Watching eng Argentina last night, can’t they make proper rugby jerseys anymore, the numbers were peeling off the backs and they looked like surf rasshie tops.
In football you can’t stay on the field without correct numbering……any rule officianados know if that’s an issue in thugby.
I enjoyed watching the Argentina – England match on TV. Maybe it wasn’t that spectacular, but it was a heroic Argentine effort against a mostly lackluster England performance – gripping fight to the finish. The Argentina supporters in the crowd looked like they were enjoying themselves.
PS I do get fed up withe the MSM giving headline results of matches as they happen – hard to avoid – and before the matches are shown in delayed mode on FTA TV.
Football as in soccer to most rugby heads, sorry I should realize that by now.
no you have to get it attended to before you can return. Happened in a euro qualifying match a few days ago to Ireland’s Richard dune, ref couldn’t read the number so trainer had to magic marker one on.
Yes, I stopped visiting Stuff this morning because of the large vacuously smiling, pseudo-presidential pic of our Prime Mincer promoting that story.
What does he have to say after the failed transport and other issues on Auckland’s waterfront Friday night, after saying people would eat their words and it would all go smoothly?
Favourite quote: John Key on…how he and Obama differ: “I have more engagement with New Zealand than people might think. Unlike the impression I have of the American president, who sits in the Oval Office and people come to them.”
Yes, that’s how you differ from Obama, John…
Carol – notice the anti-Pharmac article beside that photo? Tory all the way this morning…
No mention of the adverse effects of Warfarin, the drug Pradaxa replaces, which caused the bleeding that almost killed my old man.
And the real problem with Pradaxa, GPs prescribing the drug to people who should never have been given it, gets one line in the article.
The kea were among a group of 38 birds fitted with radio transmitters as part of a four-year programme to assess the risk of 1080 on their population.
The Department of Conservation says the pellets were supposed to be it will now look at a different formula as the baits were previously thought to be bird-repelling.
But the Chairperson of the Kumara Environmental Action Group, Gerard Bullimore says the recent deaths just show that 1080 does indeed kill everything.
“The seven keas that they found dead would be a minute percentage of native birds they have killed. Every time locals go out after a 1080 drop they’re always finding (wood) pigeons, weka, everything – flattened.”
That’s a high proportion of “collateral damage”. Most people will agree that dropping poison over large areas is far from ideal. We should be doing far more to research and trial alternative methods of predator control so we can move towards phasing out 1080 as soon as we can.
A bit subjective I know, but I used to live on a block in the countryside.
Like many people I was rather cynical about dropping poisons.
When we first moved there, there were very few native birds, apart from some pukeko.
Most of the pohutukawa were near death.
After a large 1080 drop in the area we noticed some dead birds, lots of dead rats, possums and feral cats. Also got rid of the possum infestation on our roof.
A year later there were big numbers of native birds. Wood Pigeons, Tui, Kiwi and morepork among others. The native trees had normal foliage.
That particular drop was obviously a resounding success.
There’s no doubt there can be benefits but we shouldn’t ignore the downsides – nor should we ignore looking for non-poisonous alternatives. 1080 is a real risk, and could bite us on our “clean green” and food producer bums.
A simple choice – poison or find something better?
Sounds like you have got something in mind Pete…
Cue Petulant Bean announcing a new UF/ National plan for the unemployed:
‘benificiaries to wrestle bare handed with possums in the bush’
Prime Mincer John Keys says he is comfortable with the plan saying ‘we have a lot of pests in this country, some of them are furry and some of them are lazy, may the best one win’
Yes, there’s a risk but overall 1080 drops seem to increase native flora and fauna rather than being a massive negative. And yes, we should also be looking for better methods but that doesn’t mean that we should stop using the successful methods that we are ATM.
Is this the same incident that happenned a few years ago at Franz Josef??? There (from memory) about 14 kea were fitted with transmitters and after the 1080 drop 7 were found dead – a 50% kill rate!
And what would your solution be Pete? A return to the good old days of the bushman and possum trapper like in the Barry Crump books? Any suggesting that a possum bounty will create jobs through a possum fur industry is tosh, simply because trapping possums and living in the bush is more of a lifestyle choice, rather than a way to earn money to maintain any decent standard of living.
Agree without about the need for R and D to create alternatives though. The government even owns a company that makes pesticides so there is no reason why we cannot channel money through that, and sell the products commerically.
With all due respect, PG, please read the recent report by the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment on 1080 rather than scaremongering with such reports. She has evaluated all the evidence and concluded that 1080 is the best way of dealing with threats to our native fauna. Have you done anything at all like that, or are you just basing you judgements on one report here and there and your ‘gut feeling’?
“Where were you when the world stopped turning?” This song is idiotic, preposterous, disgusting. This is the kind of lamebrained, sentimental, and—worst of all—dishonest rubbish that gives country music a bad name.
Why don’t you put up something to commemorate 9/11/73?
Might want to freshen up on reality there Brett,
The Toronto hearings: Scientists, Engineers and Architects present the best evidence to an esteemed panel amongst whom an Italian investigative judge whose expertise is: State crimes against Democracy such as the murder of Aldo Moro, Gladio and the terror attacks in Italy in the 70s. Also a specialist in Mafia related crime and involved in all of these cases. Not someone ready to through his whole distinguished career to the dogs over tinfoiled crazy conspiracy shit.
Walker said many Maori felt the Government allowed too many immigrants to enter the country, at the expense of the indigenous population.
“The problem of Maori under-performance in New Zealand – in terms of education and dependency on welfare – has not been resolved. If we can’t solve our own internal problems, why add to those problems by bringing more people? It just doesn’t make sense.”
Great questions Ranginui, wise words. After all the academic bullshit we argued this week over what was and was not racism the fact remains Maori under perform (sort of a catch all phrase that could mean anything). As a small island melting pot in the South Pacific we wont ever be a cohesive community and society until we resolve the issue of race and colonialism here. I dont have any easy answers but I do know we cant force a cure, we all need to agree.
At minimum regardless of what we think of Mutus opinions she has put the spot light well and truly back onto issues a large part of our community would ignore whilst blithely counting up the personal ebenfits of tax cuts etc.
We need to stop immigration right about now and then look at supporting the population we do have as well as looking at what we need to do due to Peak Oil. I suspect that solving the latter will also help with the former.
We need to stop immigration right about now and then look at supporting the population we do have as well as looking at what we need to do due to Peak Oil.
Oh sorry, I could not agree less! NZ is vastly underpopulated – we could happily fit in twice as many people, or three times as many.
Peak oil will come no matter how many people we have here, and in NZ we’re better placed to cope with it than anywhere else on earth!
We we get our extra 4 or 8 million people in due course, no doubt, but they will most likely be environmental or economic refugees- of course if it gets really bad elsewhere the globel elite will be flocking here in droves too…
Growth for growths sake is a doomed strategy in any situation where there are limited resources and is certainly ill advised when there is no evidence that bigger is better, and plenty to suggest that in times to come we will have to make more out of less or suffer the unpleasant consequences.
100% correct Campbell and Draco about Peak Oil and growth.
Vicky, we should be very concerned, we are well placed to cope if we are prepared but unfortunately we are not: our attitude is not unlike Britain in the 30s blithely moving toward an appointment with a sure fate. Can we cope with no oil…what are you lioke at ploughing with oxen or horses? Now tell me how many we can feed.
Got any proof that NZ is under populated? Considering that over most of history NZ had a population of less than 1m I’d say that the normal carrying capacity is well below what we have.
Oh sorry, I could not agree less!
That’s probably because you still believe in the delusional growth+ meme of the Catholic Church and the capitalists. Best thing that ever happened to man is birth control and the Catholic Church calls it against gods will.
Peak oil will come no matter how many people we have here…
Yes it will but the fewer people we have here the better off we’ll be as we’ll be more likely to be able to support them on the resources we have. Due to population levels the Northern Hemisphere and some places in the Southern will be hell on Earth with massive amounts of death from famine, disease, war and all the other problems faced by communities that just don’t have enough to support the population that they have.
That’s probably because you still believe in the delusional growth+ meme of the Catholic Church and the capitalists. Best thing that ever happened to man is birth control and the Catholic Church calls it against gods will.
Newsflash, DtB – most Catholics in NZ are leftists.. Plus, do me a favour, and don’t say ‘man’, say humanity, instead… People aren’t the problem, capitalism is.
Peak oil will come no matter how many people we have here…
… Northern Hemisphere and some places in the Southern will be hell on Earth with massive amounts of death from famine, disease, war and all the other problems faced by communities that just don’t have enough to support the population that they have.
See, this is the part that really angers me. You want to say to the rest of the world “bugger you Jack, I’m all right!” and pull up the draw-bridge! Given that some of my family, and 2/3 of my friends are in the Northern Hemipshere, I can’t be that blase about the rest of the world.
Newsflash, DtB – most Catholics in NZ are leftists.
So? The Catholic Church still holds birth control as anathema and yet it is the only thing that can allow us to live within the environments limitations. As that happens to be the case and as you happen to be a Catholic then I will hang the delusional growth meme upon you.
Capitalism is a construct of the people and so is Catholicism and so people are the problem but mostly in the form of ignorance which is what you’re showing.
You want to say to the rest of the world “bugger you Jack, I’m all right!” and pull up the draw-bridge!
Don’t have any choice – it’s probable that we’re already over populated now thus we can’t fit many more here. We certainly can’t fit the tens of millions from the UK that would have to leave there to drop their population down to sustainable levels never mind the hundreds of millions from Europe and the Middle East. And the population centres that I’m most concerned with is Asia/Minor because there’s no way we can fit billions of people here.
As that happens to be the case and as you happen to be a Catholic then I will hang the delusional growth meme upon you
Now that’s the problem – I am not a Catholic! (I am Anglo-Catholic, which is a whole ‘nother matter – and we are not opposed to birth control.) However,often, the issue is that people who hammer birth control are often at heart, racist or at least parochial in their application, or insistence on the application of it. “We must stop those Asians and those third world people from eating us out of house and home”. I am not referring to you specifically here, so don’t get angry!
It’s a fact that world-wide, we could feed the population we’ve got. The problem is distribution, and don’t blame capitalism on Catholicism, or even Anglo-catholicism..
It’s a fact that world-wide, we could feed the population we’ve got.
We can ATM, we won’t be able to in a few years. Actually, it may be true that we can’t feed them now.
don’t blame capitalism on Catholicism, or even Anglo-catholicism.
I didn’t although I admit to thinking that the church’s support the capitalists. They have, after all, always supported the rich and powerful against everyone else.
Of course Mr Keys let himself off the hook after agonizing over ‘misleading the country’ (and is busy demolishing suburbs and the CBD so that his media mates cannot be accused of histrionics either)
Yet somehow misleading the country over the economy, unemployment (‘it’s all relative’) asset sales etc etc and the world over the the state of NZ’s 100% pure environment is something he is comfortable with…
Smile and wave does very little else apart from mislead the country and now is yet again shamelessly using the quake as a means to portray himself in a better light
What happened in and to Christchurch was terrible, but the constant use of other peoples misery for self promotion whilst simultaneously doing not enough to help them is a total disgrace.
NZ’s ‘darkest day’ was when our country elected this charlatan and his government into power
If they have some more urgency, like it seems they probably will, it could easily trample over members bill day and therefore prevent it from being passed (unless the bill itself is put into urgency as well).
VSM, another neoliberal scam to privatise and destroy student services. ‘Freedom’? Like ‘level playing-field’ , leveled to advantage plunderers, and ‘no free lunch’, for you but free banquets for me? Don’t make me puke!
No hate Brett, but righteous anger. Hate is the kind of shite which comes from people like you.
Let’s define victims shall we?
The people who died in the buildings?
Their loved ones who still don’t have answers to 70 % of their questions?
The 70.000 first responders who are ill or dying from the dust and now it turns out the Nano thermite in their lungs and who are still fighting for recognition and some form of compensation and who are treated like they are the terrorists and who have been barred from attending the tenth anniversary of the events?
