I’m going to stick to my usual watering hole that way the only people that will be laughing at me will be my children it’s a shed on the farm were my son in law stays as some people will turn a fart into a hurricane . I consume about 6 cans a fortnight so my tolerance is low.
I’m using a vapor pipe to help quit smoking and I am finally beating the habit I feel a lot fitter all ready what I do is I leave the smokes at home and just take the vapor now don’t listen to the people who say vaping is as bad as smoking because in my experience its a lot cheaper and less smelly so even if there are some negative effects all the positive effects by far out weight the negative . So all you people like me who have moko you look at them and know this that no one is going to love care teach your moko like you so I SAY go and buy a vapor and use it to quit smoking so we can be around longer to look after OUR moko when you start using a vapor it is like starting to smoke and after a few splutters you will get use to it give it a try. Good to see publicity about equal pay for our lady’s Ka pai
I’m not gay that is a strategy I use to keep the other Lady’s away as the person that I bullshit hit on knows that I’m strait and this works and I have enough drama to last 10 life times now .
A few years back when I finished Kiwi fruit packing I ran into one of my old bosses he said that he had a job for me managing 1500 cow farm . Now calving was only one month away and I new that this was going to be a hard task I said that I wanted my own staff yea right I had to keep some of the old Idiots and as soon as I was out of sight they would fuck around . I had 2 positions to fill one was my son and the other my son begged me to hire his cousin I did not want to because I had employed him before and I was not impressed. I hired my nephew .
One morning I got him to feed out and my son to wash the plant . Our good tractor broke down so he was lining up the old tractor up to load mag c into the bucket buy the office as he got off the tractor he did not have it in neutral and I got pined by the bucket and the mag c which is like cement bays on a pallet both my leg’s got broken .
I heard the breaks 4 snaps clearly he panicked and was trying to start the tractor I said fuck that put tractor in neutral and use the tires to roll it away from me he was not strong enough to do this so I called my son to help he did it by him self and had the cheek to ask if I could walk to the truck the same one I got now well after a few foul words they carried me to the truck we went to the house and tried to get a helicopter no go there so I got both my sons to drive me to the Rotorua hospital which was one hour 20 minutes away Taupo was 10 minutes closer but I new that they would send me to Rotorua .
When we got to the hospital and the staff pulled me out of the truck I screamed fuck that was the most pain I have ever felt with both feet flopping around man .
They give me some gas and the next morning waking up embarrassed as I remembered I had been telling all the hospital staff that I was a chief Rangatira well I don’t no were that came from. And I was telling my siblings that story on saturday I’v got 2 Titanium rods hammered through my knee caps down to the breaks . It was my fate that my feet were not chopped off. one month later I was getting cows in at 3 pm with cast up to my ass on both leggs I would just have them sticking strait past the handle bars of my Quad and I had my best dog ever I just had to open the gate and he would get all the cows out and if there was a cow down he would not leave the gate so I would follow him in and see whats up with the cow . So in telling this story I got pissed and well some of you no the rest .
Kia Kaha
I wonder what they think they are going to achieve by bulling all my clients and there neighbors into not waving to me or recognizing or from being nice to me as I am to everyone I meet . Are they looking to improve there public Image we no that’s not hard to work out who likes to be bullied well no one.
I have losted 5 of the 13 new clients I payed 10 x the cut price for good will because of these bullies . They don’t give a shit what have I done to them nothing they are just like key control freaks and don’t give a shit whom they cause harm having a compassionate and considerate thought is beyond them It is there alter ego that rules there thought process and who wants people like this in our state service well not me I will keep going till I win and the media no this is true as they are bullying you to. Kia kaha
We generally leave all comments alone here until they get abusive, completely violate the general taste rules, start outright lying about facts, get repetitive or excessive, cause stupid flame wars, start causing the site legal issues or one of the other gotchas.
There is deliberate policy behind that. It means that people know that they can leave crap here rather than feeling that they must dump in the middle of topics that authors have chosen to write about. That simple decision by r0b to have a daily OpenMike massively reduced the moderator problems after we instituted it. After that there was absolutely no excuse for trolling other topics. Which makes it a lot easier to moderate the site.
So my best advice is that if you don’t like it, then treat it like any other places with lot of animals around. Look down often and don’t step in the crap.
Like the way Adern is sticking it to the Australians
Antithesis of John Key who presided over the period when Australia gleefully shat on us the most. And the Australians gave him their ‘highest’ honour. Says it all.
This sums up the difference between this government and the last, between National Party voters and all other New Zealanders.
Actions speak louder than words so what exactly will Jacinda Ardern achieve? I mean yeah it sounds good but if nothing changes, like Kiwis getting the same deal in Australia as Australians get in NZ then its all for nought
But then I suppose it might take peoples attention away from Labour really wanting to sign the TPPA…
1. If losing access to a single, smallish market is a concern then we’re doing it wrong
2. If standing for principle is a concern then we’re doing it wrong
3. If they don’t want to trade with us then that’s their decision. It’s a free-market after all. We don’t have to trade with them either.
I suspect RNZ are mixing up the jobs a bit, with Espiner, Forbes on Checkpoint, etc – in anticipation of going RNZ+, with an expansion of the Checkpoint style into TV programmes. So, basically, giving their journos/hosts with TV backgrounds some more experience with the radio with pictures.
And, hopefully, a John Campbell RNZ+ TV show is in all our futures – ditto Mihingarangi Forbes.
A superb, dream partnership – they really spark off of each other! I love them to stay permanently. Have to say that Guyon gets up my nose sometimes. He sounded a little lost last night on Checkpoint but it was night one.
It was good to hear this morning in a brief reference from Kim that Suzie Ferguson is on the mend after her urgent surgery for endometriosis and expected back before Christmas.
I am not always a fan of Suzie’s style, but I wish her well
That complaint can be a killer, wrapping round and causing organ failure. Surgery often has to be repeated, so I hope she and her medical team “beat the bastard”.
When she announced on 2 Nov that she was having urgent surgery the very next day – possibly a hysterectomy – she was open about it being endometriosis and RNZ put up an article/interview on this horrible condition. I also put up a comment on it and included a link to the NZ Endometriosis website for anyone who wanted to learn more about the condition.
I know from a friend’s experience just recently we have some remarkable female doctors here in Wellington who are experts in Endo so I am sure Suzie is in good hands.
Since National has defined themselves as ready to fight hard dirty campaign to unseat the new fledgling labour coalition Jacinda is best to use the same strategies National used.
Jacinda needs to ‘neutralise’ and remove all the National Party ‘policies’ purposefully left as ‘fish hooks’ within every nook & cranny in all Government agencies to stymie the new labour lead government, so remove those toxic national policies so we then can “infuence” the real changes jacinda.
Next and very urgently required for us is the needs to make urgent changes within our provinces; – like such as bring back all rail freight & passenger services everywhere, giving us transport options to increase productivity & make environmental improvements, – and that will upset National no end and stop their stupid plans to increase climate change emissions using ‘truck mania’.
Why not bring back responsible politicians who are acting for NZs and planning how to advance the country encouraging domestic businesses and jobs, not plan everything around export so the country can afford to pay for the flash things that your mates consider are essential and their right.
Improvement after improvement from the new Government and now this, from Wayne! Who’d have thought Wayne would ever experience the epiphany he so clearly has; his suggestion, heart-felt I’m sure, though he’s played it low key, that we should open our hearts to socialism, and his realisation that New Zealanders yearn for the sharing and caring socialism brings; it’s a red-letter day for Wayne, and by association, all of us!
An article from Australian commentator Peter Fitzsimons quotes Winston Peters.
” “A key part is our MMP proportional representation system, which we have had since 1996. This allows for a diversity of political voices to be heard, and a diversity of politics to be represented. It is inclusive. There are not just two main voices, there are many. It works for us. When I was elected to Parliament, there were just four Maori in parliament. We now form 24 per cent. The system fosters progressive politics.”
What Wayne calls ‘socialism’ might be better reported as “progressive politics”.
That’s what NZF voters preferred along with Green and Labour voters.
56 versus 44.
MMP enabled this.
Progressive politics. Independent voices speaking truth to power. Significant change.
Perhaps socialism, is doing anything without getting money or in kind payment for it. Murray Ball did a take on choice and neo lib with a cartoon of a new mother offering her breasts to the baby, each one labelled and priced.
That’s involuntary socialism and possibly some well off women do find it very
satisfying, and a new experience to give away something, though of course it is all being kept in-house so it’s just giving advantage to one’s own.
Wayne I know you don’t want socialism either; – I didnt for most of my life and it seems we have failed this way.
But why not think about this first.
“Beyond Manapouri,” 50 years of environmental politics
On today’s show Radio NZ ‘Nine to noon with Kathryn Ryan.
14th November 2017.
This interview with Catherine Knight is brain food for us all even the hardnosed Very righ National party today.
Preliminary thoughts; – my journey to realise we need to now get serious about our environment.
I was a young 23 yrs old kiwi new tradesman Electrician in 1966 that firstly did my duty to NZ in an “NZ Army ‘National service'” training then went to work at the Manapouri “west Arm” of the power scheme to work on the power station tunnel project then went to the MOW Turangi power scheme.
I observed then we had higher ‘environmental awareness’ then, than we do today.
So we have gone backwards my friend and we do need to turn it around and ‘instill the environmental awareness’ again after a 25 yr hiatus.
Please consider this for our childens future.
==================================================================Subject: FW: Kathryn Ryan interviews Catherine Knight author of a new book ‘Beyond Manapouri” environmental issues in NZ. http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon
A good listen.
09:05Beyond Manapouri, 50 years of environmental politics
Aratiatia Rapids Photo: Clive Madge
Environmental historian, Catherine Knight examines the catalogue of missed opportunities since the birthplace of the Manapouri environmental movement. Her new book, ‘Beyond Manapouri: 50 years of environmental politics in New Zealand’ is particularly critical of the lack of political leadership in the last 25 years. Catherine Knight is an Honorary Research Associate at the School of People, Environment and Planning at Massey University.
Beyond Manapouri, 50 years of environmental politics
Environment
about 1 hour ago
Environmental historian, Catherine Knight examines the catalogue of missed opportunities since the birthplace of the Manapouri environmental movement. Her new book, ‘Beyond Manapouri: 50 years of environmental politics in New Zealand’ is particularly critical of the lack of political leadership in the last 25 years… AUDIO
Listenduration25′ :31″ http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon
But we dont have the same ‘environmental awareness” now with public “actions” today as we saw then do we? Yes I recall all the Dam projects in NZ from that time to.
During the 1960’s when at the Turangi project (Tongariro Power Scheme) we had many more environmental considerations then to consider, as the series of dams were built there over the 1000 KM square area the dam project covered of creeks streams ect’ as I was heavily involved in then.
Now we see all our water ducts alongside our roads take the road runnoff and deposit it into our rivers and lakes and “road pollution runnoff”” is a global issue especialy in europe.
Like John Key’s government you mean? Remember when he called WFF “communism by stealth” and then kept it once elected ? That means he (and you) were part of a communist government my friend…
Can you name, with evidence, that last NZ Government/s which was Socialist?
“a political and economic theory of social organization which advocates that the means of production, distribution, and exchange should be owned or regulated by the community as a whole.”
Just interested under which governments in our history the means of production etc was regulated by the community as a whole?
Otherwise it is that slightly annoying habit you have of pretending to be rational and on high ground while slinging snide abuse in the form of epithets in place of counter argument.
” last NZ Government/s which was Socialist”.
The closest to this in my lifetime was when Rob Muldoon was PM.
Ah, remember the glorious days when Rob set all the rules.
Alone and unaided he determined the wages and prices of almost everything.
– state regulated wages via industry awards
– state regulated inflation
– state regulated days to drive a car
– state owned electricity, telephone
– state regulated farm production via prices
– state owned forests, tourism, etc etc
– state directed economic planning, including Think Big
– tiny and narrow private sector.
Etc
Oh don’t be such a silly duffer Wayne!
By the way, how’s all that ‘positioning’ coming along – a permanent appointment as a talking head rent-a-voice on the Sunday morning current affairs ‘shows’?
Wayne ,if you don’t like Socialism then give us back all your tax payer funded perks and go and be a “self made” man. You, of all on here ,have done best out of Socialism.
Brilliant garabaldi.
And Wayne please give us back our taxes we ‘incrimentally ‘sunk into all those ‘Government SOE’s’ you sold off eagerly too, and faiednus as you never gave us anything back to eh?
You are a sneaky fellow Wayne. Slipping that in there thinking we wouldn’t notice.
It’s true isn’t it; you had a great childhood. Health care, education, houses, extensive rail network (remember the railway workshops where countless men learnt a trade), all provided by the state. You didn’t mind that at all did you.
It served us all very well.
I felt great to wake up as a proud New Zealander this morning, several millions to teach kids to swim, suddenly South Marlborough residents are finding their quake claims are being settled a lot faster ( a quiet word from whom I wonder ), Jacinda holding the Aussies to account, shit that used to be in the too difficult basket actually getting done NOW !, and a plethora of other so very good-to-have-progress-on issues, and all to the melliferous tones of John Campbell and what must be the very personification of the mesmerising voice of a she-cobra about to strike, the absolutely
delightful Kim Hill. The most intelligent radio tag-team of all time.
Its really good to be a Kiwi these days.
Green Party social development spokesperson Jan Logie said although her party’s policy went further, what they had agreed with Labour was a good start.
“I will be hoping to work closely with the minister and providing a good evidence base for our policies as well as seeing how far we can get with this because we don’t have evidence that sanctions work, and we’ve got a lot of indications at the moment that the systems are causing harm.”
Mike O’Brien from the Child Poverty Action Group said the government needed to look at increasing benefits if it wanted to make a difference to vulnerable families.
“If you’re really serious about reducing poverty, then improving benefit rates, making some changes to Working for Families so you remove the discrimination against sole parents, a whole raft of those pieces that would make a really important and significant difference.”
Yes great news that s70A is going. Thank you to all the groups who have campaigned against this sanction. Now chuck the amendment in under urgency and get this sorted please.
If that’s to be a signature approach of the Green Party, and it gets enough cut through to shift the (whatd’yem’callit?) public discourse(?), then I’ll be happily rowing back from where I’ve been heading 😉
Explicitly qualified support with an equally explicit ‘pushing of the envelope’ gives me hope for a better three years than I was expecting a week or so back.
Bugger. Just noticed it’s a quote from CPAG and not The Green Party that’s pointing to the need for a raft of improvements.
So, okay. The Greens are offering qualified support and now just need to take a leaf out of CPAGs book 🙂
+1. Takes a bit of getting used to but I’m managing it!
It’s so refreshing after the suffocation of the past nine years. So good to have a government that’s doing what needs to be done rather than one which kept telling us what couldn’t be done and refusing to address the obvious especially when it was the right thing to do.
And Kim Hill and John Campbell in the morning – intelligent, engaging, insightful radio.
We in far the distant ‘remote North Island East coast Gisborne /HB regions both are waiting now for our sixth year without our rail.
Government are responsible for our rail washout here, and for the restoration of our railway service after it was washed out in March 2012, straight after the ruling National Government Minister of Transport Steven Joyce was believed to have pressured Kiwirail to sack 14 track maintenance staff and send those funds to Auckland for their commuter rail instead, and caused the storm blocked the drains with hillside slips and that washed out (only just 1km) of our 212 kms of rail and then refused to fix it over a later discredited ‘whitewashed report’ saying the service was not viablle, but we had an independant report prepared proving it was viable, by the BERL Economist Ganesh Nana (the same economist later during the election in 2017 who ruled Steven Joyce’s $11.7 billion defit hole he claimed labour had in their budget ‘was ficticious’.
We rejoyce for the South Island’s east coast communities to recieve their rail restored for their services and soon the road also will be reopenned too.
So we hope Jacinda does not forget to also ‘pressure’ Kiwirail to fix our rail they destroyed and reopen a modern efficient freight and passenger tourism rail service for us also before some Auckland guy succeeds to rob us of our rail for a cycleway!!!!!!!
Please jacinda push those buttons to bring our rail services back to our isolated NI East coast region. “lets do this.”
“We rejoyce for the South Island’s east coast communities to recieve their rail restored …..”
Christ @CG!. I know as we both enter our dotage we’re apt to forget things.
I know you don’t really mean ‘reJoyce’ – but rather rejoice. He might be useful as a bit of ballast in the foundations somewhere along a restored Gisborne railway, but please – let’s not let a Joyce near anything to do with governance or business (going forward). Their skid marks are everywhere. Steven’s contribution is to NZ what that Barnaby is to Australia’s bugger’s muddle of a parliament. Then there’s an Alan who’s done more to jeopardise Qantas’ safety record than anyone – they’re flying on luck
We over on the NI East Coast now truly hate Steven bloody Joyce with such venom as he is truly a slimly character we have met who hoodwinked most of our local choir of “civil leaders here with his bullshit, fluff & stuff, but he has well worn out his welcome here.
Good point. Just the thing that National and their ilk would do. Close the rail and then put a ‘Tourist venture” of a cycle track along that handy piece of land. Cycling is in, and heavy work is out.
The world is made for those who want to get an appearance of being green and can spend most of their time traveling around following cycle tracks round the world, or railways (my favourite if I could afford it), or hunting for precious earth minerals or whatever bright idea they have unconnected with day to day life.
“and what must be the very personification of the mesmerising voice of a she-cobra about to strike, the absolutely delightful Kim Hill”.
God, that has to be the best description of Kim Hill I have ever heard. I just hooted with laughter when I read it. Thank you Adrian. I couldn’t have described it better, just absolutely perfect .
Jacinda on TPP and David Parker.
Jacinda has done the international thing and so has lost sight of previous NZ aspirations to be part of a great country that operated by and for NZs.
David Parker worked as a litigation partner so would have idea of how ISDS could be an expensive disaster, so it might be one of those things that are such a threat they never get to be used.
He helped get a Community Law Centre shows a good attitude.
He managed Blis Technologies for a while – a NZ innovative company in the medical line.
But neither of them likely to strike a discordant note from the main choir.
english must have had a brain fade when making this accusation…. it was fine for him when the pm that quit aka key offered to take the Manus Island refugees, but as soon as Jacinda does the same it’s a whole different senario. But then key was never going to walk to talk, his offer was all for show.
“Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is continuing to offer to help resolve the Manus Island crisis to “balance up with her own constituency” the Government’s support for the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal, National leader bill english says.”
Take off your tin foil hat bill english, it’s not about winning votes or making the most money, it’s about people, once you get your head around that you might actually win an election for a change.
Go away bill english – 2 time loser tick from dipton and proven billshitter. The only good thing about him is hes blocking even more useless and unpleasant gnat members from being the leader of their rabble.
Mr Robertson told Morning Report New Zealand wasn’t giving up on the issue.
“Obviously the issue is primarily in PNG’s court but there are people [on Manus Island] who have been declared refugees which means globally we’ve all got a responsibility for that and locally and regionally New Zealand takes that seriously.” http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/343664/robertson-we-can-help-in-manus
But it is not good to say they will keep asking Australia, so we seem to have clean hands. Then saying what can we do, it’s Oz fault, and we do understand their knotty problem.
These guys are at the end of their tether. They obviously have a lot of stickability and are likely to make good citizens after care and counselling, and being reunited with families. It will have to go like that, and jobs found.
Waiting till the last moment is bad. Can we take most of who are left?
Have we got any sea transport lined up for emergency dash. Is there someone with some integrity at the UN who will call for help from member nations, and we can offer then. Is there…? It has to be done in a short time. People are like lettuces, they need water or they wilt.
I’ve been wondering for a week: does Bill English know the difference between ‘Opposition’ and ‘Obstruction’?
At the moment he and his are like a swarm of Anobium punctatum*. According to Te Ara Encyclopedia: “The larvae hatch and eat the timber for two to three years, making unsightly holes and tunnels. Adults bore exit holes in the wood in summer, and fly away. Little piles of dust near holes indicate an infestation.”
Leaving hazard and ruin behind them.
* House borer. Seemed apt…
The latest from Its Our Future NZ on TPP.
TPPA Bulletin #99 November 2017
Labour have caved in on the TPPA-11, but the agreement has yet to be signed. If the agreement goes ahead, the government can expect opposition in the streets.
Kia ora koutou katoa,
The news coming out of the TPPA talks in Vietnam last week were all over the place. An agreement was initially declared by Japan and Mexico, only to be contradicted by Canada. Jacinda Ardern then declared the negotiations had stalled indefinitely after Justin Trudeau failed to show up to a meeting of the TPPA-11 leaders. Finally, officials announced that they had reached agreement on the “core elements” of a new agreement, which they have now rebranded as the “Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership”.
Where does this leave us? Good question. It would appear from the annexes to the ministerial statement (here and here) that only four outstanding items remain for negotiations and that these have been raised by Vietnam, Canada, Brunei Darussalam and Malaysia. New Zealand is a notable absence from this list, presumably because Ardern et al are content with the limited concessions that have been achieved on ISDS. To quote Jane Kelsey:
“There is no change to the pro-investor rules or the core investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) mechanism. A provision that would allow foreign investors to use the TPPA’s ISDS mechanism to enforce contracts for infrastructure or natural resources has been suspended, as has the ability to challenge measures affecting certain financial investments. But investors can still use ISDS to enforce their special rights under the investment chapter, and the delegitimised ISDS process remains intact.”
Needless to say, this is a disappointing. As Laura O’Connell-Rapira of ActionStation wrote in advance of the latest talks, Labour set us up to be let down by their negotiating position, as though they were simply making the best of a bad situation set in train by National. Jacinda continued to hold this line in an interview after the negotiations. Don’t buy this spin. If Labour were serious about ISDS they would have held the line in negotiations — four other countries stuck to their guns, and our negotiators could have done so as well. While the type of dispute for which corporations can sue our government has been narrowed, there are still significant areas of government policy that are under threat.
ISDS is not, and has never been, the sole problem with the TPPA. Threats to PHARMAC, affordable medicine, intellectual property, regulation of e-commerce (which will become more and more important in the increasingly digital economy), the operation of State-Owned Enterprises and the operation of a progressive government procurement policy are also significant. As it stands, some of these threats have been suspended in the current TPPA-11, pending the possible re-entry of the United States to the agreement. While these suspensions are a welcome relief, Labour have effectively committed us to the same TPPA should the United States ever come back to the table.
