Open mike 18/11/2023

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, November 18th, 2023 - 52 comments
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52 comments on “Open mike 18/11/2023 ”

  1. bwaghorn 1
    18 November 2023 at 8:31 am

    https://www.interest.co.nz/banking/125244/could-new-zealand-first-save-conduct-financial-institutions-regime

    Seems like a good policy from Winston to me. Making a nz bank strong enough to be the governments bank.

    Although one wonders how a coalition can work when I'd bet my belt that nat/act would sell kiwibank in a heart beat if they could

    Reply
    • mikesh 1.1
      18 November 2023 at 4:23 pm

      They could always nationalize the BNZ, paying suitable compensation of course to National Australia Bank. The could run it as a state owned bank.

      Reply
    • bwaghorn 2.1
      18 November 2023 at 8:42 am

      But but I saw photo of a hole in the ground and some very nicely laid out small arms in a war zone?

      Reply
      • Drowsy M. Kram 2.1.1
        18 November 2023 at 1:17 pm

        Takes time to dig tunnel networks under hospitals – the IDF will find them eventually.

        Reply
      • Eco Maori 2.1.2
        20 November 2023 at 11:39 am

        I see right through this system now.

        The middle class and the upper class.

        Don't want there cottage industry to END can't lose that gravy train. That is why for tangata we have to have Tangata Whenua running the health and justice system for our selves to get better equal service from all government departments.

        I see many of my whanau dying before their 55 or 60 birthday 5 to 10 years before they can collect the retirement pension.

        Then the upper and middle classes live to 95 easy.

        To me they are getting nearly x dubble the time tangata whenua are getting from this uneven system. They get 45 years longer life from their system. In my reality these people are getting the CREAM while we get Tu Tai amount of service from the government system.

        Ka kite Ano whanau.

        Reply
        • Eco Maori 2.1.2.1
          20 November 2023 at 11:44 am

          You see whanau te western government are the most inefficient model in the world.

          Elo Mus can send a rocket to space at about 10 % of the cost that nasa can that tell me how inefficient our government agency are the 80 /20 principal 20 percent of the work force poduce

          80 %of the income so we he got ready of the 80 % as we should to.

          Ka kite Ano whanau

          Reply
  3. bwaghorn 3
    18 November 2023 at 8:40 am

    https://i.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/301010866/chris-luxon-reluctant-to-explain-the-merger-and-acquisition-experience-he-often-talks-up

    Tova the hopless reporter doing stuff she should have done pre election, like find out if clutson was any actual use as a negotiator!!

    Reply
    • AB 3.1
      18 November 2023 at 11:35 am

      It's useful to know if Luxon is a bullshitter. But unfortunately, Tova's sub-text is that if Luxon is not bullshitting, then his claim that he is well-suited to the job of coalition negotiations, is actually true.

      She might have asked the wider question of whether corporate M&A experience is useful in coalition negotiations – and concluded that the two situations are so dissimilar that any benefit is marginal, Then she would have had the double whammy of Luxon making a claim that is both absurd in principle and in his case, wrong in fact. I guess the simple gotcha of potentially discovering fibbing or CV embellishment is so attractive that she was unable to think wide enough.

      Reply
      • bwaghorn 3.1.1
        18 November 2023 at 11:45 am

        https://thestandard.org.nz/daily-review-17-11-2023/#comment-1976995

        I did note that as Joe90 pointed out yesterday she didn't point out his sale of air nzs position in ansett came at a $100 million loss!!.

        Bloody hoooton is a better reporter than the woeful tova

        Reply
        • Johnr 3.1.1.1
          18 November 2023 at 11:55 am

          I'm a bit unclear over hooootons agenda. I don't think he's a person who does stuff for no reason.

          However, if you set aside the media hysteria. Is anyone any worse off by not having a govt in the past month or so? Remember, the longer negotiations take, the less opportunity for harm

          Reply
          • bwaghorn 3.1.1.1.1
            18 November 2023 at 12:05 pm

            Don't worry I wouldn't trust hooton further than I can throw him,

            And yes the problem with governments is they feel like they must be doing something to everything all the time, never stopping to think , us it broke? And most importantly what's the right way to fix it instead of believing my ideology will fix it.

