Merry Christmas to you and yours. I know for many times are tough and I am thinking of you, hoping joy will reach you. I will be blessed with the presence of our adult children and extended family Xmas day and am very conscious of how fortunate we are. This year we gifted to the Salvation Army Christmas Appeal rather than personal gifts and know this will be distributed to some in need. I believe this will remain a future family commitment at Xmas.
Most of all I wish for 2014 to be the turnaround year.
Thank you to all who contribute here. You are very much appreciated.
And to you LynWiper! Good idea re the Sallies Christmas Appeal too 🙂
“Most of all I wish for 2014 to be the turnaround year”.
This is the biggest wish and the biggest hope of all. Imagine, this time next year we could possibly have a shiny new government. Personally, I will be playing my part to make that happen.
be very careful when listening to the weasel-words of peters vis a vis coalition options after the next election..
..peters is now saying that he could ‘never be part of a govt that sold assets’..
..nor one that did not ‘support the rebuilding of the nz infrastructure’..
..so..i read that as..after the next election..should key promise not to sell any more assets in the ’14’-’17 govt..(easy for him to do..there is ‘no more worth selling’..remember..?..)
..and offer (whatever) that peters can point at and shout ‘infrastructure-rebuilding’..
..then winston peters will quite happily slide his shiny-suited arse into a key govt ministerial-limo..
The secret deal announced by the government today with the company James Hardie on leaky school buildings smacks of more corporate welfare.
Hundreds of millions of dollars are involved, yet it appears James Hardie will not be pursued. Another shonKey deal carefully announced on Xmas Eve so that it is brushed under the carpet.
Yep, but Leaky Building rehabilitation is providing economic growth…I reckon it is the only National Party initiative (Introducing the Building Act 1991) that is actually providing growth.
James Hardie are past masters at insulating their shareholders from liabilities like this. They were criminal in how they ring faced their Asbestos liabilities.
Letting them off on the schools scandal is an act of criminal negligence or corruption. Labour should be all over this.
Mikhail Kalashnikov, the inventor of the AK47, has died aged 94. He was a remarkably modest guy, who was genuinely saddened by some of the uses the rifle was put to, but he designed a simple, cheap weapon that is still manufactured virtually unchanged from the original plans.
While the project was not completed till after WW2, the Kalashnikov helped liberate millions from the shackles of colonialism in the decades following.
At about 4:30 a.m. on Sept. 1, 2007, pilots wearing night vision goggles unleashed several Enhanced Paveway II smart bombs into his camp in eastern Colombia as officials in both capitals waited. Troops recovered only a leg. It appeared by its dark complexion to belong to Acacio, one of the few black FARC leaders. DNA tests confirmed his death.
[…]
Six weeks later, smart bombs killed Gustavo Rueda Díaz, alias Martin Caballero, leader of the 37th Front, while he was talking on his cellphone. Acacio’s and Caballero’s deaths caused the 16th and 37th fronts to collapse. They also triggered mass desertions, according to a secret State Department cable dated March 6, 2008, and released by the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks in 2010. This was just the beginning of the FARC’s disintegration.
To hide the use of the PGMs from public discovery, and to ensure maximum damage to a FARC’s leaders’ camp, the air force and U.S. advisers developed new strike tactics. In a typical mission, several A-37 Dragonflys flying at 20,000 feet carried smart bombs. As soon as the planes came within a three-mile “basket” of the target, a bomb’s GPS software would automatically turn on.
The Dragonflys were followed by several A-29 Super Tucanos, flying at a much lower altitude. They would drop a series of dumb bombs in a pattern nearby. Their blast pressure would kill anyone close in and also flatten the dense jungle and obscure the use of the smart bombs.
Then, low-flying, Vietnam-era AC-47 gunships, nicknamed Puff the Magic Dragon, would strafe the area with mounted machine guns, “shooting the wounded trying to go for cover,” according to one of several military officials who described the same scenario.
You believe that cocaine was the deciding factor in this high level of US military involvement?
And not erosion of US power in central America?
If you are serious in your belief that drug money and not political revolution was the aim, why didn’t the FARC just sit back and let the money roll in?
Its a lesson of Bernay’s treatise entitled Propaganda, yes. Another lesson is that the intellectual class is often more than happy to support war for imperial aims. Notice how the US isn’t smart bombing the leadership of Mexican drug cartels?
CV, what I’m saying is that FARC turned to the soft option of the drug trade, which, in turn, allowed the US to further attack them as part of the bogus war on drugs. It was a terrible strategic error on FARC’s behalf.
