I wonder if those people on the lowest wage rate feel any better off now that they are earning $20 an hour. With inflation running high they will now need another pay rise to keep up. But that will increase inflation further.
Funny how we always hear about wage rises, "causing inflation" and not extra profit taking, bank interest rates, asset stripping, privatisation of infrastructure and services, the increase in capital share of the economy, while the wages share has decreased, and executive salaries.
We have just had this illustrated locally with dog licence fees. A 50% increase. Obviously the private contractor that won the contract with a cheap quote isn't making enough, despite dropping the pay of their staff when they took over
My large coffee from Dunkin donuts went from $5.60 to $6.00 pretty much as soon as the wage increases came in to effect. (I hadn't noticed dog regos increasing that much, I just paid $107 but cant remember what I paid last year).
I still think reducing tax on the first say, $30k of earnings, would have been better than increasing costs to businesses and therefore inflation.
However continuing to subsidise inefficient businesses with low wages, that tax payers then have to top up, is not good for the economy or even business, long term
There is a high tax loss to a zero tax band up to $30,000 (one would have to apply a 33 cents rate from $30,000 to claw the cut back from those on higher than median wage incomes).
The historic alternative was an income tax rebate for those on lower incomes.
Not impossible. If we apply the same rate we do now to the band's up to twice the median income. And taxed gains, and income with a top rate similar to Oz.
Would be nice if those with non-working (disabled, unwell or otherwise) partners got a tax break.
The extra $5,000 to $6,000 paid in tax each year over a couple earning the same amount via two incomes would at least allow one income couples to join Kiwi-saver or pay a bit extra off the mortgage.
It is a decent chink of extra money that goes to the government while trying to support two people. Basically $100 plus per week net income.
Commercial rent growth should have been constrained,due to the Covid response policy of the reintroduction of depreciation.Rates growth however are ursury at best.
But modelling from the Ministry of Social Development for Budget 2021 shows that 193,000 individuals and families are estimated to receive less than $20 per week because the additional financial assistance they receive for accommodation or other costs will fall as a result of their main benefit rising.
It is estimated 178,000 people will receive an increase of $20 or a little bit more.
…….
Social Development Minister Carmel Sepuloni said it's a $20 net benefit increase and that the Government had never shied away from the fact that there would be payment adjustments because of supplementary support payments.
Sepuloni is adamant most beneficiaries will receive more than $15 per week.
"There will be a few that fall below that but the vast majority of people will be getting more than $15 per week."
One hand giveth, one hand taketh. Thus it is, and always was.
But you had a 7.1% hike in your latte price. I suspect you're using faux concern for the wellbeing of minimum wage workers to preserve your comfortable emphatically-not-minimum-wage lifesyle, Mr $6 Coffee.
Because that's what Jimmy brought into the discussion.
Responding to what is actually in someone else's comment often seems to cause confusion around here, or even be regarded as an unfair tactic. If you can figure out why that would be, let me know.
Coffee was just the first example I thought of. Yes rents and petrol have increased significantly too but not due to minimum wage increase. Also many examples of price increases at the supermarket (even the cheap bread).
I still believe the tax bands need to be increased (as KJT has mentioned above) as you only need to earn over $48k in a year to then start paying 30% which IMO is way too high. Even a person fulltime on minimum wage is getting close ($41,600?) to that rate.
In my wafer thin defence, it was buying from Dunkin Donuts that tipped me over the edge. In a past life I was a pioneer, introducing espresso to a rural town.
rates – paid by the leaseholders of commercial properties up,
as for the wage increase this 1 dollar will also affect kiwi saver, holiday pay, sick leave, maternity leave, bereavement leave, domestic violence leave, miscarriage leave etc.
Coffee is getting very expensive soon, in your supermarket too, as well like Cocoa Beans and soon enough also Tea we are hell bent on cutting down the forrests that grow these fruits in order to grow some soy beans n stuff. But if you grow dandylions in your garden – pesticide free of course – you can dig the roots up, roast them and they will make a good Kaffee Ersatz.
As for the 6 dollar coffee, no one needs to buy one. Free country.
To be fair I expect when you look at the 'basket' of goods used to calculate the cpi the items which a minimum wage earner would buy have increased greater than the 3.3 percent figure.
yeah, probably. I suspect an expression of genuine concern would look at issues like that, rather than bitching about the price of lattes.
But then talking rents and basics here is like reminding Greenpeace members that greenhouse gases are bad.
Tories are all about concern for the poor when they really want to leverage that concern to only help themselves.
When they get a pay rise and the lattes are still cheap, their concern for the poor is promptly overruled by the plight of the struggling small business owner who is being extorted by hospo/retail/farm workers who want a living wage.
The MW goes up every year. 2.5% on $20 is 50 cents (even National increased it by that much most years). Labour usually does it by around a dollar – that's 5%.
Inflation while house prices flat-line (as they will when mortgage rates rise) is the only way to reduce property values to incomes.
Jimmy, there is a pandemic on. I guess by your rhetorical question you think there is no sensible reply.
Imported inflation and transport woes, creating competition for goods is the cause of 2/3rds of the inflation.
Nobody is really "better off" in the current situation. Even those gaining through house sales are finding rises outstrip the "gain" unless they are buying down or cashing up.
Those on lower fixed incomes will feel it most along with the unemployed and underemployed. The fact the economy is bouyant gives job security for many.
Those business models relying on low paid workers with low margins on high volumes, will come under pressure, and yes those workers are always at the margins. Some businesses need a government mandate to raise wages.
Sadly when they get squeezed they cut hours. Then they wonder why people are not spending. Self defeating behaviour.
Often they will blame regulations or employment law for their predicament, as it has become a mind set in, for example, the fast food industry.
The Olympic games test athletes physically and psychologically. Due to the global Covid – 19 pandemic it is likely that medal contention will come down to not being infected with Covid or if infected with Covid how a person's immune system responds.
I am interested to know if an athlete will be disqualified because they are infected with Covid or if they are a close contact and will be told to isolate?
The South African athletes and support staff (2+1) who tested positive are isolating. The British (6+2) who were contacts of different positive individual on the flight over to Japan are confined to their rooms for now, waiting test results.
This sounds like a nasty risk for anyone who has used certain apps on their phones. And it's not entirely certain what apps they all are yet. WhatsApp and iMessage seem particularly vulnerable.
Fortunately, it seems the old; switch it off then on again, trick still works for the moment. I prefer to leave my phone in a bag pocket where it can't spy on me when I am not using it, though I guess it still gets location data and incoming messages there. However, I do often miss text beeps; which is sometimes an advantage and sometimes a disadvantage
Having my phone in a pocket of a handbag inside a backpack blocks the camera from filming me under remote control. It probably also muffles the audio to the point where it is ambiguous unusable too. Doesn't do anything about being cell-tower location tracked though (unless I fully turn it off as well – some people say take the battery out too, but that's easier said than done with newer phones).
TBH, I mainly do it so all my stuff is in one easily grabbable package when I need to rush out somewhere while juggling kids.
I know my Samsung 4g phone not only eavesdrops on verbal conversations but also 'mines' data from text messages. Where we live we have very limited and occasional cell coverage, so it is only the occasional txt that gets through. I once sent a txt to an acquaintance suggesting a particular make and model of campervan she could consider buying. Within 1/2 an hour this laptop I'm using now threw up an ad for the self-same vehicle. The phone and laptop share our independent provider wifi. This type of thing has been happening for a few years now and has gone beyond spooky. Short of putting the phone in a foil-lined baggie….we have no idea how to manage this other than having the occasional piss-take loud conversation to see if we can provoke a Minority Report response.
And because our wifi also provides our 'landline' phone, a power cut would render us incommunicado. Keeping the cellphone in a spot where occasionally we get reception is kind of necessary.
Ah, copper! Chorus, bless them, no longer maintain the copper lines here in the North of the North. Those still on the copper have seriously shit service. Those of us unable to hook into the copper rely on either crap cell- based hotspotting or line -of- sight signal wifi such as Uber. Which doesn't work in a power cut.
My Vodafone source no longer provides copper landline service in areas where its HFC cable service is available (Wellington and Christchurch) – we get our phones linked to the broadband modem (presumably so they can stop paying Chorus for the copper wire upkeep).
I thought that the govt made most apprenticeships free? If so you have to ask the question, when the armed forces demonstrate so clearly how you will be treated, why stay on?
Given that the Defence Force is managing many of the MIQ facilities, and so where they are being deployed at the moment… that seems to be in line with existing protocols for vaccination when they are deployed overseas and need to get vaccinated for malaria, diptheria etc.
It's one of the many expectations that are made of you when you enlist. Should not come as a surprise.
From your link: “But it’s no different to any other vaccination process we go through. There will be a number of people who cannot be vaccinated, and an obvious one is pregnant service people and those that have underlying issues at the moment.
“So we’re not going hard on any issue. We’re just saying you need to volunteer. It’s no different to what they’ve volunteered for in joining the organisation.”
My nephew has just recently marched out, in one of the first intakes since Covid-hit. He will be in a trade, BUT his first deployment is to an MIQ unit. The Defence Force has responsibilities beyond providing trades training, and interweaves both.
A young friend has been serving for nearly a decade and has been in Trades Training for less than a year. She has declined this vaccine as there was no satisfactory guarantee that it will not affect her ability to have kids…the Pfizer mRNA vaccine having no long term safety data on effects on fertility. The sticking point here is that instead of being able to simply leave the armed forces, she has to work out her time to make up for time spent doing her trades training. This will be a very difficult time for her and the other 'refusniks' as since she is not vaccinated with this new vaccine her duties will be extremely limited.
As is said in the article…this The Return of Service Obligation is vindictive, under these circumstances.
Just let them leave, and get on with their lives.
Some of these youngsters are highly skilled and very capable and have much to offer the wider community.
Then they should pay for the training received as they are highly skilled and very capable and have much to offer to the wider community and where they will be paid according to their skills.
don't join a group that has mandatory vaccinations if one is worried about getting vaccinations or is selective about which vaccinations to get.
The training they received costs money. They could have left that training space to someone who has no issues getting the vaccination.
As far as i know, military service in NZ is voluntary not mandatory.
Then they should pay for the training received … I wonder how many young women join the forces because they come from lower socio-economic backgrounds and are not in a position to take out large loans to pay for tertiary or trades training? They want to get ahead…but can't afford to get into debt.
These same young women will suffer greater impact should they have to pay refund the cost of their trades training.
They were also working hands- on during that training as well as still being serving personnel, I'll have to find out if this is taken into consideration at the accounting session.
In the US, where Te Covid has run rampant with the bodies piling up in the streets, the military has struggled to bring the vaccination rates up. Even 'shoot em up' Biden has refused to make the Covid vaccines mandatory…possibly because…
Military leaders have long insisted that they cannot require coronavirus vaccinations — as they do for myriad other inoculations — because each type is being administered under an emergency use authorization and has yet to receive formal approval from the Food and Drug Administration.
Meanwhile in the UK, the Vaccine roll out to the armed forces should be well underway by the end of this month. And 'Blighty has a particularly clever method for incentivising vaccine uptake…
…orders to the Royal Artillery and Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers state:
“Covid-19 vaccination. Anyone who is refusing to have the CV-19 jab is to be educated by the CoC (Chain of Command) and any rumours quashed. If they still refuse they may be deemed as unfit to soldier and dealt with accordingly as the CV-19 jab may be a requirement to deploy on operations/exercises, much like yellow fever.”
The Daily Mail report(s) that by law the Army cannot force soldiers to get jabs. Yet being ‘unfit to soldier’ is an offence under the Armed Forces Act.
I had this discussion several years ago with two kids whom i have helped grow up for a while, who came from a single mom, no money household in France.
Both the boy and the girl were wanting to join the Army for training and jobskills. France is involved in military conflict in various places and has had its fair share of soldiers come back in a box or come back with all sorts of mental and physical issues.
During the discussion the kids were trying to tell me how awesome the job training would be. I agreed with them, but i also told them that the first job training they would get was that on how to best and most efficiently kill a person. I told them if you do not want to go to Mali (on of the 'conflict' zones) to kill people, you better don't join the Army. The boy did join the army, the girl did not.
So a young person in NZ i would advise that if you don't want vaccinations or are selective in the vaccinations one is comfortable with, Don't join the Army. Try and get your training elsewhere. Simple as. And joining the Army and being told what to do, when and for how long is in effect a sort of 'student loan'.
Once you join the Army, you are no longer a 'free citizen', you are a Member of the Army and as such subordinate to orders, some of whom may go against ones believes. It sucks, but as i said, the Army is voluntary here, not mandatory.
I come from Army parents, and have close relatives serving. They are aware of the cost/benefit choice they made.
During the discussion the kids were trying to tell me how awesome the job training would be. I agreed with them, but i also told them that the first job training they would get was that on how to best and most efficiently kill a person. I told them if you do not want to go to Mali (on of the 'conflict' zones) to kill people, you better don't join the Army. The boy did join the army, the girl did not.
I had the same discussion with my children. Despite the very interesting lives led by their relatives, including varied deployments, and overseas trips, including several to Antartica, the possible involvement in questionable exercises or conflicts didn't appeal.
the ones in Europe are now in Germany – Rhurland – the ones were now 188 people are dead, and a 1000 still missing, are also in Saxony, Bavaria, Austria, Switzerland, Netherlands, Belgium, Luxemburg, last week England/London and so on and so forth.
In Bavaria and Austria alone another huge rain falls are expected. – Both Bavaria and Austria 'should' have dry summers from July/Aug/Sept.
In Canada in the meantime fruit bakes on trees and in the fields, mussels cook in their beds, and towns spontaneously combust into fire.
Maybe we need a shift form feel good Band-Aids that give us a bit of a sugar rush of 'helping the environment' and more of a realization that we are now well past the idea that tinkering on the edges will change and or prevent these 1 in 1000 years events.
And while Oregon burns in the US, Flagstaff in Texas is having flashfloods.
As for us here in NZ, i pity the people that have lost their houses as i expect them to find it quite hard to rebuild atm.
