Very uninformed person makes very uninformed career choice, then argues teachers don't want/need extra pay:
When I became a secondary school teacher, I had a fairy tale idea of what this career would look like. I pictured bright-eyed, eager students who wanted to learn.
I envisioned school holidays would be paid vacations that I could waste away at my leisure.
I thought, like the other jobs that I had held, that staff meetings would happen once a month, if that.
I thought parents would appreciate us. I thought society would respect us.
…
I got into this job because I want to make a difference. I want to help teens get a brilliant education so they could go out and take on the world. I want the best for all of them.
Monday night had Jessica M-M on TV1 saying we needed to get to know Luxon better following on from that night's polling. Last night Shane Reti was practically pleading with those watching to get to know him better because he is the greatest. Luxon has been Opposition leader long enough now for people to have made up their minds. What more do we need to know about him that we don't already know. He has had plenty of air time and screen time and Jessica M-M particularly is very supportive of him and is slightly caustic when she talks about the PM in my opinion.
Shane Reti's comments were absolutely vomitous. He mentioned twice that we needs to see more of Luxon's "parts", twice about Luxon needing to "reveal" more of himself, and a running theme of Reti's close proximity (between, behind, after hours) to Luxon.
Mr Reti presents as a classic “potato” style Māori with an obsequious manner, raised Mormon, he has an ingrained social conservatism as his voting record shows.
When I briefly lived in Whangārei, a Kainga Ora build of 37 public houses and apartments was approved in middle class Maunu suburb, Reti immediately took the side of the pākehā property owners not wanting state houses in their midst rather than supporting working class people in desperate need of accomodation.
I was bemused by the Nat's desperately pleading with us to like their leader. If after all this time and all of Luxon's gaffes and backtracks they think Luxon is suddenly going to become inspirational they are clearly living in fantasy land. Time for them to admit allowing JK to anoint Luxon was a huge mistake and draw a 'leader' out of the hat and then providd some coherent policy.
Labour strategists must be right chuffed with National at the moment. Against the cost of living crisis, national disasters and covid related inflation they lead in the the polls. As the cray-cray influence of the Fox News GOP right infects more and more right wingers so their political vehicles become more and more unelectable.
This isn't much of a problem in the USA where the far right has limitless resources, a full on media propaganda arm and has captured the judicial system to enable a whole raft of voter suppression and gerrymandering measures that means they don't have to worry as much about being popular enough to be elected in a fair election. But elsewhere, this style of politics has made the right unelectable.
Let's be honest – Labour is running a small target policy and on being the grown up in the room against an out of touch opposition ideologically marooned in the worst excesses of 1990s neoliberalism and full of Evangelicals intent on culture war politics. The trouble is the evidence is growing that this makes the right politically irrelevant in any sort of fair election. From Biden's victory, to the US midterms, to Albanese's win in Australia to the upcoming rout of the UK Tories the public are tiring of the infantile political distractions of Plutocrat populists. For all the horse race enthusiasm of the pundit class, that is the facts that matter.
Dr Sereana Naepi, a lecturer in social sciences at University of Auckland, said: “At best Te Pūkenga doesn't have separate email lists for academic and professional staff, at worst their CEO and the wider leadership team hasn’t read the Education and Training Act 2020.”
The "information" that staff are public servants and are not allowed to have (public) political opinions is dubious.
Yes well I think the separate lists is more the correct happening.(Cockup rather than conspiracy)
Even then most of the academics I know would look at these style guides as they usually give the best advice in not offending people unintentionally.
Unless offending is part of the game in your academic work, you mostly want to get your message/research read by as many as possible.
As well many academics are asked for things like literature reviews, extended analyses on papers of relevance to a Govt Dept and many of these paid works do abide by standards set by the employing agency. Many contracts do include the expected style and any deviation is simply not paid for and it is a waste of money.
Having a style guide isn't controlled speech, nor Orwellian. Lots of organisations have style guides. If you want to make the argument that there is something Orwellian about this particular style, can you please make an actual argument?
which makes sense when you don't know the sex or gender, or marital status, of the person being referred to. It's not akin to replacing the word woman with people who menstruate.
The terms spouse or partner have been 'around since Adam was a cowboy' as they say. Mid 1980s? Just like using Ms/Mr.
I don't have a problem with a style guide, most PS agencies have them and in the olden days we used to have a publication called
The PS Style Guide that covered all sorts of things such as
use of the Oxford comma
indenting and when you use it…….
etc
etc
This was very useful when drafting things like Gazette Notices, Orders in Council
Every Govt Dept that I ever worked in supplemented this with a department/agency specific style guide. I guess you could grab anyone of these and have a media beat-up on it.
colours and sizes of dept'l logos
salutations
when to use the shortened version of long dept'l names
If this is a Govt agency then the employees are Public Servants or belong in the State Sector and Codes of Conduct apply covering being impartial.
My understanding, having employed 'academics' in a Dept is that the usual PS Code of Conduct applies except when they are discussing their specialty so you would not expect an historian employed by Ministry of Culture or Treaty Unit to suddenly come out and comment on fluoridating water or Three Waters using their qualification in the history of Magna Carta to give these views credence.
Not being up on the pay arrangements, are all employees of tertiary orgs now employed by Te Pukenga including all academics ie tutors, profs etc?
What a beat up fuelled by ignorant journos aided and abetted by disgruntled and ignorant (on this issue) academics.
Aimed at public servants whose rules of employment prevent them from defending themselves and so presenting an easy target for bullies.
Also special attention is paid to being correct on Maori matters. The Crown is the other Treaty partner.
These agencies are crown agencies so surely out of all the people employed in the Govt sector ie for the other Treaty partner then we have an expectation that these matters will be addressed/standardised.
And again this is not new.
In a land dept prior to 1987 we had the equivalent of Maori Language style guides. I had several papers checked by both Pakeha & Maori academics and then by one of a group of eminent Maori who had an interest in what we were doing before it was presented to a UN agency audience, also in 1986/87.
It sort of does control speech, you'll quickly find that if you don't use the preferred language your opportunities quickly evaporate in the organization, will also be brought up in performance reviews etc.
I'm going to guess you're not objecting to the punctuation and grammar guide. Which bits are a problem exactly. That when writing official documents they want the organisation to be called by its name instead of the megapoly?
But why wouldn't you want your language, your tool, along with your brain, to be the best and most effective both for you and for your employer?
Do surgeons moan & groan because 'people' ask them to to sterilise their tools or use the most up to date ones. Do they moan at hospitlas that employ them who have these expectations?
So why shouldn't a person using their language tools for an employer not be guided by the employer as to the standards they expect?
As well most Style Guides are guides only, usually circulated for comment etc and if you did not take the chance to comment or indicate on a letter by letter basis why it may not be correct why do you moan when it is commented upon.
If it is still being commented on by the time a performance appraisal time comes about then you may not have shown that you have learned.
If you are writing for a Minister, for a cabinet paper, policy papers there are ways of doing this just as Drs, when writing scripts have to write them in certain ways otherwise they don't get filled.
I don't find this very convincing I am sorry Cricklewood.
Or are you saying that employers have taken issues with possible racism, sexism, ageism etc in speech in the workplace?
.
I did have a couple of staff that I had to ‘counsel’ about this. In the end we came to an agreement that he would act as if the Depts stds were a cloak that he put on as he stepped out of the lift on the way to work and left on throughout the working day. Mainly racism and sexism. The racism part, funnily enough, disappeared when he married someone who was Maori. The sexism never did.
A quote from the article I posted above. "words they should and should not use"
The row over academic freedom at Te Pūkenga – the country’s largest tertiary provider – has rumbled on after it emerged staff have been issued with a list of words they should and should not use.
“Staff were told they should not refer to the organisation as a “megapolytech” or say “merge” – even though those terms describe how it was formed. “We always refer to ourselves as Te Pūkenga.”
The guide discourages gendered language, for example: “We also use: spouse or partner – not husband, wife”.
how dare my employer tell me how to refer to my husband…….
They're not talking about personal communications, the style guide is for writing official documents so that there is consistency across the organisation. See Shanreagh's explanation above. No-one is taking away your ability to call your husband husband.
I have far more of a problem with this from the Stuff piece,
Last week Te Pūkenga staff were told they are “public servants” and must separate their personal views from their professional roles.
I only have a problem if it is not correct that they are public servants.
