The only idiot here is the man in the mirror Shane… show compassion and understanding instead of promoting idiotic commentary more about capturing a media moment than addressing the issue of family violence itself
Jones is just a media slurping wanker.
Jones "I say to our Maori people – this sort of carry-on, don't go blaming colonialism; don't join the chorus of idiocy I'm seeing on the East Coast where the artists don't want Captain Cook celebrated because they're responsible for family violence on the East Coast. That's pathetic. I hate that soup of excuses."
Shane Jones was the man that ordinary men thought was a good sort to have as an MP. So don't go calling Labour's needed voters boofheads! It’s not politic.
Edits:
Looking at the 300,000? 7.4% Pasifika population*, I think that through the connections of health, ethnic identity and conservative religion, Dr Mary English is likely to pull them to RW conservative National through her connections with such entities as Le Va. Which is working for Pasifika and also able to obtain funding from Whanau Ora which is a fund forming a big part of Maori hopes to assist them in their advancement. Smart organisation by such as Le Va may see them get more effect from their funding than Maori receive and achieve.
Welcome to Le Va | Le Va https://www.leva.co.nz/ At Le Va our dream is that Pasifika families and communities are able to unleash their full potential in New Zealand and beyond. We support and encourage this …
And there is something ineffective about the way that government agencies work in with Whanau Ora. A government review of Whānau Ora shows the approach is working well for Māori and Pacific families, but there's not enough buy in from other agencies.
Despite the initiative being launched in 2010, the report found that some government agencies still don't know what Whānau Ora is, and don't rate it.
It also found that central government agencies are, in some cases, opting out of their responsibilities and expecting Whānau Ora partners to do their job for them.
That sounds as if government is using Whanau Ora as a type of 'slush fund' and that Maori aren't getting the services and opportunities that should be arising from its proper use. If Labour Coalition wants to retain the support of Maori and voting numbers, then they had better pull finger. Carmel Sepuloni is showing signs of being an alert, careful, crafty mover on welfare issues. I believe she will be looking at this issue and we should expect to hear of better policies in the coming year.
Carmel has always been committed to improving social, health and educational outcomes for all New Zealanders but has especially focused during her career on low socio-economic groups, Māori, Pacific, disabled people and sole parents. During her political career Carmel has brought to the fore the slashing of the training incentive allowance, made public the impact of cuts to ACC funding for survivors of sexual violence, campaigned for better legislation around social workers and fought for the right to privacy for social service users. https:
//www.beehive.govt.nz/minister/biography/carmel-sepuloni
From the beginning the constabulary came to push Māori off of productive land and up into hills. That's a nice way of saying kill the mothetfuckers. To begin at the point of requesting whanau ora services can not make unproductive land productive again. If the land, Māori land, is not productive then it would produce outcomes such as 10% unemployment, high suicide rates, higher homeless and more advanced illness and disease as a result of unemployment.
Are you saying that Whanau Ora is simply papering over the cracks and we need to go into more depth to examine how it is that land designated Maori Land has, in so many cases, become unproductive?
Look, everyone thinks they're good at seeing "the big picture," because the human brain is wired to see big pictures, and if there isn't one, it makes one up. This is why conspiracy theories are so hard to kill – because the human brain demands there be a logical reason for everything. Paula Benefit must be the head of an organized conspiracy, because human psychology finds the idea of a random unplanned lunatic offensive. Do some reading on the psychology of blame and you'll come to realize how in love with easy answers human nature is.
The man accused in the mass shootings at two New Zealand mosques has been charged with carrying out a terrorist act. (the killer), 28, already faced 50 counts of murder and 40 counts of attempted murder for the March 15 shootings at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand.
An additional murder charge was lodged against him on Tuesday in relation to a Turkish man shot in the attacks who died earlier this month at Christchurch Hospital.
(the killer), who is an Australian citizen and a self-described "white supremacist," wrote an anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim manifesto before the attacks. New Zealand has made it illegal to possess the manifesto or video footage of the attacks, which the shooter streamed live online via Facebook.
In a statement, New Zealand police said they are charging (the killer) with engaging in terrorism under the Terrorism Suppression Act. New Zealand enacted the law in the wake of the 9/11 attacks, and the charge filed against (the killer) is the first of its kind. Following the shooting, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said, "It is clear that this can only be described as a terrorist attack."
I replaced the name of the killer with 'the killer' so as to not offend people who really don't want to see his name.
but hopefully it will put to rest that he is 'only' charged with murder and not with terrorism.
May they lock him up and loose the keys. May they deport him to OZ after his sentences. May they victims and survivor find peace eventually. May the country learns from this tragedy. Any one can be a killer and a terrorist. Anyone.
Personally I would prefer he just be charged with murder, attempted murder, firearms offences etc (and yes, locked up forever). These are the tangible crimes of the attack. "Terrorism" is more abstract and subjective, and encourages examination of his reasoning and motives – and who cares about giving those any headspace.
I assume that the manifesto is in the hands of the police prosecutors and that they have read it.
And considering that just recently there was a shooting in a synagoge in the US with the shooter referring to our killer here and even mentioning that manifesto we can assume that there might actually be a group of like minded people that is hell bend on terrorising those that are not like them in color of skin, faith, and nationality.
You are not alone US. Several eminent legal experts have expressed their doubts it is a good idea. They say the police are running a risk of giving 'the killer' a platform to re-broadcast his hateful ideology to the world.
" there is no reason to cottonwrap that boy and only give him a good feel sentence. "
If convicted of 51 counts of murder, I expect he will never be released – ever. The previous longest sentence in NZ history (William Bell – 30 year non-parole) was for 3 murders.
Thing is, that just leaves it at "one bad man". But he had support networks before and during his actions. He had socio-political motives and a distribution plan for his video and manifesto. He apparently viewed his actions in the context of national and international reactions.
It would be difficult to justify not charging him with terrorism, IMO.
Operation of the trial to curtail his recruitment plans is up to the judge.
A 2003 study by Jeffrey Record for the United States Army quoted a source (Schmid and Jongman 1988) that counted 109 definitions of terrorism that covered a total of 22 different definitional elements.[10] Record continued:
"Terrorism expert Walter Laqueur also has counted over 100 definitions and concludes that the 'only general characteristic generally agreed upon is that terrorism involves violence and the threat of violence.' Yet terrorism is hardly the only enterprise involving violence and the threat of violence. So does war, coercive diplomacy, and bar room brawls".[11]
i think that when someone shoots 50 people and wounds 40 others by shooting them in the back that counts as an act of terrorism hence terrorist.
It matters not one bit what hte shooter wanted or not, and considering that no one here know what he wanted because no one read his manifest or spoke to him maybe we should then take the Prime Minister at her word?
Or is that a case of i only take the PM at her word when i like the words she utters?
The Prime Minister is going to try an keep this story going right through until the next election. Her behavior immediately after the shooting is the only thing she has managed to do properly in the time she has been PM. She will spend the next 18 months with a continuous set of references to the event.
Like going to Paris for a pointless talkfest. Like getting this charge added to the 51 counts of murder when the only practical result is to have him go on ranting at his trial about his "manifesto". There will be a string of these sideshows to try and distract the public attention to the fact that all the real activities that this useless Government does turn out to be abject failures.
We don't have any prospect of bread from these losers so they are going to try and distract us with circuses.
She will spend the next 18 months with a continuous set of references to the event.
Why don’t you keep a count of it? It does not count if a journalist or reporter brings it up first. In 18 months you can report back to us and gloat about your prescience. Deal?
It could be an advantage to the USA to talk about him as a terrorist, then we have been attacked by this lot of low-lifes and are blooded brothers and can join the club devoted to take down this evil group who are attacking the wunnerful examples of western civilisation. What's the woild coming to!
no the shooter there also wrote a manifesto and named him. what ever is what i say.
as for us joining the war on 'terrorism' we already did that see currently soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. I doubt we will start a 'war on terrorism' that will involve the good people of OZ.
And frankly i don't believe that the Prime Minister is that short sighted.
And yes, we have been attacked by a terrorist, just not the one we thought would attack us. Hence why the police had to admit that it actually does not keep tags on our homegrown and imported lot of white wanna be Ersatz Nazis.
If he had just wanted to kill a whole bunch of people, he would have more opportunity at a rugby game , or at an outdoor concert.
No his aim was pure and simple to spread terror into the Muslim community, and by posting and boasting on line he hoped to encourage other to follow his "example". His boasting wasn't aimed at anyone other than those who egged him on in the first place. There is a very active online community who indulge in what would be considered dangerous and threatening conversation in any other group if they were from the Middle-East, or Asia or Africa. But because they are white European and worship such leaders as Trump, their bile and seditious behaviour has been pretty much overlooked until now. They have been allowed to carry on pretty much in the open what others would call terrorist plotting. It is not confined to one country, regrettably it is a world wide phenomenon, given strength by internet social media.
We are not the first to categorise such attacks as terrorist btw.
James Jackson wanted to kill black people. Specifically, he wanted to kill black men. A lot of them.
That's what the white supremacist admitted in court Wednesday after pleading guilty to killing Timothy Caughman in a gruesome act of violence that he said he believed would spark a nationwide race war.
In a calm voice, The Associated Press reported, Jackson went against his attorney's advice and spoke before a Manhattan court judge, confirming the story he told New York Police Department officials when he turned himself in to authorities in March 2017 — a day after the brutal stabbing that killed the 66-year-old African-American man.
At the time, Jackson told detectives that he had traveled from his home in Baltimore to New York to kill black men as a "declaration of global total war on the Negro race" and as a "political terrorist attack," the Manhattan District Attorney's Office said in a statement.
"White nationalism will not be normalized in New York," Cyrus Vance, the Manhattan district attorney said in the statement, noting that Jackson's guilty plea represents the state's first-ever conviction for murder in the first degree "in furtherance of an act of terrorism."
Jackson also pleaded guilty to charges of murder in the second degree as a crime of terrorism, murder in the second degree as a hate crime and criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree.
"If you come here to kill New Yorkers in the name of white nationalism, you will be investigated, prosecuted, and incapacitated like the terrorist that you are," Vance said. "You will spend your life in prison without possibility of parole because there is no place in our city or our society for terrorists – 'domestic' or otherwise."
Wha? It comes across as totally confusing when the woke try and use office politics speak as terrorism speak.
As far as I can discern the woke definition of terrorism is: when a brown man hurts a white person.
Where as when a white person is trying to hurt or be rude to a brown person it's racism.
However, not to throw to much shade on the woke but a brown man being rude is defined as alt right speech / hate-speech.
The definition the FBI uses is a better one IMHO: Terrorism is the unlawful use of force or violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives.
The first dealing with the murders. This would be a fairly open trial and the ability of the defence to deny guilt would be negligible.
The second dealing with hate crimes and terrorism. This would be a fairly closed trial, to deny the perp a media platform. An end of day brief summary to media and again at the end of the trial. The detail of the trial disseminated to experts in the field, law, security and academia.
is there a ban on article talking about the charges against the killer of christchurch? Or is the site just eating posts this morning for breakfast.
i linked to an article from NPR that stated the charges and against the killer, one of them being terrorist charges, 50 counts of murder and 40 counts of attempted murder.
it seems to disappear.
I am taking care not to name the guy or anything but its kind of weird.
I can see the post, and then its gone?
nope, because people here are sensible to it, and i don't actually try to aggravate people for the heck of it.
i personally think it is wrong, insofar as that we – the people – in a few years time will have a hard time arguing against those that want to white was history cause simply no one knows who it was and what happened to him,
But i don't name him because there are many here that don't want to know his name. That is the only reason.
I'm not arguing for a damnatio memoriae, but blogs and popculture "thinkpieces" are one way for him to gain support. Textbooks will be fine, and the psychologists who will prod him in prison and deliver their assessments will help. But the scalpel that refreshes the injuries he caused should be cold and sterile, IMO.
I think you’ve got your answer (no straight out ban, but please do not name him). Some topics do get a little more attention than others do, obviously.
Sometimes, comments are caught in/by auto-moderation and have to be manually released (or not). Moderators do have limited time, which means that it can take a while before a comment gets approved and released (or not).
i have never named him here, and i don't have any intention to do so.
pretty much any comment of mine ends up in moderation, so go figure. But that was odd cause i could see it and then not, and it was a bit early for anything else then coffee.
Hi Sabine, I don’t know what happened with your comment appearing and disappearing this morning. It could have been a ‘glitch’.
When a comment is held up in/by auto-moderation we try to deal with as soon as we can but as I said, we have only limited time.
I don’t recall seeing any comments from you being held up but next time it happens I’ll try to let you know the reason. Frankly, I’m a little puzzled by your words “pretty much any comment of mine ends up in moderation, so go figure.” That doesn’t seem reflected at all at back-end of TS!?
The first images from inside the New Zealand’s Pike river mine, where an explosion killed 29 men nearly nine years ago, have been released.
The shots were taken as a three-person re-entry crew broke through the 88cm concrete seal on Tuesday at the mine’s opening to start the process of gathering evidence on what caused New Zealand’s worst mining disaster since 1914. The bodies of the 29 victims remain in the mine.
On Tuesday, the families of the victims gathered outside the mine entrance to release 29 yellow balloons and call out the names of those who died when the concrete plug sealing off the mine was breached.
Anna Osborne, whose husband Milton died in the disaster, said it was “amazing” to witness. “It was so emotional, we couldn’t contain our tears … Just seeing the concrete being pulled from the portal and the men going in and thinking ‘they are doing that for us’.”
These include mine that the National Party will split into two paries. It has not yet happened but after I heard Simon Bridges make a terrible after dinner speech at the recently concluded Grey Power AGM in Wellington, I'd say that prediction moved forward quite a bit.
Suffice it to say that he misread his audience, misread the purpose and content matter of an after dinner speech, and suffered the fate of being hugely party political in a elction rally mode and suffered the concomitant behaviour from many attendees of expressions of disbelief, laughter, and later some very tough questioning that was mercifully for him foreshortened by the chairman.
My final summation for Simon Bridge's performance that Tuesday night was 'desperation'.
Damn, I would have loved to watch that one..a bit mean of me, yes, but I make no apologies, it's like watching the baddies get theirs at the end of a bad movie, at lest you walk away with that little satisfaction.
On the other hand, the PM came and was very unparty political. I am not sure even whether the opposition got mentioned. She was open and warm, and dealt well with a couple of 'tough' questions. One about the Aged Persons Commissioner was dealt with by saying that while such a commissioner was not yet appointed, the reasons why a commissioner would be needed would also need to be addressed.
