Auckland and Northland will be the guinea pigs in a revised three waters model, becoming the first to form one of 10 water entities in July next year, with the remaining staggered out to mid-2026.
Local Government Minister Kieran McAnulty confirmed the timeline today while introducing new legislation into the House for its first reading to cover recent changes to the water reforms, including expanding the initial four water service entities to 10.
The boundaries will be established roughly along the lines of New Zealand’s 16 regional councils. The 10 entities will be owned by councils via a shareholding and allow more direct engagement with the water entities that will manage water services on their behalf.
So we get a more regional design, plus a regulating supervisory organisation. What's the process now?
The bill passed its first reading, supported by Labour and the Greens, and will be shortly referred to Select Committee, giving councils and other interested parties the chance to provide feedback.
Timely move by Labour – may stem the ebb tide of floating voters triggered by Labour's various conflicts of interest.
New Zealand's 4 Day Week has made Time magazine's list of the world's most influential companies, but is yet to make waves in New Zealand.
Obviously because the media here are a slack bunch of thickos.
Not-for-profit 4 Day Week Global, established in New Zealand and led by Andrew Barnes, made the TIME100 Most Influential Companies list, alongside global giants Apple, Microsoft, Disney and TikTok.
The shorter work week concept was developed and trailed by Barnes alongside Charlotte Lockhart at Perpetual Guardian in 2018. It reduced a 40-hour work week to 32 hours for the same pay and benefits.
Barnes said the shorter work week had found strong and growing support around the world. "The UAE (United Arab Emirates) has gone to a four-day week. There has been legislation brought in to enable it in Japan, Russia, Lithuania, Romania, Belgium.
"There are government sponsored trials in Spain, Portugal. There are pilot programs in Brazil. There are bills before Congress, as well as before the legislators in four states of America. The Australian Senate Select Committee on Work and Care has recommended that Australia look at some sort of four-day week pilot."
"At the rate this movement is growing, the reduced-hour approach to work will become mainstream policy within the next five years. We should all be proud that what started as a trial at a single company in 2018 has become a movement that is changing the world." However, he said New Zealand's uptake had been disappointing.
That's due to conservative dork syndrome, which has prevailed in this country since WWII. Sure, there's been counter-trends at times. Kirk sending a frigate to the French nuclear testing zone, Lange making Aotearoa anti-nuclear, Springbok tour protest victory. But most suit-wearers are too useless to make clever moves or get it right.
“I’d be reluctant to say it cannot be learned from [the southern population]. It’s possible that this ‘fad’ is leapfrogging through the various pods/communities.” said a local cetean expert.
Cultural transmission of behaviour is an important aspect of many animal communities ranging from humans to birds. Male humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) sing a repetitive, stereotyped, socially learnt and culturally transmitted song display that slowly evolves each year. Most males within a population sing the same, slow-evolving song type; but in the South Pacific, song ‘revolutions’ have led to rapid and complete replacement of one song type by another introduced from a neighbouring population. Songs spread eastwards, from eastern Australia to French Polynesia, but the easterly extent of this transmission was unknown. Here, we investigated whether song revolutions continue to spread from the central (French Polynesia) into the eastern (Ecuador) South Pacific region. Similarity analyses using three consecutive years of song data (2016–2018) revealed that song themes recorded in 2016–2018 French Polynesian song matched song themes sung in 2018 Ecuadorian song, suggesting continued easterly transmission of song to Ecuador, and vocal connectivity across the entire South Pacific Ocean basin. This study demonstrates songs first identified in western populations can be transmitted across the entire South Pacific, supporting the potential for a circumpolar Southern Hemisphere cultural transmission of song and a vocal culture rivalled in its extent only by our own.
Five rich pricks die in a self-inflicted dangerous sightseeing tour of the remains of a ship at the bottom of the Atlantic and the MSM gives it wall to wall coverage for days on end.
Around 500 poor asylum seekers die in the Med because distress calls from their boat were ignored and the MSM soon looks away.
Its an interesting commentary on the institutional racism of the media isn't it?
Also they'd rather cover a freak show than ask deep questions about the establishment paradigms. Much easier = the press gallery is exactly the same, a breathless narrative of crisis and conflict drives them clicks!
But you would go a long way to find a better parable for our times. "Move fast and break things" libertarian tech billionaire's arrogance kills five people in a hair brained deep sea submersible while his company demands the government spend huge sums of taxpayer money in an effort to try and save him.
There were many more people of Pakistani descent involved in the migrant boat disaster. They were not 'people of means' however:
Rescuers were likely to wind down their search for survivors soon, according to Thanasis Vasilopoulos, the mayor of Kalamata. “It’s hard to see search and rescue operations going on for much longer,” he said. “Unfortunately, we have not found any survivors today. The waters in the area where the incident happened are very deep. It is hard to imagine finding survivors by now.”
The people rescued – all of whom are men – include 43 Egyptian nationals, 47 Syrian nationals, 12 Pakistani nationals, and two Palestinians, the Hellenic Coast Guard said. Eight of those rescued were minors.
There were an estimated 750 passengers on the ship, including at least 40 children, according to a spokesperson for the International Organization for Migration.
“If these numbers were confirmed, it would be the second most serious shipwreck in the Mediterranean,” Flavio Di Giacomo tweeted.
Exactly my thoughts throughout. Ok they died, doing something incredibly dangerous and completely pointless, yes very sad for the families.
But come on, we don't even know a single name of one of the people from the recent migrant disasters. People who were fleeing atrocious conditions to make some kind of life for their kids.
But billionaires? They inflict misery on millions, knowingly, no matter how hard they try to spin their "achievements", it's pretty sickening.
The comments on this incident show a level of schadenfreude I wouldn't have expected on The Standard.
A degree of self-discipline before indulging in such comments about the sudden violent death of several strangers should have stayed these comments in your thoughts.
Publishing them online exposes their juvenile nature.
Perhaps read my post again Molly. I was showing empathy for 500 poor people who had died needlessly.
The 5 "strangers" caused their own deaths by taking part in an extremely risky, pointless and egotistical so-called adventure. They could have gone online to see pictures of the Titanic wreck.
Your objection seems to be the fact that the 'pointless and egotistical so-called adventure' cost a lot of money.
We (as in the NZ taxpayer) regularly pay for search and rescue operations (some, sadly, unsuccessful) for sailors, trampers, etc – who could equally well have stayed at home and 'gone online'. Some of whom have been very poorly prepared – and certainly engaged in highly risky behaviour.
Many of these hit the headlines – in much the same way as the Titanic submersible.
Are these ordinary 'pointless and egotistical so-called adventurers' just as culpable in your view?
I said nothing about the cost of the search and rescue Bella. That was not my point at all.
But to answer you anyway, some of my best friends are in Search and Rescue and I think they do a wonderful job even when they rescue a tramper that has got into self-inflicted trouble.
That wasn't the question – the question was whether the people needing S&R operations in NZ are just as much 'pointless and egotistical so-called adventurers' as those in the Titanic submersible.
There is a slight difference between a billionaire going four thousand metres below the surface of the Atlantic and a backpacker walking the Routeburn and getting caught in bad/freak weather or twisting an ankle.
