Open mike 20/12/2022

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, December 20th, 2022 - 124 comments
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Open mike is your post.

For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose.

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

Step up to the mike …

124 comments on “Open mike 20/12/2022 ”

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  1. observer 1
    20 December 2022 at 7:22 am

    Imagine that you are the political editor for a major news organisation. You sit down for an extended interview with the man who wants to be PM.

    And then you produce a report which does not have a single specific policy. Or even a hint of one. A parade of platitudes

    The headline is a joke: "Upfront". No. There is nothing there. Zilch.

    A festive chocolate fish for anyone who can point to any content at all in what Luxon says here. Take the challenge …

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/130803325/christopher-luxons-endofyear-interview-why-politicians-need-to-be-upfront-about-new-zealands-problems

    • Muttonbird 1.1
      20 December 2022 at 8:18 am

      Policy? Luxon instead used the interview to double down on racist comments.

      At least fellow traveller, Jeremy Clarkson, did accept responsibility and attempted an apology:

      https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/entertainment/2022/12/uk-tv-presenter-jeremy-clarkson-horrified-meghan-column-caused-hurt.html

    • Incognito 1.2
      20 December 2022 at 9:19 am

      Luke, I am your father.

    • Peter 1.3
      20 December 2022 at 11:50 am

      All of that is so pertinent but there has to be context.

      It doesn't matter that what you say is true. The mass who are against Ardern and Labour, the mass who have it that everything wrong with NZ is down to them and every grievance in their lives personally gets back to them, means Luxon doesn't have to say anything of substance.

      The belief is that magically with 'not Labour' we'll be on the way to enough doctors and nurses and truckies and builders and teachers and farm workers and hospitality workers. And the housing crisis that started in 2017 will be gone and there'll be no poverty. Crime wave and youth crime? In short order they'll become things of the past.

      We have a dumb country and it's destined to determinedly stay that way. The masses don't want to hear reasoned intelligent discussion and solutions.

  2. Sacha 2
    20 December 2022 at 7:44 am

    Solid summary of Fijian election from Canterbury professor https://theconversation.com/a-knife-edge-election-in-fiji-sees-power-shift-and-a-chance-to-bring-back-real-democracy-196465

    This time, Rabuka and Bainimarama – both former military leaders and coup makers – have used the democratic electoral system rather than guns and force to try to win to power. But behind them sits a culture of command and control that will be difficult to dislodge.

    • Sacha 2.1
      20 December 2022 at 9:05 am

      Negotiating demands revealed by kingmaker party

      https://twitter.com/MichaelFieldNZ/status/1604890354548822016

      • Temp ORary 2.1.1
        20 December 2022 at 4:22 pm

        Thanks for the link Sacha, though recent developments have gotten weird:

        Viliame Gavoka is no longer the leader of the Social Democratic Liberal Party.

        SODELPA General Secretary, Lenaitasi Duru says the party leader’s position was deemed vacant, after the party failed to become the majority, as per the party’s constitution…

        Duru says according to the SODELPA constitution, the leader’s position will remain vacant until the party’s Annual General Meeting in 2024.

        https://www.fbcnews.com.fj/news/fijian-elections/gavoka-no-longer-sodelpa-leader/

        As The Conversation piece by Ratuva notes, it is only through Gavoka's son in law that there is any connection between the two parties. So it now seems likely that a 3party coalition led by Rabuka is on the cards. Unless Bainimara declares a state of emergency and calls in the military first. I hope the next Sodelpa leader is chosen before 2024!

        there is a personal link between SODELPA and the FFP, whose secretary (as well as attorney-general and minister for the economy in the previous government) is Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum. An Indo-Fijian Muslim, Sayed-Khaiyum is the son-in-law of SODELPA leader Viliame Gavoka, an indigenous Fijian (Taukei).

  3. x Socialist 3
    20 December 2022 at 7:59 am

    [deleted]

    Given David Seymour is dropping hints all over the place that ACT will demand a true conservative government from Luxon, and not a political vehicle that has had a blue paint job over the previous red, the Left may get something out of the upcoming election after all. Coalition talks may get quite nasty between ACT and National. Keep the popcorn handy.

    https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2022/12/act-leader-david-seymour-questions-christopher-luxon-s-loyalty-to-conservatism-ahead-of-election-year.html

    • Sacha 3.1
      20 December 2022 at 8:20 am

      Act is a radical right-wing party. Never been conservative.

      • x Socialist 3.1.1
        20 December 2022 at 8:31 am

        They are pseudo Libertarians. The coalition at best will be weak conservative. I can't see how coalition talks can get past this hurdle:

        ''In October, Seymour said redefining the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi and putting them to a public and binding referendum would be a bottom line in any governing negotiations.''

        • Muttonbird 3.1.1.1
          20 December 2022 at 8:33 am

          And people think Ardern is divisive?

        • Sacha 3.1.1.2
          20 December 2022 at 8:34 am

          The coalition at best will be weak conservative.

          What will they be conserving?

          • Muttonbird 3.1.1.2.1
            20 December 2022 at 8:43 am

            White privilege, I expect.

          • x Socialist 3.1.1.2.2
            20 December 2022 at 8:51 am

            Instead of being glib, I don't think you quite understand the ramifications of this quote, should ACT get their way. Have a think.

            ''In October, Seymour said redefining the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi and putting them to a public and binding referendum would be a bottom line in any governing negotiations.''

