In response to my "provocation" to declare a climate emergency, the council has sprung into action, planning and compiling actions to take and those being taken, to try to justify their refusal to declare a climate emergency; the public will want to know what they turned the opportunity down, if in fact they do, and so they're galvanised into action even before the vote. This will have happened with every council that has been challenged to make the declaration. It's a win-win situation but don't tell the "National Party supporting, 55 years and over, European New Zealand males that are the bulk of my council and who statistically oppose declaring a "climate emergency".
Those things already in train, plus others they'll have to consider, having committed to do so. The declaration is more for the public, Imo, that the councillors; it's a statement of intent and inclusion, bringing the councillors out into the light of public scrutiny on this issue, where otherwise they (we – I'm one) make our decisions behind closed doors and minds; we need the close attention and input of the people we serve and this declaration creates opportunities to do just that. The tension that exists now, and there's plenty of that, is working in favour of those wanting action; there's action aplenty as the conservative faction scrambles to justify their unwillingness to take the proactive, progressive path.
It might pay to pull the analogy of other emergencies further from what is done there. For instance the emergency provisions for a major weather event, an earthquake.
I fear the boy who cried wolf syndrome – if emergencies are declared I hope we act like an emergency has been declared otherwise I'm not sure why we would bother.
I feel "emergency" in this case is more generic and means "emerging" in; the crisis is emerging and now's the time to face the music, get activated while we still can. Later on, when we're swamped by the effects of the climate, we won't be in as strong a position to do anything bar scramble for our lives. Emergencies like earthquakes, devastating floods, tsunami etc. activate the machinery of immediacy; search and rescue, fire fighters, the military etc; not being asked for with this "climate emergency" movement. I'm curious as to why some people react the way you have, Marty, hearing alarm bells and seeing flashing lights at the word, "emergency", where I hear, "emerging". I'm not being critical of those who do, it's just interesting to compare reactivities.
This is where some of my concerns with the 'window dressing' aspect of declaring a climate emergency. The word emergency gets devalued until it means just the next difficulty. It doesn't mean that – it is an EMERGENCY or it isn't. If it is ACTION immediately is required. If not – I'd say choose a different word to convey the meaning.
Bit like saying crusaders meant the crusading spirit – umm yeah nah. Emergency does not mean emerging imo
your council withered under toxoplasmosis controlled zombies,to constrain cats adjacent to Omaui conservation estate ,and its globally significant Korero ghecko.
There was no evidence presented, or even mention of any "Korero gecko" at the hearing, Poisson; are you making that up?
Edit: sorry, I see that you are not.
Ah, my apologies, I see that Tony Jewel (whom I've met) found one. Still, it wasn't mentioned, so far as I know. That's intriguing. The proposal to control cats was contractually reliant upon majority support from the Omaui residents. They demanded otherwise and the proposal was dropped.
Poisson; you may have missed this part of my response above:
"The proposal to control cats was contractually reliant upon majority support from the Omaui residents. They demanded otherwise and the proposal was dropped. "
Without the go-ahead from the locals, we could not implement the programme proposed. Wallys, you say, but bound by rules and contracts and respectful of them.
Greenpeace climate campaigner, Amanda Larsson, says the arrival of the OMV-contracted drill rig contradicts Jacinda Ardern’s declaration that climate change is her generation’s nuclear free moment.
"This OMV rig is a 34,000 tonne embarrassment. It’s come from Norway – literally the other side of the world – to search for new oil and gas during a climate emergency. I imagine the phrase on many people’s lips right now is probably WTF," she says…..
…..Larsson says OMV can expect widespread resistance.
"We’re living through a climate emergency, and people around the world are standing up to the governments and companies that haven’t done enough to respond to this threat," she says.
…..The arrival of OMV’s drill rig in New Zealand comes as an occupation by Greenpeace UK of a BP oil rig in Scotland enters its third day.
Greenpeace UK have been served with an injunction as a result. Rig workers attempted to lower the injunction via a bucket and rope to two activists who remain camped on the rig.
Greenpeace UK has vowed to continue with the occupation, despite the legal action.
Under laws passed by the last government and yet to be repealed by this one, Protests like those currently underway in the UK against oil exploration rigs are specifically prohibited in New Zealand under the Anadarko Amendment, carrying extremely heavy penalties, up to two years imprisonment, and massive fines of both individuals and the organisations that they might be affiliated to, (like Greenpeace).
"It’s outrageous that under the new Labour-led Government, which has committed to bold climate leadership, the oil ministry would consider punishing climate activists using this anti-democratic law."
"It was bad enough that the previous National Government used these laws against climate activists, but the supposedly climate-friendly new Labour Government shouldn’t be threatening climate activists with $50,000 fines and 12 months in jail for protesting the oil industry."
…..They face a year in jail and up to $300,000 in collective fines.
One of the reasons give by Green MPs in meetings with activists, as to why they would not be making any moves in parliament towards repealing the Anadarko Amendment, was that it would negatively impact their efforts to achieve consensus over climate change with the opposition National Party.
Now that the attempt to achieve consensus with the Nats. is behind them.
In solidarity with their activist base, the Green Party as part of the government, should now be free to raise the issue of repealing the Anadarko Amendment.
It's funny Pete used to drive me mad, but over time they way he got his perspective across improved and I recently rediscovered his blog which I was enjoying reading. A thoroughly decent chap who was put through the wringer by a bunch of numbskulls and im very happy he came out on top there.
Not everyones cup of tea but one of the good guys if you ask me.
Perhaps not as bad as he's painted (beige) and has an eye for the political, but lacks self-awareness, somewhat. I reckon. I'm glad he's stopping; his readers were subtly polluting his soul
Aha! I'm trying to place you by the tone of your comment, Cricklewood, but I can't quite picture you; no matter, I like everyone I meet, so you must be okay
Pete's probably okay as well, but I've not met him yet. I'm sure I will though.
Just another plant enthusiast that has had the pleasure of visiting your forest.
I have a very similar horticultural philosophy in fact my favorite garden if you want to call it that is a patch of flowering 'weeds' in a little and forgotten (by the council contactor)traffic island. I do love Verbena bonariensis in full flight.
I take my hat off to him working a full-time job and running his blog all by himself. That shows commitment, dedication and (self-)sacrifice. In fact, I applaud Pete and I wish him well in his other/new projects. Life is precious and we all need to live it wisely.
The announcement by the Housing Minister that, we're interested in all possible avenues to fix the housing crisis, is great news.
The road less traveled.
Of all the possible avenues available to the Minister, a EMPTY HOMES TAX, like that imposed in Vancouver, will cost the least, and have immediate effect, freeing up tens of thousands of perfectly good vacant properties for renters and buyers.
no sure why you think this is an attempt at diversion as many of hte empty houses are actually full come the tourist season. So what ever empty housing tax you might levy at them will be offset by gains in the high season especially in high tourists area where locals can't find any rentals as it is easier to rent them a thousand bucks a night when the concert and festival season is high.
So firstly i agree with your 'empty house tax', i would also like to see a 'second house or millionaires batch tax' and then i would like to have these amateur hoteliers regulated as any industry in this country is.
But i am greatfull for your gracious and charitable admission that i understand 'the concept'. Bless.
….many of hte empty houses are actually full come the tourist season.
At last count there were over 33,000 empty homes in Auckland. That seems a lot of Air B&Bs. If most of them are 'actually full' during the tourist season, as you claim, then no wonder the hoteliers are moaning.
And I agree with you, if that is the case, then Air B&Bs, (whether full or empty), should be included in the Empty Homes Tax. Tourists who are passing through have choices. I would rather they stayed in hotels and motels, or a backpackers. Allow Aucklanders the chance to rent or buy these homes.
I would rather the tourists stayed in the motels, backpacker hostels and campgrounds, after all that is what they are supposed to be for.
P.S. Also, it probably wouldn't hurt to put up a link or some kind of evidence to back your claim that the empty houses "are actually full come the tourist season."
I think it is good practice, so that people can tell whether I am making stuff up off the top of my head, or whether I am relying on anecdotal evidence.
Didn't realise that this govt was so heavily into the possibility of state asset sales and for what ? Privately owned rentals "Government could give developers to build more new rental stock, including the possibility of selling them Crown-owned land with the payment being deferred to a later date."
So the private sector is the answer not HNZ. Does he not know anything about govt finance. Borrowing for HNZ does NOT increase the deficit. It is balance sheet neutral.
This is so bad. What utter filth this sad shithead is.
A volunteer in Tararua who lopped a phallus from a Māori carving with a chainsaw, has gone from hero to zero in the eyes of his community.
The figure was part of a set of carvings called Te Hononga Maunga, which offered welcome and safe passage to all who hiked along the Manawatū Gorge Reserve walking track.
But Milton Wainwright, who considers himself a devoted Christian, deemed the statue's penis to be obscene and immoral, so he tried to cut it off with a hand saw in mid-April. It proved difficult, so he returned the next morning with a mini chainsaw and reduced the phallus to sawdust.
…Wainwright has been banned from the walking track for two years by the Department of Conservation and is to appear in Dannevirke Court in July.
Brian Tamaki …… the man who gave us the idea that homosexual penisis were part of the reason …….. for the Christchurch earthquakes
Tamaki knows that generally Muslims are on par with Satan worshipers …. But when standing on the penis,,,,,,,, these blasphemous deniers of the one true messiah have are largely got it right ,,,Brian knows this ….. as God talks to him.
He remembers, When we as a country walked the talk about " God of nations " ….. the NZ penis police had kept homosexuality as a criminal offense for most of our history ,,,, this unlawfull hardness, or crime against God as Brian knows it to be ,,,, was a jailable offense, that the NZ Justice system kept on its books and enforced … until 1986.
In that cursed year of 1986, a godless Labour Govt started us on our march towards being the sodom of the south Pacific.,,,, NZ penisis freed from christian Moral restraint , began working against God himself… and his heavenly geological features were used to punish us.
As Brian has personally been told , If the good lord wanted us to look at cocks we would have them in the middle of our foreheads , and there would have been kingdom dick picks in the garden of eden ,,,,, But we don't , and their wasn't.
We are lucky to have suffered only one smite so far …. with our mortal dicks in gods face arrogance …. like a hairy mote in his all seeing eye.
To avert more Gods wrath disasters which are our inevitable wages for sin.,,, Men must stop our tools being the tools of Satan , ,,,…….We must think with our big heads ….. and Vote for Brian …..
Its as cheap as two ticks and a bit of logic ,,, for god class disaster insurance cover.
Cover the cock, trust in god …. and vote accordingly.
A similar thing happened here in Riverton where an elderly European New Zealander ex-farmer tore down and chopped-up a large driftwood figure erected in the bed of the estuary beside the town. He felt offended by the arms-spread-wide, caped figure, and took matters into his own hands. When I confronted him, he was upset but took me to the remains of "Ogon" and offered to fix and re-install it, saying he regretted his over-reaction. I could see that he was sincere in his upset and action, but both of us recognised that the problem was the lack of previous dialogue over the expression of culture the driftwood figure represented. The "phallus chopper" of today's story will have acted with sincerity (he kept his work tidy) and the same argument that's made for not growing pumpkins in a community garden because the look to a candle like footballs and will get kicked around, applies here. The same artist who made Ogon, also made a huge moose that stood also in the estuary, until someone broke off its "generous" phallus. The response from the artist was to replace the missing member with a larger one! No one removed that. I expect you'll reply angrily, Marty, saying it's a racist, disrespectful thing, and it is, but it's also that effect I'm describing, imo.
I'm sure the person had some ideas when they did it – pretty direct insult – up there with setting fire to a marae imo – being a christian used as an insult to others – pity this still happens
you'd have to add in the complexity of our current situation – the dominance of culture, beliefs such as 'progress' and 'capitalism' and so on. Then that would need to be considered via the context of the situation. Indigenous peoples have been abused and othered by this society – how do we honour our ancestors and the treaties they made from all sides.
Rule of thumb – if a older, 'whiter' maler type is offended – probably nothing to worry about. If someone is offended by them – big issue simply because of the power imbalance and their absolute domination of society including HOW we can even talk about stuff. 🙂
There is a history of this 'altering' of cultural artefacts by early European collectors, museums and ethnographers. The explanations range from Victorian prudishness (at which we can now laugh) to a systemic disrespect for cultures deemed to be inferior.
I imagine both these explanations are true – as are all sorts of muddled mixtures in between. That would seem to explain why it still happens.
Patriarchy and primates are closer bedfellows; Christianity doesn't have exclusivity there. I'm for a reversion/progression to a Goddess culture but banging on about the opposite isn't going to progress the issue at all; is that how the Goddess culture would behave?
Okay; no, the Goddess people wouldn't react that way. The image defacer was walking his walk, acting upon his heart-felt belief, I imagine. He's paid the price too and can no longer walk his walk through the forest. Dialogue between him and the sculptor would be favoured by the Goddess people, as a solution to further trouble, but they'd have already had channels of communication in place to prevent the occurence in the first place. I'm not expert on predicting what an invented culture might do, I'm just thinking…
Always marty mars you descend into insult. Robert is trying to explain that there are pakeha belief systems that predate Christianity.
Many of these belief systems were from cultures who very survival was depended on being able to resolve differences with discussion and a genuine desire to find common ground…not inflaming conflict.
Then we'd all sit down and share a goblet of mead….
These cultures were often pacifist in nature, hence struggled against those who would impose their culture by violence.
If i believe in the Goddess, which I do, and I think Robert knows that, then it is a direct confronting question. If I don't or Robert doesn't know if I believe or not, then it is irrelevant.
My response to Robert was related to this context and wasn't a judgment on him or his beliefs at all. AND it wasn't an insult imo.
You vent often enough Rosemary and I consider unreasonably though you can justify it yourself. If you can't be positive why don't you take a break instead of tackling other good thinkers on here.
ALL mainstream religions are patriarchal. None less so than Islam.
I suppose though that we should show tolerance to those of a religious persuasion, even though they seldom show it to us rational (ie non religious) people. As evidenced by the original subject of this thread.
I would consider myself to be an indigenous person MM. Are you?
Or do you think that you alone should tell me what to say, what to think? That is, to ‘neuter’ me.
Sounds a lot like imperialistic dictate to me Marty, regardless of whether or not you are indigenous (and that term is so overused that I seldom use it myself).
Not really sure what you are getting at there. I was talking about the thing I posted. Didn't mean to upset you or do anything to piss you off.
This was what I was thinking about
Massey University professor of Māori visual arts and culture Bob Jahnke said both male and female figures with genitalia were powerful and significant traditional symbols in Māori carving.
They represent an iwi's mana and the continuation of its whakapapa, every ancestor and every future descendent to ever birth a new generation.
Wainwright's removal of the carving's phallus was an insult to Rangitāne so grave that Jahnke felt it himself, even though he was Ngāti Porou.
"It's upsetting just to hear about it … it's a symbolic neutering of the whole iwi."
Wainwright's actions were an unwelcome throwback to the disrespect Māori culture was afforded in the colonial era – when Christian missionaries used to cut the genitalia out of sacred carvings wherever they saw them.
"These instances of missionary prudery, particularly in Northland, almost led to the loss of an entire [traditional] carving style."
I've heard a definition of "indigenous person or native" that grants those titles to anyone who understands the meanings of all the bird-calls of an area.
Indigenous means Maori really I think. If you aren't sure then it could be a good thing to go carefully. As you are no doubt thinking you can't always tell by skin colour or appearance.
My sister-in-law had a pakeha father. Years ago in the 60's she was in the Far North and she had to have her baby in the section for pakehas as the Maori women decided she was too white-looking to be with them. But she has a long whakapapa which her husband, a pakeha, carefully drew up for her noting all the tupuna down.
Rubbish, there is plenty of European art with full frontal male nudity, Michealangelo's David being the most obvious one that leaps to mind. The difference being that in most cultures a fully aroused erection is generally considered offensive, and usually illegal, to parade in public.
Rightly or wrongly that's what this guy was specifically objecting to. If it was a live male standing there in the same condition, the police would eventually turn up to deal with him.
On the other hand this is art, and art has different boundaries, especially in a gallery or private setting. I’m guessing that the specific idiom of this style may well present the penis in this fashion. Personally I'd cheerfully tolerate this carving because it's not really harmful and it would be disrespectful to damage it. That's what tolerance means, giving each other space to be different even if you're a bit annoyed or offended.
Just reflexively blaming patriarchy and christianity is simplistic; plenty of religious people would have walked past this carving and not felt any need to take a chainsaw to it.
RL – at no point did I mention, let alone blame, patriarchy or christianity. These are large, slippery concepts I steer clear of. I simply pointed out a history of European (mostly Victorian) collectors and ethnographers altering indigenous art in this way. To me it seems implausible that a systemic disrespect of a culture deemed to be inferior doesn't at least partially underlie such actions in the past and the present.
Pretty common – people just want their families reunited.
Rapa Nui leaders will introduce their visitors to their culture – but they also want to talk about the possible return of the world-famous statue that has stood in pride of place in the museum’s Wellcome gallery for the last 150 years.
“This is no rock,” said Carlos Edmunds, the president of the Council of Elders, of Hoa Hakananai’a, a four-tonne lava rock sculpture carved by the ancient inhabitants of Easter Island that has been kept in the British Museum for the last century and a half. “It embodies the spirit of an ancestor, almost like a grandfather. This is what we want returned to our island – not just a statue.”
mind if he only objected to the hanging male genitalia (c he could have carved a fig leave, or cut one out of fabric and put that over the object of annoyance and made his statement.
but to take a saw? and come back? and pretend he did not do damage? after he was told to stay away.
that is literally just some fuckwit deciding that he knows best.
Also, i would like to point out that until Adam ate the apple (and really i dispute that a. the snake told him so, and b. Eve is resposnsible for his lack of self control) he ran around naked in paradise, erection and all.
mind if he only objected to the hanging male genitalia
From the pic I saw of the original, it wasn't 'hanging' harmlessly. And as I pointed out discretely above, if any actual bloke was spotted in public in the same condition, we'd call him a flasher and likely call the police who'd charge him with offensive behaviour.
And that's how this guy interpreted what he was seeing. It's a socially conservative way of looking at things, but it's not necessarily racist or being a fuckwit. At worst I'd argue he unaware of what he was really seeing, and overreacted badly. I don't condone what he did, but as Rosemary points out, making him the enemy doesn't help.
It was the first statue you linked to not the second that he damaged. There are literally hundreds similar around the country. It was not only an act of supreme vandalism it was also highly culturally insensitive.
we use naked or half naked or sugessted naked bodies of women to sell everything from cars to milk.
but an erection……what will the children think? what will the women think? will the man feel little? bullshit.
an erection is one of the most normal things, every man at least has had one – by want or force of nature, and without erections and ejaculations none of us would exist.
Good fucking grief, you need some smelling salts with that fainting couch?
"Old, White, Christian man has no idea why mutilating a statue of Rangitāne's ancestor would offend local Rangitāne. Or, to put it another way, elderly racist explains NZ history in a single sentence."
I agree, Rosemary, that the epithet Marty used is way OTT. I'd save that for someone who's action is more serious than this one. The sculpture can be repaired, the cultural divide bridged through dialogue and the perps right to walk the track restored, without the outrage. It's natural for many to feel blood-boiling outrage, initially at least, but nurturing it, embedding it into local folklore is the stuff of feud and war.
"Old, White, Christian man has no idea why mutilating a statue of Rangitāne's ancestor would offend local Rangitāne. Or, to put it another way, elderly racist explains NZ history in a single sentence."
Same as desecrating tombstones or Buddha statues but not here because it is only the maari that are moaning ffs
actions have consequences. And being a bigot, even with seriously held religious believes still makes one a bigot. And that guy is a bigot. His culture is all fine and dandy and other cultures need to conform to his thinking.
Maybe being a closet minded self absorbed holier then thou geezer does not inspire others to come to his museum.
What if someone took offence to hymn singing and organ music and took an axe or electric saw to one of these and said 'I hold a sincerly held believe in Deity XYZ and am offended by organ playing and thus felt the need – despite being told to stay away – to destroy the object of my offense?
What if we all just started to destroy things that we took offence at and basically blamed our sincerely held believes in what ever deity we like?
Or are religious and cultural believes only something for christians and respect for other cultures and depictions of said cultures is only for others but not christians?
And is property destruction now a sincerely held religious believes and whose sculpture would Jesus destroy and disfigure?
He is paying the dearest of prices Sabine…being banned from the place he loves and protects.
We all know he shouldn't have done it and how it points to his age and ignorance.
We all have things we simply won't tolerate even if we are wrong in our opinion….like you telling the mum with the child recovering from chickenpox to fuck off out of your shop….and that is your territory and you believe you have the right to judge.
Likewise this guy. He has poured his heart and soul into that place and to him a oversize dick is an anathema in an environment designed to give families time in nature.
So he behaves like a dick….
And marty mars behaves like a dick and pours utter filth this sad shithead into the mix.
you know what, actions have consequences and i reserve pity for those who deserve it and this geezer deserves none.
As for the rest, i agree with Marty Mars, and frankly i believe that Marty Mars was rather constrained and polite. Personally i would have added 'penis envy'.
As for dicks, there is nothing wrong with them, some are attached to men who know how to use them well and pleasurable and some only use them to piss around leaving nothing but puddles of filth behind for others to clean up.
He threw over the tables of the money lenders. They got to leave with their money and their ledgers to conduct business elsewhere.
What did he disfigure? What culture did he disfigure? And is money lending in a temple the same as a guardian – a respected figure of the past – at the beginning of a walking track?
It was a light-hearted comment, Sabine. I suspect your deep-held Christian beliefs are impassioning your comments here; all good, they should. I wonder what Jesus would have done, faced with a sculpture like the golden calf? After all, the calf was important to those who defied it. I reckon he'd at least have tipped it over, if he could.
" And is money lending in a temple the same as a guardian "
Well, very similar in a way; Mammon was certainly often sculpted, highly regarded and representative of those who worship money, so, yeah…
Edit: earlier, you said; ” His culture is all fine and dandy and other cultures need to conform to his thinking.”
Jesus rated his culture most highly and believed other cultures needed to conform to his thinking, surely?
Bear in mind, I’m with Jesus on his culture and table-turning actions. Not biblically-inclined, me, but I recognise feistiness when I see it.
Robert….Mammon was certainly often sculpted, highly regarded and representative of those who worship money, so, yeah…
But then he did not disfigure a sculpture of Mammon, but he trhew out the lenders of money who charged interest. Something that by the jewish faith is a big no no, also in the biblical faith, and the islamic one……..:)
And lets say our property destroyer Jesus goes to the council and talks about how Mammon and the golden calf are all ok and such but their balls need to be cut off as he takes offense not at Mammon or the golden calf but the balls.
And the council says….not so fast my man, this is god and good balls n all.. What should the council do if the property destroyer goes and gets at mammon first with an axe, and then with a chain saw – not to cut down mammon or the golden calf but only to cut down their balls as that is what he is taken offense too.
I am done. This guy is no more and no less a criminal then every under aged tagger or sprayer that gets done in by the police for 'willful property destruction' and / or defacing of a public artwork/property. He should be fined at a minimum $ 2000 – as would any tagger, he should get community service, and community detention.
I am so tired of men defending their action with the old excuse of 'i did not do it' it was Eve, the snake, t'was GOD who told me! But not me. I am just the tool, not the brain. So fucking tired of that bullshit.
Sabine; I can't for the life of me find where the chainsaw wielder said,
"i did not do it' it was Eve, the snake, t'was GOD who told me! But not me. I am just the tool, not the brain." or even intimated that God told him to do it or excused him for his actions; I just can't find that anywhere, though you seem to know where it was stated.
"Milton Wainwright, who considers himself a devoted Christian, deemed the statue's penis to be obscene and immoral,…"
Even this, while irksome, doesn't say what you claim was said.
Am I losing my touch? Are my powers of search failing?
Milton Wainwright also deems himself an organ restorer; perhaps his community service could centre around his talents, rather than extracting penance from him.
"Milton Wainwright, who considers himself a devoted Christian, deemed the statue's penis to be obscene and immoral,…"
He did not say " I am offended at this display of male nakedness in a public setting'. He used his 'christianity' as an excuse. Its not him, it is only because he is a christian. Nothing to do with him, all to do with his indoctrination and the very toxic body issues that comes with the territory of nudity is bad, sex is bad, sex only good if for procreation, nudity bad…….male erections bad, male sex hanging bad, male naked bodies bad…..
So he uses his indoctrination as a christian as an excuse for destroying public property and to get a 'get out of jail' card cause he is a good christian who could not help himself and had to destroy this piece of public property because it 'offended him and it is immoral.
Can you please explain to me how your genital is offensive and immoral? Can you explain why it would be offensive and immoral. And could you explain how this might fuck up little boys growing up with the believe that the male sex is offensive and immoral.
So yeah, he did not do it, it is his Christianity that did it. 🙂
Lovely double-entendre there Robert.. I think you deserve at least one acknowledgement.
Edit – coming in late, I clicked on reply to see just how far down my reply would pop up. (This can be a problem..)
Sure enough, it came out miles below…
I was referring to your pun on the drop of membership. It put a smile on my face!
Thanks, Vino. With your appearance I felt the urge to weave "cooper's droop" into the thread, but stopped short, knowing the difference between beer and wine.
