discussions with Minister ...
The Government’s plan to help older New Zealanders live well, Better Later Life – He Oranga Kaumātua 2019 to 2034, was launched by Seniors Minister Tracey Martin today. “Better Later Life takes a fresh look at what is required to ensure everyone gets the chance to live well as they ...
Trees can play a lead role in New Zealand’s transition to a low emissions economy, and this is reflected in a new request for research into innovative ways to use wood fibre, announced by Forestry Minister Shane Jones at the blessing of the new government forestry hub site in Rotorua ...
In the second part of a new event series looking at the future of Auckland, The Spinoff and Auckland Council host In My Backyard: Glen Innes, to ask what the suburb can teach the rest of the city about housing. Throughout its history, Glen Innes has had the highest density of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rachel Badlan, Postdoctoral Researcher, Atmospheric Dynamics, UNSW As the east coast bushfire crisis unfolds, New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian and Rural Fire Service operational officer Brett Taylor have each warned residents bushfires can create their own weather systems. This is not ...
Iran has announced the discovery of a new oilfield containing 53 billion barrels of crude. So what does that say about the NZ government’s move to be a world leader in shutting down the issue of new permits for oil and gas exploration – a move which Jacinda Ardern characterised ...
A wild, hilly spear, studded with brilliant beaches and thrilling bush, the Coromandel Peninsula is a magic geographical cul-de-sac. Here’s how to explore this stunning part of our backyard.If you’ve got friends or relatives visiting Aotearoa, top of their list should be sorting out their NZeTA (New Zealand Electronic Travel ...
12 November 2019 Water and infrastructure professionals from across the public and private sectors attended a panel discussion on 4 November, focused on the Government’s proposed water reforms and most particularly the potential impacts on our urban environments. ...
Fifteen years on, Sam Brooks looks at Gwen Stefani’s wet, weird, wild and wonderful debut album Love. Angel. Music. Baby.The first thing we hear on Love. Angel. Music. Baby. – No Doubt frontwoman Gwen Stefani’s first album – is applause and cheering.Then a piano. Then Stefani warbling, sweetly, mournfully, almost ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Coral Gartner, Associate Professor, School of Public Health, The University of Queensland More than 2,000 people in the United States have developed serious lung damage in a poisoning outbreak associated with the use of vaping devices this year. At least 39 people ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Maggie Ivanova, Senior Lecturer, Drama, Creative and Performing Arts, Flinders University Review: The Dark Master and Totes Adorbs Hurricane, OzAsia Festival, Adelaide, 22 October – 8 November In theatre, the play text tends to drive the storytelling. The interpretation of this ...
Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee has made key amendments to the Credit Contracts Legislation Amendment Bill, giving borrowers more protection from harmful high cost consumer credit contracts. The changes indicate that the Select Committee ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Janet Stanley, Associate professor/Principal Research Fellow, Melbourne Sustainable Society Institute, University of Melbourne Fires of unprecedented number and ferocity are today raging in New South Wales and Queensland. Residents in some regions woke to news that the fire danger was “catastrophic”. Rural ...
The government’s reform of 1989’s Tomorrow’s Schools legislation has been announced today, and it’s promising changes for students, teachers, principals and boards.What is “Tomorrow’s Schools”?In 1989, the government introduced the Tomorrow’s Schools reforms, which meant all schools became much more independent, giving Boards power over almost all school ...
The Council of Licenced Firearms Owners (COLFO) is urging politicians to heed evidence from respected international experts on why a proposed firearms registry in New Zealand is doomed to fail. ...
Go Bus drivers in Auckland will be taking full strike action from tomorrow as relations reach a new low with their employer following a week where the company has cancelled regular wage bargaining, arbitrarily suspended union-affiliated drivers, rejected ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By William Peterson, Associate Professor, Flinders University Review: OzAsia Festival, Adelaide, 22 October – 8 November The most exciting work at OzAsia cuts across genres, styles, and cultures to create something distinctive and new: a work of art that could not exist without ...
Large and small scale and Māori foresters say the 50 Shades of Green march on parliament on Thursday (eds 14 November) highlights deliberately created confusion about the true nature and recent scope of forestry expansion. ...