So you contend that if the FARC had not been linked to the cocaine trade, the US would not be providing precision munitions and intel to the Columbian Govt?
Of course, we both know that is a nonsense, given that the US does not smart bomb Mexican drug cartel leaders.
“So you contend that if the FARC had not been linked to the cocaine trade, the US would not be providing precision munitions and intel to the Columbian Govt?”
Nope. I contend that without the drugs, the US would have to make do with ‘unofficial’ support (ie CIA, NSA etc). With drugs in play, the US can come out of the shadows and directly support military action against them as well.
You appear not to understand how the Washington Post works.
The piece was either published with the tacit approval of the US gov in that it supported a desired narrative to be pushed out into the public sphere and hence contained a whole lot of sensitive information but via ‘authorised’ leaks.
Or the piece was published without the approval of the US gov and the journalist and editors have put together a huge and awesome piece of investigative journalism.
These two scenarios mean that your suggested conditionality around drugs allowing “out of the shadows” US direct military action is mistaken.
Again, there plenty of well armed drug cartels operating around Mexico which haven’t been blasted to smithereens by smart munitions, demonstrating that the drugs angle is merely incidental.
The infamous joint US-Colombia drug eradication strategy, Plan Colombia, recently resurrected under Plan Patriota, has been embraced by the Uribe administration and referred to in the DS policy. Although most armed groups now finance their operations through the drug economy, Uribe claims to fight the “war on drugs” and the “war on terror” simultaneously. Curiously, the government “negotiates” with those most directly involved in the drug trade, the AUC, while engaging in an all-out offensive with the minor players: left-wing guerrilla groups.
The right wing militias that control most of the Colombian cocaine production do not pretend to be a revolutionary movement. They obviously took your advice.
I see old Bomber has had another brain explosion, he clearly doesn’t like the “PublicAddress gender equal person” if his (now striked out) rant was any guide. Actually as rants go it was quite funny, TBH.
I suppose that is all you can really salvage from the whole sorry carry on.
I think Bomber’s main problem is that he’s more of a performer than a militant. If he calmed down a bit, counted to something like Avogadro’s number, and didn’t insist on having the first word, the last word, and most of those in between, he might achieve a lot more. As it stands, his contributions are not trivial and he deserves to be remembered for more than frothing at the mouth.
Xox
Interesting to see how MSM spin poverty as a worthy opportunity for ‘generosity’ from the haves.
Also how MSM spin rising interest rates as great for savers. And it’s only about 2%. It is really 2 percent on top of approx 5.5 percent, which is really about 36 percent! We don’t want the MSM to scare mortgage payers (or voters) do we?
Merry Christmas, God save the Queen, heaven help her subjects.
a wealthy cousin of mine posted on facebook that to show her children the true meaning of xmas so shes going to give poor people their old toys…but anyway, i’m looking forward to a cpl days off work & spending it with my wife & daughter. ram on!
North
” The ease is patent but what’s really appalling is that they just don’t see it. “Who me ? No way !”
True but the trouble is the NZ averages can’t/don’t see it either. The ‘Keys’ know and exploit that inability. Dunno what we can do about the average kiwi’s poor visual acuity.
From that article:
“Irreverent Cabinet Minister Paula Bennett has produced her own pink wine label on a chardonnay this Christmas called “Sip It Sweetie”.
Some will find their way into Christmas stockings, but most will be auctioned to fundraise for her campaign in Upper Harbour next year.
“A fruity little number, plenty of sass and spirit,” the label says.
“This classy chardonnay will impress at a barbecue, beach picnic or a fancy-pants dinner party. Good drinking now but even better after a third term.”
Suggest “A full-bodied plonk with a tarty after-taste. Won’t age well. Will be off within 12 months.”
Jesu H Christos – now I understand why I can’t listen to Nine-toNoon for any length of time.
The music talking-head critic sage commenting on how we CONSUME music FFS!
OFF!
I was listening to RNZ Concert FM news who quoted Sara Chatwin, “celebrity” psychologist. I’m guessing this is the same one. If so, she always seems to comment on the most on the most inane non issues facing the population.
It is true, just in my observations, that folks do seem to freak and obsess about Christmas day weather, especially the newspapers and TV news, but really, to tell us not to worry about it is another thing altogether. There are far greater issues facing the national psyche than the weather.
