TPP Just in case you missed it late yesterday, and because Submissions are due by
5pm on Wednesday, 30 March 2016 I am repeating this post.
Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Paul Goldsmith today released a consultation document showing how the Government proposes to implement the intellectual property changes required to ratify the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP).
“While most of the provisions are consistent with New Zealand’s existing intellectual property settings, some changes to our laws will be required before we can ratify the final agreement.
“Releasing the consultation document shows how the changes could be implemented and allows for public comment and input before legislation is introduced to Parliament.
“The changes include a revised regime for technological protection measures, or digital locks, patent term extensions in certain situations when there are unreasonable delays in examining the patent or getting regulatory approval, a more extensive performers’ rights regime and new powers for Customs to detain goods that infringe copyright or registered trademarks.
“TPP has been the most widely-consulted Free Trade Agreement in New Zealand’s history and I encourage New Zealanders with an interest in intellectual property to have their say,” Mr Goldsmith says.
The intellectual property changes will be included in a bill covering all domestic legislative changes required to ratify TPP. This bill is expected to be introduced to Parliament this year.
“New Report on Trans-Pacific Partnership Trade Deal Raises Serious Concerns about Corporate Misalignment”
BERKELEY, Calif., March 9, 2016 /PRNewswire/ — A new report by the Haas Institute for a Fair and Inclusive Society at the University of California, Berkeley finds that the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), the mega-regional trade deal, raises serious concerns about how a world economy reregulated to suit corporate interests would undermine public accountability, transparency, and democratic participation.
Co-authored by john a. powell, Elsadig Elsheikh, and Hossein Ayazi, the Haas Institute’s analysis underscores how the TPP would grant greater transnational corporate influence over the fate of one third of all world trade, with TPP signatory members producing 40 percent of all global economic output.
The TPP’s nuanced provisions will give corporations the power to evade environmental regulations, bypass national courts and override governments, and control workers’ movements throughout the TPP countries.
Since the release of TPP text, debate has emerged over whether the trade deal will, in fact, stimulate economic growth and create jobs or violate labor laws and tank the economies of developing nations. While these discussions address important concerns, they have also overshadowed the deeper implications of the TPP. If it passes, the TPP would threaten key democratic principles, such as transparency and public accountability.
The USA is a degenerate society. That is why people don’t feel safe and have to carry guns. And they are so inward looking that the woman has a photo of her wearing makeup, a chosen outfit with expensive hat and large gun, and considers it a good thing to publish not an example of the endtimes for the country.
And what values has she to teach her wee son. She is bereft of them, living in a nation, that tries to keep it glossy on top but underneath is a simmering lot of sewage which is as full of toxic things as Flint water, and can never be cleansed and drunk safely. Probably the problem is their own polluted drinking water is driving them round the bend.
I’m a bit more hopeful that the increased militancy we’re seeing with gun owners in the US is a sign that they realize their fetish is becoming socially unacceptable and on the way out. Kinda like how smokers got really militant in the 80s and early 90s. Certainly the statistics are clear that there’s fewer gun owners, but the remaining gun owners have a lot more guns.
I had to laugh about my comment above. it reads like some communist propaganda from a story I am reading written by Colin Cotterill which is in Laos, but involve Vietnamese, Thai and Chinese in differing numbers.
Unfortunately I do think this about USA though I’m not a communist, probably more of a humanist. And believing in good for people generally and for oneself is the sort of value that I think is important.
“tragic”? She isn’t dead, and was upright and alert, and the kid probably has minimal understanding (if any) of what happened. And the irony can be cut with a knife.
“tragic” is the 9 year old who was given an uzi on full auto and accidentally killed her instructor because she was too small to handle the recoil.
OneTwo
I recognise your ploy. It gets used regularly by RW here. The emotional content of some tragedy is turned on to high, and swamps every attempt to treat the matter both humanely and rationally. Each ongoing tragedy is received more emotionally, and people are paralysed by grief and stress and cannot be allowed to concentrate on how to prevent the next tragedy.
I’ll drag myself to once again into the fray, against TPPA. Look at the hidden message in the link: It_sour_future. So on top of all the other things I try to do, to help community and keep NZ from being mean, I will do it. Thanks for backgrounding and informing saveNZ.
So is the kid on some sort of committee looking at adoption age law changes or is it just his personal opinion or something? I’m not aware of the context. I have heard there are some odd anomalies around adoption.
No, no context personal to Barclay – the rather large technicality that permits an MP of age 23 to decide (vote) on an issue concerning capacity of someone aged under 25….
That’s a different argument. We’re talking about civilised countries that are pro-choice. Why should men have a say beyond that if a 23 yr old shouldn’t vote on legislation affecting 24/25 yr olds?
Once you have answered the original question about age …… how is that justified? You know, that someone under 25 can decide if people under 25 are capable?
It is a nonsense.
Happy to hear an explanation in justification. Because the answer will surely provide some guidance to your male/abort question too……. come on …….
sheesh weka have you ever studied maths or logic? you have completely and utterly missed the point
let’s leave it for now – I have to rush out shortly and now you have me all confused and will need to be careful I don’t drive the wrong side of the road backwards …
When you come back, just start again. Make the statement about Barclay and then say what the problem is and how it it a problem. If you read back through the thread, you never said.
Lols. I’m still not with you. Are you suggesting an MP should be excluded from voting on age related legislation whether it be adoption, minimum purchase age for alcohol or anything, because of ….their age?
And if theres no such bills before parliament at the moment is your question more hypothetical than anything?
“Metalclad v. Mexico
Toxic waste
Investor win (awarded $16.2 million)
In 1997 Metalclad Corporation, a U.S. waste management firm, launched a NAFTA investor-state dispute against Mexico over the decision of Guadalcazar, a Mexican municipality, not to grant a construction permit for expansion of a toxic waste facility amid concerns of water contamination and other environmental and health hazards. Studies indicated that the site’s soils were very unstable, which could permit toxic waste to infiltrate the subsoil and carry contamination via deeper water sources. The local government had already denied similar permits to the Mexican firm from which Metalclad acquired the facility. Metalclad argued that the decision to deny a permit to it, as a foreign investor operating under NAFTA’s investor rights, amounted to expropriation without compensation, and a denial of NAFTA’s guarantee of “fair and equitable treatment.”
The tribunal ruled in favor of the firm, ordering Mexico to compensate Metalclad for the diminution of its investment’s value. The order to compensate for a “regulatory taking” was premised on the tribunal’s finding that the denial of the construction permit unless and until the site was remediated amounted to an “indirect” expropriation. The tribunal also ruled that Mexico violated NAFTA’s obligation to provide foreign investors “fair and equitable treatment,” because the firm was not granted a “transparent and predictable” regulatory environment. The decision has been described as creating a duty under NAFTA for the Mexican government to walk a foreign investor through the complexities of municipal, state and federal law and to ensure that officials at different levels never give different advice. After a Canadian court slightly modified the compensation amount ordered by the investor-state tribunal, Mexico was required to pay Metalclad more than $16 million.”
Yesterday Bill English admitted on NatRadio that pretty much all dairy farmers have been conducting their business to make money by way of capital gain rather than revenue….
These people need to account for that money in their income tax returns then.
Yes. Depends on how it is treated. Some regimes don’t require realisation before charging, others do. Michael Cullen seemed to think taxing before realisation was ok, personally I think it is a bit nuts.
Of course shortly there will be plenty of losses to counter gains anyway ….
Ha, yep like those people who manage to manufacture disabilities to make claims are simply indulging in ‘good’ income practice. They have clearly learned from Bill English and his types.
On RADIONZ this morning. About keeping young offenders out of the Courts and injustice treadmill.
09:20 How iwi led justice panels are keeping offenders away from crime
Funding is due to soon run out for three iwi led panels, which offer an alternative justice system for low level offenders.
The three panels, in Lower Hutt, Gisborne and Counties Manukau, were set up in 2014, with the objective of diverting low-level offenders away from crime, and keep them out of the criminal justice system.
The Justice Ministry has yet to decide whether it will continue funding them, saying while it appreciates the groundswell of enthusiasm, it has to consider the role and fit of the panels in the wider criminal justice system. Neville Baker is the chair of the Waiwhetu iwi led panel. Asher Hauwaho is the Iwi Liaison Officer for the Lower Hutt police.
Need more money, thank you very much, from the government. This citizen here says that time spent with young people having difficulties, helping them so they overcome their problems and limit reoffending to minor infringements, will save our tax dollars, my tax dollars, at present 15% on everything I buy., plus the cents tax you take off my small savings, and anything you get back from my taxable pension. (Don’t abandon programs for young people who are recidivists. If the offending comes down to really minor offences, it will stop as they get older. Just believe it is a good thing to do to work with them, and keep it going. It will prove a big saving and a big boost to the individual life.)
WhichAt present money received goes mostly on your and your servants’ salaries, and to the pockets of your business class running the prisons, the old people’s homes, and who knows what else you are going to hive off so you are paid for doing nothing useful for we the citizens.
Contemptible curs you are.
edited
Thanx Expat glad that the number of people saying this is growing.
There have been active intelligent rational measures to improve and reduce the numbers in prison for decades, while governments prefer to keep the bogeyman up their sleeves for a possible last minute election frisson.
The Future of Restorative Justice –Control, Co-option or Co …..
Kim Workman’s address to the 2008 Restorative Justice Aotearoa Conference. Let me first …. alternative justice movement in New Zealand, that has over the years sought to implement ….. Judge Andrew Becroft‟s advocacy for expanding.
Up to $7280 pledged for benighted journalist Bradley Ambrose. Going to 11 pm on Wednesday 16 March in his effort to raise for court fees – $38,000. I think Give a Little gives whatever is raised to the person, others only pay if target is reached. I could be wrong, but I should think anything would be helpful to him. https://givealittle.co.nz/cause/bradelyambrose
There is the link.
