Further evidence of a society in disarray.
The selfish neo-liberal approach is damaging the social structure.
Don’t expect the Herald to make the link between an economic system and such consequences, though.
However the Spirit Level has the research to prove it.
‘New research has found that New Zealanders are losing touch with their neighbours – and it’s affecting our wellbeing.
In the recently released results of the Sovereign Wellness Index, New Zealand trailed behind other countries when it came social connections and community, with our neighbourly relations particularly lacking.
“We came last when compared to 29 European countries that deployed the same survey, which is not only a disappointing result but, when compared to the first Sovereign Wellbeing Index in 2013, it shows no improvement,” said Grant Schofield professor of public health at AUT University, who led the research.’
I’ve been watching “Someone else’s country” again. In a general way you see the machinery at work during the 80’s/90’s that began to transform our society from a collective and cohesive one to a self serving and socially isolating one.
It’s certainly not in our imaginations that this transition occurred. The theorist, Uri Bronfenbrenner, who studied Human Development came up with his well known Ecological Theory to illustrate the impact of systems, including political systems upon the development of the individual. The political system exists within the Chronosystem. See handy chart below:
On the development where I live it’s all too easy to see the effect of community cohesion break down. It’s on the outer perimeter of existing suburbs, people are reliant of cars despite a good bus service, and very few residents have put any effort into creating gardens in the neighbourhood. There appears to be no connection to nature or one another.
To try and combat this sense of alienation I joined neighbourly.co.nz in an attempt to get people talking and break the ice. (The founder of that website is quoted in the Herald article) Twice I advertised an an afternoon tea at our place to discuss community resilience and response during an emergency, to be hosted by my husband whose a civil defence volunteer. Not one response from the 100+ members on the site. Twice I advertised an all ages kite flying day, a get to know your neighbours thing and once again, not one response.
It’s really quite depressing living here, but it’s what you do when you can’t afford to live in the established neighbourhoods closer to town.
Interestingly it’s those neighbourhoods that appear to be going from strength to strength with their efforts to improve social cohesion. There are many reports in the local papers about all the events they put on and their community building activities.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see more fracturing of social cohesion as we continue to sprawl out into former farmlands and as we move further away from our formerly collective and caring society. It can’t be denied that this is political in its origin.
The dismantling of the “awards” system for purposes of workplace bargaining along with disestablishing compulsory unionism should not be underestimated as to why there is less social cohesion in NZ society today. We have been forced into believing the neo liberal framing of the narrative that individual responsibility is saintly and collectivism & the concept of team work only works when it is controlled by the privileged and powerful for the benefits of capital.
I wouldn’t be surprised if a link existed between the politically motivated promotion of individualism in the workplace, the loss of widespread Union membership and diminishing social cohesion. – solidarity and collective strength is something that spreads beyond the walls of the workplace and into people’s consciousness.
You lose those bonds and surely that weakens the community as a whole. Think of the lock outs and strikes of the pre 1990 ECA era and how neighbours and sometimes local businesses rallied around to support the workers.
There are many contributing factors though and we are a long way now, from where we used to be.
The problem with the mass developments, like the one I live on, is often they’re out of sight out of mind, they’re new and not part of the culture of the region or city and all the more isolated because of it. It’s made worse by the fact that they often don’t have any amenities (shops etc) and no recreational facilities so there is no gathering place, something once so crucial to human socialising.
Thanks Rosie, I think you are 100% correct. I recall attending union meetings where the topic of conversation wasn’t solely focused on pay & conditions. Large work places were especially fertile ground for wider social issue type conversations. Where else could a large group of working people come together and share their thoughts and points of view on topics as diverse as social welfare benefits ( for freezing workers whose work was seasonal this was important – still is -) or the Vietnam war ( the recent deployment of troops to the Middle East makes that conversation as meaningful today as it was back in the 60’s & 70’s ).
The white apartheid regime in South Africa, especially when the All Blacks were due to tour was a hot topic that divided loyalties but raised consciousness levels of the many who supported tours, albeit begrudgingly and often with the exchange of more than a few words!
Of course it wasn’t all beer & skittles. People were shouted down. The loudest voice was sometimes the only one heard, while others were handier with their tongues then their mitts. But it was all part of the growing pains of a new and growing nation – we still are -.
I sympathise with what you are having to endure and as social animals we deserve better.
I should probably make it clear that when I speak of pre 1990 ECA era workplaces I speak not from experience but from learning from doco’s and sitting and listening to the fascinating stories of older Union activists.
You echo what my friend told me of his experiences in a large workplace where people sat in the canteen and discussed the Springbok tour. He was deeply involved in the anti tour movement and discussions got very lively, there was some aggro but on the whole, people did get to learn and came round to understanding why he did what he did, even if they didn’t always support him.
As for the ECA, I had been in the work force only two years before the ECA was introduced and the changes were horrendous. Our pay was dropped as we lost our penal rates and we had to work 6 days instead of 5 just to make up for the loss in wages. Retailers got to exploit the new law and it made it cheaper for them to keep shops open for longer. Thats were our long opening hours in retail came from, the ECA of 1990.
Bastards. Thats what woke me up. After that I started paying attention to what politicians do and what we can do to stop them.
‘Farmers seeking staff for the new milking season risk being named and shamed on social media if the money being offered in their job advertisement is below the minimum wage.
Outgoing Waikato Federated farmers dairy chairman Craig Littin revealed that trade unions were picking apart farm jobs placed on Fonterra’s Farm Source website.
Littin told farmers at the group’s annual meeting that unions were doing simple calculations around listed salary, hours worked and days off and posting them on social media.’
Helen Kelly has been doing that for months. Some of the jobs she highlights are atrocious. It highlights how NZ is becoming a low wage, high hours economy.
New Zealand’s ‘rock star economy’ is growing slower.
‘New Zealand’s recent economic growth is actually lower in the last two years than it has averaged over the last 20, despite being hailed as a “rock star economy”.
Quarterly growth figures show the economy grew on average 2.8 per cent between 1995 and 2014, slightly more than the 2.6 per cent it averaged in 2013-14.’
Yes… but at the same time not so subtly putting the knife into Little for shying away from CGT as it was seen as a vote shedder. Labour was on the right track, but really failed to deliver a clear and concise CGT policy that was not easily picked apart, with some artistic scaremongering, by the Nats.
@ Ben
Yes I thought that too. Why should the Hairy offer positives about Cunliffe? Just a way to pour a little salt and water into any crack they might find in Labour skin.
Not sure that Labour has ditched the CGT. Didn’t they just comment that it was the wrong time and not well presented to the electorate at that time. Now on the back burner.
CGT is one of the many previous policies Labour has under review – whether it gets picked up again is still debatable – there may well be other ways of dealing with property speculation eg removing tax benefits like property losses against other income.
Hi ianmac, I don’t think it was a case of being badly presented, but the political climate that still existed prior to the election made it the wrong time. To my way of thinking David Parker did a very good job of presenting it, but he was up against a well resourced and hostile political machine that successfully convinced the public they were going to “lose lots of money” when they sold their houses.
I hope Labour has finally learned the lesson that a little bit of pre-election subterfuge is inevitable if you want to get into power and make a real difference for everyone and not just a chosen few.
In an ideal world, none of this would be necessary…
Notes for Labour Party handlers #2:
“Phrases of a negative tone that have as the subject, “things that aren’t big”, should never leave the leader’s mouth. Instead, try positive expositions on how things that are not big often become important, and are necessary to success.”
I am disappointed that there is not more coverage of this and more dissembling of the way National frame moderate CPI-based increases in funding to essential services as ‘propping up’.
No such concern at ‘propping up’ yachties or aluminium smelters owned by wealthy overseas companies.
But to her credit MS Tolley has not checked the bloodlines which no Minister of the Crown would do. (Sarc)
Mihi is pretty good in a quiet understated way.
Luxon from Airnz on line with Radionz at 9.35am. He is one of those fast speakers who don’t sound as if there is room for thought between sentences! Comes up with a block of words that provide an explanation as to why they are doing okay as they are.
He is being questioned about their attitude to the provincial services and lack of co-operation. Highly complex systems are needed by the replacement regional services with IT etc.
Seems to be good at batting away suggestions. At a fast pace.
Auckland councillor Penny Webster is alarmed that some controls should be put on dairies selling sugar laden food. …the suggestions were “totally overboard” and she would oppose them if they were put before the council.
Sour woman, don’t know what her spiel to get into Council was. It couldn’t have been to help the people with planning and action to have a healthy and happy community.
The idea is to act with plans to lobby for changes to the Resource Management Act to give councils the power to stop new dairies, convenience stores and takeaways being built, in the same way they can for alcohol outlets.
Sounds a good idea. Talk about supermarkets and garages also being lolly outlets is just a smokescreen, and a strawman argument. The dairies are local, common and easily accessed. Way back, on my way to Sunday School, I would spend my collection money on chocolate fish, so know about the sweet temptation! Also I have had a dairy and being near a school is being near a good customer source for sales, and also on the downside, for shop stealing.
Retail industry lobbies and spokespeople for dairy owners, often Indian, need to step back or else they will be viewed negatively. They already are seen often running liquor stores in poor areas, and making a living from selling goods with a health-destroying effect will not give them mana in the community, quite the opposite.
During the apartheid era various performers disgraced themselves by playing at Sun City.
Today, Israel offers a lucrative market for various musicians. Some people just play there and take the blood money; some declare their love for the repressive racist state and complain how it is misunderstood. The latest ratbag in this category is the airhead Lady Gaga.
Meanwhile Roger Waters, ex of Pink Floyd, maintains his integrity, calling on artists to turn down offers to play there.
Ron Why don’t you just say that you do like Israelis, no matter what nasty people say about them – like running over protesters with a bulldozer. Using massive force against puny protests etc. But perhaps you are amoral as they have chosen to be.
Well I do like Israelis, I have not meet any that I dislike. Unfortunately I cannot say the same for some of people of other countries that I have met.
Better put me on the list
Don’t like the Israeli government or their policies of apartheid, ethnic cleansing and lethal use of heavy military weapons on civilians. That’s quite different to “not liking Israelis.”
