Great, the west has started financial world war 3 with Russia. And this week Obama is going to sign into law the provision of lethal US military aid to Ukraine. Which is the US way of provoking Russia into sending armoured columns into Ukraine. Because just as the US would not allow nuclear missiles with a 10 minute flight time to Washington DC to be based in Cuba, Russia is certainly not going to allow similar in Ukraine.
And at the time when the Russkies had nuke missiles in Cuba, the Yanks had nuclear missiles in Turkey and Italy pointed at Russia. Although the deal was mutual removal, when the Soviet leadership removed their missiles from Cuba, the US government (Kennedy) kept theirs in Turkey and Italy.
When you’re imperialist top-dog you make up the rules to suit yourself, as in the days when Britannia ruled the waves and waived the rules.
Not sure what conclusions I’d draw from it, apart from sanctions can destroy the russian economy but won’t necessarily effect any political change. The Russian economy is dire, I’ve seen people blabbing on about how insulated Russia will be bvecause of their foreign reserves – these have declined 20% in 2014, 10% in the last 3 weeks. Previous examples of currency collapse show you can burn through all those in a month if things get dire. The Ruble will trade at 200 within 3 months. Just rewind to 1998. Banks have stopped quoting on USDRUB – that is the start of the death spiral. While the fall in the ruble insulates somewhat against the fall in oil, every other import becomes unobtainable for the average Russian. The real problem in Russia is too much is being siphoned off by Putin and his cronies.
Putin is a declared billionaire and will have plenty of undeclared cash/gold and assets also stashed away in foreign Countries. Russia revolves on corrupt practices, it’s normal.
I have a Russian girlfriend that studied management here. Apart from being stunningly beautiful, smart & quick witted, she was from a wealthy family. I once questioned her about where the wealth came from and joked ” your old man isn’t involved with the Russian mafia is he.” she laughed and said “everyone is linked to the mafia and black market, how you think my parents come here to NZ once a year and me travel home or holiday in Europe every year, it’s part of our culture.” She invited me to go out for dinner with them next time they come over. Her mother was warm and bubbly, her father was reserved and serious and spent alot of time talking stern on his mobile phone. He was big and tall and had the straightest back I’ve ever seen. I asked her later after we dropped them at their motel, your dad looks like an army man, she laughed and replied ex army General who fought with honour in Afghanistan, he has lots of medals. She told me the ex army men just transferred the power they had to running businesses. Sounded more like racketeering to me.
You just have to look at Putin for your answer, he make the rest of the World leaders look like pussy cats. Coupled with the Russian’s close assoiation with China and I’d say no match whatsoever CV.
@ Skinny
It’s what you do when there is the opportunity. This country was stripped of great public entities which were bought relatively cheaply by fast guys, when Roger Douglas and Richard Prebble got the wind in their sails. Serious money was made when they either resold them at a profit or built other aspects into them.
As soon as neo lib came in NZ and some top private positions were created in the place of public, a new guy in Auckland was off overseas with his wife and I think they managed to find hotel rooms at $2,000 a night. It seemed like a triumphal blow out at the cost of the stupid what they seemed to view as the ordinary mass of yobboes in the street. Their mantra was, and is, government can’t do anything right. The greed-gatherers got drunk on power and opportunity here just as they have in Russia.
Yeah Fay & his side kick merchant banker partner duped the taxpayer. I remember Fay’s first lieutenant drunkenly boasting at my sisters wedding how well they had done out of asset stripping our railways. I physically had to restrain my brother (who was a loco driver & got sucked into taking transrail shares by smooth talking Preeble) from knocking him out. This clown turned up at the swanky reception with a young hussey in tow and his own bottles of Dom. His ex was there and he started making a right Charlie of himself harassing her. My other brother and myself done the honours grabbed champagne Charlie and through him in the pool to cool off, much to everyone’s laughter. He stormed off, jumped in his porsche, dropped a burnout down the road like a spoilt brat. Yes plenty of money grabbing happening in the 80’s.
I’ve seen people blabbing on about how insulated Russia will be bvecause of their foreign reserves – these have declined 20% in 2014, 10% in the last 3 weeks. Previous examples of currency collapse show you can burn through all those in a month if things get dire.
Pah! Russian gold reserves have been climbing steeply all through 2012-2013-2014, including record purchases in the last couple of months. Whatever inaccurate and propagandised sources you are reading, you should get new ones.
Russian gold reserves might be increasing but not their total reserves.
I wouldn’t rely on ZeroHedge for great insight. “Tyler Durden” has been calling for a market correction in the S&P500 since about 1400, though he went remarkably quite around 1700. great gossip site but that’s what you’d expect from a convicted Bulgarian inside trader. His view on the world is always distinctly bearish – to paraphrase many others he has called about 35 of the last 2 market corrections. And he has a distinct political bias – which is fine, just correct for that.
Russia has been a buyer of gold, latest data I can see (31/10/14 via IMF) is that their total reserves are USD416.2 billion, of which gold holdings are 37.575 million oz. At $1193 per/oz that gold is worth about $44.8 billion, so a bit more than 10% of reserves. A ton of gold sounds impressive but is “only” worth around US$38.7 mm. So a purchase of 77 tons of gold is ~3 billion. Not too significant in the scale of Russia’s reserves or in the daily turnover of gold trading – London bullion exchange clears around $18 billion of physical gold a day, then add in futures trading.
Russia has around US$700 billion of foreign debt with 125 billion due in 2015 – that won’t roll over. Before the current turmoil the Russian govt was planning on spending 1.5 trillion rubles over the next 3 years, will be a lot more now.
Just wait and see how this current ruble devaluation pans out – right now Russia is experiencing full on capital flight – when the dust settles we’ll see what position a) their reserves are in, b) domestic inflation, c) growth. I’m picking all 3 will be disastrous. Plenty of smarter people than me are seeing a bleak outlook.
I don’t think Russia will disappear, they’ve survived worse than this. The first link I put up today is a much more nuanced view of what might happen. But equally Russia won’t win either – fascist states never do, but they can lash out militarily.
Be careful who you are calling “fascist” – it is the declining US empire which is an amalgamation of corporate, financial, governmental and military power that lashes out internationally.
If you do a checklist of the classical signs of a fascist state, no major nation ticks as many as Putin’s Russia.
The US has got a long way to decline. Russian GDP is now about $950 billion.
Here’s how that compares to some other entities:
State of North Rhine Westphalia $800 billion
City of Los Angeles $630 billion
City of New York $1.1 billion
Chicago+ Boston + Philadelphia $1.02 trillion
States of Washington + Maryland + Indiana$ 1 trillion
State of Texas 1.4 trillion
To really put it in perspective, Russian nominal GDP is now about 6 times larger than NZ.
TA when you talk to CR you are allowed to use initials. But not HH as that may be construed as being flippant. You’ll catch on to the finer nuances in time.
#dirtypolitics is, of course, the hashtag version of Dirty Politics, the title of a book by screaming conspiracy theorist Nicky Hager, whose insistence on pursuing his rights has currently brought the entire New Zealand legal system to a halt. The aftermath of the book’s publication also gave rise to Whaledump (third) and Rawshark (eighth).
“I can only suppose that a hacker has penetrated the special Google voting software,” said a near-comatose Brown. “I’ve asked Pete George to investigate.”
Meanwhile, while the NZ pm is trying to spin the events as justification for enhanced surveillance, the Aus pm is noting the abject failure of their newly upgraded system.
Despite multiple charges against him, obvious signs of instability, and calls from within his own community for his investigation, and he himself virtually jumping up and down saying “Pick Me! I’m going to do something!” – though “known to them”, the deranged loner was “Not on the appropriate watchlists”.
“If I can be candid with you, that is the question that we were asking ourselves around the national security committee of the cabinet today,” Mr Abbott said.
“How can someone who has had such a long and chequered history, not be on the appropriate watch lists, and how can someone like that be entirely at large in the community?”
NSW Premier Mike Baird echoed this: “We are all outraged that this guy was on the street … the community has every right to feel upset. I’m incredibly upset,” he said.
I was wondering if someone has worked out an Israeli body count rate of exchange. Perhaps 1 Israeli = 20 Palestinians, 5 houses, 2 olive groves, 1 school, and 1 hospital.
It’s a tough world currency this balancing the political values for each side, though fairly stable in its extreme unfairness.
With more state house evictions coming soon – Let me keep reminding people – YOU ARE NOT ALONE. Neoliberalisms madness has infected the whole western world.
I’ve been listening to Mr Ludbrook, president of the Northland Fed farmers saying that because the deaths on quad bikes died of crushing injuries and not of head injuries, that the wearing of helmets should be a personal issue. This in response to a Marlborough couple getting $20,000 fines each for repeated refusal to wear quad bike helmets, purchasable for about $120.
Surely the fact that people don’t die of head injuries is a tribute to the wearing of helmets? All those people who hit their heads on the ground, rocks, trees, posts etc have survived- great.
Or is he saying that there are lots of people not wearing helmets and having accidents but their heads don’t get involved fatally?
Or is he saying that the people who died of crushing injuries weren’t wearing helmets but got no head injury?
Or they were wearing helmets but got no fatal head injury – which is what I’d expect if they wore helmets?
It defies logic to argue that helmet wearing should be a personal issue because people who die on quad bikes die of crush injuries but didn’t get head injuries because they wore helmets.
In other words, can he argue logically that the absence of death by head injury had nothing to do with helmets?
I think the man is a libertarian fishing for arguments to not be forced to wear a helmet on a quad bike, especially when repeated refusals might cost the offender $20,000.
He’s been on National radio, but the interviewer did not challenge his logic nor did the other side get an airing as to 1) why people should wear helmets on quad bikes, 2) why they should be compelled and 3). why a fine of $20,000 should apply and be awarded.
Nor did the particular aspects of this case get discussed. In all fairness to the judge, the lawmakers, the enforcing agencies, the court system, farm employees, farming family members and the taxpayer, the issue should have been more widely discussed rather than only permit a muddled-thinking libertarian talk about being reasonable.
I didn’t hear the Ludbrook interview, just the news about the fines. I suspect their will be a RW backlash about the “unfairness” of the fines.
My thought at the time was the couple had been warned several times about not wearing their helmets on their quad bikes, so they had plenty of opportunity to prevent receiving the fines. Why didn’t they comply? Serious question.
The agriculture sector is up there for workplace injuries:
and I seem to recall Helen Kelly from the CTU mentioning the highest rates for workplace death last year occurred in this sector, ahead of the forestry sector.
So why would you want to chance it by not wearing Personal Protective Equipment? What do you have to lose by simply just putting your PPE on in the workplace, the farm? Your stubborn pride?
My concern is not for those two fined but for workers and families in the industry.
I was a farm worker for three years, and safety was an issue. I can imagine the 18 year old farm worker told by his non helmet wearing boss, or the child told by their non-helmet wearing mother or father, to get on the quad bike and go do a job. No helmet provided, no helmet available, and no expectation that a prudent person should wear one.
The element of compulsion gives protection to the vulnerable. As it did with compulsory bike helmet use for our helmet wearing kids who longer got jeered at by the foolish but could quote the law and find safety with it.
“My concern is not for those two fined but for workers and families in the industry.”
Absolutely mac1. It’s those with the responsibility for others safety (eg, boss, parent as above) that need to lead by example. It’s their duty to promote a safety culture.
Too often in NZ, workplace H&S protocols are cynically referred to as tick box exercises. Too many times I’ve seen employers grudgingly and speedily go through an H&S procedure with a new employee without any thought for the reason or importance of it, and seem to miss the concept that they need to promote a safety culture not just for the sake of compliance but for safety itself.
mac1
Talking about bike helmets, I was surprised at the fervent negative attitude of a man in a bike hiring business who says that his European customers won’t wear them. He talks about Netherlands where nobody wears helmets. They also have a very flat country and are more self centrolled and disciplined than we are in my opinion.
I have heard others putting down helmets. Why do they think we now have them?
Some men are just so narcissistic and self-centred that they have trouble obeying any rules and guidelines.
No doubt the non helmet wearing promotors also expect the rest of us to pay their medical costs. Funny how individual choice is not equated with individual responsibility.
For that argument to have any weight you would have to provide stats and analysis on car accident head inuries that could be prevented by helmet wearing.
Hey I aint a professor having to prove some thesis.
Try anecdote as a first step. Average open road car crash – how many without head injuries? I would suggest very few. Certainly more head injuries than non-head injuries. Makes the argument for car helmets more compelling than the argument for cycle helmets, actual ..
“Try anecdote as a first step. Average open road car crash – how many without head injuries? I would suggest very few. Certainly more head injuries than non-head injuries. Makes the argument for car helmets more compelling than the argument for cycle helmets, actual..”
I think that prohibition laws are based on stats and risk vs benefit. So we don’t reduce the open road limit to 50km/hr because the lives lost at 100km are not worth the lots time if we all drove more slowly. In order to make that judgement for society as a whole, the numbers would have to be crunched.
Anecdata is fine in some situations, but in this case I really do think you’d have to compare head injuries preventable by helmets in cars and weight that up against other factors like moveability, head space, inconvenience etc.
If we really wanted to reduce head injuries in car accidents we would lower the speed limit and redesign roads and put check points outside every pub car park.
I think the only reason this hasn’t been attempted is the same sort of reason that alcohol is given a free run in our society – it would make too many people grumpy. Cyclists are a small group but car drivers are everyone.
I think the argument and the stats and facts would win but people don’t always like facts and stats, they prefer to stick head in sand, fingers in ears, and cry “nya nyah nyah – cant hear you…”
Not if the helmets were light like cycle helmets or slim and close fitting, or even made of glass so that sight is not obstructed……
Seems to be fine for motor-racing drivers and they need far more of those convenience things like manouervering (can never spell that word) and wide vision and quick physical actions than those of us dawdling around in Honda citys and Hillman avengers..
Each year over 600,000 people are treated in emergency departments (EDs) for bicycle-related injuries and 824 die from this type of injury. Head injury is the most common cause of death and serious disability in bicycle-related crashes; head injuries are involved in about 60 percent of the deaths, and 30 percent of the bicycle-related ED visits.
Of course, the reason why we’re seeing airbags in cars is because people would refuse to wear helmets in them.
I heard this song on the radio this morning. It is an evocative piece of atmospheric electronica music written for Eric Garner, the man who died at the hands of Police, earlier on in the year. You might recall they suspected he was selling tax free fags.
We Are Temporary explain:
“The five-minute 22-second piece includes some of Garner’s last words, as recorded on cellphone video, on July 17 to the NYPD, seconds before one of its officers put Garner in a chokehold and killed him. At the 2:25 mark, the bass and drums cut out as Garner can be heard telling the officers, “I’m minding my business; please, just leave me alone. I told you the last time, please just leave me alone.”
It’s not an easy listen, says Roberts, who’s 35 and lives in Bushwick. “It is a little manipulative. I’m aware of the fact that Garner’s life and the situation might be more complex than the video shows, but I think what I wanted to do is allow the music to create empathy for a person who was dying.
“For me, there’s something really desperate and childlike in ‘please,’ and I wanted that to come across.” ”
‘What can you say about a society whose food production must be hidden from public view? In which the factory farms and slaughterhouses supplying much of our diet must be guarded like arsenals to prevent us from seeing what happens there? We conspire in this concealment: we don’t want to know. We deceive ourselves so effectively that much of the time we barely notice that we are eating animals, even during once-rare feasts, such as Christmas, which are now scarcely distinguished from the rest of the year.’
Mr Murphy, addressing Labour party members at the Glasgow Emirates Arena, declared: “This is a fresh start for Scottish Labour. Scotland is changing and so too must Scottish Labour. I’m ambitious for our party because I’m ambitious for our country.”
