And finally, a way to get those 'vaccine hesitant' types racing in to get jabbed: free dope.
Washington State's Liquor and Cannabis Board (LCB) on Monday announced licensed marijuana dealers are now allowed to give one free pre-rolled joint to customers 21 years or older who receive their first or second dose of COVID19 vaccine at an on-site vaccination clinic.
Great new initiative for my hydrochoroquine believer relatives in the Far North.
Thousands of nurses to walk off the job today in strike action nationwide
1 NEWS
About 30,000 nurses at all public hospitals and DHB facilities will be walking off the job from 11am to 7pm today, warning that it could be the first of many strikes if an agreement with their employers isn’t reached…..
……“Burnout, exhaustion, considering working overseas. All of those things are very real and I see myself and my colleagues going through [that] on a daily basis.” Deena Cardon, a surgical nurse at North Shore Hospital
“At the moment, their [NZNO’s] ask is 17 per cent [annualised increases]; we're just not in the position to be able to fund that at this point in time,” Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern
The Prime MInister claims that the government is able to fund the nurses claims.
$785 million for a cycleway says otherwise
As part of their protest Nurses will march up Queen Street.
Nurses know a lot about blocked arteries, if they are serious they should continue their march down Fanshaw Street and block the motorway entrance, until Michael Wood or Grant Robertson agree to negotiate.
Let us refresh the memory of those that have forgotten what the two dudes named above do in government
Woods:
Transport – Minister
Workplace Relations and Safety
Deputy Leader of the House
Robertson
Minister of Finance
Minister for Infrastructure
Minister for Racing
Minister of Sport and Recreation
edit: but then we can see why cycling bridges are the winner when one is also transport minister and the other is minister of racing and sport and recreation. Priorities this government has them, and they are outdoing John Key on his cycleway of historic importance.
As for the nurse vs the bridge, lol. Yeah, that is making the rounds in all places that are not labour loyalists by hook n crook.
But then some rather have solidarity with cycling bridges for the 10% then the wellbeing for nurses and other medical frontline staff. So very 'labour' of them. So very 'kind' so very 'gentle'.
nurses being offered ' 4000 NZD backpay!!!! – as part of their wage agreement
nurses being offered 1.38% (under inflation)
Nurses Striking today.
and just for clarity : “At the moment, their [NZNO’s] ask is 17 per cent [annualised increases]; we're just not in the position to be able to fund that at this point in time,” Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern
As i suggested yesterday, all he white nurses (only the white ones please it would be to dangerous for people of color) should loan some 2 – 4 grand bikes and run over a police barricade, illegally enter a motorway, cause traffic issues and then …..then the PM would say, lols, sure here have your 870 million.
well there is the much vaunted new tax rate from the Finance Minsiter
that will raise about 500 million per year, so would pay in its first year for one half of a bridge for cyclists. And then would need probaly another three years of that to account for the 'overspending' on the bridge for the very well looked after very rich Aucklanders.
Maybe someone should tell the Prime Minister that she could use these 500 millions raised by the 'rich tax' on the Nurses, and the very white lawbreaking cyclists of rich Auckland can hold a bake sale for the bridge? I mean that is what we do for Ambulances, Firestations and schools in this country.
the foreigner don't get cookies from the get go – its called Kiwi experience and thus they can work real cheap,
the worker only gets cookie when he does as he is told,
and the suits- Jacinda, Grant, Andrew etc and the white well to do people from Herne Bay and Ponsnobby – who can break laws without consequeses- are in the meantime eating all the cookies,
And then they turn around and tell the nurses there ain't any money left in the kitty, and that if they expect a decent pay for a decent day of work, and if the Nurses expect toilet breaks and lunch breaks and enough collegues to cover these breaks they need to move to OZ, the US, or England or elsewhere, cause here in NZ they are not valued neither by the government nor the public.
‘ “Pray tell, what do Michael Wood or Grant Robertson have to do with the negotiations?” Incognito
I thought it would be a bit presumptious to ask the Prime Minister to take part in the negotiations. Though if you think that is better. Sure, why not.
After all it is the Prime Minister who has said that the government hasn't got the money. Maybe the Prime Minister coulc convince the nurses of that.
Why I chose Grant Robertson; Grant Robertson is the Deputy PM and also the Minister of Finance, an obvious choice. He holds the purse strings.
Why I chose Michael Wood, for several reasons; Michael Wood is an Auckland based MP, it wouldn;t be too far out of his comfort zone.
I have met with Michael several times and am convinced of his basic decency and humanitarianism.
Because of this, I toyed with the idea of just asking Michael to come and negotiate with the nurses on behalf of the government.
The other and more obvious reason is Michael could agree to forgo the $785 million he got for the cycleway and ask the Minister of Finance to give it to the nurses instead.
I would expect the negotiations to last 30 minutes. Auckland motorists could then get back on their way.
“You seem to spend a lot of effort not understanding how government works, nor even how it could in an ideal world.”Sacha
Hi Sacha,
We live in a far from ideal world. Sometimes you just have to cut through the Gordian Knot.
Government steps into Ihumātao land dispute, halts building activity
JUL 26, 2019 • SOURCE: 1 NEWS
…Police this week have made a number of arrests and have maintained a heavy presence after an eviction notice had been served against occupiers.
But tonight the Prime Minister stepped into the debate, following a meeting today between Government representatives, mana whenua, Fletchers, Auckland mayor Phil Goff and other members of Auckland council…..
Ihumātao: Deal struck between government and Fletcher Building to buy disputed land
Jane Patterson 16/12/2020
A deal has been struck between the government and Fletcher Building to buy the disputed Ihumātao land for just under $30 million, the first step in breaking the long-running deadlock…..
Judith Collins hits out at Jacinda Ardern's 'foolish' involvement in Ihumātao
Zane Small 20/07/2020
National leader Judith Collins has hit out at Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern's involvement in the Ihumātao land dispute, describing it as "foolish" and "a total nonsense"…..
……Collins, who became the National Party's new leader last week following the resignation of Todd Muller, said Ardern should never have got involved, and that if she becomes Prime Minister, Fletcher Building will be allowed to continue with its plans.
"It's their land, they can do what they like within the rules," she told Magic Talk. "The Government, under me will never put a cent into Ihumātao. This is private land. This is a total nonsense and the Prime Minister was foolish to go and get herself involved in it in the first place."
Collins' predecessor Muller has also said Ardern should not have got involved.
"Our position with Ihumātao has been consistent all the way through: this was an issue, from our perspective, between the iwi owners and Fletchers," he said in June.
If Grant can't make it at short notice. Michael could take a smart phone and Bring in Grant Robertson by skype, or facebook messenger, or zoom or whatever platform suits best.
The PM could even cut in for 5 minutes if she wanted to. To berate the nurses for being wrong headed, ‘There is no money, you should call off your strike’.
Good faith, and actually wanting to resolve the dispute. I can't see non of that happening at the moment;.
I mean offering an advance to owed backpay as part of a wage negotiation is not good faith, nor does it show a will to resolve a pay dispute, but it is very much an insult to injury.
"I mean offering an advance to owed backpay as part of a wage negotiation is not good faith, nor does it show a will to resolve a pay dispute, but it is very much an insult to injury."
Too true. A bit like criticism of Vance's article, the $4000 is there for lazy minds to cling to.
The chosen ones will be delighted and over Mars the Moon with their elevation, which comes as a revelation. Will you make them knights or just anoint them?
You toying with ideas is like Donald Trump playing with the two red buttons on his desk, one was for the Diet Coke Button the other one was for frying the world.
Nurses are sure going to have to campaign smarter than a boring old strike (which the system is coping with easily) if they are going to be out-competed by a few old lycra-waddling duffers.
You can pop over to the Nurses Union and tell them how their industrial relations efforts are so weak and then show them HowToGetThere.
ah, but then you are ok with foreign workers, and then it should be ok for the horticulturist, the Orchadists, the farmers, the booze shops, the universities and all the others that don't want to pay a decent wage in NZ, lead by the government. i
As always with government in NZ, Labour as well as National it is a case of do as we say not as we do. Non of them want 'living wages' or 'decent wages'.
hahahahaha, i am so gonna enjoy the next National / Act government and their 'surplus' tax cuts, for the rich, of whom Robertson, Ardern, and the rest of the dull knights and dames are members of. hahahahahahahah
The inference we're getting here is that Judith lied to Nick Smith about the breaking scandal to get him to resign. Knowing full well there was no breaking story. So she could get Harete Hipango into the House.
