Went out last night to karaoke, they now forced to close at 1am, instead of 2am – the authoritarian old farts on the council and the police I bet – love telling us peasants what to do.
So I was outside talking to security guy and police stated going past about midnight, to intimidate staff and patrons – to make sure everything was shut down by 1am.
Everybody that goes to the karaoke is pisd off about the further restriction of hours. Staff take the brunt of it, they the ones who will be fined. People just want to hang out together, play some pool, listen to music, have a few drinks etc. And in comes the Carterton Council and Community Leaders to stomp on our cultural freedoms to socialise at a pub. Is this what happens when the baby boomers are too powerful, or is it just that elites like to intimidate and control us poorer peasants.
Yes sometimes there are fights, and they are handled expertly by staff and security. I never feel unsafe there – Wairarapa is shutting down everything it can for the poorest people in the community – why is that?
Authoritiarian is not a good word, governments restricting people’s freedom to socialise is not good either.
I happen to agree with you. The police seem to be peddling some snake oil about how it is better to close early. Tried it in Newcastle Australia and all it did was increase young road deaths as they drove elsewhere for fun.
If you are young why can’t you dance till dawn – one day you can’t. Maybe start watering the drinks after 1.00pm but people drift off gradually and the cold light of 5.00a.m is kinda sobering IIRC.
One of the downsides of a Labour/Green victory if we get one this month would be that this kind of clampdown on people having fun would only increase. Both parties are even more full of people who know what’s best for you than National is.
Oh dear, I was afraid you’d say ACT. How’s ACT gonna increase my fun? I love Red Dwarf but I don’t find Seymour remotely funny. In fact, when thinking about ACT it spoils my fun …
Horrifying, isn’t it? Still, just be glad it’s Seymour and not John Banks, Don Brash and David Garrett – Seymour looks positively jovial in comparison.
I might have to see somebody for this but I often associate ACT with Destiny Church and Exclusive Brethren … These are real party-starters, aren’t they?
On the other hand, if your idea of fun is sitting around in a blue haze blurting “cosmic” and “groovy” in response to banal observations and giggling a lot, then Greens/Labour are more likely to move on allowing that indulgence without risking a visit from Plod.
I’m not opposed to most pubs shutting at 1am, but a nightclub license should be available for them who wants to go until dawn. It’s normally a tiny proportion who will move bars to continue.
The real problems come from bars competing to pump as much piss into as many people as possible, then dumping them on the street when they’re well over the limit. Preloading is also an issue.
Granny Herald is still in over-drive with its it cheer-leading for the most despicable and dishonest campaign by National since ……. oh yeah – the last election. First there was John Armstrong who seems to be racing into senility and memory loss at a faster rate than the average 80 year. Amongst other alternative facts, he appears to be claiming that Labour had a whole range of new taxes to implement in its manifesto. Really? Then there was the indefatigable serial mis-representer Fran O’Sullivan who, among other things, seems to think Labour ‘invited’ the Joyce/English lie machine to rev up to full noise to mislead the voters. Thankfully, Lizzie Marvelly put in a few drops of sanity with, “All aboard the election porky train.” to relieve the tedium.
Given that National already has a capital gains tax in force, it seems that extending the time frame from 2 to 5 years and keeping the level of taxation in line with house price inflation over the past nine years doesn’t constitute a new tax – ” Let’s do it!”. Other stuff can probably wait until later BUT another option would be to play the National line – we had to do it because it was the policy of our coalition partner. ACT, with only one pathetic excuse for a politician wagged the dog and that was fine!
“Let me be perfectly clear… like a jellyfish … translucent even… radiant from within … like a candle in the wind, never knowing where to cling to … and there goes our tax policy…”
If anyone is still determined to vote for TOP, this may give you some pause:
He wants 10 to 15 per cent of the party vote. Only then would he feel the ethical mandate to go into politics full time… But if the Opportunities Party polls lower than that – even if they get a seat – it won’t be Gareth Morgan pushing through the policies.
Given that Morgan is the face of the party (I can only name two other candidates and that is only because they used to be with the GP and ALCP respectively), you have to question who would still vote for them knowing that he’ll be on his bike as soon as the counting is done. I take polls with much caution, but TOP has never cracked 3% and has more often been below 2%; 5% is unlikely but not inconcievable10-15% is simply delusional.
Given this, I have to ask; if Morgan was always determined to stay out of parliament unless TOP got at least 10%, why is he at list position #1, rather than #11?
It doesn´t matter whether more than 5% or less, or even whether he takes up his seat, assuming wins one (assuming he does´t win a constituency seat his party will have either six seats or none – the system doesn´t allow for anything in between).
It has been my practice ever since I started voting to vote for the party with the most enlightened policies, and I will be doing so this election.
mikesh
If I had my choice, I’d be voting for MANA again, as they have been a consistant voice for the underclass in Aotearoa (Māori and Pākehā). Their policy releases have been ongoing throughout the election campaign, but not got a lot of cut through, water was the most recent:
Wai (water) is essential for the life, health and wellbeing of all living things. Water is also an important resource for the people, plant life, farming, industry, recreation, cultural ceremonies and power generation in Aotearoa. The mauri, (the vitality of the life force) and sustainability of water is constantly being threatened and eroded by pollution and over consumption.
However, unless you happen to vote in Te Tai Tokerau (which I don’t), a vote for MANA is likely to be wasted. Thus I have chosen pragmatism over principle this election.
Our electoral system is currently constructed (eg; coat-tailing, and 5% thresholds) to actively dissuade people from voting for the parties whose policies seem most enlightened to them. Until this changes, I feel it is necessary to vote strategically.
“It has obviously been happening for quite a while but sometimes these subterranean societal shifts are hard to detect, especially by people like me who are being left behind.
As we approach the closely fought election in which the race is between somebody about my age and someone exactly 22 years younger than me, it’s become clearer that New Zealand is indeed ready to cross over into something new.
That’s why I think Jacinda Ardern is going to win the election or at least get more of the party vote than National.
And even if I am wrong about that, the ground has still shifted and what she represents is in the ascendant. If not this time, it will be the next.”
Martin van Beynen: A changing of the guard is on the way
They will be covering the proposed Waimea Dam, prisons/corrections (Kelvin Davis and louise upston) and Paddy talks to Willie J, Marama D and flavell re the maori seats.
One thing that has bitterly disappointed me about national is their lack of wanting to engage in cross-party groups to tackle some of NZ’s major problems.
Have noticed nat’s wheeling out a lame as attack line to opposition parties of late… “you’ve had nine years to do something”… (it’s like excuse me, who has been running the country for the last nine years?)
EDIT… STREAM CEASED AS ALARM WENT OFF AND THEY HAVE TO EVACUATE THE BUILDING
Not watching The Nation anymore, the program needs a new title: The National Nation would be more like it. It is nothing less than a propaganda fest. Biased and is shows, shrill and at times almost hysterical to defend. Who in their right mind would want to watch this?
i watch/listen to as many different political shows as possible no matter which way their leanings, am not in my right mind, however, instead am ambidextrous.
Anyways, they are re-recording some segments with flavell, and screening it again in the morrow.
It’s hard to critique when one isn’t even prepared to listen.
Which would explain your attempt to disregard it by pointing at the National Front (who have nothing to do with it) and the site that hosted the interview.
A state seeking to suppress political activity of a citizenry isn’t the same thing as states competing or jockeying for power amongst themselves.
Best to keep the two things separate.
The US, NZ, China and every other fucking state deserves to be kicked in the head for the former (suppression of a citizenry’s political will).
As for condemning China’s bid for global power, that can’t be done without rank hypocrisy and probably buying into some degree of racist/xenophobic bullshit unless all state power by whatever state is also condemned.
And Marty Mars and McFlock doing the ad hom mambo? Yup. Fucking tedious.
You honestly can’t understand how accusing someone of being in a habit of submitting spam and insinuating they’re a liar to boot isn’t just bullshit ad hom loaded commenting?
sure bill yeah I can see why someone could possibly feel that calling someone else a spammer and non-leftie can be considered an ad hom. I thought I was just describing the facts but there you go.
When a state seeking to suppress political activity of its citizenry is also a state competing or jockeying for global power, the two can become entwined.
I take it you are referring to the second link I posted. If you look at the top of the page, you’ll see that it was part one of three. Hit the downward arrow for the following two parts.
But while we’re on it, what did you make of the Campus Patriots section and the Communist Party’s influence on Australian university campuses through the Chinese Students and Scholars Associations? Should voters and NZ Labour be concerned?
As for hypocrisy, I agree, my sentiment holds for any state seeking global power. It just happens to be we have a Chinese in parliament that has been accused of being a spy and bringing in big donations.
You put it up, Joe put something up, I agree with Joe as it fitted what I had observed.
I said it was sad that you were putting up stuff the national front got boners over and I said I still preferred that to the spam imo that you post attacking labour.
Though he did try to diminish it by pointing to the National Front (which have nothing to do with it) and the site that hosted it. Alluding to other crap the site also presents, which also has nothing to do with what I posted.
You came in, slapped his back and decided to have a little personal dig at me. When we all know I’m not the topic of the discussion. Of which, you added nothing too.
But they’re not pointless. In my opinion, TC actively contributes to the information overload that bogs down political discourse these days. Posting a fifty minute video with fuckall context and then getting pissy when someone points out it’s on a National Front hot picks list (which is definitely valid context for judging its likely merit) is just the latest example. The majority of TC’s ouvre revolves around wallowing in bland nonsensicalities that TC paints as profound political observations, like Pete George- only TC’s better at toeing the line.
And the thing is, engaging TC in debate is only playing their game of “twenty to the power of infinity questions”. Ignoring TC leaves the bog spider waiting to tie other people in knots. So that’s why I think there’s a point in calling TC what they are.
That fifty minute video was a wide ranging discussion that a number of political junkies would find interesting.
I purposely posted it on the weekend to allow those who are interested the time to view it.
It’s no longer than watching an episode of the Nation or Q&A.
If you are merely looking for quick soundbites and don’t have time for the larger issues, then best you move on. No one is forcing you to partake.
The title was self explanatory, thus “fuckall” context was given.
And I wasn’t getting “pissy” it’s on the National Front hot picks list as it’s not a valid way of judging its merit. The book has nothing to do with them.
sounded to me like the bold was coming and that was a moderator inspired comment or at least the close imminent potential for one – I took it that way.
I try to obey moderators – no point making life tough especially in a no win situation.
@bill
yeah, but I’ve learned to play it safe before things get too boldy mcboldtype 🙂
@TC – if the national front like something, it’s not because of its impartial intellectualism on either part. You could have saved yourself 50 minutes.
You haven’t refuted Joe or my points – you dragged something out that is well liked by the National Front – that is a fact. Not only that but the site he linked to runs numerous outrageous and disgusting pieces as he highlighted and that is a fact.
Here’s a hint – a REAL left orientated person would take the criticism and listen to it and maybe say, “Hey thanks Joe and Marty, I didn’t realise that what I put up had such horrible friends and now I do I will really try to do more checking before I add something to the forum.”
What do you do – argue like a rightie about your ego – sorry bubb that is a fail. sad.
I presented an interview with the author of the book. And the fact that the National Front like it is neither here nor there. They have nothing to do with it.
Moreover, the outrageous and disgusting pieces on the site he (Joe) linked to also had nothing to do with the interview I presented.
The only association the site has with the author was the hosting of the interview.
Hence, Joe was using it as a way to diminish and ridicule the interview I posted.
Therefore, I don’t owe anyone an apology.
I don’t have a problem with criticism, as long as it has merit. And as you can see from the points above, this has nothing to do with my ego.
