Open mike 19/06/2019

Written By: - Date published: 7:00 am, June 19th, 2019 - 98 comments
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Open mike is your post.

For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose.

The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy).

Step up to the mike …

98 comments on “Open mike 19/06/2019 ”

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  1. johnm 1
    19 June 2019 at 7:06 am

    The Coming Show Trial of Julian Assange

    By Chris Hedges

    June 17, 2019 "Information Clearing House" – LONDON—On Friday morning I was in a small courtroom at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London. Julian Assange, held in Belmarsh Prison and dressed in a pale-blue prison shirt, appeared on a video screen directly in front of me. Assange, his gray hair and beard neatly trimmed, slipped on heavy, dark-frame glasses at the start of the proceedings. He listened intently as Ben Brandon, the prosecutor, seated at a narrow wooden table, listed the crimes he allegedly had committed and called for his extradition to the United States to face charges that could result in a sentence of 175 years. The charges include the release of unredacted classified material that posed a “grave” threat to “human intelligence sources” and “the largest compromises of confidential information in the history of the United States.” After the prosecutor’s presentation, Assange’s attorney, Mark Summers, seated at the same table, called the charges “an outrageous and full-frontal assault on journalistic rights.” http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/51780.htm

    recuse. The verb recuse is used in legal situations and means to remove someone from a position of judicial authority, either a judge or a member of a jury, who is deemed unacceptable to judge, usually because of some bias.

  3. Robert Guyton 3
    19 June 2019 at 7:14 am

    Councillor pushes for climate change stance in Southland

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/113492908/councillor-pushes-for-climate-change-stance-in-southland

    The chairman is misleading the public.

    • mickysavage 3.1
      19 June 2019 at 7:53 am

      Go Robert Go! We expect a report …

      • Robert Guyton 3.1.1
        19 June 2019 at 8:01 am

        Will do, mickysavage; at this point, we're gathering public support for the meeting at which I'm moving a climate emergency; so far, we've got a strong response and commitments from a number of people to be there in the council chamber to support those councillors who have signalled they'll vote for the motion. As well, there are those who will petition the council prior to the vote, so there will be strong words spoken and plenty of good photo opportunities for the assembled media smiley

    • johnm 3.2
      19 June 2019 at 7:53 am

      Climate Change has now gone exponential. 2009 250 years from the baseline of 1750 we reached .85c above that line. From 2009 to 2019 we've increased the Global average temperature another 1.05c in just 10 years totalling 1.9c above 1750. We are in Mann's hockey stick curve upwards.

      JMO It's a bit late now declaring an emergency the damage is done and is irreparable; in fact nothing we do now can change this trajectory. Declaring what has been self evident for many years is empty rhetoric.

      • Robert Guyton 3.2.1
        19 June 2019 at 8:04 am

        And refusing to declare a climate emergency would be a denial of reality, johnm. The motion will be before the council; which way would you vote? Getting real is important; it may be "a bit late" but burying one's head in the sand leaves one very vulnerable to all sorts of dangers; at least we can all face the challenge with our eyes open and in agreement that there is in fact, an emergency.

        • WeTheBleeple 3.2.1.1
          19 June 2019 at 8:30 am

          The late Kurt Vonnegut said that: for a formulaic story that pleases the general public you must start on a high note to gain people's trust before the adversity strikes and then of course human resilience overcomes all obstacles and we all live happily ever after.

          Vonnegut was a genius. He didn't write formulaic rubbish he just proved how utterly predictable the bulk of today's storytelling is.

          Your Hubber bloke is trying to follow some pre-determined formula. "Following council protocol is more important than declaring a state of emergency". He'll never amount to a hill of beans in history, but will be popular with the keepers of the status quo. He knows about climate change, he's about to declare eternal sunshine… and you go and ruin it with your pesky facts!

          Haven't you read the narrative? We all live happily ever after, because science!

          Alternately, my new comedy set starts with homelessness, moves on to corruption and redeems itself with climate change. I shall be anonymous forever as we'll all die long before some future arts department gets to coo over what a rule breaker I have always been.

          Almost ready to kick ass and take names. Sounds like you are too. Good stuff!

          Stick with the dialogue, that's my advice if you want to be truly mediocre.

      • greywarshark 3.2.2
        19 June 2019 at 1:11 pm

        You are still supporting Julian Assange johnm. We have to try for what we want, have to see if we can make a difference. So don't put people down for declaring a climate emergency on the one hand and want us to support your and Julian's case on the other; it is contradictory.

        I'm surprised at your tone. Don't be negative when people are trying to do something, if you do anything, show how it could be achieved faster and most effectively. Or jump ahead to a scenario and ponder about the best way to adapt and survive and what hard decisions may have to be made, what to keep and what to abandon, and when!

        • Kevin 3.2.2.1
          19 June 2019 at 2:08 pm

          Wha?

          What has johnm's article about Assange got to do with him commenting on CC?

          • greywarshark 3.2.2.1.1
            19 June 2019 at 3:22 pm

            If you followed the thread wherever it goes – I was commenting to this,

            JMO It's a bit late now declaring an emergency the damage is done and is irreparable; in fact nothing we do now can change this trajectory. Declaring what has been self evident for many years is empty rhetoric.

            And I explained my thinking, which apparently was too extensive for you, usually one or two lines. Widen up.

            You just need to search for the thread yourself – requires a bit of work sometimes. It's at 3.2. I am suggesting that we won't give up on his project to help Assange and he shouldn't give up on the project to try and protect ourselves and the earth from the worst of CC.

            • Kevin 3.2.2.1.1.1
              19 June 2019 at 8:46 pm

              I read the thread fully the first time. So I say again what’s johnm’s comment on Assange got to do with CC?

    • Pat 3.3
      19 June 2019 at 8:19 am

      "Permafrost at outposts in the Canadian Arctic is thawing 70 years earlier than predicted, an expedition has discovered, in the latest sign that the global climate crisis is accelerating even faster than scientists had feared."

      https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jun/18/arctic-permafrost-canada-science-climate-crisis

      something the council may wish to consider

  6. WeTheBleeple 6
    19 June 2019 at 7:29 am

    Facebook planning crypto-currency system.

    Are those pesky tax-men querying your laundry business?

    Got some hush money you need to hide?

    Maybe you need to keep your war-catalyst terrorism a secret.

    Libra currency, it's not a fucking tampon.

    This ad was brought to you by the world's governments, who have acquiesced and stood aside once more to enable the rich and powerful to shit on your head. And besides, fuck you.

    • Peter Christchurh nz 6.1
      19 June 2019 at 8:46 am

      No, it's the future.

      Not even that, as in China for over a decade Weixin (WeChat) has been the payment system of choice for the vast bulk of the population. Its 'Red Bags' have essentially been crypto currency. Facebook is just somewhat belatedly catching up.

      Paper based currency is in terminal decline. Even eftpos cards, credit and debit cards are now in their final stages.

      • WeTheBleeple 6.1.1
        19 June 2019 at 9:06 am

        You only have to look at who's buying in to this shit to see the problem. But, having read your contributions, you never could see past playing your part in the nonsense narrative that all is well.

        Having facebook lead the charge reassures nobody but billionaires and idiots.

        • Peter Christchurch NZ 6.1.1.1
          19 June 2019 at 10:41 am

          I could say that having read YOUR contributions, you never could see past playing your part in the nonsense narrative that all is a conspiracy and the world is about to end. Whether you or I like it or not, crypto is the future. Communist Weixin and Capitalist Facebook. That should tell you that this is fact not opinion.