If anyone has a link for donations to local groups to give to i would appreciate it as i would love to direct some money to where need is. Thanks.
"Maybe we need a shift form feel good Band-Aids that give us a bit of a sugar rush of 'helping the environment' and more of a realization that we are now well past the idea that tinkering on the edges will change and or prevent these 1 in 1000 years events."
I agree. Often feel out of step with others when talking about the imperative need to address climate change and the destruction of the environment immediately, effectively and from now on.
Firstly, I'm a little disturbed at the premise of a cis women's only debating space. Since when did we need to be protected by white knights? I can hold my own, thank you, without anyone needing to shield me from what may come my way.
Next, who decided that we cis women needed a space? "Weka"? A sexless, anonymous entity, who may be gasp a man??
Lastly, if "Weka" intended to exclude the entire LGBT+ community in a discussion about trans people and non-binaries, then they have succeeded.
In fact, if you want to know what trans exclusionary feminism looks lok, this is it. Well done, "Weka". You've created a discussion forum straight from Mumsnet or 4Chan which debates the validity of trans women but they cannot, according to your rules, reply?
What next, a page for cis het men only, no gays, to debate the validity of heterosexuality vs homosexuality??
This is exclusionary.
It is reactionary.
It does nothing to further understanding between those who have an interest in this issue.
I look forward to the day when we don't debate the validity of an already marginalised group just because, you know, we can.
Do better please.
[well “Jane B” if you’re going to be a plonker I’ll treat you as one. Read the site Policy and About so you know what the debate culture here is and where the boundaries are. After that, if you want to join the women’s space and you are female, you will be welcome so long as you can abide by the site rules. Although I’m not sure why you would want to given your disdain for women’s space, but we’re here for the robust debate, I’m sure you’ll get some response to the issues you raise – weka]
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
Agree Sabine. Obfuscation and confusion by renaming items that are not in need of renaming is evident in this whole debate. It so patently 1984 and Brave New World-esque. Humpty Dumpty said "When I use a word," Humpty Dumpty said, in rather a scornful tone, "it means just what I choose it to mean—neither more nor less."
This cis montrosity has been with us since 2017. I have never seen it used in a caring sharing way only in ways to put bio women down. (A good illustration in the post we are replying to.)
Obviously it would be as a frame of reference in human differentiation.
It was not designed to marginalise the majority, female or male, but to provide a framework in which minorities were specifically included.
It's like a shell game, how many minorities can be identified and included before the majoritarian become intolerant – and at which point is peak tolerance load identified.
I don't see myself as cis either, and the word is now hugely problematic. I included it in the post as message to people who ID as cis that they're welcome too. Thing is, I fit under the trans umbrella anyway (thanks Stonewall) so "Jane B" is hoisted on her own binary thinking petard there.
Yes, this is one thing that i find so strange, many women that i know have body dysphoria to various extends, and thus might actually fit under the umbrella, but rather then go trans decided to just make peace with the biology that they are born with and i am sure that some men are also fall into that bracket.
And to believe that 'cis'ers' can't be gay/lesbian. And that to be cis means excluding gay/lesbians.
Well yes, the "TRANS" states it. All others who don't fall under this label are hence 'NOT' Trans but are maybe a whole lot of different things. And thus the label 'cis' becomes an insult rather then anything else.
You'd think one of the first rules of debate is that we all agree on certain definitions.
In this debate we really need to agree that 'biological sex' is real and cannot be changed and that that is what is recorded on one's birth certificate.
It is not 'assigned', it is observed, and in the vast majority of instances is an accurate description of the biological sex of that child. Sex is recorded as 'male' or 'female' or 'intersex'. Sometimes 'boy' or 'girl' or 'indeterminate'. Mature males and females are called 'men' and 'women'.
What the transgender community seems to be demanding is that the definition of 'sex' be permanently and artificially changed so it now means what is commonly understood to be 'gender'…a potentially fluid social construct.
Baffling indeed that this fundamental definition of a biological term has been changed with absolutely no public debate allowed whatsoever…because "violence" and "exclusion".
That would be arguing for born biological sex, distinct from sex identity. Not the same as gender ID – for example Camille Paglia, the only out lesbian of her time at Yale Graduate School, now identifies as transgender.
There is a case for an ID document separate to a birth certificate to cater to sex and gender ID where this is different to that of the birth certificate (which would suffice for the cisgender).
lol I know, right, the lack of public debate is deafening. The minister only sent letters across the spectrum, and social media is constantly sidetracked by the issue, and one or two rounds of submissions on the proposals but there's been zero "public debate". /sarc
As for "violence" and "exclusion", we're at the "slapping demonstrators" and "cops dun took our guns cos tweets" stage of it. How much longer will you keep putting quote marks around "violence" and "exclusion"?
How about we try a bit of "good faith" and at least discuss/debate the definitions at the centre of this issue.
Then we can move on to discussing if it is ok for a small minority of biological males to demand that we talk about "pregnant people" because "pregnant women" is exclusionary.
I'll give you a little clue. "Woman", by the traditional definition means "adult human female". Only female humans can be pregnant. So what is exclusionary about "pregnant women"?
If we are going to radically change the definitions of fundamental biological words we need a discussion about it, and at least some kind of consensus.
Queer ideology is a set of beliefs based on Queer Theory. This theory arose in academia, and is concerned with subverting the ‘normative’ and is invested in ‘queering’ the meaning of words and conceptual categories. Queer ideology discounts or denies biological sex, in favour of the primacy of gender identity. Following this line of thinking, same-sex orientation is now considered exclusionary,
Queer theory follows a typical Hegelian analysis form. Hegelian dialectic analysis is a pseudo logic (it doesn't form a valid logical argument) but is typical in Critical Theory fields in the analysis of power.
A Hegelian dialectic will take some supposed societal oppressive category (a thesis) and contrast it with the oppressed category (the anti-thesis) and supposedly advance discourse by reforming the categories into a synthesis.
Now in actual logic your system of logic can not contain any false statements. So much so that a valid logical argument form is proof by contradiction, where you sometimes prove a statement is untrue by assuming its true and then demonstrating that further statements which were true are now false. This is sufficient to show the statement you assumed true must have been false. So you can see why in Hegelian analysis forming a synthesis makes non-sense of facts, and that its a pseudo-logic.
The other issue being the dialectic supposedly advances society. While in logic establishing proof of some original fact didn't alter the fact that was always true, it merely demonstrated it is true. But this is the reason Critical Theory feels the need to correct peoples discourse because otherwise no advances are made.
I think this highlights why altering the meaning of terms is part of the point the way this creates nonsense discourse is not considered important at all.
So what is the purpose of this proposed "debate"? One of us will change the other's mind after the fifteen millionth iteration of the argument? Is the theory that enough repetition will stop language from evolving? What odds for reaching consensus do you give a debate on the mutability (or even the non-binary nature) of sex?
And frankly, if you think that all the discussion andwritten invitations for submissions mean "absolutely no public debate allowed whatsoever", then either Tinetti's office did not send those letters or we don't even share an understanding of the term "good faith".
And the origin of the term queer was related to indebtedness, a debt inquiry, a debt query and going to debtors prison (and for some how they paid off the debt to avoid going to prison and poor people committing theft of food etc). Related was the incarceration of homosexual men in prisons (and poor women resorting to prostitution and homosexual women being "committed" by fathers and husbands for treatment for being nonconformist).
One could make a case for queer theory being revolutionary, to change the world. Which would be the world accepting that someone not born of the female sex could have their birth certificate say they were. There are so many George Orwell quotes …
But there is another, one I have very recently invented – It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of the needle than it is for any one individual to get the world to conform to their personal life journey, as they live and experience it. For that would require them to rule the world and define truth within it.
There is of course the paradox of tolerance meme, which could be claimed as a synthesis of those claims together.
But so were clear I don't think every free expression of speech is necessarily morally good. Nor do I think Hegelian pseudo-logic is a valid logical form. Nor do I think truths are necessarily moral or falsehoods necessarily immoral.
Can't say I've overly studied the "Queer Theory" academic field (any wokeness most likely comes from sharing offices with people at the pointy end of trying to stop young queer folk being thumped or killing themselves), but I agree Hegelianism is pants.
I don't have gender or bodydysphoria, it's just that Stonewall et al have broadened the trans definitions so widely now that I fit into the GNC and gender queer categories. I don't think of myself that way particularly, but I don't think of myself as cis either.
Really? You are Trans, Weka? Forgive me, but that sounds like the setup for a joke whose punchline is Stonewall's (UK) definition of trans-ness. Probably from a thread I didn't read.
Anyway, I have to agree with Jane B that TS has a pretty trans-exclusionary reputation in NZ's rainbow community. In fact, I often get looked at sideways for saying that I engage with the site at all. But I've always thought that it is necessary to consider viewpoints other than your own.
I didn't read the "Adult human female" thread, so can't really comment on anything there. If I am going to read text on which I am forbidden from commenting, then I have stacks of that already – it seems a bit pointless for a blog.
I don't consider it a joke. If Stonewall and the gender lobbyists are going to socially engineer transness in the general population and I fit into their definition, then I fit into their definition 🤷♂️
If that backlashes on SW, fuck 'em, they should have tried working with women and lesbians in particular instead of trying to control.
Well said Weka the comment was intrusive. humourless and unwarranted. And surprising ……I had not thought it was 'on' here to comment about another's sexuality. . I was a bit surprised it was not moderated out.
I appreciate your presence here and your willingness to engage in the conversation. Having been commenting as feminist here for a long time, I don't consider TS to be a particularly safe place for feminists, or trans people, or many groups of people.
I am so happy for the German word 'Mensch'. I am a Mensch. More then my sexual organs for reproduction, more then my identification by gender, more then my own identification by my sexual attractions, but am Mensch. It seems that we forget that in our need to build boxes to neatly arrange things so that we can cope with this world that is becoming very unkind towards Menschen.
Either reject being categorised against one'swishes (easy), or work through it.
Becoming Cisgender[2020]
However, this was not the main thing: the study was before all an opportunity to form a point of view as a psychologist in the field of gender studies, where I have a certain visibility and cannot afford to make uninformed comments. It is a question of responsibility. It seemed to me that an empirical experience was necessary to shape my own perspective.
*
‟But what trans people need is something else: they need housing, jobs, access to healthcare, they need to feel safe in the public space…” In other words, more so than to be understood in the theoretical games played between the disciplines or currents, trans people need to be respected. And this can open a real discussion. Does understanding lead to respect? Not necessarily, because we ‟understand” with our intellectual filters, which can be pathologising, condescending, etc. Respect is a question of ethics. We either respect a person unconditionally or not at all. However, this lack of respect and the forms of violence it gives rise to, are what trans people truly have in common and which in itself would justify talking about trans identity.
* Refusing Cis-Normativity
What does it mean, becoming cis? For the first time, a category is imposed, imposes itself on the political checkboard of gender identities, by a discriminated population that invents it from scratch to designate those that discriminate it. It is possible not to recognize oneself in this category and refuse using it; however, this immediately designates a looking-down-upon or a cis-normative position. On the other hand, becoming cis means taking the other’s speech seriously. We recognize ourselves in the interpellation (in the Althusserian sense) coming from the trans community; we credit the other with a certain knowledge and a social and political efficacy that represents a form of authority, one that can summon us. This should be duly noted.
Is this a quote from somewhere? If so link please. Thanks.
As an early adopter of Ms then more than happy with forename surname forms of address, I have and will continue to look at the ciswoman.
At first glance and several other glances it has always struck me as an attempt to 'other' and in the long history of woman & politics and life yet more instances or opportunities of othering is the last thing women need.
Apologies Shanreagh, I botched embedding the link to Molinier’s paper "Becoming Cisgender" – hopefully this one works.
Pascale Molinier is professor of social psychology at Université Sorbonne Paris Nord and director of Les cahiers du genre. Her research themes are gendered division of labour, relationship between mental health and work, care ethics, feminist epistemology.
Re ‘othering‘, perhaps ‘cis‘ is an attempt by some in the trans community to allow us ‘normies’ to reflect on how it might feel to be ‘othered’? Just guessing.
You might be a normie, but a hell of a lot of GCFs, women, and lesbians aren't. You think we don't know how it might feel to be 'othered'? Why do you think that?
I feel like a 'normie', even though (very) few might see me as such.
Weka, I wouldn't presume to suggest that you, or indeed any stranger, doesn't know how it might feel to be 'othered'. If you believe that's what I'm suggesting, then we can respectfully agree to disagree – this shouldn’t become personal, imho.
Fwiw, I read Molinier's paper for the first time today, and found it both compelling and transformative.
My respect and understanding is evolving. I believe I learn new things everyday (and try to integrate them into my worldview), but then I am becoming rather forgetful. Kia kaha.
The word cisgender is the antonym of transgender. The prefix cis- is not an acronym or abbreviation of another word; it is derived from Latin meaning on this side of, and the word cissexual was invented in the 1990s from the German zissexuell.
…
Cisgender has its origin in the Latin-derived prefix cis-, meaning 'on this side of', which is the opposite of trans-, meaning 'across from' or 'on the other side of'. This usage can be seen in the cis–trans distinction in chemistry, the cis and trans sides of the Golgi apparatus in cellular biology, the cis–trans or complementation test in genetics, in Ciscaucasia (from the Russian perspective), in the ancient Roman term Cisalpine Gaul (i.e., 'Gaul on this side of the Alps'), Ciskei and Transkei (separated by the Kei River), and more recently, Cisjordan, as distinguished from Transjordan. In the case of gender, cis- describes the alignment of gender identity with assigned sex.
Personally i identify as WitchBitch, pronouns this and that. 🙂 s/
If a person does not call herself or himself as 'cis' no one should. Either we are cool with self identifying ourselves as what ever we want or we are not.
Agreed. However I'm weird, because I don't identify as anything. Probably others identify me as something, but I don't give a fig what it is. I quite like TS Eliot's maxim – "the progress of an artist is a continual self-sacrifice, a continual extinction of personality". Or better still Keats' insistence on the loss of self in the moment "…if a sparrow come before my window I take part in its existence and pick about the gravel." We live in strange times that the self should matter so much.
