Two insights from Stuff this morning (I don't need to link to the home page do I?):
One is from Steven Joyce, and after translation it basically says "I prepared this rant earlier but had to hastily rewrite it on Saturday evening after the government's response, and that's why it makes no sense". It would save him – and us – time if he was honest and just said "I don't know what they're going to do next but I'm already against it, because that's my job".
The second is from a Covid-19 patient, and after translation it basically says "Joyce has no idea what he's talking about". That one *is* worth reading.
I won't waste my time reading it. The man who was the gNatz wonderboy, but who actually fucked up everything he touched – from the Ministry for Everything to Novapay.
…… about as 'innovative' as a degree in animal buggery
You have to admit that Steven Joyce makes an excellent point about how the PGF could be better spent during a crises like what we are facing. And Liam Danns comment that the government should spend 2.5 billion seems almost miserly.
but 2.5b plus the 2b balance that appears to be left in the PGF would make 4.5b, which is the equivalent of almost 7 weeks of international tourism spending, which would be an amazing start given the travel restrictions
I don't think it's an excellent point at all. On Tuesday the government will announce a major economic package, which will inevitably include support for businesses in the regions, especially those reliant on tourism.
It doesn't matter in the slightest if that is called the Shane Jones Fund or the Totally Different Steven Joyce Fund. It's government cash to save jobs.
What Joyce forgets to say is "this is possible because I was wrong about the 11 billion dollar hole, sorry, my bad".
He also manages to tout his brilliance without once acknowledging that borrowing more is not only an option, but now a short-term necessity. Again, that would require a large helping of humble pie, which Joyce can never stomach.
Why borrow? Because even if every cent was allocated to everything you want, that would be nowhere near enough.
Listen to Wayne on the Covid19 thread:
"I reckon the govt will need around $40 billion in economic stimulus over the next twelve months. Current annual govt receipts are around $100 billion. These will drop to $60 to 80 billion as the economy retracts, but the govt will need to spend at least $120 billion, instead of the planned $100 billion.
It will push up govt debt to around 50 to 60% of GDP.
Who said don’t borrow? You may have assumed that I meant it’s only a binary choice, it isn’t. Borrow freely. Just don’t borrow to protect non-essential or essentially wasteful current spending.
Boris Johnson would appear to be playing Russian roulette with the lives of the vulnerable in the U.K.
The Tory government's plan assumes catching the virus gives you immunity. This is not yet proven (indeed anecdotally not true) and potentially a major flaw in the plan.
As the article below argues, “The human species never developed “herd immunity” to polio or smallpox or any virus, really — ever, despite millennia of death and illness and misery.”
The British government’s Coronavirus strategy, in other words, is founded on the most surreal and astonishing kind of pseudoscience.
They think that everyone getting sick magically confers resistance on a nation. That is not how disease works. Herd immunity is what happens after large-scale vaccination, as a viral infection subsides."
well it would kill the NHS – great for selling this awesome assett
it would kill a whole bunch of old people, invalids, chronic ill people etc etc, also win.
We only have human rights because we give them to us, and when we then consider that others need less rights in order for us to survive, then that is the reaction you get. I would like to point out that Boris Johnson is simply mimicking the Shitface of the US who also would like for people to continue as if there is nothing and if they get ill they should either die quick and silently or heal themselves in their hovels and then go back to work.
The sacrifice of those old who die, and those poor who make capitalism so profitable. Boris is just channeling his Balliol Etonian education, training boys to run both the class order and empire.
And so soon after his gratitude to the north for not trusting in socialist answers.
The thought occurred of a comparison with those societies that had traditions (often just colonial fantasies) of leaving their weak – the old, injured, or feeble babies – to die in the elements for the good of the community, culling the non-producers as it were.
Tory capitalism does that too, and blames the victims for their own demise.
Yes – we have got all the gormless gluttons of the National Party to put up with – but we do not have the everlasting Eccentricity of the English.
Boris Johnson the most absurd leader of the 60 Million English, has ditched Science, has vomited and shat on common sense, and made himself and every member of Merry England a global laughing Stock.
Read this:
Why Britain’s Coronavirus Strategy is Literally One of the Most Insane Things in Modern History.
Boris on Coronavirus – 'Corona' is Latin for Crown, based on the apparent 'crown' of peptid spikes when a spherical virus was viewed through a two dimensional microscope by an excitable microbiologist. Covid19 is more informative.
I urgently needed to come back to NZ for family matters, but now it's impractical for the same reason. There will be millions of similar decisions people will have to make, that will collectively pile up consequences everywhere.
Please read up on what is happening before your "ha ha ha".
Will everyone self-isolate? No. But everyone will be be able to be tracked. The latest patient spells this out very clearly in his story. It worked.
It's the weakest debating point to say not "everyone" wears a seat belt in a car so we shouldn't bother making it compulsory. A rule is introduced, the vast majority follow it, and risk is reduced. You won't get universal compliance outside a dystopian dictatorship, but that's no reason to do nothing.
Thank you but I have been reading and reading and reading for weeks ….
Human nature is the problem. What I am waiting to see now is someone I know is coming home to NZ from the States in about a weeks time. He already has said he will self isolate FOR A WEEK …… Question? Does his wife stock up the house and leave the car at the airport then him home alone for 14 days , because if she doesn't and he gets sick then she too becomes a victim ? Will be interesting to see what happens.
Janet, re your friend……seriously dob him in. Exercise your civic duty if someone is suspected of not obeying isolation rules……they can then be quaranteened.
There are very good guidelines on the MOH Covid 19 website regarding self isolation and living with others……….
I am waiting for some savvy tourist operators to offer self isolation holidays in some of NZ. lovely spots. A stand alone home, with places to walk, swimming pool etc in the middle of nowhere. Food delivered. Wouldn't be too bad.
Janet – there is, no doubt, some existing legislation that would allow for confinement in a prison cell for more than 14 days for those who don't give a stuff about the safety of others.
I have read the advice that others in the house with someone who is self-isolating but not showing signs of illness can go about their ordinary round, but keep a distance, a metre I think, and the person would be expected to mostly stay in their room, have separate bathroom if possible. Separate cutlery, crockery, glasses, cups etc. Surfaces, door handles, light switches, given a damp wipe and dried. Thinking about using tissues to handle CDs, all that would control spots of possible transmission if there was infection.
Good hygiene, hand washing routine, paper towels might be best. Towels haven't been mentioned, but damp hand towels used twice would be good carriers. Separate everything soap, toothpaste, toothbrush for the person, is the expectation for people to behave like sensible and responsible citizens.
I haven't seen this set out in a list, just a general mention. But it would be useful to point to it for those who are living with someone in self-isolation. They shouldn't have to be doing all the instructing.
I'd be concerned about those among the (high risk) elderly … who are self-isolating, few if any savings & living from pension to pension, with little fridge-freezer space.
They won't be able to stock up in a major way … instead they'll need groceries delivered to their door every 2 or 4 weeks … & they'll need to know whether or not to disinfect shopping bags & grocery packaging from contamination (and if so … precisely how)..
Need some methodical, well-organised widely-publicised plan.
True, a properly-protected delivery service (for the drivers as well) would help. Hoping someone in govt other than public health are able to manage this sort of thing – not enough of them.
will be needed but unlikely to eventuate given that the elderly support services are unable to find the staff to provide for the existing cliental…but then i suspect you already know that
The people gloating about being able to fly in before the isolation deadline, so, "they could go straight back to work" seem to be, at best, ignorant, as well.
@Janet (5) … You have obviously missed something. Please go back and read the PM's statement on how the self isolation will be practised and monitored.
Idiots went and bought up all the hand sanitiser they could find. Amazon and eBay shut the door on their profiteering. TradeMe?
Now, while millions of people across the country search in vain for hand sanitizer to protect themselves from the spread of the coronavirus, Mr. Colvin is sitting on 17,700 bottles of the stuff with little idea where to sell them.
Dopey prick thought it was a good idea to tell the world his name. And now he's getting death threats, prank pizza deliveries and people are camped up outside his home.
Who will be the bank to donate a portion of additional funds made from the tap n go feature on credit/eftpos cards during the virus of 2020? There are multiple community charities in serious need that support people in a myriad of ways.
From memory retailers pay $0.80 per transaction where you don't enter your pin to avoid germs and opt to tap instead. They must be swimming in transaction fees with people stocking up.
I think you are exaggerating the fee. I think it is, based on this article, about 1.1% on debit cards. Your number would imply an average transaction of about $90. This is above the maximum amount of $80 for such transactions.
Doesn't mean I approve of the size of the fee mind. I think it is obscene and I have told my bank in writing that I never use the feature and will object to any charge that has not been approved with a pin entry. Don't know how I would get on if one came up mind but I will complain to the Banking Ombudsman if it was to happen.
It is a distinctly Kiwi form of voluntary self-isolation being proposed. Voluntary for those who agree, compulsory for everyone else. Just like school camps really.
Seems we may have a cruise ship with corona virus on board. Seize the ship reassign it to be a dedicated floating corona virus hospital ! It won,t have anything better to do for a while .
