Open mike 19/05/2024

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, May 19th, 2024 - 31 comments
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31 comments on “Open mike 19/05/2024 ”

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  1. Morrissey 1
    19 May 2024 at 9:03 am

    "I'm the one who's actually brave on this."

    The ludicrous, pretentious Bill Maher does not usually invite smart people onto his awful show. He made the mistake of having Glenn Greenwald on once. That was a disaster for Maher. Now he's gone and done it again, and invited on the far smarter Bill Burr. Or maybe Maher’s producers have a wicked sense of humour….

    • Incognito 1.1
      19 May 2024 at 9:40 am

      FFS! Your comment is empty waffle that tells us nothing except to click & watch a 15-min YT report on a show (on YT too?). This fits your MO here on TS: a carrier pigeon who shits on the donkey that kicked the messenger – the message is completely lost in the kerfuffle. It’s great stuff for entertaining little kids but doesn’t make for an adult convo let alone robust debate (with you).

      • Morrissey 1.1.1
        19 May 2024 at 9:52 am

        FFS! Your comment is empty waffle that tells us nothing…

        ????

        You mean you don't like what I said. In just a few sentences, I pointed out that Bill Maher is pretentious and shallow, and that he occasionally makes the mistake of trying to engage with smart people, who invariably make him look foolish.

        Your frothing, reflexive hostility is almost as amusing as witnessing somebody like Maher flounder in public.

        [Woosh!

        You wouldn’t recognise that sound that’s from a Mod Hawk that just flew over your head.

        Stop trolling with your vacuous non-content and potshots at messengers. This is your warning – Incognito]

    • Phillip ure 1.2
      19 May 2024 at 11:03 am

      Why would you link to such a boring bid of vid..?…brief excerpts from the barr/maher vid…but mainly these three nobody's banging on about what exactly..?

      • Morrissey 1.2.1
        19 May 2024 at 11:09 am

        True, Phillip, they do drone on a bit. For a more concise humiliation of that frightful old bore, I recommend you do a YouTube search on "Greenwald + Maher".

        • Traveller 1.2.1.1
          19 May 2024 at 8:26 pm

          I don't think you understand just how ridiculous these videos are. The full version of the debate could be a good watch. But a video in which 3 self-indulgent pseudo intellectuals play 'gotcha', in which we hear more from these 3 bozos than either of Maher or Burr, is a waste of time.

          • Morrissey 1.2.1.1.1
            20 May 2024 at 6:34 am

            I understand how long-winded they are. I apologise for impinging on your time.

  2. KJT 2
    19 May 2024 at 9:34 am

    Charter schools are just another example of this Governments. "if it doesn't work, we need more of it".

    Of course it works fine, however, to transfer our money and asserts into private hands. Which is the goal.

    Opinion | The Federal Government Has Poured Millions into Failing Charter Schools in Louisiana | Common Dreams

    spread schools that open and close, repeatedly, and fund charter organizations that churn through districts and neighborhoods without any obvious regard for what parents and local officials want. “illegal experiment” on their children.

    What Seymour wants. Is the opposite of freedom and local control.

  3. Dolomedes III 3
    19 May 2024 at 10:25 am

    Both the Nats and ACT are committed to reducing NZ's net emissions. Note in particular ACT's pledge to "Fast-track permit development to make offshore wind easier to permit", and the Nats' ambitious plan to "electrify NZ":

    https://www.national.org.nz/electrifynz

    https://www.act.org.nz/energy

    Why these policies, if they “don’t recognise climate science”? However, the government does recognize the reality that at present we still need fossil fuels, hence their reversal of Ardern's suppression of oil and gas exploration.

    It's clear that the current government intends to strike a different balance between conservation and wealth creation from extractive industries. And here's how Claire Trevett interprets Shane Jones' enthusiasm for fast-tracking mining: “Jones is a former Labour politician himself who harked to the working-class end of Labour rather than the progressive end. The way he wants to get voters is by creating jobs in industries such as mining, and the parts of the country that once relied on them.” And she reports that Jones is about to “head to the capital of coal, Blackball, on the West Coast, to deliver a speech. He has chosen that place partly because of its history with mining, but mainly for political mischief: it was the Labour Party’s birthplace.”

    Unfortunately Trevett's article is paywalled, but it's reported here on The Democracy Project: https://democracyproject.substack.com/p/can-shane-jones-be-trusted-in-making?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=1885783&post_id=144710222&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=true&r=1vvcih&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email

    But this provides no basis for your claim that the current government "does not recognise … conservation". It means the new government's hierarchy of priorities differs from the previous government's. And if they get too permissive about mining on land with high conservation value, I'll be among those protesting about it.

    [TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]

    [I have zero interest in NACT First propaganda or propaganda from any NZ political party under my Post, so feel free to continue this in OM.

