Ceri Black, the woman who has been asked to voluntarily go to the police station (and if she doesn’t ,get arrested) speaks.All this because of a complaint lodged by a man about her tweets.
Faafoi is merely a messenger, who can be replaced by the leaders of Gov at any instance, or what its worth, he could also resign if he don't want his good name to be attached to this abomination of a law.
This bill is being shoved down these sweet lands is courtesy of the full Labour Party / Government with their handmaiden/aunt lydia the Green Party.
I wonder what Hone Harawira is doing to keep the virus out of the North and to help the people get vaccinated. Whatever he's doing is usually a good practical effort using locals to do the mahi. We in regions could do a lot worse, like do nothing, than to do similar to Hone Harawira, whatever it is. I have some faith in the man in times of shit.
With the coming "opening" of Auckland that bloody virus will get everywhere before we know it. Regional borders could be a thing, run by locals. Something must be able to be done and not just let Auckland infect the whole country. (sorry Auckland).
Well what could private citizen Hone Harawira do that he not already doing? Because he is raising the issue with the leaky border – leaky side being Akl/Cops, not his border patrol. As for the vaccination drive,
"We have a curious dialogue which implicitly equates Māori with the lower classes, drawing attention to their low incomes, their poverty, their unemployment, their poor health, housing and life prospects and their high incarceration rates. All true on average, but demeaning to many Māori, who have good jobs, decent incomes, reasonable health, their own homes and high social status and who are proud of their culture. It is true there are proportionally fewer of them than for Pakeha, but it is also true that there are many more Pakeha in total who are low in the socioeconomic ranking"
I’ve a lot of time for Brian Easton but I do wish he (and others) could find a different word for the group of people they label the underclass.
I like that he continues to highlight that there a plenty of Pākehā that belong to this group and plenty of Māori who don’t.
I spend quite a lot of time wondering why Pākehā in this group are ignored and have come to the conclusion that academics, politicians and other ‘thought leaders’ are racist or paternalistic believing that only (and all) Māori are this disengaged from society. And if they believe Pākehā are similarly disengaged, they also believe Pākehā have the means to get themselves out of a hole – personal responsibility and all that, or are disgusted that these people are letting the [Pākehā] side down so render them not worthy or invisible.
For the rest of us, thinking the ‘underclass is only Māori, that’s just shoving people in a box and equating ‘most of’ with ‘all’. We spend too much time categorising.
"I spend quite a lot of time wondering why Pākehā in this group are ignored and have come to the conclusion that academics, politicians and other ‘thought leaders’ are racist or paternalistic believing that only (and all) Māori are this disengaged from society."
I suspect it has more to do with the lack of consideration (understanding)….the 'underclass" (of all ethnicities) are dismissed as unimportant, indeed something to be 'tolerated' for the necessity of the labours they perform….the reality is our society is driven by and for the elites.
Very much like the old saying goes, if all hte poor people would see each other as poor and neglected first and different races/religions/sex last they could band together as poor people and maybe even bring about change. But then, divide and conquer is the current model and it seems to be working quite well.
Time and again Sabine we have counted on the poor etc to get the Left over the line at election time and every time they stay away in droves. They are just not engaged in politics, and the Right know it.
It is funny though, that the non voters that i know are well to do, white people in nice houses in nice areas.
Maybe neither the left nor the right has anything to offer to the poor?
the left, thinly applied empathy for a few deserving poor, a few pennies here and there when the visuals are too upsetting (kids living in vans or hovels), when it gets to cold and Nan can either eat or heat, etc etc. But no change what so ever. Try being an unemployed women in NZ who has a partner who still has an income, no matter how long you worked, no matter how much taxes you paid, you won't be getting a penny from Winz. Cause……surely your partner will give you some pin money and a daily feed. Thanks left of NZ.
the right, thickly applied 'can't be bothered at all' with most beneficiaries, as their list of the deserving poor is even shorter then that of the left. Lets cut the benefits, or not incresae them. Bootstraps for bootless people is the best they can offer.
Why on earth would any one in NZ who is poor, by unemployment, by unlucky draw of the health card, by sex – single women with children are pretty much the poorest in nz vote for the duopoly that is the political landscape in NZ? Oh to rubberstamp either party into existance?
Lol.
Maybe the left really needs to come to grips that the giveaway for one electric car (for the very rich of this country – cause one has to be rich to afford a new 35 000 NZD vehicle – at the low end that one) is more in one give away then the poor got over the last 5 years.
18% didn't vote in the last election. Who were they?
In the US with all the hullabaloo around the 2020 election and the candidates and NZ$19 billion spent on the campaigns, there was a record voter turnout but that was only 67%.
They analyse to the nth degree who did and didn't vote.
Yeah, I think so – economically marginalised Maori and economically marginalised Pākehā live in the same space, shop in the same places etc. Supporting one group and not the other creates division. Why on earth would the group that is left behind vote for a party that doesn’t see them?
It's no surprise that Te Paati Māori has MPs from Rotorua and Taranaki – and good on them. If only their party and the Labour party had enough in common to work together to bring about change for all the economically marginalised.
Economically marginalised Pākehā have yet to find a party that cares about their lives. Maybe they need a Trump or a Boris if Labour won't do it – their lives seem to be rock bottom, but at least they can shaft the centre-left. But what a disaster that would be for the rest of us.
Yes, I think women and singles are the bottom of most heaps, and if you are brown, even harder. Smart Asians anglicised their names to get past hiring agencies. That tells about bias. A great number of women will have lost part time or service positions lately, those favoured when they have a younger family.
As many office workers work from home office cleaners are not required, work cafeterias and cafes close, as firms make choices to work around covid.
Though covid has stripped away some pretensions about which functions in society are essential, those living alone are disadvantaged, as two incomes are needed to survive, one is often penury .We need to remember that and pay better rates for those part time service positions many younger and older citizens supplement income with.
As with there being no need to distinguish ethnicity, gender and partnership status are superfluous….there is perhaps only one delineation required…the 'deserving' and 'undeserving'…the former being those who labour as opposed to those who do not.
As with there being no need to distinguish ethnicity, gender and partnership status are superfluous….there is perhaps only one delineation required…the 'deserving' and 'undeserving'…the former being those who labour as opposed to those who do not
I have to disagree. Ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation and partnership status are all important. People may all be in similar dire situations but they may have different priorities and require different strategies to have the situations they live in improved.
It seems that there's a limited pot of empathy and caring (as well as money) that gets swapped from one group to the next and back again. While the well-off get bribed with tax cuts, and the wealth gap continues to widen. They governments for the well-off give up nothing for the economically marginalised and they can do so because the economically marginalised are labelled the "underclass", which is wrapped in stereotyped culture of personal failings that leaves them supposedly 'undeserving'.
the 'deserving' and 'undeserving'…the former being those who labour as opposed to those who do not
This is just so wrong, or are you being cynical and it's gone way over my head?
Yes Miravox, I was thinking of my hard working cousin, who at 58 has few reserves, no home and is a grande' mal epileptic. She works in the "care industry" lives in as she has no home. After leaving a drug addled husband she brought up two great kids, they also rent. One in NSW and one in Auckland. She has not seen her children for two years as she works in Levin.
Then there is our nephew in NSW. He is in construction, has developed a fungal lung infection from timber he was working with. His wife left him and his share of things did not stretch to a home. He has been unable to work and is thankful for excellent medical treatment, but he too has a bleak future outlook.
A friend who helps me with the heavy cleaning once a fortnight, is juggling 5 part time jobs a sick husband and a 98 year old father.
Our son is awaiting 3 different surgical procedures in QLD, the prep for which needs dye tests to decide what part gets cut away next. He has had surgery delayed 3 times through covid. (Anne I see you )So we have wee home but may have to do something drastic if things get really bad for him. How these situations work out for people with nothing and no hope who are called critical cruel unjust labels .. well "There but for the Grace…" OK some people are silly anti and misguided. But they are us. Our best and our worst.
None of these people I spoke of go without food, they are all hard workers when well, but none of them have been able to do more than keep afloat in normal times..then along came covid to add to their stress and problems.
I could tell 7 or 8 more stories like that, and I think the system is geared to two incomes.
Singles or people with a sick or unemployed partner are disadvantaged, and women more so because of the pay gap.
Also these days people need enough money for internet 'phone laptop rent and food. I feel the idea of a BUI is more appealing by the day, if it was near the level of the pension.
No doubt someone will say "We can't afford it" Wellbeing requires it.
Whether it has gone over your head I cannot say….the point is how our society functions is determined by the wants of the elites not the needs of the whole, and much of what is debated on sites such as this is mere distraction from that fact…and that serves only one group.
Keeping the wide goal in mind is essential, but so is looking at the subdivisions within the overarching delineation. These subdivisions involve different aspects of their creation and the way to overcome the inequities that result from that. Those differences sometimes require more than just a specific focus, they require effort on our part to realise the lenses we use to look at something often have filters installed by our place in society.
These are not distractions, any more than using the right tool for a job is a distraction. Sometimes you can fix everything with a hammer, sometimes it takes actual knowledge of what you're doing and the right tools to do it.
I was unable to read your meaning in the comment. But that's fair enough.
I agree that out society functions by the needs of the elite. I believe we can work to ease the problems of the people disadvantaged by that as well as working to change the system. I fear not doing that will lead to overthrow of the current elite that will hurt more people and in the end just install a different elite because we haven't actually learned how not to have an elite.
"…the 'underclass" (of all ethnicities) are dismissed as unimportant, indeed something to be 'tolerated' for the necessity of the labours they perform…"
That is a very Victorian view of the poor. Deserving and undeserving.
I believe that we are able to change things… getting bitter and putting labels on the haves is the same trap as putting labels on the poor. Those labels stop us seeing our common humanity… Our stories give us points of real connection, otherwise it is notional.
Its called divide and conquer. In the end it is this tit for tat, to and fro, low level disputes that keeps the unwashed masses ruminating in their little "class war" and all the while the carpet of protective law for all is pulled under all.
It needs a good minds, honest debate and an open ear and heart to understand and to prevent. Right now many have lost their compass and holding on to all those ideas that look like establishing balance but all it does is fanning hate and revenge. Some truly enjoying this and crime waves increase, being placated as the disadvantaged take their share and the law for all is “wrong”. The next generation will not just have to battle climate change, there is something more at stake.
So "scientists estimate that around half the plastic in the air is smaller than 5mm (the definition of a microplastic), with some in the nano-, or less than one micrometre, size range. That means there may be way more plastic in the air that this latest study didn’t account for."
Beijing, for example, is recorded as having concentrations of more than 5,500 bits of plastic per cubic metre… What’s more clear though is how horrible airborne microplastics can be for human health. They can lead to breathlessness, crackly breathing, developing cancer or might just literally cut you up from the inside out.
But don't worry, be happy! Them bits of plastic can't really compete with Delta because their invasion technique is too random.
Seven students are suing a Texas school district over its dress-code policy banning boys from having long hair… According to its dress code policy, boys cannot wear their hair over their eyes, past the bottom of their ears, or past the bottom of a dress shirt collar.
Bad enough having to wear a dress shirt, eh? But good on the Texans for taking a belated stand against Beatlemania. The mop-top look was grossly uncool to those of us who were serious about long hair.
The suit, filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas (ACLU) on Thursday on behalf of the students, argues the school district "imposed immense and irreparable harm… solely because of these students' gender".
It details a number of punishments given to the students – six boys and one non-binary child – for wearing long hair. One, a nine-year-old identified as AC, is Latino, and wears his hair long like his father and uncle as a part of his family's heritage, the suit says. Another, an 11-year-old identified as TM, is non-binary and has worn long hair as a "critical component" of their gender expression. Both have been subjected to punishments including suspension, denial of extracurricular activities and separation from their peers.
Hope they fight it to the Supreme Court, and Trump realises it's a golden opportunity to raise his waning profile. He ought to bankroll them. We see his hair creeping back over his collar on a regular basis. Fab way to reinforce his model rebel political praxis. Voters would recognise that it gives him authenticity.
Does anyone on here happen to be in the govt business and know if these vax cert's are going to be a physical thing or just something added to the covid app' like a QR code which when scanned shows fully vaxed?
Because if physical it will be a logistical nightmare. If the later an actually good idea.
And consider also the idea – as portrayed in many a movies – no QRcode no passing from one sector to the next.
Ideally all that is needed for businesses is a certification like with the health rating. All staff are vaccinated hang that cert into your business window. Done. Unless we really are starting to advocate a society where every move must be on some app.
Needs to be both as many do not have devices which do "APPS" indeed many cannot afford the connectivity required to run the devices. Try keeping connected without the ability to pay for all this connection. Run out of "minutes" and no access is also a problem that can only be mitigated by physical paper.
Can't afford smart phone? Sorry, not welcome, with my QR thinking. Bit dim on my part.
Agree, has to be both.
Personally I would also get both, as have a pre pay, with sheds of data, stuff all call time, but the monthly renewal always runs out with me not remembering to top up, and for a few days I’m carrying round a pretty pointless piece of plastic lol
You don't have to be "in the Govt Business" to know the answer. At one of the daily Press Conferences it was very specific it IS both. It can be on your phone or you can carry a hard copy around with you. I hope that clears it up for you Chris T, we wouldn't want to inadvertently cast doubt where doubt doesn't exist. Cheers
It may be that many of those who are vaccine averse will not be persuaded otherwise.
Instead of further incentives/disincentives, why not look at other strategies
Namely what has been used in countries where wide roll outs of the vaccine have not been possible .
Those testing positive in early stages have been sent home with home treatment kits, monitored and re tested , with very good results. Not a clinical trial, but good epidemiological data
Chris Leitch of Social Credit has advocated this, and includes that data for reference.
I think it should be looked at, instead of the increasing divisiveness and futility in attempts to educate resistant people into accepting the vaccine.
