Thatcher had one trick up her sleeve (i.e. in her handbag): hairspray. Image is everything. Boris could have used Brylcreem and he’d still be leader of the party partying in 10 Downing Street.
The British equivalent is the "Lady Jane Grey", who was Queen of England for nine days but then overthrown by Henry VIII's daughter, Mary Tudor. So, a Lady Jane Grey is .9 of a Scaramucci.
Liz Truss lasted 4.9 Lady Jane Greys.
— Mark ("Ain't got no stinkin' badges") Mucci (@MLMucci) October 20, 2022
He will need 100 MPs to nominate him. Not impossible but very unlikely, because the "anyone but Johnson" majority would coalesce around one candidate … somebody they only dislike, not loathe.
Truss exceeded expectations. Tories would fare better leaderless and focussing their attention on the nation rather than on internal petty party politics. 10 Downing Street is becoming a closet of failed attempts at greatness and only political corpses come out recently. I think David was the best British PM in living memory.
Good explanatory thread showing why class analysis matters, and that talking about differences in privilege at the class level is not the same as talking about individuals (something some of the replies fail to grasp).
Pākehā people today are not morally culpable for colonisation. They are not responsible for the actions of a small number of their ancestors in centuries past. But Pākehā people generally are the beneficiaries of those actions today. And often to the detriment of Māori (thread…)
yes, you are. I'm referring to class as the collective of people that have shared attributes that mean certain things as a group.
There's the analysis that there are three classes that are exploited by capitalism (especially by labour) for the purposes of continuing capitalism: socioeconomic, biological sex, and race/ethnicity.
In this instance, Godfrey is referring to Pākehā, more specifically the people whose ancestors came from Europe (Caucasians), and Māori. That's the class of ethnicity. He also talks about socioeconomic impacts on Māori, but as a group, demographically.
If you don't have a class analysis, then this statement doesn't make sense,
But Pākehā people generally are the beneficiaries of those actions today
and leads to people making a counter argument of "I'm Pākehā and I'm poor, so were my parents and grandparents, we don't have that benefit". And that blinds the conversation to how working class Pākehā have benefited despitebeing working class. It also tends to lead people to thinking in either/or, whereas obviously working class people don't have the benefits of middle or professional classes.
"This isn’t because Pākehā people are racist selfishly guarding their inherited advantages"…not sure I agree with that…why does he think half or more voters in this country vote National/Act?..has he ever worked on a large construction site?..I can tell you from first hand experience that give yourself a few days to get embedded on most sites around the country and you will slowly start to hear some pretty crazy racist shit start casually coming out of peoples mouths…and you can be sure many offices around the country are the same…racism is still deeply embedded in the NZ psych, of that I am sure, and you might be surprised were you still find it…I know I still get taken by surprise by it pretty regularly.
go ahead then, make your argument for why he is wrong when he says that Māori are demographically disadvantaged compared to Pākehā across a number of areas, and it's not because contemporary Pākehā are racist and selfishly guarding their inherited advantages, but rather because historical forces particularly the settler state are more powerful than individuals.
You’ve already said that there are Pākehā that are racist, but that doesn’t explain how MG is wrong (he hasn’t said that there are no racist Pākehā).
We must be talking at crossed purposes because I am saying that (many) “Pākehā are racist and selfishly guarding their inherited advantages” but I also strongly agree that “historical forces particularly the settler state are more powerful than individuals”(In most, but not all circumstances)…but holding one of those positions does not negate the other as far as I can see…both those things are existing side by side as we speak IMO.
Sure. So please make the argument that supports the assertion that most Pākehā are racist and selfishly guarding their inherited advantages.
That there are racist Pākehā doesn't mean that most Pākehā are racist and selfishly guarding their inherited advantages in the context of his thread. You may be right, I just haven’t seen the argument yet.
You'd also need to provide some evidence that half of NZ votes National because they're racist and selfishly guarding their inherited advantages. As opposed to being right wing, or believing in right wing politics (which again doesn't mean that racism isn't also an issue). Let's not forget that Doug Graham (Nat Minister for Treaty Settlements) did much to advance the modern treaty process in the 90s.
It is a holiday here in the Bay so I am going out to ride some hills and valley roads now, will answer when I get back…as long as I haven’t stupidly ridden myself into the ground which I have a bad habit of doing to myself for unknown reasons.
What Happened to Egalitarian New Zealand? [Easton, 25 June 2019] New Zealand was once a more egalitarian society than it is today. It has been overwhelmed by economic, social and technological changes. A crucial outcome is that the class structure has become less fluid and the increasing rigidities have disconnected the powerful from the rest of society.
We can all revel in the delicious fall of a Tory extremist, but it worth remembering the fall of Truss is a sombre illustration that centrists are more hostile to democracy than either the populist left or right. It probably shouldn't surprise us – our MSM is full of cynical and savvy members of the centrist pundocracy who pronounce themselves exhausted by the demands of vigorous democracy, contemptuous of voters, contemptuous of the politically engaged, and longing for a "safe pair of hands" to calm the markets, sooth the bankers and reassure the property owning haute bourgeoisie.
Truss fell for the same reason Jeremy Corbyn was done in – she was elected by her party members, thus becoming an irritant that is nowadays unacceptable to the incestuous Oxbridge ruling class in Britains increasingly corrupt and decayed managed democracy. Wet Tories joined with centrists and liberals in forming a claque applauding a soft coup in the name of "the markets".
So we on the left should be a bit muted in our cheering on of the fall of Truss. Most of the media hallelujahs are to the effect that "orthodoxy" has been restored. "The markets" have seen off "ideologues". But the situation in the UK, and in the wider failing neoliberal project everywhere, is unstable as neoliberal orthodoxy doesn't command the widespread support it used to – as evidenced by the Corbyn insurrection and the eruption of Truss.
Centrists will likely find their hopes for a restoration of orthodoxy dashed, and their insistence that the masses withdraw from political activity and find relief in the administrative rule of technocrats is becoming increasingly untenable.
I sure ain't cheering. The UK is the 5th largest economy in the world, one of the leading remaining democracies, one of the most sustainable, and still a critical global power.
Britain is being seriously destabilised when we need every strong coherent state on the planet working together, not fucking things up.
I've been thinking about this. For all the moaning here in NZ we've had more or less continuous growth since the GFC. For the UK (and Europe in general) however the GFC was an inflexion point – a crisis after which things did not return to normal.
The UK has essentially had a stagnant/declining economy for going on fifteen years. How much have the economies of Austrlai and NZ grown in the time?
The scoffing and derision is going on and will go on about government in the UK.
Somewhat of a contrast though isn't it. The extraordinary constitutional crisis, if that's what it could be called, compared to the US situation one in the recent past. (And in many ways continuing.)
Albeit much of it happened behind closed doors, there was a full frontal attack to usurp power in the US. Clearly lawmakers at many levels were involved or supported it, support it.
How many threads and how fine were they which saw the unthinkable not happen?
For all of her inaptness and the dire straits which saw Truss bite the bullet, the last guy in America, how did he go in the when the writing was on the wall?
Pricks intend using their Ukrainian hostages as human shields.
Looks like the Russians finished creating a barge bridge over the #Dnipro near #Kherson in the past 24 hours. Imagery from Oct 18 show a barge pushing the last parts into place at 0814 UTC. This allows Russia to resupply faster or to evacuate quickly. It's also an easy target.🤔 pic.twitter.com/MKbRu1RzPV
Oct 19 (Reuters) – Russian-installed authorities in the occupied Ukrainian region of Kherson said on Wednesday that they plan to evacuate around 50,000-60,000 people over the next six days amid escalating pressure from a Ukrainian counteroffensive.
Russian-installed governor Vladimir Saldo said authorities were moving civilians to the left (east) bank of the Dnipro River in order to "keep people safe" and allow the military to "act resolutely".
Turns out there are still one or two Extreme Right elements still operating within the Ukraine military…..which is strange because according to various commentators on this forum the Far Right problem widely acknowledged and reported on before this conflict by the BBC, Aljazeera, Vice, New Statesman, Time and many others as being deeply embedded within the Ukraine politics and their military has apparently been all taken care of…though we are still waiting for neutral links from these Standard members to prove those bold assertions…
Any way I will take it from them that no one should have any concerns nor even mention the possibility of the downstream blowback from the thousands of fully armed, battle hardened Far Right fighters who will be left standing at the end of this pointless war….you know how like arming Islamic extremists in Afghanistan during the 1980s ended in peace and tranquillity for the rest of the world…I mean seriously, what could go wrong I wonder?
You guillable fool. Just by reading your post I know those three links are widely discredited as faked Russian propaganda.
The first are Russians.
The second and third are obvious deep fake image manipulation.
I am at loss why people seem so keen to be useful idiots for Russian disinformation. Remember the purpose of Russian propaganda is create doubt, sow uncertainty and demoralise through defelection, whatabboutism and false equivalence.
