Open mike 13/08/2024
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6:00 am, August 13th, 2024 - 56 comments
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- An average 219 NZers migrated each day in July
Kia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, September 11:Annual migration of New Zealanders rose to a record-high 80,963 in the year to the end of July, which is more than double its pre-Covid levels.Two ...2 hours ago - What you’re wanting to win more than anything is The Narrative
Hubris is sitting down on election day 2016 to watch that pig Trump get his ass handed to him, and watching the New York Times needle hover for a while over Hillary and then move across to Trump where it remains all night to your gathering horror and dismay. You're ...2 hours ago - National’s automated lie machine
The government has a problem: lots of people want information from it all the time. Information about benefits, about superannuation, ACC coverage and healthcare, taxes, jury service, immigration - and that's just the routine stuff. Responding to all of those queries takes a lot of time and costs a lot ...4 hours ago - Christopher Luxon: A Man of “Faith” and “Compassion” Speaks on the Treaty Pr...
Synopsis: Today - we explore two different realities. One where National lost. And another - which is the one we are living with here. Note: the footnote on increased fees/taxes may be of interest to some readers.Article open.Subscribe nowIt’s an alternate timeline.Yesterday as news broke that the central North Island ...5 hours ago - Member’s Day
Today is a Member's Day. First up is the third reading of Dan Bidois' Fair Trading (Gift Card Expiry) Amendment Bill, which will be followed by the committee stage of Deborah Russell's Family Proceedings (Dissolution for Family Violence) Amendment Bill. This will be followed by the second readings of Katie ...8 hours ago
- Northern Expressway Boondoggle
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has been soaring high with his hubris of getting on and building motorways but some uncomfortable realities are starting to creep in. Back in July he announced that the government was pushing on with a Northland Expressway using an “accelerated delivery strategy” The Coalition Government is ...11 hours ago - Never Enough
However much I'm falling downNever enoughHowever much I'm falling outNever, never enough!Whatever smile I smile the mostNever enoughHowever I smile I smile the mostSongwriters: Robert James Smith / Simon Gallup / Boris Williams / Porl ThompsonToday in Nick’s Kōrero:A death in the Emergency Department at Rotorua Hospital.A sad homecoming and ...11 hours ago - Question Two of The Kākā Project of 2026 for 2050 (TKP 26/50)
Kia ora.Last month I proposed restarting The Kākā Project work done before the 2023 election as The Kākā Project of 2026 for 2050 (TKP 26/50), aiming to be up and running before the 2025 Local Government elections, and then in a finalised form by the 2026 General Elections.A couple of ...12 hours ago - Why is God Obsessed with Spanking?
Hi,If you’ve read Webworm for a while, you’ll be aware that I’ve spent a lot of time writing about horrific, corrupt megachurches and the shitty men who lead them.And in all of this writing, I think some people have this idea that I hate Christians or Christianity. As I explain ...13 hours ago - Inside the public service
In 2023, there were 63,117 full-time public servants earning, on average, $97,200 a year each. All up, that is a cost to the Government of $6.1 billion a year. It’s little wonder, then, that the public service has become a political whipping boy castigated by the Prime Minister and members ...14 hours ago
- New Models Show Stronger Atlantic Hurricanes, and More of Them
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A riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma, is how Winston Churchill described the Soviet Union in 1939. How might the great man have described the 2024 government of New Zealand, do we think? I can't imagine he would have thought them all that mysterious or enigmatic. I think ...1 day ago - Motorway madness
How mad is National's obsession with roads? One of their pet projects - a truck highway to Whangārei - is going to eat 10% of our total infrastructure budget for the next 25 years: Official advice from the Infrastructure Commission shows the government could be set to spend 10 ...1 day ago
- Our transport planning system is fundamentally broken
Ever since Wayne Brown became mayor (nearly two years ago now) he’s been wanting to progress an “integrated transport plan” with the government – which sounded a lot like the previous Auckland Transport Alignment Project (ATAP) with just a different name. It seems like a fair bit of work progressed ...1 day ago
- Thou Shalt Not Steal
And they taught usWhoa-oh, black woman, thou shalt not stealI said, hey, yeah, black man, thou shalt not stealWe're gonna civilise your black barbaric livesAnd we teach you how to kneelBut your history couldn't hide the genocideThe hypocrisy to us was realFor your Jesus said you're supposed to giveThe oppressed ...1 day ago - How mismanagement, not wind and solar energy, causes blackouts
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections In February 2021, several severe storms swept across the United States, culminating with one that the Weather Channel unofficially named Winter Storm Uri. In Texas, Uri knocked out power to over 4.5 million homes and 10 million people. Hundreds of Texans died as a ...1 day ago
- The ‘Infra Boys’ Highway to Budget Hell
Chris Bishop has enthusiastically dubbed himself and Simeon Brown “the Infra Boys”, but they need to take note of the sums around their roading dreams. Photo: Lynn GrievesonMōrena. Long stories short, here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Tuesday, September ...1 day ago - Media Link: “AVFA” on the politics of desperation.
