“Freedom of expression is often one of the first victims of a successful socialist revolution”.
That’s an interesting comment from @NandorTanczos, which prompted some more comments, from @LewSOS:
The trouble with revolution, socialist and otherwise, is that it *requires* suppression of free expression to prevent counter-revolution. Such repression is not merely a side-effect of revolution, but is intrinsic, and must be backed by violence if the revolution is to persist.
Lenin and Mussolini and Castro and Mao and Franco were all perfectly clear on this point. A revolution without repression and violence isn’t a revolution. It’s just an advisory campaign.
A democratic revolution is no such thing. It’s a nonsense. What the people vote for, the people can vote against, if they are allowed to vote again. So for the new regime to persist, they must not be allowed to do so. This is why I am neither a socialist nor a revolutionary.
At a basic functional level, it isn’t really. But the specifics matter. Popper was about very specific lined restrictions to safeguard the open society, but the revolutionary praxis in real life has tended to involve a great deal more murdering of dissidents
If socialist policies are adopted freely and maintained democratically, then at a regime level, for me there’s no very meaningful difference with any other democracy. The socialism bit is incidental and nearly irrelevant as it can be reversed at any time by a change of government.
(Whether it could be reversed in practice is another matter, because in principle capitalism could be reversed in the same way, and yet it has not been, because norms and institutions have power of a sort)
So is it possible to have a revolution while retaining democracy?
Yes – as we have seen over the last 30+ years, the already-powerful can impose revolutionary change quite successfully and the dilemma Tanczos describes doesn’t even arise. Owning large swathes of the private media helps in these situations of course, because it provides a non-violent way of controlling the range of what gets expressed.
Revolutionary change by the weak against the powerful is inherently more fragile and susceptible to being overturned. But there are no credible voices on the left proposing violent or repressive methods (such as curtailment of freedom of expression) for resolving the problem. Instead we are all about mass movements, evolutionary change and re-imagining the human condition. And with the coming climate crisis it is essential that this alternative vision exists, otherwise we spiral into dystopian hell.
Generally promoted and supported by small minorities who lament the ignorance of those who don’t get on board, or lambast the ‘right wing’ media left wing journalists depending on the leaning of forum, for not promoting their cause.
You’re talking about cliques and power struggles between or in support of cliques there Pete. And if there’s a clique (or a committee or a “council of wise elders”), then there is no revolution – just the changes that arrive with a changing of the guard.
And history shows us that nothing fundamental changes in those situations – thems with the power still does in thems without power.
Such reactionary emotive terminology versus the concept of evolutionary change.
As the generation coming through looks to evolve not tear down and collaborate rather than dictate. Imagine as John Lennon sang…..I wonder if you can ?
When democracy is the revolution then yes, obviously democracy supplants the faux democracy (or whatever other degree of authoritarian rule is in place) – that has enabled a constant and mere “changing of the guard” to take place off the back of endless streams of bullshit and bullshitters touting themselves as revolutionary…Lenin and Mussolini and Castro and Mao and Franco et al
Whether it could be reversed in practice is another matter, because in principle capitalism could be reversed in the same way, and yet it has not been, because norms and institutions have power of a sort
Capitalism hasn’t been thrown out because the government supports it. Often against the wishes of the populace, i.e, the sale of our power infrastructure and the signing of the TPPA and it’s replacement.
It’s difficult to say that we have a democracy when the government doesn’t rule as the many want them to but how business wants them to.
Seems to me a key aspect of any socio-economic system is how to manage the sociopaths with a lot of drive that are compelled to do what it takes to live in the biggest house, have sex with the most attractive partners, eat the tastiest foods etc.
A well designed mixed economy allows a freedom for those sociopaths to channel that drive into building things useful to us all. So the likes of Jobs, Musk, Brin & Page can take ideas languishing in obscure research labs (mostly with govt funded) and turn them into stuff that really does improve lives.
But the problems created by a weak government side that allows allows entities to grow too powerful and act too carelessly are painfully evident throughout history, and not just since the neo-lib craze of the last 30ish years.
Equally, Animal Farm is a simplistic but accurate picture of how the sociopaths corrupt socialist/communist ideals to their own benefit, backed up by plenty of real world examples.
So how to synthesise the best aspects of the extremes of ideology and minimise the failings? Looks to me like Scandinavian social democracies come closest. And there is a path there from where we are now via patient incrementalism.
I’ve noticed a BIT of a change @ Ed.
Actually it’ll end up being a shitload more than 400 in Kerala, plus a number in UP and even in Uttarakhand not that long ago.
RNZ was actually leading with this earlier today, so don’t be too dismissive of the Griggs attitude being discussed a couple of days ago (concerning that ‘shithole’ Yemen)
There’ll be one or two telling her that 30 years experience actually don’t mean shit these days. But no matter, the mortgage must be nearly paid off and Christian and Damien have been doing Oh so Very well at St Marks (going forward)
There might be an opening for her at the Spinoff before too long.
I thought the tree planting thing was an initiative to inject wages and a sense of purpose into the lives of those living in our most impoverished regions.
Shane Jones just said on Newshub Nation he is bringing in gangs of seedling planters from the Pacific Islands.
I think this is well wrong, if not planting trees, we need to find what will engage these people. Half of our problems in the Far North is the devil finding tasks for idle hands.
Tree planting Pinus radiata in the steep hills near Nelson was the most physically difficult, hardest work I’ve ever done. After a few weeks of lugging bags of trees and a mattock up and down those rocky slopes, I was mountain-goat-fit, but not planning to make a career of that form of tree planting.
If getting trees planted was the primary goal, ok. But as I understand the intitiative…Shane said “Get my neffs off the couch.”
We’ll be using tax payers money to fly in, accommodate and pay unskilled migrants from the Pacific Islands to plant trees that will ultimately benefit the companies that own the forests. The benefits to the current population of the Far North…I can’t see much.
You were younger then Robert. And look how well you turned out. Tree planting like that might be the challenge that these young fellers and gals are looking for. If they could get peer groups where they found friends, get jobs that kept them away from drugs and the gangs that are negative, in ten years there would be a different climate on the ground, and perhaps they could be in training for taking on specialist jobs to do with climate change.
David Mac
All your points are valid. Shane – work with NZs needing jobs and a wage and purpose in life first. Perhaps go to hapus and ask them to get together groups of young men and women who are ready to start learning how to do various jobs and so encourage them to be hopeful of a better future and start with some getting off drugs and moving up.
The Pacific Islanders look to NZ as a change and way they can improve life for themselves. Maori who are already here and have been faced with barriers to making a change and improving life for themselves will learn to believe in themselves in time when they see others getting a better life from taking up opportunities.
Considering that climate change is going to make life more and more difficult and we need to raise our resilience and awareness of how to manage to cope, I think it is essential that human-loving politicians right now use all their resources and thought to get projects that enable the rise in self-supporting and strength of mind and belief in one’s own worth to advance themselves.
“I thought the tree planting thing was an initiative to inject wages and a sense of purpose into the lives of those living in our most impoverished regions.”
It has the potential too. Unfortunately, Jones initially wanted it to be a work for the dole scheme. So much for injecting wages and a sense of purpose.
After some backlash, Labour ensured us employees would be paid the minimum wage. But there was no guarantee employees wouldn’t be employed as independent contractors, thus no minimum wage required.
And as you highlighted, Jones now plans to bring in offshore workers. He’s also seeking offshore companies to partake.
Seems employees and local communities will be coming off second best as a lot of this taxpayer spend up heads offshore.
The issue is also in the old days, the government pumping money into the economy with projects used to work.
Under globalism it doesn’t anymore, and actually can be making things worse aka they give the infrastructure contracts to industry who don’t use it to employ or train local people but instead import cheap workers in that don’t pay taxes, drive up prices for housing and rents and require more roads and hospitals and schools to be built. When it all goes wrong with poor construction and remedial work, everyone seems to be gone and up to the taxpayers to fix up the problems it seems. Who would possibly expect industry and those that own the company be responsible for faulty work???
Meanwhile locals are on the dole still being poisoned smallpox style by P being spread like wildfire, with little to zero intervention of how it’s happened within a decade, and how the raw ingredients are getting in.
With planting trees, when the forests are owned by offshore individuals and various accounting schemes means it remains to be seen if they will a) employ local people to plant them, and b) will there be any economic benefit for NZ if they harvest or make money from it. At least with the trees, hopefully we get cleaner air although sounds like the ratepayers pay to maintain the roads when they move the logs if they harvest them.
Informative interview for the reasoning democrat. Radionz from Kim Hill. Mr Neiwert has been studying right movements for decades. He has a view on where Jordan Peterson fits in. He explains the mindset of trollers and the alt right.
10:04 David Neiwert – The Rise of the Radical Right in the Age of Trump
Neo Nazis, Alt-Right, and White Supremacists march in Charlottesville, Virginia.
David Neiwert is a journalist, author and expert in American right-wing extremism. He has appeared on Anderson Cooper 360, CNN Newsroom, and The Rachel Maddow Show and is the managing editor of the popular political blog Crooks and Liars. His work has also appeared in the American Prospect, the Washington Post, MSNBC.com, Salon.com, and other publications.
His previous books include And Hell Followed With Her: Crossing the Dark Side of the American Border, which won the 2014 International Latino Book Award. His latest book is called Alt America: The Rise of the Radical Right in the Age of Trump, and he’ll be speaking to it at the WORD Christchurch festival, details here.
Neiwert says that Trump sees himself as expressing the common man’s and woman’s? opinions. That he has enabled the rise in alt right and other abuse with his lead on this.
Good to get the links VV. I thought they were good, she and her team, Dita? et al? pick some good riveting or relaxing stuff. to take us down and then up and more informed at the end.
It was bloody good interview @ grey eh?. I listened with all the crackling on the AM band caused by strikes of lightening, as I crossed the Desert Road earlier.
Just as an aside, I thought to myself as I listened, how all the critics of the Kim Hill Sung that offer their thoughts over 2101 collide with comments from her interviewees such as “good question” and “thanks for asking that”.
Corrrrrrrrrr eh?
A Puckish Arse gets off on Jude Collins’ every move .
Kim Hill Sung gets me just with that sexy voice AND fierce intellect. (pffft)
A treasure to behold
Once was Tim
You are a lively commenter. I think I agree with you, and the bits I don’t understand probably. As you say – Kim Hill, a fierce intellect. And when she is talking to people who understand and know her well apparently, as with the Finns, that was very enjoyable, lol.
Glad when you crossed the Desert Road that you stayed in the car. There were about 1,000 strikes or some large number. You could get your brain frizzled and be unable to lighten our frequent gloom on TS. Take care.
Neiwert almost destroyed his credibility at the end when he asserted, like a true on-message Democratic Party stooge: “And I DO believe there was Russian meddling.” He seemed to think that Mrs Clinton would have won if not for that dastardly mastermind in Moscow. In just those few words, he resembled the sad cases of the far right, who he’d scoffed at, memorably, for “inhaling their own exhaust.”
But but there probably is something there. Did he say what and how much? It is possible. We can’t know everything – your mind might be devious Morrissey but when there is a phalanx of sycophants (pretty good eh) then they can combine in ways that science has yet to identify.
I accept that the Russians did indeed try to sow dissension. But their thousands of blog posts—and I have seen many of them—were about the same quality and authority of something on Whaleoil or KiwiBlog. The idea that they somehow were crucial to the victory of Trump is absurd, and Neiwert severely damages his credibility and authority by repeating such nonsense.
Correct Marty. Of course the Russians ineptly tried to upset the warmonger Clinton’s campaign. Foolishly, they backed Trump.
But the idea that the Russians are some malevolent force manipulating Trump and his cronies and somehow interfering with the ballot itself is simply preposterous. That, however, is what the Clinton wing of the Democratic Party continues to allege, and it’s amplified daily by the likes of Rachel Maddow and, sadly, David Neiwert.
Have you considered puitting brief explanation and links to the stories where he did most good for society and NZ in general. Then you would meet DTBs point and illustrate your own.
That would be wiser than engaging in pointless abuse. Give us the facts man as a comic once said. And feel free to repeat this to me if you see me forget my owm point.
Somebody respected Warwick’s work enough to put up a quick post acknowledging his passing.
I’m suggesting that the person that feels obliged to add ‘Who cares’ is a shallow humanitarian who needs calling out on their form.
I haven’t split atoms, nobody knows me, but my family would respectfully request that you refrain from spreading the message ‘Who gives a fuck anyway’ upon my death.
There are a lot of negative things out there all the time David Mac.
Too many shoulds too. Why did you not try what I suggested if you think so highly of him. I remember he was well thought of, prove with what you think are his best pieces. I personally don’t want to live in an authoritarian world where I am told what to think. But if there is good evidence I will look and think about it.
David Neiwert – The Rise of the Radical Right His latest book is called Alt America: The Rise of the Radical Right in the Age of Trump, and he’ll be speaking to it at the –
WORD Christchurch festival –
on August 30.
disability law
Proposed euthanasia bill in NZ ‘needs tweaking’
From Nine To Noon, 9:32 am on 16 August 2018
The wording of proposed euthanasia legislation should be tightened to ensure it only applies to the terminally ill, members of an Australian advisory panel say.
