This is the latest ride on the merry-go-round of legal shit-fuckery that penalises community groups who dare to face off in opposition to the rape and pillage of the environment. Less than a decade ago, voluntary community organisations were able to apply for Government financed grants, now no longer available, when challenging the likes of Councils, big-moneyed developers, international consortiums and Government agencies in respect of environmental concerns. In almost all but the most frivolous of cases, legal costs were never awarded against community groups but left to lie where they may. This was in the interests of justice being seen to be done in both quasi and full legal proceedings that were being tested by those who were committed to upholding the incrementally unfolding joke of ‘A Clean Green New Zealand’ by their works and deeds. Up and down the country, these communities of voluntary environmental workers and supporters of the notion that we are only caretakers of the land for future generations attempted to mount cases on hard come by donations fund raising efforts and their own knowledge and informational resources that are now regarded as unqualified opinions in hearings, even if they are unpaid witnesses or presenters who are acknowledged experts in their fields. These usually unheralded challengers of 'the system' are rapidly learning that you don’t fuck with rapacious wealth accumulators, Councils, and Government without risking eye-wateringly heavy sanctions and financial penalties. With stuff-all resources, the would-be protectors now not only have to somehow engage expensive lawyers and 'experts' but will be denigrated during hearings by the paid liars who the vested interests can munificently reward, the snide demeaning attitudes of the assembled ‘specialist’ legal teams of the ‘I want brigade’ and usually associated local bodies, various intended beneficiaries of the primary parties and, as in the Coromandel case, the Government, all of who are backed by very deep pockets, often, in part, paid for by the various charges, rates or taxes of the challengers. This could end up a long dissertation of examples and bitter experience from the bottom end of the disenchanted 'protest' chain but no doubt, the shit-fuckery and perversion of environmental legal protection is already sufficiently evident!
I read hundreds of passionate pleas every day. Many of them from people who want to write on this site and are willing to pay money to do it. Those I file them into spam because most of them are made by robots and are passionate about making money for casinos or NGOs. Others are heart rending appeals for donations – like the flood of ones for the Georgian Senate race that I'm getting right now.
My immediate reaction when I read an unformatted message like the one above is that it was probably done by a badly formed robot copy and pasting text (think of tat as the moderator response). My second is that whoever was making it doesn't care enough to make their points readable (I have a lot of reading to do and not a lot of time to do it). My third is is there was a bug in the comment editor (the programmer response).
But an ability to communicate clearly is an essential skill in all of them to get me to read the actual content of what they say. That is the responsibility of the person making the passionate plea.
The link to the RNZ report is contained in the text of the comment. Someone didn't notice the third three words ARE the link. Geez – some people! Not sure what your issue is regarding syntax and grammar but style, like yours is personal and usually experientially influenced.However, if it deters your engagement, perhaps you haven't much of value to contribute on the topic anyway!
@Ad, what the hell is wrong with you?, someone comes on and writes a solid piece on a subject obviously close to their heart and you can do nothing but critique their “syntax, grammar” …maybe you need to go and sit in the corner and think about what you have done.
@Ad,,…..At the current rate of knots it will be you and and a couple others that will bother writing or reply to anything on this site,maybe that's for the better.On second thoughts,, nah
Imagine you go a restaurant and order a three-course meal with drinks. The chef cooks it to your specifications, puts all of it in a blender, and the grumpy waiter dumps a big bowl with the blended mess on your table giving you a straw telling you to “suck it up”.
Style and presentation are important, as are clarity of thought & word, if you wish to engage in on-line discussion. It doesn’t take much effort to make comments more inviting, accessible, and readable.
Many readers access the site on mobile phone with tiny screens and not all have the time, energy, or inclination to turn a dense comment into something that their brain can digest more easily let alone respond to.
Ad has a point, except he missed the link that started at the third word.
I get your blind rage aom. I was just about incandescent when I read about this at about 5am this morning. I don't need to add to your well justified rant.
For a fleeting moment I thought about posting here about this and suggesting a hat-passing to help Catherine Delahunty and Coro Watchdog with these costs. Decided it would be a waste of time considering the drubbing said former Green MP received from some here for her temerity at criticising Shaw over the Privileged Green School debacle.
There is no need to do anything about raising funds Rosemary, that is not the purpose of the Crown's strategy. In days past, the likes of Councils and more so the Crown would not make applicationsfor costs in such cases. It appears that somewhere along the way, it was realised that small 'pain in the arse' organisations could never be sufficiently solvent to comply with Orders for eye-watering costs, hence the applications. It has transpired that small organisations have defaulted and closed down in attempts to financially protect individual members. There is nothing like a legal 'mowing of the lawns' to threaten dissent. Along the similar lines, it was observed in a Wellington case that a developer, enjoined by the Council, attempted to preemptively close down a pending case. The strategy was to lodge an application to have the Court make an Order that funds be lodged in advance to meet indeterminate projected legal fees.
There is nothing like a legal 'mowing of the lawns' to threaten dissent.
Exactly. Like hiring private investigators tp spy on anyone who dared to protest the destruction of forests, birds and other forms of indigenous species. It went on for decades and various public and private entities used them.
"I think that there is clearly public interest when ministers disagree and when the Act is unclear and we sought clarification.
"It's a terrible decision in the sense that if you award costs against people who are standing up for the public interest when government can't agree – to be penalised for that is a real kick in the face to a volunteer group that's been working to protect the environment for more than 40 years, and doing it absolutely with blood sweat and tears, so we're incredibly disappointed and appalled at this decision."
and
"We can't ask the public to pay for this because we have many people who might want to help us, but they don't want to give money to Crown Law and the mining industry.
"This is actually really unfair and a real deterrent to the public interest in taking cases like this."
From the article I completely agree. I'd also say that there is a public interest in finding out the legal position. Funding an appeal about the costs being awarded against the group sounds right to me. Also the ruling does look somewhat suspicious to me. The whole point about legislation is that it needs to be fleshed out in court in the public interest. Penalising groups for doing that is definitely not.
"Less than a decade ago, voluntary community organisations were able to apply for Government financed grants, now no longer available…."
The Environmental Legal Assistance scheme run by the government is still operating. The community group that I am president of gained grants for both legal assistance for a High Court appeal and for expert landscape evidence in an Environment Court case last year.
The problem is that these grants only cover part of the cost and if you lose a case the community group may be liable for costs, though if the case is argued well and without wasting the court's time costs are usually left where they fall.
Thanks for that Bearded Git – my bad for not checking. It is ages since I heard of an organisation having successfully tapped that funding, so worked on an obviously incorrect assumption.
I hope this helps a bit; I took the liberty of making a few edits … chrs.
This is the latest ride on the merry-go-round of legal shit-fuckery that penalises community groups who dare to face off in opposition to the rape and pillage of the environment.
Less than a decade ago, voluntary community organisations were able to apply for Government financed grants, now no longer available, when challenging the likes of Councils, big-moneyed developers, international consortiums and Government agencies in respect of environmental concerns. In almost all but the most frivolous of cases, legal costs were never awarded against community groups but left to lie where they may. This was in the interests of justice being seen to be done in both quasi and full legal proceedings that were being tested by those who were committed to upholding the incrementally unfolding joke of ‘A Clean Green New Zealand’ by their works and deeds.
Up and down the country, these communities of voluntary environmental workers and supporters of the notion that we are only caretakers of the land for future generations attempted to mount cases on hard come by donations fund raising efforts and their own knowledge and informational resources. These are now treated as 'unqualified' opinions in hearings, even if they are unpaid witnesses or presenters who are acknowledged experts in their fields.
These usually unheralded challengers of 'the system' are rapidly learning that you don’t fuck with rapacious wealth accumulators, Councils, and Government without risking eye-wateringly heavy sanctions and financial penalties.
With stuff-all resources, these would-be protectors now not only have to somehow engage expensive lawyers and 'experts', but will be denigrated during hearings by the paid liars who the vested interests can munificently reward, the snide demeaning attitudes of the assembled ‘specialist’ legal teams of the ‘I want brigade’ and usually associated local bodies, various intended beneficiaries of the primary parties and, as in the Coromandel case, the Government. All of whom are backed by very deep pockets, often, in part, paid for by the various charges, rates or taxes of the challengers.
This could end up a long dissertation of examples and bitter experience from the bottom end of the disenchanted 'protest' chain but no doubt, the shit-fuckery and perversion of environmental legal protection is already sufficiently evident!
I suspect it is an effort issue. By breaking up the text into what are essentially related argument points, you reduce the amount of brain parsing and reparsing.
Computers are good at state engines and will happily churn through code without any formatting after the pre-parser removes the unrequired white space. Humans have some pretty severe stack limits for processing straight logic. Our writing styles reflect that.
Humans are way way better as inference and associative engines though. You only need to read the text of any conspiracy theory to see the extremities of that.
Nonsense. Paragraphs provide structure to style & contents in and of written comments and help to present a clear and logical argument, just as sentences convey meaning by stringing together certain words in a certain order. In order to achieve this, you don’t pull apart the components but you group them together.
If you could write properly, you would, so I get why someone with your ‘can’t be wrong’ personality uses an easy cop out like 'evolving language' to try and disguise the fact.
The world is a complex place and our issues are complex too. Therefore, I don’t see any point in trying to reduce things to single sentences that lack cohesion. Often, one ends up with just simplistic common sense and banal clichés. So, in general, for me, paragraphs are paramount.
Yes aom, this is a strategy. When the mine first wanted to do work in the area it was stopped as the land was slipping. You are right about deep pockets. They afford expensive ranks of lawyers which increases costs.
My late Mother and I asked how Waihi's water table would be affected. We received a 70 page document which made it plain they would seek costs… made it scary.
My Aunt and Uncle had a neighbour whose property subsided into old workings disturbed by the underground drilling, and subsequently their own property was shifted to a new section. That whole area has been bought by the mine and is sealed off.
So much of Waihi has become dangerous or out of bounds. I admire the groups trying to make these mining bodies ethical. We could be worse off without the watch dogs.
I hope now that police no longer chase, there will not be more of this where a person causes an accident and fails to stop to even see if anyone injured. Time will tell.
It will be seen if the end of police pursuits is actually going to improve the situation. The people fleeing the now non-chasing police probably still drive dangerously anyway.
I also think the fines for hit-and-run and other serious traffic offences should be increased significantly, for example to several years of suspended driver licenses as a starting point.
Driving a car – especially dangerously – should not be an untouchable entitlement.
Errm, how is this in any way relevant to a pursuit policy?
It appears to be a case of a clueless menace on four wheels changing multiple lanes at once, causing other drivers to take evasive action resulting in those other drivers having a crash.