In this podcast Selwyn Manning and I talk about what appears to be a particular type of end-game in the long transition to systemic realignment in international affairs, in which the move to a new multipolar order with different characteristics … Continue reading ...2 days ago - The cost of flying blind
Just over two years ago, when worries about immediate mass-death from covid had waned, and people started to talk about covid becoming "endemic", I asked various government agencies what work they'd done on the costs of that - and particularly, on the cost of Long Covid. The answer was that ...2 days ago
- Seymour vs The Clergy
For paid subscribers“Aotearoa is not as malleable as they think,” Lynette wrote last week on Homage to Simeon Brown:In my heart/mind, that phrase ricocheted over the next days, translating out to “We are not so malleable.”It gave me comfort. I always felt that we were given an advantage in New ...2 days ago - Unstoppable Minister McKee
All smiles, I know what it takes to fool this townI'll do it 'til the sun goes downAnd all through the nighttimeOh, yeahOh, yeah, I'll tell you what you wanna hearLeave my sunglasses on while I shed a tearIt's never the right timeYeah, yeahSong by SiaLast night there was a ...2 days ago - Could outdoor dining revitalise Queen Street?
This is a guest post by Ben van Bruggen of The Urban Room,.An earlier version of this post appeared on LinkedIn. All images are by Ben. Have you noticed that there’s almost nowhere on Queen Street that invites you to stop, sit outside and enjoy a coffee, let alone ...2 days ago
- Hipkins challenges long-held Labour view Government must stay below 30% of GDP
Hipkins says when considering tax settings and the size of government, the big question mark is over what happens with the balance between the size of the working-age population and the growing number of Kiwis over the age of 65. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMōrena. Long stories short; here’s ...2 days ago - Your invite to Webworm Chat (a bit like Reddit)
Hi,One of the things I love the most about Webworm is, well, you. The community that’s gathered around this lil’ newsletter isn’t something I ever expected when I started writing it four years ago — now the comments section is one of my favourite places on the internet. The comments ...3 days ago - Seymour’s Treaty bill making Nats nervous
A delay in reappointing a top civil servant may indicate a growing nervousness within the National Party about the potential consequences of David Seymour’s Treaty Principles Bill. Dave Samuels is waiting for reappointment as the Chief Executive of Te Puni Kokiri, but POLITIK understands that what should have been a ...3 days ago
- 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #36
A listing of 34 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, September 1, 2024 thru Sat, September 7, 2024. Story of the week Our Story of the Week is about how peopele are not born stupid but can be fooled ...3 days ago
- Time for a Change
You act as thoughYou are a blind manWho's crying, crying 'boutAll the virgins that are dyingIn your habitual dreams, you knowSeems you need more sleepBut like a parrot in a flaming treeI know it's pretty hard to seeI'm beginning to wonderIf it's time for a changeSong: Phil JuddThe next line ...3 days ago - Security Politics in Peripheral Democracies: Excerpt Six.
The “double shocks” in post Cold War international affairs. The end of the Cold War fundamentally altered the global geostrategic context. In particular, the end of the nuclear “balance of terror” between the USA and USSR, coupled with the relaxation … Continue reading ...3 days ago
- Buried deep
Here's a bike on Manchester St, Feilding. I took this photo on Friday night after a very nice dinner at the very nice Vietnamese restaurant, Saigon, on Manchester Street.I thought to myself, Manchester Street? Bicycle? This could be the very spot.To recap from an earlier edition: on a February night ...4 days ago - Security Politics in Peripheral Democracies, Excerpt Five.
Military politics as a distinct “partial regime.” Notwithstanding their peripheral status, national defense offers the raison d’être of the combat function, which their relative vulnerability makes apparent, so military forces in small peripheral democracies must be very conscious of events … Continue reading ...4 days ago
- Leadership for Dummies
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4 days ago - Dead even tie for hottest August ever
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- Have We an Infrastructure Deficit?
An Infrastructure New Zealand report says we are keeping up with infrastructure better than we might have thought from the grumbling. But the challenge of providing for the future remains.I was astonished to learn that the quantity of our infrastructure has been keeping up with economic growth. Your paper almost ...5 days ago - Councils reject racism
Last month, National passed a racist law requiring local councils to remove their Māori wards, or hold a referendum on them at the 2025 local body election. The final councils voted today, and the verdict is in: an overwhelming rejection. Only two councils out of 45 supported National's racist agenda ...5 days ago
- Homage to Simeon Brown
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- Government of deceit
When National cut health spending and imposed a commissioner on Te Whatu Ora, they claimed that it was necessary because the organisation was bloated and inefficient, with "14 layers of management between the CEO and the patient". But it turns out they were simply lying: Health Minister Shane Reti’s ...5 days ago
- The professionals actually think and act like our Government has no fiscal crisis at all
Treasury staff at work: The demand for a new 12-year Government bond was so strong, Treasury decided to double the amount of bonds it sold. Photo: Lynn GrievesonMōrena. Long stories short; here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Friday, September ...5 days ago - Weekly Roundup 6-September-2024
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Internal versus external security. Regardless of who rules, large countries can afford to separate external and internal security functions (even if internal control functions predominate under authoritarian regimes). In fact, given the logic of power concentration and institutional centralization of … Continue reading ...5 days ago
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- How do I make this better for people who drive Ford Rangers?