Are the tourists equally culpable in their own deaths and injuries?
Yes. It was an 'accident' – no one had any inclination that the volcano was going to erupt that day.
Equally, the submersible was an 'accident' no one had any idea that there was going to be a catastrophic hull failure (the current theory) – on that trip.
How about idiot tourists (and even locals) who venture on hiking trips inadequately clothed and equipped? Or go swimming on the west coast beaches outside the flagged safe and monitored areas? They are unlikely to be billionaires – but have ignored even basic precautions – surely they are more liable?
"…the Public Order Act, which eviscerates the right to peaceful protest in the UK – [passed] just in time to empower the Metropolitan Police to arrest six members of the anti-monarchy group Republic on the morning of the coronation, with little outcry from the free speech brigade. Rishi Sunak has defended the police and their new powers, saying that people have the right ‘to go about their day-to-day lives without facing serious disruption’. ‘Serious disruption’ – a phrase that appears 94 times in the Public Order Act – now legally includes many of the mildest tactics used by activist groups from the women of Greenham Common to Extinction Rebellion, including locking on, blocking roads and blockading oil terminals. It also includes, according to the Metropolitan Police, carrying rape alarms, for which three women’s safety volunteers were arrested ahead of the coronation…
"Does the right contradict itself? Very well then it contradicts itself. The new Higher Education Act [guaranteeing rights of individuals in university to not be 'cancelled'] appears on its face to be in conflict with the ‘Prevent duty’ created by the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015… The government guidance on Prevent says that universities should prohibit visiting speakers who are likely to express ‘extremist views that risk drawing people into terrorism or are shared by terrorist groups’, even where the expression of such views is legal.”
• 0918.4: SOSUS and the Skylark detected hull collapse at a calculated depth of 2,400 feet, 450 feet below the crush depth of 1,950 feet (150 percent of test depth), creating a bubble pulse with an energy release equivalent to 22,500 pounds of TNT. The hull collapsed in 47 milliseconds (~1/20th of a second), too fast to be cognitively recognized by those on board.
In the spirit of Luxon's wife claiming a legal rebate for a Tesla purchase, despite Luxon being against the law that provides for this rebate, are the Greens in danger of being hypocritical in a similar way, although arguably worse?
Elections are a competition – Tesla ownership is not.
Why would you give back money legally obtained if your opponents do not – and in fact when your opponents are the darlings of the wealthy and receive several times more donations over $35k than you do? If you do give the money back, you hand a funding advantage to your opponents, making it somewhat less likely that you will win and get the opportunity to be in government and cap donations at whatever figure you think is actually democratic. I think you are once again failing to distinguish superficial similarities from genuine moral dilemmas.
Sounds like an "ends justify the means" argument to me. In principle though, it seems that there is a much more direct connection between campaigning on an issue, then contradicting that position so far as the Greens are concerned than was the case with Luxon.
Actually, I think it is silly to make the argument in either case. I think it is quite reasonable to act within the rules that exist, even if the person or entity utilising those rules, in principal, opposes them.
So, I don't actually have any beef with the Greens accepting the donations in the same way that I don't have any beef with Luxon's wife claiming the rebate.
"Actually, I think it is silly to make the argument in either case. I think it is quite reasonable to act within the rules that exist, even if the person or entity utilising those rules, in principal, opposes them."
Agree. I hope it is something I personally would not do, and I would have utmost admiration for those who followed their own values alongside existing rules, but I don't feel the need to deride those who don't.
The unanswered question here is did he buy her the cheap one…eligible for rebate..
Or did he splash out and buy her the top of the range..(and if not why not..?..he can afford it..she mothered his children..etc..etc..)..which is not eligible for the cashback….?
It sounds like you are pissed off somebody is giving the Greens money tsmith. No rules have been broken. The Greens should be praised for trying to prevent NZ politics turning into a US style moneyfest.
But there is no doubt that Luxon is a hypocrite…I wonder if he is driving to the Nats conference in the clean-car discounted Tesla or riding his scooter?
Luxon's hipocricy is in obscuring the fact that he and his family bought Teslas using the subsidy. Luxon was unable to own and adequately justify his actions to the electorate.
That's what makes him the full-blown hipocrite, rather than using the current system legally like the Greens, while advocating for change to those same rules. Luxon could have walked away from this looking good if he'd been open from the start.
The real story with luxon is the blatant conflict of interest..around him owning 7 properties…and him promising legislation that will financially favour him..in a big way…
For more than two decades she has devoted her life to studying the effects of “endocrine disrupting” chemicals (EDCs), which can interfere with the body’s natural hormones. These include pesticides, bisphenols, which harden plastic so it can be used in food storage containers and baby bottles, and phthalates, which soften plastic for use in packaging and products such as garden hoses. In recent years, traces of EDCs have been found in breast milk, placental tissue, urine, blood and seminal fluid….
…The findings added to a growing consensus that certain pesticides were harmful. Legislators have failed to act sufficiently even now, Swan believes. “To this day, we have very inadequate restrictions on the kinds of pesticides that can be used and the crops they can be used on.” The ability of industry to resist tighter regulation, whether through obfuscation or lobbying, would be a constant frustration for her in the years that have followed.
1. the BPA and BPS impacts on the amount of sperm and thus the fertility of males
2. and the amount of androgen in the womb during pregnancy can impact on psych-sexual development and with this there is a known physiological characteristic.
This has been unfortunately termed a disorder of sexual development – because it has been seen as a factor is homosexuality (if not a determinant) and gender dysphoria and body dysmorphia. An irony in that people seek more or less of it when choosing a transgender identity.
In contrast to gender differences in activities and interests, associations between prenatal exposure to androgens and development of gender identity or sexual orientation are unclear
Sex development can be divided into two distinct processes: sex determination, in which the bipotential gonads form either testes or ovaries, and sex differentiation, in which the fully formed testes or ovaries secrete local and hormonal factors to drive differentiation of internal and external genitals, as well as extragonadal tissues such as the brain. DSDs can arise from a number of genetic lesions, which manifest as a spectrum of gonadal (gonadal dysgenesis to ovotestis) and genital (mild hypospadias or clitoromegaly to ambiguous genitalia) phenotypes. The physical attributes and medical implications associated with DSDs confront families of affected newborns with decisions, such as gender of rearing or genital surgery, and additional concerns, such as uncertainty over the child's psychosexual development and personal wishes later in life. In this Review, we discuss the underlying genetics of human sex determination and focus on emerging data, genetic classification of DSDs and other considerations that surround gender development and identity in individuals with DSDs.
There seems to be a lot more discussion around gender "identification these days. Is that due to increased prevalence or just greater scrutiny?
AGD, or the length of the perineum, she explained, can reflect how much testosterone or androgen a foetus was exposed to during a very small window of pregnancy. “If there’s too little androgen for a boy, he doesn’t get fully masculinised,” she said. “If there’s too much androgen for a girl, she gets over-masculinised.” A mother with polycystic ovary syndrome, for example, will produce an excess of testosterone, and her daughter might have a longer, more masculine AGD.
What relevance does biological changes (which I assume from your original comment above the article is about) have to what you introduce as "a lot more discussion around gender "identification"?