          As always with conspiracy theorists and doomsday merchants, you ignored my points that all this is old news in China. Far better to engage in personal abuse that rational argument eh WTB?

          What is it about some of the people on this site? Any opposing view is treated as some kind of evil that that challenges their world view and so must be destroyed. No wonder this site is fading fast.

          [lprent: Read the policy. It is a site for “robust debate”. Doesn’t mean that it has to be polite nor that people have to agree like sheeple.

          So long as people are willing to argue their own points and engage with others who disagree offering their one views, then I couldn’t give a pigs arse about people complaining that people are ignoring their points.

          I’m concerned about having debate – not some whining dipshit trying to frame the debate in their favour. Which is what I suspect you’re trying to do. ]

          • greywarshark 6.1.1.1.1
            19 June 2019 at 10:52 am

            Peter Chch

            Better for you not to visit here then because who wants to be involved with something going down the gurgler. Save your time and go to somewhere less passionate and demanding.

            Sometimes anxiety about the future and the intransigence of the complacent, the ignorant, and the 'passionless people' as we have been dubbed makes us seem a bit mad. Anyone who is actually alive and thinking is bound to get like that now and then. For your own sanity leave now!

            • Peter Christchurch NZ 6.1.1.1.1.1
              19 June 2019 at 10:54 am

              I would disagree. I understand your anxiety and frustration about things, but disagreement does not necessarily mean intransigence or ignorant. At the end of the day, we all see things differently, but I dare say we have more in common than not.

              • greywarshark …
                19 June 2019 at 1:04 pm

                'disagreement does not necessarily mean intransigence or ignorant.' True, not necessarily, but often. Then there is determined ignorance and closed ears. And there is little use discussing anything with them, because all you get is rejection, and refuting, and rationalisation, and artfully directed questions that reroute the argument, turn it around. It is bad faith for such people to continue as we try to find some common ground and reasonable approaches to problems beyond reason. Just putting sensible suggestions of the 20th century type, and expecting courtesy when there is urgency at this time will arouse irritation later, if not sooner.

                The object of coming here for most of us is to learn and test our own ideas and put them forward and we are interested in new ideas and don't call out others as useless, because they disagree strongly. Not at first. And the very keen and informed and involved and frustrated deserve some leeway.

                And finding out who knows what and how useful their ideas are and probably based on knowledge is good before dismissing them. Their expression of knowledge can be questioned to check if their opinions are based on good sources, or their reckons, or what their father always did, or what their religion tells them etc.

          • WeTheBleeple 6.1.1.1.2
            19 June 2019 at 11:07 am

            Hmm. Climate change is a conspiracy theory? Ice melt, sea rise, devastating storms wildfires droughts and floods are conspiracy theory?

            Rationally denying science. A real mans man aren't you.

            So bend over bitch, it's gonna get uncomfortable.

          • One Two 6.1.1.1.3
            19 June 2019 at 1:08 pm

            Whether you or I like it or not, crypto is the future

            I'd be highly surprised if you could back that up with your own opinions, in a way which illustrates a level of knowledge you have on the subject…

            Could you elaborate on the technicalities?

        • greywarshark 6.1.1.2
          19 June 2019 at 1:16 pm

          I'll go out and cause a riot if the government allows the banks to stop handling currency. People are contacting Kiwibank for giving up on cheques already. What a bloody disgrace. NZ entities should be retaining systems that are base ones and not dependent on overseas entities including Australia, and ones that require an energy source such as electricity or specially shaped batteries without which you have a dead and useless machine. Does anyone know how to run a cat's whisker radio these days?

      • SpaceMonkey 6.1.2
        19 June 2019 at 1:46 pm

        To describe paper based currency as being in terminal decline isn't accurate. The data I look at shows cash use increasing, but looking like in line with population growth, so "static" might be a better descriptor.

        Neither is digital/crypto currency automatically the future. For online transactions, I would absolutely agree with you, but for day today in the physical world, not so much. Humanity is not heading for some techno nirvana. There will be a place for high-tech and digital currencies, but the future for the masses is more likely repurposed low-tech with some form of hard currency.

        • Kevin 6.1.2.1
          19 June 2019 at 2:12 pm

          FIAT currency isn't worth the paper its printed on.

          The continual QE of the USA and ECB shows you can just print and print and print…

    • Brigid 6.2
      19 June 2019 at 12:51 pm

      "And besides, fuck you."

      Hilarious!!

      Though I think you give them more credit than they deserve. I don't think they are aware of us enough to care, in offering advice on fucking oneself.

  7. Dennis Frank 7
    19 June 2019 at 8:25 am

    The PM chose to use a public relations specialist as her chief of staff. Tacit acknowledgement that party members haven't a clue how to organise a team and/or perform govt liaison, I suppose. Also sends the signal that she prefers neoliberal professionalism to Labour's tradition of class solidarity.

    "Thompson, who founded lobbying firm Thompson Lewis in 2016, was appointed interim chief of staff to the prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, shortly after the formation of the government in late 2017 to help set up the new administration. Thompson’s appointment was short-term, to stand in for Mike Munro who was unwell at the time. After four months in the role — during which he had access to all Cabinet papers and was involved in the appointment of over 100 ministerial staff — Thompson returned to his firm to lobby the government on behalf of private clients."

    "Thompson, who worked as a senior communications adviser for SkyCity and Fonterra before founding his lobbying firm, has previously said that conflicts were properly managed during his tenure as chief of staff." https://thespinoff.co.nz/politics/19-06-2019/nothing-to-declare-new-questions-in-lobbyist-turned-chief-of-staff-saga/

    Clearly the dude is a corporate comms pro. The Spinoff writer examines the conflict of interest issue. If media hound the dude, he should just say "Easy, you just set up chinese walls in your mind. No problem."

    • The Chairman 7.1
      19 June 2019 at 11:13 am

      If the media smell blood and start to dig deeper and push this, it could cost Labour the next election. Perhaps they are biding their time, deciding to strike closer to the election?

      It doesn't look good for Jacinda and if she becomes to politically damaged from this, Labour won't stand a chance.

      • The Al1en 7.1.1
        19 June 2019 at 11:25 am

        Concerned as Mr Concern from Concerned land.

      • WeTheBleeple 7.1.2
        19 June 2019 at 11:27 am

        Oh blithering barnacles! Pray foretell the downfall of the mighty who doth sup at the cup of unrighteousness. Alas!

        Who will come to our rescue to enlighten our beer sodden minds?

        Hark, tis The Chairman! Spokesperson for the downtrodden.

        Hahaha, PR guy. At last, time to beat those fucking Herald Journalists black and blue.

      • ankerawshark 7.1.3
        19 June 2019 at 12:20 pm

        Chairman, same old same old……..It doesn't look good for Jacinda… politically damaged………..lose the next election.

        Lol lol The Chairman…Seeing right through you

      • CHCoff 7.1.4
        19 June 2019 at 1:11 pm

        The media won't be happy and behave until there's a track and trace Financial Transaction Tax, that's what it wants, it's obvious.

      • Stuart Munro. 7.1.5
        19 June 2019 at 1:18 pm

        It doesn't seem to be the kind of problem that excites the public interest – the much more serious issues surrounding the appointment of Ian Fletcher barely dented the popularity of unremitting scoundrel John Key.

        • The Chairman 7.1.5.1
          19 June 2019 at 4:15 pm

          Yes, that had little impact on Key. But this goes a little beyond that.

          As for public opinion, the media play a large role in influencing it. Therefore, it depends how they shape it and how hard they push it.