    In addition, your RW virtue signalling has been noted – Incognito]

    • Incognito 3.1
      19 May 2024 at 11:29 am

      Mod note

      • Dolomedes III 3.1.1
        19 May 2024 at 12:10 pm

        Your moving my comment to Open Mike is misleading, as you've divorced it from the comment by Patricia Bremner that I was responding to. Posted here divorced from its context, it DOES look like Nats/ACT propaganda (nice one). But in the original context I linked to the Nats and ACT websites to provide evidence to challenge some unsupported claims by Patricia Bremner. We're supposed to be evidence-based on this site, right?

        • Incognito 3.1.1.1
          19 May 2024 at 3:11 pm

          What a load of nonsense!

          Propaganda still is propaganda even when read on its own.

          What you call ‘evidence to challenge’ or ‘evidence-based’ is merely a poor substitute for propaganda, which demonstrates your bias.

          FYI, it's every TS Author’s prerogative to moderate their own Posts as they see fit, incl. moving comments to OM, irrespective of being a Moderator at large or not.

          So, stop your moaning and enjoy your commenting privileges here on this site.

          • Dolomedes III 3.1.1.1.1
            19 May 2024 at 5:54 pm

            Of course it's your right to moderate your posts as you see fit. And a moderator's decisions tell readers a lot about him/her as a person.

            • Incognito 3.1.1.1.1.1
              19 May 2024 at 8:17 pm

              Well, thank you surprise

              I moved your comment to OM, as is my prerogative as Author. Why don’t you pick up the baton here in OM and defend your indefensible NACT propaganda or do you just come here to troll? Or is it too hard for you? Show us whether you’ve got what it takes to hold a robust debate because the lack of strong evidence so far is astonishing.

              You’re showing yourself to be a waste of time here and yet you keep digging!?

    • Bearded Git 3.2
      19 May 2024 at 1:20 pm

      "Both the Nats and ACT are committed to reducing NZ's net emissions. Note in particular ACT's pledge to "Fast-track permit development to make offshore wind easier to permit", and the Nats' ambitious plan to electrify NZ."

      Come off it Dolomedes-if this was the case why did Simeon Brown not mention the option of grid battery power storage {GBS} on RNZ's Morning Report when we had the potential grid outage last week? (Megan Woods, Labour's spokesperson on CC and Energy did refer to GBS on the same programme) California is already spending many millions on GBS-this option is already viable and getting cheaper and more efficient all the time.

      Instead Brown banged on about the reintroduction of the search for oil and gas in NZ waters, a position directly opposed to reducing emissions. And both the Nats and ACT are committed to 4-lane RONS and 4-lane RORS, both of which fly in the face of CC. I could go on about their anti-public transport policies etc etc

      BTW there are already a large number of windfarms and solar farms (now cheaper than wind and less unsightly) consented to and others in the pipeline. NZ does not need the fast track process for renewables. This is just more empty rhetoric from Luxon/Seymour.

    • KJT 3.3
      19 May 2024 at 4:38 pm

      Both the Nats and ACT are committed to reducing NZ's net emissions.

      Another satirist.

      Governments that are "committed to reducing" something, normally refrain from removing policies that reduce it!

  4. Morrissey 4
    19 May 2024 at 10:40 am

    Both the Nats and ACT are committed to reducing NZ's net emissions.

    cheeky

    That's the funniest statement I've seen since Bill Maher called himself "brave" the other day.

    [TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]

  5. Subliminal 5
    19 May 2024 at 12:08 pm

    At a time when Julian Assange is about to go back to court for exposing the criminal conduct of the US military in Iraq and the depth to which the CIA has reached into and controls civil data collection, it is pertinent to look at the extent of control in western media and the highly effective mechainisms for determining that reporting follows certain narrow boundaries.

    First up is the one time editor of the German daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, a major german paper. His name was Udo Ulfkotte. Udo died in 2017, so well before the Russian invasion of Ukraine. At some point before he died, (at the earliest, 2016) he did an interview with RT.

    He then stated that he published under his name texts written by agents of various intelligence services, including the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Before his death, Ulfkotte gave an interview to the Russian television RT, in which he stated that he was "very afraid of a new war in Europe, and that the German and U.S. media want to push Europe into war and provoke war on Russian territory". "Looking at how the German and American media are bringing war to Europe, I speak up to say that what I did in the past, manipulated people, participated in anti-Russian propaganda is wrong. The war with Russia is a point of no return. What my colleagues do is wrong. I have written a book because I am very afraid of a new war in Europe. War never comes of its own accord, there are always people who stand up for it and it's not just politicians, but also journalists. We betrayed our readers, just to push the war. I don't want this anymore, I'm tired of this propaganda. We live in a banana republic, not a democratic country where we have freedom the press", Ulfkotte said at the time.