The original clueless menace that caused it all is likely completely unaware of the carnage they were directly responsible for unfolding behind them.
Fatalities from police chases will reduce significantly now as there will be hardly any police chases. I just hope deaths don't increase from more dangerous drivers on the road like the dickhead who caused this crash. Lucky they didn't kill anyone.
When people quote you GDP numbers to claim that we, as a country are doing well, tell them they're dreaming.
Right now, as has been the case for a long time, the rich are getting very rich and looking forward to their Christmas holidays on the waterways at Pauanui, Omaha and Queenstown.
Meanwhile, under this government, this is the reality for many:
Anyone can forgive, it doesn't require a Christian belief system (which, in case a clue of some kind were needed, shows she wouldn't have made a good PM anyway)
"You're lucky I'm a Christian," Judith Collins said to me, like a bolt from the blue, in a radio studio the other day.
I was incredulous. "Why's that, Judith?"
"That way, I can forgive you," she replied.
"Forgive me for what? I'm not seeking your forgiveness."
Instead of elaborating, she turned to the other panellists to tell them what kind of person I was. Much awkward shuffling ensued.
Usually, I would observe the unspoken kaupapa that what happens off-air stays off-air. But the truth is, this kind of unpleasant interaction is a rarity – in fact, I'd go as far as to say it was a first for me. Despite what you see and hear in the media, those of us who participate in the New Zealand political discourse are almost always respectful, friendly even, to one another when nobody's watching. We might disagree fiercely on issues but rarely does that translate to personal hostility. New Zealand's too small and, frankly, life's too short to turn every political disagreement into utu.
So why am I sharing details of my exchange with Collins? It's simple really. She wants to be Prime Minister, and what Collins' conduct reveals about her temperament and mindset should be taken into account when we consider whether she's up to the task.
Exposing that kind of sanctimonious 'forgiveness' is always a worth while activity.
As Shane points out it, it just reeks of someone who is unprepared to deal with reality of other people and prefers to try to set their rules about the behaviour of others.
Not someone suitable for any kind of politics in NZ. They'd never be able to make the kinds of decisions required for people that weren't exactly like their sanctimonious and their probably false internal image of who they are. Someone completely incapable of living up to the actual precepts of their own faith because they’re so busy passing judgement on others – they never look at them as being a person.
Seen others do that. It never seems to end well. Just think of the fate of damn near every judgemental 'christian' party over the last 40 years in NZ.
As opposed to those who actually live their faith. Who I usually look at as being somewhat brain strained – but usually trustworthy.
I agree, as someone with track record with religion, I find her comment quite odd really. It's like she's learned a good concept, but hasn't worked out how to use it properly.
Shane's response nails it really; forgiveness is a delicate interchange, and only has meaning when it's sincerely asked for and given.
Either that or Judith was just taking the piss … she does have an acerbic sense of humour that trips over itself from time to time.
“We are amazed that there are no government, private, or nongovernmental organisation programs or entities dedicated to attempting to understand and calculate EROI and its effects as well and as objectively as possible given that it may be the largest determinant of many aspects of our future.”
I was just thinking that there seems to be a lot less stories in the media about homeless people and people unable to afford Christmas this year. Have things improved?
No the housing situation hasn't improved. There needs to be a major change in policy settings. The last 30 years of neoliberal settings is not working. NZ needs to try something new. I suggest a housing commissioner with specific targets (address poor housing for low-income earners first) and tools. Check it out. https://medium.com/land-buildings-identity-and-values/depoliticising-housing-e9c157f1ad6
Well unfortunately as long as we have this current neo liberal duopoly (Labour/National) that completely control and dominate the political landscape and are protected by a complicit media in New Zealand, then nothing of substance can or will change.
Ardern has proved herself to be little more than Tony Blair in heels (or flats), and we all know what he represents…but as has been pointed out on this forum many times, no one should have been surprised at this outcome, after all we all knew Arden worked for the war criminal Tony Blair after Iraq (Adren on this issue "It was totally pragmatic. I wanted to live overseas. I wanted to have that time and experience abroad.")…enough said.
Jacinda Ardern is no radical, but the 21st-century face of Blair’s Third Way
So sadly we will see no end any time soon of what is obviously nothing more than a ponzi scheme that pretends itself a political ideology, wreak havoc and rip apart any semblance that remains of local community though it’s unhinged and unquenchable thirst for endless growth…oh yeah and burn the planet while it’s at it…happy Christmas one and all!
Labour is not the same party of 30 years ago and introducing a wellbeing budget, a world's first, is a step away from "orthodox neoliberal economic policies" It will take a number of years to fix the mess inherited from the previous National government.
Not sure what the connection is between your link and J Ardern but thanks for reminding me of Wayne Mapp. He has been conspicuous by his absence from TS. Quote from link:
He [Mapp] said when he checked his diary – which he had under his house – he realised he did get a briefing.
"Somehow it surfaced back into my memory that I could remember Colonel Blackwell sitting opposite me.”
He was commenting on his previous claims he had never been told there were casualties.
I have empathy for him because it happened to me. I was attempting to get to the bottom of some covert incidents in my life and then one day while checking some old material – also under my house – my subconscious threw up an image from a long forgotten occasion and I knew instantly it was the cause of the problems I was encountering.
It's an intriguing story which should be of much interest to political historians at the least but that is for another time.
Without wanting to pry into your past life, Anne, Mapp was being briefed on NZ Defence Force personnel murdering civilians and children. That sort of thing must leave an impact.
As it appears now, there seems to be a culture of 'men behaving badly' in Afghanistan among the US, Aus and NZ special forces. So this briefing is hardly likely to be an isolated affair
It would depend on the way it was delivered to him. If the military officer in question had just mentioned there may have been one or two casualties and gave no further detail, I can well imagine it not registering with Mapp what it meant at the time. It is also what happened to me, and I have wanted to kick myself over and over again for not realising what was going on.
This is just another episode or chapter in and of NZ politics and another will follow it. Ardern and Robertson are stereotypical exemplars of their generation and others from the next and different generation will succeed them.
I have been reading, in the paper, about Mike Hosking's gains from crypto currency trading, and wondered what the source of the gain was. Income comes from providing a product or service, and even capital gain comes from some enhancement in the location of, or performance of, an asset, but I don't see either of the above in the case of crypto currencies. In investing in these, as far as I can see see, one is just putting one's cash into sophisticated ponzi schemes.
In investing in these, as far as I can see see, one is just putting one's cash into sophisticated ponzi schemes.
Not quite, but very close. There is a scarcity factor in that it takes resources and effort to mine the bit chain.
However most of the demand, in my opinion, appears to intimately be driven by demand for untraceable transportable realisable currency from unlawful sources.
Those mining resources and efforts are permanently gone. A bitcoin is simply a certificate of gratuitously wasted electricity. It's of zero use for creating anything tangible. It's the ultimate expression of something that has value purely and only because a bunch of people collectively decide it has value.
Shit, even a small rectangle of printed plastic issued by a government has a tangible worth expressed in units of that government's powers of compulsion. Or you can at least grow a pretty flower from a tulip bulb. But a bitcoin has nothing, nada, zilch …
Slightly paradoxically it appears to be a good way to get illegal activities paid for on a public ledger. I imagine if the govt could identify a buyer and sellers bitcoin identities the amount of drugs they traded could be easily traced for the courts pleasure.
Good to see The Warehouse doing the morally correct thing and paying back the government covid wage subsidy. I'm sure they would have been legally entitled to claim it as their turnover would have reduced way more than 30% while closed down. As the economy has bounced back and they have made up the lost turnover in subsequent months they will get good PR out of paying it back.
Well that's a good thing. And as they are now sitting on piles of cash perhaps they could look at making up the lower end wages back to 100% (I suspect that legally firms who pay back the subsidy can no longer leave the wages paid in that period at the 80% mark?) for the relevant periods.
That's about it for the top 50 on the NZX -apart from Fletchers.
Peru has suspended flights from Europe for two weeks and has put its health and travel authorities on high alert to prevent the entry of a new strain of coronavirus that appeared in the UK.
It is indeed a state of courageous hopelessness that might lead one to tackle viewing an hour and three quarters of what looks likely to be just rambling from someone that has dedicated a large portion of their life's efforts to dumping on the idea of happiness. With no further hints as to why that might be a worthwhile use of that time, that is.
Agreed, Andre. I read at least five times as fast as a speaker. I would have read that script of Slavov Zizek in twenty minutes, been able to re-read parts if needed and had 80 minutes left- three of which to write this reply.
That's why I don't really get Ted Talks et al.
Also, why I agree with lprent up further where he made a plea for proper paragraphing. How we present arguments, and material for discussion, is important.
Today I read a poster advertising a talk about conspiracy theory, entitled "Conspiacy Theory." Won't go there either.
It's an interesting question; like a few others here I'm fortunate to be a pretty good speed reader. I can scan a document about five times faster than my partner for instance. (Oddly enough I sometimes start at the end of a document and then flip backward through the paragraphs to reconstruct the argument. It's not a substitute for a complete and considered read, and sometime I make silly mistakes doing it, but overall it's a handy skill in a world saturated in information.)
On the other hand unlimited streaming video has been a revolution; I probably listen to as much as I read now. More importantly, while not everyone is a good reader, almost everyone can watch and listen very well. I agree however that it's not always the most time efficient mode, and if that's a concern, I'll listen to podcasts while doing something else.
Two good YT tricks, one is that you can turn on an 'audio only mode' that saves bandwidth if you're only listening. The other is that you can speed up the playback speed, often to about 1.5 times with most speakers and still track the content just fine. Works well with people who have a naturally slower cadence.
And if you want to learn something, it's almost certainly on YT. The depth of content is astonishing; future generations may well look back on this past decade where unlimited video streaming became available to a mass audience, as something of equal or even greater significance as the invention of the printing press.
I think there is a real place for both the text and visual modes; I like the written mode because it's concise, efficient and it favours clear, rigorous thought. But the video mode can be a lot richer and persuasive, and for many people it's a better learning method.
We're lucky to have both, and I'd never choose one over the other.
I find YT good for seeing how things are done, made, or designed. Someone actually talking and pointing to the specific cam or roller in question is much more informative than "see photo B", in my experience. It's been really useful for a lot of home projects.
But a person delivering a powerpoint or speech for an hour? Meh. Firstly, my undergrad reflex is still with me to this day – staying awake is always an issue. Secondly, having it on in the background/second monitor while working always seems to end up with one task being tuned out. Usually the one that doesn't attract brain power.
If things are going well, it's classical. Otherwise there seems to be a scale of 80s new wave, anything that would be on a Tarantino soundtrack, club stuff like KMFDM, or Rammstein/Laibach if everything's gone to crap.