Milton Wainwright, who considers himself a devoted Christian, deemed the statue's penis to be obscene and immoral…
Psycho Milt, who considers himself a devoted atheist, deems crosses on churches and other displays of religious symbols to be obscene and immoral, but somehow manages to restrain himself from unilaterally acting to remove them – because other people are entitled to their beliefs. This prick should be up on vandalism charges. [EDIT]: I see he’s to appear in Dannevirke Court, so presumably has been charged.
"I never dreamt the Māori would be so offended…" says Wainwright.
Old, White, Christian man has no idea why mutilating a statue of Rangitāne's ancestor would offend local Rangitāne. Or, to put it another way, elderly racist explains NZ history in a single sentence.
I wouldn't deem crosses on churches and other displays of religious symbols as obscene and immoral. Rather… a reminder of a nice fairy tale I believed in when growing up – like Santa Claus, elves and fairies at the bottom of the garden and wicked witches.
…to put it another way, elderly racist explains NZ history in a single sentence.
I understand that, Sabine. Perhaps the contradiction would be more obvious if Jesus had been guillotined, or shot. Wearing a miniature of either of those death-dealing technologies around your neck, or sculpting them and putting them atop your church's spire might be too … revealing, don't you think?
Personally i abhor the imagery of the cross and find it the poster image of the patriachy. Better behave, see what this God did to his own son, whats he gonna do to you if you don't behave properly….an some men then get to decide what properly is to you, or to me or you to others.
God has his son killed in the most reprehensible way, the most painful way, the longest way even (and yes i thought long and hard about how long it would have taken his body to rip off the nails that held him up there – another discussion with Mother Superior) and thus my conclusion that God is a sadist. And thus my conclusion that many that claim this god as theirs and the only true arbiter of what is moral, what is decent of what is good are equally sadist. Not outwardly, not everyday, but hey if that women has a pregnancy that is unwanted …….its her punishment for having sex, if that man is ill it must be punishment for something, if that person has no job it must be punishment for this or for that and so forth. A bit like this geezer that in the name of his god gets to decide what is art, what is culture, what is moral, what is decent, and everyone else be damned ….. and oh my gosh, i would have never dreamed for them to be that offended….cause i did not even think about that for one minute all i thought about is my own righteous indignation of something i don't understand and don't want to understand.
"…in the name of his god gets to decide what is art, what is culture, what is moral, what is decent, and everyone else be damned ….. and oh my gosh, i would have never dreamed for them to be that offended….cause i did not even think about that for one minute all i thought about is my own righteous indignation of something i don't understand and don't want to understand. "
nope the artist in this case depicted an ancestor. An image as they do in their art. The same way we play our music, build our buildings, paint our pictures and create our sculptures. And would we not be very upset if someone took offesne at Davids balls and cut them off in the name of some god?
Because that artist, did not cut down one of the organs in the museum of the old man, did not belittle his believes, did not desecrate what for the old man would be a sacred thing.
The artist was commissioned to an artwork, presenting local iwi, an artwork of protection, of good fortune etc, and this artwork was conceptualised, presented, discussed and then agreed upon. And i feel fairly certain about that aspect of public art as i did go through that process on more then one occasion with the Auckland Council, Wellington and overseas.
Calls for submission
'Submissions entered
Submissions discussed, discarded, choosen
Final editing and touches discussed and agreed upon for the final artwork
artist creates artwork
artwork gets installed
public either hates or loves
god has got nothing to do with it. God is simply an excuse of people to blame someone else for their actions or the lack there of.
Or couldn't care less. This guy hated and expressed his dislike with vigour. He didn't chop the whole figure up, interestingly, making me think his action wasn't racist or religious, it was Freudian.
indeed it was, and that is why he is a wanker and now a criminal in the eyes of polite society. No matter how much he wants to blame god for him being an old fool with a certain lack of respect for the property and the work of others. charge him, fine him, lock him up ( ancle bracelet at home)
Did he blame God? I missed that. I don't like what he did but neither do I respect knee-jerk reactions that match his disfunction (unless they're consciously funny). There are ins and outs of the argument, and they're fun to explore, but from a distance, we should be able to relish the discussions and differences, along with the prejudices and bias we hold ourselves. If we all hold conviviality high in our list of outcomes, we'll explore further and deeper, have a more enjoyable time and approach the un-achievable – truth!
It was a SYMBOL for an ancestor and guardian, as was the tree on Maungakiekie a symbol to a lot of Aucklanders. The carving was not just any old piece of decorated wood, nor was that tree.
This doesn't take anything away from the importance and value these symbols have, if anything while the body is emphemeral the symbolic can be very enduring.
No it wasn't a symbol – try a different lens from the usual patriarchal, 'white' Christian perspective – open your mind and your eyes fella. There are many many ways of being totally alien to your way of thinking – that is your deficit not the other peoples.
Every time I read your tit for tat with RL, MM, I get the impression you stir shit for the sake of it.
RL wasn't saying that the carving was a mere symbol. He was saying that it is a symbolic representation of the whakapapa and kaitiakitanga of the Rangitāne iwi. You seem to have misinterpreted that to mean RL states it as a symbol, in the same manner that a statue of Baal is a symbol.
It seems to me here the only deficit is yours in terms of being so hung up on particularised definitions of words instead of appreciating the context in which they're put. Case in point is the fact RL highlights the body is ephemeral but symbolic can be enduring.
Just like Nelson in Trafalgar Square is a symbol, so too, is this statue a symbol of the whakapapa to Rangitāne.
The tree on Maungakiekie was a representation to Aucklanders of what One Tree Hill was. As someone who grew up in the shadow of that tree, it wasn't a symbol, but merely a physical representation of the European name ( which ignored the fact that hill used to be covered in trees)
My reality is different to yours. However the general tenor and tone of many of your comments towards others on this site makes it for a less than enjoyable experience.
It is readily apparent when you don't want to, or wilfully, ignore others realities or perception of things and spend your time denigrating others simply because the way people explain things doesn't fit in with how you would explain it.
The Māori name Maungakiekie means "mountain of the kiekie vine".[2]Māori also knew it as "tōtara that stands alone".[3]
also
When Auckland was founded as a colonial town a tree stood near the summit which gave the hill its English name. Two accounts identify it as a pōhutukawa (Metrosideros excelsa).
This tree was cut down by a pākehā settler in 1852, in an act of vandalism in one account,[21] or for firewood in another.[3]
It seems likely this was a different tree from the tōtara (Podocarpus totara) which, as a sacred tree, had given the hill one of its Maori names.
A radiata pine was planted in the 1870s to replace the previous tōtara .[22] John Logan Campbell repeatedly tried to grow native trees on the hill's summit, but the trees failed to survive – with only two pines, originally part of a shelter belt for the native trees, surviving for long. However, in 1960, one of the two was felled in another attack,[3] possibly for firewood.[citation needed]
disclaimer, a long time ago i organised the outside refurbishment of the Start Dome including the painting of the murals on the front of the building. As such i was tasked to co-ordinate with Iwi, Resident Association, Business Association, Heritage, Council and every other group that had claims. It took us over three years to raise the funds, get people to agree on color schemes, on the mural art work to be painted and such.
I stand corrected. I was labouring under the knowledge that Maungakiekie was once bush clad. Perhaps it was before it was turned into a pa site and the single tree was left for some unknown reason.
my understanding is that the top of the hill is not good dirt to grow much.
The only reason i know about this is that at the time when we discussed all aspects of the area around the Star Dome to be friendlier to the public and especially children (there is a play ground right by the building) we thought that it should be planted in kiekie.
Anyways, it was a interesting project and a very nice glimpse into Aucklands colonial and pre colonial history.
I think that it's not that the dirt doesn't grow much but wind exposure is too great for saplings to survive. Twas obvious how exposed it was by the lean that the last pine tree developed. Incidentally that, (where trees have a noticeable lean) is an indication of a good site for a wind mill. 🙂
I've been in enough marae to understand the lens you are using. I've seen a photo fall from a wall and it was quietly mentioned that maybe this long dead person was saying something. At one level everyone knew it was a photo, but on another everyone acted as if it was the real person.
This carving is a piece of wood; it's not the literal physical body of Rangitane. It embodies his spirit. That's what I call symbolic, exactly as when Christians act as if wafer bread and wine are the body and blood of Christ. It embodies his spirit. The Maori world view definitely places more emphasis on this idea than is common in our excessively materialistic modern world, but it's wrong to think it's alien to us.
You might want to climb down off that cultural superiority horse of yours and settle. It's a nice day out.
The appendage can be replaced. In fact, will be replaced, as the figure is held in such high regard. Then someone else might cut it off. Such is the world where tit-for-tat rhetoric and action reign.
well then that person too should be banned for life from that track (as should that geezer)
that person then too should be charged with willful property destruction, fined, and if repeated send to prison.
I mean this is what we do to taggers. But then they are not old white men who can't imagine that someone would be offended if they destroyed their property, their art, their cultures depictions of ancestors and holy spirits.
It’s illegal to “damage or deface” any building or other structure (a bridge for example) by writing, drawing, painting, spraying or etching on it, or by marking it in some other way. This offence also covers tagging roads, trees or other property like trains, cars and yachts.For this offence you can be fined up to $2,000, or given a community-based sentence, or both. “Community-based sentences” include community work, supervision, intensive supervision and community detention (with community detention you’re confined to your home under electronic monitoring for up to 12 hours a day). (These sentences are explained in the chapter “The criminal courts”, under “Sentencing”.)
His little comment about what would Jesus destroy and i could have never dreamed….is literally whooops you mean i can't get away with this shit anymore?
(Mike Smith's) action, driven by his frustration at the Government's fiscal envelope – limiting Maori treaty settlements to $1 billion – led to his arrest for "interfering with a tree without resource consent". He was convicted and sentenced to nine month's periodic detention.
Does the same fate await our prudish old fossil, Milton Wainwright?
When some Maori used a chainsaw to kill the summit tree of Maungkiekie at least they knew it would offend lots of people.
And it's instructive just how outraged some people were at that relatively trivial level of offence against Whitey's culture. Imagine if those guys had done something seriously offensive…
lol – he's not the people – the carving is. He cut the penis off thus cutting the people off, destroying them, nullifying them (whether you like or believe it or not) – or at least attempted to. I feel sorry for him too – sorry that he has blown everything because of his hubris and arrogance. He fucked up and deliberately hurt many people. Cry your tears for that guy but I'm not going to.
"The Podesta emails exposed donations of millions of donations from Saudi Arabia and Qatar, two of the major funders of Islamic State, to the Clinton Foundation. It exposed the 657,000 dollars that Goldman Sachs paid to Hilary Clinton to give talks, a sum so large it can only be considered a bribe. It exposed Clinton's repeated mendacity. She's caught telling the financial elites that she wanted to open trade, open borders and believed Wall Street executives were best positioned to manage the economy. A statement that contradicted her campaign statements.
It exposed the Clinton campaign efforts in to influence the Republican Primaries to ensure that Trump was the Republican nominee. It exposed Clinton's advanced knowledge of questions in a Primary debate. It exposed Clinton as the principal architect of the war in Libya, a war she believed would burnish her credentials as a Democrat candidate.
Journalists can argue that this information, like the War Logs provided to Wikileaks, should have remained hidden. That the public did not have the right to know. But they can't then call themselves journalists
Wikileaks has done more to expose the abuses of power and crimes of the American empire than any other news organisation. In addition to the War Logs and the Podesta emails it made public, the hacking tools used by the CIA, National Security Agency and their interference in foreign elections, including in the French elections, it disclosed the internal conspiracy against the British Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn by Labour Members of Parliament."
"We must build popular movements. Force the British Government to halt the extradition and judicial lynching of Julian. We must build popular movements to force the Australian Government to intervene on behalf of Julian.We must build popular movements to reclaim democracy and the rule of law.
If Julian is extradited and tried, it will create a legal precedent that will terminate the ability of the Press to hold power accountable.
The crimes of war and finance, the persecution of dissidents, minorities and immigrants. The pillaging of the eco-system and ruthless impoverishment of working men and women to swell the profits of corporations and consolidate global oligarchs total grip on power, will no longer be part of the public debate.
First Julian, then us"
Chris Hedges.
A former foreign correspondent of the New York times, Chris writes a regular column in online magazine Truthdig.
Well actually better rosters, more resources, staff retention and more staff overall would be better than a pay raise (I mean I'm not going to turn down a pay raise but if it was up to me that's what I'd be pushing for…)
Puckish Rogue…we watched the Broadmoor doco you recommended the other day.
Surprising amount of hope amid the deep suffering.
Judging by the number of residents who had grown up in foster care it is obvious, in the light of recent reports of Oranga Tamariki's outrageous uplifts, that the downstream adverse effects of being 'taken into care' are universal.
Can you see a time where such a facility would be built here, and would you consider working in such a place?
Probably not, a lot of people on all sides of the political spectrum would see it as "locking them up" Lake Alice-style so would probably oppose it plus it'd cost a stack load to set up and it certainly wouldn't be a vote winner, unfortunately
Depends on the location, we like where we live so we'd prefer not to move but if it was close by (maybe a repurposed Hillmorton) then I'd consider it
"Well actually better rosters, more resources, staff retention and more staff overall would be better than a pay raise"
I don't know about rosters, but recent actions by government and the terms of the agreement cover at least some of the other items – all of which may improve rostering problems. One issue that teachers will need to address themselves is that there are quite a few teachers who were trained since, or only shortly before the 'so-called "National Standards". They increased workload with a myriad of largely meaningless statistics, but if that is what you have been trained to do and are not aware of alternatives some teachers / team leaders will still insist on that activity. Schools need to address that issue themselves.
The most interesting thing about that 'piece' is that Garner doesn't seem to be able to write complete sentences. Or at least, that it doesn't come as naturally to him as short, over-emphatic ejaculations. You have to wonder about the quality of the underlying cognitive processes…
Well, duh. Of course forming unions and striking for better pay and conditions works, that's why employers and their political representatives are so energetic in combating unionisation of the workforce.
No, he just doesn't want to stop them voting for him. If keeping white supremacists out of jail for being all white supremacisty gets him white supremacist votes, apparentloy there's nothing he can do about that.
That feeling when you really want to pick a hot fight with Iran and attacks on shipping start to look like a pretty good pretext, but the owners contradict your story…
S'pose it's pretty hard to get believed when you've spent the last few years openly brazenly lying about everything large and small. And you're just the latest version of a government with a long history of hokeying up pretexts to start wars
Yep it's scary alright. Those idiots Bolton and Pompeo are just itching to start a hot war, and they are trying to get at it through the back door of the AMUF -so no need to get congressional approval.
Here's Vox's analysis of the situation right now:
The Trump administration keeps saying that it doesn’t want to go to war with Iran. The problem is that some top officials continue to make statements that could pave a dubiously legal and factually challenged pathway to war.
If that’s the intention, a major flare-up between Washington and Tehran could lead the administration to say it has the right to launch what would be one of the nastiest, bloodiest conflicts in modern history — even if it really doesn’t legally have that authorization.
For months, President Donald Trump and some of his top officials have claimed Iran and al-Qaeda, the terrorist group that launched the 9/11 terror attacks, are closely linked. That’s been a common refrain despite evidence showing their ties aren’t strong at all. In fact, even al-Qaeda’s own documents detail the weak connection between the two.
But insisting there’s a nefarious, continual relationship matters greatly. In 2001, Congress passed an Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF), allowing the president “to use all necessary and appropriate force against those nations, organizations, or persons he determines planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, or harbored such organizations or persons.”
Which means that if the Trump administration truly believes Iran and al-Qaeda have been in cahoots before or after 9/11, then it could claim war with Tehran already is authorized by law.
That chilling possibility was raised during a House Armed Services Committee session early Thursday morning by an unlikely pair: Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), a top Trump ally, and Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), a Pentagon official in the Obama administration.
“The notion that the administration has never maintained that there are elements of the 2001 AUMF that would authorize their hostilities toward Iran is not consistent with my understanding of what they said to us,” said Gaetz. “We were absolutely presented with a formal presentation on how the AUMF might authorize war on Iran,” added Slotkin right after, although she noted no one said they would use it to greenlight a fight.
Actually Sabine apart from his unthinking base which is around 25+% of Americans I don't believe anyone does believe anything he says. The other 10+% of his total 40% base are those Republicans who will vote GOP regardless.
In terms of wanting to escalate tensions in the Middle East – such as Bolton and Pompeo are doing – the majority of Americans are pretty much opposed to that. Trump unfortunately has only two driving "principles" his own vanity, and the size of his bottom line. As far as international affairs are concerned – if they don't involve porn stars – he's not interested. So in effect Bolton and Pompeo are free to stir the big paddle as much as they like, and if there is a bob or two in it for Trumpy all well and good.
The Senate are in the majority opposed to any escalation of war in the middle-east and last week actually voted to stop arm sales to the Saudi's – a multi million dollar deal suspiciously arranged betweenTrump and Krushner and the Prince. (Note Krushner's family Real Estate firm got a $90M backhander loan from the Saudis soon after, which naturally Krushner "forgot" to mention on his security application.)
Senators have locked in the votes needed for an initial move to block President Trump’s Saudi arms sales, paving the way for a high-stakes veto showdown.
The Senate is expected to take up the 22 resolutions of disapproval as soon as next week, to block each of the sales, after Trump invoked an emergency provision under the Arms Export Control Act to push through the sales without a congressional review period.
Because lawmakers are challenging the sales under the same law, they need only a simple majority to send the resolutions to the president.
With all 47 members of the Democratic caucus expected to support the resolutions, they needed to win over at least four Senate Republicans to have the simple majority needed to send the resolution to the House, where Democrats have pledged to follow suit with blocking the sales.
Three GOP senators — Sens. Rand Paul (Ky.), Lindsey Graham(S.C.) and Todd Young (Ind.) — signed on as sponsors when the resolutions were rolled out last week. A spokesman on Tuesday confirmed that Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) has signed on as a co-sponsor, giving Democrats their crucial fourth vote.
The unprecedented move to block the sales reflects growing frustration on Capitol Hill about the U.S.-Saudi relationship and would come after two votes fell short in recent years to block arms deals with Saudi Arabia. One, in 2016, garnered support from only 27 senators. The other, in June 2017, had the backing of 47 senators.
Since then, U.S.-Saudi relations have soured further amid growing concerns about Saudi Arabia’s involvement in the years-long Yemen civil war and the death of Washington Post contributor Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.
Democrats could also pick up Republican support in addition to the four votes they already have.
GOP Sens. Susan Collins (Maine), Steve Daines (Mont.), Lisa Murkowski(Alaska) and Jerry Moran (Kan.), along with Young, Paul and Lee, each voted with Democrats on a resolution to end support for the Saudi-led military campaign in Yemen. If each of them votes for the resolution of disapproval on the arms sales, that would give supporters at least eight Republican “yes” votes.
The government has announced a new deal aimed at breaking the deadlock with teachers, which Education Minister Chris Hipkins says unions will recommend to their members.
Last week teachers and the Government were a billion dollars apart. With the Government playing hardball, strongly stating there is no more money.
Now that industrial action has stepped up, the Government has found a little more. But it is still far short (that's Labour, always falling short) from the billion more that teachers wanted.
I see the unions are recommending it, the question is, will their members?
Will teachers settle for less than half of what they were striking for?
Would they get more if they continue to hold strong?
What argument does he need to put forward? Negotiation is a process of reaching mutual agreement where there are conflicting interests. It isn't, or shouldn't be, a game of brinkmanship to ensure you get everything you want at the other party's expense, unless you're a sociopath with a complete lack of integrity (President Donald J. Trump, for example).
I appreciate that, as a Tory concern troll, you'd like to see the government and the teacher unions locked in a bitter, no-holds-barred industrial dispute, but no-one who doesn't want National returned to power shares that view.
Negotiation isn't about getting what you want, it's about you and the other party both getting a good result while not burning all your bridges in the process. A negotiator whose position was "all about the teachers getting what they want" would be a liability, not an asset.
As far as I'm concerned, the Government can spend less on the military. Being left, you would surely agree?
The government could spend less on all kinds of things. That also is a negotiation. And the idea that we don't need any military capability isn't a "left" opinion, it's a "naive" opinion (or a concern-troll one, of course).
Negotiation isn't about getting what you want, it's about you and the other party both getting a good result while not burning all your bridges in the process.
Yes. It is about compromise, as I clearly stated. So that has dealt to your strawman quoted above. And of course, your following kicker quoted below.
A negotiator whose position was "all about the teachers getting what they want" (and how much they are willing to compromise which you conveniently left out as it didn't align with your strawman quoted above) would be a liability, not an asset.
The idea that we don't need any military capability is merely your attempt at another strawman. I certainly didn't say that or imply it.
The notion of spending less on the military and more on education was Labour's stance before Jacinda became leader.
My stance here is, if teachers genuinely want more and aren't prepared to accept less than half of what they have been striking for, then they should really hold strong. They have little to lose in doing so.
Seeing as the Government didn't even meet them half way, I feel the public (who are hugely behind them) will continue to be understanding and support them.
Moreover, now that it is on the table, I don't believe the Government will back away from this current offer, thus teachers have little to lose holding strong.
Chairman, how many times over how many years have I rebuked you for blowing your cover as an obvious concern troll? Yet you keep persisting..
Have you not noticed that the vast majority of commenters here think you are a joke? Look at yesterday's Open Mike.
As a teacher myself, I see your deep concern on this issue as that of an anti-leftie who is hoping like hell that the teachers will not vote in favour of the settlement, thereby forcing you to acknowledge that this Govt may have achieved something..
All through their many years in opposition, Labour and the Greens could never meet your preciously high standards. Now that they are in power they still cannot.
As Drowsy M Kram pointed out, you apply this blowtorch of yours only to the left – never to the Right.
You are indeed as transparent as a transparent thing, and what is more, people can see through you!
Chairman, how many times over how many years have I rebuked you for blowing your cover as an obvious concern troll, yet you keep persisting.
Never. While you have attempted to, you have never succeeded.
As a teacher myself, I see your deep concern on this issue as that of an anti-leftie who is hoping like hell that the teachers will not vote in favour of the settlement, thereby forcing you to acknowledge that this Govt may have achieved something.
Total rubbish. I clearly stated my stance on this matter above. But just for you, here it is again.
My stance here is, if teachers genuinely want more and aren't prepared to accept less than half of what they have been striking for, then they should really hold strong. They have little to lose in doing so.
So as you can see, my stance is all about what the teachers want. I merely pointed out they have nothing to lose holding strong.
All through their many years in opposition, Labour and the Greens could never meet your preciously high standards. Now that they are in power they still cannot.
Of course. if they couldn't meet expectations in opposition one can't really expect them to do it in power. Hence why I was pushing them so hard when in opposition, it wasn't hard to foresee the shortcomings we face now.
As Drowsy M Kram pointed out, you apply this blowtorch of yours only to the left – never to the Right.
Being from the left, it is only natural to expect I'm going to hold them to account. National don't represent me. And Labour generally (since 84) only do in name. But this is the main party of the left these days so it's either get them back on side, find someone new, or just give up.
I'm not one for giving up, hence I speak up, only to come across lefties that are backing the employer (in this case the Government) instead of their fellow workers.
Which just goes to show how much the left has really lost itself.
My judgement as a teacher is that the so-called Chairman is definitely not a teacher, and obviously has an ulterior motive for dragging out the conflict. In some ways he reminds me of Iago at his most persuasive.
Edit – this was in reply to Drowsey S Kram way up above, in case it seems random..
Only negative is for teachers such as Eileen Gilmore qualified on Q1 will have to wait until July 2022 before they benefit by being at paid at step 9. The pay gap for these teachers remains the same. These teachers are the group who have lost out from the initial offer, some could say their union has sacrificed them, perhaps the union failing this group could mean the offer is declined ?
You’ve said a few times that the teachers should hold strong as they have nothing to lose. You obviously believe this but try to think about it for a moment and then see whether you still hold strong on your simplism.
I ask as I had a vested interest in the nurses industrial action.
I felt the union let it's members down and seemed to be closer aligned to the ministry. E.g. sending essentially the same offer back for ratification many times, signing the accord for more 500 nurses during negotiations…
Like you, (I think) I am intensely pissed off with deliberate run-down since the Rogernomics debacle.
Our union cannot sign off for members during negotiations. We all vote on it. If majority approve, OK.
I am actually bloody old and semi-retired. I see the new offer as a plus, but I do not know how the majority of current full-time teachers will view it.
Up to them. Not me.. I am half out of it all now, and don't think I am the right one to answer your question
So you are happy that there are teachers out there doing the same fine job and yet being paid $12k less Fair?
You get annoyed by anti union spin how about supporting those who are being treated inferior to others ? Isn't that part of what a union is there for, to stand up for those to give them a "fair suck of the sav" ? It seams that fairness is not part of your make up.
Any 'betrayal … ' Really, the union thought it was worth fighting for at the start but now they have dropped this, and no reason has been given.
As I recall, such teachers were offered chance and support for upgrading their qualifications, but I am from the secondary sector, and if the case you quote is in the primary sector, then I cannot answer.
As for your first question, I have seen marvellous teacher aids who deserve to be paid at least $12k more.. but they are not qualified and part of our union, so they have no muscle.
Anti-unionists will scream out about injustice, but never support workers supporting one another in a union. Where are you coming from, Herodotus?
unfortunately the union has got themselves in a position whereby if this is not voted for have positioned themselves to lose support from the parents.
