A little pearl of wisdom from one of the regular contributors:
"Belief in the threat of climate change is what people think they are supposed to support, so they do, to pollsters. Belief in business as usual is what people depend on, so they vote accordingly."
Dennis Frank – Daily Review, 20th May, 2019.
He was talking about the Oz election, but the problem is universal. I'm afraid the man in the street, Joe Bloggs, will not take climate change seriously until it bites him on the bum.
"That's where leadership is meant to step in, but they're too scared of corporate ire"
Hold it right there WtB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.
There'll need to be several "pieces of work" and a number of consultative "conversations" with "officials" before anything can proceed "going forward". When those "conversations" are complete and "resonations" reached, we can probably proceed on a path of transformation and compassion
Na you’re wrong . This government has in very short time got most people excepting climate change as fact . And is progressing in the right direction . Move to fast and the push back will mean failure.
Of course if we had started in 1958 it would have been better . But today is the next best time.
"This government has in very short time got most people excepting climate change as fact "
So that's an achievement is it? I 'spose it is (in a really miniscule sort of way – even though most of them knew in the first place but were just coming to terms with the long term rather than keeping their loifsoyles taday and ta morra)
The bleeding bloody obvious springs to mind. A shame it doesn't extend to other ussues going forwid.
Megan and the sure rinse
Iain and Krus ummigrayshun and the feks of currint polsee
its easy to not understand if your job depends on it.
that is what i lay at the feet of government anywhere.
i don't so much have an issue with joe and jane sixpack but i have an issue with those that have the power to chance (all of them – no matter party affiliation) but do nothing.
I see the purchase price of 'bought-back' kiwibuild houses is not disclosed as 'commercially sensitive'. This is total bollocks – it is public money. What happens when you are locked to the religion of having a private business taking a cut of all things delivered by the state.
@ UncookedSelachimorpha +1 "What happens when you are locked to the religion of having a private business taking a cut of all things delivered by the state."
That religion is called free market liberalism, which just sunk the Australian Labour party and was the reason NZ Labour only scrapped in by the skin of it's teeth after three terms of disgusting and destructive National leadership.
This is part of a critique by Chris Trotter on the Oz Labour win that wasn't. (BEOT Big End of Town)
Simple enough, one might have thought, but one would have been reckoning without the extraordinary tone-deafness of the post-Hawke/Keating Labor Party. Instead of interpreting the poll data as evidence that, if they played their cards right, a win might just be possible, Shorten et al regarded it as proof that, since a loss was impossible, they could play their cards any damn way they pleased.
“We’ll never get a better chance to do all the things we’ve been promising ourselves for the past decade than this”, Labor told itself. “So, come on Comrades, this time we can quite safely bet the whole farm!” Which is pretty much what they did: promising to raise taxes and increase spending like it was going out of style. (Which, of course, it has been for the best part of three decades.)
Not only did they ignore the fact that the BEOT has untold billions invested in the farm, but they also thought it would be good politics to construct their campaign narrative around the idea of putting the inhabitants of the BEOT in their place. Unsurprisingly, the BEOT had a better idea.
I don't agree with Trotters analysis or his 'three objectives to winning an election..
"Winning a general election requires a political party to achieve three critical objectives: 1) Convince the voters that, economically-speaking, your team has got the right solutions. 2) Convince the voters that your opponents haven’t got a clue what the right answers even look like. 3) Convince the voters that, unless they do something to stop them, your opponents have a better-than-even chance of winning the election. In just three words: Reassure. Undermine. Terrify."
I will offer my opinion on winning elections a bit later, but must get off and do some work now.
Bloody hell Sam! How I wish you and others would quit using the word 'woke' in any other way than as the past participle of the verb 'to wake'.
What you are trying to show is that 1) you are hip 2) you are up with the terminology 3) you understand neocon rubbish words, and that they are useful, and that they add something to our vocabulary.
Sorry to disabuse you, but they are unintelligible rubbish, akin to those who use them.
I think Chris Trotter paints himself into unfortunate corners sometimes.
You absolutely have to rein in the BEOT if you want a society that works OK for everyone. But if you can't defeat the BEOT electorally, because they can outspend and out-message you, plus you face a populace where the psychological hegemony of neoliberal ideas runs very deep after 40 years of propaganda – what then? Despair?
It is much easier to gloomily describe this predicament than suggest ways of painting out of the corner. (I plead guilty on this one too.)
the prices the govt paid should be disclosed as LINZ captures all sales data. All realestate agents have access how else would they be able to have data on local sales .
Yes I wondered about that. Why not keep it as a state house and put in tenants who would appreciate it and look after it and be part of a community that was probably working and functional. Good house, good possibilities for lifting oneself out of the doldrums. Go for it Twyford, but choose your tenants right.
The bullying in parliament report comes out today. Hang on to your hats, I predict this will be damning for both the major parties. Very pleased it's happening, it's long overdue, thanks to Trev and the government for initiating it.
Thanks for bringing it up Cinny. I think it is going to be a shock to most people just how toxic the place is.
I would love to see a commission of inquiry into bullying in the Public Service generally and that it include retrospective cases. That would enable me to come forward and tell my story. It is something I've wanted – indeed needed – to do for a very long time but have been unable to due to the lack of a safe and secure environment.
“Just because it’s politics and people are passionate doesn’t mean any of us can behave like arseholes around this place. It’s a privilege to serve here, and the people who put us here expect us to lead and want to respect us as leaders.”
Apparently parliament is a toxic environment awash in bullying, harassment, entitled behaviour, verbal abuse and positively teeming with massive, unrestrained egos.
Well I never!
Also, the Press Gallery behave in 'unacceptable' ways.
Stuff has 4 – FOUR articles on Game of Thrones ending this morning, as if it was important. It's good TV, but important? As part of a picture it is.
Bread and Circuses aka violence conditioning for the masses. Producers/writers seem to delight in trying to outshine each other in their propensity to dream up horrors.
"a way to kill compassion to ensure the brutalization of Roman civilians and thus their compliance (or at least their complacency) vis-à-vis Imperial expansion and domestic policing"
Have we learned to not give a fuck yet? Are we entertained by all these stabbings?
There'll be awards, red carpet, gushing interviews, tears…
You ask whether "Have we learned to not give a fuck yet? Are we entertained by all these stabbings".
From the fact that the series appears to have been very popular I suppose the answer to the questions has to be yes. If nobody watched it they certainly wouldn't have bothered spending a fortune on making it. One must simply suggest that everyone who watched it was in fact entertained.
So says he who, immodestly, says that he had never heard of the series until recently and has never seen a single episode. The most I have seen was snippets in the news in the last few days.
So, if you don't approve of what they are showing the only thing to do is don't watch it. It is like the people who claim that "I never vote. It just encourages the bastards". If you watch the program, and the ads, you are just encouraging the people who make it to go even further next time.
What political statement will the Crusaders make next? First they offend religion, now sexuality. Not bad for a non-political group who just play a game.
Sure there is always at least two sides to every story, and often one involves lies to protect reputations, especially when it comes to the national sport.
How many of us here have seen drunk rugby players act like arseholes? Heaps I'd say.
Listening to the interviews this morning I believe the other fellows who complained and not the Crusaders denial and great innocence. It's a reflection I think of the brutal way that things get splattered on Facebook, the no-respect for others, the arrogant 'I'll do it my way, you lowlife (applies to whoever is chosen for disdain). This type of abuse has been going on for years and so many sportspeople give themselves an edge by harassing others in opposing teams, or the public. That's our society these days folks, authority is prepared to allow shit to happen to others, bystanders even, as externalities to the really important goal, whatever that is.
If it wasn't already obvious to everybody in the world, the US have completely lost any interest in disguising the fact that they are prepared to attack or bully any country that stands in the way of their hegemony out in the open.
Their hostile and dangerous actions against Venezuela and Iran.
Their attackon Huawei.
The US war on whistle blowers and persecution of Assange.
The US compliance and support of apartheid in Gaza, the West Bank and Israel.
Their compliance and support of the humanitarian tragedy in Yemen.
The US arming and legitimizing the despotic terrorist state of Saudi Arabia.
The list could go on, and on.
Lets just hope that Bernie Sanders gets the nomination, takes out Trump in the rust belt, and restores at lest a semblance of sanity to US foreign policy.
I think most people would consider the US governments relentless actions against Huawei over the last while including today's announcement, only in order to protect US private corporate interests as an attack, so in a word yes.
We assure you while we are complying with all US gov't requirements, services like Google Play & security from Google Play Protect will keep functioning on your existing Huawei device," Google said on Twitter.
I see there is another teens fleeing from police crash in Te Atatu on the Stuff web site this morning. When are these idiots going to learn when police signal you to stop…..you stop! At least they only injured themselves so that's all good. they will be off the roads for a while which makes it safer for everyone.
Many (maybe even most) teens do. Pushing too hard, failing to do risk assessment, not seeing warning signs, getting carried away, not realising how drunk they are…
Google told me there was an OIA request on police chase statistics last year: seems that a little over half of pursuits are abandoned (probably includes "called off for safety" as well as "lost 'em"). So some of these kids' peer group probably have escaped pursuit before.
All fun and games until someone gets hurt. But if there's nothing else to do, or no real hope for advancement, teens gonna do stupid shit.
Went flying off a 50cc a couple of years back. Straight over the handle bars, instinctive forward roll, worst problem was a tear in my pants from where I hit the key in the ignition with my thigh. God bless lower speeds.
Rear end panel damage to the car cost more than my scooter did new (which had a jiggle at the garage but was otherwise fine).
That was me worrying about what guy on the left was going to do, to the detriment of forward observation. #imadickhead
So you think that stealing cars, driving dangerously and endangering the public is all ok and just a bit of youthful silliness? These idiots put innocent people on the roads in danger.
Yes I did some stupid things as a teen but I never once stole a car, and never once ran from police.
Jimmy you good little lord fauntleroy, you sound a bit preachy there. You are probably too old and was always in the wrong class to appreciate the great attraction of stealing cars and joy riding. If you can be so proud of not having stolen a car, what is it that you did when you were being naughty? You seem to take pride in not having had to run from police in a stolen car. So what did you do?
The joyriders might be from a background that would understand and enjoy 'Boy'. Have a look at the trailer, and I bet it will show a different way of looking at the dynamics of life Jimmy than you have experienced.
So you still don't give a shit that kids actually got injured, but there was a chance that you could have been. Oh the humanity!
Keep up the middle class moral outrage, one day you might come down from the ivory tower and figure out why Remuera kids aren't doing this stuff or tagging from dusk till dawn.
No I don't give a shit that these kids got injured. They made the choice and got injured due to their own actions. However, I am greatly concerned (and give a shit) that while they are on the road hooning around they are putting my kids and other innocent people in danger.
How would you feel if they drove in to your wife / daughter /son trying to evade the police?
I'd feel like I seriously screwed up my responsibilities as a parent.
There's plenty of ways to have loads of fun scaring yourself shitless with speed, heights, freefalls, explosions etc that don't involve putting strangers at risk. Anything to do with public roads and vehicles are particularly important to take responsibly and seriously, not something to get your jollies with. Because the consequences to strangers can be so severe.
That's the attitude I think I've successfully just given my eldest (easy, he's that way inclined anyway) and I'm about to start trying to get my twins to take on board (hmm, gonna be more of a challenge, they're somewhat more neurotypical teenage boys).
I was more on Jimmy's idea that we needed to imagine a personal relationship to give a damn.
To me, hooning is one of those things where the negligence is there, but they're still kids. Kids make mistakes.
Contrast that with a court news thing I saw a while back where the hoon was basically in his late thirties – donuts, excess speed, failing to stop, ISTR it was the full trifecta. That dude, I'm totally with the "lock him up" crowd. Teens, even early twenties? I'm more ambivalent.
You mean my kids driving and running from police? I would be seriously disappointed with my parenting skills, and seriously disappointed with them. I hate to think what my old man would have done to me if I had ever not stopped for police when told to.
I don't know the statistics, but I am seriously wondering if there would be less of these terrible instances if it was advertised that the police will chase you as these young people with the nothing to lose mentality are simply putting their foot down knowing police will pull out of the chase.
You'd also be sad they got injured, no? Don't forget that bit.
Here are the stats. The trouble with your plan is that sometimes the offenders get away – lose the cops in back roads, get enough distance to bail, whatever. You just change the rules into more of an "all or nothing" situation. Same with stiffer penalties – that just increases the panic from an initial poor reaction.
The psychology and practicality of vehicle pursuits for both offender and police officer is interesting – did some reading on it about ten years ago. ISTR that if aerial unit was involved it basically doubled the chances of a successful stop. But then of course that gets limited by finance and controlled air spaces.
Maybe I'm too old to think like them, but if I knew the police would relentlessly pursue me I would be less likely to run as even if I initially got away they would eventually catch up to me. At the moment they know they have probably a 50% chance? of getting away and unfortunately they take the chance often with tragic results.
As the mother of three, and the child of a veritable gaggle of parents and step parents…let me assure you that children can be very very disappointing. It doesn't necessarily make them bad people, and sometimes they grow up to be even better than you, as a parent, deserve.
You clearly lack the imagination to understand that the whole point of the chase, the adrenaline rush, is from being chased..being caught is no more of a factor in the decision to flee, than the idea the cops will stop chasing. In fact its probably slightly disappointing when the cops do pull back. The whole point is these kids are not thinking, they are simply reacting to stimuli.
If the adrenaline rush is what they are after, then I have even less sympathy for them when they "roll the dice" and lose. They put countless innocent people at risk simply for a "high" ….very selfish.
I do feel sorry for the police as they are often in a no win situation.
If that did happen I'd probably feel a lot better about it knowing a sane policy was in place that didn't involve risky police chases and naughty teens that endangered more lives.
When they are 'young,dumb and full of cum', combined with whatever the fuck else has shaped their usually totally dysfunctional and violent lives, I don't think these young guys are really in a psychological space of mind to 'learn when police signal you to stop…..you stop!'
