Edited highlights from The Surge: wheeler/dealer Bernie @ #1
"Sanders reached a deal with Budget Committee moderates on a $3.5 trillion framework for a party-line reconciliation bill they intend to pass this fall. It would create a host of climate initiatives that Democrats claim would meet the president’s goal of halving emissions by 2030; add dental, vision, and hearing aid benefits to Medicare; extend the generously expanded child tax credit and improvements Democrats made to the Affordable Care Act earlier this year; allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices; and fund universal pre-K and paid family and medical leave. “The legislation that the president and I are supporting will go further to improve the lives of working people than any legislation since the 1930s,” Sanders told reporters once the deal was reached." https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/07/the-surge-bernie-sanders-budget-infrastructure-manchin-schumer.html
Legal weed @ #5: "Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, along with Sens. Ron Wyden and Cory Booker, introduced the first draft of their bill, the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act, to remove marijuana from the federal list of controlled substances. President Joe Biden, meanwhile, is extremely weirdly still not in favor of marijuana legalization."
Stroppy servant @ #7: "Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, got into it with congressional Republicans when he defended studying “white rage” and took offense at accusations over the military going “woke.” Conservatives like Tucker Carlson and Matt Gaetz, both privileged brats, called him “stupid,” a “pig,” and the reason why we lose so many wars. Milley is now likely in for another round of prep school Republicans calling him a wussy war-losing scumbag, as a new book documents some of the insults Milley lobbed Trump’s way when he was actively trying to prevent Trump from launching a coup. In a statement Thursday, Trump—who says he only picked Milley because Jim Mattis didn’t like Milley, and Trump didn’t like Jim Mattis—kicked things off by saying that “if I was going to do a coup, one of the last people I would want to do it with is General Mark Milley.” So there!"
While most of the farmers out yesterday were just sheep who probably didn't even really know why they were protesting, government needs to remember that its up to them to ease the pain of their policies, what's gone on down in otago and Canterbury (which is the main target of many of the policies) was all done legally in most cases and aided and abetted government national and local.
Youre right about local government support in the provinces, though public support will be far more divided (and opposition largely silent)…and its not surprising as in most cases the Ag sector is the main source of both revenue and employment in theses areas….and the method of protest was far from popular if what I hear being expressed is anything to go by.
and buried in 'Lifestyle' – funny and fitting imo – a write up on the casualness on which cis gendered girls experience sexual violence at the hand of their male peers and older male.
Girls, its called a rite of passage. I am waiting on the Minister for Women to have a say on that, and to do something about the 'right to a safe space and environment in which to grow up for human beings with natural vaginas. I am however not holding my breath, cause i'd be dead before anyone in any government really gives a flying fudge.
Of the 724 students who responded (aged 12 to 18), 60 per cent said they had been sexually harassed, many of them multiple times — out on the street, around town, at social gatherings or online. In most cases, their harassers were teenage boys of a similar age, or older men.
The impact of even what might be considered low-level harassment was often distressing. Relentless cat-calls and sexual comments had led some students to change their route to and from school, or to avoid travelling by bus altogether. Some of the verbal abuse that was reported, including rape threats, was truly vile. A girl on her way home from school says she attracted a volley of abuse when she walked past a group of teenage boys, with one of them shouting, "I'll f*** you until your back breaks."
Other students told of being groped, followed, filmed without permission or sent unwanted "dick pics". One was offered money to allow herself to be touched. Several of the reported rapes involved multiple offenders taking turns with a girl who'd had too much to drink or been subdued with drugs. More than once, a supposedly supportive boyfriend had helped her into a bedroom to lie down, then brought in his mates.
I'll deem you Minister for Women for the day. What would you do? Real solutions.
(Not real solutions are the seeming National style solution for gangs, to wit: "Gangs do bad things, put all gang members in jail." So with girls being assaulted, "Males do bad things, lock up all teenage and adult males."
make rape and sexual assault part of the hate crime bill.
– Min. sentencing 3 years plus 50.000 in damages.
– Advertise that in Schools, specifically boys school. Send police to boys schools and tell them what happens if you rape anyone (as boys also get raped).
Anyone cought raping anyone should get at least that for every charge of rape.
So this guy here who assaulted three women during a Navy trip should get at the minimum 3 years for each instance, plus 50.000 to each victim. No parole, no early release, madatory listing on sexual offenders list, no name suppression. – but he got two years. Cause boys will be boys. Right?
Cause clearly girls should know that when they are out and about, trying to live their life that they will inspire men and boys (and some women, althought no women ever told me to smile, never told me to get a breast augmention surgery lest i be considered a boy, or told that my ass is fuckable, nor has ever any women with a vagina raped me, that was always done by weaponsied penises).
So now Pete , that i told you what i would do, what would you do to keep girls as young as 13 save from having a train run over them organised by their supposed 'boyfriends'.
And please remember that the Roastbusters were not even charged with 'supplying alcohol to minors'. They went scot free, and the girls get to pick up what ever is left of them and continue on. Mind i guess they are not Rainbow Youth, so sucks to be a person with a natural vagina.
And do feel free to tell me just how unfair it is that Girls stand up for themselves and demand to not be reduced to a piece of meat by their peers and older male.
Tbh, Sabine I had no real inkling that this shit had got so bad for our young women. I was reading that article very early this morning and thinking we really need to get boys off the fucking porn sites and into some sound and solid consciousness-raising and mindfulness. They also need to learn that women do not exist for their use and entertainment. That women and girls are actually human.
"We're so desensitised to it, and so are the guys. They don't see themselves as 'offenders' whose behaviour is hurting or breaking someone. Men are trained not to respect women. And if you challenge it, they're the ones who feel they've been targeted unfairly."
This has gone way beyond a rank sense of entitlement…and we in the west have the audacity to challenge third world countries on the way they treat women and girls.
Should we start lessons in the earliest classes in schools, or preschools, telling boys what will happen to them if they treat other people badly? Should we have exemplar lists of what constitutes that unacceptable behaviour?
Why don't you answer me this? Do YOU think that girls and women should have a right to NOT be assaulted, insulted and raped by THEIR MALE peers? or is that just boys being boys and rape is a rite of passage for men to commit and for women/girls to suffer through?
A couple of times lately I have been questioned on NOT putting stuff as if something not being there means I accept it or approve of it. As if I have to preface everything I say with a pepeha which includes everything I believe in, anything not being there implying I don't care.
Like an implication that because I didn't lambaste mongrels who assault other people I might think that it's okay for girls and women to be assaulted, insulted and raped by male peers? Or thinking that rape is a reasonable rite of passage for men to commit and for women/girls to suffer through.
I'm going to a public occasion this afternoon. If someone doesn't tell me directly that they think that girls and women should have a right to NOT be assaulted, insulted and raped by THEIR MALE peers and that just boys being boys and rape is a rite of passage for men to commit and for women/girls to suffer through, do I assume the worst about them and their attitudes?
i don't know what you believe, you could answer me my question. Something like, Yes, i believe that, would suffice actually.
But let me tell you…….that
I do believe that women and girls SHOULD have that right, and i am waiting with baited breath for the Minister of Women to state something to that extend, because this is just ONE school, and we can expect this to happen pretty much anywhere in the country.
"I'm going to a public occasion this afternoon. If someone doesn't tell me directly that they think that girls and women should have a right to NOT be assaulted, insulted and raped by THEIR MALE peers and that just boys being boys and rape is a rite of passage for men to commit and for women/girls to suffer through, do I assume the worst about them and their attitudes?"
You are commenting around the topic of sexual harassment as reported by the Christchurch school girls, without actually addressing the impact this harassment has on not only their lives, but the lives of those conducting that harassment (and those around them) if it is not addressed.
Listen to what Sabine is saying, instead of getting all #NotAllMen.
Because the reality is, most women have experienced what is reported to varying degrees of harm.
So, there is a better approach than just pretending there is nothing to address, such as you seem to be doing.
It is necessary for us ALL to address it, as opposed to only those who are participating in harmful behaviour, unless you honestly believe that it is not worth finding a solution for.
(BTW, lessons are learned in cultures and societies, not just schools. The answer does not rely on educational institutions solely, we collectively carry that responsibility.)
Surely you're not telling me what I should be addressing?
And if I haven't addressed what you think I should be addressing I'm pretending there is nothing to address?
Not worth finding a solution for? I asked about specific responses. Sabine has suggested punishment and advertising. You say, "The answer does not rely on educational institutions solely, we collectively carry that responsibility" without saying what can specifically be done.
It's all right saying there is a massive problem, it's obvious there is. Thing is, what specifically should be done about it?
“Surely you’re not telling me what I should be addressing?”
God forbid. Just all those who are concerned about the current environment of harm. Else the involvement of those not caring, gets in the way of discussion and possible solutions by redirecting into dead ends of discussion.
"It's all right saying there is a massive problem, it's obvious there is. Thing is, what specifically should be done about it?"
Well, it was not apparent that you thought this from your previous comments on this thread.
Instead of asking others for solutions, or providing facile tongue-in-cheek proposals, – do you have any real solutions to propose? I'll wait.
And something about consent having to be proved. Along the lines of the accused having to demonstrated reasonable grounds for believing each act (which would take in removing condoms) was desired by the other party.
Seems like debunked Guardian hack Luck Harding is still not yet ready to abandon his wet dream fantasy that Russia helped Trump into the Whitehouse in 2016, a narrative that most thinking humans have now accepted was some sort of smoke screen to protect Clinton and the establishment Dems from taking any kind of responsibility for their embarrassing defeat during that election..a narrative now only mentioned in polite company by hardcore fantasists (like Harding and enabled by The Guardian)…..
Kremlin papers appear to show Putin’s plot to put Trump in White House
The headline warns the Prime Minister to, "dismiss protesting farmers as rednecks at (her) peril."
I could not find any reference to where the PM had done such a thing. Would anyone with a Hurled subscription be able to tell us where the PM said or implied 'protesting farmers are rednecks'?
Harris says he saw some tenants living in “absolutely awful conditions”.
''There are some landlords who are just 100 per cent scumlords, and they should never ever be allowed to own property to rent out.''
Harris' firm, TradeTech, has inspected and assessed 3756 Christchurch homes over the last 18 months. A small percentage of landlords went to extraordinary lengths to avoid fixing their poor quality rentals, he says.
''We have been asked to pass houses without seeing them and been offered money to do so.
‘’Owners are trying to tape insulation around the manhole or scatter [pink] batts around, so it looks like it has been done, or they put new lino over holes in the floor. For draught-stopping, rather than fix windows, some just nail them shut.''
I'd really like to see inspectors have the ability to force sales of rental properties and a ban from being associated in any way (including as a property manager or investor) with residential tenancies. Don't think a licence to landlord is worth anything imho cause scum LL's need more than some certificate of completion. They need repercussions, and serious ones at that. God knows the rest of us are paying via the health and welfare systems for their shoddy treatment of tenants.
I suggest that the landlord needs to put the tenant up in a motel until the repairs or legal installation is carried out or not be paid rent until the work is carried out.