Israeli Apologist Vs Pro-Palestinian Celebs and near-Celebs (a little list I’ve been compiling)
(one or two, as you’ll see, are now deceased)
In no particular order
Israel Cheerleaders (includes everything from extensive outspoken support for Israel to explicit opposition to BDS to signing pro-Israeli petitions/advertisements – usually as PR exercises during one of Israel’s regular massacres in Gaza, the West Bank or Lebanon)
Serena Williams (US tennis champ)
Ellen DeGeneres (US comedian/talkshow host)
Samuel L Jackson (US actor)
Scarlett Johansson (US actress/model)
Lady Gaga (US musician)
Simon Cowell (UK record/tv producer/prominent Tory supporter)
Vanessa Williams (US singer/actress)
Howard Stern (US radio personality)
Sylvester Stallone (US actor)
Nicole Kidman (Aussie actress)
Dennis Hopper (US actor/prominent Republican)
Bruce Willis (US actor/Republican)
Danny De Vito and Rhea Perleman (US actors/couple)
Don Johnson (US actor)
James Wood (US actor/prominent Republican)
Charlie Daniels (US Country Music)
Bill Maher (US comedian/talkshow host)
Dionne Warwick (US singer)
Ashton Kutcher (talentless US actor)
Jesse Eisenberg (US actor)
Joan Rivers (US comedian)
Jon Voight (US actor/prominent Republican)
Mayim Bialik (US actress)
Justin Timberlake (UK singer)
Mark Pellegrino (US actor – Lost/Dexter)
Robert De Niro (US actor)
Kelly Preston (US actress)
William Hurt (US actor)
Danny Schuler (US musician – Biohazard)
Jackie Mason (US comedian)
Gene Simmons (remarkably talentless US musician)
Ridley Scott (US Director)
Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta Jones (US/UK actors/’power couple’)
Dick Donner (US Director)
Tony Scott (US Director)
Michael Mann (US Director)
Elton John (UK singer/drama queen)
Patricia Heaton (US actress)
Barbra Streisand (US actress/singer)
Gal Gadot (US actress)
Adam Baldwin (US actor)
Madonna (US singer)
Adam Sandler (talentless US actor/comedian)
Arnold Schwarzenegger (over-the-top US/Austrian actor/politician)
John Lydon (UK musician – Sex Pistols)
Chuck Norris (US actor)
Maureen Lipman (UK actress)
Sympathy for Palestinians/Gaza/BDS and explicit criticism of Israel
Nelson Mandela
Archbishop Desmond Tutu
Naomi Wolf (US author/political consultant)
Danny Glover (US actor)
Alice Walker (US writer/poet)
Roger Waters (UK musician – Pink Floyd)
Rihanna (US/Barbadian singer)
Alan Rickman (UK actor)
Mia Farrow (US actress)
Brian Eno (UK musician/producer/prominent LibDem)
Anthony Bourdain (US celebrity chef)
Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz (Spanish actors/’power couple’)
Rob Schneider (US actor/comedian)
Rosie O’Donnell (US actress/talkshow host)
John Cusack (US actor)
Selena Gomez (US actress/singer)
Stephen Hawking (UK leading Physicist)
Peter Gabriel (UK musician)
Bryan Adams (Canadian Singer)
Bobby Gillespie (Scots musician – Primal Scream)
William Dalrymple (UK journalist/historian)
David Morrissey (UK actor)
Maxine Peake (UK actress)
Alexei Sayle (UK comedian)
Mario Balotelli (Italian/Ghanaian Football player)
Whoopi Goldberg (US comedian/actress)
Dwight Howard (US NBA Basketballer)
Talib Kweli (US Hip Hop artist)
Joey Barton (UK Football)
Eddie Vedder (US singer – Pearl Jam)
Jarvis Cocker (UK musician – Pulp)
Sinead O’Connor (Irish singer/musician)
Zayn Malik (UK Boy Band singer)
Mark Ruffalo (US actor)
John Stewart (US – The Daily Show)
Wallace Shawn (US actor/playwright)
Jonathan Demme (US director)
Emma Thompson (UK actress)
Elvis Costello (UK musician)
Bella Freud (UK fashion designer)
Ken Loach (UK director/filmmaker)
Robert del Naja (UK musician – Massive Attack)
Jemima Khan (UK journalist/activist)
Will Self (UK writer)
Pedro Almodovar (Spanish director)
Hanif Kureishi (UK playwright/filmmaker)
Esther Freud (UK novelist)
Laura Bailey (UK actress)
Jeremy Hardy (UK comedian)
David Randall (UK music producer)
Boots Riley (US rapper/arts producer)
Chris Hedges (US journalist)
Kool A.D/Victor Vazquez (US musician)
Michael Ondaatje (Canadian writer)
Mike Leigh (UK writer/director)
Vanessa Redgrave (UK actress)
Christiano Ronaldo (Portuguese Football legend)
Lupe Fiasco (US Hip Hop)
Michael Radford (UK director/screenwriter)
Amare Stondemire (US NBA Basketballer)
Gianluigi Buffon (Italian footballer – Goalkeeper)
Dustin Hoffman (US actor)
Cynthia Nixon (US actress – Sex in the City)
Stephen Fry (UK actor/comedian)
Miriam Margolyes (UK actress)
Harold Pinter (UK playwright legend)
Jimmy McGovern (UK screenwriter)
Zoe Wanamaker (UK actress)
Jenny Diski (UK author)
Ben Elton (UK writer/comedian)
Susan Wooldridge (UK actress)
Patrick Neville (UK actor)
Tom Adams (US musician)
Andy de la Tour (UK actor/writer)
Mike Hodges (UK director/screenwriter)
Earl Okin (UK musician/comedian)
Hayley Carmichael (UK actress)
Reem Kelani (UK musician)
David Calder (UK actor)
Norma Cohen (UK actress)
Somaye Zadeh (UK singer/musician)
Pablo Navarette (director/producer)
Chris Thomas (UK director)
Laurie Penny (UK journalist)
Mark Thomas (UK comedian)
Kate Tempest (UK musician)
Robert Wyatt (UK musician)
Yeah, well I guess the SNP has, in its own way, become a kind of “celeb or near-celeb” since the Referendum/May Election. 🙂
That’s a pretty refreshing stance, akin to the position adopted by various Nordic Left-Socialist parties (and, to some extent, Germany’s Die Linke).
Starkly contrasting with Britain’s two major parties with their powerful Friends of Israel lobbies (although, it seems Labour started to make some – admittedly tentative and half-hearted – moves away from knee-jerk Israeli support under Ed Miliband – enough to upset Zionist erstwhile-Labour-supporters like Maureen Lipman).
That’s amazing list Swordfish. Whaleoil for NZ and there is a new company starting up. They have very fresh ideas in business in Israel, very go-ahead, eating and living for two states I suppose has that effect.
Without going through the list with a fine tooth comb but Dennis Hoppers been dead 5 years and Joan Rivers passed away last year I’d suggest your lists are a bit out of date
There is a Neolib view in New Zealand that restricting the DPB stops teenage pregnancies ( see Post comments by Andrew on Miteria Turei’s May guest blog on the ‘Daily Blog’)
This is counter to the international prevailing view that looks at other social issues such as young female wellbeing and rights ….contraception, supportive family , education and employment independence opportunities etc…better to address these issues than chauvinist female victim blaming and making children of the poor even more disadvantaged
“In developed countries, teenage pregnancies are often associated with social issues, including lower educational levels, higher rates of poverty, and other poorer life outcomes in children of teenage mothers. Teenage pregnancy in developed countries is usually outside of marriage, and carries a social stigma in many communities and cultures.[8] By contrast, teenage parents in developing countries are often married, and their pregnancies welcomed by family and society. However, in these societies, early pregnancy may combine with malnutrition and poor health care to cause medical problems.
Teenage pregnancies appear to be preventable by comprehensive sex education and access to birth control.[9] Abstinence-only sex education does not appear to be effective.[10]”
In countries where women have equality of opportunity and good contraception options they do not choose to have teenage pregnancies…this is a feminist issue , a human rights issue and also an overpopulation issue
“There is a Neolib view in New Zealand that restricting the DPB stops teenage pregnancies..”
Even if it did, it would be no justification for making children and their parents suffer financial and material hardship. But since ‘the left’ (I’m using that term loosely) has ceded the debate on just about every fucking thing these days, we ain’t going to hear how it’s simply decent for society to support those most in need of support as much as possible.
Vodafone is bad, but Spark is worse 😉 I stick with vodafone because the call centre is better. That I have to call the call centre that much to be able to tell is an indictment of the whole telecommunications industry in NZ.
More like Banksie’s wife got some mates to make up some extra evidence. If you have enough money, you can buy just about anything these days – well, unless the US government is after you.
NOW?
Pity all those gullible leftists who let their bullshit detecting faculties get completely disarmed by the hope that KDC might be able to do some real damage to JK didn’t realise that THEN.
Too late now. Three more years….
Just hope those of you who got taken for absolute dummies will remember this case next time you get tempted by a false messiah pandering to your ‘obsession with JK’ weak point.
So you were the mug who bought it were you?
Now you realise that you were stupid to do so you are trying to palm it off on some other sucker. I doubt you will find anyone though who is quite as credulous as you were though.
Cue a post and one thousand comment thread about judicial corruption. What with centre-right governments being elected around the world the left can’t take a trick at the moment.
John Banks gets off, wipes egg from face, and denies it was ever there. Proceeds to fowlhouse for further feathered foolhardy, furtive and futile fandangos.
Todays the private sector can’t do it better than a collective comment.
Have a wee look at the phone book. I know you probably don’t – but at work yesterday we lost the internet – and, well, we tried using a phone book. It became a nightmare of epic proportions.
Try finding a government department – or anything which is community based. Ministry of health. And you local community centre.
Now that has probably frustrated you no end – think back before a private company got hold of it and it was privatised.
Just heard john key reiterate that there is no housing crisis in Auckland, and Andrew Little say there is one.
Why then has no one asked john Key what symptoms would be present in his opinion he would see for him to acknowledge that there is a crisis.
What is IOM – Part of United Nations Alliance of Civilisations http://www.unaoc.org/ibis/about/who-we-are-international-organization-for-migrations/ The IOM believes about half a dozen boats remain at sea, some close to shore. Mr. Lowry likened the search for the vessels that are further out to “looking for specific needles in a giant haystack,” and says a much greater search and rescue effort from the region’s governments is needed.
Food has been dropped to some by Thai helicopter. Indonesia is also offering help.
What is New Zealand doing to help its trading partner and Pacific neighbour Indenesia.
Two days ago – http://edition.cnn.com/2015/05/15/asia/thailand-malaysia-rohingya-refugees/
The Thai govt is cracking down on smugglers. This boat had called into Malaysia which had provided water and food and sent it off. It broke down off Thailand, but after the engine was fixed, and food and water given it went back to Malaysia. An observer says it is like a game of ping-pong. And many boats have been abandoned by the smugglers because they have not been able to offload their passengers and are afraid for their own safety.
We need to help these truly helpless If not – The shame is on all of us. The USA military budget is $600 billion, Australian $32 B. The matter is widely reported by media from wealthy nations.
I did a google search –
What aid offered to Myanmar boat people by Red Cross
Red Cross have nothing up about these people, last is Nepal.
Then World Vision below
Then Oxfam – they have been working in Myanmar, but the boats no.
World Vision – a summary of the problemMyanmar’s Rohingya minority adrift with little aid
As many as 120,000 members of the Rohingya ethnic and religious group have fled Myanmar and Bangladesh by sea in the past three years. Now, about 8,000 of them are stranded in boats in the Andaman sea, having been abandoned by their traffickers as a result of crackdowns on international trafficking. Boatloads of Rohingya that have been left adrift without food and water are now being turned away by Thai, Malaysian, and Indonesian authorities. About 1.3 million Rohingya have lived for generations in Myanmar’s Rakhine state, but are not counted among its citizens. The Rohingya have long suffered displacement, abuse, and extreme poverty.