Where do we watch content, what do we want from it, and how do we view New Zealand news? Here’s what we learned from NZ On Air’s latest survey on identity, culture and the media. We still like to watch free-to-view TVDespite the lingering doom and gloom around linear television, almost ...
The candidates to tackle Donald Trump are very keen on the New Zealand prime minister.It could be because Vogue called her “the anti-Trump”. It could be the desperate shortage of tolerable left-leaning leaders in the Anglosphere. Or it could be because everyone knows it’s illegal to be mean about people ...
Responding to the launch of Massey University's new policy and code regarding free speech and external speaker, Free Speech Coalition spokesman Dr David Cumin says: ...
The Government is creating a new division of the Education Ministry in an overhaul that will strip schools of the right to manage their enrolment zones and their property. ...
Making Northport Auckland’s main port will require massive investment in rail and road and will increase carbon emissions and the cost of goods says National Road Carriers Association CEO David Aitken. ...
Tuesday, November 12: After months of mounting pressure, the Environmental Protection Authority has now publicly released oil giant OMV’s application to drill a high risk oil well off the Otago Coast. ...
Simon Day eats a burger and considers becoming a vegetarian (again). For two years in my 20s, I was vegetarian. It was a choice based on the idea that it’s a much more efficient and much less environmentally invasive way to feed the world. I used to habitually roll out a ...
Ahead of TVNZ1’s new wildlife documentary Serengeti, Tara Ward presents the best animals that make up the juiciest drama on the plains.If you love nature docos filled with argy-bargy and love triangles, jealous siblings and power struggles, then TVNZ’s new wildlife documentary series Serengeti is a dream come true. The ...
The Panama Papers exposed a world in which the uber-rich and powerful were able to hide unimaginable wealth. The reporters who broke the story describe how they did it.“When it takes a whistleblower to sound the alarm… it signals that democracy’s checks and balances have all failed.”The final words in ...
Family First New Zealand has proposed a number of bills to the government regarding the access to pornography in both public places, including schools and the work place. “There has been an important national conversation around consent and ‘rape culture’. ...
Vernon Tava, the leader of the Sustainable NZ party, used to be part of the Greens. So how did he fit in there? Former MP Catherine Delahunty shares her impressions of him from then, and analyses where his new party will fit in.I first met Vernon Tava when he joined ...
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anyone else getting a sustained barrage of climate change denier paid adv on facebook ?
Ok boomer…Who still uses Facebook? Let mark melting man stutterberg harvest your dets and get paid
Guilty. I am getting these adv because I am "over 40 and live in NZ"
And who still comments on blogs???
roflnui.
No but I am noticing an increase in denier trolling for sure on facecloth
Doesn't come to me. But I don't read facebook much.
However I suspect that with the passing of the bill that the ads will diminish again for a while.
National voted for the Zero Carbon Bill. Will they now scaremonger, undermine public confidence in the Bill in order to amass votes at the coming election?
Of course they will! And they'll focus on the regions, getting MPs to dog-whistle like demented shepherds, at meetings, in local newspapers and on their many, many billboards, spreading the fear that the Government's climate change plans will bring economic ruin to all of us. Imo. Today's cartoon in The Southland Times captures the situation perfectly. It shows Simon Bridges at the pulpit, declaring, "We take climate change seriously! But we would rather see everyday New Zealanders burn in the fiery hell of global warming than pay money to stop it! Luxton pipes in, "I hear you Brother Simon!"
very true the adv are specifically scaremongering rural NZ and the agricultural sector
The issue with OK Boomer I've touched on elsewhere.
"The problem is people, often young people, buying into the right wing meme, of "intergenerational warfare, or theft" used to pit people against each other, and ignore the real cause, the rich and powerful of all generations. No one who sees National's entitled young prats, can think it is "boomers". I'm an enthusiastic supporter of Chloe Swarbrick, but i think her usual deft touch deserted her on this occasion. Lowering to the tone of the National idiot she was replying to".
OK now, Woman?
I agree, the generational-divide is a red-herring in the search for "whodunnit", but Chloe's call was elegantly done, so I'm forgiving of it. The culprit, in my opinion, is the psychological "black hole" we created then fell into over 10 000 years ago and are presently trying to identify and climb out of. It's variously described as "greed" or "civilisation" etc, but however we call it, it's brought us to a dangerous place. Only when we identify it for what it is will we be able to do something about it. Finger-pointing's one thing; humans did bring this on, and when a finger's pointed at you, it's a good idea to explore the charges levelled, but a wide-view has to be taken, lest we end up in-fighting, skirmishing, winning battles but losing the war.