A MESSAGE FROM THE QUEEN
To the citizens of the United States of America from Her Sovereign
Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
In light of your failure in recent years to nominate competent
candidates for President of the USA and thus to govern yourselves,
we hereby give notice of the revocation of your independence,
effective immediately. (You should look up ‘revocation’ in the
Oxford English Dictionary.)
Her Sovereign Majesty Queen Elizabeth II will resume monarchical
duties over all states, commonwealths, and territories (except
North Dakota, which she does not fancy).
Your new Prime Minister, David Cameron, will appoint a
Governor for America without the need for further elections.
Congress and the Senate will be disbanded. A questionnaire may
be circulated next year to determine whether any of you noticed.
To aid in the transition to a British Crown dependency, the
following rules are introduced with immediate effect:
———————–
1. The letter ‘U’ will be reinstated in words such as ‘colour,’
‘favour,’ ‘labour’ and ‘neighbour.’ Likewise, you will learn to spell
‘doughnut’ without skipping half the letters, and the suffix ‘-ize’
will be replaced by the suffix ‘-ise.’ Generally, you will be expected
to raise your vocabulary to acceptable levels. (look up
‘vocabulary’).
————————
2. Using the same twenty-seven words interspersed with filler
noises such as ”like’ and ‘you know’ is an unacceptable and
inefficient form of communication. There is no such thing as U.S.
English. We will let Microsoft know on your behalf. The Microsoft
spell-checker will be adjusted to take into account the reinstated
letter ‘u” and the elimination of ‘-ize.’
——————-
3. July 4th will no longer be celebrated as a holiday.
—————–
4. You will learn to resolve personal issues without using guns,
lawyers, or therapists. The fact that you need so many lawyers andtherapists shows that you’re not quite ready to be independent.
Guns should only be used for shooting grouse. If you can’t sort
things out without suing someone or speaking to a therapist, then
you’re not ready to shoot grouse.
———————-
5. Therefore, you will no longer be allowed to own or carry
anything more dangerous than a vegetable peeler. Although a
permit will be required if you wish to carry a vegetable peeler in
public.
———————-
6. All intersections will be replaced with roundabouts, and you will
start driving on the left side with immediate effect. At the same
time, you will go metric with immediate effect and without the
benefit of conversion tables. Both roundabouts and metrication will
help you understand the British sense of humour.
——————–
7. The former USA will adopt UK prices on petrol (which you have
been calling gasoline) of roughly $10/US gallon. Get used to it.
——————-
8. You will learn to make real chips. Those things you call French
fries are not real chips, and those things you insist on calling potato
chips are properly called crisps. Real chips are thick cut, fried in
animal fat, and dressed not with catsup but with vinegar.
——————-
9. The cold, tasteless stuff you insist on calling beer is not actually
beer at all. Henceforth, only proper British Bitter will be referred to
as beer, and European brews of known and accepted provenance
will be referred to as Lager. South African beer is also acceptable,
as they are pound for pound the greatest sporting nation on earth
and it can only be due to the beer. They are also part of the British
Commonwealth – see what it did for them. American brands will
be referred to as Near-Frozen Gnat’s Urine, so that all can be sold
without risk of further confusion.
———————
10. Hollywood will be required occasionally to cast English actors
as good guys. Hollywood will also be required to cast Englishactors to play English characters. Watching Andie Macdowell
attempt English dialect in Four Weddings and a Funeral was an
experience akin to having one’s ears removed with a cheese grater.
———————
11. You will cease playing American football. There is only one
kind of proper football; you call it soccer. Those of you brave
enough will, in time, be allowed to play rugby (which has some
similarities to American football, but does not involve stopping for
a rest every twenty seconds or wearing full kevlar body armour
like a bunch of nancies).
———————
12. Further, you will stop playing baseball. It is not reasonable to
host an event called the World Series for a game which is not
played outside of America. Since only 2.1% of you are aware there
is a world beyond your borders, your error is understandable. You
will learn cricket, and we will let you face the South Africans first
to take the sting out of their deliveries.
——————–
13.. You must tell us who killed JFK. It’s been driving us mad.
—————–
14. An internal revenue agent (i.e. tax collector) from Her Majesty’s
Government will be with you shortly to ensure the acquisition of
all monies due (backdated to 1776).
—————
15. Daily Tea Time begins promptly at 4 p.m. with proper cups,
with saucers, and never mugs, with high quality biscuits (cookies)
and cakes; plus strawberries (with cream) when in season.
God Save the Queen!
PS: Only share this with friends who have a good sense of humour
(NOT humor)
I’m just reading Affluenza by Oliver James. I had heard it being bandied about and have come to believe that there is a change that develops when we become affluent and able to stand unsupported. We think we are better and separate from the rest of our society. Hah. James is looking at the process. He calls it the Affluenza Virus. The WHO records that there is a lot of distress in developed countries. James describes it as being caused by the Virus.
He calls it Selfish Capitalism and says – I mean four basic things.
The first is that the success of businesses is judged almost exclusively by their current share price.
The second is a strong drive to privatise public utilities, such as water, gas and electricity, or in the case of America, to keep them in private hands.
The third is that there should be as little regulation of business as possible, with taxation for the rich and very rich so limited that whether to contribute becomes almost a matter of choice.
The fourth is the conviction that consumption and market forces can meet human needs of almost every kind.
America is the apotheosis of Selfish Capitalism, Denmark the nearest thing to its Unselfish opposite.
(That sounds to me how our country is operated. I think our governments have dived into this Selfish thing like Grandpa McDuck dived into his golden money pile!
He writes further that materialism is strong in the poor, because every dollar counts, there is rarely enough, the work is precarious, and everything received can help, if everything isn’t budgeted for, there will be days when there is literally no food etc.
But when there is sufficient and more, and materialism still reigns then society deteriorates.)
The Selfish Virus causes distress like this:
It impedes the meeting of our fundamental human needs: feeling secure, being part of a community, feeling competent, and being autonomous and authentic. A large body of scientific evidence suggests…the Virus impairs the meeting of each need.
You’re a good googler… Have you ever heard the saying about the exception that proves the rule?
Not sure how this helps the issue, but would be keen to see a credible answer to the point above about how an MP aged under 25 can decide (vote) that people under 25 are of insufficient capacity to adopt…
No, don’t avoid the question again. Whether it is a problem or not is separate. And I know you like throwing out the old “don’t what you’re talking about” banana skin but it is a falseity ….
The question again;
How is it that someone aged under 25 can decide (vote) on whether people under 25 are capable or not?
The answer is simple, he’s a legally elected representative and entitled to vote. His age is irrelevant to that. I really don’t get what your problem is.
In other words you’re objecting to something without knowing why. Or you’re being weasly and refusing to say what you think because you know you will get argued with. Neither are hardly the basis for useful political debate.
Weka he is been cute, from a logic point of view your statement is a circular argument , ie you are asking some one under 25 wether people under 25 are capable, by definition they can’t answer that question because you don’t know if their capable because there under 25?
I think 23 yr olds can be capable of making good MPs so it’s a nonsense argument to me. Vto seems to be arguing some principle and conflating that with his opinion that a young MP can’t do a good job because of their age.
Being an MP at 23 is not the same as adoption. But really the whole discussion is daft because the law as it stands is old and out dated and a report wants it to change to take the discriminatory aspects out. How Barclay would not be competent to vote in that because of his age is beyond me.
Hi weka – red delusion, grindlebottom and mr munro below have said it in slightly different ways that hopefully make sense to you. It was a curiousity, and illogicality.
It is a logical fallacy that the law both allows a person to decide (vote) that a person under 25 is incapable, but be capable enough to make that decision.
That is the problem.
But in further curiousity, it also highlights another discrepancy between our societies ways today and traditional ways borne out over long history …… whereby age was a factor in competency to a far greater extent than it is today. Two examples being – leaders of communities have typically been described as the “elders” (indicating the age factor), and secondly, this particular example whereby past NZ society has deemed people under 25 incapable of adopting.
This is just history. It is curious that we seem to think we are superior to this aspect of human history… time will tell whether we are right today (curiously enough)..
One final aspect – of course in societies past, far fewer people lived to a decent age, so the “elders” may have typically been in their 30’s, or heaven forbid their 20’s.
and one more final aspect – with my too many years on the planet my personal view is that age, combined with thinking (…), adds immeasurably to so very much of life. That time and experience is something that cannot be gained in other ways by most people. I do not value the views of the young on various relevant issues, to anything like the extent I value the views of the elders (subject to cogency etc..). This is my experience … and this would seem to be the experience of much of past societies too, given the prevalence of age in these matters …..
I don’t think he’s making an argument, I think he accepts a 23 year old can and will vote on the issue.
He’s just got it in his head that saying someone under 25 can decide whether someone else under 25 is capable of adopting looks to him like circular reasoning, a logical fallacy of some kind, and he wonders (out of curiosity) what kind it is.
If I’m right, the problem is that it’s a fallacy that this is a logical fallacy.
Hi vto
I think the argument for it is that it is the exception that proves the rule.
But if there were too many under 25’s, when would it stop being an exception? Would it be decided on proportionality, the same percentage in parliament, as the percentage of potentital under 25 voters. There is a lot to take in for someone that young who hasn’t lived long. So that is a mark against too many youth. Also they stop learning I think, and don’t do their own but the thinking bidden by their Party, so starting too young may see a dull old dog or bitch by the time they retire if they stay at heel for too long. One mark against career pollies.
Then again some older people don’t seem to have lived and learned despite all their years. They have set out with their gladstone bag full of precepts and prejudices and never had them washed and ironed throughout their whole lives. Our local MP Nick Smith has been in Parliament since he was a fresh faced youngster and the job has aged him, but I don’t know if it’s added to his wisdom.
