One of my favourite comedy actors of all time. I was just watching him on youtube yesterday (doco on the making of Blackadder). This is a real shocker.
I think that quad bike accident back in the late 90s fucked his career badly. And as a result of his much slower thinking / reactions, Ade Edmondson lost interest in working with him. Which is pretty bloody sad after all they’d been through.
was at uni when young ones and five go made in dorset hit our screens. saw ade Edmonson on the dales the other day and realised we are all middle aged now.
rip rik mayall for one of the funniest characters ( rick young ones) since life of bryan
ps when banks are his ear wax I immediately thought of rik in that scene about ear wax tasting bad
I loved him in “Mr Jolly Works Next Door”, and also in Guesthouse Paradiso…absolutely anarchic. RIP. Tonight I will raise a glass, as he said to Eddy Hitler in Bottom, “Make it a large one Eddy!”
“There were times when Rik and I were writing together when we almost died laughing.
They were some of the most carefree stupid days I ever had, and I feel privileged to have shared them with him.
And now he’s died for real. Without me. Selfish bastard.”
No worries, the bbc website is my home page and that’s what I awoke to when the cat meowed to tell me he didn’t need to go out in the rain as he’d sh!t in the bath instead.
Not my best morning to be fair, but at least my arse doesn’t have a footprint on it like Jasper’s.
An interesting 2010 Herald article providing a ‘reminder’ of Banks’ stance on various issues and behaviour towards fellow Parliamentarians over the years.
Not a nice man but more importantly he seems to have disregarded the rules when it suited him like buying the hotel and holding back a tender so that a friend could win etc.
Maybe an even more just outcome now than I thought?
It took reading that article to remind me what sort of person he has been over the years to get a better perspective. I used to have some admiration for Banks as someone who initially sought to overcome and rise above the deprivations of his childhood and youth – and did .-
This article and similar ones have reminded me just how far Banks came over the years from this initial start to become a narrowminded, self-serving elitist who thought he was above the rest of us and could ‘engineer’ things and the law to suit his own ends, and that of his likeminded friends and colleagues. Indeed IMO he still thinks and acts in this way.
He currently sits forlorn in the nest of his own making.
Not entirely alone. He does seem to have quite a lot of supporters – ex pollies and Nat lackeys who, by and large, are no better than himself.
Last evening I was at a local Labour function and the subject of David Seymour was discussed. We had seen the Nation interview and were flabbergasted that such a loud mouthed, pig ignorant sociopath will be in parliament after Sept.20. In contrast the other two candidates present – the charming Julie-Ann Genter and the calm, collected Richard Wood – were shining examples of the sorts of people we so desperately need on the government benches.
On Radionz there will soon be an interview about the problem of getting plastic out of the sea where it does so much harm. It sounds a good idea.
Could something be learned on making artificial floating environmentally safe floating ‘reefs’ over shellfish beds, coral reefs say, that need protecting from excessive sun and heat? Could we do something using similar technologies, ban plastic and use ocean-friendly packaging or something. I wonder?
Here is what Key had to say on Morning Report this morning on National’s possible coattail accommodations – in short that he will be announcing any in the next few weeks in the interests of transparency.
This morning the Herald also has an article on the selection by ACT of Don Nicholson, former Federated Farmers boss, as their candidate to run in Clutha Southland. This will pit him against the young ex tobacco industry National candidate …. While the article says that Key has said there will be no accommodation, it would not surprise me if there was, as a backup to the possibility that ACT does not win Epsom.
For all those on the left who think KFC has some sort of smoking gun revelation in relation to John Key and when he knew about the raid on him I have a question for you. Why is he offering 5 million dollars for information proving corruption? Seems like he would only be doing that because he doesn’t have any already.
no wonder you have such little idea on the complexities of society and the requirements for its healthy functioning and no wonder you think the only factor people consider in making life decisions is money.
Two different things, Gosman. One is the supposed evidence about John Key that KDC hints he has, the other is the offer to pay for evidence of Government corruption. One is personal to Key, the other relates to the Government in toto. Only the latter has any implications for the court case.
However, I’m with you in doubting the ‘smoking gun’. I think we’d have seen the evidence already, if it exists.
Evidence that John Key knew about the raid in advance would be suggestive of corruption or at least political collusion against KDC. This would call in to question the motivation for his arrest and be grounds for denying his extradition. The fact he is fishing for additional information is highly suggestive he has nothing as you point out as well.
with you OAB .. KDC has not been caught in any lie so far, unlike all the other motley cast of players. Also, I think he said it would be revealed in court, which is not due yet .. so much more fun in court than in msm media or the House …. and I think this is why the election was pulled forward, this and banks. but each was weighted in the decision imho.
Dotcom hasn’t been caught for lying you say, but he has been in jail several times, after being caught for a long list of criminal convictions that have followed his travels around the world for the last 20 years.
He’s been done for data espionage, embeszzlement, computer fraud, insider trading. He’s made money by ripping off phone cards and selling them, ripping off software and selling it, pretending a company he has shares in is about to get massive investment, then selling off the shares to conned buyers, and most recently ripping off music producers on a massive scale.
Whereever he’s gone, he’s made his money by ripping off other people.
But no – of course he would never ever tell a lie.
Your posterior is leaking again john, i know many seen Helen as a super-woman but really, you need get control of your propensity to lapse into fantasy…
I see a difference between a career criminal who makes his money from ripping people off, and a politician trying to save themselves by lying about speeding, paintings, foreign accounts, or even secret trusts.
I forgot about the feral inbreds comment, though it’s arguable whether that was actually a lie – just a very stupid thing to say publicly.
Even more stupid for a politician.
And even more stupid for a labour politician about a the founding region of the labour party.
Which probably proves my point. Helen Clark is generally thought of as a pretty good politician, and a good PM for most of her term, even by the right.
Showing the public are pretty tolerant of small slip-ups from politicians.
And smart enough to see that people who make big deals about small issues are just being anal.
“I forgot about the feral inbreds comment, though it’s arguable whether that was actually a lie – just a very stupid thing to say publicly.”
Funny thing, john, is that she never said it.
Which just reinforces what you’ve been demonstrating all along; that you’re a gullible dupe who is prepared to believe any old rubbish you’re told about people you disapprove of.
Meanwhile, John Key has lied his arse off for 6 years and you’re fine with it.
Well, KDM wasn’t caught in a lie, but the whole deal about a “sitting electorate MP” wanting to defect to the IP, which was subsequently withdrawn and is no longer spoken about, doesn’t do all that much for his credibility.
ahoy there, putake. i’m wondering if there’s a hint of the ‘alcohol maketh the man moreso’ to your question. there’s no excuses for me, im afraid. i’ve not labored in his vineyard for quite some time.
have to laugh at the blogger who says New Zealand is becoming a Deemocracy. i.e what we say goes.
and everything else is sub rosa or behind closed doors. Anyway the thing is a Wairarapa man is being charged with letting off a pistol not at a firing range. The defense will be that Judith collins was shown firing a pistol somewhere so waiting to see if what is good for the goose is good for the gander
Although not my buzz, ex shipping containers are a great way to recycle materials and reduce the amount of new raw materials being used for accommodation.
Watched a show about building in small spaces on tele awhile ago. One segment was about a container house accommodation and office space complex in a dis used industrial area in Britain. A lot of thought had gone into the storage spaces and layout of living areas in the containers, as well outdoor connection such as the use of large sliding glass doors going out to patios.
Wellington has a well known container house. Here’s some interesting shots of the interior:
Although not my buzz, ex shipping containers are a great way to recycle materials and reduce the amount of new raw materials being used for accommodation.
I’d almost agree with that except that they’re metal which means that they’re going to bleed heat at an absolutely astonishing rate unless they have really thick insulation. Thing is, a number of the ones I’ve seen on the internet don’t have that required insulation.
I’ve always wondered about the metal aspect regarding heat loss in winter, heat retention in summer and condensation.
Mr R did a cert in building ecology and design last year and although is interested in container housing, didn’t cover it as a project, mainly because it wasn’t construction from scratch per se. The “health” of the building and it impact on occupants would be an important consideration in sustainable housing I’d imagine – I might run that past him later, the insulation question.
In the meantime on the topic of the small house movement, heres a transportable small house manufactured in CHCH (with insulation!)
hello to you, freedom. jacob applebaum told me some things about mobiles that made me wary of their use. the question arose yesterday as to the reply button and dimebag russell (bitchin handle btw) piped up and stated that he doesnt use it. i dont want to come off as an complete asshole but cant it be one of my protests against conformity/authority (like not mowing my berm). it seems altogether too intimate for me as i do struggle in that department.
Yeah, it’s quite strange that the site’s suddenly inundated with newish people who seem incapable of using the reply button. A sudden outbreak of Reply-Button-Phobia. I’m wondering if it’s some sort of OCD thing ?
I was having fun rarking up the sewer yesterday when I was have a problem writing code. They appear to be a bit upset about that.
Teaching them to use a reply button is probably a bit much. Priority should be given to teaching them to use the toilet rather than going directly to the sewer.
Oh Hi AlIen. Hey, what was that I was reading above about Jasper the cat having a footprint on his bum because he shat in the bath?! Not true about the footprint I hope!!! Provide Jasper with a litter tray for rainy days and a cat door so he can come and go when he wants – no need for AlIen to get out of bed, and no need for Jasper to go to desperate lengths. Everyone’s happy.
You know, just yesterday I had a run with a man who was treating a cat cruelly on the side of the road. I was driving past and had to pull over and have a word with him. But this guy was a jerk and you aren’t, so give Jasper a break and get his bathroom sorted. No more messy starts to the day for you if you do 😀
Oooo you are wicked, winding me up like that…………….
Cats toilet indoors for good reasons. Address the source of the problem (litter tray and cat door) and you’ll have no worries.
If he still goes indoors and on your personal items, such as laundry and you have your cat toileting options sussed, then that means something else, he’s being territorial.
No to a litter tray, the idea is not to have cat poo smells in the house at all, I’m certainly not encouraging it.
He was out all last evening and only came in after midnight. He just won’t go to next doors garden when it’s raining. I’m sure it’s not a territory thing, he knows his place. The only bonus is it makes my girl pick her clothes up of the bedroom floor when it’s pouring down. 😀
I’m leaving the bathroom window open tonight, so if there’s a cat heaven, he best have been a good kitty if he does it again.
I’m not one for anthropomorphisms, but waking me up after the fact and not before does get me thinking. 🙂
“I’m sure it’s not a territory thing, he knows his place”. Yes cats always know THEIR place, they just like to make sure humans know theirs………they are clever like that and like to express their superiority.
No stinks from a litter tray if you keep it clean, and keep it in the garage, or somewhere not within the house
Well his place tonight certainly isn’t going to be under the blankie again, that’s for sure, so he’ll be expressing his superiority to the daddy long legs in the front room 🙂
It’s a cat door Jaspar needs. And if you don’t like the sound of the cat door going bank-whack in the middle of the night, tape the door up with some very strong sticky tape.It’ll still go whackity-whack as he hurls himself through the opening, but it’ll save you a lot of nasty smells and cussing…
Noooooo, i have been hoping that Cats didn’t get a mention, the next door one, known only to me as Cat, is one of my good friends,
She is totally the shit as far as an animal expressing itself goes and i have mentioned here befor Her love of the next door neighbors shed full of Pigeons, She sits on a fencepost in my backyard which the mentioned shed backs onto and falls asleep purring loud enough to be heard inside my house if there’s no radio blaring, and, drooling bucket-loads like a loon,
Should i have the temerity to interrupt this grand reverie by trying to use ‘my’ backyard, Her eyes will fly open and i get a Hiss and Meow that conveys to me in no uncertain terms ”F-off you bastard i was just getting to the bit where these feathered critters all fell at my feet screaming devour me master”,
We converse as often as the Cat deigns to lower Herself to engage and the Cat is an expert at using different tones and volumes of Meows, should i impart to the Cat that a certain level of Meow is insufficient to deserve as reward a Pat you can bet that the next Meow will be heart-rendingly plaintive until such time as my voice takes on a concilltory tone,
Anyway, to abbreviate, the other night Cat and i were going through this routine and when She had me in Her power, luring me into the gift of the inevitable Pat, i proceeded to lecture Her in the vein of ”i know your game Cat” following this with the lecture on Her only desiring Pats so as to ditch on one of the foolish humans at least one of Her many fleas, and,
As Pats provoke Her into fits of drooling this was in effect an attempt to pass onto the unsuspecting one of those Cat diseases they are said to carry,
Finishing this lecture with words of why don’t you make yourself useful, i haven’t seen a dead rat in months,
Next day on a trip into the backyard to feed the garden, WTF, at the bottom of the steps where the Cat normally leaves them, i assume for my inspection, 1 very dead Rat,
Which brings me to the question i have been meaning to ask, other than fast flying items of heavy matter, is there a way of keeping Cat’s from crapping in the garden, ala the drink bottle full of water on the lawn to deter the Dogs,???…
Alien Lolz, such are inherent in fast flying items of heavy matter, i had the same problem with a dog from down below that had little respect for my garden and complete disdain for me,
Until that is the day He looked up and met an object from space falling at 30 feet per second per second, what could be called an inescapable conclusion,
Myself i call it the old plastic chair on my deck, the dog then changed that to ”ouch” in the form of a yelp,
Sticks to his own turf these days choosing instead of shitting in and then digging up my garden to sending subtle messages via small yelps in the wee small quiet hours…
No to a litter tray, the idea is not to have cat poo smells in the house at all, I’m certainly not encouraging it.
Best house training of four kittens I ever did was a litter tray. Kept a litter tray until they proved that they were old enough to go outside (ie, they could jump out the window) and then dumped the litter tray in the garden. They followed the litter tray.
I’ve had him six years and he was in the family for a year or so before that and mostly he’s been good. Like I wrote, it’s only when it’s pouring down will I ever get left a present.
It’s only happened about four times in all, but I’d rather have triplets and be on permanent nappy duty than have to put up with that smell. It’s a unique aroma for sure, and one that lingers long in the nostrils.