For what it’s worth (probably nothing) I too think The Chairman is a spamming pretend leftie who posts in the Pete George mold.
It’s spam because The Chairman’s style is to write one line, place a link, then ask for thoughts (see the very comment with clip which started this). It’s pretty lazy really.
He’s a pretend leftie because 95% of his posts are criticisms of NZ Labour and when challenged on why he never critiques the actual enemy of the left, the National Party, claims lamely that not ever holding the Nats to account shouldn’t preclude him from undermining Labour at every single opportunity.
And he’s Pete George lite in the way he floods a discussion with beige distractions and how he, when pulled up, tries to make the argument itself more important than the original point.
Bill may have missed all this but I and obviously some others have The Chairman’s number.
Yeah, they’re both like that black stuff you find around the windows of a typical cold damp NZ house. An insidious and constant reminder to average Kiwis they have no hope.
I presented an interview with wide ranging implications and all you can do is write your thoughts on me?
There really is little hope for this nation if you lot think I’m your concern.
I’ve stated my political position. And any genuine lefty would be criticizing this Labour lot cause they are far from left.
They won’t even increase core benefit rates, which would provide some instant relief for a good many that are struggling.
Lowering the bar isn’t going to encourage them to up their game. If we want more from Labour we have to hold their feet to the fire. You lot should be with me on this, not against me. Which makes me question how left are you?
I didn’t claim that not ever holding the Nats to account shouldn’t preclude me from undermining Labour, which makes you a liar.
Nor was it my answer when challenged on why I seldom critique National.
The real enemy of the left are the right within, that’s what’s largely causing Labour to fall short. Robbing us of the opportunity to better repair this mess 30 odd years of neo-liberalism (led by both Labour and National) has created.
So the basic complaint is that China may be kind of buying global dominance and that’s just not on because “the West” is the rightful seat of global power. That about right?
The same shit and fear was peddled by the British when the US was on the rise – fear and loathing. All bullshit.
I’ll say this for China. At least its rise to global prominence isn’t coming off the back of militarism and imposed states of penury as “the West’s” was.
“So the basic complaint is that China may be kind of buying global dominance”
Depending on ones perspective, some may see it more as an economic takeover.
And it’s not on (as you put it) for a number of reasons, but not the one you put forward.
It’s an attack on a nations sovereignty, its democracy, and rule of law.
While there are no explosions on the ground, planes in the air, or tanks on the streets, the wealth stripping is creating harm. Seen our current account? Homelessness? Poverty? Inequality? Suicides? Assets and resources sold to foreign hands? It’s all part of the globalized, neo-liberal way.
Until recently, it’s largely been western elite cleaning us out. And that isn’t on either.
China invaded Tibet and why do think they are building up their military, Navy, etc…? Could it be to intimidate and in preparation of resistance of their financial offerings?
Have a listen to the interview, I think you’ll find it interesting.
I already dropped into it and skipped though randomly to get ‘a taste’ of where the guy was coming from. He’s a “Yellow Peril” arse-wipe from what I can tell.
And your comment’s just a pile of kinda breathless assertions with no argument or rationale attached.
I don’t really care too much for a nation state’s sovereignty given it’s an illegitimate construct by my political reasoning. But you want to get all hot under the collar over various competing and equally illegitimate “pretenders” then hey.
And if/when that slips into xenophobic and/or racist bullshit I might pipe up. But until then….meh.
The Chairman
Oh so it’s China that’s at the base of everything going wrong in NZ. And all the time I thought it was our dollar-eyeballed pollies going for broke. I noted that actually we were broke and they were just going for everything they could get and sell. Isn’t it our pollies and their fellow travellers, the dairy farmers and irrigators and so on who are welcoming Chinese to come and spend their new money here. I think we should be more concerned about the bods going to Harvard and learning the Right Way of doing laissez faire in the 21st century.
In our little country the ones who have made money have a lot of sway.
They are the little men who could, and a fewer little women who don’t have the altruistic notions portrayed in the USA book Little Women. We are being picked over by our own. The Chinese just watch bemused and come along for the ride, along with people from the Indian Continent etc/
Yes I agree, I have been watching China for some years and back in 2015 Brain Gould was writing articles re China’s rapidly expanding “property manifesto” in NZ.
But it is happening all over the world not just in NZ.
If Ron Asher’s book , In The Jaws of the Dragon, is a reds under the beds variation then explain this which I copied and filed several years ago.
“Like the China agreement the free trade with India comes with conditions. Conditions that our leader isn’t always fond of explaining. For one; we have to agree to allow a set number of Chinese immigrants into NZ per year.”
Why would there be such a stipulation in a Free Trade agreement ? Is this actually happening ?
Apart from the liberalisation of the movement of natural persons, there is no mention of immigration in the China/NZ FTA. And there is no set figure that I’m aware of.
As for China’s rapidly expanding property manifesto in NZ, the documentary (Who owns NZ now) touched upon this. We aren’t keeping sufficient records of offshore investors in our property market. And It has been suggested that China’s influence and our unwillingness to rock the boat is behind it.
Our investor visa scheme (which is separate from FTAs but is largely utilized by the Chinese) has fast tracked immigration for wealthy offshore investors.
Yes there is … It says – Phil Goff – free trade agreement with China agreed to allow 1800 extra chinese immigrants into NZ..
It is well through – about 3/4 through – the recording .
So is that enacted here or not ?
It was in reference to the liberalisation of the movement of natural persons, temporary immigrants. That is, temporary for the individual or group, but it’s an ongoing policy within the deal.
The Chinese and other great powers don’t make us agree to investments coming into NZ, it’s been done by the ambitious export oriented pollies and business leaders. The Chinese have given us an agreement to trade and we have reciprocated with lots. So we small, them big, they are happy to go along with using the opportunities they have facilitated and we have offered. That is closer to the truth than some of the wilder things that have been said here.
“He’s a “Yellow Peril” arse-wipe from what I can tell”
Really? What drove you to that conclusion?
To me, he came across as someone who doesn’t agree with how the Chinese Government operate.
My argument is China (who is no small player with a large military force) is also playing the neo-liberal game. And just because they are greasing palms instead of dropping bombs it doesn’t make them any less of a threat. And we’ve opened the door for them.
We have one in National that’s looking dodgy. Labour has a new one, raising some questions. And the Maori party have one that has just recently been accused of political bribery (allegedly offering online cash credits to potential supporters on Chinese social media message app WeChat).
I’m interested in knowing more on why you don’t value our sovereignty and think its an illegitimate construct?
We’ve opened the door to them. ‘We’ have one in… and Labour has a new one. The MP have one .
You any idea how utterly fucked in the head that shit you’re spouting is?
Nek minute you’ll be telling ‘one and all’ that you’ve nothing against Asians or Chinese in particular and that one of your mates is…Chinese…could be Korean…or might be Vietnamese or …well, you’re not sure, but ‘whatever’ they’re all Asian and some of them are okay and you’re not talking about the okay ones, just the bad ones and the bad ones are legion and they’re out to swamp ‘our’ pavlova paradise with weird monogluta addictive mind bending whatevers…
Tell me.
Where you think the original geographical location of Pacifica peoples is? And if them supposedly ‘swamping’ and ‘taking over’ is such a big deal then….well, assuming you’ll trace back to Europe heritage wise…..
And I didn’t say sovereignty was an illegitimate construct (idea). I said that the state is an illegitimate construct.
You may think it’s fucked in the head but it’s the reality.
Therefore, are you implying I’m incorrect?
We have a free trade deal with China, yes? Thus, we’ve opened the door to a new big player.
Jian Yang now looks dodgy, yes?
Wetex Kang was accused of bribery, yes?
Labour’s Naisi Chen was the former President of the New Zealand Chinese Students’ Association, yes?
I don’t know why you are attempting to make this about race? One was accused of bribery, the other two have questions surrounding their connection to the Communist Party.
“It seems to be between Labour and National. If you had asked me before my win I would have erred on the socialist side but now I am more likely to side with National … it is about wanting to protect the future for your whanau. I wouldn’t say I had it hard as some people before my win, but I wouldn’t want the mokopuna to struggle through life.
One that should have been added was National party lack of use of rail and building more roads instead!!!!!!
Rain-water washes road pollution off our roads into our streams, rivers, lakes, and aquifers, and drinking water.
National have dismissed removing half the road pollution from stock, fertilizer, fuel, & rubbish trucks off our roads & use rail as a mitigation against “road runoff pollution” from their effluent and other emissions (tyre dust) that 34 wheeler trucks deposit on our roads.
Where is Paula? Is she in hiding? Because she hasn’t been seen in her electorate and has been very quiet of late. Bit of concern about some hard questioning coming up in relation to a previous life perhaps?
What is happening in the Barclay dirty business (apart from little Toadie doing a runner off to London)? Those 450 texts? Is the police investigation still ongoing? Or has it all been buried?
What about the Jian Yang issue? Is the SIS still investigating? Or will that one fade away never to see the light of day again?
We desperately need some investigative journalism in this country to expose the murky activities of this grubby corrupt government!
Instead we get an apparent rant (no I haven’t read it and I don’t intend to) from John Armstrong on the evil machinations of Jacinda Ardern – a 2017 version of the crack-pot rant against David Cunliffe in 2014. You know, the one where he accused Cunliffe of every evil sin under the sun, and then later withdrew and apologised after the election was over.
Jacindas out door speech to the masses (and there were quite a lot of us on this raw blustery New Plymouth day) was received well by a wide range of ages.
Half way through I heard singing and chanting getting louder and I feared the worst..a bunch of Taranaki cow cockies on the rampage. Then they came into view, a party of pirates. I counted about 80, mainly in good quality fancy dress, not jeans and scarf on the head type of things, marching past having a good time.
They sent 2 envoys carrying their flag to talk to Jacinda evidently moaning about the government being mean and unfair to pirates etc. She laughed, said she would talk to them later and they commandeered the pub across the road.
Good to see such a lot of folk having a great time. Daughter said it was the annual Pirate Day pub crawl…not being on Facebook I miss out on news of these things.
Awesome especially considering the weather, it’s like where ever Jacinda goes loads of people turn out to see her, it’s amazing to see the response, what a good buzz.
The pirates would have been an absolute treat, so much goodness
Perhaps becoming the next government will not start off well in being able to fulfill the need to build houses in Auckland.
To those following the picture of the building industry there are some uneasy ndicators out there, same with houses selling being 20% down from last year.
Martin Dunn, of estate agency City Sales, said Australian banks had “pulled the plug” on the New Zealand apartment market and were refusing to give would-be buyers the remaining 90 per cent for their mortgage http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11922859
In the past year alone 35 apartment projects in Auckland were reportedly axed, including the Flo Apartments project in Avondale, which would have had 91 apartments, each priced from $370,000. http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/315433/wary-banks-blamed-for-dropped-housing-projects
Okay. That’s kinda scary shit. Just to pick out one of a number of points raised in the politico piece…
They (Ziska and his colleagues from the the U.S. Department of Agriculture) found that the protein content of goldenrod pollen has declined by a third since the industrial revolution—and the change closely tracks with the rise in CO2. Scientists have been trying to figure out why bee populations around the world have been in decline, which threatens many crops that rely on bees for pollination. Ziska’s paper suggested that a decline in protein prior to winter could be an additional factor making it hard for bees to survive other stressors.