          Have you noticed that ACT is onto this. ACT may be used as the attack dog, keeping Nationals hands clean.

    • Muttonbird 7.2
      19 June 2019 at 11:22 am

      I didn't know rank and file members and activists were experts in recruitment appointments and political strategy. I can't believe all that grass roots knowledge was overlooked for a professional political operator…

  8. Dennis Frank 8
    19 June 2019 at 8:43 am

    Dark horse canters into fourth place in latest round of tory leadership balloting: "At the moment, Google Trends shows that Conservative leader hopeful Rory Stewart is more popular than Boris Johnson." https://www.bbc.com/news/topics/c8z2ykqzgypt/rory-stewart

    Raab got eliminated. Too hard-line. Stewart "was widely expected to be one of the first to be eliminated. No longer. An unconventional campaign combined with a straight-talking, honest approach and a strong stance against a no-deal Brexit have seen him catapulted into the spotlight and sent bookies scrambling to slash the odds on him becoming Britain's next prime minister (he is now the second favourite)." https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/rory-stewart-tory-leadership-background-iraq-brexit-deal-johnson-a8964091.html

    “In 2000, when he claims to have stopped working directly for the government, he walked 6,000 miles across Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran, Nepal and India – a journey that became the basis of three widely-acclaimed books. Stewart returned to the Middle East after the 2003 invasion of Iraq, becoming deputy governor of the Maysan province in southern Iraq.”

    “After a short stint teaching at Harvard University, in 2005 he helped establish the Turquoise Mountain Foundation, an NGO working in Afghanistan in the wake of the US-led invasion of the country. Brad Pitt was so interested in Stewart’s story at this point that he bought the rights to make a film about his life, although the Hollywood star reportedly lost interest when Stewart became a Tory MP”.

  9. Professor Longhair 9
    19 June 2019 at 9:08 am

    "…a straight-talking, honest approach…"

    Not a wise approach in Great Britain, the land of scoundrels.

  10. WeTheBleeple 10
    19 June 2019 at 9:17 am

    Dear Farmers

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/environment/113562668/mountain-rain-runoff-turns-canterbury-lakes-green-and-brown

    Take a look at the first picture on this page. Note that the only green grass in the entire foreground surrounds the only trees in the entire foreground.

    Trees do not lower production. They raise it. Note the trees themselves might be used as off-season fodder.

    Things are only going to get worse, more droughts, more severe.

    Get planting if you want to save the farm.

  11. marty mars 11
    19 June 2019 at 10:01 am

    The naming and shaming of this white supremacist for breaking the law has been well paced I think. I hope this helps other sad men take a different path and find a better way to deal with their inadequacies and shortcomings. There is help out there I think – not sure what support groups for racists but that anti social behaviour and belief system is a manifestation of deeper issues imo and they CAN be worked on.

    Christchurch man Philip Neville Arps was jailed for 21 months on Tuesday in the Christchurch District Court on two charges of distributing the objectionable live-streamed video of the mosque murders.

    Arps admitted the day after the March 15 attack he sent away the video to have it modified with cross-hairs and a "kill count", and distributed the unmodified video to 30 associates.

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/christchurch-shooting/113588866/unrepentant-hardcore-white-supremacist-jailed-after-sharing-terror-video

    • greywarshark 11.1
      19 June 2019 at 10:27 am

      Attitudes to others and what is right and fair and moral!

      This morning about 8am I think it was a psychologist who said that the white supremacist followers are very set in their thinking and unlikely to change. And also that there are gangs of them in jails just like groups of Maori gang members. So there is a likely conflict there in the future.

      And if we don't have a death sentence, and the criminal should be contained and not let out to renew their shitty behaviour, and continue to harden their ideas in prison, it may be that a type of brain surgery is required – similar to the story of The Clockwork Orange? If behaviour gets really embedded in certain levels of society – what to do?

      11 year old girl not allowed to play in sporting contest for boys. She has been playing rugby in a mixed team but can’t for the competition. That is being questioned.
      But if equality is to be enforced across the board, girls will have to allow boys in their teams. What if the boys are bigger and better and replace the girls opportunities to play at a representative level? It is good to be allowed to be with your gender peers, to be able to mix and learn how to get on with your own gender. That should not be forgotten with the frequent desire to not be defined by gender.

      And from Australia:
      Looking at behaviour accepting women as equals – a reporter from Australia this morning was talking about a blast about women coming from a hardmouth union organiser who has threatened to withhold political contributions to a party if the unions are sanctioned.

      https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon/audio/2018700280/labor-s-union-problem-and-missing-belgian-backpacker

      Australia correspondent Chris Niesche looks at how union leader John Setka is proving to be a real headache for newly-elected Labor leader Anthony Albanese.

      He'll also report on the latest in the search for missing Belgian backpacker Theo Hayez and the university chancellor charging the university for use of his home which he bought with a loan – from the university.

    • Jenny - How to Get there? 11.2
      19 June 2019 at 10:31 pm

      Is Phillip Arps a white guy or a terrorist?

      Why hasn't Arps been charged under the Suppression Of Terrorism Act?

      It seems that you can only get charged as a terrorist if you kill 50 people or you are Tuhoi.

      Solitary confinement has been defined as cruel and inhumane treatment by the United Nations.

      Yet this is the expected future for the Christchurch shooter, for the rest of his life.

      Far better that he be given a cell mate of similar beliefs, so they can stroke each others egos, and whatever else they fancy. At no risk of spreading their divisive poison to the general prison population.

      Arps should be charged under section 13 of the Act:

      Section 13: participating in a terrorist group

      • Section 12 (recruiting members of a terrorist group) now simply required a designated terrorist entity (DTE)[30]
      • Section 13 (participating in a terrorist group) introduced a recklessness component alongside knowledge, as well as only requiring a DTE[31]

      The penalties within the act are severe, with most offences carrying either 14 years or life imprisonment. If Arps was convicted under the Suppression Of Terrorism Act, the Christchurch shooter could get the cell mate he deserves. (For at least half of his sentence.)

      It could be argued that Arps business which traded under white supremacist logos could fall under the definition of a DTE. Other, yet to be identified, white supremacist circles that Arps moved in could also be defined as DTEs.

      We need to give this scum a real message.

      If we really wanted to suppress white supremacist terrorism this would be the way to do it.

  12. greywarshark 12
    19 June 2019 at 10:04 am

    World university rankings just produced probably biased towards what employers might want. I wondered how many would require Humanities subjects, also problem solving, also knowledge of philosophy and its history. https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/392381/most-new-zealand-universities-improve-in-global-league-table

    This link is about likely 10 top jobs in 2030. https://www.crimsoneducation.org/nz/blog/jobs-of-the-future
    By 2025, we’ll lose over five million jobs to automation. That means that future jobs will look vastly different by the time you graduate university. Future jobs will involve knowledge creation and innovation. Machines will be freeing you up to explore, experiment and find interesting solutions to complex problems, like pollution.

    Have a look at what engineering students at Northwestern University are doing. The Solar Car Team gets to design, build, and race cars, all while saving the environment!

    So it seems further imagination, ideas, mind things with a division from physical work and from each others actual bodies!