Professor Chris Butler, from the University Oxford’s Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, Joint Chief Investigator of the PRINCIPLE trial, said, ‘Ivermectin is readily available globally, has been in wide use for many other infectious conditions so it’s a well-known medicine with a good safety profile, and because of the early promising results in some studies it is already being widely used to treat COVID-19 in several countries. By including ivermectin in a large-scale trial like PRINCIPLE, we hope to generate robust evidence to determine how effective the treatment is against COVID-19, and whether there are benefits or harms associated with its use.’
At least we now know that ivermectin at 12 mg has a good safety profile.Worth a trial at least.
Of course there may still be hardliners who won’t accept any pharmaceutical, but I am seeing a lot of anti vaxxers who are only resistant to the MRNA vaccine.
Treatment packs may be more realistic than waiting for Novovax
Ivermectin became a litmus test – not so much as whether it worked or not because I'm willing to accept that the umpire is still out on that question – but because the Big Pharma 'there is no alternative to vaccines' narrative so blatantly attempted to discredit it.
Those of us who have consistently advocated that we should be intelligently trialing every possible tool have naturally been suspicious of this from the outset, a suspicion only inflamed by the vax only crowd vilifying and othering those whose conscience or beliefs led them to be hesitant or reject this narrow plan.
If nothing else we should have learned from the antibiotic resistance story, that if we impose a single narrow evolutionary pressure on any organism – it will likely find ways to evade that tool – no matter how promising. We've already seen this starting to happen with COVID vaccines. The correct way to avoid this mistake is not to mindlessly double down with more and more booster vaccines, but to be open to multiple different approaches with mutually exclusive mechanisms.
I think also the difficulty with ivermectin is that the studies have been so small, and many crappy. To do a big study with all the bells and whistles requires money.
No pharmaceutical company is interested in giving grants to a study that will not result in profits. Ivermectin is out of patent, easily produced , therefore cheap.
If not ivermectin other antivirals could be considered.
I agree with you, all this one way stuff is frustrating.
I think also the difficulty with ivermectin is that the studies have been so small, and many crappy.
That worried me less than the detractors would have it. Ivermectin would not be the first drug to have been successfully re-purposed based on small, crappy clinical trials. Those who have demanded that the only acceptable evidence would be a large, gold standard – and yes very expensive – RCT, conveniently overlook that medical progress has never relied on these alone. Decades of experience with meta-analysis has probably driven more innovation in medicine than RCT's.
Still ultimately we have to hope that eventually the blatant agendas and politics gets out of the way and we get to see some fully trusted data – and on that the Ivermectin story will live or die.
Thanks for that info.Was not aware, but then of course many drugs have been successfully repurposed.Like aspirin, first used for fever reduction and pain relief, then many years later as a blood thinner.
Yep … you're both pretty much bang-on … as reasonable, thoughtful, fair-minded, easy-going people on the Left often are … as opposed to both Woke hysterics & Clintonista melodramatics … in terms of the latter: horse de-wormers, convergence moonbats, Donald Trump, anti-vaxxers & various other guilt-by-association rhetorical strategies designed to demonize a potentially promising & inexpensive re-purposed antiparasitic drug that could save many lives … on & on ad nauseam …
The difficulty with Ivermectin is that it has become so parasite resistant it is no longer used as an animal wormer, I guess the manufacturers have to peddle their wares somehow some where.
Google found a couple of recent papers on horse nematodes that are resistant to ivermectin – don't know if resistance is recent and/or isolated, or if it's potentially a more established problem as suggested by the third link.
Nice to know the old horse paste slur no longer applies
Ivermectin’s not going out of fashion in a hurry. Curiously, human parasites haven’t developed any resistance, and there are other multiple uses for it
"If nothing else we should have learned from”(RL 11.11am); the fact that diet is extremely important if you want a sound immune system. As a nation we shoud be totally ashamed at the general lousy health of the majority of NZers. For example it is a fact that the majority of NZ are on the verge of scurvy because of inadequate vitamin C intake. Guess which vitamin is essential for a robust immune system.?
Endless consumption of takeaways and junk,overprocessed food and sugary drinks doesn't take long to compromise your defences.
Yes. In the longer run I suspect COVID will force us to re-think the whole public health story. The correlation with so called 'co-morbidities' has been obvious from the outset – yet relatively few people have been willing to openly ask the question 'how come we're so sick in the first place'?
The 'crush the curve' narrative to prevent our hospitals from being overwhelmed is all very well in the short term, but fails to ask why diseases like diabetes, cardio-vascular illnesses, dementia, depression and anxiety already threaten to overwhelm them COVID or not.
Another aspect that’s been completely overlooked is the poor quality of so much of our indoor ventilation, creating ideal environments for an air borne virus to spread. There’s another tool the 90% plus vax crowd won’t want to mention.
I am most impressed with the tight narrowing of political and media discussion about a broader view of society beyond health.
We've got out of COVID outbreaks three times in New Zealand, and zero politicians or strong media commentators are asking:
What kind of country do we really want and can change to achieve?
– A different approach to work, when we continue to be one of the most state-subsidised wage economies in the world?
– A different approach to transport and travel, when so much of it has proven unnecessary?
– A different approach to digital news aggregators, when they have been shown to be the enemy of life-saving truth?
– A different approach to the marginalised, when their lives have never been more magnified for society?
– A different approach to Maori and Pasifika health organisations, when they have proven their superior reach and delivery from the singular state?
– A different approach to retirement savings and public employment insurance, when crises are now besetting our lives faster and faster every decade?
– A different approach to the best we can hope for our children, when travel for adventure or study is going to be rare, and may mean they don't come back for years?
New Zealand is a place where David Seymour looks like a leading public intellectual and James Shaw's support is heading for 6% within a globally huge year for climate change.
All very good questions with many posts worth of discussion to be had. Yet if I can discern one thing they may all have in common, is just what role do we want in having the state drive these questions as contrasted to the individual and the community?
Going back to public health for example, I could imagine the state might devise an excellent public food system that compelled people to eat only from a state sanctioned diet that was officially deemed to be 'healthy'. And as effective as this might be in terms of improving health, it would be rightly rejected as an insane imposition into our personal lives – for all sorts of other reasons.
But this does not mean the state should give up on getting us all leaner, fitter and a bit meaner either. The trick is inspiring change while utilising the least necessary amount of force necessary.
(Principle of Least Action. A fundamental idea in physics that has it's analogy in politics as well.)
Ad,
This is because if you want an inclusive government, don't shut anybody out as it is done now (no matter what color, race, etc.) and have unlawful behavior sanctioned. The majority of people want a cohesive, just society whilst we seem to be heading to Mad Max #3. The green party has not delivered anything that is doable in the wider sense and does not create more toxic rubbish (batteries of electric cars) Just putting platitudes out will not do. I really miss Jeanette Fitzsimons and Rod Donald, Russel Norman. They steered a focused course.
Probably the phrase 'verge of scurvy' is a tad rhetorical, but I'd generally go along with the idea that our modern lifestyles leaves us with sub-optimal levels of both Vitamin C and D.
Citing something as fact which is demonstrably untrue is a pretty poor rhetorical device.
Our modern lifestyles (generally speaking) certainly provide us with too many calories and not enough exercise.
I suspect our modern lifestyles also provide us on balance with higher vitamin intake than lifestyles of the past, not really sure as it's not my area of expertise.
I am generally in favour of the traffic light road map announced on Friday morning. There is one obvious flaw however in the system, the fate of the Waikato region.
Auckland at alert level 3 will shift to the new traffic light system when they reach 90% double vaccination. Fair enough, they have been through a lot and done a lot of 'heavy lifting'. The South Island might also move when they all reach 90%. They will have done the right thing and can migrate across.
The Waikato is currently at alert level 3, daily covid numbers have me wondering if the virus will be stamped out in our rohe or whether we will continue in the level 3 twilight zone. the Waikato is doing it's share of the heavy lifting as well now. By my calculations it will be only behind Auckland in terms of weeks in Levels 3&4 lockdowns.
Should this area be stuck in level 3 I think the same provisions given to Auckland need to apply here as well. Once we have reached 90% double vaxed we transition to the new traffic light system. If that option is not given to the Waikato, we face the inequity of sitting at level 3 waiting for all other DHBs to do the right thing. However those areas stay at level 2 and the Waikato at level 3. That wait will be pretty unfair.
In order to get to 90% the Waikato will need to have our less vaccinated populations – maori and pasifika – much better vaccinated. That's what it will take to get to 90%, such is the ethnic make up of the region, it won't be pakeha alone getting us there. So no one ethnicity will be 'left behind'. We currently have a level 3 border within the Waikato so moving to the traffic light system with a DHB wide border will not make a substantive difference. The border will simply enlarge. If we can be trusted to have a 'soft' border now, we can be trusted to have a 'soft' border under the new traffic lights.
Thus, if we cannot soon stamp out covid in the Waikato, and it becomes entrenched, then the provision must be made available to Waikato to join the likes of Auckland to transition to the traffic light system when we reach 90% double vaccinated, rather than wait for the rest of the country. We can have the same restrictions placed on us, like a border. It will allow us to control our own fate and avoid the risk of the Waikato being the only area stuck in level 3 and waiting for everyone else to get to 90%. Or, put it another way, the Waikato wants the ability to control it's own fate to get out of Level 3, not rely on the Sandra Goudies and Pembroke Birds of other areas.
Why should having had Covid 19 in your community in the past have anything to do with whether you should be locked up in the future? Why free up Auckland but keep restrictions in Christchurch just because Auckland had a Covid infection in the past but Christchurch didn't?
I personally think that the whole silly scheme is going to collapse shortly after the drop the level in Auckland down the traffic light scale. Do you really think that the people in DHB areas with high vaccination levels are going to tolerate have to put up with irksome restrictions just because people living hundreds of kilometres away happen to live in an arbitrarily defined area, ie another DHB area, that has lower levels of vaccination?
Like hell they will. That is when the Government, although it contains a lot of JAFAs, is going to be reminded that more than 2/3 of the voters do NOT live in Auckland and you offend them all at your peril. They, the Government, won't admit that they got it wrong of course. They will simply change tack and tell us that it was our fault for misunderstanding their plans and that they really meant something quite different.
sound essentially like you are supporting what I have said.
Auckland is doing the right thing and will get out of level 3 to the traffic light system at 90% vaccination. South Island will go from level 2 to the traffic lights at 90%.
The outlier will be the Waikato. In case you have missed the news, we are at LEVEL 3. If the outbreak cannot be stamped out we run the risk of remaining here for weeks on end – 3 weeks already. We did the Level 4 & 3 with the rest of the country, had a shortish period at level 2, now back to level 3.
When Auckland migrates, the Waikato might be the ONLY area left at level 3. The logical thing then is to treat us like Auckland, allow us to migrate to the traffic lights when WE reach 90% vaccination rate. If that involves a boundary around the Waikato all good and fine. We have that already so no big difference. That way we will not be locked at level 3 and dependent on other DHBs getting to 90% before WE can migrate to the traffic lights. We can go there when we are ready, the other areas enjoying level 2 can migrate to the traffic lights when they have got themselves in order.
No, I am not agreeing with you. The first thing is that you say that "South Island will go from level 2 to the traffic lights at 90%". This MAY happen for the SI in isolation but it is only promised if every other DHB has got to 90%. They simply haven't stated the SI option of going early as anything other than a possibility.
The second, and more significant thing, is that you say that the Waikato should be allowed to migrate to the traffic lights when WE reach 90%. By WE I assume you mean the Waikato, not all DHBs. I want to know why the Waikato can do that but not, say, my own area of Wellington. Why do you say that Wellington can't go to the traffic light system if perhaps the Lakes DHB district hasn't reached 90% but Wellington has? Why should we have to wait for the bottom of the South Island but you don't?
And I am afraid that saying that you are suffering now doesn't cut it. These gradings are meant to be for health reasons, not because you were unlucky enough to have Covid cases at a time when we didn't.
I wouldn't bet on any of the proposal being fixed of course. The people making the decisions are politicians and they are making them based only on what they see as the politics of the matter. Pissing off 2/3 of the voters in the country, and seeing any chance of staying in office vanishing will concentrate their minds in a quite amazing manner. You will notice that any talk of relying on the "experts" has become so yesterday-ish?
pretty simply really, you are at level 2 and have been for the past 3 weeks.
we are at level 3 and have been for the past 3 weeks and looks like we might well be for some more weeks yet.
if you want to introduce covid back into Wellington and spend a number of weeks at level 3 in order to have the option I have discussed, go for it.
What would you rather have though, stay at level 2 for a number of weeks waiting for other DHBs, or, have a number of weeks at level 3 and have the option of moving to the traffic light system when your region gets to 90%. Which of those 2 scenarios are more palatable for you?
For us with covid now seeming digging itself in, and if that continues I want the option of us being able to control our own destinies. If we have to wait for every other area to get to 90% before we leave level 3 and migrate to the traffic lights as Auckland will be soon, then every other DHB should go to level 3 as well. We all wait and we all have the SAME lock down situation. If you don't like that idea then it's pretty simple, you can stay at level 2 and we can translate to the traffic lights.
I'm not going to debate with you any longer tonight. You, and the rest of the Waikato will by now be in mourning for their defeat by the Magnificent Magpies.
My consolations. As a Bay boy myself I feel for you. Well just a little bit. Aw, why lie about it. Come on The Bay!!!!!!!!!!
They offered something about a month ago that would provide you with a record of your vaccination status. You were supposed to be able to get an e-mail or a posted response.
To see how prepared they were my wife and I responded. My wife asked for an e-mail, and got a response within a couple of days. I asked for the mail option and I am still waiting. It will be 4 weeks on Monday. I fear the scheme is no better organised that all the other activities of this mob of incompetent idiots we have for a Government.
N.B. The current MPs do not personally organise your health records. This would be a function of the chronically underfunded public service and even more dysfunctional and broken health system.
You have no clue about the technical challenges involved in standing up a nation-wide secure system that validates all its users, supports all sorts of client devices, and integrates with the rest of government.
No of course he doesn't – but he's not interested in engaging with reality, his motivations are all located somewhere else.