Edit:
“is there a way of keeping Cat’s from crapping in the garden”
remember, if you do decide to call – there’s a high likelihood youll get one of the 99% who spoil it for the rest of the good ones. * cuts to a shot of mr o connor justifying yet another heavy handed beating*
An URGENT message to all NZ MPs who are opposed to corruption:
WE NEED THE EPSOM BY-ELECTION TO HELP KEEP THE PUBLIC SPOTLIGHT ON CORRUPTION!
(In my considered opinion, if the Epsom by-election goes ahead, National will NOT win this 2014 General Election, because they are SO vulnerable on the issue of ‘corrupt corporate cronyism’ and there is SO much more to come …… )
MPS who are opposed to corruption, should NOT support the upcoming vote (which needs 75% of MPs – 91 MPs) to prevent this Epsom by-election going ahead!
If Labour MPs commit to NOT supporting the upcoming vote to stop this Epsom by-election, it won’t happen, because there simply won’t be the numbers to make up the 75%.
There will be all manner of SPIN as to why this Epsom by-election should NOT go ahead, but it’s high time for a massive public exposure proving how NZ’s ‘perceived’ status as the ‘least corrupt country in the world’ does NOT match the corruption ‘REALITY’ check.
Please make your voices heard – ASAP!
10 June 2014
PRESS RELEASE FROM ANTI-CORRUPTION ‘PUBLIC WATCHDOG’ PENNY BRIGHT –
“Why I support Graham McCready’s call for an Epsom by-election.”
I, Penny Bright, ‘anti-corruption and anti-privatisation Public Watchdog’ support the call of private prosecutor Graham McCready, for MPs to support a by-election in Epsom, and NOT to provide this National Government with the numbers to make up the 91 MPs (75%) required to STOP this by-election.
In my considered opinion, any public monies spent on this Epsom by-election, will NOT be a ‘waste of money’ – but an investment in the fight against corruption in New Zealand ‘perceived to be the least corrupt country in the world’.
The general election will focus on many issues, but a by-election in Epsom will help keep a huge public spotlight specifically on corrupt practices such as electoral fraud – which have apparently been ‘common practice’.
‘State capture’ obtains when a small number of firms (or such entities as the military) is able to shape the rules of the game to its advantage through massive illicit, and non-transparent provision of private benefits to officials and politicians. Examples of such behaviour include the ability to control legislative votes, to obtain favourable executive decrees and court decisions. A relatively new concept, the main proponents being World Bank researchers, it echoes that of ‘crony capitalism’ and covers cases where high-level corruption is pervasive. (See military-industrial complex; clientelism.)
(That’s how the NZ Business Round Table (BRT) used to do it – by focusing on ‘policy’, pretending that their greedy self-interest was somehow in the ‘national interest’, and pushing for legislation from which they profited.
The BRT mantra that ‘public was bad – private was good’ helped to frame the ‘Rogernomics’ legislation which allowed the commercialisation, corporatisation and privatisation of public assets, a number of which (or shares of which) ended up in the hands of BRT members.)
Where can you check for ‘State capture?
Read the ‘Regulatory Impact Statements / Regulatory Impact Reports and find out with whom the policy analysts have been ‘consulting’ and treating as ‘independent third-parties – when they actually have and are vested interests ….
How about ‘post-separation employment?
The ‘revolving door’ between public office and employment in the private sector.
http://www.icac.nsw.gov.au/preventing-corruption/knowing-your-risks/post-separation-employment/4301
Post-separation employment
Post-separation employment is the situation where a public official leaves the public sector and obtains employment in the private sector.
The principle underlying the management of post-separation employment is the need to ensure that public sector decisions are made only on their merits and not compromised by extraneous considerations or personal interests.
The Department of Premier and Cabinet Personnel Handbook refers to this issue in Section 8-12:
Employees should not use their position to obtain opportunities for future employment. They should not allow themselves or their work to be influenced by plans for, or offers of, employment outside the department.
There should be a mandatory ‘quarantine period’ of 18 months to 2 years, between leaving Ministerial or senior public service positions and taking up a job in the private sector where you can be seen to be using your previous contacts and influence to ‘feather your own nest’.
Want to get up to speed with a comparison of anti-corruption legislative frameworks between Australia, NZ, UK, Canada and USA and compare it with that of New Zealand?
Please be reminded that New Zealand has STILL yet to ratify the UN Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC).
Minister of Justice Judith Collins’ ‘Organised Crime and Anti-Corruption Legislation’ Bill, the passage of which is required before NZ can ratify UNCAC has yet to surface on the Parliamentary Order Paper.
This 50th Parliament has 5 sitting weeks left …
.
New Zealand desperately needs a genuinely Independent Commission Against Corruption – like the New South Wales Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC)
The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) was established by the NSW Government in 1989 in response to growing community concern about the integrity of public administration in NSW.
The ICAC’s principal functions are set out in the Independent Commission Against Corruption Act 1988. In summary, they are:
to investigate and expose corrupt conduct in the NSW public sector
to actively prevent corruption through advice and assistance, and
to educate the NSW community and public sector about corruption and its effects.
The jurisdiction of the ICAC extends to all NSW public sector agencies (except the NSW Police Force) and employees, including government departments, local councils, members of Parliament, ministers, the judiciary and the governor. The ICAC’s jurisdiction also extends to those performing public official functions.
Penny Bright
…………………….
PRESS RELEASE FROM GRAHAM McCREADY – WHY HE SUPPORTS AN EPSOM BY-ELECTION:
10 June 2014
Graham Edward Mc Cready, New Zealand Citizen, Kiwi Patriot and sucessfull prvate prosecutor of the one honorarable John Archbald Banks call for ALL Membres of Parkiament including our most able and ehically corect Prima Minsister John Key to vote to hold a bi-election in Epson following the exit from tghe halls of power of Mr Banks.
‘I am a -political when it comes to the law. I do not belong to any political party. I am by the way a long term Labour Party supporter who helped Trevor Mallard in his first campaign in Hutt South. But the whole Banks private prosecution continued to the point it did because Banks held the Epson seat propping up the Key Government.
Had Banks adopted the wisdom of Trevor Mallard and offered as soon as he was summoned to plead guilty to a lessor non indictable charge that in December 2012 would have been accepted and amongst other things would have saved the Country a two year distraction and also my health.
There are thousands of fellow Kiwis who do not vote. One of the reasons is their view that all politicians are a bunch of corrupt bastards not worthy of their support.
The Epson mad hatters tea party and subsequent court proceedings are a stain on the political life of the Nation that needs expunging.
Voting not to hold a bi-election on expediency just tells the average Joe citizen that it is business as usual.
The electorate through a Bi -Election in Epson needs the opportunity to voice their anger at their elected leaders and elect a candidate in Epson free of all the ACT balderdash.
It will focus and address all the issues that have come out of the Banks court case that will be lost forever in a General Election
I call on all MPs to vote accordingly’
Graham Edward Mc Cready
Concerned New Zealand Citizen
………………………….
Wow thats from a moderator. look, i had a little stouch a few days back with what i assume is a regular. I admit i said i dont vote and i know that upset some of you. I know i made a bit of an off colour remark about the Christchuch mayor and i know this is your labour stronghold and comments like that dont go down too well – but fucking hell, seriously, loosen the pigtails, you bunch of polyannas. If it is in the rules then sure maybe people will be happy to use the reply button. If not then being part of a democracy means all comers get to interact as they see fit within the confines of the rules which do apply. Today the only comment ive seen from what i assume is a moderator is something that indicates to me they probably shouldnt be one – which is more often than not the case. ‘…our mailed fist can crush any opposition, and if our furious assault has a heavy civilian toll, that’s all to the good—perhaps the remnants will be properly educated’. Thats a little snippet from the nice israeli’s regarding Gaza. Im not fazed by you lot getting huffy about things i say. This isnt Gaza. My understanding of teletyping facilities such as this is that they survive with the assistance of newbies. You might want to deny it and you might want to have a status quo. Surely you dont want to sit around yammering on to the same people year in year out – or do you.
Well NO actually Marius, you are Wrong on so many levels in your little attempt at commenting suicide there my pinkies aint about to waste much energy pointing out Where,
Here’s a hint tho, if there were a status quo here and those speaking too far out of that status quo got the kick, i would suggest that i would have been gone long ago,
Another hint, Peeps have been pointing out to you the agreed to method of commenting via the reply button not because they are the fascist thought police, BUT, because they like to read Nembies stuff AND, when you continue to comment simply using the function of a new comment where you should have used reply, it to be blunt, fucks up the flow of the conversation,
Taking the piss of the Mods i would suggest is an open invitation to have you exit stage left…
The thing is Marius, and I do not know why I am even bothering but….people are only trying to be helpful. If you continue to refuse to follow a simple and constructive protocol, ie: using a reply button, chances are that people will simply not bother to reply to what you say. On a busy site like The Standard it is not always easy to identify what comments isolated replies are responding to.
(this comment being a self-explanatory exception to the above statement)
It’s like going to a pub, having a conversation with folk, and you getting up to change tables every time you talk. Pretty soon the conversation will just move on without you.
No, I agree with the critical comments you’ve made about Israel’s Occupation, Marius. It’s just hard to know who the fuck you’re replying / referring to with each comment.
Then again, there is, I s’pose, a certain entertainment in trying to guess precisely who you’re on about. There’s an interesting randomness about it all, a whiff of the absurd, a hint of Waiting for Godot.
Bloody Aussies, spoil everyone’s fun, it appears that the chemical Ketamine used in some of the ”legal high’s” that got the kick off of the shelves here has been under study in a Uni over the ditch,
The result so far, when other drugs have no effect Ketamine has shown to seriously curtail depression and unlike other anti-depressants is fast working,
Didn’t hear of any adverse side effects so once the study is published the purveyors of ”legal highs” will happily get a freebie as an aid to get the products back on the shelf,
Dunno Mac, my first impression at the mention of Ketamine was ”isn’t that a horse tranqualizer” its the next item on my notes after ”do you cook Mango to make chutney” so there’s a contest now occurring between my lust for Mango chutney and my thirst for knowledge as to which question is put to Google first…
In fact, I seem to recall doing venue security at a palliative care conference a few years back – one of the poster displays praised the virtue of ketamine as being comparable to (possibly better than) diamorphine (heroin). My thought was “so if you fill ’em full of horse tranquilizer, it eases their pain? There’s a revelation…”
Mind you, amazing the stuff you pick up if you keep your eyes and ears open working at function centres 🙂
Nicely done Mac, and i can now inform everyone,(as if they didn’t know), that yes, to make Mango chutney it appears the common wisdom is to cook it along with all the other ingredients,
i have modified that, and, the liberal dose of Lemon juice i have planned for mine will go in last as i do not want the heat to alter the chemical balance of the juice,(it being a preservative ingredient)…
For several years, I made my unofficial beat the stories, struggles, and politics of blacks in America. I wrote about other things, also, but never with the same frequency or interest. I was pretty good at it, and, more than that, I enjoyed it. Eventually, people began to assume that I’d comment when a particular kind of news story bubbled up—generally one about something bad happening to a black person—and I often times would. I wasn’t surprised when a website I liked asked me to write about the case of a white man of little note in New Hampshire calling a hugely powerful black man a “nigger.” But then I realized I didn’t have anything to say.
Or maybe it wasn’t that I didn’t have anything to say. Maybe it was the realization that writing anything would be to listlessly participate in the carousel ride: an inciting incident, 1,000 angry thinkpieces, 1,000 tweeted links, and back to where we started, until next time. Perhaps it was a feeling that writing anything would finally be too redundant to bear, a pursuit of too many sad and obvious words to heap onto so many other nearly identical words written down before, by me, by thousands of others.
This fatigue is one we all face when we talk/write about issues from a personal perspective. I’m not sure what the answer is to combat the hollowed out feeling when another injustice occurs that is similar to the last injustice and so on to infinity. For me and my small contribution to the issues that matter to me the main way to combat it is the knowledge that I am not alone. I thank all those who write and comment on this site and who align with my belief in equality above all else – you know who you are and without you, well, without you the bastards would run even more amok than they are now.
” For me and my small contribution to the issues that matter to me the main way to combat it is the knowledge that I am not alone.” and it is that which also keeps me going, Marty Mars. We’re all in this together in our different ways (fighting inequality) and while you might get fed up with some of those others at various times, none of us can do it alone.
We all need a bit of luck Marius. If you don’t want your share, I’ll have it.
Just for the record, we were all new here at some time, but choosing to ignore the reply button as a form of protest, especially since being told it’s a pita is a bit self defeating.
You’ll get more out by putting a little effort in, even if it spoils your present game.
Just saying 🙂
Edit:
“it comes as no surprise to me that dissent will be met with expulsion. im not in the least bothered by that.”
look, bad. i havent purposely avoided the reply button. ive been settling into using this place in a nice sedate manner which suits me. im not being hurried along by the local cops. as i said, ive heard nothing from a moderator which says im obligated to use the reply button. ive typed in places where the screen scrolls by so fast if you blink you miss who youre interacting with – this place is a retirement home in comparison. yeah yeah i know ‘fuck off back there’. it comes as no surprise to me that dissent will be met with expulsion. im not in the least bothered by that. so be it or the chips are down as gide said.
How have you found it work out for you, turning up to others peoples places and deliberately pissing on their doorsteps just to make a point that you’re really so unique. Going well for you is it?
Yep. Or a burst of the rolly eyes. The sad thing is that the arrogance is taking the shine off the occasional glimmers of intelligence and education. I’ll bet Marius is the first poster here to name check Andre Gide, for example. But the contempt for the readers ruins that, (just as it usually does for Phil Ure’s contributions).
🙄 🙄 the Moderator is probably busy engaged in that strange human function called work Marius,
By the time you have pissed Him off enough to have heard from Him, depending how stressful the day is, might be your first and last conversation, 🙄 🙄 …
You’d think so, but there are still thousands of the bloody things on active duty around the world and even more in storage ready to be put into a state of readiness.
