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Open mike 10/01/2022

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, January 10th, 2022 - 78 comments
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For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose.

The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy).

Step up to the mike …

78 comments on “Open mike 10/01/2022 ”

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  1. Dennis Frank 1
    10 January 2022 at 6:20 am

    Greens voter slags the Greens:

    The Greens are as alienating as a Spin-off dinner party where everyone is arguing over who hates white men the most.

    But there's more!

    The Greens repeatedly get screwed over by Labour in a never ending cycle of abuse that started with Helen Clark and you kind of feel like someone should step in and intervene now.

    Jacinda’s tepid incrementalism will not be challenged by the Greens, it will be supported by them. As the climate crisis events explode over the next 2 years, as welfare reform goes no where, as housing stagnates, as poverty spreads, the Greens will sit alongside Labour like a parasitic twin unable to think for itself let alone change things.

    I've made a few milder comments onsite here over the past year so I'm not disagreeing with his view, just inclined to cut Labour some slack on the basis of prioritising pandemic management. Let's see what this year brings us before rendering a verdict.

    It is rapidly becoming apparent that Labour and the Greens are not the political vehicle for transformative change. With Labour too focused on preventing Covid from exploding in NZ and the Greens now gagged, no forward thinking vision on how to transform things will be articulated.

    It’s a Labour + Green supported Government, that gives them 75 seats in a 120 seat Parliament and yet they STILL CAN’T be transformative?

    Sad, but true. They believe they must walk and therefore they can't possibly chew gum at the same time. Conformity rules, ok?

    The Greens don’t know if they are Arthur or Martha and if they did they would need a 7month hui to discuss pronoun use.

    Dunno if it would take that long. More likely a couple of hours on a zoom call to hear all views, after which the Executive would meet to thrash out a way to fake consensus.

    Despite my contempt for what the Greens have mutated into I will still probably vote for them in 2023 but will jump the second there is a real alternative.

    There Is No Alternative. TINA. Got it?

    Imagine Jacinda as Prime Minister with Chloe as Deputy.

    https://thedailyblog.co.nz/2022/01/09/green-party-implosion-in-5432/

    Alternate realities can be fun. They can be instructive too, providing guidance. This one will not be permitted by Labour during this term. Get a grip, lad, the path to resilience gets easier if you toughen up first…

    • Robert Guyton 1.1
      10 January 2022 at 7:51 am

      "I warned the Greens!", warbles Bradbury, as he regularly does.

      "I know what's best for them!" he doubtless thinks.

      • Blazer 1.1.1
        10 January 2022 at 8:19 am

        Are you happy with the GP ,its leadership and performance Robert?

        • Robert Guyton 1.1.1.1
          10 January 2022 at 8:37 am

          I have a little insight into governance and the challenges it holds and expect the Green leadership will be engaged in navigating those as best they can – mostly, anyone from outside of the "circle" won't be able to accurately gauge what's happening inside, so I don't expect to hear anything much beyond speculation tinged with prejudice on the issue of James & Marama. Accounts from high-profile people who have worked with James indicate that he's very able indeed and held in high regard in and around Parliament. I have met Marama – she seemed very capable also. Likeable too. I still celebrate The Green's having achieved the position they now hold, particularly when I remember how they were portrayed/regarded/treated in the years prior to this present situation, where they hold significant roles and sit beside, not opposite to, the Government.

          • Anne 1.1.1.1.1
            10 January 2022 at 9:56 am

            Good response to a good question Robert. You are the right person to ask because we know the answer will be a rational one.

            I have a little insight into governance and the challenges it holds and expect the Green leadership will be engaged in navigating those as best they can – mostly, anyone from outside of the "circle" won't be able to accurately gauge what's happening inside.

            To put it another way: too many ignorant loud mouthed pseudo 'experts' think they can dogmatically crucify political parties of a left persuasion in particular despite their having no knowledge what they're talking about. Journos figure prominently among them. 😉

          • Blade 1.1.1.1.2
            10 January 2022 at 9:58 am

            So you don't consider Marama a liability for the Greens, Robert? I do, although I'm only going by her public utterances.

