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Open Mike 23/12/2017

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, December 23rd, 2017 - 98 comments
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98 comments on “Open Mike 23/12/2017 ”

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  1. Stunned mullet 1
    23 December 2017 at 7:33 am

    Beautiful piece by Steve Braunias in the herald this morning.

    • ScottGN 1.1
      23 December 2017 at 8:08 am

      He’s got 2 pieces today.
      The Secret Diary of Christmas and a rather wonderful ping pong rematch with the PM.

        • ScottGN 1.1.1.1
          23 December 2017 at 8:41 am

          So that’s 3 today. Is he the only one left working for the herald?
          And, yes, that is a, typically lovely piece.

        • funstigator 1.1.1.2
          23 December 2017 at 8:51 am

          Yep, nice article. Today is the first day of my precious 2 1/2 weeks with daughters. They live with their mum at the other end of North Island and seeing them walk off the plane yesterday afternoon I had a double take – suddenly at 11 & 13 they are no longer just my little girls but increasingly confident young ladies. One begins her “middle year” of a fantastic integrated school, the youngest having just finished primary will join her. Both doing well socially and academically. We’ll go camping for 2 weeks at a place that I almost grew up – 50 years ago my first visit. Their grandparents & family friends will be there, as will the babies of the children I remember climbing their first trees. The girls will “hold the bag” as their Grandfather & I attempt to catch some crays the old Maori way, we’ll teach them perhaps how to catch them too, as my father did for me in the same place. I’m looking forward to a wonderful, happy & peaceful break after a big year, and even though I think that most on this site are wrong-headed and quite nasty I’ll wish the same for them.

    • Sanctuary 1.2
      23 December 2017 at 8:45 am

      The “beaming assassin”. LOL

  2. Sanctuary 2
    23 December 2017 at 8:39 am

    I was talking to a friend of my in Washington DC yesterday. her health insurance is now $1600 A MONTH.

    She is young, fit and very healthy and she pays almost 20k a year for health insurance.

    Crazy bad.

    • Rosemary McDonald 2.1
      23 December 2017 at 8:49 am

      Looking for something else…I found this….

      • Stunned mullet 2.1.1
        23 December 2017 at 8:59 am

        Great video Rosemary, really interesting perspective from a couple of plain speaking yanks. Must check out their other vids.

        • Rosemary McDonald 2.1.1.1
          23 December 2017 at 9:13 am

          The thing is…and I’m mindful that for these Yanks the concept of a Publicly Funded Health and Disability System is foreign…the video presents a picture that for an increasing number of New Zealanders doesn’t actually exist.

  3. phantom snowflake 3
    23 December 2017 at 10:43 am

    I recently came across a job vacancy that I found quite chilling:

    Electro Convulsive Therapy (ECT) Coordinator – Mental Health for Older People (Ward 6C) Dunedin Hospital. (22 Hours per week)
    https://www.southerndhb.govt.nz/careers/view-vacancy/?job_id=8203

    I’m thinking to myself: 22 hours per week represents a hell of a lot of ECT sessions for a group of elderly, vulnerable hospitalized people. I took a look at the “Office of the Director Of Mental Health Annual Report 2016”
    https://www.health.govt.nz/system/files/documents/publications/office-of-the-director-of-mental-health-annual-report-2016v4_0.pdf
    Statistics related to ECT administration for 2016 are covered on pages 59-65.
    What stands out most is the massively greater number of females (156) than males (95) given ECT, and also that the 70-74 age group contains the highest number (33) of people receiving ECT of any age group. Raises a lot of questions for me…
    [It’s not my purpose (at this time) to critique ECT; however I note ongoing claims from some of the psychiatric establishment that ECT is “lifesaving”. I can’t see how that claim can be anything more than mere speculation, and I’m being charitable here.]

    • weka 3.1
      23 December 2017 at 11:04 am

      From memory, Dunedin historically has had a significantly higher rate of ECT usage than the rest of the country. If that is still going on, that’s fucked up.

      I’m really ok with critiquing ECT, there are major issues with its use in the past as a tool of oppression, and I’m not convinced we are passed that yet. Haven’t looked at this issue for some time but much of my criticism would be that the medical model used by psychiatry and society is why so many people end up in a situation where ECT is being considered. Plus, as you mention, the gender and age disparities.

      • phantom snowflake 3.1.1
        23 December 2017 at 12:09 pm

        Have found an interesting, if rather long, feminist critique of ECT:
        “Electroshock as a Form of Violence Against Women”
        https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/602d/2a60d4eaf167a1941d0f158bb4fc67281f7e.pdf

        “There is no question that women can find themselves in severe emotional distress and in need of help. And there is no question that most practitioners who administer ECT are more or less convinced that they are helping, for they are fashioned by the psychiatric profession and its norms. Nonetheless, as this article demonstrated, electroshock is a part of the repertoire of the patriarchy; and it functions as a fundamental patriarchal assault on women’s brains, bodies, and spirits. It is an assault that has much in common with traditional battery. It is traumatizing, even traumatizing “patients” who only witness it. It controls women and, indeed, is used to control women. It combines with other forms of violence against women. It is a special threat to women who are severely violated. And is used to silence women. As such, its very use is a feminist issue.“

    • JanM 3.2
      23 December 2017 at 4:19 pm

      Gosh, I thought that legalised torture went out with the ark!!! 🙁

    • phantom snowflake 3.3
      23 December 2017 at 5:11 pm

      Another really scary statistic: Of the 251 people who were given ECT in New Zealand last year; 102 did not give consent. That number is made up of 92 who supposedly “did not have the capacity to consent” plus 10 who “had capacity and refused consent.”