The problems for most of these 'idiots' are far more systemic and complicated than that, that much I do know, how to fix it, that question is probably well above my pay level.
For an informative view on how a good place turns shitty and youth go to the pack watch all series of The Wire.
It starts in the street but moves on to the working class supplying the street and then a larger focus with the dodgy dealing political and business class all in on their various games.
It is startlingly profound in retrospect.
It touched briefly upon further meddling from on high. Were the focus to enlarge further there'd be the 'philanthropic' (the PR face of the billionaire class) types behind the scenes encouraging class warfare via deals to influence money-centric law.
Just thinking this morning about how money is just a set of formalised, legalised promises. We talk about it as if it is real and substantial, Donald Duck's Grandpa had gold coins in a pile that he used to jump into. But gold is just a token within the money system that is carefully managed as to its daily value for buying some real thing – hamburgers have been used as a standard for instance.
If we thought in our minds when we say money, that we are talking of fairydust we would be closer to understanding the real thing we speak of. And economists have worked out how fairydust is transferred and added value to and relates to real, physical things and real work either physical or mental.
And a Kiwi economist has made it big in his field and is speaking on Radionz about why we don't have to worry about robots and their effect on our degraded society. Get ready for some beautifully delivered fairydust tales for the political nursery school.
10:05 Kinley Salmon : Debunking the "robocalypse"
With all the talk of artificial intelligence and machine learning – does the technological revolution really mean that robots are knocking on the door to take many of our jobs? New Zealand economist Kinley Salmon says there is so much hype, it's hard to think straight. In his new book Jobs, Robots and Us, he argues that more people than ever are in work in New Zealand, technology isn't something that just happens to us, and that the future of work is in our own hands.
We The Beeple
The Wire was set in the time when crack cocaine was flooding the ghettoes of the US courtesy of Reagan;s covert war against the Sandinista govt in Nicaragua.
Gary Webb broke the story, only to be shunned by his fellow journalists (remind you of anyone?)vilified and discredited .Later he was vindicated, too late to save his life . He committed suicide..if shooting yourself twice in the head is a thing.
During the first series the FBI guy talks about how things have changed since the towers fell and heroin being sold on the street is branded WMD and Bin Laden. So it's probably set around 2003.
It's pretty much contemporary with the time of filming. It's not a period piece.
Great characters. Really sophisticated plots. Amazing lines and scenes (my personal favourite was the scene examination conducted purely with the word "fuck"). And Idris.
I imagine that a lot of the people who read and comment on this site will applaud. Ford, after all, make those evil cars and trucks that are, at least in Greenies view, destroying the world. Get them all off the road. Let people go back to the 19th century and take a train or walk
At least I imagine what our resident idiot MP Genter would say. The only cars that should be allowed on the streets of Wellington will be her beloved Beemer Limo's.
The Government will provide almost $40 million in funding for ambulance services in a bid to relieve the pressure some of the providers are under.
But speaking to media this morning, Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters gave a strong hint the Government was planning to fully fund St John in the near future.
"I very confident that we can look forward to a day, and not very far from now, where 95 per cent of the needs of St Johns is funded from central Government."
Although he was confident, he said he was not speaking for "the whole Cabinet, at this point in time".
Having taken a ride in a ambulance a few weeks ago and chatting with the paramedic (over the awful clattering of the vehicle as it negotiated the bends of our sealed but twisty rural roads) I am very, very happy about this.
I'll be positively orgasmic if Cabinet agrees to fund at least 95% of the service…Winston might be forgiven a few of his sins if he can pull this off.
No that would be bad Gabby. Is the idea that the funding will be made available from reducing services elsewhere? Rural people need more, not less for sure.
I see why the Winston First Party survives. People like Rosemary, after 40 years of disappointment, still believe Winston's lies.
Actually it would be very easy to provide the full cost of running the New Zealand Ambulance services. All that is needed is to stop the taxpayer funding Winston's hobby of horse-racing. In order to keep the finances of the NZF party healthy, and to keep Winnie happy with his part ownership of racehorses, the taxpayer is throwing ever more money at all weather tracks.
Originally it was just one track in the Waikato, probably at Cambridge. Now he has wound the ante up to 3 tracks, at Cambridge, at Awapuni and in the South Island. The largesse will come out of the Peters/Jones $3 billion slush fund. If we spent the money, which is probably up to $40 million for horses by this time, we could pay the full cost of ambulance services immediately.
Now: " it would be very easy to provide the full cost of running the New Zealand Ambulance services."
Then:
"PM Bill English told The AM Show on Monday ambulance operators are "not asking for full funding, we're not promising full funding … The proportion of funding is fairly high, and as I understand it has been steady over the years. When you visit the ambulance services they have got pretty good gear these days. Their staff are very well-trained."
(May 2017)
It's amazing how many "easy" things National never got around to doing, isn't it?
Full funding is a pretty cheap promise and relatively easy to do. All that is true.
Bill English was right. The Ambulance service in NZ is pretty good. Modern equipment and well staffed with people who are expert at their job. In recent years all the St Johns equipment has gone through a huge level of upgrade.
The main reason why St Johns has not wanted full funding has been to preserve their independence. Total full funding makes that difficult. Even a small amount of donations (relative to the total cost) has helped preserve their independence.
It will be interesting to see if St Johns will be able to continue to be independent as they have historically been.
thanks heavesn for fundraising, volunteer work – aka unpaid work, bake sales and that stuff so that government actually ahs got nothing else to do but pay your wages and perks right?
and i for one am sure you will want that ambulance service the day you keel over and need one. would be too bad if they showed up in a vehicle from the fifties.
I used to work for the AA before i opened my business, the pretty good gear breaks down regularly cause it is not pretty good, just extremely well maintained by the unpaid staff, you arrogant do nothing know nothing.
People don't have as much free time to donate to St John these days it takes more to make ends meet for everyone. We get a professional service we should pay for it.
I recall my old man was attending the rugby every few weekends in season as a St John representative, he never got a dime but it was a windfall for us kids when we went: all the recycle soft drink bottles. Two cents each, two cents was money!
Dad was never into rugby, but as a local St John guy he fulfilled his obligations. On top of helping loads of players he saved a few people after bad accidents in our village too.
He never once appreciated that government took their service for granted, and it's been an awful long time.
From my understanding, if there are St Johns attending Saturday sport – St Johns are being paid by the sporting organisation.
Sacred Heart (Auckland)has St Johns attending Saturday winter sport. The St Johns staff were called on the day 2 boys being knocked out and a broken bone and that was only the 9:00 games !!! – To cover the costs there is a coffee/Hot Chocolate stand and the old boys cover any shortfalls, great idea by the school, and I would recommend any to seek & support the coffee service.
Thanks Herodotus. Back in the day the club might of donated to St Johns, but the actual officer didn't get paid. A free feed occasionally, but not expected. The public however were very supportive of Dad, their gratitude was obvious.
It was even noted by some parents when he was at Te Aroha baths that they felt safer having their kids swim with him present. Then we nearly lost my brother in the same place – translucent water hid him at the bottom Dad's foot hit something and he hauled him out already unconscious.
It must be hard being held in esteem, only to be human.
Good stuff. The ambulance service should be a 100% public funded service, just like police etc. This 'charity' model is bullshit that only exists to allow the wealthy to avoid paying their share.
A fossil Galaxias fish from Foulden Maar. Photo credit Jon Lindqvist.
Fossil leaves from Foulden Maar. Photo credit Jennifer Bannister.
A fossil leaf from Foulden Maar. Photo credit Tammo Reichgelt.
A short section of core from the Foulden Maar deposit, showing annual layers (alternating yellowish and dark layers) along with underwater landslide events (thicker dark layers). Photo credit Bethany Fox.
100x magnification of a 23-million-year-old leaf cuticle (Litsea calicarioides) from Foulden Maar, showing stomata (white) and epidermal cells (purple). Photo credit Tammo Reichgelt.
A fossil flower (Fouldenia staminosa) from Foulden Maar. Photo credit Jennifer Bannister.
Getz Ice Shelf on the Antarctic coast Credit: NASA/Dick Ewers
The overseas mining company seeking to expand its operation next to a fossil rich geological site of international significance in Otago, says it has good motives, and is surprised by the negative reaction. Plaman Resources is 50.9% owned by the Mayasian business Iris Corp, and 49% owned by two Australian businessmen. It has a permit to mine diatomite in Middlemarch at Foulden Maar – a 23-million-year-old crater lake at Middlemarch – and is seeking permission to buy the neighbouring property to expand the mine. The diatomite is brand named "Black Pearl" and sold as stock feed. The plan has run into strong opposition from some locals, concerned scientists and former Prime Minister Helen Clark. Kathryn talks with co-founder and CEO of Plaman Resources, Peter Plakadis.
On later on Radionz. Rod Oram first about tourism goals, which may be related to the next one on m/billionaires coming here for boltholes!
11:30 New Zealand's billionaire doomsday preppers
A new VICE documentary attempts to track down the overseas billionaires building boltholes in New Zealand. "Hunt for the Bunker People" follows freelance journalist Baz Mcdonald as he investigates why the super rich are looking to buy land in Queenstown as "apocalypse insurance."
As Baz comes to terms with the causes of this paranoia, he considers the implication for Queenstown's shrinking middle class. He joins Kathryn to speak about the documentary and what he plans to do next with his investigation.
Hunt for the Bunker People screens on VICE will be on SKY On Demand and SKY GO until May 23rd.
Does earthquake insurance need a fundamental rethink as private insurers trim their books and EQC gets out of contents insurance?
Kathryn Ryan speaks with the minister responsible for the Earthquake Commission, Dr Megan Woods.
Changes to the Earthquake Commission Act come into affect on July 1st.
They include an increase in the cap on EQC residential building cover from $100,000 to 150,000, a withdrawal of contents cover, and more transparency if earthquake claims have been made on a house in the past.
The Lord of the Great Grift is one step closer to getting exposed. A federal judge has ruled his accountants have to turn over his paperwork to Congress.
Best not reveal anything that might undermine the narrative.
Two left wing NGOs, Yesh Din and Emek Shaveh, filed a petition under the Freedom of Information Act to reveal the identities of archaeological sites and archaeologists working in the West Bank. According to Emek Shaveh, the High Court ruled to conceal the identities of the locations and archaeologists.
Supreme Court rejects NGOs petition, arguing that publishing information publicly could expose archaeologists to academic boycott and undermine Israel’s position in future diplomatic negotiations.
Here’s the result of David Seymour’s incitement of violence toward Golriz Ghahraman the other day.
Now she has to have a police escort to protect her from violent white supremacist RWNJs. This clearly proves it is far right creeps like David Seymour who are undermining the decency and safety of New Zealand society.
Don’t respect me but please (!) respect my requests (plural) to cut out the personal shit. Pointless personal shit is just that. You’ve already taken too much of my time.
what the fuck are you on about. This is like the 100th time you've threatened to ban me. Fuck me. You give a dork a little bit of power and it goes straight to there head.
so asides from anything the woke Australian Green Party leader decided he'd lead a caravan up the Australian coast signalling the virtues of thrift and cleanliness. Net result was 4% swing to the liberals and then in NZ, more woke nutters.
[Given my earlier requests here on OM to cut out the pointless personal shit, this looks like a deliberate provocation of Sam who seems unable to control himself when provoked and you know it – Incognito]
I thought that you had received a ban Sam. Your abusive comments deserve abusive description – they are shit. And your abuse isn't even high-class stuff. You are lowering the tone of this blog and you haven't said anything of value except your own lame opinions. We have plenty of those ourselves, in our own rubbish bins, and yours belong in yours.
Depends if you desire to be a super moderator or a super debater because when it's moderated it's actually not debating, wonder if this place is still for robust debate anymore. Where I come from debates can turn into fist fights. Besides that I was under the impression that I had received a permanent ban at one point for breaking some code of behaviour or something rather than the content of what I was saying ie moderated for ideological reasons rather than causing harm to some ones fragile frame of mind.
I don’t want to ban Sam or anybody else for that matter. I would like him (and others) to cut out the pointless personal shit and get on with robust debate. All it takes is a small change in online behaviour that will have large positive effects on the tone on/of this site.
Stockholm’s general shelters are in poor condition.
In the event of a crisis or war, they could not be used, according to the real estate office.
And there is no money to fix them.
Stockholm city is responsible for 22 active shelters. But none of them meet the requirements – and they cannot fulfill their function as shelters in the event of a crisis or war, Mitt i [local free ‘zine] can now reveal.
The protective shelters are used today as, for example, garages. But the city is obliged to be able put them in service within 48 hours, which is currently not possible. It appears from the real estate office’s budget for the years 2020-2022.
What would happen if there was a crisis or war?
– We can’t handle the 48 hour limit. It is a question of how to plan, says Thomas Schillén, property manager at the real estate office.
In order to be able to use the protective shelters, good ventilation, shock wave doors and toilets are required. It would take many millions to be able to fix them, money missing from the budget.
– We have got a tightening of the new majority and have not received any new funds. We are tightening our staff and have other projects that take a lot of money, “says Thomas Schillén
The government announced yesterday the appointment of five new Deputy Chairpersons to the Human Rights Review Tribunal. Legislation has been tweaked to allow these Deputy Chairperson to make and write up decisions.
" This Government has acknowledged the unacceptable backlog of cases before the Human Rights Review Tribunal that developed under the previous National Government and we have taken action by establishing the Deputy Chairperson positions to help reduce the growing backlog,” says Aupito William Sio. "
Unfortunately, one of these Deputy Chairpersons has proven herself to be less than impartial and has, over the decade she spent fighting against disabled people and their chosen family carers, chosen to engage in tactics that in my opinion bring the profession of lawyer in (further) disrepute.
I have sat an listened to her deliberately misinform and misrepresent our situation and on more than one occasion has actually made statements that in any other venue would be considered lying.
Martha Coleman markets herself as being a 'human rights specialist'.. and yes she has had much experience in arguing against claims brought under NZBORA and the HRA.