The American soldiers who died in battle the more then that amount who have killed themselves since they came home or the hundreds of thousands of soldiers who are ill and dying from the exposure to Depleted Uranium?
The more then a million Iraqi dead or the more then 4 million displaced internal and 4 million who fled their country?
The 90% of Afghans who never even heard about 911 and who thought that the burning buildings they saw on photo’s were in Kabul?
Let me tell you something Brett you put a stinking big donation here and I believe you really care. How about doing that!
Otherwise shut the fuck up about remembering these people because doing it once every ten years ain’t nowhere near enough. Take it from me because I remember and fight for these people every day since that 9/11 ten years ago and I find your sentimental drivel quit frankly an abomination in the face of all of these people I mentioned before and who suffered as a result of those atrocities.
It’s not the music, it’s the moronically sentimental and dishonest lyrics. There are lots of brilliant country songs and interesting country singers—but, sadly, Alan Jackson is out of his depth here.
Im sorry that people here dont like any tributes or sympathy to the people of the USA.
Well, I don’t! A handful were “victims” on September 11th, and so they’ve made actual victims out of hundreds of thousands in the rest of the world for the past 10 years.
The link you can put your stonking big donation too are family members who want a new and independent into the events of 911. Most of them are New Yorkers and therefore Americans and they all lost family members on the day itself.
And for a guy you are really very, very passive aggressive!
Was sitting in a Coffee shop in Lyttelton a short time ago, during a quake. Not very pleasant wondering whether to stay inside or run. Most of the customers did not even look up. Must be locals.
The waitress asked if I wanted my coffee stirred, as well as shaken.
I pick up the SST this morning and there is another,” I am going to quit”, from John Keys. I think he has had enough already. He looks like he has aged twenty yeats in the last three. Do yourself and quit while the going is good dude. Miami, Hawaii is much better than hanging out down here with rubes. Take my word for it.
On 9/11 a gang of criminal elites carried out the demolition of buildings which contained large amounts of asbestos, identified as a health hazard long after it had been installed; to have removed the asbestos would have been extraordinarily costly (possibly as much as what the buildings were worth) and would have resulted in a huge loss of rent.
That gang of criminals got together with another gang of criminals who needed a pretext to carry out the invasion of an oil-rich nation which had switched from trading in US dollars to trading in Euros, and to teach an unco-operative government a lesson for blocking the construction of an American-backed oil pipeline. (US oil extraction peaked in 1970 and the US was/is increasingly dependent on imported oil).
There was also the matter of the big reduction in poppy growing that the Taliban had caused, which was impacting badly on the CIA-sponsored drug trade and the laundering operations that were going on via Wall Street.
The idea of flying planes into buidlings had been discussed on many occasions and there had even been a film made about it. The problem was, the Twin Towers had been built to withstand multiple impacts by aircraft. The central colums were just too damed strong to be brought down without being cut. And Thermite (finely divided aluminium/magnesum/iron oxide mix) is about the only practical way of cutting though large steel columsn quickly. Termnite burns at around 2,500 oC, well above the 1500oC needed to melt steel.
By the way, aviation fuel burning in air reaches only 300oC, and in the absence of sufficient air -as evidenced by the black smoke on 9/11- at a considerably lower temperature.
The other problem was that the US Air Force had a ‘nasty’ habit of quickly intercepting planes that were off course; they did it about 67 times in the year 2000. So on 9/11, Dick Cheney sent the jet fighters that were based in the region well away from the region to carry out exercises based on the hijacking of aricraft -just to ensure there would be total confusion should any real hijackings be reported. That allowed aircraft to fly around for up to an hour-and-a-half without being intercepted.
One of those planes supposedly crashed in a field leaving no wreckage. Another supposedly crashed into the Pentagon, resulting in a tiny hole in the building and again leaving no significant wreckage.
There were a few ‘important people’ who had to be kept out of the carnage that was palnned for that day, so they were advised not to go to work. Needless to say, the elites were not the least concerned about deaths of ‘proles’: the elitesd have always regarded the masses as ‘cannon-fodder’ and always will (58,000 casualties in one week in the Battle of the Somme: run towards that machine gun or be shor here).
The event on the day went well for the elites and the preplanned attacks on Afghanistan and Iraq were soon underway.
However, after the event were many reports of serious inconsistencies in the official narrative. After stonewalling for months Bush and company decided it would be best to set up a ‘commision’ that could ignore all the evidence that blew holes in the official narrative and could churn out a whitewash report that validated the lies. That was done by several other members of the gang.
So there you have it. In all of history only three concrete and steel buidling have ever fallen down as a result of short-lived, low temperature fires, and they all did it on the same day, one (Building Seven) not even having been hit by a plane. In all of history only two passenger airliners have crashed in such a way that the titanium alloy engines ‘evaporated’ on impact.
Just ensure that the ‘proles’ were sufficiently brainwashed, the footage was shown again and again and again and again and again, with the words terreor, terrorist, terrorism bleated incessantly.
The sad thing is, we live in a scientifically illiterate society in which any kind of drivel is believed by the masses.
Interestingly, the Project New American Century website that promoted rampant militarism and listed the names of so many of the criminals involved in the 9/11 scam has been amended and it now looks quite innocuous.
We can be quite certain that the myths promoted by the eltites are now so firmly established in the moinds of most people they are irremovable. After all ‘they saw it on TV so it must be true’.
Presumably next year there will be yet another ‘celebration’ of one of the biggest lies in all of history. Howevre, the collapse of the economy due to global peak oil will have progressed a bit further by then and few more people might have woken from the collective trance.
“they have one of those honest Italian judges” – Mr Smith
Ferdinando Imposimato is the Honorary President of the Supreme Court of Italy. As a former Senior Investigative Judge in Italy, he presided over several terrorism-related cases, including the kidnapping and ultimate assassination of President Aldo Moro, the attempted assassination of Pope John Paul II, and other political assassinations and kidnapping cases and several cases against the Mafia. He is a former Senator who served on the Anti-Mafia Commission in three administrations and a former legal consultant to the United Nations regarding institution of laws to control drug trafficking.
To Pete George and to Mr Smith and every other denier who thinks they know best
If you thought the past ten years were annoying as Truthers bugged you with their silly stories then you had better be prepared. Soon there is going to be a unifying core of information, The Toronto Hearings Report. You and all the other hollow minded minions are going to be downright swarmed by Truth. It does not mean that every post in every blog is going to be inundated or the Newspapers are going to suddenly make reality a news story. It means that as the information being presented goes through the natural stages of conversion, i would step back a bit from the hearth. Currently it just being discussed then it gets digested and then converted into action. That is when it will get really interesting.
The Toronto Hearings will be producing a comprehensive formal report and an appendix heavy DVD which will be unlike any before. The call of the deniers is always the same, where is the evidence, well right now it is sitting in hard drives and vaults in Toronto and in a few months the panelists will release their findings. The Report will be published and you can all see for the first time the incontravertable reality that the events of September 11 2001 did not occur as presented in the (everchanging) accounts of the Official Story . Remember Truth is not about us deciding what did and did not happen, it is about securing an honest and open investigation into the events of that day so the survivors, the families and the World, know the crime was at least investigated. The chance of pointing a finger and getting a conversion is slim to none, we all know that. This is about an Investigation. An Investigation which through the events described and the evidence being discovered would be its own trial, judgement and sentence. A lasting sentence, woven into the fabric of Society, more permanent and more damning than any court could ever provide. We often hear of the thousands killed on 9/11. Would it shock you to discover that to date there has still not been a single murder inquiry regarding any of the deaths on 9/11.
I have ‘attended’ every minute of the past three days of the Toronto Hearings, with one more day to go. One thing is clear though, ‘Impossible’ does not begin to describe the shitstorm mission that deniers have in front of them when this evidence gets into the Public Domain, let alone when it arrives in a court of law.
Your dreams of safety in the warm and bloodsoaked arms of the Official Lie are going to get a very rude awakening. If you do not open your eyes soon then you will only have yourself to blame when that sick feeling in your gut spreads to destroy more of your life and the lives of those you love.
The evidence presented by and in front of experts in many fields has been disturbing in the clear, concise and damning nature of its accuracy, validity and legitimacy. No doubt the lengths some will go to ensure this evidence goes no further is what really will be the nail in the coffin of the deniers. If the Truth is so easy to refute, why are you not watching the Hearings and commenting. If your denials are so strong where are your questions that will show up the expert witnesses.
In short if you thought the matter was over because of a few songs and some coordinated media strikes reminding you of an illusion you swallowed ten years ago, then i have a little message
WAKE UP
This hearing is as real as it gets! There will be a lot more to come but for now just look at your families friends and loved ones, imagine they have all been slaughtered and quietly ask yourself:
Would the investigaton of their murder really matter?
or would you just shrug and accept someone’s word because they said so?
the Objectives of the Hearings, the attending panelists, moderators and guests are all here http://torontohearings.org/
Videos of the past three days and tomorrow’s live stream can be found here http://www.ustream.tv/channel/thetorontohearings
Day four
NZT Monday, September 12, 2011
01:00 – 01:15 Moderators: Opening remarks and Moment of Silence
01:15 – 02:45 David Ray Griffin: Anomalies of Flights 77 and 93
02:45 – 04:00 Peter Dale Scott: 9/11 and Deep State Politics
05:00 – 06:00 Laurie Manwell: SCADs and Psychological Resistance to
Alternative Accounts
07:00 – 8:15 Senator Mike Gravel: State Deception in the Past and Today
08:30 – 09:15 Audience Question and Answer
Well certainly looking forward to all those people coming forward that conspired Freedom, and the up coming trail should be great, but won’t be holding my breath. Maybe I will just wait for the movie with the hollywood ending.
There won’t be any sinking feeling for me either Freedom and to be honest, I couldn’t give a flying fuck about the USA or their conspiracy theories, I live in New Zealand and realized a long time ago that I’m not going to change the world, especially if I can’t even change my neighbors outlook first, so I try to keep it local, but I don’t forget to have my fun and live my life.
Your hubris is juvenile and selfish. Again you miss the point and your movie crack only proves how vacuous are the views of those who deny what happened. That sort of ‘joke’ only emphasises the ignorance of your outlook. Do you honestly believe we exist in some magical isolation from the web of this world. The search for Truth is not about a trial.
The chances of getting anyone prosecuted is slim to none.
9/11 Truth is about AN OPEN AND LEGITIMATE INVESTIGATION.
What about that can you not understand?
Freedom calling me Juvenile and selfish gets you no closer to your truth.
“The chances of getting anyone prosecuted is slim to none.”
That tends to happen when you don’t have a case Freedom, but thats right you are only after the truth.
“What about that can you not understand?”
What I don’t understand is why you can’t just let it go and move on, there was no conspiracy, and even if there was there is no way you will ever prove it or find the truth now, let it go.
“What I don’t understand is why you can’t just let it go and move on”
True, It takes the focus of investigating possible war crimes that have occurred since 9/11. I hear Tony Blair is calling for regime change in Syria and Iran now. Middle East peace envoy …. pfft.
Secondly I dont believe it was a control demolition, but thats another post.
I posted what i did, because its the tenth anniversary, and it was posted to remember the victims and the victims famalies and what americans went through.
The best way to honour the victims of 9/11 and the multitude of people who have died in wars following on from 9/11 is to establish the truth and have the criminals who orchestrated 9/11 brought to justice.
The chance of that is close zero of course, since the elites who were responsible for 9/11 -Bush, Cheney, Rice etc, pehaps even Tony B Liar- are all above the law and are closely connected to the present gang of elites -Obama, Clinton, Cameron, Harper, Key etc. who are destroying the economies of the western world and are destroying the global environment in the name of oil company profits.
BTW Brett an explanation regarding events at the Pentagon would be really useful also, especially after the official Story got annihilated top to bottom at Toronto over the weekend
More good interviews on Chris Laidlaw Radionz this morning. One on Chile. Comment that the present, or recent leader of that country is right wing, but an affable chap, wealthy – sound like the stereotype of Joky Hen? Also the Chilean one went to Harvard the nest of neo liberals or am I wrong.