I think getting the vaccine passport software ready, properly tested to handle the probably myriad marginal (non-standard) use cases, secure, load-tested etc. is a real risk to the transition to the traffic light system.
There are two places I wouldn't like to be working now – Counties-Manukau DHB, or the development team for the vaccine passport system.
There will be different vaccination certificates depending on whether you are using them within New Zealand, or for international travel. The QR codes will be different, and your international certificate will have more personal information.
You will be able to either print or save the QR codes on your smartphone in your Apple Wallet or Google Pay.
Domestic digital vaccination certificate
From the end of November, everyone in New Zealand will be able to access a digital vaccination certificate. This will include a QR code, which you can print or save to your phone.
You may be required to show this as proof of vaccination in a range of public settings. This could include:
events
hospitality
retail
sport
faith-based gatherings.
Requiring vaccination certificates will be optional for many locations.
You will not be required to show proof of vaccination to access supermarkets, pharmacies, health services, food banks and petrol stations.
There will be options available for people who do not have a smartphone or access to a computer.
Manana. Tomorrow they promise this. I was testing what they had said was available a month ago and it hasn't happened yet. When will they actually come up with something I was told I could get at the end of last month?
I gather that the proposal is that for those without smart phones or access to such technology the paper certificates will be available through GPs. They have access to NHI's.
what is stored on the QR code.
How we record your vaccination
When you get vaccinated, we record the details in the national COVID-19 Immunisation Register (CIR).
This includes:
your name, birth date, gender and National Health Index (NHI) number
your address and contact details
details about the vaccination/s you receive
any reactions you have to the vaccine.
The CIR will also record if you decide not to get a COVID-19 vaccine.
Sounds like our Aussie ones. We have Medicare issued vaccination certificates with no QR code, just names, Medicare numbers and details of the 2 Astrazeneca jabs with batch identification and who did the jabbing. We also have 'international' vaccination certs that have what the normal ones have as well as our NZ passport numbers on and a QR code with, presumably encrypted info of vaccine status, passport identification etc. We can print them off or show them on a tablet or smartphone. Haven't had a chance to use them yet with interborder travel across Oz even more of a dilemma than it is across NZ. We are in Queensland which miraculously seems to have avoided the plague rampaging over the border and has only had a few small outbreaks. The only problem is that it has made Queenslanders complacent. I haven't seen a mask in months, and the vaccination uptake here, like other Covid free states, has been slow – seems it takes the arrival of Delta to frighten most into getting the jab.
Norwegian Forest Cat. Close up he looks like a grey fluffy lion. Very large cat. Extra long claws. Waterproof fur. Avid hunter, even of ducks & other waterbirds. Suspected murderer of Aspen, Pickles, & Jojo Pook.
Norwegian Forest Cat. Close up he looks like a grey fluffy lion. Very large cat. Extra kong claws. Waterproof fur. Avid hunter, even of ducks & other waterbirds. Suspected murderer of Aspen, Pickles, & Jojo Pook.
Mod: Sorry, accidentally posted this again while editing text with 1st gif. Using my smartphone 1st time for posting. Can you just delete the copy, if possible?
Yes. The cat has a Greek name & a responsible young male owner. His owner was mortified to learn that his beautiful, very human-friendly cat was a bred-for-it apex predator who was killing birds of all sizes & kinds every single day. (I sent him a video of his cat ambushing birds on my property.)
He was renting in my area & subsequently moved, with his cat. Ending the killings. I am a former cat-lover, & still like cats, but will have no more cats at my place. Many are just too lethal to birds.
Pickles just "disappeared". My wonderful, friendly 9 mth old Aspen I found lying dead on the far side of the stream, with otherwise not a mark on him. And my 2nd baby pook, Jojo was found lying dead in shallow water 3 m downstream from my place, also unmarked. I cried buckets over Aspen & Jojo. Really surprised me how much I grieved. I decided after this to try not to get quite so emotionally attached to the local wildlife.
Further to the "Friday will Change Us"… it does feel like the world has shifted. The traffic light system is a signal of a new normal. Crisis capitalism will not save us
It is just levels, but the govt lumping the respnsibilities of moving between them on DHBs, and Ardern not having to front any more for cocking up the vaccine roll out.
Aye. Whenever you find yourself in a lather about our government’s ‘shambles’ of a vaccine roll out, it may help to re-read this advice from another commenter here.
Pointing out one party passes responsibility onto the shoulders of another who are probably about to lose their jobs anyway, because the first cocked it up (Vaccine roll out) is not bitching.
It is just observation of happenings.
It would be like saying "It is clouding over. Looks like we might get rain" is saying the person is bitching about clouds.
Admittedly I wouldn’t call the clouds pathetic
But the govt has the greatest minds in the country supposedly advising them yet still fobbed it off. So different
My only points were that it seems very openly the govt have passed responsibility to "their" chosen too high (in my personal opinion 90%) target from themselves onto the DHBs
This is quite clever and creates a no lose/big win scenario.
They cocked up the vaccine roll out and our scrambling. If any DHBs can't meet the 90% Ardern can blame the DHB. If all DHBs hit 90% it will be Ardern getting the glory.
All the while the DHB staff know that Ardern is restructuring their arse, merging them all atm and probablytrying to justify their job to keep it.
It is clever manipulation by Ardern's PR people to save her arse from cocking up the vaccine roll out and giving her a shit load of people to put the blame on if it goes sour.
As I say. I am not bitching. Think it is quite clever. But pretty nasty IMHO
It is clever manipulation by Ardern's PR people to save her arse from cocking up the vaccine roll out…
Again, if you choose to characterise Kiwis being more highly vaccinated against Covid than Aussies (when NZ currently has a couple of extra months up it's sleeves to adapt to its Delta outbreak compared to Australia), as "cocking up", then you’re beyond help, imho. Be well.
From just some of your 35 comments here today – "cocking up", "screwed up", "stuffed up". Now that's bitching.
They [our government] will screw it up like everything else big they have tried to organise.
It is a stupidly high number, and purely picked to make the govt look good if they get to it.
If they all do it and hit 90%. Hey Ardern did that. It is amazing! She's the greatest! [OK, we agree there.]
Given their [our government's] record organisation wise. Can't see this before christmas.
Make it f’ing clearer how it will work?
Should have blocked the Island off ages ago to anyone that can't pass a rapid saliva test before going there, but as usual. Too slow.
...Ardern not having to front any more for cocking up the vaccine roll out. Frankly it is pathetic.
I just pointed out the govt stuffed up the vaccine roll out.
… How many of their lifes are ok to lose because the govt screwed up the vaccine roll out btw?
Not that this lot [our government] will think of it.
But she [PM Ardern] is getting a bit them and us, and will probably get worse I reckon.
I look yet see nothing justifying lumping it on DHBs halway through being restructured.
Also missed the bit where if the vaccine was rolled out earlier we would already be on 90% probably , and she wouldn't have had to throw DHBs under the bus.
I look yet see nothing justifying lumping it on DHBs halway through being restructured.
Haven't DHBs been responsible for implementing the vaccine roll out all along?
Are you bitching about our government setting a % vaccinated target [I believe business leaders, politicians and others have been calling for target to be set], or are you complaining only about the target being too high?
And, if 90% proves too high (which imho is unlikely, although a few months ago I wouldn't have given you tuppence for the team getting to 90%), might the government have had a reason for setting it that high?
Um. No. The perception at least to me, was the govt was.
Hence the daily pressers.
As an aside. When I get caught up in these actual interactional convos on here my experience is a particular mod ends up suspending me for months on end, so do you mind if we talk about it tomorrow?
I think it is a personality clash thing. Probably my fault. Just realised it is starting toget to that time.
Hindsight is wonderful – personally I thought the medical assessments to be able to convince New Zealanders that the vaccination would be safe were done very quickly, and given the excellent results we had achieved in limiting local infections, I am not surprised that other countries were less inclined to take that step and that manufacturers were prepared to sell more quickly to countries with dreadful rates of infection.
Our results remain very very good – the programmes of vaccination and lockdowns work together – I suspect we would have had more people getting vaccinated if, like other countries, we had a lot of deaths – is that what you believe we should have had, chris T?
And restructuring has barely started – those working on Covid issues will barely be affected.
And on a different topic, that is a wonderful quote above: "Most of those finding anything they can to bitch about re vaccinations should look at themselves in the mirror and wonder that in the stuff-up, the oversight, the schemozzle, the disaster, at least one prick made it through."
That's a pity – the first time I read Pete's comment I found it LOL funny, and still get a chuckle out of it even now, although I must have read it at least a dozen times. It's just so observant.
As it is easier. Are you denying if the govt had rolled out the vaccine earlier we would already be at 90 % (Give or take a 1 or 2% of weirdo anti vaxers)?
To be honest with you chris, I’m not sure if “we would already be at 90%” – are you? Guess you are – after all you've already stated [@11.1.1.2.1.1] that you think the 90% target is too high.
Which begs the question – why all your concern that we might actually reach that target? Although it would certainly be a great outcome for the team, just like the excellent Covid health outcomes that the team has achieved to date.
"The team" is a shortened reference to "The Team of Five Million." Are you on that team chris T?
Staff that run DHBs, including healthcare professionals responsible for implementing NZ's vaccine roll out, are a vital part of the team against the pandemic; always have been, and I hope they always will be. A shout out to them; please hang in there.
What exactly united the 'team of 5 million' to quash Covid-19?
The Ministry of Health's own chief science adviser, Dr Ian Town, similarly credited Bloomfield and Ardern's careful, unifying messaging from the Beehive podiums – but also the efforts of all Kiwis this year.
"The team of five million won the day."
Regarding that problematic 90% target:
And yes I think we would be at 90% by now if the govt rolled it out earlier.
But on the other hand personally only. Think 90% is a dumb stupidly high percentage either way
If you think that the team would have been 90% vaxxed by now with an earlier vaccine roll out, then surely a target of 90% is still acheivable. And, if that’s the case, then I can’t make sense of your choice to characterise 90% as “a dumb stupidly high percentage“.
""The team" is an shortened reference to "The Team of Five Million." Are you on the team chris T?"
Well funny enough, yes I am Drowsy, mate if I could carry off a short skirt and pom poms I''d be doing the cart wheels, which is why I am finding it hard for you to not get my point she dumped responsibility with vaccination numbers from her looking after her "team" (and me with pom poms) to the DHBs she is halfway through dismatilling.
…. my point she dumped responsibility with vaccination numbers from her looking after her "team" (and me with pom poms) to the DHBs she is halfway through dismatilling.
DHB staff have been at the coalface of implementing the vaccine roll out since it's inception, with coordinating support from the MoH.
Business interests, politicians and others have been crying out for a ‘% of eligible Kiwis fully vaccinated’ target at which lockdowns will end. That target has now been set: 90%. DHBs will continue to implement the vaccine roll out, with further assistance from the MoH.
It’s not “her team” – it’s ‘The Team’. I don't understand what you're so agitated about.
Do you have a link about PM Ardern being "halfway through dismatilling" the DHBs? I'm interested in getting a little more detail on how far the restructuring has progressed.
Brings up another point actually. Will the govt still be restructuring the DHBs under covid for the forseeable future and after lumping them with acceptable vax percentages?
I just wished a lovely friend a happy birthday on facebook. I haven't seen her for ages because she lives in Auckland. Suddenly Vera Lynn's song "We'll meet again" came into what goes for my mind these days. The song of the age again?
I applied for my vaccination certificate on Tuesday and received it on Friday. I asked for it to be by email, the other option being to a physical address. It was easy as. I printed out 3 copies in case the boss wants me to supply it (guaranteed that they will) so I can hoover up any extra shifts as I work as a casual. I will get the app when it appears.
That is an actual issue I think with the physical cert side of things.
No way to send by email and print. Would have to be a non fakeable plastic thing like drivers licences, passports and cash. With unique QR codes or a chip.
Other wise you could have printed 20 and sold them to your mates for ten bucks each with QR codes
Been working from home. Decided why the hell am I bothering shaving? Grew beard for first time in my life. Thought I could just get it trimmed if gets too full on at the barber. Forgot barbers make you wear masks so can't trim.
Any advice from the bearded posters for a first timer? As the full on has hit.
Is it just small scissors and play it by ear? Or is their some secret method of buying a lady shave and doing a kind of number 3 or something?
Don't really wan't to be mistaken for the last surviving member of ZZ Top
I got a cheap corded set of clippers from the warehouse. I already had a battery set for detail trimming, but the batteries wind down pretty quickly. Corded set is nice and quiet, but the weight and shake of the cord makes them less precise.
I've tried a beard once in my life. Stuck it out for about four months. The itching drove me bonkers, and it really wasn't any good at storing breakfast leftovers for morning tea. Never been tempted to try it again.
No problem. If you don't live near a Harvey Norman I bet they will courier it to you. Dunno about all them bits & pieces but for $24 who cares. I just use the trimmer & charger. Learning the technique of careful usage takes a wee while.
I have boycotted Harvey Norman ever since they refused to pay back the $13million Govt subsidy they received ,despite record earnings and a special dividend to shareholders of 6 cents.
I either use electric hair clippers comb 3 (9mm, I think) or just use the moustache trimmer on my electric shaver to trim the beard overall, based on previous experience of achieving satisfactory results that way too. 👍
I got a Remington from Noel Leeming recently but not sure yet I would recommend it, but as the others say, select the comb length for your own beard length. Take the comb off to do a sharp edge if you want to make it tidier. Am really looking forward, one day, to trying a hot towel beard trim at the Barbers when we can. Good luck. 👍
South Island case infected person now. Bit of downer. Should have blocked the Island off ages ago to anyone that can't pass a rapid saliva test before going there, but as usual. Too slow.
It’s not really a SI case but a Te Awamutu one so how the hell did it get here. To the ramparts now!!! Repel the invaders!!. Going to a movie and a meal in Blenheim tonight, should have the place to myself.