Even background music disappears when fully engaged in another task. As a muso, it is too distracting. But, music must be heard- it's not much good to me for reading. It must be experienced at its own tempo.
The only time I found it useful playing music faster was as a bass player to work out the bass line listening to vinyl recordings. There is no 'speed listening' to music.
When I was young, I did a holiday job pressing vinyl recordings. After visual inspection, we had to check the sound quality on special sound-tables and usually at 45 rpm to speed up the process while the press was running. I remember that Gregorian chants had a ‘bit of swing’ at 45 rpm 😉
Classical music LPs were the hardest because they required the highest/perfect quality.
That was one of the more fun jobs (evening and night shifts) I did in my summer holidays although the smell of overheated/burning vinyl is awful.
I find YT good for seeing how things are done, made, or designed.
Yes I find that's much the case as well. The channels I subscribe to are usually of this nature. Yet that can't be the whole story; you only have to look at content creators like Joe Rogan to see a quite different and huge demand for people having conversations in a way they can't access in print.
Right now for instance I've got six YT tabs open, one on COVID, two on next gen nuclear, another on Peter Sagan's 2108 highlights (pro-cycling), a Canadian guy homesteading in the northern wilderness, and finally my favourite sailing channel on a massive 4yr long yacht rebuild. Yes my mind is a bit of a mess … but you knew that already
I've watched some interesting interviews, sure. And I'm not saying that YT lectures aren't popular.
But a written article or a blog can deliver most lectures in a fraction of the time – and that includes speeding up the "is this a waste of my time" assessment. And most of the internet fails that assessment, probably for everyone.
Yes, we do have favoured and different learning modes, and for some it's reading, some listening and some it's doing.
They do all have their place. At least with a document you can scan it for a quick appraisal.
Adrian Thornton's recommendation had no supporting argument, synopsis or 'taster' for a 107 minute video, such as is useful for a prospective user. Adrian's say-so is not of itself a strong enough persuader, nor is the topic tempting enough with its enigmatic title. "The courage of hopelessness."
Some YT clips have transcripts as do some Zoom recordings, depending on settings used. With a little bit of fiddling, one can transcribe any audio into text and vice versa.
I’m definitely a text person but when I watch videos or Zoom recordings, I use double playback speed and videos that rely on visual more than text I watch on mute (i.e. sound off). My auditory processing (not my actual hearing) of spoken information is relatively poor (and checked out by a specialist).
Oh what a surprise! The Wellington City Council administration seems to have a few dodgy associations in its closet! The former Mayor was officially involved with The Property Council – the developer's outfit. He was than replaced by Mayor Wade Brown's neoliberal acolyte from the UK, the previous CEO. It seems that further down the executive tree there are other questionable associations given the behind closed door contracts that seem to be written up by the commercial beneficiaries rather than the Council. Wellingtonians hoped that a longstanding Councillor who is now Mayor would know where the skeletons for be hidden and lay them to rest. Instead, a newby Councillor did the detective work to uncover the link with the preposterously titled New Zealand Initiative think tank.
Interesting thoughts from one expert, which could mean that the new variant might be heading in the direction of a less harmful endemic variant strain of Covid-19 virus:
As viruses are transmitted, those that allow for increased virological ‘success’ can be selected for, which changes the properties of the virus over time. This typically leads to more transmission and less virulence and for human infecting coronaviruses the end result of this evolutionary process might look like the other 4 commonly found coronaviruses that cause symptoms that we recognise as the common cold – however, these 4 common cold viruses are highly contagious. The new B.1.1.7 may be on the path towards this but is not there yet, and still appears to have all the human lethality that the original had but with an increased ability to transmit.
For a while now I've been vaguely musing on the topic of coronavirus lethality and long term effects.
Consider: almost all of us are exposed to the common cold coronaviruses as infants, and very few of us die or apparently suffer long term ill effects from that very early infection. While there's really not yet enough time and data to make a definitive similar statement about SARS-CoV-2, I haven't seen reports of long covid in infants or very young children, but the data seems clear the mortality rate is way way lower in infants.
It occurs to me that this new covid-causing coronavirus may be more similar to the cold coronaviruses than we currently think, and that the deaths and long-term harms we're getting are almost entirely because none of us have had that exposure as infants with subsequent partial immunity. The difference may be us, the host population, through not having had early exposure, and maybe the new coronavirus won't actually be significantly more dangerous to a population when it becomes endemic.
No de-lethalisation through evolution needed, maybe we just need to make it through this first pandemic through vaccination and other measures, and then we can live with it just like we live with other cold coronaviruses.
So once the current pandemic is extinguished by the vulnerable people (basically everyone currently alive that hasn't been exposed as an infant) getting vaccinated (or infected), we may find the new coronavirus behaviour becomes similar to the other cold coronaviruses. It might become something you get as an infant, no biggie, then again occasionally over the rest of your life as just a minor inconvenience. In which case, the benefit from the vaccine might become so minor it's no longer worth administering routinely to infants.
That cross-protection from other coronaviruses is another whole field all on its own.
I can't help wondering if that's part of the reason places like Vietnam and Taiwan have had success that seems out of proportion to the stringency of their response in dealing with the pandemic. Perhaps they've had other coronaviruses circulating in their populations that happen to give good cross-protection.
The spike protein is gonna be one hellluva intensively studied molecule for quite a while still to come.
countries with high levels of malaria seem to be less affected by covid..
and on a personal level I was pleased to hear one of jim moras' (professorial) guests uttering the aside: 'of course if you have had malaria..you have immunity to covid'..
'cos while in new guinea..I contracted malaria..
also interesting with the flu thing…
since having had malaria(a fucken hellish experience..I must say)..
I have never had the flu..
and I really thought i would never have anything good to say about the malaria thing..but there ya go..
and on a personal level I was pleased to hear one of jim moras’ (professorial) guests uttering the aside: ‘of course if you have had malaria..you have immunity to covid’..
I think that either you may have misheard or the unnamed “(professorial) guests” [plural?] may have misspoken.
Basically arguing that QAnon has a number of structural tweaks that make it look more like a free-form game (not just computer – escape rooms, LARP, all that stuff. "Games" in the widest sense) than someone leaking hidden knowledge.
Part of the giveaway is "do your own research". The players (played) are primed for a particular finding, then encouraged to look for evidence to support the claim. They find it, so the idea becomes theirs (rather than them having to be persuaded by someone else), they get a wee clickbait rush as a reward for their achievement, and they get a sense of community.
Interesting article from a completely unexpected perspective.
It continues to support via sampling that the variant is more transmissable, but also goes into a little bit of biological detail as to how a specific mutation might increase transmissability.
But we're still talking <double transmissability, not like an order of magnitude or anything. So everyone suddenly going "isolate UK!" and bojo going "lockdown" is a bit of a joke. If we should do it now, we should have done it months ago.
Nobody likes surprises, least of all politicians who are already under considerable pressure.
I found this recent update by CDC in the US illuminating too:
The VUI 202012/01 variant has not been identified through sequencing efforts in the United States, although viruses have only been sequenced from about 51,000 of the 17 million US cases.
…
Of the approximately 275,000 full-genome sequences currently in public databases, 51,000 are from the United States. (The UK currently has the most sequences, with 125,000).
Same here, and it was like a gathering in Glencoe during Summer Solstice without the horrible midges – the bitches. No sight of the celestial event though 🙁
Glencoe is a fey place, On my mother's side I am a Glencoe McDonald. It was a memorable place to visit. I went there on a Rabbi's tour bus. The driver/guide asked the twelve passengers why they were going to Glencoe. I was last to answer and said I was going there because on my mother's side I am a McDonald of Glencoe
There was a long pause. I thought, "Oh, no, he's a Campbell."
Then he replied,"I, too, am a McDonald of Glencoe on my mother's side." He really looked after us after that!
He showed me when we reached Glencoe the three islands in the loch, one of which was the ancestral burial ground close to the water, another the island where clans met to sort grievances, the third where clans met to sign their agreements.
Yup, a very special place. My most memorable trip was camping there in a little tent. The midges managed to get through the fly screen and into my tent. I used so much mozzie repellent (lotion) that my plastic cutlery started to dissolve in my hands; it must have been some cheap crap with some nasty chemical solvent – it certainly smelled like a clandestine chemical lab. The only place safe from the midges was literally in the smouldering and smoking campfire – I probably inhaled enough carcinogens to give me lung cancer combined with the chemical poisoning by the repellent. It was also the place and start of a lifelong friendship with a fellow traveller. Bloody good memories of that place 🙂
Alas twas not to be with all that cloud cover.
Those sky train/satellites are wierd when the sun catches them tracking in a line across the night sky .
Planned another 10,000 or so over the next few years with the inevitable congestion issues in the orbital space.
Inspirational: The Family of Man is a glorious hymn to human equality, but, more than that, it is a clarion call to human freedom. Because equality, unleavened by liberty, is a broken piano, an unstrung harp; upon which the songs of fraternity will never be played.“Somebody must have been telling lies about ...
Tax Lawyer Barbara Edmonds vs Emperor Justinian I- Nolo Contendere: False historical explanations of pivotal events are very far from being inconsequential.WHEN BARBARA EDMONDS made reference to the Roman Empire, my ears pricked up. It is, lamentably, very rare to hear a politician admit to any kind of familiarity ...
It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support for the various parties in ...
Buzz from the Beehive Housing Minister Chris Bishop delivered news – packed with the ingredients to enflame political passions – worthy of supplanting Winston Peters in headline writers’ priorities. He popped up at the post-Cabinet press conference to promise a crackdown on unruly and antisocial state housing tenants. His ...
Ele Ludemann writes – The Reserve Bank is advertising for a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion advisor. The Bank has one mandate – to keep inflation between one and three percent. It has failed in that and is only slowly getting inflation back down to the upper limit. Will it ...
Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency Waka KotahiThe fact that a ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Gavin Jacobson talks to Thomas Piketty 10 years on from Capital in the 21st CenturyThe SalvoLocal scoop: Green MP’s business being investigated over migrant exploitation claims StuffSteve KilgallonLocal deep-dive: The commercial contractors making money from School ...
It’s a home - but Kāinga Ora tenants accused of “abusing the privilege” may lose it. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Government announced a crackdown on Kāinga Ora tenants who were unruly and/or behind on their rent, with Housing Minister Chris Bishop saying a place in a state ...
This is a guest post by Connor Sharp of Surface Light Rail Light rail in Auckland: A way forward sooner than you think With the coup de grâce of Auckland Light Rail (ALR) earlier this year, and the shift of the government’s priorities to roads, roads, and more roads, it ...
Note: As a paid-up Webworm member, I’ve recorded this Webworm as a mini-podcast for you as well. Some of you said you liked this option - so I aim to provide it when I get a chance to record! Read more ...