Most of their young economists trained at Uni of Chicago under Milton Friedman who was developing his theory on the free market and neo liberalism. It is said that Chile was his first proving ground for his ideas. I wish I could get the ear of NZ govt for some of the good social theories that aren’t new, they have been around for long time. (But like what they say of Christianity – sounds like a good idea pity no-one has ever tried it yet.) But no the education here is directed along lines that run through the dollar – strictly uncatholic (with a small ‘c’ note).
That ‘Ideas’ slot this morning was excellent. That Chilean you mention was very articulate and moving. Then there was the VUW academic who provided an excellent analysis of the major protests and political (neo-liberal entrapped) environment.
Oh, yes, and I noticed the remarkable similarity between the Chilean Prime Minister and ours. Affable, smiley, made his millions before becoming PM, has unified the right and centre …
The only difference is that their PM (and government) is facing protests by hundreds of thousands – ‘Someone else’s Country’ all over again.
Hey Puddleglum – Did you note the theme that continues through the Chilean system – that there are many wealthy people who have bought into the government infrastructure and own the major top earning companies?
And the public have supported a centrist coalition in the belief that things were going to improve, even if slowly, but now that there is a change to the right they have galvanised for action because that means a worse life for the majority, less opportunities to improve living conditions. And that university education has been privatised and is now out of reach of most of the young people.
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New Zealand’s biggest-ever political donations scandal is finally at an end. But what is the conclusion? No one can really be sure.The Court of Appeal released its judgement on Tuesday about the Serious Fraud Office case against the NZ First Foundation. On the face of it, the court found ...
Buzz from the Beehive Waves of rain are set to lash much of the North Island during Easter Weekend as a low-pressure system forms east of New Zealand, according to a weather forecast published in the past day or so. Niwa was warning of a “moisture-laden” long weekend, with rain expected ...
Look around us…Nicola Willis’ promises of balancing the books, of cutting spending without reducing services, and of delivering game changing tax cuts are disappearing before her eyes.Everyday we see stories of violent crime ending in horrific injuries, or worse. The cost of living worsens, whereas the PM claimed renters would ...
TL;DR: My top six news of note on the morning of Thursday, March 28 include:The Government will have to borrow between $10 billion to $15 billion more than previously expected in order to make up for a slowing economy and to pay for $14.9 billion of tax cuts, according to ...
This story by Naveena Sadasivam and Kate Yoder was originally published by Grist and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. The long-awaited jobs board for the American Climate Corps, promised early in the Biden administration, will open next month, according to details shared exclusively ...
Should landlords be able to deduct the interest on the loans they take out to bankroll their property speculation? The US Senate Budget Committee and Bloomberg News don’t think this is a good idea, for reasons set out below. Regardless, our coalition government has been burning through a ton of ...
Treasury’s first report on the economy since the change of government presents a damning indictment of Labour’s economic management. The problem for National is that it is so damning that logically, coupled with a rapidly slowing economy, Finance Minister Nicola Willis should respond to it by postponing or even cancelling ...
Budget tensions are becoming evident within the Coalition Government. Winston Peters made numerous political points in his speech to the NZF annual conference. But the attack on his own government’s fiscal policies raised issues of substance. ‘Today in the Sunday Star Times, journalist and former advisor to the Labour ...
Buzz from the Beehive The media – sure enough – have been binging on Finance Minister Nicola Willis’ release of the Budget Policy Statement and a statement headed Government announces Budget priorities This assures us – or rather, this parrots the Luxon team mantra – that the Budget “will deliver ...
The Ides of March brought me COVID followed by a bereavement. No wonder they tell you to be careful of them.I’m home now and have resumed the interrupted recuperation. Very much looking forward to getting back to regular things. Meanwhile, some thoughts…OneThis new Prime Minister guy just keeps getting more dire. ...
News that the Chinese ATP 40 cyber-hacking unit penetrated parliamentary internet networks in 2021 has renewed concerns about the PRC’s malign intentions in Aotearoa. But is the hack that significant given the length of time that has passed since its … Continue reading → ...
When Parliament passed the Intelligence and security Act in 2017, they assured us all that it was full of safeguards. Any intrusive surveillance of New Zealanders would be subject to a "triple lock", requiring the approval of the Minister and (supposedly independent) Commissioner of Intelligence Warrants, as well as post-facto ...
Eric Crampton writes – Richard Harman’s Politik newsletter provides a bit of the context that ought to have been showing up in other media reports on potential reductions in public service staffing. Media has been reporting on staffing cuts on the order of about 7%. Is that ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – It’s becoming increasingly apparent that many perceive free speech to have become the preserve of the politically right wing, the religiously conservative, the libertarian fringe, the anti-trans, the anti-Māori and…. well, just fill in with whatever groups or individuals you don’t like and don’t ...
Don Brash writes – As everybody who is not blind and deaf is aware, there is a huge political preoccupation with climate change at the moment, a widespread (though by no means unanimous) belief that global temperatures are rising mainly as a result of the greenhouse gases created ...
TL;DR: My six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy on Wednesday, March 27 include:Chris Bishop laid out his vision for filling Aotearoa-NZ’s $100 billion infrastructure deficit in a speech yesterday, emphasising user pays and private funding, but failed to say how to achieve bipartisanship on population, public borrowing and ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Former Finance Minister Grant Robertson and former Prime Minister Chris Hipkins have been conveying how unhappy they are with the tax system. Last week in his valedictory speech, Robertson called for the introduction of a wealth or capital gains tax. And this week Hipkins ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
Buzz from the Beehive China has loomed large in Beehive considerations over the past 24 hours, largely because of that country’s mischief-making in the cyber espionage department. Two media statements emerged on that subject hard on the heels of the PM baulking at questions put to him on RNZ’s Morning ...
Chris Trotter writes – WHY IS THE NATIONAL PARTY doing so much for landlords, property developers, trucking, and construction companies, and so little for everybody who isn’t already pretty well-off? It’s as if protecting landlords’ investments and building apartments and roads now constitute the whole of National’s ...
Bryce Edwards writes – When she was campaigning to be Minister of Finance last year, Nicola Willis pledged that she would resign from the job if she failed to deliver tax cuts in her first Budget. Now, it’s that pledge, along with Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s ...
Robert MacCulloch writes – The Reserve Bank has doubled staff numbers in five years to 510, with personnel costs rising to $80 million in 2023 from $32 million in 2018 – up by a whopping 150%. I guess when you print $50 billion and flood markets with liquidity, ...
The furore. In case you didn’t notice there was a controversy in the weekend involving dolphins in a little town off the South Island. Don’t panic, they haven’t declared independence and resumed whaling, this was simply a sailing event.The problem began when racing was cancelled on the opening day of ...
For 20 years or more, the case for a meaningful capital tax gains has been mulled over and analysed to death, including by the tax working group chaired by Sir Michael Cullen. More than once, the International Monetary Fund has said a CGT would be a good idea for New ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: The Public Health Communications Centre (PHCC) call for urgent preventive action and a risk assessment survey of long covid in this briefing noteLocal scoop: NZ road deaths surpass OECD rates, so why is the govt reversing safety plans? ...
This story was originally published by Grist and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. This story is part of a collaboration with Grist and WABE to demystify the Georgia Public Service Commission, the small but powerful state-elected board that makes critical decisions about everything from raising ...
This is a guest post from Robert McLachlan Global warming is accelerating; 2023 was off the charts. We need to stop burning fossil fuels. In New Zealand, transport accounts for half of all fossil fuels burnt. In the Emissions Reduction Plan, transport emissions fall 41% by 2035. As the ...
Labour productivity has been receding rapidly over the past two years, reversing a post-lockdown rise. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy as at 6:26am on Tuesday, March 26 include:Workers have been treading water in output per hour worked for 12 years, ...
TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 2 include:Today, Parliament resumes sitting at 2pm for the second week of a two-week session. Officials for SIS and GCSB report their annual reviews in public to the Intelligence and Security Select Committee from 5.10pm.Tomorrow, ...
Faced with a barrage of criticism over the promised tax cuts from usually supportive commentators, Finance Minister Nicola Willis yesterday reaffirmed her intention to include them in this year’s Budget. The Government is up against it over the cuts just about every way it turns. Commentators like Fran O’Sullivan, Matthew ...
Here’s my pick of today’s substack posts as of 6:26pm on Monday, March 25: writes via his substack that Market-rate housing will make your city cheaper writes via his substack about the problems talking to double-cab ute (truck) drivers about their vehicles. today about moments of radicalisation in ...
Buzz from the Beehive Just before Christmas, Finance Minister Nicola Willis delivered something that was pitched as a mini-budget and brayed about the decisive action being taken to repair the Government books and support income tax relief in Budget 2024. In a statement headed Fiscal repair job underway. she introduced ...
My sister Belinda asked Dad yesterday what one word would describe Mum best. He said: vivacious.If you only knew her from the photos on the slideshow we've made for today,you might wonder about that, because the camera tended to lie with Mum.If ever she saw a camera pointed at her, she ...
There are two major public consultations closing in the next week, Auckland Council’s Long Term Plan (LTP), and the draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport (GPS). Closing dates and times: LTP closes Thursday 28 February, at 11.59pm – a minute to midnight! GPS closes Tuesday 2 April, at 12pm noon – note that’s ...
From Kiwiblog’s David Farrar – Bryce Wilkinson writes: Senior Fellow Bryce Wilkinson’s analysis reveals that since March 2009, New Zealand has spent $158 billion more overseas than it has earned, but its NIIP has only fallen by $32 billion.Statistics New Zealand shows that receipts from overseas reinsurers have ...
Is she hinting that the Coalition Government will have to back down on key promises it made in Opposition? Brian Easton writes – The Minister of Finance, Nicola Willis, is telling an evolving story about her fiscal challenges. In Opposition she was confident that she could ...
Dear Nicola Willis,Right now you’ve probably got lots of competing demands coming at you. Ministers who’ve inherited quite a mess, or so you’ve told us, looking for money in the budget to improve things. I imagine that’s why they came to parliament - to make things better.You’ll have to make ...
The Local Government, Transport and Auckland Minister hasthreatened councils with intervention if they don’t merge water assets to take them off balance sheet, just as the now-repealed Three Waters plan directed. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My six things of note this morning for Monday, March 25 include:Simeon ...
A listing of 36 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 17, 2024 thru Sat, March 23, 2024. Story of the week Thanks to John Mason having the stamina to sit down to watch "Climate - the Movie" ...
This morning the Q&A programme had Simeon Brown on to talk about National’s replacement for Three Waters. In case anyone’s forgotten the three are - drinking water, waste water, and sewerage. It’s quite important not to get them mixed up. In much the same way that you wouldn’t want to ...
Today’s newsletter comes with a mini-podcast conversation between me and my buddy Liv Tennet, talking about her time as a child actor in Lord of the Rings. It’s a conversation with a lot of giggles as she talks about falling off a horse, and becoming a meme. Read ...
The Desmog Climate Disinformation Database documents, "individuals and organisations that have helped to delay and distract the public and our elected leaders from taking needed action to reduce greenhouse gas pollution and fight global warming." It's a who's who of the organised climate change denial movement, in other words. In ...
Bob Edlin writes – A High Court judge has decided miscreants who have mana – or who claim to have mana – should be treated differently from miscreants who have none. It’s a ruling that suggests indigenous law-breakers have a better chance of securing a discharge without conviction ...
Welcome to the first, and possibly last, edition of Brickbats, Bouquets and Bull’s Wool. In which I’ll take a look at the events of the last week or so, and rate them.In such ratings the numbers usually have more to do with the opinions of the reviewer, than the actual ...
Roger Partridge writes – My earlier column this month, New Zealand’s highest court could be facing a turning point, prompted a flood of feedback from business readers and lawyers alike. A common query was what Parliament can do to restrain an overreaching judiciary. This week I discuss two steps Parliament ...