And
That the landlord needs to live in the rental if the work is not carried out and pay for a motel for the tenants.
My elderly parents had their first Pfizer vaccine yesterday, no side effects yet. I'm in Group 3 due to a health condition and have booked my first vaccine for this Thursday. My sister in-law works at Waikato Hospital and is fully vaccinated, as is my brother. All good.
Sore arms and tiredness seem to be the most common side effects. Had my first dose on Thursday and that night the jab site was quite painful. By morning it had receded to a mild irritation. Been feeling a bit tired but don't know if it is due to injection.
Whatever: for anyone feeling a bit unsure of the jab… the side effects are minor and only last a day or so.
Always use my OPPO A53s, ColorOS 7.2 with Android 10. Chrome browser with Adgurd private dns.
I use the Mobile version of The Standard, but the Desktop version also currently works. No issues with functionality at the moment, but I don't comment very often.
Okay, I think I have worked it out now. You have to use the link button (looks like a chain link with a diagonal dash above the bullet point buttons), rather than just pasting the link into the text body. No idea what the flag or 3 horizontal lines buttons mean.
Conversely, I found the scaling didn't work at all with image button, but copy-pasting did on laptop.
At least the link from NRT seems to be working again – that's been out for months.
I like desktop because of the Replies list, and the aesthetics, but can't comment from there so am continually switching back and forth between mobile and desktop.
I have a Samsung Galaxy Note 9 and use mobile Chrome version 91.0.4472.120 (the latest version for my phone). I can post using mobile view but not desktop view. I also have mobile Firefox version 90.1.1 (Build #2015820747), also the latest version, and report the same thing. I also have Samsung Internet (Samsung's mobile browser based on Chrome) version 14.2.1.69 (the latest version), and it didn't load this page beyond the title. When checking on my Samsung Tab S5E (tablet), Samsung Internet allows posting in mobile but not desktop.
By post, I mean that when I press the reply button on the page, I can type in the comments editor in mobile view, but not desktop view.
For all the talk about high-density housing, and its importance in addressing the failure of decades of NZ planning, the reality is that good transitional housing requires great design and location and considerations. Despite the accumulated capital gains that has delighted some of the property owners across the country from land-use changes to high-density, this delight does not necessarily result in a change from existing building designs, or better living experiences for those who end up residing in resulting houses.
As far as Auckland Council is involved past the zoning change, their ability to influence resulting builds has been hampered by their failure to connect the Auckland Design Manual to the Unitary Plan, and developers are businesses who develop to increase their profit margins, not to provide long-term homes that take into account affordability, long-term residents well-being and transition considerations over and above the current inadequate regulatory requirements. This is not a treatise against property developers, just a statement of fact.
Given the current cost of emergency housing at $1million a day, and the more accepted cost of Accommodation Supplement at $30 million a week it is apparent to more than a few of us that current mechanisms to address housing, including Kiwibuild are treating housing as a commodity rather than a human need, and despite all protestations to the contrary are propping up an overheated market. Of course, politically, the cost of depressing house prices are not to be considered, even though many NZers are paying the price of the economic benefit enjoyed by a few that have the ability to financially invest and benefit from this commodification of a human need.
I am one of those that firmly believe the solution to actually access to healthy housing to all NZers, requires a dedicated commitment to vast amounts of state housing, where tenure is stabilised and the building of state housing must consider the wellbeing of residents and connection to community AS WELL AS utilising the investment of government and the judicious use of resources and design to transition these dwellings in terms of climate change. Once all NZers have access to affordable, secure, fit-for-purpose housing as can be provided by the state, then the developers and housing investors can continue with their business model without interference. We should not expect businesses to provide the necessities of living if the government shows little interest in the same. Once again, I believe this disinterest is a result of a lack of political will, the voters that they care about are those that are benefitting from rising housing costs, or are appeased by policies that seem to allow them to get on the property ladder (Kiwibuild).
As at 31 March 2021, the number of those on the State Housing list was 23,688. There has been a marked increase, after a Covid year, but the fact is that this is the number of people awaiting state housing after meeting all requirements.
The Kainga Ora December 2020 Report states that in the previous three years they have built 3500 state houses (without specifying whether this provides 3500 houses in addition to existing available housing stock, or does not include the demolition of previous state houses. This is an important distinction. If the net gain of state houses is minimal, or not meeting demand, NZ will continue to fail to address the inequity that results in many households because of the high cost of a fundamental need.
Apparently, the current government declined to invest in speeding up the glacially slow process of providing state housing, and looking in detail at current project gives a strong impression of rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. From their current state housing builds, that is reported on Page 34:
Northcote The Northcote Development replaces about 300 existing state houses with approximately 1,500 new homes, including approximately 470 new state houses, 580 KiwiBuild/affordable homes and the rest as market houses … (Net increase in state homes -170)
Mount Roskill The Mount Roskill Development will deliver approximately 11,000 new high-quality, healthy homes over the next 20 years. The new development will be comprised of approximately 4,400 state homes, 3,300 KiwiBuild/affordable homes and 3,300 market homes. These replace 2,732 existing state houses that have an average age of 48 years. … (Net increase in state homes -1,668 in 20 years)
Māngere The Māngere Development will deliver approximately 10,000 new warm, dry, healthy homes over 20 to 25 years, including around 5,000 state homes, 2,500 KiwiBuild/affordable homes and 2,500 market homes replacing 2,700 existing state houses…((Net increase in state homes -7,300 in 20-25 years)
Delivery is underway in the Māngere West neighbourhood where over 900 homes will be built, of which 342 will be state homes. … The Tāmaki development will deliver around 10,500 new homes over the next 25 years. The development will be comprised of approximately 3,500 state homes, 3,500 affordable homes (including KiwiBuild) and 3,500 market homes replacing 2,800 existing state dwellings. … (Net increase in state homes -700 in 25 years)
North West Glen Innes will deliver more than 1,200 homes, has also commenced. Oranga The Oranga Development replaces around 400 state houses with over 1,100 new homes, including 440 new state homes, over eight years…. (Net increase in state homes -700 in eight years)
Te Kauwhata In June this year, we also entered into a land supply partnership agreement with Winton to deliver 1,300 homes over the next seven to eight years at its greenfield Lakeside development at Te Kauwhata, North Waikato. Kāinga Ora is engaging build partners to construct a wide range of housing choices in a fully consented master-planned community, located in a strategic Southern Corridor location…
In the introduction Kainga Ora states:
Over the next four years, Kāinga Ora plans to invest $11.2 billion in its housing stock, resulting in a net increase of approximately 8,250 additional state homes.
If Kainga Ora was purely investing in state houses, that would be a build price per household unit of $1.3 million. However, they are both providing state housing AND contributing/relying on housing inflation by also providing houses for market and Kiwibuild. I believe there is a disconnect going on here, that is enshrined in the current interpretation of their objective:
Our objective is to contribute to sustainable, inclusive, and thriving communities that provide people with good quality, affordable housing choices that meet diverse needs; support good access to jobs, amenities, and services; and otherwise sustain or enhance the overall economic, social, environmental, and cultural well-being of current and future generations.
The belief that the market is working as it should, allows them to participate in being property developers themselves, and also working in PPP with other developers in order to create a profit.
However, they could, if politically supported do better. Their request to increase the rate of state housing builds was denied by the current Labour government. But they do have the ability to identify development opportunities that exist within their Crown Entity roles.
For a thought experiment, could they look at purchasing Ellerslie racecourse? Six hectares in a location well positioned for walkable community and transport, and if developed with good design by Kainga Ora might provide more household units for state housing than they currently have planned to meet demand.
There is high-density housing, and there is well-designed high density housing. I don't think we are currently doing well at the second.
Kainga Ora could be investing in developments like 8 House in Copenhagen on approx 2-2.5 hectares, which was conceived in 2006 and delivered around 2010.
The cost of €92,000,000 provided 61,000 sqm of building, including 10,000 retail/commercial space, 500 sqm of community space and 476 household units (of which over 300 are unique in design). 1700 sqm of green roof. All household units have access to outside space – balcony or front garden, and many have dual aspect windows. There is also a 1 km walkway ramp that connects all residents to each other, and to the open courtyards.
It is worth taking a look at the other projects that BIG studio has been involved in. I investigated their work after my son expressed interest in the Lego House which was one of their projects. I have also read a couple of interviews with developers that are using the architectural studio because their innovative design reduces build costs on multi-story developments.
I'm not really wanting to start another round of the ivermectin shitfight. But following on the heels of the discrediting and withdrawal of the egyptian study that ivermectin boosters heavily relied on, a new study has just been published where those running the study have taken reasonable care around controls, randomisation etc, and found that ivermectin did not have any benefit.
Oddly enough, I did read them before posting. Do you think I might have missed something important?
Maybe the researcher's conclusion?
Conclusion
Ivermectin had no significant effect on preventing hospitalization of patients with COVID-19. Patients who received ivermectin required invasive MVS earlier in their treatment. No significant differences were observed in any of the other secondary outcomes.
Or perhaps this nugget?
All-cause mortality was 7 cases (1.40%) in the 501 patients, of which 4 were patients (1.60%) in the ivermectin group and 3 were patients (1.20%) in the placebo group,
Or perhaps this little wrinkle pointing to ivermectin being ineffective as prophylaxis?
Incredibly it was extremely hard to find patients for the trial. Why? Too many Argentinians it seems were already taking ivermectin.
Of 15 968 people who tested positive for Covid and were excluded from taking part in the trial, 12 356 could not participate because they were already taking ivermectin. (We are also hearing anecdotal reports of South Africans using ivermectin.)
Or perhaps you could point to what led you to suggest I should read my sources?
Secondly, the mean dose of ivermectin was 192.37 μg/kg/day (SD ± 24.56), which is below the doses proposed as probably effective [20, 33].
They used a low dose of Ivermectin in the study, and they only did a short dose of 2 consecutive days. From what I gather this is not the recommended dosage to treat with this drug.
What is the recommended dose, who made the recommendation, and on what basis was the recommendation made?
There's two links in that quote you found, what do they say? (hint: neither of them have any recommendation on actual dosages to try against covid, let alone having any kind of evidentiary basis)
When it comes to the proposal that some specified substance treats some specified ailment, the default assumption has to be that it doesn't do shit in real life, no matter what happens in test tubes when the concentration is cranked way up. It's up to those claiming it actually does something useful to prove that, to a high standard.
Nobody has come anywhere close to showing ivermectin does anything useful against covid to even a mediocre standard. Even with absolute garbage studies, the claimed improvements are really small by the time the probable outright frauds are weeded out. It's significant that as the quality of study improves, less actual beneficial effect is found.
The two links were from the erroneous study you posted, so I doubt they will be much help re dosage.
In the real world.. when conducting a scientific experiment it's often best to use the same dosage as what doctors say work in the real world… to you know test the hypothesis!
So back to the question above, which you ghosted as you usually do for inconvenient questions:
What is the recommended dose, who made the recommendation, and on what basis was the recommendation made?
