Open mike 20/09/2024

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, September 20th, 2024 - 40 comments
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40 comments on “Open mike 20/09/2024 ”

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  1. David 1
    20 September 2024 at 7:05 am

    Another ferry has lost power in the Cook Straight overnight. This time it’s Bluebridge ferry, fortunately, once again the seas have been forgiving.

    • bwaghorn 1.1
      20 September 2024 at 7:54 am

      https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/350422897/bluebridge-ferry-loses-power-adrift-cook-strait-two-hours

      Blows tha right wing meme that we don't need to own ferries because the private sectors got this.

      • PsyclingLeft.Always 1.1.1
        20 September 2024 at 8:06 am

        Frickin idiot NACT1 (attribute Thinker : )

        https://thestandard.org.nz/daily-review-19-09-2024/#comment-2011536

        I suppose we already have Rimmer/Seymour…so Dr Evil/Luxon seems like a frickin match? And the frickin idiot league/convention….

      • Tiger Mountain 1.1.2
        20 September 2024 at 8:18 am

        Drifting powerless in Cook Strait is not my idea of fun even on a good day. There will likely be others now more tentative about booking too.

        The Natzos ideologically favour road (Trucking) over rail, that is no secret, but what these vandals may well achieve is the severing of viable maritime and rail links between the North and South Islands.

        • PsyclingLeft.Always 1.1.2.1
          20 September 2024 at 8:57 am

          Concerns new Cook Strait ferries won't be rail capable

          A rail advocacy group is holding meetings in Marlborough this weekend, over concerns the new Cook Strait ferries will not be designed to carry railway vehicles.

          Sustainable transport researcher Paul Callister said the issue was particularly significant to Marlborough and the community needed to be involved in decisions.

          Community group The Future Is Rail would hold public meetings in Blenheim and Picton on Saturday to discuss the future of rail and ferry services in Marlborough.

          "We are really worried as a group that the decision is going to be made in the next month or so about the replacement ferries and we are hoping that they are going to be rail enabled, they have been rail enabled for decades and they are a key part of the whole rail network.

          "Without the link across the Cook Strait, the whole South Island's rail network is at risk."

          Callister said the loss of rail-capable ferries would mean an increase in road freight, and more trucks on the roads.

          "Picton is in limbo at the moment and the government really has to make a decision where we have got better ferries, ferries that don't break down in the middle of the Cook Strait or run aground, but we also want ferries that carry freight in the most efficient way."

          https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/528494/concerns-new-cook-strait-ferries-won-t-be-rail-capable

          I have previously linked this…but here is again.

          https://thefutureisrail.org/events

  2. Sarah Sutherland 2
    20 September 2024 at 7:48 am

    This government has been able to get away with their austerity because there had been minimal pushback from the opposition on the Labour government left the country books in arrears. The government has been spinning this for several years and because Labour hasn’t disputed this the consensus with most voters is that must be true.

    Craig Renny and Bernard Hickey are the only voices calling out bull shit.

    And just because Grant Robertson has retired from politics he can still defend his record.
    The same thing happened after John Key came into power, Labour just let the nats lies predominate the narrative.

    • Obtrectator 2.1
      20 September 2024 at 9:12 am

      You can call out lies and oppose stuff (and say you're doing so) all you like. But if you're not getting the air time, or column inches (or whatever their equivalent is on social media), how is it going to get across to an audience? Several examples cited here lately of Natzos always getting their say whether in government or opposition, but similar courtesies not now being extended to LW parties. (Sorry, haven't time to track down specific links.)

    • Tiger Mountain 2.2
      20 September 2024 at 9:15 am

      “The narrative” amounts to the ideological end of political struggle and it is important as the 3 Waters debacle showed.

      Showers of shit erupt in Wellington streets, boil water notices applied around the country, the infrastructure is crumbling in many District and Regional Council areas. Because the Labour Govt. lost the narrative battle to the nutters (right wing farmers that used no Council services had Stop 3 Waters signage in their fields near state highways), there are now huge rates rises around NZ which will not be enough to fund what is necessary.

    • Chris 2.3
      24 September 2024 at 9:38 am

      And when Hipkins does decide to open his mouth he comes across as vanilla as it gets, even indifferent. Labour needs to take a leaf out of the Aussies' book and start channelling their mongrel.

  3. Jenny 3
    20 September 2024 at 10:30 am

    '

    State sponsored terrorism

    From Wikipedia the online encyclopedia:

    State-sponsored terrorism is terrorist violence carried out with the active support of national governments provided to violent non-state actors.