Are you:
1. Conflating biological sex with declared gender identity?
2. Equating reduced viable sperm count with reduced maleness?
3. Observing the known teratogenic effects of testosterone during pregnancy?
3. Obliquely referencing DSDs – if so – why?
Since Rachel Carson's publication of The Silent Spring in 1962, there has been greater public awareness of the effect of environment on endocrine systems.
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As a follow-up to the Rings of Power trailer discussion, I thought I needed to add something. There has been some online mockery about the use of the same actor for both the Halbrand and Annatar incarnations of Sauron. The reasoning is that Halbrand with a shave and a new ...
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The Select Committee hearing submissions on the fast-track consenting legislation is starting to become a beat-up of regional councils. The inflexibility and slow workings of the Councils were prominent in two submissions yesterday. One, from the Coromandel Marine Farmers Association, simply said that the Waikato Regional Council’s planning decisions were ...
Back in April, the High Court surprised everyone by ruling that Ministers are above the law, at least as far as the Waitangi Tribunal is concerned. The reason for this ruling was "comity" - the idea that the different branches of government shouldn't interfere with each other's functions. Which makes ...
Buzz from the BeehiveTolling was mentioned when Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced the government was re-introducing the Roads of National Significance (RoNS) programme, with 15 “crucial” projects to support economic growth and regional development across New Zealand. All RoNS would be four-laned, grade-separated highways, and all funding, financing, and ...
or the past 14 years, ever since the Spanish government cheated on an autonomy deal, Catalonia has reliably given pro-independence parties a majority of seats in their regional parliament. But now that seems to be over. Catalans went to the polls yesterday, and stripped the Catalan parties of their majority. ...
David Farrar writes – Radio NZ report: Labour Party leader Chris Hipkins said the Electoral Commission should make sure the system ran smoothly and “taking away the right of thousands of people to vote” was not the answer. “Thousands of people enroled and voted on the day. If ...
Don Brash writes – There was a rather revealing headline in the Herald on Sunday today (12 May). It read “One in 8 Auckland homes on market were bought during boom, may now sell for loss”. The first line of text noted that “New data shows one in ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – At a time when universities are understandably nervous regarding the establishment of the University Advisory Group (UAG) and the Science System Advisory Group (SSAG) it may seem strange – or even fool-hardy – to state that there are long-standing issues in the tertiary sector ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – A lack of perspective can make something quite large or important seem small or irrelevant. Against a backdrop of high-profile, negative statistics it is easy to overlook the positive. For instance, the fact that 64 percent of Maori are employed is rarely reported. For ...
Earlier this year, the Herald ran a series of articles amounting to a sustained campaign against raised pedestrian crossings, by reporter Bernard Orsman. A key part of that campaign concerned the raised crossings being installed as part of the Pt Chevalier to Westmere project, with at least 10 articles over ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to May 19 include:PM Christopher Luxon is expected to hold his weekly post-cabinet news conference at 4:00pm on Monday.Parliament is not sitting this week. It resumes next week for a two-week sitting session up to and ...
Hi,Thanks to all the beautiful Worms who came to the LA Webworm popup on Saturday.It was a way to celebrate the online store we launched last week — and it was super special.As I talk about a lot, I really value our community here — and it was a BLAST ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, May 5, 2024 thru Sat, May 11, 2024. (Unfortunate) Story of the week "Grief that stops at despair is an ending that I and many others, most notably ...
The Government’s introduction of legislation that would enable landlords to end tenancies with no reason marks a dark day for the 1.4 million people who rent their home in Aotearoa. ...
The Minister for Mental Health has found the Suicide Prevention Office and mental health support for 111 calls slipping through his fingers, says Labour spokesperson for Mental Health Ingrid Leary. ...
Today’s justification from the Minister for Children for scrapping protections for our tamariki was either a case of ignorance or deliberate deception. ...
The Green Party says the Government’s misguided policy on gangs will fail, following the announcement of the establishment of a national gang unit and district gang disruption units to target gang activities. ...
“With Police pay negotiations still unresolved after six months in Government, Mark Mitchell has today rolled the Commissioner out for a rebrand of their approach to gang crime,” Labour police spokesperson Ginny Andersen said. ...
The Government bringing back 50 charter schools will not increase achievement and is a distraction from the core mission of the education system, Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
Te Pāti Māori is showing extreme concern over the Environment Select Committees adoption of a lucky dip draw to determine hearings for the Fast Track Approvals bill. Of the 27,000 submissions, 2,900 requested to present. All organisations will be heard; however, the remaining 2,350 submitters will be subject to a ...
Today New Zealand First will introduce a Member’s Bill that will protect women’s spaces. The ‘Fair Access to Bathrooms Bill’ will require, primarily in the interest and safety of women and girls, that all new non-domestic publicly accessible buildings provide separate, clearly demarcated, unisex and single sex bathrooms. This Bill ...
The Green Party is welcoming Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ continuation of Hon. James Shaw’s cross-party work on climate adaptation, now in the form of a Finance and Expenditure Committee Inquiry. ...
The National Government plans to cut 390 jobs at ACC, including roles in the areas of prevention of sexual violence, road safety and workplace safety. ...
The Government has been caught in opposition to evidence once again as it looks to usher in tried, tested and failed work seminar obligations for job-seeking beneficiaries. ...
The Green Party is welcoming the announcement by the Minister Responsible for RMA Reform Chris Bishop to approve most of the Wellington City Council’s District Plan recommendations. ...
David Seymour has failed to get the sweeping cuts he wanted to the free and healthy school lunch programme, Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
Hon Willie Jackson has been invited by the Oxford Union to debate the motion “This House Believes British Museums are not Very British’ on May 23rd. ...
Green Party MP Hūhana Lyndon says her Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill is an opportunity to right some past wrongs around the alienation of Māori land. ...
A senior, highly respected King’s Counsel with decades of experience in our law courts, Gary Judd KC, has filed a complaint about compulsory tikanga Māori studies for law students - highlighting the utter depths of absurdity this woke cultural madness has taken our society. The tikanga regulations will compel law ...
The Government needs to be clear with the people of the Nelson Marlborough region about the changes it is considering for the Nelson Hospital rebuild, Labour health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall said. ...
Ministers must front up about which projects it will push through under its Fast Track Approvals legislation, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
The Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...
With Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...
The Labour Party is saddened to learn of the death of Sir Robert Martin, a globally renowned disability advocate who led the way for disability rights both in New Zealand and internationally. ...
Labour is calling for the Government to urgently rethink its coalition commitment to restart live animal exports, Labour animal welfare spokesperson Rachel Boyack said. ...
Today’s Financial Stability Report has once again highlighted that poverty and deep inequality are political choices - and this Government is choosing to make them worse. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to do more for our households in most need as unemployment rises and the cost of living crisis endures. ...
Unemployment is on the rise and it’s only going to get worse under this Government, Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said. Stats NZ figures show the unemployment rate grew to 4.3 percent in the March quarter from 4 percent in the December quarter. “This is the second rise in unemployment ...
The New Zealand Labour Party welcomes the entering into force of the European Union and New Zealand free trade agreement. This agreement opens the door for a huge increase in trade opportunities with a market of 450 million people who are high value discerning consumers of New Zealand goods and ...