PS are bound by a Code of Conduct. this does in effect separate their personal & political views from their professional roles
Of course this does not stop you putting the best views forward to any policy based on your skills, research & life experiences within your workplace. Your brains are your tools and they are expected to be used! This is why diversity in workplaces is so important. In giving voice to views. policies, procedures we need to have a different experiences and views working with us.
If you want to engage in politics most PS are quite careful about doing anything that calls into question their impartiality, thus leading to their suitability for continued employment being called into question and losing their jobs. There are many ways to express your concern within the departmental setting and even whistle blowing mechanisms, contact with any Inspectorate doing their jobs etc.
When I was a PS I was never a member of a political party and neither were most of those I worked with. Of course we had our views and we voted, but we tried not to bring them to work.
If we were doing something that could put us in the spotlight then it was no problem to clear this and give a head's up to our employers.
“The very purpose of the protections for academic freedom in the legislation is to recognise the unique role of such institutions as spaces for stimulating debate, including on matters of controversy, provided this is informed by quality research and analysis,” said Jane Kelsey, professor emeritus at the Faculty of Law at University of Auckland.
“It may be that staff of Te Pūkenga central organisation are subject to those guidelines, but not the academics.”
Weka, I was going to follow up with Ani O'Brien but it is futile, from past experience.
Sometimes I cannot get over how sheltered and naive people like her are, have they never worked for an agency where there is a concern for correct writing & image.
This applies even to most large private sector employers who are very concerned about who & how people get to speak for them.
I’m probably blocked anyway as a couple of us tried to put a different view and were subsequently blocked……
The merged polytech is a publicly funded organisation. I think tax payers who pay for this have a right to push back on this change of the use of language
Also this change of language has nothing to do with the imparting of knowledge and skills that the polytech is set up to do. Its ideological
I do see the problem with that, very much so but some times my energy for trying to advise/comment on such sterile ground as her over blown comments just is not there.
Hmmmmm we will be having a big back log then…..I came across the PS style guide in the 1970s and Dept'l style guides in the 1980s……so they have been around a while….
What exactly is the objection to treating people with respect and courtesy and observing Te Tiriti?
Some of the guides have standards about accessibility of language, not dumbing down, but freeing the letters from jargon and other bits that are just 'noise' to a person trying to understand things.
Look & feel across all communications ie making sure the logo is the correct colour, the comms are clearly set out, there are no spelling mistakes etc that you are respectful are not hard concepts to grasp.
It has everything to do with the 'imparting of knowledge'.
People see themselves 'reflected back' in the contacts they have with an organisation. If an organisation only wants to 'see' salutations that are Mr or Mrs or pairings such as husband and wife then it is hard for people who don't fit those categories to 'see' themselves. Many of us fought for the right to use Ms as we did not feel we should have to reveal our matrimonial status with every letter we wrote. This was when Miss was sort of used as a spinsterish demeaning way and Mrs often meant you were going to get pregnant and leave
We (royal we should I say most public servants) want people to feel included and if this means we take care with our salutations, we don't weaponise the way the organisation was founded, we carefully use any Maori words (we represent the treaty partner, the Crown, remember.
I cannot really see what the objection is, no story really as style guides have been around for decades.
tsmythfielder channeling Tucker look how that's working with Tucker you must feel like a very proud boy promoting your Strawman!
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
[stop harassing this (or any) commenter. This is a pattern of behaviour from you. Next time I see it, expect a ban, building on your previous bans, and bearing in mind we are handing out bans until well after the election because we want to up the debate culture here and discourage this kind of SM-esque response – weka]
After the recent flood damage and yet another BBB (Big-Budget Blowout – as time rolls on, they are default by their inevitability) it seems certain that some things must go off the wish list.
Short-term thinking and ‘fixes’ tend to win the day, in local and national politics, and one day the can will have grown to a concrete-filled barrel that can no longer be kicked down the road.
I was looking at party health policies last night, due to ongoing personal experience with people not being treated or not being able to afford treatment in our health system – plus many similar stories in the news. As expected, the Greens seem to be the only ones with an unambiguous policy of actual free health care. Unfortunately the policy is delivered cluelessly, with this being the first strategic priority:
1.1 Reconfigure our health system towards recognising and acting on oppressive and intersecting biases (e.g. racism, sexism, ableism, fatphobia, ageism, queerphobia, transphobia) and the knowledge and skills required to work with affected communities, such as Deaf and disabled people.
And only three points further down do we get:
3.5-6 Provide universal, free and accessible diagnosis, treatment and management for all illnesses and injuries — including fully-funded public provision of dental care, general practitioner clinics, ambulance and emergency services, aged care, palliative care, and mental health services.
The first point means little to a lot of people and is confusing or alienating to people not up with the latest progressive buzzwords. I don't have a problem with the intent of point 1 – but why not swap the points around and put "FREE HEALTH CARE FOR ALL" as the first point? Of course free health care will benefit all the groups identified in 1 as well.
Not-for-profit health care for all; would prefer public, but don't care too much if the health care service provider is public or private, as long as extracting profit isn't its reason for being, and access to health services is based on need, not ability to pay.
Canada’s health care system is built on the principle that access to care should be based on need, not ability to pay. A well-designed, adequately funded, single-payer system can provide high-quality, efficient, equitable care to restore that reality.
Our publicly-funded health care system is certainly facing challenges. But the solutions lie in strengthening our public health care system, not weakening it.
…
There is little evidence that private for-profit investor-owned corporations can provide better quality care or reduce costs. In fact, there are many examples to the contrary.
In 2012, the richest tenth of New Zealanders paid 47% of all income tax, but that’s hardly surprising given they earned 34% of all the income.
It’s also better to look at what proportion of their income people pay in tax, rather than just the amounts, so as to avoid simply saying that the rich pay the most tax because they earn the largest incomes.
with several extras it appears that the top 10% already pay near 50% of Income tax.
The mistake of thinking IRD-declared income is the same thing as wealth!
In that item they conflate "wealth" with "IRD-declared income".
The issue is, really rich people don't have much declared income – their increase in wealth either comes from lightly-taxed sources that do not appear as IRD income (e.g. most capital gains) or they structure their affairs to avoid needing to declare income (offshore havens etc). 42% of "high wealth individuals" (people or families with more than $50m) in New Zealand have effective income tax rates below 10%.
It is perverse that the source of income that can only be accessed by those who already have wealth – capital gains – is the one we tax lightly and argue over whether it should be taxed at all!
If you have income under $31k pa you can apply for a Community Services card, which greatly (like 60% or so) cuts GP and private emergency clinic fees. This is a significant subsidy that increases afforability for poorer people.
I see that the greens and labour are Totally consumed by climate change and what needs to be done immediately ahead of everything else. Or was that to say anything that sounds good and will get them re elected, pity action is telling us all what they really think, and now to have a pm who doesn’t think this is important, humanity and the planets survival above everything else, you could say the defines a climate skeptic 🤨 https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/election/2017/08/jacinda-ardern-climate-change-is-my-generation-s-nuclear-free-moment.amp.html
So the condition of the world is NOT an issue – Amazing how many on the left now are deniers that climate change is an issue worth making sacrifices for ??
Perhaps you too along with our current PM should wear a tin foil hat out in public.
He's disappointed with the lack of consultation and with Hipkins' focus on the cost of living crisis over climate crisis.
"It's clear that the Prime Minister is very keen to win the election and he's prepared to do just about whatever it takes to do that." _ Great comment from someone that potentially in a few months time you will have to come crawling to form a government- Pity Hipkins has lost credibility and has little integrity, the guy is a total political animal and will do anything to survive even lie to NZ.
It's useful to note the issues which are raised by those who come here from time to time for this purpose, to eviscerate the left/Labour.
The old, label them as either single issue ideologues, or insincere politicians tactic.
Some on the left would have preferred an original focus on moving from vehicles to PT (the half fares) and e bikes (away from car transport).
There is obviously Labour's realisation that many working class cannot afford to buy cars atm (rent/cost of living or rising mortgage cost) – which speaks to the suspension of petrol taxation.
It's a real world moment. And no the modernisation of our car market is not dependent on financial inducements at taxpayer expense.
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said calling the commissioner to discuss the prosecution, and refusing to apologise for that, was “an error of judgement”. He accepted Nash’s resignation as police minister.
Nash will continue to serve in his other roles.
"Staurt Nash" eh. At least that error is easily fixed. Ah well, he brought it on himself.
It's the PM's call – Nashie's been reasonably popular in the Napier electorate, so he might come back – might even rise to lead the party. It's been known to happen.