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This year, we've seen a radical, white supremacist government ignoring its Tiriti obligations, refusing to consult with Māori, and even trying to legislatively abrogate te Tiriti o Waitangi. When it was criticised by the Waitangi Tribunal, the government sabotaged that body, replacing its legal and historical experts with corporate shills, ...
Poor old democracy, it really is in a sorry state. It would be easy to put all the blame on the vandals and tyrants presently trashing the White House, but this has been years in the making. It begins with Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan and the spirit of Gordon ...
The new school lunches came in this week, and they were absolutely scrumptious.I had some, and even though Connor said his tasted like “stodge” and gave him a sore tummy, I myself loved it!Look at the photos - I knew Mr Seymour wouldn’t lie when he told us last year:"It ...
The tighter sanctions are modelled on ones used in Britain, which did push people off ‘the dole’, but didn’t increase the number of workers, and which evidence has repeatedly shown don’t work. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in our political economy around housing, ...
Catching you up on the morning’s global news and a quick look at the parallels -GLOBALTariffs are backSharemarkets in the US, UK and Europe have “plunged” in response to Trump’s tariffs. And while Mexico has won a one month reprieve, Canada and China will see their respective 25% and 10% ...
This post by Nicolas Reid was originally published on Linked in. It is republished here with permission. Gondolas are often in the news, with manufacturers of ropeway systems proposing them as a modern option for mass transit systems in New Zealand. However, like every next big thing in transport, it’s hard ...
This is a re-post from The Climate BrinkBoth 2023 and 2024 were exceptionally warm years, at just below and above 1.5C relative to preindustrial in the WMO composite of surface temperature records, respectively. While we are still working to assess the full set of drivers of this warmth, it is clear that ...
Hi,I woke up feeling nervous this morning, realising that this weekend Flightless Bird is going to do it’s first ever live show. We’re heading to a sold out (!) show in Seattle to test the format out in front of an audience. If it works, we’ll do more. I want ...
From the United-For-Now States of America comes the thrilling news that a New Zealander may be at the very heart of the current coup. Punching above our weight on the world stage once more! Wait, you may be asking, what New Zealander? I speak of Peter Thiel, made street legal ...
Even Stevens: Over the 33 years between 1990 and 2023 (and allowing for the aberrant 2020 result) the average level of support enjoyed by the Left and Right blocs, at roughly 44.5 percent each, turns out to be, as near as dammit, identical.WORLDWIDE, THE PARTIES of the Left are presented ...
Back in 2023, a "prominent political figure" went on trial for historic sex offences. But we weren't allowed to know who they were or what political party they were "prominent" in, because it might affect the way we voted. At the time, I said that this was untenable; it was ...
I'm going, I'm goingWhere the water tastes like wineI'm going where the water tastes like wineWe can jump in the waterStay drunk all the timeI'm gonna leave this city, got to get awayI'm gonna leave this city, got to get awayAll this fussing and fighting, man, you know I sure ...
Waitangi Day is a time to honour Te Tiriti o Waitangi and stand together for a just and fair Aotearoa. Across the motu, communities are gathering to reflect, kōrero, and take action for a future built on equity and tino rangatiratanga. From dawn ceremonies to whānau-friendly events, there are ...
Subscribe to Mountain Tūī ! Where you too can learn about exciting things from a flying bird! Tweet.Yes - I absolutely suck at marketing. It’s a fact.But first -My question to all readers is:How should I set up the Substack model?It’s been something I’ve been meaning to ask since November ...
Here’s the key news, commentary, reports and debate around Aotearoa’s political economy on politics and in the week to Feb 3:PM Christopher Luxon began 2025’s first day of Parliament last Tuesday by carrying on where left off in 2024, letting National’s junior coalition partner set the political agenda and dragging ...
Half of Pacific children sometimes going without food is just one of many heartbreaking lowlights in the Salvation Army’s annual State of the Nation report. ...
The Salvation Army’s State of the Nation report is a bleak indictment on the failure of Government to take steps to end poverty, with those on benefits, including their children, hit hardest. ...
New Zealand First has today introduced a Member’s Bill which would restore decision-making power to local communities regarding the fluoridation of drinking water. The ‘Fluoridation (Referendum) Legislation Bill’ seeks to repeal the Health (Fluoridation of Drinking Water) Amendment Act 2021 that granted centralised authority to the Direct General of Health ...
New Zealand First has introduced a Member’s Bill aimed at preventing banks from refusing their services to businesses because of the current “Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Framework”. “This Bill ensures fairness and prevents ESG standards from perpetuating woke ideology in the banking sector being driven by unelected, globalist, climate ...
Erica Stanford has reached peak shortsightedness if today’s announcement is anything to go by, picking apart immigration settings piece by piece to the detriment of the New Zealand economy. ...
Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. The intention was to establish a colony with the cession of sovereignty to the Crown, ...
Te Whatu Ora Chief Executive Margie Apa leaving her job four months early is another symptom of this government’s failure to deliver healthcare for New Zealanders. ...
The Green Party is calling for the Prime Minister to show leadership and be unequivocal about Aotearoa New Zealand’s opposition to a proposal by the US President to remove Palestinians from Gaza. ...
The latest unemployment figures reveal that job losses are hitting Māori and Pacific people especially hard, with Māori unemployment reaching a staggering 9.7% for the December 2024 quarter and Pasifika unemployment reaching 10.5%. ...
Waitangi 2025: Waitangi Day must be community and not politically driven - Shane Jones Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. ...
Despite being confronted every day with people in genuine need being stopped from accessing emergency housing – National still won’t commit to building more public houses. ...
The Green Party says the Government is giving up on growing the country’s public housing stock, despite overwhelming evidence that we need more affordable houses to solve the housing crisis. ...
Before any thoughts of the New Year and what lies ahead could even be contemplated, New Zealand reeled with the tragedy of Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming losing her life. For over 38 years she had faithfully served as a front-line Police officer. Working alongside her was Senior Sergeant Adam Ramsay ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson will return to politics at Waitangi on Monday the 3rd of February where she will hold a stand up with fellow co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick. ...
Te Pāti Māori is appalled by the government's blatant mishandling of the school lunch programme. David Seymour’s ‘cost-saving’ measures have left tamariki across Aotearoa with unidentifiable meals, causing distress and outrage among parents and communities alike. “What’s the difference between providing inedible food, and providing no food at all?” Said ...
The Government is doubling down on outdated and volatile fossil fuels, showing how shortsighted and destructive their policies are for working New Zealanders. ...
Green Party MP Steve Abel this morning joined Coromandel locals in Waihi to condemn new mining plans announced by Shane Jones in the pit of the town’s Australian-owned Gold mine. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to strengthen its just-announced 2030-2035 Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement and address its woeful lack of commitment to climate security. ...
Today marks a historic moment for Taranaki iwi with the passing of the Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill in Parliament. "Today, we stand together as descendants of Taranaki, and our tūpuna, Taranaki Maunga, is now formally acknowledged by the law as a living tūpuna. ...
Labour is relieved to see Children’s Minister Karen Chhour has woken up to reality and reversed her government’s terrible decisions to cut funding from frontline service providers – temporarily. ...
It is the first week of David Seymour’s school lunch programme and already social media reports are circulating of revolting meals, late deliveries, and mislabelled packaging. ...
The Green Party says that with no-cause evictions returning from today, the move to allow landlords to end tenancies without reason plunges renters, and particularly families who rent, into insecurity and stress. ...
The Government’s move to increase speed limits substantially on dozens of stretches of rural and often undivided highways will result in more serious harm. ...
In her first announcement as Economic Growth Minister, Nicola Willis chose to loosen restrictions for digital nomads from other countries, rather than focus on everyday Kiwis. ...
The Government’s commitment to get New Zealand’s roads back on track is delivering strong results, with around 98 per cent of potholes on state highways repaired within 24 hours of identification every month since targets were introduced, Transport Minister Chris Bishop says. “Increasing productivity to help rebuild our economy is ...
The former Cadbury factory will be the site of the Inpatient Building for the new Dunedin Hospital and Health Minister Simeon Brown says actions have been taken to get the cost overruns under control. “Today I am giving the people of Dunedin certainty that we will build the new Dunedin ...
From today, Plunket in Whāngarei will be offering childhood immunisations – the first of up to 27 sites nationwide, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. The investment of $1 million into the pilot, announced in October 2024, was made possible due to the Government’s record $16.68 billion investment in health. It ...
New Zealand’s strong commitment to the rights of disabled people has continued with the response to an important United Nations report, Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston has announced. Of the 63 concluding observations of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), 47 will be progressed ...
Resources Minister Shane Jones has launched New Zealand’s national Minerals Strategy and Critical Minerals List, documents that lay a strategic and enduring path for the mineral sector, with the aim of doubling exports to $3 billion by 2035. Mr Jones released the documents, which present the Coalition Government’s transformative vision ...
Firstly I want to thank OceanaGold for hosting our event today. Your operation at Waihi is impressive. I want to acknowledge local MP Scott Simpson, local government dignitaries, community stakeholders and all of you who have gathered here today. It’s a privilege to welcome you to the launch of the ...
Racing Minister, Winston Peters has announced the Government is preparing public consultation on GST policy proposals which would make the New Zealand racing industry more competitive. “The racing industry makes an important economic contribution. New Zealand thoroughbreds are in demand overseas as racehorses and for breeding. The domestic thoroughbred industry ...
Business confidence remains very high and shows the economy is on track to improve, Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis says. “The latest ANZ Business Outlook survey, released yesterday, shows business confidence and expected own activity are ‘still both very high’.” The survey reports business confidence fell eight points to +54 ...
Enabling works have begun this week on an expanded radiology unit at Hawke’s Bay Fallen Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital which will double CT scanning capacity in Hawke’s Bay to ensure more locals can benefit from access to timely, quality healthcare, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. This investment of $29.3m in the ...
The Government has today announced New Zealand’s second international climate target under the Paris Agreement, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand will reduce emissions by 51 to 55 per cent compared to 2005 levels, by 2035. “We have worked hard to set a target that is both ambitious ...
Nine years of negotiations between the Crown and iwi of Taranaki have concluded following Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/the Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill passing its third reading in Parliament today, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “This Bill addresses the historical grievances endured by the eight iwi ...
As schools start back for 2025, there will be a relentless focus on teaching the basics brilliantly so all Kiwi kids grow up with the knowledge, skills and competencies needed to grow the New Zealand of the future, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “A world-leading education system is a key ...
Housing Minister Chris Bishop and Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson have welcomed Kāinga Ora’s decision to re-open its tender for carpets to allow wool carpet suppliers to bid. “In 2024 Kāinga Ora issued requests for tender (RFTs) seeking bids from suppliers to carpet their properties,” Mr Bishop says. “As part ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today visited Otahuhu College where the new school lunch programme has served up healthy lunches to students in the first days of the school year. “As schools open in 2025, the programme will deliver nutritious meals to around 242,000 students, every school day. On ...
Minister for Children Karen Chhour has intervened in Oranga Tamariki’s review of social service provider contracts to ensure Barnardos can continue to deliver its 0800 What’s Up hotline. “When I found out about the potential impact to this service, I asked Oranga Tamariki for an explanation. Based on the information ...
A bill to make revenue collection on imported and exported goods fairer and more effective had its first reading in Parliament, Customs Minister Casey Costello said today. “The Customs (Levies and Other Matters) Amendment Bill modernises the way in which Customs can recover the costs of services that are needed ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Department of Internal Affairs [the Department] has achieved significant progress in completing applications for New Zealand citizenship. “December 2024 saw the Department complete 5,661 citizenship applications, the most for any month in 2024. This is a 54 per cent increase compared ...
Reversals to Labour’s blanket speed limit reductions begin tonight and will be in place by 1 July, says Minister of Transport Chris Bishop. “The previous government was obsessed with slowing New Zealanders down by imposing illogical and untargeted speed limit reductions on state highways and local roads. “National campaigned on ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis has announced Budget 2025 – the Growth Budget - will be delivered on Thursday 22 May. “This year’s Budget will drive forward the Government’s plan to grow our economy to improve the incomes of New Zealanders now and in the years ahead. “Budget 2025 will build ...
For the Government, 2025 will bring a relentless focus on unleashing the growth we need to lift incomes, strengthen local businesses and create opportunity. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today laid out the Government’s growth agenda in his Statement to Parliament. “Just over a year ago this Government was elected by ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour welcomes students back to school with a call to raise attendance from last year. “The Government encourages all students to attend school every day because there is a clear connection between being present at school and setting yourself up for a bright future,” says Mr ...
The Government is relaxing visitor visa requirements to allow tourists to work remotely while visiting New Zealand, Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis, Immigration Minister Erica Stanford and Tourism Minister Louise Upston say. “The change is part of the Government’s plan to unlock New Zealand’s potential by shifting the country onto ...
The opening of Kāinga Ora’s development of 134 homes in Epuni, Lower Hutt will provide much-needed social housing for Hutt families, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “I’ve been a strong advocate for social housing on Kāinga Ora’s Epuni site ever since the old earthquake-prone housing was demolished in 2015. I ...
Trade and Investment Minister Todd McClay will travel to Australia today for meetings with Australian Trade Minister, Senator Don Farrell, and the Australia New Zealand Leadership Forum (ANZLF). Mr McClay recently hosted Minister Farrell in Rotorua for the annual Closer Economic Relations (CER) Trade Ministers’ meeting, where ANZLF presented on ...
A new monthly podiatry clinic has been launched today in Wairoa and will bring a much-needed service closer to home for the Wairoa community, Health Minister Simeon Brown says.“Health New Zealand has been successful in securing a podiatrist until the end of June this year to meet the needs of ...
The Judicial Conduct Commissioner has recommended a Judicial Conduct Panel be established to inquire into and report on the alleged conduct of acting District Court Judge Ema Aitken in an incident last November, Attorney-General Judith Collins said today. “I referred the matter of Judge Aitken’s alleged conduct during an incident ...
