Well i’ll have a little prayer today that those Kurds who are fighting ISIS while the rest of the world plays political football, says why didn’t they go in to every other hotspot so why should they now and a multitude of other excuses, continue debating the ethics of it.
Having had family face this sort of thing, while the British and Russians played political footballs over the carving up of Europe post WW2.
When you’ve been effected by similar acts, you have a different point of view.
I can’t comment on Iraq, Georgia, Zimbabwe, Africa and every other bed of nasitness that we meddle in, god knows the US has caused most of this with their war mongering oil greed, all I know is lives are at stake and life is precious.
The legality of past US actions is another matter nd should be kept separate for the Haig to decide. Beleive it when I see it.
Perhaps their is a hint of racism. Is it because they are Arabs? Foreign?
Meh save a life you’ll feel better about yourself.
I thought evacuate that city, not as lot more than that Murray, just get the civilians out of there before it’s over ridden. One thing at a time, they are on the Turkish border, hopefully they will make the folly of entering Turkey and I’m sure the valiant Turks will teach them a hard lesson and we won’t be needed.
I particularly seem to have a bug up my ass about people who commit murder, or take lives in the name of religion sorry. I really do not like these simple deeply nasty people.
I suppose I’m more wishing for a humanitarian UN rescue and we participate rather than join an all out war on the middle easts again. You can never defeat them unless you go to the lengths of genocide, and if you don’t do that, then your just poking a stick at a hornets nest and they will just get madder and madder and madder.
Could David Cunliffe and Andrew Little please sit down this weekend and sort out a united ticket please. At least have a conversation. Neither the media nor the Labour caucus have the maturity to deal with a primary. All this is generating is further splits within the party. Start talking and stop making this mess worse.
Do you really think DC would be satisfied with being 2nd fiddle? And would Andrew Little trust DC not to quietly white ant him over the next couple of years?
You’d say anything to further the cause of the greedheads. I’d say that you should not expect anyone to believe that you have any concern in boosting the morale of the Labour party. Your (and Boag’s) support of Little are arguments for supporting the other candidates.
TRP
You really believe that Cunliffe is more likely to white-ant a rival than Robertson? That does not seem to correspond to the events of the last few years; where DC demonstrated his loyalty to Goff and even Shearer, while GR has always been out for himself.
Casting aspersions with no solid evidence or even any supporting argument is…a continuation of the shit and nonsense that’s plagued the Labour Party of late. Why do it?
“Do you really think DC would be satisfied with being 2nd fiddle? And would Andrew Little trust DC not to quietly white ant him over the next couple of years?”
If what you imply is true, then labour is completely fucked. From what I can tell there is no ABC/neoliberal vs leftist split between Little and Cunliffe, so if they can’t agree it means it’s all about the power. In which case all of Labour prefers opposition rather than change.
But like Bill, I’m not sure about your implication. Care to say why you believe this?
Sure, weka. Cunliffe is a politician. He has ego and ambition (as most of them do, of course). It is naive in the extreme to believe he didn’t know of and approve of people quietly promoting him as a leadership option during the Goff and Shearer years. He was also personally underwhelming in his support for Shearer, damning him with faint praise, particularly at conference (and I was there a few feet away for at least two of his standups in Ak).
On a personal level, I was lobbied twice while Shearer was leader about potential support for Cunliffe, once to determine my LEC’s position, once to get a feel for the affiliates likely support.
Like it or not, pollies plot. That’s par for the course. I supported DC in the last leadership round and of course supported his leadership in the election campaign. But I didn’t do it on the basis of thinking he was above reproach.
The reason I cited the Virgin Mary in response to Bill is that some folk seem to have completely unrealistic understandings of how politics works. DC did not rise to the leadership of the LP on the backs of angels, innocently whistling hymns and wondering how all this happened.
@Te Reo Putake 10.14am.
She did manage to give us a pretty good sort of son. She did a good thing in her own way.. The way now for us is to take note of what Bill is saying. I am sure you will agree that less is more when it comes to political sniping in Labour for the next few weeks.
I think dismantled is a bit strong, Moz, but it wasn’t all that good an interview. However, I expect over the next few weeks he’ll get into the swing of things. Some quick media training is definitely needed (mainly devil’s advocate stuff – throwing likely negative questions at him so he’s better prepared for the likes of Spinner in the future).
Yes, I think I overstated it, Te Reo. I was very disappointed with Little, however; he let Espiner dictate the conversation and bully him over the use of terminology. At the end of the interview, Espiner signed off with a contemptuous “Obviously you’ve made your mind up.”
Hopefully some time in the near future, Little will take the opportunity to deal with Espiner decisively, and refute his nasty little comments, as Laila Harré did during the election campaign.
We’re all experts now. I don’t know why Labour doesn’t put out an SOS to The Standard bloggers to come over and save it – there would be quite a big choice of stumblebums and clutterfucks who would have a quick noggin to give them the right spirit and then happily start ten sentences that would be talked down by interviewers. Or they would get into an argument with them which would not enhance their image or the Party’s.
Probably the broken record is best, with a bit of Peters’ affront – Now just let me finish…. May I make myself clear. Steven Price has already done a piece on talking to the media. I should dig it out, with his permission, it is pure gold.
If this is true and I have no reason to disbelieve the words of a worried father in a small Marae meeting, this would be deceit and treason of the highest kind. It would mean that our prime Minister is sending troops into war before any discussion has taken place and is acting like a dictator who can decide on war alone!
No, that doesn’t mean that Key is sending troops into war. It means the troops are being sent into a staging area, waiting for the order to go into war. That’s perfectly normal operational preparation, not deceit or treason.
It doesn’t even necessarily mean that much. SAS go to heaps of places. They usually keep this secret and relatives are not really supposed to talk about it.
I hope readers will spare a thought for regular commenter Penny Bright.
The Auckland Council has followed through in its demands for rent arrears and her Warship’s home is about to be sold to defray what is owed.
While I don’t agree with the nature of her protest, (refusing to pay rates for 5 years) I empathise with someone who has put so much on the line to publicise a point of principle, which is that the council is far from transparent in its own financial dealings.
+100 TRP… Penny is an admirable anti -corruption campaigner
….hope she doesnt lose her house( hope she has a back up fund!)
…and hope that bloody Auckland Council is forced to become more transparent in its financial dealings and therefore accountable to Auclanders and New Zealanders!
While I agree that Penny Bright is a very admirable anti-corruption campaigner – she should have been paying her bloody rates like the rest of us Jafas do – even when my partner and I have been struggling financially at times. I bet the Bailiff wouldn’t have been as charitable to us if we simply stopped paying our rates, we would have had our property sold pretty pronto. I presume that Auckland City have the same criteria in their financial transactions as does the rest of our local body councils. Yeah, let’s all stop paying our rates and let’s see where that gets us eh.
if you need proof our “leaders” base their behaviour on the legal standard and no higher, have a look at this law change and the response of one of the former transgressors, chester burrows
And worse, it appears they have only partially done what is required .. property in private super does not need to be declared; also no mention of whether it remains legal to use their accommodation supplement as mortgage repays ?
And how many years has this change taken ?
Oink, oink, oink, oink …. while they do nothing to help families living in cars. Oink, oink,all the way home.
And I would be willing to bet some of these same people will be in line to buy the best available state houses as they go to market … makes me wish a hacker or three would break into their private trusts to disclose some of the despicable truth around National ministers investments. Blind trusts ? yeah, right. They all went to specsavers if Key is any example.
Listened to Andrew Little on National Radio this morning. I’m warming to the man. Refused to be pigeon holed into being “left” or “right” of the Labour Party. .
I think that was a very wise move. To insist on the policies defining what is important. People can make up their own mind whether that is “Left” or “Right”, depending on their own definition of those two words.
My advice is to stay away from those labels too. The problem is that what one person means by the label, is likely to be very different to what others may think. The vision for the Party, and the policies that will achieve that vision are less able to be misrepresented.
Does anyone CHOOSE to watch One’s lousy Breakfast show?
And is Tim Wilson the unfunniest person on television?
Friday 10 October 2014
I thought this show was supposed to have been cancelled. Stories of its impending death are constantly doing the rounds. So why the hell is it still here? It’s an insult, a slap in the face to the idea of quality, stimulating, or entertaining television. Apart from the fawning “interviews” with politicians, the bulk of the programme seems to be free puff pieces for Hollywood movies—never anything interesting, just the most insipid mainstream rubbish. This morning, at 8:25, Hollywood correspondent Aleisha joined the team to talk about what’s going on in Tinseltown….
ALEISHA: Kristen Stewart’s got a pretty serious image. She was on Jimmy Fallon’s show recently to talk about her new film Camp X-Ray, about a female guard at Guantanamo. It’s pretty heavy.
RAWDON CHRISTIE: Yeah.
ALEISHA: But to lighten things up a bit, they played a game called “Ring Around the Nosy”.
Cue unfunny clip of Jimmy Fallon and Kristen Stewart playing idiotic party game, both of them wearing plastic elephant masks, trying to put rings on their trunks, the audience roaring with laughter throughout.
ALEISHA: She’s a good sport isn’t she!
RAWDON CHRISTIE: I want that game!
…..ad nauseam……
At 8:50, the utterly dire Tim Wilson delivered his dismal Tim’s Takes segment, meant to be a humorous summing up the week. It’s supposed to be funny, but it’s not. This guy has the sense of humour of a Canterbury engineering student. He’s the ebola of comedy. He is, in other words, the perfect choice as funny man for Television One’s Breakfast.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
Jimmy Fallon Talks With Kristen Stewart About ‘Camp X-Ray’ [Video]
When The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon came back from another commercial break, Jimmy introduced his first guest of the evening, actress Kristen Stewart.
Jimmy Fallon showed the audience a copy of Elle magazine that had Kristen on the cover. He said she would be in the new movie, Camp X-Ray, a serious movie.” He said that she “found a new friend” while working on the movie — a dog.