It’s Our Future and our friends at ActionStation campaigned in the lead up to the Vietnam negotiations on a platform that Labour ought to take the time to consult meaningfully with the public before committing us to any agreement in the TPPA-11. Labour were critical (in their select committee minority view) of the secrecy with which National conducted the TPPA negotiations, but have done no better themselves by proceeding with the agreement under the false pretense of an artificial deadline.
To quote Jane Kelsey again:
“The bad news is that the Labour government has endorsed the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, with the suspension of a limited range of items, at the ministerial and leaders’ meetings in Da Nang, Viet Nam.
The good news is that the meeting failed to conclude the new deal – rebranded the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).”
If the agreement goes ahead — and that is a big “if” — the agreement will require ratification in Parliament. We still have an opportunity to beat this toxic agreement by placing pressure on the government in future negotiations, and in the ratification process. The Greens have already made it clear that they will vote down the TPPA-11 in Parliament, and we would expect New Zealand First to do the same. The fact that Labour would have to rely on National to get the TPPA-11 agreement across the line is a measure of their hypocrisy.
The struggle continues, and we’ll be coordinating actions to oppose the TPPA-11 when we have a better idea about the timelines. The demand in our recent open letter to Jacinda Ardern (which we hope to deliver this week) for full and transparent consultation with the public still stands. In opposition, Labour strongly criticised the economic arguments for the original TPPA, stating that the modelling used in the patsy National Interest Analysis overstated the benefits of the agreement while failing to take into considerations its costs (particularly those related to jobs and wealth distribution). Labour needs to commission a new National Interest Analysis for the TPPA-11 to inform meaningful public scrutiny of the potential agreement.
In the meantime, Labour’s (welcome) position that they will not include ISDS clauses in any future agreements will be put to the test in the RCEP negotiations in Manila as we speak. While RCEP negotiations are nowhere near completion, it is important that the new government is held to a higher standard than National on these and other future negotiations.
Ngā mihi koutou, keep posted and please get in touch at itsourfuturenz@gmail.com if you have any questions or comments.
Yes, let’s go back to fortress NZ pre Euro Union, let’s not trade anything with anybody, let’s not compromise, let’s not collaborate, let’s just copy North Korea. Let’s not do this.
Yes, let’s cut ourselves off from the world and become a south seas North Korea without the nukes. Even Chris Trotter is showing some understanding of the real world today.
Our PM and David Parker are doing their best, as I see it, and to see all the squealing and complaining is a real let down. That’s not to say everything will be perfect, nothing ever is. The Greens may wish so, but it will not be so. Just what would be achieved by NZ throwing their toys out of the cot and having a sulk in the corner.
If it was just about free trade fine, the trade agreements are not about free trade they are the opposite. Look at the IP for example, making medicines more expensive (many of which were largely subsidised by governments), it just goes on and on. If
it was all about free trade for NZ exporters, why not export to Russia? Nope it’s political through and through and helps only lawyers and those already making a fortune. The rest is to keep everyone else from competing by keeping market dominance and stop change.
I reckon you have hit the button on TPP in that short comment savenz.
Sometimes the right words can be short and sweet/sour. (Depend which side you are on.)
and Reality
We actually discuss things here and argue about points, and then consider them, and discuss them further. We are not just a bunch ‘squealing and complaining’. You could try and read what we are concerned about before you indicate your ignorance with that fine high-handed irritation you have adopted. It makes you sound like one of the entitled to whom all blessings flow.
You ask: Just what would be achieved by NZ throwing their toys out of the cot and having a sulk in the corner.
Would you really like to take part in a discussion on that, or are you a lazy thinker who just says TINA?
Nope it’s political through and through and helps only lawyers and those already making a fortune. The rest is to keep everyone else from competing by keeping market dominance and stop change.
QFT
The present system is a racket designed to keep the majority oppressed to the wants and desires of the rich.
We are at a crossroads of loosing our country to coporates control so remember corporatates environmental record globally is grotesque and disgusting as they have no record or documents directing them to become “good Corporate global environmental citizens” of the world.
Our ‘reality’ speaks for itself!!!
If we want to protect our environment don’t allow corporate control over our NZ laws or involve these errant Corporations inside any agreements whatsoever with our NZ Government as we must remain “independant”.
Adrian
Let’s you go back to your cup of tea and sit in the naughty corner. We haven’t been Fortress NZ since ever. And when things were tightened down, we actually managed well, though we hankered after foreign baubles and had to think creatively how to get them.
Small things you were only allowed to build towards by getting Post Office vouchers at say today’s value of $2 a time, and you had to keep on visiting daily till you had enough to buy some delectable item from ‘overseas’. An overseas car could be brought back as an import, after using it during an overseas trip which we did. Both worked well for us and we were part of a thriving, eager NZ going upwards together.
What an awful picture, people whose moans were so tiny compared to today’s, but the one’s who were making it wanted to ratchet up their own lifestyle.
Bugger anyone else’s. And the problem was that they single-mindedly went after what they personally wanted and could get, by standing on other people’s shoulders.
And that applies to the wealthy rentiers and the powerful unions alike. Both short-sighted, but particularly those unionists with eternal wage demands and not able to impose better systems that allowed them to share in the rising profits in a practical way that would encourage more understanding and co-operation between business and worker. The left had WEA and the idea of keeping informed and educated so as to keep up with the capitalist class, but it wasn’t promoted enough, and workers soon left it all to union leaders to organise and were not ready for them turning squishy when confronted with neo lib from their very own bosom-buddies.
It’s not a question of going back to ‘fortress NZ’. NZ has always been a trading nation but there’s a difference being a trading nation to one which gives its sovereignty over to multi-national corporations.
We could drop out of all the FTAs that we’re a part of, including the WTO, and have freer trade.
Willing Buyer, Willing Seller
How about we ask the people what constitutes when we want to allow trade with another nation rather than asking the corporations who really only want countries, the people, to guarantee their profits.
There are still four issues up for neogitation but all 11 nations involved in the deal have now agreeed on every other aspect. The new deal also has a new name – it’s now the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for the Trans Pacific Partnership.
Veteran trade negotiator Charles Finny has been following developments, as has TPP sceptic Professor Jane Kelsey. They join us to debate the issues around the deal.
Beyond Manapouri, 50 years of environmental politics.
A book by one really smart lady: Catherine Knight on RNZ Nine to Noon. (link not yet up)
In the interview she identifies all that’s gone wrong with our public service over the past 25 years.
Put succinctly in one statement (to paraphrase), Ministers have become the CEO’s customer, rather than The Public.
CEO’s and senior management telling their Ministers what they think they want to hear, rather than truthful, honest policy advice.
Ten Reasons We Got Rid of National
No. 9: John Key
“I felt the actions weren’t those of a Prime Minister and I felt New Zealand should know that. It is because he is the PM that I went to the media. John Key feels he is untouchable.”
Plenty of folk lost everything they had with hotchin/bryers/petrovic/graham entities so why did SCF investors get 100% plus the at risk interest ? It has an odour to it.
The Alabama special election to replace Sessions remains as watchable as ever.
So far the papaya Palpatine has managed to duck having an opinion about Roy Moore, coz, you know, he’s too busy with his besties Pootee and Doody-Turdy. But he’ll be home soon.
Will the Grabber-in-chief try to crush Moore, coz Moore’s not a star and only stars get to do that? Or coz he doesn’t want the competition?
Will Don of the Deadbrains double down on boys will be boys, the more there are around him the better?
I'd be fine with a child predator in the Senate so long as it would keep the Democrats from stealing this seat. Child molesters are evil, Democrats are even worse— Eric Dondero R. (@EricDonderoR) November 11, 2017
Kayla Moore, wife of Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore, shared a letter on Facebook indicating support from more than 50 Alabama pastors.
Moore’s wife Kayla posted the letter to her Facebook page Sunday after days of controversy surrounding her husband and allegations he had sexual contact with a 14-year-old in 1979 when he was 32-years-old. Three other women said Moore pursued them as teenagers.
If this new TPP is finally signed off with Labour and National agreeing with it then it all bodes well for the Green Party in years to come. Firstly many Labour voters will next time, vote for the Greens as the only progressive party left to vote for and secondly with climate change being a real and present danger to the planet earth, then their policies will only bring about good for the country. In future years there will be many displaced people from coastal properties etc and rising sea levels, Australia will be frying and there will be climate refugees from there and the Pacific. Yes, its all good for the future for the Green Party.
Why nations are still concentrating on trading with each other with their heads in the sand it would seem they have this vision of a healthy future ahead of themselves, there is no vision, no urgency to tackle the pending serious weather conditions we are going to experience which will make trading the last thing on their minds. Now, if they spent as much time tackling this serious problem as they do trying to make even more profit trading around the world, then maybe this planet is in with a chance of being saved.
They voted Peters because they thought he could reign in National especially around immigration, they didn’t want Labour and they certainly didn’t want to give the Greens any power.
NZ First has lost half its voter block at least, that’s another 4% for National.
A pretty large majority of NZF voters wanted NZF with Labour.
Feelings at the start of a new govt are hardly predictive of how they will change their vote next time. There’s 3 years of Labour improving the economy and people’s lives.
“The older people were, the more negative they were, the poll’s trend showed”
And there’s a big class skew towards Labour from people with less wealth. Guess who dies earlier.
TPP will not survive; period; – so give away all that hot air to someone else we are sick of your whinning .
The world is on the brink of another GFC and a *climate change Catastophe nighmare of all proportion now so we won’t see these flimsy “fools trade” agreements go ahead now.
Martyn Bradbury Editor. – TDB.
One of the main concerns behind the scenes of the negotiations to be the next Government was the deep seated belief that the global economy is about to implode.
Since the 2007-2008 Global Financial Crisis, all the developed world has done is kick the day of market reckoning down the road with more and more money printing. At some point this band-aid won’t be able to stem the pressure building and it will rupture with a backlash that will make the depression look like a week without pocket money.
What will hit first? Economic armageddon or Environmental apocalypse?
It’s difficult to know what will hit us first, the Economic Armageddon or Environmental apocalypse caused by our dangerously warming climate.
I suspect they will both combine to create something beyond our scope to deal with.
When you are getting market spreads like this, panic doesn’t even seem to sum up the proper response. Remember, a spread above 30 points suggests elevated risk and a spread above 40 calls for ‘defensive measures’. Last week the spread was almost 50 fucking points…
Economic crash IMMINENT: Fears grow as markets hit high not seen since Black Tuesday
There is a growing sense of foreboding amongst economists who believe the market is poised to repeat what happened during the dotcom bubble and the Wall street crash.
Stock values have reached levels not seen since those two disasters and a correction would throw the world economy – currently seeing an ongoing boom period – into disarray.
Graham Hacche at the National Institute for Economic and Social Research (NIESR) said:“In both cases, sharp market ¬declines followed these high readings.”
He went onto say the cyclically adjusted price-earning ratio (the Shiller CAPE ratio) has risen above 30 which shows “markets may have become increasingly vulnerable to shocks.”
…the question is no longer if, but when and where the economic crash will start and cascade from.
China could be the trigger…
Red debt rising
The news during the Chinese Communist Party Congress was supposed to be uniformly positive. But the Oct. 19 press conference of Zhou Xiaochuan, the governor of China’s central bank, was not. After admitting that the country’s high debt was high, he surprised everybody by adding that it was not so high as to cause a “Minsky Moment,” a sudden meltdown of asset prices. It was a fascinating insight into what worries China’s economic leaders and the tough choices they face.
…or it could be the failing Eurozone or Brexit that trigger it, or it could be the sudden realisation on Wall Street that Trump can’t get his tax cuts through.
Add in the sabre rattling over Chinese expansion into the Pacific, Venezuela imploding, North Korea going nuclear, Saudia Arabia launching war on Lebanon or a total collapse in Central Africa and any knock from Climate change could topple the global economy into free fall…
From Miami to Shanghai: 3C of warming will leave world cities below sea level
Hundreds of millions of urban dwellers around the world face their cities being inundated by rising seawaters if latest UN warnings that the world is on course for 3C of global warming come true, according to a Guardian data analysis.
What does a left wing Government do about it?
Anyway you want to look at it, the immediate future looks bleak, so what should a Left wing Government on these far away Shaky Isles do about it?
First of all, let’s appreciate the beauty and luck of our distance.
It’s near impossible for refugees to climb into boats and flee here successfully, we have a globally low debt to GDP ratio and we have enough fertile land to feed ourselves.
In short, the tyranny of our distance is going to end up being what saves us while the planet goes into meltdown.
BM…….hoping like fuck and quacking like a duck. Meanwhile Key’s cruising……and don’t give a fuck. BM……looks very much like Russia’s ya’ only hope baby. Udachi !
I’m assuming it means: Catalan separatists meet with Julian Assange => Julian Assange starts tweeting about the glorious revolution taking place in Catalonia => Russian media start giving extensive coverage to Assange’s tweets => Assange enthusiasts and Russian propaganda viewers the world over support independence for Catalonia. Did money change hands?
It is pretty suspicious, but the world is so full of crackpots it doesn’t necessarily mean anybody’s paying anybody for it.
Did you just summarily dismiss all and sundry who are supportive of the people of Catalonia being empowered to determine their own future?
One Russian media outlet (Sputnik) based 11 stories around Assange tweets (10 on comments by Carles Puigdemont and 5 by Mariano Rajoy). Apparently that’s outrageous because Assange isn’t an expert on Catalonia (or some such)…unlike all the talking heads whatever other outlets use. Them’s experts!
It’s utterly depressing, this enthusiasm to back the insinuation that anyone who doesn’t adhere to some “official” or “approved” script is “suspect”.
It’s kinda fascist.
BTW. Does the Scottish government’s support for Catalonian independence make them “Assange enthusiasts and/or Russian propaganda viewers” too? Maybe the SNP and Scottish Greens (plus a good proportion of Scottish Labour voters) are just ‘victims’ of Kremlin propaganda? I mean, Alex Salmond (ex First Minister of Scotland) is about to host a show on RT – gadzooks! (And yes. Pretty sure Assange tweeted on Scottish independence)
Pretty sure the barb was for Assange supporters and Russian propaganda consumers, not people supporting Catalonian independence generally (could be wrong though).
“It’s utterly depressing, this enthusiasm to back the insinuation that anyone who doesn’t adhere to some “official” or “approved” script is “suspect””
Go and do some article searches on some main Liberal publications if you genuinely don’t understand that (eg – The Guardian, Washington Post, The Independent).
And have a look at the various ministerial announcements that accompanied the vote in Catalan (but just mind and ignore what Sturgeon said, aye? 😉 )
For all practical purposes, is there a difference that matters? In either case, it still means treat everything emanating from Saint Julian of the Embassy with deep suspicion.
Looks to me more like the Russian government has found Wikileaks to be a useful way of releasing any embarrassing data they nick from the Americans and Assange isn’t fussy about where the data comes from. But the net effect is pretty much the same as if they had a business arrangement, so as Andre asks, does it matter? Either way, you have to treat the results with suspicion.
There is no Russian link to Wikileaks – that’s the whole point of having an intelligence service. However, reasons to suspect the Russian government is using Wikileaks to release embarrassing data it steals from the Americans is outlined here.
The whole “Russia Russia Russia” narrative is a totally overblown distraction.
Especially when it is clear that the US is unparalleled in its ability to steal, penetrate, impersonate the technology, data and systems of its foreign adversaries.
Further, its going to become very clear that the Democractic Party has very tight ties with Russian interests and operatives.
At the end of the day, the massive heavy handed way the USA handled the leaks has actually helped their rivals the most and reduced power in the USA both internationally and within public opinion.
If USA said sorry, and stopped their own illegal actions then it would have all gone away.
The nation has been divided. If US officials had been less gungho and less looking like manufacturing charges and extriditions for political reasons , then Wikileaks would have been yesterday’s news.
Like the Dotcom incident in NZ. Hard not to notice that one.
The young and the free are all Internet users, they want freedom in that space. Anyone trying to curb that, has a battle that they probably won’t win.
It’s 21st century Vietnam. You can’t force people to agree with things that are wrong. It just divides people.
To my mind Wikileaks/Assange began as an apolitical organisation concerned with human rights, using collateral damage/cablegate as disrupters of US foreign policy.
I’d like to know why they’ve moved past that brief, involving themselves in the political processes of at least three countries.
I reckon it’s most likely to be one of or a combination of an Assange vanity project, keeping Jules out of a Swedish/US federal prison or, for hire.
joe90 – perhaps you mean Wikileaks began as a non-partisan organisation.
Disrupting US foreign policy, releasing US secrets and then having the Anglo-American empire target you with smears and illegal lawfare tactics was always going to be highly political.
I.E. Bombing the shit out of any country that refuses to allow US corporations, free reign. Or changing the leadership of any country that threatened the dollar as the reserve currency.
I suspect your answer is ego rather than anything else. Assange has a big ego and he likes to bring it out every now and to remind us, and him, how important he is.
The tweets themselves (not the interpretation the Atlantic couches them in) just read as someone punting for business and figuring out moves that might help his own position. And given that he’s essentially under house arrest, that’s fair enough, no?
If you’re fate lay in the hands of someone who said you should be droned, wouldn’t you have something to say about that? And if there was the possibility another might open those doors, wouldn’t you be talking to them?
And in whatever correspondence you had, and given the levels of stress occasioned by your situation, you really think you wouldn’t say some really fucking stupid things among it all?
My impression of Assange (justified or otherwise) is that he’d be an unpleasant pain in the arse at a personal level. But fuck, this on-going knee-jerk reaction bullshit to anything associated with Assange or Wikileaks, from mostly Liberal quarters, is fucking diabolical.
And the tiresome attempts to discredit any and all voices that might disagree with “official takes” on world affairs or specific situations by tying those voices in with Assange or Wikileaks, or some news story from a Russian media outlet, is deeply and seriously fucked up. Actually. It’s not so much that that’s fucked up (It’s to be expected). It’s the sheer numbers of people buying into it that’s the problem.
“The tweets themselves (not the interpretation the Atlantic couches them in) just read as someone punting for business and figuring out moves that might help his own position. And given that he’s essentially under house arrest, that’s fair enough, no?”
Probably shouldn’t be using Wikileaks to do that though.
“If you’re fate lay in the hands of someone who said you should be droned, wouldn’t you have something to say about that? And if there was the possibility another might open those doors, wouldn’t you be talking to them?”
Quite possibly, but I would also probably take care not to conflate a statement about droning with an actual potential threat, especially if I was running an organisation that needed to maintain a high degree of trustworthiness in the public internationally.
I like the Trump family even less than you do, weka, and although I admire Julian Assange’s fearless journalism, I find his parlaying with these swine very odd indeed.
However, you damage your credibility immediately by citing Russell Brown, who is one of the most easily gulled people in all of faux-liberalism. You might remember how Matthew Hooton made a fool of him and the likes of Craig Ranapia back in December 2013, after Nelson Mandela died….
Funny, given that your own reputation on TS was undermined by the less than truthfulness of your transcripts 😉
Everyone does stupid shit online at some point, and everyone does something that other people disagree with. Calling RB names means nothing to me except to say that you disapprove of him somehow.
given that your own reputation on TS was undermined by the less than truthfulness of your transcripts
My transcripts were never less than truthful, despite your slimy smear. You, and a few others, objected to my emphasizing the lack of eloquence of some politicians by including every “errr” and “ahhh” and “ummm” they uttered, and you also seemed, or pretended to be, upset by my pointing out that when someone like Jim Mora or Chris Trotter said something unconscionably crass or nasty on air, there were often uncomfortable silences.
But of course that issue is long done with. You and your small group of fellow-detractors lost. Deal with it.
Everyone does stupid shit online at some point…
They certainly do, as you did just now with that attempt to smear me with an old and discredited falsehood.
Calling RB names means nothing to me except to say that you disapprove of him somehow.
I did more than call him names, I demonstrated his insufferable combination of naïveté and sanctimoniousness.
Not ums and errs but whole bits not transcribed literally (which is what a transcript is). They were impressions that by your own admission you acknowledged you wrote out mostly freehand as you listened.
From the first link – I was concerned with capturing the essence of that pompous bullfrog Trotter, and didn’t record her murmurings verbatim.
I say were, because I have a feeling you later increased the accuracy and started doing actual transcripts, but now that you’ve just denied the accuracy issue it makes me wonder if you can even tell.
“But of course that issue is long done with.”
Quite. 2013. Funnily enough, that’s the same year as whatever it is you are saying that Brown did.
“They certainly do, as you did just now with that attempt to smear me with an old and discredited falsehood.”
I’ve done stupid shit, but this isn’t one of those times as I’ve just demonstrated.
“I did more than call him names, I demonstrated his insufferable combination of naïveté and sanctimoniousness.”
I don’t see how. You linked to one of your impressions transcripts and expected people to read it and figure out what you were referring to. If RB did something wrong (I still have no idea what), then you should be able to (a) name it, and (b) back that claim up with some evidence. So far all you’ve done is said Hooton made a fool of him, and let us know that you believe Brown is x, y, z.
So. You don’t like him and are using a current event to refer to something from years ago that demonstrates that you don’t like him. I don’t see the relevance myself.
Most of what you upbraid me with is unarguable. I accept your points.
However, this one is unfair:
You linked to one of your impressions transcripts and expected people to read it and figure out what you were referring to.
No, what I did was: I took contributions of various people on the “Mandela” thread from Russell Brown’s blog of 30.12.13 and used them verbatim to form a fictional classroom situation. I imaginatively revivified a dreadful and embarrassing exercise in drippy “liberals” competing to share their feelings of sadness, then indulging a cynical and vicious manipulator. They were so drippy, in fact, that not one of them even noticed when the intruder (Matthew Hooton) smoothly compared Mandela to Reagan and Thatcher. That’s where this writer and another Standardista, Rhinocrates, came in….
Re today, I’m not going to read your fictional account. If you have something to say about Brown’s actions, by all means do and then cite to support it. Can you not see how a fictional account is still about *your opinions?
People do enjoy your posts Morrissey, I just wish you would understand that in this setting there are pretty clear dividing lines between opinion and reporting of factual events.
I’d call it over-generous. I went and read the comment you linked to. In it, you take verbatim comments from Public Address and sprinkle them in among shit you just made up, which invites the reader to assume the shit you made up consists of verbatim comments. That’s pretty low.
Our good friend Psycho Milt makes a few points, which I’ll address one by one….
…you take verbatim comments from Public Address and sprinkle them in among shit you just made up,
That’s pretty much it. But what you rather disparagingly call “shit you just made up” has a serious dramatic function. You are familiar with Monty Python’s Life of Brian, I presume, where the scriptwriters interpose a great deal of “made up shit” to counterpoint the words of the bloke delivering the Sermon on the Mount. Shakespeare did a lot of this sort of thing as well; I recommend you spend a few minutes studying a copy of Julius Caesar.
