Most importantly, as money would be openly directly created by the government to bring about the use of the countries resources as needed it would obviate the need for savings and foreign investment. It would also decrease the government borrowings to zero as they would no longer need to borrow which would eliminate the billions of dollars wasted in interest that the government presently pays out yearly.
Our entire monetary system is fucked as it’s designed to make a few people richer without them actually having to do anything.
And, yeah, that Asian investment bank is just of the same failed system.
Freeloading. Owning a home in several global capital cities and curtailing the muliplier effort of taking those resources out of the local economy. All because Thatcherites discovered that media repeating the lie adnausium , that while civil society builds the engine, and cheapening high dense middle east fuels powered the engine, only a rather extreme now disreputable political economic view created the inevitable market growth. I.e they called dibs on the diving seat while siliencing civil society and claimg growth as proof for their politicial economic non-runner ideology. Thirty years later, climbing debt levels, climate disruption, and a chronical unfit global economy lacking balancing forums to deal as one species. And worse, now the Marxists have been given their day, neo-libs are communist infiltraters, having the luxuries of wealth while corrupting capalism from within. Why does the US Republician party hate capialism so much?
Such a system is not needed and is, IMO, part of the reason why we’re having such problems as anthropogenic climate change. They push growth but prevent development because of the need to pay interest.
Well, China has the sole veto because of the size of its contribution, but I think it will very rarely use it. In essence, the AIIB has been set up to be far more democratic and apolitical than the World Bank or the IMF, which is one reason why 56 countries joined it so quickly.
Well, China has the sole veto because of the size of its contribution, but I think it will very rarely use it.
But it will use it whereas an independent investment bank in each country supplying all the money that that country needs is not under that power.
In essence, the AIIB has been set up to be far more democratic and apolitical than the World Bank or the IMF, which is one reason why 56 countries joined it so quickly.
But it’s still just a copy of the present failed system.
This article gives an interesting insight into how the TPPA is being written and who has the influence.
“The big media lobbyists’ theatrics over this minor amendment are embarrassing, but they do raise one important issue: our trade negotiators are a lot less interested in the needs of ordinary users and creators than the needs of powerful companies. Why else was a last-minute intervention by Google sufficient to bring the USTR back to the negotiating table on this topic, where the sustained interventions of EFF and 10 other major public interest groups from around the world were not?”
Hello everyone, I do hope this is the correct place to post this question/comment combo…
I just saw an ad for Radio Live on YouTube, selling the “balanced” reporting the media is currently so fond of. It is just a mash up of the Radio Live personalities telling us what we’d miss out on if they didn’t give all opinions equal weight regardless of merit.
It opens with Hilary Barry asking “Can you imagine how dull the world would be if we all thought the same?” and is followed by the rest of the team giving us such gems as:
“There would only be one shop.”
“There would only be one colour There’d be no colour” (sorry Physics)
And my favourite:
“There’d be no debate on climate change.”
Is this sort of thing new? I usually use an ad blocker so I haven’t seen it before. I did not realise they were publicly spouting fallacious arguments to support rubbish journalism.
[lprent: Updated to fix a transcription error on the commenter’s request. ]
I’d be tempted to say that the debate on climate change is now about what to do (not whether it’s real), but then I see they had Sean Plunkett giving it as an example.
It’s pretty much the only conversation I’m willing to have about it 😉
(more seriously, I can see the time approaching where I will have no tolerance for talk about what to do, given we know what to do and should just be doing it).
The debate about climate change is as valid as the debate about the earth being round or flat, or the debate about whether the moon landing was a hoax or not.
Balanced reporting like paddy’s piece on the appalling Newsworthy last night which btw looks like an episode of ‘Cops’ more so than a news show.
Little had a soundbite about farming incidents being high then followed by Gower throwing numbers about without any context, averages etc inferring Little had it wrong.
Overt bias on display, if little was in fact wrong there’d be wave after wave of graphs and stats but no just Pants on fire Paddy and his questionable use of numbers.
😈 They are assumptions. But few things take that long to compile any more unless you’re doing a lot of variants or cross compiles.
The worst one I have at present is some old C/C++ code that gets compiled in a redhat9 system (ie circa 2002) in a VM on a version of gcc/g++ that only handles a single core. It is about 500k lines and takes about 5 minutes from scratch. Fortunately it doesn’t have templates.
Three projects, three platforms, two graphics libraries (compiled from source, obv.), and a two core CPU on a laptop with a fragmented 1TB SATA. Nice and warm in here though.
It opens with Hilary Barry asking “Can you imagine how dull the world would be if we all thought the same?”
Hah, that’s amusing because according to National that’s exactly what we do. It’s the total premise that National Standards are based upon and why they fail.
“There would only be one shop.”
Well, we’re not quite there – we duopoly instead.
“There’d be no debate on climate change.”
So, I wonder what debate they’re having with their navel hair because you can’t debate climate change as you simply can’t debate facts.
We can’t see what the public say on the matter of course, because the NZ Herald has again been attacked by gremlins.
The recurrence of this very strange tech issue must be a real headache for them. Once again, despite the number of comments ‘published’ (currently 18) being clearly stated on the home page and the”Politics” section page, once you get to the actual article…. no comments are visible.
It must be so infuriating for the Herald that this keeps happening and so unlucky it only seems to occur on articles that include distinctly negative discussion points on the National Government.
“The Prime Minister says none of the advice the Government received suggested it would be illegal.”
when david cunliffe used a trust to handle his campaign for party leader it was perfectly legal, nevertheless he was pilloried for it.
another example of dirty politics, key and his cronies have not a shred of honour amongst the lot of them. they will use every means at their disposal, honest or not, to gull the public.
how anyone can continue to support someone who lies and prevaricates the way this one does is beyond me.
“”how anyone can continue to support someone who lies and prevaricates the “”
That!! Is the how I feel ,if some one thinks pure capitalism is the way forward I can live with it, but to support this rogues gallery of a political party Lead by a lying sick bully makes me wonder at the morals of the average kiwi.
At least, we hope it was: the idea that departments commonly have spare cash that can be spent without Treasury approval in this way does not bear thinking.
It’s not up to Treasury to give approval for spending. That’s the government’s job.
The scheme to relocate a sheep breeding operation from New Zealand to Saudi Arabia went ahead for other reasons, which will come within the Auditor-General’s inquiry this time.
It’s those ‘other reasons’ that are the concern as all indications are that the spend up on the Saudi Sheep Deal were a bribe.
The Prime Minister says none of the advice the Government received suggested it would be illegal.
The PM is a liar and I’m sure that we do have some laws that cover it but we obviously need stronger laws against such corruption.
If a well-connected Saudi investor’s grievance of the live export ban was obstructing a free trade agreement, it makes sense to offer a settlement.
No, there is never any excuse for such corruption.
Well its fair to say that there was a failry large proportion of NZ voters who didn’t like Helen Clarks on screen image (though I understand shes perfectly charming away from the camera) but she had definately had respect so quite similar to John Key in this instance
nah not even close – I liked a fair chunk of Helen Clark as PM but there were severe lapses imo. Key is just a mindless bumbling liar that should be ashamed of himself but lacks the self awareness to even consider how dull and dim he is.
I always underestimate how much he crumbles when he faces competent reviews from impartial media, like overseas interviewers or just his behaviour summarised by John Oliver (three times in the past year, more than Zimbabwe ffs).
I’m not so sure that we need better wingnuts.
I reckon the wingnuts need better heroes.
https://t.co/gDCChPorOr, which I posted last night, but very relevant to “respect”for John Key, and how Paul Henry was made to see the light. (for a split second)
That was interesting, thanks for posting. Loved the moment when Henry conceded the point on which personality type you’d rather have running a country.
If only that was on Seven Sharp too, might wake people up and I wouldn’t have to listen the same old answer when I ask people why they like Key…”He’s got charisma” Gawd!
Australian Govt, for all their evils, getting serious about foreign investment in residential real estate, including real estate transfer register (#8) residential property money laundering crackdown (#11) and criminal penalties for locals who act as agents to help foreign investors circumvent the prohibition on the purchase of existing properties (#5).
ANDREW LITTLE to the Associate Minister of Finance: Does she stand by the Prime Minister’s statement that “I’d hate to see New Zealanders as tenants in their own country”; if so, how many applications by overseas investors to buy land were declined under the Overseas Investment Act 2005 between January 2012 and June 2015?
ANDREW LITTLE (Leader of the Opposition): I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. This question was originally set down for the Prime Minister, and I therefore seek leave for the House to have the question transferred back to the Prime Minister.
Mr SPEAKER : Order! No. I refer the member to Speaker’s ruling 169/5. I am not prepared to put the leave. It is the prerogative of the Government to decide whom the question goes to. It has made that decision. If the member wants to continue asking it as it is on the Order Paper, he can do so.
Noted that in QT yesterday, Mr Shaw pointed out the string of National precedents when Ministers under investigation were stood down or stood themselves down. Well done James but Key just ducked. So much for open and transparent Government.
Dictatorships don’t work too well when open and transparent and National knows it. People become upset when they realise that the government is screwing them over.
CHRIS HIPKINS (Labour—Rimutaka): I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. The point of order is this: it is the tension that the Opposition finds between asking general primary questions and more specific primary questions. What we are endeavouring to do now in most of our questions—rather than asking “Does he stand by all of his statements?”—is actually be more specific and give an indication of the direction of travel of the supplementary questions. The risk of doing this is that now, under this arrangement, the Prime Minister could, in fact, answer next to no questions, because as soon as we give an indication of the nature of the question, he has grounds to transfer it.
(bold mine)
For some time The Speaker and Ministers of the Government have been actively promoting more detailed primary questions from the Opposition and this is the end result they wanted. The Opposition have two choices, ask specific questions and helplessly watch them get transferred from the PM, or be forced to waste supplementary questions by asking what should be primary questions.
Not forgetting of course by not having specifics outlayed in the primary, the PM can forever answer the more detailed supplementaries with “I don’t have the details… ” etc
Meanwhile, a nomination for Most Pathetic Question Asked In Our Parliament For Quite Some Time award
What are the benefits of returning to surplus and paying down debt?
That gem came from Chris Bishop. What a deeply probing intellectually stimulating challenge for the Minister. A question you might expect an eager year eight social studies student to ask of the Minister during a school visit but is just so embarrassing coming from a grown adult being paid over $150,000 a year to help run our country.
@ freedom (9.2) – and another patsy gem that is asked just about every parliamentary session from a variety of good little dopey government back benchers, to minister of finance English … ” what can the minister tell the House about the reports he has received on the economy?” WTF????? Duh! Of course the minister is going to talk up his economic policies!
I can just about anticipate almost every NatzKEY back bencher patsy question now, because I’ve heard the same old, same old, day in day out in Parliament so many times before. It’s just turning into a very bad Vaudeville act!
They are a part of the process of QT and we all grudgingly accept that.
No matter how good an idea it might sound, to remove the government’s allotment of questions only removes the opportunity for the rarely seen ‘question of conscience’* from a back bencher who has realised their government is a corrupt and treasonous bunch of idealogues who wouldn’t know how to find their way out of an open ended culvert.
The government of course has a right to ask itself questions and there are [almost] reasonable grounds for many of the more ridiculous questions to its own navel, but I think it was Bishop’s inability to hide the farcically vacuous nature of the question that made this one stand out. He was sniggering to himself before he even finished asking it. And he was not the only one on the government benches doing so.
I don’t remember any other government that has such obvious disrespect for question time, especially when asking the patsy questions.
We all know they will be asked, but a bit more effort to hide the patsy questions’ inner inanity would be nice.
With Key now on a slow decline, Cabinet are managing Parliamentary process to circle the wagons around him. So we will get a whole bunch more PM-puppy-and-Rugby shots.
We are already seeing Ministers Bennett and English take far more of the media load, with Joyce way down the list and Brownlee and Smith near-invisible.