            • Sacha 3.1.1.2.2.1
              20 December 2022 at 8:54 am

              So what would that be conserving?

            • Robert Guyton 3.1.1.2.2.2
              20 December 2022 at 9:22 am

              It's all about choice, squeaks Seymour.

              Hobson's Choice.

            • observer 3.1.1.2.2.3
              20 December 2022 at 10:40 am

              FFS, do we have to repeat this every day between now and the election? Are people not getting it or (tediously) pretending not to get it? Every 3 years, same posturing before the election, same reality after it.

              Seymour's "bottom line" means nothing. Here's how it goes:

              Luxon: "Hi Dave, which Cabinet job would you like?"

              Seymour: "None, unless you hold a referendum that will destroy your very brief term as PM".

              Luxon: "None it is then".

              Seymour: "Er, hang on a sec, let's not be too hasty, this referendum idea is … negotiable. Finance portfolio would make it disappear".

              Luxon: "Done".

              The bottom line … isn't. And you know it.

    • Nic the NZer 3.2
      20 December 2022 at 8:29 am

      Not convinced you were paying attention. Christopher said repeal 3-waters and the Maori health authority and then Seymour said, make sure he repeals 3-waters and the Maori health authority.

      Why don't you trust Christopher?

    • weka 3.3
      20 December 2022 at 8:30 am

      first paragraph deleted.

      if you want to reference a politician in the MSM you have to give the reference. eg Luxon was on x radio station talkback date/time. Preferably with a link (yes, this means when you are on the internet about to make a comment on TS, you first google the thing you have listened to).

      This is because we are here for the robust debate, and people reading and commenting having access to the thing you listened improves debate. It's not FB or twitter or a personal blog where one can just say what one thinks, we're not a reckons forum. There is a debate standard.

      You're lucking I didn't just dump the whole comment for wasting moderator time.

      • weka 3.3.1
        20 December 2022 at 8:32 am

        as you can now see, someone is commenting on your response to the unknown talkback and disagreeing with you, but we can't fact check because you didn't provide a reference.

        • x Socialist 3.3.1.1
          20 December 2022 at 8:44 am

          You mean this?

          ''Not convinced you were paying attention. Christopher said repeal 3-waters and the Maori health authority and then Seymour said, make sure he repeals 3-waters and the Maori health authority.''

          • weka 3.3.1.1.1
            20 December 2022 at 9:28 am

            Yes. Here you are again wanting to have a conversation about something without providing the reference you were just modded on.

            take the day off. If you're not going to take moderation seriously, I'm not wasting any more of my time.

    • RedLogix 4.1
      20 December 2022 at 9:51 am

      Nah – I judge a political analysis primarily on one thing. Does it have a framework of unity – or division?

      Unity is only possible when you have an evolving set of common principles and purposes in order to have coherence.

      All functioning societies are a tripolar blend of three broad political instincts; conservative, liberal and social. All three fundamentally share a common interest and purpose in a healthy, functioning society; sharing six core human values . Where we differ is in how we place differing weights on these values.

      That in turns means being able to point to what is in and what is out; which introduces the notion of boundaries, and discipline. Each of the three broad political poles can go too far; this is obvious from history. In very broad and simplistic terms:

      When liberalism places too much weight on personal liberty it becomes libertarianism.

      When conservatism places too much weight on sanctity it becomes some form of fascism.

      And when socialism places too much weight on fairness and equity of outcome it becomes marxism.

      Note how the extremists of each group, the libertarians, the fascists and marxists bitterly condemn everyone else as standing in the way of the revolutionary, radical change they dearly wish for. And hate most of all moderates of all shades who get on with negotiating political interests, building consensus and delivering a functioning world.

      • Muttonbird 4.1.1
        20 December 2022 at 10:08 am

        Too much weight on fairness

        Is there such a thing?

        It explains a lot that in your tripolar fantasy world, fairness should moderated.

        • RedLogix 4.1.1.1
          20 December 2022 at 10:36 am

          That is a decent question. I would guess from your commenting record here that it is something you personally place a high value on.

          But everything hinges on how you decide to implement fairness. Equal opportunity is something most people agree on; enforcing equal outcomes is another thing altogether.

          There is a lot of nuance in this; humans seem to thrive with some degree of competition, but our societies also require a high degree of cooperation at at the same time. Yet when the inequality gradient becomes too extreme, when the rungs at the bottom of the ladder are too far apart or missing altogether, this cooperation breaks down and is the trigger for all manner of social dysfunction.

          Clearly both extremes of inequality fail, but measuring and sensing where the optimum balance between them might lie – remains in my view and unsolved problem. Mostly because we are not willing yet to have an honest conversation about what the causes of inequality really are.

    • Sanctuary 4.2
      20 December 2022 at 10:00 am

      The pipeline from phoney left to populist right is represented par excellence by Bradsbury, Trotter, and all the weirdo Putin tankies on the "left" who seem to pine for the certainty of being on the wrong side of the cold war. Maybe all that pro-Putin bullshit they’ve watched on RT has addled their brains, who knows. And since I am old enough to have visited Eastern Europe during the cold war, anyone who took Moscow's shilling was definitely on the wrong side.

