nah Siobahn i’m home now, I replaced the phone, I got myt old number back with the kind help from 2degree’s and feel sad more, that I made so much effort over 2 days to find this.. lady of the night.. and nothing was done, sad our police seem to not want to add to their stats?
Picked up a hitchhicker in Glenfeild on a road trip 3 day’s ago..approaches me filling up with petrol and kindly asks if i’m heading towards the city centre(Auckland) being the mug I am I was kind and said yes..stole my phone and money and scammed me doing that like a pro. Ended up hunting her for 2 day’s on K’rd. I have just spent 2 day’s in the biggest shit hole I ever had to endure chasing [deleted] it turns out to get my phone back..here’s the crux. I tracked [deleted] to a corner on a K’rd. twice I phoned the police to say here she is.. right here.. SHe’s on video at the mobil on K’rd.. and still they did nothing.. NOTHING.. it took 20 minutes for them to turn up and there advise was it was only a phone go home and forget it.. They wouldn’t look at the video of all angles and previous day. Told me the video was too grainy? bullshit there, they also have multiple camera’s at garages.. he says he can only see her back..bullshit.. It was a total disgrace by the police in solving this crime., after doing all the leg work for them I get told if I touch her..I go to jail [deleted] took the piss and stood there laughing at me with my phone in her hand never changed the number either..
The police in this country are lazy, useless, uninterested in solving crime and happy to just give you a piece of paper. [deleted] will still be there, doing it to people and on K’rd it seems the police are not interested in upholding the Law. Or are they getting back handers? Next cop asks me anything can fuck right off.
In the end I had to go to Auckland central and plead fopr them to allow me to use there phone to call 2 degree’s as when your travelling and loose your phone how the hell do you phone anyone?
use a phone box..i thought that..tried the phone at Northcross takes a card.. went to dairy’s at least 12 no one had cards for the phone.. frustrated..i could have literally murdered someone by the end of this..,Bullshit.
I got so angry at the police attitude and rudeness and lack of actually helping me I nearly took the law into my own hands and smashed the living crap out of her. Problem was i’m 50 she was young and I suddenly found out if they run from me I can’t catch them anymore.
The police in this country have turned into a joke..any cop reads this, woe behold you next time you pull me over for something..
[So sure, you’re angry. But a couple of things. 1. This is a political blog, not some bloody facebook feed. 2. Sexist epithets have no place here.] – Bill
politicians have a responsibility to uphold our services, the angle I was making was our police have become useless with example. and a ho’s a ho..u think I should talk about her after what she did with manners. I’m not labelling women in general, so get off your PC soapbox and don’t be so bloody women rights and distracting from the points. I thought after reading your comment back.
The police seem to have a big lack of wanting to do anything these days.. what’s with that? Never used to be like this.
What I was expecting back on OPEN FORUM 14/1/2017 was comments about the sad state of our police after my long example.
I find this a lot here..you mods, mod in a way that stifles freedom of expression and stops talking points. You accuse people of having agenda’s they never intended and at times I think you go on like old knitting ladies tut tutting everything you can.. get a grip on IRL mate.
I’m not angry.. it’s just the way I write and you read it..and thought so, why would I be angry on the standard for something she did to me, or what the nz police seem unable to do , when you do the work for them and they still make no effort to arrest her.. that’s a talking point on politics IMHO. and not a anger outburst.
Hey Richard, good to see you back. Can you please not have a go at the mods, you will just get another ban and I like your presence on TS.
Btw, TS apparently used to be a free for all in its first few years and the place got overrun with trolls. There are good reasons for having moderation, one of which is to make the place more inclusive. We have a lot of leeway here all things considered but there are limits if we want people to enjoy the place.
Fair enough, and thanks wek a for the welcome back.. the mods, think I have anger issues from past behaviours I certainly understand that, but right there was a case of painting with brushes mate, I was not angry here, I just made a comment on what happened, to explain why I was not impressed with the service I got from the police under this National leadership. I thought it was a good talking point, however the mods went straight to the word Ho, and started acusing me of being angry. If I keep posting here I won’t tolerate unreasonable calls of me being angry as much as it’s my responsibility to remain calm after coming back from a ban.. or there is no point being here if they are running on me being angry in everything I say.
I see I put in some anger about how I felt at that time, when it was going on, it was not meant to come across as angry now.. as you could I was hoping read it and also get a glimpse of how frustrated one can get when dealing with the police who left me feeling so mad I wanted to take the law into my own hands. I see reading it back how it looks like anger, perhaps i’d ask the mods to not read comments once, but re-read them a couple of times and ask themselves, is there any other reason he could of wrote that, that way without it being unjustified anger.
Stephen Kings a great writer IMHO, and he can make you FEEL how it was when something happened, IMHO I think that is great story telling and comes across as passionate and with feelings.
So when someone writes something you have to read things a few timnes to understand all the nuances in what is written and not rush to hastey conclusions. Also feedback is good, and my comment back is good feedback they should not take it to heart but for what it is.
Perhap’s I should start voting National, if labour people can’t PC past the word HO.. then you have lost all common sense, are more interested in.. god knows what.. deleteing the word HO.. whore, prostitute? do those words offend you? They are in the bloody dictionary mate.. that is some case of overmodding right there..good day.
Violence is never the answer. Or vigilante actions.
You seem to threaten or infer physical actions when you are stressed. Not good man – try taking to someone about that – because the police are right – you take that step – you will be the one in jail.
PS she’s on video at the Wairau rd service station in Glenfeild where she approached me, and at the mobil on K’ rd where I dropped her off, and the next day as well when I caught her. The lazy bastards do nothing.. it’s all too much effort for our once glorious police.
If I write to the police complaints i’ll just get back a standard load of pre prepared excuses..Busy priorities bla bla..
Well this has turned me off people now, I used to be a nice person who would give someone a lift, no one gets anything from me anymore..
Hello from Glenfield… dunno if you’ve been following the news but the fuzz are seriously underfunded but still get some great results like the big drug bust yesterday
Well, well. Who’ da thunk it. Ex rugby player and current hockey player (female) are now our Very Own NZ Royalty. Royal Wedding MIGHT be today. News according to Herald or Stuff. Can’t remember which. Good Grief!
Looks pretty much like what the Wikipedia article says: left wingers critical of Clinton are claimed to promote Trump directly or inadvertently.
eg the stuff on Greenwald being pro Trump & pro Putin
First, I’ve seen it claimed a number of times that the headline usually doesn’t get written by the author of a piece, it’s usually an editor that chooses it. So to base a criticism of an author on the grounds that the headline is much more sensational than the actual contents is unfair.
The actual writing is much more nuanced, for instance passages such as “Unlike the aforementioned wannabe revolutionaries, most of these progressives haven’t endorsed Trump. But they nonetheless embrace the radical departure in American foreign policy that his presidency promises.”
I would also note that when someone writes a piece, in the context of an election, highlighting flaws in candidate A, without at least mentioning candidate B’s serious flaws in the same area (or worse, cherry-picking something positive about candidate B to highlight a contrast), it’s reasonable to infer support for candidate B.
Greenwald is just one that comes to mind as one who has written harsh anti-Clinton pieces, but also writes mildly positive approving passages about Trump such as “Questioning… whether it has this ongoing value and whether the U.S. should be expending the resources it is expending on NATO when we have massive income inequality and our working class is being deprived in ways previously unimaginable, those are perfectly legitimate questions to ask. NATO is not a religion,”. I can’t bring to mind any balancing pieces exposing Trump that he’s written. So if he writes a lot of anti-Clinton and includes stuff that’s pro-Trump, what’s the reasonable conclusion to draw? If his writing leaves a misleading impression of his views, whose fault is it?
OK. I’m with you on many of those points: e.g. headlines, political biases, etc.
However, the “Useful idiots” article, like the other Daily Beast one you linked to, clearly is pro-Clinton, and pro-US-exceptionalism and imperialism:
In “Useful Idiots”:
But it is the second group of progressive Trump fans, subtler in their sympathies, who warrant the most concern. These are the so-called anti-imperialists who harbor deep revulsion at the idea of American power being used for good in the world. America, they believe, is more often than not a source of evil and disorder—a jaundiced view of our global role that they share with the Republican nominee. Unlike the aforementioned wannabe revolutionaries, most of these progressives haven’t endorsed Trump. But they nonetheless embrace the radical departure in American foreign policy that his presidency promises.
…
For centuries, Americans have broadly accepted the idea that their country serves a unique world role as both a political leader and moral exemplar. This notion of American exceptionalism traces itself to the nation’s founding upon universal ideals of liberty and individual rights, garnered real sustenance through the part America played defeating fascist and then communist totalitarianism, and endures today as America remains a beacon for people living under tyranny overseas. Except, that is, on the isolationist right and anti-imperialist left, two groups the Trump campaign has united in rejection of American global leadership.
My bold. So, basically the article is selectively quoting from critics of Clinton (and other right leaning democrats – I don’t see Clinton or the views in the quotes above as left wing), to suggests any critics are in bed with the autocratic forces of evil.
The other article, “How Putin played the left”, does the same with noted critics to the left of Clinton (&Obama), including Jill Stein and Sanders.
I do agree that Greenwald does tend to be stronger in his condemnation of Clinton than Trump. However, other authors at the Intercept have been stronger critics of Trump.
Ultimately, though, the Daily Beast does seem to be a strong supporter of the US status quo (pre-Trump as POTUS), and seems to be out to discredit the left, and critiques of their imperialism and foreign policy., by aligning them with autocrats like Putin.
The author describes himself as a “conservative polemicist:”
Over the past eight years, a bevy of Republican politicians and conservative polemicists (including yours truly) have assailed Obama for disavowing American exceptionalism.
So it’s unsurprising he endorses American exceptionalism and considers the USA a force for good in the world. But he certainly won’t be a Hillary Clinton supporter…
I don’t think the piece is portraying the far left as “in bed with”, it’s saying that there are those on the far left that can be manipulated into words and actions that damage the centre-left. Thereby inadvertantly enabling the alt-right and others that strongly oppose the goals of the far-left.
Personally, my politics are very close to Stein’s on most issues. If the US had some kind if STV or proportional representation, my voting choice would have been dead easy: Stein. But in the system the US has, voting for Stein would be like buying a lottery ticket for the daydreams. Except the lottery ticket is much more likely to actually deliver the dreams. So I swallowed hard, and took a good look at the realistic choices.
Frankly, it looked to me like the main effect of the one-sided criticisms, single-issue shouting, and false equivalences put out by by the far-lefties obscured that 1) Sanders really had dragged the Dems close to his positions, 2) for everything “good” that Trump said (that got highlighted by the far-lefties) he said several things that should be horrifying to lefties 3) while a Clinton would do a lot of things lefties would disagree with, on average she would move things in the right direction, while Trump would be mostly a fukn disaster.
So to the extent that the noisy anti-Clinton far-lefties had an effect on switching some Dems to vote Stein, and turning other Dems off Clinton so they stayed home, yes the noisy far-lefties helped Trump win and were thereby “useful idiots” for Putin and Trump. And I think the Daily Beast is doing a good thing by calling it out.
So I’m super-grateful we’ve got MMP here so I can vote for someone a bit closer to my views here than I can in the US. And why I’m hot on reducing thresholds for representation so a wider range of views get represented.
Mostly agree – though there was so many different views, as far as I can see – and then the noisy interference from various journalists invested in one position or another, and the manipulations of the US & Kremlin intelligence agencies – I really am concerned that expressions of true left wing politics get plastered with the mud being thrown around.
Yes, prefer MMP. But also, the power structure is so entrenched in the US, that the least powerful are always the losers.
I suspect there’s a lot going on behind the scenes – manipulations, strong arming, strategic leaks, etc – that we truly don’t know the extent of the propaganda and surveillance warfare that is on-going.
Ok, now that’s just dishonest bullshit from Greenwald. There are plenty of people and organisations questioning the sufficiency of evidence that aren’t being accused of “loving Putin”.
The war against intelligence is only in its initial phase Carolyn_nth. Many foot-soldiers and noble banner bearers will work tirelessly to make society like a glorious formation lock-stepping confidently into the future.
And of course, the line, the direction – the arguments or perspectives that inform the unfolding of this great harmonious order…well, it’s unthinkable that any “right thinking” person would question it.
So to question is to be wrong. To be critical is to betray or willingly or unwittingly be in the service of all that the glorious formation seeks to overcome and set right.
You can already see it happening across numerous threads in the comments sections here.
Can anyone cite a single left-wing figure of any prominence who has ever expressed “solidarity” with Putin? I know of literally none.
Expressed “solidarity?” Sure, can’t say I’ve seen any myself. But “expressed solidarity” is a fairly precise criterion – comment 5 linked to an article that lays out fairly convincingly how the far left, including at least one prominent figure (Jill Stein) have put themselves in the position of endorsing or supporting Putin.
So your running with the raw news story then Psycho Milt?
Seems you are running with a very similar attack vector you used with Syria, in effect to shut people down people on a issue.
That not going to induce debate and the free exchange of ideas. But then again, I’m not sure I’ve ever seen you promote debate or the free exchange of ideas.
Uh, Psycho Milt is responding to how Greenwald is presenting a distorted picture of what his critics are saying which is a kind of strawman argument. Greenwald is using a very similar technique to the Nats inquiring into misconduct by one of their own: set the terms of inquiry very narrowly in order to exclude the problem behaviour from examination.
As for trying to shut down the debate, get a mirror handy and take a good look at your reply to PM. Did you actually address the points he made?
No analysis or interpretations of events, nor perspectives on issues are to be taken on board unless an approved level of opprobrium for the commissars chosen enemies, or fealty to the commissars chosen masters is in clear evidence.
That’s how it is right now. And it goes way beyond PM, Andre and some others in the comments and way beyond some mutterings from a few authors…
…this is what liberalism looks like – lashing out as it dies.
Everything is to be feared even as everything is to be cleaved to. So everything that would seek to question or understand or shed light is to be destroyed under the commissar’s crushing boot of conformity and unity.
Just look at our supposedly pluralistic media that has become no more than what might have been expected from PRAVDA taking on some biological characteristic and dividing and multiplying into a thousand or a hundred thousand clones of itself.
