It's starting to pick up now during this current bushfire season and the extreme weather pattern we are currently having which is effecting every part of Oz atm.
Australian's by nature are a independent bunch of people and the same goes with their thinking, but they really do hate it when some or a bunch of high brow over educate bunch of tossers talks down to them/ forcing it down the throat to the average ocker and tells what to do and how they should do it etc.
The average ocker likes to think for themselves and look at the available evidenced (there has been some really interesting graphs coming out of BOM, ABARES atm and some TV reports the ABC's Landline and News/ 730 Report) or when CC starts to impact on the lives of the average ocker before they like to make a decision IRT CC.
The is tide on CC is slowly changing here in Oz as people across all sectors of Australia are starting to realise that CC is real and are now start to feel the effects of CC.
For example we in the Northern part of Australia by now should've had at least over a metre of rainfall, but its dry as a dingo's backside and though it green atm. Mowing atm feels like being sandblasted by down wash by a CH47 Chook or CH53 Sea Stallion or Jet Prop wash of C130 on a duster airfield/ LZ in the Sandpit from head to toe atm.
The Pollies are slowly starting to feel the heat now with the current/ extreme weather due to CC related events and if they are not seen to be doing something about it and just not tinkering around the slides, but meaningful actions. They well be throwed out of office. It happen to John Howard at a federal level and if ScoMo and his mob keeps up its current rate of effort up atm, then he and his bunch of Muppets will be out of a job.
So man y Federal governments have called in the last decade all based around addressing climate change in one form or another, that it's really hard to see the horizon of change.
You will have seen our government do the full pre-Christmas dump of its Carbon Bill consultation, getting ready to ram it through in March 2020.
Hard to see anyone getting away with that at an Australian Federal level if the ALP were in power.
Barring a major city losing several suburbs to fire, it still feels like Australia's political discourse has a while to go on this.
I have a gut feeling this might be the year/ fire season that CC finally sinks in for awful lot of Australians. We were bloody luck up here in Darwin/ rural area of Darwin this fire season with only houses/ buildings being lost, but it was very F**king close and the law of averages will catch up with us on the fire line sooner or later. Which I've been writing up an end of action report for our NT Bushfire brigade at Dundee Beach/ Bynoe Harbour Area, but weather it gets notice and action is going to be another thing.
We just spoken to the father in-law at Sussex Inlet about 30mins ago and the only Rd to Sussex Inlet is now cut and are now on ember alert. About the same time heard that the town of the former post war labour leader Ben Chifley Lithgow, is on the western side of the Blue Mountains is now on ember alert and this town is quite large probably the size of Nelson I think.
I haven't read the NZ carbon bill as yet, but Shaw and Peters have done good job all consider.
I'm head to Melbourne for the Boxing Day Test, via Sydney on Christmas Day and its going to interesting week for me.
I've just sent an email from a brief write up I did for the folks at home in the NZ and I think it might make a good post for the readers here on the 'The Standard" to have understanding on the conditions that we face over in Oz during the fire seasons. It's picture and video heavy, well one video and a number of pictures on the conditions I face on the weekend of the 14 September 2019.
Here in Brisbane we are only getting through with air conditioning. For many days this past month there have been vast, ominous smoke clouds that render everything a sombre orange, darkening into an apocalyptic red in the sunset.
Yes it’s my sense from socialising that most people are uneasily aware that life as they knew it is changing. And this will fairly quickly reflect into the political scene.
Who could imagine any Brisbane summer without air conditioning?
Forest fires, temperature rise, and the accelerated collapse of the Murray-Darling seem like more effective public discourses into State and Federal politics about the environment than railing against coal mining.
Is this the moment that public mood alters enough in Australia?
Here's another more direct answer to your question Ad:
People are getting anxious and "this is not normal" — the phrase employed by New South Wales Liberal Minister Matt Kean to describe the apocalyptic skies above Sydney — could well become the catch cry of this summer.
Liberal insiders know it is a hot issue and they know voters are increasingly looking to the Government to do something "more".
At a recent meeting of Liberal MPs and senators, the party's federal director Andrew Hirst identified climate change and the economy as the biggest issues confronting the country.
This is probably worth a post in itself: the Dutch government has been ordered to do much more than it has been about climate change, after a six year legal fight.
The court ruled that the government had explicit duties to protect its citizens’ human rights in the face of climate change and must reduce emissions by at least 25% compared with 1990 levels by the end of 2020.
Hopefully that sends a shudder through a number of other governments.
In part it reads, "Ardern’s response to the unimaginable horror of the Christchurch massacre was more or less flawless in both tone and content. The dignity and solidarity she showed with victims was matched with the courage to act decisively on reforming New Zealand’s gun laws.
In a year where many leaders fled from scrutiny or cashed in on the kind of sentiments that lead to incidents like Christchurch, Ardern showed what leadership that pushes back against the worst parts of society really looks like."
On Radionz this morning. Needs to be heard though you will not like what you hear. Doesn't fit to a kind and practical rule. There are a lot of images on the Radionz site. There isn't a link set up yet.
8:10 Ian Urbina – Human stories of crime on the high seas
Photo: supplied / Penguin
From pirates to people smugglers, enslaved crews and dodgy fishing practices, the world's oceans are home to widespread and largely unchecked illegality.
Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist Ian Urbina has spent five years documenting the lawless behaviour flourishing on the high seas in his book The Outlaw Ocean.
He's also set up a non-profit journalism organization called The Outlaw Ocean Project dedicated to publishing more stories about life and conditions on board the global shipping fleet.
It's a failure on a massive scale. Were our political leaders a little more ecologically literate, they'd have recognised and cultivated our marine resources to enrich our nation. Instead they brought in the lowest common denominator – slave fishermen – and the agricultural research that underpins our farming sector was, shamefully, never replicated for our fisheries.
The two most common elements in the universe arehydrogen, and stupidity. ~ Harlan Ellison
Australia is going through a climate change Chernobyl, every single Australian state is suffering through a record early bush fire season and record breaking heat wave. Shockingly flying foxes are dying on their perches.
After watching the mini-series on Prime I was struck by the similarity, with the current crisis in Australia.
Just like the flying foxes in Australia, the mini series depicted birds falling from the sky to lie flapping on the ground in their death throes.
After the Chernobyl explosion, Soviet political leaders were in deep denial as the reactor core was open to the air and lumps of radioactive graphite was scattered on the ground and roof of the plant.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, (famous for holding up a lump of coal thoughtfully shellacked by his coal industry backers to stop him getting soot on his hands), like some unconcerned Soviet nuclear industry apparatchik, holidays in Hawaii.
The depth of denial plumbed by Scott Morrison dwarfs that of the Soviets.
Gorbachev didn't hold up a lump of (decontaminated) graphite to declare "This is graphite– don't be afraid!"
The US military is in the middle of a recruitment crisis. At this point finding anyone who isn't smoking pot, can pass a basic intelligence test, and has a baseline fitness level is incredibly difficult for them.
I'm guessing that they decided if one part of the recruitment criteria had to be softened it was psychological – yikes – what are they doing in that country?
Edit
The House is produced for RNZ with funding from Parliament. I noticed a highlight on Radionz about PM Jacinda from The House and hadn't heard about this before. This piece is a speculative piece and gives explanation and interpretation about something that may never happen. Interesting, but I wonder what sort of focus on our reality and priorities for matters calling for explanation that journalists developing their own stories will show, especially when it is through RNZ, RadioNZ.
This is the piece. Can you impeach a prime minister?
They conclude that we can't end up in the USA bog, a hopeful note! We no speak Americano In summary, New Zealand doesn’t require an impeachment process because prime ministers serve at the pleasure of Parliament (and their own party), and are easy to get rid of it they start getting all ‘high crimes and misdemeanours’ (which refers to abuse of power).
New Zealand has had a few prime ministers who were bullies (there’s a big statue of one of them holding forth in Parliament’s front yard), but getting rid of them is as easy as a simple majority in the House. Just ask Marilyn Waring.
And this fits in with a very interesting piece on falsehood in information releases by governments and gives a view of what is happening in Russia by someone who knows. It would give background learnings to many ponderings on this blog.
Book written: This is not Propaganda – Adventures in the war against Reality. (Some of the best information we get is coming after books have been written and bring together disparate information for the public. I am amazed at the huge numbers of fiction authors at present. These days the reality books by people devoted to finding out and explaining what’s going on are really exciting!)
9:25 Peter Pomerantsev: 'when information is a weapon, everyone is at war' How can we build up a more truthful picture of the world in the era of fake news, trolls, Trump and Putin? This is the question at the heart of Peter Pomerantsev's new book This is Not Propaganda: Adventures in the War Against Reality.
Pomerantsev is a Soviet-born journalist, author and TV producer who's spent much of his life in Britain after his dissident parents were forced out of the USSR by the KGB. He's also a Visiting Senior Fellow at the Institute of Global Affairs at the London School of Economics.
(Audio link to come if I get time, otherwise see audio list for Saturday Morning..)
I remember another interview with Kim some years ago when Pomerantsev was pushing a very similar line and promoting his book "Nothing is true and everything is possible"
I followed up and read other stuff of his but also this..to me.. interesting critique by Mark Ames in 2015
A real cast of characters here, the Chandlers, (particularly Chris, a kiwi billionaire) Browder, The Legatum Institute, the nutty ex Polish foreign minister Sikorski, married to Anne Applebaum, a colleague of Pomerantsev's
Sorry its a long read, but its always good to "pressure test" a story when there appears to be an agenda, which most often there is…from all sides.
Pomerantsev is a great mate of Bill Browder who has a similar message
More recent to the Ames article, the Browder (also rather breathlessly interviewed by Kim)story has come under closer scrutiny, by various unrelated figures. The most recent appearing in Der Spiegel.
The link below also has links for a fuller discussion .
Even our own secretive kiwi Chandler brothers, who made millions out of Russia appear in this story
Useful interview of Aussie environmental scientist Bill Hare by Amy Goodman. He's part of a team that developed a tracker that is predicting 2.8 degrees Celsius (or more) of warming by 2100. He pans both Scomo's Liberals and the ALP – his point being that resistance to action in Australia is essentially political.