Well no…as soon as the first cases appeared in court the light bulb would have gone on and phones would be heading for the skip smartly.
"ANoM could only be found on phones bought through the black market, which had been stripped of the capability to make calls or send emails, according to the AFP. The phones could only send messages to another device that had the app and criminals needed to know another criminal to get a device.
"The devices organically circulated and grew in popularity among criminals, who were confident of the legitimacy of the app because high-profile organized crime figures vouched for its integrity," the AFP statement said."
If this was a one of, and it was known (or suspicion arose among those targeted) …..then yes pull the plug and only to see if the news would make some more crawl out from under the rocks in order to hide under another.
But the cover appeared to be blown in March 2021 when a blogger detailed ANOM security flaws and claimed it was a scam linked to Australia, the United States and other members of the Five Eyes intelligence sharing network. The post was later deleted.
I'm surprised the internet policing app was used for as long as it got used and no one discovered they were being monitored. Possibly the cops cover would have been blowen as the app would be used as evidence.
seriously for this alone they should stay on strike for the rest of the week.
The DHBs revised their offer with changes to sick leave entitlement and there was a $4,000 lump sum in advance on the anticipated Pay Equity settlement.
that 4 grand has nothing to do with the current wage dispute. Here really the government and DHB are saying that we owe you back pay, but we could advance that for you now, so please dear Nurses *(male/female/others as some seem to think that nursing is a 'female' profession ) stay on strike until the Managarial Goons learn some shame, humility and grow a brain.
For what its worth all of us have needed nurses and medical staff in our lifes, non of us has needed any of the overpaid goons that pretend that 1.38% (below inflation) is a 'pay increase'.
Why? She still in politics? or is there just something in the waters of some left leaning people that they rather discuss the National wanabes of yesteryears rather tehn just the regular businesses of strikes, homelessness, violence and crime?
She was always only an attack dog, she knew her role and she fulfilled it to the finest. And now she sells real estate for big bucks, laughing all the way to the bank.
i did not answer to someone writing a post, i answered to someone who should have posted a link. So nah, i missed nothing. And i don't waste my time with has beens such as the like of Paula Benefit.
in the early days of the internet..when everybody had shit/expensive internet-coverage..providing links was crucial…
it was one of the reasons I started/did my proto-aggregation website whoar.co.nz..to provide that service…and I always included the link to every story I posted..
that was then…this is now…when everyone has fast/efficient internet..and in the above case of my made-up tabloid headline..typing bennett into google will bring up all coverage of 'what I am talking about'..namely bennetts' vomiting all over her tory party..and how they dun her wrong…
and I would contend that just providing one link (as you continue to demand) is/can be a negative..is an involuntary controlling of the message..by only giving the reader one perspective..whereby they have to Google to find out more ..(!)
It is for these reasons I feel the arc of importance of 'the link'..has reached it's natural conclusion..
and is increasingly irrelevant/a block on the full picture..
largely..the link is yesterday's imperative..
and should be left just to wither..
and certainly not be demanded of anyone posting anything..
[I did not demand, I asked, nicely and politely. You must have attended the same school as Jenny for not understanding the difference between these two verbs.
Indeed, this is here and now, you’re commenting on TS, not on your proto-site. You take heed of Moderation notes, here and now.
It is good manners to post a link. Don’t expect others to do the digging and Googling; they’re not mind readers.
When I Google “bennett”, I get all sorts of results, including Naftali Bennett, the next PM of Israel.
Please don’t act like an obstinate pillock and include links in your comments, especially when asked by a Moderator, thanks. This is your final warning – Incognito]
in the above case of my made-up tabloid headline..typing bennett into google will bring up all coverage of 'what I am talking about'
You must have an awful lot of time on your hands if that seems like a viable tactic. If you google the word 'tactic' you will find what I'm talking about..
So you totally dismiss the case I made re arc of link…?
and choose to again threaten to ban ..?
After the several days of my being back here you following me around sneering insults/trolling at virtually everything I say..?
go read them..!
your abuses of power/harassment of me is over the top..
other people..including yrslf..regularly say things without linking..I read whole threads like that..while I was'nt commenting here..and not a word from you..or any other moderator..
I repeat…why do you single me out for such special treatment..
Reform for retirees has been a long time coming. It would be a popular move if the government follows the advice and takes the rights of older folk as seriously as younger tenants.
Her [Retirement Com.] report said submissions revealed 99 per cent support for a complete review of the legislative framework and that included support from organisations like the Law Society, and professionals in the sector like trustees and statutory supervisors, as well as hundreds of residents’ submissions.
Wrightson told said the only group that thought a full review was a bad idea was the operators.
Village residents did not have many of the consumer protections provided to tenants here. A review should eliminate unfair terms in contracts and better protect the rights of consumers.
also from the link as to why nothing will change until this government is shamed into action – from Poto Williams herself
"Asked what plans, if any, she has to move on the commission and Consumer reports to strengthen the Retirement Villages Act, Williams said: "At this stage there are no immediate plans to review the Act, although I acknowledge that the Act is due for review and will work towards this when we can."
Over their four years at the Auckland hospital, the Kiwi nurse dealt with an "under-resourced, understaffed department", and sometimes experienced unsafe situations.
"Over my time working at the hospital I can’t count the number of verbal and physical assaults that have happened to health care workers," they say.
"I’ve seen co-workers punched in the face, oxygen cylinders thrown through medication rooms, people pulling out knives, family members getting up in our faces."
The nurse told Newshub of a particular incident when two nurses were attacked with a baseball bat when leaving the hospital after a night shift.
"One ended up with a head injury and the other a broken clavicle. It can sometimes be scary to think about," they say.
The Auckland hospital where the Kiwi nurse worked confirmed the incident to Newshub, stating that emergency departments are "emotionally charged, stressful environments".
"Nurses can sometimes be subjected to verbal abuse, they can experience people encroaching on their personal space, and occasionally experience low-levels of physical abuse," the hospital said in a statement.
Back in the day, last century, long service was acknowledged at 25 years and the good old gold watch was the gift.
Nowadays it occurs at 10 years.
Also since the rise of DHB CEOs, carparks were privatized. A fairly significant change in working conditions for many hospital staff.
Not a skerrick of renumeration and often decreased safety as the person in the booth wasn't paid to provide security or folk would park off hospital grounds.
At the same time, the number of complex complaints about commercial building structural design is rising, according to the Structural Engineering Society. It says the problem with substandard designs is "unacceptable".
"We've been campaigning for change to prevent quality issues," Structural Engineering Society president, Michelle Grant said. "We've … strongly voiced our recommendations for greater scrutiny and tighter assessment of structural engineers."
Such is the increase in complex investigations landing at Engineering New Zealand (ENZ) that it has had to hire more engineers and lawyers to tackle the backlog. The body receives between 45-50 complaints each year.
Give over the bridge discussion. Get behind this one now, about buildings which affects us all every day of the week.
In Australia the rule about agreement to sex or whether it was rape would be laughable if it was in a satirical performance. If it said that previous agreed sex within the period the participants were together should be considered in exoneration, (which I believe was the case for Julian Assange) that would fit the Oz idea of rationality, but not just the sheer force of the man's lust or want.)
However, the court also cited the “high hurdle” it faced on the issue of consent. Under the archaic legal definition of “consent” in place in Australia at the time the incidents had occurred, any belief by the perpetrator that the complainant was consenting – not matter how irrational that belief was – had to be counted as grounds for acquittal. The court cited McLachlan’s “egocentric” personality as an exonerating factor, in that he simply may not have been able to comprehend that his advances would not be reciprocated
Meanwhile in NZ, we seem terrified of taxing wealth but are happy to go hammer and tongs with nurses to suppress their pay. To me, these two things are linked.
Why would the wealthy people in government raise taxes on the wealthy or the wealthy companies? heck, we give millions of dollars to come here and make some dumb arse movies.
