'A well-connected school is often a golden ticket to a place at Oxbridge. Of the seven (including Gyimah) privately educated candidates McVey is the only one not to have gone to Oxford.'
Was just about to put this up myself….I see that The Guardian and The Washington Post have both finally changed their tune and realized that they have been on the wrong side of history on this one.
We are at war with East Asia, we have always been at war with East Asia
New Zealand media and the Ministry of Truth (Minitru)
Yesterday TVNZ news reported the US version of the attack on a Japanese oil tanker in the Gulf of Hormuz, verbatim. TVNZ deliberately omitted the Japanese version of events.
The US claimed that the Japanese ship was damaged with limpet mines attached to the ship and that this was proof that the attack was planned and carried out by the Iranians.
The Japanese claimed that their ship had been hit by "flying objects". The Japanese report was deliberately left out of the TVNZ, coverage.
This morning Stuff.co.nz decided to omit all coverage of this attack.
You can scour the popular NZ online News site for news of this unfolding story, all you like, all mention of this contentious attack and the embarrassing counter claims are completely missing.
George Orwell in his novel 1984 wrote of a fictitious news organisation, that kept what he called a 'memory hole'. Stories embarrassing to the establishment authorities were placed in this memory hole never to be recalled.
Yes will are living in a time when what should be our trusted media sources are now trying to tell us up is down and black is white…and unfortunately it seems to be getting worse all the time.
After the hysterical news coverage and saber rattling that spilled out of pretty much all western press following the chemical attack in Douma, they seem very quiet when it is revealed that all is not as it seemed….no follow up stories on RNZ that I have heard either.
New Evidence Suggests 2018 Chemical Attack in Douma, Syria Was Staged
Last night TVNZ News at 6 reported the attack on the Japanese oil tanker in the Gulf of Hormuz, which TVNZ reporters loyally followed the pro-war US narrative squarely putting the blame on the Iranians. TVNZ refused to report the Japanese version of the attack which contradicted the pro-war US narrative.
Stuff.co.nz took a different path and censored this story and its embarassing contradictions completely.
It is almost 6pm again.
Will TVNZ give a more balanced report of this attack tonight?
Or will TVNZ follow the Stuff.co.nz direction on this story with its embarrassing contradictions and bury it in the memory hole.
And a religious service conducted in hardhats at the Notre Dame Cathedral in France.
No correction or coverage of the shockingly biased one sided pro-war reporting of the attack on the Japanese oil tanker in the Gulf of Hormuz last night, that gave only the US side of the story and completely censored the Japanese crew version of the attack on their ship.
If NZ is dragged into another US bloodbath, TVNZ shameful one sided pro-war propaganda will be partly responsible.
New Zealanders should be rightly sickened at this example of lying by omission in the service of mass murder by TVNZ.
Less creepily pro-war, The Sydney Morning Herald
Japanese ship owner contradicts US account of how tanker was attacked
By Simon Denyer August 24, 2003 — 10.00am
Tokyo: The owner of a Japanese tanker attacked in the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday has offered a different account of the nature of the attack than that provided by the United States.
Yutaka Katada, president of Kokuka Sangyo, said the Filipino crew of the Kokuka Courageous thought their vessel had been hit by flying objects rather than a mine.
Yutaka Katada, president of Kokuka Sangyo, the Japanese company operating one of two oil tankers attacked near the Strait of Hormuz.CREDIT:AP
"The crew are saying it was hit with a flying object. They say something came flying towards them, then there was an explosion, then there was a hole in the vessel," he told reporters. "Then some crew witnessed a second shot."
Notice all the right wing supporters of 'free speech' for fascists, have nothing to say about mainstream media censorship, especially if it is in the service of inciting a war.
Shane Jones said "It was a great day for HB/Gisborne" – thanks for your support to the many fighting for this day.
Question now is; – when do we reopen the Gisborne line as Gisborne is the most isolated City of its size in NZ today without a rail service? Dear rail stakeholders.
We have a picture of the first train that leaves Gisborne in June 1942 for Napier while 10 000 people wave them off, as the ‘Minister of rail’ (Robert Semple) says it was justified to spend over 6 million pounds to complete the rail service to Gisborne as it was an “isolated” region with few other transport choices.
KiwiRail celebrates re-opening of Napier to Wairoa line Andre Chumko and Bethany Reitsma16:03, Jun 14 2019
Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones discusses what will happen to truck drivers as a result of the Napier-Wairoa rail line re-opening.
Mervyn Smiley, an Eskdale resident of 25 years, has longed for the day when trains returned to the mothballed Napier to Wairoa line.
On Friday, that dream became reality as a brass band and haka welcomed Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones to KiwiRail's depot in Ahuriri, near Napier Port.
After a short series of speeches, the minister and various other politicians including Napier MP Stuart Nash, Ikaroa-Rāwhiti MP Meka Whaitiri and National's Lawrence Yule, joined the region's mayors in boarding the carriages of the first train to make the first full trip between Napier and Wairoa since 2012. Among the politicians present were Napier MP Stuart Nash and Ikaroa-Rāwhiti MP Meka Whaitiri. On the train,
Jones held a press conference, where he described the day as a great one for Hawke's Bay. Jones said KiwiRail had had "so little for so long", and the $6.2 million investment so far was a big deal, especially in relation to moving trucks off the roads.It would also allow businesses to grow their logistics capacity, and boost exports.
The train stationed at Ahuriri before departing for Wairoa. "If we're in for the KiwiRail journey, it's a long-term journey.
It's about a nation building infrastructure at a time when there's a lot of uncertainty about weather." And the "fiscal love" would continue to flow post 2020's election, he said, forecasting "substantial amounts" being injected into KiwiRail. On whether there was a possibility of extending the line to Gisborne, Jones said any business case would be pushing on an open door.
Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones said it was a significant day. KiwiRail chief executive Greg Miller said with work on the line finished, its next focus was on establishing a log-hub in Wairoa so it could begin running trains as soon as August.
"The amount of timber flowing from forests in the region is expected to quadruple in the next four years and to get all those logs to market will require all transport networks working efficiently together."
He forecast up to six trains travelling the line per week, meaning about 5000 fewer truck journeys initially, and more than 15,000 as services increased.
The Deco Bay Brass group performed for Shane Jones upon his arrival. Jones said local civic leaders – mayors, council chairs and MPs – who had lobbied him were to credit for the re-opening.
"This will substantially reduce their roading bill if they can move more heavy freight onto rail." Transport advocacy groups NZ Transport 2050 and the Public Transport Users Association said in a statement the previous Government underfunded the line.
Locals were waving at the train the whole trip, happy to see the line back in action. "The loss of 20 fulltime jobs in Wairoa was a big hit for a small community.
With the railway re-opening today it opens up opportunities for wood processors to again re-establish in the town," Paul Miller, chair of NZ Transport 2050 said.
Green Party MP Gareth Hughes said regional rail should be the backbone of the transport system for people and freight, and his party would like to see the line extended from Wairoa to Gisborne. Hukarere Girls' College students performed a waiata for ministers and MPs upon their arrival to Eskdale, north of Napier. The train then departed for Wairoa.
Gareth Hughes is wrong. Rail will never be the "backbone of the transport system for people." Even for freight, it will only be the case for bulk cargoes and containers.
Now, I happen to believe that more needs to be done in rail. Electrification from Auckland to Wellington, reopening to Gisborne and Rotorua, decent passenger service to Hamilton, and of course Northport.
But in New Zealand rail will always by a minority/specialist form of transport. Roads are invariably faster and vastly more flexible. Which is why they need substantial investment.
Unfortunately, yes really. It's way, way easier to put a road somewhere than a railway line, which is one reason we're still on narrow-gauge rail and it's mostly single-tracked. Rail infrastructure is expensive. A government with an eye to the long term and protection of the environment would bite the bullet and prioritise the more expensive option, but the three-year electoral cycle and voters' love of cars argue very strongly for taking the quick-and-cheap option instead.
Care to clarify? What do you think is the more expensive option – short to medium term? I'm assuming you think it is rail because of the 3rd dimension (the up and down bits).
It really needn't be however if you consider corridor widths necessary for the roading option versus those necessary to carry freight (and passenger for that matter) over a more 'levelled out' narrower corridor,
And I'm not sure why Indians and Chinese can construct/reconstruct railways over 100km or more in the space of 18 or so months, whereas lil 'ole Nu Zull struggles.
(I'm thinking maybe things like Fulton and Hogan monopolies on tar seal/bitumen, traffic management – STMS – and a heap of other bullshit that's been allowed to prevail over the past several years. Oh, and not to mention lobbyists; owner drivers and their investments and whose livelihoods are dependent on it all continuing, and a few other bits and pieces. YES IT REALLY 'IS')
Pretty close to my view, main change I'd make would be "usually" rather than "invariably". But a big change I think needs to happen is rebalancing how roads are funded so that users pay in proportion to the expense they cause.
For out-of town roads highways, the engineering evidence seems very clear that trucks cause a much higher proportion of the damage and maintenance and even initial road building expense than they pay for, while cars and other light vehicles pay substantially more than their fair share.
Rebalancing the road user charges and fuel excise tax systems so trucking pays a fair share, rather than getting a hidden subsidy, would be a good first step. Then rail might be slightly closer to being competitive for moving freight on an even footing.
For most cities, it's sheer numbers of vehicles at peak times that cause big expenses. So some sort of demand or congestion charging only seems fair.
Hell, both those steps would be worth doing just to watch the ensuing histrionics and special pleading that would ensue , let alone the actual real resulting benefits.
A consequence like that isn't an argument against doing the right thing. But if the effects actually turn out to be big enough, then it is a good reason to include other adjustments at the same time, such as increases in benefit rates and/or minimum wage and/or tax rate and threshold adjustments at the bottom end of the scale.
In the case of rebalancing how roads are paid for, chances are pretty good the reduction in tax on petrol and reduced road user charges for small diesel vehicles will help the poor more than increased transport costs will hurt them.
If we stopped subsidising road freight via petrol excise, general taxation, importing of cheap third-world labour and the off-loading of environmental costs onto future generations, many goods would be more expensive, yes. That's not a reason to continue doing those things.
……in New Zealand rail will always by a minority/specialist form of transport. Roads are invariably faster and vastly more flexible. Which is why they need substantial investment.
Not so Japan.
4 Major Means Of Transportation In Japan
BULLET TRAIN/SHINKANSEN
The Bullet train/Shinkansen links the major cities on the island of Honshu and Kyushu as well as Hokadate located on northern island of Hokkaido….
CONVENTIONAL LINES
This is the major means of passenger transport in Japan.
Yep. If NZ had 120 million people in it like Japan does, I expect we'd have an excellent railway network because the alternative would be all-gridlock, all the time. But we don't, so we don't.
Certainly New Zealand is highly unlikely to ever see true high speed rail like Shinkansen, or commuter rail like major Japanese cities. But most of the Japanese rail network is rural 1067mm gauge lines very similar to New Zealand. Their loading gauge is slightly larger, but less than Kiwi Rail's aspirational standard.
Passenger services running at 100 – 130 kmh are the norm and a situation like Whangarei – Auckland – Hamilton – Tauranga would have a regular and highly patronised service.
It's ironic that those speeds, 100 -130 kmh, were common for our express passenger services in the steam days. I remember being a passenger in a car on SH1 around Rakaia when we were passed by the SI Limited going in the same direction like we were standing still.
They're a great idea – though the KTX is more modern and was adopted by China as the standard for its network. The Wellington/Auckland run, if replaced, would greatly reduce the use of aircraft for domestic travel. Roomier, cheaper, and a better prospect for working in transit, the modernity is far beyond that imaginable to the paleoGnats, though the smarter Greens and younger Labour folk might get it.
Unhappily, roads are much more carbon negative than rail. The heavy longhaul truck model was broken when frankly stupid governments like yours brought it in Wayne – much moreso as the push to contain carbon release moves from the systematic frauds perpetrated under National, to real albeit slow reform.
Surprising when an ex Government minister knows so little about how freight works in New Zealand.
Trucking is both inefficient and expensive, compared with rail and shipping.
Hidden by the huge subsidies motorists, rate payers and general tax payers are forced to give to trucking. And all they pay for it is some National party funding and employment for some ex MP's. An excellent investment. For trucking firms!