TL;DR: In my ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Monday, March 18:IKEA is accused of planting big forests in New Zealand to green-wash; REDD-MonitorA City for People takes a well-deserved victory lap over Wellington’s pro-YIMBY District Plan votes; A City for PeopleSteven Anastasiou takes a close look at the sticky ...
Buzz from the Beehive Here’s hoping for a lively post-cabinet press conference when the PM and – perhaps – some of his ministers tell us what was discussed at their meeting today. Until then, Point of Order has precious little Beehive news to report after its latest monitoring of the ...
David Farrar writes – We now have almost all 2023 data in, which has allowed me to update my annual table of how labour went against its promises. This is basically their final report card. The promiseThe result Build 100,000 affordable homes over 10 ...
I’m a bit worried that I’ve started a previous newsletter with the words “just when you think they couldn’t get any worse…” Seems lately that I could begin pretty much every issue with that opening. Such is the nature of our coalition government that they seem to be outdoing each ...
Geoffrey Miller writes – Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. ...
Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture ...
Last week Transport Minster Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre. The new train control centre will see teams from KiwiRail, Auckland Transport and Auckland One Rail working more closely together to improve train services across the city. The Auckland Rail Operations Centre in ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in an exit interview with Q+A yesterday the Government can and should sustain more debt to invest in infrastructure for future generations. Elsewhere in the news in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 6:36am: Read more ...
Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. It is more than just a happy ...
TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to March 18 include:China’s Foreign Minister visiting Wellington today;A post-cabinet news conference this afternoon; the resumption of Parliament on Tuesday for two weeks before Easter;retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson gives his valedictory speech in Parliament; ...
New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Government’s key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
“I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
.“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
“It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet – is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
Bob Edlin writes – And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ HeraldThomas CoughlanSimeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
TL;DR:Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it: We want our country to be a ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading → ...
Ele Ludemann writes – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
What was that judge thinking?Peter Williams writes – That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop:Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
Buzz from the BeehiveThe text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary. It can be quickly analysed ...
For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
Questions need to be asked on both sides of the worldPeter Williams writes – The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop:The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
TL;DR:Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
Bob Edlin writes – The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
Every year, in the Budget, Parliament forks out money to government agencies to do certain things. And every year, as part of the annual review cycle, those agencies are meant to report on whether they have done the things Parliament gave them that money for. Agencies which consistently fail to ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – Recent events in American universities point to an underlying crisis of coherent thinking, an issue that increasingly affects the progressive left across the Western world. This of course is nothing new as anyone who can either remember or has read of the late ...
The thing about life’s little victories is that they can be followed by a defeat.Reader Darryl told me on Monday night:Test again Dave. My “head cold” last week became COVID within 24 hours, and is still with me. I hear the new variants take a bit longer to show up ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Angus Deaton on rethinking his economics IMFLocal scoop: The people behind Tamarind, the firm that left a $500m cleanup bill for taxpayers at Taranaki’s Tui oil well, are back operating in Taranaki under a different company name. Jonathan ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s fast-track legislation. ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesn’t act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
The New Zealand public voted for a change in direction at the 2023 general election and that is exactly what this coalition government has been delivering in its first 100 days. There was an immediate focus on the economy, easing the cost of living, cracking down on law and order ...
The Government has left the health system as an afterthought, announcing half-baked targets at the last minute of their 100-day plan, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
Kiwis are still waiting for their promised cost of living support after 100 days of a National Government that is taking us backwards, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
100 days of National taking NZ backwardsThe National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
The Government must commit to funding free and healthy school lunches, as thousands of people sign the petition to keep them, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti says. ...
If the Government was serious about moving families into public housing, they would build more houses so there is actually somewhere for people to go. ...
The free and healthy school lunches programme feeds our kids, helps them to learn, and saves families money – but it is at risk under this Government, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
The Government’s proposed changes to Firearms Prohibition Orders (FPO) add almost nothing new and are merely an attempt to distract from its plans to loosen gun laws, police spokesperson Ginny Andersen and justice spokesperson Dr Duncan Webb said. ...
The great Victorian era English politician Lord Macauley stood in the British House of Parliament and said, "The gallery in which the reporters sit has become a fourth estate of the realm".He understood and outlined even way back then, the significant role and influence media have in a democracy. ...
The government’s attack on Māori health this week is committing tangata-whenua to a premature death, says Te Pāti Māori. “The government have begun their onslaught on Māori health with the abolishment of the Māori Health Authority and smokefree laws in the same day” said health spokesperson and co-leader, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. ...
Today marks a tragic milestone for New Zealanders as the Coalition Government side with big tobacco to repeal the Smokefree Environments and Regulated Products (Smoked Tobacco) Amendment Act 2022, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins and Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall said. ...
New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April. ...
Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand. Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships. “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland Acknowledgements and opening Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says. “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024 Acknowledgements and opening Morena, Nga Mihi Nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country. “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week. “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee. “Over the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today. “The Amendment Paper represents ...
Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).“As it stands, SNAs ...
Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has classified the drought conditions in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts as a medium-scale adverse event, acknowledging the challenging conditions facing farmers and growers in the district. “Parts of Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts are in the grip of an intense dry spell. I know ...
The Government is helping farmers eradicate the significant impact of facial eczema (FE) in pastoral animals, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “A $20 million partnership jointly funded by Beef + Lamb NZ, the Government, and the primary sector will save farmers an estimated NZD$332 million per year, and aims to ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has completed a successful visit to India, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level. “We have laid a strong foundation for the Coalition Government’s priority of enhancing New Zealand-India relations to generate significant future benefit for both countries,” says Mr Peters, ...
Cabinet has agreed to provide $7 million to ensure the 2024 ski season can go ahead on the Whakapapa ski field in the central North Island but has told the operator Ruapehu Alpine Lifts it is the last financial support it will receive from taxpayers. Cabinet also agreed to provide ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Lower fruit and vegetable prices are welcome news for New Zealanders who have been doing it tough at the supermarket, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ reported today the price of fruit and vegetables has dropped 9.3 percent in the 12 months to February 2024. “Lower fruit and vege ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the sixty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
The coalition Government is supporting farmers to enhance land management practices by investing $3.3 million in locally led catchment groups, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “Farmers and growers deliver significant prosperity for New Zealand and it’s vital their ongoing efforts to improve land management practices and water quality are supported,” ...
Good evening everyone and thank you for that lovely introduction. Thank you also to the Honourable Simon Bridges for the invitation to address your members. Since being sworn in, this coalition Government has hit the ground running with our 100-day plan, delivering the changes that New Zealanders expect of us. ...
Recommendations from the Climate Change Commission for New Zealand on the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auction and unit limit settings for the next five years have been tabled in Parliament, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “The Commission provides advice on the ETS annually. This is the third time the ...
The coalition Government is beginning its fight to lower building costs and reduce red tape by exempting minor building work from paying the building levy, says Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk. “Currently, any building project worth $20,444 including GST or more is subject to the building levy which is ...
Proposed changes to tax legislation to prevent the over-taxation of low-earning trusts are welcome, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The changes have been recommended by Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee following consideration of submissions on the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill. “One of the ...
Assalaamu alaikum. السَّلَام عليكم In light of the holy month of Ramadan, I want to extend my warmest wishes to our Muslim community in New Zealand. Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, renewed devotion, perseverance, generosity, and forgiveness. It’s a time to strengthen our bonds and appreciate the diversity ...
Former Transport Minister and CEO of the Auckland Business Chamber Hon Simon Bridges has been appointed as the new Board Chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) for a three-year term, Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced today. “Simon brings extensive experience and knowledge in transport policy and governance to the role. He will ...
Good morning all, it is a pleasure to be here as Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology. It is fantastic to see how connected and collaborative the life science and biotechnology industry is here in New Zealand. I would like to thank BioTechNZ and NZTech for the invitation to address ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says he is looking forward to the day when three key water projects in Northland are up and running, unlocking the full potential of land in the region. Mr Jones attended a community event at the site of the Otawere reservoir near Kerikeri on Friday. ...
Associate Finance Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government has agreed to restore deductibility for mortgage interest on residential investment properties. “Help is on the way for landlords and renters alike. The Government’s restoration of interest deductibility will ease pressure on rents and simplify the tax code,” says ...
Sport and Recreation Minister Chris Bishop will travel to Switzerland today to attend an Executive Committee meeting and Symposium of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Mr Bishop will then travel on to London where he will attend a series of meetings in his capacity as Infrastructure Minister. “New Zealanders believe ...
This year’s Pacific Language Weeks celebrate regional unity and the contribution of Pacific communities to New Zealand culture, says Minister for Pacific Peoples Dr Shane Reti. Dr Reti announced dates for the 2024 Pacific Language Weeks during a visit to the Pasifika festival in Auckland today and says there’s so ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Tod Wright and Hien Nguyen, Fiscal incidence in New Zealand: The effects of taxes and benefits on household incomes in tax year 2018/19 . Analyses of the distributional impact of taxation and government ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Cory Davis, Boston Hart and Benjamin Stubbing, Household cost-of-living impacts from the Emissions Trading Scheme and using transfers to mitigate regressive outcomes . This Analytical Note ...
A coalition of public transport and climate organisations, united as ‘Transport for All’, is actively opposing the government’s transport proposals. The draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) includes plans for higher fares for public transport, ...
Greater Wellington is inviting feedback on proposed changes to its Revenue and Financing Policy. The Revenue and Financing Policy covers the Council’s various sources of funding, and how the cost of services is shared across the region. This includes ...
Labour has conceded it could have done more to deal with disruptive state housing tenants while in government but says the current coalition is going too far. ...
The band has asked their record label to issue a cease and desist to stop the NZ First leader using their 1997 hit to support his ‘misguided political views’. “I get knocked down, but I get up again,” blared through the speakers on Sunday as Winston Peters took the stage ...
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Brannavan Gnanalingam reviews the debut novel by Saraid de Silva.One of the most baffling things for children who move to a new country is what their parents’ (or grandparents’) lives were like prior to moving – for kids in particular, they’re too busy trying to fit in in their ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Gaunson, Associate Professor in Cinema Studies, RMIT University Narelle Portanier/Binge “If you don’t know who your mob are, you don’t know who you are,” Detective Andrea “Andie” Whitford (played by Leah Purcell) is told early into the new crime ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elise Klein, Associate professor, Australian National University It’s commonly accepted that women do the vast majority of caregiving in Australian society. But less appreciated is that Indigenous women do larger amounts of unpaid care than any other group. Working with the Aboriginal ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne Joe Biden and Donald Trump have both secured their parties’ nominations for the November 5 United States general election by winning a ...