In the case of family carers being paid to provide the disability supports an eligible person has been assessed as needing her tactics failed (in numerous venues) as the lawyers from the Office of Human Rights Proceedings won the case by simply telling the truth and presenting the facts to the Tribunal and the Courts.
Reality will occasionally prevail.
One aspect of Coleman's career that has always intrigued me is the fact that while she was being paid by Crown Law to prepare the case against family carers she was also a member of the National Advisory Council for the Employment Of Women who stated in their March 2008 report…
NACEW supports a framework for family caring that is based on the following principles: •that the unique contribution of family carers is the provision of emotional and associative care and this needs to be recognised and valued as a priority •that formal care packages are comprehensive responses to the intensity of a client’s needs, and do not make assumptions about the family supports available •that a client and their family members can opt for greater family involvement in care arrangements and negotiate the basis of their involvement within the care package provided •that individual family members who are contracted into explicit service roles have similar protections and rights as other workers.
Yes, I get that lawyers have to be able to argue both sides of an issue convincingly…that's probably why so many end up in politics…but to have read the above, and listened to Coleman enthusiastically and with some malice argue against it, to me calls into question her suitability to participate in decision making for a Tribunal dedicated to upholding human rights.
The fact that Coleman leveled some of her invective against me personally most certainly colours my view.
Waiting in anticipation for the report into National Party culture that was promised us once the report on Parliament culture was out. I can't seem to find it anywhere though. Wonder what's taking so long…
Stuff just reported this: "Speaking during the first reading of the bill, National leader Simon Bridges said his party was supportive of the principles of the bill but National had "real differences" and expected to see change in select committee. The Government's flagship climate change bill – technically an amendment to an earlier law – would force future governments to set a series of "carbon budgets" over the next 30 years, declining until all long-lived emissions reach net zero at 2050. It will pass first reading on Tuesday afternoon." https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/112890233/national-supports-climate-change-bill-through-first-reading
"The proposed law is based on the United Kingdom's Climate Change Act. The bill would also set up an independent Climate Change Commission that would advise the Government on what these targets should be and how exactly governments should meet them. It would not have any independent power on its own. It's understood NZ First was particularly uncomfortable with talk about giving the commission Reserve Bank-like powers to set the emissions targets itself. Governments will also be required to set a plan for how they will respond to the various effects of climate change."
Stuff: "MPs were "treated like gods" with a "master servant relationship". What about goddesses? Seems like it could be a case of unconscious sexism. Mistresses are sometimes into dominance too. There was a dominatrix in the headlines a while back, after the guy who had been paying to be dominated actually died.
And if you call them public servants, is it really all that surprising that MPs treat them as such? What part of the residual patriarchy is so hard to grasp?
Can you expand on your criticisms of Martha Coleman a little more for me @ RMcD?
In what way has she spent "fighting against disabled people and their chosen family carers"? (for example).
I'm not suggesting in any way that your assertions are incorrect.
I'm just curious having known both Martha and brother Bruce in her formative years. Having seen how many of my peers have put comfy little lives over principle, nothing will surprise me, but I'm not yet ready to put Martha in that category.
btw @ lprent – not quite sure why this appears as 25, as opposed to 20.1 or 20.2. but it's possible I'm losing it
Actually, assume the worst (I’m losing it) – I’d hate to have you obsessing over a potential bug that isn’t
Often happens to me. I think I hit the reply to comment button, then after I post it shows up at the bottom of the thread. Remedy is highlight what you wrote, ctrl C to copy it, then delete comment. Then hit the reply button to the comment you want to respond to, ctrl V to copy your response into the new window, post it and watch to ensure it does publish in the right place.
As I admitted… The fact that Coleman leveled some of her invective against me personally most certainly colours my view.
I am one of those family carers.
I sat in on many of those hearings and watched her at work.
I was part of the last group to be represented by the OHRP against the Crown and the Ministry, and up until the final straight Martha 'these people have a sense of entitlement' Coleman was the Crown appointed assassin.
And oh, how she seemed to love her work.
Yeah, yeah, lawyers are supposed to use every trick in the book to make the opposition look like shit…but come on…there are limits, surely?
As I said…misinformation, malicious misrepresentation (well it seemed like malice from where I was sitting) and callous disregard for the people with disabilities who would die without appropriate hands- on care and those of us who provided that care…in many cases where the Ministry's own contracted providers refused to because the Ministry would not fund that level of care.
Even after losing in Atkinson and Spencer, Coleman dug in when it came to our case (King). It beggared belief as for all intents and purposes we were the same as the Atkinson and Spencer cases. Arguably the level of complexity in the care required from and by the King plaintiffs was measurably higher than in the previous cases.
In my particular case she argued that I was claiming to be paid for doing what 'every one else does for love'.
The Ministry's own records show that at least 40 other spouses were being paid by the Ministry for providing care for their partner…and we had met some of these couples who couldn't understand why we were not given the same accommodation by the Ministry.
However…Coleman knew this, must have gained at least a smidgen of an inkling what our lives are like…she sat through enough hearings and read enough of our submissions….you'd think, you'd hope, that at some point she'd actually back off and advise the Crown that the right thing to do would be to put the injustice and the discrimination right.
But, no. And this time last year I was girding up my delicate bits to sit in a court room and listen to Coleman yet again argue a case she had already lost on more than one occasion.
Orders came from Higher Up later last year that the Crown were to settle our case.
Coleman et al suddenly disappeared from the opposition benches and new Crown Lawyers brought in to try and make nice.
I occasionally fantasize that Coleman et al perhaps, in a fit of conscience, deliberately threw Atkinson and Spencer…but no. What they did do, and quite successfully, was to manage to stall any resolution for the rest of us so that National had time to concoct the Part 4 amendment to the PHD Act.
Coleman played a significant role in a saga that has left many in the non ACC disability community, especially those with very high support needs who want to live in their own homes, feeling marginalised. And abused. And totally disillusioned with 'the system'.
Such is the nature of the law and a good many in the legal profession (as we all know from the bullying and misogyny that's become public recently).
I've known a few perfectly 'nice' people that turn into complete arseholes in a court room because its all about winning. If it were me, I'd be more pissed off with MoH – though not surprised given the state of much of our public service these days.
But maybe she has turned into a complete bitch. It'd be a hell of a change over a lifetime though
Where do progressives go for comfort these days. In the USA they are almost up to two figures for shaming rape and sex between men and women if not married. Reading a book of Russian theory The Foundations of Geopolitics by Alexander Dugin there is this:
Foundations engages with obscure strains in 20th-century fascism, relying heavily, for example, on theorist Julius Evola, who advised Mussolini and the SS and promoted extreme misogyny as well as racism for use by the Russian elite. All sex for Evola is rape and a woman outside the home “a monkey.” He and Dugin both sneer that modern men—not to mention gays, lesbians, and transsexuals—are “feminized.” In the Evola-Dugin playbook, sexual and racist anxieties lie at the root of today’s Russian fascism. And with but slight qualification, one can see Rob Porter, Steve Bannon (an Evola fan), Roy Moore, and Donald Trump as decadent facsimiles.
seenothing any publisty is good publicity to some .
I say the Skypath project for cycling and walking is awesome good that the project is going to start.
M8 I'm going to pop the balloons of these new partys Tamaki don't you get the big picture you are going to help the people who have been disrespecting tangata whenua FOOL.
I brought some cheap honey it didn't even have a sweet taste. Honey is has been a medicine for thousands of years and Maori tohunga have been healing tangata for thousands of years to.
Tavita wahine is being lead around the mulberry Bush of the justice system if they were wealthy there would have been people paying for his death that's the system Whanau.
I'm not even going to comment on that fool who can't see past his own faith fool in Britain.
All I can say is I feel for the rabbit wahine in Christchurch I love my pets to maybe start a give a little page to help pay for your rabbits vacation
Tamiki is just going to help national float there toilet I have all ready give my view to not impress with him or Naro trying float his christen party to they both have egos that make them think te ra revolvers around them.
The parliament staff problems is going to get sorted as for Tau what insults did he say to Trevor for that to happen
Kia ora to Maori growing kiwifruit there are heaps of places in Te taiwhiti to grow kiwifruit it could easily be grown organically to big bucks.
It's awesome that Ngati Porou are going to get the right we want from the crown
For ower Coast and Tangaroa
The Whana of the Pike river mine will be happy it is all finally coming to past and reveal what went wrong we know that the safety standards were dropped and that could have been the cause.
The students strive is a awesome way to get Neanderthals attention the pollies around the Papatuanuku are pandering to money and not their children future money is the phenomenon that causes policy to be made that is good for the 00.1% that's a fact.
A lot of consumer don't no the consumer laws but now days thanks to social media and Google we can check the laws.
Bridget Davis I tell the mokopuna you are what you eat I think you book Bridgets Healthy Kitchen is awesome I say a healthy gute is a fact .I need to clean up my diet ma te wa
In my view the poor commen tamariki are in a much better position with the Labour lead government if national was still in power poverty will still snowballing they would have a block on the subject and no one would be talking about it.
I agree with Duncan Tamiki won't make the 5% threshold to get into Parliament remember he has had a few brain FARTs.
Eco maori champions wahine equal rights the Women of Influence award is a great way to achieve that goal of more Wahine getting into managing our Papatuanuku .
Nominations are open for the seventh annual Women of Influence awards, a celebration of change makers and inspiring women.
Sponsored by Stuff and Westpac, the awards have previously recognised politicians, philanthropists, businesswomen and artists.
Jackie Clark, of South Auckland social welfare charity The Aunties, won the supreme award last year. In 2017, former prime minister Helen Clark received the lifetime achievement award. Kate kite ano links below
Its is good that the IPCA has stated that the police chaser was at fault now that a problem has been admitted prosess can be put in place to minimize the losses of life.
Bit of drama with the ambulances people wages.
I have had a good flue it was Monday when I got it a week ago .
Those Christians political parties will take us back 100years with their neanderthal views.
Students strike is what is needed to get the common people view out there above the oil barons $$$$$$$$$$ it is there future we are stuffing NOW.
I feel for the people who are in the atrocitie weather that is happening in America at the minute the common people will suffer the most.
The Queen keeping up with technology the shopping kiosk are very good no need to talk to anyone I have a swarm of puppets following me around. Kate kite ano
I have said that the 2 new Christian political party's will drag Aotearoa back 100years.
It's awesome that Ngati Porou is finally getting our mana back to care for Tangaroa and his creation.
Its better to have a Labour lead government helping tangata whenua than a national lead government that takes from the poor and gives to the wealthy FOOL not everyone is going to be happy its quite hard for that phenomenon in Maoridom
Cool Maori art on display at the Auckland airport it gives Eco Maori a sore face to see all the interest in Maori culture and te reo now it was not like that just a few years ago.
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
TL;DR: In today’s ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Tuesday, March 19:Kāinga Ora’s dry rot The Spinoff DailyBill McKibben on ‘Climate Superfunds’ making Big Oil pay for climate damage The Crucial YearsPreston Mui on returning to 1980s-style productivity growth NoahpinionAndy Boenau on NIMBYs needing unusual bedfellows Urbanism SpeakeasyNed Resnikoff's case ...
Negative yesterday, negative today. Negative all year, according to one departing reader telling me I’ve grown strident and predictable. Fair enough. If it’s any help, every time I go to write about a certain topic that begins with C and ends with arrrrs, I do brace myself and ask: Again? Are ...
Bryce Edwards writes – It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support ...
Inspirational: The Family of Man is a glorious hymn to human equality, but, more than that, it is a clarion call to human freedom. Because equality, unleavened by liberty, is a broken piano, an unstrung harp; upon which the songs of fraternity will never be played.“Somebody must have been telling lies about ...
Tax Lawyer Barbara Edmonds vs Emperor Justinian I- Nolo Contendere: False historical explanations of pivotal events are very far from being inconsequential.WHEN BARBARA EDMONDS made reference to the Roman Empire, my ears pricked up. It is, lamentably, very rare to hear a politician admit to any kind of familiarity ...
It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support for the various parties in ...
Buzz from the Beehive Housing Minister Chris Bishop delivered news – packed with the ingredients to enflame political passions – worthy of supplanting Winston Peters in headline writers’ priorities. He popped up at the post-Cabinet press conference to promise a crackdown on unruly and antisocial state housing tenants. His ...
Ele Ludemann writes – The Reserve Bank is advertising for a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion advisor. The Bank has one mandate – to keep inflation between one and three percent. It has failed in that and is only slowly getting inflation back down to the upper limit. Will it ...
Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency Waka KotahiThe fact that a ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Gavin Jacobson talks to Thomas Piketty 10 years on from Capital in the 21st CenturyThe SalvoLocal scoop: Green MP’s business being investigated over migrant exploitation claims StuffSteve KilgallonLocal deep-dive: The commercial contractors making money from School ...
It’s a home - but Kāinga Ora tenants accused of “abusing the privilege” may lose it. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Government announced a crackdown on Kāinga Ora tenants who were unruly and/or behind on their rent, with Housing Minister Chris Bishop saying a place in a state ...
This is a guest post by Connor Sharp of Surface Light Rail Light rail in Auckland: A way forward sooner than you think With the coup de grâce of Auckland Light Rail (ALR) earlier this year, and the shift of the government’s priorities to roads, roads, and more roads, it ...
Note: As a paid-up Webworm member, I’ve recorded this Webworm as a mini-podcast for you as well. Some of you said you liked this option - so I aim to provide it when I get a chance to record! Read more ...
TL;DR: In my ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Monday, March 18:IKEA is accused of planting big forests in New Zealand to green-wash; REDD-MonitorA City for People takes a well-deserved victory lap over Wellington’s pro-YIMBY District Plan votes; A City for PeopleSteven Anastasiou takes a close look at the sticky ...
Buzz from the Beehive Here’s hoping for a lively post-cabinet press conference when the PM and – perhaps – some of his ministers tell us what was discussed at their meeting today. Until then, Point of Order has precious little Beehive news to report after its latest monitoring of the ...