Up you all who don’t care about anybody else’s desperate need or personally strong wish for release because of your own dark imaginings and fears. These come first according to you, with an argument about ethics and so on used as a barrier to belief in the right of a particular human being to have a decent and timely system so they can enable their death according to the fullest choice of best and painless ways with all reasonable legal and moral matters attended to
beforehand.
I find the reluctance to deal with people’s needs and requirements relating to euthanasia so disgraceful; people are so reluctant to face up to realities of living and dying that they are apparently frozen from doing anything at all. This Australian lawyer might be offering intelligent suggestions like a cup of milk into already weak tea, but that might actually be needed to give some answer to the mass of weak mutterings of the inadequate thinkers who are a majority in NZ.
Self-centred fears? Go look up Aktion T4 and see what history has to teach us. Why do you think the Australians carefully narrowed the scope of their law?
That was an interesting interview on Thursday but mainly focused on the Australian (Victoria?) legislation rather than the current NZ Bill.
Paula Tesoriero, the HRC Disabilities Commissioner, was on Nine to Noon the next morning (Friday) and I personally found her analysis and misgivings much more relevant and disturbing vis a vis the NZ Bill.
Rosemary McDonald and I have had a few comments on OM yesterday on this subject with Rosemary having done a very detailed comment with her view etc which has been rather lost on there – so here is a link
As I said in a reply to Rosemary under the above, I have great respect for Paula having worked with her briefly – and for Rosemary’s views but I do not believe that we can just can the euthanasia discussion ( although I definitely believe we need to rethink the Bill) until the never never when all these other problems have been resolved. IMHO these issues need to be addressed concurrently and together. (Bad wording but hope you get my meaning.)
Will the Green’s environmental wins further the party’s divide?
The Green’s environmental wins are going to challenge their crusade for the poor.
The Green’s environmental wins are going to result in a number of new environmental related charges being introduced with the regressive nature of the inflationary impact of these new charges hitting the poor the hardest. Thus, clashing with the cause and as a result, furthering the divide within the party.
To date, the concern is there has been little to no talk on how the Greens plan to win-over Labour and NZF and help the poor mitigate these additional costs, thus reunite the party.
The Greens consider both the poor and the environment in all their policy work. But your position is that the two concerns are mutually exclusive, going as far in one of your more confused rants to claim the the Greens’ biggest win, healthy homes, had nothing to do with social policy at all!
significantly increasing tip fees… make the manufactures/retailers have to take the packaging/clapped out model back themselves for disposal or have more recycling centres. (You used to have community sites for paper, bottles, cans etc around libraries, now that is all gone and you just have your bin/bag each week).
Most businesses generate rubbish and as with any cost incurred, it’s only logical to assume businesses will attempt to pass that cost on. Therefore, not only will people pay more for goods and services, they also pay more for their own rubbish disposal. Thus, this kind of regressive inflationary pressure is felt hardest by the poor.
Making manufactures/retailers take back packaging for disposal will see them incur further costs, which they will look to pass on.
Giving community cardholders a discount (like removing GST) on all goods and services may be a more targeted option to consider.
I’m sure retailers will try to pass it on, but then there is so much cheap crap coming into NZ and choice in that area that I doubt it will work. K Mart, Briscos, The warehouse, $1 shops, there are plenty of retailers in a crowded area of plastic goods.
Also are beneficiaries and working poor for example the ones out there buying new TV’s, whiteware, over packaged goods, cheese slices in multiple wrappers for lunches or are they at the op shops and trade me and pack and save already using less plastic?
With stores and loan-sharks offering easy credit, the poor will be purchasing a variety of things. And with the additional cost of dumping rubbish being felt across the board, competitors will simultaneously all be looking (thus giving them more scope) to pass the cost on.
You might like to reflect on the Greens’ biggest policy achievement to date, healthy homes, and what it means to low income families. Ask yourself if the Greens were “doing anything for them (the poor)” in that instance.
Once again, Muttonbird you’ve totally missed the point.
I wasn’t implying the Greens have never offered the poor anything in the past, I’m questioning what they are going to do for them moving forward? Especially as a number of their new environmental policies are going to place additional costs upon them.
You do understand we are about to embark on a major transition, which the Greens will be largely leading (Shaw is climate minister)? And as such, are championing new environmental related charges. Such as significantly increasing tip fees and the proposed feebate scheme to incentivise the uptake of low emissions vehicles, which will hit the poor the hardest.
Theses are merely two of a suite of changes that collectively will be as big as the reforms of the 80’s and 90’s that created a lot of pain and hardship, which we’ve yet to overcome.
To stay true to their crusade for the poor while dumping additional costs upon them is going to be a challenge that the Greens have yet to tell us how they plan to overcome. And failing to overcome it will further the divide within the party.
That’s because the Greens have had many problems over the last year and have yet to reunite the party. So it’s them that needs to produce some new material and get on top of this divide before it’s to late.
I not only want the Greens to be part of the next Government, I want them to have numbers and they won’t achieve that if the party remains divided.
The Chairman may well be seeking to “divide The Greens”, solkta, but his wan comments here on TS is very unlikely to achieve that aim. His attempts here are useful though, as he reveals the strategy and talking points that could be employed more widely to achieve that aim, so it’s 3 cheers for The Chairman!
As you and others can see in this thread, I’m highlighting one of the problems (additional charges being dumped on the poor) furthering the divide and what they must do (protect the poor) to help overcome it.
But Shaw and his lot are failing to act and thus far have presented no solutions while championing new environmental charges.
An easy strategy, make the environmental costs and risks all back on the polluter and don’t let the polluters loose in the first place!
For example instead of power grants, maybe look at installing solar panels that can reduce power and carbon costs long term in state housing. Of course they need to go back and look at how government has allowed power companies to overtax poor people in the first place and forcing people to pay higher prices if they have solar panels.
With plastic bags, make the manufacturer be responsible for recycling their plastic, you will be amazed how soon the manufacturers stop over packaging if they have to deal with the problem themselves! Then if they do use packaging they will turn to biodegradable packaging instead!
At present the government needs to change it’s mindset to thinking taxing people will somehow create a better society aka petrol taxes which is just leading to inequality.
Instead the answer is to solve the problem by understanding polluters in in the first place aka every man and his dog is on individual truck and courier contracts delivering crap about Auckland in clapped out vehicles or parents, people working 3 jobs because nobody has a full time job anymore.
Parents driving kids around because the lack of afterschool activities or in school activities is lacking like swimming/swimming pools, sports (now it is all about driving around to competitions rather than in school netball or what have you).
The entire government mindset needs changing to why people are needing to pollute more and what can the government do, that is fast, cheap and simple to reduce it.
And rather than the Greens picking on the little guy, they need to look at the worst offenders which are often businesses who for example are creating the packaging or businesses who make employees part time and casual and school/hospital systems that are no longer catering to the needs of the local community and then wonder why people are needing to commute to do things that used to be available locally.
Not to mention Auckland council seems to rubber-stamp as many polluting consents as possible such as truck and trailers or fill going across Auckland for Decades and the Tegal consent relies on millions of chickens being bought into Auckland from Dargaville to be processed. That is what happens when there is pretence between planning and Auckland transport. They effectively rubber stamp each others consents or too lazy to even work out some of the issues (like congestion) going forward.
What’s next, a freezing works on the water front? I mean we already have the clapped out cars and bananas coming in. Why not put industry first as they already seem to be the priority in NZ while the rest of NZ supports them with free roads, free natural resources and tax top ups for their employee’s because they can’t be expected to pay people enough to live on. Nowadays working for 50% of Kiwis seems to be more survival than living, and having to rely on other people’s decisions, like do they have a job next week, because at any time that might change.
‘For example instead of power grants, maybe look at installing solar panels…”
Like it, SaveNZ.
Interestingly, I was following up on a case I highlighted early this year. A state housing tenant was offered a free solar set up and insulation, but HNZ prevented her from having it installed. The Greens spoke out strongly on this, but I’m yet to find out what the final outcome was.
Nevertheless, once again you raise some valid points, therefore this is the kind of approach the Greens should be considering and what we need to hear more from them.
At least the Greens seem to be promoting banning the plastic bag!
Now hopefully the government will expect those that manufacture with plastic or where it is sold from (aka supermarkets and retailers) be responsible for it’s disposal.
As soon as consumers are legally able to return packaging to the point you bought it from, it will drive change faster and with more equality than say charging the consumer 10 cents for a plastic bag, while the manufacturers and retailers get a free pass while being the ones who are creating or enabling the issue in the first place.
It is all punish, or make life harder, for the ordinary poor person.
Say that poor person has to shift but has no car, and is on their own. They may have to ask for help from another poor person who has a ute or car and trailer. They probably can’t ask someone comfortably off because they haven’t got enough time or goodwill to help someone who isn’t comfortable.
Their help-person can’t get to the tip during opening hours, and nobody has any spare money to pay tip fees. They look at one another and wonder what happens if they just leave it at the tip gates. They think ‘Oh no, I’ll bet they will not like that, and we will be on CCTV, and get fined and we can’t afford that’. So the helper says I know somewhere I can take it and leave it and they agree that is the only answer that meets the situation. They load up and take it to an unlicensed tip place out of town.
This happens. To avoid it, the person might phone and ask Council for help, and they might say well we usually charge at least $20 if we come and pick it up. If you are a ratepayer we will put it on your rates bill. Can you get it to the tip somehow and we will allow you to tip it free of cost but it must meet our requirements and you should have someone capable to help you move it.
And something gets worked out that means they pay something and do what they can, and Council helps someone who wants to be a tidy kiwi.
Hmmm Where is the ‘Royal United Services Institute.’? Stirring the pot. With that Boeing X37 going up and down to show it can, unmanned, no wonder the deficit for the USA defence is large.
Who spends the most –
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) measures annual military spending for most of the world’s armed countries. According to SIPRI, the U.S. spent $618 billion on its military last year, more than three times the $171 billion budget of second place China.Jul 12, 2014
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) 2017 Military Expenditure Database estimated Russia’s military expenditure in 2016 at US$69.2 billion. This estimate is roughly twice that of SIPRI’s estimate of the Russian military budget for 2006 (US$34.5 billion).
US Military Budget: Components, Challenges, Growth – The Balance https://www.thebalance.com › Investing › US Economy › Fiscal Policy
4 days ago – The US military spending is $892 billion once you add components hidden in other budgets. Here’s the breakout since 2006.
U.S. military budget inches closer to $1 trillion mark, as concerns over … https://www.washingtonpost.com/…/u-s-military-budget-inches-closer-to-1-trillion-mark…
Jun 19, 2018 – The Senate approved the $716 billion military budget by an … Congress’s official budget scorekeeper recently projected the federal deficit will …
I found that I had to back away from taking a high interest in the Trump presidency debacle months ago as it was doing my head in. So many questions, so few answers – and so many people in positions of power with backgrounds and personalities that seem to me anyway incongruous to their positions.
One such is Stephen Miller, who despite his background, beliefs etc seems to be secure in his White House position and also despite the departure of Steve Bannon and others who he was originally aligned with in the White House corridors of power.
Last week, an article written by one of his uncles was posted on politico.com which I found quite interesting and poignant – and at the same time so very difficult to understand how far from the tree Miller has fallen.
A well worthwhile read IMHO – I highly recommend taking a few minutes to read it.
This proud Australian stands head up, jaw jutting, and having achieved an elevated position on a soapbox says this:
Wednesday 15/8/2018 4.55pm Mr [Fraser] Anning used his maiden speech last night to call for a complete overhaul of the immigration system, insisting most migrants should be from a European Christian background and all Muslims should be banned.
In that speech he used the phrase “final solution”, which was the phrase used by the Nazis under Adolf Hitler which meant annihilating Jewish people from Europe….
It has been strongly criticised by politicians from across the divide in both chambers, with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull describing the “final solution” comment as a “shocking insult” to those who died in the Holocaust.
But Mr Anning was unmoved and his party leader Bob Katter called the speech “magnificent” and “solid gold”.
Mr Katter said he discussed the speech with Mr Anning before he delivered it. Mr Anning joined Parliament last year as a One Nation senator but has since defected to Katter’s Australian Party….
(Note me: This is what the waka jumping bill here is going to prevent, and which Nick Smith is making a ‘noble principled’ stand against and attacking Winston Peters at the same time. Here in this Oz case it can be seen how waka-jumping from your avowed party at election leads to bad not good politics.)
“That has nothing to do with ‘the final solution’, the thought police got onto that.
“Good men died for our right to say whatever we wanted to say and use whatever words we want to use. If people want to take it of context that is entirely up to them…
(Note from me: This is an example of where unrestrained ‘free’ speech leads.)
Parliament stops short of censuring Mr Anning’s comments The Greens moved a motion in the Upper House to censure Mr Anning over his comments, but it did not get enough support to pass.