Home, home again to a long warm embrace. Plenty of reasons to be glad to be back.But also, reasons for dejection.You, yes you, Simeon Brown, you odious little oik, you bible thumping petrol-pandering ratfucker weasel. You would be Reason Number One. Well, maybe first among equals with Seymour and Of-Seymour ...6 days ago - A missed opportunity
The government introduced a pretty big piece of constitutional legislation today: the Parliament Bill. But rather than the contentious constitutional change (four year terms) pushed by Labour, this merely consolidates the existing legislation covering Parliament - currently scattered across four different Acts - into one piece of legislation. While I ...6 days ago
- Nicola Willis Seeks New Sidekick To Help Fix NZ’s Economy
Synopsis:Nicola Willis is seeking a new Treasury Boss after Dr Caralee McLiesh’s tenure ends this month. She didn’t listen to McLiesh. Will she listen to the new one?And why is Atlas Network’s Taxpayers Union chiming in?Please consider subscribing or supporting my work. Thanks, Tui.About CaraleeAt the beginning of July, Newsroom ...6 days ago - Inflation alive and kicking in our land of the long white monopolies
The golden days of profit continue for the the Foodstuffs (Pak’n’Save and New World) and Woolworths supermarket duopoly. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMōrena. Long stories short; here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Thursday, September 5:The Groceries Commissioner has ...6 days ago - The thermodynamics of electric vs. internal combustion cars
This is a re-post from The Climate Brink by Andrew Dessler I love thermodynamics. Thermodynamics is like your mom: it may not tell you what you can do, but it damn well tells you what you can’t do. I’ve written a few previous posts that include thermodynamics, like one on air capture of ...6 days ago
- Security Politics in Peripheral Democracies: Excerpt Three.
The notion of geopolitical “periphery.” The concept of periphery used here refers strictly to what can be called the geopolitical periphery. Being on the geopolitical periphery is an analytic virtue because it makes for more visible policy reform in response … Continue reading ...6 days ago
- Venus Hum
Fill me up with soundThe world sings with me a million smiles an hourI can see me dancing on my radioI can hear you singing in the blades of grassYellow dandelions on my way to schoolBig Beautiful Sky!Song: Venus Hum.Good morning, all you lovely people, and welcome to the 700th ...7 days ago - I Went to a Creed Concert
Note: The audio attached to this Webworm compliments today’s newsletter. I collected it as I met people attending a Creed concert. Their opinions may differ to mine. Read more ...7 days ago - Government migration policy backfires; thousands of unemployed nurses
The country has imported literally thousands of nurses over the past few months yet whether they are being employed as nurses is another matter. Just what is going on with HealthNZ and it nurses is, at best, opaque, in that it will not release anything but broad general statistics and ...7 days ago
- A Time For Unity.
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National's tax cut policies relied on stealing revenue from the ETS (previously used to fund emissions reduction) to fund tax cuts to landlords. So how's that going? Badly. Today's auction failed again, with zero units (of a possible 7.6 million) sold. Which means they have a $456 million hole in ...1 week ago
- Security Politics in Peripheral Democracies: Excerpt Two.
A question of size. Small size generally means large vulnerability. The perception of threat is broader and often more immediate for small countries. The feeling of comparative weakness, of exposure to risk, and of potential intimidation by larger powers often … Continue reading ...1 week ago
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- No Alarms And No Surprises
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This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Daisy Simmons Every summer brings a new spate of headlines about record-breaking heat – for good reason: 2023 was the hottest year on record, in keeping with the upward trend scientists have been clocking for decades. With climate forecasts suggesting that heat waves ...1 week ago
- No new funding for cycling & walking
Studies show each $1 of spending on walking and cycling infrastructure produces $13 to $35 of economic benefits from higher productivity, lower healthcare costs, less congestion, lower emissions and lower fossil fuel import costs. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMōrena. Long stories short; here’s my top six things to note ...1 week ago - 99
Dad turned 99 today.Hell of a lot of candles, eh?He won't be alone for his birthday. He will have the warm attention of my brother, and my sister, and everyone at the rest home, the most thoughtful attentive and considerate people you could ever know. On Saturday there will be ...1 week ago - Open Government: National reneges on beneficial ownership
One of the achievements of the New Zealand’s Open Government Partnership Fourth National Action Plan was a formal commitment from the government to establish a public beneficial ownership register. Such a register would allow the ultimate owners of companies to be identified - a vital measure in preventing corruption, money ...1 week ago
- Security Politics in Peripheral Democracies: Excerpt One.