National are subbing off their Bench with extreme game-playing smarts.
Labour could learn some lessons here – King and Twyford have been outstanding recently, with Little making essentially no hits. Labour need to learn National’s excellent lessons and blood their bench.
With Key now on a slow decline, Cabinet are managing Parliamentary process to circle the wagons around him. So we will get a whole bunch more PM-puppy-and-Rugby shots.
And that will be so obvious that people will wonder why they’re doing it and come to the same conclusion – National don’t have another personable front man to put in front of them and lie.
Their bench is pretty strong – and grooming an English-Bennett combination makes a whole bunch of sense. By 2020 Bennett would be a real contender for the top job.
Two men arrested following a grenade attack over the weekend in Thailand reportedly told police that the “Red Shirt” supporters of the toppled government of former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra were planning more bomb attacks on up to 100 targets in Bangkok, a security official said.
Yuttana said he was a member of a red-shirt group that communicated on a social network called Line, where they discussed a plot to bomb at least 100 places in the nation’s capital. Mahahin said that the targets included military armories in Chiang Mai and in the Northeast, university campuses and a temple.
On Monday, The Bangkok Post reported that the suspects had linked the attack to former army chief and supreme commander Chaiyasit Shinawatra, a member of the Shinawatra family, led by Yingluck’s self-exiled brother Thaksin. The junta detests the family, but it has won every national election since 2001.
Yup, these hollowed out pricks are carrying out orders and have been doing so for an eternity
Wow, you bought some propaganda wholesale there.
Have you not noticed that the junta has control of the media? Of course sources are going to blame the previous establishment – it suits their aims to stoke negative sentiment against red shirt groups and the Shinawatras.
The junta would do anything to ensure there is no future election that could possibly lead to an election, that would inevitably be won by Pheu Thai or a similar successor to Thai Rak Thai aligned with the Red Shirts
Similarly, the link to Uighur nationalists comes after pressure from China lead to the junta deciding to deport Uighurs back to China.
It suits the junta to link the bombings to Uighur nationalists, to turn public sentiment against their call for asylum.
In reality, the bombing could be from any number of sources – Red shirt activists, separatists from the south, Burmese refugee activists, someone trying to undermine certain junta figures or junta opponents, Uighur activists, or a bunch of random enraged people.
While the Shinawatras are just as corrupt and criminal as the junta is, you should really apply more critical thinking than just linking them to bombings based on statements in media that is junta-controlled.
What comments about the military? I’m well aware of the respect and social standing given to the military in Thailand, and Bangkok in particular, if that is what you are getting at. What exactly of what I have said is inaccurate though?
Well, very briefly, the military have power, they have long standing respect, they support and are supported by the monarchy, and many of the periods of dictatorship have been more stable than the surrounding periods, and plenty more, a good deal of which can be summed up as ‘this is the culture of this country’.
None of this changes that the country is run by a military junta rather than a democratically elected government, and none of that changes that that facile attacks are being made on Uighurs and Red Shirts in the media.
At current, it appears that there was knowledge of the attack in social media groups, and a red shirt leader had a warning of an attack and provided a warning on social media. In due course, it seems likely that the culprits will be able to be identified. It appears now that Prayuth is also playing down the Uighur theory, to his credit.
Much of what you wrote is solid, but there are some comments which stand out to me as a little out of place
None of this changes that the country is run by a military junta rather than a democratically elected government, and none of that changes that that facile attacks are being made on Uighurs and Red Shirts in the media.
So what it’s currently run by the Military if the Thai people are ok with that and they are providing a stability where ‘democracy’ was leading towards civil war. The Monarchy will have instructed the military to step in, that is why the military acted. 95% of Thai people support their Monarchy
Democracy ain’t ‘what it used to be’ , and as you point out, Thailand has been democratically rooted for ages at various times
What do you reckon that is ?
Not sure a reasoned person would call an attack on Red Shirts as facile, given what they have been involved in previously
Perhaps you might like to share where your bias around the Junta / Red Shirts originates
Sounds to me like you’re saying JUNTA = BAD , Democracy = Good
At current, it appears that there was knowledge of the attack in social media groups, and a red shirt leader had a warning of an attack and provided a warning on social media.
Social media groups were frenetic with activity and apparent warnings from some purporting to know the attack was coming
More warnings have also been received pertaining to coming days
Are you Thai, have Thai family or live in Thailand ?
My general problem with the junta is all that dictatorship baggage, you know, the detention of political opponents, suppression of alternative media views, enrichment of elites (admittedly going to be present regardless of who is in charge), that sort of oppression.
At least if there’s a democracy, people that aren’t in powerful positions get some sort of a voice.
I’m consistently called an unrealistic idealist, but I am always confident that a well designed democracy is better for a country, and I am confident that working towards those processes will be good for Thailand in the long term. At the moment, you only don’t have that red v yellow, poor v elites because of the military imposition in things. That conflict is not resolved, so it will just fester. I’d rather both sides have representation, involvement in political processes.
Heard on National Radio (from a source I can’t remember) that they expect milk prices to improve next year. I don’t think anyone knows what is going to happen to milk prices for the next few years. The only thing we can be sure of is price volatility.
Given that fonterra had to limit what they put up to auction to get the lift in prices they got ,and combine that with the fact that dairy factories will be approaching full production in the next month or so ,I’d be very interested to know what they base there optimism on.
The only chance demand will increase is if their is a drought in one or more of the major producing countries.
So far the long range forecast for NZ is El Nino on the rise.
So Prices might go up but N Z could miss out.
Russia allowing us to export Dairy to them is Putin Key in a precarious position with all his NATO mates.
China’s economy is in for a long rough ride.
So Dairy farmers Fairy tale ride is over.
Unless you can pick up a Dairy farm at a firesale price carry no debt ,milk once a day grow all your feed without fertilizer or harvest costs.
Dairy farming will go through a massive reorganisation.
I agree that she should be out of the spotlight though as I have as much interest in her and the crims she hangs around with as I do with the Kardashians
Can’t agree with you marty mars. You must have read the story in a different light to me. It was not nasty. It was honest. And among the words was some very good advice for the young lady in question.
Strokes and heart disease are a major killer in NZ. And working longer hours seems to greatly bump up the risk of suffering from them.
The likely toll of long working hours is revealed in a major new study which shows that employees still at their desks into the evening run an increased risk of stroke – and the longer the hours they put in, the higher the risk.
The largest study conducted on the issue, carried out in three continents and led by scientists at University College London, found that those who work more than 55 hours a week have a 33% increased risk of stroke compared with those who work a 35- to 40-hour week. They also have a 13% increased risk of coronary heart disease.
The findings will confirm the assumptions of many that a long-hours culture, in which people work from early in the morning until well into the evening, with work also intruding into weekends, is potentially harmful to health.
We included 25 studies from 24 cohorts in Europe, the USA, and Australia. The meta-analysis of coronary heart disease comprised data for 603 838 men and women who were free from coronary heart disease at baseline; the meta-analysis of stroke comprised data for 528 908 men and women who were free from stroke at baseline. Follow-up for coronary heart disease was 5·1 million person-years (mean 8·5 years), in which 4768 events were recorded, and for stroke was 3·8 million person-years (mean 7·2 years), in which 1722 events were recorded. In cumulative meta-analysis adjusted for age, sex, and socioeconomic status, compared with standard hours (35–40 h per week), working long hours (≥55 h per week) was associated with an increase in risk of incident coronary heart disease (relative risk [RR] 1·13, 95% CI 1·02–1·26; p=0·02) and incident stroke (1·33, 1·11–1·61; p=0·002). The excess risk of stroke remained unchanged in analyses that addressed reverse causation, multivariable adjustments for other risk factors, and different methods of stroke ascertainment (range of RR estimates 1·30–1·42). We recorded a dose–response association for stroke, with RR estimates of 1·10 (95% CI 0·94–1·28; p=0·24) for 41–48 working hours, 1·27 (1·03–1·56; p=0·03) for 49–54 working hours, and 1·33 (1·11–1·61; p=0·002) for 55 working hours or more per week compared with standard working hours (ptrend<0·0001).
You might find answers to some of your questions here. (The original paper in The Lancet).
I think ‘depends’ is a bit misleading in this context. It’s an epidemiological study (and a meta-analysis) not an experiment to identify a causal mechanism.
The correct notion is one of ‘risk’ at the population level.
So the answer to the question “Are long working hours killing Kiwis?” is – almost certainly (unless we systematically differ from the population covered by the meta-analysis); but just which Kiwis might be killed by long working hours ‘depends’ (on the sorts of factors you mention).
Thanks for that – always good to see the actual publication and Yes you are quite right. I think if we narrowed it don to those working more than 60 hours a week, who were overweight, smokers, primarily sedentary, over 50yrs and did frequent long haul air travel the risk of stroke would be red lining.
Yes – always remembering that there is likely to be interactions between those variables (e.g., long-working hours reinforcing sedentary habits, poor diet, etc.)..
And, of course, being over 50 happens to most of us – all going well – eventually 🙂
I blame the people who decided that it would be cheaper to import people to do the job rather than front up with getting NZers to do it. Going to cost a hell of a lot more now.
It seems he can’t fool all the people all the time, judging by the comments.
Leave our bloody flag alone.
+47
“If he was to push legislation through Parliament with 61 votes and enforce a new flag on New Zealand, “rightfully so people would say I was taking their democratic right away,” Key said.”
Like when the public voted against sale of power stations but 61 MPs from the National government rammed it through anyway? I say Key took away our democratic rights on that occasion.
+33
Glad to know old John-boy worries about our democratic right… Now how about you let us vote on the TPPA? It’s the democratic thing to do
It is going to be a very open referendum apparently when it comes to advertising and promotion of viewpoints.
The rules for the referendum advertising restrictions apply to print newspaper tv and radio but that is about it.
All online media, for example, are available for whatever purposes the spin-meisters deem necessary.
I wonder how the lawyers deal with streaming radio & TV services?
Material published online will not be a referendum advertisement and is not subject to the referendum advertising rules. This means an individual or group may publish and/or promote any advertising material in relation to the flag referendums on websites, social media pages or any other online platform and it will not be subject to the referendum advertising rules under the Act.
Of course that doesn’t mean print, radio or television miss out as they still get to report on stories from any media they choose and will be able to publish any advertisement from other media as part of their reporting.
==========
On a related ‘reporting’ issue – as the referendum draws ever closer, we have still not seen any reporting on how a collection of images that have an existing copyright against them and are currently commercially marketed products have been allowed into the flag debate long list in the first place ….
The big PR push happens around the Referendum, once we have had the reminder of the Rugby World Cup next month, Olympics soon, then World Masters Games in Auckland.
PM will have the wind beneath his wings.
Soaring like an eagle.
Shaking his ass like a Bison.
Flashing his tail like a whale.
And lots and lots of puppy shots.
National’s popularity is now moving in wild swings much like the stock market. Trouble on the horizon when no one really knows what the market is doing or if it represents anything based on reality.
No, it’s the polling which is moving about in wild swings. Having said that, National’s jump in this poll is well beyond the margin of error so we can be confident that their support has firmed recently.
However the all important Government Confidence Rating remains weak.
Labour got zero voter traction from the Chinese house buying ploy, and possibly quite the reverse, that much is clear.
On the Government’s side:
– Key understands that wall to wall media coverage is the best way to stay popular
– Chinese voter intentions will harden to National in Auckland
– The National front bench are firing, and providing Key with strong coverage
– TPP protests appear not to have touched underlying popularity
On the Opposition:
– They Opposition remain a long way from looking like an alternative government
– The rural economy has not yet fully soured. (It will)
– Criticising real estate capital growth is not popular
– Winston Peters continues to get better media traction than Little
– Greens have no MSM profile currently
It’s making 2017 look hard for the Progressive side of the fence.
Should have been firing by now.
I agree with all your points. Previously I had thought your statements around the ‘inevitable decline’ of the Key Govt as probably being a bit too early and a bit too optimistic.