…which invites the reader to assume the shit you made up consists of verbatim comments.
Anyone with an IQ above room temperature could tell that the bits labeled “UPROAR FROM CLASS”, “MURMURING FROM CLASS,” “SEVERAL VOICES”, “OUTRAGE AND UPROAR”, etc. were made up, and distinct from the verbatim transcripts of Mike O’Connell, Hebe. Paul Campbell, Matthew Hooton and Russell Brown.
That’s pretty low.
That’s drama for you. It’s a pity for people like you that the playhouses can’t be shut down like in the good old days.
Anyone with an IQ above room temperature could tell that the bits labeled “UPROAR FROM CLASS”, “MURMURING FROM CLASS,” “SEVERAL VOICES”, “OUTRAGE AND UPROAR”, etc. were made up, and distinct from the verbatim transcripts of Mike O’Connell, Hebe. Paul Campbell, Matthew Hooton and Russell Brown.
They might well. Thing is, what you call “verbatim transcripts” include Russell Brown apparently making statements like
You will have other thoughts and memories and you are welcome to share them here. Please be respectful of each other. Michael, you were the first to put your hand up. Please stand up and share with the class how sad you are.
Having read the post in question, I’m aware that part of that “verbatim transcript” is verbatim and part of it is shit you made up. Other of these supposedly “verbatim transcripts” include similar insertions, which you offered to weka as evidence of Russell Brown’s foolishness, along with the claim that
My transcripts were never less than truthful, despite your slimy smear.
Pointing out that you put words in other people’s mouths and claim it’s evidence of their foolishness isn’t a “slimy smear,” it’s an “accurate description.”
Fool, I invented nothing in those transcripts, or near-transcripts. I accept weka’s serious and principled views, but yours are still as brutal and unbalanced as ever, I’m sorry to say.
Again, this isn’t about who likes each other or not. McFlock’s example is easily as good as the one I posted, probably better (I haven’t listened to the original audio). The arguments are well laid out about the problems with the transcript.
I see on the news that they are proposing a 140 to 190 Million development of the Auckland Waterfront for the America’s Cup. Goff is full of it and expects the taxpayer once again to finance this latest elitist toy.
I would like to remind ALL the rightwingers, that we have had thirty years of user pays, being told to stand on our own two feet, no handouts with the Tories in the last nine years cutting services and benefits. Now is a good time for the right to practice what they are always preaching, pay for the fucking thing yourselves.
I for one will be totally and completely pissed off if one dollar of taxpayers money goes towards this massive white elephant when there will be a struggle after nine years of neglect rectifying a large amount of child poverty and homelessness.
If the elite wants to play with their boats good on them, but don’t expect the taxpayer to to pay for your toys
.
Is the money Goff wants to throw at this farce instead of, or in addition to, the billion he wanted to spend on an Auckland stadium? What has happened to that by the way? I’ve been out of the country and haven’t heard anything about it recently.
@ alwyn – last I heard they were wasting ratepayer money on private consultants to do feasibility studies for the stadium. They are desperate to build one as a monument to their ego’s but know that there will be a massive public backlash… Ego vs public opinion (not sure which will win).
The right, the neo-liberal, NEVER practice what they preach.
Doesn’t matter whether it’s Ruth Richardson Limited (liability); a Jenny Shipley alongside that brick of a man Burton; the entitled rich versus the undeserving poor; Jeeze Wayne’s or Mathew Hootons. It’s a foreign concept to them, devoid of humanity but all cost-accounted for. And if the accounts don’t work, why we’ll just re-invent the way we do them, and Bill’s your seedy Uncle (Steven, and there’s a new generation eagre to lead the self-entitled charge.
Hopefully the gated-community locks are going to hold out
We already paid for the last America’s cup!! What happened to all that infrastructure???? If the industry can afford millions in yachts then they should be able to crowd fund for the infrastructure that is apparently needed.
Likewise if it will be an economic boom maybe the business who will benefit aka Skycity types (mostly owed offshore corporations) can get their wallets out. I know they are used to being showered with corporate welfare but under a Labour led government can somebody find the word NO?
For everyone who lives in Auckland, it’s just more traffic, more rates and more out of control officials like Goff who will enjoy lording it over the place with all the rich and powerful that type of event attracts.
Solve our transport first, cut down rates and increase public service levels like libraries that benefit people who live here NOT try to always be impressing rich people passing through.
You must also remember the Fucking Spiv gave a 17.25 mil grant to the company that built Oracle’s boat and at the same time Pula Benefit was cutting benefits left right and centre
Today’s workplace surveillance software is a digital panopticon that began with email and phone monitoring but now includes keeping track of web-browsing patterns, text messages, screenshots, keystrokes, social media posts, private messaging apps like WhatsApp and even face-to-face interactions with co-workers.
Another reason to move from the 2000+ year old ownership (Our present day ownership laws started back in Ancient Rome) model for a cooperative approach. The people doing the work and are most affected by this type of Big Brother approach are more likely to both decrease the amount of watching and use what’s gathered more ethically.
IMO, knowing everything about someone gives ways to control them. We see this in things like self-censorship.
I’m presently looking for a job after finishing a degree. So, what effect is my anti-capitalist stance going to have on that and should I thus keep from mentioning it on my Facebook page so as to help me get a job?
To normal people that is called “a creepy invasion of privacy”.
But. Way too many employers now assume a right to know, about employees private lives, that should have never been their fucking business in the first place.
Just a question DtB …. Where do experieces and what one might call ‘common’ sense fit into it.
I’m all for science based on facts and logic (well…science), but often the heuristics used in a triage situation when decisions can be required quickly can have big experiential and common sense components. In my case, if they’d relied purely on what the science said at the time – I’d be dead
Common sense, defined as “sound judgment derived from experience rather than study,” is one of the most revered qualities in America. It evokes images of early and simpler times in which industrious men and women built our country into what it is today. People with common sense are seen as reasonable, down to earth, reliable, and practical.
But here’s the catch. Common sense is neither common nor sense. There’s not a whole of sound judgment going on these days (though whether it is worse than in the past, I can’t be sure), so it’s not common. If common sense was common, then most people wouldn’t make the kinds of decisions they do every day. People wouldn’t buy stuff they can’t afford. They wouldn’t smoke cigarettes or eat junk food. They wouldn’t gamble. And if you want to get really specific and timely, politicians wouldn’t be tweeting pictures of their private parts to strangers. In other words, people wouldn’t do the multitude of things that are clearly not good for them.
And common sense isn’t real sense, if we define sense as being sound judgment, because relying on experience alone doesn’t usually offer enough information to draw reliable conclusions. Heck, I think common sense is a contradiction in terms. Real sense can rarely be derived from experience alone because most people’s experiences are limited.
In my case, if they’d relied purely on what the science said at the time – I’d be dead
Sometimes simply doing shit can work but it’s a fluke and not something that can be relied upon.
I agree – common sense is not common, – the wrong term to use. I’m a big fan of science (as you describe it above).
I’m not a big fan of the idea that there can’t be exceptions to every rule.
For many, it was evident that there was climate change occurring a long time ago. The science subsequently proved it.
I don’t agree that “simply doing shit” can work but its always a ‘fluke’.
In the case I mentioned (mine), I understand the science now recognises the exceptions to the rule.
By the way – science isn’t dogma either. It requires an open mind ready to consider possibilities, and to be able to contest previously held scientific views and theories
I don’t agree that “simply doing shit” can work but its always a ‘fluke’.
If someone does something without knowing what they’re doing and it works then it’s a fluke.
Now, that doesn’t actually mean that what they do isn’t a result of the training and experience that they have. What it means is that it hasn’t been researched and they’re running on intuition.
Good training and education will bring about better intuition but it’s still going to be a fluke because they don’t know. It could, as a matter of fact, go the other way. That doesn’t mean that it’s not worth trying if there’s no other options.
In the case I mentioned (mine), I understand the science now recognises the exceptions to the rule.
There are no exceptions to the rule – merely misunderstood, misapplied and unknown rules.
So glad you chose to highlight this – great example of how capital can be used to support a community at large and the investors get both a return (TBD) and the warm fuzzies from knowing that the collective knowledge of the workers is not lost forever.
Kudos to the people who stood up and worked behind the scenes to organise this.
The amendment did not extend the cost of Labour’s policy and it did not extend the total amount of time parents had available to them.
Adams said she could see no real reason why Labour would be opposed to giving new families greater flexibility.
“It seems to me they’re embarrassed that they rushed this bill and there was no need to do it. This has been their policy for a long time and they still haven’t properly turned their mind to some of the important issues, like how paid parental leave works and how it can be made more flexible.”
Such a change could be detrimental to the baby, says Labour; If both parents were off at the same time, that would be a shortened total time spent on leave with that child, said Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Iain Lees-Galloway.
…
Lees Galloway said he was not opposed to looking at changes to flexibility rules further down the track, however. But the Government had not seen the amendment National was preparing to put forward.
Sounds like the ball is in National’s court. Plus, didn’t they oppose extending PPL last year?
I need to see what National are actually proposing in terms of the law before I could have an opinion. And then opinions from people that are affected and organisations that work in that area.
Yes, that’s right, I don’t trust National. The idea could be a good one, but we have no way of telling because National are dicks.
I would call it misleading their voters and parkers statement allowing the view to pervade that Labour negotiated the Oz ISDS change as Keyesque and as appaling as when Nats behaved this way.
this week it looks to me like Labour are being hoisted on their own neoliberal petard. Of course they’re pragmatic as well. Doesn’t mean they’re being pragmatic about the right things.
I feel like this is a real cynical move coming from the party who vetoed extending paid parental leave for financial reasons.
However, I think this should be considered. I am assuming labour are coming from the perspective that creating the most time before bub has to go into childcare has the most benefit. But there are plenty of situations where I think time together as a whole family trumps that. After my first baby I had PND and if my husband been able to take a chunk OK time off at that time it would have made the world of difference I think. Couples who have twins or very sick babies would also benefit.
Don’t you feel strange now as a national party spinner now seeing national comming out with real “social progams” like giving both parents maternity extended leave now that it was national (yourparty) that railed hard agaist giving the ecxtended leavejust to one parent?
I think this is not real but just a ploy by English to put a wedge between the coalition now eh?
Has National Costed this?
As they are already demading labour cost everyting they do right?
So, basically, you’re bunging a smiley face on the thought that a party of liars and hypocrites when they were in government is no longer required to attain even that shonky level.
New Zealanders deserve more transparency from their politicians so they can better engage in the political system. Having party policies independently costed will help to cut through the noise of political party promises and deliver New Zealanders unbiased information.
Amy is accusing Labour of maybe doing something her party resisted until election time? For all we know their policy was like no new taxes… only meant to win votes not be implemented.
This newfound social conscience of Nats needs to be pounced upon with some new legislation for them to support.
I thought this was good. As the leader of a small trading nation, New Zealand’s prime minister simply cannot affect a take-it-or-leave-it attitude to something as big as the TPP. The inescapable truth confronting Ardern (as it has every one of her predecessors) is that this country’s status as a first-world nation is inescapably contingent upon earning sufficient overseas currency to import the sort of lifestyle to which most Kiwis believe themselves entitled.
Bluntly: faced with the choice of announcing whether her government is “in” or “out” of a major trade agreement; no New Zealand prime minister can say “out” with impunity.
cleangreen
He is a political journalist with a left approach, not an avowed activist, and he tries to view the facts of the situation as they lie, not as you or others would like them to be. Reading him you can assess how likely it would be to get your favourite policy through, and hope he is wrong if it seem impossible. Or you might think of some other way to manage it.
Mind-boggling. That’s National for you though – “Fuck off, if we give one wrongful-imprisonment victim inflation-adjusted compensation, next thing they’ll all want it!”
The open floodgates will let through huge numbers of people who will knowingly allow themselves to be bullied and confused into confessing to things they didn’t do, spend 20 years in prison and then claim the money!
Don’t you see McFlock don’t you? It’ll be a flood, a veritable torrent!
Either that – or you shouldn’t expect liars to understand metaphors.
Bloody nora, the size of some of the hail falling in Auckland at the moment – it as big as a 50 cent piece, some pieces bigger. It’s also peeling the paint off the neighbours cars.
That unnamed “Australian newspaper” is a Murdoch rag.
And those “unnamed sources” are no doubt as scurrilous.
I note that Radio New Zealand, among other outlets, has been diligently recycling, without any hint of demur, the Double Dipper’s mad claims about New Zealand becoming a “target for people smugglers.”
An Australian newspaper has reported unnamed sources saying the government there has turned back four boats of asylum seekers that were heading to New Zealand.
The Murdoch rag cited as merely “an Australian newspaper” is the hideous Courier-Mail of Brisbane, one of the Dirty Digger’s notorious stable of racist, war-mongering, sex-obsessed but prurient, thoroughly disreputable scandal sheets. It is to RNZ’s discredit that it failed to point this out today.
Acting Prime Minister Kelvin Davis said he did not know the source of the story, but it was “quite possible” it could be the Australian government pushing back over Manus Island.
My immediate reaction when I heard the item on the car radio. In fact its such a coincidence that the story should appear at this moment in time, one has to conclude that is precisely what it is.
Oh dear Natz really does need to get over itself. Still sounding very bitter and twisted over election result. Very petulant statements from Finlayson and Collins! Natz termites all slithering out of the woodwork now. Had it too good for too long. Sore losers unable to accept the fact the present coalition government was preferred!
It’s not a good look. They’re acting like spoiled brats in trying to push the idea that Peters is untrustworthy as a means of running interference against his court proceedings.
They must think people are stupid and have very short memories because most Kiwis know that the Nats ran the Super-leak hit job against Peters. What’s that if it’s not untrustworthy!
Very bitter and twisted alright – they can’t get over their utter uselessness in failing. They want to blame anyone except themselves – both those links show callous lies and a complete spit in the face for voters. I hope they never get in again.
Glad RNZ and Guyon Espiner gave a racist thug like Ian such a platform to air his views on Checkpoint. Anyone will do if it smears Jacinda and the government, eh Guyon?
Ed that was a shocking display of naked arrogance from espiner that i was heklling at jhim on TV and got bloody so mad that my blood pressure went over the top[.
I will ask the minister of broadcvasting to sack the prick as he has no place in this public broadcasting platfom that is trying to calm the people and be a kinder, gentler way of treating each other.
Espiner was going and going repeatedly at her it was a shocking display of arrogance he showed toward a sitting M.P.
Get rid of him, and take his mate Suzie Ferguson with him please as she is also very agressive at times though maybe not as bad as Espiiner is.
Kim Hill is the very best NZ has and should be uplifted to a Radio NZ Management position to train these half backed Journo’s to act civily and treat everyone with dignity and respect.
I expect the billionaire press to be biased but not RNZ.
Espiner is a Tory hack and should sell his soul to Murdoch or Reinhart or another rich corporate bludger.
Bob Geldof has, correctly, described Aung San Suu Kyi
as a “handmaiden to genocide and accomplice to murder”.
Bob Geldof has said he will return his Freedom of the City of Dublin in protest against the Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who also holds the award. Mr Geldof said “her association with our city shames us all”. Ms Suu Kyi has faced heavy criticism over her failure to address allegations of ethnic cleansing against Myanmar’s Rohingya Muslims. More than half a million Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh following recent violence.
Mr Geldof, the musician and founder of Band Aid, said in a statement: “Her association with our city shames us all and we should have no truck with it, even by default. We honoured her, now she appals and shames us.”
He is handing back the award at City Hall in the Irish capital on Monday morning.
I picked up an anomolly in labour’s cheif negociator today in Parliament during Q+A which a National MP asked David Parker about his claim that he had got changes made to the ISDS wording.
The minister asked if Parker stuck by his words and then said how come when he was involved in April 2016 over the TPPA settling on wording of that ISDS it was actactly the same wording as parker had agreedto, Parker responded by claiming that “his text related to a different agreement to a new free trade agreement called the CPTPP now?????
So is parker saying that te ISDS he agreed to was different from the one in the TPPA that was signed off by nationalm April 2016????
Can anyone clarify this please as someone is playing games here.
Many reports had been formerly comming out including Jane kelsey’s reviews saying the ISDS was the exact wording in both the TPP 11 and the CPTPP, so I am lost here.
maybe Labour knows something we dont yet???
I will find the hansard report wording on this after this day and post it later tomorrow.
Sounds to me like Parker is playing lawyerly word games. The National MP asked about the wording being the same, and Parker essentially replied – the wording you are referring to was in the TPP whereas the CPTPP is a different agreement altogether.
New Zealand is again having to reconcile conflicting pressures from its military and its trade interests. Should we join Pillar Two of AUKUS and risk compromising our markets in China? For a century after New Zealand was founded in 1840, its external security arrangements and external economics arrangements were aligned. ...
The ‘50 Shades of Green’ farmers’ protest in 2019 was heavy on climate change denial, but five years on, scepticism and criticism about the idea that pine forests can save us is growing across the board. File photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s the top six news items of note in climate ...
This morning the sky was bright.The birds, in their usual joyous bliss. Nature doesn’t seem to feel the heat of what might angst humans.Their calls are clear and beautiful.Just some random thoughts:MāoriPaul Goldsmith has announced his government will roll back the judiciary’s rulings on Māori Customary Marine Title, which recognises ...
In 2003, the Court of Appeal delivered its decision in Ngati Apa v Attorney-General, ruling that Māori customary title over the foreshore and seabed had not been universally extinguished, and that the Māori Land Court could determine claims and confirm title if the facts supported it. This kicked off the ...
Earlier this week at Parliament, Labour leader Chris Hipkins was applauded for saying that the response to the final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care had to be “bigger than politics.” True, but the fine words, apologies and “we hear you” messages will soon ring ...
TL;DR: In news breaking this morning:The Ministry of Education is cutting $2 billion from its school building programme so the National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government has enough money to deliver tax cuts; The Government has quietly lowered its child poverty reduction targets to make them easier to achieve;Te Whatu Ora-Health NZ’s ...
Kia ora. These are some stories that caught our eye this week – as always, feel free to share yours in the comments. Our header image this week (via Eke Panuku) shows the planned upgrade for the Karanga Plaza Tidal Swimming Steps. The week in Greater Auckland On ...
1. What's not to love about the way the Harris campaign is turning things around?a. Nothingb. Love all of itc. God what a reliefd. Not that it will be by any means easye. All of the above 2. Documents released by the Ministry of Health show Associate Health Minister Casey ...
Trust in me in all you doHave the faith I have in youLove will see us through, if only you trust in meWhy don't you, you trust me?In a week that saw the release of the 3,000 page Abuse in Care report Christopher Luxon was being asked about Boot Camps. ...
TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking about the Royal Commission Inquiry into Abuse in Carereport released this week, and with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on a UN push to not recognise carbon offset markets and ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 26, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Transport: Simeon Brown announced$802.9 million in funding for 18 new trains on the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines, which ...
The northern expressway extension from Warkworth to Whangarei is likely to require radical changes to legislation if it is going to be built within the foreseeable future. The Government’s powers to purchase land, the planning process and current restrictions on road tolling are all going to need to be changed ...
Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedFirst they came for the doctors But I was confused by the numbers and costs So I didn't speak up Then they came for our police and nurses And I didn't think we could afford those costs anyway So I ...
Photo by Joshua J. Cotten on UnsplashWe’re back again after our mid-winter break. We’re still with the ‘new’ day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when we have our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream ...
Notes: This is a free article. Abuse in Care themes are mentioned. Video is at the bottom.BackgroundYesterday’s report into Abuse in Care revealed that at least 1 in 3 of all who went through state and faith based care were abused - often horrifically. At least, because not all survivors ...
Luxon speaks in Parliament yesterday about the Abuse in Care report. Photo: Hagen Hopkins/Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:PM Christopher Luxon said yesterday in tabling the Abuse in Carereport in Parliament he wanted to ‘do the ...
About a decade ago I worked with a bloke called Steve. He was the grizzled veteran coder, a few years older than me, who knew where the bodies were buried - code wise. Despite his best efforts to be approachable and friendly he could be kind of gruff, through to ...
Some of the recent announcements from the government have reminded us of posts we’ve written in the past. Here’s one from early 2020. There were plenty of reactions to the government’s infrastructure announcement a few weeks ago which saw them fund a bunch of big roading projects. One of ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Thursday, July 25 are:News: Why Electric Kiwi is closing to new customers - and why it matters RNZ’s Susan EdmundsScoop: Government drops ...
Hi,I felt a small wet tongue snaking through one of the holes in my Crocs. It explored my big toe, darting down one side, then the other. “He’s looking for some toe cheese,” said the woman next to me, words that still haunt me to this day.Growing up in New ...
Yesterday I happily quoted the Prime Minister without fact-checking him and sure enough, it turns out his numbers were all to hell. It’s not four kg of Royal Commission report, it’s fourteen.My friend and one-time colleague-in-comms Hazel Phillips gently alerted me to my error almost as soon as I’d hit ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Thursday, July 25, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day were:The Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquirypublished its final report yesterday.PM Christopher Luxon and The Minister responsible for ...
The Official Information Act has always been a battle between requesters seeking information, and governments seeking to control it. Information is power, so Ministers and government agencies want to manage what is released and when, for their own convenience, and legality and democracy be damned. Their most recent tactic for ...
TL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:Transport and Energy Minister Simeon Brown is accelerating plans to spend at least $10 billion through Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) to extend State Highway One as a four-lane ‘Expressway’ from Warkworth to Whangarei ...
I live my life (woo-ooh-ooh)With no control in my destinyYea-yeah, yea-yeah (woo-ooh-ooh)I can bleed when I want to bleedSo come on, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)You can bleed when you want to bleedYea-yeah, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)Everybody bleed when they want to bleedCome on and bleedGovernments face tough challenges. Selling unpopular decisions to ...
Please note:To skip directly to the- parliamentary footage in the video, scroll to 1:21 To skip to audio please click on the headphone iconon the left hand side of the screenThis video / audio section is under development. ...
Given the crackdown on wasteful government spending, it behooves me to point to a high profile example of spending by the Luxon government that looks like a big, fat waste of time and money. I’m talking about the deployment of NZDF personnel to support the US-led coalition in the Red ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:40 am on Wednesday, July 24 are:Deep Dive: Chipping away at the housing crisis, including my comments RNZ/Newsroom’s The DetailNews: Government softens on asset sales, ...