TL;DR: In today’s ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.16pm on Friday, March 22: writes about New Zealand's Building Boom—And What the World Must Learn From It over at his substack. challenges the Auckland Council’s use of a 3.8 degrees of warming forecast to oppose a wave-park and data centre project ...
Is she hinting that the Coalition Government will have to back down on key promises it made in Opposition?The Minister of Finance, Nicola Willis, is telling an evolving story about her fiscal challenges. In Opposition she was confident that she could deliver her promised income tax cuts. Appointed minister, she ...
Buzz from the Beehive Ministers of the Crown have drawn attention to one sector of the science sector which is unlikely to be subjected to heavy spending cuts, a state-funded broadcaster which is doing nicely, thank you, and a sporting event that had $5.4 million from the public purse puffed ...
Abbott’s Freestyle Libre sensors allow continuous glucose monitoring (CGM). The sensor is applied to the back of the patient’s arm, with a thin filament under the skin measuring glucose levels constantly. But it costs around $100 per sensor and must be replaced once every 14 days. Photo by BSIP/Universal Images ...
The Inspector General of Intelligence and Security (IGIS) recently released a report in which he exposes the existence of a foreign intelligence partner-controlled technological “capability” inside the headquarters of the GCSB, NZ’s 5 Eyes-affiliated signals intelligence collection and analysis agency. … Continue reading → ...
Peter Dunne writes – Nearly three decades after the introduction of MMP and multiparty governments there should be a greater level of understanding about their finer points than often appears to be the case. The reaction to the despicable outburst from the Deputy Prime Minister at the weekend highlights ...
The sweet kisses from fruit of summerHave slowly been turning dullerYou say, "those times"And "remember the daysWhen we went outside and there still was the shade?"Taking no reason into play…Autumn. Clear, blue days shortening to longer nights, growing colder. Aotearoa.That’s us. The temperature dropping, the looming car crash - so ...
Bryce Edwards writes – “It is often said that behind every great man is a great woman”. This is the pitch by the National Party Botany electorate branch to attend their “Ladies Afternoon Tea with Amanda Luxon”. For $110 including GST, you can turn up on Saturday 20 April ...
David Farrar writes – The Electoral Commission has published the expense returns for political parties for the 2023 election. I’ve put them in a table with how many votes a party got so we can see the spend per vote. National only spent $3.34 for every vote they got, almost ...
Winston Peters’ headline-making actions over the past week may have been a show of political power intended to strengthen his hand in Budget negotiations. It was no accident that his State of the Nation speech was as it was. He made it as New Zealand First Leader, not as Deputy ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:Former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson bowed out of politics this week, giving a series of exit ...
Graham Adams writes — If you love the law or sausages, as the saying goes, best not to look too closely at how they are made. And after watching the orgy of self-pity when Newshub’s closure was announced on February 28, television journalism should definitely be added to the list of those ...
Venerable New Zealand political commentator, Chris Trotter (https://bowalleyroad.blogspot.com/), is a sad creature these days. Once one of the most reliable Leftist writers out there – Economic Left at that – Trotter seems to have absorbed the worldview of Auckland culture-war obsessives. It is not for me to categorise what he ...
The cruelty of short-term memory loss is that each time you ask where she is, you get the fresh shock and grief of the news. That was Dad's day yesterday.Comfortingly, it seems to be less so today. Last night he looked crumpled, today he seems more settled. There's a card ...
The Coalition Government’s plan to ‘get Auckland moving’ is a cuts cover-up that will ultimately cost Aucklanders more to move around the city, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Slashing the Ministry of Pacific Peoples by 40% will have a devastating impact on pacific communities and further highlights how little this government cares about anything other than cutting taxes for the wealthiest few. ...
Labour has proposed an urgent inquiry to investigate the ever-increasing profits of supermarkets, aiming to lower costs for shoppers and food producers alike, says Labour Spokesperson for Commerce and Consumer Affairs Arena Williams and Primary Production Spokesperson Cushla Tangaere-Manuel. ...
With 14% of jobs on the line at the Ministry for Ethnic Communities, the responsible Minister Melissa Lee is failing to stand up for the very communities she’s meant to be representing. ...
COURT OF APPEAL: TRIFECTA OF VICTORY FOR NZ FIRST, TRIFECTA OF FAILURE FOR OPPONENTS For the third time since April 2020, New Zealand First has defeated the Serious Fraud Office and all those complicit in a malicious attack against a political party going about its lawful business in a lawful ...
The Green Party stands with people who live in public housing, people in dire housing need, experts and advocates in demanding better than the Government’s archaic approach to housing those who need our support the most. ...
New Zealand has recently lost the hosting rights of some major international sporting events including the America’s Cup, the Rugby Championship, Netball World Cup, and the Wellington Sevens. We are now at a huge risk of losing SailGP as well. And it won’t stop there. The recent issues with SailGP ...
A Member’s Bill drawn this week would modernise insurance law and make things fairer and more transparent for consumers, Christchurch Central MP Duncan Webb said. ...
The Minister for Disability Issues has confirmed she was aware of funding issues in mid-December and did nothing to stop it. On 14 March, she signed off on changes that were announced and implemented on 18 March without any consultation with disability communities. ...
Green Party MP Julie Anne Genter says her members' bill is an opportunity for the coalition government to plug the gap in electric vehicle incentives. ...
The National Government continues to talk about irresponsible tax cuts that will only drive up inflation, despite the country entering a technical recession. ...
The Minister for Disability Issues must act urgently to reinstate flexibility around the funding for disability support and apologise to disabled carers. ...
This story has been initiated by a leftie shill reporter who proactively sought to call a member of a former band, which disbanded twelve years ago, give their biased appraisal of what was said in my speech, and concocted a ham-fisted attempt at a story that does nothing but show ...
The Government has accepted Labour’s change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Many in the mainstream media have taken what was said in New Zealand First’s State of the Nation Speech in Palmerston North on Sunday and deliberately, deceitfully, and ignorantly misrepresented what I said and why I said it. The headlines and commentary on the news stated that I compared ‘co-governance ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
Good afternoon. Thank you for, in your very busy lives, turning up to this meeting today. On October 14th last year New Zealanders overwhelmingly voted for change. That is exactly what this new government is bringing. New Zealand First campaigned to ‘take back our country’ and stop the disastrous economic ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s fast-track legislation. ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesn’t act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed the passing of legislation to move light electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) into the road user charges system from 1 April. “It was always intended that EVs and PHEVs would be exempt from road user charges until they reached two ...
New Zealand is strengthening its ability to combat illegal fishing outside its domestic waters and beef up regulation for its own commercial fishers in international waters through a Bill which had its first reading in Parliament today. The Fisheries (International Fishing and Other Matters) Amendment Bill 2023 sets out stronger ...
Economists Carl Hansen and Professor Prasanna Gai have been appointed to the Reserve Bank Monetary Policy Committee, Finance Minister Nicola Willis announced today. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is the independent decision-making body that sets the Official Cash Rate which determines interest rates. Carl Hansen, the executive director of Capital ...
Apartment owners and buyers will soon have greater protections as further changes to the law on unit titles come into effect, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “The Unit Titles (Strengthening Body Corporate Governance and Other Matters) Amendment Act had already introduced some changes in December 2022 and May 2023, and ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters will travel to Egypt and Europe from this weekend. “This travel will focus on a range of New Zealand’s traditional diplomatic and security partnerships while enabling broad engagement on the urgent situation in Gaza,” Mr Peters says. Mr Peters will attend the NATO Foreign ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown is encouraging all road users to stay safe, plan their journeys ahead of time, and be patient with other drivers while travelling around this Easter long weekend. “Road safety is a responsibility we all share, and with increased traffic on our roads expected this Easter we ...
About 1.4 million New Zealanders will receive cost of living relief through increased government assistance from April 1 909,000 pensioners get a boost to Superannuation, including 5000 veterans 371,000 working-age beneficiaries will get higher payments 45,000 students will see an increase in their allowance Over a quarter of New Zealanders ...
Ensuring social housing is being provided to those with the greatest needs is front of mind as the Government restarts social housing tenancy reviews, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. “Our relentless focus on building a strong economy is to ensure we can deliver better public services such as social ...
The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary will not go ahead, with Cabinet deciding to stop work on the proposed reserve and remove the Bill that would have established it from Parliament’s order paper. “The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary Bill would have created a 620,000 sq km economic no-go zone,” Oceans and Fisheries Minister ...
Dam safety regulations are being amended so that smaller dams won’t be subject to excessive compliance costs, Minister for Building and Construction Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on reducing costs and removing unnecessary red tape so we can get the economy back on track. “Dam safety regulations ...
The coalition Government is expanding the medium-scale adverse event classification to parts of the North Island as dry weather conditions persist, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced today. “I have made the decision to expand the medium-scale adverse event classification already in place for parts of the South Island to also cover the ...
The passing of legislation giving effect to coalition Government tax commitments has been welcomed by Finance Minister Nicola Willis. “The Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill will help place New Zealand on a more secure economic footing, improve outcomes for New Zealanders, and make our tax system ...
Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins and Tertiary Education and Skills Minister Penny Simmonds today announced plans to transform our science and university sectors to boost the economy. Two advisory groups, chaired by Professor Sir Peter Gluckman, will advise the Government on how these sectors can play a greater ...
The Budget will deliver urgently-needed tax relief to hard-working New Zealanders while putting the government’s finances back on a sustainable track, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The Finance Minister made the comments at the release of the Budget Policy Statement setting out the Government’s Budget objectives. “The coalition Government intends ...
The coalition Government will look at options to address a zoning issue that limits how much financial support Queenstown residents can get for accommodation. Cabinet has agreed on a response to the Petitions Committee, which had recommended the geographic information MSD uses to determine how much accommodation supplement can be ...
Cabinet has agreed to a short extension to the final reporting timeframe for the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care from 28 March 2024 to 26 June 2024, Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden says. “The Royal Commission wrote to me on 16 February 2024, requesting that I consider an ...
The coalition Government is delivering an $18 million boost to New Zealanders needing to travel for specialist health treatment, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says. “These changes are long overdue – the National Travel Assistance (NTA) scheme saw its last increase to mileage and accommodation rates way back in 2009. ...
The Government is recognising the innovative and rising talent in New Zealand’s growing space sector, with the Prime Minister and Space Minister Judith Collins announcing the new Prime Minister’s Prizes for Space today. “New Zealand has a growing reputation as a high-value partner for space missions and research. I am ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed New Zealand’s concerns about cyber activity have been conveyed directly to the Chinese Government. “The Prime Minister and Minister Collins have expressed concerns today about malicious cyber activity, attributed to groups sponsored by the Chinese Government, targeting democratic institutions in both New ...
Independent Reviewers appointed for School Property Inquiry Education Minister Erica Stanford today announced the appointment of three independent reviewers to lead the Ministerial Inquiry into the Ministry of Education’s School Property Function. The Inquiry will be led by former Minister of Foreign Affairs Murray McCully. “There is a clear need ...
State Highway 1 across the Brynderwyns will be open for Easter weekend, with work currently underway to ensure the resilience of this critical route being paused for Easter Weekend to allow holiday makers to travel north, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Today I visited the Brynderwyn Hills construction site, where ...
Introduction Good morning to you all, and thanks for having me bright and early today. I am absolutely delighted to be the Minister for Infrastructure alongside the Minister of Housing and Resource Management Reform. I know the Prime Minister sees the three roles as closely connected and he wants me ...
New Zealand stands with the United Kingdom in its condemnation of People’s Republic of China (PRC) state-backed malicious cyber activity impacting its Electoral Commission and targeting Members of the UK Parliament. “The use of cyber-enabled espionage operations to interfere with democratic institutions and processes anywhere is unacceptable,” Minister Responsible for ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Defence Minister Judith Collins today announced New Zealand will provide logistics support for the upcoming Solomon Islands election. “We’re sending a team of New Zealand Defence Force personnel and two NH90 helicopters to provide logistics support for the election on 17 April, at the request ...