“The majority are fulfilled, getting on, getting by, being successful. A minority are falling behind, denied opportunity, trapped, unable to escape the hardship of their upbringing.
“That inequality is wrong and it is my driving purpose, it is our driving purpose, it is the Scottish Labour Party’s driving purpose to end that type of inequality once and for all.”
Mr Murphy said the best way to tackle poverty was to boost the economy.
“The most effective anti poverty measure is a successful economy,” he said.
“It’s about backing businesses, it’s about creating jobs, because if redistribution is our aim, which it is, then we need more wealth not less. We want more entrepreneurs, not fewer. A growing middle class that more families are able to join.
“The debate about how we spend our wealth starts with how we earn it.”
He sounds just like FJK.
“It’s about backing businesses, it’s about creating jobs, because if redistribution is our aim, which it is, then we need more wealth not less.”
We just need to wait for that “more wealth” to be made before the redistribution starts. Somehow, I don’t think we should hold our breath.
Presenting Russia’s banks: now cut off from the outside world as the second cold war goes nuclear, at least when it comes to the financial system:
Such banks as Goldman Sachs Group Inc. this week started rejecting requests from institutional clients to engage in certain ruble-denominated repurchase agreements and other transactions designed to raise cash, according to people familiar with the matter.
Bankers and traders say the moves to restrict some ruble transactions have become increasingly widespread among major Western financial institutions this week, even as the same institutions continue to try to profit from the ruble’s wild swings. The moves, which the banks are deploying to protect themselves against further swings in the currency, have the potential to add to the strain on Russia’s financial system.
Goldman in recent days largely stopped doing longer-term ruble-denominated repurchase agreements, or repos, in which securities or other assets are swapped in exchange for cash, said a person familiar with the matter. The Wall Street bank is still doing short-duration ruble repos, those that mature in less than a year, this person said.
Not sure who you want me to have sympathy for here.
This US corporate action won’t kill them – it will drive their clients and their assets into the hands of China. That isn’t in US interests either state or corporate.
An excellent write up. Just glanced at it then was hooked.
The New Yorker:
The Big Kill
New Zealand’s crusade to rid itself of mammals.
By Elizabeth Kolbert …”Sirocco’s chaperone, a Department of Conservation ranger named Alisha Sherriff, had brought along a little metal container, which she passed among the visitors. Inside was half a cup’s worth of Sirocco’s shit.
“Have a good sniff,” she suggested.
“It’s earthy!” one woman exclaimed.
“I think it smells smoky, with notes of honey,” Sherriff said. When the container came to me, I couldn’t detect any honey, but the bouquet did strike me as earthy, with hints of newly mown hay. Sherriff had also brought along a ziplock bag with some of Sirocco’s feathers. These, too, had a strong, sweetish scent.
New Zealand birds tend to smell, which was not a problem when the islands’ top predators were avian, since birds hunt by sight. But, as mammals hunt with their noses, it’s become yet another liability…..” http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/12/22/big-kill
Looked up Sirocco NZs spokesbird and after a few shots of a wise and questing kakapo who pops up but yek! The well known conservationist, laying down his life for the planet.
No that’s my point. It’s Key looking confidentially enthusiastic – Smith might have appeared further on but I cut the connection fast. Too much yek is toxic, I have to watch my health.
The authorities warn about legionella when handling compost etc, and a mask should be worn. As yet no health alerts have gone out about watching and listening to yek but I think they are overdue. However it should be added, that there is likely to be a window of contamination with yek as in ebola. Trouble is no-one is sure of how to know when the threshhold of infection is crossed.
In a regularly article in the ‘Rural News’ titled agtwits called a “irreverant and hypothetical look at what’s happening in the rural world”
sbrowninggreen:Don’t you you just love MMP when a tree-hugging,organic-munching,treat Ebola-with-homeopathy nutjod like me gets into Parliament and is given the green party’s responsibility for ag#whythegreenssuck#iamaclown.
Damienoconnormp: So the self serving unionist beat the gaggling gay for the leadership of the party viola,I’m back on the back bench again.#evenwheniwnilose#whatdidisaywrong
@littleandrewlabour:I have little interest in farming,Little to offer agriculture and Little chance of changing labours anti-farming attitude. I guess I’m to little to late.#redflag#unionforever
Johnkeypm: I was going to text Andrew Little to congratulate him on winning the Labour leadership.However, I can’t because it would mean that I’m in proactive contact with a vile,poisonous, delusional loser.#delete message
#roflmao
I’ve copied as accurately as possible seems pretty nasty in spots for what’s meant to be light hearted
Sounds as if the writer has played rugby a lot and gone straight back on the field after being slightly concussed too many times. It has cumulative effects I’ve heard. Add regular jars of ale and after a while of that, anything that differs slightly from the known and prescribed norm is strange and amusing.
It reeks of attack to me .further on in the same paper there’s this
“WANTED” A Political home for labour agriculture spokesman Damien O’Connor. A solid, talented and knowledgeable performer, he has been hung out to dry by his own party which seems to have no interest in agriculture apart from imposing a cgt and cuddling with the Greens who essentially want a return to peasant farming.
This is evidence of the ignorance in the farming sector.
It is no wonder that for generations they have claimed they want to leave the land in a better state than when they got it, yet the evidence shows that they have done exactly the opposite.
See claiming all farmers are bad just confirms some of what fukwits like who ever wrote that stuff i posted above say about the left, there are plenty of good farmers doing good stuff.
Of course there are, including a big chunk of mine …
It was a generalisation and I didn’t say all farmers are bad – I merely looked at the claims they have on average been making for the last couple of generations or so, and looked at the average evidence around those claims, and come up with an answer to their claim.
And if I might be so bold as to generalise even more – I see this all the time in our circles. That which you outlined in your original comment above is, imo, the average view of the average farmer (including the bad ones, and excluding the good ones). They are very pig-headed and stubborn. They spend so much time in their one world that they cannot fathom anything different ( or so says my opinion, after most of life in and out of such circles) – which is of course a very human trait and if I was now a farmer I would likely be doing the same ….
If you understand the terminologies than next step is to learn how to use them properly.
As for not believing my claim – non problema. It is my experience but you haven’t been by my side during that time so I can see how it can be difficult.
@ b waghorn
It just reeks of some of the empty minds we get here regularly. Bereft of any sense of how little they utilise their own intelligence they build themselves up by mocking those who do. Unwilling to test their own ideas and find them wanting, they hold onto untested myths which they accept as sureties, and then throw scorn on those who look outside the square for different possibilities.
Those people consider different ideas that when tested may prove unsuitable. Those who never dare to think out something individually, only to find it doesn’t work, or isn’t correct, remain safe, always protecting themselves from the scorn their type pours out on the thinkers and questers.
The reason I put these things here is to highlight what turns up in rural papers on occasion, in the hope that if any readers here that are linked to Labour and the Greens might come up with ways to counter it.
I was watching Newsroom, a US tv show which traverses many issues. On this episode one of the journalists is interviewing someone who has created an App enabling “citizen journalists” to post the whereabouts of celebrities on a map for the titilation of fellow citizens.
It turns out it was based on a real website called gawker stalker and a real interview. It made me think of the constant pandering to base human behaviour that is substituting journalism.
It reaaly is worth watching, especially for the website owners reactions.
From Mohammad Reza Alizadehfard: Syd Hostage: Who was Haron Monis?
1. He was born in Iran in a city called Borojerd.
2. His birth name is Mohammad Hassan Manteghi Borojerdi.
3. He was the director of a travel/tourism agency in Iran
4. He stole about $200,000 from his customers and escaped to Australia.
5. Iranin authorities through Interpol police asked Australian
government to hand him back to Iranian judiciary system. However,
Australia refuses to do so as He claimed he is a political refugee and
Iranian regime prosecuted him because of his liberal/democratic beliefs.
Australian government gave him political asylum in 1996.
6. In 2007
Sheikh Kamal Mosalmani, head of Australian Shia Council, wrote a letter
to ASIO warning them about his suspicious activities.
7. He presented himself as a Shia cleric with no confirmed official or formal education.
8. In 2014 Nov, he announced on his website renouncing Shia Islam and
paying allegiance to “the Caliphate of time Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi”, the
head of ISIL. Australian government was aware of his conversion and
support for ISIL in the last month.
(This the exact Arabic quote from his website:
أطيعوا الله و أطيعوا الرسول و أولي الأمر منكم
البيعة مع الله و رسوله و أمير المؤمنين – أبايع الله و رسوله و خليفة المسلمين
الحمد لله رب العالمين و الصلاة و السلام على نبينا محمد و على اله و
أصحابه أجمعين و التابعين منهم والسلام على أمير المؤمنين خليفة المسلمين
إمام عصرنا الحاضر و الحمد لله الذي جعل لنا خليفة في الأرض و إماما يدعونا
إلى الإسلام و الإعتصام بحبل الله سبحانه و تعالى. و الحمد لله الذي
شرّفني ببيعة إمام زماننا . إنّ الذين يبايعون خليفة المسلمين فإنما
يبايعون الله و رسوله يد الله فوق أيديهم . و قال رسول الله صلى عليه و سلم
من مات و لم يعرف إمام زمانه مات ميتة جاهلية . والحمد لله الذي لم يجعلني
من الذين ماتوا و لم يعرفوا إمام زمانهم . و الحمد لله على نعمة الإيمان و
كفى بها نعمة و أفوض أمري إلى الله إنّ الله بصير بالعباد
والسلام على من اتبع الهدى
هارون – سيدني أستراليا
الإثنين 24 محرم 1436
————————————————————————————————————————————————————
في الزمن السابق قد رفعت راية غير راية الإسلام فأستغفر الله و أتوب اليه و
أقسم بالله العظيم أن لا أرفع راية غير راية رسول الله صل الله عليه و سلم
————————————————————————————————————————————————————-
9. And as you all may know he has been charged for writing hate letters
to Australian soldiers ‘family, 40 sexual assaults and killing of his
wife. The last but not least he was known to have psychological issues.
So, If we want to play blame game who is the one to be blamed first and foremost?
%————————————————————
From me: While real political refugees get treated like shit, it looks like criminals who steal from people the government doesn’t like get the red carpet treatment. Compare this case with what happened to Ahmed Zaoui in Aotearoa.
In the Alice books they have a tea party. I think they end up by picking on a dormouse which has been quietly sleeping and presents an easy target for malicious behaviour. When the tea party protagonists have used their cups and spoons, they move on to the next setting. But of course they eventually go round again to settings with old dirty utensils.
It seems that some people with excessive powers are incapable of cleaning up their act. They carry their dirty habits with them, and the downward slide in standards and ‘hygiene’ goes on. More powers just increases the slovenly moral behaviour.
Little must be fuming having to put up with these fools, and he has every reason to be the angry man the right are trying to portray him as. Labour still need to sweep a lot more out the door before they will even be in the game next election, some of these old heads have to much baggage.
Experience is a good thing for Lawyers, Tradesmen, Accounts etc, but not necessarily in Hookers or Politicians because eventually the Baggage gets to heavy to carry and the makeup starts to run.
Previously an outspoken critic of Iranian government, was interviewed by Australian media in 2001, loved Western society…
As predicted, the suspect amid the “Sydney Siege,” has long been on the radar of Australian law enforcement, as well as a frequent visitor to Australia’s court system.
Before that, however, he came to Australia as a political refugee, an opponent of what he called the “Iranian regime,” and was even interviewed by Australia’s ABC network in 2001 as part of an ongoing anti-Iranian propaganda campaign. ….
Saddam Hussein was a poster boy for a while, then he lost favour, was hunted and captured and is now dead. So all malefactors can find a golden period of amnesty and tolerance insufficient to make them happy and give them a long life.
That Sydney guy was trouble with a capital T. But Oz politicians and spooks found him useful for their propaganda machine, and gave him a long rope, and the public have suffered from that. The deaths result from the hands of their Oz two-faced, machiavellian political masters who are subservient to an anti Middle East hegemony.
I really, really, really hope Elizabeth Warren runs for US President in 2016. She’s the only one not afraid to attack the banks, and even Obama — her own party’s president. She may be one of the only ones left not bought and paid for by Wall St.
Don’t kid yourself. She’s as corrupt and as heartless as anyone in Congress….
At a town hall in August, she defended Israel’s shelling of targets in Gaza, saying that Israel had a right to defend itself against attacks from Hamas.
“America has a very special relationship with Israel,” she said, according to the Cape Cod Times. “Israel lives in a very dangerous part of the world, and a part of the world where there aren’t many liberal democracies and democracies that are controlled by the rule of law. And we very much need an ally in that part of the world.”
In this article [1], Bloomberg (Ye Xie, Katia Porzecanski and Pietro D. Pitts) wonder who will seize Venezuelan assets if the government defaults.
A better question would be “How will Bloomberg’s reporting change when Venezuela doesn’t default?”
The global economic meltdown that took place a few years ago, and from which we are still recovering, answered for us. The reporting won’t change at all.
Being an elite investor, big credit rating agency or highly regarded economist means never having to say you’re sorry. It is quite a prestigious group that couldn’t see (or wouldn’t admit to seeing) gargantuan housing bubbles in the USA and elsewhere that led to worst global economic recession since WWII. The big credit rating agencies gave mortgage backed securities the highest possible ratings just before they blew up. The Federal Reserve of Boston put out a paper [2] exploring why the vast majority of the professional economists proved as useless as “the markets”.
We must add to the list of the “never-accountable-for-anything” corporate news agencies like Bloomberg who hype the “concerns” of all these people. The appalling track record is always a non-issue.
The fact that our media are not reporting the reasons and geopolitics behind the collapse in oil prices shows that our media is not telling us what’s really going going on.
Our media, not Russia’s, is the one we concern ourselves about, as it impacts on our own perception of reality more.
Image credit: Publish Peer Reviews. Illustration by David Parkins Scientific peer-review is often touted as a guarantee of the quality of published research. But how good is peer-review? Does it guarantee poor ...
If you like any article please help promote it (and the blog). Link to it on facebook and other social media, write about it anywhere or re-blog it. We’re very happy to have other people re-blog our material, all we ask is that you mention the original source and put ...
by The Council of Disobedient Women John Fenaughty is a senior lecturer in the Faculty of Education and Social Work at the University of Auckland. In a recent column Fenaughty suggested that school teachers should use students’ “correct names and pronouns (e.g., he, him, they, them, she, her, etc.)” ...
Heard this on Radio NZ this afternoon. Perfectly captures how I'm feeling just now.It's always good to find new music, though it would be nice to be hearing something celebratory. Even "Things Can Only Get Better" would be welcome, if it was accompanied by a thumping Labour victory. ...
by Don Franks Like New Zealand, Britain is officially a country of equal opportunity under the rule of law, with increasing hardship for those at the bottom. When there’s an election, and the party most obviously callous towards poor people wins, decent folks are dismayed and bewildered. “What the hell ...
UKanians went to the polls yesterday in early elections aimed at resolving the Brexit impasse. And they certainly have, delivering a huge majority to the Tories, and (barring internal rebellions of the sort which delayed Brexit) giving them the power to do whatever they want. And thanks to the UK's ...
by Karim Pourhamzavi Mass protests are occurring across Iran, taking place in over 100 cities. The protests have been sparked by the government’s cutting of fuel subsidies, a measure which caused fuel prices to double overnight. Mass protests are hardly new in Iran, but there is an important difference ...
What other song could we play as the UK's political rule book gets torn up and thrown away?Video courtesy of YouTubeThis post is exclusive to Bowalley Road. ...
Legendary in my own mind, I mean. All times are NZ, which is an hour10.00am (NZ) There's about an hour to go until the exit poll is released. At that point, half of the British voting public will devastated, and the other half celebrating wildly. Unless everyone is simply confused.Turnout seems ...