That's no surprise though. The whole purpose of right-wing parties is to protect an economy that acts as a conveyor belt transporting money to the top of the wealth-power pyramid. Genuine action means that all that surplus money sloshing around at the top will have to be appropriated to fund the transition to carbon-neutral economies without creating massive hardship for those dependent on industries being phased out – as well as to fund managed retreat from localities that will become uninhabitable.
Have to add how good it is to see 63 year-old woman who has let her hair go grey fronting a news show and striking a note of high seriousness.. Having recently seen the waffly sentimentalist John Campbell surrounded by a bevy on blondes in their 30's on the execrable 'Breakfast' show, or the endlessly self-referential narcissism of Seven Sharp, Amy seems particularly sane.
I hear Australians saying it's the right, but also the left (union history), and the powerful lobbies from various industries. Unlike NZ where we have a pro-action left and centre left, and business increasingly ready to get on board despite the recalcitrants like Fed Farmers and Fonterra.
No he didn't. He simply said that the ALP was no better, with the implication being that they are subject to the same pressures from economic interests.
We stand for organized terror – this should be frankly admitted. Terror is an absolute necessity during times of revolution. Our aim is to fight against the enemies of the Soviet Government and of the new order of life. We judge quickly. In most cases only a day passes between the apprehension of the criminal and his sentence. When confronted with evidence criminals in almost every case confess; and what argument can have greater weight than a criminal's own confession?
OOh. Those movements born in fire and harsh coercion, will continue to smoulder and become too hot for people to handle. Cruel and callous cannot create a society fit for humans, animals or plants. No New Order from this background can be welcomed by decent, free human beings as a way of living.
Cruel and callous cannot create a society fit for humans, animals or plants. No New Order from this background can be welcomed by decent, free human beings as a way of living
Hollow words from you, yet I agree, at your expense, though still can't quite fathom how you managed to dodge this bullet when the debate about treatment of women has been raging for the past few days.
Is there no end to this hysterical, historical sexual accusation witchhunt thing?
That 27 year old who has held a woman by the neck for heightened sexual effect, he is still not named is he. And he definitely killed that silly woman, and he is responsible for the force that she died from. Why isn't his name openly available, or has NZ suddenly become too dainty to cope with sexuality? We are a farming nation, and live by procreation.
[fixed the internal link. You have to us the link html or button or it reverts back to the post – weka]
I totally agree that action should have been taken on that absolutely disgusting comment by Greywarshark the other night on OM 19 Dec. And that is far from the first time we have had comments from Grey along similar sanctimonious, shallow lines.
I was also shocked by Grey's comment yesterday at 3.1 on Open Mike 20 Dec that
"Someone intoning about safety on the roads on radio this morning (in a foreign accent – Canadian I think one less job for a born NZer). Realistic xenophobia!"
As noted in my response at /open-mike-20-12-2019/#comment-1674783;, that 'someone' was most probably none other than Julie Anne Genter as our Associate Minister of Transport. JAG was interviewed yesterday morning on RNZ's Nine to Noon programme re the Government's new multi-billion dollar road safety plan called Road to Zero aimed at cutting road deaths by 40 per cent by 2030.
But Grey's view appears to be that 'this was someone with a foreign accent taking up a Nzer's job; and therefore "realistic zenophobia" is apparently justified!
But as usual, Grey just sprays and walks away with no response to your and others' reactions to her/his OM 19 Dec comment, nor to mine yesterday on OM 20 Dec.
And here she is back today, with her comments currently totaling 7 of the 30 so far today (as of about 30 mins ago). Well I suppose it keeps the comment numbers up if not the quality; but IMO it is not really surprising that over the last 10 or so months a noticeable number of long term commenters no longer participate here regularly, including myself. In my case, this type of behaviour/comment is a big turnoff and one of the major factors, but not the only one, as to why I no longer participate as much as I did. I certainly do not want to be associated with such prejudice and attitudes as displayed in these two very recent comments by Grey.
I'm aware there are issues. It's harder to moderate in places like OM and DR where the expectation is that as long as people don't break the main rules they can post abhorrent beliefs and arguments (there is a limit). It's the robust debate ethic and the theory is that commenters will then argue why the beliefs/argument are abhorrent (as you did over the xenophobia issue).
If she was making those rape culture comments under a post of mine she would get warned then banned (have done so in the past) because I write to create a good discussion space. But then reasons why I'm not writing on those topics (and why there are no other regular feminist authors here) are the elephant in the living room of TS.
If the community wants more moderation on topics like this it has to support the moderators and authors.
Just caught up on the comment and replies. I think that people did exactly what was needed: named the problems with the comment and pushed back clearly. I'm grateful because Grey has been commenting like that for a while and has generally not been responded to. I find reading those comments as a moderator easily the worst part of the job, it makes things way easier if the commentariat responds.
I raised it again today mainly because I can't see how someone posting about 'Cruel and callous' not befitting society and humanity one day, can post cruel and callous comments a couple of days previous, showing a distinct lack of humanity, and expect to be taken seriously on any level at all.
I honestly took it as an example of daytime drinking not being for everyone if it allows the natural nasty to come through in such an ignorant and spiteful way, but really, there's no excuse for that. Glad he got called out for it by a few others, too.
I have also found some of Grey's comments recently quite shocking – the full blown rape apologist and rape culture remarks and the misogynist language in particular. He/she made some similar remarks on open mike back in November 28 under the Assange thread (can't link sorry on my phone).
I am really annoyed at veutoviper. I have not advanced myself as a woman so she has chosen to break the rule that good bloggers here don't penetrate others' pseudonyms. Which is strange as she always holds herself up to be exemplary in everything.
Secondly there is the matter of free speech. I consider that my points are relevant and not unreasonable. The state of politics and the way that there is an oppressive PC control on speech from those who find that interacts with their advanced sensitivities means that matters can't be faced and discussed as they need to be.
The PC brigade and those concerned with 'nice' and right-as-taught expression apart from that chosen as the official line, results in a shutting down of full discussion with the ability to be objective and see and speak to the unsatisfactory state of affairs. Trying to look at things as they are while this 'moral outrage' from the cognoscenti who have made a group decision that they are right, and there is one way to consider anything, theirs seems paramount. The carping continues regularly iterated from the passive aggressive controllers.
If women can't strongly speak out on matters that should be looked at closely, not with a prepared reaction agreed to by the Sisters Union, they are being silenced and pushed out by these other women, who wish to be moral dictators. This reminds me of how Ettie Rout was treated after she conducted her campaign against sexually transmitted disease caught from sexual congress by soldiers in WW1. And I am sure that the sisters here won't see the parallel. Scorn and outrage is your response to the challenge of different ideas.
So I have responded to all the comfy chair warriors, and those who want a harmonious little coterie. I haven't in the past because I thought that some different thoughts were needed but i see you are determined to squash them. You have your wish.
Calling a murder victim "that silly girl" and historic sexual abuse/assault "hysterical" and a "witch hunt" isn't "different thoughts", it's just fucking wrong. It negates the devastating impact on victims and cheapens the suffering of all innocents. They don't need squashing, they just need not to be said in the first instance.
I'm not sure that "that silly girl" wasn't accurate – of course we don't have the full details, but certainly the defense were trying to suggest that Millane was up for bdsm with complete stranger. That seems unwise to me – not that it excuses the murderer one iota – but that reposing that much trust without cause is frankly dangerous. It is not uncommon for murder victims have done things that might be considered imprudent, and saying so isn't an endorsement of the crime.
'silly girl' is a pejorative commonly used to undermine women, it's not a phrase used to convey imprudence. Millane was an adult not a girl.
I didn't follow the details of the trial. Leaving aside the defence's argument was there any evidence that Millane wanted to be strangled during sex by a stranger on this date? I mean actual evidence here, not hearsay and rumour.
Without thinking too much about the stats, I'm wondering if the risk assessment is similar to say tourists going on a trip to an active volcano. I didn't see too many people calling them silly girls and boys. Partly because it would be grossly insensitive, but also because we just don't think about it like that. So why think about Grace Millane in that way?
to put that another way, it's possible to have a conversation about the politics of personal responsibility without using terms that start the conversation by victim blaming.
It might not be out of order, although I’m not seeing that given her age, and we don’t know what her choice was, so it’s kind of a moot point. But there’s no need to use language to describe her in ways that diminish her as a person. Talk about her actions and whether they were wise, but there’s still the bigger picture of rape culture and victim blaming.
The defense produced several witnesses that claimed Millane wanted asphyxiation and BDSM during sex (in general, not specifically with respect to the encounter with the accused). Dunno whether that counts as evidence or hearsay and rumour. The prosecution produced witnesses that said the accused engaged in non-consensual asphyxiation and domination. Again, dunno whether that counts as evidence or hearsay and rumour.
"immaturity" is just a more sensitive way of making the assumption that a Tinder date is more dangerous for women than the way we dated twenty or thirty years ago. Not so sure about that.
Secondly, even if it is more dangerous than meeting someone in a bar or at a party, there's still more than enough opportunity to avoid putting the focus of responsibility upon the victim. "Silly girl" is a pretty callous and dismissive way to describe someone who was murdered.
Feel free to see the defence's argument without the benefit of the victim's testimony as unwise, and though you say "we don't have the full details", accept this rejected trial position as a valid reason to call GM that stupid girl.
Using that logic, I suppose it's okay to call out that kiwi lass in Ausralia who fell off a balcony trying to flee that aussie creeps apartment following a tinder date?
Or the girl in a short skirt who walks in to a bar full off men?
Actually I think the girl in Oz showed a lot of sense – though shouting to the neighbours or setting a fire might have worked better than climbing.
There used to be bars in NZ (and may still be) where that dress decision would almost inescapably bring certain consequences – the downstairs bar of the British in Lyttleton used to be such a venue. No defense for attackers, but a place most women would do well to avoid.