I understood he to say that it was not enough just to tick the box of a complaints process commissioner but more important to address the problems now, which had been or were to be addressed in the Wellbeing Budget and in ongoing government action.
The other person to really feel the heat was the Kiwibank speaker who could not adequately defend or explain the withdrawal of services by office closure and of cheque facilities.
If there was one good lesson from those exchanges was that 750,000 superannuitants and increasing to a million within a decade should not be written off as a political force, or as consumers of lamingtons, or as 'Dad's Arny" as we were regarded by the previous government. Insults are not easily or always forgiven, but they are never forgotten.
5G dangers are being spoken about more widely – but hardly a murmur in NZ.
The Telecom Industry has admitted there are no studies that show 5G wireless technology is safe. Since 2017 200+ doctors and scientists have demanded a moratorium on installation due to research that has already proven it’s harmful.
It's a tough lesson to get you head around – but just about everybody who is comfortable materially or ideologically with the current status quo, will break in the direction of fascism when they feel genuinely threatened. Even if that perception of threat comes in the form of someone as harmless as Corbyn.
Yes they definitely break right under pressure, I am pretty sure most new labour blairites and the editorial staff at the Guardian would rather see the Tories back in power than Corbyn as Prime Minister, the same goes for Nancy Pelosi and the establishment DNC, re;Sanders 2020.
'P benefit' overplayed her cards yesterday. She prattled on breathlessly about women being frightened, feeling sick and scared to come to work cos:
"there's a predator in parliament and nobody knows who it is cos the awful Trevor Mallard won't tell us". (a tongue in cheek precis)
The reality: a person was identified who has preyed upon three women since 2014 (or thereabouts) and perhaps more cases will come to light, but not even a serial predator is going to roam the corridors of power grabbing unsuspecting women on the day his past behaviour had just been exposed for all to see.
Of course he has. This may be wide of the mark but according to Newsroom M. Barry has been, or has herseelf, moved on from leading another select committee in the form of the foreign interference in NZ inquiry after a poor performance on the euthanasia Bill were she often it is ignored or dismissed views opposed to her own, she may not have been "leader" of that but she seems determined to impress her points of view over most of the things she touches.
The timing seems to me interesting that she is being replaced by Chris Bishop at a time the rumours are rife of the way staff have been managed, my impression is she is lying low in yet another of the forms of that that suit her so well.
… she is being replaced by Chris Bishop at a time the rumours are rife of the way staff have been managed, my impression is she is lying low…
I think you might be on to something there. Maggie's bill-boards which normally festoon the Takapuna/Devonport region (at the least) throughout the parliamentary term have disappeared again.
I would love to know the "detail" and NZ and that electorate deserve to know it, I can't see the media, even such as it is, leaving it alone for long as far as the inquiry goes but past behaviour looks to mean that other stuff will be swept under the mat again. If it's really bad my reckon is she will "retire" quietly pre-election.
The Trumpian Wall. One of the Wonders of the World. What unintended consequences will it have – I suggest many.
The word harmonics came to mind as I looked at the image. The sort of regular noise that you get from running alongside a fence with a stick – what effect does that have? Can the Wall be fully policed? Can annoyers set up devices at untended portions, keeping guards rushing up and down or involving interaction with spy drones. Sounds like an interesting activity for people whose economic conditions have been badly affected by USA machinations. If it is electrified, could great effects be caused by a simple stone in a sling – a reprise of David and Goliath. Could harmonics be set up that would carry through the structure for kilometres? What about the animals living nearby? What effect will it have on them? Will the USA weaponise cruising hawks so they can watch over it yet be under covers – an oxymoron!
(This link might apply to the Christchurch building which there is 'stress' about between engineer-designer and engineer-certifier at Christchurch City Council.) I bet Trump doesn't know much about harmonics except the timbre of his own voice! https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fbuil.2017.00057/full
Edit: Trump…voice…arcapella…facing the music on his own….When, oh Lord when?
When the republican party under Mitch McConnell does not need the usefull idiot anymore to sign laws and rally the masses and not a moment before.
this wall is going to kill a lot of people, animals, fuck the rio grande but than the orange shitshow is old and when history comes to judge he will be a rotten corpse somewhere.
well there was a guy once up on a time who ran on repealing regulations, bringing back coal and making the country great again. File this under the 'country is great again'.
This is the kind of thing that is genuinely infuriating about the Trump regime. All the other shit about Russia and tax returns may or may not have merit, but are ultimately distractions from what is important.
Working in Panama it is utterly disheartening to walk along beaches literally ankle deep in plastic. And this was a site that was regularly cleaned up!
Trevor Mallard is certainly doing very well with his distraction tactics. A major report says that bullying is prevalent in Parliament. Trevor starts talking about a rapist probably being in Parliament, and then announces that a person has been suspended from their job. The idiots in our MSM then go into paroxysms of excitement and start talking only about sexual offences and totally ignores the bulk of the report which is about bullying.
Given the reported high turnover in some Ministerial Offices, and particularly in that of the Prime Minister's Press Secretaries, it would seem that there has been bullying going on there. High turnover of staff is often a telltale sign of a bullying culture as people working in Offices like that leave rather than put up with it.
Is Trevor merely running his usual interference tactics, as he routinely does at Question Time to protect his boss? Would discussion of bullying instead of sexual offences be a bit too close to home?
Many more people will be watching their "Ps & Qs" I imagine and I suppose one thing it distracts from, which is in the Opposition's favour, is that, for the moment, people have stopped asking where the National inquiry release on its internal findings is.
Oh dear alwyn, I should have left an emoticon for your benefit. I thought my light hearted cynicism/sarcasm (call it what you will) would be apparent for all to see.
I have no idea what any such inquiry may have said.
Why don't you ask Bridges, rather than me. I have nothing at all to do with the National Party.
Meanwhile I see, from Stuff, that there were 3 complaints of sexual harassment, involving 4 women and 2 men between 2015 and 2018 while there have been a dozen people in the first 3 months of this year alone, who resigned because of bullying. Staff turnover has doubled since this lot became the Government compared to the last year of the previous Government. Trevor really is trying to cover up his own failures isn't he?
Shouldn't we be worrying about the most common problem rather than just worry about Trevor's side-tracking to the much less common event?
The Proud Boys want the public to believe that they’re a “drinking club” who only resort to violence to defend themselves from anti-fascist protesters during political rallies.
But in private, these extremists have discussed injuring and even killing their adversaries, plotting tactics and optics for months in order to assert a claim of self-defense should they face charges.
[..]
But private chat logs leaked to HuffPost fly directly in the face of that sentiment, showing Proud Boys premeditating violence they hope to commit. They spent months before the April rally meticulously planning strategies for injuring protesters.
Members discuss what weapons they might use against the “commies” they’ll meet in the street, which police officers might be sympathetic to them, how they’ll raise funding to fly out their long-distance compatriots, and how they’ll “bait” protesters into throwing the first punch so that they can claim self-defense.
I have no idea what any such inquiry may have said.
its because the national party is keeping it well under wraps, while the current investigation has already led to one staffer going the way of hte dodo, or the moa.
so frankly i find this pissing contest tired, and the Nationalasitas issues with trevord mallard are just boring.
go ask you guys without mates about their own toxic culture of hair pulling, doxxing beneficiaries to the media for personal gain, and cutting funds to help abuse survivors receive a place of safety (womens refugee), counceling (ACC and lifeline) and then you might have a point in whinging about trevor mallard.
as for my view on this whole shitty story, its as NZ as it gets, and as always with sexual assault, sexual harassment and rape i expect nothing, cause in the twenty odd years i have lived here that is what is done about, nothing. And i stated that on the appropriate thread.
Host: Bryan Bruce with co-host The Daily Blog’s Martyn (Bomber) Bradbury with panelists :
Law Professor and Free Trade critic, Professor Jane Kelsey
Economist and commentator Rod Oram
Head of Greenpeace, Russel Norman
Former Green MP, Sue Bradford
Julia Amua Whaipooti – JustSpeak Board member. Senior advisor at the Office of the Children’s Commissioner and member of the Criminal Justice Advisory Group
Is this exciting? I don't dare to hope, so someone can critique it so we know.
But – Government to loosen its debt target rules Thursday 5/23/2019 11 am ish
The government's planning to loosen its net debt target, which would allow it to be more flexible and take on more debt to fund investments.
Finance Minister Grant Robertson has announced that from the 2021/22 year, the government is likely to target a net debt range of between 15 and 25 percent of GDP.
At the moment, the government's self-imposed Budget Responsibility Rules require it to hold net debt of no more than 20 percent of GDP by 2022, which is low by international standards.
That has been criticised by supporters as restricting the government from investing meaningfully in the country.
Which, of course, implies potentially further reducing debt, thus spending.
However, if your report is correct, it seems the Government have opted to leave it open to go either way – i.e either take on more debt, thus be able to spend more, or spend less and slash debt. Appealing to both the hopes of the conservative and those that want Government to loosen the purse strings.
I see the opposition are trying to paint it as a loosening. But it could also be seen as a tightening if the Government opt to cut debt below 20%.
The 15-25% target is based on advice fromTreasury.
So there is nothing indicative about government policy intent, despite the hopes of many Labour supporters or the doomsaying of National.
It's a bit like the inflation bands going from 0-2 to 1-3%, and inflation being lower afterwards.
IMO its Tresury arguing for a lower debt target of 15% if the good times continue and a limit to any expansionary policy to the 25% level because of looming baby boomer demographic issues.
IMO its Tresury arguing for a lower debt target of 15% if the good times continue…
Seems so. And it seems the Government largely agrees.
Considering the Minister's comments, adopting a range of between 15 percent and 25 percent opposed to the current set target of 20% does suggest that despite all the stated crisis (housing, education, health, etc) in the current economic climate (which they deem as good) the Government will most likely move to further reduce debt.
Why on earth do you want New Zealand to own lots of gold? It is basically useless unless you want to own jewelry or make electronic equipment. Or, I suppose, make an Apollo moon-lander or decorate buildings like the Paris Opera House.
What do you think would happen if all the gold in Fort Knox, or the even larger (by about 50%) pile at the New York Federal Reserve, was to vanish and nobody knew?
Well nothing, absolutely nothing. Of course the villains in the 007 film Goldfinger or the ones in Die Hard with a Vengeance would look a bit silly but until they discovered there was nothing there the world would be totally unaffected. It is a barborous relic and, as William Jenning Bryan put it "You shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold".
Well, duh. If nobody knows it happened, nothing effects the economy. Economics is about belief. To flip it around, what if everybody falsely believed all the US gold reserves had been stolen?
Suddenly the USG is treated as if it lost $300bil in assets.
Q: But can't farmers just plant trees to offset methane? A: No. The Government has specifically prevented farmers from offsetting methane emissions. A coal power station will be allowed to offset its greenhouse gas emissions by buying up farms and planting pine trees but a farmer will not be allowed to offset their methane emissions by planting trees on their own land.
This is contradictory to the recent recommendations by the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, who recommended a landscape approach to forestry offsets.
Under the PCE's landscape approach the use of forestry offsets would be limited to biological methane, and offsetting nitrous oxide would be limited to native vegetation, and fossil carbon dioxide would not be offset at all by planting trees.
The Government's Zero Carbon Bill announcement makes no distinction between fossil and biological greenhouse gases and operates in a reality where a carbon atom is as theoretically stable in a pine tree in Nelson as one in solid coal a kilometre under the ground.
Q: How can farmers reduce their emissions in order to reach the methane target? A: Currently the only way livestock farmers can significantly reduce methane emissions is to feed less dry matter to livestock.
The Biological Emissions Reference Group (BERG) commissioned work that shows in order to significantly reduce livestock methane emissions in the future without cutting production many currently unavailable and uncertain technologies will need to be developed and commercialised.
Question, in order to offset methane emissions now could farmers not just simply stop cutting down every single tree in their sight in order to load some more cows on the paddock?
Seriously can you BM or BWaghorn give an answer to that? Or is it a question of money rather then environmental consience?
And why are Farmers cutting down every tree, every shrub without regards to anything?
I mean I live on the country side now, and i swear to god that there are more birds in evil Auckland then on any of the paddocks that surround my quaint little rural town, and no cats are in sight?
It's more that technology has to keep pace with the change. Farming-labour don't require much in the way of qualifications where the carbon economy does require higher qualifications for things like finance and electrical engineering basically replacing physical labour with intellectual labour. And what that might mean for the physical make up of the rural town. Change like this has to bring the people along with it.
i am not a farmer, but i just planed two trees last week and i am planning on putting up a few more trees next weekend. In fact when i am done i have hopefully planted a little grove. 🙂
I'm not a farmer or had anything to do with the rural community so bwaghorn could probably give you a bit more insight into the mindset of the average farmer.
One thing I would say is the high stocking rates are being driven by the high cost of land.
Expensive land = big mortgage = higher stocking rates to pay for the mortgage.
Plus the government has a BILLION tree strategy. So they can't really nitpick about small one off tree planting subdivisions when what the government really needs are big blocks of converted land. So planning is just going to have to take big leaps forward, far beyond that of The National Party, unfortunately.
Question, why do they have to cut all the trees, and then remove every stump and root, when we now that the cows actually like a bit of shade, and the tree roots are good for the soil .
this has got nothing to do with the link on why farmers can't offset their tree planting for methane gas emission as that would apply that farmers will only plant trees when there is a quid pro quo in the same sense that they remove all trees for quid pro quo.
Fact is that the current drought (yes we are in a drought) will affect farmers.
The loos of wildlife, birds, the drying out of our soil, all affects Farmers.
So please BWaghorn, be bothered and answer my question, because i can't understand it.
This Farmer here i understand as he clearly thinks with his bank account in mind and at the same time he is future proofing his business and his farm.
So please, my question was not sarcastic or anything, I really don't understand and i personally don't understand how anyone can find beauty, resiliance, and future prospect in the bleak landscape that we are creating in order to grow cows, to produce milk powder – which is not even a good steady income earner. I don't understand it.
Farmers are just like all humans . Some a clever and give a fuck . Some are either thick or ignorant . Your neighbors fit that group by the sound of it
But I gaurentee it that if faced with the option of paying a methane tax or planting trees your thick/ignorant niagbours would plant trees.
The reason given by Shaw was if farmers wished to treat methane emissions as different to carbon as their submissions claimed then the accepted practice of offsetting carbon by tree planting could not apply as trees dont absorb methane
No doubt some Treasury advisor put the kibosh on it – the idea being that GDP is maximized if farmable land gets farmed, and marginal gets forested. The idea that it might force someone out never sways the bean counters – which is why so much policy over the last few decades has been so wretched.