Calling Sci Fi writers – this could be a good opportunity from JMG’s new blog http://www.ecosophia.net/
So we’re going to do it. You can find the details at http://www.solarsystemheritage.com/anthology-project-2017.html, but the short form is that we’re looking for short stories (2500-7500 words), novelettes (7500-12,500 words) and maybe a novella (12,500 words on up) set in the Old Solar System. What kind of stories? You name it. Two-(or more-)fisted tales of adventure like C.L. Moore, solar system noir like Leigh Brackett, interplanetary travel with a religious dimension like C.S. Lewis, Old Solar System horror like Clark Ashton Smith – you name it, so long as it takes place in the imaginary solar system of the classic science fiction era. You can—indeed, you should—put your own twist on ancient and desolate Mars, lush Venus, or whatever other world or worlds you choose for a setting—and yes, Earth is also an option!—but it should fit more or less cleanly into the grand collective work of art that was the Old Solar System.
“Inspired by the People’s Climate March and its hundreds of thousands of participants, Rebecca Foon and Jesse Paris Smith founded Pathway to Paris in 2015. Created as a way to keep the momentum alive, the organization is a collaboration between musicians, artists, cities and activists to help turn the Paris Agreement into real action. ”
Among a river of poetic points offered by the senior (Patti) Smith, she stressed the importance of not giving into the gloom; of how to use a positive attitude as a tool of resistance.
“When I worked with Ralph Nader, one of the things that he taught us was that nothing productive comes from negativity or pessimism,” she said. “So it’s important not to be drawn into a state of pessimism or paralysis, one has to take a breath and rise above it. I’m not saying that as rhetoric, I’m saying it as an action, as what I have to do myself. I feel the same way that you feel, that everyone else feels, but I refuse to be trampled by it, I refuse to be demoralized; I just keep on doing my work, our work.”
“And even something such as this concert, it makes me feel that each thing that we do, whether we did a concert yesterday, or we’re doing this November 5, we’re partnering with each other, we’re connecting the dots,” she added. “So we have to sometimes not turn a blind eye, but keep our eyes on what we’re trying to do, not on what is being done to dismantle our efforts.”
I love what Patti Smith is saying there – pessimism and paralysis help no one. They are the weapons of the oppressors – rise above it, breathe and keep working to make the world a better place.
“I love what Patti Smith is saying there – pessimism and paralysis help no one. They are the weapons of the oppressors – rise above it, breathe and keep working to make the world a better place.”
If you watch the video on that page with Brian Eno, from about the 3:00 min mark he also talks about the involvement of creative artists in developing a new narrative around the environment.
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We all know that bad parents simply don’t care about their children’s education. Most truants have loser parents, and grow up to be involved with crime, or in low paid employment usually like their parents. The nonsense so-called “climate strike” coming up will be attended mostly by the least intelligent ...
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The Herald has a story today about the 400 MW of wind power currently under construction. Good news, right? Except that none of it is being driven by policy (instead, its about replacing Contact Energy's Taranaki Combined Cycle gas-fired power plant, due to shut down in 2022), and most of ...
To Protect and Serve: When the Prime Minister finds herself enmeshed in the coils of a full-blown political scandal, her colleagues and party comrades have only one priority: to release her as swiftly – and with as little lasting injury – as possible. Is this what Jacinda Ardern’s colleagues and ...
When military leaders cover up and lie to elected civilian authorities, the foundation of democratic civil-military relations is undermined because it is those authorities who are entrusted to hold the military accountable to the public that they mutually serve. But this is only true if civilian political authorities take their ...
The Make It 16 campaign to lower the voting age is launching this afternoon, and they have already announced plans to challenge the law in court:The campaign, named "Make it 16" will launch at Parliament on Friday, with plans to take their case to the High Court, testing the rights ...
by Daphna Whitmore The long years of Netanyahu’s reign are drawing to an end. For years he has epitomized reactionary zionism as he oversaw hundreds of thousands of Jewish settlers seize land in the West Bank. There are now 700,000 settlers, putting an end to the myth that Israel was ...
BP, Z and Mobil all insist that petrol price hikes are temporary, “in a very literal sense.” The nation’s major petrol providers are trying to allay customer fears over prices, promising that they’ll move to lower them again “immediately” when the Middle East is returned to its formerly peaceful state. ...
South African coach Rassie Erasmus says he has no idea what they’re going to do about the boat. In a highly anticipated press conference this afternoon, All Blacks coach Steve Hansen has finally unveiled the team’s boat for its Rugby World Cup 2019 campaign. In a press conference that went ...
The Operation Burnham inquiry continued to question senior NZDF staff today, and their shoddy coverup over their knowledge of civilian casualties continue to fall apart. If you recall, first, we were asked to believe that it was all a series of "mistakes and errors": a senior officer with multiple degrees ...
The Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Bill (No 2) had part of its committee stage yesterday. its a generally tedious bill about the nitty-gritty of local government reorganisation. But it includes a clause making the Local Government Commission subject to the Ombudsmen Act, and hence the OIA. Great! Except of ...
Yesterday Ihumātao's mana whenua reached a consensus that they would like their land back, and asked the government to negotiate with Fletcher's for its return. The government's response? Try and undermine that consensus, while talking about how doing anything would undermine existing Treaty settlements. The first is just more bad ...
Its Suffrage Day, the 126th anniversary of women winning the right to vote (but not stand in elections) in New Zealand. And to celebrate, the government has bought Kate Sheppard's house in Christchurch:The government has bought Kate Sheppard's former home in Christchurch for more than $4 million. The Ilam villa ...
The UN climate summit is happening in new York next week, and unlike previous years, coal-burners and denier-states are not being invited to speak:Leading economies such as Japan and Australia will not be invited to speak at next week’s crunch UN climate change summit, as their continued support for coal ...
Get Back Jojo! The elation in Mayor Phil Goff’s camp may be easily imagined as they watched social media light up in indignation at challenger John Tamihere’s "Sieg Heil to that" quip. Just when JT’s notoriously right-wing, sexist and homophobic stains were beginning to fade back into his ‘colourful’ past, ...
Patrick Gower is good value when he's high. Not that I've ever, you know, got stoned with him. But in the second part of his documentary Patrick Gower on Weed, he does what you'd expect in a modern weed documentary and immerses himself – first with a doctor, then a ...
We surveyed candidates on their attitudes to issues facing the Western Bay Region, find out what they think: “Closing the Gap” Tauranga, one of the area groups of Income Equality Aotearoa NZ Inc., has surveyed all candidates in the three local body elections to discover attitudes to some basic issues ...
Please spread widely, and sign, to support science and rationalism over the new irrationalism sweeping universities and institutions. PROJECT NETTIE Sexual reproduction, the generation of offspring by fusion of genetic material from two different individuals, evolved over 1 billion years ago. It is the reproductive strategy of all higher animals ...
Just when I was thinking that Palmerston North's mayoral race (which includes a convicted child molester / public wanker and a convicted child beater) was the worst in the country, Auckland mayoral candidate John Tamihere opened his mouth:Auckland mayoral candidate John Tamihere is being slammed for using the words "sieg ...
We reprint below an article from the excellent website the Economics of Imperialism by Tony Norfield This is an update of the statistics for my Index of Power, using data for 2018-19 and discussing what a country’s ranking reflects. The major change is that China’s rank has shifted up and ...
The All Blacks have been, for more than a century, arguably the most successful International sports team in the world. But they are more than that; even for those Kiwis who are immune to the charms of rugby (and there are more than a few), the All Blacks are ambassadors ...
Alone, Alone, All, All, Alone: To argue that the Prime Minister is the victim of her advisers’ failure to keep her informed may offer Jacinda some measure of exoneration – but only at the cost of casting her as a hopeless political ingénue. A star-dusted muppet, whose only purpose is to ...
In times of hysteria about the “World coming to an end” and “rising sea levels” so-called ‘Journalists’ who can barely spell words longer than four letters are having a ball! Though the majority of the Public have worked out that manmade climate change is nothing short of pseudo-science, and the ...
I don't want to give pblicity to certain parts of the internet that are better left to fester in their own irrelevance (I know, a bit like this place) but the listing of Chris Trotter as a 'author' on Cameron Slater's spinoff website, the BFD requires some explanation.Now, I don't ...
The text below is a Twitter thread by Heather Heying that explains the essence of sexual reproduction and it long evolutionary history. She is an evolutionary biologist and a “professor-in-exile” after she and her husband, Bret Weinstein, stood up to supporters of an enforced “Day of Absence” for white staff and teachers ...
With crunch time for new Zealand climate policy approaching, most of the New Zealand media have got on board with a global reporting effort to cover the issue. There's one strand of stories today about polling and what it shows about changing public attitudes to the crisis, but the strand ...
Dangerous Foes: For those readers of Bowalley Road who feel disposed to dismiss any prospect of an Israeli destabilisation of New Zealand politics, the example of the United Kingdom repays close attention. Ever since the election of Jeremy Corbyn as leader of the British Labour Party, the Israelis have sanctioned, funded and ...
Make It 16, the youth-led campaign to lower New Zealand's voting age, is holding an official campaign launch at Parliament this Friday from 16:30. If you'd like to attend, you can register using EventBrite here. ...
by Don Franks It was a lovely sunny Wellington afternoon with blue skies above the beaches. In Courtenay Place, political activists packed out a stuffy upstairs room for an important meeting. The assembled pacifists, anarchists, communists and independent young radicals of Peace Action Wellington felt the need for a mission ...
Current and former NZDF top brass are being publicly grilled this week by the hit and run inquiry over their public responses to allegations of civilian casualties. Previously, they've claimed there were no casualties, a position which led them to lie to Ministers and to the public. Now, they're saying ...
by Rafael D. Quiles (gender-critical gay man from Puerto Rico) The writing on the wall is right in people’s faces and people just don’t see it or don’t want to. What could actually possess a heterosexual male to want to feminize himself and claim that he is a lesbian? Because ...
From the Wall Street Journal:Inside a room of the ornately decorated Hotel du Palais during last month’s Group of Seven summit in Biarritz, France, President Trump awaited a meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi. Mr. Trump looked over a gathering of American and Egyptian officials and called out in ...
by the Redline blog collective At Redline we are very saddened to hear of the death of Magdalen Burns who passed away on the morning of Friday, September 13 (British time). Magdalen was a great fighter for the rights of women in general and lesbian women in particular, a defender ...
The Brexit issue has certainly brought with it a series of apparently difficult constitutional issues, many of them concerning the respective roles of the executive and parliament. Most of them arise because of the unwillingness of MPs, despite their professions to the contrary, to be bound by a constitutional rarity ...
. . This blogpost is different to my usual format of reporting on issues… Since July 1011, I have blogged on a variety of political issues; near always political and/or environmental; mostly highly critical of the previous National Government. Other issues included Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands and repression of ...
Those close to the Police Minister believe the initiative may be the result of Nash “seeing a great deal” on AliExpress. In a move that comes seemingly out of nowhere, Police Minister Stuart Nash announced this afternoon that he expects all frontline staff to don bearskin hats, famously worn by ...
The government has released its Arms Legislation Bill, containing the second tranche of changes to gun laws following the March 15 massacre. And it all looks quite sensible: a national gun register, higher penalties for illegal possession and dealing, tighter restrictions on arms dealers and shooting clubs, and a shorter ...
Private prisons are a stain on humanity. Prison operators explicitly profit from human misery, then lobby for longer prisons terms so they can keep on profiting. And in the US, prison companies run not only local and state prisons, but also Donald Trump's immigration concentration camps. Faced with this moral ...
When National was in power, they were very keen on Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) - basicly, using private companies to finance public infrastructure as a way of hiding debt from the public. They were keen on using them for everything - roads, schools, hospitals. But as the UK shows, that "service" ...