(I heard some comment on this speech and the ability of rabble rousers like this to get into Australian Parliament. The commenter said something about the voting system enabling it. Single Transferable Vote? the use of the single transferable vote proportional representation system to elect the upper house, the Senate.[1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electoral_system_of_Australia
Jacinda asked teachers to be patient, yet didn’t even bother to layout a time-line.
Should the Government meet teachers demands now or are they right in making them and students wait?
As I’ve highlighted with the nurses dispute, the Government isn’t spending up to its own spending cap, moreover, debt repayment is better than expected, thus the fiscal scope is there for the Government to act now.
Prince’s mercenaries committed multiple war crimes in Iraq and were convicted for their involvement in the Nissour Square massacre.
This story has all of the markings of something leaked to the press by Trump advisers precisely because it is such a colossally bad idea.
President Donald Trump is increasingly venting frustration to his national security team about the U.S. strategy in Afghanistan and showing renewed interest in a proposal by Blackwater founder Erik Prince to privatize the war, current and former senior administration officials said.
Prince’s idea, which first surfaced last year during the president’s Afghanistan strategy review, envisions replacing troops with private military contractors who would work for a special U.S. envoy for the war who would report directly to the president.
Beyond the lunacy of privatizing wars to mercenaries—especially those who were charged with crimes while deployed in Iraq—Dan Pfeiffer suggests that this could be yet another example of how deeply corrupt this White House has become.
So very pleased to read that the Greens are seeking agreement against water rights sold with land that end up being bottling plants with huge take up. Case Whakatane. I hope Labour and NZ First agree.
It is a real problem in California. We need to learn from their orchards being bought, trees knocked down for piping or bottling the water away. Water rights should be for a designated use only, and tied to the industry IMO.
California once believed they had endless supplies.
Agreed, these are the basics the Greens ahve to get right, and
Also here, I wander if the result of no-damn plan from Waimea Greens is more maize. But the gnats could have started alt plans years ago.
“There were alternatives to dams including on-farm water storage, urban rainwater collection systems, grey water recycling systems and growing different crops.” from Waimea Green.
Great Britain still has a major influence on Aotearoa and Papatuanukue so I say it’s ECO MAORI right to give my opinion on the British exit of the European Union.
The European Union is making a lot of good call for the future of the Mokopunas and Papatuanukue so I Back a new vote on Britexit views of the people
If one looks across the Atlantic sea they will fill the void if Britain leaves the European Union I say that a wrong move for all people on Papatuanukue Ka kite ano link below https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/aug/18/founder-superdry-donates-1-million-pounds-peoples-vote-brexit-deal
You see the sandflys have only contacted lies against my good name so they are playing the intimidation game on ECO MAORI with there hands clasped together praying that I make a dumb move YEA RIGHT muppets I see everything the juveniles are doing Ana to kai Ka kite ano
Good logical policy like waste minamization looking at ways to improve te Mokopunas future and keep our environment clean is why I Back the Green 100% link below Ka kite ano
Well I’m at the hospital with my Mokopuna she is OK we still not sure what’s, wrong but my Mokopunas has the Wensday Adams personality she does not show or cry when she is in pain and she only talks when she’s is asked questions and the answer are quite blunt that’s OUR Wensday so I can see that people that don’t know her could jump to conclusions we had a child next door moaning and cry about pain I told her that’s how she should be behaving but I did inform the hospital staff that’s how her personality is doesn’t cry when in pain. Some will know that others have affecting the views that staff have on my whano Ka kite ano
The way eco Maori see this move against Turkey its not about Turkey its about the country’s that have invested in Turkey who have give trump the bird flip eco is so famous for giving. trumps adviceser have told him hit Turkey with Tariffs the US have little financial exposure to TURKEY that will bring pain to those good countries stock market he doesn’t care that the move will place people in hardship just so he can get back at the bird flippers. Ka kite ano
Good evening Newshub I have all ready posted about The great Kofi Annan he was a intelligent humane man its awesome that the Papatuanukue media are houners this great humanitarian Kofi Annan we cannot let great tangata like him go with out celebrating and hounering there lifes work
Ka pai.
The Greens Party is taking a spotlight to our waste problems and is going to come up with logical solutions to this issue Ka kite ano
Good evening Q&A Corin There is a major tangata whenua oppression in the government systems the justice system is the main offender . The national party has used the last nine years to champion this suppression of Maori .How else do you exsplane the fast rise of bad stat’s of tangata whenua.
There you go asking a Indain shop owner who only see thing’s throught his shop eye’s he has all ready locked maori up I can see it in his eye’s Corin he is a national puppet.
That’s the way Marmara you tell them how acutely is locking more people up like the Indain want’s this will flush people’s live’s and billion’s down the toilet.
seenothing is drowning Corin and he is pouring money into your pocket and other’s to try and keep his toilet a float See you around Corin Ka kite ano P.S I looked back in time and seen most new goverment’s get at least 2 terms in Parliament all the political scientist know this fact but the new government don’t let your guard down Corin look at all the new Green policys coming into law a big win for the Greens Corin using the divide an concur trick lol
Yes some in the media will plant questions and get one or 2 words and spin them into a hurricane of bullshit Go Jamie and Marama P.S Eco is quite committed his my mahi Corin
Getting to Browser Tab Zero so I can reboot the computer is awfully hard when the one open tab is a Table of Contents for the Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, and every issue has more stuff I want to read. A few highlights: Gugler et al demonstrating ...
Timothy Ford, University of Massachusetts Lowell and Charles M. Schweik, University of Massachusetts AmherstTo mitigate health inequities and promote social justice, coronavirus vaccines need to get to underserved populations and hard-to-reach communities. There are few places in the U.S. that are unreachable by road, but other factors – many ...
Israel chose to pay a bit over the odds for the Pfizer vaccine to get earlier access. Here’s The Times of Israel from 16 November. American government will be charged $39 for each two-shot dose, and the European bloc even less, but Jerusalem said to agree to pay $56. Israel ...
Orla is a gender critical Marxist in Ireland. She gave a presentation on 15 January 2021 on the connection between postmodern/transgender identity politics and the current attacks on democratic and free speech rights. Orla has been active previously in the Irish Socialist Workers Party and the People Before Profit electoral ...
. . America: The Empire Strikes Back (at itself) Further to my comments in the first part of 2020: The History That Was, the following should be considered regarding the current state of the US. They most likely will be by future historians pondering the critical decades of ...
Nathaniel ScharpingIn March, as the Covid-19 pandemic began to shut down major cities in the U.S., researchers were thinking about blood. In particular, they were worried about the U.S. blood supply — the millions of donations every year that help keep hospital patients alive when they need a transfusion. ...
Sarah L Caddy, University of CambridgeVaccines are a marvel of medicine. Few interventions can claim to have saved as many lives. But it may surprise you to know that not all vaccines provide the same level of protection. Some vaccines stop you getting symptomatic disease, but others stop you ...
Back in 2016, the Portuguese government announced plans to stop burning coal by 2030. But progress has come much quicker, and they're now scheduled to close their last coal plant by the end of this year: The Sines coal plant in Portugal went offline at midnight yesterday evening (14 ...
The Sincerest Form Of Flattery: As anybody with the intestinal fortitude to brave the commentary threads of local news-sites, large and small, will attest, the number of Trump-supporting New Zealanders is really quite astounding. IT’S SO DIFFICULT to resist the temptation to be smug. From the distant perspective of New Zealand, ...
RNZ reports on continued arbitrariness on decisions at the border. British comedian Russell Howard is about to tour New Zealand and other acts allowed in through managed isolation this summer include drag queen RuPaul and musicians at Northern Bass in Mangawhai and the Bay Dreams festival. The vice-president of the ...
As families around the world mourn more than two million people dead from Covid-19, the Plan B academics and their PR industry collaborator continue to argue that the New Zealand government should stop focusing on our managed isolation and quarantine system and instead protect the elderly so that they can ...
A chronological listing of news articles linked to on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Jan 10, 2021 through Sat, Jan 16, 2021Editor's ChoiceNASA says 2020 tied for hottest year on record — here’s what you can do to helpPhoto by Michael Held on Unsplash ...
Health authorities in Norway are reporting some concerns about deaths in frail elderly after receiving their COVID-19 vaccine. Is this causally related to the vaccine? Probably not but here are the things to consider. According to the news there have been 23 deaths in Norway shortly after vaccine administration and ...
Happy New Year! No, experts are not concerned that “…one of New Zealand’s COIVD-1( vaccines will fail to protect the country” Here is why. But first I wish to issue an expletive about this journalism (First in Australia and then in NZ). It exhibits utter failure to actually truly consult ...
All nations have shadows; some acknowledge them. For others they shape their image in uncomfortable ways.The staunch Labour supporter was in despair at what her Rogernomics Government was doing. But she finished ‘at least, we got rid of Muldoon’, a response which tells us that then, and today, one’s views ...
Grigori GuitchountsIn November, Springer Nature, one of the world’s largest publishers of scientific journals, made an attention-grabbing announcement: More than 30 of its most prestigious journals, including the flagship Nature, will now allow authors to pay a fee of US$11,390 to make their papers freely available for anyone to read ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Gary Yohe, Henry Jacoby, Richard Richels, and Benjamin Santer Imagine a major climate change law passing the U.S. Congress unanimously? Don’t bother. It turns out that you don’t need to imagine it. Get this: The Global Change Research Act of 1990 was passed ...
“They’re here already! You’re next! You’re next! You’re next!”WHO CAN FORGET the penultimate scene of the 1956 movie classic, Invasion of the Body Snatchers? The wild-eyed doctor, stumbling down the highway, trying desperately to warn his fellow citizens: “They’re here already! You’re next! You’re next! You’re next!”Ostensibly science-fiction, the movie ...
TheOneRing.Net has got its paws on the official synopsis of the upcoming Amazon Tolkien TV series. It’s a development that brings to mind the line about Sauron deliberately releasing Gollum from the dungeons of Barad-dûr. Amazon knew exactly what they were doing here, in terms of drumming up publicity: ...
Since Dwight Eisenhower’s inauguration in 1953, US presidents have joined an informal club intended to provide support - and occasionally rivalry - between those few who have been ‘leaders of the free world’. Donald Trump, elected on a promise to ‘drain the swamp’ and a constant mocker of his predecessors, ...
For over a decade commentators have noted the rise of a new brand of explicitly ideological politics throughout the world. By this they usually refer to the re-emergence of national populism and avowedly illiberal approaches to governance throughout the “advanced” democratic community, but they also extend the thought to the ...
The US House of Representatives has just impeached Donald Trump, giving him the dubious honour of being the only US President to be impeached twice. Ten Republicans voted for impeachement, making it the most bipartisan impeachment ever. The question now is whether the Senate will rise to the occasion, and ...
Kieren Mitchell; Alice Mouton, Université de Liège; Angela Perri, Durham University, and Laurent Frantz, Ludwig Maximilian University of MunichThanks to the hit television series Game of Thrones, the dire wolf has gained a near-mythical status. But it was a real animal that roamed the Americas for at least 250,000 ...
Tide of tidal data rises Having cast our own fate to include rising sea level, there's a degree of urgency in learning the history of mean sea level in any given spot, beyond idle curiosity. Sea level rise (SLR) isn't equal from one place to another and even at a particular ...
Well, some of those chickens sure came home bigly, didn’t they… and proceeded to shit all over the nice carpet in the Capitol. What we were seeing here are societal forces that have long had difficulty trying to reconcile people to the “idea” of America and the reality of ...
In the wake of Donald Trump's incitement of an assault on the US capitol, Twitter finally enforced its terms of service and suspended his account. They've since followed that up with action against prominent QAnon accounts and Trumpers, including in New Zealand. I'm not unhappy with this: Trump regularly violated ...
Peter S. Ross, University of British ColumbiaThe Arctic has long proven to be a barometer of the health of our planet. This remote part of the world faces unprecedented environmental assaults, as climate change and industrial chemicals threaten a way of life for Inuit and other Indigenous and northern ...
Susan St John makes the case for taxing a deemed rate of return on excessive real estate holdings (after a family home exemption), to redirect scarce housing resources to where they are needed most. Read the full article here ...
I’m less than convinced by arguments that platforms like Twitter should be subject to common carrier regulation preventing them from being able to decide who to keep on as clients of their free services, and who they would not like to serve. It’s much easier to create competition for the ...
The hypocritical actions of political leaders throughout the global Covid pandemic have damaged public faith in institutions and governance. Liam Hehir chronicles the way in which contemporary politicians have let down the public, and explains how real leadership means walking the talk. During the Blitz, when German bombs were ...
Over the years, we've published many rebuttals, blog posts and graphics which came about due to direct interactions with the scientists actually carrying out the underlying research or being knowledgable about a topic in general. We'll highlight some of these interactions in this blog post. We'll start with two memorable ...
Yesterday we had the unseemly sight of a landleech threatening to keep his houses empty in response to better tenancy laws. Meanwhile in Catalonia they have a solution for that: nationalisation: Barcelona is deploying a new weapon in its quest to increase the city’s available rental housing: the power ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Jeff Masters, PhD The 2020 global wildfire season brought extreme fire activity to the western U.S., Australia, the Arctic, and Brazil, making it the fifth most expensive year for wildfire losses on record. The year began with an unprecedented fire event ...