Students who need extra help with maths are set to benefit from a targeted acceleration programme that will give them more confidence in the classroom, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Last year, significant numbers of students did not meet the foundational literacy and numeracy level required to gain NCEA. To ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters has announced three new diplomatic appointments. “Our diplomats play an important role in ensuring New Zealand’s interests are maintained and enhanced across the world,” Mr Peters says. “It is a pleasure to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and ...
Ki te kahore he whakakitenga, ka ngaro te Iwi – without a vision, the people will perish. The Government has achieved its target to reduce the number of households in emergency housing motels by 75 per cent five years early, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. The number of households ...
The opening of Palmerston North’s biggest social housing development will have a significant impact for whānau in need of safe, warm, dry housing, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. The minister visited the development today at North Street where a total of 50 two, three, and four-bedroom homes plus a ...
The lead witness in Ngāi Tahu’s freshwater claim says the case raises an “existentialist question” for his people.“My greatest fear is that we will have our connection with our land and waterways extinguished,” Te Maire Tau (Ngāi Tahu/Ngāi Tūāhuriri) said in the Christchurch High Court, before Justice Melanie Harland. The university history ...
Over the past few weeks, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has had public tiffs with the leaders of both the Cook Islands and Kiribati.The issues: first Peters put foreign aid to Kiribati under review after President Taneti Maamau cancelled a meeting with him. Then this week, Peters accused the PM of ...
New Zealand employers are well-used to the constant evolution of employment and workplace health and safety law – but we think the scope of changes in this area may still surprise in 2025. In our view, the number of changes under active consideration and the potential practical impact of those ...
As New Zealand woke to Waitangi Day, 1600 athletes and their support crew began to descend on the sleepy west coast town of Greymouth, ready to take on the iconic multisport race, the Coast to Coast.Among the cars laden with kayaks, bikes and enough race food to feed a small ...
I collect sailing books, especially solo sailing adventures. I sail a lot and when in meetings, I think about sailing rather than focus on the dry PowerPoint presentations of earnest landlubbers. Just quietly, I also offer dead sailors drinks and occasionally good books over the side when I am at ...
Proposed changes to the Fisheries Act 1996 could see on-board cameras, introduced to protect endangered marine and seabird species, shut off from public view. Lyric Waiwiri-Smith explains.Minister for oceans and fisheries Shane Jones was in his element on Wellington’s waterfront on Wednesday morning. While waves crashed onto the rocks ...
The prime minister has had a bad week, and it’s barely Thursday. This week’s Luxon low points, ranked.8. Bad poll, part oneA Taxpayers’ Union-Curia Poll released on Monday showed that Labour, the Greens, and Te Pāti Māori could form a government. Christopher Luxon is down 3.8 points at ...
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Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Appiah Takyi, Senior Lecturer, Department of Planning, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) Street vending is a major economic activity in most of Ghana’s urban areas. The vendors bring everyday goods to residents and commuters at affordable prices in ...
Report by Dr David Robie – Café Pacific. – The United States shares the pathologies of all dying empires with their mixture of buffoonery, rampant corruption, military fiascos, economic collapse and savage state repression.ANALYSIS: By Chris Hedges The billionaires, Christian fascists, grifters, psychopaths, imbeciles, narcissists and deviants who ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The Albanese government has secured bipartisan support for a major new regime covering political donations and spending, after making significant concessions. The government agreed to increase the proposed threshold above which donations must be disclosed ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra With the election only months away, the Labor government finds itself suddenly battling with the Trump administration for an exemption from new US tariffs on steel and aluminium. The opposition has supported the effort, but ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Julee McDonagh, Senior Research Fellow of Frailty Research, University of Wollongong PeopleImages.com – Yuri A/Shutterstock Ageing is a normal part of the life course. It doesn’t matter how many green smoothies you drink, or how many “anti-ageing” skin care products you ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bronwyn Carlson, Professor, Critical Indigenous Studies and Director of The Centre for Global Indigenous Futures, Macquarie University The Conversation, CC BY-SAAboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised this article contains names and images of deceased people. Colonial commemorations ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Susan Hazel, Associate Professor, School of Animal and Veterinary Science, University of Adelaide Masarik/Shutterstock In some overseas countries, pets can travel with their owners in a plane’s cabin, in a carrier under a seat. In Australia, pets must travel in the ...
A raft of proposed legislation changes to the media and screen industry have been announced this morning – we read through it all all so you don’t have to. What’s all this then? This morning the Ministry for Culture and Heritage released its draft proposed changes to media and screen ...
David Seymour's recent off-road parliamentary excursion led to a reprimand from the Speaker, who also said the rules didn't apply to this instance. What are the rules? ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lee Morgenbesser, Associate Professor, School of Government and International Relations, Griffith University, Griffith University Many Americans have watched in horror as Elon Musk, the world’s richest person, has been permitted to tear through various offices of the United States government in recent ...
By Patrick Decloitre,RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk French Minister for Overseas Manuel Valls has announced he will travel to New Caledonia later this month to pursue talks on the French territory’s political future. These discussions on February 22 follow preliminary talks held last week in Paris in “bilateral” mode ...
As Benjamin Netanyahu threatens to resume war, Hamas outlines widespread Israeli ceasefire violations in document sent to the mediators.By Jeremy Scahill and Sharif Abdel Kouddous of Dropsite News Hamas officials submitted a two-page report to mediators yesterday listing a wide range of Israeli violations of the Gaza ceasefire since ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Murray Print, Professor of Education, University of Sydney A federal parliamentary inquiry has just recommended civics and citizenship become a compulsory part of the Australian Curriculum, which covers the first year of school to Year 10. The committee also recommended a ...
Welcome to The Spinoff Books Confessional, in which we get to know the reading habits of Aotearoa writers, and guests. This week: Claire Baylis, author of Dice and guest at the forthcoming HamLit programme at the Hamilton Arts Festival. The book I wish I’d writtenMy mind seems surprisingly unwilling ...
The courts should deal with illegal fishing, not the "court of public opinion", Shane Jones says, as he announces proposed changes to the Quota Management System. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Megan McElhone, Senior Lecturer in Criminology, Monash University A London court has found Sam Kerr not guilty of the racially aggravated harassment of Metropolitan Police officer Stephen Lovell. As captain of the Australian women’s national soccer team, Kerr was widely condemned when ...
Could iwi and hapū be the unexpected solution to the government’s asset dilemma? David Seymour pressured the prime minister into an unwelcome conversation, and in the couple of weeks since the Act leader raised the issue in his state of the nation speech, privatisation has shifted from absent in the ...
Human rights advocates must uphold human dignity, rights and justice, while rejecting the discriminatory tactics we oppose, writes Taimor Hazou.Two weeks ago the Palestinian Solidarity Network Aotearoa (PSNA) launched a campaign inviting New Zealanders to call a hotline if they suspected an Israel Defence Force (IDF) soldier that had ...
Immigration New Zealand figures shows more people have been looking at the ETA and visitor visa pages on the website, however fewer people have applied to come or to extend their stay. ...
Ceri Black, the woman who has been asked to voluntarily go to the police station (and if she doesn’t ,get arrested) speaks.All this because of a complaint lodged by a man about her tweets.
https://ceriblack.substack.com/p/full-text-of-my-speech-to-the-belfast
Increidble. This women is really courageous.
Thanks for posting Francesca. Is this the same women Weka posted about yesterday.
Yes, it is
And this is precisely the sort of nonsense we'll get here if Faafoi get's his way.
All power to Ceri.
Faafoi is merely a messenger, who can be replaced by the leaders of Gov at any instance, or what its worth, he could also resign if he don't want his good name to be attached to this abomination of a law.
This bill is being shoved down these sweet lands is courtesy of the full Labour Party / Government with their handmaiden/aunt lydia the Green Party.
you can watch here
https://fb.watch/8OYZwXyK2O/
I wonder what Hone Harawira is doing to keep the virus out of the North and to help the people get vaccinated. Whatever he's doing is usually a good practical effort using locals to do the mahi. We in regions could do a lot worse, like do nothing, than to do similar to Hone Harawira, whatever it is. I have some faith in the man in times of shit.
With the coming "opening" of Auckland that bloody virus will get everywhere before we know it. Regional borders could be a thing, run by locals. Something must be able to be done and not just let Auckland infect the whole country. (sorry Auckland).
Labour Weekend is going to spread Covid. No city, region, town or settlement is immune. Delta just happened to come to Auckland first.
Hone has been active in setting up roadblocks. So that's doing something to try to keep covid out of Northland.
I haven't seen anything suggesting he's been active in trying to lift vaccination rates.
Well what could private citizen Hone Harawira do that he not already doing? Because he is raising the issue with the leaky border – leaky side being Akl/Cops, not his border patrol. As for the vaccination drive,
He has been quite vocal about he issues in Northland re safety from covid, vaccinations and the leaky borders.
https://waateanews.com/2021/08/24/northland-in-real-danger-from-delta/
https://www.teaomaori.news/slam-f-door-on-auckland-hone-harawira
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/300426881/covid19-anger-as-northlanders-prepare-for-the-worst
just a few links.
"We have a curious dialogue which implicitly equates Māori with the lower classes, drawing attention to their low incomes, their poverty, their unemployment, their poor health, housing and life prospects and their high incarceration rates. All true on average, but demeaning to many Māori, who have good jobs, decent incomes, reasonable health, their own homes and high social status and who are proud of their culture. It is true there are proportionally fewer of them than for Pakeha, but it is also true that there are many more Pakeha in total who are low in the socioeconomic ranking"
https://www.pundit.co.nz/content/vaccinating-the-underclass
An underclass typically unconsidered by the powers that be…..and that underclass continues to grow.
I’ve a lot of time for Brian Easton but I do wish he (and others) could find a different word for the group of people they label the underclass.
I like that he continues to highlight that there a plenty of Pākehā that belong to this group and plenty of Māori who don’t.
I spend quite a lot of time wondering why Pākehā in this group are ignored and have come to the conclusion that academics, politicians and other ‘thought leaders’ are racist or paternalistic believing that only (and all) Māori are this disengaged from society. And if they believe Pākehā are similarly disengaged, they also believe Pākehā have the means to get themselves out of a hole – personal responsibility and all that, or are disgusted that these people are letting the [Pākehā] side down so render them not worthy or invisible.
For the rest of us, thinking the ‘underclass is only Māori, that’s just shoving people in a box and equating ‘most of’ with ‘all’. We spend too much time categorising.
"I spend quite a lot of time wondering why Pākehā in this group are ignored and have come to the conclusion that academics, politicians and other ‘thought leaders’ are racist or paternalistic believing that only (and all) Māori are this disengaged from society."
I suspect it has more to do with the lack of consideration (understanding)….the 'underclass" (of all ethnicities) are dismissed as unimportant, indeed something to be 'tolerated' for the necessity of the labours they perform….the reality is our society is driven by and for the elites.
Hear hear. I find this curious too.
Very much like the old saying goes, if all hte poor people would see each other as poor and neglected first and different races/religions/sex last they could band together as poor people and maybe even bring about change. But then, divide and conquer is the current model and it seems to be working quite well.
Time and again Sabine we have counted on the poor etc to get the Left over the line at election time and every time they stay away in droves. They are just not engaged in politics, and the Right know it.
lol, and the poor vote for the right.
It is funny though, that the non voters that i know are well to do, white people in nice houses in nice areas.
Maybe neither the left nor the right has anything to offer to the poor?
the left, thinly applied empathy for a few deserving poor, a few pennies here and there when the visuals are too upsetting (kids living in vans or hovels), when it gets to cold and Nan can either eat or heat, etc etc. But no change what so ever. Try being an unemployed women in NZ who has a partner who still has an income, no matter how long you worked, no matter how much taxes you paid, you won't be getting a penny from Winz. Cause……surely your partner will give you some pin money and a daily feed. Thanks left of NZ.
the right, thickly applied 'can't be bothered at all' with most beneficiaries, as their list of the deserving poor is even shorter then that of the left. Lets cut the benefits, or not incresae them. Bootstraps for bootless people is the best they can offer.
Why on earth would any one in NZ who is poor, by unemployment, by unlucky draw of the health card, by sex – single women with children are pretty much the poorest in nz vote for the duopoly that is the political landscape in NZ? Oh to rubberstamp either party into existance?
Lol.
Maybe the left really needs to come to grips that the giveaway for one electric car (for the very rich of this country – cause one has to be rich to afford a new 35 000 NZD vehicle – at the low end that one) is more in one give away then the poor got over the last 5 years.
18% didn't vote in the last election. Who were they?
In the US with all the hullabaloo around the 2020 election and the candidates and NZ$19 billion spent on the campaigns, there was a record voter turnout but that was only 67%.
They analyse to the nth degree who did and didn't vote.
Yeah, I think so – economically marginalised Maori and economically marginalised Pākehā live in the same space, shop in the same places etc. Supporting one group and not the other creates division. Why on earth would the group that is left behind vote for a party that doesn’t see them?
It's no surprise that Te Paati Māori has MPs from Rotorua and Taranaki – and good on them. If only their party and the Labour party had enough in common to work together to bring about change for all the economically marginalised.
Economically marginalised Pākehā have yet to find a party that cares about their lives. Maybe they need a Trump or a Boris if Labour won't do it – their lives seem to be rock bottom, but at least they can shaft the centre-left. But what a disaster that would be for the rest of us.
Yes, I think women and singles are the bottom of most heaps, and if you are brown, even harder. Smart Asians anglicised their names to get past hiring agencies. That tells about bias. A great number of women will have lost part time or service positions lately, those favoured when they have a younger family.
As many office workers work from home office cleaners are not required, work cafeterias and cafes close, as firms make choices to work around covid.
Though covid has stripped away some pretensions about which functions in society are essential, those living alone are disadvantaged, as two incomes are needed to survive, one is often penury .We need to remember that and pay better rates for those part time service positions many younger and older citizens supplement income with.
As with there being no need to distinguish ethnicity, gender and partnership status are superfluous….there is perhaps only one delineation required…the 'deserving' and 'undeserving'…the former being those who labour as opposed to those who do not.