Haha! Another rogue poll. And yet the last Roy Morgan poll commented on on this blog was blindingly reflective of the Public’s will for change, judging by the comments on here.
“I’d like to be Richard Branson. SLURP.” The Panel, Radio NZ National, Thursday 20 August 2015
Jim Mora, Peter Elliott, Gary Moore, Zara Potts, Jesse Mulligan
We join the Panelists at the tail end of their reaction to a story about how rubbing coffee into your scalp can cure baldness….
JIM MORA: Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! GARY MOORE: HA! JESSE MULLIGAN: Ha ha ha ha ha! PETER ELLIOTT: Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! ZARA POTTS: He he he he he! JIM MORA: Ha ha ha! Okay, what else have you got? ZARA POTTS: Well, have you heard of a condition called misophonia? JIM MORA: Misophonia. ZARA POTTS: Misophonia is the intense, angry reaction to everyday sounds like chewing, lip-smacking, sniffing, and pen-clicking—sounds that other people can ignore. ……
Now this was mischievous. It is probably not a coincidence that this subject was brought up when Peter Elliott was on the programme. Elliott has built a career out of cultivating a sonorous basso-profundo voice. He is a fine actor, but he has one extremely irritating habit: he is a slurper. If ever there was something to drive a misophonic person into a pit of dark frothing rage, it would be the slurping by Peter Elliott and a former Panel regular, Deborah Hill Cone.
After the 4 o’clock news, Elliott spoke briefly about his recent trip to Los Angeles….
People say L.A. is shallow and violent and nasty. I loved it! Maybe I’m just shallow and violent and nasty! SLURP. ….
Later in the program, Jim Mora asked his guests who they would like to be for a day. Peter Elliott replied like this….
Richard Branson. He owns this beautiful island and he owns an airline and he can fly anywhere he likes. SLURP…
For his Soapbox contribution, the slurping was unconstrained….
I was sad to hear of the demise of the Middle East Cafe. It’s been in Auckland for 25 years. SLURP. I used to go there with my agent Robert Bruce. SLURP. I would be really upset if it became another McDonald’s or Wendy’s or some damn thing. SLURP. But my main topic today is the accuracy of petrol pumps. SLURP. I went on line and checked it out. SLURP. The smallest volume of petrol that can be accurately delivered is two dollars. SLURP….. I just wonder if I am being ripped off at the pump. SLURP….
Poor old Gary Moore must be sick and tired of being paired with slurpers when he comes on this programme. A couple of years ago he had to sit opposite the most notorious slurper of them all, Deborah Hill Cone…..
[lprent: As Chooky says. Nothing to do with the Assange post. I will give you a little leeway as I suspect it could have been an accident. Post this far off topic again, and I’ll have to get educational. ]
Morrissey…entertainining as it is ….shouldnt this be under ‘Open Mike’ ?…cant see what it has to do with Julian Assange allegations, which is the topic of this Post
“ZARA POTTS: Well, have you heard of a condition called misophonia?
JIM MORA: Misophonia.”
*snicker* You nail Mora’s parroting schtick so well, Morrissey. I’m embarrassed to say I usually catch 15 minutes of the Panel on the webcast (more than enough!) and this is basically how he reacts to any panellist introducing something to the show… just repeating what they’ve said with a kind of cheerful incredulity, like it’s the damned punchline.
Hope they had the obligatory discussion about the flag/Auckland property prices. The Panel is a sick Groundhog Day Hell and I’m a sucker for punishment.
Treat them all with scepticism if you like, but don’t treat the ones that suit you as gospel and those that don’t as rogue.
I’d love to hear Colonial Viper’s view of this poll.
He took the last Roy Morgan poll as proof positive that Labour’s “move left” strategy was resonating with the public and that the Nats would be “nervous”.
@Clemgeopin
Chris Trotter says that the young adults are very drawn to yek as he epitomises the virtues of today, money, and essence of cool. What he posits might be an answer to your question. The things you have listed are the sort of things that older Labour voters considered important. Now in the ‘Me’ neo lib era they are not central. http://bowalleyroad.blogspot.co.nz/2015/08/heart-of-gold-why-mike-hosking-is-more.html
(1) Our education system does not include the (compulsory) study and discussion about political thought, past revolutions, civics, constitution, local and world history, discussions of ideologies, ethics, philosophical thoughts etc unless a student specifically chooses that and very few do.
(2) The media dumbs down news and the people generally do not take an active interest in democratic participation, thought and discussion on important issues, except for a small part of the population, including the activists. (even in the USA of all places which is a large democratic nation and also where ‘God’ is put on a pedestal and ‘spoken off’ as important by politicians but ‘opposite’ rules in practice, if you know what I mean!)
In the mean time, the world is being taken over by ‘all kinds’ of evil forces! I fear for the children and the future of our world.
P.S : “The things you have listed are the sort of things that older Labour voters considered important’
I didn’t think I was that old, but ok! LOL
greywarshark, have a guess of my age and gender from my comments over time. +/- 5 will do. I am curious. It is interesting.
@Clem
I think that people don’t reach the age of approaching wisdom till they are about 40, as by that time they have had personal life experience and learned a bit about how the world works. So I would put you nearer 50 than 40. Any good? Gender – I feel you are a woman, have a less stoic attitude to others’ difficulties and conditions than the average male.
Myself I have let on earlier. But I’m a late bloomer, really didn’t start thinking hard till I went to uni mid-life and that was my tertiary introduction and I have tried to keep learning, thinking and doing for good democracy since then.
edited
@Clem
I thought you might give an indication as to correctness. You are worse than a cryptic crossword which hold out on me (I really like to do them late and have the answers available to peek at.)
The Cabinet is chocablock with liars, but Labour are far too genteel to point this out in words of one syllable. They won’t get Ponyboy into court without goading him into suing someone.
The latest from AVaaz. Sad stuff continues with journalists persecuted Mexican photojournalist Rubén Espinosa was just found tortured and murdered, along with human rights activist Nadia Vera and three other women.
Freedom of expression is under attack in one of Latin America’s oldest democracies, and Rubén is the 14th journalist killed in the southern state of Veracruz where governor Javier Duarte has made open threats against reporters. Almost none of these crimes have been solved.
But this case has sent thousands into the streets and set off an explosion in the national and global media. Now Gael García Bernal, Salman Rushdie, Christiane Amanpour and hundreds of journalists, writers and artists have signed an open letter demanding justice for journalists in Mexico murdered for doing their jobs
Mexico – Committee to Protect Journalists https://cpj.org/americas/mexico/
In the past 10 years, 370 journalists were murdered; in 90 percent of cases, there … Mexican photojournalist who fled violent Veracruz state murdered in capital.
Journalists Killed in Mexico – Committee to Protect Journalists https://cpj.org/killed/americas/mexico/
34 Journalists Killed in Mexico since 1992/Motive Confirmed. — Killed by Country –. — Killed by Country –; All Countries; Afghanistan; Algeria; Angola; Argentina …
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The Government’s three prevention frameworks to reduce family violence in Aotearoa were launched this week by Associate Minister for Social Development Poto Williams. The frameworks were developed in partnership with communities around New Zealand, and build on the work the Government has already begun with its new family violence prevention ...
The Government is pleased to confirm funding for improvements to radiology and surgical services at Hawke's Bay DHB, Health Minister Chris Hipkins says. "The Minister of Finance the Hon Grant Robertson and former Health Minister Dr David Clark approved funding for Hawke's Bay DHB’s redevelopment of their radiology facilities ...
• New funding for four beds at Napier’s Springhill Residential Addiction Centre • A new managed withdrawal home and community service, and peer support before and after residential care at Tairāwhiti DHB • A co-ordinated network of withdrawal management services throughout the South Island • Peer support in Rotorua and ...
Introduction, seafarers and POAL Good morning everyone, I am delighted to be online with you all today. Before I begin, I have to acknowledge that COVID-19 has disrupted the maritime sector on an unprecedented scale. The work of seafarers and the maritime industry is keeping many economies around the world ...
A $13 million investment from Government will create jobs and improve the resilience of the rail connection between Christchurch and the West Coast, Infrastructure Minister Shane Jones and Regional Economic Development Under-Secretary Fletcher Tabuteau say. The funding comes from the tagged contingency set aside in Budget 2020 for infrastructure projects ...
The Government is investing $761 million to assist local government upgrade under-pressure water services across the country, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Local Government Minister Nanaia Mahuta announced today. The announcement was made at the site of the water bore that was found to be the source of the fatal ...
Recognised Seasonal Employers and migrant seasonal workers stranded in New Zealand will be able to continue working and supporting themselves with more flexible hours and roles, says Immigration Minister Iain Lees-Galloway. The time-limited visa changes are: Stranded RSE workers will be able to work part-time (a minimum of 15 hours ...
The Government is making immediate short-term changes to visa settings to support temporary migrants already onshore in New Zealand and their employers, while also ensuring New Zealanders needing work are prioritised, Immigration Minister Iain Lees-Galloway says. We are: Extending temporary work visas due to expire by the end of 2020 ...
Professor Peter Skelton CNZM has been appointed as Chief Freshwater Commissioner and Alternate Environment Court Judge Craig James Thompson as Deputy Chief Freshwater Commissioner for the newly established Freshwater Planning Process (FPP). Environment Minister David Parker today also announced the appointment of Chief Environment Court Judge Laurie Newhook as the ...
Auckland Queen’s Counsel Neil Campbell has been appointed a Judge of the High Court, Attorney‑General David Parker announced today. Justice Campbell graduated with a BCom and LLB (Hons) from the University of Auckland in 1992. He spent two years with Bell Gully Buddle Weir in Auckland before travelling to the United ...
The Associate Minister for Greater Christchurch Regeneration, Poto Williams, is seeking feedback on a proposal to better enable the development and operation of commercial film and video facilities in Christchurch. The Proposal, developed by Regenerate Christchurch in response to a request from Christchurch City Council, asks that powers under section ...
The Government has launched a bold plan to boost primary sector export earnings by $44 billion over the next decade, while protecting the environment and growing jobs. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern today released Fit for a Better World – Accelerating our Economic Potential, a 10-year roadmap to unlock greater value ...
A new approach to prevent family harm that encourages greater collaboration across government and community groups is being celebrated at the opening of a new facility in Auckland. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern today opened the Multi-Disciplinary Family Harm Prevention Hub Te Taanga Manawa in Lambie Road in Manukau. The facility ...
The Government has released a major new report on the options for relocating the Port of Auckland’s freight operations while deferring any decision on the issue. “That decision needs to be informed by policy analysis that is still to be completed. As a result it will be up to a ...
The history of Rāpaki is being restored through the inclusion of te reo in thirteen official place names on Te Pātaka-o-Rākaihautū / Banks Peninsula and around Lyttelton Harbour/Whakaraupō, the Minister for Land Information, Eugenie Sage, announced today. “I am pleased to approve the proposals from Te Hapū o Ngāti ...
Bookings for seats on Air New Zealand flights into New Zealand will be managed in the short term to ensure the Government is able to safely place New Zealanders arriving home into a managed isolation or quarantine facility, says Housing Minister Megan Woods. “Last week Air Commodore Darryn Webb and I ...
Grant Robertson has today announced the first major release of funding from the $265 million Sport Recovery Package announced at Budget 2020. “Today we’re setting out how $80 million will be invested, with $54 million of that over the 2020/2021 financial year for organisations from community level through to elite ...
The Government is maintaining current levy rates for the next 2 years, as part of a set of changes to help ease the financial pressures of COVID-19 providing certainty for businesses and New Zealanders, ACC Minister Iain Lees-Galloway says. “New Zealanders and businesses are facing unprecedented financial pressures as a ...
Small businesses are getting greater certainty about access to finance with an extension to the interest-free cashflow loan scheme to the end of the year. The Small Business Cashflow Loan Scheme has already been extended once, to 24 July. Revenue and Small Business Minister Stuart Nash says it will be ...