Please try and limit the number of short sharp irrationalities that you put up Sabine.
Dumb arse movies are common, and watched by many similar people. If made here they provide jobs and a change of business, a bit of diversity from dairy and housing and building war tech for the USA. It will be a good change from selling our stock of houses from under the feet of the NZs who we hope will make some wages from the movie-making.
In the agreement with the New Zealand Government, obtained by Stuff under the Official Information Act, the company committed to partnering with local firms to invest in research and development in sectors as diverse as drones, costume design and healthcare.
The deal could also see the company establishing offshoots of its other businesses here.
It is unconfirmed whether Amazon will open a local distribution centre for its famous online shop, which would likely upend the local retail sector. The company isn't obliged to start new businesses in New Zealand, but as a minimum it is required to partner with local research houses
MSD cannot do this. Help with emergency accommodation is governed by legislation which means if a person is entitled to the help they must receive it. Nobody can stop anyone applying for help under the Act, but when it comes to emergency accommodation MSD do it all the time.
When challenged MSD will of course agree they cannot blacklist anyone, but the fact is that very few people do challenge their decisions so what has become a widespread problem is left to continue because it suits MSD for it to continue even though they know it's wrong.
The money you are trying to raise to pay for the nurses would have to come from …the nurses. They are well paid ,but not as well paid as the Aussies. I’m not being a smart are’s, my wife is a nurse and she is currently on the street protesting, and I agree with her but there aren’t enough rich to tax to get enough money to pay the nurses without taxing the nurses. The point being missed by most is not the 17% increase to the nurses, almost certainly affordable, but the ongoing parity that would then be required for all other govt employees, a huge sum no doubt, well beyond my capacity to calculate and the governments to afford in the short term.. That huge sum can only come from bankrupting the so-called rich which would include ..the nurses.
Adrian, I am minded of the parable that Christ taught about the farmer who got a problem with weeds in his crops. Of course, his listeners were the poor farmers high up the hills whose land was too poor to grow the particular weeds and who never knew the threat to their huge crops complained of by the wealthy farmers on the valley floor.
A bit like a poorly paid worker being told that they would have to pay more tax if they got paid a decent wage commensurate with their hours, skills and social worth.
What is the average pay for a nurse? The start at about 55 before tax and after a few years should be at about mid 70? that is not rich, not before tax not after tax. And certainly not when one factors in GST. And certainly not when we consider that these women and men are the ones that will intubate us should we need it, and in case of Covid might be the last people to actually care about the patient more then them just being a dying bag of bones and flesh.
They could however establish a Capital Gains Tax to finance these fancy people called Nurses. Maybe a Land tax? Maybe a luxury tax on certain cars for the very rich? Maybe an 'empty room' tax for those that own houses but keep them empty? I am sure if these people were to put that thinking hat on they would come up with something.
Anyway, i hope she and her collegues will achieve and receive not only bread but also Roses, and maybe some respect. So she has my support.
The wealth of NZ's richest person, Graeme Hart, increased (!) by $3.4b since the covid pandemic started. So a 10% pay rise for every nurse in NZ is only 12% of this wealth increase (ignoring his existing enormous wealth). So this single person could easily pay for a 10% increase for every nurse in NZ, for the next 8 years, without losing a cent of his underlying wealth, just his recent increase.
There’s no bottom to the depths these fuckers will sink to.
Three groups opposed to Covid restrictions, masks, and vaccines are hosting conspiracy theorist Naomi Wolf for a fundraiser entitled "Liberate Our Five Freedoms."
The event is going to be held on Juneteenth, the holiday celebrating the end of chattel slavery in the US. Event organizer Kathryn Levin told me that in her view, it's appropriate.
"The 19th is a day of emancipation, and it's a day when we claim our freedom," said Levin. "It's when we see that we are not slaves to mandate. It's when we take our power back."
I asked Levin how she analogized American chattel slavery—where slaves were whipped, beaten, raped, and murdered by their white masters for centuries—to the temporary restrictions over the last 15 months due to the pandemic.
"We have been enslaved by our government," she replied.
Ironically, these people are perfectly fine with a police state as long as it is them not being policed. They all would have thought George Floyd deserved to die.
Like these 3 people who I used to work with, all through COVID was a plot to impose a police state, but supported Trump.
2035 – 14 years away. So what are we doing in the meantime?
The Climate Change Commission has released its final report laying out the roadmap for the country to slash emissions and become carbon neutral by 2050…
By end of 2022 set targets to get more people walking, cycling and using public transport
Renewable energy target of 50 by the end of 2035
(Plus a lot more. Doesn't say anything about hybrid vehicles in the meantime, which would be helpful while we up the electricity supply.)
Climate Change Minister James Shaw said this government had done more to fight the climate crisis in the last three-and-a-half years than the combined efforts of governments over the last three-and-a-half decades.
"However, we are yet to see a sustained decline in the pollution we put into the atmosphere," Shaw said.
You know what, that was said consistently under John Key too, and i bet you a dollar that no one asked those that can't afford rent, are on a benefit in a town that costs per week (without utilities, food, and all other jazz of nice things)
Market rent in Avondale (Auckland) 01 Nov 2020 – 30 Apr 2021
BONDS 2160
LOWER ($)490
MEDIAN ($)580
UPPER ($)650
If however you are one of the really lucky ones that live in a nice part of town, with a nice wage, and an affordable mortgage, or inherited housing then truly Auckland is a very livable city.
That's an extremely limited alibi and exoneration.
Those articles only provide evidence for an argument against the idea that a jump to humans from bats or pangolins occurred at that specific market. It in no way excludes the possibility that patient zero got it from bats or pangolins (or any other species for that matter) somewhere else, then spread it to other humans at the market. Nor does it even exclude the possibility that the jump to humans happened from some other species at the market.
Never mind the myriad other possibilities for zoonotic transfer some other place and time, and that Wuhan maybe just happened to be where the first superspreading event occurred.
Bats and pangolins just happened to have drawn suspicion because they are known to host viruses similar to SARS-CoV-2, to the extent that they commonly have antibodies already circulating that neutralise SARS-CoV-2.. That doesn't mean there aren't other species also hosting similar coronaviruses that we aren't aware of. The original SARS intermediary was likely palm civets, for example, or camels for MERS.
One of the stranger things about moderating TS is seeing how many people make comments and then don't check to see who has replied to them next time the come back. Mods see this when someone's comments are held in the back end until someone responds to a moderation request.
I'd like to know how many people either don't use the Replies list function, or can't see it on their device. What are you all doing?
Tricledrown, if you are reading this, you need to go back to my last reply to you. All your other comments are landing in Trash until this gets sorted out.
Gelberger's body was found the next day, missing his lower left leg, and entire right leg.
Ports of Auckland was fined more than $420,000 in the Auckland District Court following Gelberger's death.
It admitted it had put people's lives at risk because its pilot boats consistently breached speed limits because, it said, they believed they were exempt.
The limits dictate vessels should not exceed five knots when closer than 200m to shore, and must keep to a 12-knot limit between the Harbour Bridge and North Head.
There is an exemption for Ports of Auckland vessels to breach limits if they are unable to carry out duties, but this applies only in limited circumstances.
In court, the company was found to have breached the rules on about 99 percent of its trips.
This seems the way things are in NZ. Power tends to corrupt etc. Why does someone have to be killed before the value of the precautionary policy is recognised? It was too fast, and not allowed at that time anyway.
As reported the proposed pay rates by DHBs for the nursing sector
Healthcare Assistants $40,382 a year, through to $48,003. This will range of $45,310 to $53,359. That is a total pay increase of between 4.6 per cent for those on step two of the pay scale, and 11.7 per cent for those at the top.
Enrolled nurses are currently paid between $48,632 and $57,047. The new agreement would take that to $53,998 to $59,447, or a total increase of 11 per cent for the step one nurses through to 4.2 per cent for step four
Senior midwives would see their pay increase from $79,760 for grade two through to $130,653 for grade eight, to $83,157 to $133,486.
Registered Nurses total pay increase between 3.1 per cent and 4.4 per cent, to reach a band of $56,434 to $79,786.