The only way Rail would become the backbone of NZ Transport scene again, would be if NZ's Sea Lanes Of Communication were cut or degraded to a point that it reduces NZ's import of its POL products/ production where rationing has to introduce.
But since NZ Rail at levels during before its sell off by all Governments, under Private ownership and after it was re-nationalise that it needs a level of state involvement and investment since the 1930's under the first NZ Labour Government.
Its last major rail workshop that built wagons and Locomotives closed, this decision by the "No Mates Party" now causing delays for the new Inter- City train Auckland- Hamilton passenger train as KiwiRail no longer makes stuff aka bogies for the rebuilt passenger carriages. WTF!!!!
The Way and Works Dept was ran into the ground under private ownership which has effected the speed on some lines the Canterbury Plains lines the Ka, Kb's and the old Vulcan Railcars were doing a 100kph plus and the current loco’s s etc are now restricted to 90kph or less WTF!!!.
The loading gauge has been impacted as a result of running down of the Way and Works Dept, to a point the old Standard Railcars under private ownership are restricted on some Nth Island rail lines (Note: The Standard Railcars were Nth Island base only and the Vulcans Sth Island Base). Apart from the NIMT between Plamy and Frankston has seen any major realignment's, major rebuilds apart from the recent earthquake's in the Sth Island or Otaki rebuilds at still dated back when Rail and Stream were Kings. The last Rail Observer mention that KiwiRail was refuse funds to build a major Rail Hub at Rollie Sth of CHCH which has increase cost to producers in the Mid Canterbury Regional, but the Palmy one got the Ok and then we have the saga of the Gizzy line, Northland Rail lines and other mothball lines.
Land was sold off by Government's in the mid 80's and under Private ownership without any thought to the future use for freight and passenger services. A good example of this the CHCH Station and the removal of the turnout towards the site of the old Station, land around the New Market Junction and that's before we even start talking the Britomart Station only being restricted to 4 roads or the Wellington Station issues as well.
To those that the current Rail gauge of 3ft 6in restricts NZ Rail services is a bloody load of Bollocks. We only need to have a look at the Tilt Trains in Qld both Electric and Diesel power trains or the Train Systems in the Perth/ Lower to Mid WA.
To those out there that want to understand the current issues facing NZ Rail and other aspects of NZ Rail from the pass and to the future? Grab the latest edition of the NZ Rail Observer and sign up to the NZ Rail Society.
Cleangreen: I absolutely upport a strong rail base for freight and commuters, but the Gisborne line has always been a problem.
Major erosion issues have meant this line has frequently been closed for very long periods. It would always have been like that, and that line was never going to be essential to the rail system as a whole, being a dead end as such.
Better to bite the bullet and keep it closed, and spend the money elsewhere in the rail system. Which I guess is what the current government has decided.
It's ironic you say that Peter, our local example of road/rail/slips has the road closed, the Manawatu Gorge, and across the river the trains keep on trucking.
Apparently the difference between the terra firma of the Ruahines (rail) and the Tararuas is profound. Consequence is all the road freight grinds it's way up, over and down the Ruahines.
For the sake of a couple of tunnels being widened we could have the trucks trained through the gorge, Woodville to Ashhurst or Palmy….
"Jeremy Hunt has demanded broadcasters “grow up” and stop mistakenly referring to him by the C-word when trying to pronounce his surname."
"On Tuesday, BBC presenter Victoria Derbyshire followed a host of TV and radio personalities by accidentally referring to the foreign secretary as “Jeremy C***” live on-air. Addressing Conservative MP Steve Brine, Derbyshire said: “You say the man you are backing, Jeremy C***…”
“I’m so sorry, Jeremy Hunt. I’ve never said that before in my life. It’s normally men who say that so I really, really want to apologise.”
"Others who have made the gaffe include Sky News reporter Thomas Moore, BBC journalists Justin Webb and James Naughtie, as well as presenter Nicky Campbell just last week."
Jeremy Hunt is the British Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs. For the British media to vilify him thus seems a new behavioural low, which has become contagious. Not an appropriate way to treat a leading govt minister!
Notice how he asks them to grow up, yet refers to their utterances as mistakes. Adults make mistakes too. Surely he knows they do! Really accidental?? Or juvenile? Perhaps it would be better for offenders to agree that the trend is Freudian slippage…
This is the enormous virtue of Reid’s and Newsroom’s investigative journalism. It digs below the superficial stereotypes that allow so many of us to dismiss the anguish of “these people” as the inevitable outcome of their irresponsible lifestyles. That they are brown and say “yous”, instead of “you”, only makes it easier for middle-class Pakeha to ignore their pain. Oranga Tamariki, the Family Court, the DHBs and the Police have made it possible for those Kiwis who have made their peace with race-based social injustice to go about their lives without the slightest awareness of the tragedies unfolding, every night, in suburbs they will never visit.
First of all the "State"- aided and abetted by successive governments – created the climate of poverty that exists among Maori communities in particular, and then they remove their babies on the pretext they are nor living in safe and secure environments.
There will of course be valid reasons why some children have to be removed from their Whanau, but it is looks to me like the agencies involved have created a social apartheid system based on their prejudices and… not a little desire for power and control.
True Gabby, but they might also be basing their judgement on past behaviour not taking into account that the circumstances of the mother and her whanau may have changed.
That is terrible design. The type looks awful at that size and its a text body font anyway. Even worse is the horrible contrast between the oblique shapes and the type.
Any what does the pink represent? There seems to have been no design brief, and even less design ability.
Like ACT itself a clumsy, poorly thought out wish mash of not fit for purpose ideas…
…on second thoughts that logo is a perfect description of the 0.4% party.
If you think for one minute the old money establishment give a rats about you and yours, think again… In the following spot the similarity with dirty politics that Donkey pulled.
Replacement for Sarah Sanders Disqualified After Telling Truth on Job Application
WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—A leading candidate to replace the White House press secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, was disqualified after telling the truth repeatedly on his job application, the White House has confirmed.
According to the White House chief of staff, Mick Mulvaney, the candidate got high marks in his job interview by demonstrating “utter disregard and contempt for press freedoms.”
“We then had him do a practice press briefing in which he was relentlessly abusive, obnoxious, and insulting,” Mulvaney said. “We were all, like, ‘This is our guy.’ ”
But after a thorough examination of the candidate’s job application, “a troubling series of truthhoods emerged,” Mulvaney said.
“It turned out that he was telling the truth about his education and previous employment,” the chief of staff said. “It was a pattern of honesty that we found deeply disturbing.”
Mulvaney said that the “inexcusably veracious” answers had eliminated the candidate from further consideration. “We all feel like we just dodged a bullet,” he said. “This whole episode just demonstrates how tough it is to replace Sarah Huckabee Sanders.”
OMG! I did used to fly out of Hood way back. In fact did my first solo there and my PPL.
I remember my first solo – not only because it was my first solo, but for a very similar reason. On your down wind leg apart from doing the normal pre landing checks on the aircraft you are also looking out for other aircraft . Naturally you are looking out for aircraft to the right and to the left and above and behind. On the approach as you descend you are watching airspeed height and timing your turn to line up with the runway. Well I landed safely and came to a stop turning to the left to clear the runway before heading back to the club house when I saw almost directly behind me a DC3 from James Aviation, used for top dressing, landing just behind me! It had come in on a direct approach low down – no standard circuit at 1000ft as one is supposed to do on an uncontrolled airfield like Hood. Gave me one hell of a fright!
It's been a bad weekend for aircraft crashes. There was one earlier on up by Coromandel as well.
Trump's got a Twitter page—though nearly all of it is written by the sinister fanatic Stephen Miller. Obama's got a Twitter page. Blair's got one. Bill Clinton's got one. So has Crooked Hillary.
Compared to that horrific quintet, O.J. Simpson is a choirboy.
The act the goat for freedom party proposes a $185,000 parent's fund for each child to spend on whichever school they want for the length of the child's education.
I'm trying to imagine the landscape were a policy like this enacted.
One immediate outcome would be that each school would charge according to popularity. Supply and demand and all that.
Therefore, as night follows day, there would be immediate elitism injected into the education system. Prices for "good" schools would skyrocket, wealthier parents able to top up thousands of dollars to get little Cinnamon in, and they'd then pay their teachers more, hoarding all the 'best' ones.
Then of course low income communities would be left with all the 'poorer' teachers and facilities, unable to raise extra funds out of already disadvantaged communities.
This is just one aspect of what is to me a completely bizarre education policy. It would lead to massive widening of inequality for generations to come.
I remember the criticism over the proposed CGT was it'll be too hard & unwieldy to manage, all the variables, to me this education policy seems insanely complicated, more money for ticket clippers I guess, which is apt from the rentier party.
Pompeo's "freedom loving nations" is as dishonest and ridiculous a phrase as "Democratic Republic of North Korea"
The "freedom loving nations" that this poisonous slug refers to are: the rogue U.S. regime of Donald Trump, and its vile, violent vassals Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, and Israel.
A report yesterday of a woman, 86, moving because of a 73 percent rent hike illustrates the crisis created by Housing Minister Phil Twyford, Tenancies War spokesman Mike Butler said today….
The main justification for Mr Twyford’s standards was to prevent the hospitalisation each year of 6000 children for housing-sensitive illnesses.
As a one-bedroom flat, the flat under discussion would be unsuitable for children; this illustrates the short-sightedness of setting requirements for 588,700 properties for the supposed benefit of 6000, Mr Butler said.
This is reality our environmental the Papatuanuku weather stabilizer the Antarctica and Arctic Polar Ice caps all that billions of tons of Ice stabilizes our Papatuanuku weather. It's not hard to figure that out they are melting fast this is going to ramp up sea level rising and the EXTREME WEATHER events. The poor people from 3 world nations are going to hit hardest by Climate Change hence wealth nations have a duty to help them survive this big man made mess.
The Arctic Ocean and Greenland ice sheet have seen record June ice loss
In recent days, observations have revealed a record-challenging melt event over the Greenland ice sheet while the extent of ice over the Arctic Ocean has never been this low in mid-June during the age of weather satellites.
Greenland saw temperatures soar up to 40 degrees above normal Wednesday while open water exists in places north of Alaska where it seldom, if ever, has in recent times.
It's "another series of extreme events consistent with the long-term trend of a warming, changing Arctic," said Zachary Labe, a climate researcher at the University of California-Irvine Ka kite ano link below.
shonky is to sly to get caught the way he forces his stare shows Eco Maori he is false he should step down to he is just chucking the ANZ CEO under the bus to save his ASS.
I thank the government for legislating banks to negotiate with farmers before receivership is started. That is well needed farmers work there asss off only to have a down turn in the price of their produce next minute the receiver are banging their doors down. I know that happened to one big farming family it cost the banks many millions and who instigated their downfall well non other than shonky muppet.
Thank to Our Government for increasing the marine Reservation in the North and South Island to protect our Maui and Hector dolphin KA PAI Yar Cool.
That end of life bill is a bit tricky for Eco Maori it could leave the door open for deceitful people to manipulate the system for their own gain if people were not deceitful I would back it we Know that not the CASE.
Peter Smith I say you are correct that the health system is treating prisoners as lower class people you are there seeing it .But bro you have to look after you health first for you mokopuna.
It good that $138 million for rehabilitation of Drug addicts that PEE shit is ruining te tangata whenua O Aotearoa thanks very much I won't say anymore because I will start ranting against you know who.
That's cool our Government giving $9.8 million to keep tamariki in schools they need a good education the extra funding will help give the tamariki that leave school with no education a interest in there future wellbeing.
The forestry industry has not delivered the promises that they made to Nagti Porou the only people making good money from east coast forestry is the forestry company's I know of one farm spent $1 million for the harvest and only made $90.000 WTF there was heaps of good farming land planted in pines what a waste farming provides more work per hectare than forestry.
Chris Climate Change is affecting our weather I can see the effects all around te Papatuanuku.
The Government farm finance bill is well over due we have to look after our farmers they are the backbone of Aotearoa.
Don't focus on the numbers what the numbers tell the TRUTH of the story you have to focus on the numbers .
Some Pepi and Tamariki need to be uplifted for their safety Very good that Our Iwis are working with Oranga tamariki to find solutions to the problems that they have.