I often read the cis-woman combo word in the company of words like Terf, transphobic or bigot. .
Why would that be?
Cis seems to be in use as a rather derogatory term (as many woman related phrases are) and here I salute Sabine's WitchBitch). and I would rather not use a label like ‘cis’ anything.
What is being done, do you know, to counter the use of the combo word cis-woman in a pejorative sense?
Cis isn't derogatory or a pejorative though, it is an adjective used to add meaning just like trans is. Definitionally 'Witch/Bitch' certainly is derogatory and a pejorative. You seem comfortable with that, why is that?
Witch bitch is a call out to the angel/bitch dichotomy that woman face everyday. It is also a recognition of the fact that women with different ideas to the patriarchy in times gone past were often labelled, then lost their lives, because they were felt to be witches*.
It is an example self deprecating female humour, We need humour, it opens doors sometimes. For this reason if I had a choice on an official form between cis-anything and witch bitch I would probably chose 'witchbitch'. For the laugh, for the recognition of the place that witches have played in the history of women……
Also in recognition that older women of any sexual leaning are not 'seen' in our current world. They never have been. While it gives us freedom to operate outside the edges of society it is irritating as well We have ageist propaganda used against us, if people can get away with it they 'Karen' us.
Cis is so ugly. I see it often lumped in with Terf etc. So I am suspicious.
*And why this should be is is the stuff of Women's Studies and has a foundation in the hidden nature of the female sexual response together with the impact of wise words that older woman, in every society I have been in, often irritatingly have to say in mixed company.
Witchbitch harks back, it's tongue in cheek…….I love it. Showing my age now but it makes me think of the old Helen Reddy song that was a stalwart for some back in the day 'I am woman'
If you have not heard of it here is the song……changing it to put cis-woman does not work does it? Yet it is relevant and much more powerful because the word is not it chopped up in tiny othering pieces…It speaks to women no matter how we want to define ourselves/what we look like.
You can cis but never break me
'Cause it only serves to make me
More determined to achieve my final goal
And I come back even stronger
Not a novice any longer
'Cause you've deepened the conviction in my soul
We can’t decry the ‘hollowing out’ of terms and definitions if we are also going disregard or create new meanings for other words, based on a perceived ‘ugliness’ or unfamiliarity.
I haven't hollowed out any words. I do not see the need for tiny little chopped up words to describe biology. I am not keen in Cis because
a) it is not necessary ……main point
b) it is an example of 'othering' that we do not need second main point.
c) it is so b…. ugly……also concerning
Indeed I supported a poster on the Womens' Day thread who stated
We do not need to empty the terms woman and female of meaning in order to protect trans rights
Back in the day Ms was thought to be ugly. We realised that it had a great use to anonymise the marital status of women, something men had been able to do for aeons. We recognised therefore that it was pro-women.
I have yet to be convinced that my status as a cis-woman is pro women at all. In fact the point is I have more often seen it sharing it paragraphs with words like 'Terfs', 'oldies', 'bigots' and 'transphobic'.
because I was not consulted about whether I wanted to be labelled this way. It has been foisted on me and others
it is a label inserted where no label was needed. All that is needed are a few extra words to describe the category, if one is needed.
it signifies division and 'othering' Women as a group do not need any more othering and made-up names unless we self select them.
it keeps bad company with Terf, transphobic and bigot also oldie
it does not seem to be a step on the path of enhancing the lot of women, in the widest sense, in society.
it has no back story, pedigree or 'aha' moment that would make it relevant for women – it has come from nowhere that I recognise
Having had friends from the 1970s who identified themselves as 'Trannies' more along the lines of drag queens and Carmen & workmates I am familiar with the prefix 'trans'. The prefix trans "across, over, or beyond."is used far more in day to day life.
Again there was a mine of self deprecating humour behind the adoption of the term Trannies by my friends. I'm smiling to myself just thinking about them and their sayings. One of them had a 9-5 job as a male (dressing etc) in a Govt dept.
Anyway……that's it from me on the use of 'cis' . Female/woman suits me. You could add; for reasons where this was necessary, like enrolment for health care; 'female with hetero orientation'.
Cis isn't derogatory or a pejorative though, it is an adjective used to add meaning just like trans is. Definitionally 'Witch/Bitch' certainly is derogatory and a pejorative. You seem comfortable with that, why is that?
Witch/bitch here was self ID. In the same way that black people have reclaimed the word nigger, and homosexuals have reclaimed queer. Context determines if something is derogatory or a pejorative.
Cis is a term applied by one group to another whether the other group wants that or not. That's bullshit. And it’s fast becoming a pejorative.
if it's about self, sure. I know very few people that politically object to other people's self expression. Gender self-ID is a different thing where it impacts on women politically and socially as a class, and where GAs actively suppress women being able to talk about that. Can you see the difference?
I am wondering if rather than hollowing out/emptying the words man/woman or male/female we leave them and then say
male includes but is not limited to…….
female includes but is not limited to
intersex includes but is not limited to
unspecified X includes but is not limited to
Different people have different needs and the medical surgical needs of any of our rainbows could be catered for by greater specificity where it matters ie in day to day life access to healthcare. housing education. So any health plans that came up to MOH would need to show that the agency recognised and was catering for everybody.
Self-ID is definitionally about the self, but it is good to know we don’t object to that then.
And yet Gender self-ID is different?
I guess I fail to see how we can not object to other peoples self expression while at the same time considering gender self-ID to be something other than someone else’s self expression.
I have left a comment at the very bottom of the women thread in regards to the self ID bill. Please read it – it might at the very least makes my stance to it clearer.
For the record i have hired worked with and have until she moved to a different town for her studies a transgender women. She came recommended as a good pastry chef / baker and i came recommended as a 'welcoming' workplace of people who don't fit in neat boxes. My workplace was her first step at 'social' transitioning.
I guess I fail to see how we can not object to other peoples self expression while at the same time considering gender self-ID to be something other than someone else’s self expression.
I thought I already explained that. Society should be free enough so that people can express themselves how they want. Men can wear dresses, women can look like men, gay pride, vanilla sex, whatever. There are some limits on this (eg I think prohibitions on public nudity are good for society, I don't think Pride marches should had dog fetishists or nappy festishists hanging out with kids while in role)
Gender-self ID where it intends to suppress other people's needs and politics and expressions is a different thing. If we are talking about legislation that will impact on women and women are being pressured to not talk about it or have say, then that's a really different thing than self expression. I want women (ie biologically female) only space, and if some people in society want to change that, then as a woman I want a full and open debate on what is fair. We haven't had that yet.
Society should be free enough so that people can express themselves how they want. Men can wear dresses, women can look like men, gay pride, vanilla sex, whatever.
So to clarify: this ‘whatever’ allows trans people to express themselves how they want?
Gender-self ID where it intends to suppress other people’s needs and politics and expressions is a different thing
This is where you lose me, how does gender-self ID intend to supress etc. etc.? It allows people to express themselves how they want.
I want women (ie biologically female) only space, and if some people in society want to change that
What is this space you want? Where is it? If it’s a space meant for all the public then that seems unrealistic.
I want a full and open debate on what is fair. We haven’t had that yet.
I dispute that we haven’t had the ‘debate’, what we have is an impasse. However, what does a full and open debate look like, and what do you think is the fair outcome/answer to the debate?
Arkie, for mine the separation is between birth certificate status and subsequent status/identification.
I have no problem with an identity certificate saying a person has the legal name Samantha, a female sex identity and their date of birth (but their birth certificate says they were born male sex and they were named Sam). I would add the option of adding gender ID and name known by to this identity certificate. And this identity certificate can be used for getting a drivers licence or passport.
Such an identity certificate could also be used by cisgender people to add a gender ID and provide greater information to employers and community/club groups than the birth certificate does.
It would be great, while you are here, if you could go through the posts and answer the questions that many have asked.
That would be a great use if time rather than slinging off at others who may be your supporters but do not (yet) have the answers to their questions or concerns.
There are too many queries to list here but if you scroll down through the posts .and answer them in a factual unemotive way …..
But for those who disagree, their choice is to provide and or utilise a womans space.
It's a bit like the control of the body thing, personal choice. Beyond that is freedom of association. Then beyond that the right to be free from discrimination.
PS. Two cisgender females questioning each others ID as women is taking “debate” too far.
There is a special column open for women and other entities for their particular assertions so why is Open Mike flooded with input on identity politics?
Do a large number of such people want to take over NZ/the western world and impose their authoritarian views upon it?
Um … this was moved from that womans space to open mike (presumably because of the questioning of the need for there to be a separate place for this debate).
I'm struggling enough with the thought that Boris is trying his best to do exactly that with his "Freedom Day". I don't even want to go near contemplating what the consequences of his arrogance and stupidity may actually mean.
I just keep reinforcing to her to stay home. Fortunately she doesn't need much convincing.
Someone said on a different blog, that covid like with climate change, the ones who make rules know that it is real, but they expect themselves to survive and if half of the rest of the world dies then that can only be good.
Friends in the US and in England have stated that even while vaccinated they will continue to wear masks, keep social distance and still limit their outings in many ways.
So the best that one can do is hope that people will take this seriously, and try themselves to be safe, advice from their governments be damned.
The Auckland based Immunisation Advisory Centre, appears to have such a monopolistic contract with the MoH that university's are unable to train their own students as vaccinators during a Pandemic. What?
"We have been trying for so long and every so often I get to the point where I think, ‘Oh just leave it’ but then I think of all the good that all our vaccinators could be doing and think that perhaps I shouldn’t give up."
There's "a clear plurality of New Zealanders either strongly or somewhat oppose the Government’s proposals – 43 percent in total. But, the number of eligible voters who somewhat or strongly support the proposed measures, at 31 percent, represents an extremely solid minority. With 15 percent of voters currently taking a “neutral” stance, the Prime Minister still has everything to play for."
So the undecided hold the key – no surprise. What comes out of the submissions process will be crucial, and I'm expecting that the bill which eventually goes to select committee will be quite conservative and woke idealists will become disillusioned.
Trotter illuminates the multitude of ways that the proposal is divisive, supplying the stats on those resulting divisions. They will spook Labour moderates big-time…
So the undecided hold the key – no surprise. What comes out of the submissions process will be crucial, and I’m expecting that the bill which eventually goes to select committee will be quite conservative and woke idealists will become disillusioned.
Why do you conflate an opinion poll and submissions to SC? Do you believe that bills are decided in some kind of popularity contests in/by SC and ‘decided by undecided’, i.e. a simple count of for & against submissions? In the end, the whole Parliament gets to debate and then vote on the bill, not the SC.
In any case, a poll is just a snapshot and I’d like to think that there could be considerable movement in those opinions, e.g., support becomes undecided, et cetera.
I agree re snapshot & movement & dunno why you see me conflating the poll & sc. What I meant re the undecided is that the public mood will firm up pro & con when the govt produces the bill to go to select committee & the media reports the details.
That's what usually happens, eh? The govt is seeking submissions in order to finalise their design of the bill, right? So the interim proposal seems nebulous to many & they wait to make up their mind on the government's reading of the public mood and the subsequent (re) design – which will then head into the sc. If you think the process works differently than that I hope you will explain precisely how (I've never been party to the process so can't testify from personal experience).
Dunno why you reply with such binary waffle straight out of PDF’s spin manual.
The way the process works is that Government takes professional and expert advice from wide range of sources as well as feedback provided through the submission process to SC. Maybe you need to re-read the piece in the NZH by Russell Palmer that you linked to in OM this morning, yes?
You do realise that making law is not a popularity contest but for the benefit of all New Zealanders and the whole NZ society, yes?
Finally just getting time to look at the comment editor again. I 'fixed' it on the 11th, and did a bit of fiddling sometime last week. I was a bit sick over the last two weeks so I'm unsure exactly where I left it.
I was getting my rental apartment ready for new tenants over this last weekend. My extremely valued previous tenants got a bigger place for their new cat, and started accumulating their own furniture. But I'll try to have a look at it this week.
I see that I lost the edges of the edit box.
There is a known issue with the Cancel edit button.
Anything else that I should look at (I'll scan through the previous comments as well).
A few of us still have issues commenting from Mobile phones. I can't comment from Desktop view, the text box is there but won't take the cursor. Can comment from Mobile but don't like it because there is no Replies or Comments list, which makes it harder to follow what is going on (including for moderation). https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-17-07-2021/#comment-1803279
Posting images in comments still seems quite tricky to get the size right. This could probably be solved by me writing a protocol for how to do that as a reference.
All I did was to take your image url. Pressed the image button tool. Added URL, tabbed out of the field. It them loaded the original size of 4000+ pixels. I clicked into that field and changed it to 250. It adjusted the height. Saved it.
The one below was the same, but I didn't set a size. Then I clicked into the image and set the width to 450. Did this on chrome on linux.
All I did was to take your image url. Pressed the image button tool. Added URL, tabbed out of the field. It them loaded the original size of 4000+ pixels. I clicked into that field and changed it to 250. It adjusted the height. Saved it.
Interesting. I was able to comment from teh Desktop/mobile phone by trying to post an image with the image button. Couldn't size the image so deleted it but this left me an active cursor text box. Cursor was still there when I replied to my own comment below Sacha, but disappeared again when I went to reply to 12.1
While it looks like there are multiple comment areas. There is in fact just one on any one page. It just gets moved from place to place.
When you save a comment (ie force s refresh of the page) or manual refresh it, then the comment will get updated as part of the page load.
Currently the Cancel comment button isn't working because it has some old handlers in it and just doesn't work. I have to try for that again this weekend.
Third time trying to post in the right place (keeps taking me back to where I started to comment but decided not to after reloading the page). Apologies if this has caused any issues.
Sounds like it was inevitable someone stuck overseas would get this in front of the Ombudsman.
Read yesterday of a lovely lady who has had surgery to have mesh inserted, and now is stuck in the US in pain and without the ability to pay for treatment or book in our MIQ system.