            Reply
          • observer 3.1.1.1.2
            18 November 2023 at 1:19 pm

            It's really not about the length of time per se, but what it demonstrates.

            To repeat (again): these are not the usual negotiations. We knew the outcome 5 weeks ago. There is no "A or B". Only A.

            Luxon is going to form a government with two minor parties who have no leverage (neither can go and talk to Labour instead). They both have to support National on conf & supp – at a minimum.

            So your last sentence isn't right. There is more harm because Luxon is too weak to tell Peters (even more than Seymour) "we're done here, take it or walk away". He keeps coming back for more.

            We'll find out the price soon, and I bet you it's a lot more than 6%.

            Reply
          • Cricklewood 3.1.1.1.3
            18 November 2023 at 1:39 pm

            I think Hooton is upset over been frozen out post his involvment installing Todd Muller if anything goes to show how shit his judgement is.

            Reply
    • Gabby 3.2
      19 November 2023 at 12:11 pm

      I was thinking that. Interesting timing.

      Reply
  4. Sanctuary 4
    18 November 2023 at 10:47 am

    This story is just awesome, it's got unconsented buildings, breaches of the healthy homes rules, an unrepentent slumlord, a basically corrupt local council refusing to act on breaches of consenting laws, and presented as though the real victim is the slumlord.

    https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/landlord-who-ran-unlawful-napier-property-slams-tenant-who-filmed-leaks-hes-made-himself-a-lot-of-enemies/BU5D2BHI35HYRC2YTTV4ULY3YM/

    It's behind a payway, but if you can read I highly recommend it as a tale of the new minor aristocracy in action. We might call the landlord loathsome, but Luxon calls him his base.

    Reply
    • ianmac 4.1
      18 November 2023 at 12:42 pm

      The summary for Sanctuary's story. Note that the Council decided to not prosecute.

      • When Scott Healey realised he had rented a badly leaking property in the Napier suburb of Onekawa, he decided to take his landlord to the Tenancy Tribunal.
      • The tribunal ordered Leyland Properties Ltd’s Darrell Paul Ross to pay him $9000 in compensation and noted the industrial zone property that Ross rented out, which housed several others, was likely unlawful.
      • Ross says he’s housed people for 30 years without a single complaint. He told Hawke’s Bay Today that he now had to make 20 people homeless and Healey had “made himself a lot of enemies that boy”.
      • Napier City Council says it has decided not to issue an infringement fine against Leyland Properties despite an investigation confirming that unconsented building work had been carried out and that people were living at the property.
      Reply
      • SPC 4.1.1
        18 November 2023 at 12:52 pm

        BOB possessed Leyland (sp) Properties the entity manufactured to cater to the need of the deprived to have a home.

        Market forces will be market forces wherever and whenever a council and a government allow them to be.

        Where the corrupt operate, dig a grave and build a prison to house the politicians and their lawyers.

        Man in the mirror

        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QgYAWFb3oE4

        Reply
      • Visubversa 4.1.2
        18 November 2023 at 4:55 pm

        Councils have to think about how much of the ratepayers $$$$ they want to expend going to Court for fines. There is always the thought that the requirement to no longer rent the properties and/or to remediate or remove the unconsented work will be sufficient.

        It will all be in Council records, so any Council Officer who deals with the sites or the Company in the future will be very careful.

        There is a great deal of unconsented work and unlawful dwellings around. In my last year of Planning School, I collected the Census around my area. I found 6 dwelling units that I could see did not meet the requirements of the relevant District Plan and were very likely not lawfully established. As I had signed the usual non-disclosure agreement with the Census people I could not report any of them.

        Reply
  5. Sanctuary 5
    18 November 2023 at 11:02 am

    Reliable neolib poodle Luke Malpass is warming us all up for a Reoublican style attack on the independence of the judiciary I see:

    https://www.thepost.co.nz/a/nz-news/350112591/judges-beware-black-letter-law-day-could-be-coming?utm_id=mh_stuff

    It seems to me obvious that the settler elite who have all the power have brought themselves NZ First and ACT and a stakehold in National and are determined to go after any suggestion their total grip on powwer be loosened.