A key point of all these studies showing zero effectiveness is that the dosage used was the best guess by the doctors conducting the trial at what would be the most effective dose regime. Those that have had the honesty and integrity to set up reasonably robust trials of what they think is most likely to give positive outcomes have found – nothing, zip, nada. Those who let their hopes and motivated reasoning lead them into conducting badly designed and badly analysed trials with high risk of bias have found – at best very small effects, which haven't been replicated elsewhere.
Johnson also took aim at Tinetti, saying “her silence has created this vast void under which all of this animosity has poured”, and called on the minister to “show leadership and say that … women have the right to speak about women’s rights”.
Tinetti said she sent letters to several groups including Speak Up for Women, encouraging them to make a submission to select committee later this year.
As always, there are multiple sides to a story/narrative and I refuse to be shoehorned into one or the other. It will be interesting to see how many submissions will be received this time and whether public opinion has changed much; opinion and debate certainly seem to be more polarised, which is never a good sign.
As always, there are multiple sides to a story/narrative and I refuse to be shoehorned into one or the other.
Indeed. I'm so tempted to put up a thread title "Man's Day" and exclude all women and any pro-feminist viewpoints from it. But that would be … provocative. Still given that feminists have spent two generations systematically dismantling all the traditional male-only spaces where men might have talked without the distraction of the female perspective – I can't help but note the delicious irony icing on this particular little cupcake.
But as I stated yesterday, all of this was a more or less predictable outcome of the left elevating the post-modernist cult of Identity Politics to the loudest voice in our ideological narrative. Did it never occur to those who promoted it with such fervour, that the day might come when others would learn to play it as well?
Heh! It wouldn’t surprise me if some here would try to counter that by saying that some (most?) of TS could be considered ‘Man’s Day’. However, I understand the desire for a safe harbour to talk with like-minded people but this too easily leads to pseudo-debate and echo chamber stuff, IMO. I don’t think it fits well with the kaupapa of this site, but I stress that this is my personal opinion and I have to and (thus) will respect the opinions of others if/when they make a strong case for it.
Regarding the merit of the loudest voice leading/ruling, this also happens to be one of allegations raised in regard to the self-destruction of the Auckland chapter of SS4C (see my other comment in OM). Indeed, it is highly predictable, especially in hindsight 😉
Like you I'm not particularly against the idea of the thread. It seems largely populated by women who collectively burned their bridges with the male half of humanity a long time ago – and if they need an exclusive space to talk then well and good. But it's also obvious this is not a privilege they would extend to men.
I have a strong egalitarian streak and react to exclusive zones, spaces, meetings, communications, et cetera, and to hierarchical structures as well – a personal problem, obviously 😉 This is also one of the reasons why I have a major issue with the current state of the OIA in particular and with Government and State transparency and accountability in general.
I believe strongly in fair and inclusive debate, which is one reason why I’m on this site and put considerable time and effort into it. Good robust debate is key; it is also lacking, not just here on The Standard but everywhere – people seem to have lost or never learned how to debate each other effectively. It is not about winning or losing, about being right or wrong, about power – all the power is in the coming together in and of mind & spirit; polarisation, division, separation, and exclusion always remove collective power and therefore individual power and mana as well.
I see this reflected in the smoke & mirrors surrounding the so-called hate speech laws as well as He Puapua, for example – all symptomatic of the same problem. This this does not bode well for tackling global issues that affect all humanity and the planet for that matter. Sometimes, it feels we’re still stuck in day-care …
I hear you. We don't always agree but I can sincerely respect the motives you express here.
If I might add an optimistic note, while the standard of debate does fall short of what we might imagine as ideal, but honestly I think in some respects it has gotten better over the years. A quick glance at many social media comment threads shows that we could be a lot worse.
Affirmative, you and I don’t always agree but that’s ok with me; what matters is how we disagree and, for the record, I don’t have any major personal complaints 🙂
As far as your optimistic note is concerned, I don’t know whether to laugh or to cry 😉
Interesting discussion….after talking to female members of my circle re trans rights and 'womens space' I've come to the conclusion that like any group of people the viewpoints will vary tremendously though with one underlying theme…its all good for for men.
Like you I'm not particularly against the idea of the thread. It seems largely populated by women who collectively burned their bridges with the male half of humanity a long time ago – and if they need an exclusive space to talk then well and good. But it's also obvious this is not a privilege they would extend to men.
I haven't seen a comment like this about women since the 1970s when we were all dried up prunes and men haters for thinking as we did.
And I can readily find equivalent ghettos on the internet of men who have similarly 'burned their bridges with women'. You call it misogyny.
That both sexes are in a very real sense sundering their ancient connection and literally 'going their own separate ways' is in my view a totally predictable consequence that I was in my own fumbling way attempting to outline years ago. Watching it all unfold in real-time gives me no pleasure, trust me.
I'm not hurt by the "dismantling of traditional male-only spaces", because those spaces harboured and legitimised the very misogynistic oppression and abuse which is in the process of being addressed today.
As always, those against identity politics are those against the questioning of their traditional power.
Why some men feel the need to insert themselves into every discussion, mansplaining the righteousness of the status quo is beyond me.
No. As I said above, they're welcome to talk among themselves. I've refrained from commenting on almost anything gender related for almost four years now and contrary to what you imagine, I'm not at all keen on 'inserting myself into that conversation'.
I'm merely observing the the endless 'gender critical' threads of recent months and noting it as a predictable outcome of the entire post-modernist project, of which 'identity politics' was a large component. Which is pretty much all I have to say for the moment.
If you would like to 'learn by reading' on the Women's Day thread TeWhareWhero's summation (post 7.1) of the move from Womens' Studies to Gender issues/Studies is instructive.
I heard about that elsewhere, good to have a verifiable source for the story, Incognito. This from the SUFW spokeswoman was also good (not often I type that phrase!):
“We are calling for respectful, considered public dialogue. This is the last thing we want. We don’t know the validity of that [slapping] claim … but I absolutely condemn physical violence and abuse,” Johnson said.
After the Wi Spa violence, it is good to know that the local branch of that trans averse franchise are not gearing up for literal, rather than figurative war. Though trusting that many trans folk believe a word she says at this point seems a bit of a forlorn hope. Really hoping people don't start going to protests armed with protective gear that could become weapons at the wrong moment.
And just so you know, I had a quick look at the link from the other thread re Wi Spa and I'm not finding any credible evidence that the video was a hoax. I'm seeing speculation that it was, which is fine, but that's a different thing.
It also looks like the stabbings were by far right activists. This was in a conflict with antifa. I'm not seeing how women are involved in this at all.
I don't want to spend much time on this tonight, so I'm giving you a warning in comment rather than stepping into moderator mode. You will have to up your game in this debate. If you want to argue that women in NZ present a violent threat to trans people at protest actions, you will need to make an actual argument and back it up if making claims. Dropping in slur comments and using trans activist opinion based websites as evidence fails the requirements here for robust debate.
My suggestion is read the Policy. I want strong debate on sex/gender from all sides because I belief that NZ will be better for an open and honest examination of the issues. You bring in important perspectives, but you are going to have to learn how to present them directly. If you don't know what I am getting at here, please ask.
In the end my moderation response will come down to how much of my time gets sucked up chasing up useless links or asking for back up for claims or explanations of arguments poorly made. This isn't specific to you, or the topic, it's how it's been for a long time on site.
Because this isn't the first time I've had to explain how things work here, next time I have to think about this as a moderator I'll be putting boundaries in place. I suggest you get into the habit of linking well every time, and also cut and pasting the bits from the link that support what you are saying. This is so others don't have to do the work to find what your actual argument is. The onus is on you to state your argument clearly.
If you want to argue that women in NZ present a violent threat to trans people at protest actions, you will need to make an actual argument and back it up if making claims.
Imho some cis NZers are a threat to trans NZers, and NZ is pretty typical in this regard. If it's too much to expect acceptance, or even tolerance, then at least a little more understanding on all 'sides' wouldn't go amiss.
STELLAR PRITCHARD | HERE WE ARE [18 Nov. 2020] Moe: For me motherhood means like it's, it's creating, so it's like kinda help, helping create worlds, for, say, Stellar, creating a world of safety, where she's able to live her authentic self and be unapologetic and, um, having support from us, as well as myself, to guide her through this thing called trans-queer life.
Stellar: All of us weren't necessarily born into womanhood. We had to fight to get accepted, we have to fight to get understood. And we have to find who we are especially, and we have to find ourselves through our communities, and we have to find ourselves through… events, the best and the hardest events of our lives. Yeah, and I feel like all of us have to fight for the womanhood that we have, because there's so many people that will try and doubt our womanhood, and there's so many people that won't understand our womanhood. I may have been treated like that, but I'm not going to fall – yeah.
Gender Violence
Transgender Experiences with Violence and Discrimination
[2002; cited 1088 times] There is a pervasive pattern of discrimination and prejudice against transgendered people within society. Both economic discrimination and experiencing violence could be the result of a larger social climate that severely sanctions people for not conforming to society's norms concerning gender; as such, both would be strongly associated with each other. Questionnaires were distributed to people either through events or through volunteers, and made available upon the World Wide Web. A sample of 402 cases was collected over the span of 12 months (April 1996-April 1997). We found that over half the people within this sample experienced some form of harassment or violence within their lifetime, with a quarter experiencing a violent incident. Further investigation found that experiencing economic discrimination because one is transgendered had the strongest association with experiencing a transgender related violent incident. Economic discrimination was related to transgendered people's experience with violence. Therefore, both hate crimes legislation and employment protections are needed for transgendered individuals.
Can't help wondering if those who identify as trans NZers today are that much better off than 25 years ago when data were collected for the above study.
Factors associated with suicide attempts among Australian transgender adults [2021] Transgender, including gender diverse and non-binary people, henceforth referred to collectively as trans people, are a highly marginalised population with alarming rates of suicidal ideation, attempted suicide and self-harm. We aimed to understand the risk and protective factors of a lifetime history of attempted suicide in a community sample of Australian trans adults to guide better mental health support and suicide prevention strategies.
Experiences and factors associated with transphobic hate crimes among transgender women in the San Francisco Bay Area: comparisons across race [2021] Trans women experience high rates of gender-based violence (GBV)—a risk factor for adverse health outcomes. Transphobic hate crimes are one such form of GBV that affect trans women. However, little is understood about factors that shape transphobic hate crimes and racial/ethnic variation in these experiences. To contextualize GBV risk and police reporting, we examined self-reported types and correlates of transphobic hate crimes by racial/ethnic group of trans women in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Many, possibly a majority, of cis and trans women continue to face many challenges, but it's not a competition (or at least it shouldn't be, imho.) NZ can look to other countries to identify progressive strategies that might minimise real and perceived violence and discrimination against all women.
States Must Push Back Against Harmful Anti-Gender Narratives – UN Expert [26 June 2021]
“Gender theory is a powerful tool to address the oppression of female or non-normative identities,” the report says. “Feminist struggle and the fight to live free from violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity are deeply intertwined, and they reinforce each other.”
This comes after RNZ revealed trans woman Kristine Ablinger's landlord gave her three hours to move out of her home because she found her 'offensive'.
