"We ask FBI whistleblower Coleen Rowley to compare the Russiagate investigation with the treatment of Hillary Clinton's emails, and ask whether the current polarized political landscape makes it more likely for the agency to make partisan choices."
Here is a interesting piece that helps unpack and clear a bit of the fog around some of the perceived similarities on major issues in the Warren/Sanders platforms…
There are objective policy differences between Warren and Sanders. People will interpret those differences in their own way. For many people who aren't even Americans, the Sanders project represents something hopeful with global implications because the US is so important. To belittle this as 'messianic' seems to me like a gratuitous exaggeration – an attempt to create the perception of 'deplorables' on the left.
The article starts in with a whine about Bernie getting negative media coverage. It's only dedicated true believer followers that can't accept that nobody's perfect, that all candidate are flawed, those flaws will be harshly examined, and rightly so.
The article goes on to highlight one of Warren's serious flaws, her vagueness on how her healthcare plans will be funded. True dat.
But it then gets gooey-eyed about Bernie's alternative, without recognising how electorally damaging Bernie's 'your taxes are going up to pay for it' stance is. Let alone that Bernie and the article also fail to identify the biggest financial factor in most American's healthcare; that they get their health insurance through an employer-sponsored healthcare plan where the employer pays the vast majority of the cost.
@ Andre, aahh. the staunchest defender of the liberal status quo, no change is good change, a real steady as she goes kind of guy….Warren will be fine if you are OK with a safe centersit liberal capitalist in the mould of Helen Clark that won't really rock the boat, and probably not really be remembered for anything in particular..I know that being all safe and sound is more your style.
However if transformative change in the battle against climate change, a more sane foreign policy etc is your bag..like it is mine, then only one name is worth mentioning..and we all know who that is.
Acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney said President Trump had mentioned Democratic "corruption".
But Mr Trump was also concerned about wider corruption in Ukraine, he said.
"That's why we held up the money," he said, calling it "absolutely appropriate".
The question of whether military aid for Ukraine was withheld in exchange for a "quid pro quo" to investigate Donald Trump's political rivals is central to an impeachment inquiry against the president.
The White House has denied any such conditions were imposed.
It's an interesting take on the idea that it's the cover-up that gets you, not the crime. Gotta give 'em credit for having the whatever it takes to do it all right out in the open so there won't be a cover-up.
It's like they forgot the purpose in the cover-up in the first place.
It's all very well not to cover something up if people happen to ask the right questions, but it's a bloody stupid idea to take the body to the police station and announce "I murdered this man in cold blood and then I pissed on his corpse".
I really can't decide whether to think it's because they really don't think they're doing anything wrong, or they don't think they could ever possibly be held accountable, or it's a deliberate effort to burn it all.
This is so dumb… we still have no evidence of a quid pro quo.
We have the transcript of the phone call with the Ukrainian president which was supposed to be direct evidence, and it utterly fails. Now we're left with relying on whatever Trump says to media as evidence…
If I were a mod here and said "nice commenting privileges you have here, shame if anything happened to them", would you take that as support for what you said or a strong suggestion to modify your behaviour?
Yeah, but you're a supposed lefty, doing all they can to suckle on Trump's twin tangerines, so I don't think your judgement is something you can really rely on.
Well Sanders isn't going to be president – He won't even win the nomination, so the next year is going to be fun isn't it? All those fevered imaginations running daily republican attack lines on whoever the Democrats select because they won't be nearly left enough for them, hoping instead for a second term from the nastiest, most anti liberal left potus in living history.
You could write it, though if you hadn’t of seen it happen here last time out, you wouldn’t bleedin’ believe it.
So you are able to identify that cliched phrase as a veiled threat, even though I'm not a mod, have zero ability to make good on a threat, and there is therefore no power imbalance whatsoever.
Yet where there is a massive power imbalance and hundreds of millions of dollars at stake and the language used is even more overt, you claim there is no threat being made?
I really thought I was going to have to be more subtle. But I was psyching myself up for an hour and a half of abject terror teaching my kid to drive on Auckland streets, so just went what the hell with the easy one. Yet even that one worked.
So, let me get this straight. The Intelligence person who "blew the whistle" makes an allegation of Trump corruption, but can't provide evidence to back this up. Trump can however provide a transcript of the conversation within a few days. Over 3 weeks later the whistleblower still can't provide a counter transcript… worse they initially launched their complaint about 8 weeks ago…
The whistleblower was able to point to where evidence of wrongdoing might be found. So for whatever bizarre reason, the White House then released a document, presumably their best spin, that clearly showed wrongdoing. Subsequently, investigators with the proper authority looked where the whistleblower said to look, and lo, further wrongdoing and corroboration was found.
Dunno why you think the whistleblower should have to personally produce the evidence. S'pose since Repugs seem to think it's a good talking point, it's good enough for you to use to try to deflect from actual evidence of wrongdoing.
I hope I can get a look at this beasty with my scope
Here’s the Picture We’ve Been Waiting for. Hubble’s Photo of Interstellar Comet 2I/Borisov.
…2I/Borisov has wandered into our Solar System from the deep cold of interstellar space, but nobody knows from whence it came, or how long it’s been travelling. Boris only the second object we’ve observed that’s come into our Solar System from somewhere else in the galaxy, and the Hubble snapped photos of it speeding along at about 177,000 kph (110,000 mph.) So far, the Hubble images are the sharpest ones yet.
Our first interstellar visitor was Oumuamua, which sped through our Solar System in 2017. But that object didn’t give up its secrets easily. It came and went and generated a lot of clicking and conjecture, and panicky headlines in some quarters. But it had not coma, and no tail, meaning it had no ice. But Boris is clearly a comet.
Hubble captured these images of Boris when it was 418 million km (260 million miles) from Earth. At its closest approach it’ll be two astronomical units away from the Sun, on December 27th, 2019. As it approaches and recedes, other telescopes will observe it, and we’ll learn more about it.
The numbers around this comet are astounding to me. At a speed of 177,000 km/h, this comet would have taken 24000 years to have travelled from the nearest star at 4 light years away.
And it hurtles through our solar system and away. Mrs Mac1 remembered her EELS stage one unit when a medieval writer wrote in AngloSaxon of a group of men sitting in the mead hall and watching a bird fly in one window and though the hall out the other end. Whence it came and whither it went?
Good to be reminded there is a wider world out there……..
Nectarine cider sounds good. I have brewed apple cider, perry and cherry cider which I called 'chider". and another with feijoa, apple and kiwifruit. The apple cider was reinforced 20:1 with crab apple juice and the perry reinforced. again for acidity, with quince juice. Quince juice tastes incredibly acidic, a real mouth puckerer. Enough sugar to make 5.5% alcohol my hydrometer said, but it turned my cheeks inside out! The cherry cider tasted like pinot noir, very dry. Now to find some nectarines……..
My former neighbour is an apiarist and used to give me the washings from his machinery, as well as straight honey to brew with. Very generous. One brew took two or three inoculations to get started with yeast. It had some manuka honey in it, I believe.
I first learned about this from a friend who had a couple of bottles from a deceased aunt's estate, 25 years old or so, and freaking amazing. It's probably replicable with a solera system but I'm not settled enough at present for such experiments.
For those who were inquiring, I have made the final cut and secured my seat at the table at Environment Southland. Thanks for your support. I am somewhat relieved and my family will no longer have to tippy-toe around the place
Yeah, it is a great feeling when you can relax those tense muscles and feel like you are walking on clouds. You often don’t know how stressful it is till it dissipates, a bit like child birth 😉
Great for the country and thank goodness that the whole family is committed and up with the 'play'. Your lifestyle should enable you to stand up to the pressures and tiring work of carrying forward measures that don't offer any material positive outcomes for the councillors who have to give up some perks and the comfort of conforming to the mean mean.
Did you come across Polly Higgins’ idea to impact on environmental damage with an international law banning climate harming? She wrote three books –
2010 Eradicating Ecocide: Exposing the Corporate and Political Practices Destroying the Planet and Proposing the Laws Needed to Eradicate Ecocide
2012 Earth is our Business: Changing the Rules of the Game Advocating a new form of leadership that places the health and well-being of people and the planet first, this book proposes a new Earth law, a framework for sustainable development and international environmental governance.
Sad fact is that the infiltrators and undercovers will already be in there – stirring it up, creating anxiety and distrust, getting extreme and then pretending others were, and doing the opposite of that. Can't stop it – just a tightness of group and an awareness of others to mitigate. Kia kaha ER.
I am not saying this action described below is unaligned with the movement or that it is contrived – the point is no one can know because the ones the disrupt, work from both sides – calling for more action, calling for less action – it is the uncertainty and division that is the goal.
The climate protests during which one activist was dragged from the roof of a London Underground train by angry commuters had been discussed within Extinction Rebellion [XR] for weeks.
But it was not until Wednesday morning, when a note was posted on the group’s website, that a decision appeared to have been taken.