Agreed, teacher aids and other support people have been IMO been severely taken for granted by all governments ( Same could be said for any female dominated workforce). Fine when in the past, a family could survive on the primary wage earner, and the secondary earner just paid for the extras. Times have changed that now with 2 primary wage earners a family lives on a day to day basis and there are few/if any xtras 🤢
Support staff are paid from the school budget and have to literally compete with toilet paper. If a school exceeds the MoE roll and has to hire extra teaching staff this will also have to be paid from the school budget. Guess what has the lowest priority.
I wouldn't know, but I am a union member and believer, even though they are made up of people, with all the foibles people have, including not great ones.
Gabby, the vast majority of secondary teachers are the PPTA, and their vote is the will of the vast majority of the secondary teaching force. This settlement will be voted on by every member of PPTA: the union executive can do nothing without the membership's approval.
But you accuse the PPTA of not standing up for its membership?
A more correct accusation might be that the vast majority of secondary teachers may sometimes neglect minority groups in their ranks.
I'll be watching you
Every move you make
Every step you take
I'll be watching you
Bluetooth beacons, however, can track your location accurately from a range of inches to about 50 meters. They use little energy, and they work well indoors. That has made them popular among companies that want precise tracking inside a store.
The Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was in Tehran trying to help ease rising tensions between the United States and Iran.
A Japanese owned vessel is then struck with 'flying objects'.
Coincidence?
Probably not.
Who was the culprit?
What was their motive?
Was it 'False Flag' attack by the Americans on their Japanese ally, pinned on the Iranians by the Americans to sabotage the Japanese Prime Minister's peace making efforts?
Was it a false, 'False Flag' attack, by the Iranians, blamed on the Americans, to strengthen Japanese peace making efforts?
The US claim it was the Iranians.
The Iranians express mystification.
The Us have video from the scene, which the US claims, shows Iranian revolutionary guards removing an unexploded limpet mine from the ship.
The world now knows the US claim of limpet mines is false.
The Japanese ship owner says it is not obvious from looking at it that the ship was Japanese, which means that someone would've had to have had pre-knowledge that it was Japanese. That is, if that was the reason it was targeted.
The Japanese owner said that there was no damage to the 25,000 tons of highly flammable methanol cargo, aboard the Kokuka Courageous. This would indicate that the 'flying objects', whatever they were, did not carry explosive warheads. The removal of war heads normally fitted to flying missiles/shells/objects indicates that the attack was premeditated, and that the attackers, whoever they were, did not intend to sink or destroy the Japanese vessel, instead they wanted to send a warning, or create political fallout from the attack.
Flying objects” damaged Japanese tanker during attack in Gulf of Oman
By Junko Fujita 13 hrs ago
TOKYO, June 14 (Reuters) – Two “flying objects” damaged a Japanese tanker owned by Kokuka Sangyo Co in an attack on Thursday in the Gulf of Oman, but there was no damage to the cargo of methanol, the company president said on Friday…..
……Japanese Industry Minister Hiroshige Seko said on Friday that the incidents will be discussed at a meeting of G20 energy and environment ministers this weekend.
Seko declined to comment on American officials blaming Iran, saying Japan is still investigating the incident, which occurred while Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was in Tehran trying to help ease rising tensions between the United States and Iran.
…..but we also have to get our allies in order. The irony of this is that one of the ships is owned by the Japanese, Japanese Prime Minister Abe was in Iran talking peace with the Iranians while one of his ships was being laden with a mine that exploded. This was a direct insult to Abe to do this to one of his ships while he was in Iran.
Fox News needn't worry that NZ is not in order. We’re never one to miss a US sponsored bloodbath.
I used to have a poster on my wall when I was a teenager saying exactly that "Suppose they gave a war and nobody came" superimposed on a picture of the mushroom cloud from the Hiroshima bomb – made me happy to think that all of the soldiers suddenly saw that propaganda they were fed for what it was and what was behind it all – the avarice, bigotry and inhumanity of mendacious tyrants using them as weapons to bully and beat up countries less able to protect themselves…
If war does break out and New Zealanders are called to fight and die in it, TVNZ can claim part of the responsibility.
TVNZ News at 6 has just repeated the US version of the attack on the Japanese tanker as caused by limpet mines placed there by Iranian forces.
And gave no mention at all, of the Japanese ship owner claim that their ship was hit by 'flying objects'.
Or Iranian denial of any involvement.
So much for journalistic balance at TVNZ.
That TVNZ have deliberately provided the NZ public with only the US version of this attack, goes against all journalistic norms of ethical unbiased reporting.
Shameful by TVNZ, I couldn't watch the regurgitation of Pompeo and Trump's talking points, where is our independent foreign policy…or are we going to be talking about withdrawing NZ military from Iran in 10 years' time too?
218 people had taken part by March 2019, about 20 per cent of them went back to or started work, and another 13 per cent were in full-time study, or volunteer work.
My question is what was the impact on the majority that partook but didn't end up in work, study or volunteering?
Did any have a negative impact from the programme?
Did it worsen or intensify their health conditions?
Is this help merely offered, or can it not be refused?
Seems there were a small number that benefited, hence my two states of mind.
Yes, I do have some thoughts: if you don’t know what you’re talking about, it helps to do a search instead of seeding doubt and discord and your usual negativity that is often unfounded in reality.
The REACH programme is being evaluated by a PhD student from the University of Auckland.
That information – along with data from the other Oranga Mahi programmes – will help the government determine what works best for combined health and employment programmes.
I stated some general facts about the programme. Stated I was in two frames of mind about it. Then proceeded to ask some straight forward questions.
So how you came to that conclusion is anybodies guess.
And although I'm still undecided, what's fishy about this is the way the story (which I linked to) was hyping up the programme despite its very limited success. And yet, it is still going for further evaluation for the Government to consider (no doubt for a national roll out) despite it's dismal rate of success from the onset.
So speaking of already making up ones mind, sounds (by the way this is being pushed through) as if this has already been given some sort of nod of approval behind the scenes.
Furthermore, it's hard to search for a programme evaluation when said programme is still being evaluated.
Your mind didn’t bother to tell you that it had made up its mind because you tend to not listen and because you don’t have an open mind. Mind you, this is just me deduction from your mindless blabbering about undermining the Government by others.
I know I am irrational, thank you. I’m not lacking in self-awareness.
Furthermore, it's hard to search for a programme evaluation when said programme is still being evaluated.
Indeed, it is, so why not hold judgement? It is not your style, is it? You know nothing about the programme yet you feel ‘authorised’ to cast your doubts.
You even claim is earmarked “no doubt for a national roll out” but have no data to support this claim.
You talk about “it's [sic] dismal rate of success from the onset” and “its very limited success” but have not data to support this either.
I can come to only one conclusion, which is that you are not “in two frames of mind about it” and that you are not “still undecided” but that you have made up your mind.
It is pretty sad that you form an opinion based on a “fishy” story in MSM without any further evidence. However, this feeds the perception that some here have of you and I can’t blame them, as it is hard if not impossible to escape it.
Sorry to butt into your guys' little snipe fest but you both do realise this little program of 'gently guiding people into life affirming employment by lovingly supporting them to be confident and positive' was an initiative started under the Previous Incumbents?
You know…the Key/English combo committed… to dealing to what English dubbed the 'big hard lump of wasted human potential.'
English then stated that …if these people were on ACC they'd be moved on, it costs a little more on ACC, but not that much…blah, blah.
Is it all coming back now? How under the National administration ACC purged its books of clients forcing many onto WINZ benefits…and so it goes.
Yeah, yeah, buried in the crypt of the Business Section where no decent Lefty would be seen dead…but there it is.
So that was what was on Mr Guy's mind when he was busy treating my partner and I with such un professional disdain.
Incognito…you might want to take a few moments to check a little bit further afield before you automatically assume someone is merely trying to lower morale and faith in the Current Incumbents by casting aspersions on a new initiative.
This is not new, and this has little to do with the Current Mob.
Just like the Disability Support Services System Transformation whose launch in Mid Central was presented by Sepuloni as a Coalition initiative…this started under National and can't be trusted.
It was started under National in 2016 I believe and it is still going. Whether it is going strong seems be too early to tell although some seem to have made up their minds already albeit for different reasons.
National may have initiated many things for the wrong reasons or with the wrong intentions in mind but that doesn’t mean these cannot be turned into something more positive with better outcomes. Time with tell with this one.
I respect your views on The Chairman and his MO but I don’t share them. I find his comments less than helpful and constructive, they generally lack supportive evidence or information, and take up much space here for no obvious benefit, IMHO.
Yes, asserting I lack self-awareness along with your other irrational comments/assumptions confirmed it.
I didn't hold judgement. And it is also incorrect to say I know nothing of the programme. After all, I was the one who posted the article about it.
You even claim is earmarked “no doubt for a national roll out” but have no data to support this claim.
The model is being evaluated for that consideration as implied in the article.
You talk about “it's [sic] dismal rate of success from the onset” and “its very limited success” but have not data to support this either.
Again, the data was in the article initially linked too.
I can come to only one conclusion, which is that you are not “in two frames of mind about it” and that you are not “still undecided” but that you have made up your mind.
Which reaffirms you're an irrational (now self admitted) nutter.
As it seems to work for a small number and isn't compulsory (being compulsory would be a sticking point for me) I'm not that opposed to it.
You posted your usual negative outlook with a link to a piece in MSM. That was and is the extent of your knowledge. You didn’t even know it is voluntary but even that you dispute because, you know, WINZ.
If the programme is deemed unsuccessful, now or in the future, it will be scrapped. It is an experiment and as such, there always is a risk that it will not deliver or live up to expectations. Hopefully, some useful things will be learned from this.
You have already jumped the gun.
Where in the article does it state that the programme is considered for “a national roll out”? Why then did you need to add your qualifier “no doubt”?
Do you consider yourself to be a purely rational being?
You posted your usual negative outlook with a link to a piece in MSM.
I stated some general facts about the programme. Stated I was in two frames of mind about it. Then proceeded to ask some straight forward questions. So why do you continually lie about this?
You didn’t even know it is voluntary
Hence, it was one of my questions.
I didn't dispute it, I merely pointed out WINZ is notorious for forcing people on to work ready programmes. And despite your attempt to imply that was all in the past, it still happens today.
Albeit, not currently with this programme. Hence my hope this stance continues going forward.
I haven't jumped the gun, that is merely another of your irrational conclusions.
Where in the article does it state that the programme is considered for “a national roll out”?
Where did I say that? You, yourself linked to where the article implied it.
Why then did you need to add your qualifier “no doubt”?
As it seems a most likely outcome IMO.
Do you consider yourself to be a purely rational being?
And it is also incorrect to say I know nothing of the programme. After all, I was the one who posted the article about it.
Your claimed ‘knowledge’ was a link, no more, no less. What did I “lie” about?
It is voluntary. But you were casting doubt on this lasting with your usual expression of concern soaked in negativity.
Yes, you have jumped the gun but you are tone-deaf and in denial about it. You have already interpreted the programme in your own words “it's [sic] dismal rate of success from the onset” and “its very limited success”.
You cannot even remember what you write in your comments. From your comment @ 14.1.1:
And yet, it is still going for further evaluation for the Government to consider (no doubt for a national roll out) despite it's [sic] dismal rate of success from the onset. [my bold]
Why do you think this is “a [sic] most likely outcome” in the light of “its very limited success” [your own words]?
So, when you think, you are rational, and when you don’t think, you are not? Weird answer.
Robert Guyton's description of The Chairman's commenting style is apt and hard to forget, particularly given the frequent reinforcement that The Chairman provides.
Then there's the fact that comments submitted by The Chairman (who professes to be “more left than most“) are invariably critical of the policies and performance of left-leaning parties/MPs, regardless of whether they are in Government or in opposition.
In The Chairman'sthousands of comments submitted to The Standard, you could count the comments critical of right-leaning parties/MPs on one hand. Unfortunately the search function isn't working for me at the moment, otherwise I'd do a count myself.
The Chairman’s criticism, and the way they raise Natioanl party attack lines and talking point, is all fine – what I object to the the deceptive nature of the “more left than most” description.
The link was to an article about the programme, refuting your assertion I know nothing about it.
What casts doubt on it remaining voluntary is it's not in the nature of other current and past work ready programmes.
Again, I haven't jumped the gun. I was commenting on its reported data noting its dismal success rate.
I remembered what I wrote, it's just not what you stated (not this time but initially).
The reason why it is a most likely outcome was clearly stated. The reporting of it was over hyped. Moreover, its success rate is dismal yet, despite this, it has made the grade for further evaluation for the Government to then consider. Additionally, seeing as it has survived the change of Government, it seems it is favoured/supported in high places.
A link to a piece in MSM that contained all of your ‘knowledge’ – I already said that – which led you to go off on your usual tangent.
I quote verbatim from your comment and you blankly deny you wrote it.
You make all sorts of (negative) assumptions but pretend to be in two minds.
You cast doubt, seed discord, place everything in the most negative light possible and do amazing acrobatics when pulled up on it. Any more music clips coming?
How do you know the reporting was overhyped? Do you have any data to show it was overhyped? My guess is that all you’ve got is what is in the linked piece.
Last attempt: where is or was it clearly stated that the [not “a”] most likely outcome is a national roll out? Come on, quote it, if you can. I bet you can’t because you made it up. But you seem to think you didn’t, that it is based in and on reality.
The purpose of a genuine debate is to present facts, examine these and the merits of the various conceptual (or ideological) frameworks, to obtain a better handle on reality and arrive closer to what might be called truth. Surely, this must appeal to a rational thinker.
Do you consider yourself contributing to or participating in debate here or do you see yourself more as an alarmist? Your comments seem to suggest the latter.
You asserted I know nothing on the matter, yet the article linked to was a report on the matter. Therefore, you knowingly lied.
Nor did I go off on a tangent. I merely asked a set of questions. So there is another lie.
I didn't deny the quote. I denied I said the article stated that nor did I quote it as such. I said it implied that. Making that your third lie.
I made one assumption not all sorts. That's 4.
Doubt, discord, and things looking negative are largely the consequences of the Government's failure to deliver, policies, etc. Especially for those struggling on the left hoping for some wellbeing.
You (and a couple of others) seem to want to blame those who discuss the failures and not those that failed to deliver.
It was clear the report was over hyped. The report was more positive than balanced (covering nothing at all on the majority that didn't succeed other than the numbers) failing to align with the dismal results.
The Chairman and other similar trollers trivialise this blog and probably lose us a lot of really good commenters who can't be bothered with TS while the feeble rules of engagement don't protect against the persistent pests. These blighters want and succced in emasculating the discussion contributions and controlled contest of thought and opinion that the blog can deliver well, When it is enabled.
WINZ? As always, assuming the worst-case scenario? No trust or faith in positive change, it seems. WINZ once bad, WINZ always bad. With such an outlook and mentality, you’re ensured to never be pleasantly surprised because, you know, all good things come to an end. To me, you come across as a misery guts.
Peter and I have history with that ex-UK bureaucrat.
How shall I put this? Struggles with facts. Struggles with people checking up on his statements and discovering what he just wrote as fact was indeed…not fact.
Is very, very good (we think he's had lots and lots of practice) at doing a stone statue impression and flatly refusing to answer questions or account for his statements or actions. Shows absolutely no reaction when a normally mild mannered man out of frustration calls him a liar to his face.
Twists a complaint against him and the organisation he manages into an implied accusation that said disabled person is reluctant to have a proper needs assessment.
Said disabled person happy to have Needs Assessment (sigh, another one) only this time there is a doctor, registered nurse, an occupational therapist and a physiotherapist who at the behest of said Graham Guy subject the disabled person to a three hour assessment which even included checking said disabled persons feet and posterior for the pressure sores they had already been told he didn't have.
Hmmm. Mr Guy had given the impression that it was just our opinion that Peter's care needs were very high and complex…hence the top guns for this assessment.
Funny thing is the initial allocation of 8 hours per day of support needed came out as11 hours per day after the Hit Squad had done their three hour thing. It was then 'peer reviewed' back down to 8 hours per day. Because what do the experts know? Right?
(Note to all…Peter does not receive any funding for his care as they won't pay me.)
Mr Guy, bright chap that he, is then proceeded to suggest three Contracted Providers who could step up at short notice to provide Peter's support should I be rendered incapacitated. None of them had any recognised experience with high spinal injury and in the words of a Ministry Of Health consultant his suggestions 'were highly inappropriate'.
Is this help merely offered, or can it not be refused?
And that is a very good question. When my man told Mr Guy that yes he was happy to have (yet another) Needs Assessment '…. but if the assessor does not have a working knowledge of tetraplegia then I'll be asking them to leave.', he was told in no uncertain terms that he would be "declining service."
This "Declining Service" and the black mark it attracts to your record is an actual thing in this sector.
It matters not if the "Service" is not fit for purpose. Decline it and you can kiss your proverbial ta ta.
I have no idea what a "concern troll" is but I presume it is bad? No matter.
The Chairman is correct to question these schemes…indeed, when I read that article earlier I nearly posted here as I have personal experience with the manager when in an allied field to the REACH programme.
I didn't think anyone else here would detect the possible fish hooks or failings….see it for what it probably is…another happy clappy feel good scheme that this gummint is as good as the last for promoting.
Some of us are actually despondent In Vino, as despite much effort (including court cases and Human Rights hearings) our positions, as a disabled person with very high and complex supports needs and the unpaid spousal partner providing all of his supports are worse now in terms of security and rights than they were when we had our last dealings with Mr Guy back in late 2016.
Promises, but no hint of any improvement in our situation nor the situations of other commenters here. Like Kay, for instance.
"Despondent" might be too defeated sounding. Down we are but not out.
And I will challenge this Current Mob every step of the way.
I don't think many of us are feeling elated and victorious these days Rosemary, but having read many of your contributions, I sympathise, and accept your concerns as genuine.
Basically, I see a concern troll as one who pretends to be one of us, tries to make himself (or, of course, herself) accepted as one of us, but then tries to use our attitudes and philosophies against us. This can be by encouraging us to push policies that they think will make us unpopular with the general public (but we believe in those policies, and don't see the trick); by encouraging us to argue and disagree amongst ourselves through stirring up internal debate where there is no easy answer, and (Chairman's speciality) by pushing our beloved principles so hard as to make us all aware that we are nowhere near living up to them, thereby reducing our belief in those principles, and our will to bring them into practice because it is all going so badly with no success, only disappointment.
Your disappointment is genuine. Your challenging the current mob is genuine. I trust that, but I do not trust The Chairman.
Interesting answer…but of course raises more questions.
Define "us".
And say we all here (bar some) are part of the "we", what are the 'attitudes and philosophies' that define us?
What are these " beloved principles " that the likes of The Chairman is causing 'us' to become aware that 'we' are not living up to them?
Mayhap The Chairman's mission is to provoke all around these parts into having the expectation that this Current Mob will be true to its publicised principals and be truly transformative and put an end toot sweet to the ravages of the last thirty years of neo- liberal rule.
Or, The Chairman could simply be an annoying nit-picker.
And luckily, TC, by the time we had to make a complaint about Disability Support Link and subsequently Mr Guy himself we had learned to put everything in writing or record conversations. Probably the reason Mr Guy wouldn't respond, or account for what he had written.
Could these non-union members who are "philosophically opposed" to unions simply refuse the pay rises union members have done the hard work to secure?
Newsflash, Justin Lindsay; stating you are “philosophically opposed” to unions, but demanding access to a core tenet of union membership – equal pay – doesn’t add up.
Jordan Peterson, the sulky alt-lite celebrity professor who likes to sue people who disagree with him, has announced the imminent arrival of his new Free Speech Social Media platform Thinkspot, which promises to be the freest free speech venue in human history except that you have to pay for it and if you say something that offends the Peterson fans and oft-banned alt-right weirdos who will likely populate the service, they can downvote your comments until they disappear.
“The kindest thing you can say about Sarah Sanders is that she was completely useless. She didn’t bother disguising her disdain for reporters. She didn’t bother holding press briefings – the last one was over 90 days ago. And she didn’t bother with the truth. She was an incompetent press secretary.
Here’s the thing though: Sanders was never really hired to be a press secretary. Her real job, I’d venture, was to be a Very Visible Woman. Her real job was to be the female face of a deeply misogynistic administration; to play the role of the empowered working mother and make the Trump administration’s crass patriarchy more palatable.”
The Japanese Prime Minister goes to Iran on a peace mission.
During the Japanese Prime Minister's visit a Japanese oil tanker is attacked in the Gulf of Hormoz
The Americans say the Japanese vessel was attacked with mines.
The Japanese say their vessel was attacked by "flying objects"
The Japanese say the ship's cargo of methanol was unharmed.
Iranian fire fighting vessels put out a fire on the ship.
The crew of the stricken vessel are taken off the Japanese ship by Iranian "rescuers". The damaged vessel is taken under control by the US Navy. The crew return and the ship is "escorted" by the US Navy to the United Arab Emirates.
The American authorities blame the Iranian government for the attack, citing the alleged "sophisticated" use of mines as the evidence of Iranian involvement.
The Americans release a grainy film clip which they claim shows Iranian forces removing an unexploded mine from the Japanese vessel
The Japanese defence Minister says that Japan will not be sending any Japanese defence force ships to protect Japanese vessels operating in the Gulf
Eco Maori thanks Mike Joy for all the hard mahi he has dune to HIGHLIGHT the damage being dune to OUR Awa rivers waterways and estuaries from industrial farming and city industries
Its quite hard getting the TRUTH about our environment out through the industrial money that suppress reality on the harm that urea and other Agricultural chemicals have on our waterways. Kia kaha Mike you are one of my heroes.
National Portrait: Mike Joy, passionate advocate for the environment "I was thinking, what the f… is going on here," he says. "It was gruesome stuff. That was the first really concrete evidence of the stupidity of farming, of bubbles and how people get caught up in doing dumb things
It was frustration that will later fuel a career studying the health of the nation's waterways and a bitter fightback from industries and academia angry at his findings and passionate advocacy.
The journey has twists and turns like the many rivers Joy now stands in, but it starts in a headwater of blissful boyhood ignorance
Former prime minister John Key and others accused him of economic sabotage and treachery when his mocking of New Zealand's 100% Pure branding was broadcast around the world Joy is just as scathing in his condemnation of the many bodies supporting the industry, the supposed watchdogs of the environment and the Government that supposedly rules them all.
It matters not. Joy could have made a great deal more money by keeping his mouth shut and his head down.
Whanau our African cousin will suffer more than the people living in western countries as they don't have the money or the means to combat Climate Change.
Most Africans have to grow their OWN FOOD. If the weather plays up they cannot go to the shop and buy food they end up starving to death that's their REALITY.
Eco Maori knowns what the western people have dune to Africa over the last 300 years and it's no good at all because of that phenomenon I say that the western governments have to do all they can to help Africa survive Human Causes Global Warming.
Global heating to inflict more droughts on Africa as well as floods
New UK research predicts extremes of weather will hit food production
Global heating could bring many more bouts of severe drought as well as increased flooding to Africa than previously forecast, scientists have warned.
New research says the continent will experience many extreme outbreaks of intense rainfall over the next 80 years. These could trigger devastating floods, storms and disruption of farming. In addition, these events are likely to be interspersed with more crippling droughts during the growing season and these could also damage crop and food production.
“Essentially we have found that both ends of Africa’s weather extremes will get more severe,” said Elizabeth Kendon of the Met Office’s Hadley Centre in Exeter. “The wet extreme will get worse, but also the appearance of dry spells during the growing season will also get more severe.”
This meteorological double whammy is blamed on the burning of fossil fuels, which is increasing levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and causing it to heat up. Last month levels of carbon dioxide reached 415 parts per million, their highest level since Homo sapiens first appeared on Earth – and scientists warn that they are likely to continue on this upward curve for several decades. Global temperatures will be raised dangerously as a result.
The new meteorology study – carried out by scientists at the Met Office in collaboration with researchers at the Institute of Climate and Atmospheric Science at Leeds University – reports on the likely impact on Africa of these temperature rises and indicates that western and central areas will suffer the worst impacts of weather disruptions. Many countries in these regions – including Niger, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo – are expected to experience substantial growth in population over that time and will be particularly vulnerable to severe floods la kite ano link below.
Condolences to the whanau of the people who died in the 2 plane's that crashed into each other in Masterton .
seenothing.
national goals of there reform of the justice system was to save the government money they made legal aid near impossible to get .If you wanted to sue the crown you can't get legal aid who cares about the Human rights to a fair trial.
Thanks to our Government for having a enquiry into Oranga tamariki process of uplifting tamariki it not just Maori and Pacific tamariki it's all tamariki in the lower 10 % who end up in CYPS the lives of these tamariki who end up in cyps for long periods of time is not good at all ka pai.
It's sad all the wars going on around Papatuanuku at the minute. Its is the tamariki and Wahine who suffer the most in WAR.
Good on the Wahine from Dancing with the Stars for teaching the elderly people with dementia it helps slow the effects of dementia very cool.
Kia ora te ao Maori news. Condolences to Hapa Jim's Whanau and Tuwharetua for their losses of a great leader.
I give Eco Maori a sore face to see the resurgence of the interest in the tangata whenua O Aotearoa art of ta moko all Maori culture is getting great interest.
Auckland butcher of the year is cool a lot of Maori work in the trade some for 3 generations Eco is great at butchering fish my meat butchering knowledge is not as good as my fish skills.
