Interesting that a global slowdown is occurring right when the planet actually needs it to happen.
Of course, to economists this is BAD news. And rapid slowdown is actually very bad news, with banks likely to force all and sundry onto the street if they don’t get paid.
“Certainly there is a new message there that we are in a new ‘normal’ environment — getting used to lower rates of growth than we have been used to historically,” says Yetsenga.”
Watch this space. Blame for the effects of the global slowdown slowing down NZ will get thrown at the Coalition. Winston warned us of this pre-election.
Nothing wrong with slowing down. We could keep economic activity relatively busy on retrofitting to a more sustainable economy. No real pain required.
Except those poor rich folks, the free ride still being free and easy, but losing some impetus.
Brian Easton looks into the Health Care in NZ compared with the top 11 countries.
Health: “What has happened to healthcare is nicely illustrated by an international analysis of healthcare systems by the prestigious (American) Commonwealth Fund. It compares 11 countries (it always finds the US has the worst system). In 2017 it found New Zealand’s ranking was 8th (out of 11) on the equity dimension, ahead of France, Canada and the US. We were behind Britain, Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, Norway, Germany and Australia.”
And Education: “In contrast, the schooling system claims to be directly funded to offset inequity. However only 3 percent of the total resourcing (operational and staffing) provided to our schools is allocated on the basis of disadvantage. Comparable international jurisdictions allocate around 6 percent.”
Agrigeneration – putting solar generation onto the same land that’s used for agriculture can even increase the agricultural productivity of the land in hot dry regions. The shade can help reduce evaporation, and it seems if the plant growth is limited by other resources then getting too much sunlight reduces plant growth.
Putting wind turbines on farms happens pretty much all the time already. But I can’t see any major downsides to putting solar and wind generation and agriculture all on the same bit of land for even more productivity.
During the drought this summer it really troubled the girls and myself that many farms didn’t have shade for their stock. We would see animals sweltering in 30+ degree heat without a single tree casting shadow in the paddocks. It was upsetting to see.
Meanwhile at home the only green grass was under the trampoline.
Solar panels with cows would be a fantastic solution, providing shade and green grass for feed, power and food/dairy/meat. It’s like companion planting with different elements.
I’m trying to remember to transfer most of this #4 thread to How to get there tomorrow as it talks about the problem and ideas and anecdotes relating. Good thinking. I will miss stuff and if anyone else sees things that we should archive copying it over for the Sunday post would be good, checking that it isn’t already there. The Sunday post gets archived and Open Mike doesn’t. I hope that people will go fishing through past How to get theres when looking for ideas. It is something lasting that we have achieved from this dynamic blog.
Right lprent. I mis-spoke. What I am thinking is that the items that the How to get there post has will I hope be relevant for people looking for future-thinking ideas. Whereas in Open Mike they will be scattered and hard to find by keywords which would bring up individual items if the looker was lucky. Whereas accessing archived How to get theres will bring up a bumper bunch of informative ideas and topics in one place.
Gday wags, at what point can the word cruelty enter the conversation in regards to stock and shelter?
Not looking to wind you up, I am genuinely interested in yr response.
I feel at a basic level, it’s an animals ‘right’ to shelter. Even more so when commerce is involved.
As an abstract, planting of stock shelter belts could be a great way of helping meet the 1 billion trees target.
Subsidised by the state.
Imagine cockies potentially voting for Labour…..
Any cattle that have no shelter from the hot summer sun would be appriaching cruelty imo. They did a study in the hawkesbay a few years ago and the temps on a black beasts back approach 60degrees in the worst heat .
Spread trees would be my preference as shelter belts tend to bring mud . And mud means bugs especially in lactating animals .
Most councils help with pole planting costs but i believe scattered trees are not recognized for carbon capture i believe?
I don’t doubt most stock owners care for their animals but there seems to be a blind spot in regards shelter.
As mentioned up thread there is an increase in productivity with shelter, but… less pasture… mud around shelter belts… the neighbours don’t do it…
The mud effect from shelter belts would be less on dairy farms due to them really being in the same paddock twice in a row. There’s a plant called miscanthus? That is supposed to be very quick growng and the big rotorainers can brush over it .
Im pro famrimg but im no apologist for the madness that has gone on in Canterbury and down south .
I live rurally in the Manawatu, surrounded by dairy farms.
I am not anti farming.
I do not like a lot of common farming practices e.g.: the urea phosphate addiction, shelterless paddocks, stock in waterways, round-up between crop cycles.
To me it comes down to the $.
What are usually decent people, have a wilful blind spot when it comes to their ways.
As we all know it takes a lot of courage to step outside the flock and change a habit.
I would love to see the primary producers return to their rightful place of the food supply chain.
In my lifetime the tables have turned against them.
I’ve been off at school all day or I’d have chipped in earlier. Production losses come from heat stress – and wind chill. Shelter can make a big difference for temperature extremes at both ends of the scale. Scattered trees are difficult where stock may take them out, and fencing each tree could be considered a PITA. But I believe it’s worth it. Also, if your stock have access to mineral licks they’ll typically leave trees alone (cept the tasty leaves).
As weather patterns continue to deteriorate Farmers main defense against drought and subsequent bankruptcy is trees. Trees that double as fodder, and triple as nitrogen fixers.
We live in interesting times, where change, adapting and questioning what we have always done is imperative.
I have a mate who works for a company selling fertilizer.
They get soil samples from different parts of the property and mix a fertilizer containing the minerals that are deficient.
The idea is soil health is paramount. As opposed to going for the crack pipe habit of phosphate/urea.
Farmers are conservative (keen on status quo), but these other theories (organic/permaculture) are slowly becoming more popular.
Heaven forbid, they may become mainstream in our lifetime.
Of course with plant-based diets we wouldn’t have to shade animals Cinny because we wouldn’t be farming them. Animal agriculture is a major contributor to greenhouse gases and degrades our environment in other ways and needs to end.
Better for the animals and better for us, especially as it moving to plant-based diets increases the chances of humans actually surviving.
Not sure that is true Grey Area. Animals are an integral part of ecosystems and always have been. We could lower stocking rates, but eliminating stock is highly problematic. In NZ we had ridiculous numbers of birds that brought oceanic resources to land. On the land some moa species ‘took the place’ of cows grazing/browsing ground covers. These were then laid low, able to be composted through winters season adding nutrients for the next spring flush. Fungi too, have many species designed to work with both dung and plant matter.
Natures systems are not vegan, vegetarian, or even lactose intolerant.
The ability to find shade is absolutely necessary for the basic comforts of the animals as well. I’ve been increasingly dismayed by the removal of windbreaks in favour of vast irrigation networks. Could it be pasture growth is quantifiable, animal well-being is not?
About the killing of the ‘mocking bird Julian Assange;’
This is a history of sad repute by our leading ‘peace makers’.
It was shown that ‘the dirty tricks campaign’ had gone out to deliberately repeatedly “discredit” the whistle blowers again now beginning with Julian Assange.
Now on sex charges, so what else will they throw at him?
They will lock him up for life as Daniel Ellsberg On Assange Arrest: The Beginning of the End For Press Freedom video attest to; – a powerful video expression by Daniel.
Thank you for you and Julian Assange and Chelsea Manning for standing up for our freedom of expression.
The only cheering is TRP, Mcflock etc who think that abandonment of due process, extradition to the States and solitary confinement for life, for something that isn’t a crime, is appropriate.
The rest of us are capable of separating the public good, from wikileaks, from the fact that Sweden should have followed due process, and punished him only, for his actions that are a crime. If found guilty.
lol pretty much everything about your two main paragraphs was incorrect or probably incorrect.
Due process is being followed.
The sentence for the crimes which the yanks are trying to extradite him for isn’t life.
Hacking is a crime (albeit one he is probably innocent of).
The Swedes did and are following due process.
And I, for one, don’t think that the incorrect scenario you outlined would be appropriate.
Between you, who I thought was better than that, TRP, and a few other “black and white” non thinkers, who cannot comprehend that no one is all good, or all bad, are making this site a cesspit.
Making any reasoned discussion, uncomfortable.
Francesca, who you would justifiably expect to be tough on a rapist, has put forward reasoned points.
The replies have been an unthinking witch hunt.
I am disappointed at the low level of intelligent discussion displayed here.
If you actually really think that this has even the slightest thing to do with rape, then all I can say is that you must be a very naive person indeed.
I’m just glad that he looks like he might get to face the rape charges. Sad to see so many on here able to overlook that simply because of his political views.
This Video is about the recent history of Russia……
” Yeltsin went into the election campaign with a rating hovering between 3%-5%, reflecting what must be the single most disastrous presidency of the 20th century: Under Yeltsin, Russia’s economy collapsed some 60%, the male life expectancy plummeted from 68 years to 56, millions were reduced to living on subsistence farming for the first time since Stalin as wages went unpaid for years at a time. Russia was on its way to going extinct—but about 3-5% of the population (plus or minus 3%) was making out like bandits. Probably because they actually were bandits. “https://pando.com/2015/05/17/neocons-2-0-the-problem-with-peter-pomerantsev/
The music starts about 6 mins 48 secs
The Wolf and bears ….. 11 mins 55 secs
Iwould describe it as …. 2 minutes to midnight rock ……
You seem to making a habit of writing disparaging comments about other regular commenters here on TS as your single focus. Yesterday, you were targeting Wayne on OM @ 2 and now you are having a go at James. By doing so, you are setting a tone and creating an environment in which others find it o.k. to join your posse and chime in. I don’t think this is conducive to healthy debate or making others feel welcome, do you?
I have no posse Incognito ….. unless your talking a posse against me quite often.
Anyway ,,, surprise , surprise …. you missed the point of my post …. which I’ll repeat ….. as having a one eyed, opportunistic, inconsistent, rape apologist troll like james, ….. trying to scare people off and shut down the argument is worse than my being a bit rude to such types ….
james ….
….Who used sleazy rape culture posts to diminish the woman involved in the waikato cheifs sexual assault controversy.
….Who uses and advocates for the lawless rapey company ‘uber’.
….who advocated for public toilet sex … he did this when defending some other over-sexed rugby player.
….who thought it fair enough Oxfam should lose funding ……… for two sacked workers who allegedly used prostitutes
….He who who called right wing Brazilian leader and rape celebrator Jair Bolsonaro “charismatic”
James ….Who ran around with glee …. trying to smear Labour as ‘rape apologists’ …. over a drunk committing assults at a Labour youth event …
And has run around the Assange thread.. trying to label everyone ‘rape apologists’…
Same with Wayne Mapp … who should be shamed and reviled … until prompted into doing something good …. Like a apology and donation to his victims ….. the dead and maimed ones.
“We’ve heard the tragic tales of our murdered Christchurch Muslims bravely trying to protect their children / their wife / their husband — their mother / their father and their community ……
……The same brave sacrifices obviously took place multiple times …… in our SAS revenge raid on the Afghanistan village,,,,, under Wayne Mapp and John Key……
But we never heard of these brave people …… who we killed ,,,, and who were then dissapeared from existence.
Even though I feel they were more human than Wayne Mapp / Key are ….”
The problem is incognito ….. How do you propose to shame the blatantly reprehensible among us ….. without being blunt ??.
My politics is I want the truth …. and less wars.
Sorry if that offends you ——– I extend you my plausible sincerity
The problem is incognito ….. How do you propose to shame the blatantly reprehensible among us ….. without being blunt ??.
Is that what you’re trying to do here, shaming the blatantly (!) reprehensible? If I understand you correctly, your targets are reprehensible because, in your opinion, they have reprehensible opinions that you clearly object to. If so, you feel justified to play the man instead of the ball?
My politics is I want the truth …. and less wars.
Not sure what you mean by that. Is wanting “the truth” politics? And “less wars” [sic]? How do you envisage your shaming strategy here on TS leads to “the truth” and “less wars”? Do you expect “the blatantly reprehensible among us” to go through some cathartic shaming ritual and become more like you, for example?
Or do you simply want them to shut up and go away?
Or do you want to punish them?
I’m honestly at a loss as to what you’re thinking and what you’re trying to achieve here. In any case, I don’t think it is working, do you?
Also Incog …James has smeared multitude people here at TS …. in multi threads ….
I’m quite specific to where my criticism is directed … and I try to make an informative point while doing it.
And Here’s a thing we both missed about James …. to quote the troll … ” Sad to see so many on here able to overlook that simply because of his political views”
How is it political to want democratic OPEN govt Incognito ?? ….Or is it political in the sense of Authoritarian versus open democratic ???
You’ll find I argue like a sticky gummy-bear … I use snipey posts at me to expand my argument ….
Also Incog …James has smeared multitude people here at TS …. in multi threads ….
So, for you it is personal, some kind of vendetta?
And Here’s a thing we both missed about James …. to quote the troll … ” Sad to see so many on here able to overlook that simply because of his political views”
Uhhhmmm, what exactly did we miss there? What blatantly reprehensive act was hiding in plain view?
How is it political to want democratic OPEN govt Incognito ?? ….Or is it political in the sense of Authoritarian versus open democratic ???
Is this “the truth” that you were referring to or have you moved the goal posts? Anyway, how does your shaming of so-called trolls here on TS pave a path to “democratic OPEN govt”?
You’ll find I argue like a sticky gummy-bear … I use snipey posts at me to expand my argument ….
You sound a tad defensive and you are quite evasive. Do you object to being queried about your motivations and conduct here on TS?
If you cannot argue a point in your own words, a video won’t help much either. People who cannot stand on their own two feet often use them as crutches …
Sorry incognito ….. when I meant sticky gummy-bear,,, in this instance I meant using your post to expand the case and Argument ,,,, that Julian Assange is hunted and persecuted for reasons that have nothing to do …. nothing to do with the smears james has been running around this site with.
He has not answered whether he Would use the gutter label and call ‘Amy goodman , Naiomei Shaei, Ranata Viella , Gleen Greenwald, edward snowden,’ and all the other people featured in the democracy now news item … ” rape apologists” ???
And how come the Democracy Now news item had a totally different weighting of content and information …. compared to james posts … which are pretty much 100% rape apologist finger pointing or other shit smeary accusations on this topic….
How come Amy Goodmans reporting and Denocracy now …. carry such a different story ,,, than those being spread by many TS posters… and others joining in with the James campaigns ???.