      Interesting comment on the idea of the Cathedral/Bazaar model. Most of us who consider ourselves to be on the progressive left understand that we are in an ideological battle with two powerful forces. The first is the donor driven politics of the center right that has ruled our lives for most of the last five decades. The second is an even bigger threat from reactionary nationalists in alliance with religious fundamentalists who want to turn back the clock to some glorious era that never existed except as a nightmare for women and minorities. Trotter and Bradbury only want to fight the first group, and and ignore or even play footsie with a reactionary fascist adjacent right. Trotter spends his whole life in a lengthening shadow of obsessive and increasingly absurd conspiracy theories over race issues, endlessly invoking comparisons between co-governance and the racial policies of the Nazis and harking back in a proto-fascist idealised past. Bradbury's is an amusing blowhard and buffoon, who confesses to utter frustration at the "woke lefts" obsession with identity politics whilst seemingly devoting his entire existence to endlessly making common cause with the libertarian far right to wage an incessant war on the topic. His journey from left to a soft cock Boogaloo Boi is something else.

      • RedLogix 4.2.1
        20 December 2022 at 11:01 am

        Interesting comment on the idea of the Cathedral/Bazaar model. Most of us who consider ourselves to be on the progressive left understand that we are in an ideological battle with two powerful forces. The first is the donor driven politics of the center right that has ruled our lives for most of the last five decades. The second is an even bigger threat from reactionary nationalists in alliance with religious fundamentalists who want to turn back the clock to some glorious era that never existed except as a nightmare for women and minorities

        A restatement of the tripolar model I outlined above. Essentially you have described three political poles – progressive socialism, liberalism and conservatism.

        Liberalism promotes innovation, liberty and development. Conservatism balances this with a respect for institutions, systems and reliability. Socialism looks to fairness, respect and redistribution. Each of them plays a legitimate role in a healthy society; politics is the eternal contention between all three as time and circumstance change.

        Extremism is when any of these three steps over a boundary. You can tell when you are an extremist because you conceive of yourself as a sole arbiter of of a singular truth, isolated in a battle against everyone else.

    • weka 4.3
      20 December 2022 at 10:10 am

      I'd like to see the argument made that Trotter and/or Redline have abandoned class struggle. I disagree with Trotter a fair amount, and I don't read him that often, but it's quite the claim that he has no class analysis.

      Likewise claiming Redline have no class analysis. Whatever criticisms there are to be made about the politics of both, this just seems like an anti-anti reaction.

    • weka 4.4
      20 December 2022 at 10:15 am

      Scratching my head at this too,

      They want to defend the WRONG THING from neoliberalism – strong, closed-borders states.

      Is she a supporter of open borders? Because neoliberalism does whatever the fuck it wants with borders eg the Key government used fast, excessive immigration as a tool in running the neoliberal economy. Unless one is in favour of open borders, I can't see how neoliberalism can be characterised as closed borders.

      • joe90 4.4.1
        20 December 2022 at 10:33 am

        We live in a strong, open border state where we can come and go as we please.

        • weka 4.4.1.1
          20 December 2022 at 12:31 pm

          yeah, well I've yet to see a left wing explanation of how that will protect communities and the environment. The people I see running that position basically live in cities and visit nature and have zero plan for ecology and increasing population. Nor how to resolve the problems of resource depletion and how that impacts on low income/poor people.

          Where Trotter and co react against that, they're holding a conservative position as a service to the community because of the liberals who think open borders are all good. I don't agree with Trotter much, but I think liberals believe they can force everyone to agree with them so what can they expect.

          • weka 4.4.1.1.1
            20 December 2022 at 12:32 pm

            and of course there are clear parallels with women's rights and gender ideologists. People without healthy boundaries are just as dangerous as the people with authoritarian control boundaries.

            • RedLogix 4.4.1.1.1.1
              20 December 2022 at 12:47 pm

              People without healthy boundaries are just as dangerous as the people with authoritarian control boundaries.

              Well yes. An idea I have been articulating here for some time. We might well debate the details of exactly where these boundaries are located – but it is worth noting the points we do align on.

        • Descendant Of Smith 4.4.1.2
          20 December 2022 at 11:04 pm

          The neo-liberal approach to border control is that executives/managerial class are free to ply their trade anywhere in the world (necessary as they continually move their production to where the lowest labour costs / best tax incentives are) whereas workers are not free to move willy nilly around the world to work.

          This is embedded in international trade agreements in many cases and results in things like RSE at one end and the procession of overseas CEO's running and wrecking our public institutions at the other.

          Border control remains a class issue.

    • swordfish 4.5
      20 December 2022 at 1:34 pm

      .

      LOL … spare me the ID pols bullshit from pampered well-to-do virtue-signalers like dear old Daphne … Oligarchic Capitalism absolutely loves the affluent Woke cadre within the Professional Middle Class … its inherent divisiveness, its rejection of traditional Social Democratic class politics in favour of systematically scapegoating the non-indigenous majority of the working & lower-middle classes into a degraded, powerless second-class citizenship.

      The new Woke Corporate Oligarchy, with its radically redefined Woke-Identitarian ideology, mirrors sanctimonious bourgeois ID politics activists of the pretend-"Left" in being no friend of democracy and no friend of class politics.

      The ruthlessly self-interested masquerading as moral exemplars.

      Bryce Edwards, Chris Trotter, DaphnaRedliner & a few others are a breath of fresh air against the perversion of the Left into a self-serving Vanity Project for an affluent, increasingly authoritarian segment of society.