Google headings – The Guardian –
Burma’s boatpeople ‘faced choice of annihilation
also
5 days ago – With up to 8000 desperate people – Rohingya Muslims from Burma and … leaving an estimated 6,000 refugees to fend for themselves, according to reliable aid .
USNews –
500 people on a boat found Wednesday off northern Penang state were given …
Yahoo –
Southeast Asia for years tried to quietly ignore the plight of Myanmar’s 1.3 million …
independent.co.uk –
Southeast Asia for years tried to quietly ignore the plight of Myanmar’s 1.3 million …
phuketwan –
Nations Must Speedily Aid Desperate Boatpeople, Says Rights Group … to work together to rescue these desperate people and offer them humanitarian aid, help in … ”The world will judge these governments by how they treat these most …
msn news –
4 days ago – More than 1,600 migrants and refugees from Myanmar and Bangladesh have…
trust –
Jeffrey Savage, who works for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees … boats for the next 20 days and given only small amounts of food and water.
jakartapost –
Australia’s slashing of foreign aid by almost Aus$1.0 billion (US$800 million) will hurt the most .
thedailybeast –
4 days ago – BANGKOK—As boatloads of stateless Rohingya people and other migrants drift off the … 8,000 boat people seeking to land somewhere—anywhere—as they struggle with a ..
Rohingya Blogger http://www.rohingyablogger.com/
6 hours ago – The price of living in a world of rules and norms widely shared is that you do not get … Malaysia prodded Myanmar on Sunday to halt the exodus from its shores as ..
Can AsEAN help in its own territory? NON-INTERVENTION PRINCIPLE
At the core of ASEAN’s inaction is its principle of non-interference in internal political affairs of its member states, observers said.
“There is a lot of sensitivity, a lot of prejudices and a lot of mutual suspicion that make it difficult for any entity to do something about this situation,” Surin said.
The U.N. has said the deadly pattern of migration across the Bay of Bengal would continue unless Myanmar ends discrimination against the Rohingya.
Most of Myanmar’s 1.1 million Rohingya are stateless and live in apartheid-like conditions. Almost 140,000 were displaced in clashes with ethnic Rakhine Buddhists in 2012.
Is the UN going to wait till talks on May 29 which Myanmar says it will not attend if the word Rohingya is mentioned! Can people live on air and hope? Is this a time to put aside regional thoughts and make it an all-world crisis and do the blaming and reproaching later!!
Recent http://blogs.wsj.com/briefly/2015/05/18/indonesias-boat-people-the-numbers/
After this is over it might be that we should look at helping Muslim Aid as a counter to so much of the destruction and violence that they are suffering. It might help in the healing that hopefully would come soon. Muslim Aid
The USA military budget is $600 billion, Australian $32 B.
This is a statement from somebody who doesn’t understand economics. Economics isn’t about money but about resources and we’re running out of them.
There’s also the point that, no matter how much money was spent on militaries around the world, almost none of those resources would help the people on the boats even if they hadn’t left their homeland. You cannot eat or drink steel.
You can’t say that if we just spent the money here rather than there and everything will be fixed because of the difference between what resources are being used and what resources are needed to bring about the change you desire.
What are you on about DTB. You’re making an argument out of a mud pie.
If countries can afford to spend on war to that extent then they can find the machinmery to fly or sail to help those people. They can find a bit in a corner of their extensive budgets to pay for water food and humanitarian aid. Don’t make a blockbuster drama out of a very simple premise.
Stop being so objective too, when people are hurting. They don’t want your considered opinion on the cost benefit of helping them, or care whether you care or not, just as long as you don’t stop other people from paying attnetion to their plight which was what my bloody comment was about.
I’ve taken the leap and joined twitter. So if you really, really need to know two minutes ahead of time that I’m about to put up a post, this is the place for you:
Any PR/media consultants/publicists with the inside goss to share are welcome to send it to me as well. No promises that it’ll make it into the Standard though; my bullshit detector is finely tuned.
Labour Party in England is repeating the exact same mistake as in the last leader selection: only Oxbridge graduates who subsequently became “Special Advisers” are entered into the race.
Andy Burnham: English, Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge.
Yvette Cooper: PPE, Balliol College, Oxford.
Mary Creagh:Languages, Pembroke College, Oxford.
Liz Kendall: History, Queen’s College, Cambridge.
Tristram Julian William Hunt: History, Trinity College, Cambridge.
As long as they continue to draw from this small clique they will continue to be loosers.
In contract the SNP intake is remarkably representative of broad society.
Pretty much the same issue here. Caused in no small part by the destruction of the trade union movement and Labours natural leaders. Of course Andrew Little at least has a union background and a strong understanding of workers issues. Unfortunately the union movement in this country is predominantly led by academics and they are appointed rather than elected, albeit they are in all probability good people with sound humanitarian values, but I would doubt that any of them would have ever lined up in the dole queue waiting to see their case officer or boned a quarter of beef or sweated over a cheese vat or polished a lino floor 40 hours a week.
With respect I think you’d find that many people with academic qualifications, especially older ones have in their student days.done the sorts of jobs that you mention.
and your point is? Roger Douglas was a pig farmer once.
I wasn’t trying to be disingenuous as I think their hearts and intentions are noble and some of them could have (had) high paying positions utilising their qualifications in other vocations.
But I wonder if they have the passion, understanding and desire to lead those who perform those jobs their entire working lives? Douglas didn’t.
Oh well I hope I’m wrong.
My point about Oxbridge, SPADs and the small elite which had control of the English Labour Party.
There are 109 universities in the current UK. There is an additional 133 Higher Education Institutes that don’t use the term university. The great prosperity bestowed (another story) on “Oxbridge” was and is marvellous. I don’t begrudge them their history and their current standing as two great places of learning, research and thought leadership.
When the five contestants for Labour leadership in 2010 and the five in 2015 all come from a tiny section of society there is a systemic problem.
No argument from me Northsider. I’m with you on this one.
My 25.1.1.2 was a response to 25.1.1.
Seems to me that Labour here and the UK need a broader mix of people standing for public office and a reconnection with communities and their real needs. Ain’t necessarily enough to simply ask about & attempt to resolve there issues, but more about having as their representatives those people themselves. Not really convinced that Grant is capable of representing the financial views of labour simply because he picked a few apples during the summer break.
I’ve no issue with an individual Oxbridge grad and spad becoming a Labour MP. I’ve no issue with an individual rolling down the hill from Victoria to a back office role in a political office and then onto becoming an MP.
When a powerful group at HQ all have the same career profile then there is a systemic problem. Robertson, Ardern, Faafoi in Labour and many in the Nats have these narrow profiles.
The public hear similar mechanical messaging styles.
The public turn off.
In the 1970s UK Labour had a third of its MPs come from labouring and manual work backgrounds, including a couple of dozen MPs who were former coal miners. The unions frequently sponsored workers from within their own ranks to run as candidates in electorates.
Today, Labour all around the world are professional middle class and upper middle class politicians: former student politicians, former Parliamentary staffers, former academics and policy wonks, PhDs and upper middle class professionals.
Labour thinks that it represents the best interests of almost all NZers; sadly only about one in five voters agreed.
When a powerful group at HQ all have the same career profile then there is a systemic problem. Robertson, Ardern, Faafoi in Labour and many in the Nats have these narrow profiles.
Yep. Hipkins. It’s a self perpetuating systemic issue with Labour now, as you infer.
Peter Dunne writes – The great nineteenth British Prime Minister, William Gladstone, once observed that “the first essential for a Prime Minister is to be a good butcher.” When a later British Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan, sacked a third of his Cabinet in July 1962, in what became ...
Ele Ludemann writes – New Zealanders had the OECD’s second highest tax increase last year: New Zealanders faced the second-biggest tax raises in the developed world last year, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) says. The intergovernmental agency said the average change in personal income tax ...
We all know something’s not right with our elections. The spread of misinformation, people being targeted with soundbites and emotional triggers that ignore the facts, even the truth, and influence their votes.The use of technology to produce deep fakes. How can you tell if something is real or not? Can ...
This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Simon Clark. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). This year you will be lied to! Simon Clark helps prebunk some misleading statements you'll hear about climate. The video includes ...
It is all very well cutting the backrooms of public agencies but it may compromise the frontlines. One of the frustrations of the Productivity Commission’s 2017 review of universities is that while it observed that their non-academic staff were increasing faster than their academic staff, it did not bother to ...
Buzz from the Beehive Two speeches delivered by Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters at Anzac Day ceremonies in Turkey are the only new posts on the government’s official website since the PM announced his Cabinet shake-up. In one of the speeches, Peters stated the obvious: we live in a troubled ...
1. Which of these would you not expect to read in The Waikato Invader?a. Luxon is here to do business, don’t you worry about thatb. Mr KPI expects results, and you better believe itc. This decisive man of action is getting me all hot and excitedd. Melissa Lee is how ...
…it has a restricted jurisdiction which must not be abused: it is not an inquisitionNOTE – this article was published before the High Court ruled that Karen Chhour does not have to appear before the Waitangi Tribunal Gary Judd writes – The High Court ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – One of reasons Oranga Tamariki exists is to prevent child neglect. But could the organisation itself be guilty of the same?Oranga Tamariki’s statistics show a decrease in the number and age of children in care. “There are less children ...
David Farrar writes: Graeme Edgeler wrote in 2017: In the first five years after three strikes came into effect 5248 offenders received a ‘first strike’ (that is, a “stage-1 conviction” under the three strikes sentencing regime), and 68 offenders received a ‘second strike’. In the five years prior to ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has surprised everyone with his ruthlessness in sacking two of his ministers from their crucial portfolios. Removing ministers for poor performance after only five months in the job just doesn’t normally happen in politics. That’s refreshing and will be extremely ...
TL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the two days to 6:06am on Thursday, April 25:Politics: PM Christopher Luxon has set up a dual standard for ministerial competence by demoting two National Cabinet ministers while leaving also-struggling ...
Hi,Today I mainly want to share some of your thoughts about the recent piece I wrote about success and failure, and the forces that seemingly guide our lives. But first, a quick bit of housekeeping: I am doing a Webworm popup in Los Angeles on Saturday May 11 at 2pm. ...
It is hard to see what Melissa Lee might have done to “save” the media. National went into the election with no public media policy and appears not to have developed one subsequently. Lee claimed that she had prepared a policy paper before the election but it had been decided ...
Open access notablesIce acceleration and rotation in the Greenland Ice Sheet interior in recent decades, Løkkegaard et al., Communications Earth & Environment:In the past two decades, mass loss from the Greenland ice sheet has accelerated, partly due to the speedup of glaciers. However, uncertainty in speed derived from satellite products ...
Buzz from the Beehive A statement from Children’s Minister Karen Chhour – yet to be posted on the Government’s official website – arrived in Point of Order’s email in-tray last night. It welcomes the High Court ruling on whether the Waitangi Tribunal can demand she appear before it. It does ...
