George Galloway is on fire.
Listen to the first 12 minutes to hear his view of Trump, his speech and the demise of Obama. These are views you do not hear in the neoliberal mainstream media.
He does provide a fine example of Andre’s point the other day, about how some on the loonier fringes of the left would rather see a right-wing nationalist demagogue win power and implement a policy prescription big on racism, sexism and destruction of the environment, than see an insufficiently-left member of a centre-left party get the job. The convergence of extreme left and extreme right is approaching 1930s levels.
“an insufficiently-left member of a centre left party” is third way (Blairism) and is a proven disaster. Your scale goes straight from Blairism to ‘extreme’ left. I don’t see any calls for that, I only see a growing call for a return to the Left, which you conveniently leave out.
I “conveniently” left out a “return to the left,” as there were only two candidates on the ballot with any chance of success and neither represented the left (hardly surprising in a country far more conservative and right-wing-oriented than New Zealand). Referring to those two candidates, Galloway, a fine representative of the loonier fringes of the left, says it’s better that the right-wing nationalist demagogue got the job than that the fairly ordinary Democrat nominee should have it. I find that significant – don’t you?
No. It comes down to your definition of “loonier fringes of the Left”.
Don’t forget that we, and the Democrats, have under-estimated just how much people did not want “more of the same” as offered by Clinton.
Some of them so not wanted more of the same under Clinton that they elected (either actively by voting for him or passively by not voting) someone far worse. So the question is, are those people indistinguishable from fascists or just idiots? Galloway isn’t a voter in US elections, but his declaration of preference for Trump invites the same question about him – and in his case, I’m genuinely not sure which it is. Possibly both.
“someone far worse”. That is going to be hard to prove because Hillary will not get to deliver her very questionable brand of “Pax Americana” ( which is the same as the Republicans version anyway!).
Well, yes, for the left’s nutcase element there’s no way the actual, really-existing unpleasantness that Trump is about to unleash on the USA will be able to compete with their bizarre fantasies about “Killary,” “Crooked Hillary” etc. However, those of us in the reality-based community are able to spot the difference between a fairly typical Democrat presidential candidate and a Tangerine Nazi Rapeclown. It’s instructive that so many on the extreme left prefer the latter.
New Zealand is supporting them as part of the Ukraine violent Coup …. where Nazis get in power….. with a bit of death before hand …. and heaps afterwards
U.s.a sponsored and Clinton endorsed of course …..
racism, sexism and destruction of the environment …..
Are you describing what Hillary brought to Libya ????
She was afraid of NOT being able to wage ….
” the Clinton emails reveal one other important fact – that before and during the NATO conflict, Clinton and her team knew very well, and actually feared, that the conflict in Libya might very well have been resolved through negotiations;” …
” Clinton shunned such efforts, instead preferring a war, despite its quite predictably horrible consequences, which would give the U.S. and its allies the hand they wanted in the future of Libyan and African affairs.”
Hillary prevailed as we all know ……….. The results have been very bad for blacks, women, children, family’s… and human rights for the people of Libya ..
“…, before the war, Libya had less of its population in poverty than the Netherlands. Libyans had access to free health care, education, electricity and interest-free loans, and women had great freedoms that had been applauded by the U.N. Human Rights Council in January 2011, on the eve of the war that destroyed the government. ….”
War propaganda from clinton and co was used as justification for reprisals and ethnic cleansing of blacks ,,, “US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton added fuel to the fire by saying she was “deeply concerned” that Gaddafi’s troops were participating in widespread rape in Libya. “Rape, physical intimidation, sexual harassment, and even so-called ‘virginity tests’ have taken place..,”.
But others not pushing for wars of aggression say otherwise ….
Amnesty International crisis researcher, Donatella Rovera: “We examined this issue in depth and found no evidence. The rebels spread these rumours everywhere,…. which had terrible consequences for African guest workers: there was a systematic hunt for migrants, some were lynched and many arrested….”
Shes quite a woman that Hillary …
” the town of Tawergha had been completely eradicated of all its mainly black population by rebels in nearby Misrata, who had marked their signature on the walls to the town: “the brigade for purging slaves, black skin”
Do we think its racism that makes her such a ‘super-predator’ ???
The rant I’d write if I had the time and the skillz with words…
Just a taster:
“I’m sick of seeing people who insist on being willfully ignorant of basic civics and how government works, stunningly myopic of the bigger picture or the greater good, and outright refuse to even consider coalition building, still being catered to like customers at a high end day spa because they’re the either loudest voices in the room or are adept with or active on social media — even if they’re using it to promote laughingly biased fake news.”
‘Swimming has been banned at 10 Auckland beaches this summer because of worsening pollution from human and animal wastes.
Permanent signs declaring that the water is not safe for swimming went up at the start of summer at Laingholm and Wood Bay near Titirangi, the north and south lagoons at Piha, and at the Bethells Beach lagoon – all popular swimming spots for children too young to swim in the wild west coast surf.
Auckland Council has now stopped routine monitoring of water quality at all five sites, as well as at five other beaches that already had permanent warning signs – Cox’s Bay, Meola Reef, Weymouth, the Wairau Stream outlet at Milford Beach and Little Oneroa lagoon on Waiheke Island.
It has also issued temporary health warnings so far this summer at seven of the other 72 beaches that are still monitored.’
The worst faecal bacteria count, measured at Green Bay on November 16, was 24,200 enterococci in every 100ml of water – 173 times the maximum safe level of 140.’
Mayors are actually fairly powerless which is a Good Thing as we really don’t want petty dictatorships. But that means that the cities are run by the councillors which are either RWNJs themselves or are scared of the RWNJs call for lowering rates which results in these types of stories happening.
In other words, the problem is the RWNJs saying that we need to lower rates/taxes and the people actually believing those lies.
Stunned mullet
No I haven’t seen your mayors over the last few decades but I have seen a lot of your short comments and don’t think much of your ability to intelligently critique anything including mayors.
I live at Ngataringa Bay and have been here for 14 years.
The seawater quality is better now than for many years. The leechate from the old Devonport tip has essentially disappeared.
I also recall that Takapuna, Cheltenham and the North Shore beaches were regularly closed. This has not happened for years. There has been a huge amount spent on the sewage system that has meant that this almost never happens. The Wairau creek issue will have been much worse in the past.
So these measures of pollution have no context of time. Sure things could be better, but seawater quality has got progressively better in Auckland over the last 20 years.
So your back yard is now fine Wayne ? Oh lucky you living in a rich Nact area. However, the point of the post is that many waterways are deteriorating beyond clean up point and the council does not have the funds to do anything about it.
Another product of Nact’s “let’s load Auckland up with people” and “the rest of the country with cows”.
So as the party of everyone needs to be responsible for themselves – how about your lot taking some personal responsibility for their poor personal choices here which are impacting on the rest of us and are going to cost heaps to fix?
And why aren’t the cost of these choices going into silly old Bill English’s social investment modeling as money the taxpayers will have to spend to clean up after the righties?? It’s going to dwarf the cost of the people he is hounding
Oh and I forgot to mention – if an earlier bunch of rightie’s had had their way then there would be no Ngataringa Bay – they were going to fill it in. Lucky for you Wayne that the left & environmentalist’s fought back and won. Your lot were wrong and the left was right.
The point I am making is that such things have to be viewed in a context.
Our beaches, right across Auckland, are much better than they were 20 years ago.
Watercare is spending enormous amounts of money so that they will continue to improve.
For instance the relatively new sewage system on the Manukau is vastly better than the huge ponds that preceded it. There is a whole new round of new construction taking place at the plant to take account of growth and to improve water quality.
The five spots with permanent signs are a problem. But I know for instance that Wairau creek is substantially better as a result of building the collector tanks, probably now about ten years ago.
If asked the question,; Is water quality in the harbours continuing to improve” I would say “yes”.
So?? In context the number of places permanently off limits has just doubled. All those extra people – look at the cost of fixing it all. let’s do the social investment modelling shall we?
lol, that’s what I was thinking. If Auckland has a magic wand, why aren’t they sharing it around, that’s what I want to know. To be fair to Wayne though, he did say it disappeared, not that someone disappeared it, so maybe it’s a local phenomenon.
Being a solutions kind of person, maybe the wand can be waved inspiring all of those who really do care about the environment to up stakes and exit the burg.
En masse.