David Farrar writes – We now have almost all 2023 data in, which has allowed me to update my annual table of how labour went against its promises. This is basically their final report card. The promiseThe result Build 100,000 affordable homes over 10 ...
I’m a bit worried that I’ve started a previous newsletter with the words “just when you think they couldn’t get any worse…” Seems lately that I could begin pretty much every issue with that opening. Such is the nature of our coalition government that they seem to be outdoing each ...
Geoffrey Miller writes – Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. ...
Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture ...
Last week Transport Minster Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre. The new train control centre will see teams from KiwiRail, Auckland Transport and Auckland One Rail working more closely together to improve train services across the city. The Auckland Rail Operations Centre in ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in an exit interview with Q+A yesterday the Government can and should sustain more debt to invest in infrastructure for future generations. Elsewhere in the news in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 6:36am: Read more ...
Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. It is more than just a happy ...
TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to March 18 include:China’s Foreign Minister visiting Wellington today;A post-cabinet news conference this afternoon; the resumption of Parliament on Tuesday for two weeks before Easter;retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson gives his valedictory speech in Parliament; ...
New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Government’s key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
“I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
.“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
“It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet – is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
Bob Edlin writes – And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ HeraldThomas CoughlanSimeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
TL;DR:Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it: We want our country to be a ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading → ...
Ele Ludemann writes – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
What was that judge thinking?Peter Williams writes – That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop:Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
Buzz from the BeehiveThe text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary. It can be quickly analysed ...
For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
Questions need to be asked on both sides of the worldPeter Williams writes – The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop:The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
TL;DR:Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
Bob Edlin writes – The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
The Government has accepted Labour’s change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s fast-track legislation. ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesn’t act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
The New Zealand public voted for a change in direction at the 2023 general election and that is exactly what this coalition government has been delivering in its first 100 days. There was an immediate focus on the economy, easing the cost of living, cracking down on law and order ...
The Government has left the health system as an afterthought, announcing half-baked targets at the last minute of their 100-day plan, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
Kiwis are still waiting for their promised cost of living support after 100 days of a National Government that is taking us backwards, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
100 days of National taking NZ backwardsThe National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
The Government must commit to funding free and healthy school lunches, as thousands of people sign the petition to keep them, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti says. ...
If the Government was serious about moving families into public housing, they would build more houses so there is actually somewhere for people to go. ...
The free and healthy school lunches programme feeds our kids, helps them to learn, and saves families money – but it is at risk under this Government, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
The Government’s proposed changes to Firearms Prohibition Orders (FPO) add almost nothing new and are merely an attempt to distract from its plans to loosen gun laws, police spokesperson Ginny Andersen and justice spokesperson Dr Duncan Webb said. ...
The great Victorian era English politician Lord Macauley stood in the British House of Parliament and said, "The gallery in which the reporters sit has become a fourth estate of the realm".He understood and outlined even way back then, the significant role and influence media have in a democracy. ...
"The Government is moving quickly to realise an additional $46 million in tariff savings in the EU market this season for Kiwi exporters,” Minister for Trade and Agriculture, Todd McClay says. Parliament is set, this week, to complete the final legislative processes required to bring the New Zealand – European ...
New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April. ...
Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand. Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships. “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland Acknowledgements and opening Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says. “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024 Acknowledgements and opening Morena, Nga Mihi Nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country. “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week. “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee. “Over the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today. “The Amendment Paper represents ...
Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).“As it stands, SNAs ...
Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has classified the drought conditions in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts as a medium-scale adverse event, acknowledging the challenging conditions facing farmers and growers in the district. “Parts of Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts are in the grip of an intense dry spell. I know ...
The Government is helping farmers eradicate the significant impact of facial eczema (FE) in pastoral animals, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “A $20 million partnership jointly funded by Beef + Lamb NZ, the Government, and the primary sector will save farmers an estimated NZD$332 million per year, and aims to ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has completed a successful visit to India, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level. “We have laid a strong foundation for the Coalition Government’s priority of enhancing New Zealand-India relations to generate significant future benefit for both countries,” says Mr Peters, ...
Cabinet has agreed to provide $7 million to ensure the 2024 ski season can go ahead on the Whakapapa ski field in the central North Island but has told the operator Ruapehu Alpine Lifts it is the last financial support it will receive from taxpayers. Cabinet also agreed to provide ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Lower fruit and vegetable prices are welcome news for New Zealanders who have been doing it tough at the supermarket, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ reported today the price of fruit and vegetables has dropped 9.3 percent in the 12 months to February 2024. “Lower fruit and vege ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the sixty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
The coalition Government is supporting farmers to enhance land management practices by investing $3.3 million in locally led catchment groups, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “Farmers and growers deliver significant prosperity for New Zealand and it’s vital their ongoing efforts to improve land management practices and water quality are supported,” ...
Good evening everyone and thank you for that lovely introduction. Thank you also to the Honourable Simon Bridges for the invitation to address your members. Since being sworn in, this coalition Government has hit the ground running with our 100-day plan, delivering the changes that New Zealanders expect of us. ...
Recommendations from the Climate Change Commission for New Zealand on the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auction and unit limit settings for the next five years have been tabled in Parliament, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “The Commission provides advice on the ETS annually. This is the third time the ...
The coalition Government is beginning its fight to lower building costs and reduce red tape by exempting minor building work from paying the building levy, says Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk. “Currently, any building project worth $20,444 including GST or more is subject to the building levy which is ...
Proposed changes to tax legislation to prevent the over-taxation of low-earning trusts are welcome, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The changes have been recommended by Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee following consideration of submissions on the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill. “One of the ...
Assalaamu alaikum. السَّلَام عليكم In light of the holy month of Ramadan, I want to extend my warmest wishes to our Muslim community in New Zealand. Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, renewed devotion, perseverance, generosity, and forgiveness. It’s a time to strengthen our bonds and appreciate the diversity ...
Former Transport Minister and CEO of the Auckland Business Chamber Hon Simon Bridges has been appointed as the new Board Chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) for a three-year term, Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced today. “Simon brings extensive experience and knowledge in transport policy and governance to the role. He will ...
Good morning all, it is a pleasure to be here as Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology. It is fantastic to see how connected and collaborative the life science and biotechnology industry is here in New Zealand. I would like to thank BioTechNZ and NZTech for the invitation to address ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says he is looking forward to the day when three key water projects in Northland are up and running, unlocking the full potential of land in the region. Mr Jones attended a community event at the site of the Otawere reservoir near Kerikeri on Friday. ...
Associate Finance Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government has agreed to restore deductibility for mortgage interest on residential investment properties. “Help is on the way for landlords and renters alike. The Government’s restoration of interest deductibility will ease pressure on rents and simplify the tax code,” says ...
Sport and Recreation Minister Chris Bishop will travel to Switzerland today to attend an Executive Committee meeting and Symposium of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Mr Bishop will then travel on to London where he will attend a series of meetings in his capacity as Infrastructure Minister. “New Zealanders believe ...
Pacific Media Watch Earthwise hosts Lois and Martin Griffiths. Earthwise presenters Lois and Martin Griffiths on Plains FM 96.9 community radio talk to Dr David Robie, a New Zealand author, independent journalist and media educator with a passion for the Asia-Pacific region. David talks about the struggle to raise awareness ...
Pacific Media Watch Ismail al-Ghoul, an Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent who was held for 12 hours at Gaza’s al-Shifa hospital, says Israeli forces rounded up Palestinian journalists at the facility and made them kneel on the ground for hours, while naked and blindfolded. “The occupation forces handcuffed and blindfolded us ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tony Wood, Program Director, Energy, Grattan Institute chinasong, Shutterstock Electricity customers in four Australian states can breathe a sigh of relief. After two years in a row of 20% price increases, power prices have finally stabilised. In many places they’re ...
Chumbawamba have reportedly issued the deputy PM a cease-and-desist notice after he used their song 'Tubthumping' before his state of the nation speech. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Deborah Lupton, SHARP Professor, Vitalities Lab, Centre for Social Research in Health and Social Policy Centre, and the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society, UNSW Sydney kitzcorner/Shutterstock The assertion from Queensland’s chief health officer John Gerrard that ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Shutterstock Why are musicians so keen to get played on the radio? It can’t be because of the money. In Australia they are paid at rates so low they ...
"Farmers make a point not to tell our urban cousins how to live, yet Chlöe from central Auckland is hell-bent on having her say about farmers," says ACT Rural Communities spokesman Mark Cameron. “On her first day in the House as Green ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards – Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Curran, Associate Professor of Ecology, Lincoln University, New Zealand Getty Images/Gerald Corsi In the latest move to reform environmental laws in New Zealand, the coalition government has introduced a bill to fast-track consenting processes for projects deemed to ...
Uber has argued it does not have as much control over drivers as the unions suggest, and wants a judgment ruling that drivers are employees and not contractors set aside and sent back to the Employment Court. The 2022 ruling followed a three-week hearing in which four drivers sought to ...
What can and can’t be purchased by disabled people or their carers has been slashed in an effort by the Ministry of Disabled People Whaikaha to save money. The purchasing guidelines, a set of rules that sets out what can be purchased using the various streams of Government disability funding, ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Tod Wright and Hien Nguyen, Fiscal incidence in New Zealand: The effects of taxes and benefits on household incomes in tax year 2018/19 . Analyses of the distributional impact of taxation and government ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Cory Davis, Boston Hart and Benjamin Stubbing, Household cost-of-living impacts from the Emissions Trading Scheme and using transfers to mitigate regressive outcomes . This Analytical Note ...
A coalition of public transport and climate organisations, united as ‘Transport for All’, is actively opposing the government’s transport proposals. The draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) includes plans for higher fares for public transport, ...
Greater Wellington is inviting feedback on proposed changes to its Revenue and Financing Policy. The Revenue and Financing Policy covers the Council’s various sources of funding, and how the cost of services is shared across the region. This includes ...
Labour has conceded it could have done more to deal with disruptive state housing tenants while in government but says the current coalition is going too far. ...
The band has asked their record label to issue a cease and desist to stop the NZ First leader using their 1997 hit to support his ‘misguided political views’. “I get knocked down, but I get up again,” blared through the speakers on Sunday as Winston Peters took the stage ...
By Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific journalist Food rationing is underway in remote areas in Papua New Guinea’s Highlands following torrential rain and flash flooding. More than 20 people have been reported dead in Chimbu Province. In nearby Enga Province, the centre of last month’s massacre, a 15-year-old boy has been ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Hughes, Lecturer, Research School of Management, Australian National University After months of debate and intrigue, the AFL’s 19th and newest team, the Tasmania Devils, finally launched its jumper, logo and colours in Devonport this week. The Devils will wear green, ...
Brannavan Gnanalingam reviews the debut novel by Saraid de Silva.One of the most baffling things for children who move to a new country is what their parents’ (or grandparents’) lives were like prior to moving – for kids in particular, they’re too busy trying to fit in in their ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Gaunson, Associate Professor in Cinema Studies, RMIT University Narelle Portanier/Binge “If you don’t know who your mob are, you don’t know who you are,” Detective Andrea “Andie” Whitford (played by Leah Purcell) is told early into the new crime ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elise Klein, Associate professor, Australian National University It’s commonly accepted that women do the vast majority of caregiving in Australian society. But less appreciated is that Indigenous women do larger amounts of unpaid care than any other group. Working with the Aboriginal ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne Joe Biden and Donald Trump have both secured their parties’ nominations for the November 5 United States general election by winning a ...
Comment: There has been a striking contrast in trans-Tasman interest about Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi’s visit to New Zealand and Australia. While the Australian press has been full of articles about the visit – including his curious decision to meet with former prime minister and China booster Paul Keating ...
After years of pressuring banks and other institutions to stop investing in fossil fuels, climate campaigners are making some progress. So how does divestment work?For years, climate activists have been pushing banks and other big institutions to divest from fossil fuels. New research from climate advocacy group 350 Aotearoa ...
For Boba, Ethan and Ashley, K-pop is a place to belong, a way to express themselves, and a bridge to connect with others. The three young Polynesians are part of a K-pop fan community in Tāmaki Makaurau. It’s one of many that have sprung up worldwide as K-pop has gone ...
For Boba, Ethan and Ashley, K-pop is a place to belong, a way to express themselves, and a bridge to connect with others. This one-off documentary presents three intimate portraits of young Polynesians who are pulled into a Korean cultural phenomenon. K-POLYS is directed by Litia Tuiburelevu, Produced by Hex ...
There’s ample evidence demonstrating free school lunch programmes provide wide benefits across schools, households and communities according to public health researchers. ACT Minister David Seymour wants to reduce the spending on Aotearoa New Zealand’s ...
By Wata Shaw in Suva Fiji is facing an exodus of Fijians as many are leaving for overseas seeking employment and education and others are migrating, says Opposition MP Viliame Naupoto. Speaking in Parliament, he said: “His Excellency’s speech (Ratu Wiliame Katonivere) comes after a little over one year of ...
The Taxpayers’ Union is welcoming comments from Christopher Luxon this morning recommitting to ‘no new taxes’ as part of Budget 2024. “Mr Luxon’s refusal at the Post-Cabinet press conference yesterday to repeat the ‘no new taxes’ promise ...
SAFE is urgently calling on the Environment Committee to reject the Government’s Fast-Track Approvals Bill, and is urging New Zealanders to rally behind the call. The proposed Bill, currently under consideration with the Environment select committee, ...
Teammates who spend all their time picking fights with spectators are only helpful for the other team, writes Madeleine Chapman. Anyone who has ever played a team sport competitively, particularly as a child and particularly, for some reason, basketball, will know that there’s a lot of politics involved. While there ...
The long-running Wellington music festival is too focused on the Jim Beam-ness and not enough on the Homegrown-ness.There is something about Homegrown that’s difficult to place. A barely perceptible-ness. Like feeling a ghost is watching you from the corner of the room but when you look, there’s nothing there. ...