Mr Bombastic:Ironically, the media the academic experts wanted is, in many ways, the media they got. In place of the tyrannical editors of yesteryear, advancing without fear or favour the interests of the ruling class; the New Zealand news media of today boasts a troop of enlightened journalists dedicated to ...
It's hard times try to make a livingYou wake up every morning in the unforgivingOut there somewhere in the cityThere's people living lives without mercy or pityI feel good, yeah I'm feeling fineI feel better then I have for the longest timeI think these pills have been good for meI ...
In 1974, the US Supreme Court issued its decision in United States v. Nixon, finding that the President was not a King, but was subject to the law and was required to turn over the evidence of his wrongdoing to the courts. It was a landmark decision for the rule ...
Every day now just seems to bring in more fresh meat for the grinder.In their relentlessly ideological drive to cut back on the “excessive bloat” (as they see it) of the previous Labour-led government, on the mountains of evidence accumulated in such a short period of time do not ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Megan Valére SosouMarket gardening site of the Itchèléré de Itagui agricultural cooperative in Dassa-Zoumè (Image credit: Megan Valère Sossou) For the residents of Dassa-Zoumè, a city in the West African country of Benin, choosing between drinking water and having enough ...
Buzz from the Beehive Melissa Lee – as may be discerned from the screenshot above – has not been demoted for doing something seriously wrong as Minister of ...
Morning in London Mother hugs beloved daughter outside the converted shoe factory in which she is living.Afternoon in London Travelling writer takes himself and his wrist down to A&E, just to be sure. Read more ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – The recent announcement of the University Advisory Group, chaired by Sir Peter Gluckman, makes very clear where the Government’s focus and priorities lie. The remit of the Advisory Group is that Group members will consider challenges and opportunities for improvement in the university sector including: ...
Eric Crampton writes – The Reserve Bank of New Zealand desperately wants to find reasons to have workstreams in climate change. It makes little sense. They’ve run another stress test on the banks looking to see if they could find a prudential regulation case. They couldn’t. They ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Pundits from the left and the right are arguing that National’s Fast Track Bill that is designed to speed up infrastructure decisions could end up becoming mired in a cesspool of corruption. Political commentator ...
Looking at the headlines this morning it’s hard to feel anything other than pessimistic about the future of humanity.Note that I’m not speaking about the future of mankind, but the survival of our humanity. The values that we believe in seem to be ebbing away, by the day.Perhaps every generation ...
Swabbing mixed breed baby chicks to test for avian influenzaUh oh. Bird flu – often deadly to humans – is not only being transmitted from infected birds to dairy cows, but is now travelling between dairy cows. As of last Friday, Bloomberg News reports, there were 32 American dairy herds ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
What is it with the mining industry? Its not enough for them to pillage the earth - they apparently can't even be bothered getting resource consent to do so: The proponent behind a major mine near the Clutha River had already been undertaking activity in the area without a ...
Photo # 1 I am a huge fan of Singapore’s approach to housing, as described here two years ago by copying and pasting from The ConversationWhat Singapore has that Australia does not is a public housing developer, the Housing Development Board, which puts new dwellings on public and reclaimed land, ...
Buzz from the Beehive Reactions to news of the government’s readiness to make urgent changes to “the resource management system” through a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) suggest a balanced approach is being taken. The Taxpayers’ Union says the proposed changes don’t go far enough. Greenpeace says ...
I’m starting to wonder if Anna Burns-Francis might be the best political interviewer we’ve got. That might sound unlikely to you, it came as a bit of a surprise to me.Jack Tame can be excellent, but has some pretty average days. I like Rebecca Wright on Newshub, she asks good ...
Chris Trotter writes – Willie Jackson is said to be planning a “media summit” to discuss “the state of the media and how to protect Fourth Estate Journalism”. Not only does the Editor of The Daily Blog, Martyn Bradbury, think this is a good idea, but he has also ...
Graeme Edgeler writes – This morning [April 21], the Wellington High Court is hearing a judicial review brought by Hon. Karen Chhour, the Minister for Children, against a decision of the Waitangi Tribunal. This is unusual, judicial reviews are much more likely to brought against ministers, rather than ...
Both of Parliament’s watchdogs have now ripped into the Government’s Fast-track Approvals Bill. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMy pick of the six newsey things to know from Aotearoa’s political economy and beyond on the morning of Tuesday, April 23 are:The Lead: The Auditor General,John Ryan, has joined the ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Sarah SpengemanPeople wait to board an electric bus in Pune, India. (Image credit: courtesy of ITDP) Public transportation riders in Pune, India, love the city’s new electric buses so much they will actually skip an older diesel bus that ...
The infrastructure industry yesterday issued a “hurry up” message to the Government, telling it to get cracking on developing a pipeline of infrastructure projects.The hiatus around the change of Government has seen some major projects cancelled and others delayed, and there is uncertainty about what will happen with the new ...
Hi,Over the weekend I revisited a podcast I really adore, Dead Eyes. It’s about a guy who got fired from Band of Brothers over two decades ago because Tom Hanks said he had “dead eyes”.If you don’t recall — 2001’s Band of Brothers was part of the emerging trend of ...
Buzz from the Beehive The 180 or so recipients of letters from the Government telling them how to submit infrastructure projects for “fast track” consideration includes some whose project applications previously have been rejected by the courts. News media were quick to feature these in their reports after RMA Reform Minister Chris ...
It would not be a desirable way to start your holiday by breaking your back, your head, or your wrist, but on our first hour in Singapore I gave it a try.We were chatting, last week, before we started a meeting of Hazel’s Enviro Trust, about the things that can ...
Calling all journalists, academics, planners, lawyers, political activists, environmentalists, and other members of the public who believe that the relationships between vested interests and politicians need to be scrutinised. We need to work together to make sure that the new Fast-Track Approvals Bill – currently being pushed through by the ...
Feel worried. Shane Jones and a couple of his Cabinet colleagues are about to be granted the power to override any and all objections to projects like dams, mines, roads etc even if: said projects will harm biodiversity, increase global warming and cause other environmental harms, and even if ...
Bryce Edwards writes- The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. ...
Michael Bassett writes – If you think there is a move afoot by the radical Maori fringe of New Zealand society to create a parallel system of government to the one that we elect at our triennial elections, you aren’t wrong. Over the last few days we have ...
Without a corresponding drop in interest rates, it’s doubtful any changes to the CCCFA will unleash a massive rush of home buyers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The six things that stood out to me in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, poverty and climate on Monday, April 22 included:The Government making a ...
Sunday was a lazy day. I started watching Jack Tame on Q&A, the interviews are usually good for something to write about. Saying the things that the politicians won’t, but are quite possibly thinking. Things that are true and need to be extracted from between the lines.As you might know ...
In our Weekly Roundup last week we covered news from Auckland Transport that the WX1 Western Express is going to get an upgrade next year with double decker electric buses. As part of the announcement, AT also said “Since we introduced the WX1 Western Express last November we have seen ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 29 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. Stats NZ releases its statutory report on Census 2023 tomorrow.Finance Minister Nicola Willis delivers a pre-Budget speech at ...
A listing of 29 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 14, 2024 thru Sat, April 20, 2024. Story of the week Our story of the week hinges on these words from the abstract of a fresh academic ...
The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. The Government says this will ...
This is a column to say thank you. So many of have been in touch since Mum died to say so many kind and thoughtful things. You’re wonderful, all of you. You’ve asked how we’re doing, how Dad’s doing. A little more realisation each day, of the irretrievable finality of ...
Identifying the engine type in your car is crucial for various reasons, including maintenance, repairs, and performance upgrades. Knowing the specific engine model allows you to access detailed technical information, locate compatible parts, and make informed decisions about modifications. This comprehensive guide will provide you with a step-by-step approach to ...
Introduction: The allure of racing is undeniable. The thrill of speed, the roar of engines, and the exhilaration of competition all contribute to the allure of this adrenaline-driven sport. For those who yearn to experience the pinnacle of racing, becoming a race car driver is the ultimate dream. However, the ...
Introduction Automobiles have become ubiquitous in modern society, serving as a primary mode of transportation and a symbol of economic growth and personal mobility. With countless vehicles traversing roads and highways worldwide, it begs the question: how many cars are there in the world? Determining the precise number is a ...
Maintaining a safe and reliable vehicle requires regular inspections. Whether it’s a routine maintenance checkup or a safety inspection, knowing how long the process will take can help you plan your day accordingly. This article delves into the factors that influence the duration of a car inspection and provides an ...
Mazda Motor Corporation, commonly known as Mazda, is a Japanese multinational automaker headquartered in Fuchu, Aki District, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. The company was founded in 1920 as the Toyo Cork Kogyo Co., Ltd., and began producing vehicles in 1931. Mazda is primarily known for its production of passenger cars, but ...
Your car battery is an essential component that provides power to start your engine, operate your electrical systems, and store energy. Over time, batteries can weaken and lose their ability to hold a charge, which can lead to starting problems, power failures, and other issues. Replacing your battery before it ...
In most states, you cannot register a car without a valid driver’s license. However, there are a few exceptions to this rule. Exceptions to the RuleIf you are under 18 years old: In some states, you can register a car in your name even if you do not ...
Mazda, a Japanese automotive manufacturer with a rich history of innovation and engineering excellence, has emerged as a formidable player in the global car market. Known for its reputation of producing high-quality, fuel-efficient, and driver-oriented vehicles, Mazda has consistently garnered praise from industry experts and consumers alike. In this article, ...
Struts are an essential part of a car’s suspension system. They are responsible for supporting the weight of the car and damping the oscillations of the springs. Struts are typically made of steel or aluminum and are filled with hydraulic fluid. How Do Struts Work? Struts work by transferring the ...
Car registration is a mandatory process that all vehicle owners must complete annually. This process involves registering your car with the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and paying an associated fee. The registration process ensures that your vehicle is properly licensed and insured, and helps law enforcement and other authorities ...
Zoom is a video conferencing service that allows you to share your screen, webcam, and audio with other participants. In addition to sharing your own audio, you can also share the audio from your computer with other participants. This can be useful for playing music, sharing presentations with audio, or ...
Building your own computer can be a rewarding and cost-effective way to get a high-performance machine tailored to your specific needs. However, it also requires careful planning and execution, and one of the most important factors to consider is the time it will take. The exact time it takes to ...
Sleep mode is a power-saving state that allows your computer to quickly resume operation without having to boot up from scratch. This can be useful if you need to step away from your computer for a short period of time but don’t want to shut it down completely. There are ...
Introduction Computer-Assisted Translation (CAT) has revolutionized the field of translation by harnessing the power of technology to assist human translators in their work. This innovative approach combines specialized software with human expertise to improve the efficiency, accuracy, and consistency of translations. In this comprehensive article, we will delve into the ...
In today’s digital age, mobile devices have become an indispensable part of our daily lives. Among the vast array of portable computing options available, iPads and tablet computers stand out as two prominent contenders. While both offer similar functionalities, there are subtle yet significant differences between these two devices. This ...