            • Robert Guyton 1.1.1.1.2.1
              10 January 2022 at 10:42 am

              I don't, Blade. Have you been watching/listening to any of her interviews around Maori issues, particularly those made by Maori media? She's respected and hardworking, imo.

              • Blade …
                10 January 2022 at 11:47 am

                I saw one of her interviews on Maori TV. She was OK.

                I believe she is in her co-leadership position as a token gesture to diversity. When Metiria Turei was disgraced, they seem to have picked another Maori person just to show the electorate not all Maori are bad.

                Jeanette Fitzsimons noted in the 90s that the Greens had to expand from their hard leftist roots if they wanted to gain political power.

                She was right. But that expansion has come at a cost. The Greens have gained factions the further they moved from their roots. I predicted last year the Greens would splinter. The run up to the next election will put huge pressure on all Green factions. What gives will be the question.

                James and Marama are living on borrowed time in my opinion,

                • Robert Guyton …
                  10 January 2022 at 12:00 pm

                  We are all of us, on borrowed time, Blade. Wider circumstances will dictate the future of The Greens, as they will all of us. They have taken an ideological position that will bring them further and further forward into the political and public "lime-light" – they recognised this long ago and have remained true to their realisation. Risk-taking now could jeopardise all that preparatory work. While relative caution has its downside (criticism from risk-taking supporters), maintaining a position where their very presence has a positive effect across the Parliament and public sphere (The Greens are in! The Greens are still in! What has the world come to!! * say all critics of The Greens) is vital. Their sinking back into Opposition and losing that "iconic" role would be something to worry all of us, Imo.

                  • Dennis Frank …
                    10 January 2022 at 12:08 pm

                    sinking back into Opposition

                    That's the subtext of what we get from the complaining Greens. Just wanna oppose govt when it doesn't do sufficiently leftist stuff. Sorta like driving a car while continually turning the steering wheel to the left regardless of whether the car is approaching a left turn or not.

          • Gosman 1.1.1.1.3
            10 January 2022 at 10:12 am

            The Greens have essentially created a noose for their own neck by taking two Associate Minister positions in areas of policy where it is highly improbable that there will be improvement even if they could implement any significant policy changes (which they won't be able to do). Taking on Housing and Family violence will just mean the Greens get blamed when nothing improves.

            • Robert Guyton 1.1.1.1.3.1
              10 January 2022 at 10:44 am

              Big ups then for The Greens in taking on those roles, knowing they'd be thankless ones. Lesser politicians would perhaps choose easier challenges, for the sake of looking good in the public's eye; kudos to the Green MPs for their integrity, I say.

              • Gosman …
                10 January 2022 at 10:52 am

                It might be noble but it is terrible politics. If the Greens want to be regarded as serious players they need to get better at playing the game. Politics is about the art of the possible. The Greens should focus on the areas that they can make progress in. Climate change is an obvious area which they are doing this in however they should have stuck to areas like conservation or even welfare reform where they could implement changes that might make a difference rather than housing and family violence.

                • Robert Guyton …
                  10 January 2022 at 10:58 am

                  Get better at playing the game?

                  They seem to be sitting on the better side of the House, Gosman.

                  That's well-played, in my opinion.

                  The Greens should, The Greens should, intone their opponents.

                  Perhaps The Greens have and are.

                  They're not flailing helplessly on the Opposition benches, as other small parties are and will be for some considerable time yet.

                  • Puckish Rogue …
                    10 January 2022 at 11:00 am

                    Power for the sake of power, is that it Robert?

                    • Robert Guyton …
                      10 January 2022 at 11:03 am

                      Of course that's what I meant, Pucky!

                      It's the only goal of politics and The Greens are just like every other party, right – that's why, as Gosman points out, they choose only the soft-option roles … oh … hang on …

                    • Puckish Rogue …
                      10 January 2022 at 11:06 am

                      Are they achieving what you'd like them to achieve given what Winston was able to do?

                    • Tricledrown []
                      10 January 2022 at 11:27 am

                      Loosing representation in Parliament after going with Labour.