Assumed that Janet's idea of turning it into a floating isolation hospital would involve it being taken somewhere where it could dock at a wharf or quayside (like the DiamondPrincess in Japan). All in all a pretty terrible idea …
Yeah. Cruise ships are notorious for disease outbreaks already. Cabins too small, plumbing not ideal for preventing virus spread, same with ventilation systems, and multiple common systems like big kitchens and services that are obvious points of weakness.
And this little nugget from the Guardian. Privatising elective surgery while allowing the NHS to be potentially overrun by coronavirus because social distancing is not being promoted. Great way to use available medical staff and resources.
Fortunately I can see other sectors of the UK just ignoring Boris and getting on with suppressing high risk activities.
“NHS England will this week issue new guidance to hospitals and clinical commissioning groups on working with the private sector to carry out more non-urgent operations on NHS patients to free up beds”.
I must have missed the Democrats regularly speaking of limiting the American people's access to toilet paper. Are they getting big donations from bidet suppliers or something?
Wingnuts made a big thing of running out of toilet paper in Venezuela too. Some sort of toilet-related early childhood deep trauma makes a conservative, perhaps?
My partner and I just cracked up with laughter – whether you are kidding us or actually are doing this the imagination ran away with us. We all need a bloody good laugh in times like this up. Keep up those comments.
The guns are for use on their fellow citizens. If your own philosophy is "Every man for himself and devil take the hindmost," you figure everyone else is thinking the same way so you'll need to protect yourself from those motherfuckers in a crisis. The idea that we might cooperate for the benefit of all rather than immediately collapsing into a wasteland of looters and murderers is foreign to them.
Funny thing is, not even yanks are as bad in real crises as their popculture or gun-hoarding would indicate. Like most people, they tend to cooperate more than beat and rob.
This will certainly test the nimbleness and planning ability of sports administrators.
1. Kudos to the Phoenix for anticipating and planning for having to play remaining games in Oz (in front of no crowds albeit no home semi-final now possible).
2. Super Rugby …
Maybe they should consider bumping up the schedule for the remaining games between home teams and hold those.
3. UK Rugby and Football …
After a break return to completing the 2019-2020 season later in the 2020 calendar year. Consider reducing the 2020-2021 comp into one with one round.
They have gone through the upside down mongrel speech, by which their beloved Idiot, Donald Trump, bypasses anyone in the Globe at any time.
But the Donald is not the real Nitwit. He suffers from a horrendous gulf ball disorder, and has lost any normal brain power. Although he does keep his everlasting Bullying. Possibly other pastimes too.
The real Brainless lot are the Republicans. They don't know sickness from vomit. They don't even know their own names. For they do not Speak.
They are a Virus in upside down action. And have no intention of doing anything for this collapsed United States of America.
Stupidity is all they have. Republicans only ever want Stupidity.
A few thoughts…he's distancing himself and his paymasters from their recent politicising of the government response. He's doing this by collectivising and relabelling it "public" pressure.
My recollection of recent days is that the public haven't said anything much – just a couple of entrepreneurs, one a toymaker, Mowbray, and the other the Trademe guy Sam Morgan.
There's been plenty of media pressure of course but they are in the business of creating controversy in order to sell papers.
I think Farrar and National are happy to see the economy tank as much as possible under Labour's watch – he'll use it closer to election.
For what it's worth I completely empathise with that; it's entirely normal and justified to be at anxious about this.
Two thoughts. People naturally vary in their response to negative events and threat. Some people just shrug it off, others are intensely affected and most people lie on a spectrum between. Don't be disconcerted by others who don't react like you do; sometimes strong fear is useless and paralysing, other times it's informative and drives the correct response. Only with hindsight do we know which people were right.
Don't run away from it, confront it now, find out as much as you can and try to understand what is really happening. Treat it as an interesting opportunity to learn. Get the emotional impact over early, before any potential crisis really hits home, and if and when the virus does hit you'll be much stronger and more likely to deal with it rationally.
Sorry if this sounds a bit bromidey, but I hope it is of some help.
Time to turbo charge the role of unions in the workplace again? At least( even if it is by skype) there would be a freer and more realistic discussion of who is going to suffer and how much they will need instead of an employer driven profit focus. Heaven forbid but places may decide to allocate the funds available for wages rather more equitably so the top end takes the biggest hit – why not?
I'm sure that the Prime Minister was eagerly monitoring the situation and is now greatly relieved that her government's response to this crisis has lately achieved some level of satisfaction from that fucking tool.
And meanwhile the est Dems and MSM liberal media continue to demand that everyone go along with their bizzaro Alice in Wonderland craziness….although it seems plenty of people on TS are happy as pigs in shit to go along with their weird fantasy make believe world, says volumes about how easy it is to corral huge parts of any population..pretty depressing to witness in real time though…
So you're saying potential Sanders voters are easily led by the media? You're so special you can see through it all and not be affected. If only everyone would be like you, though you know what they say when it's everyone else that's crazy and you're the only sane one.
Looking at all the polls, which broadly mirror those in Illinois, it really does, for better or worse, seem like a clear rejection by the voters of Bernie's run.
What are saying? that you seriously don't see that Biden is suffering from some kind of age related cognitive decline?..you don't have to be special to see that obvious truth.. just have eyes that can see and ears that can listen..I assume you are still in possession of those facilities..maybe try using them for a change.
Given that POTUS has their finger on the entire US nuclear arsenal; it seems a pretty big egg to me. And there are plenty of video clips out there showing Biden behaving quite erratically under pressure.
Wouldn't it be ironic if the world came to look back on Trump with a nostalgic fondness ….
Biden's managed to get down to two candidates in the primaries without a dozen sexual assault allegations and stopping a debate to assure the nation his penis is of adequate size.
Jeeze search engines are amazing. Given the left insist there is zero excuse for this sort of thing, the Dems really do have to dump him.
And as low as Trump is, it’s a failure of imagination to think he is the worst humans can be. Rock bottom is a fair bit further down the stack of turtles man.
I'm just saying that a dude who isn't on audio boasting about grabbing women by the pussy is a step up from the current guy, and people seem to be voting for the small step up (in that regard) rather than voting for the nice guy who managed to use his political skills in senate to name a couple of post offices and get a CoL increase for veterans.
I'm just saying that a dude who isn't on audio boasting about grabbing women by the pussy
Correct me if I'm wrong, but have any of the women involved come forward with assault allegations? By contrast we have a number of women making direct allegations of inappropriate behaviour around Biden and the left insists that all women must be believed all the time. Except apparently when Democrat.
The lack of moral consistency is kind of obvious. Personally I've always argued that the sexual interactions between the sexes is complex, nuanced and fraught; this is an arena where we should tread cautiously and with proportionality. But whenever I've openly advocated this, I've been shouted down as a virtual rape apologist.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but have any of the women involved come forward with assault allegations?
You're joking, right? Did you forget it all, or were you not paying attention?
Use your fabled google powers. The extensive list of allegations against the current oaf even has its own wikipedia page. And yeah, it goes well beyond what women have complained about with Biden. I know this doesn't compute for you, you've previously made that very clear.
But hey, Sanders is the better human being. Trouble is, Biden is the better politician and people are voting for him. In a perfect world Sanders would already be president and running for reelection.
Yes there is a solid history of these allegations. I was careless in framing that point. Still the point remains, if the same allegations raised against Biden were made against any Republican, there would be a massive left wing response.
Well, depending on intent he's close to the Al Franken Line, sure.
Does he meet it? Probably not. Should people vote for Sanders instead? Well, probably. But if Sanders can't beat a degenerate senile Cosby-esque fiend like Biden, how the fuck will he beat a fiendishly clever totally healthy and completely nonracist nonsexist non-rapist demigod like dolt45? You can't vaccinate against covid-19 with "I told you so" any more than you can vaccinate against covid-19 with the flu vaccine, no matter what people with a natural talent for science might say.
Quite clearly, I'm saying the voters appear to have made up their minds, and despite your best intentions otherwise, it's almost done for Bernie.
The interesting thing, which you didn't pick up on, is how the media can sway the democratic voters, but not you. Surely if one believes in the message, it doesn't disappear with negative election ads, after all, it hasn't for you, has it?
All that shows, to me, is the Sander's vote from '16 was anti Hilary and not much more. It says heaps about the electorate as a whole they prefer someone with "age related cognitive decline" to the alternative. Politics is always about the numbers, and those landslide opinion polls speak so much louder than your rhetoric.
Given that I strongly supported Sanders in 2016 (against considerable pushback here I might add) … then yes I think that is exactly what KJT must be implying
We all know that well funded, "rightish" campaigns, are not above using psychological techniques from advertising, combined with outright lies, to remain in power.
That doesn't say that people are thick.
It says that the manipulation and propaganda techniques, especially when there is a lot of money to pay for them, are too good.
It would be much better for democracy, if that money was kept out of politics.
It wasn't long ago that the people here, claiming Biden is the result of "well informed" voters, were claiming that the working class voters that voted for Brexit, were manipulated thicko's. Cognitive dissonance, much!
If I said the things I say in here in some counties I could be looking at the inside of a cell before sunrise. Many of us could be. Traitor! Your case will be heard in 2023.
I miss John Clarke, I think we should produce a $17 dollar note in his honour. I think he is our John Lennon. We don't know how lucky we are.
I think money collectors the world over would be intrigued by a limited run official NZ Govt $17 dollar note. A device to embrace the memory of one of our most favorite square pegs in a round hole.