A computer is an electronic device that can be programmed to carry out a set of instructions. The basic components of a computer are the processor, memory, storage, input devices, and output devices. The Processor The processor, also known as the central processing unit (CPU), is the brain of the ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi, and Mema Paremata mō Tāmaki-Makaurau, Takutai Tarsh Kemp, will travel to the Gold Coast to strengthen ties with Māori in Australia next week (15-21 April). The visit, in the lead-up to the 9th Australian National Kapa haka Festival, will be an opportunity for both ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
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. ...
Hundreds of New Zealand families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) will benefit from a new Government focus on prevention and treatment, says Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. “We know FASD is a leading cause of preventable intellectual and neurodevelopmental disability in New Zealand,” Dr Reti says. “Every day, ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges. “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order. “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions. “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today. “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale. “It is good ...
The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
“China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
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 ...
Tara Ward talks to presenter Naomi Toilalo about the new TV show that turns food waste into a three course feast. Naomi Toilalo is standing in the warehouse at Good Neighbour Tauranga, helping unpack the two-and-a-half tonnes of rejected food that will arrive at the community support hub that day. ...
Scout is our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our What’s Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Scout’s human, Avril, for her support. Dog name: Scout (named after the little girl in To Kill a Mockingbird – she inherited the independent spirit ...
Megan Alatini takes us through her life in TV, including ‘terrible’ daytime TV, the class of Carol Hirschfeld and her most embarrassing TrueBliss moment. When she responded to a vague newspaper ad asking “do you have what it takes to be a popstar?” 25 years ago, Megan Alatini never guessed ...
A new exhibition in Wellington showcases the faces behind your local goods and services. Back in 1977, when I was a fine arts student at the University of Canterbury, I took a series of photographs of Christchurch shopkeepers. The photos were for a calendar – a project for my end ...
Toomaj and his resistance to tyranny through his songs have become an icon for the youth of Iran, so his sentence has hit the nation hard. Toomaj Salehi is not the first artist to pay the price for standing with the people. ...
My cousin Dylan and I spotted these big eels under the bridge that summer. We watched them lounging under the dark weed, facing into the flow of water, their mouths frozen open. Dylan and I couldn’t stop thinking about those eels. The night we went down to the creek, we ...
Newsroom, home of satire. My long-running weekly satirical series The Secret Diary has moved to Newsroom and will appear every Saturday, with Victor Billot’s wildly popular satirical Odes continuing to appear every Sunday. Diaries, Odes – while serious political columnists toil at meaningful opinions and stroke their chins to an ...
Tara Ward unravels the many nuanced layers of a cartoon about talking dogs.This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. It’s not often an episode of a children’s cartoon has adults sobbing into their sleeves, but that’s exactly what happened this week when ...
Working as a doctor in developing countries to help communities achieve better health outcomes is nothing short of a life goal for Jessica Tater. The University of Otago medical student has her sights firmly set on joining the international humanitarian organisation Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) when she qualifies ...
There’s an island in the far reaches of Auckland’s territory, sitting off the tip of the Coromandel Peninsula, 30 minutes by air from the city or four hours on the slow boat. Aotea Great Barrier is off-grid, it has a population of fewer than a thousand people … and most ...
Asia Pacific Report An Australian author and advocate, Jim Aubrey, today led a national symbolic one minute’s silence to mark the “blood debt” owed to Papuan allies during the Second World War indigenous resistance against the invading Japanese forces. “A promise to most people is a promise,” Aubrey said in ...
Asia Pacific Report The Freedom Flotilla is ready to sail to Gaza, reports Kia Ora Gaza. All the required paperwork has been submitted to the port authority, and the cargo has been loaded and prepared for the humanitarian trip to the besieged enclave. However, organisers received word of an “administrative ...
Pacific Media Watch Palestine solidarity protesters today demonstrated at the Auckland headquarters of Television New Zealand, accusing the country’s major TV network of broadcasting “propaganda” backing Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza. About 50 protesters targeted the main entrance to the TVNZ building near Sky Tower and also picketed a side ...
Opinion by Lynley Hood. Forty years on from my 1985 Fulbright Grant, my disquiet over the war in Gaza evoked some troubling questions. The answer to my first question – What is the primary purpose of the Fulbright Programme? – was on the Fulbright NZ website. It says: US Senator, ...
The ministers responsible for green-lighting major projects need to be open about potential conflicts of interest, says Transparency International. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Powell, Professor, Family and Sexual Violence, RMIT University It has been a particularly distressing start to the year. There is little that can ease the current grief of individuals, families and communities who have needlessly lost a loved one to men’s ...
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Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Whiteford, Professor, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University The government’s Economic Inclusion Advisory Committee has just published its second report. It was set up by Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth in 2022 to provide: ...
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Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Naeni, PhD candidate at Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation, Deakin University There’s been much talk in recent months about what a possible second Donald Trump presidency in the United States could mean for Europe, Russia’s war in Ukraine, the ...
A brief round-up of submissions on the controversial proposed law. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week, submissions on the controversial Fast-track Approvals Bill closed just hours after the government released a list of stakeholder organisations who were sent letters advising how they could ...
A poem from Robin Peace’s new collection Detritus of Empire: feather / grass / rock. Cereal giving I see a woman’s hands, see her curious hands break a stalk as she walks through the tall prairie, the savannah, the steppe, wherever it was. See her idly bite the grass that ...
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)A handsomely produced (debossed cover, lovely ...
The Commissioner's decision validates the longstanding efforts of the local community and ensures that Awataha Marae will be managed to serve the needs of the local community, particularly for hosting tangihanga. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tristan Salles, Associate professor, University of Sydney Examples of Australian landscapes.Unsplash Seventy thousand years ago, the sea level was much lower than today. Australia, along with New Guinea and Tasmania, formed a connected landmass known as Sahul. Around this time – ...
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Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Ryan, Teaching Fellow in Economics, University of Waikato GettyImagesfatido/Getty Images There is an ongoing global debate over whether the high inflation seen in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic can be lowered without a recession. New Zealand is not ...
The ‘Wicked Game’ heartthrob is in his late 60s now. That didn’t stop him putting on a lively, goofy and very sparkly show. Apart from ‘Wicked Game’, which graces a sultry playlist of mine simply called 💋, my last sustained Chris Isaak listening session took place when I was about ...
Analysis - Two ministers were stripped of portfolios in a warning to Cabinet, drama broke out at the Waitangi Tribunal, and the gang patch ban bill ran into opposition. ...
Tara Ward makes an impassioned plea for some vital pop culture merch. In April 1999, I became obsessed with a new reality television show called Popstars. Every Tuesday night, five strangers transformed into music royalty before my very eyes as Joe, Keri, Carly, Erika and Megan were chosen to form ...
PNG Post-Courier In the early hours of ANZAC Day, aerial photographs captured an impressive gathering of Australians and Papua New Guineans at Isurava in the Northern (Oro) Province. The solemn dawn service yesterday was held at a site steeped in history, where some of the fiercest battles of World War ...
The PSA is shocked that Oranga Tamariki has used the cost cutting drive to downgrade its commitment to Te Ao Māori and remove many specialist Māori roles. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Kemish, Adjunct Professor, School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry, The University of Queensland There can be no more powerful symbol of the relationship between Australia and Papua New Guinea than the prime ministers of these neighbouring countries walking together on the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sharon Robinson, Distinguished Professor and Deputy Director of ARC Securing Antarctica’s Environmental Future (SAEF), University of Wollongong, University of Wollongong Andrew Netherwood Over the last 25 years, the ozone hole which forming over Antarctica each spring has started to shrink. ...
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Wondering where to host your next BYO? Whether its a small gathering or a massive party, we’ve got some recommendations. I was first introduced to the concept of BYOs at Dunedin’s India Gardens, a legendary but sadly defunct establishment, which purveyed enormous quantities of mango chicken to Aotearoa’s drunkest future ...
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The sector says it’s hopeful her replacement Paul Goldsmith will be able to throw it a lifeline, after six months with a minister deemed missing in action, 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 ...
The government can't just rely on axing public sector jobs and has to do more to cut spending, says the chief economist at a free market think tank. ...
Rock The Vote NZ, known for its advocacy for minor party unity and its role within the Freedoms NZ Coalition during the 2023 General Election, celebrates this merger as a strategic enhancement of its operational strength and outreach. ...
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Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards, Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has surprised everyone with his ruthlessness in sacking two of his ministers from their crucial portfolios. Removing ministers for poor performance after only five months in the job just doesn’t normally happen in ...
Further evidence of a society in disarray.
The selfish neo-liberal approach is damaging the social structure.
Don’t expect the Herald to make the link between an economic system and such consequences, though.
However the Spirit Level has the research to prove it.
‘New research has found that New Zealanders are losing touch with their neighbours – and it’s affecting our wellbeing.
In the recently released results of the Sovereign Wellness Index, New Zealand trailed behind other countries when it came social connections and community, with our neighbourly relations particularly lacking.
“We came last when compared to 29 European countries that deployed the same survey, which is not only a disappointing result but, when compared to the first Sovereign Wellbeing Index in 2013, it shows no improvement,” said Grant Schofield professor of public health at AUT University, who led the research.’
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/news/article.cfm?c_id=6&objectid=11450741
http://www.equalitytrust.org.uk/resources/spirit-level
I’ve been watching “Someone else’s country” again. In a general way you see the machinery at work during the 80’s/90’s that began to transform our society from a collective and cohesive one to a self serving and socially isolating one.
It’s certainly not in our imaginations that this transition occurred. The theorist, Uri Bronfenbrenner, who studied Human Development came up with his well known Ecological Theory to illustrate the impact of systems, including political systems upon the development of the individual. The political system exists within the Chronosystem. See handy chart below:
http://cicsworld.centerforics.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/02061.jpeg
On the development where I live it’s all too easy to see the effect of community cohesion break down. It’s on the outer perimeter of existing suburbs, people are reliant of cars despite a good bus service, and very few residents have put any effort into creating gardens in the neighbourhood. There appears to be no connection to nature or one another.
To try and combat this sense of alienation I joined neighbourly.co.nz in an attempt to get people talking and break the ice. (The founder of that website is quoted in the Herald article) Twice I advertised an an afternoon tea at our place to discuss community resilience and response during an emergency, to be hosted by my husband whose a civil defence volunteer. Not one response from the 100+ members on the site. Twice I advertised an all ages kite flying day, a get to know your neighbours thing and once again, not one response.
It’s really quite depressing living here, but it’s what you do when you can’t afford to live in the established neighbourhoods closer to town.
Interestingly it’s those neighbourhoods that appear to be going from strength to strength with their efforts to improve social cohesion. There are many reports in the local papers about all the events they put on and their community building activities.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see more fracturing of social cohesion as we continue to sprawl out into former farmlands and as we move further away from our formerly collective and caring society. It can’t be denied that this is political in its origin.