Where are the alternative analyses or the critical analyses? (There are none). Where is the mainstream news outlet that expresses doubt or asks a question or two? (They don’t exist).
There’s definitely a dark foreboding emanating from ‘our’ political institutions these days and I don’t know that I’ve ever seen anything like it. For them, it can’t but end badly. For us, it depends.
So there are some sources, such as Greenwald, that are totally exempt from scrutiny and criticism? May we have an approved list of all those sources whose pronouncements must be accepted without question? Please?
So there are some sources, such as Greenwald, that are totally exempt from scrutiny and criticism?
Nope
May we have an approved list of all those sources whose pronouncements must be accepted without question?
According to a number of flailing liberals, the BBC (and others) can, more or less, be taken at face value. They are, according to flailing liberals, pretty damned objective. In fact, to question the BBC is to be an apologist, a shill for (insert designated official enemy).
I read that piece, and it got me thinking about the difference between me and a lot of the wishy washy believe anything fringe merchants of the Green movement/anti-Clinton crowd. I think it might be that I have actually seen the old Warsaw Pact. I visited East Germany for a couple of weeks back in the 1980s. It was railway sidings of tanks, uniformed soldiers, grey food served in cold grey restaurants, scared locals and being followed everywhere you go. It was depressing, many buildings in East Berlin were frozen in time, unrepaired and scarred from the battles of 1945. I found it a scary and an awful place. After my little taste of totalitarianism, I couldn’t wait to get back to West Germany and freedom. When you realise the slighly on edge West German border police with their submachine guns were there to protect you from the hyper-aggresssive East German border guards should it all turn to custard on the border you also realise what the cost of freedom might be. After those two weeks, I had no problem identifying between “us” and “them”.
To many on the left today have no idea how awful totalitarianism is or how scary it is to suddenly realise you are not protected by the rule of law and have no human rights. Putin and his kleptocrat thugs in his gangster state are horrible people who wish us all harm. Xi Jinping and the rest of his murderous butchers of the Chinese communist party would brutally torture and kill anyone of us who stood up them, if they could get their hands on us. People like Jill Stein and the flaky occupy movement media and the rest of crackpot conspiracy theory left need to grow up. Maybe they need to spend a fortnight in North Korea, to see what life looks like in a totalitarian state.
This blog’s comments sections are currently plagued by the worst kind of false moral equivalence troll, a person so monumentally stupid, vindictive and egotisitical that he wishes to do nothing but sneer at the ideals of freedom and seek to act as the useful idiot of our enemies. I’ve seen with my own eyes what sort of place Putin and Xi Jinping want to create for us, and I have no time for people who act as traitors by supporting them.
“The term “russophobia” (the hatred and/or fear of things Russian) has become rather popular in the recent years, courtesy of the anti-Russian hysteria of the AngloZionist Empire, ”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethnic_groups_in_Russia
\Russia is a multi-national state with over 185 ethnic groups designated as nationalities; the populations of these groups vary enormously, from millions (e.g., Russians and Tatars) to under 10,000 (e.g., Samis and Kets).[1]
But the article above is more about discrediting people who are strongly left wing, by falsely smearing them as either Trump & Putin supporters or enablers.= are supporters of Putin or Trump.
And the people being criticised don’t actually support Trump or Putin.
…has cultivated dupes, fellow travelers, and purblind fools among plenty of American progressives…
Now in general, I agree with that about the Kremlin and Putin. But I also think that is true of the CIA, US intelligence community, and the US defenders of US imperialism and foreign policy.
There is a propaganda and surveillance/intelligence war going on between the Kremlin and the US agencies. Trump has inserted himself into it one way or another.
Meanwhile the US powers that be also use the whole situation to discredit any strong expression of left wing values, policies, campaigns and critiques.
You do not have to be the biggest fan of either Putin or Xi Jinping to think that (a) war is to be avoided, especially war with such destructive potential, and/or (b) that a multipolar world is a better thing than a world dominated by a single power. “Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely” as the saying goes.
Further down, at comment 12, you approvingly quoted, Bill Clinton’s generation, however, believed that concentration of financial power could be virtuous, as long as that power was in the hands of experts. They largely dismissed the white working class as a bastion of reactionary racism.
Do you not think that this hubris would increase rather than abate in a world dominated by such people, with no need to negotiate or make concessions? Owen Jones thinks it increased greatly after the Berlin wall fell, and neoliberal capitalists felt they could from then on reign supreme. I do not have a link, but the claim is from his book “The Establishment & how they get away with it.”
i once spend the better part of the night at the german/german boarder with people pointing guns at us and taking the car apart.
why?
the old man driving the car, Adi – short for Adolf, was pointing to his rather long arms and large fists when the Volkspolizist asked if we had weapons in the car.
oh dear oh dear oh dear.
Also fun in Berlin, no matter how drunk one got, you could never get lost, the wall was there to guide you home. Always.
Yes, a lot of people don’t have much of an idea what it looked like, what it felt like and those that did know – family members that did make it out of East Germany after years of ‘re-education’ never much spoke about it.
Perhaps you could submit a proposal to deal with the problem direct to Merkal. The board is set for the dismantling of the left, there entire economic thesis has been discredit along with the right. Nows a great time to submit a proposal to deal with the problems you’ve out lined. Because the system can’t deal with all the refuges flowing from the Middle East. But first there’d have to be admission there’s no solution.
“…plagued by the worst kind of false moral equivalence…”
Projection and hypocrisy appear to be your ‘stock and trade’
Comments from you , Sanctuary, are some of the lowest level on this site
It is self evident that you have not a single shred of understanding about what you write. The words do tell a story about the personality behind them…
I spent 4 months in 1982 working for Topdeck Travel on their USSR/Eastern Europe camping tours. Each trip was for a month and visited East Germany, Poland, USSR, Romania, Hungary and Czechoslovakia. Absolutely fascinating but very oppressive. We were among the first tourists to be allowed in Poland after the Solidarity uprising and I’ll never forget the sight of Russian soldiers goosestepping through Warsaw. I found Romania and Czechoslovakia the most oppressive. It would take 6 hours to get into and out of the USSR because they searched everything and even read peoples diaries. I wonder if it is still like that.
You mean, the “badly constructed front for the political meddling of evangelical Christians” Maxim Institute? The one of whom Bruce Logan was a former director? I’m sure they’ve nothing but our best interests at heart, more so if you happen to be homosexual.
well its all good then, they will loose their Health Care and have to go back to bankruptcy in order to receive surgery or simply just die.
In the mean time, America will be Great again! Woot Woot.
A long but worthwhile look back at the fake news in the US election. Given how successful it was and how much of it was sprayed around here on The Standard, we’ll all need to be very wary of it for our own elections coming up.
Along woth the best two paragraph summation of how and why third way, middle class identity politics has crippled the political left in the west since the 1970s – an own goal if there ever was one:
“…There’s history here: In the 1970s, a wave of young liberals, Bill Clinton among them, destroyed the populist Democratic Party they had inherited from the New Dealers of the 1930s. The contours of this ideological fight were complex, but the gist was: Before the ’70s, Democrats were suspicious of big business. They used anti-monopoly policies to fight oligarchy and financial manipulation. Creating competition in open markets, breaking up concentrations of private power, and protecting labor and farmer rights were understood as the essence of ensuring that our commercial society was democratic and protected from big money.
Bill Clinton’s generation, however, believed that concentration of financial power could be virtuous, as long as that power was in the hands of experts. They largely dismissed the white working class as a bastion of reactionary racism. Fred Dutton, who served on the McGovern-Fraser Commission in 1970 , saw the white working class as “a major redoubt of traditional Americanism and of the antinegro, antiyouth vote.” This paved the way for the creation of the modern Democratic coalition. Obama is simply the latest in a long line of party leaders who have bought into the ideology of these “new” Democrats, and he has governed likewise, with commercial policies that ravaged the heartland…”
i am sure our double dipper from Dipton, the beancounter in Chief is studying this and wonders if there is a way to apply it here 🙂
Quote: “But wait, it gets worse. Another feature of this bizarre GOP scheme gives exporters a gargantuan tax break by, in effect, not taxing their export revenues. Let’s say a corporation sells a piece of machinery to Iran for $5 million, which cost only $4 million to produce. That means $1 million in taxable profit. Under the new Republican scheme, however, that $5 million received from the mullahs wouldn’t be taxable. Instead of a $1 million profit, the corporation, for tax purposes, would have a $4 million loss. Loophole doesn’t begin to describe this “tax break.”Quote End
quote” As the tax reform debate heats up in Congress, the obscure border adjustment tax (BAT) is causing friction within the GOP.
What is the BAT? Well, Steve Forbes calls it “a nasty political and economic trap for Donald Trump” — a trap he says is being set by Republicans rather than Democrats.”
can someone explain to my why rural white is ‘heartland’ and urban brown is not?
why can we tell people that live in cities to ‘move out if they can’t afford it’, to get of benefits and ‘move to where the jobs are’, to ‘get an education if they want to earn more money’ to not ‘have children they can’t afford’ but then we turn around and don’t expect the same of white people living in the heart land?
And why do we give people like those in the US heartland a pass on voting for the same fuckwits that have been fucking(looking at Kansas, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Kentucky, Louisiana and so on and so on, heck even Texas) it up for them and tell the democrats that they should give up their voter base of women, people of colour, people who do not identify as heterosexual white male, low income workers, etc etc to make way for the’ white male worker’ who wants to go back to a time where women were barefeet pregnant fixing sandwiches, people of colour being segregated back into obscurity, and anyone not being a heterosexual white male going to the closet?
Please someone explain the heartland to me. I don’t get it. I honestly don’t.
Not sure what your second paragraph means, but your initial question is within the formation of New Zealand identity, economy and society through the development of extensive then intensive agriculture.
i am talking about the US. white heartland is evangelic fundamentalist. YOu know the once who think abstinence only is a good way to prevent pregnancy – even when married i would guess, that think that homosexuality etc is an abomination, and that ‘these people’ you know brown people should learn their place again. Essentially the current Republican lot led by fundamentalists that would like to become a ‘christian’ Nation again by ending the persecution of the Christians by the non Christians that live in Cities. 🙂
So what you are saying then is that a few hundred people – old NZ Farming Stock are ‘heartland’ ‘real NZ’lers’ and all the others are not?
Or are you saying that a few hundred people – old NZ white large scale Landowners are heartland and all others are not?
+1 although I would say concepts of the Heartland predate the neoliberal revolution by a long way. Sabine’s second paragraph is about the bastardisation of NZ culture that has happened since.
Sabine, was there something specific that prompted the question?
it is these articles that basically say that if Clinton would have abandoned all other democratic voter blocks in favour of the ‘disgruntled white male voter’ in the heartland she would have won. (and we often hear the same here in NZ – where Labour = urban / brown / low income / female/ non land owning etc, National = white / male / upper income/ rural / land owning
My point is why are we calling people / areas heartland – in it self a loaded term as the heart is the engine of the body – implying that all other areas of a country are of lesser importance.
combine this with things that we have heard often over the last years
if people in the city can’t afford to live there they should move.
we could equally say that if people on the country side don’t have jobs they should just move.
why are women with large families in the urban areas a drain on socity, while the white women on countrysides having large families are not?
the double standard that is applied Heartland = white , Urban = Brown.
Fwiw, the heartland in the US voted to have the Afordable Care Act gutted, they voted to have the remains of their public schools gutted, they voted to have Birth Control and Family planning replaced with abstinence only (even in marriage) as only form of Family planning, they voted to have environmental degradation be made standard operational procedures, and for what its worth non of the jobs they lost 40 years ago is gonna come back.
I don’t recall rural and urban in Germany or France or Holland to be adressed that way. I grew up on the deep bavarian country side and then went to he City as a young women. It was always just Germany. Non of that these are better then those bs.
In settler/colonial societies, like Aussie, NZ, the US, national identity has often been tied to the (freedom of the) open countryside. It features a lot in novels and movies – cowboys in the US and the man alone in rugged country in NZ.
100% pure and all that.
They’re kind of origin myths, in (implicit) opposition to the (implicitly class-based) corruption of the (much more urbanised) UK/Europe.
The “heartland” or countryside-identification is not usually the rural marae, the Aboriginal township, or the native American reservation.
No, it’s not fake, it’s real. NZ really does have a love historically for the countryside. That’s different than the politics you describe which I address below.
what are the oldest ‘urban’ centres in NZ , the oldest ports? If we apply the creation myth to ‘heartland’ one would have to include the old Port Towns at least?
i get the heartland in an emotional sense of love of the country side, especially what is left over of old NZ in Doc Parks and the like.
but heartland in the political sense i find hard to digest. It seems divisive, not only based on race, gender but also location.
so the question that i put to you then is the North Island less Heartland then the South Island?
I am not trying to be divisive, i am really trying to understand this emotional separation of a country.
example, Bavaria is a beautiful place with the Alps, the lakes, the cows and such, but it is not the heartland of Germany. It is often descriped as an industrial powerhouse as due to some quirky german legislation it is a free state within the federation of Germany and can use that to its advantage in incentivising businesses to settle there. But neither is Schleswig Holstein or Sachsen or Friesland the Heartland.
Mmmhmmm. You seem desperate with all this talk of German boarder crack downs. Can I suggest you have a sleep before going out again and pointing fingers and words at men with guns
3 days in Auckland left me, seriously, wondering how they can put up with the place. The roads were a nightmare, the people I found rude, and when they heard my please’s and thank you’s they all smiled and looked at me like I was a weirdo. I have left Auckland flummoxed as to why oh why would you put up with the place. To many cars, people riding your bumper, cutting lanes, crowds at beaches like I had not seen since Greece..i left Auckland shocked at it’s transformation since 2000 when I left there it was nothing like that, and Asians.., OMG not dissing Asians just commenting..it was like being in Asia. I felt the minority for the first time in my life, in my own country of birth, I felt we had been overrun. just a feeling I got and I cannot get over the fact it did that to me.
Most people stay here for the work. And some people don’t like being too far removed from family — and if all their family lives in Auckland…
I went to Putaruru a couple of years back for a birthday. The air was fresh, the grass was green and everyone was so laid back. But there was bugger all to do. If you took a bunch of kids from Auckland and plopped them down in a place like Putaruru, they’d be climbing the walls within a week.