Neither smeary James or others speak of the best step forward if it truly were about two women … like take their views into consideration at a formal tribunal or something ….
And we could recognize Julian Assange has children and they are victims too…. of what has been quite a long sentence so far …
You and many others here on TS seem to have major problems separating the issue from the commenter. In fact, I think it’s lazy and possibly even deliberate because it suits you. In any case, it does not make for good discussion or debate. That is my point, which you have not addressed in a satisfactory way.
New Zealand World
‘Islam is peace’: Pakistani city shows support for victims of the Christchurch mosque terror attacks
9:08 am today
More than 20,000 people in a Pakistani city have created a striking visual tribute to the victims of the Christchurch mosque massacre.
More than 20,000 people in Shorkot, Pakistan created a striking visual tribute to the victims of the Christchurch mosque massacre.
Dressed in white, they stood in formation in front of a shrine to create a huge living image of the Al Noor Mosque in Deans Avenue, 13,000 kilometres away.
They lined up behind a large banner saying ‘Solidarity with Martyrs of Christchurch, from Pakistan’, and hundreds more formed the message ‘Islam Is Peace’ in English.
Spokesperson Asif Tanveer Awan says the event in the city of Shorkot was organised by a think-tank, the Muslim Institute, in order to send a strong message to the world that Muslims want peace and cooperation.
Two women telling how they have survived seeing their countries change in front of their eyes and being dislocated. And they have learned to adapt but are aware of the goodness they have in life but also I think both do not believe in getting too attached to institutions, and the need to be thinking about things, wary of change.
Which I think is a mindset we have to adopt.
It seems to me that we have come to a stop in our minds at the end of last century, and are slow to see how we have to change for the 21st century. Also have we appreciated what was good and valuable, and how we were, in the 20th century and carried our bundles of goodness to preserve them and share, in this century.
That will elp us to keep being potentially wonderful humans living in harmony yet individuality with each other and the planet, and not allow ourselves to be turned into machine and efficiency pawns, human resources being pushed around by powerful, mindless and soulless others – people and corporate conglomerates.
Yesterday was the saddest day I have ever witnessed on The Standard, one after another people came on to say that they were actually glad Assange had been arrested, I of course have always known that The Standard harbors a lot of reactionaries, but I honestly didn’t realize that it harbored so many stupid, short sighted reactionaries who are so easily sucked in by establishment propaganda…I was shocked, am shocked at the depth of stupidity that has been so proudly displayed by so many here..history will of course, and rightly, judge them cruelly.
The Standard via Te Reo Putake yesterday finally converged seamlessly with Mike Hosking…if that doesn’t give you pause to think..
There is much disdain for Assange from people who wouldn’t be prepared to expose themselves for a mass moral purpose as he did. A lot of people are guided in their direction by their own individual concerns or that of the general group they form part of.
An outlier like Assange acting for the principle of transparency of dark doings against the mass of u. He has used means that have been made illegal by the very people carrying out or enabling the dark doings. It is a rare and significant protest on the behalf of those who care that such machinations should be exposed. Thanks for that Julian, it takes determination, vision and inner strength to do such things which few have.
I wholeheartedly agree Adrian.
The display of cognitive dissonance is disturbing.
We all know that the facts are:
Julian Assange was not charged with rape or any other crime by the Swedish authorities.
Julian Assange has published information that has never been refuted that has caused considerable embarrassment to many.
Those feasting on the downfall of Juilan Assange seem to have little introspection, display even less logic and no empathy
What many seem not to appreciate is that the false accusation of rape is an extremely evil crime.
I passed comment yesty along those lines, but more from a fascination angle.
I am sure those who disappointed you, would see themselves as progressive.
My hunch is the sexual allegations is what tarnished most of their opinions.
Akin to trying to separate the art from the artist, eg Picasso, in time Assange will be seen separate to the deeds/allegations.
I find it frustrating that the ‘left’ saves the worst for its closest allies.
There was an enquiry some years ago about a plane taking off in conditions that were marginal and late in the day because there had been bad weather for some time.
I wonder how often that will happen in this area enclosed by high mountains as seen in the media image. The more planes, the more risk and the more unhappy stranded tourists who expect their bucks to buy them entry, quality experience, and exit as and when required.
Queenstown airport has been effectively running at over 100% for a couple of years and it’s only a matter of time before something breaks. Yesterday’s oops has been on the cards for a while with minimal atc staff cover combined with a town where people get sick a lot for the first 10 years they live here because there’s a new bug on every bus and plane. This affects every employer to varying degrees, but staff critical positions like atc, teaching and police are hard hit.
We are also getting very close to airspace limits with little space if aircraft have to go around, which happens a lot due to a very difficult airport. On Wednesday afternoon most flights (8 I think, can’t get back that far in flightradar) were diverted because of cloud to ground level with the front, which would have cost the airlines a packet. On a day with tricky cross winds there will be jets on hold all over the southern South Island waiting to get an approach slot.
Queenstown airport has also become the de-facto regional airport for the southern South Island. Passengers come from Southland, most of Otago outside Dunedin and South Westland to travel to Auckland, Wellington and Australia. There’s 26 jet aircraft going through ZQN today and 3 ATRs, that’s a typical day.
There’s a fairly solid consensus around the district that the airport’s at it’s limits and needs to move as the current location is beyond it’s capacity, but beyond that it gets tricky. Where does it go to do a better job? A new regional airport will need to be easily connected to it’s main markets, Queenstown and Wanaka, and not have noise or airspace issues.
Three options have been bandied around. First is a dual airport idea with expansion of the existing Wanaka airport which hasn’t gone down well with the good burghers of Wanaka, to say the least. Then there’s two options a new regional airport, Five Rivers, near Lumsden, and Tarras near Wanaka. Tarras is easier to connect with but has noise and airspace constraints, Five Rivers is an excellent site but expensive to connect to existing tourist infrastructure as it’s 100 km south Queenstown. Both would probably need a quick rail connection to avoid bus mayhem, and then you’d have high speed rail to Christchurch sneaking into the mix as well.
So a huge can of worms, vested interests with several airport companies and big operators trying to protect their turf, and locals who’ve had enough of the noise and congestion, but want their city connectivity, and local councils who want it in their patch.
This one’s going to need very strong leadership from Government, and very soon.
Yep, although in this case the airport is 75.1% local council (QLDC) and 24.9% AIA so local interests still have control. Where it gets bogged down is all the other “interested” parties trying to steer the ship in their direction.
A lot of the growth we’ve seen has been due to the demise of Christchurch as a visitor destination post earthquakes, that market space has been displaced to Wellington and Queenstown. There’s over twice the capacity ZQN – WLG than ZQN – CHC now and that won’t change back.
Bt any solution is going to need to be led by central government, not possible at a local level.
ANZ are starting direct flights NV – AA in August I think, which will very slightly reduce the load on Queenstown. Southlanders won’t need drive there to get to Auckland or further afield.
There will never be another airfield built. The aircraft numbers would have to be high to justify a completely new development. And Lumsden has too many fog days in winter anyway.
It’s going to be interesting to see how the NV-AA thing goes, hope it works for Invercargill’s sake, but don’t think it’ll make much difference to Queenstown. Just hope it doesn’t bugger the frequency of flights to Christchurch.
The weather issues are equal for all the options, and the airlines want the airport to be able to take wide body aircraft and be at least CAT II, preferably CAT III, so instrument landing. This wouldn’t be a problem at Five Rivers.
Biggest problem with Five Rivers is the 100 km to Queenstown. And that it may threaten the viability of Christchurch.
There will have to be another airport built, Queenstown is getting too difficult to sustain and sooner or later it’s going to break. Whatever the solution it’s going to be hard and expensive. Doing nothing and sticking with the existing airport is in category too.
Ok there will be a critical number of arrivals/departures that determines the financial viability of any new airport. Government funding would be required for such a large investment and I just can’t see it happening. I can’t see Queenstown interests funding it either. But I’m often wrong about things.
If the NV-AA Airbus link succeeds there will probably be one less ATR going out from NV first thing in the mornings.
Why build in Lumsden when NV is already large enough for big jets, slightly less than an hour further away less affected by fog/low cloud. Much less investment to bring up to standard, I’ll get Tim onto right away….
Newshub’s politica editor Tova O’Brien reports: The war between Simon Bridges and Jami-Lee Ross has gone up a notch. Credits: Newshub.
The war between Simon Bridges and Jami-Lee Ross has gone up a notch with yet more explosive allegations from the former National MP.
Ross has implied Bridges was told by intelligence agencies that a National MP was a Chinese spy.
Our top spies were asked about it at Parliament in their first outing since the Christchurch terror attack.
GCSB boss Andrew Hampton warns against local election online voting
Jami-Lee Ross brings more allegations against National’s Simon Bridges
GCSB, NZSIS concerned about foreign interference in New Zealand election
The leaders of New Zealand’s spy agencies are normally secretive when out in the great wide open.
“We’re really happy to talk to you after the hearing,” Rebecca Kitteridge, director-general of the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service (NZSIS), told Newshub outside Parliament on Thursday morning when she arrived.
Both Kitteridge’s agency and the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) – of which Andrew Hampton is director-general – are being investigated as part of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the March 15 attack.
When asked why the alleged gunman wasn’t on NZSIS’s radar, Kitteridge told Newshub: “Well, I guess that’s what the [Royal Commission of Inquiry] will look into.”
The head of the GCSB said the agency needs a red flag before it can act, and there wasn’t one.
“Lots of people travel to Pakistan, lots of people have gun licences, unfortunately lots of people post not very nice stuff on dodgy websites,” he said.
The spy bosses at Parliament were there to warn MPs about foreign government interference in New Zealand politics. They said they’re not just using cash, but putting pressure on expat communities and even MPs.
When asked if she’s concerned a state might have tried to exert influence over New Zealand MPs, Kitteridge responded: “Yes.”
Tough article with some very hard lessons. It is hard work emotionally killing. I’ve worked on a farm and seen the calves die and/or be killed. I’ve seen the cows go down and the gun come out. We’ve got to reduce the pressure on people and reducing herd size and areas herds can be would really help. But of course this is about m.bovis and the havoc it has wrought.
Henk Smit could handle the bullet in the mail and the death threats.
It was when the dairy farmer had to shoot his newborn calves that the impact of Mycoplasma bovis finally hit him…
… “I think was a really bad call,” he says at his quiet Maungatautari property. “On the other farm, we had a contract milker and that sent him over the edge, killing the calves, and he tried to commit suicide in spring…
…Calving was always the highlight on the farming calender for Smit because he saw the next generation of his herd being born.
“Now I had to shoot them on a daily basis for weeks on end and I think the impact of that has definitely been underestimated, not only for me, but plenty of other farmers too.”
He staggered the culling to reduce the financial and emotional impact. He said the the final portion of his herd left the farm just three weeks ago.
How sad – poor young man committed suicide. I suppose he couldn’t get out of his contract which he entered innocently never thinking of such a situation. And as Smit noted it was awful work when he had to do it himself. If farmers actually worked at their own businesses, and were not encouraged by easy credit to buy numerous farms (think Crafar*) there would be less of this sort of result. The bad spongy brain spread of disease in Britain was exacerbated by industrial farming methods.
* In 2009 they owned 22 farms, 18 of which are dairy, and 20,000 cows,[3] making them New Zealand’s largest family owned dairy business.[5] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CraFarms
These are the consequences when you try to engineer your way to maximum profit and growth with scant regard for good practice.
It is to be hoped that this will be a lesson to others in this industry and other industries. They need to ask themselves whether profit and growth at any cost is worth the inherent risk.
First point, this salt reactor actually is capable of using the waste (spent fuel) from other nukes as fuel, thereby helping to deal with the problem of waste built up from existing reactors.
Second, it’s in the right power range for large ships. It’s also a pretty useful size for remote installations that are unsuitable for solar.
But yeah, for mainstream grid supply, wind and solar have got so cheap it’s hard to see any new nukes making the grade.
“First point, this salt reactor actually is capable of using the waste (spent fuel) from other nukes as fuel, thereby helping to deal with the problem of waste built up from existing reactors.”
It’s an example of the broader class of “fast neutron reactors”. Most of which can be configured to use as fuel the waste from most of today’s reactors.
While the ability to burn other reactor’s waste is attractive, there’s also downsides. The biggest being that burning the uranium238 (that’s a large part of the waste from more common reactors) requires turning most of it into plutonium239 along the way. There’s obvious concerns about military proliferation there.
Personally I’m more interested in thorium based reactors. Because the intermediate steps of the thorium reaction chain are much harder to turn into weapons (though not impossible). But probably just as attractive to terrorists wanting to build dirty bombs.
Agreed, although the thorium story and MSR’s while technically separate, are in reality very closely aligned. It’s pretty much the same people interested in both at this time.
It’s a good question; I’m a big fan of CSP power, it looks very cool and comes with built-in energy storage. Of all the renewable technologies it’s the one which I suspect has the brightest future.
But it’s important not to underestimate the scale of the challenge and the enormous amount of land and resources that will be consumed to make a serious contribution to the total global need.
These MSR reactors are nothing like your grandfather’s Pressurised Water Reactors. Some typical features:
1. All the safety engineering is ‘walk away’ passive. If something goes wrong the correct thing to do is nothing. The machine will stop and cool itself with no external power or intervention.
2. All the dangerous nucleides, cesium, strontium and iodine are stable compounds within the salt. Even if the plant was bombed, all that would happen is the released molten salt would solidify quickly, the nuclear reaction would stop and no gases would be released.
3. The internal operating pressures are very low, barely 2 -4 atmospheres. The engineering is far easier.
4. They are incredibly flexible with what fuel they use; and will cheerfully burn the waste from existing reactors. All current MSR designs are intended to have zero waste stream. Uranium, thorium, plutonium … gobble, munch, munch.
5. The manufacturing model will be similar to ship building or aircraft manufacture; everything is built and shipped from a single global site, and the sealed reactor units are shipped to wherever needed. Site assembly and certification is hugely reduced and they require almost no maintenance. No back up power, no emergency systems, no super complex control systems, no containment vessel, etc.
6. The cores are intended to have an operating life of about 5 – 10 years, after which the operator swaps to a new unit, shuts down the old one and lets it cool for 3 -5 years. Then ships the spent and empty unit back to the manufacturing site for refurbishment.