The state needs to value Pepe as gifts from God to me that's what they are.
Bank fees the banks are creaming it just for a computer transactions. 5 billion over 5 years. It is good that other players are coming into that market of changing currency the internet is making many industries honest. I feared that the banks would interfere in crypto currency's hence I didn't buy any but the tech companies will bring down the cost of putea transportation lending rates ect.
GENETIC engineering a big no from Eco Maori on that if we do what America wants on that subject all our high value customers will leave. There are to many unanswered questions on that subject. Its not like the companies who are pushing that shit have a honest reputation look at monstat and dupont and other companies sell shit that they know harm people they just bury the data under a pile of cash .
I say that the people who receive the Pepe that are up lifted by the state who are most often grandparents should be given more money to care for the Pepe it cost a lot of money to raise a child people will treat Pepe like a taonga.
Good on you Nikki for having a month free from Alcohol detox the system.
Antonio and David Out Rageous fortunes was a great series and The West's to I also like the American show Shame Less it gives a insight of how the common people all around the Papatuanuku have to battle to survive.
The Maori Council has been voicing their concerns about CYPs for many years now there voices are finally be heard through all the naysayers bullshit.
This sort of campaign does made me sick. Poor people with the problems that arise from poor diet and not much money and opportunity to properly supervise the food and drink intake of their family, are not being given the attention and assistance they need.
Meanwhile there is a lobby for the middle class and the older age group that wants expensive medication to extend life beyond what would be considered reasonable and kind. They are attacking pharmac relentlessly to spend money on them, while ignoring the facts about the country's lack of funds for essential things like health, and why, and what is needed to fix it.
New Zealand's world number one ranked eventer Tim Price has added another top trophy to the cabinet, winning the Luhmuhlen Horse Trials in Germany.
Photo: PHOTOSPORT
Price's wife, Jonelle, won the event last year.
Tim and his grey mare Ascona M picked up time penalties in the showjumping but still finished 2.1 penalty points ahead of runner-up Tom McEwen of Great Britain.
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 27 were:1. The Minister for Ford Rangers strikes againTransport Minister Simeon Brown was again the busiest of the Cabinet ministers this week, announcing an ...
You got a fast carAnd I want a ticket to anywhereMaybe we make a dealMaybe together we can get somewhereAny place is betterYesterday’s newsletter, Trust In Me, on the report of abuse in state care, and by religious organisations, between 1950 and 2019, coupled with the hypocrisy of Christopher Luxon ...
New Zealand is again having to reconcile conflicting pressures from its military and its trade interests. Should we join Pillar Two of AUKUS and risk compromising our markets in China? For a century after New Zealand was founded in 1840, its external security arrangements and external economics arrangements were aligned. ...
The ‘50 Shades of Green’ farmers’ protest in 2019 was heavy on climate change denial, but five years on, scepticism and criticism about the idea that pine forests can save us is growing across the board. File photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s the top six news items of note in climate ...
This morning the sky was bright.The birds, in their usual joyous bliss. Nature doesn’t seem to feel the heat of what might angst humans.Their calls are clear and beautiful.Just some random thoughts:MāoriPaul Goldsmith has announced his government will roll back the judiciary’s rulings on Māori Customary Marine Title, which recognises ...
In 2003, the Court of Appeal delivered its decision in Ngati Apa v Attorney-General, ruling that Māori customary title over the foreshore and seabed had not been universally extinguished, and that the Māori Land Court could determine claims and confirm title if the facts supported it. This kicked off the ...
Earlier this week at Parliament, Labour leader Chris Hipkins was applauded for saying that the response to the final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care had to be “bigger than politics.” True, but the fine words, apologies and “we hear you” messages will soon ring ...
TL;DR: In news breaking this morning:The Ministry of Education is cutting $2 billion from its school building programme so the National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government has enough money to deliver tax cuts; The Government has quietly lowered its child poverty reduction targets to make them easier to achieve;Te Whatu Ora-Health NZ’s ...
Kia ora. These are some stories that caught our eye this week – as always, feel free to share yours in the comments. Our header image this week (via Eke Panuku) shows the planned upgrade for the Karanga Plaza Tidal Swimming Steps. The week in Greater Auckland On ...
1. What's not to love about the way the Harris campaign is turning things around?a. Nothingb. Love all of itc. God what a reliefd. Not that it will be by any means easye. All of the above 2. Documents released by the Ministry of Health show Associate Health Minister Casey ...
Trust in me in all you doHave the faith I have in youLove will see us through, if only you trust in meWhy don't you, you trust me?In a week that saw the release of the 3,000 page Abuse in Care report Christopher Luxon was being asked about Boot Camps. ...
TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking about the Royal Commission Inquiry into Abuse in Carereport released this week, and with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on a UN push to not recognise carbon offset markets and ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 26, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Transport: Simeon Brown announced$802.9 million in funding for 18 new trains on the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines, which ...
The northern expressway extension from Warkworth to Whangarei is likely to require radical changes to legislation if it is going to be built within the foreseeable future. The Government’s powers to purchase land, the planning process and current restrictions on road tolling are all going to need to be changed ...
Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedFirst they came for the doctors But I was confused by the numbers and costs So I didn't speak up Then they came for our police and nurses And I didn't think we could afford those costs anyway So I ...
Photo by Joshua J. Cotten on UnsplashWe’re back again after our mid-winter break. We’re still with the ‘new’ day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when we have our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream ...
Notes: This is a free article. Abuse in Care themes are mentioned. Video is at the bottom.BackgroundYesterday’s report into Abuse in Care revealed that at least 1 in 3 of all who went through state and faith based care were abused - often horrifically. At least, because not all survivors ...
Luxon speaks in Parliament yesterday about the Abuse in Care report. Photo: Hagen Hopkins/Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:PM Christopher Luxon said yesterday in tabling the Abuse in Carereport in Parliament he wanted to ‘do the ...
About a decade ago I worked with a bloke called Steve. He was the grizzled veteran coder, a few years older than me, who knew where the bodies were buried - code wise. Despite his best efforts to be approachable and friendly he could be kind of gruff, through to ...
Some of the recent announcements from the government have reminded us of posts we’ve written in the past. Here’s one from early 2020. There were plenty of reactions to the government’s infrastructure announcement a few weeks ago which saw them fund a bunch of big roading projects. One of ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Thursday, July 25 are:News: Why Electric Kiwi is closing to new customers - and why it matters RNZ’s Susan EdmundsScoop: Government drops ...
Hi,I felt a small wet tongue snaking through one of the holes in my Crocs. It explored my big toe, darting down one side, then the other. “He’s looking for some toe cheese,” said the woman next to me, words that still haunt me to this day.Growing up in New ...
Yesterday I happily quoted the Prime Minister without fact-checking him and sure enough, it turns out his numbers were all to hell. It’s not four kg of Royal Commission report, it’s fourteen.My friend and one-time colleague-in-comms Hazel Phillips gently alerted me to my error almost as soon as I’d hit ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Thursday, July 25, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day were:The Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquirypublished its final report yesterday.PM Christopher Luxon and The Minister responsible for ...
The Official Information Act has always been a battle between requesters seeking information, and governments seeking to control it. Information is power, so Ministers and government agencies want to manage what is released and when, for their own convenience, and legality and democracy be damned. Their most recent tactic for ...
TL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:Transport and Energy Minister Simeon Brown is accelerating plans to spend at least $10 billion through Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) to extend State Highway One as a four-lane ‘Expressway’ from Warkworth to Whangarei ...
I live my life (woo-ooh-ooh)With no control in my destinyYea-yeah, yea-yeah (woo-ooh-ooh)I can bleed when I want to bleedSo come on, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)You can bleed when you want to bleedYea-yeah, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)Everybody bleed when they want to bleedCome on and bleedGovernments face tough challenges. Selling unpopular decisions to ...
Please note:To skip directly to the- parliamentary footage in the video, scroll to 1:21 To skip to audio please click on the headphone iconon the left hand side of the screenThis video / audio section is under development. ...
Given the crackdown on wasteful government spending, it behooves me to point to a high profile example of spending by the Luxon government that looks like a big, fat waste of time and money. I’m talking about the deployment of NZDF personnel to support the US-led coalition in the Red ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:40 am on Wednesday, July 24 are:Deep Dive: Chipping away at the housing crisis, including my comments RNZ/Newsroom’s The DetailNews: Government softens on asset sales, ...
As I reported about the city centre, Auckland’s rail network is also going through a difficult and disruptive period which is rapidly approaching a culmination, this will result in a significant upgrade to the whole network. Hallelujah. Also like the city centre this is an upgrade predicated on the City ...
Today, a 4 kilogram report will be delivered to Parliament. We know this is what the report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care weighs, because our Prime Minister told us so.Some reporter had blindsided him by asking a question about something done by ...
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Wednesday, July 24, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Beehive:Transport Minister Simeon Brownannounced plans to use PPPs to fund, build and run a four-lane expressway between Auckland ...
NewstalkZB host Mike Hosking, who can usually be relied on to give Prime Minister Christopher Luxon an easy run, did not do so yesterday when he interviewed him about the HealthNZ deficit. Luxon is trying to use a deficit reported last year by HealthNZ as yet another example of the ...
Back in January a StatsNZ employee gave a speech at Rātana on behalf of tangata whenua in which he insulted and criticised the government. The speech clearly violated the principle of a neutral public service, and StatsNZ started an investigation. Part of that was getting an external consultant to examine ...
Renting for life: Shared ownership initiatives are unlikely to slow the slide in home ownership by much. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:A Deloittereport for Westpac has projected Aotearoa’s home-ownership rate will ...
You're broken down and tiredOf living life on a merry go roundAnd you can't find the fighterBut I see it in you so we gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsWe gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsAnd I'll rise upI'll rise like the dayI'll rise upI'll rise unafraidI'll rise upAnd I'll ...
There’s been a change in Myers Park. Down the steps from St. Kevin’s Arcade, past the grassy slopes, the children’s playground, the benches and that goat statue, there has been a transformation. The underpass for Mayoral Drive has gone from a barren, grey, concrete tunnel, to a place that thrums ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections Global society may have finally slammed on the brakes for climate-warming pollution released by human fossil fuel combustion. According to the Carbon Monitor Project, the total global climate pollution released between February and May 2024 declined slightly from the amount released during the same ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Tuesday, July 23 are:Deep Dive: Penlink: where tolling rhetoric meets reality BusinessDesk-$$$’sOliver LewisScoop:Te Pūkenga plans for regional polytechs leak out ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Tuesday, July 23, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Health: Shane Reti announcedthe Board of Te Whatu Ora-Health New Zealand was being replaced with Commissioner Lester Levy ...
Health NZ warned the Government at the end of March that it was running over Budget. But the reasons it gave were very different to those offered by the Prime Minister yesterday. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon blamed the “botched merger” of the 20 District Health Boards (DHBs) to create Health ...
Long ReadKey Summary: Although National increased the health budget by $1.4 billion in May, they used an old funding model to project health system costs, and never bothered to update their pre-election numbers. They were told during the Health Select Committees earlier in the year their budget amount was deficient, ...
As a momentous, historic weekend in US politics unfolded, analysts and commentators grasped for precedents and comparisons to help explain the significance and power of the choice Joe Biden had made. The 46th president had swept the Democratic party’s primaries but just over 100 days from the election had chosen ...
TL;DR: I’m casting around for new ideas and ways of thinking about Aotearoa’s political economy to find a few solutions to our cascading and self-reinforcing housing, poverty and climate crises.Associate Professor runs an online masters degree in the economics of sustainability at Torrens University in Australia and is organising ...
The Finance and Expenditure Committee has reported back on National's Local Government (Water Services Preliminary Arrangements) Bill. The bill sets up water for privatisation, and was introduced under urgency, then rammed through select committee with no time even for local councils to make a proper submission. Naturally, national's select committee ...
Some years ago, I bought a book at Dunedin’s Regent Booksale for $1.50. As one does. Vandrad the Viking (1898), by J. Storer Clouston, is an obscure book these days – I cannot find a proper online review – but soon it was sitting on my shelf, gathering dust alongside ...
History is not on the side of the centre-left, when Democratic presidents fall behind in the polls and choose not to run for re-election. On both previous occasions in the past 75 years (Harry Truman in 1952, Lyndon Johnson in 1968) the Democrats proceeded to then lose the White House ...
This is a free articleCoverageThis morning, US President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the Presidential race. And that is genuinely newsworthy. Thanks for your service, President Biden, and all the best to you and yours.However, the media in New Zealand, particularly the 1News nightly bulletin, has been breathlessly covering ...
A homeless person’s camp beside a blocked-off slipped damage walkway in Freeman’s Bay: we are chasing our tail on our worsening and inter-related housing, poverty and climate crises. Photo: Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy ...
What has happened to it all?Crazy, some'd sayWhere is the life that I recognise?(Gone away)But I won't cry for yesterdayThere's an ordinary worldSomehow I have to findAnd as I try to make my wayTo the ordinary worldYesterday morning began as many others - what to write about today? I began ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Monday, July 22 are:Today’s Must Read: Father and son live in a tent, and have done for four years, in a million ...
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Monday, July 22, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:US President Joe Biden announced via X this morning he would not stand for a second term.Multinational professional services firm ...
A listing of 32 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, July 14, 2024 thru Sat, July 20, 2024. Story of the week As reflected by preponderance of coverage, our Story of the Week is Project 2025. Until now traveling ...
This weekend, a friend pointed out someone who said they’d like to read my posts, but didn’t want to pay. And my first reaction was sympathy.I’ve already told folks that if they can’t comfortably subscribe, and would like to read, I’d be happy to offer free subscriptions. I don’t want ...
National: The Party of ‘Law and Order’ IntroductionThis weekend, the Government formally kicked off one of their flagship policy programs: a military style boot camp that New Zealand has experimented with over the past 50 years. Cartoon credit: Guy BodyIt’s very popular with the National Party’s Law and Orderimage, ...
Day one of the solo leg of my long journey home begins with my favourite sound: footfalls in an empty street. 5.00 am and it’s already light and already too warm, almost.If I can make the train that leaves Budapest later this hour I could be in Belgrade by nightfall; ...
Do you remember Y2K, the threat that hung over humanity in the closing days of the twentieth century? Horror scenarios of planes falling from the sky, electronic payments failing and ATMs refusing to dispense cash. As for your VCR following instructions and recording your favourite show - forget about it.All ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts being questioned by The Kākā’s Bernard Hickey.TL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 20 were:1. A strategy that fails Zero Carbon Act & Paris targetsThe National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government finally unveiled ...
Summary:As New Zealand loses at least 12 leaders in the public service space of health, climate, and pharmaceuticals, this month alone, directly in response to the Government’s policies and budget choices, what lies ahead may be darker than it appears. Tui examines some of those departures and draws a long ...
The Minister of Housing’s ambition is to reduce markedly the ratio of house prices to household incomes. If his strategy works it would transform the housing market, dramatically changing the prospects of housing as an investment.Leaving aside the Minister’s metaphor of ‘flooding the market’ I do not see how the ...
As previously noted, my historical fantasy piece, set in the fifth-century Mediterranean, was accepted for a Pirate Horror anthology, only for the anthology to later fall through. But in a good bit of news, it turned out that the story could indeed be re-marketed as sword and sorcery. As of ...
An employee of tobacco company Philip Morris International demonstrates a heated tobacco device. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy on Friday, July 19 are:At a time when the Coalition Government is cutting spending on health, infrastructure, education, housing ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 8:30 am on Friday, July 19 are:Scoop: NZ First Minister Casey Costello orders 50% cut to excise tax on heated tobacco products. The minister has ...
Kia ora, it’s time for another Friday roundup, in which we pull together some of the links and stories that caught our eye this week. Feel free to add more in the comments! Our header image this week shows a foggy day in Auckland town, captured by Patrick Reynolds. ...
TL;DR : Here’s the top six items climate news for Aotearoa this week, as selected by Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer. A discussion recorded yesterday is in the video above and the audio of that sent onto the podcast feed.The Government released its draft Emissions Reduction ...
Save some money, get rich and old, bring it back to Tobacco Road.Bring that dynamite and a crane, blow it up, start all over again.Roll up. Roll up. Or tailor made, if you prefer...Whether you’re selling ciggies, digging for gold, catching dolphins in your nets, or encouraging folks to flutter ...
Waiting In The Wings:For truly, if Trump is America’s un-assassinated Caesar, then J.D. Vance is America’s Octavian, the Republic’s youthful undertaker – and its first Emperor.DONALD TRUMP’S SELECTION of James D. Vance as his running-mate bodes ill for the American republic. A fervent supporter of Viktor Orban, the “illiberal” prime ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 19, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:The PSAannounced the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) had ruled in the PSA’s favour in its case against the Ministry ...
Te Rangi e tu nei (The sky above us) Te Papa e takoto nei (The land beneath us) Tatou katoa te hunga ora (To us all the living) Tena koutou katoa (Greetings) ...
A late change to charter school legislation will cheat educators out of fair pay and negotiating power proving charter schools are just a vehicle to make profit out of our education system. ...
In 2004 te iwi Māori rallied against the Crown’s attempt to confiscate our coastlines and moana with the Foreshore and Seabed Act. This led to the largest hīkoi of a generation and the birth of Te Pāti Māori. 20 years later, history is repeating itself. Today the government has announced ...
It has been five and a half years since the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care was established to investigate the abuse of children, young people, and vulnerable adults within state and faith-based institutions. Yesterday, the final report - Whanaketia through pain and trauma, from darkness to light ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to take action off the back of the International Court of Justice ruling on Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine. ...
On Friday the International Court of Justice reaffirmed what Palestinian’s have been telling us for decades: that the occupation and colonisation of Palestinian lands by Israel is illegal and must end immediately. They also called for reparations for Palestinian’s who have lived under Israeli occupation since it began in 1967. ...
Labour calls on the Government to act after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian Territories is illegal. ...
The 53.7 percent rise in benefit sanctions over the last year is more proof of this Government’s disdain for our communities most in need of support. ...
Aotearoa could be a country where every child grows up feeling safe, loved and with a sense of belonging in their whānau and community. But for some of our children, this is far from reality. Instead, they are trapped in a maze of intergenerational harm that they can’t escape on ...
Te Pāti Māori are calling for David Seymour to resign as Associate Health Minister in response to his call for Pharmac to ignore the Treaty of Waitangi. “This announcement is just another example of the government’s anti-Tiriti, anti-Māori agenda.” Said Co-leader and spokesperson for health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. “Seymour thinks it ...
The soaring price of renting is driving the rise of inflation in this country - with latest figures from Stats NZ showing rents are up 4.8 per cent on average while annual inflation is at 3.3 per cent. ...
National’s Emissions Reduction Plan will take New Zealand further from the economy we need to ensure the next generation has a stable climate and secure livelihoods. ...
Following consultation with named parties and thorough consideration of privacy interests, the Green Party is in a position to release the Executive Summary of the final report from the independent investigation into Darleen Tana. ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon should be asking serious questions of his Minister for Resources Shane Jones now it’s been revealed he misled the public about a dinner with mining companies that he didn’t declare and said wasn’t pre-arranged. ...
Te Pāti Māori have submitted to the Justice Select Committee against the Sentencing (Reinstating Three Strikes) Amendment Bill. The bill will further entrench racism in our justice system and fails to focus on rehabilitation. “Reinstating Three Strikes will empower a systematically racist system and exacerbate the overrepresentation of Māori in ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee is set to make a determination on the Residential Tenancies Amendment (RTA) Bill in the coming weeks. “This legislation will give landlords the power to kick our whānau out onto the street for no reason” said Housing spokesperson, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “Their solution to the housing ...
“National’s campaign was about tackling crime and the best they can do is a two-year long Ministerial Advisory Group,” Labour justice spokesperson Duncan Webb said. ...
“There are more examples of charter schools failing their students than there are success stories. The coalition Government is driving to dismantle our public school system and instead promote a privatised, competitive structure that puts profits before kids,” Jan Tinetti said. ...
“This government is choosing to deliberately mislead and withhold information, keeping our people in the dark about this government’s agenda and the future of our mokopuna,” said co-leader and spokesperson for Health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. The call comes after the demand from the Chief Ombudsman that Associate Minister of Health, Casey ...
“Today’s climate announcement by Simon Watts makes clear the National Government is simply paying lip service to meeting its climate change targets,” Megan Woods said. ...
National is choosing to make life harder for workers by taking away the rights our communities have fought hard for. Here's how they’re taking workers backwards. ...
Australia, Canada and New Zealand today issued the following statement on the need for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza and the risk of expanded conflict between Hizballah and Israel. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The human suffering is unacceptable. It cannot continue. We remain unequivocal in our condemnation of ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today reminded all State and faith-based institutions of their legal obligation to preserve records relevant to the safety and wellbeing of those in its care. “The Abuse in Care Inquiry’s report has found cases where records of the most vulnerable people in State and faith‑based institutions were ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government’s online safety website for children and young people has reached one million page views. “It is great to see so many young people and their families accessing the site Keep It Real Online to learn how to stay safe online, and manage ...
Tēnā tātou katoa, Ngā mihi te rangi, ngā mihi te whenua, ngā mihi ki a koutou, kia ora mai koutou. Thank you for the opportunity to be here and the invitation to speak at this 50th anniversary conference. I acknowledge all those who have gone before us and paved the ...
New Zealand’s payroll providers have successfully prepared to ensure 3.5 million individuals will, from Wednesday next week, be able to keep more of what they earn each pay, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Revenue Minister Simon Watts. “The Government's tax policy changes are legally effective from Wednesday. Delivering this tax ...
An experimental vineyard which will help futureproof the wine sector has been opened in Blenheim by Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson. The covered vineyard, based at the New Zealand Wine Centre – Te Pokapū Wāina o Aotearoa, enables controlled environmental conditions. “The research that will be produced at the Experimental ...
The Coalition Government has confirmed the indicative regional breakdown of North Island Weather Event (NIWE) funding for state highway recovery projects funded through Budget 2024, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Regions in the North Island suffered extensive and devastating damage from Cyclone Gabrielle and the 2023 Auckland Anniversary Floods, and ...
Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, Retno Marsudi, will visit New Zealand next week, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “Indonesia is important to New Zealand’s security and economic interests and is our closest South East Asian neighbour,” says Mr Peters, who is currently in Laos to engage with South East Asian partners. ...
He aha te kai a te rangatira? He kōrero, he kōrero, he kōrero. The government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the aspirations of Ngāti Maniapoto, Minister for Māori Development Tama Potaka says. “My thanks to Te Nehenehenui Trust – Ngāti Maniapoto for bringing their important kōrero to a ministerial ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has thanked outgoing Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority, Janice Fredric, for her service to the board.“I have received Ms Fredric’s resignation from the role of Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority,” Mr Brown says.“On behalf of the Government, I want to thank Ms Fredric for ...
The Government is proposing legislation to overturn a Court of Appeal decision and amend the Marine and Coastal Area Act in order to restore Parliament’s test for Customary Marine Title, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “Section 58 required an applicant group to prove they have exclusively used and occupied ...
Regulation Minister David Seymour says that opposition parties have united in bad faith, opposing what they claim are ‘dangerous changes’ to the Early Childhood Education sector, despite no changes even being proposed yet. “Issues with affordability and availability of early childhood education, and the complexity of its regulation, has led ...
After receiving more than 740 submissions in the first 20 days, Regulation Minister David Seymour is asking the Ministry for Regulation to extend engagement on the early childhood education regulation review by an extra two weeks. “The level of interest has been very high, and from the conversations I’ve been ...
The Coalition Government is investing $802.9 million into the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines as part of a funding agreement with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA), KiwiRail, and the Greater Wellington and Horizons Regional Councils to deliver more reliable services for commuters in the lower North Island, Transport Minister Simeon ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced his intention to appoint a Crown Manager to both Hawke’s Bay Regional and Wairoa District Councils to speed up the delivery of flood protection work in Wairoa."Recent severe weather events in Wairoa this year, combined with damage from Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023 have ...
Mr Speaker, this is a day that many New Zealanders who were abused in State care never thought would come. It’s the day that this Parliament accepts, with deep sorrow and regret, the Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care. At the heart of this report are the ...
For the first time, the Government is formally acknowledging some children and young people at Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital experienced torture. The final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care “Whanaketia – through pain and trauma, from darkness to light,” was tabled in Parliament ...
The Government has acknowledged the nearly 2,400 courageous survivors who shared their experiences during the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State and Faith-Based Care. The final report from the largest and most complex public inquiry ever held in New Zealand, the Royal Commission Inquiry “Whanaketia – through ...
With a week to go before hard-working New Zealanders see personal income tax relief for the first time in fourteen years, 513,000 people have used the Budget tax calculator to see how much they will benefit, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis. “Tax relief is long overdue. From next Wednesday, personal income ...
Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says a bill that has passed its first reading will improve parental leave settings and give non-biological parents more flexibility as primary carer for their child. The Regulatory Systems Amendment Bill (No3), passed its first reading this morning. “It includes a change ...
Two Bills designed to improve regulation and make it easier to do business have passed their first reading in Parliament, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. The Regulatory Systems (Economic Development) Amendment Bill and Regulatory Systems (Immigration and Workforce) Amendment Bill make key changes to legislation administered by the Ministry ...