That’s because their nuclear operations comply with international standards.
Japan signed comprehensive de-militarisation pacts at the end of WW2. But, they could have a working bomb within 3 months or so if it was deemed ‘necessary’.
Hey Gosman, if you’re around…. You are always banging on about how useless Zimbabwe is/was. Well I get sent emails from an investor thingy called the Dail;y Reckoning. It’s an aussie thing worth a read on the occasional blue moon.
Anyway, this one today caught my eye… especially when it said this ….
“–Years ago a man named Gideon Gono first appeared in The Daily Reckoning. He quickly became a favourite character of readers. Best of all, we didn’t even have to make him up.
–The charismatic Governor of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe surged to fame in 2008. Not just because he destroyed the country’s economy by printing money. But because American and European central bankers embraced his policies after ridiculing them for years, which he promptly rubbed their faces in.
–Quantitative Easing went on to become the key economic policy of the decade. It saved us all. Except, of course, the savers who got nothing. In fact, their interest payments dwindled to less than inflation in much of the developed world. ”
I told you your claims about individual policies and supposed causation links through to various economy-wide results were simplistic.
As simplistic as suggesting that Cuba’s positions are a result solely of its internal policies / rolly eyes.
–Quantitative Easing went on to become the key economic policy of the decade. It saved us all. Except, of course, the savers who got nothing. In fact, their interest payments dwindled to less than inflation in much of the developed world. ”
It particularly saved the insolvent big banks and the 0.1% whose asset portfolios went up through the roof in value. Almost like those programmes were designed with that in mind.
–The charismatic Governor of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe surged to fame in 2008. Not just because he destroyed the country’s economy by printing money.
This is the key thing – economies are not typically destroyed just by printing money. It usually has to be combined with the destruction of productive capacity as well as war/civil war which really does it.
In Zimbabwe’s case the inflation in the economy which began to occur well befor the Governor of the Reserve Bank began to Print ever bigger bank notes,
Economic sanctions, imposed on Zimbabwe by the Western powers after Mugabe began repatriating the stolen land from the white farmers created the spiral of inflation that ensured the printing of ever bigger denominations of bank notes,
The basic essentials of life not produced in the Zimbabwe economy had to, after the imposition of the sanctions, be smuggled in from other countries thus driving their price up in an ever increasing spiral,
The US printing’s in particular have gone more to the big institutional banks and from their into the share-market or are simply sitting propping up the balance sheets of what is essentially a bankrupt system in terms of the means of counting the beans…
The US printing’s in particular have gone more to the big institutional banks and from their into the share-market or are simply sitting propping up the balance sheets of what is essentially a bankrupt system in terms of the means of counting the beans…
QFT
And that is, of course, why the US didn’t see any inflation – all the money printed went to the already rich and banks rather than going into the economy and producing demand.
Zimbabwe already had massive inflation (1991 48% and 1992 40%) in the years before any sanctions were imposed.
In addition, the sanctions were never general sanctions, but targeted just to certain individuals and companies.
Huge amounts of productive land was taken by Mugabe and given to war veterans, who failed to keep producing. Hence food production in Zimbabwe halved.
Similarly a large amount of capital invested in businesses (both Zimbabwean and foreign), fled the country, along with white and black Zimbabweans – a total of quarter of population fled. Manufactured goods plummeted, and unemployment skyrocketed.
Mugabes tax base dissappeared so they started printing money. I have a hundred billion dollar bank note from a recent visit that wouldn’t buy a single jelly bean.
John old boy, so good to see you old chap, how are things going over their at the embassy, so sorry you had to be dragged away from after dinner cocktails on such a minor mission especially having to answer the likes of me,(knowing how the unwashed upset you so),
A bit droll don’t you think John trotting out the old Zillion dollar bank note, oh sure it works as the grand party trick for those with their noses stuck so far up their arses that dinner is always delivered,via syphoning hose that is, but, i thought even you lot would have learned by now to save the bullshit for such idiots john,
How was the trip tho,must be hard on the skin all this flip flopping between time zones and climates john old boy, i am surprised the Regime over their didn’t get a hold of you as soon as the plane hit Harare and string you up by your old school tie to the nearest lampost,
The old Dip Pouch right old chap, Merlin of old could not have conjured up a shield so grand,you forgot a little something with the party trick zillion note john, the fact that that old rogue Mugabe changed to using the currency of the enemy so long ago i forgot what year it was,
08 or 09 wasn’t it old boy???
As for the ”other” information imparted, sorry, Disinformation, precious, ‘You’ can fool some of the people some of the time right old boy, you know the rest,
Here let me give a little assistance to aid you in NOT talking out of your arsehole,
Does seem a little like the poor old Governor of the Zimbabwe Reserve Bank had never had a talk with Ruth Richardson or Doctor Dullard Don Brash doesn’t it john,
However after the EU sanctions were imposed in 2001/2002 the story really changes doesn’t it john,
At which point Zimabawe had a choice, change to the Rand, the South African currency having become the stable currency of trade in the surrounding nations, or
Fuck totally your and the US’es little game big time by not switching to the Rand which would then also have become a target of your monetary terrorism john, simply by switching to the currency of the country that was imposing such monetary terrorism upon them, the US Dollar which they did right john,
i would call that small piece of intelligent use of the US dollar john, Game Set and Fucking Match old boy, well played and oh wont you come again,
Pfft, what would happen i have to ask to any small economy that had its ability to borrow kneecapped by sanctions, had its ability to buy and sell its goods knee capped by monetary terrorism in the form of the US banning its currency from being able to purchase the US dollar through any banking system,
In 2002 (before the US targeted sanctions started in 2003) trade between Zimbabwe and USA was a meagre $47m of exports and $103m of imports.
Four years later in 2006, when inflation passed 1000%, trade between Zimbabwe and USA was virtually identical – 49m of exports and $102m of imports.
In 2008, when inflation passed a billion %, trade between Zimbabwe and USA was even greater – $92m of exports and $112 of imports
Mugabe chased quarter of his own population out of the country and had to print money to make up for lost taxes from the farms businesses, and tourist industry he destroyed.
On a drive last year from Hwange to Bulawayo, farm after farm was destroyed and burnt out. In some parts only one in ten was left. Sanctions didn’t do that. Mugabes henchmen did.
You’re assertion that the hyperinflation was because of sanctions is both ignorant and laughable.
But john, and i know this may sour the next G and T forcing you to dribble it all over the shirt,(the expense account will be a hard one to justify this month won’t it, ”one of the unwashed i was educating on the web”, not being sufficient reason for the bean counters to loosen the purse strings right),but,
Cannot you see the utter contradiction in your explanation, it is rather glaring don’t you think old boy,
Henchman, i so love your propensity for the melodramatic john, ghastly tho would have to be a better level as a raiser of the tension in the narrative don’t you think old boy, in the vein of ghastly henchman, must make full use of the Queens at every opportunity what,
Oh right, sorry you have me escaping into flights of fancy, ghastly henchmen and all that, have you gone into a sideline as a tin-foil salesman john, i thought the Embassy was quite clear about those earns on the side, But,
To address this utter contradiction, damned ghastly henchmen burned the whole fucking farm to a crisp and exports to the good old home of international financial terrorism also known as the US of A went UP,
i would suggest john the old scoundrel running the place better hire a far more efficient cadre of ghastly henchmen, wouldn’t you old boy,
Oh what, is that what you were doing there risking your delicate pallor over john,can’t have the natives joining forces now can we, best to ferment a little mischief,
While we are chatting john, were we by chance traveling with the use of a NZ passport, that would be a novel means of having not to have to face the hostility at the border brought aboutt by the production of Her Maj’s documents…
Yes agreed CV, particularly your past paragraph and how economies and the like are the result of countless things such as war, embargoes, etc.
That is what annoys me about gosman’s musings and their simplicity – they show nothing and prove nothing. Hence my point there about Cuba – it has been absolutely nailed by the US for 50+ years.
As bad12 detailed above, the US is expert at destabilising nations and turning populations against their rulers.
Venezuela is in the firing line now (with the co-operation of the local 1%) and I’m not sure that Maduro is going to be able to hold out much longer – and this is a nation with hundreds of billions in oil wealth.
But that can’t be right CV, gosman says it is all because of the communist policies blah blah blah …
The US doesn’t do stuff like that, it just goes merrily about its business in accordance with the laws of every land including international law. The US is trustworthy and honest. It would never dream of anything other than acting as a good and honest international citizen.
Time to retire this graceless goon, this hectoring halfwit, this mindless moron.
Another hapless performance from Graham Bell The Panel, Radio NZ National, Tuesday 10 June 2014
Jim Mora, Graham Bell, Ali Jones
After the four o’clock news, it’s time to have a chat with the guests. Host Jim Mora always tries to talk about something relevant to the particular guest. With the cantankerous old cop Graham Bell, it’s the vexed question of arming the police….
JIM MORA: I was reading the American papers today, and we think WE’ve got problems, but over there I see the police are talking about arming themselves with grenade-launchers! Ha ha ha ha ha!
GRAHAM BELL: Haw, haw, haw, haw! Well, I suppose they have crack dens there that they have to knock over….
When Mora speaks to the indefatigable spokesperson for Christchurch’s earthquake victims, Ali Jones, there is only one possible subject: how the people of Christchurch are coping with insurance companies’ obstructiveness and the refusal of the Key government to do anything about it. It’s a really serious problem, and it demands serious and focused discussion. Unwisely, however, Bell decides that it’s time to say something sarcastic…..
GRAHAM BELL: So is David Cundliffe going to gallop to your rescue?
Perhaps he divined some of the irritation felt by Ali Jones, because the next words he spoke had none of the jocular tone of his dig at the Labour Party….
GRAHAM BELL:[uncomfortable, suddenly forced to assume an air of gravitas] Because, and believe me I have a lot of experience of this, lawyers have no interest in resolving an issue, they only want to prolong it as long as possible so they can make money off it.
Jones was having none of that nonsense. She launched into a stinging critique of the Insurance Council and the National-led government—and, by implication, of fools like Graham Bell who parrot their poisonous talking points…
ALI JONES: I totally reject what the Insurance Council and Gerry Brownlee have said about this.
Jones was really angry, and Bell showed a rare lick of common sense when he decided to lapse into silence. It was his most humiliating moment on this show since Gordon Campbell silenced him a few years ago after Bell had ignorantly attacked the then leader of the Greens, Jeanette Fitzsimons.
Bell was back to his curmudgeonly self a little later, during the Soapbox segment. Over the years, his Soapbox contributions have consisted almost entirely of gripes about the minor irritations in his life, like the food quality in tearooms, or the standard of customer service at Telecom, or—my personal favorite—this one from three years ago: “There’s a number of things that RANKLE me and FRUSTRATE me….Some time, just once in a blue moon, I’d like to get TWO biscuits with my cup of coffee, not just one biscuit!”
Today the tradition continued….
MORA: Graham Bell, what’s been on your mind please? GRAHAM BELL: Well, I tried to get some tickets this morning for the Eagles concert next year in Auckland. What a BLOODY FIASCO! MORA:[perhaps misreading just how serious Bell is] Ha ha ha ha ha! GRAHAM BELL:[raving] I’ve MISSED OUT! I’ve been waiting for them to come for twenty years and I’ve missed out. MORA: Who’s your favorite Eagle? GRAHAM BELL: Joe Walsh. Arrrrrgghhh! I sat there for TWO HOURS, logging in and out of their site. MORA:[insensitively] Ha ha ha ha ha! GRAHAM BELL: It drove me NUTS! How do these scalpers get the tickets though?
More snarling and grumbling for several minutes….
POINT TO PONDER….
According to Radio NZ National’s frequent station promos, The Panel features “leading opinion makers”, who discuss the news and “help to make sense of it all”.
Totally agree about Bell. The clanger I recall from him was when the Greens announced a policy about putting $200million (I think) into cycleways and cycling improvements around the country….
… of course something like this Bell would have had absolutely no idea about and of course he subsequently let his lack of nous on the subject pour forth ….
…blah blah he dribbled … “what an absolute waste of money … blah blah … I can’t believe the Greens keep coming up with these barmy ideas … waffle rant”
Then of course the cycling expert came on and cleaning dispatched the fool by outlining how the return for $1 spent on cycling improvements is $7 (think health, energy, etc etc) and the return for $1 spent on “roads of notional significance” is 60cents….
Bell is a dork with nothing useful to say. I agree he is a waste of time.
According to the study by In The Public Interest called “Race to the Bottom: How Outsourcing Public Services Rewards Corporations and Punishes the Middle Class,” privatization of government services “contributes to the decline of the middle class and the rise in poverty-level jobs, thereby exacerbating growing economic inequality.”
Since the 1980s and 1990s mass-scale privatization of government services has pushed millions of people into a “race to the bottom” cycle of poverty and added considerable stress to local, state and federal budgets.
And we’ve seen exactly the same things happening here in New Zealand.
Edward Snowden may not have had access to the NSA’s independent top tier surveillance systems
RUSSELL TICE: Think of it this way. Remember I told you about the NSA doing everything they could to make sure that the information from 40 years ago – from spying on Frank Church and Lord knows how many other Congressman that they were spying on – was hidden?
Now do you think they’re going to put that information into Powerpoint slides that are easy to explain to everybody what they’re doing?
They would not even put their own NSA designators on the reports [so that no one would know that] it came from the NSA. They made the reports look like they were Humint (human intelligence) reports. They did it to hide the fact that they were NSA and they were doing the collection. That’s 40 years ago. [The NSA and other agencies are still doing “parallel construction”, “laundering” information to hide the fact that the information is actually from mass NSA surveillance.]
Now, what NSA is doing right now is that they’re taking the information and they’re putting it in a much higher security level. It’s called “ECI” – Exceptionally Controlled Information – and it’s called the black program … which I was a specialist in, by the way.
I specialized in black world – DOD and IC (Intelligence Community) – programs, operations and missions … in “VRKs”, “ECIs”, and “SAPs”, “STOs”. SAP equals Special Access Program. It’s highly unlikely Mr. Snowden had any access to these. STO equals Special Technical Operations It’s highly unlikely Mr. Snowden had any access to these.