Ablinger laid a complaint with the Commission, but was shocked to learn an exception to the Human Rights Act meant the discrimination she faced was not unlawful, and the Commission was unable to take action.
Why 1 in 5 transgender people experience homelessness
"So, my mum hates me. She doesn't hate me per se, but she just doesn't agree with, in her words, 'my lifestyle'. Whatever that means. So, yeah."
* Almost one in five trans and non-binary New Zealanders have been homeless, according to 2018 survey Counting Ourselves. The proportion is even higher for non-European survey participants (a quarter), while 16 percent of European participants have experienced homelessness, the study found.
Another survey, by Gender Minorities Aotearoa, found of 43 trans homeless people in Wellington, 79 percent had a mental health condition, and 47 percent had a disability. The survey, which is yet to be released publicly, also found that for three quarters of participants, homelessness had been experienced more than once.
For some gender diverse people, intersecting identities – like ethnicity, disability, religion or sexuality – can compound to make life even more difficult. The cumulative effects of these minority stresses can result in mental health difficulties and stable housing is a key ingredient in the maintenance of good mental health.
An interesting PoV from an insider into the implosion of the Auckland chapter of SS4C. Self-appointed leadership and the lack of structure are mentioned as a possible contributing reasons. Hopefully, it was a learning curve for some, at least.
This is too soon and insensitive. I do wonder how many of the farmers who drove their tractors into town one day, have their hand out for govt help following floods the next.
I think it is perfectly ok when farmers ask and receive help and government assistance when there’s a natural disaster. It would be totally wrong to try and link that to democratic protest or to giving one party more leverage over the other – the power balance is almost never equal/symmetrical anyway. Similarly, should nurses, for example, have more negotiating leverage because of what they’re doing as part of the Covid elimination strategy? There’s a calculating and neo-liberal aspect to this, if you ask me, as with the farmers who claim that they feed us, et cetera. The unrealistic and unjustified elevation of people rather than functions has led to over-paid managers, Directors, and CEOs, IMO. The question is: where do you draw the line and how?
When will government be able to take control over the country again, and ensure that their policies are being carried out well, in a timely fashion, and wield some stick?
This business of contracting out of the job is getting to be a farce. Government departments contract out to others, they contract out to associated suppliers, operatives, and now to computer machines and algorithms. These are not doing the job properly, and our economy is built on people doing jobs, it gets leaner paradoxically when people aren't receiving pay to do stuff that machines can do faster and more efficiently. Though it is cheaper, which looks good on one financial statement, it does people out of a job which lowers the money flow and small local business suffers.
Exporters’ trying to sustain essential trade and supply chains are in no man’s land, able to travel offshore but not return, blocked by the MIQ booking system which randomly throws up spots, gobbled up within seconds by gamers or people paid to sit hitting refresh round the clock despite assurances that 10 per cent of the 4,000 available rooms are allocated for critical business.
A group of dissident doctors have joined the ranks of those seeking to undermine confidence in New Zealand's vaccine campaign by spreading misinformation. What are they saying and do they pose a real threat to our Covid-19 response? CATE BROUGHTON reports.
On June 14, talkback radio host Peter Williams welcomed Wellington GP Matt Shelton onto his show to discuss the Covid-19 vaccine.
Shelton was from the little-known group New Zealand Doctors Speaking Out on Science (NZDSOS), Williams said.
When Williams pointed out the decrease in Covid-19 cases and deaths since the rollout of vaccination programmes overseas, Shelton claimed it was the result of widespread falsification of test results. Again, he provided no evidence.
Well, if they're at the level of claiming that global death rates have been faked to make vaccines appear effective, I'd strongly suspect they're either having problems with reality or there's cash in it somewhere for them.
This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Simon Clark. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). This year you will be lied to! Simon Clark helps prebunk some misleading statements you'll hear about climate. The video includes ...
It is all very well cutting the backrooms of public agencies but it may compromise the frontlines. One of the frustrations of the Productivity Commission’s 2017 review of universities is that while it observed that their non-academic staff were increasing faster than their academic staff, it did not bother to ...
Buzz from the Beehive Two speeches delivered by Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters at Anzac Day ceremonies in Turkey are the only new posts on the government’s official website since the PM announced his Cabinet shake-up. In one of the speeches, Peters stated the obvious: we live in a troubled ...
1. Which of these would you not expect to read in The Waikato Invader?a. Luxon is here to do business, don’t you worry about thatb. Mr KPI expects results, and you better believe itc. This decisive man of action is getting me all hot and excitedd. Melissa Lee is how ...
…it has a restricted jurisdiction which must not be abused: it is not an inquisitionNOTE – this article was published before the High Court ruled that Karen Chhour does not have to appear before the Waitangi Tribunal Gary Judd writes – The High Court ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – One of reasons Oranga Tamariki exists is to prevent child neglect. But could the organisation itself be guilty of the same?Oranga Tamariki’s statistics show a decrease in the number and age of children in care. “There are less children ...
David Farrar writes: Graeme Edgeler wrote in 2017: In the first five years after three strikes came into effect 5248 offenders received a ‘first strike’ (that is, a “stage-1 conviction” under the three strikes sentencing regime), and 68 offenders received a ‘second strike’. In the five years prior to ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has surprised everyone with his ruthlessness in sacking two of his ministers from their crucial portfolios. Removing ministers for poor performance after only five months in the job just doesn’t normally happen in politics. That’s refreshing and will be extremely ...
TL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the two days to 6:06am on Thursday, April 25:Politics: PM Christopher Luxon has set up a dual standard for ministerial competence by demoting two National Cabinet ministers while leaving also-struggling ...
Hi,Today I mainly want to share some of your thoughts about the recent piece I wrote about success and failure, and the forces that seemingly guide our lives. But first, a quick bit of housekeeping: I am doing a Webworm popup in Los Angeles on Saturday May 11 at 2pm. ...
It is hard to see what Melissa Lee might have done to “save” the media. National went into the election with no public media policy and appears not to have developed one subsequently. Lee claimed that she had prepared a policy paper before the election but it had been decided ...
Open access notablesIce acceleration and rotation in the Greenland Ice Sheet interior in recent decades, Løkkegaard et al., Communications Earth & Environment:In the past two decades, mass loss from the Greenland ice sheet has accelerated, partly due to the speedup of glaciers. However, uncertainty in speed derived from satellite products ...
Buzz from the Beehive A statement from Children’s Minister Karen Chhour – yet to be posted on the Government’s official website – arrived in Point of Order’s email in-tray last night. It welcomes the High Court ruling on whether the Waitangi Tribunal can demand she appear before it. It does ...
Mr Bombastic:Ironically, the media the academic experts wanted is, in many ways, the media they got. In place of the tyrannical editors of yesteryear, advancing without fear or favour the interests of the ruling class; the New Zealand news media of today boasts a troop of enlightened journalists dedicated to ...
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Every day now just seems to bring in more fresh meat for the grinder.In their relentlessly ideological drive to cut back on the “excessive bloat” (as they see it) of the previous Labour-led government, on the mountains of evidence accumulated in such a short period of time do not ...
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Buzz from the Beehive Melissa Lee – as may be discerned from the screenshot above – has not been demoted for doing something seriously wrong as Minister of ...
Morning in London Mother hugs beloved daughter outside the converted shoe factory in which she is living.Afternoon in London Travelling writer takes himself and his wrist down to A&E, just to be sure. Read more ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – The recent announcement of the University Advisory Group, chaired by Sir Peter Gluckman, makes very clear where the Government’s focus and priorities lie. The remit of the Advisory Group is that Group members will consider challenges and opportunities for improvement in the university sector including: ...
Eric Crampton writes – The Reserve Bank of New Zealand desperately wants to find reasons to have workstreams in climate change. It makes little sense. They’ve run another stress test on the banks looking to see if they could find a prudential regulation case. They couldn’t. They ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Pundits from the left and the right are arguing that National’s Fast Track Bill that is designed to speed up infrastructure decisions could end up becoming mired in a cesspool of corruption. Political commentator ...
Looking at the headlines this morning it’s hard to feel anything other than pessimistic about the future of humanity.Note that I’m not speaking about the future of mankind, but the survival of our humanity. The values that we believe in seem to be ebbing away, by the day.Perhaps every generation ...
Swabbing mixed breed baby chicks to test for avian influenzaUh oh. Bird flu – often deadly to humans – is not only being transmitted from infected birds to dairy cows, but is now travelling between dairy cows. As of last Friday, Bloomberg News reports, there were 32 American dairy herds ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
What is it with the mining industry? Its not enough for them to pillage the earth - they apparently can't even be bothered getting resource consent to do so: The proponent behind a major mine near the Clutha River had already been undertaking activity in the area without a ...
Photo # 1 I am a huge fan of Singapore’s approach to housing, as described here two years ago by copying and pasting from The ConversationWhat Singapore has that Australia does not is a public housing developer, the Housing Development Board, which puts new dwellings on public and reclaimed land, ...
Buzz from the Beehive Reactions to news of the government’s readiness to make urgent changes to “the resource management system” through a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) suggest a balanced approach is being taken. The Taxpayers’ Union says the proposed changes don’t go far enough. Greenpeace says ...
I’m starting to wonder if Anna Burns-Francis might be the best political interviewer we’ve got. That might sound unlikely to you, it came as a bit of a surprise to me.Jack Tame can be excellent, but has some pretty average days. I like Rebecca Wright on Newshub, she asks good ...
Chris Trotter writes – Willie Jackson is said to be planning a “media summit” to discuss “the state of the media and how to protect Fourth Estate Journalism”. Not only does the Editor of The Daily Blog, Martyn Bradbury, think this is a good idea, but he has also ...
Graeme Edgeler writes – This morning [April 21], the Wellington High Court is hearing a judicial review brought by Hon. Karen Chhour, the Minister for Children, against a decision of the Waitangi Tribunal. This is unusual, judicial reviews are much more likely to brought against ministers, rather than ...
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The infrastructure industry yesterday issued a “hurry up” message to the Government, telling it to get cracking on developing a pipeline of infrastructure projects.The hiatus around the change of Government has seen some major projects cancelled and others delayed, and there is uncertainty about what will happen with the new ...
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Calling all journalists, academics, planners, lawyers, political activists, environmentalists, and other members of the public who believe that the relationships between vested interests and politicians need to be scrutinised. We need to work together to make sure that the new Fast-Track Approvals Bill – currently being pushed through by the ...
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Bryce Edwards writes- The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. ...
Michael Bassett writes – If you think there is a move afoot by the radical Maori fringe of New Zealand society to create a parallel system of government to the one that we elect at our triennial elections, you aren’t wrong. Over the last few days we have ...
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The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. The Government says this will ...
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Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
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Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi, and Mema Paremata mō Tāmaki-Makaurau, Takutai Tarsh Kemp, will travel to the Gold Coast to strengthen ties with Māori in Australia next week (15-21 April). The visit, in the lead-up to the 9th Australian National Kapa haka Festival, will be an opportunity for both ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order. “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions. “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today. “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale. “It is good ...