“Can we go to Westfield, Dad?”
“This is Putaruru, sweetpea. There is no Westfield.”
Can’t say I missed the clogged roads, awful driving and generally shitty attitudes of Auckland, though.
Well, there’s the swing bridge at Arapuni, the sanctuary at Maungatautari, complete with tuatara, the toy museum in the castle at Tirau, and the lovely little shops and cafes in that village, the lovely carvings all up and down the streets of Tokoroa, the gorgeous hot springs at Okoroire, and Rotorua and Taupo are an hour or less away. Westfield – very boring by comparison! 🙂
I think what your are describing isn’t about concepts of the heartland though, at least not in NZ. Those dynamics strike me as ftom the neoliberal decades. And it’s not like we have farmers coming on to TS running alt-right or anti-identity politics 😉 One of the classic example she of what you describe comes from Chris Trotter and his Waitakere Man myth. Haven’t heard it for a while so hopefully it was discredited but what we have now is another version.
From what I cannot tell it’s the politics of dudes who don’t actually care about racism, sexism etc, or who in facts oppose advances in those areas and are now feeling encouraged to be bolder about that post-Obama.
There are some valid politics around working class and poor people and what has been done to them while others thrived but I also don’t understand the need to roll back advances for women, Māori, gay people etc in order to address that. The identity politics I’ve been involved in my whole adult life has been inclusive. What we are seeing now is the disintegration of society and a whole bunch of nasty coming out. Some of that is latent until now.
Also, the whole thing about stop whining and move where capitalism want and you has a modern bent to it, but several generations ago Māori were pressured to move from country to city. It’s a big part on NZ’s history, look it up I think you will find it interesting.Since the 80s it’s been the norm for Pakeha in rural areas to also move to town. This is the neoliberal agenda in the economy and is different from the racist, sexist politics you describe.
it always seemed to me that ‘heartland’ applied by journos/politicians is more a code for a livestyle long gone, nuclear family and such. And in that sense one could argue that the live on the country side is more ‘traditional’ then in an urban centre where people can to some extend hide and live in anonymity.
but i find it interesting as this notion is applied in politics and how in some publications it is argued that the vote of the heartland is morally superior to the vote of the non heartland.
thanks for answering, this was quite interesting to me.
I think you’d have to give some examples of those usages Sabine. To me you are mixing a number of complex phenomena up, they’re not all about the Heartland.
weka, I agree that there are complex things in the mix. But the term “heartland” does get used in reports on NZ politics, and it does traditionally relate to more rural areas associated with conservative values..
As I’ve tried to indicate, there’s old origin myths that have long been incorporated in NZ identity. They do keep getting revived in various forms, from Speight’s Southern Man in the 1990s, to the #8 wire metaphor of NZ identity in the 21st century, and Trotter’s re-working of the Southern man stereotype in his Waitakere Man.
That old rural NZ identity is one where resourceful white men dominated, and were usually located in rural areas – once considered to be the backbone of the country. I think it still gets revisited to reclaim a time when white men dominated.
Despite the fact that the country was now largely urban, New Zealand’s rural mythology remained alive and well. Although New Zealand’s traditional farm exports had some difficulties from the mid-1960s, governments continued to provide subsidies and tax relief to encourage farm production. There was growing investment in education, but it was still assumed that farming was the backbone of the nation. In politics the long-serving prime ministers in these years, Sid Holland and Keith Holyoake, were both claimed to be farmers.
National identity
The farming life remained central to the nation’s identity. When in 1953 Queen Elizabeth II visited New Zealand her guidebook told her that ‘the dominion is essentially a farming country’. The pioneers had transformed ‘a waste of fern, bush and swamp’ into ‘the rich productive area it is today’.
They then go on to say urban culture took over post 1975.
“But the myth of NZ identity being based in rural locations has long been commented on.”
Not sure what you are meaning there Carolyn. There is no single NZ identity, but the connection between NZers and the land isn’t a myth. It still exists despite the problems that neoliberalism has created.
Well, there are dominant NZ identities and the association between NZ’s countryside and NZ national identity has long been represented in ads and various cultural forms.
the connection between NZers and the land isn’t a myth
hmmm… but you’ve been saying most Kiwis these days live in urban contexts. The rural myth of NZ identity continued long after urbanisation. The Te Ara link that I included in an earlier comment talks about that. There is some reality about connection with land, but it’s been raised to a mythical level in various cultural representations.
And the connection between land and NZ identity has been more commonly associated with white (male) Kiwis… ie not being located in the long history of tangata whenua association with the land.
Are you using the word myth to mean cultural story of fake construct?
Kind of – a cultural story, maybe based in some kind of reality, but very skewed to misrepresent reality/realities. And raised to some high status within a culture – mainly to represent to interest of the dominant group/s.
So for instance, the rural myth of NZ identity is one of hard working pioneers who created farms and built the country. It ignores the earlier presence of tangata whenua, and hides the brutal processes of colonisation – let alone the actiivities in towns and the growth of cities.
New Zealand national identity is usually shown in terms of the great outdoors, ignoring the diverse activities around the country. I searched on google images for “New Zealand”. I largely got images of NZ’s great outdoors, with a small number of more urban images thrown in.
7 minutes of images accompanying the singing of the NZ National anthem – must have been for the 2011 RWC. I hadn’t seen the vid before. But most of the 7 minutes is images of pristine, glorious outdoor vistas. there’s a few shots of Auckland/Waitemata harbour, a bit of barbed wire, a cross, a building (maybe a church, sports stadia.
But note what is not there in this representation of NZ to ourselves and internationally – nothing of the diverse multi-cultural Asia-Pacific country we now are; nothing of the diverse fauna; nothing of Te Tiriti; no urban and/or rural marae; none of our diverse cultural and work/business activities . Certainly no polluted rivers; no homeless people; no women who have been victims of violence; no beggars; no Wellington cafes or Otago history… etc.
It’s pretty much open, breath-taking, majestic landscape without people. NZ is very often represented like this – sometimes they include farms.
I think of the man alone means rural masculine NZ national identity myth as something like in the Speight’s Southern Man” ads.
To me, Trotter’s “Waitakere man” echoed the Southern Man stereotype – and Trotter is a man from the south. It’s like he was re-locating the rural identity to somewhere on the fringes of a major urban centre.
Waitakere, while being partly blue-collar urban, also includes hilly bush country.
”Yep NZ is a racist country.”
I agree i got told once i wasn’t bad for a balhead,
have been randomly assaulted twice by brown people,
joined a softball team once but gave up after 3 weeks of being ignored and not touching the ball.
some lefties need to get over them selves , there are horrible bastards in all races.
I will try to help you Sabine, you see the world the way you want it not the way it really is, and you class every one into and identity and then assume they all think the same way if they are that identify, rather than individuals, hope this helps 😀
Because often people in the cities or their parents etc migrated from these heartland towns, its where the family connection are, not sure why you are so exercised over it
hmmm, how much money is made in the Cities? And the people that come from the heartland to live and work in the Cities, are they still heartland?
I can understand the regional thinking i.e. the beauty of the contry, the mountains and that, but then you also have stunning coastlines and such and Fishery is a good business in NZ, and Tourism is a good income in NZ. etc etc.
I don’t try to diminish the value of farmers or their work, don’t get me wrong,
I am trying to understand the political importance of Heartland, when in fact ‘Heartland’ does not even cover 50% of he population.
The moment the crown seized Tainui land, commerce in New Zealand started flowing from Waikato, to Auckland in around the 1860-1880s, and then onto the rest of the world, people started betting on those future prices. So the three enterprises are one and the same.
Great I live in the Heartland.. you will obey my wishes then… Sabines point is.. what make Heartland so special they should get preferential treatment I agree with her totally, it’s supposed to be about ALL kiwi’s not one group and to put any justification for it, even if they are critical to industry whatever, is her point made. They shouldn’t, they should be valued, not preferentially treated over others, that nuance is the crux of it IMHO.
Material units are being forward deployed so soldiers and tankers can fall on them. Meaning instead of taking 2 months to deploy brigade sized elements and begin operations it takes 2 weeks. This information was glimed from the dragon trails which tested how long it takes a stricter brigade to travel across European held NATO territory
Happy to see myself as aligned with outstanding journalists such as Pilger and Greenwald.
Guess you connect more with the propagandists at CNN and the Washington Post.
Didn’t you learn anything frm the lies about WMD and Iraq?
You really should learn your political history, it was the west who shafted Russia at the end of the second world war and caused the great cold war, not the Russians. I’m not going into it, but merely to say Russia got shafted by the US, as soon as they had the bomb. They used it to get their way in almost everything and Russia at that stage was on our team. It caused a cold war that went on for years, and the west’s propaganda machine I see still claims a few victims who haven’t watched any good doco’s on the second WW.
They stole all the scientists, V2 project, and reneged on many deals they had agreed too once they had the bomb and no one else did, in fact they even shafted the English they were so cocky..
Albania was meant to be western they dropped it and let it fall to Enver Hoxha’s communists. My country folk will never forget it.
Paul, this has been in the making since the annexation of Crimea by the Russia and it appears that the Poles invited the US to come and hang out.
One should remember that the ‘eastern’ countries after the second world war got their fare share of Russian interference and occupation and might not be so happy about Russia going around flexing muscle. They might even fear, that they will be ‘annexed’ and again get disappeared behind the great iron curtain.
” The US and Poland are discussing the deployment of American heavy weapons in eastern Europe in response to Russian expansionism and sabre-rattling in the region in what represents a radical break with post-cold war military planning.”
“Poland and the countries that border Russia are becoming increasingly concerned with Russia’s aggression in the region as it continues to provoke Ukraine and occupy Crimea. Many Baltic countries fear Russia’s provocative behavior will spread to inside their own borders.
Macierewicz added that the Polish military would “especially” like to evaluate cooperation in the context of hybrid warfare on land and sea and with special forces.
Russia’s continued attacks on Ukraine have been characterized as hybrid warfare.”
http://english.almanar.com.lb/94576
” Poland’s president urged US President-elect Donald Trump to keep Washington’s promise to deploy troops on NATO’s eastern flank amid tensions with Russia.
“Polish-American relations have become an important pillar of the European and transatlantic stability,” Polish President Andrzej Duda said in a letter of congratulations.
“We are particularly pleased that during this year’s NATO Summit in Warsaw the US decided to increase its military presence in Poland, thereby strengthening the Alliance’s Eastern flank.
“We sincerely hope that your leadership will open new opportunities for our cooperation based on mutual commitment.””
“Atlantic Resolve was launched in the immediate aftermath of Russia’s annexation of Crimea, which sparked fears in the Baltic nations that Vladimir Putin was planning a similar land-grab there.
Under that banner, the US Army in Europe has been conducting training operations since May 2014.”
Despite the Polish celebrations, clouds hung over the historic moment. As the AP puts it, “there are anxieties that the enhanced security could eventually be undermined by the pro-Kremlin views of President-elect Donald Trump. Meanwhile, Russia appears provoked by the deployment of American troops on its doorstep.”
“We perceive it as a threat,” President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. “These actions threaten our interests, our security. Especially as it concerns a third party building up its military presence near our borders,” Peskov said in a conference call with reporters. “It’s not even a European state.”
Poles still feel betrayed by Obama’s “reset” with Russia early on in his administration, which involved abandoning plans for a major U.S. missile defense system in Poland and replacing it with plans for a less ambitious system, still not in place.
“All recent U.S. presidents have thought there can be a grand bargain with Russia,” said Marcin Zaborowski, a senior associate at Visegrad Insight, an analytic journal on Central Europe. “Trump has a proclivity to make deals, and Central and Eastern Europe have reason to worry about that.”
Polish Foreign Minister Witold Waszczykowski expressed hope this week that any new effort at reconciliation with Russia “does not happen at our expense.”
Anyone who’s “preparing for war with Russia” had better send a hell of a lot more than 4000 soldiers into Poland – a couple of orders of magnitude more. This is about making Poland and the Baltic Republics feel a bit better, nothing more than that (because physically incapable of anything more than that). I guess it does come in handy for lackwit pro-Putin propagandists to squawk about “preparing for WW3” though…
What, you’re posting stuff about “preparing for war with Russia” and “preparing for WW3” but me pointing out it’s bullshit is “McCarthyism” and “paranoia?” Try googling “arse about face.”
Rising temperatures and crop farming mean birds are disappearing from parts of England, says study, while butterflies and dragonflies are faring better
Two things you don’t want happening to your environment. There’s a reason why people fear swarming locusts and excess insects will have the same effect although over a longer period of time.
Wonder how much damage NZs farming community is doing to our bird species.
Have a look at the large dairy conversions in the waikato and count the birds.
there are not many left, cause there are no trees, no shrubs, nothing but baked soil with a few strands of grass.
you will find flies. lots and lots of flies.
I recall as a child being told how good it was to see the farms. To see the cleared fields.
But I’ve also been reading Scifi and fantasy for my entire life and in all of them they describe lush green forests as the epitome of a healthy environment. Green fields aren’t and neither are cities.
IMO, we know in our heart of hearts that farming is destructive.
This land of ours used to be covered in birds. It’s entire fertility was based upon sea birds flying and shitting from the coast all the way inland carrying the minerals that the sea provided.
There are load carrying capacities of land but not all land is commodified, just the land that is valuable to cities and complex cities, the rest is not mentioned so there are limits to how many immigrants New Zealand can accept. Once the load carrying capacity has been reached, conflict increases in warfare and politics proceeded by depopulation.
It’s possible to find atomised groups of people in all sectors. Such cases do not quarrel with neighbours to conquer or subjugate, only at state level does that become a dominant type of conflict.
The natural fertility cycle dictates the carrying capacity and the lush forests that used to be here were part of that cycle. By cutting them down and replacing them with farms we’ve actually decreased our carrying capacity as the land can no longer handle the pollutants that we’re putting into it.
The first President to enter the White House under Senate investigation?.
Intelligence Committee will investigate possible Russia-Trump links
The Senate panel will use ‘subpoenas if necessary’ to secure testimony from Obama administration officials as well as Trump’s team, Richard Burr and Mark Warner said.