This isn’t about her, but a tech dude stuck in Singapore and unable to book without bot help.
Sean Gourley, a Canterbury University Physics and Complex Systems PhD who went on to become a NASA research scientist before founding an AI startup, divides his time between the US and NZ, and told Brewer's experience was typical. Gourley's logs showed bookings "happening in under 750 milliseconds [three-quarters of a second] which is faster than a human can navigate this UX [user-interface].
Maybe some sort of STV+lottery process would be better – every day opens a new bunch of slots, you apply in order of preference, then at the end of the day they divvy up the slots randomly? With a certain allocation for priority/humanitarian entry?
Stonewall are over in the UK, I don't know how they define gender, Weka. From an Aotearoan perspective, I would argue that; the National Council of Women are better placed for any NZ woman to interact with if they are wanting to affect NZ law.
I particularly like this diagram of theirs. With the whole debate being but a tiny aspect of many social interactions within the overarching issue of climate change. If we don't get that right, then I doesn't really matter who does what where.
Sure some of the reaction to the term "cisgender" comes because of a disagreement with those who use the categorisation – just as resistance to "Pakeha identity" comes from those of the assimilationist or integration, rather than bi-national identity and recognition of indigenous peoples status.
But what's influencing my current perspective is the value of the female sex birth status to those who do not conform to feminine stereotype in physique or social aspect. If we allow people to change their birth sex status this can have unintended consequences for this group.
Resistance to Pakeha from white folk includes it being a name they did not create for themselves. So much so that Stats NZ stopped using it after a massive backlash.
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It’s a simple deal. We pay taxes in order to finance the social services we want and need. The carnage now occurring across the public sector though, is breaking that contract. Over 3,000 jobs have been lost so far. Many are in crucial areas like Education where the impact of ...
Hi,A friend had their 40th over the weekend and decided to theme it after Curb Your Enthusiasm fashion icon Susie Greene. Captured in my tiny kitchen before I left the house, I ending up evoking a mix of old lesbian and Hillary Clinton — both unintentional.Me vs Hillary ClintonIf you’re ...
This is a re-post from Andrew Dessler at the Climate Brink blogIn 2023, the Earth reached temperature levels unprecedented in modern times. Given that, it’s reasonable to ask: What’s going on? There’s been lots of discussions by scientists about whether this is just the normal progression of global warming or if something ...
The schools are on holiday and the sun is shining in the seaside village and all day long I have been seeing bunches of bikes; Mums, Dads, teens and toddlers chattering, laughing, happy, having a bloody great time together. Cheers, AT, for the bits of lane you’ve added lately around the ...
Today in our National-led authoritarian nightmare: Shane Jones thinks Ministers should be above the law: New Zealand First MP Shane Jones is accusing the Waitangi Tribunal of over-stepping its mandate by subpoenaing a minister for its urgent hearing on the Oranga Tamariki claim. The tribunal is looking into the ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Politicians across the political spectrum are implicated in the New Zealand media’s failing health. Either through neglect or incompetent interventions, successive governments have failed to regulate, foster, and allow a healthy Fourth Estate that can adequately hold politicians and the powerful to account. ...
Citizen Science writes – Last week saw two significant developments in the debate over the treatment of trans-identifying children and young people – the release in Britain of the final report of Dr Hilary Cass’s review into gender healthcare, and here in New Zealand, the news that the ...
One night while sleeping in my bed I had a beautiful dreamThat all the people of the world got together on the same wavelengthAnd began helping one anotherNow in this dream, universal love was the theme of the dayPeace and understanding and it happened this wayAfter such an eventful day ...
This is a guest post by Oscar Simms who is a housing activist, volunteer for the Coalition for More Homes, and was the Labour Party candidate for Auckland Central at the last election. ...
Turning what Labour called the “holiday highway” into a four-lane expressway from Auckland to Whangarei could bring at least an economic benefit of nearly two billion a year for Northland each year. And it could help bring an end to poverty in one of New Zealand’s most deprived regions. The ...
Tonight’s six-stack includes: launching his substack with a bunch of his previous documentaries, including this 1992 interview with Dame Whina Cooper. and here crew give climate activists plenty to do, including this call to submit against the Fast Track Approvals bill. writes brilliantly here on his substack ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
You're in the mall when you hear it: some kind of popping sound in the distance, kids with fireworks, maybe. But then a moment of eerie stillness is followed by more of the fireworks sound and there’s also screaming and shrieking and now here come people running for their lives.Does ...
Karl du Fresne writes – There’s a crisis in the news media and the media are blaming it on everyone except themselves. Culpability is being deflected elsewhere – mainly to the hapless Minister of Communications, Melissa Lee, and the big social media platforms that are accused of hoovering ...
I don’t normally send out two newsletters in a day but I figured I’d say something about… the news. If two newsletters is a bit much then maybe just skip one, I don’t want to overload people. Alternatively if you’d be interested in sometimes receiving multiple, smaller updates from me, ...
Buzz from the Beehive David Seymour and Winston Peters today signalled that at least two ministers of the Crown might be in Wellington today. Seymour (as Associate Minister of Education) announced the removal of more red tape, this time to make it easier for new early learning services to be ...
Politicians across the political spectrum are implicated in the New Zealand media’s failing health. Either through neglect or incompetent interventions, successive governments have failed to regulate, foster, and allow a healthy Fourth Estate that can adequately hold politicians and the powerful to account. Our political system is suffering from the ...
David Farrar writes – The Broadcasting Standards Authority ruled: Comments by radio host Kate Hawkesby suggesting Māori and Pacific patients were being prioritised for surgery due to their ethnicity were misleading and discriminatory, the Broadcasting Standards Authority has found. It is a fact such patients are prioritised. ...
PRC and its proxies in Solomons have been preparing for these elections for a long time.A lot of money, effort and intelligence have gone into ensuring an outcome that won’t compromise Beijing’s plans. Cleo Paskall writes – On April 17th the Solomon Islands, a country of ...
Is speeding up the trip to and from Wellington airport by 12 minutes worth spending up more than $10 billion? Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The six news items that stood out to me in the last day to 8:26 am today are:The Lead: Transport Minister Simeon Brownannounced ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
The Government’s newly announced review of methane emissions reduction targets hints at its desire to delay Aotearoa New Zealand’s urgent transition to a climate safe future, the Green Party said. ...
The Government must commit to the Maitai School building project for students with high and complex needs, to ensure disabled students from the top of the South Island have somewhere to learn. ...
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey and his Government colleagues have made a meal of their mental health commitments, showing how flimsy their efforts to champion the issue truly are, says Labour Mental Health spokesperson Ingrid Leary. ...
Māori are yet to see anything from this Government except cuts, reversals and taking our people backwards, Māori Development spokesperson Willie Jackson said. ...
The Coalition Government’s refusal to commit to ongoing funding for social housing is seeing the sector pull back on developments and families watch their dreams of securing a home fade away, says Labour Housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty. ...
Changes to minimum wage and benefit indexation means many New Zealanders will get less this year, as the Government gives a big tax break to landlords instead. ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector. "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...
The Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...
Changes to the Resource Management Act will align consenting for coal mining to other forms of mining to reduce barriers that are holding back economic development, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The inconsistent treatment of coal mining compared with other extractive activities is burdensome red tape that fails to acknowledge ...
Trade, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Todd McClay has concluded productive discussions with ministerial counterparts in Beijing today, in support of the New Zealand-China trade and economic relationship. “My meeting with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao reaffirmed the complementary nature of the bilateral trade relationship, with our Free Trade Agreement at its ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today paid tribute to Singapore’s outgoing Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Meeting in Singapore today immediately before Prime Minister Lee announced he was stepping down, Prime Minister Luxon warmly acknowledged his counterpart’s almost twenty years as leader, and the enduring legacy he has left for Singapore and South East ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. While in Singapore as part of his visit to South East Asia this week, Prime Minister Luxon also met with Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and will meet with Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has made further appointments to the Board of Antarctica New Zealand as part of a continued effort to ensure the Scott Base Redevelopment project is delivered in a cost-effective and efficient manner. The Minister has appointed Neville Harris as a new member of the Board. Mr ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis will travel to the United States on Tuesday to attend a meeting of the Five Finance Ministers group, with counterparts from Australia, the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. “I am looking forward to meeting with our Five Finance partners on how we can work ...
The coalition Government has today announced purrfect and pawsitive changes to the Residential Tenancies Act to give tenants with pets greater choice when looking for a rental property, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Pets are important members of many Kiwi families. It’s estimated that around 64 per cent of New ...
State Highway 1 (SH1) through Wellington City is heavily congested at peak times and while planning continues on the duplicate Mt Victoria Tunnel and Basin Reserve project, the Government has also asked NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) to consider and provide advice on a Long Tunnel option, Transport Minister Simeon Brown ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Foreign Minister Winston Peters have condemned Iran’s shocking and illegal strikes against Israel. “These attacks are a major challenge to peace and stability in a region already under enormous pressure," Mr Luxon says. "We are deeply concerned that miscalculation on any side could ...
Hundreds of people in little over a week have turned out in Northland to hear Regional Development Minister Shane Jones speak about plans for boosting the regional economy through infrastructure. About 200 people from the infrastructure and associated sectors attended an event headlined by Mr Jones in Whangarei today. Last ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti has today thanked outgoing Health New Zealand – Te Whatu Ora Chair Dame Karen Poutasi for her service on the Board. “Dame Karen tendered her resignation as Chair and as a member of the Board today,” says Dr Reti. “I have asked her to ...
The NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has signalled their proposed delivery approach for the Government’s 15 Roads of National Significance (RoNS), with the release of the State Highway Investment Proposal (SHIP) today, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Boosting economic growth and productivity is a key part of the Government’s plan to ...
New Zealand is renewing its connections with a world facing urgent challenges by pursuing an active, energetic foreign policy, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “Our country faces the most unstable global environment in decades,” Mr Peters says at the conclusion of two weeks of engagements in Egypt, Europe and the United States. “We cannot afford to sit back in splendid ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced the Australian Governor-General, His Excellency General The Honourable David Hurley and his wife Her Excellency Mrs Linda Hurley, will make a State visit to New Zealand from Tuesday 16 April to Thursday 18 April. The visit reciprocates the State visit of former Governor-General Dame Patsy Reddy ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced that Medsafe has approved 11 cold and flu medicines containing pseudoephedrine. Pharmaceutical suppliers have indicated they may be able to supply the first products in June. “This is much earlier than the original expectation of medicines being available by 2025. The Government recognised ...
New Zealand and the United States have recommitted to their strategic partnership in Washington DC today, pledging to work ever more closely together in support of shared values and interests, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The strategic environment that New Zealand and the United States face is considerably more ...
April 11, 2024 Joint Declaration by United States Secretary of State the Honorable Antony J. Blinken and New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs the Right Honourable Winston Peters We met today in Washington, D.C. to recommit to the historic partnership between our two countries and the principles that underpin it—rule ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced further New Zealand cooperation with the United States in the Pacific Islands region through $16.4 million in funding for initiatives in digital connectivity and oceans and fisheries research. “New Zealand can achieve more in the Pacific if we work together more urgently and ...
Māori representation brings a perspective that encompasses not only the interests of Māori communities but also a broader, holistic approach to environmental stewardship and community well-being, principles deeply embedded in Te Ao Māori (the Māori ...
This week in Auckland, a group of young people took over the microphone at a ministerial press conference, to explain why they oppose the Fast-Track Approvals Bill. One young woman said, ‘We’re here because we love Aotearoa New Zealand. We want to raise our children in an environment that’s thriving, ...
The summer was wonderful. Evie was wonderful, too; finally a teenager, finally worthy of long, hot days. She shaved her legs for the first time and bought cut-off shorts from the op-shop that made them look long. She got a Warehouse singlet so tight on her new shape that her ...
When Thomas James was on his solo camp as part of Outward Bound, the keen outdoorsman didn’t find it too challenging, as others often do. In what might just be the perfect illustration of his character, he saw it as a great opportunity to solve a few problems. “I thought, ...
From the unstable and drippy to the hi-tech and pretty, here’s our ranking of all the tunnels you can drive through in this country. The first tunnel seems to have been built in 2200BC in Babylonia, kicking off a global phenomenon for digging holes in order to get places more ...
Lucinda Bennett on the art of being greedy but resourceful. This is an excerpt from our weekly food newsletter, The Boil Up. When I picture the market, it is always this time of year. Crisp air, dripping nose, counting coins with cold fingers. Sunlight pale, filtered through specks of dew still ...
Zoë Colling’s favourite piece in the ‘That’s So Last Century’ collection is a lubrication chart for a sewing machine from the ’60s. It’s about the size of a postcard, and carefully maintained. “I like it that this piece of ephemera highlights that manual and technical side of the skill involved ...
Kia Ora Gaza A passionate haka reverberated through Auckland International Airport as a medical team of three New Zealand doctors received an emotional farewell from a big crowd of supporters before flying to Turkey to join the international Freedom Flotilla to Gaza. The doctors, who left Auckland yesterday, hope to ...
With submissions closing today, Macassey-Pickard says groups around the country have been supporting a huge range of people to make their submissions. ...
Our response to the new legislation is informed by targeted conversations with practitioners working in the system and through an implementation lens. ...
The new ‘Fast-track Approvals Bill’ would give just three Ministers the power to approve or deny development projects. They would avoid the usual checks and balances that are in place to protect rivers, land, the ocean, and communities. ...
COMMENTARY:By Eugene Doyle Helen Clark, how I miss you. The former New Zealand Prime Minister — the safest pair of hands this country has had in living memory — gave a masterclass on the importance of maintaining an independent foreign policy when she spoke at an AUKUS symposium held ...