    Future Skills:
    1. Mental Elasticity and Complex Problem Solving:
    2. Critical Thinking
    3. Creativity
    4. People Skills
    5. STEM
    6. SMAC
    7. Interdisciplinary Knowledge

    Jobs for the Future:
    1. Trash Engineer
    2. Alternative Energy Consultant
    3. Earthquake Forecaster
    4. Medical Mentor
    5. Organ/Body Part Creator
    6. Memory Surgeon
    7. Personal Productivity Person
    8. Personal Internet of Things (IOT) Security Repair Person
    9. Flight Instructor
    10. Commercial Space Pilot

  13. marty mars 13
    19 June 2019 at 10:30 am

    Good news – not many to go

    Chevron and Norwegian oil giant Equinor have opted to abandon their joint exploration efforts off the east coast of the North Island.

    The two firms have applied to surrender three permits they were granted in December 2014. The acreage covers more than 25,000 square-kilometres of ocean – roughly a quarter of the country's active exploration portfolio – and stretches from south-east of Turakirae Head on the southern Wairarapa coast, north towards Hawke's Bay.

    Link here

  14. marty mars 14
    19 June 2019 at 10:53 am

    Not good – silly justin is going down for this and desperate times in southern India

    Canada has approved the Trans Mountain expansion project after a federal court sent it back for review last summer.

    The decision could pose a challenge for PM Justin Trudeau as he heads into an election season likely to be fought in part over climate issues.

    His federal Liberals took the rare step last year of buying the pipeline for C$4.5bn ($3.4bn; £2.6bn) to help ensure the project's survival.

    Environmentalists and some First Nations fiercely oppose Trans Mountain.

    https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-48641293

    and this one

    The southern Indian city of Chennai (formerly Madras) is in crisis after its four main water reservoirs ran completely dry.

    The acute water shortage has forced the city to scramble for urgent solutions, including drilling new boreholes.

    Residents have had to stand in line for hours to get water from government tanks, and restaurants have closed due to the lack of water.

    "Only rain can save Chennai from this situation," an official told BBC Tamil.

    The city, which, according to the 2011 census, is India's sixth largest, has been in the grip of a severe water shortage for weeks now.

    https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-48672330

  15. Muttonbird 15
    19 June 2019 at 11:17 am

    Of course Jong Kee knew nothing of this as board member and chairman…

    https://i.stuff.co.nz/business/113599166/anzs-former-boss-david-hisco-clocked-up-nearly-450k-a-year-in-expenses

    Yeah, right.

    • greywarshark 15.1
      19 June 2019 at 12:14 pm

      Aha not tends of thousands but an 'order of magnitude'.

      In 2010 the amount was high because of relocation expenses etc.

      In 2014 relocation was referred to again.

      Then – In 2017 and 2018, when relocation was no longer cited, expenses remained remarkable at over A$400,000 each year.

      Why not? There's plenty more where that came from. He was making a perfectly rational decision for a financial whore in the present and even past capitalist system. And whatever your bank does you will be bailed out as in 2008, (shortly before he visited our bounteous shores).

    • ianmac 15.2
      19 June 2019 at 1:56 pm

      Perhaps the clever Sir John decided to just hint at "modest" spending to disguise the fact that Mr Hisco had an expense account of over $400,000 per year. And should Sir John as Chair be aware of this outrageous figure. Not really. It was some junior clerk's fault and Sir John is as everyone knows, above reproach. Right?

      • Muttonbird 15.2.1
        19 June 2019 at 2:03 pm

        I think Surge On is doing some frantic arse covering in the face the upcoming and unprecedented scrutiny of the banking industry's excesses.

  16. greywarshark 16
    19 June 2019 at 12:32 pm

    This woman is an example of a failed mental health system, and I wonder if we are becoming so callous that we will think along the same lines as when the Bedlam place was where people got shoved like a human zoo. We had progressed beyond casual ECT but who knows where these mindless, soul-less semi-people in charge will go on their path to rid themselves of these damned souls.

    I hope this woman gets treatment, whatever has happened to her it looks as if she needs to be permanently in care. I hope that Labour's keen emotionally-driven, idelogues haven't given away all the places where that could happen and so she has to be in 'the community' where they can make her care SEP.

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/392391/woman-jailed-for-abuse-of-mother

  17. Observer Tokoroa 17
    19 June 2019 at 2:40 pm

    Apologies if I am off topic …

    But can someone tell me why all Americans are so like Donald Trump ? War mongers. Wealth Hogs. Racists. Low IQers. Always threatening everybody – everywhere. Deniers and Destroyers. Nuclear nutters. Loud Mouths.

    I wake up in the night thinking Americans all wear the same underwear and lingerie. Frightening. Fixated. Wondering if yet another American Wonder Air plane has hit the tarmac upside down… careless.

    It is so much easier to get along with Europeans than with Americans. And although the English are cantankerous on a daily basis, they really only attempt to become Eccentric. In fact, they desire Eccentricity above everything else. They even sleep with their little doggies and rottweilers. They believe in Boris Johnson. Boro is Eccentricty Universal. Absobloodylutely Dicky.

    I wish the Prime President Donald Trump well in his pursuit of Stupidity. I hope he gets voted in forever. For he is the spongy backbone of the American Horror Oddessy.

    Like all of America he believes only in his wretched little self. Yuck

    As for me, I would rather live with Peasants – and with Alice. There is no Alice like Alice.

    • I feel love 17.1
      19 June 2019 at 2:47 pm

      Saying all Americans are like Trump is like saying all NZrs were like Key when he was PM. There are pleasant Americans, crappy Americans, wise Americans, stupid Americans, just like us really, doing their best or worse, I'm weary of generalisations.

    • WeTheBleeple 17.2
      19 June 2019 at 2:51 pm

      I'm quite fond of this particular Merkin



    • James 17.3
      19 June 2019 at 3:17 pm

      you consider Obama “like Donald Trump ? War mongers. Wealth Hogs. Racists. Low IQers. Always threatening everybody – everywhere. Deniers and Destroyers. Nuclear nutters. Loud Mouths”

      You are showing yourself up as a racist and ignorant individual who needs to get out more and meet some people.

      Perhaps a holiday across the US would do you the world of good.

      • WeTheBleeple 17.3.1
        19 June 2019 at 3:42 pm

        Anti-american sentiment is very high right now thanks to their clown in charge. OT's blowing off steam and saying what a lot of people might be thinking. Context is good aka there are good american people the majority did not vote Trump.

        Five minutes viewing of a Trump rally would send most sane people into a genocidal rage. Obviously not a good option, but the thing is if you keep walking over everyone you are gonna get your ass handed to you real bad when the worm turns.

        Schoolyard 101.

        Travel is not good for the soul unless you actually have a soul. Didn't do 'our' terrorist any good did it.

        Blowing off steam and getting feedback is good for the troubled mind. Getting it out rather than being a festering little fuckwad.

        • higherstandard 17.3.1.1
          19 June 2019 at 5:30 pm

          'Blowing off steam and getting feedback is good for the troubled mind. Getting it out rather than being a festering little fuckwad.'

          Remarkable how many commenters here can both blow off steam and be a festering little fuckwad at the same time.

    • AB 17.4
      19 June 2019 at 10:12 pm

      Well OT, that is a bit OTT.

      I am particularly fond of one long dead 'Murican – Walt Whitman, who wrote this in his 'Specimen Days' (Section 100) about the Civil War. No war-monger here:

      "somewhere they crawl’d to die, alone, in bushes, low gullies, or on the sides of hills—(there, in secluded spots, their skeletons, bleach’d bones, tufts of hair, buttons, fragments of clothing, are occasionally found yet)—our young men once so handsome and so joyous, taken from us—the son from the mother, the husband from the wife, the dear friend from the dear friend"

  18. WeTheBleeple 18
    19 June 2019 at 2:46 pm

    Just a query – is tvnz site down for others, or is it me and my cookie bashing screwed up again…

    Edit – it’s back up, it was me methinks. DOH!