Now in that world – the ECI/VRK world – everything in that system is classified at a higher level and it has its own computer systems that house it. It’s totally separate than the system which Mr. Snowden was privy to, which was called the “JWICS”: Joint Worldwide Intelligence Communications System. The JWICS system is what everybody at NSA has access to. Mr Snowden had Sys Admin [systems administrator] authority for the JWICS.
And you still have to have TS/SCI clearance [i.e. Top Secret/ Sensitive Compartmented Information – also known as “code word” – clearance] to get on the JWICS. But the ECI/VRK systems are much higher [levels of special compartmentalized clearance] than the JWICS. And you have to be in the black world to get that [clearance].
ECI = Exceptionally Controlled Information. I do not believe Mr. Snowden had any access to these ECI controlled networks). VRK = Very Restricted Knowledge. I do not believe Mr. Snowden had any access to these VRK controlled networks.
Why did this not come with a supporter statement: this was brought to you buy the National and ACT parties.
Ngarimu Blair seems like a nice chap, but Fran talks over him and he shuts up and they conclude:
1) Internet Mana isn’t a real party.
See also: who the fuck is Phill Quinn on Pundit? Doesn’t seem to have a publishing history or profile but running the same lines.
2) They are gaming the system and cheating.
No mention made of ACT with an ex-National leader and cabinet minister in Epsom. No mention made of the fact that a review was held and the recommendation was to change it and they didn’t.
3) In Europe where there is proportional representation all coalition deals are organised before the election in all details. Is this actually an indisputable fact? Do parties put out joint manifestos before the election and then go into co-oalition before the election? I have my doubts.
Again no mention of the way National gamed the system to ‘compromise’ in its education policy because of John Banks’ tough cooalition negotiations with the guys who had set him up in Epsom by encouraging their supporters to vote for him.
What happened to all the ‘Electoral Finance Act’ we wanna spend our money jingoism? Or is it that party’s representing poor people or people not already entrenched in the establishment shouldn’t have access to money at elections and so should have less of a voice?
Ok, Lyn is off to Hawaii and then to rest of the US for 3 weeks. I still have another 4+ weeks of holiday pay. May the music be loud and the coding free and loose….
Maybe that will help with the irritating coding block.
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 ...
In today’s digital age, mobile devices have become an indispensable part of our daily lives. Among the vast array of portable computing options available, iPads and tablet computers stand out as two prominent contenders. While both offer similar functionalities, there are subtle yet significant differences between these two devices. This ...
A computer is an electronic device that can be programmed to carry out a set of instructions. The basic components of a computer are the processor, memory, storage, input devices, and output devices. The Processor The processor, also known as the central processing unit (CPU), is the brain of the ...
Voice Memos is a convenient app on your iPhone that allows you to quickly record and store audio snippets. These recordings can be useful for a variety of purposes, such as taking notes, capturing ideas, or recording interviews. While you can listen to your voice memos on your iPhone, you ...
Laptop screens are essential for interacting with our devices and accessing information. However, when lines appear on the screen, it can be frustrating and disrupt productivity. Understanding the underlying causes of these lines is crucial for finding effective solutions. Types of Screen Lines Horizontal lines: Also known as scan ...
Right-clicking is a common and essential computer operation that allows users to access additional options and settings. While most desktop computers have dedicated right-click buttons on their mice, laptops often do not have these buttons due to space limitations. This article will provide a comprehensive guide on how to right-click ...
Powering up and shutting down your ASUS laptop is an essential task for any laptop user. Locating the power button can sometimes be a hassle, especially if you’re new to ASUS laptops. This article will provide a comprehensive guide on where to find the power button on different ASUS laptop ...
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. ...
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 - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
I was initially resistant to the idea often suggested to me that the Government should deliver an arts strategy. The whole point of the arts and creativity is that people should do whatever the hell they want, unbound by the dictates of politicians in Wellington. Peter Jackson, Kiri Te Kanawa, Eleanor ...
Asia Pacific Report The Freedom Flotilla is ready to sail to Gaza, reports Kia Ora Gaza. All the required paperwork has been submitted to the port authority, and the cargo has been loaded and prepared for the humanitarian trip to the besieged enclave. However, organisers received word of an “administrative ...
Pacific Media Watch Palestine solidarity protesters today demonstrated at the Auckland headquarters of Television New Zealand, accusing the country’s major TV network of broadcasting “propaganda” backing Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza. About 50 protesters targeted the main entrance to the TVNZ building near Sky Tower and also picketed a side ...
Opinion by Lynley Hood. Forty years on from my 1985 Fulbright Grant, my disquiet over the war in Gaza evoked some troubling questions. The answer to my first question – What is the primary purpose of the Fulbright Programme? – was on the Fulbright NZ website. It says: US Senator, ...
The ministers responsible for green-lighting major projects need to be open about potential conflicts of interest, says Transparency International. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Powell, Professor, Family and Sexual Violence, RMIT University It has been a particularly distressing start to the year. There is little that can ease the current grief of individuals, families and communities who have needlessly lost a loved one to men’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gregory Moore, Senior Research Associate, School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, The University of Melbourne Lichen, the first described example of symbiosis.AdeJ Artventure/Shutterstock Once known only to those studying biology, the word symbiosis is now widely used. Symbiosis is the intimate ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kim Hemsley, Head, Childhood Dementia Research Group, Flinders Health and Medical Research Institute, College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University Olena Ivanova/Shutterstock “Childhood” and “dementia” are two words we wish we didn’t have to use together. But sadly, around 1,400 ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Whiteford, Professor, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University The government’s Economic Inclusion Advisory Committee has just published its second report. It was set up by Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth in 2022 to provide: ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne The Queensland state election will be held in October. A YouGov poll for The Courier Mail, conducted April 9–17 from a sample ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Naeni, PhD candidate at Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation, Deakin University There’s been much talk in recent months about what a possible second Donald Trump presidency in the United States could mean for Europe, Russia’s war in Ukraine, the ...
A brief round-up of submissions on the controversial proposed law. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week, submissions on the controversial Fast-track Approvals Bill closed just hours after the government released a list of stakeholder organisations who were sent letters advising how they could ...
A poem from Robin Peace’s new collection Detritus of Empire: feather / grass / rock. Cereal giving I see a woman’s hands, see her curious hands break a stalk as she walks through the tall prairie, the savannah, the steppe, wherever it was. See her idly bite the grass that ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Hemingway’s Goblet by Dermot Ross (Mary Egan Publishing, $38)A handsomely produced (debossed cover, lovely ...
The Commissioner's decision validates the longstanding efforts of the local community and ensures that Awataha Marae will be managed to serve the needs of the local community, particularly for hosting tangihanga. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tristan Salles, Associate professor, University of Sydney Examples of Australian landscapes.Unsplash Seventy thousand years ago, the sea level was much lower than today. Australia, along with New Guinea and Tasmania, formed a connected landmass known as Sahul. Around this time – ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Felicity Castagna, Lecturer, Creative Writing, Western Sydney University Day Day Market, ParramattaPhoto: Garry Trinh I live on the edge of Parramatta, Australia’s fastest-growing city, on the kind of old-fashioned suburban street that has 1950s fibros constructed in the post-war housing boom, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Ryan, Teaching Fellow in Economics, University of Waikato GettyImagesfatido/Getty Images There is an ongoing global debate over whether the high inflation seen in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic can be lowered without a recession. New Zealand is not ...
The ‘Wicked Game’ heartthrob is in his late 60s now. That didn’t stop him putting on a lively, goofy and very sparkly show. Apart from ‘Wicked Game’, which graces a sultry playlist of mine simply called 💋, my last sustained Chris Isaak listening session took place when I was about ...
Analysis - Two ministers were stripped of portfolios in a warning to Cabinet, drama broke out at the Waitangi Tribunal, and the gang patch ban bill ran into opposition. ...
Tara Ward makes an impassioned plea for some vital pop culture merch. In April 1999, I became obsessed with a new reality television show called Popstars. Every Tuesday night, five strangers transformed into music royalty before my very eyes as Joe, Keri, Carly, Erika and Megan were chosen to form ...
PNG Post-Courier In the early hours of ANZAC Day, aerial photographs captured an impressive gathering of Australians and Papua New Guineans at Isurava in the Northern (Oro) Province. The solemn dawn service yesterday was held at a site steeped in history, where some of the fiercest battles of World War ...
The PSA is shocked that Oranga Tamariki has used the cost cutting drive to downgrade its commitment to Te Ao Māori and remove many specialist Māori roles. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Kemish, Adjunct Professor, School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry, The University of Queensland There can be no more powerful symbol of the relationship between Australia and Papua New Guinea than the prime ministers of these neighbouring countries walking together on the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sharon Robinson, Distinguished Professor and Deputy Director of ARC Securing Antarctica’s Environmental Future (SAEF), University of Wollongong, University of Wollongong Andrew Netherwood Over the last 25 years, the ozone hole which forming over Antarctica each spring has started to shrink. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Viktoria Kahui, Senior Lecturer in Environmental Economics, University of Otago Getty Images/Amy Toensing Biodiversity is declining at rates unprecedented in human history. This suggests the ways we currently use to manage our natural environment are failing. One emerging concept focuses on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Timothy Colin Bednall, Associate Professor in Management, Swinburne University of Technology marvent/Shutterstock Finding the best person to fill a position can be tough, from drafting a job ad to producing a shortlist of top interview candidates. Employers typically consider information from ...
Wondering where to host your next BYO? Whether its a small gathering or a massive party, we’ve got some recommendations. I was first introduced to the concept of BYOs at Dunedin’s India Gardens, a legendary but sadly defunct establishment, which purveyed enormous quantities of mango chicken to Aotearoa’s drunkest future ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Julien Cooper, Honorary Lecturer, Department of History and Archaeology, Macquarie University Julien Cooper The hyper-arid desert of Eastern Sudan, the Atbai Desert, seems like an unlikely place to find evidence of ancient cattle herders. But in this dry environment, my new ...
The sector says it’s hopeful her replacement Paul Goldsmith will be able to throw it a lifeline, after six months with a minister deemed missing in action, writes Catherine McGregor in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign ...
The government can't just rely on axing public sector jobs and has to do more to cut spending, says the chief economist at a free market think tank. ...
Rock The Vote NZ, known for its advocacy for minor party unity and its role within the Freedoms NZ Coalition during the 2023 General Election, celebrates this merger as a strategic enhancement of its operational strength and outreach. ...
Nearly everyone has experienced the frustration of something you use breaking and being difficult or expensive to fix. Proposed legislation could change that. It’s been raining on and off all Sunday afternoon but people are lining up outside a building in a corner of Gribblehirst Park in Sandringham, Auckland. In ...
What does a forever relationship look like when you don’t believe in marriage? And how do you celebrate it? This essay is part of our Sunday Essay series, made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.I’m going to do it, right now. I’m going to say ...
It’s not that long ago Eliza McCartney was seriously wondering if the Paris Olympics would be her pole vaulting swansong. After years of being hounded by injury after injury, the Rio Olympics bronze medallist was still confident she would compete at her second Olympics in Paris in July, unless something ...
FICTION 1 Take Two by Danielle Hawkins (Allen & Unwin, $36.99) There’s commercial fiction, like this book, and then there’s quality fiction, quality writers, quality literature; the forthcoming Auckland Writers Festival is full of quality, and ReadingRoom has two tickets to give away to the following events: Paul Lynch (Dublin ...
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. ...
You can’t have missed the Gallipoli story as the movies, documentaries, essays and books capture what it was like for New Zealand troops in their eight-month campaign on the Peninsula. But this Anzac Day the Auckland War Memorial Museum has published a book that sheds light on a little-known aspect of the ...
The Prime Minister has committed to resuming direct flights to Thailand. But it’s not a promise he will be able to deliver on anytime soon. The post Prime Minister jumps the gun in Thailand appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra In the free-for-all between the Australian government and Big Tech boss Elon Musk this week, the government had to be on a winner. Most people would have little sympathy with Musk’s vociferous opposition to ...
Asia Pacific Report Chief Mandla Mandela, a member of the National Assembly of South Africa and Nelson Mandela’s grandson, has joined the Freedom Flotilla in istanbul as the ships prepare to sail for Gaza, reports Kia Ora Gaza. Mandela is also the ambassador for the Global Campaign to Return to ...
Pacific Media Watch Journalists who report on environmental issues are encountering growing difficulties in many parts of the world, reports Reporters Without Borders. According to the tally kept by RSF, 200 journalists have been subjected to threats and physical violence, including murder, in the past 10 years because they were ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards, Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. 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 ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Hawkins, Senior Lecturer, Canberra School of Politics, Economics and Society, University of Canberra BagzhanSadvakassov/Upsplash, CC BY-SA Australia’s inflation rate has fallen for the fifth successive quarter, and it’s now less than half of what it was back in late 2022. ...
ACT's Rural Communities and Veterans spokesman Mark Cameron responds to cancellations and protests of ANZAC Day commemorations in Wellington. He says, "These pitiful attempts to detract from ANZAC Day are not at all indicative of the feelings of mainstream ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Meighen McCrae, Associate Professor of Strategic & Defence Studies, Australian National University American and Australian stretcher bearers working together near the front line during the Battle of Hamel in 1918.Australian War Memorial While the AUKUS alliance is new, the Australian-American partnership ...
Pōneke based peace activists staged a silent protest at the ANZAC day service to highlight New Zealand’s complicity in war and genocide, and urge the government to take concrete steps to stop the genocide in Palestine. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Magdalena M.E. Bunbury, Postdoctoral Researcher, James Cook University Burial with a horse at the Rákóczifalva site, Hungary (8th century AD).Sándor Hegedűs, Hungarian National Museum, CC BY How do we understand past societies? For centuries, our main sources of information have been ...