Yep it's all fake…you just keep on telling yourself that….oh that's right you don't need too..all those MSM news sites (linked to above) that only a short while ago told you that there was a serious Right Wing problem in the Ukraine, are now telling you there isn't…isn't that strange and bizarre? ….holy shit what a chump you are.
Show us all just one serious neutral link that proves Zelenskyy has dealt with the proven (by your Liberal MSM sources I might add) Far Right problem in Ukraine or more specifically the military….if you or others cannot supply us with that one neutral link…then you all have no argument….just empty rhetoric.
Is there such a thing as useful idiots of Ukrainian propaganda? Considering all mainstream coverage we get is pro-Ukrainian, and any independent journalism going against this narrative is sidelined. Shouldnt that make it obvious where the propaganda is coming from?
Re; "Show us all just one serious neutral link that proves Zelenskyy has dealt with the proven Far Right problem in Ukraine or more specifically the military"
…no I didn't think so….This is the third thread that I have asked for any link to verify that claim..you and the rest have failed to deliver because there is no link or links, and never was…just more pro war Western propaganda that you want to believe..so you do…without question.
It is pretty damn obvious that you (and many others) have been so conditioned over time, by the relentless propaganda around Russia (and China too for that matter) spewed out over the past half decade that now you either cannot or will not, and actually often seem to just outright refuse to even try and analyze any facet of the Ukraine war with any sort of critical judgment whatsoever….kind of crazy to watch people in so deep they don't know which way is up or down anymore.
Yeah that's true, but not too many of them get to form their very own offical battalions with their very own Waffen SS inspired unit banners and insignia to wear and to fight under…
"Russian-installed governor Vladimir Saldo said authorities were moving civilians to the left (east) bank of the Dnipro River in order to "keep people safe" and allow the military to "act resolutely".
This statement made my blood run cold. The right bank of the Dnipr river is characterised by high bluffs that over look the left bak, which is flat. It seems to me the the Russian are moving people to the left bak of the river with the clear threat that if the Ukrainains keep attacking and seize Nova Kakhova they'll blow up the massive Kakhovka dam and release a torrent from the Reservoir and drown thousdands of civilians deliberately placed there.
your comment makes no sense whateva sanc especially since Ukraine has been shelling and otherwise attacking that dam for weeks !! Why are they doing that ?? trying to beat the russkies to it ???
Hears some up to date info you might like to look at
It makes sense because Russia has form of destroying dams in pursuit of military advantage – they struck the Oskil reservoir dam to isolate one of the Ukrainian bridgeheads across the Seversky Dinets River. Ukrainian helicopters ferried supplies to the isolated troops however, so the invaders were not able to overrun them.
An obvious use of the same tactic on the Dnipro River is to cover their retreat as they abandon Kherson. The last thing a retreating army needs is an enemy hot on their heels, picking off the stragglers.
Superpower policy is often dominated by spite. Russian destruction of this dam would cause lasting damage to Ukraine, and, having been trounced, Putin is feeling very spiteful. Unlike tactical nukes, dam busting has no specific international consequences.
Cant really see it stuart and i think " trounced " is a ridiculous word to use under the circumstances after all if Ukraine broke through russian lines in the north it was only because that was where the line was thinnest and ukraine by most accounts paid a very heavy price for gains made .Since then the lines have hardly moved save for the regions where russia is making gains .
Time will tell i guess and anyway its foolish to make grand statements about outcomes within the ebb an flow of war dont you think ?
Seems evident to me that Russia plays the long game but really what the fuck do i know? or for that matter any of us ? we are not there and are at the mercy of those who ply us with information .Trust nothing and apply the pinch of salt !!
And where, pray tell us, do you imagine that is? It is clearly nowhere in Ukraine.
Seems evident to me that Russia plays the long game
A four-day operation that goes over two hundred days could certainly be considered long – but there is little evidence of strategy.
"I have heard of military operations that were clumsy but swift, but I have never seen one that was skillful and lasted a long time." ~ Sun Tzu
"Those who use the military skillfully do not raise troops twice."
Hmm… I generally avoid pure propaganda sites like that Weston – you know, the kind that make unsupported allegations that Ukraine is planning to destroy the Dnipro dam. It is Ukraine's dam, and once the invasion is merely an horrific memory, they intend to use it to produce electricity once more.
The allegation is merely intended to provide a bit of deniability – credulous people like yourself repeating the lie after Russia destroys the dam, to suppress the outrage at targeting civilian infrastructure, and using an, albeit unconventional, weapon of mass destruction.
You are some considerable way from supporting your assertion, much less offering good measure.
Zelensky: Russians have planted bombs at the Kakhovska hydroelectric power plant’s dum on the Dnipro River. Destroying the facility may flood some 80 towns and cities, including Kherson.
Apparently Russia wants to flood Kherson, an area that Russia just fought for, allowed the vote in, and just became part of Russia. The logic is mind boggling…
And they've done it before !!! he thunders, as if unblocking a canal which supplied water to two an a half million civilians was a crime !!!!
I dont know exactly when Ukrainian nationalists dammed that canal but they damned themselves in the process .As one can see from the date stamp on the reuters article russian troops unblocked the canal not two days after the invasion which shows clearly the importance given to the task .In fact it would have been another of the provocations Russia had to invade in the first place .
I cannot read the clickbait behind the paywall. In the previous financial year 2020-2021 the total net hectares of land sales approved by OIO was 16,341. Even doubling that would not go anywhere near the area of Arthur’s Pass National Park.
It [applications approved] does not necessarily indicate that a sale has taken place or will take place.
''Foreigners more than doubled their appetite for New Zealand land in the latest year, buying an area equivalent to a South Island national park.
The 111,674 hectares or 1116 square kilometres of land that overseas entities bought between September 2021 and August this year is about the same size as Arthur's Pass National Park, the rugged, 1185sq km mountainous area straddling the Southern Alps.
Toitū Te Whenua Land Information New Zealand provided details of the transactions approved by the Overseas Investment Office in the year to August.
In the previous year to August 2021, foreigners bought 46,000ha. The year before that, to August 2020, 70,148ha of land was bought. Now the numbers are up to 111,674ha.
The volume of overseas investment approvals showed a post-Covid bounceback: 122 applications were approved in the August 2020 year, remaining almost static at 124 for the August 2021 year, but rising to 152 applications approved in the latest year to August.''
The ones which were Kiwi companies selling to foreign interests, seem to be mostly around forestry. Whether that's a good or a bad thing…..
Just checked, and it is Herald premium.
The first Kiwi owned land sale was no. 3 in size:
“3. 3400ha: Kiwis sell forestry interests to Germans
Ponga Silva (49 per cent German, 18 per cent British) won consent to buy Mangatarata Forest, Mangatarata Station, Mata Forest, Onetohunga Forest and Te Rawhiti Forest – around Tauwhareparae in the Gisborne district – from Kiwi interests.
“The applicant is acquiring a freehold interest in approximately 3466ha of land comprising four adjoining forests, including several forestry rights registered over the freehold land,” said the Overseas investment Office. Approval was granted last October, with the sale price suppressed.”
I've got a lot of time for Dave Letele – and think he does a whole lot of practical good in the world.
So, like a lot of Aucklanders, I was pretty horrified to see that his foodbank had been robbed, in what was clearly a theft-for-sale, rather than a theft-because-someone-was-hungry.
So it is heart-warming to see two things come out of it:
The generosity of the community in making donations to put them in a better place than they were before the break in;
Dave's attitude towards restorative justice for the offenders:
"I've asked the police that I would like the girl to do community service with us. I think there will be more chance of her rehabilitating if she is with us, rather than going to prison," Letele said.
What will happen to the New Zealand economy if as seems likely China's economy simply stops growing or is 1-3% GDP growth, for as far as the eye can see?
LATEST Boris Johnson is being advised by some close friends not to stand. One friend tells me: "It is too early. In Autumn next year the party will be on its knees. "He is walking into a sh*t show he can't control. They need to be on their knees." More: https://t.co/1MQCWPyQYD
i am one of those that say that the protests for trains and no oil and such need to happen on the parliaments lawn. Joe/Jane Wrokingforacrustandtopayrent/mortgage really don't have the time nor the humor to deal with these well meaning people.
so file this under shit has consequences in three acts.
One: a tweet from someone in nz
I think this is what's called "not thinking through the consequences of your actions". pic.twitter.com/6WJ6equX2F
Act two: , curious me checking if this is real or not – it is.
.@VW told us that they supported our right to protest, but they refused our request to provide us with a bowl to urinate and defecate in a decent manner while we are glued, and have turned off the heating. People in support can't get out of the building. 2/ pic.twitter.com/YZuuiww5Q4
Doctors ascertained the possibility of life-threatening blood clots in my hand and recommended an immediate transfer to a hospital. My health is of course paramount. I accepted to leave this wonderful group and was taken to hospital, continuing my hunger strike.8/ pic.twitter.com/FUEUj7wu1b
This is a dude who is a Researcher in social psychology, so one would assume that he has a bit of a brain and is fairly well educated. So when he thought that gluing himself into that position how far did he think? did he think about going to the loo, eating food, causing potential blood clods? Did he think it made him heroic? Did he think other people had to accommodate his 'protest'?