Forlorn Hope: When the call came down to make Corbyn unelectable, the Establishment's journalists and columnists rose to the challenge. Antisemitism was only the most imaginative of the charges levelled against the old democratic-socialist. There were many more and, sadly, they appear to have worked. Boris Johnson may not be much ...
"Rendezvous" by David Low, September 1939.DUNEDIN IS THE BIRTHPLACE of, for my money, the world’s greatest cartoonist, David Low. At the height of his powers, in 1930s London, Low’s cartoons represented the visual conscience of the civilised world. His most famous cartoon, “Rendezvous”, penned a few weeks into the Second ...
If you want to study propagandist techniques, you are typically told to study Dictatorships. Not unfair, but what’s always been more interesting to me is so-called “democratic” countries and their broader information systems.Why? Because people opt for it, even as they decry “totalitarian regimes!”.. It’s quite an eye ...
Introducing legislation which shits on the public's right to know seems to have become a daily occurrence for this government. Today's example is the Infrastructure Funding and Financing Bill. The bill establishes a framework for the establishment of "special purpose vehicles" (SPVs) to hide debt from local government balance sheets ...
Below is the longlist of words and phrases generated in the korero phase of Public Address Word of the Year 2019, with some editorial moderation. Now it's time to vote. As you'll doubtless be able to see, you get three ranked choices. Use your power wisely. Or frivolously, whatever.As usual, ...
The University of Waikato and New Zealand Law Foundation have released a report today on the law around encryption in New Zealand. There's stuff in there about principles and values, and how proposed government policies to provide for "lawful access" by creating backdoors would destroy the trust which makes encryption ...
A ballot for two Member's Bills was held today, and the following bills were drawn: Insurance (Prompt Settlement of Claims for Uninhabitable Residential Property) Bill (Stuart Smith) Social Security (Exemption for Ex Gratia and Compensation Payments) Amendment Bill (Willow-Jean Prime) Neither bill seems likely to be particularly controversial. This is ...
Earlier in the month, Bougainvilleans went to the polls in a landmark referendum to decide on whether they would remain part of Papua New Guinea or become independent. Yesterday, the results came in, with over 97% support for independence. The referendum wasn't binding - instead it means negotiations with the ...
by Daphna Whitmore This week 800 unionised bus drivers in Auckland were suspended from work after they refused to collect fares as part of a campaign of industrial action. Drivers working for Auckland’s largest bus company NZ Bus are asking for more pay and better working conditions after being offered ...
As details emerge about what unfolded on Whakaari / White Island two days ago, my thoughts go out to all the families affected by this terrible event. My thoughts are also with the first responders who worked in perilous circumstances to assist and protect those affected. Both local and ...
BMG research have unleashed their final poll of the 2019 campaign:Westminster voting intention: CON: 41% (-)LAB: 32% (-)LDEM: 14% (-)GRN: 4% (-)BREX: 3% (-1)via @BMGResearch , 06 - 11 Dec Chgs. w/ 06 Dec That's a bit of a "Dunno why we bothered" sort of poll. "Phillip, I'm afraid I've been a ...
Grant Keeps On Trucking: Out of the $12 billion Robertson has announced for infrastructure investment, $8 billion will be allocated to specific projects, with the balance of $4 billion held in reserve. What does it say about this Government's "transformational" ambitions that 85 percent of that $8 billion is to ...
I am not making this up.First few lines of the Dail Mail write up:Boris Johnson's exasperated media minder swore on live TV today as the PM refused to speak to Good Morning Britain before trotting into a fridge as he started an early milkround in Yorkshire. Piers Morgan was visibly ...
In previous elections pollsters have bemoaned the 'shy Tory' - the respondent who is so fearful of being judged as a cruel and heartless bastard by an anonymous pollster, or their spouses, workmates and friends, that they lie about their intention of voting Conservative, skewing the poll figures in Labour's ...
Climate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change.If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, please send it to climate.change@stuff.co.nzI was in Switzerland recently and discovered that they haven’t ...
So, You Gov's MRP poll - the weird one that tries to reflect what will happen at a constituency level and which pretty much nailed the hung parliament in 2017 - is not looking too good for Labour:
We've known about climate change for over forty years now,and it has been a major political issue for twenty. And yet fossil fuel companies have kept polluting with impunity, while government have looked the other way and twiddled their thumbs and refused to do anything because "the economy", or just ...
Sheer Loopiness: Many of those expressing bemusement at the antics of these #turnardern effacers, were convinced that they were yet another expression of the National Party’s increasingly spiteful anti-government propaganda campaign. They marvelled at the oddness of the perpetrators’ mindset and questioned the common-sense of allowing the rest of New Zealand ...
Brad Scott, GNS Science VolcanologistThis post was originally published by GeoNet.Following the 9 December devastating eruption at Whakaari/White Island we have put together some information about the island. New Zealand’s most active volcano Whakaari/White Island is currently New Zealand’s most active volcano, it has been since an eruptive episode ...
The Justice Committee has reported back on its Inquiry into the 2017 General Election and 2016 Local Elections, with a host of recommendations about how to improve our electoral systems. Some of their recommendations are already incorporate din the Electoral Amendment Bill currently before Parliament, but there's also a recommendation ...
Back in 2017, in order to make themselves "electable" in the eyes of rich people who oppose everything they stand for, the Greens signed up for NeoLiberalism, adopting a restrictive set of "Budget Responsibility Rules" which basicly prevented them from using government to make things better. Now, they're finally abandoning ...
Since invading in 2001, the US has consistently claimed that their war in Afghanistan has been going well, even when it continued year after year after year. Of course, they were lying, and thanks to the Washington Post and the US Freedom of Information Act, we get to see just ...
How should we think about artificial intelligence and the implications that it has for our work and leisure? There are many articles on artificial intelligence and its potential impacts on jobs, and the ethics of applications. These are important topics, but I want to focus on some less discussed aspects, ...
I love data. It’s amazing the sort of “discoveries” I can make given a data set and computer statistical package. It’s just so easy to search for relationships and test their statistical significance. Maybe relationships which ...
The other big story concerning Leeds Hospital is Boris Johnson's bizzare behaviour at Leeds Hospital, where he was confronted by a journalist and challenged about a four year old boy with suspected pneumonia who was left sleeping on the floor, rather than getting abed like a sick kid would in ...
So, for a brief period of history, it was alleged that a protester had punched Matt Hancock's SPAD (not a euphemism; special adviser) when Hancock visited Leeds Hospital.This was reported by the likes of Robert Peston and Laura Keunssberg, as well as the less credible Guido Fawkes. It also quickly ...
by Daphna Whitmore Last week France passed a law that equates anti-Zionism with anti-Semitism. It is based on a definition of anti-Semitism that includes criticism of Israel such as: “Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, e.g., by claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist ...
Over the past year we've seen major bus problems in Hamilton and Wellington, as drivers have sought better wages and an end to the bullshit of split shifts, which basicly see them "married to the job". And now its Auckland's turn. When NZBus's drivers planned low-level strike action of not ...
The government has been congratulating itself over the passage of the Zero Carbon Act, which sets out long-term emissions targets. But those targets are insufficient. Meanwhile, Denmark is showing us how its done:Denmark’s parliament adopted a new climate law on Friday, committing to reach 70% below its 1990 emissions in ...
Another day, another piece of legislation with a secrecy clause. This time its the innocuous-seeming Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission Bill, which (after establishing a new body and making it subject to the OIA in three different ways) includes the rapidly-becoming-standard clauses enabling it to request information from other public ...
The state of the United Kingdom is fractured, torn up, shredded. The Empire is gone, it died a long time ago. And yet, the country is still tracking with a lead in favour of the ones who play to the ingrained, class-bound division for political gain. It is a disgrace ...
On 27 September, Greta Thunberg addressed a crowd of 500,000 at the School Strike for Climate in Montreal, saying: “You are a nation that is allegedly a climate leader. And Sweden is also a nation that is allegedly a climate leader. And in both cases, it means absolutely nothing. Because ...
It should be obvious by now but let’s be clear: The same folk who regularly traffic in disinformation, misinformation and “fake news” are also those who most strongly claim that their freedom of expression rights are being violated when moves are made to curb hate speech (as opposed to protected ...
Michael SchulsonWhen Shane Burcaw flies on an airplane, he brings along a customized gel cushion, a car seat, and about 10 pieces of memory foam. The whole arsenal costs around $1,000, but for Burcaw it’s a necessity. The 27-year-old author and speaker — who, alongside his fiancée, Hannah ...
We are very pleased to publish this submission is from Lucinda Stoan. She is a social justice activist, mother, and educator, based in Washington State in the US. This detailed and comprehensive source-linked overview of trans issues and what is at stake will be useful for many people, especially in ...
New Zealand's Underarm Banker: It bears recalling that the “independence” of the Reserve Bank Governor was for decades held up by neoliberal capitalists as the most compelling justification for passing the Reserve Bank Act. Interesting, is it not, how the ruling class’s support for the Bank’s independence lasted no longer than ...
Rubbish In, Rubbish Out: Put all this together, and it’s difficult to avoid the conclusion that anyone who responds positively to a pollster’s request to “answer a few questions” is just ever-so-slightly weird. Desperately lonely? Some sort of psephological train-spotter? Political party member primed to skew the poll for or against ...
“Free at last, Free at last, Thank God almighty we are free at last.” ― Martin Luther King Jr. A long and bitter court feud between former Conservative Party leader Colin Craig and Jordan Williams has been settled, with an apology and compensation from Williams. On Tuesday, Craig sent out ...
Samuel Becher, Victoria University of Wellington and Jessica C Lai, Victoria University of WellingtonEarlier this year, the New Zealand-based pizza chain Hell Pizza offered a limited-edition “Burger Pizza”. Its customers weren’t told that the “meat” was plant-based. Some customers complained to the Commerce Commission, which enforces consumer law in ...
Some people seem to want to close down any critical discussion of the current research into the relationship between water fluoride and child IQ. They appear to argue that claims made by researchers should not be open to critical review and that the claims be accepted without proper consideration ...
The government has been congratulating itself over the passage of the Zero Carbon Act, which sets out long-term emissions targets. Meanwhile, Climate Action Tracker has the shameful reality: those targets are insufficient:While New Zealand is showing leadership by having passed the world’s second-ever Zero Carbon Act in November 2019, under ...
The government introduced a Racing Industry Bill today. As an urban who horse racing as pointless-to-cruel, and gambling as a tax on stupidity and/or hope, this isn't normally a bill which would interest me in the slightest, beyond grumpiness at more government money for a dying industry. But there is ...
Check. Check. One, two, three, four. Is this thing ON? Hello readers, I logged in last night (yeah, it’s been a while) to mark THE END of the landmark legal case, Jordan Williams v Colin Craig, which (gulp) reached The Supreme Court, in which New Zealand’s most-defamed man was suing the politician he ...
Before The Birth: Israel’s most fervent supporters set their clocks ticking in Biblical times. They cite the kingdoms of David and Solomon as proof that, in the words of the Exodus movie’s theme-song: “This land is mine.” The majority of Israel’s backers, however, start their clocks in 1933 – the year Adolf ...
In an unreliable, strange and confusing world, Public Address is proud to present a measure of comfort and stability by annually asking everyone what words or phrases sum up the year that's been – and then giving some of them consumer goods as prizes for being clever or simply lucky.Well, ...
Both my parents are pretty handy – and they seem to have the right tools for most jobs in the garage and they know how to fix practically anything. A similar story could be told about their generation’s experience in the workforce – being a generalist was not unusual and ...
When it was revealed that NZ First had tried to enrich itself from public office via the Provoncial Growth Fund, the Prime Minister assured us that everything was OK as Shane Jones, the Minister responsible for the fund, had recused himself. Except it seems that that recusal came very late ...
Today is a Member's Day, and probably the last one of the year. After the marathon of the End of Life Choice Act, most of the bills up for debate today are uncontentious. First up is the second reading of Chlöe Swarbrick's Election Access Fund Bill. This will be followed ...
The Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee has reported back on the government's odious and tyrannical control orders bill. As expected, the fraudulent select committee process has made no significant changes (partly because they couldn't agree, but mostly because it was a stitch-up from the start, with no intention of ...
Yesterday, the government released its draft Cannabis Legalisation and Control Bill, which will be put to a non-binding referendum at the next election. I'm not a drug policy expert, but Russell Brown is, and he thinks its pretty good. And pretty obviously, it will be a massive improvement on the ...
As you're probably aware, the draft bill outlining the proposed legal cannabis regime to be put to a referendum late next year was published yesterday, and has already attracted a flurry of comment. It's notable that a good deal of the comment is about proposals that aren't actually new.A minimum ...
One of the big problems in New Zealand climate change policy is the government working at cross-purposes with itself. It wants to reduce fossil fuel use, but encourages oil and gas exploration. It wants to reduce transport emissions, but then builds enormous new roads. The problem could be avoided if ...
Climate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change.If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, please send it to climate.change@stuff.co.nzAccording to the United Nations, food shortages are a threat ...
Last year, the government announced it was ending offshore oil exploration by no longer issuing new permits. The idea was that the industry would then die off as permits expired. Except almost immediately the government revealed its bad faith, by saying they would extend permits and alter conditions to keep ...
The government introduced the Education and Training Bill to Parliament yesterday. Its a massive bill, which replaces both existing Education Acts, as well as various other bits of legislation (including some which are still proceeding through the House). I'll leave the serious analysis to teachers and people who actually know ...
Amelia SharmanThere’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to micro-credentials, those bits of bite-sized learning that can help workers stay on top of technological change. What’s a micro-credential? While definitions vary, micro-credentials can be understood as short courses that allow people to learn new skills or have an existing competency recognised. ...
All Smiles Now: Claire Szabo is taking up her presidential role after serving as the CEO of Habitat For Humanity. Which is absolutely perfect! After KiwiBuild was so comprehensively mismanaged by Phil Twyford, the party has not only elected a new president from a thoroughly respectable not-for-profit, but one who ...
While much of the NZ left has transitioned to postmodern and identity politics in relation to transgender ideology, there are some very good articles about that deploy Marxist methodology in relation to this subject. The one below is from the British marxist group Counterfire and appeared on their site here ...
by Daphna Whitmore At Golden Oaks, a luxurious country retreat in the Hudson Valley, pregnant women have the best care money can buy. From the organic food, personalised exercise programmes, private yoga instruction and daily massages Golden Oaks looks like a country lodge for the upper class. Set some time ...
When Labour was running for election in 2017, it felt it needed to demonstrate "fiscal responsibility" and signed itself up to masochistic "budget responsibility rules". It was a fool's errand: the sorts of voters who demand fiscal responsibility are also the sorts of voters who believe that labour can never ...
Writing in Stuff, Joel MacManus looks at what we need to do to meet the Zero Carbon Act's targets. The core of it:1. Convert 85 per cent of vehicles on the road to electric. 2. Eliminate fossil fuels from all industrial heating up to 300 degrees Celsius. 3. Double our ...
Paramedics have reiterated their support for New Zealand First MP Darroch Ball's bill to impose mandatory prison sentences on those who assault our first responders and prison officers. There are more than 50 cases of abuse and assault against New Zealand paramedics each week. The figure has remained largely unchanged ...
New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has revealed the Party’s stance on a proposed single public broadcaster. He said it had been the NZ First policy to support and strengthen public sector media. "For this reason, we welcome the initiative of Minister Faafoi to progress work in this area. Both ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Leader of New Zealand First Introduction Good morning, and thank you for your attendance here today. Let us start by acknowledging the work of all the media outlets and reporters, particularly the regional reporters, who have been covering this week’s tragedy at Whakaari White Island. It ...