Moving And Shaking: There was a time when people spoke matter-of-factly about the “labour movement” – a political phenomenon understood to embrace much more than the Labour Party. Included within the term’s definition was the whole trade union movement – many of whose members looked upon the Labour Party as ...
by Philip Ferguson Much of the left, even people who formally identify as marxists, have collapsed politically in the face of postmodern gender theory of the sort pioneered by American philosopher Judith Butler. For Butler even biological sex is socially constructed. “If the immutable character of sex is contested, perhaps ...
The media is reporting that the (alleged) Labour party sexual assaulter has resigned from their job at Parliament, which means hopefully he won't be turning up there making people feel unsafe in future. Good. But as with everything about this scandal, it just raises other questions. Most significantly: why the ...
By Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern I am every bit as angry as you are. I am every bit as disappointed as you must be. The people with power, oversight and the ability to do something about these processes within the Labour Party should be ashamed. Whoever those people are, I ...
Property developers think there is an "oversupply" of houses in Auckland:High turnover rates and falling prices may be a sign that there are too many new houses going in to some parts of Auckland, commentators say. [...] Property developer David Whitburn said there was a "bit of an oversupply" in ...
Labour Party president Nigel Haworth resigned yesterday over the party's sexual assault scandal. But while that's good news, its unlikely to take away the stench of a coverup. Because according to Paula Bennett in Parliament yesterday, pretty much everyone in the Prime Minister's office was involved as well:I have been ...
Two-Faced? Labour insiders' commitment to the neoliberal status quo puts them at odds with their party’s membership; its trade union affiliates; and a majority of Labour voters, but this only serves to strengthen the perception they have of themselves as a special elite. Among the lesser breeds, they’ll talk up a ...
There has been a lot of talk about Boris Johnson wanting an election, and he has blustered with great gusto about 'chicken' Jeremy Corbyn refusing one, but I think there are many reasons why he is secretly glad he has been refused the opportunity:The Tories are an utter rabble,tearing themselves ...
Scottish appeal court judges have declared that Boris Johnson’s decision to suspend parliament in the run-up to the October Brexit deadline is unlawful. The three judges, chaired by Lord Carloway, Scotland’s most senior judge, overturned an earlier ruling that the courts did not have the powers to interfere in the prime ...
By Simon Bridges. The following is a press release from the office of Simon Bridges, leader of The National Party. Key ora, New Zealand. Happy Maori Language Week. Look, I’m writing to you today because I want to clear something up. There’s been a lot of kerfuffle around some things ...
I understand there's some stuff going round about how the SIS "was removed from the list of public offices covered by the Public Records Act in 2017". The context of course being their records derived from US torture, which will be disposed of or sealed. The good news is that ...
Dr. Christopher Labos and Jonathan Jarry discuss the recent Canadian fluoride/IQ research. They provide an expert analysis of the paper and its problems. Click on image to go to podcast. The critical debate about the recent ...
Australia is burning down again, and meanwhile its natural disaster minister is denying climate change:Australia’s minister responsible for drought and natural disasters, David Littleproud, has said that he doesn’t “know if climate change is manmade”. Clarifying earlier comments that the question is “irrelevant” when considering the Coalition government’s response to ...
Auckland Philippines Solidarity is excited to host Professor Judy Taguiwalo for a speaking tour of NZ in September. She is a well-known activist in the Philippines and was a political prisoner under the Marcos dictatorship. Professor Taguiwalo briefly served as a Cabinet member under President Duterte but was forced from ...
This open letter to the Green Party was penned after an opinion piece by Jill Abigail, a feminist and founding member of the party, was censored by the Greens’ leadership. (Redline has reprinted her article here).The intolerance of the Green Party leaders and their acceptance of the misogyny of gender ...
Today is a Member's day, and David Seymour's End of Life Choice Bill continues its slow crawl through its committee stage. They're spending the whole day on it today, though the first hour is likely to be spent on voting left over from last time. After that they'll move on ...
An ambitious plan to fly to Los Angeles petered out into a brief sight-seeing trip and a desire to return home and get some sleep before work tomorrow. Air New Zealand has confirmed a flight to Los Angeles last night was turned back about a quarter of the way into ...
There appears to be consensus – by omission – that the concept of indigenous futures should be accepted at face value. So I scavenged the internet to see if I could locate an academic descriptor or a framework around how we think about it as a concept, and whether it ...
Here’s another novelty chocolate to shove in your gob, New Zealand Cadbury could be seeking to make itself great again with a rumoured new release: Pineapple Trumps, a spin on its classic chocolate-encased pineapple treat and do-it-yourself tooth remover. The global confectionery manufacturer and bumbling “before” character in an infomercial, ...
During my time in the Pentagon I had the privilege of sitting down with military leaders and defence and security officials from a variety of Latin American nations. Sometimes I was present as a subordinate assistant to a senior US defence department official, sometimes as part of a delegation that ...
Kia ora, Aotearoa. It’s that magical time of year. Te Wiki o te Reo Māori. In English, the week that frightens talk radio. As you probably know by now, all your favourite media outlets are participating, some more successfully than others. Stuff has changed its name to Puna for the ...
Eighteen months ago, the government promised to strengthen the Bill of Rights Act, by explicitly affirming the power of the courts to issue declarations of inconsistency and requiring Parliament to formally respond to them. So how's that going? I was curious, so I asked for all advice about the proposal. ...
As the Brexit saga staggers on, the focus is naturally enough on the Prime Minister and his attempts to achieve Brexit “do or die”. But the role played by the Leader of the Opposition is of almost equal interest and complexity. The first problem for Jeremy Corbyn is that he ...
“Climate change is here - we all need to do our part.” Monday 23rd September 2019. Press Release: Citizens Environmental Advocacy Centre Climate change is happening. CEAC – compendium facts tribute to ‘Climate Change Week’ https://www.stuff.co.nz/science/115098866/exceptionally-rare-warming-above-antarctica-may-be-affecting-nzs-weather ...
Criminal law changes are now increasingly being used by politicians as a vote gathering tool pandering to lynch mob special interest groups. To look tough against crime, govts constantly increase penalties, create new crimes, and make it harder to get ...
It has been two years since Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern called climate change her generation's nuclear free moment. And on Monday, against a backdrop of global climate protest, she will give the opening speech at the United Nation's climate ...
Finance Minister Grant Robertson is under intense scrutiny. New figures show economic growth has slowed to levels not seen for six years. And he has chosen not to answer questions about when he heard about serious allegations of a sexual assault cover-up ...
NZDF Attends Commemorations to Mark International Mission in East Timor A New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) contingent participated today in the 20th anniversary commemorations of the International Force East Timor (INTERFET) mission in Dili. The commemoration ...
They’ve only been up and running for a few months, but a New Zealand not-for-profit has already made a big impact on period poverty in New Zealand. ...
The allocation of money for publicly funded broadcasting for election campaigns should be turned on it's head according to Massey University professor of communication design Claire Robinson. ...
Disappointment expressed by Fletcher Building CEO, Ross Taylor, reflects the increasing frustration held by many with this Government’s failure to protect private property rights.[1] ...
The independent Interim Climate Change Committee today launched an eight-week, nationwide call for evidence on options available to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. ...
Social Credit has lodged a complaint with the Ombudsman over the way the Overseas Investment Office is handling its official information request for disclosure of documents on the sale of Westland Milk Products to Chinese company Inner Mongolian ...
This Friday in Solidarity with the Global Climate Strike All of the SodaStream’s e-commerce platforms and head office operations will be closed to kick-off the week-long event, and employees will march the #CLIMATESTRIKE in Auckland on 27 September. ...
Federated Farmers congratulates the Auditor-General’s office on its release today of its report Managing Freshwater Quality: Challenges and Opportunities. ...
Growth has now slowed to a 6-year low, and downside risks are dominating. June quarter GDP growth came in at 0.5%qoq, in line with our expectation, and slightly above consensus. Although there were a few sensational reports of the chance of a negative print. ...
Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ) is calling the release of the National Climate Change Risk Assessment (NCCRA) framework a good first step in balancing New Zealand’s response to climate change. ...
Family First NZ says that a new Colorado report compiled by the Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area finds marijuana-positive traffic fatalities, hospitalisations, marijuana use, and illegal market activity have exploded since marijuana legalization. ...
This year’s Ratepayers’ Report , local government league tables released yesterday, reveals which local councils owe the most and which owe the least. ...
Rachel MacGregor welcomes the decision released today by Justice Hinton. The key issue on which all the various litigation has been based is the question, did Colin Craig sexually harass Rachel. That question has been answered – he did. Justice ...
The Rail and Maritime Transport Union (RMTU) has today ratified a ground breaking pay deal with Dunedin Railways which will see all union members being paid a living wage and the lowest paid receiving an 18% wage increase. Higher paid RMTU members ...
Inclusion for trans women/men and non-binary peoples has today been announced as the cornerstone of a new resolution for the National Council of Women New Zealand (NCWNZ). ...
It took a testy Morning Report interview this week to remind me that Simon Bridges was still the Leader of the Opposition. Until then, he had been largely invisible as the events of recent weeks unfolded. ...
The National Council of Women NZ has today welcomed the news that the Government has purchased Kate Sheppard’s house in Christchurch, the base for the NZ suffrage campaign. ...
The Māori Party supports mana whenua of Ihumātao and acknowledges their coming together to reach consensus on the future of their whenua. “We also acknowledge the leadership of the Kīngitanga who have played an important role in supporting ...
The New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union is questioning why, for the second time, Jacinda Ardern has appointed a Crown-owned company Chief Executive to Chair her “Business Advisory Council”, following her announcement that Mercury CEO Fraser Whineray ...
Responding to the Government’s decision to give around $300 million to Amazon as a sweetener for filming a TV series in New Zealand, New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union spokesman Louis Houlbrooke says: “As a matter of simple waste, this is striking, ...
I am very pleased with Air New Zealand’s Decision to backdown and withdraw their application to trademark into a logo Kia Ora. I said at the time that it was an ill conceived idea and poorly thought out – more importantly it should never have been ...
NZEI Te Riu Roa members will be joining with others across the union movement by wearing black and white in support of pay equity on Suffrage Day tomorrow, and urging the Government to commit to a settlement for teacher aides this year. ...
Yesterday’s announcement from the Minister for Immigration, to improve temporary work visas for migrant workers, provides some positive changes but more detail is needed. The Council of Trade Unions fundamentally supports the principle of making ...
FIRST Union today welcomed Westpac’s public admission of the significant gender pay gap in its workforce and reiterated its call for employers to work with unions to close this disparity, arguing that this work must begin at the bottom of the pay ...
Changes to the work visa system announced by the Minister of Immigration are not all positive for employers or migrants, comments Ms June Ranson, chair of the New Zealand Association for Migration and Investment (NZAMI) , a leading voice in the ...
The Dairy Workers Union (DWU) has welcomed the announcement from dairy company, Synlait, that they will be boosting parental leave entitlements significantly for working parents. ...
In June, the Children’s Commissioner announced a thematic review into Oranga Tamariki’s policies, processes and practice relating to care and protection issues for tamariki Māori aged 0-3 months. Today the Children’s Commissioner has released the full ...
“Closing the Gap” Tauranga, one of the area groups of Income Equality Aotearoa NZ Inc., has surveyed all candidates in the three local body elections to discover attitudes to some basic issues of the Western Bay region. We believe that this is ...
In response to DairyNZ's attempt to dismiss an economic report that highlighted dairy's role in the New Zealand economy is only three per cent of GDP, Fish & Game New Zealand Chief Executive Martin Taylor says: "If DairyNZ wishes to reject a report ...