Leaving the City of Sails to those who merely seek the kudos of an Auckland address…and they will come, believe me.
And they can sit with clothes pegs on their noses admiring the sludgy tide as it ebbs and flows over the dead and stinking foreshore.
If I’m a bit tetchy about this it is because this has been featured in news reports for decades now…heavy rain flooding the stormwater and sewage system and depositing shit on Auckland beaches.
Not one single extra house or any structure should be allowed until this is sorted. Now.
Its all very well obtaining a building permit or resource consent on the basis that the developer has met the sewage and stormwater requirements when the actual infrastructure receiving those products can’t cope when it rains heavily.
Madness.
If I were living in Auckland I’d be protesting/rioting about this.
I guess it has literally literally leeched out, or alternatively properly sealed in. The tip was closed about 30 years ago and over about 10 years it was properly sealed. It is now quite a nice park.
Anyway from my experience of swimming in Ngataringa (I am one of the few who do) I can absolutely testify to the water quality progressively improving. There has been a recovery of fish life. There is less mud, more sand and the mangroves are more healthy.
I know enough about the rest of North Shore and the Waitemata to also make my observations of water quality. I both sail and fish on it regularly. In the last four weeks, three fishing trips. All with 4 or 5 snapper typically caught over a 2 hour period.
So from what I see the harbour is actually pretty good. Not perfect, but not deteriorating and at least on the North Shore, improving.
Sorry that the rest of you can only ever see a glass half empty.
Wayne – I was unable to respond yesterday; all glitched up with WordPress;
Your anecdotal comments are fair enough, in the way that everyone else’s are, but the science, represented by the warning signs mentioned earlier, tell a more reliable story. It was a bit churlish of you, I thought, to typify “the rest of us” as only ever seeing a glass half empty. That particular phrase seems to be favoured by a certain kind of person; those who laud our “100% pure rivers” by comparing them with China’s much worse rivers. Claiming that we’d be “half-empty glassers” if we believe the rivers now are far from their best, simply because you can remember them when they were even worse, is a similarly deluded, imo. As to the leachate from the landfill you cite, years of leaking and the debatable quality of the engineering of containment systems don’t have me breathing a sigh of relief over any of the tip-sites we’ve created over the past 100 years.
It would be of interest to know what the definition of a Christian is. Is it someone who believes in the idea that Jesus was the son of God etc, etc or that they follow the teachings – because the two do not necessarily go together – frequently don’t, in fact!
If anyone missed it, China housing bubble just popped. Volcanic shelter-flippers can take a break together with the Great Auk. It could be a long and bumpy ride down if the earth moves again.
The incoming administration allocated at least a dozen of 183 seats on the inaugural platform to donors and fundraisers, who sat beside cabinet designees, senators, and President Trump’s immediate family. Another 49 seats for the pre-inaugural Friday morning church service, which Trump attended, were allocated to a billionaire fundraiser.
The documents, which come from the inauguration’s organizing committee, paint a markedly different picture than the one Trump presented during the campaign, that of a swashbuckling populist who would overturn “the rigged system” and drain Washington’s corrupt “swamp” of money-driven influence.
If these documents are any indication, Trump’s inner circle is shaping up to be even more plutocratic and insular than that of previous presidents.
…
In 2013, the New York Times made an incomplete chart showing many of the attendees who were granted platform seats for Barack Obama’s second inaugural. Only two of those among the platform crowd who the Times was able to identify were megadonors—Chris Hughes, the Facebook co-founder, and his husband Sean Eldridge.
Well, it’s Sunday and perhaps minor issues like racist images on popular New Zealand products will interest people who have had enough of politics with a capital “P” during the week. That’s what I reckon, stunned.
Did you watch the video of the woman who comes from a country with a large population of people of African descent, whose job it is to study social phenomena? A few clues there.
Stunned thinks, nothing to see here, move on.
Yates could easily capitulate, acknowledge the problem, change the image and enjoy the kudos and free publicity. But they seem to have dug in (when in a hole etc…garden suppliers after all)
A bigger problem is the way people get upset over things like this and ascribe meanings which in the past were never thought of .. the world is progressively getting more and more idiotic with false sensitivities for political reasons.
Have you noticed the lamp? which suggests to me an ‘Arabian nights’ fairy tale so it is logical the character will be darker skinned than northern european.
Latest NZCPC comment by Muriel Newman puts her finger squarely on the problem of PC or political crap.
After years of neo-liberal propaganda, what goes for ‘middle-of-the-road’ these days is nothing like the views that would have been considered ‘centrist’ sometime earlier (depicted in my sketch).
Now the whole continuum has become distorted. The Third Wayers (Blairites) and the rest of the faux progressives have not only dislocated the Political Left from the True Left but also skewed the distribution of views to the right.
The Political Left is close to where the Right used to sit (the scales on my sketch are meaningful) and as a result, what is now termed ‘centrist’, has shifted dramatically to the right of the distribution.
The Right is now much more extreme than it used to be (particularly on economic matters).
TRUE LEFT ———————————————— POLITICAL LEFT——— CENTRIST VIEWS — RIGHT
Except for a few fringe dwellers in social media the political right in New Zealand is far from extreme. Given that many people claim little real difference between the two larges parties here, National and Labour, and some claim with justification that some Green policy positions (especially environmental) transcend political alignments.
“Except for a few fringe dwellers in social media the political right in New Zealand is far from extreme. ”
I should point out your simply wrong. Both the political left and right in NZ are wedded to a position adopted by Labour4 that the market, left to its own devices, provides a close to ideal social and political environment (which is responsible for most social goods). That is an extreme position and demonstrably incorrect.
I did a binge watch of “The Fugitive” a couple of years ago. Richard Kimble (The Fugitive) lives his life in the USA at the bottom of society, on the margins, so there are shows, in passing, about union troubles and boss/workers troubles. It really shows how far to the right the USA has moved on these issues in just over 50 years.
(And it’s a really interesting watch for two other reasons:
1) for how the adults act towards the teenagers of the time (the baby boom generation). It’s like their force of numbers means that the adults perceive them as just inherently troublesome and
2) for how primitive all the technology was just 50 years ago)
Trump repeated a campaign line that the U.S. should have “kept”‘ Iraq’s oil after the 2003 invasion, saying that might have blocked the rise of the Islamic State. He added: “Maybe we’ll have another chance.” The president again said he opposed the Iraq war, though interviews at the time indicated otherwise.
The Retirement Commissioner is getting airplay for the problems of funding the old age pension (superannuation) giving the large costs which she forecasts to go to 90 billion a year by 2020 I think. There is talk about shifting it up to 67 which is a commonsense way of dealing with it. That there are not enough paid jobs to go round doesn’t enter into it. The Wince department drives people into depression and oppresses and degrades those forced to go on the treadmill who aren’t the right fit for employers and the cold-blooded working -bludgers-being-bludgeoned system is not acknowledged either.
It’s time to face up to the truth that money is a system of exchangeable tokens. It’s a way to convert credits to a virtually universal transfer system. What is essential to have is food, housing, security, transport, personal care for health, spectacles etc. – that doesn’t change. If retired people can earn credits by doing something that is useful to society then they should be given enough credits from the system to provide for themselves to a decent level. Then any money they manage to earn can be on top of that. Superannuation tax on income would be 5% for the first $20,000 and 40% over that, and all the time there would be no tax on their basic pension.
Also planned demise will be legalised with a practical, thoughtful system set up that people could choose to ignore, or opt into or out of with set steps to follow, and would apply to all those over 70 and to medical personnel or others. There may be specially designated trained and certificated people to be the dying equivalents of marriage celebrants.
Instead of top-down policies for older people, with decisions made for them,
there should be groups holding discussions around the country as to how they should be treated. There are enough capable, mature minds still functioning well and able to absorb facts, discuss financial matters, standards of living, standards of ethical treatment, philosophical and religious aspects.
Then there is the conflict caused by generational unbalance in numbers and expectations, in political power and experience and the lack of input into society by many wage earners when they retire although receiving much respectful assistance and finance from society on top of any income and assets they hold, which is not equally available to the young vulnerable adult.
Why is the retirement comissioner engaged in undermining entitlements for pensioners? Is that part of her job description? Given the impending boom in demand for services for the retired, should she not be advocating for capacity increases and additional training to relieve inflationary pressures here before they arrise?