  4. Draco T Bastard 4
    23 December 2017 at 11:35 am

    Devastating climate change could lead to 1m migrants a year entering EU by 2100

    Climate change will drive a huge increase in the number of migrants seeking asylum in Europe if current trends continue, according to a new study.

    Which is something that I’ve been saying for years. As place become inhospitable due to increasing temperatures then people will leave. Fairly obvious when you think about it.

    They concentrated the study on Europe but similar pressures will come to bear on other countries such as NZ.

    Solomon Hsiang, professor at Berkeley, University of California, and author of a previous study linking conflict and climate change, who was not involved with the current research, said the world must prepare. “We will need to build new institutions and systems to manage this steady flow of asylum-seekers. As we have seen from recent experience in Europe, there are tremendous costs, both for refugees and their hosts, when we are caught flat-footed.”

    Being prepared for the increase in refugees and immigration is something that we haven’t been doing either. Especially considering that NZ’s food production will be decreasing as the world warms.

  5. adam 5
    23 December 2017 at 12:10 pm

    What the hell is up with this russian stuff. It’s getting odd. no wait, this is getting downright silly.

    It’s now attacking Jill Stein.

    .

  6. joe90 6
    23 December 2017 at 12:18 pm

    Mass executions and the imprisonment of millions in an empire of forced labour camps should be celebrated because patriots.
    //

    We stand for organized terror – this should be frankly admitted. Terror is an absolute necessity during times of revolution. Our aim is to fight against the enemies of the Soviet Government and of the new order of life. We judge quickly. In most cases only a day passes between the apprehension of the criminal and his sentence. When confronted with evidence criminals in almost every case confess; and what argument can have greater weight than a criminal’s own confession?

    – Felix Dzerzhinsky

    Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared the infamous Soviet Cheka secret police “integral” to the country’s history and stated that those who served in the ranks of the Kremlin’s security forces were patriots.

    http://www.newsweek.com/soviet-secret-police-was-full-true-patriots-says-vladimir-putin-754991

      • joe90 6.1.1
        23 December 2017 at 12:29 pm

        Twenty million dead Russians but hey, let’s play whataboutism.

        /

        • Ed 6.1.1.1
          23 December 2017 at 12:30 pm

          How many native Americans were there in 1776?

          • joe90 6.1.1.1.1
            23 December 2017 at 12:36 pm

            Someone’s celebrating the perpetrators?.

            • Ed 6.1.1.1.1.1
              23 December 2017 at 12:40 pm

              No…it just seems you bash the Russians all the time and forget that the Americans record is hardly flash.

              You’re highly defensive.
              Or as Adam puts it, ‘precious.’

              • Stuart Munro …
                23 December 2017 at 12:54 pm

                Meh.

                You’re letting your anti-Americanism create false positive characteristics for Russia.

                And, you don’t have the excuse the old left had, of belief in Soviet adherence to a value system that would theoretically create a better world.

                Measure the yanks by yank failings, and the Russians by Russian failings.

                Neither has a damned thing to boast of.

                • stunned mullet …
                  23 December 2017 at 1:04 pm

                  To be fair, despite their many failings both Russia and the US have much to boast of, their rich histories and many scientific achievements being just some of them.

                  • Stuart Munro …
                    23 December 2017 at 1:23 pm

                    Which must be weighed against oppressive nationalist enterprises like Molotov/Ribbentrop, the Soviet genocides, the killing of half the Chechen population, the Citrus War, the mufti use of Russian regular forces in the Ukraine, the failure to implement the rule of law, cheating in elections and the murder of journalists and opposition politicians.

                    In the US the long history of invading third world nations and massacres there, political interference in South American countries like the imposition of Chicago school economics in Chile that wrecked that country as thoroughly as Rogergnomics wrecked NZ, failure to resolve race and law and order and corruption issues, and subverting important international institutions like the UN and World Bank to prevent them from performing the functions for which they were established every time some crooked American industrialist can make a bent penny out of it.

                • Ed …
                  23 December 2017 at 1:06 pm

                  I’m not.
                  Russia has a terrible history and anyone in the west would know of it.
                  I just get bored of hearing how amazing America is. We don’t hear about the genocides it performed.

              • Psycho Milt …
                23 December 2017 at 1:06 pm

                No…it just seems you bash the Russians all the time and forget that the Americans record is hardly flash.

                Yeah, because, like, who can recall any comment ever by Joe90 pointing out ugly shit Trump comes out with, right? /sarc

                • Ed …
                  23 December 2017 at 1:07 pm

                  I acknowledge he mocks Trump incessantly.
                  But American ideals?

                • Andre …
                  23 December 2017 at 1:41 pm

                  Why narrow it down to comments about the Dork from New York? There’s been plenty of joe90 commentary about other things that are fucked up about the US. Starting from well before the terracotta turdface splattering onto the scene, IIRC.