Kiingi Tuuheitia Pootatau Te Wherowhero VII has successfully guided the mana whenua of lhumaatao to reach a consensus on the future of their whenua. ...
Two activists disguised as shareholders interrupted the AGM of a gold mining company in central Auckland this morning to inform shareholders their plans to mine for gold in conservation estate in the Karangahake Gorge were unwelcome. ...
The Capital and Coast District Health Board (CCDHB) has been labelled ‘NATO’ (no action, talk only) when it comes to child mental health, with just 0.6 full time staff (24 hours per week) for inpatient child psychology and just 0.8 full time staff ...
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL has awarded three New Zealand climate youth groups with its Ambassador of Conscience award, its highest recognition for human rights work, previously given to the likes of Nelson Mandela, Ai Weiwei and Malala Yousafzai. ...
The New Zealand Taxpayers' Union , in partnership with the Auckland Ratepayers’ Alliance , has today published this year's Ratepayers' Report – online local government league tables – at www.ratepayersreport.nz . ...
NZUS Council executive director Jordan Small welcomes the news New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will meet with US President Donald Trump in New York next week. ...
By Michael Andrew Social media and tech industries have been replicating the ugliest aspects of capitalism from the 1800s, according to an AUT computer science lecturer. Associate Professor Tony Clear says that social media and tech executives are taking advantage of unregulated markets in a similar way as wealthy ...
Covering Climate Now: There’s a range of dairy-free ice creams available these days, but it’s a fair bet none will be as delicious – or satisfying – as making your own. The Spinoff’s participation in Covering Climate Now is made possible thanks to Spinoff Members. Join us here!If the latest stats ...
Covering Climate Action: Ahead of the UN’s Climate Action Summit, artist Joseph Michael and composer Rhian Sheehan teamed up to create Voices For The Future, a 30-minute installation projected onto the UN buildings.The Spinoff’s participation in Covering Climate Now is made possible thanks to Spinoff Members. Join us here!Joseph Michael is ...
New Zealand banning Huawei’s 5G network equipment won’t impact you nearly as much as the US’s recent moves against Huawei phones, writes Henry Burrell. Twenty years ago, you would have shown off your flash new Ericsson or Nokia. How times change. Now, those two entities exist only to provide mobile network ...
Op-Ed by Kaveh Zahedi, Deputy Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP)Kaveh Zahedi is Deputy Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).In less than ten days world leaders will be ...
Grant McDougall reviews Kilgour’s new solo album, Bobbie’s A Girl, which sees him reflecting on the deaths of his friend and former bandmate, Peter Gutteridge and his own mother, Helen Kilgour. There is a passage in Shayne Carter’s excellent recent autobiography, Dead People I Have Known, in which he describes ...
New Zealand painter-poet Gregory O’Brien has just published a new collection of essays and art; pitched as a “field notebook … my whale survey”, Always Song in the Water drifts from his own front lawn in Hataitai, up to Northland and way, way across the Pacific. It’s the sort of ...
Ruby Porterlooks into New Zealand’s future when the sea level rises 10, 25 and 80 metres, and finds out how much of Auckland will be left.I grew up in Ponsonby, but the only bay I knew around here was Cox’s. It’s fed by a creek which was once a mahinga ...
Opening up a skid pad, create more housing for single people and make the central city dog friendly: policies from Christchurch's lesser-known mayoral candidates. ...
Josie Adams, Hayden Donnell, and Alice Webb-Liddall read thousands of policy statements to find the climate change deniers, fudgers, prevaricators (and believers) running in our local elections.The Spinoff local election coverage is made possible thanks to The SpinoffMembers. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism click here.One of the problems ...
The paintings of Colin McCahon convey dissonance and uncertainty, writes Shannon Te Ao. So what does this say about us? And why are we maintaining this Pākehā male narrative at the expense of more inclusive representation?Colin McCahon would have turned 100 on August the 1st. If you keep one eye ...
Amanda Thompson spends a day with the New Zealand men’s roller derby squad as they prepare for next year’s world champs in the US.Let’s play a word game. Let’s list some contact sports and the top teams in those codes.Say rugby. Are you thinking about the All Blacks yet? What ...
Covering Climate Now:Dietary Requirements is The Spinoff’s monthly podcast in which we eat, drink and talk about it too, with special thanks to Freedom Farms. This month, we go crazy for crickets in a climate week special.The Spinoff’s participation in Covering Climate Now is made possible thanks to Spinoff Members. ...
To mark International Day of Peace, Dr Rebecca Dudley of the New Zealand Red Cross explores the role that New Zealanders play in the global story of war and peace. Personal stories about war almost always begin with a memory.A humid afternoon in South Sudan.A calm Wednesday evening in Beirut.A bustling ...
The history of tattoo art in Japan is deep-rooted and complex – and so is the cultural aversion to tattooed bodies, explains Brian Ashcraft, the author of a book on subject.Tonight, when the All Blacks take the field, they’ll be covering up. In order not to run afoul of Japanese ...
Covering Climate Now: Saying climate change is important is one thing. So why are we so incapable of having a real conversation about what actually addressing it will mean? Sam McGlennon investigates. The Spinoff’s participation in Covering Climate Now is made possible thanks to Spinoff Members. Join us here!Up until a week ago, ...
"This is what Wellington boy said, after he finished his quick and bloody deed. You know what your problem is? Once a slut, always a slut": a short story by Auckland writer Eileen Merriman. ...
Michael Mann, a climatologist and famous press critic, talks to the Columbia Journalism Review about the dangers of both understating and overstating the dangers of climate change. ...
Ahead of the All Blacks first game Trevor McKewen makes some his fanciful, fraught and some hopefully on-point predictions for the Rugby World Cup.Can you take one for the team? Could you cope with the All Blacks coming up short in achieving an unprecedented third straight World Cup if it ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra [embedded content]University of Canberra Deputy Vice-Chancellor Leigh Sullivan discusses Scott Morrison’s new family law inquiry with Michelle Grattan. They also speak of the developments in the Tamil family from Biloela’s case, and the UN barring ...
Analysis - Jacinda Ardern heads for the UN as the sexual assault scandal rumbles on at home, and Simon Bridges says he isn't going to ease off his personal attacks on the PM. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dries Verstraete, Senior Lecturer in Aerospace Design and Propulsion, University of Sydney CC BY-NDClimate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change.If you have a question you’d ...
In this episode of our new tarot reading show Wild Card, The Spinoff’s resident psychic divines the outcome of the All Blacks’ opening match against the Springboks on Saturday.In the first and potentially only episode of Wild Card, we have a focus on sport. The Spinoff’s psychic-in-residence, Jo Sees, specialises ...
Recently-retired Sky TV chief executive John Fellet talks to Newsroom business editor Nikki Mandow about baseball, media, goldfish, accountancy - and more baseball. ...
The Real Pod assembles to dissect the week in reality television and real life, with special thanks to Nando’s.With Duncan enjoying a MAFS-style beach holiday in Bali, Alex and Jane are left to cover another crazy week in reality television. Shannon Ryan has gone full beast-mode in Celebrity Treasure Island, Married ...
Dr Bryce Edwards“Diversity” is a central theme of the current local government elections – with the common criticism that incumbent politicians are generally too “stale, male, and pale” (or variations on that). Numerous commentators and candidates have lamented the lack of women, ethnic minorities, and youth in local government. ...
Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.New Zealand Parliament Buildings, Wellington, New Zealand.Today’s content by Dr Bryce Edwards.Climate change, environment Paul Gorman (Stuff): How would you spend an unlimited war chest for ...
A review into the Ministry for Culture and Heritage will look into the relationship between a staffer and the external developer responsible for a massive data breach. ...
Covering Climate Now: The Spinoff crew who took on climate change with a vegan diet for the week reflect on the highs, the lows, the pies and the fries. The Spinoff’s participation in Covering Climate Now is made possible thanks to Spinoff Members. Join us here!As I write, I’m tucking into ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Roger Crisp, Professorial Fellow, Dianoia Institute of Philosophy, Australian Catholic University As world chiefs and youth leaders gather in New York at the United Nations Climate Action Summit, many of us as individuals are feeling powerless and overwhelmed. Making big personal changes ...
The head of one of the country's biggest news media firms is the latest subject of criticism for darkening his face at a staff party he attended dressed as US basketballer Lamar Odom. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Coral Gartner, Associate Professor, School of Public Health, The University of Queensland Health authorities in the United States are investigating 530 cases of lung illness, including seven deaths, reportedly connected to vaping. Some of these patients have been diagnosed with lung inflammation ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 The Testaments by Margaret Atwood (Chatto & Windus, $48)Obvs. (Read our review by Pip Adam here)2 Three ...
When comedy documentary Funny As was made, a lot of interviews got left on the cutting room floor which NZ On Screen quickly picked up. Here are some of our favourites.We’re a pretty funny bunch us Kiwis. Trapped on a tiny island at the end of the earth it appears ...
Auckland rapper JessB has just released a new EP and wraps up a national mini-tour tonight in her home town. Jogai Bhatt talked to her about her world travels, performing at Ihumātao, and how her community and her music intersect.It’s only been two years since JessB entered the public radar ...
A new poem by Waiheke poet Rata Gordon.PacingA deep bow to NerudaIt so happens I am sick of being a woman. It happens that I walk into BP stations and supermarkets greasy, swollen, like a cow made of soap, losing my way in a field of placentas and pesticides.The smell ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amanda Gardiner, Lecturer, Edith Cowan University In August, a 24-year-old woman appeared before the Western Australian District Court after pleading guilty to concealing the birth of her newborn baby in 2018. The charge of concealment of birth refers to hiding the dead ...
Voting papers are being sent out today, and lots of people say they won’t fill them out because they don’t know anything about the candidates. Respected website ‘The Spinoff’ is trying to fix that through its Policy Local tool. But it’s not the only one. Catherine Jeffcoat talks to the ...
This week's biggest-selling New Zealand books, as recorded by the Nielsen BookScan New Zealand bestseller list and described by literary editor Steve Braunias ...
Writer and cannabis legalisation expert Russell Brown watched episode two of Patrick Gower on Weed, and found it highly entertaining but dangerously light on facts. Patrick Gower is good value when he’s high. In the second part of his documentary Patrick Gower on Weed, he does what you’d expect in a ...
Sydney shock-jock Alan Jones has written to Jacinda Ardern saying he didn't intend any violence towards her when he said on air that Australia's Prime Minister should "shove a sock down [her] throat". ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Caio Seguin, PhD candidate, University of Melbourne Brain regions exchange information by sending and receiving signals through a network of nerve connections. This exchange is crucial to all aspects of the brain’s functioning, including how we experience the world, form and retrieve ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Miranda Kaye, Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Law, University of Technology Sydney Over the next 12 months, a joint parliamentary committee will examine Australia’s family law system. It will be led by conservative Liberal MP Kevin Andrews and One Nation leader Pauline Hanson. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Barbara Allen, Senior Lecturer in Public Management, Victoria University of Wellington This story is part of Covering Climate Now, a global collaboration of more than 250 news outlets to strengthen coverage of the climate story. For three years in a row, the ...