You missed the point. He still holds other portfolios (Minister for Economic Development, Forestry, and Oceans & Fisheries). If Chippy was as strong a leader as you suggest then he should have removed ALL his Ministerial warrants.
As I suggest? Really Gosman – that's a bit strong. It is the PM's call, isn't it?
Chippie's an experienced politician – an electorate MP for 14+ years cf. Luxo's two-and-a-bit. Lux weathered last year's Uffindell storm well, I'll give him that.
It isn't because he is too right wing but because he breached the Cabinet manual and the one involving political interfering in the Police Commissioners role.
That is correct, but ignores the glaring irony that the opposition are constantly demanding that the PM and Ministers interfere in the Police Commissioner's role, from crime to cyclones to protests at Parliament.
Chris "I would pick up the phone" Luxon would presumably NOT pick up the phone after all, like Nash picked up the phone. Good to know.
I suspect the public would have very little interest in the story anyway.
It's one of those times when the opposition and media get very excited ("Cabinet manual!") and are later surprised when it has no effect whatsoever on public opinion. They really do live in their own world.
(If the wider public think about the story at all, they are going to be far less "outraged" by Nash, and far more that a guy commits a serious gun crime and gets off scot-free … ).
Why? As Hipkins pointed out, while Nash had the discussion, the outcome of the legal decision was not what he advocated. Hipkins put forward that this shows our system of judicial independence was maintained. Seems fair to me. And at the time he was not Minister for Police.
The US is a wacky place. They have Marjorie Taylor Greene as an elected representative. Most Republicans believe the Presidency was stolen from Trump. Apparently some are totally opposed to abortion because it's killing and all killing is wrong, but they agree with capital punishment.
I've seen pleas that school kids should have see-through bags so any guns in them can be spotted. Another school story indicating the state of what has been called the 'most advanced country in the history of the world. Bullet proof whiteboards in class.
"Two special education classrooms at West Elementary School are currently piloting the technology, developed by KT Security Solutions, which essentially turns a classroom whiteboard into a pop-out, standalone, bulletproof storm shelter."
Gain of function research was suspended by POTUS Obama in 2014.
When it resumed in 2017 some were concerned
Dr. Tom Inglesby, director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, said he is concerned the framework does not include a clear process for analysing the risks and benefits of such experiments.
“Does the benefit of this outweigh the risk and how do we determine that?”
At this time the debate was whether research should be limited to diseases/viruses that had never infected humans.
In his letter, Daszak claimed that the experiments carried out by WIV would not count as “gain of function” because the bat coronaviruses involved had never infected humans.
This is the argument used by Fauci when he denied funding gain of function research at Wuhan.
No laboratory in the world held a virus close enough to Covid-19 that it could be manipulated to create the pandemic strain, the British zoologist whose company funded Wuhan researchers has said.
Peter Daszak, the president of EcoHealth Alliance, was responding to claims that scientists had dismissed the lab leak theory because they did not want to stop doing dangerous “gain of function” experiments to increase the infectivity of viruses.
He mentions after 26 minutes – that they had a lot of bat coronaviruses they were adding spike proteins to so as to manipulate the virus. The spike proteins would make any such virus more dangerous (and as we know the mRNA designed vaccines focused on identification of the spike protein).
The SARS 2 coronavirus is about 97% similar to some in the Wuhan lab research.
Daszak said: “There’s really no way RaTG13 could have anything to do with SARS-CoV-2 – the spike protein and the backbone sequence of the virus are too genetically distinct to make it possible that this virus could have rapidly evolved into SARS-CoV-2 or be manipulated genetically to become SARS-CoV-2.”
However it is not that simple. Those involved were aware of the the possibility of making consensus sequences where viruses were 95% similar.
In a leaked grant proposal made by EcoHealth Alliance and WIV in 2018, researchers had proposed synthesising viral genomes to make a consensus sequence based on viruses that were 95% identical to each other.
The proposal, which was rejected by US military research agency DARPA because it “could have put local communities at risk” also proposed the insertion of human-specific furin cleavage sites into Sars like coronaviruses – which could have made them very infectious for humans.
Dr Monali Rahalkar, a Scientist in Microbiology at the Agharkar Research institute in India said the changes would have been possible with the viruses available.
“A consensus sequence can be created if they have similar viruses or using other bioinformatics tools,” she said.
Of course he had to resign because he broke the rules, but only the press gallery and headline-hungry opposition will care.
Luxon's lucky he has Covid and is isolating, otherwise he'd be flannelling when asked the obvious question: this sentence OK by you? (And unlike a Minister, he'd be free to answer it … but he wouldn't want to).
From accounts I have read it was essentially a private conversation between Nash and Coster who apparently are personal as well as professional acquaintances. It happened two years ago and it suddenly pops up in the media.
Foul play? Where’s Soper in all of this?
Having said the above, Nash has a reputation for impulsive behaviour. It isn't the first time he has been in trouble.
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While the world has largely transitioned to digital communication, faxing still holds relevance in certain industries and situations. Fortunately, gone are the days of bulky fax machines and dedicated phone lines. Today, you can easily send and receive faxes directly from your computer, offering a convenient and efficient way to ...
In our increasingly digital world, home computers have become essential tools for work, communication, entertainment, and more. However, this increased reliance on technology also exposes us to various cyber threats. Understanding these threats and taking proactive steps to protect your home computer is crucial for safeguarding your personal information, finances, ...
In the ever-evolving world of technology, server-based computing has emerged as a cornerstone of modern digital infrastructure. This article delves into the concept of server-based computing, exploring its various forms, benefits, challenges, and its impact on the way we work and interact with technology. Understanding Server-Based Computing: At its core, ...
The absolute brass neck of this guy.We want more medical doctors, not more spin doctors, Luxon was saying a couple of weeks ago, and now we’re told the guy has seven salaried adults on TikTok duty. Sorry, doing social media. The absolute brass neck of it. The irony that the ...
Buzz from the Beehive Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones relishes spatting and eagerly takes issue with environmentalists who criticise his enthusiasm for resource development. He relishes helping the fishing industry too. And so today, while the media are making much of the latest culling in the public service to ...
Having written, taught and worked for the US government on issues involving unconventional warfare and terrorism for 30-odd years, two things irritate me the most when the subject is discussed in public. The first is the Johnny-come-lately academics-turned-media commentators who … Continue reading → ...
Eric Crampton writes – Kainga Ora is the government’s house building agency. It’s been building a lot of social housing. Kainga Ora has its own (but independent) consenting authority, Consentium. It’s a neat idea. Rather than have to deal with building consents across each different territorial authority, Kainga Ora ...
Muriel Newman writes – The Coalition Government says it is moving with speed to deliver campaign promises and reverse the damage done by Labour. One of their key commitments is to “defend the principle that New Zealanders are equal before the law.” To achieve this, they have pledged they “will not advance ...
Chris Trotter writes – The absence of anything resembling a fightback from the public servants currently losing their jobs is interesting. State-sector workers’ collective fatalism in the face of Coalition cutbacks indicates a surprisingly broad acceptance of impermanence in the workplace. Fifty years ago, lay-offs in the thousands ...
Mariupol, on the Azov Sea coast, was one of the first cities to suffer almost complete destruction after the start of the Ukraine War started in late February 2022. We remember the scenes of absolute destruction of the houses and city structures. The deaths of innocent civilians – many of ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – Ten years ago, I wrote the following in a Listener column: Every year around one in five new-born babies will be reliant on their caregivers benefit by Christmas. This pattern has persisted from at least 1993. For Maori the number jumps to over one in three. ...
Climate change is expected to generate more and more extreme events, delivering a sort of structural shock to inflation that central banks will have to react to as if they were short-term cyclical issues. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMy pick of the six newsey things to know from Aotearoa’s ...
It’s a simple deal. We pay taxes in order to finance the social services we want and need. The carnage now occurring across the public sector though, is breaking that contract. Over 3,000 jobs have been lost so far. Many are in crucial areas like Education where the impact of ...
Hi,A friend had their 40th over the weekend and decided to theme it after Curb Your Enthusiasm fashion icon Susie Greene. Captured in my tiny kitchen before I left the house, I ending up evoking a mix of old lesbian and Hillary Clinton — both unintentional.Me vs Hillary ClintonIf you’re ...
This is a re-post from Andrew Dessler at the Climate Brink blogIn 2023, the Earth reached temperature levels unprecedented in modern times. Given that, it’s reasonable to ask: What’s going on? There’s been lots of discussions by scientists about whether this is just the normal progression of global warming or if something ...