This project analyzes security politics in three peripheral democracies (Chile, New Zealand, Portugal) during the 30 years after the end of the Cold War. It argues that changes in the geopolitical landscape and geo-strategic context are interpreted differently by small … Continue reading ...1 week ago
- Tea and Toast
When the skies are looking bad my dearAnd your heart's lost all its hopeAfter dawn there will be sunshineAnd all the dust will goThe skies will clear my darlingNow it's time for you to let goOur girl will wake you up in the mornin'With some tea and toastLyrics: Lucy Spraggan.Good ...1 week ago - NLTP 2024 released – destroying pipeline of shovel ready local projects
Transport Minister Simeon Brown and Waka Kotahi yesterday released the latest National Land Transport Plan (NLTP) for 2024-27. The NLTP sets out what transport projects will be funded for the next three years, including both central and local government projects. As expected given the government’s extremely ideological transport policy, it’s ...1 week ago
- Can Brown deliver his roads
The Government’s unveiling of its road-building programme yesterday was ambitious and, many would say, long overdue. But the question will be whether it is too ambitious, whether it is affordable, and, if not, what might be dropped. The big ticket items will be the 17 so-called Roads of National Significance. ...1 week ago
- New paper about detecting climate misinformation on Twitter/X
Together with Cristian Rojas, Frank Algra-Maschio, Mark Andrejevic, Travis Coan, and Yuan-Fang Li, I just published a paper in Nature Communications Earth & Environment where we use the Computer Assisted Recognition of Denial and Skepticism (CARDS) machine learning model to detect climate misinformation in 5 million climate tweets. We find over half ...1 week ago
- Excerpting “Security Politics in Peripheral Democracies.”
In the late 2000s-early 2010s I was researching and writing a book titled “Security Politics in Peripheral Democracies: Chile, New Zealand and Portugal.” The book was a cross-regional Small-N qualitative comparison of the security strategies and postures of three small … Continue reading ...1 week ago
- Hating for the Wrong Reasons: Of Rings of Power, Orcs and Evil
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On Friday the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment released their submission on National's second Emissions Reduction Plan, ripping the shit out of it as a massive gamble based on wishful thinking. One of the specific issues he focused on was National's idea of "least cost" emissions reduction, pointing out that ...1 week ago
- Release: Aged care will be worse off if redesign rushed
New Zealanders needing aged care support and the people who care for them will be worse off if the Government pushes through a flawed and rushed redesign of dementia and aged care. ...3 hours ago - Release: Govt fails hundreds of workers as mills close
Labour is devastated at news hundreds of workers are set to lose their jobs following the closure of Winstone Pulp mills. ...10 hours ago
- Job losses from mill closures consequence of Govt inaction
Hundreds of jobs lost as a result of pulp mill closures in the Ruapehu District are a consequence of government inaction in addressing the shortfalls of our electricity network. ...1 day ago - Release: Cabinet should stop the Treaty Principles Bill
National Party Ministers have a majority in Cabinet and can stop David Seymour’s Treaty Principles Bill, which even the Prime Minister has described as “divisive and unhelpful.” ...2 days ago
- Release: Staff gagged to keep fast track list secret
The National Government is so determined to hide the list of potential projects that will avoid environmental scrutiny it has gagged Ministry for the Environment staff from talking about it. ...2 days ago
- Release: Labour challenges Te Whatu Ora gag orders
Labour has complained to the Te Kawa Mataaho Public Service Commission about the high number of non-disclosure agreements that have effectively gagged staff at Te Whatu Ora Health NZ from talking about anything relating to their work. ...2 days ago
- Greens call on Treaty Principles Bill to be abandoned after letter from Christian leaders
The Green Party is once again urging the Prime Minister to abandon the Treaty Principles Bill as a letter from more than 400 Christian leaders calls for the proposed legislation to be dropped. ...3 days ago
- Sign the petition: Keep military-style firearms off our streets
Help us tell the Government that reintroducing military-style firearms should not be up for debate. ...4 days ago
- Vast majority of councils support Māori wards
Councils across the country have now decided where they stand regarding Māori wards, with a resounding majority in favour of keeping them in what is a significant setback for the Government. ...5 days ago
- Release: Government on the wrong side of Māori wards
The National-led government has been given a clear message from the local government sector, as almost all councils reject the Government’s bid to treat Māori wards different to other wards. ...5 days ago
- Release: Labour congratulates Kuīni Ngā Wai hono i te po Paki
The Labour Party congratulates Kuīni Ngā Wai hono i te po Paki on being crowned as the eighth Te Ariki Nui – head of Te Kiingitanga. ...6 days ago
- Green Party welcomes new Maaori Kuiini
The Green Party welcomes the coronation of the new Maaori Kuiini, Te Arikinui Nga Wai Hono i te Po, today in Turangawaewae. ...6 days ago
- ECE teachers deserve better than this Government