As I reported about the city centre, Auckland’s rail network is also going through a difficult and disruptive period which is rapidly approaching a culmination, this will result in a significant upgrade to the whole network. Hallelujah. Also like the city centre this is an upgrade predicated on the City ...
Today, a 4 kilogram report will be delivered to Parliament. We know this is what the report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care weighs, because our Prime Minister told us so.Some reporter had blindsided him by asking a question about something done by ...
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Wednesday, July 24, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Beehive:Transport Minister Simeon Brownannounced plans to use PPPs to fund, build and run a four-lane expressway between Auckland ...
NewstalkZB host Mike Hosking, who can usually be relied on to give Prime Minister Christopher Luxon an easy run, did not do so yesterday when he interviewed him about the HealthNZ deficit. Luxon is trying to use a deficit reported last year by HealthNZ as yet another example of the ...
Back in January a StatsNZ employee gave a speech at Rātana on behalf of tangata whenua in which he insulted and criticised the government. The speech clearly violated the principle of a neutral public service, and StatsNZ started an investigation. Part of that was getting an external consultant to examine ...
Renting for life: Shared ownership initiatives are unlikely to slow the slide in home ownership by much. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:A Deloittereport for Westpac has projected Aotearoa’s home-ownership rate will ...
You're broken down and tiredOf living life on a merry go roundAnd you can't find the fighterBut I see it in you so we gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsWe gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsAnd I'll rise upI'll rise like the dayI'll rise upI'll rise unafraidI'll rise upAnd I'll ...
There’s been a change in Myers Park. Down the steps from St. Kevin’s Arcade, past the grassy slopes, the children’s playground, the benches and that goat statue, there has been a transformation. The underpass for Mayoral Drive has gone from a barren, grey, concrete tunnel, to a place that thrums ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections Global society may have finally slammed on the brakes for climate-warming pollution released by human fossil fuel combustion. According to the Carbon Monitor Project, the total global climate pollution released between February and May 2024 declined slightly from the amount released during the same ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Tuesday, July 23 are:Deep Dive: Penlink: where tolling rhetoric meets reality BusinessDesk-$$$’sOliver LewisScoop:Te Pūkenga plans for regional polytechs leak out ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Tuesday, July 23, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Health: Shane Reti announcedthe Board of Te Whatu Ora-Health New Zealand was being replaced with Commissioner Lester Levy ...
Health NZ warned the Government at the end of March that it was running over Budget. But the reasons it gave were very different to those offered by the Prime Minister yesterday. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon blamed the “botched merger” of the 20 District Health Boards (DHBs) to create Health ...
Long ReadKey Summary: Although National increased the health budget by $1.4 billion in May, they used an old funding model to project health system costs, and never bothered to update their pre-election numbers. They were told during the Health Select Committees earlier in the year their budget amount was deficient, ...
As a momentous, historic weekend in US politics unfolded, analysts and commentators grasped for precedents and comparisons to help explain the significance and power of the choice Joe Biden had made. The 46th president had swept the Democratic party’s primaries but just over 100 days from the election had chosen ...
TL;DR: I’m casting around for new ideas and ways of thinking about Aotearoa’s political economy to find a few solutions to our cascading and self-reinforcing housing, poverty and climate crises.Associate Professor runs an online masters degree in the economics of sustainability at Torrens University in Australia and is organising ...
The Finance and Expenditure Committee has reported back on National's Local Government (Water Services Preliminary Arrangements) Bill. The bill sets up water for privatisation, and was introduced under urgency, then rammed through select committee with no time even for local councils to make a proper submission. Naturally, national's select committee ...
Some years ago, I bought a book at Dunedin’s Regent Booksale for $1.50. As one does. Vandrad the Viking (1898), by J. Storer Clouston, is an obscure book these days – I cannot find a proper online review – but soon it was sitting on my shelf, gathering dust alongside ...
History is not on the side of the centre-left, when Democratic presidents fall behind in the polls and choose not to run for re-election. On both previous occasions in the past 75 years (Harry Truman in 1952, Lyndon Johnson in 1968) the Democrats proceeded to then lose the White House ...
This is a free articleCoverageThis morning, US President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the Presidential race. And that is genuinely newsworthy. Thanks for your service, President Biden, and all the best to you and yours.However, the media in New Zealand, particularly the 1News nightly bulletin, has been breathlessly covering ...
A homeless person’s camp beside a blocked-off slipped damage walkway in Freeman’s Bay: we are chasing our tail on our worsening and inter-related housing, poverty and climate crises. Photo: Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy ...
What has happened to it all?Crazy, some'd sayWhere is the life that I recognise?(Gone away)But I won't cry for yesterdayThere's an ordinary worldSomehow I have to findAnd as I try to make my wayTo the ordinary worldYesterday morning began as many others - what to write about today? I began ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Monday, July 22 are:Today’s Must Read: Father and son live in a tent, and have done for four years, in a million ...
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Monday, July 22, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:US President Joe Biden announced via X this morning he would not stand for a second term.Multinational professional services firm ...
A listing of 32 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, July 14, 2024 thru Sat, July 20, 2024. Story of the week As reflected by preponderance of coverage, our Story of the Week is Project 2025. Until now traveling ...
This weekend, a friend pointed out someone who said they’d like to read my posts, but didn’t want to pay. And my first reaction was sympathy.I’ve already told folks that if they can’t comfortably subscribe, and would like to read, I’d be happy to offer free subscriptions. I don’t want ...
National: The Party of ‘Law and Order’ IntroductionThis weekend, the Government formally kicked off one of their flagship policy programs: a military style boot camp that New Zealand has experimented with over the past 50 years. Cartoon credit: Guy BodyIt’s very popular with the National Party’s Law and Orderimage, ...
Day one of the solo leg of my long journey home begins with my favourite sound: footfalls in an empty street. 5.00 am and it’s already light and already too warm, almost.If I can make the train that leaves Budapest later this hour I could be in Belgrade by nightfall; ...
Do you remember Y2K, the threat that hung over humanity in the closing days of the twentieth century? Horror scenarios of planes falling from the sky, electronic payments failing and ATMs refusing to dispense cash. As for your VCR following instructions and recording your favourite show - forget about it.All ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts being questioned by The Kākā’s Bernard Hickey.TL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 20 were:1. A strategy that fails Zero Carbon Act & Paris targetsThe National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government finally unveiled ...
Summary:As New Zealand loses at least 12 leaders in the public service space of health, climate, and pharmaceuticals, this month alone, directly in response to the Government’s policies and budget choices, what lies ahead may be darker than it appears. Tui examines some of those departures and draws a long ...
The Minister of Housing’s ambition is to reduce markedly the ratio of house prices to household incomes. If his strategy works it would transform the housing market, dramatically changing the prospects of housing as an investment.Leaving aside the Minister’s metaphor of ‘flooding the market’ I do not see how the ...
As previously noted, my historical fantasy piece, set in the fifth-century Mediterranean, was accepted for a Pirate Horror anthology, only for the anthology to later fall through. But in a good bit of news, it turned out that the story could indeed be re-marketed as sword and sorcery. As of ...
An employee of tobacco company Philip Morris International demonstrates a heated tobacco device. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy on Friday, July 19 are:At a time when the Coalition Government is cutting spending on health, infrastructure, education, housing ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 8:30 am on Friday, July 19 are:Scoop: NZ First Minister Casey Costello orders 50% cut to excise tax on heated tobacco products. The minister has ...
Kia ora, it’s time for another Friday roundup, in which we pull together some of the links and stories that caught our eye this week. Feel free to add more in the comments! Our header image this week shows a foggy day in Auckland town, captured by Patrick Reynolds. ...
TL;DR : Here’s the top six items climate news for Aotearoa this week, as selected by Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer. A discussion recorded yesterday is in the video above and the audio of that sent onto the podcast feed.The Government released its draft Emissions Reduction ...
Save some money, get rich and old, bring it back to Tobacco Road.Bring that dynamite and a crane, blow it up, start all over again.Roll up. Roll up. Or tailor made, if you prefer...Whether you’re selling ciggies, digging for gold, catching dolphins in your nets, or encouraging folks to flutter ...
Waiting In The Wings:For truly, if Trump is America’s un-assassinated Caesar, then J.D. Vance is America’s Octavian, the Republic’s youthful undertaker – and its first Emperor.DONALD TRUMP’S SELECTION of James D. Vance as his running-mate bodes ill for the American republic. A fervent supporter of Viktor Orban, the “illiberal” prime ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 19, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:The PSAannounced the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) had ruled in the PSA’s favour in its case against the Ministry ...
TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent talking about the National-ACT-NZ First Government’s release of its first Emissions Reduction Plan;University of Otago Foreign Relations Professor and special guest Dr Karin von ...
Open access notablesImproving global temperature datasets to better account for non-uniform warming, Calvert, Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society:To better account for spatial non-uniform trends in warming, a new GITD [global instrumental temperature dataset] was created that used maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) to combine the land surface ...
A late change to charter school legislation will cheat educators out of fair pay and negotiating power proving charter schools are just a vehicle to make profit out of our education system. ...
In 2004 te iwi Māori rallied against the Crown’s attempt to confiscate our coastlines and moana with the Foreshore and Seabed Act. This led to the largest hīkoi of a generation and the birth of Te Pāti Māori. 20 years later, history is repeating itself. Today the government has announced ...
It has been five and a half years since the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care was established to investigate the abuse of children, young people, and vulnerable adults within state and faith-based institutions. Yesterday, the final report - Whanaketia through pain and trauma, from darkness to light ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to take action off the back of the International Court of Justice ruling on Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine. ...
On Friday the International Court of Justice reaffirmed what Palestinian’s have been telling us for decades: that the occupation and colonisation of Palestinian lands by Israel is illegal and must end immediately. They also called for reparations for Palestinian’s who have lived under Israeli occupation since it began in 1967. ...
Labour calls on the Government to act after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian Territories is illegal. ...
The 53.7 percent rise in benefit sanctions over the last year is more proof of this Government’s disdain for our communities most in need of support. ...
Aotearoa could be a country where every child grows up feeling safe, loved and with a sense of belonging in their whānau and community. But for some of our children, this is far from reality. Instead, they are trapped in a maze of intergenerational harm that they can’t escape on ...
Te Pāti Māori are calling for David Seymour to resign as Associate Health Minister in response to his call for Pharmac to ignore the Treaty of Waitangi. “This announcement is just another example of the government’s anti-Tiriti, anti-Māori agenda.” Said Co-leader and spokesperson for health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. “Seymour thinks it ...
The soaring price of renting is driving the rise of inflation in this country - with latest figures from Stats NZ showing rents are up 4.8 per cent on average while annual inflation is at 3.3 per cent. ...
National’s Emissions Reduction Plan will take New Zealand further from the economy we need to ensure the next generation has a stable climate and secure livelihoods. ...
Following consultation with named parties and thorough consideration of privacy interests, the Green Party is in a position to release the Executive Summary of the final report from the independent investigation into Darleen Tana. ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon should be asking serious questions of his Minister for Resources Shane Jones now it’s been revealed he misled the public about a dinner with mining companies that he didn’t declare and said wasn’t pre-arranged. ...
Te Pāti Māori have submitted to the Justice Select Committee against the Sentencing (Reinstating Three Strikes) Amendment Bill. The bill will further entrench racism in our justice system and fails to focus on rehabilitation. “Reinstating Three Strikes will empower a systematically racist system and exacerbate the overrepresentation of Māori in ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee is set to make a determination on the Residential Tenancies Amendment (RTA) Bill in the coming weeks. “This legislation will give landlords the power to kick our whānau out onto the street for no reason” said Housing spokesperson, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “Their solution to the housing ...
“National’s campaign was about tackling crime and the best they can do is a two-year long Ministerial Advisory Group,” Labour justice spokesperson Duncan Webb said. ...
“There are more examples of charter schools failing their students than there are success stories. The coalition Government is driving to dismantle our public school system and instead promote a privatised, competitive structure that puts profits before kids,” Jan Tinetti said. ...
“This government is choosing to deliberately mislead and withhold information, keeping our people in the dark about this government’s agenda and the future of our mokopuna,” said co-leader and spokesperson for Health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. The call comes after the demand from the Chief Ombudsman that Associate Minister of Health, Casey ...
“Today’s climate announcement by Simon Watts makes clear the National Government is simply paying lip service to meeting its climate change targets,” Megan Woods said. ...
National is choosing to make life harder for workers by taking away the rights our communities have fought hard for. Here's how they’re taking workers backwards. ...
Australia, Canada and New Zealand today issued the following statement on the need for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza and the risk of expanded conflict between Hizballah and Israel. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The human suffering is unacceptable. It cannot continue. We remain unequivocal in our condemnation of ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today reminded all State and faith-based institutions of their legal obligation to preserve records relevant to the safety and wellbeing of those in its care. “The Abuse in Care Inquiry’s report has found cases where records of the most vulnerable people in State and faith‑based institutions were ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government’s online safety website for children and young people has reached one million page views. “It is great to see so many young people and their families accessing the site Keep It Real Online to learn how to stay safe online, and manage ...
Tēnā tātou katoa, Ngā mihi te rangi, ngā mihi te whenua, ngā mihi ki a koutou, kia ora mai koutou. Thank you for the opportunity to be here and the invitation to speak at this 50th anniversary conference. I acknowledge all those who have gone before us and paved the ...
New Zealand’s payroll providers have successfully prepared to ensure 3.5 million individuals will, from Wednesday next week, be able to keep more of what they earn each pay, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Revenue Minister Simon Watts. “The Government's tax policy changes are legally effective from Wednesday. Delivering this tax ...
An experimental vineyard which will help futureproof the wine sector has been opened in Blenheim by Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson. The covered vineyard, based at the New Zealand Wine Centre – Te Pokapū Wāina o Aotearoa, enables controlled environmental conditions. “The research that will be produced at the Experimental ...
The Coalition Government has confirmed the indicative regional breakdown of North Island Weather Event (NIWE) funding for state highway recovery projects funded through Budget 2024, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Regions in the North Island suffered extensive and devastating damage from Cyclone Gabrielle and the 2023 Auckland Anniversary Floods, and ...
Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, Retno Marsudi, will visit New Zealand next week, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “Indonesia is important to New Zealand’s security and economic interests and is our closest South East Asian neighbour,” says Mr Peters, who is currently in Laos to engage with South East Asian partners. ...
He aha te kai a te rangatira? He kōrero, he kōrero, he kōrero. The government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the aspirations of Ngāti Maniapoto, Minister for Māori Development Tama Potaka says. “My thanks to Te Nehenehenui Trust – Ngāti Maniapoto for bringing their important kōrero to a ministerial ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has thanked outgoing Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority, Janice Fredric, for her service to the board.“I have received Ms Fredric’s resignation from the role of Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority,” Mr Brown says.“On behalf of the Government, I want to thank Ms Fredric for ...
The Government is proposing legislation to overturn a Court of Appeal decision and amend the Marine and Coastal Area Act in order to restore Parliament’s test for Customary Marine Title, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “Section 58 required an applicant group to prove they have exclusively used and occupied ...
Regulation Minister David Seymour says that opposition parties have united in bad faith, opposing what they claim are ‘dangerous changes’ to the Early Childhood Education sector, despite no changes even being proposed yet. “Issues with affordability and availability of early childhood education, and the complexity of its regulation, has led ...
After receiving more than 740 submissions in the first 20 days, Regulation Minister David Seymour is asking the Ministry for Regulation to extend engagement on the early childhood education regulation review by an extra two weeks. “The level of interest has been very high, and from the conversations I’ve been ...
The Coalition Government is investing $802.9 million into the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines as part of a funding agreement with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA), KiwiRail, and the Greater Wellington and Horizons Regional Councils to deliver more reliable services for commuters in the lower North Island, Transport Minister Simeon ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced his intention to appoint a Crown Manager to both Hawke’s Bay Regional and Wairoa District Councils to speed up the delivery of flood protection work in Wairoa."Recent severe weather events in Wairoa this year, combined with damage from Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023 have ...
Mr Speaker, this is a day that many New Zealanders who were abused in State care never thought would come. It’s the day that this Parliament accepts, with deep sorrow and regret, the Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care. At the heart of this report are the ...
For the first time, the Government is formally acknowledging some children and young people at Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital experienced torture. The final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care “Whanaketia – through pain and trauma, from darkness to light,” was tabled in Parliament ...
The Government has acknowledged the nearly 2,400 courageous survivors who shared their experiences during the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State and Faith-Based Care. The final report from the largest and most complex public inquiry ever held in New Zealand, the Royal Commission Inquiry “Whanaketia – through ...
With a week to go before hard-working New Zealanders see personal income tax relief for the first time in fourteen years, 513,000 people have used the Budget tax calculator to see how much they will benefit, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis. “Tax relief is long overdue. From next Wednesday, personal income ...
Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says a bill that has passed its first reading will improve parental leave settings and give non-biological parents more flexibility as primary carer for their child. The Regulatory Systems Amendment Bill (No3), passed its first reading this morning. “It includes a change ...
Two Bills designed to improve regulation and make it easier to do business have passed their first reading in Parliament, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. The Regulatory Systems (Economic Development) Amendment Bill and Regulatory Systems (Immigration and Workforce) Amendment Bill make key changes to legislation administered by the Ministry ...
New legislation paves the way for greater competition in sectors such as banking and electricity, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says. “Competitive markets boost productivity, create employment opportunities and lift living standards. To support competition, we need good quality regulation but, unfortunately, a recent OECD report ranked New ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says lotteries for charitable purposes, such as those run by the Heart Foundation, Coastguard NZ, and local hospices, will soon be allowed to operate online permanently. “Under current laws, these fundraising lotteries are only allowed to operate online until October 2024, after which ...
The Coalition Government is accelerating work on the new four-lane expressway between Auckland and Whangārei as part of its Roads of National Significance programme, with an accelerated delivery model to deliver this project faster and more efficiently, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “For too long, the lack of resilient transport connections ...
Sir Don McKinnon will travel to Viet Nam this week as a Special Envoy of the Government, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “It is important that the Government give due recognition to the significant contributions that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made to New Zealand-Viet Nam relations,” Mr ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says newly appointed Commissioner, Grant Illingworth KC, will help deliver the report for the first phase of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into COVID-19 Lessons, due on 28 November 2024. “I am pleased to announce that Mr Illingworth will commence his appointment as ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters travels to Laos this week to participate in a series of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-led Ministerial meetings in Vientiane. “ASEAN plays an important role in supporting a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” Mr Peters says. “This will be our third visit to ...
Construction of a new mental health facility at Te Nikau Grey Hospital in Greymouth is today one step closer, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey says. “This $27 million facility shows this Government is delivering on its promise to boost mental health care and improve front line services,” Mr Doocey says. ...
New Zealand is committing nearly $50 million to a package supporting sustainable Pacific fisheries development over the next four years, Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones announced today. “This support consisting of a range of initiatives demonstrates New Zealand’s commitment to assisting our Pacific partners ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour says proposed changes to the Education and Training Amendment Bill will ensure charter schools have more flexibility to negotiate employment agreements and are equipped with the right teaching resources. “Cabinet has agreed to progress an amendment which means unions will not be able to initiate ...
In response to serious concerns around oversight, overspend and a significant deterioration in financial outlook, the Board of Health New Zealand will be replaced with a Commissioner, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti announced today. “The previous government’s botched health reforms have created significant financial challenges at Health NZ that, without ...
Minister for Space and Science, Innovation and Technology Judith Collins will travel to Adelaide tomorrow for space and science engagements, including speaking at the Australian Space Forum. While there she will also have meetings and visits with a focus on space, biotechnology and innovation. “New Zealand has a thriving space ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts will travel to China on Saturday to attend the Ministerial on Climate Action meeting held in Wuhan. “Attending the Ministerial on Climate Action is an opportunity to advocate for New Zealand climate priorities and engage with our key partners on climate action,” Mr Watts says. ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is travelling to the Solomon Islands tomorrow for meetings with his counterparts from around the Pacific supporting collective management of the region’s fisheries. The 23rd Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Committee and the 5th Regional Fisheries Ministers’ Meeting in Honiara from 23 to 26 July ...
The Government today launched the Military Style Academy Pilot at Te Au rere a te Tonga Youth Justice residence in Palmerston North, an important part of the Government’s plan to crackdown on youth crime and getting youth offenders back on track, Minister for Children, Karen Chhour said today. “On the ...
The Government has welcomed news the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has begun work to replace nine priority bridges across the country to ensure our state highway network remains resilient, reliable, and efficient for road users, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“Increasing productivity and economic growth is a key priority for the ...
Acting Prime Minister David Seymour has been in contact throughout the evening with senior officials who have coordinated a whole of government response to the global IT outage and can provide an update. The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet has designated the National Emergency Management Agency as the ...
New Zealand and Japan will continue to step up their shared engagement with the Pacific, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “New Zealand and Japan have a strong, shared interest in a free, open and stable Pacific Islands region,” Mr Peters says. “We are pleased to be finding more ways ...
New developments in the heart of North Island forestry country will reinvigorate their communities and boost economic development, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones visited Kaingaroa and Kawerau in Bay of Plenty today to open a landmark community centre in the former and a new connecting road in ...
President Adeang, fellow Ministers, honourable Diet Member Horii, Ambassadors, distinguished guests. Minasama, konnichiwa, and good afternoon, everyone. Distinguished guests, it’s a pleasure to be here with you today to talk about New Zealand’s foreign policy reset, the reasons for it, the values that underpin it, and how it ...
Last summer when Matairangi burned, Ginny and Tom stood at the window of their lounge, watching kākā shoot skyward from the burning trees. From the distance, they looked to Ginny like pages torn from books and thrown into a bonfire. It was Tom, voice tight, who told her it was ...
Opinion: The Canadian short story writer Alice Munro – winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2013 – died in May at the age of 92. Her work was about “the damage people inflict on one another in the name of love”, Deborah Treisman wrote in the New Yorker. ...
This month marks two years since the most powerful telescope ever built sent its first pictures back to earth. From its lofty vantage point, beyond the moon in orbit around the sun, the James Webb Space Telescope was tuned to observe the first stars and galaxies being born soon after ...
Comment: After Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ preview several weeks ago, I had some optimism about the Government’s emissions reduction plan. Now I’ve read the discussion document, that hope has been dashed. How can the Government propose a plan that wants to take New Zealand taxpayers’ hard-earned money, and spend ...
Christopher Luxon: hurdles The little man from National jumps hurdles in his sleep. He’s quite good at it in his dreams and even though the reality doesn’t quite match up you have to give him credit for getting up every morning and crashing into the very first hurdle of the ...