In the hours that followed there was a sometimes fractious debate among XR supporters. More than 3,700 people responded to an online poll circulated on the group’s social media networks with 72% saying they were opposed to the action “no matter how it is done”.
Those opposed feared the action, taken against what they said were the wishes of the overwhelming majority, would demoralise activists and raised questions about the group’s democratic decision-making processes.
More fundamentally, they argued that the targeting of public transport – rather than roads, airports or financial institutions hit earlier in the week – confused their message.
“Our fear was that targeting public transport, an environmentally friendly way to travel, would alienate the public and muddle what we were trying to say in the minds of the public,” said one of those opposed to the action who did not want to be named.
There was also concern that by explicitly targeting working Londoners, they would undermine any public sympathy they had built up.
Not sure this is XR divided, but it will probably present some issues for people who think that disagreement and dissent are a problem.
Following on twitter, looks like XR leaders are learning from the experience and fronting up.
My main issue is the stations that were chosen. Why ones that are more working class? I think the point was that the lines end up in the business district, and were used in April actions. But I'd still like to see an explanation of the thinking process behind that one.
While I think XR are right to make statements of non-support for the action (and look at how splinter groups can take independent action but not as part of XR), this XR woman is impressive in her calm explanation of what matters. Clare Farrell,
"The people are rising up against the elites. No, I don’t mean Extinction Rebellion. I mean the Rebellion againstExtinction Rebellion. Today’s clashes on the Tube between the commuting working classes and the time-rich, bourgeois fearmongers of the XR cult is a wonderful illustration of the elitist nature of eco-politics and of rising public fury with the eco-agenda. "
No, they’re reactionary against XR, who clearly prioritise their bougie viewpoints over all rational and logical criticism of their behaviour.
the tube is one of the answers to climate change, and getting more people to use it. It’s used by all classes, because it works, is relatively cheap compared to cabs and cars, and is per passenger mile the cleanest powered transport in London.
yet it should be a target “cos direct action” sure
no surprise weka focuses on the messenger rather than the message.
XR can distance themselves, but it was coordinated and under the XR banner. If it’s decentralised how do we know it’s XR leaders talking for XR and not showing support? How do we know the whole leadership of XR is against the action?
"How do we know the whole leadership of XR is against the action?"
We don't. It's a large group, and decentralised. But key players are talking about the problems with the action, and what the solutions are for them as an org.
Impressive statement – I hope they can keep the wheels on and focus on the real enemy.
…Our fifth value is “that we value reflecting and learning”. ‘Post consensus’ organising is undoubtedly an important part of what has made us such a dynamic, fast-growing and vibrant movement. On the other hand, there are clearly serious flaws in a system that gives rise to pain such as many of us feel today.
This movement is made up of people who pour their energy and hopes into this cause and who have been left feeling disrespected, powerless and unheard. It’s clear we need to take serious time to learn from what went wrong.
As we begin to think about why we are where we are, it’s vital to remember the bigger picture. As with earlier controversial proposals, this action was conceived and carried out by incredibly courageous individuals, willing to face prison sentences, and motivated by the same deep fear and profound love that drives so many of us to do what we do.
It’s no less through love and fear, and due to the same conditions of oppression that we face ourselves, that we saw such a disturbing reaction from some of those on the platform at Canning Town. These were commuters trying to get to work so they can support their loved ones. We recognise that disruption at Canning Town affected those already suffering the hardships of a toxic system – those who are the most at risk from the effects of climate and ecological collapse…
I thought about how many people would be encouraged to thoughtful and useful action towards preventing and coping with climate change by this action by apparently Extinction Rebellion activists?
And decided that it was likely to be none, and the events that unfolded show that none appears to be the right answer. No, or very few people wanted to sit down and have a pow wow about the problem of climate change. In fact they were reported to have been incensed that they could not fulfil their various roles in society where people were waiting for them to attend and work using their various skills. We live in a complex economic system and it gives people jobs which they earn money from to support themselves and families. Is that hard for activists to understand?
Creating chaos is not the way to stop the behaviours that cause and increase Climate Change. It will only mean that the small ameliorations we hope to achieve become impossible, and we hope that small things done all over the globe may have large implications as in Chaos Theory. It is important to plan the Chaos Theory* campaigns so one does not create complete chaos!
In chaos theory, the butterfly effect is the sensitive dependence on initial conditions in which a small change in one state of a deterministic nonlinear system can result in large differences in a later state.
I'd be interested to know what @Wayne thinks of the various theories on Repressed Memory Syndrome and Dissociative Amnesia and what sort of trauma it is that prompts a recall of memory.
It really must be hard for a self-appointed sage having to coming to terms with one's credibility being placed in question.
Notice how the generals have thick briefing books in front of them at the Burnham enquiry , but a few Colonels and Captains can remember quite clearly . The Army tried to hide one relevant Colonel from testifying as they 'keep losing' the paperwork. The secret reports, the lists of people who handled documents….
"A second senior military officer has claimed former Defence Minister Wayne Mapp was given a report showing the civilians may have died in a New Zealand-led mission in Afghanistan years before the Defence Force acknowledged the possibility.
You know @Duke, I was just saying to Mrs OnceWasTim the other day, as I was preparing for my next rent-a-voice media gig, and she was busy darning my socks, ironing my leisure suit and getting the meal on the table at 6pm sharpish, that all this could get a bit ugly.
As Mrs OnceWasTim discarded the khaki wool and re-threaded her needle with a pinkish shade, I suddenly had a recall, and it brought back a few hazy memories of being told about a few things relating to civilian casualties. At the time, I now know I thought it best kept secret in the national interest. But it really did prey on my mind.
I said to Mrs OnceWasTim, forget worrying about the 2019 Christmas card list and that matching set of feral vests and jumpers you've been knitting for John and Bronagh and that nice young man Mex – we really need a plan going forward.
My best friend, companion and woifey Mrs OnceWereTim were again at one.
I've been hard out on the phone ever since doing the numbers and trying to determine just who it is that'll remain loyal, and who is about to drop me like a hot potato. AND! after ALL I've done for this country. Already, quite a few just don't seem to know who I am!
My heart rilly rilly goes out to Juss. And to think!!! – the ultimate insult. Jacinda didn't even seem to know who he was AFTER ALL he'd actually achieved. It's just not right eh!
Never mind though eh? Juss is considering his options and he might even be able to do another Kapai style startup – just as long as some of those pesky young people and feminazis don't get in his way. 62 votes! – he must be fucking devastated now that arshole is in control with a load of young whippersnappers.
Maybe they could all have a meeting of the minds down at somewhere like Bats, and come to a Brexit-style agreement (going forward)
There'd be a Labour label, a few young whippersnappers each of which has the brainpower of the entire collective, and maybe even a bit of Wellington Party rough trade that failed on the local council but professed such a concern regionally, that would show up.
You might even be able to attract the prefect Nicola – such an impressive lineage!
As things stand, it's not that bad an outcome even if it is a holding pattern
TV3 down and wants government help. I should cocoa!
Struggling news media companies have been lobbying the government behind the scenes for some time. On Thursday broadcaster MediaWorks put it all out in the open, telling the minister responsible its future is in doubt and democracy could die in darkness if he fails to act now.
“I have a challenge for the broadcasting minister. Step in and save New Zealand television and news channels before it’s too late,” Duncan Garner told his listeners and viewers dramatically on the AM show this morning.
To reinforce the message, the studio lights dipped for a few seconds.
Broadcasting Minister Kris Faafoi was a former TVNZ rival of Duncan Garner when they were both TV reporters in the press gallery 10 years ago.
Ever since Kris Faafoi got the job last year, news media companies have been telling him they need his help.
It was music to their ears when he spoke about shoring up the news media scene, "preserving plurality" and "funding differently".
There are 4-5 million of us. We don't need three channels to stand between the truth, the explanations and the viewers. What we need is less tv and more talks, panels, thinking, reading, not just dropped jaws as the latest scandal gets hyped up in techiest technicolour.
Every now and then some celebrity does something crazy, has a breakdown or commits suicide. The noise after that usually includes 'why didn't we take notice of the signs and do something about it to help?'
That's the feeling I'm getting watching Trump in Texas. Not about me, about him.
A former defence minister facing accusations of a cover up has admitted he knew of possible civilian deaths and decided not to tell the prime minister and public.
Would you deliver your first line to Wayne while his grandchild was bouncing on his knee? (The child is only 1, won't understand you, just smile as you say it.)
I think you spend a lot of time saying "My life is crap and I demand that you, you, you and you fix it right now."
That's fine but I'm not sure you should be so quick to judge a view that differs from your own. Lets find ways to get along hey….we can skew the game our way*
It's the culture of the Defence Force OWT. I sat on on an Air Force base – an outsider looking in – for five years. The rank and file were by and large a good bunch, but some of the brass saw themselves as superior to the rest of us civilian yobbos in particular, and therefore impervious to criticism and accountability.
There is an element of "Dunning Kruger" at play too and a determination to cover each others backs no matter how serious the charges laid.
It was inevitable they would come a cropper one day and thanks to Jon Stephenson and Nicky Hager it looks like it has happened.