Open Mike 16/09/2017 
Reprinted from Jacobinmag by Jane Slaughter and Chris Brooks Almost 50,000 UAW workers are on strike against GM and a two-tier labor system that undermines worker solidarity. But members may need to wage a battle on two fronts — against the company, but also against their own union leadership. Forty-nine ...3 hours ago
Before Jacingrant There Was Gracinda: Grant Robertson and his 2014 running mate, Jacinda Ardern. She stood at his side: loyal and obliging, as she had ever been. The media dubbed this duo “Gracinda” – a sort of political “Brangelina”. The other young people who worked alongside Robertson were also ambitious ...11 hours ago
. . Just when you thought Simon Bridges couldn’t sink any lower – he has. After the March 15th Christchurch terror attack, the (current) Leader of the National Party issued strong committments to support urgently needed gun law reform; “We will be ready and prepared to be constructive and to ...2 days ago
We all know that bad parents simply don’t care about their children’s education. Most truants have loser parents, and grow up to be involved with crime, or in low paid employment usually like their parents. The nonsense so-called “climate strike” coming up will be attended mostly by the least intelligent ...2 days ago
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To Protect and Serve: When the Prime Minister finds herself enmeshed in the coils of a full-blown political scandal, her colleagues and party comrades have only one priority: to release her as swiftly – and with as little lasting injury – as possible. Is this what Jacinda Ardern’s colleagues and ...2 days ago
When military leaders cover up and lie to elected civilian authorities, the foundation of democratic civil-military relations is undermined because it is those authorities who are entrusted to hold the military accountable to the public that they mutually serve. But this is only true if civilian political authorities take their ...2 days ago
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Get Back Jojo! The elation in Mayor Phil Goff’s camp may be easily imagined as they watched social media light up in indignation at challenger John Tamihere’s "Sieg Heil to that" quip. Just when JT’s notoriously right-wing, sexist and homophobic stains were beginning to fade back into his ‘colourful’ past, ...4 days ago
Patrick Gower is good value when he's high. Not that I've ever, you know, got stoned with him. But in the second part of his documentary Patrick Gower on Weed, he does what you'd expect in a modern weed documentary and immerses himself – first with a doctor, then a ...4 days ago
We surveyed candidates on their attitudes to issues facing the Western Bay Region, find out what they think: “Closing the Gap” Tauranga, one of the area groups of Income Equality Aotearoa NZ Inc., has surveyed all candidates in the three local body elections to discover attitudes to some basic issues ...4 days ago
Why is New Zealand climate change policy so crap? The Herald this morning has a long article on the twists and turns of climate change policy in New Zealand [paywalled / depaywall script], which shows where we've been. The short version is that the government first began worrying about this ...5 days ago
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Dangerous Foes: For those readers of Bowalley Road who feel disposed to dismiss any prospect of an Israeli destabilisation of New Zealand politics, the example of the United Kingdom repays close attention. Ever since the election of Jeremy Corbyn as leader of the British Labour Party, the Israelis have sanctioned, funded and ...6 days ago
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by Don Franks It was a lovely sunny Wellington afternoon with blue skies above the beaches. In Courtenay Place, political activists packed out a stuffy upstairs room for an important meeting. The assembled pacifists, anarchists, communists and independent young radicals of Peace Action Wellington felt the need for a mission ...6 days ago
From the Wall Street Journal:Inside a room of the ornately decorated Hotel du Palais during last month’s Group of Seven summit in Biarritz, France, President Trump awaited a meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi. Mr. Trump looked over a gathering of American and Egyptian officials and called out in ...1 week ago
Those close to the Police Minister believe the initiative may be the result of Nash “seeing a great deal” on AliExpress. In a move that comes seemingly out of nowhere, Police Minister Stuart Nash announced this afternoon that he expects all frontline staff to don bearskin hats, famously worn by ...1 week ago
Moving And Shaking: There was a time when people spoke matter-of-factly about the “labour movement” – a political phenomenon understood to embrace much more than the Labour Party. Included within the term’s definition was the whole trade union movement – many of whose members looked upon the Labour Party as ...1 week ago
By Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern I am every bit as angry as you are. I am every bit as disappointed as you must be. The people with power, oversight and the ability to do something about these processes within the Labour Party should be ashamed. Whoever those people are, I ...1 week ago
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Dr. Christopher Labos and Jonathan Jarry discuss the recent Canadian fluoride/IQ research. They provide an expert analysis of the paper and its problems. Click on image to go to podcast. The critical debate about the recent ... 2 weeks ago
An ambitious plan to fly to Los Angeles petered out into a brief sight-seeing trip and a desire to return home and get some sleep before work tomorrow. Air New Zealand has confirmed a flight to Los Angeles last night was turned back about a quarter of the way into ...2 weeks ago
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By Michael Andrew Social media and tech industries have been replicating the ugliest aspects of capitalism from the 1800s, according to an AUT computer science lecturer. Associate Professor Tony Clear says that social media and tech executives are taking advantage of unregulated markets in a similar way as wealthy ...12 hours ago
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New Zealand banning Huawei’s 5G network equipment won’t impact you nearly as much as the US’s recent moves against Huawei phones, writes Henry Burrell. Twenty years ago, you would have shown off your flash new Ericsson or Nokia. How times change. Now, those two entities exist only to provide mobile network ...14 hours ago
Op-Ed by Kaveh Zahedi, Deputy Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP)
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Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Miranda Kaye, Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Law, University of Technology Sydney Over the next 12 months, a joint parliamentary committee will examine Australia’s family law system. It will be led by conservative Liberal MP Kevin Andrews and One Nation leader Pauline Hanson. ...3 days ago
Went out last night to karaoke, they now forced to close at 1am, instead of 2am – the authoritarian old farts on the council and the police I bet – love telling us peasants what to do.
So I was outside talking to security guy and police stated going past about midnight, to intimidate staff and patrons – to make sure everything was shut down by 1am.
Everybody that goes to the karaoke is pisd off about the further restriction of hours. Staff take the brunt of it, they the ones who will be fined. People just want to hang out together, play some pool, listen to music, have a few drinks etc. And in comes the Carterton Council and Community Leaders to stomp on our cultural freedoms to socialise at a pub. Is this what happens when the baby boomers are too powerful, or is it just that elites like to intimidate and control us poorer peasants.
Yes sometimes there are fights, and they are handled expertly by staff and security. I never feel unsafe there – Wairarapa is shutting down everything it can for the poorest people in the community – why is that?
Authoritiarian is not a good word, governments restricting people’s freedom to socialise is not good either.
I happen to agree with you. The police seem to be peddling some snake oil about how it is better to close early. Tried it in Newcastle Australia and all it did was increase young road deaths as they drove elsewhere for fun.
If you are young why can’t you dance till dawn – one day you can’t. Maybe start watering the drinks after 1.00pm but people drift off gradually and the cold light of 5.00a.m is kinda sobering IIRC.
One of the downsides of a Labour/Green victory if we get one this month would be that this kind of clampdown on people having fun would only increase. Both parties are even more full of people who know what’s best for you than National is.
Are you saying that they are party poopers and will take all the fun out of our lives?
Are you saying that fun=bad & no fun=good?
I just wanna have fun, lots of it! Whom should I vote for?
Bloody hell, don’t base your vote on that! The party that would interfere the least with whatever fun you like having is probably ACT…
Oh dear, I was afraid you’d say ACT. How’s ACT gonna increase my fun? I love Red Dwarf but I don’t find Seymour remotely funny. In fact, when thinking about ACT it spoils my fun …
Horrifying, isn’t it? Still, just be glad it’s Seymour and not John Banks, Don Brash and David Garrett – Seymour looks positively jovial in comparison.
Jamie Whyte must have been an absolute riot at family gatherings.
Actually, I found him moderately interesting on occasion but his philosophical musings had no place in political discourse.
I might have to see somebody for this but I often associate ACT with Destiny Church and Exclusive Brethren … These are real party-starters, aren’t they?
On the other hand, if your idea of fun is sitting around in a blue haze blurting “cosmic” and “groovy” in response to banal observations and giggling a lot, then Greens/Labour are more likely to move on allowing that indulgence without risking a visit from Plod.
I gave up smoking – no good news to be had for me on that front.
I’m not opposed to most pubs shutting at 1am, but a nightclub license should be available for them who wants to go until dawn. It’s normally a tiny proportion who will move bars to continue.
The real problems come from bars competing to pump as much piss into as many people as possible, then dumping them on the street when they’re well over the limit. Preloading is also an issue.
Granny Herald is still in over-drive with its it cheer-leading for the most despicable and dishonest campaign by National since ……. oh yeah – the last election. First there was John Armstrong who seems to be racing into senility and memory loss at a faster rate than the average 80 year. Amongst other alternative facts, he appears to be claiming that Labour had a whole range of new taxes to implement in its manifesto. Really? Then there was the indefatigable serial mis-representer Fran O’Sullivan who, among other things, seems to think Labour ‘invited’ the Joyce/English lie machine to rev up to full noise to mislead the voters. Thankfully, Lizzie Marvelly put in a few drops of sanity with, “All aboard the election porky train.” to relieve the tedium.
Given that National already has a capital gains tax in force, it seems that extending the time frame from 2 to 5 years and keeping the level of taxation in line with house price inflation over the past nine years doesn’t constitute a new tax – ” Let’s do it!”. Other stuff can probably wait until later BUT another option would be to play the National line – we had to do it because it was the policy of our coalition partner. ACT, with only one pathetic excuse for a politician wagged the dog and that was fine!
The deplorables are revolting.
It seems they’re a wee bit miffed that Donny Littlehands is daring to talk to Dems about immigration.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/burn-my-maga-hat_us_59bb4dc9e4b0edff971ac966?ncid=inblnkushpmg00000009
‘I deny that I spy with my little eye on a country beginning with NZ”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11922676
lmao….the funniest line I’ve read since the last one.
On Ardern:
“Let me be perfectly clear… like a jellyfish … translucent even… radiant from within … like a candle in the wind, never knowing where to cling to … and there goes our tax policy…”
Top work Mr Braunias.
If anyone is still determined to vote for TOP, this may give you some pause:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/90512535/gareth-morgan-rules-out-parliament-unless-opportunities-party-gets-10-per-cent-of-vote
Given that Morgan is the face of the party (I can only name two other candidates and that is only because they used to be with the GP and ALCP respectively), you have to question who would still vote for them knowing that he’ll be on his bike as soon as the counting is done. I take polls with much caution, but TOP has never cracked 3% and has more often been below 2%; 5% is unlikely but not inconcievable10-15% is simply delusional.
Given this, I have to ask; if Morgan was always determined to stay out of parliament unless TOP got at least 10%, why is he at list position #1, rather than #11?
It doesn´t matter whether more than 5% or less, or even whether he takes up his seat, assuming wins one (assuming he does´t win a constituency seat his party will have either six seats or none – the system doesn´t allow for anything in between).
It has been my practice ever since I started voting to vote for the party with the most enlightened policies, and I will be doing so this election.
mikesh
If I had my choice, I’d be voting for MANA again, as they have been a consistant voice for the underclass in Aotearoa (Māori and Pākehā). Their policy releases have been ongoing throughout the election campaign, but not got a lot of cut through, water was the most recent:
http://mana.org.nz/
However, unless you happen to vote in Te Tai Tokerau (which I don’t), a vote for MANA is likely to be wasted. Thus I have chosen pragmatism over principle this election.
Our electoral system is currently constructed (eg; coat-tailing, and 5% thresholds) to actively dissuade people from voting for the parties whose policies seem most enlightened to them. Until this changes, I feel it is necessary to vote strategically.
“It has obviously been happening for quite a while but sometimes these subterranean societal shifts are hard to detect, especially by people like me who are being left behind.
As we approach the closely fought election in which the race is between somebody about my age and someone exactly 22 years younger than me, it’s become clearer that New Zealand is indeed ready to cross over into something new.
That’s why I think Jacinda Ardern is going to win the election or at least get more of the party vote than National.