The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
“China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
I was initially resistant to the idea often suggested to me that the Government should deliver an arts strategy. The whole point of the arts and creativity is that people should do whatever the hell they want, unbound by the dictates of politicians in Wellington. Peter Jackson, Kiri Te Kanawa, Eleanor ...
Asia Pacific Report The Freedom Flotilla is ready to sail to Gaza, reports Kia Ora Gaza. All the required paperwork has been submitted to the port authority, and the cargo has been loaded and prepared for the humanitarian trip to the besieged enclave. However, organisers received word of an “administrative ...
Pacific Media Watch Palestine solidarity protesters today demonstrated at the Auckland headquarters of Television New Zealand, accusing the country’s major TV network of broadcasting “propaganda” backing Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza. About 50 protesters targeted the main entrance to the TVNZ building near Sky Tower and also picketed a side ...
Opinion by Lynley Hood. Forty years on from my 1985 Fulbright Grant, my disquiet over the war in Gaza evoked some troubling questions. The answer to my first question – What is the primary purpose of the Fulbright Programme? – was on the Fulbright NZ website. It says: US Senator, ...
The ministers responsible for green-lighting major projects need to be open about potential conflicts of interest, says Transparency International. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Powell, Professor, Family and Sexual Violence, RMIT University It has been a particularly distressing start to the year. There is little that can ease the current grief of individuals, families and communities who have needlessly lost a loved one to men’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gregory Moore, Senior Research Associate, School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, The University of Melbourne Lichen, the first described example of symbiosis.AdeJ Artventure/Shutterstock Once known only to those studying biology, the word symbiosis is now widely used. Symbiosis is the intimate ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kim Hemsley, Head, Childhood Dementia Research Group, Flinders Health and Medical Research Institute, College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University Olena Ivanova/Shutterstock “Childhood” and “dementia” are two words we wish we didn’t have to use together. But sadly, around 1,400 ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Whiteford, Professor, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University The government’s Economic Inclusion Advisory Committee has just published its second report. It was set up by Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth in 2022 to provide: ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne The Queensland state election will be held in October. A YouGov poll for The Courier Mail, conducted April 9–17 from a sample ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Naeni, PhD candidate at Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation, Deakin University There’s been much talk in recent months about what a possible second Donald Trump presidency in the United States could mean for Europe, Russia’s war in Ukraine, the ...
A brief round-up of submissions on the controversial proposed law. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week, submissions on the controversial Fast-track Approvals Bill closed just hours after the government released a list of stakeholder organisations who were sent letters advising how they could ...
A poem from Robin Peace’s new collection Detritus of Empire: feather / grass / rock. Cereal giving I see a woman’s hands, see her curious hands break a stalk as she walks through the tall prairie, the savannah, the steppe, wherever it was. See her idly bite the grass that ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Hemingway’s Goblet by Dermot Ross (Mary Egan Publishing, $38)A handsomely produced (debossed cover, lovely ...
The Commissioner's decision validates the longstanding efforts of the local community and ensures that Awataha Marae will be managed to serve the needs of the local community, particularly for hosting tangihanga. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tristan Salles, Associate professor, University of Sydney Examples of Australian landscapes.Unsplash Seventy thousand years ago, the sea level was much lower than today. Australia, along with New Guinea and Tasmania, formed a connected landmass known as Sahul. Around this time – ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Felicity Castagna, Lecturer, Creative Writing, Western Sydney University Day Day Market, ParramattaPhoto: Garry Trinh I live on the edge of Parramatta, Australia’s fastest-growing city, on the kind of old-fashioned suburban street that has 1950s fibros constructed in the post-war housing boom, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Ryan, Teaching Fellow in Economics, University of Waikato GettyImagesfatido/Getty Images There is an ongoing global debate over whether the high inflation seen in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic can be lowered without a recession. New Zealand is not ...
The ‘Wicked Game’ heartthrob is in his late 60s now. That didn’t stop him putting on a lively, goofy and very sparkly show. Apart from ‘Wicked Game’, which graces a sultry playlist of mine simply called 💋, my last sustained Chris Isaak listening session took place when I was about ...
Analysis - Two ministers were stripped of portfolios in a warning to Cabinet, drama broke out at the Waitangi Tribunal, and the gang patch ban bill ran into opposition. ...
Tara Ward makes an impassioned plea for some vital pop culture merch. In April 1999, I became obsessed with a new reality television show called Popstars. Every Tuesday night, five strangers transformed into music royalty before my very eyes as Joe, Keri, Carly, Erika and Megan were chosen to form ...
PNG Post-Courier In the early hours of ANZAC Day, aerial photographs captured an impressive gathering of Australians and Papua New Guineans at Isurava in the Northern (Oro) Province. The solemn dawn service yesterday was held at a site steeped in history, where some of the fiercest battles of World War ...
The PSA is shocked that Oranga Tamariki has used the cost cutting drive to downgrade its commitment to Te Ao Māori and remove many specialist Māori roles. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Kemish, Adjunct Professor, School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry, The University of Queensland There can be no more powerful symbol of the relationship between Australia and Papua New Guinea than the prime ministers of these neighbouring countries walking together on the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sharon Robinson, Distinguished Professor and Deputy Director of ARC Securing Antarctica’s Environmental Future (SAEF), University of Wollongong, University of Wollongong Andrew Netherwood Over the last 25 years, the ozone hole which forming over Antarctica each spring has started to shrink. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Viktoria Kahui, Senior Lecturer in Environmental Economics, University of Otago Getty Images/Amy Toensing Biodiversity is declining at rates unprecedented in human history. This suggests the ways we currently use to manage our natural environment are failing. One emerging concept focuses on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Timothy Colin Bednall, Associate Professor in Management, Swinburne University of Technology marvent/Shutterstock Finding the best person to fill a position can be tough, from drafting a job ad to producing a shortlist of top interview candidates. Employers typically consider information from ...
Wondering where to host your next BYO? Whether its a small gathering or a massive party, we’ve got some recommendations. I was first introduced to the concept of BYOs at Dunedin’s India Gardens, a legendary but sadly defunct establishment, which purveyed enormous quantities of mango chicken to Aotearoa’s drunkest future ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Julien Cooper, Honorary Lecturer, Department of History and Archaeology, Macquarie University Julien Cooper The hyper-arid desert of Eastern Sudan, the Atbai Desert, seems like an unlikely place to find evidence of ancient cattle herders. But in this dry environment, my new ...
The sector says it’s hopeful her replacement Paul Goldsmith will be able to throw it a lifeline, after six months with a minister deemed missing in action, writes Catherine McGregor in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign ...
The government can't just rely on axing public sector jobs and has to do more to cut spending, says the chief economist at a free market think tank. ...
Rock The Vote NZ, known for its advocacy for minor party unity and its role within the Freedoms NZ Coalition during the 2023 General Election, celebrates this merger as a strategic enhancement of its operational strength and outreach. ...
Nearly everyone has experienced the frustration of something you use breaking and being difficult or expensive to fix. Proposed legislation could change that. It’s been raining on and off all Sunday afternoon but people are lining up outside a building in a corner of Gribblehirst Park in Sandringham, Auckland. In ...
What does a forever relationship look like when you don’t believe in marriage? And how do you celebrate it? This essay is part of our Sunday Essay series, made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.I’m going to do it, right now. I’m going to say ...
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You can’t have missed the Gallipoli story as the movies, documentaries, essays and books capture what it was like for New Zealand troops in their eight-month campaign on the Peninsula. But this Anzac Day the Auckland War Memorial Museum has published a book that sheds light on a little-known aspect of the ...
The Prime Minister has committed to resuming direct flights to Thailand. But it’s not a promise he will be able to deliver on anytime soon. The post Prime Minister jumps the gun in Thailand appeared first on Newsroom. ...
It’s not that long ago Eliza McCartney was seriously wondering if the Paris Olympics would be her pole vaulting swansong. After years of being hounded by injury after injury, the Rio Olympics bronze medallist was still confident she would compete at her second Olympics in Paris in July, unless something ...
FICTION 1 Take Two by Danielle Hawkins (Allen & Unwin, $36.99) There’s commercial fiction, like this book, and then there’s quality fiction, quality writers, quality literature; the forthcoming Auckland Writers Festival is full of quality, and ReadingRoom has two tickets to give away to the following events: Paul Lynch (Dublin ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra In the free-for-all between the Australian government and Big Tech boss Elon Musk this week, the government had to be on a winner. Most people would have little sympathy with Musk’s vociferous opposition to ...
Asia Pacific Report Chief Mandla Mandela, a member of the National Assembly of South Africa and Nelson Mandela’s grandson, has joined the Freedom Flotilla in istanbul as the ships prepare to sail for Gaza, reports Kia Ora Gaza. Mandela is also the ambassador for the Global Campaign to Return to ...
Pacific Media Watch Journalists who report on environmental issues are encountering growing difficulties in many parts of the world, reports Reporters Without Borders. According to the tally kept by RSF, 200 journalists have been subjected to threats and physical violence, including murder, in the past 10 years because they were ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards, Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has surprised everyone with his ruthlessness in sacking two of his ministers from their crucial portfolios. Removing ministers for poor performance after only five months in the job just doesn’t normally happen in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Hawkins, Senior Lecturer, Canberra School of Politics, Economics and Society, University of Canberra BagzhanSadvakassov/Upsplash, CC BY-SA Australia’s inflation rate has fallen for the fifth successive quarter, and it’s now less than half of what it was back in late 2022. ...
ACT's Rural Communities and Veterans spokesman Mark Cameron responds to cancellations and protests of ANZAC Day commemorations in Wellington. He says, "These pitiful attempts to detract from ANZAC Day are not at all indicative of the feelings of mainstream ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Meighen McCrae, Associate Professor of Strategic & Defence Studies, Australian National University American and Australian stretcher bearers working together near the front line during the Battle of Hamel in 1918.Australian War Memorial While the AUKUS alliance is new, the Australian-American partnership ...
Pōneke based peace activists staged a silent protest at the ANZAC day service to highlight New Zealand’s complicity in war and genocide, and urge the government to take concrete steps to stop the genocide in Palestine. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Magdalena M.E. Bunbury, Postdoctoral Researcher, James Cook University Burial with a horse at the Rákóczifalva site, Hungary (8th century AD).Sándor Hegedűs, Hungarian National Museum, CC BY How do we understand past societies? For centuries, our main sources of information have been ...
Amanda Thompson doesn’t really do Anzac Day. But what she does do is remember the people she knew who had a lifetime to remember stuff they didn’t really want to, because of a war they didn’t ask for. And she does make Anzac biscuits.First published in 2021.All my ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kathryn Willis, Postdoctoral Researcher, CSIRO Xavier Boulenger/Shutterstock In the two decades to 2019, global plastic production doubled. By 2040, plastic manufacturing and processing could consume as much as 20% of global oil production and use up 15% of the annual carbon ...
With our collective remembrance, and steadfast belief in our common humanity, we strengthen our hope and resolve to do what we can to foster dialogue and understanding, and to heal divisions in our pursuit of peace. ...