Fascinating, if the journalist's take is to be believed it looks as though the hearing has come to a bit of a head. SAS commander Colonel Jim Blackwell toe to toe with ex Minister Mapp.
Looks as if it unfolded a bit like this…
Colonel: "Are you saying I'm lying Mr Mapp?”
Mr Mapp: "Oh no, I am highlighting the minor but important discrepencies in your recall of events. Are you saying that I'm lying?"
I would suggest that it would be very difficult to maintain the respect of the squad and rise to the very top of our most elite fighting force whilst being a bullshit artist.
I don't think Wayne is a devious lying manipulator.
He is a retired career politician. It's a role that requires an ability to spin, describing 'What's going down' with glasses of many tints, mainly rose. Behave any way long enough and it becomes habit.
He believes what he is saying….sort of.
No other Nat minor celeb spends time in here. Wayne is a bit like the straight guy that is spending just a bit too much of his time in a gay bar. "Oh I only hang out at the Standard because geez those lefties know how to select tunes and dance."
I dig Wayne. No other established righty spends time in here. I reckon he's a closet leftie. Full of BS, of course, he was a politician, show me one that isn't….not so much liars….Truth artists.
Don't be sucked in by apparent niceness and civility – that's how monsters gain power. The truth will out about these sordid murders of innocents and the courts hopefully will make appropriate judgment. Nice people do shit things sonetimes – you do don't you? And you're nice aren't you?
Your 'don't be sucked in by apparent niceness and civility' line reminds me of remarks in the 'Reality kicks in for US trolls' post to do with the style of David Farrar.
The biggest, slimiest, dirtiest weasels don't necessarily look like the biggest, slimiest, dirtiest weasels or on a superficial level sound like them. Their deeds speak for them though.
I believe in us. I think we all want to be good parents and lovers. We just need a good enough reason to be so. Striving to get a $17 an hour job or deemed suitable enough to pay $500 a week for a $300 a week flat beats the get up and go out of folk.
Life in NZ has become tough for people that aren't going to be doctors. Even them! Doctors striking!
ummm he was the 'authority'. You seem to care more about your imaginary relationship to wayne than any truth – why not just wait and see what comes out before going all gushy.
I used to take you with a grain of salt but you still seemed to upset me. I tried taking you with 2 grains of salt and found myself getting to like you.
Our inner self, it is the key element in all of Mike King's talks and he is so right.
That inner voice that says 'gee you're smart' or 'gee you're fat'. It's just so jolly fundamental. The conversation our inner voice is having with us.
I dig Mike King. Mike King for Health Minister. He gives a genuine damn. Mike King would say "If you don't like what I'm doing, vote me out, I'll do something else." He wouldn't defend a bullshit scheme, he'd call it for what it is.
Hey Mike, stand as an Independent Minister of Health, I reckon you'd romp in sport.
When do we get to the point where Brexit is done, the Democrats have a nominated candidate, the China-US trade deal is done, and the Year of Delivery starts?
I don't think most people's thoughts are focused on the points you point to Ad.
Even those deemed to be comfortable are having to choose between insurance cover or the Herald delivered.
Too many of us are working too hard to earn nothing more than more struggle. It shouldn't be so tough to get ahead. Anyone with their nose to the grind-stone for 5 years should end up with equity in their own home. Not just keeping up with the rent.
Working like a demon to pay off a house for someone too lazy to scratch sux
Aqua culture has huge potential to feed Te Papatuanuku tangata we can grow aqua culture with out ruining our environment so long as plans are put in place to minimise the negative environmental effects on day one.
Seaweed project to reduce burping cows may be an environmental 'game-changer
A project to turn a native red seaweed into a greenhouse gas-busting cattle feed supplement has received Government backing.
The Cawthron Institute is to receive the money from the Government's Sustainable Food & Fibre Futures fund to turn the seaweed, Asparagopsis armata, into a cattle feed supplement for domestic and global markets. This particular seaweed contains chemicals that have been found to reduce the microbes in the stomachs of cattle that cause them to burp when they eat grass
The Cawthron project could lay the foundations for a new high-value industry, "along with the jobs that go with it"
"There is also export potential and on-farm economic benefits, including price premiums for milk and meat," O'Connor said. "We want to be the most productive, sustainable country in the world. Projects
SUPPLIED
Asparagopsis armata is a native red seaweed, which grows abundantly throughout New Zealand waters
"Australian research estimates that if just 10 per cent of global ruminant producers adopted Asparagopsis as an additive to feed their livestock, it would have the same impact for our climate as removing 50 million cars from the world's roads."
A quote from the article above. Brilliant science. A little fantasy now. Can the gene that makes the compound that reduces the microbes that make the methane in a ruminant's gut be transferred into something like grape skins so that the huge tonnage of waste mast material from the wine industry can be dried and fed to cattle? Sauvignon blanc would be good cos I don't drink it, and also the compound from asparagopsis might add to that distinctive Savvy smell……… sorry, aroma…..
" "We want to be the most productive, sustainable country in the world. Projects "
Oh cripes, please settle for very good, reliable and innovative. All this competitive boasting makes me feel sick. Probably nothing is 100% and we know we never were 100% pure, zero targets, nah, just down to minimal levels. And wanting to be the fastest little country in the world to shoot itself in the foot, was what Roger Douglas got a knighthood for. And he didn't have to put up with as much as poor Black Knight did. Actually the roles were reversed and we went down still claiming we could fight, come on ya pussy, and we still are trying. Good for us losers. So please don't set the bar at perfect or first in the world. Keeping up the front for the world is too demanding.
It's great to see that the majority of tangata now believe our scientists facts on humans causing Global Warming. Now we can change Te Papatuanuku for the better for all Ma Te Wa.
Extreme weather linked to greater public trust in science, survey shows
Seeing is believing when it comes to climate change and it's changing people's minds, writes Amber-Leigh Woolf.
The tangible evidence of climate change, in the form of extreme weather events, has seen a boost in the public's trust in science, an Auckland University professor says.
Thirty years ago some scientists would've struggled to have their climate change work noticed, now it seems more and more people are taking note.
Auckland physics professor Shaun Hendy said people were seeing the evidence of climate change with their own eyes
A wild storm lashed northern parts of New Zealand earlier this month, causing flash floods, especially in Auckland, Waikato and areas of the Coromandel Peninsula
Planting trees has many positive impacts on Tangata and Papatuanuku. But one can not just plant trees in any location there needs to be a bit of planning so that the trees won't have a negative effect on your property. For one don't plant trees in front of your whare as they could shade your whare and make heating your whare very expensive. Don't plant trees close to power line telephone lines etc as you can end up spending thousands trimming trees away from the lines. I have seen many trees planted in the wrong locations.
How to plant trees – and help save the planet
Mass tree planting may be one of the simplest and cheapest ways to help the environment – and now is the time to get started
My friend Ming is a friend of oaks. Whenever she sees a sapling that’s doomed to be mown or trampled, or has appeared in the middle of a vegetable bed, she is there to rehome it. Now, when I see an oak sapling in the wrong spot, I think of her and move it. To love trees is to invest hope in the future. To have faith in times to come is not easy right now, but there is scientific evidence that mass tree planting may be one of the simplest and cheapest ways to reduce our impact on our ecosystem.
We will need a lot of trees, however – more than a trillion, and they will have to span the globe. They will not negate climate change on their own, but they will store carbon, help clean the air, filter and slow down rainwater to help prevent flooding and, if a diverse bunch is planted, help increase biodiversity. A target of a trillion trees needs worldwide backing from every country and every government. It’s easy to feel pessimistic about the likelihood of that Ka kite Ano link below.
Its good that Te Rangatahi views and concerns are heard.
Yes Tangata need to be prepared for the weather Tawhirimate can change very fast at Tongariro.
Mana Wahine.
The 30 coffins found by Egypt is amazing they will contain a lot of valuable information on that erra. That’s excellent that Lincoln University is going to build a solar powered system so they can faze out their coal powered boilers
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Peter Dunne writes – The great nineteenth British Prime Minister, William Gladstone, once observed that “the first essential for a Prime Minister is to be a good butcher.” When a later British Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan, sacked a third of his Cabinet in July 1962, in what became ...
Ele Ludemann writes – New Zealanders had the OECD’s second highest tax increase last year: New Zealanders faced the second-biggest tax raises in the developed world last year, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) says. The intergovernmental agency said the average change in personal income tax ...
We all know something’s not right with our elections. The spread of misinformation, people being targeted with soundbites and emotional triggers that ignore the facts, even the truth, and influence their votes.The use of technology to produce deep fakes. How can you tell if something is real or not? Can ...
This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Simon Clark. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). This year you will be lied to! Simon Clark helps prebunk some misleading statements you'll hear about climate. The video includes ...
It is all very well cutting the backrooms of public agencies but it may compromise the frontlines. One of the frustrations of the Productivity Commission’s 2017 review of universities is that while it observed that their non-academic staff were increasing faster than their academic staff, it did not bother to ...