Not sure what you want grey. You have the freedom here to post your thoughts and others have the freedom to respond as they see fit. If you don't like the responses you can modify how you communicate, but you appear to be saying you want to say what you want and have people like what you say. It doesn't work like that.
If your views are relevant and not unreasonable then argue them and see how they stand up to political analysis of your peers. What I see yesterday is you dropping a controversial comment and then walking away. You can't have it both ways. Either we have robust debate here or we don't.
"Our children are unable to speak our language and understand our culture,” she said. “They are taken to state-run orphanages and are completely indoctrinated.
“I’m afraid this will turn into mass extermination. There’s nothing better to describe what’s happening in Xinjiang than concentration camps. What are we waiting for? Mass executions and gas chambers before we take action? What is it going to take to have the leaders of world communities – particularly Western democratic countries like Australia – to act? Executions? Is that what it’s going to come down to?”
I was going link to that myself. Truly one of the more disturbing things I've read in a while.
One of the consequences of the concept creep which our outrage culture has indulged in for so long, that when finally faced with the truly outrageous and evil … we are at a loss for words and a meaningful response.
The first thing that came to mind with the Australian PM holidaying in Hawaii while Australia is imploding with bush fires and enduring extreme heat was the saying "Nero Fiddled while Rome Burned". Seems very apt today and another ominous example of history repeating itself. I envisage Australian climate refugees coming here by the boatloads in the not too distant future – the irony of it. Because we are hopefully a civilised country we will accept them.
If I was the Australian PM I would start treating our PM and country with the respect it deserves. He is going to have to do some grovelling/negotiating in the future to the NZ Government on behalf of his country's citizens so as to enable them to have a safe haven here. Meanwhile the country is frying and their Government is still in denial and thrall to the coal industry. God help them.
Can I just give a shoutout on the retirement of Brian Gaynor, the well respected NZHerald business journalist.
I always felt that he put the interests of New Zealand first, and always wanted business to grow in the national interest and not just in self-interest.
He was always clear that overseas ownership of business and land here just holds New Zealand back. He was very rarely in favour of privatization.
And he was resolute in holding bad directors to account and wanting high-quality industry-experienced directors to govern their businesses well.
Finally, he had a broad horizon with some historical depth. In his last column today he rails against Muldoon for killing the Superannuation scheme an bemoans how much more powerful and secure we would be as a society we would have been. But still praises NZSuperfund as a good start, even if not perfect.
Sure hope they get a decent replacement who seeks to bring the interests of business back to the long term interests of New Zealand.
"No one was given an explanation, no one ever consulted with me or my wife or offered any help to my daughter or apologised to her."
Five years later, after the father had left the community, he finally took action after learning more about the law.
When the police became involved, late Gloriavale leader Hopeful Christian – a convicted sexual offender himself – brought the mother into a meeting with the Servants and Shepherds, all men of authority.
"Nev [Neville Cooper aka Hopeful Christian] told them that it was her fault, that she had not looked after my daughter properly or she wouldn't have seduced this old guy. He also spoke about forgiveness – that they all need to forgive Just, including my daughter."
The daughter who seduced the old guy was 9 years old.
The instigator of the childish "Turn Ardern" campaign is Colin Wilson, a 66 year-old pale male from Canterbury. What a surprise (not). I bet he feels emasculated and scared when he sees Greta's photo as well. The poor chap needs therapy.
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 27 were:1. The Minister for Ford Rangers strikes againTransport Minister Simeon Brown was again the busiest of the Cabinet ministers this week, announcing an ...
You got a fast carAnd I want a ticket to anywhereMaybe we make a dealMaybe together we can get somewhereAny place is betterYesterday’s newsletter, Trust In Me, on the report of abuse in state care, and by religious organisations, between 1950 and 2019, coupled with the hypocrisy of Christopher Luxon ...
New Zealand is again having to reconcile conflicting pressures from its military and its trade interests. Should we join Pillar Two of AUKUS and risk compromising our markets in China? For a century after New Zealand was founded in 1840, its external security arrangements and external economics arrangements were aligned. ...
The ‘50 Shades of Green’ farmers’ protest in 2019 was heavy on climate change denial, but five years on, scepticism and criticism about the idea that pine forests can save us is growing across the board. File photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s the top six news items of note in climate ...
This morning the sky was bright.The birds, in their usual joyous bliss. Nature doesn’t seem to feel the heat of what might angst humans.Their calls are clear and beautiful.Just some random thoughts:MāoriPaul Goldsmith has announced his government will roll back the judiciary’s rulings on Māori Customary Marine Title, which recognises ...
In 2003, the Court of Appeal delivered its decision in Ngati Apa v Attorney-General, ruling that Māori customary title over the foreshore and seabed had not been universally extinguished, and that the Māori Land Court could determine claims and confirm title if the facts supported it. This kicked off the ...
Earlier this week at Parliament, Labour leader Chris Hipkins was applauded for saying that the response to the final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care had to be “bigger than politics.” True, but the fine words, apologies and “we hear you” messages will soon ring ...
TL;DR: In news breaking this morning:The Ministry of Education is cutting $2 billion from its school building programme so the National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government has enough money to deliver tax cuts; The Government has quietly lowered its child poverty reduction targets to make them easier to achieve;Te Whatu Ora-Health NZ’s ...
Kia ora. These are some stories that caught our eye this week – as always, feel free to share yours in the comments. Our header image this week (via Eke Panuku) shows the planned upgrade for the Karanga Plaza Tidal Swimming Steps. The week in Greater Auckland On ...
1. What's not to love about the way the Harris campaign is turning things around?a. Nothingb. Love all of itc. God what a reliefd. Not that it will be by any means easye. All of the above 2. Documents released by the Ministry of Health show Associate Health Minister Casey ...
Trust in me in all you doHave the faith I have in youLove will see us through, if only you trust in meWhy don't you, you trust me?In a week that saw the release of the 3,000 page Abuse in Care report Christopher Luxon was being asked about Boot Camps. ...
TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking about the Royal Commission Inquiry into Abuse in Carereport released this week, and with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on a UN push to not recognise carbon offset markets and ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 26, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Transport: Simeon Brown announced$802.9 million in funding for 18 new trains on the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines, which ...
The northern expressway extension from Warkworth to Whangarei is likely to require radical changes to legislation if it is going to be built within the foreseeable future. The Government’s powers to purchase land, the planning process and current restrictions on road tolling are all going to need to be changed ...
Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedFirst they came for the doctors But I was confused by the numbers and costs So I didn't speak up Then they came for our police and nurses And I didn't think we could afford those costs anyway So I ...
Photo by Joshua J. Cotten on UnsplashWe’re back again after our mid-winter break. We’re still with the ‘new’ day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when we have our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream ...
Notes: This is a free article. Abuse in Care themes are mentioned. Video is at the bottom.BackgroundYesterday’s report into Abuse in Care revealed that at least 1 in 3 of all who went through state and faith based care were abused - often horrifically. At least, because not all survivors ...
Luxon speaks in Parliament yesterday about the Abuse in Care report. Photo: Hagen Hopkins/Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:PM Christopher Luxon said yesterday in tabling the Abuse in Carereport in Parliament he wanted to ‘do the ...
About a decade ago I worked with a bloke called Steve. He was the grizzled veteran coder, a few years older than me, who knew where the bodies were buried - code wise. Despite his best efforts to be approachable and friendly he could be kind of gruff, through to ...
Some of the recent announcements from the government have reminded us of posts we’ve written in the past. Here’s one from early 2020. There were plenty of reactions to the government’s infrastructure announcement a few weeks ago which saw them fund a bunch of big roading projects. One of ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Thursday, July 25 are:News: Why Electric Kiwi is closing to new customers - and why it matters RNZ’s Susan EdmundsScoop: Government drops ...
Hi,I felt a small wet tongue snaking through one of the holes in my Crocs. It explored my big toe, darting down one side, then the other. “He’s looking for some toe cheese,” said the woman next to me, words that still haunt me to this day.Growing up in New ...
Yesterday I happily quoted the Prime Minister without fact-checking him and sure enough, it turns out his numbers were all to hell. It’s not four kg of Royal Commission report, it’s fourteen.My friend and one-time colleague-in-comms Hazel Phillips gently alerted me to my error almost as soon as I’d hit ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Thursday, July 25, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day were:The Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquirypublished its final report yesterday.PM Christopher Luxon and The Minister responsible for ...
The Official Information Act has always been a battle between requesters seeking information, and governments seeking to control it. Information is power, so Ministers and government agencies want to manage what is released and when, for their own convenience, and legality and democracy be damned. Their most recent tactic for ...
TL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:Transport and Energy Minister Simeon Brown is accelerating plans to spend at least $10 billion through Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) to extend State Highway One as a four-lane ‘Expressway’ from Warkworth to Whangarei ...
I live my life (woo-ooh-ooh)With no control in my destinyYea-yeah, yea-yeah (woo-ooh-ooh)I can bleed when I want to bleedSo come on, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)You can bleed when you want to bleedYea-yeah, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)Everybody bleed when they want to bleedCome on and bleedGovernments face tough challenges. Selling unpopular decisions to ...
Please note:To skip directly to the- parliamentary footage in the video, scroll to 1:21 To skip to audio please click on the headphone iconon the left hand side of the screenThis video / audio section is under development. ...
Given the crackdown on wasteful government spending, it behooves me to point to a high profile example of spending by the Luxon government that looks like a big, fat waste of time and money. I’m talking about the deployment of NZDF personnel to support the US-led coalition in the Red ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:40 am on Wednesday, July 24 are:Deep Dive: Chipping away at the housing crisis, including my comments RNZ/Newsroom’s The DetailNews: Government softens on asset sales, ...
As I reported about the city centre, Auckland’s rail network is also going through a difficult and disruptive period which is rapidly approaching a culmination, this will result in a significant upgrade to the whole network. Hallelujah. Also like the city centre this is an upgrade predicated on the City ...