I have to disagree. Ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation and partnership status are all important. People may all be in similar dire situations but they may have different priorities and require different strategies to have the situations they live in improved.
It seems that there's a limited pot of empathy and caring (as well as money) that gets swapped from one group to the next and back again. While the well-off get bribed with tax cuts, and the wealth gap continues to widen. They governments for the well-off give up nothing for the economically marginalised and they can do so because the economically marginalised are labelled the "underclass", which is wrapped in stereotyped culture of personal failings that leaves them supposedly 'undeserving'.
This is just so wrong, or are you being cynical and it's gone way over my head?
Yes Miravox, I was thinking of my hard working cousin, who at 58 has few reserves, no home and is a grande' mal epileptic. She works in the "care industry" lives in as she has no home. After leaving a drug addled husband she brought up two great kids, they also rent. One in NSW and one in Auckland. She has not seen her children for two years as she works in Levin.
Then there is our nephew in NSW. He is in construction, has developed a fungal lung infection from timber he was working with. His wife left him and his share of things did not stretch to a home. He has been unable to work and is thankful for excellent medical treatment, but he too has a bleak future outlook.
A friend who helps me with the heavy cleaning once a fortnight, is juggling 5 part time jobs a sick husband and a 98 year old father.
Our son is awaiting 3 different surgical procedures in QLD, the prep for which needs dye tests to decide what part gets cut away next. He has had surgery delayed 3 times through covid. (Anne I see you
)So we have wee home but may have to do something drastic if things get really bad for him. How these situations work out for people with nothing and no hope who are called critical cruel unjust labels .. well "There but for the Grace…" OK some people are silly anti and misguided. But they are us. Our best and our worst.
None of these people I spoke of go without food, they are all hard workers when well, but none of them have been able to do more than keep afloat in normal times..then along came covid to add to their stress and problems.
I could tell 7 or 8 more stories like that, and I think the system is geared to two incomes.
Singles or people with a sick or unemployed partner are disadvantaged, and women more so because of the pay gap.
Also these days people need enough money for internet 'phone laptop rent and food. I feel the idea of a BUI is more appealing by the day, if it was near the level of the pension.
No doubt someone will say "We can't afford it" Wellbeing requires it.
It is a descriptive comment, not a judgement.
Whether it has gone over your head I cannot say….the point is how our society functions is determined by the wants of the elites not the needs of the whole, and much of what is debated on sites such as this is mere distraction from that fact…and that serves only one group.
.
Yep … you've hit the nail squarely on the head.
As true of an affluent power-hungry Woke as it is of the Neo-Liberal Right.
Keeping the wide goal in mind is essential, but so is looking at the subdivisions within the overarching delineation. These subdivisions involve different aspects of their creation and the way to overcome the inequities that result from that. Those differences sometimes require more than just a specific focus, they require effort on our part to realise the lenses we use to look at something often have filters installed by our place in society.
These are not distractions, any more than using the right tool for a job is a distraction. Sometimes you can fix everything with a hammer, sometimes it takes actual knowledge of what you're doing and the right tools to do it.
I was unable to read your meaning in the comment. But that's fair enough.
I agree that out society functions by the needs of the elite. I believe we can work to ease the problems of the people disadvantaged by that as well as working to change the system. I fear not doing that will lead to overthrow of the current elite that will hurt more people and in the end just install a different elite because we haven't actually learned how not to have an elite.
"…the former being those who labour as opposed to those who do not."
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-23-10-2021/#comment-1826868
"…the 'underclass" (of all ethnicities) are dismissed as unimportant, indeed something to be 'tolerated' for the necessity of the labours they perform…"
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-23-10-2021/#comment-1826867
That is a very Victorian view of the poor. Deserving and undeserving.
I believe that we are able to change things… getting bitter and putting labels on the haves is the same trap as putting labels on the poor. Those labels stop us seeing our common humanity… Our stories give us points of real connection, otherwise it is notional.
Its called divide and conquer. In the end it is this tit for tat, to and fro, low level disputes that keeps the unwashed masses ruminating in their little "class war" and all the while the carpet of protective law for all is pulled under all.
It needs a good minds, honest debate and an open ear and heart to understand and to prevent. Right now many have lost their compass and holding on to all those ideas that look like establishing balance but all it does is fanning hate and revenge. Some truly enjoying this and crime waves increase, being placated as the disadvantaged take their share and the law for all is “wrong”. The next generation will not just have to battle climate change, there is something more at stake.
" The next generation will not just have to battle climate change, there is something more at stake."
Indeed, but I fear they will be no more successful than the current generation….we are a slow to learn species.
Having trouble breathing? It's all them bits of plastic you're breathing in. https://thespinoff.co.nz/science/21-10-2021/is-it-a-bird-is-it-a-plane-no-its-millions-of-tiny-bits-of-plastic-above-our-heads/
So "scientists estimate that around half the plastic in the air is smaller than 5mm (the definition of a microplastic), with some in the nano-, or less than one micrometre, size range. That means there may be way more plastic in the air that this latest study didn’t account for."
But don't worry, be happy! Them bits of plastic can't really compete with Delta because their invasion technique is too random.
A good brushing of the tongue and a spit to clear the shit out.
Bad enough having to wear a dress shirt, eh? But good on the Texans for taking a belated stand against Beatlemania. The mop-top look was grossly uncool to those of us who were serious about long hair.
Hope they fight it to the Supreme Court, and Trump realises it's a golden opportunity to raise his waning profile. He ought to bankroll them. We see his hair creeping back over his collar on a regular basis. Fab way to reinforce his model rebel political praxis. Voters would recognise that it gives him authenticity.
Just out of interest
Does anyone on here happen to be in the govt business and know if these vax cert's are going to be a physical thing or just something added to the covid app' like a QR code which when scanned shows fully vaxed?
Because if physical it will be a logistical nightmare. If the later an actually good idea.
it should be both.
And consider also the idea – as portrayed in many a movies – no QRcode no passing from one sector to the next.
Ideally all that is needed for businesses is a certification like with the health rating. All staff are vaccinated hang that cert into your business window. Done. Unless we really are starting to advocate a society where every move must be on some app.
Needs to be both as many do not have devices which do "APPS" indeed many cannot afford the connectivity required to run the devices. Try keeping connected without the ability to pay for all this connection. Run out of "minutes" and no access is also a problem that can only be mitigated by physical paper.
The whole concept is fatally flawed.
Yeah that is a good point.
Can't afford smart phone? Sorry, not welcome, with my QR thinking. Bit dim on my part.
Agree, has to be both.
Personally I would also get both, as have a pre pay, with sheds of data, stuff all call time, but the monthly renewal always runs out with me not remembering to top up, and for a few days I’m carrying round a pretty pointless piece of plastic lol
With the current APP, a data connection is not required for it to work..
True I guess if it is a QR type thing. But it would still require a smart phone to display QR.
But if you can use a physical card as well that would alleviate that issue
Drivers licence type makes more sense to me.
Hopefully we can dispense with ID cards, again, when covid is sorted out.
You don't have to be "in the Govt Business" to know the answer. At one of the daily Press Conferences it was very specific it IS both. It can be on your phone or you can carry a hard copy around with you. I hope that clears it up for you Chris T, we wouldn't want to inadvertently cast doubt where doubt doesn't exist. Cheers
Some people struggle with simple instructions.
What instructions?
You kind of do as they are rolling it out.
And I don’t like many people watch every news conference.
Maybe they could. I don’t know. Make it f’ing clearer how it will work?
Seems pretty f'ing clear to me.
From the covid19 website under Vaccination Certificate it specifically states
"There will be options available for people who do not have a smartphone or access to a computer"
Perhaps if you have any other f'ing questions you might find the answers there. Unless you are fomenting f'ing mischief. Egg!
I think I will walk away from this convo' as it is getting obvious you do not get my point.
This is probably my fault for not expressing it properly, as not the greatest when it comes to typed conversations. So woouldn't be a first.
And if it carries on I will be the one who ends up suspended for months for not expressing myself well enough
All good.
It may be that many of those who are vaccine averse will not be persuaded otherwise.
Instead of further incentives/disincentives, why not look at other strategies
Namely what has been used in countries where wide roll outs of the vaccine have not been possible .
Those testing positive in early stages have been sent home with home treatment kits, monitored and re tested , with very good results. Not a clinical trial, but good epidemiological data
Chris Leitch of Social Credit has advocated this, and includes that data for reference.
https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/GE2110/S00137/call-for-treatment-kits-to-be-issued-to-home-isolatees.htm
I think it should be looked at, instead of the increasing divisiveness and futility in attempts to educate resistant people into accepting the vaccine.
The Principle Oxford study must be due out soon
https://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2021-06-23-ivermectin-be-investigated-possible-treatment-covid-19-oxford-s-principle-trial
At least we now know that ivermectin at 12 mg has a good safety profile.Worth a trial at least.
Of course there may still be hardliners who won’t accept any pharmaceutical, but I am seeing a lot of anti vaxxers who are only resistant to the MRNA vaccine.
Treatment packs may be more realistic than waiting for Novovax
Ivermectin became a litmus test – not so much as whether it worked or not because I'm willing to accept that the umpire is still out on that question – but because the Big Pharma 'there is no alternative to vaccines' narrative so blatantly attempted to discredit it.
Those of us who have consistently advocated that we should be intelligently trialing every possible tool have naturally been suspicious of this from the outset, a suspicion only inflamed by the vax only crowd vilifying and othering those whose conscience or beliefs led them to be hesitant or reject this narrow plan.
If nothing else we should have learned from the antibiotic resistance story, that if we impose a single narrow evolutionary pressure on any organism – it will likely find ways to evade that tool – no matter how promising. We've already seen this starting to happen with COVID vaccines. The correct way to avoid this mistake is not to mindlessly double down with more and more booster vaccines, but to be open to multiple different approaches with mutually exclusive mechanisms.
I think also the difficulty with ivermectin is that the studies have been so small, and many crappy. To do a big study with all the bells and whistles requires money.
No pharmaceutical company is interested in giving grants to a study that will not result in profits. Ivermectin is out of patent, easily produced , therefore cheap.
If not ivermectin other antivirals could be considered.
I agree with you, all this one way stuff is frustrating.
I think also the difficulty with ivermectin is that the studies have been so small, and many crappy.
That worried me less than the detractors would have it. Ivermectin would not be the first drug to have been successfully re-purposed based on small, crappy clinical trials. Those who have demanded that the only acceptable evidence would be a large, gold standard – and yes very expensive – RCT, conveniently overlook that medical progress has never relied on these alone. Decades of experience with meta-analysis has probably driven more innovation in medicine than RCT's.
Still ultimately we have to hope that eventually the blatant agendas and politics gets out of the way and we get to see some fully trusted data – and on that the Ivermectin story will live or die.
Thanks for that info.Was not aware, but then of course many drugs have been successfully repurposed.Like aspirin, first used for fever reduction and pain relief, then many years later as a blood thinner.
Thalidomide was a successfully re-purposed drug too – at least for a short time until it was found not to be successful . . .
.
Yep … you're both pretty much bang-on … as reasonable, thoughtful, fair-minded, easy-going people on the Left often are … as opposed to both Woke hysterics & Clintonista melodramatics … in terms of the latter: horse de-wormers, convergence moonbats, Donald Trump, anti-vaxxers & various other guilt-by-association rhetorical strategies designed to demonize a potentially promising & inexpensive re-purposed antiparasitic drug that could save many lives … on & on ad nauseam …
The difficulty with Ivermectin is that it has become so parasite resistant it is no longer used as an animal wormer, I guess the manufacturers have to peddle their wares somehow some where.
Mind giving a link for that ?
Google found a couple of recent papers on horse nematodes that are resistant to ivermectin – don't know if resistance is recent and/or isolated, or if it's potentially a more established problem as suggested by the third link.
I wonder if SARS-CoV-2 could be ‘pushed’ to become resistant to ivermectin – if not in the lab then maybe in the field? "Life finds a way."
Nice to know the old horse paste slur no longer applies
Ivermectin’s not going out of fashion in a hurry. Curiously, human parasites haven’t developed any resistance, and there are other multiple uses for it
https://www.nature.com/articles/ja201711?proof=t%2Btarget%3D
And in regions where long term use of ivermectin has resulted in sub-optimal responses to the treatment?
https://bmcinfectdis.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12879-020-05444-2
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24762816/
Don’t worry Joe, you’re not likely to suffer from river blindness here.
Ivermectin is still being used and has a good record for the last 30 years.
Moxidectin is a supercharged version and may take over
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(18)30101-6/fulltext
"If nothing else we should have learned from”(RL 11.11am); the fact that diet is extremely important if you want a sound immune system. As a nation we shoud be totally ashamed at the general lousy health of the majority of NZers. For example it is a fact that the majority of NZ are on the verge of scurvy because of inadequate vitamin C intake. Guess which vitamin is essential for a robust immune system.?
Endless consumption of takeaways and junk,overprocessed food and sugary drinks doesn't take long to compromise your defences.
Yes. In the longer run I suspect COVID will force us to re-think the whole public health story. The correlation with so called 'co-morbidities' has been obvious from the outset – yet relatively few people have been willing to openly ask the question 'how come we're so sick in the first place'?
The 'crush the curve' narrative to prevent our hospitals from being overwhelmed is all very well in the short term, but fails to ask why diseases like diabetes, cardio-vascular illnesses, dementia, depression and anxiety already threaten to overwhelm them COVID or not.
Another aspect that’s been completely overlooked is the poor quality of so much of our indoor ventilation, creating ideal environments for an air borne virus to spread. There’s another tool the 90% plus vax crowd won’t want to mention.
I am most impressed with the tight narrowing of political and media discussion about a broader view of society beyond health.
We've got out of COVID outbreaks three times in New Zealand, and zero politicians or strong media commentators are asking:
What kind of country do we really want and can change to achieve?
– A different approach to work, when we continue to be one of the most state-subsidised wage economies in the world?
– A different approach to transport and travel, when so much of it has proven unnecessary?