New legislation paves the way for greater competition in sectors such as banking and electricity, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says. “Competitive markets boost productivity, create employment opportunities and lift living standards. To support competition, we need good quality regulation but, unfortunately, a recent OECD report ranked New ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says lotteries for charitable purposes, such as those run by the Heart Foundation, Coastguard NZ, and local hospices, will soon be allowed to operate online permanently. “Under current laws, these fundraising lotteries are only allowed to operate online until October 2024, after which ...
The Coalition Government is accelerating work on the new four-lane expressway between Auckland and Whangārei as part of its Roads of National Significance programme, with an accelerated delivery model to deliver this project faster and more efficiently, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “For too long, the lack of resilient transport connections ...
Sir Don McKinnon will travel to Viet Nam this week as a Special Envoy of the Government, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “It is important that the Government give due recognition to the significant contributions that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made to New Zealand-Viet Nam relations,” Mr ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says newly appointed Commissioner, Grant Illingworth KC, will help deliver the report for the first phase of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into COVID-19 Lessons, due on 28 November 2024. “I am pleased to announce that Mr Illingworth will commence his appointment as ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters travels to Laos this week to participate in a series of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-led Ministerial meetings in Vientiane. “ASEAN plays an important role in supporting a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” Mr Peters says. “This will be our third visit to ...
Construction of a new mental health facility at Te Nikau Grey Hospital in Greymouth is today one step closer, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey says. “This $27 million facility shows this Government is delivering on its promise to boost mental health care and improve front line services,” Mr Doocey says. ...
New Zealand is committing nearly $50 million to a package supporting sustainable Pacific fisheries development over the next four years, Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones announced today. “This support consisting of a range of initiatives demonstrates New Zealand’s commitment to assisting our Pacific partners ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour says proposed changes to the Education and Training Amendment Bill will ensure charter schools have more flexibility to negotiate employment agreements and are equipped with the right teaching resources. “Cabinet has agreed to progress an amendment which means unions will not be able to initiate ...
In response to serious concerns around oversight, overspend and a significant deterioration in financial outlook, the Board of Health New Zealand will be replaced with a Commissioner, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti announced today. “The previous government’s botched health reforms have created significant financial challenges at Health NZ that, without ...
Minister for Space and Science, Innovation and Technology Judith Collins will travel to Adelaide tomorrow for space and science engagements, including speaking at the Australian Space Forum. While there she will also have meetings and visits with a focus on space, biotechnology and innovation. “New Zealand has a thriving space ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts will travel to China on Saturday to attend the Ministerial on Climate Action meeting held in Wuhan. “Attending the Ministerial on Climate Action is an opportunity to advocate for New Zealand climate priorities and engage with our key partners on climate action,” Mr Watts says. ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is travelling to the Solomon Islands tomorrow for meetings with his counterparts from around the Pacific supporting collective management of the region’s fisheries. The 23rd Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Committee and the 5th Regional Fisheries Ministers’ Meeting in Honiara from 23 to 26 July ...
The Government today launched the Military Style Academy Pilot at Te Au rere a te Tonga Youth Justice residence in Palmerston North, an important part of the Government’s plan to crackdown on youth crime and getting youth offenders back on track, Minister for Children, Karen Chhour said today. “On the ...
The Government has welcomed news the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has begun work to replace nine priority bridges across the country to ensure our state highway network remains resilient, reliable, and efficient for road users, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“Increasing productivity and economic growth is a key priority for the ...
Acting Prime Minister David Seymour has been in contact throughout the evening with senior officials who have coordinated a whole of government response to the global IT outage and can provide an update. The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet has designated the National Emergency Management Agency as the ...
New Zealand and Japan will continue to step up their shared engagement with the Pacific, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “New Zealand and Japan have a strong, shared interest in a free, open and stable Pacific Islands region,” Mr Peters says. “We are pleased to be finding more ways ...
New developments in the heart of North Island forestry country will reinvigorate their communities and boost economic development, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones visited Kaingaroa and Kawerau in Bay of Plenty today to open a landmark community centre in the former and a new connecting road in ...
President Adeang, fellow Ministers, honourable Diet Member Horii, Ambassadors, distinguished guests. Minasama, konnichiwa, and good afternoon, everyone. Distinguished guests, it’s a pleasure to be here with you today to talk about New Zealand’s foreign policy reset, the reasons for it, the values that underpin it, and how it ...
Opinion: The Canadian short story writer Alice Munro – winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2013 – died in May at the age of 92. Her work was about “the damage people inflict on one another in the name of love”, Deborah Treisman wrote in the New Yorker. ...
This month marks two years since the most powerful telescope ever built sent its first pictures back to earth. From its lofty vantage point, beyond the moon in orbit around the sun, the James Webb Space Telescope was tuned to observe the first stars and galaxies being born soon after ...
Comment: After Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ preview several weeks ago, I had some optimism about the Government’s emissions reduction plan. Now I’ve read the discussion document, that hope has been dashed. How can the Government propose a plan that wants to take New Zealand taxpayers’ hard-earned money, and spend ...
Christopher Luxon: hurdles The little man from National jumps hurdles in his sleep. He’s quite good at it in his dreams and even though the reality doesn’t quite match up you have to give him credit for getting up every morning and crashing into the very first hurdle of the ...
Comment: It was a good two hours into the conversation when Tyrone Marks raised the most basic of questions when I first spoke to him in 2017. “They didn’t explain the things they did to me. They never told me why. And they still haven’t. There’s no explanation for it. ...
Last summer when Matairangi burned, Ginny and Tom stood at the window of their lounge, watching kākā shoot skyward from the burning trees. From the distance, they looked to Ginny like pages torn from books and thrown into a bonfire. It was Tom, voice tight, who told her it was ...
Madeleine Chapman rounds out Death Week on The Spinoff with a final recommendation. You can read all of our Death Week coverage here. Nothing forces you to reflect on your life and relationships quite like proximity to death. For those whose nearest and dearest have died, there are reasonably obvious ...
Whitney Greene takes us through her life in television, including the TV character she’d like to plan a funeral for and her cow lung catastrophe on The Traitors NZ. “If the phone rings, I have to answer it,” Whitney Greene from The Traitors NZ warns as we begin our My ...
Maddie Ballard reviews the debut essay collection of Pōneke writer Flora Feltham.In ‘The Raw Material’, the longest essay in Flora Feltham’s dazzling debut collection, the author heads out for a run after hours of weaving and sees the world turn to textile. “Pounding along the Parade, I saw the ...
Andy Christiansen, one half of the experimental rock-pop duo TRiPS, shares the tunes inspiring the band’s perfect weekend and new release. “Good speakers, good food, good music, no distractions”: that’s all you need to enjoy the psychedelic stylings of TRiPS, a new band formed by Fly My Pretties’ Barnaby Weir ...
Celebrating our quadrennial opportunity to become experts in a bunch of sports we never normally watch.The games of the XXXIII Olympiad are upon us. Paris will host this year’s showcase of sporting and athletic prowess, which means some late-night and early-morning viewing for us in Aotearoa.But what sports ...
The photograph is striking and beautiful, but also disturbing – a reminder that my love for John was often entangled in shame.The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.In the spring of 1980, in Dunedin, shortly before his death, someone took a photograph ...
Get to know Babushka, our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our What’s Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Babu’s humans, Jo and Isabel, for their support. Dog name: Babushka (Babu for short) Age: 2Breed: Border Collie X poodleIf rescued, ...
Pacific Media Watch A Lebanese photojournalist who was severely wounded during an Israeli air strike in south Lebanon carried the Olympic torch in Paris this week in honour of her peers who have been wounded and killed in the field — especially in Gaza and Lebanon. Christina Assi of Agence ...
The first report in a five-part web series focused on the 15th Triennial Conference of Pacific Women taking place in the Marshall Islands this week.SPECIAL REPORT:By Netani Rika in Majuro Women continue to fight for justice 70 years after the first nuclear tests by the United States caused ...
Christopher Luxon has joined with Australia and Canada's leaders in voicing support for US President Joe Biden's ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The 2022 election brought the “teal wave” into parliament. The next election will test whether teals, who occupy what were Liberal seats, and other independents can maintain their momentum. Joining us on the Podcast ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Musgrave, Senior lecturer in Pharmacology, University of Adelaide Pixavri/Shutterstock A major Federal Court class action has been dismissed this week after Justice Michael Lee ruled there was not enough evidence to prove the weedkiller Roundup causes cancer. Plaintiff Kelvin ...
In The Week in Politics: politicians have to decide what to do about child abuse, Health NZ is booked in for major surgery and Darleen Tana returns. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Corbould, Associate Professor, Contemporary Histories Research Group, Deakin University Mainstream media are surprisingly muted at the prospect of the world’s most powerful nation being led for the first time by a woman – specifically a woman of colour, Vice President Kamala ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rebecca Bennett, PhD Student, Associate Research Fellow, Deakin University Last week, a drone delivery company called Wing (owned by Google’s parent company, Alphabet) started operating in Melbourne. Some 250,000 residents in parts of the city’s eastern suburbs can now order food from ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonathan Foo, Lecturer, Physiotherapy, Monash University pikselstock/Shutterstock In the next 40 years in Australia, it’s predicted the number of Australians aged 65 and over will more than double, while the number of people aged 85 and over will more than triple. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katrina Grant, Research Associate, Power Institute for Arts and Visual Culture, University of Sydney Jonas Åkerström’s 1790 work, Session of the Accademia dell’Arcadia on August 17 1788.Nationalmuseum/Cecilia Heisser Ever wondered whether you’d have a better chance at winning an Olympic gold ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexandra Jones, Program Lead, Food Governance, George Institute for Global Health wavebreakmedia/Shutterstock On Thursday, Australian and New Zealand food ministers at state, federal and national levels met to thrash out what’s next for health star ratings on packaged foods. Now, after ...
The Abuse in Care report found many Pacific survivors lost their connections to their culture and language, resulting in trauma that has been carried from generation to generation. ...
In the regulatory review, ECC intends to suggest that ERO focus on curriculum delivery reviews rather than the Ministry, because it’s not efficient or effective to have two agencies with radically different approaches climbing over each other. ...
Te Rūnanga Nui o Ngā Kura Kaupapa Māori invites the current government to work in partnership with them to develop a pathway forward, including the development of a parallel pathway and meaningful policy and strategy for Kura Kaupapa Māori ...
If you haven’t started watching yet, Tara Ward begs you to reconsider. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. In the world of New Zealand reality television, we have many gems in our crown. There’s the delicious second season of the Celebrity Treasure ...
A new poem by Fiona Kidman. The clothes of the dead I did not keep my mother’s furry red beret for long nor the stringy scarves that adorned the necks of my aunts, although I have kept tag ends of gold, the rings and trinkets they wore, the brooches no ...
The government’s announcement that it will re-open the foreshore and seabed controversy by changing the rules on recognising centuries-old Māori customary title for a third time goes against the rule of law and New Zealand values,” Mr Tipa says. ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Lioness by Emily Perkins (Bloomsbury, $25) Roarrrr! Perkins’ brilliant, award-winning, Marian-Keyes anointed, darkly funny, long ...
The 2004 Act vested ownership of the foreshore and seabed in the Crown, extinguishing any Māori claims to ownership and causing widespread outrage and protests among Māori communities. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Antje Deckert, Associate Professor (Criminology), Auckland University of Technology Getty Images Despite the connection between institutional harm and gang membership made clear in this week’s mammoth royal commission abuse-in care report, the government seems unlikely to soften its “get tough on ...
From Lewis Clareburt in the swimming to the start of the rowing – the first seven days of Paris 2024 promise to be big for New Zealand. There are few events that bring the country together quite like an Olympic Games. Nothing quite matches the excitement of getting up in ...
Groundbreaking local science just showed up in the most surprising of places: the season finale of The Kardashians. In the season five finale of The Kardashians last night, several members of the family gathered together in one of their signature empty, cream-coloured rooms to hear test results that had been ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Saikal, Emeritus professor of Middle Eastern and Central Asian Studies, Australian National University The Middle East is on the brink of a possibly devastating regional war, with hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah reaching an extremely dangerous level. Washington has engaged in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laura Elizabeth Eades, Rheumatologist, Monash University Lupus is an inflammatory autoimmune illness, where the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks itself. Lupus can affect virtually any part of the body, although it most commonly affects the skin, joints and kidneys. The symptoms ...
A law firm that specialises in working with survivors of abuse in State care is disappointed that the Government fails to recognise that its boot camps can be directly compared to previous boot camps from the 1990s and 2000s. ...
Dying is a natural part of life, like updating your Wof or seeing your hairdresser, but without the word-of-mouth recs that help guarantee a good service. What if we changed that? Dying Reviews received by The Spinoff have had the names of organisations redacted while Hospice NZ collects further data. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonti Horner, Professor (Astrophysics), University of Southern Queensland Mike Lewinski/Flickr, CC BY On any clear night, if you gaze skywards long enough, chances are you’ll see a meteor streaking through the sky. Some nights, however, are better than others. At ...
Despite having no bars or other designated spaces for lesbians, Auckland boasts a small but mighty lesbian museum. So how did it get here? The past 18 months has brought increasing hostility towards the queer community across Aotearoa. Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull’s anti-trans rally in Tamaki Makaurau last March led to a ...
Poneke Antifascist Coalition has invited Wellingtonians to stand in solidarity with the Kanak people at 12pm today outside the French Embassy in Wellington. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Layton, Visiting Fellow, Strategic Studies, Griffith University Drones are the signature technology of the Ukraine war. A few miniature aircraft designs were used in the war’s early days, but an incredible array of drones have now evolved. There are different types, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Slee, Associate Professor, Clinical Academic Neurologist, Flinders University Francisco Gonzelez/Unsplash Migraine is many things, but one thing it’s not is “just a headache”. “Migraine” comes from the Greek word “hemicrania”, referring to the common experience of migraine being predominantly ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lee White, Senior Lecturer and Horizon Fellow, School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Sydney Australia was slow to introduce minimum building standards for energy efficiency. The Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS) only came into force in 2003. Older homes ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Steven Sherwood, Professor of Atmospheric Sciences, Climate Change Research Centre, UNSW Sydney The past century of human-induced warming has increased rainfall variability over 75% of the Earth’s land area – particularly over Australia, Europe and eastern North America, new research shows. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tony Heynen, Program Coordinator, Sustainable Energy, The University of Queensland A temporary stadium in the Champ-de-Mars, ParisEkaterina Pokrovsky/Shutterstock As Paris prepares to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the sustainability of the event is coming under scrutiny. The organisers have promoted ...
A night of karaoke and community in a pub that feels like a memory. You’d barely even notice it, unless you knew to look. Tucked away behind a liquor store on busy Constable Street is the capital’s last great pub. Newtown Sports Bar is an emblem of the pub culture ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Wright, Professor in Marine Geology, University of Canterbury Louise Corcoran/Getty Images The decline in the number of doctoral candidates at New Zealand universities is a worrying sign for the country’s effort to build a knowledge-based economy. Aotearoa New Zealand’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laurie Berg, Associate Professor, University of Technology Sydney defotoberg/Shutterstock Migrant worker exploitation is entrenched in workplaces across Australia. Tragically, a deep fear of immigration consequences means most unlawful employer conduct goes unreported. On Wednesday, however, the government officially launched a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Vaughan Cruickshank, Senior Lecturer in Health and Physical Education, University of Tasmania Paris is about to host its third summer Olympics. While we don’t yet know what the legacy of this year’s games will be, let’s take the opportunity to reflect on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Hugh Breakey, Deputy Director, Institute for Ethics, Governance & Law, Griffith University In the wake of the assassination attempt on former US President Donald Trump, there were calls from bothsides of US politics, as well as internationally, to reduce the brutal, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Keith Rathbone, Senior Lecturer, Modern European History and Sports History, Macquarie University Two high-profile assaults on Australians in Paris have raised concerns about security ahead of the Olympic Games. On Saturday evening, a young woman was allegedly sexually assaulted by a ...
Dying is inevitable and, so it seems, is it costing a lot, writes Stewart Sowman-Lund in today’s extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here.The cost of dying ...
The government took Joyce Harris's first baby and sent her off to a girls' home. Half a century on - and out of oceans of hurt - it asked her to be a mother figure. ...
It’s the deadliest fictional town in the country, but which death has been the most bonkers? Alex Casey looks back at 10 seasons of The Brokenwood Mysteries to find out. Warning: The following ranking story contains famous New Zealand actors appearing to be dead (not alive). The Spinoff has been ...
Water cremation is the biggest thing to happen to the death industry in the last 100 years. Alex Casey meets the people trying to bring it to Aotearoa. Through a set of mirrored doors down the industrial end of Christchurch’s St Asaph Street, death is getting a new lease on ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A,DIV,A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp'); Got a good quiz question?Send Newsroom your questions. The post Newsroom daily quiz, Friday 26 July appeared first on Newsroom. ...
“It's time for NZ to declare a climate emergency, majority of Kiwis say in new poll”
https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/its-time-nz-declare-climate-emergency-majority-kiwis-say-in-new-poll
“Those who were more likely to be against were National Party supporters, men aged 55 and over and New Zealand Europeans. “
Actions are needed – declaring an emergency requires action – I am concerned that this is just a rebranding exercise/
In response to my "provocation" to declare a climate emergency, the council has sprung into action, planning and compiling actions to take and those being taken, to try to justify their refusal to declare a climate emergency; the public will want to know what they turned the opportunity down, if in fact they do, and so they're galvanised into action even before the vote. This will have happened with every council that has been challenged to make the declaration. It's a win-win situation but don't tell the "National Party supporting, 55 years and over, European New Zealand males that are the bulk of my council and who statistically oppose declaring a "climate emergency".
what emergency things do you think you guys will do
Those things already in train, plus others they'll have to consider, having committed to do so. The declaration is more for the public, Imo, that the councillors; it's a statement of intent and inclusion, bringing the councillors out into the light of public scrutiny on this issue, where otherwise they (we – I'm one) make our decisions behind closed doors and minds; we need the close attention and input of the people we serve and this declaration creates opportunities to do just that. The tension that exists now, and there's plenty of that, is working in favour of those wanting action; there's action aplenty as the conservative faction scrambles to justify their unwillingness to take the proactive, progressive path.
It might pay to pull the analogy of other emergencies further from what is done there. For instance the emergency provisions for a major weather event, an earthquake.
I fear the boy who cried wolf syndrome – if emergencies are declared I hope we act like an emergency has been declared otherwise I'm not sure why we would bother.
I feel "emergency" in this case is more generic and means "emerging" in; the crisis is emerging and now's the time to face the music, get activated while we still can. Later on, when we're swamped by the effects of the climate, we won't be in as strong a position to do anything bar scramble for our lives. Emergencies like earthquakes, devastating floods, tsunami etc. activate the machinery of immediacy; search and rescue, fire fighters, the military etc; not being asked for with this "climate emergency" movement. I'm curious as to why some people react the way you have, Marty, hearing alarm bells and seeing flashing lights at the word, "emergency", where I hear, "emerging". I'm not being critical of those who do, it's just interesting to compare reactivities.
Yes it is interesting to compare.
This is where some of my concerns with the 'window dressing' aspect of declaring a climate emergency. The word emergency gets devalued until it means just the next difficulty. It doesn't mean that – it is an EMERGENCY or it isn't. If it is ACTION immediately is required. If not – I'd say choose a different word to convey the meaning.
Bit like saying crusaders meant the crusading spirit – umm yeah nah. Emergency does not mean emerging imo
It is an emergency, Marty.
It may not seem like it to most people, but it is.
your council withered under toxoplasmosis controlled zombies,to constrain cats adjacent to Omaui conservation estate ,and its globally significant Korero ghecko.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/113468670/omaui-cats-can-stay-under-southland-regional-pest-management-plan
https://www.flickr.com/photos/rocknvole/7660368934/in/photostream/
There was no evidence presented, or even mention of any "Korero gecko" at the hearing, Poisson; are you making that up?
Edit: sorry, I see that you are not.
Ah, my apologies, I see that Tony Jewel (whom I've met) found one. Still, it wasn't mentioned, so far as I know. That's intriguing. The proposal to control cats was contractually reliant upon majority support from the Omaui residents. They demanded otherwise and the proposal was dropped.
So you did not think to consider all protected species in the adjacent conservation estate? What a pack of wally's.
Poisson; you may have missed this part of my response above:
"The proposal to control cats was contractually reliant upon majority support from the Omaui residents. They demanded otherwise and the proposal was dropped. "
Without the go-ahead from the locals, we could not implement the programme proposed. Wallys, you say, but bound by rules and contracts and respectful of them.
Blockade this thing, just as activists are doing overseas
Under laws passed by the last government and yet to be repealed by this one, Protests like those currently underway in the UK against oil exploration rigs are specifically prohibited in New Zealand under the Anadarko Amendment, carrying extremely heavy penalties, up to two years imprisonment, and massive fines of both individuals and the organisations that they might be affiliated to, (like Greenpeace).
Correction: One year in jail
One of the reasons give by Green MPs in meetings with activists, as to why they would not be making any moves in parliament towards repealing the Anadarko Amendment, was that it would negatively impact their efforts to achieve consensus over climate change with the opposition National Party.
Now that the attempt to achieve consensus with the Nats. is behind them.
In solidarity with their activist base, the Green Party as part of the government, should now be free to raise the issue of repealing the Anadarko Amendment.
I agree.
Pete pulls pin.
Beige Badger bids bye-bye.
https://yournz.org/2019/06/15/announcement-a-major-change/#comments
It's funny Pete used to drive me mad, but over time they way he got his perspective across improved and I recently rediscovered his blog which I was enjoying reading. A thoroughly decent chap who was put through the wringer by a bunch of numbskulls and im very happy he came out on top there.
Not everyones cup of tea but one of the good guys if you ask me.
Perhaps not as bad as he's painted (beige) and has an eye for the political, but lacks self-awareness, somewhat. I reckon. I'm glad he's stopping; his readers were subtly polluting his soul![smiley smiley](https://cdn.ckeditor.com/4.11.3/full-all/plugins/smiley/images/regular_smile.png)
You're probably right Robert, that said… having met you a few times I suspect some of the commenters on The Standard have polluted yours as well.
Aha! I'm trying to place you by the tone of your comment, Cricklewood, but I can't quite picture you; no matter, I like everyone I meet, so you must be okay![smiley smiley](https://cdn.ckeditor.com/4.11.3/full-all/plugins/smiley/images/regular_smile.png)
Pete's probably okay as well, but I've not met him yet. I'm sure I will though.
Just another plant enthusiast that has had the pleasure of visiting your forest.
I have a very similar horticultural philosophy in fact my favorite garden if you want to call it that is a patch of flowering 'weeds' in a little and forgotten (by the council contactor)traffic island. I do love Verbena bonariensis in full flight.
Ha, got it!
May your traffic island garden live long and prosper!
Didn't Pete give you the boot from his blog after numerous opportunities to not behave in a trolling manner? Or did you eventually crawl away?
I take my hat off to him working a full-time job and running his blog all by himself. That shows commitment, dedication and (self-)sacrifice. In fact, I applaud Pete and I wish him well in his other/new projects. Life is precious and we all need to live it wisely.
“All possible avenues…”
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/113428568/twyford-seeks-buildtorent-advice-as-nats-ramp-up-kiwi-dream-attack-rhetoric
The announcement by the Housing Minister that, we're interested in all possible avenues to fix the housing crisis, is great news.
The road less traveled.
Of all the possible avenues available to the Minister, a EMPTY HOMES TAX, like that imposed in Vancouver, will cost the least, and have immediate effect, freeing up tens of thousands of perfectly good vacant properties for renters and buyers.
and please regulate Air B n B as the hotel/motel/bnb they are.
Can't be that hard.
A good attempt at diversion there, Sabine.
But it shows that at least you understand the concept.
wow…..why thanks.
no sure why you think this is an attempt at diversion as many of hte empty houses are actually full come the tourist season. So what ever empty housing tax you might levy at them will be offset by gains in the high season especially in high tourists area where locals can't find any rentals as it is easier to rent them a thousand bucks a night when the concert and festival season is high.
So firstly i agree with your 'empty house tax', i would also like to see a 'second house or millionaires batch tax' and then i would like to have these amateur hoteliers regulated as any industry in this country is.
But i am greatfull for your gracious and charitable admission that i understand 'the concept'. Bless.
At last count there were over 33,000 empty homes in Auckland. That seems a lot of Air B&Bs. If most of them are 'actually full' during the tourist season, as you claim, then no wonder the hoteliers are moaning.
And I agree with you, if that is the case, then Air B&Bs, (whether full or empty), should be included in the Empty Homes Tax. Tourists who are passing through have choices. I would rather they stayed in hotels and motels, or a backpackers. Allow Aucklanders the chance to rent or buy these homes.
I would rather the tourists stayed in the motels, backpacker hostels and campgrounds, after all that is what they are supposed to be for.
P.S. Also, it probably wouldn't hurt to put up a link or some kind of evidence to back your claim that the empty houses "are actually full come the tourist season."
I think it is good practice, so that people can tell whether I am making stuff up off the top of my head, or whether I am relying on anecdotal evidence.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11654495
See, just like I did there. 🙂
Didn't realise that this govt was so heavily into the possibility of state asset sales and for what ? Privately owned rentals "Government could give developers to build more new rental stock, including the possibility of selling them Crown-owned land with the payment being deferred to a later date."
So the private sector is the answer not HNZ. Does he not know anything about govt finance. Borrowing for HNZ does NOT increase the deficit. It is balance sheet neutral.