These things are just way easier to do, once you have the salt chemistry and fuel cycle sorted. The safety case is hugely less onerous and operating them is relatively simple. Homer Simpson might have trouble fecking with one.
The expectation is the costs will be about half that of new coal plant. These can be rolled out fast and located without huge infrastructure demands. All up I see these as being a faster and more certain route to de-carbonising than renewables on their own.
This could be the missing link in energy budgets to transform to a more resilient economy. We’ve not got the oil resources to do it without mucking up the planet.
Just yesterday I was daydreaming in class about how we might set up a block of renewable energy (using oil energy) and start from there to use less oil and more renewables as we ‘expand out’ to encompass more of industry/market/the globe.
Energy stuff is not my forte, but I do think we might progressively retrofit without too much pain if we work in a methodical manner always reducing consumable energy as we increase sustainable energy.
The issue is that large infrastructure projects require tremendous energy inputs. I’m trying to get my head around how we transition the transition period – if that makes any sense…
I also think they can test these reactors NIMBY. Heard too many false claims from companies posing as saviors. Swap some out for older more dangerous reactors maybe, as in those situations it might be seen as progress.
I’d vehemently oppose anyone testing any form of nuclear reactor here.
I would cheerfully have one in my backyard, indeed I’d love to have a crack at working in one. While the nuclear aspect would be pretty tame, there is real potential for innovative thermochemical downstream processing, the efficient production of bulk hydrogen for instance, that would be really interesting.
MSR’s are nothing like the massive nuclear plants we’re all accustomed to; they’re a fraction of the size. They have more in common with building a large ship than a massive plant.
ORNL successfully ran the first one in the 60’s for five years with no incidents of any kind.
It’s not a case of one company promising miracles. At present there are 6 -10 different private companies working towards a licensed design, and the Chinese have an impressive $500m program; leading the way on work being done in 10 different countries. MSR’s are not completely without technical challenges, but most of them appear to be a matter of funding and time, rather than needing to invent wheels. The biggest hurdles are going to be regulatory, and overcoming negative public sentiment toward anything nuclear.
It’s strongly arguable that if the Nixon administration had not shut the original ORNL program down in 1973 for purely political reasons, MSR’s would have likely become the dominant energy source by now … and global warming would never have become an issue.
Looking ahead to when transport is fully electrified, it’s not hard to imagine service stations wanting to have on-site generation in the range of tens of MW. That’s in the same range as what large ships need. It’s not hard to see substantial demand for mass-produced small reactors.
NZ probably won’t ever get there, but much of the rest of the world might. Personally I’d have no concerns about those being nukes, particularly if they were thorium. For military proliferation and terrorism reasons, not any kind of Chernobyl style fears.
Checkout the specs! They aren’t quite the holy grail as their energy density is about 2/3 standard Lithium chemistries, but for applications where weight doesn’t matter too much, like buses, boats, solar storage, etc they’re definitely the next leap forward. Full recharge is possible in 10 minutes!
Down the road a year or two we should see the next gen of solid state Lithiums. If they live up to the promise, then fully electric personal transport will happen very quickly. A huge amount of R&D is going on, but Tesla’s buyout of these guys recently shows concrete progress:
Professional. I’m using them to eliminate the travelling harness on a high speed shuttle. It recharges when parked for piece change-out, and allows easy 2D freedom of movement with no trailing power cables for the automation. All control data is via RF.
The 20,000+ cycle life is pretty attractive too. Cells like this were either not cost effective or unavailable 12 months ago.
even the tripe media ( 2nd behind finance as the biggest benefit industry on NZ economy) shouldn’t be reporting or broadcasting the contents of threats made to public figures
Peter Dutton has apologised for appalling comments he made about his Labor opponent (who happens to be an amputee) in his seat of Dickson. But not before 2 Labor heavyweights, Deputy Leader Tanya Plibersek and Senator Kristina Keneally went to town on him and PM Morrison over the issue.
Keneally did not mince words – cut him right down. Called him a thug, and the ‘worst’ of the liberals. Which must have been a difficult decision to make because it’s a crowded field.
Plibersek was pretty much on message too, accusing Dutton of trying to ditch Dickson for a more glamorous seat closer to his mansion in the Gold Coast.
As late as Friday evening Dutton was doubling down on the accusations, by Saturday arvo he’d apologised. The optics were terrible and the overnight polling must have been diabolical for the Liberals.
This is bad and sad. My relatives have been teachers, and I have heard that principals can be more concerned about smooth running and meeting Board
requirements than actually fulfilling the requirements of looking after the pastoral care of students as well as the important keeping up on the league table of passes and success as expected.
Has anyone encountered a successful all-school effort to reduce bullying by discussing it and its detrimental effects on the pupil, the bully, and the school as model of a social group within the larger group of society? I wondered about an all-school meeting to discuss the problems and how they affect individuals and show lack of social abilities which are needed in a healthy society. Of course studies in philosophy, different cultures and how they handle the common human
condition should be mandatory but our society has never had deep enough thought to ask for this.
Kia ora R&R.
THE plastic waste should be legerslated so that the manufacturer and retailers pay a percentage to give the waste a valuation to make it profitable to recycle it.
I agree all the chemicals that leach out of our WASTE can and is causing bad side effects on our wildlife and US.
The plastic waste /WASTE problems is not to big to cured its a problem that has to be cured we just need smart simple laws a process to FIX this Problem. Ka kite ano
Eco Maori exzact thoughts the powerfull people don’t want the truth to get out THE TRUTH IS POWER trump is using all the dirty tricks in his puppets book to control OUR media he has use the power of the USA goverments power to suppress the biggest problem human kind is about to face CLIMATE CHANGE . With the sexual assult charges does one think that Julian would have made such a STUPID move knowing the USA goverment was after his ASS KNOW that acusation is the easyest set up they could come up with pay a girl $10 of thousands to stand up in court and lie I have seen the sandflys trying this move on ECO MAORI WTF.
The WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is so disliked in journalism and political circles that many reporters and liberal politicians were publicly cheering on Thursday when the Trump administration released an indictment of Assange, which was related to his interactions with the whistleblower Chelsea Manning in the months leading up to the publication of Pentagon and state department cables in 2010.
The Assange prosecution threatens modern journalism
Please do not fall for this trap. It is exactly what the Trump administration is hoping for, as the Department of Justice (DoJ) moves forward with its next dangerous step in its war on journalism and press freedom.
The larger context surrounding this case is almost as important as the Assange indictment itself. Donald Trump has been furious with leakers and the news organizations that publish them ever since he took office. He complains about it constantly in his Twitter tirades. He has repeatedly directed the justice department to stop leaks, and he even asked former FBI director James Comey if he can put journalists in jail.
The justice department has responded by launching a record number of leak cases and have weighed changing the rules to make it easier to subpoena journalists
Ka kite ano links below P.S Julian let the Papatuanuku know that goverments are CHEATS.
I know Julian Assange is a wonderful friend of the Trolls on here. Through him they have discovered some nasty bits of what happens in War. As if that was ever an unknown.
They seem entirely unaware that Assange released what he called “timely information” (true or false) to obliterate Hilary Clinton’s chances of Presidency.
He is after all Mr Big. He did not try and destroy the Wealthy, of course. Just the needy. And of course Obama Care is a hanging offence in the Wealthy Troll households.
The most savage Wikileak thing to Date, is the release of Millions of pieces of personal Information belonging to Turkish Women. Home Address, Banking, Phone, and so on.
Neither ugly Wikileaks or Assange, has apologised to all those Women. Many of whom are now victims of Turkey Red Necks, former mongrel husbands, and Murder.
Like New Zealand, Turkey males do not value the women who bring them into the World.
The Internet, thanks to mongrels like Assange, is not worth a dime. It’s a dump, fit for dumpsters.
Eco Maori Agrees strongly with these comments we are PART OF THE ENVIROMENT we need to care for OUR enviroment like its our grandparents as Papatuanuku actually is OUR GRANDPARENT FOOLs
We need to coexist with the ecosystem because we’re part of it, and so are birds
Susan Elbin
Though the studies bear sad news about the effects cities have on birds, conservationists see them as opportunities to target their activism.
“Every time new scientific literature comes out, we learn more about the problem, and … we can pinpoint the best solutions using the science,” said Kaitlyn Parkins, a conservation biologist at NYC Audubon.
Turning out the lights in buildings at night for a few weeks during peak migration is a simple first step and would make a big difference, Parkins said. The National Audubon Society runs Lights Out, a coordinated effort with local chapters to advocate reducing light during migration. States such as New York and Minnesota have participated in the program, turning out lights in state-operated buildings during migration.
Conservationists also advocate that buildings adopt more “bird-friendly” designs, for example using patterned glass and dimmer lighting. San Francisco and Toronto have already adopted some bird-friendly guidelines, while city council members in New York and Chicago have introduced legislation to adopt similar measures. A bipartisan bill in Congress introduced in January, called the “Bird-Safe Building Act”, would require new federal buildings to adopt designs that keep migrating birds in mind.
“We need to coexist with the ecosystem because we’re part of it, and so are birds,” Elbin said. “What’s good for birds is good for people.”
This article was amended on 8 April 2019 to clarify the relative dangers different types of buildings pose for birds. Ka kite ano links below
Kia kaha you go and fight for your futures climate the neanderthals are to dumb to get the big picture
“The power that we have in numbers and the power that we have in coming together and taking action as a collective was something people were really keen to get back into.”
The plan was for other groups around the country to hold their own meetings in the coming weeks and months. Sophie said inclusivity was central to the movement, and they wanted everyone who had been involved in the strike so far to have their say in the next steps.
In Auckland, 17-year-old strike organiser Luke Wijohn said while things slowed down slightly, lots of new people have joined the movement in the weeks since March 15.
Sophie said the students wanted to make it clear the strike wasn’t a one-off and they were committed to holding the government to account.
The group was developing a national strategy and planned to create a youth climate action network. Campaigning to make climate change education a compulsory part of the curriculum was one of the aims on the cards.
Another global school climate strike was planned for September 27. Ka kite ano links below
Kia ora Newshub.
Condolences to Evet whanau.
Its cool that Our government is going to sort out the problems with the construction sector it needs sorting out as it been left in a Mess.
I see some puppet trying ride on ECO MAORI Coat Tails once again I stand by my Tau toko of Julian.
I Back Nagti Kuri call for a Tangaroa sanatorium we have to save Tangaroa for our MOKOPUNA.
Its a good idea that more people at school learn CPR for heart attack victims revival.
You no how it is they will never apologise for the atrocities that were carried out in India or to other indigenous cultures that’s the European way.
Its a good idea going around and getting knowledge from the kaumatua before they pass but studying war is a waste of time in my view someone has to record the indigenous cultures knowledge before our tangata whenua O Atoearoa kaumatua pass. Ka kite ano P.S Some are trying every dirty trick in their book to try stop the Eco Maori effect. YEA RIGHT
Kia ora The AM Show.
Ryan a capital gains tax is needed to stop all NZ capital flowing out to nation with no tax keep the capital in NZ for the Mokopuna allso it takes the burden off the paye tax payer’s.No simon the tax needs to be aimed at the people who pay next to KNOW TAX
The Australian Unicon sheep looks hard case mite be a new breed that will get the deniers to see reality with a little prodding.
I still see a lot of EGGS around if eggs get to expensive people will be able to grow their own with very little money and work.
Mark ther you go making statements that have to be retracted
That billion dollar hole was joice pridicting the extra cost that the government service industry has to spend to clean up the MESS HE MADE.
Bush you are frowning have you heard OF the TRUTH that I have been say about your organisation its the TRUTH.
A good free range egg is bright orange very good.
I think the way the government has aproched the construction industry is WIZE asking what needs to be done to fix some of the problems in the industry I can remember 28 years ago I got a house built the section price would have just payed for the prosess of council permits now days GO FIGURE why we have a housing shortage now.
My literacy is OK for someone’s who actually only learnt at school to the age of 9 after that Eco Maori is self taught my spelling is bad but I READ very well.
Now is the time to put heaps of effort into conserving OUR indanger WILD life like the Maui Dolphin Ka pai.
Ka kite ano P.S congratulations on the new jacket someone has given me a birthday present all ready Mike the leftys need to harden up and let everyone know as the ightys cheat when ever they can and the left let them hide their cheating ways if someone goes public they get what they deserve
The 21st century comunacation device was is a device that gets the TRUTH out to the masses of tangata. Social Media is the best way to inform the people that the RULEING CLASS are RIPPING the common tangata of they use there MONEY to try and hide the facts change the facts.
One exzample is salt and sugar one we need in OUR diet the other we don’t one can be obtained from tangaroa the other is controled by big busness.
Salt has heaps of infomation published about the negitive effects I say most of that is crap.
Sugar causes DIABETES obesity rotts teeth stuff you liver and many other bad side effects from sugar and up till a few months ago every story on sugar had the words would or could cause these bad side effects when the links between sugar and the bad health affects are clear to see you see this is just a small part of the story of the eelite CHEATING the 99.99 % out of the truth here are just a few on the topics that they are cheating tangata ABOUT.
Sugar
salt
we don’t know why the native poupulation’s are doing so bad /no discrimanation here don’t LOOK and you won’t see it.
Carbon is not causing climate change
nitrogin is not causeing our water ways/ AWA to die.
The trickle down effect when its clear the captialst system is being massaged to make the money flow to the TOP and stop any trickleing down to the poor people/COUNTRYS.
the justice systems being fair
The ruling class are hounest YEA RIGHT when do they admite lierability not even if there hand’s are caught in the cookie jar they will lies and say they were just cleaning the jar and take the lie to the highest COURT in the land to obmit liability the poor person could not even get it to a COURT but ha the justice system is fair YEA RIGHT .
This is why I back social media 100 % AS now we get to sift throught the information and find the FACT.s with social media Ka kite ano Links below P.S the ruling class laught to themselves that the common person is hounest.
After a hiatus of over four months Selwyn Manning and I finally got it together to re-start the “A View from Afar” podcast series. We shall see how we go but aim to do 2 episodes per month if possible. … Continue reading → ...
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Lindsay Mitchell writes – The Children’s Minister, Karen Chhour, intends to repeal Section 7AA from the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989 because it creates conflict between claimed Crown Treaty obligations and the child’s best interests. In her words, “Oranga Tamariki’s governing principles and its act should be colour ...