I don't think that the authorities should treat the people who are homeless like that making them move with know were to go putting them in worst circumstances than before they moved.
There might be a bit of inconvenience for the fishermen with new marine protection Reserve for our endangered Maui and Hector dolphin. But in the future the Reserves will be a nursery the fish's they will multiply quite quickly and flow into other areas of Tangaroa any Marine Reservation is good for the preservation of Tangaroa mokopuna.
I agree that our churches should open their doors to help the homeless people in South Auckland I bet that there will be old buildings not being used in Auckland to house the homeless people look at Rotorua council they found a solution to the homeless people in Rotorua if there's a will there's a way.
Eco Maori thanks all the reporters who are not intimidated by big oil barons money thanks for all the skin you put on the line to get the TRUTH about our environmental issues out there that the Papatuanuku has at the minute.
We must protect our world reporters with good legislation so the people who intimidated our reporters will think twice before doing bad stuff to our reporters governments of the world must protect our reporters its their duty.
Environment reporters facing harassment and murder, study finds
Tally of deaths makes it one of most dangerous fields for journalists after war reporting
Thirteen journalists who were investigating damage to the environment have been killed in recent years and many more are suffering violence, harassment, intimidation and lawsuits, according to a study.
The Committee to Protect Journalists(CPJ), which produced the tally, is investigating a further 16 deaths over the last decade. It says the number of murders may be as high as 29, making this field of journalism one of the most dangerous after war reporting
Environmental issues involve some of the greatest abuses of power in the world and some of the greatest of concentrations of power in the world,” said Bruce Shapiro, the director of the Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma.
“I’m hard put to think of a category of investigative reporters who are routinely dealing with more dangerous actors. Investigative reporting on the environment can be as dangerous a beat as reporting on narco smuggling.”
The CPJ executive director, Joel Simon, added: “Reporting such stories for national and international media often involves travelling to remote communities and confronting powerful interests. This makes it inherently dangerous ka kite ano link below.
Te Ego is huge shonky that is when you make enemies they have long memories and as soon as they get the chance they bit you on the ASS .
The smiling assassin strikes: John Key pushes out David Hisco as ANZ CEO
ANZ CEO David Hisco felt entitled to claim around $50,000 worth of personal chauffeur and wine storage costs as business costs. So John Key pushed out his friend and NZ's most successful banker to protect ANZ's position and try to avoid a Royal Commission here. Bernard Hickey analyses Key's biggest hit yet
David Hisco just joined a long list of loyal and often friendly colleagues of John Key who exited their jobs in often surprisingly quick and career-ending ways. It could be said Hisco's exit is Key's biggest yet.
The Former Prime Minister and now ANZ New Zealand chairman became known in his corporate life before politics as the 'smiling assassin
Hisco successfully managed the merger with barely a blip in customer service and market share. He also quietly presided over a reduction in ANZ's exposure to dangerous dairy loans, flicking on some of the weakest lenders to other banks. For example, ANZ let Allan Crafar move his more than $200 million of loans to Westpac before the poorly managed farming group collapsed under a welter of animal mistreatment allegations and effluent treatment fines. Westpac suffered heavy losses in the subsequent receivership and sale of Crafar Farms Ka kite ano link below.
Condolences to the Whanau of Wanna Davies she was a good Wahine Maori leader.
I'm am not commenting on Oranga tamariki to much .I think the good reforms will come soon.
30 years ago the ruling class were still in denial mode what gives Eco Maori a sore face in now they are listening and can see that institutionalized racism is a reality for te tangata whenua O Aotearoa. NOW
I think traditional ronga Maori healing needs to be revived bad to its rightful place in Maoridom it's sad that we losted some of the knowledge on traditional Maori healing.
I say bottled water needs to be banned we need to stop doing dumb shit all the plastic waste and the carbon footprint of bottled water out weighs the positives of bottled water
Big 6.8 Earthquake in Japan let's hope not to many people are harmed .
That guy and his dog who got lost in a cave found their way out cool.
The SHOW must go on in America.
Mark the American polls tell a difference STORY .
That form of accommodation is good for young people shared accommodation in a whare in Auckland rent $320 a week for one room and every else is shared.
Very cool that our Government is investing $26 million into Artic research they Polar Ice caps are the Papatuanuku environment stabilization.
trump is spending big time manipulating the Papatuanuku media I can hear it in your words duncan I have read stories about them moving federal funds to manipulate the reality of what trump has done he is creating a tsunami of broke America's it will take years for the Democrats to clean up trump's MESS. His tariff are harming the whole Papatuanuku everyone in the world will end up paying and worse off because of his tariffs.
Nice Jersey I agree trump's personal ratings are low .
Its very funny the story's about new technology device use causing bone growth in your neck the internet of things and the hard wear devices and social media is changing who rules the world the oil barons trumps masters are losing control fast time for the next generation to rule the Papatuanuku the next generation has to focus on a good future for all.
A chronological listing of news articles linked to on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Jan 17, 2021 through Sat, Jan 23, 2021Editor's Choice12 new books explore fresh approaches to act on climate changeAuthors explore scientific, economic, and political avenues for climate action ...
This discussion is from a Twitter thread by Martin Kulldorff on 20 December 2020. He is a Professor at Harvard Medical School specialising in disease surveillance methods, infectious disease outbreaks and vaccine safety. His Twitter handle is @MartinKulldorff #1 Public health is about all health outcomes, not just a single ...
The Treasury forecasts suggest the economy is doing better than expected after the Covid Shock. John Kenneth Galbraith was wont to say that economic forecasting was designed to make astrology look good. Unfair, but it raises the question of the purpose of economic forecasts. Certainly the public may treat them ...
Q: Will the COVID-19 vaccines prevent the transmission of the coronavirus and bring about community immunity (aka herd immunity)? A: Jury not in yet but vaccines do not have to be perfect to thwart the spread of infection. While vaccines induce protection against illness, they do not always stop actual ...
Joe Biden seems to be everything that Donald Trump was not – decent, straightforward, considerate of others, mindful of his responsibilities – but none of that means that he has an easy path ahead of him. The pandemic still rages, American standing in the world is grievously low, and the ...
Keana VirmaniFrom healthcare robots to data privacy, to sea level rise and Antarctica under the ice: in the four years since its establishment, the Aotearoa New Zealand Science Journalism Fund has supported over 30 projects.Rebecca Priestley, receiving the PM Science Communication Prize (Photo by Mark Tantrum) Associate Professor ...
Nothing more from me today - I'm off to Wellington, to participate in the city's annual roleplaying convention (which has also eaten my time for the whole week, limiting blogging despite there being interesting things happening). Normal bloggage will resume Tuesday. ...
The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weaponscame into force today, making the development, possession, use or threat of use of nuclear weapons illegal in international law. Every nuclear-armed state is now a criminal regime. The corporations and scientists who design, build and maintain their illegal weapons are now ...
"Come The Revolution!" The key objective of Bernard Hickey’s revolutionary solution to the housing crisis is a 50 percent reduction in the price of the average family home. This will be achieved by the introduction of Capital Gains, Land, and Wealth taxes, and by the opening up of currently RMA-protected ...
by Daphna Whitmore Twitter and Facebook shutting down Trump’s accounts after his supporters stormed Capitol Hill is old news now but the debates continue over whether the actions against Trump are a good thing or not. Those in favour of banning Trump say Twitter and Facebook are private companies and ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections Democrats now control the White House, Senate, and House of Representatives for the first time in a decade, albeit with razor thin Congressional majorities. The last time, in the 111th Congress (2009-2011), House Democrats passed a carbon cap and trade bill, but it died ...
Session thirty-three was highly abbreviated, via having to move house in a short space of time. Oh well. The party decided to ignore the tree-monster and continue the attack on the Giant Troll. Tarsin – flying on a giant summoned bat – dumped some high-grade oil over the ...
Last night I stayed up till 3am just to see then-President Donald Trump leave the White House, get on a plane, and fly off to Florida, hopefully never to return. And when I woke up this morning, America was different. Not perfect, because it never was. Probably not even good, ...
Watching today’s inauguration of Joe Biden as the United States’ 46th president, there’s not a lot in common with the inauguration of Donald Trump just four destructive years ago. Where Trump warned of carnage, Biden dared to hope for unity and decency. But the one place they converge is that ...
Dan FalkBritons who switched on their TVs to “Good Morning Britain” on the morning of Sept. 15, 2020, were greeted by news not from our own troubled world, but from neighboring Venus. Piers Morgan, one of the hosts, was talking about a major science story that had surfaced the ...
Sara LutermanGrowing up autistic in a non-autistic world can be very isolating. We are often strange and out of sync with peers, despite our best efforts. Autistic adults have, until very recently, been largely absent from media and the public sphere. Finding role models is difficult. Finding useful advice ...
Doug JohnsonThe alien-like blooms and putrid stench of Amorphophallus titanum, better known as the corpse flower, draw big crowds and media coverage to botanical gardens each year. In 2015, for instance, around 75,000 people visited the Chicago Botanic Garden to see one of their corpse flowers bloom. More than ...
Getting to Browser Tab Zero so I can reboot the computer is awfully hard when the one open tab is a Table of Contents for the Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, and every issue has more stuff I want to read. A few highlights: Gugler et al demonstrating ...
Timothy Ford, University of Massachusetts Lowell and Charles M. Schweik, University of Massachusetts AmherstTo mitigate health inequities and promote social justice, coronavirus vaccines need to get to underserved populations and hard-to-reach communities. There are few places in the U.S. that are unreachable by road, but other factors – many ...
Israel chose to pay a bit over the odds for the Pfizer vaccine to get earlier access. Here’s The Times of Israel from 16 November. American government will be charged $39 for each two-shot dose, and the European bloc even less, but Jerusalem said to agree to pay $56. Israel ...
Orla is a gender critical Marxist in Ireland. She gave a presentation on 15 January 2021 on the connection between postmodern/transgender identity politics and the current attacks on democratic and free speech rights. Orla has been active previously in the Irish Socialist Workers Party and the People Before Profit electoral ...
. . America: The Empire Strikes Back (at itself) Further to my comments in the first part of 2020: The History That Was, the following should be considered regarding the current state of the US. They most likely will be by future historians pondering the critical decades of ...
Nathaniel ScharpingIn March, as the Covid-19 pandemic began to shut down major cities in the U.S., researchers were thinking about blood. In particular, they were worried about the U.S. blood supply — the millions of donations every year that help keep hospital patients alive when they need a transfusion. ...
Sarah L Caddy, University of CambridgeVaccines are a marvel of medicine. Few interventions can claim to have saved as many lives. But it may surprise you to know that not all vaccines provide the same level of protection. Some vaccines stop you getting symptomatic disease, but others stop you ...
Back in 2016, the Portuguese government announced plans to stop burning coal by 2030. But progress has come much quicker, and they're now scheduled to close their last coal plant by the end of this year: The Sines coal plant in Portugal went offline at midnight yesterday evening (14 ...
The Sincerest Form Of Flattery: As anybody with the intestinal fortitude to brave the commentary threads of local news-sites, large and small, will attest, the number of Trump-supporting New Zealanders is really quite astounding. IT’S SO DIFFICULT to resist the temptation to be smug. From the distant perspective of New Zealand, ...
RNZ reports on continued arbitrariness on decisions at the border. British comedian Russell Howard is about to tour New Zealand and other acts allowed in through managed isolation this summer include drag queen RuPaul and musicians at Northern Bass in Mangawhai and the Bay Dreams festival. The vice-president of the ...
As families around the world mourn more than two million people dead from Covid-19, the Plan B academics and their PR industry collaborator continue to argue that the New Zealand government should stop focusing on our managed isolation and quarantine system and instead protect the elderly so that they can ...
A chronological listing of news articles linked to on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Jan 10, 2021 through Sat, Jan 16, 2021Editor's ChoiceNASA says 2020 tied for hottest year on record — here’s what you can do to helpPhoto by Michael Held on Unsplash ...
Health authorities in Norway are reporting some concerns about deaths in frail elderly after receiving their COVID-19 vaccine. Is this causally related to the vaccine? Probably not but here are the things to consider. According to the news there have been 23 deaths in Norway shortly after vaccine administration and ...