The Green Party is unsurprised but disappointed by today’s announcement from the Government that will see our Early Childhood Centre teachers undermined and pay parity pushed further out of reach. ...1 week ago
- Urgent intervention needed on supermarkets
The Green Party is calling on the Government to intervene in the supermarket duopoly dominating our supply of groceries following today’s report from the Commerce Commission. ...1 week ago
- Release: Rainbow youth neglected in mental health funding
Labour backs the call from The Rainbow Support Collective members for mental health funding specifically earmarked for grassroots and peer led community organisations to be set up in a way that they are able to access. ...1 week ago
- Release: Transport in NZ has to be more than just roads
As expected, the National Land Transport Programme lacks ambition for our cities and our country’s rail network and puts the majority of investment into roads. ...1 week ago
- Speech: Barbara Edmonds Building Nations 2024
Tēnā koutou katoa, Thank you for your warm welcome and for having my colleagues and I here today. Earlier you heard from the Labour Leader, Chris Hipkins, on our vision for the future of infrastructure. I want to build on his comments and provide further detail on some key elements ...1 week ago
- Govt transport plan deepens fossil fuel fix
The Green Party says the Government’s new National Land Transport Programme marks another missed opportunity to take meaningful action to fight the climate crisis. ...1 week ago
- Greens call for public to back Wrybill in BOTY and beyond
The Green Party is calling on the public to support the Ngutu Pare Wrybill not just in this year’s Bird of the Year competition but also in pushing back against policies that could lead to the destruction of its habitat and accelerate its extinction. ...1 week ago
- Building consents data bad news for construction
News that the annual number of building consents granted for new homes fell by more than 20 percent for the year ended July 2024, is bad news for the construction industry. ...2 weeks ago
- Te Pāti Māori Pay Tribute to Kiingi Tūheitia Pōtatau Te Wherowhero VII
Papā te whatitiri, hikohiko te uira, i kanapu ki te rangi, i whētuki i raro rā, rū ana te whenua e. Uea te pou o tōku whare kia tū tangata he kapua whakairi nāku nā runga o Taupiri. Ko taku kiri ka tōkia ki te anu mātao. E te iwi ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Gaps still to be addressed in callouts response
The Government must guarantee New Zealanders will not be at risk after making changes to the way mental health callouts are handled. ...2 weeks ago
- Poroporoaki: Kiingi Tuheitia passing
Haere e te Kīngi o te kotahitangi Haere ki o nui, ki o rahi I te pō ...2 weeks ago
- Green Party pays respects to Kiingi Tuuheitia
The Green Party is paying tribute to the Māori King, Kiingi Tuuheitia Pootatau Te Wherowhero XVII, after he passed away earlier this morning. ...2 weeks ago
- Potaka Brings Whakaata Māori to its Knees
Today’s Whakaata Māori announcement is yet another colossal failure from Minister Potaka, who has turned his back on te reo Māori, forcing a channel offline, putting whānau out of jobs, and cutting Māori content, says Te Pāti Māori. “A Senior Māori Minister has turned his back on Te Reo Māori. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: National restricts access to disability care homes
With disability communities still reeling from the diminishing of Whaikaha, a leaked document now reveals another blow with National restricting access to residential care homes. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Govt must help save 230 manufacturing jobs
Labour is calling on the Government and Mercury Energy to find a solution to the proposed Winstone Pulp mill closure and save 230 manufacturing jobs. ...2 weeks ago
- Govt shirks its responsibility to Whakaata Māori
The Green Party has called out the Government for allowing Whakaata Māori to effectively collapse to a shell of its former self as job cuts and programming cuts were announced at the broadcaster today. ...2 weeks ago
- NZ First Member’s Bill To Disestablish Auckland Transport
Today New Zealand First has introduced a Member’s Bill that will restore democratic control over transport management in Auckland City by disestablishing Auckland Transport (AT) and returning control to Auckland Council. The ‘Local Government (Auckland Council) (Disestablishment of Auckland Transport) Amendment Bill’ intends to restore democratic oversight, control, and accountability ...2 weeks ago - Release: PM fails in constitutional role and leadership
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Only sociopaths can deliberately inflict so much harm on so many people and sleep at night.
Even more terrifying is the large number of NZers who happily vote for them.
Kay, I suppose you are involved with support networks ? All I can say is Strength in numbers.
I hope all the Best for you.
Thanks, and no I'm not. One thing I've learnt about life under this mob- third time now- is to keep a very low profile.
Ah, yea I could understand that. And i would def see how making a noise would draw negative attention from the nasties at winz/msd. I was maybe more meaning support from Help and other groups…although of course they are also getting defunded by aforesaid NACT1 nasties.
Anyway..Look after.
That is correct Kay. This is the worst form of their cruelty since Richardson.
They underfund services to funnel funds to their own, while blaming the unemployed for being a victim of their austerity.
The behaviour is cruel and cavalier. To hear that man say 'You have obligations'.