The schools are on holiday and the sun is shining in the seaside village and all day long I have been seeing bunches of bikes; Mums, Dads, teens and toddlers chattering, laughing, happy, having a bloody great time together. Cheers, AT, for the bits of lane you’ve added lately around the ...
Today in our National-led authoritarian nightmare: Shane Jones thinks Ministers should be above the law: New Zealand First MP Shane Jones is accusing the Waitangi Tribunal of over-stepping its mandate by subpoenaing a minister for its urgent hearing on the Oranga Tamariki claim. The tribunal is looking into the ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Politicians across the political spectrum are implicated in the New Zealand media’s failing health. Either through neglect or incompetent interventions, successive governments have failed to regulate, foster, and allow a healthy Fourth Estate that can adequately hold politicians and the powerful to account. ...
Citizen Science writes – Last week saw two significant developments in the debate over the treatment of trans-identifying children and young people – the release in Britain of the final report of Dr Hilary Cass’s review into gender healthcare, and here in New Zealand, the news that the ...
One night while sleeping in my bed I had a beautiful dreamThat all the people of the world got together on the same wavelengthAnd began helping one anotherNow in this dream, universal love was the theme of the dayPeace and understanding and it happened this wayAfter such an eventful day ...
This is a guest post by Oscar Simms who is a housing activist, volunteer for the Coalition for More Homes, and was the Labour Party candidate for Auckland Central at the last election. ...
Turning what Labour called the “holiday highway” into a four-lane expressway from Auckland to Whangarei could bring at least an economic benefit of nearly two billion a year for Northland each year. And it could help bring an end to poverty in one of New Zealand’s most deprived regions. The ...
Tonight’s six-stack includes: launching his substack with a bunch of his previous documentaries, including this 1992 interview with Dame Whina Cooper. and here crew give climate activists plenty to do, including this call to submit against the Fast Track Approvals bill. writes brilliantly here on his substack ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
You're in the mall when you hear it: some kind of popping sound in the distance, kids with fireworks, maybe. But then a moment of eerie stillness is followed by more of the fireworks sound and there’s also screaming and shrieking and now here come people running for their lives.Does ...
Karl du Fresne writes – There’s a crisis in the news media and the media are blaming it on everyone except themselves. Culpability is being deflected elsewhere – mainly to the hapless Minister of Communications, Melissa Lee, and the big social media platforms that are accused of hoovering ...
I don’t normally send out two newsletters in a day but I figured I’d say something about… the news. If two newsletters is a bit much then maybe just skip one, I don’t want to overload people. Alternatively if you’d be interested in sometimes receiving multiple, smaller updates from me, ...
Buzz from the Beehive David Seymour and Winston Peters today signalled that at least two ministers of the Crown might be in Wellington today. Seymour (as Associate Minister of Education) announced the removal of more red tape, this time to make it easier for new early learning services to be ...
Politicians across the political spectrum are implicated in the New Zealand media’s failing health. Either through neglect or incompetent interventions, successive governments have failed to regulate, foster, and allow a healthy Fourth Estate that can adequately hold politicians and the powerful to account. Our political system is suffering from the ...
David Farrar writes – The Broadcasting Standards Authority ruled: Comments by radio host Kate Hawkesby suggesting Māori and Pacific patients were being prioritised for surgery due to their ethnicity were misleading and discriminatory, the Broadcasting Standards Authority has found. It is a fact such patients are prioritised. ...
PRC and its proxies in Solomons have been preparing for these elections for a long time.A lot of money, effort and intelligence have gone into ensuring an outcome that won’t compromise Beijing’s plans. Cleo Paskall writes – On April 17th the Solomon Islands, a country of ...
Is speeding up the trip to and from Wellington airport by 12 minutes worth spending up more than $10 billion? Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The six news items that stood out to me in the last day to 8:26 am today are:The Lead: Transport Minister Simeon Brownannounced ...
You're a fraud, and you know itBut it's too good to throw it all awayAnyone would do the sameYou've got 'em goingAnd you're careful not to show itSometimes you even fool yourself a bitIt's like magicBut it's always been a smoke and mirrors gameAnyone would do the sameForty six billion ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections The June general election in Mexico could mark a turning point in ensuring that the country’s climate policies better reflect the desire of its citizens to address the climate crisis, with both leading presidential candidates expressing support for renewable energy. Mexico is the ...
2024, it feels, keeps presenting us with ever more challenges, ever more dismay.Do you give up yet? It seems to ask.No? How about this? Or this?How about this?When I say 2024 I really mean the state of humanity in 2024.Saturday night, we watched Civil War because that is one terrifying cliff we've ...
Buzz from the Beehive A pet project and governmental tunnel vision jump out from the latest batch of ministerial announcements. The government is keen to assure us of its concern for the wellbeing of our pets. It will be introducing pet bonds in a change to the Residential Tenancies Act ...
A recent report generated from a Growing Up in New Zealand (GUiNZ) survey of 1,224 rangatahi Māori aged 11-12 found: Cultural connectedness was associated with fewer depression symptoms, anxiety symptoms and better quality of life. That sounds cut and dry. But further into the report the following appears: Cultural connectedness is ...
David Farrar writes – The Herald reports: From the gory details of job-cuts news, you’d think the public service was being eviscerated. While the media’s view of the cuts is incomplete, it’s also true that departments have been leaking the particulars faster than a Wellington ...
Remember the good old days, back when New Zealand had a PM who could think and speak calmly and intelligently in whole sentences without blustering? Even while Iran’s drones and missiles were still being launched, Helen Clark was live on TVNZ expertly summing up the latest crisis in the Middle ...
Costello did not pass on analysis of the benefits of the smokefree reforms to Cabinet, emphasising instead the extra tax revenues of repealing them. Photo: Hagen Hopkins, Getty Images TL;DR: The six news items that stood out to me at 7:26 am today are:The Lead: Casey Costello never passed on ...
True loveYou're the one I'm dreaming ofYour heart fits me like a gloveAnd I'm gonna be true blueBaby, I love youI’ve written about the job cuts in our news media last week. The impact on individuals, and the loss to Aotearoa of voices covering our news from different angles.That by ...
While commentators, including former Prime Minister Helen Clark, are noting a subtle shift in New Zealand’s foreign policy, which now places more emphasis on the United States, many have missed a key element of the shift. What National said before the election is not what the government is doing now. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
The Government’s newly announced review of methane emissions reduction targets hints at its desire to delay Aotearoa New Zealand’s urgent transition to a climate safe future, the Green Party said. ...
The Government must commit to the Maitai School building project for students with high and complex needs, to ensure disabled students from the top of the South Island have somewhere to learn. ...
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey and his Government colleagues have made a meal of their mental health commitments, showing how flimsy their efforts to champion the issue truly are, says Labour Mental Health spokesperson Ingrid Leary. ...
Māori are yet to see anything from this Government except cuts, reversals and taking our people backwards, Māori Development spokesperson Willie Jackson said. ...
The Coalition Government’s refusal to commit to ongoing funding for social housing is seeing the sector pull back on developments and families watch their dreams of securing a home fade away, says Labour Housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty. ...
Changes to minimum wage and benefit indexation means many New Zealanders will get less this year, as the Government gives a big tax break to landlords instead. ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector. "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...
The Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...
Changes to the Resource Management Act will align consenting for coal mining to other forms of mining to reduce barriers that are holding back economic development, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The inconsistent treatment of coal mining compared with other extractive activities is burdensome red tape that fails to acknowledge ...
Trade, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Todd McClay has concluded productive discussions with ministerial counterparts in Beijing today, in support of the New Zealand-China trade and economic relationship. “My meeting with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao reaffirmed the complementary nature of the bilateral trade relationship, with our Free Trade Agreement at its ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today paid tribute to Singapore’s outgoing Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Meeting in Singapore today immediately before Prime Minister Lee announced he was stepping down, Prime Minister Luxon warmly acknowledged his counterpart’s almost twenty years as leader, and the enduring legacy he has left for Singapore and South East ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. While in Singapore as part of his visit to South East Asia this week, Prime Minister Luxon also met with Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and will meet with Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has made further appointments to the Board of Antarctica New Zealand as part of a continued effort to ensure the Scott Base Redevelopment project is delivered in a cost-effective and efficient manner. The Minister has appointed Neville Harris as a new member of the Board. Mr ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis will travel to the United States on Tuesday to attend a meeting of the Five Finance Ministers group, with counterparts from Australia, the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. “I am looking forward to meeting with our Five Finance partners on how we can work ...