Kristen mentioned a friend of hers that liked to play Frisbee Golf. He found the two dogs while playing Frisbee Golf and drove to her house to show her. She had two dogs already, but she decided to keep one of the two her friend brought, anyway. “She is the coolest dog in the world,” Kristen said.
Fallon said that Stewart plays a soldier at Guantanamo Bay and strikes up a friendship with one of the people incarcerated there. Fallon showed a clip from the movie, also starring John Lynch. Lynch confronts Stewart’s character and asks her about her friendship, which she, at first, denies.
Then, Jimmy asked Stewart to play the funky game he showed earlier, Ring Around the Nosy. She wore a green elephant mask and Fallon had on a blue one. He was the first to get a ring on his nose, so he won the game.
“..And is Tim Wilson the unfunniest person on television?..”
..i think it is neck and neck between him and reece darby..
..(and the two fat people who play two fat people thing on tv2..dunno what it is called..in lieu of comedic content..they talk loudly/shout at each other..it should be called ‘two fat people shout at each other’..whoar..!..it’s so so bad..)
..has anyone seen that latest dire offering from darby..?
..it’s buried late at nite on tvone (thurs..)..
..i watched it again last nite to see if it reached the excreble-levels of previous ones..
..and yes..yes it did..
..it is painfully..resolutely..unfunny..
..and how long can a man wring out/flog a character (murray) to death..?
Fair comment, Phillip. But, in stark contrast to Wilson, Reece Darby is a genuinely funny and clever entertainer.
Tim Wilson is unfunny in the way Mark Richardson and Greg Boyed are unfunny: all they have to offer is sardonic and facetious commentary masquerading as deadpan delivery.
You have to be witty, and have perfect timing to carry off being sour all the time. Ricky Gervais can do it; Tim Wilson, Mark Richardson and Greg Boyed cannot.
Ebola nurse returns to New Zealand: Very interesting and admirable first hand information.
” Some people were so scared that they tried anything to protect themselves from Ebola, including such mythical cures as drinking chlorine and bathing in salt water at midnight.
When a patient did survive – about half of them did so – the medical staff hugged them and they returned to their village with a certificate proving there were cured, to prevent ongoing stigma, Mackie said.”
Key Democrats, Led by Hillary Clinton, Leave No doubt that Endless War is Official U.S. Doctrine
by GLENN GREENWALD
October 09, 2014 “ICH” – The Intercept
Long before Americans were introduced to the new 9/11 era super-villains called ISIS and Khorasan, senior Obama officials were openly and explicitly stating that America’s “war on terror,” already 12 years old, would last at least another decade. At first, they injected these decrees only anonymously; in late 2012, the Washington Post – disclosing the administration’s secret creation of a “disposition matrix” to decide who should be killed, imprisoned without charges, or otherwise “disposed” of – reported these remarkable facts:
“Among senior Obama administration officials, there is a broad consensus that such operations are likely to be extended at least another decade. Given the way al-Qaida continues to metastasize, some officials said no clear end is in sight. . . . That timeline suggests that the United States has reached only the midpoint of what was once known as the global war on terrorism.”
In May, 2013, the Senate Armed Services Committee held a hearing on whether it should revise the 2001 Authorization to Use Military Force (AUMF). A committee member asked a senior Pentagon official, Assistant Secretary Michael Sheehan, how long the war on terror would last; his reply: “At least 10 to 20 years.” At least. A Pentagon spokesperson confirmed afterward “that Sheehan meant the conflict is likely to last 10 to 20 more years from today — atop the 12 years that the conflict has already lasted.” As Spencer Ackerman put it: “Welcome to America’s Thirty Years War,” one which – by the Obama administration’s own reasoning – has “no geographic limit.”
Listening to all this, Maine’s independent Sen. Angus King said: “This is the most astounding and most astoundingly disturbing hearing that I’ve been to since I’ve been here. You guys have essentially rewritten the Constitution today.”
This may well have been covered elsewhere, in which case a link would be nice. After the debacle of the Bill English leadership in 1999 when they only got 22% of the vote, how did the NP go about their rebuild. It can’t all be down to Key.There must have been some fundamental/structural changes made. And if so are there lessons we could learn?
I always thought the credit went to Ms Boag, who took the knife to the deadwood (and they bleated at the time too but she didnt stop till she was satisfied) and then parachuted in John Key for the “new and acceptable face of the NP” – aka the PM in waiting.
I would think that was a strategy that could work for Labour. New Prez with a big knife, and parachute in the Mayor of Porirua as the “PM in waiting”
Repugnant abuse of taxpayer money halted. No surprises 35 of the 40 MP’s caught with their snouts in the trough are National MP’s. These leeches all took the oath to represent New Zealanders to the best of their ability. Disgraceful act of self interest greed. Any Labour MP exposed in this rort should be announcing their imminent retirement. http://m.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11340130
Bitta history.
Having been a member of the New Left Club at Canterbury University, Gibbs had converted to strongly-held free-market views by the late 1970s. He became a strong supporter of Roger Douglas, the Minister of Finance in the reforming Fourth Labour Government, 1984–90.
Gibbs was appointed chairman of the NZ Forestry Corporation, which in 1987 corporatised the old New Zealand Forest Service. The loss-making department was restructured and transformed into a profitable State Owned Enterprise.
He was also appointed chairman of the Hospital and Related Services Taskforce, with a brief to recommend reforms for the underperforming public hospital service. Their suggestions, which focused on introducing an internal market into the system, were not taken up by the Labour government but were partially implemented by the next National Government.
This is how you make money in NZ, buying businesses then dissecting them and selling their spare parts. Gibbs’ career took off in 1979 when, with three other investors, he purchased Tappenden Motors Ltd. They liquidated it profitably over the next few years.
Gibbs then gained stakes in Atlas Majestic Industries, Bendon and Ceramco, three prominent New Zealand public companies which he merged in 1986 and 1987 and that was liquidated in 1989.
In early 1990 the Fourth Labour Government confirmed it would sell the Telecom Corporation of New Zealand. Together with merchant banker David Richwhite, Gibbs brokered the $4.25 billion winning bid for the company, which when subsequently floated became the largest company on the New Zealand Stock Exchange.
It was obvious that the phone system needed privatising – a new business couldn’t get listed for months at that time.
wikipedia
—President William J. Clinton, AKA “Slick Willy”, White House press conference, 26 January 1998 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KiIP_KDQmXs
(Hat tip to our friend and colleague Clemgeopin for this one.)
More liars….
No. 43: Assistant Commissioner Alan Boreham: “Look, integrity is absolutely critical to the New Zealand Police. It’s a core value.”
No. 42 John Key: “We’ve been given a tremendous gift tonight, the trust and goodwill of New Zealanders, and I do not take that trust for granted.”
No. 41 Richard Prebble: “What I do know is that John will consider everything. He’s an honorable man….”
New Zealand Navy Rear Admiral (a rather unflattering title) has banned alcohol from on board navy vessels and the Davenport naval base.
I know the Lash was stopped generations ago, and now the ban on Rum means no more hot toddies at sea. However for some sailers Sodomy will remain in vogue.
“I don’t doubt her sincereness.”
Has The Panel reached its nadir today?
Radio NZ National, Friday 10 October 2014
Jim Mora, Tau Henare, Bernard Hickey, Julie Moffett
Move over Garth George—you’re not the most useless guest ever. Since he first appeared in parliament as Winston Peters’ No. 2 man, Tau Henare has never looked like anything other than a vacuous chancer, a thug who adds no value to any discussion. In an utterly undistinguished parliamentary career, Henare came to public attention only twice—first, when Trevor Mallard thumped him, and second when he brutally mocked a parliamentary cleaner who was appearing before a parliamentary committee.
Tau Henare is the epitome of uselessness, in other words. Yet he is now regularly being used as a commentator on Television One, TV3 and Māori Television. And today he made his debut on Jim Mora’s light chat show. He is, I suppose, just right for it. He has little of interest to say, not only because he clearly reads nothing, but also because he spends his time polishing up his cheeky Westie act. His Twitter handle is “West Side Tory”. He obviously thinks that’s quite clever.
Sadly, the other guest today is Bernard Hickey, who so far has gone out of his way to agree with everything Henare has said.
JIM MORA: So what else is going on in the world? JULIE MOFFETT: A beach in Hawaii was going to be renamed in honor of President Obama, but there is apparently a great deal of public opposition to this happening. JIM MORA: He’s had—you’ve got to feel sorry for what’s happened to Obama in the Middle East, don’t you. TAU HENARE: Yeah, he came on the scene at the wrong time. He’s a great speaker. JIM MORA: Great speaker!
4:27 p.m.: Hilariously, he has just pronounced on Penny Bright’s refusal to pay her rates. “I don’t doubt her sincereness,” he intoned, speaking very slowly to underline how deeply he was thinking.
4:34 p.m.: Mora turned down Penny Bright’s voice as she was speaking, because (so he claimed) she did not have evidence to back up some claims she was making about the Auckland Council. “I’ve just turned you down,” he said. Bernard Hickey snorted approvingly.
A little later, the following exchange occurred….
JIM MORA: Celia Wade Brown is sleeping rough on the streets of Wellington tonight. TAU HENARE: Why? JIM MORA: Doesn’t it give her a degree of empathy with the poor? TAU HENARE: Ahhhh, BOLLOCKS!
And a little later, this one….
TAU HENARE: Hey wouldn’t you want to go to sleep in Finland? JIM MORA: Finland? TAU HENARE: It’s not a very exciting place, is it?
I sent Jim a quick email in regard to his sympathy for poor old Obomba….
We should “feel sorry for what’s happened to Obama in the Middle East”?
Dear Jim,
You said that we “have to feel sorry for what’s happened to Obama in the Middle East.” I think most fair-minded people would feel sorry for what Obama has done in the Middle East. He has rhetorically encouraged, diplomatically supported and armed the bloody Al Qaeda/ISIS insurrection in Syria, and he was quick to support the brutal overthrow of the elected government of Egypt and support the bloodthirsty Sisi regime. The people of Gaza and the Occupied West Bank are sorry about what he has allowed Israel to do to them.