New Zealand First MP Darroch Ball’s bill introducing a six-month minimum sentence for assaults on first responders has passed its first reading in Parliament. Mr Ball said the new offence of "injuring a first responder or prison officer with intent" would target people who attacked paramedics, police, firefighters, and corrections ...
New Zealand First leader Winston Peters gave his final interview for 2019 on The Country to tell farmers they have never had it better under the current coalition Government. “Here you've got these record returns [for farmers]. These returns would be nothing like a record if the currency under the ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters said that New Zealand's Cook Islands High Commissioner, Tessa Temata, has died over the weekend. Ms Temata, 52, died in Palmerston North and had returned to New Zealand for medical treatment. She was the first New Zealand High Commissioner to the Cook Islands of Cook Island ...
A new defence report has mapped out how New Zealand's soldiers will navigate rising seas, and a year after the Defence Force announced its need to prepare for climate change. In the “Responding to the Climate Crisis” report, the Force restates its operational plan and sets goals to tackle climate ...
We're rebuilding New Zealand - our transport network, our hospitals, our schools and more... After nine years of neglect there's a lot to fix - but we're getting on with the job. ...
We're rebuilding New Zealand - our transport network, our hospitals, our schools and more... After nine years of neglect there's a lot to fix - but we're getting on with the job. ...
Mark Patterson, Spokesperson for Primary Industries New Zealand First spokesperson for Primary Industries, Mark Patterson, has called for awareness to be raised and more stringent biosecurity checks to be put in place for African Swine Fever (ASF), a widespread virus that is uncontrolled in most of Asia and a serious ...
Jenny Marcroft MP, Spokesperson for Human Rights A critical step has been taken to end gender based violence against women and girls in Parliament this evening. New Zealand First Spokesperson for Human Rights Jenny Marcroft MP has welcomed the passing of the first reading of the Crimes (Definition of Female ...
New Zealand First MP Shane Jones says it's time to recognise market forces haven't led to the expected reduction in Māori smoking rates and try a new approach. The Party had recently invoked the agree to disagree clause in their Coalition Agreement with the Labour Party, and will not support ...
Live from the Whanganui Opera House, on the final day of the 2019 Labour Party Conference, Jacinda Ardern announced the largest investment in school property in 25 years. ...
The Coalition Government will be banning foreign donations to political parties and candidates, ahead of next year’s general elections. Legislation will be introduced to Parliament and passed under urgency – emphasising the need for such restrictions to safeguard our democracy. The bill introduces a new requirement that party secretaries and ...
Associate Transport Minister Shane Jones opened Taipā's $19 million bridge recently, improving transport infrastructure in the Northland region. The two-lane bridge is 107m long with a 2.5m-wide shared walking and cycling path, and will reduce the congestion that the old one-lane bridge was notorious for. The project had also included ...
The Overseas Investment Office have rejected the application of Mercury Agriculture LP, which is 92 per cent controlled by Canadian interests, to purchase more than 2000 hectares of South Canterbury and Otago land. Mercury wanted to buy 2000ha at Rangitata, 1494ha near Ashburton, 816ha near Cromwell and 212ha near Temuka. ...
This weekend was Labour's 103rd Party Conference! We welcomed over 500 of our Labour whānau in red to Whanganui, where we reflected on the last two years in Government, and looked ahead to 2020 and beyond. We know the long-term challenges facing New Zealand won't be tackled overnight, but we're making ...
Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced that the Provincial Growth Fund will invest $9.6 million to seal the final unsealed section of State Highway 43 from Stratford to Taumarunui. The Minister said sealing the 12-kilometre gravel section of the highway – also called the “Forgotten World Highway” - through ...
Former Finance Minister and former chair of the Tax Working Group, Sir Michael Cullen, has voiced his support for New Zealand First’s decision to oppose the planned increase in tobacco excise tax. In an interview with The Weekend Collective, he said that increasing the price was no longer effective in ...
Māori are natural storytellers. On the marae we use stories to tell our history, to teach the next generation life lessons and to let people know, in our most creative of ways, who we are and where we have come from. ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, New Zealand First Leader New Zealand First has invoked the ‘Agree to Disagree’ provisions of the Coalition Agreement because it cannot support the announced 11.46 percent increase in the tobacco excise from 1 January 2020. “Studies show that the automatic tobacco excise increases are having less effect ...
Taupō-based company Geo40 has made a breakthrough in extracting near battery-grade lithium from geothermal fluid which its says could be a gamechanger. Its chief executive John Worth said the earth mineral was highly prized, with battery-grade lithium selling for US$10,000 (NZ$15,600) a tonne. Geo40 was founded in 2010 to find ...
Crown research institute AgResearch Ltd, as part of its Future Footprint plan, had intended to relocate top scientists and support staff — particularly those focused on sheep genetics and genomics — from Invermay to Lincoln. However, those plans seem to have been shelved at the request of the Coalition Government. ...
Ten engineering firms in Southland are receiving a total of $2.13 million in Provincial Growth Fund funding to lift productivity and create new jobs. Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced in Invercargill that the 10 engineering and manufacturing firms would receive funding to assist them with buying equipment that ...
The number of new residents to New Zealand is the lowest it has been in nearly two decades and it has earned the ire of the immigration industry. The industry alleges that 'Trump-style extreme vetting' is being put in place aimed at keeping a lid on immigration numbers. June Ranson, ...
The Royal New Zealand Air Force is one step closer to modernising its fleet after the United States State Department recently approved the sale of five new C-130J Hercules aircraft to New Zealand. Arms manufacturer Lockheed Martin, in Fort Worth, Texas, will provide the aircraft, but as a "foreign military ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development A $261,000 loan from the Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) has helped a family-run business in Manawatū to scale up manufacturing capacity, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced at its opening today. Ashhurst-based skin-care business The Herb Farm is on track to ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development The Regional Freight Hub near Palmerston North has taken a step forward with the completion of the master plan, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones said. Shane Jones unveiled the high-level design of the new Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) backed rail-road hub ...
Hon Ron Mark, Minister of DefenceTērā te haeata takiri ana mai i runga o Pukaha!Ara tai uru, whai uru, whai uru!Ara whai ato, whai ato, whai ato!Ara rā tini, ara rā tini, ara ri!The rays of the morning sun strike a new dawn upon Pukaha ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic DevelopmentThe Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) is investing $772,000 in opportunities for growth in Manawatū-Whanganui, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced today.NZ Bio-Forestry Limited will receive a $380,000 boost for game-changing research which could unlock significant growth in the wood processing sector, ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs Foreign Minister Winston Peters announced today the appointment of diplomat Sarah Lee as New Zealand’s High Commissioner to South Africa. She will be the first female Head of Mission to represent New Zealand in Africa. “New Zealand’s relationship with South ...
Sustained high growth in primary industry exports looks set to continue over the next two years with strong prices predicted for farmers, fishers, growers and rural communities. Minister of Agriculture and Minister of State for Trade and Export Growth Damien O’Connor today released the latest Situation and Outlook report for ...
Auckland’s growing screen sector is the catalyst for a new partnership between the Ministry of Social Development and Auckland’s economic development agency Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development (ATEED). The launch today at FilmFX in Henderson, is to celebrate the partnership which looks to capitalise on the social and economic development opportunities ...
A minute’s silence will be observed at 2.11pm on Monday 16 December in honour of the victims of the Whakaari White Island eruption, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has confirmed. “Wherever you are in New Zealand, or around the world, this is a moment we can stand alongside those who have ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced New Zealand will contribute NZ$1 million of funding towards the joint United Nations Fund for Children (UNICEF) and World Health Organisation (WHO) Pacific Regional Action Plan for Measles. “Prevention through vaccination is the most effective way of avoiding illness and a costly health emergency. ...
New Zealand is today remembering one of our true sporting heroes, triple Olympic gold medal winner Sir Peter Snell. “He was a legend, here and around the world,” Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said. “Our thoughts are with Sir Peter’s wife Miki and their family.” “Sir Peter is recognised as New ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has congratulated United Kingdom Prime Minister Boris Johnson on his election victory. “New Zealand and the United Kingdom are close friends and despite our distance we are strongly connected by our history and people,” Jacinda Ardern said. “I look forward to continuing to work with Prime ...
The Government has released its long term vision for a sustainable 21st Century rail network that gets our cities moving, connects our regions and gets more freight off the roads. Deputy Prime Minister and State Owned Enterprises Minister Winston Peters said the Government is committed to rebuilding New Zealand’s ...
I want to start by acknowledging the families who have experienced such grief and such loss since the extraordinary tragedy on Monday. Today was all about reuniting them with their loved ones. We've just come from the airport where many of them were gathered and in amongst what you can ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters today announced further support for Samoa’s longer term needs as it continues to respond to a devastating measles epidemic. “Samoa’s health system has experienced massive strain in the wake of the measles epidemic. The volume of patients needing care during this outbreak, and the number of ...
Discounted electric bikes will be offered up to public sector staff across the country as part of the Government’s work to reduce transport emissions and support healthier transport options. Associate Minister of Transport Julie Anne Genter officially launched the new initiative at Wellington Hospital today. “The Government has negotiated bulk-purchase ...
The Australian and New Zealand Governments today launch an historic joint bid to bring the FIFA Women’s World Cup to the Southern Hemisphere for the first time. Australian Minister for Youth and Sport, Richard Colbeck and New Zealand Minister for Sport and Recreation Grant Robertson will announce the bold campaign, ...
The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) has approved a $15 million loan to help re-establish a gold mining operation at Blackwater Gold Mine, near Reefton, Rural Communities Minister and local MP Damien O’Connor announced at an event on the West Coast today. “This is great news for the Coast that could ...
Papakāinga model inspires whānau well-being A housing project by Kohupātiki whānau in Hastings is an outstanding example of a Māori-led housing initiative that can reduce financial pressure and reconnect whānau to their whakapapa says the Minister for Māori Development Hon Nanaia Mahuta. Minister Mahuta officially opened the Aroha Te Rangi ...
Restoration efforts for a significant wetland in the Hawke’s Bay are getting more support announced Associate Minister for the Environment Eugenie Sage. “Wetlands are vital to healthy landscapes and ecosystems. They function as nature’s ‘kidneys’, filtering and protecting water quality, acting as nature’s sponges after rain and are home to ...
Nelson has today seen the launch of Housing First Nelson Tasman. Today’s launch marks the expansion of the Government’s homelessness programme, Housing First, to the top of the South Island. “Housing First is a proven programme that puts people who are experiencing homelessness and multiple, high and complex needs into ...
New Government funding announced today will help communities make a difference in tackling environmental issues Associate Minister for the Environment Eugenie Sage announced in Hawkes Bay today. The Ministry for the Environment’s Community Environment Fund is dedicating $243,101 to growing the capacity and capability of the Environment Hubs Aotearoa’s (EHA) ...
The days of vulnerable consumers falling victim to loan sharks, truck shops and other predatory lenders are numbered, following the Credit Contracts Legislation Amendment Bill passing its third reading tonight. “Too many Kiwis are being given loans that are unaffordable and unsuitable, trapping them in debt and leaving their families ...
A Bill that prevents terrorism and supports the de-radicalisation of New Zealanders returning from overseas has passed its third reading, Justice Minister Andrew Little says. The Terrorism Suppression (Control Orders) Bill is a carefully targeted response to manage the risk posed by a small number of New Zealanders who have ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters and Minister for Pacific Peoples Aupito William Sio will travel to Samoa on Friday, where New Zealand medical teams are helping Samoa respond to an outbreak of measles. “New Zealand has been working closely with the Government of Samoa and offering our assistance from the ...
The Government has changed the law to improve student safety and welfare in university halls of residence and other student accommodation. The Education (Pastoral Care) Amendment Bill passed its third reading this afternoon and details of an interim Code of Practice setting out the Government’s expectations of tertiary providers have also been released. ...
A new tool to help councils fund and finance infrastructure could mean some housing developments happen a decade earlier than currently planned, Urban Development Minister Phil Twyford said today. “This new tool, developed by the Government in partnership with industry and high-growth councils, will allow councils to access private debt ...
Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor has welcomed the release of a bold new vision for the country’s vital food and fibre sector. “I’m delighted that New Zealand’s major farmer and grower organisations are today supporting the Primary Sector Council’s vision – Fit for a Better World,” he said. “The international consumers ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has congratulated the Government of Papua New Guinea and the Autonomous Bougainville Government for completing a well-conducted referendum on the future political status of Bougainville. “New Zealand supported the referendum process by providing technical advice through the New Zealand Electoral Commission and leading a Regional Police ...
In light of Cabinet’s position that freight operations on prime land in downtown Auckland are no longer viable, the Government will now embark on a short work programme to enable decision-making in the first half of next year, Associate Transport Minister Shane Jones says. Minister Jones is today releasing the ...
Associate Health Minister Julie Anne Genter has received the report back from a surgical mesh restorative justice process undertaken by Victoria University. The process heard stories, either in person or online submission, from more than 600 people affected by surgical mesh. “The report made for heart-breaking and confronting reading,” says ...
The Water Services Regulator Bill – Taumata Arowai , introduced to Parliament today, is a milestone for drinking water safety in New Zealand and will help improve environmental outcomes for urban waterways, rivers and lakes. “This is a breakthrough for New Zealanders in terms of providing safe drinking water throughout ...
Kia ora koutouE ngā mana, e ngā reo, e ngā matā wakaTēnā koutou katoaHaere ngā, moe maiKoutou ma ngā Rangatira Ko Anaru ahauKo au te Minita mo ngā TureHe Honore tino nui kei roto I ahau No reira tena koutou katoa Today, we are releasing two reports that are the ...
The Government is looking to turn around the long-term challenges of criminal justice by taking a new approach to break the cycle of offending to ensure there are fewer victims of crime. Justice Minister Andrew Little released two reports today, Turuki! Turuki! from Te Uepū Hāpai I te Ora, and ...
New Zealand firms expanding beyond the start-up phase are set for more support after today’s passage of the Venture Capital Fund Bill, Associate Finance Minister David Parker said. The Bill, which establishes a $300 million Venture Capital Fund, puts in place a key initiative of the Wellbeing Budget’s economic package. ...
E ngā mana, e ngā reo, e ngā iwi, e ngā rau rangatira mā. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa. Señora Presidenta, Excellencies, Delegates. International action A common thread that runs through the Paris Agreement is the commitment we have made to each other to do what we can to ...
The Government is lifting capital investment to the highest level in more than 20 years as it takes the next step to future-proof New Zealand. Finance Minister Grant Robertson has announced $12 billion of new investment, with $8 billion for specific capital projects and $4 billion to be added to ...
The Government is forecast to run $12 billion worth of surpluses across the four years to 2023/24 as the economy continues to grow. The surpluses will help fund day-to-day capital requirements each year. These include fixing leaky hospitals, building new classrooms to cover population growth and take pressure off class ...
Budget 2020 will continue the Coalition Government’s focus on tackling the long-term challenges facing New Zealand while also investing to future-proof the economy. When the Government took office in 2017 it was left with crumbling infrastructure, severe underinvestment in public services, degraded rivers and lakes, a housing crisis and rising ...
The Minister responsible for the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act 2011 (te Takutai Moana Act 2011), Andrew Little has welcomed the launch of an online geospatial tool that provides data-rich, dynamic coastline maps that will significantly boost research and evidence-gathering under the Act. Te Kete Kōrero a Te ...
The Chief Victims Advisor to Government Dr Kim McGregor, QSO, has been reappointed in her role for a further two years. Dr McGregor has held the role since it was established in November 2015. She provides independent advice to government on how to improve the criminal justice system for victims. ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters and Civil Defence Minister Peeni Henare have today announced the deployment of a network of DART (Deep-ocean Assessment and Reporting of Tsunami) buoys. “New Zealand and the Pacific region are particularly vulnerable to natural disasters. It is vital we have adequate warning systems in place,” ...