NOTE: This is an excerpt from a digital story – read the full story here.Tess TuxfordKo te Kauri Ko Au, Ko te Au ko Kauri I am the kauri, the kauri is me Te Roroa proverb In Waipoua Forest, at the top of the North Island, New ...
Story of the Week... Toon of the Week... Coming Soon on SkS... Poster of the Week... SkS Week in Review... Story of the Week... Coming attraction: IPCC's upcoming major climate assessmentLook for more emphasis on 'solutions,' efforts by cities, climate equity ... and outlook for emissions cuts in ...
Ringing A Clear Historical Bell: The extraordinary images captured in and around the US Capitol Building on 6 January 2021 mirror some of the worst images of America's past.THERE IS A SCENE in the 1982 movie Missing which has remained with me for nearly 40 years. Directed by the Greek-French ...
To impact or not to impeach? I understand why some of those who are justifiably aghast at Trump’s behaviour over recent days might still counsel against impeaching him for a second time. To impeach him, they argue, would run the risk of making him a martyr in the eyes of ...
The Capitol Building, Washington DC, Wednesday, 6 January 2021. Oh come, my little one, come.The day is almost done.Be at my side, behold the sightOf evening on the land.The life, my love, is hardAnd heavy is my heart.How should I live if you should leaveAnd we should be apart?Come, let me ...
A chronological listing of news articles linked to on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Jan 3, 2021 through Sat, Jan 9, 2021Editor's ChoiceAfter the Insurrection: Accountability, Reform, and the Science of Democracy The poisonous lies and enablers of sedition--including Senator Hawley, pictured ...
This article, guest authored by Prof. Angela Gallego-Sala & Dr. Julie Loisel, was originally published on the Carbon Brief website on Dec 21, 2020. It is reposted below in its entirety. Click here to access the original article and comments. Peatlands Peatlands are ecosystems unlike any other. Perpetually saturated, their ...
The assault on the US Capitol and constitutional crisis that it has caused was telegraphed, predictable and yet unexpected and confusing. There are several subplots involved: whether the occupation of the Michigan State House in May was a trial run for the attacks on Congress; whether people involved in the ...
On Christmas Eve, child number 1 spotted a crack in a window. It’s a double-glazed window, and inspection showed that the small, horizontal crack was in the outermost pane. It was perpendicular to the frame, about three-quarters of the way up one side. The origins are a mystery. It MIGHT ...
Anne-Marie Broudehoux, Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM)Will the COVID-19 pandemic prompt a shift to healthier cities that focus on wellness rather than functional and economic concerns? This is a hypothesis that seems to be supported by several researchers around the world. In many ways, containment and physical distancing ...
Does the US need to strike a grand bargain with like-minded countries to pool their efforts? What does this tell us about today’s global politics? Perhaps the most remarkable editorial of last year was the cover leader of the London Economist on 19 November 2020. Shortly after Joe Biden was ...
Alexander Gillespie, University of Waikato and Valmaine Toki, University of WaikatoAotearoa New Zealand likes to think it punches above its weight internationally, but there is one area where we are conspicuously falling behind — the number of sites recognised by the UNESCO World Heritage Convention. Globally, there are 1,121 ...
An event organised by the Auckland PhilippinesSolidarity group Have a three-course lunch at Nanam Eatery with us! Help support the organic farming of our Lumad communities through the Mindanao Community School Agricultural Foundation. Each ticket is $50. Food will be served on shared plates. To purchase, please email phsolidarity@gmail.com or ...
"Abandon Hope All Ye Who Enter Here." Prisons are places of unceasing emotional and physical violence, unrelieved despair and unforgivable human waste.IT WAS NATIONAL’S Bill English who accurately described New Zealand’s prisons as “fiscal and moral failures”. On the same subject, Labour’s Dr Martyn Findlay memorably suggested that no prison ...
This is a re-post from Inside Climate News by Ilana Cohen. Inside Climate News is a nonprofit, independent news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. Sign up for the ICN newsletter here. Whether or not people accept the science on Covid-19 and climate change, both global crises will have lasting impacts on health and ...
. . American Burlesque As I write this (Wednesday evening, 6 January), the US Presidential election is all but resolved, confirming Joe Biden as the next President of the (Dis-)United State of America. Trump’s turbulent political career has lasted just four years – one of the few single-term US presidents ...
The session started off so well. Annalax – suitably chastised – spent a pleasant morning with his new girlfriend (he would say paramour, of course, but for our purposes, girlfriend is easier*). He told her about Waking World Drow, and their worship of Her Ladyship. And he started ...
In a recent column I wrote for local newspapers, I ventured to suggest that Donald Trump – in addition to being a liar and a cheat, and sexist and racist – was a fascist in the making and would probably try, if he were to lose the election, to defy ...
When I was preparing for my School C English exam I knew I needed some quotes to splash through my essays. But remembering lines was never my strong point, so I tended to look for the low-hanging fruit. We’d studied Shakespeare’s King Lear that year and perhaps the lowest hanging ...
When I went to bed last night, I was expecting today to be eventful. A lot of pouting in Congress as last-ditch Trumpers staged bad-faith "objections" to a democratic election, maybe some rioting on the streets of Washington DC from angry Trump supporters. But I wasn't expecting anything like an ...
Melted ice of the past answers question today? Kate Ashley and a large crew of coauthors wind back the clock to look at Antarctic sea ice behavior in times gone by, in Mid-Holocene Antarctic sea-ice increase driven by marine ice sheet retreat. For armchair scientists following the Antarctic sea ice situation, something jumps out in ...
Christina SzalinskiWhen Martha Field became pregnant in 2005, a singular fear weighed on her mind. Not long before, as a Cornell University graduate student researching how genes and nutrients interact to cause disease, she had seen images of unborn mouse pups smaller than her pinkie nail, some with ...
Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidates for President and Vice President respectively for the US 2020 Election, may have dispensed with the erstwhile nemesis, Trump the candidate – but there are numerous critical openings through which much, much worse many out there may yet see fit to ...
I don’t know Taupō well. Even though I stop off there from time to time, I’m always on the way to somewhere else. Usually Taupō means making a hot water puddle in the gritty sand followed by a swim in the lake, noticing with bemusement and resignation the traffic, the ...
Frances Williams, King’s College LondonFor most people, infection with SARS-CoV-2 – the virus that causes COVID-19 – leads to mild, short-term symptoms, acute respiratory illness, or possibly no symptoms at all. But some people have long-lasting symptoms after their infection – this has been dubbed “long COVID”. Scientists are ...
Last night, a British court ruled that Julian Assange cannot be extradited to the US. Unfortunately, its not because all he is "guilty" of is journalism, or because the offence the US wants to charge him with - espionage - is of an inherently political nature; instead the judge accepted ...
Is the Gender Identity Movement a movement for human liberation, or is it a regressive movement which undermines women’s liberation and promotes sexist stereotypes? Should biological males be allowed to play in women’s sport, use women-only spaces (public toilets, changing rooms, other facilities), be able to have access to everything ...
As we welcome in the new year, our focus is on continuing to keep New Zealanders safe and moving forward with our economic recovery. There’s a lot to get on with, but before we say a final goodbye to 2020, here’s a quick look back at some of the milestones ...
A major investment to tackle wilding pines in Mt Richmond will create jobs and help protect the area’s unique ecosystems, Biosecurity Minister Damien O’Connor says. The Mt Richmond Forest Park has unique ecosystems developed on mineral-rich geology, including taonga plant species found nowhere else in the country. “These special plant ...
To further protect New Zealand from COVID-19, the Government is extending pre-departure testing to all passengers to New Zealand except from Australia, Antarctica and most Pacific Islands, COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said today. “The change will come into force for all flights arriving in New Zealand after 11:59pm (NZT) on Monday ...
Bay Conservation Cadets launched with first intake Supported with $3.5 million grant Part of $1.245b Jobs for Nature programme to accelerate recover from Covid Cadets will learn skills to protect and enhance environment Environment Minister David Parker today welcomed the first intake of cadets at the launch of the Bay ...
The Prime Minister of New Zealand Jacinda Ardern and the Prime Minister of the Cook Islands Mark Brown have announced passengers from the Cook Islands can resume quarantine-free travel into New Zealand from 21 January, enabling access to essential services such as health. “Following confirmation of the Cook Islands’ COVID ...
Jobs for Nature funding is being made available to conservation groups and landowners to employ staff and contractors in a move aimed at boosting local biodiversity-focused projects, Conservation Minister Kiritapu Allan has announced. It is estimated some 400-plus jobs will be created with employment opportunities in ecology, restoration, trapping, ...
The Government has approved an exception class for 1000 international tertiary students, degree level and above, who began their study in New Zealand but were caught offshore when border restrictions began. The exception will allow students to return to New Zealand in stages from April 2021. “Our top priority continues ...
Today’s deal between Meridian and Rio Tinto for the Tiwai smelter to remain open another four years provides time for a managed transition for Southland. “The deal provides welcome certainty to the Southland community by protecting jobs and incomes as the region plans for the future. The Government is committed ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has appointed Anna Curzon to the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC). The leader of each APEC economy appoints three private sector representatives to ABAC. ABAC provides advice to leaders annually on business priorities. “ABAC helps ensure that APEC’s work programme is informed by business community perspectives ...
The Government’s prudent fiscal management and strong policy programme in the face of the COVID-19 global pandemic have been acknowledged by the credit rating agency Fitch. Fitch has today affirmed New Zealand’s local currency rating at AA+ with a stable outlook and foreign currency rating at AA with a positive ...
The Government is putting in place a suite of additional actions to protect New Zealand from COVID-19, including new emerging variants, COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said today. “Given the high rates of infection in many countries and evidence of the global spread of more transmissible variants, it’s clear that ...
$36 million of Government funding alongside councils and others for 19 projects Investment will clean up and protect waterways and create local jobs Boots on the ground expected in Q2 of 2021 Funding part of the Jobs for Nature policy package A package of 19 projects will help clean up ...
The commemoration of the 175th anniversary of the Battle of Ruapekapeka represents an opportunity for all New Zealanders to reflect on the role these conflicts have had in creating our modern nation, says Associate Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Kiri Allan. “The Battle at Te Ruapekapeka Pā, which took ...
Babies born with tongue-tie will be assessed and treated consistently under new guidelines released by the Ministry of Health, Associate Minister of Health Dr Ayesha Verrall announced today. Around 5% to 10% of babies are born with a tongue-tie, or ankyloglossia, in New Zealand each year. At least half can ...
The prisoner disorder event at Waikeria Prison is over, with all remaining prisoners now safely and securely detained, Corrections Minister Kelvin Davis says. The majority of those involved in the event are members of the Mongols and Comancheros. Five of the men are deportees from Australia, with three subject to ...
Travellers from the United Kingdom or the United States bound for New Zealand will be required to get a negative test result for COVID-19 before departing, and work is underway to extend the requirement to other long haul flights to New Zealand, COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins confirmed today. “The new PCR test requirement, foreshadowed last ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has added her warm congratulations to the New Zealanders recognised for their contributions to their communities and the country in the New Year 2021 Honours List. “The past year has been one that few of us could have imagined. In spite of all the things that ...
Attorney-General and Minister for the Environment David Parker has congratulated two retired judges who have had their contributions to the country and their communities recognised in the New Year 2021 Honours list. The Hon Tony Randerson QC has been appointed a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for ...
Minister for Pacific Peoples Aupito William Sio says the New Year’s Honours List 2021 highlights again the outstanding contribution made by Pacific people across Aotearoa. “We are acknowledging the work of 13 Pacific leaders in the New Year’s Honours, representing a number of sectors including health, education, community, sports, the ...
The Government’s investment in digital literacy training for seniors has led to more than 250 people participating so far, helping them stay connected. “COVID-19 has meant older New Zealanders are showing more interest in learning how to use technology like Zoom and Skype so they can to keep in touch ...
By RNZ News An independent panel says Chinese officials could have applied public health measures more forcefully in January to curb the initial covid-19 outbreak, and criticised the World Health Organisation (WHO) for not declaring an international emergency until 30 January. The experts reviewing the global handling of the pandemic, ...
Pacific Media Watch newsdesk Fiji’s NGO Coalition on Human Rights has called for stronger accountability and commitment to human rights at home in response to the country taking the world stage as the head of a UN body. The UN Human Rights Council (UNHCR) elected Fiji’s ambassador Nazhat Shameem as ...
Danyl McLauchlan reviews Stuart Ritchie’s Science Fictions, which outlines the staggering systemic flaws in the funding and publication of scientific papers. Back in August of 2006 a number of New Zealand scientists were caught up in a media controversy about whether Māori had a genetic predisposition towards violent crime. It kicked ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robert G. Patman, Professor of International Relations, University of Otago America is currently experiencing its worst political and constitutional crisis since the civil war when the very survival of Abraham Lincoln’s government “of, by and for the people” was at stake. On ...