    • bwaghorn 5.1
      20 December 2022 at 11:19 am

      Surely she wouldn't openly side with a couple that have decided to operate open warfare by useing a completely one sided attack on netflix (haven't nor will ever watch it)

      • Anker 5.1.1
        20 December 2022 at 4:07 pm

        Bwagon, I suspect Jacinda wouldn't have openly sided with H and M. The "close bond"may be tested a bit if they have used her without her permission

  6. Ed 6
    20 December 2022 at 9:03 am

    Clare Daly speaks truth to power.

    In modern war the only winner is global capital. Ordinary people always lose. Remember that next time there's talk about peace being "treason."

    • Sanctuary 6.1
      20 December 2022 at 9:40 am

      The trouble with this sort of nonsense is the ordinary people of the Ukraine have their own agency, and they beg to differ. Ukrainians know peace at any price is just another word for suicide.

      • mikesh 6.1.1
        20 December 2022 at 11:03 am

        It's good to see someone in politics making a sensible speech concerning the Ukrainian war. The point about having to pay four times the previous price for energy and forcing people to choose between eating and keeping warm is a point worth hammering home.

        And the Ukranianians don't know that peace talks mean "suicide" We cannot "know" something that isn't true.

        the

        • Ed 6.1.1.1
          20 December 2022 at 11:21 am

          Spot on mikesh

          The Ukrainians tried to make peace In April, but Boris Johnson was sent over to make sure the war was continued.

          https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ukraine-must-not-be-pressured-into-bad-peace-deal-says-uk-pm-johnson-2022-06-07/

          • mikesh 6.1.1.1.1
            20 December 2022 at 11:51 am

            Yes. I forgot to mention the point Miss Daly made about the Americans laughing at Europe. The Americans don't want the war to end because they see it as weakening Russia, and if it weakens Europe also, that's a bonus.

            It all contributes to the cause of American hegemony.

            • Ed 6.1.1.1.1.1
              20 December 2022 at 11:52 am

              And that is what this proxy war is all about.

              • Gabby …
                20 December 2022 at 2:12 pm

                What a shame that pooty can't see that he's being played.

              • Jenny are we there yet …
                21 December 2022 at 9:43 am

                The lesson; If you don't want a proxy war on your borders. Don't invade your neighbours.

                Russia is fighting the US and Nato in Ukraine?

                Was the US fighting Russia and the Warsaw Pact in Vietnam?

                While Vietnamese morale, patriotism, superior training and the belief that theirs was a just cause were clearly critical factors, the victory was also due to the virtually ceaseless flow of weapons from Russia.

                Yes of course there was some element of 'proxy war' but principally the Vietnam war, was a war against US domination and take over.

                The superpowers like to see their imperial rivals get a black eye.

                But without the Vietnamese willingness to fight and resist the US invasion the Soviet Union would have had no where to send their weapons.

                The same in Ukraine, again there is an element of 'proxy war' but principally the Ukraine war is a war against Russian domination and take over.

                https://www.rbth.com/…/vietnam_war_the_critical_role_of…

                • Ed …
                  21 December 2022 at 10:34 am

                  The proxy war started before 2014.
                  A simple reading of history shows the Americans were involved in the 2014 coup and have been arming and training the Ukrainian army ever since.

                  And if you remember the history of the Vietnam war, the Americans started by sending ‘trainers’to assist the South Vietnamese…

                  That is why we urgently need a ceasefire.

                  • joe90 …
                    21 December 2022 at 10:44 am

                    A simple reading of history shows the Americans were involved in the 2014 coup

                    Evidence? Or another soft-headed reckon?

                    • Ed …
                      21 December 2022 at 11:00 am

                      Joe, are really trying to say the Americans weren’t involved in the 2014 coup?

                      Wow.

                    • joe90 …
                      21 December 2022 at 11:16 am

                      Joe, are really trying to say the Americans weren’t involved in the 2014 coup?

                      I'll ask again, do you have any evidence Americans were involve?

          • joe90 6.1.1.1.2
            20 December 2022 at 1:08 pm

            The Ukrainians tried to make peace In April,

            Really? Do you have any evidence?

            Boris Johnson was sent over to make sure the war was continued.

            Cite?

    • Jenny are we there yet 6.2
      20 December 2022 at 10:32 am

      The Russian aggressor will not even agree to a Christmas truce.

      Is A Christmas Truce In Ukraine Possible?

      …..When asked if Moscow would consider a proposal to cease hostilities over the Christmas or New Year period, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, said “There is no such topic on the agenda.”

      https://worldcrunch.com/christmas-truce-in-ukraine

      Russia launches one of its most damaging missile attacks yet against civilian infrastructure

      UKRAINE INVASION

      Ukraine invasion: Russia fires scores of missiles in one of its biggest attacks on Ukraine

      18/12/2022

      Reuters

      Russia fired more than 70 missiles at Ukraine on Friday in one of its biggest attacks since the start of the war, knocking out power in the second-biggest city and forcing Kyiv to implement emergency blackouts nationwide, Ukrainian officials said.

      Three people were killed when an apartment block was hit in central Kryvyi Rih and another died in shelling in Kherson in the south,….

      https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/world/2022/12/ukraine-invasion-russia-fires-scores-of-missiles-in-one-of-its-biggest-attacks-on-ukraine.html

      A unilateral withdrawal back to the their own borders is the only guarantee of a proper lasting peace with the Russian Federation invaders.