    The point he is making, so many years ago is not to ascribe blame. How could he, the war hadnt begun, but to show that he was being asked to print articles in his name that were written by intelligence agencies, with the express aim of preparing the population for a war against Russia.

    https://x.com/ivan_8848/status/1790713783544885573?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1790713783544885573%7Ctwgr%5E22ba6995387668d40071061c35e04db38a10a925%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nakedcapitalism.com%2F2024%2F05%2Flinks-5-18-2024.html

    The second instance is recent and comes from Canada.

    Trying to work your way up to a permanent position at Canada’s public broadcaster requires knowing the sort of stories, angles and guests that are acceptable—and which are out of bounds. As a precarious “casual” employee—a class of worker that makes up over a quarter of CBC’s workforce—it hadn’t taken me long to realize that the subject of Israel-Palestine was to be avoided wherever possible. When it was covered, it was tacitly expected to be framed in such a way as to obscure history and sanitize contemporary reality.

    After October 7, it was no longer possible for the corporation to continue avoiding it. But because CBC had never properly contextualized the world’s longest active military occupation in the lead-up to that atrocity, it was ill-equipped to report on what happened next.

    The CBC would spend the following months whitewashing the horrors that Israel would visit on Palestinians in Gaza. In the days after Israel began its bombing campaign, this was already evident: while virtually no scrutiny was applied to Israeli officials and experts, an unprecedented level of suspicion was being brought to bear on the family members of those trapped in Gaza.

    https://breachmedia.ca/cbc-whitewashed-israels-crimes-gaza-firsthand/

    In both theses cases, it is very clear to the journalists that their jobs and career paths are dependent on their publishing stories inside a very narrow band of views.

    It is also of intrest that in the interview with Udo, when asked which countries have similar setups for enforcing conformity, he names the UK as a country where the bond between intelligence agencies and the press is more tightly woven even than Germany and specifically states that Aus and NZ have these same links and pressures on journalists to conform.

  6. Corey 6
    19 May 2024 at 1:38 pm

    Thoughts after seeing Hipkins speech:

    1. This government being so unpopular right now has Labour foolishly thinking it can do zero self reflection or soul searching and carry on as before and just hope the government disintegrates.

    2. That thinking ignores the fact that everyone still hates Labour for gas lighting us for 6 years on housing healthcare poverty education and cost of living and feeding us nothing but sacharin shiny good vibes and acting like feral cats when people fairly questioned their priorities.

    3. If Labour is overconfident so early on in then it's not going to do any self reflection or be working on any new policy platforms it's just going to smugly coast, parliamentary terms are only 3 years, not much time to formulate policy.

    4. Betting on National remaining unpopular and the economy remaining bad is unwise. Theres never been a one term tory govt in NZ before for a reason, they are damn good at politics

    5. This speech is terribly, it's full of the same shiny sacharin good vibey nothing Labours offered for the last 7 years but delivered poorly by a bad orator.

    6. Chris Hipkins is literally Labours version of Simeon Brown, he is immensely unlikable, undeservingly smug and worst of all a droning bore. He is deeply unpleasant.

    We do presidental style politics in NZ now whether you love it or hate and Chris Hipkins lost to the most unpopular incumbent first term PM in history,eren must retire from politics.

    7. The only likeable people in the NZLP caucus are Kieren McNulty and Duncan Webb, Kieren should be the leader of the Labour party come February 2025 and a lot of sitting mp's like Deborah Russel , Helen White, Damien O'Connor etc should be announcing they are retiring in 2026.

    8. the problem isn't just whose delivering the message it's Labours message itself … It's empty nothing, it doesn't speak to any of the daunting pressing issues of our time and talks about far away targets. Labour needs to change it needs to be setting its priorities to be about delivering real on the ground change not platitudes on hope and virtue signalling about identity. ..

    People are losing their jobs, homes, lives if this is the best the NZLP can do then we're f**king cooked

    • Obtrectator 6.1
      19 May 2024 at 2:52 pm

      Can't disagree. Hipkins was probably a highly competent Mr Fixit in the last government, but he simply isn't a natural front man or numero uno. Doesn't look the part. Even when the words he speaks are making sense, he still looks like a rabbit caught in the headlights. Like it or not, performing the roles of PM and LOTO is often just that – performing. There's an unavoidable element of theatricality, the need for which can't be disregarded. Chippie doesn't command it. Has to go.

    • bwaghorn 7.1
      19 May 2024 at 6:21 pm

      Can't work out why obrain has gone down the puff piece track,

      keys been talking the sneaky woman for years, which means she thinks like him or is managed by him,

      Almost vomited at the bs about her little darlings doing it hard ,

  8. simbit 8
    19 May 2024 at 3:22 pm

    [The following is a very good reply – some would say a ‘damning’ one – to a comment (https://thestandard.org.nz/are-we-drifting-away-or-falling-apart/#comment-2000139) by Dolomedes III under a different Post:

    The previous government undermined science by bringing maatauranga into the science curriculum.