Yet, in spite of all this, you claim “we” should feel sorry for what’s happened “to Obama”.
You’re lucky you have Tau Henare sitting next to you in the studio. Anyone a bit quicker on the uptake would have taken you to task.
[Deleted by DPF. I know you were not meaning it literally, and trying to make the point that the song should not have been trivialised, but that was not the way to do it]
So DPF’s line on twitter today was that the comment stayed up for so long because no one had reported it in the correct manner (you have to email him). And then he went on about how he doesn’t have time to read every comment and so can’t control what people say there.
Doesn’t explain why 16 people upvoted the comment and one person down voted.
It’s all about the culture there and that people in general think it’s ok to be pro-rape. One comment on twitter was that DPF doesn’t need to say these things because he has commenters do it for him. Handy having no moderators then.
DPF is also a complete and utter fuckwit to use rape as part of his political manipulations, er I mean PR for National.
I’ve got a lovely photo of Farrar, all posh in fancy dress and a blond wig. I think he must have been going to some sort of party. It doesn’t look like one I’d go to. I’d post it if it were OK with lprent and I knew how.
The Labour Party caucus led by Labour Deputy leader David Parker is in open revolt against David Cunliffe’as their elected leader, When the caucus made the undemocratic demand that he hand over his leadership to someone of their choosing. David Cunliffe had no choice but to step down and seek a mandate from the membership. To do less would have been to let down those who had voted for him in the first place.
I have sympathy for Andrew Little, his Left Wing credentials are good.
But more than being a vote of confidence, a membership vote that returns David Cunliffe as Party Leader, will be a membership vote of no confidence in the right dominated caucus.
So while I am sympathetic to Andrew Little
Any other leader chosen, be it Robertson, or Little, will not bring this struggle between the Left and Right to a head, neither man will be able shift the caucus from their comfortable positions and they will wind up just being played.
On the other hand a Cunliffe victory could change everything.
Coming from Right Wing perspective Vernon Small in a post last year sets out the size of the problem.
But if you were really weeding out the – shall we call it “less Left wing” – faction within the Labour caucus you would have to swing the axe much more widely, especially if the touchstones of Leftwingery were an empathy with Green issues and a hostility to raising the pension age and the TPP free trade talks. The red reaper would then have to take out the likes of David Parker and Shane Jones (unthinkable), David Shearer and a bunch of others.
Note the dated reference to darling of the Right Shane Jones. “Unthinkable” that he should leave the Labour caucus, opines Small. But the unthinkable happened and Shane Jones removed himself. I expect that if David Cunliffe is returned as leader a few other Right Wing Labour caucus members will be moved to remove themselves. Good! What is unthinkable to the Right, is sweet reason to the Left. First amongst those to remove themselves must be Shane Jones close personal friend and admirer David Parker. Parker like Jones is a staunch advocate of the fossil fuel lobby and a bane of the Greens. Therefore Parker’s exit will be a double blessing not just for Labour Party Left but for the environment as well, And will put a Labour Green coalition government a much more sounder base making it a much more viable proposition.
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Simeon Brown’s Ideology BentSimeon Brown once told Kiwis he tries to represent his deep sense of faith by interacting “with integrity”.“It’s important that there’s Christians in Parliament…and from my perspective, it’s great to be a Christian in Parliament and to bring that perspective to [laws, conversations and policies].”And with ...
Severe geological and financial earthquakes are inevitable. We just don’t know how soon and how they will play out. Are we putting the right effort into preparing for them?Every decade or so the international economy has a major financial crisis. We cannot predict exactly when or exactly how it will ...
Questions1. How did Old Mate Grabaseat describe his soon-to-be-Deputy-PM’s letter to police advocating for Philip Polkinghorne?a.Ill-advisedb.A perfect letterc.A letter that will live in infamyd.He had me at hello2. What did Seymour say in response?a.What’s ill-advised is commenting when you don’t know all the facts and ...
NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi President Richard Wagstaff has called on OJI Fibre Solutions to work with the government, unions, and the community before closing the Kinleith Paper Mill. “OJI has today announced 230 job losses in what will be a devastating blow for the community. OJI needs to work with ...
NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi President Richard Wagstaff is sounding the alarm about the latest attack on workers from Minister of Workplace Relations and Safety Brooke van Velden, who is ignoring her own officials to pursue reckless changes that would completely undermine the personal grievance system. “Brooke van Velden’s changes will ...
Hi,When I started writing Webworm in 2020, I wrote a lot about the conspiracy theories that were suddenly invading our Twitter timelines and Facebook feeds. Four years ago a reader, John, left this feedback under one of my essays:It’s a never ending labyrinth of lunacy which, as you have pointed ...
And if you said this life ain't good enoughI would give my world to lift you upI could change my life to better suit your moodBecause you're so smoothAnd it's just like the ocean under the moonOh, it's the same as the emotion that I get from youYou got the ...
Aotearoa remains the minority’s birthright, New Zealand the majority’s possession. WAITANGI DAY commentary see-saws manically between the warmly positive and the coldly negative. Many New Zealanders consider this a good thing. They point to the unexamined patriotism of July Fourth and Bastille Day celebrations, and applaud the fact that the ...
The podcast above of the weekly ‘Hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers on Thursday night features co-hosts & talking about the week’s news with regular and special guests, including: and on the week in geopolitics, including the latest from Donald Trump’s administration over Gaza and Ukraine; on the ...
Up until now, the prevailing coalition view of public servants was that there were simply too many of them. But yesterday the new Public Service Commissioner, handpicked by the Luxon Government, said it was not so much numbers but what they did and the value they produced that mattered. Sir ...
In a moment we explore the question: What is Andrew Bayly wanting to tell ACC, and will it involve enjoying a small wine tasting and then telling someone to fuck off? But first, for context, a broader one: What do we look for in a government?Imagine for a moment, you ...
As expected, Donald Trump just threw Ukraine under the bus, demanding that it accept Russia's illegal theft of land, while ruling out any future membership of NATO. Its a colossal betrayal, which effectively legitimises Russia's invasion, while laying the groundwork for the next one. But Trump is apparently fine with ...
A ballot for a single member's bill was held today, and the following bill was drawn: Employment Relations (Collective Agreements in Triangular Relationships) Amendment Bill (Adrian Rurawhe) The bill would extend union rights to employees in triangular relationships, where they are (nominally) employed by one party, but ...
This is a guest post by George Weeks, reviewing a book called ‘How to Fly a Horse’ by Kevin AshtonBook review: ‘How to Fly a Horse’ by Kevin Ashton (2015) – and what it means for Auckland. The title of this article might unnerve any Greater Auckland ...
This story was originally published by Capital & Main and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. Within just a week, the sheer devastation of the Los Angeles wildfires has pushed to the fore fundamental questions about the impact of the climate crisis that have been ...
In this world, it's just usYou know it's not the same as it wasSongwriters: Harry Edward Styles / Thomas Edward Percy Hull / Tyler Sam JohnsonYesterday, I received a lovely message from Caty, a reader of Nick’s Kōrero, that got me thinking. So I thought I’d share it with you, ...
In past times a person was considered “unserious” or “not a serious” person if they failed to grasp, behave and speak according to the solemnity of the context in which they were located. For example a serious person does not audibly pass gas at Church, or yell “gun” at a ...
Long stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Thursday, February 13 are:The coalition Government’s early 2024 ‘fiscal emergency’ freeze on funding, planning and building houses, schools, local roads and hospitals helped extend and deepen the economic and jobs recession through calendar ...
For obvious reasons, people feel uneasy when the right to be a citizen is sold off to wealthy foreigners. Even selling the right to residency seems a bit dubious, when so many migrants who are not millionaires get turned away or are made to jump through innumerable hoops – simply ...
A new season of White Lotus is nearly upon us: more murder mystery, more sumptuous surroundings, more rich people behaving badly.Once more we get to identify with the experience of the pampered tourist or perhaps the poorly paid help; there's something in White Lotus for all New Zealanders.And unlike the ...
In 2016, Aotearoa shockingly plunged to fourth place in the Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index. Nine years later, and we're back there again: New Zealand has seen a further slip in its global ranking in the latest Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI). [...] In the latest CPI New Zealand's score ...
1. You’ve started ranking your politicians on how much they respect the rule of law2. You’ve stopped paying attention to those news publications3. You’ve developed a sudden interest in a particular period of history4. More and more people are sounding like your racist, conspiracist uncle.5. Someone just pulled a Nazi ...
Transforming New Zealand: Brian EastonBrian Easton will discuss the above topic at 2/57 Willis Street, Wellington at 5:30pm on Tuesday 26 February at 2/57 Willis Street, WellingtonThe sub-title to the above is "Why is the Left failing?" Brian Easton's analysis is based on his view that while the ...
Salvation Army’s State of the Nation 2025 report highlights falling living standards, the highest unemployment rates since the 1990s and half of all Pacific children going without food. There are reports of hundreds if not thousands of people are applying for the same jobs in the wake of last year’s ...
Mountain Tui is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Correction: On the article The Condundrum of David Seymour, Luke Malpass conducted joint reviews with Bryce Wilkinson, the architect of the Regulatory Standards Bill - not Bryce Edwards. The article ...
Tomorrow the council’s Transport, Resilience and Infrastructure Committee meet and agenda has a few interesting papers. Council’s Letter of Expectation to Auckland Transport Every year the council provide a Letter of Expectation to Auckland Transport which is part of the process for informing AT of the council’s priorities and ...
All around in my home townThey're trying to track me down, yeahThey say they want to bring me in guiltyFor the killing of a deputyFor the life of a deputySongwriter: Robert Nesta Marley.Support Nick’s Kōrero today with a 20% discount on a paid subscription to receive all my newsletters directly ...