DART Buoys Announcement Aotea Wharf, 9.30am 11 December 2019 Acknowledgements Acknowledgements to Minister for Civil Defence Hon Peeni Henare also here today. White Island It is with regret that this event shadows the tragic natural disaster two days ago. The volcanic eruptions on White Island have claimed 5 lives, ...
Racing Minister Winston Peters has welcomed the first reading of the Racing Industry Bill in parliament today. This is the second of two Bills that have been introduced this year to revitalise New Zealand’s racing industry. “Our domestic racing industry has been in serious decline. The Government is committed to ...
Minister for Disability Issues, Carmel Sepuloni, is pleased to announce that $291,321 is to be awarded to national and local community initiatives to maintain and promote the use of New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL). “New Zealand is one of the few countries in the world where Sign Language is an ...
Minister for Veterans Ron Mark has announced today the Coalition Government’s initial response to work completed by the independent statutory body, the Veterans’ Advisory Board. “When Professor Ron Paterson completed his review of the Veterans’ Support Act in 2018, he made a number of recommendations, including one which I referred ...
The Provincial Growth Fund giving $13 million to a gold mining project under DOC land on the West Coast is a disgraceful waste of public money says Coromandel Watchdog, a group fighting gold mining in Hauraki. ...
CEAC reviewed the NZTA National Land Transport Programme “2021–24 NLTP development” plan to see the support for rail funding was there, and NZTA is now seen as ‘anti-rail’ in their NLTP plans, contrary to Government policy to use rail - heads must roll. ...
Kiwi startup founder Jenene Crossan has spent two years enduring jetlag and heinous London Airbnb prices as she builds her latest business.Jenene Crossan, co-founder and CEO of beauty booking service Flossie, has spent most of the past two years sitting in airport lounges and living out of suitcases in a bid ...
From New Zealand’s biggest band selling out Western Springs to a landmark moment for Pasifika women onstage, these are the live events that shaped New Zealand this decade.An anchor in the middle of the deep blue sea: Daffodils, 2014 Todd Emerson and Colleen Davis in Daffodils, on stage at the Traverse ...
Is there something to be learned from TVNZ’s Wild West-meets-WWE-meets-19th-century-New Zealand web series? After all, writes Sharon Mazer, colonisation, like professional wrestling, is a fixed match.The premise underlying TVNZ’s new web series Colonial Combat is anachronistic and preposterous, even by WWE standards. It’s also fascinating.Transported from American popular culture to ...
For a lot of people, there’s not much joy to be found at Christmas. Emily Writes spoke to Dr Sarah Bell-Booth and Gwendoline Smith about how to deal with the hard stuff in the face of all that relentless holiday cheer.Despite my anxiety, I generally enjoy Christmas now that I ...
This contained incorrect information regarding the remuneration of Alexandra Allan. The item has now been deleted and Scoop unreservedly apologises to Ms Allan for the distress caused due to this publication. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, University of Melbourne At the December 12 UK election, the Conservatives won 365 of the 650 House of Commons seats (up 48 since the 2017 election), Labour 202 (down 60), the Scottish National ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Simon Tormey, Professor of Politics, University of Bristol So for all the talk of narrowing polls, tactical voting, and possible shocks leading to a hung parliament, Boris Johnson achieved a crushing victory over Jeremy Corbyn and the Labour Party in the UK’s ...
Sir Peter Snell has died, aged 80, at his home in Dallas, Texas. James McOnie remembers arguably New Zealand’s greatest ever athlete.Sir Peter Snell was so great that small towns still engage in custody battles over the legendary runner.His birthplace Opunake (where he spent his first 11 years) claims him, ...
Māori Injustice Issues Will Have More Visibility Thanks to New Panel Advising Ombudsman A prominent Māori leader, Lady Tureiti Moxon believes Māori injustice issues will be seen much more now thanks to Pūhara Mana Tangata, a first-time Māori panel appointed ...
“It was right there in the waiting room that Jack first told me he was finding it hard to separate his fingers”: a parent’s nightmare, by Dunedin writer Emma Neale. ...
We started picking a top 10 ourselves and puttered out at about #3, sick of the sound of our own voice. Bugger it, we thought, and sent for assistance. It’s been like Christmas ever since, an inbox flowing over with gorgeous, sincere little gifts. Here’s the nonfiction selection, in no ...
The leadership shown by tangata whenua at every national disaster and tragedy should be recognised and honoured by all of us, writes Catherine Delahunty.I do appreciate having a prime minister who is capable of expressing decent, human emotions when tragedies descend on us. It’s a sadly low bar that she ...
From the pockmarked rugby paddock of Apiti, to the smooth, iridescent-blue turf of Albany, Black Sticks defender Steph Dickins' hockey journey has come a long way. ...
If you want to shock and amaze your friends and family this Christmas, look no further than the deep recesses of $1 reserve Trade Me. Folks, I’m going to let you in on a huge Christmas secret here: you can get all your presents for $1 if you know where to ...
To celebrate the 50th birthday of the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery/Len Lye Centre in New Plymouth, Walters Prize-winning artist Ruth Buchanan has rehung their collection, bringing previously unseen works and skeletons out of the closet. Her new exhibition The scene in which I find myself/Or, where does my body belong examines ...
It is hard to remember a year in which New Zealand was so repeatedly in global headlines, writes Kamahl Santamaria, a Kiwi journalist based in Doha.Time zones are a strange thing. You go to sleep, and then for eight hours or so, you miss out on everything happening on the ...
Napoleon demanded that his generals be lucky. Conservative PM Boris Johnson, as he surveys a thumping victory in the British general election, would meet that criterion.His luck bears a resemblance to that of Margaret Thatcher. Like her, he has made a decisive break with orthodox establishment thinking. That presents ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Scott Morrison has rejected or sidelined a number of recommendations from the long-awaited Thodey review of the public service that might have constrained his and his government’s power. Not surprisingly, a proposal to ensure changes ...
Analysis - The "do nothing" government announces a big spend-up on infrastructure, moving the Port of Auckland, and Winston Peters throws his weight behind NZME's bid to buy Stuff. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra [embedded content]For their last video for the year, University of Canberra Vice-Chancellor Deep Saini and Michelle Grattan look backwards to the big issues which have shaped political discourse. They discuss the surprise election results, and ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has acknowledged Ngāti Awa for their role as tangata whenua (people of the land) in leading and caring for affected whānau (family members), following the Whakaari / White Island eruption and recovery operation earlier today. ...
The Environment Committee has opened for public submissions on the Urban Development Bill. The bill follows on from the Kāinga Ora–Homes and Communities bill, which disestablished Housing New Zealand and set up a Crown entity in the same name. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By William Loader, Emeritus Professor of New Testament at Murdoch University, Murdoch University This article is part of our Gender and Christianity series. To understand contemporary Christian ideas about gender, and specifically masculinity, we need to go all the way back to the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Gissing, General Manager, Risk Frontiers, Adjunct Fellow, Macquarie University Calls are growing for a national bushfire plan, including from former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, who says they are an issue of national security and the federal government must provide hands-on leadership. ...
Pro-democracy lobby group Democracy Action welcome New Zealand First’s commitment to hold firm rejecting the Te Tai Tonga MP Rino Tirikatene’s bill to entrench the Māori seats. The Bill, which would require any changes to the seats to require the ...
The Real Pod assembles to dissect the week in reality television and real life, with special thanks to Nando’s.Sometimes you are just doing a podcast as usual and then Colin Mathura-Jeffree gives you a call and throws your world off its axis. In a very special edition of Colin’s Cranny: Live, ...
We get a handle on the artists and artworks that shaped this decade in Aotearoa.As 2019 draws to a close, the four nominees for this year’s Turner Prize subverted the competition – they asked to receive the award as a collective. Meanwhile, at Art Basel Miami Beach, a banana taped ...
The second and final report of Te Uepū Hāpai i te Ora, the Safe and Effective Justice Advisory Group, contains nothing we didn’t know 30 years ago. Yet generations of politicians have ignored the same advice, writes Laura O’Connell Rapira.Between the 1950s and 1990s, New Zealand experienced seismic social, economic ...
Fuel company Z Energy has cut its earnings forecast for the year by 10 percent because of tougher competition and falling margins, and is forecasting a big cut in dividends. ...
Liquidators of the hacked cryptocurrency exchange Cryptopia have travelled to the United States, to retrieve customers' information and certain crypto-assets. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kath Albury, Professor of Media and Communication, Faculty of Health, Arts and Design, Swinburne University of Technology Popular commentary on dating apps often associates their use with “risky” sex, harassment and poor mental health. But anyone who has used a dating app ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Louise Grimmer, Senior Lecturer in Marketing, Tasmanian School of Business and Economics, University of Tasmania Australian shoppers are set to spend $52.7 billion this Christmas. In the words of the retail industry, we are “stampeding” to empty our wallets, both online and ...
NZ Herald and many other media outlets ran a story on a man whose farts could repel mosquitos, despite the story coming from a satire news site and not being verified in any way, writes Dan Satherly for Newshub.“Man’s farts so deadly he kills mosquitoes in a 6m radius” is ...
Timing right to borrow our way to a stronger economy in 2020 The Government’s announcement of its intent to invest significantly in the county’s infrastructure could turbo charge an economic recovery that was already showing positive signs for ...
A poem by writer, journalist, and former Manus Island refugee Behrouz Boochani.Forgive me my loveTranslated by Moones Mansoubi, Manus Island, Papua New Guinea, 2018 Forgive me my bird as I am not able to embrace you.But here,in this corner,I know some migrating birds that I smile to at dawn.I embrace them ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anna Powles, Senior Lecturer in Security Studies, Massey University The Autonomous Region of Bougainville, a chain of islands that lie 959 kilometres northwest of Papua New Guinea’s capital, Port Moresby, has voted unequivocally for independence. The referendum saw 85% voter turnout during ...
Fisheries New Zealand starts consultation today on proposed changes to catch settings for rock lobster and scallops for the new fishing year beginning 1 April 2020. ...
All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others. This was the declaration of the pigs who control the government in George Orwell’s novel, Animal Farm– a tart comment on the hypocrisy of governments that proclaim the absolute equality of their citizens but gives power and privileges ...
SPCA has been working flat out to desex more than 80 animals a day over the last year, which is the most desexing SPCA has done since recording the figures. ...
“The fact so many families are struggling to pay the rent and put food on the table must be addressed urgently if we’re to provide the foundations for a good life for the next generation of New Zealanders,” says Scott Figenshow, Chief Executive ...
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 Girl, Woman, Other by Bernadine Evaristo (Hamish Hamilton, $40)Winner of the 2019 Booker Prize.2The Body: ...
This holiday season Te Tari Taiwhenua, Department of Internal Affairs wants to offer parents and caregivers some advice on how to help keep your family safe online. ...
A report released by the Chief Victims advisor Kim McGregor advising there needs to be an Independent Victims body is being welcomed by Victim Rights lobby group Sensible Sentencing Trust. National spokesperson Jess McVicar says the trust have ...
For the third time in five years, the United Kingdom has gone to the polls today. From the summer islands of New Zealand, join The Spinoff as we follow the results rolling in.9.30am: So, with polls about 90 minutes away from closing, the top line is this – we’ve got ...
Winston Peters will back an NZME proposal to buy Stuff with a 'Kiwishare' guarantee the merged news company will keep regional news and separate websites for at least two years. ...
The Executive Director of Dapaanz (Addiction Practitioners’ Association Aotearoa New Zealand), Sue Paton says the announcement that Alcohol and Other Drug Treatment court would become permanent immediately, following successful pilots in Auckland ...
Online marketplace Sidekicker is taking advantage of people who have little choice but to juggle multiple low-paying jobs to make ends meet, writes artist and freelancer Ben Markley.After graduating early this year with one of the least vocational degrees, I didn’t expect the largest array of job prospects. Nevertheless, I ...
National is vowing to bring back and expand health sector targets dropped by the current Government and mulling whether to scrap elected District Health Boards. ...
More than 10,000 people have signed a petition launched a week ago, calling for better support and funding for community midwives. The 10k figure was reached after the first four days. Chief executive of the College of Midwives, Alison Eddy, said last ...
Information obtained by animal rights organisation SAFE has revealed rodeo organisers are refusing to halt calf-roping events in rodeo, despite the Government’s animal welfare advisors’ recommendation that they do so. ...
Subject; Deputy PM said quote; “New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has challenged his Cabinet colleagues for the delay over a Northport decision, criticising it as "paralysis by analysis". https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/405385/paralysis-by-analysis-winston-peters-assessment-of-the-delay-over-northport ...
If the Productivity Commission's report on local government funding, released yesterday, had been relied on by NASA as the basis for getting astronauts to the moon, its greatest achievement by now would have been launching a $2 skyrocket 40 feet into the air ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Benjamin Mayne, Molecular biologist and bioinformatician, CSIRO Humans have a “natural” lifespan of around 38 years, according to a new method we have developed for estimating the lifespans of different species by analysing their DNA. Extrapolating from genetic studies of species with ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Evans, Professor of Governance and Director of Democracy 2025 – bridging the trust divide at Old Parliament House, University of Canberra A new, ongoing survey on how young Australians understand and imagine their democracy is already challenging long-held stereotypes. The survey ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Francesco Paolucci, Associate Professor; Head of Health Policy Program, Sir Walter Murdoch School of Public Policy and International Affairs, University of Newcastle Private health insurance has come under intense scrutiny in recent months, as it becomes clear health insurers are failing to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Luke Zaphir, Researcher for the University of Queensland Critical Thinking Project; and Online Teacher at Education Queensland’s IMPACT Centre, The University of Queensland This is the second of two essays exploring key theories – cognitive load theory and constructivism – underlying teaching ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Richard Holden, Professor of Economics, UNSW On Monday the Australian government will release the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook (MYEFO). This will – as required by the Charter of Budget Honesty – provide an update on the key assumptions made in this ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ari Mattes, Lecturer in Communications and Media, University of Notre Dame Australia It seems like every time we switch on the idiot box we are confronted with news footage of another disaster. Bushfires in Australia. A hurricane in North America. A tsunami ...
Open mike 17/12/2014 
Open mike is your post.