We need to find some creative ways of keeping the overseas dollar flowing…without touching.
If you were wondering who's about to profit off of coronavirus testing in the US, take a look at Oscar, the tech-driven health insurance company, which just launched its first testing center locator.
– Police began closing off access to the Philippines’ sprawling and densely populated capital of Manila on Sunday, imposing a quarantine that officials hope will curb the nation’s rising number of coronavirus cases.
Officers armed with rifles blocked off main roads into the city of some 12 million as domestic flights to and from Manila were halted early Sunday for a monthlong isolation of the capital.
Mass gatherings and school at all levels have also been called off, but delays and exceptions have led public health experts to question how effective President Rodrigo Duterte’s measures will be.
Good. Now if the WHO had not entirely blown it's credibility the past two months, what I would want to see is a set of standard global rules that enforced a common set of travel rule, social distancing and shut down of non-core economic activity … across the whole planet …. for 3 – 6 weeks.
Get this bastard bug by the throat and throttle it now. Go hard, go early will be the least damaging choice now.
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A Different Kind Of Vibe: In the days and weeks ahead, as the Hipkins ministry takes shape, the only question that matters is whether New Zealand’s new prime minister possesses both the wisdom and the courage to correct his party’s currently suicidal political course. If Chris “Chippy” Hipkins is able to steer ...
The days of the Labour Government being associated with middle class social liberalism look to be numbered. Soon-to-be Prime Minister Chris Hipkins and Deputy Prime Minister Carmel Sepuloni are heralding a major shift in emphasis away from the constituencies and ideologies of liberal Grey Lynn and Wellington Central towards the ...
Following the surprise resignation of Jacinda Ardern last week, her replacement, Chis Hipkins, has said: Over the coming week, Cabinet will be making decisions on reining in some programs and projects that aren’t essential right now That messaging is similar to what Jacinda Ardern said late last year and as ...
Much of what will mark the early days of Chris Hipkins’ Prime Ministership would have happened anyway. By December, the Prime Minister and Finance Minister were making it clear the summer break and early days of this year were going to be spent on a reset of government policy. ...
Going to try to get into the blogging thing again (ha!) what with an election coming up and all that. So today I thought I'd start small and simple, by merely tackling the world's (second) richest man.I'm no fan of Elon Musk. You don't want to know why, but I'll ...
A chronological listing of news articles posted on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Jan 15, 2023 thru Sat, Jan 21, 2023. Story of the Week State of the climate: How the world warmed in 2022With a new year underway, most of the climate data for ...
Well, that was a disappointment. As of today, the New Zealand Labour Caucus opted for Chris Hipkins as our new Prime Minister, and I cannot help but let loose a cynical cackle. ...
Get ready for a major political reset once Chris Hipkins is sworn in as Prime Minister this week. Labour’s new leader is likely to push the Government to the right economically, and do his best to jettison the damaging perceptions that Labour has become “too woke” on social issues. Overall, ...
Things have gone sideways… and it’s only the third week of January? It was political earthquake time. For some the Prime Minister made a truly significant announcement. For others – did you have this on your bingo card? – a body double did so (sit tight, you’ll understand later, ...
Buzz from the Beehive Because our hard-working Ministers of the Crown are engaged in Labour Party caucus stuff in Napier, no doubt jockeying to ensure they keep their jobs or get a better one, Point of Order was not surprised to find no fresh news on the Beehive website this ...
By the end of 2019, Jacinda Ardern was a political superstar heading towards an election defeat. She was an icon, internationally beloved, on track to be an ex-prime minister before the age of forty. It was the year of the Christchurch terror attack when Ardern’s response to the atrocity saw ...
People complain about their jobs being meaningless. Does it matter?David Graeber, author of Bullshit Jobs: The Rise of Pointless Work and What We Can Do About It, would have smiled at Elon Musk’s sacking half the Twitter workforce. Musk seems to be confirming the main thesis of the book, that ...
Dr Bryce Edwards writes: Should New Zealand have a snap election? That’s one of the questions arising out of the chaos of Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s shock resignation. There’s an increased realisation that everything has changed, and the old plans and assumptions for election year have suddenly evaporated. ...
Should New Zealand have a snap election? That’s one of the questions arising out of the chaos of Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s shock resignation. There’s an increased realisation that everything has changed, and the old plans and assumptions for election year have suddenly evaporated. So, although Ardern has named an ...
I warned about the trap of virtue signaling in my article Virtue signaling over Ukraine. This video is still relevant – but have we moved on since then? The Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 was universally condemned at the time. Or was it? Certainly, the political atmosphere ...
Earlier this week Point of Order carried a post by Geoffrey Miller on how Japan under a new security blueprint is doubling its defence spending. The plans see Japan buying up advanced weaponry – including long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles from the US – and spending more on ...
Anyone else suffering back-to-work-blues? We’re battling, but still upright. Haere tonu! Today’s cover image is of sunset over Tirohanga Whānui Bridge, sourced from Twitter. The week in Greater Auckland On Monday, Jolisa pondered the fate of AT’s ‘Statements of Imagination’. Tuesday’s post was a guest post by Grady ...
Open access notables Bad news delivered by an all-star cast of familiar researchers: Another Year of Record Heat for the Oceans. From the abstract: In 2022, the world’s oceans, as given by OHC, were again the hottest in the historical record and exceeded the previous 2021 record maximum. According to IAP/CAS data, ...
The resignation of Jacinda Ardern has already made more global headlines than you might expect for that of the PM of a small commonwealth nation like say Sierra Leone (population 6.5 million) or Singapore (population 5.5 million). But international observers might not be too surprised by Ardern’s announcement that ...
One of my earliest political memories is the resignation of Prime Minister David Lange in August 1989. I remember this because of a brown felt-tipped pen drawing I did of the Beehive, the building that houses the Executive of the New Zealand Government. More than thirty years later, we ...
Buzz from the Beehive Hard on the heels of our Buzz from the Beehive earlier today, the PM has made two announcements – the 2023 general election will be held on Saturday 14 October and she will not be campaigning to win a third term as Prime Minister. She will ...
Jacinda Ardern had an outsized impact on New Zealand’s international relations. While all Prime Ministers travel internationally, Ardern’s calendar was fuller than most. Ardern’s first major foreign trip came within weeks of her election in 2017, to the APEC summit in Vietnam. The meeting gave Ardern her first in-person encounter ...
She gave it her all. No New Zealand Prime Minister has ever dominated the political scene at home as she has done, or has established an international profile to match hers. No New Zealand Prime Minister has had to confront such a sequence of domestic and international catastrophes – from ...
Jacinda Ardern's shock resignation announcement today has left a lot of us with a lot of complicated feelings. In my case, while I've been highly critical of Ardern's government, I'm still sorry to see her go. We've had far too many terrible things happen during her term as Prime Minister ...
The decision by Jacinda Ardern to end her term as Prime Minister on February 7 has come as a stunning surprise. It turns the task of a centre-left government winning re-election this year from difficult to nigh on impossible. No-one else among the Labour caucus has Ardern’s ability to explain ...
Jacinda Ardern’s first press conference as Labour leader in August 2017 was a defining moment in the past decade of New Zealand politics. A young woman (by the standards of politics) who had long been tipped for higher office, she had underperformed as a minister and Andrew Little’s noble resignation ...
The tools exist to help families with surging costs – and as costs continue to rise it is more urgent than ever that we use them, the Green Party says. ...
Members of Parliament for the Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand have today written to Iran’s Grand Ayatollah Khamenei to condemn the ongoing violence and killing of women’s rights and democracy protesters, and to call on him to intervene immediately. ...
As the Mayor of Auckland has announced a state of emergency, the Government, through NEMA, is able to step up support for those affected by flooding in Auckland. “I’d urge people to follow the advice of authorities and check Auckland Emergency Management for the latest information. As always, the Government ...
Ka papā te whatitiri, Hikohiko ana te uira, wāhi rua mai ana rā runga mai o Huruiki maunga Kua hinga te māreikura o te Nota, a Titewhai Harawira Nā reira, e te kahurangi, takoto, e moe Ka mōwai koa a Whakapara, kua uhia te Tai Tokerau e te kapua pōuri ...
Carmel Sepuloni, Minister for Social Development and Employment, has activated Enhanced Taskforce Green (ETFG) in response to flooding and damaged caused by Cyclone Hale in the Tairāwhiti region. Up to $500,000 will be made available to employ job seekers to support the clean-up. We are still investigating whether other parts ...
The 2023 General Election will be held on Saturday 14 October 2023, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced today. “Announcing the election date early in the year provides New Zealanders with certainty and has become the practice of this Government and the previous one, and I believe is best practice,” Jacinda ...
Jacinda Ardern has announced she will step down as Prime Minister and Leader of the Labour Party. Her resignation will take effect on the appointment of a new Prime Minister. A caucus vote to elect a new Party Leader will occur in 3 days’ time on Sunday the 22nd of ...
The Government is maintaining its strong trade focus in 2023 with Trade and Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor visiting Europe this week to discuss the role of agricultural trade in climate change and food security, WTO reform and New Zealand agricultural innovation. Damien O’Connor will travel tomorrow to Switzerland to attend the ...