      • mikesh 6.2.1
        20 December 2022 at 7:56 pm

        I think the Orthodox Churches – Greek Orthodox, Russian Orthodox, Ukrainian Orthodox, etc. – do not attach much importance to Christmas, For them the main event in the Christian calendar is Easter. For someone to suggest a ceasefire for Christmas seems a little pernicious.

        • joe90 6.2.1.1
          20 December 2022 at 8:31 pm

          Christmas Day by the Gregorian calendar is an official government holiday in Ukraine. The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church celebrates pretty much like every other Catholic church does.

          Orthodox Church of Ukraine celebrations begin today our time, St Nicholas day, when Ukrainian kids clean and leave their footwear along with their Christmas letters on the window sill and St Nicholas visits overnight and leaves presents, and the festival runs through to late January.

          So no, there's nothing at all pernicious about Christmas ceasefire proposals.

    • Sanctuary 7.1
      20 December 2022 at 9:35 am

      China appears to adopted ACT's COVID response policy, and “Let whoever needs to be infected infected, let whoever needs to die die. Early infections, early deaths, early peak, early resumption of production.” is going about as well as you'd expect.

      https://twitter.com/DrEricDing/status/1604748747640119296

      • RedLogix 7.2.1
        20 December 2022 at 10:11 am

        As a vassal state of the Russian empire for centuries, and until very recently a captive of the same corrupt, kleptocratic mode of governance – this does seem entirely possible.

        And when the Ukrainian people chose to go in a different direction, sacrifice their lives for this – you do nothing but shit on them.

        • adam 7.2.1.1
          20 December 2022 at 10:58 am

          Yeah what was Ed thinking being critical of the proliferation of arms towards other conflicts.

          /sarc

          • RedLogix 7.2.1.1.1
            20 December 2022 at 11:10 am

            Indeed no-one supports that kind of proliferation. I did not imagine that needed spelling out.

            But the claim made by Ed was 'Ukraine is a corrupt country'. Fair enough that I might question why.

            • adam 7.2.1.1.1.1
              20 December 2022 at 2:11 pm

              Did you see the response below – it does need to be spelt out. Because we have those who are supplying the weapons being incapable of keeping a track of the money it is spending.

              And as you said below, those selling the weapons are playing 'a hell of a dangerous game". I've read reports in the past, that some factions are they selling them to the Russians, which is total FUBAR and should be stopped. I don't think it's 70%, but even 1% is to much in my opinion.

              • RedLogix …
                20 December 2022 at 2:30 pm

                Any amount would be too much, but if it is as low as 1% I would be delighted. Ukraine will be no more immune from having traitorous fuckers than anywhere else.

                Point is, the leakage is probably some low number, no-one as a reliable handle on it – and Ed is still repeating weak propaganda sources without thinking much.

                • Ed …
                  20 December 2022 at 2:55 pm

                  You are aware that the US is also involved in propaganda?

                  • RedLogix …
                    20 December 2022 at 3:18 pm

                    Well of course; but have you just implicitly acknowledged that Russia does propaganda too?

                    The simple difference is this – there are Russian troops in Ukraine and not the other way around. No amount of agitprop, or obfuscation over the meaning of words from either side, can gloss over that reality.

                    It was Putin who turned a diplomatic confrontation into a kinetic one; he started this war and he still has the power to end it at any moment.

                    • Ed …
                      20 December 2022 at 3:25 pm

                      The war started in 2014.
                      It suits NATO and the US to pretend the events of February 2022 came out of the blue. It didn’t.

                • adam …
                  20 December 2022 at 11:25 pm

                  Not sure if it is a low number and here why. Reports have surfaced that the weapons are in Russia, Syria, and as of last week or so, Africa. With a spread like that, not a small number. I'd guess maybe 3-6% of all materials, including weapons. And in the shear scale of whats being sent that is a large amount.

                  I'm guessing (wild guess) it's Russian Ukraine's or Gangs who are doing the selling. With the flood of arms and other materials its just too easy in a war zone which is having it's infrastructure systematically destroyed, for stuff to go missing.

      • Gabby 7.2.2
        20 December 2022 at 2:15 pm

        I'm not sure that the US minds very much if terrorists are armed.

    • joe90 7.3
      20 December 2022 at 10:15 am

      The procurement and destination of weapons and materiels is at the heart of any military's operations security.

      But the AFU will be delighted to hear that their enemy thinks they're losing 70% of US supplied arms.

      /

    • Jenny are we there yet 7.4
      20 December 2022 at 10:49 am

      On one hand the Putin fanboys tell us that Ukraine is only beating Russia solely because of Western military aid. Now they are saying only a fraction of this military aid 30% is reaching them?

      All I can say to that, is the Ukrainian people are mounting a remarkable defence of their homeland against the Russian invading forces without it.

      • adam 7.4.1
        20 December 2022 at 11:03 am

        It's the spilling of the arms out to other conflicts which is the problem Jenny are we there yet. How many of these weapons and materials are ending up in Russian hands? Or the head choppers in Syria?

      • joe90 7.4.2
        20 December 2022 at 11:16 am

        On one hand the Putin fanboys tell us that Ukraine is only beating Russia solely because of Western military aid.

        Umberto Eco;

        However, the followers must be convinced that they can overwhelm the enemies. Thus, by a continuous shifting of rhetorical focus, the enemies are at the same time too strong and too weak.