The European Union Free Trade Agreement Legislation Amendment Bill received Royal Assent today, completing the process for New Zealand’s ratification of its free trade agreement with the European Union. “I am pleased to announce that today, in a small ceremony at the Beehive, New Zealand notified the European Union ...
Public consultation on the terms of reference for the Royal Commission into COVID-19 Lessons has concluded, Internal Affairs Minister Hon Brooke van Velden says. “I have been advised that there were over 11,000 submissions made through the Royal Commission’s online consultation portal.” Expanding the scope of the Royal Commission of ...
Hardworking families are set to benefit from a new credit to help them meet their early childcare education (ECE) costs, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. From 1 July, parents and caregivers of young children will be supported to manage the rising cost of living with a partial reimbursement of their ...
A specialised Independent Technical Advisory Group (ITAG) tasked with preparing and publishing independent non-binding advice on the design of a "green" (sustainable finance) taxonomy rulebook is being established, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “Comprising experts and market participants, the ITAG's primary goal is to deliver comprehensive recommendations to the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins has thanked the Chief of Army, Major General John Boswell, DSD, for his service as he leaves the Army after 40 years. “I would like to thank Major General Boswell for his contribution to the Army and the wider New Zealand Defence Force, undertaking many different ...
25 March 2024 Minister to meet Australian counterparts and Manufacturing Industry Leaders Small Business, Manufacturing, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly will travel to Australia for a series of bi-lateral meetings and manufacturing visits. During the visit, Minister Bayly will meet with his Australian counterparts, Senator Tim Ayres, Ed ...
Government commits almost $3 million for period products in schools The Coalition Government has committed $2.9 million to ensure intermediate and secondary schools continue providing period products to those who need them, Minister of Education Erica Stanford announced today. “This is an issue of dignity and ensuring young women don’t ...
Good morning, it’s great to be here. First, I would like to acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of Building Surveyors and thank you for the opportunity to be here this morning. I would like to use this opportunity to outline the Government’s ambitious plan and what we hope to ...
Minister for Pacific Peoples Dr Shane Reti has announced the Government’s commitment to the Auckland Secondary Schools Māori and Pacific Islands Cultural Festival, more commonly known as Polyfest. “The Ministry for Pacific Peoples is a longtime supporter of Polyfest and, as it celebrates 49 years in 2024, I’m proud to ...
Before moving onto the substance of today’s address, I want to recognise the very significant and ongoing contribution the Breast Cancer Foundation makes to support the lives of New Zealand women and their families living with breast cancer. I very much enjoy working with you. I also want to recognise ...
New Zealand has notched up a first with the launch of University of Canterbury research to the International Space Station, Science, Innovation and Technology and Space Minister Judith Collins says. The hardware, developed by Dr Sarah Kessans, is designed to operate autonomously in orbit, allowing scientists on Earth to study ...
Introduction Thank you for inviting me to speak with you today and I’m sorry I can’t be there in person. Yesterday I started in Wellington for Breakfast TV, spoke to a property conference in Auckland, and finished the day speaking to local government in Christchurch, so it would have been ...
The Coalition Government is contributing more than $1 million to support the establishment of an emergency multi-agency coordination centre in Northland. Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell announced the contribution today during a visit of the Whangārei site where the facility will be constructed. “Northland has faced a number ...
New Zealanders have enjoyed a broader range of voices telling the story of Aotearoa thanks to the creation of Whakaata Māori 20 years ago, says Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka. The minister spoke at a celebration marking the national indigenous media organisation’s 20th anniversary at their studio in Auckland on ...
Commercial catch limits for some fisheries have been increased following a review showing stocks are healthy and abundant, Ocean and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The changes, along with some other catch limit changes and management settings, begin coming into effect from 1 April 2024. "Regular biannual reviews of fish ...
COMMENTARY:By Ronny Kareni Since the atrocious footage of the suffering of an indigenous Papuan man reverberates in the heart of Puncak by the brute force of Indonesia’s army in early February, shocking tactics deployed by those in power to silence critics has been unfolding. Nowhere is this more evident ...
Analysis - Nicola Willis is holding firm on tax cuts despite the economic outlook being worse than forecast and critics urging her to wait, writes Peter Wilson for The Week In Politics. ...
Opposition MPs and unions are criticising a proposal by New Zealand’s Ministry of Pacific Peoples to cut staff by 40 percent. The country’s largest trade union — The Public Service Association — says the ministry has informed staff that it is looking to shed 63 of 156 positions. Opposition MPs ...
A poem by Poetry Aotearoa Yearbook 2024 featured poet Carin Smeaton. Daughtr of the 90s when she gets promoted to usherette a baby blu eel carries her all the way up to mothership she’s hovering high she lets the underaged in to see keanu reeves she lets the only lonely ...
Analysis by Keith Rankin. Keith Rankin, trained as an economic historian, is a retired lecturer in Economics and Statistics. He lives in Auckland, New Zealand. My earlier article – Can ‘Good’ be the Greater Evil? – looked at the issue of how wars should end, and how Good versus Evil ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 AMMA by Saraid de Silva (Moa Press, $38)A stunning debut novel reviewed by Brannavan ...
From Steve Martin to Ricky Stanicky, a pick’n’mix of things worth watching and listening to this long weekend. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. If you’re at a loss for something to occupy yourself with this Easter, don’t panic: The Spinoff’s got ...
Jesus had dinner with his 12 disciples right before he died. Noted historian Madeleine Chapman finds out who really deserved to be there.First published in 2018 but let’s be honest, the subject is timeless. As you sit on your couch this Easter Sunday, eating a chocolate egg you know ...
The newly-promoted Northern League club is on a mission to return to the National League for the first time in two decades. Plenty about domestic football in New Zealand has changed in that time – but the sense that this amateur competition is not an entirely level playing field remains. ...
Comment: Every year on February 2, a dozen men in tuxedos and top hats approach the burrow of a groundhog in Gobbler’s Knob, Pennsylvania and entice the beaver-like rodent to emerge and predict the weather. If the groundhog, named Punxsutawney Phil, sees its own shadow when it is summoned, legend ...
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Auckland Council has put a deadline on new weather-impacted property owners applying for categorisation as government funding looks set to run out. Councillors have voted to support a deadline of September 30 for property owners who haven’t accessed support to come forward and engage with the council’s recovery office. It ...
NONFICTION 1 BBQ Economics by Liam Dann (Penguin Random House, $40) “It’s official,” wrote Dann nine days ago in the Herald, where he works as business editor at large, “we’re in recession.” Yeah, great. He delivered the bad stats: “GDP fell 0.1 percent in the December 2023 quarter, compared with ...
By Anneke Smith, RNZ News political reporter A petition urging the New Zealand government to provide urgent humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people has been tabled in the House. More than 200 people gathered on Parliament’s forecourt today and they were met by MPs from Labour, the Greens and Te ...
Pacific Media Watch The Paris-based global media freedom watchdog RSF (Reporters Without Borders) has appealed for information about the “disappearance” of Palestinian journalist Bayan Abusultan. She was reportedly last seen on March 19 among people “sequestered” in this week’s raid and siege of Al Shifa hospital by Israeli troops in ...
EDITORIAL:The Jakarta Post It happens again and again; indigenous Papuans fall victim to Indonesian soldiers. This time, we have photographic evidence for the brutality, with videos on social media showing a Papuan man being tortured by a group of plainclothes men alleged to be the Indonesian Military (TNI) members. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robyn J. Whitaker, Director of the Wesley Centre for Theology, Ethics, and Public Policy & Associate Professor, New Testament, Pilgrim Theological College, University of Divinity A strange and eclectic range of activities takes place across these few weeks of the year. Some ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Panizza Allmark, Professor Visual & Cultural Studies, Edith Cowan University It’s Easter weekend, which means many of us will be kicking back with the greatest hits on repeat. But whether you’re a boomer, or an ‘80s or ’90s kid, you might be ...
RNZ Pacific Fiji’s Acting Public Prosecutor has filed an appeal against the sentences of former prime minister Voreqe Bainimarama and suspended police chief Sitiveni Qiliho in their corruption case. Bainimarama was granted an absolute discharge for attempting to pervert the course of justice while Qiliho received a conditional discharge with ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Arosha Weerakoon, Senior Lecturer and General Dentist, School of Dentistry, The University of Queensland Casezy idea/Shutterstock How does toothpaste work? What did people use before toothpaste was invented? – Amelia, age 7, Meanjin (Brisbane) Thanks for your ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brett Hallam, Associate professor, UNSW Sydney IM Imagery/Shutterstock Solar SunShot is well named. The Australian government announced today it would plough A$1 billion into bringing back solar manufacturing to Australia, boosting energy security, swapping coal and gas jobs for those ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Dix, Research Fellow in Nutrition & Dietetics, The University of Queensland Easter is the time for chocolate. The shops are full of fantastically packaged and shiny chocolates in all shapes and sizes, making trips to the supermarket with children more challenging ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emma Felton, Adjunct Senior Researcher, University of South Australia Even in a stubborn cost-of-living crisis, it seems there’s one luxury most Australians won’t sacrifice – their daily cup of coffee. Coffee sales have largely remained stable, even as financial pressures have ...
Mining company Trans-Tasman Resources has unexpectedly withdrawn its application for a consent to suck the valuable metals vanadium and titanium from the Taranaki seafloor, as it apparently wagers on the Government’s new fast-track process. It had spent two-and-a-half days putting its case to the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision-making committee, at ...
Contrary to the Associate Minister of Education’s claims, analysis of Healthy School Lunches Programme - Ka Ora, Ka Ako assessments has revealed it provides excellent value for the taxpayer dollar, as a groundswell of public opposition to Government ...
Greenpeace says wannabe Taranaki seabed miner Trans-Tasman Resources is likely banking on Christopher Luxon’s fast-track process to side-step proper scrutiny of its Taranaki seabed mining proposal by bailing out of the Environmental Protection Agency hearing ...
Kiwis Against Seabed mining today slammed Australian owned would-be seabed miner Trans Tasman Resources (TTR) for abandoning its application to the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) to mine the seabed of the South Taranaki Bight. The company ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katie Attwell, Associate Professor, School of Social Sciences, The University of Western Australia Ground Picture/Shutterstock Months after COVID vaccines were introduced in 2021, governments and private organisations mandated them for various groups. Health and aged care workers were among the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Dzurak, Scientia Professor Andrew Dzurak, CEO and Founder of Diraq, UNSW Sydney Diraq For decades, the pursuit of quantum computing has struggled with the need for extremely low temperatures, mere fractions of a degree above absolute zero (0 Kelvin or ...
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 Essential poll, conducted March 20–24 from a sample of 1,150, gave the Coalition a 50–44 lead including undecided, a reversal ...
The Taxpayers’ Union has today made a formal request under the Regulations of the People’s Republic of China on Open Government Information () for information held about how New Zealand Members of Parliament are spending taxpayer ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robert Nelson, Honorary Principal Fellow, The University of Melbourne A Byzantine depiction of the Eucharist in Saint Sophia Cathedral, Kyiv.Jacek555/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA A nasty quarrel arose in the 11th century over what kind of bread should be used in holy ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Patrick Hesp, Professor, Flinders University Patrick Hesp In some parts of Australia, coastal dunes are retreating from the ocean at an alarming rate, as waves carve up the beach and wind blows the sand inland. But coastal communities are largely ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Luke Heemsbergen, Senior Lecturer, Digital, Political, Media, Deakin University With an impressive 60% of the US smartphone market, Apple is undeniably big, but not a clear monopoly. Yet, years of innovation by Apple have effectively given the company its own exclusive ...
Whether you’re facing layoffs or are just an emotional junior staffer, it’s always a good idea to scout out a good crying place before you need it. It’s an incredibly hard time for Wellington. Across the city, thousands of public servants are hearing tough news about redundancies and layoffs. Government ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James Miller-Jones, Professor, Curtin University Nuclear explosions on a neutron star feed its jets. Danielle Futselaar and Nathalie Degenaar, Anton Pannekoek Institute, University of Amsterdam, CC BY-SA How fast can a neutron star drive powerful jets into space? The answer, it ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Daryl Adair, Associate Professor of Sport Management, University of Technology Sydney Earlier this week, independent MP Andrew Wilkie accused the AFL of conducting “off the books” illicit drug testing to identify players using substances of abuse, then inappropriately withdrawing them from matches ...