The dismantling of the “awards” system for purposes of workplace bargaining along with disestablishing compulsory unionism should not be underestimated as to why there is less social cohesion in NZ society today. We have been forced into believing the neo liberal framing of the narrative that individual responsibility is saintly and collectivism & the concept of team work only works when it is controlled by the privileged and powerful for the benefits of capital.
I wouldn’t be surprised if a link existed between the politically motivated promotion of individualism in the workplace, the loss of widespread Union membership and diminishing social cohesion. – solidarity and collective strength is something that spreads beyond the walls of the workplace and into people’s consciousness.
You lose those bonds and surely that weakens the community as a whole. Think of the lock outs and strikes of the pre 1990 ECA era and how neighbours and sometimes local businesses rallied around to support the workers.
There are many contributing factors though and we are a long way now, from where we used to be.
The problem with the mass developments, like the one I live on, is often they’re out of sight out of mind, they’re new and not part of the culture of the region or city and all the more isolated because of it. It’s made worse by the fact that they often don’t have any amenities (shops etc) and no recreational facilities so there is no gathering place, something once so crucial to human socialising.
Thanks Rosie, I think you are 100% correct. I recall attending union meetings where the topic of conversation wasn’t solely focused on pay & conditions. Large work places were especially fertile ground for wider social issue type conversations. Where else could a large group of working people come together and share their thoughts and points of view on topics as diverse as social welfare benefits ( for freezing workers whose work was seasonal this was important – still is -) or the Vietnam war ( the recent deployment of troops to the Middle East makes that conversation as meaningful today as it was back in the 60’s & 70’s ).
The white apartheid regime in South Africa, especially when the All Blacks were due to tour was a hot topic that divided loyalties but raised consciousness levels of the many who supported tours, albeit begrudgingly and often with the exchange of more than a few words!
Of course it wasn’t all beer & skittles. People were shouted down. The loudest voice was sometimes the only one heard, while others were handier with their tongues then their mitts. But it was all part of the growing pains of a new and growing nation – we still are -.
I sympathise with what you are having to endure and as social animals we deserve better.
I should probably make it clear that when I speak of pre 1990 ECA era workplaces I speak not from experience but from learning from doco’s and sitting and listening to the fascinating stories of older Union activists.
You echo what my friend told me of his experiences in a large workplace where people sat in the canteen and discussed the Springbok tour. He was deeply involved in the anti tour movement and discussions got very lively, there was some aggro but on the whole, people did get to learn and came round to understanding why he did what he did, even if they didn’t always support him.
As for the ECA, I had been in the work force only two years before the ECA was introduced and the changes were horrendous. Our pay was dropped as we lost our penal rates and we had to work 6 days instead of 5 just to make up for the loss in wages. Retailers got to exploit the new law and it made it cheaper for them to keep shops open for longer. Thats were our long opening hours in retail came from, the ECA of 1990.
Bastards. Thats what woke me up. After that I started paying attention to what politicians do and what we can do to stop them.
I’m quite sure we share different political beliefs Rosie, but can I just say I was quite moved by your story. Well spoken.
Thanks Jan
Stingy farmers named and shamed on social media.
‘Farmers seeking staff for the new milking season risk being named and shamed on social media if the money being offered in their job advertisement is below the minimum wage.
Outgoing Waikato Federated farmers dairy chairman Craig Littin revealed that trade unions were picking apart farm jobs placed on Fonterra’s Farm Source website.
Littin told farmers at the group’s annual meeting that unions were doing simple calculations around listed salary, hours worked and days off and posting them on social media.’
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/dairy/68509128/stingy-farmers-named-and-shamed-on-social-media
Helen Kelly has been doing that for months. Some of the jobs she highlights are atrocious. It highlights how NZ is becoming a low wage, high hours economy.
telling headlines eh…stingy, not illegal, naming and shaming, not prosecution.
New Zealand’s ‘rock star economy’ is growing slower.
‘New Zealand’s recent economic growth is actually lower in the last two years than it has averaged over the last 20, despite being hailed as a “rock star economy”.
Quarterly growth figures show the economy grew on average 2.8 per cent between 1995 and 2014, slightly more than the 2.6 per cent it averaged in 2013-14.’
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/68626049/new-zealands-rock-star-economy-is-growing-slower
So the Herald is now praising David Cunliffe’s CGT policies (http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=11450781).
I now look forward to it apologising to David for its Donghua Liu coverage (http://thestandard.org.nz/the-more-complete-donghua-liu-timeline/).
Yes… but at the same time not so subtly putting the knife into Little for shying away from CGT as it was seen as a vote shedder. Labour was on the right track, but really failed to deliver a clear and concise CGT policy that was not easily picked apart, with some artistic scaremongering, by the Nats.
@ Ben
Yes I thought that too. Why should the Hairy offer positives about Cunliffe? Just a way to pour a little salt and water into any crack they might find in Labour skin.
Not sure that Labour has ditched the CGT. Didn’t they just comment that it was the wrong time and not well presented to the electorate at that time. Now on the back burner.
CGT is one of the many previous policies Labour has under review – whether it gets picked up again is still debatable – there may well be other ways of dealing with property speculation eg removing tax benefits like property losses against other income.
Hi ianmac, I don’t think it was a case of being badly presented, but the political climate that still existed prior to the election made it the wrong time. To my way of thinking David Parker did a very good job of presenting it, but he was up against a well resourced and hostile political machine that successfully convinced the public they were going to “lose lots of money” when they sold their houses.
I hope Labour has finally learned the lesson that a little bit of pre-election subterfuge is inevitable if you want to get into power and make a real difference for everyone and not just a chosen few.
In an ideal world, none of this would be necessary…
Notes for Labour Party handlers #2:
“Phrases of a negative tone that have as the subject, “things that aren’t big”, should never leave the leader’s mouth. Instead, try positive expositions on how things that are not big often become important, and are necessary to success.”
yeah it’s the basics…
http://thedailyblog.co.nz/2015/05/19/what-happens-if-there-is-another-example-of-key-pulling-a-womans-hair-in-a-workplace/
Hmmm? Possible that someone knows that there is? Indeed what then!
Very cryptic indeed. Sounds like there is another case of hair pulling waiting in the wings.
“He” behaves like those horrible boys in my day who liked pulling wings off butterflies and tipping baby birds out of their nests.
And in a Government department.. was this Roger Sutton’s ponytail?
Bradbury shouldn’t play games with this (as evidenced by his readers comments who either make jokes or say nothing will happen).
This story highlights the effects of a funding freeze on services.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/273983/govt-won't-'prop-up'-counselling-service
I am disappointed that there is not more coverage of this and more dissembling of the way National frame moderate CPI-based increases in funding to essential services as ‘propping up’.
No such concern at ‘propping up’ yachties or aluminium smelters owned by wealthy overseas companies.
Listening confirmed my take-away from lasts nights Native Affairs – Tolley’s a dissembling fool.
@ 22 minutes, Mihi Forbes has the fool on the rack over the make up the CYF review panel and lack of Māori input.
http://www.maoritelevision.com/tv/shows/native-affairs/S09E011/native-affairs
But to her credit MS Tolley has not checked the bloodlines which no Minister of the Crown would do. (Sarc)
Mihi is pretty good in a quiet understated way.
I’m not sure why but the bloodline references turned my stomach.
And in IMO Mihi Forbes is by far the best interviewer on the box today.
Defining poverty down
And National’s actual priorities?
Proof, if any more was actually needed, that National just doesn’t give a shit about anything except protecting the status quo.
Luxon from Airnz on line with Radionz at 9.35am. He is one of those fast speakers who don’t sound as if there is room for thought between sentences! Comes up with a block of words that provide an explanation as to why they are doing okay as they are.
He is being questioned about their attitude to the provincial services and lack of co-operation. Highly complex systems are needed by the replacement regional services with IT etc.
Seems to be good at batting away suggestions. At a fast pace.
Mike Yardley – columnist for The Press seems to be kept awake at night at the thought of the City of Christchurch owning power grids and airports.
Auckland councillor Penny Webster is alarmed that some controls should be put on dairies selling sugar laden food. …the suggestions were “totally overboard” and she would oppose them if they were put before the council.
Sour woman, don’t know what her spiel to get into Council was. It couldn’t have been to help the people with planning and action to have a healthy and happy community.
The idea is to act with plans to lobby for changes to the Resource Management Act to give councils the power to stop new dairies, convenience stores and takeaways being built, in the same way they can for alcohol outlets.
Sounds a good idea. Talk about supermarkets and garages also being lolly outlets is just a smokescreen, and a strawman argument. The dairies are local, common and easily accessed. Way back, on my way to Sunday School, I would spend my collection money on chocolate fish, so know about the sweet temptation! Also I have had a dairy and being near a school is being near a good customer source for sales, and also on the downside, for shop stealing.
Retail industry lobbies and spokespeople for dairy owners, often Indian, need to step back or else they will be viewed negatively. They already are seen often running liquor stores in poor areas, and making a living from selling goods with a health-destroying effect will not give them mana in the community, quite the opposite.
Webster is from the Act party.
Sacha Useful to know. It is good that ACT are staying true to their do-nothing, don’t care motto.
During the apartheid era various performers disgraced themselves by playing at Sun City.
Today, Israel offers a lucrative market for various musicians. Some people just play there and take the blood money; some declare their love for the repressive racist state and complain how it is misunderstood. The latest ratbag in this category is the airhead Lady Gaga.
Meanwhile Roger Waters, ex of Pink Floyd, maintains his integrity, calling on artists to turn down offers to play there.
Pimping for Israel: Lady Gaga, Madonna and Dionne Warwick:
https://rdln.wordpress.com/2015/05/18/pimping-for-israel-lady-gaga-madonna-and-dionne-warwick/
Why not just say that you don;t like Israelis
I imagine because that is not what he is saying Ron.
Ron Why don’t you just say that you do like Israelis, no matter what nasty people say about them – like running over protesters with a bulldozer. Using massive force against puny protests etc. But perhaps you are amoral as they have chosen to be.
Well I do like Israelis, I have not meet any that I dislike. Unfortunately I cannot say the same for some of people of other countries that I have met.
Better put me on the list
Don’t like the Israeli government or their policies of apartheid, ethnic cleansing and lethal use of heavy military weapons on civilians. That’s quite different to “not liking Israelis.”
