Two differing accounts of the missile strike on Poland. Whether this missile strayed off course or was a deliberate attack on a Nato country, CNN reports it was concurrent with a "Wave of missile strikes" on Ukraine.
Two deaths reported in Polish border town, as a wave of Russian missiles hit Ukraine
…..they landed in the NATO member’s territory roughly the same time as Russia launched its biggest wave of missile attacks on Ukrainian cities in more than a month……
I don't have to guess what details will follow: Going on their past MO Russia will accuse Ukraine of staging the attack on Poland to try and bring Nato into the war.
I don't think Russia would have any interest in firing missiles at Poland so, either they were intended for Ukraine but Russia's aim was not accurate, or it was a "false flag" move by Ukraine, though for what purpose is unclear.
Accident or not on the part of Russia, NATO, or Poland directly, has little choice but to make a strong response to this situation because otherwise Russia will see it as a green light to keep targeting Nato countries.
I agree that the NATO response probably won't be a direct military response at this stage.
But there will have to be a credible strong response that is sufficient to deter Russia from doing that again.
Ukraine probably will get better weapons now as a result of this. I think they should get the long range ATACM missiles they have been asking for for ages. This will allow them to target the Russian air bases and launch sites the Russians are using for these attacks. Thus, further protect Ukraine, and NATO countries as well.
Ukraine has previously called for a free fly zone over at least a part of Ukraine. With this attack on a NATO member country, a free fly zone over the Western half of Ukraine bordering Poland and Moldova, makes a lot of sense.
……Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy virtually addressed the United States Congress on March 16, 2022, and, as widely expected, requested additional U.S. military assistance for Ukraine.
Zelenskyy also asked for the U.S. to create a no-fly zone over some portion, or potentially all, of Ukraine.
“Russia has turned the Ukrainian sky into a source of death for thousands of people. Russian troops have already fired nearly 1,000 missiles at Ukraine, countless bombs. They use drones to kill us with precision. This is a terror Europe has not seen for 80 years,” said Zelenskyy, delivering the first virtual address by a foreign leader to Congress….
…..“Is this a lot to ask, to create a no fly zone over Ukraine to save people? Is this too much to ask? A humanitarian non-fly zone, so that Russia would not be able to terrorize our free cities,” Zelenskyy continued.
Zelenskyy paused during his address to play a video documenting the war in Ukraine. That video ended with the words, “close the skies over Ukraine.”
Not much point to a no-fly zone as the Ukrainians effectively have that now. In fact, in some areas, the Ukrainian airforce has been dominant. So, a nofly zone would simply penalise the Ukrainians.
Russian planes hardly dare go into Ukrainian air-space due to the bristilling air defence. The missiles tend to be fired by Russian planes outside of Ukrainian air space.
I think what they need to be supplied is longer-range precision missiles such as ATACMs so they can take out the missiles before they are even launched. This would mean targeting Russian air bases and the like.
If the missiles can be taken out before launch, that reduces the risk of Russian missiles to Nato countries as well.
I felt for the war porn aficionados today, waking to news Russia had bombed Poland. At their keyboards, typing one handed, only to end the day with Biden pouring cold water on the idea.
Three U.S. officials said preliminary assessments suggested the missile was fired by Ukrainian forces at an incoming Russian one amid the crushing salvo against Ukraine’s electrical infrastructure Tuesday. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.
Though out of range for direct fire from Russian territory, there are many S300s in Belarus, which for a long time was the chief manufacturing centre for them. And Russia has used S300 missiles on ground targets before.
Having failed militarily, Russia would love to prise Ukraine away from its allies and supporters by creating an incident.
A while ago there was talk of how hard it is to get positive messages through in a world of highly partisan politics, disinformation, and the usual problems of gotcha media going for cheap shots and false balance . . .
I suspect we get a lot of news and comment through the internet; leaving aside the faults of official media, we now have many websites that peddle personal opinions that are at times extreme. The following is a list of sites that I collected over a few days of websites that appear to cover political issues to at least some extent. They include what appear to be a return of dirty tricks, to deliberately deceptive sites, to those expressing extreme or even deranged opinions from authors that appear to have fallen down a rabbit hole. I tried to decide where each lay on a scale or -10 for negative views of the current government, to +10 for those consistently positive about the current government. I have not included Facebook of other "social media," and I may have missed some that are worth looking at – I certainly hope there are other sites with high positive or good balance like The Standard!
Although it is an 'interesting' list it is duplicated (!?) and I can't see the alleged ranking from −10 to +10 for views on the current Government in it!?
I would not encourage this sort of comments, also because they need to be released manually from the Spam trap.
Early last week my SO arrived home home from work rather distressed after a row with the boss over refusing to attend a regional meeting. Turns out one of the traveling attendees was covid positive and today three of the local staff attending have tested positive. One, for the third time, and there will probably be more.
Unlikely to be reported in our usual media, so you may be unaware of the incident at the Let Women Speak rally, in New York on Monday 14 November.
Now the format for a Let Women Speak rally, is that the organiser – Kellie Jay Keen – turns up with a microphone and sound system and basically emcees an open mike, for women that want to talk. There's little curating of who speaks, if any. It is purely an event to encourage women to speak up on the impact on women's rights of legislative and policy changes. You can view previous rallies on the livestream of KJK's Youtube channel:
KJK was invited to the US, and took the format over there, and arranged rallies in public spaces – such as in front of New York town hall. A couple of events had to be cancelled due to the threats made to the women. Security was hired, and then unevidenced criticism was made that security was right-wing and aligned with fascists.
Each event was advertised by Gender Ideology Activists as a hate event, and and open invitations were issued for people to turn up and do anything they considered necessary to address that hate.
The perpetually oppressed never stop to consider that they are not stopped from marching by women (Brisbane this last weeekend) – but they are appalled at the idea of women publicly expressing their opinions, or gathering.
So, what happened in New York?
Due to the aggressive nature of the gender ideology proponents, many women, including KJK were unable to get to the event to speak.
Belissa Cohen – a LGB activist posted this video that gives some insight into what is happening with these activists:
From the left, the topless three are notable for:
1. A good example of autogynephilia – a man so preoccupied with his hormone induced breast growth, he is indulging in his sexual arousal in public with no awareness of the protest around him, apart from the opportunity it gives him for exhibitionism;
2. A trans-identified female – complete with double mastectomy scars, demonstrating a hatred for women by calling out to them either "bleeders" or "breeders". There are several videos of this group and one is of this woman declaring that she didn't want to be a woman, and how she is a boy who loves testosterone. (NB. Testosterone is a powerful drug – with euphoric effects for some). This woman was also a child model from the age of ten, which may have affected her experience of what female is, and how it is represented;
3. The last contender has been identified as a prominent and feted trans-identified male. Employed also as a model and mentor of LGBTQ+ people, he spent much of the protest spitting on people he found objectionable (women) and declaring he was going to beat their asses, bitch.
I'm always interested to hear (from those who refrain from scrolling past) the updated excuses for why 1 and 3 are vulnerable, and why women should unquestioningly make space for them in women's single-sex spaces and provisions.
And also why men can't just hold safe spaces in their own single-sex spaces for their trans-identified brothers.
"Indecent exposure is a crime, and the laws are in place to deal with this, no matter the gender identity of the criminal."
Apparently baring your breasts in NYC is not indecent exposure. Spitting at people might be however. Breasts don't bother me much, TBH, the thought of someone's saliva has more to be concerned about in this day and age, don't you think?
"Yes, there are bad trans people. There are bad gay people and bad cishet people."
I don't disagree – apart from the cishet – I don't follow this belief so the term is nonsensical. You might have just stated the obvious, some people are bad.
Did you miss the part when I said that No. 3 was a well-known and profiled activist and mentor?
So not a random idiot, a promoted spokeperson for the community.
"You need to remember that the teachers who offended that Dilworth were all cisgender men."
Why do you assume I have forgotten?
Is it because you "forget" that all transwomen are men?
No comment on the antagonism shown by the non-rally attendees only?
Or the public display of the often denied aspect of autogynephilia?
Or the fear and hate directed at women who are gathering to speak their opinions in a public space?
Thanks for providing yet another example of redirection and totally ignoring the content of the issue at hand.
I don't think we should be tarring all transgender people with the same brush.
Who do you think is doing that? I'm not seeing anyone here doing that. I wouldn't even tar all AGP with the same brush.
You need to remember that the teachers who offended that Dilworth were all cisgender men.
So close and yet still not quite getting it. Yes, most people who sexually offend are male. This is exactly why we have female only spaces. It doesn't mean all men, or even most, are sexual offenders, it means that if we stop thinking about men for a minute and look at this from the perspective of women, we see that the most straight forward way of protecting women from the high rates of sexual assault and harrassment by men is to arrange society so that women have female only spaces.
I've not seen any evidence that trans women or other trans-identified males sexually offend at a lower rate than the general male population. Again, this doesn't mean all or even most TW are sexual offenders. It means that when we consider the safety of women, we should consider males of whatever gender identity as the class that women need protecting from.
The safety of TW can be addressed likewise, without removing the safety of women.
"Cishet" displays your fealty to Gender Ideology. Humans are not divided into 2 categories based on a supposed relationship with their sexed bodies. Forced division without approval or permission is insulting and oppressive.
"cis" or "cisgender" is another term for virtually everyone.
Invented largely for political reasons within Queer Theory & Gender Studies … it seeks to massively exaggerate the size of the trans community while inherently downplaying the relevance of biological sex.
For Gender ideologues, cisgender means that one's "gender identity" and "sex assigned at birth" (as opposed to biological sex) match up.