The Government has extended its medium-scale classification of Cyclone Hale to the Wairarapa after assessing storm damage to the eastern coastline of the region. “We’re making up to $80,000 available to the East Coast Rural Support Trust to help farmers and growers recover from the significant damage in the region,” ...
The Government is making an initial contribution of $150,000 to the Mayoral Relief Fund to help communities in Tairāwhiti following ex-Tropical Cyclone Hale, Minister for Emergency Management Kieran McAnulty announced. “While Cyclone Hale has caused widespread heavy rain, flooding and high winds across many parts of the North Island, Tairāwhiti ...
Rural Communities Minister Damien O’Connor has classified this week’s Cyclone Hale that caused significant flood damage across the Tairāwhiti/Gisborne District as a medium-scale adverse event, unlocking Government support for farmers and growers. “We’re making up to $100,000 available to help coordinate efforts as farmers and growers recover from the heavy ...
A vaccine for people at risk of mpox (Monkeypox) will be available if prescribed by a medical practitioner to people who meet eligibility criteria from Monday 16 January, says Associate Minister of Health Dr Ayesha Verrall. 5,000 vials of the vaccine have been obtained, enough for up to 20,000 ...
Or if he did, it might read something like thisVexed, defensive, shouty, Mayor Brown the Second wore the countenance of a man who had just discovered, to his irritation and horror, that he is, you know, the mayor of Auckland. At Saturday’s press conference in response to the record-breaking, ...
When you consider their remote location, perilous terrain and dark, sometimes ugly history, it seems incredible that anyone still lives on Pitcairn Island. But almost 50 people do and, as Graeme Lay discovers, they live very well. The supply ship Claymore II stands off the north coast of Pitcairn Island. ...
In the second of a three-part series on Labour's leadership transition, Elliot Crossan focuses on how Labour's economic handling of the Covid crisis created an explosion in inequality. Read part one here.Opinion: In her emotional resignation speech, Jacinda Ardern described how she no longer had “enough in the tank to do ...
ANALYSIS:By James Renwick, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington The extraordinary flood event Auckland experienced on the night of January 27, the eve of the city’s anniversary weekend, was caused by rainfall that was literally off the chart. Over 24 hours, 249mm of rain fell — well ...
RNZ News Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has acknowledged the way Aucklanders have come together and opened their homes to those in need, with the New Zealand government focused on providing the resources needed to get the city back up and running. The new prime minister — just four days into ...
RNZ News Minister for Emergency Management Kieran McAnulty has asked for communication on support after the severe thunderstorm in Auckland to be stepped up. It comes after a Civil Defence warning text failed to be sent out, and Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown told RNZ they will be reviewing the response, ...
RNZ News Three people are dead and at least one person is missing following the flooding overnight in Auckland, New Zealand’s largest city. About 1000 people were still stranded today after Auckland Airport was closed last night because of flooding of the arrival and departure foyers. Flights were cancelled for ...
Wayne Brown has doubled down on his decision last night to shun the media until close to midnight and only order a state of emergency at 9.30pm. In a defensive display to the media this afternoon, the Auckland mayor was questioned on comments other councillors made last night, including some ...
Prime minister Chris Hipkins has confirmed there are three deaths linked to the extreme weather event in Auckland over the past 24 hours. There is also at least one person missing. Speaking at a press conference in Auckland, Hipkins said the priority was to make sure Aucklanders were safe, housed ...
*This story was first published on The Conversation and is republished with permission*Until New Zealand's stormwater drain system adapts to our rising climate, it will never be able to cope with the level of flooding seen in Auckland on Friday night, writes James Renwick The extraordinary flood event Auckland experienced ...
Due to the “unprecedented weather event” in Auckland, organisers have confirmed the “heartbreaking decision” to cancel this year’s Laneway Festival. “We were so excited to deliver this show to our biggest crowd ever in New Zealand, our team has been working around the clock to do everything they can to ...
Chris Hipkins has experienced his first major event as prime minister, just days into his tenure. He’s spent the day in Auckland alongside emergency services, surveying the damage and assessing next steps. He’s due to speak at 3.15pm alongside Auckland mayor Wayne Brown. Thanks to Stuff, here is a livestream. ...
With the rain easing for a moment, many will be beginning the arduous task of cleaning out their flooded property. Auckland council has release advice for cleaning up after a flood. Cleaning up after a flood It is important to clean and dry your house and everything in it. Floodwater ...
Air New Zealand Chief Operational Integrity and Safety Officer Captain David Morgan says the airline’s domestic flights in and out of Auckland resumed from 12pm today as Auckland Airport re-opens. But he said with a backlog of flights and customers, the priority is those who need to travel urgently. “Those ...
Festival-goers holding on hope for Laneway, set to take place at Western Springs on Monday, will have to wait a bit longer for an official update. A brief post on Facebook this afternoon stated: “Safety is Laneway Festival’s number one priority. With the large weather event Auckland is currently experiencing, ...
Wayne Brown has defended the timing of a declaration of a state of emergency last night following record rainfall in Auckland. “The state of emergency is a prescribed process, it’s quite formal, and I had to wait until I had the official request from the emergency management centre. The moment ...
After the 11th hour cancellation last night, Elton John has cancelled the second concert of his farewell tour at Mt Smart, which had been scheduled for this evening. In a statement, John said: “Following the instruction of the emergency services, we have no option but to cancel tonight’s show in ...
The member of parliament for Mt Albert, Jacinda Ardern, has posted a message on Facebook following the flooding in Auckland. “I’m very conscious that it’s been a while since I posted, and there have been a few big things happening. But today the most important thing is everyone’s wellbeing and ...
Flooding of the runway, the check-in and arrivals areas on the ground floor and surrounding roads has disrupted operations at Auckland International, halting all departures until at least 5pm today, with no arrivals before 4:30am tomorrow. “People are asked not to come to the International Terminal at this time for ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James Renwick, Professor, Physical Geography (climate science), Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington Victoria Park near the Auckland CBD on January 27.Getty Images The extraordinary flood event Auckland experienced on the night of January 27, the eve of the ...
New Zealand’s largest insurance group, IAG, says it is on track to receive more than 1,100 claims from Aucklanders by lunchtime after the city was deluged in the wettest day on record. Those claims, said the group which includes AMI, State and NZI Insurance, span property damage to homes and ...
The rampant flooding in Auckland didn’t just detonate its provincial public holiday weekend – it coincided with the biggest weekend of the year to date for live events. A pair of Elton John concerts at Mt Smart stadium had a combined capacity of over 80,000, while both Laneway at Western ...
Auckland is beginning a clean-up after its wettest day since records began. “Auckland was clobbered on Friday,” said emergency management duty controller Andrew Clark. “We won’t start to get a good idea of numbers affected until later today and, even then, this will take time, with information still coming in ...
The prime minister, Chris Hipkins, is travelling to Auckland after devastating floods hit the city overnight. With the airport out of operation until at least midday, he is landing at Whenuapai air base on a New Zealand Defence Force Hercules aircraft from Wellington. ...
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has arrived in Auckland for a daylong visit to the city following its catastrophic flood on Friday night. Flying in an Air Force Hercules to Whenuapai, Hipkins will spend roughly three hours on the ground assessing flood damage in the city before returning. He will receive ...
A quirk of timing left all Auckland’s institutions on the back foot. But social media, particularly TikTok, graphically showed just how bad the situation was. Late afternoon on a Friday is known as time to quietly drop bad news. You have the plausible deniability of it happening during work hours, ...
It’s a common sight during summer. It’s also a recipe for disaster.I recently drove with my family from New Plymouth to Tāmaki Makaurau and, just like how I lost count of how many cows I saw on the way, I lost count of how many cars had a passenger ...
Opinion - Election year has begun with a bang, and already the punditry and speculation are ramping up, but Grant Duncan warns not to treat polls as gospel. ...
New Zealand’s new prime minister, Chris Hipkins, is formally facing down an emergency just a few days after being sworn in, summoning the National Crisis Management Centre to the Beehive. The Beehive Bunker is being stood up to help with coordination of the emergency response in Auckland. I’ve asked ...
Analysis - Jacinda Ardern is one of New Zealand's most historically significant leaders. But she did not achieve the grand vision for Aotearoa her outsized rhetoric promised. ...
Brits abroad can be an asset to Aotearoa - but only if we make an effort to engage with te ao Māori, writes Scottish expat Fran Barclay Earlier this week, the UK High Commissioner signalled a promising intention to address the barriers facing young Māori and Pasifika who aspire to ...
"They want the Māoris out": provincial life in NZShe hadn’t learned to shut her mouth. Howard was tired of Councillor Kemp harping on and on and on. He pushed himself deeper into the boardroom chair and leaned back as far as he could force it. This woman had ranted ...
Positive affirmation quotes often aren’t helpful for tāngata whai ora. But taking the piss out of them can be. Early in January, on the first day of what would be a week of staying in bed with the curtains pulled, I put a disappointingaffirmations Instagram post up on my stories. ...
Ellen Rykers visits Mahakirau Forest Estate, ‘a crown jewel in the Coromandel Range’, where pest control is serious business.This is an excerpt from our weekly environment newsletter Future Proof – sign up here. The Mahakirau Forest Estate is not your average subdivision. Enter through its tall ...