Buzz from the Beehive Two speeches delivered by Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters at Anzac Day ceremonies in Turkey are the only new posts on the government’s official website since the PM announced his Cabinet shake-up. In one of the speeches, Peters stated the obvious: we live in a troubled ...
1. Which of these would you not expect to read in The Waikato Invader?a. Luxon is here to do business, don’t you worry about thatb. Mr KPI expects results, and you better believe itc. This decisive man of action is getting me all hot and excitedd. Melissa Lee is how ...
…it has a restricted jurisdiction which must not be abused: it is not an inquisitionNOTE – this article was published before the High Court ruled that Karen Chhour does not have to appear before the Waitangi Tribunal Gary Judd writes – The High Court ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – One of reasons Oranga Tamariki exists is to prevent child neglect. But could the organisation itself be guilty of the same?Oranga Tamariki’s statistics show a decrease in the number and age of children in care. “There are less children ...
David Farrar writes: Graeme Edgeler wrote in 2017: In the first five years after three strikes came into effect 5248 offenders received a ‘first strike’ (that is, a “stage-1 conviction” under the three strikes sentencing regime), and 68 offenders received a ‘second strike’. In the five years prior to ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has surprised everyone with his ruthlessness in sacking two of his ministers from their crucial portfolios. Removing ministers for poor performance after only five months in the job just doesn’t normally happen in politics. That’s refreshing and will be extremely ...
TL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the two days to 6:06am on Thursday, April 25:Politics: PM Christopher Luxon has set up a dual standard for ministerial competence by demoting two National Cabinet ministers while leaving also-struggling ...
Hi,Today I mainly want to share some of your thoughts about the recent piece I wrote about success and failure, and the forces that seemingly guide our lives. But first, a quick bit of housekeeping: I am doing a Webworm popup in Los Angeles on Saturday May 11 at 2pm. ...
It is hard to see what Melissa Lee might have done to “save” the media. National went into the election with no public media policy and appears not to have developed one subsequently. Lee claimed that she had prepared a policy paper before the election but it had been decided ...
Open access notablesIce acceleration and rotation in the Greenland Ice Sheet interior in recent decades, Løkkegaard et al., Communications Earth & Environment:In the past two decades, mass loss from the Greenland ice sheet has accelerated, partly due to the speedup of glaciers. However, uncertainty in speed derived from satellite products ...
Buzz from the Beehive A statement from Children’s Minister Karen Chhour – yet to be posted on the Government’s official website – arrived in Point of Order’s email in-tray last night. It welcomes the High Court ruling on whether the Waitangi Tribunal can demand she appear before it. It does ...
Mr Bombastic:Ironically, the media the academic experts wanted is, in many ways, the media they got. In place of the tyrannical editors of yesteryear, advancing without fear or favour the interests of the ruling class; the New Zealand news media of today boasts a troop of enlightened journalists dedicated to ...
It's hard times try to make a livingYou wake up every morning in the unforgivingOut there somewhere in the cityThere's people living lives without mercy or pityI feel good, yeah I'm feeling fineI feel better then I have for the longest timeI think these pills have been good for meI ...
In 1974, the US Supreme Court issued its decision in United States v. Nixon, finding that the President was not a King, but was subject to the law and was required to turn over the evidence of his wrongdoing to the courts. It was a landmark decision for the rule ...
Every day now just seems to bring in more fresh meat for the grinder.In their relentlessly ideological drive to cut back on the “excessive bloat” (as they see it) of the previous Labour-led government, on the mountains of evidence accumulated in such a short period of time do not ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Megan Valére SosouMarket gardening site of the Itchèléré de Itagui agricultural cooperative in Dassa-Zoumè (Image credit: Megan Valère Sossou) For the residents of Dassa-Zoumè, a city in the West African country of Benin, choosing between drinking water and having enough ...
Buzz from the Beehive Melissa Lee – as may be discerned from the screenshot above – has not been demoted for doing something seriously wrong as Minister of ...
Morning in London Mother hugs beloved daughter outside the converted shoe factory in which she is living.Afternoon in London Travelling writer takes himself and his wrist down to A&E, just to be sure. Read more ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – The recent announcement of the University Advisory Group, chaired by Sir Peter Gluckman, makes very clear where the Government’s focus and priorities lie. The remit of the Advisory Group is that Group members will consider challenges and opportunities for improvement in the university sector including: ...
Eric Crampton writes – The Reserve Bank of New Zealand desperately wants to find reasons to have workstreams in climate change. It makes little sense. They’ve run another stress test on the banks looking to see if they could find a prudential regulation case. They couldn’t. They ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Pundits from the left and the right are arguing that National’s Fast Track Bill that is designed to speed up infrastructure decisions could end up becoming mired in a cesspool of corruption. Political commentator ...
Looking at the headlines this morning it’s hard to feel anything other than pessimistic about the future of humanity.Note that I’m not speaking about the future of mankind, but the survival of our humanity. The values that we believe in seem to be ebbing away, by the day.Perhaps every generation ...
Swabbing mixed breed baby chicks to test for avian influenzaUh oh. Bird flu – often deadly to humans – is not only being transmitted from infected birds to dairy cows, but is now travelling between dairy cows. As of last Friday, Bloomberg News reports, there were 32 American dairy herds ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
What is it with the mining industry? Its not enough for them to pillage the earth - they apparently can't even be bothered getting resource consent to do so: The proponent behind a major mine near the Clutha River had already been undertaking activity in the area without a ...
Photo # 1 I am a huge fan of Singapore’s approach to housing, as described here two years ago by copying and pasting from The ConversationWhat Singapore has that Australia does not is a public housing developer, the Housing Development Board, which puts new dwellings on public and reclaimed land, ...
Buzz from the Beehive Reactions to news of the government’s readiness to make urgent changes to “the resource management system” through a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) suggest a balanced approach is being taken. The Taxpayers’ Union says the proposed changes don’t go far enough. Greenpeace says ...
I’m starting to wonder if Anna Burns-Francis might be the best political interviewer we’ve got. That might sound unlikely to you, it came as a bit of a surprise to me.Jack Tame can be excellent, but has some pretty average days. I like Rebecca Wright on Newshub, she asks good ...
Chris Trotter writes – Willie Jackson is said to be planning a “media summit” to discuss “the state of the media and how to protect Fourth Estate Journalism”. Not only does the Editor of The Daily Blog, Martyn Bradbury, think this is a good idea, but he has also ...
Graeme Edgeler writes – This morning [April 21], the Wellington High Court is hearing a judicial review brought by Hon. Karen Chhour, the Minister for Children, against a decision of the Waitangi Tribunal. This is unusual, judicial reviews are much more likely to brought against ministers, rather than ...
Both of Parliament’s watchdogs have now ripped into the Government’s Fast-track Approvals Bill. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMy pick of the six newsey things to know from Aotearoa’s political economy and beyond on the morning of Tuesday, April 23 are:The Lead: The Auditor General,John Ryan, has joined the ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Sarah SpengemanPeople wait to board an electric bus in Pune, India. (Image credit: courtesy of ITDP) Public transportation riders in Pune, India, love the city’s new electric buses so much they will actually skip an older diesel bus that ...
The infrastructure industry yesterday issued a “hurry up” message to the Government, telling it to get cracking on developing a pipeline of infrastructure projects.The hiatus around the change of Government has seen some major projects cancelled and others delayed, and there is uncertainty about what will happen with the new ...
Hi,Over the weekend I revisited a podcast I really adore, Dead Eyes. It’s about a guy who got fired from Band of Brothers over two decades ago because Tom Hanks said he had “dead eyes”.If you don’t recall — 2001’s Band of Brothers was part of the emerging trend of ...
Buzz from the Beehive The 180 or so recipients of letters from the Government telling them how to submit infrastructure projects for “fast track” consideration includes some whose project applications previously have been rejected by the courts. News media were quick to feature these in their reports after RMA Reform Minister Chris ...
It would not be a desirable way to start your holiday by breaking your back, your head, or your wrist, but on our first hour in Singapore I gave it a try.We were chatting, last week, before we started a meeting of Hazel’s Enviro Trust, about the things that can ...
Calling all journalists, academics, planners, lawyers, political activists, environmentalists, and other members of the public who believe that the relationships between vested interests and politicians need to be scrutinised. We need to work together to make sure that the new Fast-Track Approvals Bill – currently being pushed through by the ...
Feel worried. Shane Jones and a couple of his Cabinet colleagues are about to be granted the power to override any and all objections to projects like dams, mines, roads etc even if: said projects will harm biodiversity, increase global warming and cause other environmental harms, and even if ...
Bryce Edwards writes- The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. ...
Michael Bassett writes – If you think there is a move afoot by the radical Maori fringe of New Zealand society to create a parallel system of government to the one that we elect at our triennial elections, you aren’t wrong. Over the last few days we have ...
Without a corresponding drop in interest rates, it’s doubtful any changes to the CCCFA will unleash a massive rush of home buyers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The six things that stood out to me in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, poverty and climate on Monday, April 22 included:The Government making a ...