In the meantime, private planes flying a few persons to places for no reasons or because people are rich and can afford too and it would be a fun little happy maker. In the meantime, people camp for the opening of a KMART filled with crap shipped from china and elsewhere to get a little dopamine hit, all for it to end up in our landfills. In the meantime there are almost no flying insects about and that is absolutely terrifying.
Also, really, paid for university education is not worth shit if this is the best it produces.
edit: this protest is not happening in NZ. It is just a little human action that is would make a worthy Brother Grimm story.
You sound like a neoliberal dogmatist judging the action of others through the lens of rational decision-making and personal responsibility. On top of that, your usual and inevitable anti-intellectual bias is on show.
Psychology theory will undoubtedly include perspectives on personal suffering and sacrifice for the greater good and/or one’s personal belief system, which is what that the activist is describing & documenting. It is not so much whining/complaining about his personal deteriorating situation and you’re simply projecting, again.
You love to ridicule this story and diminish it as some kind of bad fairy tale belonging in realm of fantasy, but it is very real and cannot be ignored and denied, no matter how hard you try to dismiss it as a fool’s errant. I’m in awe of their courage to put themselves through this and in a potentially highly embarrassing and literally sickening position.
Guarav Sharma has a chance to put his money where his mouth is. I reckon he should take the chance, take up the challenge. When he produces the evidence, the good people of Hamilton West will see that he is a man of integrity and all vote for him in the by-election.
"Trevor Mallard demands resigned MP Gaurav Sharma release full recording of conversation
Speaking to the NZ Herald, Mallard challenged Sharma to release the full recording of the conversation, which lasted about 30 minutes.
"I know [Sharma] won't [release] it because in it, he tells lies," Mallard said.
You’ve really got to wonder at the introspection, or lack thereof, from much of the mainstream media post Jacinda Ardern stepping down. Some so-called journalists haven’t even taken a breath before once again putting the boot in, which clearly shows their inherent bias and lack of any misgivings about fueling ...
Over the weekend I was interviewed by a media outlet about the threats that Jacinda Ardern and her family have received while she has been PM and what can be expected now that she has resigned. I noted that the level of threat she has been exposed to is unprecedented ...
A Different Kind Of Vibe: In the days and weeks ahead, as the Hipkins ministry takes shape, the only question that matters is whether New Zealand’s new prime minister possesses both the wisdom and the courage to correct his party’s currently suicidal political course. If Chris “Chippy” Hipkins is able to steer ...
The days of the Labour Government being associated with middle class social liberalism look to be numbered. Soon-to-be Prime Minister Chris Hipkins and Deputy Prime Minister Carmel Sepuloni are heralding a major shift in emphasis away from the constituencies and ideologies of liberal Grey Lynn and Wellington Central towards the ...
Going to try to get into the blogging thing again (ha!) what with an election coming up and all that. So today I thought I'd start small and simple, by merely tackling the world's (second) richest man.I'm no fan of Elon Musk. You don't want to know why, but I'll ...
A chronological listing of news articles posted on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Jan 15, 2023 thru Sat, Jan 21, 2023. Story of the Week State of the climate: How the world warmed in 2022With a new year underway, most of the climate data for ...
Well, that was a disappointment. As of today, the New Zealand Labour Caucus opted for Chris Hipkins as our new Prime Minister, and I cannot help but let loose a cynical cackle. ...
Get ready for a major political reset once Chris Hipkins is sworn in as Prime Minister this week. Labour’s new leader is likely to push the Government to the right economically, and do his best to jettison the damaging perceptions that Labour has become “too woke” on social issues. Overall, ...
Things have gone sideways… and it’s only the third week of January? It was political earthquake time. For some the Prime Minister made a truly significant announcement. For others – did you have this on your bingo card? – a body double did so (sit tight, you’ll understand later, ...
By the end of 2019, Jacinda Ardern was a political superstar heading towards an election defeat. She was an icon, internationally beloved, on track to be an ex-prime minister before the age of forty. It was the year of the Christchurch terror attack when Ardern’s response to the atrocity saw ...
People complain about their jobs being meaningless. Does it matter?David Graeber, author of Bullshit Jobs: The Rise of Pointless Work and What We Can Do About It, would have smiled at Elon Musk’s sacking half the Twitter workforce. Musk seems to be confirming the main thesis of the book, that ...
Should New Zealand have a snap election? That’s one of the questions arising out of the chaos of Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s shock resignation. There’s an increased realisation that everything has changed, and the old plans and assumptions for election year have suddenly evaporated. So, although Ardern has named an ...
I warned about the trap of virtue signaling in my article Virtue signaling over Ukraine. This video is still relevant – but have we moved on since then? The Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 was universally condemned at the time. Or was it? Certainly, the political atmosphere ...
Open access notables Bad news delivered by an all-star cast of familiar researchers: Another Year of Record Heat for the Oceans. From the abstract: In 2022, the world’s oceans, as given by OHC, were again the hottest in the historical record and exceeded the previous 2021 record maximum. According to IAP/CAS data, ...
One of my earliest political memories is the resignation of Prime Minister David Lange in August 1989. I remember this because of a brown felt-tipped pen drawing I did of the Beehive, the building that houses the Executive of the New Zealand Government. More than thirty years later, we ...
Jacinda Ardern had an outsized impact on New Zealand’s international relations. While all Prime Ministers travel internationally, Ardern’s calendar was fuller than most. Ardern’s first major foreign trip came within weeks of her election in 2017, to the APEC summit in Vietnam. The meeting gave Ardern her first in-person encounter ...
She gave it her all. No New Zealand Prime Minister has ever dominated the political scene at home as she has done, or has established an international profile to match hers. No New Zealand Prime Minister has had to confront such a sequence of domestic and international catastrophes – from ...
Jacinda Ardern's shock resignation announcement today has left a lot of us with a lot of complicated feelings. In my case, while I've been highly critical of Ardern's government, I'm still sorry to see her go. We've had far too many terrible things happen during her term as Prime Minister ...
The decision by Jacinda Ardern to end her term as Prime Minister on February 7 has come as a stunning surprise. It turns the task of a centre-left government winning re-election this year from difficult to nigh on impossible. No-one else among the Labour caucus has Ardern’s ability to explain ...
Jacinda Ardern’s first press conference as Labour leader in August 2017 was a defining moment in the past decade of New Zealand politics. A young woman (by the standards of politics) who had long been tipped for higher office, she had underperformed as a minister and Andrew Little’s noble resignation ...
An Astonishing Rapport: Jacinda Ardern's "Politics of Kindness" raised so many progressive possibilities. Her own tragedy, and New Zealand's, is that so few of them were realised.MUCH WILL BE WRITTEN in the coming days about "The Ardern Years", some of it sympathetic and insightful, most of it spiteful and wrong.For ...
The Herald this morning reports on the rich's efforts to buy this year's election. And you'll never guess who their chosen vehicle is: The National Party may start election year with a $2.3 million war chest raised from 24 big donors in 2022, while Labour has declared just $150,000 ...
Christopher Luxon’s National Party are the odds-on favourites to win the general election this year. They have been consistently ahead of Labour in the polls in recent months, and have a firm coalition partner in Act, which is often polling about 10 per cent. Betting agencies can’t take bets on ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Sarah Wesseler You walk into your kitchen to make pasta. After filling a pot with water, you place a small silicone mat in the middle of your counter, then set the pot above it and open a stovetop app on your phone. ...
You know it as well as I, the famous Ring Verse from The Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien: Three Rings for the Elven Kings under the sky Seven for the Dwarf Lords in their halls of stone Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die One ...
The Herald has an annual roundup of electric vehicle stats this morning, and it shows us that the government's clean-car-discount - which sees buyers of dirty vehicles pay to subsidies purchases of clean ones - has been a hugely successful policy: New Zealand broke two records for electric vehicles ...
She’s Such A Scream! The Prime Minister’s enemies, those who want us to hate her, suffer from the not insubstantial handicap of being more than a little hateful themselves. Rendered nonsensical by their unwavering belief in the most absurd conspiracy theories, and dangerous by their relentless peddling of fake news ...
Me, Myself, Eye: The great irony of individualism is that the nearer humanity comes to the point where every person can make their own life, the more doubtful many intellectuals become of its merit. But, before embracing the moral oblivion of collective identity; and the strictures of tribal tradition, they ...
Ever since Christopher Luxon became leader, National has adopted a “small target” strategy. This consists of offering nothing to distract the media from its focus on the government’s shortcomings and the public’s discontent with its performance. In particular, the strategy involves releasing no policy alternatives whose own failings might then ...
Japan is a country on the move. Since World War II, Tokyo has largely been happy to outsource its security needs to Washington. But this is now changing to a more equal partnership. On Friday, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida called his country’s alliance with the United States ‘stronger than ...