Image credit: Publish Peer Reviews. Illustration by David Parkins Scientific peer-review is often touted as a guarantee of the quality of published research. But how good is peer-review? Does it guarantee poor ... 3 hours ago
If you like any article please help promote it (and the blog). Link to it on facebook and other social media, write about it anywhere or re-blog it. We’re very happy to have other people re-blog our material, all we ask is that you mention the original source and put ...24 hours ago
by The Council of Disobedient Women John Fenaughty is a senior lecturer in the Faculty of Education and Social Work at the University of Auckland. In a recent column Fenaughty suggested that school teachers should use students’ “correct names and pronouns (e.g., he, him, they, them, she, her, etc.)” ...24 hours ago
Heard this on Radio NZ this afternoon. Perfectly captures how I'm feeling just now.It's always good to find new music, though it would be nice to be hearing something celebratory. Even "Things Can Only Get Better" would be welcome, if it was accompanied by a thumping Labour victory. ...1 day ago
by Don Franks Like New Zealand, Britain is officially a country of equal opportunity under the rule of law, with increasing hardship for those at the bottom. When there’s an election, and the party most obviously callous towards poor people wins, decent folks are dismayed and bewildered. “What the hell ...1 day ago
UKanians went to the polls yesterday in early elections aimed at resolving the Brexit impasse. And they certainly have, delivering a huge majority to the Tories, and (barring internal rebellions of the sort which delayed Brexit) giving them the power to do whatever they want. And thanks to the UK's ...1 day ago
What other song could we play as the UK's political rule book gets torn up and thrown away?Video courtesy of YouTubeThis post is exclusive to Bowalley Road. ...2 days ago
If you want to study propagandist techniques, you are typically told to study Dictatorships. Not unfair, but what’s always been more interesting to me is so-called “democratic” countries and their broader information systems. Why? Because people opt for it, even as they decry “totalitarian regimes!”.. It’s quite an eye ...3 days ago
Below is the longlist of words and phrases generated in the korero phase of Public Address Word of the Year 2019, with some editorial moderation. Now it's time to vote. As you'll doubtless be able to see, you get three ranked choices. Use your power wisely. Or frivolously, whatever.As usual, ...3 days ago
As details emerge about what unfolded on Whakaari / White Island two days ago, my thoughts go out to all the families affected by this terrible event. My thoughts are also with the first responders who worked in perilous circumstances to assist and protect those affected. Both local and ...3 days ago
I love data. It’s amazing the sort of “discoveries” I can make given a data set and computer statistical package. It’s just so easy to search for relationships and test their statistical significance. Maybe relationships which ... 5 days ago
The state of the United Kingdom is fractured, torn up, shredded. The Empire is gone, it died a long time ago. And yet, the country is still tracking with a lead in favour of the ones who play to the ingrained, class-bound division for political gain. It is a disgrace ...1 week ago
It should be obvious by now but let’s be clear: The same folk who regularly traffic in disinformation, misinformation and “fake news” are also those who most strongly claim that their freedom of expression rights are being violated when moves are made to curb hate speech (as opposed to protected ...1 week ago
“Free at last, Free at last, Thank God almighty we are free at last.” ― Martin Luther King Jr. A long and bitter court feud between former Conservative Party leader Colin Craig and Jordan Williams has been settled, with an apology and compensation from Williams. On Tuesday, Craig sent out ...1 week ago
Paramedics have reiterated their support for New Zealand First MP Darroch Ball's bill to impose mandatory prison sentences on those who assault our first responders and prison officers. There are more than 50 cases of abuse and assault against New Zealand paramedics each week. The figure has remained largely unchanged ...2 days ago
Just after 2pm on Monday this week, Whakaari / White Island erupted. Read the Prime Minister's statement here, and watch her statement to the House below. ...2 days ago
Sustained high growth in primary industry exports looks set to continue over the next two years with strong prices predicted for farmers, fishers, growers and rural communities. Minister of Agriculture and Minister of State for Trade and Export Growth Damien O’Connor today released the latest Situation and Outlook report for ...11 hours ago
The cycleway fine is part of the party's transport ideas that will be announced tomorrow. ...2 hours ago
COLFO Confirms Number of Banned Firearms in New Zealand at Upper End of Police Estimates SUNDAY 15 DECEMBER 2019 ...5 hours ago
Kiwi startup founder Jenene Crossan has spent two years enduring jetlag and heinous London Airbnb prices as she builds her latest business.Jenene Crossan, co-founder and CEO of beauty booking service Flossie, has spent most of the past two years sitting in airport lounges and living out of suitcases in a bid ...12 hours ago
This week's biggest-selling New Zealand books, as recorded by the Nielsen BookScan New Zealand bestseller list and described by Steve Braunias. ...1 day ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, University of Melbourne At the December 12 UK election, the Conservatives won 365 of the 650 House of Commons seats (up 48 since the 2017 election), Labour 202 (down 60), the Scottish National ...1 day ago
“It was right there in the waiting room that Jack first told me he was finding it hard to separate his fingers”: a parent’s nightmare, by Dunedin writer Emma Neale. ...2 days ago
From the pockmarked rugby paddock of Apiti, to the smooth, iridescent-blue turf of Albany, Black Sticks defender Steph Dickins' hockey journey has come a long way. ...2 days ago
Napoleon demanded that his generals be lucky. Conservative PM Boris Johnson, as he surveys a thumping victory in the British general election, would meet that criterion. His luck bears a resemblance to that of Margaret Thatcher. Like her, he has made a decisive break with orthodox establishment thinking. That presents ...2 days ago
The ACT leader says his arguments haven't changed - but the circumstances that make them relevant have. ...2 days ago
Three Otago institutions are teaming up to improve the future of rural health care. ...2 days ago
Fuel company Z Energy has cut its earnings forecast for the year by 10 percent because of tougher competition and falling margins, and is forecasting a big cut in dividends. ...2 days ago
House prices are on the rise again with record increases in 10 regions, but with fewer sales overall. ...2 days ago
Liquidators of the hacked cryptocurrency exchange Cryptopia have travelled to the United States, to retrieve customers' information and certain crypto-assets. ...2 days ago
The Government’s homelessness program ‘ Housing First’ has expanded to the top of the South Island. ...2 days ago
All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others. This was the declaration of the pigs who control the government in George Orwell’s novel, Animal Farm – a tart comment on the hypocrisy of governments that proclaim the absolute equality of their citizens but gives power and privileges ...2 days ago
Winston Peters will back an NZME proposal to buy Stuff with a 'Kiwishare' guarantee the merged news company will keep regional news and separate websites for at least two years. ...2 days ago
National wants all Kiwi kids running for 15 minutes a day; and Auckland Council stops issuing urgent property reports until the New Year. ...3 days ago
National is vowing to bring back and expand health sector targets dropped by the current Government and mulling whether to scrap elected District Health Boards. ...3 days ago
ACC admits it has fallen short in the way it has dealt with surgical mesh patients as a report into their experiences is released. ...3 days ago
A high-risk mission to recover the bodies left behind after Monday's deadly eruption on Whakaari-White Island is now underway. ...3 days ago
Great, the west has started financial world war 3 with Russia. And this week Obama is going to sign into law the provision of lethal US military aid to Ukraine. Which is the US way of provoking Russia into sending armoured columns into Ukraine. Because just as the US would not allow nuclear missiles with a 10 minute flight time to Washington DC to be based in Cuba, Russia is certainly not going to allow similar in Ukraine.
And at the time when the Russkies had nuke missiles in Cuba, the Yanks had nuclear missiles in Turkey and Italy pointed at Russia. Although the deal was mutual removal, when the Soviet leadership removed their missiles from Cuba, the US government (Kennedy) kept theirs in Turkey and Italy.
When you’re imperialist top-dog you make up the rules to suit yourself, as in the days when Britannia ruled the waves and waived the rules.
Phil
This is a good view of how both sides see each other:
http://www.stratfor.com/weekly/viewing-russia-inside#axzz3M3XjUDKd
Not sure what conclusions I’d draw from it, apart from sanctions can destroy the russian economy but won’t necessarily effect any political change. The Russian economy is dire, I’ve seen people blabbing on about how insulated Russia will be bvecause of their foreign reserves – these have declined 20% in 2014, 10% in the last 3 weeks. Previous examples of currency collapse show you can burn through all those in a month if things get dire. The Ruble will trade at 200 within 3 months. Just rewind to 1998. Banks have stopped quoting on USDRUB – that is the start of the death spiral. While the fall in the ruble insulates somewhat against the fall in oil, every other import becomes unobtainable for the average Russian. The real problem in Russia is too much is being siphoned off by Putin and his cronies.
http://www.bloomberg.com/video/ruble-implodes-is-it-1998-all-over-again-mD4759gESfG4QbugVxZAdQ.html
The only real pressure point on Putin is more likely to come from his oligarch mates:
http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000339649
I suspect that is the bet the Americans and Germans are making.
Putin is a declared billionaire and will have plenty of undeclared cash/gold and assets also stashed away in foreign Countries. Russia revolves on corrupt practices, it’s normal.
I have a Russian girlfriend that studied management here. Apart from being stunningly beautiful, smart & quick witted, she was from a wealthy family. I once questioned her about where the wealth came from and joked ” your old man isn’t involved with the Russian mafia is he.” she laughed and said “everyone is linked to the mafia and black market, how you think my parents come here to NZ once a year and me travel home or holiday in Europe every year, it’s part of our culture.” She invited me to go out for dinner with them next time they come over. Her mother was warm and bubbly, her father was reserved and serious and spent alot of time talking stern on his mobile phone. He was big and tall and had the straightest back I’ve ever seen. I asked her later after we dropped them at their motel, your dad looks like an army man, she laughed and replied ex army General who fought with honour in Afghanistan, he has lots of medals. She told me the ex army men just transferred the power they had to running businesses. Sounded more like racketeering to me.
Do you think that the current decaying American empire is a match for a Russia led by people like your g/f’s family.
You just have to look at Putin for your answer, he make the rest of the World leaders look like pussy cats. Coupled with the Russian’s close assoiation with China and I’d say no match whatsoever CV.
@ Skinny
It’s what you do when there is the opportunity. This country was stripped of great public entities which were bought relatively cheaply by fast guys, when Roger Douglas and Richard Prebble got the wind in their sails. Serious money was made when they either resold them at a profit or built other aspects into them.
As soon as neo lib came in NZ and some top private positions were created in the place of public, a new guy in Auckland was off overseas with his wife and I think they managed to find hotel rooms at $2,000 a night. It seemed like a triumphal blow out at the cost of the stupid what they seemed to view as the ordinary mass of yobboes in the street. Their mantra was, and is, government can’t do anything right. The greed-gatherers got drunk on power and opportunity here just as they have in Russia.
Yeah Fay & his side kick merchant banker partner duped the taxpayer. I remember Fay’s first lieutenant drunkenly boasting at my sisters wedding how well they had done out of asset stripping our railways. I physically had to restrain my brother (who was a loco driver & got sucked into taking transrail shares by smooth talking Preeble) from knocking him out. This clown turned up at the swanky reception with a young hussey in tow and his own bottles of Dom. His ex was there and he started making a right Charlie of himself harassing her. My other brother and myself done the honours grabbed champagne Charlie and through him in the pool to cool off, much to everyone’s laughter. He stormed off, jumped in his porsche, dropped a burnout down the road like a spoilt brat. Yes plenty of money grabbing happening in the 80’s.
Pah! Russian gold reserves have been climbing steeply all through 2012-2013-2014, including record purchases in the last couple of months. Whatever inaccurate and propagandised sources you are reading, you should get new ones.
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-12-31/russian-banks-buy-1814-tons-gold-2013
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-11-19/gold-rises-after-unusual-russian-central-bank-gold-buying-announcement
Russian gold reserves might be increasing but not their total reserves.
I wouldn’t rely on ZeroHedge for great insight. “Tyler Durden” has been calling for a market correction in the S&P500 since about 1400, though he went remarkably quite around 1700. great gossip site but that’s what you’d expect from a convicted Bulgarian inside trader. His view on the world is always distinctly bearish – to paraphrase many others he has called about 35 of the last 2 market corrections. And he has a distinct political bias – which is fine, just correct for that.
Russia has been a buyer of gold, latest data I can see (31/10/14 via IMF) is that their total reserves are USD416.2 billion, of which gold holdings are 37.575 million oz. At $1193 per/oz that gold is worth about $44.8 billion, so a bit more than 10% of reserves. A ton of gold sounds impressive but is “only” worth around US$38.7 mm. So a purchase of 77 tons of gold is ~3 billion. Not too significant in the scale of Russia’s reserves or in the daily turnover of gold trading – London bullion exchange clears around $18 billion of physical gold a day, then add in futures trading.
Russia has around US$700 billion of foreign debt with 125 billion due in 2015 – that won’t roll over. Before the current turmoil the Russian govt was planning on spending 1.5 trillion rubles over the next 3 years, will be a lot more now.
Just wait and see how this current ruble devaluation pans out – right now Russia is experiencing full on capital flight – when the dust settles we’ll see what position a) their reserves are in, b) domestic inflation, c) growth. I’m picking all 3 will be disastrous. Plenty of smarter people than me are seeing a bleak outlook.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2014/12/15/russias-economy-is-doomed-its-that-simple/
this is out of date:
http://www.bloomberg.com/quote/USDRUB:CUR
Currently trading at 70, been as high as 79.
Russia has all the energy in the world. It also has about 40% of the EU’s gas requirements.
It just needs to wait things out and continue to work with the rest of the BRICS.
Let’s see how things play out. My bet is Russia wins.
no your 40% number is incorrect. It’s 28% and the most dependent countries are the ex-soviet satellites.
http://www.vox.com/2014/7/25/5936521/why-europe-wont-punish-russia-in-one-map
I don’t think Russia will disappear, they’ve survived worse than this. The first link I put up today is a much more nuanced view of what might happen. But equally Russia won’t win either – fascist states never do, but they can lash out militarily.
Be careful who you are calling “fascist” – it is the declining US empire which is an amalgamation of corporate, financial, governmental and military power that lashes out internationally.
If you do a checklist of the classical signs of a fascist state, no major nation ticks as many as Putin’s Russia.
The US has got a long way to decline. Russian GDP is now about $950 billion.
Here’s how that compares to some other entities:
State of North Rhine Westphalia $800 billion
City of Los Angeles $630 billion
City of New York $1.1 billion
Chicago+ Boston + Philadelphia $1.02 trillion
States of Washington + Maryland + Indiana$ 1 trillion
State of Texas 1.4 trillion
To really put it in perspective, Russian nominal GDP is now about 6 times larger than NZ.
Go Putin!
@ Philip F
Britannia ruled the waves and waived the rules.
Very neat aphorism I think.
They already have the cash for this misadventure their CR. Or there reassurance fund.
A back door to funding and a new term we may hear more of – The European Initiative.
http://www.publicintegrity.org/2014/12/11/16479/long-term-blank-check-war-spending?utm_source=email&utm_campaign=watchdog&utm_medium=publici-email&goal=0_ffd1d0160d-40abf15259-100020097&mc_cid=40abf15259&mc_eid=c346e018f7
What the hell is CR adam? Is that the new white power way of addressing another human being?
😆
TA when you talk to CR you are allowed to use initials. But not HH as that may be construed as being flippant. You’ll catch on to the finer nuances in time.
Oh I’ve got those nuances well and truly sussed now. You have too by the looks. 😉
And not only flippant, but white supremacist too, don’t forget.
Stalker much
If you don’t want your double standards exposed you shouldn’t show them. 🙂
Stalker much
“..More Nails in the Drug War Coffin: Top Stories of 2014..
..There’s been so much going on with drug policy reform this year -’
– it wouldn’t all fit in a ‘Top 10″ list..”
(cont..)
http://www.alternet.org/drugs/drug-war-coffin-nails-top-stories-2014-0
(also of interest..is that ex-junkie russell brand has done a doco on drugs..
..that has been very well received..)
“..This might be the only time almost all of Twitter agree with Russell Brand..
..This week has seen a social media turn-around for the star –
– following the airing of BBC 3′s Russell Brand: End the Drugs War..”
(cont..)
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/this-might-be-the-only-time-almost-all-of-twitter-agreed-with-russell-brand-9928057.html
‘cos unlike what some claim..my campaigning on this isn’t just because i want to smoke a joint..(i can do that already..eh..?..)
..it’s also because of my experience/history of having been addicted to heroin/cocaine/crack etc..
..that showed me that just about everything that is now done about ‘drugs’..is just so so wrong..on so so many levels..
..(and don’t get me started on that vile muck methadone..the ‘nazi-smack’..
..a textbook illustration/example of the maxim of the cure being worse than what it purports to heal..)
Interested and encouraging list that Phil.
Jebus, 105 opiate overdoses in the US per day…
Hard News top ten words of the year: “Dirty Politics” #1:
That article is a good round up of many of the recent issues on political social media.
Some Australian left-wing commentators on Sydney siege.