I see Stuart M has put up a lively answer. I thought it was simpler than that – that if you say you are making an exception, that implies that there is a rule to which the present matter is different but is being allowed, thus it is being made one exception to the (normal and accepted) rule. Thus, the exception proves the rule.
edited
hi mr grey, I have tried to explain again just above, hopefully makes sense …
Woody Allen gets the last say…
“In my next life I want to live my life backwards. You start out dead and get that out of the way. Then you wake up in an old people’s home feeling better every day. You get kicked out for being too healthy, go collect your pension, and then when you start work, you get a gold watch and a party on your first day. You work for 40 years until you’re young enough to enjoy your retirement. You party, drink alcohol, and are generally promiscuous, then you are ready for high school. You then go to primary school, you become a kid, you play. You have no responsibilities, you become a baby until you are born. And then you spend your last 9 months floating in luxurious spa-like conditions with central heating and room service on tap, larger quarters every day and then Voila! You finish off as an orgasm!”
The exception proves the rule is one of the famous sayings that have come to mean the opposite of what they originally meant. Exceptio probat regulam meant that when you have an apparent exception, you should apply the rule. The convenience to the likes of VTO of this position is it allows him to avoid refutation by what is effectively a selective use of the excluded middle. Something is something, or it is not.
Under 25s are capable of good judgment, or they are not. We have several instances of under 25s with good judgment, so the generalisation is unsound. But qualifying it might redeem it ‘many under 25s are not capable of good judgement’ is probably tenable.
The other inverted saying was Solon’s ‘A moral man is a law unto himself’ – the point being that moral persons are genuinely self-policing to some degree. The modern meaning refers to someone who does whatever they want – like our despicable substitute for a PM.
VTO is pointing to a Cretan liar’s paradox – “All Cretans are liars” says a Cretan, and the expectation is that the statement must be untrue. The paradox only works in an abstract situation because to be a liar only requires occasional lying. Thus a person under 25 could have inadequate judgment but still make the occasional good decision – as seems likely given that the police are now scheduled to investigate Todd Barclay. http://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/375835/todd-barclay-electorate-staff-member-talk-police
Crikey, is that a scandal brewing? As Rosie said, bring on Popcorn April. Is that four legal process National will be involved in over the next months?
The question for me is, who decided that you shouldn’t be able to adopt under the age of 25, there are many under 25 who are mature enough to manage the adoption adequately , it’s not the age, it’s the ability to meet the requirements, surely.
In a democracy, as long as your’e old enough to vote then, your view point should not be dismissed.
VTO, I agree with your point to a large extent on this issue, if I was interested in adopting, and under 25, does this guy understand (at 23) the issues surrounding adoption, I see your point as 18 year olds voting on lowering the drinking age.
The point I make above about why there is a need to even make a decision based on age (age of the adopter), it’s discrimination isn’t.
Surely if you meet the necessary requirements for adoption, age is not a consideration, therefore the argument for voting on the question is irrelevant
The issue in the news is that a report is saying the current law (which says you can’t adopt if under 25) is outdated and discriminatory (not just the age issue) and should be changed.
I don’t know what vto’s point is. Barclay may or may not be competent to have a say on this proposed law change, but his age has nothing to do with it.
The law change would remove the prohibition on his particular age to adopt, so him having a say makes sense at that level anyway.
Thanks for answering my question that I asked of vto at round one of this thread, from this morning. I didn’t know whether it was a hypothetical question or related to actual current discussion of adoption law.
Which brings it back round to my question to him which was
“Are you suggesting an MP should be excluded from voting on age related legislation whether it be adoption, minimum purchase age for alcohol or anything, because of ….their age?”
I think, no they shouldn’t be excluded. That in itself would be discrimination.
Hi Rosie, sorry for missing your question earlier.. it raises the same interesting dilemma regarding age restrictions on anything and everything…
people around here seem to be saying that age is immaterial
if that is the case then there are an awful lot of statutes to clear up and remove the discrimination from – alcohol, marriage, sex, war, driving, adoption, school, voting, , ,
what to do?
allow the young to decide these matters for themselves? allow the elders to do the deciding?
it all ends in logical fallacy stew
seriously though, what should we do
Thanks for that, I wasn’t fully aware of the issue, so sounds like perhaps he should have a say and condemn two age discrimination issues at the same time, but regarding Barclay’s competency, in a democracy, he can’t be discriminated against for being incompetent either.
That’s a petition calling for Hoskings to apologise or be sacked for calling returned servicemen morons for having an opion about the flag. Seems important.
Yeah, the petition is important, to counter the absolute stupidity of the man, but he’s not important, anyone with only half a brain would switch off after only listening to him for a few seconds of his dribble, I don’t know anyone who could say he represents their view points, except for maybe the PM.
Thanks. Signed. The guy is a prize jerk, and that was a really offensive thing to say. He should lose his job for a number of reasons, but this is as good as any.
I can’t look at him for a few seconds without my blood pressure going up. A broadcaster should not inspire that reaction in people. A broadcaster should inspire their viewers to have an enquiring mind and a desire to be educated by their investigative journalism…………….
“A broadcaster should inspire their viewers to have an inquiring mind and a desire to be educated by their investigative journalism…………….”
Problem is, who is that broadcaster?, where is that reporter? the free to air ones have gone down the toilet and not even worth watching any more and sky news is Murdoch BS.
When I was their in Jan, I watched “One” news with “Peter whats his face”, how embarrassing, he looked like a possum about to be hit by a car.
It’s a real shame we don’t have a public broadcaster modeled on the Aus ABC, providing balanced points of view for the benefit of the viewers, Q & A on the ABC includes 5 or more commentators from a diverse range of fields, beliefs and political persuasions, and the audience (aprox 200) is made up of a proportional amount of each of the 3 main political parties.
Having said that, Turnbull has replaced some of the key mangers within the ABC, and there has been a slight change in the way in which information is presented in the news, with less criticism of the Govt, you know, change a few of the neutral reporters for ones which are more pro Govt skew.
The great thing about the ABC is that there is NO commercial advertising at all, it’s free to air in digital right across the country with 4 separate channels at a cost annually of aprox $1B.
The ABC serves the needs of the Australian people, not the govt.
It makes sense that slavery and environmental destruction would go hand in hand. In some ways they spring from the same root. Our consumer economy is driven at its most basic level by resource extraction, pulling things from the earth, an extraction that we never actually see. We pull food from the earth, of course, but we also pull our cellphones from the earth, our clothing, our computers, our flat-screen televisions, our cars—it all comes from the earth, ultimately. And pulling things from the earth can be a dirty business. To make our consumer economy hum and grow and instantly gratify, costs are driven down as low as they can go, especially at the bottom of the supply chain; this can lead to abusive conditions for workers and harm to the natural world. Taken to the extreme it means slavery and catastrophic environmental destruction. But all this normally happens far from any prying eyes. It’s a hidden world that keeps its secrets.
[…]
When it comes to global warming, these slaveholders outpace all but the very biggest polluters. Adding together their slave-based deforestation and other CO2-producing crimes leads to a sobering conclusion. If slavery were an American state it would have the population of California and the economic output of the District of Columbia, but it would be the world’s third-largest producer of CO2, after China and the United States. It’s no wonder that we struggle and often fail to stop climate change and reduce the atmospheric carbon count. Slavery, one of the world’s largest greenhouse gas producers, is hidden from us. Environmentalists are right to call for laws and treaties that will apply to the community of nations, but that is not enough. We also have to understand that slavers—who don’t adhere to those laws and treaties—are a leading cause of the natural world’s destruction. And to stop them, we don’t need more laws. We need to end slavery.
What do the shrimp on your plate, the cell phone in your pocket and the rising pollution levels in the developing world have in common? Kevin Bales says, in a word: slavery. Paul Kennedy talks with the author of Blood and Earth: Modern Slavery, Ecocide and the Secret to Saving the World.
Thats one sound reason I only have an old dumb phone, slavery and it’s effects, eg early death for for people that extract cobalt from dangerous mines for the phones (and why I don’t eat shrimps from Vietnam).
And another reason I use an old dumb phone. I’ve never being able to trust the security on smart phones. Hackers will always win.
There are so many benefits to consider by being part of the dumb phone movement. It began as a psycho social issue but it’s really much larger than that.
+100 Rosie…the dumb phones are best imo…my smart phone stays under the chair and turned off…i reckon the apps my daughter loaded it with are bugged…ha ha
Barrie Saunders writes – Dear Paul As the new Minister of Media and Communications, you will be inundated with heaps of free advice and special pleading, all in the national interest of course. For what it’s worth here is my assessment: Traditional broadcasting free to air content through ...
Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government is trying to achieve and its arguments for such a bold reform. ...
Peter Dunne writes – The great nineteenth British Prime Minister, William Gladstone, once observed that “the first essential for a Prime Minister is to be a good butcher.” When a later British Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan, sacked a third of his Cabinet in July 1962, in what became ...
Ele Ludemann writes – New Zealanders had the OECD’s second highest tax increase last year: New Zealanders faced the second-biggest tax raises in the developed world last year, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) says. The intergovernmental agency said the average change in personal income tax ...
We all know something’s not right with our elections. The spread of misinformation, people being targeted with soundbites and emotional triggers that ignore the facts, even the truth, and influence their votes.The use of technology to produce deep fakes. How can you tell if something is real or not? Can ...
This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Simon Clark. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). This year you will be lied to! Simon Clark helps prebunk some misleading statements you'll hear about climate. The video includes ...
It is all very well cutting the backrooms of public agencies but it may compromise the frontlines. One of the frustrations of the Productivity Commission’s 2017 review of universities is that while it observed that their non-academic staff were increasing faster than their academic staff, it did not bother to ...