                      That's priceless 🤣

                      The Greens are in for the longterm and don't rely on one person to gain power.

                      PR what you want is for the greens to collapse their vote.or to Moderate their policies to be able to form a coalition with National with policies that don't change anything.

                      The blue rinsing of the Greens something Winston was able to do.

                      The only chance National has to form a Coalition next election.

                      Winston's Days are over he only ever sucked in National voters who wanted to put a handbrake on Labour.

                    • Robert Guyton …
                      10 January 2022 at 11:24 am

                      Do I wish The Greens played the same sort of game Winston plays?

                      No thank you.

                      Their game is a long one. It's not surprising people scratch and itch when they don't see the plays they are used to seeing in other parties.

                      Are they achieving what I'd like them to achieve?

                      I'm confident they'll achieve all they can and they certainly don't need me chiding them. As to what I'd like to see happen, in politics, society, the environment and so on… no party comes very close to what I'd like to see (will see 🙂 but The Greens are at least within cooee 🙂

                    • Puckish Rogue …
                      10 January 2022 at 11:38 am

                      At Tricledrown:

                      'or to Moderate their policies to be able to form a coalition with National with policies that don't change anything.'

                      Well close but, as an example, I would like to see no more dairy farms in areas where they're not sustainable, less water taken out of Canterbury rivers and mandatory shade shelters put up in paddocks

                      I think thats something that would be quite achievable for a National/Green coalition or a Labour/Green coalition

                      At Robert, a very long game indeed

                    • Tricledrown []
                      10 January 2022 at 2:26 pm

                      PR after Nick Smith single handedly undermined Ecan allowing unfettered pollution to destroy Canterbury rivers.

                      The chances of the Greens going into coalition with National are Zero.

                      So you would be better voting Green and Labour that would a least give a chance for Rivers to be cleaned up.

                      Under National more rivers will be damaged.

                    • Robert Guyton …
                      10 January 2022 at 11:51 am

                      Pucky – all that glisters is not gold – it's the unseen shifting of the Overton Window that I'm watchful for. I've seen this in my own council, to dramatic effect, over time but am aware that members of the public can't easily detect the changes, as they are looking for different markers.

            • Gezza 1.1.1.1.3.2
              10 January 2022 at 10:47 am

              Hmm. Yeah, I think having the Greens on board is useful for Labour in that any policies that are good for addressing climate change or the environment but that might be unpopular with voters also ensures that any dissatisfaction is directed at the Greens rather than Labour.

              But against this has to be balanced the likelihood that many ordinary voters & younger voters in particular will likely approve of them.

              I don’t think the Greens are doing too badly out of the current cooperation arrangement.

              Addressing family violence & housing (homelessness) are certainly going to be big challenges though. There’s only so far one can take blaming family violence on a century of colonial oppression & I think that’s been done to death in the minds of most voters now. Somewhere along the line those who commit family violence are going to have to take responsibility for their bad behaviour themselves.

              And filling the towns’ & cities’ hotels & motels & Kainga Ora state housing up with some homeless people that are gang members or affiliates, and antisocials, is generating negative reactions from ordinary townfolk who have to suffer the consequences of gang-related drug dealing/usage, violence & general antisocial behaviour they weren’t previously cursed with.

              But I don’t think the Greens will carry the can problems in these two areas. I think Labour will.

    • roy cartland 1.2
      10 January 2022 at 8:15 am

      There's some truth to his argument, but he's mixed up cause and effect. He slates them continually, urging his readers off them, then complains when they don't have leverage.

      So they try any strategy to get cut through (wacky things, straight, boring things) then get slated for that.

      I reckon if he encouraged his readers to vote for them, so Labour actually needed them, THEN they'd be able to demand more policy without compromise.

      Couldn't be worse than his current strategy.