On the first day: http://rdln.wordpress.com/2014/12/16/on-the-sydney-siege/
On the day after: http://rdln.wordpress.com/2014/12/16/the-sydney-siege-the-day-after/
And something the mainstream news media, for some reason, choose not to cover much at all; US drone strikes and how they kill 28 people for every one target: http://rdln.wordpress.com/2014/12/17/us-drones-target-one-murder-twenty-eight/
Phil
Somebody should ask John Key’s view on his mates murdering 28 people for every 1 target …. drill down into it with Key ….
Which is more important? 28 people in Pakistan, or 2 people in Sydney?
Meanwhile, while the NZ pm is trying to spin the events as justification for enhanced surveillance, the Aus pm is noting the abject failure of their newly upgraded system.
Despite multiple charges against him, obvious signs of instability, and calls from within his own community for his investigation, and he himself virtually jumping up and down saying “Pick Me! I’m going to do something!” – though “known to them”, the deranged loner was “Not on the appropriate watchlists”.
“If I can be candid with you, that is the question that we were asking ourselves around the national security committee of the cabinet today,” Mr Abbott said.
“How can someone who has had such a long and chequered history, not be on the appropriate watch lists, and how can someone like that be entirely at large in the community?”
NSW Premier Mike Baird echoed this: “We are all outraged that this guy was on the street … the community has every right to feel upset. I’m incredibly upset,” he said.
http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/tony-abbott-martin-place-siege-gunman-was-known-to-asio-but-not-on-terror-watch-list-20141216-128hdj.html
@ vto..
..key has been quite open about how we help with the targeting of those drone attacks..
..those attacks in which 28 innocent men/women/children are slaughtered..
..for every ‘terrorist’ killed..
..his hands are drenched with/in the blood of these innocents..
..and as this is done by him in our name..
..so are ours..
..we..by siding with america..by actively helping in the execution of these killings..
..and by in general being such eager spear-carriers for america..
..we are also ‘the bad guys’..
I was wondering if someone has worked out an Israeli body count rate of exchange. Perhaps 1 Israeli = 20 Palestinians, 5 houses, 2 olive groves, 1 school, and 1 hospital.
It’s a tough world currency this balancing the political values for each side, though fairly stable in its extreme unfairness.
(we need some of this to happen here..)
“..Mom Calls C-SPAN To Scold Pundit Sons On Live TV..”
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/12/16/mother-calls-cspan-to-yell-at-brothers-on-live-tv_n_6334652.html
A list and explanation of roles of those responsible for the US breaking their own constitution and using torture.
http://www.publicintegrity.org/2014/12/12/15221/whos-responsible-cias-torture-policy?utm_source=email&utm_campaign=watchdog&utm_medium=publici-email&goal=0_ffd1d0160d-40abf15259-100020097&mc_cid=40abf15259&mc_eid=c346e018f7
With more state house evictions coming soon – Let me keep reminding people – YOU ARE NOT ALONE. Neoliberalisms madness has infected the whole western world.
http://libcom.org/news/protest-staves-eviction-liverpool-family-16122014
I meant to put this up a few days ago – Asks some tough questions about health and our attitude towards that concept.
http://libcom.org/blog/healthcare-only-tiny-part-health-13122014
I know this is an old blog – but re-read this the other day – and found it very much on the money.
http://libcom.org/library/dear-jamie-oliver
Watched all your links Adam. Pretty depressing stuff. No wonder people don’t want to know and skirt around the difficult stuff.
I’ve been listening to Mr Ludbrook, president of the Northland Fed farmers saying that because the deaths on quad bikes died of crushing injuries and not of head injuries, that the wearing of helmets should be a personal issue. This in response to a Marlborough couple getting $20,000 fines each for repeated refusal to wear quad bike helmets, purchasable for about $120.
Surely the fact that people don’t die of head injuries is a tribute to the wearing of helmets? All those people who hit their heads on the ground, rocks, trees, posts etc have survived- great.
Or is he saying that there are lots of people not wearing helmets and having accidents but their heads don’t get involved fatally?
Or is he saying that the people who died of crushing injuries weren’t wearing helmets but got no head injury?
Or they were wearing helmets but got no fatal head injury – which is what I’d expect if they wore helmets?
It defies logic to argue that helmet wearing should be a personal issue because people who die on quad bikes die of crush injuries but didn’t get head injuries because they wore helmets.
In other words, can he argue logically that the absence of death by head injury had nothing to do with helmets?
I think the man is a libertarian fishing for arguments to not be forced to wear a helmet on a quad bike, especially when repeated refusals might cost the offender $20,000.
He’s been on National radio, but the interviewer did not challenge his logic nor did the other side get an airing as to 1) why people should wear helmets on quad bikes, 2) why they should be compelled and 3). why a fine of $20,000 should apply and be awarded.
Nor did the particular aspects of this case get discussed. In all fairness to the judge, the lawmakers, the enforcing agencies, the court system, farm employees, farming family members and the taxpayer, the issue should have been more widely discussed rather than only permit a muddled-thinking libertarian talk about being reasonable.
I didn’t hear the Ludbrook interview, just the news about the fines. I suspect their will be a RW backlash about the “unfairness” of the fines.
My thought at the time was the couple had been warned several times about not wearing their helmets on their quad bikes, so they had plenty of opportunity to prevent receiving the fines. Why didn’t they comply? Serious question.
The agriculture sector is up there for workplace injuries:
http://www.dol.govt.nz/whss/statistics.asp
and I seem to recall Helen Kelly from the CTU mentioning the highest rates for workplace death last year occurred in this sector, ahead of the forestry sector.
So why would you want to chance it by not wearing Personal Protective Equipment? What do you have to lose by simply just putting your PPE on in the workplace, the farm? Your stubborn pride?
My concern is not for those two fined but for workers and families in the industry.
I was a farm worker for three years, and safety was an issue. I can imagine the 18 year old farm worker told by his non helmet wearing boss, or the child told by their non-helmet wearing mother or father, to get on the quad bike and go do a job. No helmet provided, no helmet available, and no expectation that a prudent person should wear one.
The element of compulsion gives protection to the vulnerable. As it did with compulsory bike helmet use for our helmet wearing kids who longer got jeered at by the foolish but could quote the law and find safety with it.
“My concern is not for those two fined but for workers and families in the industry.”
Absolutely mac1. It’s those with the responsibility for others safety (eg, boss, parent as above) that need to lead by example. It’s their duty to promote a safety culture.
Too often in NZ, workplace H&S protocols are cynically referred to as tick box exercises. Too many times I’ve seen employers grudgingly and speedily go through an H&S procedure with a new employee without any thought for the reason or importance of it, and seem to miss the concept that they need to promote a safety culture not just for the sake of compliance but for safety itself.
Yes and with the regulator Work Safe being empowered the Bosses are all positioning the liability back on the workers, which is just typical.
Once a boss tells a worker to were a helmet then surely it is up to the worker to do it , bosses cannot monitor there workers at all times.
I think the fines are excessive a drink driver is far more dangerous and 3rd time offenders get $1000 fine
mac1
Talking about bike helmets, I was surprised at the fervent negative attitude of a man in a bike hiring business who says that his European customers won’t wear them. He talks about Netherlands where nobody wears helmets. They also have a very flat country and are more self centrolled and disciplined than we are in my opinion.
I have heard others putting down helmets. Why do they think we now have them?
Some men are just so narcissistic and self-centred that they have trouble obeying any rules and guidelines.
“.. Why do they think we now have them?..”
control-freak/nanny-state gone mad..
..that’s why we ‘have them’..
..and far be it from me to speak for all men..
..but i think as many women wd oppose cycle-helmets as do men..
..helmet-hair is gender-neutral..
No doubt the non helmet wearing promotors also expect the rest of us to pay their medical costs. Funny how individual choice is not equated with individual responsibility.
wear a helmet when you drive a car then – same argument exactly
sheesh
How is it the same argument ?
Surely a better but still not correct argument would be to wear a seat belt when you drive a car.
Do you recall the argument for forcing people on bikes to wear helmets? The number of head injuries in the average bike accident.
How many people who have a car crash on the open road come out without head injuries?
Same argument
Wear a helmet when you drive a car.
For that argument to have any weight you would have to provide stats and analysis on car accident head inuries that could be prevented by helmet wearing.
Hey I aint a professor having to prove some thesis.
Try anecdote as a first step. Average open road car crash – how many without head injuries? I would suggest very few. Certainly more head injuries than non-head injuries. Makes the argument for car helmets more compelling than the argument for cycle helmets, actual ..
“Try anecdote as a first step. Average open road car crash – how many without head injuries? I would suggest very few. Certainly more head injuries than non-head injuries. Makes the argument for car helmets more compelling than the argument for cycle helmets, actual..”
I think that prohibition laws are based on stats and risk vs benefit. So we don’t reduce the open road limit to 50km/hr because the lives lost at 100km are not worth the lots time if we all drove more slowly. In order to make that judgement for society as a whole, the numbers would have to be crunched.
Anecdata is fine in some situations, but in this case I really do think you’d have to compare head injuries preventable by helmets in cars and weight that up against other factors like moveability, head space, inconvenience etc.
If we really wanted to reduce head injuries in car accidents we would lower the speed limit and redesign roads and put check points outside every pub car park.
I think the only reason this hasn’t been attempted is the same sort of reason that alcohol is given a free run in our society – it would make too many people grumpy. Cyclists are a small group but car drivers are everyone.
I think the argument and the stats and facts would win but people don’t always like facts and stats, they prefer to stick head in sand, fingers in ears, and cry “nya nyah nyah – cant hear you…”
The reason cyclists were made to wear helmets is because it was an easy thing to do with great benefit.
Ditto seat belts. And prohibiting cell phone use in cars.
Wearing a helmet in a car is not straight forward for a whole bunch of reasons, so it’s not as simple as saying it would be unpopular.
Not if the helmets were light like cycle helmets or slim and close fitting, or even made of glass so that sight is not obstructed……
Seems to be fine for motor-racing drivers and they need far more of those convenience things like manouervering (can never spell that word) and wide vision and quick physical actions than those of us dawdling around in Honda citys and Hillman avengers..
Car Accident TBI
Bicycle Helmet Usage and Head Injury Prevention
Of course, the reason why we’re seeing airbags in cars is because people would refuse to wear helmets in them.
@ weka..
“..Wearing a helmet in a car is not straight forward for a whole bunch of reasons,..”
cd u give us a couple of those reasons..?
..’cos following yr logic around cycle-helmets..
..the case for car-driver helmets is compelling..
..(especially if you are going to be driving over 50 k per hr…
..now there’s a policy..!..target the speedsters..!..)
Thanks DtB. Always good to have the stats facts.
I look forward to seeing increasing numbers of people voluntarily wearing helmets when driving their cars……
http://www.pmlydon.com/2011/make-it-a-law-help-protect-us-from-ourselves/
http://www.aceshowbiz.com/images/news/channing-tatum-and-jonah-hill-drive-football-helmet-car-on-set-of-22-jump-street.jpg
http://scrapetv.com/News/News%20Pages/usa/images-5/car-helmets.jpg
i think we should all have to wear big rubber/foam-rings..
..around our waists..
..all the time..
..then we wd be at no risk of bumping into each other..
..why should everyone else have to pay for those injuries..?
..when universal rubber/foam-rings wd take care of that..?
..and yes..!..rugby players/the all blacks..wd have to wear them too..!..
..do you know how much acc now pays out each yr on rugby-injuries..?
..whoar..!
..it makes bike-injuries look like chump-change…
..and yes..it will change the game..
..but you can’t be too careful now..can you..?
Save on birth control to re stopping people bumping into each other
yes..the benefits of the ring-solution are many and multi-faceted..
..and a natural form of contraception is definitely one of them..
..as only rubber/foam fanciers/fetishists will be turned on by the ring..
..it wd probably save acc money/make financial sense for acc to supply the compulsory-rings for free…
(and hey..!..if peter jackson is looking for a new ring-riff.?
..to make a new trilogy out of..
..and then a prequel-trilogy after that..?
..just saying..!..)
and of course..cyclists that fall off..will just bounce..
..and roll down the road..
and i am pretty sure that weka..representing the control-freak wing of the greens..
(‘you must wear a helmet..!..and no..!..you can’t smoke a joint..!..
..and don’t you even think of getting on a bicycle after smoking a joint..!’..
..i think the greens actually support breathyliser-locks on all bikes..
..’blow before you go..!’..)
..will be in wholehearted support of the idea of the ring…
(..probably wishes she thought of it..)
I have always said that cars and trucks should be made of soft bouncy rubber rather than bone-crunching flesh-tearing metal.
now yr talking..!
..those wellington buses cd definitely do with big rubber bump-guards..
..metal on flesh hurts so…
“I have always said that cars and trucks should be made of soft bouncy rubber rather than bone-crunching flesh-tearing metal.”
Could make pedestrians wear helmets when crossing roads…
…or we could design and built roads and paths that are fit for purpose and let people go about their business without being armour-plated.
Ahead of their time?
now yr talking..!
..those puffy-ones wd be perfect compulsory-suits for all cyclists..
..you can’t be too careful..!
I heard this song on the radio this morning. It is an evocative piece of atmospheric electronica music written for Eric Garner, the man who died at the hands of Police, earlier on in the year. You might recall they suspected he was selling tax free fags.
We Are Temporary explain:
“The five-minute 22-second piece includes some of Garner’s last words, as recorded on cellphone video, on July 17 to the NYPD, seconds before one of its officers put Garner in a chokehold and killed him. At the 2:25 mark, the bass and drums cut out as Garner can be heard telling the officers, “I’m minding my business; please, just leave me alone. I told you the last time, please just leave me alone.”
It’s not an easy listen, says Roberts, who’s 35 and lives in Bushwick. “It is a little manipulative. I’m aware of the fact that Garner’s life and the situation might be more complex than the video shows, but I think what I wanted to do is allow the music to create empathy for a person who was dying.
“For me, there’s something really desperate and childlike in ‘please,’ and I wanted that to come across.” ”
http://blogs.villagevoice.com/music/2014/12/listen_to_i_cant_breathe_the_song_about_eric_garner.php
‘What can you say about a society whose food production must be hidden from public view? In which the factory farms and slaughterhouses supplying much of our diet must be guarded like arsenals to prevent us from seeing what happens there? We conspire in this concealment: we don’t want to know. We deceive ourselves so effectively that much of the time we barely notice that we are eating animals, even during once-rare feasts, such as Christmas, which are now scarcely distinguished from the rest of the year.’
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/dec/16/perpetual-denial-food-meat-production-environmental-devastation
JIM MURPHY ELECTED SCOTTISH LABOUR LEADER.
Mr Murphy, addressing Labour party members at the Glasgow Emirates Arena, declared: “This is a fresh start for Scottish Labour. Scotland is changing and so too must Scottish Labour. I’m ambitious for our party because I’m ambitious for our country.”
“The majority are fulfilled, getting on, getting by, being successful. A minority are falling behind, denied opportunity, trapped, unable to escape the hardship of their upbringing.
“That inequality is wrong and it is my driving purpose, it is our driving purpose, it is the Scottish Labour Party’s driving purpose to end that type of inequality once and for all.”
Mr Murphy said the best way to tackle poverty was to boost the economy.
“The most effective anti poverty measure is a successful economy,” he said.
“It’s about backing businesses, it’s about creating jobs, because if redistribution is our aim, which it is, then we need more wealth not less. We want more entrepreneurs, not fewer. A growing middle class that more families are able to join.
“The debate about how we spend our wealth starts with how we earn it.”
Read more here:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/labour/11291800/Jim-Murphy-announced-as-new-Scottish-Labour-Party-leader.html
He sounds just like FJK.