A chronological listing of news articles posted on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Jan 8, 2023 thru Sat, Jan 14, 2023. Story of the Week Relentless Rise of Ocean Heat Content Drives Deadly ExtremesThe heat of global warming will keep penetrating deeper into the oceans ...
The two most comprehensive forecasts of the New Zealand economy are by the Reserve Bank and the Treasury. They are especially important because they inform monetary and fiscal policy. What do they say?Shortly after the Reserve Bank and Treasury published their end-of-year forecasts, Statistics New Zealand announced a 2.0 percent ...
On Tuesday, the Herald broke the news of a massive increase in ANPR surveillance by police, from mere dozens of uses in 2020 to thousands in 2022, and that police had lied in their internal documentation when they said the system was audited to ensure use was legal. And today ...
There’s the joke that the difference between the Victorians and our current era is that the Victorians were obsessed with Death and acted as though Sex didn’t exist, whereas current modernity is the other way around. It’s not actually true, of course, but it’s still amusing. Today, I’m going ...
The next recession is shaping up as the most predicted event since the Second Coming. While we have to take it on faith that it will arrive someday, it is hard to say when it will happen, or how great/how bad it will be if and when it ever does. ...
I was going to write about something else to start off the KP year but current events have intruded in the form of the craziness surrounding the selection of US House Speaker and the storming of the Brazilian seats of power (Congress, the Supreme Court and Presidential Palace) by (so-called ...
Stuff reports that Tasman Steel - the latest name for what used to be NZ Steel - made a $340 million profit last year. The kicker? $117 million of that was from government pollution subsidies: New Zealand Steel’s holding company Tasman Steel increased its profit by 153% to a ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Bob Henson and Jeff Masters A series of Pacific storms that’s taken aim on California since late December is on track to continue into mid-January. Ferocious winds will slam much of the state on Wednesday and Thursday, accompanied by heavy rain likely ...
In this article from the website Radicalism of Fools Daniel Ben-Ami looks at some of the limitations of the new anti-racism movement One of the key tasks I have set myself this year is to examine the arguments around anti-Semitism in more depth. That is both those used by anti-Semites ...
For wealthier New Zealanders and Australians, Fiji is just one option among many for their tourism resort experiences, poolside. Obviously, the country amounts to a lot more to the people who actually live there. It also happens to be the Pacific’s key diplomatic listening post, the home of the Pacific ...
What is it with Prince Harry?. Most of us would probably acknowledge that he has a legitimate cause for complaint at the way he and his wife have been treated by the British media. But there is more to it than that. Harry seems to harbour resentment against the media ...
One of the most popular moves Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern ever made was the pay freeze her government imposed on politicians back in 2018. The freeze may have only been grudgingly agreed to by other MPs and parties, but it had universal public support. The pay freeze is due to ...
Two years ago, supporters of failed presidential candidate Donald Trump stormed the US Capitol in an attempt to overthrow America's democracy and overturn the results of an election they had lost. And today, just a few days after the anniversary of that event, supporters of Trump's ally Jair Bolsonaro did ...
A chronological listing of news articles posted on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Jan 1, 2023 thru Sat, Jan 7, 2023. Story of the Week Scientists Report a Dramatic Drop in the Extent of Antarctic Sea Ice Links between global warming and the decline of sea ...
About half an hour ago, I became a very happy writer. My long-running effort at writing a sequel to Wise Phuul has finally borne fruit. Specifically, the draft manuscript for Old Phuul – starring Teltö’s elder sister, Rhea Phuul – is now complete at 102,172 words. This ...
The Green Party has a habit of sabotaging their election-year campaigns, risking electoral oblivion. Could the same thing happen in 2023? The last two election campaigns were particularly painful for the party. In 2017 then co-leader Metiria Turei had her story about her past as a welfare beneficiary unravel during ...
Open access notables In Conservation Biology, snapshots of two books that will probably launch a lot of objections, one by Vaclav Smil and the other yet more Bill Gates. Two doses of carbon budget realism review author Vojtech Novotny sums them up: "Sober assessments of our options for reducing carbon emissions in ...
Pundits have been making their political forecasts for the year ahead. Here are some of their predictions about what we can expect in 2023. The Big issues of 2023: Economy and ethnicity There’s a consensus that the political year, and especially the election campaign, will centre around the economy, with ...
I watched this movie three times in two days so you wouldn’t have to (but should anyway, it’s exquisite). You should definitely watch it at least once before reading this even if you don’t care about spoilers because most of this doesn’t give much context. Note “Children ...
Members of Parliament for the Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand have today written to Iran’s Grand Ayatollah Khamenei to condemn the ongoing violence and killing of women’s rights and democracy protesters, and to call on him to intervene immediately. ...
The 2023 General Election will be held on Saturday 14 October 2023, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced today. “Announcing the election date early in the year provides New Zealanders with certainty and has become the practice of this Government and the previous one, and I believe is best practice,” Jacinda ...
Jacinda Ardern has announced she will step down as Prime Minister and Leader of the Labour Party. Her resignation will take effect on the appointment of a new Prime Minister. A caucus vote to elect a new Party Leader will occur in 3 days’ time on Sunday the 22nd of ...
The Government is maintaining its strong trade focus in 2023 with Trade and Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor visiting Europe this week to discuss the role of agricultural trade in climate change and food security, WTO reform and New Zealand agricultural innovation. Damien O’Connor will travel tomorrow to Switzerland to attend the ...
The Government has extended its medium-scale classification of Cyclone Hale to the Wairarapa after assessing storm damage to the eastern coastline of the region. “We’re making up to $80,000 available to the East Coast Rural Support Trust to help farmers and growers recover from the significant damage in the region,” ...
The Government is making an initial contribution of $150,000 to the Mayoral Relief Fund to help communities in Tairāwhiti following ex-Tropical Cyclone Hale, Minister for Emergency Management Kieran McAnulty announced. “While Cyclone Hale has caused widespread heavy rain, flooding and high winds across many parts of the North Island, Tairāwhiti ...
Rural Communities Minister Damien O’Connor has classified this week’s Cyclone Hale that caused significant flood damage across the Tairāwhiti/Gisborne District as a medium-scale adverse event, unlocking Government support for farmers and growers. “We’re making up to $100,000 available to help coordinate efforts as farmers and growers recover from the heavy ...
A vaccine for people at risk of mpox (Monkeypox) will be available if prescribed by a medical practitioner to people who meet eligibility criteria from Monday 16 January, says Associate Minister of Health Dr Ayesha Verrall. 5,000 vials of the vaccine have been obtained, enough for up to 20,000 ...
The Government is seeking feedback on measures to help reduce the number of young people vaping. “Youth vaping is becoming increasingly popular, with many choosing to vape despite never having smoked,” Associate Health Minister Dr Ayesha Verrall said. “Alongside our efforts to reduce tobacco smoking, we want to ensure vaping ...
The Government is reiterating its advice to all international travellers to do a Covid test if they become symptomatic after arrival, while also stepping up awareness of free RATs available at airports, Covid-19 Response Minister Dr Ayesha Verrall says. “This follows growing global concerns, including from the World Health Organisation ...
ANALYSIS:By Richard Naidu Who’s broken the law? “Separation of powers” and all that stuff. Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum’s hour-long news conference on Saturday, January 21, seems mostly to have followed the usual FijiFirst party format. He pontificated at length while his party’s MPs stood silently behind him. From what I could ...
ANALYSIS:By Richard Naidu Who’s broken the law? “Separation of powers” and all that stuff. Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum’s hour-long news conference on Saturday, January 21, seems mostly to have followed the usual FijiFirst party format. He pontificated at length while his party’s MPs stood silently behind him. From what I could ...
They say a week is a long time in politics—what a week it’s been. Jacinda Ardern’s resignation as Prime Minister shocked many, given that she said she had “no plans to quit her job.” Her resignation wasn’t the only surprise; now we have a new ...
An online hate tracker found Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern was the target of 93 percent of toxic posts against seven high profile politicians and officials, with a total of 5438 abusive messages. ...
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 A new poll has given Labor a sizeable 56% to 44% two-party preferred lead over the Coalition, two months ahead of the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Hunter, Lecturer in Art and Performance, Deakin University Pia Johnson/Melbourne Theatre CompanyReview: Sunday, directed by Anne-Louise Sarks, Melbourne Theatre Company Sunday is a glimpse into the private world of the philanthropist and art patron Sunday Reed. Sunday, ...
Our morning news shows are back for another year. Tara Ward tuned in bright and early to bring us these highlights. There’s only one place to turn for your life lessons these days, and that is breakfast television. It’s the only show where you can learn about inflation and ...
For those of you wondering where the typical Monday Covid stat release is, you’re a day early. Due to Wellington Anniversary Day, the Ministry of Health has held off publishing the weekly Covid numbers. They should be released tomorrow at the usual time of 1pm. Last week saw close to ...
Books editor Claire Mabey offers some bibliotherapy for when Jacinda Ardern can flick on her out of office and enjoy a cuppa tea and a lie down.If anyone deserves to lounge in a deckchair by the pool with a tangy cocktail and a stack of books, it’s soon-to-be-former prime ...