  19. Observer Tokoroa 19
    19 June 2019 at 3:00 pm

    Hi – You who feels Love

    I am glad you have found an exception to the monolithic American. I have too.

    Belinda and Bill Gates are amazing Americans. Truly outstanding.

    Most Americans don’t even know that they are on a Planet.
    They do nothing for each other. Nothing for Planet Earth either. Hopeless.

    Regards

    • Professor Longhair 19.1
      19 June 2019 at 3:42 pm

      Some damned fool from Tokoroa bloviates thusly: "Belinda and Bill Gates are amazing Americans. Truly outstanding."

      What on EARTH are they smoking down that way? And, no, I don't want some of it.

      • Jimmy 19.1.1
        19 June 2019 at 3:53 pm

        I think OT has had too much Tokoroa Gold and all his posts recently have been OTT…lol I think he is trying make us truly look like the looney left!

        • I feel love 19.1.1.1
          19 June 2019 at 5:51 pm

          Us on the looney left are a rich tapestry Jimmy, some drink, some smoke, some are even like me and practice teetotalism! Yet none of us are perfect, especially in this day in age of cyber stalking and keyboard warriorism, live and let live huh?

          • WeTheBleeple 19.1.1.1.1
            19 June 2019 at 6:09 pm

            I haven't had any decent bush weed for years. Send some of that good forest flora up to Aucks!

            Back in the day, Te Puke Thunder would have made most of today's 'elite strains' look like the rubbish they are. I hope some of the Te Arawa folk kept that strain running it will make mighty good medicine.

            Kakariki is also worth it's weight. One to watch out for if the law changes.

            Oops, was we hating on potheads? Nah, just Jimmy thinks it's an insult while he sucks back some more booze.

            Obama, Gates, Clooney, Jobs, Sagan, Marley, Hendrix – what a bunch of pothead losers!

    • Brigid 19.2
      19 June 2019 at 11:48 pm

      "Belinda and Bill Gates are amazing Americans."

      Balderdash. The Gates are wealthy because they paid the code monkeys poorly who created Windoze and ripped off those who bought the product. As well Gates, when he could get away with it, stole from other OS producers.

      And having created such immense wealth by not fair means but foul, he magnanimously doles it out to those he judges worthy.

      IMHO Windoze has always been a pig of an operating system and I'm proud to say I have not contributed one cent to the Gates empire.

  20. greywarshark 20
    19 June 2019 at 9:32 pm

    Malcolm Evans a great cartoonist with his enearing farming couple that goes by the name of Edna.

    He was affected by free speech limitation and we have all noticed the surveillance and hostility about this subject.

    Having first worked for The New Zealand Herald in the 1970s, when he succeeded Sir Gordon Minhinnick, Evans was again its cartoonist for six years from 1997 till 2003 when those opposed to his anti-Zionist cartoons, which the Herald had judged to be "fair comment", put pressure on the paper and, following Evans' subsequent refusal to stop drawing cartoon comments on the Israeli treatment of Palestinians, he was subsequently dismissed.[1][2]

    During his time at the New Zealand Herald he was twice judged New Zealand Cartoonist of the Year, a title he held at the time of his firing, along with that of President of the NZCIA – the New Zealand Cartoonists and Illustrators Association. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malcolm_Evans_(cartoonist)

  21. greywarshark 21
    19 June 2019 at 9:37 pm

    The wealthy and foreigners attempting to take over our commons, our enjoyment of our own land.

    I read of someone near Queenstown who has got permission for a helicopter pad near his house. He applied for it and got permission on the basis that it was for him on an occasional basis, but he is a frequent user and has others calling on him. So there is that noise coming through into their originally placid home and very hard to do anything about it.

    Now there is an application to have an exclusive air space for using for drones near Kerikeri.

    https://www.nzherald.co.nz/northland-age/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503402&objectid=12241392

    Northland pilots baulk at private airspace request 18/6/2019

  22. greywarshark 22
    19 June 2019 at 10:45 pm

    Chris Trotter on the dreadful carry on employed by Oranga Tamariki, a name that implies it is in tune with Maori and te reo. By a very well-organised filming by Newsroom's Melanie Reid, of a dirty secret that this agency and District Health Boards are conniving with, we can see that a scandal is being perpetrated against vulnerable families.

    There is a problem of family violence in NZ. But grabbing children and taking them away from families is, literally, kidnapping. The kindness of strangers it is supposed to be. But the children are traumatised by it and the families are beaten down by their helplessness and the lack of respect for them and their rights. When they are in chaos yes there is no choice. But when families need support and are willing to work co-operatively with life skill coaches, that would be the way to go and would bring the wanted results. (Try the Celia Lashlie approach FGS.)

    https://bowalleyroad.blogspot.com/2019/06/ripped-away-from-their-parents.html

    ...Reid estimates that the “uplift” of Maori children from their biological parents by child welfare social workers – often assisted by the Police – is occurring at least three times a week. The removal of these children, who range in age from just a few days to 14 years, is authorised by Family Court orders which, astonishingly, permit the use of “reasonable force” to separate parents from their children. That this regularly involves burly police officers carrying distraught and screaming children from their family home is a fact which Oranga Tamariki is very keen to keep from the public.

    …This is the enormous virtue of Reid’s and Newsroom’s investigative journalism. It digs below the superficial stereotypes that allow so many of us to dismiss the anguish of “these people” as the inevitable outcome of their irresponsible lifestyles. That they are brown and say “yous”, instead of “you”, only makes it easier for middle-class Pakeha to ignore their pain. Oranga Tamariki, the Family Court, the DHBs and the Police have made it possible for those Kiwis who have made their peace with race-based social injustice to go about their lives without the slightest awareness of the tragedies unfolding, every night, in suburbs they will never visit.

    Reid and Newsroom are, of course, already feeling the lash of official displeasure. Oranga Tamariki are attempting to force edits in Reid’s video. The Hawkes Bay DHB has chastised one of its board members for daring to speak out against the incident recorded by Reid and her camera-operator. The Minister for Children, Tracey Martin, is unapologetic: the uplifts, she says, will continue. The Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, is conflicted. Reid’s footage depicts a world a long, long way from the “politics of kindness”.

    • Brigid 22.1
      19 June 2019 at 11:38 pm

      It isn't just the "“uplift” of Maori children from their biological parents", it's that in this particular case these horrible bitches representing Oranga Tamariki lied to and attempted to manipulate the mother when they had been told that the warrant was rendered temporarily invalid by the mother's lawyer's action in applying to the court to have the proceedings halted.

      These horrible creatures went to her hospital room at night and sat there waiting for her to become too exhausted to continue holding on the the baby. They then intended to steal the baby from her. At the same time the hospital had refused entry to her family and the midwives who were caring for her. The whole fiasco was unbelievably disgusting.

  23. Jenny - How to Get there? 23
    20 June 2019 at 5:49 am

    Fascism in the US

    When will the cattle cars start running?*

    Hitler found that he could not remove 6 million 'undesirable aliens' by conventional means.

    The current 25 million undesirable aliens in the US, represent a much bigger logistical problem.

    It may not happen straight away, but if Trump goes ahead with his plan to deport "millions" of "criminal aliens"….

    There simply isn't enough secure buses trains and planes in the whole country to move that many people.

    And if you can't lock them in, what's to stop people just simply getting off?

    Especially if they and their families face being dumped on the other side of the Mexican border with no jobs, no food, no water.