Hi,I think all of us have probably experienced the power of music — that strange, transformative thing that gets under our skin and helps us experience this whole life thing with some kind of sanity.Listening and experiencing music has always been such a huge part of my life, and has ...
Business frustration over the stalled economy is growing, and only 34% of voters are confidentNicola Willis can deliver. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, February 12 are:Business frustration is growing about a ...
I have now lived long enough to see a cabinet minister go both barrels on their Prime Minister and not get sacked.It used to be that the PM would have a drawer full of resignations signed by ministers on the day of their appointment, ready for such an occasion. But ...
This session will feature Simon McCallum, Senior Lecturer in Engineering and Computer Science (VUW) and recent Labour Party candidate in the Southland Electorate talking about some of the issues around AI and how this should inform Labour Party policy. Simon is an excellent speaker with a comprehensive command of AI ...
The proposed Waimate garbage incinerator is dead: The company behind a highly-controversial proposal to build a waste-to-energy plant in the Waimate District no longer has the land. [...] However, SIRRL director Paul Taylor said the sales and purchase agreement to purchase land from Murphy Farms, near Glenavy, lapsed at ...
The US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act has been a vital tool in combatting international corruption. It forbids US companies and citizens from bribing foreign public officials anywhere in the world. And its actually enforced: some of the world's biggest companies - Siemens, Hewlett Packard, and Bristol Myers Squibb - have ...
December 2024 photo - with UK Tory Boris Johnson (Source: Facebook)Those PollsFor hours, political poll results have resounded across political hallways and commentary.According to the 1News Verizon poll, 50% of the country believe we are heading in the “wrong direction”, while 39% believe we are “on the right track”.The left ...
A Tai Rāwhiti mill that ran for 30 years before it was shut down in late 2023 is set to re-open in the coming months, which will eventually see nearly 300 new jobs in the region. A new report from Massey University shows that pensioners are struggling with rising costs. ...
As support continues to fall, Luxon also now faces his biggest internal ructions within the coalition since the election, with David Seymour reacting badly to being criticised by the PM. File photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate ...
Not since 1988 when Richard Prebble openly criticised David Lange have we seen such a challenge to a Prime Minister as that of David Seymour to Christopher Luxon last night. Prebble suggested Lange had mental health issues during a TV interview and was almost immediately fired. Seymour hasn’t gone quite ...
Three weeks in, and the 24/7 news cycle is not helping anyone feel calm and informed about the second Trump presidency. One day, the US is threatening 25% trade tariffs on its friends and neighbours. The reasons offered by the White House are absurd, such as stopping fentanyl coming in ...
This video includes personal musings and conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Adam Levy. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). Wherever you look, you'll hear headlines claiming we've passed 1.5 degrees of global warming. And while 2024 saw ...
Photo by Heather M. Edwards on UnsplashHere’s the key news, commentary, reports and debate around Aotearoa’s politics and economy in the week to Feb 10 below. That’s ahead of live chats on the Substack App and The Kākā’s front page on Substack at 5pm with: on his column in The ...
Is there anyone in the world the National Party loves more than a campaign donor? Why yes, there is! They will always have the warmest hello and would you like to slip into something more comfortable for that great god of our age, the High Net Worth Individual.The words the ...
Waste and fraud certainly exist in foreign aid programs, but rightwing celebration of USAID’s dismantling shows profound ignorance of the value of soft power (as opposed to hard power) in projecting US influence and interests abroad by non-military/coercive means (think of “hearts and minds,” “hugs, not bullets,” “honey versus vinegar,” ...
Health New Zealand is proposing to cut almost half of its data and digital positions – more than 1000 of them. The PSA has called on the Privacy Commissioner to urgently investigate the cuts due to the potential for serious consequences for patients. NZNO is calling for an urgent increase ...
We may see a few more luxury cars on Queen Street, but a loosening of rules to entice rich foreigners to invest more here is unlikely to “turbocharge our economic growth”. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate ...
Let us not dance daintily around the elephant in the room. Our politicians who serve us in the present are not honest, certainly not as honest as they should be, and while the right are taking out most of the trophies for warping narratives and literally redefining “facts”, the kiwi ...
A few weeks ago I took a look at public transport ridership in 2024. In today’s post I’m going to be looking a bit deeper at bus ridership. Buses make up the vast majority of ridership in Auckland with 70 million boardings last year out of a total of 89.4 ...
Oh, you know I did itIt's over and I feel fineNothing you could say is gonna change my mindWaited and I waited the longest nightNothing like the taste of sweet declineSongwriters: Chris Shiflett / David Eric Grohl / Nate Mendel / Taylor Hawkins.Hindsight is good, eh?The clarity when the pieces ...
Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on UnsplashHere’s what we’re watching in the week to February 16 and beyond in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty:Monday, February 10The Kākā’s weekly wrap-up of news about politics and the economy is due at midday, followed by webinar for paying subscribers in Substack’s ...
A listing of 23 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, February 2, 2025 thru Sat, February 8, 2025. This week's roundup is again published soleley by category. We are still interested in feedback to hone the categorization, so if ...
The Government’s newly announced funding for biodiversity and tourism of $30-million over three years is a small fraction of what is required for conservation in this country. ...
The Government's sudden cancellation of the tertiary education funding increase is a reckless move that risks widespread job losses and service reductions across New Zealand's universities. ...
National’s cuts to disability support funding and freezing of new residential placements has resulted in significant mental health decline for intellectually disabled people. ...
The hundreds of jobs lost needlessly as a result of the Kinleith Mill paper production closure will have a devastating impact on the Tokoroa community - something that could have easily been avoided. ...
Today Te Pāti Māori MP for Te Tai Tokerau, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi, released her members bill that will see the return of tamariki and mokopuna Māori from state care back to te iwi Māori. This bill will establish an independent authority that asserts and protects the rights promised in He Whakaputanga ...
The Whangarei District Council being forced to fluoridate their local water supply is facing a despotic Soviet-era disgrace. This is not a matter of being pro-fluoride or anti-fluoride. It is a matter of what New Zealanders see and value as democracy in our country. Individual democratically elected Councillors are not ...
Nicola Willis’ latest supermarket announcement is painfully weak with no new ideas, no real plan, and no relief for Kiwis struggling with rising grocery costs. ...
Half of Pacific children sometimes going without food is just one of many heartbreaking lowlights in the Salvation Army’s annual State of the Nation report. ...
The Salvation Army’s State of the Nation report is a bleak indictment on the failure of Government to take steps to end poverty, with those on benefits, including their children, hit hardest. ...
New Zealand First has today introduced a Member’s Bill which would restore decision-making power to local communities regarding the fluoridation of drinking water. The ‘Fluoridation (Referendum) Legislation Bill’ seeks to repeal the Health (Fluoridation of Drinking Water) Amendment Act 2021 that granted centralised authority to the Direct General of Health ...
New Zealand First has introduced a Member’s Bill aimed at preventing banks from refusing their services to businesses because of the current “Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Framework”. “This Bill ensures fairness and prevents ESG standards from perpetuating woke ideology in the banking sector being driven by unelected, globalist, climate ...
Erica Stanford has reached peak shortsightedness if today’s announcement is anything to go by, picking apart immigration settings piece by piece to the detriment of the New Zealand economy. ...
Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. The intention was to establish a colony with the cession of sovereignty to the Crown, ...
Te Whatu Ora Chief Executive Margie Apa leaving her job four months early is another symptom of this government’s failure to deliver healthcare for New Zealanders. ...
The Green Party is calling for the Prime Minister to show leadership and be unequivocal about Aotearoa New Zealand’s opposition to a proposal by the US President to remove Palestinians from Gaza. ...
The latest unemployment figures reveal that job losses are hitting Māori and Pacific people especially hard, with Māori unemployment reaching a staggering 9.7% for the December 2024 quarter and Pasifika unemployment reaching 10.5%. ...
Waitangi 2025: Waitangi Day must be community and not politically driven - Shane Jones Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. ...
Despite being confronted every day with people in genuine need being stopped from accessing emergency housing – National still won’t commit to building more public houses. ...
The Green Party says the Government is giving up on growing the country’s public housing stock, despite overwhelming evidence that we need more affordable houses to solve the housing crisis. ...
Before any thoughts of the New Year and what lies ahead could even be contemplated, New Zealand reeled with the tragedy of Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming losing her life. For over 38 years she had faithfully served as a front-line Police officer. Working alongside her was Senior Sergeant Adam Ramsay ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson will return to politics at Waitangi on Monday the 3rd of February where she will hold a stand up with fellow co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick. ...
Te Pāti Māori is appalled by the government's blatant mishandling of the school lunch programme. David Seymour’s ‘cost-saving’ measures have left tamariki across Aotearoa with unidentifiable meals, causing distress and outrage among parents and communities alike. “What’s the difference between providing inedible food, and providing no food at all?” Said ...
The Government is doubling down on outdated and volatile fossil fuels, showing how shortsighted and destructive their policies are for working New Zealanders. ...
Green Party MP Steve Abel this morning joined Coromandel locals in Waihi to condemn new mining plans announced by Shane Jones in the pit of the town’s Australian-owned Gold mine. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to strengthen its just-announced 2030-2035 Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement and address its woeful lack of commitment to climate security. ...
Today marks a historic moment for Taranaki iwi with the passing of the Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill in Parliament. "Today, we stand together as descendants of Taranaki, and our tūpuna, Taranaki Maunga, is now formally acknowledged by the law as a living tūpuna. ...
The Government’s commitment to get New Zealand’s roads back on track is delivering strong results, with around 98 per cent of potholes on state highways repaired within 24 hours of identification every month since targets were introduced, Transport Minister Chris Bishop says. “Increasing productivity to help rebuild our economy is ...
The former Cadbury factory will be the site of the Inpatient Building for the new Dunedin Hospital and Health Minister Simeon Brown says actions have been taken to get the cost overruns under control. “Today I am giving the people of Dunedin certainty that we will build the new Dunedin ...