    However, even though the present comment is a strong response & rebuttal of the one-liner by Dolomedes III, I’ve moved it to OM in the hope that it will elicit further robust debate here – Incognito]

    Speaking from the frontlines of science, the government undermines what many argue is the sine qua non of Western modernity by 1. ignoring the accumulated knowledge of science (some of the evidence provided by politicians up to and inlcuding the PM is as shocking as ignoring the evidence provided by people dedicated to exactly the insights we need as a society and eocnomy); 2. Ending many many science positions across govt, including CRIs, and undermining universities so that they are no longer employing or training a critical mass of the very people who one looks to inform the multiple urgent debates we should be having.

    As to matauranga (and acknowledging the space in OM to have a fuller debate), this Indigenous Knowledge is, like all other IKs, empirically based and brutal in its pragmatism. It amounts to a 'cultural license to operate': you wanna develop your fast-track gizmo's in Ngai Tahu territory, they'll draw on their matauraka to inform their position (which may not be opposition), just as they'll roll out their legal team.

    Many people, including govt and opposition members, are thrown by the so-called 'metaphysics' of Maori (and its worth looking up exactly what Plato meant by what became metaphysics because of a catologuing decision). As a Maori researcher I do not want any govt encroaching beyond its secular status and tbh, mauri is not something I dabble with or comment on. Matauranga is localised knowledge held by rights holders. It works alongside farmers insights and little old ladies and their gardening journals. It is named within several pieces of legislation including Settlements – not to be fiddled with according to the current govt – and the Haka Ka Mate Attribution Act of 2014. Go on, run that down lol.

    [TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]

    • Incognito 8.1
      19 May 2024 at 3:38 pm

      Mod note and thank you for your excellent reply.

      • adam 8.1.1
        19 May 2024 at 11:17 pm

        Maybe put it up as a post Incognito?

        As it is rather good.

        • Incognito 8.1.1.1
          20 May 2024 at 8:34 am

          I agree, and I’d be quite happy to assist simbit with morphing their comment into a Guest Post if they are game.

          The way I see it, in the context of this blog site, there are two aspects to this: 1) epistemological; 2) politico-ideological.

  9. Bearded Git 9
    19 May 2024 at 5:29 pm

    Chris Trotter really nails it here. Luxon's political inexperience and lack of empathy, Seymour's extremism and Peters' slow decline into irrelevance are leading NZ towards an inevitable one-term government.

    https://bowalleyroad.blogspot.com/2024/05/this-unreasonable-government.html

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    This is a re-post from the Climate Brink by Andrew Dessler Headline from 2021 The Texas grid, run by ERCOT, has had a rough few years. In 2021, winter storm Uri blacked out much of the state for several days. About a week ago, Hurricane Beryl knocked out ...
    Skeptical Science
    3 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on a textbook case of spending waste by the Luxon government

    Given the crackdown on wasteful government spending, it behooves me to point to a high profile example of spending by the Luxon government that looks like a big, fat waste of time and money. I’m talking about the deployment of NZDF personnel to support the US-led coalition in the Red ...
    WerewolfBy lyndon
    3 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Wednesday, July 24

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:40 am on Wednesday, July 24 are:Deep Dive: Chipping away at the housing crisis, including my comments RNZ/Newsroom’s The DetailNews: Government softens on asset sales, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • LXR Takaanini

    As I reported about the city centre, Auckland’s rail network is also going through a difficult and disruptive period which is rapidly approaching a culmination, this will result in a significant upgrade to the whole network. Hallelujah. Also like the city centre this is an upgrade predicated on the City ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    3 days ago
  • Four kilograms of pain

    Today, a 4 kilogram report will be delivered to Parliament. We know this is what the report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care weighs, because our Prime Minister told us so.Some reporter had blindsided him by asking a question about something done by ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Wednesday, July 24

    TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Wednesday, July 24, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Beehive: Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced plans to use PPPs to fund, build and run a four-lane expressway between Auckland ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • Luxon gets caught out

    NewstalkZB host Mike Hosking, who can usually be relied on to give Prime Minister Christopher Luxon an easy run, did not do so yesterday when he interviewed him about the HealthNZ deficit. Luxon is trying to use a deficit reported last year by HealthNZ as yet another example of the ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    3 days ago
  • A worrying sign

    Back in January a StatsNZ employee gave a speech at Rātana on behalf of tangata whenua in which he insulted and criticised the government. The speech clearly violated the principle of a neutral public service, and StatsNZ started an investigation. Part of that was getting an external consultant to examine ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Are we fine with 47.9% home-ownership by 2048?