Sunday was a lazy day. I started watching Jack Tame on Q&A, the interviews are usually good for something to write about. Saying the things that the politicians won’t, but are quite possibly thinking. Things that are true and need to be extracted from between the lines.As you might know ...
In our Weekly Roundup last week we covered news from Auckland Transport that the WX1 Western Express is going to get an upgrade next year with double decker electric buses. As part of the announcement, AT also said “Since we introduced the WX1 Western Express last November we have seen ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 29 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. Stats NZ releases its statutory report on Census 2023 tomorrow.Finance Minister Nicola Willis delivers a pre-Budget speech at ...
A listing of 29 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 14, 2024 thru Sat, April 20, 2024. Story of the week Our story of the week hinges on these words from the abstract of a fresh academic ...
The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. The Government says this will ...
This is a column to say thank you. So many of have been in touch since Mum died to say so many kind and thoughtful things. You’re wonderful, all of you. You’ve asked how we’re doing, how Dad’s doing. A little more realisation each day, of the irretrievable finality of ...
Identifying the engine type in your car is crucial for various reasons, including maintenance, repairs, and performance upgrades. Knowing the specific engine model allows you to access detailed technical information, locate compatible parts, and make informed decisions about modifications. This comprehensive guide will provide you with a step-by-step approach to ...
Introduction: The allure of racing is undeniable. The thrill of speed, the roar of engines, and the exhilaration of competition all contribute to the allure of this adrenaline-driven sport. For those who yearn to experience the pinnacle of racing, becoming a race car driver is the ultimate dream. However, the ...
Introduction Automobiles have become ubiquitous in modern society, serving as a primary mode of transportation and a symbol of economic growth and personal mobility. With countless vehicles traversing roads and highways worldwide, it begs the question: how many cars are there in the world? Determining the precise number is a ...
Maintaining a safe and reliable vehicle requires regular inspections. Whether it’s a routine maintenance checkup or a safety inspection, knowing how long the process will take can help you plan your day accordingly. This article delves into the factors that influence the duration of a car inspection and provides an ...
Mazda Motor Corporation, commonly known as Mazda, is a Japanese multinational automaker headquartered in Fuchu, Aki District, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. The company was founded in 1920 as the Toyo Cork Kogyo Co., Ltd., and began producing vehicles in 1931. Mazda is primarily known for its production of passenger cars, but ...
Your car battery is an essential component that provides power to start your engine, operate your electrical systems, and store energy. Over time, batteries can weaken and lose their ability to hold a charge, which can lead to starting problems, power failures, and other issues. Replacing your battery before it ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi, and Mema Paremata mō Tāmaki-Makaurau, Takutai Tarsh Kemp, will travel to the Gold Coast to strengthen ties with Māori in Australia next week (15-21 April). The visit, in the lead-up to the 9th Australian National Kapa haka Festival, will be an opportunity for both ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Hon Paula Bennett has been appointed as member and chair of the Pharmac board, Associate Health Minister David Seymour announced today. "Pharmac is a critical part of New Zealand's health system and plays a significant role in ensuring that Kiwis have the best possible access to medicines,” says Mr Seymour. ...
Hundreds of New Zealand families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) will benefit from a new Government focus on prevention and treatment, says Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. “We know FASD is a leading cause of preventable intellectual and neurodevelopmental disability in New Zealand,” Dr Reti says. “Every day, ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges. “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order. “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions. “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today. “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale. “It is good ...
The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
“China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
The protest outside the White House correspondents’ dinner hotel. Image: Anatolu video screenshot APR More than two dozen Palestinian journalists had called for a boycott of the dinner, writing an open letter urging their American colleagues not to attend. “You have a unique responsibility to speak truth to power and ...
“Our exporters should, therefore, be deeply concerned that the Fast-track Approvals Bill was not assessed for consistency with any of our free trade commitments prior to being introduced to the House,” says Gary Taylor, Chief Executive of the Environmental ...
NZCTU President Richard Wagstaff is calling on all political parties to support the new Member’s Bill from Labour’s workplace relations and safety spokesperson Camilla Belich MP that would ensure negligent companies are held accountable when their employees ...
A historian with an uncanny track record of predicting US election winners tells RNZ's Sunday Morning that President Biden looks to be on track for another term, but things could still go very wrong for him. ...
A historian with a track record of predicting US election winners tells RNZ's Sunday Morning that President Biden looks to be on track for another term, but things could still go wrong for him. ...
Ngaio Marsh House is one of Christchurch’s best kept secrets – and contains more than a few mysteries of its own.Trust Ngaio Marsh to leave more than a few mysteries scattered through her house long after her departure. For a start, there’s the curious concrete portal in the garden, ...
Appointment viewing has been lost to the mists of time, but memories of Montana Sunday Theatre can still be conjured by hitting play on a particular piece of classical music. “You’re not going to be able to sell it.” Over 30 years on, Karen Bieleski still recalls how the task ...
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What Happens When the FBI Chooses Sides
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Here is a interesting piece that helps unpack and clear a bit of the fog around some of the perceived similarities on major issues in the Warren/Sanders platforms…
"No, Warren and Sanders Are Not the Same"
https://www.truthdig.com/articles/no-warren-and-sanders-are-not-the-same/
tl;dr Bernie is the true messiah and Elizabeth is a pale imitation false idol.
There are objective policy differences between Warren and Sanders. People will interpret those differences in their own way. For many people who aren't even Americans, the Sanders project represents something hopeful with global implications because the US is so important. To belittle this as 'messianic' seems to me like a gratuitous exaggeration – an attempt to create the perception of 'deplorables' on the left.
The article starts in with a whine about Bernie getting negative media coverage. It's only dedicated true believer followers that can't accept that nobody's perfect, that all candidate are flawed, those flaws will be harshly examined, and rightly so.
The article goes on to highlight one of Warren's serious flaws, her vagueness on how her healthcare plans will be funded. True dat.
But it then gets gooey-eyed about Bernie's alternative, without recognising how electorally damaging Bernie's 'your taxes are going up to pay for it' stance is. Let alone that Bernie and the article also fail to identify the biggest financial factor in most American's healthcare; that they get their health insurance through an employer-sponsored healthcare plan where the employer pays the vast majority of the cost.
@ Andre, aahh. the staunchest defender of the liberal status quo, no change is good change, a real steady as she goes kind of guy….Warren will be fine if you are OK with a safe centersit liberal capitalist in the mould of Helen Clark that won't really rock the boat, and probably not really be remembered for anything in particular..I know that being all safe and sound is more your style.
However if transformative change in the battle against climate change, a more sane foreign policy etc is your bag..like it is mine, then only one name is worth mentioning..and we all know who that is.
You got any idea how far 'out there' you have to be for Warren to look like "a safe centersit liberal capitalist" ?
By our standards or your average Americans?
By the standards of the people that actually get to vote for either Warren or Sanders (or Biden or Harris or Buttigieg or …)
the unravelling is the fun part
It's an interesting take on the idea that it's the cover-up that gets you, not the crime. Gotta give 'em credit for having the whatever it takes to do it all right out in the open so there won't be a cover-up.
It's like they forgot the purpose in the cover-up in the first place.
It's all very well not to cover something up if people happen to ask the right questions, but it's a bloody stupid idea to take the body to the police station and announce "I murdered this man in cold blood and then I pissed on his corpse".
I really can't decide whether to think it's because they really don't think they're doing anything wrong, or they don't think they could ever possibly be held accountable, or it's a deliberate effort to burn it all.
This is so dumb… we still have no evidence of a quid pro quo.
We have the transcript of the phone call with the Ukrainian president which was supposed to be direct evidence, and it utterly fails. Now we're left with relying on whatever Trump says to media as evidence…
If I were a mod here and said "nice commenting privileges you have here, shame if anything happened to them", would you take that as support for what you said or a strong suggestion to modify your behaviour?
Classy.. that looks like some sort of powerplay to shut down another commenter to me.
Yeah, but you're a supposed lefty, doing all they can to suckle on Trump's twin tangerines, so I don't think your judgement is something you can really rely on.
Supposed lefty? – just a misnomer and their fevered imagination I think
Well Sanders isn't going to be president – He won't even win the nomination, so the next year is going to be fun isn't it? All those fevered imaginations running daily republican attack lines on whoever the Democrats select because they won't be nearly left enough for them, hoping instead for a second term from the nastiest, most anti liberal left potus in living history.
You could write it, though if you hadn’t of seen it happen here last time out, you wouldn’t bleedin’ believe it.
Yup, plenty of slow learners like Susan Sarandon out there.
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/lostinshowbiz/2018/jul/05/protest-all-you-like-susan-sarandon-in-effect-you-work-for-trump
https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/susan-sarandon-elizabeth-warren-bernie-sanders-republican-democrat-2020-election-2016-hillary-a9072251.html
So you are able to identify that cliched phrase as a veiled threat, even though I'm not a mod, have zero ability to make good on a threat, and there is therefore no power imbalance whatsoever.