Most NZNO members are in the RN category and on the top scale ( after 7 years) of $80 k per year
My neighbour was on top scale and I would see her each morning waiting for Uber instead of the bus just around the corner
Up to 30 people are in handcuffs and being questioned by police after a hit-and-run crash which left one person dead in Auckland this morning.
A witness at the scene in Māngere said 20-30 people had been restrained across two scenes, while they were questioned amid a heavy police presence of about 15-20 officers.
"The vehicle involved fled the area immediately afterwards. Emergency services attended the scene but sadly the man died shortly after."
Early reports suggested a firearm may have been involved in the incident and as a precaution, armed staff responded to the area.
Police had not located a firearm.
Or is that selective over policing in certain areas of town? Have a good look at this picture and ask yourself if that is a normal action to a 'hit and run'. Also who suggested firearms had been involved and when that weapon failed to materialized why was the present police force not told to put their weapons away?
It wasnt a hit and run ! First reports arent always accurate
Why does this concern you now , Im sure you can wait till tomorrow when more will be released. A person is dead after an some sort of violence in a house , a car was attacked in the street and some masked people drove off … and thats what neighbors have said at around 5 PM reports
Is that your alter ego , a TV reporter for those real life crime shows ?
I just asked because i read the article and i could not quite get it sorted. It seems there were at least two if not three incidents. And having the cops stand there with what look like assault weapons in suburbia should concern all of us, unless of course we think that cops with assault weapons in the street is Kiwi as.
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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 ...
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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 ...
Photo by Heather M. Edwards on UnsplashHere’s the key news, commentary, reports and debate around Aotearoa’s politics and economy in the week to Feb 10 below. That’s ahead of live chats on the Substack App and The Kākā’s front page on Substack at 5pm with: on his column in The ...
Is there anyone in the world the National Party loves more than a campaign donor? Why yes, there is! They will always have the warmest hello and would you like to slip into something more comfortable for that great god of our age, the High Net Worth Individual.The words the ...
Waste and fraud certainly exist in foreign aid programs, but rightwing celebration of USAID’s dismantling shows profound ignorance of the value of soft power (as opposed to hard power) in projecting US influence and interests abroad by non-military/coercive means (think of “hearts and minds,” “hugs, not bullets,” “honey versus vinegar,” ...
Health New Zealand is proposing to cut almost half of its data and digital positions – more than 1000 of them. The PSA has called on the Privacy Commissioner to urgently investigate the cuts due to the potential for serious consequences for patients. NZNO is calling for an urgent increase ...
We may see a few more luxury cars on Queen Street, but a loosening of rules to entice rich foreigners to invest more here is unlikely to “turbocharge our economic growth”. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate ...
Let us not dance daintily around the elephant in the room. Our politicians who serve us in the present are not honest, certainly not as honest as they should be, and while the right are taking out most of the trophies for warping narratives and literally redefining “facts”, the kiwi ...
A few weeks ago I took a look at public transport ridership in 2024. In today’s post I’m going to be looking a bit deeper at bus ridership. Buses make up the vast majority of ridership in Auckland with 70 million boardings last year out of a total of 89.4 ...
Oh, you know I did itIt's over and I feel fineNothing you could say is gonna change my mindWaited and I waited the longest nightNothing like the taste of sweet declineSongwriters: Chris Shiflett / David Eric Grohl / Nate Mendel / Taylor Hawkins.Hindsight is good, eh?The clarity when the pieces ...
Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on UnsplashHere’s what we’re watching in the week to February 16 and beyond in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty:Monday, February 10The Kākā’s weekly wrap-up of news about politics and the economy is due at midday, followed by webinar for paying subscribers in Substack’s ...
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. ...
Today marks a historic moment for Taranaki iwi with the passing of the Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill in Parliament. "Today, we stand together as descendants of Taranaki, and our tūpuna, Taranaki Maunga, is now formally acknowledged by the law as a living tūpuna. ...
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 ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Department of Internal Affairs [the Department] has achieved significant progress in completing applications for New Zealand citizenship. “December 2024 saw the Department complete 5,661 citizenship applications, the most for any month in 2024. This is a 54 per cent increase compared ...
The self-appointed apostle says he could be to Christopher Luxon what Elon Musk is to Donald Trump, and his track record speaks for itself.Who is New Zealand’s answer to Elon Musk? The Herald’s tech insider, Chris Keall, put the question to his LinkedIn acolytes the other day. “If Luxon ...
The last good thing at the supermarket is gone. Mad Chapman mourns the Cadbury mini egg cartons. When life is overwhelming and it feels like every story around you is a bad news story, there are a few things that can be relied upon to instil a sense of calm, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Parker, Honorary Professorial Fellow, Melbourne CSHE, The University of Melbourne Shutterstock Judges in Australian courtrooms have a lot of power. They can decide on someone’s guilt and the punishment for it, including lengthy prison time. But what if they get ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Louise Birrell, Researcher, Matilda Centre for Research in Mental Health and Substance Use, University of Sydney Pixel-Shot/Shutterstock Australians are waiting an average of 12 years to seek treatment for mental health and substance use disorders, our new research shows. While ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Justine Bell-James, Professor, TC Beirne School of Law, The University of Queensland Almost 200 nations have signed an ambitious agreement to halt and reverse biodiversity loss but none is on track to meet the crucial goal, our new research reveals. The agreement, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Philippa Collin, Professor, Institute for Culture and Society, Western Sydney University Australian school students’ civics knowledge is the lowest it has been since testing began 20 years ago, according to new national data. Results have fallen since the last assessment in 2019 ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Buckley, Senior Research Fellow, Education Research, Policy and Development Division, Australian Council for Educational Research Michael Jung/ Shutterstock There is a persistent gender gap in Australian schools. Boys, on average, outperform girls in maths. We see this in national ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Felicity Deane, Professor, Queensland University of Technology Australian beef exports to the United States are GST-free and should not be subject to any retaliatory tariff. William Edge/Shutterstock The latest round of proposed tariffs from US President Donald Trump includes a response ...
As part of our series exploring how New Zealanders live and our relationship with money, a 36-year-old tertiary adviser and bartender shares her approach to spending and saving. Want to be part of The Cost of Being? Fill out the questionnaire here.Gender: Female. Age: 36. Ethnicity: Pākehā. Role: Tertiary adviser, ...
The change allows for devices that do screening, similar to at drink-drive checkpoints, rather than having to test oral fluid to an evidentiary standard. ...
Almost 40% of those departing NZ long-term are aged 18 to 30. What sort of country will they leave behind, asks Catherine McGregor in today’s extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. Young people leading the charge out the door Last year saw ...
New Health Minister Simeon Brown is presiding over a list of resignations from high-ranking health officials that some say is a "bloodbath". What's going on? ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Rickerby, Lecturer, School of Product Design, University of Canterbury The Poly-1. MOTAT , CC BY-NC Some 45 years ago, a team of staff and students at Wellington Polytechnic designed and built a desktop computer with an operating system customised for ...
The Forum has raised concerns regarding the Principles of the Treaty of Waitangi Bill and the Regulatory Standards Bill, which, if enacted, will radically undermine existing human rights protections, Indigenous rights, and constitutional safeguards ...
The passage of time hasn’t been kind to Ngāi Tahu.When its High Court hearing over wai māori (freshwater) commenced last week, 52 months after the claim was filed, the tribe mourned the loss of two named first plaintiffs – Bishop Richard Wallace, of Makaawhio, and Theo Bunker, of Wairewa – ...
Margie Apa, Nicholas Jones, Diana Sarfati, the board of Health New Zealand … and will Lester Levy be next?The biggest names in our health service are tumbling like dominos.It’s been called a bloodbath and a crisis.What’s going on?Every day there’s a new story about shortages, patients having to wait for ...
Opinion: The coalition Government’s recent revisions to the business investor visa, officially the Active Investor Plus but commonly known as the ‘golden visa’, has put pay-for-residency back in the headlines. While many object to the commodification of citizenship implicit in this policy, questions should be asked about its potential as ...
One Christmas, to thank him for helping me hugely with my writing (on a mentor scheme), I sent Michael King a dark blue cashmere scarf. I chose it with the awful knowledge that he was battling cancer, and I somehow thought it might keep him warm and make him feel ...