The government's released the list of organisations provided with information on how to apply - just hours before public submissions on the bill close. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Milton Speer, Visiting Fellow, School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, University of Technology Sydney Before climate change really got going, eastern Australia’s flash floods tended to concentrate on our coastal regions, east of the Great Dividing Range. But that’s changing. Now ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elizabeth Finkel, Vice-Chancellor’s Fellow, La Trobe University Sia Duff / South Australian Museum In February, the South Australian Museum “re-imagined” itself. In the face of rising costs and inadequate government funds, CEO David Gaimster, who took the reins last June, declared ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alan Pearce, Professor, School of Allied Heath, Human Services & Sport, La Trobe University, La Trobe University This week, Collingwood AFL player Nathan Murphy announced his retirement, brought on by his concussion history and ongoing issues. The 24-year-old’s seemingly sudden retirement, ...
The Mental Health Foundation provides support and resources for those facing the loss of their job, so it’s wrong in the very week the Government adds another 1000 jobs to its tally of cuts, that this is happening. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexander Howard, Senior Lecturer, Discipline of English and Writing, University of Sydney Daniel Boud/Sydney Theatre Company Decay, terror, revulsion. These are three of the central themes of Thomas Bernhard’s rarely performed play The President. The Austrian is one of the greatest ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says threats by ministers Shane Jones and David Seymour to reform or close down the Waitangi Tribunal were “ill-considered”, as legal experts say the ministers may have breached Cabinet Manual conventions. “I think those comments are ill-considered and we expect all ministers to actually exercise good ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ye In (Jane) Hwang, Postdoctoral Research Associate at School of Population Health, UNSW Sydney Shutterstock You’d be hard pressed to find any aspect of daily life that doesn’t require some form of digital literacy. We need only to look back ten ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rob Newton, Professor of Exercise Medicine, Edith Cowan University Pexels/RDNE stock project You’re not in your 20s or 30s anymore and you know regular health checks are important. So you go to your GP. During the appointment they measure your waist. ...
A new poem by Evangeline Riddiford Graham. Mitochondrial Problem I. It was long drive to Kansas for the man and his dog but you have to understand he said She doesn’t fly. Which calls to mind not carsick shitting barking or whining but a dog who chooses not to as ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Hemingway’s Goblet by Dermot Ross (Mary Egan Publishing, $38)Hot off the press, this debut ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laura Wajnryb McDonald, PhD candidate in Criminology, University of Sydney Less than 24 hours after Ashlee Good was murdered in Bondi Junction, her family released a statement requesting the media take down photographs they had reproduced of Ashlee and her family without ...
Chief executive Shaun Robinson said it has not had any government funding cut, but government-funded contracts have not kept pace with rising costs. ...
The Ministry of Health has delayed the release of its evidence brief on the safety, reversibility and mental health and wellbeing outcomes for puberty blockers. While we wait, Julia de Bres speaks to those with firsthand experience. Best practice gender-affirming healthcare is based on trans people’s self-determination and agency. The ...
Barcelona’s city streets have gone from traffic-clogged to pedestrian-friendly. How? Superblocks. Ellen Rykers explains. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week I read a great interview with renowned urbanist Janette Sadik-Khan by The Spinoff’s Wellington editor Joel MacManus: “You can reimagine streets, ...
Student groups ‘Climate Action VUW’, Schools Strike 4 Climate and VUWSA will be on the street in Wellington today, the last day for submissions on the Fast-track Approvals Bill, with a message that the fight against the Government’s ‘War on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sofia Ammassari, Research Fellow, Griffith University Since 2014, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity has grown exponentially – and so has the formidable organisational machine of his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). These two factors will be key to delivering the BJP a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brendon Hyndman, Associate Professor of Education (Adjunct) & Senior Manager (BCE), Charles Sturt University During COVID almost all Australian students and their families experienced online learning. But while schools have long since gone back to in-person teaching, online learning has not gone ...
Yes, they’re better for the environment. No, that’s not a good enough reason for me to use them. Once every 26 days or so, my period arrives, and if struck by an act of God, I am caught red-crotched without products. How, after 17 years of this, do I still ...
“It will cause significant harm to our environment and communities. It is completely at odds with New Zealanders’ relationship with nature and our need for a low-carbon, sustainable economic future." ...
The Chair of the National Maori Authority, Matthew Tukaki, has warned a Parliamentary Select Committee that fast-tracking legislation is a perilous practice that undermines the core tenets of democracy, transparency, and accountability. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Tenbensel, Associate Professor, Health Policy, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Getty Images Since coming into power, the coalition government has adopted a simple but shrewd see-how-fast-we-can-move political strategy. However, in the health sector this need for speed entails ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Hronis, Clinical Psychologist, University of Technology Sydney Darya Sannikova/Pexels Whether you’re watching TV, attending a footy game, or eating a meal at your local pub, gambling is hard to escape. Although the rise of gambling is not unique to Australia, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Wong, Forrest Fellow, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia Have you ever wondered if there are more insects out at night than during the day? We set out to answer this question by combing through the scientific ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Carol T Kulik, Research Professor, University of South Australia IR Stone/Shutterstock In Australia, it’s not the done thing to know – let alone ask – what our colleagues are paid. Yet, it’s easy to see how pay transparency can make pay ...
The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) is sounding a warning to migrants, that running foul of the law may see them leaving the country prematurely. ...
The government’s plan to get 50,000 people off jobseeker support by 2030 has had a rocky start, writes Catherine McGregor in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. Beneficiary numbers are up – and so are ...
Raglan Roast is a staple of Wellington coffee culture. But with five branches across the capital, which one is the best? I am a die-hard Raglan Roast fan. It’s consistently the most affordable cafe in Wellington, and one of the only places you can get a coffee after 3pm. So, ...
Residents of University of Auckland halls are being urged to withhold their accommodation fees from May 1, in a bid to force the university to take student concerns over rent hikes seriously.The University of Auckland is facing a strike from students over the cost of on-campus accommodation. The Students ...
The thousands of government “back-office” job cuts are causing widespread pain in the capital city. In today’s episode of The Detail, we speak to three journalists and a think tank researcher, looking at the larger picture around the cuts and what effect it will have on Wellington, a city that’s ...
Opinion: The famed American architect and urban designer Daniel Burnham once said, “Make no little plans. They have no magic to stir men’s blood!” Burnham wouldn’t have been referring to the transport plans in Aotearoa New Zealand over the past five years; projects so big they hadn’t the credibility to ...
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Opinion: With maths understanding at 42 percent for Year 8 students, there’s no doubt something has to be done. But how? The post Financial literacy should be on all of us appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Hineaupounamu ‘Missy’ Nuku has been scaling mountains in Canada for her college basketball team, the Lakeland Rustlers. Alberta is currently home for the 20-year-old point guard, who is in her first year of a scholarship at Lakeland College, where she is studying for a business degree. She has certainly made ...
New Zealand and the Philippines have signed a new maritime security agreement and stated their concerns over activity in the South China Sea, as Chinese vessels continue to flout international law. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Philippines President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos committed to signing a Mutual Logistics Supporting Arrangement by ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra When ASIO boss Mike Burgess delivered his annual threat assessment earlier this year, he stressed the rising danger posed by espionage and foreign interference. “In 2024, threats to our way of life have surpassed ...
The Tribunal had called on Minister for Children Karen Chhour to provide evidence at an urgent inquiry into the repeal of Section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By T.J. Thomson, Senior Lecturer in Visual Communication & Digital Media, RMIT University Midjourney image by T.J. Thomson As more than half of Australian office workers report using generative artificial intelligence (AI) for work, we’re starting to see this technology affect every ...
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Thinking of those so badly affected by weather events, in both islands and in Europe.
I wonder if those people on the lowest wage rate feel any better off now that they are earning $20 an hour. With inflation running high they will now need another pay rise to keep up. But that will increase inflation further.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/125733642/nzs-jump-in-inflation-to-33-a-problem-of-growth-says-finance-minister
It was inevitable that inflation would rise due to a global pandemic.
Can it be forecast how quick and how high inflation will rise?
Funny how we always hear about wage rises, "causing inflation" and not extra profit taking, bank interest rates, asset stripping, privatisation of infrastructure and services, the increase in capital share of the economy, while the wages share has decreased, and executive salaries.
We have just had this illustrated locally with dog licence fees. A 50% increase. Obviously the private contractor that won the contract with a cheap quote isn't making enough, despite dropping the pay of their staff when they took over
My large coffee from Dunkin donuts went from $5.60 to $6.00 pretty much as soon as the wage increases came in to effect. (I hadn't noticed dog regos increasing that much, I just paid $107 but cant remember what I paid last year).
I still think reducing tax on the first say, $30k of earnings, would have been better than increasing costs to businesses and therefore inflation.
I would agree with removing the ,"paper boy tax".
However continuing to subsidise inefficient businesses with low wages, that tax payers then have to top up, is not good for the economy or even business, long term
I'd rather have the government with the tax revenues to pay nurses more and fully staff wards.
That requires taxes on those who can afford to pay, and have also benefited the most from tax funding.
Those of us who are well off. Including CGT, etc so that those currently avoiding tax have to contribute.
Incomes under say 30k should not be taxed
There is a high tax loss to a zero tax band up to $30,000 (one would have to apply a 33 cents rate from $30,000 to claw the cut back from those on higher than median wage incomes).
The historic alternative was an income tax rebate for those on lower incomes.
Not impossible. If we apply the same rate we do now to the band's up to twice the median income. And taxed gains, and income with a top rate similar to Oz.
Would be nice if those with non-working (disabled, unwell or otherwise) partners got a tax break.
The extra $5,000 to $6,000 paid in tax each year over a couple earning the same amount via two incomes would at least allow one income couples to join Kiwi-saver or pay a bit extra off the mortgage.
It is a decent chink of extra money that goes to the government while trying to support two people. Basically $100 plus per week net income.
Coffee bean increases are well up with Arabica up 56%,as are most food groups reaching decade price levels globally.
https://twitter.com/i/events/1416772045053087746
Food security is a well defined boundary under the Paris agreement,something policymakers need to understand.
Everyone seems to forget about commercial rents. In several local businesses I have numbers for, it exceeds the wage bill.
Typically rent increases recently have been 50 to 100% while total costs of employees have increased around 10%.
Commercial rent growth should have been constrained,due to the Covid response policy of the reintroduction of depreciation.Rates growth however are ursury at best.
well, not everyone will feel better, never mind inflation.
https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/majority-beneficiaries-wont-20-better-off-despite-budget-boost
One hand giveth, one hand taketh. Thus it is, and always was.
+1. And that $15 will likely fall short of the rise in the cost of living in reality, regardless of spin.
3.3%, huh. Tragic lol
$20/hr from $18.90/hr = 5.8% increase.
Inflation 3.3%.
2.6% pay rise in real terms.
But you had a 7.1% hike in your latte price. I suspect you're using faux concern for the wellbeing of minimum wage workers to preserve your comfortable emphatically-not-minimum-wage lifesyle, Mr $6 Coffee.
That's a long-winded "Wanker!".
lol
It’s addressing the comment rather than shooting the messenger with crass insults that could draw attention from Moderators.
lol Sorry Incognito… but Jimmy!!
Now why would you focus on coffee rather than rent or food? Trying to think why that would be.
Because that's what Jimmy brought into the discussion.
Responding to what is actually in someone else's comment often seems to cause confusion around here, or even be regarded as an unfair tactic. If you can figure out why that would be, let me know.
Coffee was just the first example I thought of. Yes rents and petrol have increased significantly too but not due to minimum wage increase. Also many examples of price increases at the supermarket (even the cheap bread).
I still believe the tax bands need to be increased (as KJT has mentioned above) as you only need to earn over $48k in a year to then start paying 30% which IMO is way too high. Even a person fulltime on minimum wage is getting close ($41,600?) to that rate.
Sorry about the wanker observation.
In my wafer thin defence, it was buying from Dunkin Donuts that tipped me over the edge. In a past life I was a pioneer, introducing espresso to a rural town.
The news of Government giving and taking, it was under National exactly the same. So why so bitter that it is exactly the same under Labour.
Actually
rents have gone up,
insurance cost have gone up,
dairy has gone up,
eggs, flower etc all gone up,
rates – paid by the leaseholders of commercial properties up,
as for the wage increase this 1 dollar will also affect kiwi saver, holiday pay, sick leave, maternity leave, bereavement leave, domestic violence leave, miscarriage leave etc.
Coffee is getting very expensive soon, in your supermarket too, as well like Cocoa Beans and soon enough also Tea we are hell bent on cutting down the forrests that grow these fruits in order to grow some soy beans n stuff. But if you grow dandylions in your garden – pesticide free of course – you can dig the roots up, roast them and they will make a good Kaffee Ersatz.
As for the 6 dollar coffee, no one needs to buy one. Free country.
By a jar and make your own for ten cents lol
lol Buy!!
To be fair I expect when you look at the 'basket' of goods used to calculate the cpi the items which a minimum wage earner would buy have increased greater than the 3.3 percent figure.
yeah, probably. I suspect an expression of genuine concern would look at issues like that, rather than bitching about the price of lattes.
But then talking rents and basics here is like reminding Greenpeace members that greenhouse gases are bad.
Tories are all about concern for the poor when they really want to leverage that concern to only help themselves.
When they get a pay rise and the lattes are still cheap, their concern for the poor is promptly overruled by the plight of the struggling small business owner who is being extorted by hospo/retail/farm workers who want a living wage.
The MW goes up every year. 2.5% on $20 is 50 cents (even National increased it by that much most years). Labour usually does it by around a dollar – that's 5%.
Inflation while house prices flat-line (as they will when mortgage rates rise) is the only way to reduce property values to incomes.
Jimmy, there is a pandemic on. I guess by your rhetorical question you think there is no sensible reply.
Imported inflation and transport woes, creating competition for goods is the cause of 2/3rds of the inflation.
Nobody is really "better off" in the current situation. Even those gaining through house sales are finding rises outstrip the "gain" unless they are buying down or cashing up.
Those on lower fixed incomes will feel it most along with the unemployed and underemployed. The fact the economy is bouyant gives job security for many.
Those business models relying on low paid workers with low margins on high volumes, will come under pressure, and yes those workers are always at the margins. Some businesses need a government mandate to raise wages.
Sadly when they get squeezed they cut hours. Then they wonder why people are not spending. Self defeating behaviour.