– A different approach to digital news aggregators, when they have been shown to be the enemy of life-saving truth?
– A different approach to the marginalised, when their lives have never been more magnified for society?
– A different approach to Maori and Pasifika health organisations, when they have proven their superior reach and delivery from the singular state?
– A different approach to retirement savings and public employment insurance, when crises are now besetting our lives faster and faster every decade?
– A different approach to the best we can hope for our children, when travel for adventure or study is going to be rare, and may mean they don't come back for years?
New Zealand is a place where David Seymour looks like a leading public intellectual and James Shaw's support is heading for 6% within a globally huge year for climate change.
All very good questions with many posts worth of discussion to be had. Yet if I can discern one thing they may all have in common, is just what role do we want in having the state drive these questions as contrasted to the individual and the community?
Going back to public health for example, I could imagine the state might devise an excellent public food system that compelled people to eat only from a state sanctioned diet that was officially deemed to be 'healthy'. And as effective as this might be in terms of improving health, it would be rightly rejected as an insane imposition into our personal lives – for all sorts of other reasons.
But this does not mean the state should give up on getting us all leaner, fitter and a bit meaner either. The trick is inspiring change while utilising the least necessary amount of force necessary.
(Principle of Least Action. A fundamental idea in physics that has it's analogy in politics as well.)
The new role of the state would need a book.
Must surely be your turn to do a post RL.
Seconded. This discussion has been enlightened by the contributions of Redlogix and Andre
"and may mean they don't come back for years?"
Isn't that how it's always been…well, pre-facebook/messenger/email/ticki-tocki-etc..?
“Hi mum – I’m in the Congo/greasy grey Limpopo River etc…)
Ad,
This is because if you want an inclusive government, don't shut anybody out as it is done now (no matter what color, race, etc.) and have unlawful behavior sanctioned. The majority of people want a cohesive, just society whilst we seem to be heading to Mad Max #3. The green party has not delivered anything that is doable in the wider sense and does not create more toxic rubbish (batteries of electric cars) Just putting platitudes out will not do. I really miss Jeanette Fitzsimons and Rod Donald, Russel Norman. They steered a focused course.
Maybe we make dentistry affordable again. All the good food in the world is of no use when you have no teeth to chew.
And fwiw, junkfood is very soft, and needs almost no chewing, or can be gummed down.
"For example it is a fact that the majority of NZ are on the verge of scurvy because of inadequate vitamin C intake. "
This is neither a fact nor is it remotely true.
Probably the phrase 'verge of scurvy' is a tad rhetorical, but I'd generally go along with the idea that our modern lifestyles leaves us with sub-optimal levels of both Vitamin C and D.
Citing something as fact which is demonstrably untrue is a pretty poor rhetorical device.
Our modern lifestyles (generally speaking) certainly provide us with too many calories and not enough exercise.
I suspect our modern lifestyles also provide us on balance with higher vitamin intake than lifestyles of the past, not really sure as it's not my area of expertise.
Vitamin D yes; vitamin C not so much. Very few recent cases of scurvy in NZ.
Possibly? A tad? Touchstone of credibility?
I am generally in favour of the traffic light road map announced on Friday morning. There is one obvious flaw however in the system, the fate of the Waikato region.
Auckland at alert level 3 will shift to the new traffic light system when they reach 90% double vaccination. Fair enough, they have been through a lot and done a lot of 'heavy lifting'. The South Island might also move when they all reach 90%. They will have done the right thing and can migrate across.
The Waikato is currently at alert level 3, daily covid numbers have me wondering if the virus will be stamped out in our rohe or whether we will continue in the level 3 twilight zone. the Waikato is doing it's share of the heavy lifting as well now. By my calculations it will be only behind Auckland in terms of weeks in Levels 3&4 lockdowns.
Should this area be stuck in level 3 I think the same provisions given to Auckland need to apply here as well. Once we have reached 90% double vaxed we transition to the new traffic light system. If that option is not given to the Waikato, we face the inequity of sitting at level 3 waiting for all other DHBs to do the right thing. However those areas stay at level 2 and the Waikato at level 3. That wait will be pretty unfair.
In order to get to 90% the Waikato will need to have our less vaccinated populations – maori and pasifika – much better vaccinated. That's what it will take to get to 90%, such is the ethnic make up of the region, it won't be pakeha alone getting us there. So no one ethnicity will be 'left behind'. We currently have a level 3 border within the Waikato so moving to the traffic light system with a DHB wide border will not make a substantive difference. The border will simply enlarge. If we can be trusted to have a 'soft' border now, we can be trusted to have a 'soft' border under the new traffic lights.
Thus, if we cannot soon stamp out covid in the Waikato, and it becomes entrenched, then the provision must be made available to Waikato to join the likes of Auckland to transition to the traffic light system when we reach 90% double vaccinated, rather than wait for the rest of the country. We can have the same restrictions placed on us, like a border. It will allow us to control our own fate and avoid the risk of the Waikato being the only area stuck in level 3 and waiting for everyone else to get to 90%. Or, put it another way, the Waikato wants the ability to control it's own fate to get out of Level 3, not rely on the Sandra Goudies and Pembroke Birds of other areas.
Why should having had Covid 19 in your community in the past have anything to do with whether you should be locked up in the future? Why free up Auckland but keep restrictions in Christchurch just because Auckland had a Covid infection in the past but Christchurch didn't?
I personally think that the whole silly scheme is going to collapse shortly after the drop the level in Auckland down the traffic light scale. Do you really think that the people in DHB areas with high vaccination levels are going to tolerate have to put up with irksome restrictions just because people living hundreds of kilometres away happen to live in an arbitrarily defined area, ie another DHB area, that has lower levels of vaccination?
Like hell they will. That is when the Government, although it contains a lot of JAFAs, is going to be reminded that more than 2/3 of the voters do NOT live in Auckland and you offend them all at your peril. They, the Government, won't admit that they got it wrong of course. They will simply change tack and tell us that it was our fault for misunderstanding their plans and that they really meant something quite different.
sound essentially like you are supporting what I have said.
Auckland is doing the right thing and will get out of level 3 to the traffic light system at 90% vaccination. South Island will go from level 2 to the traffic lights at 90%.
The outlier will be the Waikato. In case you have missed the news, we are at LEVEL 3. If the outbreak cannot be stamped out we run the risk of remaining here for weeks on end – 3 weeks already. We did the Level 4 & 3 with the rest of the country, had a shortish period at level 2, now back to level 3.
When Auckland migrates, the Waikato might be the ONLY area left at level 3. The logical thing then is to treat us like Auckland, allow us to migrate to the traffic lights when WE reach 90% vaccination rate. If that involves a boundary around the Waikato all good and fine. We have that already so no big difference. That way we will not be locked at level 3 and dependent on other DHBs getting to 90% before WE can migrate to the traffic lights. We can go there when we are ready, the other areas enjoying level 2 can migrate to the traffic lights when they have got themselves in order.
No, I am not agreeing with you. The first thing is that you say that "South Island will go from level 2 to the traffic lights at 90%". This MAY happen for the SI in isolation but it is only promised if every other DHB has got to 90%. They simply haven't stated the SI option of going early as anything other than a possibility.
The second, and more significant thing, is that you say that the Waikato should be allowed to migrate to the traffic lights when WE reach 90%. By WE I assume you mean the Waikato, not all DHBs. I want to know why the Waikato can do that but not, say, my own area of Wellington. Why do you say that Wellington can't go to the traffic light system if perhaps the Lakes DHB district hasn't reached 90% but Wellington has? Why should we have to wait for the bottom of the South Island but you don't?
And I am afraid that saying that you are suffering now doesn't cut it. These gradings are meant to be for health reasons, not because you were unlucky enough to have Covid cases at a time when we didn't.
I wouldn't bet on any of the proposal being fixed of course. The people making the decisions are politicians and they are making them based only on what they see as the politics of the matter. Pissing off 2/3 of the voters in the country, and seeing any chance of staying in office vanishing will concentrate their minds in a quite amazing manner. You will notice that any talk of relying on the "experts" has become so yesterday-ish?
Don't worry Alwyn COVID is coming to your town.
It's not an Auckland disease. We've simply given the rest of the country time to prepare.
Why you ask?
pretty simply really, you are at level 2 and have been for the past 3 weeks.
we are at level 3 and have been for the past 3 weeks and looks like we might well be for some more weeks yet.
if you want to introduce covid back into Wellington and spend a number of weeks at level 3 in order to have the option I have discussed, go for it.
What would you rather have though, stay at level 2 for a number of weeks waiting for other DHBs, or, have a number of weeks at level 3 and have the option of moving to the traffic light system when your region gets to 90%. Which of those 2 scenarios are more palatable for you?
For us with covid now seeming digging itself in, and if that continues I want the option of us being able to control our own destinies. If we have to wait for every other area to get to 90% before we leave level 3 and migrate to the traffic lights as Auckland will be soon, then every other DHB should go to level 3 as well. We all wait and we all have the SAME lock down situation. If you don't like that idea then it's pretty simple, you can stay at level 2 and we can translate to the traffic lights.
There, there.
I'm not going to debate with you any longer tonight. You, and the rest of the Waikato will by now be in mourning for their defeat by the Magnificent Magpies.
My consolations. As a Bay boy myself I feel for you. Well just a little bit. Aw, why lie about it. Come on The Bay!!!!!!!!!!
TF
who cares about some bloody rugby game, couldn't give a stuff
I would probably have felt the same way if it was my provincial team that had been thrashed.
Anyone seen anything about when the passport system is actually going to be ready?
Wondering if something went wrong with it because it sound like it was really close a few weeks ago…
They offered something about a month ago that would provide you with a record of your vaccination status. You were supposed to be able to get an e-mail or a posted response.
To see how prepared they were my wife and I responded. My wife asked for an e-mail, and got a response within a couple of days. I asked for the mail option and I am still waiting. It will be 4 weeks on Monday. I fear the scheme is no better organised that all the other activities of this mob of incompetent idiots we have for a Government.
Alwyn, Could you suggest something better? Or is brickbats all you have?
Constructive criticism welcome.
N.B. The current MPs do not personally organise your health records. This would be a function of the chronically underfunded public service and even more dysfunctional and broken health system.
You have no clue about the technical challenges involved in standing up a nation-wide secure system that validates all its users, supports all sorts of client devices, and integrates with the rest of government.
No of course he doesn't – but he's not interested in engaging with reality, his motivations are all located somewhere else.
I think getting the vaccine passport software ready, properly tested to handle the probably myriad marginal (non-standard) use cases, secure, load-tested etc. is a real risk to the transition to the traffic light system.
There are two places I wouldn't like to be working now – Counties-Manukau DHB, or the development team for the vaccine passport system.
Vaccination certificates
There will be different vaccination certificates depending on whether you are using them within New Zealand, or for international travel. The QR codes will be different, and your international certificate will have more personal information.
You will be able to either print or save the QR codes on your smartphone in your Apple Wallet or Google Pay.
Domestic digital vaccination certificate
From the end of November, everyone in New Zealand will be able to access a digital vaccination certificate. This will include a QR code, which you can print or save to your phone.
You may be required to show this as proof of vaccination in a range of public settings. This could include:
Requiring vaccination certificates will be optional for many locations.
You will not be required to show proof of vaccination to access supermarkets, pharmacies, health services, food banks and petrol stations.
There will be options available for people who do not have a smartphone or access to a computer.
Manana. Tomorrow they promise this. I was testing what they had said was available a month ago and it hasn't happened yet. When will they actually come up with something I was told I could get at the end of last month?
"Digital vaccination certificates will be available at the end of November 2021."
Sounds pretty good. As long as it is properly security checked and rolled out and not rushed through.
From a purely selfish point of you hope they are taking Huawei's into account.
Probably are.
If not, sounds like you just join the no smartphone lot which, while annoying, is reasonable.
I gather that the proposal is that for those without smart phones or access to such technology the paper certificates will be available through GPs. They have access to NHI's.
what is stored on the QR code.
How we record your vaccination
When you get vaccinated, we record the details in the national COVID-19 Immunisation Register (CIR).
This includes:
The CIR will also record if you decide not to get a COVID-19 vaccine.
Thank you. This is clear, precise and well explained.
Sounds like our Aussie ones. We have Medicare issued vaccination certificates with no QR code, just names, Medicare numbers and details of the 2 Astrazeneca jabs with batch identification and who did the jabbing. We also have 'international' vaccination certs that have what the normal ones have as well as our NZ passport numbers on and a QR code with, presumably encrypted info of vaccine status, passport identification etc. We can print them off or show them on a tablet or smartphone. Haven't had a chance to use them yet with interborder travel across Oz even more of a dilemma than it is across NZ. We are in Queensland which miraculously seems to have avoided the plague rampaging over the border and has only had a few small outbreaks. The only problem is that it has made Queenslanders complacent. I haven't seen a mask in months, and the vaccination uptake here, like other Covid free states, has been slow – seems it takes the arrival of Delta to frighten most into getting the jab.
Norwegian Forest Cat. Close up he looks like a grey fluffy lion. Very large cat. Extra long claws. Waterproof fur. Avid hunter, even of ducks & other waterbirds. Suspected murderer of Aspen, Pickles, & Jojo Pook.
https://m.imgur.com/BiMKzuk
Norwegian Forest Cat. Close up he looks like a grey fluffy lion. Very large cat. Extra kong claws. Waterproof fur. Avid hunter, even of ducks & other waterbirds. Suspected murderer of Aspen, Pickles, & Jojo Pook.
https://m.imgur.com/BiMKzuk
Mod: Sorry, accidentally posted this again while editing text with 1st gif. Using my smartphone 1st time for posting. Can you just delete the copy, if possible?
Bullet-proof fur? Just asking'…
That's sad 😥. Does he have an owner?
Yes. The cat has a Greek name & a responsible young male owner. His owner was mortified to learn that his beautiful, very human-friendly cat was a bred-for-it apex predator who was killing birds of all sizes & kinds every single day. (I sent him a video of his cat ambushing birds on my property.)