Where is his obligation to improve people's lives? Where is the "Do least harm?" Where is the job creation? The Nation building? The care?
If we list the things he has "Done" they are all pulling the screws and pins out of our social fabric, and putting costs and rules in place with no consultation.
Further, they "Other" anyone who does anything to try to check or change their plans, so working against them when you are vulnerable is a problem.
The control is fear. Fear of job loss, fear of income loss, fear of crime, fear of culture loss.
When people find their world so shifted from its usual axis, they start protecting their own, losing trust in community solutions sadly.
That is the goal. Be a selfish self interested individual, as Thatcher said "There is no such thing as society, only individual men and women"
Well we need to be there for each other, start supporting groups who display the strength of community and values.
At near 83 years old, when some says they are a Christian…., they are not! Those who are are I have found, live and act by the values. This lot, it is all about sending public money towards their own. They are in the crowd Christ would have thrown out of the temple.
Kay we understand how hard this is going to be for you and Rolling on Gravel, and that it is even harder when they underfund support systems. Keep telling your story. Your story and others like it will bring people to a change of heart. Many good people are swayed by misinformation, and now are questioning the crude ill planned moves as carnage happens.
” ….when some says they are a Christian…., they are not!”
Those characters need calling out like this:
(And, predictably, it doesn’t end well for her …. )
Oh dear, b******d it up again, sorry. Search YT on "Magdalene", "man" and "god".
Some hint of what you're talking about would be helpful?
Sorry. benefit sanctions.
What, you have to sign a NDA now to get your benefit? Jeezu ….
Quoting a “Catch 22” has been out of fashion for a while, but “a no-win or absurd situation full of contradictions” certainly seems to apply to the CoC Govt.’s ever extending war on the poor. Reserve Bank and capitalist economists call for higher unemployment to battle inflation and put downward pressure on wages. Then the state welfare apparatus puts the slipper into unemployed rather than lauding them as inflation busters.
MSD/WINZ run a punitive dehumanising operation. Sanctions for missing a meeting? or even a phone call if you have run out of data? Some of these cruel bureaucrats make the Stasi look caring. I was involved in the unemployed workers rights movement in the 90s and family members have been beneficiary advocates. The WINZ weasels soon pull their heads in and start advising full entitlements when an informed person turns up in support with a Jobseeker.
A high trust model was introduced during COVID particularly for employers and middle class people on the higher second tier benefit (on which a partner could continue to work! try that with MSD/WINZ now…). The current regime is a no trust model, where cards are issued to control spending–no chocolate or lotto for you pal or it is boot camp…
Sometimes you need Martyn “bomber” aka bombastic, Bradbury to cut through…
https://thedailyblog.co.nz/2024/08/13/all-louise-upston-needs-after-draconian-welfare-penalty-announcement-is-a-coat-and-101-dalmatians/
Ultimately a Basic Income for all citizens is needed which abates as you start to earn significantly, and MSD/WINZ consigned to the history books.
I feel for anyone that has..or will have, interaction with winz/msd. It will be back to the real bad old days for many. They were bad enough recently, but now they have been given…permission : (
Expect much more of this….
This shit policy comes straight out of the UK government's austerity playbook.
In a 2018 UK government reported on the effects of benefit sanction.
Fewer go off 'universal credit' into PAYE work than just disappear off the radar (ie, they become workers, in the UK's zero hours gig economy, at quantifiably lower weekly income, or become homeless beggars).
I predict next year the repeal of legislation introduced by Labour to regulate ambiguity in the gig economy. Currently employers need to "include the hours of work which have been agreed between you and the employee." LegalVision.
This looks like an agenda to drive down wages at the lowest level of workers.
IMO the NACT1 creeps are waging war on all below the top percentile. NZ incl our Environment is going to be damaged forever after these POS are done. The deluded who voted for them ? They will find out soon enough.
It will get worse.
"It further punishes people for being poor and it will only exacerbate the issues.
Well, yes. That's the idea.
Landlord, Luxury Luxon opines….
What an asshole…
Yes, Baldrick is a prosperity Christian apparently, so Bennie Bashing is as natural as the falling rain for him.
Fark, he basically says when asked what happens to people once they get benefits cut is "dunno, don't care". What an arsehole indeed!
"I don't Kea", is what he says. It's what he said to Heather Duplicity-Allen a couple of months ago when questioned whether the bootcamps would work.
"I don't Kea".
How many is the expected number of job interviews to qualify as enough?
Where the fuck is the money expected to come from to go to all of those job interviews?
How about a carrot such as an additional payment for actually attending .
At what level of sociopathy to psychopathy is the requirement to be a Nact minister?
At what level of sociopathy to psychopathy is the requirement to be a Nact minister?
It's a mandatory requirement.
"Where the fuck is the money expected to come from to go to all of those job interviews?
How about a carrot such as an additional payment for actually attending"
Yep, like something simple such as free Public Transport.
These people do not know what the fuck they are doing.