We have allowed a prime minister to be subjected to an unprecedented level of violent, sexist attacks – it would only be worse if they were Māori, writes Tina Ngata.A version of this article was first published on the author’s website.When I first heard that prime minister Ardern ...
Alex Casey speaks to the driving force behind Send Our Socks about his “audacious” goal to send thousands of NZ-made wool socks to Ukraine. Last year Wellington advertising creative Chris Childerhouse was reading news from Ukraine and, like many of us, feeling a deep sense of despair. “I just couldn’t ...
In the wake of Thursday’s astonishing announcement, Duncan Greive sits down with Jacinda Ardern biographer Mad Chapman and Gone By Lunchtime host Toby Manhire to discuss Ardern’s complicated relationship with both mainstream and social media. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Parwinder Kaur, Associate Professor | Director, DNA Zoo Australia, The University of Western Australia Conor O’Reagan/Unsplash For years, scientists have known bird flu kills every black swan it infects. This means if the disease made it to the Australian continent, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emma Beckett, Senior Lecturer (Food Science and Human Nutrition), School of Environmental and Life Sciences, University of Newcastle Shutterstock Parents of young children today were raised during some of the most damaging periods of diet culture. From diet and “lite” ...
In the digital age, online activity can be a conduit for abusive behaviours. But secure digital tools can also offer a lifeline for victims. It’s no secret that New Zealand has a family violence epidemic, with one third of women physically or sexually assaulted by a partner over their lifetimes. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tanya Latty, Associate professor, University of Sydney Shutterstock Have you ever been in the garden and found a large, white, C-shaped grub with a distinctive brown head and six legs clustered near the head? If so, you’ve had an ...
RNZ News Incoming Prime Minister Chris Hipkins of Aotearoa New Zealand has signalled tackling the “inflation pandemic” will be a top priority for his cabinet’s slimmed-down work programme. Hipkins and new Deputy Prime Minister Carmel Sepuloni — the first with a Pasifika heritage — will take the reins on Wednesday, ...
By Susana Suisuiki, RNZ Pacific journalist More than 100 activist groups, including Greenpeace, Veterans for Peace, and the Arms Control Association have signed a letter calling on US President Joe Biden to apologise for nuclear tests conducted in the Marshall Islands. The letter urges Biden to deliver on promises his ...
Some major (to some of you, anyway) news that understandably got buried during the flurry at the end of last week: M3GAN will officially have a sequel. The comedy-horror film was helmed by New Zealand’s own Gerard Johnstone, with local young actress Amie Donald in the starring role as killer ...
Chris Hipkins has revealed he had a bit of forewarning that the prime minister was considering her future. It came as a shock to many when Jacinda Ardern announced she would be stepping down as PM on Thursday last week. While she formally told her caucus earlier that day, Hipkins, ...
New statistics reveal that nearly 40% of Pasifika people live in a home that’s short on bedrooms. Sela Jane Hopgood takes you into her overcrowded family home and asks whether it’s large extended families that are the problem.It’s no secret in Aotearoa that the majority of Pasifika people come ...
While we wait for sensible drug law reform, we can thank our lucky stars for the NZ Drug Foundation and the lifesaving – or at the very least, bad-trip-preventing – work they do testing drugs at music festivals. Aotearoa’s summers are typically marked by an influx of sketchy party drugs ...
National party leader Christopher Luxon responded to the news of Labour’s leadership change by saying that the new prime minister has been part of a government which has not delivered. Speaking to media yesterday, Luxon said he sent his congratulations to the new PM by text. “There is not change, it is ...
New Zealand needs a government who "can get things done" but Christopher Luxon wouldn't go as far as to say he would beat the new prime minister in this year's election. ...
Dr Bryce Edwards writes: The days of the Labour Government being associated with middle class social liberalism look to be numbered. Soon-to-be Prime Minister Chris Hipkins and Deputy Prime Minister Carmel Sepuloni are heralding a major shift in emphasis away from the constituencies and ideologies of liberal Grey ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards. Political Roundup: Labour shifts focus from Grey Lynn to West AucklandChris Hipkins, Minister of Education, speaking at NZEI Te Riu Roa strike rally on the steps of the New Zealand Parliament, 15th August 2018. Then, Labour Party deputy leader Kelvin Davis looks on. Image; Wiki ...
Chris Hipkins as doubled down on his intentions to rein in government projects and “run a ruler” over the work programme. It’s the day after Hipkins was officially voted in as Labour Party leader and presumptive prime minister. He’ll officially be sworn in on Wednesday, following attendance – alongside Jacinda ...
Yesterday’s press conference from Chris Hipkins sent some very clear signals as New Zealand’s new prime minister hits the ground running this week, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday morning, sign up here. Chris Hipkins, prime minister ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alice Clement, Research Associate in the College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University Elia Pellegrini/Unsplash Many of us are returning to work or school after spending time with relatives over the summer period. Sometimes we can be left wondering how on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Duncan McDonnell, Professor of Politics, Griffith University Shutterstock The Liberal Party’s recently published review of the 2022 federal election defeat does not mince words: the party has a problem with women. The party has struggled to connect with women voters in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Joshua Trigg, Research Fellow in Public Health, Flinders University Olena Bohovyk/Pexels You’ve dropped your daughter off at her friend’s house and while cleaning the car, you find what looks like a USB drive on the passenger seat. It’s a disposable vape. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ivor Stuart, Fisheries ecologist, Charles Sturt University Ivor Stuart/The Conversation With widespread La Niña flooding in the Murray-Darling Basin, common carp (Cyprinus carpio) populations are having a boom year. Videos of writhing masses of both adult and young fish illustrate ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jim Stanford, Economist and Director, Centre for Future Work, Australia Institute; Honorary Professor of Political Economy, University of Sydney A long overdue public debate has started in Australia about “free riding” in industrial relations – when non-union members benefit from collective agreements ...
The Labour Party has entered a new era with the election of Chris Hipkins as prime minister and Carmel Sepuloni as his deputy, writes Jane Patterson. ...
The stand-off continues, a petition is underway and one expert is fired up. The abandoned trolley situation appears to be worse than anyone realised. Ellen Schindler has a good life. From her Sandringham home, she doesn’t work, instead spending most of her time volunteering at local organisations and tending to ...
On Wednesday a new prime minister will be sworn in, but he promises to have hit the ground running already. And the tone was palpably reset yesterday, writes Toby Manhire from parliament.When parties vote in a new leader, there is sometimes a push to fill the stage with MPs, ...
By Rashika Kumar in Suva Fijian national, jurist and lawyer Imrana Jalal has been awarded the Ruth Bader Ginsburg Medal of Honour by the World Jurists Association. The award is given in recognition of inspiring women jurists who fight to defend and strengthen the rule of law, and to consolidate ...
By Pekai Kotoisuva in Suva Arriving late to court, poor court etiquette and lack of respect are signs that the level of ethics among Fiji lawyers has dropped over the years, says the Attorney-General. Attorney-General Siromi Turaga highlighted this during a panel discussion at the Fiji Law Society (FLS) convention ...
A former intelligence worker says the PM faces an "unprecedented level of threat," driven by the enroachment of US-style politics and conspiracies. ...
The Labour Party has leapt on board the meme-wagon by offering up for auction the cap and sunglasses worn by Chris Hipkins in the interview with Newshub’s Amelia Wade on the streets of Napier Friday morning. It quickly went viral, mostly because of an ensemble that, if nothing else, confirmed ...
The new leader of the Labour Party has asked New Zealanders to respect his family's privacy as he prepares to be sworn-in as New Zealand's 41st prime minister next week. ...
New Zealand has a new deputy prime minister. What’s her deal? New prime minister Chris Hipkins has confirmed that Carmel Sepuloni will take up the role of deputy prime minister. Here’s the backstory. New Zealand’s first Pasifika deputy prime minister Sepuloni has a Sāmoan-Tongan father and Pākehā mother. She has ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leaders Rawiri Waititi and Debbie Ngarewa-Packer have expressed disappointment that tangata whenua were “overlooked” in the deciding and naming of the new prime minister and deputy prime minister. At 3pm, Chris Hipkins said that he was unanimously supported by Labour’s caucus and confirmed Carmel Sepuloni as the ...
Incoming prime minister Chris Hipkins and new deputy PM Carmel Sepuloni are promising to rein in some government programs that are less "essential", after quickly establishing their new leadership team. ...
"New leader, same story," says National party leader Christopher Luxon after Chris Hipkins and Carmel Sepuloni were confirmed as the new prime minister and deputy today. ...
LIVE Incoming prime minister Chris Hipkins says his new role is the biggest privilege, and responsibility, of his life. Chris Hipkins has today been confirmed as New Zealand’s 41st prime minister, pending the official resignation of Jacinda Ardern in the coming days. Speaking to media, flanked by his new deputy ...