Amanda Thompson doesn’t really do Anzac Day. But what she does do is remember the people she knew who had a lifetime to remember stuff they didn’t really want to, because of a war they didn’t ask for. And she does make Anzac biscuits.First published in 2021.All my ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kathryn Willis, Postdoctoral Researcher, CSIRO Xavier Boulenger/Shutterstock In the two decades to 2019, global plastic production doubled. By 2040, plastic manufacturing and processing could consume as much as 20% of global oil production and use up 15% of the annual carbon ...
With our collective remembrance, and steadfast belief in our common humanity, we strengthen our hope and resolve to do what we can to foster dialogue and understanding, and to heal divisions in our pursuit of peace. ...
Principal reasons for the opposition is the loss of the public’s democratic right to have “a fair say” and the vital need for a government free from corruption, said Casey Cravens of Dunedin, president of the New Zealand Federation of Freshwater ...
Never mind the scoreboard – in the 2000 Bledisloe Cup decider, the real trans-Tasman battle was won before kickoff.First published in 2016. The dawn of the new millennium was a dark time for the All Blacks. Their final game pre-Y2K was a 22-18 loss to South Africa in the ...
I’m on the wrong side of 40, I never pursued creative work and now my job is killing my soul. Help! Want Hera’s help? Email your problem to helpme@thespinoff.co.nzDear Hera,May I start with the least original conversation opener you’re likely to hear around the motu at the moment, particularly in Wellington: ...
2 pieces of bad news:
NZ very expensive (shock, horror)
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/246767/study-finds-nz-expensive-place-to-live
and rik mayall has died:
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/world/246761/comedian-rik-mayall-dies
rik mayall has died
Fuck, I can’t believe that !
One of my favourite comedy actors of all time. I was just watching him on youtube yesterday (doco on the making of Blackadder). This is a real shocker.
I think that quad bike accident back in the late 90s fucked his career badly. And as a result of his much slower thinking / reactions, Ade Edmondson lost interest in working with him. Which is pretty bloody sad after all they’d been through.
One of my favourite Mayall / Edmondson scenes from the BBC’s Bottom.
“Gas Man !, Gas Man !, Gas Man !”
“Who is it Darling ?”
“It’s the Gas Man !!!
“Well, don’t leave him out in the cold, Dreamboat, show him in !”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5p-YQkbe_s
only 56, too
Rik channels Banksie!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9CuGieQQRM
snap
very sad about rik mayall….always reminded me of a couple of young Trots i knew…lol
was at uni when young ones and five go made in dorset hit our screens. saw ade Edmonson on the dales the other day and realised we are all middle aged now.
rip rik mayall for one of the funniest characters ( rick young ones) since life of bryan
ps when banks are his ear wax I immediately thought of rik in that scene about ear wax tasting bad
I loved him in “Mr Jolly Works Next Door”, and also in Guesthouse Paradiso…absolutely anarchic. RIP. Tonight I will raise a glass, as he said to Eddy Hitler in Bottom, “Make it a large one Eddy!”
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-27770266
Ade Edmondson
“There were times when Rik and I were writing together when we almost died laughing.
They were some of the most carefree stupid days I ever had, and I feel privileged to have shared them with him.
And now he’s died for real. Without me. Selfish bastard.”
Rip Flash.
Thanx for the link giving more links The Allen.
No worries, the bbc website is my home page and that’s what I awoke to when the cat meowed to tell me he didn’t need to go out in the rain as he’d sh!t in the bath instead.
Not my best morning to be fair, but at least my arse doesn’t have a footprint on it like Jasper’s.
Now that is a for crying shame. Rik Mayall has died.
(this is the best rik mayall coverage i have found..
..a clip-roundup of his best..)
http://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2014/jun/09/rik-mayalls-funniest-tv-moments-young-ones-bottom
Cheers for that, Phillip and TRP.
Just one more – from their slightly more obscure Filthy, Rich and Catflap
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXTDrrdOb0o
hhahah yeah filthy rich & catflap was their best work I reckon
Certainly their most under-rated. “Oh how I love the business !!!”
I have season 1 on dvd.. might have 2 dig it out
been awhile
I simply can’t resist one more. Possibly the best scene from Filthy, Rich and Catflap
Ooer, Sounds a bit Rude Gameshow…http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKOc6OG1FJY
IMHO can I disagree ris? Google Rik Mayall in The Comic Strip series, especially A Fistful of Travellers Cheques. His best work there.
cheers I know of the comic strip presents- five go mad in Dorset is the best
I grew up watchin all the shows as my older brothers n sisters had them all on beta tape 🙂
Mr Jolly Lives Next Door would be my personal fav from The Comic Strip. Mayall and Edmondson at their sleaziest.
Part 1… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qSkl3mhEMA
Part 2… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-Mb-fNJw9I
Part 3… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arsbFqUtYLI
Part 4… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBLb19Ojgsg
R.I.P Rik. Such unexpected and sad news today.
Epic and adored icon of 80’s British comedy who filled my teenage goth mind with massive crack ups.
Thanks for links above folks. Might have to dedicate a spare week night to Mayall viewing in his honour.
f.y.i..
http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/jun/09/10-best-vegetarian-vegan-bloggers
(this one is very interesting..)
“..The French are right: tear up public debt – most of it is illegitimate anyway..
..Debt audits show that austerity is politically motivated to favour social elites.
Is a new working-class internationalism in the air?..”
(cont..)
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/jun/09/french-public-debt-audit-illegitimate-working-class-internationalim
(yes plse..!..eh..?..)
I call it financial cannabilsm cos the very wealthy just vacuum up the lower income lives
That’s a very good description.
So we need the rich to blow and not just suck. Got it.
Wonder if we can persuade the left-parties that a debt audit for NZ is called for.
i think it’s a meme to get rolling..
.a bit of a debt-audit..and more than a soupcon of partial-nationalising..
..mix in financial transaction tax/capital gains tax..
..wd be quite aways down the road of ‘putting things right’..
..methinks..
man is born free and everywhere he is now in the chains of debt?
pls excuse not using gender neutral language
An interesting 2010 Herald article providing a ‘reminder’ of Banks’ stance on various issues and behaviour towards fellow Parliamentarians over the years.
http://t.co/EaJCYcfsMb
h/t Russell Brown Twitter
Not a nice man but more importantly he seems to have disregarded the rules when it suited him like buying the hotel and holding back a tender so that a friend could win etc.
Maybe an even more just outcome now than I thought?
Exactly, ianmac.
It took reading that article to remind me what sort of person he has been over the years to get a better perspective. I used to have some admiration for Banks as someone who initially sought to overcome and rise above the deprivations of his childhood and youth – and did .-
This article and similar ones have reminded me just how far Banks came over the years from this initial start to become a narrowminded, self-serving elitist who thought he was above the rest of us and could ‘engineer’ things and the law to suit his own ends, and that of his likeminded friends and colleagues. Indeed IMO he still thinks and acts in this way.
John Banks has always been a pig of a man.
That list reminds us all why.
He currently sits forlorn in the nest of his own making – full of his own stinking bird shit …
LOL – on that note, vto, I am now off to do the daily (at least) task of cleaning my four parrot cages!
Not entirely alone. He does seem to have quite a lot of supporters – ex pollies and Nat lackeys who, by and large, are no better than himself.
Last evening I was at a local Labour function and the subject of David Seymour was discussed. We had seen the Nation interview and were flabbergasted that such a loud mouthed, pig ignorant sociopath will be in parliament after Sept.20. In contrast the other two candidates present – the charming Julie-Ann Genter and the calm, collected Richard Wood – were shining examples of the sorts of people we so desperately need on the government benches.
Alan B’Stard exposed.
funny how he all of a sudden became a saint…
dont forget speeding on his jetski with three kids on the back and lying about it…
Fine for using his mobile during a flight
Hujlich bullshit
Add in the stuff from your link and how anyone could testify he was honest and decent is a joke…
Read what Judge Wylie said about his testimony and its credibility, and the same about his wife.
Damning. The Judge basically said John Banks is a bullshitter with no credibility, and the same about his wife.
On Radionz there will soon be an interview about the problem of getting plastic out of the sea where it does so much harm. It sounds a good idea.
Could something be learned on making artificial floating environmentally safe floating ‘reefs’ over shellfish beds, coral reefs say, that need protecting from excessive sun and heat? Could we do something using similar technologies, ban plastic and use ocean-friendly packaging or something. I wonder?
http://business.scoop.co.nz/2014/06/09/coat-tail-deals-a-few-weeks-away-says-key/
Seems coat tailing is fine for the right but not for anyone else..
BE real afraid of those whackjob Colin craig and his cast of idiots
Here is what Key had to say on Morning Report this morning on National’s possible coattail accommodations – in short that he will be announcing any in the next few weeks in the interests of transparency.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/2599050/national-expected-to-reveal-political-deals-soonish
This morning the Herald also has an article on the selection by ACT of Don Nicholson, former Federated Farmers boss, as their candidate to run in Clutha Southland. This will pit him against the young ex tobacco industry National candidate …. While the article says that Key has said there will be no accommodation, it would not surprise me if there was, as a backup to the possibility that ACT does not win Epsom.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=11270697
it would actually be great sport to see Don Nicholson in parliament.
he is such a numpty of a man with mad ideas about the way things work that he would likely provide great larfs on a weekly basis.
i agree..!..his time running fed-farmers was a series of howlers/jaw-droppers..
.(a best-of would lift the spirits..)
..he’s like the dumb local-yokel in a wallace and grommit flic..
john oliver unpacks fifa…
..it’s 13 mins long..and very funny..
..and will tell you all you need to know about how fifa is a stinking bag of pus..
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/09/john-oliver-fifa_n_5473346.html
For all those on the left who think KFC has some sort of smoking gun revelation in relation to John Key and when he knew about the raid on him I have a question for you. Why is he offering 5 million dollars for information proving corruption? Seems like he would only be doing that because he doesn’t have any already.
such a simpleton again gosman
no wonder you have such little idea on the complexities of society and the requirements for its healthy functioning and no wonder you think the only factor people consider in making life decisions is money.
sheesh
Two different things, Gosman. One is the supposed evidence about John Key that KDC hints he has, the other is the offer to pay for evidence of Government corruption. One is personal to Key, the other relates to the Government in toto. Only the latter has any implications for the court case.
However, I’m with you in doubting the ‘smoking gun’. I think we’d have seen the evidence already, if it exists.
Evidence that John Key knew about the raid in advance would be suggestive of corruption or at least political collusion against KDC. This would call in to question the motivation for his arrest and be grounds for denying his extradition. The fact he is fishing for additional information is highly suggestive he has nothing as you point out as well.
Pretty much. But we all knew this.
Just another lie from the desperate German, his sphincter is cutting washers as the trial date draws closer and the noose tightens around his neck.
“Another lie…”
Justice Wylie, who has no skin in the game, disagrees with your media-based assessment.
I take everything every player in this matter says with a bucket of salt and Mr.com still hasn’t been caught in a lie.
Pretty sure you were confidently declaring Crim.Banks’ innocence not that long ago.
with you OAB .. KDC has not been caught in any lie so far, unlike all the other motley cast of players. Also, I think he said it would be revealed in court, which is not due yet .. so much more fun in court than in msm media or the House …. and I think this is why the election was pulled forward, this and banks. but each was weighted in the decision imho.
KDC has promised that the evidence will come out in court. Some on the Left are hoping he will release it before the election instead.
I suspect they are dreaming. He has to play a straight bat with the judiciary.
Dotcom hasn’t been caught for lying you say, but he has been in jail several times, after being caught for a long list of criminal convictions that have followed his travels around the world for the last 20 years.
He’s been done for data espionage, embeszzlement, computer fraud, insider trading. He’s made money by ripping off phone cards and selling them, ripping off software and selling it, pretending a company he has shares in is about to get massive investment, then selling off the shares to conned buyers, and most recently ripping off music producers on a massive scale.
Whereever he’s gone, he’s made his money by ripping off other people.
But no – of course he would never ever tell a lie.
Now John Key, on the other hand, has never told a lie. And made his money helping the sick and poor.
🙄
🙄
🙄
What politician doesn’t lie.
Are you so naïve to believe Helen Clark’s claim that she didn’t really know she was travelling at 500km/h across the Canterbury plain?
Or that they painting she signed wasn’t really hers.
Or that David Shearer forgot about his overseas millions.
Or David Cunliffe that he wasn’t really trying to hide secret donors via a secret trust.
Or that Banks didn’t know about the Dotcom donations.
Or that David Cunliffe had no intention of rolling Phil Goff, or David Shearer.
There’s a high tolerance of lying, because they all do it, all the time.
Your posterior is leaking again john, i know many seen Helen as a super-woman but really, you need get control of your propensity to lapse into fantasy…
You’re very funny, John. Tell us the one about the feral inbreds next. 🙄
ps I heard it was a zillion kmph.
pps You went very, very quickly from ‘kdc is a cretin and everyone should care’ to ‘all politicians are cretins and who cares’
I see a difference between a career criminal who makes his money from ripping people off, and a politician trying to save themselves by lying about speeding, paintings, foreign accounts, or even secret trusts.
I forgot about the feral inbreds comment, though it’s arguable whether that was actually a lie – just a very stupid thing to say publicly.
Even more stupid for a politician.
And even more stupid for a labour politician about a the founding region of the labour party.
Which probably proves my point. Helen Clark is generally thought of as a pretty good politician, and a good PM for most of her term, even by the right.
Showing the public are pretty tolerant of small slip-ups from politicians.
And smart enough to see that people who make big deals about small issues are just being anal.
Your first sentence in your latest comment john, must surely be a description of Slippery the current prime minister right???
“I forgot about the feral inbreds comment, though it’s arguable whether that was actually a lie – just a very stupid thing to say publicly.”
Funny thing, john, is that she never said it.
Which just reinforces what you’ve been demonstrating all along; that you’re a gullible dupe who is prepared to believe any old rubbish you’re told about people you disapprove of.
Meanwhile, John Key has lied his arse off for 6 years and you’re fine with it.