As Auckland tackles severe floods and the city’s airport emerges from a deluge on both the runway and in terminals, Air New Zealand has confirmed that no flights will leave or arrive before noon on Saturday at the earliest. In a statement, the airline said anyone booked for a flight ...
RNZ News Mayor Wayne Brown has shut down criticism that he was too slow in declaring a state of emergency after severe flooding in Auckland, New Zealand’s largest city. In a media stand-up late on Friday evening, Brown said he was following advice from experts and as soon as they ...
The Prime Minister has gone down to the Beehive bunker to help coordinate the emergency response, as the Insurance Council warns some Aucklanders whose homes and business are flooded face very hard times ahead. Jonathan Milne reports.Comment: Standing by the south-western motorway, I watched in dismay as hundreds of cars ...
Auckland’s mayor Wayne Brown said he declared an emergency in Auckland as soon as he possibly could – and he made the decision without listening to the “clamour” of the public. There has been some criticism of the mayor for his relative silence today throughout the deadly flooding that’s hit ...
A state of emergency has been declared in Auckland as severe weather causes major flooding across much of the city. It’s expected the rain will continue into the morning. This post will be updated as more information is shared.What does a state of emergency mean? A state of emergency ...
Welcome to a special late night edition of The Spinoff’s live updates as Auckland enters a state of emergency. Stewart Sowman-Lund is on deck, with help from our news team.The top linesAuckland is in a state of emergency. It will remain in place for seven ...
Prime minister Chris Hipkins is pleased the call was made to declare a state of emergency in Auckland. All government agencies were working “flat out” to help in what was an “extraordinary set of circumstances”, Hipkins said in a tweet. “The emergency response is underway and the government is ready ...
Auckland’s mayor Wayne Brown has released a statement following the decision to declare a state of emergency in Auckland. Brown has faced criticism this evening for his relative silence throughout today’s major flooding, with the first public pronouncement of the state of emergency coming from his deputy. Brown said the ...
Christopher Luxon has criticised the time it took for the state of emergency in Auckland to be declared. The National Party leader is currently in Southland, but told Today FM he intends to get back to Auckland as soon as possible. Earlier in the night, Luxon sent a tweet “urging” ...
Here is, verbatim, that latest information we have from Civil Defence on tonight’s state of emergency in Auckland: Auckland Emergency Management has opened a Civil Defence Centre to assist those that have been displaced or need assistance following today’s severe weather. The centre is open now and is based at ...
Severe flooding has ravaged Auckland today but the mayor of the city is barely visible. As I write, the airport has flooded, check-in areas looking like a public pool. Motorways are overflowing and cars have been seen floating down streets like a river. A person has died in floodwaters in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Treasurer Jim Chalmers has laid out an economic blueprint for pursuing “values-based capitalism”, involving public-private co-investment and collaboration and the renovation of key economic institutions and markets. In a 6000-word essay in The Monthly ...
This is live coverage of the developing situation in Auckland. We will continue to update this with photos and information as it comes to hand. After a day of torrential rain, and new reports of at least one death in the flood water, a state of emergency has been declared ...
Fans are describing Auckland Transport's plans to help them get to and from Elton John's concerts in the supercity this weekend as a fiasco with tonight's concert now cancelled due to the weather. Two concerts were due at Mt Smart Stadium before tonight's concert was called off in the face ...
A state of emergency has been declared in Auckland due to severe flooding that has caused people to evacuate their homes. It was officially declared at 9.54pm. Meanwhile, Auckland Airport has closed its international terminal check-in due to flooding inside the building. The airport says it is sincerely sorry to ...
RNZ News Residents in flood-prone areas of West Auckland are being asked to prepare to evacuate as bad weather causes power cuts and car crashes across Tāmaki Makaurau, with a severe thunderstorm watch in place for the north of Aotearoa New Zealand. Auckland Emergency Management said the severe weather across ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Ward, Postdoctoral research fellow, The University of Queensland Five years ago, bulldozers with chains cleared forests and woodlands almost triple the size of the Australian Capital Territory in a single year. Brazil? Indonesia? No – much closer: Queensland. In 2018-19, ...
Auckland Transport has apologised for confusing messaging that suggested attendees of tonight’s Elton John concert should drive. In a post on Facebook last night, AT said “driving to the concert is recommended” – a suggestion that prompted backlash due to the lack of parking options near the stadium. The announcement ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Steven Tingay, John Curtin Distinguished Professor (Radio Astronomy), Curtin University Asteroid 20223 BU’s path in red, with green showing the orbit of geosynchronous satellites.NASA/JPL-Caltech There are hundreds of millions of asteroids in our Solar System, which means new asteroids are discovered ...
In his memoir Spare, Prince Harry revealed he attended the future King and Queen of England’s wedding with a frostbitten penis. A veteran of Antarctic expeditions says it’s not an issue that crops up often, if at all.Now that the avalanche of coverage about the Duke of Sussex’s memoir ...
A new poem by Wellington poet and publisher Ash Davida Jane. objects in the mirror are closer than they appear if a dog digs in the right spot and unearths a rib what do I care if a woman grows from that bone take her in and tend to her ...
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.AUCKLAND1Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan (Grove Press, $25) Everyone’s chowing down on fiction ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Susan Hazel, Associate Professor, School of Animal and Veterinary Science, University of Adelaide schankz/Shutterstock Have you ever worried if the play between your cats was getting too rough? A new study published in Scientific Reports has investigated play and fighting ...
More water than anything else, the cucumber is the perfect counter to intense and fiery flavours. Cucumber is without a doubt the most refreshing vegetable*, the antidote to hot summer days. At 95% water, a cucumber is basically an edible, crunchy, waste-free water bottle. Beside water, the cucumber has almost ...
REVIEW:By Rowan Callick Radio Australia was conceived at the beginning of the Second World War out of Canberra’s desire to counter Japanese propaganda in the Pacific. More than 70 years later its rebirth is being driven by a similarly urgent need to counter propaganda, this time from China. Set ...
The yellow brick road to Mt Smart stadium looks to be packed this weekend as thousands travel to dual Elton John concerts In the words of pop royal Elton John, “I think it’s going to be a long, long time” - in this case for the 40,000 odd concert-goers driving ...
The decision by Sport Northland to deny 'Stop Co-Governance', a community group, use of their Whangarei venue to hold a public meeting is illegal and defies the rights given to all Kiwis to voice their political opinions. This case, yet again, illustrates ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rolf Gerritsen, Professorial Research Fellow, Northern Institute, Charles Darwin University The supposed dimensions of the “crisis” in Alice Springs have been exhaustively portrayed in the media, both nationally and in the Northern Territory. The stories abound: shopfront windows repeatedly broken, groups of ...
Children’s Commissioner, Judge Frances Eivers: "Myself and previous Commissioners have been clear that the use of motels at all is deplorable, and a symptom of a system that is failing children. "Concerns around the practice have been raised repeatedly ...
Everything you need to know to get through the chaotic commute to to the Elton John concert in Tāmaki Mākaurau this weekend. Fans heading to Elton John’s concerts at Mt Smart Stadium this weekend have been advised to drive or walk thereby Auckland Transport (AT). In a Facebook post ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tamara Borovica, Research assistant and early career researcher, Critical Mental Health research group, RMIT University Shutterstock If your new year’s resolutions include getting healthier, exercising more and lifting your mood, dance might be for you. By dance, we don’t ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Julie Andrews, Professor and Academic Director (Indigenous Research), La Trobe University ShutterstockAboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised this article contains names and images of deceased people. Many people do not know about the early activism undertaken ...
Finance minister Grant Robertson has opted to go list-only for the upcoming election, meaning he will not seek to be re-elected as MP for Wellington Central. It opens up the door for a swift exit from politics should Labour lose the election; without an electorate, no byelection would be triggered ...
Tory Whanau told The Spinoff’s When The Facts Change podcast that National’s transport spokesperson would push Wellington ‘backwards’ if he becomes transport minister.Wellington’s left-leaning mayor is worried her plans for the city could be scuppered by a new National-led government – and specifically by the party’s most likely candidate ...
Thousands of people are expected to flock to Auckland’s Western Springs on Monday for the triumphant return of the Laneway Festival. But with severe weather warnings in place, is it going to be reduced to a Splendour in the Grass-style “hellscape”? According to the organisers, no. In an email sent ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robert G. Patman, Professor of International Relations, University of Otago A German Leopard 2 heavy battle tank of the type destined for Ukraine.Getty Images The recent decision by Olaf Scholz’s German government to supply Ukraine with Leopard 2 tanks – after ...
Two insights from Stuff this morning (I don't need to link to the home page do I?):
One is from Steven Joyce, and after translation it basically says "I prepared this rant earlier but had to hastily rewrite it on Saturday evening after the government's response, and that's why it makes no sense". It would save him – and us – time if he was honest and just said "I don't know what they're going to do next but I'm already against it, because that's my job".
The second is from a Covid-19 patient, and after translation it basically says "Joyce has no idea what he's talking about". That one *is* worth reading.
I won't waste my time reading it. The man who was the gNatz wonderboy, but who actually fucked up everything he touched – from the Ministry for Everything to Novapay.
…… about as 'innovative' as a degree in animal buggery
Linking to each article is not hard. Which are on the home page changes all the time.