He was renting in my area & subsequently moved, with his cat. Ending the killings. I am a former cat-lover, & still like cats, but will have no more cats at my place. Many are just too lethal to birds.
RIP Aspen, Pickles & Jojo Pook. That is so sad Gezza.
Pickles just "disappeared". My wonderful, friendly 9 mth old Aspen I found lying dead on the far side of the stream, with otherwise not a mark on him. And my 2nd baby pook, Jojo was found lying dead in shallow water 3 m downstream from my place, also unmarked. I cried buckets over Aspen & Jojo. Really surprised me how much I grieved. I decided after this to try not to get quite so emotionally attached to the local wildlife.
Further to the "Friday will Change Us"… it does feel like the world has shifted. The traffic light system is a signal of a new normal. Crisis capitalism will not save us
https://youtu.be/WLPeRDJGKvQ
Bit over exaggeration I think.
It is just levels, but the govt lumping the respnsibilities of moving between them on DHBs, and Ardern not having to front any more for cocking up the vaccine roll out.
Frankly it is pathetic.
Aye. Whenever you find yourself in a lather about our government’s ‘shambles’ of a vaccine roll out, it may help to re-read this advice from another commenter here.
https://ourworldindata.org/covid-vaccinations?country=NZL~AUS
Unite against COVID-19
https://covid19.govt.nz
Forgive me. But I am not sure of your point. I am not bitching.
I just pointed out the govt stuffed up the vaccine roll out.
I don't actually care that much as the likelihood of me dying if I got it is about the same as me being hit by a bus watching TV in my lounge.
But a bit of pull finger and actual sort it shit probably would have helped a lot of people coming up with underlying medical conditions.
At lets not forget cancer treatments and heart ops put off.
How many of their lifes are ok to lose because the govt screwed up the vaccine roll out btw?
Really, chris "frankly it is pathetic" T – you're not bitching? Really?
Frankly that's pathetic.
https://ourworldindata.org/covid-vaccinations?country=NZL~AUS
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
Unite against COVID-19
https://covid19.govt.nz
I still don't get how it is bitching.
Pointing out one party passes responsibility onto the shoulders of another who are probably about to lose their jobs anyway, because the first cocked it up (Vaccine roll out) is not bitching.
It is just observation of happenings.
It would be like saying "It is clouding over. Looks like we might get rain" is saying the person is bitching about clouds.
Admittedly I wouldn’t call the clouds pathetic
But the govt has the greatest minds in the country supposedly advising them yet still fobbed it off. So different
If you really don't get how your brief comment @11.1 about Ardern:
and that
is bitching about the vaccine roll out, then frankly I can't help – be well.
https://medium.com/@razvan.rogoz/do-you-want-a-better-life-stop-bitching-complaining-and-criticizing-ee7ba0e580e6
Actually apologies. I meat to say
"
I just pointed out the govt stuffed up the vaccine roll out."…And have suicide passed their cock up to the FHB's
(Which they are about to restructure and merge. So the people they are f'ing over will probably lose their jobs either way. Ironic"
Forgive me. But I am not sure of your point(s).
My only points were that it seems very openly the govt have passed responsibility to "their" chosen too high (in my personal opinion 90%) target from themselves onto the DHBs
This is quite clever and creates a no lose/big win scenario.
They cocked up the vaccine roll out and our scrambling. If any DHBs can't meet the 90% Ardern can blame the DHB. If all DHBs hit 90% it will be Ardern getting the glory.
All the while the DHB staff know that Ardern is restructuring their arse, merging them all atm and probablytrying to justify their job to keep it.
It is clever manipulation by Ardern's PR people to save her arse from cocking up the vaccine roll out and giving her a shit load of people to put the blame on if it goes sour.
As I say. I am not bitching. Think it is quite clever. But pretty nasty IMHO
Again, if you choose to characterise Kiwis being more highly vaccinated against Covid than Aussies (when NZ currently has a couple of extra months up it's sleeves to adapt to its Delta outbreak compared to Australia), as "cocking up", then you’re beyond help, imho. Be well.
From just some of your 35 comments here today – "cocking up", "screwed up", "stuffed up". Now that's bitching.
I look yet see nothing justifying lumping it on DHBs halway through being restructured.
Also missed the bit where if the vaccine was rolled out earlier we would already be on 90% probably , and she wouldn't have had to throw DHBs under the bus.
Haven't DHBs been responsible for implementing the vaccine roll out all along?
Are you bitching about our government setting a % vaccinated target [I believe business leaders, politicians and others have been calling for target to be set], or are you complaining only about the target being too high?
And, if 90% proves too high (which imho is unlikely, although a few months ago I wouldn't have given you tuppence for the team getting to 90%), might the government have had a reason for setting it that high?
Um. No. The perception at least to me, was the govt was.
Hence the daily pressers.
As an aside. When I get caught up in these actual interactional convos on here my experience is a particular mod ends up suspending me for months on end, so do you mind if we talk about it tomorrow?
I think it is a personality clash thing. Probably my fault. Just realised it is starting toget to that time.
Just as a leaving thing.
What is with the people have to be bitching to disagree with you thing?
I mean I just disagree
Hindsight is wonderful – personally I thought the medical assessments to be able to convince New Zealanders that the vaccination would be safe were done very quickly, and given the excellent results we had achieved in limiting local infections, I am not surprised that other countries were less inclined to take that step and that manufacturers were prepared to sell more quickly to countries with dreadful rates of infection.
Our results remain very very good – the programmes of vaccination and lockdowns work together – I suspect we would have had more people getting vaccinated if, like other countries, we had a lot of deaths – is that what you believe we should have had, chris T?
And restructuring has barely started – those working on Covid issues will barely be affected.
And on a different topic, that is a wonderful quote above: "Most of those finding anything they can to bitch about re vaccinations should look at themselves in the mirror and wonder that in the stuff-up, the oversight, the schemozzle, the disaster, at least one prick made it through."
BTW. Whats with the fixation with my posts and copy and paste out of context shit about dude? …. or dudette?
Kind of odd.
I mean it's cool. At least you read them.
Just didn't think they were that important in the grand scheme of things
Glad you think it's cool too – does Pete's 'bitching prick' comment make sense now?
Not really.
As I am not still 12 and into name calling
That is me for a bit. Too close to being suspended from experience
That's a pity – the first time I read Pete's comment I found it LOL funny, and still get a chuckle out of it even now, although I must have read it at least a dozen times. It's just so observant.
Simple question
As it is easier. Are you denying if the govt had rolled out the vaccine earlier we would already be at 90 % (Give or take a 1 or 2% of weirdo anti vaxers)?
To be honest with you chris, I’m not sure if “we would already be at 90%” – are you? Guess you are – after all you've already stated [@11.1.1.2.1.1] that you think the 90% target is too high.
Which begs the question – why all your concern that we might actually reach that target? Although it would certainly be a great outcome for the team, just like the excellent Covid health outcomes that the team has achieved to date.
"outcomes that the team has achieved to date."\
That is my complete point.
Ardern has switched it from "The team" to individual DHBs.
You seem a bright dude..dudette.
Even you must see that
Edit: And yes I think we would be at 90% by now if the govt rolled it out earlier.
But on the other hand personally only. Think 90% is a dumb stupidly high percentage either way
By the way. As about to go to bed.
Yes I do think 90% is too high for the whole country.
Totally get only my opinion, some experts will disagree, others will agree. But just seems a tad silly to me.
Personally would go 85
"The team" is a shortened reference to "The Team of Five Million." Are you on that team chris T?
Staff that run DHBs, including healthcare professionals responsible for implementing NZ's vaccine roll out, are a vital part of the team against the pandemic; always have been, and I hope they always will be. A shout out to them; please hang in there.
Regarding that problematic 90% target:
If you think that the team would have been 90% vaxxed by now with an earlier vaccine roll out, then surely a target of 90% is still acheivable. And, if that’s the case, then I can’t make sense of your choice to characterise 90% as “a dumb stupidly high percentage“.
""The team" is an shortened reference to "The Team of Five Million." Are you on the team chris T?"
Well funny enough, yes I am Drowsy, mate if I could carry off a short skirt and pom poms I''d be doing the cart wheels, which is why I am finding it hard for you to not get my point she dumped responsibility with vaccination numbers from her looking after her "team" (and me with pom poms) to the DHBs she is halfway through dismatilling.
Excellent !
DHB staff have been at the coalface of implementing the vaccine roll out since it's inception, with coordinating support from the MoH.
Business interests, politicians and others have been crying out for a ‘% of eligible Kiwis fully vaccinated’ target at which lockdowns will end. That target has now been set: 90%. DHBs will continue to implement the vaccine roll out, with further assistance from the MoH.
It’s not “her team” – it’s ‘The Team’. I don't understand what you're so agitated about.
Do you have a link about PM Ardern being "halfway through dismatilling" the DHBs? I'm interested in getting a little more detail on how far the restructuring has progressed.
Brings up another point actually. Will the govt still be restructuring the DHBs under covid for the forseeable future and after lumping them with acceptable vax percentages?
I just wished a lovely friend a happy birthday on facebook. I haven't seen her for ages because she lives in Auckland. Suddenly Vera Lynn's song "We'll meet again" came into what goes for my mind these days. The song of the age again?
for many of us, yes.
Yeah I'm thinking that wrt visiting our daughters, one in Auckland, and the other in Perth WA. Also the absence of our mokopuna is hard to take.
Reply to Chris T at 6.
I applied for my vaccination certificate on Tuesday and received it on Friday. I asked for it to be by email, the other option being to a physical address. It was easy as. I printed out 3 copies in case the boss wants me to supply it (guaranteed that they will) so I can hoover up any extra shifts as I work as a casual. I will get the app when it appears.
My mistake – it is a confirmation of Covid-19 vaccination letter rather than actual certificate.
No worries.
That is an actual issue I think with the physical cert side of things.
No way to send by email and print. Would have to be a non fakeable plastic thing like drivers licences, passports and cash. With unique QR codes or a chip.
Other wise you could have printed 20 and sold them to your mates for ten bucks each with QR codes
Actually just further from that post. Thinking about it there is a way to fast track it off the top of my head.
Just take the template for drivers licences they use and replace some of the wording. Already has photo and has years of unfaking tech behind already.
It would just look a lot like your licence but different wording and a QR code added.
Would be a shedload cheaper than creating some new template.
Not that this lot will think of it.
Oh and obviously use a different coloured piece of plastic.
Probably red for impact.
Easy peasy lemon squeasy.
They already print licences all day everyday, so printing machines already around ready to go.
One of my left field off covid ones again.
Been working from home. Decided why the hell am I bothering shaving? Grew beard for first time in my life. Thought I could just get it trimmed if gets too full on at the barber. Forgot barbers make you wear masks so can't trim.
Any advice from the bearded posters for a first timer? As the full on has hit.
Is it just small scissors and play it by ear? Or is their some secret method of buying a lady shave and doing a kind of number 3 or something?
Don't really wan't to be mistaken for the last surviving member of ZZ Top
Hair clippers, select your comb, no 2 for me, have at it and tidy up with a razor.
Ah, the covidbeard 🙂
I got a cheap corded set of clippers from the warehouse. I already had a battery set for detail trimming, but the batteries wind down pretty quickly. Corded set is nice and quiet, but the weight and shake of the cord makes them less precise.
I've tried a beard once in my life. Stuck it out for about four months. The itching drove me bonkers, and it really wasn't any good at storing breakfast leftovers for morning tea. Never been tempted to try it again.
No problem. If you don't live near a Harvey Norman I bet they will courier it to you. Dunno about all them bits & pieces but for $24 who cares. I just use the trimmer & charger. Learning the technique of careful usage takes a wee while.
https://www.harveynorman.co.nz/personal-care-and-health/shavers-and-trimmers/mens-shavers-and-groomers/vs-sassoon-metro-carbon-titanium-all-in-one-grooming-system.html
I presume the titanium keeps the cutting edge sharp…
I don't know how they can make and ship that for $24, let alone sell it for that price.
I have boycotted Harvey Norman ever since they refused to pay back the $13million Govt subsidy they received ,despite record earnings and a special dividend to shareholders of 6 cents.
I either use electric hair clippers comb 3 (9mm, I think) or just use the moustache trimmer on my electric shaver to trim the beard overall, based on previous experience of achieving satisfactory results that way too. 👍
I got a Remington from Noel Leeming recently but not sure yet I would recommend it, but as the others say, select the comb length for your own beard length. Take the comb off to do a sharp edge if you want to make it tidier. Am really looking forward, one day, to trying a hot towel beard trim at the Barbers when we can. Good luck. 👍
Thanks heaps everyone.
She is just getting a bit raggedy
Covid beard in progress here. Aiming for the full ZZ Top look though!
I’m a rough boy. Ain't nobody with legs gonna do the velcro fly or slip inside my sleeping bag in the near future…
Lol
Whadda ya mean, "too full"?
I think there is a point where it gets bigger than your hair and your head looks upside down lol
Deploy the beard-oils!
(or as my hairdresser said, as I began my grow-out, “tame the beast!”)
Good one!
South Island case infected person now. Bit of downer. Should have blocked the Island off ages ago to anyone that can't pass a rapid saliva test before going there, but as usual. Too slow.
Have you heard the research stats on the reliability of National''s holy grail "Rapid saliva tests" compered with the current nasal ones?
Especially when done by untrained people.
Which is why they havn't featured much until now.
Better ones are coming however.
It’s not really a SI case but a Te Awamutu one so how the hell did it get here. To the ramparts now!!! Repel the invaders!!. Going to a movie and a meal in Blenheim tonight, should have the place to myself.
Rapid saliva done by an inexperienced person is from 54% accurate. By an experienced person anywhere between 72% and 89%. The only people promoting them are the ones who own the company and Chris Bishop and JC, reminder to self, must look up the share register.
This from an Oxford study on RNZ last week.
Adrian DO Bishop and Collins actually own the saliva testing co?