Today, a 4 kilogram report will be delivered to Parliament. We know this is what the report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care weighs, because our Prime Minister told us so.Some reporter had blindsided him by asking a question about something done by ...
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Wednesday, July 24, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Beehive:Transport Minister Simeon Brownannounced plans to use PPPs to fund, build and run a four-lane expressway between Auckland ...
NewstalkZB host Mike Hosking, who can usually be relied on to give Prime Minister Christopher Luxon an easy run, did not do so yesterday when he interviewed him about the HealthNZ deficit. Luxon is trying to use a deficit reported last year by HealthNZ as yet another example of the ...
Back in January a StatsNZ employee gave a speech at Rātana on behalf of tangata whenua in which he insulted and criticised the government. The speech clearly violated the principle of a neutral public service, and StatsNZ started an investigation. Part of that was getting an external consultant to examine ...
Renting for life: Shared ownership initiatives are unlikely to slow the slide in home ownership by much. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:A Deloittereport for Westpac has projected Aotearoa’s home-ownership rate will ...
You're broken down and tiredOf living life on a merry go roundAnd you can't find the fighterBut I see it in you so we gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsWe gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsAnd I'll rise upI'll rise like the dayI'll rise upI'll rise unafraidI'll rise upAnd I'll ...
There’s been a change in Myers Park. Down the steps from St. Kevin’s Arcade, past the grassy slopes, the children’s playground, the benches and that goat statue, there has been a transformation. The underpass for Mayoral Drive has gone from a barren, grey, concrete tunnel, to a place that thrums ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections Global society may have finally slammed on the brakes for climate-warming pollution released by human fossil fuel combustion. According to the Carbon Monitor Project, the total global climate pollution released between February and May 2024 declined slightly from the amount released during the same ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Tuesday, July 23 are:Deep Dive: Penlink: where tolling rhetoric meets reality BusinessDesk-$$$’sOliver LewisScoop:Te Pūkenga plans for regional polytechs leak out ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Tuesday, July 23, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Health: Shane Reti announcedthe Board of Te Whatu Ora-Health New Zealand was being replaced with Commissioner Lester Levy ...
Health NZ warned the Government at the end of March that it was running over Budget. But the reasons it gave were very different to those offered by the Prime Minister yesterday. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon blamed the “botched merger” of the 20 District Health Boards (DHBs) to create Health ...
Long ReadKey Summary: Although National increased the health budget by $1.4 billion in May, they used an old funding model to project health system costs, and never bothered to update their pre-election numbers. They were told during the Health Select Committees earlier in the year their budget amount was deficient, ...
As a momentous, historic weekend in US politics unfolded, analysts and commentators grasped for precedents and comparisons to help explain the significance and power of the choice Joe Biden had made. The 46th president had swept the Democratic party’s primaries but just over 100 days from the election had chosen ...
TL;DR: I’m casting around for new ideas and ways of thinking about Aotearoa’s political economy to find a few solutions to our cascading and self-reinforcing housing, poverty and climate crises.Associate Professor runs an online masters degree in the economics of sustainability at Torrens University in Australia and is organising ...
The Finance and Expenditure Committee has reported back on National's Local Government (Water Services Preliminary Arrangements) Bill. The bill sets up water for privatisation, and was introduced under urgency, then rammed through select committee with no time even for local councils to make a proper submission. Naturally, national's select committee ...
Some years ago, I bought a book at Dunedin’s Regent Booksale for $1.50. As one does. Vandrad the Viking (1898), by J. Storer Clouston, is an obscure book these days – I cannot find a proper online review – but soon it was sitting on my shelf, gathering dust alongside ...
History is not on the side of the centre-left, when Democratic presidents fall behind in the polls and choose not to run for re-election. On both previous occasions in the past 75 years (Harry Truman in 1952, Lyndon Johnson in 1968) the Democrats proceeded to then lose the White House ...
This is a free articleCoverageThis morning, US President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the Presidential race. And that is genuinely newsworthy. Thanks for your service, President Biden, and all the best to you and yours.However, the media in New Zealand, particularly the 1News nightly bulletin, has been breathlessly covering ...
A homeless person’s camp beside a blocked-off slipped damage walkway in Freeman’s Bay: we are chasing our tail on our worsening and inter-related housing, poverty and climate crises. Photo: Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy ...
What has happened to it all?Crazy, some'd sayWhere is the life that I recognise?(Gone away)But I won't cry for yesterdayThere's an ordinary worldSomehow I have to findAnd as I try to make my wayTo the ordinary worldYesterday morning began as many others - what to write about today? I began ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Monday, July 22 are:Today’s Must Read: Father and son live in a tent, and have done for four years, in a million ...
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Monday, July 22, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:US President Joe Biden announced via X this morning he would not stand for a second term.Multinational professional services firm ...
A listing of 32 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, July 14, 2024 thru Sat, July 20, 2024. Story of the week As reflected by preponderance of coverage, our Story of the Week is Project 2025. Until now traveling ...
This weekend, a friend pointed out someone who said they’d like to read my posts, but didn’t want to pay. And my first reaction was sympathy.I’ve already told folks that if they can’t comfortably subscribe, and would like to read, I’d be happy to offer free subscriptions. I don’t want ...
National: The Party of ‘Law and Order’ IntroductionThis weekend, the Government formally kicked off one of their flagship policy programs: a military style boot camp that New Zealand has experimented with over the past 50 years. Cartoon credit: Guy BodyIt’s very popular with the National Party’s Law and Orderimage, ...
Day one of the solo leg of my long journey home begins with my favourite sound: footfalls in an empty street. 5.00 am and it’s already light and already too warm, almost.If I can make the train that leaves Budapest later this hour I could be in Belgrade by nightfall; ...
Do you remember Y2K, the threat that hung over humanity in the closing days of the twentieth century? Horror scenarios of planes falling from the sky, electronic payments failing and ATMs refusing to dispense cash. As for your VCR following instructions and recording your favourite show - forget about it.All ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts being questioned by The Kākā’s Bernard Hickey.TL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 20 were:1. A strategy that fails Zero Carbon Act & Paris targetsThe National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government finally unveiled ...
Summary:As New Zealand loses at least 12 leaders in the public service space of health, climate, and pharmaceuticals, this month alone, directly in response to the Government’s policies and budget choices, what lies ahead may be darker than it appears. Tui examines some of those departures and draws a long ...
The Minister of Housing’s ambition is to reduce markedly the ratio of house prices to household incomes. If his strategy works it would transform the housing market, dramatically changing the prospects of housing as an investment.Leaving aside the Minister’s metaphor of ‘flooding the market’ I do not see how the ...
As previously noted, my historical fantasy piece, set in the fifth-century Mediterranean, was accepted for a Pirate Horror anthology, only for the anthology to later fall through. But in a good bit of news, it turned out that the story could indeed be re-marketed as sword and sorcery. As of ...
An employee of tobacco company Philip Morris International demonstrates a heated tobacco device. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy on Friday, July 19 are:At a time when the Coalition Government is cutting spending on health, infrastructure, education, housing ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 8:30 am on Friday, July 19 are:Scoop: NZ First Minister Casey Costello orders 50% cut to excise tax on heated tobacco products. The minister has ...
Kia ora, it’s time for another Friday roundup, in which we pull together some of the links and stories that caught our eye this week. Feel free to add more in the comments! Our header image this week shows a foggy day in Auckland town, captured by Patrick Reynolds. ...
TL;DR : Here’s the top six items climate news for Aotearoa this week, as selected by Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer. A discussion recorded yesterday is in the video above and the audio of that sent onto the podcast feed.The Government released its draft Emissions Reduction ...
Save some money, get rich and old, bring it back to Tobacco Road.Bring that dynamite and a crane, blow it up, start all over again.Roll up. Roll up. Or tailor made, if you prefer...Whether you’re selling ciggies, digging for gold, catching dolphins in your nets, or encouraging folks to flutter ...
Waiting In The Wings:For truly, if Trump is America’s un-assassinated Caesar, then J.D. Vance is America’s Octavian, the Republic’s youthful undertaker – and its first Emperor.DONALD TRUMP’S SELECTION of James D. Vance as his running-mate bodes ill for the American republic. A fervent supporter of Viktor Orban, the “illiberal” prime ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 19, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:The PSAannounced the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) had ruled in the PSA’s favour in its case against the Ministry ...
Te Rangi e tu nei (The sky above us) Te Papa e takoto nei (The land beneath us) Tatou katoa te hunga ora (To us all the living) Tena koutou katoa (Greetings) ...
A late change to charter school legislation will cheat educators out of fair pay and negotiating power proving charter schools are just a vehicle to make profit out of our education system. ...
In 2004 te iwi Māori rallied against the Crown’s attempt to confiscate our coastlines and moana with the Foreshore and Seabed Act. This led to the largest hīkoi of a generation and the birth of Te Pāti Māori. 20 years later, history is repeating itself. Today the government has announced ...
It has been five and a half years since the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care was established to investigate the abuse of children, young people, and vulnerable adults within state and faith-based institutions. Yesterday, the final report - Whanaketia through pain and trauma, from darkness to light ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to take action off the back of the International Court of Justice ruling on Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine. ...
On Friday the International Court of Justice reaffirmed what Palestinian’s have been telling us for decades: that the occupation and colonisation of Palestinian lands by Israel is illegal and must end immediately. They also called for reparations for Palestinian’s who have lived under Israeli occupation since it began in 1967. ...
Labour calls on the Government to act after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian Territories is illegal. ...
The 53.7 percent rise in benefit sanctions over the last year is more proof of this Government’s disdain for our communities most in need of support. ...
Aotearoa could be a country where every child grows up feeling safe, loved and with a sense of belonging in their whānau and community. But for some of our children, this is far from reality. Instead, they are trapped in a maze of intergenerational harm that they can’t escape on ...
Te Pāti Māori are calling for David Seymour to resign as Associate Health Minister in response to his call for Pharmac to ignore the Treaty of Waitangi. “This announcement is just another example of the government’s anti-Tiriti, anti-Māori agenda.” Said Co-leader and spokesperson for health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. “Seymour thinks it ...