Happy New Year! No, experts are not concerned that “…one of New Zealand’s COIVD-1( vaccines will fail to protect the country” Here is why. But first I wish to issue an expletive about this journalism (First in Australia and then in NZ). It exhibits utter failure to actually truly consult ...
All nations have shadows; some acknowledge them. For others they shape their image in uncomfortable ways.The staunch Labour supporter was in despair at what her Rogernomics Government was doing. But she finished ‘at least, we got rid of Muldoon’, a response which tells us that then, and today, one’s views ...
Grigori GuitchountsIn November, Springer Nature, one of the world’s largest publishers of scientific journals, made an attention-grabbing announcement: More than 30 of its most prestigious journals, including the flagship Nature, will now allow authors to pay a fee of US$11,390 to make their papers freely available for anyone to read ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Gary Yohe, Henry Jacoby, Richard Richels, and Benjamin Santer Imagine a major climate change law passing the U.S. Congress unanimously? Don’t bother. It turns out that you don’t need to imagine it. Get this: The Global Change Research Act of 1990 was passed ...
“They’re here already! You’re next! You’re next! You’re next!”WHO CAN FORGET the penultimate scene of the 1956 movie classic, Invasion of the Body Snatchers? The wild-eyed doctor, stumbling down the highway, trying desperately to warn his fellow citizens: “They’re here already! You’re next! You’re next! You’re next!”Ostensibly science-fiction, the movie ...
TheOneRing.Net has got its paws on the official synopsis of the upcoming Amazon Tolkien TV series. It’s a development that brings to mind the line about Sauron deliberately releasing Gollum from the dungeons of Barad-dûr. Amazon knew exactly what they were doing here, in terms of drumming up publicity: ...
Since Dwight Eisenhower’s inauguration in 1953, US presidents have joined an informal club intended to provide support - and occasionally rivalry - between those few who have been ‘leaders of the free world’. Donald Trump, elected on a promise to ‘drain the swamp’ and a constant mocker of his predecessors, ...
For over a decade commentators have noted the rise of a new brand of explicitly ideological politics throughout the world. By this they usually refer to the re-emergence of national populism and avowedly illiberal approaches to governance throughout the “advanced” democratic community, but they also extend the thought to the ...
The US House of Representatives has just impeached Donald Trump, giving him the dubious honour of being the only US President to be impeached twice. Ten Republicans voted for impeachement, making it the most bipartisan impeachment ever. The question now is whether the Senate will rise to the occasion, and ...
Kieren Mitchell; Alice Mouton, Université de Liège; Angela Perri, Durham University, and Laurent Frantz, Ludwig Maximilian University of MunichThanks to the hit television series Game of Thrones, the dire wolf has gained a near-mythical status. But it was a real animal that roamed the Americas for at least 250,000 ...
Tide of tidal data rises Having cast our own fate to include rising sea level, there's a degree of urgency in learning the history of mean sea level in any given spot, beyond idle curiosity. Sea level rise (SLR) isn't equal from one place to another and even at a particular ...
Well, some of those chickens sure came home bigly, didn’t they… and proceeded to shit all over the nice carpet in the Capitol. What we were seeing here are societal forces that have long had difficulty trying to reconcile people to the “idea” of America and the reality of ...
In the wake of Donald Trump's incitement of an assault on the US capitol, Twitter finally enforced its terms of service and suspended his account. They've since followed that up with action against prominent QAnon accounts and Trumpers, including in New Zealand. I'm not unhappy with this: Trump regularly violated ...
Peter S. Ross, University of British ColumbiaThe Arctic has long proven to be a barometer of the health of our planet. This remote part of the world faces unprecedented environmental assaults, as climate change and industrial chemicals threaten a way of life for Inuit and other Indigenous and northern ...
Susan St John makes the case for taxing a deemed rate of return on excessive real estate holdings (after a family home exemption), to redirect scarce housing resources to where they are needed most. Read the full article here ...
I’m less than convinced by arguments that platforms like Twitter should be subject to common carrier regulation preventing them from being able to decide who to keep on as clients of their free services, and who they would not like to serve. It’s much easier to create competition for the ...
The hypocritical actions of political leaders throughout the global Covid pandemic have damaged public faith in institutions and governance. Liam Hehir chronicles the way in which contemporary politicians have let down the public, and explains how real leadership means walking the talk. During the Blitz, when German bombs were ...
Over the years, we've published many rebuttals, blog posts and graphics which came about due to direct interactions with the scientists actually carrying out the underlying research or being knowledgable about a topic in general. We'll highlight some of these interactions in this blog post. We'll start with two memorable ...
Yesterday we had the unseemly sight of a landleech threatening to keep his houses empty in response to better tenancy laws. Meanwhile in Catalonia they have a solution for that: nationalisation: Barcelona is deploying a new weapon in its quest to increase the city’s available rental housing: the power ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Jeff Masters, PhD The 2020 global wildfire season brought extreme fire activity to the western U.S., Australia, the Arctic, and Brazil, making it the fifth most expensive year for wildfire losses on record. The year began with an unprecedented fire event ...
NOTE: This is an excerpt from a digital story – read the full story here.Tess TuxfordKo te Kauri Ko Au, Ko te Au ko Kauri I am the kauri, the kauri is me Te Roroa proverb In Waipoua Forest, at the top of the North Island, New ...
Story of the Week... Toon of the Week... Coming Soon on SkS... Poster of the Week... SkS Week in Review... Story of the Week... Coming attraction: IPCC's upcoming major climate assessmentLook for more emphasis on 'solutions,' efforts by cities, climate equity ... and outlook for emissions cuts in ...
Ringing A Clear Historical Bell: The extraordinary images captured in and around the US Capitol Building on 6 January 2021 mirror some of the worst images of America's past.THERE IS A SCENE in the 1982 movie Missing which has remained with me for nearly 40 years. Directed by the Greek-French ...
To impact or not to impeach? I understand why some of those who are justifiably aghast at Trump’s behaviour over recent days might still counsel against impeaching him for a second time. To impeach him, they argue, would run the risk of making him a martyr in the eyes of ...
The Capitol Building, Washington DC, Wednesday, 6 January 2021. Oh come, my little one, come.The day is almost done.Be at my side, behold the sightOf evening on the land.The life, my love, is hardAnd heavy is my heart.How should I live if you should leaveAnd we should be apart?Come, let me ...
A chronological listing of news articles linked to on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Jan 3, 2021 through Sat, Jan 9, 2021Editor's ChoiceAfter the Insurrection: Accountability, Reform, and the Science of Democracy The poisonous lies and enablers of sedition--including Senator Hawley, pictured ...
This article, guest authored by Prof. Angela Gallego-Sala & Dr. Julie Loisel, was originally published on the Carbon Brief website on Dec 21, 2020. It is reposted below in its entirety. Click here to access the original article and comments. Peatlands Peatlands are ecosystems unlike any other. Perpetually saturated, their ...
The assault on the US Capitol and constitutional crisis that it has caused was telegraphed, predictable and yet unexpected and confusing. There are several subplots involved: whether the occupation of the Michigan State House in May was a trial run for the attacks on Congress; whether people involved in the ...
On Christmas Eve, child number 1 spotted a crack in a window. It’s a double-glazed window, and inspection showed that the small, horizontal crack was in the outermost pane. It was perpendicular to the frame, about three-quarters of the way up one side. The origins are a mystery. It MIGHT ...
A growing public housing waiting list and continued increase of house prices must be urgently addressed by Government, Green Party Co-leader Marama Davidson said today. ...
[Opening comments, welcome and thank you to Auckland University etc] It is a great pleasure to be here this afternoon to celebrate such an historic occasion - the entry into force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. This is a moment many feared would never come, but ...
The Government is providing $3 million in one-off seed funding to help disabled people around New Zealand stay connected and access support in their communities, Minister for Disability Issues, Carmel Sepuloni announced today. The funding will allow disability service providers to develop digital and community-based solutions over the next two ...
Border workers in quarantine facilities will be offered voluntary daily COVID-19 saliva tests in addition to their regular weekly testing, COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said today. This additional option will be rolled out at the Jet Park Quarantine facility in Auckland starting on Monday 25 January, and then to ...
The next steps in the Government’s ambitious firearms reform programme to include a three-month buy-back have been announced by Police Minister Poto Williams today. “The last buy-back and amnesty was unprecedented for New Zealand and was successful in collecting 60,297 firearms, modifying a further 5,630 firearms, and collecting 299,837 prohibited ...
The Government has released its Public Housing Plan 2021-2024 which outlines the intention of where 8,000 additional public and transitional housing places announced in Budget 2020, will go. “The Government is committed to continuing its public house build programme at pace and scale. The extra 8,000 homes – 6000 public ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has congratulated President Joe Biden on his inauguration as the 46th President of the United States of America. “I look forward to building a close relationship with President Biden and working with him on issues that matter to both our countries,” Jacinda Ardern said. “New Zealand ...
A major investment to tackle wilding pines in Mt Richmond will create jobs and help protect the area’s unique ecosystems, Biosecurity Minister Damien O’Connor says. The Mt Richmond Forest Park has unique ecosystems developed on mineral-rich geology, including taonga plant species found nowhere else in the country. “These special plant ...
To further protect New Zealand from COVID-19, the Government is extending pre-departure testing to all passengers to New Zealand except from Australia, Antarctica and most Pacific Islands, COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said today. “The change will come into force for all flights arriving in New Zealand after 11:59pm (NZT) on Monday ...
Bay Conservation Cadets launched with first intake Supported with $3.5 million grant Part of $1.245b Jobs for Nature programme to accelerate recover from Covid Cadets will learn skills to protect and enhance environment Environment Minister David Parker today welcomed the first intake of cadets at the launch of the Bay ...
The Prime Minister of New Zealand Jacinda Ardern and the Prime Minister of the Cook Islands Mark Brown have announced passengers from the Cook Islands can resume quarantine-free travel into New Zealand from 21 January, enabling access to essential services such as health. “Following confirmation of the Cook Islands’ COVID ...
Jobs for Nature funding is being made available to conservation groups and landowners to employ staff and contractors in a move aimed at boosting local biodiversity-focused projects, Conservation Minister Kiritapu Allan has announced. It is estimated some 400-plus jobs will be created with employment opportunities in ecology, restoration, trapping, ...
The Government has approved an exception class for 1000 international tertiary students, degree level and above, who began their study in New Zealand but were caught offshore when border restrictions began. The exception will allow students to return to New Zealand in stages from April 2021. “Our top priority continues ...
Today’s deal between Meridian and Rio Tinto for the Tiwai smelter to remain open another four years provides time for a managed transition for Southland. “The deal provides welcome certainty to the Southland community by protecting jobs and incomes as the region plans for the future. The Government is committed ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has appointed Anna Curzon to the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC). The leader of each APEC economy appoints three private sector representatives to ABAC. ABAC provides advice to leaders annually on business priorities. “ABAC helps ensure that APEC’s work programme is informed by business community perspectives ...
The Government’s prudent fiscal management and strong policy programme in the face of the COVID-19 global pandemic have been acknowledged by the credit rating agency Fitch. Fitch has today affirmed New Zealand’s local currency rating at AA+ with a stable outlook and foreign currency rating at AA with a positive ...
The Government is putting in place a suite of additional actions to protect New Zealand from COVID-19, including new emerging variants, COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said today. “Given the high rates of infection in many countries and evidence of the global spread of more transmissible variants, it’s clear that ...
$36 million of Government funding alongside councils and others for 19 projects Investment will clean up and protect waterways and create local jobs Boots on the ground expected in Q2 of 2021 Funding part of the Jobs for Nature policy package A package of 19 projects will help clean up ...
The commemoration of the 175th anniversary of the Battle of Ruapekapeka represents an opportunity for all New Zealanders to reflect on the role these conflicts have had in creating our modern nation, says Associate Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Kiri Allan. “The Battle at Te Ruapekapeka Pā, which took ...
“If today’s probable case of Covid-19 in Northland turns out to be community transmission the Government’s overarching objective must be avoiding another lockdown,” says ACT Leader David Seymour. “The best news would be that this is a false alarm, ...
E tū Lifewise homecare members have been taking strike and picket action since December 2020 for basic improvements in their working conditions. Members are asking for increased sick and bereavement leave, a collective agreement, and more guaranteed ...
Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for January 24. Reach me on stewart@thespinoff.co.nz1.15pm: Suspected community case in NorthlandHealth officials are investigating a suspected community case of Covid-19 in Northland, related to someone who was recently released from managed isolation and quarantine, the NZ Herald is reporting.A spokesperson for Covid-19 response ...
We’re only a few weeks into the year, and already there are two new seasons of Drag Race. Are we in danger of reaching peak Drag Race? In the first month of this year, there’s been more RuPaul’s Drag Race than ever. The 13th season of the flagship US version debuted ...
In her first years of adulthood, Jai Breitnauer found herself living in a bold and hopeful nation. More than two decades on, she laments on how the Britain we know now came to be.Apparently, fish off the coast of the United Kingdom are happier because they’re British. This is what ...
Dunedin writer Victor Billot resumes his weekly odes to New Zealanders in the news. This week: the blogging firm of Michael Bassett, Don Brash and Rodney HideThree Men in a BoatIt sounds like a conveyancing firm in Levin.It sounds like TV funny guys who’ll ...
Under a thick layer of concrete at the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacramentin Christchurch is a metal box likely containing hundreds of holy relics – a historical treasure trove set to be uncovered after 50 years of near total obscurity.As the earth shook and buildings crumbled, a statue of ...
Bananas are unequivocally the best fruit in the world, and there’s nothing you can say to change my mind, writes Alice Webb-Liddall.I was about 15 when I realised that halftime banana cake wasn’t a tradition outside of my family. On the day of an All Blacks game a banana cake ...
Summer reissue: Join Michèle A’Court, Alex Casey and Leonie Hayden as On the Rag looks at how the world around us has been built by men, for men. First published December 7, 2020.Independent journalism depends on you. Help us stay curious in 2021. The Spinoff’s journalism is funded by its members ...
At an antagonistic hearing yesterday, the internet giant laid out the ‘worst case scenario’. And Facebook is also considering an ‘amputation’. Hal Crawford was watching.Google is poised to hit self-destruct in Australia according to a fractious Senate hearing into an unprecedented law that will force digital giants to pay money ...
It’s great to hear Phil Twyford celebrating a success. Not a personal ministerial success, it’s fair to say, but a success nevertheless related to arms control. The arms on which Twyford is focused, it should be noted, will make quite a mess if they are triggered. They tend to be ...
Duncan Greive and Leonie Hayden were young hip hop heads and music journalists during the era captured in a new documentary about the rise and fall of South Auckland hip hop label Dawn Raid. Here they discuss the film and their memories (what’s left of them) of that time. Warning: contains ...
Houses might be the most popular and inflated purchases in New Zealand, but there are plenty of other products that are seeing soaring demand and prices over the past few months. Here’s a list of what New Zealanders are spending their money on with international travel out of the picture.Used ...
"The young boy leaps, the muscles in his thighs tensing and twisting as he lifts from the handrail": the noble art of bombing, by Pātea writer Airana Ngarewa A beautifully muscled boy is posted on the side of a pool, his feet fixed to the top of a pair of ...
How Waiwera Hot Pools went from New Zealand’s most visited water park to dereliction and decay. Many who grew up in Auckland likely have fond memories of Waiwera Hot Pools. Like me, they remember summer days spent racing down the slides and playing in the naturally hot pools. But how did ...
A government contract for a P rehab programme was canned after half a million dollars of taxpayer money was given out. Aaron Smale investigates. The Ministry of Health spent over half a million dollars on a P Rehab contract before pulling the pin because there were no results or progress reports. ...
Kia Koropp and her husband John Daubeny have been cruising the Pacific, Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean over the past decade with their two children onboard their 50ft yacht, Atea. Starting in 2011 from Auckland, New Zealand, they have sailed more than 64,000 kilometres and just completed their longest ...
We are drowning out the natural world with synthetic sounds, and it’s getting worse, writes Michelle Langstone.It used to be quiet once. Remember that? Remember the hush that settled over the cities like the silence that comes down in a snowstorm? It’s less than a year since Aotearoa first locked ...
Summer reissue: Join Michèle A’Court, Alex Casey and Leonie Hayden in the latest episode of On the Rag as they examine the topic of boobs from every possible angle. First published November 16, 2020.Independent journalism depends on you. Help us stay curious in 2021. The Spinoff’s journalism is funded by its ...
Seventy-five years after the US detonated the first nuclear tests in the Pacific, New Zealand pledges its support to Joe Biden's first tentative step towards disarmament. Today, the United Nations Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons comes into effect, making it illegal for New Zealand and the 50 other ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Terry, Professor of Psychology, University of Southern Queensland The challenge of bringing the world’s best tennis players and support staff, about 1,200 people in all, from COVID-ravaged parts of the world to our almost pandemic-free shores was always going to be ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Geoffrey Browne, Research Fellow in International Urban Development, University of Melbourne The Victorian government has committed to removing 75 road/rail level crossings across Melbourne by 2025. That’s the fastest rate of removal in the city’s history. The scale of the investment — ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Richard Holden, Professor of Economics, UNSW In an age of hyperpartisan politics, the Biden presidency offers a welcome centrism that might help bridge the divides. But it is also Biden’s economic centrism that offers a chance to cut through what has become ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Stevens, Lecturer in History, University of Waikato In a year of surprises, one of the more pleasant was the recent runaway viral popularity of 19th century sea shanties on TikTok. A collaborative global response to pandemic isolation, it saw singers and ...
The sudden departure of Graine Moss from her Chief Executive role at Oranga Tamariki is a vital first step in a sequence of changes that must take place at the Ministry according to a group of wahine Māori leaders. Dame Naida Glavish, Dame Tariana Turia, ...
A new poem from Dunedin poet Jenny Powell.Her uncle’s eyeShe introduced us to her uncle’s eye floating in a jar.Lost in an accident, he hadn’t wanted to lose it again. He left it to her in his will.We must have looked shocked. ‘Don’t worry,’ she said. ‘I turn him to ...
The chief executive of Oranga Tamariki is quitting, leaving behind an agency she’s admitted suffers from structural racism. Justin Giovannetti looks at the future of Oranga Tamariki.Grainne Moss’s tenure as head of Oranga Tamariki has been untenable since November when the government’s senior Māori minister wouldn’t express any confidence in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christopher Sainsbury, Senior Lecturer Composition, Australian National University Despite having different cultural backgrounds and experiences — Indigenous composers with an Indigenous mentor, and a pianist descended from Anglo-colonial history — it is nevertheless possible to create a project that can serve as ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Plank, Professor in Applied Mathematics, University of Canterbury With new, more infectious variants of COVID-19 detected around the world, and at New Zealand’s border, the risk of further level 3 or 4 lockdowns is increased if those viruses get into the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rachel Hogg, Lecturer in Psychology, Charles Sturt University Horse racing is an ethical hotbed in Australia. The Melbourne Cup alone has seen seven horses die after racing since 2013, and animal cruelty protesters have become a common feature at carnivals. The latest ...
Right now, our most fiery national debate is over whether New Zealanders were nice to the singer Amanda Palmer in a café. Desperate to restore peace in our nation, Hayden Donnell went in search of the truth.Joe Biden had barely finished calling for unity when Amanda Palmer posted a tweet ...
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 When We Cease to Understand the World by Benjamin Labatut (Pushkin Press, $37)Maths, cyanide, suicide, gardening; ye ...
Wellington artist Estère isn’t just breaking boundaries, she’s dissecting them. Maddi Rowe spoke to her about her new album, Archetypes.“That’s the story of pelicans, they’ll stab themselves in the heart to feed their young.”Despite the somewhat dark subject matter, Estère Dalton’s eyes sparkle with fascination. We’ve met to discuss Archetypes, ...
Cycling advocates are welcoming new advice from the Transport Agency on safe cycling. "Cyclists hate it when drivers pass too close. That's scary and dangerous," said Patrick Morgan from Cycling Action Network. "So it's encouraging to see ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tilman Ruff, Honorary Principal Fellow, School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne Today, many around the world will celebrate the first multilateral nuclear disarmament treaty to enter into force in 50 years. The UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear ...
The Public Service Association welcomes the creation of a Chief Executive role to lead the public service’s pay equity work, and the appointment of Grainne Moss to this position. "Unions and public service employers are currently working ...
The Council of Trade Unions is warning that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) figures out today illustrate that the cost of living is increasing disproportionately for those on lower incomes; resulting in the poor getting poorer. CTU Economist Craig ...
Why are there so many offensive comments on the New Zealand Police Facebook page and are they breaking the law? Janaye Henry investigates. New Zealand Police Facebook pages – there are a number of them, for different regional police districts around the country – are an interesting place to spend ...
Our guide to stopping procrastinating and actually (finally) getting on top of investing. Because there’s a good chance that if you’re reading this, you don’t know a single thing about it.In part one, we covered some of the basic things you need to know about investing – why do it? ...
Children’s Commissioner Andrew Becroft acknowledges the huge effort and commitment of departing Oranga Tamariki Chief Executive Grainne Moss and says her decision to resign today was principled. “The issues facing Oranga Tamariki are beyond individual ...
Analysis by Keith Rankin. Two Large Waves versus One Tsunami. Chart by Keith Rankin. Two Large Waves versus One Tsunami. Chart by Keith Rankin. With Covid19, Italy shows the classic European pattern, with its early outbreak, substantial recovery thanks to lockdowns and other public health measures, and resurgence thanks to complacency ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gabrielle Appleby, Professor, UNSW Law School, UNSW This year has already seen significant progress in the government’s commitment to establish a body – a “Voice” – that would allow Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to have a say when the government ...
Northland farmer Derek Robinson was sentenced earlier today by the District Court in Whangarei for two offences of ill-treating animals at rodeo events. Mr Robinson was found guilty in November last year, following a defended hearing. The charges ...
Under fire Oranga Tamariki chief executive Grainne Moss has announced she will resign, effective February 28, Marc Daalder reports After four and a half years at the helm of child protection agency Oranga Tamariki, chief executive Grainne Moss has announced she will be leaving the position at the end of ...
The Department of Internal Affairs and New Zealand Police acknowledge the sentencing of 36-year-old Aaron Joseph Hutton on charges relating to the possession of child sexual exploitation material, and entering into a dealing involving the sexual exploitation ...
Ngā Tāngata Microfinance (NTM) is calling for tougher penalties for those caught promoting pyramid schemes. Such business models are illegal under the Fair Trading Act 1986. This call comes after the Commerce Commission issued a ‘stop now’ notice ...
British High Commissioner to New Zealand Laura Clarke is calling on young women aged 17 to 25 to apply for the annual ‘Be British High Commissioner for the Day’ competition. The winner will have the opportunity to become an ‘honorary High Commissioner’, ...
The Māori Party is welcoming the resignation of Oranga Tamariki chief executive Grainne Moss after sustained pressure from leading figures within the Māori Party. This resignation is the result of the continued strong pressure of the Māori Party ...
In a historic corner of Dunedin, startup culture is thriving. Catherine McGregor visited the city’s Warehouse Precinct to meet the people driving the movement. When Jason and Kate Lindsey bought the four storey building now known as Petridish, it was an absolute wreck. Once home to a thriving hat and textiles ...
Summer reissue: The Fold’s very first guest is back to tell Duncan Greive how she pulled off the media deal of the year.The chaotic couple of weeks which finally saw the end of the Stuff-NZME saga were riveting and strange, replete with stock exchange announcements, legal challenges and finally the ...
Chris Liddell has dropped his candidacy to become director-general of the Paris-based OECD. Without support from the Ardern government and vilified in the media as somehow being involved in the encouragement by Donald Trump of the Washington riots, he plainly saw he had little chance of crowning his stellar career ...
Tara Ward hands out her first impression roses as she dives deep into the sea of single men vying to win The Bachelorette NZ’s heart. While the world burns in a searing fireball of unpredictability, we can take comfort in the fact that some things never change. The heart still yearns, ...
People from all around New Zealand will be converging on the super-secret Waihopai satellite interception spybase, in Marlborough, on Saturday January 30th. ...