Ko tenei the ra o te Pakanga Nui!
The evidence shows the shape of the curve and 10000 years ago it was flat.
Boomers, and I am one, have to own up to the shit that has happened in our lifetimes, that we have contributed to, that we still contribute to TODAY. Alas not taking responsibility is a trait of our little cohort – easier to blame others or blaming no one is even better – as long as the mirror is put away.
Are you speaking on behalf of all boomers, Marty?
"I have seen the enemy, and he is us" can be said by boomers and non-boomers alike
I don't think I said that I was speaking for all boomers – weird you'd get that so wrong. Good distraction from my point though. It is a false duality to go for enemies and friends – the point is acceptance of the reality and that is very hard especially for boomers who have so much justifiable guilt on our hands.
"Boomers have to…"
Probably better to say, "I have to…", or it will seem as though you're speaking on behalf of…
I notice when someone says, "Group "A" needs to…or Group "B" must… or Group "C" has to…"
Do you, also, feeling uncomfortable when you read those kinds of statements?
lol jeeze anything other than the point eh – sad and stupid
Your point being that boomers need to own up?
Yes?
Robert – you and I have both much better things to do than argue in this way. I respect much of what you have done and say and you are an idiot sometimes.
Yeah, and I think those "sometimes" are drawing closer and closer together the more I tune in to the thoughts of the wider community
Never had the experience of someone misinterpreting your meaning, Marty?
I admire your clarity of thought and expression and seek to be more like you. And reduce my moments of idiocy with it.
I agree that we both have better things to do. In-between comments, I'm planting hebe. 50 so far this morning, 150 to go; better get busy!
He be planting hebe.
(sorry, the best I could do, although it has a nice scan to it)
I tend to be a "seek forgiveness rather than ask permission" type of person so I am always seeking forgiveness from others for my transgressions. I use a lot of IMO's (in my opinion) in my comments usually because I only ever want to speak from me and my experience – that's identity politics for ya.
We have rain coming – Tasman at about -19% rainfall for the year and we are even less. Thinking of getting another watertank for rain water as the drought last year was tough and this year I suspect will be even tougher. Also I am enjoying being alive. Have a nice day Robert.
That's very good, weka.
Yoda would have said, "Planting hebe, he be. "
Boomers find it hard to own up to their failings.
Privileged people find it hard to own up to their failings.
Colonists find it hard to own up to their failings.
Men find it hard to own up to their failings.
Patriarchs find it hard to own up to their failings.
Greedy people find it hard to own up to their failings.
Addicts find it….hang on!
I swear there's a pattern here!
lol – you just checkmated yourself ta
Marty, I think you may have missed the signal sent by the line that begins, "Addicts…"
All groups that find it difficult to "own up to their failings" are addicted to the culture they are part of. Do we require those addicted to substances to "own up" before we help them, or do we recognise the difficultly they may have in doing that and get on with helping them anyway?
Boomers deserve help with humility just like every other group does.
'zakly
Yes – healing can only begin when we accept the truth of who we are and what we do. It starts with us all individually Robert. IMO
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/nov/06/ok-boomer-meme-older-generations
"Like much of online culture, “OK Boomer” tells us something about the cultural dominance of upper-middle-class youth. These young people are surrounded by baby boomers who’ve “hoarded all the wealth” and polluted the planet in the process. They haven’t had to witness – or deal with the ramifications of – old age and precarity for millions of working people in that generational cohort. Instead they get to revel without self-reflection in oedipal angst about their elders – many of whom were kind enough to pass them their ill-gotten privileges".
mate here is another one boomersplaining
Marty. I think you are reacting, without trying to understand.
Māori were powerless to do anything about colonization for years. So I don't blame many older Māori for not doing anything. Also I don't blame those in the boomer generation who had no power to change things, either. It is not as though they didn't try. Which was why 1984 Labour only got two terms.
Environmental and economic destruction is hardly the fault of the type of people who spent their lives, opposing both.