The coalition Government has today announced purrfect and pawsitive changes to the Residential Tenancies Act to give tenants with pets greater choice when looking for a rental property, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Pets are important members of many Kiwi families. It’s estimated that around 64 per cent of New ...
State Highway 1 (SH1) through Wellington City is heavily congested at peak times and while planning continues on the duplicate Mt Victoria Tunnel and Basin Reserve project, the Government has also asked NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) to consider and provide advice on a Long Tunnel option, Transport Minister Simeon Brown ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Foreign Minister Winston Peters have condemned Iran’s shocking and illegal strikes against Israel. “These attacks are a major challenge to peace and stability in a region already under enormous pressure," Mr Luxon says. "We are deeply concerned that miscalculation on any side could ...
Hundreds of people in little over a week have turned out in Northland to hear Regional Development Minister Shane Jones speak about plans for boosting the regional economy through infrastructure. About 200 people from the infrastructure and associated sectors attended an event headlined by Mr Jones in Whangarei today. Last ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti has today thanked outgoing Health New Zealand – Te Whatu Ora Chair Dame Karen Poutasi for her service on the Board. “Dame Karen tendered her resignation as Chair and as a member of the Board today,” says Dr Reti. “I have asked her to ...
The NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has signalled their proposed delivery approach for the Government’s 15 Roads of National Significance (RoNS), with the release of the State Highway Investment Proposal (SHIP) today, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Boosting economic growth and productivity is a key part of the Government’s plan to ...
New Zealand is renewing its connections with a world facing urgent challenges by pursuing an active, energetic foreign policy, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “Our country faces the most unstable global environment in decades,” Mr Peters says at the conclusion of two weeks of engagements in Egypt, Europe and the United States. “We cannot afford to sit back in splendid ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced the Australian Governor-General, His Excellency General The Honourable David Hurley and his wife Her Excellency Mrs Linda Hurley, will make a State visit to New Zealand from Tuesday 16 April to Thursday 18 April. The visit reciprocates the State visit of former Governor-General Dame Patsy Reddy ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced that Medsafe has approved 11 cold and flu medicines containing pseudoephedrine. Pharmaceutical suppliers have indicated they may be able to supply the first products in June. “This is much earlier than the original expectation of medicines being available by 2025. The Government recognised ...
New Zealand and the United States have recommitted to their strategic partnership in Washington DC today, pledging to work ever more closely together in support of shared values and interests, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The strategic environment that New Zealand and the United States face is considerably more ...
April 11, 2024 Joint Declaration by United States Secretary of State the Honorable Antony J. Blinken and New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs the Right Honourable Winston Peters We met today in Washington, D.C. to recommit to the historic partnership between our two countries and the principles that underpin it—rule ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced further New Zealand cooperation with the United States in the Pacific Islands region through $16.4 million in funding for initiatives in digital connectivity and oceans and fisheries research. “New Zealand can achieve more in the Pacific if we work together more urgently and ...
Kia Ora Gaza A passionate haka reverberated through Auckland International Airport as a medical team of three New Zealand doctors received an emotional farewell from a big crowd of supporters before flying to Turkey to join the international Freedom Flotilla to Gaza. The doctors, who left Auckland yesterday, hope to ...
With submissions closing today, Macassey-Pickard says groups around the country have been supporting a huge range of people to make their submissions. ...
Our response to the new legislation is informed by targeted conversations with practitioners working in the system and through an implementation lens. ...
The new ‘Fast-track Approvals Bill’ would give just three Ministers the power to approve or deny development projects. They would avoid the usual checks and balances that are in place to protect rivers, land, the ocean, and communities. ...
COMMENTARY:By Eugene Doyle Helen Clark, how I miss you. The former New Zealand Prime Minister — the safest pair of hands this country has had in living memory — gave a masterclass on the importance of maintaining an independent foreign policy when she spoke at an AUKUS symposium held ...
The government's released the list of organisations provided with information on how to apply - just hours before public submissions on the bill close. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Milton Speer, Visiting Fellow, School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, University of Technology Sydney Before climate change really got going, eastern Australia’s flash floods tended to concentrate on our coastal regions, east of the Great Dividing Range. But that’s changing. Now ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elizabeth Finkel, Vice-Chancellor’s Fellow, La Trobe University Sia Duff / South Australian Museum In February, the South Australian Museum “re-imagined” itself. In the face of rising costs and inadequate government funds, CEO David Gaimster, who took the reins last June, declared ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alan Pearce, Professor, School of Allied Heath, Human Services & Sport, La Trobe University, La Trobe University This week, Collingwood AFL player Nathan Murphy announced his retirement, brought on by his concussion history and ongoing issues. The 24-year-old’s seemingly sudden retirement, ...
The Mental Health Foundation provides support and resources for those facing the loss of their job, so it’s wrong in the very week the Government adds another 1000 jobs to its tally of cuts, that this is happening. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexander Howard, Senior Lecturer, Discipline of English and Writing, University of Sydney Daniel Boud/Sydney Theatre Company Decay, terror, revulsion. These are three of the central themes of Thomas Bernhard’s rarely performed play The President. The Austrian is one of the greatest ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ye In (Jane) Hwang, Postdoctoral Research Associate at School of Population Health, UNSW Sydney Shutterstock You’d be hard pressed to find any aspect of daily life that doesn’t require some form of digital literacy. We need only to look back ten ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says threats by ministers Shane Jones and David Seymour to reform or close down the Waitangi Tribunal were “ill-considered”, as legal experts say the ministers may have breached Cabinet Manual conventions. “I think those comments are ill-considered and we expect all ministers to actually exercise good ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rob Newton, Professor of Exercise Medicine, Edith Cowan University Pexels/RDNE stock project You’re not in your 20s or 30s anymore and you know regular health checks are important. So you go to your GP. During the appointment they measure your waist. ...
A new poem by Evangeline Riddiford Graham. Mitochondrial Problem I. It was long drive to Kansas for the man and his dog but you have to understand he said She doesn’t fly. Which calls to mind not carsick shitting barking or whining but a dog who chooses not to as ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Hemingway’s Goblet by Dermot Ross (Mary Egan Publishing, $38)Hot off the press, this debut ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laura Wajnryb McDonald, PhD candidate in Criminology, University of Sydney Less than 24 hours after Ashlee Good was murdered in Bondi Junction, her family released a statement requesting the media take down photographs they had reproduced of Ashlee and her family without ...
Chief executive Shaun Robinson said it has not had any government funding cut, but government-funded contracts have not kept pace with rising costs. ...
The Ministry of Health has delayed the release of its evidence brief on the safety, reversibility and mental health and wellbeing outcomes for puberty blockers. While we wait, Julia de Bres speaks to those with firsthand experience. Best practice gender-affirming healthcare is based on trans people’s self-determination and agency. The ...
Barcelona’s city streets have gone from traffic-clogged to pedestrian-friendly. How? Superblocks. Ellen Rykers explains. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week I read a great interview with renowned urbanist Janette Sadik-Khan by The Spinoff’s Wellington editor Joel MacManus: “You can reimagine streets, ...
Student groups ‘Climate Action VUW’, Schools Strike 4 Climate and VUWSA will be on the street in Wellington today, the last day for submissions on the Fast-track Approvals Bill, with a message that the fight against the Government’s ‘War on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sofia Ammassari, Research Fellow, Griffith University Since 2014, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity has grown exponentially – and so has the formidable organisational machine of his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). These two factors will be key to delivering the BJP a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brendon Hyndman, Associate Professor of Education (Adjunct) & Senior Manager (BCE), Charles Sturt University During COVID almost all Australian students and their families experienced online learning. But while schools have long since gone back to in-person teaching, online learning has not gone ...
Yes, they’re better for the environment. No, that’s not a good enough reason for me to use them. Once every 26 days or so, my period arrives, and if struck by an act of God, I am caught red-crotched without products. How, after 17 years of this, do I still ...
“It will cause significant harm to our environment and communities. It is completely at odds with New Zealanders’ relationship with nature and our need for a low-carbon, sustainable economic future." ...