Senate Intelligence Chairman Richard Burr (R-N.C.) said late Friday that his committee would investigate possible contacts between Donald Trump’s campaign and Russia, reversing himself one day after telling reporters that the issue would be outside of his panel’s ongoing probe into Moscow’s election-disruption efforts.
I have already been sought out and approached by senior Grey Power members, who are deeply concerned about the lack of transparency and the proven bribery and corruption associated with the vast spending of public rates and taxes at local and central government on private consultants and contractors.
My long-standing policy and proven track record on transparency in public spending and ‘whistle-blowing’ against corruption, goes back TEN years.
Politically, support for transparency (and accountability) in public spending cuts across the entire political spectrum.
I’ve also been in Kingsland for the last 26 years.
In my view – anyone who thinks Jacinda Adern is going to sleep walk into becoming the MP for Mt Albert, needs to think again?
Why would people in Mt Albert waste their vote, voting for someone to become their MP – who is already an MP?
I’m not an MP.
(Yet 🙂
What have Labour / Green members/ supporters got to lose, by strategically voting for proven anti-privatisation / anti-corruption campaigner Penny Bright as the (fiercely) Independent MP for Mt Albert?
Jacinda and Julie Anne will still be MPs, and the House will have a fiery new Independent MP, who will be able to rattle the Parliamentary cage from the inside, asking the stinking hard questions about corruption that others will not – under Parliamentary privilege.
……”
In my view, this National Government is very vulnerable on this growing issue of corruption.
If corruption were to become a major election issue in 2017, in my opinion,
it would be far easier to achieve a change of Government.
What better way to help achieve that outcome than for a strategic vote in the Mt Albert by-election for a proven anti-corruption campaigner, in order to make a huge fuss INSIDE the House?
In my view, this is bigger than what will be best for the Labour and Green parties – it’s what will be best for New Zealand and the New Zealand 99%?
Penny Bright
2017 Independent candidate for the Mt Albert by-election.
I actually think it would be worth voting for you. At this point in the electoral cycle it won’t change much but it would send the message that we’re really pissed off with the corruption and lack of transparency that we’re seeing in both local and national politics.
National Geographic’s Genographic Project, launched in 2005, uses science to bring people together where politics have failed.
Through DNA analysis, the project is answering people’s questions regarding ethnicity, race, and the overall origins of the human population and how we came to populate the Earth.
The Genographic Project lists a group of reference populations, where the typical national of each country is described according to genetic makeup. These are based on hundreds of DNA samples and advanced DNA analysis. Four Arab countries were part of the reference population list.
Here are some surprising discoveries on the genetic makeup of these four Arab nationalities.
The video at the end is a must watch.
And, no, I don’t like that headline or the focus on Arabia.
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It would not be a desirable way to start your holiday by breaking your back, your head, or your wrist, but on our first hour in Singapore I gave it a try.We were chatting, last week, before we started a meeting of Hazel’s Enviro Trust, about the things that can ...
Calling all journalists, academics, planners, lawyers, political activists, environmentalists, and other members of the public who believe that the relationships between vested interests and politicians need to be scrutinised. We need to work together to make sure that the new Fast-Track Approvals Bill – currently being pushed through by the ...
Feel worried. Shane Jones and a couple of his Cabinet colleagues are about to be granted the power to override any and all objections to projects like dams, mines, roads etc even if: said projects will harm biodiversity, increase global warming and cause other environmental harms, and even if ...
Bryce Edwards writes- The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. ...
Michael Bassett writes – If you think there is a move afoot by the radical Maori fringe of New Zealand society to create a parallel system of government to the one that we elect at our triennial elections, you aren’t wrong. Over the last few days we have ...
Without a corresponding drop in interest rates, it’s doubtful any changes to the CCCFA will unleash a massive rush of home buyers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The six things that stood out to me in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, poverty and climate on Monday, April 22 included:The Government making a ...
Sunday was a lazy day. I started watching Jack Tame on Q&A, the interviews are usually good for something to write about. Saying the things that the politicians won’t, but are quite possibly thinking. Things that are true and need to be extracted from between the lines.As you might know ...
In our Weekly Roundup last week we covered news from Auckland Transport that the WX1 Western Express is going to get an upgrade next year with double decker electric buses. As part of the announcement, AT also said “Since we introduced the WX1 Western Express last November we have seen ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 29 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. Stats NZ releases its statutory report on Census 2023 tomorrow.Finance Minister Nicola Willis delivers a pre-Budget speech at ...
A listing of 29 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 14, 2024 thru Sat, April 20, 2024. Story of the week Our story of the week hinges on these words from the abstract of a fresh academic ...
The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. The Government says this will ...
This is a column to say thank you. So many of have been in touch since Mum died to say so many kind and thoughtful things. You’re wonderful, all of you. You’ve asked how we’re doing, how Dad’s doing. A little more realisation each day, of the irretrievable finality of ...
Identifying the engine type in your car is crucial for various reasons, including maintenance, repairs, and performance upgrades. Knowing the specific engine model allows you to access detailed technical information, locate compatible parts, and make informed decisions about modifications. This comprehensive guide will provide you with a step-by-step approach to ...
Introduction: The allure of racing is undeniable. The thrill of speed, the roar of engines, and the exhilaration of competition all contribute to the allure of this adrenaline-driven sport. For those who yearn to experience the pinnacle of racing, becoming a race car driver is the ultimate dream. However, the ...
Introduction Automobiles have become ubiquitous in modern society, serving as a primary mode of transportation and a symbol of economic growth and personal mobility. With countless vehicles traversing roads and highways worldwide, it begs the question: how many cars are there in the world? Determining the precise number is a ...
Maintaining a safe and reliable vehicle requires regular inspections. Whether it’s a routine maintenance checkup or a safety inspection, knowing how long the process will take can help you plan your day accordingly. This article delves into the factors that influence the duration of a car inspection and provides an ...
Mazda Motor Corporation, commonly known as Mazda, is a Japanese multinational automaker headquartered in Fuchu, Aki District, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. The company was founded in 1920 as the Toyo Cork Kogyo Co., Ltd., and began producing vehicles in 1931. Mazda is primarily known for its production of passenger cars, but ...
Your car battery is an essential component that provides power to start your engine, operate your electrical systems, and store energy. Over time, batteries can weaken and lose their ability to hold a charge, which can lead to starting problems, power failures, and other issues. Replacing your battery before it ...
In most states, you cannot register a car without a valid driver’s license. However, there are a few exceptions to this rule. Exceptions to the RuleIf you are under 18 years old: In some states, you can register a car in your name even if you do not ...
Mazda, a Japanese automotive manufacturer with a rich history of innovation and engineering excellence, has emerged as a formidable player in the global car market. Known for its reputation of producing high-quality, fuel-efficient, and driver-oriented vehicles, Mazda has consistently garnered praise from industry experts and consumers alike. In this article, ...
Struts are an essential part of a car’s suspension system. They are responsible for supporting the weight of the car and damping the oscillations of the springs. Struts are typically made of steel or aluminum and are filled with hydraulic fluid. How Do Struts Work? Struts work by transferring the ...
Car registration is a mandatory process that all vehicle owners must complete annually. This process involves registering your car with the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and paying an associated fee. The registration process ensures that your vehicle is properly licensed and insured, and helps law enforcement and other authorities ...
Zoom is a video conferencing service that allows you to share your screen, webcam, and audio with other participants. In addition to sharing your own audio, you can also share the audio from your computer with other participants. This can be useful for playing music, sharing presentations with audio, or ...
Building your own computer can be a rewarding and cost-effective way to get a high-performance machine tailored to your specific needs. However, it also requires careful planning and execution, and one of the most important factors to consider is the time it will take. The exact time it takes to ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi, and Mema Paremata mō Tāmaki-Makaurau, Takutai Tarsh Kemp, will travel to the Gold Coast to strengthen ties with Māori in Australia next week (15-21 April). The visit, in the lead-up to the 9th Australian National Kapa haka Festival, will be an opportunity for both ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
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 ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order. “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions. “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today. “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale. “It is good ...
The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
“China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Asia Pacific Report From France to Australia, university pro-Palestine protests in the United States have now spread to several countries with students pitching on-campus camps. And students at Columbia and other US universities remain defiant as campuses have witnessed the biggest protests since the anti-Vietnam war and anti-apartheid eras in ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards, Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)New Zealand Government’s Fast Track legislation. Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government ...
Tara Ward talks to presenter Naomi Toilalo about the new TV show that turns food waste into a three course feast. Naomi Toilalo is standing in the warehouse at Good Neighbour Tauranga, helping unpack the two-and-a-half tonnes of rejected food that will arrive at the community support hub that day. ...
Scout is our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our What’s Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Scout’s human, Avril, for her support. Dog name: Scout (named after the little girl in To Kill a Mockingbird – she inherited the independent spirit ...
Megan Alatini takes us through her life in TV, including ‘terrible’ daytime TV, the class of Carol Hirschfeld and her most embarrassing TrueBliss moment. When she responded to a vague newspaper ad asking “do you have what it takes to be a popstar?” 25 years ago, Megan Alatini never guessed ...
A new exhibition in Wellington showcases the faces behind your local goods and services. Back in 1977, when I was a fine arts student at the University of Canterbury, I took a series of photographs of Christchurch shopkeepers. The photos were for a calendar – a project for my end ...
Toomaj and his resistance to tyranny through his songs have become an icon for the youth of Iran, so his sentence has hit the nation hard. Toomaj Salehi is not the first artist to pay the price for standing with the people. ...
My cousin Dylan and I spotted these big eels under the bridge that summer. We watched them lounging under the dark weed, facing into the flow of water, their mouths frozen open. Dylan and I couldn’t stop thinking about those eels. The night we went down to the creek, we ...
Newsroom, home of satire. My long-running weekly satirical series The Secret Diary has moved to Newsroom and will appear every Saturday, with Victor Billot’s wildly popular satirical Odes continuing to appear every Sunday. Diaries, Odes – while serious political columnists toil at meaningful opinions and stroke their chins to an ...
Tara Ward unravels the many nuanced layers of a cartoon about talking dogs.This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. It’s not often an episode of a children’s cartoon has adults sobbing into their sleeves, but that’s exactly what happened this week when ...
Working as a doctor in developing countries to help communities achieve better health outcomes is nothing short of a life goal for Jessica Tater. The University of Otago medical student has her sights firmly set on joining the international humanitarian organisation Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) when she qualifies ...
There’s an island in the far reaches of Auckland’s territory, sitting off the tip of the Coromandel Peninsula, 30 minutes by air from the city or four hours on the slow boat. Aotea Great Barrier is off-grid, it has a population of fewer than a thousand people … and most ...
Asia Pacific Report An Australian author and advocate, Jim Aubrey, today led a national symbolic one minute’s silence to mark the “blood debt” owed to Papuan allies during the Second World War indigenous resistance against the invading Japanese forces. “A promise to most people is a promise,” Aubrey said in ...
Asia Pacific Report The Freedom Flotilla is ready to sail to Gaza, reports Kia Ora Gaza. All the required paperwork has been submitted to the port authority, and the cargo has been loaded and prepared for the humanitarian trip to the besieged enclave. However, organisers received word of an “administrative ...
Pacific Media Watch Palestine solidarity protesters today demonstrated at the Auckland headquarters of Television New Zealand, accusing the country’s major TV network of broadcasting “propaganda” backing Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza. About 50 protesters targeted the main entrance to the TVNZ building near Sky Tower and also picketed a side ...
Opinion by Lynley Hood. Forty years on from my 1985 Fulbright Grant, my disquiet over the war in Gaza evoked some troubling questions. The answer to my first question – What is the primary purpose of the Fulbright Programme? – was on the Fulbright NZ website. It says: US Senator, ...
The ministers responsible for green-lighting major projects need to be open about potential conflicts of interest, says Transparency International. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Powell, Professor, Family and Sexual Violence, RMIT University It has been a particularly distressing start to the year. There is little that can ease the current grief of individuals, families and communities who have needlessly lost a loved one to men’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gregory Moore, Senior Research Associate, School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, The University of Melbourne Lichen, the first described example of symbiosis.AdeJ Artventure/Shutterstock Once known only to those studying biology, the word symbiosis is now widely used. Symbiosis is the intimate ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kim Hemsley, Head, Childhood Dementia Research Group, Flinders Health and Medical Research Institute, College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University Olena Ivanova/Shutterstock “Childhood” and “dementia” are two words we wish we didn’t have to use together. But sadly, around 1,400 ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Whiteford, Professor, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University The government’s Economic Inclusion Advisory Committee has just published its second report. It was set up by Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth in 2022 to provide: ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne The Queensland state election will be held in October. A YouGov poll for The Courier Mail, conducted April 9–17 from a sample ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Naeni, PhD candidate at Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation, Deakin University There’s been much talk in recent months about what a possible second Donald Trump presidency in the United States could mean for Europe, Russia’s war in Ukraine, the ...
A brief round-up of submissions on the controversial proposed law. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week, submissions on the controversial Fast-track Approvals Bill closed just hours after the government released a list of stakeholder organisations who were sent letters advising how they could ...
A poem from Robin Peace’s new collection Detritus of Empire: feather / grass / rock. Cereal giving I see a woman’s hands, see her curious hands break a stalk as she walks through the tall prairie, the savannah, the steppe, wherever it was. See her idly bite the grass that ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Hemingway’s Goblet by Dermot Ross (Mary Egan Publishing, $38)A handsomely produced (debossed cover, lovely ...
The Commissioner's decision validates the longstanding efforts of the local community and ensures that Awataha Marae will be managed to serve the needs of the local community, particularly for hosting tangihanga. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tristan Salles, Associate professor, University of Sydney Examples of Australian landscapes.Unsplash Seventy thousand years ago, the sea level was much lower than today. Australia, along with New Guinea and Tasmania, formed a connected landmass known as Sahul. Around this time – ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Felicity Castagna, Lecturer, Creative Writing, Western Sydney University Day Day Market, ParramattaPhoto: Garry Trinh I live on the edge of Parramatta, Australia’s fastest-growing city, on the kind of old-fashioned suburban street that has 1950s fibros constructed in the post-war housing boom, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Ryan, Teaching Fellow in Economics, University of Waikato GettyImagesfatido/Getty Images There is an ongoing global debate over whether the high inflation seen in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic can be lowered without a recession. New Zealand is not ...