    They are so blinded by settler arrogance that they can't see what the Maori Partry victories in the Maori seats for what they are – a warning shot that any attempt to deinstiutionalise the treaty will be seen by many Maori as signal the settler government deligitimising any sovereignty it might have over them, and a defacto declaration of war with people who are convinced they never ceded sovereignty in the first place.

    Still, ACT and ex-mercenary Mark Mitcheel seem determined to pass laws that, combined with attacks on the treaty and the judiciary, will encourage Maori to start seeing the gangs as the armed wing of their movement and create a nice enemy weithin for wannabe authoritarians

    Reply
  6. Anne 6
    18 November 2023 at 12:13 pm

    Interesting interview with Matthew Hooton on The Nation this morning. He's wearing his 'I'm such a reasonable man ' hat, which we all know is only one of his multiple head gear, but even so there are some good points:

    https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2023/11/election-2023-humiliating-five-weeks-for-christopher-luxon-matthew-hooton.html

    Reply
    • bwaghorn 6.1
      18 November 2023 at 12:58 pm

      I'd be looking to see who in national hooton is close to that might have something to gain by luxon being rolled

      Reply
    • observer 6.2
      18 November 2023 at 1:07 pm

      Wonderful moment at 6:55 in.

      Hoots was dumbstruck, couldn't believe what the interviewer had just said. If Luxon is a "quick learner", Stephen Hawking was a dunce.

      Reply
      • newsense 6.2.1
        18 November 2023 at 4:05 pm

        Just highlights the way he’s been covered- he’s f- everything up, insulting colleagues and his wannabe ministers don’t know anything about their portfolios to base their policy prescriptions on.

        Oh, he’s learning!

        Quite an astonishing interview in terms of showing how the media wanna avoid their job pre-election. Or play teams that go with momentum in the polls.

        Reply
  7. Muttonbird 7
    18 November 2023 at 1:25 pm

    National Party leader Christopher Luxon arrives at an Auckland hotel to continue discussions on forming the next government.

    All that is wrong with the near future.

    https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2023/11/election-2023-winston-peters-christopher-luxon-continue-coalition-talks-in-auckland.html

    Reply
  8. Kat 8
    18 November 2023 at 2:14 pm

    Winston could be emerging as New Zealand's very own version of a benevolent dictator.

    Without his involvement in these farcical coalition talks Luxon and Seymour would be running riot with their sweaty little hands on the levers of power.

    The blue and yellow team supporters must be choking and spinning on the G forces of the unfolding political handbrake skid.

    As another Winston once famously said: "The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter"

    Reply
  11. Morrissey 11
    18 November 2023 at 5:06 pm

    How lucky we mainstream media followers are to be served by rigorous and reliable media outlets like the BBC…

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_JC371jxPI

    And trustworthy politicians like this fellow…

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBWE7QzADe8&t=107s

    Reply
    • SPC 11.1
      18 November 2023 at 5:41 pm

      'I don't think anybody after this is going to be able to say of Tony Blair that he's somebody who is driven by the drift of public opinion, or focus groups, or opinion polls. He took all of those on. He said that they would be able to take Baghdad without a bloodbath, and that in the end the Iraqis would be celebrating. And on both of those points he has been proved conclusively right. And it would be entirely ungracious, even for his critics, not to acknowledge that tonight he stands as a larger man and a stronger prime minister as a result

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_JC371jxPI

      Don Rumsfeld was of the opinion that military victory could be won by a force to small too occupy the nation successfully afterwards – and he was proven right.

      Was it his fault that the Baath Party army, police and bureaucracy were all laid off … banks and museums looted?

      Was it his fault that no one on the White House or No 10 considered the past rule of Iraq in 3 provinces by the Ottoman empire and why the Hussein regime had faced rebellions in the Kurdish and southern areas

      There are known knowns. These are things we know that we know. There are known unknowns. That is to say, there are things that we know we don't know. But there are also unknown unknowns. There are things we don't know we don't know.

      Donald Rumsfeld

      Did anyone at Foggybottom or Whitehall (Munich paperliteweight) have anything useful to say, and if so what happened?

      Reply
      • SPC 11.1.1
        18 November 2023 at 5:53 pm

        The King’s English version

        Don Rumsfeld was of the opinion that military victory could be won by a force too small to occupy the nation successfully afterwards – and he was proven right.