Manaaki Rangatahi report that young people experiencing homelessness are being further traumatized within the emergency accommodation where they have sought safety. Often these environments are unsafe, and unsuitable for young people to live in, and rangatahi ...
Can you figure out which of the above is the real Jacinda Ardern? Probably! But one day, that might not be true.There are many reasons to believe the internet shouldn’t exist. Social media empires exerting, intentionally or not, their control over sovereign governments. Baby Shark. Your aunt on Facebook.It pains ...
The Point of Order Ministers on a Mission Monitor has flickered only fleetingly for much of the month. More than once, the minister to trigger it has been David Parker, who set it off again yesterday with an announcement that shows how he has been spending our money. He welcomed ...
Ban Bomb Day event at the New Brighton Pier, 9am, on January 22nd, 2021 January 22nd, 2021, marks the first day the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) Enters into Force and becomes international law. Aotearoa NZ is one of the ...
Why are New Zealand’s 2 Minute Noodles called 3 Minute Noodles in the UK? It’s a puzzle that has taken hold of Dylan Reeve and refuses to let go.I’m a child of the 80s and 90s. I watched a lot of TV and was a big fan of aggressively marketed ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonatan A Lassa, Senior Lecturer, Humanitarian Emergency and Disaster Management, College of Indigenous Futures, Arts and Society, Charles Darwin University News of storms battering parts of Queensland and the threat posed by Cyclone Kimi reminded me of a recent experience I’d had. ...
The Independent Police Conduct Authority has found that the use of force to effect the arrest of a wanted offender in Auckland was justified and proportionate to the risk he posed. A man, who was well known to Police, was wanted by Police for an aggravated ...
A distinctly colonial institution, banking has long ignored te ao Māori. Teaho Pihama believes investment in tikanga Māori at Kiwibank can have significant, positive outcomes for Māori.In early 90s Tāmaki Makaurau, when Teahooterangi (Teaho) Pihama was growing up riding his bike around the streets of Kingsland until the streetlights came ...
Donald Trump’s awful presidency expires at midday on Wednesday [US time] when Air Force One will have deposited him in Florida. He retreats to his Mar-a-Lago resort and Joseph R Biden Junior takes command of the White House. Trump’s has been an unpleasant presidency, brought about largely by his own ...
The New Zealand Union of Students’ Associations (NZUSA) has elected its National President for 2021. The election took place last Friday at an NZUSA Special General Meeting (SGM) in Wellington. Andrew Lessells, 22, was elected to serve as the National ...
Think twice before you accept that surprise school reunion invite, writes Chris Schulz.It started with a Facebook notification. A school reunion was being organised. It sounded fun, with a fancy dress party set to be held in the city where I grew up, Whanganui. I hadn’t seen some of my ...
Unlike the US, there is very little NZ precedent for politicians to issue discretionary pardons – creating a challenge for those like Prof Sean Davison who might have a humanitarian claim to mercy. ...
Schools have told the Education Review Office that some children lost 10 weeks of learning in last year's lockdowns, but the overall impact of the pandemic is still unclear. In a report based on surveys of thousand of students, teachers and principals during and after last year's national and Auckland ...
The government seems to still be in holiday mode when in the past two weeks alone we have had six homicides, countless firearms incidents, and police needing to arm themselves against gangs almost every second day," says Sensible Sentencing ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robert Crawford, Associate Professor in Construction and Environmental Assessment, University of Melbourne Over the past few years, Australians have embraced online food delivery services such as UberEats, Deliveroo and Menulog. But home-delivered food comes with a climate cost, and single-use packaging is ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Quiggin, Professor, School of Economics, The University of Queensland When the coronavirus pandemic hit Australia in March 2020, the Morrison government took bold and imaginative action. The most notable examples were its income support programs – JobKeeper, paying a A$750 weekly ...
Ocean Ute, which arrived at Port Taranaki yesterday, is the second live export ship to arrive in New Zealand this year. Taranaki Animal Rights Group has two demonstrations planned for today. A protest at midday and a vigil at 6.30pm tonight . The number ...
The Department of Corrections is well within its rights to refuse Jared Savage’s “Gangland” book from being read by inmates and it is outrageous that resources and time are now potentially going to be wasted in court about it, says Sensible ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Cowling, Associate Professor – Information & Communication Technology (ICT), CQUniversity Australia We’ve probably all been there. We buy some new smart gadget and when we plug it in for the first time it requires an update to work. So we end ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tony Walker, Vice-chancellor’s fellow, La Trobe University The new trade minister, Dan Tehan, has been handed one of the Morrison government’s most demanding roles. Despite a lot of chest-thumping in government circles about the need to stand up to “Chinese bullying”, Tehan’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Philip Weinstein, Professorial Research Fellow, University of Adelaide There’s no question the rising rate of unemployment is one of the worst consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. The number of Australians seeking work is heading towards 10%, almost double the pre-pandemic Australian average ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Munro, Professor, Faculty of Education and Arts, Australian Catholic University Research during the first phase of remote teaching in Victoria reported some students found the workload “too high”, missed interactions with peers, felt their thinking ability was impaired, and reported a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Keating, Visiting Fellow, College of Business & Economics, Australian National University It is tempting to think the Australian government’s decision to spend big – bigger than ever before, an unprecedented 33% of GDP this financial year according to the budget update ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Maguire-Rosier, Honorary Associate, Department of Theatre and Performance Studies, School of Literature, Art, and Media, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Sydney Review: Humans 2.0, directed by Yaron Lifschitz, Circa at Sydney Festival The black circular stage is lit ...
Summer reissue: Greens MP Chlöe Swarbrick joins Annabelle Lee-Mather, Ben Thomas and Toby Manhire to pick over the remains of election night in a special Sunday edition of Gone By Lunchtime.First published October 18, 2020.Independent journalism depends on you. Help us stay curious in 2021. The Spinoff’s journalism is funded ...
Summer reissue: Our feminist webseries On the Rag returns to dissect representation in the media and who is still being left behind when you turn on the telly. First published July 22, 2020.Independent journalism depends on you. Help us stay curious in 2021. The Spinoff’s journalism is funded by its members ...
Applaud the social media silencing of Donald Trump if you must, but be careful what you wish for, writes Matt Bartlett of the University of Auckland. The sighs of relief from all around the world were almost palpable when Donald Trump’s Twitter account was permanently banned this month. Twitter, Facebook, ...
Matteo Di Maio investigates what MPs have been filling their heads with over the summer holidays What have our lords and masters been reading on the beach during the summer holidays? What books have filled their heads, given them ideas, expanded their horizons? Eight prominent politicians have revealed their choice ...
From white-collar crims to famous rappers, President Trump is to issue about 100 pardons on his final full day in office, buying protection from incriminating revelations. ...
Are the continent’s coronavirus statistics as good as they appear? Felix Geiringer looks at the numbers, and why whether they reflect the reality matters. Living in Africa during Covid times, one of the questions I am asked most often is this: how has Africa done so well?At the start of September, ...
With new strains of Covid-19 bearing down on our shores, Pattrick Smellie of BusinessDesk looks at the challenges 2021 has in store, and what can be done to prepare.In the three weeks that New Zealanders have been at the beach and ignoring Covid tracer app sign-ins, the threat of Covid-19 ...
Pacific Media Watch newsdesk Human Rights Watch (HRW) has criticised the Indonesian government of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo for its weak health response to covid-19 which has brought Indonesia to its knees since March 2020, reports CNN Indonesia. The assessment is based on Indonesia’s poor rates of testing and tracing ...
By The National in Port Moresby An expatriate who tested positive for the covid-19 coronavirus last week has been admitted to a private hospital in the Papua New Guinea capital of Port Moresby, an official has confirmed. Pacific International Hospital (PIH) chief executive officer Colonel Sandeep Shaligram toldThe National the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nathan Bartlett, Associate Professor, School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy, University of Newcastle Reports of about 30 deaths among elderly nursing home residents who received the Pfizer vaccine have made international headlines. With Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) expected to approve the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Culum Brown, Professor, Macquarie University How do gills work? Tully, aged 7 Great question, Tully! Animals on land breathe air, which is made up of different gasses. Oxygen is one of these gases, and is made by plants (hug ...
Dairy prices increased by 3.9% across the board at the latest Fonterra global auction. The lift followed rises of 1.3% and 4.3% in the December auctions which took dairy prices to their highest level in 11 months, defying those analysts who believed Covid-19 had disrupted dairy markets. In the latest ...
America's Cup team American Magic has spoken publicly after their boat Patriot capsized when on its way to their first win of the Challenger Selection Series yesterday. Patriot dramatically capsized yesterday, becoming temporarily airborne before crashing back into the water and tipping. The boat, helmed by New Zealander Dean Barker, could not be ...
It’s a seemingly age old question: why do Auckland’s beaches become unswimmable after every single downpour? Stewart Sowman-Lund investigates.Ah, the beach. A staple of the New Zealand summer. Unless, of course, you’re based in Auckland and it’s raining. The start of 2021 has been a lot like every other New ...
We have opened a book, among members of the Point of Order team, on how long it will be before the PM offers to sort out the land dispute at Wellington’s Shelly Bay and (to win the double) how much the settlement will cost taxpayers. Just a few weeks ago ...
Breakfast TV news is back for 2021, and Tara Ward got up early to watch. “Thank god it’s almost Christmas,” John Campbell said during the opening minutes of Breakfast’s premiere episode of the year. “2021’s been rough so far. I’m buggered”. We’re all buggered, to be fair, but I’m worried that ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Pearson, Professor of Journalism and Social Media, Griffith Centre for Social and Cultural Research, Griffith University, Griffith University The blame for the recent assault on the US Capitol and President Donald Trump’s broader dismantling of democratic institutions and norms can be ...
Despite a popular and unifying leader of the governing party, divisions both in policy and culture will test the progressive movement, writes Peter McKenzie.‘I think we’re confused.” Marlon Drake is an organiser for the Living Wage Movement. His job takes him all over Wellington, trying to convince businesses to increase ...
Covid-19 Recovery Minister Chris Hipkins says vaccinations should be available to the public by the middle of the year, but other countries are prioritised. ...
It’s as true now as it ever has been: nowhere else offers an education experience like that of Dunedin. But rather than resting on their laurels, the University of Otago and Otago Polytechnic have plans to make the city an even more inspiring place for students.From high in the summit ...
Haggis, neeps and tatties and whisky may not be a traditional spread for a summer gathering in NZ, but trust Auckland city councillor and Kiwi-Scot Cathy Casey on this one. Gie it laldy! Rule one: Hold it on (or near) January 25Robert Burns was born on January 25, 1759. Since the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Tuffley, Senior Lecturer in Applied Ethics & CyberSecurity, Griffith University It could be argued artificial intelligence (AI) is already the indispensable tool of the 21st century. From helping doctors diagnose and treat patients to rapidly advancing new drug discoveries, it’s our ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Kenny, Professor, Australian Studies Institute, Australian National University Through recent natural disasters, global upheavals and a pandemic, Australia’s political centre has largely held. Australians may have disagreed at times, but they have also kept faith with governmental norms, eschewing the false ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Holly Seale, Associate professor, UNSW Health workers are at higher risk of COVID infection and illness. They can also act as extremely efficient transmitters of viruses to others in medical and aged care facilities. That’s why health workers have been prioritised to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jim Orchard, Adjunct Lecturer, Monash University Last week, somewhat overshadowed by the events in Washington, the Democrats took control of the US Senate. The Democrats now hold a small majority in both the House and the Senate until 2022, giving President-elect Joe ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mittul Vahanvati, Lecturer, School of Global, Urban and Social Studies, RMIT University Heatwaves, floods, bushfires: disaster season is upon us again. We can’t prevent hazards or climate change-related extreme weather events but we can prepare for them — not just as individuals ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mandie Shean, Lecturer, School of Education, Edith Cowan University Starting school is an important event for children and a positive experience can set the tone for the rest of their school experience. Some children are excited to attend school for the first ...
Some families in emergency housing are reporting their children are becoming emotionally distressed because of their living conditions. Demand for emergency accommodation has escalated this past year with the number of emergency housing grants increasing by half. Data showed nearly 10,000 people were given an Emergency Housing Special Needs Grant between ...
Summer reissue: Michèle A’Court, Alex Casey and Leonie Hayden are back for a second season of On the Rag, and where better to start than with the mysterious, exhausting world of wellness?First published June 23, 2020.Independent journalism depends on you. Help us stay curious in 2021. The Spinoff’s journalism is ...
With few Covid-19 infections and negiligible natural immunity, New Zealand faces being a victim of its own success when it is left till last to get the vaccines, argues Dr Parmjeet Parmar. ...
Steve Braunias reports on a literary cancelling. The Corrections department has refused to allow Jared Savage's best-selling book Gangland inside prison on the grounds that it "promotes violence and drug use". An inmate at Otago Corrections Facility in Dunedin was sent a copy of the book – but it was ...
New data from the CTU’s annual work life survey shows a snapshot of working people’s experiences and outlook heading out of 2020 and into the new year. Concerningly 42% of respondents cite workplace bullying as an issue in their workplace - a number ...