                  • Psycho Milt …
                    23 December 2017 at 3:19 pm

                    Trump just seemed the obvious US alternative to Putin in this instance. But yeah, as usual, the extent to which Ed doesn’t know what he’s talking about is easily underestimated.

                    • adam …
                      23 December 2017 at 6:03 pm

                      So one stinking capitalist pig dog, (putin) is fighting with another capitalist pig dog, (trump) and were supposed to pick sides? Is that the agenda?

                    • Psycho Milt …
                      23 December 2017 at 8:46 pm

                      Well, you tell me. Seems like anyone who points out what a shit Putin is attracts rebuttals by left-wing authoritarians I can only assume are deeply confused (given that Putin’s a right-wing authoritarian). If those commenters haven’t picked a side, what’s the alternative explanation?

                    • adam …
                      23 December 2017 at 8:55 pm

                      You do know I agreed with joe90, he the one who made an ass of himself and me, with his very wide of the mark assumption.

                      As the overwhelming majority of my arguments revolver around the state being the enemy, I find it odd you can’t comprehend my question.

                    • Psycho Milt …
                      23 December 2017 at 9:04 pm

                      I saw that you claimed you were agreeing with him, yeah. What he and I both saw was something different: Joe90 posts about a current world leader praising the enforcers of a reign of terror arguably worse than the Nazis, and you respond with a comment that the US government kills people too. Hence the response re “whataboutism.” If Angela Merkel were quacking on about the heroic patriotism of the Gestapo and the Algemeine SS you’d probably have less trouble figuring out why “Yeah, but America…” responses would annoy people.

                    • adam …
                      23 December 2017 at 10:04 pm

                      Funny as I posted this first

                      I have friends in Russian prisons, and I spoken about that on a regular basis.

                      I see no difference between the USA and Russia, both are capitalist scum bags. Both use hard and soft power to control their citizenry, and both play the empire game badly.

                      I would have thought on a site which supports worker rights or socialism in some form. A critique of both Russia and the USA was valid.

                      Sheesh a critique of marxism-leninism is always welcome, wouldn’t you say?

                      Are not debates meant to evolve, and take on a life of their own. But no, let’s shut down any debate by the latest newspeak buzzword. Last week “fake news” this week…

                    • adam …
                      23 December 2017 at 10:13 pm

                      P.S.

                      This video which puts it on the line, but it’s Russian. So maybe you won’t watch.

                    • Ed …
                      23 December 2017 at 10:18 pm

                      The usual smears, abuse and insults from Milt.

        • adam 6.1.1.2
          23 December 2017 at 12:35 pm

          I said, did you miss it,

          “States are nasty things.”

          I did not counter what you said, but supported it. Being precious much.

    • Bill 6.2
      23 December 2017 at 12:35 pm

      I reckon the old Stalinist regime outdoes the USA in terms of any mass execution of its own citizerny by factors containing a fair string of zeros. But the rate of imprisonment? And prison labour?

      Throw in those plea bargains where innocent people are routinely ‘taking the hit’ because they are shit scared of what the US (so-called) justice system will land them with if it turns up a guilty verdict, and yeah…the results aren’t so different to what Dzerzhinsky’s quote describes.

      And patriots? I don’t anyone need say anything about popular, mis-guided and dangerous patriotism where the US is concerned.

  7. Ed 7
    23 December 2017 at 12:34 pm

    Hope srylands is feeling calmer today.

    • SPC 7.1
      23 December 2017 at 1:21 pm

      A suggestible lad, I recommend you try to avoid triggering him with topics involving the term middle finger.

  8. Ant 8
    23 December 2017 at 12:36 pm

    Trivial trivia:

    “Visibly moved, the President…..”
    If it was not “visible” how would the journo have known he was moved?

    Even stranger (on a bottle of contact lens cleaner) “…. this solution is visibly tinted.”
    Mischievously I asked the chemist “if it was invisibly tinted would it be tinted?” She said “I guess not.”

    “That time is his personal best.” Surely if its “his” its personal?

    “Mrs Jones has given birth to a new baby.” Would be a shocker if she gave birth to an old one.

  9. SPC 9
    23 December 2017 at 1:38 pm

    The new tech bubble burst back in 1999.

    The crypto-currency craze will go the same way. They either prove themselves, or they will wither on the vine – they are pretending to be useful information record technology (various), usable currency and stores of value.

    I am reminded of the 1985-86 doubling in our local bubble share market before the collapse. Then a dead cat bounce back to the 1986 high in 1987. Then another collapse – recovery here only came with the 2002 global monetary expansion and post GFC QE.

    Back in the day bitcoin was 30 cents, then rose to $30, then collapsed to $3. This is the course of every upward expansion massive gains and massive corrections.

    But because of growing publicity there are more “takers”, so the pyramid scheme continues and the continuing upward rise (more takers) gives the whole scam credibility – till there is market saturation (cue 1929 shoe-shine boy as investor story). At peak value the whole thing just exposes itself as another new tech bubble albeit hidden behind a crypto-currency front.

    What its actual new tech value will be one factor then (like gold blockchain and other information storage tech it has its uses). But even that will be confused by posing it as an alternative store of value/currency to gold (worth a little over $1000 per ounce and it fluctuations are related to monetary expansion, inflation levels and concerns about the reliability of money in banks).