Meanwhile (surprise surprise), the owner of Farmers, James Pascoe Group, generated $2b in revenue in 2011 (profit and more recent figures unknown – they are privately held). The family that owns them reportedly had personal wealth of $500m in 2013. But they can't pay their staff enough for basic living!
With his relationship with Deutsche Bank under increasing scrutiny, President Donald Trump, in a move not previously reported, has recently shifted some of his banking business from this global institution to a small and relatively new bank in South Florida. As Democrats in Congress have requested information from Deutsche Bank about its dealings with Trump—the firm has loaned him billions over the years—he appears to have closed his brokerage accounts with the German company and has deposited millions of dollars in the Coral Gables–based Professional Bank, which last year gave Trump an eight-figure loan to buy a property adjacent to his private club Mar-a-Lago.
[…]
In January, in what may be a sign of the bank’s rising profile, the firm’s president and CEO, Abel Iglesias, was appointed to the board of directors for the Miami branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.
Torrential rains, thunderstorms and tornados struck Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas Monday, but the rains in Oklahoma caused the North Canadian River to crest in parts of El Reno. But it was the Cimarron River that took out one family’s home.
Add to that a heatwave in the south east States over the weekend, over 100 F, so high 30's in our money, fortunately with moderate humidity forecast. But with the current thunder / tornado there's a lot of moisture around so wouldn't be surprised if it turns out humid as hell.
A critical wet bulb event (wet bulb over 35 C) is when everything changes. Lots of people will die and it may get a little messy. High 30's and high humidity and she's all on.
Only a few more months to Brexit on Park Lane 111.
A Tory PM meeting Donald J Trump to negotiate a FTA to save the island from its hubris and these words are spoken – you'll sign here, nothing to negotiate, these are my terms, you have no other options, surrender to me, consider your island colonised.
And afterwards.
I came, I saw, I conquered. I was so smart and they were so dumb. Victory in my time.
Funny as a fart in a Caci Clinic lift really isn't it (sorry to be base). Coalition NZ launched with Hannah at the helm. (Btw, has anyone else noticed the similaritoise between Hannah and Paula going forward? And then Saint Jude riding valiantly alongside it all as some sort of Saviour of the 'Centre Right").Then there's that pathetic creature Preacher Alfred with an ego the size of a bus -all of them with egos the size of a bus jostling for position).
Cargo Cults have returned and Parliamentary Gang territorial warfare has arrived
Yes thought that the makeover person/s for Poorer Benefit and Hamma Tamaki has done a great job. The two haven't had to suffer any of Michael Jackson's problems I think. People should be considered in their opinions. If the po-faced in USA can elect Trump, then who knows what will arise here, and may receive a warm welcome.
The people in China haven't been able to organise for popular protest for some time I think. Anyone who knows different please inform.
But Poission noted that there is unsettling news about a nasty banned CFC having been traced to China. Is that factual or propaganda. It would be good if countries could be very transparent about such things and
submit to UN inspection. I hate the very thought but I think of WMD and all that followed that.
Edit.
The USA have expropriated a North Korean vessel for doing something wrong and breaking the freaking sanctions. I wish they would look after their own affairs, and do something about their trillion dollar debit which must be having a big affect on the world’s financial stability. That could even be regarded as a WMD.)
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/world/389885/ozone-layer-banned-cfcs-traced-to-china-scientists-say
There is an image with this item that shows an orange cloud spreading over part of the globe. I think it is around China, but there is probably an invisible one coming from the USA. Why can't these countries follow careful and reasonable policies, and from such a height they could criticise others fairly.
Simon Bridges has racked up the stiffest bill for chauffeur-driven cars so far in 2019, the latest MPs’ expenses report shows.
Slow learner Simon. Loves the perks of the job doesn't he?
In total, $1,457,574 was spent for MPs’ travel and accommodation in the first quarter of this year, January to March. It breaks down to $914,232 for the National Party, $388,907 for Labour, $63,724 for the Greens, $59,808 for New Zealand First, $18,787 for Act’s David Seymour, and $12,115 for the now independent Ross.
And why is the National party spending more than twice Labour on travel and accomodation? I guess guess fiscal responsibility is for other people…
Did you not notice that the numbers reported do not include any of the Ministers? Do you really think it was because they didn't spend anything at all?
They are financed from a separate budget for Ministerial Services and are reported at a later date. Thus these numbers include ALL the National MPs but only the junior dregs from the Labaour, NZF and Green parties. In the NZF case that is only 3 out of 8 members. It is hardly surprising that the reported numbers for National are so much higher than the totals for about half the Government parties is it?
And did you see the note 2 at the bottom. The only MPs who aren't in the Ministerial ranks who get the VIP transport are the Speaker, Deputy Speaker and the Leader of the Opposition. It is also charged out at a much higher rate ($171/hr) than are Ministers ($68/hr) That was something our current Government introduced I believe. God knows why, unless it was to try and make the Leader of the Opposition look bad. I am surprised that the smear works but you obviously fell for it.
Wait till the Minister's expenses come out. Unless you really are a hypocrite I suppose you will then rant at the extravagance of the Government who spent a fortune while National will have spent precisely nothing.
Still, apparently you really must be as silly as you appear. I guess you really that foolish as to not have noticed the things I have pointed out.
Fascinating. It looks like the National party got their friends at the Herald to remove the story.
You have to admit that blowing nearly $1M of our hard earned money in just three months makes National look not only wasteful but reckless in their spending – not a good look for a party which is auditioning for government.
You can defend them all you want but the public don't like seeing Simon Bridges lord it in limousines after being caught wasting taxpayers money on them just last year.
That's two RWNJs in a row who have resorted to personal abuse.
You can do better.
I’m interested about the removal of the article though. From memory it didn’t mention Minister’s expenses were not included, just those of JA and Peters (we’ll never know now because it’s been disappeared).
alwyn has helpfully pointed this out but surely the article could have been updated. Why remove it altogether? Perhaps the Herald, under pressure from the National Party, conceded it was too damaging to the opposition…
You would certainly know all about personal abuse. You revel in it don't you? Pretty typical of LWNJs such as you though.
Perhaps the Herald, like you, really thought that they had produced a zinger to wack National with. Their reporters do lean, like you, way over to the left. So far in fact that they, also like you,fall on their faces regularly.
They on the other hand might have realised that they had totally stuffed it up and were embarrassed enough to remove it. You have no such shame. In fact you seem to be proud of your foolishness. I despair of the school system we seem to have ended up with if you are a typical outcome.
If that was the table that The Herald published it is a repeat of the one I linked to from the Parliamentary website. It would seem very hard to understand how Muttonbird didn't notice all the people in the Government Parties who appeared to have spent absolutely nothing.
Ardern – nothing? Peters – nothing? Every other Minister- nothing?
Did nothing register as being just slightly funny in Muttonbird's mind? Well apparently not. Oh dear, some mothers do ave 'em.
Thank you, but that is not the article I read which has now disappeared from the Herald website. That particular article did not include a list of member's expenses on Scribd uploaded by "Anonymous jlKATDoSIW".
I wonder who Anonymous jlKATDoSIW is?
Perhaps that person works in the office of the leader of the opposition?
Perhaps that person runs a right wing blog popular with islamophobes?
Also, I commented at 4:19pm and Collette Devlin's more National Party friendly piece on Stuff was published at 7:30pm.
Anyway, the now removed Herald article wasn't the only one up at the time – there was another headline on one of the other sites referring to Simon Bridges as, "King of Limos". 😂
And perhaps, as I said, they simply copied the material of the Parliamentary web-site I referenced in my first comment at 28.1. And no,I really don't think the official Parliamentary web-site has been taken over by aliens.
Do you ever read the things people reference? And are you sure about what you claim to have seen on the Herald web-site? You seem to be the only one who ever saw it. You really do seem to be getting delusional.
I believe that you may have read the Herald article you quoted. It was the other one that I wonder about because Google doesn't find anything at all like it.
The Herald one gives a link from a google search that includes this quote "21 hours ago – Simon Bridges has racked up the stiffest bill for chauffeur-driven cars so far in 2019, the latest MPs' expenses report shows. National Party boss …".
I suspect that my supposition in 28.1.1.1.1.1 was right. Some idiot reporter, trying to wack Bridges, did write a story from the MP expenses and was simply too stupid to notice that there were no reported expenses at all for the Ministers. Finally some one with just a little bit of sense saw it and hurriedly spiked it.
It would have got into print, or on the internet at least, because their reporters these days are pretty dumb and they don't have any sub-editors any more. How they could write such a thing without even wondering why there were no reported numbers for Ministers and that only Bridges and Tolley appeared to have access to the Limos is totally beyond me.
Still, when it comes to the intelligence of the LWNJ reporters on the MSM in New Zealand nothing is too foolish for them to say. They don't get an education anymore. They just go to some left-wing propaganda school like the night school in Hamilton they pretend is a University and learn the right jargon and who they are to moan about.
To paraphrase H L Mencken
“No one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the New Zealand Journalists'.”
Seems to be pretty much what I would expect. The Opposition are about half of the Parliament. Of the Government about half are Ministers or suchlike and aren't included in these figures at all. Thus you would expect that there are about twice as many MPs from the Opposition as from the Government whose expenses are paid from this budget.
Hence you would expect that 2/3 of the expenses reported here were for Opposition MPs. Simple Arithmetic isn't it? Did they teach Arithmetic when you were at school?
It isn't 2/3 of ALL spending costs of course. Wait till they release the numbers for the Ministers and we see how much travel James Shaw has been doing this quarter. In the previous one he, a professed aircraft hating Greenie, topped the entire list for International travel. More that the PM. More than the Minister of Foreign Affairs. More than the Minister of Trade. He was number 1. So much for worrying about Carbon emissions.
But it is all to much for you to understand isn't it?
Give it up Sabine. Trying to defend Muttonbird in his stupidity just make you look equally as ignorant. It isn't worth it.
Spending on expensive medicines to give a longer period of capability when having a terminal illness. There are more and more demands on the government, often by people who actually are very individualistic, have never co-operated with a true community-based local or national government. It is time for some practical limitations.
I have noted a couple with genetic differences from the norm, have two dwarf children and be considering another pregnancy. The children have needed medical intervention throughout their early years.
There has to be a decent and proper way to treat terminally ill. They could perhaps be allocated an expensive drug for a year so they could have special time with their family, but then the care is management and pain and there should be no more babies in that time. Perhaps an injection of long-lasting hormones for women. And men must not start more children if they have a genetic mutation.
The demands from people with cancer are shrill. It is hard when you are young, and I wonder why so many younger people seem to be suffering. Do government know that hair dyes and so on may be carcinogenic, and I believe are not controlled the same as cosmetics are. It maybe that there will have to be a cap put on different diseases – so much to cancer, so much to heart? And a firefighter who has contracted lung disease going into dangerous conditions to save people, homes, workplaces, animals; people suffering from their work conditions should receive priority care, it seems fair.
And also the hoary issue of old people. We once died often before 40, then it got to 75, now it is in the 80s, and how much older with demands for spare parts and intricate surgery, and what return does that person give to the country offering these extra years – what grateful input back for the kindly care?
We cannot afford to treat children and workers so that they can keep healthy and have a normal life. We certainly can't afford to pay out too much to give terminally ill people all the life that they would like. But a kind and practical health system would set up a model that would provide a way to help dying people fairly and appropriately. Many people have complained of the shortcomings when they are near end of life when they deserve some TLC from a modern civilised nation.
[Pharmac CEO Sarah] Fitt concedes that New Zealand does not offer as many medicines as other countries but claims that Pharmac is smarter. "Funding more medicines doesn't necessarily improve health outcomes. You could find five medicines in the same class that are very similar, you might only need to fund one or two. And that's the strategy that we take."
Is she saying New Zealand knows something other nations don't, and that they are wasting money on these drugs? "Well, that was certainly one of our conclusions when we looked at the comparison with Australia that we did a couple of years ago. You could be spending a lot more money but actually not gaining a lot of additional health outcomes."
When it comes to lung cancer, she says patients often present at a late stage of the disease. "Treatment for cancer isn't all about medicines. It's about screening. The most effective things to manage cancer are screening, diagnosis, radiotherapy and surgery. Medicines make up about 8-10 percent of cancer control."
But Chris Atkinson, an oncologist and the medical director of the Lung Foundation, says many of these new precision cancer medicines are showing remarkable results. While the drugs won't cure them, they are buying them time.
"Every day I'm involved in the care of patients who are giving me cheek two or three years down the track, who presented with disease widely spread from the primary cancer. When you repeat the imaging in response to some of these drugs that are self-funded they don't have any imagable, active cancer."
Thinking about your "parents with genetic mutation" example, I'm uncertain about any of the options to prevent further children. Yes, they should, but requiring LARC/LAC to stop further children with genetic disorders is dangerous ground.
It just feels very eugenic-y, even though it's not really.
The pharmac CEO probably isn't too far off, IMO. I suspect pharmac is underfunded (which is easier to hide because its expenditure meets its budget, as there's always unmet medical need, just with diminishing returns), but the pricey drugs probably aren't the best way to make life easier for NZers at a population level.
I reckon any change-producing increase for pharmac should go to lowering or eliminating the $5/drug charge for subsidised prescriptions. Anyone with a complex situation could well end up dropping $40/prescription or much more – try doing that on a limited income.
Of course, it still requires someone to come up with $100 up front, but I doubt you could conceive how that would be a difficulty for people, a barrier to them getting the drugs they need when the doctor proescribes them.
For children under 14, the prescription items are free.
If you have a Community Services Card, you'll pay a small fee for funded pharmaceuticals and still qualify for the 20 items pre year max before all comes free.
Alternatively go to chemist warehouse who have a nil Rx fee for subsidised pharmaceuticals coming to a town near you soon.
The future requires our reasoning. Nothing happening now or in the future is like what has happened before. I don't want us to do nothing until we have to which by then is too late. We need to be talking about the problems as involved citizens. People can then understand the issues, take responsibility and work in with government, or if they decide not, know there will be a limit on services. Everything in our world is shrinking, except individual desires. So it is necessary to point out some hard facts – there's no free lunch. We're all in this together – B. Franklin; We must all hang together, or we surely will hang separately.
And the pharmacy cost – so true about cutting the cost for families and for others perhaps a flat fee for two or more for dispensing.