An international player, selector and self-confessed cricket stats nerd, Penny Kinsella has now played a hand in recording the rich history of the women's game in New Zealand. Penny Kinsella’s cricketing career was perched on the cusp of change for the White Ferns. “My first tour to Australia, we ...
The dramatic capsize of American Magic brought out the best in the America's Cup sailing fraternity. But, Suzanne McFadden asks, what does it mean to the crippled New York Yacht Club campaign and to the Prada Cup? It was a scene as unreal as it was calamitous. Right at the moment the ...
The current number of members of parliament is starting to get too low for the job we expect them to do, argues Alex Braae. As a general rule, with the possible exception of their families, nobody likes backbench MPs. But it’s nevertheless time we accepted that parliament should have more of ...
The experience in the Brazilian city of Manaus reveals how mistaken, and dangerous, the herd-immunity-by-infection theory really is. As families around the world mourn more than two million people dead from Covid-19, the Plan B academics and their PR industry collaborator continue to argue that the New Zealand government should stop ...
As New Zealand gears up to fight climate change, experts warn that we need to actually reduce emissions, not just plant trees to offset our greenhouse gases. ...
A nationwide poll has found majority support for the government to continue to closely monitor abortions in New Zealand and the reasons for it, despite the Ministry of Health recently suggesting that there is not a use for collecting much of this information. ...
The out-of-control growth in gangs, gun crime, and violent gang activity is exposing our communities to dangerous levels of violence that will inevitably end in tragedy, says Sensible Sentencing Trust. “The recent incidents of people being shot and ...
Successive governments have paid lip service to our productivity challenge but have failed to deliver. It's time to establish a Productivity Council charged with prioritising efforts. ...
“Freedom of expression is often one of the first victims of a successful socialist revolution”.
That’s an interesting comment from @NandorTanczos, which prompted some more comments, from @LewSOS:
So is it possible to have a revolution while retaining democracy?
Perhaps revolutionary change without having a revolution is possible. Jacinda Ardern’s idea of government is revolutionary perhaps?
Too revolutionary for some. Not enough of a revolution for others. (Some thing it is little more than a softer same old).
Viva Jacinda?
The 80s and early 90s saw revolutionary changes without revolutions in a bunch of countries, including ours.
They just weren’t towards socialism, but away from it.
Yes – as we have seen over the last 30+ years, the already-powerful can impose revolutionary change quite successfully and the dilemma Tanczos describes doesn’t even arise. Owning large swathes of the private media helps in these situations of course, because it provides a non-violent way of controlling the range of what gets expressed.
Revolutionary change by the weak against the powerful is inherently more fragile and susceptible to being overturned. But there are no credible voices on the left proposing violent or repressive methods (such as curtailment of freedom of expression) for resolving the problem. Instead we are all about mass movements, evolutionary change and re-imagining the human condition. And with the coming climate crisis it is essential that this alternative vision exists, otherwise we spiral into dystopian hell.
“Instead we are all about mass movements”
Generally promoted and supported by small minorities who lament the ignorance of those who don’t get on board, or lambast the ‘right wing’ media left wing journalists depending on the leaning of forum, for not promoting their cause.
You’re talking about cliques and power struggles between or in support of cliques there Pete. And if there’s a clique (or a committee or a “council of wise elders”), then there is no revolution – just the changes that arrive with a changing of the guard.
And history shows us that nothing fundamental changes in those situations – thems with the power still does in thems without power.
That’s pretty much the situation we have in New Zealand – small minorities dreaming of mass movements that support their particular cause.
I don’t think we;ve had any mass movements since 1981, and even that may have been a (large) minority movement.
Such reactionary emotive terminology versus the concept of evolutionary change.
As the generation coming through looks to evolve not tear down and collaborate rather than dictate. Imagine as John Lennon sang…..I wonder if you can ?
When democracy is the revolution then yes, obviously democracy supplants the faux democracy (or whatever other degree of authoritarian rule is in place) – that has enabled a constant and mere “changing of the guard” to take place off the back of endless streams of bullshit and bullshitters touting themselves as revolutionary…Lenin and Mussolini and Castro and Mao and Franco et al
Capitalism hasn’t been thrown out because the government supports it. Often against the wishes of the populace, i.e, the sale of our power infrastructure and the signing of the TPPA and it’s replacement.
It’s difficult to say that we have a democracy when the government doesn’t rule as the many want them to but how business wants them to.
From the hard to believe files:
https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/russian-asbestos-trump_face/
In praise of mixed economies.
https://www.vox.com/the-big-idea/2018/8/16/17698602/socialism-capitalism-false-dichotomy-kevin-williamson-column-republican-ocasio-cortez
Seems to me a key aspect of any socio-economic system is how to manage the sociopaths with a lot of drive that are compelled to do what it takes to live in the biggest house, have sex with the most attractive partners, eat the tastiest foods etc.
A well designed mixed economy allows a freedom for those sociopaths to channel that drive into building things useful to us all. So the likes of Jobs, Musk, Brin & Page can take ideas languishing in obscure research labs (mostly with govt funded) and turn them into stuff that really does improve lives.
But the problems created by a weak government side that allows allows entities to grow too powerful and act too carelessly are painfully evident throughout history, and not just since the neo-lib craze of the last 30ish years.
Equally, Animal Farm is a simplistic but accurate picture of how the sociopaths corrupt socialist/communist ideals to their own benefit, backed up by plenty of real world examples.
So how to synthesise the best aspects of the extremes of ideology and minimise the failings? Looks to me like Scandinavian social democracies come closest. And there is a path there from where we are now via patient incrementalism.
Over 400 killed by flooding in Kerala.
Terrible news.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/kerala-floods-death-toll-latest-india-landslides-bridge-collapse-a8496066.html
I’ve noticed a BIT of a change @ Ed.
Actually it’ll end up being a shitload more than 400 in Kerala, plus a number in UP and even in Uttarakhand not that long ago.
RNZ was actually leading with this earlier today, so don’t be too dismissive of the Griggs attitude being discussed a couple of days ago (concerning that ‘shithole’ Yemen)
There’ll be one or two telling her that 30 years experience actually don’t mean shit these days. But no matter, the mortgage must be nearly paid off and Christian and Damien have been doing Oh so Very well at St Marks (going forward)
There might be an opening for her at the Spinoff before too long.
I thought the tree planting thing was an initiative to inject wages and a sense of purpose into the lives of those living in our most impoverished regions.
Shane Jones just said on Newshub Nation he is bringing in gangs of seedling planters from the Pacific Islands.
I think this is well wrong, if not planting trees, we need to find what will engage these people. Half of our problems in the Far North is the devil finding tasks for idle hands.
Tree planting Pinus radiata in the steep hills near Nelson was the most physically difficult, hardest work I’ve ever done. After a few weeks of lugging bags of trees and a mattock up and down those rocky slopes, I was mountain-goat-fit, but not planning to make a career of that form of tree planting.
If getting trees planted was the primary goal, ok. But as I understand the intitiative…Shane said “Get my neffs off the couch.”
We’ll be using tax payers money to fly in, accommodate and pay unskilled migrants from the Pacific Islands to plant trees that will ultimately benefit the companies that own the forests. The benefits to the current population of the Far North…I can’t see much.
Seems that this tree planting initiative is turning out to be vaporware.
You were younger then Robert. And look how well you turned out. Tree planting like that might be the challenge that these young fellers and gals are looking for. If they could get peer groups where they found friends, get jobs that kept them away from drugs and the gangs that are negative, in ten years there would be a different climate on the ground, and perhaps they could be in training for taking on specialist jobs to do with climate change.
David Mac
All your points are valid. Shane – work with NZs needing jobs and a wage and purpose in life first. Perhaps go to hapus and ask them to get together groups of young men and women who are ready to start learning how to do various jobs and so encourage them to be hopeful of a better future and start with some getting off drugs and moving up.
The Pacific Islanders look to NZ as a change and way they can improve life for themselves. Maori who are already here and have been faced with barriers to making a change and improving life for themselves will learn to believe in themselves in time when they see others getting a better life from taking up opportunities.
Considering that climate change is going to make life more and more difficult and we need to raise our resilience and awareness of how to manage to cope, I think it is essential that human-loving politicians right now use all their resources and thought to get projects that enable the rise in self-supporting and strength of mind and belief in one’s own worth to advance themselves.
“I thought the tree planting thing was an initiative to inject wages and a sense of purpose into the lives of those living in our most impoverished regions.”
It has the potential too. Unfortunately, Jones initially wanted it to be a work for the dole scheme. So much for injecting wages and a sense of purpose.
After some backlash, Labour ensured us employees would be paid the minimum wage. But there was no guarantee employees wouldn’t be employed as independent contractors, thus no minimum wage required.
And as you highlighted, Jones now plans to bring in offshore workers. He’s also seeking offshore companies to partake.
Seems employees and local communities will be coming off second best as a lot of this taxpayer spend up heads offshore.
‘Seeking overseas companies’ – what, we can’t even organise planting trees locally anymore?
Apparently, the sector is about 70% foreign owned as it stands.
The issue is also in the old days, the government pumping money into the economy with projects used to work.
Under globalism it doesn’t anymore, and actually can be making things worse aka they give the infrastructure contracts to industry who don’t use it to employ or train local people but instead import cheap workers in that don’t pay taxes, drive up prices for housing and rents and require more roads and hospitals and schools to be built. When it all goes wrong with poor construction and remedial work, everyone seems to be gone and up to the taxpayers to fix up the problems it seems. Who would possibly expect industry and those that own the company be responsible for faulty work???
Meanwhile locals are on the dole still being poisoned smallpox style by P being spread like wildfire, with little to zero intervention of how it’s happened within a decade, and how the raw ingredients are getting in.
With planting trees, when the forests are owned by offshore individuals and various accounting schemes means it remains to be seen if they will a) employ local people to plant them, and b) will there be any economic benefit for NZ if they harvest or make money from it. At least with the trees, hopefully we get cleaner air although sounds like the ratepayers pay to maintain the roads when they move the logs if they harvest them.
Informative interview for the reasoning democrat. Radionz from Kim Hill. Mr Neiwert has been studying right movements for decades. He has a view on where Jordan Peterson fits in. He explains the mindset of trollers and the alt right.
10:04 David Neiwert – The Rise of the Radical Right in the Age of Trump
Neo Nazis, Alt-Right, and White Supremacists march in Charlottesville, Virginia.
David Neiwert is a journalist, author and expert in American right-wing extremism. He has appeared on Anderson Cooper 360, CNN Newsroom, and The Rachel Maddow Show and is the managing editor of the popular political blog Crooks and Liars. His work has also appeared in the American Prospect, the Washington Post, MSNBC.com, Salon.com, and other publications.
His previous books include And Hell Followed With Her: Crossing the Dark Side of the American Border, which won the 2014 International Latino Book Award. His latest book is called Alt America: The Rise of the Radical Right in the Age of Trump, and he’ll be speaking to it at the WORD Christchurch festival, details here.
I’ll try to add audio link when available.
Neiwert says that Trump sees himself as expressing the common man’s and woman’s? opinions. That he has enabled the rise in alt right and other abuse with his lead on this.
This comment about abuse to those who have been hurt and wish to expose it, especially if it is gender related is an example of the disturbed and negativenature of some people being able to flow without pause.
https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/on-the-inside/364374/i-am-sorry-you-can-t-freely-express-yourself
I don’t know whether this will be on audio. You might have to read it.
Here is the link to the audio
https://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/saturday/audio/2018658681/david-neiwert-the-rise-of-the-radical-right
In fact here are links to the great selection of interviews on Kim Hill’s show this morning which included Nigel Farage, and Neil and Liam Finn
https://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/saturday
Good to get the links VV. I thought they were good, she and her team, Dita? et al? pick some good riveting or relaxing stuff. to take us down and then up and more informed at the end.
Reminds me of the film Short Circuit and the runaway robot Johnny 5 I think. It became a rapacious and rapid reader.
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pj-qBUWOYfE
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kov5JGeAXvc
Short Circuit 2
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HVtojNukkA0
It was bloody good interview @ grey eh?. I listened with all the crackling on the AM band caused by strikes of lightening, as I crossed the Desert Road earlier.
Just as an aside, I thought to myself as I listened, how all the critics of the Kim Hill Sung that offer their thoughts over 2101 collide with comments from her interviewees such as “good question” and “thanks for asking that”.
Corrrrrrrrrr eh?
A Puckish Arse gets off on Jude Collins’ every move .
Kim Hill Sung gets me just with that sexy voice AND fierce intellect. (pffft)
A treasure to behold
Once was Tim
You are a lively commenter. I think I agree with you, and the bits I don’t understand probably. As you say – Kim Hill, a fierce intellect. And when she is talking to people who understand and know her well apparently, as with the Finns, that was very enjoyable, lol.
Glad when you crossed the Desert Road that you stayed in the car. There were about 1,000 strikes or some large number. You could get your brain frizzled and be unable to lighten our frequent gloom on TS. Take care.