  10. joe90 10
    23 December 2017 at 2:06 pm

    Accidental, of course.
    /

    Trump has changed the "challenge coin":—The presidential seal is replaced by an eagle bearing Trump’s signature—The 13 arrows representing the original states are gone—The national motto, “E pluribus unum,” is replaced with “Make America Great Again”https://t.co/MeckemSi5W— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) December 22, 2017

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DRsTIv7VQAAiNNo.jpg

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DRsTIv9VAAAeY3C.jpg

    The eagle is also looking the other way. Like this. pic.twitter.com/7JOP88IYl4— L-science based evidence-Z (@LZ181818) December 23, 2017

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DRsTrjcUEAAJRka.jpg

  11. Morrissey 11
    23 December 2017 at 2:16 pm

    Drummer of mediocre pop band thinks he’s an intellectual.
    “You’re incredible!” sighs the Fox bimbette.

    This insufferable blowhard says he speaks four languages. Don’t know about his Hebrew and his German, but in very bad Japanese, he tells the woman in this panel of admiring dopes: “You’re beautiful.”

    • Barfly 11.1
      23 December 2017 at 2:30 pm

      Yeah but he does have a really long tongue

    • James 11.2
      23 December 2017 at 5:42 pm

      Well he plays bass not drums and is the lead singer of KISS.

      They are in the rock and roll hall of flame.

      Given that you call him a drummer of a mediocre pop band just shows you ignorance.

      Given he’s Israeli- I’m guessimg he knows Hebrew from German – so I’m guessing you are wrong there as well.

      Compared with you – I guess he’s an intellectual giant.

      • fender 11.2.1
        23 December 2017 at 6:23 pm

        Paul Stanley is actually the lead singer of Kiss, that overrated band with the creepy bass player Gene Simmons who brags about having had sex with thousands of woman. Simmons is an ego-maniac who just recently attempted to trademark a hand gesture he claimed he invented despite the fact people were using it long before he ever did.

        Simmons is also a Trump supporter.

        • James 11.2.1.1
          23 December 2017 at 6:30 pm

          They both have lead vocals – buy gene is listed as lead vocals along with Paul – it’s not a one or other. He certainly isn’t the drummer tho ‘

          Also after fans but 75 million records what makes them overrated?

          • fender 11.2.1.1.1
            23 December 2017 at 6:41 pm

            Listening to their music will illustrate how overrated they are. Wearing the cartoon character makeup is about all they have contributed to music.

        • James 11.2.1.2
          23 December 2017 at 6:40 pm

          So what that he a trump supporter- millions are.

          • fender 11.2.1.2.1
            23 December 2017 at 6:58 pm

            Well I hope all those millions aren’t misogynistic blowhards like those two.

            • James 11.2.1.2.1.1
              23 December 2017 at 7:48 pm

              Some will be. Some not. Just like the supporters of any political party.

            • BM 11.2.1.2.1.2
              23 December 2017 at 7:57 pm

              Even if they are, It helps balance out all those simpering browbeaten eunuchs that are so prevalent on the other side.

              • fender …
                23 December 2017 at 8:26 pm

                Having a decent society doesn’t require a pack of assholes to create some kind of imaginary balance.

              • Barfly …
                23 December 2017 at 8:43 pm

                Wow BM that’s sick…even from you

                • BM …
                  23 December 2017 at 9:36 pm

                  Struck I nerve did I?
                  Truth is though Left-wing men do tend to be complete and utter pusses.

                  • fender …
                    24 December 2017 at 4:53 pm

                    Maybe you could walk around Hamilton wearing a sandwich board declaring your reckons that left voting men are what you say they are. Do the experiment and then see if a nurse could post the results here on your behalf.

                    Your mate Slater sure showed everyone how tough he was.

      • Psycho Milt 11.2.2
        23 December 2017 at 8:42 pm

        Well he plays bass not drums and is the lead singer of KISS.

        We’re talking Morrissey levels of accuracy here, so “drummer of mediocre pop band” is about as good as you could expect.

      • Morrissey 11.2.3
        23 December 2017 at 9:03 pm

        Given that you call him a drummer of a mediocre pop band just shows you ignorance.

        Kiss had less musical credibility than the Bay City Rollers.

        Given he’s Israeli- I’m guessimg he knows Hebrew from German – so I’m guessing you are wrong there as well.

        Well, judging from his hopeless grasp of Japanese, I doubt he speaks German very well either.

        Compared with you – I guess he’s an intellectual giant.

        That statement is about as convincing as Simmons’ claim to have shtupped five thousand shiksas.

        • James 11.2.3.1
          23 December 2017 at 9:26 pm

          for A guy who doesn’t know that the guy at the front singing and playing a guitar isn’t the drummer for will forgive me for thinking you know less than nothing.

          • Ed 11.2.3.1.1
            23 December 2017 at 9:27 pm

            Kiss were a really really bad band. And Simmons likes Trump.

            • James 11.2.3.1.1.1
              23 December 2017 at 9:37 pm

              75 million record sales say you are wrong. (Yet again)

              Induction into the rock and roll hall of fame say you are wrong (yet again)

              Your just not good at this game are you.