In its Thursday editorial the NZ Herald speaks an important truth: “Investment important to stay on track”. This won’t have startled its more literate readers but in its text it notes the strong result in the latest Global Dairy Trade auction, which prompted Westpac to raise its forecast for dairy ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Craig Mark, Professor, Faculty of International Studies, Kyoritsu Women’s University With the spread of COVID-19 steadily worsening in Japan since the onset of winter — daily records for infections and deaths continue to be broken — the fate of the Tokyo Summer ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adam Taylor, Early Career Research Leader, Emerging Viruses, Inflammation and Therapeutics Group, Menzies Health Institute Queensland, Griffith University All eyes are on COVID-19 vaccines, with Australia’s first expected to be approved for use shortly. But their development in record time, without compromising ...
Yesterday’s government announcement on new state housing is a pathetic response to the biggest housing crisis in New Zealand since the 1940s. At a time when the country needs an industrial-scale state house building programme, the government ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Obadiah Mulder, PhD Candidate in Computational Biology, University of Southern California Australia is in the midst of tropical cyclone season. As we write, a cyclone is forming off Western Australia’s Pilbara coast, and earlier in the week Queenslanders were bracing for a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lynette Vernon, School of Education – VC Research Fellow, Edith Cowan University When the holidays end, barring a fresh outbreak of COVID-19, teenagers across Australia will head back to school. Some will bounce out of bed well before the alarm goes off, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Richard Holden, Professor of Economics, UNSW In an age of hyperpartisan politics, the Biden presidency offers a welcome centrism that might help bridge the divides. But it is also Biden’s economic centrism that offers a chance to cut through what has become ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gary Mortimer, Professor of Marketing and Consumer Behaviour, Queensland University of Technology Twenty years ago, on January 25 2001, a virtually unknown German supermarket chain quietly opened its first stores in Australia. The two stores – one in Sydney’s inner-west suburb of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Liz Giuffre, Senior Lecturer in Communication, University of Technology Sydney Bluey is easily the most successful Australian television show of the last decade. A record-breaking success for its local broadcaster the ABC, as well as production partners BBC Studios and Screen Australia, ...
*This article first appeared on RNZ and is republished with permissionIt will take $3 million to clean up 1 million litres of abandoned toxic waste from a property in Ruakaka - three times more than the last big chemical clean-up undertaken by government agencies A two-year mission to clean up 1 million ...
*This article first appeared on RNZ and is republished with permission. The action Biden took on just his first afternoon in office demonstrates a radical shift in priority for the US when it comes to its efforts to combat the climate crisis. It could put more pressure on New Zealand to step up. ...
Ban Bomb Day event at the New Brighton Pier, 9am, on January 22nd, 2021 January 22nd, 2021, marks the first day the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) Enters into Force and becomes international law. Aotearoa NZ is one of the ...
This week's biggest-selling New Zealand books, as recorded by the Nielsen BookScan New Zealand bestseller list and described by Steve BrauniasFICTION 1 Tell Me Lies by J.P. Pomare (Hachette, $29.99) Every January, there's a new best-selling crime thriller by the New Zealand-born author who lives in Melbourne. Pomare is ...
Our approach so far in trying to end what Dr Collin Tukuitonga describes as a 'racist' disease - rheumatic fever - has not worked. It's time we try something new, he writes. Acute rheumatic fever and the rheumatic heart disease it causes, long-known as a disease of poverty, is a blight on ...
New Zealand triple-code star, Anna Harrison, can't stop returning to the courts - whether it's netball or beach volleyball. She tells Ashley Stanley what keeps drawing her back. The day before Anna Harrison leaps back into netball, she will have one more hit-out at another of her favourite old sports ...
The lights are burning into the night at the New York Yacht Club's America's Cup base as they race to fix their damaged boat. And Suzanne McFadden discovers something surprising may emerge. Out of American Magic’s calamity may come opportunity - for even more speed. While the lights burn bright ...
Anyone want some Brit fudge?
'But a senior Boris Johnson backer yesterday admitted he may have to delay Brexit by a few weeks…'
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/9300327/britain-not-leave-eu-this-year/
'A well-connected school is often a golden ticket to a place at Oxbridge. Of the seven (including Gyimah) privately educated candidates McVey is the only one not to have gone to Oxford.'
https://inews.co.uk/opinion/comment/boris-johnson-rory-stewart-eton-balliol-tory-leadership-contenders-oxford-social-mobility/
'Theresa May backs Lorraine Kelly over 'complete cow' Esther Mcvey in TV fued'
https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/theresa-backs-lorraine-kelly-over-16520677
At last: a Scandinavian politician with integrity
Was just about to put this up myself….I see that The Guardian and The Washington Post have both finally changed their tune and realized that they have been on the wrong side of history on this one.
NZ Media: Toeing the pro war propaganda line
We are at war with East Asia, we have always been at war with East Asia
New Zealand media and the Ministry of Truth (Minitru)
Yesterday TVNZ news reported the US version of the attack on a Japanese oil tanker in the Gulf of Hormuz, verbatim. TVNZ deliberately omitted the Japanese version of events.
The US claimed that the Japanese ship was damaged with limpet mines attached to the ship and that this was proof that the attack was planned and carried out by the Iranians.
The Japanese claimed that their ship had been hit by "flying objects". The Japanese report was deliberately left out of the TVNZ, coverage.
This morning Stuff.co.nz decided to omit all coverage of this attack.
You can scour the popular NZ online News site for news of this unfolding story, all you like, all mention of this contentious attack and the embarrassing counter claims are completely missing.
George Orwell in his novel 1984 wrote of a fictitious news organisation, that kept what he called a 'memory hole'. Stories embarrassing to the establishment authorities were placed in this memory hole never to be recalled.
Stuff.co.nz realising Orwell's nightmare
https://www.stuff.co.nz/
Yes will are living in a time when what should be our trusted media sources are now trying to tell us up is down and black is white…and unfortunately it seems to be getting worse all the time.
After the hysterical news coverage and saber rattling that spilled out of pretty much all western press following the chemical attack in Douma, they seem very quiet when it is revealed that all is not as it seemed….no follow up stories on RNZ that I have heard either.
New Evidence Suggests 2018 Chemical Attack in Douma, Syria Was Staged
https://therealnews.com/stories/new-evidence-suggests-2018-syria-chemical-attack-in-douma-was-staged
https://www.democracynow.org/2019/5/23/leaked_opcw_report_raises_new_questions
Here is a little history of the US bullshitting itself into violence around the world…and still out news sources parrot their lies again and again..
Last night TVNZ News at 6 reported the attack on the Japanese oil tanker in the Gulf of Hormuz, which TVNZ reporters loyally followed the pro-war US narrative squarely putting the blame on the Iranians. TVNZ refused to report the Japanese version of the attack which contradicted the pro-war US narrative.
Stuff.co.nz took a different path and censored this story and its embarassing contradictions completely.
It is almost 6pm again.
Will TVNZ give a more balanced report of this attack tonight?
Or will TVNZ follow the Stuff.co.nz direction on this story with its embarrassing contradictions and bury it in the memory hole.
TVNZ News at 6 the two international news stories
A hobby horse competition in Norway.
And a religious service conducted in hardhats at the Notre Dame Cathedral in France.
No correction or coverage of the shockingly biased one sided pro-war reporting of the attack on the Japanese oil tanker in the Gulf of Hormuz last night, that gave only the US side of the story and completely censored the Japanese crew version of the attack on their ship.
If NZ is dragged into another US bloodbath, TVNZ shameful one sided pro-war propaganda will be partly responsible.
New Zealanders should be rightly sickened at this example of lying by omission in the service of mass murder by TVNZ.
Less creepily pro-war, The Sydney Morning Herald
Notice all the right wing supporters of 'free speech' for fascists, have nothing to say about mainstream media censorship, especially if it is in the service of inciting a war.
"Restoring Regional rail" 16th June 2019.
Shane Jones said "It was a great day for HB/Gisborne" – thanks for your support to the many fighting for this day.
Question now is; – when do we reopen the Gisborne line as Gisborne is the most isolated City of its size in NZ today without a rail service? Dear rail stakeholders.
We have a picture of the first train that leaves Gisborne in June 1942 for Napier while 10 000 people wave them off, as the ‘Minister of rail’ (Robert Semple) says it was justified to spend over 6 million pounds to complete the rail service to Gisborne as it was an “isolated” region with few other transport choices.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/113480664/kiwirail-to-celebrate-reopening-of-napier-to-wairoa-line
KiwiRail celebrates re-opening of Napier to Wairoa line Andre Chumko and Bethany Reitsma16:03, Jun 14 2019
Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones discusses what will happen to truck drivers as a result of the Napier-Wairoa rail line re-opening.
Mervyn Smiley, an Eskdale resident of 25 years, has longed for the day when trains returned to the mothballed Napier to Wairoa line.
On Friday, that dream became reality as a brass band and haka welcomed Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones to KiwiRail's depot in Ahuriri, near Napier Port.
After a short series of speeches, the minister and various other politicians including Napier MP Stuart Nash, Ikaroa-Rāwhiti MP Meka Whaitiri and National's Lawrence Yule, joined the region's mayors in boarding the carriages of the first train to make the first full trip between Napier and Wairoa since 2012. Among the politicians present were Napier MP Stuart Nash and Ikaroa-Rāwhiti MP Meka Whaitiri. On the train,
Jones held a press conference, where he described the day as a great one for Hawke's Bay. Jones said KiwiRail had had "so little for so long", and the $6.2 million investment so far was a big deal, especially in relation to moving trucks off the roads.It would also allow businesses to grow their logistics capacity, and boost exports.
The train stationed at Ahuriri before departing for Wairoa. "If we're in for the KiwiRail journey, it's a long-term journey.
It's about a nation building infrastructure at a time when there's a lot of uncertainty about weather." And the "fiscal love" would continue to flow post 2020's election, he said, forecasting "substantial amounts" being injected into KiwiRail. On whether there was a possibility of extending the line to Gisborne, Jones said any business case would be pushing on an open door.
Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones said it was a significant day. KiwiRail chief executive Greg Miller said with work on the line finished, its next focus was on establishing a log-hub in Wairoa so it could begin running trains as soon as August.
"The amount of timber flowing from forests in the region is expected to quadruple in the next four years and to get all those logs to market will require all transport networks working efficiently together."
He forecast up to six trains travelling the line per week, meaning about 5000 fewer truck journeys initially, and more than 15,000 as services increased.
The Deco Bay Brass group performed for Shane Jones upon his arrival. Jones said local civic leaders – mayors, council chairs and MPs – who had lobbied him were to credit for the re-opening.
"This will substantially reduce their roading bill if they can move more heavy freight onto rail." Transport advocacy groups NZ Transport 2050 and the Public Transport Users Association said in a statement the previous Government underfunded the line.
Locals were waving at the train the whole trip, happy to see the line back in action. "The loss of 20 fulltime jobs in Wairoa was a big hit for a small community.
With the railway re-opening today it opens up opportunities for wood processors to again re-establish in the town," Paul Miller, chair of NZ Transport 2050 said.
Green Party MP Gareth Hughes said regional rail should be the backbone of the transport system for people and freight, and his party would like to see the line extended from Wairoa to Gisborne. Hukarere Girls' College students performed a waiata for ministers and MPs upon their arrival to Eskdale, north of Napier. The train then departed for Wairoa.
Gareth Hughes is wrong. Rail will never be the "backbone of the transport system for people." Even for freight, it will only be the case for bulk cargoes and containers.
Now, I happen to believe that more needs to be done in rail. Electrification from Auckland to Wellington, reopening to Gisborne and Rotorua, decent passenger service to Hamilton, and of course Northport.
But in New Zealand rail will always by a minority/specialist form of transport. Roads are invariably faster and vastly more flexible. Which is why they need substantial investment.
….and vastly more flexible.
Really?
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/111065215/kpiti-expressway-needs-25-million-worth-of-repairs-just-two-years-after-opening
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10395289
https://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/100847641/christchurch-the-pothole-capital-of-new-zealand
Unfortunately, yes really. It's way, way easier to put a road somewhere than a railway line, which is one reason we're still on narrow-gauge rail and it's mostly single-tracked. Rail infrastructure is expensive. A government with an eye to the long term and protection of the environment would bite the bullet and prioritise the more expensive option, but the three-year electoral cycle and voters' love of cars argue very strongly for taking the quick-and-cheap option instead.
Care to clarify? What do you think is the more expensive option – short to medium term? I'm assuming you think it is rail because of the 3rd dimension (the up and down bits).