The National-led Government continues its fiscal jiggery pokery with its Pharmac announcement today, Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall says. “The government has increased Pharmac funding but conceded it will only make minimal increases in access to medicine”, said Ayesha Verrall “This is far from the bold promises made to fund ...
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. ...
"On the 27th of March, I sought assurances from the Chief Executive, Department of Internal Affairs, that the Department’s correct processes and policies had been followed in regards to a passport application which received media attention,” says Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden. “I raised my concerns after being ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins has announced the appointment of three new District Court Judges, to replace Judges who have recently retired. Peter James Davey of Auckland has been appointed a District Court Judge with a jury jurisdiction to be based at Whangarei. Mr Davey initially started work as a law clerk/solicitor with ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour is calling on the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) to put ideology to the side and focus on students’ learning, in reaction to the union holding paid teacher meetings across New Zealand about charter schools. “The PPTA is disrupting schools up and down the ...
Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly today announced the appointment of Craig Stobo as the new chair of the Financial Markets Authority (FMA). Mr Stobo takes over from Mark Todd, whose term expired at the end of April. Mr Stobo’s appointment is for a five-year term. “The FMA plays ...
Surf Life Saving New Zealand and Coastguard New Zealand will continue to be able to keep people safe in, on, and around the water following a funding boost of $63.644 million over four years, Transport Minister Simeon Brown and Associate Transport Minister Matt Doocey say. “Heading to the beach for ...
New Zealand and Tuvalu have reaffirmed their close relationship, Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters says. “New Zealand is committed to working with Tuvalu on a shared vision of resilience, prosperity and security, in close concert with Australia,” says Mr Peters, who last visited Tuvalu in 2019. “It is my pleasure ...
New Zealand is gravely concerned about the situation in New Caledonia, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The escalating situation and violent protests in Nouméa are of serious concern across the Pacific Islands region,” Mr Peters says. “The immediate priority must be for all sides to take steps to de-escalate the ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon met today with Samoa’s O le Ao o le Malo, Afioga Tuimalealiifano Vaaletoa Sualauvi II, who is making a State Visit to New Zealand. “His Highness and I reflected on our two countries’ extensive community links, with Samoan–New Zealanders contributing to all areas of our national ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has announced that he has approved Waiheke Island ferry operator Island Direct to be eligible for SuperGold Card funding, paving the way for a commercial agreement to bring the operator into the scheme. “Island Direct started operating in November 2023, offering an additional option for people ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters today announced further sanctions on 28 individuals and 14 entities providing military and strategic support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. “Russia is directly supported by its military-industrial complex in its illegal aggression against Ukraine, attacking its sovereignty and territorial integrity. New Zealand condemns all entities and ...
A year on from the tragedy at Loafers Lodge, the Government is working hard to improve building fire safety, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “I want to share my sincere condolences with the families and friends of the victims on the anniversary of the tragic fire at Loafers ...
Ka nui te mihi kia koutou. Kia ora and good afternoon, everyone. Thank you so much for having me here in the lead up to my Government’s first Budget. Before I get started can I acknowledge: Simon Bridges – Auckland Business Chamber CEO. Steve Jurkovich – Kiwibank CEO. Kids born ...
New Zealand and Vanuatu will enhance collaboration on issues of mutual interest, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “It is important to return to Port Vila this week with a broad, high-level political delegation which demonstrates our deep commitment to New Zealand’s relationship with Vanuatu,” Mr Peters says. “This ...
Minister for Land Information, Chris Penk will travel to Peru this week to represent New Zealand at a meeting of trade ministers from the Asia-Pacific region on behalf of Trade Minister Todd McClay. The annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Ministers Responsible for Trade meeting will be held on 17-18 May ...
Minister of Education Erica Stanford will head to the United Kingdom this week to participate in the 22nd Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers (CCEM) and the 2024 Education World Forum (EWF). “I am looking forward to sharing this Government’s education priorities, such as introducing a knowledge-rich curriculum, implementing an evidence-based ...
Minister of Education Erica Stanford has today thanked outgoing New Zealand Qualifications Authority Chair, Hon Tracey Martin. “Tracey Martin tendered her resignation late last month in order to take up a new role,” Ms Stanford says. Ms Martin will relinquish the role of Chair on 10 May and current Deputy ...
New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and President Emmanuel Macron of France today announced a new non-governmental organisation, the Christchurch Call Foundation, to coordinate the Christchurch Call’s work to eliminate terrorist and violent extremist content online. This change gives effect to the outcomes of the November 2023 Call Leaders’ Summit, ...
Distinguished public servant and former diplomat Sir Maarten Wevers will lead the independent review into the disability support services administered by the Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha. The review was announced by Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston a fortnight ago to examine what could be done to strengthen the ...
Today’s announcement by Police Commissioner Andrew Coster of a National Gang Unit and district Gang Disruption Units will help deliver on the coalition Government’s pledge to restore law and order and crack down on criminal gangs, Police Minister Mark Mitchell says. “The National Gang Unit and Gang Disruption Units will ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today expressed regret at North Korea’s aggressive rhetoric towards New Zealand and its international partners. “New Zealand proudly stands with the international community in upholding the rules-based order through its monitoring and surveillance deployments, which it has been regularly doing alongside partners since 2018,” Mr ...
Air Vice-Marshal Tony Davies MNZM is the new Chief of Defence Force, Defence Minister Judith Collins announced today. The Chief of Defence Force commands the Navy, Army and Air Force and is the principal military advisor to the Defence Minister and other Ministers with relevant portfolio responsibilities in the defence ...
Legislation to repeal section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act has been introduced to Parliament. The Bill’s introduction reaffirms the Coalition Government’s commitment to the safety of children in care, says Minister for Children, Karen Chhour. “While section 7AA was introduced with good intentions, it creates a conflict for Oranga ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins will this week travel to the UK and Italy to meet with her defence counterparts, and to attend Battles of Cassino commemorations. “I am humbled to be able to represent the New Zealand Government in Italy at the commemorations for the 80th anniversary of what was ...
The upcoming Budget will include funding for up to 50 charter schools to help lift declining educational performance, Associate Education Minister David Seymour announced today. $153 million in new funding will be provided over four years to establish and operate up to 15 new charter schools and convert 35 state ...
“The results of the public consultation on the terms of reference for the Royal Commission into COVID-19 Lessons has now been received, with results indicating over 13,000 submissions were made from members of the public,” Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden says. “We heard feedback about the extended lockdowns in ...
Foreign Minister, Defence Minister, other Members of Parliament Acting Chief of Defence Force, Secretary of Defence Distinguished Guests Defence and Diplomatic Colleagues Ladies and Gentlemen, Good afternoon, tēna koutou, apinun tru It’s a pleasure to be back in Port Moresby today, and to speak here at the Kumul Leadership ...
Health, infrastructure, renewable energy, and stability are among the themes of the current visit to Papua New Guinea by a New Zealand political delegation, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “Papua New Guinea carries serious weight in the Pacific, and New Zealand deeply values our relationship with it,” Mr Peters ...