Comment: It was a good two hours into the conversation when Tyrone Marks raised the most basic of questions when I first spoke to him in 2017. “They didn’t explain the things they did to me. They never told me why. And they still haven’t. There’s no explanation for it. ...
Madeleine Chapman rounds out Death Week on The Spinoff with a final recommendation. You can read all of our Death Week coverage here. Nothing forces you to reflect on your life and relationships quite like proximity to death. For those whose nearest and dearest have died, there are reasonably obvious ...
Whitney Greene takes us through her life in television, including the TV character she’d like to plan a funeral for and her cow lung catastrophe on The Traitors NZ. “If the phone rings, I have to answer it,” Whitney Greene from The Traitors NZ warns as we begin our My ...
Maddie Ballard reviews the debut essay collection of Pōneke writer Flora Feltham.In ‘The Raw Material’, the longest essay in Flora Feltham’s dazzling debut collection, the author heads out for a run after hours of weaving and sees the world turn to textile. “Pounding along the Parade, I saw the ...
Andy Christiansen, one half of the experimental rock-pop duo TRiPS, shares the tunes inspiring the band’s perfect weekend and new release. “Good speakers, good food, good music, no distractions”: that’s all you need to enjoy the psychedelic stylings of TRiPS, a new band formed by Fly My Pretties’ Barnaby Weir ...
Celebrating our quadrennial opportunity to become experts in a bunch of sports we never normally watch.The games of the XXXIII Olympiad are upon us. Paris will host this year’s showcase of sporting and athletic prowess, which means some late-night and early-morning viewing for us in Aotearoa.But what sports ...
The photograph is striking and beautiful, but also disturbing – a reminder that my love for John was often entangled in shame.The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.In the spring of 1980, in Dunedin, shortly before his death, someone took a photograph ...
Get to know Babushka, our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our What’s Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Babu’s humans, Jo and Isabel, for their support. Dog name: Babushka (Babu for short) Age: 2Breed: Border Collie X poodleIf rescued, ...
Pacific Media Watch A Lebanese photojournalist who was severely wounded during an Israeli air strike in south Lebanon carried the Olympic torch in Paris this week in honour of her peers who have been wounded and killed in the field — especially in Gaza and Lebanon. Christina Assi of Agence ...
The first report in a five-part web series focused on the 15th Triennial Conference of Pacific Women taking place in the Marshall Islands this week.SPECIAL REPORT:By Netani Rika in Majuro Women continue to fight for justice 70 years after the first nuclear tests by the United States caused ...
Christopher Luxon has joined with Australia and Canada's leaders in voicing support for US President Joe Biden's ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The 2022 election brought the “teal wave” into parliament. The next election will test whether teals, who occupy what were Liberal seats, and other independents can maintain their momentum. Joining us on the Podcast ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Musgrave, Senior lecturer in Pharmacology, University of Adelaide Pixavri/Shutterstock A major Federal Court class action has been dismissed this week after Justice Michael Lee ruled there was not enough evidence to prove the weedkiller Roundup causes cancer. Plaintiff Kelvin ...
In The Week in Politics: politicians have to decide what to do about child abuse, Health NZ is booked in for major surgery and Darleen Tana returns. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Corbould, Associate Professor, Contemporary Histories Research Group, Deakin University Mainstream media are surprisingly muted at the prospect of the world’s most powerful nation being led for the first time by a woman – specifically a woman of colour, Vice President Kamala ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rebecca Bennett, PhD Student, Associate Research Fellow, Deakin University Last week, a drone delivery company called Wing (owned by Google’s parent company, Alphabet) started operating in Melbourne. Some 250,000 residents in parts of the city’s eastern suburbs can now order food from ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonathan Foo, Lecturer, Physiotherapy, Monash University pikselstock/Shutterstock In the next 40 years in Australia, it’s predicted the number of Australians aged 65 and over will more than double, while the number of people aged 85 and over will more than triple. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katrina Grant, Research Associate, Power Institute for Arts and Visual Culture, University of Sydney Jonas Åkerström’s 1790 work, Session of the Accademia dell’Arcadia on August 17 1788.Nationalmuseum/Cecilia Heisser Ever wondered whether you’d have a better chance at winning an Olympic gold ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexandra Jones, Program Lead, Food Governance, George Institute for Global Health wavebreakmedia/Shutterstock On Thursday, Australian and New Zealand food ministers at state, federal and national levels met to thrash out what’s next for health star ratings on packaged foods. Now, after ...
The Abuse in Care report found many Pacific survivors lost their connections to their culture and language, resulting in trauma that has been carried from generation to generation. ...
In the regulatory review, ECC intends to suggest that ERO focus on curriculum delivery reviews rather than the Ministry, because it’s not efficient or effective to have two agencies with radically different approaches climbing over each other. ...
Te Rūnanga Nui o Ngā Kura Kaupapa Māori invites the current government to work in partnership with them to develop a pathway forward, including the development of a parallel pathway and meaningful policy and strategy for Kura Kaupapa Māori ...
If you haven’t started watching yet, Tara Ward begs you to reconsider. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. In the world of New Zealand reality television, we have many gems in our crown. There’s the delicious second season of the Celebrity Treasure ...
A new poem by Fiona Kidman. The clothes of the dead I did not keep my mother’s furry red beret for long nor the stringy scarves that adorned the necks of my aunts, although I have kept tag ends of gold, the rings and trinkets they wore, the brooches no ...
The government’s announcement that it will re-open the foreshore and seabed controversy by changing the rules on recognising centuries-old Māori customary title for a third time goes against the rule of law and New Zealand values,” Mr Tipa says. ...
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 Lioness by Emily Perkins (Bloomsbury, $25) Roarrrr! Perkins’ brilliant, award-winning, Marian-Keyes anointed, darkly funny, long ...
The 2004 Act vested ownership of the foreshore and seabed in the Crown, extinguishing any Māori claims to ownership and causing widespread outrage and protests among Māori communities. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Antje Deckert, Associate Professor (Criminology), Auckland University of Technology Getty Images Despite the connection between institutional harm and gang membership made clear in this week’s mammoth royal commission abuse-in care report, the government seems unlikely to soften its “get tough on ...
From Lewis Clareburt in the swimming to the start of the rowing – the first seven days of Paris 2024 promise to be big for New Zealand. There are few events that bring the country together quite like an Olympic Games. Nothing quite matches the excitement of getting up in ...
Groundbreaking local science just showed up in the most surprising of places: the season finale of The Kardashians. In the season five finale of The Kardashians last night, several members of the family gathered together in one of their signature empty, cream-coloured rooms to hear test results that had been ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Saikal, Emeritus professor of Middle Eastern and Central Asian Studies, Australian National University The Middle East is on the brink of a possibly devastating regional war, with hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah reaching an extremely dangerous level. Washington has engaged in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laura Elizabeth Eades, Rheumatologist, Monash University Lupus is an inflammatory autoimmune illness, where the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks itself. Lupus can affect virtually any part of the body, although it most commonly affects the skin, joints and kidneys. The symptoms ...
A law firm that specialises in working with survivors of abuse in State care is disappointed that the Government fails to recognise that its boot camps can be directly compared to previous boot camps from the 1990s and 2000s. ...
Dying is a natural part of life, like updating your Wof or seeing your hairdresser, but without the word-of-mouth recs that help guarantee a good service. What if we changed that? Dying Reviews received by The Spinoff have had the names of organisations redacted while Hospice NZ collects further data. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonti Horner, Professor (Astrophysics), University of Southern Queensland Mike Lewinski/Flickr, CC BY On any clear night, if you gaze skywards long enough, chances are you’ll see a meteor streaking through the sky. Some nights, however, are better than others. At ...
Despite having no bars or other designated spaces for lesbians, Auckland boasts a small but mighty lesbian museum. So how did it get here? The past 18 months has brought increasing hostility towards the queer community across Aotearoa. Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull’s anti-trans rally in Tamaki Makaurau last March led to a ...
Poneke Antifascist Coalition has invited Wellingtonians to stand in solidarity with the Kanak people at 12pm today outside the French Embassy in Wellington. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Layton, Visiting Fellow, Strategic Studies, Griffith University Drones are the signature technology of the Ukraine war. A few miniature aircraft designs were used in the war’s early days, but an incredible array of drones have now evolved. There are different types, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Slee, Associate Professor, Clinical Academic Neurologist, Flinders University Francisco Gonzelez/Unsplash Migraine is many things, but one thing it’s not is “just a headache”. “Migraine” comes from the Greek word “hemicrania”, referring to the common experience of migraine being predominantly ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lee White, Senior Lecturer and Horizon Fellow, School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Sydney Australia was slow to introduce minimum building standards for energy efficiency. The Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS) only came into force in 2003. Older homes ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Steven Sherwood, Professor of Atmospheric Sciences, Climate Change Research Centre, UNSW Sydney The past century of human-induced warming has increased rainfall variability over 75% of the Earth’s land area – particularly over Australia, Europe and eastern North America, new research shows. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tony Heynen, Program Coordinator, Sustainable Energy, The University of Queensland A temporary stadium in the Champ-de-Mars, ParisEkaterina Pokrovsky/Shutterstock As Paris prepares to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the sustainability of the event is coming under scrutiny. The organisers have promoted ...
A night of karaoke and community in a pub that feels like a memory. You’d barely even notice it, unless you knew to look. Tucked away behind a liquor store on busy Constable Street is the capital’s last great pub. Newtown Sports Bar is an emblem of the pub culture ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Wright, Professor in Marine Geology, University of Canterbury Louise Corcoran/Getty Images The decline in the number of doctoral candidates at New Zealand universities is a worrying sign for the country’s effort to build a knowledge-based economy. Aotearoa New Zealand’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laurie Berg, Associate Professor, University of Technology Sydney defotoberg/Shutterstock Migrant worker exploitation is entrenched in workplaces across Australia. Tragically, a deep fear of immigration consequences means most unlawful employer conduct goes unreported. On Wednesday, however, the government officially launched a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Vaughan Cruickshank, Senior Lecturer in Health and Physical Education, University of Tasmania Paris is about to host its third summer Olympics. While we don’t yet know what the legacy of this year’s games will be, let’s take the opportunity to reflect on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Hugh Breakey, Deputy Director, Institute for Ethics, Governance & Law, Griffith University In the wake of the assassination attempt on former US President Donald Trump, there were calls from bothsides of US politics, as well as internationally, to reduce the brutal, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Keith Rathbone, Senior Lecturer, Modern European History and Sports History, Macquarie University Two high-profile assaults on Australians in Paris have raised concerns about security ahead of the Olympic Games. On Saturday evening, a young woman was allegedly sexually assaulted by a ...
Dying is inevitable and, so it seems, is it costing a lot, writes Stewart Sowman-Lund in today’s extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here.The cost of dying ...
The government took Joyce Harris's first baby and sent her off to a girls' home. Half a century on - and out of oceans of hurt - it asked her to be a mother figure. ...
It’s the deadliest fictional town in the country, but which death has been the most bonkers? Alex Casey looks back at 10 seasons of The Brokenwood Mysteries to find out. Warning: The following ranking story contains famous New Zealand actors appearing to be dead (not alive). The Spinoff has been ...
Water cremation is the biggest thing to happen to the death industry in the last 100 years. Alex Casey meets the people trying to bring it to Aotearoa. Through a set of mirrored doors down the industrial end of Christchurch’s St Asaph Street, death is getting a new lease on ...
I’m going to stick to my usual watering hole that way the only people that will be laughing at me will be my children it’s a shed on the farm were my son in law stays as some people will turn a fart into a hurricane . I consume about 6 cans a fortnight so my tolerance is low.
I’m using a vapor pipe to help quit smoking and I am finally beating the habit I feel a lot fitter all ready what I do is I leave the smokes at home and just take the vapor now don’t listen to the people who say vaping is as bad as smoking because in my experience its a lot cheaper and less smelly so even if there are some negative effects all the positive effects by far out weight the negative . So all you people like me who have moko you look at them and know this that no one is going to love care teach your moko like you so I SAY go and buy a vapor and use it to quit smoking so we can be around longer to look after OUR moko when you start using a vapor it is like starting to smoke and after a few splutters you will get use to it give it a try. Good to see publicity about equal pay for our lady’s Ka pai
I’m not gay that is a strategy I use to keep the other Lady’s away as the person that I bullshit hit on knows that I’m strait and this works and I have enough drama to last 10 life times now .
A few years back when I finished Kiwi fruit packing I ran into one of my old bosses he said that he had a job for me managing 1500 cow farm . Now calving was only one month away and I new that this was going to be a hard task I said that I wanted my own staff yea right I had to keep some of the old Idiots and as soon as I was out of sight they would fuck around . I had 2 positions to fill one was my son and the other my son begged me to hire his cousin I did not want to because I had employed him before and I was not impressed. I hired my nephew .
One morning I got him to feed out and my son to wash the plant . Our good tractor broke down so he was lining up the old tractor up to load mag c into the bucket buy the office as he got off the tractor he did not have it in neutral and I got pined by the bucket and the mag c which is like cement bays on a pallet both my leg’s got broken .
I heard the breaks 4 snaps clearly he panicked and was trying to start the tractor I said fuck that put tractor in neutral and use the tires to roll it away from me he was not strong enough to do this so I called my son to help he did it by him self and had the cheek to ask if I could walk to the truck the same one I got now well after a few foul words they carried me to the truck we went to the house and tried to get a helicopter no go there so I got both my sons to drive me to the Rotorua hospital which was one hour 20 minutes away Taupo was 10 minutes closer but I new that they would send me to Rotorua .
When we got to the hospital and the staff pulled me out of the truck I screamed fuck that was the most pain I have ever felt with both feet flopping around man .
They give me some gas and the next morning waking up embarrassed as I remembered I had been telling all the hospital staff that I was a chief Rangatira well I don’t no were that came from. And I was telling my siblings that story on saturday I’v got 2 Titanium rods hammered through my knee caps down to the breaks . It was my fate that my feet were not chopped off. one month later I was getting cows in at 3 pm with cast up to my ass on both leggs I would just have them sticking strait past the handle bars of my Quad and I had my best dog ever I just had to open the gate and he would get all the cows out and if there was a cow down he would not leave the gate so I would follow him in and see whats up with the cow . So in telling this story I got pissed and well some of you no the rest .
Kia Kaha
What’s up bill we know that Jacinda has more courage than you and I’m being nice
Ka pai
I wonder what they think they are going to achieve by bulling all my clients and there neighbors into not waving to me or recognizing or from being nice to me as I am to everyone I meet . Are they looking to improve there public Image we no that’s not hard to work out who likes to be bullied well no one.
I have losted 5 of the 13 new clients I payed 10 x the cut price for good will because of these bullies . They don’t give a shit what have I done to them nothing they are just like key control freaks and don’t give a shit whom they cause harm having a compassionate and considerate thought is beyond them It is there alter ego that rules there thought process and who wants people like this in our state service well not me I will keep going till I win and the media no this is true as they are bullying you to. Kia kaha
They are sending people into my wife’s workplace to get her sacked what has she dune to them she loves her job WTF
Kia kaha
Mods, admin, what’s up with allowing these idiot posts?
Surely they’re more suited to facebook or a twitter account nobody reads than a supposed serious left leaning forum.
I think he is mentally unwell and could use some help rather than slagging off, but no one else here seems to see it
You are probably right, though note I wrote “these idiot posts” and not this idiots posts.
So what should we do about it
Except asking the mods to intervene there’s nothing we can do about it.
We could all start submitting unsubstantiated delusional paranoid anecdotal treatises, but surely the standard platform has suffered enough already.
There isn’t a particular topic in OpenMike.
We generally leave all comments alone here until they get abusive, completely violate the general taste rules, start outright lying about facts, get repetitive or excessive, cause stupid flame wars, start causing the site legal issues or one of the other gotchas.
There is deliberate policy behind that. It means that people know that they can leave crap here rather than feeling that they must dump in the middle of topics that authors have chosen to write about. That simple decision by r0b to have a daily OpenMike massively reduced the moderator problems after we instituted it. After that there was absolutely no excuse for trolling other topics. Which makes it a lot easier to moderate the site.
So my best advice is that if you don’t like it, then treat it like any other places with lot of animals around. Look down often and don’t step in the crap.
Like the way Adern is sticking it to the Australians
Antithesis of John Key who presided over the period when Australia gleefully shat on us the most. And the Australians gave him their ‘highest’ honour. Says it all.
This sums up the difference between this government and the last, between National Party voters and all other New Zealanders.
Actions speak louder than words so what exactly will Jacinda Ardern achieve? I mean yeah it sounds good but if nothing changes, like Kiwis getting the same deal in Australia as Australians get in NZ then its all for nought
But then I suppose it might take peoples attention away from Labour really wanting to sign the TPPA…
What will she achieve? Probably far more than National’s kowtowing ever did or ever will.
Sure. Nz access to aussie denied.
1. If losing access to a single, smallish market is a concern then we’re doing it wrong
2. If standing for principle is a concern then we’re doing it wrong
3. If they don’t want to trade with us then that’s their decision. It’s a free-market after all. We don’t have to trade with them either.
Twisted old Chris73 what! Luv it!
Kim Hill and John Campbell on Morning Report.
Bliss.
I suspect RNZ are mixing up the jobs a bit, with Espiner, Forbes on Checkpoint, etc – in anticipation of going RNZ+, with an expansion of the Checkpoint style into TV programmes. So, basically, giving their journos/hosts with TV backgrounds some more experience with the radio with pictures.
And, hopefully, a John Campbell RNZ+ TV show is in all our futures – ditto Mihingarangi Forbes.
A superb, dream partnership – they really spark off of each other! I love them to stay permanently. Have to say that Guyon gets up my nose sometimes. He sounded a little lost last night on Checkpoint but it was night one.
It was good to hear this morning in a brief reference from Kim that Suzie Ferguson is on the mend after her urgent surgery for endometriosis and expected back before Christmas.
I am not always a fan of Suzie’s style, but I wish her well
That complaint can be a killer, wrapping round and causing organ failure. Surgery often has to be repeated, so I hope she and her medical team “beat the bastard”.
Good luck and good wishes Suzie.
Same, Patricia re not always being a Suzie fan.
When she announced on 2 Nov that she was having urgent surgery the very next day – possibly a hysterectomy – she was open about it being endometriosis and RNZ put up an article/interview on this horrible condition. I also put up a comment on it and included a link to the NZ Endometriosis website for anyone who wanted to learn more about the condition.
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-02112017/#comment-1408621
Here is the NZ Endo Support link again – http://www.nzendo.org.nz/about-endometriosis/index.html
I know from a friend’s experience just recently we have some remarkable female doctors here in Wellington who are experts in Endo so I am sure Suzie is in good hands.
Yeah of course……good recovery Suzie Ferguson.
Ed (3) … Broadcasting at its best . A Natz nightmare. Brilliant 🙂
Isn’t just! It’s a dream team for me. So great to wake up listening to them and they have a great rapport.
Aunty Jacinda or ‘combatant Jacinda’?
Since National has defined themselves as ready to fight hard dirty campaign to unseat the new fledgling labour coalition Jacinda is best to use the same strategies National used.
Jacinda needs to ‘neutralise’ and remove all the National Party ‘policies’ purposefully left as ‘fish hooks’ within every nook & cranny in all Government agencies to stymie the new labour lead government, so remove those toxic national policies so we then can “infuence” the real changes jacinda.
Next and very urgently required for us is the needs to make urgent changes within our provinces; – like such as bring back all rail freight & passenger services everywhere, giving us transport options to increase productivity & make environmental improvements, – and that will upset National no end and stop their stupid plans to increase climate change emissions using ‘truck mania’.
Yes, why not bring back socialism. That is what the people, including NZF voters want.
Why not bring back responsible politicians who are acting for NZs and planning how to advance the country encouraging domestic businesses and jobs, not plan everything around export so the country can afford to pay for the flash things that your mates consider are essential and their right.
Improvement after improvement from the new Government and now this, from Wayne! Who’d have thought Wayne would ever experience the epiphany he so clearly has; his suggestion, heart-felt I’m sure, though he’s played it low key, that we should open our hearts to socialism, and his realisation that New Zealanders yearn for the sharing and caring socialism brings; it’s a red-letter day for Wayne, and by association, all of us!
An article from Australian commentator Peter Fitzsimons quotes Winston Peters.
” “A key part is our MMP proportional representation system, which we have had since 1996. This allows for a diversity of political voices to be heard, and a diversity of politics to be represented. It is inclusive. There are not just two main voices, there are many. It works for us. When I was elected to Parliament, there were just four Maori in parliament. We now form 24 per cent. The system fosters progressive politics.”
What Wayne calls ‘socialism’ might be better reported as “progressive politics”.
That’s what NZF voters preferred along with Green and Labour voters.
56 versus 44.
MMP enabled this.
Progressive politics. Independent voices speaking truth to power. Significant change.
Socialism, I think, in Wayne’s mind means anything not done by National.
Or maybe he thinks equal to communism? A popular error on the right.
Perhaps socialism, is doing anything without getting money or in kind payment for it. Murray Ball did a take on choice and neo lib with a cartoon of a new mother offering her breasts to the baby, each one labelled and priced.
That’s involuntary socialism and possibly some well off women do find it very
satisfying, and a new experience to give away something, though of course it is all being kept in-house so it’s just giving advantage to one’s own.
😆
Now you sound like David Bennett. What a pair of clowns.
Wayne is sounding like David Garrett to me – certainly trolling like him with the same non existant intellectual honesty.
Yes, why not bring back socialism.
Er, bring “back” socialism? Was there a bit of NZ’s history I wasn’t told about?
Don’t forget Labour introduced Communism, by stealth. So obviously that must’ve replaced the Socialism.
Wayne, what people said of you in parliament still applies…
https://timewantsaskeleton.files.wordpress.com/2013/09/asshole.gif
Really? Not much of a counter narrative there Morrisey
You really think Wayne’s smug and sarcastic comment at 4.1 deserves more than that?
Wayne, have you finally seen the light. More We less Me.
Wayne I know you don’t want socialism either; – I didnt for most of my life and it seems we have failed this way.
But why not think about this first.
“Beyond Manapouri,” 50 years of environmental politics
On today’s show Radio NZ ‘Nine to noon with Kathryn Ryan.
14th November 2017.
This interview with Catherine Knight is brain food for us all even the hardnosed Very righ National party today.
Preliminary thoughts; – my journey to realise we need to now get serious about our environment.