"Sex assigned at birth" is seen as an act of power, indeed of deliberate violence … so, specifying "sex assigned at birth" instead of biological sex allows these activists to maintain the Queer Theory dogmas that (1) sex itself is socially constructed and that (2) sex categorisation is illegitimatelyimposed on new-born babies by Doctors, Parents & others who supposedly possess sociopolitical power … (rather than biological sex being a simple fact of human reality).
In other words, they're total fantasists (in the same way that Critical Theory / Woke ideologues are in general) … and very controlling, demanding, authoritarian fantasists at that.
Obviously we aren't but the trans movement has been infiltrated by violent and misogynistic men who are using it to get away with stuff. Self ID laws and the like have not taken this into account.
at this stage I wouldn't say infiltrated so much as welcomed with open arms. Left wing men defacto arguing that rape of women in prison is an acceptable price to pay for keeping TW safe. Left wing women saying that rape survivors need to manage their triggers better when males come into their single sex spaces. It's not like the evidence hasn't been there, presented by the pariah feminists. Even before self ID. The choices were made to put aside the concerns of women, and make the changes anyway.
#1 and #3 in other vids, it took me a while to figure out exactly the problem here (because we know that women use nudity as part of protest). What they look like to me are men who want the right to masturbate in public. Any conversation about trans women's rights that doesn't included discussion of AGP is a fail.
#2, the trans man is someone presumably who hates their female body to the extent that they had their breasts removed to make their life tolerable. Society needs to stop and consider if people with such degrees of mental distress should be driving policy and social change.
on reflection, it's not simply the right to masturbate in public, it's the right to do so at women they hate. I'm struggling to think of worse public expression of misogyny than that video.
That the police didn't intervene is both astounding and scary in its implications. Haven't looked at NY indecency laws.
Last time I checked men going shirtless was not considered public nudity. I don't think failing to invent a crime is really a good basis for police criticism here.
The NYPD seemed to respond appropriately throughout the day, calling in special operations unit to disperse the crowd and providing human barriers between the small group of women and the crowd.
It's always a judgment call on the day. I don't think they did much that can be genuinely criticised.
did you miss the bit in my comments where I differentiated between nudity and obscenity? In this case, public self pleasuring sexually is an act that involves others without their consent. I don't know if indecency laws cover what that man is doing, as I said in my comment.
And of course, we know that women don't generally behave like this, and that there are hefty societal and physical risk pressures that prevent women from having the freedom to be in public topless.
There’s also the issue of what would happen to the police of they reacted to the men as if they were men. But I’m guessing there is no topless law in NY for either men or women.
"What they look like to me are men who want the right to masturbate in public."
Another regular activist who attended yesterday (with previous record of doxxing women), might confirm your suspicions.
(I know many here might not believe it, but I don't post the most contentious pictures or videos I come across, I posted the one above because of the role the third one has in the community, while publicly threatening women with violence).
The following video from the same event, posted by a women's right activist (not one I particularly agree with) with a AGP enjoying the simulation of masturbation maybe a bit too much at the end:
Was interesting to note how the different cultures responded to the same format. Really noticeable distinctions between the women speaking at the UK events and the US ones.
Along this train of thought, while I was looking into the issues of consent and the mixed messages regarding intimate relationships from many of the LGBTQ+ support organisations, I watched part of a programme about transgender people finding love.
I didn't watch it all, there was a featured piece about a well-known transgender teenage dream couple that had finally split up after promoting their transgender identities and relationship status during their teenage years. It turned out that there was little or no physical intimacy, and that their relationship was more performative than personal.
However, there was a particularly memorable young trans-identified male, who had been supported during their transition by a close male friend over the years. They had finally got the courage to directly ask their supportive male friend, now that they had finished their transition, whether they could take their friendship to a personal relationship.
The response was immediate and definite: it was better if they kept their connection to friendship only.
A couple of thoughts struck me when I watched this segment, and saw the change in demeanour of the young trans-identified man:
What if – this young man was one of the many gay teenagers who had developed a crush on their heterosexual close friend? What if both the personal homosexuality and unrequited nature of that crush, were avoided by the promise of becoming a woman, and therefore a possible romantic partner of the afore mentioned crush?
The friend – unwittingly supporting that notion by his support of a female gender identity – and all the transitional changes made, but whose heterosexual orientation meant that despite it all – he was not ever going to be an intimate relationship option.
It was quite devastating to watch. A good friend of mine, related his long-time crush on his best friend as the catalyst for realising his sexual orientation. I wonder how the young gay men in similar situations are doing now.
Some of the vitriol displayed at events might come from the realisation of the failure to deliver on the unspoken promises of full recognition alluded to in public policy and legislation, and what is experienced at individual personal level.
Thanks Molly. Your question “why women should make space for these people” is bang on. I am afraid I could only watch so much of the (exhibitionist, likely autogynophile) person waving their breast around.
I'm probably a bit jaded, but the antics of the AGP struck me as someone particularly unskilled in the handling of breasts in a sexually stimulating way. I figure, at least he inflicts that lack of expertise only on himself and not anybody else.
He is in multiple videos of the day and the reality is – his behaviour never gets any better.
"Nelson’s counsel, Glenn Dixon, said his client, a transgender woman, had been in Spring Hill Prison but was now incarcerated in Auckland Women’s Prison. There, she felt safer and was motivated to engage in drug and alcohol rehabilitative programmes, as well as a business and creativity course.
Prior to the restaurant incident, Nelson had been arrested on other charges as well as a subsequent breach of bail. She had been evicted from her bail address, and had soon afterwards made the decision to go to the restaurant, where the assaults happened."
Prior to the restaurant incident, Nelson had been arrested on other charges as well as a subsequent breach of bail. She had been evicted from her bail address, and had soon afterwards made the decision to go to the restaurant, where the assaults happened.
Nelson was “an extraordinarily complex person, one of the most complex that this counsel has experienced”, Dixon said.
We really need a specialised unit for trans people.
Relieved to see Stuff reporting on the gender transition so it's clear they are male.
As the court was told, she now prefers to go by the name Pandora Electra
Wake up people on the left. The gender ideology movement is not progressive at all. It's harming women and its prioritizing men like Nelson over vulnerable women prisoners.
"Very complex" may be an understatement. There is a high incident of co-morbidity with other psychological conditions among today's self identified male trans people. The trans identified men in British prisons are far more likely (over 40%) to be there for sex related offences than the rest of the male prison population.
It is not just men in women's prisons and other spaces – it is the worst kind of men in women's spaces.
it's also possible that societal factors like transphobia, homophobia, and sanctions against effeminate behaviour in men may mean it's more likely that trans women and TIMs end up doing sex work. In the same way that we see sexual abuse and poverty makes it more likely for women to end up doing sex work.
I'd also like to know how that plays out with AGP men and violence. Pity No Debate means we won't be getting much good research for a while.
My thesis here is that patriarchal conditioning and conditions create violence in TIMs like it does with other men. Different dynamics.
As Molly said, why aren't men making male spaces safer?
Because these people do not want to be safe in male spaces or third spaces. They want to be in womens spaces, as women.
Male spaces and bathrooms are no more and no less dangerous for transpeople then female spaces. I mean self ID opens the door to all men, at all times, to all female spaces and thus the same men that were feared by transpeople in the male spaces will now have access to them in the female spaces. Its bs. They want access to female spaces because they want to be women, and they can only be fully women if they get to play the full game, women sports, women awards, women jobs, women rape counseling, women breastfeeding, woman everything, nothing less will do. Ditto for Transmen, they want to be men. And the rest of the population has to go along with it by hook or by crook.
But a few people will profit of this regressive misery covered in kindness, it will set women – adult human female – set back into the 1700 and further back even – removed from public record and medical texts, denial of the labour of their body, and it for sure will teach women – human born female of all ages – their place in society.
Don't you think that our future as the large gamete producers is bright and rosy?
If you think that the prisons in NZ are so dangeorus you should voice your concern with the MP who looks after Corrections. It is up to government to regulate and then assure the safety of all prisoners who are held in the care of government.
Incarcerated women are not body shields.
How many women would need to get harmed in prison by men – who may or may not be transwomen – for you to consider the safety of women?
"If you think that the prisons in NZ are so dangeorus you should voice your concern with the MP who looks after Corrections."
I dont think the government gives a shit about the safety of our prisoners, regardless of biological sex, gender identity or sexual orientation. For the past 20-30 years, both parties have imported US penal policies into this country, which is bascially stick prisoners in a cage and watch while they tear each other apart. This is largely due to the lobbying of the likes of Garth McVicar and Norm Withers, both of whom actively condone the rape and shanking of weaker prisoners by the strong ones as that is part of the 'punishment' factor of prisons.
And yet you like the government seem to have no fuck to give about safety of women in prisons.
Men – irrespective of their self identification should never be locked up in prison with women. And to do so, is to show that absolutly no regards for the wellbeing and the safety – from rape and pregnancy – of the women is given. But then maybe the rape of a woman – human born female – is acceptable to some on the left in order to protect a male from male violence that seems to be state sanctioned and / or permitted.
A transgender inmate at Christchurch Women's Prison is being held in isolation while facing several allegations from fellow inmates, including one of sexual assault.
Below is the prisoner you are insisting on placing with females with nowhere to run:
Nelson quickly targeted another worker, a female who was later revealed to be Nelson’s ex-girlfriend. He slashed her in the face and stabbed her in the upper back, causing her to suffer a punctured lung. Despite her horrific injuries, the woman managed to run out of the building and flee for help at a nearby gas station.