The coalition Government is launching Roads of Regional Significance to sit alongside Roads of National Significance as part of its plan to deliver priority roading projects across the country, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The Roads of National Significance (RoNS) built by the previous National Government are some of New Zealand’s ...
A high-level New Zealand political delegation in Honiara today congratulated the new Government of Solomon Islands, led by Jeremiah Manele, on taking office. “We are privileged to meet the new Prime Minister and members of his Cabinet during his government’s first ten days in office,” Deputy Prime Minister and ...
New Zealand voted in favour of a resolution broadening Palestine’s participation at the United Nations General Assembly overnight, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The resolution enhances the rights of Palestine to participate in the work of the UN General Assembly while stopping short of admitting Palestine as a full ...
Introduction Good morning. It’s a great privilege to be here at the 2024 Infrastructure Symposium. I was extremely happy when the Prime Minister asked me to be his Minister for Infrastructure. It is one of the great barriers holding the New Zealand economy back from achieving its potential. Building high ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins today announced the upcoming Budget will include new funding of $571 million for Defence Force pay and projects. “Our servicemen and women do New Zealand proud throughout the world and this funding will help ensure we retain their services and expertise as we navigate an increasingly ...
New Zealand’s ability to cope with climate change will be strengthened as part of the Government’s focus to build resilience as we rebuild the economy, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “An enduring and long-term approach is needed to provide New Zealanders and the economy with certainty as the climate ...
Jobseeker beneficiaries who have work obligations must now meet with MSD within two weeks of their benefit starting to determine their next step towards finding a job, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “A key part of the coalition Government’s plan to have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker ...
A new standalone Social Investment Agency will power-up the social investment approach, driving positive change for our most vulnerable New Zealanders, Social Investment Minister Nicola Willis says. “Despite the Government currently investing more than $70 billion every year into social services, we are not seeing the outcomes we want for ...
Check against delivery Good morning. It is a pleasure to be with you to outline the Coalition Government’s approach to our first Budget. Thank you Mark Skelly, President of the Hutt Valley Chamber of Commerce, together with your Board and team, for hosting me. I’d like to acknowledge His Worship ...
Your Excellency Ambassador Meredith, Members of the Diplomatic Corps and Ambassadors from European Union Member States, Ministerial colleagues, Members of Parliament, and other distinguished guests, Thank you everyone for joining us. Ladies and gentlemen - In diplomacy, we often speak of ‘close’ and ‘long-standing’ relations. ...
The Therapeutic Products Act (TPA) will be repealed this year so that a better regime can be put in place to provide New Zealanders safe and timely access to medicines, medical devices and health products, Associate Health Minister Casey Costello announced today. “The medicines and products we are talking about ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop, today released his decision on twenty recommendations referred to him by the Wellington City Council relating to its Intensification Planning Instrument, after the Council rejected those recommendations of the Independent Hearings Panel and made alternative recommendations. “Wellington notified its District Plan on ...
Rape Awareness Week (6-10 May) is an important opportunity to acknowledge the continued effort required by government and communities to ensure that all New Zealanders can live free from violence, say Ministers Karen Chhour and Louise Upston. “With 1 in 3 women and 1 in 8 men experiencing sexual violence ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Roger Benjamin, Professor in Art History, University of Sydney “She’s no oil painting”. Those were the unkind words of a colleague commenting on the subject of Vincent Namatjira’s acrylic painting, Gina. Every one of the prominent Australians and cultural heroes in Namatjira’s ...
Government plans to require local councils hold a referendum on whether to have Māori wards breaches the Treaty of Waitangi, a Waitangi Tribunal report has found. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Harcourt, Industry Professor and Chief Economist, University of Technology Sydney This year the National Rugby League (NRL) opened its season in Las Vegas. It was an audacious move by the league’s ambitious head honcho Peter V’Landys to showcase the game in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Catherine Strong, Associate Professor, Music Industry, RMIT University Leading music organisations have praised the federal budget for its investment in the live music sector. The budget includes A$8.6 million for a program called Revive Live: to provide essential support to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Marnee Shay, Associate Professor, Principal Research Fellow, The University of Queensland The 2024 federal budget contains A$110 million for Indigenous education. This includes funding for various different organisations to represent and help Indigenous people as well as scholarships in a bid to ...
Air New Zealand has confirmed Nouméa’s Tontouta International airport in New Caledonia is closed until Tuesday. The airline earlier told RNZ it would update customers as soon as it could. Earlier today, Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters told RNZ Morning Report government officials had been working on an “hourly basis” ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Grant Linley, PhD Candidate in Ecology, Charles Sturt University Grant Linley Australia’s unprecedented Black Summer bushfires in 2019–20 created ideal conditions for misinformation to spread, from the insidious to the absurd. It was within this context that a bizarre story ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Marcel Scharth, Lecturer in Business Analytics, University of Sydney OpenAI executive Mira Murati launching GPT-4o.OpenAI Earlier this week OpenAI launched GPT-4o (“o” for “omni”), a new version of the artificial intelligence (AI) system powering the popular ChatGPT chatbot. GPT-4o is promoted ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Treasure McGuire, Assistant Director of Pharmacy, Mater Health SEQ in conjoint appointment as Associate Professor of Pharmacology, Bond University and as Associate Professor (Clinical), The University of Queensland Speedkingz/Shutterstock Menopause is a natural biological process that marks the end of a ...
A new poem by Hannah Patterson. Xiāng There’s a pear tree in our backyard And Xiāng tells me She can’t eat them anymore Not after some things that have happened in her life. She tells me, in Mandarin The word for pear sounds the same as the word for disassociation ...
‘Cycling Works’ aims to show business support for citywide cycle infrastructure. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week, supermarket giant Foodstuffs lost its attempt to block the construction of a cycle lane outside Thorndon New World in Wellington. The Spinoff’s Wellington editor ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Slow Productivity by Cal Newport (Penguin, $40)Taking out the top spot in Auckland this ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Lowe, Emeritus Professor, School of Environment and Science, Griffith University For decades, Australia has exported uranium – but not used it, other than in the Lucas Heights research reactor. But change is coming. We now face a rapidly deepening commitment to ...
"In future I should walk away," Green MP Julie Anne Genter says after complaints over an exchange in Parliament and from two members of the public. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonathan Graffam, PhD Candidate in Theatre, Monash University Gianna Rizzo/Malthouse Music pumps; lights pulsate; two sweaty bodies sway together, touching, breathing in each other’s scent. A male body framed by downlight restlessly shifts between stances and gestures. He undresses. The intensity ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sandra van der Laan, Professor of Accounting, University of Sydney Mtaya/Shutterstock At some point, you or someone else will need to make a decision about your “send-off”. Most Australians die in an institution, such as a hospital or aged care facility. ...
Asia Pacific Report Vanuatu Prime Minister Charlot Salwai — who is also Chairman of the Melanesian Spearhead Group — has reaffirmed MSG’s support of the pro-independence umbrella group Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front (FLNKS) stance opposing the French government’s constitutional bill “unfreezing” the New Caledonia Electoral Roll. It is ...
Producer Susan Leonard remembers her father Ernie, a pioneer of Māori television, and how his legacy lives on in Pathfinders.My father was a fabulous man. His name was Ernie Leonard and he started in TV in the 1970s when it was still glamorous – when TVNZ made behind the ...