The latest Ipsos New Zealand Issues Monitor reveals that fewer New Zealanders believe crime / law and order is one of the top issues facing our country. In 2018, Ipsos New Zealand started tracking the key issues facing New Zealand. In this wave ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Griffiths, Deputy Program Director, Budgets and Government, Grattan Institute Australia’s political donations rules are woefully inadequate, but donations reform is finally on the agenda. The federal government has signalled its interest in reform and will soon begin briefing MPs on its ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Patrick Taylor, Chief Environmental Scientist, EPA Victoria; Honorary Professor, School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University Naiyana Somchitkaeo/Shutterstock A recent study published in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine has linked microplastics with risk to human health. The study ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Albert Van Dijk, Professor, Water and Landscape Dynamics, Fenner School of Environment & Society, Australian National University Global climate records were shattered in 2023, from air and sea temperatures to sea-level rise and sea-ice extent. Scores of countries recorded their hottest year ...
As part of our series exploring how New Zealanders live and our relationship with money, a teacher explains why he and his partner are in frugal mode – and how they’re making it work. Gender: Male Age: 35Ethnicity: Pākehā Role: I am an intermediate school teacher and my partner is ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Bendall, Senior Lecturer, Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences, Australian Catholic University Binge Mary & George, the new British television drama series, depicts the real-life story of Mary Villiers and her son George, and their social climbing at the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jason Nassios, Associate Professor, Centre of Policy Studies, Victoria University This article is part of The Conversation’s series examining the housing crisis. Read the other articles in the series here. Australian state and federal governments spend money in many ways to ...
The finance minister is denying that there’s a $5.6b shortfall in paying for the government’s campaign promises, including tax cuts. At his post-cabinet press conference yesterday, the PM refused to rule out new taxes to pay for the cuts, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s ...
Kāinga Ora tenants abused by their neighbours are doubting the government's crackdown on disruptive tenants will make a difference on their behaviour. ...
Kāinga Ora is New Zealand’s biggest residential landlord, housing more than 180,000 vulnerable people in more than 67,000 properties. Yesterday the government announced a crackdown on its tenants who fall behind on rent. One longtime Kāinga Ora tenant shares her experience.For 18 years I lived in a 1960s standalone ...
Why does this myth persist, and what’s the real reason our skin is suffering?It’s one of the biggest international grievances New Zealanders hold, up there with the sinking of the Rainbow Warrior and 1981’s underarm incident. We’re quick to tell international travellers that the world’s pollution led to the ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[quiz],DIV[quiz],A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp'); Got a good quiz question?Send Newsroom your questions. The post Newsroom daily quiz, Tuesday 19 March appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Bob’s relationship with certain members of Lincoln’s academic staff continued to deteriorate in the 1990s. Others supported him publicly, though articles such as Roland Clark’s 1993 piece in Growing Today cannot have pleased the university management. Clark wrote that Bob was selling onions from the Biological Husbandry Unit to a ...
SailGP’s races feature in-your-face action, with agile, hydro-foiling catamarans tacking and jibing for the title over several days. However, public comments ahead of the global series’ return to New Zealand have left this past year’s controversy in the shadows, as a key appointment attracts criticism from dolphin advocates. A year ...
Opinion: We are fast approaching a fundamental change in prisons. As the number of people on custodial remand looks set to overtake the number of sentenced prisoners, the main function of prisons in New Zealand may become incarcerating un-sentenced people who may not be guilty of offending. We have already ...
A huge seven months lies in store for the White Ferns, beginning this week with the visit of England and culminating with the T20 World Cup in Bangladesh in September and October. Starting on Tuesday in Dunedin, the world ranked No. 2 visitors will play five T20s and three ODIs, ...
Opinion: In a move that has shocked road safety advocates across the country, the new Minister of Transport, Simeon Brown, is poised to abandon the previous government’s speed limit reduction policy, particularly around schools. Even more alarmingly, he wants school speed limits to be variable rather than full-time, arguing ...
Auckland Council is opposing a fast-track development backed by Sir John Kirwan and Spark NZ, because it doesn’t meet stringent new climate adaptation requirements The post Surf-data centre faces new 3.8C climate warming rules appeared first on Newsroom. ...
When the Criminal Proceeds (Recovery) Act was introduced in 2009 it was firmly targeted at gangs and drugs. The legislation means police no longer need a conviction to seize assets that criminals can’t prove were paid for legitimately, as long as their alleged offences are punishable by more than a ...
The letters, which were published last week, were addressed to Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) Chairperson Megawati Sukarnoputri, National Democrat Party (NasDem) Chairperson Surya Paloh, National Awakening Party (PKB) Chairperson Muhaimin Iskandar, Justice and Prosperity Party (PKS) President Ahmad Syaikhu and United Development Party (PPP) Chairperson Muhammad Mardiono. In ...
Evicting more people from state housing is ignorant to the consequences of poverty, the Greens say, but the Housing Minister says it's a privilege that can be taken away if abused. ...
Evicting more people from state housing is ignorant to the consequences of poverty, the Greens say, but the Housing Minister says it's a privilege that can be taken away if abused. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emerald L King, Lecturer in Humanities, University of Tasmania IMDB Between Netflix’s 2023 live-action version of One Piece, and its latest take on Avatar: The Last Airbender, fans are once again asking: why are live-action anime adaptations so tricky to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emerald L King, Lecturer in Humanities, University of Tasmania IMDB Between Netflix’s 2023 live-action version of One Piece, and its latest take on Avatar: The Last Airbender, fans are once again asking: why are live-action anime adaptations so tricky to ...
The government says it still intends to deliver tax cuts by July, but will not lock them in until they have got them past their coalition partners. ...
A little pearl of wisdom from one of the regular contributors:
"Belief in the threat of climate change is what people think they are supposed to support, so they do, to pollsters. Belief in business as usual is what people depend on, so they vote accordingly."
Dennis Frank – Daily Review, 20th May, 2019.
He was talking about the Oz election, but the problem is universal. I'm afraid the man in the street, Joe Bloggs, will not take climate change seriously until it bites him on the bum.
But by then, I fear, it will be far too late.
That's where leadership is meant to step in, but they're too scared of corporate ire.
Shallow from being hollowed out.
Some muddy the waters to appear deep.
They're not.
"That's where leadership is meant to step in, but they're too scared of corporate ire"
Hold it right there WtB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.
There'll need to be several "pieces of work" and a number of consultative "conversations" with "officials" before anything can proceed "going forward". When those "conversations" are complete and "resonations" reached, we can probably proceed on a path of transformation and compassion
Na you’re wrong . This government has in very short time got most people excepting climate change as fact . And is progressing in the right direction . Move to fast and the push back will mean failure.
Of course if we had started in 1958 it would have been better . But today is the next best time.
"This government has in very short time got most people excepting climate change as fact "
So that's an achievement is it? I 'spose it is (in a really miniscule sort of way – even though most of them knew in the first place but were just coming to terms with the long term rather than keeping their loifsoyles taday and ta morra)
The bleeding bloody obvious springs to mind. A shame it doesn't extend to other ussues going forwid.
Megan and the sure rinse
Iain and Krus ummigrayshun and the feks of currint polsee
etc.
I'm thinking we need to have a conversation
There’s an element of truth in that but elections are not single-issue polls and a poll is just a poll.
its easy to not understand if your job depends on it.
that is what i lay at the feet of government anywhere.
i don't so much have an issue with joe and jane sixpack but i have an issue with those that have the power to chance (all of them – no matter party affiliation) but do nothing.
If a Kiwibuild house is bought by the government after not selling – will it become a state house? Good if it did.
Unsold kiwibuild houses bought by government
I see the purchase price of 'bought-back' kiwibuild houses is not disclosed as 'commercially sensitive'. This is total bollocks – it is public money. What happens when you are locked to the religion of having a private business taking a cut of all things delivered by the state.
@ UncookedSelachimorpha +1 "What happens when you are locked to the religion of having a private business taking a cut of all things delivered by the state."
That religion is called free market liberalism, which just sunk the Australian Labour party and was the reason NZ Labour only scrapped in by the skin of it's teeth after three terms of disgusting and destructive National leadership.
Turn Labour Left!
This is part of a critique by Chris Trotter on the Oz Labour win that wasn't. (BEOT Big End of Town)
Simple enough, one might have thought, but one would have been reckoning without the extraordinary tone-deafness of the post-Hawke/Keating Labor Party. Instead of interpreting the poll data as evidence that, if they played their cards right, a win might just be possible, Shorten et al regarded it as proof that, since a loss was impossible, they could play their cards any damn way they pleased.
“We’ll never get a better chance to do all the things we’ve been promising ourselves for the past decade than this”, Labor told itself. “So, come on Comrades, this time we can quite safely bet the whole farm!” Which is pretty much what they did: promising to raise taxes and increase spending like it was going out of style. (Which, of course, it has been for the best part of three decades.)
Not only did they ignore the fact that the BEOT has untold billions invested in the farm, but they also thought it would be good politics to construct their campaign narrative around the idea of putting the inhabitants of the BEOT in their place. Unsurprisingly, the BEOT had a better idea.
https://www.interest.co.nz/opinion/99754/chris-trotter-says-bill-shorten-will-go-down-australian-political-history-labor-leader
I don't agree with Trotters analysis or his 'three objectives to winning an election..
"Winning a general election requires a political party to achieve three critical objectives: 1) Convince the voters that, economically-speaking, your team has got the right solutions. 2) Convince the voters that your opponents haven’t got a clue what the right answers even look like. 3) Convince the voters that, unless they do something to stop them, your opponents have a better-than-even chance of winning the election. In just three words: Reassure. Undermine. Terrify."
I will offer my opinion on winning elections a bit later, but must get off and do some work now.
Right AT add your thoughts later and I'll look foir that. You might like to see on the Billionaire post #13 from Dennis F. and Red Logix.
Heuristic: if someone that hasn't learnt anything new in the past 5 years tells you that something new sucks, then their opinion isn't worth dog shit.
Too many woke people get credit for losing years ago.
Bloody hell Sam! How I wish you and others would quit using the word 'woke' in any other way than as the past participle of the verb 'to wake'.
What you are trying to show is that 1) you are hip 2) you are up with the terminology 3) you understand neocon rubbish words, and that they are useful, and that they add something to our vocabulary.
Sorry to disabuse you, but they are unintelligible rubbish, akin to those who use them.
Heh.
Appropriating African-American vernacular to ridicule others is a chan kiddie thing.
https://thetylt.com/culture/do-white-people-need-to-stop
Fuck you joe90
[Cut the personal shit or find a sandpit to play in – Incognito]
And hello to you, bby boi.
[Cut the personal shit or find a sandpit to play in – Incognito]
take your greeting and shove it up your arse.
See my Moderation note @ 12:53 PM.
Edit: Mod notes above.
See my Moderation note @ 12:58 PM.
I think Chris Trotter paints himself into unfortunate corners sometimes.
You absolutely have to rein in the BEOT if you want a society that works OK for everyone. But if you can't defeat the BEOT electorally, because they can outspend and out-message you, plus you face a populace where the psychological hegemony of neoliberal ideas runs very deep after 40 years of propaganda – what then? Despair?
It is much easier to gloomily describe this predicament than suggest ways of painting out of the corner. (I plead guilty on this one too.)
the prices the govt paid should be disclosed as LINZ captures all sales data. All realestate agents have access how else would they be able to have data on local sales .
Good point! You wouldn't normally be able to get around LINZ / valuation records.
Yes I wondered about that. Why not keep it as a state house and put in tenants who would appreciate it and look after it and be part of a community that was probably working and functional. Good house, good possibilities for lifting oneself out of the doldrums. Go for it Twyford, but choose your tenants right.
Don't hold your breath waiting for a reporter to ask for an explanation of the commercial sensitivity.
Gabby Yes. I think that we hear understand a lot of the sensitivities though.
The bullying in parliament report comes out today. Hang on to your hats, I predict this will be damning for both the major parties. Very pleased it's happening, it's long overdue, thanks to Trev and the government for initiating it.
Thanks for bringing it up Cinny. I think it is going to be a shock to most people just how toxic the place is.
I would love to see a commission of inquiry into bullying in the Public Service generally and that it include retrospective cases. That would enable me to come forward and tell my story. It is something I've wanted – indeed needed – to do for a very long time but have been unable to due to the lack of a safe and secure environment.
Hugs Anne. I so understand what you are saying. May the day come, when you will feel safe and secure enough to share your story. Much love to you.
Thank-you Cinny. You are a lovely person.
Will we ever see the names of the MPs etc accused of bulling?
The full Report is available here…
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/389696/serious-bullying-rife-at-parliament-report
A seriously Grim Read which flatters our Halls of Power not at all.
Shame.
“Just because it’s politics and people are passionate doesn’t mean any of us can behave like arseholes around this place. It’s a privilege to serve here, and the people who put us here expect us to lead and want to respect us as leaders.”
Thanks for the link Rosemary, it can be a rather vile environment for some who work there. It's the self entitlement of some MP's that's the worst.
Apparently parliament is a toxic environment awash in bullying, harassment, entitled behaviour, verbal abuse and positively teeming with massive, unrestrained egos.
Well I never!
Also, the Press Gallery behave in 'unacceptable' ways.
Stuff has 4 – FOUR articles on Game of Thrones ending this morning, as if it was important. It's good TV, but important? As part of a picture it is.
Bread and Circuses aka violence conditioning for the masses. Producers/writers seem to delight in trying to outshine each other in their propensity to dream up horrors.
"a way to kill compassion to ensure the brutalization of Roman civilians and thus their compliance (or at least their complacency) vis-à-vis Imperial expansion and domestic policing"
Have we learned to not give a fuck yet? Are we entertained by all these stabbings?
There'll be awards, red carpet, gushing interviews, tears…
Game of what? Never ‘eard of it.
You ask whether "Have we learned to not give a fuck yet? Are we entertained by all these stabbings".