The soaring price of renting is driving the rise of inflation in this country - with latest figures from Stats NZ showing rents are up 4.8 per cent on average while annual inflation is at 3.3 per cent. ...
National’s Emissions Reduction Plan will take New Zealand further from the economy we need to ensure the next generation has a stable climate and secure livelihoods. ...
Following consultation with named parties and thorough consideration of privacy interests, the Green Party is in a position to release the Executive Summary of the final report from the independent investigation into Darleen Tana. ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon should be asking serious questions of his Minister for Resources Shane Jones now it’s been revealed he misled the public about a dinner with mining companies that he didn’t declare and said wasn’t pre-arranged. ...
Te Pāti Māori have submitted to the Justice Select Committee against the Sentencing (Reinstating Three Strikes) Amendment Bill. The bill will further entrench racism in our justice system and fails to focus on rehabilitation. “Reinstating Three Strikes will empower a systematically racist system and exacerbate the overrepresentation of Māori in ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee is set to make a determination on the Residential Tenancies Amendment (RTA) Bill in the coming weeks. “This legislation will give landlords the power to kick our whānau out onto the street for no reason” said Housing spokesperson, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “Their solution to the housing ...
“National’s campaign was about tackling crime and the best they can do is a two-year long Ministerial Advisory Group,” Labour justice spokesperson Duncan Webb said. ...
“There are more examples of charter schools failing their students than there are success stories. The coalition Government is driving to dismantle our public school system and instead promote a privatised, competitive structure that puts profits before kids,” Jan Tinetti said. ...
“This government is choosing to deliberately mislead and withhold information, keeping our people in the dark about this government’s agenda and the future of our mokopuna,” said co-leader and spokesperson for Health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. The call comes after the demand from the Chief Ombudsman that Associate Minister of Health, Casey ...
“Today’s climate announcement by Simon Watts makes clear the National Government is simply paying lip service to meeting its climate change targets,” Megan Woods said. ...
National is choosing to make life harder for workers by taking away the rights our communities have fought hard for. Here's how they’re taking workers backwards. ...
Australia, Canada and New Zealand today issued the following statement on the need for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza and the risk of expanded conflict between Hizballah and Israel. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The human suffering is unacceptable. It cannot continue. We remain unequivocal in our condemnation of ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today reminded all State and faith-based institutions of their legal obligation to preserve records relevant to the safety and wellbeing of those in its care. “The Abuse in Care Inquiry’s report has found cases where records of the most vulnerable people in State and faith‑based institutions were ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government’s online safety website for children and young people has reached one million page views. “It is great to see so many young people and their families accessing the site Keep It Real Online to learn how to stay safe online, and manage ...
Tēnā tātou katoa, Ngā mihi te rangi, ngā mihi te whenua, ngā mihi ki a koutou, kia ora mai koutou. Thank you for the opportunity to be here and the invitation to speak at this 50th anniversary conference. I acknowledge all those who have gone before us and paved the ...
New Zealand’s payroll providers have successfully prepared to ensure 3.5 million individuals will, from Wednesday next week, be able to keep more of what they earn each pay, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Revenue Minister Simon Watts. “The Government's tax policy changes are legally effective from Wednesday. Delivering this tax ...
An experimental vineyard which will help futureproof the wine sector has been opened in Blenheim by Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson. The covered vineyard, based at the New Zealand Wine Centre – Te Pokapū Wāina o Aotearoa, enables controlled environmental conditions. “The research that will be produced at the Experimental ...
The Coalition Government has confirmed the indicative regional breakdown of North Island Weather Event (NIWE) funding for state highway recovery projects funded through Budget 2024, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Regions in the North Island suffered extensive and devastating damage from Cyclone Gabrielle and the 2023 Auckland Anniversary Floods, and ...
Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, Retno Marsudi, will visit New Zealand next week, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “Indonesia is important to New Zealand’s security and economic interests and is our closest South East Asian neighbour,” says Mr Peters, who is currently in Laos to engage with South East Asian partners. ...
He aha te kai a te rangatira? He kōrero, he kōrero, he kōrero. The government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the aspirations of Ngāti Maniapoto, Minister for Māori Development Tama Potaka says. “My thanks to Te Nehenehenui Trust – Ngāti Maniapoto for bringing their important kōrero to a ministerial ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has thanked outgoing Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority, Janice Fredric, for her service to the board.“I have received Ms Fredric’s resignation from the role of Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority,” Mr Brown says.“On behalf of the Government, I want to thank Ms Fredric for ...
The Government is proposing legislation to overturn a Court of Appeal decision and amend the Marine and Coastal Area Act in order to restore Parliament’s test for Customary Marine Title, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “Section 58 required an applicant group to prove they have exclusively used and occupied ...
Regulation Minister David Seymour says that opposition parties have united in bad faith, opposing what they claim are ‘dangerous changes’ to the Early Childhood Education sector, despite no changes even being proposed yet. “Issues with affordability and availability of early childhood education, and the complexity of its regulation, has led ...
After receiving more than 740 submissions in the first 20 days, Regulation Minister David Seymour is asking the Ministry for Regulation to extend engagement on the early childhood education regulation review by an extra two weeks. “The level of interest has been very high, and from the conversations I’ve been ...
The Coalition Government is investing $802.9 million into the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines as part of a funding agreement with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA), KiwiRail, and the Greater Wellington and Horizons Regional Councils to deliver more reliable services for commuters in the lower North Island, Transport Minister Simeon ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced his intention to appoint a Crown Manager to both Hawke’s Bay Regional and Wairoa District Councils to speed up the delivery of flood protection work in Wairoa."Recent severe weather events in Wairoa this year, combined with damage from Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023 have ...
Mr Speaker, this is a day that many New Zealanders who were abused in State care never thought would come. It’s the day that this Parliament accepts, with deep sorrow and regret, the Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care. At the heart of this report are the ...
For the first time, the Government is formally acknowledging some children and young people at Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital experienced torture. The final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care “Whanaketia – through pain and trauma, from darkness to light,” was tabled in Parliament ...
The Government has acknowledged the nearly 2,400 courageous survivors who shared their experiences during the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State and Faith-Based Care. The final report from the largest and most complex public inquiry ever held in New Zealand, the Royal Commission Inquiry “Whanaketia – through ...
With a week to go before hard-working New Zealanders see personal income tax relief for the first time in fourteen years, 513,000 people have used the Budget tax calculator to see how much they will benefit, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis. “Tax relief is long overdue. From next Wednesday, personal income ...
Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says a bill that has passed its first reading will improve parental leave settings and give non-biological parents more flexibility as primary carer for their child. The Regulatory Systems Amendment Bill (No3), passed its first reading this morning. “It includes a change ...
Two Bills designed to improve regulation and make it easier to do business have passed their first reading in Parliament, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. The Regulatory Systems (Economic Development) Amendment Bill and Regulatory Systems (Immigration and Workforce) Amendment Bill make key changes to legislation administered by the Ministry ...
New legislation paves the way for greater competition in sectors such as banking and electricity, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says. “Competitive markets boost productivity, create employment opportunities and lift living standards. To support competition, we need good quality regulation but, unfortunately, a recent OECD report ranked New ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says lotteries for charitable purposes, such as those run by the Heart Foundation, Coastguard NZ, and local hospices, will soon be allowed to operate online permanently. “Under current laws, these fundraising lotteries are only allowed to operate online until October 2024, after which ...
The Coalition Government is accelerating work on the new four-lane expressway between Auckland and Whangārei as part of its Roads of National Significance programme, with an accelerated delivery model to deliver this project faster and more efficiently, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “For too long, the lack of resilient transport connections ...
Sir Don McKinnon will travel to Viet Nam this week as a Special Envoy of the Government, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “It is important that the Government give due recognition to the significant contributions that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made to New Zealand-Viet Nam relations,” Mr ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says newly appointed Commissioner, Grant Illingworth KC, will help deliver the report for the first phase of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into COVID-19 Lessons, due on 28 November 2024. “I am pleased to announce that Mr Illingworth will commence his appointment as ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters travels to Laos this week to participate in a series of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-led Ministerial meetings in Vientiane. “ASEAN plays an important role in supporting a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” Mr Peters says. “This will be our third visit to ...
Construction of a new mental health facility at Te Nikau Grey Hospital in Greymouth is today one step closer, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey says. “This $27 million facility shows this Government is delivering on its promise to boost mental health care and improve front line services,” Mr Doocey says. ...
New Zealand is committing nearly $50 million to a package supporting sustainable Pacific fisheries development over the next four years, Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones announced today. “This support consisting of a range of initiatives demonstrates New Zealand’s commitment to assisting our Pacific partners ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour says proposed changes to the Education and Training Amendment Bill will ensure charter schools have more flexibility to negotiate employment agreements and are equipped with the right teaching resources. “Cabinet has agreed to progress an amendment which means unions will not be able to initiate ...
In response to serious concerns around oversight, overspend and a significant deterioration in financial outlook, the Board of Health New Zealand will be replaced with a Commissioner, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti announced today. “The previous government’s botched health reforms have created significant financial challenges at Health NZ that, without ...
Minister for Space and Science, Innovation and Technology Judith Collins will travel to Adelaide tomorrow for space and science engagements, including speaking at the Australian Space Forum. While there she will also have meetings and visits with a focus on space, biotechnology and innovation. “New Zealand has a thriving space ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts will travel to China on Saturday to attend the Ministerial on Climate Action meeting held in Wuhan. “Attending the Ministerial on Climate Action is an opportunity to advocate for New Zealand climate priorities and engage with our key partners on climate action,” Mr Watts says. ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is travelling to the Solomon Islands tomorrow for meetings with his counterparts from around the Pacific supporting collective management of the region’s fisheries. The 23rd Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Committee and the 5th Regional Fisheries Ministers’ Meeting in Honiara from 23 to 26 July ...