I see lots of boomers who did well out of the neolib reforms and were/are uninterested in changing that. But I just don't see millennials as significantly better (eg if they really wanted to make change, then mobilise the vote). Each generation has its share of selfish people and those that will do the mahi to effect good change.
Millennials were raised by people to be more progressive than the previous generation, and they will become more conservative as they grow older, just like every other generation before them (including the radical boomers). I find the whole gen war stupid, and at this point in history it's dangerous.
Hear hear!!
I agree with you about the elite leading the way and that that is a 'class' issue for want of a better term. I think western countries are in the 'elite' group although groups within that are disadvantaged and vulnerable. The boomer label and ok boomer in particular are just another classification.
It is a bit low bringing colonisation into the argument – boomers PARTICIPATED they weren't dragged kicking and screaming as their culture was ridiculed and attempted to be destroyed.
Ngai Tahu participated, "marrying" off some of their wahine to sealers and whalers, making alignments and alliances through binding Maori and Pakeha into whanau. It was a wise strategy, instigated by tangata whenua. Whenua Hou served as the "melting pot" for many families who live in this part of the world. Holders of mana whenua were not "dragged kicking and screaming" into that relationship. IMO
what the hell would you know – lol – it is irrelevant to the discussion but it appears you have started dirty tactics eh – talk about your own heritage not mine Robert ok.
"talk about your own heritage not mine Robert"
That's just bloody stupid.
Should we discount Michael King's and Vincent O'Malley's writings because they aren't of Maori descent but they have written about your heritage and educated us all?
fuksake man
it was a pointed comment and he and I know it – your opinions are yours and bully for you – hint – not everything is as blunt and obvious as you suppose
On Boomers, many PARTICIPATED because they/we were born into the culture. It takes time to unravel that culture, see beyond it and move beyond it, if that's even possible. Are you critical of how boomers behaved when they were children? Do you have a cut-off point at which you expect boomers to reject their culture? And which boomer behaviours do you believe are wrong? All of them? How about altruism? Many boomers are altruistic . Intermarriage? Many boomers are married outside of their race. Environmental sensitivity? Many boomers are actively improving and protecting the wild environment. It's not as simple as requiring that boomers "accept responsibility for their actions". IMO
ffs have a chamomile tea and go plant some more trees mate and get over yourself
Ice creams supposed to make you happy
Boomers love ice-cream – it'll have to go!
I think we were. Our culture of fairness, egalitarianism, and equal opportunity, was destroyed. In a very few short years. We did believe in a “fair go” for everyone.
It was like we were colonized by yet another strange culture. In this case the Chicago Boys.
And. Some of the boomers who suffered the most, were fairly prosperous boomer Māori working class, who were absolutely marginalised, along with many others who started work, young. Forced out of jobs like train driving, onto the dole.
We didn't participate, at least I didn't. Kicked and screamed all the way.
Ok boomer. Only stupid old boomers don’t get the meme. It’s not inter-generational warfare, it’s an ironic thank you for the mess the boomer generation left us, yet deny us any of our complaints because apparently things were so amazing in your times and we don’t do what you do. We do what we can in the world you left us, as you dreamily remember the good old days as if it was perfect, with no racism or sexism or misogyny, and feel a stirring in your loins at the outdated hate speech associated with class war.
"old" boomers?
Are there young boomers?
you Just don’t get it do you? Your boomer mentality sees it as perhaps an age thing, along with the hairy old socialist trying to equate ok boomer as right wing meme so boomers like yourselves can feel above being mocked about being a boomer.
What's a "meme"?
Mock the boomers! *Mock the boomers!
Mock! Mock! Mock!
*Always ends well
An old white male expressing borrow that he isn’t instantly shown respect… what a surprise
Your borrow is my sorrow, Climaction.
I've always said, "Respect my authoritah!" and having a young whipper-snapper like you speaking out of turn and criticising those who brought you this wonderful way of life is mighty galling!
RESPECT MY AUTHORITAH!
I'd wage Robert has done more for the climate in real practical actions than most in New Zealand.
Generational warfare, IS a right wing meme. To distract from the real problem, which is class.
Are you trying to tell me that the boomers who lost their livelihood in the 80's and never had a decent job since, are the cause of anything. I know many that are entering retirement with absolutely, nothing.