From today, Plunket in Whāngarei will be offering childhood immunisations – the first of up to 27 sites nationwide, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. The investment of $1 million into the pilot, announced in October 2024, was made possible due to the Government’s record $16.68 billion investment in health. It ...
New Zealand’s strong commitment to the rights of disabled people has continued with the response to an important United Nations report, Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston has announced. Of the 63 concluding observations of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), 47 will be progressed ...
Resources Minister Shane Jones has launched New Zealand’s national Minerals Strategy and Critical Minerals List, documents that lay a strategic and enduring path for the mineral sector, with the aim of doubling exports to $3 billion by 2035. Mr Jones released the documents, which present the Coalition Government’s transformative vision ...
Firstly I want to thank OceanaGold for hosting our event today. Your operation at Waihi is impressive. I want to acknowledge local MP Scott Simpson, local government dignitaries, community stakeholders and all of you who have gathered here today. It’s a privilege to welcome you to the launch of the ...
Racing Minister, Winston Peters has announced the Government is preparing public consultation on GST policy proposals which would make the New Zealand racing industry more competitive. “The racing industry makes an important economic contribution. New Zealand thoroughbreds are in demand overseas as racehorses and for breeding. The domestic thoroughbred industry ...
Business confidence remains very high and shows the economy is on track to improve, Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis says. “The latest ANZ Business Outlook survey, released yesterday, shows business confidence and expected own activity are ‘still both very high’.” The survey reports business confidence fell eight points to +54 ...
Enabling works have begun this week on an expanded radiology unit at Hawke’s Bay Fallen Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital which will double CT scanning capacity in Hawke’s Bay to ensure more locals can benefit from access to timely, quality healthcare, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. This investment of $29.3m in the ...
The Government has today announced New Zealand’s second international climate target under the Paris Agreement, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand will reduce emissions by 51 to 55 per cent compared to 2005 levels, by 2035. “We have worked hard to set a target that is both ambitious ...
Nine years of negotiations between the Crown and iwi of Taranaki have concluded following Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/the Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill passing its third reading in Parliament today, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “This Bill addresses the historical grievances endured by the eight iwi ...
As schools start back for 2025, there will be a relentless focus on teaching the basics brilliantly so all Kiwi kids grow up with the knowledge, skills and competencies needed to grow the New Zealand of the future, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “A world-leading education system is a key ...
Housing Minister Chris Bishop and Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson have welcomed Kāinga Ora’s decision to re-open its tender for carpets to allow wool carpet suppliers to bid. “In 2024 Kāinga Ora issued requests for tender (RFTs) seeking bids from suppliers to carpet their properties,” Mr Bishop says. “As part ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today visited Otahuhu College where the new school lunch programme has served up healthy lunches to students in the first days of the school year. “As schools open in 2025, the programme will deliver nutritious meals to around 242,000 students, every school day. On ...
Minister for Children Karen Chhour has intervened in Oranga Tamariki’s review of social service provider contracts to ensure Barnardos can continue to deliver its 0800 What’s Up hotline. “When I found out about the potential impact to this service, I asked Oranga Tamariki for an explanation. Based on the information ...
A bill to make revenue collection on imported and exported goods fairer and more effective had its first reading in Parliament, Customs Minister Casey Costello said today. “The Customs (Levies and Other Matters) Amendment Bill modernises the way in which Customs can recover the costs of services that are needed ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Department of Internal Affairs [the Department] has achieved significant progress in completing applications for New Zealand citizenship. “December 2024 saw the Department complete 5,661 citizenship applications, the most for any month in 2024. This is a 54 per cent increase compared ...
Reversals to Labour’s blanket speed limit reductions begin tonight and will be in place by 1 July, says Minister of Transport Chris Bishop. “The previous government was obsessed with slowing New Zealanders down by imposing illogical and untargeted speed limit reductions on state highways and local roads. “National campaigned on ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis has announced Budget 2025 – the Growth Budget - will be delivered on Thursday 22 May. “This year’s Budget will drive forward the Government’s plan to grow our economy to improve the incomes of New Zealanders now and in the years ahead. “Budget 2025 will build ...
Almost 40% of those departing NZ long-term are aged 18 to 30. What sort of country will they leave behind, asks Catherine McGregor in today’s extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. Young people leading the charge out the door Last year saw ...
New Health Minister Simeon Brown is presiding over a list of resignations from high-ranking health officials that some say is a "bloodbath". What's going on? ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Rickerby, Lecturer, School of Product Design, University of Canterbury The Poly-1. MOTAT , CC BY-NC Some 45 years ago, a team of staff and students at Wellington Polytechnic designed and built a desktop computer with an operating system customised for ...
The Forum has raised concerns regarding the Principles of the Treaty of Waitangi Bill and the Regulatory Standards Bill, which, if enacted, will radically undermine existing human rights protections, Indigenous rights, and constitutional safeguards ...
The passage of time hasn’t been kind to Ngāi Tahu.When its High Court hearing over wai māori (freshwater) commenced last week, 52 months after the claim was filed, the tribe mourned the loss of two named first plaintiffs – Bishop Richard Wallace, of Makaawhio, and Theo Bunker, of Wairewa – ...
Margie Apa, Nicholas Jones, Diana Sarfati, the board of Health New Zealand … and will Lester Levy be next?The biggest names in our health service are tumbling like dominos.It’s been called a bloodbath and a crisis.What’s going on?Every day there’s a new story about shortages, patients having to wait for ...
Opinion: The coalition Government’s recent revisions to the business investor visa, officially the Active Investor Plus but commonly known as the ‘golden visa’, has put pay-for-residency back in the headlines. While many object to the commodification of citizenship implicit in this policy, questions should be asked about its potential as ...
One Christmas, to thank him for helping me hugely with my writing (on a mentor scheme), I sent Michael King a dark blue cashmere scarf. I chose it with the awful knowledge that he was battling cancer, and I somehow thought it might keep him warm and make him feel ...
Comment: Readers may recall the commentaries from academics that appeared on these pages as well as on many media outlets, alarmed and appalled by the disbanding of the Marsden panels for humanities and the social sciences.The Marsden Fund is a “blue skies” initiative established by Simon Upton in the 1990s. ...
Everything you missed from day five of the Treaty principles bill hearings, when the Justice Committee heard seven hours of submissions. Read our recaps of the previous hearings here.An “insult to every one of our tīpuna” was the first advice the Justice Committee heard on the Treaty principles bill ...
The same councillors who decry excessive spending on pet projects just voted to pump millions of dollars into a greenhouse for flowers. On Thursday last week, Wellington City Council voted to consult on repairing Begonia House, the greenhouse for exotic flowers in Wellington Botanic Garden. The options for repairs range ...
It’s important to respect people’s right to free speech and peaceful assembly, but how much political deference is due when it isn’t peaceful? Commenting on Destiny Church members storming a children’s event at the Te Atatū library and community centre on Saturday, prime minister Christopher Luxon said it’s important to ...
Comment: US is capitulating to Moscow’s demands before negotiations over Ukraine even begin The post The day the West died appeared first on Newsroom. ...
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Asia Pacific Report Two Palestinian resistance groups have condemned “the brutal assault” on prisoners at Ofer Prison, saying it was “barbaric criminal behaviour that reflects the fascist and terrorist nature of” Israel. In the joint statement, Hamas and Palestine Islamic Jihad (PIJ) called the attack a “miserable attempt” by Israel ...
By Caleb Fotheringham, RNZ Pacific journalist in Avarua, Rarotonga Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown hopes to have “an opportunity to talk” with the New Zealand government to “heal some of the rift”. Brown returned to Avarua on Sunday afternoon (Cook Islands Time) following his week-long state visit to China, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sonia R. Grover, Clinical Professor of Gynaecology, The University of Melbourne Polina Zimmerman/Pexels Menstruation, or a period, is the bleeding that occurs about monthly in healthy people born with a uterus, from puberty to menopause. This happens when the endometrium, the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ella Barclay, Senior Lecturer, School of Art and Design, Australian National University Despite the perceived outrage at Khaled Sabsabi’s depiction of Hassan Nasrallah in his 2007 work You, Australian art has long made subjects of outlaws and questionable figures. And it is ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Louise Pryke, Honorary Research Associate, Department of Classics and Ancient History, University of Sydney Lisa Tomasetti/Opera Australia “It’s an old song”, Hermes (Christine Anu) sings at the opening of Hadestown, but “we’re gonna sing it again and again”. Based on a ...
An additional $13 million will be invested in tourism infrastructure, including upgrading huts and resolving the backlog in Milford Sound concessions. ...
The reality is that we have no obligation to tolerate the intolerant. They are using violence to shut down and silence others. The result of tolerating intolerant views is the loss of everyone’s freedom of speech except for the one who most effectively ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robert Davis, Associate Professor in Conservation, Edith Cowan University Adwo/Shutterstock Humans have been poisoning rodents for centuries. But fast-breeding rats and mice have evolved resistance to earlier poisons. In response, manufacturers have produced second generation anticoagulant rodenticides such as bromadiolone, widely ...
Alex Casey unearths Simon Court’s full sales pitch for how menstrual cups could end poverty. On Friday last week, Act MP Simon Court was accused of “mansplaining” during a parliamentary committee hearing about benefit sanctions. After submitter Rachel Dibble shared her concerns about period poverty and the impact that sanctions ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexander Gillespie, Professor of Law, University of Waikato It’s an unfortunate fact that bad people sometimes want guns. And while laws are designed to prevent guns falling into the wrong hands, the determined criminal can be highly resourceful. There are three main ...
Asia Pacific Report Two independent Jewish Voices groups in Aotearoa New Zealand have written an open letter to the government condemning the Zionist “colonisation” project leading to genocide and criticising the role of the NZ Jewish Council for its “unelected” and “uncritical support” for Israel. The groups, Alternative Jewish Voices ...
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 A national Newspoll, conducted February 10–14 from a sample of 1,244, gave the Coalition a 51–49 lead, unchanged from the previous Newspoll, ...