              • fender …
                23 December 2017 at 9:54 pm

                They were only inducted out of sympathy for their 14 previous unsuccessful nominations.

                There are many shit products that have become commercially successful, doesn’t mean they’re any good.

                • James …
                  23 December 2017 at 9:58 pm

                  You seem to suffer the lefties self righteous view of the world that just because you don’t like something that millions of other people are wrong.

                  • Ed …
                    23 December 2017 at 10:03 pm

                    This isn’t a political issue.
                    It’s a matter of musical taste.

                  • fender …
                    23 December 2017 at 10:13 pm

                    But I never said people who liked Kiss were wrong to do so did I Dr. James.

                    Let’s just say your music tastes match your taste in political party’s: Lots of bullshit and bluster with very little substance.

              • Ed …
                23 December 2017 at 10:02 pm

                Popular and good is not necessarily the same.
                The Spice Girls sold a lot of records.

                • Pat …
                  24 December 2017 at 12:23 am

                  All that needs to be remembered about Kiss (and probably all that will be) is that once the makeup came off nobody listened to them any more….their popularity (bubblegummers) was in the marketing ,never the music.

          • Morrissey 11.2.3.1.2
            24 December 2017 at 11:00 am

            Simmons’ reputation rested entirely on that long tongue of his. He might have been pretending to play the piano for all anyone cared.

            Certainly not one Kiss “fan” actually cared for their “music”, which everyone acknowledged was nothing more than crap.

  12. Morrissey 12
    23 December 2017 at 2:47 pm

    “What says ‘peace and democracy’ more than
    being shot dead from a helicopter by a prince?”

    One way of shutting up awkward comedians is to send them off on a tour of Afghanistan and/or Iraq. They then feel obligated to say nothing but nice things about the Army. So instead of criticizing the aggression against Iraq as he had in 2003, Lewis Black became a fervent advocate of U.S. troops after being paid to go over there and “entertain” them. David Letterman and Al Franken were similarly muzzled after their trips to Iraq.

    Similarly, the New Zealand comedian Mike King was willingly inveigled into becoming a part of the New Zealand government’s propaganda machinery, travelling to Afghanistan to “entertain the troops” and making a propaganda doco called Postcard from Afghanistan (“I’m just HOPING there’ll be no dramas of the TALIBAN kind!”)

    http://www.throng.co.nz/2012/07/postcard-from-afghanistan-with-mike-king/

    Not all comedians can be bought, however. Like there are some honest politicians, and some honest journalists, there are still some honest comedians too. One of the best of them is Glasgow’s brilliant Frankie Boyle….

    [From the beginning]…We had the Queen’s 91st birthday a couple of months ago. …. Why do they call the Queen “Her Majesty”? Is she majestic? Really? I think of an eagle as being majestic, not a shuffling old woman who hasn’t cracked a fucking smile since Diana died.

    …..

    [From 4:41]…. Prince William and Prince Harry have been fronting a campaign urging people to talk more about their mental health. They’ve been very well received, everybody thinks that this is a great idea. I wonder if Prince Harry ever spares a thought for the mental health of the families of the various shepherds that he gunned down from his twenty million pound death helicopter in Afghanistan. I wonder how he justifies that to himself. “I pictured Dodi’s face on every shepherd I killed! Every Arab we shot serves my mother in Hell! I know that Afghans aren’t Arabs, but I, Prince Harry in this joke, believe that they are!” That’s Britain, man, exporting peace and democracy to the world, and what says “peace and democracy” more than being shot dead from a helicopter by a prince?

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TecCuUhLHk

  13. Sabine 13
    23 December 2017 at 7:31 pm

    Jakarta, slowly but surely drowning in the sea.

    Quote:
    But global warming turned out not to be the only culprit behind the historic floods that overran Rasdiono’s bodega and much of the rest of Jakarta in 2007. The problem, it turned out, was that the city itself is sinking.

    In fact, Jakarta is sinking faster than any other big city on the planet, faster, even, than climate change is causing the sea to rise – so surreally fast that rivers sometimes flow upstream, ordinary rains regularly swamp neighbourhoods and buildings slowly disappear underground, swallowed by the earth.

    The main cause: Jakartans are digging illegal wells, drip by drip draining the underground aquifers on which the city rests – like deflating a giant cushion underneath it. About 40 per cent of Jakarta now lies below sea level.

    Coastal districts, like Muara Baru, near the Blessed Bodega, have sunk as much as 14 feet in recent years.

    http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/jakarta-is-sinking-so-fast-it-could-end-up-underwater

    At some stage we really have to ask how long we can continue to fool us to the forthcoming realities of loosing human habitat to a changed environment.
    Might have to watch Waterworld again 🙂 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waterworld

  14. eco maori 14
    23 December 2017 at 8:19 pm

    It is so hilarious watching these people try there stupid plays on me I read 99% of them they were trying there best tricks today. When I’m driving I just keep a gard up and ignore them it’s comical. Many thanks to my te puna for the sense to see there dum ass moves. What I also find comical is what bullshit they have come up with to carry on this farcical man hunt it should be
    A big warning to everyone that one can be a good person and cross swords with the wrong person and you have the most of the police force trying to intimatedate you and run a smear campaign oppress you WTF. I say if the police are like this in New Zealand then most of the police around the world will be the same. Ana to kai

  15. joe90 15
    23 December 2017 at 8:29 pm

    Mike “thuper therum” Cernovich thought an AMA was a good idea.