My comment about the Retirement Commissioner will probably come up later.
It’s 12.52 22/1 now. I will put the link to Radionz item of the Commissioner below. I think some have not been able to access this easily. I have found that if the link is put in the subject heading window in a new tab, it goes through okay to the item summary with the listen button at top.
This will be a sub-set of the Hilary vote feeling good about themselves but, like the Occupy Movement, achieving no effective change because they are only ever preaching to the converted.
Rather than making an effort to understand how the people they need to win over think and changing the strategy to fit. Whining and stomping feet ‘aint it.
Still, I guess some people got some much needed exercise, so it’s not all a waste of time.
Well, I've been there, sitting in that same chairWhispering that same prayer half a million timesIt's a lie, though buried in disciplesOne page of the Bible isn't worth a lifeThere's nothing wrong with youIt's true, it's trueThere's something wrong with the villageWith the villageSomething wrong with the villageSongwriters: Andrew Jackson ...
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The Natural Choice: As a starter for ten percent of the Party Vote, “saving the planet” is a very respectable objective. Young voters, in particular, raised on the dire (if unheeded) warnings of climate scientists, and the irrefutable evidence of devastating weather events linked to global warming, vote Green. After ...
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I don't knowHow to say what's got to be saidI don't know if it's black or whiteThere's others see it redI don't get the answers rightI'll leave that to youIs this love out of fashionOr is it the time of yearAre these words distraction?To the words you want to hearSongwriters: ...
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One last thing before I quitI never wanted any moreThan I could fit into my headI still remember every single word you saidAnd all the shit that somehow came along with itStill, there's one thing that comforts meSince I was always caged and now I'm freeSongwriters: David Grohl / Georg ...
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This is a must watch, and puts on brilliant and practical display the implications and mechanics of fast-track law corruption and weakness.CLICK HERE: LINK TO WATCH VIDEOOur news media as it is set up is simply not equipped to deal with the brazen disinformation and corruption under this right wing ...
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We're going backwardsIgnoring the realitiesGoing backwardsAre you counting all the casualties?We are not there yetWhere we need to beWe are still in debtTo our insanitiesSongwriter: Martin Gore Read more ...
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The right have a stupid saying that is only occasionally true:When is democracy not democracy? When it hasn’t been voted on.While not true in regards to branches of government such as the judiciary, it’s a philosophy that probably should apply to recently-elected local government councillors. Nevertheless, this concept seemed to ...
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In 1998, in the wake of the Paremoremo Prison riot, the Department of Corrections established the "Behaviour Management Regime". Prisoners were locked in their cells for 22 or 23 hours a day, with no fresh air, no exercise, no social contact, no entertainment, and in some cases no clothes and ...
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At the 2023 election, National basically ran on a platform of being better economic managers. So how'd that turn out for us? In just one year, they've fucked us for two full political terms: The government's books are set to remain deeply in the red for the near term ...
AUSTERITYText within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedMy spreadsheet insists This pain leads straight to glory (File not found) Read more ...
The NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi are saying that the Government should do the right thing and deliver minimum wage increases that don’t see workers fall further behind, in response to today’s announcement that the minimum wage will only be increased by 1.5%, well short of forecast inflation. “With inflation forecast ...
Oh, I weptFor daysFilled my eyesWith silly tearsOh, yeaBut I don'tCare no moreI don't care ifMy eyes get soreSongwriters: Paul Rodgers / Paul Kossoff. Read more ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Bob HensonIn this aerial view, fingers of meltwater flow from the melting Isunnguata Sermia glacier descending from the Greenland Ice Sheet on July 11, 2024, near Kangerlussuaq, Greenland. According to the Programme for Monitoring of the Greenland Ice Sheet (PROMICE), the ...
In August, I wrote an article about David Seymour1 with a video of his testimony, to warn that there were grave dangers to his Ministry of Regulation:David Seymour's Ministry of Slush Hides Far Greater RisksWhy Seymour's exorbitant waste of taxpayers' money could be the least of concernThe money for Seymour ...
Willis is expected to have to reveal the bitter fiscal fruits of her austerity strategy in the HYEFU later today. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/TheKakaMōrena. Long stories short, the six things that matter in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Tuesday, December 17 in The Kākā’s Dawn Chorus podcast ...
On Friday the government announced it would double the number of toll roads in New Zealand as well as make a few other changes to how toll roads are used in the country. The real issue though is not that tolling is being used but the suggestion it will make ...
The Prime Minister yesterday engaged in what looked like a pre-emptive strike designed to counter what is likely to be a series of depressing economic statistics expected before the end of the week. He opened his weekly post-Cabinet press conference with a recitation of the Government’s achievements. “It certainly has ...
This whooping cough story from south Auckland is a good example of the coalition government’s approach to social need – spend money on urging people to get vaccinated but only after you’ve cut the funding to where they could get vaccinated. This has been the case all year with public ...
And if there is a GodI know he likes to rockHe likes his loud guitarsHis spiders from MarsAnd if there is a GodI know he's watching meHe likes what he seesBut there's trouble on the breezeSongwriter: William Patrick Corgan Read more ...
Here’s a quick round up of today’s political news:1. MORE FOOD BANKS, CHARITIES, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SHELTERS AND YOUTH SOCIAL SERVICES SET TO CLOSE OR SCALE BACK AROUND THE COUNTRY AS GOVT CUTS FUNDINGSome of Auckland's largest foodbanks are warning they may need to close or significantly reduce food parcels after ...
Iain Rennie, CNZMSecretary and Chief Executive to the TreasuryDear Secretary, Undue restrictions on restricted briefings This week, the Treasury barred representatives from four organisations, including the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions Te Kauae Kaimahi, from attending the restricted briefing for the Half-Year Economic and Fiscal Update. We had been ...
This is a guest post by Tim Adriaansen, a community, climate, and accessibility advocate.I won’t shut up about climate breakdown, and whenever possible I try to shift the focus of a climate conversation towards solutions. But you’ll almost never hear me give more than a passing nod to ...
A grassroots backlash has forced a backdown from Brown, but he is still eyeing up plenty of tolls for other new roads. And the pressure is on Willis to ramp up the Government’s austerity strategy. Photo: Getty ImagesMōrena. Long stories short, the six things that matter in Aotearoa’s political economy ...
Hi all,I'm pretty overwhelmed by all your messages and emails today; thank you so very much.As much as my newsletter this morning was about money, and we all need to earn money, it was mostly about world domination if I'm honest. 😉I really hate what’s happening to our country, and ...
A listing of 23 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, December 8, 2024 thru Sat, December 14, 2024. Listing by Category Like last week's summary this one contains the list of articles twice: based on categories and based on ...
I started writing this morning about Hobson’s Pledge, examining the claims they and their supporters make, basically ripping into them. But I kept getting notifications coming through, and not good ones.Each time I looked up, there was another un-subscription message, and I felt a bit sicker at the thought of ...
Once, long before there was Harry and Meghan and Dodi and all those episodes of The Crown, they came to spend some time with us, Charles and Diana. Was there anyone in the world more glamorous than the Princess of Wales?Dazzled as everyone was by their company, the leader of ...
The collective right have a problem.The entire foundation for their world view is antiscientific. Their preferred economic strategies have been disproven. Their whole neoliberal model faces accusations of corporate corruption and worsening inequality. Climate change not only definitely exists, its rapid progression demands an immediate and expensive response in order ...
Just ten days ago, South Korea's president attempted a self-coup, declaring martial law and attempting to have opposition MPs murdered or arrested in an effort to seize unconstrained power. The attempt was rapidly defeated by the national assembly voting it down and the people flooding the streets to defend democracy. ...
Hi,“What I love about New Zealanders is that sometimes you use these expressions that as Americans we have no idea what those things mean!"I am watching a 30-something year old American ramble on about how different New Zealanders are to Americans. It’s his podcast, and this man is doing a ...
What Chris Penk has granted holocaust-denier and equal-opportunity-bigot Candace Owens is not “freedom of speech”. It’s not even really freedom of movement, though that technically is the right she has been granted. What he has given her is permission to perform. Freedom of SpeechIn New Zealand, the right to freedom ...
All those tears on your cheeksJust like deja vu flow nowWhen grandmother speaksSo tell me a story (I'll tell you a story)Spell it out, I can't hear (What do you want to hear?)Why you wear black in the morning?Why there's smoke in the air? Songwriter: Greg Johnson.Mōrena all ☀️Something a ...