Neiwert almost destroyed his credibility at the end when he asserted, like a true on-message Democratic Party stooge: “And I DO believe there was Russian meddling.” He seemed to think that Mrs Clinton would have won if not for that dastardly mastermind in Moscow. In just those few words, he resembled the sad cases of the far right, who he’d scoffed at, memorably, for “inhaling their own exhaust.”
But but there probably is something there. Did he say what and how much? It is possible. We can’t know everything – your mind might be devious Morrissey but when there is a phalanx of sycophants (pretty good eh) then they can combine in ways that science has yet to identify.
I accept that the Russians did indeed try to sow dissension. But their thousands of blog posts—and I have seen many of them—were about the same quality and authority of something on Whaleoil or KiwiBlog. The idea that they somehow were crucial to the victory of Trump is absurd, and Neiwert severely damages his credibility and authority by repeating such nonsense.
“And I DO believe there was Russian meddling.” = destroyed cred says morrie
and
I accept that the Russians did indeed try to sow dissension. = ???
You disagree with the extent of the meddling not that there was meddling.
Correct Marty. Of course the Russians ineptly tried to upset the warmonger Clinton’s campaign. Foolishly, they backed Trump.
But the idea that the Russians are some malevolent force manipulating Trump and his cronies and somehow interfering with the ballot itself is simply preposterous. That, however, is what the Clinton wing of the Democratic Party continues to allege, and it’s amplified daily by the likes of Rachel Maddow and, sadly, David Neiwert.
Metro magazine founder Warwick Roger dies
Sad news
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/106376891/metro-magazine-founder-warwick-roger-dies
Why is it sad?
Why is it even news?
Because he tried and achieved something. Without his input nz would be in a poorer position than it is.
I agree Herodotus, and was sad at the news and his struggle over recent times.
Death happens to everyone but almost nobody knew who he was and so his death doesn’t actually affect them.
So, it may be sad to those who knew him. It’s meaningless to everyone else.
I really don’t get this worship of rich people that many have:
Have you considered just passing over the eulogies of people that mean nothing to you?
For someone that pretends to care about all people you’re making a horrible hash of your charade.
Have you considered puitting brief explanation and links to the stories where he did most good for society and NZ in general. Then you would meet DTBs point and illustrate your own.
That would be wiser than engaging in pointless abuse. Give us the facts man as a comic once said. And feel free to repeat this to me if you see me forget my owm point.
Somebody respected Warwick’s work enough to put up a quick post acknowledging his passing.
I’m suggesting that the person that feels obliged to add ‘Who cares’ is a shallow humanitarian who needs calling out on their form.
I haven’t split atoms, nobody knows me, but my family would respectfully request that you refrain from spreading the message ‘Who gives a fuck anyway’ upon my death.
There are a lot of negative things out there all the time David Mac.
Too many shoulds too. Why did you not try what I suggested if you think so highly of him. I remember he was well thought of, prove with what you think are his best pieces. I personally don’t want to live in an authoritarian world where I am told what to think. But if there is good evidence I will look and think about it.
why would it not be sad?
David Neiwert – The Rise of the Radical Right
His latest book is called Alt America: The Rise of the Radical Right in the Age of Trump, and he’ll be speaking to it at the –
WORD Christchurch festival –
on August 30.
https://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/saturday/audio/2018658681/david-neiwert-the-rise-of-the-radical-right
Too many pseudo Irish pubs opening up in Australia apparently…
The Rumjacks – An Irish Pub Song (Official Music Video) – YouTube
How can NZs get decent treatment for themselves following their own choice about when they want to die when we have the self-centred fears of the disabled, also from the medical profession, the hospice sector, the financial sector etc, the uncaring or conformist, with now Australians stepping in with their guidance in this matter which is our concern?
https://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon/audio/2018658341/proposed-euthanasia-bill-in-nz-needs-tweaking
disability law
Proposed euthanasia bill in NZ ‘needs tweaking’
From Nine To Noon, 9:32 am on 16 August 2018
The wording of proposed euthanasia legislation should be tightened to ensure it only applies to the terminally ill, members of an Australian advisory panel say.
Up you all who don’t care about anybody else’s desperate need or personally strong wish for release because of your own dark imaginings and fears. These come first according to you, with an argument about ethics and so on used as a barrier to belief in the right of a particular human being to have a decent and timely system so they can enable their death according to the fullest choice of best and painless ways with all reasonable legal and moral matters attended to
beforehand.
I find the reluctance to deal with people’s needs and requirements relating to euthanasia so disgraceful; people are so reluctant to face up to realities of living and dying that they are apparently frozen from doing anything at all. This Australian lawyer might be offering intelligent suggestions like a cup of milk into already weak tea, but that might actually be needed to give some answer to the mass of weak mutterings of the inadequate thinkers who are a majority in NZ.
Self-centred fears? Go look up Aktion T4 and see what history has to teach us. Why do you think the Australians carefully narrowed the scope of their law?
That was an interesting interview on Thursday but mainly focused on the Australian (Victoria?) legislation rather than the current NZ Bill.
Paula Tesoriero, the HRC Disabilities Commissioner, was on Nine to Noon the next morning (Friday) and I personally found her analysis and misgivings much more relevant and disturbing vis a vis the NZ Bill.
https://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon/audio/2018658517/assisted-dying-bill-undermines-disabled-people
Rosemary McDonald and I have had a few comments on OM yesterday on this subject with Rosemary having done a very detailed comment with her view etc which has been rather lost on there – so here is a link
As I said in a reply to Rosemary under the above, I have great respect for Paula having worked with her briefly – and for Rosemary’s views but I do not believe that we can just can the euthanasia discussion ( although I definitely believe we need to rethink the Bill) until the never never when all these other problems have been resolved. IMHO these issues need to be addressed concurrently and together. (Bad wording but hope you get my meaning.)
Thank you. The Tesoriero interview was on my to-listen list already. Busy week.
Will the Green’s environmental wins further the party’s divide?
The Green’s environmental wins are going to challenge their crusade for the poor.
The Green’s environmental wins are going to result in a number of new environmental related charges being introduced with the regressive nature of the inflationary impact of these new charges hitting the poor the hardest. Thus, clashing with the cause and as a result, furthering the divide within the party.
To date, the concern is there has been little to no talk on how the Greens plan to win-over Labour and NZF and help the poor mitigate these additional costs, thus reunite the party.
Are you stirring?
Don’t be silly. This is a serious concern.
And the fact that some can’t even see it is part of the problem.
Some seem too blinded by the environmental wins to see it’s going to compound the problem for those in poverty.
The Greens consider both the poor and the environment in all their policy work. But your position is that the two concerns are mutually exclusive, going as far in one of your more confused rants to claim the the Greens’ biggest win, healthy homes, had nothing to do with social policy at all!
“The Greens consider both the poor and the environment in all their policy work.”
They may well do. But considering them doesn’t guarantee they are actually going to do anything for them (the poor).
For example, can you tell me what they have planned to help the poor offset the regressive inflationary cost of significantly increasing tip fees?
significantly increasing tip fees… make the manufactures/retailers have to take the packaging/clapped out model back themselves for disposal or have more recycling centres. (You used to have community sites for paper, bottles, cans etc around libraries, now that is all gone and you just have your bin/bag each week).
Most businesses generate rubbish and as with any cost incurred, it’s only logical to assume businesses will attempt to pass that cost on. Therefore, not only will people pay more for goods and services, they also pay more for their own rubbish disposal. Thus, this kind of regressive inflationary pressure is felt hardest by the poor.
Making manufactures/retailers take back packaging for disposal will see them incur further costs, which they will look to pass on.
Giving community cardholders a discount (like removing GST) on all goods and services may be a more targeted option to consider.
I’m sure retailers will try to pass it on, but then there is so much cheap crap coming into NZ and choice in that area that I doubt it will work. K Mart, Briscos, The warehouse, $1 shops, there are plenty of retailers in a crowded area of plastic goods.
Also are beneficiaries and working poor for example the ones out there buying new TV’s, whiteware, over packaged goods, cheese slices in multiple wrappers for lunches or are they at the op shops and trade me and pack and save already using less plastic?
With stores and loan-sharks offering easy credit, the poor will be purchasing a variety of things. And with the additional cost of dumping rubbish being felt across the board, competitors will simultaneously all be looking (thus giving them more scope) to pass the cost on.
You might like to reflect on the Greens’ biggest policy achievement to date, healthy homes, and what it means to low income families. Ask yourself if the Greens were “doing anything for them (the poor)” in that instance.
Once again, Muttonbird you’ve totally missed the point.
I wasn’t implying the Greens have never offered the poor anything in the past, I’m questioning what they are going to do for them moving forward? Especially as a number of their new environmental policies are going to place additional costs upon them.
You do understand we are about to embark on a major transition, which the Greens will be largely leading (Shaw is climate minister)? And as such, are championing new environmental related charges. Such as significantly increasing tip fees and the proposed feebate scheme to incentivise the uptake of low emissions vehicles, which will hit the poor the hardest.
Theses are merely two of a suite of changes that collectively will be as big as the reforms of the 80’s and 90’s that created a lot of pain and hardship, which we’ve yet to overcome.
To stay true to their crusade for the poor while dumping additional costs upon them is going to be a challenge that the Greens have yet to tell us how they plan to overcome. And failing to overcome it will further the divide within the party.
Dead right Ed, that’s all he ever does.
Oh no, not another moron that can’t see how the Greens dumping additional costs onto the poor is going to clash with their crusade for the poor.
You’re just a really crap troll.
Are you denying my assertions?
If so, put forward you reasoning.
You can’t help but reply, you really are a crap troll.
That’s simply because I’m not a troll.
Give it up already. About the only person you have convinced is SaveNZ. Congratulations.
While problems remain, I won’t be giving up.
The Greens are going to have a major falling out if they don’t sort this out.
And while I’m only one voice from the left within the Greens, many more share my concerns.
You are not a party member, you are just a really crap troll.
Whether people believe I’m a troll or not, the problem for the Greens (which evidently you haven’t refuted) remains.
Fuck, you’ve been trolling that same line all year. It is tired. Get some new material.
And what sort of Chairman uses the term ‘Egg’ like you did the other day. I mean really…
That’s because the Greens have had many problems over the last year and have yet to reunite the party. So it’s them that needs to produce some new material and get on top of this divide before it’s to late.
I not only want the Greens to be part of the next Government, I want them to have numbers and they won’t achieve that if the party remains divided.
Your whole purpose here is to divide the Greens, we understand that.
The Chairman may well be seeking to “divide The Greens”, solkta, but his wan comments here on TS is very unlikely to achieve that aim. His attempts here are useful though, as he reveals the strategy and talking points that could be employed more widely to achieve that aim, so it’s 3 cheers for The Chairman!
No.
As you and others can see in this thread, I’m highlighting one of the problems (additional charges being dumped on the poor) furthering the divide and what they must do (protect the poor) to help overcome it.
But Shaw and his lot are failing to act and thus far have presented no solutions while championing new environmental charges.
Here’s an idea.
Next time the Greens champion a new environmental charge/cost, it would be good for them to also tell us how they plan to protect the poor from it
An easy strategy, make the environmental costs and risks all back on the polluter and don’t let the polluters loose in the first place!
For example instead of power grants, maybe look at installing solar panels that can reduce power and carbon costs long term in state housing. Of course they need to go back and look at how government has allowed power companies to overtax poor people in the first place and forcing people to pay higher prices if they have solar panels.
With plastic bags, make the manufacturer be responsible for recycling their plastic, you will be amazed how soon the manufacturers stop over packaging if they have to deal with the problem themselves! Then if they do use packaging they will turn to biodegradable packaging instead!
At present the government needs to change it’s mindset to thinking taxing people will somehow create a better society aka petrol taxes which is just leading to inequality.
Instead the answer is to solve the problem by understanding polluters in in the first place aka every man and his dog is on individual truck and courier contracts delivering crap about Auckland in clapped out vehicles or parents, people working 3 jobs because nobody has a full time job anymore.
Parents driving kids around because the lack of afterschool activities or in school activities is lacking like swimming/swimming pools, sports (now it is all about driving around to competitions rather than in school netball or what have you).
The entire government mindset needs changing to why people are needing to pollute more and what can the government do, that is fast, cheap and simple to reduce it.
And rather than the Greens picking on the little guy, they need to look at the worst offenders which are often businesses who for example are creating the packaging or businesses who make employees part time and casual and school/hospital systems that are no longer catering to the needs of the local community and then wonder why people are needing to commute to do things that used to be available locally.
Not to mention Auckland council seems to rubber-stamp as many polluting consents as possible such as truck and trailers or fill going across Auckland for Decades and the Tegal consent relies on millions of chickens being bought into Auckland from Dargaville to be processed. That is what happens when there is pretence between planning and Auckland transport. They effectively rubber stamp each others consents or too lazy to even work out some of the issues (like congestion) going forward.
What’s next, a freezing works on the water front? I mean we already have the clapped out cars and bananas coming in. Why not put industry first as they already seem to be the priority in NZ while the rest of NZ supports them with free roads, free natural resources and tax top ups for their employee’s because they can’t be expected to pay people enough to live on. Nowadays working for 50% of Kiwis seems to be more survival than living, and having to rely on other people’s decisions, like do they have a job next week, because at any time that might change.