      • mikesh 7.4.3
        20 December 2022 at 11:28 am

        Presumably the Ukrainians are finding 70% of the weapons to be surplus to requirements and are therefor flogging them off for cash the they need to buy other consumer goods of which they have a greater need.

    • Macro 7.5
      20 December 2022 at 11:37 am

      FFS that old and erroneous article – published over 6 months ago has been roundly debunked and shown by actual events to be a load of hogwash.

      Here is just one article where CBS has had to pull a report based in the bullshit being peddled here.

      There are many others if anyone wants to waste some time .

      U.S. and Ukrainian officials say they have not documented any instances of illicit use or transfer of American arms in Ukraine since Russian President Vladimir Putin launched his invasion on Feb. 24. The State Department has acknowledged that Russian forces’ capture of Ukrainian arms could lead to those weapons being smuggled on to other countries. Other weapons have gone missing; a Swedish grenade launcher, apparently pilfered from a battlefield in Ukraine, exploded in the trunk of a car in Russia in May.

      Arms trade experts warn that the administration and its allies must remain on guard despite the broad Western support for Kyiv’s effort to confront Putin’s invasion and the brutal tactics his forces have used against Ukrainian cities and civilians.

      Rachel Stohl, the vice president for research programs at the Washington-based Stimson Center, said officials also must develop longer-term plans to ensure the security of surplus U.S. weapons once the conflict with Russia ends, noting Ukraine’s history as a theater for small-arms smuggling after the Cold War.

      • Ed 7.5.1
        20 December 2022 at 11:45 am

        In which case why have arms turned up in the Mail Basin? This story is dated December 3rd.

        CBS, as a United States news source in a proxy war involving the US, cannot be regarded as an impartial source.

      • mikesh 7.5.2
        20 December 2022 at 12:01 pm

        This would seem to imply that the Russians have captured 70% of the weapons supplied. Are the Russians more successful in this war than the propagandists are letting on?

        Actually, where does the 70% figure come from?

        • Macro 7.5.2.1
          20 December 2022 at 12:55 pm

          where does the 70% figure come from?

          Out of someones arse.

          An NBC report cited a small-scale Lithuanian non-lethal supplier to Ukraine who estimated only 40% of shipped weapons reached the frontlines in the early stages of the 2022 war. Months later, the report was repackaged by RT, citing a CBS claim that 70% of shipped weapons were misappropriated.

      • RedLogix 7.5.3
        20 December 2022 at 12:06 pm

        Exactly.

        If the CBS had really turned up solid information that 70% of weapons were not making it to the Ukrainian front – then it is reasonable to think people in Ukraine would know this fact as well.

        And what do you imagine would happen to someone caught in such treachery? Because that is exactly what it is – and traitors everywhere are marked out for a very short life.

        It would be silly to suggest there is no leakage of this sort, but it is a hell of a dangerous game to be playing.

      • adam 7.5.4
        20 December 2022 at 2:16 pm

        Oh please the state department is in full propaganda mode over this war.

        They are a source I take with a grain of salt, like RT.

        • Macro 7.5.4.1
          20 December 2022 at 4:02 pm

          It is RT who are currently peddling the 70% claim adam.

          Have a good read of the CBS article on which the original estimate was based. This was in April just over a month after the invasion by Russia. Understandably things would be a little chaotic then and supply lines would be patchy at best – remember the chaos as millions of people were fleeing the country at that time. Logistical supplies would take time to progress through to the front lines even with the best will in the world.

          Jonas Ohman is founder and CEO of Blue-Yellow, a Lithuania-based organization that has been meeting with and supplying frontline units with non-lethal military aid in Ukraine since the start of the conflict with Russia-backed separatists in 2014. Back in April, he estimated that just "30-40%" of the supplies coming across the border reached its final destination. But he says the situation has significantly improved since then and a much larger quantity now gets where it's supposed to go.

          and in particular the editors note:

          Editor's note: This article has been updated to reflect changes since the CBS Reports documentary "Arming Ukraine" was filmed, and the documentary is also being updated. Jonas Ohman says the delivery has significantly improved since filming with CBS in late April. The government of Ukraine notes that U.S. defense attaché Brigadier General Garrick M. Harmon arrived in Kyiv in August 2022 for arms control and monitoring.

  8. Anker 8
    20 December 2022 at 9:38 am

    I don't know who Daphne Lawless is Joe 90.
    And what is the “Cathedral/ Bazaar model”? When I googled it I got stuff about it being about software

    But she is utterly incorrect about Redline. They have not rejected class analysist and the link below about the Workers Now political party indicates this. Strong rights given to unions, low tax threseholds for workers, womens spaces for women only (non woke), free speech for all as workers need to be free to debate ideas.

    https://rdln.wordpress.com/2022/12/15/workers-now/

    I read most of Chris Trotters articles and he certainly brings class analysis into what he is writing (although I suspect he would call himself a social democratic (sorry Chris if I am misrepresenting you).

  9. UncookedSelachimorpha 9
    20 December 2022 at 11:24 am

    We are being treated on this site to disinformation about Ukraine, courtesy of a few who have fallen into Kremlin propaganda. One of the egregious lies that Russia invented to justify their murderous and unprovoked invasion is that Ukraine "is Nazi".

    Ukrainian Jews give some of the strongest rebukes to this nonsense.

    Ukraine’s Jews denounce myth of rampant Nazism

    ….attempts to smear Kyiv as a Nazi-led regime are nothing more than "Russian propaganda." The Nazi myth has infuriated Ukraine’s Jews. Not only does it ignore their voices. It puts Jewish lives in danger.