Buzz from the Beehive Two speeches delivered by Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters at Anzac Day ceremonies in Turkey are the only new posts on the government’s official website since the PM announced his Cabinet shake-up. In one of the speeches, Peters stated the obvious: we live in a troubled ...
1. Which of these would you not expect to read in The Waikato Invader?a. Luxon is here to do business, don’t you worry about thatb. Mr KPI expects results, and you better believe itc. This decisive man of action is getting me all hot and excitedd. Melissa Lee is how ...
…it has a restricted jurisdiction which must not be abused: it is not an inquisitionNOTE – this article was published before the High Court ruled that Karen Chhour does not have to appear before the Waitangi Tribunal Gary Judd writes – The High Court ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – One of reasons Oranga Tamariki exists is to prevent child neglect. But could the organisation itself be guilty of the same?Oranga Tamariki’s statistics show a decrease in the number and age of children in care. “There are less children ...
David Farrar writes: Graeme Edgeler wrote in 2017: In the first five years after three strikes came into effect 5248 offenders received a ‘first strike’ (that is, a “stage-1 conviction” under the three strikes sentencing regime), and 68 offenders received a ‘second strike’. In the five years prior to ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has surprised everyone with his ruthlessness in sacking two of his ministers from their crucial portfolios. Removing ministers for poor performance after only five months in the job just doesn’t normally happen in politics. That’s refreshing and will be extremely ...
TL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the two days to 6:06am on Thursday, April 25:Politics: PM Christopher Luxon has set up a dual standard for ministerial competence by demoting two National Cabinet ministers while leaving also-struggling ...
Hi,Today I mainly want to share some of your thoughts about the recent piece I wrote about success and failure, and the forces that seemingly guide our lives. But first, a quick bit of housekeeping: I am doing a Webworm popup in Los Angeles on Saturday May 11 at 2pm. ...
It is hard to see what Melissa Lee might have done to “save” the media. National went into the election with no public media policy and appears not to have developed one subsequently. Lee claimed that she had prepared a policy paper before the election but it had been decided ...
Open access notablesIce acceleration and rotation in the Greenland Ice Sheet interior in recent decades, Løkkegaard et al., Communications Earth & Environment:In the past two decades, mass loss from the Greenland ice sheet has accelerated, partly due to the speedup of glaciers. However, uncertainty in speed derived from satellite products ...
Buzz from the Beehive A statement from Children’s Minister Karen Chhour – yet to be posted on the Government’s official website – arrived in Point of Order’s email in-tray last night. It welcomes the High Court ruling on whether the Waitangi Tribunal can demand she appear before it. It does ...
Mr Bombastic:Ironically, the media the academic experts wanted is, in many ways, the media they got. In place of the tyrannical editors of yesteryear, advancing without fear or favour the interests of the ruling class; the New Zealand news media of today boasts a troop of enlightened journalists dedicated to ...
It's hard times try to make a livingYou wake up every morning in the unforgivingOut there somewhere in the cityThere's people living lives without mercy or pityI feel good, yeah I'm feeling fineI feel better then I have for the longest timeI think these pills have been good for meI ...
In 1974, the US Supreme Court issued its decision in United States v. Nixon, finding that the President was not a King, but was subject to the law and was required to turn over the evidence of his wrongdoing to the courts. It was a landmark decision for the rule ...
Every day now just seems to bring in more fresh meat for the grinder.In their relentlessly ideological drive to cut back on the “excessive bloat” (as they see it) of the previous Labour-led government, on the mountains of evidence accumulated in such a short period of time do not ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Megan Valére SosouMarket gardening site of the Itchèléré de Itagui agricultural cooperative in Dassa-Zoumè (Image credit: Megan Valère Sossou) For the residents of Dassa-Zoumè, a city in the West African country of Benin, choosing between drinking water and having enough ...
Buzz from the Beehive Melissa Lee – as may be discerned from the screenshot above – has not been demoted for doing something seriously wrong as Minister of ...
Morning in London Mother hugs beloved daughter outside the converted shoe factory in which she is living.Afternoon in London Travelling writer takes himself and his wrist down to A&E, just to be sure. Read more ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – The recent announcement of the University Advisory Group, chaired by Sir Peter Gluckman, makes very clear where the Government’s focus and priorities lie. The remit of the Advisory Group is that Group members will consider challenges and opportunities for improvement in the university sector including: ...
Eric Crampton writes – The Reserve Bank of New Zealand desperately wants to find reasons to have workstreams in climate change. It makes little sense. They’ve run another stress test on the banks looking to see if they could find a prudential regulation case. They couldn’t. They ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Pundits from the left and the right are arguing that National’s Fast Track Bill that is designed to speed up infrastructure decisions could end up becoming mired in a cesspool of corruption. Political commentator ...
Looking at the headlines this morning it’s hard to feel anything other than pessimistic about the future of humanity.Note that I’m not speaking about the future of mankind, but the survival of our humanity. The values that we believe in seem to be ebbing away, by the day.Perhaps every generation ...
Swabbing mixed breed baby chicks to test for avian influenzaUh oh. Bird flu – often deadly to humans – is not only being transmitted from infected birds to dairy cows, but is now travelling between dairy cows. As of last Friday, Bloomberg News reports, there were 32 American dairy herds ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
What is it with the mining industry? Its not enough for them to pillage the earth - they apparently can't even be bothered getting resource consent to do so: The proponent behind a major mine near the Clutha River had already been undertaking activity in the area without a ...
Photo # 1 I am a huge fan of Singapore’s approach to housing, as described here two years ago by copying and pasting from The ConversationWhat Singapore has that Australia does not is a public housing developer, the Housing Development Board, which puts new dwellings on public and reclaimed land, ...
Buzz from the Beehive Reactions to news of the government’s readiness to make urgent changes to “the resource management system” through a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) suggest a balanced approach is being taken. The Taxpayers’ Union says the proposed changes don’t go far enough. Greenpeace says ...
I’m starting to wonder if Anna Burns-Francis might be the best political interviewer we’ve got. That might sound unlikely to you, it came as a bit of a surprise to me.Jack Tame can be excellent, but has some pretty average days. I like Rebecca Wright on Newshub, she asks good ...
Chris Trotter writes – Willie Jackson is said to be planning a “media summit” to discuss “the state of the media and how to protect Fourth Estate Journalism”. Not only does the Editor of The Daily Blog, Martyn Bradbury, think this is a good idea, but he has also ...
Graeme Edgeler writes – This morning [April 21], the Wellington High Court is hearing a judicial review brought by Hon. Karen Chhour, the Minister for Children, against a decision of the Waitangi Tribunal. This is unusual, judicial reviews are much more likely to brought against ministers, rather than ...
Both of Parliament’s watchdogs have now ripped into the Government’s Fast-track Approvals Bill. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMy pick of the six newsey things to know from Aotearoa’s political economy and beyond on the morning of Tuesday, April 23 are:The Lead: The Auditor General,John Ryan, has joined the ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Sarah SpengemanPeople wait to board an electric bus in Pune, India. (Image credit: courtesy of ITDP) Public transportation riders in Pune, India, love the city’s new electric buses so much they will actually skip an older diesel bus that ...
The infrastructure industry yesterday issued a “hurry up” message to the Government, telling it to get cracking on developing a pipeline of infrastructure projects.The hiatus around the change of Government has seen some major projects cancelled and others delayed, and there is uncertainty about what will happen with the new ...
Hi,Over the weekend I revisited a podcast I really adore, Dead Eyes. It’s about a guy who got fired from Band of Brothers over two decades ago because Tom Hanks said he had “dead eyes”.If you don’t recall — 2001’s Band of Brothers was part of the emerging trend of ...
Buzz from the Beehive The 180 or so recipients of letters from the Government telling them how to submit infrastructure projects for “fast track” consideration includes some whose project applications previously have been rejected by the courts. News media were quick to feature these in their reports after RMA Reform Minister Chris ...
It would not be a desirable way to start your holiday by breaking your back, your head, or your wrist, but on our first hour in Singapore I gave it a try.We were chatting, last week, before we started a meeting of Hazel’s Enviro Trust, about the things that can ...
Calling all journalists, academics, planners, lawyers, political activists, environmentalists, and other members of the public who believe that the relationships between vested interests and politicians need to be scrutinised. We need to work together to make sure that the new Fast-Track Approvals Bill – currently being pushed through by the ...
Feel worried. Shane Jones and a couple of his Cabinet colleagues are about to be granted the power to override any and all objections to projects like dams, mines, roads etc even if: said projects will harm biodiversity, increase global warming and cause other environmental harms, and even if ...
Bryce Edwards writes- The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. ...
Michael Bassett writes – If you think there is a move afoot by the radical Maori fringe of New Zealand society to create a parallel system of government to the one that we elect at our triennial elections, you aren’t wrong. Over the last few days we have ...
Without a corresponding drop in interest rates, it’s doubtful any changes to the CCCFA will unleash a massive rush of home buyers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The six things that stood out to me in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, poverty and climate on Monday, April 22 included:The Government making a ...
Sunday was a lazy day. I started watching Jack Tame on Q&A, the interviews are usually good for something to write about. Saying the things that the politicians won’t, but are quite possibly thinking. Things that are true and need to be extracted from between the lines.As you might know ...
In our Weekly Roundup last week we covered news from Auckland Transport that the WX1 Western Express is going to get an upgrade next year with double decker electric buses. As part of the announcement, AT also said “Since we introduced the WX1 Western Express last November we have seen ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 29 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. Stats NZ releases its statutory report on Census 2023 tomorrow.Finance Minister Nicola Willis delivers a pre-Budget speech at ...
A listing of 29 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 14, 2024 thru Sat, April 20, 2024. Story of the week Our story of the week hinges on these words from the abstract of a fresh academic ...
The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. The Government says this will ...