    State-sponsored terrorism – Wikipedia

    • Subliminal 3.1
      20 September 2024 at 7:39 pm

      A video of this length can be time consuming to watch but much of what it says is summarised in this Mondoweiss article. It highlights the fascistic nature of the far right politics in Israel and the ideology of those that have now been put in charge of national security. The article introduces the latest Israeli MK, Zvir Sukkot. From the article:

      The most notorious of these is the Kahanist Itamar Ben Gvir, but other militant fascists also abound, such as Zvika Fogel, the lawmaker who wants to make “a thousand Palestinian mothers cry,” and former vigilante leader Almog Cohen, who in the wake of the recent massacre in Jenin called on the army to “keep killing them.”

      As a minister, Smotrich is able to step aside and allow the next list candidate to enter the Knesset.

      The person stepping in to take Smotrich’s place, from the 16th spot of the Religious Zionism-Jewish Power-Noam list, is Zvi Sukkot, a former “Hilltop Youth” member….

      Ariel Sharon served as the initial inspiration for this movement, who in 1998 told settlers: “Everybody has to move, run, and grab as many hilltops as they can to enlarge the settlements, because everything we take now will stay ours…[and] everything we don’t grab will go to them [the Palestinians].”

      The “Hilltop Youth” is now a group of mostly adults in their 20s. They are some of the most violent religious fundamentalists around…

      When Sukkot attended the Yeshiva in 2009, its leading rabbis were Yosef Shapira and Yosef Elitzur, who authored a book called King’s Torah. It was a manual for the murder of non-Jews.

      In that book, Shapiro and Elitzur opined that even enemy babies may be killed, since those babies may grow up to harm Jews . One of the endorsers of the genocidal book is rabbi Dov Lior, who is Itamar Ben Gvir’s current spiritual leader…

      In 2015, the Dawabshah family was burned alive in an arson attack by a “Hilltop Youth” settler. As the King’s Torah endorses, a baby was burned to death – 18-month-old Ali Dawabshah. His parents Riham and Saad died a few weeks later, and only 5-year-old Ahmad survived…

      At around the same time, these people were celebrating the murder of the baby: in an unbelievably murderous wedding celebration in December 2015, dozens of celebrators were cheering the murder with Molotov cocktails, guns, and knives. At one point, celebrators were literally stabbing the photo of baby Ali Dawabshe. Among the celebrators was Itamar Ben Gvir.

      This is what Israel now is. Its horrific and it must be fought against. This is what the US is supporting and running cover for Israel at the UNSC. To witness these things and then call Hamas, the armed resistance fighters for a free Palestine, terrorists, is colonial bigotry at its darkest. If you doubt this, then take the time to watch the video. These people believe that being Palestinian invites and justifies violence and further, age – either very young or very old – is no protection against this violence. Sukkot was one of those who demanded the release of the soldiers that gang raped a Palestinian detained without charge. For him and the many like him, torture of Palestinians, the crueler the better, brings great joy.

      Edit: I would note that the article was written Feb 2023, so well before the current accelerated iteration of the genocide.

  4. Chris 4
    20 September 2024 at 10:57 am

    The lies from this government are breathtaking. Would be great to see the long long list of price hikes and other dumb measures this government's responsible for that have worsened the cost of living not improved it.

    "Dear Chris–

    Chris Hipkins and Labour are at it again.

    While National is delivering tax relief and easing the cost of living, Labour is busy plotting for another tax hike.

    Hipkins said just the other week: "I think we do actually need to have a fairly significant conversation as a country around tax.”

    As you always know with Labour – this just means more taxes for hardworking New Zealanders.

    MMP elections are close and we need to be ready to fight Labour on this issue so they don’t have a chance at the next election.

    Labour and their tax backing coalition options only need a few more percent to sneak back into office. If they do, New Zealanders are looking at capital gains taxes, wealth taxes, and who knows what other taxes.

    Under National and Christopher Luxon, we’re fixing the damage caused by Labour’s wasteful spending and economic mismanagement. We’re putting money back in your pocket, where it belongs and getting our country back on track.

    But to really stop Labour and protect New Zealand’s future, we need your support right now.

    This is why we’re asking you to contribute to the critical 2024 President’s Appeal."

    • gsays 4.1
      20 September 2024 at 12:11 pm

      Who needs The Civilian when you've got this ^^ shit.

      • Cricklewood 4.1.1
        20 September 2024 at 4:14 pm

        Thats not satire, it's perfectly pitched to their donors and its true, surely Labour is growing a spine and is planning tax policey to increase taxes on the Nats donor class. The Greens and TPM will.

  5. Reality 5
    20 September 2024 at 11:16 am

    Winston Peters has commented on Helen Clark's statement to the UN Security Council about Gaza. He said she has left the stage and should stay off the stage.