Well, KDM wasn’t caught in a lie, but the whole deal about a “sitting electorate MP” wanting to defect to the IP, which was subsequently withdrawn and is no longer spoken about, doesn’t do all that much for his credibility.
Yes the sitting MP was one of the fat Germans lies
He has also forgotten about vowing to fund team NZ.
Uh…Kim Dotcom IS funding “Team New Zealand” – IMP style that is, lol
are you seriously saying that key didnt know?
key said he didn’t know, and also that fletcher didn’t know. lolz
If that is true they got played: bit part actors in the subversion of their country’s sovereignty and judicial system.
I think the “smoking gun” would be best used on, say, 6th September.
Bearded Git you’re a very naughty boy 🙂
he doesn’t have anything anyway except bogey and hooton and joyce and his media machine. otherwise he just another rich idiot.
how high’s the water, momma?
3ft and rising, Marius. How’s your hangover?
ahoy there, putake. i’m wondering if there’s a hint of the ‘alcohol maketh the man moreso’ to your question. there’s no excuses for me, im afraid. i’ve not labored in his vineyard for quite some time.
Hi Marius, do you post via mobile?
If not, would you please use the reply button.
have to laugh at the blogger who says New Zealand is becoming a Deemocracy. i.e what we say goes.
and everything else is sub rosa or behind closed doors. Anyway the thing is a Wairarapa man is being charged with letting off a pistol not at a firing range. The defense will be that Judith collins was shown firing a pistol somewhere so waiting to see if what is good for the goose is good for the gander
did the blogger say when we can expect this new deemocracy to happen?
It’s already here. I deem it so, and if you disagree I can show you some bloggers who’ll give you a counterview.
hows that for a smoking gun?
Collins had the pistol facing the wrong way
ah yes. but judith didnt know the gun was loaded, your honor
and she only dropped into the shooting-range ‘on her way to the airport’..eh..?
‘on her way to the airport’:..the judith collins story..(coming soon to a screen near you..)
Outbuilding of the Week: Shipping Container Greenhouse by
There seems to be a craze going on in using shipping containers to build things lately.
Although not my buzz, ex shipping containers are a great way to recycle materials and reduce the amount of new raw materials being used for accommodation.
Watched a show about building in small spaces on tele awhile ago. One segment was about a container house accommodation and office space complex in a dis used industrial area in Britain. A lot of thought had gone into the storage spaces and layout of living areas in the containers, as well outdoor connection such as the use of large sliding glass doors going out to patios.
Wellington has a well known container house. Here’s some interesting shots of the interior:
http://www.treehugger.com/modular-design/shipping-container-house-by-ross-stevens.html
I’d almost agree with that except that they’re metal which means that they’re going to bleed heat at an absolutely astonishing rate unless they have really thick insulation. Thing is, a number of the ones I’ve seen on the internet don’t have that required insulation.
By “really thick” insulation I take it you simply mean “really good” insulation.”
And it’s not just the cold. 45 deg C on a sunny summers day would be no fun at all.
I’ve always wondered about the metal aspect regarding heat loss in winter, heat retention in summer and condensation.
Mr R did a cert in building ecology and design last year and although is interested in container housing, didn’t cover it as a project, mainly because it wasn’t construction from scratch per se. The “health” of the building and it impact on occupants would be an important consideration in sustainable housing I’d imagine – I might run that past him later, the insulation question.
In the meantime on the topic of the small house movement, heres a transportable small house manufactured in CHCH (with insulation!)
http://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/home-property/10135430/Snug-living-space-part-of-global-trend
oh well, at minimum it’s a nice change from the zincalume, wharf posts and tufted grasses.
Rik doing what he does best:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aUxilWb2Og
Believe nothing!
hello to you, freedom. jacob applebaum told me some things about mobiles that made me wary of their use. the question arose yesterday as to the reply button and dimebag russell (bitchin handle btw) piped up and stated that he doesnt use it. i dont want to come off as an complete asshole but cant it be one of my protests against conformity/authority (like not mowing my berm). it seems altogether too intimate for me as i do struggle in that department.
Great, just what we need.
Yeah, it’s quite strange that the site’s suddenly inundated with newish people who seem incapable of using the reply button. A sudden outbreak of Reply-Button-Phobia. I’m wondering if it’s some sort of OCD thing ?
I was having fun rarking up the sewer yesterday when I was have a problem writing code. They appear to be a bit upset about that.
Teaching them to use a reply button is probably a bit much. Priority should be given to teaching them to use the toilet rather than going directly to the sewer.
You take a dump in the sewer and all of us get the backwash…yumm
I can’t help the splashing. They certainly aren’t constipated. In fact I’d say that they have a severe case of a thin diarrhea.
Ughhh. And I have just read this after my dinner.
😈
Just imagine what it would be like closer to the source.
lol
And Lolz…
“i dont want to come off as an complete asshole”
Yeah, good luck with that.
Jeez, go away for 4 days, miss all the craic about Banks’ resignation and all that that entails AND all the goss on the newbies!
Sometimes you just can’t take your eyes off the screen 😆
Oh Hi AlIen. Hey, what was that I was reading above about Jasper the cat having a footprint on his bum because he shat in the bath?! Not true about the footprint I hope!!! Provide Jasper with a litter tray for rainy days and a cat door so he can come and go when he wants – no need for AlIen to get out of bed, and no need for Jasper to go to desperate lengths. Everyone’s happy.
You know, just yesterday I had a run with a man who was treating a cat cruelly on the side of the road. I was driving past and had to pull over and have a word with him. But this guy was a jerk and you aren’t, so give Jasper a break and get his bathroom sorted. No more messy starts to the day for you if you do 😀
Te be honest, I’m just glad he didn’t do it in the laundry basket like last time.
I would have kicked him, but the little sod is too quick for me, still, he’s got to stop running at some point, I’ll have another try later 🙂
Oooo you are wicked, winding me up like that…………….
Cats toilet indoors for good reasons. Address the source of the problem (litter tray and cat door) and you’ll have no worries.
If he still goes indoors and on your personal items, such as laundry and you have your cat toileting options sussed, then that means something else, he’s being territorial.
No to a litter tray, the idea is not to have cat poo smells in the house at all, I’m certainly not encouraging it.
He was out all last evening and only came in after midnight. He just won’t go to next doors garden when it’s raining. I’m sure it’s not a territory thing, he knows his place. The only bonus is it makes my girl pick her clothes up of the bedroom floor when it’s pouring down. 😀
I’m leaving the bathroom window open tonight, so if there’s a cat heaven, he best have been a good kitty if he does it again.
I’m not one for anthropomorphisms, but waking me up after the fact and not before does get me thinking. 🙂
“I’m sure it’s not a territory thing, he knows his place”. Yes cats always know THEIR place, they just like to make sure humans know theirs………they are clever like that and like to express their superiority.
No stinks from a litter tray if you keep it clean, and keep it in the garage, or somewhere not within the house
Well his place tonight certainly isn’t going to be under the blankie again, that’s for sure, so he’ll be expressing his superiority to the daddy long legs in the front room 🙂
I’m with Rosie on this one.
It’s a cat door Jaspar needs. And if you don’t like the sound of the cat door going bank-whack in the middle of the night, tape the door up with some very strong sticky tape.It’ll still go whackity-whack as he hurls himself through the opening, but it’ll save you a lot of nasty smells and cussing…
Noooooo, i have been hoping that Cats didn’t get a mention, the next door one, known only to me as Cat, is one of my good friends,
She is totally the shit as far as an animal expressing itself goes and i have mentioned here befor Her love of the next door neighbors shed full of Pigeons, She sits on a fencepost in my backyard which the mentioned shed backs onto and falls asleep purring loud enough to be heard inside my house if there’s no radio blaring, and, drooling bucket-loads like a loon,
Should i have the temerity to interrupt this grand reverie by trying to use ‘my’ backyard, Her eyes will fly open and i get a Hiss and Meow that conveys to me in no uncertain terms ”F-off you bastard i was just getting to the bit where these feathered critters all fell at my feet screaming devour me master”,
We converse as often as the Cat deigns to lower Herself to engage and the Cat is an expert at using different tones and volumes of Meows, should i impart to the Cat that a certain level of Meow is insufficient to deserve as reward a Pat you can bet that the next Meow will be heart-rendingly plaintive until such time as my voice takes on a concilltory tone,
Anyway, to abbreviate, the other night Cat and i were going through this routine and when She had me in Her power, luring me into the gift of the inevitable Pat, i proceeded to lecture Her in the vein of ”i know your game Cat” following this with the lecture on Her only desiring Pats so as to ditch on one of the foolish humans at least one of Her many fleas, and,
As Pats provoke Her into fits of drooling this was in effect an attempt to pass onto the unsuspecting one of those Cat diseases they are said to carry,
Finishing this lecture with words of why don’t you make yourself useful, i haven’t seen a dead rat in months,
Next day on a trip into the backyard to feed the garden, WTF, at the bottom of the steps where the Cat normally leaves them, i assume for my inspection, 1 very dead Rat,
Which brings me to the question i have been meaning to ask, other than fast flying items of heavy matter, is there a way of keeping Cat’s from crapping in the garden, ala the drink bottle full of water on the lawn to deter the Dogs,???…
Alien Lolz, such are inherent in fast flying items of heavy matter, i had the same problem with a dog from down below that had little respect for my garden and complete disdain for me,
Until that is the day He looked up and met an object from space falling at 30 feet per second per second, what could be called an inescapable conclusion,
Myself i call it the old plastic chair on my deck, the dog then changed that to ”ouch” in the form of a yelp,
Sticks to his own turf these days choosing instead of shitting in and then digging up my garden to sending subtle messages via small yelps in the wee small quiet hours…
Best house training of four kittens I ever did was a litter tray. Kept a litter tray until they proved that they were old enough to go outside (ie, they could jump out the window) and then dumped the litter tray in the garden. They followed the litter tray.
I’ve had him six years and he was in the family for a year or so before that and mostly he’s been good. Like I wrote, it’s only when it’s pouring down will I ever get left a present.
It’s only happened about four times in all, but I’d rather have triplets and be on permanent nappy duty than have to put up with that smell. It’s a unique aroma for sure, and one that lingers long in the nostrils.
Edit:
“is there a way of keeping Cat’s from crapping in the garden”
Concrete or paving stones.
‘Great, just what we need.’ – reminded me of Jan Brady looking out the window at imminent rain. lol
Oh Christ, not The Brady Bunch. Next It’ll be 70s Disco and I’m afraid at that point I shall have to ring the local Constabulary.
remember, if you do decide to call – there’s a high likelihood youll get one of the 99% who spoil it for the rest of the good ones. * cuts to a shot of mr o connor justifying yet another heavy handed beating*
An URGENT message to all NZ MPs who are opposed to corruption:
WE NEED THE EPSOM BY-ELECTION TO HELP KEEP THE PUBLIC SPOTLIGHT ON CORRUPTION!
(In my considered opinion, if the Epsom by-election goes ahead, National will NOT win this 2014 General Election, because they are SO vulnerable on the issue of ‘corrupt corporate cronyism’ and there is SO much more to come …… )
MPS who are opposed to corruption, should NOT support the upcoming vote (which needs 75% of MPs – 91 MPs) to prevent this Epsom by-election going ahead!
If Labour MPs commit to NOT supporting the upcoming vote to stop this Epsom by-election, it won’t happen, because there simply won’t be the numbers to make up the 75%.
There will be all manner of SPIN as to why this Epsom by-election should NOT go ahead, but it’s high time for a massive public exposure proving how NZ’s ‘perceived’ status as the ‘least corrupt country in the world’ does NOT match the corruption ‘REALITY’ check.
Please make your voices heard – ASAP!
10 June 2014
PRESS RELEASE FROM ANTI-CORRUPTION ‘PUBLIC WATCHDOG’ PENNY BRIGHT –
“Why I support Graham McCready’s call for an Epsom by-election.”
I, Penny Bright, ‘anti-corruption and anti-privatisation Public Watchdog’ support the call of private prosecutor Graham McCready, for MPs to support a by-election in Epsom, and NOT to provide this National Government with the numbers to make up the 91 MPs (75%) required to STOP this by-election.
In my considered opinion, any public monies spent on this Epsom by-election, will NOT be a ‘waste of money’ – but an investment in the fight against corruption in New Zealand ‘perceived to be the least corrupt country in the world’.
http://cpi.transparency.org/cpi2013/results/
The general election will focus on many issues, but a by-election in Epsom will help keep a huge public spotlight specifically on corrupt practices such as electoral fraud – which have apparently been ‘common practice’.
https://nz.news.yahoo.com/election/a/-/24196184/prebble-told-to-back-up-allegations-of-electoral-fraud/
How many other internationally-recognised corrupt practices are common practice in New Zealand?
Here are a couple of examples of corrupt practice that most New Zealanders have never even heard of, but are endemic here, in my considered opinion:
Ever heard of ‘State capture’?
Where vested interests get their way at ‘policy’ level – before legislation is passed which serves their interests.
http://www.answers.com/topic/state-capture
‘State capture’ obtains when a small number of firms (or such entities as the military) is able to shape the rules of the game to its advantage through massive illicit, and non-transparent provision of private benefits to officials and politicians. Examples of such behaviour include the ability to control legislative votes, to obtain favourable executive decrees and court decisions. A relatively new concept, the main proponents being World Bank researchers, it echoes that of ‘crony capitalism’ and covers cases where high-level corruption is pervasive. (See military-industrial complex; clientelism.)
Read more: http://www.answers.com/topic/state-capture#ixzz34BuEK4YI
(That’s how the NZ Business Round Table (BRT) used to do it – by focusing on ‘policy’, pretending that their greedy self-interest was somehow in the ‘national interest’, and pushing for legislation from which they profited.
The BRT mantra that ‘public was bad – private was good’ helped to frame the ‘Rogernomics’ legislation which allowed the commercialisation, corporatisation and privatisation of public assets, a number of which (or shares of which) ended up in the hands of BRT members.)
Where can you check for ‘State capture?