The Government’s announcement that it will scrap plans for a vast marine sanctuary around the Kermadec Islands is ‘shameful’ and will make it impossible for Aotearoa New Zealand to meet its international commitments, says the World Wide Fund for Nature ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Quiggin, Professor, School of Economics, The University of Queensland Shutterstock The federal government has bowed to pressure from the car industry, announcing it will relax proposed emissions rules for utes and vans and delay enforcement of the new standards ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Suzanne Rutland, Professor Emerita, University of Sydney In his latest book, Jewish Life in Medieval Spain, Jonathan Ray focuses on the tumult of the 14th century in Spain – a time of the plague, civil strife and war between the two largest ...
While creating a slate of world-class shows, Whakaata Māori also developed a generation of world-class creatives. Television is an odd word. It mixes the Ancient Greek and Latin languages, and its most literal meaning is “far-off sight”. In the contemporary and living language of te reo Māori, “whakaata” as a ...
Yesterday the UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Israel’s war on Gaza. This significant step and the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza prompted an urgent debate in the New Zealand Parliament. Leader ...
The Government’s decision to reduce access to continuous glucose monitors (CGM) not only threatens the lives of children with type 1 diabetes and increases the potential for ‘Dead in Bed’ syndrome, but also threatens the health of their parents an ...
Apples are available year-round, but the wide variety on offer involves intensive scientific research – and large-scale commercialisation. What’s beautiful, red, sweet and crunchy? Tony Martin’s favourite kind of apple: Sassy. The CEO of apple and pear breeding organisation Prevar, Martin’s fondness for Sassy represents professional success as well as ...
Family violence specialist service Shine is calling on employers to stop asking for proof of domestic violence in order for employees to access domestic violence leave. The call comes five years after the introduction of the Domestic Violence ...
The Deputy Chairperson of the Finance and Expenditure Committee is calling for public submissions on the Budget Policy Statement 2024. The Budget Policy Statement 2024 (BPS) sets out the Government's priorities for the 2024 Budget. It explains the approach ...
Brutal government spending cuts that will see the size of the Ministry for Pacific Peoples slashed by 40% will hit Pasifika communities hard, the PSA says. The Ministry has told staff that it is seeking voluntary redundancies, and to redeploy and reassign ...
I live with five people I mostly love, but our different ideas about generosity are starting to really irk me.Want Hera’s help? Email your problem to helpme@thespinoff.co.nzDear Hera,This is a bit of a random one but here goes. I’m 22 and work an OK job (OK meaning I get paid ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Maria Nicholas, Senior Lecturer in Language and Literacy Education, Deakin University Earlier this month, the New South Wales government announced it would roll out programs for gifted students in every public school in the state. This comes amid concerns gifted school ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christopher Rudge, Law lecturer, University of Sydney Massachusetts General Hospital In a world first, we heard last week that US surgeons had transplanted a kidney from a gene-edited pig into a living human. News reports said the procedure was a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Tombs, Howard Paterson Chair of Theology and Public Issues, University of Otago The 5th-century Maskell panel showing Jesus in a loincloth.British Museum, CC BY-NC-SA When Jesus is shown on the cross, he is almost always depicted wearing a loincloth around ...
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Asia Pacific Report A New Zealand investigative journalist and author says the US spy system hosted by the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) appears to be a controversial intelligence system used in global capture-kill operations. Writing a commentary for RNZ News today, Nicky Hager, author of Secret Power, a 1996 ...
While Nicola Willis wouldn’t give any details on its size, she said a package of tax cuts is definitely still coming in this year’s budget, writes Catherine McGregor in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. ...
The Taxpayers’ Union is welcoming the investigation into the Department of Internal Affairs after it was revealed that the Department’s Chief Executive personally reached out to expedite a DJs passport application. Taxpayers’ Union Campaigns ...
Finance minister Nicola Willis delivers her first budget statement, and unwittingly helps Joel MacManus save his relationship. Nicola Willis strode into the Beehive Theatrette. Around me, on the green foldout seats, were the country’s top business and political journalists. They were all here to see her announce the Budget Policy ...
Twenty years ago today, Māori Television launched after much controversy. Jamie Tahana looks back on its survival and impact across two decades. Chad Chambers stepped onto the stage, the brim of his cap casting a shadow across his face. His smile beamed as bright as his white freezing works gumboots, ...
Tauranga, Rotorua, Wellsford, Onehunga, Westhaven marina – Gavin Strawhan walks the meanish streets of New Zealand in his entertaining debut novel The Call, almost sure to roar into the number 1 position on the Nielsen bestseller chart, its front cover bearing a rave from somebody: “A really good and genuinely ...
On a Thursday in February, at Wellington’s Conservation House, the Conservation Authority, a statutory body advising the eponymous department and minister, Tama Potaka, opened its 195th meeting. Under consideration that afternoon was an agenda item written by Tim Bamford, chief advisor in the Department of Conservation’s biodiversity, heritage and visitors ...
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http://www.ustream.tv/channel/thetorontohearings
NZT 07:45 – 09:00 Niels Harrit: Incendiary/Explosive Residue in the WTC Dust
LIVE RIGHT NOW WORLD EXPERT IN HIS FIELD
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/09/08/national-archive-keeps-bulk-of-911-commission-report-sealed/
Also: http://www.archive.org/details/sept_11_tv_archive
Cheers for the TV archive link J!
Watching eng Argentina last night, can’t they make proper rugby jerseys anymore, the numbers were peeling off the backs and they looked like surf rasshie tops.
In football you can’t stay on the field without correct numbering……any rule officianados know if that’s an issue in thugby.
The quality of the numbers was about as good as the quality of the rugby, but the crowd rocked!
It was an alien experience in my home town.
I enjoyed watching the Argentina – England match on TV. Maybe it wasn’t that spectacular, but it was a heroic Argentine effort against a mostly lackluster England performance – gripping fight to the finish. The Argentina supporters in the crowd looked like they were enjoying themselves.
PS I do get fed up withe the MSM giving headline results of matches as they happen – hard to avoid – and before the matches are shown in delayed mode on FTA TV.
The quality of the numbers was about as good as the quality of the rugby, but the crowd rocked!
Actually, it was a tremendously tense and engaging match. That’s why the crowd rocked—it was a rugby match as absorbing as anyone could hope to see.
Pity the Pumas lost. The game needs well performing and strong second tier nations to keep the top teams on their toes.
In football you can’t stay on the field without correct numbering…
Yes, you can stay on the football field without correct numbering—as you have just pointed out, they did exactly that last night.
I share your concern about the poorly made jerseys and poorly attached numbers.
Football as in soccer to most rugby heads, sorry I should realize that by now.
no you have to get it attended to before you can return. Happened in a euro qualifying match a few days ago to Ireland’s Richard dune, ref couldn’t read the number so trainer had to magic marker one on.
Ah the latest lovefest : http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/5601825/A-prime-ministers-view
Was quite enjoying my Sunday morning too
Yes, I stopped visiting Stuff this morning because of the large vacuously smiling, pseudo-presidential pic of our Prime Mincer promoting that story.
What does he have to say after the failed transport and other issues on Auckland’s waterfront Friday night, after saying people would eat their words and it would all go smoothly?
Favourite quote: John Key on…how he and Obama differ: “I have more engagement with New Zealand than people might think. Unlike the impression I have of the American president, who sits in the Oval Office and people come to them.”
Yes, that’s how you differ from Obama, John…
Carol – notice the anti-Pharmac article beside that photo? Tory all the way this morning…
Yes, I also registered the anti-Pharmac slant and wondered where that came from.
No mention of the adverse effects of Warfarin, the drug Pradaxa replaces, which caused the bleeding that almost killed my old man.
And the real problem with Pradaxa, GPs prescribing the drug to people who should never have been given it, gets one line in the article.
The five uses of the word “actually” are all quotes from Key.
16 arrested for the ‘Anonymous’ hacks. The mugshots of a surprisingly diverse group of people.
Further proof of the dangers of widespread use of 1080:
That’s a high proportion of “collateral damage”. Most people will agree that dropping poison over large areas is far from ideal. We should be doing far more to research and trial alternative methods of predator control so we can move towards phasing out 1080 as soon as we can.
A bit subjective I know, but I used to live on a block in the countryside.
Like many people I was rather cynical about dropping poisons.
When we first moved there, there were very few native birds, apart from some pukeko.
Most of the pohutukawa were near death.
After a large 1080 drop in the area we noticed some dead birds, lots of dead rats, possums and feral cats. Also got rid of the possum infestation on our roof.
A year later there were big numbers of native birds. Wood Pigeons, Tui, Kiwi and morepork among others. The native trees had normal foliage.
That particular drop was obviously a resounding success.
There’s no doubt there can be benefits but we shouldn’t ignore the downsides – nor should we ignore looking for non-poisonous alternatives. 1080 is a real risk, and could bite us on our “clean green” and food producer bums.
A simple choice – poison or find something better?
Sounds like you have got something in mind Pete…
Cue Petulant Bean announcing a new UF/ National plan for the unemployed:
‘benificiaries to wrestle bare handed with possums in the bush’
Prime Mincer John Keys says he is comfortable with the plan saying ‘we have a lot of pests in this country, some of them are furry and some of them are lazy, may the best one win’
Yes, there’s a risk but overall 1080 drops seem to increase native flora and fauna rather than being a massive negative. And yes, we should also be looking for better methods but that doesn’t mean that we should stop using the successful methods that we are ATM.
Is this the same incident that happenned a few years ago at Franz Josef??? There (from memory) about 14 kea were fitted with transmitters and after the 1080 drop 7 were found dead – a 50% kill rate!
And what would your solution be Pete? A return to the good old days of the bushman and possum trapper like in the Barry Crump books? Any suggesting that a possum bounty will create jobs through a possum fur industry is tosh, simply because trapping possums and living in the bush is more of a lifestyle choice, rather than a way to earn money to maintain any decent standard of living.
Agree without about the need for R and D to create alternatives though. The government even owns a company that makes pesticides so there is no reason why we cannot channel money through that, and sell the products commerically.
With all due respect, PG, please read the recent report by the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment on 1080 rather than scaremongering with such reports. She has evaluated all the evidence and concluded that 1080 is the best way of dealing with threats to our native fauna. Have you done anything at all like that, or are you just basing you judgements on one report here and there and your ‘gut feeling’?
See: http://www.pce.parliament.nz/media/media-releases/1080-must-not-be-banned-environment-commissioner
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_clidR7drg
“Where were you when the world stopped turning?” This song is idiotic, preposterous, disgusting. This is the kind of lamebrained, sentimental, and—worst of all—dishonest rubbish that gives country music a bad name.
Why don’t you put up something to commemorate 9/11/73?
Or have you not heard of that?
Jeez Brett that’s fricking awful.
Might want to freshen up on reality there Brett,
The Toronto hearings: Scientists, Engineers and Architects present the best evidence to an esteemed panel amongst whom an Italian investigative judge whose expertise is: State crimes against Democracy such as the murder of Aldo Moro, Gladio and the terror attacks in Italy in the 70s. Also a specialist in Mafia related crime and involved in all of these cases. Not someone ready to through his whole distinguished career to the dogs over tinfoiled crazy conspiracy shit.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJ_E7Vce8vU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o0olef0e4JM&feature=related
If Tama iti is the face of Maori terrorism then we have little to worry about, the police could have saved heaps of money and angst if they had only picked up the phone!
http://localbodies-bsprout.blogspot.com/2011/09/tama-iti-terrorist.html
From todays Dom more comments on Mutu and racism.
Walker said many Maori felt the Government allowed too many immigrants to enter the country, at the expense of the indigenous population.