Principal reasons for the opposition is the loss of the public’s democratic right to have “a fair say” and the vital need for a government free from corruption, said Casey Cravens of Dunedin, president of the New Zealand Federation of Freshwater ...
Never mind the scoreboard – in the 2000 Bledisloe Cup decider, the real trans-Tasman battle was won before kickoff.First published in 2016. The dawn of the new millennium was a dark time for the All Blacks. Their final game pre-Y2K was a 22-18 loss to South Africa in the ...
I’m on the wrong side of 40, I never pursued creative work and now my job is killing my soul. Help! Want Hera’s help? Email your problem to helpme@thespinoff.co.nzDear Hera,May I start with the least original conversation opener you’re likely to hear around the motu at the moment, particularly in Wellington: ...
Edited highlights from The Surge: wheeler/dealer Bernie @ #1
"Sanders reached a deal with Budget Committee moderates on a $3.5 trillion framework for a party-line reconciliation bill they intend to pass this fall. It would create a host of climate initiatives that Democrats claim would meet the president’s goal of halving emissions by 2030; add dental, vision, and hearing aid benefits to Medicare; extend the generously expanded child tax credit and improvements Democrats made to the Affordable Care Act earlier this year; allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices; and fund universal pre-K and paid family and medical leave. “The legislation that the president and I are supporting will go further to improve the lives of working people than any legislation since the 1930s,” Sanders told reporters once the deal was reached." https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/07/the-surge-bernie-sanders-budget-infrastructure-manchin-schumer.html
Legal weed @ #5: "Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, along with Sens. Ron Wyden and Cory Booker, introduced the first draft of their bill, the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act, to remove marijuana from the federal list of controlled substances. President Joe Biden, meanwhile, is extremely weirdly still not in favor of marijuana legalization."
Stroppy servant @ #7: "Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, got into it with congressional Republicans when he defended studying “white rage” and took offense at accusations over the military going “woke.” Conservatives like Tucker Carlson and Matt Gaetz, both privileged brats, called him “stupid,” a “pig,” and the reason why we lose so many wars. Milley is now likely in for another round of prep school Republicans calling him a wussy war-losing scumbag, as a new book documents some of the insults Milley lobbed Trump’s way when he was actively trying to prevent Trump from launching a coup. In a statement Thursday, Trump—who says he only picked Milley because Jim Mattis didn’t like Milley, and Trump didn’t like Jim Mattis—kicked things off by saying that “if I was going to do a coup, one of the last people I would want to do it with is General Mark Milley.” So there!"
While most of the farmers out yesterday were just sheep who probably didn't even really know why they were protesting, government needs to remember that its up to them to ease the pain of their policies, what's gone on down in otago and Canterbury (which is the main target of many of the policies) was all done legally in most cases and aided and abetted government national and local.
Youre right about local government support in the provinces, though public support will be far more divided (and opposition largely silent)…and its not surprising as in most cases the Ag sector is the main source of both revenue and employment in theses areas….and the method of protest was far from popular if what I hear being expressed is anything to go by.
and buried in 'Lifestyle' – funny and fitting imo – a write up on the casualness on which cis gendered girls experience sexual violence at the hand of their male peers and older male.
Girls, its called a rite of passage. I am waiting on the Minister for Women to have a say on that, and to do something about the 'right to a safe space and environment in which to grow up for human beings with natural vaginas. I am however not holding my breath, cause i'd be dead before anyone in any government really gives a flying fudge.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/christchurch-girls-high-schools-sexual-harassment-survey-breaking-the-code-of-silence/EAU74JF2AROUEF77FHV2FCRLYQ/
I'll deem you Minister for Women for the day. What would you do? Real solutions.
(Not real solutions are the seeming National style solution for gangs, to wit: "Gangs do bad things, put all gang members in jail." So with girls being assaulted, "Males do bad things, lock up all teenage and adult males."
For a start, it might help to acknowledge there is a problem, instead of indulging in whataboutism.
– Min. sentencing 3 years plus 50.000 in damages.
– Advertise that in Schools, specifically boys school. Send police to boys schools and tell them what happens if you rape anyone (as boys also get raped).
Anyone cought raping anyone should get at least that for every charge of rape.
So this guy here who assaulted three women during a Navy trip should get at the minimum 3 years for each instance, plus 50.000 to each victim. No parole, no early release, madatory listing on sexual offenders list, no name suppression. – but he got two years. Cause boys will be boys. Right?
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/royal-new-zealand-navy-sailor-sentenced-over-sex-attacks-on-colleagues/2MFYQ7TSMFZ3QMJO4TBVE3HVNY/
How bout that? Would that work for you?
And what would you do?
Apologize for boys being boys? https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/89110814/willie-jackson-embroiled-in-roast-busters-controversey-just-hours-after-joining-labour-party
Like some people did for the Roast busters?
Cause clearly girls should know that when they are out and about, trying to live their life that they will inspire men and boys (and some women, althought no women ever told me to smile, never told me to get a breast augmention surgery lest i be considered a boy, or told that my ass is fuckable, nor has ever any women with a vagina raped me, that was always done by weaponsied penises).
So now Pete , that i told you what i would do, what would you do to keep girls as young as 13 save from having a train run over them organised by their supposed 'boyfriends'.
And please remember that the Roastbusters were not even charged with 'supplying alcohol to minors'. They went scot free, and the girls get to pick up what ever is left of them and continue on. Mind i guess they are not Rainbow Youth, so sucks to be a person with a natural vagina.
And do feel free to tell me just how unfair it is that Girls stand up for themselves and demand to not be reduced to a piece of meat by their peers and older male.
Tbh, Sabine I had no real inkling that this shit had got so bad for our young women. I was reading that article very early this morning and thinking we really need to get boys off the fucking porn sites and into some sound and solid consciousness-raising and mindfulness. They also need to learn that women do not exist for their use and entertainment. That women and girls are actually human.
"We're so desensitised to it, and so are the guys. They don't see themselves as 'offenders' whose behaviour is hurting or breaking someone. Men are trained not to respect women. And if you challenge it, they're the ones who feel they've been targeted unfairly."
This has gone way beyond a rank sense of entitlement…and we in the west have the audacity to challenge third world countries on the way they treat women and girls.
Thank you. In the cause of robust debate:
Should we start lessons in the earliest classes in schools, or preschools, telling boys what will happen to them if they treat other people badly? Should we have exemplar lists of what constitutes that unacceptable behaviour?
Why don't you answer me this? Do YOU think that girls and women should have a right to NOT be assaulted, insulted and raped by THEIR MALE peers? or is that just boys being boys and rape is a rite of passage for men to commit and for women/girls to suffer through?
🙂
A couple of times lately I have been questioned on NOT putting stuff as if something not being there means I accept it or approve of it. As if I have to preface everything I say with a pepeha which includes everything I believe in, anything not being there implying I don't care.
Like an implication that because I didn't lambaste mongrels who assault other people I might think that it's okay for girls and women to be assaulted, insulted and raped by male peers? Or thinking that rape is a reasonable rite of passage for men to commit and for women/girls to suffer through.
I'm going to a public occasion this afternoon. If someone doesn't tell me directly that they think that girls and women should have a right to NOT be assaulted, insulted and raped by THEIR MALE peers and that just boys being boys and rape is a rite of passage for men to commit and for women/girls to suffer through, do I assume the worst about them and their attitudes?
i don't know what you believe, you could answer me my question. Something like, Yes, i believe that, would suffice actually.
But let me tell you…….that
I do believe that women and girls SHOULD have that right, and i am waiting with baited breath for the Minister of Women to state something to that extend, because this is just ONE school, and we can expect this to happen pretty much anywhere in the country.
"I'm going to a public occasion this afternoon. If someone doesn't tell me directly that they think that girls and women should have a right to NOT be assaulted, insulted and raped by THEIR MALE peers and that just boys being boys and rape is a rite of passage for men to commit and for women/girls to suffer through, do I assume the worst about them and their attitudes?"
You are commenting around the topic of sexual harassment as reported by the Christchurch school girls, without actually addressing the impact this harassment has on not only their lives, but the lives of those conducting that harassment (and those around them) if it is not addressed.
Listen to what Sabine is saying, instead of getting all #NotAllMen.
Because the reality is, most women have experienced what is reported to varying degrees of harm.
So, there is a better approach than just pretending there is nothing to address, such as you seem to be doing.
It is necessary for us ALL to address it, as opposed to only those who are participating in harmful behaviour, unless you honestly believe that it is not worth finding a solution for.
(BTW, lessons are learned in cultures and societies, not just schools. The answer does not rely on educational institutions solely, we collectively carry that responsibility.)
Surely you're not telling me what I should be addressing?
And if I haven't addressed what you think I should be addressing I'm pretending there is nothing to address?
Not worth finding a solution for? I asked about specific responses. Sabine has suggested punishment and advertising. You say, "The answer does not rely on educational institutions solely, we collectively carry that responsibility" without saying what can specifically be done.
It's all right saying there is a massive problem, it's obvious there is. Thing is, what specifically should be done about it?
“Surely you’re not telling me what I should be addressing?”
God forbid. Just all those who are concerned about the current environment of harm. Else the involvement of those not caring, gets in the way of discussion and possible solutions by redirecting into dead ends of discussion.
"It's all right saying there is a massive problem, it's obvious there is. Thing is, what specifically should be done about it?"
Well, it was not apparent that you thought this from your previous comments on this thread.
Instead of asking others for solutions, or providing facile tongue-in-cheek proposals, – do you have any real solutions to propose? I'll wait.
Your comment again suggests that because I didn't condemn scummy attacks on women there was an inference I somehow didn't mind such.
I ask for answers when I see complaints with implications that "something should be done" with no suggestion of what that could be.
Prosecuting some of the pricks would be a start. Barring the 'what were you wearing' defence would be helpful.
And something about consent having to be proved. Along the lines of the accused having to demonstrated reasonable grounds for believing each act (which would take in removing condoms) was desired by the other party.
Flogging a Dead Horse #1…
Seems like debunked Guardian hack Luck Harding is still not yet ready to abandon his wet dream fantasy that Russia helped Trump into the Whitehouse in 2016, a narrative that most thinking humans have now accepted was some sort of smoke screen to protect Clinton and the establishment Dems from taking any kind of responsibility for their embarrassing defeat during that election..a narrative now only mentioned in polite company by hardcore fantasists (like Harding and enabled by The Guardian)…..
Kremlin papers appear to show Putin’s plot to put Trump in White House
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/15/kremlin-papers-appear-to-show-putins-plot-to-put-trump-in-white-house
RUSSIAGATE: Luke Harding’s Hard Sell
https://consortiumnews.com/2021/07/16/luke-hardings-hard-sell/
debunked Guardian hack Luck Harding…
As in "bad luck", I suppose, Adrian? Or, in his case, rotten luck.
I don't know how that sniveling drip has the hide to show himself after his toe-curlingly embarrassing exposure at the hands of Aaron Maté…
https://twitter.com/aaronjmate/status/1070324381396684802?lang=en
The headline warns the Prime Minister to, "dismiss protesting farmers as rednecks at (her) peril."