This is a column to say thank you. So many of have been in touch since Mum died to say so many kind and thoughtful things. You’re wonderful, all of you. You’ve asked how we’re doing, how Dad’s doing. A little more realisation each day, of the irretrievable finality of ...
Identifying the engine type in your car is crucial for various reasons, including maintenance, repairs, and performance upgrades. Knowing the specific engine model allows you to access detailed technical information, locate compatible parts, and make informed decisions about modifications. This comprehensive guide will provide you with a step-by-step approach to ...
Introduction: The allure of racing is undeniable. The thrill of speed, the roar of engines, and the exhilaration of competition all contribute to the allure of this adrenaline-driven sport. For those who yearn to experience the pinnacle of racing, becoming a race car driver is the ultimate dream. However, the ...
Introduction Automobiles have become ubiquitous in modern society, serving as a primary mode of transportation and a symbol of economic growth and personal mobility. With countless vehicles traversing roads and highways worldwide, it begs the question: how many cars are there in the world? Determining the precise number is a ...
Maintaining a safe and reliable vehicle requires regular inspections. Whether it’s a routine maintenance checkup or a safety inspection, knowing how long the process will take can help you plan your day accordingly. This article delves into the factors that influence the duration of a car inspection and provides an ...
Mazda Motor Corporation, commonly known as Mazda, is a Japanese multinational automaker headquartered in Fuchu, Aki District, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. The company was founded in 1920 as the Toyo Cork Kogyo Co., Ltd., and began producing vehicles in 1931. Mazda is primarily known for its production of passenger cars, but ...
Your car battery is an essential component that provides power to start your engine, operate your electrical systems, and store energy. Over time, batteries can weaken and lose their ability to hold a charge, which can lead to starting problems, power failures, and other issues. Replacing your battery before it ...
In most states, you cannot register a car without a valid driver’s license. However, there are a few exceptions to this rule. Exceptions to the RuleIf you are under 18 years old: In some states, you can register a car in your name even if you do not ...
Mazda, a Japanese automotive manufacturer with a rich history of innovation and engineering excellence, has emerged as a formidable player in the global car market. Known for its reputation of producing high-quality, fuel-efficient, and driver-oriented vehicles, Mazda has consistently garnered praise from industry experts and consumers alike. In this article, ...
Struts are an essential part of a car’s suspension system. They are responsible for supporting the weight of the car and damping the oscillations of the springs. Struts are typically made of steel or aluminum and are filled with hydraulic fluid. How Do Struts Work? Struts work by transferring the ...
Car registration is a mandatory process that all vehicle owners must complete annually. This process involves registering your car with the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and paying an associated fee. The registration process ensures that your vehicle is properly licensed and insured, and helps law enforcement and other authorities ...
Zoom is a video conferencing service that allows you to share your screen, webcam, and audio with other participants. In addition to sharing your own audio, you can also share the audio from your computer with other participants. This can be useful for playing music, sharing presentations with audio, or ...
Building your own computer can be a rewarding and cost-effective way to get a high-performance machine tailored to your specific needs. However, it also requires careful planning and execution, and one of the most important factors to consider is the time it will take. The exact time it takes to ...
Sleep mode is a power-saving state that allows your computer to quickly resume operation without having to boot up from scratch. This can be useful if you need to step away from your computer for a short period of time but don’t want to shut it down completely. There are ...
Introduction Computer-Assisted Translation (CAT) has revolutionized the field of translation by harnessing the power of technology to assist human translators in their work. This innovative approach combines specialized software with human expertise to improve the efficiency, accuracy, and consistency of translations. In this comprehensive article, we will delve into the ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi, and Mema Paremata mō Tāmaki-Makaurau, Takutai Tarsh Kemp, will travel to the Gold Coast to strengthen ties with Māori in Australia next week (15-21 April). The visit, in the lead-up to the 9th Australian National Kapa haka Festival, will be an opportunity for both ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
Hundreds of New Zealand families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) will benefit from a new Government focus on prevention and treatment, says Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. “We know FASD is a leading cause of preventable intellectual and neurodevelopmental disability in New Zealand,” Dr Reti says. “Every day, ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges. “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order. “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions. “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today. “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale. “It is good ...
The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
“China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
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Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[quiz],DIV[quiz],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, Friday 26 April appeared first on Newsroom. ...
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TPP Just in case you missed it late yesterday, and because
Submissions are due by
5pm on Wednesday, 30 March 2016 I am repeating this post.
https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/consulting-tpp%E2%80%99s-intellectual-property-implementation
To read the consultation document and provide a submission go to http://www.mbie.govt.nz/info-services/business/intellectual-property/tpp-intellectual-property-chapter/implementation-consultation.
(my bold and italics)
Goodie bags FFS! Like a child’s birthday party!
“TPP representatives walk away with NZ goodie bag”
Why is taxpayers’ money being spent on an agreement designed to transfer some of the taxpayers’ rights to large foreign corporations? Did the corporations provide any money for this or just the taxpayer? OIA request?
Read more: http://www.newshub.co.nz/politics/tpp-representatives-walk-away-with-nz-goodie-bag-2016030923#ixzz42QrXfeuC
“New Report on Trans-Pacific Partnership Trade Deal Raises Serious Concerns about Corporate Misalignment”
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/new-report-on-trans-pacific-partnership-trade-deal-raises-serious-concerns-about-corporate-misalignment-300233471.html
Karma.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3484064/Pro-gun-poster-girl-shot-four-year-old-son-driving-Florida-boy-pistol-seat-truck.html
The USA is a degenerate society. That is why people don’t feel safe and have to carry guns. And they are so inward looking that the woman has a photo of her wearing makeup, a chosen outfit with expensive hat and large gun, and considers it a good thing to publish not an example of the endtimes for the country.
And what values has she to teach her wee son. She is bereft of them, living in a nation, that tries to keep it glossy on top but underneath is a simmering lot of sewage which is as full of toxic things as Flint water, and can never be cleansed and drunk safely. Probably the problem is their own polluted drinking water is driving them round the bend.
I’m a bit more hopeful that the increased militancy we’re seeing with gun owners in the US is a sign that they realize their fetish is becoming socially unacceptable and on the way out. Kinda like how smokers got really militant in the 80s and early 90s. Certainly the statistics are clear that there’s fewer gun owners, but the remaining gun owners have a lot more guns.
I had to laugh about my comment above. it reads like some communist propaganda from a story I am reading written by Colin Cotterill which is in Laos, but involve Vietnamese, Thai and Chinese in differing numbers.
Unfortunately I do think this about USA though I’m not a communist, probably more of a humanist. And believing in good for people generally and for oneself is the sort of value that I think is important.
🙂 After reading your posts for a few years grey, I’d agree you’re a humanist.
A thoughtful and reflective humanist.
Thanks Rosie. I think your judgment would be right. I hadn’t thought much about it, except I knew what I didn’t like, which narrowed things down.
And TC I will. I never did see it originally, and hey it isn’t out of date by the sounds of it.
Go and watch ‘bowling for columbine’ , 14 years old now.
Moore does a subtle and effective job of highlighting some of the reasons for a gun toting society that lives in fear of each other.
Gloating over a tragic event. That is what you have done
“tragic”? She isn’t dead, and was upright and alert, and the kid probably has minimal understanding (if any) of what happened. And the irony can be cut with a knife.
“tragic” is the 9 year old who was given an uzi on full auto and accidentally killed her instructor because she was too small to handle the recoil.
OneTwo
I recognise your ploy. It gets used regularly by RW here. The emotional content of some tragedy is turned on to high, and swamps every attempt to treat the matter both humanely and rationally. Each ongoing tragedy is received more emotionally, and people are paralysed by grief and stress and cannot be allowed to concentrate on how to prevent the next tragedy.
C’mon Folks – make sure you make a submission on TPP. The MSM are publicising that only a few people are opposed and protesting at the Roadshows….
The current closing date for public submissions on the TPP is Friday March 11th.
http://itsourfuture.org.nz/take-action/
I’ll drag myself to once again into the fray, against TPPA. Look at the hidden message in the link: It_sour_future. So on top of all the other things I try to do, to help community and keep NZ from being mean, I will do it. Thanks for backgrounding and informing saveNZ.
We want our taxpayers money going on health and schools, not Kangaroo IDS court lawyers….
http://www.isdscorporateattacks.org/#!basics/c66t
Server now up to date.
Thanks.You are the best!
So Todd Barclay is of sufficient age, 23 years, to decide that those under a certain age, 25 years, are not eligible to adopt.
how does that work?
cuckoo cuckoo
Hey, alllllmost 26
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Todd_Barclay
All good then, except that the point above still stands.
People under 25 can decide whether people under 25 are of insufficient capacity.
Clearly a gigantic nonsense. But in existence. And the gigantic nonsense is supported by many people around here ….
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8GwT7ZotCg
Just pointing out the technicality vto.
So is the kid on some sort of committee looking at adoption age law changes or is it just his personal opinion or something? I’m not aware of the context. I have heard there are some odd anomalies around adoption.
No, no context personal to Barclay – the rather large technicality that permits an MP of age 23 to decide (vote) on an issue concerning capacity of someone aged under 25….
hence the cuckoos in la-la land
Oh, good, male MPs won’t be voting on abortion law any more. Excellent.
except when it is a male being aborted of course
That’s a different argument. We’re talking about civilised countries that are pro-choice. Why should men have a say beyond that if a 23 yr old shouldn’t vote on legislation affecting 24/25 yr olds?
You can’t have it both ways.
conflator conflatee conflataaarrrr…. yeeaahh…. tra la la la life goes on
giving up so soon vto?
that’s not what conflating means btw. I made a straight out comparison. Feel free to explain why it’s invalid if you can.
Yours was the different argument weka.
Once you have answered the original question about age …… how is that justified? You know, that someone under 25 can decide if people under 25 are capable?