I’d be one of those people, but funnily enough only on work days. Can go without any caffeine all weekend, but have a grossly unnatural relationship with that first cup of coffee mon-fri…
as for the music on 9-no-one.
its all whining gamines, processed pap and noo noo heads who cant sing.
but the awful thing is that “THEY” think its wunnerful.
yetchhhhhhhh.
Where’d your computer come from? Government
Where’d the drugs you use come from? Most likely government.
And this applies to a hell of a lot of innovation over the last few centuries. The lesson we need to learn is that the private sector doesn’t do the innovation as we’ve been told over the last 30 to 40 years. More often than not, the private sector holds innovation back through the use of patents.
Yep, from what I’ve seen out of the TPP innovation is going to become even more difficult and the patent trolls are going to be even more of a problem.
Brewer denies journalist prompt
The councillor caught out on a junket to the Gold Coast declared the trip to officials – but concedes he may have done so after a call from a journalist.
Xox
Pity about the falling standards @ RNZ. Lead by Jim, and Kathryn. Hopefully Wallace will do some serious reading and thinking over the Summer break, ready to provide an informed and intelligent program. A worthy successor to Chris.
Indeed!
Just like this morning, the nicest man on Earth is about to get the OFF button. Currently playing – the most self-indulgent load of kaka you could ever hope to imagine. And if anyone ever accuses RNZ of left-wing bias, they only need check out his afternoon’s guests. The occasional leftie (for fairness and balance of course – likw Peter Elliot, maybe even Bernard Hickey) – other than that – what a pack of out-of-touch ‘experts’ ffs/
Mai: what’s the diff between living in wgtn and commuting to auckland, and living in auck and commuting to wgtn?
– Oh (to paraphrase) it’s so difficult getting the kids to school.
– It makes you realise that to win an election, you have to win Auckland.
All very twee.
There goes half RNZ’s budget on cheap Chardonnay – down the gullets of those ‘movers and shakers’ including some Squeaky Fromme TVNZ hasbeen.
Reasons given being just as valid in proposing Auckland be carved off as a separate country, and for all those Auckland expats moving to Queenstown (or Martinborough) to get away from it all (whereupon they attempt to develop, develop, develop and re-create the new wonderland).
I like Jim and Kathryn and I’m leftish thinking. They seem to be reasonably impartial to me. Middle road reasonably intelligent content except for the concessional bigotted comments of Boag or Farrar and I guess we have to put up with the silly empty rhetoric of Hooton as part of being a democracy. Often disappointed with, “i have to agree with Michelle” from Mike Williams who I guess is changing with the need to supplement his corporate retirement.
Generally I think Jim and Kathryn do a good job.
I enjoy Kathryn Ryan too Rodel and agree she’s fairly impartial. She has regularly pulled up Hooton on his more outrageous claims and on one occasion she shouted him down and almost threatened to pull the plug on him. She also has a good sense of humour and conducts her interviews in a very professional manner. You can’t really expect any more than that…
Indeed she and Mary Wilson on Check Point keep us well served with all the information of the day.
There was an interesting opinion piece in the Dom/Post this morning by Geoffrey Palmer.
I can’t find it online so I can’t give a link to it unfortunately.
It will, I suspect attract completely opposite views from thos on the right of politics to those on the left.
Those on the right will say, about the first part the GP has finally come to his senses and that in the second part that he has reverted to senility. To the left the first part will be anathema and the second that he is finally back to his sensible self.
The first part argues that referenda endanger our democratic system. He also says that democracies where they are used extensively the results have been disastrous and that the act that allows for CIR should be repealed. Governments are elected to govern. They should decide what to do and to get on with it.
Very sensible of the man say all right thinking people.
The second part, where he relapses into drooling idiocy, calls for extending the OIA, bringing in a written, entrenched constitution, better protection for Maori values and aspirations and more safeguards against government’s abuse of power. “Bah humbug” as Ebenezer Scrooge would say, and as all right thinking people would believe..
I wonder how many people here would agree with everything, or disagree with everything, the Geoffrey says?
The first part argues that referenda endanger our democratic system. He also says that democracies where they are used extensively the results have been disastrous and that the act that allows for CIR should be repealed. Governments are elected to govern. They should decide what to do and to get on with it.
Very sensible of the man say all right thinking people.
I don’t see anything particularly right wing about this view, and nor, frankly, do I see his point. In NZ CIRs are not binding on the government. They are designed to be a means whereby people can determine the view of the electorate. The way politics works, that means they will usually be about expressing a view the government of the day doesn’t like. It is form of, very civil indeed, disobedience.
calls for extending the OIA, bringing in a written, entrenched constitution, better protection for Maori values and aspirations and more safeguards against government’s abuse of power.