    If nothing else this will create a huge humanitarian crisis for the Mexican government.

    If Trump carries through with his plan…

    Expect massive transit/detention camps.

    Expect riots., expect repression, expect talk of final solutions.

    Never forget that Trump has declared a nation wide state of emergency which gives him and his executive wide unchecked powers.

    Trump: Mass arrests, removals of 'millions of illegal aliens' to begin next week

    US President Donald Trump said in a tweet Monday night that US immigration agents are planning to make mass arrests starting "next week," an apparent reference to a plan in preparation for months that aims to round up thousands of migrant parents and children in a blitz operation across major US cities.

    "Next week ICE will begin the process of removing the millions of illegal aliens who have illicitly found their way into the United States," Trump wrote….

    ,,,,In 2018, Trump and other senior officials threatened the mayor of Oakland, California, with criminal prosecution for alerting city residents that immigration raids were in the works….

    ….."The Oakland mayor's decision to publicise her suspicions about ICE operations further increased that risk for my officers and alerted criminal aliens – making clear that this reckless decision was based on her political agenda with the very federal laws that ICE is sworn to uphold," then-ICE deputy director Thomas Homan said at the time…..

    ……In April, acting ICE director Ronald Vitiello and Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen were ousted after they hesitated to go forward with the plan, expressing concerns about its preparation, effectiveness and the risk of public outrage from images of migrant children being taken into custody or separated from their families.

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/world/americas/donald-trumps-america/113621152/trump-mass-arrests-removals-of-millions-of-illegal-aliens-to-begin-next-week

    And so it goes.

    Will the American people stand for this?

    *or Modern Equivalent

    • Jenny - How to Get there? 23.1
      20 June 2019 at 5:56 am

      …And let's not forget the massive war that Trump is planning against Iran, based on trumped up charges of limpet mines on oil tankers, that the Japanese tanker owners said, just didn't happen.

  24. Eco maori 24
    20 June 2019 at 8:27 am

    Kia ora The Am Show.

    World Refugee day 70 million refugees on Papatuanuku.

    Gary is starting a electric plane phenomenon in Christchurch very cool we need more people like him chasing clean renewable energy.

    The Americas Cup is a great event that will promote the positive things about Aotearoa to the big punters of the Papatuanuku.

    I tau toko Wahine playing sports with Tane .

    7 years since Fyfe resigned from Air New Zealand time flys .

    Poverty =Family Violence enough said.

    The tourists levy was needed to build the infrastructure to cater for our tourists needs sustainably and respectfully.

    Ka kite ano

  25. Eco maori 25
    20 June 2019 at 9:48 am

    Whanau you see most countrys don't get there water from tawhirimate most countries get their water from Glaciers melting in their high lands Monga mountains Glaciers melting. With Global warming these people are going to have no Glaciers to provide water this is just one phenomenon of Global warming that is going to displace Billions of people and create Water Wars we have to act fast to avoid this crisis.

    Himalayan glacier melting doubled since 2000, spy satellites show

    Ice losses indicate ‘devastating’ future for region and 1 billion people who depend on it for water

    The melting of Himalayan glaciers has doubled since the turn of the century, with more than a quarter of all ice lost over the last four decades, scientists have revealed. The accelerating losses indicate a “devastating” future for the region, upon which a billion people depend for regular water

    The scientists combined declassified US spy satellite images from the mid-1970s with modern satellite data to create the first detailed, four-decade record of ice along the 2,000km (1,200-mile) mountain chain.

    The analysis shows that 8bn tonnes of ice are being lost every year and not replaced by snow, with the lower level glaciers shrinking in height by 5 meters annually. The study shows that only global heating caused by human activities can explain the heavy melting. In previous work, local weather and the impact of air pollution had complicated the picture.

    Joshua Maurer, from Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth observatory, who led the new research, said: “This is the clearest picture yet of how fast Himalayan glaciers are melting since 1975, and why. Ka kite ano link below.

    https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jun/19/himalayan-glacier-melting-doubled-since-2000-scientists-reveal

  26. Eco maori 26
    20 June 2019 at 1:14 pm

    Some Eco Maori music for the minute.

    https://youtu.be/amGI5T0JGDc

  27. Eco maori 27
    20 June 2019 at 3:31 pm

    Eco Maori backs Wahine equality when I first put some serious thoughts into the 2 genders I came to the conclusion that Wahine are more intelligent than men.

    I figured out that over the centuries Wahine have had to use there witty intellect to survive were as men had brute force to win hence Wahine became more intelligent. As for the humane side of Wahine that comes naturally to the ones that give us life.

    I also back equality for Wahine why because men are making a MESS of Papatuanuku Wahine always have to clean up after men make big messes.

    Men have always played critical roles in the women’s movement. From John Stuart Mill to Fredrick Douglass, male allies have long supported the struggle for gender equality. And today there are plenty of men who are proud feminists – just ask Andy Murray, who hired and championed a female coach, Amélie Mauresmo; or Ryan Gosling, who has become something of a feminist icon. But there is still a long way to go, and we’ll only get there by drawing more men into the conversation.

    Despite all the progress made, men still dominate positions of power. And, as a string of recent harassment scandals has shown, the behaviour of some men has had profound effects on women’s careers, their success and their lives. The good news, as we mark International Women’s Day, is that many men are acknowledging the importance of playing their part to make gender equality a reality.

    Scotland unveils plans to become world leader in gender equality

    A new study by Ipsos Mori, in collaboration with the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership at King’s College London (of which I am the chair) and International Women’s Day, has found that while a third of British men think they are being expected to do too much to support women’s equality, far more – half – do not. In fact, three in five men in Britain agree that gender equality won’t be achieved unless they also take action to support women’s rights ka kite ano link below.

    https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/mar/08/gender-equality-not-womens-issue-good-men-too

  28. Eco maori 28
    20 June 2019 at 6:28 pm

    Kia ora Newshub.

    I agree with our government not paying market prices for the gun buy back scheme once you buy something its starts devaluing.

    Some people don't no how to treat animals that fool stabbing that poor miniature horse 40 times.

    The elderly lady was lucky that those young men were able to save her from drowning in the lake in Christchurch that she crashed into.

    Its cool making it easier to vote having polling booth In shopping centers and super markets and you can register and vote on the same day a positive move.

    Its not on the way Saudi crown prince had that reporter killed we need to protect our reporters of the Papatuanuku.

    Ka kite ano

  29. Eco Maori 29
    20 June 2019 at 7:20 pm

    That Marae at Auckland MIT is awsome it been open for 20 years.

    The sandfly muppets are stuffing with my internet I watch the news on my computa and some how my ph data all ways runs out when I just read a few news sites and post posts WTF intimadation games dont work on Eco Maori I see there actors and there games coming from a mile away

  30. Eco maori 30
    21 June 2019 at 8:27 am

    Kia Ora The Am Show.

    That's one reason why I like to use the fist bump instead of shaking hands its limits catching viruses is that what happened to Duncan and Amanda.

    Sir Bob Harvey is a Aotearoa treasure good on you for supporting the tangata sleeping under the bridge very fine cause .The home less need work I say the old PEP scheme needs to come back a van picks workers up takes them to mahi and drops them off. If they can do that For Periotic probation why not do that for the homeless even council's could do this instead of getting the authority's to chase them away.

    I think it's good to find out the jender of your child before being born you can plan for the pepi . My first was a girl my first mokopuna is a girl to .