A package of 23 projects across the country will clean up waterways and deliver over 2000 jobs Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Environment Minister David Parker announced today. The $162 million dollar package will see 22 water clean-up projects put forward by local councils receiving $62 million and the Kaipara ...
Tena koutou katoa Nga tangata whenua o tenei rohe o Pōneke, tena koutou Nau mai, haere mai ki te hui a tau mo te roopu reipa Ko tatou! Ko to tatou mana! Ko to tatou kaupapa kei te kokiri whakamua Tena koutou, tena koutou, tena tatou katoa Welcome. I ...
The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) is investing $1.5 million to ensure QE Health in Rotorua can proceed with its world class health service and save 75 existing jobs, Under Secretary for Regional Economic Development, Fletcher Tabuteau announced today. The PGF funding announced today is in addition to the $8 million ...
A new programme, which sets a firm course for the Building and Construction sector to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, has been announced by the Minister for Building and Construction Jenny Salesa. “A significant amount of New Zealand’s carbon emissions come from the building and construction sector. If we’re serious ...
The Tahr Foundation has released a short video that shows just what Himalayan tahr mean to Kiwis and why so many people are fighting so hard to maintain them in New Zealand. The video is a powerful reminder of the extent that tahr are now woven into ...
Introduction Thank you very much. Elections in New Zealand – like everywhere - are a very special tradition, because they are driven by you. They’re an opportunity to change your future. If you think about it, the Government doesn’t do much. It ...
“This election and Covid-19 present New Zealanders with an opportunity to change their future and create a fair, modern employment insurance scheme,” says ACT’s Employment Spokesperson, and third-ranked candidate, Nicole McKee. “Covid-19 has ...
“A new approach to mental health and addiction will reduce bureaucracy, improve patient choice, and empower New Zealanders,” says ACT’s Deputy Leader and Health Spokesperson Brooke van Velden. “Each year, the government spends about $2 billion ...
"Working people have signaled their commitment to do more to address the most pressing issue of our time; climate change. The energy policies that the Green Party have launched today provide a meaningful contribution to addressing climate change," ...
Climate justice organisation 350 Aotearoa welcomes the Greens' plan to transform Aotearoa’s energy system and set Aotearoa on course towards a fossil-fuel free future in which workers are supported into new jobs, and communities have the power ...
The Old Guard, new to Netflix, is a resounding success because it doesn’t focus on what makes these heroes great, it focuses on what makes them human, writes Sam Brooks.The climax of Netflix’s new movie The Old Guard shouldn’t be anything new, but it feels exhilarating. The titular old guard, ...
A new Green Party announcement heralds a fast-exit out of fossil fuels through a massive state housing solar panel installation programme, a ban on new coal boilers, and the shifting of a target for renewable energy Solar panels and batteries would be installed in 30,000 State homes to create a "virtual power plant" if ...
As yet more male-led festival lineups are announced, Shaquille Wasasala, aka halfqueen, writes an open letter to the industry.To those whose career it is booking talent for music festivals, punters, and people who listen to music.As a DJ and artist who exists at many intersections that directly inform my lens ...
For all The Spinoff’s latest coverage of Covid-19 see here. Read Siouxsie Wiles’s work here. New Zealand is currently in alert level one – read about what that means here. For official government advice, see here.The Spinoff’s coverage of the Covid-19 outbreak is made possible thanks to donations from Spinoff Members. To support this ...
Dunedin writer Victor Billot pens topical verse every Sunday. This week: disgraced MP Hamish Walker.Showing promise The MP for Clutha-Southland did, it is true, post on Facebook that he had been door knocking in Mataura when he hadn’t. He lied. The MP for Clutha-Southland did, it is ...
It’s one of the most commonly used weedkillers in the world, but pressure to phase out use of the herbicide glyphosate could force us to come up with alternatives quickly. Listen to the full episode of Two Cents Worth below. Subscribe to Two Cents' Worth for free on Apple ...
The Covid-19 crisis has exposed gaps in the funding of early education that we should be bold in responding to, writes Sue Cherrington of Victoria University of Wellington Early childhood education has been in the media a great deal over recent weeks, initially with positive but increasingly with negative news reports. ...
It’s an economic theory that advocates tout as a solution to governments’ debt crises, but critics warn is a recipe for hyperinflation. Either way, modern monetary theory is getting a lot more attention in the era of Covid-19.Two big economic ideas have captured the popular imagination during the Covid-19 pandemic: ...
For one hour a week the supermarket lights are dimmed and the music stops. And it’s a kind of triumph, writes Michelle Langstone.I thought there’d been a power cut. The lights were out at the entrance, so you arrived into a kind of gloom. There was no music, and no ...
It’s no secret that New Zealand’s Covid-19 response was one of the world’s most effective. But to get an idea of how eagerly parts of our economy have rebounded post lockdown, take a look at our electricity demand data.Despite an impending wave of unemployment and looming fiscal challenges down the ...
In the second in the Spnioff’s Last on the list series, Dave King explains what inspired him to stand for the Act Party in Manurewa. At 20th spot on the list, if David Seymour’s party can win around 16% of the party vote, King is parliament bound.It wasn’t that long ...
Basketball is growing massively in popularity around the country, led by thousands of youngsters picking up the game every day. To The Line looks at what it’s like for New Zealand high school kids with hoop dreams.If there’s been a narrative rumbling away in the sports pages, it’s that of ...
Unbelievable. A first-rank world leader picks a needless fight with blameless allies, thus imperiling their unity. But that’s General de Gaulle for you.Impressive work, even by his standards. In 1967, Canada was to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge (their Gallipoli – except that they ...
From RNZ Saturday Morning Described by a Guardian reviewer as “superb hate-reading”, writer and columnist Anand Giridharadas‘s latest book Winners Take All: The Elite Charade of Changing the World investigates the hypocrisy of billionaire “do-gooders”. He questions how and why we have become reliant on the philanthropy of the super-rich ...
The Professional Hunting Guides Association is welcoming the High Court decision on DoC’s controversial tahr campaign. The High Court in Wellington was asked on Wednesday by the Tahr Foundation for a judicial review of DoC’s plan to kill thousands ...
With the 2020 general election nearly three months away, a new campaign is asking voters to vote in line with the future. Vote Climate 2020 aims to highlight the opportunity to build momentum behind climate change, ensuring climate justice is a key election ...
“ACT will target the gangs by hitting them where it hurts – their pockets,” according to ACT Leader David Seymour and Firearms Spokesperson Nicole McKee. “New Zealanders deserve to be safe and secure, but violent gangs are a scourge on our ...
Waffles don’t need to be sweet – these cheese and onion numbers make an excellent savoury breakfast with an egg, or an equally tasty dinner with leftover mince.It’s easy to default to sweet breakfasts without thinking. At least that’s the case in our household, as porridge or bircher muesli is ...
The government is revitalising the wool sector, splashing out on freshwater restoration projects, relieving student stress and showing kindness to Muslims by extending the border exception criteria. It is also increasing its support (in announcements from two separate Green Party Ministers) for women and for wildlife institutions. And it is ...
People have called it for it be pulled from the service, but the escapist fantasy of 365 Days is nothing new, writes Alie Benge.To every generation, a bullish alpha-male psychopath is born, and is for someone reason considered a romantic hero. We’ve been through a lot this year, and instead ...
As Aucklanders reluctantly adjust to the inconvenient practice of water conservation, a drought-savvy Northlander shares the tips and temperament needed to get through the dry times.Auckland’s water shortage was recently reported on The Project, and viewers were earnestly exhorted to fill their dishwashers completely before turning them on. My husband ...
Pacific Media Watch Newsdesk A request by the Philippines’ biggest radio and TV network for a new franchise has been rejected by a congressional committee in a vote that will go down in history as a flagrant violation of the country’s constitution, says Reporters Without Borders (RSF). The Paris-based media ...
Hamish Walker's privacy leak debacle dominated the news this week, but it's not the first time a southern MP has hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons, writes Daisy Hudson. ...
Let’s not allow the focus on big-budget infrastructure projects to detract from the vital role public transport will play in revitalising our cities in a post-Covid world, says Greg Pollock.The recent match between the Blues and the Hurricanes was one of the world’s first major post-lockdown sporting fixtures. It was ...
For all The Spinoff’s latest coverage of Covid-19 see here. Read Siouxsie Wiles’s work here. New Zealand is currently in alert level one – read about what that means here. For official government advice, see here.The Spinoff’s coverage of the Covid-19 outbreak is made possible thanks to donations from Spinoff Members. To support this ...
In the heart of Christchurch is a Designated Character high school. What makes it unique? And should there be more like it? Frank Film visits Hagley College Paddy Grant was a 27-year-old truck driver when he rocked up to Christchurch’s Hagley High School, as it was then known. It was ...
"After he calms down we share the pie and talk about how hard the years since the show have been for him": a short story by Wellington writer Jordan Hamel. Every morning it’s the same. Cling wrap on the toilet seat, a pop up snake in my can of breakfast ...
Childcare centre closures have left families and staff out in the cold. In some cases, they were given just three days’ notice, Laura Walters reports Staff and families of Auckland’s Discoveries Educare branches feel blindsided by the sudden closure of the early childhood education centres. The Ministry of Education has ...
Controversy and the America's Cup go hand-in-hand and the latest edition is no different with Emirates Team New Zealand at the centre of financial mismanagement allegations. Extra Time unpicks the debate and ponders what does the latest Cup drama mean? And should we care? A study has revealed racial bias ...
Over the decades, Mike Fox has witnessed the housing market progressively tilt towards larger, more expensive homes. Without a major overhaul of the current regulatory processes, he says, things will never change.It’s one of the biggest problems our country faces – we cannot produce the affordable housing that’s so desperately ...
So-called dirty deals have been roundly denounced over the years. Hayden Donnell argues that they need to be normalised, and even embraced, in September’s election.Just before the 2011 general election, Patrick Gower was confronted with a political act so stomach-churning, it forced him to abandon his trademark reserve. John Key ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Esterman, Professor of Biostatistics, University of South Australia Victoria has recorded 288 new COVID-19 cases since yesterday, the largest daily increase we’ve seen so far. This big jump must have the Victorian government and health authorities very concerned, especially since nearly ...
The controversial 101 East episode Locked Up in Malaysia’s Lockdown on 3 July 2020. Video: Al JazeeraPacific Media Watch Newsdesk Malaysian police summoned six Al Jazeera media workers today for questioning relating to an investigation for defamation and violation of Malaysia’s Communications and Multimedia Act (CMA), reports IFJ Asia-Pacific. ...
Analysis - A National MP destroys his career, the government explains how someone with Covid-19 could walk around a supermarket and the closure of Tiwai Point aluminium smelter is announced. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Abrar Ahmad Chughtai, Epidemiologist, UNSW Australia’s chief medical officer Paul Kelly today recommended people in Melbourne and the Mitchell Shire wear masks when leaving the house: […] If people have symptoms and they need to go for a test, for example, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rochelle Wynne, Director, Western Sydney Nursing & Midwifery Research Centre, Western Sydney University Over the past week, we’ve seen a spike in the number of COVID-19 infections among health-care workers in Victoria. This includes a doctor at Melbourne’s St Vincent’s Hospital, one ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra University of Canberra Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Paddy Nixon and Professorial Fellow Michelle Grattan discuss the week in politics including the return to lockdown in Victoria, National Cabinet setting to slow the flow of Australian’s ...
We prefer our heroes untarnished. And few match the heroism of Winston Churchill. But a recent report in the Times reminds us of the inevitability of human frailty and the consequences of keeping it under wraps.During the second world war, Britain’s greatest single loss of life at sea was the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ou Yang, Research Fellow, University of Melbourne Donald Trump has ordered US federal agencies to bypass environmental protection laws and fast-track pipeline, highway and other infrastructure projects. Signing the executive order last month, the US president declared regulatory delays would hinder “our ...