      • Dennis Frank 1.2.1
        10 January 2022 at 9:08 am

        they don't have leverage

        They actually do, Roy, insofar as they are partly within & partly without. So you can see they have a triad of options:

        1. operating within the govt, which is what the co-leaders are doing

        2. remainder of caucus operating outside the govt, of which the apparent lack thereof is the basis for the complaints from the disaffected Greens

        3. using a principled basis to integrate those two and communicating the strategy to the party, the broader Green movement, and the public

        Note that the comms strategy they ain't using is likewise a triad. That's an example of how suitable political framing can be derived from metaphysics.

        • roy cartland 1.2.1.1
          10 January 2022 at 9:43 am

          The GP also don't have the adequate media coverage. So they'll try a combination of protests and stunts (C-word rally), compromise, if that's the right word (meetings with Feds), cage-rattling (Chloe's debating other poli's), and irony (that unicorn picture). Any publicity is good publicity and all that.

          My point is that Bradbury and others can't seem to differentiate between the actions they are able to perform versus what the rest of the electorate 'must be thinking about them' (because they only see through the media lens). I just think it would be way more helpful if we highlighted the good stuff, which would translate to votes, then to action. Shaming them for how they appear just isn't working in our favour.

          • Dennis Frank 1.2.1.1.1
            10 January 2022 at 10:24 am

            That's a very good psychological point. Too subtle for most punters, no doubt! But definitely one that any pr or media pro the GP is using ought to get their head around tout suite! yes

  2. Dennis Frank 2
    10 January 2022 at 6:36 am

    More and more people around the world are suffering because their immune systems can no longer tell the difference between healthy cells and invading micro-organisms. Disease defences that once protected them are instead attacking their tissue and organs.

    https://www.theguardian.com/science/2022/jan/08/global-spread-of-autoimmune-disease-blamed-on-western-diet

    The focus of the reporter is research "to identify common genetic patterns among those suffering from an autoimmune disease". Blaming fast food is easy, habitual, and I've never noticed correlative evidence being amassed to support it. I'm more inclined to suspect the web of electromagnetic fields we live in, which has intensified considerably in recent decades.

    Think of it as a matrix. It is a deep dimension of our environmental habitat which we can escape only via retreat to living remotely. Science has discovered various ways that organisms are effected by these dynamic intangible components of our life matrix. The pandemic highlights the relation of the health of victims to the state of their auto-immune defence system. I hope researchers take a broader view.

    • Robert Guyton 2.1
      10 January 2022 at 7:52 am

      A touch of 5G-itis this morning, Dennis?

      • Dennis Frank 2.1.1
        10 January 2022 at 8:37 am

        smiley A slight touch, no more. Just enough to remind us of the longish concern that the 5G pathology arises from – the historical context stretching back to the mid-20th century. The entirety of the thing is vast.

        I've been diffidently attempting to encompass it throughout my life. Easy to see how those without scientific education get spooked by simplifying it!

    • miravox 2.2
      10 January 2022 at 1:00 pm

      Love how so many people look for a single cause for a complex problem.

      Yes, DNA hasn't changed, but we're living a lot longer and counting better – especially in emergent economies/nations . Rheumatoid Arthritis, one of the highlighted examples, is prevalent in older age groups, despite onset often occurring much, much younger.

      The headline is playing to the crowd. Further down is the more important:

      If you look at some autoimmune diseases – for example, lupus – it has become clear recently there are many different versions of them, that may be caused by different genetic pathways,” said Vinuesa. “And that has a consequence when you are trying to find the right treatment.

      “We have lots of potentially useful new therapies that are being developed all the time, but we don’t know which patients to give them to, because we now realise we don’t know exactly which version of the disease they have. And that is now a key goal for autoimmune research. We have to learn how to group and stratify patients so we can give them the right therapy.”

      For Rheumatoid, tobacco smoking (primary or secondhand) is a proven environmental factor in the development of an important 'version' and there probably a range of other environmental factors, fast food might be one, or not one at all.

      • Dennis Frank 2.2.1
        10 January 2022 at 2:11 pm

        Yes I see it as a natural consequence of biodiversity but also of complex systems generally. Reductionists are averse to such contemporary views.