The Chair of the National Maori Authority, Matthew Tukaki, has warned a Parliamentary Select Committee that fast-tracking legislation is a perilous practice that undermines the core tenets of democracy, transparency, and accountability. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Tenbensel, Associate Professor, Health Policy, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Getty Images Since coming into power, the coalition government has adopted a simple but shrewd see-how-fast-we-can-move political strategy. However, in the health sector this need for speed entails ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Hronis, Clinical Psychologist, University of Technology Sydney Darya Sannikova/Pexels Whether you’re watching TV, attending a footy game, or eating a meal at your local pub, gambling is hard to escape. Although the rise of gambling is not unique to Australia, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Wong, Forrest Fellow, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia Have you ever wondered if there are more insects out at night than during the day? We set out to answer this question by combing through the scientific ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Carol T Kulik, Research Professor, University of South Australia IR Stone/Shutterstock In Australia, it’s not the done thing to know – let alone ask – what our colleagues are paid. Yet, it’s easy to see how pay transparency can make pay ...
The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) is sounding a warning to migrants, that running foul of the law may see them leaving the country prematurely. ...
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Very uninformed person makes very uninformed career choice, then argues teachers don't want/need extra pay:
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/education/131492676/im-a-teacher-please-dont-pay-me-more
Nostalgia.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPGQol_WuTQ
A right wing teacher colleague of mine had an idea.
Give teachers much needed PD about teaching students with ASD, ADD, ADHD, dyslexia etc etc. Then pay us more for having that PD/qualification.
Not such a bad idea.
Monday night had Jessica M-M on TV1 saying we needed to get to know Luxon better following on from that night's polling. Last night Shane Reti was practically pleading with those watching to get to know him better because he is the greatest. Luxon has been Opposition leader long enough now for people to have made up their minds. What more do we need to know about him that we don't already know. He has had plenty of air time and screen time and Jessica M-M particularly is very supportive of him and is slightly caustic when she talks about the PM in my opinion.
Shane Reti's comments were absolutely vomitous. He mentioned twice that we needs to see more of Luxon's "parts", twice about Luxon needing to "reveal" more of himself, and a running theme of Reti's close proximity (between, behind, after hours) to Luxon.
Something of a Smithers
Mr Reti presents as a classic “potato” style Māori with an obsequious manner, raised Mormon, he has an ingrained social conservatism as his voting record shows.
When I briefly lived in Whangārei, a Kainga Ora build of 37 public houses and apartments was approved in middle class Maunu suburb, Reti immediately took the side of the pākehā property owners not wanting state houses in their midst rather than supporting working class people in desperate need of accomodation.
National MPs defend Luxon over falling popularity: 'I see the man that you don't see' https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/485945/national-mps-defend-luxon-over-falling-popularity-i-see-the-man-that-you-don-t-see
(Just posting the source, RNZ)
I was bemused by the Nat's desperately pleading with us to like their leader. If after all this time and all of Luxon's gaffes and backtracks they think Luxon is suddenly going to become inspirational they are clearly living in fantasy land. Time for them to admit allowing JK to anoint Luxon was a huge mistake and draw a 'leader' out of the hat and then providd some coherent policy.
Labour strategists must be right chuffed with National at the moment. Against the cost of living crisis, national disasters and covid related inflation they lead in the the polls. As the cray-cray influence of the Fox News GOP right infects more and more right wingers so their political vehicles become more and more unelectable.
This isn't much of a problem in the USA where the far right has limitless resources, a full on media propaganda arm and has captured the judicial system to enable a whole raft of voter suppression and gerrymandering measures that means they don't have to worry as much about being popular enough to be elected in a fair election. But elsewhere, this style of politics has made the right unelectable.
Let's be honest – Labour is running a small target policy and on being the grown up in the room against an out of touch opposition ideologically marooned in the worst excesses of 1990s neoliberalism and full of Evangelicals intent on culture war politics. The trouble is the evidence is growing that this makes the right politically irrelevant in any sort of fair election. From Biden's victory, to the US midterms, to Albanese's win in Australia to the upcoming rout of the UK Tories the public are tiring of the infantile political distractions of Plutocrat populists. For all the horse race enthusiasm of the pundit class, that is the facts that matter.
Anyone else noting that Google is playing a captcha cop game on VPN use?
Google does that to me occasionally too – and I'm not using a VPN
latest round of culture wars bollocks (bollocks on both sides)
https://twitter.com/wekatweets/status/1635751860555632642
Pithy response award to
The "information" that staff are public servants and are not allowed to have (public) political opinions is dubious.
Yes well I think the separate lists is more the correct happening.(Cockup rather than conspiracy)
Even then most of the academics I know would look at these style guides as they usually give the best advice in not offending people unintentionally.
Unless offending is part of the game in your academic work, you mostly want to get your message/research read by as many as possible.
As well many academics are asked for things like literature reviews, extended analyses on papers of relevance to a Govt Dept and many of these paid works do abide by standards set by the employing agency. Many contracts do include the expected style and any deviation is simply not paid for and it is a waste of money.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/education/131490591/te-pkenga-tells-academics-not-to-say-words-like-staff-students-or-treaty-of-waitangi
Arhh, yes controlling speech. George Orwell foreshadowed it in 1984.
It is worse than bonkers. And of course it relates to the workings of gender ideology where it is people who menstruate etc.
Remind me again how much the Polytech merger has cost? And this is what it has bought us
Having a style guide isn't controlled speech, nor Orwellian. Lots of organisations have style guides. If you want to make the argument that there is something Orwellian about this particular style, can you please make an actual argument?
How does it relate to gender ideology?
Presumably the advice to use the gender neutral terms spouse or partner.
which makes sense when you don't know the sex or gender, or marital status, of the person being referred to. It's not akin to replacing the word woman with people who menstruate.
The terms spouse or partner have been 'around since Adam was a cowboy' as they say. Mid 1980s? Just like using Ms/Mr.
I don't have a problem with a style guide, most PS agencies have them and in the olden days we used to have a publication called
The PS Style Guide that covered all sorts of things such as
This was very useful when drafting things like Gazette Notices, Orders in Council
Every Govt Dept that I ever worked in supplemented this with a department/agency specific style guide. I guess you could grab anyone of these and have a media beat-up on it.
colours and sizes of dept'l logos
salutations
when to use the shortened version of long dept'l names
use of both dept'l names etc etc.
(Australian but we had one similar) https://www.ops.gov.ie/app/uploads/2019/09/Plain-English-Style-Guide-for-the-Public-Service-2.pdf
https://www.publicservice.govt.nz/assets/DirectoryFile/New-Zealand-Government-Identity-Technical-Style-Guide.pdf
then there are the special guides for writing for an audience who gets info on line
https://www.digital.govt.nz/standards-and-guidance/design-and-ux/content-design-guidance/writing-style/
then we have specialist writing and style guides for writing for Ministers etc
https://dpmc.govt.nz/publications/writing-ministers-and-cabinet
If this is a Govt agency then the employees are Public Servants or belong in the State Sector and Codes of Conduct apply covering being impartial.
My understanding, having employed 'academics' in a Dept is that the usual PS Code of Conduct applies except when they are discussing their specialty so you would not expect an historian employed by Ministry of Culture or Treaty Unit to suddenly come out and comment on fluoridating water or Three Waters using their qualification in the history of Magna Carta to give these views credence.
Not being up on the pay arrangements, are all employees of tertiary orgs now employed by Te Pukenga including all academics ie tutors, profs etc?
What a beat up fuelled by ignorant journos aided and abetted by disgruntled and ignorant (on this issue) academics.
Aimed at public servants whose rules of employment prevent them from defending themselves and so presenting an easy target for bullies.
Also special attention is paid to being correct on Maori matters. The Crown is the other Treaty partner.
These agencies are crown agencies so surely out of all the people employed in the Govt sector ie for the other Treaty partner then we have an expectation that these matters will be addressed/standardised.
And again this is not new.
In a land dept prior to 1987 we had the equivalent of Maori Language style guides. I had several papers checked by both Pakeha & Maori academics and then by one of a group of eminent Maori who had an interest in what we were doing before it was presented to a UN agency audience, also in 1986/87.
It sort of does control speech, you'll quickly find that if you don't use the preferred language your opportunities quickly evaporate in the organization, will also be brought up in performance reviews etc.
100% Cricklewood
I'm going to guess you're not objecting to the punctuation and grammar guide. Which bits are a problem exactly. That when writing official documents they want the organisation to be called by its name instead of the megapoly?
But why wouldn't you want your language, your tool, along with your brain, to be the best and most effective both for you and for your employer?
Do surgeons moan & groan because 'people' ask them to to sterilise their tools or use the most up to date ones. Do they moan at hospitlas that employ them who have these expectations?