Comment: There has been a striking contrast in trans-Tasman interest about Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi’s visit to New Zealand and Australia. While the Australian press has been full of articles about the visit – including his curious decision to meet with former prime minister and China booster Paul Keating ...
After years of pressuring banks and other institutions to stop investing in fossil fuels, climate campaigners are making some progress. So how does divestment work?For years, climate activists have been pushing banks and other big institutions to divest from fossil fuels. New research from climate advocacy group 350 Aotearoa ...
For Boba, Ethan and Ashley, K-pop is a place to belong, a way to express themselves, and a bridge to connect with others. The three young Polynesians are part of a K-pop fan community in Tāmaki Makaurau. It’s one of many that have sprung up worldwide as K-pop has gone ...
For Boba, Ethan and Ashley, K-pop is a place to belong, a way to express themselves, and a bridge to connect with others. This one-off documentary presents three intimate portraits of young Polynesians who are pulled into a Korean cultural phenomenon. K-POLYS is directed by Litia Tuiburelevu, Produced by Hex ...
There’s ample evidence demonstrating free school lunch programmes provide wide benefits across schools, households and communities according to public health researchers. ACT Minister David Seymour wants to reduce the spending on Aotearoa New Zealand’s ...
By Wata Shaw in Suva Fiji is facing an exodus of Fijians as many are leaving for overseas seeking employment and education and others are migrating, says Opposition MP Viliame Naupoto. Speaking in Parliament, he said: “His Excellency’s speech (Ratu Wiliame Katonivere) comes after a little over one year of ...
The Taxpayers’ Union is welcoming comments from Christopher Luxon this morning recommitting to ‘no new taxes’ as part of Budget 2024. “Mr Luxon’s refusal at the Post-Cabinet press conference yesterday to repeat the ‘no new taxes’ promise ...
SAFE is urgently calling on the Environment Committee to reject the Government’s Fast-Track Approvals Bill, and is urging New Zealanders to rally behind the call. The proposed Bill, currently under consideration with the Environment select committee, ...
Teammates who spend all their time picking fights with spectators are only helpful for the other team, writes Madeleine Chapman. Anyone who has ever played a team sport competitively, particularly as a child and particularly, for some reason, basketball, will know that there’s a lot of politics involved. While there ...
The long-running Wellington music festival is too focused on the Jim Beam-ness and not enough on the Homegrown-ness.There is something about Homegrown that’s difficult to place. A barely perceptible-ness. Like feeling a ghost is watching you from the corner of the room but when you look, there’s nothing there. ...
The latest Ipsos New Zealand Issues Monitor reveals that fewer New Zealanders believe crime / law and order is one of the top issues facing our country. In 2018, Ipsos New Zealand started tracking the key issues facing New Zealand. In this wave ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Griffiths, Deputy Program Director, Budgets and Government, Grattan Institute Australia’s political donations rules are woefully inadequate, but donations reform is finally on the agenda. The federal government has signalled its interest in reform and will soon begin briefing MPs on its ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Patrick Taylor, Chief Environmental Scientist, EPA Victoria; Honorary Professor, School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University Naiyana Somchitkaeo/Shutterstock A recent study published in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine has linked microplastics with risk to human health. The study ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Albert Van Dijk, Professor, Water and Landscape Dynamics, Fenner School of Environment & Society, Australian National University Global climate records were shattered in 2023, from air and sea temperatures to sea-level rise and sea-ice extent. Scores of countries recorded their hottest year ...
As part of our series exploring how New Zealanders live and our relationship with money, a teacher explains why he and his partner are in frugal mode – and how they’re making it work. Gender: Male Age: 35Ethnicity: Pākehā Role: I am an intermediate school teacher and my partner is ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Bendall, Senior Lecturer, Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences, Australian Catholic University Binge Mary & George, the new British television drama series, depicts the real-life story of Mary Villiers and her son George, and their social climbing at the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jason Nassios, Associate Professor, Centre of Policy Studies, Victoria University This article is part of The Conversation’s series examining the housing crisis. Read the other articles in the series here. Australian state and federal governments spend money in many ways to ...
The finance minister is denying that there’s a $5.6b shortfall in paying for the government’s campaign promises, including tax cuts. At his post-cabinet press conference yesterday, the PM refused to rule out new taxes to pay for the cuts, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s ...
Kāinga Ora tenants abused by their neighbours are doubting the government's crackdown on disruptive tenants will make a difference on their behaviour. ...
Kāinga Ora is New Zealand’s biggest residential landlord, housing more than 180,000 vulnerable people in more than 67,000 properties. Yesterday the government announced a crackdown on its tenants who fall behind on rent. One longtime Kāinga Ora tenant shares her experience.For 18 years I lived in a 1960s standalone ...
Why does this myth persist, and what’s the real reason our skin is suffering?It’s one of the biggest international grievances New Zealanders hold, up there with the sinking of the Rainbow Warrior and 1981’s underarm incident. We’re quick to tell international travellers that the world’s pollution led to the ...
Opinion: We are fast approaching a fundamental change in prisons. As the number of people on custodial remand looks set to overtake the number of sentenced prisoners, the main function of prisons in New Zealand may become incarcerating un-sentenced people who may not be guilty of offending. We have already ...
A huge seven months lies in store for the White Ferns, beginning this week with the visit of England and culminating with the T20 World Cup in Bangladesh in September and October. Starting on Tuesday in Dunedin, the world ranked No. 2 visitors will play five T20s and three ODIs, ...
Opinion: In a move that has shocked road safety advocates across the country, the new Minister of Transport, Simeon Brown, is poised to abandon the previous government’s speed limit reduction policy, particularly around schools. Even more alarmingly, he wants school speed limits to be variable rather than full-time, arguing ...
Auckland Council is opposing a fast-track development backed by Sir John Kirwan and Spark NZ, because it doesn’t meet stringent new climate adaptation requirements The post Surf-data centre faces new 3.8C climate warming rules appeared first on Newsroom. ...
When the Criminal Proceeds (Recovery) Act was introduced in 2009 it was firmly targeted at gangs and drugs. The legislation means police no longer need a conviction to seize assets that criminals can’t prove were paid for legitimately, as long as their alleged offences are punishable by more than a ...
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Bob’s relationship with certain members of Lincoln’s academic staff continued to deteriorate in the 1990s. Others supported him publicly, though articles such as Roland Clark’s 1993 piece in Growing Today cannot have pleased the university management. Clark wrote that Bob was selling onions from the Biological Husbandry Unit to a ...
SailGP’s races feature in-your-face action, with agile, hydro-foiling catamarans tacking and jibing for the title over several days. However, public comments ahead of the global series’ return to New Zealand have left this past year’s controversy in the shadows, as a key appointment attracts criticism from dolphin advocates. A year ...
The letters, which were published last week, were addressed to Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) Chairperson Megawati Sukarnoputri, National Democrat Party (NasDem) Chairperson Surya Paloh, National Awakening Party (PKB) Chairperson Muhaimin Iskandar, Justice and Prosperity Party (PKS) President Ahmad Syaikhu and United Development Party (PPP) Chairperson Muhammad Mardiono. In ...
Evicting more people from state housing is ignorant to the consequences of poverty, the Greens say, but the Housing Minister says it's a privilege that can be taken away if abused. ...
Evicting more people from state housing is ignorant to the consequences of poverty, the Greens say, but the Housing Minister says it's a privilege that can be taken away if abused. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emerald L King, Lecturer in Humanities, University of Tasmania IMDB Between Netflix’s 2023 live-action version of One Piece, and its latest take on Avatar: The Last Airbender, fans are once again asking: why are live-action anime adaptations so tricky to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emerald L King, Lecturer in Humanities, University of Tasmania IMDB Between Netflix’s 2023 live-action version of One Piece, and its latest take on Avatar: The Last Airbender, fans are once again asking: why are live-action anime adaptations so tricky to ...
The government says it still intends to deliver tax cuts by July, but will not lock them in until they have got them past their coalition partners. ...
Kiingi Tuheitia Pootatau Te Wherowhero VII has hosted members of the Green Party Caucus at Tuurangawaewae Marae in Ngaaruawahia. The audience follows the King’s Hui-aa-Motu on 20 January, where more than 10,000 people gathered to discuss national ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dr Rachael Potter, Research Associate and Lecturer in Work and Organisational Psychology, University of South Australia Ground Picture/Shutterstock Pregnant women and workers with children are often unfairly treated by their bosses and colleagues, despite laws to protect against workplace discrimination ...
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Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Duckett, Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne Aila Images/Shutterstock Aged-care workers will receive a significant pay increase after the Fair Work Commission ruled they ...
He’s bringing ‘Sophie’ back, yeah. Goodshirt’s ‘Sophie’ music video is one of the most instantly recognisable New Zealand music videos of all time. Featuring a woman listening to the song on headphones while her entire house is burgled behind her, the video won the New Zealand music award for Best ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Blaxland, Professor, Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, Australian National University A year ago, the AUKUS agreement was formally announced between Australian and UK Prime Ministers Anthony Albanese and Rishi Sunak and US President Joe Biden. The agreement mapped out the “optimal ...
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This is the latest ride on the merry-go-round of legal shit-fuckery that penalises community groups who dare to face off in opposition to the rape and pillage of the environment. Less than a decade ago, voluntary community organisations were able to apply for Government financed grants, now no longer available, when challenging the likes of Councils, big-moneyed developers, international consortiums and Government agencies in respect of environmental concerns. In almost all but the most frivolous of cases, legal costs were never awarded against community groups but left to lie where they may. This was in the interests of justice being seen to be done in both quasi and full legal proceedings that were being tested by those who were committed to upholding the incrementally unfolding joke of ‘A Clean Green New Zealand’ by their works and deeds. Up and down the country, these communities of voluntary environmental workers and supporters of the notion that we are only caretakers of the land for future generations attempted to mount cases on hard come by donations fund raising efforts and their own knowledge and informational resources that are now regarded as unqualified opinions in hearings, even if they are unpaid witnesses or presenters who are acknowledged experts in their fields. These usually unheralded challengers of 'the system' are rapidly learning that you don’t fuck with rapacious wealth accumulators, Councils, and Government without risking eye-wateringly heavy sanctions and financial penalties. With stuff-all resources, the would-be protectors now not only have to somehow engage expensive lawyers and 'experts' but will be denigrated during hearings by the paid liars who the vested interests can munificently reward, the snide demeaning attitudes of the assembled ‘specialist’ legal teams of the ‘I want brigade’ and usually associated local bodies, various intended beneficiaries of the primary parties and, as in the Coromandel case, the Government, all of who are backed by very deep pockets, often, in part, paid for by the various charges, rates or taxes of the challengers. This could end up a long dissertation of examples and bitter experience from the bottom end of the disenchanted 'protest' chain but no doubt, the shit-fuckery and perversion of environmental legal protection is already sufficiently evident!