It is a nonsense.
Happy to hear an explanation in justification. Because the answer will surely provide some guidance to your male/abort question too……. come on …….
You think it’s a nonsense but you haven’t said why. Go on, have a go and see if you can explain your thinking.
It’s justified because (I’m assuming) anyone aged 18 or older can stand for parliament.
sheesh weka have you ever studied maths or logic? you have completely and utterly missed the point
let’s leave it for now – I have to rush out shortly and now you have me all confused and will need to be careful I don’t drive the wrong side of the road backwards …
When you come back, just start again. Make the statement about Barclay and then say what the problem is and how it it a problem. If you read back through the thread, you never said.
Lols. I’m still not with you. Are you suggesting an MP should be excluded from voting on age related legislation whether it be adoption, minimum purchase age for alcohol or anything, because of ….their age?
And if theres no such bills before parliament at the moment is your question more hypothetical than anything?
I really liked the cuckoo’s btw. Nice touch. 😀
“Metalclad v. Mexico
Toxic waste
Investor win (awarded $16.2 million)
In 1997 Metalclad Corporation, a U.S. waste management firm, launched a NAFTA investor-state dispute against Mexico over the decision of Guadalcazar, a Mexican municipality, not to grant a construction permit for expansion of a toxic waste facility amid concerns of water contamination and other environmental and health hazards. Studies indicated that the site’s soils were very unstable, which could permit toxic waste to infiltrate the subsoil and carry contamination via deeper water sources. The local government had already denied similar permits to the Mexican firm from which Metalclad acquired the facility. Metalclad argued that the decision to deny a permit to it, as a foreign investor operating under NAFTA’s investor rights, amounted to expropriation without compensation, and a denial of NAFTA’s guarantee of “fair and equitable treatment.”
The tribunal ruled in favor of the firm, ordering Mexico to compensate Metalclad for the diminution of its investment’s value. The order to compensate for a “regulatory taking” was premised on the tribunal’s finding that the denial of the construction permit unless and until the site was remediated amounted to an “indirect” expropriation. The tribunal also ruled that Mexico violated NAFTA’s obligation to provide foreign investors “fair and equitable treatment,” because the firm was not granted a “transparent and predictable” regulatory environment. The decision has been described as creating a duty under NAFTA for the Mexican government to walk a foreign investor through the complexities of municipal, state and federal law and to ensure that officials at different levels never give different advice. After a Canadian court slightly modified the compensation amount ordered by the investor-state tribunal, Mexico was required to pay Metalclad more than $16 million.”
http://www.isdscorporateattacks.org/#!environment/c1wa0
Thanx for that important info savenNZ What we ‘The Gullibles’ need to know.
Crikey. Fined $16million for acting to protect a water supply and no appeal allowed. TPPA beware!
Yesterday Bill English admitted on NatRadio that pretty much all dairy farmers have been conducting their business to make money by way of capital gain rather than revenue….
These people need to account for that money in their income tax returns then.
and not be dirty tax-dodging bludgers ….
Bill English said it, not me…
will IRD ignore this?
Isn’t the capital gain only realised when they sell up ?
Yes. Depends on how it is treated. Some regimes don’t require realisation before charging, others do. Michael Cullen seemed to think taxing before realisation was ok, personally I think it is a bit nuts.
Of course shortly there will be plenty of losses to counter gains anyway ….
Probably realised when they go out and borrow huge amounts more money on the farm.
vto
No, silly. It’s just ‘good’ business practice!
Ha, yep like those people who manage to manufacture disabilities to make claims are simply indulging in ‘good’ income practice. They have clearly learned from Bill English and his types.
On RADIONZ this morning. About keeping young offenders out of the Courts and injustice treadmill.
09:20 How iwi led justice panels are keeping offenders away from crime
Funding is due to soon run out for three iwi led panels, which offer an alternative justice system for low level offenders.
The three panels, in Lower Hutt, Gisborne and Counties Manukau, were set up in 2014, with the objective of diverting low-level offenders away from crime, and keep them out of the criminal justice system.
The Justice Ministry has yet to decide whether it will continue funding them, saying while it appreciates the groundswell of enthusiasm, it has to consider the role and fit of the panels in the wider criminal justice system. Neville Baker is the chair of the Waiwhetu iwi led panel. Asher Hauwaho is the Iwi Liaison Officer for the Lower Hutt police.
Need more money, thank you very much, from the government. This citizen here says that time spent with young people having difficulties, helping them so they overcome their problems and limit reoffending to minor infringements, will save our tax dollars, my tax dollars, at present 15% on everything I buy., plus the cents tax you take off my small savings, and anything you get back from my taxable pension. (Don’t abandon programs for young people who are recidivists. If the offending comes down to really minor offences, it will stop as they get older. Just believe it is a good thing to do to work with them, and keep it going. It will prove a big saving and a big boost to the individual life.)
WhichAt present money received goes mostly on your and your servants’ salaries, and to the pockets of your business class running the prisons, the old people’s homes, and who knows what else you are going to hive off so you are paid for doing nothing useful for we the citizens.
Contemptible curs you are.
edited
Link to justice diversion system. Worth backing! Positive and fruitful policy.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/player/201792645
Good points greywarshark, basic, fundamentaly good economics, prevention as opposed to reaction, I doubt whether the govt sees it that way.
Thanx Expat glad that the number of people saying this is growing.
There have been active intelligent rational measures to improve and reduce the numbers in prison for decades, while governments prefer to keep the bogeyman up their sleeves for a possible last minute election frisson.
links:
Rethinking Crime and Punishment
http://www.rethinking.org.nz/Default.aspx?page=3613
and
Restorative justice – Victim, Offender, Community
http://www.restorativejustice.org.nz/cms/WhoWeAre/tabid/65/Default.aspx
And an address by Kim Workman 2008 – Refers to another innovator and thinker Judge Andrew Becroft.
http://www.rethinking.org.nz/images/newsletter%20PDF/Issue%2048/080927_The_Future_of_Restorative_Justice.pdf
The Future of Restorative Justice –Control, Co-option or Co …..
Kim Workman’s address to the 2008 Restorative Justice Aotearoa Conference. Let me first …. alternative justice movement in New Zealand, that has over the years sought to implement ….. Judge Andrew Becroft‟s advocacy for expanding.
Up to $7280 pledged for benighted journalist Bradley Ambrose. Going to 11 pm on Wednesday 16 March in his effort to raise for court fees – $38,000. I think Give a Little gives whatever is raised to the person, others only pay if target is reached. I could be wrong, but I should think anything would be helpful to him.
https://givealittle.co.nz/cause/bradelyambrose
There is the link.
Put in a bit and you are doing something to stir things along against this government. The link to the post on The Standard tells more:
http://thestandard.org.nz/crowdfunding-for-bradley-ambroses-defamation-case-against-john-key/
+1
The disability hate-speech enabler is on Radio NZ’s Panel today. I suppose they have to have him on to keep their funding.
A MESSAGE FROM THE QUEEN
To the citizens of the United States of America from Her Sovereign
Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
In light of your failure in recent years to nominate competent
candidates for President of the USA and thus to govern yourselves,
we hereby give notice of the revocation of your independence,
effective immediately. (You should look up ‘revocation’ in the
Oxford English Dictionary.)
Her Sovereign Majesty Queen Elizabeth II will resume monarchical
duties over all states, commonwealths, and territories (except
North Dakota, which she does not fancy).
Your new Prime Minister, David Cameron, will appoint a
Governor for America without the need for further elections.
Congress and the Senate will be disbanded. A questionnaire may
be circulated next year to determine whether any of you noticed.
To aid in the transition to a British Crown dependency, the
following rules are introduced with immediate effect:
———————–
1. The letter ‘U’ will be reinstated in words such as ‘colour,’
‘favour,’ ‘labour’ and ‘neighbour.’ Likewise, you will learn to spell
‘doughnut’ without skipping half the letters, and the suffix ‘-ize’
will be replaced by the suffix ‘-ise.’ Generally, you will be expected
to raise your vocabulary to acceptable levels. (look up
‘vocabulary’).
————————
2. Using the same twenty-seven words interspersed with filler
noises such as ”like’ and ‘you know’ is an unacceptable and
inefficient form of communication. There is no such thing as U.S.
English. We will let Microsoft know on your behalf. The Microsoft
spell-checker will be adjusted to take into account the reinstated
letter ‘u” and the elimination of ‘-ize.’
——————-
3. July 4th will no longer be celebrated as a holiday.
—————–
4. You will learn to resolve personal issues without using guns,
lawyers, or therapists. The fact that you need so many lawyers andtherapists shows that you’re not quite ready to be independent.
Guns should only be used for shooting grouse. If you can’t sort
things out without suing someone or speaking to a therapist, then
you’re not ready to shoot grouse.
———————-
5. Therefore, you will no longer be allowed to own or carry
anything more dangerous than a vegetable peeler. Although a
permit will be required if you wish to carry a vegetable peeler in
public.
———————-
6. All intersections will be replaced with roundabouts, and you will
start driving on the left side with immediate effect. At the same
time, you will go metric with immediate effect and without the
benefit of conversion tables. Both roundabouts and metrication will
help you understand the British sense of humour.
——————–
7. The former USA will adopt UK prices on petrol (which you have
been calling gasoline) of roughly $10/US gallon. Get used to it.
——————-
8. You will learn to make real chips. Those things you call French
fries are not real chips, and those things you insist on calling potato
chips are properly called crisps. Real chips are thick cut, fried in
animal fat, and dressed not with catsup but with vinegar.