Comment: Readers may recall the commentaries from academics that appeared on these pages as well as on many media outlets, alarmed and appalled by the disbanding of the Marsden panels for humanities and the social sciences.The Marsden Fund is a “blue skies” initiative established by Simon Upton in the 1990s. ...
Everything you missed from day five of the Treaty principles bill hearings, when the Justice Committee heard seven hours of submissions. Read our recaps of the previous hearings here.An “insult to every one of our tīpuna” was the first advice the Justice Committee heard on the Treaty principles bill ...
The same councillors who decry excessive spending on pet projects just voted to pump millions of dollars into a greenhouse for flowers. On Thursday last week, Wellington City Council voted to consult on repairing Begonia House, the greenhouse for exotic flowers in Wellington Botanic Garden. The options for repairs range ...
It’s important to respect people’s right to free speech and peaceful assembly, but how much political deference is due when it isn’t peaceful? Commenting on Destiny Church members storming a children’s event at the Te Atatū library and community centre on Saturday, prime minister Christopher Luxon said it’s important to ...
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Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp');Got a good quiz question?Send Newsroom your questions.The post Newsroom daily quiz, Tuesday 18 February appeared first on Newsroom. ...
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And finally, a way to get those 'vaccine hesitant' types racing in to get jabbed: free dope.
Washington State's Liquor and Cannabis Board (LCB) on Monday announced licensed marijuana dealers are now allowed to give one free pre-rolled joint to customers 21 years or older who receive their first or second dose of COVID19 vaccine at an on-site vaccination clinic.
Great new initiative for my hydrochoroquine believer relatives in the Far North.
The new age hippy fascists will be queueing around the block.
https://gen.medium.com/nazi-hippies-when-the-new-age-and-far-right-overlap-d1a6ddcd7be4
that link is an interesting read..
kinda unsure tho' of the validity/connection of yr 'queueing around the block' sneer…
and thereby surely setting a new benchmark in lateral thinking..?
Lateral comment directed @ ad..
Don't know how effective that would be in Northland ATM. The harvest is in, the curing has happened and should be plentiful.
Lol ova here it,d have to be at least an oz
The Prime MInister claims that the government is able to fund the nurses claims.
$785 million for a cycleway says otherwise
As part of their protest Nurses will march up Queen Street.
Nurses know a lot about blocked arteries, if they are serious they should continue their march down Fanshaw Street and block the motorway entrance, until Michael Wood or Grant Robertson agree to negotiate.
Oops typo.
Should read:
The Prime MInister claims that the government is not able to fund the nurses claims.
$785 million for a cycleway says otherwise
A textbook example of a Freudian slip
mummy?
The smell of custard pudding.
I see, you’re still tilting at the cycling & walking bridge, which doesn’t surprise me.
And you’re still barking up the wrong tree, it seems.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/444225/nurse-fears-for-exhausted-profession-as-colleagues-gear-up-for-strike [from yesterday, i.e. before the strike]
Pray tell, what do Michael Wood or Grant Robertson have to do with the negotiations?
One trick pony.
Let us refresh the memory of those that have forgotten what the two dudes named above do in government
Woods:
Transport – Minister
Workplace Relations and Safety
Deputy Leader of the House
Robertson
Minister of Finance
Minister for Infrastructure
Minister for Racing
Minister of Sport and Recreation
edit: but then we can see why cycling bridges are the winner when one is also transport minister and the other is minister of racing and sport and recreation. Priorities this government has them, and they are outdoing John Key on his cycleway of historic importance.
As for the nurse vs the bridge, lol. Yeah, that is making the rounds in all places that are not labour loyalists by hook n crook.
But then some rather have solidarity with cycling bridges for the 10% then the wellbeing for nurses and other medical frontline staff. So very 'labour' of them. So very 'kind' so very 'gentle'.
Who persuaded you it's one or the other?
https://twitter.com/roydanroy/status/1218197470695641098
dear leader yesterday saying
"There is NO money"
nurses striking today
nurses being offered ' 4000 NZD backpay!!!! – as part of their wage agreement
nurses being offered 1.38% (under inflation)
Nurses Striking today.
and just for clarity : “At the moment, their [NZNO’s] ask is 17 per cent [annualised increases]; we're just not in the position to be able to fund that at this point in time,”
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern
As i suggested yesterday, all he white nurses (only the white ones please it would be to dangerous for people of color) should loan some 2 – 4 grand bikes and run over a police barricade, illegally enter a motorway, cause traffic issues and then …..then the PM would say, lols, sure here have your 870 million.
In whose interests is it for you to believe that?
I don't believe anything,
I take them at their word.
And she said what she said, and she can't unsay it, and today the nurses are striking.
So in whose interest is it for her to say that kind of stuff?
Not that you're aware of, perhaps then. Must make life tricky.
It's a wonder we have any nurses left in this country.
Could say the same about teachers, cleaners, and any support staff in general.
verily
https://twitter.com/rg_jones/status/1402371259757826052
The problem is that 3 letter word is political poison
Used to be. Now would be a great time to push it, when other countries are.
tax the rich?
well there is the much vaunted new tax rate from the Finance Minsiter
that will raise about 500 million per year, so would pay in its first year for one half of a bridge for cyclists. And then would need probaly another three years of that to account for the 'overspending' on the bridge for the very well looked after very rich Aucklanders.
Lol. https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/election-2020-labour-ups-top-tax-rate-for-high-earners-grant-robertson/2Y4FYWV5GKIAEPPCI4J7PTREPY/
Maybe someone should tell the Prime Minister that she could use these 500 millions raised by the 'rich tax' on the Nurses, and the very white lawbreaking cyclists of rich Auckland can hold a bake sale for the bridge? I mean that is what we do for Ambulances, Firestations and schools in this country.
nah, that image is wrong,
the foreigner don't get cookies from the get go – its called Kiwi experience and thus they can work real cheap,
the worker only gets cookie when he does as he is told,
and the suits- Jacinda, Grant, Andrew etc and the white well to do people from Herne Bay and Ponsnobby – who can break laws without consequeses- are in the meantime eating all the cookies,
And then they turn around and tell the nurses there ain't any money left in the kitty, and that if they expect a decent pay for a decent day of work, and if the Nurses expect toilet breaks and lunch breaks and enough collegues to cover these breaks they need to move to OZ, the US, or England or elsewhere, cause here in NZ they are not valued neither by the government nor the public.
One step forward @ 8:22 am, two steps backward @ 8:41 am. It’s windy outside.
‘
“Pray tell, what do Michael Wood or Grant Robertson have to do with the negotiations?”
Incognito
I thought it would be a bit presumptious to ask the Prime Minister to take part in the negotiations. Though if you think that is better. Sure, why not.
After all it is the Prime Minister who has said that the government hasn't got the money. Maybe the Prime Minister coulc convince the nurses of that.
Why I chose Grant Robertson; Grant Robertson is the Deputy PM and also the Minister of Finance, an obvious choice. He holds the purse strings.
Why I chose Michael Wood, for several reasons; Michael Wood is an Auckland based MP, it wouldn;t be too far out of his comfort zone.
I have met with Michael several times and am convinced of his basic decency and humanitarianism.
Because of this, I toyed with the idea of just asking Michael to come and negotiate with the nurses on behalf of the government.
The other and more obvious reason is Michael could agree to forgo the $785 million he got for the cycleway and ask the Minister of Finance to give it to the nurses instead.
I would expect the negotiations to last 30 minutes. Auckland motorists could then get back on their way.
You seem to spend a lot of effort not understanding how government works, nor even how it could in an ideal world. Stuck in the middle somehow.
“You seem to spend a lot of effort not understanding how government works, nor even how it could in an ideal world.” Sacha
Hi Sacha,
We live in a far from ideal world. Sometimes you just have to cut through the Gordian Knot.
And;
The lesson is obvious.
It is a lesson not missed by the Right.
You seem to spend a lot of effort not understanding how government works, nor even how it could in an ideal world. Stuck in the middle somehow.
Or perhaps, bogged down. That quicksand is diabolically slow sometimes.
The other reason I chose Michael Wood, he is probably in town already and could get there without much delay.
If Grant can't make it at short notice. Michael could take a smart phone and Bring in Grant Robertson by skype, or facebook messenger, or zoom or whatever platform suits best.