From the fact that the series appears to have been very popular I suppose the answer to the questions has to be yes. If nobody watched it they certainly wouldn't have bothered spending a fortune on making it. One must simply suggest that everyone who watched it was in fact entertained.
So says he who, immodestly, says that he had never heard of the series until recently and has never seen a single episode. The most I have seen was snippets in the news in the last few days.
So, if you don't approve of what they are showing the only thing to do is don't watch it. It is like the people who claim that "I never vote. It just encourages the bastards". If you watch the program, and the ads, you are just encouraging the people who make it to go even further next time.
Re the Crusaders…. who would think that a bunch of drunk rugby heads playing away from home would hassle and abuse gay people?
Far out, how they are playing it down is shocking, that kind of behaviour by rugbyheads has been going on since year dot.
Abuse and booze, that's NZ rugby culture, tell me I'm wrong.
What political statement will the Crusaders make next? First they offend religion, now sexuality. Not bad for a non-political group who just play a game.
Do you have proof it happened.?
Hi wags, on RNZ this morn a local woman claimed a player spat beer at her and pinched her bum.
She 'found pig's it was Richie Mounga, 'social mediad' him with her allegations. His response was part apology, part denial. Didn't sound good.
let's ban booze, its a gate way to shitty manners and violence.
Plenty of people can drink without getting abusive. Better to ban thugby.
sorry i forgot the sarcasm tag
/s
Booze and abuse is ingrained in many codes fans. Scottish football is back to it's bad old ways because it never left.
Society's ugly side comes out after a few beersies
Sounds like you've already decided they are guilty then. There is two sides to every story you know.
One story is coherent and detailed, the other is evasive and defensive.
Usually a good indication, that…
Sure there is always at least two sides to every story, and often one involves lies to protect reputations, especially when it comes to the national sport.
How many of us here have seen drunk rugby players act like arseholes? Heaps I'd say.
Update, there is to be an investigation….
https://i.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/super-rugby/112870592/crusaders-coach-scott-robertson-says-trios-alleged-homophobic-slurs-were-misconstrued
Will be interesting to see what the security footage shows but it sounds bad.
George Bridge named as one of the players
struggling with their sexualityinvolved in alleged homophobic incident.https://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=12232758
Listening to the interviews this morning I believe the other fellows who complained and not the Crusaders denial and great innocence. It's a reflection I think of the brutal way that things get splattered on Facebook, the no-respect for others, the arrogant 'I'll do it my way, you lowlife (applies to whoever is chosen for disdain). This type of abuse has been going on for years and so many sportspeople give themselves an edge by harassing others in opposing teams, or the public. That's our society these days folks, authority is prepared to allow shit to happen to others, bystanders even, as externalities to the really important goal, whatever that is.
no presumption of innocence at cinny? ESP as independent witnesses have backed their side of events ?
If it wasn't already obvious to everybody in the world, the US have completely lost any interest in disguising the fact that they are prepared to attack or bully any country that stands in the way of their hegemony out in the open.
Their hostile and dangerous actions against Venezuela and Iran.
Their attack on Huawei.
The US war on whistle blowers and persecution of Assange.
The US compliance and support of apartheid in Gaza, the West Bank and Israel.
Their compliance and support of the humanitarian tragedy in Yemen.
The US arming and legitimizing the despotic terrorist state of Saudi Arabia.
The list could go on, and on.
Lets just hope that Bernie Sanders gets the nomination, takes out Trump in the rust belt, and restores at lest a semblance of sanity to US foreign policy.
By attack I guess you mean the unprecedented announcement by the US that Huawei will no longer be able to access Google's operating system and apps?
https://www.news.com.au/technology/gadgets/mobile-phones/huawei-apps-banned-china-hits-back-at-google-united-states/news-story/cfb7fa8cf0a164e28799eb236457a505
“Panicked Huawei owners are already selling their smartphones amid fears they’ll stop working properly, a top trade-in site has warned.
MusicMagpie — which lets you swap your old phones for cash — says it’s seen a huge spike in the number of people selling their Huawei smartphones.”
I think most people would consider the US governments relentless actions against Huawei over the last while including today's announcement, only in order to protect US private corporate interests as an attack, so in a word yes.
This was in stuff
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/world/112868643/google-says-google-play-and-other-services-will-still-work-on-huawei-phones
I see there is another teens fleeing from police crash in Te Atatu on the Stuff web site this morning. When are these idiots going to learn when police signal you to stop…..you stop! At least they only injured themselves so that's all good. they will be off the roads for a while which makes it safer for everyone.
You never did anything stupid as a youth?
You enjoy seeing people injured… nice one.
I never did something stupid that got me killed weewee. You only get to do that once.
I came close once or twice.
Many (maybe even most) teens do. Pushing too hard, failing to do risk assessment, not seeing warning signs, getting carried away, not realising how drunk they are…
Google told me there was an OIA request on police chase statistics last year: seems that a little over half of pursuits are abandoned (probably includes "called off for safety" as well as "lost 'em"). So some of these kids' peer group probably have escaped pursuit before.
All fun and games until someone gets hurt. But if there's nothing else to do, or no real hope for advancement, teens gonna do stupid shit.
I once went 100kph through a massive puddle in a Honda City.
That didn't end well.
Must have taken you a couple of days to get up to that speed lol
Heh. Yeah. And a couple of seconds to stop.
Always wear your seatbelt, kids. And don't drive your Dad's Honda City through puddles at excessive speed. It's a terrible idea.
Went flying off a 50cc a couple of years back. Straight over the handle bars, instinctive forward roll, worst problem was a tear in my pants from where I hit the key in the ignition with my thigh. God bless lower speeds.
Rear end panel damage to the car cost more than my scooter did new (which had a jiggle at the garage but was otherwise fine).
That was me worrying about what guy on the left was going to do, to the detriment of forward observation. #imadickhead
So you think that stealing cars, driving dangerously and endangering the public is all ok and just a bit of youthful silliness? These idiots put innocent people on the roads in danger.
Yes I did some stupid things as a teen but I never once stole a car, and never once ran from police.
Jimmy you good little lord fauntleroy, you sound a bit preachy there. You are probably too old and was always in the wrong class to appreciate the great attraction of stealing cars and joy riding. If you can be so proud of not having stolen a car, what is it that you did when you were being naughty? You seem to take pride in not having had to run from police in a stolen car. So what did you do?
The joyriders might be from a background that would understand and enjoy 'Boy'. Have a look at the trailer, and I bet it will show a different way of looking at the dynamics of life Jimmy than you have experienced.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwqfR8g-Qow
So you still don't give a shit that kids actually got injured, but there was a chance that you could have been. Oh the humanity!
Keep up the middle class moral outrage, one day you might come down from the ivory tower and figure out why Remuera kids aren't doing this stuff or tagging from dusk till dawn.
No I don't give a shit that these kids got injured. They made the choice and got injured due to their own actions. However, I am greatly concerned (and give a shit) that while they are on the road hooning around they are putting my kids and other innocent people in danger.
How would you feel if they drove in to your wife / daughter /son trying to evade the police?
How would you feel if they were your kids?
I'd feel like I seriously screwed up my responsibilities as a parent.
There's plenty of ways to have loads of fun scaring yourself shitless with speed, heights, freefalls, explosions etc that don't involve putting strangers at risk. Anything to do with public roads and vehicles are particularly important to take responsibly and seriously, not something to get your jollies with. Because the consequences to strangers can be so severe.
That's the attitude I think I've successfully just given my eldest (easy, he's that way inclined anyway) and I'm about to start trying to get my twins to take on board (hmm, gonna be more of a challenge, they're somewhat more neurotypical teenage boys).
I was more on Jimmy's idea that we needed to imagine a personal relationship to give a damn.
To me, hooning is one of those things where the negligence is there, but they're still kids. Kids make mistakes.
Contrast that with a court news thing I saw a while back where the hoon was basically in his late thirties – donuts, excess speed, failing to stop, ISTR it was the full trifecta. That dude, I'm totally with the "lock him up" crowd. Teens, even early twenties? I'm more ambivalent.
You mean my kids driving and running from police? I would be seriously disappointed with my parenting skills, and seriously disappointed with them. I hate to think what my old man would have done to me if I had ever not stopped for police when told to.
I don't know the statistics, but I am seriously wondering if there would be less of these terrible instances if it was advertised that the police will chase you as these young people with the nothing to lose mentality are simply putting their foot down knowing police will pull out of the chase.
You'd also be sad they got injured, no? Don't forget that bit.
Here are the stats. The trouble with your plan is that sometimes the offenders get away – lose the cops in back roads, get enough distance to bail, whatever. You just change the rules into more of an "all or nothing" situation. Same with stiffer penalties – that just increases the panic from an initial poor reaction.
The psychology and practicality of vehicle pursuits for both offender and police officer is interesting – did some reading on it about ten years ago. ISTR that if aerial unit was involved it basically doubled the chances of a successful stop. But then of course that gets limited by finance and controlled air spaces.
Maybe I'm too old to think like them, but if I knew the police would relentlessly pursue me I would be less likely to run as even if I initially got away they would eventually catch up to me. At the moment they know they have probably a 50% chance? of getting away and unfortunately they take the chance often with tragic results.
The 50% includes legitimate escapes and bails.
And it's not a cost-benefit analysis. Kids get carried away.
As the mother of three, and the child of a veritable gaggle of parents and step parents…let me assure you that children can be very very disappointing. It doesn't necessarily make them bad people, and sometimes they grow up to be even better than you, as a parent, deserve.
You clearly lack the imagination to understand that the whole point of the chase, the adrenaline rush, is from being chased..being caught is no more of a factor in the decision to flee, than the idea the cops will stop chasing. In fact its probably slightly disappointing when the cops do pull back. The whole point is these kids are not thinking, they are simply reacting to stimuli.
If the adrenaline rush is what they are after, then I have even less sympathy for them when they "roll the dice" and lose. They put countless innocent people at risk simply for a "high" ….very selfish.
I do feel sorry for the police as they are often in a no win situation.
If that did happen I'd probably feel a lot better about it knowing a sane policy was in place that didn't involve risky police chases and naughty teens that endangered more lives.
When they are 'young,dumb and full of cum', combined with whatever the fuck else has shaped their usually totally dysfunctional and violent lives, I don't think these young guys are really in a psychological space of mind to 'learn when police signal you to stop…..you stop!'
The problems for most of these 'idiots' are far more systemic and complicated than that, that much I do know, how to fix it, that question is probably well above my pay level.
For an informative view on how a good place turns shitty and youth go to the pack watch all series of The Wire.
It starts in the street but moves on to the working class supplying the street and then a larger focus with the dodgy dealing political and business class all in on their various games.
It is startlingly profound in retrospect.
It touched briefly upon further meddling from on high. Were the focus to enlarge further there'd be the 'philanthropic' (the PR face of the billionaire class) types behind the scenes encouraging class warfare via deals to influence money-centric law.
Just thinking this morning about how money is just a set of formalised, legalised promises. We talk about it as if it is real and substantial, Donald Duck's Grandpa had gold coins in a pile that he used to jump into. But gold is just a token within the money system that is carefully managed as to its daily value for buying some real thing – hamburgers have been used as a standard for instance.
If we thought in our minds when we say money, that we are talking of fairydust we would be closer to understanding the real thing we speak of. And economists have worked out how fairydust is transferred and added value to and relates to real, physical things and real work either physical or mental.
And a Kiwi economist has made it big in his field and is speaking on Radionz about why we don't have to worry about robots and their effect on our degraded society. Get ready for some beautifully delivered fairydust tales for the political nursery school.
10:05 Kinley Salmon : Debunking the "robocalypse"
With all the talk of artificial intelligence and machine learning – does the technological revolution really mean that robots are knocking on the door to take many of our jobs? New Zealand economist Kinley Salmon says there is so much hype, it's hard to think straight. In his new book Jobs, Robots and Us, he argues that more people than ever are in work in New Zealand, technology isn't something that just happens to us, and that the future of work is in our own hands.
Audio later
Audio: Link supplied by a human!
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon/audio/2018695990/kinley-salmon-debunking-the-robocalypse
We The Beeple
The Wire was set in the time when crack cocaine was flooding the ghettoes of the US courtesy of Reagan;s covert war against the Sandinista govt in Nicaragua.
Gary Webb broke the story, only to be shunned by his fellow journalists (remind you of anyone?)vilified and discredited .Later he was vindicated, too late to save his life . He committed suicide..if shooting yourself twice in the head is a thing.
https://nsarchive2.gwu.edu//NSAEBB/NSAEBB2/index.html
During the first series the FBI guy talks about how things have changed since the towers fell and heroin being sold on the street is branded WMD and Bin Laden. So it's probably set around 2003.
It's pretty much contemporary with the time of filming. It's not a period piece.
Great characters. Really sophisticated plots. Amazing lines and scenes (my personal favourite was the scene examination conducted purely with the word "fuck"). And Idris.
Ford has announced it will lay off 7,000 workers worldwide. Pretty shocking. That's a small town out of work.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=12232788
I imagine that a lot of the people who read and comment on this site will applaud. Ford, after all, make those evil cars and trucks that are, at least in Greenies view, destroying the world. Get them all off the road. Let people go back to the 19th century and take a train or walk
At least I imagine what our resident idiot MP Genter would say. The only cars that should be allowed on the streets of Wellington will be her beloved Beemer Limo's.
Sometimes infantile hyperbole doesn't work.
Agree, AB. Alwyn usually tries to seem literate and intelligent, but that one was just plain silly.
All correct WTB and Not TV.
"We are stting in a leaky boat without an oar"
Why? – as Jacinda's policy to tackle climate change has evaporated sady for her generation and her offspring's..
So arresting journalists and handing down prison terms is the new norm. Thanks censorship crowd.
https://www.thecanary.co/feature/2019/05/15/today-a-nato-country-sentenced-this-woman-to-nearly-two-years-in-jail-for-journalism/
There's nothing new about Turkey imprisoning journalists.
https://cpj.org/imprisoned/2016.php
*slow hand clap*
Way to miss the point joe90…
WTF was your point?