——————-
9. The cold, tasteless stuff you insist on calling beer is not actually
beer at all. Henceforth, only proper British Bitter will be referred to
as beer, and European brews of known and accepted provenance
will be referred to as Lager. South African beer is also acceptable,
as they are pound for pound the greatest sporting nation on earth
and it can only be due to the beer. They are also part of the British
Commonwealth – see what it did for them. American brands will
be referred to as Near-Frozen Gnat’s Urine, so that all can be sold
without risk of further confusion.
———————
10. Hollywood will be required occasionally to cast English actors
as good guys. Hollywood will also be required to cast Englishactors to play English characters. Watching Andie Macdowell
attempt English dialect in Four Weddings and a Funeral was an
experience akin to having one’s ears removed with a cheese grater.
———————
11. You will cease playing American football. There is only one
kind of proper football; you call it soccer. Those of you brave
enough will, in time, be allowed to play rugby (which has some
similarities to American football, but does not involve stopping for
a rest every twenty seconds or wearing full kevlar body armour
like a bunch of nancies).
———————
12. Further, you will stop playing baseball. It is not reasonable to
host an event called the World Series for a game which is not
played outside of America. Since only 2.1% of you are aware there
is a world beyond your borders, your error is understandable. You
will learn cricket, and we will let you face the South Africans first
to take the sting out of their deliveries.
——————–
13.. You must tell us who killed JFK. It’s been driving us mad.
—————–
14. An internal revenue agent (i.e. tax collector) from Her Majesty’s
Government will be with you shortly to ensure the acquisition of
all monies due (backdated to 1776).
—————
15. Daily Tea Time begins promptly at 4 p.m. with proper cups,
with saucers, and never mugs, with high quality biscuits (cookies)
and cakes; plus strawberries (with cream) when in season.
God Save the Queen!
PS: Only share this with friends who have a good sense of humour
(NOT humor)
Like
LOL
😀 😀 😀
just another reason why I think Kiwis will stick with the flag
yup
I’m just reading Affluenza by Oliver James. I had heard it being bandied about and have come to believe that there is a change that develops when we become affluent and able to stand unsupported. We think we are better and separate from the rest of our society. Hah. James is looking at the process. He calls it the Affluenza Virus. The WHO records that there is a lot of distress in developed countries. James describes it as being caused by the Virus.
He calls it Selfish Capitalism and says – I mean four basic things.
The first is that the success of businesses is judged almost exclusively by their current share price.
The second is a strong drive to privatise public utilities, such as water, gas and electricity, or in the case of America, to keep them in private hands.
The third is that there should be as little regulation of business as possible, with taxation for the rich and very rich so limited that whether to contribute becomes almost a matter of choice.
The fourth is the conviction that consumption and market forces can meet human needs of almost every kind.
America is the apotheosis of Selfish Capitalism, Denmark the nearest thing to its Unselfish opposite.
(That sounds to me how our country is operated. I think our governments have dived into this Selfish thing like Grandpa McDuck dived into his golden money pile!
He writes further that materialism is strong in the poor, because every dollar counts, there is rarely enough, the work is precarious, and everything received can help, if everything isn’t budgeted for, there will be days when there is literally no food etc.
But when there is sufficient and more, and materialism still reigns then society deteriorates.)
The Selfish Virus causes distress like this:
Here’s an example of a brilliant young woman being an excellent MP at age 20. See, it can be done.
Mhairi Black’s maiden speech,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZAmhB55_-k
You’re a good googler… Have you ever heard the saying about the exception that proves the rule?
Not sure how this helps the issue, but would be keen to see a credible answer to the point above about how an MP aged under 25 can decide (vote) that people under 25 are of insufficient capacity to adopt…
Why don’t you start with explaining why you think it’s a problem? Then we’d know what you are talking about.
No, don’t avoid the question again. Whether it is a problem or not is separate. And I know you like throwing out the old “don’t what you’re talking about” banana skin but it is a falseity ….
The question again;
How is it that someone aged under 25 can decide (vote) on whether people under 25 are capable or not?
The answer is simple, he’s a legally elected representative and entitled to vote. His age is irrelevant to that. I really don’t get what your problem is.
it is a circular logic thing
maybe there are bigger brains around here who can pinpoint the descriptor for this …
In other words you’re objecting to something without knowing why. Or you’re being weasly and refusing to say what you think because you know you will get argued with. Neither are hardly the basis for useful political debate.
no no not at all – just looking for the technical description of this phenomenon which will help you understand it . Later
oks.
Weka he is been cute, from a logic point of view your statement is a circular argument , ie you are asking some one under 25 wether people under 25 are capable, by definition they can’t answer that question because you don’t know if their capable because there under 25?
I think 23 yr olds can be capable of making good MPs so it’s a nonsense argument to me. Vto seems to be arguing some principle and conflating that with his opinion that a young MP can’t do a good job because of their age.
Being an MP at 23 is not the same as adoption. But really the whole discussion is daft because the law as it stands is old and out dated and a report wants it to change to take the discriminatory aspects out. How Barclay would not be competent to vote in that because of his age is beyond me.
Hi weka – red delusion, grindlebottom and mr munro below have said it in slightly different ways that hopefully make sense to you. It was a curiousity, and illogicality.
It is a logical fallacy that the law both allows a person to decide (vote) that a person under 25 is incapable, but be capable enough to make that decision.
That is the problem.
But in further curiousity, it also highlights another discrepancy between our societies ways today and traditional ways borne out over long history …… whereby age was a factor in competency to a far greater extent than it is today. Two examples being – leaders of communities have typically been described as the “elders” (indicating the age factor), and secondly, this particular example whereby past NZ society has deemed people under 25 incapable of adopting.
This is just history. It is curious that we seem to think we are superior to this aspect of human history… time will tell whether we are right today (curiously enough)..
One final aspect – of course in societies past, far fewer people lived to a decent age, so the “elders” may have typically been in their 30’s, or heaven forbid their 20’s.
and one more final aspect – with my too many years on the planet my personal view is that age, combined with thinking (…), adds immeasurably to so very much of life. That time and experience is something that cannot be gained in other ways by most people. I do not value the views of the young on various relevant issues, to anything like the extent I value the views of the elders (subject to cogency etc..). This is my experience … and this would seem to be the experience of much of past societies too, given the prevalence of age in these matters …..
… now back to my weetbix
It’s a kind of authority-based hypocrisy, as far as I can judge.
Basically, I have the power of the establishment on my side so I can tell you what to do or not do.
I don’t think he’s making an argument, I think he accepts a 23 year old can and will vote on the issue.
He’s just got it in his head that saying someone under 25 can decide whether someone else under 25 is capable of adopting looks to him like circular reasoning, a logical fallacy of some kind, and he wonders (out of curiosity) what kind it is.
If I’m right, the problem is that it’s a fallacy that this is a logical fallacy.
Hi vto
I think the argument for it is that it is the exception that proves the rule.
But if there were too many under 25’s, when would it stop being an exception? Would it be decided on proportionality, the same percentage in parliament, as the percentage of potentital under 25 voters. There is a lot to take in for someone that young who hasn’t lived long. So that is a mark against too many youth. Also they stop learning I think, and don’t do their own but the thinking bidden by their Party, so starting too young may see a dull old dog or bitch by the time they retire if they stay at heel for too long. One mark against career pollies.
Then again some older people don’t seem to have lived and learned despite all their years. They have set out with their gladstone bag full of precepts and prejudices and never had them washed and ironed throughout their whole lives. Our local MP Nick Smith has been in Parliament since he was a fresh faced youngster and the job has aged him, but I don’t know if it’s added to his wisdom.
I see Stuart M has put up a lively answer. I thought it was simpler than that – that if you say you are making an exception, that implies that there is a rule to which the present matter is different but is being allowed, thus it is being made one exception to the (normal and accepted) rule. Thus, the exception proves the rule.
edited
In the case of Nick Smith .. er what wisdom?
Nick Smith is a good Minister, by National standards.
hi mr grey, I have tried to explain again just above, hopefully makes sense …
Woody Allen gets the last say…
“In my next life I want to live my life backwards. You start out dead and get that out of the way. Then you wake up in an old people’s home feeling better every day. You get kicked out for being too healthy, go collect your pension, and then when you start work, you get a gold watch and a party on your first day. You work for 40 years until you’re young enough to enjoy your retirement. You party, drink alcohol, and are generally promiscuous, then you are ready for high school. You then go to primary school, you become a kid, you play. You have no responsibilities, you become a baby until you are born. And then you spend your last 9 months floating in luxurious spa-like conditions with central heating and room service on tap, larger quarters every day and then Voila! You finish off as an orgasm!”
@vto
Thanks for Woody Allen I’ve grabbed that for further reading. Seems like a gem, that will amuse me for some years even.
“Have you ever heard the saying about the exception that proves the rule?”
Marilyn Waring
Jacinda Ardern
Gareth Hughes
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baby_of_the_House#New_Zealand
Someone else can comment on the global list as to whether any of the myriad of young politicians were any good,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baby_of_the_House
The exception proves the rule is one of the famous sayings that have come to mean the opposite of what they originally meant. Exceptio probat regulam meant that when you have an apparent exception, you should apply the rule. The convenience to the likes of VTO of this position is it allows him to avoid refutation by what is effectively a selective use of the excluded middle. Something is something, or it is not.
Under 25s are capable of good judgment, or they are not. We have several instances of under 25s with good judgment, so the generalisation is unsound. But qualifying it might redeem it ‘many under 25s are not capable of good judgement’ is probably tenable.
The other inverted saying was Solon’s ‘A moral man is a law unto himself’ – the point being that moral persons are genuinely self-policing to some degree. The modern meaning refers to someone who does whatever they want – like our despicable substitute for a PM.