    Renting for life: Shared ownership initiatives are unlikely to slow the slide in home ownership by much. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:A Deloitte report for Westpac has projected Aotearoa’s home-ownership rate will ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Let's Win This

    You're broken down and tiredOf living life on a merry go roundAnd you can't find the fighterBut I see it in you so we gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsWe gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsAnd I'll rise upI'll rise like the dayI'll rise upI'll rise unafraidI'll rise upAnd I'll ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago
  • Waimahara: The Singing Spirit of Water

    There’s been a change in Myers Park. Down the steps from St. Kevin’s Arcade, past the grassy slopes, the children’s playground, the benches and that goat statue, there has been a transformation. The underpass for Mayoral Drive has gone from a barren, grey, concrete tunnel, to a place that thrums ...
    Greater AucklandBy Connor Sharp
    4 days ago
  • A major milestone: Global climate pollution may have just peaked

    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections Global society may have finally slammed on the brakes for climate-warming pollution released by human fossil fuel combustion. According to the Carbon Monitor Project, the total global climate pollution released between February and May 2024 declined slightly from the amount released during the same ...
    Skeptical Science
    4 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Tuesday, July 23

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Tuesday, July 23 are:Deep Dive: Penlink: where tolling rhetoric meets reality BusinessDesk-$$$’s Oliver LewisScoop: Te Pūkenga plans for regional polytechs leak out ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Tuesday, July 23

    TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Tuesday, July 23, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Health: Shane Reti announced the Board of Te Whatu Ora- Health New Zealand was being replaced with Commissioner Lester Levy ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • HealthNZ and Luxon at cross purposes over budget blowout

    Health NZ warned the Government at the end of March that it was running over Budget. But the reasons it gave were very different to those offered by the Prime Minister yesterday. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon blamed the “botched merger” of the 20 District Health Boards (DHBs) to create Health ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    4 days ago
  • 2500-3000 more healthcare staff expected to be fired, as Shane Reti blames Labour for a budget defic...

    Long ReadKey Summary: Although National increased the health budget by $1.4 billion in May, they used an old funding model to project health system costs, and never bothered to update their pre-election numbers. They were told during the Health Select Committees earlier in the year their budget amount was deficient, ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    4 days ago
  • Might Kamala Harris be about to get a 'stardust' moment like Jacinda Ardern?

    As a momentous, historic weekend in US politics unfolded, analysts and commentators grasped for precedents and comparisons to help explain the significance and power of the choice Joe Biden had made. The 46th president had swept the Democratic party’s primaries but just over 100 days from the election had chosen ...
    PunditBy Tim Watkin
    5 days ago
  • Solutions Interview: Steven Hail on MMT & ecological economics

    TL;DR: I’m casting around for new ideas and ways of thinking about Aotearoa’s political economy to find a few solutions to our cascading and self-reinforcing housing, poverty and climate crises.Associate Professor runs an online masters degree in the economics of sustainability at Torrens University in Australia and is organising ...
    The KakaBy Steven Hail
    5 days ago
  • Reported back

    The Finance and Expenditure Committee has reported back on National's Local Government (Water Services Preliminary Arrangements) Bill. The bill sets up water for privatisation, and was introduced under urgency, then rammed through select committee with no time even for local councils to make a proper submission. Naturally, national's select committee ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Vandrad the Viking, Christopher Coombes, and Literary Archaeology

    Some years ago, I bought a book at Dunedin’s Regent Booksale for $1.50. As one does. Vandrad the Viking (1898), by J. Storer Clouston, is an obscure book these days – I cannot find a proper online review – but soon it was sitting on my shelf, gathering dust alongside ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell On The Biden Withdrawal

    History is not on the side of the centre-left, when Democratic presidents fall behind in the polls and choose not to run for re-election. On both previous occasions in the past 75 years (Harry Truman in 1952, Lyndon Johnson in 1968) the Democrats proceeded to then lose the White House ...
    WerewolfBy lyndon
    5 days ago
  • Joe Biden's withdrawal puts the spotlight back on Kamala and the USA's complicated relatio...

    This is a free articleCoverageThis morning, US President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the Presidential race. And that is genuinely newsworthy. Thanks for your service, President Biden, and all the best to you and yours.However, the media in New Zealand, particularly the 1News nightly bulletin, has been breathlessly covering ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    5 days ago
  • Why we have to challenge our national fiscal assumptions

    A homeless person’s camp beside a blocked-off slipped damage walkway in Freeman’s Bay: we are chasing our tail on our worsening and inter-related housing, poverty and climate crises. Photo: Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Existential Crisis and Damaged Brains

    What has happened to it all?Crazy, some'd sayWhere is the life that I recognise?(Gone away)But I won't cry for yesterdayThere's an ordinary worldSomehow I have to findAnd as I try to make my wayTo the ordinary worldYesterday morning began as many others - what to write about today? I began ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • A speed limit is not a target, and yet…

    This is a guest post from longtime supporter Mr Plod, whose previous contributions include a proposal that Hamilton become New Zealand’s capital city, and that we should switch which side of the road we drive on. A recent Newsroom article, “Back to school for the Govt’s new speed limit policy“, ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    5 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Monday, July 22