Often they will blame regulations or employment law for their predicament, as it has become a mind set in, for example, the fast food industry.
The Olympic games test athletes physically and psychologically. Due to the global Covid – 19 pandemic it is likely that medal contention will come down to not being infected with Covid or if infected with Covid how a person's immune system responds.
I am interested to know if an athlete will be disqualified because they are infected with Covid or if they are a close contact and will be told to isolate?
The South African athletes and support staff (2+1) who tested positive are isolating. The British (6+2) who were contacts of different positive individual on the flight over to Japan are confined to their rooms for now, waiting test results.
https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2021/jul/18/south-africa-footballers-test-positive-for-covid-19-in-tokyo-olympic-village
If it manages to take out all human competitors before a sport's medal ceremony, the Olympics ought to award the medal for that sport to the virus!
It appears that teams competing are a lot more vulnerable than individual competitors.
Any ceremony for awarding medals is going to be contentious due to appeals for being disqualified.
Can the Olympic Committee prevent an athlete from competing due to Covid?
This sounds like a nasty risk for anyone who has used certain apps on their phones. And it's not entirely certain what apps they all are yet. WhatsApp and iMessage seem particularly vulnerable.
https://www.theguardian.com/news/2021/jul/18/what-is-pegasus-spyware-and-how-does-it-hack-phones
Fortunately, it seems the old; switch it off then on again, trick still works for the moment. I prefer to leave my phone in a bag pocket where it can't spy on me when I am not using it, though I guess it still gets location data and incoming messages there. However, I do often miss text beeps; which is sometimes an advantage and sometimes a disadvantage
That’s enough for me to turn off iMessage. Hardly ever use it anyway
how does putting your phone in a bag stop it being tracked?
Having my phone in a pocket of a handbag inside a backpack blocks the camera from filming me under remote control. It probably also muffles the audio to the point where it is ambiguous unusable too. Doesn't do anything about being cell-tower location tracked though (unless I fully turn it off as well – some people say take the battery out too, but that's easier said than done with newer phones).
TBH, I mainly do it so all my stuff is in one easily grabbable package when I need to rush out somewhere while juggling kids.
Ah, I get you now.
I have location services turned off as default and a few other tricks, but it's getting harder and harder.
I know my Samsung 4g phone not only eavesdrops on verbal conversations but also 'mines' data from text messages. Where we live we have very limited and occasional cell coverage, so it is only the occasional txt that gets through. I once sent a txt to an acquaintance suggesting a particular make and model of campervan she could consider buying. Within 1/2 an hour this laptop I'm using now threw up an ad for the self-same vehicle. The phone and laptop share our independent provider wifi. This type of thing has been happening for a few years now and has gone beyond spooky. Short of putting the phone in a foil-lined baggie….we have no idea how to manage this other than having the occasional piss-take loud conversation to see if we can provoke a Minority Report response.
And because our wifi also provides our 'landline' phone, a power cut would render us incommunicado. Keeping the cellphone in a spot where occasionally we get reception is kind of necessary.
The move from copper wire landlines to broadband connected landline phones would enable warrant less surveillance.
Ah, copper! Chorus, bless them, no longer maintain the copper lines here in the North of the North. Those still on the copper have seriously shit service. Those of us unable to hook into the copper rely on either crap cell- based hotspotting or line -of- sight signal wifi such as Uber. Which doesn't work in a power cut.
My Vodafone source no longer provides copper landline service in areas where its HFC cable service is available (Wellington and Christchurch) – we get our phones linked to the broadband modem (presumably so they can stop paying Chorus for the copper wire upkeep).
That's all they can be sure of having proved it out.
Zero day vulnerabilities in the OS, Bluetooth, network etc and the no touch aspect are major concerns….what's not known and currently being exploited.
I thought that the govt made most apprenticeships free? If so you have to ask the question, when the armed forces demonstrate so clearly how you will be treated, why stay on?
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/125748342/covid19-defence-force-booting-unvaccinated-apprentices-off-trades
Given that the Defence Force is managing many of the MIQ facilities, and so where they are being deployed at the moment… that seems to be in line with existing protocols for vaccination when they are deployed overseas and need to get vaccinated for malaria, diptheria etc.
It's one of the many expectations that are made of you when you enlist. Should not come as a surprise.
From your link: “But it’s no different to any other vaccination process we go through. There will be a number of people who cannot be vaccinated, and an obvious one is pregnant service people and those that have underlying issues at the moment.
“So we’re not going hard on any issue. We’re just saying you need to volunteer. It’s no different to what they’ve volunteered for in joining the organisation.”
My nephew has just recently marched out, in one of the first intakes since Covid-hit. He will be in a trade, BUT his first deployment is to an MIQ unit. The Defence Force has responsibilities beyond providing trades training, and interweaves both.
A young friend has been serving for nearly a decade and has been in Trades Training for less than a year. She has declined this vaccine as there was no satisfactory guarantee that it will not affect her ability to have kids…the Pfizer mRNA vaccine having no long term safety data on effects on fertility. The sticking point here is that instead of being able to simply leave the armed forces, she has to work out her time to make up for time spent doing her trades training. This will be a very difficult time for her and the other 'refusniks' as since she is not vaccinated with this new vaccine her duties will be extremely limited.
As is said in the article…this The Return of Service Obligation is vindictive, under these circumstances.
Just let them leave, and get on with their lives.
Some of these youngsters are highly skilled and very capable and have much to offer the wider community.
Then they should pay for the training received as they are highly skilled and very capable and have much to offer to the wider community and where they will be paid according to their skills.
don't join a group that has mandatory vaccinations if one is worried about getting vaccinations or is selective about which vaccinations to get.
The training they received costs money. They could have left that training space to someone who has no issues getting the vaccination.
As far as i know, military service in NZ is voluntary not mandatory.
Then they should pay for the training received … I wonder how many young women join the forces because they come from lower socio-economic backgrounds and are not in a position to take out large loans to pay for tertiary or trades training? They want to get ahead…but can't afford to get into debt.
These same young women will suffer greater impact should they have to pay refund the cost of their trades training.
They were also working hands- on during that training as well as still being serving personnel, I'll have to find out if this is taken into consideration at the accounting session.
In the US, where Te Covid has run rampant with the bodies piling up in the streets, the military has struggled to bring the vaccination rates up. Even 'shoot em up' Biden has refused to make the Covid vaccines mandatory…possibly because…
Military leaders have long insisted that they cannot require coronavirus vaccinations — as they do for myriad other inoculations — because each type is being administered under an emergency use authorization and has yet to receive formal approval from the Food and Drug Administration.
Meanwhile in the UK, the Vaccine roll out to the armed forces should be well underway by the end of this month. And 'Blighty has a particularly clever method for incentivising vaccine uptake…
…orders to the Royal Artillery and Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers state:
“Covid-19 vaccination. Anyone who is refusing to have the CV-19 jab is to be educated by the CoC (Chain of Command) and any rumours quashed. If they still refuse they may be deemed as unfit to soldier and dealt with accordingly as the CV-19 jab may be a requirement to deploy on operations/exercises, much like yellow fever.”
The Daily Mail report(s) that by law the Army cannot force soldiers to get jabs. Yet being ‘unfit to soldier’ is an offence under the Armed Forces Act.
I had this discussion several years ago with two kids whom i have helped grow up for a while, who came from a single mom, no money household in France.
Both the boy and the girl were wanting to join the Army for training and jobskills. France is involved in military conflict in various places and has had its fair share of soldiers come back in a box or come back with all sorts of mental and physical issues.
During the discussion the kids were trying to tell me how awesome the job training would be. I agreed with them, but i also told them that the first job training they would get was that on how to best and most efficiently kill a person. I told them if you do not want to go to Mali (on of the 'conflict' zones) to kill people, you better don't join the Army. The boy did join the army, the girl did not.
So a young person in NZ i would advise that if you don't want vaccinations or are selective in the vaccinations one is comfortable with, Don't join the Army. Try and get your training elsewhere. Simple as. And joining the Army and being told what to do, when and for how long is in effect a sort of 'student loan'.
Once you join the Army, you are no longer a 'free citizen', you are a Member of the Army and as such subordinate to orders, some of whom may go against ones believes. It sucks, but as i said, the Army is voluntary here, not mandatory.
I come from Army parents, and have close relatives serving. They are aware of the cost/benefit choice they made.
During the discussion the kids were trying to tell me how awesome the job training would be. I agreed with them, but i also told them that the first job training they would get was that on how to best and most efficiently kill a person. I told them if you do not want to go to Mali (on of the 'conflict' zones) to kill people, you better don't join the Army. The boy did join the army, the girl did not.
I had the same discussion with my children. Despite the very interesting lives led by their relatives, including varied deployments, and overseas trips, including several to Antartica, the possible involvement in questionable exercises or conflicts didn't appeal.
Everything costs in one form or another.
A little nice tool to check just where the world is on fire – well unless the world is drowning.
This little neat feature now has a 'bio' option and all the little red and yellow dots are fires. Siberia. oh boy.
https://earth.nullschool.net/#current/bio/surface/level/annot=fires/orthographic=134.78,23.31,396/loc=134.666,23.090
And while we have our own floods here,
the ones in Europe are now in Germany – Rhurland – the ones were now 188 people are dead, and a 1000 still missing, are also in Saxony, Bavaria, Austria, Switzerland, Netherlands, Belgium, Luxemburg, last week England/London and so on and so forth.
In Bavaria and Austria alone another huge rain falls are expected. – Both Bavaria and Austria 'should' have dry summers from July/Aug/Sept.
In Canada in the meantime fruit bakes on trees and in the fields, mussels cook in their beds, and towns spontaneously combust into fire.
Maybe we need a shift form feel good Band-Aids that give us a bit of a sugar rush of 'helping the environment' and more of a realization that we are now well past the idea that tinkering on the edges will change and or prevent these 1 in 1000 years events.
And while Oregon burns in the US, Flagstaff in Texas is having flashfloods.
https://twitter.com/christofspieler/status/1415496090015698944
As for us here in NZ, i pity the people that have lost their houses as i expect them to find it quite hard to rebuild atm.
If anyone has a link for donations to local groups to give to i would appreciate it as i would love to direct some money to where need is. Thanks.
"Maybe we need a shift form feel good Band-Aids that give us a bit of a sugar rush of 'helping the environment' and more of a realization that we are now well past the idea that tinkering on the edges will change and or prevent these 1 in 1000 years events."
I agree. Often feel out of step with others when talking about the imperative need to address climate change and the destruction of the environment immediately, effectively and from now on.
Firstly, I'm a little disturbed at the premise of a cis women's only debating space. Since when did we need to be protected by white knights? I can hold my own, thank you, without anyone needing to shield me from what may come my way.
Next, who decided that we cis women needed a space? "Weka"? A sexless, anonymous entity, who may be gasp a man??
Lastly, if "Weka" intended to exclude the entire LGBT+ community in a discussion about trans people and non-binaries, then they have succeeded.
In fact, if you want to know what trans exclusionary feminism looks lok, this is it. Well done, "Weka". You've created a discussion forum straight from Mumsnet or 4Chan which debates the validity of trans women but they cannot, according to your rules, reply?
What next, a page for cis het men only, no gays, to debate the validity of heterosexuality vs homosexuality??
This is exclusionary.
It is reactionary.
It does nothing to further understanding between those who have an interest in this issue.
I look forward to the day when we don't debate the validity of an already marginalised group just because, you know, we can.
Do better please.
[well “Jane B” if you’re going to be a plonker I’ll treat you as one. Read the site Policy and About so you know what the debate culture here is and where the boundaries are. After that, if you want to join the women’s space and you are female, you will be welcome so long as you can abide by the site rules. Although I’m not sure why you would want to given your disdain for women’s space, but we’re here for the robust debate, I’m sure you’ll get some response to the issues you raise – weka]
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
Who decided that we are 'Cis-women"? Seriously, who did, and why do have i to adhere to this standard?
Cis-women is more and more becoming an insult, if it not ever was intended to be one.
I am not a cis anything, i am a biological women, born with the attributes of the 'female' of the human species.
So please, you too, do better.
Agree Sabine. Obfuscation and confusion by renaming items that are not in need of renaming is evident in this whole debate. It so patently 1984 and Brave New World-esque. Humpty Dumpty said "When I use a word," Humpty Dumpty said, in rather a scornful tone, "it means just what I choose it to mean—neither more nor less."
This cis montrosity has been with us since 2017. I have never seen it used in a caring sharing way only in ways to put bio women down. (A good illustration in the post we are replying to.)
It is laughable if it were not so serious.
It's been around a while longer.
Obviously it would be as a frame of reference in human differentiation.
It was not designed to marginalise the majority, female or male, but to provide a framework in which minorities were specifically included.
It's like a shell game, how many minorities can be identified and included before the majoritarian become intolerant – and at which point is peak tolerance load identified.
Does it not mean 'real'? I'm going to interpret it as meaning 'real' from now on.
Have I got this right? You think cis means real? Are you saying that women are real and trans women aren't?
I don't see myself as cis either, and the word is now hugely problematic. I included it in the post as message to people who ID as cis that they're welcome too. Thing is, I fit under the trans umbrella anyway (thanks Stonewall) so "Jane B" is hoisted on her own binary thinking petard there.
Yes, this is one thing that i find so strange, many women that i know have body dysphoria to various extends, and thus might actually fit under the umbrella, but rather then go trans decided to just make peace with the biology that they are born with and i am sure that some men are also fall into that bracket.
And to believe that 'cis'ers' can't be gay/lesbian. And that to be cis means excluding gay/lesbians.
I must not understand something.
Cisgender is about gender identity not sexuality, you are incorrect to say there aren't cis gay, lesbian or bi people, it merely means not trans.
then we don't need the word CIS at all. Full stop.
There are Transpeople, and there are people.
Transpeople are different to people. Well, that's not exclusionary at all. 🙄
Well yes, the "TRANS" states it. All others who don't fall under this label are hence 'NOT' Trans but are maybe a whole lot of different things. And thus the label 'cis' becomes an insult rather then anything else.