I was a young 23 yrs old kiwi new tradesman Electrician in 1966 that firstly did my duty to NZ in an “NZ Army ‘National service'” training then went to work at the Manapouri “west Arm” of the power scheme to work on the power station tunnel project then went to the MOW Turangi power scheme.
I observed then we had higher ‘environmental awareness’ then, than we do today.
So we have gone backwards my friend and we do need to turn it around and ‘instill the environmental awareness’ again after a 25 yr hiatus.
Please consider this for our childens future.
==================================================================Subject: FW: Kathryn Ryan interviews Catherine Knight author of a new book ‘Beyond Manapouri” environmental issues in NZ. http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon
A good listen.
09:05Beyond Manapouri, 50 years of environmental politics
Aratiatia Rapids Photo: Clive Madge
Environmental historian, Catherine Knight examines the catalogue of missed opportunities since the birthplace of the Manapouri environmental movement. Her new book, ‘Beyond Manapouri: 50 years of environmental politics in New Zealand’ is particularly critical of the lack of political leadership in the last 25 years. Catherine Knight is an Honorary Research Associate at the School of People, Environment and Planning at Massey University.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon
Beyond Manapouri, 50 years of environmental politics
Environment
about 1 hour ago
Environmental historian, Catherine Knight examines the catalogue of missed opportunities since the birthplace of the Manapouri environmental movement. Her new book, ‘Beyond Manapouri: 50 years of environmental politics in New Zealand’ is particularly critical of the lack of political leadership in the last 25 years… AUDIO
Listenduration25′ :31″
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon
– a good listen.
Manapouri protest did not stop the dam. It just stayed at a regulated water level.
It did not stop Tiwai Point aluminium smelter. Didnt alter it.
It did not even stop major business inside a National Park. The tunnel and generator any continues upgraded.
It’s a heroic protest, but by no means a perfect one.
Hi Ad,
Yes that may be so;
But we dont have the same ‘environmental awareness” now with public “actions” today as we saw then do we? Yes I recall all the Dam projects in NZ from that time to.
During the 1960’s when at the Turangi project (Tongariro Power Scheme) we had many more environmental considerations then to consider, as the series of dams were built there over the 1000 KM square area the dam project covered of creeks streams ect’ as I was heavily involved in then.
Now we see all our water ducts alongside our roads take the road runnoff and deposit it into our rivers and lakes and “road pollution runnoff”” is a global issue especialy in europe.
http://www.oecd.org/env/the-cost-of-air-pollution-9789264210448-en.htm
We in NZ are now very slack as I pointed out so we need to raise the “awareness again” and that was my principle driving point
Can you please put actual links to what you are cut and pasting? It’s not hard to do.
Like John Key’s government you mean? Remember when he called WFF “communism by stealth” and then kept it once elected ? That means he (and you) were part of a communist government my friend…
Can you name, with evidence, that last NZ Government/s which was Socialist?
“a political and economic theory of social organization which advocates that the means of production, distribution, and exchange should be owned or regulated by the community as a whole.”
Just interested under which governments in our history the means of production etc was regulated by the community as a whole?
Otherwise it is that slightly annoying habit you have of pretending to be rational and on high ground while slinging snide abuse in the form of epithets in place of counter argument.
” last NZ Government/s which was Socialist”.
The closest to this in my lifetime was when Rob Muldoon was PM.
Ah, remember the glorious days when Rob set all the rules.
Alone and unaided he determined the wages and prices of almost everything.
You seem horribly confused about what socialism means.
He thinks authoritarian = the people controlling the means of production.
– state regulated wages via industry awards
– state regulated inflation
– state regulated days to drive a car
– state owned electricity, telephone
– state regulated farm production via prices
– state owned forests, tourism, etc etc
– state directed economic planning, including Think Big
– tiny and narrow private sector.
Etc
And. Highest standard of living in the world.
If that was “Socialism”, which it wasn’t. Please bring it back.
Debated here:
http://socialdemocracy21stcentury.blogspot.co.nz/2009/07/new-zealand-and-think-big-did-it-ruin.html
Muldoon himself would agree he wasn’t socialist here:
https://nzhistory.govt.nz/media/video/dancing-cossacks
The political historian Gustafson gets into the detail on Muldoon here:
file:///C:/Users/alan.howard-smith/Downloads/431-1-389-1-10-20120514.pdf
You don’t know what socialism is.
Naughty!
And cancel all those nasty FTAs. I wonder how many here know that NZ is part of a ASEAN-CER (NZ-Australia) FTA and has been since 2009.
http://asean.org/?static_post=asean-australia-new-zealand-free-trade-area
What’s Jacinda (and Winston and Damien O’Connor) up to in the Philippines at the ASEAN Summit?
Oh dear. Good thing it ends today.
Oh don’t be such a silly duffer Wayne!
By the way, how’s all that ‘positioning’ coming along – a permanent appointment as a talking head rent-a-voice on the Sunday morning current affairs ‘shows’?
Wayne ,if you don’t like Socialism then give us back all your tax payer funded perks and go and be a “self made” man. You, of all on here ,have done best out of Socialism.
+ 1 yep bet there’d be plenty of squeals if the snout had to come out the trough.
Brilliant garabaldi.
And Wayne please give us back our taxes we ‘incrimentally ‘sunk into all those ‘Government SOE’s’ you sold off eagerly too, and faiednus as you never gave us anything back to eh?
You are a sneaky fellow Wayne. Slipping that in there thinking we wouldn’t notice.
It’s true isn’t it; you had a great childhood. Health care, education, houses, extensive rail network (remember the railway workshops where countless men learnt a trade), all provided by the state. You didn’t mind that at all did you.
It served us all very well.
That would be wonderful.
Wayne Wayne W A Y N E !……you’re being hysterical darling. Or at least trying to make out you are. Chill !
I felt great to wake up as a proud New Zealander this morning, several millions to teach kids to swim, suddenly South Marlborough residents are finding their quake claims are being settled a lot faster ( a quiet word from whom I wonder ), Jacinda holding the Aussies to account, shit that used to be in the too difficult basket actually getting done NOW !, and a plethora of other so very good-to-have-progress-on issues, and all to the melliferous tones of John Campbell and what must be the very personification of the mesmerising voice of a she-cobra about to strike, the absolutely
delightful Kim Hill. The most intelligent radio tag-team of all time.
Its really good to be a Kiwi these days.
Yay! And Sepuloni has announced single mothers will no longer be issued with sanctions for not naming their child/ren’s father!
nice one!
On RNZ.
And hopefully more to come.
Yes great news that s70A is going. Thank you to all the groups who have campaigned against this sanction. Now chuck the amendment in under urgency and get this sorted please.
Good to also see Marama wanting to push for even more changes too. Strong positive work.
If that’s to be a signature approach of the Green Party, and it gets enough cut through to shift the (whatd’yem’callit?) public discourse(?), then I’ll be happily rowing back from where I’ve been heading 😉
Explicitly qualified support with an equally explicit ‘pushing of the envelope’ gives me hope for a better three years than I was expecting a week or so back.
Bugger. Just noticed it’s a quote from CPAG and not The Green Party that’s pointing to the need for a raft of improvements.
So, okay. The Greens are offering qualified support and now just need to take a leaf out of CPAGs book 🙂
The “Greens” are pushing bloody hard in Parliament for our “socialist” policies. Like ensuring children have enough money to eat.
Chocolate coins? 🙂
+1 Adrian 🙂
+1. Takes a bit of getting used to but I’m managing it!
It’s so refreshing after the suffocation of the past nine years. So good to have a government that’s doing what needs to be done rather than one which kept telling us what couldn’t be done and refusing to address the obvious especially when it was the right thing to do.
And Kim Hill and John Campbell in the morning – intelligent, engaging, insightful radio.
Bloody good to hear Adrian Good on Jacinda.
We in far the distant ‘remote North Island East coast Gisborne /HB regions both are waiting now for our sixth year without our rail.
Government are responsible for our rail washout here, and for the restoration of our railway service after it was washed out in March 2012, straight after the ruling National Government Minister of Transport Steven Joyce was believed to have pressured Kiwirail to sack 14 track maintenance staff and send those funds to Auckland for their commuter rail instead, and caused the storm blocked the drains with hillside slips and that washed out (only just 1km) of our 212 kms of rail and then refused to fix it over a later discredited ‘whitewashed report’ saying the service was not viablle, but we had an independant report prepared proving it was viable, by the BERL Economist Ganesh Nana (the same economist later during the election in 2017 who ruled Steven Joyce’s $11.7 billion defit hole he claimed labour had in their budget ‘was ficticious’.
We rejoyce for the South Island’s east coast communities to recieve their rail restored for their services and soon the road also will be reopenned too.
So we hope Jacinda does not forget to also ‘pressure’ Kiwirail to fix our rail they destroyed and reopen a modern efficient freight and passenger tourism rail service for us also before some Auckland guy succeeds to rob us of our rail for a cycleway!!!!!!!
Please jacinda push those buttons to bring our rail services back to our isolated NI East coast region. “lets do this.”
“We rejoyce for the South Island’s east coast communities to recieve their rail restored …..”
Christ @CG!. I know as we both enter our dotage we’re apt to forget things.
I know you don’t really mean ‘reJoyce’ – but rather rejoice. He might be useful as a bit of ballast in the foundations somewhere along a restored Gisborne railway, but please – let’s not let a Joyce near anything to do with governance or business (going forward). Their skid marks are everywhere. Steven’s contribution is to NZ what that Barnaby is to Australia’s bugger’s muddle of a parliament. Then there’s an Alan who’s done more to jeopardise Qantas’ safety record than anyone – they’re flying on luck
Yes thanks tim,
We over on the NI East Coast now truly hate Steven bloody Joyce with such venom as he is truly a slimly character we have met who hoodwinked most of our local choir of “civil leaders here with his bullshit, fluff & stuff, but he has well worn out his welcome here.
Good point. Just the thing that National and their ilk would do. Close the rail and then put a ‘Tourist venture” of a cycle track along that handy piece of land. Cycling is in, and heavy work is out.
The world is made for those who want to get an appearance of being green and can spend most of their time traveling around following cycle tracks round the world, or railways (my favourite if I could afford it), or hunting for precious earth minerals or whatever bright idea they have unconnected with day to day life.
“and what must be the very personification of the mesmerising voice of a she-cobra about to strike, the absolutely delightful Kim Hill”.
God, that has to be the best description of Kim Hill I have ever heard. I just hooted with laughter when I read it. Thank you Adrian. I couldn’t have described it better, just absolutely perfect .
A dream to listen to every morning.
Jacinda on TPP and David Parker.
Jacinda has done the international thing and so has lost sight of previous NZ aspirations to be part of a great country that operated by and for NZs.
David Parker worked as a litigation partner so would have idea of how ISDS could be an expensive disaster, so it might be one of those things that are such a threat they never get to be used.
He helped get a Community Law Centre shows a good attitude.
He managed Blis Technologies for a while – a NZ innovative company in the medical line.
But neither of them likely to strike a discordant note from the main choir.
english must have had a brain fade when making this accusation…. it was fine for him when the pm that quit aka key offered to take the Manus Island refugees, but as soon as Jacinda does the same it’s a whole different senario. But then key was never going to walk to talk, his offer was all for show.
“Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is continuing to offer to help resolve the Manus Island crisis to “balance up with her own constituency” the Government’s support for the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal, National leader bill english says.”
Take off your tin foil hat bill english, it’s not about winning votes or making the most money, it’s about people, once you get your head around that you might actually win an election for a change.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/98848979/pms-manus-island-push-a-deflection-from-tpp–bill-english
Go away bill english – 2 time loser tick from dipton and proven billshitter. The only good thing about him is hes blocking even more useless and unpleasant gnat members from being the leader of their rabble.
Grant Robertson with some brave words yesterday. But…
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/thepanel/audio/2018621455/to-push-or-not-to-push-australia-over-manus-island-refugees
http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/programmes/datelinepacific/audio/2018621469/png-minister-says-no-to-nz-on-manus
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/2018621368/ardern-to-meet-again-with-turnbull-over-manus
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/2018621385/govt-has-serious-concerns-for-manus-detainees
Mr Robertson told Morning Report New Zealand wasn’t giving up on the issue.
“Obviously the issue is primarily in PNG’s court but there are people [on Manus Island] who have been declared refugees which means globally we’ve all got a responsibility for that and locally and regionally New Zealand takes that seriously.”
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/343664/robertson-we-can-help-in-manus
But it is not good to say they will keep asking Australia, so we seem to have clean hands. Then saying what can we do, it’s Oz fault, and we do understand their knotty problem.
These guys are at the end of their tether. They obviously have a lot of stickability and are likely to make good citizens after care and counselling, and being reunited with families. It will have to go like that, and jobs found.
Waiting till the last moment is bad. Can we take most of who are left?
Have we got any sea transport lined up for emergency dash. Is there someone with some integrity at the UN who will call for help from member nations, and we can offer then. Is there…? It has to be done in a short time. People are like lettuces, they need water or they wilt.
I’ve been wondering for a week: does Bill English know the difference between ‘Opposition’ and ‘Obstruction’?
At the moment he and his are like a swarm of Anobium punctatum*. According to Te Ara Encyclopedia: “The larvae hatch and eat the timber for two to three years, making unsightly holes and tunnels. Adults bore exit holes in the wood in summer, and fly away. Little piles of dust near holes indicate an infestation.”
Leaving hazard and ruin behind them.
* House borer. Seemed apt…
The latest from Its Our Future NZ on TPP.
TPPA Bulletin #99 November 2017
Labour have caved in on the TPPA-11, but the agreement has yet to be signed. If the agreement goes ahead, the government can expect opposition in the streets.
Kia ora koutou katoa,
The news coming out of the TPPA talks in Vietnam last week were all over the place. An agreement was initially declared by Japan and Mexico, only to be contradicted by Canada. Jacinda Ardern then declared the negotiations had stalled indefinitely after Justin Trudeau failed to show up to a meeting of the TPPA-11 leaders. Finally, officials announced that they had reached agreement on the “core elements” of a new agreement, which they have now rebranded as the “Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership”.
Where does this leave us? Good question. It would appear from the annexes to the ministerial statement (here and here) that only four outstanding items remain for negotiations and that these have been raised by Vietnam, Canada, Brunei Darussalam and Malaysia. New Zealand is a notable absence from this list, presumably because Ardern et al are content with the limited concessions that have been achieved on ISDS. To quote Jane Kelsey:
“There is no change to the pro-investor rules or the core investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) mechanism. A provision that would allow foreign investors to use the TPPA’s ISDS mechanism to enforce contracts for infrastructure or natural resources has been suspended, as has the ability to challenge measures affecting certain financial investments. But investors can still use ISDS to enforce their special rights under the investment chapter, and the delegitimised ISDS process remains intact.”
Needless to say, this is a disappointing. As Laura O’Connell-Rapira of ActionStation wrote in advance of the latest talks, Labour set us up to be let down by their negotiating position, as though they were simply making the best of a bad situation set in train by National. Jacinda continued to hold this line in an interview after the negotiations. Don’t buy this spin. If Labour were serious about ISDS they would have held the line in negotiations — four other countries stuck to their guns, and our negotiators could have done so as well. While the type of dispute for which corporations can sue our government has been narrowed, there are still significant areas of government policy that are under threat.
ISDS is not, and has never been, the sole problem with the TPPA. Threats to PHARMAC, affordable medicine, intellectual property, regulation of e-commerce (which will become more and more important in the increasingly digital economy), the operation of State-Owned Enterprises and the operation of a progressive government procurement policy are also significant. As it stands, some of these threats have been suspended in the current TPPA-11, pending the possible re-entry of the United States to the agreement. While these suspensions are a welcome relief, Labour have effectively committed us to the same TPPA should the United States ever come back to the table.
It’s Our Future and our friends at ActionStation campaigned in the lead up to the Vietnam negotiations on a platform that Labour ought to take the time to consult meaningfully with the public before committing us to any agreement in the TPPA-11. Labour were critical (in their select committee minority view) of the secrecy with which National conducted the TPPA negotiations, but have done no better themselves by proceeding with the agreement under the false pretense of an artificial deadline.
To quote Jane Kelsey again:
“The bad news is that the Labour government has endorsed the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, with the suspension of a limited range of items, at the ministerial and leaders’ meetings in Da Nang, Viet Nam.
The good news is that the meeting failed to conclude the new deal – rebranded the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).”
If the agreement goes ahead — and that is a big “if” — the agreement will require ratification in Parliament. We still have an opportunity to beat this toxic agreement by placing pressure on the government in future negotiations, and in the ratification process. The Greens have already made it clear that they will vote down the TPPA-11 in Parliament, and we would expect New Zealand First to do the same. The fact that Labour would have to rely on National to get the TPPA-11 agreement across the line is a measure of their hypocrisy.
The struggle continues, and we’ll be coordinating actions to oppose the TPPA-11 when we have a better idea about the timelines. The demand in our recent open letter to Jacinda Ardern (which we hope to deliver this week) for full and transparent consultation with the public still stands. In opposition, Labour strongly criticised the economic arguments for the original TPPA, stating that the modelling used in the patsy National Interest Analysis overstated the benefits of the agreement while failing to take into considerations its costs (particularly those related to jobs and wealth distribution). Labour needs to commission a new National Interest Analysis for the TPPA-11 to inform meaningful public scrutiny of the potential agreement.
In the meantime, Labour’s (welcome) position that they will not include ISDS clauses in any future agreements will be put to the test in the RCEP negotiations in Manila as we speak. While RCEP negotiations are nowhere near completion, it is important that the new government is held to a higher standard than National on these and other future negotiations.
Ngā mihi koutou, keep posted and please get in touch at itsourfuturenz@gmail.com if you have any questions or comments.
Stephen Parry
It’s Our Future Coordinator
Itsourfuturenz@gmail.com
http://www.itsourfuture.org.nz
P.S, for a round-up of the press coverage of the recent TPPA-11 negotiations, Bryce Edwards’ recent article in the Herald is a good starting point.
Yes, let’s go back to fortress NZ pre Euro Union, let’s not trade anything with anybody, let’s not compromise, let’s not collaborate, let’s just copy North Korea. Let’s not do this.
Yes, let’s cut ourselves off from the world and become a south seas North Korea without the nukes. Even Chris Trotter is showing some understanding of the real world today.
Our PM and David Parker are doing their best, as I see it, and to see all the squealing and complaining is a real let down. That’s not to say everything will be perfect, nothing ever is. The Greens may wish so, but it will not be so. Just what would be achieved by NZ throwing their toys out of the cot and having a sulk in the corner.
If it was just about free trade fine, the trade agreements are not about free trade they are the opposite. Look at the IP for example, making medicines more expensive (many of which were largely subsidised by governments), it just goes on and on. If
it was all about free trade for NZ exporters, why not export to Russia? Nope it’s political through and through and helps only lawyers and those already making a fortune. The rest is to keep everyone else from competing by keeping market dominance and stop change.
I reckon you have hit the button on TPP in that short comment savenz.
Sometimes the right words can be short and sweet/sour. (Depend which side you are on.)
and Reality
We actually discuss things here and argue about points, and then consider them, and discuss them further. We are not just a bunch ‘squealing and complaining’. You could try and read what we are concerned about before you indicate your ignorance with that fine high-handed irritation you have adopted. It makes you sound like one of the entitled to whom all blessings flow.
You ask: Just what would be achieved by NZ throwing their toys out of the cot and having a sulk in the corner.
Would you really like to take part in a discussion on that, or are you a lazy thinker who just says TINA?
QFT
The present system is a racket designed to keep the majority oppressed to the wants and desires of the rich.
Agreed Adrian,
We are at a crossroads of loosing our country to coporates control so remember corporatates environmental record globally is grotesque and disgusting as they have no record or documents directing them to become “good Corporate global environmental citizens” of the world.
Our ‘reality’ speaks for itself!!!
If we want to protect our environment don’t allow corporate control over our NZ laws or involve these errant Corporations inside any agreements whatsoever with our NZ Government as we must remain “independant”.
Adrian
Let’s you go back to your cup of tea and sit in the naughty corner. We haven’t been Fortress NZ since ever. And when things were tightened down, we actually managed well, though we hankered after foreign baubles and had to think creatively how to get them.
Small things you were only allowed to build towards by getting Post Office vouchers at say today’s value of $2 a time, and you had to keep on visiting daily till you had enough to buy some delectable item from ‘overseas’. An overseas car could be brought back as an import, after using it during an overseas trip which we did. Both worked well for us and we were part of a thriving, eager NZ going upwards together.
What an awful picture, people whose moans were so tiny compared to today’s, but the one’s who were making it wanted to ratchet up their own lifestyle.
Bugger anyone else’s. And the problem was that they single-mindedly went after what they personally wanted and could get, by standing on other people’s shoulders.
And that applies to the wealthy rentiers and the powerful unions alike. Both short-sighted, but particularly those unionists with eternal wage demands and not able to impose better systems that allowed them to share in the rising profits in a practical way that would encourage more understanding and co-operation between business and worker. The left had WEA and the idea of keeping informed and educated so as to keep up with the capitalist class, but it wasn’t promoted enough, and workers soon left it all to union leaders to organise and were not ready for them turning squishy when confronted with neo lib from their very own bosom-buddies.
It’s not a question of going back to ‘fortress NZ’. NZ has always been a trading nation but there’s a difference being a trading nation to one which gives its sovereignty over to multi-national corporations.
We could drop out of all the FTAs that we’re a part of, including the WTO, and have freer trade.
Willing Buyer, Willing Seller
How about we ask the people what constitutes when we want to allow trade with another nation rather than asking the corporations who really only want countries, the people, to guarantee their profits.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/2018621388/charles-finny-jane-kelsey-debate-tpp-developments
7.26m
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern thinks the refashioned Trans Pacific Partnership is a ‘damned sight better than the last’. And it could be in effect in just a matter of months.
There are still four issues up for neogitation but all 11 nations involved in the deal have now agreeed on every other aspect. The new deal also has a new name – it’s now the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for the Trans Pacific Partnership.
Veteran trade negotiator Charles Finny has been following developments, as has TPP sceptic Professor Jane Kelsey. They join us to debate the issues around the deal.
Greywarshark.
You speak higghly of Charles Finny here.
This man is simply just another corporate trumpet so what is he doing there.???????
he should be removed at all costs unless you want to sign NZ away to ruin under corporate private control!!!!
“Veteran trade negotiator Charles Finny has been following developments,”
No no no.