The PM could even cut in for 5 minutes if she wanted to. To berate the nurses for being wrong headed, ‘There is no money, you should call off your strike’.
And all of that hinges on two things,
Good faith, and actually wanting to resolve the dispute. I can't see non of that happening at the moment;.
I mean offering an advance to owed backpay as part of a wage negotiation is not good faith, nor does it show a will to resolve a pay dispute, but it is very much an insult to injury.
"I mean offering an advance to owed backpay as part of a wage negotiation is not good faith, nor does it show a will to resolve a pay dispute, but it is very much an insult to injury."
Too true. A bit like criticism of Vance's article, the $4000 is there for lazy minds to cling to.
The chosen ones will be delighted and over
Marsthe Moon with their elevation, which comes as a revelation. Will you make them knights or just anoint them?You toying with ideas is like Donald Trump playing with the two red buttons on his desk, one was for the Diet Coke Button the other one was for frying the world.
Acutally we could choose the worlds governments, inclusive ours and ship them all to Mars to colonize the rock.
No one would be missed here on earth, and chances are life would go on as if these useless eaters had never existed.
Robertson popped his beak in a couple of days ago.
As Finance Minister, he controls the purse strings and gas been able to find monies for various reasons/projects
Like all things the amount is largely irrelevant, it is a will that is lacking.
Freudian slip there? (gas/has)
Nurses are sure going to have to campaign smarter than a boring old strike (which the system is coping with easily) if they are going to be out-competed by a few old lycra-waddling duffers.
You can pop over to the Nurses Union and tell them how their industrial relations efforts are so weak and then show them HowToGetThere.
nope they don't actually, they could just choose to move overseas to a government that pays them better.
It's a free country. Go for it. We'll just keep importing replacements.
ah, but then you are ok with foreign workers, and then it should be ok for the horticulturist, the Orchadists, the farmers, the booze shops, the universities and all the others that don't want to pay a decent wage in NZ, lead by the government. i
As always with government in NZ, Labour as well as National it is a case of do as we say not as we do. Non of them want 'living wages' or 'decent wages'.
hahahahaha, i am so gonna enjoy the next National / Act government and their 'surplus' tax cuts, for the rich, of whom Robertson, Ardern, and the rest of the dull knights and dames are members of. hahahahahahahah
Nope we should only import who we need. Each has their own category. As you are aware.
will this mean you will stop your endless incessant whingeing?
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/300327417/judith-collins-refuses-to-discuss-conversation-with-nick-smith-ahead-of-his-resignation
The inference we're getting here is that Judith lied to Nick Smith about the breaking scandal to get him to resign. Knowing full well there was no breaking story. So she could get Harete Hipango into the House.
Or am I reading this all wrong?
Kinda stoopid of those cops telling the world how they got their busts..
instead of hauling their informant out into the sunlight and pointing at them ..
you'd think it would have made more sense to just keep that gold mine of information ticking over ..
and occaisonally/selectively harvesting..?
and of course it will not make the slightest difference in the supply of meth etc..
to claim otherwise is a folly..
and of course it is a given…that the war on drugs is an ineffectual keystone cops farce…
and that all drugs should be decriminalised..and treatment etc. moved under the aegis of the health department..
that is the only solution that will work..
Careful where you get your phone.
The legal basis they used worldwide expired.
??..
See Eric Garland's thread of tweets below.
Well no…as soon as the first cases appeared in court the light bulb would have gone on and phones would be heading for the skip smartly.
"ANoM could only be found on phones bought through the black market, which had been stripped of the capability to make calls or send emails, according to the AFP. The phones could only send messages to another device that had the app and criminals needed to know another criminal to get a device.
"The devices organically circulated and grew in popularity among criminals, who were confident of the legitimacy of the app because high-profile organized crime figures vouched for its integrity," the AFP statement said."
well no…if you read the story you will see they have been doing that…using info gained to bust imports…back to 2019..
so I still don't understand why they blew the gaff..
and didn't just continue to milk it..
maybe it was already blewn and thus they explained what they did.
or they wanted the kudos/positive p.r..
I still can't see any 'policing' reason to pull the plug…
If this was a one of, and it was known (or suspicion arose among those targeted) …..then yes pull the plug and only to see if the news would make some more crawl out from under the rocks in order to hide under another.
Let me put it another way. All the arrests around the world were coordinated,
and the point you are trying to make..is..?
The gig was up.
But the cover appeared to be blown in March 2021 when a blogger detailed ANOM security flaws and claimed it was a scam linked to Australia, the United States and other members of the Five Eyes intelligence sharing network. The post was later deleted.
https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/anom-operation-trojan-shield-over-800-arrested-worldwide-in-staggering-global-crime-sting-2459534
Certainly showed the problem of networked crime,and its expansive reach.
https://twitter.com/FBISanDiego/status/1402350093781680138
As a psyop,the enhancement of paranoia,within acute paranoid gangsters will bring fear,and error.
Make what you will of the author but he certainly tells a ripping yarn.
https://twitter.com/ericgarland/status/1402100449013125123
Two for one.
"The erosion of trust in these networks was a primary goal, along with gathering invaluable investigative information."
I'm surprised the internet policing app was used for as long as it got used and no one discovered they were being monitored. Possibly the cops cover would have been blowen as the app would be used as evidence.
for anyone at all interested in hip-hop..the guardian website has a very tidy piece on the history/arc of hip-hop lyrics..
with the appropriate vid-links…
All I need is here:
https://www.thetempleofhiphop.org/
this one is my current favorite.
very clever people.
Good on them. Hope they strike until the DHB (and Government) pull their heads in.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/125372284/nurses-speak-out-before-nationwide-strike
seriously for this alone they should stay on strike for the rest of the week.
that 4 grand has nothing to do with the current wage dispute. Here really the government and DHB are saying that we owe you back pay, but we could advance that for you now, so please dear Nurses *(male/female/others as some seem to think that nursing is a 'female' profession ) stay on strike until the Managarial Goons learn some shame, humility and grow a brain.
For what its worth all of us have needed nurses and medical staff in our lifes, non of us has needed any of the overpaid goons that pretend that 1.38% (below inflation) is a 'pay increase'.
Strike!
Strike!
Strike!
(should have been headline ..)
'bennett blacklisted by tories..!'..)
[time to flex my (blue-pencil) muscles 😀
Please add a link to your comments so that others may get a clue what you’re on about, thanks – Incognito]
Why? She still in politics? or is there just something in the waters of some left leaning people that they rather discuss the National wanabes of yesteryears rather tehn just the regular businesses of strikes, homelessness, violence and crime?
She was always only an attack dog, she knew her role and she fulfilled it to the finest. And now she sells real estate for big bucks, laughing all the way to the bank.
lol
You seem to have missed the post by Mike Smith: https://thestandard.org.nz/nz-nuclear-free-day/.
i did not answer to someone writing a post, i answered to someone who should have posted a link. So nah, i missed nothing. And i don't waste my time with has beens such as the like of Paula Benefit.
heh..!….luv yr long reason why you wouldn't link to the link you demanded from me…
tho' there is anti-tory schadenfreude to burn there..
I'm sure you would find something to please you there ..
(hint:. just Google bennett..and it will all be @ yr fingertips..wallow away..!..)
i just think it is polite to link. Nothing more nothing less. And no i see no reason to google anything National, I have no care for them.
Links are even more important than ever.
So called Journalists should provide them for one.
Helps stop the all to common practice of interviewing their own empty heads.
As shown by Vance’s recent, unsupported by evidence fluff piece.
See my Moderation note @ 8:35 am.
(a short history/arc of the link..)
in the early days of the internet..when everybody had shit/expensive internet-coverage..providing links was crucial…
it was one of the reasons I started/did my proto-aggregation website whoar.co.nz..to provide that service…and I always included the link to every story I posted..
that was then…this is now…when everyone has fast/efficient internet..and in the above case of my made-up tabloid headline..typing bennett into google will bring up all coverage of 'what I am talking about'..namely bennetts' vomiting all over her tory party..and how they dun her wrong…
and I would contend that just providing one link (as you continue to demand) is/can be a negative..is an involuntary controlling of the message..by only giving the reader one perspective..whereby they have to Google to find out more ..(!)