I note that Putin and his supporters now view the war in Ukraine as a war for 'traditional values' against 'western decadance' (LGBTQ) with some pro Russian supporters wanting an open alliance between Orthodox Christian, Confucian Chinese and Wahabist Islam in some kind of 'Holy War'.
It is starting to look like the missile strikes on Poland may have been due to stray Ukrainian air defence missiles, or a Russian missile deflected by air defence.
So, that part may be an accident.
What wasn't an accident was oil supplies to both Hungary and Slovakia (NATO members) were cut due to Russia hitting infrastructure in Ukraine that is used for the piping of oil through to those countries. So, perhaps at least an indirect attack on Nato.
The EU and NATO need to make sure that this doesn't blow up out of hand. As much as I dislike Putin, I don't think it is worth turning Europe into a radioactive wasteland just to get one up on him.
Time to make a submission on the proposal on restricting agricultural emissions is running out. This is an opportunity to make sure we as a country do what is necessary to meet our international obligations as well as incentivising more environmentally friendly agricultural practices which will benefit us all:
Submissions close this Friday 18 November and the Green Party has put together a submission guide with background information and key points to make it easy for you to have your say.
We have the opportunity to become the first country in the world to tackle agricultural emissions at the source, but we need to push the Government to act, and not cave to agribusiness.
Right now, every submission counts.
Your submission can be as detailed or simple as you have time for.
The BAU TINA agribusinesses will be making submissions, we can outnumber theirs and send a message that will strengthen the Governments resolve. Nature, and the future, need us to advocate for them.
National later U-turned on that remark, clarifying that Luxon misspoke and had not intended to U-turn on that particular policy. He was in fact talking about the clean car standard, an emissions standard for vehicle importers.
National opposed that policy too, meaning Luxon has still U-turned on a policy today – just not the policy he said he was U-turning on.
Not a performance of a leader who is confident of wandering far from his script at all. Not a word or an aside that wasn’t scripted. Also shows his handlers lack of confidence.
The most racist, homophobic, transphobic, mysoginost, religious fundamentalist, anti abortion, anti union, anti welfare president in US history. The guy must be stopped. At all costs.
Agree with that – an authoritarian narcissist who periodically and unconvincingly pretends to be a religious fundamentalist, because it's politically expedient to do so.
Luxon is an interesting counterpoint to that – someone who is a religious fundamentalist but pretends not to be, because it's politically expedient to do so.
Says something about the two different political cultures I guess.
Mostly an attempt to delay the inevitable indictments coming his way. The Jan 6 committee will have to speed up their final report and recommendations with the House going GoP next year, but even some Repugnants possess principles. DoJ indictment still in the offing (even if a candidate) wrt mishandling of secret files.
Dems could run a puppy dog against him and win – he still doesn't understand that he is not as popular with the majority as he thinks he is – only the deluded.
This is not how change happens. Never has been. Never will be.
With disagreement even over the conference cover statement, 'Carried to Hell in a Handcart', might be a more efficient mode of transport to take us to the apocalypse than this *shemozzle.
Climate negotiations are in disarray as COP27 enters its second week
Talks in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, are running well behind schedule, with discussions on key areas such as loss and damage at a political impasse
This article has been viewed 247 times in the last 3 hours.
15 November 2022
…..behind-the-scenes negotiations are in disarray, with talks running well behind schedule….
……talks on the cover text – a political agreement traditionally struck at the end of a UN climate conference – are still in the very early stages.
Tory Whanau may be in trouble with the Greens. According to HDA, all the best jobs in council have gone to her mates. I don't know whether that's true, but nepotism is a Maori speciality.
''Wellington mayor Tory Whanau, whose independent campaign was endorsed by the Greens, has decided she will not renew her party membership, the Herald understands.
The key reason behind the move is so she can work more productively with councillors without a formal tie to a political party – but it could also ruffle feathers among those in the Green Party who helped her win the election.
Whanau has now spent almost six weeks in the city’s top job after she romped home with a convincing majority of 17,751 votes over the incumbent.
It was clear Whanau had a sense of which way the tide was turning a couple of weeks before election day, but such a strong majority certainly came as a surprise.
On the campaign trail, Whanau pitched herself as someone who could cross the political spectrum and bring people together. She pointed to her experience negotiating with New Zealand First when she was the Green Party’s chief of staff as an example of this.
Green Party councillor Laurie Foon is the deputy mayor, while two Labour councillors and one Green councillor will chair the council’s three big committees.
First-term Motukairangi Eastern Ward councillor Tim Brown told Newstalk ZB Wellington Mornings host Nick Mills he felt “slightly disconcerted” about the appointments.
It’s because they share her [Whanau’s] views, which I think is a good reason on her part, but of course means that the independent candidates sitting around the table are looking at the equation and thinking well if we don’t share her views, we’re going to be excluded.”
[Take a month off. You don’t seem to know what nepotism is and you simply indulged in baseless Māori bashing – Incognito]
It's common. Many problems of Maori v Maori rotates around people being appointed to some position, but other Maori saying they shouldn't be appointed because they belong to the wrong tribe, or have the wrong whakapapa. I said at the time, Auckland and Wellington councils would encounter problems.
You need to add more than your trite uncalled for comment.
How is Mark Mitchell? What else has he been up to? Is he backing Nicola Willis for leader or is he going himself? He didn’t say on the radio but I figured you’d know.
Mark Mitchell would be most worrying as National Partty leader. The guy would, in the words of Trotter, liberate the police, and police the liberals.
His desire to bring about US-style policing is well documented. I would imagine that Maori would be gunned down left right and centre by cops if he is allowed anywhere near cabiney.
You don’t give Kiwi cops much credit, do you? I’m pretty sure that for that to happen you’d need US cops with a US mind-set in a US context here in Aotearoa – New Zealand.
Waiting for a post: Luxon: Chicken Little or an Egg? on the clean car fleet. Polluters must meet their costs or we are paying them to do so. We’re picking up fossil awards while our neighbors in and outside NZ are seeing their property below water. The clean car work is not nearly enough, but it’s a basic step. Polluters must pay.
" Instead of free and universal provision, he wants people to go crawling to WINZ, with all the added pain and suffering that entails. Weirdly, he thinks that this isn't a deterrent – which I guess tells us either that he has never dealt with them, or that nine years on an MP's salary and six on a deputy prime minister's has destroyed all memory of it (and WINZ has got massively worse since Grant was a student) "
He said he did not think the fact the grants had to be applied for through Work and Income would deter people from applying for them.
"For low-income people, I'm sure the opportunity to be able to get the support for [dental care] is something that they will take up."
That sounds like someone who is totally out of touch.
I detest the National party but before you have a crack at them Greg what about your Labour party and their failures to their own people they solicit votes from then look the other way.
Now back to the RMA and Nationals policy failure's.
[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.]
year in extra funding and any additional investment needed to be weighed against other priorities in the health sector.
Instead of free and universal provision, he wants people to go crawling to WINZ, with all the added pain and suffering that entails. Weirdly, he thinks that this isn't a deterrent – which I guess tells us either that he has never dealt with them, or that nine years on an MP's salary and six on a deputy prime minister's has destroyed all memory of it (and WINZ has got massively worse since Grant was a student).
" "Going straight to universal dental care right away would be well over a billion dollars a year of extra funding, we have to weigh that up against the other things that are needed in the health system."
And Grant has ruled out a windfall tax that could pay for universal care and much more.
National is not in government but Grant and Jacinda are !
[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.]
[looks like you’re also insisting on being modded for diversion trolling. This is your warning – Incognito]
There’s a first for everything. If you continue the efforts of a notorious diversion troll who had been warned and modded then, for all intents and purposes, I consider you also a diversion troll and will treat you as such.
You are free to say what you feel you have to say but you don’t have carte blanche to say it wherever (and however) you feel like here. You may also want to tone down on the personal snides when you ‘call out Labour’.
" You are free to say what you feel you have to say but you don’t have carte blanche to say it wherever (and however) you feel like here "
No you have that power Incognito by the way you and others decide what is acceptable on this site.
Its called freedom of expression which the government has not banned yet and I am not talking about anything illegal or malicious but the Standard has just has to look at the growing list of people driven out by being banned because they said something the moderators disagreed with.
The TDB has a number of contributors who are on topic and and aren't afraid to call the National party out while also revealing the increasing poverty and hardship still being experienced under Labour and their fiddling with statistics.
Personal snides ? you mean the attack on Chris Trotter on this site ?
I take it then that's acceptable if its one of your main contributors , or Lyn's
put down's against some of the correspondents who contribute here.
Addressing and correcting the very many points in your comment feels like cleaning the Augean stables. Suffice to say, as long as one adheres to this site’s Policy and takes heed of Moderator notes one can enjoy the generous freedom of commenting on TS to their heart’s content.
I hope this will help and I also hope you don’t draw unnecessary attention to yourself.
Good dental health, has such a positive effect on other health issues.
And the dental care offered by the school system is much less consistent or frequent than it was back in the 70s when every primary school had it's own dental clinic and nurse.
It would have been a good preventative health measure, and the cost of dental care is high or unaffordable for those with few discretionary funds.
Yes. I think it's the cost factor which has just driven it up out of reach of many middle-class (let alone working-class) kiwis.
I don't know what the answer is to this. Some of it is the bells-and-whistles (x-rays, etc.), which may improve the dental care – but all the equipment costs an arm-and-a-leg and has to be amortized across all of the patients. Some of it is the high cost of training, and then of staffing and operating dental surgeries.