I could not find any reference to where the PM had done such a thing. Would anyone with a Hurled subscription be able to tell us where the PM said or implied 'protesting farmers are rednecks'?
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/claire-trevett-dismiss-protesting-farmers-as-rednecks-at-your-peril-prime-minister/ZVYHGYGEVDLLSP2AL3435HGEFY/
This headline tells it as it is…Bribery, filth and 'scumlords'…
Appalling conditions compounded by weak legislation with the usual crap enforcement.
The obvious scumlords…and they're easily identified…should have their slums confiscated by the Crown with zero compensation.
FFS…make the punishment fit the crime.
I'd really like to see inspectors have the ability to force sales of rental properties and a ban from being associated in any way (including as a property manager or investor) with residential tenancies. Don't think a licence to landlord is worth anything imho cause scum LL's need more than some certificate of completion. They need repercussions, and serious ones at that. God knows the rest of us are paying via the health and welfare systems for their shoddy treatment of tenants.
FFS…make the punishment fit the crime.
I suggest that the landlord needs to put the tenant up in a motel until the repairs or legal installation is carried out or not be paid rent until the work is carried out.
And
That the landlord needs to live in the rental if the work is not carried out and pay for a motel for the tenants.
My elderly parents had their first Pfizer vaccine yesterday, no side effects yet. I'm in Group 3 due to a health condition and have booked my first vaccine for this Thursday. My sister in-law works at Waikato Hospital and is fully vaccinated, as is my brother. All good.
Smooth sailing for us too, both Group 3, both fully vaccinated, only side effect was slightly sore arms at injection site.
Sore arms and tiredness seem to be the most common side effects. Had my first dose on Thursday and that night the jab site was quite painful. By morning it had receded to a mild irritation. Been feeling a bit tired but don't know if it is due to injection.
Whatever: for anyone feeling a bit unsure of the jab… the side effects are minor and only last a day or so.
I'm wanting feedback from people who use a mobile phone to comment on TS.
Trying to gauge how many people are having problems and the nature of the problems. Details is good. Cheers.
Always use my OPPO A53s, ColorOS 7.2 with Android 10. Chrome browser with Adgurd private dns.
I use the Mobile version of The Standard, but the Desktop version also currently works. No issues with functionality at the moment, but I don't comment very often.
Okay, I think I have worked it out now. You have to use the link button (looks like a chain link with a diagonal dash above the bullet point buttons), rather than just pasting the link into the text body. No idea what the flag or 3 horizontal lines buttons mean.
Conversely, I found the scaling didn't work at all with image button, but copy-pasting did on laptop.
At least the link from NRT seems to be working again – that's been out for months.
no idea what all that means because you didn't say what you are referring to.
If you want to link into a comment from a mobile phone, click in the URL of the browser, and cut and paste from there (just like in a computer).
I use an android Samsung x4 I prefer desktop but have to switch to mobile to comment most of the time.
Same on an iphone iOS 14.6
I like desktop because of the Replies list, and the aesthetics, but can't comment from there so am continually switching back and forth between mobile and desktop.
Currently on an HP laptop with windows 7, chrome or firefox and no probs.
Otherwise an Oppo bat fone. I use the mobile version as the desktop doesn't show any replies. More to do with my end I would imagine…
I have a Samsung Galaxy Note 9 and use mobile Chrome version 91.0.4472.120 (the latest version for my phone). I can post using mobile view but not desktop view. I also have mobile Firefox version 90.1.1 (Build #2015820747), also the latest version, and report the same thing. I also have Samsung Internet (Samsung's mobile browser based on Chrome) version 14.2.1.69 (the latest version), and it didn't load this page beyond the title. When checking on my Samsung Tab S5E (tablet), Samsung Internet allows posting in mobile but not desktop.
By post, I mean that when I press the reply button on the page, I can type in the comments editor in mobile view, but not desktop view.
For all the talk about high-density housing, and its importance in addressing the failure of decades of NZ planning, the reality is that good transitional housing requires great design and location and considerations. Despite the accumulated capital gains that has delighted some of the property owners across the country from land-use changes to high-density, this delight does not necessarily result in a change from existing building designs, or better living experiences for those who end up residing in resulting houses.
As far as Auckland Council is involved past the zoning change, their ability to influence resulting builds has been hampered by their failure to connect the Auckland Design Manual to the Unitary Plan, and developers are businesses who develop to increase their profit margins, not to provide long-term homes that take into account affordability, long-term residents well-being and transition considerations over and above the current inadequate regulatory requirements. This is not a treatise against property developers, just a statement of fact.
Given the current cost of emergency housing at $1million a day, and the more accepted cost of Accommodation Supplement at $30 million a week it is apparent to more than a few of us that current mechanisms to address housing, including Kiwibuild are treating housing as a commodity rather than a human need, and despite all protestations to the contrary are propping up an overheated market. Of course, politically, the cost of depressing house prices are not to be considered, even though many NZers are paying the price of the economic benefit enjoyed by a few that have the ability to financially invest and benefit from this commodification of a human need.
I am one of those that firmly believe the solution to actually access to healthy housing to all NZers, requires a dedicated commitment to vast amounts of state housing, where tenure is stabilised and the building of state housing must consider the wellbeing of residents and connection to community AS WELL AS utilising the investment of government and the judicious use of resources and design to transition these dwellings in terms of climate change. Once all NZers have access to affordable, secure, fit-for-purpose housing as can be provided by the state, then the developers and housing investors can continue with their business model without interference. We should not expect businesses to provide the necessities of living if the government shows little interest in the same. Once again, I believe this disinterest is a result of a lack of political will, the voters that they care about are those that are benefitting from rising housing costs, or are appeased by policies that seem to allow them to get on the property ladder (Kiwibuild).
As at 31 March 2021, the number of those on the State Housing list was 23,688. There has been a marked increase, after a Covid year, but the fact is that this is the number of people awaiting state housing after meeting all requirements.
In the introduction Kainga Ora states:
If Kainga Ora was purely investing in state houses, that would be a build price per household unit of $1.3 million. However, they are both providing state housing AND contributing/relying on housing inflation by also providing houses for market and Kiwibuild. I believe there is a disconnect going on here, that is enshrined in the current interpretation of their objective:
The belief that the market is working as it should, allows them to participate in being property developers themselves, and also working in PPP with other developers in order to create a profit.
However, they could, if politically supported do better. Their request to increase the rate of state housing builds was denied by the current Labour government. But they do have the ability to identify development opportunities that exist within their Crown Entity roles.
For a thought experiment, could they look at purchasing Ellerslie racecourse? Six hectares in a location well positioned for walkable community and transport, and if developed with good design by Kainga Ora might provide more household units for state housing than they currently have planned to meet demand.
There is high-density housing, and there is well-designed high density housing. I don't think we are currently doing well at the second.
Kainga Ora could be investing in developments like 8 House in Copenhagen on approx 2-2.5 hectares, which was conceived in 2006 and delivered around 2010.
The cost of €92,000,000 provided 61,000 sqm of building, including 10,000 retail/commercial space, 500 sqm of community space and 476 household units (of which over 300 are unique in design). 1700 sqm of green roof. All household units have access to outside space – balcony or front garden, and many have dual aspect windows. There is also a 1 km walkway ramp that connects all residents to each other, and to the open courtyards.
It is worth taking a look at the other projects that BIG studio has been involved in. I investigated their work after my son expressed interest in the Lego House which was one of their projects. I have also read a couple of interviews with developers that are using the architectural studio because their innovative design reduces build costs on multi-story developments.
You can see how they developed the design concept in a short video on Vimeo, but more importantly, you can also see how residents experience living in such as development – regarded as a village in the sky:
https://youtu.be/uoR_LMi8Lx8
I'm not really wanting to start another round of the ivermectin shitfight. But following on the heels of the discrediting and withdrawal of the egyptian study that ivermectin boosters heavily relied on, a new study has just been published where those running the study have taken reasonable care around controls, randomisation etc, and found that ivermectin did not have any benefit.
https://www.news24.com/health24/medical/infectious-diseases/coronavirus/ivermectin-balance-of-evidence-shows-no-benefit-against-covid-19-20210705
primary source: https://bmcinfectdis.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12879-021-06348-5
Try reading your sources.
Oddly enough, I did read them before posting. Do you think I might have missed something important?
Maybe the researcher's conclusion?
Or perhaps this nugget?
Or perhaps this little wrinkle pointing to ivermectin being ineffective as prophylaxis?
Or perhaps you could point to what led you to suggest I should read my sources?
They used a low dose of Ivermectin in the study, and they only did a short dose of 2 consecutive days. From what I gather this is not the recommended dosage to treat with this drug.
What is the recommended dose, who made the recommendation, and on what basis was the recommendation made?
There's two links in that quote you found, what do they say? (hint: neither of them have any recommendation on actual dosages to try against covid, let alone having any kind of evidentiary basis)
When it comes to the proposal that some specified substance treats some specified ailment, the default assumption has to be that it doesn't do shit in real life, no matter what happens in test tubes when the concentration is cranked way up. It's up to those claiming it actually does something useful to prove that, to a high standard.
Nobody has come anywhere close to showing ivermectin does anything useful against covid to even a mediocre standard. Even with absolute garbage studies, the claimed improvements are really small by the time the probable outright frauds are weeded out. It's significant that as the quality of study improves, less actual beneficial effect is found.
https://respectfulinsolence.com/2021/07/16/ivermectin-is-the-new-hydroxychloroquine-take-4/
The two links were from the erroneous study you posted, so I doubt they will be much help re dosage.
In the real world.. when conducting a scientific experiment it's often best to use the same dosage as what doctors say work in the real world… to you know test the hypothesis!
So back to the question above, which you ghosted as you usually do for inconvenient questions:
What is the recommended dose, who made the recommendation, and on what basis was the recommendation made?
A key point of all these studies showing zero effectiveness is that the dosage used was the best guess by the doctors conducting the trial at what would be the most effective dose regime. Those that have had the honesty and integrity to set up reasonably robust trials of what they think is most likely to give positive outcomes have found – nothing, zip, nada. Those who let their hopes and motivated reasoning lead them into conducting badly designed and badly analysed trials with high risk of bias have found – at best very small effects, which haven't been replicated elsewhere.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/wellington/125772143/speak-up-for-women-group-shocked-by-reported-slapping-of-protrans-rights-rally-organiser
As always, there are multiple sides to a story/narrative and I refuse to be shoehorned into one or the other. It will be interesting to see how many submissions will be received this time and whether public opinion has changed much; opinion and debate certainly seem to be more polarised, which is never a good sign.
As always, there are multiple sides to a story/narrative and I refuse to be shoehorned into one or the other.
Indeed. I'm so tempted to put up a thread title "Man's Day" and exclude all women and any pro-feminist viewpoints from it. But that would be … provocative. Still given that feminists have spent two generations systematically dismantling all the traditional male-only spaces where men might have talked without the distraction of the female perspective – I can't help but note the delicious irony icing on this particular little cupcake.