SAFE CEO Debra Ashton says "The NZDIA has done the right thing, and we’re glad to see Bertram has been held to account over his actions. He should take this as an opportunity to right his wrongs and show that he takes animal welfare seriously." ...
Takuta Ferris, Te Tai Tonga candidate for the Māori Party, is urging government to place whānau first in the wake of announcements around Tiwai Point. “The declaration that one of the region's major employers the Tiwai Point aluminium smelter is closing ...
Dietary Requirements is The Spinoff’s monthly podcast in which we eat, drink and talk about it too, with special thanks to Freedom Farms. This month, we’re joined by The Spinoff’s managing editor, mall rat and self-confessed food philistine Duncan Greive.On this month’s Dietary Requirements, the gang’s back in the studio, and ...
Analysis by Keith Rankin. Chart 1: United States and Australia rising. Chart by Keith Rankin. These charts look at Covid19 incidence in China (the most important first-wave country, with a limited second wave), Italy (the lead second-wave country), and USA and Australia (second-wave countries – drawing their caseload from Europe ...
The Government must listen to the Muslim community to rectify its failure to act in the past, says the Human Rights Commission. The Islamic Women’s Council of New Zealand (IWCNZ) submission to the Royal Commission of Inquiry was released this week. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Hugh Breakey, President, Australian Association for Professional & Applied Ethics. Senior Research Fellow, Moral philosophy, Institute for Ethics, Governance & Law, Law Futures Centre., Griffith University Earlier this week, 150 high-profile authors, commentators and scholars signed an open letter in Harper’s magazine ...
You can’t keep a good woman down and Helen Clark is no exception. Her new appointment, as co-chair of a review of how the World Health Organisation handled the coronavirus pandemic, will test her formidable political skills. Sitting with her is Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, former Liberian president, who handled the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonathan Connor, Lecturer, James Cook University While many people may enjoy a game of backyard cricket, only a few go on to become elite professional batsmen in Australia. Cricket batting is example of what human skills can achieve. The fastest bowling delivery ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lee Baumgartner, Professor of Fisheries and River Management, Institute for Land, Water, and Society, Charles Sturt University This article is a preview of Flora, Fauna, Fire, a multimedia project launching on Monday July 13. The project tracks the recovery of Australia’s native ...
CEAC review of pre-election National’s “outline plan” just sent to us by Todd Muller 9/7/20 was actually his speech about his plan and was described as ‘an outline’. So in our review of National Party response to A Greener, Smarter Future; climate ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Podger, Honorary Professor of Public Policy, Australian National University In Hidden Hand, China scholars Clive Hamilton and Marieke Ohlberg examine the Chinese Communist Party’s influence in Europe and North America in a similar way to how Hamilton dissected the CCP’s influence ...
“I can see why people are fed up, many are wondering how to clothe and feed their kids, or how they are going to pay their rent next week and still others are wondering what has happened to our beautiful Kiwi Way of Life. Well no party in parliament ...
Pacific Media Watch Newsdesk Sixty press freedom groups and civil society organisations, journalism institutions, filmmakers, and other supporters have formed a coalition in support of Maria Ressa and independent media in the Philippines, united around the call to #HoldTheLine. Today the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), the International Center for ...
National MP Michael Woodhouse also received Covid-19 patient emails from Michelle Boag, and deleted them when he realised she was implicated in a separate email scandal. National Party leader Todd Muller says no further MPs in his party received confidential information from Michelle Boag, after revelations today that Michael Woodhouse also ...
The government is extending border exceptions to allow overseas victims of the Christchurch mosque attacks and their support people to attend the shooter's sentencing. ...
Ever wanted to be Iron Man? Sam Brooks prefers Pepper Potts, but he had a great time stepping into the iron suit anyway.The first few moments of Iron Man VR are where it plays its hand, confidently and assuredly. You hold your palms out in front of you, and Iron ...
SAP has released to the public a policy paper, “Helping Kiwis get back to work: How data and technology can drive a bigger, better, faster economic recovery.” ...
A new poem by Jordan Hamel.Mermaids When you lose grip and start to drift.The first thing you’re supposed to do issteer into it or steer away? Not all mermaids are royaltysomeone needs to audit the oceanprovide cashflow projectionssome mermaids are actuallymiddle-aged accountants named Stephendreaming of a land-view holiday home. I saw a ...
Want to work for The Spinoff? We’re looking for someone to fill an exciting new role based in our Auckland office. We’re looking for a video and podcast content manager: an experienced writer or sub-editor with a strong understanding of social media to manage our video and podcast content across various channels. ...
National Party leader Todd Muller says no further MPs in his party received confidential information from Michelle Boag, after revelations today that Michael Woodhouse also received four unsolicited emails. ...
By RNZ News Opposition National list MP Dr Jian Yang has announced his retirement from New Zealand politics and says he will not stand in the 2020 general election after three terms in the party caucus. He said politics was “demanding” and he wanted to spend more time with his ...
Open mike 20/08/2015 
Open mike is your post.
National has a problem. And it’s time they said it out loud. It can’t be dismissed as a one-off anymore or excused because ‘everyone does it’. No, it cuts deeper than that. National has an ethics problem. Especially when it comes to privacy and using ordinary people as pawns in ...5 hours ago
A chronological listing of news articles linked to on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, July 5 through Sat, July 11, 2020 Editor's Choice Think Covid-19 Disrupted the Food Chain? Wait and See What Climate Change Will Do The pandemic has revealed deep flaws in the ...13 hours ago
The Council of Disobedient Women There is a regular segment in the Speak Up For Women podcasts called “Absolutely Blasted Mad Moment of the Week”. Each podcast the speaker and the host discuss a recent event that is the most insane thing they have seen in the gender critical space ...1 day ago
Todd Muller - Dishonest National Party leaderIt seems that dishonest Todd Muller is, like many right-wing politicians, entirely morally bankrupt. I mean just look at the National Party’s leaking omni-shambles over the last week or so. They’ve imploded in a spectacular display of backfiring dirty politics, the likes of which ...1 day ago
MONDAY JULY 13Bodyguard (TVNZ 1, 8.30pm). It's the final; if you haven't seen this already on Netflix, get ready, the ending is batshit.Unforgotten (Vibe, Sky 006, 8.30pm). I wonder if Sanjeev Bhasksar's character has got rid of that damn backpack in the third season of this cold case drama? Although, come ...1 day ago
Simon Bridges must be the unluckiest person in New Zealand politics. When he was elected as leader of the National party, he also became Leader of the Opposition – a position, he was entitled to assume, that would require him to “oppose”. But the government he set out to oppose ...1 day ago
Check out Speak Up For Women’s new podcasts: Episode 3 In this episode Speak Up For Women spokeswoman Ani O’Brien (@aniobrien) is joined by Beth Johnson (@beth_nosnhoj) to discuss the proposal from Statistics NZ to change standard data collection policy to “gender by default” rather than sex. They discuss why the ...2 days ago
Everyone is paying attention today to the Supreme Court ruling that the President is not above the law and that Trump's tax returns can be given to a New York grand jury investigating him. But the Supreme Court decided another, far more important case yesterday, and effectively restored Native American ...2 days ago
Transcript: National Party policy announcement on roads – 8 July, 2020 Muller: Good afternoon everybody. Thank you for coming. Reporter 1: Is Hamish Walker a racist? Muller: Hang on… you haven’t even said good afternoon to me yet. Reporter 1: Good afternoon Mr Muller. Is Hamish Walker a racist? ...2 days ago
Today’s content Tiwai Point to close Hamish Rutherford (Herald): Government subsidising practically everything plays hardball with Rio Tinto (paywalled) Tom Pullar-Strecker (Stuff): Sudden closure of aluminium smelter worst outcome for jobs, consumers and the environment Brian Fallow (Herald): Tiwai closure sad news – and an opportunity for the environment (paywalled) Heather du Plessis-Allan (Newstalk ZB): Rio ...3 days ago
Prof Nick Wilson, Dr Anja Mizdrak, Dr Jennifer Summers, Prof Michael Baker The pandemic-related lockdown is possibly the most dramatic public health intervention in NZ history. It helped achieve the elimination of community transmission of the COVID-19 virus in NZ. But it was also associated with 548 fewer total ...3 days ago
Reprehensible: There is much that could be said about Michael Woodhouse, but what would be the point? Any man who willingly involves himself in a situation as reprehensible as the one depicted in the above photograph has already vouchsafed all that decent people need to know about his character. That there have ...3 days ago
Some are surprised at this sudden brain implosion on the part of both Michelle Boag, former National Party President, and the National Party in general, in exposing the private, confidential details of COVID patients. Others…? Let’s be blunt: not so much. Too many of that Party have long operated with ...4 days ago
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Unfortunately, due to a medical emergency, I have landed in hospital so am not able to do a current update on the NZ blog statistics. Let’s hope I can get back to this in good time. ...1 week ago
The Green Party is today unveiling part one of its plan for a fossil-fuel free Aotearoa, including an immediate ban on new industrial coal boilers. ...10 hours ago
Mark Patterson MP, Spokesperson for Primary Industry New Zealand First is supporting calls by hunters and the New Zealand Tahr Foundation (NZTF) to halt a large scale cull of Himalayan Tahr by the Department of Conservation in National Parks. The calls are supported by a 40,000 strong petition and the ...5 days ago
New Zealanders deserve healthy rivers and lakes that are safe to swim in - but they have been getting worse for decades. That's why, with our latest announcement, we're investing in projects that will help clean up our rivers and lakes and restore them to health, within a generation. ...1 week ago
The Minister for Pacific Peoples, Aupito William Sio is pleased to announce the inaugural launch of Kiribati Language Week as part of the 2020 Pacific language Weeks programme. “I am so pleased that this year we are able to provide resourcing support to the Kiribati community in Aotearoa which will ...1 day ago
The ACT Party is promising its biggest campaign in 15 years, as it fights for more seats in Parliament after September's election. ...4 hours ago
...5 hours ago
The Old Guard, new to Netflix, is a resounding success because it doesn’t focus on what makes these heroes great, it focuses on what makes them human, writes Sam Brooks.The climax of Netflix’s new movie The Old Guard shouldn’t be anything new, but it feels exhilarating. The titular old guard, ...7 hours ago
A new Green Party announcement heralds a fast-exit out of fossil fuels through a massive state housing solar panel installation programme, a ban on new coal boilers, and the shifting of a target for renewable energy Solar panels and batteries would be installed in 30,000 State homes to create a "virtual power plant" if ...10 hours ago
Dunedin writer Victor Billot pens topical verse every Sunday. This week: disgraced MP Hamish Walker. Showing promise The MP for Clutha-Southland did, it is true, post on Facebook that he had been door knocking in Mataura when he hadn’t. He lied. The MP for Clutha-Southland did, it is ...15 hours ago
It’s one of the most commonly used weedkillers in the world, but pressure to phase out use of the herbicide glyphosate could force us to come up with alternatives quickly. Listen to the full episode of Two Cents Worth below. Subscribe to Two Cents' Worth for free on Apple ...16 hours ago
The Covid-19 crisis has exposed gaps in the funding of early education that we should be bold in responding to, writes Sue Cherrington of Victoria University of Wellington Early childhood education has been in the media a great deal over recent weeks, initially with positive but increasingly with negative news reports. ...16 hours ago
Unbelievable. A first-rank world leader picks a needless fight with blameless allies, thus imperiling their unity. But that’s General de Gaulle for you. Impressive work, even by his standards. In 1967, Canada was to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge (their Gallipoli – except that they ...23 hours ago
The government is revitalising the wool sector, splashing out on freshwater restoration projects, relieving student stress and showing kindness to Muslims by extending the border exception criteria. It is also increasing its support (in announcements from two separate Green Party Ministers) for women and for wildlife institutions. And it is ...1 day ago
Pacific Media Watch Newsdesk A request by the Philippines’ biggest radio and TV network for a new franchise has been rejected by a congressional committee in a vote that will go down in history as a flagrant violation of the country’s constitution, says Reporters Without Borders (RSF). The Paris-based media ...1 day ago
In the heart of Christchurch is a Designated Character high school. What makes it unique? And should there be more like it? Frank Film visits Hagley College Paddy Grant was a 27-year-old truck driver when he rocked up to Christchurch’s Hagley High School, as it was then known. It was ...2 days ago
"After he calms down we share the pie and talk about how hard the years since the show have been for him": a short story by Wellington writer Jordan Hamel. Every morning it’s the same. Cling wrap on the toilet seat, a pop up snake in my can of breakfast ...2 days ago
Childcare centre closures have left families and staff out in the cold. In some cases, they were given just three days’ notice, Laura Walters reports Staff and families of Auckland’s Discoveries Educare branches feel blindsided by the sudden closure of the early childhood education centres. The Ministry of Education has ...2 days ago
Controversy and the America's Cup go hand-in-hand and the latest edition is no different with Emirates Team New Zealand at the centre of financial mismanagement allegations. Extra Time unpicks the debate and ponders what does the latest Cup drama mean? And should we care? A study has revealed racial bias ...2 days ago
You can’t keep a good woman down and Helen Clark is no exception. Her new appointment, as co-chair of a review of how the World Health Organisation handled the coronavirus pandemic, will test her formidable political skills. Sitting with her is Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, former Liberian president, who handled the ...2 days ago
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Investment bank for NZ too? Sidelski makes the case for such things….