Read the ‘Regulatory Impact Statements / Regulatory Impact Reports and find out with whom the policy analysts have been ‘consulting’ and treating as ‘independent third-parties – when they actually have and are vested interests ….
How about ‘post-separation employment?
The ‘revolving door’ between public office and employment in the private sector.
http://www.icac.nsw.gov.au/preventing-corruption/knowing-your-risks/post-separation-employment/4301
Post-separation employment
Post-separation employment is the situation where a public official leaves the public sector and obtains employment in the private sector.
The principle underlying the management of post-separation employment is the need to ensure that public sector decisions are made only on their merits and not compromised by extraneous considerations or personal interests.
The Department of Premier and Cabinet Personnel Handbook refers to this issue in Section 8-12:
Employees should not use their position to obtain opportunities for future employment. They should not allow themselves or their work to be influenced by plans for, or offers of, employment outside the department.
There should be a mandatory ‘quarantine period’ of 18 months to 2 years, between leaving Ministerial or senior public service positions and taking up a job in the private sector where you can be seen to be using your previous contacts and influence to ‘feather your own nest’.
Want to get up to speed with a comparison of anti-corruption legislative frameworks between Australia, NZ, UK, Canada and USA and compare it with that of New Zealand?
http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/BN/2012-2013/Conduct
Please be reminded that New Zealand has STILL yet to ratify the UN Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC).
Minister of Justice Judith Collins’ ‘Organised Crime and Anti-Corruption Legislation’ Bill, the passage of which is required before NZ can ratify UNCAC has yet to surface on the Parliamentary Order Paper.
http://www.parliament.nz/resource/en-nz/50DBSCH_SCR5462_1/e73e0f6412f2e249705a3fa50593fa18d79e2d80
International treaty examination of the United Nations Convention Against Corruption
Report of the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee
This 50th Parliament has 5 sitting weeks left …
.
New Zealand desperately needs a genuinely Independent Commission Against Corruption – like the New South Wales Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC)
http://www.icac.nsw.gov.au/about-the-icac/overview
Overview
The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) was established by the NSW Government in 1989 in response to growing community concern about the integrity of public administration in NSW.
The ICAC’s principal functions are set out in the Independent Commission Against Corruption Act 1988. In summary, they are:
to investigate and expose corrupt conduct in the NSW public sector
to actively prevent corruption through advice and assistance, and
to educate the NSW community and public sector about corruption and its effects.
The jurisdiction of the ICAC extends to all NSW public sector agencies (except the NSW Police Force) and employees, including government departments, local councils, members of Parliament, ministers, the judiciary and the governor. The ICAC’s jurisdiction also extends to those performing public official functions.
Penny Bright
…………………….
PRESS RELEASE FROM GRAHAM McCREADY – WHY HE SUPPORTS AN EPSOM BY-ELECTION:
10 June 2014
Graham Edward Mc Cready, New Zealand Citizen, Kiwi Patriot and sucessfull prvate prosecutor of the one honorarable John Archbald Banks call for ALL Membres of Parkiament including our most able and ehically corect Prima Minsister John Key to vote to hold a bi-election in Epson following the exit from tghe halls of power of Mr Banks.
‘I am a -political when it comes to the law. I do not belong to any political party. I am by the way a long term Labour Party supporter who helped Trevor Mallard in his first campaign in Hutt South. But the whole Banks private prosecution continued to the point it did because Banks held the Epson seat propping up the Key Government.
Had Banks adopted the wisdom of Trevor Mallard and offered as soon as he was summoned to plead guilty to a lessor non indictable charge that in December 2012 would have been accepted and amongst other things would have saved the Country a two year distraction and also my health.
There are thousands of fellow Kiwis who do not vote. One of the reasons is their view that all politicians are a bunch of corrupt bastards not worthy of their support.
The Epson mad hatters tea party and subsequent court proceedings are a stain on the political life of the Nation that needs expunging.
Voting not to hold a bi-election on expediency just tells the average Joe citizen that it is business as usual.
The electorate through a Bi -Election in Epson needs the opportunity to voice their anger at their elected leaders and elect a candidate in Epson free of all the ACT balderdash.
It will focus and address all the issues that have come out of the Banks court case that will be lost forever in a General Election
I call on all MPs to vote accordingly’
Graham Edward Mc Cready
Concerned New Zealand Citizen
………………………….
god, dont make me vote for goldsmith twice within a few months!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Talk about sacrificing for Queen and Country…
😉
Wow thats from a moderator. look, i had a little stouch a few days back with what i assume is a regular. I admit i said i dont vote and i know that upset some of you. I know i made a bit of an off colour remark about the Christchuch mayor and i know this is your labour stronghold and comments like that dont go down too well – but fucking hell, seriously, loosen the pigtails, you bunch of polyannas. If it is in the rules then sure maybe people will be happy to use the reply button. If not then being part of a democracy means all comers get to interact as they see fit within the confines of the rules which do apply. Today the only comment ive seen from what i assume is a moderator is something that indicates to me they probably shouldnt be one – which is more often than not the case. ‘…our mailed fist can crush any opposition, and if our furious assault has a heavy civilian toll, that’s all to the good—perhaps the remnants will be properly educated’. Thats a little snippet from the nice israeli’s regarding Gaza. Im not fazed by you lot getting huffy about things i say. This isnt Gaza. My understanding of teletyping facilities such as this is that they survive with the assistance of newbies. You might want to deny it and you might want to have a status quo. Surely you dont want to sit around yammering on to the same people year in year out – or do you.
Interesting comment, Marius. Who were you replying to?
😀
Ok, so this is probably going to be fun for a few days.
“Today the only comment ive seen from what i assume is a moderator is something that indicates to me they probably shouldnt be one”
Lolz.
Well NO actually Marius, you are Wrong on so many levels in your little attempt at commenting suicide there my pinkies aint about to waste much energy pointing out Where,
Here’s a hint tho, if there were a status quo here and those speaking too far out of that status quo got the kick, i would suggest that i would have been gone long ago,
Another hint, Peeps have been pointing out to you the agreed to method of commenting via the reply button not because they are the fascist thought police, BUT, because they like to read Nembies stuff AND, when you continue to comment simply using the function of a new comment where you should have used reply, it to be blunt, fucks up the flow of the conversation,
Taking the piss of the Mods i would suggest is an open invitation to have you exit stage left…
The thing is Marius, and I do not know why I am even bothering but….people are only trying to be helpful. If you continue to refuse to follow a simple and constructive protocol, ie: using a reply button, chances are that people will simply not bother to reply to what you say. On a busy site like The Standard it is not always easy to identify what comments isolated replies are responding to.
(this comment being a self-explanatory exception to the above statement)
It’s like going to a pub, having a conversation with folk, and you getting up to change tables every time you talk. Pretty soon the conversation will just move on without you.
No, I agree with the critical comments you’ve made about Israel’s Occupation, Marius. It’s just hard to know who the fuck you’re replying / referring to with each comment.
Then again, there is, I s’pose, a certain entertainment in trying to guess precisely who you’re on about. There’s an interesting randomness about it all, a whiff of the absurd, a hint of Waiting for Godot.
Clever Marius. Well played.
Bloody Aussies, spoil everyone’s fun, it appears that the chemical Ketamine used in some of the ”legal high’s” that got the kick off of the shelves here has been under study in a Uni over the ditch,
The result so far, when other drugs have no effect Ketamine has shown to seriously curtail depression and unlike other anti-depressants is fast working,
Didn’t hear of any adverse side effects so once the study is published the purveyors of ”legal highs” will happily get a freebie as an aid to get the products back on the shelf,
Source: RadioNZ National news…
Didn’t they make it a class C drug a few years back? Not a “legal high” then…
Dunno Mac, my first impression at the mention of Ketamine was ”isn’t that a horse tranqualizer” its the next item on my notes after ”do you cook Mango to make chutney” so there’s a contest now occurring between my lust for Mango chutney and my thirst for knowledge as to which question is put to Google first…
lol
Yeah it’s a horse tranq.
In fact, I seem to recall doing venue security at a palliative care conference a few years back – one of the poster displays praised the virtue of ketamine as being comparable to (possibly better than) diamorphine (heroin). My thought was “so if you fill ’em full of horse tranquilizer, it eases their pain? There’s a revelation…”
Mind you, amazing the stuff you pick up if you keep your eyes and ears open working at function centres 🙂
Nicely done Mac, and i can now inform everyone,(as if they didn’t know), that yes, to make Mango chutney it appears the common wisdom is to cook it along with all the other ingredients,
i have modified that, and, the liberal dose of Lemon juice i have planned for mine will go in last as i do not want the heat to alter the chemical balance of the juice,(it being a preservative ingredient)…
PS, Shhh not until Phillip has gone to bed, re: Ketamine/Heroin
lol
chuckle
This article is very good
https://medium.com/matter/the-racism-beat-6ff47f76cbb6
This fatigue is one we all face when we talk/write about issues from a personal perspective. I’m not sure what the answer is to combat the hollowed out feeling when another injustice occurs that is similar to the last injustice and so on to infinity. For me and my small contribution to the issues that matter to me the main way to combat it is the knowledge that I am not alone. I thank all those who write and comment on this site and who align with my belief in equality above all else – you know who you are and without you, well, without you the bastards would run even more amok than they are now.
” For me and my small contribution to the issues that matter to me the main way to combat it is the knowledge that I am not alone.” and it is that which also keeps me going, Marty Mars. We’re all in this together in our different ways (fighting inequality) and while you might get fed up with some of those others at various times, none of us can do it alone.
not now ‘the a11en’. im in the backstraight of my initiation rites.
just use the damn reply button already
We all need a bit of luck Marius. If you don’t want your share, I’ll have it.
Just for the record, we were all new here at some time, but choosing to ignore the reply button as a form of protest, especially since being told it’s a pita is a bit self defeating.
You’ll get more out by putting a little effort in, even if it spoils your present game.
Just saying 🙂
Edit:
“it comes as no surprise to me that dissent will be met with expulsion. im not in the least bothered by that.”
Fair enough, see ya.
Good article from brain rudman:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=466&objectid=11270708
You mean Bryan Gould?
I do indeed 🙂
thanks
interesting observation about the media, but i guess the vice chancellor of waikato uni is just a conspiracy theorist.
look, bad. i havent purposely avoided the reply button. ive been settling into using this place in a nice sedate manner which suits me. im not being hurried along by the local cops. as i said, ive heard nothing from a moderator which says im obligated to use the reply button. ive typed in places where the screen scrolls by so fast if you blink you miss who youre interacting with – this place is a retirement home in comparison. yeah yeah i know ‘fuck off back there’. it comes as no surprise to me that dissent will be met with expulsion. im not in the least bothered by that. so be it or the chips are down as gide said.
so basically, you have decided to buy a house in the King Country and want to spend your time complaining about the lack of ocean views 🙄
enjoy your martyrdom
lollol freedom
Oh great, a self-martyrdom dickhead.
How have you found it work out for you, turning up to others peoples places and deliberately pissing on their doorsteps just to make a point that you’re really so unique. Going well for you is it?
EDIT I suggest a DNFTT policy for Marius.
Yep. Or a burst of the rolly eyes. The sad thing is that the arrogance is taking the shine off the occasional glimmers of intelligence and education. I’ll bet Marius is the first poster here to name check Andre Gide, for example. But the contempt for the readers ruins that, (just as it usually does for Phil Ure’s contributions).
Very interesting. With a bit of potty training Marius could have what it takes to be an interesting commentator
“..the contempt for the readers..”
what ‘contempt for the readers’..?
..what utter shite you spout..
..i laugh at idiots..
..i can’t help it if you act like one..
🙄 🙄 the Moderator is probably busy engaged in that strange human function called work Marius,
By the time you have pissed Him off enough to have heard from Him, depending how stressful the day is, might be your first and last conversation, 🙄 🙄 …
thanks for the advice framu and the a11en.
just so long as the barmaid isnt ignoring me, eh, freedom. thanks for bothering, though
i knew you’d get it, sword.
lol. look at the viper go. hes so fucked up he cant get his words out proper. ‘KILL THE PIG! KILL THE PIG!’
…needn’t be a dick all your life Mariarse…
marius is boring
yeah…someone should push the reject button. hur hur hur. take that you autodidactic peedogog.
have i been zapped?
am i still at least about the outskirts of the fold??
youre next for the highjump, dimebag – unless you roll over. i only wish i was there to witness it.
WIIIIIIIIIILLLLLLLLLLLLLLLMMMMMMMAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!
Now you’re just starting to look like a troll.
Japan has enough plutonium on hand to make 80 nuclear warheads
Well, that’s reassuring, given the tension rising in East Asia.
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-06-09/japan-has-inappropriately-omitted-80-bombs-worth-nuclear-fuel-iaea-report
Dont you only need one?
You’d think so, but there are still thousands of the bloody things on active duty around the world and even more in storage ready to be put into a state of readiness.
And, I suspect, the expertise make them but you don’t hear the US/UK demanding that their nuclear operations be shut down.
That’s because their nuclear operations comply with international standards.
Japan signed comprehensive de-militarisation pacts at the end of WW2. But, they could have a working bomb within 3 months or so if it was deemed ‘necessary’.
As if complying with all required international inspections helped Iraq and Iran.
And how many international inspections has Israel permitted of its nuclear forces?
Bottom line is – being friends with the US is very very helpful in these matters.
Hey Gosman, if you’re around…. You are always banging on about how useless Zimbabwe is/was. Well I get sent emails from an investor thingy called the Dail;y Reckoning. It’s an aussie thing worth a read on the occasional blue moon.
Anyway, this one today caught my eye… especially when it said this ….
“–Years ago a man named Gideon Gono first appeared in The Daily Reckoning. He quickly became a favourite character of readers. Best of all, we didn’t even have to make him up.
–The charismatic Governor of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe surged to fame in 2008. Not just because he destroyed the country’s economy by printing money. But because American and European central bankers embraced his policies after ridiculing them for years, which he promptly rubbed their faces in.