You have to admit that Steven Joyce makes an excellent point about how the PGF could be better spent during a crises like what we are facing. And Liam Danns comment that the government should spend 2.5 billion seems almost miserly.
but 2.5b plus the 2b balance that appears to be left in the PGF would make 4.5b, which is the equivalent of almost 7 weeks of international tourism spending, which would be an amazing start given the travel restrictions
I don't think it's an excellent point at all. On Tuesday the government will announce a major economic package, which will inevitably include support for businesses in the regions, especially those reliant on tourism.
It doesn't matter in the slightest if that is called the Shane Jones Fund or the Totally Different Steven Joyce Fund. It's government cash to save jobs.
What Joyce forgets to say is "this is possible because I was wrong about the 11 billion dollar hole, sorry, my bad".
He also manages to tout his brilliance without once acknowledging that borrowing more is not only an option, but now a short-term necessity. Again, that would require a large helping of humble pie, which Joyce can never stomach.
Blah blah blah My names observer and I don’t like Steven Joyce so he can’t be right about anything.
Infantile bullshit
why borrow when useless spending can be reallocated?
Why borrow? Because even if every cent was allocated to everything you want, that would be nowhere near enough.
Listen to Wayne on the Covid19 thread:
"I reckon the govt will need around $40 billion in economic stimulus over the next twelve months. Current annual govt receipts are around $100 billion. These will drop to $60 to 80 billion as the economy retracts, but the govt will need to spend at least $120 billion, instead of the planned $100 billion.
It will push up govt debt to around 50 to 60% of GDP.
But there is no choice."
Who said don’t borrow? You may have assumed that I meant it’s only a binary choice, it isn’t. Borrow freely. Just don’t borrow to protect non-essential or essentially wasteful current spending.
It's great that you are keeping an eye and advising on this observer. It's beyond some people's IQ limit to comprehend.
Really? Just like Joyce, I don’t think you’re any good with bigly numbers.
You’re right, I overestimated the spend of international tourists.
4.5b would account for 13.6 weeks of lost international tourist spending. Which makes it even better value for money.
https://www.mbie.govt.nz/immigration-and-tourism/tourism-research-and-data/tourism-data-releases/tourism-and-the-economy/
Which takes us close to the peak of the expected pandemic in NZ and provides for the whole country and not just NZ1’s favourite provinces
Thank goodness for a sane government like ours.
Meanwhile in the UK….
Boris Johnson would appear to be playing Russian roulette with the lives of the vulnerable in the U.K.
The Tory government's plan assumes catching the virus gives you immunity. This is not yet proven (indeed anecdotally not true) and potentially a major flaw in the plan.
As the article below argues, “The human species never developed “herd immunity” to polio or smallpox or any virus, really — ever, despite millennia of death and illness and misery.”
The British government’s Coronavirus strategy, in other words, is founded on the most surreal and astonishing kind of pseudoscience.
They think that everyone getting sick magically confers resistance on a nation. That is not how disease works. Herd immunity is what happens after large-scale vaccination, as a viral infection subsides."
https://eand.co/why-britains-coronavirus-strategy-is-literally-one-of-the-most-insane-things-in-modern-history-45c755f1db2d
well it would kill the NHS – great for selling this awesome assett
it would kill a whole bunch of old people, invalids, chronic ill people etc etc, also win.
We only have human rights because we give them to us, and when we then consider that others need less rights in order for us to survive, then that is the reaction you get. I would like to point out that Boris Johnson is simply mimicking the Shitface of the US who also would like for people to continue as if there is nothing and if they get ill they should either die quick and silently or heal themselves in their hovels and then go back to work.
Do keep up.
The sacrifice of those old who die, and those poor who make capitalism so profitable. Boris is just channeling his Balliol Etonian education, training boys to run both the class order and empire.
And so soon after his gratitude to the north for not trusting in socialist answers.
Heh.
The thought occurred of a comparison with those societies that had traditions (often just colonial fantasies) of leaving their weak – the old, injured, or feeble babies – to die in the elements for the good of the community, culling the non-producers as it were.
Tory capitalism does that too, and blames the victims for their own demise.
We don't know how Lucky we are !
Yes – we have got all the gormless gluttons of the National Party to put up with – but we do not have the everlasting Eccentricity of the English.
Boris Johnson the most absurd leader of the 60 Million English, has ditched Science, has vomited and shat on common sense, and made himself and every member of Merry England a global laughing Stock.
Read this:
Why Britain’s Coronavirus Strategy is Literally One of the Most Insane Things in Modern History.
See: Ed – above!
The same writer explains why America’s response to coronavirus is s.o abysmal.
And the answer in one word.
Capitalism.
https://eand.co/why-is-americas-response-to-coronavirus-so-abysmal-beda56829aa8
Indeed, it was a superb comment from Ed.
The official advice from the NHS/government in the UK doesn't quite match Ed's link.
https://www.gov.uk/government/topical-events/coronavirus-covid-19-uk-government-response
Seems some take Boris' idiotic riffing as official policy.
The danger of believing mischievous edits and random posts on the internet.
Perhaps get actual transcripts of what people are saying and/or go to the official government health site for info.
https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/uk-news/boris-johnsons-coronavirus-speech-full-17915183
Boris on Coronavirus – 'Corona' is Latin for Crown, based on the apparent 'crown' of peptid spikes when a spherical virus was viewed through a two dimensional microscope by an excitable microbiologist. Covid19 is more informative.
https://www.conservativehome.com/frontpage/2020/03/newslinks-for-saturday-14th-march-2020.html
So you think everyone arriving in NZ from tonight onwards is going self – isolate for 14 days ….. Ha Ha Ha
How , within the family home , in a hotel , in a hut in the forest ?
Perhaps utilise this method from Israel ?
'Israel to Track Coronavirus Patients' Phones as Cases Spike to 193'
ttps://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/coronavirus-cases-in-israel-spike-to-164-nearly-2-500-medical-officials-quarantined-1.8671075
I've had to cancel an overseas trip as it would have meant going somewhere, spending 2 weeks in a hotel room, then coming home again.
I urgently needed to come back to NZ for family matters, but now it's impractical for the same reason. There will be millions of similar decisions people will have to make, that will collectively pile up consequences everywhere.
Please read up on what is happening before your "ha ha ha".
Will everyone self-isolate? No. But everyone will be be able to be tracked. The latest patient spells this out very clearly in his story. It worked.
It's the weakest debating point to say not "everyone" wears a seat belt in a car so we shouldn't bother making it compulsory. A rule is introduced, the vast majority follow it, and risk is reduced. You won't get universal compliance outside a dystopian dictatorship, but that's no reason to do nothing.
Thank you but I have been reading and reading and reading for weeks ….
Human nature is the problem. What I am waiting to see now is someone I know is coming home to NZ from the States in about a weeks time. He already has said he will self isolate FOR A WEEK …… Question? Does his wife stock up the house and leave the car at the airport then him home alone for 14 days , because if she doesn't and he gets sick then she too becomes a victim ? Will be interesting to see what happens.
Janet, re your friend……seriously dob him in. Exercise your civic duty if someone is suspected of not obeying isolation rules……they can then be quaranteened.
There are very good guidelines on the MOH Covid 19 website regarding self isolation and living with others……….
I am waiting for some savvy tourist operators to offer self isolation holidays in some of NZ. lovely spots. A stand alone home, with places to walk, swimming pool etc in the middle of nowhere. Food delivered. Wouldn't be too bad.
Janet – there is, no doubt, some existing legislation that would allow for confinement in a prison cell for more than 14 days for those who don't give a stuff about the safety of others.
I have read the advice that others in the house with someone who is self-isolating but not showing signs of illness can go about their ordinary round, but keep a distance, a metre I think, and the person would be expected to mostly stay in their room, have separate bathroom if possible. Separate cutlery, crockery, glasses, cups etc. Surfaces, door handles, light switches, given a damp wipe and dried. Thinking about using tissues to handle CDs, all that would control spots of possible transmission if there was infection.
Good hygiene, hand washing routine, paper towels might be best. Towels haven't been mentioned, but damp hand towels used twice would be good carriers. Separate everything soap, toothpaste, toothbrush for the person, is the expectation for people to behave like sensible and responsible citizens.
I haven't seen this set out in a list, just a general mention. But it would be useful to point to it for those who are living with someone in self-isolation. They shouldn't have to be doing all the instructing.
Ten thousand people have already managed to self-isolate in NZ.
And there's always the big stick.
https://www.health.govt.nz/our-work/diseases-and-conditions/notifiable-diseases/summary-infectious-disease-management-under-health-act-1956
Will not help people to do it though. Many forms of support are needed.
I'd be concerned about those among the (high risk) elderly … who are self-isolating, few if any savings & living from pension to pension, with little fridge-freezer space.
They won't be able to stock up in a major way … instead they'll need groceries delivered to their door every 2 or 4 weeks … & they'll need to know whether or not to disinfect shopping bags & grocery packaging from contamination (and if so … precisely how)..
Need some methodical, well-organised widely-publicised plan.
True, a properly-protected delivery service (for the drivers as well) would help. Hoping someone in govt other than public health are able to manage this sort of thing – not enough of them.
will be needed but unlikely to eventuate given that the elderly support services are unable to find the staff to provide for the existing cliental…but then i suspect you already know that
Although the dickhead who got sick and flew here before he got the (positive) test results should be done for something like criminal nuisance.