2024 is now officially my best-ever year for short stories. My 1,850-word dark fantasy piece, As Our Power Lessens, has been accepted for the upcoming solstice edition of Eternal Haunted Summer (https://eternalhauntedsummer.com/), thereby making that six published short stories for the calendar year. As always, see the Bibliography page for ...
National has only been in power for a year, but everywhere you look, its choices are taking New Zealand a long way backwards. In no particular order, here are the National Government's Top 50 Greatest Misses of its first year in power. ...
The Government is quietly undertaking consultation on the dangerous Regulatory Standards Bill over the Christmas period to avoid too much attention. ...
The Government’s planned changes to the freedom of speech obligations of universities is little more than a front for stoking the political fires of disinformation and fear, placing teachers and students in the crosshairs. ...
The Ministry of Regulation’s report into Early Childhood Education (ECE) in Aotearoa raises serious concerns about the possibility of lowering qualification requirements, undermining quality and risking worse outcomes for tamariki, whānau, and kaiako. ...
A Bill to modernise the role of Justices of the Peace (JP), ensuring they remain active in their communities and connected with other JPs, has been put into the ballot. ...
Labour will continue to fight unsustainable and destructive projects that are able to leap-frog environment protection under National’s Fast-track Approvals Bill. ...
The Green Party has warned that a Green Government will revoke the consents of companies who override environmental protections as part of Fast-Track legislation being passed today. ...
The Green Party says the Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update shows how the Government is failing to address the massive social and infrastructure deficits our country faces. ...
The Government’s latest move to reduce the earnings of migrant workers will not only hurt migrants but it will drive down the wages of Kiwi workers. ...
Te Pāti Māori has this morning issued a stern warning to Fast-Track applicants with interests in mining, pledging to hold them accountable through retrospective liability and to immediately revoke Fast-Track consents under a future Te Pāti Māori government. This warning comes ahead of today’s third reading of the Fast-Track Approvals ...
The Government’s announcement today of a 1.5 per cent increase to minimum wage is another blow for workers, with inflation projected to exceed the increase, meaning it’s a real terms pay reduction for many. ...
All the Government has achieved from its announcement today is to continue to push responsibility back on councils for its own lack of action to help bring down skyrocketing rates. ...
The Government has used its final post-Cabinet press conference of the year to punch down on local government without offering any credible solutions to the issues our councils are facing. ...
The Government has failed to keep its promise to ‘super charge’ the EV network, delivering just 292 chargers - less than half of the 670 chargers needed to meet its target. ...
The Green Party is calling for the Government to stop subsidising the largest user of the country’s gas supplies, Methanex, following a report highlighting the multi-national’s disproportionate influence on energy prices in Aotearoa. ...
The Green Party is appalled with the Government’s new child poverty targets that are based on a new ‘persistent poverty’ measure that could be met even with an increase in child poverty. ...
New independent analysis has revealed that the Government’s Emissions Reduction Plan (ERP) will reduce emissions by a measly 1 per cent by 2030, failing to set us up for the future and meeting upcoming targets. ...
The loss of 27 kaimahi at Whakaata Māori and the end of its daily news bulletin is a sad day for Māori media and another step backwards for Te Tiriti o Waitangi justice. ...
Yesterday the Government passed cruel legislation through first reading to establish a new beneficiary sanction regime that will ultimately mean more households cannot afford the basic essentials. ...
Today's passing of the Government's Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill–which allows landlords to end tenancies with no reason–ignores the voice of the people and leaves renters in limbo ahead of the festive season. ...
After wasting a year, Nicola Willis has delivered a worse deal for the Cook Strait ferries that will end up being more expensive and take longer to arrive. ...
Green Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick has today launched a Member’s Bill to sanction Israel for its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, as the All Out For Gaza rally reaches Parliament. ...
After years of advocacy, the Green Party is very happy to hear the Government has listened to our collective voices and announced the closure of the greyhound racing industry, by 1 August 2026. ...
In response to a new report from ERO, the Government has acknowledged the urgent need for consistency across the curriculum for Relationship and Sexuality Education (RSE) in schools. ...
The Green Party is appalled at the Government introducing legislation that will make it easier to penalise workers fighting for better pay and conditions. ...
Thank you for the invitation to speak with you tonight on behalf of the political party I belong to - which is New Zealand First. As we have heard before this evening the Kinleith Mill is proposing to reduce operations by focusing on pulp and discontinuing “lossmaking paper production”. They say that they are currently consulting on the plan to permanently shut ...
Auckland Central MP, Chlöe Swarbrick, has written to Mayor Wayne Brown requesting he stop the unnecessary delays on St James Theatre’s restoration. ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says Health New Zealand will move swiftly to support dozens of internationally-trained doctors already in New Zealand on their journey to employment here, after a tripling of sought-after examination places. “The Medical Council has delivered great news for hardworking overseas doctors who want to contribute ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has appointed Sarah Ottrey to the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC). “At my first APEC Summit in Lima, I experienced firsthand the role that ABAC plays in guaranteeing political leaders hear the voice of business,” Mr Luxon says. “New Zealand’s ABAC representatives are very well respected and ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced four appointments to New Zealand’s intelligence oversight functions. The Honourable Robert Dobson KC has been appointed Chief Commissioner of Intelligence Warrants, and the Honourable Brendan Brown KC has been appointed as a Commissioner of Intelligence Warrants. The appointments of Hon Robert Dobson and Hon ...
Improvements in the average time it takes to process survey and title applications means housing developments can progress more quickly, Minister for Land Information Chris Penk says. “The government is resolutely focused on improving the building and construction pipeline,” Mr Penk says. “Applications to issue titles and subdivide land are ...
The Government’s measures to reduce airport wait times, and better transparency around flight disruptions is delivering encouraging early results for passengers ahead of the busy summer period, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Improving the efficiency of air travel is a priority for the Government to give passengers a smoother, more reliable ...
The Government today announced the intended closure of the Apollo Hotel as Contracted Emergency Housing (CEH) in Rotorua, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. This follows a 30 per cent reduction in the number of households in CEH in Rotorua since National came into Government. “Our focus is on ending CEH in the Whakarewarewa area starting ...
The Government will reshape vocational education and training to return decision making to regions and enable greater industry input into work-based learning Tertiary Education and Skills Minister, Penny Simmonds says. “The redesigned system will better meet the needs of learners, industry, and the economy. It includes re-establishing regional polytechnics that ...
The Government is taking action to better manage synthetic refrigerants and reduce emissions caused by greenhouse gases found in heating and cooling products, Environment Minister Penny Simmonds says. “Regulations will be drafted to support a product stewardship scheme for synthetic refrigerants, Ms. Simmonds says. “Synthetic refrigerants are found in a ...
People travelling on State Highway 1 north of Hamilton will be relieved that remedial works and safety improvements on the Ngāruawāhia section of the Waikato Expressway were finished today, with all lanes now open to traffic, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“I would like to acknowledge the patience of road users ...
Tertiary Education and Skills Minister, Penny Simmonds, has announced a new appointment to the board of Education New Zealand (ENZ). Dr Erik Lithander has been appointed as a new member of the ENZ board for a three-year term until 30 January 2028. “I would like to welcome Dr Erik Lithander to the ...
The Government will have senior representatives at Waitangi Day events around the country, including at the Waitangi Treaty Grounds, but next year Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has chosen to take part in celebrations elsewhere. “It has always been my intention to celebrate Waitangi Day around the country with different ...
Two more criminal gangs will be subject to the raft of laws passed by the Coalition Government that give Police more powers to disrupt gang activity, and the intimidation they impose in our communities, Police Minister Mark Mitchell says. Following an Order passed by Cabinet, from 3 February 2025 the ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Justice Christian Whata as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Whata’s appointment as a Judge of the Court of Appeal will take effect on 1 August 2025 and fill a vacancy created by the retirement of Hon Justice David Goddard on ...
The latest economic figures highlight the importance of the steps the Government has taken to restore respect for taxpayers’ money and drive economic growth, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Data released today by Stats NZ shows Gross Domestic Product fell 1 per cent in the September quarter. “Treasury and most ...