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Newsroom has a story today about National's (fortunately failed) effort to disestablish the newly-created Inspector-General of Defence. The creation of this agency was the key recommendation of the Inquiry into Operation Burnham, and a vital means of restoring credibility and social licence to an agency which had been caught lying ...
Holding On To The Present:The moment a political movement arises that attacks the whole idea of social progress, and announces its intention to wind back the hands of History’s clock, then democracy, along with its unwritten rules, is in mortal danger.IT’S A COMMONPLACE of political speeches, especially those delivered in ...
Stuck In The Middle With You:As Christopher Luxon feels the hot breath of Act’s and NZ First’s extremists on the back of his neck and, as he reckons with the damage their policies are already inflicting upon a country he’s described as “fragile”, is there not some merit in reaching out ...
The unpopular coalition government is currently rushing to repeal section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act. The clause is Oranga Tamariki's Treaty clause, and was inserted after its systematic stealing of Māori children became a public scandal and resulted in physical resistance to further abductions. The clause created clear obligations ...
Buzz from the Beehive The government’s official website – which Point of Order monitors daily – not for the first time has nothing much to say today about political happenings that are grabbing media headlines. It makes no mention of the latest 1News-Verian poll, for example. This shows National down ...
It Takes A Train To Cry:Surely, there is nothing lonelier in all this world than the long wail of a distant steam locomotive on a cold Winter’s night.AS A CHILD, I would lie awake in my grandfather’s house and listen to the traffic. The big wooden house was only a ...
Packing A Punch: The election of the present government, including in its ranks politicians dedicated to reasserting the rights of the legislature in shaping and determining the future of Māori and Pakeha in New Zealand, should have alerted the judiciary – including its anomalous appendage, the Waitangi Tribunal – that its ...
Dead Woman Walking: New Zealand’s media industry had been moving steadily towards disaster for all the years Melissa Lee had been National’s media and communications policy spokesperson, and yet, when the crisis finally broke, on her watch, she had nothing intelligent to offer. Christopher Luxon is a patient man - but he’s not ...
Chris Trotter writes – New Zealand politics is remarkably easy-going: dangerously so, one might even say. With the notable exception of John Key’s flat ruling-out of the NZ First Party in 2008, all parties capable of clearing MMP’s five-percent threshold, or winning one or more electorate seats, tend ...
Ministers must front up about which projects it will push through under its Fast Track Approvals legislation, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
The Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...
With Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...
The Labour Party is saddened to learn of the death of Sir Robert Martin, a globally renowned disability advocate who led the way for disability rights both in New Zealand and internationally. ...
Labour is calling for the Government to urgently rethink its coalition commitment to restart live animal exports, Labour animal welfare spokesperson Rachel Boyack said. ...
Today’s Financial Stability Report has once again highlighted that poverty and deep inequality are political choices - and this Government is choosing to make them worse. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to do more for our households in most need as unemployment rises and the cost of living crisis endures. ...
Unemployment is on the rise and it’s only going to get worse under this Government, Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said. Stats NZ figures show the unemployment rate grew to 4.3 percent in the March quarter from 4 percent in the December quarter. “This is the second rise in unemployment ...
The New Zealand Labour Party welcomes the entering into force of the European Union and New Zealand free trade agreement. This agreement opens the door for a huge increase in trade opportunities with a market of 450 million people who are high value discerning consumers of New Zealand goods and ...
The National-led Government continues its fiscal jiggery pokery with its Pharmac announcement today, Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall says. “The government has increased Pharmac funding but conceded it will only make minimal increases in access to medicine”, said Ayesha Verrall “This is far from the bold promises made to fund ...
This afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
New Zealanders will be safer because of a $1.9 billion investment in more frontline Corrections officers, more support for offenders to turn away from crime, and more prison capacity, Corrections Minister Mark Mitchell says. “Our Government said we would crack down on crime. We promised to restore law and order, ...
The OECD’s latest report on New Zealand reinforces the importance of bringing Government spending under control, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The OECD conducts country surveys every two years to review its members’ economic policies. The 2024 New Zealand survey was presented in Wellington today by OECD Chief Economist Clare Lombardelli. ...
The Government has delivered on its election promise to provide a financially sustainable model for Auckland under its Local Water Done Well plan. The plan, which has been unanimously endorsed by Auckland Council’s Governing Body, will see Aucklanders avoid the previously projected 25.8 per cent water rates increases while retaining ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters discussed the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and enhanced cooperation in the Pacific with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock during her first official visit to New Zealand today. "New Zealand and Germany enjoy shared interests and values, including the rule of law, democracy, respect for the international system ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop today released his decision on four recommendations referred to him by the Western Bay of Plenty District Council, opening the door to housing growth in the area. The Council’s Plan Change 92 allows more homes to be built in existing and new ...
Thank you, John McKinnon and the New Zealand China Council for the invitation to speak to you today. Thank you too, all members of the China Council. Your effort has played an essential role in helping to build, shape, and grow a balanced and resilient relationship between our two ...
The Government is modernising insurance law to better protect Kiwis and provide security in the event of a disaster, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly announced today. “These reforms are long overdue. New Zealand’s insurance law is complicated and dated, some of which is more than 100 years old. ...
The coalition Government is refreshing its approach to supporting pay equity claims as time-limited funding for the Pay Equity Taskforce comes to an end, Public Service Minister Nicola Willis says. “Three years ago, the then-government introduced changes to the Equal Pay Act to support pay equity bargaining. The changes were ...
Structured literacy will change the way New Zealand children learn to read - improving achievement and setting students up for success, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Being able to read and write is a fundamental life skill that too many young people are missing out on. Recent data shows that ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay says Canada’s refusal to comply in full with a CPTPP trade dispute ruling in our favour over dairy trade is cynical and New Zealand has no intention of backing down. Mr McClay said he has asked for urgent legal advice in respect of our ‘next move’ ...
The rights of our children and young people will be enhanced by changes the coalition Government will make to strengthen oversight of the Oranga Tamariki system, including restoring a single Children’s Commissioner. “The Government is committed to delivering better public services that care for our most at-risk young people and ...
The Government is making it easier for minor changes to be made to a building consent so building a home is easier and more affordable, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on making it easier and cheaper to build homes so we can ...
New Zealand lost a true legend when internationally renowned disability advocate Sir Robert Martin (KNZM) passed away at his home in Whanganui last night, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. “Our Government’s thoughts are with his wife Lynda, family and community, those he has worked with, the disability community in ...
Good evening – Before discussing the challenges and opportunities facing New Zealand’s foreign policy, we’d like to first acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. You have contributed to debates about New Zealand foreign policy over a long period of time, and we thank you for hosting us. ...
From today, passengers travelling internationally from Auckland Airport will be able to keep laptops and liquids in their carry-on bags for security screening thanks to new technology, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Creating a more efficient and seamless travel experience is important for holidaymakers and businesses, enabling faster movement through ...
People with an interest in the health of Northland’s marine ecosystems are invited to a public meeting to discuss how to deal with kina barrens, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones will lead the discussion, which will take place on Friday, 10 May, at Awanui Hotel in ...
Kiwi exporters are $100 million better off today with the NZ EU FTA entering into force says Trade Minister Todd McClay. “This is all part of our plan to grow the economy. New Zealand's prosperity depends on international trade, making up 60 per cent of the country’s total economic activity. ...
There are heartening signs that the extractive sector is once again becoming an attractive prospect for investors and a source of economic prosperity for New Zealand, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The beginnings of a resurgence in extractive industries are apparent in media reports of the sector in the past ...
The return of the historic Ō-Rākau battle site to the descendants of those who fought there moved one step closer today with the first reading of Te Pire mō Ō-Rākau, Te Pae o Maumahara / The Ō-Rākau Remembrance Bill. The Bill will entrust the 9.7-hectare battle site, five kilometres west ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has announced 25 new high-speed EV charging hubs along key routes between major urban centres and outlined the Government’s plan to supercharge New Zealand’s EV infrastructure. The hubs will each have several chargers and be capable of charging at least four – and up to 10 ...
The coalition Government will not proceed with the previous Government’s plans to regulate residential property managers, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “I have written to the Chairperson of the Social Services and Community Committee to inform him that the Government does not intend to support the Residential Property Managers Bill ...
The Government has announced an independent review into the disability support system funded by the Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha. Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston says the review will look at what can be done to strengthen the long-term sustainability of Disability Support Services to provide disabled people and ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith has attended the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva and outlined the Government’s plan to restore law and order. “Speaking to the United Nations Human Rights Council provided us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while responding to issues and ...
The Government and Rotorua Lakes Council are committed to working closely together to end the use of contracted emergency housing motels in Rotorua. Associate Minister of Housing (Social Housing) Tama Potaka says the Government remains committed to ending the long-term use of contracted emergency housing motels in Rotorua by the ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay heads overseas today for high-level trade talks in the Gulf region, and a key OECD meeting in Paris. Mr McClay will travel to Riyadh to meet with counterparts from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). “New Zealand’s goods and services exports to the Gulf region ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford has outlined six education priorities to deliver a world-leading education system that sets Kiwi kids up for future success. “I’m putting ambition, achievement and outcomes at the heart of our education system. I want every child to be inspired and engaged in their learning so they ...
The new NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) App is a secure ‘one stop shop’ to provide the services drivers need, Transport Minister Simeon Brown and Digitising Government Minister Judith Collins say. “The NZTA App will enable an easier way for Kiwis to pay for Vehicle Registration and Road User Charges (RUC). ...
Whānau with tamariki growing up in emergency housing motels will be prioritised for social housing starting this week, says Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka. “Giving these whānau a better opportunity to build healthy stable lives for themselves and future generations is an essential part of the Government’s goal of reducing ...
Racing Minister Winston Peters has paid tribute to an icon of the industry with the recent passing of Dave O’Sullivan (OBE). “Our sympathies are with the O’Sullivan family with the sad news of Dave O’Sullivan’s recent passing,” Mr Peters says. “His contribution to racing, initially as a jockey and then ...
Assalaamu alaikum, greetings to you all. Eid Mubarak, everyone! I want to extend my warmest wishes to you and everyone celebrating this joyous occasion. It is a pleasure to be here. I have enjoyed Eid celebrations at Parliament before, but this is my first time joining you as the Minister ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced Pharmac’s largest ever budget of $6.294 billion over four years, fixing a $1.774 billion fiscal cliff. “Access to medicines is a crucial part of many Kiwis’ lives. We’ve committed to a budget allocation of $1.774 billion over four years so Kiwis are ...
Hon Paula Bennett has been appointed as member and chair of the Pharmac board, Associate Health Minister David Seymour announced today. "Pharmac is a critical part of New Zealand's health system and plays a significant role in ensuring that Kiwis have the best possible access to medicines,” says Mr Seymour. ...
Hundreds of New Zealand families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) will benefit from a new Government focus on prevention and treatment, says Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. “We know FASD is a leading cause of preventable intellectual and neurodevelopmental disability in New Zealand,” Dr Reti says. “Every day, ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges. “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jenny Stewart, Professor of Public Policy, ADFA Canberra, UNSW Sydney For years, First Nations people have been telling governments they want to be listened to. In particular, they want more ownership of the programs and services that are supposed to help them. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gregory Moore, Senior Research Associate, School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, The University of Melbourne Why do trees have bark? Julien, age 6, Melbourne. This is a great question, Julien. We are so familiar with bark on trees, that most of us ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anthony Nasser, Senior Lecturer in Physiotherapy, University of Technology Sydney PeopleImages.com – Yuri A/Shutterstock The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is an important ligament in the knee. It runs from the thigh bone (femur) to the shin bone (tibia) and helps stabilise ...
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 I covered the May 2 United Kingdom local government elections for The Poll Bludger. The Blackpool South parliamentary byelection was also held, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Deanna Grant-Smith, Professor of Management, University of the Sunshine Coast The federal government has announced a “Commonwealth Prac Payment” to support selected groups of students doing mandatory work placements. Those who are studying to be a teacher, nurse, midwife or social ...
We round up everything coming to streaming services this week, including Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+, Apple TV+, ThreeNow, Neon and TVNZ+. If you love a dark comedy: Bodkin (Netflix, May 9)An English podcaster, an Irish podcaster and American podcaster walk into a pub and…make a TV show? ...
By Eleisha Foon, RNZ Pacific senior journalist A Pacific regionalism academic has called out New Zealand’s Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters for withholding information from the public on AUKUS and says the security deal “raises serious questions for the Pacific region”. Auckland University of Technology academic Dr Marco de Jong ...
How worried should we be about the cloud? This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. I currently have a few thousand unread emails languishing in my inbox, mostly old marketing newsletters and piles of unread science journal press releases. I have a similar number ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nuurrianti Jalli, Assistant Professor of Communication Studies College of Arts and Sciences Department of Languages, Literature, and Communication Studies, Northern State University Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Southeast Asian governments not only have to deal with the virus but also with the false ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Murakami Wood, Professor of Critical Surveillance and Securities Studies, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa The skyline of Riyadh, the capital and largest city of the Kingdom of Saudia Arabia.(Shutterstock) There is a long history of planned city building by both governments ...
The LIVE Recording of A View from Afar podcast will begin today at 12:45pm May 6, 2024 (NZST) which is Sunday evening, 8:30pm (USEST). In an analytical essay titled ‘A moment of friction’ political scientist Dr Paul Buchanan wrote how we are living within a decisive moment of ...
The Boil Up’s Lucinda Bennett considers the oyster – from freshness to pearls to the joy of shucking your own. This is an excerpt from our weekly food newsletter, The Boil Up. In Carmen Maria Machado’s short story ‘Eight Bites’, a woman begins her last supper before bariatric surgery with “a cavalcade ...
Asia Pacific Report A group of 65 Auckland University academics have written an open letter to vice-chancellor Dawn Freshwater criticising the institution’s stance over students protesting in solidarity with Palestine. They have called on her administration to “support” the students who were denied permission to establish an “overnight encampment” by ...
The Student Volunteer Army is on the march, generating approximately 1.6 million hours of volunteering from roughly 35,000 secondary school students in just five years. For Rebekah Brown, the pathway to volunteering started with her singing coach. With a passion for the arts, the suggestion to volunteer at Acting Antics, ...