Chris Hipkins and Carmel Sepuloni are set to give their first press conference since being confirmed as incoming prime minister and deputy. The pair were voted into their new positions by Labour’s caucus at a closed doors meeting earlier this afternoon. Hipkins was the only nominee for the position of ...
Welcome to a special Sunday edition of The Spinoff’s live updates as we mark the confirmation of New Zealand’s next prime minister: Chris Hipkins. Stewart Sowman-Lund is on deck from Auckland, with Toby Manhire on the ground in Wellington. Get in touch at [email protected] ...
While there will be a new deputy prime minister, Labour’s current party deputy – Kelvin Davis – will remain in the role. In a slightly unusual turn, Labour opted to differentiate the roles of deputy prime minister and deputy party leader after the 2020 election. Davis’s role was confirmed by ...
Grant Robertson will not stay on as deputy prime minister under new leader Chris Hipkins. The incoming prime minister will address media at 3pm, alongside his new deputy Carmel Sepuloni. The minister for social development has been confirmed to be taking up the number two slot after a closed doors ...
Prime minister-to-be Chris Hipkins has arrived at parliament, joined by outgoing leader Jacinda Ardern. The pair were cheered on by their Labour caucus colleagues as they entered a closed doors meeting at parliament. Here are the all important timings for today. We’ll have coverage from on the ground in Wellington ...
A look back at the horror stories Erin Harrington devoured as a tween reveals some unsettling truths.A while ago I was digging through the musty outdoor book fridge on Kilmore Street – take one, leave one, don’t be messy – when I felt something like a snag, a little ...
Two drug dealers can coexist in perfect peace, as long as they keep to either side of a small girl’s home.One was twenty-something and the other probably 60. They both mostly sold weed, a humble drug and a favourite in our community. Everyone’s parents did it, even my own. ...
These very hungry caterpillars are eating me out of house and home. I dreamt about caterpillars the other night. Fat wriggly beasties, ringed in black, white and yellow, squirming over my fingers. I was in the garden, carefully picking them up from the soil and placing them onto a plant. ...
Analysis - While Chris Hipkins is all but confirmed as our next prime minister, there is less certainty in the race to be his deputy. Newsroom's Sam Sachdeva looks at the factors the next Labour leader will need to consider, and some of t ...
ANALYSIS:By Brett Wilkins As Julian Assange awaits the final appeal of his looming extradition to the United States while languishing behind bars in London’s notorious Belmarsh Prison, leading left luminaries and free press advocates gathered in Washington, DC, on Friday for the fourth sitting of the Belmarsh Tribunal, where ...
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced on January 19 that she would resign as Prime Minister by February 7. Currently, she does not see anything unusual about him participating in the next elections and remaining in his position as Prime ...
In a shock announcement on Thursday, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern told the media she would step down from the position by February 7 and leave parliament in April. After more than five years leading the Labour Party-led government, Ardern ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Grant Duncan, Associate Professor, School of People, Environment and Planning, Massey University Getty Images Following the surprise resignation of Jacinda Ardern on January 19, the New Zealand Labour Party already has a new leader: Chris Hipkins. The handover from Ardern ...
It is unusual for a politician to admit they are burnt out - but it's not surprising that the stress of leading a country can take its toll on leaders, from Austria to Estonia. ...
RNZ News Chris Hipkins says the opportunity to become Prime Minister of Aotearoa New Zealand is the biggest privilege of his life and his eyes are wide open for the challenges that lie ahead. Hipkins began a media briefing today by saying: “I can confirm that I have put my ...
By Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific journalist A second group of refugees detained in offshore Australian detention camps have arrived in New Zealand. Four people touched down on a flight yesterday. “I’m happy for them that they can get their freedom,” a friend of the recent arrivals who is still detained ...
By Miriam Zarriga in Port Moresby Since the start of Papua New Guinea’s Operation Stabilising Oro last month, 22 rape, murder and armed robbery suspects have been to date charged — and more are to follow. There is also an estimated backlog of 105 outstanding cases that will be attended ...
Chris Hipkins says the opportunity to become Prime Minister is the biggest privilege of his life and his eyes are wide open for the challenges that lie ahead. ...
Chris Hipkins says a previously announced cabinet reshuffle will continue, and has been given a new impetus following Jacinda Ardern's resignation. ...
Chris Hipkins is the sole nominee to become the Labour Party Leader, Labour Whip Duncan Webb announced this morning. “The Labour Party caucus will meet at 1pm on Sunday to endorse the nomination and confirm Chris Hipkins as Party Leader,” Duncan ...
In his maiden speech, Chris Hipkins described himself as a "genuine Hutt boy", how have his constituents reacted to the news he is the next Prime Minister? ...
The lettuce won.
Lettuce GAIN from Conservatives
44 days!
As the daughter of a grocer, Thatcher knew better how long a lettuce would last.
Thatcher had one trick up her sleeve (i.e. in her handbag): hairspray. Image is everything. Boris could have used Brylcreem and he’d still be leader of the party partying in 10 Downing Street.
Who was funding the lettuce's makeup appears to be the real politic here.
thatcher was kept in power by general pinochet,
Bye
Edit:
Oh dear…
heh
Good to see you practicing farewells, Joe. You have a momentous one coming up next year.
I'm sure it'll trickle down.
/
Liz Truss will receive a yearly £115,000 allowance for the rest of her life despite her short stint as Prime Minister.
https://www.businessinsider.com/liz-truss-eligible-allowance-prime-minister-resignation-uk-2022-10
Arise Lord Boris and save them.
Yep they say Boris may run again!
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/liz-truss-quits-as-uk-prime-minister-reports-boris-johnson-will-run-again/XJAOB5PE6UONVAESOCTT5DZSY4/
He will need 100 MPs to nominate him. Not impossible but very unlikely, because the "anyone but Johnson" majority would coalesce around one candidate … somebody they only dislike, not loathe.
so, should judith collins play the english grandmother card,?
They could always just stick with the current caretaker PM, Larry. He's the only one at #10 who has consistently met his job expectations.
Easier said than done.
Truss exceeded expectations. Tories would fare better leaderless and focussing their attention on the nation rather than on internal petty party politics. 10 Downing Street is becoming a closet of failed attempts at greatness and only political corpses come out recently. I think David was the best British PM in living memory.
The true winner of the soft coup addresses the British people.
Good explanatory thread showing why class analysis matters, and that talking about differences in privilege at the class level is not the same as talking about individuals (something some of the replies fail to grasp).
Weka. I don't see this as talking about 'class' (as in socio-economic class) at all, it's talking about ethnicity and (possibly) culture.
Am I misunderstanding your usage of 'class analysis' here?
yes, you are. I'm referring to class as the collective of people that have shared attributes that mean certain things as a group.
There's the analysis that there are three classes that are exploited by capitalism (especially by labour) for the purposes of continuing capitalism: socioeconomic, biological sex, and race/ethnicity.
In this instance, Godfrey is referring to Pākehā, more specifically the people whose ancestors came from Europe (Caucasians), and Māori. That's the class of ethnicity. He also talks about socioeconomic impacts on Māori, but as a group, demographically.
If you don't have a class analysis, then this statement doesn't make sense,
and leads to people making a counter argument of "I'm Pākehā and I'm poor, so were my parents and grandparents, we don't have that benefit". And that blinds the conversation to how working class Pākehā have benefited despite being working class. It also tends to lead people to thinking in either/or, whereas obviously working class people don't have the benefits of middle or professional classes.
This post is about the differences between class oppression and discrimination, but it also talks about the three classes whose labour is exploited.
.https://thestandard.org.nz/class-oppression-and-discrimination/
"This isn’t because Pākehā people are racist selfishly guarding their inherited advantages"…not sure I agree with that…why does he think half or more voters in this country vote National/Act?..has he ever worked on a large construction site?..I can tell you from first hand experience that give yourself a few days to get embedded on most sites around the country and you will slowly start to hear some pretty crazy racist shit start casually coming out of peoples mouths…and you can be sure many offices around the country are the same…racism is still deeply embedded in the NZ psych, of that I am sure, and you might be surprised were you still find it…I know I still get taken by surprise by it pretty regularly.
read his thread again. He's not saying that there are no racist people in NZ, nor that racism by individuals isn't still a problem.
Taking soundbites out of context is usually a bad idea.
I didn't take it out context…it's what he said at the start of a line of thread to contextualize his own argument/point.
must be a different reason for you not understanding what he is saying then.
I understand and agree with most of what he is saying, I just don't agree with that part.
go ahead then, make your argument for why he is wrong when he says that Māori are demographically disadvantaged compared to Pākehā across a number of areas, and it's not because contemporary Pākehā are racist and selfishly guarding their inherited advantages, but rather because historical forces particularly the settler state are more powerful than individuals.
You’ve already said that there are Pākehā that are racist, but that doesn’t explain how MG is wrong (he hasn’t said that there are no racist Pākehā).
We must be talking at crossed purposes because I am saying that (many) “Pākehā are racist and selfishly guarding their inherited advantages” but I also strongly agree that “historical forces particularly the settler state are more powerful than individuals”(In most, but not all circumstances)…but holding one of those positions does not negate the other as far as I can see…both those things are existing side by side as we speak IMO.