Tertiary Education and Skills Minister Penny Simmonds and Associate Minister of Education David Seymour today announced legislation changes to strengthen freedom of speech obligations on universities. “Freedom of speech is fundamental to the concept of academic freedom and there is concern that universities seem to be taking a more risk-averse ...
Police Minister, Mark Mitchell, and Internal Affairs Minister, Brooke van Velden, today launched a further Public Safety Network cellular service that alongside last year’s Cellular Roaming roll-out, puts globally-leading cellular communications capability into the hands of our emergency responders. The Public Safety Network’s new Cellular Priority service means Police, Wellington ...
State Highway 1 through the Mangamuka Gorge has officially reopened today, providing a critical link for Northlanders and offering much-needed relief ahead of the busy summer period, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“The Mangamuka Gorge is a vital route for Northland, carrying around 1,300 vehicles per day and connecting the Far ...
The Government has welcomed decisions by the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) and Ashburton District Council confirming funding to boost resilience in the Canterbury region, with construction on a second Ashburton Bridge expected to begin in 2026, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Delivering a second Ashburton Bridge to improve resilience and ...
The Government is backing the response into high pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in Otago, Biosecurity Minister Andrew Hoggard says. “Cabinet has approved new funding of $20 million to enable MPI to meet unbudgeted ongoing expenses associated with the H7N6 response including rigorous scientific testing of samples at the enhanced PC3 ...
Legislation that will repeal all advertising restrictions for broadcasters on Sundays and public holidays has passed through first reading in Parliament today, Media Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “As a growing share of audiences get their news and entertainment from streaming services, these restrictions have become increasingly redundant. New Zealand on ...
Today the House agreed to Brendan Horsley being appointed Inspector-General of Defence, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “Mr Horsley’s experience will be invaluable in overseeing the establishment of the new office and its support networks. “He is currently Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security, having held that role since June 2020. ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government has agreed to the final regulations for the levy on insurance contracts that will fund Fire and Emergency New Zealand from July 2026. “Earlier this year the Government agreed to a 2.2 percent increase to the rate of levy. Fire ...
The Government is delivering regulatory relief for New Zealand businesses through changes to the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act. “The Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Amendment Bill, which was introduced today, is the second Bill – the other being the Statutes Amendment Bill - that ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed further progress on the Hawke’s Bay Expressway Road of National Significance (RoNS), with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) Board approving funding for the detailed design of Stage 1, paving the way for main works construction to begin in late 2025.“The Government is moving at ...
The Government today released a request for information (RFI) to seeking interest in partnerships to plant trees on Crown-owned land with low farming and conservation value (excluding National Parks) Forestry Minister Todd McClay announced. “Planting trees on Crown-owned land will drive economic growth by creating more forestry jobs in our regions, providing more wood ...
Court timeliness, access to justice, and improving the quality of existing regulation are the focus of a series of law changes introduced to Parliament today by Associate Minister of Justice Nicole McKee. The three Bills in the Regulatory Systems (Justice) Amendment Bill package each improve a different part of the ...
A total of 41 appointments and reappointments have been made to the 12 community trusts around New Zealand that serve their regions, Associate Finance Minister Shane Jones says. “These trusts, and the communities they serve from the Far North to the deep south, will benefit from the rich experience, knowledge, ...
The Government has confirmed how it will provide redress to survivors who were tortured at the Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital Child and Adolescent Unit (the Lake Alice Unit). “The Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care found that many of the 362 children who went through the Lake Alice Unit between 1972 and ...
It has been a busy, productive year in the House as the coalition Government works hard to get New Zealand back on track, Leader of the House Chris Bishop says. “This Government promised to rebuild the economy, restore law and order and reduce the cost of living. Our record this ...
“Accelerated silicosis is an emerging occupational disease caused by unsafe work such as engineered stone benchtops. I am running a standalone consultation on engineered stone to understand what the industry is currently doing to manage the risks, and whether further regulatory intervention is needed,” says Workplace Relations and Safety Minister ...
Mehemea he pai mō te tangata, mahia – if it’s good for the people, get on with it. Enhanced reporting on the public sector’s delivery of Treaty settlement commitments will help improve outcomes for Māori and all New Zealanders, Māori Crown Relations Minister Tama Potaka says. Compiled together for the ...
Mr Roger Holmes Miller and Ms Tarita Hutchinson have been appointed to the Charities Registration Board, Community and Voluntary Sector Minister Louise Upston says. “I would like to welcome the new members joining the Charities Registration Board. “The appointment of Ms Hutchinson and Mr Miller will strengthen the Board’s capacity ...
More building consent and code compliance applications are being processed within the statutory timeframe since the Government required councils to submit quarterly data, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “In the midst of a housing shortage we need to look at every step of the build process for efficiencies ...
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey is proud to announce the first three recipients of the Government’s $10 million Mental Health and Addiction Community Sector Innovation Fund which will enable more Kiwis faster access to mental health and addiction support. “This fund is part of the Government’s commitment to investing in ...
New Zealand is providing Vanuatu assistance following yesterday's devastating earthquake, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. "Vanuatu is a member of our Pacific family and we are supporting it in this time of acute need," Mr Peters says. "Our thoughts are with the people of Vanuatu, and we will be ...
The Government welcomes the Commerce Commission’s plan to reduce card fees for Kiwis by an estimated $260 million a year, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says.“The Government is relentlessly focused on reducing the cost of living, so Kiwis can keep more of their hard-earned income and live a ...
Regulation Minister David Seymour has welcomed the Early Childhood Education (ECE) regulatory review report, the first major report from the Ministry for Regulation. The report makes 15 recommendations to modernise and simplify regulations across ECE so services can get on with what they do best – providing safe, high-quality care ...
The Government‘s Offshore Renewable Energy Bill to create a new regulatory regime that will enable firms to construct offshore wind generation has passed its first reading in Parliament, Energy Minister Simeon Brown says.“New Zealand currently does not have a regulatory regime for offshore renewable energy as the previous government failed ...
Legislation to enable new water service delivery models that will drive critical investment in infrastructure has passed its first reading in Parliament, marking a significant step towards the delivery of Local Water Done Well, Local Government Minister Simeon Brown and Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly say.“Councils and voters ...
New Zealand is one step closer to reaping the benefits of gene technology with the passing of the first reading of the Gene Technology Bill, Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins says. "This legislation will end New Zealand's near 30-year ban on gene technology outside the lab and is ...
Cosmic CatastropheThe year draws to a close.King Luxon has grown tired of the long eveningsListening to the dreary squabbling of his Triumvirate.He strolls up to the top floor of the PalaceTo consult with his Astronomer Royal.The Royal Telescope scans the skies,And King Luxon stares up into the heavensFrom the terrestrial ...
Spinoff editor Mad Chapman and books editor Claire Mabey debate Carl Shuker’s new novel about… an editor. Claire: Hello Mad, you just finished The Royal Free – overall impressions? Mad: Hi Claire, I literally just put the book down and I would have to say my immediate impression is ...
Christmas and its buildup are often lonely, hard and full of unreasonable expectations. Here’s how to make it to Jesus’s birthday and find the little bit of joy we all deserve. Have you found this year relentless? Has the latest Apple update “fucked up your life”? Have you lost two ...
Despite overwhelming public and corporate support, the government has stalled progress on a modern day slavery law. That puts us behind other countries – and makes Christmas a time of tragedy rather than joy, argues Shanti Mathias. Picture the scene on Christmas Day. Everyone replete with nice things to eat, ...
Asia Pacific Report “It looks like Hiroshima. It looks like Germany at the end of World War Two,” says an Israeli-American historian and professor of holocaust and genocide studies at Brown University about the horrifying reality of Gaza. Professor Omer Bartov, has described Israel’s ongoing war on Gaza as an ...
The New Zealand government coalition is tweaking university regulations to curb what it says is an increasingly “risk-averse approach” to free speech. The proposed changes will set clear expectations on how universities should approach freedom of speech issues. Each university will then have to adopt a “freedom of speech statement” ...
Report by Dr David Robie – Café Pacific. – COMMENTARY: By Caitlin Johnstone New York prosecutors have charged Luigi Mangione with “murder as an act of terrorism” in his alleged shooting of health insurance CEO Brian Thompson earlier this month. This news comes out at the same time as ...
Pacific Media Watch The union for Australian journalists has welcomed the delivery by the federal government of more than $150 million to support the sustainability of public interest journalism over the next four years. Combined with the announcement of the revamped News Bargaining Initiative, this could result in up to ...