And even if I am wrong about that, the ground has still shifted and what she represents is in the ascendant. If not this time, it will be the next.”
Martin van Beynen: A changing of the guard is on the way
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/opinion/96824698/martin-van-beynen-a-changing-of-the-guard-is-on-the-way
Well worth while reading!
Heres the live link for the Nation, it’s on now.
http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/shows.html
They will be covering the proposed Waimea Dam, prisons/corrections (Kelvin Davis and louise upston) and Paddy talks to Willie J, Marama D and flavell re the maori seats.
Corrections interview/debate is on now.
I’d watch but, Patrick Gower – I think I’ll just watch the responses.
LMFAO re Paddy
One thing that has bitterly disappointed me about national is their lack of wanting to engage in cross-party groups to tackle some of NZ’s major problems.
Have noticed nat’s wheeling out a lame as attack line to opposition parties of late… “you’ve had nine years to do something”… (it’s like excuse me, who has been running the country for the last nine years?)
EDIT… STREAM CEASED AS ALARM WENT OFF AND THEY HAVE TO EVACUATE THE BUILDING
Ha!
And is that why they are evacuating – according to my twitter – wasup?
Flavell is a no show?
OOps A fire alarm. All out. Louise Upston is a shouty woman too! Her belief is if you shout over the others you will believe her.
I could hear the sirens from my place:
Tim Watkin tweet.
With photo showing Lisa Owen outside with fire engine.
Thanks Carolyn 😀 hard case picture.
Yays it’s back on the stream 😀
Not watching The Nation anymore, the program needs a new title: The National Nation would be more like it. It is nothing less than a propaganda fest. Biased and is shows, shrill and at times almost hysterical to defend. Who in their right mind would want to watch this?
i watch/listen to as many different political shows as possible no matter which way their leanings, am not in my right mind, however, instead am ambidextrous.
Anyways, they are re-recording some segments with flavell, and screening it again in the morrow.
Does anyone know who is hosting the final debate please? The few times I’ve seen 7sharp advertised this week i’ve seen Jack filling in for hosking
With the recent Jian Yang revelation, this is worth a listen
To be fair Ron Asher’s book is a hit over at the national front, but I think I’ll pass.
Palgrem’s red ice conspiracy theories, pseudohistory, and alt-right white genocide woo are fucking hilarious, too.
It’s hard to critique when one isn’t even prepared to listen.
Which would explain your attempt to disregard it by pointing at the National Front (who have nothing to do with it) and the site that hosted the interview.
Do you think we are immune from this?
http://www.smh.com.au/interactive/2017/chinas-operation-australia/soft-power.html
A state seeking to suppress political activity of a citizenry isn’t the same thing as states competing or jockeying for power amongst themselves.
Best to keep the two things separate.
The US, NZ, China and every other fucking state deserves to be kicked in the head for the former (suppression of a citizenry’s political will).
As for condemning China’s bid for global power, that can’t be done without rank hypocrisy and probably buying into some degree of racist/xenophobic bullshit unless all state power by whatever state is also condemned.
And Marty Mars and McFlock doing the ad hom mambo? Yup. Fucking tedious.
link to one ad hom from me please on this sub thread – or don’t bother cos there are none 🙄
You wanna start with your comment at 9.1.2?
You honestly can’t understand how accusing someone of being in a habit of submitting spam and insinuating they’re a liar to boot isn’t just bullshit ad hom loaded commenting?
sure bill yeah I can see why someone could possibly feel that calling someone else a spammer and non-leftie can be considered an ad hom. I thought I was just describing the facts but there you go.
“Facts”, you say. I’m calling it. Prove it.
what
When a state seeking to suppress political activity of its citizenry is also a state competing or jockeying for global power, the two can become entwined.
I take it you are referring to the second link I posted. If you look at the top of the page, you’ll see that it was part one of three. Hit the downward arrow for the following two parts.
But while we’re on it, what did you make of the Campus Patriots section and the Communist Party’s influence on Australian university campuses through the Chinese Students and Scholars Associations? Should voters and NZ Labour be concerned?
http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2017/06/labour-reveals-young-auckland-candidate-naisi-chen.html
Who is suitable to hold office in this country?
https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/watch-its-nothing-personal-but-national-mp-dr-jian-yang-should-resign
As for hypocrisy, I agree, my sentiment holds for any state seeking global power. It just happens to be we have a Chinese in parliament that has been accused of being a spy and bringing in big donations.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/10391818/Secret-donors-Buck-stops-here
Onto it joe as usual. Thanks for the links. Sad the chair is going this way although better than his usual spam and declarations that he’s a leftie.
That’s right, Marty, have another go at me. Show everyone how you play the man and not the ball.
You put it up, Joe put something up, I agree with Joe as it fitted what I had observed.
I said it was sad that you were putting up stuff the national front got boners over and I said I still preferred that to the spam imo that you post attacking labour.
Wow big personal attacks in all that – not.
Joe didn’t address the interview I presented.
Though he did try to diminish it by pointing to the National Front (which have nothing to do with it) and the site that hosted it. Alluding to other crap the site also presents, which also has nothing to do with what I posted.
You came in, slapped his back and decided to have a little personal dig at me. When we all know I’m not the topic of the discussion. Of which, you added nothing too.
Care to try again?
I’m impressed that Joe got that far.
I figured it was probably bunk simply because you were posting it.
Have a listen, then tell me what you think is bunk and why you believe it to be so.
Why should I bother?
You’re just a time leech.
Cut it the fuck out McFlock, will you?
You don’t like the guys comments, then pass them by and stop filling space up with pointless snipes.
You’re a moderator, so I guess I’ll have to.
But they’re not pointless. In my opinion, TC actively contributes to the information overload that bogs down political discourse these days. Posting a fifty minute video with fuckall context and then getting pissy when someone points out it’s on a National Front hot picks list (which is definitely valid context for judging its likely merit) is just the latest example. The majority of TC’s ouvre revolves around wallowing in bland nonsensicalities that TC paints as profound political observations, like Pete George- only TC’s better at toeing the line.
And the thing is, engaging TC in debate is only playing their game of “twenty to the power of infinity questions”. Ignoring TC leaves the bog spider waiting to tie other people in knots. So that’s why I think there’s a point in calling TC what they are.
That fifty minute video was a wide ranging discussion that a number of political junkies would find interesting.
I purposely posted it on the weekend to allow those who are interested the time to view it.
It’s no longer than watching an episode of the Nation or Q&A.
If you are merely looking for quick soundbites and don’t have time for the larger issues, then best you move on. No one is forcing you to partake.
The title was self explanatory, thus “fuckall” context was given.
And I wasn’t getting “pissy” it’s on the National Front hot picks list as it’s not a valid way of judging its merit. The book has nothing to do with them.
It’s ‘Open Mike’ McFlock. That makes a difference. And if I was moderating, I’d have been bold typing inside your comment. Just saying.
“Cut it the fuck out McFlock, will you?”
sounded to me like the bold was coming and that was a moderator inspired comment or at least the close imminent potential for one – I took it that way.
I try to obey moderators – no point making life tough especially in a no win situation.
@bill
yeah, but I’ve learned to play it safe before things get too boldy mcboldtype 🙂
@TC – if the national front like something, it’s not because of its impartial intellectualism on either part. You could have saved yourself 50 minutes.
You haven’t refuted Joe or my points – you dragged something out that is well liked by the National Front – that is a fact. Not only that but the site he linked to runs numerous outrageous and disgusting pieces as he highlighted and that is a fact.
Here’s a hint – a REAL left orientated person would take the criticism and listen to it and maybe say, “Hey thanks Joe and Marty, I didn’t realise that what I put up had such horrible friends and now I do I will really try to do more checking before I add something to the forum.”
What do you do – argue like a rightie about your ego – sorry bubb that is a fail. sad.
+1 Marty.
“argue like a rightie” – he always does as far as I can see.
What so-called points are you on about, Marty?
I presented an interview with the author of the book. And the fact that the National Front like it is neither here nor there. They have nothing to do with it.
Moreover, the outrageous and disgusting pieces on the site he (Joe) linked to also had nothing to do with the interview I presented.
The only association the site has with the author was the hosting of the interview.
Hence, Joe was using it as a way to diminish and ridicule the interview I posted.
Therefore, I don’t owe anyone an apology.
I don’t have a problem with criticism, as long as it has merit. And as you can see from the points above, this has nothing to do with my ego.
For what it’s worth (probably nothing) I too think The Chairman is a spamming pretend leftie who posts in the Pete George mold.
It’s spam because The Chairman’s style is to write one line, place a link, then ask for thoughts (see the very comment with clip which started this). It’s pretty lazy really.
He’s a pretend leftie because 95% of his posts are criticisms of NZ Labour and when challenged on why he never critiques the actual enemy of the left, the National Party, claims lamely that not ever holding the Nats to account shouldn’t preclude him from undermining Labour at every single opportunity.
And he’s Pete George lite in the way he floods a discussion with beige distractions and how he, when pulled up, tries to make the argument itself more important than the original point.
Bill may have missed all this but I and obviously some others have The Chairman’s number.
Mould, or in PG’s case, mold is probably appropriate.
Yeah, they’re both like that black stuff you find around the windows of a typical cold damp NZ house. An insidious and constant reminder to average Kiwis they have no hope.
I presented an interview with wide ranging implications and all you can do is write your thoughts on me?
There really is little hope for this nation if you lot think I’m your concern.
I’ve stated my political position. And any genuine lefty would be criticizing this Labour lot cause they are far from left.
They won’t even increase core benefit rates, which would provide some instant relief for a good many that are struggling.
Lowering the bar isn’t going to encourage them to up their game. If we want more from Labour we have to hold their feet to the fire. You lot should be with me on this, not against me. Which makes me question how left are you?
I didn’t claim that not ever holding the Nats to account shouldn’t preclude me from undermining Labour, which makes you a liar.
Nor was it my answer when challenged on why I seldom critique National.
The real enemy of the left are the right within, that’s what’s largely causing Labour to fall short. Robbing us of the opportunity to better repair this mess 30 odd years of neo-liberalism (led by both Labour and National) has created.
So the basic complaint is that China may be kind of buying global dominance and that’s just not on because “the West” is the rightful seat of global power. That about right?
The same shit and fear was peddled by the British when the US was on the rise – fear and loathing. All bullshit.
I’ll say this for China. At least its rise to global prominence isn’t coming off the back of militarism and imposed states of penury as “the West’s” was.
“So the basic complaint is that China may be kind of buying global dominance”
Depending on ones perspective, some may see it more as an economic takeover.
And it’s not on (as you put it) for a number of reasons, but not the one you put forward.
It’s an attack on a nations sovereignty, its democracy, and rule of law.
While there are no explosions on the ground, planes in the air, or tanks on the streets, the wealth stripping is creating harm. Seen our current account? Homelessness? Poverty? Inequality? Suicides? Assets and resources sold to foreign hands? It’s all part of the globalized, neo-liberal way.
Until recently, it’s largely been western elite cleaning us out. And that isn’t on either.
China invaded Tibet and why do think they are building up their military, Navy, etc…? Could it be to intimidate and in preparation of resistance of their financial offerings?
Have a listen to the interview, I think you’ll find it interesting.
I already dropped into it and skipped though randomly to get ‘a taste’ of where the guy was coming from. He’s a “Yellow Peril” arse-wipe from what I can tell.
And your comment’s just a pile of kinda breathless assertions with no argument or rationale attached.
I don’t really care too much for a nation state’s sovereignty given it’s an illegitimate construct by my political reasoning. But you want to get all hot under the collar over various competing and equally illegitimate “pretenders” then hey.