We round up everything coming to streaming services this week, including Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+, Apple TV+, ThreeNow, Neon and TVNZ+. If you enjoy whip-smart satire: The White Lotus (Neon, February 17) HBO’s award-winning The White Lotus is back for what critics are calling “an absolutely exquisite third ...
NZPF called for a slowdown of the curriculum change, asking for one subject at a time, so that teachers and principals could be fully trained and feel confident and competent to implement the changes, New Zealand Principals’ Federation (NZPF) President ...
Well i’ll have a little prayer today that those Kurds who are fighting ISIS while the rest of the world plays political football, says why didn’t they go in to every other hotspot so why should they now and a multitude of other excuses, continue debating the ethics of it.
Having had family face this sort of thing, while the British and Russians played political footballs over the carving up of Europe post WW2.
When you’ve been effected by similar acts, you have a different point of view.
I can’t comment on Iraq, Georgia, Zimbabwe, Africa and every other bed of nasitness that we meddle in, god knows the US has caused most of this with their war mongering oil greed, all I know is lives are at stake and life is precious.
The legality of past US actions is another matter nd should be kept separate for the Haig to decide. Beleive it when I see it.
Perhaps their is a hint of racism. Is it because they are Arabs? Foreign?
Meh save a life you’ll feel better about yourself.
I already have saved a few lives. It didn’t involve taking others.
I thought evacuate that city, not as lot more than that Murray, just get the civilians out of there before it’s over ridden. One thing at a time, they are on the Turkish border, hopefully they will make the folly of entering Turkey and I’m sure the valiant Turks will teach them a hard lesson and we won’t be needed.
I particularly seem to have a bug up my ass about people who commit murder, or take lives in the name of religion sorry. I really do not like these simple deeply nasty people.
I suppose I’m more wishing for a humanitarian UN rescue and we participate rather than join an all out war on the middle easts again. You can never defeat them unless you go to the lengths of genocide, and if you don’t do that, then your just poking a stick at a hornets nest and they will just get madder and madder and madder.
Could David Cunliffe and Andrew Little please sit down this weekend and sort out a united ticket please. At least have a conversation. Neither the media nor the Labour caucus have the maturity to deal with a primary. All this is generating is further splits within the party. Start talking and stop making this mess worse.
+100
Do you really think DC would be satisfied with being 2nd fiddle? And would Andrew Little trust DC not to quietly white ant him over the next couple of years?
I’d say morale within Labour would go up a thousand fold if both Cunliffe and Robertson left to pursue other ventures.
BM
You’d say anything to further the cause of the greedheads. I’d say that you should not expect anyone to believe that you have any concern in boosting the morale of the Labour party. Your (and Boag’s) support of Little are arguments for supporting the other candidates.
TRP
You really believe that Cunliffe is more likely to white-ant a rival than Robertson? That does not seem to correspond to the events of the last few years; where DC demonstrated his loyalty to Goff and even Shearer, while GR has always been out for himself.
” … where DC demonstrated his loyalty to Goff and even Shearer”
Don’t kid yourself, Parsupial, DC’s rise to the top job didn’t happen in a vacuum.
Casting aspersions with no solid evidence or even any supporting argument is…a continuation of the shit and nonsense that’s plagued the Labour Party of late. Why do it?
And Mary really was a virgin …
“Do you really think DC would be satisfied with being 2nd fiddle? And would Andrew Little trust DC not to quietly white ant him over the next couple of years?”
If what you imply is true, then labour is completely fucked. From what I can tell there is no ABC/neoliberal vs leftist split between Little and Cunliffe, so if they can’t agree it means it’s all about the power. In which case all of Labour prefers opposition rather than change.
But like Bill, I’m not sure about your implication. Care to say why you believe this?
Sure, weka. Cunliffe is a politician. He has ego and ambition (as most of them do, of course). It is naive in the extreme to believe he didn’t know of and approve of people quietly promoting him as a leadership option during the Goff and Shearer years. He was also personally underwhelming in his support for Shearer, damning him with faint praise, particularly at conference (and I was there a few feet away for at least two of his standups in Ak).
On a personal level, I was lobbied twice while Shearer was leader about potential support for Cunliffe, once to determine my LEC’s position, once to get a feel for the affiliates likely support.
Like it or not, pollies plot. That’s par for the course. I supported DC in the last leadership round and of course supported his leadership in the election campaign. But I didn’t do it on the basis of thinking he was above reproach.
The reason I cited the Virgin Mary in response to Bill is that some folk seem to have completely unrealistic understandings of how politics works. DC did not rise to the leadership of the LP on the backs of angels, innocently whistling hymns and wondering how all this happened.
@Te Reo Putake 10.14am.
She did manage to give us a pretty good sort of son. She did a good thing in her own way.. The way now for us is to take note of what Bill is saying. I am sure you will agree that less is more when it comes to political sniping in Labour for the next few weeks.
🙄 @BM
1. No, but DC won’t have any choice.
2. AL doesn’t have to trust. He just has to deal. Politics.
I listened to Andrew Little being dismantled by Guyon Espiner this morning. Little was absolutely terrible. He is not the answer.
I think dismantled is a bit strong, Moz, but it wasn’t all that good an interview. However, I expect over the next few weeks he’ll get into the swing of things. Some quick media training is definitely needed (mainly devil’s advocate stuff – throwing likely negative questions at him so he’s better prepared for the likes of Spinner in the future).
Yes, I think I overstated it, Te Reo. I was very disappointed with Little, however; he let Espiner dictate the conversation and bully him over the use of terminology. At the end of the interview, Espiner signed off with a contemptuous “Obviously you’ve made your mind up.”
Hopefully some time in the near future, Little will take the opportunity to deal with Espiner decisively, and refute his nasty little comments, as Laila Harré did during the election campaign.
Isn’t this shades of David Shearer? Lets bring in a fresh face to save the Labour Party who doesn’t have much experience as a politician.
Agree , he is not the answer. He stumbling diction reminds me of Shearer . And we will no doubt hear that he needs media training now.
You may not have read TRP at 2.3.1 before commenting.
We’re all experts now. I don’t know why Labour doesn’t put out an SOS to The Standard bloggers to come over and save it – there would be quite a big choice of stumblebums and clutterfucks who would have a quick noggin to give them the right spirit and then happily start ten sentences that would be talked down by interviewers. Or they would get into an argument with them which would not enhance their image or the Party’s.
Probably the broken record is best, with a bit of Peters’ affront – Now just let me finish…. May I make myself clear. Steven Price has already done a piece on talking to the media. I should dig it out, with his permission, it is pure gold.
If this is true and I have no reason to disbelieve the words of a worried father in a small Marae meeting, this would be deceit and treason of the highest kind. It would mean that our prime Minister is sending troops into war before any discussion has taken place and is acting like a dictator who can decide on war alone!
Is The SAS Already Deployed? http://wp.me/p638n-4xf
No, that doesn’t mean that Key is sending troops into war. It means the troops are being sent into a staging area, waiting for the order to go into war. That’s perfectly normal operational preparation, not deceit or treason.
“not deceit or treason”
Although Key would not hesitate if it was expedient.
It doesn’t even necessarily mean that much. SAS go to heaps of places. They usually keep this secret and relatives are not really supposed to talk about it.
.
Cartoon; From today’s Leunig Appreciation Page
every day should be a leunig appreciation day…
🙂 it already is in my house …
http://www.musingsbylizzytish.com/cn/leunig,%20holiday.gif
brilliance ..
http://www.abc.net.au/mediawatch/transcripts/ep16leunig1.jpg
One of my favs 😉
http://www.theage.com.au/ftimages/2005/10/25/1130006119294.html
I hope readers will spare a thought for regular commenter Penny Bright.
The Auckland Council has followed through in its demands for rent arrears and her Warship’s home is about to be sold to defray what is owed.
While I don’t agree with the nature of her protest, (refusing to pay rates for 5 years) I empathise with someone who has put so much on the line to publicise a point of principle, which is that the council is far from transparent in its own financial dealings.
Agreed, if more of us in Auckland had taken a similar stand perhaps we wouldn’t have such an odious council set up.
We agree HS?
Maybe a donation fund should be opened to assist Penny?
Good thought, but I suspect it’s not lack of cash that’s stopping her paying the rates, it’s a deliberate strategy to challenge the council.
The Herald has a piece on it: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11340075
It’d be awesome if no-one wants to buy the house.
Of course, ‘cos Penny, like Nicky Hager, is a charity case…
+100 TRP… Penny is an admirable anti -corruption campaigner
….hope she doesnt lose her house( hope she has a back up fund!)
…and hope that bloody Auckland Council is forced to become more transparent in its financial dealings and therefore accountable to Auclanders and New Zealanders!
( there is too much corruption going on!)
GO PENNY!…you wee gem!
While I agree that Penny Bright is a very admirable anti-corruption campaigner – she should have been paying her bloody rates like the rest of us Jafas do – even when my partner and I have been struggling financially at times. I bet the Bailiff wouldn’t have been as charitable to us if we simply stopped paying our rates, we would have had our property sold pretty pronto. I presume that Auckland City have the same criteria in their financial transactions as does the rest of our local body councils. Yeah, let’s all stop paying our rates and let’s see where that gets us eh.
She didn’t just stop paying her rates though.
if you need proof our “leaders” base their behaviour on the legal standard and no higher, have a look at this law change and the response of one of the former transgressors, chester burrows
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11340130
And worse, it appears they have only partially done what is required .. property in private super does not need to be declared; also no mention of whether it remains legal to use their accommodation supplement as mortgage repays ?
And how many years has this change taken ?
Oink, oink, oink, oink …. while they do nothing to help families living in cars. Oink, oink,all the way home.
And I would be willing to bet some of these same people will be in line to buy the best available state houses as they go to market … makes me wish a hacker or three would break into their private trusts to disclose some of the despicable truth around National ministers investments. Blind trusts ? yeah, right. They all went to specsavers if Key is any example.
breaking news..!..
..south park has outed lorde as being a man..