“The problem of Maori under-performance in New Zealand – in terms of education and dependency on welfare – has not been resolved. If we can’t solve our own internal problems, why add to those problems by bringing more people? It just doesn’t make sense.”
Great questions Ranginui, wise words. After all the academic bullshit we argued this week over what was and was not racism the fact remains Maori under perform (sort of a catch all phrase that could mean anything). As a small island melting pot in the South Pacific we wont ever be a cohesive community and society until we resolve the issue of race and colonialism here. I dont have any easy answers but I do know we cant force a cure, we all need to agree.
At minimum regardless of what we think of Mutus opinions she has put the spot light well and truly back onto issues a large part of our community would ignore whilst blithely counting up the personal ebenfits of tax cuts etc.
We need to stop immigration right about now and then look at supporting the population we do have as well as looking at what we need to do due to Peak Oil. I suspect that solving the latter will also help with the former.
Oh sorry, I could not agree less! NZ is vastly underpopulated – we could happily fit in twice as many people, or three times as many.
Peak oil will come no matter how many people we have here, and in NZ we’re better placed to cope with it than anywhere else on earth!
We we get our extra 4 or 8 million people in due course, no doubt, but they will most likely be environmental or economic refugees- of course if it gets really bad elsewhere the globel elite will be flocking here in droves too…
Growth for growths sake is a doomed strategy in any situation where there are limited resources and is certainly ill advised when there is no evidence that bigger is better, and plenty to suggest that in times to come we will have to make more out of less or suffer the unpleasant consequences.
100% correct Campbell and Draco about Peak Oil and growth.
Vicky, we should be very concerned, we are well placed to cope if we are prepared but unfortunately we are not: our attitude is not unlike Britain in the 30s blithely moving toward an appointment with a sure fate. Can we cope with no oil…what are you lioke at ploughing with oxen or horses? Now tell me how many we can feed.
Got any proof that NZ is under populated? Considering that over most of history NZ had a population of less than 1m I’d say that the normal carrying capacity is well below what we have.
That’s probably because you still believe in the delusional growth+ meme of the Catholic Church and the capitalists. Best thing that ever happened to man is birth control and the Catholic Church calls it against gods will.
Yes it will but the fewer people we have here the better off we’ll be as we’ll be more likely to be able to support them on the resources we have. Due to population levels the Northern Hemisphere and some places in the Southern will be hell on Earth with massive amounts of death from famine, disease, war and all the other problems faced by communities that just don’t have enough to support the population that they have.
Draco T Bastard,
Beatrice Hill (Tinsley), a famous NZ cosmologist, apparently also belonged to a group who believed in population control.
Maybe its time has come.
Newsflash, DtB – most Catholics in NZ are leftists.. Plus, do me a favour, and don’t say ‘man’, say humanity, instead… People aren’t the problem, capitalism is.
See, this is the part that really angers me. You want to say to the rest of the world “bugger you Jack, I’m all right!” and pull up the draw-bridge! Given that some of my family, and 2/3 of my friends are in the Northern Hemipshere, I can’t be that blase about the rest of the world.
So? The Catholic Church still holds birth control as anathema and yet it is the only thing that can allow us to live within the environments limitations. As that happens to be the case and as you happen to be a Catholic then I will hang the delusional growth meme upon you.
Capitalism is a construct of the people and so is Catholicism and so people are the problem but mostly in the form of ignorance which is what you’re showing.
Don’t have any choice – it’s probable that we’re already over populated now thus we can’t fit many more here. We certainly can’t fit the tens of millions from the UK that would have to leave there to drop their population down to sustainable levels never mind the hundreds of millions from Europe and the Middle East. And the population centres that I’m most concerned with is Asia/Minor because there’s no way we can fit billions of people here.
Now that’s the problem – I am not a Catholic! (I am Anglo-Catholic, which is a whole ‘nother matter – and we are not opposed to birth control.) However,often, the issue is that people who hammer birth control are often at heart, racist or at least parochial in their application, or insistence on the application of it. “We must stop those Asians and those third world people from eating us out of house and home”. I am not referring to you specifically here, so don’t get angry!
It’s a fact that world-wide, we could feed the population we’ve got. The problem is distribution, and don’t blame capitalism on Catholicism, or even Anglo-catholicism..
We can ATM, we won’t be able to in a few years. Actually, it may be true that we can’t feed them now.
I didn’t although I admit to thinking that the church’s support the capitalists. They have, after all, always supported the rich and powerful against everyone else.
No that’s just not true? Haven’t you ever heard of liberation theology?
That would be the liberation theology criticised by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith?
Just had a good 4.5-5M-ish jolt. About 2-3 seconds between the P and S waves so I’d guess out by Lyttleton or the Rolleston fault again.
just felt that now…from a long way away
4.5M, out at Lyttleton: http://geonet.org.nz/earthquake/quakes/3577039g.html
Also: http://xkcd.com/723/
That seemed to go on for a long long time.
So did your bloody song.
@CV
Remember when back in Feb (27th) we were debating about whether or not Shonkey was scaremongering over the quake?
Apparently he was debating it too – according to the SST the prime mincer was ready to resign over his comments if they were found to be ‘terribly terribly wrong’ (yeah right)
http://www.stuff.co.nz/sunday-star-times/5602498/Key-almost-quit-over-quake/
Of course Mr Keys let himself off the hook after agonizing over ‘misleading the country’ (and is busy demolishing suburbs and the CBD so that his media mates cannot be accused of histrionics either)
Yet somehow misleading the country over the economy, unemployment (‘it’s all relative’) asset sales etc etc and the world over the the state of NZ’s 100% pure environment is something he is comfortable with…
Smile and wave does very little else apart from mislead the country and now is yet again shamelessly using the quake as a means to portray himself in a better light
What happened in and to Christchurch was terrible, but the constant use of other peoples misery for self promotion whilst simultaneously doing not enough to help them is a total disgrace.
NZ’s ‘darkest day’ was when our country elected this charlatan and his government into power
Hey guys, VSM is about to become law, I am sure you will join me in celebrating this freedom.
The bill hasn’t actually been passed yet.
If they have some more urgency, like it seems they probably will, it could easily trample over members bill day and therefore prevent it from being passed (unless the bill itself is put into urgency as well).
This already happened once.
VSM, another neoliberal scam to privatise and destroy student services. ‘Freedom’? Like ‘level playing-field’ , leveled to advantage plunderers, and ‘no free lunch’, for you but free banquets for me? Don’t make me puke!
Just something to remember the victims by, no need for all the hate.
Crap music is crap music, whatever your reasons. I’ll never hate you though buddy.
No hate Brett, but righteous anger. Hate is the kind of shite which comes from people like you.
Let’s define victims shall we?
The people who died in the buildings?
Their loved ones who still don’t have answers to 70 % of their questions?
The 70.000 first responders who are ill or dying from the dust and now it turns out the Nano thermite in their lungs and who are still fighting for recognition and some form of compensation and who are treated like they are the terrorists and who have been barred from attending the tenth anniversary of the events?
The American soldiers who died in battle the more then that amount who have killed themselves since they came home or the hundreds of thousands of soldiers who are ill and dying from the exposure to Depleted Uranium?
The more then a million Iraqi dead or the more then 4 million displaced internal and 4 million who fled their country?
The 90% of Afghans who never even heard about 911 and who thought that the burning buildings they saw on photo’s were in Kabul?
Let me tell you something Brett you put a stinking big donation here and I believe you really care. How about doing that!
Otherwise shut the fuck up about remembering these people because doing it once every ten years ain’t nowhere near enough. Take it from me because I remember and fight for these people every day since that 9/11 ten years ago and I find your sentimental drivel quit frankly an abomination in the face of all of these people I mentioned before and who suffered as a result of those atrocities.
travellerev:
Again I posted the video, to remember the victims of the attack.
yes Brett you remembered the victims as you remind yourself to forget the crime
Yiou know guys, my post wasnt about politics, wasnt about ideology, wasnt about what country does what to who.
Like the song it was about the victims and their loved ones, it was about the rescue teams and what they went through.
That was it really, Im sorry that people here dont like any tributes or sympathy to the people of the USA.
That was all it was posted for.
I just don’t like bullshit music Brett.
Felix:
I might think the same about yuor taste in music.
Each to their own.
I just don’t like bullshit music Brett.
It’s not the music, it’s the moronically sentimental and dishonest lyrics. There are lots of brilliant country songs and interesting country singers—but, sadly, Alan Jackson is out of his depth here.
Yeah I’m quite fond of country music myself Morrissey. Not so keen on bullshit though.
Actually, by picking only the direct victims in New York you are making a political statement.
Well, I don’t! A handful were “victims” on September 11th, and so they’ve made actual victims out of hundreds of thousands in the rest of the world for the past 10 years.
I dont think I was doing that, I also dont think I should have to sorry for remembering the victims of 9/11 just because they are American.
“just because they are American”
No-one’s saying that Brett. Thing is you only seem to care about the American victims.
Felix:
Again its the anniversary of 9/11, thats why i posted it.
I never expected this type of reaction, sure I may of thought there woould be the odd comment on American Policies.
Im not sure whats passive aggressive about it.
Oh Felix go over to the DU (democratic underground) search my posts during the Bush admin, search my posts about the DSM, you will know where I stand.
Tomorrow is the anniversary Brett. Also, you mean 11/9.
In fact Brett,
The link you can put your stonking big donation too are family members who want a new and independent into the events of 911. Most of them are New Yorkers and therefore Americans and they all lost family members on the day itself.
And for a guy you are really very, very passive aggressive!
Was sitting in a Coffee shop in Lyttelton a short time ago, during a quake. Not very pleasant wondering whether to stay inside or run. Most of the customers did not even look up. Must be locals.
The waitress asked if I wanted my coffee stirred, as well as shaken.
After a while you get to use to these quakes.
I pick up the SST this morning and there is another,” I am going to quit”, from John Keys. I think he has had enough already. He looks like he has aged twenty yeats in the last three. Do yourself and quit while the going is good dude. Miami, Hawaii is much better than hanging out down here with rubes. Take my word for it.
Spotted on the
interest.co.nz
website
by Carpetbagger | 10 Sep 11, 12:57pm
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/5598136/German-investment-fun…
So remind me again why we should be so smug about our agriculture sector when slowly but surely it’s being sold to overseas interests who then export the profits?
by Plan B | 11 Sep 11, 5:35am
It is all OK, the farms are being sold to German ‘Mums and Dads’, boy I was worried for a minute!
Wasn’t it choice to hear Pasifikan names pronounced properly, by a Scotsman no less, in the NZ Tonga match ?
Mad props to Gavin Hastings !!!
Shows what ignorant douchebags Ian Smith and Grant Nesbitt are. Even Keith Quinn was nailing the pronunciation with relative ease.
+1 wtl
Lets never let the truth get in the way of whipping up some hysteria for a small party in election year, Ah Pete.
Brett.
On 9/11 a gang of criminal elites carried out the demolition of buildings which contained large amounts of asbestos, identified as a health hazard long after it had been installed; to have removed the asbestos would have been extraordinarily costly (possibly as much as what the buildings were worth) and would have resulted in a huge loss of rent.
That gang of criminals got together with another gang of criminals who needed a pretext to carry out the invasion of an oil-rich nation which had switched from trading in US dollars to trading in Euros, and to teach an unco-operative government a lesson for blocking the construction of an American-backed oil pipeline. (US oil extraction peaked in 1970 and the US was/is increasingly dependent on imported oil).
There was also the matter of the big reduction in poppy growing that the Taliban had caused, which was impacting badly on the CIA-sponsored drug trade and the laundering operations that were going on via Wall Street.
The idea of flying planes into buidlings had been discussed on many occasions and there had even been a film made about it. The problem was, the Twin Towers had been built to withstand multiple impacts by aircraft. The central colums were just too damed strong to be brought down without being cut. And Thermite (finely divided aluminium/magnesum/iron oxide mix) is about the only practical way of cutting though large steel columsn quickly. Termnite burns at around 2,500 oC, well above the 1500oC needed to melt steel.