Golly you are going to have a real problem with Hamas, ISISL, Boko Haram then
Israeli Apologist Vs Pro-Palestinian Celebs and near-Celebs (a little list I’ve been compiling)
(one or two, as you’ll see, are now deceased)
In no particular order
Israel Cheerleaders (includes everything from extensive outspoken support for Israel to explicit opposition to BDS to signing pro-Israeli petitions/advertisements – usually as PR exercises during one of Israel’s regular massacres in Gaza, the West Bank or Lebanon)
Serena Williams (US tennis champ)
Ellen DeGeneres (US comedian/talkshow host)
Samuel L Jackson (US actor)
Scarlett Johansson (US actress/model)
Lady Gaga (US musician)
Simon Cowell (UK record/tv producer/prominent Tory supporter)
Vanessa Williams (US singer/actress)
Howard Stern (US radio personality)
Sylvester Stallone (US actor)
Nicole Kidman (Aussie actress)
Dennis Hopper (US actor/prominent Republican)
Bruce Willis (US actor/Republican)
Danny De Vito and Rhea Perleman (US actors/couple)
Don Johnson (US actor)
James Wood (US actor/prominent Republican)
Charlie Daniels (US Country Music)
Bill Maher (US comedian/talkshow host)
Dionne Warwick (US singer)
Ashton Kutcher (talentless US actor)
Jesse Eisenberg (US actor)
Joan Rivers (US comedian)
Jon Voight (US actor/prominent Republican)
Mayim Bialik (US actress)
Justin Timberlake (UK singer)
Mark Pellegrino (US actor – Lost/Dexter)
Robert De Niro (US actor)
Kelly Preston (US actress)
William Hurt (US actor)
Danny Schuler (US musician – Biohazard)
Jackie Mason (US comedian)
Gene Simmons (remarkably talentless US musician)
Ridley Scott (US Director)
Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta Jones (US/UK actors/’power couple’)
Dick Donner (US Director)
Tony Scott (US Director)
Michael Mann (US Director)
Elton John (UK singer/drama queen)
Patricia Heaton (US actress)
Barbra Streisand (US actress/singer)
Gal Gadot (US actress)
Adam Baldwin (US actor)
Madonna (US singer)
Adam Sandler (talentless US actor/comedian)
Arnold Schwarzenegger (over-the-top US/Austrian actor/politician)
John Lydon (UK musician – Sex Pistols)
Chuck Norris (US actor)
Maureen Lipman (UK actress)
Sympathy for Palestinians/Gaza/BDS and explicit criticism of Israel
Nelson Mandela
Archbishop Desmond Tutu
Naomi Wolf (US author/political consultant)
Danny Glover (US actor)
Alice Walker (US writer/poet)
Roger Waters (UK musician – Pink Floyd)
Rihanna (US/Barbadian singer)
Alan Rickman (UK actor)
Mia Farrow (US actress)
Brian Eno (UK musician/producer/prominent LibDem)
Anthony Bourdain (US celebrity chef)
Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz (Spanish actors/’power couple’)
Rob Schneider (US actor/comedian)
Rosie O’Donnell (US actress/talkshow host)
John Cusack (US actor)
Selena Gomez (US actress/singer)
Stephen Hawking (UK leading Physicist)
Peter Gabriel (UK musician)
Bryan Adams (Canadian Singer)
Bobby Gillespie (Scots musician – Primal Scream)
William Dalrymple (UK journalist/historian)
David Morrissey (UK actor)
Maxine Peake (UK actress)
Alexei Sayle (UK comedian)
Mario Balotelli (Italian/Ghanaian Football player)
Whoopi Goldberg (US comedian/actress)
Dwight Howard (US NBA Basketballer)
Talib Kweli (US Hip Hop artist)
Joey Barton (UK Football)
Eddie Vedder (US singer – Pearl Jam)
Jarvis Cocker (UK musician – Pulp)
Sinead O’Connor (Irish singer/musician)
Zayn Malik (UK Boy Band singer)
Mark Ruffalo (US actor)
John Stewart (US – The Daily Show)
Wallace Shawn (US actor/playwright)
Jonathan Demme (US director)
Emma Thompson (UK actress)
Elvis Costello (UK musician)
Bella Freud (UK fashion designer)
Ken Loach (UK director/filmmaker)
Robert del Naja (UK musician – Massive Attack)
Jemima Khan (UK journalist/activist)
Will Self (UK writer)
Pedro Almodovar (Spanish director)
Hanif Kureishi (UK playwright/filmmaker)
Esther Freud (UK novelist)
Laura Bailey (UK actress)
Jeremy Hardy (UK comedian)
David Randall (UK music producer)
Boots Riley (US rapper/arts producer)
Chris Hedges (US journalist)
Kool A.D/Victor Vazquez (US musician)
Michael Ondaatje (Canadian writer)
Mike Leigh (UK writer/director)
Vanessa Redgrave (UK actress)
Christiano Ronaldo (Portuguese Football legend)
Lupe Fiasco (US Hip Hop)
Michael Radford (UK director/screenwriter)
Amare Stondemire (US NBA Basketballer)
Gianluigi Buffon (Italian footballer – Goalkeeper)
Dustin Hoffman (US actor)
Cynthia Nixon (US actress – Sex in the City)
Stephen Fry (UK actor/comedian)
Miriam Margolyes (UK actress)
Harold Pinter (UK playwright legend)
Jimmy McGovern (UK screenwriter)
Zoe Wanamaker (UK actress)
Jenny Diski (UK author)
Ben Elton (UK writer/comedian)
Susan Wooldridge (UK actress)
Patrick Neville (UK actor)
Tom Adams (US musician)
Andy de la Tour (UK actor/writer)
Mike Hodges (UK director/screenwriter)
Earl Okin (UK musician/comedian)
Hayley Carmichael (UK actress)
Reem Kelani (UK musician)
David Calder (UK actor)
Norma Cohen (UK actress)
Somaye Zadeh (UK singer/musician)
Pablo Navarette (director/producer)
Chris Thomas (UK director)
Laurie Penny (UK journalist)
Mark Thomas (UK comedian)
Kate Tempest (UK musician)
Robert Wyatt (UK musician)
Might want to throw the SNP on that second list Swordfish 😉
http://www.bdsmovement.net/2011/scottish-first-minister-6963
Yeah, well I guess the SNP has, in its own way, become a kind of “celeb or near-celeb” since the Referendum/May Election. 🙂
That’s a pretty refreshing stance, akin to the position adopted by various Nordic Left-Socialist parties (and, to some extent, Germany’s Die Linke).
Starkly contrasting with Britain’s two major parties with their powerful Friends of Israel lobbies (although, it seems Labour started to make some – admittedly tentative and half-hearted – moves away from knee-jerk Israeli support under Ed Miliband – enough to upset Zionist erstwhile-Labour-supporters like Maureen Lipman).
I thought Maureen Lipman was a humorist. Has she lost her fine sense of what’s ridiculous and what’s nauseous?
That’s amazing list Swordfish. Whaleoil for NZ and there is a new company starting up. They have very fresh ideas in business in Israel, very go-ahead, eating and living for two states I suppose has that effect.
Without going through the list with a fine tooth comb but Dennis Hoppers been dead 5 years and Joan Rivers passed away last year I’d suggest your lists are a bit out of date
Hence, my second sentence (in parentheses)
Ridley Scott’s a Brit..
Our scumbag PM is addressing child poverty – by redefining what counts:
https://www.greens.org.nz/news/press-releases/pms-%E2%80%98oliver-twist%E2%80%99-poverty-measure-excuse-breaking-budget-promise
There is a Neolib view in New Zealand that restricting the DPB stops teenage pregnancies ( see Post comments by Andrew on Miteria Turei’s May guest blog on the ‘Daily Blog’)
This is counter to the international prevailing view that looks at other social issues such as young female wellbeing and rights ….contraception, supportive family , education and employment independence opportunities etc…better to address these issues than chauvinist female victim blaming and making children of the poor even more disadvantaged
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teenage_pregnancy
“In developed countries, teenage pregnancies are often associated with social issues, including lower educational levels, higher rates of poverty, and other poorer life outcomes in children of teenage mothers. Teenage pregnancy in developed countries is usually outside of marriage, and carries a social stigma in many communities and cultures.[8] By contrast, teenage parents in developing countries are often married, and their pregnancies welcomed by family and society. However, in these societies, early pregnancy may combine with malnutrition and poor health care to cause medical problems.
Teenage pregnancies appear to be preventable by comprehensive sex education and access to birth control.[9] Abstinence-only sex education does not appear to be effective.[10]”
http://sjp.sagepub.com/content/36/4/415.abstract
In countries where women have equality of opportunity and good contraception options they do not choose to have teenage pregnancies…this is a feminist issue , a human rights issue and also an overpopulation issue
“There is a Neolib view in New Zealand that restricting the DPB stops teenage pregnancies..”
Even if it did, it would be no justification for making children and their parents suffer financial and material hardship. But since ‘the left’ (I’m using that term loosely) has ceded the debate on just about every fucking thing these days, we ain’t going to hear how it’s simply decent for society to support those most in need of support as much as possible.
Smile of the morning, I got a phishing email pretending to be vodafone and it was signed off with ‘Yours Truly’.
Just giving up on Vodafone and switching to Spark @ $30 less per month. Hope the service is OK.
Vodafone is bad, but Spark is worse 😉 I stick with vodafone because the call centre is better. That I have to call the call centre that much to be able to tell is an indictment of the whole telecommunications industry in NZ.
I have never had to ring Spark as I have never had a problem, and have been with them for years.
Banksie.
Discuss,
Kim Dotcom changed his evidence.
zero credibility now for the fat german
More like Banksie’s wife got some mates to make up some extra evidence. If you have enough money, you can buy just about anything these days – well, unless the US government is after you.
Yeah more like that
“zero credibility now for the fat german”
NOW?
Pity all those gullible leftists who let their bullshit detecting faculties get completely disarmed by the hope that KDC might be able to do some real damage to JK didn’t realise that THEN.
Too late now. Three more years….
Just hope those of you who got taken for absolute dummies will remember this case next time you get tempted by a false messiah pandering to your ‘obsession with JK’ weak point.
At least now its official before the courts. Dotcom is telly porkies.
John Banks was/is the most credible witness.
I have a collateralised future dividend option on Auckland Harbour Bridge that might interest you.
But apparently there are two harbour bridges and you have conveniently forgotten to tell the crown about the other one?
Metaphor fail: Banks agrees that donations were discussed; the disclosure failure was the Crown’s.
Nice try though: far better than Alwyn’s feeble effort.
So you were the mug who bought it were you?
Now you realise that you were stupid to do so you are trying to palm it off on some other sucker. I doubt you will find anyone though who is quite as credulous as you were though.
Some interesting questions during question time today in parliament.
Here are the questions:
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA1505/S00275/questions-for-oral-answer-may-19.htm
Here is the parliament TV available from 2 pm:
http://www.parliament.nz/en-nz/about-parliament/see-hear/ptv
Cue a post and one thousand comment thread about judicial corruption. What with centre-right governments being elected around the world the left can’t take a trick at the moment.
The anglo-saxon FVEY nations have systems biased towards the establishment conservative (now right wing) players. No one argues that is not the case.
John Banks gets off, wipes egg from face, and denies it was ever there. Proceeds to fowlhouse for further feathered foolhardy, furtive and futile fandangos.
The court found it was never there. He has been acquitted, therefore did not commit the crime of which he was accused.
Never mind the courts. Do you really think he is not guilty?
Mud’s mud.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UU46_HMmziw
@ SHG
Well that’s good for you.
John Banks acquitted today of submitting false returns. Honest John at last.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/68668623/john-banks-acquitted-by-court-of-appeal-on-falsereturn-charges
Post up now. http://thestandard.org.nz/john-banks-conviction-quashed/
Todays the private sector can’t do it better than a collective comment.