Keeping up with online communication can be exhausting, so Fran Barclay enlisted the help of Meta’s new ‘intelligent assistant’ to respond to all her messages. Could her mates tell the difference? For centuries, technology has ruled the ways in which we communicate. From the dawn of written language, to the ...
Jamie Arbuckle, a councillor who has become an member of parliament, says he has settled into having two roles so comfortably he's going to keep both pay cheques. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Luis Gómez Romero, Senior Lecturer in Human Rights, Constitutional Law and Legal Theory, University of Wollongong Fifty years ago, Australian feminist Anne Summers denounced “the ideology of sexism” governing over so many women’s lives. Unfortunately, sexism is as lethal today as it ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jose Antonio Lara-Hernandez, Senior Researcher in Architecture, Auckland University of Technology Getty Images The COVID-19 pandemic and the hybrid work patterns it fostered have changed the way we think about office space, and central business districts in general. While fears ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dale Boccabella, Associate Professor of Taxation Law, UNSW Sydney There’s a good reason your local volunteer-run netball club doesn’t pay tax. In Australia, various nonprofit organisations are exempt from paying income tax, including those that do charitable work, such as churches. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Marina Deller, Casual Academic, Creative Writing and English Literature, Flinders University NetflixComedy is opening up spaces for silences to be broken and trauma stories to be told. In 2018, Hannah Gadsby started a revolution with Nanette, asking audiences to rethink ...
The workplace can be a minefield of bad comms and passive aggression. Kinksters can help you navigate it. A friend and colleague recently gave me a compliment I loved. They told me I’d always been good at emotional communication and making people feel comfortable. “But I feel like it’s really ...
Even if some students are now just texting on their laptops. Stewart Sowman-Lund writes in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. ...
Councils from Horowhenua, Kāpiti, Wairarapa, the Hutt Valley, Porirua and Wellington City will meet this Friday to work together on a plan for a Greater Wellington region water deal. ...
Renowned musician, advocate, and proud born and raised daughter of Tauranga, Ria Hall, is announcing her candidacy for Mayor of Tauranga and Pāpāmoa Ward for the upcoming election on July 20th. ...
The new Aotearoa histories curriculum is rich with potential. There’s still work to be done, but the education minister’s criticisms about ‘balance’ miss the mark, argues primary school teacher Jessie Moss. In 2015, Ōtorohanga College students presented to parliament a petition signed by more than 10,000 people calling for a ...
For too long our so-called national bird has maintained its stranglehold on the economy of regional New Zealand. Thanks to the fast track legislation, we will have our revenge. Theories abound on what ails New Zealand’s economy. National leader Chris Luxon has posited that we’re negative, wet, whiny, and inward-looking; ...
Comment: The debate over the future relationship between news and social media is bringing us closer to a long-overdue reckoning. Social media isn’t trying to kill journalism, because social media has never really cared about journalism. Social media is resolutely in the attention business. News propels some attention — perhaps ...
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For the past 12 years, Georgia-Rose Brown has balanced on the brink of making an Olympic Games – but always landed gracefully on the wrong side. Reaching the Olympics is a dream the gymnast has harboured since she was a six-year-old; a dream that would dwindle every four years, yet ...
Late one afternoon in March 1860 a man in a thin green velveteen jacket and a wide-awake hat arrived on foot at a sheep station named Glenmark, about 65 kilometres north of Christchurch. The man was in his mid-fifties but he looked older. Several people who met him that day ...
If building one of Auckland’s possible waterfront stadiums was funded privately, it would need to hold a sold-out Ed Sherran concert every weekday for 25 years. That’s Rob Hamlin’s finding – he’s a senior marketing lecturer at the University of Otago. “It’s not going to happen; forget about it,” he ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra A new Commonwealth Prac Payment will provide students with $319.50 a week when they are on clinical and professional placements. The payment will be means tested and start from July 1 next year, which ...
Asia Pacific Report About 500 people honoured Palestinian journalists in the heart of the New Zealand city of Auckland today for their brave coverage of Israel’s War on Gaza, now in its seventh month with almost 35,000 people killed, mostly women and children. Marking the annual May 3 World Press ...
The Government Communications Security Bureau denies hosting a foreign spying capability flagged by the watchdog, differentiating it from the system recently criticised. ...
RNZ News A group of academic staff at New Zealand’s largest university have expressed concern at the administration’s move to block a protest encampment that was planned to take place on campus calling for support for the rights of Palestinians. This week, the University of Auckland warned that while it ...
Genterwocky After a hard days marching, Sir Doocey calls in at the Village Tavern For a pint of ale and a pork pie. The grim villagers stare at him. “Do not be travelling on the forest road,” warns a crusty old beak. “And why is that, antique peasant?” Grins Sir ...
Political conferences after a party returns to power are usually a chance for some healthy, even unhealthy backslapping. Yet National Party president Sylvia Wood’s address to its mainland representatives on Saturday hardly contained the unalloyed delight that one might have expected following National’s escape from the wilderness of opposition. Yes, ...
Comment: Almost half the world is voting in national elections this year and artificial intelligence is the elephant in the room. There are genuine fears AI-generated or AI-edited deepfakes will potentially manipulate election outcomes not just in the US and UK, but critically in countries such as India. For that ...
Ahead of the reality franchise’s return to New Zealand, allow us to introduce the eight brides and grooms. Chuck on a veil and tie back your man bun, because it’s time to say “I do” to a new season of Married at First Sight NZ. The reality TV “social experiment” ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Norton, Professor in the Practice of Higher Education Policy, Australian National University Every year on June 1, student debt in Australia is indexed to inflation. In 2023, high inflation pushed the indexation rate to 7.1%, the highest since 1990. This ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Changes in the May 14 budget will cut the student debt of more than three million people, wiping more than $3 billion from what people owe. The government will cap the HELP indexation rate ...
Asia Pacific Report The prosecutor’s office at the International Criminal Court (ICC) has appealed for an end to what it calls intimidation of its staff, saying such threats could constitute an offence against the “administration of justice” by the world’s permanent war crimes court. The Hague-based office of ICC Prosecutor ...
By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk A women’s union in New Caledonia has staged a sit-in protest this week to support senior Kanak indigenous journalist Thérèse Waia, who works for public broadcaster Nouvelle-Calédonie la Première, after a smear attack by critics. The peaceful demonstration was held on ...
New Zealand Food Safety is monitoring overseas recalls of Indian packaged spice products manufactured by MDH and Everest due to concerns over a cancer-causing pesticide. ...
By Stephen Wright and Stefan Armbruster of BenarNews Fiji’s ranking in a global press freedom index has jumped into the top tier of countries with free or mostly free media after its government last year repealed a draconian law that threatened journalists with prison for doing their jobs. Fiji’s improvement ...
We might be in Invercargill but all anyone can talk about is Gore. Specifically, Salford Street. That’s where three-year-old Lachlan Jones lived, south of the centre of town, between the A&P Showgrounds and the Mataura River. Roughly 1.2 km away from the single level home he lived in with his ...
MONDAY I lined up the latest round of civil servants from city hall against the wall, and signalled for the firing squad to drop their rifles. I stepped up onto a wooden crate to look at the office workers in the eye. But that didn’t feel right, so I found ...
Keen hiker and second-year MSc student Liam Hewson wears two hats when he’s in the great outdoors. “The scientist in me appreciates nature and goes, ‘Oh, there’s that thing and there’s another thing,’ but then the tramper and the outdoorsy person in me thinks, ‘Cool bush.’” Born and bred in ...
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Interesting that a global slowdown is occurring right when the planet actually needs it to happen.
Of course, to economists this is BAD news. And rapid slowdown is actually very bad news, with banks likely to force all and sundry onto the street if they don’t get paid.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=12221891
But right now it’s gradual.
“Certainly there is a new message there that we are in a new ‘normal’ environment — getting used to lower rates of growth than we have been used to historically,” says Yetsenga.”
Watch this space. Blame for the effects of the global slowdown slowing down NZ will get thrown at the Coalition. Winston warned us of this pre-election.
Nothing wrong with slowing down. We could keep economic activity relatively busy on retrofitting to a more sustainable economy. No real pain required.
Except those poor rich folks, the free ride still being free and easy, but losing some impetus.
Full agreement with you wethebleople.
Begs the question; “How much is enough”?
You are so right cleangreen. Some people have never sorted a need from a want, so they want everything.
I’m not sure if we have this in NZ yet, but with homelessness and foodbank patronage still pretty high it would not go amiss.
https://www.sbs.com.au/yourlanguage/korean/en/audiotrack/korean-migrant-volunteers-feeding-25000-homeless-people-year?fbclid=IwAR3iOTzWPTK2-Y1b5jm2L78TkHyoC9JZ4L6DaAGdTo6FN_cA25bqF6iqAZk
Equity in an “Egalitarian” society?
Brian Easton looks into the Health Care in NZ compared with the top 11 countries.
Health: “What has happened to healthcare is nicely illustrated by an international analysis of healthcare systems by the prestigious (American) Commonwealth Fund. It compares 11 countries (it always finds the US has the worst system). In 2017 it found New Zealand’s ranking was 8th (out of 11) on the equity dimension, ahead of France, Canada and the US. We were behind Britain, Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, Norway, Germany and Australia.”
And Education: “In contrast, the schooling system claims to be directly funded to offset inequity. However only 3 percent of the total resourcing (operational and staffing) provided to our schools is allocated on the basis of disadvantage. Comparable international jurisdictions allocate around 6 percent.”
https://www.pundit.co.nz/content/have-we-abandoned-the-egalitarian-society
Take a bow team national, health and education plundered for ideological and political means.
Zero concern for the impacts on NZ as a whole as long as their backers are happy with team national.
Lest NZ forget at the next few general elections and local council ones which are full of national aligned stooges.
That’s team neoliberal, spanning both major parties since 1984.
1000% Sacha.
@Sacha +1, you can dress Labour up all you want with Ardern, but that dosn’t alter the fact that they are neoliberal.
Agrigeneration – putting solar generation onto the same land that’s used for agriculture can even increase the agricultural productivity of the land in hot dry regions. The shade can help reduce evaporation, and it seems if the plant growth is limited by other resources then getting too much sunlight reduces plant growth.
https://cleantechnica.com/2019/04/12/fraunhofer-reports-combining-farming-with-solar-186-more-efficient-in-summer-of-2018/
Putting wind turbines on farms happens pretty much all the time already. But I can’t see any major downsides to putting solar and wind generation and agriculture all on the same bit of land for even more productivity.
Andre, that’s really cool, what a great idea.
During the drought this summer it really troubled the girls and myself that many farms didn’t have shade for their stock. We would see animals sweltering in 30+ degree heat without a single tree casting shadow in the paddocks. It was upsetting to see.
Meanwhile at home the only green grass was under the trampoline.
Solar panels with cows would be a fantastic solution, providing shade and green grass for feed, power and food/dairy/meat. It’s like companion planting with different elements.
Thanks for sharing Andre.
Andre and Cinny,
I opened up our ‘stock pen’ as it had a roof over the top with open sides and our sheep always camped there i n the hottest days.
I had to keep the water troughs filled every two days as well.
For every other year since 2005 I never had to do this, so climate change is now with us for sure.
I’m trying to remember to transfer most of this #4 thread to How to get there tomorrow as it talks about the problem and ideas and anecdotes relating. Good thinking. I will miss stuff and if anyone else sees things that we should archive copying it over for the Sunday post would be good, checking that it isn’t already there. The Sunday post gets archived and Open Mike doesn’t. I hope that people will go fishing through past How to get theres when looking for ideas. It is something lasting that we have achieved from this dynamic blog.
?? They all get archived.
Right lprent. I mis-spoke. What I am thinking is that the items that the How to get there post has will I hope be relevant for people looking for future-thinking ideas. Whereas in Open Mike they will be scattered and hard to find by keywords which would bring up individual items if the looker was lucky. Whereas accessing archived How to get theres will bring up a bumper bunch of informative ideas and topics in one place.
Shade for cattle is a no brainer . Its been proven they produce more plus its a good thing to do .
Gday wags, at what point can the word cruelty enter the conversation in regards to stock and shelter?
Not looking to wind you up, I am genuinely interested in yr response.
I feel at a basic level, it’s an animals ‘right’ to shelter. Even more so when commerce is involved.
As an abstract, planting of stock shelter belts could be a great way of helping meet the 1 billion trees target.
Subsidised by the state.
Imagine cockies potentially voting for Labour…..
Any cattle that have no shelter from the hot summer sun would be appriaching cruelty imo. They did a study in the hawkesbay a few years ago and the temps on a black beasts back approach 60degrees in the worst heat .
Spread trees would be my preference as shelter belts tend to bring mud . And mud means bugs especially in lactating animals .
Most councils help with pole planting costs but i believe scattered trees are not recognized for carbon capture i believe?
Thanks mate I appreciate that.
I don’t doubt most stock owners care for their animals but there seems to be a blind spot in regards shelter.
As mentioned up thread there is an increase in productivity with shelter, but… less pasture… mud around shelter belts… the neighbours don’t do it…
The mud effect from shelter belts would be less on dairy farms due to them really being in the same paddock twice in a row. There’s a plant called miscanthus? That is supposed to be very quick growng and the big rotorainers can brush over it .
Im pro famrimg but im no apologist for the madness that has gone on in Canterbury and down south .
I live rurally in the Manawatu, surrounded by dairy farms.
I am not anti farming.
I do not like a lot of common farming practices e.g.: the urea phosphate addiction, shelterless paddocks, stock in waterways, round-up between crop cycles.
To me it comes down to the $.
What are usually decent people, have a wilful blind spot when it comes to their ways.
As we all know it takes a lot of courage to step outside the flock and change a habit.
I would love to see the primary producers return to their rightful place of the food supply chain.
In my lifetime the tables have turned against them.
I’ve been off at school all day or I’d have chipped in earlier. Production losses come from heat stress – and wind chill. Shelter can make a big difference for temperature extremes at both ends of the scale. Scattered trees are difficult where stock may take them out, and fencing each tree could be considered a PITA. But I believe it’s worth it. Also, if your stock have access to mineral licks they’ll typically leave trees alone (cept the tasty leaves).
As weather patterns continue to deteriorate Farmers main defense against drought and subsequent bankruptcy is trees. Trees that double as fodder, and triple as nitrogen fixers.
Shelter belts that grow fence posts, nuts, fruit, stock food, honey…
The limits are imagination.