I'd like to see a very low-cost, basic dental care option. Fillings (quick and cheap), extraction (if necessary), cleaning & scaling [which always sounds painful]. And conversations with the dentist which include what you can afford – rather than starting out with 'you need 5 crowns, at 1.5 K each'
I know that school dental care was massively backed up before Covid (my son missed the last 3 annual checkups at his school – because they simply prioritized kids who they felt were more likely to have issues). And, of course, virtually no preventive dental work was done over the last 2 years with Covid. Now the dental checks have started up again, but they are so far behind, I don't think they have any hope of catching up – and are suffering from the same staffing shortages that every other aspect of medicine is coping with.
And, if your kid needs braces (not just cosmetic, if there are misaligned or overlapping teeth, without straightening you're in for a life of heightened risk of dental decay) – you're talking 7K plus (which is completely out of reach of many families).
Buzz from the Beehive Housing Minister Chris Bishop delivered news – packed with the ingredients to enflame political passions – worthy of supplanting Winston Peters in headline writers’ priorities. He popped up at the post-Cabinet press conference to promise a crackdown on unruly and antisocial state housing tenants. His ...
Ele Ludemann writes – The Reserve Bank is advertising for a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion advisor. The Bank has one mandate – to keep inflation between one and three percent. It has failed in that and is only slowly getting inflation back down to the upper limit. Will it ...
Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency Waka KotahiThe fact that a ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Gavin Jacobson talks to Thomas Piketty 10 years on from Capital in the 21st CenturyThe SalvoLocal scoop: Green MP’s business being investigated over migrant exploitation claims StuffSteve KilgallonLocal deep-dive: The commercial contractors making money from School ...
It’s a home - but Kāinga Ora tenants accused of “abusing the privilege” may lose it. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Government announced a crackdown on Kāinga Ora tenants who were unruly and/or behind on their rent, with Housing Minister Chris Bishop saying a place in a state ...
This is a guest post by Connor Sharp of Surface Light Rail Light rail in Auckland: A way forward sooner than you think With the coup de grâce of Auckland Light Rail (ALR) earlier this year, and the shift of the government’s priorities to roads, roads, and more roads, it ...
Note: As a paid-up Webworm member, I’ve recorded this Webworm as a mini-podcast for you as well. Some of you said you liked this option - so I aim to provide it when I get a chance to record! Read more ...
TL;DR: In my ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Monday, March 18:IKEA is accused of planting big forests in New Zealand to green-wash; REDD-MonitorA City for People takes a well-deserved victory lap over Wellington’s pro-YIMBY District Plan votes; A City for PeopleSteven Anastasiou takes a close look at the sticky ...
Buzz from the Beehive Here’s hoping for a lively post-cabinet press conference when the PM and – perhaps – some of his ministers tell us what was discussed at their meeting today. Until then, Point of Order has precious little Beehive news to report after its latest monitoring of the ...
David Farrar writes – We now have almost all 2023 data in, which has allowed me to update my annual table of how labour went against its promises. This is basically their final report card. The promiseThe result Build 100,000 affordable homes over 10 ...
I’m a bit worried that I’ve started a previous newsletter with the words “just when you think they couldn’t get any worse…” Seems lately that I could begin pretty much every issue with that opening. Such is the nature of our coalition government that they seem to be outdoing each ...
Geoffrey Miller writes – Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. ...
Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture ...
Last week Transport Minster Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre. The new train control centre will see teams from KiwiRail, Auckland Transport and Auckland One Rail working more closely together to improve train services across the city. The Auckland Rail Operations Centre in ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in an exit interview with Q+A yesterday the Government can and should sustain more debt to invest in infrastructure for future generations. Elsewhere in the news in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 6:36am: Read more ...
Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. It is more than just a happy ...
TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to March 18 include:China’s Foreign Minister visiting Wellington today;A post-cabinet news conference this afternoon; the resumption of Parliament on Tuesday for two weeks before Easter;retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson gives his valedictory speech in Parliament; ...
New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Government’s key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
“I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
.“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
“It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet – is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
Bob Edlin writes – And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ HeraldThomas CoughlanSimeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
TL;DR:Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it: We want our country to be a ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading → ...
Ele Ludemann writes – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
What was that judge thinking?Peter Williams writes – That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop:Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
Buzz from the BeehiveThe text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary. It can be quickly analysed ...
For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
Questions need to be asked on both sides of the worldPeter Williams writes – The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop:The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
TL;DR:Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
Bob Edlin writes – The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
Every year, in the Budget, Parliament forks out money to government agencies to do certain things. And every year, as part of the annual review cycle, those agencies are meant to report on whether they have done the things Parliament gave them that money for. Agencies which consistently fail to ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – Recent events in American universities point to an underlying crisis of coherent thinking, an issue that increasingly affects the progressive left across the Western world. This of course is nothing new as anyone who can either remember or has read of the late ...
The thing about life’s little victories is that they can be followed by a defeat.Reader Darryl told me on Monday night:Test again Dave. My “head cold” last week became COVID within 24 hours, and is still with me. I hear the new variants take a bit longer to show up ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Angus Deaton on rethinking his economics IMFLocal scoop: The people behind Tamarind, the firm that left a $500m cleanup bill for taxpayers at Taranaki’s Tui oil well, are back operating in Taranaki under a different company name. Jonathan ...
Normally when we talk about accessing public transport it’s about improving how easy it is to get to, such as how easy is it to cross roads in a station/stop’s walking catchment, is it possible to cycle to safely, do bus connections work, or even if are there new routes/connections ...
Politicians are not renowned for telling the truth. Some tell us things that are verifiably not true. They offer statements that omit critical pieces of information. Gloss over risks, preferring to offer the best case scenario.Some not truths are quite small, others amusing in their transparency. There are those repeated ...
The pressure is mounting on the Government as it finalises its Budget Policy Statement, but yet more predicted revenue ‘goes missing’. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Climate Commission has delivered another funding blow to the National-ACT-NZ First coalition Government’s tax-cutting plans, potentially carving $1.4 billion off the ‘climate ...
The Government now faces the prospect of having to watch another tax raise the price of petrol when, only six days ago, it abolished the Auckland Regional Fuel tax. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon argued that the regional fuel tax imposed costs on lower-income people with less fuel-efficient vehicles and that ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s fast-track legislation. ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesn’t act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
The New Zealand public voted for a change in direction at the 2023 general election and that is exactly what this coalition government has been delivering in its first 100 days. There was an immediate focus on the economy, easing the cost of living, cracking down on law and order ...
The Government has left the health system as an afterthought, announcing half-baked targets at the last minute of their 100-day plan, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
Kiwis are still waiting for their promised cost of living support after 100 days of a National Government that is taking us backwards, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
100 days of National taking NZ backwardsThe National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
The Government must commit to funding free and healthy school lunches, as thousands of people sign the petition to keep them, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti says. ...
If the Government was serious about moving families into public housing, they would build more houses so there is actually somewhere for people to go. ...
The free and healthy school lunches programme feeds our kids, helps them to learn, and saves families money – but it is at risk under this Government, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
The Government’s proposed changes to Firearms Prohibition Orders (FPO) add almost nothing new and are merely an attempt to distract from its plans to loosen gun laws, police spokesperson Ginny Andersen and justice spokesperson Dr Duncan Webb said. ...
The great Victorian era English politician Lord Macauley stood in the British House of Parliament and said, "The gallery in which the reporters sit has become a fourth estate of the realm".He understood and outlined even way back then, the significant role and influence media have in a democracy. ...
The government’s attack on Māori health this week is committing tangata-whenua to a premature death, says Te Pāti Māori. “The government have begun their onslaught on Māori health with the abolishment of the Māori Health Authority and smokefree laws in the same day” said health spokesperson and co-leader, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. ...
Today marks a tragic milestone for New Zealanders as the Coalition Government side with big tobacco to repeal the Smokefree Environments and Regulated Products (Smoked Tobacco) Amendment Act 2022, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins and Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall said. ...
New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April. ...
Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand. Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships. “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland Acknowledgements and opening Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says. “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024 Acknowledgements and opening Morena, Nga Mihi Nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country. “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week. “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee. “Over the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today. “The Amendment Paper represents ...
Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).“As it stands, SNAs ...
Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has classified the drought conditions in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts as a medium-scale adverse event, acknowledging the challenging conditions facing farmers and growers in the district. “Parts of Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts are in the grip of an intense dry spell. I know ...
The Government is helping farmers eradicate the significant impact of facial eczema (FE) in pastoral animals, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “A $20 million partnership jointly funded by Beef + Lamb NZ, the Government, and the primary sector will save farmers an estimated NZD$332 million per year, and aims to ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has completed a successful visit to India, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level. “We have laid a strong foundation for the Coalition Government’s priority of enhancing New Zealand-India relations to generate significant future benefit for both countries,” says Mr Peters, ...
Cabinet has agreed to provide $7 million to ensure the 2024 ski season can go ahead on the Whakapapa ski field in the central North Island but has told the operator Ruapehu Alpine Lifts it is the last financial support it will receive from taxpayers. Cabinet also agreed to provide ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Lower fruit and vegetable prices are welcome news for New Zealanders who have been doing it tough at the supermarket, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ reported today the price of fruit and vegetables has dropped 9.3 percent in the 12 months to February 2024. “Lower fruit and vege ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the sixty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
The coalition Government is supporting farmers to enhance land management practices by investing $3.3 million in locally led catchment groups, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “Farmers and growers deliver significant prosperity for New Zealand and it’s vital their ongoing efforts to improve land management practices and water quality are supported,” ...