And if/when that slips into xenophobic and/or racist bullshit I might pipe up. But until then….meh.
The Chairman
Oh so it’s China that’s at the base of everything going wrong in NZ. And all the time I thought it was our dollar-eyeballed pollies going for broke. I noted that actually we were broke and they were just going for everything they could get and sell. Isn’t it our pollies and their fellow travellers, the dairy farmers and irrigators and so on who are welcoming Chinese to come and spend their new money here. I think we should be more concerned about the bods going to Harvard and learning the Right Way of doing laissez faire in the 21st century.
In our little country the ones who have made money have a lot of sway.
They are the little men who could, and a fewer little women who don’t have the altruistic notions portrayed in the USA book Little Women. We are being picked over by our own. The Chinese just watch bemused and come along for the ride, along with people from the Indian Continent etc/
“Oh so it’s China that’s at the base of everything going wrong in NZ.”
Not at all. But they are now playing a growing part. By and large, it’s neo-liberalism.
And that includes all those that are advancing it.
The Chinese are doing more than just watching and coming along for the ride.
Yes I agree, I have been watching China for some years and back in 2015 Brain Gould was writing articles re China’s rapidly expanding “property manifesto” in NZ.
But it is happening all over the world not just in NZ.
If Ron Asher’s book , In The Jaws of the Dragon, is a reds under the beds variation then explain this which I copied and filed several years ago.
“Like the China agreement the free trade with India comes with conditions. Conditions that our leader isn’t always fond of explaining. For one; we have to agree to allow a set number of Chinese immigrants into NZ per year.”
Why would there be such a stipulation in a Free Trade agreement ? Is this actually happening ?
Apart from the liberalisation of the movement of natural persons, there is no mention of immigration in the China/NZ FTA. And there is no set figure that I’m aware of.
As for China’s rapidly expanding property manifesto in NZ, the documentary (Who owns NZ now) touched upon this. We aren’t keeping sufficient records of offshore investors in our property market. And It has been suggested that China’s influence and our unwillingness to rock the boat is behind it.
Our investor visa scheme (which is separate from FTAs but is largely utilized by the Chinese) has fast tracked immigration for wealthy offshore investors.
Yes there is … It says – Phil Goff – free trade agreement with China agreed to allow 1800 extra chinese immigrants into NZ..
It is well through – about 3/4 through – the recording .
So is that enacted here or not ?
It was in reference to the liberalisation of the movement of natural persons, temporary immigrants. That is, temporary for the individual or group, but it’s an ongoing policy within the deal.
“The Chinese just watch bemused ….”
Anyone who believes that has to be naive in the extreme.
Naive to think that a Trade Agreement allowed a set number of Chinese immigrants to come into NZ per year ?
The Chinese and other great powers don’t make us agree to investments coming into NZ, it’s been done by the ambitious export oriented pollies and business leaders. The Chinese have given us an agreement to trade and we have reciprocated with lots. So we small, them big, they are happy to go along with using the opportunities they have facilitated and we have offered. That is closer to the truth than some of the wilder things that have been said here.
“He’s a “Yellow Peril” arse-wipe from what I can tell”
Really? What drove you to that conclusion?
To me, he came across as someone who doesn’t agree with how the Chinese Government operate.
My argument is China (who is no small player with a large military force) is also playing the neo-liberal game. And just because they are greasing palms instead of dropping bombs it doesn’t make them any less of a threat. And we’ve opened the door for them.
We have one in National that’s looking dodgy. Labour has a new one, raising some questions. And the Maori party have one that has just recently been accused of political bribery (allegedly offering online cash credits to potential supporters on Chinese social media message app WeChat).
I’m interested in knowing more on why you don’t value our sovereignty and think its an illegitimate construct?
We’ve opened the door to them. ‘We’ have one in… and Labour has a new one. The MP have one .
You any idea how utterly fucked in the head that shit you’re spouting is?
Nek minute you’ll be telling ‘one and all’ that you’ve nothing against Asians or Chinese in particular and that one of your mates is…Chinese…could be Korean…or might be Vietnamese or …well, you’re not sure, but ‘whatever’ they’re all Asian and some of them are okay and you’re not talking about the okay ones, just the bad ones and the bad ones are legion and they’re out to swamp ‘our’ pavlova paradise with weird monogluta addictive mind bending whatevers…
Tell me.
Where you think the original geographical location of Pacifica peoples is? And if them supposedly ‘swamping’ and ‘taking over’ is such a big deal then….well, assuming you’ll trace back to Europe heritage wise…..
And I didn’t say sovereignty was an illegitimate construct (idea). I said that the state is an illegitimate construct.
You may think it’s fucked in the head but it’s the reality.
Therefore, are you implying I’m incorrect?
We have a free trade deal with China, yes? Thus, we’ve opened the door to a new big player.
Jian Yang now looks dodgy, yes?
Wetex Kang was accused of bribery, yes?
Labour’s Naisi Chen was the former President of the New Zealand Chinese Students’ Association, yes?
I don’t know why you are attempting to make this about race? One was accused of bribery, the other two have questions surrounding their connection to the Communist Party.
“I don’t really care too much for a nation state’s sovereignty given it’s an illegitimate construct by my political reasoning.”
“I didn’t say sovereignty was an illegitimate construct (idea). I said that the state is an illegitimate construct.”
Sorry, I mistook the first quote.
So why do you believe the state is an illegitimate construct?
“It seems to be between Labour and National. If you had asked me before my win I would have erred on the socialist side but now I am more likely to side with National … it is about wanting to protect the future for your whanau. I wouldn’t say I had it hard as some people before my win, but I wouldn’t want the mokopuna to struggle through life.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11922851
Classic, just goes to show even the socialists will roll over when it comes to $
[lprent: Diversion comment on post that this does not relate to at all. Banned for 3 months. You seem to be an obnoxious moron with limited . ]
[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.]
Here’s another reason not to vote for national Lurgee,
https://thedailyblog.co.nz/2017/09/16/16-political-decisions-that-show-national-dont-care-about-the-environment/
One that should have been added was National party lack of use of rail and building more roads instead!!!!!!
Rain-water washes road pollution off our roads into our streams, rivers, lakes, and aquifers, and drinking water.
National have dismissed removing half the road pollution from stock, fertilizer, fuel, & rubbish trucks off our roads & use rail as a mitigation against “road runoff pollution” from their effluent and other emissions (tyre dust) that 34 wheeler trucks deposit on our roads.
http://oecdinsights.org/2016/09/08/air-pollution-tyres-and-brakes/
[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.]
I never have, and never will vote National. You seem to be under some curious delusion about me.
Thanks peshmerga, but your rights to self-determination are a distraction from our one-Iraq policy disaster.
//
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-iraq-kurds/iraqs-kurdish-parliament-backs-sept-25-independence-referendum-idUSKCN1BQ2AV
Thanks J 90. Always appreciate your input!
And perspectives… !
kia ora
IMO’ Mr Fixit’ Steven Joyce is USELESS.
In Tamaki only 213 new houses built – 237 gone.
https://www.facebook.com/penny.bright.104/posts/1796625243683493
https://www.companiesoffice.govt.nz/companies/app/ui/pages/companies/5840214/shareholdings
Penny Bright
2017 Independent candidate for Tamaki
Some questions ….
Where is Paula? Is she in hiding? Because she hasn’t been seen in her electorate and has been very quiet of late. Bit of concern about some hard questioning coming up in relation to a previous life perhaps?
What is happening in the Barclay dirty business (apart from little Toadie doing a runner off to London)? Those 450 texts? Is the police investigation still ongoing? Or has it all been buried?
What about the Jian Yang issue? Is the SIS still investigating? Or will that one fade away never to see the light of day again?
We desperately need some investigative journalism in this country to expose the murky activities of this grubby corrupt government!
+1
Me too.
Instead we get an apparent rant (no I haven’t read it and I don’t intend to) from John Armstrong on the evil machinations of Jacinda Ardern – a 2017 version of the crack-pot rant against David Cunliffe in 2014. You know, the one where he accused Cunliffe of every evil sin under the sun, and then later withdrew and apologised after the election was over.
The Guardian UK on Ardern today
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/sep/15/jacinda-ardern-new-zealand-election-campaign
oh wows, thanks Peter for posting that link, wows 😀
I thought I was having a shitty week
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11923067
A dog man, Mr. English? Is that like a Minotaur? That would certainly explain a lot.
Crosby textor told him to grab a pussy to win the election.
Jacindas out door speech to the masses (and there were quite a lot of us on this raw blustery New Plymouth day) was received well by a wide range of ages.
Half way through I heard singing and chanting getting louder and I feared the worst..a bunch of Taranaki cow cockies on the rampage. Then they came into view, a party of pirates. I counted about 80, mainly in good quality fancy dress, not jeans and scarf on the head type of things, marching past having a good time.
They sent 2 envoys carrying their flag to talk to Jacinda evidently moaning about the government being mean and unfair to pirates etc. She laughed, said she would talk to them later and they commandeered the pub across the road.
Good to see such a lot of folk having a great time. Daughter said it was the annual Pirate Day pub crawl…not being on Facebook I miss out on news of these things.
Awesome especially considering the weather, it’s like where ever Jacinda goes loads of people turn out to see her, it’s amazing to see the response, what a good buzz.
The pirates would have been an absolute treat, so much goodness
Perhaps becoming the next government will not start off well in being able to fulfill the need to build houses in Auckland.
To those following the picture of the building industry there are some uneasy ndicators out there, same with houses selling being 20% down from last year.
Martin Dunn, of estate agency City Sales, said Australian banks had “pulled the plug” on the New Zealand apartment market and were refusing to give would-be buyers the remaining 90 per cent for their mortgage
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11922859
In the past year alone 35 apartment projects in Auckland were reportedly axed, including the Flo Apartments project in Avondale, which would have had 91 apartments, each priced from $370,000.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/315433/wary-banks-blamed-for-dropped-housing-projects
Rising Co2 makes many crops less nutritious. And nobody’s talking about it.
http://www.politico.com/agenda/story/2017/09/13/food-nutrients-carbon-dioxide-000511
http://bigthink.com/Mind-Matters/how-global-warming-leaches-nutrients-out-of-food
Okay. That’s kinda scary shit. Just to pick out one of a number of points raised in the politico piece…
Calling Sci Fi writers – this could be a good opportunity from JMG’s new blog http://www.ecosophia.net/
http://www.ecosophia.net/the-worlds-that-never-were/
Nice initiative
“Inspired by the People’s Climate March and its hundreds of thousands of participants, Rebecca Foon and Jesse Paris Smith founded Pathway to Paris in 2015. Created as a way to keep the momentum alive, the organization is a collaboration between musicians, artists, cities and activists to help turn the Paris Agreement into real action. ”
https://www.treehugger.com/climate-change/patti-smith-rising-above-and-fighting-climate-change-art.html
I love what Patti Smith is saying there – pessimism and paralysis help no one. They are the weapons of the oppressors – rise above it, breathe and keep working to make the world a better place.
“I love what Patti Smith is saying there – pessimism and paralysis help no one. They are the weapons of the oppressors – rise above it, breathe and keep working to make the world a better place.”
That is very good.
I hadn’t heard of James Thornton or ClientEarth before but was impressed by what this article said – https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/sep/10/my-job-is-to-clean-up-the-environment-china-really-wants-to-do-that
If you watch the video on that page with Brian Eno, from about the 3:00 min mark he also talks about the involvement of creative artists in developing a new narrative around the environment.
That is what Jacinda understands. Working from positive energy creates an energy feedback loop.