I think it is unreasonable higherstandard to claim that Pharmac CEO is a 'mendacious public servant'. The job of looking into the claims for medications and assessing reasonable cost for public supply is important and doesn't get you popularity. A while ago I quoted a case where a private equity bought up a slow-demand drug that cost $16 say and the new owner put it up to $100 or more. Your put down about Pharmac sounds like a little child who wants some goodie and when refused, says ‘You are a bad mummy/daddy.
I suggest government set up a website with scenarios and parameters that people can fill out and play at managing an agency, ie how do we manage the health budget where spending falls – with lists how it goes now – this does not result in fair treatment ie to rural, to poor children etc. Then question how do you think we could manage this, and people could allocate and explain why it was fair to favour this group and lessen for that group. And what should be spent on education to prevent some of the problems. And why prevention can become obsessive and limit ordinary life, so no risks at all?
It would be a little like people playing Sim City.
"I think it is unreasonable higherstandard to claim that Pharmac CEO is a 'mendacious public servant'. The job of looking into the claims for medications and assessing reasonable cost for public supply is important and doesn't get you popularity. A while ago I quoted a case where a private equity bought up a slow-demand drug that cost $16 say and the new owner put it up to $100 or more. Your put down about Pharmac sounds like a little child who wants some goodie and when refused, says ‘You are a bad mummy/daddy. "
Cobblers !
Clinician's in NZ are constantly in a situation where we have inferior access to medicines in comparisons to our colleagues overseas. A number of generic medicines which patients have been forced to change to have been poor in comparison to what was previously available, there are many supply shortages that pharmacists have to deal with on a daily basis. PHARMAC meanwhile sits on their collective dates telling half truths and at times outright lies when they should actively be pushing for an increase in their budget with a view to funding medicines rather than delaying matters while patients die.
Similar to NICE in the UK or the PBAC in Australia wherein if a pharmaceutical intervention meets certain efficacy and value criteria it is funded and made available.
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…it has a restricted jurisdiction which must not be abused: it is not an inquisitionNOTE – this article was published before the High Court ruled that Karen Chhour does not have to appear before the Waitangi Tribunal Gary Judd writes – The High Court ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – One of reasons Oranga Tamariki exists is to prevent child neglect. But could the organisation itself be guilty of the same?Oranga Tamariki’s statistics show a decrease in the number and age of children in care. “There are less children ...
David Farrar writes: Graeme Edgeler wrote in 2017: In the first five years after three strikes came into effect 5248 offenders received a ‘first strike’ (that is, a “stage-1 conviction” under the three strikes sentencing regime), and 68 offenders received a ‘second strike’. In the five years prior to ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has surprised everyone with his ruthlessness in sacking two of his ministers from their crucial portfolios. Removing ministers for poor performance after only five months in the job just doesn’t normally happen in politics. That’s refreshing and will be extremely ...
TL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the two days to 6:06am on Thursday, April 25:Politics: PM Christopher Luxon has set up a dual standard for ministerial competence by demoting two National Cabinet ministers while leaving also-struggling ...
Hi,Today I mainly want to share some of your thoughts about the recent piece I wrote about success and failure, and the forces that seemingly guide our lives. But first, a quick bit of housekeeping: I am doing a Webworm popup in Los Angeles on Saturday May 11 at 2pm. ...
It is hard to see what Melissa Lee might have done to “save” the media. National went into the election with no public media policy and appears not to have developed one subsequently. Lee claimed that she had prepared a policy paper before the election but it had been decided ...
Open access notablesIce acceleration and rotation in the Greenland Ice Sheet interior in recent decades, Løkkegaard et al., Communications Earth & Environment:In the past two decades, mass loss from the Greenland ice sheet has accelerated, partly due to the speedup of glaciers. However, uncertainty in speed derived from satellite products ...
Buzz from the Beehive A statement from Children’s Minister Karen Chhour – yet to be posted on the Government’s official website – arrived in Point of Order’s email in-tray last night. It welcomes the High Court ruling on whether the Waitangi Tribunal can demand she appear before it. It does ...
Mr Bombastic:Ironically, the media the academic experts wanted is, in many ways, the media they got. In place of the tyrannical editors of yesteryear, advancing without fear or favour the interests of the ruling class; the New Zealand news media of today boasts a troop of enlightened journalists dedicated to ...
It's hard times try to make a livingYou wake up every morning in the unforgivingOut there somewhere in the cityThere's people living lives without mercy or pityI feel good, yeah I'm feeling fineI feel better then I have for the longest timeI think these pills have been good for meI ...
In 1974, the US Supreme Court issued its decision in United States v. Nixon, finding that the President was not a King, but was subject to the law and was required to turn over the evidence of his wrongdoing to the courts. It was a landmark decision for the rule ...
Every day now just seems to bring in more fresh meat for the grinder.In their relentlessly ideological drive to cut back on the “excessive bloat” (as they see it) of the previous Labour-led government, on the mountains of evidence accumulated in such a short period of time do not ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Megan Valére SosouMarket gardening site of the Itchèléré de Itagui agricultural cooperative in Dassa-Zoumè (Image credit: Megan Valère Sossou) For the residents of Dassa-Zoumè, a city in the West African country of Benin, choosing between drinking water and having enough ...
Buzz from the Beehive Melissa Lee – as may be discerned from the screenshot above – has not been demoted for doing something seriously wrong as Minister of ...
Morning in London Mother hugs beloved daughter outside the converted shoe factory in which she is living.Afternoon in London Travelling writer takes himself and his wrist down to A&E, just to be sure. Read more ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – The recent announcement of the University Advisory Group, chaired by Sir Peter Gluckman, makes very clear where the Government’s focus and priorities lie. The remit of the Advisory Group is that Group members will consider challenges and opportunities for improvement in the university sector including: ...
Eric Crampton writes – The Reserve Bank of New Zealand desperately wants to find reasons to have workstreams in climate change. It makes little sense. They’ve run another stress test on the banks looking to see if they could find a prudential regulation case. They couldn’t. They ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Pundits from the left and the right are arguing that National’s Fast Track Bill that is designed to speed up infrastructure decisions could end up becoming mired in a cesspool of corruption. Political commentator ...
Looking at the headlines this morning it’s hard to feel anything other than pessimistic about the future of humanity.Note that I’m not speaking about the future of mankind, but the survival of our humanity. The values that we believe in seem to be ebbing away, by the day.Perhaps every generation ...
Swabbing mixed breed baby chicks to test for avian influenzaUh oh. Bird flu – often deadly to humans – is not only being transmitted from infected birds to dairy cows, but is now travelling between dairy cows. As of last Friday, Bloomberg News reports, there were 32 American dairy herds ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
What is it with the mining industry? Its not enough for them to pillage the earth - they apparently can't even be bothered getting resource consent to do so: The proponent behind a major mine near the Clutha River had already been undertaking activity in the area without a ...
Photo # 1 I am a huge fan of Singapore’s approach to housing, as described here two years ago by copying and pasting from The ConversationWhat Singapore has that Australia does not is a public housing developer, the Housing Development Board, which puts new dwellings on public and reclaimed land, ...
This afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi, and Mema Paremata mō Tāmaki-Makaurau, Takutai Tarsh Kemp, will travel to the Gold Coast to strengthen ties with Māori in Australia next week (15-21 April). The visit, in the lead-up to the 9th Australian National Kapa haka Festival, will be an opportunity for both ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
The return of the historic Ō-Rākau battle site to the descendants of those who fought there moved one step closer today with the first reading of Te Pire mō Ō-Rākau, Te Pae o Maumahara / The Ō-Rākau Remembrance Bill. The Bill will entrust the 9.7-hectare battle site, five kilometres west ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has announced 25 new high-speed EV charging hubs along key routes between major urban centres and outlined the Government’s plan to supercharge New Zealand’s EV infrastructure. The hubs will each have several chargers and be capable of charging at least four – and up to 10 ...
The coalition Government will not proceed with the previous Government’s plans to regulate residential property managers, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “I have written to the Chairperson of the Social Services and Community Committee to inform him that the Government does not intend to support the Residential Property Managers Bill ...
The Government has announced an independent review into the disability support system funded by the Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha. Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston says the review will look at what can be done to strengthen the long-term sustainability of Disability Support Services to provide disabled people and ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith has attended the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva and outlined the Government’s plan to restore law and order. “Speaking to the United Nations Human Rights Council provided us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while responding to issues and ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay heads overseas today for high-level trade talks in the Gulf region, and a key OECD meeting in Paris. Mr McClay will travel to Riyadh to meet with counterparts from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). “New Zealand’s goods and services exports to the Gulf region ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford has outlined six education priorities to deliver a world-leading education system that sets Kiwi kids up for future success. “I’m putting ambition, achievement and outcomes at the heart of our education system. I want every child to be inspired and engaged in their learning so they ...
The new NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) App is a secure ‘one stop shop’ to provide the services drivers need, Transport Minister Simeon Brown and Digitising Government Minister Judith Collins say. “The NZTA App will enable an easier way for Kiwis to pay for Vehicle Registration and Road User Charges (RUC). ...
Whānau with tamariki growing up in emergency housing motels will be prioritised for social housing starting this week, says Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka. “Giving these whānau a better opportunity to build healthy stable lives for themselves and future generations is an essential part of the Government’s goal of reducing ...
Racing Minister Winston Peters has paid tribute to an icon of the industry with the recent passing of Dave O’Sullivan (OBE). “Our sympathies are with the O’Sullivan family with the sad news of Dave O’Sullivan’s recent passing,” Mr Peters says. “His contribution to racing, initially as a jockey and then ...
Assalaamu alaikum, greetings to you all. Eid Mubarak, everyone! I want to extend my warmest wishes to you and everyone celebrating this joyous occasion. It is a pleasure to be here. I have enjoyed Eid celebrations at Parliament before, but this is my first time joining you as the Minister ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced Pharmac’s largest ever budget of $6.294 billion over four years, fixing a $1.774 billion fiscal cliff. “Access to medicines is a crucial part of many Kiwis’ lives. We’ve committed to a budget allocation of $1.774 billion over four years so Kiwis are ...
Hon Paula Bennett has been appointed as member and chair of the Pharmac board, Associate Health Minister David Seymour announced today. "Pharmac is a critical part of New Zealand's health system and plays a significant role in ensuring that Kiwis have the best possible access to medicines,” says Mr Seymour. ...
Hundreds of New Zealand families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) will benefit from a new Government focus on prevention and treatment, says Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. “We know FASD is a leading cause of preventable intellectual and neurodevelopmental disability in New Zealand,” Dr Reti says. “Every day, ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges. “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order. “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions. “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today. “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale. “It is good ...
The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
“China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Asia Pacific Report A Pacific civil society alliance has condemned French neocolonial policies in Kanaky New Caledonia, saying Paris is set on “maintaining the status quo” and denying the indigenous Kanak people their inalienable right to self-determination. The Pacific Regional Non-Governmental Organisations (PRNGOs) Alliance, representing some 15 groups, said in ...
Koi Tū New Zealand cannot sit back and see the collapse of its Fourth Estate, the director of Koi Tū: The Centre for Informed Futures, Sir Peter Gluckman, says in the foreword of a paper published today. The paper, “If not journalists, then who?” paints a picture of an industry ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Foreign investment proposals with implications for Australia’s strategic or economic security will face tougher scrutiny, under a policy overhaul to be announced by Treasurer Jim Chalmers on Wednesday. At the same time, the government ...
A Waitangi Tribunal inquiry report has warned government that a repeal of Section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act could cause harm to children in care. ...
The Treasury has published today three new papers covering government consumption multipliers, automatic stabilisers and the impacts of global shocks on New Zealand’s economy. ...
Asia Pacific Report The Pacific state of Hawai’i’s House of Representatives has joined the state’s Senate in calling for a ceasefire in Israel’s war on Gaza, becoming the first state to pass such a resolution, reports Hawaii News Now. In March, the Senate passed a ceasefire resolution with a 24–1 ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christopher Ferrie, A/Prof, UTS Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Research and ARC DECRA Fellow, University of Technology Sydney PsiQuantum The Australian government has announced a pledge of approximately A$940 million (US$617 million) to PsiQuantum, a quantum computing start-up company based in Silicon Valley. Half ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Hunter Bennett, Lecturer in Exercise Science, University of South Australia Cameron Prins/Shutterstock If you spend a lot of time exploring fitness content online, you might have come across the concept of heart rate zones. Heart rate zone training has become more ...
SPECIAL REPORT:By Eugene Doyle He is the most popular Palestinian leader alive today — and yet few people in the West even know his name. Absolutely no one in Gaza or the West Bank does not know him. That difference speaks volumes about who dominates the media narrative that ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Will McCallum, PhD Candidate – School of Communication and Creative Arts, Deakin University Earlier this year, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton accused Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of not supporting Operation Sovereign Borders – the military-led border security operation that has “closed Australia’s borders ...
By Melyne Baroi in Port Moresby A Papua New Guinea MP, Peter Isoaimo, who had been ousted by the National Court in an alleged bribery case, has been reinstated by the Supreme Court on appeal. A three-member Supreme Court bench found that the National Court had erred in finding that ...
Publisher Chris Holdaway reflects on the unique project of collecting the work of the late, terrific poet Schaeffer Lemalu. One of the nice things you can do as a truly independent publisher is to make the books that writers want to make, whatever they happen to be. That’s how I’ve ...
Those profiled in the stamp series served on overseas deployments from 1995 onwards, and all have been awarded theNew Zealand Operational Service Medal. ...
Last night’s dismal poll result for the coalition government shows the limits of trying to govern as an opposition, argues Joel MacManus. There’s a quote from the American political activist Barbara Deming: “Vengeance is not the point; change is. But the trouble is that in most people’s minds, the thought ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Shireen Morris, Associate Professor and Director of the Radical Centre Reform Lab at Macquarie University Law School, Macquarie University Leonid Andronov/Shutterstock Foreign interference in Australian democracy poses a growing risk to our national sovereignty. It refers to coercive, corrupt or ...
A defendant charged by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has pleaded guilty to four charges of obtaining by deception in relation to a mortgage fraud scheme. Sentencing has been scheduled for 14 August 2024. ...
What to say when pesky journalists ask gotcha questions like ‘can you name a single book you’ve ever read?’ and ‘did you read it, or did you just see the movie?’This week, Act Party arts spokesperson Todd Stephenson foolishly agreed to an interview with Newsroom’s Steve Braunias regarding his ...