    The students Strikes gets the message to the Papatuanuku the tide is turning on Human Caused Climate Change its very hard to get the TRUTH out through the oil barons money that is suppressing the TRUTH about climate change.

    Ryan it's politics the gun buy back thing who ever was in power when the Christchurch disaster happened would have dune the same .

    The cast of That 70,s Show are cool.

    Of course you are going to have some national supporters gun owners shouting that they are being hard dune buy.

    Malisa you are correct not having the guns out there stop the wrong people stealing them stop the guns getting in the wrong hands.

    The Queenstown winter festival is on today that will be cool there is plenty of snow for the event.

    Allbirds Tim Brown enviomently friendly made shoes is awesome you're successful business will make other manufacturers take note and copy that's good. Congratulations on you winning the Kia awards. Christeen you and your national m8 slashed the money to the poor people and gave tax cuts to the rich you made a big mess of CYPS you are part of the problem poverty = family Violence the data is around Papatuanuku to prove my words Ka kite ano

  32. Eco maori 32
    21 June 2019 at 8:54 am

    https://youtu.be/rWxdIMdkrKM

    Do you want this lying muppets puppets to be in charge of Air Newzealand big no from Eco Maori

  33. Eco maori 33
    21 June 2019 at 9:14 am

    Here shonky is denying how many children are in poverty because of his ways.

    https://youtu.be/95v4jYzKrtw

  34. Eco maori 34
    21 June 2019 at 11:30 am

    Eco Maori thanks these people for doing things that are going to protect our decendince futures Ka pai.

    Major global investor drops US firms deemed climate crisis laggards

    Legal and General Investment Management cuts companies including ExxonMobil

    An ethical investment operation by the UK’s largest asset manager has dumped shares in a string of US companies it has deemed climate crisis laggards, including oil giant ExxonMobil and insurer Metlife.

    Legal and General Investment Management (LGIM) said it had cut five companies – ExxonMobil, Metlife, Spam maker Hormel Foods, US retailer Kroger and Korean Electric Power Corporation – from its umbrella of ethical investment funds worth a total of £5bn.

    LGIM added the climate laggards to a list which already includes China Construction Bank, carmaker Subaru, Japan Post Holdings, Canadian retailer Loblaw, US food and service conglomerate Sysco Corporation and Russian oil giant Rosneft, which is part-owned by BP.

    The asset manager monitors companies across six major sectors: oil and gas; mining; electric utilities; carmakers; food retailers; and finance.

    Meryam Omi, head of responsible investment at LGIM, said investor engagement with companies can be “a powerful tool” if there are “consequences”. L&G retains shareholdings in the blacklisted companies at other funds in its £1tn investment empire and will now use those shares to vote against board appointments at the named and shamed businesses

    Ka kite ano link below.

    https://www.theguardian.com/business/2019/jun/21/us-climate-crisis-legal-and-general-investment-management

  35. Eco maori 35
    21 June 2019 at 2:50 pm

    Some Eco Maori music for the minute.

    https://youtu.be/vqnwqsJYyiU

  36. Eco maori 36
    21 June 2019 at 4:04 pm

    Some people trick them selves into believing that everything just fine well read this and see the TRUTH Whanau now let's keep our nose clean and stay out of trouble.

    Last year, the government set up an advisory group, Te Uepū Hāpai i te Ora, to advise it on what reforms should be made to our criminal justice system. In the wake of the release of its first report, He Waka Roimata (A Valley of Tears), Dale Husband talked to Chester Borrows, the former cop and National Party MP who leads the group

    Well, I was absolutely staunchly Labour, right through until I went to Pātea, where I was the local cop, and I saw what happened there with the change in government policy. The truth is that Labour (which was my party) swapped sides with National. This was in the middle of Rogernomics.

    We had PEP schemes operating and we had people fully engaged with their community. Then Richard Prebble decided it was too expensive to keep doing that, and that it was much cheaper just to pay the dole. So that’s what he did.

    The fact, though, is that colonisation is an ongoing process. You take away a group’s economic base, educate them in a foreign language, relegate them into housing that isn’t certain. Is it any surprise that, a few generations down the track, this indigenous population has been corralled into low-decile, vulnerable communities, where they have the smallest voice in our democracy?

    Take Pātea, for instance. Eighty percent of that town was on government support. They were the people who were vulnerable to centralisation, or work being moved offshore. And they find themselves unemployed, almost in a cyclic way.

    It’s no wonder that they get into a cycle where they fail in education, they fail in health, and they fail in employment because their jobs keep moving. And they keep finding themselves in court

    There’s another factor in the failure of the justice system — and that’s the collaboration of other government agencies. If we look back into the 1970s, for instance, the state took one in 100 Pākehā kids and put them into state care. But they took 14 in 100 Māori kids and put them into state care.

    This is what we mean when we talk about ongoing colonisation. It was those government policies that affect outcomes for Māori today. And indigenous people around the world in colonised countries have the same statistics.

    Are we talking about decisions being made by well-meaning but misguided people? Or are we talking about really racist attitudes?

    I think some of it is well-meaning and paternalistic stuff. But it’s racism nevertheless. So it doesn’t matter whether it’s malicious or accidental or just ignorant racism. It’s still racism. And the outcome is just the same Ka kite ano link below.

    https://e-tangata.co.nz/korero/chester-borrows-the-blue-leftie/

  37. Eco maori 37
    21 June 2019 at 6:27 pm

    Kia ora Newshub.

    Eqc under national made a mess of the Christchurch earthquake repairs.

    No comment on Iran.

    I feel sorry for the couple in Nelson who are fighting judy and the council .

    I have all ready giving my opinion of shonky in my post above.

    The dog and owner race in Queens town looks like good fun.

    Lloyd it looks hot in Britain no comment on the political seen everyone knows my opinion.

    It think it's good that the Wahine can smear there own mear that will increase the up take of cervical cancer screening.

    Ka kite ano

  38. Eco maori 38
    21 June 2019 at 6:54 pm

    Kia ora te ao Maori news.

    5000 tamariki in state care 4500 are Maori that's sad I do agree some tamariki need to be uplifted but it should be about the pepi first .

    The youth department unit will be good for the youth people teaching them how to respect each other and themselves ka pai.

    Te Aroa I think it's is needed a barge and a port to export all logs from Te taiwhiti it will create jobs and save carbon emissions being burned. The cost to freight logs to Gisborne port takes all.the PROFITS out of forestry harvesting.

    Ka pai to Rangitaki Marae for building kau matua flats and other whare around the Marae.

    Cool 13 kapa haka groups are going to preform a our Nations Museum Te Papa in Wellington.

    Its is awesome getting our kau matua out and getting exercise and best for them to socialize our society seems to forget about our kau matua they need lots of aroha and care or they will just sit at whare . We are all getting older.