Good evening everyone and thank you for that lovely introduction. Thank you also to the Honourable Simon Bridges for the invitation to address your members. Since being sworn in, this coalition Government has hit the ground running with our 100-day plan, delivering the changes that New Zealanders expect of us. ...
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The coalition Government is beginning its fight to lower building costs and reduce red tape by exempting minor building work from paying the building levy, says Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk. “Currently, any building project worth $20,444 including GST or more is subject to the building levy which is ...
Proposed changes to tax legislation to prevent the over-taxation of low-earning trusts are welcome, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The changes have been recommended by Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee following consideration of submissions on the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill. “One of the ...
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Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says he is looking forward to the day when three key water projects in Northland are up and running, unlocking the full potential of land in the region. Mr Jones attended a community event at the site of the Otawere reservoir near Kerikeri on Friday. ...
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This year’s Pacific Language Weeks celebrate regional unity and the contribution of Pacific communities to New Zealand culture, says Minister for Pacific Peoples Dr Shane Reti. Dr Reti announced dates for the 2024 Pacific Language Weeks during a visit to the Pasifika festival in Auckland today and says there’s so ...
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For Boba, Ethan and Ashley, K-pop is a place to belong, a way to express themselves, and a bridge to connect with others. The three young Polynesians are part of a K-pop fan community in Tāmaki Makaurau. It’s one of many that have sprung up worldwide as K-pop has gone ...
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The Taxpayers’ Union is welcoming comments from Christopher Luxon this morning recommitting to ‘no new taxes’ as part of Budget 2024. “Mr Luxon’s refusal at the Post-Cabinet press conference yesterday to repeat the ‘no new taxes’ promise ...
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The finance minister is denying that there’s a $5.6b shortfall in paying for the government’s campaign promises, including tax cuts. At his post-cabinet press conference yesterday, the PM refused to rule out new taxes to pay for the cuts, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s ...
Kāinga Ora tenants abused by their neighbours are doubting the government's crackdown on disruptive tenants will make a difference on their behaviour. ...
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Why does this myth persist, and what’s the real reason our skin is suffering?It’s one of the biggest international grievances New Zealanders hold, up there with the sinking of the Rainbow Warrior and 1981’s underarm incident. We’re quick to tell international travellers that the world’s pollution led to the ...
When the Criminal Proceeds (Recovery) Act was introduced in 2009 it was firmly targeted at gangs and drugs. The legislation means police no longer need a conviction to seize assets that criminals can’t prove were paid for legitimately, as long as their alleged offences are punishable by more than a ...
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Bob’s relationship with certain members of Lincoln’s academic staff continued to deteriorate in the 1990s. Others supported him publicly, though articles such as Roland Clark’s 1993 piece in Growing Today cannot have pleased the university management. Clark wrote that Bob was selling onions from the Biological Husbandry Unit to a ...
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Evicting more people from state housing is ignorant to the consequences of poverty, the Greens say, but the Housing Minister says it's a privilege that can be taken away if abused. ...
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In the latest barrage of Russian missile strikes on Ukraine, two have hit Poland, killing two people.
https://twitter.com/ywnreporter/status/1592582175798743041
Interesting times.
Well, maybe it'll all be over by Christmas after all.
Another story here.
‘
Two differing accounts of the missile strike on Poland. Whether this missile strayed off course or was a deliberate attack on a Nato country, CNN reports it was concurrent with a "Wave of missile strikes" on Ukraine.
Unattributed RT report denies that the missile that landed in Poland came from the missile strikes launched against Ukraine at the same time.
I don't have to guess what details will follow: Going on their past MO Russia will accuse Ukraine of staging the attack on Poland to try and bring Nato into the war.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/russia-s-lavrov-says-syria-chemical-weapons-attack-was-staged-n865686
I don't think Russia would have any interest in firing missiles at Poland so, either they were intended for Ukraine but Russia's aim was not accurate, or it was a "false flag" move by Ukraine, though for what purpose is unclear.
Always ask, who profits.
Funny how this has happened just at the time US military high command is suggesting its time for negotiation for peace.
They must have some interest in firing missiles, they've fired a lot of them.
https://www.19fortyfive.com/2022/05/ukraine-war-fact-russia-has-fired-off-more-than-1100-missiles/
… at Poland …
Googles "size of Polish army"
Googles "NATO membership".
As Poland is in NATO, you might also google "size of NATO countries armies"
Accident or not on the part of Russia, NATO, or Poland directly, has little choice but to make a strong response to this situation because otherwise Russia will see it as a green light to keep targeting Nato countries.
NATO has an escalation ladder so no WW3, yet.
https://twitter.com/PhillipsPOBrien/status/1592598256512798720
I agree that the NATO response probably won't be a direct military response at this stage.
But there will have to be a credible strong response that is sufficient to deter Russia from doing that again.
Ukraine probably will get better weapons now as a result of this. I think they should get the long range ATACM missiles they have been asking for for ages. This will allow them to target the Russian air bases and launch sites the Russians are using for these attacks. Thus, further protect Ukraine, and NATO countries as well.
Biden and co won't want to be in the books about how the war started. I reckon top end air defence systems rather than long range missiles.
Close the sky
Ukraine has previously called for a free fly zone over at least a part of Ukraine. With this attack on a NATO member country, a free fly zone over the Western half of Ukraine bordering Poland and Moldova, makes a lot of sense.
Not much point to a no-fly zone as the Ukrainians effectively have that now. In fact, in some areas, the Ukrainian airforce has been dominant. So, a nofly zone would simply penalise the Ukrainians.
Russian planes hardly dare go into Ukrainian air-space due to the bristilling air defence. The missiles tend to be fired by Russian planes outside of Ukrainian air space.
I think what they need to be supplied is longer-range precision missiles such as ATACMs so they can take out the missiles before they are even launched. This would mean targeting Russian air bases and the like.
If the missiles can be taken out before launch, that reduces the risk of Russian missiles to Nato countries as well.
One missile – plausible accident.
Two?
Guess we need to know the exact pedigree of the missiles, as to their accuracy, track record, etc.
They'll know.
https://twitter.com/noclador/status/1592596493252591617
It appears to be remains of a UKR S300 intercept of a Russian cruise missile over Livi in Western Ukraine.
At best, it will a be an Article 4 response from NATO. No need for the Poles to go to Article 5 in the NATO Charter.
Likelihood of more calls to close Western Ukraine Airspace, would be my assumption atm.
NATO/Poland are full of shit if they're saying the missiles were definitely fired by Russia
I felt for the war porn aficionados today, waking to news Russia had bombed Poland. At their keyboards, typing one handed, only to end the day with Biden pouring cold water on the idea.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/missile-that-landed-in-poland-may-have-been-fired-by-ukrainian-forces-against-an-incoming-russian-one-say-u-s-officials/ar-AA14asoY
Indeed
Now that we know it was Ukrainian missiles…..
Not with certainty.
Though out of range for direct fire from Russian territory, there are many S300s in Belarus, which for a long time was the chief manufacturing centre for them. And Russia has used S300 missiles on ground targets before.
Having failed militarily, Russia would love to prise Ukraine away from its allies and supporters by creating an incident.
"Keep?" targeting NATO countries?
A while ago there was talk of how hard it is to get positive messages through in a world of highly partisan politics, disinformation, and the usual problems of gotcha media going for cheap shots and false balance . . .
I suspect we get a lot of news and comment through the internet; leaving aside the faults of official media, we now have many websites that peddle personal opinions that are at times extreme. The following is a list of sites that I collected over a few days of websites that appear to cover political issues to at least some extent. They include what appear to be a return of dirty tricks, to deliberately deceptive sites, to those expressing extreme or even deranged opinions from authors that appear to have fallen down a rabbit hole. I tried to decide where each lay on a scale or -10 for negative views of the current government, to +10 for those consistently positive about the current government. I have not included Facebook of other "social media," and I may have missed some that are worth looking at – I certainly hope there are other sites with high positive or good balance like The Standard!
@mods – linkspam?
Although it is an 'interesting' list it is duplicated (!?) and I can't see the alleged ranking from −10 to +10 for views on the current Government in it!?
I would not encourage this sort of comments, also because they need to be released manually from the Spam trap.
Duplicated and no ranking, only clickable links. Hence my diagnosis.
I think it was done with good intentions but let down by poor execution.
Early last week my SO arrived home home from work rather distressed after a row with the boss over refusing to attend a regional meeting. Turns out one of the traveling attendees was covid positive and today three of the local staff attending have tested positive. One, for the third time, and there will probably be more.
#filthy
That's no good. Expect we will hear more similar stories over coming weeks. Yet this govt spurned expert advice about masking. https://www.newsroom.co.nz/pro/cabinet-overrode-health-advice-to-retain-masks
Yet masking didn't stop or curtail our explosion of Covid back in March did it?
Some Scandinavian countries, dropped masks altogether about a year ago. There are competing versions of expert advice.
What are you basing that conclusion on? And the advice in question is from our own local pandemic experts, not overseas academics or suchlike.
"4 shots for summer" may be the next advertising campaign to keep us safe.
For those interested, an excellent Youtube interview with the author of this RUSI piece on the Ukraine airwar.
TLDR – the early phase of this war crippled the Ukrainian airforce as it was forced to engage the Russians at a considerable disadvantage.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYDnspMWdaM
Unlikely to be reported in our usual media, so you may be unaware of the incident at the Let Women Speak rally, in New York on Monday 14 November.