Sure. So please make the argument that supports the assertion that most Pākehā are racist and selfishly guarding their inherited advantages.
That there are racist Pākehā doesn't mean that most Pākehā are racist and selfishly guarding their inherited advantages in the context of his thread. You may be right, I just haven’t seen the argument yet.
You'd also need to provide some evidence that half of NZ votes National because they're racist and selfishly guarding their inherited advantages. As opposed to being right wing, or believing in right wing politics (which again doesn't mean that racism isn't also an issue). Let's not forget that Doug Graham (Nat Minister for Treaty Settlements) did much to advance the modern treaty process in the 90s.
It is a holiday here in the Bay so I am going out to ride some hills and valley roads now, will answer when I get back…as long as I haven’t stupidly ridden myself into the ground which I have a bad habit of doing to myself for unknown reasons.
We can all revel in the delicious fall of a Tory extremist, but it worth remembering the fall of Truss is a sombre illustration that centrists are more hostile to democracy than either the populist left or right. It probably shouldn't surprise us – our MSM is full of cynical and savvy members of the centrist pundocracy who pronounce themselves exhausted by the demands of vigorous democracy, contemptuous of voters, contemptuous of the politically engaged, and longing for a "safe pair of hands" to calm the markets, sooth the bankers and reassure the property owning haute bourgeoisie.
Truss fell for the same reason Jeremy Corbyn was done in – she was elected by her party members, thus becoming an irritant that is nowadays unacceptable to the incestuous Oxbridge ruling class in Britains increasingly corrupt and decayed managed democracy. Wet Tories joined with centrists and liberals in forming a claque applauding a soft coup in the name of "the markets".
So we on the left should be a bit muted in our cheering on of the fall of Truss. Most of the media hallelujahs are to the effect that "orthodoxy" has been restored. "The markets" have seen off "ideologues". But the situation in the UK, and in the wider failing neoliberal project everywhere, is unstable as neoliberal orthodoxy doesn't command the widespread support it used to – as evidenced by the Corbyn insurrection and the eruption of Truss.
Centrists will likely find their hopes for a restoration of orthodoxy dashed, and their insistence that the masses withdraw from political activity and find relief in the administrative rule of technocrats is becoming increasingly untenable.
I sure ain't cheering. The UK is the 5th largest economy in the world, one of the leading remaining democracies, one of the most sustainable, and still a critical global power.
Britain is being seriously destabilised when we need every strong coherent state on the planet working together, not fucking things up.
First, the disintegration, then the coalescing.
and preparing for both, as we go.
UK is not the 5th largest economy anymore (BREXIT-related?):
Not that it changes your argument.
I've been thinking about this. For all the moaning here in NZ we've had more or less continuous growth since the GFC. For the UK (and Europe in general) however the GFC was an inflexion point – a crisis after which things did not return to normal.
The UK has essentially had a stagnant/declining economy for going on fifteen years. How much have the economies of Austrlai and NZ grown in the time?
@Sanctuary, Exactly right +1
Corbyn lasted 5 years not 6 weeks and, but for that flash-in-the-pan Davidson woman in Scotland, would have won a general election and been PM.
The scoffing and derision is going on and will go on about government in the UK.
Somewhat of a contrast though isn't it. The extraordinary constitutional crisis, if that's what it could be called, compared to the US situation one in the recent past. (And in many ways continuing.)
Albeit much of it happened behind closed doors, there was a full frontal attack to usurp power in the US. Clearly lawmakers at many levels were involved or supported it, support it.
How many threads and how fine were they which saw the unthinkable not happen?
For all of her inaptness and the dire straits which saw Truss bite the bullet, the last guy in America, how did he go in the when the writing was on the wall?
Pricks intend using their Ukrainian hostages as human shields.
Oct 19 (Reuters) – Russian-installed authorities in the occupied Ukrainian region of Kherson said on Wednesday that they plan to evacuate around 50,000-60,000 people over the next six days amid escalating pressure from a Ukrainian counteroffensive.
Russian-installed governor Vladimir Saldo said authorities were moving civilians to the left (east) bank of the Dnipro River in order to "keep people safe" and allow the military to "act resolutely".
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russia-evacuate-10000-day-ukraines-kherson-region-2022-10-19/
Turns out there are still one or two Extreme Right elements still operating within the Ukraine military…..which is strange because according to various commentators on this forum the Far Right problem widely acknowledged and reported on before this conflict by the BBC, Aljazeera, Vice, New Statesman, Time and many others as being deeply embedded within the Ukraine politics and their military has apparently been all taken care of…though we are still waiting for neutral links from these Standard members to prove those bold assertions…
Ukrainian paratroopers singing “Our father is Bandera, our mother is Ukraine”
Ukrainian military chief photographed with far-right paraphernalia
Tank with German, Ukrainian and Azov insignia spotted in Ukraine
Any way I will take it from them that no one should have any concerns nor even mention the possibility of the downstream blowback from the thousands of fully armed, battle hardened Far Right fighters who will be left standing at the end of this pointless war….you know how like arming Islamic extremists in Afghanistan during the 1980s ended in peace and tranquillity for the rest of the world…I mean seriously, what could go wrong I wonder?
You guillable fool. Just by reading your post I know those three links are widely discredited as faked Russian propaganda.
The first are Russians.
The second and third are obvious deep fake image manipulation.
I am at loss why people seem so keen to be useful idiots for Russian disinformation. Remember the purpose of Russian propaganda is create doubt, sow uncertainty and demoralise through defelection, whatabboutism and false equivalence.
Yep it's all fake…you just keep on telling yourself that….oh that's right you don't need too..all those MSM news sites (linked to above) that only a short while ago told you that there was a serious Right Wing problem in the Ukraine, are now telling you there isn't…isn't that strange and bizarre? ….holy shit what a chump you are.
Show us all just one serious neutral link that proves Zelenskyy has dealt with the proven (by your Liberal MSM sources I might add) Far Right problem in Ukraine or more specifically the military….if you or others cannot supply us with that one neutral link…then you all have no argument….just empty rhetoric.
Is there such a thing as useful idiots of Ukrainian propaganda? Considering all mainstream coverage we get is pro-Ukrainian, and any independent journalism going against this narrative is sidelined. Shouldnt that make it obvious where the propaganda is coming from?
Re; "Show us all just one serious neutral link that proves Zelenskyy has dealt with the proven Far Right problem in Ukraine or more specifically the military"
…no I didn't think so….This is the third thread that I have asked for any link to verify that claim..you and the rest have failed to deliver because there is no link or links, and never was…just more pro war Western propaganda that you want to believe..so you do…without question.
It is pretty damn obvious that you (and many others) have been so conditioned over time, by the relentless propaganda around Russia (and China too for that matter) spewed out over the past half decade that now you either cannot or will not, and actually often seem to just outright refuse to even try and analyze any facet of the Ukraine war with any sort of critical judgment whatsoever….kind of crazy to watch people in so deep they don't know which way is up or down anymore.
there are extreme right elements in every military, its there natural home, as is the police.
Yeah that's true, but not too many of them get to form their very own offical battalions with their very own Waffen SS inspired unit banners and insignia to wear and to fight under…
"Russian-installed governor Vladimir Saldo said authorities were moving civilians to the left (east) bank of the Dnipro River in order to "keep people safe" and allow the military to "act resolutely".
This statement made my blood run cold. The right bank of the Dnipr river is characterised by high bluffs that over look the left bak, which is flat. It seems to me the the Russian are moving people to the left bak of the river with the clear threat that if the Ukrainains keep attacking and seize Nova Kakhova they'll blow up the massive Kakhovka dam and release a torrent from the Reservoir and drown thousdands of civilians deliberately placed there.
your comment makes no sense whateva sanc especially since Ukraine has been shelling and otherwise attacking that dam for weeks !! Why are they doing that ?? trying to beat the russkies to it ???
Hears some up to date info you might like to look at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqV1ts5TIPE
/
/
It makes sense because Russia has form of destroying dams in pursuit of military advantage – they struck the Oskil reservoir dam to isolate one of the Ukrainian bridgeheads across the Seversky Dinets River. Ukrainian helicopters ferried supplies to the isolated troops however, so the invaders were not able to overrun them.
An obvious use of the same tactic on the Dnipro River is to cover their retreat as they abandon Kherson. The last thing a retreating army needs is an enemy hot on their heels, picking off the stragglers.
Superpower policy is often dominated by spite. Russian destruction of this dam would cause lasting damage to Ukraine, and, having been trounced, Putin is feeling very spiteful. Unlike tactical nukes, dam busting has no specific international consequences.
Cant really see it stuart and i think " trounced " is a ridiculous word to use under the circumstances after all if Ukraine broke through russian lines in the north it was only because that was where the line was thinnest and ukraine by most accounts paid a very heavy price for gains made .Since then the lines have hardly moved save for the regions where russia is making gains .