    …Alexander Shatkhin (of no relation to Igor) is a lifelong Odesa resident who attended a Jewish school as a child. He characterized Ukraine as "super safe" for Jews and said that antisemitism hasn’t been a serious issue since the 1990s, when "Soviet thinking" was the norm. A seasoned traveler, he believes that Ukraine is safer for Jews than many Western European states…

    …In November, 111 Ukrainian Jewish leaders signed a public letter calling Ukrainian Jews victims of Russian war crimes and denouncing Putin’s destruction of Holocaust memorials, synagogues, and Jewish cemeteries. Those who believe that Ukraine is full of Nazis should listen to these Jews, who are natural experts on this subject

    • Ed 9.1
      20 December 2022 at 11:27 am

      Noam Chomsky, John Pilger, Jeffrey Sachs, John Mearsheimer amongst other informed and independent experts and thinkers present a different narrative to the one we are being fed by the corporate mainstream media, yes.

      It is not misinformation, though.

      • UncookedSelachimorpha 9.1.1
        20 December 2022 at 2:36 pm

        I have agreed with various things from Chomsky and Pilger in the past – but not on this.

        Seems they have intellectualised themselves into knots, and have emerged defending imperialism, dictatorship, war crimes and censorship.

        They remind me of the conversation at the start of this clip…"It would be wise".

        • Ed 9.1.1.1
          20 December 2022 at 2:57 pm

          They remain voices I respect.

        • RedLogix 9.1.1.2
          20 December 2022 at 3:04 pm

          They have abandoned reason for madness.

          Chomsky and Pilger would do well to get out from behind their keyboards, visit the country they profess to care so much about – and listen to ordinary Ukrainian people.

          Good clip.yes

    • mikesh 9.2
      20 December 2022 at 11:39 am

      The Ukrainian Jews seem to be attacking a "straw man". I doubt whether, these days, Ukrainian fascism has anything to do with antisemitism.

    • Francesca 9.3
      20 December 2022 at 1:46 pm

      There's no controversy around the fact that Ihor Kolomoisky, a jewish Ukrainian oligarch with an Israeli passport funded the Azov militia when it began in 2014.He had no problem with its neo nazi symbols and ideology, as long as it was effective in brutalising his competitors and attacking the Russians of the Donbas.It was effectively his own private militia.

      Azov was also backed by the interior ministry of the Ukrainian govt, many of whom are Jewish , so this nonsense that no Jew would countenance far right neo nazis is quite false

      https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/3/1/who-are-the-azov-regiment

    • joe90 9.4
      20 December 2022 at 1:49 pm

      The people who gave the world the anti-cosmopolitan campaign the doctors plot, and the night of the murdered poets are smearing Jews, again.

      Surely not?

      Russia is returning to the days of the former Soviet Union when it comes to antisemitism, fired by the need for a “scapegoat,” the former Chief Rabbi of Moscow asserted in an interview published on Thursday.

      “Russia is returning to the Soviet Union, not in terms of communism, but in terms of its isolation from the rest of the world, antisemitism, general mobilization, repression of dissidents, and economic hardship,” Rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt said in an interview with the Spanish Catholic news outlet Alfa & Omega. “It has become a very unpleasant place to live.”

      Goldchmidt said that 50,000 Jews had left Russia for Israel since President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine at the end of February, a process he emphasized he had “encouraged.”

      “Russia has a very difficult history of government antisemitism,” Goldschmidt observed. “When things go wrong, they look for a scapegoat.”

      […]

      Crude antisemitic rhetoric had surfaced again in the context of the invasion of Ukraine, Goldschmidt noted, for example in the claim of Russian propagandists that the war is an operation to “denazify” Ukraine — a stance the rabbi dismissed as “utter nonsense.”

      In that regard, Goldschmidt also mentioned the false claim made by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov that Adolf Hitler had “Jewish blood”, the allegation made by Russian Security Council Aleksei Pavlov that the Orthodox Chabad movement is a “sect,” and the authorities ongoing attempts to shutter the local operations of the Jewish Agency, which assists those making aliyah to Israel.

      https://www.algemeiner.com/2022/12/15/putins-russia-returning-to-soviet-era-antisemitism-former-chief-rabbi-of-moscow-asserts/

      • RedLogix 9.4.1
        20 December 2022 at 2:10 pm

        For what it is worth; in the two short periods I lived and worked in Russia I encountered a casual anti-Semitic (and a frank racism directed specifically toward black people ) often enough to surprise me.

        That is to say not a daily occurrence or openly blatant, but often enough to suggest it was not rare either.

        n=1 and all that.

  11. SPC 11
    20 December 2022 at 12:53 pm

    A Labour reboot for 2023

    TAX

    1. Adopt the Greens 1% wealth tax on those with asset equity over $1M
    2. The American concept of progressive income tax for companies as we do for individuals (so high profit companies pay more tax – the Oz banks etc)
    3. A FTT (if seen as more efficient than incorporation of the financial services sector into GST)
    4. 1-3 enabling reduced income tax and or WFF/AS changes.
    5. A land tax for contributions to an infrastructure fund (for housing/PT/water etc)
    6. The first year after any increase in AS involves a rent freeze

    Housing

    1. buy up homes (those with space for granny flat small builds extra) and or lease to increase the number of state houses charging income related rent to 100,000 and get people out of motels.
    2. the current upgrade/renovate or replace phase to get Kainga Ora stock up to modern standard include a focus on disability and aged friendly accommodation renovation.
    3. take advantage of the building downturn to reboot Kiwibuild – and allow existing flat/apartment owners to buy in when starting a family, aging singles seeking co-ownership companionship/mutual support, and boomers downsizing (see 7) (this allows sales while mortgage rates are high).