But as I stated yesterday, all of this was a more or less predictable outcome of the left elevating the post-modernist cult of Identity Politics to the loudest voice in our ideological narrative. Did it never occur to those who promoted it with such fervour, that the day might come when others would learn to play it as well?
Heh! It wouldn’t surprise me if some here would try to counter that by saying that some (most?) of TS could be considered ‘Man’s Day’. However, I understand the desire for a safe harbour to talk with like-minded people but this too easily leads to pseudo-debate and echo chamber stuff, IMO. I don’t think it fits well with the kaupapa of this site, but I stress that this is my personal opinion and I have to and (thus) will respect the opinions of others if/when they make a strong case for it.
Regarding the merit of the loudest voice leading/ruling, this also happens to be one of allegations raised in regard to the self-destruction of the Auckland chapter of SS4C (see my other comment in OM). Indeed, it is highly predictable, especially in hindsight 😉
Like you I'm not particularly against the idea of the thread. It seems largely populated by women who collectively burned their bridges with the male half of humanity a long time ago – and if they need an exclusive space to talk then well and good. But it's also obvious this is not a privilege they would extend to men.
I have a strong egalitarian streak and react to exclusive zones, spaces, meetings, communications, et cetera, and to hierarchical structures as well – a personal problem, obviously 😉 This is also one of the reasons why I have a major issue with the current state of the OIA in particular and with Government and State transparency and accountability in general.
I believe strongly in fair and inclusive debate, which is one reason why I’m on this site and put considerable time and effort into it. Good robust debate is key; it is also lacking, not just here on The Standard but everywhere – people seem to have lost or never learned how to debate each other effectively. It is not about winning or losing, about being right or wrong, about power – all the power is in the coming together in and of mind & spirit; polarisation, division, separation, and exclusion always remove collective power and therefore individual power and mana as well.
I see this reflected in the smoke & mirrors surrounding the so-called hate speech laws as well as He Puapua, for example – all symptomatic of the same problem. This this does not bode well for tackling global issues that affect all humanity and the planet for that matter. Sometimes, it feels we’re still stuck in day-care …
I hear you. We don't always agree but I can sincerely respect the motives you express here.
If I might add an optimistic note, while the standard of debate does fall short of what we might imagine as ideal, but honestly I think in some respects it has gotten better over the years. A quick glance at many social media comment threads shows that we could be a lot worse.![yes yes](https://cdn2.thestandard.org.nz/wp-content/plugins/ark-wysiwyg-comment-editor/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/thumbs_up.png)
Affirmative, you and I don’t always agree but that’s ok with me; what matters is how we disagree and, for the record, I don’t have any major personal complaints 🙂
As far as your optimistic note is concerned, I don’t know whether to laugh or to cry 😉
Interesting discussion….after talking to female members of my circle re trans rights and 'womens space' I've come to the conclusion that like any group of people the viewpoints will vary tremendously though with one underlying theme…its all good for for men.
Oh that it was.
Choice!
I haven't seen a comment like this about women since the 1970s when we were all dried up prunes and men haters for thinking as we did.![wink wink](https://cdn2.thestandard.org.nz/wp-content/plugins/ark-wysiwyg-comment-editor/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/wink_smile.png)
And I can readily find equivalent ghettos on the internet of men who have similarly 'burned their bridges with women'. You call it misogyny.
That both sexes are in a very real sense sundering their ancient connection and literally 'going their own separate ways' is in my view a totally predictable consequence that I was in my own fumbling way attempting to outline years ago. Watching it all unfold in real-time gives me no pleasure, trust me.
"… I don’t think it fits well with the kaupapa of this site…"
Do you feel that way about the Lefties on the Standard posts too?
Yes, and I have said as much in the past.
👍
I'm not hurt by the "dismantling of traditional male-only spaces", because those spaces harboured and legitimised the very misogynistic oppression and abuse which is in the process of being addressed today.
As always, those against identity politics are those against the questioning of their traditional power.
Why some men feel the need to insert themselves into every discussion, mansplaining the righteousness of the status quo is beyond me.
How very 80's of you.
Would you like me to make a plea on the Women's Day thread to let you in so you can tell them about all the mistakes they've made over the years?
No. As I said above, they're welcome to talk among themselves. I've refrained from commenting on almost anything gender related for almost four years now and contrary to what you imagine, I'm not at all keen on 'inserting myself into that conversation'.
I'm merely observing the the endless 'gender critical' threads of recent months and noting it as a predictable outcome of the entire post-modernist project, of which 'identity politics' was a large component. Which is pretty much all I have to say for the moment.
If you would like to 'learn by reading' on the Women's Day thread TeWhareWhero's summation (post 7.1) of the move from Womens' Studies to Gender issues/Studies is instructive.
Yes, that is indeed an interesting comment. Cheers.
November 19, you're welcome.
Can you wait that long before you comment here again? Please, thank you.
I heard about that elsewhere, good to have a verifiable source for the story, Incognito. This from the SUFW spokeswoman was also good (not often I type that phrase!):
After the Wi Spa violence, it is good to know that the local branch of that trans averse franchise are not gearing up for literal, rather than figurative war. Though trusting that many trans folk believe a word she says at this point seems a bit of a forlorn hope. Really hoping people don't start going to protests armed with protective gear that could become weapons at the wrong moment.
you seem to be running a line that GCF women are violent despite any evidence for that.
Meanwhile, https://terfisaslur.com/ documents the range of violent, often sexually violent imagery that's been targeted at GCFs by GAs online.
Almost like violence runs along gendered lines (by which I mean sex and gender, but we already knew that).
And just so you know, I had a quick look at the link from the other thread re Wi Spa and I'm not finding any credible evidence that the video was a hoax. I'm seeing speculation that it was, which is fine, but that's a different thing.
It also looks like the stabbings were by far right activists. This was in a conflict with antifa. I'm not seeing how women are involved in this at all.
I don't want to spend much time on this tonight, so I'm giving you a warning in comment rather than stepping into moderator mode. You will have to up your game in this debate. If you want to argue that women in NZ present a violent threat to trans people at protest actions, you will need to make an actual argument and back it up if making claims. Dropping in slur comments and using trans activist opinion based websites as evidence fails the requirements here for robust debate.
My suggestion is read the Policy. I want strong debate on sex/gender from all sides because I belief that NZ will be better for an open and honest examination of the issues. You bring in important perspectives, but you are going to have to learn how to present them directly. If you don't know what I am getting at here, please ask.
In the end my moderation response will come down to how much of my time gets sucked up chasing up useless links or asking for back up for claims or explanations of arguments poorly made. This isn't specific to you, or the topic, it's how it's been for a long time on site.
Because this isn't the first time I've had to explain how things work here, next time I have to think about this as a moderator I'll be putting boundaries in place. I suggest you get into the habit of linking well every time, and also cut and pasting the bits from the link that support what you are saying. This is so others don't have to do the work to find what your actual argument is. The onus is on you to state your argument clearly.
Warning read.
Imho some cis NZers are a threat to trans NZers, and NZ is pretty typical in this regard. If it's too much to expect acceptance, or even tolerance, then at least a little more understanding on all 'sides' wouldn't go amiss.
https://www.genderjustice.nz/why_this_matters
Can't help wondering if those who identify as trans NZers today are that much better off than 25 years ago when data were collected for the above study.
Many, possibly a majority, of cis and trans women continue to face many challenges, but it's not a competition (or at least it shouldn't be, imho.) NZ can look to other countries to identify progressive strategies that might minimise real and perceived violence and discrimination against all women.
https://www.hrc.org/ – "Breaking down barriers that divide us"
An interesting PoV from an insider into the implosion of the Auckland chapter of SS4C. Self-appointed leadership and the lack of structure are mentioned as a possible contributing reasons. Hopefully, it was a learning curve for some, at least.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2021/07/school-strike-4-climate-s-disbanded-auckland-chapter-was-marred-by-racism-lack-of-structure-former-member.html
Several tons of blowback—but will the dismal Daily Mail get the message?
What's the bet that a similar protest is on the way for the execrable NZ Herald one of these days?
https://extinctionrebellion.uk/2021/06/27/breaking-cut-the-crap-extinction-rebellion-dump-pile-of-bullshit-outside-daily-mail-offices/
This is too soon and insensitive. I do wonder how many of the farmers who drove their tractors into town one day, have their hand out for govt help following floods the next.
I think it is perfectly ok when farmers ask and receive help and government assistance when there’s a natural disaster. It would be totally wrong to try and link that to democratic protest or to giving one party more leverage over the other – the power balance is almost never equal/symmetrical anyway. Similarly, should nurses, for example, have more negotiating leverage because of what they’re doing as part of the Covid elimination strategy? There’s a calculating and neo-liberal aspect to this, if you ask me, as with the farmers who claim that they feed us, et cetera. The unrealistic and unjustified elevation of people rather than functions has led to over-paid managers, Directors, and CEOs, IMO. The question is: where do you draw the line and how?
I know, but my irony meter is in rampant Geiger Counter mode.
When will government be able to take control over the country again, and ensure that their policies are being carried out well, in a timely fashion, and wield some stick?
This business of contracting out of the job is getting to be a farce. Government departments contract out to others, they contract out to associated suppliers, operatives, and now to computer machines and algorithms. These are not doing the job properly, and our economy is built on people doing jobs, it gets leaner paradoxically when people aren't receiving pay to do stuff that machines can do faster and more efficiently. Though it is cheaper, which looks good on one financial statement, it does people out of a job which lowers the money flow and small local business suffers.
Here larger business is suffering from this devilish system. https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO2107/S00113/exporters-can-check-out-but-no-guarantee-they-can-return.htm
Exporters’ trying to sustain essential trade and supply chains are in no man’s land, able to travel offshore but not return, blocked by the MIQ booking system which randomly throws up spots, gobbled up within seconds by gamers or people paid to sit hitting refresh round the clock despite assurances that 10 per cent of the 4,000 available rooms are allocated for critical business.
Algorithms – What are these standards for government? https://www.zdnet.com/article/new-zealand-establishes-algorithm-charter-for-government-agencies/
The storm over parts of the country is largely over – Westport hit badly. Buller River was as high as a 1926 large flood.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/125785379/state-of-emergency-evacuations-and-daring-rescues-as-rain-batters-parts-of-nz
Why do we get this undermining after there has been much research and a decision has been carefully made for all of our benefits.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/125605155/the-doctors-trying-to-hijack-new-zealands-covid19-vaccination-rollout
A group of dissident doctors have joined the ranks of those seeking to undermine confidence in New Zealand's vaccine campaign by spreading misinformation. What are they saying and do they pose a real threat to our Covid-19 response? CATE BROUGHTON reports.
On June 14, talkback radio host Peter Williams welcomed Wellington GP Matt Shelton onto his show to discuss the Covid-19 vaccine.
Shelton was from the little-known group New Zealand Doctors Speaking Out on Science (NZDSOS), Williams said.
Well, if they're at the level of claiming that global death rates have been faked to make vaccines appear effective, I'd strongly suspect they're either having problems with reality or there's cash in it somewhere for them.