It is for these reasons I feel the arc of importance of 'the link'..has reached it's natural conclusion..
and is increasingly irrelevant/a block on the full picture..
largely..the link is yesterday's imperative..
and should be left just to wither..
and certainly not be demanded of anyone posting anything..
[I did not demand, I asked, nicely and politely. You must have attended the same school as Jenny for not understanding the difference between these two verbs.
Indeed, this is here and now, you’re commenting on TS, not on your proto-site. You take heed of Moderation notes, here and now.
It is good manners to post a link. Don’t expect others to do the digging and Googling; they’re not mind readers.
When I Google “bennett”, I get all sorts of results, including Naftali Bennett, the next PM of Israel.
Please don’t act like an obstinate pillock and include links in your comments, especially when asked by a Moderator, thanks. This is your final warning – Incognito]
You must have an awful lot of time on your hands if that seems like a viable tactic. If you google the word 'tactic' you will find what I'm talking about..
See my Moderation note @ 9:54 am.
So you totally dismiss the case I made re arc of link…?
and choose to again threaten to ban ..?
After the several days of my being back here you following me around sneering insults/trolling at virtually everything I say..?
go read them..!
your abuses of power/harassment of me is over the top..
other people..including yrslf..regularly say things without linking..I read whole threads like that..while I was'nt commenting here..and not a word from you..or any other moderator..
I repeat…why do you single me out for such special treatment..
So you don't like my arguments…esp re animal flesh..eh..?..
So you cancel me…?
'final warning'..?
not very over the top…eh..?
injustice does my fucken head in..
how about telling me what I got wrong in my depiction of the arc/increasing irrelevance/need of the link…
I thought I made quite a relevant case..
would be interested to hear your dismissal…
all I have heard so far is 'polite'..and 'because I said so'
lol
my screen/font settings gave a convenient word wrap:
For me, that's filed under "don't ask questions you don't wanna know the answer to".
Reform for retirees has been a long time coming. It would be a popular move if the government follows the advice and takes the rights of older folk as seriously as younger tenants.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/125371030/retirement-village-residents-have-less-protection-than-tenants–retirement-commissioner-calls-for-urgent-law-reform
From the link above
also from the link as to why nothing will change until this government is shamed into action – from Poto Williams herself
"Asked what plans, if any, she has to move on the commission and Consumer reports to strengthen the Retirement Villages Act, Williams said: "At this stage there are no immediate plans to review the Act, although I acknowledge that the Act is due for review and will work towards this when we can."
Lol. This fucking government.
Seriously the government should be ashamed of itself. All of the goons.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2021/06/kiwi-nurse-exposes-hospital-conditions-that-prompted-her-move-to-australia.html
as the nurse who know lives and work in OZ says: "We want to be recognised for all we do, and unfortunately a pen on international nurses’ day doesn’t cut it."
Back in the day, last century, long service was acknowledged at 25 years and the good old gold watch was the gift.
Nowadays it occurs at 10 years.
Also since the rise of DHB CEOs, carparks were privatized. A fairly significant change in working conditions for many hospital staff.
Not a skerrick of renumeration and often decreased safety as the person in the booth wasn't paid to provide security or folk would park off hospital grounds.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/444325/inquiries-into-unsafe-building-designs-not-published-as-complaints-rise
Two crucial initiatives to clamp down on unsafe building designs are yet to see the light of day, five years after the Kaikōura earthquake.
At the same time, the number of complex complaints about commercial building structural design is rising, according to the Structural Engineering Society.
It says the problem with substandard designs is "unacceptable".
"We've been campaigning for change to prevent quality issues," Structural Engineering Society president, Michelle Grant said.
"We've … strongly voiced our recommendations for greater scrutiny and tighter assessment of structural engineers."
Such is the increase in complex investigations landing at Engineering New Zealand (ENZ) that it has had to hire more engineers and lawyers to tackle the backlog. The body receives between 45-50 complaints each year.
Give over the bridge discussion. Get behind this one now, about buildings which affects us all every day of the week.
but are there votes in that?
Here is something to bite into.
In Australia the rule about agreement to sex or whether it was rape would be laughable if it was in a satirical performance. If it said that previous agreed sex within the period the participants were together should be considered in exoneration, (which I believe was the case for Julian Assange) that would fit the Oz idea of rationality, but not just the sheer force of the man's lust or want.)
However, the court also cited the “high hurdle” it faced on the issue of consent. Under the archaic legal definition of “consent” in place in Australia at the time the incidents had occurred, any belief by the perpetrator that the complainant was consenting – not matter how irrational that belief was – had to be counted as grounds for acquittal. The court cited McLachlan’s “egocentric” personality as an exonerating factor, in that he simply may not have been able to comprehend that his advances would not be reciprocated
Gordon Campbell in Scoop – https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL2106/S00022/on-the-mclachlan-interview-and-the-g-7-global-corporate-tax.htm
Not a surprise, but leaked info from the US IRS confirms billionaires pay very low tax rates compared to ordinary people
https://www.propublica.org/article/the-secret-irs-files-trove-of-never-before-seen-records-reveal-how-the-wealthiest-avoid-income-tax
Meanwhile in NZ, we seem terrified of taxing wealth but are happy to go hammer and tongs with nurses to suppress their pay. To me, these two things are linked.
Why would the wealthy people in government raise taxes on the wealthy or the wealthy companies? heck, we give millions of dollars to come here and make some dumb arse movies.
Please try and limit the number of short sharp irrationalities that you put up Sabine.
Dumb arse movies are common, and watched by many similar people. If made here they provide jobs and a change of business, a bit of diversity from dairy and housing and building war tech for the USA. It will be a good change from selling our stock of houses from under the feet of the NZs who we hope will make some wages from the movie-making.
so the Amazon dude did not get some hundered million and a bit for a movie? 🙂 lol.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/300278243/amazon-may-be-on-the-way-to-new-zealand-as-government-signs-subsidy-deal
but but but
Says here MSD has "blacklisted" the person from receiving help with emergency accommodation.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/news/125336479/eco-lodge-owner-taken-to-tenancy-tribunal-over-bond-money
MSD cannot do this. Help with emergency accommodation is governed by legislation which means if a person is entitled to the help they must receive it. Nobody can stop anyone applying for help under the Act, but when it comes to emergency accommodation MSD do it all the time.
When challenged MSD will of course agree they cannot blacklist anyone, but the fact is that very few people do challenge their decisions so what has become a widespread problem is left to continue because it suits MSD for it to continue even though they know it's wrong.
The money you are trying to raise to pay for the nurses would have to come from …the nurses. They are well paid ,but not as well paid as the Aussies. I’m not being a smart are’s, my wife is a nurse and she is currently on the street protesting, and I agree with her but there aren’t enough rich to tax to get enough money to pay the nurses without taxing the nurses. The point being missed by most is not the 17% increase to the nurses, almost certainly affordable, but the ongoing parity that would then be required for all other govt employees, a huge sum no doubt, well beyond my capacity to calculate and the governments to afford in the short term.. That huge sum can only come from bankrupting the so-called rich which would include ..the nurses.
Adrian, I am minded of the parable that Christ taught about the farmer who got a problem with weeds in his crops. Of course, his listeners were the poor farmers high up the hills whose land was too poor to grow the particular weeds and who never knew the threat to their huge crops complained of by the wealthy farmers on the valley floor.
A bit like a poorly paid worker being told that they would have to pay more tax if they got paid a decent wage commensurate with their hours, skills and social worth.
If only……….
What is the average pay for a nurse? The start at about 55 before tax and after a few years should be at about mid 70? that is not rich, not before tax not after tax. And certainly not when one factors in GST. And certainly not when we consider that these women and men are the ones that will intubate us should we need it, and in case of Covid might be the last people to actually care about the patient more then them just being a dying bag of bones and flesh.
They could however establish a Capital Gains Tax to finance these fancy people called Nurses. Maybe a Land tax? Maybe a luxury tax on certain cars for the very rich? Maybe an 'empty room' tax for those that own houses but keep them empty? I am sure if these people were to put that thinking hat on they would come up with something.