The Government today launched the Military Style Academy Pilot at Te Au rere a te Tonga Youth Justice residence in Palmerston North, an important part of the Government’s plan to crackdown on youth crime and getting youth offenders back on track, Minister for Children, Karen Chhour said today. “On the ...
The Government has welcomed news the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has begun work to replace nine priority bridges across the country to ensure our state highway network remains resilient, reliable, and efficient for road users, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“Increasing productivity and economic growth is a key priority for the ...
Acting Prime Minister David Seymour has been in contact throughout the evening with senior officials who have coordinated a whole of government response to the global IT outage and can provide an update. The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet has designated the National Emergency Management Agency as the ...
New Zealand and Japan will continue to step up their shared engagement with the Pacific, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “New Zealand and Japan have a strong, shared interest in a free, open and stable Pacific Islands region,” Mr Peters says. “We are pleased to be finding more ways ...
New developments in the heart of North Island forestry country will reinvigorate their communities and boost economic development, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones visited Kaingaroa and Kawerau in Bay of Plenty today to open a landmark community centre in the former and a new connecting road in ...
President Adeang, fellow Ministers, honourable Diet Member Horii, Ambassadors, distinguished guests. Minasama, konnichiwa, and good afternoon, everyone. Distinguished guests, it’s a pleasure to be here with you today to talk about New Zealand’s foreign policy reset, the reasons for it, the values that underpin it, and how it ...
Last summer when Matairangi burned, Ginny and Tom stood at the window of their lounge, watching kākā shoot skyward from the burning trees. From the distance, they looked to Ginny like pages torn from books and thrown into a bonfire. It was Tom, voice tight, who told her it was ...
Opinion: The Canadian short story writer Alice Munro – winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2013 – died in May at the age of 92. Her work was about “the damage people inflict on one another in the name of love”, Deborah Treisman wrote in the New Yorker. ...
This month marks two years since the most powerful telescope ever built sent its first pictures back to earth. From its lofty vantage point, beyond the moon in orbit around the sun, the James Webb Space Telescope was tuned to observe the first stars and galaxies being born soon after ...
Comment: After Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ preview several weeks ago, I had some optimism about the Government’s emissions reduction plan. Now I’ve read the discussion document, that hope has been dashed. How can the Government propose a plan that wants to take New Zealand taxpayers’ hard-earned money, and spend ...
Christopher Luxon: hurdles The little man from National jumps hurdles in his sleep. He’s quite good at it in his dreams and even though the reality doesn’t quite match up you have to give him credit for getting up every morning and crashing into the very first hurdle of the ...
Comment: It was a good two hours into the conversation when Tyrone Marks raised the most basic of questions when I first spoke to him in 2017. “They didn’t explain the things they did to me. They never told me why. And they still haven’t. There’s no explanation for it. ...
Madeleine Chapman rounds out Death Week on The Spinoff with a final recommendation. You can read all of our Death Week coverage here. Nothing forces you to reflect on your life and relationships quite like proximity to death. For those whose nearest and dearest have died, there are reasonably obvious ...
Whitney Greene takes us through her life in television, including the TV character she’d like to plan a funeral for and her cow lung catastrophe on The Traitors NZ. “If the phone rings, I have to answer it,” Whitney Greene from The Traitors NZ warns as we begin our My ...
Maddie Ballard reviews the debut essay collection of Pōneke writer Flora Feltham.In ‘The Raw Material’, the longest essay in Flora Feltham’s dazzling debut collection, the author heads out for a run after hours of weaving and sees the world turn to textile. “Pounding along the Parade, I saw the ...
Andy Christiansen, one half of the experimental rock-pop duo TRiPS, shares the tunes inspiring the band’s perfect weekend and new release. “Good speakers, good food, good music, no distractions”: that’s all you need to enjoy the psychedelic stylings of TRiPS, a new band formed by Fly My Pretties’ Barnaby Weir ...
Celebrating our quadrennial opportunity to become experts in a bunch of sports we never normally watch.The games of the XXXIII Olympiad are upon us. Paris will host this year’s showcase of sporting and athletic prowess, which means some late-night and early-morning viewing for us in Aotearoa.But what sports ...
The photograph is striking and beautiful, but also disturbing – a reminder that my love for John was often entangled in shame.The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.In the spring of 1980, in Dunedin, shortly before his death, someone took a photograph ...
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A question for our Australian commenters:
Is the dialogue about climate change getting stronger there?
It needs to get stronger here.
good question.
You would hope this would hammer the message home… Penrith expecting up to 47C
It's starting to pick up now during this current bushfire season and the extreme weather pattern we are currently having which is effecting every part of Oz atm.
Australian's by nature are a independent bunch of people and the same goes with their thinking, but they really do hate it when some or a bunch of high brow over educate bunch of tossers talks down to them/ forcing it down the throat to the average ocker and tells what to do and how they should do it etc.
The average ocker likes to think for themselves and look at the available evidenced (there has been some really interesting graphs coming out of BOM, ABARES atm and some TV reports the ABC's Landline and News/ 730 Report) or when CC starts to impact on the lives of the average ocker before they like to make a decision IRT CC.
The is tide on CC is slowly changing here in Oz as people across all sectors of Australia are starting to realise that CC is real and are now start to feel the effects of CC.
For example we in the Northern part of Australia by now should've had at least over a metre of rainfall, but its dry as a dingo's backside and though it green atm. Mowing atm feels like being sandblasted by down wash by a CH47 Chook or CH53 Sea Stallion or Jet Prop wash of C130 on a duster airfield/ LZ in the Sandpit from head to toe atm.
The Pollies are slowly starting to feel the heat now with the current/ extreme weather due to CC related events and if they are not seen to be doing something about it and just not tinkering around the slides, but meaningful actions. They well be throwed out of office. It happen to John Howard at a federal level and if ScoMo and his mob keeps up its current rate of effort up atm, then he and his bunch of Muppets will be out of a job.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-12-21/angus-taylor-facing-the-ire-of-liberals-wanting-climate-action/11815000
PS. Current temp at home atm, on my weather station is 38.1 degrees, with humidity at 45% and the pressure is dropping atm is around 1004.1 Hpa.
At 14.31 Local time CST
ExKiwi that sounds pretty brutal.
So man y Federal governments have called in the last decade all based around addressing climate change in one form or another, that it's really hard to see the horizon of change.
You will have seen our government do the full pre-Christmas dump of its Carbon Bill consultation, getting ready to ram it through in March 2020.
Hard to see anyone getting away with that at an Australian Federal level if the ALP were in power.
Barring a major city losing several suburbs to fire, it still feels like Australia's political discourse has a while to go on this.
I have a gut feeling this might be the year/ fire season that CC finally sinks in for awful lot of Australians. We were bloody luck up here in Darwin/ rural area of Darwin this fire season with only houses/ buildings being lost, but it was very F**king close and the law of averages will catch up with us on the fire line sooner or later. Which I've been writing up an end of action report for our NT Bushfire brigade at Dundee Beach/ Bynoe Harbour Area, but weather it gets notice and action is going to be another thing.
We just spoken to the father in-law at Sussex Inlet about 30mins ago and the only Rd to Sussex Inlet is now cut and are now on ember alert. About the same time heard that the town of the former post war labour leader Ben Chifley Lithgow, is on the western side of the Blue Mountains is now on ember alert and this town is quite large probably the size of Nelson I think.
I haven't read the NZ carbon bill as yet, but Shaw and Peters have done good job all consider.
I'm head to Melbourne for the Boxing Day Test, via Sydney on Christmas Day and its going to interesting week for me.
PS, here’s the link from the ABC’s Fire Alert updates and god bless the ABC and this the reason why we have a taxpayer funded Broadcaster.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-12-21/nsw-bushfire-emergency-catastrophic-warnings-greater-sydney/11815992
Amen to that; to the ABC, and to your father-in-law in Sussex.
Hi Ad,
I've just sent an email from a brief write up I did for the folks at home in the NZ and I think it might make a good post for the readers here on the 'The Standard" to have understanding on the conditions that we face over in Oz during the fire seasons. It's picture and video heavy, well one video and a number of pictures on the conditions I face on the weekend of the 14 September 2019.
Yes, do.
For contributions just send it through to:
thestandardnz@gmail.com
Here in Brisbane we are only getting through with air conditioning. For many days this past month there have been vast, ominous smoke clouds that render everything a sombre orange, darkening into an apocalyptic red in the sunset.
Yes it’s my sense from socialising that most people are uneasily aware that life as they knew it is changing. And this will fairly quickly reflect into the political scene.
Who could imagine any Brisbane summer without air conditioning?
Forest fires, temperature rise, and the accelerated collapse of the Murray-Darling seem like more effective public discourses into State and Federal politics about the environment than railing against coal mining.
Is this the moment that public mood alters enough in Australia?
Holy heck….only 2 major roads out of Sydney are open right now
Yeah, its not good atm either way.
Here's another more direct answer to your question Ad:
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-12-21/angus-taylor-facing-the-ire-of-liberals-wanting-climate-action/11815000
This is probably worth a post in itself: the Dutch government has been ordered to do much more than it has been about climate change, after a six year legal fight.
The court ruled that the government had explicit duties to protect its citizens’ human rights in the face of climate change and must reduce emissions by at least 25% compared with 1990 levels by the end of 2020.
Hopefully that sends a shudder through a number of other governments.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/dec/20/dutch-supreme-court-upholds-landmark-ruling-demanding-climate-action
Well deserved award to PM Ardern, by crikey.
https://www.crikey.com.au/2019/12/19/2019-person-of-the-year/
In part it reads, "Ardern’s response to the unimaginable horror of the Christchurch massacre was more or less flawless in both tone and content. The dignity and solidarity she showed with victims was matched with the courage to act decisively on reforming New Zealand’s gun laws.
In a year where many leaders fled from scrutiny or cashed in on the kind of sentiments that lead to incidents like Christchurch, Ardern showed what leadership that pushes back against the worst parts of society really looks like."
On Radionz this morning. Needs to be heard though you will not like what you hear. Doesn't fit to a kind and practical rule. There are a lot of images on the Radionz site. There isn't a link set up yet.