    Somewhat hypocritical from a man who never wants to stays off the stage, always wanting a comeback.

    • Ngungukai 5.1
      20 September 2024 at 11:55 am

      Winston always wants to be on the stage and in the headlights/headlines all the time.

    • Bearded Git 5.2
      20 September 2024 at 12:04 pm

      Good luck trying to shut Clark up…she actually has scruples. Winston wouldn't understand that.

    • Tiger Mountain 5.3
      20 September 2024 at 12:09 pm

      Winston got officially involved with the tin foil hat brigade around the time of the Parliament grounds occupation. It is curious how the “Freedom” lot treat people they disagree with.

      400 religious leaders speaking out on Te Tiriti via a letter–very bad–according to Atlas Dave Seymour, Helen Clark a distinguished elder politician talking to the UN who she has previously worked for!–very bad–according to Mr Peters.

      Libertarians and right wingers are the ultimate sell outs and opportunists when it comes to genuine support for freedom of speech, association and assembly.

    • Patricia Bremner 5.4
      20 September 2024 at 1:15 pm

      Yes Reality, and as he indoors says, "last time it was hanging on Jacinda's skirt." devil

      • Belladonna 5.4.1
        24 September 2024 at 9:42 am

        Pretty strong selective memory from 'he indoors'.
        If Winston hadn't supported Ardern, she would not have been in government.
        Labour certainly didn't have a majority in 2017, and didn't even have the greatest number of seats. Winston was the king/queen maker at that election.

  6. adam 6
    20 September 2024 at 12:58 pm

    Now if you need a laugh, the problem with self check out.

  7. Joe90 7
    20 September 2024 at 3:23 pm

    You can take the man out of SA but you can't take SA out of the man.

    /

    Elon Musk lived in apartheid South Africa until he was 17. David Sacks, the venture capitalist who has become a fundraiser for Donald Trump and a troll of Ukraine, left aged five, and grew up in a South African diaspora family in Tennessee. Peter Thiel spent years of childhood in South Africa and Namibia, where his father was involved in uranium mining as part of the apartheid regime’s clandestine drive to acquire nuclear weapons. And Paul Furber, an obscure South African software developer and tech journalist living near Johannesburg, has been identified by two teams of forensic linguists as the originator of the QAnon conspiracy, which helped shape Trump’s Maga movement. (Furber denies being “Q”.)

    In short, four of Maga’s most influential voices are fiftysomething white men with formative experiences in apartheid South Africa. This probably isn’t a coincidence.

    https://archive.li/YXd26 (financial times)

    • Incognito 7.1
      20 September 2024 at 4:11 pm

      Lester Levy is from SA.

    • Tiger Mountain 7.2
      20 September 2024 at 5:28 pm

      Very interesting Joe90.

      Whilst stereotyping is not the best, white “Seff Efricans” I have met over the years in work situations tended towards boofheadism, with the exception of the great journalist Donald Woods who I met in 1981 at the height of the Springbok Rugby Tour. He signed my copy of his book at a small meeting at the Auckland Trades Hall.

      So the one eyed MAGA approach fits.

      Via union and other contacts I met various ANC and PAC fighters over the years who were definitely intellectually superior to the likes of Musk and Thiel.

    • Muttonbird 7.3
      20 September 2024 at 7:48 pm

      Heather Duplicity Allen is South African.

      I see a pattern.

  8. Hunter Thompson II 8
    20 September 2024 at 6:22 pm

    It seems the government's proposed reforms of the RMA (announced 20 Sept) are based on property rights.

    That fits with National's general philosophy I guess: everything, including the environment, has a price. The only exception will be assets in the public estate such as water, which will be gifted to irrigators and the dairy industry.

  9. Jenny 9
    20 September 2024 at 6:41 pm

    So what happens now for air travel, when every cell phone, pager laptop, even smartwatch could be a bomb?

    Will people be prepared to fly with this threat?

    Will battery powered devices only be allowed to be loaded on a plane without their battery and if stowed in the hold in a faraday cage.

    Will you have to buy (or hire), a battery for your device at your destination?

    I see a business opportunity here somewhere.

    • Belladonna 9.1
      24 September 2024 at 9:55 am

      If you are concerned about the Hezbollah device incidents – it seems most likely that these were retro-engineered to include explosives. Nothing to do with their batteries, at all.

      Nor were any of the explosions at the level which could threaten the airplane itself (although nasty enough for the individuals in the detonation zone)

      It also seems as though the devices were on the …. chunky … side. So very minimal risk for a smartwatch. Given the tight engineering constraints involved in a smartphone (the struggle they have to get all of the elements integrated into the case) – it seems unlikely that smartphones would be tampered with in the same way. Laptops are a greater risk – they have a lot more space to play with – but also go through airport screening, specifically looking for 'unusual' inclusions, for precisely this reason.