MONDAY“Merry Xmas, and praise the Lord,” said Sheriff Luxon, and smiled for the camera. There was a flash of smoke when the shutter pressed down on the magnesium powder. The sheriff had arranged for a photographer from the Dodge Gazette to attend a ceremony where he handed out food parcels to ...
It’s a little under two months since the White Ferns shocked the cricketing world, deservedly taking home the T20 World Cup. Since then the trophy has had a tour around the country, five of the squad have played in the WBBL in Australia while most others have returned to domestic ...
Comment: If we say the word ‘dementia’, many will picture an older person struggling to remember the names of their loved ones, maybe a grandparent living out their final years in an aged care facility. Dementia can also occur in people younger than 65, but it can take time before ...
Piracy is a reality of modern life – but copyright law has struggled to play catch-up for as long as the entertainment industry has existed. As far back as 1988, the House of Lords criticised copyright law’s conflict with the reality of human behaviour in the context of burning cassette ...
As he makes a surprise return to Shortland Street, actor Craig Parker takes us through his life in television. Craig Parker has been a fixture on television in Aotearoa for nearly four decades. He had starring roles in iconic local series like Gloss, Mercy Peak and Diplomatic Immunity, featured in ...
The Ōtautahi musician shares the 10 tracks he loves to spin, including the folk classic that cured him of a ‘case of the give-ups’. When singer-songwriter Adam McGrath returns to Kumeu’s Auckland Folk Festival from January 24-27, he’s not planning on simply idling his way through – he wants the late ...
Alex Casey spends an afternoon on the job with River, the rescue dog on a mission to spread joy to Ōtautahi rest homes.Almost everyone says it is never enough time. But River the rescue dog, a jet black huntaway border collie cross, has to keep a tight pace to ...
Asia Pacific Report Fiji activists have recreated the nativity scene at a solidarity for Palestine gathering in Fiji’s capital Suva just days before Christmas. The Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre and Fijians for Palestine Solidarity Network recreated the scene at the FWCC compound — a baby Jesus figurine lies amidst the ...
By 1News Pacific correspondent Barbara Dreaver and 1News reporters A number of Kiwis have been successfully evacuated from Vanuatu after a devastating earthquake shook the Pacific island nation earlier this week. The death toll was still unclear, though at least 14 people were killed according to an earlier statement from ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Richard Scully, Professor in Modern History, University of New England Bunker.Image courtesy of Michael Leunig, CC BY-NC-SA Michael Leunig – who died in the early hours of Thursday December 19, surrounded by “his children, loved ones, and sunflowers” – was the ...
The House - On Parliament's last day of the year, there was the rare occurrence of a personal (conscience) vote on selling booze over the Easter weekend. While it didn't have the numbers to pass, it was a chance to get a rare glimpse of the fact ...
A new poem by Holly Fletcher. bejeweled log i was dreaming about wasps / wee darlings that followed me / ducking under objects / that i was fated to pickup / my fingers seeking / and meeting with tiny proboscis’s / but instead / i wake up / roll sideways ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Flora Hui, Research Fellow, Centre for Eye Research Australia and Honorary Fellow, Department of Surgery (Ophthalmology), The University of Melbourne Versta/Shutterstock Australians are exposed to some of the highest levels of solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation in the world. While we ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Terry, Professor of Business Regulation, University of Sydney Michael von Aichberger/Shutterstock Even if you’ve no idea how the business model underpinning franchises works, there’s a good chance you’ve spent money at one. Franchising is essentially a strategy for cloning ...
If something big is going to happen in Ferndale, it’s going to happen at Christmas. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. If there’s one episode of Shortland Street you should watch each year, it’s the annual Christmas cliffhanger. The final episode of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By William A. Stoltz, Lecturer and expert Associate, National Security College, Australian National University US President-elect Donald Trump has named most of the members of his proposed cabinet. However, he’s yet to reveal key appointees to America’s powerful cyber warfare and intelligence institutions. ...
Announcing the top 10 books of the the year at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Intermezzo by Sally Rooney (Faber & Faber, $37) The phenomenal Irish writer is the unsurprising chart topper for 2024 with her fourth novel that, much like her first ...
The government has confirmed its plan to break up Te Pūkenga / New Zealand Institute of Skills and Technology and re-establish independent polytechnics. ...
Colbert on fire. Finally I’ve learned what length a tie should be tied at.
https://youtu.be/0L9ZDnOB5ZU
Stacey Herbert and Max Keiser on fire. I learnt why the Democrats lost the US election.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=fVD2fI_uXSk
It was because they relied on quants and algorithms.
George Galloway is on fire.
Listen to the first 12 minutes to hear his view of Trump, his speech and the demise of Obama. These are views you do not hear in the neoliberal mainstream media.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Oj1PjSpkPss
Everyone’s on fire.
He does provide a fine example of Andre’s point the other day, about how some on the loonier fringes of the left would rather see a right-wing nationalist demagogue win power and implement a policy prescription big on racism, sexism and destruction of the environment, than see an insufficiently-left member of a centre-left party get the job. The convergence of extreme left and extreme right is approaching 1930s levels.
“an insufficiently-left member of a centre left party” is third way (Blairism) and is a proven disaster. Your scale goes straight from Blairism to ‘extreme’ left. I don’t see any calls for that, I only see a growing call for a return to the Left, which you conveniently leave out.
I “conveniently” left out a “return to the left,” as there were only two candidates on the ballot with any chance of success and neither represented the left (hardly surprising in a country far more conservative and right-wing-oriented than New Zealand). Referring to those two candidates, Galloway, a fine representative of the loonier fringes of the left, says it’s better that the right-wing nationalist demagogue got the job than that the fairly ordinary Democrat nominee should have it. I find that significant – don’t you?
No. It comes down to your definition of “loonier fringes of the Left”.
Don’t forget that we, and the Democrats, have under-estimated just how much people did not want “more of the same” as offered by Clinton.
Some of them so not wanted more of the same under Clinton that they elected (either actively by voting for him or passively by not voting) someone far worse. So the question is, are those people indistinguishable from fascists or just idiots? Galloway isn’t a voter in US elections, but his declaration of preference for Trump invites the same question about him – and in his case, I’m genuinely not sure which it is. Possibly both.
“someone far worse”. That is going to be hard to prove because Hillary will not get to deliver her very questionable brand of “Pax Americana” ( which is the same as the Republicans version anyway!).
Well, yes, for the left’s nutcase element there’s no way the actual, really-existing unpleasantness that Trump is about to unleash on the USA will be able to compete with their bizarre fantasies about “Killary,” “Crooked Hillary” etc. However, those of us in the reality-based community are able to spot the difference between a fairly typical Democrat presidential candidate and a Tangerine Nazi Rapeclown. It’s instructive that so many on the extreme left prefer the latter.
And did you mention nazis ????
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYyy0aeWrnw
New Zealand is supporting them as part of the Ukraine violent Coup …. where Nazis get in power….. with a bit of death before hand …. and heaps afterwards
U.s.a sponsored and Clinton endorsed of course …..
They care not who they kill
racism, sexism and destruction of the environment …..
Are you describing what Hillary brought to Libya ????
She was afraid of NOT being able to wage ….
” the Clinton emails reveal one other important fact – that before and during the NATO conflict, Clinton and her team knew very well, and actually feared, that the conflict in Libya might very well have been resolved through negotiations;” …
” Clinton shunned such efforts, instead preferring a war, despite its quite predictably horrible consequences, which would give the U.S. and its allies the hand they wanted in the future of Libyan and African affairs.”
Hillary prevailed as we all know ……….. The results have been very bad for blacks, women, children, family’s… and human rights for the people of Libya ..
“…, before the war, Libya had less of its population in poverty than the Netherlands. Libyans had access to free health care, education, electricity and interest-free loans, and women had great freedoms that had been applauded by the U.N. Human Rights Council in January 2011, on the eve of the war that destroyed the government. ….”
And now ?.?, ?”Control and crucifixions: Life in Libya under IS”
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-35325072
War propaganda from clinton and co was used as justification for reprisals and ethnic cleansing of blacks ,,, “US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton added fuel to the fire by saying she was “deeply concerned” that Gaddafi’s troops were participating in widespread rape in Libya. “Rape, physical intimidation, sexual harassment, and even so-called ‘virginity tests’ have taken place..,”.