I suggest that many of the University educated commenters on here are somewhat divorced from the reality of the over 40% of boomers entering retirement, without a house in their name.
Particularly galling when it is young upper middle class, who have benefited from all the wrongs that were done, and very often vote for it’s continuation, use it.
'Boomer' is now a cultural group, no longer just a demographic fact.
'OK' is merely what younger-at-heart folk say when tired of responding rationally for the umpeenth time to someone saying they just need to stop eating avocados and do what we did 'in our day'.
It is this year's equivalent of 'whatever'.
Imagine constructing a negating meme around women, or disabled people, and then arguing that those are now cultural groups not just demographics.
That blurring of Boomer as old person and Boomer as selfish, regressive privilege holder is a problem because ageism is a real thing (esp for Pākehā) and we don't have good progressive politics around it. We generally leave it to Grey Power and the chuckle when they do something that's not oldie.
I have less of a problem with Ok Boomer, than I do with lefties and progressives largely ignoring the problems with old ageism in way they'd never tolerate with any other marginalised group and not being willing to bring old ageism into the conversation.
A really good example is the politics around Generation Rent that never talks about what happens to elderly people who are basically on the dole with high rents and shivering in their homes in winter.
I'm explaining what the term is, not agreeing with all of its implications. Today's younger people are more attuned to style as well as substance.
‘Not All Boomers’ looks like Not All Men’.
OK Sprog.
Nicest thing I've been called for ages
Happy to oblige. 🤣
I think the right wing has been so successful in pitting the generations against each other that even lefties, who should know better, are adopting it.
I am not so concerned about Chloe because she is a person whose achievements I have considerable respect for, and I think she will come to understand why it is counterproductive to spread RW, rich kid, memes. I am sad that people who should be allies, are blaming each other.
The "selfish boomers" is no more true of a generation, than the "Young mums breeding for a living", "teenage dole bludgers" "Māori ferals", and "Avocado munchers" are of anyone else.. I find all those unthinking stereotypes false and offensive.
Over 80% of the pre boomer generation owned their own homes.
Less than 60% of boomers. And many, like me, are still mortgaged to help our Kids.
I think some like Climaction are a bit confused about who got the 3% loans and land grants, Certainly long gone by my day. Removed by the people in Parliament, who gained from them.
Maybe you should stop running with a pack of idiots? The generation that presided over the greatest increase in wealth and expansion of the middle class, after free education and cheap houses, now approaches retirement with nothing? Don’t look to you her generations for support. You left the world, and obviously your own lives, in a mess we are expected to fix without the benefits you enjoyed.
talk about giving yourself an uppercut
You don't have a fucking clue, do you?
By the way, Neo-liberalism was bought to us by politicians in the generation before boomers. We tried to vote the buggers out, but there was only a choice of two Neo-liberal parties. Which is why we supported MMP. So the barstards couldn’t do it again. Unfortunately they did, anyway.
Cheap houses? It cost a greater percentage of our weekly wage to buy a house when we bought ours, than it does, now. After scrambling to get 30% deposits while inflation was over 15%.
And we paid 60% top tax rate on moderate incomes, more than you pay in student loans and tax combined, now. so the previous generation could retire at 60 and so 10% of us, the children of the rich, had free tertiary education.
KJT – "Boomers" is such a nebulous topic that I think some people are unable to discuss it sensibly, whether they are inside or outside of the "Boomer" tent. It's curious. I wonder if, had Chloe said, "Okay Willy Wonker", the candy-producers would be getting a thrashing on the blogs and comments sections of the country's rags
Not All Wonkas
And in any case, most of the Oompa Loompas know which side their Eskimo Sandwich is wafered on.
Meming:
https://imgflip.com/i/3fmtxu
I have lot's of clues. clues from all your "NeO-Luberalism is the enemy" rants that you can't see the problems that face society require a more nuanced and inclusive approach. but being a boomer, you've always had it so easy and you're generation spent so much time culturally colonising the whole world you can't stop spluttering in indigantion when the youth don't like your proscriptions and don't accept your pearls of wisdom are valid.
you may as well work on fox news for all your "Good ol' days with the good ol' union lads" rants are relevant.