Thanks WTB, it all makes sense.
We live in interesting times, where change, adapting and questioning what we have always done is imperative.
I have a mate who works for a company selling fertilizer.
They get soil samples from different parts of the property and mix a fertilizer containing the minerals that are deficient.
The idea is soil health is paramount. As opposed to going for the crack pipe habit of phosphate/urea.
Farmers are conservative (keen on status quo), but these other theories (organic/permaculture) are slowly becoming more popular.
Heaven forbid, they may become mainstream in our lifetime.
Of course with plant-based diets we wouldn’t have to shade animals Cinny because we wouldn’t be farming them. Animal agriculture is a major contributor to greenhouse gases and degrades our environment in other ways and needs to end.
Better for the animals and better for us, especially as it moving to plant-based diets increases the chances of humans actually surviving.
Not sure that is true Grey Area. Animals are an integral part of ecosystems and always have been. We could lower stocking rates, but eliminating stock is highly problematic. In NZ we had ridiculous numbers of birds that brought oceanic resources to land. On the land some moa species ‘took the place’ of cows grazing/browsing ground covers. These were then laid low, able to be composted through winters season adding nutrients for the next spring flush. Fungi too, have many species designed to work with both dung and plant matter.
Natures systems are not vegan, vegetarian, or even lactose intolerant.
I guess we’ll see. Or maybe we won’t.
Nature’s systems look nothing like the horror show we’ve created.
The ability to find shade is absolutely necessary for the basic comforts of the animals as well. I’ve been increasingly dismayed by the removal of windbreaks in favour of vast irrigation networks. Could it be pasture growth is quantifiable, animal well-being is not?
Detention camps run by the military. I think there’s a name for those.
https://twitter.com/MSNBC/status/1116704314725163008
https://www.facebook.com/DoctorWho/photos/a.182096918471010/3084745078206165/?type=3
Looking even closer!
https://talk.whatthefuckjusthappenedtoday.com/uploads/default/original/2X/e/e1bcb3f7d50528c3204d2620230eb6a5f605766d.jpeg
A chinese gentleman showed me an image today of old style chinese charcoal burners. All the holes look like the photo of the black hole.
Can’t find it on the local web yet but chinese social media is full of it.
About the killing of the ‘mocking bird Julian Assange;’
This is a history of sad repute by our leading ‘peace makers’.
It was shown that ‘the dirty tricks campaign’ had gone out to deliberately repeatedly “discredit” the whistle blowers again now beginning with Julian Assange.
Now on sex charges, so what else will they throw at him?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tw8yf6Luwo4
They will lock him up for life as Daniel Ellsberg On Assange Arrest: The Beginning of the End For Press Freedom video attest to; – a powerful video expression by Daniel.
Thank you for you and Julian Assange and Chelsea Manning for standing up for our freedom of expression.
Hero’s you all are to us.
Will you still be cheering him if he’s found guilty on the rape charges ????
Who is cheering him on?
The only cheering is TRP, Mcflock etc who think that abandonment of due process, extradition to the States and solitary confinement for life, for something that isn’t a crime, is appropriate.
The rest of us are capable of separating the public good, from wikileaks, from the fact that Sweden should have followed due process, and punished him only, for his actions that are a crime. If found guilty.
lol pretty much everything about your two main paragraphs was incorrect or probably incorrect.
Due process is being followed.
The sentence for the crimes which the yanks are trying to extradite him for isn’t life.
Hacking is a crime (albeit one he is probably innocent of).
The Swedes did and are following due process.
And I, for one, don’t think that the incorrect scenario you outlined would be appropriate.
Between you, who I thought was better than that, TRP, and a few other “black and white” non thinkers, who cannot comprehend that no one is all good, or all bad, are making this site a cesspit.
Making any reasoned discussion, uncomfortable.
Francesca, who you would justifiably expect to be tough on a rapist, has put forward reasoned points.
The replies have been an unthinking witch hunt.
I am disappointed at the low level of intelligent discussion displayed here.
OK, so let’s start from item 1:
How is due process being “abandoned”?
If you actually really think that this has even the slightest thing to do with rape, then all I can say is that you must be a very naive person indeed.
+100
Describing James as naive is very kind Adrian.
I’m just glad that he looks like he might get to face the rape charges. Sad to see so many on here able to overlook that simply because of his political views.
If it wasn’t for his political embarrassment of war criminals, the rape charges would have been sorted long ago.
And James. I know you don’t give a flying fuck, about women being kept in poverty, or disadvantaged.
So. What’s with all the holier than thou?
This post is for Wild Katipo …. who noted James was like a shitty wolf …. who didn’t give a shit
She nailed him ….. as he is a one eyed, opportunistic, inconsistent, rape apologist troll
james ….
….Who used sleazy rape culture posts to diminish the woman involved in the waikato cheifs sexual assault controversy.
….Who uses and advocates for the lawless rapey company ‘uber’.
….who advocated for public toilet sex … he did this when defending some other over-sexed rugby player.
….who thought it fair enough Oxfam should lose funding ……… for two sacked workers who allegedly used prostitutes
….He who who called right wing Brazilian leader and rape celebrator Jair Bolsonaro “charismatic”
James ….Who ran around with glee …. trying to smear Labour as ‘rape apologists’ …. over a drunk committing assults at a Labour youth event …
And has run around the Assange thread.. trying to label everyone ‘rape apologists’…
In reality James is a troll and if Assange played for the NZ allblacks he’d be defending him.
**************************************************
This Video is about the recent history of Russia……
” Yeltsin went into the election campaign with a rating hovering between 3%-5%, reflecting what must be the single most disastrous presidency of the 20th century: Under Yeltsin, Russia’s economy collapsed some 60%, the male life expectancy plummeted from 68 years to 56, millions were reduced to living on subsistence farming for the first time since Stalin as wages went unpaid for years at a time. Russia was on its way to going extinct—but about 3-5% of the population (plus or minus 3%) was making out like bandits. Probably because they actually were bandits. “https://pando.com/2015/05/17/neocons-2-0-the-problem-with-peter-pomerantsev/
The music starts about 6 mins 48 secs
The Wolf and bears ….. 11 mins 55 secs
Iwould describe it as …. 2 minutes to midnight rock ……
the link I posted incorrectly
https://pando.com/2015/05/17/neocons-2-0-the-problem-with-peter-pomerantsev/
You seem to making a habit of writing disparaging comments about other regular commenters here on TS as your single focus. Yesterday, you were targeting Wayne on OM @ 2 and now you are having a go at James. By doing so, you are setting a tone and creating an environment in which others find it o.k. to join your posse and chime in. I don’t think this is conducive to healthy debate or making others feel welcome, do you?
I have no posse Incognito ….. unless your talking a posse against me quite often.
Anyway ,,, surprise , surprise …. you missed the point of my post …. which I’ll repeat ….. as having a one eyed, opportunistic, inconsistent, rape apologist troll like james, ….. trying to scare people off and shut down the argument is worse than my being a bit rude to such types ….
james ….
….Who used sleazy rape culture posts to diminish the woman involved in the waikato cheifs sexual assault controversy.
….Who uses and advocates for the lawless rapey company ‘uber’.
….who advocated for public toilet sex … he did this when defending some other over-sexed rugby player.
….who thought it fair enough Oxfam should lose funding ……… for two sacked workers who allegedly used prostitutes
….He who who called right wing Brazilian leader and rape celebrator Jair Bolsonaro “charismatic”
James ….Who ran around with glee …. trying to smear Labour as ‘rape apologists’ …. over a drunk committing assults at a Labour youth event …
And has run around the Assange thread.. trying to label everyone ‘rape apologists’…
Same with Wayne Mapp … who should be shamed and reviled … until prompted into doing something good …. Like a apology and donation to his victims ….. the dead and maimed ones.
“We’ve heard the tragic tales of our murdered Christchurch Muslims bravely trying to protect their children / their wife / their husband — their mother / their father and their community ……
……The same brave sacrifices obviously took place multiple times …… in our SAS revenge raid on the Afghanistan village,,,,, under Wayne Mapp and John Key……
But we never heard of these brave people …… who we killed ,,,, and who were then dissapeared from existence.
Even though I feel they were more human than Wayne Mapp / Key are ….”
The problem is incognito ….. How do you propose to shame the blatantly reprehensible among us ….. without being blunt ??.
My politics is I want the truth …. and less wars.
Sorry if that offends you ——– I extend you my plausible sincerity
enjoy another video ….
https://www.bitchute.com/video/hUaWa8L9YPXL/
Is that what you’re trying to do here, shaming the blatantly (!) reprehensible? If I understand you correctly, your targets are reprehensible because, in your opinion, they have reprehensible opinions that you clearly object to. If so, you feel justified to play the man instead of the ball?
Not sure what you mean by that. Is wanting “the truth” politics? And “less wars” [sic]? How do you envisage your shaming strategy here on TS leads to “the truth” and “less wars”? Do you expect “the blatantly reprehensible among us” to go through some cathartic shaming ritual and become more like you, for example?
Or do you simply want them to shut up and go away?
Or do you want to punish them?
I’m honestly at a loss as to what you’re thinking and what you’re trying to achieve here. In any case, I don’t think it is working, do you?
Also Incog …James has smeared multitude people here at TS …. in multi threads ….
I’m quite specific to where my criticism is directed … and I try to make an informative point while doing it.
And Here’s a thing we both missed about James …. to quote the troll … ” Sad to see so many on here able to overlook that simply because of his political views”
How is it political to want democratic OPEN govt Incognito ?? ….Or is it political in the sense of Authoritarian versus open democratic ???
You’ll find I argue like a sticky gummy-bear … I use snipey posts at me to expand my argument ….
Like this
So, for you it is personal, some kind of vendetta?
Uhhhmmm, what exactly did we miss there? What blatantly reprehensive act was hiding in plain view?
Is this “the truth” that you were referring to or have you moved the goal posts? Anyway, how does your shaming of so-called trolls here on TS pave a path to “democratic OPEN govt”?
You sound a tad defensive and you are quite evasive. Do you object to being queried about your motivations and conduct here on TS?
If you cannot argue a point in your own words, a video won’t help much either. People who cannot stand on their own two feet often use them as crutches …
Sorry incognito ….. when I meant sticky gummy-bear,,, in this instance I meant using your post to expand the case and Argument ,,,, that Julian Assange is hunted and persecuted for reasons that have nothing to do …. nothing to do with the smears james has been running around this site with.
He has not answered whether he Would use the gutter label and call ‘Amy goodman , Naiomei Shaei, Ranata Viella , Gleen Greenwald, edward snowden,’ and all the other people featured in the democracy now news item … ” rape apologists” ???
And how come the Democracy Now news item had a totally different weighting of content and information …. compared to james posts … which are pretty much 100% rape apologist finger pointing or other shit smeary accusations on this topic….
How come Amy Goodmans reporting and Denocracy now …. carry such a different story ,,, than those being spread by many TS posters… and others joining in with the James campaigns ???.
Neither smeary James or others speak of the best step forward if it truly were about two women … like take their views into consideration at a formal tribunal or something ….
And we could recognize Julian Assange has children and they are victims too…. of what has been quite a long sentence so far …
You and many others here on TS seem to have major problems separating the issue from the commenter. In fact, I think it’s lazy and possibly even deliberate because it suits you. In any case, it does not make for good discussion or debate. That is my point, which you have not addressed in a satisfactory way.
https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/386984/islam-is-peace-pakistani-city-shows-support-for-victims-of-the-christchurch-mosque-terror-attacks
New Zealand World
‘Islam is peace’: Pakistani city shows support for victims of the Christchurch mosque terror attacks
9:08 am today
More than 20,000 people in a Pakistani city have created a striking visual tribute to the victims of the Christchurch mosque massacre.
More than 20,000 people in Shorkot, Pakistan created a striking visual tribute to the victims of the Christchurch mosque massacre.
Dressed in white, they stood in formation in front of a shrine to create a huge living image of the Al Noor Mosque in Deans Avenue, 13,000 kilometres away.
They lined up behind a large banner saying ‘Solidarity with Martyrs of Christchurch, from Pakistan’, and hundreds more formed the message ‘Islam Is Peace’ in English.
Spokesperson Asif Tanveer Awan says the event in the city of Shorkot was organised by a think-tank, the Muslim Institute, in order to send a strong message to the world that Muslims want peace and cooperation.
Two women telling how they have survived seeing their countries change in front of their eyes and being dislocated. And they have learned to adapt but are aware of the goodness they have in life but also I think both do not believe in getting too attached to institutions, and the need to be thinking about things, wary of change.
Which I think is a mindset we have to adopt.
It seems to me that we have come to a stop in our minds at the end of last century, and are slow to see how we have to change for the 21st century. Also have we appreciated what was good and valuable, and how we were, in the 20th century and carried our bundles of goodness to preserve them and share, in this century.
That will elp us to keep being potentially wonderful humans living in harmony yet individuality with each other and the planet, and not allow ourselves to be turned into machine and efficiency pawns, human resources being pushed around by powerful, mindless and soulless others – people and corporate conglomerates.
https://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/saturday/audio/2018690860/go-went-gone-the-asylum-seeker-experience-in-germany
https://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/saturday/audio/2018690863/ella-al-shamahi-neanderthals
Yesterday was the saddest day I have ever witnessed on The Standard, one after another people came on to say that they were actually glad Assange had been arrested, I of course have always known that The Standard harbors a lot of reactionaries, but I honestly didn’t realize that it harbored so many stupid, short sighted reactionaries who are so easily sucked in by establishment propaganda…I was shocked, am shocked at the depth of stupidity that has been so proudly displayed by so many here..history will of course, and rightly, judge them cruelly.
The Standard via Te Reo Putake yesterday finally converged seamlessly with Mike Hosking…if that doesn’t give you pause to think..
A very dark day for the progressive Left.
There is much disdain for Assange from people who wouldn’t be prepared to expose themselves for a mass moral purpose as he did. A lot of people are guided in their direction by their own individual concerns or that of the general group they form part of.
An outlier like Assange acting for the principle of transparency of dark doings against the mass of u. He has used means that have been made illegal by the very people carrying out or enabling the dark doings. It is a rare and significant protest on the behalf of those who care that such machinations should be exposed. Thanks for that Julian, it takes determination, vision and inner strength to do such things which few have.