Explainer - What will a ban on cellphones in schools achieve? Can students use them during lunch breaks? And what happens if you need to contact your child? ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jodi Rowley, Curator, Amphibian & Reptile Conservation Biology, Australian Museum, UNSW Sydney Jodi Rowley, CC BY-NC-ND In winter 2021, Australia’s frogs started dropping dead. People began posting images of dead frogs on social media. Unable to travel to investigate the deaths ...
In the year ended March 2024, 0.4 percent of home transfers were to people who didn’t hold New Zealand citizenship or a resident visa, according to figures released by Stats NZ today. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Wasay Majid, Research Assistant , University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau New Zealand’s accommodation supplement scheme is facing scrutiny, with Social Development Minister Louise Upston recently saying “there is merit in considering whether the current settings are fair and sustainable long-term”. The ...
By Koroi Hawkins, RNZ Pacific editor The first prime ministerial candidate has been announced in Solomon Islands and it is not Manasseh Sogavare. The man of the hour is Jeremiah Manele, the MP for Hograno/Kia/Havulei constituency in Isabel Province, who served as minister of foreign affairs in the last government. ...
Protesting the removal of bins by leaving piles of your dog’s shit for others to deal with doesn’t make you a hero – it’s precious and entitled behaviour. You haven’t truly lived until you’ve stood on the shoreline of Auckland’s Cheltenham beach, desperately trying to scoop increasingly liquid dog shit ...
Analysis - Christopher Luxon will be alert to the factors driving the dire polling, but won't be waving the white flag just yet, RNZ political editor Jo Moir writes. ...
Writer, teacher and academic Vincent O’Sullivan died on Sunday 28 April. Here we gather tributes from friends, colleagues, and students who remember his extraordinary contributions. I went down to the garage tonight. There was a bird shrieking out in the bush, in the dark, maybe a kākā. Miraculously, through the ...
As part of our series exploring how New Zealanders live and our relationship with money, a burnt-out corporate escapee explains how she gets by ‘working as little as possible’. Want to be part of The Cost of Being? Fill out the questionnaire here.Gender: Female Age: 31 Ethnicity: Pākehā Role: Contractor in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Timothy Schmidt, Professor of Chemistry, UNSW Sydney Albert Russ / Shutterstock The icebreaker of many a barbeque conversation is something like “what do you do for a crust?” “I teach chemistry at university,” is what we usually reply. Then silence. Our ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Asher Flynn, Associate Professor of Criminology, Monash University Shutterstock Sexual harassment is often considered to be a person-to-person act, but new research shows Australians are also experiencing and perpetrating workplace harassment in large numbers through technology. Our latest study shows one ...
A petition signed by more than 16,500 people, demanding the government take stronger action to halt the genocide of Palestinians by the State of Israel, is being presented to the House of Representatives today by Hon Phil Twyford. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Burnett, Honorary Associate Professor, ANU College of Law, Australian National University jenmartin/Shutterstock April has been a bad month for the Australian environment. The Great Barrier Reef was hit, yet again, by intense coral bleaching. And Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek delayed ...
Winston Peters might not give a ‘rat’s derriere’ about last night’s poll, but it revealed the unusual absence of a honeymoon period and little payoff for the government’s action plan approach, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Marco de Jong, Lecturer, Law School, Auckland University of Technology Getty Images Details released by the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet under the Official Information Act reveal New Zealand officials have been considering involvement in AUKUS from the outset. ...
The government's treatment of Māori raised eyebrows, with countries saying New Zealand needed to do more to reduce health, education and justice inequities. ...
The age of criminal responsibility was one of numerous human rights issues raised during Aotearoa New Zealand’s UPR. Other key themes were racism and discrimination, the disproportionate representation of Māori in prison, and to uphold the UN Declaration ...
In a sitdown interview ahead of his final day at Parliament this week, the former Green Party co-leader tells RNZ about his lowest point during 2017's rough election campaign. ...
Is the fringe radio station really in a financial crisis, or is it just running a hyped-up donation drive? Fringe internet radio station Reality Check Radio was launched by the anti-vaccine mandates group Voices for Freedom in March 2023. For the next year, it undertook probably the most aggressive promotional ...
Above the Fold: On Monday, the biggest Māori screen production company faced down the biggest funder of Māori content at the High Court. It was an incredibly tense moment – then, just as quickly, it resolved. Duncan Greive breaks down a strange day in the screen sector.Yesterday morning, Māori ...
When it comes to talking about the Government’s controversial fast-track consenting process, political scientist Richard Shaw refers to the famous Chinese sci-fi novel Three-Body Problem, while RNZ’s In Depth journalist Farah Hancock talks about zombie projects. Shaw is referring to the three-party coalition Government and how the proposed legislation is ...
Opinion: The debate over single gender versus co-educational schooling has long been controversial. I went to a co-ed school and was inspired by a remarkable woman who was my maths teacher, and because of her deep knowledge and passion for the subject, I knew that maths was definitely an option ...
He won everything and he earned a knighthood and he was a senior literary figure to the point that he was a living monument to himself until his death in the weekend at 86, but there was something about Vincent O’Sullivan that flew under the radar, that was independent and ...
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This site can't be reached.
I can’t see your comment @ 1 😉
I agree with Annette Sykes here
Jones is just a media slurping wanker.
link here
Duncan Gardner and Shane Jones,,,
..it is like watching some unfunny old joke from the mid 90’s, what did one boofhead say to the other?…nothing worth listening too.
Shane Jones was the man that ordinary men thought was a good sort to have as an MP. So don't go calling Labour's needed voters boofheads! It’s not politic.
Edits:
Looking at the 300,000? 7.4% Pasifika population*, I think that through the connections of health, ethnic identity and conservative religion, Dr Mary English is likely to pull them to RW conservative National through her connections with such entities as Le Va. Which is working for Pasifika and also able to obtain funding from Whanau Ora which is a fund forming a big part of Maori hopes to assist them in their advancement. Smart organisation by such as Le Va may see them get more effect from their funding than Maori receive and achieve.
Welcome to Le Va | Le Va https://www.leva.co.nz/
At Le Va our dream is that Pasifika families and communities are able to unleash their full potential in New Zealand and beyond. We support and encourage this …
And there is something ineffective about the way that government agencies work in with Whanau Ora. A government review of Whānau Ora shows the approach is working well for Māori and Pacific families, but there's not enough buy in from other agencies.
21 Feb 2019 – The Whānau Ora Minister Peeni Henare released 'The Whānau Ora Review Report – Tipu Mātoro ki te Ao' yesterday. https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/te-manu-korihi/383028/government-review-finds-its-own-agencies-don-t-buy-into-whanau-ora-enough
Despite the initiative being launched in 2010, the report found that some government agencies still don't know what Whānau Ora is, and don't rate it.
It also found that central government agencies are, in some cases, opting out of their responsibilities and expecting Whānau Ora partners to do their job for them.
That sounds as if government is using Whanau Ora as a type of 'slush fund' and that Maori aren't getting the services and opportunities that should be arising from its proper use. If Labour Coalition wants to retain the support of Maori and voting numbers, then they had better pull finger. Carmel Sepuloni is showing signs of being an alert, careful, crafty mover on welfare issues. I believe she will be looking at this issue and we should expect to hear of better policies in the coming year.
Carmel has always been committed to improving social, health and educational outcomes for all New Zealanders but has especially focused during her career on low socio-economic groups, Māori, Pacific, disabled people and sole parents. During her political career Carmel has brought to the fore the slashing of the training incentive allowance, made public the impact of cuts to ACC funding for survivors of sexual violence, campaigned for better legislation around social workers and fought for the right to privacy for social service users. https:
//www.beehive.govt.nz/minister/biography/carmel-sepuloni
*https://www.health.govt.nz/our-work/populations/pacific-health/tagata-pasifika-new-zealand
From the beginning the constabulary came to push Māori off of productive land and up into hills. That's a nice way of saying kill the mothetfuckers. To begin at the point of requesting whanau ora services can not make unproductive land productive again. If the land, Māori land, is not productive then it would produce outcomes such as 10% unemployment, high suicide rates, higher homeless and more advanced illness and disease as a result of unemployment.
Are you saying that Whanau Ora is simply papering over the cracks and we need to go into more depth to examine how it is that land designated Maori Land has, in so many cases, become unproductive?
Look, everyone thinks they're good at seeing "the big picture," because the human brain is wired to see big pictures, and if there isn't one, it makes one up. This is why conspiracy theories are so hard to kill – because the human brain demands there be a logical reason for everything. Paula Benefit must be the head of an organized conspiracy, because human psychology finds the idea of a random unplanned lunatic offensive. Do some reading on the psychology of blame and you'll come to realize how in love with easy answers human nature is.
came across this yesterday
https://www.npr.org/2019/05/21/725390449/accused-shooter-in-new-zealand-mosque-attacks-charged-with-terrorism
I replaced the name of the killer with 'the killer' so as to not offend people who really don't want to see his name.
but hopefully it will put to rest that he is 'only' charged with murder and not with terrorism.
May they lock him up and loose the keys. May they deport him to OZ after his sentences. May they victims and survivor find peace eventually. May the country learns from this tragedy. Any one can be a killer and a terrorist. Anyone.
Personally I would prefer he just be charged with murder, attempted murder, firearms offences etc (and yes, locked up forever). These are the tangible crimes of the attack. "Terrorism" is more abstract and subjective, and encourages examination of his reasoning and motives – and who cares about giving those any headspace.
why?
I assume that the manifesto is in the hands of the police prosecutors and that they have read it.
And considering that just recently there was a shooting in a synagoge in the US with the shooter referring to our killer here and even mentioning that manifesto we can assume that there might actually be a group of like minded people that is hell bend on terrorising those that are not like them in color of skin, faith, and nationality.
https://theintercept.com/2019/04/28/san-diego-synagogue-attack-new-zealand-anti-semitism-islamophobia/
that would fall straight under terrorism.
I find this charge perfectly apt and i hope he gets to spend a long time in prison.
You are not alone US. Several eminent legal experts have expressed their doubts it is a good idea. They say the police are running a risk of giving 'the killer' a platform to re-broadcast his hateful ideology to the world.
too late for that. Its just that terrorism and it should be charged at it.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/christchurch-shooting/112299084/synagogue-shooting-four-injured-at-san-diego-synagogue-where-worshippers-were-celebrating-the-last-day-of-passover
so maybe if we charge it properly we might set an example of what happens when the book of law is thrown at your properly.
there is no reason to cottonwrap that boy and only give him a good feel sentence.
" there is no reason to cottonwrap that boy and only give him a good feel sentence. "
If convicted of 51 counts of murder, I expect he will never be released – ever. The previous longest sentence in NZ history (William Bell – 30 year non-parole) was for 3 murders.
Agree U.S. Elevates one vicious idiot with no proven links to a terrorist group/freedom fighter cause to being a terrorist-just what he would want.
This was murder plain and simple.
Thing is, that just leaves it at "one bad man". But he had support networks before and during his actions. He had socio-political motives and a distribution plan for his video and manifesto. He apparently viewed his actions in the context of national and international reactions.
It would be difficult to justify not charging him with terrorism, IMO.
Operation of the trial to curtail his recruitment plans is up to the judge.
then take it up with the Prime Minister who stated this:
also from here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Definitions_of_terrorism
i think that when someone shoots 50 people and wounds 40 others by shooting them in the back that counts as an act of terrorism hence terrorist.
It matters not one bit what hte shooter wanted or not, and considering that no one here know what he wanted because no one read his manifest or spoke to him maybe we should then take the Prime Minister at her word?
Or is that a case of i only take the PM at her word when i like the words she utters?
The Prime Minister is going to try an keep this story going right through until the next election. Her behavior immediately after the shooting is the only thing she has managed to do properly in the time she has been PM. She will spend the next 18 months with a continuous set of references to the event.
Like going to Paris for a pointless talkfest. Like getting this charge added to the 51 counts of murder when the only practical result is to have him go on ranting at his trial about his "manifesto". There will be a string of these sideshows to try and distract the public attention to the fact that all the real activities that this useless Government does turn out to be abject failures.
We don't have any prospect of bread from these losers so they are going to try and distract us with circuses.
Why don’t you keep a count of it? It does not count if a journalist or reporter brings it up first. In 18 months you can report back to us and gloat about your prescience. Deal?
sure that is why the story that i linked to is from the NPR rather then the NZ Herald cause ….something anythinb blather rharharha
It could be an advantage to the USA to talk about him as a terrorist, then we have been attacked by this lot of low-lifes and are blooded brothers and can join the club devoted to take down this evil group who are attacking the wunnerful examples of western civilisation. What's the woild coming to!
no the shooter there also wrote a manifesto and named him. what ever is what i say.
as for us joining the war on 'terrorism' we already did that see currently soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. I doubt we will start a 'war on terrorism' that will involve the good people of OZ.
And frankly i don't believe that the Prime Minister is that short sighted.
And yes, we have been attacked by a terrorist, just not the one we thought would attack us. Hence why the police had to admit that it actually does not keep tags on our homegrown and imported lot of white wanna be Ersatz Nazis.
Don't be naive.
Why did he post his evil work on Facebook?
Why did he publish a "manifesto"?
Who was his audience?
And what was he trying to achieve?
If he had just wanted to kill a whole bunch of people, he would have more opportunity at a rugby game , or at an outdoor concert.
No his aim was pure and simple to spread terror into the Muslim community, and by posting and boasting on line he hoped to encourage other to follow his "example". His boasting wasn't aimed at anyone other than those who egged him on in the first place. There is a very active online community who indulge in what would be considered dangerous and threatening conversation in any other group if they were from the Middle-East, or Asia or Africa. But because they are white European and worship such leaders as Trump, their bile and seditious behaviour has been pretty much overlooked until now. They have been allowed to carry on pretty much in the open what others would call terrorist plotting. It is not confined to one country, regrettably it is a world wide phenomenon, given strength by internet social media.
We are not the first to categorise such attacks as terrorist btw.
https://www.npr.org/2019/01/23/688045711/white-supremacist-pleads-guilty-to-fatally-stabbing-black-man-with-sword
Wha? It comes across as totally confusing when the woke try and use office politics speak as terrorism speak.
As far as I can discern the woke definition of terrorism is: when a brown man hurts a white person.
Where as when a white person is trying to hurt or be rude to a brown person it's racism.
However, not to throw to much shade on the woke but a brown man being rude is defined as alt right speech / hate-speech.
The definition the FBI uses is a better one IMHO: Terrorism is the unlawful use of force or violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives.