I notice mostly that your response only amounts to a ‘humbug’. Understandably I suppose, it’s hard to argue against any of that without looking like a fuckwit.
It worked!
As I expected someone who doesn’t agree with part one, but is thoroughly in favour of part two shows up.
Referenda. “nor do I see his point”, “people can determine the view of the electorate”
Constitution “Hard to argue against any of it”.
Now is there anyone who agrees with BOTH parts of his opinion piece or, alternatively, disagrees with BOTH parts.
About the only sensible thing I can remember about Geoffrey was a proposal to put an expiration date on legislation.
Now that might be a little impractical, but at the very least (as someone else on this site suggested), it should be mandatory for anything passed under urgency.
(Besides – it’d give the delightful Mai Chen a reason to commute to Wellington and pass on her apologies to the all important “The Panel” appearances – she could probably even claim on a taxi to get the kids to and from school).
Geoffrey has a knack of romanticising everything and being a thoroughly ‘well rounded fellow’ amongst those who aspire to be his peers.
Now a far cry from the Mt Vic-living Geo of old who was far more practical and in touch with reality.
Geoffrey former Mt Vic what ? Hope he never engaged the face-first molestation of the steep Hawker Street pavement as has apparently the fulsomely reasonable closet totalitarian Stephen Franks. As mirthfully reported by someone on TS recently.
Akshully I seem to recall that hilarious story was related by you Tim. It was real LOL stuff to a former resident in that very street. Poor Geoffrey. Poor Stephen. Poor Nation.
Further hilarity – Alwyn above talks “bah humbug” as though his know-it-all right wing twittiness doesn’t define it.
Considering the shenanigans with the GCSB in NZ, think about this allegedly “benign” filter instituted by Cameron in the UK that was only supposed to filter porn and in fact, not accidentally, filters a lot more and think what could be planned here in NZ:
Cameron’s problem, methinks, is that he’s thinking like an old-school (literally) authoritarian whereas todays digital natives might not have heard the cyberpunk slogan “Information wants to be free” because its thoroughly ingrained in them. A lot of young people at least are going to get and damned well play on the old man’s lawn whether he likes it or not. Especially if not.
EDMONTON – More than 75 environment officers who watched over oil industry activities left the provincial environment department this fall, to take higher paying jobs with the new industry-funded Alberta Energy Regulator. Another 75-plus are expected to leave in the spring.
In mid-November, the department also began handing over to the regulator thousands of files on oil industry activity pertaining to the Public Lands Act, according to documents obtained by the Journal.
This shift in staffing and the moving of years of files out of a government department to the new arm’s length regulator are key steps in the government’s plan, announced last spring, to create a more streamlined approval process for oil companies that wanted “one window” to get permits for new projects.
Previously, companies had to apply to the environment department for some permits and to the old regulator, the now defunct Energy Resources Conservation Board.
To achieve the “one window,” the provincial government handed over to the privately funded regulator responsibility for administering the Water Act, Public Lands Act, and the Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act (dealing with spills) as they pertain to energy companies.
To ALL Standardistas, friends and foes, have a happy holiday season, a Merry Christmas to those who celebrate it, and the best of wishes for the new year 2014, which will be highly important “DECISION YEAR” for all of us.
It was an at times stressful and difficult year that comes to an end, and the fight for social justice, and for common sense, sustainable, smart, constructive, fair and inclusive policies, will continue in 2014.
For those that suffer illness and disabilities, bear in mind, that WINZ will start a new regime in February 2014, which will include medical and work capability assessments – similar to the ones done by ATOS in the UK, for those sick and disabled on benefits. They will be using OUTSOURCED CONTRACTORS!
“Private contractors will be paid $650 an assessment to get thousands of New Zealand’s sick and disabled ready to return to work.”
“From February, Work and Income will pay private “medical assessors” to scrutinise sickness and disability beneficiaries who it believes can work.”
“The medical assessors will be paid $650 per assessment, which are expected to take about three hours, and are prompted to recommend lifestyle changes to help the beneficiary get a job, such as a “positive approach to life” and more time at the gym.”
“It is expected eventually 3000 disabled people a year will have to visit an assessor, who will judge their fitness for work and report back to Work and Income.
The scheme, revealed in a tender proposal, is part of the biggest welfare shake-up in decades, with the Government aiming to have 28,000 to 44,000 people off benefits by 2017, saving up to $1.6 billion.”