    Hilarity ensued.

    I’m Mike Cernovich – Journalist, Author, and Filmmaker. Ask Me Anything from IAmA

  16. joe90 16
    23 December 2017 at 8:54 pm

    Finnish study reckons 100% renewable 2050 is achievable and cheaper.

    Or we could burn the joint down.

    Transitioning the world to 100 percent renewable electricity isn’t just some environmentalist pipe dream—it’s “feasible at every hour throughout the year” and is more cost-effective than the current system, which largely relies on fossil fuels and nuclear energy, a new study claims.

    The research, compiled by Finland’s Lappeenranta University of Technology (LUT) and the Berlin-based nonprofit Energy Watch Group (EWG), was presented Wednesday at the Global Renewable Energy Solutions Showcase, a stand-alone event coinciding with the COP 23 climate talks in Bonn, Germany.

    https://www.ecowatch.com/100-renewable-energy-by-2050-2519335518.html

  17. Macro 17
    23 December 2017 at 9:26 pm

    Finally Mueller meets Trump!

  18. joe90 18
    24 December 2017 at 5:09 am

    Austria’s far right Freedom Party gets to helm foreign, interior and defence ministries.

    But Heinz-Christian Strache isn’t a nazi, now.

    https://www.reuters.com/article/us-austria-politics-ministries/austrian-far-right-to-control-foreign-interior-ministries-spokesman-idUSKBN1EA0EG

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  • Tuvalu language revival and COVID-19
    Te Vaiaso o te Gana Tuvalu 2021 - Tuvalu Language Week moves online due to the uncertainty around COVID-19 said the Minister for Pacific Peoples Aupito William Sio.  “However it is a timely reminder of the power of embracing both traditional and new ways of doing things. It has been ...
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    23 hours ago

  • United Nations General Assembly: 76th General Debate Statement
    E ngā Mana, e ngā Reo, Rau Rangatira mā o tēnei Whare Nui o te Ao Prestigious people, Speakers of note, Chiefs one and all of this General Assembly Ngā mihi mahana ki o koutou katoa, mai i toku Whenua o Aotearoa Warm greetings to you all from my home ...
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    2 days ago

  • APEC 2021 Women and the Economy Forum prioritises women’s economic empowerment
    Minister for Women Jan Tinetti today chaired the virtual APEC 2021 Women and the Economy Forum, which is working to address outstanding issues for women and girls across the region as it recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic. The forum brought together Ministers and representatives from 21 economies to discuss gender ...
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    2 days ago

  • Upper Hauraki to move to Alert Level 2
    Upper Hauraki will move to Alert Level 2 from 11:59pm tomorrow, 25 September, COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins confirmed today. After positive cases were detected in the Upper Hauraki area on Sunday, extra Alert Level restrictions were put in place to immediately prevent any wider transmission of the virus.  “We’ve ...
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    3 days ago

  • Report into Aotearoa New Zealand’s export controls system released
    Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta today welcomed the findings of an independent review into Aotearoa New Zealand’s export controls system, which regulates the export of goods to foreign militaries, police forces or paramilitaries. Produced by David Smol, a former Chief Executive of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, the ...
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    3 days ago

  • New District Court Judge appointed
    Attorney-General David Parker has announced the appointment of Brett Crowley of Wellington as a District Court Judge.  He is currently the Wellington Public Defender and started his career as a staff solicitor working in a range of litigation including criminal defence work. He went to the bar in 1999 specialising ...
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    3 days ago

  • Mental health stocktake shows strong progress
    The first report of the Government’s Implementation Unit has found strong progress has been made since the Mental Health and Addictions Package was announced in 2019. “The report notes most initiatives funded in the Budget 2019 package are on track to deliver what is expected by 2023/24,” Grant Robertson said. ...
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    3 days ago

  • Working together to grow the West Coast
    A project that has been crucial in allowing businesses to continue during the tourism downturn is among a number of initiatives to receive a boost from the Government’s Jobs For Nature programme, Conservation Minister Kiri Allan says. Sustaining South Westland is an extension of an initiative set up last year ...
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    3 days ago

  • Next steps to improve safety in wake of Whakaari White Island tragedy
    The Government is moving to improve safety in light of the Whakaari White Island tragedy and has released proposals to reinforce safety standards in registered adventure activities. The package of proposals includes: Strengthening requirements for how operators, landowners and the regulator manage natural hazard risks Improving how risks are monitored, ...
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    3 days ago

  • New Zealand donates more COVID-19 vaccines to COVAX and the Pacific
    Foreign Affairs Minister Hon Nanaia Mahuta and Associate Health Minister Aupito William Sio announced today that New Zealand is donating additional Pfizer vaccines to the Pacific and AstraZeneca vaccines to the COVAX Facility, to support equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines. “New Zealand is donating 708,000 doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine ...
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    3 days ago