http://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/aug/19/corbynomics-why-we-should-take-it-seriously
…and it would ours, rather than this
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/276332/nz-to-join-new-asian-investment-bank
which seems to be about being the member for another club, for $125 million!
Real Monetary Reform
Our entire monetary system is fucked as it’s designed to make a few people richer without them actually having to do anything.
And, yeah, that Asian investment bank is just of the same failed system.
Freeloading. Owning a home in several global capital cities and curtailing the muliplier effort of taking those resources out of the local economy. All because Thatcherites discovered that media repeating the lie adnausium , that while civil society builds the engine, and cheapening high dense middle east fuels powered the engine, only a rather extreme now disreputable political economic view created the inevitable market growth. I.e they called dibs on the diving seat while siliencing civil society and claimg growth as proof for their politicial economic non-runner ideology. Thirty years later, climbing debt levels, climate disruption, and a chronical unfit global economy lacking balancing forums to deal as one species. And worse, now the Marxists have been given their day, neo-libs are communist infiltraters, having the luxuries of wealth while corrupting capalism from within. Why does the US Republician party hate capialism so much?
Hardly.
For starters it is not dominated by the US and western European powers.
Smart move for NZ to be a founding member.
No, it’ll be dominated by China.
Such a system is not needed and is, IMO, part of the reason why we’re having such problems as anthropogenic climate change. They push growth but prevent development because of the need to pay interest.
Well, China has the sole veto because of the size of its contribution, but I think it will very rarely use it. In essence, the AIIB has been set up to be far more democratic and apolitical than the World Bank or the IMF, which is one reason why 56 countries joined it so quickly.
But it will use it whereas an independent investment bank in each country supplying all the money that that country needs is not under that power.
But it’s still just a copy of the present failed system.
This article gives an interesting insight into how the TPPA is being written and who has the influence.
“The big media lobbyists’ theatrics over this minor amendment are embarrassing, but they do raise one important issue: our trade negotiators are a lot less interested in the needs of ordinary users and creators than the needs of powerful companies. Why else was a last-minute intervention by Google sufficient to bring the USTR back to the negotiating table on this topic, where the sustained interventions of EFF and 10 other major public interest groups from around the world were not?”
https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20150818/14190431997/mpaa-throws-hissy-fit-over-ustr-even-thinking-about-expanding-fair-use-tpp.shtml
I love one of the comments below re the public stakeholders being ignored.:
“It is our pie that they are carving up. Why would we be invited to it?”
Hello everyone, I do hope this is the correct place to post this question/comment combo…
I just saw an ad for Radio Live on YouTube, selling the “balanced” reporting the media is currently so fond of. It is just a mash up of the Radio Live personalities telling us what we’d miss out on if they didn’t give all opinions equal weight regardless of merit.
It opens with Hilary Barry asking “Can you imagine how dull the world would be if we all thought the same?” and is followed by the rest of the team giving us such gems as:
“There would only be one shop.”
“
There would only be one colourThere’d be no colour” (sorry Physics)And my favourite:
“There’d be no debate on climate change.”
Is this sort of thing new? I usually use an ad blocker so I haven’t seen it before. I did not realise they were publicly spouting fallacious arguments to support rubbish journalism.
[lprent: Updated to fix a transcription error on the commenter’s request. ]
P.s. Any excuse to link John Oliver:
Any chance of a link to the ad? Choice handle 🙂
Ah, I’m not sure how to link to an ad, but I did grab it off YouTube before it finished, so I have a copy.
Check it out here:
I’d be tempted to say that the debate on climate change is now about what to do (not whether it’s real), but then I see they had Sean Plunkett giving it as an example.
Wouldn’t it be super if the only debate we were having on climate change was what to do about it.
It’s pretty much the only conversation I’m willing to have about it 😉
(more seriously, I can see the time approaching where I will have no tolerance for talk about what to do, given we know what to do and should just be doing it).
The debate about climate change is as valid as the debate about the earth being round or flat, or the debate about whether the moon landing was a hoax or not.
And it’s the same people who treat it seriously.
Thanks.
So I wonder if this is the new lie from denier trash: that they’re performing a public service?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heisenbug
Balanced reporting like paddy’s piece on the appalling Newsworthy last night which btw looks like an episode of ‘Cops’ more so than a news show.
Little had a soundbite about farming incidents being high then followed by Gower throwing numbers about without any context, averages etc inferring Little had it wrong.
Overt bias on display, if little was in fact wrong there’d be wave after wave of graphs and stats but no just Pants on fire Paddy and his questionable use of numbers.
Is it possible to edit comments after the timer has expired? I misquoted:
“There would only be one colour” should be “There’d be no colour”.
[lprent: Nope (FFS it is something like eight minutes). However I will change it for you. ]
Thanks Lynn. For the record, the edit time is something less than how long it takes to rebuild my projects in Eclipse. You know what I mean 🙂
Well there is half of your problem. Use a make and a -j 7 or the equivalent on your compiler. Compile on n-1 cores.
Thank you, wise one. Please lay upon me your solution to the other half of my problem, with at least as many assumptions.
😈 They are assumptions. But few things take that long to compile any more unless you’re doing a lot of variants or cross compiles.
The worst one I have at present is some old C/C++ code that gets compiled in a redhat9 system (ie circa 2002) in a VM on a version of gcc/g++ that only handles a single core. It is about 500k lines and takes about 5 minutes from scratch. Fortunately it doesn’t have templates.
Nailed it 🙂
Three projects, three platforms, two graphics libraries (compiled from source, obv.), and a two core CPU on a laptop with a fragmented 1TB SATA. Nice and warm in here though.
Release day!
Urrggh… That would explain it.
Hah, that’s amusing because according to National that’s exactly what we do. It’s the total premise that National Standards are based upon and why they fail.
Well, we’re not quite there – we duopoly instead.
So, I wonder what debate they’re having with their navel hair because you can’t debate climate change as you simply can’t debate facts.
It makes me uneasy how proud they all seem to be about it, they must know what they are doing is wrong… right?
Don’t count on it. There’s a reason they’re journalists rather than say, engineers.
Even Granny Herald says McCully should be stood down. He is in big trouble.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=11499775
We can’t see what the public say on the matter of course, because the NZ Herald has again been attacked by gremlins.
The recurrence of this very strange tech issue must be a real headache for them. Once again, despite the number of comments ‘published’ (currently 18) being clearly stated on the home page and the”Politics” section page, once you get to the actual article…. no comments are visible.
It must be so infuriating for the Herald that this keeps happening and so unlucky it only seems to occur on articles that include distinctly negative discussion points on the National Government.
They’re there for me. This is the first one:
and minutes later, as if by magic, the comments appear – interactive media, gotta love it 😆
“”how anyone can continue to support someone who lies and prevaricates the “”
That!! Is the how I feel ,if some one thinks pure capitalism is the way forward I can live with it, but to support this rogues gallery of a political party Lead by a lying sick bully makes me wonder at the morals of the average kiwi.
It’s not up to Treasury to give approval for spending. That’s the government’s job.
It’s those ‘other reasons’ that are the concern as all indications are that the spend up on the Saudi Sheep Deal were a bribe.
The PM is a liar and I’m sure that we do have some laws that cover it but we obviously need stronger laws against such corruption.
No, there is never any excuse for such corruption.
“The Prime Minister says none of the advice the Government received suggested it would be illegal.”
I note the word legal doesn’t appear in front of the word advice. Tricky Prime Minister.
john key “”I don’t get respect because I’m Prime Minister of New Zealand but I hopefully earn respect because people think I do a good job.”
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/71284637/kids-need-to-know-the-value-of-work–john-key
You are a zero respect monkey
no mention of honesty or integrity I note
Three election wins is probably a good indicator of the respect in which hes held
lol – good one unde
Well its fair to say that there was a failry large proportion of NZ voters who didn’t like Helen Clarks on screen image (though I understand shes perfectly charming away from the camera) but she had definately had respect so quite similar to John Key in this instance
nah not even close – I liked a fair chunk of Helen Clark as PM but there were severe lapses imo. Key is just a mindless bumbling liar that should be ashamed of himself but lacks the self awareness to even consider how dull and dim he is.
but lacks the self awareness to even consider how dull and dim he is
and therein lies the major problem with the left in regards to John Key, consistantly underestimating him
I always underestimate how much he crumbles when he faces competent reviews from impartial media, like overseas interviewers or just his behaviour summarised by John Oliver (three times in the past year, more than Zimbabwe ffs).
I’m not so sure that we need better wingnuts.
I reckon the wingnuts need better heroes.
john key “”I don’t get respect because I’m Prime Minister of New Zealand but I hopefully earn respect because people think I do a good job.”
Well that explains why he treats the PM role with such disdain and doesn’t mind making us a laughing stock via it.
https://t.co/gDCChPorOr, which I posted last night, but very relevant to “respect”for John Key, and how Paul Henry was made to see the light. (for a split second)
The end bit where the guy interviewed refused to say if John Key was a psychopath it was obvious that that was exactly what he thought John Key was 😈
That was interesting, thanks for posting. Loved the moment when Henry conceded the point on which personality type you’d rather have running a country.
If only that was on Seven Sharp too, might wake people up and I wouldn’t have to listen the same old answer when I ask people why they like Key…”He’s got charisma” Gawd!
Australian Govt, for all their evils, getting serious about foreign investment in residential real estate, including real estate transfer register (#8) residential property money laundering crackdown (#11) and criminal penalties for locals who act as agents to help foreign investors circumvent the prohibition on the purchase of existing properties (#5).
http://www.treasury.gov.au/PublicationsAndMedia/Publications/2015/Foreign-Investment-in-Residential-Real-Estate
Jane Clifton on Key dodging the question.
http://www.pressreader.com/new-zealand/the-dominion-post/20150820/281543699665007/TextView
edit: the question transferred to Bennett.
ANDREW LITTLE to the Associate Minister of Finance: Does she stand by the Prime Minister’s statement that “I’d hate to see New Zealanders as tenants in their own country”; if so, how many applications by overseas investors to buy land were declined under the Overseas Investment Act 2005 between January 2012 and June 2015?
http://www.parliament.nz/en-nz/pb/business/qoa/00HOH_OralQuestions/list-of-questions-for-oral-answer
Question No. 3 to Minister
ANDREW LITTLE (Leader of the Opposition): I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. This question was originally set down for the Prime Minister, and I therefore seek leave for the House to have the question transferred back to the Prime Minister.