So why shouldn't a person using their language tools for an employer not be guided by the employer as to the standards they expect?
As well most Style Guides are guides only, usually circulated for comment etc and if you did not take the chance to comment or indicate on a letter by letter basis why it may not be correct why do you moan when it is commented upon.
If it is still being commented on by the time a performance appraisal time comes about then you may not have shown that you have learned.
If you are writing for a Minister, for a cabinet paper, policy papers there are ways of doing this just as Drs, when writing scripts have to write them in certain ways otherwise they don't get filled.
I don't find this very convincing I am sorry Cricklewood.
Or are you saying that employers have taken issues with possible racism, sexism, ageism etc in speech in the workplace?
.
I did have a couple of staff that I had to ‘counsel’ about this. In the end we came to an agreement that he would act as if the Depts stds were a cloak that he put on as he stepped out of the lift on the way to work and left on throughout the working day. Mainly racism and sexism. The racism part, funnily enough, disappeared when he married someone who was Maori. The sexism never did.
A quote from the article I posted above. "words they should and should not use"
The row over academic freedom at Te Pūkenga – the country’s largest tertiary provider – has rumbled on after it emerged staff have been issued with a list of words they should and should not use.
“Staff were told they should not refer to the organisation as a “megapolytech” or say “merge” – even though those terms describe how it was formed. “We always refer to ourselves as Te Pūkenga.”
The guide discourages gendered language, for example: “We also use: spouse or partner – not husband, wife”.
how dare my employer tell me how to refer to my husband…….
They're not talking about personal communications, the style guide is for writing official documents so that there is consistency across the organisation. See Shanreagh's explanation above. No-one is taking away your ability to call your husband husband.
I have far more of a problem with this from the Stuff piece,
I only have a problem if it is not correct that they are public servants.
PS are bound by a Code of Conduct. this does in effect separate their personal & political views from their professional roles
Of course this does not stop you putting the best views forward to any policy based on your skills, research & life experiences within your workplace. Your brains are your tools and they are expected to be used! This is why diversity in workplaces is so important. In giving voice to views. policies, procedures we need to have a different experiences and views working with us.
If you want to engage in politics most PS are quite careful about doing anything that calls into question their impartiality, thus leading to their suitability for continued employment being called into question and losing their jobs. There are many ways to express your concern within the departmental setting and even whistle blowing mechanisms, contact with any Inspectorate doing their jobs etc.
When I was a PS I was never a member of a political party and neither were most of those I worked with. Of course we had our views and we voted, but we tried not to bring them to work.
If we were doing something that could put us in the spotlight then it was no problem to clear this and give a head's up to our employers.
if you work in a university or polytech you have to be able to speak freely. That's part of the role of academia.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/education/131490591/te-pkenga-tells-academics-not-to-say-words-like-staff-students-or-treaty-of-waitangi
I'm pleased this is coming up because if the GI stuff goes like the UK having academic freedom established will help.
It is not academic freedom it is a style guide.
Weka, I was going to follow up with Ani O'Brien but it is futile, from past experience.
Sometimes I cannot get over how sheltered and naive people like her are, have they never worked for an agency where there is a concern for correct writing & image.
This applies even to most large private sector employers who are very concerned about who & how people get to speak for them.
I’m probably blocked anyway as a couple of us tried to put a different view and were subsequently blocked……
The merged polytech is a publicly funded organisation. I think tax payers who pay for this have a right to push back on this change of the use of language
Also this change of language has nothing to do with the imparting of knowledge and skills that the polytech is set up to do. Its ideological
yes, but Ani has a large follower count and she lied by calling it a ban. Can you not see the problem with that?
I do see the problem with that, very much so but some times my energy for trying to advise/comment on such sterile ground as her over blown comments just is not there.
my comment was to anker.
Hmmmmm we will be having a big back log then…..I came across the PS style guide in the 1970s and Dept'l style guides in the 1980s……so they have been around a while….
What exactly is the objection to treating people with respect and courtesy and observing Te Tiriti?
Some of the guides have standards about accessibility of language, not dumbing down, but freeing the letters from jargon and other bits that are just 'noise' to a person trying to understand things.
Look & feel across all communications ie making sure the logo is the correct colour, the comms are clearly set out, there are no spelling mistakes etc that you are respectful are not hard concepts to grasp.
It has everything to do with the 'imparting of knowledge'.
People see themselves 'reflected back' in the contacts they have with an organisation. If an organisation only wants to 'see' salutations that are Mr or Mrs or pairings such as husband and wife then it is hard for people who don't fit those categories to 'see' themselves. Many of us fought for the right to use Ms as we did not feel we should have to reveal our matrimonial status with every letter we wrote. This was when Miss was sort of used as a spinsterish demeaning way and Mrs often meant you were going to get pregnant and leave
We (royal we should I say most public servants) want people to feel included and if this means we take care with our salutations, we don't weaponise the way the organisation was founded, we carefully use any Maori words (we represent the treaty partner, the Crown, remember.
I cannot really see what the objection is, no story really as style guides have been around for decades.
Good overall analysis of where we are at regarding Climate Change and its effect on our rain intensities – and is easy for anyone to read:
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/485990/niwa-scientist-in-no-doubt-climate-change-behind-cyclone-gabrielle-s-intensity
Though it concerns me anyone is even suggesting obliquely there is still doubt among the informed that CC is real.
tsmythfielder channeling Tucker look how that's working with Tucker you must feel like a very proud boy promoting your Strawman!
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
[stop harassing this (or any) commenter. This is a pattern of behaviour from you. Next time I see it, expect a ban, building on your previous bans, and bearing in mind we are handing out bans until well after the election because we want to up the debate culture here and discourage this kind of SM-esque response – weka]
mod note. Please let me know that you have read and understood.
sorry couldn't help myself
Aucklanders have something to think about, but not for too long – the consultation window is for a defined period only.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/local-government/131493305/alternative-to-auckland-councils-grim-budget-doesnt-gut-services
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/new-auckland/chloe-comes-out-swinging-at-auckland-council-budget-cuts
After the recent flood damage and yet another BBB (Big-Budget Blowout – as time rolls on, they are default by their inevitability) it seems certain that some things must go off the wish list.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/local-government/131499344/billion-dollar-blowout-aucklands-city-rail-link-to-cost-55b
Short-term thinking and ‘fixes’ tend to win the day, in local and national politics, and one day the can will have grown to a concrete-filled barrel that can no longer be kicked down the road.
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/comment/dont-sell-auckland-airport-shares
I was looking at party health policies last night, due to ongoing personal experience with people not being treated or not being able to afford treatment in our health system – plus many similar stories in the news. As expected, the Greens seem to be the only ones with an unambiguous policy of actual free health care. Unfortunately the policy is delivered cluelessly, with this being the first strategic priority:
And only three points further down do we get:
The first point means little to a lot of people and is confusing or alienating to people not up with the latest progressive buzzwords. I don't have a problem with the intent of point 1 – but why not swap the points around and put "FREE HEALTH CARE FOR ALL" as the first point? Of course free health care will benefit all the groups identified in 1 as well.
Surely Tax Payer funded health care for all.
For if it is free for ALL … exactly who pays for it as someone MUST inevitably
Not-for-profit health care for all; would prefer public, but don't care too much if the health care service provider is public or private, as long as extracting profit isn't its reason for being, and access to health services is based on need, not ability to pay.
Looking at you, Coleman.
Free at point of delivery, obviously paid through tax and other state revenue.
Exactly who should pay? Mainly those with the most – in particular the top 10% who have over 50% of the wealth.
"User Pays" = "Poor Can't Use"
I can only find this 2012 study:
https://www.inequality.org.nz/understand/rich-really-pay-tax/
with several extras it appears that the top 10% already pay near 50% of Income tax.
There is this link in there too:
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/300238241/more-than-40-of-millionaires-paying-tax-rates-lower-than-the-lowest-earners-government-data-reveals
The mistake of thinking IRD-declared income is the same thing as wealth!
In that item they conflate "wealth" with "IRD-declared income".
The issue is, really rich people don't have much declared income – their increase in wealth either comes from lightly-taxed sources that do not appear as IRD income (e.g. most capital gains) or they structure their affairs to avoid needing to declare income (offshore havens etc). 42% of "high wealth individuals" (people or families with more than $50m) in New Zealand have effective income tax rates below 10%.