IMO sadly….they do. Its all part of their Atlas network led MasterPlan. You should read a few of Mountain Tui's posts ( On the Standard . Gives a detailed and awesome cut on them ! )
Luxon doesn't know the jobseeker benefit rates (or won't say it).
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/2018950903/pm-luxon-on-new-sanctions-to-beneficiaries
See them here.
https://www.moneyhub.co.nz/jobseeker-benefit-rates.html#rates
He knows his own 'entitlements' of course.
https://www.thepaepae.com/what-does-entitlement-look-like-chris-luxon/39308/
aj-I listened to that RNZ Morning Report interview this morning. Luxon had no idea what the jobseeker rates were-it was a really bad look.
Well done Ingrid Hipkiss for asking him the question and then giving him a bit of a hard time when he had no idea. She usually doesn't ask the hard questions or follow up.
On a related note, I'm surprised, I'm enjoying Paddy Gower on Nine to Noon.
Today he gave a senior mandarin a squeeze from the Education Ministry.
Sitting on a report about an earthquake prone building @ Wellington Girls.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon/audio/2018950920/wellington-girls-college-closes-another-quake-prone-building
Yes, I'm afraid Paddy Gower gave me a bit of a turn. I thought my ancient but trustworthy old radio had lost its marbles and dumped RNZ. I'm still trying to find it again. 😉
Yep, I heard that interview. The "mandie" was repeating the same formulaic, non-self-incriminating statement over and over, doing everything bar actually saying "what I'm telling you is … ".
Yes he gets flustered easily once it goes off script. Also Hipkiss ended the interview by interrupting and talking over his babble, which capped it off quite nicely.
News item: the Environment Court has granted an order sought by a local council that an East Cape forestry company stops discharging forestry debris and sediment and deals with about a lot of woody debris from a forest block.
So the stable door has slammed but the horse bolted long ago.
I wondered yesterday whether this government considers NZ's performance in Paris too good and is using that success to begin a narrative to cover their real agenda; cutting funding and/or partially privatising high performance sport, asking athletes themselves to raise sponsorship and self-fund.
There have been two unattributed articles in the government adjacent NZ Herald yesterday and today framing NZ as overachievers (what business does NZ have at 11 on the medal table), and potentially high earning profit seekers.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/olympics/olympics-2024-new-zealand-labelled-overachievers-of-paris-2024-olympics/7CTQ2ZMUFNEN5GDRQH7KWM3J6I/
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/olympics/olympics-2024-paris-gold-medals-unlock-financial-opportunities-for-new-zealand-athletes/AHR23XFCSNFQBF4FSMDJAU3X3I/
Given the Herald's want to entertain political advertising, can we be sure this isn't an exercise in softening public opinion driven inside or outside the office of Chris Bishop?
Or, given the Herald's want to use AI as a journalist, perhaps no one wrote these articles at all.
I think some ministers need to watch "I, Daniel Blake". He has to go to a job interview in order to receive a benefit but can't accept the job because of doctor's orders. Just a big waste of everyone's time.
Hearing about these proposed
cruel sanctionsTory incentives , I was reminded of the Ashburton WINZ office murders.Peggy Noble and Susan Cleveland were killed by Russell Tully in 2014. Kim Adams and Lindy Curtis were also caught up in the horror.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/work-and-income-shooting-gunman-russell-john-tullys-appeal-under-way-in-christchurch/QLBMRYFTY6F5LLNJKTBZV5ZRMI/
I remember that too well, and my first reactions upon hearing the news. First thoughts were for the victims and their families. Quickly followed by not at all being surprised. The only real surprise was that it hadn't happened sooner.
Followed by how the government will use this as the excuse they need to treat all beneficiaries as potentially violent, which they did ( guards on the doors and checking ID). Even today we're all guilty of something until proven innocent.
I will never forget Paula Bennett on the news that night shedding crocodile tears for the victims. If she was genuinely upset, it was because it happened on her watch.
There's no one I know from that time who condones that action, and jail is appropriate. But we also knew full well how it could've happened.
Sorry, but this guy is definitely a “nut case” his actions are his responsibility. He shot dead two defenceless women pleading for their lives. You can’t defend this guy.
Got to agree with you there David. This guy should be kept locked up. You can't blame National for this.
Not defending him at all, or condoning his actions. He belongs in jail. I'm saying that those of on the receiving end of a highly sadistic winz system can see how that ended up happening. You had to be there.
Exactly.
Where's the defence of 'this guy'?
Tully clearly had some issues and received the third longest sentence handed down.
To suggest this 'just happened' in isolation is turning a blind eye to the vexatious, cruel and dehumanising nature of WINZ under 6 years of Key's government.
Tully was always going to do what he ended up doing. The two women worked for WINZ, they didn’t deserve this.
Although, WINZ is a useless organisation.
Big Hairy News yesterday, from 45 min cover the government's new literacy and maths curricula. Interestingly, no existing Reading Recovery teachers have been approached about retraining, although the current Minister claims they have. Meanwhile, an Aussie private company is looking to bid into becoming providers of RR in NZ.