Also remember this, from the NZ Herald, 18 Nov. 2013:
“Winz apologises to sick woman placed on wrong benefit”
So if some had horrific experiences with WINZ’s “designated doctors” (some are true “hatchet doctors”), get ready for the next level of harassment!
Study up the ample information offered in the following publications, to get informed what is going on, and what it is all about. Do NOT forget, the new year will bring more challenges, and the enemy NEVER sleeps (Bennett and her nasty WINZ and MSD underlings):
Feel free to copy and paste, and use the links at convenient times. Enjoy your holidays or breaks for time being, and get ready for the firestorm on the welfare and national policy front in the coming years. Every voice and body will be needed, it all leading up to the most important election in recent New Zealand history!
This is one more issue that Labour needs to take a firm position on. It seems Jacinda and whoever took her place have taken Benefat’s recommendation to heart and zipped it.
Also: Tnagata Whenua do not forget your brothers and sisters in Chile, they are called Mapuche, they have lived there for centuries, but have had their lands and rights taken away, like your people. Some take a stand at least:
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On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
Have a story to share about St Paul’s, but today just picturesPopular novels written at this desk by a young man who managed to bootstrap himself out of father’s imprisonment and his own young life in a workhouse Read more ...
The list of former National Party Ministers being given plum and important roles got longer this week with the appointment of former Deputy Prime Minister Paula Bennett as the chair of Pharmac. The Christopher Luxon-led Government has now made key appointments to Bill English, Simon Bridges, Steven Joyce, Roger Sowry, ...
Newsroom has a story today about National's (fortunately failed) effort to disestablish the newly-created Inspector-General of Defence. The creation of this agency was the key recommendation of the Inquiry into Operation Burnham, and a vital means of restoring credibility and social licence to an agency which had been caught lying ...
Holding On To The Present:The moment a political movement arises that attacks the whole idea of social progress, and announces its intention to wind back the hands of History’s clock, then democracy, along with its unwritten rules, is in mortal danger.IT’S A COMMONPLACE of political speeches, especially those delivered in ...
Stuck In The Middle With You:As Christopher Luxon feels the hot breath of Act’s and NZ First’s extremists on the back of his neck and, as he reckons with the damage their policies are already inflicting upon a country he’s described as “fragile”, is there not some merit in reaching out ...
The unpopular coalition government is currently rushing to repeal section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act. The clause is Oranga Tamariki's Treaty clause, and was inserted after its systematic stealing of Māori children became a public scandal and resulted in physical resistance to further abductions. The clause created clear obligations ...
Buzz from the Beehive The government’s official website – which Point of Order monitors daily – not for the first time has nothing much to say today about political happenings that are grabbing media headlines. It makes no mention of the latest 1News-Verian poll, for example. This shows National down ...
It Takes A Train To Cry:Surely, there is nothing lonelier in all this world than the long wail of a distant steam locomotive on a cold Winter’s night.AS A CHILD, I would lie awake in my grandfather’s house and listen to the traffic. The big wooden house was only a ...
Packing A Punch: The election of the present government, including in its ranks politicians dedicated to reasserting the rights of the legislature in shaping and determining the future of Māori and Pakeha in New Zealand, should have alerted the judiciary – including its anomalous appendage, the Waitangi Tribunal – that its ...
Dead Woman Walking: New Zealand’s media industry had been moving steadily towards disaster for all the years Melissa Lee had been National’s media and communications policy spokesperson, and yet, when the crisis finally broke, on her watch, she had nothing intelligent to offer. Christopher Luxon is a patient man - but he’s not ...
Chris Trotter writes – New Zealand politics is remarkably easy-going: dangerously so, one might even say. With the notable exception of John Key’s flat ruling-out of the NZ First Party in 2008, all parties capable of clearing MMP’s five-percent threshold, or winning one or more electorate seats, tend ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Polling shows that Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau has the lowest approval rating of any mayor in the country. Siting at -12 per cent, the proportion of constituents who disapprove of her performance outweighs those who give her the thumbs up. This negative rating is ...
Luxon will no doubt put a brave face on it, but there is no escaping the pressure this latest poll will put on him and the government. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political ...
This is a re-post from The Climate Brink by Andrew Dessler In the wake of any unusual weather event, someone inevitably asks, “Did climate change cause this?” In the most literal sense, that answer is almost always no. Climate change is never the sole cause of hurricanes, heat waves, droughts, or ...