I got a firefox plugin that does text replacement. My browser at home calls him words beginning with "F".
naughty fire fix. 🙂
There should be two trials.
The first dealing with the murders. This would be a fairly open trial and the ability of the defence to deny guilt would be negligible.
The second dealing with hate crimes and terrorism. This would be a fairly closed trial, to deny the perp a media platform. An end of day brief summary to media and again at the end of the trial. The detail of the trial disseminated to experts in the field, law, security and academia.
Good thinking SPC, I vote for that.
question,
is there a ban on article talking about the charges against the killer of christchurch? Or is the site just eating posts this morning for breakfast.
i linked to an article from NPR that stated the charges and against the killer, one of them being terrorist charges, 50 counts of murder and 40 counts of attempted murder.
it seems to disappear.
I am taking care not to name the guy or anything but its kind of weird.
I can see the post, and then its gone?
yep the site is eating posts.
i can hear it burp.
lol
"I am taking care not to name the guy."
Why?
because that's one thing he wanted from this act.
nope, because people here are sensible to it, and i don't actually try to aggravate people for the heck of it.
i personally think it is wrong, insofar as that we – the people – in a few years time will have a hard time arguing against those that want to white was history cause simply no one knows who it was and what happened to him,
But i don't name him because there are many here that don't want to know his name. That is the only reason.
Fair enough.
I'm not arguing for a damnatio memoriae, but blogs and popculture "thinkpieces" are one way for him to gain support. Textbooks will be fine, and the psychologists who will prod him in prison and deliver their assessments will help. But the scalpel that refreshes the injuries he caused should be cold and sterile, IMO.
I think you’ve got your answer (no straight out ban, but please do not name him). Some topics do get a little more attention than others do, obviously.
Sometimes, comments are caught in/by auto-moderation and have to be manually released (or not). Moderators do have limited time, which means that it can take a while before a comment gets approved and released (or not).
i have never named him here, and i don't have any intention to do so.
pretty much any comment of mine ends up in moderation, so go figure. But that was odd cause i could see it and then not, and it was a bit early for anything else then coffee.
Hi Sabine, I don’t know what happened with your comment appearing and disappearing this morning. It could have been a ‘glitch’.
When a comment is held up in/by auto-moderation we try to deal with as soon as we can but as I said, we have only limited time.
I don’t recall seeing any comments from you being held up but next time it happens I’ll try to let you know the reason. Frankly, I’m a little puzzled by your words “pretty much any comment of mine ends up in moderation, so go figure.” That doesn’t seem reflected at all at back-end of TS!?
Pike River mine open and pictures
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/may/22/first-images-emerge-from-new-zealands-pike-river-mine
i hope that closure is finally coming to these family.
Yes I do too
Funnily I haven't seen any reporting on the event other than in the Guardian.
yes, a bit with the article i posted upthread about the charges laid against the Christchurch killer. That came from the NPR.
maybe the population is still expected to discuss the events of Sansa declaring independence on the wellbeing of the people of winterfell and westero?
History is littered with failed predictions.
These include mine that the National Party will split into two paries. It has not yet happened but after I heard Simon Bridges make a terrible after dinner speech at the recently concluded Grey Power AGM in Wellington, I'd say that prediction moved forward quite a bit.
Suffice it to say that he misread his audience, misread the purpose and content matter of an after dinner speech, and suffered the fate of being hugely party political in a elction rally mode and suffered the concomitant behaviour from many attendees of expressions of disbelief, laughter, and later some very tough questioning that was mercifully for him foreshortened by the chairman.
My final summation for Simon Bridge's performance that Tuesday night was 'desperation'.
Damn, I would have loved to watch that one..a bit mean of me, yes, but I make no apologies, it's like watching the baddies get theirs at the end of a bad movie, at lest you walk away with that little satisfaction.
On the other hand, the PM came and was very unparty political. I am not sure even whether the opposition got mentioned. She was open and warm, and dealt well with a couple of 'tough' questions. One about the Aged Persons Commissioner was dealt with by saying that while such a commissioner was not yet appointed, the reasons why a commissioner would be needed would also need to be addressed.
I understood he to say that it was not enough just to tick the box of a complaints process commissioner but more important to address the problems now, which had been or were to be addressed in the Wellbeing Budget and in ongoing government action.
The other person to really feel the heat was the Kiwibank speaker who could not adequately defend or explain the withdrawal of services by office closure and of cheque facilities.
If there was one good lesson from those exchanges was that 750,000 superannuitants and increasing to a million within a decade should not be written off as a political force, or as consumers of lamingtons, or as 'Dad's Arny" as we were regarded by the previous government. Insults are not easily or always forgiven, but they are never forgotten.
That's what happens when you dont stand for anything other than trying to win.
https://lightonconspiracies.com/vaud-switzerland-joins-brussels-in-adopting-5g-moratorium/
5G dangers are being spoken about more widely – but hardly a murmur in NZ.
The Telecom Industry has admitted there are no studies that show 5G wireless technology is safe. Since 2017 200+ doctors and scientists have demanded a moratorium on installation due to research that has already proven it’s harmful.
Labouring Under Antisemitism
Norman Finkelstein on antisemitism in the UK and Labour/Corbyn.
And yes calls bullshit on that….
It's a tough lesson to get you head around – but just about everybody who is comfortable materially or ideologically with the current status quo, will break in the direction of fascism when they feel genuinely threatened. Even if that perception of threat comes in the form of someone as harmless as Corbyn.
Yes they definitely break right under pressure, I am pretty sure most new labour blairites and the editorial staff at the Guardian would rather see the Tories back in power than Corbyn as Prime Minister, the same goes for Nancy Pelosi and the establishment DNC, re;Sanders 2020.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/389839/food-parcel-demand-rises-food-can-become-a-discretionary-item
Yes, food = discretionary.
Shocking. And clearly the Government isn't doing enough to get on top of it.
Moreover, it seems it will only get worse come election time, which, of course, isn't going to do the Government any favours.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/2018696361/govt-not-fixing-child-poverty-fast-enough-advocates
To have people like P benefit and collins wail about bullying is a cynical joke. That natz lot really are among the rock bottom of NZ society.
'P benefit' overplayed her cards yesterday. She prattled on breathlessly about women being frightened, feeling sick and scared to come to work cos:
"there's a predator in parliament and nobody knows who it is cos the awful Trevor Mallard won't tell us". (a tongue in cheek precis)
The reality: a person was identified who has preyed upon three women since 2014 (or thereabouts) and perhaps more cases will come to light, but not even a serial predator is going to roam the corridors of power grabbing unsuspecting women on the day his past behaviour had just been exposed for all to see.
I found an insincerity in her recent comments after hearing her 'off the record' during the JLR fiasco.
Has Peter Godfather released the National Party culture report yet?
Has Simon Bridges read it yet?
Of course he has. This may be wide of the mark but according to Newsroom M. Barry has been, or has herseelf, moved on from leading another select committee in the form of the foreign interference in NZ inquiry after a poor performance on the euthanasia Bill were she often it is ignored or dismissed views opposed to her own, she may not have been "leader" of that but she seems determined to impress her points of view over most of the things she touches.
The timing seems to me interesting that she is being replaced by Chris Bishop at a time the rumours are rife of the way staff have been managed, my impression is she is lying low in yet another of the forms of that that suit her so well.
… she is being replaced by Chris Bishop at a time the rumours are rife of the way staff have been managed, my impression is she is lying low…
I think you might be on to something there. Maggie's bill-boards which normally festoon the Takapuna/Devonport region (at the least) throughout the parliamentary term have disappeared again.
I would love to know the "detail" and NZ and that electorate deserve to know it, I can't see the media, even such as it is, leaving it alone for long as far as the inquiry goes but past behaviour looks to mean that other stuff will be swept under the mat again. If it's really bad my reckon is she will "retire" quietly pre-election.
i have a friend who works for the department and that friend has got nothing good to say about the dear Minister. Nothing. not one flower to give.
i agree we will most likely never know just how mean spirited and bullying she was .
more importantly, will the minister realise the ill of their ways?
Fiscal Responsibility.
https://www.facebook.com/bloombergbusiness/posts/10157327089591880
a grifter is gonna grift.
they voted for the shitshow and voting has consequences.
The Trumpian Wall. One of the Wonders of the World. What unintended consequences will it have – I suggest many.
The word harmonics came to mind as I looked at the image. The sort of regular noise that you get from running alongside a fence with a stick – what effect does that have? Can the Wall be fully policed? Can annoyers set up devices at untended portions, keeping guards rushing up and down or involving interaction with spy drones. Sounds like an interesting activity for people whose economic conditions have been badly affected by USA machinations. If it is electrified, could great effects be caused by a simple stone in a sling – a reprise of David and Goliath. Could harmonics be set up that would carry through the structure for kilometres? What about the animals living nearby? What effect will it have on them? Will the USA weaponise cruising hawks so they can watch over it yet be under covers – an oxymoron!
Some fuel for the scientific minded which may or may not be relevant: http://spacegass.com/harmonic/index.htm
(This link might apply to the Christchurch building which there is 'stress' about between engineer-designer and engineer-certifier at Christchurch City Council.) I bet Trump doesn't know much about harmonics except the timbre of his own voice! https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fbuil.2017.00057/full
Edit: Trump…voice…arcapella…facing the music on his own….When, oh Lord when?
When the republican party under Mitch McConnell does not need the usefull idiot anymore to sign laws and rally the masses and not a moment before.
this wall is going to kill a lot of people, animals, fuck the rio grande but than the orange shitshow is old and when history comes to judge he will be a rotten corpse somewhere.
Would have been cheaper with imported steel from China.
not with the current tariffs. Cause China ain't paying them.
America says NO to curbing plastic pollution.
http://www.democracynow.org/2019/5/16/the_world_just_took_a_major
well there was a guy once up on a time who ran on repealing regulations, bringing back coal and making the country great again. File this under the 'country is great again'.
This is the kind of thing that is genuinely infuriating about the Trump regime. All the other shit about Russia and tax returns may or may not have merit, but are ultimately distractions from what is important.
Working in Panama it is utterly disheartening to walk along beaches literally ankle deep in plastic. And this was a site that was regularly cleaned up!
Good link mosa.
Trevor Mallard is certainly doing very well with his distraction tactics. A major report says that bullying is prevalent in Parliament. Trevor starts talking about a rapist probably being in Parliament, and then announces that a person has been suspended from their job. The idiots in our MSM then go into paroxysms of excitement and start talking only about sexual offences and totally ignores the bulk of the report which is about bullying.
Given the reported high turnover in some Ministerial Offices, and particularly in that of the Prime Minister's Press Secretaries, it would seem that there has been bullying going on there. High turnover of staff is often a telltale sign of a bullying culture as people working in Offices like that leave rather than put up with it.
Is Trevor merely running his usual interference tactics, as he routinely does at Question Time to protect his boss? Would discussion of bullying instead of sexual offences be a bit too close to home?
Many more people will be watching their "Ps & Qs" I imagine and I suppose one thing it distracts from, which is in the Opposition's favour, is that, for the moment, people have stopped asking where the National inquiry release on its internal findings is.
In the light of recent events it's being re-written.
Work for the National Party do you Anne? How else would you possibly know to make such a claim?
Oh dear alwyn, I should have left an emoticon for your benefit. I thought my light hearted cynicism/sarcasm (call it what you will) would be apparent for all to see.
snowflakes gonna snowflake, I guess.
what happened to the inquiry into the toxic culture of the national party that involves , the Jami Lee Ross Saga?
Oh, nothing you say? Sure, lets blame Trevor Mallard for something something anything gazpacho with grated cheese.
I have no idea what any such inquiry may have said.
Why don't you ask Bridges, rather than me. I have nothing at all to do with the National Party.
Meanwhile I see, from Stuff, that there were 3 complaints of sexual harassment, involving 4 women and 2 men between 2015 and 2018 while there have been a dozen people in the first 3 months of this year alone, who resigned because of bullying. Staff turnover has doubled since this lot became the Government compared to the last year of the previous Government. Trevor really is trying to cover up his own failures isn't he?
Shouldn't we be worrying about the most common problem rather than just worry about Trevor's side-tracking to the much less common event?
Losing must've made the gnasties cwoss wally.
alywin trolling again. don't respond.
But milkshakes could escalate, mkay.
The Proud Boys want the public to believe that they’re a “drinking club” who only resort to violence to defend themselves from anti-fascist protesters during political rallies.
But in private, these extremists have discussed injuring and even killing their adversaries, plotting tactics and optics for months in order to assert a claim of self-defense should they face charges.
[..]
But private chat logs leaked to HuffPost fly directly in the face of that sentiment, showing Proud Boys premeditating violence they hope to commit. They spent months before the April rally meticulously planning strategies for injuring protesters.
Members discuss what weapons they might use against the “commies” they’ll meet in the street, which police officers might be sympathetic to them, how they’ll raise funding to fly out their long-distance compatriots, and how they’ll “bait” protesters into throwing the first punch so that they can claim self-defense.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/proud-boys-chat-logs-premeditate-rally-violence-in-leaked-chats_n_5ce1e231e4b00e035b928683?fzb
its because the national party is keeping it well under wraps, while the current investigation has already led to one staffer going the way of hte dodo, or the moa.
so frankly i find this pissing contest tired, and the Nationalasitas issues with trevord mallard are just boring.
go ask you guys without mates about their own toxic culture of hair pulling, doxxing beneficiaries to the media for personal gain, and cutting funds to help abuse survivors receive a place of safety (womens refugee), counceling (ACC and lifeline) and then you might have a point in whinging about trevor mallard.
as for my view on this whole shitty story, its as NZ as it gets, and as always with sexual assault, sexual harassment and rape i expect nothing, cause in the twenty odd years i have lived here that is what is done about, nothing. And i stated that on the appropriate thread.
that should have gone to alwyn at 13.2.1
The People’s Budget
Host: Bryan Bruce with co-host The Daily Blog’s Martyn (Bomber) Bradbury with panelists :
Law Professor and Free Trade critic, Professor Jane Kelsey
Economist and commentator Rod Oram
Head of Greenpeace, Russel Norman
Former Green MP, Sue Bradford
Julia Amua Whaipooti – JustSpeak Board member. Senior advisor at the Office of the Children’s Commissioner and member of the Criminal Justice Advisory Group
Auckland City Councillor Efeso Collins
https://thedailyblog.co.nz/2019/05/20/the-peoples-budget-to-screen-8pm-sunday-2nd-june/
thanks bomber
Is this exciting? I don't dare to hope, so someone can critique it so we know.