Well put, thanks.
I wholeheartedly agree Adrian.
The display of cognitive dissonance is disturbing.
We all know that the facts are:
Julian Assange was not charged with rape or any other crime by the Swedish authorities.
Julian Assange has published information that has never been refuted that has caused considerable embarrassment to many.
Those feasting on the downfall of Juilan Assange seem to have little introspection, display even less logic and no empathy
What many seem not to appreciate is that the false accusation of rape is an extremely evil crime.
The great news is now he isn’t hiding like a coward they can conclude their investigation and charge him with rape if they think so.
Nice to see that statue of limitations hasn’t come in.
I passed comment yesty along those lines, but more from a fascination angle.
I am sure those who disappointed you, would see themselves as progressive.
My hunch is the sexual allegations is what tarnished most of their opinions.
Akin to trying to separate the art from the artist, eg Picasso, in time Assange will be seen separate to the deeds/allegations.
I find it frustrating that the ‘left’ saves the worst for its closest allies.
I think it’s sader that people would not want him to see justice for crimes committed.
Apart from the Swedish sexual complaints what are the other crimes you see him culpable of James?
What else would you honestly have expected…
Queenstown is wanting to expand its tourism, yet there is so much reliance on air traffic that it may have reached capacity. The idea that where there is money to be made, something to sell, and that capital is invested until the collapse of the resource is the uppermost attitude of business and the uncaring NZ money accreters.
https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/386994/queenstown-flight-cancellations-due-to-sick-air-traffic-control-staff
There was an enquiry some years ago about a plane taking off in conditions that were marginal and late in the day because there had been bad weather for some time.
I wonder how often that will happen in this area enclosed by high mountains as seen in the media image. The more planes, the more risk and the more unhappy stranded tourists who expect their bucks to buy them entry, quality experience, and exit as and when required.
Queenstown airport has been effectively running at over 100% for a couple of years and it’s only a matter of time before something breaks. Yesterday’s oops has been on the cards for a while with minimal atc staff cover combined with a town where people get sick a lot for the first 10 years they live here because there’s a new bug on every bus and plane. This affects every employer to varying degrees, but staff critical positions like atc, teaching and police are hard hit.
We are also getting very close to airspace limits with little space if aircraft have to go around, which happens a lot due to a very difficult airport. On Wednesday afternoon most flights (8 I think, can’t get back that far in flightradar) were diverted because of cloud to ground level with the front, which would have cost the airlines a packet. On a day with tricky cross winds there will be jets on hold all over the southern South Island waiting to get an approach slot.
Queenstown airport has also become the de-facto regional airport for the southern South Island. Passengers come from Southland, most of Otago outside Dunedin and South Westland to travel to Auckland, Wellington and Australia. There’s 26 jet aircraft going through ZQN today and 3 ATRs, that’s a typical day.
There’s a fairly solid consensus around the district that the airport’s at it’s limits and needs to move as the current location is beyond it’s capacity, but beyond that it gets tricky. Where does it go to do a better job? A new regional airport will need to be easily connected to it’s main markets, Queenstown and Wanaka, and not have noise or airspace issues.
Three options have been bandied around. First is a dual airport idea with expansion of the existing Wanaka airport which hasn’t gone down well with the good burghers of Wanaka, to say the least. Then there’s two options a new regional airport, Five Rivers, near Lumsden, and Tarras near Wanaka. Tarras is easier to connect with but has noise and airspace constraints, Five Rivers is an excellent site but expensive to connect to existing tourist infrastructure as it’s 100 km south Queenstown. Both would probably need a quick rail connection to avoid bus mayhem, and then you’d have high speed rail to Christchurch sneaking into the mix as well.
So a huge can of worms, vested interests with several airport companies and big operators trying to protect their turf, and locals who’ve had enough of the noise and congestion, but want their city connectivity, and local councils who want it in their patch.
This one’s going to need very strong leadership from Government, and very soon.
We have been told for the last 30 years that the market will sort these things out ….
market failure again
privatise the airports they said
useless
Yep, although in this case the airport is 75.1% local council (QLDC) and 24.9% AIA so local interests still have control. Where it gets bogged down is all the other “interested” parties trying to steer the ship in their direction.
A lot of the growth we’ve seen has been due to the demise of Christchurch as a visitor destination post earthquakes, that market space has been displaced to Wellington and Queenstown. There’s over twice the capacity ZQN – WLG than ZQN – CHC now and that won’t change back.
Bt any solution is going to need to be led by central government, not possible at a local level.
ANZ are starting direct flights NV – AA in August I think, which will very slightly reduce the load on Queenstown. Southlanders won’t need drive there to get to Auckland or further afield.
There will never be another airfield built. The aircraft numbers would have to be high to justify a completely new development. And Lumsden has too many fog days in winter anyway.
It’s going to be interesting to see how the NV-AA thing goes, hope it works for Invercargill’s sake, but don’t think it’ll make much difference to Queenstown. Just hope it doesn’t bugger the frequency of flights to Christchurch.
https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/380920/direct-invercargill-auckland-flights-set-to-launch
The weather issues are equal for all the options, and the airlines want the airport to be able to take wide body aircraft and be at least CAT II, preferably CAT III, so instrument landing. This wouldn’t be a problem at Five Rivers.
Biggest problem with Five Rivers is the 100 km to Queenstown. And that it may threaten the viability of Christchurch.
There will have to be another airport built, Queenstown is getting too difficult to sustain and sooner or later it’s going to break. Whatever the solution it’s going to be hard and expensive. Doing nothing and sticking with the existing airport is in category too.
Ok there will be a critical number of arrivals/departures that determines the financial viability of any new airport. Government funding would be required for such a large investment and I just can’t see it happening. I can’t see Queenstown interests funding it either. But I’m often wrong about things.
If the NV-AA Airbus link succeeds there will probably be one less ATR going out from NV first thing in the mornings.
Why build in Lumsden when NV is already large enough for big jets, slightly less than an hour further away less affected by fog/low cloud. Much less investment to bring up to standard, I’ll get Tim onto right away….
Well here we go again.
Spy bosses dragged into Jami-Lee Ross-Simon Bridges saga
11/04/2019
Tova O’Brien
Newshub’s politica editor Tova O’Brien reports: The war between Simon Bridges and Jami-Lee Ross has gone up a notch. Credits: Newshub.
The war between Simon Bridges and Jami-Lee Ross has gone up a notch with yet more explosive allegations from the former National MP.
Ross has implied Bridges was told by intelligence agencies that a National MP was a Chinese spy.
Our top spies were asked about it at Parliament in their first outing since the Christchurch terror attack.
GCSB boss Andrew Hampton warns against local election online voting
Jami-Lee Ross brings more allegations against National’s Simon Bridges
GCSB, NZSIS concerned about foreign interference in New Zealand election
The leaders of New Zealand’s spy agencies are normally secretive when out in the great wide open.
“We’re really happy to talk to you after the hearing,” Rebecca Kitteridge, director-general of the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service (NZSIS), told Newshub outside Parliament on Thursday morning when she arrived.
Both Kitteridge’s agency and the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) – of which Andrew Hampton is director-general – are being investigated as part of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the March 15 attack.
When asked why the alleged gunman wasn’t on NZSIS’s radar, Kitteridge told Newshub: “Well, I guess that’s what the [Royal Commission of Inquiry] will look into.”
The head of the GCSB said the agency needs a red flag before it can act, and there wasn’t one.
“Lots of people travel to Pakistan, lots of people have gun licences, unfortunately lots of people post not very nice stuff on dodgy websites,” he said.
The spy bosses at Parliament were there to warn MPs about foreign government interference in New Zealand politics. They said they’re not just using cash, but putting pressure on expat communities and even MPs.
When asked if she’s concerned a state might have tried to exert influence over New Zealand MPs, Kitteridge responded: “Yes.”
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2019/04/spy-bosses-dragged-into-jami-lee-ross-simon-bridges-saga.html?ref=ves-nextauto
Meanwhile down on the farm…
Tough article with some very hard lessons. It is hard work emotionally killing. I’ve worked on a farm and seen the calves die and/or be killed. I’ve seen the cows go down and the gun come out. We’ve got to reduce the pressure on people and reducing herd size and areas herds can be would really help. But of course this is about m.bovis and the havoc it has wrought.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/111871137/owner-of-m-bovisinfected-farm-who-had-to-shoot-newborn-calves-you-just-learn-to-grit-your-teeth-and-do-it
How sad – poor young man committed suicide. I suppose he couldn’t get out of his contract which he entered innocently never thinking of such a situation. And as Smit noted it was awful work when he had to do it himself. If farmers actually worked at their own businesses, and were not encouraged by easy credit to buy numerous farms (think Crafar*) there would be less of this sort of result. The bad spongy brain spread of disease in Britain was exacerbated by industrial farming methods.
* In 2009 they owned 22 farms, 18 of which are dairy, and 20,000 cows,[3] making them New Zealand’s largest family owned dairy business.[5]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CraFarms
Poor bastards. That’d break my heart too.
These are the consequences when you try to engineer your way to maximum profit and growth with scant regard for good practice.
It is to be hoped that this will be a lesson to others in this industry and other industries. They need to ask themselves whether profit and growth at any cost is worth the inherent risk.
I doubt they will heed that lesson.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2019/04/climate-change-risks-to-be-assessed-as-new-zealand-s-emissions-labelled-disturbing.html
Climate change is here.
The greens are in government why again?
to be able to say
‘we have been telling you guys for long long time’?
Molten Salt Reactors. If I was at the start of my career this is where I would head right now. Here is one variation:
very interesting
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stable_salt_reactor
We can’t handle our plastic waste responsibly. Maybe this might be better than thousands of nuclear power plants.
https://insideclimatenews.org/news/16012018/csp-concentrated-solar-molten-salt-storage-24-hour-renewable-energy-crescent-dunes-nevada
First point, this salt reactor actually is capable of using the waste (spent fuel) from other nukes as fuel, thereby helping to deal with the problem of waste built up from existing reactors.
Second, it’s in the right power range for large ships. It’s also a pretty useful size for remote installations that are unsuitable for solar.
But yeah, for mainstream grid supply, wind and solar have got so cheap it’s hard to see any new nukes making the grade.
“First point, this salt reactor actually is capable of using the waste (spent fuel) from other nukes as fuel, thereby helping to deal with the problem of waste built up from existing reactors.”
You have my attention now.
It’s an example of the broader class of “fast neutron reactors”. Most of which can be configured to use as fuel the waste from most of today’s reactors.
While the ability to burn other reactor’s waste is attractive, there’s also downsides. The biggest being that burning the uranium238 (that’s a large part of the waste from more common reactors) requires turning most of it into plutonium239 along the way. There’s obvious concerns about military proliferation there.
Personally I’m more interested in thorium based reactors. Because the intermediate steps of the thorium reaction chain are much harder to turn into weapons (though not impossible). But probably just as attractive to terrorists wanting to build dirty bombs.
http://www.world-nuclear.org/information-library/current-and-future-generation/fast-neutron-reactors.aspx
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thorium-based_nuclear_power
Agreed, although the thorium story and MSR’s while technically separate, are in reality very closely aligned. It’s pretty much the same people interested in both at this time.
It’s a good question; I’m a big fan of CSP power, it looks very cool and comes with built-in energy storage. Of all the renewable technologies it’s the one which I suspect has the brightest future.
But it’s important not to underestimate the scale of the challenge and the enormous amount of land and resources that will be consumed to make a serious contribution to the total global need.
These MSR reactors are nothing like your grandfather’s Pressurised Water Reactors. Some typical features:
1. All the safety engineering is ‘walk away’ passive. If something goes wrong the correct thing to do is nothing. The machine will stop and cool itself with no external power or intervention.
2. All the dangerous nucleides, cesium, strontium and iodine are stable compounds within the salt. Even if the plant was bombed, all that would happen is the released molten salt would solidify quickly, the nuclear reaction would stop and no gases would be released.
3. The internal operating pressures are very low, barely 2 -4 atmospheres. The engineering is far easier.
4. They are incredibly flexible with what fuel they use; and will cheerfully burn the waste from existing reactors. All current MSR designs are intended to have zero waste stream. Uranium, thorium, plutonium … gobble, munch, munch.
5. The manufacturing model will be similar to ship building or aircraft manufacture; everything is built and shipped from a single global site, and the sealed reactor units are shipped to wherever needed. Site assembly and certification is hugely reduced and they require almost no maintenance. No back up power, no emergency systems, no super complex control systems, no containment vessel, etc.
6. The cores are intended to have an operating life of about 5 – 10 years, after which the operator swaps to a new unit, shuts down the old one and lets it cool for 3 -5 years. Then ships the spent and empty unit back to the manufacturing site for refurbishment.
These things are just way easier to do, once you have the salt chemistry and fuel cycle sorted. The safety case is hugely less onerous and operating them is relatively simple. Homer Simpson might have trouble fecking with one.
The expectation is the costs will be about half that of new coal plant. These can be rolled out fast and located without huge infrastructure demands. All up I see these as being a faster and more certain route to de-carbonising than renewables on their own.
This could be the missing link in energy budgets to transform to a more resilient economy. We’ve not got the oil resources to do it without mucking up the planet.
Just yesterday I was daydreaming in class about how we might set up a block of renewable energy (using oil energy) and start from there to use less oil and more renewables as we ‘expand out’ to encompass more of industry/market/the globe.
Energy stuff is not my forte, but I do think we might progressively retrofit without too much pain if we work in a methodical manner always reducing consumable energy as we increase sustainable energy.
The issue is that large infrastructure projects require tremendous energy inputs. I’m trying to get my head around how we transition the transition period – if that makes any sense…
I also think they can test these reactors NIMBY. Heard too many false claims from companies posing as saviors. Swap some out for older more dangerous reactors maybe, as in those situations it might be seen as progress.
I’d vehemently oppose anyone testing any form of nuclear reactor here.
I would cheerfully have one in my backyard, indeed I’d love to have a crack at working in one. While the nuclear aspect would be pretty tame, there is real potential for innovative thermochemical downstream processing, the efficient production of bulk hydrogen for instance, that would be really interesting.
MSR’s are nothing like the massive nuclear plants we’re all accustomed to; they’re a fraction of the size. They have more in common with building a large ship than a massive plant.