Here is an alternative view to this
https://thedailyblog.co.nz/2019/06/12/more-motels-for-the-homeless-dear-labour-dump-kiwibuild-start-kiwiown/
All possible avenues that maintain property values.
Invitation to public session of Environment Southland council to support motion to declare climate emergency![smiley smiley](https://cdn.ckeditor.com/4.11.3/full-all/plugins/smiley/images/regular_smile.png)
https://www.facebook.com/events/482304345874794/
This is so bad. What utter filth this sad shithead is.
Wow!!!!!! Penis envy?
There is quite a tradition of this – mostly by Museums
Brian Tamaki …… the man who gave us the idea that homosexual penisis were part of the reason …….. for the Christchurch earthquakes
Tamaki knows that generally Muslims are on par with Satan worshipers …. But when standing on the penis,,,,,,,, these blasphemous deniers of the one true messiah have are largely got it right ,,,Brian knows this ….. as God talks to him.
He remembers, When we as a country walked the talk about " God of nations " ….. the NZ penis police had kept homosexuality as a criminal offense for most of our history ,,,, this unlawfull hardness, or crime against God as Brian knows it to be ,,,, was a jailable offense, that the NZ Justice system kept on its books and enforced … until 1986.
In that cursed year of 1986, a godless Labour Govt started us on our march towards being the sodom of the south Pacific.,,,, NZ penisis freed from christian Moral restraint , began working against God himself… and his heavenly geological features were used to punish us.
As Brian has personally been told , If the good lord wanted us to look at cocks we would have them in the middle of our foreheads , and there would have been kingdom dick picks in the garden of eden ,,,,, But we don't , and their wasn't.
We are lucky to have suffered only one smite so far …. with our mortal dicks in gods face arrogance …. like a hairy mote in his all seeing eye.
To avert more Gods wrath disasters which are our inevitable wages for sin.,,, Men must stop our tools being the tools of Satan , ,,,…….We must think with our big heads ….. and Vote for Brian …..
Its as cheap as two ticks and a bit of logic ,,, for god class disaster insurance cover.
Cover the cock, trust in god …. and vote accordingly.
A similar thing happened here in Riverton where an elderly European New Zealander ex-farmer tore down and chopped-up a large driftwood figure erected in the bed of the estuary beside the town. He felt offended by the arms-spread-wide, caped figure, and took matters into his own hands. When I confronted him, he was upset but took me to the remains of "Ogon" and offered to fix and re-install it, saying he regretted his over-reaction. I could see that he was sincere in his upset and action, but both of us recognised that the problem was the lack of previous dialogue over the expression of culture the driftwood figure represented. The "phallus chopper" of today's story will have acted with sincerity (he kept his work tidy) and the same argument that's made for not growing pumpkins in a community garden because the look to a candle like footballs and will get kicked around, applies here. The same artist who made Ogon, also made a huge moose that stood also in the estuary, until someone broke off its "generous" phallus. The response from the artist was to replace the missing member with a larger one! No one removed that. I expect you'll reply angrily, Marty, saying it's a racist, disrespectful thing, and it is, but it's also that effect I'm describing, imo.
I'm sure the person had some ideas when they did it – pretty direct insult – up there with setting fire to a marae imo – being a christian used as an insult to others – pity this still happens
So people are allowed to Express their culture unless they are Christians??
yarp
Huh what have you done with the mm that would have abused me . ?
I'm impressed at you ignoring my baiting.
But seriously I was hope it might start a conversation about when something is cultural and where the line should be drawn ;
cultural beliefs vs causing offence.
you'd have to add in the complexity of our current situation – the dominance of culture, beliefs such as 'progress' and 'capitalism' and so on. Then that would need to be considered via the context of the situation. Indigenous peoples have been abused and othered by this society – how do we honour our ancestors and the treaties they made from all sides.
Rule of thumb – if a older, 'whiter' maler type is offended – probably nothing to worry about. If someone is offended by them – big issue simply because of the power imbalance and their absolute domination of society including HOW we can even talk about stuff. 🙂
property destruction is now a Christian culture?
There is a history of this 'altering' of cultural artefacts by early European collectors, museums and ethnographers. The explanations range from Victorian prudishness (at which we can now laugh) to a systemic disrespect for cultures deemed to be inferior.
I imagine both these explanations are true – as are all sorts of muddled mixtures in between. That would seem to explain why it still happens.
yes – pretty standard fundamentalist rubbish – patriarchy and christianity are such close bedfellows
Patriarchy and primates are closer bedfellows; Christianity doesn't have exclusivity there. I'm for a reversion/progression to a Goddess culture but banging on about the opposite isn't going to progress the issue at all; is that how the Goddess culture would behave?
it is your made up story so you tell me – I'd say walk the walk not just talk the talk as general advice though
Okay; no, the Goddess people wouldn't react that way. The image defacer was walking his walk, acting upon his heart-felt belief, I imagine. He's paid the price too and can no longer walk his walk through the forest. Dialogue between him and the sculptor would be favoured by the Goddess people, as a solution to further trouble, but they'd have already had channels of communication in place to prevent the occurence in the first place. I'm not expert on predicting what an invented culture might do, I'm just thinking…
it is your made up story so you tell me –
Always marty mars you descend into insult. Robert is trying to explain that there are pakeha belief systems that predate Christianity.
Many of these belief systems were from cultures who very survival was depended on being able to resolve differences with discussion and a genuine desire to find common ground…not inflaming conflict.
Then we'd all sit down and share a goblet of mead….![wink wink](https://cdn.ckeditor.com/4.11.3/full-all/plugins/smiley/images/wink_smile.png)
These cultures were often pacifist in nature, hence struggled against those who would impose their culture by violence.
try reading context rosemary – it will save you some anxiety
Explain what you mean by context marty mars…
"is that how the Goddess culture would behave?"
That was robert's question
why ask me?
If i believe in the Goddess, which I do, and I think Robert knows that, then it is a direct confronting question. If I don't or Robert doesn't know if I believe or not, then it is irrelevant.
My response to Robert was related to this context and wasn't a judgment on him or his beliefs at all. AND it wasn't an insult imo.
I didn't feel insulted.
You vent often enough Rosemary and I consider unreasonably though you can justify it yourself. If you can't be positive why don't you take a break instead of tackling other good thinkers on here.
I find Rosemary's comments to be reasonable, logical and positive and her to be a good thinker; funny ol' world!
ALL mainstream religions are patriarchal. None less so than Islam.
I suppose though that we should show tolerance to those of a religious persuasion, even though they seldom show it to us rational (ie non religious) people. As evidenced by the original subject of this thread.
do what you like but don't try to neuter an iwi or group of people especially the indigenous people of this land
I would consider myself to be an indigenous person MM. Are you?
Or do you think that you alone should tell me what to say, what to think? That is, to ‘neuter’ me.
Sounds a lot like imperialistic dictate to me Marty, regardless of whether or not you are indigenous (and that term is so overused that I seldom use it myself).
Not really sure what you are getting at there. I was talking about the thing I posted. Didn't mean to upset you or do anything to piss you off.
This was what I was thinking about
Thanks MM for clarification. Sorry I jumped the gun a little!
Fair enough mate all good – I have been going hard today so even I am wary of myself 🙂
I've heard a definition of "indigenous person or native" that grants those titles to anyone who understands the meanings of all the bird-calls of an area.
I think that's the best test ever.
was it an indigenous person?
Peter Ch
Indigenous means Maori really I think. If you aren't sure then it could be a good thing to go carefully. As you are no doubt thinking you can't always tell by skin colour or appearance.
My sister-in-law had a pakeha father. Years ago in the 60's she was in the Far North and she had to have her baby in the section for pakehas as the Maori women decided she was too white-looking to be with them. But she has a long whakapapa which her husband, a pakeha, carefully drew up for her noting all the tupuna down.
Waddaboutwaitaha?
None LESS so peetee?
Rubbish, there is plenty of European art with full frontal male nudity, Michealangelo's David being the most obvious one that leaps to mind. The difference being that in most cultures a fully aroused erection is generally considered offensive, and usually illegal, to parade in public.
Rightly or wrongly that's what this guy was specifically objecting to. If it was a live male standing there in the same condition, the police would eventually turn up to deal with him.
On the other hand this is art, and art has different boundaries, especially in a gallery or private setting. I’m guessing that the specific idiom of this style may well present the penis in this fashion. Personally I'd cheerfully tolerate this carving because it's not really harmful and it would be disrespectful to damage it. That's what tolerance means, giving each other space to be different even if you're a bit annoyed or offended.
Just reflexively blaming patriarchy and christianity is simplistic; plenty of religious people would have walked past this carving and not felt any need to take a chainsaw to it.
RL – at no point did I mention, let alone blame, patriarchy or christianity. These are large, slippery concepts I steer clear of. I simply pointed out a history of European (mostly Victorian) collectors and ethnographers altering indigenous art in this way. To me it seems implausible that a systemic disrespect of a culture deemed to be inferior doesn't at least partially underlie such actions in the past and the present.
Pretty common – people just want their families reunited.
… there is plenty of European art with full frontal male nudity.
http://www.gilescartoons.co.uk/cartoon.asp?cartoon=341
Very droll.
Look at the date on it …1980. I wonder if it would be published these days?
Something to hang your hat on.
That's not something to hang your hat on …
This is something to hang your hat on.
quite heroically tattooed, as well (go on, zoom in, you know you want to)
I think that one got an alteration by a person of similar beliefs.
mind if he only objected to the hanging male genitalia (c he could have carved a fig leave, or cut one out of fabric and put that over the object of annoyance and made his statement.
but to take a saw? and come back? and pretend he did not do damage? after he was told to stay away.
that is literally just some fuckwit deciding that he knows best.
Also, i would like to point out that until Adam ate the apple (and really i dispute that a. the snake told him so, and b. Eve is resposnsible for his lack of self control) he ran around naked in paradise, erection and all.
Taking great care near the blackberries and cacti.
mind if he only objected to the hanging male genitalia
From the pic I saw of the original, it wasn't 'hanging' harmlessly. And as I pointed out discretely above, if any actual bloke was spotted in public in the same condition, we'd call him a flasher and likely call the police who'd charge him with offensive behaviour.
And that's how this guy interpreted what he was seeing. It's a socially conservative way of looking at things, but it's not necessarily racist or being a fuckwit. At worst I'd argue he unaware of what he was really seeing, and overreacted badly. I don't condone what he did, but as Rosemary points out, making him the enemy doesn't help.
If it's the one in this article, looks to me like it's just got an unthreatening dangle.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/manawatu-standard/news/109408380/gorge-walk-entrance-opened-by-conservation-minister
The one at the Ashhurst end of the gorge is somewhat more intimidating.
https://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/0a/42/2f/b5/the-whatonga-sculpture.jpg
It was the first statue you linked to not the second that he damaged. There are literally hundreds similar around the country. It was not only an act of supreme vandalism it was also highly culturally insensitive.
good grief,
we use naked or half naked or sugessted naked bodies of women to sell everything from cars to milk.
but an erection……what will the children think? what will the women think? will the man feel little? bullshit.
an erection is one of the most normal things, every man at least has had one – by want or force of nature, and without erections and ejaculations none of us would exist.
Good fucking grief, you need some smelling salts with that fainting couch?
But the problem with adam and eve is where to put the figleaf.
https://www.myartprints.com/kunst/lucas_cranach_d_ae//Adam-und-Eva.jpg
Surely the navel would need to be covered.
Adam and Eve had navels?
There goes the neighbourhood!
You certainly can blame the conservative end of patriarchy and christianity for this kind of outdated and dangerous thinking.
Conservatism holds the world back in so many ways.
The statue didn't have an erection.
It had a penis, hanging down, of a size that was in the bounds of normal proportions.
The guy is a much bigger dick than anything attached to the statue.
Thank you Robert.
Betcha marty mars will still choose cultural outrage over understanding.
Poor old bugger has been banned from the track he has worked so hard on…punishment enough without the utter filth this sad shithead …
Bit OTT there?
Nobody died.
nice – maybe try to get up to speed before displaying your ignorance eh
? What did I miss?
PM explained it well below as quoted
"Old, White, Christian man has no idea why mutilating a statue of Rangitāne's ancestor would offend local Rangitāne. Or, to put it another way, elderly racist explains NZ history in a single sentence."
.
I agree, Rosemary, that the epithet Marty used is way OTT. I'd save that for someone who's action is more serious than this one. The sculpture can be repaired, the cultural divide bridged through dialogue and the perps right to walk the track restored, without the outrage. It's natural for many to feel blood-boiling outrage, initially at least, but nurturing it, embedding it into local folklore is the stuff of feud and war.
Let's grow up, together.
you have zero idea
PM summed it up
"Old, White, Christian man has no idea why mutilating a statue of Rangitāne's ancestor would offend local Rangitāne. Or, to put it another way, elderly racist explains NZ history in a single sentence."
Same as desecrating tombstones or Buddha statues but not here because it is only the maari that are moaning ffs
Ah, but Robert, there's a pot that demands stirring.
This old bugger will be dead soon, like all of his cohort, and perhaps his archaic notions will die too?
In the meantime, as you say, there are much better ways to bridge the divide without returning the unintended insult manyfold.
(The real interesting aspect of this story is the fact that old Milton owns the Woodville Organ Museum….am I the only one to appreciate the irony?)
The Woodville Organ Museum Society has suffered a serious drop-off of membership lately…
actions have consequences. And being a bigot, even with seriously held religious believes still makes one a bigot. And that guy is a bigot. His culture is all fine and dandy and other cultures need to conform to his thinking.
Maybe being a closet minded self absorbed holier then thou geezer does not inspire others to come to his museum.
What if someone took offence to hymn singing and organ music and took an axe or electric saw to one of these and said 'I hold a sincerly held believe in Deity XYZ and am offended by organ playing and thus felt the need – despite being told to stay away – to destroy the object of my offense?
What if we all just started to destroy things that we took offence at and basically blamed our sincerely held believes in what ever deity we like?
Or are religious and cultural believes only something for christians and respect for other cultures and depictions of said cultures is only for others but not christians?
And is property destruction now a sincerely held religious believes and whose sculpture would Jesus destroy and disfigure?
He is paying the dearest of prices Sabine…being banned from the place he loves and protects.
We all know he shouldn't have done it and how it points to his age and ignorance.
We all have things we simply won't tolerate even if we are wrong in our opinion….like you telling the mum with the child recovering from chickenpox to fuck off out of your shop….and that is your territory and you believe you have the right to judge.
Likewise this guy. He has poured his heart and soul into that place and to him a oversize dick is an anathema in an environment designed to give families time in nature.
So he behaves like a dick….
And marty mars behaves like a dick and pours utter filth this sad shithead into the mix.
And the dicks win.
Long live the dicks!
you know what, actions have consequences and i reserve pity for those who deserve it and this geezer deserves none.
As for the rest, i agree with Marty Mars, and frankly i believe that Marty Mars was rather constrained and polite. Personally i would have added 'penis envy'.
As for dicks, there is nothing wrong with them, some are attached to men who know how to use them well and pleasurable and some only use them to piss around leaving nothing but puddles of filth behind for others to clean up.
The tables in the temple?
He threw over the tables of the money lenders. They got to leave with their money and their ledgers to conduct business elsewhere.
What did he disfigure? What culture did he disfigure? And is money lending in a temple the same as a guardian – a respected figure of the past – at the beginning of a walking track?
Try again Robert.
It was a light-hearted comment, Sabine. I suspect your deep-held Christian beliefs are impassioning your comments here; all good, they should. I wonder what Jesus would have done, faced with a sculpture like the golden calf? After all, the calf was important to those who defied it. I reckon he'd at least have tipped it over, if he could.
" And is money lending in a temple the same as a guardian "
Well, very similar in a way; Mammon was certainly often sculpted, highly regarded and representative of those who worship money, so, yeah…
Edit: earlier, you said; ” His culture is all fine and dandy and other cultures need to conform to his thinking.”
Jesus rated his culture most highly and believed other cultures needed to conform to his thinking, surely?
Bear in mind, I’m with Jesus on his culture and table-turning actions. Not biblically-inclined, me, but I recognise feistiness when I see it.
Robert….Mammon was certainly often sculpted, highly regarded and representative of those who worship money, so, yeah…
But then he did not disfigure a sculpture of Mammon, but he trhew out the lenders of money who charged interest. Something that by the jewish faith is a big no no, also in the biblical faith, and the islamic one……..:)
And lets say our property destroyer Jesus goes to the council and talks about how Mammon and the golden calf are all ok and such but their balls need to be cut off as he takes offense not at Mammon or the golden calf but the balls.
And the council says….not so fast my man, this is god and good balls n all.. What should the council do if the property destroyer goes and gets at mammon first with an axe, and then with a chain saw – not to cut down mammon or the golden calf but only to cut down their balls as that is what he is taken offense too.
I am done. This guy is no more and no less a criminal then every under aged tagger or sprayer that gets done in by the police for 'willful property destruction' and / or defacing of a public artwork/property. He should be fined at a minimum $ 2000 – as would any tagger, he should get community service, and community detention.
I am so tired of men defending their action with the old excuse of 'i did not do it' it was Eve, the snake, t'was GOD who told me! But not me. I am just the tool, not the brain. So fucking tired of that bullshit.
Sabine; I can't for the life of me find where the chainsaw wielder said,
"i did not do it' it was Eve, the snake, t'was GOD who told me! But not me. I am just the tool, not the brain." or even intimated that God told him to do it or excused him for his actions; I just can't find that anywhere, though you seem to know where it was stated.
"Milton Wainwright, who considers himself a devoted Christian, deemed the statue's penis to be obscene and immoral,…"
Even this, while irksome, doesn't say what you claim was said.
Am I losing my touch? Are my powers of search failing?
Milton Wainwright also deems himself an organ restorer; perhaps his community service could centre around his talents, rather than extracting penance from him.
"Milton Wainwright, who considers himself a devoted Christian, deemed the statue's penis to be obscene and immoral,…"
He did not say " I am offended at this display of male nakedness in a public setting'. He used his 'christianity' as an excuse. Its not him, it is only because he is a christian. Nothing to do with him, all to do with his indoctrination and the very toxic body issues that comes with the territory of nudity is bad, sex is bad, sex only good if for procreation, nudity bad…….male erections bad, male sex hanging bad, male naked bodies bad…..
So he uses his indoctrination as a christian as an excuse for destroying public property and to get a 'get out of jail' card cause he is a good christian who could not help himself and had to destroy this piece of public property because it 'offended him and it is immoral.
Can you please explain to me how your genital is offensive and immoral? Can you explain why it would be offensive and immoral. And could you explain how this might fuck up little boys growing up with the believe that the male sex is offensive and immoral.
So yeah, he did not do it, it is his Christianity that did it. 🙂
Lovely double-entendre there Robert.. I think you deserve at least one acknowledgement.
Edit – coming in late, I clicked on reply to see just how far down my reply would pop up. (This can be a problem..)
Sure enough, it came out miles below…
I was referring to your pun on the drop of membership. It put a smile on my face!
Thanks, Vino. With your appearance I felt the urge to weave "cooper's droop" into the thread, but stopped short, knowing the difference between beer and wine.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=rtxbM7-jAD0
I'm neuter this pun lark.
Milton Wainwright, who considers himself a devoted Christian, deemed the statue's penis to be obscene and immoral…
Psycho Milt, who considers himself a devoted atheist, deems crosses on churches and other displays of religious symbols to be obscene and immoral, but somehow manages to restrain himself from unilaterally acting to remove them – because other people are entitled to their beliefs. This prick should be up on vandalism charges. [EDIT]: I see he’s to appear in Dannevirke Court, so presumably has been charged.
"I never dreamt the Māori would be so offended…" says Wainwright.
Old, White, Christian man has no idea why mutilating a statue of Rangitāne's ancestor would offend local Rangitāne. Or, to put it another way, elderly racist explains NZ history in a single sentence.
I wouldn't deem crosses on churches and other displays of religious symbols as obscene and immoral. Rather… a reminder of a nice fairy tale I believed in when growing up – like Santa Claus, elves and fairies at the bottom of the garden and wicked witches.
…to put it another way, elderly racist explains NZ history in a single sentence.
Well said.
A cross, representing a device of torture and killing, "not obscene"?
In my ex convent the nuns saw it as the symbol of liberation from the eternal hellfire and the love of god.
go figure.
I understand that, Sabine. Perhaps the contradiction would be more obvious if Jesus had been guillotined, or shot. Wearing a miniature of either of those death-dealing technologies around your neck, or sculpting them and putting them atop your church's spire might be too … revealing, don't you think?
Personally i abhor the imagery of the cross and find it the poster image of the patriachy. Better behave, see what this God did to his own son, whats he gonna do to you if you don't behave properly….an some men then get to decide what properly is to you, or to me or you to others.
God has his son killed in the most reprehensible way, the most painful way, the longest way even (and yes i thought long and hard about how long it would have taken his body to rip off the nails that held him up there – another discussion with Mother Superior) and thus my conclusion that God is a sadist. And thus my conclusion that many that claim this god as theirs and the only true arbiter of what is moral, what is decent of what is good are equally sadist. Not outwardly, not everyday, but hey if that women has a pregnancy that is unwanted …….its her punishment for having sex, if that man is ill it must be punishment for something, if that person has no job it must be punishment for this or for that and so forth. A bit like this geezer that in the name of his god gets to decide what is art, what is culture, what is moral, what is decent, and everyone else be damned ….. and oh my gosh, i would have never dreamed for them to be that offended….cause i did not even think about that for one minute all i thought about is my own righteous indignation of something i don't understand and don't want to understand.
"…in the name of his god gets to decide what is art, what is culture, what is moral, what is decent, and everyone else be damned ….. and oh my gosh, i would have never dreamed for them to be that offended….cause i did not even think about that for one minute all i thought about is my own righteous indignation of something i don't understand and don't want to understand. "
Aren't these also the "thoughts" of the artist?
nope the artist in this case depicted an ancestor. An image as they do in their art. The same way we play our music, build our buildings, paint our pictures and create our sculptures. And would we not be very upset if someone took offesne at Davids balls and cut them off in the name of some god?
Because that artist, did not cut down one of the organs in the museum of the old man, did not belittle his believes, did not desecrate what for the old man would be a sacred thing.
The artist was commissioned to an artwork, presenting local iwi, an artwork of protection, of good fortune etc, and this artwork was conceptualised, presented, discussed and then agreed upon. And i feel fairly certain about that aspect of public art as i did go through that process on more then one occasion with the Auckland Council, Wellington and overseas.
Calls for submission
'Submissions entered
Submissions discussed, discarded, choosen
Final editing and touches discussed and agreed upon for the final artwork
artist creates artwork
artwork gets installed
public either hates or loves
god has got nothing to do with it. God is simply an excuse of people to blame someone else for their actions or the lack there of.
"public either hates or loves "
Or couldn't care less. This guy hated and expressed his dislike with vigour. He didn't chop the whole figure up, interestingly, making me think his action wasn't racist or religious, it was Freudian.
@ Robert ……it was Freudian
indeed it was, and that is why he is a wanker and now a criminal in the eyes of polite society. No matter how much he wants to blame god for him being an old fool with a certain lack of respect for the property and the work of others. charge him, fine him, lock him up ( ancle bracelet at home)
Did he blame God? I missed that. I don't like what he did but neither do I respect knee-jerk reactions that match his disfunction (unless they're consciously funny). There are ins and outs of the argument, and they're fun to explore, but from a distance, we should be able to relish the discussions and differences, along with the prejudices and bias we hold ourselves. If we all hold conviviality high in our list of outcomes, we'll explore further and deeper, have a more enjoyable time and approach the un-achievable – truth!
Struth!
When some Maori used a chainsaw to kill the summit tree of Maungkiekie at least they knew it would offend lots of people.
You should try to argue the point not bring in bias imo
This was an ancestor – if someone cut your jesus's dick off, on the cross on your church altar, would you be so flippant?
The difference is this wasn’t a ‘disputed’ character not related to you – this was an ACTUAL ancestor and guardian for the people there.
It was a SYMBOL for an ancestor and guardian, as was the tree on Maungakiekie a symbol to a lot of Aucklanders. The carving was not just any old piece of decorated wood, nor was that tree.
This doesn't take anything away from the importance and value these symbols have, if anything while the body is emphemeral the symbolic can be very enduring.
No it wasn't a symbol – try a different lens from the usual patriarchal, 'white' Christian perspective – open your mind and your eyes fella. There are many many ways of being totally alien to your way of thinking – that is your deficit not the other peoples.
Every time I read your tit for tat with RL, MM, I get the impression you stir shit for the sake of it.
RL wasn't saying that the carving was a mere symbol. He was saying that it is a symbolic representation of the whakapapa and kaitiakitanga of the Rangitāne iwi. You seem to have misinterpreted that to mean RL states it as a symbol, in the same manner that a statue of Baal is a symbol.
It seems to me here the only deficit is yours in terms of being so hung up on particularised definitions of words instead of appreciating the context in which they're put. Case in point is the fact RL highlights the body is ephemeral but symbolic can be enduring.
Just like Nelson in Trafalgar Square is a symbol, so too, is this statue a symbol of the whakapapa to Rangitāne.
The tree on Maungakiekie was a representation to Aucklanders of what One Tree Hill was. As someone who grew up in the shadow of that tree, it wasn't a symbol, but merely a physical representation of the European name ( which ignored the fact that hill used to be covered in trees)
your impression is just that – an impression and not related to reality james
Impressions come from reality.