        Correlating patients with causes & effects requires pattern-matching ability, and is more inherently sophisticated than the old put 'em in known simple categories…

        • miravox 2.2.1.1
          10 January 2022 at 3:13 pm

          Reductionists are averse to such contemporary views.

          Also reductionists write headlines. Did you see how many times that piece has been shared?! I'm not looking forward to another round of 'advice' from the 'well-being' people (apologies to the ones that do good work).

          I keep thinking about a review I once did on childhood immune-mediated inflammatory arthritis. There's a known decent correlation between peaks and earlier bacterial/viral disease outbreaks. It could be interesting, with Covid, to review the number of cases of various auto-immune diseases in a few years.

  3. Dennis Frank 3
    10 January 2022 at 7:48 am

    What if the law were not merely a fossilised instrumental arm of the patriarchy? What if it were to transform itself into a force for good? Natural rights! Dr Greg Severinsen is a senior policy adviser at the Environmental Defence Society and has a PhD in resource management law:

    In a recent article in Policy Quarterly I outlined the different kinds of justice we can use to scrutinise whether change is necessary for our seas. These include distributional (or intragenerational) equity, environmental justice, intergenerational justice, ecological justice, and procedural justice. Cutting across all of these is te Tiriti o Waitangi and indigenous justice.

    Ecological justice is different. It is more about the interests and rights of nature itself, and looking at ways we can give the natural world a “voice” in its own future… Perhaps nature as a whole should be recognised as an entity with recognisable rights that can be defended in court

    No perhaps about it – the necessity has been evaded far too long already. We expect the law profession to conserve the past and ignore the future as usual, but when the survival of humanity is at stake we need legal advocates to extricate themselves from their congenital laziness and make progress instead. Advocates for Gaia are essential.

    We don’t internalise the true costs of resource use to those causing damage, and the polluter doesn’t pay – society does. So too do future generations. Coastal communities, Māori and others who rely on the ocean for food and wellbeing are often disproportionately affected by such damage in their watery backyards. For some, including Māori, this harm can also have a spiritual or metaphysical component…. humans could be viewed as part of a complex web of relationships with the natural world that needs to be respected. We are not just resource users. The environment is not just a supermarket shelf. That view is more consistent with te ao Māori, which considers whakapapa and whanaungatanga (kinship relationships) to be at the heart of environmental management, with the moana taking pride of place as an ancestor.

    https://www.newsroom.co.nz/climate-emergency/ecological-justice-and-oceans-reform

  4. jpwood 4
    10 January 2022 at 9:22 am

    January 9 2022 the date that the NZ Herald launched the National party election campaign for 2023:

  5. Puckish Rogue 5
    10 January 2022 at 10:58 am

    Cricket, cricket, cricket!

    Well day one was not quite what I was expecting but then the first test didn't go as I thought it would.

    The Black Caps were obviously hurt by their performance in the first test and surprised by the outstanding performance by Bangladesh so they wanted to put out a statement and did they ever

    Are the Black Caps looking to put on their biggest test score ever, previously 715/6 declared against Bangladesh 2019, bat 7 sessions and bowl them out twice?

    Is Will Young shaping up to be the new Mark Richardson, average 45 but only 4 100s and a high of 140 so reliable and consistently made good scores but didn't push on and if Young does turn out like Richardson is that bad thing (I don't think it is at all)

    Will the Boss get a 100 in his last game, will it matter?

    Can Bangladesh come back from (two days in the field in hot weather takes it out of you)

    • Dennis Frank 5.1
      10 January 2022 at 11:16 am

      Conway's third century in his first five tests certainly seems an admirable foundation for a test career. Statistics suggests he could maintain that 60% rate if he stabilises self-discipline with technique…

      • Puckish Rogue 5.1.1
        10 January 2022 at 11:18 am

        A top five of:

        Latham

        Young

        Williamson

        Conway

        Nicholls

        Isn't too shabby at all

        • Dennis Frank 5.1.1.1
          10 January 2022 at 11:23 am

          Not only that, it's promising for the future. I started listening to test cricket in the mid-1950s when we were non-contenders & like the way the side has been trending in recent years… yes

          • Puckish Rogue 5.1.1.1.1
            10 January 2022 at 11:31 am

            Yeah our middle order batting looks strong and guys waiting in the wings, all these guys average 40+ in FC cricket:

            Mark Chapman (handy spinner)

            Dane Clever (wicket keeper)

            Tom Bruce

        • Stephen D 5.1.1.2
          10 January 2022 at 12:05 pm

          Will Williamson recover from the elbow injury?