Some semblance of syntax, grammar, and a link to whatever you're on about would be useful if you want any kind of engagement.
For example you could always publish the High Court decision on the reasons that their costs application was not considered in the public interest.
Agree about the link, but not a lot wrong with the grammar and syntax.
A few paragraphs wouldn't go amiss. It means that I'd actually try to read the comment for a starter.
You appear more annoyed by poor grammar than the rape and pillage of our environment Ad.
aom’s passionate piece highlights how far our nation has fallen into being a neoliberal playground for massive multinational corporations.
Whose side are on, Ad?
I read hundreds of passionate pleas every day. Many of them from people who want to write on this site and are willing to pay money to do it. Those I file them into spam because most of them are made by robots and are passionate about making money for casinos or NGOs. Others are heart rending appeals for donations – like the flood of ones for the Georgian Senate race that I'm getting right now.
My immediate reaction when I read an unformatted message like the one above is that it was probably done by a badly formed robot copy and pasting text (think of tat as the moderator response). My second is that whoever was making it doesn't care enough to make their points readable (I have a lot of reading to do and not a lot of time to do it). My third is is there was a bug in the comment editor (the programmer response).
But an ability to communicate clearly is an essential skill in all of them to get me to read the actual content of what they say. That is the responsibility of the person making the passionate plea.
In addition to your premise being wrong, Ad’s record is here for all to judge for themselves: https://thestandard.org.nz/author/advantage/
The link to the RNZ report is contained in the text of the comment. Someone didn't notice the third three words ARE the link. Geez – some people! Not sure what your issue is regarding syntax and grammar but style, like yours is personal and usually experientially influenced.However, if it deters your engagement, perhaps you haven't much of value to contribute on the topic anyway!
@Ad, what the hell is wrong with you?, someone comes on and writes a solid piece on a subject obviously close to their heart and you can do nothing but critique their “syntax, grammar” …maybe you need to go and sit in the corner and think about what you have done.
@Ad,,…..At the current rate of knots it will be you and and a couple others that will bother writing or reply to anything on this site,maybe that's for the better.On second thoughts,, nah
Imagine you go a restaurant and order a three-course meal with drinks. The chef cooks it to your specifications, puts all of it in a blender, and the grumpy waiter dumps a big bowl with the blended mess on your table giving you a straw telling you to “suck it up”.
Style and presentation are important, as are clarity of thought & word, if you wish to engage in on-line discussion. It doesn’t take much effort to make comments more inviting, accessible, and readable.
Many readers access the site on mobile phone with tiny screens and not all have the time, energy, or inclination to turn a dense comment into something that their brain can digest more easily let alone respond to.
Ad has a point, except he missed the link that started at the third word.
Slightly off choice of analogy I think. Ad has used the phrase "suck it up" plenty of times on here.
Here's the link for those who failed to read the article.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/433343/environmental-group-to-pay-cost-of-failed-bid-to-review-gold-mining-consent
I get your blind rage aom. I was just about incandescent when I read about this at about 5am this morning. I don't need to add to your well justified rant.
For a fleeting moment I thought about posting here about this and suggesting a hat-passing to help Catherine Delahunty and Coro Watchdog with these costs. Decided it would be a waste of time considering the drubbing said former Green MP received from some here for her temerity at criticising Shaw over the Privileged Green School debacle.
There is no need to do anything about raising funds Rosemary, that is not the purpose of the Crown's strategy. In days past, the likes of Councils and more so the Crown would not make applicationsfor costs in such cases. It appears that somewhere along the way, it was realised that small 'pain in the arse' organisations could never be sufficiently solvent to comply with Orders for eye-watering costs, hence the applications. It has transpired that small organisations have defaulted and closed down in attempts to financially protect individual members. There is nothing like a legal 'mowing of the lawns' to threaten dissent. Along the similar lines, it was observed in a Wellington case that a developer, enjoined by the Council, attempted to preemptively close down a pending case. The strategy was to lodge an application to have the Court make an Order that funds be lodged in advance to meet indeterminate projected legal fees.
Exactly. Like hiring private investigators tp spy on anyone who dared to protest the destruction of forests, birds and other forms of indigenous species. It went on for decades and various public and private entities used them.
Thanks for bringing the subject up aom.
and
From the article I completely agree. I'd also say that there is a public interest in finding out the legal position. Funding an appeal about the costs being awarded against the group sounds right to me. Also the ruling does look somewhat suspicious to me. The whole point about legislation is that it needs to be fleshed out in court in the public interest. Penalising groups for doing that is definitely not.
Does anyone have a link to the judgement?
lprent: Is this what you were after?
Yes thank you. I'll read it next coffee break. I'd better get back to work. Lunch is well over.
"Less than a decade ago, voluntary community organisations were able to apply for Government financed grants, now no longer available…."
The Environmental Legal Assistance scheme run by the government is still operating. The community group that I am president of gained grants for both legal assistance for a High Court appeal and for expert landscape evidence in an Environment Court case last year.
The problem is that these grants only cover part of the cost and if you lose a case the community group may be liable for costs, though if the case is argued well and without wasting the court's time costs are usually left where they fall.
Thanks for that Bearded Git – my bad for not checking. It is ages since I heard of an organisation having successfully tapped that funding, so worked on an obviously incorrect assumption.
No worries….I have much sympathy with your post….the system works against small community groups and community interests
I hope this helps a bit; I took the liberty of making a few edits … chrs.
Way better.
It's quite peculiar how a bit of white space makes such a difference … the human brain really is quite odd at times.
I suspect it is an effort issue. By breaking up the text into what are essentially related argument points, you reduce the amount of brain parsing and reparsing.
Computers are good at state engines and will happily churn through code without any formatting after the pre-parser removes the unrequired white space. Humans have some pretty severe stack limits for processing straight logic. Our writing styles reflect that.
Humans are way way better as inference and associative engines though. You only need to read the text of any conspiracy theory to see the extremities of that.
@red logix..
if you get into the habit of giving each sentence its' own line…
soon the paragraphs that most use start to look like bricks..
and you ask yourself 'why?'
especially because the paragraph is a habit dictated by the high cost of paper/printing..
pushing a bunch of sentences together under those circumstances makes perfect sense..
but not so now..
we all have acres of white space to stretch/loll about in…
let your words breathe/gambol..
banish the brick..
(and I speak up on this ‘cos sentences don’t have a voice…eh..? they have nobody to speak for them..)
Mr Ure giving writing lessons…….
Now that’s gold that will keep me smiling….
Merry xmas..
good use of white space there..
Nonsense. Paragraphs provide structure to style & contents in and of written comments and help to present a clear and logical argument, just as sentences convey meaning by stringing together certain words in a certain order. In order to achieve this, you don’t pull apart the components but you group them together.
I can see times when what you say would apply..
(say in the presentation of complex ideas..they are invaluable then..)
but in general.. the paragraph has seen its' day…
doomed to go the way of the whorl..
If you could write properly, you would, so I get why someone with your ‘can’t be wrong’ personality uses an easy cop out like 'evolving language' to try and disguise the fact.
The world is a complex place and our issues are complex too. Therefore, I don’t see any point in trying to reduce things to single sentences that lack cohesion. Often, one ends up with just simplistic common sense and banal clichés. So, in general, for me, paragraphs are paramount.
QED
Yes aom, this is a strategy. When the mine first wanted to do work in the area it was stopped as the land was slipping. You are right about deep pockets. They afford expensive ranks of lawyers which increases costs.
My late Mother and I asked how Waihi's water table would be affected. We received a 70 page document which made it plain they would seek costs… made it scary.
My Aunt and Uncle had a neighbour whose property subsided into old workings disturbed by the underground drilling, and subsequently their own property was shifted to a new section. That whole area has been bought by the mine and is sealed off.
So much of Waihi has become dangerous or out of bounds. I admire the groups trying to make these mining bodies ethical. We could be worse off without the watch dogs.
I hope now that police no longer chase, there will not be more of this where a person causes an accident and fails to stop to even see if anyone injured. Time will tell.
Southern Motorway crash: Car flips, police trying to locate vehicle that crossed two lanes – NZ Herald
The police policy on chase had no bearing on this person leaving the scene.
It is a good decision to end these pursuits, and I applaud the police on taking it.
It will be seen if the end of police pursuits is actually going to improve the situation. The people fleeing the now non-chasing police probably still drive dangerously anyway.
I also think the fines for hit-and-run and other serious traffic offences should be increased significantly, for example to several years of suspended driver licenses as a starting point.
Driving a car – especially dangerously – should not be an untouchable entitlement.
Errm, how is this in any way relevant to a pursuit policy?
It appears to be a case of a clueless menace on four wheels changing multiple lanes at once, causing other drivers to take evasive action resulting in those other drivers having a crash.
The original clueless menace that caused it all is likely completely unaware of the carnage they were directly responsible for unfolding behind them.
Fatalities from police chases will reduce significantly now as there will be hardly any police chases. I just hope deaths don't increase from more dangerous drivers on the road like the dickhead who caused this crash. Lucky they didn't kill anyone.
When people quote you GDP numbers to claim that we, as a country are doing well, tell them they're dreaming.
Right now, as has been the case for a long time, the rich are getting very rich and looking forward to their Christmas holidays on the waterways at Pauanui, Omaha and Queenstown.
Meanwhile, under this government, this is the reality for many:
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/christchurch-city-mission-struggling-under-christmas-pressure/34A3KUPIBPVTT5THF5PPC46W4Q/
Looks like Judith Collins has made a pointless personal enemy of Shane Te Pou if his Herald column today is any guide!
Anyone can forgive, it doesn't require a Christian belief system (which, in case a clue of some kind were needed, shows she wouldn't have made a good PM anyway)
I don't think they ever would of been friends anyway.
Even though it is pay-walled, you should still provide the link for those who can access the content and read it in full
As such, your comment contains nothing of substance.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/shane-te-pou-why-what-judith-collins-said-to-me-matters/ZQDFFLLOZNYWPSKN3C3XDIP5HY/
Interesting. I'll quote the relevant interaction.
Exposing that kind of sanctimonious 'forgiveness' is always a worth while activity.
As Shane points out it, it just reeks of someone who is unprepared to deal with reality of other people and prefers to try to set their rules about the behaviour of others.
Not someone suitable for any kind of politics in NZ. They'd never be able to make the kinds of decisions required for people that weren't exactly like their sanctimonious and their probably false internal image of who they are. Someone completely incapable of living up to the actual precepts of their own faith because they’re so busy passing judgement on others – they never look at them as being a person.