Something odd happened yesterday, and I’d love to know if there’s more to it. If there was something which preempted what happened, or if it was simply a throwaway line in response to a journalist.Yesterday David Seymour was asked at a press conference what the process would be if the ...
Hi,From time to time, I want to bring Webworm into the real world. We did it last year with the Jurassic Park event in New Zealand — which was a lot of fun!And so on Saturday May 11th, in Los Angeles, I am hosting a lil’ Webworm pop-up! I’ve been ...
Education Minister Erica Standford yesterday unveiled a fundamental reform of the way our school pupils are taught. She would not exactly say so, but she is all but dismantling the so-called “inquiry” “feel good” method of teaching, which has ruled in our classrooms since a major review of the New ...
Exactly where are we seriously going with this government and its policies? That is, apart from following what may as well be a Truss-Lite approach on the purported economic “plan“, and Victorian-era regression when it comes to social policy.Oh it’ll work this time of course, we’re basically assured, “the ...
Hey Uncle Dave, When the Poms joined the EEC, I wasn't one of those defeatists who said, Well, that’s it for the dairy job. And I was right, eh? The Chinese can’t get enough of our milk powder and eventually, the Poms came to their senses and backed up the ute ...
Polling shows that Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau has the lowest approval rating of any mayor in the country. Siting at -12 per cent, the proportion of constituents who disapprove of her performance outweighs those who give her the thumbs up. This negative rating is higher than for any other mayor ...
Buzz from the Beehive Pharmac has been given a financial transfusion and a new chair to oversee its spending in the pharmaceutical business. Associate Health Minister David Seymour described the funding for Pharmac as “its largest ever budget of $6.294 billion over four years, fixing a $1.774 billion fiscal cliff”. ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government is trying to achieve and its ...
TL;DR: Here’s my top 10 ‘pick ‘n’ mix of links to news, analysis and opinion articles as of 10:10am on Monday, April 29:Scoop: The children's ward at Rotorua Hospital will be missing a third of its beds as winter hits because Te Whatu Ora halted an upgrade partway through to ...
span class=”dropcap”>As hideous as David Seymour can be, it is worth keeping in mind occasionally that there are even worse political figures (and regimes) out there. Iran for instance, is about to execute the country’s leading hip hop musician Toomaj Salehi, for writing and performing raps that “corrupt” the nation’s ...
Yesterday marked 10 years since the first electric train carried passengers in Auckland so it’s a good time to look back at it and the impact it has had. A brief history The first proposals for rail electrification in Auckland came in the 1920’s alongside the plans for earlier ...
The Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...
With Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...
The Labour Party is saddened to learn of the death of Sir Robert Martin, a globally renowned disability advocate who led the way for disability rights both in New Zealand and internationally. ...
Labour is calling for the Government to urgently rethink its coalition commitment to restart live animal exports, Labour animal welfare spokesperson Rachel Boyack said. ...
Today’s Financial Stability Report has once again highlighted that poverty and deep inequality are political choices - and this Government is choosing to make them worse. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to do more for our households in most need as unemployment rises and the cost of living crisis endures. ...
Unemployment is on the rise and it’s only going to get worse under this Government, Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said. Stats NZ figures show the unemployment rate grew to 4.3 percent in the March quarter from 4 percent in the December quarter. “This is the second rise in unemployment ...
The New Zealand Labour Party welcomes the entering into force of the European Union and New Zealand free trade agreement. This agreement opens the door for a huge increase in trade opportunities with a market of 450 million people who are high value discerning consumers of New Zealand goods and ...
The National-led Government continues its fiscal jiggery pokery with its Pharmac announcement today, Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall says. “The government has increased Pharmac funding but conceded it will only make minimal increases in access to medicine”, said Ayesha Verrall “This is far from the bold promises made to fund ...
This afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters discussed the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and enhanced cooperation in the Pacific with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock during her first official visit to New Zealand today. "New Zealand and Germany enjoy shared interests and values, including the rule of law, democracy, respect for the international system ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop today released his decision on four recommendations referred to him by the Western Bay of Plenty District Council, opening the door to housing growth in the area. The Council’s Plan Change 92 allows more homes to be built in existing and new ...
Thank you, John McKinnon and the New Zealand China Council for the invitation to speak to you today. Thank you too, all members of the China Council. Your effort has played an essential role in helping to build, shape, and grow a balanced and resilient relationship between our two ...
The Government is modernising insurance law to better protect Kiwis and provide security in the event of a disaster, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly announced today. “These reforms are long overdue. New Zealand’s insurance law is complicated and dated, some of which is more than 100 years old. ...