–Quantitative Easing went on to become the key economic policy of the decade. It saved us all. Except, of course, the savers who got nothing. In fact, their interest payments dwindled to less than inflation in much of the developed world. ”
I told you your claims about individual policies and supposed causation links through to various economy-wide results were simplistic.
As simplistic as suggesting that Cuba’s positions are a result solely of its internal policies / rolly eyes.
It particularly saved the insolvent big banks and the 0.1% whose asset portfolios went up through the roof in value. Almost like those programmes were designed with that in mind.
This is the key thing – economies are not typically destroyed just by printing money. It usually has to be combined with the destruction of productive capacity as well as war/civil war which really does it.
In Zimbabwe’s case the inflation in the economy which began to occur well befor the Governor of the Reserve Bank began to Print ever bigger bank notes,
Economic sanctions, imposed on Zimbabwe by the Western powers after Mugabe began repatriating the stolen land from the white farmers created the spiral of inflation that ensured the printing of ever bigger denominations of bank notes,
The basic essentials of life not produced in the Zimbabwe economy had to, after the imposition of the sanctions, be smuggled in from other countries thus driving their price up in an ever increasing spiral,
The US printing’s in particular have gone more to the big institutional banks and from their into the share-market or are simply sitting propping up the balance sheets of what is essentially a bankrupt system in terms of the means of counting the beans…
QFT
And that is, of course, why the US didn’t see any inflation – all the money printed went to the already rich and banks rather than going into the economy and producing demand.
Zimbabwe already had massive inflation (1991 48% and 1992 40%) in the years before any sanctions were imposed.
In addition, the sanctions were never general sanctions, but targeted just to certain individuals and companies.
Huge amounts of productive land was taken by Mugabe and given to war veterans, who failed to keep producing. Hence food production in Zimbabwe halved.
Similarly a large amount of capital invested in businesses (both Zimbabwean and foreign), fled the country, along with white and black Zimbabweans – a total of quarter of population fled. Manufactured goods plummeted, and unemployment skyrocketed.
Mugabes tax base dissappeared so they started printing money. I have a hundred billion dollar bank note from a recent visit that wouldn’t buy a single jelly bean.
John old boy, so good to see you old chap, how are things going over their at the embassy, so sorry you had to be dragged away from after dinner cocktails on such a minor mission especially having to answer the likes of me,(knowing how the unwashed upset you so),
A bit droll don’t you think John trotting out the old Zillion dollar bank note, oh sure it works as the grand party trick for those with their noses stuck so far up their arses that dinner is always delivered,via syphoning hose that is, but, i thought even you lot would have learned by now to save the bullshit for such idiots john,
How was the trip tho,must be hard on the skin all this flip flopping between time zones and climates john old boy, i am surprised the Regime over their didn’t get a hold of you as soon as the plane hit Harare and string you up by your old school tie to the nearest lampost,
The old Dip Pouch right old chap, Merlin of old could not have conjured up a shield so grand,you forgot a little something with the party trick zillion note john, the fact that that old rogue Mugabe changed to using the currency of the enemy so long ago i forgot what year it was,
08 or 09 wasn’t it old boy???
As for the ”other” information imparted, sorry, Disinformation, precious, ‘You’ can fool some of the people some of the time right old boy, you know the rest,
Here let me give a little assistance to aid you in NOT talking out of your arsehole,
Rate of inflation Zimbabwe 1992 40%, 1993 20%, 1994% 25%, 1995 28%, 1996 16%, 1997 20%,
Does seem a little like the poor old Governor of the Zimbabwe Reserve Bank had never had a talk with Ruth Richardson or Doctor Dullard Don Brash doesn’t it john,
However after the EU sanctions were imposed in 2001/2002 the story really changes doesn’t it john,
2001 112%, 2003 598%, 2005 585%, 2007 66,212%, 2008 89,700,000+++%,
You do get my point john???,
At which point Zimabawe had a choice, change to the Rand, the South African currency having become the stable currency of trade in the surrounding nations, or
Fuck totally your and the US’es little game big time by not switching to the Rand which would then also have become a target of your monetary terrorism john, simply by switching to the currency of the country that was imposing such monetary terrorism upon them, the US Dollar which they did right john,
i would call that small piece of intelligent use of the US dollar john, Game Set and Fucking Match old boy, well played and oh wont you come again,
Pfft, what would happen i have to ask to any small economy that had its ability to borrow kneecapped by sanctions, had its ability to buy and sell its goods knee capped by monetary terrorism in the form of the US banning its currency from being able to purchase the US dollar through any banking system,
Exactly what did happen i would suggest…
You’re talking utter nonsense.
In 2002 (before the US targeted sanctions started in 2003) trade between Zimbabwe and USA was a meagre $47m of exports and $103m of imports.
Four years later in 2006, when inflation passed 1000%, trade between Zimbabwe and USA was virtually identical – 49m of exports and $102m of imports.
In 2008, when inflation passed a billion %, trade between Zimbabwe and USA was even greater – $92m of exports and $112 of imports
Mugabe chased quarter of his own population out of the country and had to print money to make up for lost taxes from the farms businesses, and tourist industry he destroyed.
On a drive last year from Hwange to Bulawayo, farm after farm was destroyed and burnt out. In some parts only one in ten was left. Sanctions didn’t do that. Mugabes henchmen did.
You’re assertion that the hyperinflation was because of sanctions is both ignorant and laughable.
But john, and i know this may sour the next G and T forcing you to dribble it all over the shirt,(the expense account will be a hard one to justify this month won’t it, ”one of the unwashed i was educating on the web”, not being sufficient reason for the bean counters to loosen the purse strings right),but,
Cannot you see the utter contradiction in your explanation, it is rather glaring don’t you think old boy,
Henchman, i so love your propensity for the melodramatic john, ghastly tho would have to be a better level as a raiser of the tension in the narrative don’t you think old boy, in the vein of ghastly henchman, must make full use of the Queens at every opportunity what,
Oh right, sorry you have me escaping into flights of fancy, ghastly henchmen and all that, have you gone into a sideline as a tin-foil salesman john, i thought the Embassy was quite clear about those earns on the side, But,
To address this utter contradiction, damned ghastly henchmen burned the whole fucking farm to a crisp and exports to the good old home of international financial terrorism also known as the US of A went UP,
i would suggest john the old scoundrel running the place better hire a far more efficient cadre of ghastly henchmen, wouldn’t you old boy,
Oh what, is that what you were doing there risking your delicate pallor over john,can’t have the natives joining forces now can we, best to ferment a little mischief,
While we are chatting john, were we by chance traveling with the use of a NZ passport, that would be a novel means of having not to have to face the hostility at the border brought aboutt by the production of Her Maj’s documents…
bad12 says “Oh right, sorry you have me escaping into flights of fancy,”
In other words, screeds of delusional gibberish.
While you joke about Mugabe’s henchmen, just over a week ago they gang raped and killed a farmers daughter, and killed the farmer.
http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/article_xinhua.aspx?id=220124
They’ve evicted millions of people – 700,000 in 2005 alone according to amnesty international and UN.
If that’s just a big joke to you, then best seek some professional psychological help..
Yes agreed CV, particularly your past paragraph and how economies and the like are the result of countless things such as war, embargoes, etc.
That is what annoys me about gosman’s musings and their simplicity – they show nothing and prove nothing. Hence my point there about Cuba – it has been absolutely nailed by the US for 50+ years.
As bad12 detailed above, the US is expert at destabilising nations and turning populations against their rulers.
Venezuela is in the firing line now (with the co-operation of the local 1%) and I’m not sure that Maduro is going to be able to hold out much longer – and this is a nation with hundreds of billions in oil wealth.
But that can’t be right CV, gosman says it is all because of the communist policies blah blah blah …
The US doesn’t do stuff like that, it just goes merrily about its business in accordance with the laws of every land including international law. The US is trustworthy and honest. It would never dream of anything other than acting as a good and honest international citizen.
But of course. However, maintaining exceptionalism occasionally requires…exceptional measures to be undertaken.
Time to retire this graceless goon, this hectoring halfwit, this mindless moron.
Another hapless performance from Graham Bell
The Panel, Radio NZ National, Tuesday 10 June 2014
Jim Mora, Graham Bell, Ali Jones
After the four o’clock news, it’s time to have a chat with the guests. Host Jim Mora always tries to talk about something relevant to the particular guest. With the cantankerous old cop Graham Bell, it’s the vexed question of arming the police….
JIM MORA: I was reading the American papers today, and we think WE’ve got problems, but over there I see the police are talking about arming themselves with grenade-launchers! Ha ha ha ha ha!
GRAHAM BELL: Haw, haw, haw, haw! Well, I suppose they have crack dens there that they have to knock over….
When Mora speaks to the indefatigable spokesperson for Christchurch’s earthquake victims, Ali Jones, there is only one possible subject: how the people of Christchurch are coping with insurance companies’ obstructiveness and the refusal of the Key government to do anything about it. It’s a really serious problem, and it demands serious and focused discussion. Unwisely, however, Bell decides that it’s time to say something sarcastic…..
GRAHAM BELL: So is David Cundliffe going to gallop to your rescue?
Perhaps he divined some of the irritation felt by Ali Jones, because the next words he spoke had none of the jocular tone of his dig at the Labour Party….
GRAHAM BELL: [uncomfortable, suddenly forced to assume an air of gravitas] Because, and believe me I have a lot of experience of this, lawyers have no interest in resolving an issue, they only want to prolong it as long as possible so they can make money off it.
Jones was having none of that nonsense. She launched into a stinging critique of the Insurance Council and the National-led government—and, by implication, of fools like Graham Bell who parrot their poisonous talking points…
ALI JONES: I totally reject what the Insurance Council and Gerry Brownlee have said about this.
Jones was really angry, and Bell showed a rare lick of common sense when he decided to lapse into silence. It was his most humiliating moment on this show since Gordon Campbell silenced him a few years ago after Bell had ignorantly attacked the then leader of the Greens, Jeanette Fitzsimons.
Bell was back to his curmudgeonly self a little later, during the Soapbox segment. Over the years, his Soapbox contributions have consisted almost entirely of gripes about the minor irritations in his life, like the food quality in tearooms, or the standard of customer service at Telecom, or—my personal favorite—this one from three years ago: “There’s a number of things that RANKLE me and FRUSTRATE me….Some time, just once in a blue moon, I’d like to get TWO biscuits with my cup of coffee, not just one biscuit!”
Today the tradition continued….
MORA: Graham Bell, what’s been on your mind please?
GRAHAM BELL: Well, I tried to get some tickets this morning for the Eagles concert next year in Auckland. What a BLOODY FIASCO!
MORA: [perhaps misreading just how serious Bell is] Ha ha ha ha ha!
GRAHAM BELL: [raving] I’ve MISSED OUT! I’ve been waiting for them to come for twenty years and I’ve missed out.
MORA: Who’s your favorite Eagle?
GRAHAM BELL: Joe Walsh. Arrrrrgghhh! I sat there for TWO HOURS, logging in and out of their site.
MORA: [insensitively] Ha ha ha ha ha!
GRAHAM BELL: It drove me NUTS! How do these scalpers get the tickets though?
More snarling and grumbling for several minutes….
POINT TO PONDER….
According to Radio NZ National’s frequent station promos, The Panel features “leading opinion makers”, who discuss the news and “help to make sense of it all”.
Totally agree about Bell. The clanger I recall from him was when the Greens announced a policy about putting $200million (I think) into cycleways and cycling improvements around the country….
… of course something like this Bell would have had absolutely no idea about and of course he subsequently let his lack of nous on the subject pour forth ….
…blah blah he dribbled … “what an absolute waste of money … blah blah … I can’t believe the Greens keep coming up with these barmy ideas … waffle rant”
Then of course the cycling expert came on and cleaning dispatched the fool by outlining how the return for $1 spent on cycling improvements is $7 (think health, energy, etc etc) and the return for $1 spent on “roads of notional significance” is 60cents….
Bell is a dork with nothing useful to say. I agree he is a waste of time.
Have missed your biting and witty critique or Mora’s dreadful show.
bell is another overgrown thicko who is so blinkered that he cant see his toes anymore. and that is not just because he has a fat head.
How Government “Contracting Out” Drives Up Costs, Pushes Down Workers
And we’ve seen exactly the same things happening here in New Zealand.
Of course, in this case “driving up costs to government” = “driving up private sector profits”
This sectoral balance thinking really does wonders.
Which was always the purpose of privatisation.
Edward Snowden may not have had access to the NSA’s independent top tier surveillance systems
http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2014/06/original-nsa-whistleblower-snowden-never-access-juicy-documents.html
Fucking hell.
http://tvnz.co.nz/q-and-a-news/panel-discuss-john-banks-video-5994867
Why did this not come with a supporter statement: this was brought to you buy the National and ACT parties.
Ngarimu Blair seems like a nice chap, but Fran talks over him and he shuts up and they conclude:
1) Internet Mana isn’t a real party.
See also: who the fuck is Phill Quinn on Pundit? Doesn’t seem to have a publishing history or profile but running the same lines.
2) They are gaming the system and cheating.
No mention made of ACT with an ex-National leader and cabinet minister in Epsom. No mention made of the fact that a review was held and the recommendation was to change it and they didn’t.
3) In Europe where there is proportional representation all coalition deals are organised before the election in all details. Is this actually an indisputable fact? Do parties put out joint manifestos before the election and then go into co-oalition before the election? I have my doubts.
Again no mention of the way National gamed the system to ‘compromise’ in its education policy because of John Banks’ tough cooalition negotiations with the guys who had set him up in Epsom by encouraging their supporters to vote for him.
What happened to all the ‘Electoral Finance Act’ we wanna spend our money jingoism? Or is it that party’s representing poor people or people not already entrenched in the establishment shouldn’t have access to money at elections and so should have less of a voice?
Ok, Lyn is off to Hawaii and then to rest of the US for 3 weeks. I still have another 4+ weeks of holiday pay. May the music be loud and the coding free and loose….
Maybe that will help with the irritating coding block.
Calling Naki Man -CHICKEN – come debate real economic indicators