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Monday, July 22 are:Today’s Must Read: Father and son live in a tent, and have done for four years, in a million ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Monday, July 22

    TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Monday, July 22, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:US President Joe Biden announced via X this morning he would not stand for a second term.Multinational professional services firm ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #29

    A listing of 32 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, July 14, 2024 thru Sat, July 20, 2024. Story of the week As reflected by preponderance of coverage, our Story of the Week is Project 2025. Until now traveling ...
    Skeptical Science
    6 days ago
  • I'd like to share what I did this weekend

    This weekend, a friend pointed out someone who said they’d like to read my posts, but didn’t want to pay. And my first reaction was sympathy.I’ve already told folks that if they can’t comfortably subscribe, and would like to read, I’d be happy to offer free subscriptions. I don’t want ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    6 days ago
  • For the children – Why mere sentiment can be a misleading force in our lives, and lead to unex...

    National: The Party of ‘Law and Order’ IntroductionThis weekend, the Government formally kicked off one of their flagship policy programs: a military style boot camp that New Zealand has experimented with over the past 50 years. Cartoon credit: Guy BodyIt’s very popular with the National Party’s Law and Order image, ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    6 days ago
  • A friend in uncertain times

    Day one of the solo leg of my long journey home begins with my favourite sound: footfalls in an empty street. 5.00 am and it’s already light and already too warm, almost.If I can make the train that leaves Budapest later this hour I could be in Belgrade by nightfall; ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago
  • The Chaotic World of Male Diet Influencers

    Hi,We’ll get to the horrific world of male diet influencers (AKA Beefy Boys) shortly, but first you will be glad to know that since I sent out the Webworm explaining why the assassination attempt on Donald Trump was not a false flag operation, I’ve heard from a load of people ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago
  • It's Starting To Look A Lot Like… Y2K

    Do you remember Y2K, the threat that hung over humanity in the closing days of the twentieth century? Horror scenarios of planes falling from the sky, electronic payments failing and ATMs refusing to dispense cash. As for your VCR following instructions and recording your favourite show - forget about it.All ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • Bernard’s Saturday Soliloquy for the week to July 20

    Climate Change Minister Simon Watts being questioned by The Kākā’s Bernard Hickey.TL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 20 were:1. A strategy that fails Zero Carbon Act & Paris targetsThe National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government finally unveiled ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Pharmac Director, Climate Change Commissioner, Health NZ Directors – The latest to quit this m...

    Summary:As New Zealand loses at least 12 leaders in the public service space of health, climate, and pharmaceuticals, this month alone, directly in response to the Government’s policies and budget choices, what lies ahead may be darker than it appears. Tui examines some of those departures and draws a long ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    1 week ago
  • Flooding Housing Policy

    The Minister of Housing’s ambition is to reduce markedly the ratio of house prices to household incomes. If his strategy works it would transform the housing market, dramatically changing the prospects of housing as an investment.Leaving aside the Minister’s metaphor of ‘flooding the market’ I do not see how the ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    1 week ago
  • A Voyage Among the Vandals: Accepted (Again!)

    As previously noted, my historical fantasy piece, set in the fifth-century Mediterranean, was accepted for a Pirate Horror anthology, only for the anthology to later fall through. But in a good bit of news, it turned out that the story could indeed be re-marketed as sword and sorcery. As of ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    1 week ago
  • The Kākā's Chorus for Friday, July 19

    An employee of tobacco company Philip Morris International demonstrates a heated tobacco device. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy on Friday, July 19 are:At a time when the Coalition Government is cutting spending on health, infrastructure, education, housing ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Friday, July 19

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 8:30 am on Friday, July 19 are:Scoop: NZ First Minister Casey Costello orders 50% cut to excise tax on heated tobacco products. The minister has ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Weekly Roundup 19-July-2024

    Kia ora, it’s time for another Friday roundup, in which we pull together some of the links and stories that caught our eye this week. Feel free to add more in the comments! Our header image this week shows a foggy day in Auckland town, captured by Patrick Reynolds. ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    1 week ago
  • Weekly Climate Wrap: A market-led plan for failure

    TL;DR : Here’s the top six items climate news for Aotearoa this week, as selected by Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer. A discussion recorded yesterday is in the video above and the audio of that sent onto the podcast feed.The Government released its draft Emissions Reduction ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Tobacco First

    Save some money, get rich and old, bring it back to Tobacco Road.Bring that dynamite and a crane, blow it up, start all over again.Roll up. Roll up. Or tailor made, if you prefer...Whether you’re selling ciggies, digging for gold, catching dolphins in your nets, or encouraging folks to flutter ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • Trump’s Adopted Son.