Mr SPEAKER : Order! No. I refer the member to Speaker’s ruling 169/5. I am not prepared to put the leave. It is the prerogative of the Government to decide whom the question goes to. It has made that decision. If the member wants to continue asking it as it is on the Order Paper, he can do so.
http://www.parliament.nz/en-nz/pb/debates/debates/51HansD_20150819_00000012/oral-questions-%E2%80%94-questions-to-ministers-questions-to-members
Noted that in QT yesterday, Mr Shaw pointed out the string of National precedents when Ministers under investigation were stood down or stood themselves down. Well done James but Key just ducked. So much for open and transparent Government.
Dictatorships don’t work too well when open and transparent and National knows it. People become upset when they realise that the government is screwing them over.
(bold mine)
For some time The Speaker and Ministers of the Government have been actively promoting more detailed primary questions from the Opposition and this is the end result they wanted. The Opposition have two choices, ask specific questions and helplessly watch them get transferred from the PM, or be forced to waste supplementary questions by asking what should be primary questions.
Not forgetting of course by not having specifics outlayed in the primary, the PM can forever answer the more detailed supplementaries with “I don’t have the details… ” etc
Meanwhile, a nomination for Most Pathetic Question Asked In Our Parliament For Quite Some Time award
That gem came from Chris Bishop. What a deeply probing intellectually stimulating challenge for the Minister. A question you might expect an eager year eight social studies student to ask of the Minister during a school visit but is just so embarrassing coming from a grown adult being paid over $150,000 a year to help run our country.
@ freedom (9.2) – and another patsy gem that is asked just about every parliamentary session from a variety of good little dopey government back benchers, to minister of finance English … ” what can the minister tell the House about the reports he has received on the economy?” WTF????? Duh! Of course the minister is going to talk up his economic policies!
I can just about anticipate almost every NatzKEY back bencher patsy question now, because I’ve heard the same old, same old, day in day out in Parliament so many times before. It’s just turning into a very bad Vaudeville act!
They are a part of the process of QT and we all grudgingly accept that.
No matter how good an idea it might sound, to remove the government’s allotment of questions only removes the opportunity for the rarely seen ‘question of conscience’* from a back bencher who has realised their government is a corrupt and treasonous bunch of idealogues who wouldn’t know how to find their way out of an open ended culvert.
The government of course has a right to ask itself questions and there are [almost] reasonable grounds for many of the more ridiculous questions to its own navel, but I think it was Bishop’s inability to hide the farcically vacuous nature of the question that made this one stand out. He was sniggering to himself before he even finished asking it. And he was not the only one on the government benches doing so.
I don’t remember any other government that has such obvious disrespect for question time, especially when asking the patsy questions.
We all know they will be asked, but a bit more effort to hide the patsy questions’ inner inanity would be nice.
* (if you’re gonna dream, dream big i say)
Well caught Joe.
With Key now on a slow decline, Cabinet are managing Parliamentary process to circle the wagons around him. So we will get a whole bunch more PM-puppy-and-Rugby shots.
We are already seeing Ministers Bennett and English take far more of the media load, with Joyce way down the list and Brownlee and Smith near-invisible.
National are subbing off their Bench with extreme game-playing smarts.
Labour could learn some lessons here – King and Twyford have been outstanding recently, with Little making essentially no hits. Labour need to learn National’s excellent lessons and blood their bench.
And that will be so obvious that people will wonder why they’re doing it and come to the same conclusion – National don’t have another personable front man to put in front of them and lie.
Their bench is pretty strong – and grooming an English-Bennett combination makes a whole bunch of sense. By 2020 Bennett would be a real contender for the top job.
“With Key now on a slow decline”
Nor too sure of that.
http://www.roymorgan.com/findings/6406-roy-morgan-new-zealand-voting-intention-august-2015-201508200049
He is on a slow decline he just doesn’t know it yet, neither do voters.
The ‘Chinagate blip’, eh?
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/bangkok-bomb-thai-authorities-suspect-uighur-link-erawan-shrine-attack-1516045
Sponsored and supported by the worlds biggest criminal enterprises
Still massively pissed at their Shinawatra puppets being removed
Thaksin posted a message on Youtube denouncing urging his followers to reject the junta’s proposed constitution because he said it was undemocratic
Usual suspects will be behind this atrocity
http://thediplomat.com/2015/03/100-more-bomb-attacks-planned-in-thailand-police-told/
March 10 2015
Two men arrested following a grenade attack over the weekend in Thailand reportedly told police that the “Red Shirt” supporters of the toppled government of former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra were planning more bomb attacks on up to 100 targets in Bangkok, a security official said.
Yuttana said he was a member of a red-shirt group that communicated on a social network called Line, where they discussed a plot to bomb at least 100 places in the nation’s capital. Mahahin said that the targets included military armories in Chiang Mai and in the Northeast, university campuses and a temple.
On Monday, The Bangkok Post reported that the suspects had linked the attack to former army chief and supreme commander Chaiyasit Shinawatra, a member of the Shinawatra family, led by Yingluck’s self-exiled brother Thaksin. The junta detests the family, but it has won every national election since 2001.
Yup, these hollowed out pricks are carrying out orders and have been doing so for an eternity
Buckle up Thailand
Wow, you bought some propaganda wholesale there.
Have you not noticed that the junta has control of the media? Of course sources are going to blame the previous establishment – it suits their aims to stoke negative sentiment against red shirt groups and the Shinawatras.
The junta would do anything to ensure there is no future election that could possibly lead to an election, that would inevitably be won by Pheu Thai or a similar successor to Thai Rak Thai aligned with the Red Shirts
Similarly, the link to Uighur nationalists comes after pressure from China lead to the junta deciding to deport Uighurs back to China.
It suits the junta to link the bombings to Uighur nationalists, to turn public sentiment against their call for asylum.
In reality, the bombing could be from any number of sources – Red shirt activists, separatists from the south, Burmese refugee activists, someone trying to undermine certain junta figures or junta opponents, Uighur activists, or a bunch of random enraged people.
While the Shinawatras are just as corrupt and criminal as the junta is, you should really apply more critical thinking than just linking them to bombings based on statements in media that is junta-controlled.
No proganda onboarded here bro, I am very aware of the situations in Thailand as well as the history
Given your comments about the military , it is clear you know fuck all about the situation on the ground, or how the locals feel about it
Go on, tell me about the locals and the military
What comments about the military? I’m well aware of the respect and social standing given to the military in Thailand, and Bangkok in particular, if that is what you are getting at. What exactly of what I have said is inaccurate though?
The premise of your response was :
JUNTA
Propaganda
controlled media
The word Junta was used numerous times, those are your comments
An overwhelming majority of ALL Thai people support the military
Perhaps you can explain why that is
Well, very briefly, the military have power, they have long standing respect, they support and are supported by the monarchy, and many of the periods of dictatorship have been more stable than the surrounding periods, and plenty more, a good deal of which can be summed up as ‘this is the culture of this country’.
None of this changes that the country is run by a military junta rather than a democratically elected government, and none of that changes that that facile attacks are being made on Uighurs and Red Shirts in the media.
At current, it appears that there was knowledge of the attack in social media groups, and a red shirt leader had a warning of an attack and provided a warning on social media. In due course, it seems likely that the culprits will be able to be identified. It appears now that Prayuth is also playing down the Uighur theory, to his credit.
Much of what you wrote is solid, but there are some comments which stand out to me as a little out of place
None of this changes that the country is run by a military junta rather than a democratically elected government, and none of that changes that that facile attacks are being made on Uighurs and Red Shirts in the media.
So what it’s currently run by the Military if the Thai people are ok with that and they are providing a stability where ‘democracy’ was leading towards civil war. The Monarchy will have instructed the military to step in, that is why the military acted. 95% of Thai people support their Monarchy
Democracy ain’t ‘what it used to be’ , and as you point out, Thailand has been democratically rooted for ages at various times
What do you reckon that is ?
Not sure a reasoned person would call an attack on Red Shirts as facile, given what they have been involved in previously
Perhaps you might like to share where your bias around the Junta / Red Shirts originates
Sounds to me like you’re saying JUNTA = BAD , Democracy = Good
At current, it appears that there was knowledge of the attack in social media groups, and a red shirt leader had a warning of an attack and provided a warning on social media.
Social media groups were frenetic with activity and apparent warnings from some purporting to know the attack was coming
More warnings have also been received pertaining to coming days
Are you Thai, have Thai family or live in Thailand ?
My general problem with the junta is all that dictatorship baggage, you know, the detention of political opponents, suppression of alternative media views, enrichment of elites (admittedly going to be present regardless of who is in charge), that sort of oppression.
At least if there’s a democracy, people that aren’t in powerful positions get some sort of a voice.
I’m consistently called an unrealistic idealist, but I am always confident that a well designed democracy is better for a country, and I am confident that working towards those processes will be good for Thailand in the long term. At the moment, you only don’t have that red v yellow, poor v elites because of the military imposition in things. That conflict is not resolved, so it will just fester. I’d rather both sides have representation, involvement in political processes.
Heard on National Radio (from a source I can’t remember) that they expect milk prices to improve next year. I don’t think anyone knows what is going to happen to milk prices for the next few years. The only thing we can be sure of is price volatility.
This from the same people who did such a good job forecasting this years milk prices…
Anyways I suppose $4.10/kg can be considered “improved”
Given that fonterra had to limit what they put up to auction to get the lift in prices they got ,and combine that with the fact that dairy factories will be approaching full production in the next month or so ,I’d be very interested to know what they base there optimism on.
The only chance demand will increase is if their is a drought in one or more of the major producing countries.
So far the long range forecast for NZ is El Nino on the rise.
So Prices might go up but N Z could miss out.
Russia allowing us to export Dairy to them is Putin Key in a precarious position with all his NATO mates.
China’s economy is in for a long rough ride.
So Dairy farmers Fairy tale ride is over.
Unless you can pick up a Dairy farm at a firesale price carry no debt ,milk once a day grow all your feed without fertilizer or harvest costs.
Dairy farming will go through a massive reorganisation.
hahaha!
When Misinformed Is Just Another Word For Muppet!
rosemary mcleod – nasty piece of shit
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/71234125/millie-elderholmes-deserves-to-be-out-of-the-spotlight-now
millie – keep moving forward, kia kaha
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/entertainment/news/article.cfm?c_id=1501119&objectid=11499975
I agree that she should be out of the spotlight though as I have as much interest in her and the crims she hangs around with as I do with the Kardashians
Can’t agree with you marty mars. You must have read the story in a different light to me. It was not nasty. It was honest. And among the words was some very good advice for the young lady in question.
Auckland Transport Blog
Large PDF
You want page 50.
And this is the story about the PPPs being shortlisted for that loss of money meaning that the loss will be even greater because PPPs are simply bad.
Are long working hours killing Kiwis?
Strokes and heart disease are a major killer in NZ. And working longer hours seems to greatly bump up the risk of suffering from them.
http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/aug/20/working-longer-hours-increases-stroke-risk
“Are long working hours killing Kiwis?”
Depends really doesn’t it.
Do they have other risk factors ? Are the long hours over long periods or intermittent ? What type of jobs are they in…etc etc
From The Lancet:
Hi northshoredoc,
You might find answers to some of your questions here. (The original paper in The Lancet).
I think ‘depends’ is a bit misleading in this context. It’s an epidemiological study (and a meta-analysis) not an experiment to identify a causal mechanism.
The correct notion is one of ‘risk’ at the population level.
So the answer to the question “Are long working hours killing Kiwis?” is – almost certainly (unless we systematically differ from the population covered by the meta-analysis); but just which Kiwis might be killed by long working hours ‘depends’ (on the sorts of factors you mention).