The coalition Government is refreshing its approach to supporting pay equity claims as time-limited funding for the Pay Equity Taskforce comes to an end, Public Service Minister Nicola Willis says. “Three years ago, the then-government introduced changes to the Equal Pay Act to support pay equity bargaining. The changes were ...
Structured literacy will change the way New Zealand children learn to read - improving achievement and setting students up for success, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Being able to read and write is a fundamental life skill that too many young people are missing out on. Recent data shows that ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay says Canada’s refusal to comply in full with a CPTPP trade dispute ruling in our favour over dairy trade is cynical and New Zealand has no intention of backing down. Mr McClay said he has asked for urgent legal advice in respect of our ‘next move’ ...
The rights of our children and young people will be enhanced by changes the coalition Government will make to strengthen oversight of the Oranga Tamariki system, including restoring a single Children’s Commissioner. “The Government is committed to delivering better public services that care for our most at-risk young people and ...
The Government is making it easier for minor changes to be made to a building consent so building a home is easier and more affordable, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on making it easier and cheaper to build homes so we can ...
New Zealand lost a true legend when internationally renowned disability advocate Sir Robert Martin (KNZM) passed away at his home in Whanganui last night, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. “Our Government’s thoughts are with his wife Lynda, family and community, those he has worked with, the disability community in ...
Good evening – Before discussing the challenges and opportunities facing New Zealand’s foreign policy, we’d like to first acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. You have contributed to debates about New Zealand foreign policy over a long period of time, and we thank you for hosting us. ...
From today, passengers travelling internationally from Auckland Airport will be able to keep laptops and liquids in their carry-on bags for security screening thanks to new technology, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Creating a more efficient and seamless travel experience is important for holidaymakers and businesses, enabling faster movement through ...
People with an interest in the health of Northland’s marine ecosystems are invited to a public meeting to discuss how to deal with kina barrens, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones will lead the discussion, which will take place on Friday, 10 May, at Awanui Hotel in ...
Kiwi exporters are $100 million better off today with the NZ EU FTA entering into force says Trade Minister Todd McClay. “This is all part of our plan to grow the economy. New Zealand's prosperity depends on international trade, making up 60 per cent of the country’s total economic activity. ...
There are heartening signs that the extractive sector is once again becoming an attractive prospect for investors and a source of economic prosperity for New Zealand, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The beginnings of a resurgence in extractive industries are apparent in media reports of the sector in the past ...
The return of the historic Ō-Rākau battle site to the descendants of those who fought there moved one step closer today with the first reading of Te Pire mō Ō-Rākau, Te Pae o Maumahara / The Ō-Rākau Remembrance Bill. The Bill will entrust the 9.7-hectare battle site, five kilometres west ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has announced 25 new high-speed EV charging hubs along key routes between major urban centres and outlined the Government’s plan to supercharge New Zealand’s EV infrastructure. The hubs will each have several chargers and be capable of charging at least four – and up to 10 ...
The coalition Government will not proceed with the previous Government’s plans to regulate residential property managers, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “I have written to the Chairperson of the Social Services and Community Committee to inform him that the Government does not intend to support the Residential Property Managers Bill ...
The Government has announced an independent review into the disability support system funded by the Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha. Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston says the review will look at what can be done to strengthen the long-term sustainability of Disability Support Services to provide disabled people and ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith has attended the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva and outlined the Government’s plan to restore law and order. “Speaking to the United Nations Human Rights Council provided us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while responding to issues and ...
The Government and Rotorua Lakes Council are committed to working closely together to end the use of contracted emergency housing motels in Rotorua. Associate Minister of Housing (Social Housing) Tama Potaka says the Government remains committed to ending the long-term use of contracted emergency housing motels in Rotorua by the ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay heads overseas today for high-level trade talks in the Gulf region, and a key OECD meeting in Paris. Mr McClay will travel to Riyadh to meet with counterparts from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). “New Zealand’s goods and services exports to the Gulf region ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford has outlined six education priorities to deliver a world-leading education system that sets Kiwi kids up for future success. “I’m putting ambition, achievement and outcomes at the heart of our education system. I want every child to be inspired and engaged in their learning so they ...
The new NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) App is a secure ‘one stop shop’ to provide the services drivers need, Transport Minister Simeon Brown and Digitising Government Minister Judith Collins say. “The NZTA App will enable an easier way for Kiwis to pay for Vehicle Registration and Road User Charges (RUC). ...