    Waiting In The Wings: For truly, if Trump is America’s un-assassinated Caesar, then J.D. Vance is America’s Octavian, the Republic’s youthful undertaker – and its first Emperor.DONALD TRUMP’S SELECTION of James D. Vance as his running-mate bodes ill for the American republic. A fervent supporter of Viktor Orban, the “illiberal” prime ...
    Bowalley Road
    1 week ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Friday, July 19

    TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 19, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:The PSA announced the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) had ruled in the PSA’s favour in its case against the Ministry ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • The Hoon around the week to July 19

    TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent talking about the National-ACT-NZ First Government’s release of its first Emissions Reduction Plan;University of Otago Foreign Relations Professor and special guest Dr Karin von ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #29 2024

    Open access notables Improving global temperature datasets to better account for non-uniform warming, Calvert, Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society: To better account for spatial non-uniform trends in warming, a new GITD [global instrumental temperature dataset] was created that used maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) to combine the land surface ...
    Skeptical Science
    1 week ago

  • Joint statement from the Prime Ministers of Canada, Australia and New Zealand

    Australia, Canada and New Zealand today issued the following statement on the need for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza and the risk of expanded conflict between Hizballah and Israel. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The human suffering is unacceptable. It cannot continue.  We remain unequivocal in our condemnation of ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    17 hours ago
  • AG reminds institutions of legal obligations

    Attorney-General Judith Collins today reminded all State and faith-based institutions of their legal obligation to preserve records relevant to the safety and wellbeing of those in its care. “The Abuse in Care Inquiry’s report has found cases where records of the most vulnerable people in State and faith‑based institutions were ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    19 hours ago
  • More young people learning about digital safety

    Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government’s online safety website for children and young people has reached one million page views.  “It is great to see so many young people and their families accessing the site Keep It Real Online to learn how to stay safe online, and manage ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    20 hours ago
  • Speech to the Conference for General Practice 2024

    Tēnā tātou katoa,  Ngā mihi te rangi, ngā mihi te whenua, ngā mihi ki a koutou, kia ora mai koutou. Thank you for the opportunity to be here and the invitation to speak at this 50th anniversary conference. I acknowledge all those who have gone before us and paved the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    22 hours ago
  • Employers and payroll providers ready for tax changes

    New Zealand’s payroll providers have successfully prepared to ensure 3.5 million individuals will, from Wednesday next week, be able to keep more of what they earn each pay, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Revenue Minister Simon Watts.  “The Government's tax policy changes are legally effective from Wednesday. Delivering this tax ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    24 hours ago
  • Experimental vineyard futureproofs wine industry

    An experimental vineyard which will help futureproof the wine sector has been opened in Blenheim by Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson. The covered vineyard, based at the New Zealand Wine Centre – Te Pokapū Wāina o Aotearoa, enables controlled environmental conditions. “The research that will be produced at the Experimental ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Funding confirmed for regions affected by North Island Weather Events

    The Coalition Government has confirmed the indicative regional breakdown of North Island Weather Event (NIWE) funding for state highway recovery projects funded through Budget 2024, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Regions in the North Island suffered extensive and devastating damage from Cyclone Gabrielle and the 2023 Auckland Anniversary Floods, and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Indonesian Foreign Minister to visit

    Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, Retno Marsudi, will visit New Zealand next week, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced.   “Indonesia is important to New Zealand’s security and economic interests and is our closest South East Asian neighbour,” says Mr Peters, who is currently in Laos to engage with South East Asian partners. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Strengthening partnership with Ngāti Maniapoto

    He aha te kai a te rangatira? He kōrero, he kōrero, he kōrero. The government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the aspirations of Ngāti Maniapoto, Minister for Māori Development Tama Potaka says. “My thanks to Te Nehenehenui Trust – Ngāti Maniapoto for bringing their important kōrero to a ministerial ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Transport Minister thanks outgoing CAA Chair

    Transport Minister Simeon Brown has thanked outgoing Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority, Janice Fredric, for her service to the board.“I have received Ms Fredric’s resignation from the role of Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority,” Mr Brown says.“On behalf of the Government, I want to thank Ms Fredric for ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Test for Customary Marine Title being restored

    The Government is proposing legislation to overturn a Court of Appeal decision and amend the Marine and Coastal Area Act in order to restore Parliament’s test for Customary Marine Title, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says.  “Section 58 required an applicant group to prove they have exclusively used and occupied ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Opposition united in bad faith over ECE sector review

    Regulation Minister David Seymour says that opposition parties have united in bad faith, opposing what they claim are ‘dangerous changes’ to the Early Childhood Education sector, despite no changes even being proposed yet.  “Issues with affordability and availability of early childhood education, and the complexity of its regulation, has led ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Kiwis having their say on first regulatory review

    After receiving more than 740 submissions in the first 20 days, Regulation Minister David Seymour is asking the Ministry for Regulation to extend engagement on the early childhood education regulation review by an extra two weeks.  “The level of interest has been very high, and from the conversations I’ve been ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Government upgrading Lower North Island commuter rail