But others not pushing for wars of aggression say otherwise ….
Amnesty International crisis researcher, Donatella Rovera: “We examined this issue in depth and found no evidence. The rebels spread these rumours everywhere,…. which had terrible consequences for African guest workers: there was a systematic hunt for migrants, some were lynched and many arrested….”
Shes quite a woman that Hillary …
” the town of Tawergha had been completely eradicated of all its mainly black population by rebels in nearby Misrata, who had marked their signature on the walls to the town: “the brigade for purging slaves, black skin”
Do we think its racism that makes her such a ‘super-predator’ ???
Or is she just a psycho like her mentor Kissinger https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmOb6DRrLWg
The rant I’d write if I had the time and the skillz with words…
Just a taster:
“I’m sick of seeing people who insist on being willfully ignorant of basic civics and how government works, stunningly myopic of the bigger picture or the greater good, and outright refuse to even consider coalition building, still being catered to like customers at a high end day spa because they’re the either loudest voices in the room or are adept with or active on social media — even if they’re using it to promote laughingly biased fake news.”
https://medium.com/@sammystyle77/the-nihilistic-purity-of-the-far-left-will-kill-us-all-54169b25e3a8#.rdo17tvj3
Hmm,
Galloway as a touchstone of sensible political analysis. Probably enough said with that one observation.
Clean Green New Zealand.
‘Swimming has been banned at 10 Auckland beaches this summer because of worsening pollution from human and animal wastes.
Permanent signs declaring that the water is not safe for swimming went up at the start of summer at Laingholm and Wood Bay near Titirangi, the north and south lagoons at Piha, and at the Bethells Beach lagoon – all popular swimming spots for children too young to swim in the wild west coast surf.
Auckland Council has now stopped routine monitoring of water quality at all five sites, as well as at five other beaches that already had permanent warning signs – Cox’s Bay, Meola Reef, Weymouth, the Wairau Stream outlet at Milford Beach and Little Oneroa lagoon on Waiheke Island.
It has also issued temporary health warnings so far this summer at seven of the other 72 beaches that are still monitored.’
The worst faecal bacteria count, measured at Green Bay on November 16, was 24,200 enterococci in every 100ml of water – 173 times the maximum safe level of 140.’
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11786380
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11785299
Auckland eh? What a shithole.
This has been happening for years…yet the message is…. build more houses!
Bring in more people! With the extra rates we can fix the infrastructure!
Stupid.
Talking of stupid, have you seen our mayors over the last few decades.
And have you read the above comment?
Mayors are actually fairly powerless which is a Good Thing as we really don’t want petty dictatorships. But that means that the cities are run by the councillors which are either RWNJs themselves or are scared of the RWNJs call for lowering rates which results in these types of stories happening.
In other words, the problem is the RWNJs saying that we need to lower rates/taxes and the people actually believing those lies.
Stunned mullet
No I haven’t seen your mayors over the last few decades but I have seen a lot of your short comments and don’t think much of your ability to intelligently critique anything including mayors.
I live at Ngataringa Bay and have been here for 14 years.
The seawater quality is better now than for many years. The leechate from the old Devonport tip has essentially disappeared.
I also recall that Takapuna, Cheltenham and the North Shore beaches were regularly closed. This has not happened for years. There has been a huge amount spent on the sewage system that has meant that this almost never happens. The Wairau creek issue will have been much worse in the past.
So these measures of pollution have no context of time. Sure things could be better, but seawater quality has got progressively better in Auckland over the last 20 years.
There is still no excuse for so many places to be unsafe for swimming. “It could be worse” is the classic canard of the visionless.
Those permanent signs must just be a wee jolly prank then. That’s a relief.
So your back yard is now fine Wayne ? Oh lucky you living in a rich Nact area. However, the point of the post is that many waterways are deteriorating beyond clean up point and the council does not have the funds to do anything about it.
Another product of Nact’s “let’s load Auckland up with people” and “the rest of the country with cows”.
So as the party of everyone needs to be responsible for themselves – how about your lot taking some personal responsibility for their poor personal choices here which are impacting on the rest of us and are going to cost heaps to fix?
And why aren’t the cost of these choices going into silly old Bill English’s social investment modeling as money the taxpayers will have to spend to clean up after the righties?? It’s going to dwarf the cost of the people he is hounding
Oh and I forgot to mention – if an earlier bunch of rightie’s had had their way then there would be no Ngataringa Bay – they were going to fill it in. Lucky for you Wayne that the left & environmentalist’s fought back and won. Your lot were wrong and the left was right.
The point I am making is that such things have to be viewed in a context.
Our beaches, right across Auckland, are much better than they were 20 years ago.
Watercare is spending enormous amounts of money so that they will continue to improve.
For instance the relatively new sewage system on the Manukau is vastly better than the huge ponds that preceded it. There is a whole new round of new construction taking place at the plant to take account of growth and to improve water quality.
The five spots with permanent signs are a problem. But I know for instance that Wairau creek is substantially better as a result of building the collector tanks, probably now about ten years ago.
If asked the question,; Is water quality in the harbours continuing to improve” I would say “yes”.
So?? In context the number of places permanently off limits has just doubled. All those extra people – look at the cost of fixing it all. let’s do the social investment modelling shall we?
No they’re not.
That’s five new spots. There were other spots that had permanent warning signs up before them.
Have you got research to back that up?
Because if you don’t then it’s simply unfounded opinion.
” The leechate from the old Devonport tip has essentially disappeared.”
Poof! Just like that!
lol, that’s what I was thinking. If Auckland has a magic wand, why aren’t they sharing it around, that’s what I want to know. To be fair to Wayne though, he did say it disappeared, not that someone disappeared it, so maybe it’s a local phenomenon.
“To be fair to Wayne though, …”
Why?
The King of NIMBY and I’m Alright, Jack needs none of us to support his position.
Wayne…you will just never get it will you?
You do actually reside in your own little island -in- your -head.
I was being satirical 😉
So was I. 😉 😉
Are you sure? Because your makes sense and is meaningful when read straight.
“Are you sure? Because your makes sense and is meaningful when read straight.”
Now I’m not sure what you’re saying here. 🙂
The “Why” was satirical.
The rest was not so much. 😉
Satire and sarcasm never come across well in text and can thus often lead to miscommunication.
Agree with Draco, it was impossible to tell that that was satirical.
“If Auckland has a magic wand….”
Being a solutions kind of person, maybe the wand can be waved inspiring all of those who really do care about the environment to up stakes and exit the burg.
En masse.
Leaving the City of Sails to those who merely seek the kudos of an Auckland address…and they will come, believe me.
And they can sit with clothes pegs on their noses admiring the sludgy tide as it ebbs and flows over the dead and stinking foreshore.
If I’m a bit tetchy about this it is because this has been featured in news reports for decades now…heavy rain flooding the stormwater and sewage system and depositing shit on Auckland beaches.
Not one single extra house or any structure should be allowed until this is sorted. Now.
Its all very well obtaining a building permit or resource consent on the basis that the developer has met the sewage and stormwater requirements when the actual infrastructure receiving those products can’t cope when it rains heavily.
Madness.
If I were living in Auckland I’d be protesting/rioting about this.
Robert,
I guess it has literally literally leeched out, or alternatively properly sealed in. The tip was closed about 30 years ago and over about 10 years it was properly sealed. It is now quite a nice park.
Anyway from my experience of swimming in Ngataringa (I am one of the few who do) I can absolutely testify to the water quality progressively improving. There has been a recovery of fish life. There is less mud, more sand and the mangroves are more healthy.
I know enough about the rest of North Shore and the Waitemata to also make my observations of water quality. I both sail and fish on it regularly. In the last four weeks, three fishing trips. All with 4 or 5 snapper typically caught over a 2 hour period.
So from what I see the harbour is actually pretty good. Not perfect, but not deteriorating and at least on the North Shore, improving.
Sorry that the rest of you can only ever see a glass half empty.