  • Speech to the Property Council of New Zealand
    Kia ora koutou katoa   Is it a pleasure to be able to speak with you today, and to be able to answer some questions you may have. I would like to acknowledge the organisers of this event, the Property Council. The theme of this year’s conference is City Shapers. Together ...
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    4 days ago

  • Additional MIQ for Christchurch
    An additional hotel will be added to our network of managed isolation and quarantine facilities, COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said today. “I have approved and Cabinet is in the final stages of signing off The Quality Hotel Elms in Christchurch as a new managed isolation facility,” Chris Hipkins said. ...
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    4 days ago

  • NZ COVID-19 response earns another major digital investment
    Minister for the Digital Economy and Communications Dr David Clark welcomes Amazon’s Web Services’ (AWS) decision to establish a Cloud Region on New Zealand shores, further boosting New Zealand’s growing digital sector, and providing a vote of confidence in the direction of New Zealand’s economic recovery. “Amazon is the second ...
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    4 days ago

  • New Zealand invests in cutting edge cancer R&D
    Scaling up the manufacture of CAR T-cell cancer therapy for clinical trials Advancing New Zealand’s biomedical manufacturing capability Supporting future international scientific collaborations Transforming cancer care with targeted, affordable solutions Research, Science and Innovation Minister Hon Dr Megan Woods has announced that the fight against COVID-19 will not stop the ...
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    4 days ago

  • Expert group appointed to lead New Zealand’s future health system
    An outstanding group of people with extensive and wide-ranging governance and health experience have been appointed to lead the Māori Health Authority and Health New Zealand, Health Minister Andrew Little says. “This Government is building a truly national health system to provide consistent, high-quality health services right across the country. This ...
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    4 days ago

  • Funding to help clean up contaminated sites
    The Government is supporting the clean-up of contaminated sites in Northland, Dunedin and Southland to reduce risk to people’s health and protect the environment. Environment Minister David Parker said the funding announced today, through the Contaminated Sites Remediation Fund, will help us turn previously hazardous sites into safe, usable public ...
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    4 days ago

  • Predator Free apprenticeships open up new job opportunities
    The expansion of a predator free apprenticeship programme is an opportunity for more people to kick-start a conservation career, Conservation Minister Kiri Allan says. “The Predator Free Apprenticeship Programme is focused on increasing the number of skilled predator control operators in New Zealand through a two-year training programme. “The Trust ...
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    5 days ago

  • Further NCEA support confirmed for Auckland students
    The number of Learning Recognition Credits for senior secondary school students will be increased for Auckland students, Education Minister Chris Hipkins confirmed today. This recognises the extended time these students will spend in Alert Levels 3 and 4. “It means students in Auckland will have a fair opportunity to attain ...
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    5 days ago

  • Long-term pathway next step to better mental wellbeing for New Zealanders
    The Government is taking a new approach to support people who experience mental distress, Health Minister Andrew Little says. “Kia Manawanui Aotearoa – Long-term pathway to mental wellbeing (Kia Manawanui) is the first 10-year plan of its kind that targets the cause of mental distress and also sets out how ...
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    5 days ago

  • Keeping our Police safe to keep our communities safe
    The Government is committed to keeping our frontline police officers safe, so they in turn can keep New Zealanders safe – with one of the largest investments in frontline safety announced by Police Minister Poto Williams at the Police College today.   The $45 million investment includes $15.496 million in ...
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    5 days ago

  • Clean Vehicles Bill passes first checkpoint
    The Land Transport (Clean Vehicles) Amendment Bill will help New Zealand drive down transport emissions by cleaning up the light vehicle fleet, Transport Minister Michael Wood says. The Bill passed its first reading today and will establish the legislative framework for key parts of the Government’s Clean Car Package, including ...
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    6 days ago

  • Funding boost supports ongoing Māori COVID-19 response
    The Government is responding to the need by whānau Māori and Māori Health providers to support their ongoing work responding to COVID-19 and to continue increasing rates of Māori vaccination, Associate Minister for Health (Māori Health), Peeni Henare and Minister for Māori Development Willie Jackson announced today.   This increased ...
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    6 days ago

  • Significant increase to COVID-19 penalties
    Penalties for breaches of COVID-19 orders are set to significantly increase from early November 2021 to better reflect the seriousness of any behaviour that threatens New Zealand’s response to the virus, COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said today. “Throughout this Delta outbreak we’ve seen the overwhelming majority of people doing ...
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    6 days ago

  • Counter-Terrorism Legislation Bill returns to Parliament
    The Counter-Terrorism Legislation Bill has returned to Parliament for its second reading in an important step towards giving enforcement agencies greater power to protect New Zealanders from terrorist activity. “The Bill addresses longstanding gaps in our counter terrorism legislation that seek to protect New Zealanders and make us safer,” Justice ...
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    6 days ago

  • Joint Statement: New Zealand and Australian Trade Ministers
    Hon Damien O'Connor MP, New Zealand Minister for Trade and Export Growth, and Hon Dan Tehan MP, Australian Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment, met virtually on Monday 20 September to advance trans-Tasman cooperation under the Australia-New Zealand Closer Economic Relations Trade Agreement (CER). CER is one of the most ...
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    7 days ago