Now the format for a Let Women Speak rally, is that the organiser – Kellie Jay Keen – turns up with a microphone and sound system and basically emcees an open mike, for women that want to talk. There's little curating of who speaks, if any. It is purely an event to encourage women to speak up on the impact on women's rights of legislative and policy changes. You can view previous rallies on the livestream of KJK's Youtube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/c/KellieJayKeen/streams
KJK was invited to the US, and took the format over there, and arranged rallies in public spaces – such as in front of New York town hall. A couple of events had to be cancelled due to the threats made to the women. Security was hired, and then unevidenced criticism was made that security was right-wing and aligned with fascists.
Each event was advertised by Gender Ideology Activists as a hate event, and and open invitations were issued for people to turn up and do anything they considered necessary to address that hate.
The perpetually oppressed never stop to consider that they are not stopped from marching by women (Brisbane this last weeekend) – but they are appalled at the idea of women publicly expressing their opinions, or gathering.
So, what happened in New York?
Due to the aggressive nature of the gender ideology proponents, many women, including KJK were unable to get to the event to speak.
Belissa Cohen – a LGB activist posted this video that gives some insight into what is happening with these activists:
From the left, the topless three are notable for:
1. A good example of autogynephilia – a man so preoccupied with his hormone induced breast growth, he is indulging in his sexual arousal in public with no awareness of the protest around him, apart from the opportunity it gives him for exhibitionism;
2. A trans-identified female – complete with double mastectomy scars, demonstrating a hatred for women by calling out to them either "bleeders" or "breeders". There are several videos of this group and one is of this woman declaring that she didn't want to be a woman, and how she is a boy who loves testosterone. (NB. Testosterone is a powerful drug – with euphoric effects for some). This woman was also a child model from the age of ten, which may have affected her experience of what female is, and how it is represented;
3. The last contender has been identified as a prominent and feted trans-identified male. Employed also as a model and mentor of LGBTQ+ people, he spent much of the protest spitting on people he found objectionable (women) and declaring he was going to beat their asses, bitch.
I'm always interested to hear (from those who refrain from scrolling past) the updated excuses for why 1 and 3 are vulnerable, and why women should unquestioningly make space for them in women's single-sex spaces and provisions.
And also why men can't just hold safe spaces in their own single-sex spaces for their trans-identified brothers.
https://twitter.com/BelissaCohen/status/1592544726955487233?s=20&t=xr4_-7QXnpe2EC0Fo6DlTw
Indecent exposure is a crime, and the laws are in place to deal with this, no matter the gender identity of the criminal.
Yes, there are bad trans people. There are bad gay people and bad cishet people.
I don't think we should be tarring all transgender people with the same brush.
You need to remember that the teachers who offended that Dilworth were all cisgender men.
"Indecent exposure is a crime, and the laws are in place to deal with this, no matter the gender identity of the criminal."
Apparently baring your breasts in NYC is not indecent exposure. Spitting at people might be however. Breasts don't bother me much, TBH, the thought of someone's saliva has more to be concerned about in this day and age, don't you think?
"Yes, there are bad trans people. There are bad gay people and bad cishet people."
I don't disagree – apart from the cishet – I don't follow this belief so the term is nonsensical. You might have just stated the obvious, some people are bad.
Did you miss the part when I said that No. 3 was a well-known and profiled activist and mentor?
So not a random idiot, a promoted spokeperson for the community.
"You need to remember that the teachers who offended that Dilworth were all cisgender men."
Why do you assume I have forgotten?
Is it because you "forget" that all transwomen are men?
No comment on the antagonism shown by the non-rally attendees only?
Or the public display of the often denied aspect of autogynephilia?
Or the fear and hate directed at women who are gathering to speak their opinions in a public space?
Thanks for providing yet another example of redirection and totally ignoring the content of the issue at hand.
I knew you wouldn't let me down, millsy.
Who do you think is doing that? I'm not seeing anyone here doing that. I wouldn't even tar all AGP with the same brush.
So close and yet still not quite getting it. Yes, most people who sexually offend are male. This is exactly why we have female only spaces. It doesn't mean all men, or even most, are sexual offenders, it means that if we stop thinking about men for a minute and look at this from the perspective of women, we see that the most straight forward way of protecting women from the high rates of sexual assault and harrassment by men is to arrange society so that women have female only spaces.
I've not seen any evidence that trans women or other trans-identified males sexually offend at a lower rate than the general male population. Again, this doesn't mean all or even most TW are sexual offenders. It means that when we consider the safety of women, we should consider males of whatever gender identity as the class that women need protecting from.
The safety of TW can be addressed likewise, without removing the safety of women.
"Cishet" displays your fealty to Gender Ideology. Humans are not divided into 2 categories based on a supposed relationship with their sexed bodies. Forced division without approval or permission is insulting and oppressive.
.
"cis" or "cisgender" is another term for virtually everyone.
Invented largely for political reasons within Queer Theory & Gender Studies … it seeks to massively exaggerate the size of the trans community while inherently downplaying the relevance of biological sex.
For Gender ideologues, cisgender means that one's "gender identity" and "sex assigned at birth" (as opposed to biological sex) match up.
"Sex assigned at birth" is seen as an act of power, indeed of deliberate violence … so, specifying "sex assigned at birth" instead of biological sex allows these activists to maintain the Queer Theory dogmas that (1) sex itself is socially constructed and that (2) sex categorisation is illegitimately imposed on new-born babies by Doctors, Parents & others who supposedly possess sociopolitical power … (rather than biological sex being a simple fact of human reality).
In other words, they're total fantasists (in the same way that Critical Theory / Woke ideologues are in general) … and very controlling, demanding, authoritarian fantasists at that.
Obviously we aren't but the trans movement has been infiltrated by violent and misogynistic men who are using it to get away with stuff. Self ID laws and the like have not taken this into account.
at this stage I wouldn't say infiltrated so much as welcomed with open arms. Left wing men defacto arguing that rape of women in prison is an acceptable price to pay for keeping TW safe. Left wing women saying that rape survivors need to manage their triggers better when males come into their single sex spaces. It's not like the evidence hasn't been there, presented by the pariah feminists. Even before self ID. The choices were made to put aside the concerns of women, and make the changes anyway.
Weka you are right. I was being too kind.
very good comment Molly.
I would add a couple of points.
#1 and #3 in other vids, it took me a while to figure out exactly the problem here (because we know that women use nudity as part of protest). What they look like to me are men who want the right to masturbate in public. Any conversation about trans women's rights that doesn't included discussion of AGP is a fail.
#2, the trans man is someone presumably who hates their female body to the extent that they had their breasts removed to make their life tolerable. Society needs to stop and consider if people with such degrees of mental distress should be driving policy and social change.
on reflection, it's not simply the right to masturbate in public, it's the right to do so at women they hate. I'm struggling to think of worse public expression of misogyny than that video.
That the police didn't intervene is both astounding and scary in its implications. Haven't looked at NY indecency laws.
Last time I checked men going shirtless was not considered public nudity. I don't think failing to invent a crime is really a good basis for police criticism here.
The NYPD seemed to respond appropriately throughout the day, calling in special operations unit to disperse the crowd and providing human barriers between the small group of women and the crowd.
It's always a judgment call on the day. I don't think they did much that can be genuinely criticised.
did you miss the bit in my comments where I differentiated between nudity and obscenity? In this case, public self pleasuring sexually is an act that involves others without their consent. I don't know if indecency laws cover what that man is doing, as I said in my comment.
And of course, we know that women don't generally behave like this, and that there are hefty societal and physical risk pressures that prevent women from having the freedom to be in public topless.
There’s also the issue of what would happen to the police of they reacted to the men as if they were men. But I’m guessing there is no topless law in NY for either men or women.
"What they look like to me are men who want the right to masturbate in public."
Another regular activist who attended yesterday (with previous record of doxxing women), might confirm your suspicions.
(I know many here might not believe it, but I don't post the most contentious pictures or videos I come across, I posted the one above because of the role the third one has in the community, while publicly threatening women with violence).
The following video from the same event, posted by a women's right activist (not one I particularly agree with) with a AGP enjoying the simulation of masturbation maybe a bit too much at the end:
https://twitter.com/StandingforXX/status/1592318236628221953?s=20&t=x5CuKlkN0eksd20w87CU-A
Was interesting to note how the different cultures responded to the same format. Really noticeable distinctions between the women speaking at the UK events and the US ones.
it's the visual on the ground equivalent of 'suck my trans dick'.
For those not familiar with the online version,
https://terfisaslur.com/
Along this train of thought, while I was looking into the issues of consent and the mixed messages regarding intimate relationships from many of the LGBTQ+ support organisations, I watched part of a programme about transgender people finding love.
I didn't watch it all, there was a featured piece about a well-known transgender teenage dream couple that had finally split up after promoting their transgender identities and relationship status during their teenage years. It turned out that there was little or no physical intimacy, and that their relationship was more performative than personal.
However, there was a particularly memorable young trans-identified male, who had been supported during their transition by a close male friend over the years. They had finally got the courage to directly ask their supportive male friend, now that they had finished their transition, whether they could take their friendship to a personal relationship.
The response was immediate and definite: it was better if they kept their connection to friendship only.
A couple of thoughts struck me when I watched this segment, and saw the change in demeanour of the young trans-identified man:
What if – this young man was one of the many gay teenagers who had developed a crush on their heterosexual close friend? What if both the personal homosexuality and unrequited nature of that crush, were avoided by the promise of becoming a woman, and therefore a possible romantic partner of the afore mentioned crush?
The friend – unwittingly supporting that notion by his support of a female gender identity – and all the transitional changes made, but whose heterosexual orientation meant that despite it all – he was not ever going to be an intimate relationship option.