Just wondering, Climaction, if you see yourself as representative of Post-Boomers? Typical of them, that is, able to think the way they do, act the way they do, express yourself the way they do?
(coz I don't believe you are one
Funny thing is the yoof, are advocating the policies and progress I've been fighting for all along.
I doubt you are really one of them, though. In fact it seems like the "boomer" mindset you describe describes your position more accurately, than mine.
You’ve been well brainwashed, by right wing propaganda.
Due to our efforts, you can now vote for a non Neo-liberal party, the Greens, where we only had the choice of either of two, Neo-liberal stuffups.
So. FFS. Put your money where your mouth is and vote for them. Non boomers are over 70% of eligible voters. So statistically it looks like you are mostly voting for a continuation of the same policies you reckon are "boomer", stuffups.
" ..the 3% loans… Removed by the people in Parliament, who gained from them." e.g. Wayne Mapp
Our Housing Corp mortgage was initially floating at 7%. Within 5 years it had been sold to ANZ and rose to 18%.
By the mid 1990s (when I was studying) tertiary education was not free. I still owe $40k in student loans.
Incidentally we built our home and changed the head gasket on our 30 yr old cars. The generation that followed us seems unable to change a light bulb for fear being non compliant and having a lack of the no.8 wire mentality.
I belong to the baby boomer demographic.
How much plastic have you bought this week Climaction?
Boomer is an attitude. And it wasn't millenials who published all thoise media puffpieces about avocados and snowflakes.
Have a look at the age of many writing those clickbait, pieces.
Have a look at the age of the owners and editors – anyway it's no longer about age, it's attitude.
And who the target audience is (and therefore the demographic advertisers believe have the disposable cash in society).
The "ok boomer" thing isn't just about generational war, it is actually about the power dynamics within society. About how the media get clickbait from "dumb millennial" stories, with headlines like "millennials don't know hard work" and then "millennials killed the power lunch".
And most people called "boomer" tend to be of apparent European descent. Could just be my perception, but that hints at maybe another social power dynamic going on as well.
Some of you people on here need to eat some ice cream as it will make you happy.
I'm off to sue Red Bull as I drank a can and didn't get any wings.
You ought to have drunk the contents of the can, Jimmy! It's little wonder you failed to fly.
Next time, try pads.
oh dear what a pity – the nazi cowards will be quaking in their jackboots – all those 'respectable' nazis will be so worried and they will be driven into the light where we will all be able to see them and their disguises.
My wife has just finished an appeal hearing in the Whangarei District court. Byrne Vs NZTA, 4-6 nov, 2019. we are awaiting judgment.
During this hearing evidence was produced by nzta that confirmed they were spying on my wife and family,(including our 6yr old son).
They used a male employee to spy on a female employee of a nzta supplier (wsp opus) condoned by senior nzta management, with a special mention under oath for acting ceo of the time, brett gliddon.
They did not inform their supplier wsp opus that they were spying on an employee of theirs.
This male employee has a colourful police history. He also testified that he is spying on other families in our isolated community.
the spying is still continuing, and my wife has had to move away for work.
she fears for her safety from this male employee,
This has been ongoing for almost two years now.
they have spent in excess of $150,000 on this, while offering my wife $7,500 to shut up and go away.
I say , shame on you NZTA.
Talk to Radio NZ and tell them.
You'll find them sympathetic.
hi Ad, thank you for your comment.
we are not looking for sympathy.
i did get a fair airing on magic talk last week, and i thank steven for that.
RNZ are a little aloof for me.
The reason for the court case please ? Do they want to compulsory acquire your land or its it related to vehicle certification?
Regarding spying , wasnt that stopped after all the Thompson and Clark shady details came out. Look that up and ask how that decision affects you.
There is an employment dispute mentioned in the Herald.
a man from the agency said he was scared of my wife, she is 5; 4" and 45kgs. he is ex military.the nzta believed him and then ordered my wifes dismissal. she is a professional engineer with 20yrs experience. she took them to the era and the era found in nzta favour. my wife appealed and this is the hearing.
they were spying on us to get dirt on her.
Name not listed on Engineers NZ register
This is really a big problem – our society is not giving people what they want or need. So many people are suffering. The canaries in the coalmine are dying in front of our eyes.