The ‘Wicked Game’ heartthrob is in his late 60s now. That didn’t stop him putting on a lively, goofy and very sparkly show. Apart from ‘Wicked Game’, which graces a sultry playlist of mine simply called 💋, my last sustained Chris Isaak listening session took place when I was about ...
Analysis - Two ministers were stripped of portfolios in a warning to Cabinet, drama broke out at the Waitangi Tribunal, and the gang patch ban bill ran into opposition. ...
Tara Ward makes an impassioned plea for some vital pop culture merch. In April 1999, I became obsessed with a new reality television show called Popstars. Every Tuesday night, five strangers transformed into music royalty before my very eyes as Joe, Keri, Carly, Erika and Megan were chosen to form ...
PNG Post-Courier In the early hours of ANZAC Day, aerial photographs captured an impressive gathering of Australians and Papua New Guineans at Isurava in the Northern (Oro) Province. The solemn dawn service yesterday was held at a site steeped in history, where some of the fiercest battles of World War ...
The PSA is shocked that Oranga Tamariki has used the cost cutting drive to downgrade its commitment to Te Ao Māori and remove many specialist Māori roles. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Kemish, Adjunct Professor, School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry, The University of Queensland There can be no more powerful symbol of the relationship between Australia and Papua New Guinea than the prime ministers of these neighbouring countries walking together on the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sharon Robinson, Distinguished Professor and Deputy Director of ARC Securing Antarctica’s Environmental Future (SAEF), University of Wollongong, University of Wollongong Andrew Netherwood Over the last 25 years, the ozone hole which forming over Antarctica each spring has started to shrink. ...
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LAUGH. It’s good for you.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3gIYgSa4qw
I think this post should be moved down one. Rawsharks in some pain . Serious pain…
nah Siobahn i’m home now, I replaced the phone, I got myt old number back with the kind help from 2degree’s and feel sad more, that I made so much effort over 2 days to find this.. lady of the night.. and nothing was done, sad our police seem to not want to add to their stats?
Picked up a hitchhicker in Glenfeild on a road trip 3 day’s ago..approaches me filling up with petrol and kindly asks if i’m heading towards the city centre(Auckland) being the mug I am I was kind and said yes..stole my phone and money and scammed me doing that like a pro. Ended up hunting her for 2 day’s on K’rd. I have just spent 2 day’s in the biggest shit hole I ever had to endure chasing [deleted] it turns out to get my phone back..here’s the crux. I tracked [deleted] to a corner on a K’rd. twice I phoned the police to say here she is.. right here.. SHe’s on video at the mobil on K’rd.. and still they did nothing.. NOTHING.. it took 20 minutes for them to turn up and there advise was it was only a phone go home and forget it.. They wouldn’t look at the video of all angles and previous day. Told me the video was too grainy? bullshit there, they also have multiple camera’s at garages.. he says he can only see her back..bullshit.. It was a total disgrace by the police in solving this crime., after doing all the leg work for them I get told if I touch her..I go to jail [deleted] took the piss and stood there laughing at me with my phone in her hand never changed the number either..
The police in this country are lazy, useless, uninterested in solving crime and happy to just give you a piece of paper. [deleted] will still be there, doing it to people and on K’rd it seems the police are not interested in upholding the Law. Or are they getting back handers? Next cop asks me anything can fuck right off.
In the end I had to go to Auckland central and plead fopr them to allow me to use there phone to call 2 degree’s as when your travelling and loose your phone how the hell do you phone anyone?
use a phone box..i thought that..tried the phone at Northcross takes a card.. went to dairy’s at least 12 no one had cards for the phone.. frustrated..i could have literally murdered someone by the end of this..,Bullshit.
I got so angry at the police attitude and rudeness and lack of actually helping me I nearly took the law into my own hands and smashed the living crap out of her. Problem was i’m 50 she was young and I suddenly found out if they run from me I can’t catch them anymore.
The police in this country have turned into a joke..any cop reads this, woe behold you next time you pull me over for something..
[So sure, you’re angry. But a couple of things. 1. This is a political blog, not some bloody facebook feed. 2. Sexist epithets have no place here.] – Bill
politicians have a responsibility to uphold our services, the angle I was making was our police have become useless with example. and a ho’s a ho..u think I should talk about her after what she did with manners. I’m not labelling women in general, so get off your PC soapbox and don’t be so bloody women rights and distracting from the points. I thought after reading your comment back.
The police seem to have a big lack of wanting to do anything these days.. what’s with that? Never used to be like this.
What I was expecting back on OPEN FORUM 14/1/2017 was comments about the sad state of our police after my long example.
I find this a lot here..you mods, mod in a way that stifles freedom of expression and stops talking points. You accuse people of having agenda’s they never intended and at times I think you go on like old knitting ladies tut tutting everything you can.. get a grip on IRL mate.
I’m not angry.. it’s just the way I write and you read it..and thought so, why would I be angry on the standard for something she did to me, or what the nz police seem unable to do , when you do the work for them and they still make no effort to arrest her.. that’s a talking point on politics IMHO. and not a anger outburst.
Hey Richard, good to see you back. Can you please not have a go at the mods, you will just get another ban and I like your presence on TS.
Btw, TS apparently used to be a free for all in its first few years and the place got overrun with trolls. There are good reasons for having moderation, one of which is to make the place more inclusive. We have a lot of leeway here all things considered but there are limits if we want people to enjoy the place.
Fair enough, and thanks wek a for the welcome back.. the mods, think I have anger issues from past behaviours I certainly understand that, but right there was a case of painting with brushes mate, I was not angry here, I just made a comment on what happened, to explain why I was not impressed with the service I got from the police under this National leadership. I thought it was a good talking point, however the mods went straight to the word Ho, and started acusing me of being angry. If I keep posting here I won’t tolerate unreasonable calls of me being angry as much as it’s my responsibility to remain calm after coming back from a ban.. or there is no point being here if they are running on me being angry in everything I say.
I see I put in some anger about how I felt at that time, when it was going on, it was not meant to come across as angry now.. as you could I was hoping read it and also get a glimpse of how frustrated one can get when dealing with the police who left me feeling so mad I wanted to take the law into my own hands. I see reading it back how it looks like anger, perhaps i’d ask the mods to not read comments once, but re-read them a couple of times and ask themselves, is there any other reason he could of wrote that, that way without it being unjustified anger.
Stephen Kings a great writer IMHO, and he can make you FEEL how it was when something happened, IMHO I think that is great story telling and comes across as passionate and with feelings.
So when someone writes something you have to read things a few timnes to understand all the nuances in what is written and not rush to hastey conclusions. Also feedback is good, and my comment back is good feedback they should not take it to heart but for what it is.
Perhap’s I should start voting National, if labour people can’t PC past the word HO.. then you have lost all common sense, are more interested in.. god knows what.. deleteing the word HO.. whore, prostitute? do those words offend you? They are in the bloody dictionary mate.. that is some case of overmodding right there..good day.
” I nearly took the law into my own hands”
Violence is never the answer. Or vigilante actions.
You seem to threaten or infer physical actions when you are stressed. Not good man – try taking to someone about that – because the police are right – you take that step – you will be the one in jail.
PS she’s on video at the Wairau rd service station in Glenfeild where she approached me, and at the mobil on K’ rd where I dropped her off, and the next day as well when I caught her. The lazy bastards do nothing.. it’s all too much effort for our once glorious police.
If I write to the police complaints i’ll just get back a standard load of pre prepared excuses..Busy priorities bla bla..
Well this has turned me off people now, I used to be a nice person who would give someone a lift, no one gets anything from me anymore..
Hello from Glenfield… dunno if you’ve been following the news but the fuzz are seriously underfunded but still get some great results like the big drug bust yesterday
That’s a really shitty thing to happen RR. Ropata is right, the cops are under resourced big time, as a result their moral is super low, and they can’t be bothered.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/nelson-mail/news/84905273/nelson-police-morale-continues-to-fall
http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/69210055/police-morale-in-hawkes-bay-hits-a-new-low
Whole police system needs a shake up. I’d give the hooker a shake up for you but I’m still working on the teleporter.
Well, well. Who’ da thunk it. Ex rugby player and current hockey player (female) are now our Very Own NZ Royalty. Royal Wedding MIGHT be today. News according to Herald or Stuff. Can’t remember which. Good Grief!
+1
The MSM is leading us down the garden path with celebrity worship.
I saw Jamie farrar the tickle film guy come out of the garage when I was chasing Ho’s for phones on K’rd, he looked tall and was blowing on a pie…
OI Farrar ur famous I yelled out, he kept walking..
my claim to meet fame was over…
Looking at how Putin plays the far left as well as the alt-right…
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2017/01/13/how-putin-played-the-far-left.html
A bit like the Daily Beast’s “useful idiots” story, then?
That wikipedia article you linked to gives quite a different impression than the actual Daily Beast story.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/08/15/beware-the-hillary-clinton-loathing-donald-trump-loving-useful-idiots-of-the-left.html
Really? Please explain?
Looks pretty much like what the Wikipedia article says: left wingers critical of Clinton are claimed to promote Trump directly or inadvertently.
eg the stuff on Greenwald being pro Trump & pro Putin
First, I’ve seen it claimed a number of times that the headline usually doesn’t get written by the author of a piece, it’s usually an editor that chooses it. So to base a criticism of an author on the grounds that the headline is much more sensational than the actual contents is unfair.
The actual writing is much more nuanced, for instance passages such as “Unlike the aforementioned wannabe revolutionaries, most of these progressives haven’t endorsed Trump. But they nonetheless embrace the radical departure in American foreign policy that his presidency promises.”
I would also note that when someone writes a piece, in the context of an election, highlighting flaws in candidate A, without at least mentioning candidate B’s serious flaws in the same area (or worse, cherry-picking something positive about candidate B to highlight a contrast), it’s reasonable to infer support for candidate B.
Greenwald is just one that comes to mind as one who has written harsh anti-Clinton pieces, but also writes mildly positive approving passages about Trump such as “Questioning… whether it has this ongoing value and whether the U.S. should be expending the resources it is expending on NATO when we have massive income inequality and our working class is being deprived in ways previously unimaginable, those are perfectly legitimate questions to ask. NATO is not a religion,”. I can’t bring to mind any balancing pieces exposing Trump that he’s written. So if he writes a lot of anti-Clinton and includes stuff that’s pro-Trump, what’s the reasonable conclusion to draw? If his writing leaves a misleading impression of his views, whose fault is it?
OK. I’m with you on many of those points: e.g. headlines, political biases, etc.
However, the “Useful idiots” article, like the other Daily Beast one you linked to, clearly is pro-Clinton, and pro-US-exceptionalism and imperialism:
In “Useful Idiots”:
My bold. So, basically the article is selectively quoting from critics of Clinton (and other right leaning democrats – I don’t see Clinton or the views in the quotes above as left wing), to suggests any critics are in bed with the autocratic forces of evil.
The other article, “How Putin played the left”, does the same with noted critics to the left of Clinton (&Obama), including Jill Stein and Sanders.
I do agree that Greenwald does tend to be stronger in his condemnation of Clinton than Trump. However, other authors at the Intercept have been stronger critics of Trump.
Ultimately, though, the Daily Beast does seem to be a strong supporter of the US status quo (pre-Trump as POTUS), and seems to be out to discredit the left, and critiques of their imperialism and foreign policy., by aligning them with autocrats like Putin.
The author describes himself as a “conservative polemicist:”
Over the past eight years, a bevy of Republican politicians and conservative polemicists (including yours truly) have assailed Obama for disavowing American exceptionalism.
So it’s unsurprising he endorses American exceptionalism and considers the USA a force for good in the world. But he certainly won’t be a Hillary Clinton supporter…
Well, he’s more of a Clinton supporter than one for the likes of Sanders or Stein.
Maybe more of a never-Trumper.
I don’t think the piece is portraying the far left as “in bed with”, it’s saying that there are those on the far left that can be manipulated into words and actions that damage the centre-left. Thereby inadvertantly enabling the alt-right and others that strongly oppose the goals of the far-left.
Personally, my politics are very close to Stein’s on most issues. If the US had some kind if STV or proportional representation, my voting choice would have been dead easy: Stein. But in the system the US has, voting for Stein would be like buying a lottery ticket for the daydreams. Except the lottery ticket is much more likely to actually deliver the dreams. So I swallowed hard, and took a good look at the realistic choices.
Frankly, it looked to me like the main effect of the one-sided criticisms, single-issue shouting, and false equivalences put out by by the far-lefties obscured that 1) Sanders really had dragged the Dems close to his positions, 2) for everything “good” that Trump said (that got highlighted by the far-lefties) he said several things that should be horrifying to lefties 3) while a Clinton would do a lot of things lefties would disagree with, on average she would move things in the right direction, while Trump would be mostly a fukn disaster.
So to the extent that the noisy anti-Clinton far-lefties had an effect on switching some Dems to vote Stein, and turning other Dems off Clinton so they stayed home, yes the noisy far-lefties helped Trump win and were thereby “useful idiots” for Putin and Trump. And I think the Daily Beast is doing a good thing by calling it out.
So I’m super-grateful we’ve got MMP here so I can vote for someone a bit closer to my views here than I can in the US. And why I’m hot on reducing thresholds for representation so a wider range of views get represented.
Mostly agree – though there was so many different views, as far as I can see – and then the noisy interference from various journalists invested in one position or another, and the manipulations of the US & Kremlin intelligence agencies – I really am concerned that expressions of true left wing politics get plastered with the mud being thrown around.
Yes, prefer MMP. But also, the power structure is so entrenched in the US, that the least powerful are always the losers.
I suspect there’s a lot going on behind the scenes – manipulations, strong arming, strategic leaks, etc – that we truly don’t know the extent of the propaganda and surveillance warfare that is on-going.
Greenwald, on his twitter feed today, has been strongly attacking the claims that the anti-imperialist left is supporting Putin.
eg:
Can anyone cite a single left-wing figure of any prominence who has ever expressed “solidarity” with Putin? I know of literally none.
And
Right. If you question sufficiency of evidence for govt claims about Russia, they accuse you of “loving Putin”: as dumb as it is dishonest.