Time will tell i guess and anyway its foolish to make grand statements about outcomes within the ebb an flow of war dont you think ?
Seems evident to me that Russia plays the long game but really what the fuck do i know? or for that matter any of us ? we are not there and are at the mercy of those who ply us with information .Trust nothing and apply the pinch of salt !!
Cant really see it stuart
The attack on Oskil is referenced by both sides.
i think " trounced " is a ridiculous word
Oh – do you prefer decimated or routed?
save for the regions where russia is making gains
And where, pray tell us, do you imagine that is? It is clearly nowhere in Ukraine.
Seems evident to me that Russia plays the long game
A four-day operation that goes over two hundred days could certainly be considered long – but there is little evidence of strategy.
"I have heard of military operations that were clumsy but swift, but I have never seen one that was skillful and lasted a long time." ~ Sun Tzu
"Those who use the military skillfully do not raise troops twice."
but really what the fuck do i know?
Out of the mouths of babes.
"And where pray tell us do you imagine that is ? clearly nowhere in Ukraine "
for you stuart here is the latest military summery
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqV1ts5TIPE
and another for good measure
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wz0M4dXmAtw
Hmm… I generally avoid pure propaganda sites like that Weston – you know, the kind that make unsupported allegations that Ukraine is planning to destroy the Dnipro dam. It is Ukraine's dam, and once the invasion is merely an horrific memory, they intend to use it to produce electricity once more.
The allegation is merely intended to provide a bit of deniability – credulous people like yourself repeating the lie after Russia destroys the dam, to suppress the outrage at targeting civilian infrastructure, and using an, albeit unconventional, weapon of mass destruction.
You are some considerable way from supporting your assertion, much less offering good measure.
Wanna lay out for us joe a scenario where Russia could possibly profit from blowing this dam ?
Its pretty apparent how it would benefit Ukraine as a precurser to an offensive
What do you think ?
Apparently Russia wants to flood Kherson, an area that Russia just fought for, allowed the vote in, and just became part of Russia. The logic is mind boggling…
Scorched earth and covering up the evidence.
Indications are that they're packing up and leaving with their tails between their legs and because every time Russian forces leave, evidence of war crimes is found.
And they've done it before.
https://uatv.ua/en/78-years-ago-soviets-blown-dnieper-hydroelectric-station-dam/
And they've done it before !!! he thunders, as if unblocking a canal which supplied water to two an a half million civilians was a crime !!!!
I dont know exactly when Ukrainian nationalists dammed that canal but they damned themselves in the process .As one can see from the date stamp on the reuters article russian troops unblocked the canal not two days after the invasion which shows clearly the importance given to the task .In fact it would have been another of the provocations Russia had to invade in the first place .
exactly maui
The hypocrisy of this Labour government : 36 billion of land sold to foreign buyers in last 12 months nz herald 21 oct 22
please provide a link (even if it is paywalled).
Front page and business section page A26 A27 under land hungry article. NZ Herald 21 oct 22
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/foreigners-double-appetite-for-nz-land-buy-area-same-size-as-arthurs-pass-national-park/UK7PZCA5XTE274JFPBAUPTXQEY/
I think we need better info than responding to a clickbait headline.
"The answer will surprise you … !!". It usually doesn't.
I cannot read the clickbait behind the paywall. In the previous financial year 2020-2021 the total net hectares of land sales approved by OIO was 16,341. Even doubling that would not go anywhere near the area of Arthur’s Pass National Park.
https://www.linz.govt.nz/resources/briefing/overseas-investment-office-decision-statistics-202021
How much does NZH pay those numpties to spread disinformation?
From behind the paywall:
''Foreigners more than doubled their appetite for New Zealand land in the latest year, buying an area equivalent to a South Island national park.
The 111,674 hectares or 1116 square kilometres of land that overseas entities bought between September 2021 and August this year is about the same size as Arthur's Pass National Park, the rugged, 1185sq km mountainous area straddling the Southern Alps.
Toitū Te Whenua Land Information New Zealand provided details of the transactions approved by the Overseas Investment Office in the year to August.
In the previous year to August 2021, foreigners bought 46,000ha. The year before that, to August 2020, 70,148ha of land was bought. Now the numbers are up to 111,674ha.
The volume of overseas investment approvals showed a post-Covid bounceback: 122 applications were approved in the August 2020 year, remaining almost static at 124 for the August 2021 year, but rising to 152 applications approved in the latest year to August.''
As I suspected, clearly a highly misleading piece from the NZH.
What is misleading about it?
Are you saying the numbers are false. If so what are the real ones.
If it is something else that makes you think it is misleading what is that "something else".
Read my comments and start using your brain.
A heck of a lot of it is foreigners selling to foreigners (i.e. the land was already in foreign ownership)
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/foreigners-double-appetite-for-nz-land-buy-area-same-size-as-arthurs-pass-national-park/UK7PZCA5XTE274JFPBAUPTXQEY/?c_id=3&objectid=12559260&ref=rss
The ones which were Kiwi companies selling to foreign interests, seem to be mostly around forestry. Whether that's a good or a bad thing…..
Just checked, and it is Herald premium.
The first Kiwi owned land sale was no. 3 in size:
“3. 3400ha: Kiwis sell forestry interests to Germans
Ponga Silva (49 per cent German, 18 per cent British) won consent to buy Mangatarata Forest, Mangatarata Station, Mata Forest, Onetohunga Forest and Te Rawhiti Forest – around Tauwhareparae in the Gisborne district – from Kiwi interests.
“The applicant is acquiring a freehold interest in approximately 3466ha of land comprising four adjoining forests, including several forestry rights registered over the freehold land,” said the Overseas investment Office. Approval was granted last October, with the sale price suppressed.”
I've got a lot of time for Dave Letele – and think he does a whole lot of practical good in the world.
So, like a lot of Aucklanders, I was pretty horrified to see that his foodbank had been robbed, in what was clearly a theft-for-sale, rather than a theft-because-someone-was-hungry.
So it is heart-warming to see two things come out of it:
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/kahu/buttabean-foodbank-burglary-good-samaritans-to-the-rescue-with-donations/42AVZ47JZVAZFTK7REAPF7U5PY/?c_id=1&objectid=12560187&ref=rss
Yes. In an ideal world, there would be no need for foodbanks. But we're not in an ideal world.
And, yes, I put my money where my mouth is – and made an extra donation (Buttabean is already one of the charities I donate to).
What will happen to the New Zealand economy if as seems likely China's economy simply stops growing or is 1-3% GDP growth, for as far as the eye can see?
China's Faltering Economy Causes Political Shocks (foreignpolicy.com)
Where China goes, Australia and New Zealand wealth goes.
Presumably our Treasury and NZSuper are doing their own country impact analysis. They'd better.
If you can believe it, some Tories are already planning to overthrow the winner of this contest regardless of who it is.
i am one of those that say that the protests for trains and no oil and such need to happen on the parliaments lawn. Joe/Jane Wrokingforacrustandtopayrent/mortgage really don't have the time nor the humor to deal with these well meaning people.
so file this under shit has consequences in three acts.
One: a tweet from someone in nz
Act two: , curious me checking if this is real or not – it is.
Act three: woe betide me!
This is a dude who is a Researcher in social psychology, so one would assume that he has a bit of a brain and is fairly well educated. So when he thought that gluing himself into that position how far did he think? did he think about going to the loo, eating food, causing potential blood clods? Did he think it made him heroic? Did he think other people had to accommodate his 'protest'?
In the meantime, private planes flying a few persons to places for no reasons or because people are rich and can afford too and it would be a fun little happy maker. In the meantime, people camp for the opening of a KMART filled with crap shipped from china and elsewhere to get a little dopamine hit, all for it to end up in our landfills. In the meantime there are almost no flying insects about and that is absolutely terrifying.
Also, really, paid for university education is not worth shit if this is the best it produces.
edit: this protest is not happening in NZ. It is just a little human action that is would make a worthy Brother Grimm story.
You sound like a neoliberal dogmatist judging the action of others through the lens of rational decision-making and personal responsibility. On top of that, your usual and inevitable anti-intellectual bias is on show.
Psychology theory will undoubtedly include perspectives on personal suffering and sacrifice for the greater good and/or one’s personal belief system, which is what that the activist is describing & documenting. It is not so much whining/complaining about his personal deteriorating situation and you’re simply projecting, again.
You love to ridicule this story and diminish it as some kind of bad fairy tale belonging in realm of fantasy, but it is very real and cannot be ignored and denied, no matter how hard you try to dismiss it as a fool’s errant. I’m in awe of their courage to put themselves through this and in a potentially highly embarrassing and literally sickening position.
Guarav Sharma has a chance to put his money where his mouth is. I reckon he should take the chance, take up the challenge. When he produces the evidence, the good people of Hamilton West will see that he is a man of integrity and all vote for him in the by-election.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/trevor-mallard-accuses-resigned-mp-gaurav-sharma-over-recording/WHACAEPJS6GOMJHJ4LHH5MAOYQ/