Have a wee look at the phone book. I know you probably don’t – but at work yesterday we lost the internet – and, well, we tried using a phone book. It became a nightmare of epic proportions.
Try finding a government department – or anything which is community based. Ministry of health. And you local community centre.
Now that has probably frustrated you no end – think back before a private company got hold of it and it was privatised.
Just heard john key reiterate that there is no housing crisis in Auckland, and Andrew Little say there is one.
Why then has no one asked john Key what symptoms would be present in his opinion he would see for him to acknowledge that there is a crisis.
Meanwhile Rohingya people from Myanmar float on boats crying for water, fighting, hungry, lying sick. What can we do about it.
http://blogs.wsj.com/indonesiarealtime/2015/05/18/international-agencies-pitch-in-to-help-boat-people-in-indonesia/
What is IOM – Part of United Nations Alliance of Civilisations
http://www.unaoc.org/ibis/about/who-we-are-international-organization-for-migrations/
The IOM believes about half a dozen boats remain at sea, some close to shore. Mr. Lowry likened the search for the vessels that are further out to “looking for specific needles in a giant haystack,” and says a much greater search and rescue effort from the region’s governments is needed.
Food has been dropped to some by Thai helicopter. Indonesia is also offering help.
What is New Zealand doing to help its trading partner and Pacific neighbour Indenesia.
Two days ago –
http://edition.cnn.com/2015/05/15/asia/thailand-malaysia-rohingya-refugees/
The Thai govt is cracking down on smugglers. This boat had called into Malaysia which had provided water and food and sent it off. It broke down off Thailand, but after the engine was fixed, and food and water given it went back to Malaysia. An observer says it is like a game of ping-pong. And many boats have been abandoned by the smugglers because they have not been able to offload their passengers and are afraid for their own safety.
We need to help these truly helpless If not – The shame is on all of us. The USA military budget is $600 billion, Australian $32 B. The matter is widely reported by media from wealthy nations.
I did a google search –
What aid offered to Myanmar boat people by Red Cross
Red Cross have nothing up about these people, last is Nepal.
Then World Vision below
Then Oxfam – they have been working in Myanmar, but the boats no.
World Vision – a summary of the problemMyanmar’s Rohingya minority adrift with little aid
As many as 120,000 members of the Rohingya ethnic and religious group have fled Myanmar and Bangladesh by sea in the past three years. Now, about 8,000 of them are stranded in boats in the Andaman sea, having been abandoned by their traffickers as a result of crackdowns on international trafficking. Boatloads of Rohingya that have been left adrift without food and water are now being turned away by Thai, Malaysian, and Indonesian authorities. About 1.3 million Rohingya have lived for generations in Myanmar’s Rakhine state, but are not counted among its citizens. The Rohingya have long suffered displacement, abuse, and extreme poverty.
Google headings – The Guardian –
Burma’s boatpeople ‘faced choice of annihilation
also
5 days ago – With up to 8000 desperate people – Rohingya Muslims from Burma and … leaving an estimated 6,000 refugees to fend for themselves, according to reliable aid .
USNews –
500 people on a boat found Wednesday off northern Penang state were given …
Yahoo –
Southeast Asia for years tried to quietly ignore the plight of Myanmar’s 1.3 million …
independent.co.uk –
Southeast Asia for years tried to quietly ignore the plight of Myanmar’s 1.3 million …
phuketwan –
Nations Must Speedily Aid Desperate Boatpeople, Says Rights Group … to work together to rescue these desperate people and offer them humanitarian aid, help in … ”The world will judge these governments by how they treat these most …
msn news –
4 days ago – More than 1,600 migrants and refugees from Myanmar and Bangladesh have…
trust –
Jeffrey Savage, who works for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees … boats for the next 20 days and given only small amounts of food and water.
jakartapost –
Australia’s slashing of foreign aid by almost Aus$1.0 billion (US$800 million) will hurt the most .
thedailybeast –
4 days ago – BANGKOK—As boatloads of stateless Rohingya people and other migrants drift off the … 8,000 boat people seeking to land somewhere—anywhere—as they struggle with a ..
Rohingya Vision TV | Human Trafficking
http://www.rvisiontv.com/category/daily-news-2/human-trafficking/
6 days ago – … Myanmar migrants on a boat stranded for a week in the Andaman Sea with no ..
Rohingya Blogger
http://www.rohingyablogger.com/
6 hours ago – The price of living in a world of rules and norms widely shared is that you do not get … Malaysia prodded Myanmar on Sunday to halt the exodus from its shores as ..
Can AsEAN help in its own territory?
NON-INTERVENTION PRINCIPLE
At the core of ASEAN’s inaction is its principle of non-interference in internal political affairs of its member states, observers said.
“There is a lot of sensitivity, a lot of prejudices and a lot of mutual suspicion that make it difficult for any entity to do something about this situation,” Surin said.
The U.N. has said the deadly pattern of migration across the Bay of Bengal would continue unless Myanmar ends discrimination against the Rohingya.
Most of Myanmar’s 1.1 million Rohingya are stateless and live in apartheid-like conditions. Almost 140,000 were displaced in clashes with ethnic Rakhine Buddhists in 2012.
Is the UN going to wait till talks on May 29 which Myanmar says it will not attend if the word Rohingya is mentioned! Can people live on air and hope? Is this a time to put aside regional thoughts and make it an all-world crisis and do the blaming and reproaching later!!
Recent
http://blogs.wsj.com/briefly/2015/05/18/indonesias-boat-people-the-numbers/
Help Medecins Sans Frontieres with donation? http://www.msf.org.au/refugee/?gclid=CLmuoN7jzMUCFUIAvAodPJgA1Q
After this is over it might be that we should look at helping Muslim Aid as a counter to so much of the destruction and violence that they are suffering. It might help in the healing that hopefully would come soon.
Muslim Aid
This is a statement from somebody who doesn’t understand economics. Economics isn’t about money but about resources and we’re running out of them.
There’s also the point that, no matter how much money was spent on militaries around the world, almost none of those resources would help the people on the boats even if they hadn’t left their homeland. You cannot eat or drink steel.
You can’t say that if we just spent the money here rather than there and everything will be fixed because of the difference between what resources are being used and what resources are needed to bring about the change you desire.
What are you on about DTB. You’re making an argument out of a mud pie.
If countries can afford to spend on war to that extent then they can find the machinmery to fly or sail to help those people. They can find a bit in a corner of their extensive budgets to pay for water food and humanitarian aid. Don’t make a blockbuster drama out of a very simple premise.
Stop being so objective too, when people are hurting. They don’t want your considered opinion on the cost benefit of helping them, or care whether you care or not, just as long as you don’t stop other people from paying attnetion to their plight which was what my bloody comment was about.
I’ve taken the leap and joined twitter. So if you really, really need to know two minutes ahead of time that I’m about to put up a post, this is the place for you:
https://twitter.com/tereoputake
Any PR/media consultants/publicists with the inside goss to share are welcome to send it to me as well. No promises that it’ll make it into the Standard though; my bullshit detector is finely tuned.
Me on Twitter
Cheers, DTB. Only quite a few thousand tweets before I catch up with you!
Meh, I’m only a baby tweeter really. A mere 7000 tweets in 5 years.
Add it to the twitter-auto-poster – right side of a post.
No women should look at this link – you might just get the wrong idea.
https://www.facebook.com/usauncut/photos/a.190167221017767.44131.186219261412563/936768469690968/?type=1&fref=nf
Labour Party in England is repeating the exact same mistake as in the last leader selection: only Oxbridge graduates who subsequently became “Special Advisers” are entered into the race.
Andy Burnham: English, Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge.
Yvette Cooper: PPE, Balliol College, Oxford.
Mary Creagh:Languages, Pembroke College, Oxford.
Liz Kendall: History, Queen’s College, Cambridge.
Tristram Julian William Hunt: History, Trinity College, Cambridge.
As long as they continue to draw from this small clique they will continue to be loosers.
In contract the SNP intake is remarkably representative of broad society.
Pretty much the same issue here. Caused in no small part by the destruction of the trade union movement and Labours natural leaders. Of course Andrew Little at least has a union background and a strong understanding of workers issues. Unfortunately the union movement in this country is predominantly led by academics and they are appointed rather than elected, albeit they are in all probability good people with sound humanitarian values, but I would doubt that any of them would have ever lined up in the dole queue waiting to see their case officer or boned a quarter of beef or sweated over a cheese vat or polished a lino floor 40 hours a week.
With respect I think you’d find that many people with academic qualifications, especially older ones have in their student days.done the sorts of jobs that you mention.
yeah but that aint the same is it.
not
by
a
long
shot
aint no substitute for experience and time
and your point is? Roger Douglas was a pig farmer once.
I wasn’t trying to be disingenuous as I think their hearts and intentions are noble and some of them could have (had) high paying positions utilising their qualifications in other vocations.
But I wonder if they have the passion, understanding and desire to lead those who perform those jobs their entire working lives? Douglas didn’t.
Oh well I hope I’m wrong.
My point about Oxbridge, SPADs and the small elite which had control of the English Labour Party.
There are 109 universities in the current UK. There is an additional 133 Higher Education Institutes that don’t use the term university. The great prosperity bestowed (another story) on “Oxbridge” was and is marvellous. I don’t begrudge them their history and their current standing as two great places of learning, research and thought leadership.
When the five contestants for Labour leadership in 2010 and the five in 2015 all come from a tiny section of society there is a systemic problem.
No argument from me Northsider. I’m with you on this one.
My 25.1.1.2 was a response to 25.1.1.
Seems to me that Labour here and the UK need a broader mix of people standing for public office and a reconnection with communities and their real needs. Ain’t necessarily enough to simply ask about & attempt to resolve there issues, but more about having as their representatives those people themselves. Not really convinced that Grant is capable of representing the financial views of labour simply because he picked a few apples during the summer break.
I’ve no issue with an individual Oxbridge grad and spad becoming a Labour MP. I’ve no issue with an individual rolling down the hill from Victoria to a back office role in a political office and then onto becoming an MP.
When a powerful group at HQ all have the same career profile then there is a systemic problem. Robertson, Ardern, Faafoi in Labour and many in the Nats have these narrow profiles.
The public hear similar mechanical messaging styles.
The public turn off.
In the 1970s UK Labour had a third of its MPs come from labouring and manual work backgrounds, including a couple of dozen MPs who were former coal miners. The unions frequently sponsored workers from within their own ranks to run as candidates in electorates.
Today, Labour all around the world are professional middle class and upper middle class politicians: former student politicians, former Parliamentary staffers, former academics and policy wonks, PhDs and upper middle class professionals.
Labour thinks that it represents the best interests of almost all NZers; sadly only about one in five voters agreed.
Yep. Hipkins. It’s a self perpetuating systemic issue with Labour now, as you infer.
Tell me something, interesting?
Eggs don’t bounce and steam rollers don’t roll steam!