        Reply
  12. SPC 12
    18 November 2023 at 7:14 pm

    People over 65 and how they cope if they do not own property?

    In a room in a hotel (ex boarding house).

    Continuing to work, so market rent is afforded.

    Flatting with those who own property (family or friends), until a subsidised unit becomes available.

    Having a retirement village place but no right of continuing occupancy (and then being told to leave).

    https://www.waikatotimes.co.nz/nz-news/350089499/everybody-out-boom-retirees-kicked-out-cambridge-retirement-village

    A registered community housing provider that bought up council pensioner housing

    And then there is the delivery of food parcels in the weeks between the fortnightly super payment

    https://www.waikatotimes.co.nz/a/society/350110249/renting-and-pension-its-just-hard?utm_source=stuff_website&utm_medium=stuff_referral&utm_campaign=mh_stuff&utm_id=mh_stuff

    And also

    state housing

    housing on iwi land

    for the able – community gardens

    those not able

    https://www.govt.nz/browse/health/help-in-your-home/cooking-and-meals/

    Winston Peters said we lacked a plan for having enough old aged care places.

    One wonders if this will be mentioned in the coalition agreement.

    Reply
    • Belladonna 12.1
      18 November 2023 at 10:22 pm

      This has always been the case – for people over 65 without home ownership – which is why all of those social provisions exist.

      The issue is now: A. There are a lot more of them (social disruption since the 80s reduced home ownership, and the last of the retiring Boomers boosting the overall numbers) and B. The cost of housing and the general cost of living has increased substantially (a much greater proportion of super goes on just having a roof over your head)

      Of course, this is also true for people under 65 – especially those in minimum wage jobs, or who have a disability which prevents them working full time; and the ability to aspire to home ownership is looking more out of reach than ever for many households.

      The challenge for the new government will be to address this for everyone (not just the golden oldies).

      Reply
    • Ad 12.2
      19 November 2023 at 1:06 am

      Also the bleeding obvious that children who own houses should have their parents living with them. Until they need hospital level care. Like back when we were real families.

      Reply
      • Drowsy M. Kram 12.2.1
        19 November 2023 at 8:47 am

        yes

        Reply
      • SPC 12.2.2
        19 November 2023 at 4:33 pm

        They would need them living in New Zealand and with either land for a granny flat (less and less likely with infill) or a spare double bedroom – grandchildren emptying the nest.

        In that regard the developing issue would be the delayed period before starting a family – though there are child care advantages also if there is the room.

        That leads to the question of available housing where the children live so that mutual support is available.

        In terms of housing policy – if there is the section entire there is the chance of a small (some mobile) builds. The encouragement of granny flats (or sleep out for children/grandchildren) in urban planning as part of social policy. In times of yore of course people just added a bedroom to the house (with each new child)

        Reply

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    Cheers to reader Deane for this quote from Breakfast TV today:Chloe Swarbrick to Brook van Velden re the coalition agreement: “... an unhinged grab-bag of hot takes from your drunk uncle at Christmas”Cheers also to actual Prime Minister of a country Christopher Luxon for dorking up his swearing-in vows.But that's enough ...
    More than a fieldingBy David Slack
    3 days ago

  • National’s murderous smoking policy
    One of the big underlying problems in our political system is the prevalence of short-term thinking, most usually seen in the periodic massive infrastructure failures at a local government level caused by them skimping on maintenance to Keep Rates Low. But the new government has given us a new example, ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago

  • NZ has a chance to rise again as our new government gets spending under control
    New Zealand has  a chance  to  rise  again. Under the  previous  government, the  number of New Zealanders below the poverty line was increasing  year by year. The Luxon-led government  must reverse that trend – and set about stabilising  the  pillars  of the economy. After the  mismanagement  of the outgoing government created   huge ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    3 days ago

  • KARL DU FRESNE: Media and the new government
    Two articles by Karl du Fresne bring media coverage of the new government into considerations.  He writes –    Tuesday, November 28, 2023 The left-wing media needed a line of attack, and they found one The left-wing media pack wasted no time identifying the new government’s weakest point. Seething over ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago

  • PHILIP CRUMP:  Team of rivals – a CEO approach to government leadership
    The work begins Philip Crump wrote this article ahead of the new government being sworn in yesterday – Later today the new National-led coalition government will be sworn in, and the hard work begins. At the core of government will be three men – each a leader ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago

  • Black Friday
    As everyone who watches television or is on the mailing list for any of our major stores will confirm, “Black Friday” has become the longest running commercial extravaganza and celebration in our history. Although its origins are obscure (presumably dreamt up by American salesmen a few years ago), it has ...
    Bryan GouldBy Bryan Gould
    3 days ago

  • In Defense of the Media.
    Yesterday the Ministers in the next government were sworn in by our Governor General. A day of tradition and ceremony, of decorum and respect. Usually.But yesterday Winston Peters, the incoming Deputy Prime Minister, and Foreign Minister, of our nation used it, as he did with the signing of the coalition ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago

  • Top 10 news links at 10 am for Tuesday, Nov 28
    Nicola Willis’ first move was ‘spilling the tea’ on what she called the ‘sobering’ state of the nation’s books, but she had better be able to back that up in the HYEFU. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Here’s my pick of top 10 news links elsewhere at 10 am ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago

  • PT use up but fare increases coming
    Yesterday Auckland Transport were celebrating, as the most recent Sunday was the busiest Sunday they’ve ever had. That’s a great outcome and I’m sure the ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    3 days ago

  • The very opposite of social investment
    Nicola Willis (in blue) at the signing of the coalition agreement, before being sworn in as both Finance Minister and Social Investment Minister. National’s plan to unwind anti-smoking measures will benefit her in the first role, but how does it stack up from a social investment viewpoint? Photo: Lynn Grieveson ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago

  • Giving Tuesday
    For the first time "in history" we decided to jump on the "Giving Tuesday" bandwagon in order to make you aware of the options you have to contribute to our work! Projects supported by Skeptical Science Inc. Skeptical Science Skeptical Science is an all-volunteer organization but ...
    Skeptical Science
    4 days ago

  • Let's open the books with Nicotine Willis
    Let’s say it’s 1984,and there's a dreary little nation at the bottom of the Pacific whose name rhymes with New Zealand,and they've just had an election.Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, will you look at the state of these books we’ve opened,cries the incoming government, will you look at all this mountain ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago

  • Climate Change: Stopping oil
    National is promising to bring back offshore oil and gas drilling. Naturally, the Greens have organised a petition campaign to try and stop them. You should sign it - every little bit helps, and as the struggle over mining conservation land showed, even National can be deterred if enough people ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago

  • Don’t accept Human Rights Commission reading of data on Treaty partnership – read the survey fin...
    Wellington is braced for a “massive impact’ from the new government’s cutting public service jobs, The Post somewhat grimly reported today. Expectations of an economic and social jolt are based on the National-Act coalition agreement to cut public service numbers in each government agency in a cost-trimming exercise  “informed by” head ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago

  • The stupidest of stupid reasons
    One of the threats in the National - ACT - NZ First coalition agreements was to extend the term of Parliament to four years, reducing our opportunities to throw a bad government out. The justification? Apparently, the government thinks "elections are expensive". This is the stupidest of stupid reasons for ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago

  • A website bereft of buzz
    Buzz from the Beehive The new government was being  sworn in, at time of writing , and when Point of Order checked the Beehive website for the latest ministerial statements and re-visit some of the old ones we drew a blank. We found ….  Nowt. Nothing. Zilch. Not a ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago

  • MICHAEL BASSETT: A new Ministry – at last
    Michael Bassett writes – Like most people, I was getting heartily sick of all the time being wasted over the coalition negotiations. During the first three weeks Winston grinned like a Cheshire cat, certain he’d be needed; Chris Luxon wasted time in lifting the phone to Winston ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago

  • Luxon's Breakfast.
    The Prime Minister elect had his silver fern badge on. He wore it to remind viewers he was supporting New Zealand, that was his team. Despite the fact it made him look like a concierge, or a welcomer in a Koru lounge. Anna Burns-Francis, the Breakfast presenter, asked if he ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago

  • LINDSAY MITCHELL:  Oranga Tamariki faces major upheaval under coalition agreement
     Lindsay Mitchell writes – A hugely significant gain for ACT is somewhat camouflaged by legislative jargon. Under the heading ‘Oranga Tamariki’ ACT’s coalition agreement contains the following item:   Remove Section 7AA from the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989 According to Oranga Tamariki:     “Section ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago

  • BRIAN EASTON:  Peters as Minister
    A previous column looked at Winston Peters biographically. This one takes a closer look at his record as a minister, especially his policy record. Brian Easton writes – 1990-1991: Minister of Māori Affairs. Few remember Ka Awatea as a major document on the future of Māori policy; there is ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago

  • Cathrine Dyer's guide to watching COP 28 from the bottom of a warming planet
    Is COP28 largely smoke and mirrors and a plan so cunning, you could pin a tail on it and call it a weasel? Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: COP28 kicks off on November 30 and up for negotiation are issues like the role of fossil fuels in the energy transition, contributions to ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago

  • Top 10 news links at 10 am for Monday, Nov 27
    PM Elect Christopher Luxon was challenged this morning on whether he would sack Adrian Orr and Andrew Coster.TL;DR: Here’s my pick of top 10 news links elsewhere at 10 am on Monday November 27, including:Signs councils are putting planning and capital spending on hold, given a lack of clear guidance ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell on the new government’s policies of yesteryear
    This column expands on a Werewolf column published by Scoop on Friday Routinely, Winston Peters is described as the kingmaker who gets to decide when the centre right or the centre-left has a turn at running this country. He also plays a less heralded but equally important role as the ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    4 days ago

  • The New Government’s Agreements
    Last Friday, almost six weeks after election day, National finally came to an agreement with ACT and NZ First to form a government. They also released the agreements between each party and looking through them, here are the things I thought were the most interesting (and often concerning) from the. ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    4 days ago

  • How many smokers will die to fund the tax cuts?
    Maori and Pasifika smoking rates are already over twice the ‘all adult’ rate. Now the revenue that generates will be used to fund National’s tax cuts. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The devil is always in the detail and it emerged over the weekend from the guts of the policy agreements National ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago

  • How the culture will change in the Beehive
    Perhaps the biggest change that will come to the Beehive as the new government settles in will be a fundamental culture change. The era of endless consultation will be over. This looks like a government that knows what it wants to do, and that means it knows what outcomes ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    4 days ago

  • No More Winnie Blues.
    So what do you think of the coalition’s decision to cancel Smokefree measures intended to stop young people, including an over representation of Māori, from taking up smoking? Enabling them to use the tax revenue to give other people a tax cut?David Cormack summed it up well:It seems not only ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago

  • 2023 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #47
    A chronological listing of news and opinion articles posted on the Skeptical Science  Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Nov 19, 2023 thru Sat, Nov 25, 2023.  Story of the Week World stands on frontline of disaster at Cop28, says UN climate chief  Exclusive: Simon Stiell says leaders must ‘stop ...
    Skeptical Science
    5 days ago

  • Some of it is mad, some of it is bad and some of it is clearly the work of people who are dangerous ...
    On announcement morning my mate texted:Typical of this cut-price, fake-deal government to announce itself on Black Friday.What a deal. We lose Kim Hill, we gain an empty, jargonising prime minister, a belligerent conspiracist, and a heartless Ayn Rand fanboy. One door closes, another gets slammed repeatedly in your face.It seems pretty ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago

  • “Revolution” is the threat as the Māori Party smarts at coalition government’s Treaty directi...
    Buzz from the Beehive Having found no fresh announcements on the government’s official website, Point of Order turned today to Scoop’s Latest Parliament Headlines  for its buzz. This provided us with evidence that the Māori Party has been soured by the the coalition agreement announced yesterday by the new PM. “Soured” ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago

  • The Good, the Bad, and the even Worse.
    Yesterday the trio that will lead our country unveiled their vision for New Zealand.Seymour looking surprisingly statesmanlike, refusing to rise to barbs about his previous comments on Winston Peters. Almost as if they had just been slapstick for the crowd.Winston was mostly focussed on settling scores with the media, making ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago

  • When it Comes to Palestine – Free Speech is Under Threat
    Hi,Thanks for getting amongst Mister Organ on digital — thanks to you, we hit the #1 doc spot on iTunes this week. This response goes a long way to helping us break even.I feel good about that. Other things — not so much.New Zealand finally has a new government, and ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago

  • Thank you Captain Luxon. Was that a landing, or were we shot down?
    Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past week’s editions.Also in More Than A FeildingFriday The unboxing And so this is Friday and what have we gone and done to ourselves?In the same way that a Christmas present can look lovely under the ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago

  • Cans of Worms.
    “And there’ll be no shortage of ‘events’ to test Luxon’s political skills. David Seymour wants a referendum on the Treaty. Winston wants a Royal Commission of Inquiry into Labour’s handling of the Covid crisis. Talk about cans of worms!”LAURIE AND LES were very fond of their local. It was nothing ...
    Bowalley Road
    6 days ago

  • Disinformation campaigns are undermining democracy. Here’s how we can fight back
    This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. Misinformation is debated everywhere and has justifiably sparked concerns. It can polarise the public, reduce health-protective behaviours such as mask wearing and vaccination, and erode trust in science. Much of misinformation is spread not ...
    Skeptical Science
    6 days ago

  • Peters as Minister
    A previous column looked at Winston Peters biographically. This one takes a closer look at his record as a minister, especially his policy record.1990-1991: Minister of Māori Affairs. Few remember Ka Awatea as a major document on the future of Māori policy; there is not even an entry in Wikipedia. ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    7 days ago

  • The New Government: 2023 Edition
    So New Zealand has a brand-spanking new right-wing government. Not just any new government either. A formal majority coalition, of the sort last seen in 1996-1998 (our governmental arrangements for the past quarter of a century have been varying flavours of minority coalition or single-party minority, with great emphasis ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    7 days ago

  • The unboxing
    And so this is Friday and what have we gone and done to ourselves?In the same way that a Christmas present can look lovely under the tree with its gold ribbon but can turn out to be nothing more than a big box holding a voucher for socks, so it ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    7 days ago

  • A cruel, vicious, nasty government
    So, after weeks of negotiations, we finally have a government, with a three-party cabinet and a time-sharing deputy PM arrangement. Newsroom's Marc Daalder has put the various coalition documents online, and I've been reading through them. A few things stand out: Luxon doesn't want to do any work, ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    1 week ago

  • Hurrah – we have a new government (National, ACT and New Zealand First commit “to deliver for al...
    Buzz from the Beehive Sorry, there has been  no fresh news on the government’s official website since the caretaker trade minister’s press statement about the European Parliament vote on the NZ-EU Free Trade Agreement. But the capital is abuzz with news – and media comment is quickly flowing – after ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 week ago

  • Christopher Luxon – NZ PM #42.
    Nothing says strong and stable like having your government announcement delayed by a day because one of your deputies wants to remind everyone, but mostly you, who wears the trousers. It was all a bit embarrassing yesterday with the parties descending on Wellington before pulling out of proceedings. There are ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago

  • Coalition Government details policies & ministers
    Winston Peters will be Deputy PM for the first half of the Coalition Government’s three-year term, with David Seymour being Deputy PM for the second half. Photo montage by Lynn Grieveson for The KākāTL;DR: PM-Elect Christopher Luxon has announced the formation of a joint National-ACT-NZ First coalition Government with a ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago

  • “Old Coat” by Peter, Paul & Mary.
     THERE ARE SOME SONGS that seem to come from a place that is at once in and out of the world. Written by men and women who, for a brief moment, are granted access to that strange, collective compendium of human experience that comes from, and belongs to, all the ...
    Bowalley Road
    1 week ago

  • New Zealand welcomes European Parliament vote on the NZ-EU Free Trade Agreement
    A significant milestone in ratifying the NZ-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was reached last night, with 524 of the 705 member European Parliament voting in favour to approve the agreement. “I’m delighted to hear of the successful vote to approve the NZ-EU FTA in the European Parliament overnight. This is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Further humanitarian support for Gaza, the West Bank and Israel
    The Government is contributing a further $5 million to support the response to urgent humanitarian needs in Gaza, the West Bank and Israel, bringing New Zealand’s total contribution to the humanitarian response so far to $10 million. “New Zealand is deeply saddened by the loss of civilian life and the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

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