The clips are from Q+A with Labour’s Education spokesperson.
Listening to Morning Report on RNZ this morning.
Chris Luxon comes on to defend the new punitive measures against beneficiaries who the government deems are not sufficiently motivated to seek work.
He is asked if he knows how much the job seeker benefit is a week.
He doesn't know, not even willing to approximate.
It sums up what we have already found out about our figurehead PM. He is incredibly unprepared and out of touch with what many New Zealanders have to live on per week.
Even Luxon conceded that it was a small proportion of beneficiaries who milk the system, which begs the question why if it is so small, is the government so keen to do it?
The answer has nothing to do with being fair to "ordinary hard working tax paying New Zealanders" a phrase which National uses unceasingly. It is all about playing up to their redneck supporters who think that only people who WANT to be unemployed end up that way and if they can't find a job it is THEIR fault.
Ignores how unemployment has soared in the last year under this government. The hypocrisy of running a government where unemployment is growing, and at the same time telling people they are bucking the system when they can't find a job. An astute listener to Morning Report texted that to the programme.
Luxon is a slave to ACT and NZ First. His government is a thieves guild comprised of rich urban neo-liberals, conservative rural environment plunderers, conspiracy theorists and "squeezed middle class" Ford Ranger enthusiasts. He sits impotently on the top, not seeming to realize what is happening beneath.
'If I don't know about it, I'm not responsible. Lalalala [fingers in ears]'. Except the buck stops with you when you're the leader of the country.
Can’t think of a less effective PM in my lifetime.
The Disinformation Project seems to have gone quiet.
I would have thought the recent Olympic boxing bruhaha was in their purview.
Perhaps they are the victims of recent funding cuts.
Perhaps – the DP's most recent media statement was on 26 March. Maybe there are now better ways (AI?) to address disinformation and associated harms. Our CoC govt appears committed to disinformation resilience and the like, although I do wonder.
According to AP News, Khelif can look after herself: she's filing a complaint in the French legal system regarding the misinformation and hate targeted at her. Kirsty Burrows, an IOC official who had death threats and harassment after speaking on Khelif's behalf at a press conference earlier filed a similar complaint.
This is the way to go, like the Green MP who chased and exposed 2 Young Nats as generators of bulk hate mail a couple of years ago. Can't hide your hate behind a social media mask anymore. Or your state propaganda behind a bot army.
"The Paris prosecutor’s office said it received Burrows’ complaint on Aug. 4 and agents from the National Unit for the Fight against Online Hate are investigating the alleged offenses, including death threats, public provocations aimed at attacking a person and cyberbullying. Under French law, the crimes, if proven, carry prison sentences that range from two to five years and fines ranging from 30,000 to 45,000 euros."
In France's Justice system, it's up to prosecutors to identify miscreants, and whether there's a case against an individual or organisation.
Placed this where I meant it to go.
And of course, the aim of all this blitzing is to shift public opinion in NZ against the trans community, and the positive legal and social advances they have made here in recent years. Demagogues aren't interested in facts, they're interested in feelings: ‘Nasty man hurts poor, whimpering woman. Man in dress is pedophile. Change this now!’
The DP was contracted by the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet under the last Labour government, but that ended well before the 2023 election. As did the contract the DP had with the University of Auckland. If they've gone quiet, it's more likely because their at times ridiculous claims have dented their credibility.
Bryce Edwards: The need to take disinformation seriously – Democracy Project
Fully aware of that, I was wondering if funding from the Prime Minister's had stopped.
Not content with wrecking housing and health and education, the NACT1 government is also destroying tourism.
https://archive.md/kKZA2
I think that increasing levies on tourism is a good thing. And people who can afford international airfares, aren't going to be deterred by a fee of $341.
Working holiday visas contribute virtually nothing to the economy (apart from supporting the low-wage economy in tourism industries (think ski instructors in Queenstown, or vineyard temp employees in Marlborough). Again, if they can afford to fly here, they can afford the cost of the visa.
And of course, the aim of all this blitzing is to shift public opinion in NZ against the trans community, and the positive legal and social advances they have made here in recent years. Demagogues aren't interested in facts, they're interested in feelings: ‘Nasty man hurts poor, whimpering woman. Man in dress is pedophile. Change this now!’
To sell more fizz in the Middle East and South Asia, Coca Cola tried to pass off a Coca Cola factory built in an illegal Israeli settlement in the occupied territory of East Jerusalem, as being in Palestine.
Technically this may be correct, but didn't stop the outrage from Coke's intended customers, offended that Coke considered them too ignorant to know the difference between a factory situated in an illegal Israeli only Settlement on Palestinian land, and Palestine.
“Even Palestine has a Coke factory,” Coca Cola advertising claim
https://www.stuff.co.nz/world-news/350376909/how-coca-cola-tried-and-failed-suppress-boycott-over-gaza