Ok, now that’s just dishonest bullshit from Greenwald. There are plenty of people and organisations questioning the sufficiency of evidence that aren’t being accused of “loving Putin”.
The war against intelligence is only in its initial phase Carolyn_nth. Many foot-soldiers and noble banner bearers will work tirelessly to make society like a glorious formation lock-stepping confidently into the future.
And of course, the line, the direction – the arguments or perspectives that inform the unfolding of this great harmonious order…well, it’s unthinkable that any “right thinking” person would question it.
So to question is to be wrong. To be critical is to betray or willingly or unwittingly be in the service of all that the glorious formation seeks to overcome and set right.
You can already see it happening across numerous threads in the comments sections here.
It’s Red Scare. It’s McCarthyism.
Can anyone cite a single left-wing figure of any prominence who has ever expressed “solidarity” with Putin? I know of literally none.
Expressed “solidarity?” Sure, can’t say I’ve seen any myself. But “expressed solidarity” is a fairly precise criterion – comment 5 linked to an article that lays out fairly convincingly how the far left, including at least one prominent figure (Jill Stein) have put themselves in the position of endorsing or supporting Putin.
So your running with the raw news story then Psycho Milt?
Seems you are running with a very similar attack vector you used with Syria, in effect to shut people down people on a issue.
That not going to induce debate and the free exchange of ideas. But then again, I’m not sure I’ve ever seen you promote debate or the free exchange of ideas.
Uh, Psycho Milt is responding to how Greenwald is presenting a distorted picture of what his critics are saying which is a kind of strawman argument. Greenwald is using a very similar technique to the Nats inquiring into misconduct by one of their own: set the terms of inquiry very narrowly in order to exclude the problem behaviour from examination.
As for trying to shut down the debate, get a mirror handy and take a good look at your reply to PM. Did you actually address the points he made?
Raw news to obscure for the likes of you Andre?
And obviously I don’t need a mirror because you joined in. 🙂
No analysis or interpretations of events, nor perspectives on issues are to be taken on board unless an approved level of opprobrium for the commissars chosen enemies, or fealty to the commissars chosen masters is in clear evidence.
That’s how it is right now. And it goes way beyond PM, Andre and some others in the comments and way beyond some mutterings from a few authors…
…this is what liberalism looks like – lashing out as it dies.
Everything is to be feared even as everything is to be cleaved to. So everything that would seek to question or understand or shed light is to be destroyed under the commissar’s crushing boot of conformity and unity.
Just look at our supposedly pluralistic media that has become no more than what might have been expected from PRAVDA taking on some biological characteristic and dividing and multiplying into a thousand or a hundred thousand clones of itself.
Where are the alternative analyses or the critical analyses? (There are none). Where is the mainstream news outlet that expresses doubt or asks a question or two? (They don’t exist).
There’s definitely a dark foreboding emanating from ‘our’ political institutions these days and I don’t know that I’ve ever seen anything like it. For them, it can’t but end badly. For us, it depends.
So there are some sources, such as Greenwald, that are totally exempt from scrutiny and criticism? May we have an approved list of all those sources whose pronouncements must be accepted without question? Please?
So there are some sources, such as Greenwald, that are totally exempt from scrutiny and criticism?
Nope
May we have an approved list of all those sources whose pronouncements must be accepted without question?
According to a number of flailing liberals, the BBC (and others) can, more or less, be taken at face value. They are, according to flailing liberals, pretty damned objective. In fact, to question the BBC is to be an apologist, a shill for (insert designated official enemy).
I never question my cat’s pronouncements.
I read that piece, and it got me thinking about the difference between me and a lot of the wishy washy believe anything fringe merchants of the Green movement/anti-Clinton crowd. I think it might be that I have actually seen the old Warsaw Pact. I visited East Germany for a couple of weeks back in the 1980s. It was railway sidings of tanks, uniformed soldiers, grey food served in cold grey restaurants, scared locals and being followed everywhere you go. It was depressing, many buildings in East Berlin were frozen in time, unrepaired and scarred from the battles of 1945. I found it a scary and an awful place. After my little taste of totalitarianism, I couldn’t wait to get back to West Germany and freedom. When you realise the slighly on edge West German border police with their submachine guns were there to protect you from the hyper-aggresssive East German border guards should it all turn to custard on the border you also realise what the cost of freedom might be. After those two weeks, I had no problem identifying between “us” and “them”.
To many on the left today have no idea how awful totalitarianism is or how scary it is to suddenly realise you are not protected by the rule of law and have no human rights. Putin and his kleptocrat thugs in his gangster state are horrible people who wish us all harm. Xi Jinping and the rest of his murderous butchers of the Chinese communist party would brutally torture and kill anyone of us who stood up them, if they could get their hands on us. People like Jill Stein and the flaky occupy movement media and the rest of crackpot conspiracy theory left need to grow up. Maybe they need to spend a fortnight in North Korea, to see what life looks like in a totalitarian state.
This blog’s comments sections are currently plagued by the worst kind of false moral equivalence troll, a person so monumentally stupid, vindictive and egotisitical that he wishes to do nothing but sneer at the ideals of freedom and seek to act as the useful idiot of our enemies. I’ve seen with my own eyes what sort of place Putin and Xi Jinping want to create for us, and I have no time for people who act as traitors by supporting them.
Yeah. I visited Czechoslavakia as an invited guest for a sporting event in the early 80s. It was deeply uncomfortable and depressing.
http://thesaker.is/the-ancient-spiritual-roots-of-russophobia/
http://thesaker.is/could-there-be-a-grain-of-truth-in-the-ukrainian-propaganda/
The piece is ridiculous, so i guess it fits you perfectly.
“The term “russophobia” (the hatred and/or fear of things Russian) has become rather popular in the recent years, courtesy of the anti-Russian hysteria of the AngloZionist Empire, ”
Oh the irony….
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethnic_groups_in_Russia
\Russia is a multi-national state with over 185 ethnic groups designated as nationalities; the populations of these groups vary enormously, from millions (e.g., Russians and Tatars) to under 10,000 (e.g., Samis and Kets).[1]
please define Russians? Or are you talking Putin?
But the article above is more about discrediting people who are strongly left wing, by falsely smearing them as either Trump & Putin supporters or enablers.= are supporters of Putin or Trump.
And the people being criticised don’t actually support Trump or Putin.
The article says – “…Putin has cultivated dupes, fellow travelers, and purblind fools among plenty of American progressives…”
Accurate, IMHO.
See my response to Andre above at 10.56am.
…has cultivated dupes, fellow travelers, and purblind fools among plenty of American progressives…
Now in general, I agree with that about the Kremlin and Putin. But I also think that is true of the CIA, US intelligence community, and the US defenders of US imperialism and foreign policy.
There is a propaganda and surveillance/intelligence war going on between the Kremlin and the US agencies. Trump has inserted himself into it one way or another.
Meanwhile the US powers that be also use the whole situation to discredit any strong expression of left wing values, policies, campaigns and critiques.
Thank you. My sentiments exactly.
You do not have to be the biggest fan of either Putin or Xi Jinping to think that (a) war is to be avoided, especially war with such destructive potential, and/or (b) that a multipolar world is a better thing than a world dominated by a single power. “Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely” as the saying goes.
“… (b) that a multipolar world is a better thing than a world dominated by a single power….”
Yet people look back with nostalgia at the Pax Romana, or the Pax Britannica, or the golden age of the Han dynasty.
A multipolar world is a dangerously unstable one, which historically result in large scale wars of alliances.
Further down, at comment 12, you approvingly quoted, Bill Clinton’s generation, however, believed that concentration of financial power could be virtuous, as long as that power was in the hands of experts. They largely dismissed the white working class as a bastion of reactionary racism.
Do you not think that this hubris would increase rather than abate in a world dominated by such people, with no need to negotiate or make concessions? Owen Jones thinks it increased greatly after the Berlin wall fell, and neoliberal capitalists felt they could from then on reign supreme. I do not have a link, but the claim is from his book “The Establishment & how they get away with it.”
i once spend the better part of the night at the german/german boarder with people pointing guns at us and taking the car apart.
why?
the old man driving the car, Adi – short for Adolf, was pointing to his rather long arms and large fists when the Volkspolizist asked if we had weapons in the car.
oh dear oh dear oh dear.
Also fun in Berlin, no matter how drunk one got, you could never get lost, the wall was there to guide you home. Always.
Yes, a lot of people don’t have much of an idea what it looked like, what it felt like and those that did know – family members that did make it out of East Germany after years of ‘re-education’ never much spoke about it.
Perhaps you could submit a proposal to deal with the problem direct to Merkal. The board is set for the dismantling of the left, there entire economic thesis has been discredit along with the right. Nows a great time to submit a proposal to deal with the problems you’ve out lined. Because the system can’t deal with all the refuges flowing from the Middle East. But first there’d have to be admission there’s no solution.
mate, what ever you smoke its good. i give you that.
Yep that dude’s supply is the good shit alright.. did you understand any of it?
nope, i am stone sober.
he ain’t sharing i tell ya.
“…plagued by the worst kind of false moral equivalence…”
Projection and hypocrisy appear to be your ‘stock and trade’
Comments from you , Sanctuary, are some of the lowest level on this site
It is self evident that you have not a single shred of understanding about what you write. The words do tell a story about the personality behind them…
I spent 4 months in 1982 working for Topdeck Travel on their USSR/Eastern Europe camping tours. Each trip was for a month and visited East Germany, Poland, USSR, Romania, Hungary and Czechoslovakia. Absolutely fascinating but very oppressive. We were among the first tourists to be allowed in Poland after the Solidarity uprising and I’ll never forget the sight of Russian soldiers goosestepping through Warsaw. I found Romania and Czechoslovakia the most oppressive. It would take 6 hours to get into and out of the USSR because they searched everything and even read peoples diaries. I wonder if it is still like that.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/opinion/88399075/like-a-bickering-couple-we-need-to-find-healthy-ways-to-disagree-about-politics
interesting read for your mornng
Written by the CEO of the Maxim Institute, an organisation responsible for some of the most divisive ideas around.
You mean, the “badly constructed front for the political meddling of evangelical Christians” Maxim Institute? The one of whom Bruce Logan was a former director? I’m sure they’ve nothing but our best interests at heart, more so if you happen to be homosexual.
Or you could tell me what’s wrong with what he wrote
I like the irony, don’t you? “Like a bickering couple, we need to find healthy ways to disagree about politics”, lolz.
Do you even read things and make a comment – or do you go “I don’t like the author so I’ll just ignore and keep reading my echo chambers ?”
Way to learn.
What the Democrats are up to. And why a good number of Democrat voters didn’t bother to show up to vote for Hillary.
https://newrepublic.com/minutes/139825/cory-booker-not-friend
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2017/01/12/sanders-slams-democrats-who-voted-pharmaceutical-industry/96506340/
Cory Booker may have just given his 2020 chances a big black eye with that one.
well its all good then, they will loose their Health Care and have to go back to bankruptcy in order to receive surgery or simply just die.
In the mean time, America will be Great again! Woot Woot.
A long but worthwhile look back at the fake news in the US election. Given how successful it was and how much of it was sprayed around here on The Standard, we’ll all need to be very wary of it for our own elections coming up.
http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/01/tabloid-newspapers-trump-media-propaganda-214627
heh
https://twitter.com/Politics_PR/status/819728516602331136
Yum.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/hey-would-you-eat-this-golden-shower-burger-inspired-by-trump_us_5878fd80e4b09281d0ea7aeb?ew2tgmv4nhotro1or
Except Trump liked it.
https://media.giphy.com/media/l4xVGOegQxqe9za4E/giphy.gif
bwahahahahahahahah
someone might be a wee bit touchy…
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/dons-johns-inauguration-trump_us_58792908e4b0b3c7a7b1291b?mh8q4h827rezmpldi
Bans for TRP and Lanthanide are up today …
Thanks ms.
I hope they both return.
+ 1
All hail dear leader, or else!
/
(1 of 7)
https://twitter.com/JuddLegum/status/819725619193933824
An excellent summation of Obama here –
https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2017/01/12/democrats-cant-win-until-they-recognize-how-bad-obamas-financial-policies-were/?utm_term=.7a00bfce6274&wpisrc=nl_most&wpmm=1
Along woth the best two paragraph summation of how and why third way, middle class identity politics has crippled the political left in the west since the 1970s – an own goal if there ever was one:
“…There’s history here: In the 1970s, a wave of young liberals, Bill Clinton among them, destroyed the populist Democratic Party they had inherited from the New Dealers of the 1930s. The contours of this ideological fight were complex, but the gist was: Before the ’70s, Democrats were suspicious of big business. They used anti-monopoly policies to fight oligarchy and financial manipulation. Creating competition in open markets, breaking up concentrations of private power, and protecting labor and farmer rights were understood as the essence of ensuring that our commercial society was democratic and protected from big money.
Bill Clinton’s generation, however, believed that concentration of financial power could be virtuous, as long as that power was in the hands of experts. They largely dismissed the white working class as a bastion of reactionary racism. Fred Dutton, who served on the McGovern-Fraser Commission in 1970 , saw the white working class as “a major redoubt of traditional Americanism and of the antinegro, antiyouth vote.” This paved the way for the creation of the modern Democratic coalition. Obama is simply the latest in a long line of party leaders who have bought into the ideology of these “new” Democrats, and he has governed likewise, with commercial policies that ravaged the heartland…”
i am sure our double dipper from Dipton, the beancounter in Chief is studying this and wonders if there is a way to apply it here 🙂
Quote: “But wait, it gets worse. Another feature of this bizarre GOP scheme gives exporters a gargantuan tax break by, in effect, not taxing their export revenues. Let’s say a corporation sells a piece of machinery to Iran for $5 million, which cost only $4 million to produce. That means $1 million in taxable profit. Under the new Republican scheme, however, that $5 million received from the mullahs wouldn’t be taxable. Instead of a $1 million profit, the corporation, for tax purposes, would have a $4 million loss. Loophole doesn’t begin to describe this “tax break.”Quote End
http://www.forbes.com/sites/steveforbes/2017/01/11/omg-house-republicans-are-preparing-to-hit-consumers-with-a-horrible-new-tax-that-will-harm-trump-and-hurt-the-economy/#6d2bfc3b641e
hat tip red state,
http://www.redstate.com/california_yankee/2017/01/13/a-nasty-political-and-economic-trap-for-trump/
quote” As the tax reform debate heats up in Congress, the obscure border adjustment tax (BAT) is causing friction within the GOP.