Wayne – I was unable to respond yesterday; all glitched up with WordPress;
Your anecdotal comments are fair enough, in the way that everyone else’s are, but the science, represented by the warning signs mentioned earlier, tell a more reliable story. It was a bit churlish of you, I thought, to typify “the rest of us” as only ever seeing a glass half empty. That particular phrase seems to be favoured by a certain kind of person; those who laud our “100% pure rivers” by comparing them with China’s much worse rivers. Claiming that we’d be “half-empty glassers” if we believe the rivers now are far from their best, simply because you can remember them when they were even worse, is a similarly deluded, imo. As to the leachate from the landfill you cite, years of leaking and the debatable quality of the engineering of containment systems don’t have me breathing a sigh of relief over any of the tip-sites we’ve created over the past 100 years.
President Donald J Trump: It all begins today.
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/822421390125043713
Indeed it does Mr President. And godspeed Mr President, godspeed.
If your god is on the side of Trump then it just reflects how stupid this whole god concept is.
No-one could claim Trump is a Christian.
It would be of interest to know what the definition of a Christian is. Is it someone who believes in the idea that Jesus was the son of God etc, etc or that they follow the teachings – because the two do not necessarily go together – frequently don’t, in fact!
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-01-18/china-housing-bubble-finally-pops-first-slowdown-after-19-months-acceleration
If anyone missed it, China housing bubble just popped. Volcanic shelter-flippers can take a break together with the Great Auk. It could be a long and bumpy ride down if the earth moves again.
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-01-20/real-markets%C2%A0are-not-pop-economics
It looks like Trumps main financial backers include many mega-wealthy, like Peter Thiel.
Mattathias Schwartz writes:
The Black Magic debate – are you offended by this logo?
Should Yates rebrand?
You’ve heard of Zoo-do, but Voodoo…?
http://i.stuff.co.nz/business/88568961/kiwi-gardening-company-defends-black-magic-product-amid-racism-concerns
Must be a slow news day.
Well, it’s Sunday and perhaps minor issues like racist images on popular New Zealand products will interest people who have had enough of politics with a capital “P” during the week. That’s what I reckon, stunned.
What is racist about the image ?
Everything.
Hoodoo you think might find that image offensive?
“What is racist about the image ?”
Did you watch the video of the woman who comes from a country with a large population of people of African descent, whose job it is to study social phenomena? A few clues there.
OMG, I was thinking “so it’s called Black Magic, big whoop,” then I clicked on the story and saw the image. What the serious fuck were they thinking?
Stunned thinks, nothing to see here, move on.
Yates could easily capitulate, acknowledge the problem, change the image and enjoy the kudos and free publicity. But they seem to have dug in (when in a hole etc…garden suppliers after all)
Brought up on Little Black Sambo, I shouldn’t wonder. Hasn’t noticed the world has moved on – friend of the mad butcher, maybe
Yates is now a subsidiary of DuluxGroup, an Australian listed company on the S&P/ASX 200.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yates_(company)
It’s as inoffensive as a Thai Hitler restaurant.
A bigger problem is the way people get upset over things like this and ascribe meanings which in the past were never thought of .. the world is progressively getting more and more idiotic with false sensitivities for political reasons.
Have you noticed the lamp? which suggests to me an ‘Arabian nights’ fairy tale so it is logical the character will be darker skinned than northern european.
Latest NZCPC comment by Muriel Newman puts her finger squarely on the problem of PC or political crap.
Upset? More tidying up things that have passed unnoticed, due to familiarity. Muriel gets upset though, whenever anyone points out such issues.
Post on third-way politics. With a bonus, implications of NZ govt meddling in US politics.
http://bilbo.economicoutlook.net/blog/?p=35202
Weka might be interested in this part:
Except for a few fringe dwellers in social media the political right in New Zealand is far from extreme. Given that many people claim little real difference between the two larges parties here, National and Labour, and some claim with justification that some Green policy positions (especially environmental) transcend political alignments.
Since your trying to claim
“Except for a few fringe dwellers in social media the political right in New Zealand is far from extreme. ”
I should point out your simply wrong. Both the political left and right in NZ are wedded to a position adopted by Labour4 that the market, left to its own devices, provides a close to ideal social and political environment (which is responsible for most social goods). That is an extreme position and demonstrably incorrect.
Weka understands that, BTW.
I did a binge watch of “The Fugitive” a couple of years ago. Richard Kimble (The Fugitive) lives his life in the USA at the bottom of society, on the margins, so there are shows, in passing, about union troubles and boss/workers troubles. It really shows how far to the right the USA has moved on these issues in just over 50 years.
(And it’s a really interesting watch for two other reasons:
1) for how the adults act towards the teenagers of the time (the baby boom generation). It’s like their force of numbers means that the adults perceive them as just inherently troublesome and
2) for how primitive all the technology was just 50 years ago)
Plus, where’s that guy’s missing arm?
Our most valuable asset
Can’t be made, mined or bought
Is misunderstood,misapplied and disregarded
https://www.mcc-berlin.net/en/research/co2-budget.html
Labour in the U.K. – Corbyn looking to deliver how some of us predicted. (According to their own figures).
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/01/20/exclusive-labour-set-lose-copeland-by-election-partys-canvass/
Probably only because hes not far left enough
But emails!.
Trump repeated a campaign line that the U.S. should have “kept”‘ Iraq’s oil after the 2003 invasion, saying that might have blocked the rise of the Islamic State. He added: “Maybe we’ll have another chance.” The president again said he opposed the Iraq war, though interviews at the time indicated otherwise.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2017/01/21/donald-trump-president-day-two-prayer-service-national-cathedral/96877028/
The Retirement Commissioner is getting airplay for the problems of funding the old age pension (superannuation) giving the large costs which she forecasts to go to 90 billion a year by 2020 I think. There is talk about shifting it up to 67 which is a commonsense way of dealing with it. That there are not enough paid jobs to go round doesn’t enter into it. The Wince department drives people into depression and oppresses and degrades those forced to go on the treadmill who aren’t the right fit for employers and the cold-blooded working -bludgers-being-bludgeoned system is not acknowledged either.
It’s time to face up to the truth that money is a system of exchangeable tokens. It’s a way to convert credits to a virtually universal transfer system. What is essential to have is food, housing, security, transport, personal care for health, spectacles etc. – that doesn’t change. If retired people can earn credits by doing something that is useful to society then they should be given enough credits from the system to provide for themselves to a decent level. Then any money they manage to earn can be on top of that. Superannuation tax on income would be 5% for the first $20,000 and 40% over that, and all the time there would be no tax on their basic pension.
Also planned demise will be legalised with a practical, thoughtful system set up that people could choose to ignore, or opt into or out of with set steps to follow, and would apply to all those over 70 and to medical personnel or others. There may be specially designated trained and certificated people to be the dying equivalents of marriage celebrants.
Instead of top-down policies for older people, with decisions made for them,
there should be groups holding discussions around the country as to how they should be treated. There are enough capable, mature minds still functioning well and able to absorb facts, discuss financial matters, standards of living, standards of ethical treatment, philosophical and religious aspects.
Then there is the conflict caused by generational unbalance in numbers and expectations, in political power and experience and the lack of input into society by many wage earners when they retire although receiving much respectful assistance and finance from society on top of any income and assets they hold, which is not equally available to the young vulnerable adult.
Why is the retirement comissioner engaged in undermining entitlements for pensioners? Is that part of her job description? Given the impending boom in demand for services for the retired, should she not be advocating for capacity increases and additional training to relieve inflationary pressures here before they arrise?
My comment about the Retirement Commissioner will probably come up later.
It’s 12.52 22/1 now. I will put the link to Radionz item of the Commissioner below. I think some have not been able to access this easily. I have found that if the link is put in the subject heading window in a new tab, it goes through okay to the item summary with the listen button at top.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/the-weekend/audio/201830221/commissioned-retirement-commissioner-diane-maxwell
Don’t like the result?, Protest
Don’t like the policies?, Protest
Got an axe to grind?, Protest
Yawn, do something useful such as get a job, get a haircut and have a shower….
[away you go troll, 2 weeks. – weka]
[2 weeks is Waitangi Day, so better to make it 3 weeks. – weka]
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
You forgot to mention yell racism and sexism.
Or lynch mob the arrogant right who like to denigrate and label those who actually give a damn about others!
Welcome back 😉
This will be a sub-set of the Hilary vote feeling good about themselves but, like the Occupy Movement, achieving no effective change because they are only ever preaching to the converted.
Rather than making an effort to understand how the people they need to win over think and changing the strategy to fit. Whining and stomping feet ‘aint it.
Still, I guess some people got some much needed exercise, so it’s not all a waste of time.