          • Puckish Rogue 5.1.1.2.1
            10 January 2022 at 12:11 pm

            I'd imagine he would and even if it takes a little longer we finally have the depth to cover him being out (as much as you can cover someone like Williamson)

      • alwyn 5.1.2
        10 January 2022 at 12:22 pm

        That would be quite a feat. After all Bradman only got centuries in 56% of the tests he played and Tendulkar only got a century in 26% of his tests.

        Do you think that Conway is better than they were?

        • Dennis Frank 5.1.2.1
          10 January 2022 at 2:05 pm

          Too soon to say, eh? Most unlikely to be in Bradman's class, that's for sure. There's a natural tendency for young guys to start well and then fade slowly – notice how Williamson has been unable to maintain the high standard he set in his first few years, for instance.

          • Puckish Rogue 5.1.2.1.1
            10 January 2022 at 2:13 pm

            I'd be more than happy with Conway averaging only 50 over his entire test career… wink

    • Puckish Rogue 5.2
      10 January 2022 at 11:23 am

      Well the Boss certainly has a good chance of a 100 now…

    • Stephen D 5.3
      10 January 2022 at 12:04 pm

      Regarding team selection.

      Shouldn't you select your best bowlers no matter what the conditions?

      And if the bowler who could take wickets when no one else could is one of your best, shouldn't they be selected?

      • Puckish Rogue 5.3.1
        10 January 2022 at 12:31 pm

        I see your point but conditions come into it as well (Patel 10 for against India) plus the need for rotation so your bowlers don't break down has to be considered

        Personally I like variation so my team (assuming injury free) would be:

        1. Latham

        2. Young (I'd prefer NZ develop another opening batter)

        3. Williamson

        4. Conway

        5. Nicholls

        6. Mitchell (keep it tight at one end for the others to attack)

        7. Seifert (though I'd like to see him score some runs)

        8. Kyle Jamieson (height for variety)

        9. Trent Boult (left arm swing for variety)

        10. Adam Milne/Ben Sears/bowler that clocks above 145 (pace for variety)

        11. Patel (spinner for variety)

        Wagner and Southee would then come in to rest bowlers or as injury replacements (the pace bowlers most likely)

        • Stephen D 5.3.1.1
          10 January 2022 at 2:02 pm

          Possibly Jamieson will evolve into a proper allrounder.

          Hold his place as both bowler and batter. At the moment our all rounders don't achieve that.

          Then he could bat at 6, and leave room for another bowler.

          • Puckish Rogue 5.3.1.1.1
            10 January 2022 at 2:15 pm

            Yeah that would be good as we haven't had any genuine all rounders since Chris Cairns and Dan Vettori but I sort of see it like Tim Southee

            I think Tim Southee could have worked on his batting a more and contributed a bit more with the bat but, and its a pretty big but, hes taken over 300 test wickets at under 29, only the third NZ player to do so

            Would he have taken over 300 wickets if he'd concentrated on his batting a bit more…I don't know but in the same vein for Kyle I'd rather see him concentrate on his bowling and bowl teams out and therefore win

            I mean if he can do both then great but bowlers win matches and maybe Mitchell can become the number 6 (and bowl a tight line like Chatfield) and Ravindra can come in at 7 or that Nathan Smiths not tracking badly …

            • Stephen Doyle 5.3.1.1.1.1
              10 January 2022 at 2:50 pm

              Didn’t think we’d declare so early. Usually 30/40 minutes before stumps? Or just before lunch on day 3.