At $45 plus a doctors visit, only the well off can afford to be healthy.
No its not. My doctor clinic charges $18.50. The ones that charge $45 plus ARE in well off areas , as the funding is based in socio-economic status of the patients/neighbourhood.
Mine charges $17, in a relatively average area. But there is no way any new patients can get in.
The one in the poor area in town charges $45, for new patients. As does the A and E.
I suspect in part because of a funding cut, when he was getting too loud supporting his patients.
wow – that creates an epiphany for me – so obvious once known
Not surprised.
And the many Māori Men put out of work by the Neo-liberal, "unfortunate experiment" shortly afterwards.
Yep – good to join the dots
Climaction. Above, has NFA, how devastating the 80's reforms were to so many working class families. Followed of course by Richardsons, welfare cuts, devastating communities even more.
Missing jigsaw piece, eh. NZ disability activism in the 1980s came from the same source – state residential institutions.
Comes with a trigger warning for 'moderates' as it's from RT.
It's humour and it's talking about Chile. 5 min long – In solidarity.
No more sitting at the beach in the Hiace with a cold Heineken.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/world/117261827/walmart-toyota-heineken-warehouse-workers-wear-trackers
wow – so bad imo – just resign – hasn't even watched the video about her departments utter disgraceful actions wtf?
Nice analysis
Good call
You follow politics , you follow NZ politics to the nth degree, you you still dont follow that the Ministers arent involved in these sort of operational decisions. Nor would they want to.
Why would she resign? Sure if it was a 'process' that required ministerial signoff , sure . It wasnt.
Where was Raukawa Tait of Te Pou Matakana/WOCA when this happened –
“One of three commissioning agencies, Te Pou Matakana receives around $40 million in Whānau Ora funding each year.
It distributes money to frontline providers. But it has been revealed a surplus of $600,000 was pocketed by the commissioning agency and paid out to its private shareholder.”
https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/wh-nau-ora-minister-demands-explanation-after-commissioning-agency-pays-600k-its-shareholder
WOCA is a private company inspite of the ‘agency’ in the name
Yes I do follow politics ta Ministers can resign for all sorts of reasons such as this example
The minister today can't even watch the recording of the events which led to the inquiry and severe reprimand for her department – so severe that practices of staff have been changed immediately!!! She should go imo.
In the event of a sudden decompression passengers inside the Dreamliner might die from lack of oxygen. Good to know.
https://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/incidents/exengineer-claims-boeings-dreamliner-could-be-dangerous/news-story/63af8c84a7cbe94db5655d64463edfc7
Ghost planes are a thing.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghost_plane
Not a reliable source . He seems to only have minor level job
If this story doesn't do a person's head in then there is something wrong with the person:
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/402840/abuse-survivor-raped-at-foster-homes-sexually-abused-by-nun
Capital is hard to find in NZ. No. Not the hidden away city at the bottom of the N.Island. No, financing businesses. Seems that if we advantage capital gain it sucks investment capital for other projects. Labour have said No. National think benefitaries can get us back, yeah like a few hundred beanies if only they were in work… ..no, the problem is our parliament is hidden away on a fault line waiting to be moved to S. Auckland. Next big shake…
Hamilton or Whangarei are safer, if that's the criteria.
12% business interest rates, when overseas competitors are paying less than 3% is a big margin to make up. Unless you are buying land for capital gains tax free farming, of course.
Well. The ChCh shake sure paved the way for some well overdue development investment in the area.
I keep spare, fresh drinking water in the shed and in a wardrobe in the house just in case. And I live within walking distance of a fresh water river.
A small burner, a lighter, a torch and a sealed plastic box full of long life basic beverage additives (cordial, tea, coffee, whatever and some sugar) may not seem much day to day. But you may really need it after a major event.
get a can opener and a…gun!
[lprent: Just what every useless unsafe dimwit needs – right? Along with vitamin deficiencies and bad breath and other hygiene issues.
*sigh* – Any irresponsible dickhead who says something like that is someone who should never hold a firearms license or a weapon. At the very least they need to gets some arms training, and some socialisation training in how to deal with people without waving a surrogate penis as if it was magic talisman. Clearly their parents failed in the socialisation, hygiene or installation of common sense. ]