But – Government to loosen its debt target rules Thursday 5/23/2019 11 am ish
The government's planning to loosen its net debt target, which would allow it to be more flexible and take on more debt to fund investments.
Finance Minister Grant Robertson has announced that from the 2021/22 year, the government is likely to target a net debt range of between 15 and 25 percent of GDP.
At the moment, the government's self-imposed Budget Responsibility Rules require it to hold net debt of no more than 20 percent of GDP by 2022, which is low by international standards.
That has been criticised by supporters as restricting the government from investing meaningfully in the country.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/389861/government-to-loosen-its-debt-target-rules
Pfft. Some where in rural New Zealand the former minister of everything is muttering about an $11 billion fiscal hole that never arrived.
Interesting. This report (in the link below) was indicating a range of 15% – 20%
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/112927135/wellbeing-budget-will-deliver-intergenerational-outcomes-finance-minister-grant-robertson-says
Which, of course, implies potentially further reducing debt, thus spending.
However, if your report is correct, it seems the Government have opted to leave it open to go either way – i.e either take on more debt, thus be able to spend more, or spend less and slash debt. Appealing to both the hopes of the conservative and those that want Government to loosen the purse strings.
I see the opposition are trying to paint it as a loosening. But it could also be seen as a tightening if the Government opt to cut debt below 20%.
huh? Why anyone would pursue deflationary policies in an inflationary environment is beyond me.
They haven't stated what they plan to pursue as it seems they plan to leave it open.
Well the rule of thumb is the longer the delay in taking a fiscal direction the greater the fiscal stimulus required.
Similar can be said about their welfare investment. The less they invest now, the greater it will cost going forward.
Beneficiaries can still be compensated for a reconstructed tax, education and health systems.
Edit: forget to mention Housing New Zealand. You’d want poor people to use them.
The 15-25% target is based on advice fromTreasury.
So there is nothing indicative about government policy intent, despite the hopes of many Labour supporters or the doomsaying of National.
It's a bit like the inflation bands going from 0-2 to 1-3%, and inflation being lower afterwards.
IMO its Tresury arguing for a lower debt target of 15% if the good times continue and a limit to any expansionary policy to the 25% level because of looming baby boomer demographic issues.
Seems so. And it seems the Government largely agrees.
Considering the Minister's comments, adopting a range of between 15 percent and 25 percent opposed to the current set target of 20% does suggest that despite all the stated crisis (housing, education, health, etc) in the current economic climate (which they deem as good) the Government will most likely move to further reduce debt.
I know NZ sold it's gold reserves – ideological purity and all that.
Has it ever brought it back? Tried google and got this
https://goldsurvivalguide.co.nz/australia-has-80-tonnes-of-gold-how-much-does-new-zealand-have/
Why on earth do you want New Zealand to own lots of gold? It is basically useless unless you want to own jewelry or make electronic equipment. Or, I suppose, make an Apollo moon-lander or decorate buildings like the Paris Opera House.
What do you think would happen if all the gold in Fort Knox, or the even larger (by about 50%) pile at the New York Federal Reserve, was to vanish and nobody knew?
Well nothing, absolutely nothing. Of course the villains in the 007 film Goldfinger or the ones in Die Hard with a Vengeance would look a bit silly but until they discovered there was nothing there the world would be totally unaffected. It is a barborous relic and, as William Jenning Bryan put it "You shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold".
Well, duh. If nobody knows it happened, nothing effects the economy. Economics is about belief. To flip it around, what if everybody falsely believed all the US gold reserves had been stolen?
Suddenly the USG is treated as if it lost $300bil in assets.
Very good. You read right through what I wrote. Amazing. I didn't really think you could concentrate for that long.
Does anyone know why farmers are not allowed to offset the Methane emmisions by planting trees . ??
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/the-country/news/article.cfm?c_id=16&objectid=12233042
My guess is that this government wants to see fewer farms or herds drastically reduced in size.
They don't want to give Farmers the ability to maintain the status quo, which they could probably do by planting trees.
Question, in order to offset methane emissions now could farmers not just simply stop cutting down every single tree in their sight in order to load some more cows on the paddock?
Seriously can you BM or BWaghorn give an answer to that? Or is it a question of money rather then environmental consience?
And why are Farmers cutting down every tree, every shrub without regards to anything?
I mean I live on the country side now, and i swear to god that there are more birds in evil Auckland then on any of the paddocks that surround my quaint little rural town, and no cats are in sight?
It's more that technology has to keep pace with the change. Farming-labour don't require much in the way of qualifications where the carbon economy does require higher qualifications for things like finance and electrical engineering basically replacing physical labour with intellectual labour. And what that might mean for the physical make up of the rural town. Change like this has to bring the people along with it.
i am not a farmer, but i just planed two trees last week and i am planning on putting up a few more trees next weekend. In fact when i am done i have hopefully planted a little grove. 🙂
I'm not a farmer or had anything to do with the rural community so bwaghorn could probably give you a bit more insight into the mindset of the average farmer.
One thing I would say is the high stocking rates are being driven by the high cost of land.
Expensive land = big mortgage = higher stocking rates to pay for the mortgage.
The solution for land cost is simple.
Prohibit sales of land to foreign buyers.
+10000000
and prohibit the sale of farm land to build oversized GJ Garderners ( and similar ) houses that no one can afford.
Exactly.
Plus the government has a BILLION tree strategy. So they can't really nitpick about small one off tree planting subdivisions when what the government really needs are big blocks of converted land. So planning is just going to have to take big leaps forward, far beyond that of The National Party, unfortunately.
I cant be bothered answering sabine . Turning a simple question into a opportunity to rant turns me off.
Thanks for the above link .
It sounds like it’s for ideological reasons. Which is a shame
It actually is not.
Question, why can't they plant trees now.
Question, why do they have to cut all the trees, and then remove every stump and root, when we now that the cows actually like a bit of shade, and the tree roots are good for the soil .
this has got nothing to do with the link on why farmers can't offset their tree planting for methane gas emission as that would apply that farmers will only plant trees when there is a quid pro quo in the same sense that they remove all trees for quid pro quo.
Fact is that the current drought (yes we are in a drought) will affect farmers.
The loos of wildlife, birds, the drying out of our soil, all affects Farmers.
So please BWaghorn, be bothered and answer my question, because i can't understand it.
This Farmer here i understand as he clearly thinks with his bank account in mind and at the same time he is future proofing his business and his farm.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/waikato-times/news/112624389/letting-go-of-ego-achieves-big-environmental-gains-for-trau-farmer
So please, my question was not sarcastic or anything, I really don't understand and i personally don't understand how anyone can find beauty, resiliance, and future prospect in the bleak landscape that we are creating in order to grow cows, to produce milk powder – which is not even a good steady income earner. I don't understand it.
Please enlighten me.
Farmers are just like all humans . Some a clever and give a fuck . Some are either thick or ignorant . Your neighbors fit that group by the sound of it
But I gaurentee it that if faced with the option of paying a methane tax or planting trees your thick/ignorant niagbours would plant trees.
The reason given by Shaw was if farmers wished to treat methane emissions as different to carbon as their submissions claimed then the accepted practice of offsetting carbon by tree planting could not apply as trees dont absorb methane
Aagh I see its petulance from shaws part not ideology!
petulance?…i doubt so….more a case of timeframes and real world effects
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/2018694233/james-shaw-discusses-zero-carbon-bill
from 4.20
that makes sense
No doubt some Treasury advisor put the kibosh on it – the idea being that GDP is maximized if farmable land gets farmed, and marginal gets forested. The idea that it might force someone out never sways the bean counters – which is why so much policy over the last few decades has been so wretched.
"They don't want to give Farmers the ability to maintain the status quo"
Seems wise.
“Does anyone know why farmers are not allowed to offset the Methane emmisions by planting trees?”
Because trees do not remove methane from the atmosphere?
You mean that it is CO2 that trees take care of then?
Methane turns in co2 so trees must do.
Not in the short (30 year) term. By then, 30 year old trees are only partially effective in removing CO2.
The bloke who said he'd don khaki, pick up a rifle and head for the front lines hid from milkshake wielding marauders.
Nigel Farage reportedly got stuck on his Brexit Party campaign bus after people armed with milkshakes surrounded him.
The politician is said to have refused to leave the vehicle just days after he was covered in banana and salted caramel milkshake in Newcastle
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/nigel-farage-milkshake-brexit-party-bus-european-elections-protest-milkshaking-a8926011.html
bwahahahahahahahahahahaha
rotten eggs and tomatoes replaced by a banana and salted caramel milkshake.
Oh my goodness that is monty phytonesque
dairy, dairy me…
Bet he was in a foul mooood
don't forget your coat…
Oh banana and salted caramel is so yesterday.
Support the Farmer's staff on strike for a Living Wage today!
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/business/389870/farmers-staff-walk-off-the-job-over-living-wage-demands
Meanwhile (surprise surprise), the owner of Farmers, James Pascoe Group, generated $2b in revenue in 2011 (profit and more recent figures unknown – they are privately held). The family that owns them reportedly had personal wealth of $500m in 2013. But they can't pay their staff enough for basic living!
You're cooking with gas Sela. Is that appropriate in these Green days?
Important stuff.
https://twitter.com/JohnnyHeatWave/status/1131275448435056640
Coincidences, coincidences…
With his relationship with Deutsche Bank under increasing scrutiny, President Donald Trump, in a move not previously reported, has recently shifted some of his banking business from this global institution to a small and relatively new bank in South Florida. As Democrats in Congress have requested information from Deutsche Bank about its dealings with Trump—the firm has loaned him billions over the years—he appears to have closed his brokerage accounts with the German company and has deposited millions of dollars in the Coral Gables–based Professional Bank, which last year gave Trump an eight-figure loan to buy a property adjacent to his private club Mar-a-Lago.
[…]
In January, in what may be a sign of the bank’s rising profile, the firm’s president and CEO, Abel Iglesias, was appointed to the board of directors for the Miami branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2019/05/in-an-odd-move-trump-shifts-his-banking-business-to-a-small-firm-in-florida/
Seems an odd move. It's not as if he has anything to fear or anything to hide in New York.
https://www.npr.org/2019/05/21/725495478/new-york-assembly-passes-bill-closing-double-jeopardy-loophole-as-rebuke-to-trum
https://edition.cnn.com/2019/05/22/politics/new-york-state-president-taxes/index.html
this is normal, totally normal, move a long, nothing to see here
https://www.rawstory.com/2019/05/watch-house-falls-into-the-river-as-oklahoma-flood-waters-rise/
https://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/live-intense-thunderstorms-erupt-over-oklahoma-as-new-round-of-severe-weather-unfolds/70008345
so normal. so very very normal.
Add to that a heatwave in the south east States over the weekend, over 100 F, so high 30's in our money, fortunately with moderate humidity forecast. But with the current thunder / tornado there's a lot of moisture around so wouldn't be surprised if it turns out humid as hell.
https://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/southeastern-us-on-notice-for-major-heat-wave-heading-into-memorial-day/70008329
A critical wet bulb event (wet bulb over 35 C) is when everything changes. Lots of people will die and it may get a little messy. High 30's and high humidity and she's all on.
Only a few more months to Brexit on Park Lane 111.
A Tory PM meeting Donald J Trump to negotiate a FTA to save the island from its hubris and these words are spoken – you'll sign here, nothing to negotiate, these are my terms, you have no other options, surrender to me, consider your island colonised.
And afterwards.
I came, I saw, I conquered. I was so smart and they were so dumb. Victory in my time.
Funny as a fart in a Caci Clinic lift really isn't it (sorry to be base). Coalition NZ launched with Hannah at the helm. (Btw, has anyone else noticed the similaritoise between Hannah and Paula going forward? And then Saint Jude riding valiantly alongside it all as some sort of Saviour of the 'Centre Right").Then there's that pathetic creature Preacher Alfred with an ego the size of a bus -all of them with egos the size of a bus jostling for position).
Cargo Cults have returned and Parliamentary Gang territorial warfare has arrived
Yes thought that the makeover person/s for Poorer Benefit and Hamma Tamaki has done a great job. The two haven't had to suffer any of Michael Jackson's problems I think. People should be considered in their opinions. If the po-faced in USA can elect Trump, then who knows what will arise here, and may receive a warm welcome.
China confirmed as unlawful emitter of CFC.
https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-48353341
It will be interesting what the response from both the parties to the MP an the UNEP will be.
https://www.unenvironment.org/news-and-stories/statement/un-environment-statement-cfc-emissions
China may point to its pollution-limiting actions, and ask for extra time.
But a slowdown with USA would help to settle pollution down, it could help to establish a new lower, norm.
I wonder how many Chinese students will skip school to protest about climate change?
The people in China haven't been able to organise for popular protest for some time I think. Anyone who knows different please inform.
But Poission noted that there is unsettling news about a nasty banned CFC having been traced to China. Is that factual or propaganda. It would be good if countries could be very transparent about such things and
submit to UN inspection. I hate the very thought but I think of WMD and all that followed that.
Edit.
The USA have expropriated a North Korean vessel for doing something wrong and breaking the freaking sanctions. I wish they would look after their own affairs, and do something about their trillion dollar debit which must be having a big affect on the world’s financial stability. That could even be regarded as a WMD.)
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/world/389885/ozone-layer-banned-cfcs-traced-to-china-scientists-say
There is an image with this item that shows an orange cloud spreading over part of the globe. I think it is around China, but there is probably an invisible one coming from the USA. Why can't these countries follow careful and reasonable policies, and from such a height they could criticise others fairly.
Slow learner Simon. Loves the perks of the job doesn't he?
And why is the National party spending more than twice Labour on travel and accomodation? I guess guess fiscal responsibility is for other people…
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12233804
The link you provide does not work. I shall comment based on the information on the Parliamentary website at
https://www.parliament.nz/en/mps-and-electorates/mps-expenses/members-expense-disclosure-from-1-january-to-31-march-2019/
Did you not notice that the numbers reported do not include any of the Ministers? Do you really think it was because they didn't spend anything at all?
They are financed from a separate budget for Ministerial Services and are reported at a later date. Thus these numbers include ALL the National MPs but only the junior dregs from the Labaour, NZF and Green parties. In the NZF case that is only 3 out of 8 members. It is hardly surprising that the reported numbers for National are so much higher than the totals for about half the Government parties is it?