My reality is different to yours. However the general tenor and tone of many of your comments towards others on this site makes it for a less than enjoyable experience.
It is readily apparent when you don't want to, or wilfully, ignore others realities or perception of things and spend your time denigrating others simply because the way people explain things doesn't fit in with how you would explain it.
whatever – move fucken on then james and stop moaning and bleating eh
not so fast
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_Tree_Hill_(New_Zealand)
The Māori name Maungakiekie means "mountain of the kiekie vine".[2] Māori also knew it as "tōtara that stands alone".[3]
also
When Auckland was founded as a colonial town a tree stood near the summit which gave the hill its English name. Two accounts identify it as a pōhutukawa (Metrosideros excelsa).
It seems likely this was a different tree from the tōtara (Podocarpus totara) which, as a sacred tree, had given the hill one of its Maori names.
A radiata pine was planted in the 1870s to replace the previous tōtara .[22] John Logan Campbell repeatedly tried to grow native trees on the hill's summit, but the trees failed to survive – with only two pines, originally part of a shelter belt for the native trees, surviving for long. However, in 1960, one of the two was felled in another attack,[3] possibly for firewood.[citation needed]
disclaimer, a long time ago i organised the outside refurbishment of the Start Dome including the painting of the murals on the front of the building. As such i was tasked to co-ordinate with Iwi, Resident Association, Business Association, Heritage, Council and every other group that had claims. It took us over three years to raise the funds, get people to agree on color schemes, on the mural art work to be painted and such.
I stand corrected. I was labouring under the knowledge that Maungakiekie was once bush clad. Perhaps it was before it was turned into a pa site and the single tree was left for some unknown reason.
my understanding is that the top of the hill is not good dirt to grow much.
The only reason i know about this is that at the time when we discussed all aspects of the area around the Star Dome to be friendlier to the public and especially children (there is a play ground right by the building) we thought that it should be planted in kiekie.
Anyways, it was a interesting project and a very nice glimpse into Aucklands colonial and pre colonial history.
I think that it's not that the dirt doesn't grow much but wind exposure is too great for saplings to survive. Twas obvious how exposed it was by the lean that the last pine tree developed. Incidentally that, (where trees have a noticeable lean) is an indication of a good site for a wind mill. 🙂
I've been in enough marae to understand the lens you are using. I've seen a photo fall from a wall and it was quietly mentioned that maybe this long dead person was saying something. At one level everyone knew it was a photo, but on another everyone acted as if it was the real person.
This carving is a piece of wood; it's not the literal physical body of Rangitane. It embodies his spirit. That's what I call symbolic, exactly as when Christians act as if wafer bread and wine are the body and blood of Christ. It embodies his spirit. The Maori world view definitely places more emphasis on this idea than is common in our excessively materialistic modern world, but it's wrong to think it's alien to us.
You might want to climb down off that cultural superiority horse of yours and settle. It's a nice day out.
The appendage can be replaced. In fact, will be replaced, as the figure is held in such high regard. Then someone else might cut it off. Such is the world where tit-for-tat rhetoric and action reign.
well then that person too should be banned for life from that track (as should that geezer)
that person then too should be charged with willful property destruction, fined, and if repeated send to prison.
I mean this is what we do to taggers. But then they are not old white men who can't imagine that someone would be offended if they destroyed their property, their art, their cultures depictions of ancestors and holy spirits.
https://communitylaw.org.nz/community-law-manual/chapter-34-common-crimes/tagging-and-graffiti/
His little comment about what would Jesus destroy and i could have never dreamed….is literally whooops you mean i can't get away with this shit anymore?
"You might want to climb down off that cultural superiority horse of yours and settle."
Lol yes tough when you have to see things from a different perspective – might help you grow a bit.
Asserting the sacredness of physical objects seems pretty materialistic.
Does the same fate await our prudish old fossil, Milton Wainwright?
yep the tree was incidental to the highlighting of the injustice but dims won't see that through their perception of reality and their bias.
One wonders just what Milton was protesting. Turgid penises?
I wonder, did he take it home with him?
Is it now proudly displayed on his mantelpiece.
Does his wife know about his new hobby?
Will we soon see it on Trade Me?
When some Maori used a chainsaw to kill the summit tree of Maungkiekie at least they knew it would offend lots of people.
And it's instructive just how outraged some people were at that relatively trivial level of offence against Whitey's culture. Imagine if those guys had done something seriously offensive…
At least he recognises the need to write the word, “Māori” using a macron over the “a”.
The world's changing!
Well, the journalist reporting the story recognised that the a in Māori gets a macron – I doubt Wainwright has a clue about it.
It was a quote. It didn't say (sic)![smiley smiley](https://cdn.ckeditor.com/4.11.3/full-all/plugins/smiley/images/regular_smile.png)
what a fucking wanker.
"what a fucking wanker.", What a fucking liberty even.
Sometimes it's the simple messages that weigh the most eh? Probably the best summary of all the above.
What utter filth this sad shithead is.
So, to put the action of old Milton into some kind of perspective marty mars…can you string together a few words of invective for this guy…
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/113384741/guilty-verdict-for-william-wakefield-on-charge-of-murdering-shaken-baby
why don't you do it if you want – that's called doing your own dirty work. I'll stand on what I say, will you?
He aha te mea nui o te ao
He tangata, he tangata, he tangata
The response to the crime has to be proportional.
Save the nasty invective for those who warrant it.
lol – he's not the people – the carving is. He cut the penis off thus cutting the people off, destroying them, nullifying them (whether you like or believe it or not) – or at least attempted to. I feel sorry for him too – sorry that he has blown everything because of his hubris and arrogance. He fucked up and deliberately hurt many people. Cry your tears for that guy but I'm not going to.
Willywaving never made me feel particularly welcome.
Genuine court of justice or political case? – John Pilger on Assange extradition
"The Podesta emails exposed donations of millions of donations from Saudi Arabia and Qatar, two of the major funders of Islamic State, to the Clinton Foundation. It exposed the 657,000 dollars that Goldman Sachs paid to Hilary Clinton to give talks, a sum so large it can only be considered a bribe. It exposed Clinton's repeated mendacity. She's caught telling the financial elites that she wanted to open trade, open borders and believed Wall Street executives were best positioned to manage the economy. A statement that contradicted her campaign statements.
It exposed the Clinton campaign efforts in to influence the Republican Primaries to ensure that Trump was the Republican nominee. It exposed Clinton's advanced knowledge of questions in a Primary debate. It exposed Clinton as the principal architect of the war in Libya, a war she believed would burnish her credentials as a Democrat candidate.
Journalists can argue that this information, like the War Logs provided to Wikileaks, should have remained hidden. That the public did not have the right to know. But they can't then call themselves journalists
Wikileaks has done more to expose the abuses of power and crimes of the American empire than any other news organisation. In addition to the War Logs and the Podesta emails it made public, the hacking tools used by the CIA, National Security Agency and their interference in foreign elections, including in the French elections, it disclosed the internal conspiracy against the British Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn by Labour Members of Parliament."
"We must build popular movements. Force the British Government to halt the extradition and judicial lynching of Julian. We must build popular movements to force the Australian Government to intervene on behalf of Julian.We must build popular movements to reclaim democracy and the rule of law.
If Julian is extradited and tried, it will create a legal precedent that will terminate the ability of the Press to hold power accountable.
The crimes of war and finance, the persecution of dissidents, minorities and immigrants. The pillaging of the eco-system and ruthless impoverishment of working men and women to swell the profits of corporations and consolidate global oligarchs total grip on power, will no longer be part of the public debate.
First Julian, then us"
Chris Hedges.
A former foreign correspondent of the New York times, Chris writes a regular column in online magazine Truthdig.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/opinion/113487707/hipkins-blinks-then-buckles–it-shows-that-strikes-work
Corrections has just started its bargaining with the government…
You got slushies what more could you want??
Isnt garner the most cynical grotty little twerp .
Well actually better rosters, more resources, staff retention and more staff overall would be better than a pay raise (I mean I'm not going to turn down a pay raise but if it was up to me that's what I'd be pushing for…)
Puckish Rogue…we watched the Broadmoor doco you recommended the other day.
Surprising amount of hope amid the deep suffering.
Judging by the number of residents who had grown up in foster care it is obvious, in the light of recent reports of Oranga Tamariki's outrageous uplifts, that the downstream adverse effects of being 'taken into care' are universal.
Can you see a time where such a facility would be built here, and would you consider working in such a place?
It was certainly interesting
Probably not, a lot of people on all sides of the political spectrum would see it as "locking them up" Lake Alice-style so would probably oppose it plus it'd cost a stack load to set up and it certainly wouldn't be a vote winner, unfortunately
Depends on the location, we like where we live so we'd prefer not to move but if it was close by (maybe a repurposed Hillmorton) then I'd consider it
"Well actually better rosters, more resources, staff retention and more staff overall would be better than a pay raise"
I don't know about rosters, but recent actions by government and the terms of the agreement cover at least some of the other items – all of which may improve rostering problems. One issue that teachers will need to address themselves is that there are quite a few teachers who were trained since, or only shortly before the 'so-called "National Standards". They increased workload with a myriad of largely meaningless statistics, but if that is what you have been trained to do and are not aware of alternatives some teachers / team leaders will still insist on that activity. Schools need to address that issue themselves.
There' a whole Ministry full of smooth arses whose existence is justified by the amount of work they impose on the peasants.
The most interesting thing about that 'piece' is that Garner doesn't seem to be able to write complete sentences. Or at least, that it doesn't come as naturally to him as short, over-emphatic ejaculations. You have to wonder about the quality of the underlying cognitive processes…
Well, duh. Of course forming unions and striking for better pay and conditions works, that's why employers and their political representatives are so energetic in combating unionisation of the workforce.
Didn't I read recently that Treasury had also rejigged their projections and decided the surplus would be a bit larger than previously calculated?
That might have helped, too.
David Seymour wants to attract White Supremacist voters.
He also wants to repeal parts of the Human Rights Act to protect Nazi and racist hate speech.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/shows/2019/06/nazis-and-racists-offensive-but-shouldn-t-be-arrested-david-seymour.html
No, he just doesn't want to stop them voting for him. If keeping white supremacists out of jail for being all white supremacisty gets him white supremacist votes, apparentloy there's nothing he can do about that.
Johnathan Pie's take on the Tory leadership race in the UK
Fucking brilliant and so true.
That feeling when you really want to pick a hot fight with Iran and attacks on shipping start to look like a pretty good pretext, but the owners contradict your story…
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/oil-tanker-gulf-of-oman-iran-explosion-trump-administration_n_5d0415c3e4b0dc17ef09f629
S'pose it's pretty hard to get believed when you've spent the last few years openly brazenly lying about everything large and small. And you're just the latest version of a government with a long history of hokeying up pretexts to start wars
Yep it's scary alright. Those idiots Bolton and Pompeo are just itching to start a hot war, and they are trying to get at it through the back door of the AMUF -so no need to get congressional approval.
Here's Vox's analysis of the situation right now:
https://www.vox.com/2019/6/14/18678809/usa-iran-war-aumf-911-trump-pompeo
i don't think that anyone should believe anything the Trump administration says.
Not a single word.
what ever will have the biggest quid pro quo is what gets done.
Actually Sabine apart from his unthinking base which is around 25+% of Americans I don't believe anyone does believe anything he says. The other 10+% of his total 40% base are those Republicans who will vote GOP regardless.
In terms of wanting to escalate tensions in the Middle East – such as Bolton and Pompeo are doing – the majority of Americans are pretty much opposed to that. Trump unfortunately has only two driving "principles" his own vanity, and the size of his bottom line. As far as international affairs are concerned – if they don't involve porn stars – he's not interested. So in effect Bolton and Pompeo are free to stir the big paddle as much as they like, and if there is a bob or two in it for Trumpy all well and good.
The Senate are in the majority opposed to any escalation of war in the middle-east and last week actually voted to stop arm sales to the Saudi's – a multi million dollar deal suspiciously arranged betweenTrump and Krushner and the Prince. (Note Krushner's family Real Estate firm got a $90M backhander loan from the Saudis soon after, which naturally Krushner "forgot" to mention on his security application.)
https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/448054-senators-clinch-votes-to-rebuke-trump-on-saudi-arms-sale
Regrettably there were not enough votes in this to stop Trump's veto.
Regrettable there is a lot of lip service and very little action. We live in interesting times.
Definition. AMUF. American Musicians United Fellowship. Copyright 1988-2018 AcronymFinder.com, All rights reserved.
War! What is it good for!
I do believe that the musicians should be the ones to face off.
Ooops! my typo'
Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF),
Good work sorting this – thanks to all concerned.
Last week teachers and the Government were a billion dollars apart. With the Government playing hardball, strongly stating there is no more money.
Now that industrial action has stepped up, the Government has found a little more. But it is still far short (that's Labour, always falling short) from the billion more that teachers wanted.
I see the unions are recommending it, the question is, will their members?
Will teachers settle for less than half of what they were striking for?
Would they get more if they continue to hold strong?
What would you recommend they do?
Vote Green.
(that's Labour, always falling short)
You are as transparent as a transparent thing.
Solkta You can be funny too!
Yep good to see wise heads are prevailing – good work everyone.
If teachers genuinely want more, wouldn't you agree the "wise" thing to do would be to hold strong?
Wise is making the agreement
Not if teachers genuinely want more. The reason being, they have little to lose by holding strong.
ummm I don't think you know much about negotiations if you think that.
Really? Play your hand then and we'll see. In other words, put forward your argument for why you think that.
What argument does he need to put forward? Negotiation is a process of reaching mutual agreement where there are conflicting interests. It isn't, or shouldn't be, a game of brinkmanship to ensure you get everything you want at the other party's expense, unless you're a sociopath with a complete lack of integrity (President Donald J. Trump, for example).
I appreciate that, as a Tory concern troll, you'd like to see the government and the teacher unions locked in a bitter, no-holds-barred industrial dispute, but no-one who doesn't want National returned to power shares that view.
His argument for why he thinks that.
Yes, negotiation is about compromise, but that doesn't mean people shouldn't hold strong to ensure they aren't unfairly compromised.
My position here is all about the teachers getting what they want and how much they are willing to compromise.
As far as I'm concerned, the Government can spend less on the military. Being left, you would surely agree?
Negotiation isn't about getting what you want, it's about you and the other party both getting a good result while not burning all your bridges in the process. A negotiator whose position was "all about the teachers getting what they want" would be a liability, not an asset.
As far as I'm concerned, the Government can spend less on the military. Being left, you would surely agree?
The government could spend less on all kinds of things. That also is a negotiation. And the idea that we don't need any military capability isn't a "left" opinion, it's a "naive" opinion (or a concern-troll one, of course).
Yes. It is about compromise, as I clearly stated. So that has dealt to your strawman quoted above. And of course, your following kicker quoted below.
The idea that we don't need any military capability is merely your attempt at another strawman. I certainly didn't say that or imply it.
The notion of spending less on the military and more on education was Labour's stance before Jacinda became leader.
Not agreeing (holding out for more) is what The Chairman wants.
Maybe The Chairman is a teacher, or maybe they have an ulterior motive for dragging out the conflict. You be the judge.
My stance here is, if teachers genuinely want more and aren't prepared to accept less than half of what they have been striking for, then they should really hold strong. They have little to lose in doing so.
Seeing as the Government didn't even meet them half way, I feel the public (who are hugely behind them) will continue to be understanding and support them.
Moreover, now that it is on the table, I don't believe the Government will back away from this current offer, thus teachers have little to lose holding strong.
Chairman, how many times over how many years have I rebuked you for blowing your cover as an obvious concern troll? Yet you keep persisting..
Have you not noticed that the vast majority of commenters here think you are a joke? Look at yesterday's Open Mike.
As a teacher myself, I see your deep concern on this issue as that of an anti-leftie who is hoping like hell that the teachers will not vote in favour of the settlement, thereby forcing you to acknowledge that this Govt may have achieved something..
All through their many years in opposition, Labour and the Greens could never meet your preciously high standards. Now that they are in power they still cannot.
As Drowsy M Kram pointed out, you apply this blowtorch of yours only to the left – never to the Right.
You are indeed as transparent as a transparent thing, and what is more, people can see through you!
Never. While you have attempted to, you have never succeeded.
Total rubbish. I clearly stated my stance on this matter above. But just for you, here it is again.
My stance here is, if teachers genuinely want more and aren't prepared to accept less than half of what they have been striking for, then they should really hold strong. They have little to lose in doing so.
So as you can see, my stance is all about what the teachers want. I merely pointed out they have nothing to lose holding strong.
Of course. if they couldn't meet expectations in opposition one can't really expect them to do it in power. Hence why I was pushing them so hard when in opposition, it wasn't hard to foresee the shortcomings we face now.
Being from the left, it is only natural to expect I'm going to hold them to account. National don't represent me. And Labour generally (since 84) only do in name. But this is the main party of the left these days so it's either get them back on side, find someone new, or just give up.
I'm not one for giving up, hence I speak up, only to come across lefties that are backing the employer (in this case the Government) instead of their fellow workers.
Which just goes to show how much the left has really lost itself.
So once again you tried, but failed, In Vino.
The tone of this line from The Chairman reveals, for those sensitive to tone, his true intent:
"As far as I'm concerned, the Government can spend less on the military. Being left, you would surely agree?"
The chair is a bore.
My judgement as a teacher is that the so-called Chairman is definitely not a teacher, and obviously has an ulterior motive for dragging out the conflict. In some ways he reminds me of Iago at his most persuasive.
Edit – this was in reply to Drowsey S Kram way up above, in case it seems random..
Only negative is for teachers such as Eileen Gilmore qualified on Q1 will have to wait until July 2022 before they benefit by being at paid at step 9. The pay gap for these teachers remains the same. These teachers are the group who have lost out from the initial offer, some could say their union has sacrificed them, perhaps the union failing this group could mean the offer is declined ?
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12140139
https://campaigns.nzei.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/20190614-Proposed-Terms-of-Settlement-PTCA.pdf
It could be.
It wouldn't cost the Government much more to correct this, thus one wonders why they left it to become a potential sticking point.
You’ve said a few times that the teachers should hold strong as they have nothing to lose. You obviously believe this but try to think about it for a moment and then see whether you still hold strong on your simplism.
You talk of the union betraying members? I think a good 80% plus of teachers are union members, and they will be the deciders when they vote on it.
Any 'betrayal' will be by the vast majority of teachers by the way they voted.
I get annoyed by anti-union spin.
Feel free to to tell me it's none of my business…
Are you happy with what has been offered In Vino?
I ask as I had a vested interest in the nurses industrial action.
I felt the union let it's members down and seemed to be closer aligned to the ministry. E.g. sending essentially the same offer back for ratification many times, signing the accord for more 500 nurses during negotiations…
Like you, (I think) I am intensely pissed off with deliberate run-down since the Rogernomics debacle.
Our union cannot sign off for members during negotiations. We all vote on it. If majority approve, OK.
I am actually bloody old and semi-retired. I see the new offer as a plus, but I do not know how the majority of current full-time teachers will view it.
Up to them. Not me.. I am half out of it all now, and don't think I am the right one to answer your question
So you are happy that there are teachers out there doing the same fine job and yet being paid $12k less Fair?
You get annoyed by anti union spin how about supporting those who are being treated inferior to others ? Isn't that part of what a union is there for, to stand up for those to give them a "fair suck of the sav" ? It seams that fairness is not part of your make up.
Any 'betrayal … ' Really, the union thought it was worth fighting for at the start but now they have dropped this, and no reason has been given.
As I recall, such teachers were offered chance and support for upgrading their qualifications, but I am from the secondary sector, and if the case you quote is in the primary sector, then I cannot answer.
As for your first question, I have seen marvellous teacher aids who deserve to be paid at least $12k more.. but they are not qualified and part of our union, so they have no muscle.
Anti-unionists will scream out about injustice, but never support workers supporting one another in a union. Where are you coming from, Herodotus?
Have o look at this page
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1390088457960727/
unfortunately the union has got themselves in a position whereby if this is not voted for have positioned themselves to lose support from the parents.
Agreed, teacher aids and other support people have been IMO been severely taken for granted by all governments ( Same could be said for any female dominated workforce). Fine when in the past, a family could survive on the primary wage earner, and the secondary earner just paid for the extras. Times have changed that now with 2 primary wage earners a family lives on a day to day basis and there are few/if any xtras 🤢
Support staff are paid from the school budget and have to literally compete with toilet paper. If a school exceeds the MoE roll and has to hire extra teaching staff this will also have to be paid from the school budget. Guess what has the lowest priority.
Can you expand on that notion, thanks.
PPTA's record of standing up for the membership isn't stellar.
I wouldn't know, but I am a union member and believer, even though they are made up of people, with all the foibles people have, including not great ones.
Gabby, the vast majority of secondary teachers are the PPTA, and their vote is the will of the vast majority of the secondary teaching force. This settlement will be voted on by every member of PPTA: the union executive can do nothing without the membership's approval.
But you accuse the PPTA of not standing up for its membership?
A more correct accusation might be that the vast majority of secondary teachers may sometimes neglect minority groups in their ranks.
Care to elucidate?
I'll be watching you
Every move you make
Every step you take
I'll be watching you
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/06/14/opinion/bluetooth-wireless-tracking-privacy.html
What if they gave a war, and nobody came?
The Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was in Tehran trying to help ease rising tensions between the United States and Iran.
A Japanese owned vessel is then struck with 'flying objects'.
Coincidence?
Probably not.
Who was the culprit?
What was their motive?
Was it 'False Flag' attack by the Americans on their Japanese ally, pinned on the Iranians by the Americans to sabotage the Japanese Prime Minister's peace making efforts?
Was it a false, 'False Flag' attack, by the Iranians, blamed on the Americans, to strengthen Japanese peace making efforts?
The US claim it was the Iranians.
The Iranians express mystification.
The Us have video from the scene, which the US claims, shows Iranian revolutionary guards removing an unexploded limpet mine from the ship.
The world now knows the US claim of limpet mines is false.
The Japanese ship owner says it is not obvious from looking at it that the ship was Japanese, which means that someone would've had to have had pre-knowledge that it was Japanese. That is, if that was the reason it was targeted.
The Japanese owner said that there was no damage to the 25,000 tons of highly flammable methanol cargo, aboard the Kokuka Courageous. This would indicate that the 'flying objects', whatever they were, did not carry explosive warheads. The removal of war heads normally fitted to flying missiles/shells/objects indicates that the attack was premeditated, and that the attackers, whoever they were, did not intend to sink or destroy the Japanese vessel, instead they wanted to send a warning, or create political fallout from the attack.
What if they gave a war and nobody came II
FOX NEWS @3:40 minutes
Fox News needn't worry that NZ is not in order. We’re never one to miss a US sponsored bloodbath.
I used to have a poster on my wall when I was a teenager saying exactly that "Suppose they gave a war and nobody came" superimposed on a picture of the mushroom cloud from the Hiroshima bomb – made me happy to think that all of the soldiers suddenly saw that propaganda they were fed for what it was and what was behind it all – the avarice, bigotry and inhumanity of mendacious tyrants using them as weapons to bully and beat up countries less able to protect themselves…
The first victim of war is truth.
TVNZ beats the war drums.
If war does break out and New Zealanders are called to fight and die in it, TVNZ can claim part of the responsibility.
TVNZ News at 6 has just repeated the US version of the attack on the Japanese tanker as caused by limpet mines placed there by Iranian forces.
And gave no mention at all, of the Japanese ship owner claim that their ship was hit by 'flying objects'.
Or Iranian denial of any involvement.
So much for journalistic balance at TVNZ.
That TVNZ have deliberately provided the NZ public with only the US version of this attack, goes against all journalistic norms of ethical unbiased reporting.
Shameful by TVNZ, I couldn't watch the regurgitation of Pompeo and Trump's talking points, where is our independent foreign policy…or are we going to be talking about withdrawing NZ military from Iran in 10 years' time too?
In two frames of mind about this one
REACH is a Waikato programme which helps people medically excluded from work get back into employment.
It's a collaboration between the Ministry of Development and Waikato DHB, and part of a wider Oranga Mahi project.
The programme is under the umbrella of Oranga Mahi, which also has initiatives in Northland, Auckland, and Canterbury.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/112906124/reconnecting-the-spark-the-waikato-programme-helping-people-with-medical-conditions-or-disabilities-back-into-work–and-life
218 people had taken part by March 2019, about 20 per cent of them went back to or started work, and another 13 per cent were in full-time study, or volunteer work.
My question is what was the impact on the majority that partook but didn't end up in work, study or volunteering?
Did any have a negative impact from the programme?
Did it worsen or intensify their health conditions?
Is this help merely offered, or can it not be refused?
Seems there were a small number that benefited, hence my two states of mind.
Any thoughts?
“The programme is voluntary and does not affect client’s benefits.”
https://www.waikatodhb.health.nz/about-us/a-z-of-services/older-persons-rehabilitation-and-allied-health/reach/
Yes, I do have some thoughts: if you don’t know what you’re talking about, it helps to do a search instead of seeding doubt and discord and your usual negativity that is often unfounded in reality.
https://reachout.nz/
From the link you provided in your comment:
https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/about/news-events-and-notices/news/news-2016/10/key-role-in-new-health-support-programme.html
But it seems you have already made up your mind.