Yet where there is a massive power imbalance and hundreds of millions of dollars at stake and the language used is even more overt, you claim there is no threat being made?
Fascinating.
How blinkered does someone have to be to have walked into that one? lol
I really thought I was going to have to be more subtle. But I was psyching myself up for an hour and a half of abject terror teaching my kid to drive on Auckland streets, so just went what the hell with the easy one. Yet even that one worked.
Nope. The supposed transcript is the tRump White House's version of what was said.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-whistleblower-transcript/trumps-transcript-of-ukraine-call-unlikely-to-be-verbatim-idUSKBN1W935S
So, let me get this straight. The Intelligence person who "blew the whistle" makes an allegation of Trump corruption, but can't provide evidence to back this up. Trump can however provide a transcript of the conversation within a few days. Over 3 weeks later the whistleblower still can't provide a counter transcript… worse they initially launched their complaint about 8 weeks ago…
The whistleblower was able to point to where evidence of wrongdoing might be found. So for whatever bizarre reason, the White House then released a document, presumably their best spin, that clearly showed wrongdoing. Subsequently, investigators with the proper authority looked where the whistleblower said to look, and lo, further wrongdoing and corroboration was found.
Dunno why you think the whistleblower should have to personally produce the evidence. S'pose since Repugs seem to think it's a good talking point, it's good enough for you to use to try to deflect from actual evidence of wrongdoing.
Oh, it seems the new Repug talking points have come through. It's not "no quid pro quo" anymore.
Now Mulvaney sez yes there was a quid pro quo, no biggie, we do it all the time.
*several hours later*
Uhhh, yeah, uhh, that quid pro quo was about about 2016, actually. (please please nobody mention the pseudo -transcript sez investigate Biden)\
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/mick-mulvaney-walks-back-quid-pro-quo-answer_n_5da8e40ce4b0258abfcac997
I hope I can get a look at this beasty with my scope
I don't often agree with you marty, but that is very cool. Might have have to dig out out our old telescope.
…Turn Borisov left…
With a name like Borisov it might already be tracking a little left
The numbers around this comet are astounding to me. At a speed of 177,000 km/h, this comet would have taken 24000 years to have travelled from the nearest star at 4 light years away.
And it hurtles through our solar system and away. Mrs Mac1 remembered her EELS stage one unit when a medieval writer wrote in AngloSaxon of a group of men sitting in the mead hall and watching a bird fly in one window and though the hall out the other end. Whence it came and whither it went?
Good to be reminded there is a wider world out there……..
A mead hall, that sounds attractive. He said, sitting on the verandah, enjoying a home brew nectarine cider
Nectarine cider sounds good. I have brewed apple cider, perry and cherry cider which I called 'chider". and another with feijoa, apple and kiwifruit. The apple cider was reinforced 20:1 with crab apple juice and the perry reinforced. again for acidity, with quince juice. Quince juice tastes incredibly acidic, a real mouth puckerer. Enough sugar to make 5.5% alcohol my hydrometer said, but it turned my cheeks inside out! The cherry cider tasted like pinot noir, very dry. Now to find some nectarines……..
Its a hobby that is very rewarding.
I have an acquaintance that has asked do I want honey to make mead. I am keenly awaiting his return from a holiday.
My former neighbour is an apiarist and used to give me the washings from his machinery, as well as straight honey to brew with. Very generous. One brew took two or three inoculations to get started with yeast. It had some manuka honey in it, I believe.
I brewed mead for years – it's easy enough, but aging it makes all the difference, about five years in it shows real improvement.
5 years!
That is another unintended consequence of brewing – patience.
It is not one of my strong suits.
I first learned about this from a friend who had a couple of bottles from a deceased aunt's estate, 25 years old or so, and freaking amazing. It's probably replicable with a solera system but I'm not settled enough at present for such experiments.
For those who were inquiring, I have made the final cut and secured my seat at the table at Environment Southland. Thanks for your support. I am somewhat relieved and my family will no longer have to tippy-toe around the place
https://www.facebook.com/CrRobertGuyton/photos/a.100684654644457/135382631174659/?type=3&theater
Hurray!
You make it sound you were a grumpy olde man 😉
Never grumpy, more highly-strung. More and more tetchy as the loooooong (extra) week of waiting unfolded. Angelic now
Yeah, it is a great feeling when you can relax those tense muscles and feel like you are walking on clouds. You often don’t know how stressful it is till it dissipates, a bit like child birth 😉
I've a long, hot bath calling my name…
Congratulations Robert.
You are one of the few elected leaders I would happily follow.
Thanks, gsays. I wouldn't follow me though, but walk alongside of, if you see what I mean
Great for the country and thank goodness that the whole family is committed and up with the 'play'. Your lifestyle should enable you to stand up to the pressures and tiring work of carrying forward measures that don't offer any material positive outcomes for the councillors who have to give up some perks and the comfort of conforming to the mean mean.
Did you come across Polly Higgins’ idea to impact on environmental damage with an international law banning climate harming? She wrote three books –
2010 Eradicating Ecocide: Exposing the Corporate and Political Practices Destroying the Planet and Proposing the Laws Needed to Eradicate Ecocide
2012 Earth is our Business: Changing the Rules of the Game
Advocating a new form of leadership that places the health and well-being of people and the planet first, this book proposes a new Earth law, a framework for sustainable development and international environmental governance.
2014 I Dare You to be Great
https://highprofiles.info/interview/polly-higgins/
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PV2yvYGjgMk 1hr+
2014 Earth Talk: I Dare You To Be Great – Polly Higgins
2013 Dare to be great: Polly Higgins at TEDxWhitechapel 12 mins
2019 April 21 Polly died.
WOO HOOOO !!!!!!!!!!!!!! Good stuff Congrats !
Congratulations Robert!
Great news! Huzzahs aplenty!!
yay!
Thanks, everyone. My sigh of relief was recorded in Iceland.
… as was mine, that you were elected again. Well done!
Congratulations you life support system for a long grey…beard.
Sad fact is that the infiltrators and undercovers will already be in there – stirring it up, creating anxiety and distrust, getting extreme and then pretending others were, and doing the opposite of that. Can't stop it – just a tightness of group and an awareness of others to mitigate. Kia kaha ER.
I am not saying this action described below is unaligned with the movement or that it is contrived – the point is no one can know because the ones the disrupt, work from both sides – calling for more action, calling for less action – it is the uncertainty and division that is the goal.
Not sure this is XR divided, but it will probably present some issues for people who think that disagreement and dissent are a problem.
Following on twitter, looks like XR leaders are learning from the experience and fronting up.
My main issue is the stations that were chosen. Why ones that are more working class? I think the point was that the lines end up in the business district, and were used in April actions. But I'd still like to see an explanation of the thinking process behind that one.
While I think XR are right to make statements of non-support for the action (and look at how splinter groups can take independent action but not as part of XR), this XR woman is impressive in her calm explanation of what matters. Clare Farrell,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=estuUJCa6RY
I also hope the people in the action get support. That's scarey shit being pulled into a mob and kicked on the ground.
The people are rising,the working class.
"The people are rising up against the elites. No, I don’t mean Extinction Rebellion. I mean the Rebellion against Extinction Rebellion. Today’s clashes on the Tube between the commuting working classes and the time-rich, bourgeois fearmongers of the XR cult is a wonderful illustration of the elitist nature of eco-politics and of rising public fury with the eco-agenda. "
https://www.spiked-online.com/2019/10/17/finally-a-rebellion-against-extinction-rebellion/
Hardly a working class uprising, looks more like a stress reaction to me.
Spiked are pretty reactionary against climate action as far as I can tell.
No, they’re reactionary against XR, who clearly prioritise their bougie viewpoints over all rational and logical criticism of their behaviour.
the tube is one of the answers to climate change, and getting more people to use it. It’s used by all classes, because it works, is relatively cheap compared to cabs and cars, and is per passenger mile the cleanest powered transport in London.
yet it should be a target “cos direct action” sure
no surprise weka focuses on the messenger rather than the message.
Are you saying Spiked support climate action generally but just not XR?
XR is a decentralised network. Most of XR, including the main leaders, opposed the action and didn't want it to happen.
XR can distance themselves, but it was coordinated and under the XR banner. If it’s decentralised how do we know it’s XR leaders talking for XR and not showing support? How do we know the whole leadership of XR is against the action?
because they have a degree of transparency, they're accepting responsibility and are intending to review how they do things.
People have posted online screenshots of the % that voted against the action before it happened. It's pretty clear now what happened.
"How do we know the whole leadership of XR is against the action?"
We don't. It's a large group, and decentralised. But key players are talking about the problems with the action, and what the solutions are for them as an org.
Hmmmm, all right. At least they recognise the disruption and frustration caused to those who can not necessarily afford it
Statement from XR about the tube actions in London,
https://rebellion.earth/2019/10/17/todays-tube-action-how-it-happened/
Impressive statement – I hope they can keep the wheels on and focus on the real enemy.