..(when asked about the official govt view on this revelation..
..john key said that ‘ackshully’..he was ‘relaxed’..and that ‘at the end of the day ..it was a new day for lorde..and new zealand.!’..
..and when asked what he actually meant by that..he rushed off to a prior appointment..)
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/09/south-park-lorde_n_5960132.html
“..Wednesday night ‘South Park’ shocked the world by revealing one of the biggest cover ups in music history:
Teenage pop sensation Lorde’s true identity is Randy Marsh from ‘South Park’.
Marsh originally started posing as a 17-year-old from New Zealand as an elaborate cover to use the women’s restroom-
– and things logically took off from there..”
(cont..)
Listened to Andrew Little on National Radio this morning. I’m warming to the man. Refused to be pigeon holed into being “left” or “right” of the Labour Party. .
I think that was a very wise move. To insist on the policies defining what is important. People can make up their own mind whether that is “Left” or “Right”, depending on their own definition of those two words.
My advice is to stay away from those labels too. The problem is that what one person means by the label, is likely to be very different to what others may think. The vision for the Party, and the policies that will achieve that vision are less able to be misrepresented.
Mr. Botany (B.)
i thought his refusal to clearly state what he stood for..aside from the aspirational bullshit he mouthed..
..just further confirmed his ‘nowhere man’ persona/image..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PASYqq4-iD0
(it’s been re-mastered..very tasty..)
Even the Herald think the police raid was a mistake.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11340033
thought this line was a bt odd “It was well-known that Hager – like Slater – sees himself as an investigative journalist, …”
*(back to original name, thanks moderators)
just looked at the Stuff poll…’someone else’ bolting with a huge margin over DC.GR,AL and DS.
Does anyone CHOOSE to watch One’s lousy Breakfast show?
And is Tim Wilson the unfunniest person on television?
Friday 10 October 2014
I thought this show was supposed to have been cancelled. Stories of its impending death are constantly doing the rounds. So why the hell is it still here? It’s an insult, a slap in the face to the idea of quality, stimulating, or entertaining television. Apart from the fawning “interviews” with politicians, the bulk of the programme seems to be free puff pieces for Hollywood movies—never anything interesting, just the most insipid mainstream rubbish. This morning, at 8:25, Hollywood correspondent Aleisha joined the team to talk about what’s going on in Tinseltown….
ALEISHA: Kristen Stewart’s got a pretty serious image. She was on Jimmy Fallon’s show recently to talk about her new film Camp X-Ray, about a female guard at Guantanamo. It’s pretty heavy.
RAWDON CHRISTIE: Yeah.
ALEISHA: But to lighten things up a bit, they played a game called “Ring Around the Nosy”.
Cue unfunny clip of Jimmy Fallon and Kristen Stewart playing idiotic party game, both of them wearing plastic elephant masks, trying to put rings on their trunks, the audience roaring with laughter throughout.
ALEISHA: She’s a good sport isn’t she!
RAWDON CHRISTIE: I want that game!
…..ad nauseam……
At 8:50, the utterly dire Tim Wilson delivered his dismal Tim’s Takes segment, meant to be a humorous summing up the week. It’s supposed to be funny, but it’s not. This guy has the sense of humour of a Canterbury engineering student. He’s the ebola of comedy. He is, in other words, the perfect choice as funny man for Television One’s Breakfast.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
Jimmy Fallon Talks With Kristen Stewart About ‘Camp X-Ray’ [Video]
When The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon came back from another commercial break, Jimmy introduced his first guest of the evening, actress Kristen Stewart.
Jimmy Fallon showed the audience a copy of Elle magazine that had Kristen on the cover. He said she would be in the new movie, Camp X-Ray, a serious movie.” He said that she “found a new friend” while working on the movie — a dog.
Kristen mentioned a friend of hers that liked to play Frisbee Golf. He found the two dogs while playing Frisbee Golf and drove to her house to show her. She had two dogs already, but she decided to keep one of the two her friend brought, anyway. “She is the coolest dog in the world,” Kristen said.
Fallon said that Stewart plays a soldier at Guantanamo Bay and strikes up a friendship with one of the people incarcerated there. Fallon showed a clip from the movie, also starring John Lynch. Lynch confronts Stewart’s character and asks her about her friendship, which she, at first, denies.
Then, Jimmy asked Stewart to play the funky game he showed earlier, Ring Around the Nosy. She wore a green elephant mask and Fallon had on a blue one. He was the first to get a ring on his nose, so he won the game.
Read more……
http://guardianlv.com/2014/10/jimmy-fallon-talks-with-kristen-stewart-about-camp-x-ray-video-2/
“..And is Tim Wilson the unfunniest person on television?..”
..i think it is neck and neck between him and reece darby..
..(and the two fat people who play two fat people thing on tv2..dunno what it is called..in lieu of comedic content..they talk loudly/shout at each other..it should be called ‘two fat people shout at each other’..whoar..!..it’s so so bad..)
..has anyone seen that latest dire offering from darby..?
..it’s buried late at nite on tvone (thurs..)..
..i watched it again last nite to see if it reached the excreble-levels of previous ones..
..and yes..yes it did..
..it is painfully..resolutely..unfunny..
..and how long can a man wring out/flog a character (murray) to death..?
..has darby set a new record for that..?
I concur, Darby wringing too much out of too little
and isn’t wilson part of that ‘seven blunt’ thing..?
..called ‘seven blunt’..because you need to have smoked seven blunts in a row..
..to be able to watch/sit thru it..?
“Seven blunt”. Nice bit of Cockney rhyming slang there, Phillip.
i was going more for the weed-reference..
..but..it is always in the eye of the beholder..
..that such things are seen..
I know you were, Phillip. I was just doing a Tim Wilson, i.e., being facetious.
“Does anyone CHOOSE to watch One’s lousy Breakfast show?”
No
Fair comment, Phillip. But, in stark contrast to Wilson, Reece Darby is a genuinely funny and clever entertainer.
Tim Wilson is unfunny in the way Mark Richardson and Greg Boyed are unfunny: all they have to offer is sardonic and facetious commentary masquerading as deadpan delivery.
You have to be witty, and have perfect timing to carry off being sour all the time. Ricky Gervais can do it; Tim Wilson, Mark Richardson and Greg Boyed cannot.
And Rhys Darby is excellent too.
I KNEW it! I should never have used Phillip Ure as my de facto spellchecker.
@ trp..have you seen his latest offering..?
..if not..you may find you are rushing to judgement..
Ebola nurse returns to New Zealand: Very interesting and admirable first hand information.
” Some people were so scared that they tried anything to protect themselves from Ebola, including such mythical cures as drinking chlorine and bathing in salt water at midnight.
When a patient did survive – about half of them did so – the medical staff hugged them and they returned to their village with a certificate proving there were cured, to prevent ongoing stigma, Mackie said.”
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/10599907/Ebola-nurse-returns-to-New-Zealand
Key Democrats, Led by Hillary Clinton, Leave No doubt that Endless War is Official U.S. Doctrine
by GLENN GREENWALD
October 09, 2014 “ICH” – The Intercept
Long before Americans were introduced to the new 9/11 era super-villains called ISIS and Khorasan, senior Obama officials were openly and explicitly stating that America’s “war on terror,” already 12 years old, would last at least another decade. At first, they injected these decrees only anonymously; in late 2012, the Washington Post – disclosing the administration’s secret creation of a “disposition matrix” to decide who should be killed, imprisoned without charges, or otherwise “disposed” of – reported these remarkable facts:
“Among senior Obama administration officials, there is a broad consensus that such operations are likely to be extended at least another decade. Given the way al-Qaida continues to metastasize, some officials said no clear end is in sight. . . . That timeline suggests that the United States has reached only the midpoint of what was once known as the global war on terrorism.”
In May, 2013, the Senate Armed Services Committee held a hearing on whether it should revise the 2001 Authorization to Use Military Force (AUMF). A committee member asked a senior Pentagon official, Assistant Secretary Michael Sheehan, how long the war on terror would last; his reply: “At least 10 to 20 years.” At least. A Pentagon spokesperson confirmed afterward “that Sheehan meant the conflict is likely to last 10 to 20 more years from today — atop the 12 years that the conflict has already lasted.” As Spencer Ackerman put it: “Welcome to America’s Thirty Years War,” one which – by the Obama administration’s own reasoning – has “no geographic limit.”
Listening to all this, Maine’s independent Sen. Angus King said: “This is the most astounding and most astoundingly disturbing hearing that I’ve been to since I’ve been here. You guys have essentially rewritten the Constitution today.”
Read more…..
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article39907.htm
This may well have been covered elsewhere, in which case a link would be nice. After the debacle of the Bill English leadership in 1999 when they only got 22% of the vote, how did the NP go about their rebuild. It can’t all be down to Key.There must have been some fundamental/structural changes made. And if so are there lessons we could learn?
2002 election and Steven Joyce was the chap who was behind the rebuild.
And he did what exactly?
I thought it was Lord Ashcroft……
@ barfly..
..and he rebuilt it in his image..
..remember when key used to dutifully troop out to the airport..
..to get his regular briefings from ashcroft..in his ‘secure’ private jet..?
..that was a tad blatant/obvious..i always thought..
I always thought the credit went to Ms Boag, who took the knife to the deadwood (and they bleated at the time too but she didnt stop till she was satisfied) and then parachuted in John Key for the “new and acceptable face of the NP” – aka the PM in waiting.
I would think that was a strategy that could work for Labour. New Prez with a big knife, and parachute in the Mayor of Porirua as the “PM in waiting”
Brian Easton was writing about the National rebuild including being less the farmers’ party and more Urban party.
http://www.pundit.co.nz/content/party-renewal-nationals-success-labours-failing
Yes, I read that Ian, but it didn’t really get into the nitty gritty, which is what interests me.
“How did the NP go about their rebuild” ?
Orewa 2004
Ebola patients wearing protective gear. Wow.
That was easy, the infected realise that society
exists, and take precautions to protect others.