ORNL successfully ran the first one in the 60’s for five years with no incidents of any kind.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molten-Salt_Reactor_Experiment
It’s not a case of one company promising miracles. At present there are 6 -10 different private companies working towards a licensed design, and the Chinese have an impressive $500m program; leading the way on work being done in 10 different countries. MSR’s are not completely without technical challenges, but most of them appear to be a matter of funding and time, rather than needing to invent wheels. The biggest hurdles are going to be regulatory, and overcoming negative public sentiment toward anything nuclear.
It’s strongly arguable that if the Nixon administration had not shut the original ORNL program down in 1973 for purely political reasons, MSR’s would have likely become the dominant energy source by now … and global warming would never have become an issue.
Looking ahead to when transport is fully electrified, it’s not hard to imagine service stations wanting to have on-site generation in the range of tens of MW. That’s in the same range as what large ships need. It’s not hard to see substantial demand for mass-produced small reactors.
NZ probably won’t ever get there, but much of the rest of the world might. Personally I’d have no concerns about those being nukes, particularly if they were thorium. For military proliferation and terrorism reasons, not any kind of Chernobyl style fears.
Incidentally I’ve just gotten my hands on a bunch of these:
https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/2-3v40Ah-66160-LTO-Lithium-titanate_60842282887.html
Checkout the specs! They aren’t quite the holy grail as their energy density is about 2/3 standard Lithium chemistries, but for applications where weight doesn’t matter too much, like buses, boats, solar storage, etc they’re definitely the next leap forward. Full recharge is possible in 10 minutes!
Down the road a year or two we should see the next gen of solid state Lithiums. If they live up to the promise, then fully electric personal transport will happen very quickly. A huge amount of R&D is going on, but Tesla’s buyout of these guys recently shows concrete progress:
https://www.maxwell.com/
Fun stuff. Professional project or homer?
Professional. I’m using them to eliminate the travelling harness on a high speed shuttle. It recharges when parked for piece change-out, and allows easy 2D freedom of movement with no trailing power cables for the automation. All control data is via RF.
The 20,000+ cycle life is pretty attractive too. Cells like this were either not cost effective or unavailable 12 months ago.
Cool. I fukn hate cables running around the place. That 10C charge rate really does open up a whole lot of opportunities.
even the tripe media ( 2nd behind finance as the biggest benefit industry on NZ economy) shouldn’t be reporting or broadcasting the contents of threats made to public figures
Peter Dutton has apologised for appalling comments he made about his Labor opponent (who happens to be an amputee) in his seat of Dickson. But not before 2 Labor heavyweights, Deputy Leader Tanya Plibersek and Senator Kristina Keneally went to town on him and PM Morrison over the issue.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-04-13/peter-dutton-apologises-to-dickson-rival-ali-france/11000532
Has either of these two “Labor heavyweights” spoken out for their fellow Australian Julian Assange?
And if not, why not?
Keneally did not mince words – cut him right down. Called him a thug, and the ‘worst’ of the liberals. Which must have been a difficult decision to make because it’s a crowded field.
Jesus. We’re lucky we only have Collins and Bennett who are capable of that kind of evil.
Plibersek was pretty much on message too, accusing Dutton of trying to ditch Dickson for a more glamorous seat closer to his mansion in the Gold Coast.
As late as Friday evening Dutton was doubling down on the accusations, by Saturday arvo he’d apologised. The optics were terrible and the overnight polling must have been diabolical for the Liberals.
Called him a thug, and the ‘worst’ of the liberals.
That ugly fuck and his party are “liberal” to the same extent that I’m “conservative,” ie not even when hung over.
STOP THE PRESS!!!!!
In breaking news:
Labour uses Facebook ‘thumbs up’ logo on website !!!!!!!!!!!
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/111975909/labour-uses-facebook-thumbs-up-logo-on-website
A Lee Kenny exclusive no doubt.
Need to sort some support for this Muslim family who’s son is receiving threats and being beaten at school. Grrrr
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12219785
This is bad and sad. My relatives have been teachers, and I have heard that principals can be more concerned about smooth running and meeting Board
requirements than actually fulfilling the requirements of looking after the pastoral care of students as well as the important keeping up on the league table of passes and success as expected.
Has anyone encountered a successful all-school effort to reduce bullying by discussing it and its detrimental effects on the pupil, the bully, and the school as model of a social group within the larger group of society? I wondered about an all-school meeting to discuss the problems and how they affect individuals and show lack of social abilities which are needed in a healthy society. Of course studies in philosophy, different cultures and how they handle the common human
condition should be mandatory but our society has never had deep enough thought to ask for this.
Kia ora R&R.
THE plastic waste should be legerslated so that the manufacturer and retailers pay a percentage to give the waste a valuation to make it profitable to recycle it.
I agree all the chemicals that leach out of our WASTE can and is causing bad side effects on our wildlife and US.
The plastic waste /WASTE problems is not to big to cured its a problem that has to be cured we just need smart simple laws a process to FIX this Problem. Ka kite ano
Some Eco Maori Music for the minute.
Eco Maori exzact thoughts the powerfull people don’t want the truth to get out THE TRUTH IS POWER trump is using all the dirty tricks in his puppets book to control OUR media he has use the power of the USA goverments power to suppress the biggest problem human kind is about to face CLIMATE CHANGE . With the sexual assult charges does one think that Julian would have made such a STUPID move knowing the USA goverment was after his ASS KNOW that acusation is the easyest set up they could come up with pay a girl $10 of thousands to stand up in court and lie I have seen the sandflys trying this move on ECO MAORI WTF.
The WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is so disliked in journalism and political circles that many reporters and liberal politicians were publicly cheering on Thursday when the Trump administration released an indictment of Assange, which was related to his interactions with the whistleblower Chelsea Manning in the months leading up to the publication of Pentagon and state department cables in 2010.
The Assange prosecution threatens modern journalism
Please do not fall for this trap. It is exactly what the Trump administration is hoping for, as the Department of Justice (DoJ) moves forward with its next dangerous step in its war on journalism and press freedom.
The larger context surrounding this case is almost as important as the Assange indictment itself. Donald Trump has been furious with leakers and the news organizations that publish them ever since he took office. He complains about it constantly in his Twitter tirades. He has repeatedly directed the justice department to stop leaks, and he even asked former FBI director James Comey if he can put journalists in jail.
The justice department has responded by launching a record number of leak cases and have weighed changing the rules to make it easier to subpoena journalists
Ka kite ano links below P.S Julian let the Papatuanuku know that goverments are CHEATS.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/apr/13/julian-assange-indictment-wikileaks-trump-administration-war-on-press-freedom
Some Eco Maori musci for the minute.
Heart Throb
I know Julian Assange is a wonderful friend of the Trolls on here. Through him they have discovered some nasty bits of what happens in War. As if that was ever an unknown.
They seem entirely unaware that Assange released what he called “timely information” (true or false) to obliterate Hilary Clinton’s chances of Presidency.
He is after all Mr Big. He did not try and destroy the Wealthy, of course. Just the needy. And of course Obama Care is a hanging offence in the Wealthy Troll households.
The most savage Wikileak thing to Date, is the release of Millions of pieces of personal Information belonging to Turkish Women. Home Address, Banking, Phone, and so on.
Neither ugly Wikileaks or Assange, has apologised to all those Women. Many of whom are now victims of Turkey Red Necks, former mongrel husbands, and Murder.
Like New Zealand, Turkey males do not value the women who bring them into the World.
The Internet, thanks to mongrels like Assange, is not worth a dime. It’s a dump, fit for dumpsters.
Thanks for nothing Heart Throbs.
Eco Maori Agrees strongly with these comments we are PART OF THE ENVIROMENT we need to care for OUR enviroment like its our grandparents as Papatuanuku actually is OUR GRANDPARENT FOOLs
We need to coexist with the ecosystem because we’re part of it, and so are birds
Susan Elbin
Though the studies bear sad news about the effects cities have on birds, conservationists see them as opportunities to target their activism.
“Every time new scientific literature comes out, we learn more about the problem, and … we can pinpoint the best solutions using the science,” said Kaitlyn Parkins, a conservation biologist at NYC Audubon.
Turning out the lights in buildings at night for a few weeks during peak migration is a simple first step and would make a big difference, Parkins said. The National Audubon Society runs Lights Out, a coordinated effort with local chapters to advocate reducing light during migration. States such as New York and Minnesota have participated in the program, turning out lights in state-operated buildings during migration.
Conservationists also advocate that buildings adopt more “bird-friendly” designs, for example using patterned glass and dimmer lighting. San Francisco and Toronto have already adopted some bird-friendly guidelines, while city council members in New York and Chicago have introduced legislation to adopt similar measures. A bipartisan bill in Congress introduced in January, called the “Bird-Safe Building Act”, would require new federal buildings to adopt designs that keep migrating birds in mind.
“We need to coexist with the ecosystem because we’re part of it, and so are birds,” Elbin said. “What’s good for birds is good for people.”
This article was amended on 8 April 2019 to clarify the relative dangers different types of buildings pose for birds. Ka kite ano links below
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/apr/07/how-many-birds-killed-by-skyscrapers-american-cities-report
Kia kaha you go and fight for your futures climate the neanderthals are to dumb to get the big picture
“The power that we have in numbers and the power that we have in coming together and taking action as a collective was something people were really keen to get back into.”
The plan was for other groups around the country to hold their own meetings in the coming weeks and months. Sophie said inclusivity was central to the movement, and they wanted everyone who had been involved in the strike so far to have their say in the next steps.
In Auckland, 17-year-old strike organiser Luke Wijohn said while things slowed down slightly, lots of new people have joined the movement in the weeks since March 15.
Sophie said the students wanted to make it clear the strike wasn’t a one-off and they were committed to holding the government to account.
The group was developing a national strategy and planned to create a youth climate action network. Campaigning to make climate change education a compulsory part of the curriculum was one of the aims on the cards.
Another global school climate strike was planned for September 27. Ka kite ano links below
https://www.stuff.co.nz/environment/climate-news/111942869/school-climate-strikers-grieving-after-christchurch-shootings-but-planning-for-future
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4H1N_yXBiA
P.S The neanderthals are stuffing with my devices
Kia ora Newshub.
Condolences to Evet whanau.
Its cool that Our government is going to sort out the problems with the construction sector it needs sorting out as it been left in a Mess.
I see some puppet trying ride on ECO MAORI Coat Tails once again I stand by my Tau toko of Julian.
I Back Nagti Kuri call for a Tangaroa sanatorium we have to save Tangaroa for our MOKOPUNA.
Its a good idea that more people at school learn CPR for heart attack victims revival.
You no how it is they will never apologise for the atrocities that were carried out in India or to other indigenous cultures that’s the European way.
Its a good idea going around and getting knowledge from the kaumatua before they pass but studying war is a waste of time in my view someone has to record the indigenous cultures knowledge before our tangata whenua O Atoearoa kaumatua pass. Ka kite ano P.S Some are trying every dirty trick in their book to try stop the Eco Maori effect. YEA RIGHT
Some Eco Maori Music for the minute.
Kia ora The AM Show.
Ryan a capital gains tax is needed to stop all NZ capital flowing out to nation with no tax keep the capital in NZ for the Mokopuna allso it takes the burden off the paye tax payer’s.No simon the tax needs to be aimed at the people who pay next to KNOW TAX
The Australian Unicon sheep looks hard case mite be a new breed that will get the deniers to see reality with a little prodding.
I still see a lot of EGGS around if eggs get to expensive people will be able to grow their own with very little money and work.
Mark ther you go making statements that have to be retracted
That billion dollar hole was joice pridicting the extra cost that the government service industry has to spend to clean up the MESS HE MADE.
Bush you are frowning have you heard OF the TRUTH that I have been say about your organisation its the TRUTH.
A good free range egg is bright orange very good.
I think the way the government has aproched the construction industry is WIZE asking what needs to be done to fix some of the problems in the industry I can remember 28 years ago I got a house built the section price would have just payed for the prosess of council permits now days GO FIGURE why we have a housing shortage now.
My literacy is OK for someone’s who actually only learnt at school to the age of 9 after that Eco Maori is self taught my spelling is bad but I READ very well.
Now is the time to put heaps of effort into conserving OUR indanger WILD life like the Maui Dolphin Ka pai.
Ka kite ano P.S congratulations on the new jacket someone has given me a birthday present all ready Mike the leftys need to harden up and let everyone know as the ightys cheat when ever they can and the left let them hide their cheating ways if someone goes public they get what they deserve
The 21st century comunacation device was is a device that gets the TRUTH out to the masses of tangata. Social Media is the best way to inform the people that the RULEING CLASS are RIPPING the common tangata of they use there MONEY to try and hide the facts change the facts.
One exzample is salt and sugar one we need in OUR diet the other we don’t one can be obtained from tangaroa the other is controled by big busness.
Salt has heaps of infomation published about the negitive effects I say most of that is crap.
Sugar causes DIABETES obesity rotts teeth stuff you liver and many other bad side effects from sugar and up till a few months ago every story on sugar had the words would or could cause these bad side effects when the links between sugar and the bad health affects are clear to see you see this is just a small part of the story of the eelite CHEATING the 99.99 % out of the truth here are just a few on the topics that they are cheating tangata ABOUT.
Sugar
salt
we don’t know why the native poupulation’s are doing so bad /no discrimanation here don’t LOOK and you won’t see it.
Carbon is not causing climate change
nitrogin is not causeing our water ways/ AWA to die.
The trickle down effect when its clear the captialst system is being massaged to make the money flow to the TOP and stop any trickleing down to the poor people/COUNTRYS.
the justice systems being fair
The ruling class are hounest YEA RIGHT when do they admite lierability not even if there hand’s are caught in the cookie jar they will lies and say they were just cleaning the jar and take the lie to the highest COURT in the land to obmit liability the poor person could not even get it to a COURT but ha the justice system is fair YEA RIGHT .
This is why I back social media 100 % AS now we get to sift throught the information and find the FACT.s with social media Ka kite ano Links below P.S the ruling class laught to themselves that the common person is hounest.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Internet
Some Eco Maori Music for the minute.
Eco Maori know that I am going to bring these cheating lieing rednecks sandflys to heal .Then everyone will know of my mana maui
Some Eco Maori Music for the minute.
https://youtu.be/34Na4j8AVgA
I see the sandflys are trying to pin more bullshit on Eco Maori