Was a poorly chosen target when you're struggling to make rent etc in London a tube shutdown is bad news… hopefully they learn from it.
I would have thought the London city airport would have been a far better target.
XR could alienate themselves from the working classes if they arn't careful and would likely undo all they are trying to achieve.
I thought about how many people would be encouraged to thoughtful and useful action towards preventing and coping with climate change by this action by apparently Extinction Rebellion activists?
And decided that it was likely to be none, and the events that unfolded show that none appears to be the right answer. No, or very few people wanted to sit down and have a pow wow about the problem of climate change. In fact they were reported to have been incensed that they could not fulfil their various roles in society where people were waiting for them to attend and work using their various skills. We live in a complex economic system and it gives people jobs which they earn money from to support themselves and families. Is that hard for activists to understand?
Creating chaos is not the way to stop the behaviours that cause and increase Climate Change. It will only mean that the small ameliorations we hope to achieve become impossible, and we hope that small things done all over the globe may have large implications as in Chaos Theory. It is important to plan the Chaos Theory* campaigns so one does not create complete chaos!
*https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butterfly_effect
In chaos theory, the butterfly effect is the sensitive dependence on initial conditions in which a small change in one state of a deterministic nonlinear system can result in large differences in a later state.
I'd be interested to know what @Wayne thinks of the various theories on Repressed Memory Syndrome and Dissociative Amnesia and what sort of trauma it is that prompts a recall of memory.
It really must be hard for a self-appointed sage having to coming to terms with one's credibility being placed in question.
Collective amnesia before the 2011 election.
Notice how the generals have thick briefing books in front of them at the Burnham enquiry , but a few Colonels and Captains can remember quite clearly . The Army tried to hide one relevant Colonel from testifying as they 'keep losing' the paperwork. The secret reports, the lists of people who handled documents….
NZ Herald
"A second senior military officer has claimed former Defence Minister Wayne Mapp was given a report showing the civilians may have died in a New Zealand-led mission in Afghanistan years before the Defence Force acknowledged the possibility.
You know @Duke, I was just saying to Mrs OnceWasTim the other day, as I was preparing for my next rent-a-voice media gig, and she was busy darning my socks, ironing my leisure suit and getting the meal on the table at 6pm sharpish, that all this could get a bit ugly.
As Mrs OnceWasTim discarded the khaki wool and re-threaded her needle with a pinkish shade, I suddenly had a recall, and it brought back a few hazy memories of being told about a few things relating to civilian casualties. At the time, I now know I thought it best kept secret in the national interest. But it really did prey on my mind.
I said to Mrs OnceWasTim, forget worrying about the 2019 Christmas card list and that matching set of feral vests and jumpers you've been knitting for John and Bronagh and that nice young man Mex – we really need a plan going forward.
My best friend, companion and woifey Mrs OnceWereTim were again at one.
I've been hard out on the phone ever since doing the numbers and trying to determine just who it is that'll remain loyal, and who is about to drop me like a hot potato. AND! after ALL I've done for this country. Already, quite a few just don't seem to know who I am!
I'm shocked – really I am!
Wellington Mayoral race down to 62 votes, and the possibility of a recount. Voting matters.
https://twitter.com/justin_lester/status/1184966502979473409
My heart rilly rilly goes out to Juss. And to think!!! – the ultimate insult. Jacinda didn't even seem to know who he was AFTER ALL he'd actually achieved. It's just not right eh!
Never mind though eh? Juss is considering his options and he might even be able to do another Kapai style startup – just as long as some of those pesky young people and feminazis don't get in his way. 62 votes! – he must be fucking devastated now that arshole is in control with a load of young whippersnappers.
Odds on Jacinda claiming him as a Labour candidate if he gets back in?
Let's hope so!
Maybe they could all have a meeting of the minds down at somewhere like Bats, and come to a Brexit-style agreement (going forward)
There'd be a Labour label, a few young whippersnappers each of which has the brainpower of the entire collective, and maybe even a bit of Wellington Party rough trade that failed on the local council but professed such a concern regionally, that would show up.
You might even be able to attract the prefect Nicola – such an impressive lineage!
As things stand, it's not that bad an outcome even if it is a holding pattern
oops sorry @ Avocado. I mis-read. I'm hoping Jacinda DOESN'T try and claim him
I’m not even sure why she felt the need to apologise. Maybe Grant had a whisper in her ear
You don’t clean out an ethnic group you fucking Nazi.
https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/1184897777941307392
TV3 down and wants government help. I should cocoa!
Struggling news media companies have been lobbying the government behind the scenes for some time. On Thursday broadcaster MediaWorks put it all out in the open, telling the minister responsible its future is in doubt and democracy could die in darkness if he fails to act now.
“I have a challenge for the broadcasting minister. Step in and save New Zealand television and news channels before it’s too late,” Duncan Garner told his listeners and viewers dramatically on the AM show this morning.
To reinforce the message, the studio lights dipped for a few seconds.
Broadcasting Minister Kris Faafoi was a former TVNZ rival of Duncan Garner when they were both TV reporters in the press gallery 10 years ago.
Ever since Kris Faafoi got the job last year, news media companies have been telling him they need his help.
It was music to their ears when he spoke about shoring up the news media scene, "preserving plurality" and "funding differently".
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/mediawatch/audio/2018708908/a-media-cry-for-help
There are 4-5 million of us. We don't need three channels to stand between the truth, the explanations and the viewers. What we need is less tv and more talks, panels, thinking, reading, not just dropped jaws as the latest scandal gets hyped up in techiest technicolour.
boom
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/picture/2019/oct/17/steve-bell-on-boris-johnsons-brexit-deal-versus-theresa-mays-cartoon
Every now and then some celebrity does something crazy, has a breakdown or commits suicide. The noise after that usually includes 'why didn't we take notice of the signs and do something about it to help?'
That's the feeling I'm getting watching Trump in Texas. Not about me, about him.
you think he's getting worse? Possible, I guess.
bombshell – not good wayne
Slimy, wriggly-arsed, bottom-feeding scum suckers.
And to think that these are the uprights we put in charge of our nation's security.
Goddess help us all.
Geez, that's terse Rosemary.
Would you deliver your first line to Wayne while his grandchild was bouncing on his knee? (The child is only 1, won't understand you, just smile as you say it.)
I think you spend a lot of time saying "My life is crap and I demand that you, you, you and you fix it right now."
That's fine but I'm not sure you should be so quick to judge a view that differs from your own. Lets find ways to get along hey….we can skew the game our way*
*wink
Indeed Mr Mars (see 7 above)
The rise of the sociopaths.
It's the culture of the Defence Force OWT. I sat on on an Air Force base – an outsider looking in – for five years. The rank and file were by and large a good bunch, but some of the brass saw themselves as superior to the rest of us civilian yobbos in particular, and therefore impervious to criticism and accountability.
There is an element of "Dunning Kruger" at play too and a determination to cover each others backs no matter how serious the charges laid.
It was inevitable they would come a cropper one day and thanks to Jon Stephenson and Nicky Hager it looks like it has happened.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
I should have said… culture within the Defence Force. Bit unfair to tar them all with the same brush because they're not all at fault.
Fascinating, if the journalist's take is to be believed it looks as though the hearing has come to a bit of a head. SAS commander Colonel Jim Blackwell toe to toe with ex Minister Mapp.
Looks as if it unfolded a bit like this…
Colonel: "Are you saying I'm lying Mr Mapp?”
Mr Mapp: "Oh no, I am highlighting the minor but important discrepencies in your recall of events. Are you saying that I'm lying?"
Colonel: "Yes."
I would suggest that it would be very difficult to maintain the respect of the squad and rise to the very top of our most elite fighting force whilst being a bullshit artist.
I don't think Wayne is a devious lying manipulator.
He is a retired career politician. It's a role that requires an ability to spin, describing 'What's going down' with glasses of many tints, mainly rose. Behave any way long enough and it becomes habit.
He believes what he is saying….sort of.
No other Nat minor celeb spends time in here. Wayne is a bit like the straight guy that is spending just a bit too much of his time in a gay bar. "Oh I only hang out at the Standard because geez those lefties know how to select tunes and dance."
I dig Wayne. No other established righty spends time in here. I reckon he's a closet leftie. Full of BS, of course, he was a politician, show me one that isn't….not so much liars….Truth artists.
Don't be sucked in by apparent niceness and civility – that's how monsters gain power. The truth will out about these sordid murders of innocents and the courts hopefully will make appropriate judgment. Nice people do shit things sonetimes – you do don't you? And you're nice aren't you?
There's a Derringer in my sock.
I thought you were just very shocked to see me.
The curse of the well heeled
He really does dress to the left.
Your 'don't be sucked in by apparent niceness and civility' line reminds me of remarks in the 'Reality kicks in for US trolls' post to do with the style of David Farrar.
The biggest, slimiest, dirtiest weasels don't necessarily look like the biggest, slimiest, dirtiest weasels or on a superficial level sound like them. Their deeds speak for them though.