Yeah.
The people gloating about being able to fly in before the isolation deadline, so, "they could go straight back to work" seem to be, at best, ignorant, as well.
Best excuse to go sailing, ever!
But wash your hands after touching mainsheet and tiller!
@Janet (5) … You have obviously missed something. Please go back and read the PM's statement on how the self isolation will be practised and monitored.
Idiots went and bought up all the hand sanitiser they could find. Amazon and eBay shut the door on their profiteering. TradeMe?
Now, while millions of people across the country search in vain for hand sanitizer to protect themselves from the spread of the coronavirus, Mr. Colvin is sitting on 17,700 bottles of the stuff with little idea where to sell them.
http://archive.li/v1DKw
Easy solution is to get their own website and drive traffic using Google search. Take money through Stripe. They are in the US so plenty of options.
I think his choice of t shirt self advertising is instructive – Family Man, Family Business. So USA!
This lovely entrepreneur tells us he is doing a public service for which he is being paid. What a Communally Heroic Underestimated Male Person.
Dopey prick thought it was a good idea to tell the world his name. And now he's getting death threats, prank pizza deliveries and people are camped up outside his home.
https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/local/story/2020/mar/14/hixson-man-hopes-donating-hand-sanitizer-death-threats/518204/
Contrast with Asiyah and Jawad, who're dishing out sanitary bits and bobs to their elderly customers.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/coronavirus-face-masks-hand-gel-scotland-uk-outbreak-a9397781.html
CHUMP indeed. Well said there 🙂
Who will be the bank to donate a portion of additional funds made from the tap n go feature on credit/eftpos cards during the virus of 2020? There are multiple community charities in serious need that support people in a myriad of ways.
From memory retailers pay $0.80 per transaction where you don't enter your pin to avoid germs and opt to tap instead. They must be swimming in transaction fees with people stocking up.
I think you are exaggerating the fee. I think it is, based on this article, about 1.1% on debit cards. Your number would imply an average transaction of about $90. This is above the maximum amount of $80 for such transactions.
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2019/10/07/846601/banks-on-notice-over-no-paywave-dysfunction-1
Doesn't mean I approve of the size of the fee mind. I think it is obscene and I have told my bank in writing that I never use the feature and will object to any charge that has not been approved with a pin entry. Don't know how I would get on if one came up mind but I will complain to the Banking Ombudsman if it was to happen.
Correction. Average transaction would have ti be about $73. That is less than the maximum of $80 but not by much.
Thick finger problem with the divide and multiply keys on a calculator.
In the USA, people are going round buying up all the hand sanitizers they can find and selling it on Ebay/Amazon at extortionate prices.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/14/technology/coronavirus-purell-wipes-amazon-sellers.html?action=click&module=Spotlight&pgtype=Homepage
Fair enough. I have it on good authority we're put on planet earth to make as much money as we can.
When things calm down those who've made a bundle in that scheme can be honoured at the White House.
Don't they have soap over there?
It is a distinctly Kiwi form of voluntary self-isolation being proposed. Voluntary for those who agree, compulsory for everyone else. Just like school camps really.
What's this about a racehorse called Coronavirus ?
It sounds like a mean critter ..
Seems we may have a cruise ship with corona virus on board. Seize the ship reassign it to be a dedicated floating corona virus hospital ! It won,t have anything better to do for a while .
Coronavirus isolation on a cruise ship in port. What could possibly go wrong?
It's at anchor. No alongside berths for cruise ships in Akaroa.
Assumed that Janet's idea of turning it into a floating isolation hospital would involve it being taken somewhere where it could dock at a wharf or quayside (like the Diamond Princess in Japan). All in all a pretty terrible idea …
Yeah. Cruise ships are notorious for disease outbreaks already. Cabins too small, plumbing not ideal for preventing virus spread, same with ventilation systems, and multiple common systems like big kitchens and services that are obvious points of weakness.
Almost as bad as aircraft.
Maybe the government could exchange health services for lease of a cruise ship for the homeless.
Japanese tried that. Worth a go, big mistake.
And this little nugget from the Guardian. Privatising elective surgery while allowing the NHS to be potentially overrun by coronavirus because social distancing is not being promoted. Great way to use available medical staff and resources.
Fortunately I can see other sectors of the UK just ignoring Boris and getting on with suppressing high risk activities.
“NHS England will this week issue new guidance to hospitals and clinical commissioning groups on working with the private sector to carry out more non-urgent operations on NHS patients to free up beds”.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/14/coronavirus-nhs-private-hospitals-join-forces-academics-warn-over-strategy
Janet, our fantastic early acting PM ensured that none of those people were allowed to dis embark last night. Isn’t that/she good.
Say your pwayers, wiwuss!
Crisis do bring out both the best and worst in people. As this event progresses expect weird and upsetting things happen.
Skyped with a friend in LA this AM. The shelves at his local supermarket are empty.
Another mate in Ostrava, Czech Republic, said there's panic buying going on, mostly non-perishable foodstuffs. But not toilet paper, yet.
I can't get my head around this toilet paper thing. Seems so non-sensical.
Lubbock TX' s Mr. Conservative has it all worked out.
I must have missed the Democrats regularly speaking of limiting the American people's access to toilet paper. Are they getting big donations from bidet suppliers or something?
Wingnuts made a big thing of running out of toilet paper in Venezuela too. Some sort of toilet-related early childhood deep trauma makes a conservative, perhaps?
Yes. When our base assessment is, "We're in the shit", or "Oh shit!", toilet paper is front and centre
.
Ahhh! That explains it all. Toilet paper, guns, and ammo.
Not like the old days …
"In days of old,
when knights were bold
And paper not invented
They wiped their A***
Along the grass
And walked away contented."
Now days the knights are not so bold.
Macro @ (14.1.1.1.1.2) …
Way to go.
I just use the garden hose and a leaf blower.
For what?
Fireblade
My partner and I just cracked up with laughter – whether you are kidding us or actually are doing this the imagination ran away with us. We all need a bloody good laugh in times like this up. Keep up those comments.
Fireblade @(14.1.1.1.2) … Love it. That’s's an idea we might all have to resort to. Be great for the environment too.
Don't like the leaf blowing bit though. 😯
Oooo – the Czechs seem to be doing it right, then. Sensible panic, not stoopid panik.
Gezz! WTF! They must be amazing telescopic sights to be able to detect a virus.
They are gonna shoot down any invading foreign virus they see? Right?
The guns are for use on their fellow citizens. If your own philosophy is "Every man for himself and devil take the hindmost," you figure everyone else is thinking the same way so you'll need to protect yourself from those motherfuckers in a crisis. The idea that we might cooperate for the benefit of all rather than immediately collapsing into a wasteland of looters and murderers is foreign to them.
Well yes I suspected as much. But you know in a crisis there is always hope.
And in the USA, hope and heavily-armed conservatives!
Funny thing is, not even yanks are as bad in real crises as their popculture or gun-hoarding would indicate. Like most people, they tend to cooperate more than beat and rob.
Unfortunately. It only takes a few.
I wonder how many of the queuers are exposing themselves to infection as they queue.
If you've got a big stack of toilet paper, you're sure as hell going to defend it. Seems logical.
They're losing it.
#PanicShopping
Vegans will inherit the earth. Coz they're the only ones that will still be able to buy food.
https://slate.com/business/2020/03/coronavirus-groceries-supermarket.html
Oh, and pork. Nobody wants pork. Fuck knows why.
Yo wut – is there cheap pork? Count me in for some of that.
From the photo and what you've told us of your consumption habits, there's prob'ly only enough for a day or two.
My God, this self-isolation thing is looking more and more like a recipe for future PTSD.
If they welded you in.
The government should not be able to weld you into your own home
I could totally never have guessed that this might at some point become something that needed pointing out.
oh dear
Note the spacings between people. Are all gun-toters that anti-social, or have they been listening at least in part to the advice?
Me, I sits in the gunfighter's corner of the bar-room where I git to see everyone, and no-one gits ahind of me, far away from the spittoon…..
This will certainly test the nimbleness and planning ability of sports administrators.
1. Kudos to the Phoenix for anticipating and planning for having to play remaining games in Oz (in front of no crowds albeit no home semi-final now possible).
2. Super Rugby …
Maybe they should consider bumping up the schedule for the remaining games between home teams and hold those.
3. UK Rugby and Football …
After a break return to completing the 2019-2020 season later in the 2020 calendar year. Consider reducing the 2020-2021 comp into one with one round.
The Republicans are silent
They have gone through the upside down mongrel speech, by which their beloved Idiot, Donald Trump, bypasses anyone in the Globe at any time.
But the Donald is not the real Nitwit. He suffers from a horrendous gulf ball disorder, and has lost any normal brain power. Although he does keep his everlasting Bullying. Possibly other pastimes too.
The real Brainless lot are the Republicans. They don't know sickness from vomit. They don't even know their own names. For they do not Speak.
They are a Virus in upside down action. And have no intention of doing anything for this collapsed United States of America.
Stupidity is all they have. Republicans only ever want Stupidity.