Ring the bells! Sound the trumpets!
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12232792
The Government will provide almost $40 million in funding for ambulance services in a bid to relieve the pressure some of the providers are under.
But speaking to media this morning, Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters gave a strong hint the Government was planning to fully fund St John in the near future.
"I very confident that we can look forward to a day, and not very far from now, where 95 per cent of the needs of St Johns is funded from central Government."
Although he was confident, he said he was not speaking for "the whole Cabinet, at this point in time".
Having taken a ride in a ambulance a few weeks ago and chatting with the paramedic (over the awful clattering of the vehicle as it negotiated the bends of our sealed but twisty rural roads) I am very, very happy about this.
I'll be positively orgasmic if Cabinet agrees to fund at least 95% of the service…Winston might be forgiven a few of his sins if he can pull this off.
Well done.
Sounds great Rosemary.
As long as it doesn't end in further cuts to rural services greysie.
No that would be bad Gabby. Is the idea that the funding will be made available from reducing services elsewhere? Rural people need more, not less for sure.
The idea would be that once central government controls the finances it'll decide where it gets the biggest bang for its buck.
I see why the Winston First Party survives. People like Rosemary, after 40 years of disappointment, still believe Winston's lies.
Actually it would be very easy to provide the full cost of running the New Zealand Ambulance services. All that is needed is to stop the taxpayer funding Winston's hobby of horse-racing. In order to keep the finances of the NZF party healthy, and to keep Winnie happy with his part ownership of racehorses, the taxpayer is throwing ever more money at all weather tracks.
Originally it was just one track in the Waikato, probably at Cambridge. Now he has wound the ante up to 3 tracks, at Cambridge, at Awapuni and in the South Island. The largesse will come out of the Peters/Jones $3 billion slush fund. If we spent the money, which is probably up to $40 million for horses by this time, we could pay the full cost of ambulance services immediately.
Let's do it.
https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/sport/other/ardern-says-new-10m-all-weather-horse-racing-track-protect-significant-losses
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=12091937
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=12231683
Hmmm …
Now: " it would be very easy to provide the full cost of running the New Zealand Ambulance services."
Then:
"PM Bill English told The AM Show on Monday ambulance operators are "not asking for full funding, we're not promising full funding … The proportion of funding is fairly high, and as I understand it has been steady over the years. When you visit the ambulance services they have got pretty good gear these days. Their staff are very well-trained."
(May 2017)
It's amazing how many "easy" things National never got around to doing, isn't it?
Full funding is a pretty cheap promise and relatively easy to do. All that is true.
Bill English was right. The Ambulance service in NZ is pretty good. Modern equipment and well staffed with people who are expert at their job. In recent years all the St Johns equipment has gone through a huge level of upgrade.
The main reason why St Johns has not wanted full funding has been to preserve their independence. Total full funding makes that difficult. Even a small amount of donations (relative to the total cost) has helped preserve their independence.
It will be interesting to see if St Johns will be able to continue to be independent as they have historically been.
The Ambulance service in NZ is pretty good
thanks heavesn for fundraising, volunteer work – aka unpaid work, bake sales and that stuff so that government actually ahs got nothing else to do but pay your wages and perks right?
and i for one am sure you will want that ambulance service the day you keel over and need one. would be too bad if they showed up in a vehicle from the fifties.
I used to work for the AA before i opened my business, the pretty good gear breaks down regularly cause it is not pretty good, just extremely well maintained by the unpaid staff, you arrogant do nothing know nothing.
People don't have as much free time to donate to St John these days it takes more to make ends meet for everyone. We get a professional service we should pay for it.
I recall my old man was attending the rugby every few weekends in season as a St John representative, he never got a dime but it was a windfall for us kids when we went: all the recycle soft drink bottles. Two cents each, two cents was money!
Dad was never into rugby, but as a local St John guy he fulfilled his obligations. On top of helping loads of players he saved a few people after bad accidents in our village too.
He never once appreciated that government took their service for granted, and it's been an awful long time.
From my understanding, if there are St Johns attending Saturday sport – St Johns are being paid by the sporting organisation.
Sacred Heart (Auckland)has St Johns attending Saturday winter sport. The St Johns staff were called on the day 2 boys being knocked out and a broken bone and that was only the 9:00 games !!! – To cover the costs there is a coffee/Hot Chocolate stand and the old boys cover any shortfalls, great idea by the school, and I would recommend any to seek & support the coffee service.
Thanks Herodotus. Back in the day the club might of donated to St Johns, but the actual officer didn't get paid. A free feed occasionally, but not expected. The public however were very supportive of Dad, their gratitude was obvious.
It was even noted by some parents when he was at Te Aroha baths that they felt safer having their kids swim with him present. Then we nearly lost my brother in the same place – translucent water hid him at the bottom Dad's foot hit something and he hauled him out already unconscious.
It must be hard being held in esteem, only to be human.
What was their reasoning for wanting to be 'independent'?
People like Rosemary, after 40 years of disappointment, still believe Winston's lies.
I do?
What lies is Winston telling that you are assuming I believe?
Peters does nothing without a political motive and most of the time it is his privileged mates and supporters who benefit.
This time, if his machinations pay off, we all benefit.
Potentially.
Good stuff. The ambulance service should be a 100% public funded service, just like police etc. This 'charity' model is bullshit that only exists to allow the wealthy to avoid paying their share.
Mining our vanished past for fertiliser. Isn't that a great analogy of what is happening to us every day.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon/audio/2018695982/mining-company-we-have-good-motives-here
A fossil Galaxias fish from Foulden Maar. Photo credit Jon Lindqvist.
Fossil leaves from Foulden Maar. Photo credit Jennifer Bannister.
A fossil leaf from Foulden Maar. Photo credit Tammo Reichgelt.
A short section of core from the Foulden Maar deposit, showing annual layers (alternating yellowish and dark layers) along with underwater landslide events (thicker dark layers). Photo credit Bethany Fox.
100x magnification of a 23-million-year-old leaf cuticle (Litsea calicarioides) from Foulden Maar, showing stomata (white) and epidermal cells (purple). Photo credit Tammo Reichgelt.
A fossil flower (Fouldenia staminosa) from Foulden Maar. Photo credit Jennifer Bannister.
Getz Ice Shelf on the Antarctic coast Credit: NASA/Dick Ewers
The overseas mining company seeking to expand its operation next to a fossil rich geological site of international significance in Otago, says it has good motives, and is surprised by the negative reaction. Plaman Resources is 50.9% owned by the Mayasian business Iris Corp, and 49% owned by two Australian businessmen. It has a permit to mine diatomite in Middlemarch at Foulden Maar – a 23-million-year-old crater lake at Middlemarch – and is seeking permission to buy the neighbouring property to expand the mine. The diatomite is brand named "Black Pearl" and sold as stock feed. The plan has run into strong opposition from some locals, concerned scientists and former Prime Minister Helen Clark. Kathryn talks with co-founder and CEO of Plaman Resources, Peter Plakadis.
Thanks Grey – good analogy, and nice photos.
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2019/05/17/588070/fossil-dirt-nutrition-claims-under-doubt
On later on Radionz. Rod Oram first about tourism goals, which may be related to the next one on m/billionaires coming here for boltholes!
11:30 New Zealand's billionaire doomsday preppers
A new VICE documentary attempts to track down the overseas billionaires building boltholes in New Zealand. "Hunt for the Bunker People" follows freelance journalist Baz Mcdonald as he investigates why the super rich are looking to buy land in Queenstown as "apocalypse insurance."
As Baz comes to terms with the causes of this paranoia, he considers the implication for Queenstown's shrinking middle class. He joins Kathryn to speak about the documentary and what he plans to do next with his investigation.
Hunt for the Bunker People screens on VICE will be on SKY On Demand and SKY GO until May 23rd.
Insurance love it or hate it – need it.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon/audio/2018695812/earthquake-damage-insurance-dr-megan-woods
Does earthquake insurance need a fundamental rethink as private insurers trim their books and EQC gets out of contents insurance?
Kathryn Ryan speaks with the minister responsible for the Earthquake Commission, Dr Megan Woods.
Changes to the Earthquake Commission Act come into affect on July 1st.
They include an increase in the cap on EQC residential building cover from $100,000 to 150,000, a withdrawal of contents cover, and more transparency if earthquake claims have been made on a house in the past.
The Lord of the Great Grift is one step closer to getting exposed. A federal judge has ruled his accountants have to turn over his paperwork to Congress.
https://edition.cnn.com/2019/05/20/politics/mazars-trump-records/index.html
Best not reveal anything that might undermine the narrative.
Two left wing NGOs, Yesh Din and Emek Shaveh, filed a petition under the Freedom of Information Act to reveal the identities of archaeological sites and archaeologists working in the West Bank. According to Emek Shaveh, the High Court ruled to conceal the identities of the locations and archaeologists.
https://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/High-Court-rules-archaeologists-identities-and-digs-in-West-Bank-remain-undisclosed-590167
Supreme Court rejects NGOs petition, arguing that publishing information publicly could expose archaeologists to academic boycott and undermine Israel’s position in future diplomatic negotiations.
https://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/.premium-west-bank-archaeological-digs-must-not-be-made-public-israel-s-top-court-rules-1.7255369
Here’s the result of David Seymour’s incitement of violence toward Golriz Ghahraman the other day.
Now she has to have a police escort to protect her from violent white supremacist RWNJs. This clearly proves it is far right creeps like David Seymour who are undermining the decency and safety of New Zealand society.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2019/05/golriz-ghahraman-gets-police-security-escort-following-seymour-menace-comments.html
Happy now, David?
Rubbish. That's got zip nothing to do with counter terrorism operations. Fuck all to do with it, except to demonstrate how woke you are.
Aww. Did joe90 get under your skin, sweetheart?
Your concern for Golriz lasted as long as your woke delusions.
You're angry. Go for a walk to clear your head.
My emotions have zip fuck all to do with your knowledge and skills of counter terrorism.
Please don’t go down this path, you two.
Being a good moderator you'll be able to see that Sam needs a break.
as the woke nutter whispers sweet nothings into people's ears.
Hmmm, holidays for singles are becoming more popular it seems …
I’m a lousy moderator but I do like gifting holidays for couples …
Don't drag me into it. You'll notice I've not responded to Sam after your suggestion. Sam? Not so much.
Why should I respect you, Incognito or anyone else's?
Don’t respect me but please (!) respect my requests (plural) to cut out the personal shit. Pointless personal shit is just that. You’ve already taken too much of my time.
Appreciated.
what the fuck are you on about. This is like the 100th time you've threatened to ban me. Fuck me. You give a dork a little bit of power and it goes straight to there head.
I quite happily let you ban yourself, if you like. You think you can handle the power, Sam? The only question might be: for how long?
* their
i genuinely snorted my drink when I read that – very funny.
Look at the people around you, incognito. Some times it's best to just focus on the people who give a dam.
so asides from anything the woke Australian Green Party leader decided he'd lead a caravan up the Australian coast signalling the virtues of thrift and cleanliness. Net result was 4% swing to the liberals and then in NZ, more woke nutters.
Who's wokey cuckysambam?
[Given my earlier requests here on OM to cut out the pointless personal shit, this looks like a deliberate provocation of Sam who seems unable to control himself when provoked and you know it – Incognito]
fuck off time waster
See my Moderation note @ 5:17 PM.
I thought that you had received a ban Sam. Your abusive comments deserve abusive description – they are shit. And your abuse isn't even high-class stuff. You are lowering the tone of this blog and you haven't said anything of value except your own lame opinions. We have plenty of those ourselves, in our own rubbish bins, and yours belong in yours.
Depends if you desire to be a super moderator or a super debater because when it's moderated it's actually not debating, wonder if this place is still for robust debate anymore. Where I come from debates can turn into fist fights. Besides that I was under the impression that I had received a permanent ban at one point for breaking some code of behaviour or something rather than the content of what I was saying ie moderated for ideological reasons rather than causing harm to some ones fragile frame of mind.
I don’t want to ban Sam or anybody else for that matter. I would like him (and others) to cut out the pointless personal shit and get on with robust debate. All it takes is a small change in online behaviour that will have large positive effects on the tone on/of this site.
Charming.
(google translation)
Stockholm’s general shelters are in poor condition.
In the event of a crisis or war, they could not be used, according to the real estate office.
And there is no money to fix them.
Stockholm city is responsible for 22 active shelters. But none of them meet the requirements – and they cannot fulfill their function as shelters in the event of a crisis or war, Mitt i [local free ‘zine] can now reveal.
The protective shelters are used today as, for example, garages. But the city is obliged to be able put them in service within 48 hours, which is currently not possible. It appears from the real estate office’s budget for the years 2020-2022.
What would happen if there was a crisis or war?
– We can’t handle the 48 hour limit. It is a question of how to plan, says Thomas Schillén, property manager at the real estate office.
In order to be able to use the protective shelters, good ventilation, shock wave doors and toilets are required. It would take many millions to be able to fix them, money missing from the budget.
– We have got a tightening of the new majority and have not received any new funds. We are tightening our staff and have other projects that take a lot of money, “says Thomas Schillén
https://mitti.se/nyheter/skyddsrum-oanvandbara-renovering/?omrade=hela-stockholm
Aww..
https://twitter.com/seddonnews/status/1130446247171710976
#milkshake
300 million quid a week, one milkshake at a time.
milkshakes – the new rotten eggs and tomatoes.
The government announced yesterday the appointment of five new Deputy Chairpersons to the Human Rights Review Tribunal. Legislation has been tweaked to allow these Deputy Chairperson to make and write up decisions.
" This Government has acknowledged the unacceptable backlog of cases before the Human Rights Review Tribunal that developed under the previous National Government and we have taken action by establishing the Deputy Chairperson positions to help reduce the growing backlog,” says Aupito William Sio. "
https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/new-support-human-rights-review-tribunal
Unfortunately, one of these Deputy Chairpersons has proven herself to be less than impartial and has, over the decade she spent fighting against disabled people and their chosen family carers, chosen to engage in tactics that in my opinion bring the profession of lawyer in (further) disrepute.