By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk, and Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific journalist The suspected ringleaders of the unrest in New Caledonia have been placed in home detention and the social network TikTok has been banned as French security forces struggle to restore law and order. The French ...
Multi-year appropriations - which give the government authority to spend money without reapplying annually - are loosening Parliament's control of the public purse, auditor-general says. ...
Dr. Eric Chuah who stood for a centrist NZ political party in the October 2023 NZ Elections for Maungakiekie Auckland will stand as a candidate for Tauranga City Council Ward of Matua-=Otumoetai and Mayor of Tauranga. ...
If you can’t get to the comedy fest, let us bring the comedy fest to you. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. The New Zealand International Comedy Festival is in full swing at the moment, with a veritable smorgasboard of comedy treats ...
A new poll commissioned by Unions Wellington shows an overwhelming majority of Wellingtonians oppose the Council’s plan to sell the 34% public stake in Wellington Airport. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Aruna Sathanapally, Chief Executive, Grattan Institute, Grattan Institute A central focus of this week’s budget is the treasury’s forecast for inflation. By this time next year, inflation is projected to be back within the Reserve Bank’s 2-3% target range. Inflation has ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Yolanda van Heezik, Professor of Ecology, University of Otago Getty Images Cities across Aotearoa New Zealand are trying to solve a housing crisis, with increasing residential density a key solution. But not everyone is happy about the resulting loss of natural ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alison Reeve, Deputy Program Director, Energy and Climate Change, Grattan Institute WDG Photo/Shutterstock For years, the electricity sector has been the poster child for emissions cuts in Australia. The sector achieved a stunning 26% drop in emissions over the past 15 ...
It’s often the last thing people want to do, but asking someone if they’re having suicidal thoughts is a critical first step to helping them. Content warning: this story discusses suicide and suicidal ideation. For a list of resources that can help if you or someone you know is feeling ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Timothy J. Ralph, Associate Professor, Macquarie University The pyramids at Giza, like dozens of others, are located several kilometres west of the current path of the Nile.Alex Cimbal / Shutterstock The largest field of pyramids in Egypt – consisting of 31 ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Diepstraten, Senior Research Officer, Blood Cells and Blood Cancer Division, Walter and Eliza Hall Institute ABO PHOTOGRAPHY/Shutterstock Receiving a cancer diagnosis is life-changing and can cause a range of concerns about ongoing health. Fear of cancer returning is one ...
Winston Peters has been on tour around the Pacific while two unrelated crises unfolded, explains Stewart Sowman-Lund in this extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. Two separate ...
This is the Mount Everest of artificial meatcraft.Ah, bacon. Pig’s gold. Toast’s consolation. Dawn’s savoury embrace. If meat was a currency, bacon would be the Benjamin Franklin. Or if you’re feeling patriotic, the Lord Rutherford. When it comes to fake bacon, the obvious question is: why bother? In the ...
From illegal milk to sprinkler bans and airplane ticket scams, Tyrone Barugh is on a one-man mission through New Zealand’s most obscure legal loopholes. I’m deep undercover, investigating Wellington’s criminal underworld. Inside this store, I’ve been told there is a million-dollar trade in illicit substances. A man dressed in black ...
Dear Hon Judith Collins, Minister of Defence, and Hon Christopher Penk, Associate Minister of Defence I have written to you, to attempt to give you an insight into the incredible hardship of being an NZDF family. Whilst I cannot speak on behalf of serving personnel, I can speak from my ...
Analysis: What a difference a year makes. In mid 2023, Wayne Brown the Auckland Mayor was a politician diminished by a calamitous response to the region’s Anniversary Weekend storm emergency and later forced against his preference into a half sale only of the city’s airport shares. His demeanour among his ...
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New Zealand’s drug legislation hasn’t been overhauled in nearly 50 years, in spite of a recommendation from the Law Commission in 2011 to do so. Our Misuse of Drugs Act was passed in 1975 and is based on a United Nations framework set in 1961. Now a new organisation, Harm ...
NONFICTION 1 The Last Secret Agent by Pippa Latour & Jude Dobson (Allen & Unwin, $37.99) A free copy of this amazing story of a woman who operated behind enemy lines in Nazi-occupied France was up for grabs this past fortnight. Readers were asked to share a story of wartime bravery, ...
It’s been a recess week at Parliament, which might indicate slim pickings for conversation topics for the Raw Politics team. But things are never dull in politics, especially with a new Government keen to follow through on its law and order promises, and a NZ First minister who wants to ...
Asia Pacific Report An open letter to The New Zealand Herald has challenged a full page Zionist advertisement this week for failing to acknowledge the “terrible injustices” suffered by the Palestinian people in Israel’s seven-month genocidal war on Gaza. In the latest of several international reports that have condemned genocide ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra When he was opposition leader, Bill Shorten faced Coalition criticism for attacking “the top end of town”, a phrase he used in his 2019 budget reply. Now Peter Dutton is finding the line “billions of ...
By Adam Burns, RNZ News reporter Worried New Caledonian expats in Aotearoa admit they are “terrified” for friends and family amid ongoing violence and civil unrest in the French Pacific territory. The death toll remained at four tonight, and hundreds have been injured after electoral changes sparked widespread rioting by ...
French President Emmanuel Macron has declared a state of emergency in New Caledonia after several days of civil unrest in the capital. Four people are dead due to the unrest and violence in the capital, Nouméa. France TV reports that a 22-year-old gendarme who had been seriously wounded has become ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Quiggin, Professor, School of Economics, The University of Queensland This week’s budget was Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ third and – for practical purposes – final for the current parliamentary term. Even if the 2025 election is delayed long enough to give ...
They held a noisy but peaceful demonstration against the ongoing genocide being carried out by the State of Israel, condemning the Israeli ambassador who was hosting an invitation-only event to celebrate the establishment of the State of Israel. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bridget Haire, Senior lecturer, public health ethics, School of Population Health, UNSW Sydney Bowonpat Sakaew/Shutterstock HIV prevention was allocated A$43.9 million over three years in this week’s federal budget. Some $26m of this is for “PrEP” for people without access to ...
Karen Chhour wants Oranga Tamiriki to establish more partnerships with Māori, despite introducing a bill to Parliament removing their obligation to do so. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bridget Haire, Senior lecturer, public health ethics, School of Population Health, UNSW Sydney Bowonpat Sakaew/Shutterstock HIV prevention was allocated A$43.9 million over three years in this week’s federal budget. Some $26m of this is for “PrEP” for people without access to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nicole George, Associate Professor in Peace and Conflict Studies, The University of Queensland New Caledonia’s capital city, Noumea, has endured widespread violent rioting over the past 48 hours. This crisis intensified rapidly, taking local authorities by surprise. Peaceful protests had been ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brad Elphinstone, Lecturer in psychology., Swinburne University of Technology A DNA sequence.Gio.tto/Shutterstock Should you be denied life insurance or have to pay extra if you have a genetic risk for certain diseases? Should insurance companies even have access to your genetic ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rob Nicholls, Senior research associate, University of Sydney Barely a day has gone by this month without politicians or commentators talking about online harms. There have been multiple high-profile examples spurring on the conversation. There was the circulation of videos of Bishop ...