And did you see the note 2 at the bottom. The only MPs who aren't in the Ministerial ranks who get the VIP transport are the Speaker, Deputy Speaker and the Leader of the Opposition. It is also charged out at a much higher rate ($171/hr) than are Ministers ($68/hr) That was something our current Government introduced I believe. God knows why, unless it was to try and make the Leader of the Opposition look bad. I am surprised that the smear works but you obviously fell for it.
Wait till the Minister's expenses come out. Unless you really are a hypocrite I suppose you will then rant at the extravagance of the Government who spent a fortune while National will have spent precisely nothing.
Still, apparently you really must be as silly as you appear. I guess you really that foolish as to not have noticed the things I have pointed out.
Fascinating. It looks like the National party got their friends at the Herald to remove the story.
You have to admit that blowing nearly $1M of our hard earned money in just three months makes National look not only wasteful but reckless in their spending – not a good look for a party which is auditioning for government.
You can defend them all you want but the public don't like seeing Simon Bridges lord it in limousines after being caught wasting taxpayers money on them just last year.
Why won't Simon Bridges learn?
"Why won't Simon Bridges learn?"
Perhaps, like yourself, he's a dimwit.
That's two RWNJs in a row who have resorted to personal abuse.
You can do better.
I’m interested about the removal of the article though. From memory it didn’t mention Minister’s expenses were not included, just those of JA and Peters (we’ll never know now because it’s been disappeared).
alwyn has helpfully pointed this out but surely the article could have been updated. Why remove it altogether? Perhaps the Herald, under pressure from the National Party, conceded it was too damaging to the opposition…
You would certainly know all about personal abuse. You revel in it don't you? Pretty typical of LWNJs such as you though.
Perhaps the Herald, like you, really thought that they had produced a zinger to wack National with. Their reporters do lean, like you, way over to the left. So far in fact that they, also like you,fall on their faces regularly.
They on the other hand might have realised that they had totally stuffed it up and were embarrassed enough to remove it. You have no such shame. In fact you seem to be proud of your foolishness. I despair of the school system we seem to have ended up with if you are a typical outcome.
Try this: https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/112962799/mps-quarterly-expenditure-list-shows-15m-of-taxpayer-funds-on-travel-and-accommodation
If that was the table that The Herald published it is a repeat of the one I linked to from the Parliamentary website. It would seem very hard to understand how Muttonbird didn't notice all the people in the Government Parties who appeared to have spent absolutely nothing.
Ardern – nothing? Peters – nothing? Every other Minister- nothing?
Did nothing register as being just slightly funny in Muttonbird's mind? Well apparently not. Oh dear, some mothers do ave 'em.
Thank you, but that is not the article I read which has now disappeared from the Herald website. That particular article did not include a list of member's expenses on Scribd uploaded by "Anonymous jlKATDoSIW".
I wonder who Anonymous jlKATDoSIW is?
Perhaps that person works in the office of the leader of the opposition?
Perhaps that person runs a right wing blog popular with islamophobes?
Also, I commented at 4:19pm and Collette Devlin's more National Party friendly piece on Stuff was published at 7:30pm.
Anyway, the now removed Herald article wasn't the only one up at the time – there was another headline on one of the other sites referring to Simon Bridges as, "King of Limos". 😂
Sadly, it too has disappeared.
And perhaps, as I said, they simply copied the material of the Parliamentary web-site I referenced in my first comment at 28.1. And no,I really don't think the official Parliamentary web-site has been taken over by aliens.
Do you ever read the things people reference? And are you sure about what you claim to have seen on the Herald web-site? You seem to be the only one who ever saw it. You really do seem to be getting delusional.
I have quoted from that article so yes, I'm sure it existed. Unless you're saying I made it up?
I believe that you may have read the Herald article you quoted. It was the other one that I wonder about because Google doesn't find anything at all like it.
The Herald one gives a link from a google search that includes this quote "21 hours ago – Simon Bridges has racked up the stiffest bill for chauffeur-driven cars so far in 2019, the latest MPs' expenses report shows. National Party boss …".
I suspect that my supposition in 28.1.1.1.1.1 was right. Some idiot reporter, trying to wack Bridges, did write a story from the MP expenses and was simply too stupid to notice that there were no reported expenses at all for the Ministers. Finally some one with just a little bit of sense saw it and hurriedly spiked it.
It would have got into print, or on the internet at least, because their reporters these days are pretty dumb and they don't have any sub-editors any more. How they could write such a thing without even wondering why there were no reported numbers for Ministers and that only Bridges and Tolley appeared to have access to the Limos is totally beyond me.
Still, when it comes to the intelligence of the LWNJ reporters on the MSM in New Zealand nothing is too foolish for them to say. They don't get an education anymore. They just go to some left-wing propaganda school like the night school in Hamilton they pretend is a University and learn the right jargon and who they are to moan about.
To paraphrase H L Mencken
“No one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the New Zealand Journalists'.”
I don't think you are in a position to call anyone out for personal abuse, Muttonbird
Meh.
At least you know you are a hypocrite and seemingly embrace it
and still they raked up over 900.000 out of 1.5 (rounded) million.
that means that the party of the opposition cost the country 2/3 (roughly 🙂 ) of all spending costs.
but yeah…..surely it must not be true, cause reasons. right?
Seems to be pretty much what I would expect. The Opposition are about half of the Parliament. Of the Government about half are Ministers or suchlike and aren't included in these figures at all. Thus you would expect that there are about twice as many MPs from the Opposition as from the Government whose expenses are paid from this budget.
Hence you would expect that 2/3 of the expenses reported here were for Opposition MPs. Simple Arithmetic isn't it? Did they teach Arithmetic when you were at school?
It isn't 2/3 of ALL spending costs of course. Wait till they release the numbers for the Ministers and we see how much travel James Shaw has been doing this quarter. In the previous one he, a professed aircraft hating Greenie, topped the entire list for International travel. More that the PM. More than the Minister of Foreign Affairs. More than the Minister of Trade. He was number 1. So much for worrying about Carbon emissions.
But it is all to much for you to understand isn't it?
Give it up Sabine. Trying to defend Muttonbird in his stupidity just make you look equally as ignorant. It isn't worth it.
Spending on expensive medicines to give a longer period of capability when having a terminal illness. There are more and more demands on the government, often by people who actually are very individualistic, have never co-operated with a true community-based local or national government. It is time for some practical limitations.
I have noted a couple with genetic differences from the norm, have two dwarf children and be considering another pregnancy. The children have needed medical intervention throughout their early years.
There has to be a decent and proper way to treat terminally ill. They could perhaps be allocated an expensive drug for a year so they could have special time with their family, but then the care is management and pain and there should be no more babies in that time. Perhaps an injection of long-lasting hormones for women. And men must not start more children if they have a genetic mutation.
The demands from people with cancer are shrill. It is hard when you are young, and I wonder why so many younger people seem to be suffering. Do government know that hair dyes and so on may be carcinogenic, and I believe are not controlled the same as cosmetics are. It maybe that there will have to be a cap put on different diseases – so much to cancer, so much to heart? And a firefighter who has contracted lung disease going into dangerous conditions to save people, homes, workplaces, animals; people suffering from their work conditions should receive priority care, it seems fair.
And also the hoary issue of old people. We once died often before 40, then it got to 75, now it is in the 80s, and how much older with demands for spare parts and intricate surgery, and what return does that person give to the country offering these extra years – what grateful input back for the kindly care?
We cannot afford to treat children and workers so that they can keep healthy and have a normal life. We certainly can't afford to pay out too much to give terminally ill people all the life that they would like. But a kind and practical health system would set up a model that would provide a way to help dying people fairly and appropriately. Many people have complained of the shortcomings when they are near end of life when they deserve some TLC from a modern civilised nation.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/in-depth/389835/guyon-espiner-investigates-pharmac-the-nz-buyer-s-club
[Pharmac CEO Sarah] Fitt concedes that New Zealand does not offer as many medicines as other countries but claims that Pharmac is smarter. "Funding more medicines doesn't necessarily improve health outcomes. You could find five medicines in the same class that are very similar, you might only need to fund one or two. And that's the strategy that we take."
Is she saying New Zealand knows something other nations don't, and that they are wasting money on these drugs? "Well, that was certainly one of our conclusions when we looked at the comparison with Australia that we did a couple of years ago. You could be spending a lot more money but actually not gaining a lot of additional health outcomes."
When it comes to lung cancer, she says patients often present at a late stage of the disease. "Treatment for cancer isn't all about medicines. It's about screening. The most effective things to manage cancer are screening, diagnosis, radiotherapy and surgery. Medicines make up about 8-10 percent of cancer control."
But Chris Atkinson, an oncologist and the medical director of the Lung Foundation, says many of these new precision cancer medicines are showing remarkable results. While the drugs won't cure them, they are buying them time.
"Every day I'm involved in the care of patients who are giving me cheek two or three years down the track, who presented with disease widely spread from the primary cancer. When you repeat the imaging in response to some of these drugs that are self-funded they don't have any imagable, active cancer."
Thinking about your "parents with genetic mutation" example, I'm uncertain about any of the options to prevent further children. Yes, they should, but requiring LARC/LAC to stop further children with genetic disorders is dangerous ground.
It just feels very eugenic-y, even though it's not really.
The pharmac CEO probably isn't too far off, IMO. I suspect pharmac is underfunded (which is easier to hide because its expenditure meets its budget, as there's always unmet medical need, just with diminishing returns), but the pricey drugs probably aren't the best way to make life easier for NZers at a population level.
I reckon any change-producing increase for pharmac should go to lowering or eliminating the $5/drug charge for subsidised prescriptions. Anyone with a complex situation could well end up dropping $40/prescription or much more – try doing that on a limited income.
Rx fees are capped at 20 items in a calendar year for families/individuals.
The PHARMAC CEO is a mendacious public servant which seems to be the case with many ex medical/pharmacy staff who work there.
Capped fees? That's nice.
Of course, it still requires someone to come up with $100 up front, but I doubt you could conceive how that would be a difficulty for people, a barrier to them getting the drugs they need when the doctor proescribes them.
Sigh
For children under 14, the prescription items are free.
If you have a Community Services Card, you'll pay a small fee for funded pharmaceuticals and still qualify for the 20 items pre year max before all comes free.
Alternatively go to chemist warehouse who have a nil Rx fee for subsidised pharmaceuticals coming to a town near you soon.
And yet the research says the costs are still too high for some people.
McFlock
The future requires our reasoning. Nothing happening now or in the future is like what has happened before. I don't want us to do nothing until we have to which by then is too late. We need to be talking about the problems as involved citizens. People can then understand the issues, take responsibility and work in with government, or if they decide not, know there will be a limit on services. Everything in our world is shrinking, except individual desires. So it is necessary to point out some hard facts – there's no free lunch. We're all in this together – B. Franklin; We must all hang together, or we surely will hang separately.
And the pharmacy cost – so true about cutting the cost for families and for others perhaps a flat fee for two or more for dispensing.
I think it is unreasonable higherstandard to claim that Pharmac CEO is a 'mendacious public servant'. The job of looking into the claims for medications and assessing reasonable cost for public supply is important and doesn't get you popularity. A while ago I quoted a case where a private equity bought up a slow-demand drug that cost $16 say and the new owner put it up to $100 or more. Your put down about Pharmac sounds like a little child who wants some goodie and when refused, says ‘You are a bad mummy/daddy.
I suggest government set up a website with scenarios and parameters that people can fill out and play at managing an agency, ie how do we manage the health budget where spending falls – with lists how it goes now – this does not result in fair treatment ie to rural, to poor children etc. Then question how do you think we could manage this, and people could allocate and explain why it was fair to favour this group and lessen for that group. And what should be spent on education to prevent some of the problems. And why prevention can become obsessive and limit ordinary life, so no risks at all?
It would be a little like people playing Sim City.
(https://www.quartertothree.com/fp/2013/03/11/simcity-societies-better-living-through-knitting/
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrNrShQPwWU
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWLClUwAHGc
"I think it is unreasonable higherstandard to claim that Pharmac CEO is a 'mendacious public servant'. The job of looking into the claims for medications and assessing reasonable cost for public supply is important and doesn't get you popularity. A while ago I quoted a case where a private equity bought up a slow-demand drug that cost $16 say and the new owner put it up to $100 or more. Your put down about Pharmac sounds like a little child who wants some goodie and when refused, says ‘You are a bad mummy/daddy. "
Cobblers !
Clinician's in NZ are constantly in a situation where we have inferior access to medicines in comparisons to our colleagues overseas. A number of generic medicines which patients have been forced to change to have been poor in comparison to what was previously available, there are many supply shortages that pharmacists have to deal with on a daily basis. PHARMAC meanwhile sits on their collective dates telling half truths and at times outright lies when they should actively be pushing for an increase in their budget with a view to funding medicines rather than delaying matters while patients die.
So what system would you prefer?
Similar to NICE in the UK or the PBAC in Australia wherein if a pharmaceutical intervention meets certain efficacy and value criteria it is funded and made available.
How does that differ from the way Pharmac decide which interventions to fund?
"parents with genetic mutation"
Fingers crossed I get super powers!
You already have! You do see things that nobody else can. JC is a case in point.
lol
At the end of Question Time today Chris Hipkins moved that Amy Adams be on the Intelligence and Security Committee.
Funny that that was about an hour after Adams showed with her questioning of Grant Robertson, that she and intelligence had yet to meet.
good grief,
i posted a link to a Daily Kos dairy last week about this impeding bad weather coming in.
And good fucking grief.
https://twitter.com/B_Carp01/status/1131409791585325056?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1131409791585325056&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdisqus.com%2Fembed%2Fcomments%2F%3Fbase%3Ddefault%26f%3Deschaton%26t_u%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.eschatonblog.com%252F2019%252F05%252F4.html%26t_d%3DEschaton%253A%25204%26t_t%3DEschaton%253A%25204%26s_o%3Ddesc%23version%3Da710ee4b8f7d52e76441919a322769f5
Meh. Houses have been floating off down flooded rivers in the US ever since there were houses in the US. Haven't you ever read Huckleberry Finn?
yes dear.
Have a look at great Mississippi floods of 1927 petal
A paddling pool compared to the possibilities.
https://www.wunderground.com/cat6/Americas-Achilles-Heel-Mississippi-Rivers-Old-River-Control-Structure
https://www.wunderground.com/cat6/Escalating-Floods-Putting-Mississippi-Rivers-Old-River-Control-Structure-Risk
https://www.wunderground.com/cat6/If-Old-River-Control-Structure-Fails-Catastrophe-Global-Impact
heh
https://twitter.com/PostOpinions/status/1131347520590929925
hahahahahahahahahaha