I believe in us. I think we all want to be good parents and lovers. We just need a good enough reason to be so. Striving to get a $17 an hour job or deemed suitable enough to pay $500 a week for a $300 a week flat beats the get up and go out of folk.
Life in NZ has become tough for people that aren't going to be doctors. Even them! Doctors striking!
We've got shit to sort.
Regardless of how many damnings you may encounter over the next while Wayne.
There's a comfy chair and a lager for you over at The Standard. Most of us have had unfortunate dealings with the authorities over the years.
Welcome.
I second that.
ummm he was the 'authority'. You seem to care more about your imaginary relationship to wayne than any truth – why not just wait and see what comes out before going all gushy.
anyway just ignore my grumpiness – I think I'll head to a mates place 3 minutes away down the hill and throw some arrows. Have a good one.
I used to take you with a grain of salt but you still seemed to upset me. I tried taking you with 2 grains of salt and found myself getting to like you.
We all just want to be loved Marty.
This part interested me:
I am curious as to why the poor behaviour by folk that should know better.
Yep, the chap in Wayne's mirror is winning him over.
'It's ok to place giving a shit about people above all else bro.'
Our inner self, it is the key element in all of Mike King's talks and he is so right.
That inner voice that says 'gee you're smart' or 'gee you're fat'. It's just so jolly fundamental. The conversation our inner voice is having with us.
I dig Mike King. Mike King for Health Minister. He gives a genuine damn. Mike King would say "If you don't like what I'm doing, vote me out, I'll do something else." He wouldn't defend a bullshit scheme, he'd call it for what it is.
Hey Mike, stand as an Independent Minister of Health, I reckon you'd romp in sport.
Yep. Less shame in making a mistake than in lying about it.
Yep, mistakes, a by-product of circulating oxygen. The person that doesn't make mistakes is lying. The person that embraces their mistakes prospers.
Engaging with our faults through a loving eye completes us.
That's a beautiful thought. Thank you.
x
In light of today’s developments here is a two year old Standard post by much missed author, Anthony Robins:
https://thestandard.org.nz/the-nzdf-will-never-clear-its-name-and-neither-will-bill-english/
The comments are also well worth a read… Pete George does not come out of it at all well. 🙂
Sheesh, I forget sometimes just how much oxygen some people can waste.
When do we get to the point where Brexit is done, the Democrats have a nominated candidate, the China-US trade deal is done, and the Year of Delivery starts?
2019 is like political Waiting For Godot.
The Year of Flux.
2019 lends itself to being a year of anticipation.
2020 will be the year of first rate vision.
There's a good likelihood that it's a year that democracy really starts to wear out.
Nothing changes, nothing worth getting up for, global economy stagnant, no major political shifts, most liberative movements exhausted.
I don't think most people's thoughts are focused on the points you point to Ad.
Even those deemed to be comfortable are having to choose between insurance cover or the Herald delivered.
Too many of us are working too hard to earn nothing more than more struggle. It shouldn't be so tough to get ahead. Anyone with their nose to the grind-stone for 5 years should end up with equity in their own home. Not just keeping up with the rent.
Working like a demon to pay off a house for someone too lazy to scratch sux
aye dat
Her phone has gone to message 3 times.
Fortunately I have your ear to chew on, Hi, I'm Rupert
Aqua culture has huge potential to feed Te Papatuanuku tangata we can grow aqua culture with out ruining our environment so long as plans are put in place to minimise the negative environmental effects on day one.
Seaweed project to reduce burping cows may be an environmental 'game-changer
A project to turn a native red seaweed into a greenhouse gas-busting cattle feed supplement has received Government backing.
The Cawthron Institute is to receive the money from the Government's Sustainable Food & Fibre Futures fund to turn the seaweed, Asparagopsis armata, into a cattle feed supplement for domestic and global markets. This particular seaweed contains chemicals that have been found to reduce the microbes in the stomachs of cattle that cause them to burp when they eat grass
The Cawthron project could lay the foundations for a new high-value industry, "along with the jobs that go with it"
"There is also export potential and on-farm economic benefits, including price premiums for milk and meat," O'Connor said. "We want to be the most productive, sustainable country in the world. Projects
SUPPLIED
Asparagopsis armata is a native red seaweed, which grows abundantly throughout New Zealand waters
Ka kite Ano link below.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/environment/climate-news/116683942/government-supports-seaweed-project-to-reduce-cattle-methane-emissions
"Australian research estimates that if just 10 per cent of global ruminant producers adopted Asparagopsis as an additive to feed their livestock, it would have the same impact for our climate as removing 50 million cars from the world's roads."
A quote from the article above. Brilliant science. A little fantasy now. Can the gene that makes the compound that reduces the microbes that make the methane in a ruminant's gut be transferred into something like grape skins so that the huge tonnage of waste mast material from the wine industry can be dried and fed to cattle? Sauvignon blanc would be good cos I don't drink it, and also the compound from asparagopsis might add to that distinctive Savvy smell……… sorry, aroma…..
" "We want to be the most productive, sustainable country in the world. Projects "
Oh cripes, please settle for very good, reliable and innovative. All this competitive boasting makes me feel sick. Probably nothing is 100% and we know we never were 100% pure, zero targets, nah, just down to minimal levels. And wanting to be the fastest little country in the world to shoot itself in the foot, was what Roger Douglas got a knighthood for. And he didn't have to put up with as much as poor Black Knight did. Actually the roles were reversed and we went down still claiming we could fight, come on ya pussy, and we still are trying. Good for us losers. So please don't set the bar at perfect or first in the world. Keeping up the front for the world is too demanding.
Kia Ora 1 News.
I agree that prisoners should get to vote.
I know a couple of tangata who stuffed from chemicals poison while serving in Vietnam.
Wahine walking in space that's great.
Ka kite Ano
Kia Ora Te Ao Maori News.
That's great to hear that Lee Smith was a champion for our Taonga Te reo Maori.
I know A new day is coming were minority cultures are given respect
Ka kite Ano
https://youtu.be/qQfetkoGrpU
It's great to see that the majority of tangata now believe our scientists facts on humans causing Global Warming. Now we can change Te Papatuanuku for the better for all Ma Te Wa.
Extreme weather linked to greater public trust in science, survey shows
Seeing is believing when it comes to climate change and it's changing people's minds, writes Amber-Leigh Woolf.
The tangible evidence of climate change, in the form of extreme weather events, has seen a boost in the public's trust in science, an Auckland University professor says.
Thirty years ago some scientists would've struggled to have their climate change work noticed, now it seems more and more people are taking note.
Auckland physics professor Shaun Hendy said people were seeing the evidence of climate change with their own eyes
A wild storm lashed northern parts of New Zealand earlier this month, causing flash floods, especially in Auckland, Waikato and areas of the Coromandel Peninsula
Ka kite Ano link below.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/science/116397981/extreme-weather-linked-to-greater-public-trust-in-science-survey-shows
Planting trees has many positive impacts on Tangata and Papatuanuku. But one can not just plant trees in any location there needs to be a bit of planning so that the trees won't have a negative effect on your property. For one don't plant trees in front of your whare as they could shade your whare and make heating your whare very expensive. Don't plant trees close to power line telephone lines etc as you can end up spending thousands trimming trees away from the lines. I have seen many trees planted in the wrong locations.
How to plant trees – and help save the planet
Mass tree planting may be one of the simplest and cheapest ways to help the environment – and now is the time to get started
My friend Ming is a friend of oaks. Whenever she sees a sapling that’s doomed to be mown or trampled, or has appeared in the middle of a vegetable bed, she is there to rehome it. Now, when I see an oak sapling in the wrong spot, I think of her and move it. To love trees is to invest hope in the future. To have faith in times to come is not easy right now, but there is scientific evidence that mass tree planting may be one of the simplest and cheapest ways to reduce our impact on our ecosystem.
We will need a lot of trees, however – more than a trillion, and they will have to span the globe. They will not negate climate change on their own, but they will store carbon, help clean the air, filter and slow down rainwater to help prevent flooding and, if a diverse bunch is planted, help increase biodiversity. A target of a trillion trees needs worldwide backing from every country and every government. It’s easy to feel pessimistic about the likelihood of that Ka kite Ano link below.
https://amp.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2019/oct/19/reduce-impact-ecosystem-plant-trees-alys-fowler
Kia Ora 1 News.
Its good that Te Rangatahi views and concerns are heard.
Yes Tangata need to be prepared for the weather Tawhirimate can change very fast at Tongariro.
Mana Wahine.
The 30 coffins found by Egypt is amazing they will contain a lot of valuable information on that erra. That’s excellent that Lincoln University is going to build a solar powered system so they can faze out their coal powered boilers
Ka kite Ano
Kia Ora Te Ao Maori News.
Condolences to Matua Ramon whanau for their loss.
Its great to see The Rugby World Cup in Japan has full seats.
Ka pai to the Wahine Rugby league team.
Virtual Reality is a great educational tool that is cool that it’s being used to help protect our Taonga Kauri trees Tane Mahuta.
Ka kite Ano