              • Puckish Rogue …
                10 January 2022 at 2:57 pm

                Yeah I thought at least another 20 overs, take the score to 600 and still have 10 sessions to bowl them out twice would have been a better plan

                Theres forecast for rain on Wednesday but it doesn't look to bad…still if they win it'll be deemed a good decision by the captain especially in light of the last ashes test

                • alwyn …
                  10 January 2022 at 5:52 pm

                  Why would they bother? In the first test New Zealand only got 63 runs in the first innings after the fall of the sixth wicket and only 15 in the same interval in the second innings. At that sort of rate we would only have got another 40 or so runs and all the bowlers would have to have gone out to bat. We are probably better of having all the bowlers ready to fire without having to have a session out there batting.

              • Puckish Rogue …
                10 January 2022 at 3:26 pm

                11/4 so maybe not a bad decision laugh

                • Stephen Doyle …
                  10 January 2022 at 4:28 pm

                  Not wanting to get ahead of myself but…

                  Do you enforce the follow on if they’re more than 250/300 behind. Aussie seem not, and it works for them.

                  • Craig H …
                    10 January 2022 at 4:42 pm

                    I think the captain asks the bowlers if they can do it or if they need a session off, basically. Hot weather down here, but on the other hand, unsettled weather later in the week, so a finely balanced decision.

                  • Puckish Rogue …
                    10 January 2022 at 6:50 pm

                    I would enforce because they basically played a one dayer so less bowling and less time in the field than usual plus they probably want a little bit of payback so an innings victory will on their minds

                    So yeah should be good to go again tomorrow however if the bowlers are feeling a bit iffy then you'd have to take that into account

                    • logie97 …
                      10 January 2022 at 7:14 pm

                      Nice to see a different thread on this site. So while we are at it, when can we return to a commentary team of articulate knowledgeable pundits rather than the qualification of "I've played test cricket so I'm an expert." Commentary used to be given by wordsmiths who had a grounding in the game. As for television we are constantly given "expertise" on what we can see for ourselves.

                      And finally – when did the expression "running between the wickets" come in – where else do batsmen run to – square leg?

                      Actually it's not finally. The second new ball came after 160 overs or 400 runs. The new ball was due after 80 overs.

                      Ian Galloway, Alan McGilvray and Brian Johnston would be embarrassed by this current lot. (Right throughout the cricketing world of commentary boxes)

                    • alwyn …
                      10 January 2022 at 8:29 pm

                      @logie97

                      I fear that, to get some truly great commentators we are going to have to find some way of reincarnating the dead.

                      I always thought the best were Brian Johnstone and Richie Benaud. Johnstone unfortunately died in 1994 and Benaud in 2015 so getting them back in the commentary box might be difficult.

                      Benaud had one practice I always approved of. He was doing commentary before they had the third umpire but while they had instant replay on TV. He would show you the replay and sometimes the umpire had made a mistake. However he would always finish by playing the incident at full speed with the comment that "That was what the umpire saw". At full speed it was very easy to see how they could get it wrong.

  6. Stephen D 6
    10 January 2022 at 11:53 am

    It’ll be interesting to see how National play the early part of the year. Luxon seems to have decided to drop the consistently negative approach to our Covid response.

    Attack lines are going to have to be carefully managed. Housing, immigration, inflation, poverty, all have serious fish hooks for National given their track record over their last term in office. My guess would be inflation will be a primary target. Voters don’t really care that it’s not the government’s fault when it comes to supply chains, product shortages etc. National will be blaming the government as much as they can.

    Whether it works or not, time will tell.

  7. Pete 7
    10 January 2022 at 12:14 pm

    I was pleased to see this:

    Fake vax exemption doctor Jonie Girouard 'no longer able to practise in New Zealand'

    "The North Canterbury doctor under investigation for allegedly issuing fake vaccine exemptions can no longer practise medicine in New Zealand.