It was quite devastating to watch. A good friend of mine, related his long-time crush on his best friend as the catalyst for realising his sexual orientation. I wonder how the young gay men in similar situations are doing now.
Some of the vitriol displayed at events might come from the realisation of the failure to deliver on the unspoken promises of full recognition alluded to in public policy and legislation, and what is experienced at individual personal level.
I'm probably a bit jaded, but the antics of the AGP struck me as someone particularly unskilled in the handling of breasts in a sexually stimulating way. I figure, at least he inflicts that lack of expertise only on himself and not anybody else.
He is in multiple videos of the day and the reality is – his behaviour never gets any better.
Often used as an excuse for bad behaviour. And just the sort of person you want in a woman's prison.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/waikato-times/news/130471744/restaurant-triple-stabber-jailed-for-nine-years-and-three-months
Yes. Saw that and despaired:
I'm sure they do feel safer. Sorry women.
We really need a specialised unit for trans people.
Relieved to see Stuff reporting on the gender transition so it's clear they are male.
Of course.
Wake up people on the left. The gender ideology movement is not progressive at all. It's harming women and its prioritizing men like Nelson over vulnerable women prisoners.
"Very complex" may be an understatement. There is a high incident of co-morbidity with other psychological conditions among today's self identified male trans people. The trans identified men in British prisons are far more likely (over 40%) to be there for sex related offences than the rest of the male prison population.
It is not just men in women's prisons and other spaces – it is the worst kind of men in women's spaces.
it's also possible that societal factors like transphobia, homophobia, and sanctions against effeminate behaviour in men may mean it's more likely that trans women and TIMs end up doing sex work. In the same way that we see sexual abuse and poverty makes it more likely for women to end up doing sex work.
I'd also like to know how that plays out with AGP men and violence. Pity No Debate means we won't be getting much good research for a while.
My thesis here is that patriarchal conditioning and conditions create violence in TIMs like it does with other men. Different dynamics.
As Molly said, why aren't men making male spaces safer?
Because these people do not want to be safe in male spaces or third spaces. They want to be in womens spaces, as women.
Male spaces and bathrooms are no more and no less dangerous for transpeople then female spaces. I mean self ID opens the door to all men, at all times, to all female spaces and thus the same men that were feared by transpeople in the male spaces will now have access to them in the female spaces. Its bs. They want access to female spaces because they want to be women, and they can only be fully women if they get to play the full game, women sports, women awards, women jobs, women rape counseling, women breastfeeding, woman everything, nothing less will do. Ditto for Transmen, they want to be men. And the rest of the population has to go along with it by hook or by crook.
But a few people will profit of this regressive misery covered in kindness, it will set women – adult human female – set back into the 1700 and further back even – removed from public record and medical texts, denial of the labour of their body, and it for sure will teach women – human born female of all ages – their place in society.
Don't you think that our future as the large gamete producers is bright and rosy?
So you think that Nelson should go to a men's prison and possibly be raped or attacked?
Not defending them, but our prisons are fucked enough without transgender prisoners getting attacked and raped.
Any prisoner going into a men's prison could possibly be raped or attacked.
How do you justify ignoring the other vulnerable males in your expression of care?
The women's prison estate is for women, and should remain sex-segregated.
So you think that Nelson should go to a women's prison and possibly stab or otherwise assault women?
The solution is to set up a special prison unit for trans prisoners. .
I would agree with you on a special trans/LGBT unit. I belive that Rikers Island in NYC had one from 1975-2005, but was closed down.
Posted a few times on the K6G unit in LA County, but you must've missed them:
https://thestandard.org.nz/search/K6G/?search_comments=true&search_posts=true&search_sortby=date
AFAIK, still going.
https://www.kcet.org/shows/socal-connected/clip/life-behind-bars-for-gbt-inmates-at-the-k6g
If you think that the prisons in NZ are so dangeorus you should voice your concern with the MP who looks after Corrections. It is up to government to regulate and then assure the safety of all prisoners who are held in the care of government.
Incarcerated women are not body shields.
How many women would need to get harmed in prison by men – who may or may not be transwomen – for you to consider the safety of women?
"If you think that the prisons in NZ are so dangeorus you should voice your concern with the MP who looks after Corrections."
I dont think the government gives a shit about the safety of our prisoners, regardless of biological sex, gender identity or sexual orientation. For the past 20-30 years, both parties have imported US penal policies into this country, which is bascially stick prisoners in a cage and watch while they tear each other apart. This is largely due to the lobbying of the likes of Garth McVicar and Norm Withers, both of whom actively condone the rape and shanking of weaker prisoners by the strong ones as that is part of the 'punishment' factor of prisons.
And yet you like the government seem to have no fuck to give about safety of women in prisons.
Men – irrespective of their self identification should never be locked up in prison with women. And to do so, is to show that absolutly no regards for the wellbeing and the safety – from rape and pregnancy – of the women is given. But then maybe the rape of a woman – human born female – is acceptable to some on the left in order to protect a male from male violence that seems to be state sanctioned and / or permitted.
And when the foreseeable happens – it warrants only brief article:
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/112432880/transgender-prisoner-investigated-for-sexual-assault-behind-bars
Below is the prisoner you are insisting on placing with females with nowhere to run:
https://reduxx.info/nz-trans-identified-male-sent-to-womens-prison-after-stabbing-spree/
Might make you think that Putin has a point.
I note that Putin and his supporters now view the war in Ukraine as a war for 'traditional values' against 'western decadance' (LGBTQ) with some pro Russian supporters wanting an open alliance between Orthodox Christian, Confucian Chinese and Wahabist Islam in some kind of 'Holy War'.
Odd as the war in Ukraine is in effect, Orthodox Christians fighting Orthodox Christians.
It is starting to look like the missile strikes on Poland may have been due to stray Ukrainian air defence missiles, or a Russian missile deflected by air defence.
So, that part may be an accident.
What wasn't an accident was oil supplies to both Hungary and Slovakia (NATO members) were cut due to Russia hitting infrastructure in Ukraine that is used for the piping of oil through to those countries. So, perhaps at least an indirect attack on Nato.
https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/hungary-mol-says-oil-shipments-druzhba-pipeline-temporarily-suspended-2022-11-15/
So, that may end up being a more serious than the missile strikes.
The EU and NATO need to make sure that this doesn't blow up out of hand. As much as I dislike Putin, I don't think it is worth turning Europe into a radioactive wasteland just to get one up on him.
What a difference a day makes
Hungarian/Slovakian supplies have resumed
https://www.upstreamonline.com/production/ukraine-oil-supplies-to-hungary-and-slovakia-resume-after-missile-strike/2-1-1355360
Grateful for your regular updates tsmithfield. Saves me a lot of reading. 😉
Thanks, I wish there wasn't a need to do that.
Time to make a submission on the proposal on restricting agricultural emissions is running out. This is an opportunity to make sure we as a country do what is necessary to meet our international obligations as well as incentivising more environmentally friendly agricultural practices which will benefit us all:
https://action.greens.org.nz/submission_guide_he_waka_eke_noa
The BAU TINA agribusinesses will be making submissions, we can outnumber theirs and send a message that will strengthen the Governments resolve. Nature, and the future, need us to advocate for them.
Latest on Luxon contortions, from Thomas Coughlan at NZME.
The old political adage applies: it is better to be criticised than mocked. Once you've become a figure of fun, you've lost.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/christopher-luxon-u-turns-on-u-turn-acknowledging-he-misspoke/G4LEMNH2MNHV7M2VAR453Z4NRE/
National later U-turned on that remark, clarifying that Luxon misspoke and had not intended to U-turn on that particular policy. He was in fact talking about the clean car standard, an emissions standard for vehicle importers.
National opposed that policy too, meaning Luxon has still U-turned on a policy today – just not the policy he said he was U-turning on.
He’s doing doughnuts
He just got squashed in the House by Grant Robertson.
Time for Split Enz … "Nobody takes me seriously anyway".
This one: https://ondemand.parliament.nz/parliament-tv-on-demand/?itemId=229653?
Not a performance of a leader who is confident of wandering far from his script at all. Not a word or an aside that wasn’t scripted. Also shows his handlers lack of confidence.
Shouldn't that be "delivering doughnuts"?
This the problem when doing doughnuts: you never deliver anything except for noise, hot air, and an acrid smell.
I'm gonna *555 Luxon.
Sustained loss of traction is against the law.
Confiscate his car and then crush it! I know just the right person for this and she’d love it
Donald Trump announces he is running for President of the United States again.
Former Republican President Donald Trump says he's launching another White House bid | CNN Politics
What could go wrong?
The most racist, homophobic, transphobic, mysoginost, religious fundamentalist, anti abortion, anti union, anti welfare president in US history. The guy must be stopped. At all costs.
LOL I think most of those labels are way off. Religious fundamentalist he certainly isn't.
Didn't he let Caitlyn Jenner use the girl's restrooms in Trump Towers?
Caitlyn Jenner is trying to be 'one of the good ones', so she doesn't count.
Agree with that – an authoritarian narcissist who periodically and unconvincingly pretends to be a religious fundamentalist, because it's politically expedient to do so.
Luxon is an interesting counterpoint to that – someone who is a religious fundamentalist but pretends not to be, because it's politically expedient to do so.
Says something about the two different political cultures I guess.
He could be suspended from Twitter for impersonating a sane person.
What a loser!
Mostly an attempt to delay the inevitable indictments coming his way. The Jan 6 committee will have to speed up their final report and recommendations with the House going GoP next year, but even some Repugnants possess principles. DoJ indictment still in the offing (even if a candidate) wrt mishandling of secret files.