      Of course, it remains possible that the phone could just be a case for explosives (no change there, it was a risk before the Hezbollah incident – and doesn't appear to have been an issue). And requires a suicide bomber to be willing to carry it, rather than a booby trap engineered without the person's knowledge. And some methodology to spoof the scanners.

      Overall, it seems likely that these are assassination methodologies – rather than threats to airlines.

      You're probably at greater risk on the bus. But, by all means stop flying – the planet will thank you.

      • Drowsy M. Kram 9.1.1
        24 September 2024 at 5:00 pm

        Nothing to do with their batteries, at all.

        Is there some evidence to support this adamant assertion (reckon)?

        Unbeknownst to Hezbollah, Israeli intelligence services (Mossad) had manufactured the devices, integrated the explosive PETN into the batteries, and sold them to Hezbollah through a shell company.
        …
        The pagers produced for Hezbollah had batteries that integrated 3 grams (0.11 ounces) of the explosive PETN in such a way that it would have been extremely difficult to detect.

        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2024_Lebanon_pager_explosions

        Integrating three grams of an explosive into a “smartwatch” would be more of a challenge – not sure even Mossad would be up for it.

        Re "Stop flying", could work for some – if not then fly only when one really needs too.

        • Belladonna 9.1.1.1
          24 September 2024 at 6:01 pm

          Your own quote proves the point. It's not the batteries, but the additional explosive.

          Devices with batteries, but without the additional explosive, are at no more risk than they ever have been.

          As I pointed out – you’re at far greater risk on the bus (no attempt to screen for any explosives at all) – but that doesn’t suit the narrative of the OP.

          • Drowsy M. Kram 9.1.1.1.1
            24 September 2024 at 7:19 pm

            Scandinavian Airlines mouse: Plane forced to divert after mouse jumps out of in-flight meal [23 Sept 2024]

            Your own quote proves the point. It's not the batteries, but the additional explosive.

            A point that the linked Wikipedia page makes is that 3 g of an explosive was integrated into each pager's (operationally essential) battery – no battery, no explosive. A fiendishly clever way to construct/conceal a bomb. Expect more flight delays, but it's still the safest way to travel – if you have to.

            Israel Turned Thousands of Pagers Into Bombs, Opening the Door to a Whole New Kind of Warfare [23 Sept 2024]
            There’s new urgency to inspect bulk shipments of personal communication devices—because successful novel attacks can inspire copycat attempts.

            Time will tell whether this "Israeli blitz" inspires (other) terrorists – hope not.

            TECH CRACKDOWN [19 Sept 2024]
            Fears of BOMBS being snuck into everyday gadgets sparks global security alert as airlines ban pagers after Israeli blitz

            Watch our experts reveal fears terror groups could carry out similar attacks

            Price said safety measures can't pick up every prohibited item that goes through security as it is a "numbers game".

            The aviation security expert said: "You put so many [bombs] into a system, and it just increases your chances of something getting through.

            "Even with the best technology and the best detector personnel out there, you'll put enough stuff through a lot of different areas and at one point in time something is is frankly bound to get through."
            …
            Price said a tiny minority of people are able to sneak guns, knives, and even drugs through current screening methods.

            "The problem is we don't know how many we're missing," he said.

            "The more we detect the more we can presume that there's been
            misses in the past.

            "We know that things get missed. There's no 100 per cent detection."

            UNITED STATES OF AMERICA V. RICHARD COLVIN REID (PDF)

            • Belladonna 9.1.1.1.1.1
              25 September 2024 at 10:59 am

              But equally if there are no explosives, no risk from batteries.

              Nor is there any evidence that the explosives would not have been detected by the existing airline security.

              Leaving the bus as a much greater risk of this particular threat.

              But, again, that doesn't suit the narrative the OP is pushing.

              • Drowsy M. Kram …
                25 September 2024 at 11:37 am

                If you are concerned about the Hezbollah device incidents – it seems most likely that these were retro-engineered to include explosives. Nothing to do with their batteries, at all.

                B, I'm simply expressing my doubt about the veracity of your assertion that "the Hezbollah device incidents" had "Nothing to do with their [the devices] batteries, at all." On the face of it this seems extraordinarily unlikely to me, but if it's important to you (for some reason) then we can agree to disagree.

                The pagers produced for Hezbollah had [Mossad-manufactured] batteries that integrated 3 grams (0.11 ounces) of the explosive PETN in such a way that it would have been extremely difficult to detect.