For "transpeople" to count as "people" then some "people" must be "transpeople".
But if "There are Transpeople, and there are people", then the implication is that "transpeople" aren't really the same as "people".
Transpeople are people, surely. Unless this is some woke slogan, now?
In which case if one needs to refer to people who are not transpeople, just saying "people" would fail to do that. hence the use of the "cis" prefix.
You'd think one of the first rules of debate is that we all agree on certain definitions.
In this debate we really need to agree that 'biological sex' is real and cannot be changed and that that is what is recorded on one's birth certificate.
It is not 'assigned', it is observed, and in the vast majority of instances is an accurate description of the biological sex of that child. Sex is recorded as 'male' or 'female' or 'intersex'. Sometimes 'boy' or 'girl' or 'indeterminate'. Mature males and females are called 'men' and 'women'.
What the transgender community seems to be demanding is that the definition of 'sex' be permanently and artificially changed so it now means what is commonly understood to be 'gender'…a potentially fluid social construct.
By definition, sex and gender are not interchangeable.
Baffling indeed that this fundamental definition of a biological term has been changed with absolutely no public debate allowed whatsoever…because "violence" and "exclusion".
That would be arguing for born biological sex, distinct from sex identity. Not the same as gender ID – for example Camille Paglia, the only out lesbian of her time at Yale Graduate School, now identifies as transgender.
There is a case for an ID document separate to a birth certificate to cater to sex and gender ID where this is different to that of the birth certificate (which would suffice for the cisgender).
lol I know, right, the lack of public debate is deafening. The minister only sent letters across the spectrum, and social media is constantly sidetracked by the issue, and one or two rounds of submissions on the proposals but there's been zero "public debate". /sarc
As for "violence" and "exclusion", we're at the "slapping demonstrators" and "cops dun took our guns cos tweets" stage of it. How much longer will you keep putting quote marks around "violence" and "exclusion"?
lol. I know right. " https://terfisaslur.com/ "
How about we try a bit of "good faith" and at least discuss/debate the definitions at the centre of this issue.
Then we can move on to discussing if it is ok for a small minority of biological males to demand that we talk about "pregnant people" because "pregnant women" is exclusionary.
I'll give you a little clue. "Woman", by the traditional definition means "adult human female". Only female humans can be pregnant. So what is exclusionary about "pregnant women"?
If we are going to radically change the definitions of fundamental biological words we need a discussion about it, and at least some kind of consensus.
And we should really examine the motives of this very queer movement…
Queer ideology is a set of beliefs based on Queer Theory. This theory arose in academia, and is concerned with subverting the ‘normative’ and is invested in ‘queering’ the meaning of words and conceptual categories. Queer ideology discounts or denies biological sex, in favour of the primacy of gender identity. Following this line of thinking, same-sex orientation is now considered exclusionary,
Queer theory follows a typical Hegelian analysis form. Hegelian dialectic analysis is a pseudo logic (it doesn't form a valid logical argument) but is typical in Critical Theory fields in the analysis of power.
A Hegelian dialectic will take some supposed societal oppressive category (a thesis) and contrast it with the oppressed category (the anti-thesis) and supposedly advance discourse by reforming the categories into a synthesis.
Now in actual logic your system of logic can not contain any false statements. So much so that a valid logical argument form is proof by contradiction, where you sometimes prove a statement is untrue by assuming its true and then demonstrating that further statements which were true are now false. This is sufficient to show the statement you assumed true must have been false. So you can see why in Hegelian analysis forming a synthesis makes non-sense of facts, and that its a pseudo-logic.
The other issue being the dialectic supposedly advances society. While in logic establishing proof of some original fact didn't alter the fact that was always true, it merely demonstrated it is true. But this is the reason Critical Theory feels the need to correct peoples discourse because otherwise no advances are made.
I think this highlights why altering the meaning of terms is part of the point the way this creates nonsense discourse is not considered important at all.
So what is the purpose of this proposed "debate"? One of us will change the other's mind after the fifteen millionth iteration of the argument? Is the theory that enough repetition will stop language from evolving? What odds for reaching consensus do you give a debate on the mutability (or even the non-binary nature) of sex?
And frankly, if you think that all the discussion and written invitations for submissions mean "absolutely no public debate allowed whatsoever", then either Tinetti's office did not send those letters or we don't even share an understanding of the term "good faith".
And the origin of the term queer was related to indebtedness, a debt inquiry, a debt query and going to debtors prison (and for some how they paid off the debt to avoid going to prison and poor people committing theft of food etc). Related was the incarceration of homosexual men in prisons (and poor women resorting to prostitution and homosexual women being "committed" by fathers and husbands for treatment for being nonconformist).
One could make a case for queer theory being revolutionary, to change the world. Which would be the world accepting that someone not born of the female sex could have their birth certificate say they were. There are so many George Orwell quotes …
But there is another, one I have very recently invented – It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of the needle than it is for any one individual to get the world to conform to their personal life journey, as they live and experience it. For that would require them to rule the world and define truth within it.
Nic. How about free speech is good and hate speech is bad. If they are both right, what can be done to reconcile divergent truths?
There is of course the paradox of tolerance meme, which could be claimed as a synthesis of those claims together.
But so were clear I don't think every free expression of speech is necessarily morally good. Nor do I think Hegelian pseudo-logic is a valid logical form. Nor do I think truths are necessarily moral or falsehoods necessarily immoral.
Can't say I've overly studied the "Queer Theory" academic field (any wokeness most likely comes from sharing offices with people at the pointy end of trying to stop young queer folk being thumped or killing themselves), but I agree Hegelianism is pants.
I don't have gender or bodydysphoria, it's just that Stonewall et al have broadened the trans definitions so widely now that I fit into the GNC and gender queer categories. I don't think of myself that way particularly, but I don't think of myself as cis either.
no idea what "Jane B" was on about re excluding all LGBTQI people.
Really? You are Trans, Weka? Forgive me, but that sounds like the setup for a joke whose punchline is Stonewall's (UK) definition of trans-ness. Probably from a thread I didn't read.
Anyway, I have to agree with Jane B that TS has a pretty trans-exclusionary reputation in NZ's rainbow community. In fact, I often get looked at sideways for saying that I engage with the site at all. But I've always thought that it is necessary to consider viewpoints other than your own.
I didn't read the "Adult human female" thread, so can't really comment on anything there. If I am going to read text on which I am forbidden from commenting, then I have stacks of that already – it seems a bit pointless for a blog.
I don't consider it a joke. If Stonewall and the gender lobbyists are going to socially engineer transness in the general population and I fit into their definition, then I fit into their definition 🤷♂️
If that backlashes on SW, fuck 'em, they should have tried working with women and lesbians in particular instead of trying to control.
Well said Weka the comment was intrusive. humourless and unwarranted. And surprising ……I had not thought it was 'on' here to comment about another's sexuality. . I was a bit surprised it was not moderated out.
.
which comment?
8.1.2.2 Second sentence.
oh, I don't mind being asked. It's ok to ask as long as there is no pressure and it's not politicised/aggro. I opened the way for that upthread.
(trans is a gender ID not a sexuality 👍)
I thought you were talking about "Jane B" saying I was sexless or man, which I found really funny from a gender activist.
I appreciate your presence here and your willingness to engage in the conversation. Having been commenting as feminist here for a long time, I don't consider TS to be a particularly safe place for feminists, or trans people, or many groups of people.
I am so happy for the German word 'Mensch'. I am a Mensch. More then my sexual organs for reproduction, more then my identification by gender, more then my own identification by my sexual attractions, but am Mensch. It seems that we forget that in our need to build boxes to neatly arrange things so that we can cope with this world that is becoming very unkind towards Menschen.
Either reject being categorised against one's wishes (easy), or work through it.
[link fixed]
Is this a quote from somewhere? If so link please. Thanks.
As an early adopter of Ms then more than happy with forename surname forms of address, I have and will continue to look at the ciswoman.
At first glance and several other glances it has always struck me as an attempt to 'other' and in the long history of woman & politics and life yet more instances or opportunities of othering is the last thing women need.
Apologies Shanreagh, I botched embedding the link to Molinier’s paper "Becoming Cisgender" – hopefully this one works.
Re ‘othering‘, perhaps ‘cis‘ is an attempt by some in the trans community to allow us ‘normies’ to reflect on how it might feel to be ‘othered’? Just guessing.
You might be a normie, but a hell of a lot of GCFs, women, and lesbians aren't. You think we don't know how it might feel to be 'othered'? Why do you think that?
I feel like a 'normie', even though (very) few might see me as such.
Weka, I wouldn't presume to suggest that you, or indeed any stranger, doesn't know how it might feel to be 'othered'. If you believe that's what I'm suggesting, then we can respectfully agree to disagree – this shouldn’t become personal, imho.
Fwiw, I read Molinier's paper for the first time today, and found it both compelling and transformative.
My respect and understanding is evolving. I believe I learn new things everyday (and try to integrate them into my worldview), but then I am becoming rather forgetful. Kia kaha.
We either respect a person unconditionally or not at all?
Well that's not true.
Might be an opinion/belief, and/or not universally applicable? Imho, of course.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cisgender
Personally i identify as WitchBitch, pronouns this and that. 🙂 s/
If a person does not call herself or himself as 'cis' no one should. Either we are cool with self identifying ourselves as what ever we want or we are not.
Agreed. However I'm weird, because I don't identify as anything. Probably others identify me as something, but I don't give a fig what it is. I quite like TS Eliot's maxim – "the progress of an artist is a continual self-sacrifice, a continual extinction of personality". Or better still Keats' insistence on the loss of self in the moment "…if a sparrow come before my window I take part in its existence and pick about the gravel." We live in strange times that the self should matter so much.
Thanks Arkie for the explanation.
I often read the cis-woman combo word in the company of words like Terf, transphobic or bigot. .
Why would that be?
Cis seems to be in use as a rather derogatory term (as many woman related phrases are) and here I salute Sabine's WitchBitch). and I would rather not use a label like ‘cis’ anything.
What is being done, do you know, to counter the use of the combo word cis-woman in a pejorative sense?
Cis isn't derogatory or a pejorative though, it is an adjective used to add meaning just like trans is. Definitionally 'Witch/Bitch' certainly is derogatory and a pejorative. You seem comfortable with that, why is that?
Witch bitch is a call out to the angel/bitch dichotomy that woman face everyday. It is also a recognition of the fact that women with different ideas to the patriarchy in times gone past were often labelled, then lost their lives, because they were felt to be witches*.
It is an example self deprecating female humour, We need humour, it opens doors sometimes. For this reason if I had a choice on an official form between cis-anything and witch bitch I would probably chose 'witchbitch'. For the laugh, for the recognition of the place that witches have played in the history of women……
Also in recognition that older women of any sexual leaning are not 'seen' in our current world. They never have been. While it gives us freedom to operate outside the edges of society it is irritating as well We have ageist propaganda used against us, if people can get away with it they 'Karen' us.
Cis is so ugly. I see it often lumped in with Terf etc. So I am suspicious.
*And why this should be is is the stuff of Women's Studies and has a foundation in the hidden nature of the female sexual response together with the impact of wise words that older woman, in every society I have been in, often irritatingly have to say in mixed company.
Witchbitch harks back, it's tongue in cheek…….I love it. Showing my age now but it makes me think of the old Helen Reddy song that was a stalwart for some back in the day 'I am woman'
If you have not heard of it here is the song……changing it to put cis-woman does not work does it? Yet it is relevant and much more powerful because the word is not it chopped up in tiny othering pieces…It speaks to women no matter how we want to define ourselves/what we look like.
2013 version https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAo8k0Fq1OM
1975 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6fHTyVmYp4
Perhaps women could sing:
You can cis but never break me
'Cause it only serves to make me
More determined to achieve my final goal
And I come back even stronger
Not a novice any longer
'Cause you've deepened the conviction in my soul
We can’t decry the ‘hollowing out’ of terms and definitions if we are also going disregard or create new meanings for other words, based on a perceived ‘ugliness’ or unfamiliarity.
I haven't hollowed out any words. I do not see the need for tiny little chopped up words to describe biology. I am not keen in Cis because
a) it is not necessary ……main point
b) it is an example of 'othering' that we do not need second main point.
c) it is so b…. ugly……also concerning
Indeed I supported a poster on the Womens' Day thread who stated
Back in the day Ms was thought to be ugly. We realised that it had a great use to anonymise the marital status of women, something men had been able to do for aeons. We recognised therefore that it was pro-women.
I have yet to be convinced that my status as a cis-woman is pro women at all. In fact the point is I have more often seen it sharing it paragraphs with words like 'Terfs', 'oldies', 'bigots' and 'transphobic'.
Can you put your finger on why you consider 'cis' to be ugly and/or concerning? Is 'cis' intrinsically ugly, or ugly only in a cisgender context?
As an aside, are terms such as 'trans' and/or 'transgender' similarly less than beautiful in your view? Just trying to learn/understand.
It is ugly:
because I was not consulted about whether I wanted to be labelled this way. It has been foisted on me and others
it is a label inserted where no label was needed. All that is needed are a few extra words to describe the category, if one is needed.
it signifies division and 'othering' Women as a group do not need any more othering and made-up names unless we self select them.
it keeps bad company with Terf, transphobic and bigot also oldie
it does not seem to be a step on the path of enhancing the lot of women, in the widest sense, in society.
it has no back story, pedigree or 'aha' moment that would make it relevant for women – it has come from nowhere that I recognise
Having had friends from the 1970s who identified themselves as 'Trannies' more along the lines of drag queens and Carmen & workmates I am familiar with the prefix 'trans'. The prefix trans "across, over, or beyond."is used far more in day to day life.
Again there was a mine of self deprecating humour behind the adoption of the term Trannies by my friends. I'm smiling to myself just thinking about them and their sayings. One of them had a 9-5 job as a male (dressing etc) in a Govt dept.
Anyway……that's it from me on the use of 'cis' . Female/woman suits me. You could add; for reasons where this was necessary, like enrolment for health care; 'female with hetero orientation'.