Dems could run a puppy dog against him and win – he still doesn't understand that he is not as popular with the majority as he thinks he is – only the deluded.
This is one of the most insane, grotesque political scenes imaginable.
There are many versions of the occasion. This unedited, raw, all-over-the-shop long version puts the simple photo-op still moments into context.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQCHvK_pB7U
This is not how change happens. Never has been. Never will be.
With disagreement even over the conference cover statement, 'Carried to Hell in a Handcart', might be a more efficient mode of transport to take us to the apocalypse than this *shemozzle.
*(even the dictionary gets it)
Starting to look like the missile(s) that hit Poland may have been Ukrainian S300(s) (they have a lot that are past their use by date)
Tory Whanau may be in trouble with the Greens. According to HDA, all the best jobs in council have gone to her mates. I don't know whether that's true, but nepotism is a Maori speciality.
Quote: from paywalled article:
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/a-capital-letter-wellington-mayor-will-not-renew-green-party-membership/6QL5E56C4BG5ZM3N3R77GL4V
OPINION
''Wellington mayor Tory Whanau, whose independent campaign was endorsed by the Greens, has decided she will not renew her party membership, the Herald understands.
The key reason behind the move is so she can work more productively with councillors without a formal tie to a political party – but it could also ruffle feathers among those in the Green Party who helped her win the election.
Whanau has now spent almost six weeks in the city’s top job after she romped home with a convincing majority of 17,751 votes over the incumbent.
It was clear Whanau had a sense of which way the tide was turning a couple of weeks before election day, but such a strong majority certainly came as a surprise.
On the campaign trail, Whanau pitched herself as someone who could cross the political spectrum and bring people together. She pointed to her experience negotiating with New Zealand First when she was the Green Party’s chief of staff as an example of this.
Green Party councillor Laurie Foon is the deputy mayor, while two Labour councillors and one Green councillor will chair the council’s three big committees.
First-term Motukairangi Eastern Ward councillor Tim Brown told Newstalk ZB Wellington Mornings host Nick Mills he felt “slightly disconcerted” about the appointments.
It’s because they share her [Whanau’s] views, which I think is a good reason on her part, but of course means that the independent candidates sitting around the table are looking at the equation and thinking well if we don’t share her views, we’re going to be excluded.”
[Take a month off. You don’t seem to know what nepotism is and you simply indulged in baseless Māori bashing – Incognito]
Nice knowing you.
It's common. Many problems of Maori v Maori rotates around people being appointed to some position, but other Maori saying they shouldn't be appointed because they belong to the wrong tribe, or have the wrong whakapapa. I said at the time, Auckland and Wellington councils would encounter problems.
You need to add more than your trite uncalled for comment.
I'd stop digging if I were you.
How is Mark Mitchell? What else has he been up to? Is he backing Nicola Willis for leader or is he going himself? He didn’t say on the radio but I figured you’d know.
Mark Mitchell would be most worrying as National Partty leader. The guy would, in the words of Trotter, liberate the police, and police the liberals.
His desire to bring about US-style policing is well documented. I would imagine that Maori would be gunned down left right and centre by cops if he is allowed anywhere near cabiney.
You don’t give Kiwi cops much credit, do you? I’m pretty sure that for that to happen you’d need US cops with a US mind-set in a US context here in Aotearoa – New Zealand.
That's your problem, right there
Mod note
thank you
Thank you.
Waiting for a post: Luxon: Chicken Little or an Egg? on the clean car fleet. Polluters must meet their costs or we are paying them to do so. We’re picking up fossil awards while our neighbors in and outside NZ are seeing their property below water. The clean car work is not nearly enough, but it’s a basic step. Polluters must pay.
Which is it Micky?
You mean Greg alwyn.
What's happened to LINO's commitment to health outcomes like dental.
" Yesterday the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists released a report on dental care in Aotearoa, highlighting its unaffordability and recommending free, universal dental care. This is something the left has been campaigning for for a long time – Jim Anderton pushed for it before the 2011 election, and Helen Clark has advocated for it. It would massively improve people's lives, reduce pain and suffering, and save money in the long-term. But it would involve spending money, so naturally Grant Robertson has vetoed it "
" Instead of free and universal provision, he wants people to go crawling to WINZ, with all the added pain and suffering that entails. Weirdly, he thinks that this isn't a deterrent – which I guess tells us either that he has never dealt with them, or that nine years on an MP's salary and six on a deputy prime minister's has destroyed all memory of it (and WINZ has got massively worse since Grant was a student) "
http://norightturn.blogspot.com/2022/11/grant-says-no-again.html
A windfall tax could pay for this and more.
He said he did not think the fact the grants had to be applied for through Work and Income would deter people from applying for them.
"For low-income people, I'm sure the opportunity to be able to get the support for [dental care] is something that they will take up."
That sounds like someone who is totally out of touch.
I detest the National party but before you have a crack at them Greg what about your Labour party and their failures to their own people they solicit votes from then look the other way.
Now back to the RMA and Nationals policy failure's.
[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.]
If you cannot stay on-topic then take it to OM, or TDB.
" Yesterday the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists released a report on dental care in Aotearoa, highlighting its unaffordability and recommending free, universal dental care. This is something the left has been campaigning for for a long time – Jim Anderton pushed for it before the 2011 election, and Helen Clark has advocated for it. It would massively improve people's lives, reduce pain and suffering, and save money in the long-term. But it would involve spending money, so naturally Grant Robertson has vetoed it:
"
Instead of free and universal provision, he wants people to go crawling to WINZ, with all the added pain and suffering that entails. Weirdly, he thinks that this isn't a deterrent – which I guess tells us either that he has never dealt with them, or that nine years on an MP's salary and six on a deputy prime minister's has destroyed all memory of it (and WINZ has got massively worse since Grant was a student).
http://norightturn.blogspot.com/2022/11/grant-says-no-again.html
" "Going straight to universal dental care right away would be well over a billion dollars a year of extra funding, we have to weigh that up against the other things that are needed in the health system."
And Grant has ruled out a windfall tax that could pay for universal care and much more.
National is not in government but Grant and Jacinda are !
[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.]
[looks like you’re also insisting on being modded for diversion trolling. This is your warning – Incognito]
Mod note
I have never trolled in my life and you can check on my history with posting on here.
I know its uncomfortable when you are presented with the facts behind the spin of the current government but it is the facts.
National are terrible but we expect that. Labour are supposed to care for the poor.
They don't.
I will continue to call them out even if the people here can’t see it.
Open and transparent government was promised wasn’t it ?
There’s a first for everything. If you continue the efforts of a notorious diversion troll who had been warned and modded then, for all intents and purposes, I consider you also a diversion troll and will treat you as such.
You are free to say what you feel you have to say but you don’t have carte blanche to say it wherever (and however) you feel like here. You may also want to tone down on the personal snides when you ‘call out Labour’.
" You are free to say what you feel you have to say but you don’t have carte blanche to say it wherever (and however) you feel like here "
No you have that power Incognito by the way you and others decide what is acceptable on this site.
Its called freedom of expression which the government has not banned yet and I am not talking about anything illegal or malicious but the Standard has just has to look at the growing list of people driven out by being banned because they said something the moderators disagreed with.
The TDB has a number of contributors who are on topic and and aren't afraid to call the National party out while also revealing the increasing poverty and hardship still being experienced under Labour and their fiddling with statistics.
Personal snides ? you mean the attack on Chris Trotter on this site ?
I take it then that's acceptable if its one of your main contributors , or Lyn's
put down's against some of the correspondents who contribute here.
I rest my case.
Seriously?? Are you oblivious or obtuse?
Addressing and correcting the very many points in your comment feels like cleaning the Augean stables. Suffice to say, as long as one adheres to this site’s Policy and takes heed of Moderator notes one can enjoy the generous freedom of commenting on TS to their heart’s content.
I hope this will help and I also hope you don’t draw unnecessary attention to yourself.
Have a nice day.
Good dental health, has such a positive effect on other health issues.
And the dental care offered by the school system is much less consistent or frequent than it was back in the 70s when every primary school had it's own dental clinic and nurse.
It would have been a good preventative health measure, and the cost of dental care is high or unaffordable for those with few discretionary funds.
Yes. I think it's the cost factor which has just driven it up out of reach of many middle-class (let alone working-class) kiwis.
I don't know what the answer is to this. Some of it is the bells-and-whistles (x-rays, etc.), which may improve the dental care – but all the equipment costs an arm-and-a-leg and has to be amortized across all of the patients. Some of it is the high cost of training, and then of staffing and operating dental surgeries.
https://www.nsoms.co.nz/dental-costs-in-new-zealand-why-is-it-so-expensive/
I'd like to see a very low-cost, basic dental care option. Fillings (quick and cheap), extraction (if necessary), cleaning & scaling [which always sounds painful]. And conversations with the dentist which include what you can afford – rather than starting out with 'you need 5 crowns, at 1.5 K each'
I know that school dental care was massively backed up before Covid (my son missed the last 3 annual checkups at his school – because they simply prioritized kids who they felt were more likely to have issues). And, of course, virtually no preventive dental work was done over the last 2 years with Covid. Now the dental checks have started up again, but they are so far behind, I don't think they have any hope of catching up – and are suffering from the same staffing shortages that every other aspect of medicine is coping with.
And, if your kid needs braces (not just cosmetic, if there are misaligned or overlapping teeth, without straightening you're in for a life of heightened risk of dental decay) – you're talking 7K plus (which is completely out of reach of many families).
Good on you Mosa