Seen others do that. It never seems to end well. Just think of the fate of damn near every judgemental 'christian' party over the last 40 years in NZ.
As opposed to those who actually live their faith. Who I usually look at as being somewhat brain strained – but usually trustworthy.
I agree, as someone with track record with religion, I find her comment quite odd really. It's like she's learned a good concept, but hasn't worked out how to use it properly.
Shane's response nails it really; forgiveness is a delicate interchange, and only has meaning when it's sincerely asked for and given.
Either that or Judith was just taking the piss … she does have an acerbic sense of humour that trips over itself from time to time.
Judith Collins, at least the one who is spoken of in Shane Te Pou's story, seems not to understand what forgiveness is.
It's not a gift bestowed by a generous benefactor, but an act that frees the giver from the negativity of bearing a hurt.
If Collins gave forgiveness, she benefits.
If she still goes on about another's hurtful ways, then she has not forgiven them.
Instead, the Collins in the story seems to be 'holier than thou', sanctimonious and requiring forgiveness?
Ah! … but will Shane Te Pou ever forgive Judith Collins?
“We are amazed that there are no government, private, or nongovernmental organisation programs or entities dedicated to attempting to understand and calculate EROI and its effects as well and as objectively as possible given that it may be the largest determinant of many aspects of our future.”
Amazed….or dumbfounded? I'd go with the latter.
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/is-our-renewable-energy-future-what-we-think
I think we need a simplified two word petition, "DO SOMETHING", directed to the Ministers of Housing.
Yesterday it was Christmas in a caravan, now this today
I was just thinking that there seems to be a lot less stories in the media about homeless people and people unable to afford Christmas this year. Have things improved?
No the housing situation hasn't improved. There needs to be a major change in policy settings. The last 30 years of neoliberal settings is not working. NZ needs to try something new. I suggest a housing commissioner with specific targets (address poor housing for low-income earners first) and tools. Check it out.
https://medium.com/land-buildings-identity-and-values/depoliticising-housing-e9c157f1ad6
Well unfortunately as long as we have this current neo liberal duopoly (Labour/National) that completely control and dominate the political landscape and are protected by a complicit media in New Zealand, then nothing of substance can or will change.
Ardern has proved herself to be little more than Tony Blair in heels (or flats), and we all know what he represents…but as has been pointed out on this forum many times, no one should have been surprised at this outcome, after all we all knew Arden worked for the war criminal Tony Blair after Iraq (Adren on this issue "It was totally pragmatic. I wanted to live overseas. I wanted to have that time and experience abroad.")…enough said.
Jacinda Ardern is no radical, but the 21st-century face of Blair’s Third Way
https://thespinoff.co.nz/politics/15-01-2018/jacinda-ardern-is-no-radical-but-the-21st-century-face-of-blairs-third-way/
So sadly we will see no end any time soon of what is obviously nothing more than a ponzi scheme that pretends itself a political ideology, wreak havoc and rip apart any semblance that remains of local community though it’s unhinged and unquenchable thirst for endless growth…oh yeah and burn the planet while it’s at it…happy Christmas one and all!
Rubbish, Ardern is nothing like Blair. Written by former Nat minister Wayne Mapp who "forgot' about civilian casualties"
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/422487/operation-burnham-former-minister-wayne-mapp-forgot-about-civilian-casualties
On.foreign policy she is different.
However Robertson and Ardern follow orthodox neoliberal economic policies.
The policies in place since the betrayal of the working class of New Zealand by Lange, Douglas and that traitorous crew.
Labour is not the same party of 30 years ago and introducing a wellbeing budget, a world's first, is a step away from "orthodox neoliberal economic policies" It will take a number of years to fix the mess inherited from the previous National government.
It is a step….a tiny step.
Tinkering isn’t going to break the grip neoliberal economic thinking has on this country.
The Wellbeing budget is a significant step.
@ louis..
we are in year four now..
and still waiting..
how much longer do you think..
..before we can be a bit questioning..?
possibly even grumpy..?
Good things do take time. The second term has barely started.
OK, it is me not Mapp saying Ardern js in the ideological mold of Blair…how about that?
Disagree with your opinion.
Apart from them both winning landslide general elections, although at present, Blair has two more in the bag.
Whilst both are not as left leaning as I had hoped for, they do have similarly impressive records in taking the public with them as they rout tories.
Not sure what the connection is between your link and J Ardern but thanks for reminding me of Wayne Mapp. He has been conspicuous by his absence from TS. Quote from link:
He was commenting on his previous claims he had never been told there were casualties.
I have empathy for him because it happened to me. I was attempting to get to the bottom of some covert incidents in my life and then one day while checking some old material – also under my house – my subconscious threw up an image from a long forgotten occasion and I knew instantly it was the cause of the problems I was encountering.
It's an intriguing story which should be of much interest to political historians at the least but that is for another time.
conspicuous by his absence from TS
It's an involuntary but self-inflicted absence. The involuntary bit is finished with around Jan 1st or 2nd.
Thanks. I missed it.
Without wanting to pry into your past life, Anne, Mapp was being briefed on NZ Defence Force personnel murdering civilians and children. That sort of thing must leave an impact.
As it appears now, there seems to be a culture of 'men behaving badly' in Afghanistan among the US, Aus and NZ special forces. So this briefing is hardly likely to be an isolated affair
It would depend on the way it was delivered to him. If the military officer in question had just mentioned there may have been one or two casualties and gave no further detail, I can well imagine it not registering with Mapp what it meant at the time. It is also what happened to me, and I have wanted to kick myself over and over again for not realising what was going on.
Hindsight is a wonderful thing.
Totally agree Adrian.
Comment of the day.
This is just another episode or chapter in and of NZ politics and another will follow it. Ardern and Robertson are stereotypical exemplars of their generation and others from the next and different generation will succeed them.
https://thestandard.org.nz/colin-james-looking-forward/
https://thestandard.org.nz/beyond-jacinda-colin-james-and-cr-tamatha-paul/
Make it so.
I have been reading, in the paper, about Mike Hosking's gains from crypto currency trading, and wondered what the source of the gain was. Income comes from providing a product or service, and even capital gain comes from some enhancement in the location of, or performance of, an asset, but I don't see either of the above in the case of crypto currencies. In investing in these, as far as I can see see, one is just putting one's cash into sophisticated ponzi schemes.
Not quite, but very close. There is a scarcity factor in that it takes resources and effort to mine the bit chain.
However most of the demand, in my opinion, appears to intimately be driven by demand for untraceable transportable realisable currency from unlawful sources.
Those mining resources and efforts are permanently gone. A bitcoin is simply a certificate of gratuitously wasted electricity. It's of zero use for creating anything tangible. It's the ultimate expression of something that has value purely and only because a bunch of people collectively decide it has value.
Shit, even a small rectangle of printed plastic issued by a government has a tangible worth expressed in units of that government's powers of compulsion. Or you can at least grow a pretty flower from a tulip bulb. But a bitcoin has nothing, nada, zilch …
Hosking and Bitcoin make perfect sense together.
Slightly paradoxically it appears to be a good way to get illegal activities paid for on a public ledger. I imagine if the govt could identify a buyer and sellers bitcoin identities the amount of drugs they traded could be easily traced for the courts pleasure.
Good to see The Warehouse doing the morally correct thing and paying back the government covid wage subsidy. I'm sure they would have been legally entitled to claim it as their turnover would have reduced way more than 30% while closed down. As the economy has bounced back and they have made up the lost turnover in subsequent months they will get good PR out of paying it back.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/300190019/the-warehouse-group-to-repay-68-million-in-wage-subsidy
I find little to admire about the Warehouse as a company – ethically or environmentally.
Well that's a good thing. And as they are now sitting on piles of cash perhaps they could look at making up the lower end wages back to 100% (I suspect that legally firms who pay back the subsidy can no longer leave the wages paid in that period at the 80% mark?) for the relevant periods.
That's about it for the top 50 on the NZX -apart from Fletchers.
Props to Jilnaught Wong, who seems to have helped them find their moral compass.
heh..!..yeah…I heard a couple of interviews he gave..
and he clearly wasn't going to let up..
until this was sorted..
good on him..
Peru has suspended flights from Europe for two weeks and has put its health and travel authorities on high alert to prevent the entry of a new strain of coronavirus that appeared in the UK.
We should too.
https://mobile.reuters.com/article/amp/idUSKBN28V2MF
No
The Courage of Hopelessness
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNlW3HnNqlk
It is indeed a state of courageous hopelessness that might lead one to tackle viewing an hour and three quarters of what looks likely to be just rambling from someone that has dedicated a large portion of their life's efforts to dumping on the idea of happiness. With no further hints as to why that might be a worthwhile use of that time, that is.
Agreed, Andre. I read at least five times as fast as a speaker. I would have read that script of Slavov Zizek in twenty minutes, been able to re-read parts if needed and had 80 minutes left- three of which to write this reply.
That's why I don't really get Ted Talks et al.
Also, why I agree with lprent up further where he made a plea for proper paragraphing. How we present arguments, and material for discussion, is important.
Today I read a poster advertising a talk about conspiracy theory, entitled "Conspiacy Theory." Won't go there either.
Unless I were Australian……….
I read at least five times as fast as a speaker.
It's an interesting question; like a few others here I'm fortunate to be a pretty good speed reader. I can scan a document about five times faster than my partner for instance. (Oddly enough I sometimes start at the end of a document and then flip backward through the paragraphs to reconstruct the argument. It's not a substitute for a complete and considered read, and sometime I make silly mistakes doing it, but overall it's a handy skill in a world saturated in information.)
On the other hand unlimited streaming video has been a revolution; I probably listen to as much as I read now. More importantly, while not everyone is a good reader, almost everyone can watch and listen very well. I agree however that it's not always the most time efficient mode, and if that's a concern, I'll listen to podcasts while doing something else.
Two good YT tricks, one is that you can turn on an 'audio only mode' that saves bandwidth if you're only listening. The other is that you can speed up the playback speed, often to about 1.5 times with most speakers and still track the content just fine. Works well with people who have a naturally slower cadence.
And if you want to learn something, it's almost certainly on YT. The depth of content is astonishing; future generations may well look back on this past decade where unlimited video streaming became available to a mass audience, as something of equal or even greater significance as the invention of the printing press.
I think there is a real place for both the text and visual modes; I like the written mode because it's concise, efficient and it favours clear, rigorous thought. But the video mode can be a lot richer and persuasive, and for many people it's a better learning method.
We're lucky to have both, and I'd never choose one over the other.
I find YT good for seeing how things are done, made, or designed. Someone actually talking and pointing to the specific cam or roller in question is much more informative than "see photo B", in my experience. It's been really useful for a lot of home projects.