  • Prime Minister’s Post Cabinet Press Conference/COVID-19 Update opening statement
    ***Please check against delivery***   E te tī, e te tā, nau mai rā [To all, I bid you welcome]   As you will have seen earlier, today there are 22 new community cases to report; three of which are in Whakatiwai in the Hauraki area, and the remainder in ...
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    7 days ago

  • Major milestones for Māori COVID-19 vaccine rollout as new campaign launches
    Whānau Ora and Associate Health (Māori Health) Minister Peeni Henare acknowledges two major milestones in the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccination programme for Māori. “I am very pleased to announce more than 50 percent of eligible Māori have received their first dose and 25 per cent are now fully vaccinated,” ...
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    1 week ago

  • Government funding to fight infectious diseases
    $36 million for research into Covid-19 and other infectious diseases The investment will improve our readiness for future pandemics Research will focus on prevention, control, and management of infectious diseases The Government’s investing in a new Infectious Diseases Research Platform to boost Aotearoa New Zealand’s Covid-19 response and preparedness for ...
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    1 week ago

  • Quarantine-free travel with Australia to remain suspended for a further 8 weeks
    Suspension to be reviewed again mid to late November Decision brought forward to enable access from Australia to first tranche of around 3000 rooms in MIQ Air New Zealand working at pace to put on more flights from Australia from October    The suspension of quarantine-free travel (QFT) with Australia has ...
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    1 week ago

  • Extra support for Ethnic Communities to share vaccination information
    Extra support is being made available to Ethnic Communities to help them share COVID-19 vaccination information within their communities, Minister for Diversity, Inclusion and Ethnic Communities Priyanca Radhakrishnan said. “We know we need to get every eligible person in New Zealand vaccinated. A fund being launched today will allow for ...
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    1 week ago

  • School holidays remain unchanged for Auckland region
    School holidays in Auckland will continue to be held at the same time as the rest of the country, starting from Saturday, 2 October, Education Minister Chris Hipkins said today. “I’ve carefully considered advice on the implications of shifting the dates and concluded that on balance, maintaining the status quo ...
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    1 week ago

  • Government continues crackdown on gangs and organised crime
    Operation Tauwhiro extended until March 2022 Since it was launched in February, Operation Tauwhiro has resulted in:   987 firearms seized $4.99 million in cash seized 865 people charged with a firearms-related offence Gangs and organised crime groups will continue to be relentlessly targeted with the extension of Police’s successful ...
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    1 week ago

  • Speech to Body Positive 'HIV Treatments Update Seminar 2021'
    E ngā mana E ngā reo E ngā iwi Tēnā koutou katoa Ka huri ki ngā mana whenua o te rohe nei. Tēnā koutou. He mihi hoki ki a tatou kua tau mai nei I raro I te kaupapa o te rā. Nō reira tēnā koutou katoa Acknowledgements It’s a ...
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    1 week ago

  • Power bill changes bring fairness to charges
    A key recommendation of an independent panel to make electricity charges fairer across all households will be put in place, the Energy and Resources Minister Megan Woods has announced. “Phasing out the regulations on ‘low-use’ electricity plans will create a fairer playing field for all New Zealanders and encourage a ...
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    1 week ago

  • NZ economy’s strong momentum will support rebound from Delta outbreak; COVID fund replenished
    The economy showed strong momentum in the period leading up to the recent Delta COVID-19 outbreak, which bodes well for a solid economic rebound, Grant Robertson said. GDP rose 2.8 percent in the June quarter, following on from a 1.4 percent increase in the previous March quarter. This was a ...
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    2 weeks ago

  • Projects create benefits into the future
    Making a well-known lake swimmable and helping to halt the decline of the endangered hoiho/yellow-eyed penguins are among a suite of new projects being supported by the Government’s Jobs for Nature programme across the southern South Island, Conservation Minister Kiri Allan says. “It’s no secret that many of our most ...
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    2 weeks ago

  • Opening statement for Whāriki Indigenous Small Business Roundtable
      Kei ngā tōpito e wha o te āo e rere ana te mihi maioha ki a koutou nō tawhiti, nō tata mai e tāpiri ana ki tēnei taumata kōrero mo te ao hokohoko arā mā ngā pākihi mo ngā iwi taketake Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa – Pai Mārire.  ...
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    2 weeks ago

  • New members appointed to Kāpuia
    The Government is adding four additional members to Kāpuia, the Ministerial Advisory Group on the Government’s Response to the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the terrorist attack on Christchurch mosques. “I’m looking forward to having Pamela MacNeill, Huia Bramley, Melani Anae and Katherine Dedo  join Kāpuia and contribute to this group’s ...
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    2 weeks ago

  • Timeline confirmed for Emissions Reductions Plan
    Cabinet has agreed to begin consulting on the Emissions Reduction Plan in early October and require that the final plan be released by the end of May next year in line with the 2022 Budget, the Minister of Climate Change, James Shaw confirmed today. “Cabinet’s decision allows organisations and communities ...
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    2 weeks ago

  • Pay parity pathway for early learning teachers confirmed
    Pay parity conditions and higher funding rates for education and care services will come into force on 1 January, 2022, Minister of Education Chris Hipkins confirmed today. The Government signalled this work in Budget 2021. “From 1 January, 2022, centres opting into the scheme will receive government funding and be ...
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    2 weeks ago

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