Anyway, i hope she and her collegues will achieve and receive not only bread but also Roses, and maybe some respect. So she has my support.
" The money you are trying to raise to pay for the nurses would have to come from …the nurses. "
Yeah right.
There are about 60,000 nurses working in NZ. Average pay is very roughly $70k. a 10% pay rise (compared to the 1.38% on offer) would cost roughly $420m p.a.
The wealth of NZ's richest person, Graeme Hart, increased (!) by $3.4b since the covid pandemic started. So a 10% pay rise for every nurse in NZ is only 12% of this wealth increase (ignoring his existing enormous wealth). So this single person could easily pay for a 10% increase for every nurse in NZ, for the next 8 years, without losing a cent of his underlying wealth, just his recent increase.
There’s no bottom to the depths these fuckers will sink to.
Three groups opposed to Covid restrictions, masks, and vaccines are hosting conspiracy theorist Naomi Wolf for a fundraiser entitled "Liberate Our Five Freedoms."
The event is going to be held on Juneteenth, the holiday celebrating the end of chattel slavery in the US. Event organizer Kathryn Levin told me that in her view, it's appropriate.
"The 19th is a day of emancipation, and it's a day when we claim our freedom," said Levin. "It's when we see that we are not slaves to mandate. It's when we take our power back."
I asked Levin how she analogized American chattel slavery—where slaves were whipped, beaten, raped, and murdered by their white masters for centuries—to the temporary restrictions over the last 15 months due to the pandemic.
"We have been enslaved by our government," she replied.
https://eoinhiggins.substack.com/p/fresh-off-twitter-ban-naomi-wolf
They think 'It's all about me, precious me, my inviolable rights. Others serve my purpose, and might get some advantage eventually.'
Ironically, these people are perfectly fine with a police state as long as it is them not being policed. They all would have thought George Floyd deserved to die.
Like these 3 people who I used to work with, all through COVID was a plot to impose a police state, but supported Trump.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/444341/climate-change-commission-releases-final-report-says-nearly-all-cars-imported-by-2035-must-be-electric
2035 – 14 years away. So what are we doing in the meantime?
The Climate Change Commission has released its final report laying out the roadmap for the country to slash emissions and become carbon neutral by 2050…
(Plus a lot more. Doesn't say anything about hybrid vehicles in the meantime, which would be helpful while we up the electricity supply.)
Climate Change Minister James Shaw said this government had done more to fight the climate crisis in the last three-and-a-half years than the combined efforts of governments over the last three-and-a-half decades.
"However, we are yet to see a sustained decline in the pollution we put into the atmosphere," Shaw said.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/444345/auckland-named-most-liveable-city-in-the-world
Well. It's time for The Hollies. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmzi0Rc3P8Q
'What more could I ask, There's nothing left to desire!'
Auckland the most liveable city in the world?
You know what, that was said consistently under John Key too, and i bet you a dollar that no one asked those that can't afford rent, are on a benefit in a town that costs per week (without utilities, food, and all other jazz of nice things)
https://www.tenancy.govt.nz/rent-bond-and-bills/market-rent/
Market rent in Avondale (Auckland) 01 Nov 2020 – 30 Apr 2021
If however you are one of the really lucky ones that live in a nice part of town, with a nice wage, and an affordable mortgage, or inherited housing then truly Auckland is a very livable city.
But then…….who was asked and who did the asking?
The wet markets of Wuhan,suspects exonerated Bats and Pangolin's have an alibi.
https://www.ox.ac.uk/news/science-blog/wet-market-sources-covid-19-bats-and-pangolins-have-alibi.
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-91470-2
That's a damned useful bit of research.
That's an extremely limited alibi and exoneration.
Those articles only provide evidence for an argument against the idea that a jump to humans from bats or pangolins occurred at that specific market. It in no way excludes the possibility that patient zero got it from bats or pangolins (or any other species for that matter) somewhere else, then spread it to other humans at the market. Nor does it even exclude the possibility that the jump to humans happened from some other species at the market.
Never mind the myriad other possibilities for zoonotic transfer some other place and time, and that Wuhan maybe just happened to be where the first superspreading event occurred.
Bats and pangolins just happened to have drawn suspicion because they are known to host viruses similar to SARS-CoV-2, to the extent that they commonly have antibodies already circulating that neutralise SARS-CoV-2.. That doesn't mean there aren't other species also hosting similar coronaviruses that we aren't aware of. The original SARS intermediary was likely palm civets, for example, or camels for MERS.
The natural evolution theory gets stronger by the day!
One of the stranger things about moderating TS is seeing how many people make comments and then don't check to see who has replied to them next time the come back. Mods see this when someone's comments are held in the back end until someone responds to a moderation request.
I'd like to know how many people either don't use the Replies list function, or can't see it on their device. What are you all doing?
Tricledrown, if you are reading this, you need to go back to my last reply to you. All your other comments are landing in Trash until this gets sorted out.
I've been doing (tedious) "Find in This Page" searches of the (default) "Comments" tab, so thanks weka for highlighting the "Replies" tab – brilliant!
👍😎what device are you using?
I'm a slow adopter, tethered to my desktop and Firefox – no tablet or smartphone.
Hardly ever look at replies , maybe later in day or next day.
never heard of Replies list function, just found it now
It’s very handy
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/444364/coroner-calls-for-ocean-swimming-advice-after-swimmer-hit-by-boat
Gelberger's body was found the next day, missing his lower left leg, and entire right leg.
Ports of Auckland was fined more than $420,000 in the Auckland District Court following Gelberger's death.
It admitted it had put people's lives at risk because its pilot boats consistently breached speed limits because, it said, they believed they were exempt.
The limits dictate vessels should not exceed five knots when closer than 200m to shore, and must keep to a 12-knot limit between the Harbour Bridge and North Head.
There is an exemption for Ports of Auckland vessels to breach limits if they are unable to carry out duties, but this applies only in limited circumstances.
In court, the company was found to have breached the rules on about 99 percent of its trips.
This seems the way things are in NZ. Power tends to corrupt etc. Why does someone have to be killed before the value of the precautionary policy is recognised? It was too fast, and not allowed at that time anyway.
As reported the proposed pay rates by DHBs for the nursing sector
Healthcare Assistants $40,382 a year, through to $48,003. This will range of $45,310 to $53,359. That is a total pay increase of between 4.6 per cent for those on step two of the pay scale, and 11.7 per cent for those at the top.
Enrolled nurses are currently paid between $48,632 and $57,047. The new agreement would take that to $53,998 to $59,447, or a total increase of 11 per cent for the step one nurses through to 4.2 per cent for step four
Senior midwives would see their pay increase from $79,760 for grade two through to $130,653 for grade eight, to $83,157 to $133,486.
Registered Nurses total pay increase between 3.1 per cent and 4.4 per cent, to reach a band of $56,434 to $79,786.
Most NZNO members are in the RN category and on the top scale ( after 7 years) of $80 k per year
My neighbour was on top scale and I would see her each morning waiting for Uber instead of the bus just around the corner
she.took.an.uber!
Can someone explain to me why 30 people would be in handcuffs for 'questioning' after a hit and run in Auckland?
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/south-auckland-fatal-hit-and-run-crash-up-to-30-people-handcuffed-in-mangere-heavy-police-presence/JDAHZGDRQRBKCVSCSIVTEXX3KY/
Or is that selective over policing in certain areas of town? Have a good look at this picture and ask yourself if that is a normal action to a 'hit and run'. Also who suggested firearms had been involved and when that weapon failed to materialized why was the present police force not told to put their weapons away?
It wasnt a hit and run ! First reports arent always accurate
Why does this concern you now , Im sure you can wait till tomorrow when more will be released. A person is dead after an some sort of violence in a house , a car was attacked in the street and some masked people drove off … and thats what neighbors have said at around 5 PM reports
Is that your alter ego , a TV reporter for those real life crime shows ?
I just asked because i read the article and i could not quite get it sorted. It seems there were at least two if not three incidents. And having the cops stand there with what look like assault weapons in suburbia should concern all of us, unless of course we think that cops with assault weapons in the street is Kiwi as.
Never mind, you were not answering. 🙂
If you want to take on a gang-related fatal street fight with a cheery smile and a whistle, be our guest.