8:10 Ian Urbina – Human stories of crime on the high seas
Photo: supplied / Penguin
From pirates to people smugglers, enslaved crews and dodgy fishing practices, the world's oceans are home to widespread and largely unchecked illegality.
Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist Ian Urbina has spent five years documenting the lawless behaviour flourishing on the high seas in his book The Outlaw Ocean.
He's also set up a non-profit journalism organization called The Outlaw Ocean Project dedicated to publishing more stories about life and conditions on board the global shipping fleet.
It's a failure on a massive scale. Were our political leaders a little more ecologically literate, they'd have recognised and cultivated our marine resources to enrich our nation. Instead they brought in the lowest common denominator – slave fishermen – and the agricultural research that underpins our farming sector was, shamefully, never replicated for our fisheries.
The two most common elements in the universe are hydrogen, and stupidity. ~ Harlan Ellison
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-thailand-fishing/thousands-of-thai-fishermen-protest-against-tough-industry-regulations-idUSKBN1YL0VY
Some people arnt happy about it.
#IMPOTUS
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/george-conway-trump-impotus_n_5dfc6f05e4b0b2520d089ab1
The US is drawing closer to implosion via civil war. Not funny.
Ridicule works on bullies.
Thoughts on Chernobyl.
Australia is going through a climate change Chernobyl, every single Australian state is suffering through a record early bush fire season and record breaking heat wave. Shockingly flying foxes are dying on their perches.
After watching the mini-series on Prime I was struck by the similarity, with the current crisis in Australia.
Just like the flying foxes in Australia, the mini series depicted birds falling from the sky to lie flapping on the ground in their death throes.
After the Chernobyl explosion, Soviet political leaders were in deep denial as the reactor core was open to the air and lumps of radioactive graphite was scattered on the ground and roof of the plant.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, (famous for holding up a lump of coal thoughtfully shellacked by his coal industry backers to stop him getting soot on his hands), like some unconcerned Soviet nuclear industry apparatchik, holidays in Hawaii.
The depth of denial plumbed by Scott Morrison dwarfs that of the Soviets.
Gorbachev didn't hold up a lump of (decontaminated) graphite to declare "This is graphite– don't be afraid!"
Good Lord. The pic of him yukking it up in Hawaii as Australia burns comes to mind.
It's 1930, again.
https://twitter.com/CNNPolitics/status/1207965394817953792
https://twitter.com/adamparkhomenko/status/1208108320239702016
The US military is in the middle of a recruitment crisis. At this point finding anyone who isn't smoking pot, can pass a basic intelligence test, and has a baseline fitness level is incredibly difficult for them.
I'm guessing that they decided if one part of the recruitment criteria had to be softened it was psychological – yikes – what are they doing in that country?
Maybe someone got to the senator.
Yeah, right![angry angry](https://cdn.ckeditor.com/4.11.3/full-all/plugins/smiley/images/angry_smile.png)
Edit
The House is produced for RNZ with funding from Parliament. I noticed a highlight on Radionz about PM Jacinda from The House and hadn't heard about this before. This piece is a speculative piece and gives explanation and interpretation about something that may never happen. Interesting, but I wonder what sort of focus on our reality and priorities for matters calling for explanation that journalists developing their own stories will show, especially when it is through RNZ, RadioNZ.
This is the piece. Can you impeach a prime minister?
(Followed by a pic of PM Jacinda on a background of an old hand-written document which might be the Treaty or some Constitution.)
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/the-house/audio/2018726597/can-you-impeach-a-prime-minister
They conclude that we can't end up in the USA bog, a hopeful note!
We no speak Americano
In summary, New Zealand doesn’t require an impeachment process because prime ministers serve at the pleasure of Parliament (and their own party), and are easy to get rid of it they start getting all ‘high crimes and misdemeanours’ (which refers to abuse of power).
New Zealand has had a few prime ministers who were bullies (there’s a big statue of one of them holding forth in Parliament’s front yard), but getting rid of them is as easy as a simple majority in the House. Just ask Marilyn Waring.
And this fits in with a very interesting piece on falsehood in information releases by governments and gives a view of what is happening in Russia by someone who knows. It would give background learnings to many ponderings on this blog.
Book written: This is not Propaganda – Adventures in the war against Reality. (Some of the best information we get is coming after books have been written and bring together disparate information for the public. I am amazed at the huge numbers of fiction authors at present. These days the reality books by people devoted to finding out and explaining what’s going on are really exciting!)
9:25 Peter Pomerantsev: 'when information is a weapon, everyone is at war'
How can we build up a more truthful picture of the world in the era of fake news, trolls, Trump and Putin? This is the question at the heart of Peter Pomerantsev's new book This is Not Propaganda: Adventures in the War Against Reality.
Pomerantsev is a Soviet-born journalist, author and TV producer who's spent much of his life in Britain after his dissident parents were forced out of the USSR by the KGB.
He's also a Visiting Senior Fellow at the Institute of Global Affairs at the London School of Economics.
(Audio link to come if I get time, otherwise see audio list for Saturday Morning..)
This is the link to the RadioNZ fishers and high seas story I referred to earlier. https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/saturday/audio/2018727956/ian-urbina-human-stories-of-crime-on-the-high-seas
I remember another interview with Kim some years ago when Pomerantsev was pushing a very similar line and promoting his book "Nothing is true and everything is possible"
I followed up and read other stuff of his but also this..to me.. interesting critique by Mark Ames in 2015
A real cast of characters here, the Chandlers, (particularly Chris, a kiwi billionaire) Browder, The Legatum Institute, the nutty ex Polish foreign minister Sikorski, married to Anne Applebaum, a colleague of Pomerantsev's
https://pando.com/2015/05/17/neocons-2-0-the-problem-with-peter-pomerantsev/
Sorry its a long read, but its always good to "pressure test" a story when there appears to be an agenda, which most often there is…from all sides.
Pomerantsev is a great mate of Bill Browder who has a similar message
More recent to the Ames article, the Browder (also rather breathlessly interviewed by Kim)story has come under closer scrutiny, by various unrelated figures. The most recent appearing in Der Spiegel.
The link below also has links for a fuller discussion .
Even our own secretive kiwi Chandler brothers, who made millions out of Russia appear in this story
https://www.spiegel.de/international/world/spiegel-responds-to-browder-criticisms-of-magnitsky-story-a-1301716.html
Its as good as Shakespeare, a human drama of power and intrigue and treachery, and Russia doesn't get off the hook either
Useful interview of Aussie environmental scientist Bill Hare by Amy Goodman. He's part of a team that developed a tracker that is predicting 2.8 degrees Celsius (or more) of warming by 2100. He pans both Scomo's Liberals and the ALP – his point being that resistance to action in Australia is essentially political.
That's no surprise though. The whole purpose of right-wing parties is to protect an economy that acts as a conveyor belt transporting money to the top of the wealth-power pyramid. Genuine action means that all that surplus money sloshing around at the top will have to be appropriated to fund the transition to carbon-neutral economies without creating massive hardship for those dependent on industries being phased out – as well as to fund managed retreat from localities that will become uninhabitable.
Have to add how good it is to see 63 year-old woman who has let her hair go grey fronting a news show and striking a note of high seriousness.. Having recently seen the waffly sentimentalist John Campbell surrounded by a bevy on blondes in their 30's on the execrable 'Breakfast' show, or the endlessly self-referential narcissism of Seven Sharp, Amy seems particularly sane.
I hear Australians saying it's the right, but also the left (union history), and the powerful lobbies from various industries. Unlike NZ where we have a pro-action left and centre left, and business increasingly ready to get on board despite the recalcitrants like Fed Farmers and Fonterra.
Did Hare address that?
No he didn't. He simply said that the ALP was no better, with the implication being that they are subject to the same pressures from economic interests.
ah, yes, that's similar. Political parties, unions, industry, all resistant and with a lot of power.
Because it's Chekist day
― Felix Dzerzhinsky
OOh. Those movements born in fire and harsh coercion, will continue to smoulder and become too hot for people to handle. Cruel and callous cannot create a society fit for humans, animals or plants. No New Order from this background can be welcomed by decent, free human beings as a way of living.
Hollow words from you, yet I agree, at your expense, though still can't quite fathom how you managed to dodge this bullet when the debate about treatment of women has been raging for the past few days.
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-19-12-2019/#comment-1674615
[fixed the internal link. You have to us the link html or button or it reverts back to the post – weka]
I totally agree that action should have been taken on that absolutely disgusting comment by Greywarshark the other night on OM 19 Dec. And that is far from the first time we have had comments from Grey along similar sanctimonious, shallow lines.
I was also shocked by Grey's comment yesterday at 3.1 on Open Mike 20 Dec that
"Someone intoning about safety on the roads on radio this morning (in a foreign accent – Canadian I think one less job for a born NZer). Realistic xenophobia!"
As noted in my response at /open-mike-20-12-2019/#comment-1674783;, that 'someone' was most probably none other than Julie Anne Genter as our Associate Minister of Transport. JAG was interviewed yesterday morning on RNZ's Nine to Noon programme re the Government's new multi-billion dollar road safety plan called Road to Zero aimed at cutting road deaths by 40 per cent by 2030.
But Grey's view appears to be that 'this was someone with a foreign accent taking up a Nzer's job; and therefore "realistic zenophobia" is apparently justified!
But as usual, Grey just sprays and walks away with no response to your and others' reactions to her/his OM 19 Dec comment, nor to mine yesterday on OM 20 Dec.
And here she is back today, with her comments currently totaling 7 of the 30 so far today (as of about 30 mins ago). Well I suppose it keeps the comment numbers up if not the quality; but IMO it is not really surprising that over the last 10 or so months a noticeable number of long term commenters no longer participate here regularly, including myself. In my case, this type of behaviour/comment is a big turnoff and one of the major factors, but not the only one, as to why I no longer participate as much as I did. I certainly do not want to be associated with such prejudice and attitudes as displayed in these two very recent comments by Grey.