‘For example instead of power grants, maybe look at installing solar panels…”
Like it, SaveNZ.
Interestingly, I was following up on a case I highlighted early this year. A state housing tenant was offered a free solar set up and insulation, but HNZ prevented her from having it installed. The Greens spoke out strongly on this, but I’m yet to find out what the final outcome was.
Nevertheless, once again you raise some valid points, therefore this is the kind of approach the Greens should be considering and what we need to hear more from them.
At least the Greens seem to be promoting banning the plastic bag!
Now hopefully the government will expect those that manufacture with plastic or where it is sold from (aka supermarkets and retailers) be responsible for it’s disposal.
As soon as consumers are legally able to return packaging to the point you bought it from, it will drive change faster and with more equality than say charging the consumer 10 cents for a plastic bag, while the manufacturers and retailers get a free pass while being the ones who are creating or enabling the issue in the first place.
It is all punish, or make life harder, for the ordinary poor person.
Say that poor person has to shift but has no car, and is on their own. They may have to ask for help from another poor person who has a ute or car and trailer. They probably can’t ask someone comfortably off because they haven’t got enough time or goodwill to help someone who isn’t comfortable.
Their help-person can’t get to the tip during opening hours, and nobody has any spare money to pay tip fees. They look at one another and wonder what happens if they just leave it at the tip gates. They think ‘Oh no, I’ll bet they will not like that, and we will be on CCTV, and get fined and we can’t afford that’. So the helper says I know somewhere I can take it and leave it and they agree that is the only answer that meets the situation. They load up and take it to an unlicensed tip place out of town.
This happens. To avoid it, the person might phone and ask Council for help, and they might say well we usually charge at least $20 if we come and pick it up. If you are a ratepayer we will put it on your rates bill. Can you get it to the tip somehow and we will allow you to tip it free of cost but it must meet our requirements and you should have someone capable to help you move it.
And something gets worked out that means they pay something and do what they can, and Council helps someone who wants to be a tidy kiwi.
Space force. Is this part of the recipe for building up support for one?
https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/world/364257/mystery-russian-satellite-s-behaviour-raises-alarm-in-us
16/8/2018
I think the US is already there. WTF does this thing do then?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boeing_X-37
Hmmm Where is the ‘Royal United Services Institute.’? Stirring the pot. With that Boeing X37 going up and down to show it can, unmanned, no wonder the deficit for the USA defence is large.
Who spends the most –
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) measures annual military spending for most of the world’s armed countries. According to SIPRI, the U.S. spent $618 billion on its military last year, more than three times the $171 billion budget of second place China.Jul 12, 2014
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) 2017 Military Expenditure Database estimated Russia’s military expenditure in 2016 at US$69.2 billion. This estimate is roughly twice that of SIPRI’s estimate of the Russian military budget for 2006 (US$34.5 billion).
US Military Budget: Components, Challenges, Growth – The Balance
https://www.thebalance.com › Investing › US Economy › Fiscal Policy
4 days ago – The US military spending is $892 billion once you add components hidden in other budgets. Here’s the breakout since 2006.
U.S. military budget inches closer to $1 trillion mark, as concerns over …
https://www.washingtonpost.com/…/u-s-military-budget-inches-closer-to-1-trillion-mark…
Jun 19, 2018 – The Senate approved the $716 billion military budget by an … Congress’s official budget scorekeeper recently projected the federal deficit will …
Denying Palestinians respect and support and communication with the world.
Is this how Israelis want to behave towards other humans? Is this their dream of how life would be in their own country?
16/8/2018
https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/world/364202/palestinian-mail-blocked-by-israel-arrives-eight-years-late
I found that I had to back away from taking a high interest in the Trump presidency debacle months ago as it was doing my head in. So many questions, so few answers – and so many people in positions of power with backgrounds and personalities that seem to me anyway incongruous to their positions.
One such is Stephen Miller, who despite his background, beliefs etc seems to be secure in his White House position and also despite the departure of Steve Bannon and others who he was originally aligned with in the White House corridors of power.
Last week, an article written by one of his uncles was posted on politico.com which I found quite interesting and poignant – and at the same time so very difficult to understand how far from the tree Miller has fallen.
A well worthwhile read IMHO – I highly recommend taking a few minutes to read it.
https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2018/08/13/stephen-miller-is-an-immigration-hypocrite-i-know-because-im-his-uncle-219351
This proud Australian stands head up, jaw jutting, and having achieved an elevated position on a soapbox says this:
Wednesday 15/8/2018 4.55pm
Mr [Fraser] Anning used his maiden speech last night to call for a complete overhaul of the immigration system, insisting most migrants should be from a European Christian background and all Muslims should be banned.
In that speech he used the phrase “final solution”, which was the phrase used by the Nazis under Adolf Hitler which meant annihilating Jewish people from Europe….
It has been strongly criticised by politicians from across the divide in both chambers, with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull describing the “final solution” comment as a “shocking insult” to those who died in the Holocaust.
But Mr Anning was unmoved and his party leader Bob Katter called the speech “magnificent” and “solid gold”.
Mr Katter said he discussed the speech with Mr Anning before he delivered it.
Mr Anning joined Parliament last year as a One Nation senator but has since defected to Katter’s Australian Party….
(Note me: This is what the waka jumping bill here is going to prevent, and which Nick Smith is making a ‘noble principled’ stand against and attacking Winston Peters at the same time. Here in this Oz case it can be seen how waka-jumping from your avowed party at election leads to bad not good politics.)
“That has nothing to do with ‘the final solution’, the thought police got onto that.
“Good men died for our right to say whatever we wanted to say and use whatever words we want to use. If people want to take it of context that is entirely up to them…
(Note from me: This is an example of where unrestrained ‘free’ speech leads.)
Parliament stops short of censuring Mr Anning’s comments
The Greens moved a motion in the Upper House to censure Mr Anning over his comments, but it did not get enough support to pass.
(Me: Instead wishy-washy pretence of integrity -)
The Senate did, however, pass a motion recognising the merits of immigration and multiculturalism, and a similar motion was moved in the House of Representatives.
https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/world/364171/australian-mps-condemn-fraser-anning-for-final-solution-muslim-ban-speech
(I heard some comment on this speech and the ability of rabble rousers like this to get into Australian Parliament. The commenter said something about the voting system enabling it. Single Transferable Vote?
the use of the single transferable vote proportional representation system to elect the upper house, the Senate.[1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electoral_system_of_Australia
Some google headings on Australia and its version of politics:
Fraser Anning: One Nation Senator elected with just 19 votes
https://www.theaustralian.com.au › national-affairs
Nov 10, 2017 – Fraser Anning is Pauline Hanson’s new low-vote senator … I will do the job for the people of Queensland and Australia.” … With the declaration, senator-elect Anning said he realised he was in parliament because of the …
***
Josh Frydenberg under pressure over $444m reef foundation grant …
https://www.theguardian.com/australia…/fraser-anning-refuses-to-apologise-for-final-sol…
3 days ago – The annual ABC Parliament House Showcase is on tonight, where the ABC brings … David Leyonhjelm said Turnbull had promised him a free vote in the House. … issues, less sensible people jump in” – @TonyAbbottMHR on Fraser Anning #auspol … At what point are we going to say you are Australian?
***
Fraser Anning: How only 19 people voting for him secured Senate gig
https://www.news.com.au/national/…/19…/f8d8aaa83f0c2bcab53626455a3698d6
3 days ago – A BLOKE who got just 19 votes in a Federal election still managed to get his bum on a Senate seat. … the boot from Parliament in the citizenship saga, paving the way for Fraser Anning who … took a pit-stop as an independent, and then joined Katter’s Australian Party. … News Pty Limited Copyright © 2018.
Jacinda asked teachers to be patient, yet didn’t even bother to layout a time-line.
Should the Government meet teachers demands now or are they right in making them and students wait?
As I’ve highlighted with the nurses dispute, the Government isn’t spending up to its own spending cap, moreover, debt repayment is better than expected, thus the fiscal scope is there for the Government to act now.
How do you feel on this one?
Prince’s mercenaries committed multiple war crimes in Iraq and were convicted for their involvement in the Nissour Square massacre.
This story has all of the markings of something leaked to the press by Trump advisers precisely because it is such a colossally bad idea.
Beyond the lunacy of privatizing wars to mercenaries—especially those who were charged with crimes while deployed in Iraq—Dan Pfeiffer suggests that this could be yet another example of how deeply corrupt this White House has become.
https://washingtonmonthly.com/2018/08/17/will-mattis-allow-trump-to-start-privatizing-the-military/
The questions you might consider, Joe…
How is the ‘military’ not already a private force ?
When did the privitization occur ?
How is privitization enabled ?
Jimmy Dore on Syria.
Some background for folk here.
Kofi Annan has died.
So very pleased to read that the Greens are seeking agreement against water rights sold with land that end up being bottling plants with huge take up. Case Whakatane. I hope Labour and NZ First agree.
It is a real problem in California. We need to learn from their orchards being bought, trees knocked down for piping or bottling the water away. Water rights should be for a designated use only, and tied to the industry IMO.
California once believed they had endless supplies.
Agreed, these are the basics the Greens ahve to get right, and
Also here, I wander if the result of no-damn plan from Waimea Greens is more maize. But the gnats could have started alt plans years ago.
“There were alternatives to dams including on-farm water storage, urban rainwater collection systems, grey water recycling systems and growing different crops.” from Waimea Green.
Why was he so quiet over the past 9 years? https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12108722
Great Britain still has a major influence on Aotearoa and Papatuanukue so I say it’s ECO MAORI right to give my opinion on the British exit of the European Union.
The European Union is making a lot of good call for the future of the Mokopunas and Papatuanukue so I Back a new vote on Britexit views of the people
If one looks across the Atlantic sea they will fill the void if Britain leaves the European Union I say that a wrong move for all people on Papatuanukue Ka kite ano link below
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/aug/18/founder-superdry-donates-1-million-pounds-peoples-vote-brexit-deal
Here you go police tasering a 87 years old lady I told you they are on a different Papatuanukue probley influence buy trump vile views on other culture one can say one thing but it is his actions that speak loud and clear to ECO MAORI he’s a racist Ana to kai Ka kite ano link below
http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/americas/106386070/us-police-use-taser-on-87yearold-woman-carrying-a-knife-to-cut-dandelions
You see the sandflys have only contacted lies against my good name so they are playing the intimidation game on ECO MAORI with there hands clasped together praying that I make a dumb move YEA RIGHT muppets I see everything the juveniles are doing Ana to kai Ka kite ano
Good logical policy like waste minamization looking at ways to improve te Mokopunas future and keep our environment clean is why I Back the Green 100% link below Ka kite ano
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12109641 P.S it’s logical to create less waste and save money and the environment
Well I’m at the hospital with my Mokopuna she is OK we still not sure what’s, wrong but my Mokopunas has the Wensday Adams personality she does not show or cry when she is in pain and she only talks when she’s is asked questions and the answer are quite blunt that’s OUR Wensday so I can see that people that don’t know her could jump to conclusions we had a child next door moaning and cry about pain I told her that’s how she should be behaving but I did inform the hospital staff that’s how her personality is doesn’t cry when in pain. Some will know that others have affecting the views that staff have on my whano Ka kite ano
The way eco Maori see this move against Turkey its not about Turkey its about the country’s that have invested in Turkey who have give trump the bird flip eco is so famous for giving. trumps adviceser have told him hit Turkey with Tariffs the US have little financial exposure to TURKEY that will bring pain to those good countries stock market he doesn’t care that the move will place people in hardship just so he can get back at the bird flippers. Ka kite ano
Link for post above here.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-45237372
Good evening Newshub I have all ready posted about The great Kofi Annan he was a intelligent humane man its awesome that the Papatuanukue media are houners this great humanitarian Kofi Annan we cannot let great tangata like him go with out celebrating and hounering there lifes work
Ka pai.
The Greens Party is taking a spotlight to our waste problems and is going to come up with logical solutions to this issue Ka kite ano
Good evening Q&A Corin There is a major tangata whenua oppression in the government systems the justice system is the main offender . The national party has used the last nine years to champion this suppression of Maori .How else do you exsplane the fast rise of bad stat’s of tangata whenua.
There you go asking a Indain shop owner who only see thing’s throught his shop eye’s he has all ready locked maori up I can see it in his eye’s Corin he is a national puppet.
That’s the way Marmara you tell them how acutely is locking more people up like the Indain want’s this will flush people’s live’s and billion’s down the toilet.
seenothing is drowning Corin and he is pouring money into your pocket and other’s to try and keep his toilet a float See you around Corin Ka kite ano P.S I looked back in time and seen most new goverment’s get at least 2 terms in Parliament all the political scientist know this fact but the new government don’t let your guard down Corin look at all the new Green policys coming into law a big win for the Greens Corin using the divide an concur trick lol
Yes some in the media will plant questions and get one or 2 words and spin them into a hurricane of bullshit Go Jamie and Marama P.S Eco is quite committed his my mahi Corin