It really needn't be however if you consider corridor widths necessary for the roading option versus those necessary to carry freight (and passenger for that matter) over a more 'levelled out' narrower corridor,
And I'm not sure why Indians and Chinese can construct/reconstruct railways over 100km or more in the space of 18 or so months, whereas lil 'ole Nu Zull struggles.
(I'm thinking maybe things like Fulton and Hogan monopolies on tar seal/bitumen, traffic management – STMS – and a heap of other bullshit that's been allowed to prevail over the past several years. Oh, and not to mention lobbyists; owner drivers and their investments and whose livelihoods are dependent on it all continuing, and a few other bits and pieces. YES IT REALLY 'IS')
Pretty close to my view, main change I'd make would be "usually" rather than "invariably". But a big change I think needs to happen is rebalancing how roads are funded so that users pay in proportion to the expense they cause.
For out-of town roads highways, the engineering evidence seems very clear that trucks cause a much higher proportion of the damage and maintenance and even initial road building expense than they pay for, while cars and other light vehicles pay substantially more than their fair share.
Rebalancing the road user charges and fuel excise tax systems so trucking pays a fair share, rather than getting a hidden subsidy, would be a good first step. Then rail might be slightly closer to being competitive for moving freight on an even footing.
For most cities, it's sheer numbers of vehicles at peak times that cause big expenses. So some sort of demand or congestion charging only seems fair.
Hell, both those steps would be worth doing just to watch the ensuing histrionics and special pleading that would ensue
, let alone the actual real resulting benefits.
If trucks were forced to pay the full price of the damage they do it would force up the price of every thing that is carried by trucks .
The poor would suffer the most as usual.
Let the special pleading begin …
A consequence like that isn't an argument against doing the right thing. But if the effects actually turn out to be big enough, then it is a good reason to include other adjustments at the same time, such as increases in benefit rates and/or minimum wage and/or tax rate and threshold adjustments at the bottom end of the scale.
In the case of rebalancing how roads are paid for, chances are pretty good the reduction in tax on petrol and reduced road user charges for small diesel vehicles will help the poor more than increased transport costs will hurt them.
If we stopped subsidising road freight via petrol excise, general taxation, importing of cheap third-world labour and the off-loading of environmental costs onto future generations, many goods would be more expensive, yes. That's not a reason to continue doing those things.
Not so Japan.
4 Major Means Of Transportation In Japan
BULLET TRAIN/SHINKANSEN
The Bullet train/Shinkansen links the major cities on the island of Honshu and Kyushu as well as Hokadate located on northern island of Hokkaido….
CONVENTIONAL LINES
This is the major means of passenger transport in Japan.
https://fastjapan.com/en/p125853
The more motorways and fossil fuel lobby, God bless 'em, are doing their damnedness to ensure that doesn't happen here.
Public transport not more roading is where the real investment needs to happen.
How do we compare vis a vis population density jensy?
Yep. If NZ had 120 million people in it like Japan does, I expect we'd have an excellent railway network because the alternative would be all-gridlock, all the time. But we don't, so we don't.
Certainly New Zealand is highly unlikely to ever see true high speed rail like Shinkansen, or commuter rail like major Japanese cities. But most of the Japanese rail network is rural 1067mm gauge lines very similar to New Zealand. Their loading gauge is slightly larger, but less than Kiwi Rail's aspirational standard.
Passenger services running at 100 – 130 kmh are the norm and a situation like Whangarei – Auckland – Hamilton – Tauranga would have a regular and highly patronised service.
It's ironic that those speeds, 100 -130 kmh, were common for our express passenger services in the steam days. I remember being a passenger in a car on SH1 around Rakaia when we were passed by the SI Limited going in the same direction like we were standing still.
Interesting – I always assumed our trains are so slow due to the narrow gauge track.
They're a great idea – though the KTX is more modern and was adopted by China as the standard for its network. The Wellington/Auckland run, if replaced, would greatly reduce the use of aircraft for domestic travel. Roomier, cheaper, and a better prospect for working in transit, the modernity is far beyond that imaginable to the paleoGnats, though the smarter Greens and younger Labour folk might get it.
Unhappily, roads are much more carbon negative than rail. The heavy longhaul truck model was broken when frankly stupid governments like yours brought it in Wayne – much moreso as the push to contain carbon release moves from the systematic frauds perpetrated under National, to real albeit slow reform.
Surprising when an ex Government minister knows so little about how freight works in New Zealand.
Trucking is both inefficient and expensive, compared with rail and shipping.
Hidden by the huge subsidies motorists, rate payers and general tax payers are forced to give to trucking. And all they pay for it is some National party funding and employment for some ex MP's. An excellent investment. For trucking firms!
The only way Rail would become the backbone of NZ Transport scene again, would be if NZ's Sea Lanes Of Communication were cut or degraded to a point that it reduces NZ's import of its POL products/ production where rationing has to introduce.
But since NZ Rail at levels during before its sell off by all Governments, under Private ownership and after it was re-nationalise that it needs a level of state involvement and investment since the 1930's under the first NZ Labour Government.
Its last major rail workshop that built wagons and Locomotives closed, this decision by the "No Mates Party" now causing delays for the new Inter- City train Auckland- Hamilton passenger train as KiwiRail no longer makes stuff aka bogies for the rebuilt passenger carriages. WTF!!!!
The Way and Works Dept was ran into the ground under private ownership which has effected the speed on some lines the Canterbury Plains lines the Ka, Kb's and the old Vulcan Railcars were doing a 100kph plus and the current loco’s s etc are now restricted to 90kph or less WTF!!!.
The loading gauge has been impacted as a result of running down of the Way and Works Dept, to a point the old Standard Railcars under private ownership are restricted on some Nth Island rail lines (Note: The Standard Railcars were Nth Island base only and the Vulcans Sth Island Base). Apart from the NIMT between Plamy and Frankston has seen any major realignment's, major rebuilds apart from the recent earthquake's in the Sth Island or Otaki rebuilds at still dated back when Rail and Stream were Kings. The last Rail Observer mention that KiwiRail was refuse funds to build a major Rail Hub at Rollie Sth of CHCH which has increase cost to producers in the Mid Canterbury Regional, but the Palmy one got the Ok and then we have the saga of the Gizzy line, Northland Rail lines and other mothball lines.
Land was sold off by Government's in the mid 80's and under Private ownership without any thought to the future use for freight and passenger services. A good example of this the CHCH Station and the removal of the turnout towards the site of the old Station, land around the New Market Junction and that's before we even start talking the Britomart Station only being restricted to 4 roads or the Wellington Station issues as well.
To those that the current Rail gauge of 3ft 6in restricts NZ Rail services is a bloody load of Bollocks. We only need to have a look at the Tilt Trains in Qld both Electric and Diesel power trains or the Train Systems in the Perth/ Lower to Mid WA.
To those out there that want to understand the current issues facing NZ Rail and other aspects of NZ Rail from the pass and to the future? Grab the latest edition of the NZ Rail Observer and sign up to the NZ Rail Society.
Sorry for the plug for the NZ Rail Society.
Cleangreen: I absolutely upport a strong rail base for freight and commuters, but the Gisborne line has always been a problem.
Major erosion issues have meant this line has frequently been closed for very long periods. It would always have been like that, and that line was never going to be essential to the rail system as a whole, being a dead end as such.
Better to bite the bullet and keep it closed, and spend the money elsewhere in the rail system. Which I guess is what the current government has decided.
It's ironic you say that Peter, our local example of road/rail/slips has the road closed, the Manawatu Gorge, and across the river the trains keep on trucking.
Apparently the difference between the terra firma of the Ruahines (rail) and the Tararuas is profound. Consequence is all the road freight grinds it's way up, over and down the Ruahines.
For the sake of a couple of tunnels being widened we could have the trucks trained through the gorge, Woodville to Ashhurst or Palmy….
I thought of you clean when I heard the Napier-Wairoa announcement.
Toasted your efforts with a lovely hopped chilli home brew cider.
tRump's 'Murica.
I wonder what the reaction would be, if the same criteria were included in a job ad. for any other kind of child care facility?
who would have predicted that.
I was surprised to notice that Marama seems to have gotten belated traction in her campaign to liberate the C word – in the most unlikeliest of places. Britain, where the stuff upper lip is no longer merely quivering. It seems to have gone feral. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-hunt-c-word-victoria-derbyshire-tory-leadership-race-contest-a8958426.html
"Jeremy Hunt has demanded broadcasters “grow up” and stop mistakenly referring to him by the C-word when trying to pronounce his surname."
"On Tuesday, BBC presenter Victoria Derbyshire followed a host of TV and radio personalities by accidentally referring to the foreign secretary as “Jeremy C***” live on-air. Addressing Conservative MP Steve Brine, Derbyshire said: “You say the man you are backing, Jeremy C***…”
“I’m so sorry, Jeremy Hunt. I’ve never said that before in my life. It’s normally men who say that so I really, really want to apologise.”
"Others who have made the gaffe include Sky News reporter Thomas Moore, BBC journalists Justin Webb and James Naughtie, as well as presenter Nicky Campbell just last week."
Jeremy Hunt is the British Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs. For the British media to vilify him thus seems a new behavioural low, which has become contagious. Not an appropriate way to treat a leading govt minister!
Notice how he asks them to grow up, yet refers to their utterances as mistakes. Adults make mistakes too. Surely he knows they do! Really accidental?? Or juvenile? Perhaps it would be better for offenders to agree that the trend is Freudian slippage…
To be fair, Jeremy Hunt's personality and behaviour must make it very hard for journalists to remember to say "Hunt" when referring to him.
If he'd just stop being such a hunt it might happen less often.
It's in the feed section but needs to be highlighted:
http://bowalleyroad.blogspot.com/2019/06/ripped-away-from-their-parents.html
First of all the "State"- aided and abetted by successive governments – created the climate of poverty that exists among Maori communities in particular, and then they remove their babies on the pretext they are nor living in safe and secure environments.
There will of course be valid reasons why some children have to be removed from their Whanau, but it is looks to me like the agencies involved have created a social apartheid system based on their prejudices and… not a little desire for power and control.
Minister, Tracy Martin has announced an inquiry into the case. I have trust in her to ensure the inquiry is fair and the outcome reasonable.
https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/inquiry-announced-into-handling-attempted-uplift-baby-in-hawkes-bay-last-month-oranga-tamariki
They might know more about the whanau and their associates than they're allowed to say.
True Gabby, but they might also be basing their judgement on past behaviour not taking into account that the circumstances of the mother and her whanau may have changed.
Trivial comment.
If my weight goes up because I'm fat, why does the fatty cream float on top of the milk? Perhaps i should eat more cream.
Or drink more milk? Force those fat deposits to the surface GWS!
And how does balsa get away with being a hardwood greysy?
If they're all scrunched up together, how come they're called apartments?
Drink buttermilk, That allows the fat to be suspended in water (blood) and carried away.
"Fuck the Government and Fuck Boris"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ClYy0MxsU0
The Act Party's new branding is blue, yellow and hot pink.
I feel a migraine coming on.
https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/actnz/sites/1002/meta_images/original/output-onlinepngtools.png?1560642422
Once upon a time, I had ski gear in just those colours!
That is terrible design. The type looks awful at that size and its a text body font anyway. Even worse is the horrible contrast between the oblique shapes and the type.
Any what does the pink represent? There seems to have been no design brief, and even less design ability.
Like ACT itself a clumsy, poorly thought out wish mash of not fit for purpose ideas…
…on second thoughts that logo is a perfect description of the 0.4% party.
Maybe it's a trend
Maybe Seymour got the idea after he went to…
https://www.peachesandcream.co.nz/catalog/view/theme/custom/image/2014/pc-logo-white.png
If you think for one minute the old money establishment give a rats about you and yours, think again… In the following spot the similarity with dirty politics that Donkey pulled.
https://theintercept.com/2019/06/09/brazil-archive-operation-car-wash/
With Sarah Huckabooboo Slanders heading off to spend more time lying to her family, Samantha Bee has a couple of farewell remembrance messages.
She's horrible, but she's not the first, and she's not the worst.
She is irreplacable!
My thoughts and prayers to those affected by the plane collision over Hood Aerodrome, Masterton.