I have sat an listened to her deliberately misinform and misrepresent our situation and on more than one occasion has actually made statements that in any other venue would be considered lying.
Martha Coleman markets herself as being a 'human rights specialist'.. and yes she has had much experience in arguing against claims brought under NZBORA and the HRA.
In the case of family carers being paid to provide the disability supports an eligible person has been assessed as needing her tactics failed (in numerous venues) as the lawyers from the Office of Human Rights Proceedings won the case by simply telling the truth and presenting the facts to the Tribunal and the Courts.
Reality will occasionally prevail.
One aspect of Coleman's career that has always intrigued me is the fact that while she was being paid by Crown Law to prepare the case against family carers she was also a member of the National Advisory Council for the Employment Of Women who stated in their March 2008 report…
NACEW supports a framework for family caring that is based on the following principles: •that the unique contribution of family carers is the provision of emotional and associative care and this needs to be recognised and valued as a priority •that formal care packages are comprehensive responses to the intensity of a client’s needs, and do not make assumptions about the family supports available •that a client and their family members can opt for greater family involvement in care arrangements and negotiate the basis of their involvement within the care package provided •that individual family members who are contracted into explicit service roles have similar protections and rights as other workers.
https://women.govt.nz/sites/public_files/NACEW-Financial-support-for-family-carers-2008.pdf
Yes, I get that lawyers have to be able to argue both sides of an issue convincingly…that's probably why so many end up in politics…but to have read the above, and listened to Coleman enthusiastically and with some malice argue against it, to me calls into question her suitability to participate in decision making for a Tribunal dedicated to upholding human rights.
The fact that Coleman leveled some of her invective against me personally most certainly colours my view.
Waiting in anticipation for the report into National Party culture that was promised us once the report on Parliament culture was out. I can't seem to find it anywhere though. Wonder what's taking so long…
Too true, didn't simon say it would be released after the parliament report?
So that would be tomorrow then, should have been this afternoon.
Stuff just reported this: "Speaking during the first reading of the bill, National leader Simon Bridges said his party was supportive of the principles of the bill but National had "real differences" and expected to see change in select committee. The Government's flagship climate change bill – technically an amendment to an earlier law – would force future governments to set a series of "carbon budgets" over the next 30 years, declining until all long-lived emissions reach net zero at 2050. It will pass first reading on Tuesday afternoon." https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/112890233/national-supports-climate-change-bill-through-first-reading
"The proposed law is based on the United Kingdom's Climate Change Act. The bill would also set up an independent Climate Change Commission that would advise the Government on what these targets should be and how exactly governments should meet them. It would not have any independent power on its own. It's understood NZ First was particularly uncomfortable with talk about giving the commission Reserve Bank-like powers to set the emissions targets itself. Governments will also be required to set a plan for how they will respond to the various effects of climate change."
Karma's a wonderful thing.
https://twitter.com/matthewamiller/status/1130581792052920321
Stuff: "MPs were "treated like gods" with a "master servant relationship". What about goddesses? Seems like it could be a case of unconscious sexism. Mistresses are sometimes into dominance too. There was a dominatrix in the headlines a while back, after the guy who had been paying to be dominated actually died.
And if you call them public servants, is it really all that surprising that MPs treat them as such? What part of the residual patriarchy is so hard to grasp?
Anyway, psychology aside, we will now have everyone carefully avoiding the implication that democracy creates toxic workplaces: "Parliament is a toxic workplace with a systemic bullying problem – Francis Review" – Andrea Vance https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/112865411/parliament-a-toxic-workplace-with-systematic-bullying-problem–francis-review
Good to see National supporting Shaw's climate bill into Parliament through its first reading.
They will protest the methane level proposed on behalf of stock farmers, so this is the limits of Shaw's persuasion.
Not a bad result.
How politics is supposed to be done. Need more of this.
Can you expand on your criticisms of Martha Coleman a little more for me @ RMcD?
In what way has she spent "fighting against disabled people and their chosen family carers"? (for example).
I'm not suggesting in any way that your assertions are incorrect.
I'm just curious having known both Martha and brother Bruce in her formative years. Having seen how many of my peers have put comfy little lives over principle, nothing will surprise me, but I'm not yet ready to put Martha in that category.
btw @ lprent – not quite sure why this appears as 25, as opposed to 20.1 or 20.2. but it's possible I'm losing it
Actually, assume the worst (I’m losing it) – I’d hate to have you obsessing over a potential bug that isn’t
Often happens to me. I think I hit the reply to comment button, then after I post it shows up at the bottom of the thread. Remedy is highlight what you wrote, ctrl C to copy it, then delete comment. Then hit the reply button to the comment you want to respond to, ctrl V to copy your response into the new window, post it and watch to ensure it does publish in the right place.
Coleman, working for Crown Law, was the lead in the defense for the Ministry of Health in 'Atkinson".
One of the better precis of the case here…https://www.hrc.co.nz/enquiries-and-complaints/faqs/caring-disabled-adult-family-members/
….and over on Public Address here….https://publicaddress.net/access/paying-family-carers-what-was-all-the-fuss/
As I admitted… The fact that Coleman leveled some of her invective against me personally most certainly colours my view.
I am one of those family carers.
I sat in on many of those hearings and watched her at work.
I was part of the last group to be represented by the OHRP against the Crown and the Ministry, and up until the final straight Martha 'these people have a sense of entitlement' Coleman was the Crown appointed assassin.
And oh, how she seemed to love her work.
Yeah, yeah, lawyers are supposed to use every trick in the book to make the opposition look like shit…but come on…there are limits, surely?
As I said…misinformation, malicious misrepresentation (well it seemed like malice from where I was sitting) and callous disregard for the people with disabilities who would die without appropriate hands- on care and those of us who provided that care…in many cases where the Ministry's own contracted providers refused to because the Ministry would not fund that level of care.
Even after losing in Atkinson and Spencer, Coleman dug in when it came to our case (King). It beggared belief as for all intents and purposes we were the same as the Atkinson and Spencer cases. Arguably the level of complexity in the care required from and by the King plaintiffs was measurably higher than in the previous cases.
In my particular case she argued that I was claiming to be paid for doing what 'every one else does for love'.
The Ministry's own records show that at least 40 other spouses were being paid by the Ministry for providing care for their partner…and we had met some of these couples who couldn't understand why we were not given the same accommodation by the Ministry.
However…Coleman knew this, must have gained at least a smidgen of an inkling what our lives are like…she sat through enough hearings and read enough of our submissions….you'd think, you'd hope, that at some point she'd actually back off and advise the Crown that the right thing to do would be to put the injustice and the discrimination right.
But, no. And this time last year I was girding up my delicate bits to sit in a court room and listen to Coleman yet again argue a case she had already lost on more than one occasion.
Orders came from Higher Up later last year that the Crown were to settle our case.
Coleman et al suddenly disappeared from the opposition benches and new Crown Lawyers brought in to try and make nice.
I occasionally fantasize that Coleman et al perhaps, in a fit of conscience, deliberately threw Atkinson and Spencer…but no. What they did do, and quite successfully, was to manage to stall any resolution for the rest of us so that National had time to concoct the Part 4 amendment to the PHD Act.
http://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2013/0022/latest/whole.html
Bastards.
Coleman played a significant role in a saga that has left many in the non ACC disability community, especially those with very high support needs who want to live in their own homes, feeling marginalised. And abused. And totally disillusioned with 'the system'.
I'm sure she'll look back in pride at her work.
Such is the nature of the law and a good many in the legal profession (as we all know from the bullying and misogyny that's become public recently).
I've known a few perfectly 'nice' people that turn into complete arseholes in a court room because its all about winning. If it were me, I'd be more pissed off with MoH – though not surprised given the state of much of our public service these days.
But maybe she has turned into a complete bitch. It'd be a hell of a change over a lifetime though
I'd be more pissed off with MoH –
Heh. I am pretty sure that Coleman's style perfectly complimented the Misery of Health's intent.
Where do progressives go for comfort these days. In the USA they are almost up to two figures for shaming rape and sex between men and women if not married. Reading a book of Russian theory The Foundations of Geopolitics by Alexander Dugin there is this:
Foundations engages with obscure strains in 20th-century fascism, relying heavily, for example, on theorist Julius Evola, who advised Mussolini and the SS and promoted extreme misogyny as well as racism for use by the Russian elite. All sex for Evola is rape and a woman outside the home “a monkey.” He and Dugin both sneer that modern men—not to mention gays, lesbians, and transsexuals—are “feminized.” In the Evola-Dugin playbook, sexual and racist anxieties lie at the root of today’s Russian fascism. And with but slight qualification, one can see Rob Porter, Steve Bannon (an Evola fan), Roy Moore, and Donald Trump as decadent facsimiles.
https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-far-right-book-every-russian-general-reads
The Christchurch shooter has been charged with terrorism.
What are the implications for all other white supremacists in New Zealand?
Will they now, (finally), be put on the official terror watch list?
Will their organisations now be ruled 'terrorist organisations' under the Suppression Of Terrorism Act?
Will members and organisers of white supremacist and fascist groups face arrest if they try to hold triumphalist public parades and rallies?
Will publicly displaying fascist regalia and flags become a crime, as it is in Germany?
And if not, why not?
Should specific amendments be made to Suppression of Terrorism Act to suppress and disrupt White Supremacist organisations?
<a href="https://apnews.com/703d6b9cdd0d4da78e6ad0fc14f0ffa8" rel="nofollow">https://apnews.com/703d6b9cdd0d4da78e6ad0fc14f0ffa8</a>
Kia ora Newshub.
seenothing any publisty is good publicity to some .
I say the Skypath project for cycling and walking is awesome good that the project is going to start.
M8 I'm going to pop the balloons of these new partys Tamaki don't you get the big picture you are going to help the people who have been disrespecting tangata whenua FOOL.
I brought some cheap honey it didn't even have a sweet taste. Honey is has been a medicine for thousands of years and Maori tohunga have been healing tangata for thousands of years to.
Tavita wahine is being lead around the mulberry Bush of the justice system if they were wealthy there would have been people paying for his death that's the system Whanau.
I'm not even going to comment on that fool who can't see past his own faith fool in Britain.
All I can say is I feel for the rabbit wahine in Christchurch I love my pets to maybe start a give a little page to help pay for your rabbits vacation
Ka kite ano
Kia ora team ao Maori News.
Tamiki is just going to help national float there toilet I have all ready give my view to not impress with him or Naro trying float his christen party to they both have egos that make them think te ra revolvers around them.
The parliament staff problems is going to get sorted as for Tau what insults did he say to Trevor for that to happen
Kia ora to Maori growing kiwifruit there are heaps of places in Te taiwhiti to grow kiwifruit it could easily be grown organically to big bucks.
It's awesome that Ngati Porou are going to get the right we want from the crown
For ower Coast and Tangaroa
The Whana of the Pike river mine will be happy it is all finally coming to past and reveal what went wrong we know that the safety standards were dropped and that could have been the cause.
Ka kite ano
Kia ora The Am Show .
The students strive is a awesome way to get Neanderthals attention the pollies around the Papatuanuku are pandering to money and not their children future money is the phenomenon that causes policy to be made that is good for the 00.1% that's a fact.
A lot of consumer don't no the consumer laws but now days thanks to social media and Google we can check the laws.
Bridget Davis I tell the mokopuna you are what you eat I think you book Bridgets Healthy Kitchen is awesome I say a healthy gute is a fact .I need to clean up my diet ma te wa
In my view the poor commen tamariki are in a much better position with the Labour lead government if national was still in power poverty will still snowballing they would have a block on the subject and no one would be talking about it.
I agree with Duncan Tamiki won't make the 5% threshold to get into Parliament remember he has had a few brain FARTs.
Ka kite ano
Some Eco maori music for the minute
https://youtu.be/jWhAoZZh8fcSl
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWhAoZZh8fc
my devices are playing up
Some Eco Maori music for the minute
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=v2AC41dglnM
Eco maori champions wahine equal rights the Women of Influence award is a great way to achieve that goal of more Wahine getting into managing our Papatuanuku .
Nominations are open for the seventh annual Women of Influence awards, a celebration of change makers and inspiring women.
Sponsored by Stuff and Westpac, the awards have previously recognised politicians, philanthropists, businesswomen and artists.
Jackie Clark, of South Auckland social welfare charity The Aunties, won the supreme award last year. In 2017, former prime minister Helen Clark received the lifetime achievement award. Kate kite ano links below
https://i.stuff.co.nz/national/women-of-influence/112888859/know-any-women-of-influence-awards-look-to-honour-change-makers
Kia ora Newshub.
Its is good that the IPCA has stated that the police chaser was at fault now that a problem has been admitted prosess can be put in place to minimize the losses of life.
Bit of drama with the ambulances people wages.
I have had a good flue it was Monday when I got it a week ago .
Those Christians political parties will take us back 100years with their neanderthal views.
Students strike is what is needed to get the common people view out there above the oil barons $$$$$$$$$$ it is there future we are stuffing NOW.
I feel for the people who are in the atrocitie weather that is happening in America at the minute the common people will suffer the most.
The Queen keeping up with technology the shopping kiosk are very good no need to talk to anyone I have a swarm of puppets following me around. Kate kite ano
Kia ora te ao Maori news
I have said that the 2 new Christian political party's will drag Aotearoa back 100years.
It's awesome that Ngati Porou is finally getting our mana back to care for Tangaroa and his creation.
Its better to have a Labour lead government helping tangata whenua than a national lead government that takes from the poor and gives to the wealthy FOOL not everyone is going to be happy its quite hard for that phenomenon in Maoridom
Cool Maori art on display at the Auckland airport it gives Eco Maori a sore face to see all the interest in Maori culture and te reo now it was not like that just a few years ago.
Ka kite ano