    Welfare

    1. Disability singles at super rates, and the base income support rate when in partnership

    2. move repayment of debt to the TD model (begins once people have employment)

    3. support those with terminal sickness or undergoing cancer treatment at ACC levels

    4. refinance the debt of women going onto the DPB after divorce (and become partners in making mortgage payments, leading in some long term cases to the home becoming a state house).

    PT

    1. Free offpeak to CSC holders and students. Half fare otherwise.

    Health

    1. no tertiary debt repayments required for anyone working in our health system

    2. investment in drugs that keep people in employment and out of health care (GP/hospital/carer) dependency to reduce system costs and stress on capability

    Dental.

    1. Expand CS card service from hospital treatment (emergency check and tooth removal) to annual dental visits.
    2. Expand hospital treatment to low income workers.

  12. SPC 12
    20 December 2022 at 1:02 pm

    After spending around 18 months investigating the riot, the House of Representatives select committee recommended at their final meeting on Monday that Mr Trump face four charges:

    • Inciting, assisting, aiding or comforting an insurrection
    • Obstruction of an official proceeding
    • Conspiracy to defraud the United States
    • Conspiracy to make a false statement

    Predictably Donald Trump has called the SC, a "kangaroo court"

    https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-64034559

    The term kangaroo court comes from the notion of justice proceeding "by leaps", like a kangaroo – in other words, "jumping over" (intentionally ignoring) evidence that would be in favour of the defendant.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kangaroo_court

    Are kangaroo courts illegal?

    Referring to a legal trial as a kangaroo court is a serious charge, since it implies that the trial was not conducted in a legal or fair fashion. Outside the United States, the term is not as widely heard

    https://www.mylawquestions.com/what-is-a-kangaroo-court.htm

    • adam 12.1
      20 December 2022 at 2:22 pm

      Between the NFTS and this, I think we can finally call trump, done.

    • Peter 12.2
      20 December 2022 at 2:27 pm

      Oh that's a surprise, Trump calls it a kangaroo court and wants the talk to be about that.

      I thought it was an investigation, an inquiry into what happened on Jan 6 and around that. I realise the committee heard from many, many people. I heard that others who had information refused to share what they knew. People who apparently had dealings with Trump on that day as events unfolded.

      The definition including "that would be in favour of the defendant"? There was no defendant. There was no trial. It was not a court.

  14. Robert Guyton 14
    20 December 2022 at 4:01 pm

    You see! (Why are we wasting our energy talking about Seymour??)

    "The Green Party welcomes an historic new global agreement to protect 30% of the planet for nature by the end of the decade and calls on the Government to follow it with immediate action to protect native wildlife."

    https://www.greens.org.nz/urgent_action_needed_at_home_following_global_deal_for_nature

    • UncookedSelachimorpha 15.1
      20 December 2022 at 5:35 pm

      Hopefully some goodwill gestures await. Goodwill all the way back to Ukraine's borders would be nice.

  16. Jenny are we there yet 16
    20 December 2022 at 10:09 pm

    RT Russia Today, speculates on Russia's defeat in their war with Ukraine.

    RT accuses Ukraine and Nato of planning a genocide of Russian speakers in Ukraine on Russia's defeat.

    The weird thing is the President of Ukraine is a native Russian speaker, who learnt to speak Russian at school.

    The weird thing about this story is that the Russian Federation have been mercilessly bombing the Russian speaking Ukrainian city of Odessa

    The other weird thing, the President of Ukraine is a native Russian speaker, who learnt to speak Russian at school. Will he too be rounded up in this supposed post war pogrom of Russian speakers?

    Bu truly the most weirdest thing about this claim, in a paragraph that would not be out of place in an episode of Black Adder Goes To War, RT's evidence for this supposedly planned genocide of Russian speakers in the Donbas following a Ukraine victory is the lack of any evidence for it.

    17 Dec, 2022 16:29

    HomeRussia & FSU

    What will happen to ethnic Russians in Donbass and Crimea, if Ukraine and NATO emerge victorious from the current conflict?

    ….if Kiev and NATO win, what happens to the Russians living in the regions they will have ‘liberated’? This is the question I posed to both former and current US government officials and experts. But no one would answer. So I searched online. Likewise, nothing. No detailed information on Kiev’s post-war plan. Their silence is sinister.

    https://www.rt.com/russia/568369-nato-russians-donbass-crimea/

    • Jenny are we there yet 16.1
      20 December 2022 at 10:17 pm

      The morning after Russia's retreat from Ukraine, Ukrainian army officers will rip off their Ukrainian uniforms to reveal their black Waffen SS uniforms complete with glittering silver deaths head insignia and will order the round up of millions of Ukrainian Russian speakers. President Zelensky having served his purpose, will be detained and stripped of his titles and with the other Russian speakers loaded into cattle cars to be transported to one of many newly built extermination camps alongside all the Jews and Gypsies (OMG Zelensky a Russian speaking Jew, will be doubly damned)

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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