Farrar watch:
A few thoughts…he's distancing himself and his paymasters from their recent politicising of the government response. He's doing this by collectivising and relabelling it "public" pressure.
My recollection of recent days is that the public haven't said anything much – just a couple of entrepreneurs, one a toymaker, Mowbray, and the other the Trademe guy Sam Morgan.
There's been plenty of media pressure of course but they are in the business of creating controversy in order to sell papers.
I think Farrar and National are happy to see the economy tank as much as possible under Labour's watch – he'll use it closer to election.
The virus situation is getting scary. We are fortunate to live in NZ right now, but I'm very anxious and frightened to be honest.
Please take care everyone.
For what it's worth I completely empathise with that; it's entirely normal and justified to be at anxious about this.
Two thoughts. People naturally vary in their response to negative events and threat. Some people just shrug it off, others are intensely affected and most people lie on a spectrum between. Don't be disconcerted by others who don't react like you do; sometimes strong fear is useless and paralysing, other times it's informative and drives the correct response. Only with hindsight do we know which people were right.
Don't run away from it, confront it now, find out as much as you can and try to understand what is really happening. Treat it as an interesting opportunity to learn. Get the emotional impact over early, before any potential crisis really hits home, and if and when the virus does hit you'll be much stronger and more likely to deal with it rationally.
Sorry if this sounds a bit bromidey, but I hope it is of some help.
Cheers
Thanks for your comments RedLogix.
Newshub has an article about anxiety and mental health issues associated with Covid-19.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2020/03/fear-of-coronavirus-putting-pressure-on-mental-health-services.html
Time to turbo charge the role of unions in the workplace again? At least( even if it is by skype) there would be a freer and more realistic discussion of who is going to suffer and how much they will need instead of an employer driven profit focus. Heaven forbid but places may decide to allocate the funds available for wages rather more equitably so the top end takes the biggest hit – why not?
David Farrar: "’Im much more satisfied with the Government’s response to the Coronavirus pandemic than I was a week ago."
I
d
i
o
t.
I'm sure that the Prime Minister was eagerly monitoring the situation and is now greatly relieved that her government's response to this crisis has lately achieved some level of satisfaction from that fucking tool.
And meanwhile the est Dems and MSM liberal media continue to demand that everyone go along with their bizzaro Alice in Wonderland craziness….although it seems plenty of people on TS are happy as pigs in shit to go along with their weird fantasy make believe world, says volumes about how easy it is to corral huge parts of any population..pretty depressing to witness in real time though…
So you're saying potential Sanders voters are easily led by the media? You're so special you can see through it all and not be affected. If only everyone would be like you, though you know what they say when it's everyone else that's crazy and you're the only sane one.
Looking at all the polls, which broadly mirror those in Illinois, it really does, for better or worse, seem like a clear rejection by the voters of Bernie's run.
From real clear politics.
Illinois Democratic Primary:
Emerson – Biden 57, Sanders 36, Biden +21
Gravis – Biden 63, Sanders 25, Biden +38
What are saying? that you seriously don't see that Biden is suffering from some kind of age related cognitive decline?..you don't have to be special to see that obvious truth.. just have eyes that can see and ears that can listen..I assume you are still in possession of those facilities..maybe try using them for a change.
You have to be pretty special to make that the biggest egg in your omlette.
Even if it were anything other than the cognitive bias of the left's equivalent of the Ancient Mariner, voters do seem to prefer to vote for Biden.
biggest egg in your omlette.
Given that POTUS has their finger on the entire US nuclear arsenal; it seems a pretty big egg to me. And there are plenty of video clips out there showing Biden behaving quite erratically under pressure.
Wouldn't it be ironic if the world came to look back on Trump with a nostalgic fondness ….
Biden's managed to get down to two candidates in the primaries without a dozen sexual assault allegations and stopping a debate to assure the nation his penis is of adequate size.
When you hit rock bottom, everywhere is up.
Jeeze search engines are amazing. Given the left insist there is zero excuse for this sort of thing, the Dems really do have to dump him.
And as low as Trump is, it’s a failure of imagination to think he is the worst humans can be. Rock bottom is a fair bit further down the stack of turtles man.
I'm sure there can be worse people than dolt45. They'd have to make a massive effort, though. And Biden ain't anywhere close.
Not in sexual assault allegations, not in "erratic behaviour", and not in gross incompetence. .
So unlike a whole bunch of other accused men I can think of, you're giving Biden a free pass on the sexual allegations because … Democrat?
Who says free pass?
I'm just saying that a dude who isn't on audio boasting about grabbing women by the pussy is a step up from the current guy, and people seem to be voting for the small step up (in that regard) rather than voting for the nice guy who managed to use his political skills in senate to name a couple of post offices and get a CoL increase for veterans.
I'm just saying that a dude who isn't on audio boasting about grabbing women by the pussy
Correct me if I'm wrong, but have any of the women involved come forward with assault allegations? By contrast we have a number of women making direct allegations of inappropriate behaviour around Biden and the left insists that all women must be believed all the time. Except apparently when Democrat.
The lack of moral consistency is kind of obvious. Personally I've always argued that the sexual interactions between the sexes is complex, nuanced and fraught; this is an arena where we should tread cautiously and with proportionality. But whenever I've openly advocated this, I've been shouted down as a virtual rape apologist.
You're joking, right? Did you forget it all, or were you not paying attention?
Use your fabled google powers. The extensive list of allegations against the current oaf even has its own wikipedia page. And yeah, it goes well beyond what women have complained about with Biden. I know this doesn't compute for you, you've previously made that very clear.
But hey, Sanders is the better human being. Trouble is, Biden is the better politician and people are voting for him. In a perfect world Sanders would already be president and running for reelection.
Yes there is a solid history of these allegations. I was careless in framing that point. Still the point remains, if the same allegations raised against Biden were made against any Republican, there would be a massive left wing response.
Well, depending on intent he's close to the Al Franken Line, sure.
Does he meet it? Probably not. Should people vote for Sanders instead? Well, probably. But if Sanders can't beat a degenerate senile Cosby-esque fiend like Biden, how the fuck will he beat a fiendishly clever totally healthy and completely nonracist nonsexist non-rapist demigod like dolt45? You can't vaccinate against covid-19 with "I told you so" any more than you can vaccinate against covid-19 with the flu vaccine, no matter what people with a natural talent for science might say.
And by some number if you look at the recent polling data.
Quite clearly, I'm saying the voters appear to have made up their minds, and despite your best intentions otherwise, it's almost done for Bernie.
The interesting thing, which you didn't pick up on, is how the media can sway the democratic voters, but not you. Surely if one believes in the message, it doesn't disappear with negative election ads, after all, it hasn't for you, has it?
All that shows, to me, is the Sander's vote from '16 was anti Hilary and not much more. It says heaps about the electorate as a whole they prefer someone with "age related cognitive decline" to the alternative. Politics is always about the numbers, and those landslide opinion polls speak so much louder than your rhetoric.
Yeah. The unrelenting propaganda against Sanders has no effect, of course.
But then you and Thornton haven't fallen for it, have you? So are you saying those who voted Bernie in 2016 are thick and easily led?
Given that I strongly supported Sanders in 2016 (against considerable pushback here I might add) … then yes I think that is exactly what KJT must be implying
We all know that well funded, "rightish" campaigns, are not above using psychological techniques from advertising, combined with outright lies, to remain in power.
That doesn't say that people are thick.
It says that the manipulation and propaganda techniques, especially when there is a lot of money to pay for them, are too good.
It would be much better for democracy, if that money was kept out of politics.
It wasn't long ago that the people here, claiming Biden is the result of "well informed" voters, were claiming that the working class voters that voted for Brexit, were manipulated thicko's. Cognitive dissonance, much!
They call Sanders a commie, and they call Biden doolally. Meh.
I'm not going along with anything, not being a yanker and all.
If I said the things I say in here in some counties I could be looking at the inside of a cell before sunrise. Many of us could be. Traitor! Your case will be heard in 2023.
I miss John Clarke, I think we should produce a $17 dollar note in his honour. I think he is our John Lennon. We don't know how lucky we are.
I think money collectors the world over would be intrigued by a limited run official NZ Govt $17 dollar note. A device to embrace the memory of one of our most favorite square pegs in a round hole.
We need to find some creative ways of keeping the overseas dollar flowing…without touching.
gangster state
Getting real.
– Police began closing off access to the Philippines’ sprawling and densely populated capital of Manila on Sunday, imposing a quarantine that officials hope will curb the nation’s rising number of coronavirus cases.
Officers armed with rifles blocked off main roads into the city of some 12 million as domestic flights to and from Manila were halted early Sunday for a monthlong isolation of the capital.
Mass gatherings and school at all levels have also been called off, but delays and exceptions have led public health experts to question how effective President Rodrigo Duterte’s measures will be.
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2020/03/15/asia-pacific/philippines-manila-coronavirus-infections-doubles/#.Xm3vnHLRWUk
Good. Now if the WHO had not entirely blown it's credibility the past two months, what I would want to see is a set of standard global rules that enforced a common set of travel rule, social distancing and shut down of non-core economic activity … across the whole planet …. for 3 – 6 weeks.
Get this bastard bug by the throat and throttle it now. Go hard, go early will be the least damaging choice now.