But a person delivering a powerpoint or speech for an hour? Meh. Firstly, my undergrad reflex is still with me to this day – staying awake is always an issue. Secondly, having it on in the background/second monitor while working always seems to end up with one task being tuned out. Usually the one that doesn't attract brain power.
YT is also good for background music, though
I immediately thought of you:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXZAbnn1kTU
Ha.
If things are going well, it's classical. Otherwise there seems to be a scale of 80s new wave, anything that would be on a Tarantino soundtrack, club stuff like KMFDM, or Rammstein/Laibach if everything's gone to crap.
But I'll try something more serene next year…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3z1WW70R88w
Even background music disappears when fully engaged in another task. As a muso, it is too distracting. But, music must be heard- it's not much good to me for reading. It must be experienced at its own tempo.
The only time I found it useful playing music faster was as a bass player to work out the bass line listening to vinyl recordings. There is no 'speed listening' to music.
Hans Zimmer
When I was young, I did a holiday job pressing vinyl recordings. After visual inspection, we had to check the sound quality on special sound-tables and usually at 45 rpm to speed up the process while the press was running. I remember that Gregorian chants had a ‘bit of swing’ at 45 rpm 😉
Classical music LPs were the hardest because they required the highest/perfect quality.
That was one of the more fun jobs (evening and night shifts) I did in my summer holidays although the smell of overheated/burning vinyl is awful.
I find YT good for seeing how things are done, made, or designed.
Yes I find that's much the case as well. The channels I subscribe to are usually of this nature. Yet that can't be the whole story; you only have to look at content creators like Joe Rogan to see a quite different and huge demand for people having conversations in a way they can't access in print.
Right now for instance I've got six YT tabs open, one on COVID, two on next gen nuclear, another on Peter Sagan's 2108 highlights (pro-cycling), a Canadian guy homesteading in the northern wilderness, and finally my favourite sailing channel on a massive 4yr long yacht rebuild. Yes my mind is a bit of a mess … but you knew that already
I've watched some interesting interviews, sure. And I'm not saying that YT lectures aren't popular.
But a written article or a blog can deliver most lectures in a fraction of the time – and that includes speeding up the "is this a waste of my time" assessment. And most of the internet fails that assessment, probably for everyone.
Yes, we do have favoured and different learning modes, and for some it's reading, some listening and some it's doing.
They do all have their place. At least with a document you can scan it for a quick appraisal.
Adrian Thornton's recommendation had no supporting argument, synopsis or 'taster' for a 107 minute video, such as is useful for a prospective user. Adrian's say-so is not of itself a strong enough persuader, nor is the topic tempting enough with its enigmatic title. "The courage of hopelessness."
Some YT clips have transcripts as do some Zoom recordings, depending on settings used. With a little bit of fiddling, one can transcribe any audio into text and vice versa.
I’m definitely a text person but when I watch videos or Zoom recordings, I use double playback speed and videos that rely on visual more than text I watch on mute (i.e. sound off). My auditory processing (not my actual hearing) of spoken information is relatively poor (and checked out by a specialist).
Oh what a surprise! The Wellington City Council administration seems to have a few dodgy associations in its closet! The former Mayor was officially involved with The Property Council – the developer's outfit. He was than replaced by Mayor Wade Brown's neoliberal acolyte from the UK, the previous CEO. It seems that further down the executive tree there are other questionable associations given the behind closed door contracts that seem to be written up by the commercial beneficiaries rather than the Council. Wellingtonians hoped that a longstanding Councillor who is now Mayor would know where the skeletons for be hidden and lay them to rest. Instead, a newby Councillor did the detective work to uncover the link with the preposterously titled New Zealand Initiative think tank.
Wellington seems to have managed to get itself a good group of councillors who are intelligently challenging the old boys back room MO.
anyone remember Simon Bridges comments about how National was going to 'light a bonfire under good ideas' and become a "red tape factory"
Simon who ?
Interesting thoughts from one expert, which could mean that the new variant might be heading in the direction of a less harmful endemic variant strain of Covid-19 virus:
https://www.sciencemediacentre.org/expert-reaction-to-brief-summary-of-nervtag-opinion-from-the-nervtag-meeting-on-sars-cov-2-variant-under-investigation-vui-202012-01/
For a while now I've been vaguely musing on the topic of coronavirus lethality and long term effects.
Consider: almost all of us are exposed to the common cold coronaviruses as infants, and very few of us die or apparently suffer long term ill effects from that very early infection. While there's really not yet enough time and data to make a definitive similar statement about SARS-CoV-2, I haven't seen reports of long covid in infants or very young children, but the data seems clear the mortality rate is way way lower in infants.
It occurs to me that this new covid-causing coronavirus may be more similar to the cold coronaviruses than we currently think, and that the deaths and long-term harms we're getting are almost entirely because none of us have had that exposure as infants with subsequent partial immunity. The difference may be us, the host population, through not having had early exposure, and maybe the new coronavirus won't actually be significantly more dangerous to a population when it becomes endemic.
No de-lethalisation through evolution needed, maybe we just need to make it through this first pandemic through vaccination and other measures, and then we can live with it just like we live with other cold coronaviruses.
So once the current pandemic is extinguished by the vulnerable people (basically everyone currently alive that hasn't been exposed as an infant) getting vaccinated (or infected), we may find the new coronavirus behaviour becomes similar to the other cold coronaviruses. It might become something you get as an infant, no biggie, then again occasionally over the rest of your life as just a minor inconvenience. In which case, the benefit from the vaccine might become so minor it's no longer worth administering routinely to infants.
It is actually quite fascinating if one ignores the negative effects of this pandemic for a moment.
In a nutshell, snotty & runny noses might be a good thing and provide some limited (?) and temporary (?) protection against Covid-19.
Preexisting and de novo humoral immunity to SARS-CoV-2 in humans
That cross-protection from other coronaviruses is another whole field all on its own.
I can't help wondering if that's part of the reason places like Vietnam and Taiwan have had success that seems out of proportion to the stringency of their response in dealing with the pandemic. Perhaps they've had other coronaviruses circulating in their populations that happen to give good cross-protection.
The spike protein is gonna be one hellluva intensively studied molecule for quite a while still to come.
malaria is an interesting factor to look at..
countries with high levels of malaria seem to be less affected by covid..
and on a personal level I was pleased to hear one of jim moras' (professorial) guests uttering the aside: 'of course if you have had malaria..you have immunity to covid'..
'cos while in new guinea..I contracted malaria..
also interesting with the flu thing…
since having had malaria(a fucken hellish experience..I must say)..
I have never had the flu..
and I really thought i would never have anything good to say about the malaria thing..but there ya go..
I think that either you may have misheard or the unnamed “(professorial) guests” [plural?] may have misspoken.
Without a link we will never know 🙁
'one of'..
and I couldn't face going back to listen/wade thru moras' shows..
but of course I know..
a shard of memory..a vivid one..
shame we can't allow links into our brains..
then I would be able to give you a memory-link..
or else I just made it all up…
tho' a simple covid malaria question to google..will reveal more..and contrary opinions..
Can you remember the name(s) of the guest(s)?
And there we have it, the paint point, with only a vague recollection of Mora’s show, one of them, as starting point 🙁
I’m not going to start a wild goose chase on Google based on that! The onus is on you!
Heh. Funnily enough, this Medium article turned up in my FB feed today: A Game Designer’s Analysis Of QAnon.
Basically arguing that QAnon has a number of structural tweaks that make it look more like a free-form game (not just computer – escape rooms, LARP, all that stuff. "Games" in the widest sense) than someone leaking hidden knowledge.
Part of the giveaway is "do your own research". The players (played) are primed for a particular finding, then encouraged to look for evidence to support the claim. They find it, so the idea becomes theirs (rather than them having to be persuaded by someone else), they get a wee clickbait rush as a reward for their achievement, and they get a sense of community.
Interesting article from a completely unexpected perspective.
A great read on Christmas Day.
Public Health England have released another briefing. (pdf download. h/t twitter Mads Albertsen).
It continues to support via sampling that the variant is more transmissable, but also goes into a little bit of biological detail as to how a specific mutation might increase transmissability.
But we're still talking <double transmissability, not like an order of magnitude or anything. So everyone suddenly going "isolate UK!" and bojo going "lockdown" is a bit of a joke. If we should do it now, we should have done it months ago.
Ta
Nobody likes surprises, least of all politicians who are already under considerable pressure.
I found this recent update by CDC in the US illuminating too:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/more/scientific-brief-emerging-variant.html
So did anyone notice? Yesterday was the longest day of the longest year of our lives.
No. I was anxiously waiting for nightfall and hoping for a break in the clouds so I could get a glimpse of the Great Conjunction.
Same here, and it was like a gathering in Glencoe during Summer Solstice without the horrible midges – the bitches. No sight of the celestial event though 🙁
Glencoe is a fey place, On my mother's side I am a Glencoe McDonald. It was a memorable place to visit. I went there on a Rabbi's tour bus. The driver/guide asked the twelve passengers why they were going to Glencoe. I was last to answer and said I was going there because on my mother's side I am a McDonald of Glencoe
There was a long pause. I thought, "Oh, no, he's a Campbell."
Then he replied,"I, too, am a McDonald of Glencoe on my mother's side." He really looked after us after that!
He showed me when we reached Glencoe the three islands in the loch, one of which was the ancestral burial ground close to the water, another the island where clans met to sort grievances, the third where clans met to sign their agreements.
Missed the midges, though………….
Yup, a very special place. My most memorable trip was camping there in a little tent. The midges managed to get through the fly screen and into my tent. I used so much mozzie repellent (lotion) that my plastic cutlery started to dissolve in my hands; it must have been some cheap crap with some nasty chemical solvent – it certainly smelled like a clandestine chemical lab. The only place safe from the midges was literally in the smouldering and smoking campfire – I probably inhaled enough carcinogens to give me lung cancer combined with the chemical poisoning by the repellent. It was also the place and start of a lifelong friendship with a fellow traveller. Bloody good memories of that place 🙂
Alas twas not to be with all that cloud cover.
Those sky train/satellites are wierd when the sun catches them tracking in a line across the night sky .
Planned another 10,000 or so over the next few years with the inevitable congestion issues in the orbital space.
But?
That’s hard to make work when two other comments are interposed between the two comments needing to be conjoined to make sense or fun.
Abject failure. I went to bed with a profound sense of bitter disappointment.
Maybe better luck tonight.
They're out there tonight. Some folks in the streets looking at Xmas lighted houses and Mr and Mrs Mac1 out looking for conjunctions.
Light, distance, the solar system, the galaxy, time and place, universal wonder.
That explains why I woke up this morning feeling older than usual