With less than six months to go, it’s time to start paying attention to what could be the most consequential election of our lifetimes. It’s less than half a year until election day in the United States, which makes this a good opportunity to review what’s happened thus far in ...
Three Waters phase 2 hits the road:
So we get a more regional design, plus a regulating supervisory organisation. What's the process now?
Timely move by Labour – may stem the ebb tide of floating voters triggered by Labour's various conflicts of interest.
Obviously because the media here are a slack bunch of thickos.
That's due to conservative dork syndrome, which has prevailed in this country since WWII. Sure, there's been counter-trends at times. Kirk sending a frigate to the French nuclear testing zone, Lange making Aotearoa anti-nuclear, Springbok tour protest victory. But most suit-wearers are too useless to make clever moves or get it right.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/business/492462/nz-not-for-profit-4-day-week-global-named-among-time-s-most-influential-companies
Organised orcas: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/jun/21/orca-rams-yacht-off-shetland-first-such-incident-northern-waters
This is 2000 km north of Portugal.
“I’d be reluctant to say it cannot be learned from [the southern population]. It’s possible that this ‘fad’ is leapfrogging through the various pods/communities.” said a local cetean expert.
Blame Tiktok.
Oh dear, they are orcanizing!
Someone should write them a cetacean!!
Who needs social media.
Cultural transmission of behaviour is an important aspect of many animal communities ranging from humans to birds. Male humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) sing a repetitive, stereotyped, socially learnt and culturally transmitted song display that slowly evolves each year. Most males within a population sing the same, slow-evolving song type; but in the South Pacific, song ‘revolutions’ have led to rapid and complete replacement of one song type by another introduced from a neighbouring population. Songs spread eastwards, from eastern Australia to French Polynesia, but the easterly extent of this transmission was unknown. Here, we investigated whether song revolutions continue to spread from the central (French Polynesia) into the eastern (Ecuador) South Pacific region. Similarity analyses using three consecutive years of song data (2016–2018) revealed that song themes recorded in 2016–2018 French Polynesian song matched song themes sung in 2018 Ecuadorian song, suggesting continued easterly transmission of song to Ecuador, and vocal connectivity across the entire South Pacific Ocean basin. This study demonstrates songs first identified in western populations can be transmitted across the entire South Pacific, supporting the potential for a circumpolar Southern Hemisphere cultural transmission of song and a vocal culture rivalled in its extent only by our own.
https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsos.220158
Five rich pricks die in a self-inflicted dangerous sightseeing tour of the remains of a ship at the bottom of the Atlantic and the MSM gives it wall to wall coverage for days on end.
Around 500 poor asylum seekers die in the Med because distress calls from their boat were ignored and the MSM soon looks away.
Its an interesting commentary on the institutional racism of the media isn't it?
Also they'd rather cover a freak show than ask deep questions about the establishment paradigms. Much easier = the press gallery is exactly the same, a breathless narrative of crisis and conflict drives them clicks!
But you would go a long way to find a better parable for our times. "Move fast and break things" libertarian tech billionaire's arrogance kills five people in a hair brained deep sea submersible while his company demands the government spend huge sums of taxpayer money in an effort to try and save him.
Although I agree with your general point I don't think it is an example of institutional racism.
Two of the poor souls at the bottom of the ocean were of Pakistani descent.
There were many more people of Pakistani descent involved in the migrant boat disaster. They were not 'people of means' however:
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/06/15/europe/migrant-boat-sinking-greece-cause-intl/index.html
If millionaires were getting killed in submersibles pretty regularly I think the MSM would soon lose interest.
You're probably right everest is littered with rich dead people
Exactly my thoughts throughout. Ok they died, doing something incredibly dangerous and completely pointless, yes very sad for the families.
But come on, we don't even know a single name of one of the people from the recent migrant disasters. People who were fleeing atrocious conditions to make some kind of life for their kids.
But billionaires? They inflict misery on millions, knowingly, no matter how hard they try to spin their "achievements", it's pretty sickening.
The comments on this incident show a level of schadenfreude I wouldn't have expected on The Standard.
A degree of self-discipline before indulging in such comments about the sudden violent death of several strangers should have stayed these comments in your thoughts.
Publishing them online exposes their juvenile nature.
Perhaps read my post again Molly. I was showing empathy for 500 poor people who had died needlessly.
The 5 "strangers" caused their own deaths by taking part in an extremely risky, pointless and egotistical so-called adventure. They could have gone online to see pictures of the Titanic wreck.
It seemed appropriate to post under your orginal, rather than under each reply.
The "rich pricks" reference to unknown persons, just strikes me as a distorted version of the notorious "ferals" comment a few years back.
It is apparent others feel the same as you about this.
Just thought, I'd note that I didn't.
However, not a big deal in the larger scheme of political discourse.
Your objection seems to be the fact that the 'pointless and egotistical so-called adventure' cost a lot of money.
We (as in the NZ taxpayer) regularly pay for search and rescue operations (some, sadly, unsuccessful) for sailors, trampers, etc – who could equally well have stayed at home and 'gone online'. Some of whom have been very poorly prepared – and certainly engaged in highly risky behaviour.
Many of these hit the headlines – in much the same way as the Titanic submersible.
Are these ordinary 'pointless and egotistical so-called adventurers' just as culpable in your view?
I said nothing about the cost of the search and rescue Bella. That was not my point at all.
But to answer you anyway, some of my best friends are in Search and Rescue and I think they do a wonderful job even when they rescue a tramper that has got into self-inflicted trouble.
That wasn't the question – the question was whether the people needing S&R operations in NZ are just as much 'pointless and egotistical so-called adventurers' as those in the Titanic submersible.
There is a slight difference between a billionaire going four thousand metres below the surface of the Atlantic and a backpacker walking the Routeburn and getting caught in bad/freak weather or twisting an ankle.
So the difference is money.
How about comparing apples with a related fruit.
Like a cruise ship tour to an active volcano.
Are the tourists equally culpable in their own deaths and injuries?
Yes. It was an 'accident' – no one had any inclination that the volcano was going to erupt that day.
Equally, the submersible was an 'accident' no one had any idea that there was going to be a catastrophic hull failure (the current theory) – on that trip.
How about idiot tourists (and even locals) who venture on hiking trips inadequately clothed and equipped? Or go swimming on the west coast beaches outside the flagged safe and monitored areas? They are unlikely to be billionaires – but have ignored even basic precautions – surely they are more liable?
An opinion piece from London Review of Books about the UK government's attack on freedom of expression under guise of shutting down wokedness.