I stated some general facts about the programme. Stated I was in two frames of mind about it. Then proceeded to ask some straight forward questions.
So how you came to that conclusion is anybodies guess.
And although I'm still undecided, what's fishy about this is the way the story (which I linked to) was hyping up the programme despite its very limited success. And yet, it is still going for further evaluation for the Government to consider (no doubt for a national roll out) despite it's dismal rate of success from the onset.
So speaking of already making up ones mind, sounds (by the way this is being pushed through) as if this has already been given some sort of nod of approval behind the scenes.
Furthermore, it's hard to search for a programme evaluation when said programme is still being evaluated.
Your mind didn’t bother to tell you that it had made up its mind because you tend to not listen and because you don’t have an open mind. Mind you, this is just me deduction from your mindless blabbering about undermining the Government by others.
There is nothing wrong with my mind. You are the one acting irrational.
I know I am irrational, thank you. I’m not lacking in self-awareness.
Indeed, it is, so why not hold judgement? It is not your style, is it? You know nothing about the programme yet you feel ‘authorised’ to cast your doubts.
You even claim is earmarked “no doubt for a national roll out” but have no data to support this claim.
You talk about “it's [sic] dismal rate of success from the onset” and “its very limited success” but have not data to support this either.
I can come to only one conclusion, which is that you are not “in two frames of mind about it” and that you are not “still undecided” but that you have made up your mind.
It is pretty sad that you form an opinion based on a “fishy” story in MSM without any further evidence. However, this feeds the perception that some here have of you and I can’t blame them, as it is hard if not impossible to escape it.
Sorry to butt into your guys' little snipe fest but you both do realise this little program of 'gently guiding people into life affirming employment by lovingly supporting them to be confident and positive' was an initiative started under the Previous Incumbents?
You know…the Key/English combo committed… to dealing to what English dubbed the 'big hard lump of wasted human potential.'
English then stated that …if these people were on ACC they'd be moved on, it costs a little more on ACC, but not that much…blah, blah.
Is it all coming back now? How under the National administration ACC purged its books of clients forcing many onto WINZ benefits…and so it goes.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/better-business/86968855/waikato-trial-getting-beneficiaries-back-on-their-feet-into-work
Yeah, yeah, buried in the crypt of the Business Section where no decent Lefty would be seen dead…but there it is.
So that was what was on Mr Guy's mind when he was busy treating my partner and I with such un professional disdain.
Incognito…you might want to take a few moments to check a little bit further afield before you automatically assume someone is merely trying to lower morale and faith in the Current Incumbents by casting aspersions on a new initiative.
This is not new, and this has little to do with the Current Mob.
Just like the Disability Support Services System Transformation whose launch in Mid Central was presented by Sepuloni as a Coalition initiative…this started under National and can't be trusted.
SSDD
Thanks again, Rosemary.
Indeed.
It was started under National in 2016 I believe and it is still going. Whether it is going strong seems be too early to tell although some seem to have made up their minds already albeit for different reasons.
National may have initiated many things for the wrong reasons or with the wrong intentions in mind but that doesn’t mean these cannot be turned into something more positive with better outcomes. Time with tell with this one.
I respect your views on The Chairman and his MO but I don’t share them. I find his comments less than helpful and constructive, they generally lack supportive evidence or information, and take up much space here for no obvious benefit, IMHO.
Yes, asserting I lack self-awareness along with your other irrational comments/assumptions confirmed it.
I didn't hold judgement. And it is also incorrect to say I know nothing of the programme. After all, I was the one who posted the article about it.
The model is being evaluated for that consideration as implied in the article.
Again, the data was in the article initially linked too.
Which reaffirms you're an irrational (now self admitted) nutter.
As it seems to work for a small number and isn't compulsory (being compulsory would be a sticking point for me) I'm not that opposed to it.
You posted your usual negative outlook with a link to a piece in MSM. That was and is the extent of your knowledge. You didn’t even know it is voluntary but even that you dispute because, you know, WINZ.
If the programme is deemed unsuccessful, now or in the future, it will be scrapped. It is an experiment and as such, there always is a risk that it will not deliver or live up to expectations. Hopefully, some useful things will be learned from this.
You have already jumped the gun.
Where in the article does it state that the programme is considered for “a national roll out”? Why then did you need to add your qualifier “no doubt”?
Do you consider yourself to be a purely rational being?
I stated some general facts about the programme. Stated I was in two frames of mind about it. Then proceeded to ask some straight forward questions. So why do you continually lie about this?
Hence, it was one of my questions.
I didn't dispute it, I merely pointed out WINZ is notorious for forcing people on to work ready programmes. And despite your attempt to imply that was all in the past, it still happens today.
Albeit, not currently with this programme. Hence my hope this stance continues going forward.
I haven't jumped the gun, that is merely another of your irrational conclusions.
Where did I say that? You, yourself linked to where the article implied it.
As it seems a most likely outcome IMO.
I'm rational in my line of thinking.
Your claimed ‘knowledge’ was a link, no more, no less. What did I “lie” about?
It is voluntary. But you were casting doubt on this lasting with your usual expression of concern soaked in negativity.
Yes, you have jumped the gun but you are tone-deaf and in denial about it. You have already interpreted the programme in your own words “it's [sic] dismal rate of success from the onset” and “its very limited success”.
You cannot even remember what you write in your comments. From your comment @ 14.1.1:
Why do you think this is “a [sic] most likely outcome” in the light of “its very limited success” [your own words]?
So, when you think, you are rational, and when you don’t think, you are not? Weird answer.
Robert Guyton's description of The Chairman's commenting style is apt and hard to forget, particularly given the frequent reinforcement that The Chairman provides.
Then there's the fact that comments submitted by The Chairman (who professes to be “more left than most“) are invariably critical of the policies and performance of left-leaning parties/MPs, regardless of whether they are in Government or in opposition.
In The Chairman's thousands of comments submitted to The Standard, you could count the comments critical of right-leaning parties/MPs on one hand. Unfortunately the search function isn't working for me at the moment, otherwise I'd do a count myself.
The Chairman’s criticism, and the way they raise Natioanl party attack lines and talking point, is all fine – what I object to the the deceptive nature of the “more left than most” description.
@Incognito
Let's twist again like we did last summer
I'll untwist that load rubbish for you when I have time![wink wink](https://cdn.ckeditor.com/4.11.3/full-all/plugins/smiley/images/wink_smile.png)
The link was to an article about the programme, refuting your assertion I know nothing about it.
What casts doubt on it remaining voluntary is it's not in the nature of other current and past work ready programmes.
Again, I haven't jumped the gun. I was commenting on its reported data noting its dismal success rate.
I remembered what I wrote, it's just not what you stated (not this time but initially).
The reason why it is a most likely outcome was clearly stated. The reporting of it was over hyped. Moreover, its success rate is dismal yet, despite this, it has made the grade for further evaluation for the Government to then consider. Additionally, seeing as it has survived the change of Government, it seems it is favoured/supported in high places.
A link to a piece in MSM that contained all of your ‘knowledge’ – I already said that – which led you to go off on your usual tangent.
I quote verbatim from your comment and you blankly deny you wrote it.
You make all sorts of (negative) assumptions but pretend to be in two minds.
You cast doubt, seed discord, place everything in the most negative light possible and do amazing acrobatics when pulled up on it. Any more music clips coming?
How do you know the reporting was overhyped? Do you have any data to show it was overhyped? My guess is that all you’ve got is what is in the linked piece.
Last attempt: where is or was it clearly stated that the [not “a”] most likely outcome is a national roll out? Come on, quote it, if you can. I bet you can’t because you made it up. But you seem to think you didn’t, that it is based in and on reality.
The purpose of a genuine debate is to present facts, examine these and the merits of the various conceptual (or ideological) frameworks, to obtain a better handle on reality and arrive closer to what might be called truth. Surely, this must appeal to a rational thinker.
Do you consider yourself contributing to or participating in debate here or do you see yourself more as an alarmist? Your comments seem to suggest the latter.
You asserted I know nothing on the matter, yet the article linked to was a report on the matter. Therefore, you knowingly lied.
Nor did I go off on a tangent. I merely asked a set of questions. So there is another lie.
I didn't deny the quote. I denied I said the article stated that nor did I quote it as such. I said it implied that. Making that your third lie.
I made one assumption not all sorts. That's 4.
Doubt, discord, and things looking negative are largely the consequences of the Government's failure to deliver, policies, etc. Especially for those struggling on the left hoping for some wellbeing.
You (and a couple of others) seem to want to blame those who discuss the failures and not those that failed to deliver.
It was clear the report was over hyped. The report was more positive than balanced (covering nothing at all on the majority that didn't succeed other than the numbers) failing to align with the dismal results.
I genuinely debate, you ridicule twist and lie.
The Chairman and other similar trollers trivialise this blog and probably lose us a lot of really good commenters who can't be bothered with TS while the feeble rules of engagement don't protect against the persistent pests. These blighters want and succced in emasculating the discussion contributions and controlled contest of thought and opinion that the blog can deliver well, When it is enabled.
Low blow, greywarshark.
Keep it to the political topic. Playing the man tends to risk the concern you claim to be concerned about – i.e. putting people off.
Good. Let's hope it remains that way.
Why wouldn’t it?
WINZ are notorious for forcing people on to work ready programmes.
WINZ? As always, assuming the worst-case scenario? No trust or faith in positive change, it seems. WINZ once bad, WINZ always bad. With such an outlook and mentality, you’re ensured to never be pleasantly surprised because, you know, all good things come to an end. To me, you come across as a misery guts.
Any thoughts?
Ah. The Manager is one Graham Guy.
Peter and I have history with that ex-UK bureaucrat.
How shall I put this? Struggles with facts. Struggles with people checking up on his statements and discovering what he just wrote as fact was indeed…not fact.
Is very, very good (we think he's had lots and lots of practice) at doing a stone statue impression and flatly refusing to answer questions or account for his statements or actions. Shows absolutely no reaction when a normally mild mannered man out of frustration calls him a liar to his face.
Twists a complaint against him and the organisation he manages into an implied accusation that said disabled person is reluctant to have a proper needs assessment.
Said disabled person happy to have Needs Assessment (sigh, another one) only this time there is a doctor, registered nurse, an occupational therapist and a physiotherapist who at the behest of said Graham Guy subject the disabled person to a three hour assessment which even included checking said disabled persons feet and posterior for the pressure sores they had already been told he didn't have.
Hmmm. Mr Guy had given the impression that it was just our opinion that Peter's care needs were very high and complex…hence the top guns for this assessment.
Funny thing is the initial allocation of 8 hours per day of support needed came out as11 hours per day after the Hit Squad had done their three hour thing. It was then 'peer reviewed' back down to 8 hours per day. Because what do the experts know? Right?
(Note to all…Peter does not receive any funding for his care as they won't pay me.)
Mr Guy, bright chap that he, is then proceeded to suggest three Contracted Providers who could step up at short notice to provide Peter's support should I be rendered incapacitated. None of them had any recognised experience with high spinal injury and in the words of a Ministry Of Health consultant his suggestions 'were highly inappropriate'.
Is this help merely offered, or can it not be refused?
And that is a very good question. When my man told Mr Guy that yes he was happy to have (yet another) Needs Assessment '…. but if the assessor does not have a working knowledge of tetraplegia then I'll be asking them to leave.', he was told in no uncertain terms that he would be "declining service."
This "Declining Service" and the black mark it attracts to your record is an actual thing in this sector.
It matters not if the "Service" is not fit for purpose. Decline it and you can kiss your proverbial ta ta.
So, TC. your resevations are founded. IMHO.
(And their success rate is appalling.)
Sorry to read that Rosemary – my full sympathy and probably useless moral support.
I just fear that the Chairman is a long-time concern troll, who may use your material for his own purposes.. Probably to spread despondency.
Mind you, if a bad, dysfunctional programme ends up getting quashed, that would be a plus for all of us.
I have no idea what a "concern troll" is but I presume it is bad? No matter.
The Chairman is correct to question these schemes…indeed, when I read that article earlier I nearly posted here as I have personal experience with the manager when in an allied field to the REACH programme.
I didn't think anyone else here would detect the possible fish hooks or failings….see it for what it probably is…another happy clappy feel good scheme that this gummint is as good as the last for promoting.
Some of us are actually despondent In Vino, as despite much effort (including court cases and Human Rights hearings) our positions, as a disabled person with very high and complex supports needs and the unpaid spousal partner providing all of his supports are worse now in terms of security and rights than they were when we had our last dealings with Mr Guy back in late 2016.
Promises, but no hint of any improvement in our situation nor the situations of other commenters here. Like Kay, for instance.
"Despondent" might be too defeated sounding. Down we are but not out.
And I will challenge this Current Mob every step of the way.
I don't think many of us are feeling elated and victorious these days Rosemary, but having read many of your contributions, I sympathise, and accept your concerns as genuine.
Basically, I see a concern troll as one who pretends to be one of us, tries to make himself (or, of course, herself) accepted as one of us, but then tries to use our attitudes and philosophies against us. This can be by encouraging us to push policies that they think will make us unpopular with the general public (but we believe in those policies, and don't see the trick); by encouraging us to argue and disagree amongst ourselves through stirring up internal debate where there is no easy answer, and (Chairman's speciality) by pushing our beloved principles so hard as to make us all aware that we are nowhere near living up to them, thereby reducing our belief in those principles, and our will to bring them into practice because it is all going so badly with no success, only disappointment.
Your disappointment is genuine. Your challenging the current mob is genuine. I trust that, but I do not trust The Chairman.
Interesting answer…but of course raises more questions.
Define "us".
And say we all here (bar some) are part of the "we", what are the 'attitudes and philosophies' that define us?
What are these " beloved principles " that the likes of The Chairman is causing 'us' to become aware that 'we' are not living up to them?
Mayhap The Chairman's mission is to provoke all around these parts into having the expectation that this Current Mob will be true to its publicised principals and be truly transformative and put an end toot sweet to the ravages of the last thirty years of neo- liberal rule.
Or, The Chairman could simply be an annoying nit-picker.
An annoying nit-picker with a big ulterior motive is a third possibility.
How many times will I get away with posting the same comment; that is;
"in vino veritas".
Very sad yet very informative, Rosemary. Thanks very much for sharing your personal insights.
And luckily, TC, by the time we had to make a complaint about Disability Support Link and subsequently Mr Guy himself we had learned to put everything in writing or record conversations. Probably the reason Mr Guy wouldn't respond, or account for what he had written.
These are twisty, tricksy times.![wink wink](https://cdn.ckeditor.com/4.11.3/full-all/plugins/smiley/images/wink_smile.png)
Participated cherry. We partake of food. We participate in activity.
Maybe free coffee was provided?
Could these non-union members who are "philosophically opposed" to unions simply refuse the pay rises union members have done the hard work to secure?
Newsflash, Justin Lindsay; stating you are “philosophically opposed” to unions, but demanding access to a core tenet of union membership – equal pay – doesn’t add up.
No wonder he is a music teacher.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12240761
They come across as ungrateful, hypocritical, parasitic pricks.
Agree. Coat-tailing, without having paid any union fees. I hope that the 3 months' delay makes up the years of union fees they have saved.
They are actually free to negotiate their own individual contract with their own Board of Trustees.
Good luck with that – the BOTs are still Bulk-Underfunded.
Wondering if NZ police will do the same.
https://twitter.com/RVAwonk/status/1139653125420343304
If nothing else it should begin to decrease the impunity with which such sites have been operating.
It's the global version of Kiwiblog's forced moderation. Starve the white supremacists out of existence.
Farcebook next.
Moderation sewer style.
Jordan Peterson, the sulky alt-lite celebrity professor who likes to sue people who disagree with him, has announced the imminent arrival of his new Free Speech Social Media platform Thinkspot, which promises to be the freest free speech venue in human history except that you have to pay for it and if you say something that offends the Peterson fans and oft-banned alt-right weirdos who will likely populate the service, they can downvote your comments until they disappear.
http://www.wehuntedthemammoth.com/2019/06/13/jordan-peterson-is-launching-thinkspot-a-free-speech-platform-where-his-fanboys-can-downvote-posts-they-dislike-and-make-them-vanish/
Hoist with their own petard.
So screwed up that their bathwater gurgles upwards.
Anyone know how to report a page promoting the Australian killers manifesto.
Ring the police Bruce.
is it a page from overseas or NZ?
if it is a NZ page you can call the police, if it is an overseas page you can't to much as NZ laws do not apply to them.
Ladies and gentlemen, grab your ankles….
https://twitter.com/climate_ice/status/1134451836935708673
https://twitter.com/EricHolthaus/status/1139234563400634368
lol truth
“The kindest thing you can say about Sarah Sanders is that she was completely useless. She didn’t bother disguising her disdain for reporters. She didn’t bother holding press briefings – the last one was over 90 days ago. And she didn’t bother with the truth. She was an incompetent press secretary.
Here’s the thing though: Sanders was never really hired to be a press secretary. Her real job, I’d venture, was to be a Very Visible Woman. Her real job was to be the female face of a deeply misogynistic administration; to play the role of the empowered working mother and make the Trump administration’s crass patriarchy more palatable.”
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jun/15/sarah-sanders-job-was-to-be-the-female-face-of-a-misogynistic-administration
You could call her Aunt Lydia and Mrs. Conway is Serena Joy : )
and all the lying was for god, and daddy, and god, and money, and god.
What we know
The Japanese Prime Minister goes to Iran on a peace mission.
During the Japanese Prime Minister's visit a Japanese oil tanker is attacked in the Gulf of Hormoz
The Americans say the Japanese vessel was attacked with mines.
The Japanese say their vessel was attacked by "flying objects"
The Japanese say the ship's cargo of methanol was unharmed.
Iranian fire fighting vessels put out a fire on the ship.
The crew of the stricken vessel are taken off the Japanese ship by Iranian "rescuers". The damaged vessel is taken under control by the US Navy. The crew return and the ship is "escorted" by the US Navy to the United Arab Emirates.
The American authorities blame the Iranian government for the attack, citing the alleged "sophisticated" use of mines as the evidence of Iranian involvement.
The Americans release a grainy film clip which they claim shows Iranian forces removing an unexploded mine from the Japanese vessel
The Japanese defence Minister says that Japan will not be sending any Japanese defence force ships to protect Japanese vessels operating in the Gulf
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190614_36/
https://www.msn.com/en-nz/news/world/flying-objects-damaged-japanese-tanker-during-attack-in-gulf-of-oman/ar-AACSxVh
Eco Maori thanks Mike Joy for all the hard mahi he has dune to HIGHLIGHT the damage being dune to OUR Awa rivers waterways and estuaries from industrial farming and city industries
Its quite hard getting the TRUTH about our environment out through the industrial money that suppress reality on the harm that urea and other Agricultural chemicals have on our waterways. Kia kaha Mike you are one of my heroes.
National Portrait: Mike Joy, passionate advocate for the environment "I was thinking, what the f… is going on here," he says. "It was gruesome stuff. That was the first really concrete evidence of the stupidity of farming, of bubbles and how people get caught up in doing dumb things
It was frustration that will later fuel a career studying the health of the nation's waterways and a bitter fightback from industries and academia angry at his findings and passionate advocacy.
The journey has twists and turns like the many rivers Joy now stands in, but it starts in a headwater of blissful boyhood ignorance
Former prime minister John Key and others accused him of economic sabotage and treachery when his mocking of New Zealand's 100% Pure branding was broadcast around the world Joy is just as scathing in his condemnation of the many bodies supporting the industry, the supposed watchdogs of the environment and the Government that supposedly rules them all.
It matters not. Joy could have made a great deal more money by keeping his mouth shut and his head down.
But he's no lamb. He won't be silenced
Ka kite ano link below.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/environment/111837725/national-portrait-mike-joy-passionate-advocate-for-the-environment
+100% Eco Maori – very good post.
Some Eco Maori music for the minute.
https://youtu.be/ycOPGarZ9nM
Whanau our African cousin will suffer more than the people living in western countries as they don't have the money or the means to combat Climate Change.
Most Africans have to grow their OWN FOOD. If the weather plays up they cannot go to the shop and buy food they end up starving to death that's their REALITY.
Eco Maori knowns what the western people have dune to Africa over the last 300 years and it's no good at all because of that phenomenon I say that the western governments have to do all they can to help Africa survive Human Causes Global Warming.
Global heating to inflict more droughts on Africa as well as floods
New UK research predicts extremes of weather will hit food production
Global heating could bring many more bouts of severe drought as well as increased flooding to Africa than previously forecast, scientists have warned.
New research says the continent will experience many extreme outbreaks of intense rainfall over the next 80 years. These could trigger devastating floods, storms and disruption of farming. In addition, these events are likely to be interspersed with more crippling droughts during the growing season and these could also damage crop and food production.
“Essentially we have found that both ends of Africa’s weather extremes will get more severe,” said Elizabeth Kendon of the Met Office’s Hadley Centre in Exeter. “The wet extreme will get worse, but also the appearance of dry spells during the growing season will also get more severe.”
This meteorological double whammy is blamed on the burning of fossil fuels, which is increasing levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and causing it to heat up. Last month levels of carbon dioxide reached 415 parts per million, their highest level since Homo sapiens first appeared on Earth – and scientists warn that they are likely to continue on this upward curve for several decades. Global temperatures will be raised dangerously as a result.
The new meteorology study – carried out by scientists at the Met Office in collaboration with researchers at the Institute of Climate and Atmospheric Science at Leeds University – reports on the likely impact on Africa of these temperature rises and indicates that western and central areas will suffer the worst impacts of weather disruptions. Many countries in these regions – including Niger, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo – are expected to experience substantial growth in population over that time and will be particularly vulnerable to severe floods la kite ano link below.
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2019/jun/14/africa-global-heating-more-droughts-and-flooding-threat
Kia ora Newshub.
Condolences to the whanau of the people who died in the 2 plane's that crashed into each other in Masterton .
seenothing.
national goals of there reform of the justice system was to save the government money they made legal aid near impossible to get .If you wanted to sue the crown you can't get legal aid who cares about the Human rights to a fair trial.
Thanks to our Government for having a enquiry into Oranga tamariki process of uplifting tamariki it not just Maori and Pacific tamariki it's all tamariki in the lower 10 % who end up in CYPS the lives of these tamariki who end up in cyps for long periods of time is not good at all ka pai.
It's sad all the wars going on around Papatuanuku at the minute. Its is the tamariki and Wahine who suffer the most in WAR.
Good on the Wahine from Dancing with the Stars for teaching the elderly people with dementia it helps slow the effects of dementia very cool.
Ka kite ano
Kia ora te ao Maori news. Condolences to Hapa Jim's Whanau and Tuwharetua for their losses of a great leader.
I give Eco Maori a sore face to see the resurgence of the interest in the tangata whenua O Aotearoa art of ta moko all Maori culture is getting great interest.
Auckland butcher of the year is cool a lot of Maori work in the trade some for 3 generations Eco is great at butchering fish my meat butchering knowledge is not as good as my fish skills.
Ka kite ano.
Ka kite ano
Kia ora The Am Show.
The state needs to value Pepe as gifts from God to me that's what they are.
Bank fees the banks are creaming it just for a computer transactions. 5 billion over 5 years. It is good that other players are coming into that market of changing currency the internet is making many industries honest. I feared that the banks would interfere in crypto currency's hence I didn't buy any but the tech companies will bring down the cost of putea transportation lending rates ect.
GENETIC engineering a big no from Eco Maori on that if we do what America wants on that subject all our high value customers will leave. There are to many unanswered questions on that subject. Its not like the companies who are pushing that shit have a honest reputation look at monstat and dupont and other companies sell shit that they know harm people they just bury the data under a pile of cash .
I say that the people who receive the Pepe that are up lifted by the state who are most often grandparents should be given more money to care for the Pepe it cost a lot of money to raise a child people will treat Pepe like a taonga.
Good on you Nikki for having a month free from Alcohol detox the system.
Antonio and David Out Rageous fortunes was a great series and The West's to I also like the American show Shame Less it gives a insight of how the common people all around the Papatuanuku have to battle to survive.
The Maori Council has been voicing their concerns about CYPs for many years now there voices are finally be heard through all the naysayers bullshit.
Ka kite ano
Action-faction on logging companies.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/392213/hikurangi-forest-farms-pleads-guilty-over-debris-damage-in-tolaga-bay-flooding
This sort of campaign does made me sick. Poor people with the problems that arise from poor diet and not much money and opportunity to properly supervise the food and drink intake of their family, are not being given the attention and assistance they need.
Meanwhile there is a lobby for the middle class and the older age group that wants expensive medication to extend life beyond what would be considered reasonable and kind. They are attacking pharmac relentlessly to spend money on them, while ignoring the facts about the country's lack of funds for essential things like health, and why, and what is needed to fix it.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/first-up/audio/2018699900/life-or-death-under-pharmac-part-one
Something beautiful to look at for a change from the usual suspects.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/sport/392190/another-title-for-nz-equestrian
Another title for NZ equestrian 9:37 am today
New Zealand's world number one ranked eventer Tim Price has added another top trophy to the cabinet, winning the Luhmuhlen Horse Trials in Germany.
Photo: PHOTOSPORT
Price's wife, Jonelle, won the event last year.
Tim and his grey mare Ascona M picked up time penalties in the showjumping but still finished 2.1 penalty points ahead of runner-up Tom McEwen of Great Britain.