Sorry the phrase/dichotomy is 'Madonna/whore'.
It's like reclaiming the word queer.
The patriarchy and outlier males were dogs and females were witches – thus the term bitch.
Witch/bitch here was self ID. In the same way that black people have reclaimed the word nigger, and homosexuals have reclaimed queer. Context determines if something is derogatory or a pejorative.
Cis is a term applied by one group to another whether the other group wants that or not. That's bullshit. And it’s fast becoming a pejorative.
So Self-ID is fine then?
if it's about self, sure. I know very few people that politically object to other people's self expression. Gender self-ID is a different thing where it impacts on women politically and socially as a class, and where GAs actively suppress women being able to talk about that. Can you see the difference?
I am wondering if rather than hollowing out/emptying the words man/woman or male/female we leave them and then say
male includes but is not limited to…….
female includes but is not limited to
intersex includes but is not limited to
unspecified X includes but is not limited to
Different people have different needs and the medical surgical needs of any of our rainbows could be catered for by greater specificity where it matters ie in day to day life access to healthcare. housing education. So any health plans that came up to MOH would need to show that the agency recognised and was catering for everybody.
Self-ID is definitionally about the self, but it is good to know we don’t object to that then.
And yet Gender self-ID is different?
I guess I fail to see how we can not object to other peoples self expression while at the same time considering gender self-ID to be something other than someone else’s self expression.
I have left a comment at the very bottom of the women thread in regards to the self ID bill. Please read it – it might at the very least makes my stance to it clearer.
For the record i have hired worked with and have until she moved to a different town for her studies a transgender women. She came recommended as a good pastry chef / baker and i came recommended as a 'welcoming' workplace of people who don't fit in neat boxes. My workplace was her first step at 'social' transitioning.
Yet where has this cis come from if we are able or not to use it to describe ourselves?
If it was only used as a self ID, fine, but imposed 'nah'.
By using it in a context to differentiate, cis, is being imposed ie it has moved drastically from being self ID to being a way of 'othering'.
I thought I already explained that. Society should be free enough so that people can express themselves how they want. Men can wear dresses, women can look like men, gay pride, vanilla sex, whatever. There are some limits on this (eg I think prohibitions on public nudity are good for society, I don't think Pride marches should had dog fetishists or nappy festishists hanging out with kids while in role)
Gender-self ID where it intends to suppress other people's needs and politics and expressions is a different thing. If we are talking about legislation that will impact on women and women are being pressured to not talk about it or have say, then that's a really different thing than self expression. I want women (ie biologically female) only space, and if some people in society want to change that, then as a woman I want a full and open debate on what is fair. We haven't had that yet.
changing legislation to remove single sex exemptions in equality law isn't self expression. It's major politics.
@weka
So to clarify: this ‘whatever’ allows trans people to express themselves how they want?
This is where you lose me, how does gender-self ID intend to supress etc. etc.? It allows people to express themselves how they want.
What is this space you want? Where is it? If it’s a space meant for all the public then that seems unrealistic.
I dispute that we haven’t had the ‘debate’, what we have is an impasse. However, what does a full and open debate look like, and what do you think is the fair outcome/answer to the debate?
Arkie, for mine the separation is between birth certificate status and subsequent status/identification.
I have no problem with an identity certificate saying a person has the legal name Samantha, a female sex identity and their date of birth (but their birth certificate says they were born male sex and they were named Sam). I would add the option of adding gender ID and name known by to this identity certificate. And this identity certificate can be used for getting a drivers licence or passport.
Such an identity certificate could also be used by cisgender people to add a gender ID and provide greater information to employers and community/club groups than the birth certificate does.
did you see the s/ ? sarcasm.
I have never stated anything other on this blog then my 'sex' female, and my female name Sabine.
Anything else I personally consider no-one elses business.
But if you need to know, my stepfather called me 'bitch' my mother called me 'witch'. Patriachy or something.
It would be great, while you are here, if you could go through the posts and answer the questions that many have asked.
That would be a great use if time rather than slinging off at others who may be your supporters but do not (yet) have the answers to their questions or concerns.
There are too many queries to list here but if you scroll down through the posts .and answer them in a factual unemotive way …..
Cheers
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2011/04/denial-science-chris-mooney/
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20170131-why-wont-some-people-listen-to-reason
I both agree and disagree with your argument.
But for those who disagree, their choice is to provide and or utilise a womans space.
It's a bit like the control of the body thing, personal choice. Beyond that is freedom of association. Then beyond that the right to be free from discrimination.
PS. Two cisgender females questioning each others ID as women is taking “debate” too far.
This is a very interesting conversation for someone that had to google "cis" (and amusing if you don't mind me saying).
There is a special column open for women and other entities for their particular assertions so why is Open Mike flooded with input on identity politics?
Do a large number of such people want to take over NZ/the western world and impose their authoritarian views upon it?
Um … this was moved from that womans space to open mike (presumably because of the questioning of the need for there to be a separate place for this debate).
Thought experiment
How would you react to someone who had killed one of your children?
I'm struggling enough with the thought that Boris is trying his best to do exactly that with his "Freedom Day". I don't even want to go near contemplating what the consequences of his arrogance and stupidity may actually mean.
I just keep reinforcing to her to stay home. Fortunately she doesn't need much convincing.
Someone said on a different blog, that covid like with climate change, the ones who make rules know that it is real, but they expect themselves to survive and if half of the rest of the world dies then that can only be good.
Friends in the US and in England have stated that even while vaccinated they will continue to wear masks, keep social distance and still limit their outings in many ways.
So the best that one can do is hope that people will take this seriously, and try themselves to be safe, advice from their governments be damned.
Under what circumstances did the act occur and to what circumstances am I reacting?
Exactly
This is pathetic!
The Auckland based Immunisation Advisory Centre, appears to have such a monopolistic contract with the MoH that university's are unable to train their own students as vaccinators during a Pandemic. What?
https://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/campus/vaccinator-plan-hit-stalemate
Trotter reports the result of a recent Curia poll on the hate speech law proposal: http://bowalleyroad.blogspot.com/
There's "a clear plurality of New Zealanders either strongly or somewhat oppose the Government’s proposals – 43 percent in total. But, the number of eligible voters who somewhat or strongly support the proposed measures, at 31 percent, represents an extremely solid minority. With 15 percent of voters currently taking a “neutral” stance, the Prime Minister still has everything to play for."
So the undecided hold the key – no surprise. What comes out of the submissions process will be crucial, and I'm expecting that the bill which eventually goes to select committee will be quite conservative and woke idealists will become disillusioned.
Trotter illuminates the multitude of ways that the proposal is divisive, supplying the stats on those resulting divisions. They will spook Labour moderates big-time…
Why do you conflate an opinion poll and submissions to SC? Do you believe that bills are decided in some kind of popularity contests in/by SC and ‘decided by undecided’, i.e. a simple count of for & against submissions? In the end, the whole Parliament gets to debate and then vote on the bill, not the SC.
In any case, a poll is just a snapshot and I’d like to think that there could be considerable movement in those opinions, e.g., support becomes undecided, et cetera.
I agree re snapshot & movement & dunno why you see me conflating the poll & sc. What I meant re the undecided is that the public mood will firm up pro & con when the govt produces the bill to go to select committee & the media reports the details.
That's what usually happens, eh? The govt is seeking submissions in order to finalise their design of the bill, right? So the interim proposal seems nebulous to many & they wait to make up their mind on the government's reading of the public mood and the subsequent (re) design – which will then head into the sc. If you think the process works differently than that I hope you will explain precisely how (I've never been party to the process so can't testify from personal experience).
Dunno why you reply with such binary waffle straight out of PDF’s spin manual.
The way the process works is that Government takes professional and expert advice from wide range of sources as well as feedback provided through the submission process to SC. Maybe you need to re-read the piece in the NZH by Russell Palmer that you linked to in OM this morning, yes?
You do realise that making law is not a popularity contest but for the benefit of all New Zealanders and the whole NZ society, yes?
Yeah, nah.
Finally just getting time to look at the comment editor again. I 'fixed' it on the 11th, and did a bit of fiddling sometime last week. I was a bit sick over the last two weeks so I'm unsure exactly where I left it.
I was getting my rental apartment ready for new tenants over this last weekend. My extremely valued previous tenants got a bigger place for their new cat, and started accumulating their own furniture. But I'll try to have a look at it this week.
I see that I lost the edges of the edit box.
There is a known issue with the Cancel edit button.
Anything else that I should look at (I'll scan through the previous comments as well).
A few of us still have issues commenting from Mobile phones. I can't comment from Desktop view, the text box is there but won't take the cursor. Can comment from Mobile but don't like it because there is no Replies or Comments list, which makes it harder to follow what is going on (including for moderation). https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-17-07-2021/#comment-1803279
Posting images in comments still seems quite tricky to get the size right. This could probably be solved by me writing a protocol for how to do that as a reference.
test
. https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-17-07-2021/#comment-1803279
^
For those of us that like to link in a separate line.
Which also displays correctly for me now.
Does "100%" not work for image sizing?
It does! but it’s about where and when to use that, and how.
Putting it into the width box doesn’t work. Can you get it to work without having to use the edit comment function?
test
https://www.rd.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Cute-cat-lying-on-his-back-on-the-carpet.-Breed-British-mackerel-with-yellow-eyes-and-a-bushy-mustache.-Close-up-e1573490045672.jpg
That's me putting 100 into the width box on the first pass, no editing.
btw Lynn, it displays at the correct size in the comments list in the back end.
That’s me adding width=100 or width=100% at the end of the tag, in double quotes.
See <a href=”#comment-1804083″>comment here
All I did was to take your image url. Pressed the image button tool. Added URL, tabbed out of the field. It them loaded the original size of 4000+ pixels. I clicked into that field and changed it to 250. It adjusted the height. Saved it.
The one below was the same, but I didn't set a size. Then I clicked into the image and set the width to 450. Did this on chrome on linux.
testing first option
trying again (see how the width doesn't take in the tag?)
that's me following the instructions exactly.
The 'saved' is clicking on the ok button, right?
trying again in Safari not Firefox.
Interesting. I was able to comment from teh Desktop/mobile phone by trying to post an image with the image button. Couldn't size the image so deleted it but this left me an active cursor text box. Cursor was still there when I replied to my own comment below Sacha, but disappeared again when I went to reply to 12.1
While it looks like there are multiple comment areas. There is in fact just one on any one page. It just gets moved from place to place.
When you save a comment (ie force s refresh of the page) or manual refresh it, then the comment will get updated as part of the page load.
Currently the Cancel comment button isn't working because it has some old handlers in it and just doesn't work. I have to try for that again this weekend.
The typo bug in mobiles is still happening (name and email boxes, I think it's a cursor issue too)
eg https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-20-07-2021/#comment-1804036
Ok, that I'll have to test at home. That may have to be a javascript fix because it is device/browser specific.
What I'll try to do is to always set the cursor to the edit box after the comment gets moved. You have to click out to the name etc.
that's what it used to do, but it changed a year or two back. Not sure that it does that for everyone though.
I do a set of tests across platforms
Ok – that gives me some things to do towards the weekend. My spare time for the next day will be taken up with editing a tenancy agreement.
Test image for size
This is your image set to a width of 300
Does the editor not take %?
I have not used it.
Testing – nope. It only takes a number which is pixels (px).
I think that weka was referring to changing the IMG parameters.
Yes, either 100 (or whatever) in the width box, or editing the comment after posting to add 100% or width=100. None seem to work consistently
Fake news, as per usual, on Murdoch's infamous Fox News
Those Cuban "street protests" were not what Fox News would have its mouth-breathing viewers believe.
https://twitter.com/AlanRMacLeod/status/1416713677378629636
Third time trying to post in the right place (keeps taking me back to where I started to comment but decided not to after reloading the page). Apologies if this has caused any issues.
Sounds like it was inevitable someone stuck overseas would get this in front of the Ombudsman.
Read yesterday of a lovely lady who has had surgery to have mesh inserted, and now is stuck in the US in pain and without the ability to pay for treatment or book in our MIQ system.
This isn’t about her, but a tech dude stuck in Singapore and unable to book without bot help.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/tech-industry-figure-stuck-in-singapore-takes-unusable-miq-booking-system-to-ombudsman/VNFJGTO4MJ5R75BR6GCCMNTU2E/
Maybe some sort of STV+lottery process would be better – every day opens a new bunch of slots, you apply in order of preference, then at the end of the day they divvy up the slots randomly? With a certain allocation for priority/humanitarian entry?
I dunno.
Stonewall are over in the UK, I don't know how they define gender, Weka. From an Aotearoan perspective, I would argue that; the National Council of Women are better placed for any NZ woman to interact with if they are wanting to affect NZ law.
I particularly like this diagram of theirs. With the whole debate being but a tiny aspect of many social interactions within the overarching issue of climate change. If we don't get that right, then I doesn't really matter who does what where.
https://www.ncwnz.org.nz/what
That was supposed to go upthread somewhere in response to comment 8.1(.2.something…). Still on that learning curve.
[image resized and posted below – weka]
Reading above I'm reminded of the reaction of some white New Zealanders to the word Pakeha being used to describe us. Privilege dies hard.
Are you a male or a female? just asking on behalf of privilege 🙂
Sure some of the reaction to the term "cisgender" comes because of a disagreement with those who use the categorisation – just as resistance to "Pakeha identity" comes from those of the assimilationist or integration, rather than bi-national identity and recognition of indigenous peoples status.
But what's influencing my current perspective is the value of the female sex birth status to those who do not conform to feminine stereotype in physique or social aspect. If we allow people to change their birth sex status this can have unintended consequences for this group.
Resistance to Pakeha from white folk includes it being a name they did not create for themselves. So much so that Stats NZ stopped using it after a massive backlash.
The same people who stuffed up the last census …
I would have had New Zealand European/Pakeha as a category – it's all very New Zealand English/Aotearoa Maori affirmative.
And they will probably end up there … He Puapua etc