I'm aware there are issues. It's harder to moderate in places like OM and DR where the expectation is that as long as people don't break the main rules they can post abhorrent beliefs and arguments (there is a limit). It's the robust debate ethic and the theory is that commenters will then argue why the beliefs/argument are abhorrent (as you did over the xenophobia issue).
If she was making those rape culture comments under a post of mine she would get warned then banned (have done so in the past) because I write to create a good discussion space. But then reasons why I'm not writing on those topics (and why there are no other regular feminist authors here) are the elephant in the living room of TS.
If the community wants more moderation on topics like this it has to support the moderators and authors.
Just caught up on the comment and replies. I think that people did exactly what was needed: named the problems with the comment and pushed back clearly. I'm grateful because Grey has been commenting like that for a while and has generally not been responded to. I find reading those comments as a moderator easily the worst part of the job, it makes things way easier if the commentariat responds.
Thanks to you both for raising it again today.
I raised it again today mainly because I can't see how someone posting about 'Cruel and callous' not befitting society and humanity one day, can post cruel and callous comments a couple of days previous, showing a distinct lack of humanity, and expect to be taken seriously on any level at all.
I honestly took it as an example of daytime drinking not being for everyone if it allows the natural nasty to come through in such an ignorant and spiteful way, but really, there's no excuse for that. Glad he got called out for it by a few others, too.
Thanks The Allen, Veuto and Weka.
I have also found some of Grey's comments recently quite shocking – the full blown rape apologist and rape culture remarks and the misogynist language in particular. He/she made some similar remarks on open mike back in November 28 under the Assange thread (can't link sorry on my phone).
I wrote the other day, the only benefit of this type of commentary is knowing who we share this space with.![yes yes](https://cdn.ckeditor.com/4.11.3/full-all/plugins/smiley/images/thumbs_up.png)
I am really annoyed at veutoviper. I have not advanced myself as a woman so she has chosen to break the rule that good bloggers here don't penetrate others' pseudonyms. Which is strange as she always holds herself up to be exemplary in everything.
Secondly there is the matter of free speech. I consider that my points are relevant and not unreasonable. The state of politics and the way that there is an oppressive PC control on speech from those who find that interacts with their advanced sensitivities means that matters can't be faced and discussed as they need to be.
The PC brigade and those concerned with 'nice' and right-as-taught expression apart from that chosen as the official line, results in a shutting down of full discussion with the ability to be objective and see and speak to the unsatisfactory state of affairs. Trying to look at things as they are while this 'moral outrage' from the cognoscenti who have made a group decision that they are right, and there is one way to consider anything, theirs seems paramount. The carping continues regularly iterated from the passive aggressive controllers.
If women can't strongly speak out on matters that should be looked at closely, not with a prepared reaction agreed to by the Sisters Union, they are being silenced and pushed out by these other women, who wish to be moral dictators. This reminds me of how Ettie Rout was treated after she conducted her campaign against sexually transmitted disease caught from sexual congress by soldiers in WW1. And I am sure that the sisters here won't see the parallel. Scorn and outrage is your response to the challenge of different ideas.
So I have responded to all the comfy chair warriors, and those who want a harmonious little coterie. I haven't in the past because I thought that some different thoughts were needed but i see you are determined to squash them. You have your wish.
Calling a murder victim "that silly girl" and historic sexual abuse/assault "hysterical" and a "witch hunt" isn't "different thoughts", it's just fucking wrong. It negates the devastating impact on victims and cheapens the suffering of all innocents. They don't need squashing, they just need not to be said in the first instance.
I'm not sure that "that silly girl" wasn't accurate – of course we don't have the full details, but certainly the defense were trying to suggest that Millane was up for bdsm with complete stranger. That seems unwise to me – not that it excuses the murderer one iota – but that reposing that much trust without cause is frankly dangerous. It is not uncommon for murder victims have done things that might be considered imprudent, and saying so isn't an endorsement of the crime.
'silly girl' is a pejorative commonly used to undermine women, it's not a phrase used to convey imprudence. Millane was an adult not a girl.
I didn't follow the details of the trial. Leaving aside the defence's argument was there any evidence that Millane wanted to be strangled during sex by a stranger on this date? I mean actual evidence here, not hearsay and rumour.
Without thinking too much about the stats, I'm wondering if the risk assessment is similar to say tourists going on a trip to an active volcano. I didn't see too many people calling them silly girls and boys. Partly because it would be grossly insensitive, but also because we just don't think about it like that. So why think about Grace Millane in that way?
to put that another way, it's possible to have a conversation about the politics of personal responsibility without using terms that start the conversation by victim blaming.
I don't think it's out of order to suggest that her choice may have reflected a decree of immaturity.
Of course I'm not sure to what degree bdsm was even part of her decision as opposed to a self-serving narrative conjured by the defence.
It might not be out of order, although I’m not seeing that given her age, and we don’t know what her choice was, so it’s kind of a moot point. But there’s no need to use language to describe her in ways that diminish her as a person. Talk about her actions and whether they were wise, but there’s still the bigger picture of rape culture and victim blaming.
The defense produced several witnesses that claimed Millane wanted asphyxiation and BDSM during sex (in general, not specifically with respect to the encounter with the accused). Dunno whether that counts as evidence or hearsay and rumour. The prosecution produced witnesses that said the accused engaged in non-consensual asphyxiation and domination. Again, dunno whether that counts as evidence or hearsay and rumour.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12286093
"immaturity" is just a more sensitive way of making the assumption that a Tinder date is more dangerous for women than the way we dated twenty or thirty years ago. Not so sure about that.
Secondly, even if it is more dangerous than meeting someone in a bar or at a party, there's still more than enough opportunity to avoid putting the focus of responsibility upon the victim. "Silly girl" is a pretty callous and dismissive way to describe someone who was murdered.
Feel free to see the defence's argument without the benefit of the victim's testimony as unwise, and though you say "we don't have the full details", accept this rejected trial position as a valid reason to call GM that stupid girl.
Using that logic, I suppose it's okay to call out that kiwi lass in Ausralia who fell off a balcony trying to flee that aussie creeps apartment following a tinder date?
Or the girl in a short skirt who walks in to a bar full off men?
Actually I think the girl in Oz showed a lot of sense – though shouting to the neighbours or setting a fire might have worked better than climbing.
There used to be bars in NZ (and may still be) where that dress decision would almost inescapably bring certain consequences – the downstairs bar of the British in Lyttleton used to be such a venue. No defense for attackers, but a place most women would do well to avoid.
Not sure what you want grey. You have the freedom here to post your thoughts and others have the freedom to respond as they see fit. If you don't like the responses you can modify how you communicate, but you appear to be saying you want to say what you want and have people like what you say. It doesn't work like that.
If your views are relevant and not unreasonable then argue them and see how they stand up to political analysis of your peers. What I see yesterday is you dropping a controversial comment and then walking away. You can't have it both ways. Either we have robust debate here or we don't.
Info about linking received.![yes yes](https://cdn.ckeditor.com/4.11.3/full-all/plugins/smiley/images/thumbs_up.png)
Mass rape in China against a Muslim minority. An activist asked,
I was going link to that myself. Truly one of the more disturbing things I've read in a while.
One of the consequences of the concept creep which our outrage culture has indulged in for so long, that when finally faced with the truly outrageous and evil … we are at a loss for words and a meaningful response.
It was only 80 years ago or so that they realised they had to invent words to describe that stuff: "genocide" and "crimes against humanity".
The first thing that came to mind with the Australian PM holidaying in Hawaii while Australia is imploding with bush fires and enduring extreme heat was the saying "Nero Fiddled while Rome Burned". Seems very apt today and another ominous example of history repeating itself. I envisage Australian climate refugees coming here by the boatloads in the not too distant future – the irony of it. Because we are hopefully a civilised country we will accept them.
If I was the Australian PM I would start treating our PM and country with the respect it deserves. He is going to have to do some grovelling/negotiating in the future to the NZ Government on behalf of his country's citizens so as to enable them to have a safe haven here. Meanwhile the country is frying and their Government is still in denial and thrall to the coal industry. God help them.
Of course they have some of the best gigs in the economy, politics, science, etc, etc, but other than that they're completely marginalised.
/
https://twitter.com/GMB/status/1207559555665801217
Donny Dotard doing his bit to encourage vegetariansim in the USA.
https://cleantechnica.com/2019/12/20/mystery-pork-will-soon-hit-the-stores/
Can I just give a shoutout on the retirement of Brian Gaynor, the well respected NZHerald business journalist.
I always felt that he put the interests of New Zealand first, and always wanted business to grow in the national interest and not just in self-interest.
He was always clear that overseas ownership of business and land here just holds New Zealand back. He was very rarely in favour of privatization.
And he was resolute in holding bad directors to account and wanting high-quality industry-experienced directors to govern their businesses well.
Finally, he had a broad horizon with some historical depth. In his last column today he rails against Muldoon for killing the Superannuation scheme an bemoans how much more powerful and secure we would be as a society we would have been. But still praises NZSuperfund as a good start, even if not perfect.
Sure hope they get a decent replacement who seeks to bring the interests of business back to the long term interests of New Zealand.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=12295721
Gaynor was always forthright about how scum like Fay and Richwhite fleeced co-investors and incompetent privatising governments of an easy half billion: https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=12689
A rare journalist.
Aren't we past this yet?
The daughter who seduced the old guy was 9 years old.
The instigator of the childish "Turn Ardern" campaign is Colin Wilson, a 66 year-old pale male from Canterbury. What a surprise (not). I bet he feels emasculated and scared when he sees Greta's photo as well. The poor chap needs therapy.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12295954
Quite. Anyone who feels the need to add 'the man' to his twitter handle has issues.
Funny, I'd always assumed he was part of the Nat troll crew.
They all look the same. But hey..
https://twitter.com/GraemeEdgeler/status/1208483320406786048
A brow any lower would be a heel.
Crikey! This is front-page news (with photo!) on Stuff’s landing page too. The squeaky wheels get attention.