Wait until a neo-liberal gets Ebola. Will they suit up to
protect society?
When white people start dying.
/
http://www.theonion.com/articles/experts-ebola-vaccine-at-least-50-white-people-awa,36580/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/08/ebola-illustration-andre-carrilho_n_5955192.html
Repugnant abuse of taxpayer money halted. No surprises 35 of the 40 MP’s caught with their snouts in the trough are National MP’s. These leeches all took the oath to represent New Zealanders to the best of their ability. Disgraceful act of self interest greed. Any Labour MP exposed in this rort should be announcing their imminent retirement.
http://m.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11340130
Bitta history.
Having been a member of the New Left Club at Canterbury University, Gibbs had converted to strongly-held free-market views by the late 1970s. He became a strong supporter of Roger Douglas, the Minister of Finance in the reforming Fourth Labour Government, 1984–90.
Gibbs was appointed chairman of the NZ Forestry Corporation, which in 1987 corporatised the old New Zealand Forest Service. The loss-making department was restructured and transformed into a profitable State Owned Enterprise.
He was also appointed chairman of the Hospital and Related Services Taskforce, with a brief to recommend reforms for the underperforming public hospital service. Their suggestions, which focused on introducing an internal market into the system, were not taken up by the Labour government but were partially implemented by the next National Government.
This is how you make money in NZ, buying businesses then dissecting them and selling their spare parts.
Gibbs’ career took off in 1979 when, with three other investors, he purchased Tappenden Motors Ltd. They liquidated it profitably over the next few years.
Gibbs then gained stakes in Atlas Majestic Industries, Bendon and Ceramco, three prominent New Zealand public companies which he merged in 1986 and 1987 and that was liquidated in 1989.
In early 1990 the Fourth Labour Government confirmed it would sell the Telecom Corporation of New Zealand. Together with merchant banker David Richwhite, Gibbs brokered the $4.25 billion winning bid for the company, which when subsequently floated became the largest company on the New Zealand Stock Exchange.
It was obvious that the phone system needed privatising – a new business couldn’t get listed for months at that time.
wikipedia
How can Wikipedia say it was obvious that the phone system needed privatising? That’s opinion, and highly contestable.
LIARS OF OUR TIME
No. 44: President William J. Clinton
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
“I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky. I never told anybody to lie, not a single time; never.”
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
—President William J. Clinton, AKA “Slick Willy”, White House press conference, 26 January 1998
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KiIP_KDQmXs
(Hat tip to our friend and colleague Clemgeopin for this one.)
More liars….
No. 43: Assistant Commissioner Alan Boreham: “Look, integrity is absolutely critical to the New Zealand Police. It’s a core value.”
No. 42 John Key: “We’ve been given a tremendous gift tonight, the trust and goodwill of New Zealanders, and I do not take that trust for granted.”
No. 41 Richard Prebble: “What I do know is that John will consider everything. He’s an honorable man….”
See the rest of the liars HERE….
http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-09102014/#comment-907232
A sad announcement for the Navy.
New Zealand Navy Rear Admiral (a rather unflattering title) has banned alcohol from on board navy vessels and the Davenport naval base.
I know the Lash was stopped generations ago, and now the ban on Rum means no more hot toddies at sea. However for some sailers Sodomy will remain in vogue.
Homophobic Craig,
Misogynistic nut-job,
Revealed as gutless too.
“I don’t doubt her sincereness.”
Has The Panel reached its nadir today?
Radio NZ National, Friday 10 October 2014
Jim Mora, Tau Henare, Bernard Hickey, Julie Moffett
Move over Garth George—you’re not the most useless guest ever. Since he first appeared in parliament as Winston Peters’ No. 2 man, Tau Henare has never looked like anything other than a vacuous chancer, a thug who adds no value to any discussion. In an utterly undistinguished parliamentary career, Henare came to public attention only twice—first, when Trevor Mallard thumped him, and second when he brutally mocked a parliamentary cleaner who was appearing before a parliamentary committee.
Tau Henare is the epitome of uselessness, in other words. Yet he is now regularly being used as a commentator on Television One, TV3 and Māori Television. And today he made his debut on Jim Mora’s light chat show. He is, I suppose, just right for it. He has little of interest to say, not only because he clearly reads nothing, but also because he spends his time polishing up his cheeky Westie act. His Twitter handle is “West Side Tory”. He obviously thinks that’s quite clever.
Sadly, the other guest today is Bernard Hickey, who so far has gone out of his way to agree with everything Henare has said.
JIM MORA: So what else is going on in the world?
JULIE MOFFETT: A beach in Hawaii was going to be renamed in honor of President Obama, but there is apparently a great deal of public opposition to this happening.
JIM MORA: He’s had—you’ve got to feel sorry for what’s happened to Obama in the Middle East, don’t you.
TAU HENARE: Yeah, he came on the scene at the wrong time. He’s a great speaker.
JIM MORA: Great speaker!
4:27 p.m.: Hilariously, he has just pronounced on Penny Bright’s refusal to pay her rates. “I don’t doubt her sincereness,” he intoned, speaking very slowly to underline how deeply he was thinking.
4:34 p.m.: Mora turned down Penny Bright’s voice as she was speaking, because (so he claimed) she did not have evidence to back up some claims she was making about the Auckland Council. “I’ve just turned you down,” he said. Bernard Hickey snorted approvingly.
A little later, the following exchange occurred….
JIM MORA: Celia Wade Brown is sleeping rough on the streets of Wellington tonight.
TAU HENARE: Why?
JIM MORA: Doesn’t it give her a degree of empathy with the poor?
TAU HENARE: Ahhhh, BOLLOCKS!
And a little later, this one….
TAU HENARE: Hey wouldn’t you want to go to sleep in Finland?
JIM MORA: Finland?
TAU HENARE: It’s not a very exciting place, is it?
I sent Jim a quick email in regard to his sympathy for poor old Obomba….
We should “feel sorry for what’s happened to Obama in the Middle East”?
Dear Jim,
You said that we “have to feel sorry for what’s happened to Obama in the Middle East.” I think most fair-minded people would feel sorry for what Obama has done in the Middle East. He has rhetorically encouraged, diplomatically supported and armed the bloody Al Qaeda/ISIS insurrection in Syria, and he was quick to support the brutal overthrow of the elected government of Egypt and support the bloodthirsty Sisi regime. The people of Gaza and the Occupied West Bank are sorry about what he has allowed Israel to do to them.
Yet, in spite of all this, you claim “we” should feel sorry for what’s happened “to Obama”.
You’re lucky you have Tau Henare sitting next to you in the studio. Anyone a bit quicker on the uptake would have taken you to task.
Yours sincerely,
Morrissey Breen
Northcote Point
The blatant censoring of Penny Bright was the nadir.
Even worse than that was Hickey’s sniggering at it.
Under General Pinochet in Chile public education was increasingly privatised.
Is it possible that we are seeing this happening in godzone? Under general key and his aide-de-camp Seymour?
I sincerely hope not but nothing would surprise me. Maybe people won’t notice if Key and his accomplices are surreptitious enough.
Interesting how power corrupts but even more interesting is how those in power aren’t aware of it or can so easily deny it..
See, the internets are forever.
[Deleted by DPF. I know you were not meaning it literally, and trying to make the point that the song should not have been trivialised, but that was not the way to do it]
What he really said.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BzjZJ9PCYAAw3QZ.png:large
The donotlink link to the comment on KB http://www.donotlink.com/framed?559231
Edit, ug sorry it doesn’t go to comment. You can keyword search for 3:10 pm or scroll down comment 4
Yeah, tried but couldn’t get a working link to the comment.
cheers.
So DPF’s line on twitter today was that the comment stayed up for so long because no one had reported it in the correct manner (you have to email him). And then he went on about how he doesn’t have time to read every comment and so can’t control what people say there.
Doesn’t explain why 16 people upvoted the comment and one person down voted.
It’s all about the culture there and that people in general think it’s ok to be pro-rape. One comment on twitter was that DPF doesn’t need to say these things because he has commenters do it for him. Handy having no moderators then.
DPF is also a complete and utter fuckwit to use rape as part of his political manipulations, er I mean PR for National.
Has that guy been posting here as well? I think I’ve seen those initials.
I’ve got a lovely photo of Farrar, all posh in fancy dress and a blond wig. I think he must have been going to some sort of party. It doesn’t look like one I’d go to. I’d post it if it were OK with lprent and I knew how.
The Labour Party caucus led by Labour Deputy leader David Parker is in open revolt against David Cunliffe’as their elected leader, When the caucus made the undemocratic demand that he hand over his leadership to someone of their choosing. David Cunliffe had no choice but to step down and seek a mandate from the membership. To do less would have been to let down those who had voted for him in the first place.
I have sympathy for Andrew Little, his Left Wing credentials are good.
But more than being a vote of confidence, a membership vote that returns David Cunliffe as Party Leader, will be a membership vote of no confidence in the right dominated caucus.
So while I am sympathetic to Andrew Little
Any other leader chosen, be it Robertson, or Little, will not bring this struggle between the Left and Right to a head, neither man will be able shift the caucus from their comfortable positions and they will wind up just being played.
On the other hand a Cunliffe victory could change everything.
Coming from Right Wing perspective Vernon Small in a post last year sets out the size of the problem.
Note the dated reference to darling of the Right Shane Jones. “Unthinkable” that he should leave the Labour caucus, opines Small. But the unthinkable happened and Shane Jones removed himself. I expect that if David Cunliffe is returned as leader a few other Right Wing Labour caucus members will be moved to remove themselves. Good! What is unthinkable to the Right, is sweet reason to the Left. First amongst those to remove themselves must be Shane Jones close personal friend and admirer David Parker. Parker like Jones is a staunch advocate of the fossil fuel lobby and a bane of the Greens. Therefore Parker’s exit will be a double blessing not just for Labour Party Left but for the environment as well, And will put a Labour Green coalition government a much more sounder base making it a much more viable proposition.