What is the BAT? Well, Steve Forbes calls it “a nasty political and economic trap for Donald Trump” — a trap he says is being set by Republicans rather than Democrats.”
lol. lol. lol.
can someone explain to my why rural white is ‘heartland’ and urban brown is not?
why can we tell people that live in cities to ‘move out if they can’t afford it’, to get of benefits and ‘move to where the jobs are’, to ‘get an education if they want to earn more money’ to not ‘have children they can’t afford’ but then we turn around and don’t expect the same of white people living in the heart land?
And why do we give people like those in the US heartland a pass on voting for the same fuckwits that have been fucking(looking at Kansas, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Kentucky, Louisiana and so on and so on, heck even Texas) it up for them and tell the democrats that they should give up their voter base of women, people of colour, people who do not identify as heterosexual white male, low income workers, etc etc to make way for the’ white male worker’ who wants to go back to a time where women were barefeet pregnant fixing sandwiches, people of colour being segregated back into obscurity, and anyone not being a heterosexual white male going to the closet?
Please someone explain the heartland to me. I don’t get it. I honestly don’t.
Not sure what your second paragraph means, but your initial question is within the formation of New Zealand identity, economy and society through the development of extensive then intensive agriculture.
i am talking about the US. white heartland is evangelic fundamentalist. YOu know the once who think abstinence only is a good way to prevent pregnancy – even when married i would guess, that think that homosexuality etc is an abomination, and that ‘these people’ you know brown people should learn their place again. Essentially the current Republican lot led by fundamentalists that would like to become a ‘christian’ Nation again by ending the persecution of the Christians by the non Christians that live in Cities. 🙂
So what you are saying then is that a few hundred people – old NZ Farming Stock are ‘heartland’ ‘real NZ’lers’ and all the others are not?
Or are you saying that a few hundred people – old NZ white large scale Landowners are heartland and all others are not?
+1 although I would say concepts of the Heartland predate the neoliberal revolution by a long way. Sabine’s second paragraph is about the bastardisation of NZ culture that has happened since.
Sabine, was there something specific that prompted the question?
it is these articles that basically say that if Clinton would have abandoned all other democratic voter blocks in favour of the ‘disgruntled white male voter’ in the heartland she would have won. (and we often hear the same here in NZ – where Labour = urban / brown / low income / female/ non land owning etc, National = white / male / upper income/ rural / land owning
My point is why are we calling people / areas heartland – in it self a loaded term as the heart is the engine of the body – implying that all other areas of a country are of lesser importance.
combine this with things that we have heard often over the last years
if people in the city can’t afford to live there they should move.
we could equally say that if people on the country side don’t have jobs they should just move.
why are women with large families in the urban areas a drain on socity, while the white women on countrysides having large families are not?
the double standard that is applied Heartland = white , Urban = Brown.
Fwiw, the heartland in the US voted to have the Afordable Care Act gutted, they voted to have the remains of their public schools gutted, they voted to have Birth Control and Family planning replaced with abstinence only (even in marriage) as only form of Family planning, they voted to have environmental degradation be made standard operational procedures, and for what its worth non of the jobs they lost 40 years ago is gonna come back.
I don’t recall rural and urban in Germany or France or Holland to be adressed that way. I grew up on the deep bavarian country side and then went to he City as a young women. It was always just Germany. Non of that these are better then those bs.
In settler/colonial societies, like Aussie, NZ, the US, national identity has often been tied to the (freedom of the) open countryside. It features a lot in novels and movies – cowboys in the US and the man alone in rugged country in NZ.
100% pure and all that.
They’re kind of origin myths, in (implicit) opposition to the (implicitly class-based) corruption of the (much more urbanised) UK/Europe.
The “heartland” or countryside-identification is not usually the rural marae, the Aboriginal township, or the native American reservation.
thanks.
that makes sense to me.
a fake creations myth to hold up stereotypes that never existed.
No, it’s not fake, it’s real. NZ really does have a love historically for the countryside. That’s different than the politics you describe which I address below.
sorry not being clear enough.
what are the oldest ‘urban’ centres in NZ , the oldest ports? If we apply the creation myth to ‘heartland’ one would have to include the old Port Towns at least?
i get the heartland in an emotional sense of love of the country side, especially what is left over of old NZ in Doc Parks and the like.
but heartland in the political sense i find hard to digest. It seems divisive, not only based on race, gender but also location.
so the question that i put to you then is the North Island less Heartland then the South Island?
I am not trying to be divisive, i am really trying to understand this emotional separation of a country.
example, Bavaria is a beautiful place with the Alps, the lakes, the cows and such, but it is not the heartland of Germany. It is often descriped as an industrial powerhouse as due to some quirky german legislation it is a free state within the federation of Germany and can use that to its advantage in incentivising businesses to settle there. But neither is Schleswig Holstein or Sachsen or Friesland the Heartland.
Lol. If you had followed my comments over the last few weeks you would know all that
i am not stoned enough to understand what you say.
this was probably the most ‘english’ phrase you typed all week.
and my english is limited i tell ya.
Mmmhmmm. You seem desperate with all this talk of German boarder crack downs. Can I suggest you have a sleep before going out again and pointing fingers and words at men with guns
Oldest European port? kororareka? Bay of islands?
oldest urban centre? Dunedin/Otago was a very dominant centre in the late 19th and early 20th century.
suspect the term is just a synonym for rural areas that has been adopted, often for marketing that has been pinched by the politicians.
as to north v south being more heartland than the other that would simply be an extension of the North South parochialism
3 days in Auckland left me, seriously, wondering how they can put up with the place. The roads were a nightmare, the people I found rude, and when they heard my please’s and thank you’s they all smiled and looked at me like I was a weirdo. I have left Auckland flummoxed as to why oh why would you put up with the place. To many cars, people riding your bumper, cutting lanes, crowds at beaches like I had not seen since Greece..i left Auckland shocked at it’s transformation since 2000 when I left there it was nothing like that, and Asians.., OMG not dissing Asians just commenting..it was like being in Asia. I felt the minority for the first time in my life, in my own country of birth, I felt we had been overrun. just a feeling I got and I cannot get over the fact it did that to me.
On Auckland buses, passengers usually say thank-you to the driver when they get off.
OMG thank you, thank you, for a minute I thought they had completely lost the meaning of manners up there. There is a glimmer of hope.
Well, rr, there probably is a lot of rudeness in Auckland. But there is also politeness about, too.
i don’t think us Aucklanders are ruder then people on the country side. 🙂 We might just be a bit more stressed but that can be blamed on the traffic.
Most people stay here for the work. And some people don’t like being too far removed from family — and if all their family lives in Auckland…
I went to Putaruru a couple of years back for a birthday. The air was fresh, the grass was green and everyone was so laid back. But there was bugger all to do. If you took a bunch of kids from Auckland and plopped them down in a place like Putaruru, they’d be climbing the walls within a week.
“Can we go to Westfield, Dad?”
“This is Putaruru, sweetpea. There is no Westfield.”
Can’t say I missed the clogged roads, awful driving and generally shitty attitudes of Auckland, though.
Well, there’s the swing bridge at Arapuni, the sanctuary at Maungatautari, complete with tuatara, the toy museum in the castle at Tirau, and the lovely little shops and cafes in that village, the lovely carvings all up and down the streets of Tokoroa, the gorgeous hot springs at Okoroire, and Rotorua and Taupo are an hour or less away. Westfield – very boring by comparison! 🙂
Yep NZ is a racist country.
I think what your are describing isn’t about concepts of the heartland though, at least not in NZ. Those dynamics strike me as ftom the neoliberal decades. And it’s not like we have farmers coming on to TS running alt-right or anti-identity politics 😉 One of the classic example she of what you describe comes from Chris Trotter and his Waitakere Man myth. Haven’t heard it for a while so hopefully it was discredited but what we have now is another version.
From what I cannot tell it’s the politics of dudes who don’t actually care about racism, sexism etc, or who in facts oppose advances in those areas and are now feeling encouraged to be bolder about that post-Obama.
There are some valid politics around working class and poor people and what has been done to them while others thrived but I also don’t understand the need to roll back advances for women, Māori, gay people etc in order to address that. The identity politics I’ve been involved in my whole adult life has been inclusive. What we are seeing now is the disintegration of society and a whole bunch of nasty coming out. Some of that is latent until now.
Also, the whole thing about stop whining and move where capitalism want and you has a modern bent to it, but several generations ago Māori were pressured to move from country to city. It’s a big part on NZ’s history, look it up I think you will find it interesting.Since the 80s it’s been the norm for Pakeha in rural areas to also move to town. This is the neoliberal agenda in the economy and is different from the racist, sexist politics you describe.
hence my question.
it always seemed to me that ‘heartland’ applied by journos/politicians is more a code for a livestyle long gone, nuclear family and such. And in that sense one could argue that the live on the country side is more ‘traditional’ then in an urban centre where people can to some extend hide and live in anonymity.
but i find it interesting as this notion is applied in politics and how in some publications it is argued that the vote of the heartland is morally superior to the vote of the non heartland.
thanks for answering, this was quite interesting to me.
I think you’d have to give some examples of those usages Sabine. To me you are mixing a number of complex phenomena up, they’re not all about the Heartland.
weka, I agree that there are complex things in the mix. But the term “heartland” does get used in reports on NZ politics, and it does traditionally relate to more rural areas associated with conservative values..
As I’ve tried to indicate, there’s old origin myths that have long been incorporated in NZ identity. They do keep getting revived in various forms, from Speight’s Southern Man in the 1990s, to the #8 wire metaphor of NZ identity in the 21st century, and Trotter’s re-working of the Southern man stereotype in his Waitakere Man.
That old rural NZ identity is one where resourceful white men dominated, and were usually located in rural areas – once considered to be the backbone of the country. I think it still gets revisited to reclaim a time when white men dominated.
Here a report is of John Key “at ease” in the Southland “heartland” in 2010.
Todd Barclay in Gore “heartland” in 2016, where his commitment to rural people is being questioned.
Q@A questions people in the “Wairarapa heartland” about our next PM Dec 11, 2016.
Though, in this 2014 article, South Auckland is referred to as “Labour heartland”. – which contradicts what I’ve been saying.
And in this Jan 2016 article it says Auckland has become National “heartland”.
So… hmmm.
Always found the Speights add rather funny.
Drink Speights and you, a young male, will prefer a hoary old sheep herder to a pretty young barmaid.
Not the message they wanted to get across! LOL.
Well to some extent, I think they were a bit tongue in cheek – but, at the same time, affirming a certain kind of NZ masculinity.
I agree that there’s a whole lot changed since the “neoliberal” revolution in the 1980s. I agreee with your final paragraph, weka.
But the myth of NZ identity being based in rural locations has long been commented on.
TeAra (NZ Encyclopedia has seveal pages on it.
They claim the myth of NZ rural identity persisted into the 1970s.
They then go on to say urban culture took over post 1975.
I do think there is some connection between the rural mythology of NZ identity, and the man alone myths associated with settler societies like NZ.
“But the myth of NZ identity being based in rural locations has long been commented on.”
Not sure what you are meaning there Carolyn. There is no single NZ identity, but the connection between NZers and the land isn’t a myth. It still exists despite the problems that neoliberalism has created.
Well, there are dominant NZ identities and the association between NZ’s countryside and NZ national identity has long been represented in ads and various cultural forms.
the connection between NZers and the land isn’t a myth
hmmm… but you’ve been saying most Kiwis these days live in urban contexts. The rural myth of NZ identity continued long after urbanisation. The Te Ara link that I included in an earlier comment talks about that. There is some reality about connection with land, but it’s been raised to a mythical level in various cultural representations.
And the connection between land and NZ identity has been more commonly associated with white (male) Kiwis… ie not being located in the long history of tangata whenua association with the land.
Are you using the word myth to mean cultural story of fake construct?
Are you using the word myth to mean cultural story of fake construct?
Kind of – a cultural story, maybe based in some kind of reality, but very skewed to misrepresent reality/realities. And raised to some high status within a culture – mainly to represent to interest of the dominant group/s.
So for instance, the rural myth of NZ identity is one of hard working pioneers who created farms and built the country. It ignores the earlier presence of tangata whenua, and hides the brutal processes of colonisation – let alone the actiivities in towns and the growth of cities.
New Zealand national identity is usually shown in terms of the great outdoors, ignoring the diverse activities around the country. I searched on google images for “New Zealand”. I largely got images of NZ’s great outdoors, with a small number of more urban images thrown in.
I picked a nice outdoor image randomly, and it took me to this site, and this youtube video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dPcj_aC8fk
7 minutes of images accompanying the singing of the NZ National anthem – must have been for the 2011 RWC. I hadn’t seen the vid before. But most of the 7 minutes is images of pristine, glorious outdoor vistas. there’s a few shots of Auckland/Waitemata harbour, a bit of barbed wire, a cross, a building (maybe a church, sports stadia.
But note what is not there in this representation of NZ to ourselves and internationally – nothing of the diverse multi-cultural Asia-Pacific country we now are; nothing of the diverse fauna; nothing of Te Tiriti; no urban and/or rural marae; none of our diverse cultural and work/business activities . Certainly no polluted rivers; no homeless people; no women who have been victims of violence; no beggars; no Wellington cafes or Otago history… etc.
It’s pretty much open, breath-taking, majestic landscape without people. NZ is very often represented like this – sometimes they include farms.
Some parts promote it shit(s) and all.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7AqBeQ3b8k
Nice one, Poission!
I think of the man alone means rural masculine NZ national identity myth as something like in the Speight’s Southern Man” ads.
To me, Trotter’s “Waitakere man” echoed the Southern Man stereotype – and Trotter is a man from the south. It’s like he was re-locating the rural identity to somewhere on the fringes of a major urban centre.
Waitakere, while being partly blue-collar urban, also includes hilly bush country.
”Yep NZ is a racist country.”