"…the Public Order Act, which eviscerates the right to peaceful protest in the UK – [passed] just in time to empower the Metropolitan Police to arrest six members of the anti-monarchy group Republic on the morning of the coronation, with little outcry from the free speech brigade. Rishi Sunak has defended the police and their new powers, saying that people have the right ‘to go about their day-to-day lives without facing serious disruption’. ‘Serious disruption’ – a phrase that appears 94 times in the Public Order Act – now legally includes many of the mildest tactics used by activist groups from the women of Greenham Common to Extinction Rebellion, including locking on, blocking roads and blockading oil terminals. It also includes, according to the Metropolitan Police, carrying rape alarms, for which three women’s safety volunteers were arrested ahead of the coronation…
"Does the right contradict itself? Very well then it contradicts itself. The new Higher Education Act [guaranteeing rights of individuals in university to not be 'cancelled'] appears on its face to be in conflict with the ‘Prevent duty’ created by the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015… The government guidance on Prevent says that universities should prohibit visiting speakers who are likely to express ‘extremist views that risk drawing people into terrorism or are shared by terrorist groups’, even where the expression of such views is legal.”
It was quick.
Debris consistent with a catastrophic loss of the pressure chamber, according to Rear Adm. Mauger.
[…]
Incredibly complex operating environment on the sea floor but ROV has been able to identify parts of the sub, says Rear Adm. Mauger.
[…]
Five different major pieces, including nose cone, front end bell of the pressure hull, aft of the hull, found, according to officials.
[…]
Castraphobic implosion and pressure of sea floor makes finding human remains challenging, says Rear Adm. Mauger.
[…]
Debris fields of sub about 1,600 feet (~500 meters) off bow of the Titanic, according to officials.
https://journa.host/@w7voa/110589418730320046
• 0918.4: SOSUS and the Skylark detected hull collapse at a calculated depth of 2,400 feet, 450 feet below the crush depth of 1,950 feet (150 percent of test depth), creating a bubble pulse with an energy release equivalent to 22,500 pounds of TNT. The hull collapsed in 47 milliseconds (~1/20th of a second), too fast to be cognitively recognized by those on board.
https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/2018/july/declassify-thresher-data
I reckon they spotted the "Heart of the Ocean" and abandoned all caution to try and pick it up.
The thing I always ask with a "news" story like this is, what the f*ck do they expect us to do about it?
"…what the f*ck do they expect us to do about it..?"
Click on the link, send the link to our colleagues, talk about the link, comment on the link on SM.
See the associated ads!
In the spirit of Luxon's wife claiming a legal rebate for a Tesla purchase, despite Luxon being against the law that provides for this rebate, are the Greens in danger of being hypocritical in a similar way, although arguably worse?
After all, they have previously attempted to have political donations capped at $35000. Yet they have just received two donations of $50000 each. So, since I know that the Green party is a party that stands on firmly on its principles, to remain consistent, will they give the donations back? Or, at least the $15k per donation in excess of the cap they wanted to set.
Elections are a competition – Tesla ownership is not.
Why would you give back money legally obtained if your opponents do not – and in fact when your opponents are the darlings of the wealthy and receive several times more donations over $35k than you do? If you do give the money back, you hand a funding advantage to your opponents, making it somewhat less likely that you will win and get the opportunity to be in government and cap donations at whatever figure you think is actually democratic. I think you are once again failing to distinguish superficial similarities from genuine moral dilemmas.
Sounds like an "ends justify the means" argument to me. In principle though, it seems that there is a much more direct connection between campaigning on an issue, then contradicting that position so far as the Greens are concerned than was the case with Luxon.
Actually, I think it is silly to make the argument in either case. I think it is quite reasonable to act within the rules that exist, even if the person or entity utilising those rules, in principal, opposes them.
So, I don't actually have any beef with the Greens accepting the donations in the same way that I don't have any beef with Luxon's wife claiming the rebate.
"Actually, I think it is silly to make the argument in either case. I think it is quite reasonable to act within the rules that exist, even if the person or entity utilising those rules, in principal, opposes them."
Agree. I hope it is something I personally would not do, and I would have utmost admiration for those who followed their own values alongside existing rules, but I don't feel the need to deride those who don't.
The unanswered question here is did he buy her the cheap one…eligible for rebate..
Or did he splash out and buy her the top of the range..(and if not why not..?..he can afford it..she mothered his children..etc..etc..)..which is not eligible for the cashback….?
It sounds like you are pissed off somebody is giving the Greens money tsmith. No rules have been broken. The Greens should be praised for trying to prevent NZ politics turning into a US style moneyfest.
But there is no doubt that Luxon is a hypocrite…I wonder if he is driving to the Nats conference in the clean-car discounted Tesla or riding his scooter?
Three cheers for the Greens.
Hyp, hyp, hypocrisy
So… arguing for election funding reform..somehow disqualifies the greens from taking campaign donations under the unreformed system..?
Don't think so…
Yes. I agree. It is no worse than legally taking a rebate on a new car while opposing the policy in principle.
😉
Luxon's hipocricy is in obscuring the fact that he and his family bought Teslas using the subsidy. Luxon was unable to own and adequately justify his actions to the electorate.
That's what makes him the full-blown hipocrite, rather than using the current system legally like the Greens, while advocating for change to those same rules. Luxon could have walked away from this looking good if he'd been open from the start.
The Tesla story is an irrelevance..
The real story with luxon is the blatant conflict of interest..around him owning 7 properties…and him promising legislation that will financially favour him..in a big way…
Global sperm counts are falling. This scientist thinks she knows why A terrifying report from Shanna Swan. Pretty dire warning to the World population. That is us!
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/global-sperm-counts-are-falling-this-scientist-believes-she-knows-why/CNATVYNOAFDBVDRDJNRYQVRIUY/#
After all those years of research we finally found a male contraceptive
No problem, we don't need that many of them anyway. However, if it encourages people to use less of that stuff – it may be of use.
Less Sperm ? or fewer men ?.
Take your pick! They produce a great deal of sperm, most of which is "wasted" and it freezes well!
…getting dangerously close there to "making god get quite irate…"
The biblical spilling of the seed upon the ground wouldn't happen so much now..
We live in the age of the tissue.. unknown (and no doubt a thing of wonder) to biblical era seed-spillers..
So
1. the BPA and BPS impacts on the amount of sperm and thus the fertility of males
2. and the amount of androgen in the womb during pregnancy can impact on psych-sexual development and with this there is a known physiological characteristic.
This has been unfortunately termed a disorder of sexual development – because it has been seen as a factor is homosexuality (if not a determinant) and gender dysphoria and body dysmorphia. An irony in that people seek more or less of it when choosing a transgender identity.
https://www.nature.com/articles/nrendo.2014.130
There seems to be a lot more discussion around gender "identification these days. Is that due to increased prevalence or just greater scrutiny?
Quoted from where please?
Within the text of the above link.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/global-sperm-counts-are-falling-this-scientist-believes-she-knows-why/CNATVYNOAFDBVDRDJNRYQVRIUY/#
Paywalled for me.
What relevance does biological changes (which I assume from your original comment above the article is about) have to what you introduce as "a lot more discussion around gender "identification"?
Are you:
1. Conflating biological sex with declared gender identity?
2. Equating reduced viable sperm count with reduced maleness?
3. Observing the known teratogenic effects of testosterone during pregnancy?
3. Obliquely referencing DSDs – if so – why?
Since Rachel Carson's publication of The Silent Spring in 1962, there has been greater public awareness of the effect of environment on endocrine systems.
What is your discussion point here?
Joe Rogan and RFK Jr also talk about this extensively in their recent podcast. Joe has also spoken about this earlier with other guests.