VTO is pointing to a Cretan liar’s paradox – “All Cretans are liars” says a Cretan, and the expectation is that the statement must be untrue. The paradox only works in an abstract situation because to be a liar only requires occasional lying. Thus a person under 25 could have inadequate judgment but still make the occasional good decision – as seems likely given that the police are now scheduled to investigate Todd Barclay. http://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/375835/todd-barclay-electorate-staff-member-talk-police
Crikey, is that a scandal brewing? As Rosie said, bring on Popcorn April. Is that four legal process National will be involved in over the next months?
The question for me is, who decided that you shouldn’t be able to adopt under the age of 25, there are many under 25 who are mature enough to manage the adoption adequately , it’s not the age, it’s the ability to meet the requirements, surely.
In a democracy, as long as your’e old enough to vote then, your view point should not be dismissed.
VTO, I agree with your point to a large extent on this issue, if I was interested in adopting, and under 25, does this guy understand (at 23) the issues surrounding adoption, I see your point as 18 year olds voting on lowering the drinking age.
The point I make above about why there is a need to even make a decision based on age (age of the adopter), it’s discrimination isn’t.
Surely if you meet the necessary requirements for adoption, age is not a consideration, therefore the argument for voting on the question is irrelevant
The issue in the news is that a report is saying the current law (which says you can’t adopt if under 25) is outdated and discriminatory (not just the age issue) and should be changed.
http://www.odt.co.nz/news/politics/375768/call-reform-adoption-laws
I don’t know what vto’s point is. Barclay may or may not be competent to have a say on this proposed law change, but his age has nothing to do with it.
The law change would remove the prohibition on his particular age to adopt, so him having a say makes sense at that level anyway.
Thanks for answering my question that I asked of vto at round one of this thread, from this morning. I didn’t know whether it was a hypothetical question or related to actual current discussion of adoption law.
Which brings it back round to my question to him which was
“Are you suggesting an MP should be excluded from voting on age related legislation whether it be adoption, minimum purchase age for alcohol or anything, because of ….their age?”
I think, no they shouldn’t be excluded. That in itself would be discrimination.
Good reminder of Mhairi Black btw. She’s a star.
Hi Rosie, sorry for missing your question earlier.. it raises the same interesting dilemma regarding age restrictions on anything and everything…
people around here seem to be saying that age is immaterial
if that is the case then there are an awful lot of statutes to clear up and remove the discrimination from – alcohol, marriage, sex, war, driving, adoption, school, voting, , ,
what to do?
allow the young to decide these matters for themselves? allow the elders to do the deciding?
it all ends in logical fallacy stew
seriously though, what should we do
Weka
Thanks for that, I wasn’t fully aware of the issue, so sounds like perhaps he should have a say and condemn two age discrimination issues at the same time, but regarding Barclay’s competency, in a democracy, he can’t be discriminated against for being incompetent either.
Can this guy go any lower?https://www.change.org/p/tv-one-and-seven-sharp-mike-hosking-s-seven-sharp-host-called-nz-returned-servicemen-morons-we-want-an-apology?recruiter=
Don’t listen to, or watch him, the only ones who do are wankers.
That’s a petition calling for Hoskings to apologise or be sacked for calling returned servicemen morons for having an opion about the flag. Seems important.
Yeah, the petition is important, to counter the absolute stupidity of the man, but he’s not important, anyone with only half a brain would switch off after only listening to him for a few seconds of his dribble, I don’t know anyone who could say he represents their view points, except for maybe the PM.
True, I don’t watch him. I think the petition deserved to be highlighted separately to that.
Does anybody?
At seven I’m on The Daily Blog for some ‘real’ discussion on problems of this country,
Isn’t everybody?
Can you please link to today’s one?
I don’t even watch tv, got this off a facebook feed.
Mark, I didn’t mean to imply “you” fitted the description I detailed.
No problem Expat.
The only time I watched his show was the online version when Jane Kelsey shot him down in flames over the TPP. That was fun.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MblZU5nMZIE
He really is a thicko. She’s a joy to watch.
+1
Thanks. Signed. The guy is a prize jerk, and that was a really offensive thing to say. He should lose his job for a number of reasons, but this is as good as any.
That is his job ! Red neck ranting and shilling for national.
He uses his arrogant smug persona as a substitute for the intellectual rigour long gone from tvnz and enjoys the backing of besties jk.
Oh I know, but it’s up to us to not tolerate it.
I can’t look at him for a few seconds without my blood pressure going up. A broadcaster should not inspire that reaction in people. A broadcaster should inspire their viewers to have an enquiring mind and a desire to be educated by their investigative journalism…………….
Oh wait…………..
Rosie
“A broadcaster should inspire their viewers to have an inquiring mind and a desire to be educated by their investigative journalism…………….”
Problem is, who is that broadcaster?, where is that reporter? the free to air ones have gone down the toilet and not even worth watching any more and sky news is Murdoch BS.
When I was their in Jan, I watched “One” news with “Peter whats his face”, how embarrassing, he looked like a possum about to be hit by a car.
It’s a real shame we don’t have a public broadcaster modeled on the Aus ABC, providing balanced points of view for the benefit of the viewers, Q & A on the ABC includes 5 or more commentators from a diverse range of fields, beliefs and political persuasions, and the audience (aprox 200) is made up of a proportional amount of each of the 3 main political parties.
Having said that, Turnbull has replaced some of the key mangers within the ABC, and there has been a slight change in the way in which information is presented in the news, with less criticism of the Govt, you know, change a few of the neutral reporters for ones which are more pro Govt skew.
The great thing about the ABC is that there is NO commercial advertising at all, it’s free to air in digital right across the country with 4 separate channels at a cost annually of aprox $1B.
The ABC serves the needs of the Australian people, not the govt.
‘ ‘That’s horse sh*t!’: FBI can already unlock iPhone without Apple’s help – Snowden’
https://www.rt.com/usa/335054-snowden-apple-fbi-fight/
‘FBI changes rules on accessing NSA data on Americans, but won’t say how’
https://www.rt.com/usa/335058-fbi-nsa-rules-americans-surveillance/
‘Pentagon admits using drones to spy on Americans’
https://www.rt.com/usa/335068-pentagon-drones-spy-americans/
I saw that earlier and thought the FBI can’t hack an iphone, yeah right.
Or maybe it’s like NZ’s SIS who don’t have the fancy gear and so have to team up with the GCSB now 😉
Better than Icke! ( who is stupid and boring)
….Something to watch late at night if you cant sleep…to get yourself really paranoid
( but I dont agree with what they said about Queenie…it was a nasty fib!)
‘JFK to 911 Everything Is A Rich Man’s Trick’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1Qt6a-v
(definitely say “NO” to the TPPA!)
ooops …see link below
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1Qt6a-vaNM
Oh dear, How embarrassing for ISIS.
An insider has leaked a list of jihadi recruits to Sky News in Britain.
Full details of 22,00 of them. Edward Snowden would have been proud of this, I suppose.
http://news.sky.com/story/1656777/is-registration-forms-identify-22000-jihadis
So the US UK controllers and agents made a ‘mistake’
Some propganda is easier to identify
A primer on slavery today.
It makes sense that slavery and environmental destruction would go hand in hand. In some ways they spring from the same root. Our consumer economy is driven at its most basic level by resource extraction, pulling things from the earth, an extraction that we never actually see. We pull food from the earth, of course, but we also pull our cellphones from the earth, our clothing, our computers, our flat-screen televisions, our cars—it all comes from the earth, ultimately. And pulling things from the earth can be a dirty business. To make our consumer economy hum and grow and instantly gratify, costs are driven down as low as they can go, especially at the bottom of the supply chain; this can lead to abusive conditions for workers and harm to the natural world. Taken to the extreme it means slavery and catastrophic environmental destruction. But all this normally happens far from any prying eyes. It’s a hidden world that keeps its secrets.
[…]
When it comes to global warming, these slaveholders outpace all but the very biggest polluters. Adding together their slave-based deforestation and other CO2-producing crimes leads to a sobering conclusion. If slavery were an American state it would have the population of California and the economic output of the District of Columbia, but it would be the world’s third-largest producer of CO2, after China and the United States. It’s no wonder that we struggle and often fail to stop climate change and reduce the atmospheric carbon count. Slavery, one of the world’s largest greenhouse gas producers, is hidden from us. Environmentalists are right to call for laws and treaties that will apply to the community of nations, but that is not enough. We also have to understand that slavers—who don’t adhere to those laws and treaties—are a leading cause of the natural world’s destruction. And to stop them, we don’t need more laws. We need to end slavery.
http://blog.longreads.com/2016/03/08/your-phone-was-made-by-slaves-a-primer-on-the-secret-economy/
Also – an interview with the author.
What do the shrimp on your plate, the cell phone in your pocket and the rising pollution levels in the developing world have in common? Kevin Bales says, in a word: slavery. Paul Kennedy talks with the author of Blood and Earth: Modern Slavery, Ecocide and the Secret to Saving the World.
http://www.cbc.ca/radio/ideas/blood-and-earth-kevin-bales-1.3442119
Thats one sound reason I only have an old dumb phone, slavery and it’s effects, eg early death for for people that extract cobalt from dangerous mines for the phones (and why I don’t eat shrimps from Vietnam).
This from the Sydney Morning Herald today – haven’t seen it reported this side of the Tasman as yet though. http://www.smh.com.au/technology/consumer-security/malware-hijacks-big-four-australian-banks-apps-steals-twofactor-sms-codes-20160309-gnf528.html
Don’t do your banking from your phone!
And another reason I use an old dumb phone. I’ve never being able to trust the security on smart phones. Hackers will always win.
There are so many benefits to consider by being part of the dumb phone movement. It began as a psycho social issue but it’s really much larger than that.
+100 Rosie…the dumb phones are best imo…my smart phone stays under the chair and turned off…i reckon the apps my daughter loaded it with are bugged…ha ha
Any update on when the case of a prominent northland man is to be heard in the courts ?
Just thought of this when I was reading about M&M vs Nats