    Dr Jonie Girouard – who runs a weight loss clinic – is an unvaccinated GP who was captured in an undercover Newshub sting late last year issuing fake certificates and coaching patients on how to get away with using them."

    https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/covid-19-delta-outbreak-fake-vax-exemption-doctor-jonie-girouard-no-longer-able-to-practise-in-new-zealand/ELYAK5VECGTJDU6KLBDQTX4DEM/

  8. Blade 8
    10 January 2022 at 1:27 pm

    Went to a garage sale on the weekend. It was at the front of six units of flats. I talked to a bro who was running the garage sale. He said the landlord was selling up because of new rules around renting. He said all tenants had told the landlord they wouldn't complain about anything even if the flats didn't meet new standards. But the landlord said it was too risky. The bro and one other flat tenant are the lucky ones. They both have clapped out vans that could be slept in. The other tenants will be hitting the streets. Not a good situation. But it's happening all over New Zealand. Its another reason why this Labour coalition gummint has to go. We need firm policy from National as to how they will tackle these renting market issues. Will they have the guts to make changes? Or will it be another typical Tory government that continues the status quo? I said last year it's only a matter of time before visible tent communities spring up all over New Zealand. It looks like that process is well under way.

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/127062235/the-people-sleeping-rough-in-nelson

    • Tony Veitch (not etc.) 8.1
      10 January 2022 at 2:01 pm

      Einstein's (I think it was) definition of insanity was doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.

      Expecting a Natz government to give a solitary f**k about the poor of this country seems to fit the definition of insanity to me.

      • Stuart Munro 8.1.1
        10 January 2022 at 2:17 pm

        Expecting a Natz government to give a solitary f**k about the poor of this country seems to fit the definition of insanity to me.

        True – and yet it would probably be their best competitive strategy. Housing has already been identified as a govt. weak point – if National actually got off their gluteus and did something useful for the first time in four or five decades, they might have a dogs show of getting back in.

        I've been spending a bit of time in the MacKenzie recently. One cannot help but notice that none of our current parties seems up to public interest projects on the scale of the canals. They are like jackals slinking through the ruins of our country – certainly not the equal of the parties that went before them.

        • Puckish Rogue 8.1.1.1
          10 January 2022 at 2:22 pm

          Ok so if all prices are raising but Christchurch is still rated as affordable (for now)

          https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/454639/christchurch-housing-remains-affordable-despite-rising-prices

          The question should be asked is how did Christchurch manage this and can it be done in other centres

          • Stuart Munro 8.1.1.1.1
            10 January 2022 at 8:29 pm

            Christchurch suffered a bit of an inflexion a few years back, and one of the curiosities in the way it was rebuilt, where it was, is that many rebuilds have, shall we say, a whiff of Evergrande about them – they seem somehow less permanent than they might be.

            The first cause is still going strong all around the Ring of Fire, but as a housing solution, it does not bend especially readily to human convenience:

            And if California slides into the ocean
            Like the mystics and statistics say it will
            I predict this motel will be standing until I pay my bill ~ Warren Zevon

            I have a feeling however, that good governance lies more in deliberate constructive action, than in abandoning one's responsibilities to either the vagaries of 'the market' or to the cthonic forces released along the subduction zones of the Pacific plate.

          • Dennis Frank 8.1.1.1.2
            10 January 2022 at 9:06 pm

            Wizards aren't famous for explaining their spells – hadn't you noticed??

      • Blade 8.1.2
        10 January 2022 at 2:37 pm

        Doing something different is the way to go when facing a vexing problem. However, doing something different – successfully or not – to only align with your ideological worldview is no better than keeping the status quo.

  9. logie97 9
    10 January 2022 at 6:59 pm

    Ah, bliss at last.

    I had occasion to call the Apple-online assistance today. And the automated system gave me some options. What type of music I should prefer in the possible/likely event, that I might be on hold. I could choose Contemporary, Classic, Jazz, and (well I do not know how many further options because I had already pressed "2" for classical. Sadly, it didn't last the eternity of our IP's, Insurances, IRD or other help desks. Apple were too efficient and someone in The Philippines soon interrupted my blissful disposition and took up my service request. However, if only …

    …one can still hope. Just who is it that selects the screeching crass sounds that pass for music on most "waiting" systems.

  10. fender 10
    10 January 2022 at 8:55 pm

    The credibility of this site takes a hit when any old shit like the It's Time junk is allowed past the vetting process.

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