We don't know how much tax the rich in NZ actually pay (NZ has 'virtually no idea' rate of tax paid by wealthiest) but indications are it is very low. Confirming that income tax brackets are a red herring, two-thirds of the very rich in NZ have no income in the top tax bracket whatsoever.
It is perverse that the source of income that can only be accessed by those who already have wealth – capital gains – is the one we tax lightly and argue over whether it should be taxed at all!
If you have income under $31k pa you can apply for a Community Services card, which greatly (like 60% or so) cuts GP and private emergency clinic fees. This is a significant subsidy that increases afforability for poorer people.
Or we could call it what it is – "single payer health care for all"
I see that the greens and labour are Totally consumed by climate change and what needs to be done immediately ahead of everything else. Or was that to say anything that sounds good and will get them re elected, pity action is telling us all what they really think, and now to have a pm who doesn’t think this is important, humanity and the planets survival above everything else, you could say the defines a climate skeptic 🤨
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/election/2017/08/jacinda-ardern-climate-change-is-my-generation-s-nuclear-free-moment.amp.html
Would you like to re-write your 'hate on anything connected to Labour' comment so we know what you are talking about – together with suitable links?
Banging on about something Jacinda Ardern (who has left the parliamentary arena) said six years ago is no longer a relevant link.
So the condition of the world is NOT an issue – Amazing how many on the left now are deniers that climate change is an issue worth making sacrifices for ??
Perhaps you too along with our current PM should wear a tin foil hat out in public.
You're the one with tin foil hat on your head!
Shaw said it's "very disappointing".
He's disappointed with the lack of consultation and with Hipkins' focus on the cost of living crisis over climate crisis.
"It's clear that the Prime Minister is very keen to win the election and he's prepared to do just about whatever it takes to do that." _ Great comment from someone that potentially in a few months time you will have to come crawling to form a government- Pity Hipkins has lost credibility and has little integrity, the guy is a total political animal and will do anything to survive even lie to NZ.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_DVvXyRj2o
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2023/03/election-2023-red-green-friction-heats-up-as-james-shaw-says-chris-hipkins-prepared-to-do-just-about-whatever-to-win.html
Given you won’t vote for the Greens
either because of their wealth tax and or their environment first approach
or MP
either because of the indigenous rights co-governance (consultative) or Tiriti advocacy or their support for delivery MHA
or Labour
either because of their mortgage interest tax deductability or their coalition partners
what is your point?
Everyone knows Greens will support Labour on confidence and supply for nothing if the alternative is National or NACT.
It's useful to note the issues which are raised by those who come here from time to time for this purpose, to eviscerate
the left/Labour.The old, label them as either single issue ideologues, or insincere politicians tactic.
Some on the left would have preferred an original focus on moving from vehicles to PT (the half fares) and e bikes (away from car transport).
There is obviously Labour's realisation that many working class cannot afford to buy cars atm (rent/cost of living or rising mortgage cost) – which speaks to the suspension of petrol taxation.
It's a real world moment. And no the modernisation of our car market is not dependent on financial inducements at taxpayer expense.
Stuart Nash has officially resigned after initially stating he had no reason to do so.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/131505006/stuart-nash-resigns-as-police-minister-after-encouraging-police-commissioner-to-appeal-a-ruling
He looks very foolish now. He should have just refused to speak to journalists prior to his decision to resign.
"Staurt Nash" eh. At least that error is easily fixed. Ah well, he brought it on himself.
If Chippy wants to be consistent with past breaches of this rule he should be sacked from all portfolios not just Police.
It's the PM's call – Nashie's been reasonably popular in the Napier electorate, so he might come back – might even rise to lead the party. It's been known to happen.
You missed the point. He still holds other portfolios (Minister for Economic Development, Forestry, and Oceans & Fisheries). If Chippy was as strong a leader as you suggest then he should have removed ALL his Ministerial warrants.
Quite a few people will be wanting Tourism taking off him too over his stupid freedom camping ban legislation.
As I suggest? Really Gosman – that's a bit strong. It is the PM's call, isn't it?
Chippie's an experienced politician – an electorate MP for 14+ years cf. Luxo's two-and-a-bit. Lux weathered last year's Uffindell storm well, I'll give him that.
What it does show is a very decisive PM who will not allow distractions to get in the way, unlike the floundering isolating LOTO.
Except Nash should not be a Minister of anything.
Many on this site have, in the past, said Nash is too Right for the Labour Party so perhaps your opinion is right.
It isn't because he is too right wing but because he breached the Cabinet manual and the one involving political interfering in the Police Commissioners role.
That is correct, but ignores the glaring irony that the opposition are constantly demanding that the PM and Ministers interfere in the Police Commissioner's role, from crime to cyclones to protests at Parliament.
Chris "I would pick up the phone" Luxon would presumably NOT pick up the phone after all, like Nash picked up the phone. Good to know.
That's a very good point, but will be lost on the public.
I suspect the public would have very little interest in the story anyway.
It's one of those times when the opposition and media get very excited ("Cabinet manual!") and are later surprised when it has no effect whatsoever on public opinion. They really do live in their own world.
(If the wider public think about the story at all, they are going to be far less "outraged" by Nash, and far more that a guy commits a serious gun crime and gets off scot-free … ).
Why? As Hipkins pointed out, while Nash had the discussion, the outcome of the legal decision was not what he advocated. Hipkins put forward that this shows our system of judicial independence was maintained. Seems fair to me. And at the time he was not Minister for Police.
The US is a wacky place. They have Marjorie Taylor Greene as an elected representative. Most Republicans believe the Presidency was stolen from Trump. Apparently some are totally opposed to abortion because it's killing and all killing is wrong, but they agree with capital punishment.
I've seen pleas that school kids should have see-through bags so any guns in them can be spotted. Another school story indicating the state of what has been called the 'most advanced country in the history of the world. Bullet proof whiteboards in class.
"Two special education classrooms at West Elementary School are currently piloting the technology, developed by KT Security Solutions, which essentially turns a classroom whiteboard into a pop-out, standalone, bulletproof storm shelter."
https://www.al.com/educationlab/2023/03/two-alabama-classrooms-now-have-60000-whiteboards-that-turn-into-gun-storm-shelters.html?outputType=amp
Tremain's racist (and reality-free) cartoons are still being hosted here. Inexplicable, please stop.
Agree with this. We did raise this before.
I don't think the Point of Order blog is worth having to suffer these racist, vitriolic and clearly personal cartoons for.
Readers can go directly to the blog off their own devices and put themselves down to get updates. We don't need to have a direct link here, do we?
Please………
Gain of function research was suspended by POTUS Obama in 2014.
When it resumed in 2017 some were concerned
https://www.reuters.com/article/usa-pathogens-funding-idINKBN1ED2FL
At this time the debate was whether research should be limited to diseases/viruses that had never infected humans.
This is the argument used by Fauci when he denied funding gain of function research at Wuhan.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/world/europe/300830407/no-lab-had-virus-similar-enough-to-covid-to-spark-pandemic-zoologist-says
The following is an interview with him at a December 2019 conference in Singapore
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IdYDL_RK–w
He mentions after 26 minutes – that they had a lot of bat coronaviruses they were adding spike proteins to so as to manipulate the virus. The spike proteins would make any such virus more dangerous (and as we know the mRNA designed vaccines focused on identification of the spike protein).
The SARS 2 coronavirus is about 97% similar to some in the Wuhan lab research.
However it is not that simple. Those involved were aware of the the possibility of making consensus sequences where viruses were 95% similar.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/world/europe/300830407/no-lab-had-virus-similar-enough-to-covid-to-spark-pandemic-zoologist-says
Tough break Nash you were on point.
It speaks to National being soft on illegal gun possession, if none of them said anything similar.
The funny thing is Nash is unlikely to lose votes for venting to the police commissioner over a soft sentence amongst the voters of Napier.
Exactly. Public outrage: none.
Of course he had to resign because he broke the rules, but only the press gallery and headline-hungry opposition will care.
Luxon's lucky he has Covid and is isolating, otherwise he'd be flannelling when asked the obvious question: this sentence OK by you? (And unlike a Minister, he'd be free to answer it … but he wouldn't want to).
So how did the media get to hear about it?
From accounts I have read it was essentially a private conversation between Nash and Coster who apparently are personal as well as professional acquaintances. It happened two years ago and it suddenly pops up in the media.
Foul play? Where’s Soper in all of this?
Having said the above, Nash has a reputation for impulsive behaviour. It isn't the first time he has been in trouble.
Ki te aha whano
https://youtu.be/fKopy74weus