All that is quotes from Radionz cleangreen. I know nussing of Mr Finny Fishy. I must put quotes in italics to buffer myself from the indignant.
When we had the highest standard of living in the world. Please……………….
+1 Adrian. But some people seem to have taken your comment at face value, LOL.
Also excellent back-up comments from Reality.
Beyond Manapouri, 50 years of environmental politics.
A book by one really smart lady: Catherine Knight on RNZ Nine to Noon. (link not yet up)
In the interview she identifies all that’s gone wrong with our public service over the past 25 years.
Put succinctly in one statement (to paraphrase), Ministers have become the CEO’s customer, rather than The Public.
CEO’s and senior management telling their Ministers what they think they want to hear, rather than truthful, honest policy advice.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon/audio/2018621558/beyond-manapouri-50-years-of-environmental-politics
Nice, might listen to that later. Thanks.
If you’re interested in the environment and NZ’s environmental history check out her blog too:
https://envirohistorynz.com/
Many thanks @mauī
Ten Reasons We Got Rid of National
No. 9: John Key
“I felt the actions weren’t those of a Prime Minister and I felt New Zealand should know that. It is because he is the PM that I went to the media. John Key feels he is untouchable.”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11436978
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/dec/17/new-zealand-prime-minister-john-key-criticised-for-joke
http://www.noted.co.nz/currently/politics/eyes-wide-shut-the-governments-guilty-secrets-in-afghanistan/
SCF royal commission please.
Plenty of folk lost everything they had with hotchin/bryers/petrovic/graham entities so why did SCF investors get 100% plus the at risk interest ? It has an odour to it.
I cannot confirm but a little birdie assures me there was at least one well known South Island National MP who had a trust heavily invested in SCF.
Jacinda in Manila…..SO jACINDANILA.. clever A !!?
Very good Td, +
100
TPPA update for anyone interested:
http://mailchi.mp/9261891ab9a4/bulletin?e=86cb35e34a
The Alabama special election to replace Sessions remains as watchable as ever.
So far the papaya Palpatine has managed to duck having an opinion about Roy Moore, coz, you know, he’s too busy with his besties Pootee and Doody-Turdy. But he’ll be home soon.
Will the Grabber-in-chief try to crush Moore, coz Moore’s not a star and only stars get to do that? Or coz he doesn’t want the competition?
Will Don of the Deadbrains double down on boys will be boys, the more there are around him the better?
The suspense is unbearable…
http://edition.cnn.com/2017/11/13/politics/roy-moore-mitch-mcconnell-trump/index.html
Party of the vile.
https://www.thedailybeast.com/roy-moores-gop-stands-for-grand-old-pedobears
Yuck.
Good God!
Yup.
Kayla Moore, wife of Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore, shared a letter on Facebook indicating support from more than 50 Alabama pastors.
Moore’s wife Kayla posted the letter to her Facebook page Sunday after days of controversy surrounding her husband and allegations he had sexual contact with a 14-year-old in 1979 when he was 32-years-old. Three other women said Moore pursued them as teenagers.
http://www.al.com/news/index.ssf/2017/11/53_pastors_sign_letter_of_supp.html
If this new TPP is finally signed off with Labour and National agreeing with it then it all bodes well for the Green Party in years to come. Firstly many Labour voters will next time, vote for the Greens as the only progressive party left to vote for and secondly with climate change being a real and present danger to the planet earth, then their policies will only bring about good for the country. In future years there will be many displaced people from coastal properties etc and rising sea levels, Australia will be frying and there will be climate refugees from there and the Pacific. Yes, its all good for the future for the Green Party.
Why nations are still concentrating on trading with each other with their heads in the sand it would seem they have this vision of a healthy future ahead of themselves, there is no vision, no urgency to tackle the pending serious weather conditions we are going to experience which will make trading the last thing on their minds. Now, if they spent as much time tackling this serious problem as they do trying to make even more profit trading around the world, then maybe this planet is in with a chance of being saved.
If Labour signs the TPP then it’s National again in 2020.
Lol yep and the frogs shall fall from the sky and the statues cry blood… give up rabble rouser, your lines are weak just like the gnats.
It will split the left vote.
and then they’ll vote National? Lol.
Be either a lot of non-vote or a sizable swing back to the Greens, which will push all those centrist voters back towards the far stable National.
NZ First won’t feature in 2020, Peters has burnt his bridges with the rural community and especially the elderly.
If you want proof, this article just recently from stuff.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/98813714/if-youre-old-and-rich-youre-more-likely-to-hate-the-new-government
They voted Peters because they thought he could reign in National especially around immigration, they didn’t want Labour and they certainly didn’t want to give the Greens any power.
NZ First has lost half its voter block at least, that’s another 4% for National.
A pretty large majority of NZF voters wanted NZF with Labour.
Feelings at the start of a new govt are hardly predictive of how they will change their vote next time. There’s 3 years of Labour improving the economy and people’s lives.
“The older people were, the more negative they were, the poll’s trend showed”
And there’s a big class skew towards Labour from people with less wealth. Guess who dies earlier.
A political party that constantly lies is not stable and doesn’t bring about stable government or a stable society because its foundation is all myth.
It will be forgotten like the legacy of johnny hotfoot and bill nobody.
So you’re saying the TPPA is no big deal and was only a concern to all the tin foilers out on the fringes?
It’s a big deal, but unlikely to cause Labour to lose the election*. Unless we get sued in the next 3 years I guess.
*think it though BM. If Labour voters are pissed about the TPPA, who are they going to vote for instead?
No I’m not saying that. Use your brain mate it’s not just for show.
If’s it’s so easily forgotten it’s obviously not a big deal
Pretty weak BM.
BM dont get your nickers in a twist,
TPP will not survive; period; – so give away all that hot air to someone else we are sick of your whinning .
The world is on the brink of another GFC and a *climate change Catastophe nighmare of all proportion now so we won’t see these flimsy “fools trade” agreements go ahead now.
* http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/world/2017/11/daunting-antarctic-sea-ice-plummet-could-be-tipping-point.html
13 November 2017
Newshub
‘Daunting’ Antarctic sea ice plummet could be tipping point
Credit here to Martyn Bradbury Editor TDB for the monologue below on GFC.- and the link.
http://www.express.co.uk/finance/city/876082/stock-market-black-Tuesday-dotcom-bubble-Wall-street-crash
Martyn Bradbury Editor. – TDB.
One of the main concerns behind the scenes of the negotiations to be the next Government was the deep seated belief that the global economy is about to implode.
Since the 2007-2008 Global Financial Crisis, all the developed world has done is kick the day of market reckoning down the road with more and more money printing. At some point this band-aid won’t be able to stem the pressure building and it will rupture with a backlash that will make the depression look like a week without pocket money.
What will hit first? Economic armageddon or Environmental apocalypse?
It’s difficult to know what will hit us first, the Economic Armageddon or Environmental apocalypse caused by our dangerously warming climate.
I suspect they will both combine to create something beyond our scope to deal with.
When you are getting market spreads like this, panic doesn’t even seem to sum up the proper response. Remember, a spread above 30 points suggests elevated risk and a spread above 40 calls for ‘defensive measures’. Last week the spread was almost 50 fucking points…
Economic crash IMMINENT: Fears grow as markets hit high not seen since Black Tuesday
There is a growing sense of foreboding amongst economists who believe the market is poised to repeat what happened during the dotcom bubble and the Wall street crash.
Stock values have reached levels not seen since those two disasters and a correction would throw the world economy – currently seeing an ongoing boom period – into disarray.
Graham Hacche at the National Institute for Economic and Social Research (NIESR) said:“In both cases, sharp market ¬declines followed these high readings.”
He went onto say the cyclically adjusted price-earning ratio (the Shiller CAPE ratio) has risen above 30 which shows “markets may have become increasingly vulnerable to shocks.”
…the question is no longer if, but when and where the economic crash will start and cascade from.
China could be the trigger…
Red debt rising
The news during the Chinese Communist Party Congress was supposed to be uniformly positive. But the Oct. 19 press conference of Zhou Xiaochuan, the governor of China’s central bank, was not. After admitting that the country’s high debt was high, he surprised everybody by adding that it was not so high as to cause a “Minsky Moment,” a sudden meltdown of asset prices. It was a fascinating insight into what worries China’s economic leaders and the tough choices they face.
…or it could be the failing Eurozone or Brexit that trigger it, or it could be the sudden realisation on Wall Street that Trump can’t get his tax cuts through.
Add in the sabre rattling over Chinese expansion into the Pacific, Venezuela imploding, North Korea going nuclear, Saudia Arabia launching war on Lebanon or a total collapse in Central Africa and any knock from Climate change could topple the global economy into free fall…
From Miami to Shanghai: 3C of warming will leave world cities below sea level
Hundreds of millions of urban dwellers around the world face their cities being inundated by rising seawaters if latest UN warnings that the world is on course for 3C of global warming come true, according to a Guardian data analysis.
What does a left wing Government do about it?
Anyway you want to look at it, the immediate future looks bleak, so what should a Left wing Government on these far away Shaky Isles do about it?
First of all, let’s appreciate the beauty and luck of our distance.
It’s near impossible for refugees to climb into boats and flee here successfully, we have a globally low debt to GDP ratio and we have enough fertile land to feed ourselves.
In short, the tyranny of our distance is going to end up being what saves us while the planet goes into meltdown.
http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/world/2017/11/daunting-antarctic-sea-ice-plummet-could-be-tipping-point.html
13 November 2017
Newshub
‘Daunting’ Antarctic sea ice plummet could be tipping point
Might be one these babies hiding under the Antarctic ice sheet causing the sudden ice melt?
http://www.news.com.au/technology/environment/natural-wonders/nasa-study-suggests-an-antarctic-supervolcano-could-make-the-ice-sheet-vulnerable/news-story/14ee668fa018e7f7d861ccbe63a3cd2f
Then you’ve got this ticking time bomb which will solve GW http://www.news.com.au/technology/environment/natural-wonders/supervolcano-at-yellowstone-national-park-set-to-erupt-sooner-than-expected/news-story/561d721bd007038fcab727c0ca140330
BM…….hoping like fuck and quacking like a duck. Meanwhile Key’s cruising……and don’t give a fuck. BM……looks very much like Russia’s ya’ only hope baby. Udachi !
Julian Assange or Wikileaks’ long conversation with Trump Jnr,
https://twitter.com/publicaddress/status/930188285007167488
” Russell Brown @publicaddress
37m37 minutes ago
Anyone who thinks Wikileaks is a “transparency organisation” after reading this is basically just a cult member.”
Ooops,
Asher WolfVerified account @Asher_Wolf
It’s now over 20 mins since Assange began a thread and failed to finish his sentence. I assume his lawyer burst into the room halfway through:
https://twitter.com/Asher_Wolf/status/930214142610309121
LOLOLOL
Wow what a goddam mess – cred gone, just another puppet or puppet master. And Wikileaks nuked as well. Thanks Julian asshole.
It’s like someone’s working for someone.
/
https://translate.google.co.nz/translate?hl=en&sl=es&u=https://politica.elpais.com/politica/2017/11/12/actualidad/1510497199_316581.html&prev=search
“It’s like someone’s working for someone.”
How do you mean?
I’m assuming it means: Catalan separatists meet with Julian Assange => Julian Assange starts tweeting about the glorious revolution taking place in Catalonia => Russian media start giving extensive coverage to Assange’s tweets => Assange enthusiasts and Russian propaganda viewers the world over support independence for Catalonia. Did money change hands?
It is pretty suspicious, but the world is so full of crackpots it doesn’t necessarily mean anybody’s paying anybody for it.
True, and for Wikileaks it probably doesn’t matter if money is changing hands, they’ve lost their credibility and keep putting nails in that coffin.
Did you just summarily dismiss all and sundry who are supportive of the people of Catalonia being empowered to determine their own future?
One Russian media outlet (Sputnik) based 11 stories around Assange tweets (10 on comments by Carles Puigdemont and 5 by Mariano Rajoy). Apparently that’s outrageous because Assange isn’t an expert on Catalonia (or some such)…unlike all the talking heads whatever other outlets use. Them’s experts!
It’s utterly depressing, this enthusiasm to back the insinuation that anyone who doesn’t adhere to some “official” or “approved” script is “suspect”.
It’s kinda fascist.
BTW. Does the Scottish government’s support for Catalonian independence make them “Assange enthusiasts and/or Russian propaganda viewers” too? Maybe the SNP and Scottish Greens (plus a good proportion of Scottish Labour voters) are just ‘victims’ of Kremlin propaganda? I mean, Alex Salmond (ex First Minister of Scotland) is about to host a show on RT – gadzooks! (And yes. Pretty sure Assange tweeted on Scottish independence)
Pretty sure the barb was for Assange supporters and Russian propaganda consumers, not people supporting Catalonian independence generally (could be wrong though).
“It’s utterly depressing, this enthusiasm to back the insinuation that anyone who doesn’t adhere to some “official” or “approved” script is “suspect””
Sorry, which is the approved script?
You being serious here Weka?
An abbreviated “official” or “approved” script in this instance runs along the following lines…
Catalonia seeking independence = bad. Catalonia seeking independence = threat to “European democracy”. Reports backing Catalonian independence = Russian interference.
Go and do some article searches on some main Liberal publications if you genuinely don’t understand that (eg – The Guardian, Washington Post, The Independent).
And have a look at the various ministerial announcements that accompanied the vote in Catalan (but just mind and ignore what Sturgeon said, aye? 😉 )
Sure, I just wasn’t sure if you meant that Psycho Milt believes anyone not adhering to establishment lines was suspect.
Did you just summarily dismiss all and sundry who are supportive of the people of Catalonia being empowered to determine their own future?
Er, no, given that I’m supportive of that myself. Not much sign of it in the current conflict, though.
Sorry PM. Reading too much into your comment.
From Ukraine, Crimea, and brexit through to Trump and now Catalonia, we see Assange/wikileaks turning up like a bad penny.
Wikileaks/Assange working for someone? Or just manipulating things for their own political ends?
For all practical purposes, is there a difference that matters? In either case, it still means treat everything emanating from Saint Julian of the Embassy with deep suspicion.
I tend to agree, just thought it worth checking what Joe meant.
Looks to me more like the Russian government has found Wikileaks to be a useful way of releasing any embarrassing data they nick from the Americans and Assange isn’t fussy about where the data comes from. But the net effect is pretty much the same as if they had a business arrangement, so as Andre asks, does it matter? Either way, you have to treat the results with suspicion.
Where is the Russian link to Wikileaks?
There is no Russian link to Wikileaks – that’s the whole point of having an intelligence service. However, reasons to suspect the Russian government is using Wikileaks to release embarrassing data it steals from the Americans is outlined here.
The whole “Russia Russia Russia” narrative is a totally overblown distraction.
Especially when it is clear that the US is unparalleled in its ability to steal, penetrate, impersonate the technology, data and systems of its foreign adversaries.
Further, its going to become very clear that the Democractic Party has very tight ties with Russian interests and operatives.
If you last sentence is true, your first is wrong.
At the end of the day, the massive heavy handed way the USA handled the leaks has actually helped their rivals the most and reduced power in the USA both internationally and within public opinion.
If USA said sorry, and stopped their own illegal actions then it would have all gone away.
The nation has been divided. If US officials had been less gungho and less looking like manufacturing charges and extriditions for political reasons , then Wikileaks would have been yesterday’s news.
Like the Dotcom incident in NZ. Hard not to notice that one.
The young and the free are all Internet users, they want freedom in that space. Anyone trying to curb that, has a battle that they probably won’t win.
It’s 21st century Vietnam. You can’t force people to agree with things that are wrong. It just divides people.
To my mind Wikileaks/Assange began as an apolitical organisation concerned with human rights, using collateral damage/cablegate as disrupters of US foreign policy.
I’d like to know why they’ve moved past that brief, involving themselves in the political processes of at least three countries.
I reckon it’s most likely to be one of or a combination of an Assange vanity project, keeping Jules out of a Swedish/US federal prison or, for hire.
Yep. Or Assange’s personal politics.
That’s a good description of the problem and what has happened.
Agree and his ego. Wikileaks stopped being “we” a long time ago. It is the Assange Show.
joe90 – perhaps you mean Wikileaks began as a non-partisan organisation.
Disrupting US foreign policy, releasing US secrets and then having the Anglo-American empire target you with smears and illegal lawfare tactics was always going to be highly political.
That’s the point of wikileaks.
Disrupting US foreign policy.
I.E. Bombing the shit out of any country that refuses to allow US corporations, free reign. Or changing the leadership of any country that threatened the dollar as the reserve currency.
Was a good thing.
Genuine question, what have they leaked about Russia and China over the years.
Trumpingly good to have you back CV !
I suspect your answer is ego rather than anything else. Assange has a big ego and he likes to bring it out every now and to remind us, and him, how important he is.
Yep dirty paw prints all over the place – we’ve been fucken played. Truth out now and it is not good.
Played. But by whom?
Everyone. Everyone in power is playing someone.
We also see the USA turning up for a bit of a meddle – again;
https://www.state.gov/j/drl/p/275396.htm
The tweets themselves (not the interpretation the Atlantic couches them in) just read as someone punting for business and figuring out moves that might help his own position. And given that he’s essentially under house arrest, that’s fair enough, no?
If you’re fate lay in the hands of someone who said you should be droned, wouldn’t you have something to say about that? And if there was the possibility another might open those doors, wouldn’t you be talking to them?
And in whatever correspondence you had, and given the levels of stress occasioned by your situation, you really think you wouldn’t say some really fucking stupid things among it all?
My impression of Assange (justified or otherwise) is that he’d be an unpleasant pain in the arse at a personal level. But fuck, this on-going knee-jerk reaction bullshit to anything associated with Assange or Wikileaks, from mostly Liberal quarters, is fucking diabolical.
And the tiresome attempts to discredit any and all voices that might disagree with “official takes” on world affairs or specific situations by tying those voices in with Assange or Wikileaks, or some news story from a Russian media outlet, is deeply and seriously fucked up. Actually. It’s not so much that that’s fucked up (It’s to be expected). It’s the sheer numbers of people buying into it that’s the problem.
“The tweets themselves (not the interpretation the Atlantic couches them in) just read as someone punting for business and figuring out moves that might help his own position. And given that he’s essentially under house arrest, that’s fair enough, no?”
Probably shouldn’t be using Wikileaks to do that though.
“If you’re fate lay in the hands of someone who said you should be droned, wouldn’t you have something to say about that? And if there was the possibility another might open those doors, wouldn’t you be talking to them?”
Quite possibly, but I would also probably take care not to conflate a statement about droning with an actual potential threat, especially if I was running an organisation that needed to maintain a high degree of trustworthiness in the public internationally.
” I was running an organisation that needed to maintain a high degree of trustworthiness in the public internationally. ”
I think it stopped being about anything other than Assanges motivations after he went into the Embassy
I like the Trump family even less than you do, weka, and although I admire Julian Assange’s fearless journalism, I find his parlaying with these swine very odd indeed.
However, you damage your credibility immediately by citing Russell Brown, who is one of the most easily gulled people in all of faux-liberalism. You might remember how Matthew Hooton made a fool of him and the likes of Craig Ranapia back in December 2013, after Nelson Mandela died….
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-30122013/#comment-750859
Funny, given that your own reputation on TS was undermined by the less than truthfulness of your transcripts 😉
Everyone does stupid shit online at some point, and everyone does something that other people disagree with. Calling RB names means nothing to me except to say that you disapprove of him somehow.
given that your own reputation on TS was undermined by the less than truthfulness of your transcripts
My transcripts were never less than truthful, despite your slimy smear. You, and a few others, objected to my emphasizing the lack of eloquence of some politicians by including every “errr” and “ahhh” and “ummm” they uttered, and you also seemed, or pretended to be, upset by my pointing out that when someone like Jim Mora or Chris Trotter said something unconscionably crass or nasty on air, there were often uncomfortable silences.
But of course that issue is long done with. You and your small group of fellow-detractors lost. Deal with it.
Everyone does stupid shit online at some point…
They certainly do, as you did just now with that attempt to smear me with an old and discredited falsehood.
Calling RB names means nothing to me except to say that you disapprove of him somehow.
I did more than call him names, I demonstrated his insufferable combination of naïveté and sanctimoniousness.
Really? I thought you’d gotten past this shit.
On the accuracy of the transcripts,
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-19072013/#comment-665294
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-25072013/#comment-668293
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-25072013/#comment-668899
Not ums and errs but whole bits not transcribed literally (which is what a transcript is). They were impressions that by your own admission you acknowledged you wrote out mostly freehand as you listened.
From the first link – I was concerned with capturing the essence of that pompous bullfrog Trotter, and didn’t record her murmurings verbatim.
I say were, because I have a feeling you later increased the accuracy and started doing actual transcripts, but now that you’ve just denied the accuracy issue it makes me wonder if you can even tell.
“But of course that issue is long done with.”
Quite. 2013. Funnily enough, that’s the same year as whatever it is you are saying that Brown did.
“They certainly do, as you did just now with that attempt to smear me with an old and discredited falsehood.”
I’ve done stupid shit, but this isn’t one of those times as I’ve just demonstrated.
“I did more than call him names, I demonstrated his insufferable combination of naïveté and sanctimoniousness.”
I don’t see how. You linked to one of your impressions transcripts and expected people to read it and figure out what you were referring to. If RB did something wrong (I still have no idea what), then you should be able to (a) name it, and (b) back that claim up with some evidence. So far all you’ve done is said Hooton made a fool of him, and let us know that you believe Brown is x, y, z.
So. You don’t like him and are using a current event to refer to something from years ago that demonstrates that you don’t like him. I don’t see the relevance myself.
Most of what you upbraid me with is unarguable. I accept your points.
However, this one is unfair:
You linked to one of your impressions transcripts and expected people to read it and figure out what you were referring to.
No, what I did was: I took contributions of various people on the “Mandela” thread from Russell Brown’s blog of 30.12.13 and used them verbatim to form a fictional classroom situation. I imaginatively revivified a dreadful and embarrassing exercise in drippy “liberals” competing to share their feelings of sadness, then indulging a cynical and vicious manipulator. They were so drippy, in fact, that not one of them even noticed when the intruder (Matthew Hooton) smoothly compared Mandela to Reagan and Thatcher. That’s where this writer and another Standardista, Rhinocrates, came in….
Ok, thanks.
Re today, I’m not going to read your fictional account. If you have something to say about Brown’s actions, by all means do and then cite to support it. Can you not see how a fictional account is still about *your opinions?