    The Coalition Government is investing $802.9 million into the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines as part of a funding agreement with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA), KiwiRail, and the Greater Wellington and Horizons Regional Councils to deliver more reliable services for commuters in the lower North Island, Transport Minister Simeon ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Government moves to ensure flood protection for Wairoa

    Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced his intention to appoint a Crown Manager to both Hawke’s Bay Regional and Wairoa District Councils to speed up the delivery of flood protection work in Wairoa."Recent severe weather events in Wairoa this year, combined with damage from Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023 have ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • PM speech to Parliament – Royal Commission of Inquiry’s Report into Abuse in Care

    Mr Speaker, this is a day that many New Zealanders who were abused in State care never thought would come. It’s the day that this Parliament accepts, with deep sorrow and regret, the Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care.  At the heart of this report are the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Government acknowledges torture at Lake Alice

    For the first time, the Government is formally acknowledging some children and young people at Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital experienced torture. The final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care “Whanaketia – through pain and trauma, from darkness to light,” was tabled in Parliament ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Government acknowledges courageous abuse survivors

    The Government has acknowledged the nearly 2,400 courageous survivors who shared their experiences during the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State and Faith-Based Care. The final report from the largest and most complex public inquiry ever held in New Zealand, the Royal Commission Inquiry “Whanaketia – through ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Half a million people use tax calculator

    With a week to go before hard-working New Zealanders see personal income tax relief for the first time in fourteen years, 513,000 people have used the Budget tax calculator to see how much they will benefit, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis.  “Tax relief is long overdue. From next Wednesday, personal income ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Paid Parental Leave improvements pass first reading

    Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says a bill that has passed its first reading will improve parental leave settings and give non-biological parents more flexibility as primary carer for their child. The Regulatory Systems Amendment Bill (No3), passed its first reading this morning. “It includes a change ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Rebuilding the economy through better regulation

    Two Bills designed to improve regulation and make it easier to do business have passed their first reading in Parliament, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. The Regulatory Systems (Economic Development) Amendment Bill and Regulatory Systems (Immigration and Workforce) Amendment Bill make key changes to legislation administered by the Ministry ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • ‘Open banking’ and ‘open electricity’ on the way

    New legislation paves the way for greater competition in sectors such as banking and electricity, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says. “Competitive markets boost productivity, create employment opportunities and lift living standards. To support competition, we need good quality regulation but, unfortunately, a recent OECD report ranked New ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Charity lotteries to be permitted to operate online

    Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says lotteries for charitable purposes, such as those run by the Heart Foundation, Coastguard NZ, and local hospices, will soon be allowed to operate online permanently. “Under current laws, these fundraising lotteries are only allowed to operate online until October 2024, after which ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Accelerating Northland Expressway

    The Coalition Government is accelerating work on the new four-lane expressway between Auckland and Whangārei as part of its Roads of National Significance programme, with an accelerated delivery model to deliver this project faster and more efficiently, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “For too long, the lack of resilient transport connections ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Sir Don to travel to Viet Nam as special envoy

    Sir Don McKinnon will travel to Viet Nam this week as a Special Envoy of the Government, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced.    “It is important that the Government give due recognition to the significant contributions that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made to New Zealand-Viet Nam relations,” Mr ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Grant Illingworth KC appointed as transitional Commissioner to Royal Commission

    Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says newly appointed Commissioner, Grant Illingworth KC, will help deliver the report for the first phase of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into COVID-19 Lessons, due on 28 November 2024.  “I am pleased to announce that Mr Illingworth will commence his appointment as ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • NZ to advance relationships with ASEAN partners

    Foreign Minister Winston Peters travels to Laos this week to participate in a series of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-led Ministerial meetings in Vientiane.    “ASEAN plays an important role in supporting a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” Mr Peters says.   “This will be our third visit to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Backing mental health services on the West Coast

    Construction of a new mental health facility at Te Nikau Grey Hospital in Greymouth is today one step closer, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey says. “This $27 million facility shows this Government is delivering on its promise to boost mental health care and improve front line services,” Mr Doocey says. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • NZ support for sustainable Pacific fisheries

    New Zealand is committing nearly $50 million to a package supporting sustainable Pacific fisheries development over the next four years, Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones announced today. “This support consisting of a range of initiatives demonstrates New Zealand’s commitment to assisting our Pacific partners ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Students’ needs at centre of new charter school adjustments

    Associate Education Minister David Seymour says proposed changes to the Education and Training Amendment Bill will ensure charter schools have more flexibility to negotiate employment agreements and are equipped with the right teaching resources. “Cabinet has agreed to progress an amendment which means unions will not be able to initiate ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Commissioner replaces Health NZ Board

    In response to serious concerns around oversight, overspend and a significant deterioration in financial outlook, the Board of Health New Zealand will be replaced with a Commissioner, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti announced today.  “The previous government’s botched health reforms have created significant financial challenges at Health NZ that, without ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
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  • Minister to speak at Australian Space Forum

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