    Ka kite ano

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  • God what a relief

    1. What's not to love about the way the Harris campaign is turning things around?a. Nothingb. Love all of itc. God what a reliefd. Not that it will be by any means easye. All of the above 2. Documents released by the Ministry of Health show Associate Health Minister Casey ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 day ago
  • Trust In Me

    Trust in me in all you doHave the faith I have in youLove will see us through, if only you trust in meWhy don't you, you trust me?In a week that saw the release of the 3,000 page Abuse in Care report Christopher Luxon was being asked about Boot Camps. ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 day ago
  • The Hoon around the week to July 26

    TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking about the Royal Commission Inquiry into Abuse in Care report released this week, and with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on a UN push to not recognise carbon offset markets and ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Friday, July 26

    TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 26, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Transport: Simeon Brown announced $802.9 million in funding for 18 new trains on the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines, which ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • Radical law changes needed to build road

    The northern expressway extension from Warkworth to Whangarei is likely to require radical changes to legislation if it is going to be built within the foreseeable future. The Government’s powers to purchase land, the planning process and current restrictions on road tolling are all going to need to be changed ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    1 day ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #30 2024

    Open access notables Could an extremely cold central European winter such as 1963 happen again despite climate change?, Sippel et al., Weather and Climate Dynamics: Here, we first show based on multiple attribution methods that a winter of similar circulation conditions to 1963 would still lead to an extreme seasonal ...
    Skeptical Science
    2 days ago
  • First they came for the Māori

    Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedFirst they came for the doctors But I was confused by the numbers and costs So I didn't speak up Then they came for our police and nurses And I didn't think we could afford those costs anyway So I ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    2 days ago
  • Join us for the weekly Hoon on YouTube Live

    Photo by Joshua J. Cotten on UnsplashWe’re back again after our mid-winter break. We’re still with the ‘new’ day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when we have our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Will the real PM Luxon please stand up?

    Notes: This is a free article. Abuse in Care themes are mentioned. Video is at the bottom.BackgroundYesterday’s report into Abuse in Care revealed that at least 1 in 3 of all who went through state and faith based care were abused - often horrifically. At least, because not all survivors ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    2 days ago
  • Will debt reduction trump abuse in care redress?

    Luxon speaks in Parliament yesterday about the Abuse in Care report. Photo: Hagen Hopkins/Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:PM Christopher Luxon said yesterday in tabling the Abuse in Care report in Parliament he wanted to ‘do the ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Olywhites and Time Bandits

    About a decade ago I worked with a bloke called Steve. He was the grizzled veteran coder, a few years older than me, who knew where the bodies were buried - code wise. Despite his best efforts to be approachable and friendly he could be kind of gruff, through to ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago
  • Why were the 1930s so hot in North America?

    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Jeff Masters and Bob Henson Those who’ve trawled social media during heat waves have likely encountered a tidbit frequently used to brush aside human-caused climate change: Many U.S. states and cities had their single hottest temperature on record during the 1930s, setting incredible heat marks ...
    Skeptical Science
    2 days ago
  • Throwback Thursday – Thinking about Expressways

    Some of the recent announcements from the government have reminded us of posts we’ve written in the past. Here’s one from early 2020. There were plenty of reactions to the government’s infrastructure announcement a few weeks ago which saw them fund a bunch of big roading projects. One of ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    2 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Thursday, July 25

    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 Thursday, July 25 are:News: Why Electric Kiwi is closing to new customers - and why it matters RNZ’s Susan EdmundsScoop: Government drops ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • The Possum: Demon or Friend?

    Hi,I felt a small wet tongue snaking through one of the holes in my Crocs. It explored my big toe, darting down one side, then the other. “He’s looking for some toe cheese,” said the woman next to me, words that still haunt me to this day.Growing up in New ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    2 days ago
  • Not a story

    Yesterday I happily quoted the Prime Minister without fact-checking him and sure enough, it turns out his numbers were all to hell. It’s not four kg of Royal Commission report, it’s fourteen.My friend and one-time colleague-in-comms Hazel Phillips gently alerted me to my error almost as soon as I’d hit ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Thursday, July 25

    TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Thursday, July 25, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day were:The Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry published its final report yesterday.PM Christopher Luxon and The Minister responsible for ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • A tougher line on “proactive release”?

    The Official Information Act has always been a battle between requesters seeking information, and governments seeking to control it. Information is power, so Ministers and government agencies want to manage what is released and when, for their own convenience, and legality and democracy be damned. Their most recent tactic for ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago
  • 'Let's build a motorway costing $100 million per km, before emissions costs'

    TL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:Transport and Energy Minister Simeon Brown is accelerating plans to spend at least $10 billion through Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) to extend State Highway One as a four-lane ‘Expressway’ from Warkworth to Whangarei ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • Lester's Prescription – Positive Bleeding.

    I live my life (woo-ooh-ooh)With no control in my destinyYea-yeah, yea-yeah (woo-ooh-ooh)I can bleed when I want to bleedSo come on, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)You can bleed when you want to bleedYea-yeah, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)Everybody bleed when they want to bleedCome on and bleedGovernments face tough challenges. Selling unpopular decisions to ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago
  • Casey Costello gaslights Labour in the House

    Please note:To skip directly to the- parliamentary footage in the video, scroll to 1:21 To skip to audio please click on the headphone icon on the left hand side of the screenThis video / audio section is under development. ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    3 days ago
  • Why is the Texas grid in such bad shape?

    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

  • 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
    18 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
    21 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
    21 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
    23 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
    1 day 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 ...
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    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 ...
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    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 ...
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    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 ...
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    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 ...
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    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 ...
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    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 ...
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    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 ...
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    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 ...
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    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 ...
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    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. ...
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    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 ...
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    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 ...
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    5 days ago
  • Minister to speak at Australian Space Forum

    Minister for Space and Science, Innovation and Technology Judith Collins will travel to Adelaide tomorrow for space and science engagements, including speaking at the Australian Space Forum.  While there she will also have meetings and visits with a focus on space, biotechnology and innovation.  “New Zealand has a thriving space ...
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    5 days ago
  • Climate Change Minister to attend climate action meeting in China

    Climate Change Minister Simon Watts will travel to China on Saturday to attend the Ministerial on Climate Action meeting held in Wuhan.  “Attending the Ministerial on Climate Action is an opportunity to advocate for New Zealand climate priorities and engage with our key partners on climate action,” Mr Watts says. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Oceans and Fisheries Minister to Solomons

    Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is travelling to the Solomon Islands tomorrow for meetings with his counterparts from around the Pacific supporting collective management of the region’s fisheries. The 23rd Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Committee and the 5th Regional Fisheries Ministers’ Meeting in Honiara from 23 to 26 July ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago
  • Government launches Military Style Academy Pilot

    The Government today launched the Military Style Academy Pilot at Te Au rere a te Tonga Youth Justice residence in Palmerston North, an important part of the Government’s plan to crackdown on youth crime and getting youth offenders back on track, Minister for Children, Karen Chhour said today. “On the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago
  • Nine priority bridge replacements to get underway

    The Government has welcomed news the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has begun work to replace nine priority bridges across the country to ensure our state highway network remains resilient, reliable, and efficient for road users, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“Increasing productivity and economic growth is a key priority for the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Update on global IT outage

    Acting Prime Minister David Seymour has been in contact throughout the evening with senior officials who have coordinated a whole of government response to the global IT outage and can provide an update. The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet has designated the National Emergency Management Agency as the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • New Zealand, Japan renew Pacific partnership

    New Zealand and Japan will continue to step up their shared engagement with the Pacific, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says.    “New Zealand and Japan have a strong, shared interest in a free, open and stable Pacific Islands region,” Mr Peters says.    “We are pleased to be finding more ways ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • New infrastructure energises BOP forestry towns

    New developments in the heart of North Island forestry country will reinvigorate their communities and boost economic development, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones visited Kaingaroa and Kawerau in Bay of Plenty today to open a landmark community centre in the former and a new connecting road in ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • 'Pacific Futures'

    President Adeang, fellow Ministers, honourable Diet Member Horii, Ambassadors, distinguished guests.    Minasama, konnichiwa, and good afternoon, everyone.    Distinguished guests, it’s a pleasure to be here with you today to talk about New Zealand’s foreign policy reset, the reasons for it, the values that underpin it, and how it ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

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