“It’s about backing businesses, it’s about creating jobs, because if redistribution is our aim, which it is, then we need more wealth not less.”
We just need to wait for that “more wealth” to be made before the redistribution starts. Somehow, I don’t think we should hold our breath.
What it means to piss off the western empire: financial, banking and capital attack
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-12-16/western-banks-cut-liquidity-russian-entities
What do you expect?
You come to me for a loan and I say what is your collateral?
You say “these Russian ruble denominated assets”
What would you do?
This is about assets; It’s a financial cold war between a dying empire and its pretenders. There’s nothing else to be said about it.
Not sure who you want me to have sympathy for here.
This US corporate action won’t kill them – it will drive their clients and their assets into the hands of China. That isn’t in US interests either state or corporate.
Tony Abbott, what a guy
http://thesauce.co/achievements-of-the-abbott-government/
it’s a blip-list..
..with an aussie accent…
(while looking for something else..i stumbled upon this..
..back in february i told labour what they had to do to avoid a caning from national/key..
..i guess they weren’t listening..
..and what i warned of..they didn’t heed..
..and what i said would happen if they didn’t..did..)
http://whoar.co.nz/2014/commentwhoar-ed-the-mire-labour-find-themselves-in-how-to-get-out-of-that-mire-and-how-to-avoid-an-election-campaign-caning-from-keynational/
An excellent write up. Just glanced at it then was hooked.
The New Yorker:
The Big Kill
New Zealand’s crusade to rid itself of mammals.
By Elizabeth Kolbert
…”Sirocco’s chaperone, a Department of Conservation ranger named Alisha Sherriff, had brought along a little metal container, which she passed among the visitors. Inside was half a cup’s worth of Sirocco’s shit.
“Have a good sniff,” she suggested.
“It’s earthy!” one woman exclaimed.
“I think it smells smoky, with notes of honey,” Sherriff said. When the container came to me, I couldn’t detect any honey, but the bouquet did strike me as earthy, with hints of newly mown hay. Sherriff had also brought along a ziplock bag with some of Sirocco’s feathers. These, too, had a strong, sweetish scent.
New Zealand birds tend to smell, which was not a problem when the islands’ top predators were avian, since birds hunt by sight. But, as mammals hunt with their noses, it’s become yet another liability…..”
http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/12/22/big-kill
Looked up Sirocco NZs spokesbird and after a few shots of a wise and questing kakapo who pops up but yek! The well known conservationist, laying down his life for the planet.
is it nick ‘the gurner’ smith..?
No that’s my point. It’s Key looking confidentially enthusiastic – Smith might have appeared further on but I cut the connection fast. Too much yek is toxic, I have to watch my health.
The authorities warn about legionella when handling compost etc, and a mask should be worn. As yet no health alerts have gone out about watching and listening to yek but I think they are overdue. However it should be added, that there is likely to be a window of contamination with yek as in ebola. Trouble is no-one is sure of how to know when the threshhold of infection is crossed.
since when was key yek…?
..and for why..?
..(what am i missing here..?..)
“..(what am i missing here..?..)”
Heaps, bro.
say ‘thank you!’..
..i gave it to u on a plate..
Nga mihi.
In a regularly article in the ‘Rural News’ titled agtwits called a “irreverant and hypothetical look at what’s happening in the rural world”
sbrowninggreen:Don’t you you just love MMP when a tree-hugging,organic-munching,treat Ebola-with-homeopathy nutjod like me gets into Parliament and is given the green party’s responsibility for ag#whythegreenssuck#iamaclown.
Damienoconnormp: So the self serving unionist beat the gaggling gay for the leadership of the party viola,I’m back on the back bench again.#evenwheniwnilose#whatdidisaywrong
@littleandrewlabour:I have little interest in farming,Little to offer agriculture and Little chance of changing labours anti-farming attitude. I guess I’m to little to late.#redflag#unionforever
Johnkeypm: I was going to text Andrew Little to congratulate him on winning the Labour leadership.However, I can’t because it would mean that I’m in proactive contact with a vile,poisonous, delusional loser.#delete message
#roflmao
I’ve copied as accurately as possible seems pretty nasty in spots for what’s meant to be light hearted
Wow!
Sounds as if the writer has played rugby a lot and gone straight back on the field after being slightly concussed too many times. It has cumulative effects I’ve heard. Add regular jars of ale and after a while of that, anything that differs slightly from the known and prescribed norm is strange and amusing.
It reeks of attack to me .further on in the same paper there’s this
“WANTED” A Political home for labour agriculture spokesman Damien O’Connor. A solid, talented and knowledgeable performer, he has been hung out to dry by his own party which seems to have no interest in agriculture apart from imposing a cgt and cuddling with the Greens who essentially want a return to peasant farming.
This is evidence of the ignorance in the farming sector.
It is no wonder that for generations they have claimed they want to leave the land in a better state than when they got it, yet the evidence shows that they have done exactly the opposite.
Ignorance on a grand scale.
See claiming all farmers are bad just confirms some of what fukwits like who ever wrote that stuff i posted above say about the left, there are plenty of good farmers doing good stuff.
Of course there are, including a big chunk of mine …
It was a generalisation and I didn’t say all farmers are bad – I merely looked at the claims they have on average been making for the last couple of generations or so, and looked at the average evidence around those claims, and come up with an answer to their claim.
And if I might be so bold as to generalise even more – I see this all the time in our circles. That which you outlined in your original comment above is, imo, the average view of the average farmer (including the bad ones, and excluding the good ones). They are very pig-headed and stubborn. They spend so much time in their one world that they cannot fathom anything different ( or so says my opinion, after most of life in and out of such circles) – which is of course a very human trait and if I was now a farmer I would likely be doing the same ….
Prejudice and preconceived ideas confirmed then vto. Sigh
No you are wrong Jimmy.
Not pre-judged because as mentioned opinion is based on a lifetime of direct and indirect experience.
And not preconceived because as mentioned opinion is based on a lifetime of direct and indirect experience.
You should learn the meaning of words before using them. Sigh.
I understand the terminology no problem vto, just dont beleive you.
If you understand the terminologies than next step is to learn how to use them properly.
As for not believing my claim – non problema. It is my experience but you haven’t been by my side during that time so I can see how it can be difficult.
@ b waghorn
It just reeks of some of the empty minds we get here regularly. Bereft of any sense of how little they utilise their own intelligence they build themselves up by mocking those who do. Unwilling to test their own ideas and find them wanting, they hold onto untested myths which they accept as sureties, and then throw scorn on those who look outside the square for different possibilities.
Those people consider different ideas that when tested may prove unsuitable. Those who never dare to think out something individually, only to find it doesn’t work, or isn’t correct, remain safe, always protecting themselves from the scorn their type pours out on the thinkers and questers.
The reason I put these things here is to highlight what turns up in rural papers on occasion, in the hope that if any readers here that are linked to Labour and the Greens might come up with ways to counter it.
Agreed. I read those publications and notice what you point out too. It is common.
Sssorry if this has been posted before.
I was watching Newsroom, a US tv show which traverses many issues. On this episode one of the journalists is interviewing someone who has created an App enabling “citizen journalists” to post the whereabouts of celebrities on a map for the titilation of fellow citizens.
It turns out it was based on a real website called gawker stalker and a real interview. It made me think of the constant pandering to base human behaviour that is substituting journalism.
It reaaly is worth watching, especially for the website owners reactions.
Is this another example of dirty politics?
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11364950
You havent actually read the book then?
“Is this another example of dirty politics?”
No.
From Mohammad Reza Alizadehfard: Syd Hostage: Who was Haron Monis?
1. He was born in Iran in a city called Borojerd.
2. His birth name is Mohammad Hassan Manteghi Borojerdi.
3. He was the director of a travel/tourism agency in Iran
4. He stole about $200,000 from his customers and escaped to Australia.
5. Iranin authorities through Interpol police asked Australian
government to hand him back to Iranian judiciary system. However,
Australia refuses to do so as He claimed he is a political refugee and
Iranian regime prosecuted him because of his liberal/democratic beliefs.
Australian government gave him political asylum in 1996.
6. In 2007
Sheikh Kamal Mosalmani, head of Australian Shia Council, wrote a letter
to ASIO warning them about his suspicious activities.
7. He presented himself as a Shia cleric with no confirmed official or formal education.
8. In 2014 Nov, he announced on his website renouncing Shia Islam and
paying allegiance to “the Caliphate of time Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi”, the
head of ISIL. Australian government was aware of his conversion and
support for ISIL in the last month.
(This the exact Arabic quote from his website:
أطيعوا الله و أطيعوا الرسول و أولي الأمر منكم
البيعة مع الله و رسوله و أمير المؤمنين – أبايع الله و رسوله و خليفة المسلمين
الحمد لله رب العالمين و الصلاة و السلام على نبينا محمد و على اله و
أصحابه أجمعين و التابعين منهم والسلام على أمير المؤمنين خليفة المسلمين
إمام عصرنا الحاضر و الحمد لله الذي جعل لنا خليفة في الأرض و إماما يدعونا
إلى الإسلام و الإعتصام بحبل الله سبحانه و تعالى. و الحمد لله الذي
شرّفني ببيعة إمام زماننا . إنّ الذين يبايعون خليفة المسلمين فإنما
يبايعون الله و رسوله يد الله فوق أيديهم . و قال رسول الله صلى عليه و سلم
من مات و لم يعرف إمام زمانه مات ميتة جاهلية . والحمد لله الذي لم يجعلني
من الذين ماتوا و لم يعرفوا إمام زمانهم . و الحمد لله على نعمة الإيمان و
كفى بها نعمة و أفوض أمري إلى الله إنّ الله بصير بالعباد
والسلام على من اتبع الهدى
هارون – سيدني أستراليا
الإثنين 24 محرم 1436
————————————————————————————————————————————————————
في الزمن السابق قد رفعت راية غير راية الإسلام فأستغفر الله و أتوب اليه و
أقسم بالله العظيم أن لا أرفع راية غير راية رسول الله صل الله عليه و سلم
————————————————————————————————————————————————————-
9. And as you all may know he has been charged for writing hate letters
to Australian soldiers ‘family, 40 sexual assaults and killing of his
wife. The last but not least he was known to have psychological issues.
So, If we want to play blame game who is the one to be blamed first and foremost?
%————————————————————
From me: While real political refugees get treated like shit, it looks like criminals who steal from people the government doesn’t like get the red carpet treatment. Compare this case with what happened to Ahmed Zaoui in Aotearoa.
Plenty of egg to go around the Australian security, surveillance and immigration services.
The answer must to reward such stellar performance by giving them more powers!
In the Alice books they have a tea party. I think they end up by picking on a dormouse which has been quietly sleeping and presents an easy target for malicious behaviour. When the tea party protagonists have used their cups and spoons, they move on to the next setting. But of course they eventually go round again to settings with old dirty utensils.
It seems that some people with excessive powers are incapable of cleaning up their act. They carry their dirty habits with them, and the downward slide in standards and ‘hygiene’ goes on. More powers just increases the slovenly moral behaviour.
An excellent thought experiment
Radio: “U.S. troops say they were locked in coffin-like boxes and endured countless near-drownings.”
A Republican-voting housewife comments: “The Taliban says it was legal, so that’s OK with me.”
https://twitter.com/astroehlein/status/544822901640531968/photo/1
I see Phil Goof has apologised.
Little must be fuming having to put up with these fools, and he has every reason to be the angry man the right are trying to portray him as. Labour still need to sweep a lot more out the door before they will even be in the game next election, some of these old heads have to much baggage.
Experience is a good thing for Lawyers, Tradesmen, Accounts etc, but not necessarily in Hookers or Politicians because eventually the Baggage gets to heavy to carry and the makeup starts to run.
Who Created Cartoon Character “Man Haron Monis” Behind “Sydney Siege” Circus?
http://www.activistpost.com/2014/12/who-created-cartoon-character-man-haron.html
by Tony Cartalucci , Activist Post
Previously an outspoken critic of Iranian government, was interviewed by Australian media in 2001, loved Western society…
As predicted, the suspect amid the “Sydney Siege,” has long been on the radar of Australian law enforcement, as well as a frequent visitor to Australia’s court system.
Before that, however, he came to Australia as a political refugee, an opponent of what he called the “Iranian regime,” and was even interviewed by Australia’s ABC network in 2001 as part of an ongoing anti-Iranian propaganda campaign. ….
Read more….
http://www.activistpost.com/2014/12/who-created-cartoon-character-man-haron.html
Saddam Hussein was a poster boy for a while, then he lost favour, was hunted and captured and is now dead. So all malefactors can find a golden period of amnesty and tolerance insufficient to make them happy and give them a long life.
That Sydney guy was trouble with a capital T. But Oz politicians and spooks found him useful for their propaganda machine, and gave him a long rope, and the public have suffered from that. The deaths result from the hands of their Oz two-faced, machiavellian political masters who are subservient to an anti Middle East hegemony.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/miles-mogulescu/the-speech-that-could-make-elizabeth-warren-president_b_6319142.html
I really, really, really hope Elizabeth Warren runs for US President in 2016. She’s the only one not afraid to attack the banks, and even Obama — her own party’s president. She may be one of the only ones left not bought and paid for by Wall St.
Don’t kid yourself. She’s as corrupt and as heartless as anyone in Congress….
At a town hall in August, she defended Israel’s shelling of targets in Gaza, saying that Israel had a right to defend itself against attacks from Hamas.
“America has a very special relationship with Israel,” she said, according to the Cape Cod Times. “Israel lives in a very dangerous part of the world, and a part of the world where there aren’t many liberal democracies and democracies that are controlled by the rule of law. And we very much need an ally in that part of the world.”
http://www.politico.com/story/2014/11/elizabeth-warren-israel-113141.html
that is the only chink in her armour i have seen..
..what about the rest of the warren-package..?
..and you wd prefer clinton..?
Who will be Discredited When Venezuela Doesn’t Default? Nobody.
https://zcomm.org/zblogs/who-will-be-discredited-when-venezuela-doesnt-default-nobody/
by JOE EMERSBERGER, 17 December 2014
In this article [1], Bloomberg (Ye Xie, Katia Porzecanski and Pietro D. Pitts) wonder who will seize Venezuelan assets if the government defaults.
A better question would be “How will Bloomberg’s reporting change when Venezuela doesn’t default?”
The global economic meltdown that took place a few years ago, and from which we are still recovering, answered for us. The reporting won’t change at all.
Being an elite investor, big credit rating agency or highly regarded economist means never having to say you’re sorry. It is quite a prestigious group that couldn’t see (or wouldn’t admit to seeing) gargantuan housing bubbles in the USA and elsewhere that led to worst global economic recession since WWII. The big credit rating agencies gave mortgage backed securities the highest possible ratings just before they blew up. The Federal Reserve of Boston put out a paper [2] exploring why the vast majority of the professional economists proved as useless as “the markets”.
We must add to the list of the “never-accountable-for-anything” corporate news agencies like Bloomberg who hype the “concerns” of all these people. The appalling track record is always a non-issue.
[1] http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-12-15/who-gets-citgo-s-assets-if-venezuela-defaults-.html
[2] http://www.bostonfed.org/economic/ppdp/2010/ppdp1005.pdf
This pic is the lesson that the RWNJs, neoliberals and other Randian types have forgotten.
And you think the NZ media sucks up to the government……
http://www.vox.com/2014/12/16/7402469/putin-russia-ads
They’re not that much different from what we get on Channel 9 in Brisbane. And yes, the Kiwi media does suck up to Key.
The fact that our media are not reporting the reasons and geopolitics behind the collapse in oil prices shows that our media is not telling us what’s really going going on.
Our media, not Russia’s, is the one we concern ourselves about, as it impacts on our own perception of reality more.