OMG! I did used to fly out of Hood way back. In fact did my first solo there and my PPL.
I remember my first solo – not only because it was my first solo, but for a very similar reason. On your down wind leg apart from doing the normal pre landing checks on the aircraft you are also looking out for other aircraft . Naturally you are looking out for aircraft to the right and to the left and above and behind. On the approach as you descend you are watching airspeed height and timing your turn to line up with the runway. Well I landed safely and came to a stop turning to the left to clear the runway before heading back to the club house when I saw almost directly behind me a DC3 from James Aviation, used for top dressing, landing just behind me! It had come in on a direct approach low down – no standard circuit at 1000ft as one is supposed to do on an uncontrolled airfield like Hood. Gave me one hell of a fright!
It's been a bad weekend for aircraft crashes. There was one earlier on up by Coromandel as well.
She expressed shock that Trump spoke crudely about women, but apparently she was not shocked that her own husband had a kill list.
https://morrisseybreen.blogspot.com/2018/01/its-michelle-obamas-marie-antoinette.html
World Famous, except in NZ
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
Just what the world needs.
Trump's got a Twitter page—though nearly all of it is written by the sinister fanatic Stephen Miller. Obama's got a Twitter page. Blair's got one. Bill Clinton's got one. So has Crooked Hillary.
Compared to that horrific quintet, O.J. Simpson is a choirboy.
The act
the goatfor freedom party proposes a $185,000 parent's fund for each child to spend on whichever school they want for the length of the child's education.I'm trying to imagine the landscape were a policy like this enacted.
One immediate outcome would be that each school would charge according to popularity. Supply and demand and all that.
Therefore, as night follows day, there would be immediate elitism injected into the education system. Prices for "good" schools would skyrocket, wealthier parents able to top up thousands of dollars to get little Cinnamon in, and they'd then pay their teachers more, hoarding all the 'best' ones.
Then of course low income communities would be left with all the 'poorer' teachers and facilities, unable to raise extra funds out of already disadvantaged communities.
This is just one aspect of what is to me a completely bizarre education policy. It would lead to massive widening of inequality for generations to come.
I remember the criticism over the proposed CGT was it'll be too hard & unwieldy to manage, all the variables, to me this education policy seems insanely complicated, more money for ticket clippers I guess, which is apt from the rentier party.
Indeed. There'd be an entire new industry of advisors pop up to manage the new complexities of educating your kids.
There are volumes and volumes of negatives in this bizarre, 19th century policy.
Pompeo's "freedom loving nations" is as dishonest and ridiculous a phrase as "Democratic Republic of North Korea"
The "freedom loving nations" that this poisonous slug refers to are: the rogue U.S. regime of Donald Trump, and its vile, violent vassals Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, and Israel.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1906/S00182/the-crisis-the-housing-minister-created.htm
A report yesterday of a woman, 86, moving because of a 73 percent rent hike illustrates the crisis created by Housing Minister Phil Twyford, Tenancies War spokesman Mike Butler said today….
The main justification for Mr Twyford’s standards was to prevent the hospitalisation each year of 6000 children for housing-sensitive illnesses.
As a one-bedroom flat, the flat under discussion would be unsuitable for children; this illustrates the short-sightedness of setting requirements for 588,700 properties for the supposed benefit of 6000, Mr Butler said.
$150/week is under-rented. Insulation requirements were nothing to do with Labour, sadly, so Mr Butler can't 'blame' Twyford for that.
And bringing up to healthy homes standard which I believe is mostly about a heating source in the main room doesn't require a $110/week rent hike.
I think Mr Butler has used this story to push a pro-amateur landlord/property investor agenda.
It's tiresome.
This is reality our environmental the Papatuanuku weather stabilizer the Antarctica and Arctic Polar Ice caps all that billions of tons of Ice stabilizes our Papatuanuku weather. It's not hard to figure that out they are melting fast this is going to ramp up sea level rising and the EXTREME WEATHER events. The poor people from 3 world nations are going to hit hardest by Climate Change hence wealth nations have a duty to help them survive this big man made mess.
The Arctic Ocean and Greenland ice sheet have seen record June ice loss
Ice is melting in unprecedented waysas summer approaches in the Arctic.
In recent days, observations have revealed a record-challenging melt event over the Greenland ice sheet while the extent of ice over the Arctic Ocean has never been this low in mid-June during the age of weather satellites.
Greenland saw temperatures soar up to 40 degrees above normal Wednesday while open water exists in places north of Alaska where it seldom, if ever, has in recent times.
It's "another series of extreme events consistent with the long-term trend of a warming, changing Arctic," said Zachary Labe, a climate researcher at the University of California-Irvine Ka kite ano link below.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/environment/climate-news/113516824/the-arctic-ocean-and-greenland-ice-sheet-have-seen-record-june-ice-loss
Some Eco Maori music for the minute.
Kia ora Newshub.
shonky is to sly to get caught the way he forces his stare shows Eco Maori he is false he should step down to he is just chucking the ANZ CEO under the bus to save his ASS.
I thank the government for legislating banks to negotiate with farmers before receivership is started. That is well needed farmers work there asss off only to have a down turn in the price of their produce next minute the receiver are banging their doors down. I know that happened to one big farming family it cost the banks many millions and who instigated their downfall well non other than shonky muppet.
Thank to Our Government for increasing the marine Reservation in the North and South Island to protect our Maui and Hector dolphin KA PAI Yar Cool.
That end of life bill is a bit tricky for Eco Maori it could leave the door open for deceitful people to manipulate the system for their own gain if people were not deceitful I would back it we Know that not the CASE.
Ka kite ano
Kia ora te ao Maori news.
Peter Smith I say you are correct that the health system is treating prisoners as lower class people you are there seeing it .But bro you have to look after you health first for you mokopuna.
It good that $138 million for rehabilitation of Drug addicts that PEE shit is ruining te tangata whenua O Aotearoa thanks very much I won't say anymore because I will start ranting against you know who.
That's cool our Government giving $9.8 million to keep tamariki in schools they need a good education the extra funding will help give the tamariki that leave school with no education a interest in there future wellbeing.
The forestry industry has not delivered the promises that they made to Nagti Porou the only people making good money from east coast forestry is the forestry company's I know of one farm spent $1 million for the harvest and only made $90.000 WTF there was heaps of good farming land planted in pines what a waste farming provides more work per hectare than forestry.
Ka kite ano
Kia ora The Am Show.
Chris Climate Change is affecting our weather I can see the effects all around te Papatuanuku.
The Government farm finance bill is well over due we have to look after our farmers they are the backbone of Aotearoa.
Don't focus on the numbers what the numbers tell the TRUTH of the story you have to focus on the numbers .
Some Pepi and Tamariki need to be uplifted for their safety Very good that Our Iwis are working with Oranga tamariki to find solutions to the problems that they have.
I don't think that the authorities should treat the people who are homeless like that making them move with know were to go putting them in worst circumstances than before they moved.
There might be a bit of inconvenience for the fishermen with new marine protection Reserve for our endangered Maui and Hector dolphin. But in the future the Reserves will be a nursery the fish's they will multiply quite quickly and flow into other areas of Tangaroa any Marine Reservation is good for the preservation of Tangaroa mokopuna.
I agree that our churches should open their doors to help the homeless people in South Auckland I bet that there will be old buildings not being used in Auckland to house the homeless people look at Rotorua council they found a solution to the homeless people in Rotorua if there's a will there's a way.
Ka kite ano
Eco Maori thanks all the reporters who are not intimidated by big oil barons money thanks for all the skin you put on the line to get the TRUTH about our environmental issues out there that the Papatuanuku has at the minute.
We must protect our world reporters with good legislation so the people who intimidated our reporters will think twice before doing bad stuff to our reporters governments of the world must protect our reporters its their duty.
Environment reporters facing harassment and murder, study finds
Tally of deaths makes it one of most dangerous fields for journalists after war reporting
Thirteen journalists who were investigating damage to the environment have been killed in recent years and many more are suffering violence, harassment, intimidation and lawsuits, according to a study.
The Committee to Protect Journalists(CPJ), which produced the tally, is investigating a further 16 deaths over the last decade. It says the number of murders may be as high as 29, making this field of journalism one of the most dangerous after war reporting
Environmental issues involve some of the greatest abuses of power in the world and some of the greatest of concentrations of power in the world,” said Bruce Shapiro, the director of the Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma.
“I’m hard put to think of a category of investigative reporters who are routinely dealing with more dangerous actors. Investigative reporting on the environment can be as dangerous a beat as reporting on narco smuggling.”
The CPJ executive director, Joel Simon, added: “Reporting such stories for national and international media often involves travelling to remote communities and confronting powerful interests. This makes it inherently dangerous ka kite ano link below.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jun/17/environment-reporters-facing-harassment-murder-study
Some Eco Maori music for the minute.
Te Ego is huge shonky that is when you make enemies they have long memories and as soon as they get the chance they bit you on the ASS .
The smiling assassin strikes: John Key pushes out David Hisco as ANZ CEO
ANZ CEO David Hisco felt entitled to claim around $50,000 worth of personal chauffeur and wine storage costs as business costs. So John Key pushed out his friend and NZ's most successful banker to protect ANZ's position and try to avoid a Royal Commission here. Bernard Hickey analyses Key's biggest hit yet
David Hisco just joined a long list of loyal and often friendly colleagues of John Key who exited their jobs in often surprisingly quick and career-ending ways. It could be said Hisco's exit is Key's biggest yet.
The Former Prime Minister and now ANZ New Zealand chairman became known in his corporate life before politics as the 'smiling assassin
Hisco successfully managed the merger with barely a blip in customer service and market share. He also quietly presided over a reduction in ANZ's exposure to dangerous dairy loans, flicking on some of the weakest lenders to other banks. For example, ANZ let Allan Crafar move his more than $200 million of loans to Westpac before the poorly managed farming group collapsed under a welter of animal mistreatment allegations and effluent treatment fines. Westpac suffered heavy losses in the subsequent receivership and sale of Crafar Farms Ka kite ano link below.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/business/113576752/the-smiling-assassin-returns-for-his-biggest-hit
Kia ora Newshub.
I agree shonky scapegoats a junior staff we know that the buck stops with the boss not the boy.
I think it's good that the restriction on foreign houses buyers is working let KIWIs back into the Aotearoa housing markets.
Condolences to all the people affected by the earthquakes in China.
Mark the UBER flying taxis engineer very cool the flying electric cars are the way of the future KIWIs ingenuity ka pai.
Is sad how the police treated the African American people in America Mike.
Ka kite ano
Kia ora te ao Maori news.
Condolences to the Whanau of Wanna Davies she was a good Wahine Maori leader.
I'm am not commenting on Oranga tamariki to much .I think the good reforms will come soon.
30 years ago the ruling class were still in denial mode what gives Eco Maori a sore face in now they are listening and can see that institutionalized racism is a reality for te tangata whenua O Aotearoa. NOW
I think traditional ronga Maori healing needs to be revived bad to its rightful place in Maoridom it's sad that we losted some of the knowledge on traditional Maori healing.
I say bottled water needs to be banned we need to stop doing dumb shit all the plastic waste and the carbon footprint of bottled water out weighs the positives of bottled water
Ka kite ano
Kia ora The Am show .
Big 6.8 Earthquake in Japan let's hope not to many people are harmed .
That guy and his dog who got lost in a cave found their way out cool.
The SHOW must go on in America.
Mark the American polls tell a difference STORY .
That form of accommodation is good for young people shared accommodation in a whare in Auckland rent $320 a week for one room and every else is shared.
Very cool that our Government is investing $26 million into Artic research they Polar Ice caps are the Papatuanuku environment stabilization.
trump is spending big time manipulating the Papatuanuku media I can hear it in your words duncan I have read stories about them moving federal funds to manipulate the reality of what trump has done he is creating a tsunami of broke America's it will take years for the Democrats to clean up trump's MESS. His tariff are harming the whole Papatuanuku everyone in the world will end up paying and worse off because of his tariffs.
Nice Jersey I agree trump's personal ratings are low .
Its very funny the story's about new technology device use causing bone growth in your neck the internet of things and the hard wear devices and social media is changing who rules the world the oil barons trumps masters are losing control fast time for the next generation to rule the Papatuanuku the next generation has to focus on a good future for all.
Ka kite ano