By the way, aviation fuel burning in air reaches only 300oC, and in the absence of sufficient air -as evidenced by the black smoke on 9/11- at a considerably lower temperature.
The other problem was that the US Air Force had a ‘nasty’ habit of quickly intercepting planes that were off course; they did it about 67 times in the year 2000. So on 9/11, Dick Cheney sent the jet fighters that were based in the region well away from the region to carry out exercises based on the hijacking of aricraft -just to ensure there would be total confusion should any real hijackings be reported. That allowed aircraft to fly around for up to an hour-and-a-half without being intercepted.
One of those planes supposedly crashed in a field leaving no wreckage. Another supposedly crashed into the Pentagon, resulting in a tiny hole in the building and again leaving no significant wreckage.
There were a few ‘important people’ who had to be kept out of the carnage that was palnned for that day, so they were advised not to go to work. Needless to say, the elites were not the least concerned about deaths of ‘proles’: the elitesd have always regarded the masses as ‘cannon-fodder’ and always will (58,000 casualties in one week in the Battle of the Somme: run towards that machine gun or be shor here).
The event on the day went well for the elites and the preplanned attacks on Afghanistan and Iraq were soon underway.
However, after the event were many reports of serious inconsistencies in the official narrative. After stonewalling for months Bush and company decided it would be best to set up a ‘commision’ that could ignore all the evidence that blew holes in the official narrative and could churn out a whitewash report that validated the lies. That was done by several other members of the gang.
So there you have it. In all of history only three concrete and steel buidling have ever fallen down as a result of short-lived, low temperature fires, and they all did it on the same day, one (Building Seven) not even having been hit by a plane. In all of history only two passenger airliners have crashed in such a way that the titanium alloy engines ‘evaporated’ on impact.
Just ensure that the ‘proles’ were sufficiently brainwashed, the footage was shown again and again and again and again and again, with the words terreor, terrorist, terrorism bleated incessantly.
The sad thing is, we live in a scientifically illiterate society in which any kind of drivel is believed by the masses.
Interestingly, the Project New American Century website that promoted rampant militarism and listed the names of so many of the criminals involved in the 9/11 scam has been amended and it now looks quite innocuous.
We can be quite certain that the myths promoted by the eltites are now so firmly established in the moinds of most people they are irremovable. After all ‘they saw it on TV so it must be true’.
Presumably next year there will be yet another ‘celebration’ of one of the biggest lies in all of history. Howevre, the collapse of the economy due to global peak oil will have progressed a bit further by then and few more people might have woken from the collective trance.
Your promotion of conspiracy fairies like this doesn’t help your credibility on your “the end of the world as we know it is imminent” warnings.
Have to agree with you pete, some people are flogging a dead here for sure.
But don’t worry they have one of those honest Italian judges looking into it, and I have know doubt he will get to the bottom of something.
Typo sorry that was meant to read “flogging a dead horse”
“they have one of those honest Italian judges” – Mr Smith
Ferdinando Imposimato is the Honorary President of the Supreme Court of Italy. As a former Senior Investigative Judge in Italy, he presided over several terrorism-related cases, including the kidnapping and ultimate assassination of President Aldo Moro, the attempted assassination of Pope John Paul II, and other political assassinations and kidnapping cases and several cases against the Mafia. He is a former Senator who served on the Anti-Mafia Commission in three administrations and a former legal consultant to the United Nations regarding institution of laws to control drug trafficking.
What, fairies at the bottom of the garden! I like the concept of conspiracy fairies. Let’s adopt it.
To Pete George and to Mr Smith and every other denier who thinks they know best
If you thought the past ten years were annoying as Truthers bugged you with their silly stories then you had better be prepared. Soon there is going to be a unifying core of information, The Toronto Hearings Report. You and all the other hollow minded minions are going to be downright swarmed by Truth. It does not mean that every post in every blog is going to be inundated or the Newspapers are going to suddenly make reality a news story. It means that as the information being presented goes through the natural stages of conversion, i would step back a bit from the hearth. Currently it just being discussed then it gets digested and then converted into action. That is when it will get really interesting.
The Toronto Hearings will be producing a comprehensive formal report and an appendix heavy DVD which will be unlike any before. The call of the deniers is always the same, where is the evidence, well right now it is sitting in hard drives and vaults in Toronto and in a few months the panelists will release their findings. The Report will be published and you can all see for the first time the incontravertable reality that the events of September 11 2001 did not occur as presented in the (everchanging) accounts of the Official Story . Remember Truth is not about us deciding what did and did not happen, it is about securing an honest and open investigation into the events of that day so the survivors, the families and the World, know the crime was at least investigated. The chance of pointing a finger and getting a conversion is slim to none, we all know that. This is about an Investigation. An Investigation which through the events described and the evidence being discovered would be its own trial, judgement and sentence. A lasting sentence, woven into the fabric of Society, more permanent and more damning than any court could ever provide. We often hear of the thousands killed on 9/11. Would it shock you to discover that to date there has still not been a single murder inquiry regarding any of the deaths on 9/11.
I have ‘attended’ every minute of the past three days of the Toronto Hearings, with one more day to go. One thing is clear though, ‘Impossible’ does not begin to describe the shitstorm mission that deniers have in front of them when this evidence gets into the Public Domain, let alone when it arrives in a court of law.
Your dreams of safety in the warm and bloodsoaked arms of the Official Lie are going to get a very rude awakening. If you do not open your eyes soon then you will only have yourself to blame when that sick feeling in your gut spreads to destroy more of your life and the lives of those you love.
The evidence presented by and in front of experts in many fields has been disturbing in the clear, concise and damning nature of its accuracy, validity and legitimacy. No doubt the lengths some will go to ensure this evidence goes no further is what really will be the nail in the coffin of the deniers. If the Truth is so easy to refute, why are you not watching the Hearings and commenting. If your denials are so strong where are your questions that will show up the expert witnesses.
In short if you thought the matter was over because of a few songs and some coordinated media strikes reminding you of an illusion you swallowed ten years ago, then i have a little message
WAKE UP
This hearing is as real as it gets! There will be a lot more to come but for now just look at your families friends and loved ones, imagine they have all been slaughtered and quietly ask yourself:
Would the investigaton of their murder really matter?
or would you just shrug and accept someone’s word because they said so?
the Objectives of the Hearings, the attending panelists, moderators and guests are all here
http://torontohearings.org/
Videos of the past three days and tomorrow’s live stream can be found here
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/thetorontohearings
Day four
NZT Monday, September 12, 2011
01:00 – 01:15 Moderators: Opening remarks and Moment of Silence
01:15 – 02:45 David Ray Griffin: Anomalies of Flights 77 and 93
02:45 – 04:00 Peter Dale Scott: 9/11 and Deep State Politics
05:00 – 06:00 Laurie Manwell: SCADs and Psychological Resistance to
Alternative Accounts
07:00 – 8:15 Senator Mike Gravel: State Deception in the Past and Today
08:30 – 09:15 Audience Question and Answer
Respect, Aroha and Peace
Well certainly looking forward to all those people coming forward that conspired Freedom, and the up coming trail should be great, but won’t be holding my breath. Maybe I will just wait for the movie with the hollywood ending.
There won’t be any sinking feeling for me either Freedom and to be honest, I couldn’t give a flying fuck about the USA or their conspiracy theories, I live in New Zealand and realized a long time ago that I’m not going to change the world, especially if I can’t even change my neighbors outlook first, so I try to keep it local, but I don’t forget to have my fun and live my life.
Your hubris is juvenile and selfish. Again you miss the point and your movie crack only proves how vacuous are the views of those who deny what happened. That sort of ‘joke’ only emphasises the ignorance of your outlook. Do you honestly believe we exist in some magical isolation from the web of this world. The search for Truth is not about a trial.
The chances of getting anyone prosecuted is slim to none.
9/11 Truth is about AN OPEN AND LEGITIMATE INVESTIGATION.
What about that can you not understand?
Freedom calling me Juvenile and selfish gets you no closer to your truth.
“The chances of getting anyone prosecuted is slim to none.”
That tends to happen when you don’t have a case Freedom, but thats right you are only after the truth.
“What about that can you not understand?”
What I don’t understand is why you can’t just let it go and move on, there was no conspiracy, and even if there was there is no way you will ever prove it or find the truth now, let it go.
“What I don’t understand is why you can’t just let it go and move on”
True, It takes the focus of investigating possible war crimes that have occurred since 9/11. I hear Tony Blair is calling for regime change in Syria and Iran now. Middle East peace envoy …. pfft.
Afewknowthetruth:
Again, my post was for the victims of 9/11.
Secondly I dont believe it was a control demolition, but thats another post.
I posted what i did, because its the tenth anniversary, and it was posted to remember the victims and the victims famalies and what americans went through.
The best way to honour the victims of 9/11 and the multitude of people who have died in wars following on from 9/11 is to establish the truth and have the criminals who orchestrated 9/11 brought to justice.
The chance of that is close zero of course, since the elites who were responsible for 9/11 -Bush, Cheney, Rice etc, pehaps even Tony B Liar- are all above the law and are closely connected to the present gang of elites -Obama, Clinton, Cameron, Harper, Key etc. who are destroying the economies of the western world and are destroying the global environment in the name of oil company profits.
ok Brett, if you do not think it was controlled demo, how did WTC 1, WTC 2 & WTC 7 fail?
BTW Brett an explanation regarding events at the Pentagon would be really useful also, especially after the official Story got annihilated top to bottom at Toronto over the weekend
More good interviews on Chris Laidlaw Radionz this morning. One on Chile. Comment that the present, or recent leader of that country is right wing, but an affable chap, wealthy – sound like the stereotype of Joky Hen? Also the Chilean one went to Harvard the nest of neo liberals or am I wrong.
Most of their young economists trained at Uni of Chicago under Milton Friedman who was developing his theory on the free market and neo liberalism. It is said that Chile was his first proving ground for his ideas. I wish I could get the ear of NZ govt for some of the good social theories that aren’t new, they have been around for long time. (But like what they say of Christianity – sounds like a good idea pity no-one has ever tried it yet.) But no the education here is directed along lines that run through the dollar – strictly uncatholic (with a small ‘c’ note).
That ‘Ideas’ slot this morning was excellent. That Chilean you mention was very articulate and moving. Then there was the VUW academic who provided an excellent analysis of the major protests and political (neo-liberal entrapped) environment.
Here’s the audio here
Oh, yes, and I noticed the remarkable similarity between the Chilean Prime Minister and ours. Affable, smiley, made his millions before becoming PM, has unified the right and centre …
The only difference is that their PM (and government) is facing protests by hundreds of thousands – ‘Someone else’s Country’ all over again.
Hey Puddleglum – Did you note the theme that continues through the Chilean system – that there are many wealthy people who have bought into the government infrastructure and own the major top earning companies?
And the public have supported a centrist coalition in the belief that things were going to improve, even if slowly, but now that there is a change to the right they have galvanised for action because that means a worse life for the majority, less opportunities to improve living conditions. And that university education has been privatised and is now out of reach of most of the young people.
Is it possibly true that Don Brash is claiming a Leaders Salary from Parliament in his capacity as a vote losing Leader of the ACT party?
The man hasn’t been a democratically elected cretin Member of Parliament, so therefore has no right to claim a salary.
Can anyone confirm this?
Another tornado hits Auckland.
No deaths reported, but there could easily have been.
Can we just ignore this anymore?
I am over 50 and have lived my whole life in Auckland and this threatening weather phenomenon has never impinged my consciousness before.
How many more of these events can we expect this year, or the next?
When will my suburb/home be hit?
Test bug with auto-embeds enabled and Jetpack short-code embeds enabled allowing video embedding in comments
http://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/1316
Turned off Jetpack short-code embeds and the problem is fixed.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o0olef0e4JM&feature=related
Fixed. Problem with wordpress auto-embeds and jetpack
Typical: I go and die for a few days with the flu and a new feature bug turns up
Oh there there. Seems you’re over it and sparking, hope that’s the case.
‘
Auckland’s Tornado Ally