Thanks for that – always good to see the actual publication and Yes you are quite right. I think if we narrowed it don to those working more than 60 hours a week, who were overweight, smokers, primarily sedentary, over 50yrs and did frequent long haul air travel the risk of stroke would be red lining.
Yes – always remembering that there is likely to be interactions between those variables (e.g., long-working hours reinforcing sedentary habits, poor diet, etc.)..
And, of course, being over 50 happens to most of us – all going well – eventually 🙂
Blame the irish for the shoddy ChCh rebuild, so says the CEO of Fletcher Construction, http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/71284076/irish-outraged-at-fletcher-construction-ceo-comments-over-shoddy-quake-repairs & http://www.irishmirror.ie/news/irish-news/fury-after-new-zealand-construction-6279973
I blame the people who decided that it would be cheaper to import people to do the job rather than front up with getting NZers to do it. Going to cost a hell of a lot more now.
Article on stuff giving the PM free reign on his flag change.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/71285531/john-key-lists-his-reasons-for-a-new-flag
It seems he can’t fool all the people all the time, judging by the comments.
+47
+33
+58
It is going to be a very open referendum apparently when it comes to advertising and promotion of viewpoints.
The rules for the referendum advertising restrictions apply to print newspaper tv and radio but that is about it.
All online media, for example, are available for whatever purposes the spin-meisters deem necessary.
I wonder how the lawyers deal with streaming radio & TV services?
(bold mine)
http://www.elections.org.nz/events/referendums-new-zealand-flag-0/referendum-advertising-rules
Of course that doesn’t mean print, radio or television miss out as they still get to report on stories from any media they choose and will be able to publish any advertisement from other media as part of their reporting.
==========
On a related ‘reporting’ issue – as the referendum draws ever closer, we have still not seen any reporting on how a collection of images that have an existing copyright against them and are currently commercially marketed products have been allowed into the flag debate long list in the first place ….
The big PR push happens around the Referendum, once we have had the reminder of the Rugby World Cup next month, Olympics soon, then World Masters Games in Auckland.
PM will have the wind beneath his wings.
Soaring like an eagle.
Shaking his ass like a Bison.
Flashing his tail like a whale.
And lots and lots of puppy shots.
Them too ugh?
http://nyti.ms/1LchAdQ
People are waking up, I tells ya:
http://www.roymorgan.com/findings/6406-roy-morgan-new-zealand-voting-intention-august-2015-201508200049
Wow. Collectively as a country we are so bloody dense it hurts.
Stop thinking collectively.
Why? We function as a society, not as individuals in isolation.
Rogue poll by the looks.
Yet another one.
So last months poll was not a rogue poll then ???
National’s popularity is now moving in wild swings much like the stock market. Trouble on the horizon when no one really knows what the market is doing or if it represents anything based on reality.
No, it’s the polling which is moving about in wild swings. Having said that, National’s jump in this poll is well beyond the margin of error so we can be confident that their support has firmed recently.
However the all important Government Confidence Rating remains weak.
Labour got zero voter traction from the Chinese house buying ploy, and possibly quite the reverse, that much is clear.
Draco, it’s a shame last months poll wasn’t a rogue one!!!!!
On the Government’s side:
– Key understands that wall to wall media coverage is the best way to stay popular
– Chinese voter intentions will harden to National in Auckland
– The National front bench are firing, and providing Key with strong coverage
– TPP protests appear not to have touched underlying popularity
On the Opposition:
– They Opposition remain a long way from looking like an alternative government
– The rural economy has not yet fully soured. (It will)
– Criticising real estate capital growth is not popular
– Winston Peters continues to get better media traction than Little
– Greens have no MSM profile currently
It’s making 2017 look hard for the Progressive side of the fence.
Should have been firing by now.
I agree with all your points. Previously I had thought your statements around the ‘inevitable decline’ of the Key Govt as probably being a bit too early and a bit too optimistic.
Haha! Another rogue poll. And yet the last Roy Morgan poll commented on on this blog was blindingly reflective of the Public’s will for change, judging by the comments on here.
That many people over that much time are not wrong.
Except they are quite obviously wrong, as they keep voting for National!
“I’d like to be Richard Branson. SLURP.”
The Panel, Radio NZ National, Thursday 20 August 2015
Jim Mora, Peter Elliott, Gary Moore, Zara Potts, Jesse Mulligan
We join the Panelists at the tail end of their reaction to a story about how rubbing coffee into your scalp can cure baldness….
JIM MORA: Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!
GARY MOORE: HA!
JESSE MULLIGAN: Ha ha ha ha ha!
PETER ELLIOTT: Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!
ZARA POTTS: He he he he he!
JIM MORA: Ha ha ha! Okay, what else have you got?
ZARA POTTS: Well, have you heard of a condition called misophonia?
JIM MORA: Misophonia.
ZARA POTTS: Misophonia is the intense, angry reaction to everyday sounds like chewing, lip-smacking, sniffing, and pen-clicking—sounds that other people can ignore. ……
Now this was mischievous. It is probably not a coincidence that this subject was brought up when Peter Elliott was on the programme. Elliott has built a career out of cultivating a sonorous basso-profundo voice. He is a fine actor, but he has one extremely irritating habit: he is a slurper. If ever there was something to drive a misophonic person into a pit of dark frothing rage, it would be the slurping by Peter Elliott and a former Panel regular, Deborah Hill Cone.
After the 4 o’clock news, Elliott spoke briefly about his recent trip to Los Angeles….
Later in the program, Jim Mora asked his guests who they would like to be for a day. Peter Elliott replied like this….
For his Soapbox contribution, the slurping was unconstrained….
Poor old Gary Moore must be sick and tired of being paired with slurpers when he comes on this programme. A couple of years ago he had to sit opposite the most notorious slurper of them all, Deborah Hill Cone…..
[lprent: As Chooky says. Nothing to do with the Assange post. I will give you a little leeway as I suspect it could have been an accident. Post this far off topic again, and I’ll have to get educational. ]
Morrissey…entertainining as it is ….shouldnt this be under ‘Open Mike’ ?…cant see what it has to do with Julian Assange allegations, which is the topic of this Post
It was indeed an accident. Please accept my apologies.
*snicker* You nail Mora’s parroting schtick so well, Morrissey. I’m embarrassed to say I usually catch 15 minutes of the Panel on the webcast (more than enough!) and this is basically how he reacts to any panellist introducing something to the show… just repeating what they’ve said with a kind of cheerful incredulity, like it’s the damned punchline.
Hope they had the obligatory discussion about the flag/Auckland property prices. The Panel is a sick Groundhog Day Hell and I’m a sucker for punishment.
“The latest Roy Morgan political poll has the John Key-led National Party’s support jumping 7.5 per cent to 50.5 per cent.”
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/71308270/national-jumps-to-outright-majority-in-latest-roy-morgan-poll
Last Roy Morgan with a big jump for Labour and the standard commented:
“Key and his advisors will be very nervous now”
I wonder if Little and his advisors will be very nervous now?
Labour is way back at 27%. I still think that they will drop from here.
The swings are so big and numbers so inconsistent that I don’t think Roy Morgan polls are good enough to wipe your arse with.
Treat them all with scepticism if you like, but don’t treat the ones that suit you as gospel and those that don’t as rogue.
I’d love to hear Colonial Viper’s view of this poll.
He took the last Roy Morgan poll as proof positive that Labour’s “move left” strategy was resonating with the public and that the Nats would be “nervous”.
– Gormless Fool
And I don’t.
Colonial Viper and yourself may choose to analyse polls looking for answers that aren’t there, and you are welcome to do that.
Yes, this poll has been a big disappointment for me and a surprise that National has risen in spite of….
(1) TPP shenanigans
(2) Low milk price
(3) Housing crisis
(4) Saudi Sheep shit bribe (and investigation)
(5) Pony tail investigation
(6) State house asset sales
(7) Homelessness increase
(9) Job losses left, right and centre!
(10) Undermining of workers
Don’t know what gives! Remains to be seen in the next TV1 & TV3 polls if there is a trend or if this poll is a strange unexpected aberration.
@Clemgeopin
Chris Trotter says that the young adults are very drawn to yek as he epitomises the virtues of today, money, and essence of cool. What he posits might be an answer to your question. The things you have listed are the sort of things that older Labour voters considered important. Now in the ‘Me’ neo lib era they are not central.
http://bowalleyroad.blogspot.co.nz/2015/08/heart-of-gold-why-mike-hosking-is-more.html
There is a lot of truth in that…sadly!
Two other reasons for that are, in my opinion,
(1) Our education system does not include the (compulsory) study and discussion about political thought, past revolutions, civics, constitution, local and world history, discussions of ideologies, ethics, philosophical thoughts etc unless a student specifically chooses that and very few do.
(2) The media dumbs down news and the people generally do not take an active interest in democratic participation, thought and discussion on important issues, except for a small part of the population, including the activists. (even in the USA of all places which is a large democratic nation and also where ‘God’ is put on a pedestal and ‘spoken off’ as important by politicians but ‘opposite’ rules in practice, if you know what I mean!)
In the mean time, the world is being taken over by ‘all kinds’ of evil forces! I fear for the children and the future of our world.
P.S :
“The things you have listed are the sort of things that older Labour voters considered important’
I didn’t think I was that old, but ok! LOL
greywarshark, have a guess of my age and gender from my comments over time. +/- 5 will do. I am curious. It is interesting.
@Clem
I think that people don’t reach the age of approaching wisdom till they are about 40, as by that time they have had personal life experience and learned a bit about how the world works. So I would put you nearer 50 than 40. Any good? Gender – I feel you are a woman, have a less stoic attitude to others’ difficulties and conditions than the average male.
Myself I have let on earlier. But I’m a late bloomer, really didn’t start thinking hard till I went to uni mid-life and that was my tertiary introduction and I have tried to keep learning, thinking and doing for good democracy since then.
edited
Thanks for the response, greywarshark. Much appreciated. Have an enjoyable day. Cheers!
@Clem
I thought you might give an indication as to correctness. You are worse than a cryptic crossword which hold out on me (I really like to do them late and have the answers available to peek at.)
LOL! You did quite Ok, I will leave it at that. Sorry, I shouldn’t have asked you in the first place. My bad a tad as the sad mad lad.
John Oliver and Clarke and Dawe touching on Tony Abbott (with a bargepole).
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3IaKVmkXuk)
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6T0S7KAHCE)
The Cabinet is chocablock with liars, but Labour are far too genteel to point this out in words of one syllable. They won’t get Ponyboy into court without goading him into suing someone.
Overseas deaths of honourable people.
Khaled al-Asaad Syrian archaeologist aged 81 beheaded by ISIS.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-33984006
The latest from AVaaz. Sad stuff continues with journalists persecuted
Mexican photojournalist Rubén Espinosa was just found tortured and murdered, along with human rights activist Nadia Vera and three other women.
Freedom of expression is under attack in one of Latin America’s oldest democracies, and Rubén is the 14th journalist killed in the southern state of Veracruz where governor Javier Duarte has made open threats against reporters. Almost none of these crimes have been solved.
But this case has sent thousands into the streets and set off an explosion in the national and global media. Now Gael García Bernal, Salman Rushdie, Christiane Amanpour and hundreds of journalists, writers and artists have signed an open letter demanding justice for journalists in Mexico murdered for doing their jobs
http://www.theguardian.com/media/greenslade/2015/aug/18/500-writers-sign-letter-to-mexicos-president-over-journalists-murders
Mexico – Committee to Protect Journalists
https://cpj.org/americas/mexico/
In the past 10 years, 370 journalists were murdered; in 90 percent of cases, there … Mexican photojournalist who fled violent Veracruz state murdered in capital.
Journalists Killed in Mexico – Committee to Protect Journalists
https://cpj.org/killed/americas/mexico/
34 Journalists Killed in Mexico since 1992/Motive Confirmed. — Killed by Country –. — Killed by Country –; All Countries; Afghanistan; Algeria; Angola; Argentina …
Bloody hell!