People do enjoy your posts Morrissey, I just wish you would understand that in this setting there are pretty clear dividing lines between opinion and reporting of factual events.
Fair enough weka. All the best, my friend!
What a pleasure to watch that discourse unfold between you and weka. Truly, I am not being sarcastic.
Given the difficulties of conversations online, kudos to you both on this one.
🙂
Here you go, tracey….
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/77/54/03/77540399c7cbe389c35a6e89fe602af7.jpg
However, this one is unfair:
I’d call it over-generous. I went and read the comment you linked to. In it, you take verbatim comments from Public Address and sprinkle them in among shit you just made up, which invites the reader to assume the shit you made up consists of verbatim comments. That’s pretty low.
Our good friend Psycho Milt makes a few points, which I’ll address one by one….
…you take verbatim comments from Public Address and sprinkle them in among shit you just made up,
That’s pretty much it. But what you rather disparagingly call “shit you just made up” has a serious dramatic function. You are familiar with Monty Python’s Life of Brian, I presume, where the scriptwriters interpose a great deal of “made up shit” to counterpoint the words of the bloke delivering the Sermon on the Mount. Shakespeare did a lot of this sort of thing as well; I recommend you spend a few minutes studying a copy of Julius Caesar.
…which invites the reader to assume the shit you made up consists of verbatim comments.
Anyone with an IQ above room temperature could tell that the bits labeled “UPROAR FROM CLASS”, “MURMURING FROM CLASS,” “SEVERAL VOICES”, “OUTRAGE AND UPROAR”, etc. were made up, and distinct from the verbatim transcripts of Mike O’Connell, Hebe. Paul Campbell, Matthew Hooton and Russell Brown.
That’s pretty low.
That’s drama for you. It’s a pity for people like you that the playhouses can’t be shut down like in the good old days.
Anyone with an IQ above room temperature could tell that the bits labeled “UPROAR FROM CLASS”, “MURMURING FROM CLASS,” “SEVERAL VOICES”, “OUTRAGE AND UPROAR”, etc. were made up, and distinct from the verbatim transcripts of Mike O’Connell, Hebe. Paul Campbell, Matthew Hooton and Russell Brown.
They might well. Thing is, what you call “verbatim transcripts” include Russell Brown apparently making statements like
You will have other thoughts and memories and you are welcome to share them here. Please be respectful of each other. Michael, you were the first to put your hand up. Please stand up and share with the class how sad you are.
Having read the post in question, I’m aware that part of that “verbatim transcript” is verbatim and part of it is shit you made up. Other of these supposedly “verbatim transcripts” include similar insertions, which you offered to weka as evidence of Russell Brown’s foolishness, along with the claim that
My transcripts were never less than truthful, despite your slimy smear.
Pointing out that you put words in other people’s mouths and claim it’s evidence of their foolishness isn’t a “slimy smear,” it’s an “accurate description.”
Strict but fair, Psycho Milt. I’ll take that on board.
No, morrissey, you outright invented things.
repeatedly.
Fool, I invented nothing in those transcripts, or near-transcripts. I accept weka’s serious and principled views, but yours are still as brutal and unbalanced as ever, I’m sorry to say.
🙄
Maybe you’re just delusional.
Again, this isn’t about who likes each other or not. McFlock’s example is easily as good as the one I posted, probably better (I haven’t listened to the original audio). The arguments are well laid out about the problems with the transcript.
McFlock’s example is easily as good as the one I posted, probably better….
Yeah, it was pretty good. Sorry McFlock.
http://i.123g.us/c/emay_flowerofmonth/card/312638.gif
Kia kaha morrissey.
Love your work.
I see on the news that they are proposing a 140 to 190 Million development of the Auckland Waterfront for the America’s Cup. Goff is full of it and expects the taxpayer once again to finance this latest elitist toy.
I would like to remind ALL the rightwingers, that we have had thirty years of user pays, being told to stand on our own two feet, no handouts with the Tories in the last nine years cutting services and benefits. Now is a good time for the right to practice what they are always preaching, pay for the fucking thing yourselves.
I for one will be totally and completely pissed off if one dollar of taxpayers money goes towards this massive white elephant when there will be a struggle after nine years of neglect rectifying a large amount of child poverty and homelessness.
If the elite wants to play with their boats good on them, but don’t expect the taxpayer to to pay for your toys
.
Couple of hundred million would build quite a few houses even in Auckland.
Sounds like extortion by a bunch of rich twats.
Is the money Goff wants to throw at this farce instead of, or in addition to, the billion he wanted to spend on an Auckland stadium? What has happened to that by the way? I’ve been out of the country and haven’t heard anything about it recently.
@ alwyn – last I heard they were wasting ratepayer money on private consultants to do feasibility studies for the stadium. They are desperate to build one as a monument to their ego’s but know that there will be a massive public backlash… Ego vs public opinion (not sure which will win).
Depends on the size of the ego. If it’s large enough, it will have a gravity of its own.
Space monkeys know about gravity, and that was very funny.
The right, the neo-liberal, NEVER practice what they preach.
Doesn’t matter whether it’s Ruth Richardson Limited (liability); a Jenny Shipley alongside that brick of a man Burton; the entitled rich versus the undeserving poor; Jeeze Wayne’s or Mathew Hootons. It’s a foreign concept to them, devoid of humanity but all cost-accounted for. And if the accounts don’t work, why we’ll just re-invent the way we do them, and Bill’s your seedy Uncle (Steven, and there’s a new generation eagre to lead the self-entitled charge.
Hopefully the gated-community locks are going to hold out
Empire builders all at the poor’s expense like rome eh?
exactly halfcrown!
We already paid for the last America’s cup!! What happened to all that infrastructure???? If the industry can afford millions in yachts then they should be able to crowd fund for the infrastructure that is apparently needed.
Likewise if it will be an economic boom maybe the business who will benefit aka Skycity types (mostly owed offshore corporations) can get their wallets out. I know they are used to being showered with corporate welfare but under a Labour led government can somebody find the word NO?
For everyone who lives in Auckland, it’s just more traffic, more rates and more out of control officials like Goff who will enjoy lording it over the place with all the rich and powerful that type of event attracts.
Solve our transport first, cut down rates and increase public service levels like libraries that benefit people who live here NOT try to always be impressing rich people passing through.
You must also remember the Fucking Spiv gave a 17.25 mil grant to the company that built Oracle’s boat and at the same time Pula Benefit was cutting benefits left right and centre
http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/other-sports/67998523/americas-cup-team-oracles-new-zealandbased-boat-builders-get-government-grant
Soon he will propose a name change to Goffland – where wet dreams come true
Yep and we can call NZ, New Key Land after John.
Big Brother isn’t just watching: workplace surveillance can track your every move
Another reason to move from the 2000+ year old ownership (Our present day ownership laws started back in Ancient Rome) model for a cooperative approach. The people doing the work and are most affected by this type of Big Brother approach are more likely to both decrease the amount of watching and use what’s gathered more ethically.
Why do they want to know everything about everyone – haven’t they got better things to do.
IMO, knowing everything about someone gives ways to control them. We see this in things like self-censorship.
I’m presently looking for a job after finishing a degree. So, what effect is my anti-capitalist stance going to have on that and should I thus keep from mentioning it on my Facebook page so as to help me get a job?
Good luck job hunting – tough situation for you too in finding good employment you are prepared to give your energy to.
As a recruiter I can confirm that the vast majority of employers do look at facebook etc. when considering candidates.
So you recommend that I self-censor to please them?
That would be that control that I was talking about.
To normal people that is called “a creepy invasion of privacy”.
But. Way too many employers now assume a right to know, about employees private lives, that should have never been their fucking business in the first place.
As for the HR business………
Hi Marty,
In the get rich quick club they believe gathering intellegence on everyone is “money” and thats the long & short of it.
Sick isn’t it?
Cos they assume their employees are like them, corner cutters and piss takers
Exactly
Is that your opinion?
It’s a quote from Hippocrates. It’s what one would call a truism.
As I’ve pointed out to you before – opinions are meaningless tripe unless they’re backed by facts, logic and, well, science.
Where are the facts, logic and science behind your opinion on this one. I see nothing… just a quote.
I’ve linked to those before. Several times in fact. You seem to be one of the ones that get most upset when I do.
Same as you’re getting upset now.
And that was just a quote, a truism, from an age old philosopher.
In the dictionary. Hippocrates’ remarks is axiomatic, on account of the meanings of words.
Self referencing then?
No: he’s relying on the fact that words have meaning.
It’s hardly a controversial statement.
The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination. Einstein
does imagination beget ignorance?
There’s a difference between imagining something and then testing to see if its true and merely imagining something and then believing it to be true.
The former is a path to knowledge while the latter propagates ignorance.
EDIT: And you should read this as it seems that that is not an actual quote of Einstein.
I got it from the same source as yours – I wonder if yours is true or just made up.
Edit – nice you looked the answer up.
That is a good point. Wikiquotes has no source for it. Still, I don’t think that takes away from the message.
All good – these discussions for me hone my thinking i hope tgey arent too tedious for you ☺
If they’re backed by facts, logic and science, they cease to be an opinion.
Just a question DtB …. Where do experieces and what one might call ‘common’ sense fit into it.
I’m all for science based on facts and logic (well…science), but often the heuristics used in a triage situation when decisions can be required quickly can have big experiential and common sense components. In my case, if they’d relied purely on what the science said at the time – I’d be dead
Common Sense Is Neither Common nor Sense
Sometimes simply doing shit can work but it’s a fluke and not something that can be relied upon.
I agree – common sense is not common, – the wrong term to use. I’m a big fan of science (as you describe it above).
I’m not a big fan of the idea that there can’t be exceptions to every rule.
For many, it was evident that there was climate change occurring a long time ago. The science subsequently proved it.
I don’t agree that “simply doing shit” can work but its always a ‘fluke’.
In the case I mentioned (mine), I understand the science now recognises the exceptions to the rule.
By the way – science isn’t dogma either. It requires an open mind ready to consider possibilities, and to be able to contest previously held scientific views and theories
If someone does something without knowing what they’re doing and it works then it’s a fluke.
Now, that doesn’t actually mean that what they do isn’t a result of the training and experience that they have. What it means is that it hasn’t been researched and they’re running on intuition.
Good training and education will bring about better intuition but it’s still going to be a fluke because they don’t know. It could, as a matter of fact, go the other way. That doesn’t mean that it’s not worth trying if there’s no other options.
There are no exceptions to the rule – merely misunderstood, misapplied and unknown rules.
It’s the opinion of Hippocrates.
It’s a fairly obvious restatement of the definition of the word “opinion”. Words do have meanings, after all.
Angel investors in NZ.
Start up businesses investment going strong. Always room for more though.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/businessnews/audio/2018621431/nz-s-arch-angel-of-the-year-in-it-for-more-than-money
Note: Sweeeet.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/343774/dunedin-chocolate-crowdfund-reaches-target
A PledgeMe project for the public to buy out the boutique chocolatier Ocho was launched yesterday morning, and raised more than $1 million by the end of the day.
The campaign was born out of the closure of the city’s Cadbury factory and an unsuccessful attempt by the community to buy it.
Pledges have just reached $1.75m, very close to the $1.8m threshold for the project.
So glad you chose to highlight this – great example of how capital can be used to support a community at large and the investors get both a return (TBD) and the warm fuzzies from knowing that the collective knowledge of the workers is not lost forever.
Kudos to the people who stood up and worked behind the scenes to organise this.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/98858474/labour-says-no-to-allowing-both-parents-take-paid-parental-leave-at-the-same-time
The amendment did not extend the cost of Labour’s policy and it did not extend the total amount of time parents had available to them.
Adams said she could see no real reason why Labour would be opposed to giving new families greater flexibility.
“It seems to me they’re embarrassed that they rushed this bill and there was no need to do it. This has been their policy for a long time and they still haven’t properly turned their mind to some of the important issues, like how paid parental leave works and how it can be made more flexible.”
C’mon Labour do the right thing by families 🙂
Such a change could be detrimental to the baby, says Labour; If both parents were off at the same time, that would be a shortened total time spent on leave with that child, said Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Iain Lees-Galloway.
…
Lees Galloway said he was not opposed to looking at changes to flexibility rules further down the track, however. But the Government had not seen the amendment National was preparing to put forward.
Sounds like the ball is in National’s court. Plus, didn’t they oppose extending PPL last year?
Well now its Labours turn to have the blowtorch applied but its not a bad idea is it, to have both parents off at the same time
I need to see what National are actually proposing in terms of the law before I could have an opinion. And then opinions from people that are affected and organisations that work in that area.
Yes, that’s right, I don’t trust National. The idea could be a good one, but we have no way of telling because National are dicks.
Classic! 😀 And so true. I looked at this story and thought “that may have some merit” and then reminded myself it was Adams saying it.
So how would you describe Labour about their TPPA dealins, I myself would call them pragmatic
I would call it misleading their voters and parkers statement allowing the view to pervade that Labour negotiated the Oz ISDS change as Keyesque and as appaling as when Nats behaved this way.
Your serve
This too.
this week it looks to me like Labour are being hoisted on their own neoliberal petard. Of course they’re pragmatic as well. Doesn’t mean they’re being pragmatic about the right things.
I feel like this is a real cynical move coming from the party who vetoed extending paid parental leave for financial reasons.
However, I think this should be considered. I am assuming labour are coming from the perspective that creating the most time before bub has to go into childcare has the most benefit. But there are plenty of situations where I think time together as a whole family trumps that. After my first baby I had PND and if my husband been able to take a chunk OK time off at that time it would have made the world of difference I think. Couples who have twins or very sick babies would also benefit.
I hope labour will consider this.
Most National voters prefer to go back to work straight away and put the baby in childcare for 10 hours a day anyway.
They lack empathy.
Puckish Rogue,
Don’t you feel strange now as a national party spinner now seeing national comming out with real “social progams” like giving both parents maternity extended leave now that it was national (yourparty) that railed hard agaist giving the ecxtended leavejust to one parent?
I think this is not real but just a ploy by English to put a wedge between the coalition now eh?
Has National Costed this?
As they are already demading labour cost everyting they do right?
“I think this is not real but just a ploy by English to put a wedge between the coalition now eh?”
Possibly
“Has National Costed this?”
Probably not
“As they are already demading labour cost everyting they do right?”
The joys of being in opposition is that you don’t actually have to cost anything 🙂
So, basically, you’re bunging a smiley face on the thought that a party of liars and hypocrites when they were in government is no longer required to attain even that shonky level.
The Greens costed things in Opposition. And they even had this idea to have a part of Treasury available to all parties to have their policies costed.
https://www.greens.org.nz/policy/fairer-society/policy-costings-unit
Pretty useless having good ideas if you don’t know how to implement them and think someone else should take them on board and do your mahi for you.
New Zealanders deserve more transparency from their politicians so they can better engage in the political system. Having party policies independently costed will help to cut through the noise of political party promises and deliver New Zealanders unbiased information.
And they costed it.
Amy is accusing Labour of maybe doing something her party resisted until election time? For all we know their policy was like no new taxes… only meant to win votes not be implemented.
This newfound social conscience of Nats needs to be pounced upon with some new legislation for them to support.
Troll.
Recent piece from Chris Trotter reviewing TPP and how did we go?
http://bowalleyroad.blogspot.co.nz/2017/11/a-very-lucky-escape.html
I thought this was good.
As the leader of a small trading nation, New Zealand’s prime minister simply cannot affect a take-it-or-leave-it attitude to something as big as the TPP. The inescapable truth confronting Ardern (as it has every one of her predecessors) is that this country’s status as a first-world nation is inescapably contingent upon earning sufficient overseas currency to import the sort of lifestyle to which most Kiwis believe themselves entitled.
Bluntly: faced with the choice of announcing whether her government is “in” or “out” of a major trade agreement; no New Zealand prime minister can say “out” with impunity.
Greywarshark;
Not impressed as it must have been his bad day I assume.
Chris does not really have a strong will to fight for our democracy as many others do sorry.
cleangreen
He is a political journalist with a left approach, not an avowed activist, and he tries to view the facts of the situation as they lie, not as you or others would like them to be. Reading him you can assess how likely it would be to get your favourite policy through, and hope he is wrong if it seem impossible. Or you might think of some other way to manage it.
the nats say that paying Teina Pora inflation-adjusted amount “opened floodgates”.
Just how many demonstrably innocent people do they think we’ve imprisoned?!
Mind-boggling. That’s National for you though – “Fuck off, if we give one wrongful-imprisonment victim inflation-adjusted compensation, next thing they’ll all want it!”
It sure is head-shaking stuff. Whenever you think they couldn’t be bigger dicks, they keep surpassing themselves.
Well it was 9 years of a Tory government McFlock – so we should find out in say…. 10 years.
Edit: Was that little thing about not giving people access to legal aid so…
Hah! I just read idiot savant’s response to that from the other day…http://norightturn.blogspot.co.nz/2017/11/opening-floodgates.html
….bloody brilliant.
Amy Adams is now called National’s “justice” spokeswoman.
She used to be their Minister of “Justice.”
She clearly wouldn’t know justice if it turned up and bit her on the arse.
The open floodgates will let through huge numbers of people who will knowingly allow themselves to be bullied and confused into confessing to things they didn’t do, spend 20 years in prison and then claim the money!
Don’t you see McFlock don’t you? It’ll be a flood, a veritable torrent!
Either that – or you shouldn’t expect liars to understand metaphors.
Bloody nora, the size of some of the hail falling in Auckland at the moment – it as big as a 50 cent piece, some pieces bigger. It’s also peeling the paint off the neighbours cars.
Put my arm out in it, very sore.
Count the number of people that talk about climate change there post-hail 😉
That unnamed “Australian newspaper” is a Murdoch rag.
And those “unnamed sources” are no doubt as scurrilous.
I note that Radio New Zealand, among other outlets, has been diligently recycling, without any hint of demur, the Double Dipper’s mad claims about New Zealand becoming a “target for people smugglers.”
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/343787/pm-s-stance-on-manus-island-could-backfire-national
The Murdoch rag cited as merely “an Australian newspaper” is the hideous Courier-Mail of Brisbane, one of the Dirty Digger’s notorious stable of racist, war-mongering, sex-obsessed but prurient, thoroughly disreputable scandal sheets. It is to RNZ’s discredit that it failed to point this out today.
From the link:
My immediate reaction when I heard the item on the car radio. In fact its such a coincidence that the story should appear at this moment in time, one has to conclude that is precisely what it is.
Correct, Anne. We all know who those “unnamed sources” are.
Oh dear Natz really does need to get over itself. Still sounding very bitter and twisted over election result. Very petulant statements from Finlayson and Collins! Natz termites all slithering out of the woodwork now. Had it too good for too long. Sore losers unable to accept the fact the present coalition government was preferred!
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11942559
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11943985
It’s not a good look. They’re acting like spoiled brats in trying to push the idea that Peters is untrustworthy as a means of running interference against his court proceedings.
They must think people are stupid and have very short memories because most Kiwis know that the Nats ran the Super-leak hit job against Peters. What’s that if it’s not untrustworthy!
The more they hate on Peters the more I like him.
Same
Very bitter and twisted alright – they can’t get over their utter uselessness in failing. They want to blame anyone except themselves – both those links show callous lies and a complete spit in the face for voters. I hope they never get in again.
Glad RNZ and Guyon Espiner gave a racist thug like Ian such a platform to air his views on Checkpoint. Anyone will do if it smears Jacinda and the government, eh Guyon?
Followed by a pitbull attack on Carmel Sepuloni.
Guyon – working for the Tories.
Ed that was a shocking display of naked arrogance from espiner that i was heklling at jhim on TV and got bloody so mad that my blood pressure went over the top[.
I will ask the minister of broadcvasting to sack the prick as he has no place in this public broadcasting platfom that is trying to calm the people and be a kinder, gentler way of treating each other.
Espiner was going and going repeatedly at her it was a shocking display of arrogance he showed toward a sitting M.P.
Get rid of him, and take his mate Suzie Ferguson with him please as she is also very agressive at times though maybe not as bad as Espiiner is.
Kim Hill is the very best NZ has and should be uplifted to a Radio NZ Management position to train these half backed Journo’s to act civily and treat everyone with dignity and respect.
I expect the billionaire press to be biased but not RNZ.
Espiner is a Tory hack and should sell his soul to Murdoch or Reinhart or another rich corporate bludger.
Yep get shod of this despot asap would be good as Espiner is a liability to us all now.
I hate these turncoats like Espiner they are just after money so dont belong in public broadcasting.
Bob Geldof has, correctly, described Aung San Suu Kyi
as a “handmaiden to genocide and accomplice to murder”.
HOWEVER: who’s this consorting with another handmaiden to genocide and accomplice to murder?…..
http://www.channel4.com/media/images/Channel4/c4-news/2013/April/11/geldof_thatcher_g_w.jpg
….and who’s this consorting with another bloody monster?
http://www4.pictures.gi.zimbio.com/Bill+Clinton+Bob+Geldof+BILD+OSGAR+Award+1eyJ3BAYqkbl.jpg
Neither Geldof or Bono are in a position to lecture.
We also see the USA turning up for a bit of a meddle – again:
https://www.state.gov/j/drl/p/275396.htm
I picked up an anomolly in labour’s cheif negociator today in Parliament during Q+A which a National MP asked David Parker about his claim that he had got changes made to the ISDS wording.
The minister asked if Parker stuck by his words and then said how come when he was involved in April 2016 over the TPPA settling on wording of that ISDS it was actactly the same wording as parker had agreedto, Parker responded by claiming that “his text related to a different agreement to a new free trade agreement called the CPTPP now?????
So is parker saying that te ISDS he agreed to was different from the one in the TPPA that was signed off by nationalm April 2016????
Can anyone clarify this please as someone is playing games here.
Many reports had been formerly comming out including Jane kelsey’s reviews saying the ISDS was the exact wording in both the TPP 11 and the CPTPP, so I am lost here.
maybe Labour knows something we dont yet???
I will find the hansard report wording on this after this day and post it later tomorrow.
Sounds to me like Parker is playing lawyerly word games. The National MP asked about the wording being the same, and Parker essentially replied – the wording you are referring to was in the TPP whereas the CPTPP is a different agreement altogether.
Basically just smartarse evasive BS.
Not a good start. Following National into lying their arse off. Already.
Thanks CV, yes I heard this exactly also.
“Doublespeak” is common place on both sides even though Jacinda is the ‘champion of ‘honesty’ and ‘truth’.
Jacinda needs to do some house cleaning soon?