I agree i got told once i wasn’t bad for a balhead,
have been randomly assaulted twice by brown people,
joined a softball team once but gave up after 3 weeks of being ignored and not touching the ball.
some lefties need to get over them selves , there are horrible bastards in all races.
that’s not what I meant by racism.
What’s a balhead?
It’s baldhead – Rasta man for someone who’s not a Rasta man.
edit: what bwaghorn said about horrible bastards in all races, too.
According to Bob Marley a balhead is a con man with crazy ideas of prisons and schools and education that teaches crazy ideas of his false idols. He goes on to say we should chase them out of town https://genius.com/Bob-marley-and-the-wailers-crazy-baldheads-lyrics
I will try to help you Sabine, you see the world the way you want it not the way it really is, and you class every one into and identity and then assume they all think the same way if they are that identify, rather than individuals, hope this helps 😀
bullshit.
this really is something i don’t get.
What is heartland. Why is Dipton more heartland then say Auckland or Tauranga?
Because often people in the cities or their parents etc migrated from these heartland towns, its where the family connection are, not sure why you are so exercised over it
when we are elevating one group over another it becomes an abusive statement.
simple as that.
and we are hearing over and over again, how the majority that lives and large/medium/smaller centres should yield to the few that live in heartland.
and i ask why and based on what. not exersised just intrigued. 🙂
Heartland
A central region, especially one that is politically, economically, or militarily vital to a nation, region, or culture.
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/heartland
Dairy and other primary goods are what makes NZ most of its money, therefore the country is the heartland.
hmmm, how much money is made in the Cities? And the people that come from the heartland to live and work in the Cities, are they still heartland?
I can understand the regional thinking i.e. the beauty of the contry, the mountains and that, but then you also have stunning coastlines and such and Fishery is a good business in NZ, and Tourism is a good income in NZ. etc etc.
I don’t try to diminish the value of farmers or their work, don’t get me wrong,
I am trying to understand the political importance of Heartland, when in fact ‘Heartland’ does not even cover 50% of he population.
The moment the crown seized Tainui land, commerce in New Zealand started flowing from Waikato, to Auckland in around the 1860-1880s, and then onto the rest of the world, people started betting on those future prices. So the three enterprises are one and the same.
Great I live in the Heartland.. you will obey my wishes then… Sabines point is.. what make Heartland so special they should get preferential treatment I agree with her totally, it’s supposed to be about ALL kiwi’s not one group and to put any justification for it, even if they are critical to industry whatever, is her point made. They shouldn’t, they should be valued, not preferentially treated over others, that nuance is the crux of it IMHO.
thank you for saying it so much better then me.
And here was me thinking it was tourism!
Actually, most of the value added exports come from Auckland.
But. I don’t want to burst your bubble.
What are you talking about? Who is saying this?
also i would guess that Auckland, Dunedin are very old towns by NZ standards.
So if old rural towns are Heartland, should the same not be applied to old Urban tows.
‘heartland’ means ‘flyover’. An area to pay lip service to that can otherwise be safely ignored.
still makes no sense, as the people in the city are equally only getting lip service and are otherwise safely ignored.
The US and NATO preparing for war with Russia
http://robinwestenra.blogspot.co.nz/2017/01/us-and-nato-preparing-for-ww3-with.html?m=1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDBIlurfSLM&ebc=ANyPxKpxaUxrIZTLOgX5Rf-Rmrl4ZMsqUHZAbWBgSP7TBwBBupAfisG_Rusd-IRXjiE8tNxJtrfdz_LyHYuKjSpZkEbsWe1N8A
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYmPh5-pYvA&ebc=ANyPxKpxaUxrIZTLOgX5Rf-Rmrl4ZMsqUHZAbWBgSP7TBwBBupAfisG_Rusd-IRXjiE8tNxJtrfdz_LyHYuKjSpZkEbsWe1N8A
Officially reported from Paulsky NZ RT correspondent and pilger greenwald sock puppet
Material units are being forward deployed so soldiers and tankers can fall on them. Meaning instead of taking 2 months to deploy brigade sized elements and begin operations it takes 2 weeks. This information was glimed from the dragon trails which tested how long it takes a stricter brigade to travel across European held NATO territory
Happy to see myself as aligned with outstanding journalists such as Pilger and Greenwald.
Guess you connect more with the propagandists at CNN and the Washington Post.
Didn’t you learn anything frm the lies about WMD and Iraq?
Nyet Comrad Paulsky, but I d agree history has shown the west has not been able to trust the Russians for oh about 80 years
You really should learn your political history, it was the west who shafted Russia at the end of the second world war and caused the great cold war, not the Russians. I’m not going into it, but merely to say Russia got shafted by the US, as soon as they had the bomb. They used it to get their way in almost everything and Russia at that stage was on our team. It caused a cold war that went on for years, and the west’s propaganda machine I see still claims a few victims who haven’t watched any good doco’s on the second WW.
They stole all the scientists, V2 project, and reneged on many deals they had agreed too once they had the bomb and no one else did, in fact they even shafted the English they were so cocky..
Albania was meant to be western they dropped it and let it fall to Enver Hoxha’s communists. My country folk will never forget it.
Twenty five years ago this week.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2SvhDY23So
Paul, this has been in the making since the annexation of Crimea by the Russia and it appears that the Poles invited the US to come and hang out.
One should remember that the ‘eastern’ countries after the second world war got their fare share of Russian interference and occupation and might not be so happy about Russia going around flexing muscle. They might even fear, that they will be ‘annexed’ and again get disappeared behind the great iron curtain.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jun/14/us-poland-weapons-deployment-eastern-europe-russia
” The US and Poland are discussing the deployment of American heavy weapons in eastern Europe in response to Russian expansionism and sabre-rattling in the region in what represents a radical break with post-cold war military planning.”
http://www.defensenews.com/story/defense-news/2016/06/07/anakonda-kicks-off-poland-major-us-army-involvement/85541328/
“Poland and the countries that border Russia are becoming increasingly concerned with Russia’s aggression in the region as it continues to provoke Ukraine and occupy Crimea. Many Baltic countries fear Russia’s provocative behavior will spread to inside their own borders.
Macierewicz added that the Polish military would “especially” like to evaluate cooperation in the context of hybrid warfare on land and sea and with special forces.
Russia’s continued attacks on Ukraine have been characterized as hybrid warfare.”
http://english.almanar.com.lb/94576
” Poland’s president urged US President-elect Donald Trump to keep Washington’s promise to deploy troops on NATO’s eastern flank amid tensions with Russia.
“Polish-American relations have become an important pillar of the European and transatlantic stability,” Polish President Andrzej Duda said in a letter of congratulations.
“We are particularly pleased that during this year’s NATO Summit in Warsaw the US decided to increase its military presence in Poland, thereby strengthening the Alliance’s Eastern flank.
“We sincerely hope that your leadership will open new opportunities for our cooperation based on mutual commitment.””
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/russia-us-troops-nato-mission-poland-message-obama-putin-a7517281.html
“Atlantic Resolve was launched in the immediate aftermath of Russia’s annexation of Crimea, which sparked fears in the Baltic nations that Vladimir Putin was planning a similar land-grab there.
Under that banner, the US Army in Europe has been conducting training operations since May 2014.”
Despite the Polish celebrations, clouds hung over the historic moment. As the AP puts it, “there are anxieties that the enhanced security could eventually be undermined by the pro-Kremlin views of President-elect Donald Trump. Meanwhile, Russia appears provoked by the deployment of American troops on its doorstep.”
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-01-12/american-troops-roll-poland-largest-deployment-cold-war
“We perceive it as a threat,” President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. “These actions threaten our interests, our security. Especially as it concerns a third party building up its military presence near our borders,” Peskov said in a conference call with reporters. “It’s not even a European state.”
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/us-troops-enter-poland-1st-deployment-russias-doorstep-44728112
Worries about the permanence of the new U.S. security commitments are rooted in a tragic national history in which Poland has often lost out in deals made by the great powers.
Poles still feel betrayed by Obama’s “reset” with Russia early on in his administration, which involved abandoning plans for a major U.S. missile defense system in Poland and replacing it with plans for a less ambitious system, still not in place.
“All recent U.S. presidents have thought there can be a grand bargain with Russia,” said Marcin Zaborowski, a senior associate at Visegrad Insight, an analytic journal on Central Europe. “Trump has a proclivity to make deals, and Central and Eastern Europe have reason to worry about that.”
Polish Foreign Minister Witold Waszczykowski expressed hope this week that any new effort at reconciliation with Russia “does not happen at our expense.”
Anyone who’s “preparing for war with Russia” had better send a hell of a lot more than 4000 soldiers into Poland – a couple of orders of magnitude more. This is about making Poland and the Baltic Republics feel a bit better, nothing more than that (because physically incapable of anything more than that). I guess it does come in handy for lackwit pro-Putin propagandists to squawk about “preparing for WW3” though…
Your arguments sound like McCarthyism of the post WW2 era.
Rods under the beds!
Paranoia.
Time to get out of basement Paul reality and sun light awaits
What, you’re posting stuff about “preparing for war with Russia” and “preparing for WW3” but me pointing out it’s bullshit is “McCarthyism” and “paranoia?” Try googling “arse about face.”
Mr Trump –
I am the only one. Trust me. I can build a wall around your homes that nothing can penetrate.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gs6UcgiDwg0&feature=youtu.be
Bird species vanish from UK due to climate change and habitat loss
Two things you don’t want happening to your environment. There’s a reason why people fear swarming locusts and excess insects will have the same effect although over a longer period of time.
Wonder how much damage NZs farming community is doing to our bird species.
Have a look at the large dairy conversions in the waikato and count the birds.
there are not many left, cause there are no trees, no shrubs, nothing but baked soil with a few strands of grass.
you will find flies. lots and lots of flies.
I recall as a child being told how good it was to see the farms. To see the cleared fields.
But I’ve also been reading Scifi and fantasy for my entire life and in all of them they describe lush green forests as the epitome of a healthy environment. Green fields aren’t and neither are cities.
IMO, we know in our heart of hearts that farming is destructive.
This land of ours used to be covered in birds. It’s entire fertility was based upon sea birds flying and shitting from the coast all the way inland carrying the minerals that the sea provided.
There are load carrying capacities of land but not all land is commodified, just the land that is valuable to cities and complex cities, the rest is not mentioned so there are limits to how many immigrants New Zealand can accept. Once the load carrying capacity has been reached, conflict increases in warfare and politics proceeded by depopulation.
It’s possible to find atomised groups of people in all sectors. Such cases do not quarrel with neighbours to conquer or subjugate, only at state level does that become a dominant type of conflict.
The natural fertility cycle dictates the carrying capacity and the lush forests that used to be here were part of that cycle. By cutting them down and replacing them with farms we’ve actually decreased our carrying capacity as the land can no longer handle the pollutants that we’re putting into it.
This war on nature or crimes against humanity, call it what ever, does have to do with building a proper land rights system.
The first President to enter the White House under Senate investigation?.
Intelligence Committee will investigate possible Russia-Trump links
The Senate panel will use ‘subpoenas if necessary’ to secure testimony from Obama administration officials as well as Trump’s team, Richard Burr and Mark Warner said.
Senate Intelligence Chairman Richard Burr (R-N.C.) said late Friday that his committee would investigate possible contacts between Donald Trump’s campaign and Russia, reversing himself one day after telling reporters that the issue would be outside of his panel’s ongoing probe into Moscow’s election-disruption efforts.
http://www.politico.com/story/2017/01/burr-says-intel-panel-will-investigate-possible-russia-trump-links-233621
Dont you love the US checks and measures , unfortunatel we don’t see the same in Paul’s Russia
oh good grief, please don’t give Mrs. Bennett ideas.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPVCTLPNUzo
guy lives for two month in a storage unit.
Good to see that Martyn Bradbury published my following comment on The Daily Blog.
http://thedailyblog.co.nz/2017/01/14/for-everyone-claiming-gareth-morgan-couldnt-win-the-mt-albert-by-election/
PENNY BRIGHT says:
JANUARY 14, 2017 AT 2:46 PM
I have already been sought out and approached by senior Grey Power members, who are deeply concerned about the lack of transparency and the proven bribery and corruption associated with the vast spending of public rates and taxes at local and central government on private consultants and contractors.
My long-standing policy and proven track record on transparency in public spending and ‘whistle-blowing’ against corruption, goes back TEN years.
Politically, support for transparency (and accountability) in public spending cuts across the entire political spectrum.
I’ve also been in Kingsland for the last 26 years.
In my view – anyone who thinks Jacinda Adern is going to sleep walk into becoming the MP for Mt Albert, needs to think again?
Why would people in Mt Albert waste their vote, voting for someone to become their MP – who is already an MP?
I’m not an MP.
(Yet 🙂
What have Labour / Green members/ supporters got to lose, by strategically voting for proven anti-privatisation / anti-corruption campaigner Penny Bright as the (fiercely) Independent MP for Mt Albert?
Jacinda and Julie Anne will still be MPs, and the House will have a fiery new Independent MP, who will be able to rattle the Parliamentary cage from the inside, asking the stinking hard questions about corruption that others will not – under Parliamentary privilege.
……”
In my view, this National Government is very vulnerable on this growing issue of corruption.
If corruption were to become a major election issue in 2017, in my opinion,
it would be far easier to achieve a change of Government.
What better way to help achieve that outcome than for a strategic vote in the Mt Albert by-election for a proven anti-corruption campaigner, in order to make a huge fuss INSIDE the House?
In my view, this is bigger than what will be best for the Labour and Green parties – it’s what will be best for New Zealand and the New Zealand 99%?
Penny Bright
2017 Independent candidate for the Mt Albert by-election.
I actually think it would be worth voting for you. At this point in the electoral cycle it won’t change much but it would send the message that we’re really pissed off with the corruption and lack of transparency that we’re seeing in both local and national politics.
Great!
Are you in the Mt Albert electorate?
Would you like a sign on your fence?
If so – send me a personal
message on Facebook?
Cheers!
Penny Bright 🙂
No, I’m not in the Mt Albert electorate.
McCarthyism alive and well in the USA
http://professorwatchlist.org/
http://www.propornot.com/p/home.html
DNA analysis proves Arabs aren’t entirely Arab
The video at the end is a must watch.
And, no, I don’t like that headline or the focus on Arabia.