Whānau with tamariki growing up in emergency housing motels will be prioritised for social housing starting this week, says Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka. “Giving these whānau a better opportunity to build healthy stable lives for themselves and future generations is an essential part of the Government’s goal of reducing ...
Racing Minister Winston Peters has paid tribute to an icon of the industry with the recent passing of Dave O’Sullivan (OBE). “Our sympathies are with the O’Sullivan family with the sad news of Dave O’Sullivan’s recent passing,” Mr Peters says. “His contribution to racing, initially as a jockey and then ...
Assalaamu alaikum, greetings to you all. Eid Mubarak, everyone! I want to extend my warmest wishes to you and everyone celebrating this joyous occasion. It is a pleasure to be here. I have enjoyed Eid celebrations at Parliament before, but this is my first time joining you as the Minister ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced Pharmac’s largest ever budget of $6.294 billion over four years, fixing a $1.774 billion fiscal cliff. “Access to medicines is a crucial part of many Kiwis’ lives. We’ve committed to a budget allocation of $1.774 billion over four years so Kiwis are ...
Hon Paula Bennett has been appointed as member and chair of the Pharmac board, Associate Health Minister David Seymour announced today. "Pharmac is a critical part of New Zealand's health system and plays a significant role in ensuring that Kiwis have the best possible access to medicines,” says Mr Seymour. ...
Hundreds of New Zealand families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) will benefit from a new Government focus on prevention and treatment, says Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. “We know FASD is a leading cause of preventable intellectual and neurodevelopmental disability in New Zealand,” Dr Reti says. “Every day, ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges. “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Genterwocky After a hard days marching, Sir Doocey calls in at the Village Tavern For a pint of ale and a pork pie. The grim villagers stare at him. “Do not be travelling on the forest road,” warns a crusty old beak. “And why is that, antique peasant?” Grins Sir ...
Political conferences after a party returns to power are usually a chance for some healthy, even unhealthy backslapping. Yet National Party president Sylvia Wood’s address to its mainland representatives on Saturday hardly contained the unalloyed delight that one might have expected following National’s escape from the wilderness of opposition. Yes, ...
Comment: Almost half the world is voting in national elections this year and artificial intelligence is the elephant in the room. There are genuine fears AI-generated or AI-edited deepfakes will potentially manipulate election outcomes not just in the US and UK, but critically in countries such as India. For that ...
Ahead of the reality franchise’s return to New Zealand, allow us to introduce the eight brides and grooms. Chuck on a veil and tie back your man bun, because it’s time to say “I do” to a new season of Married at First Sight NZ. The reality TV “social experiment” ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Norton, Professor in the Practice of Higher Education Policy, Australian National University Every year on June 1, student debt in Australia is indexed to inflation. In 2023, high inflation pushed the indexation rate to 7.1%, the highest since 1990. This ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Changes in the May 14 budget will cut the student debt of more than three million people, wiping more than $3 billion from what people owe. The government will cap the HELP indexation rate ...
Asia Pacific Report The prosecutor’s office at the International Criminal Court (ICC) has appealed for an end to what it calls intimidation of its staff, saying such threats could constitute an offence against the “administration of justice” by the world’s permanent war crimes court. The Hague-based office of ICC Prosecutor ...
By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk A women’s union in New Caledonia has staged a sit-in protest this week to support senior Kanak indigenous journalist Thérèse Waia, who works for public broadcaster Nouvelle-Calédonie la Première, after a smear attack by critics. The peaceful demonstration was held on ...
New Zealand Food Safety is monitoring overseas recalls of Indian packaged spice products manufactured by MDH and Everest due to concerns over a cancer-causing pesticide. ...
By Stephen Wright and Stefan Armbruster of BenarNews Fiji’s ranking in a global press freedom index has jumped into the top tier of countries with free or mostly free media after its government last year repealed a draconian law that threatened journalists with prison for doing their jobs. Fiji’s improvement ...
We might be in Invercargill but all anyone can talk about is Gore. Specifically, Salford Street. That’s where three-year-old Lachlan Jones lived, south of the centre of town, between the A&P Showgrounds and the Mataura River. Roughly 1.2 km away from the single level home he lived in with his ...
MONDAY I lined up the latest round of civil servants from city hall against the wall, and signalled for the firing squad to drop their rifles. I stepped up onto a wooden crate to look at the office workers in the eye. But that didn’t feel right, so I found ...
Keen hiker and second-year MSc student Liam Hewson wears two hats when he’s in the great outdoors. “The scientist in me appreciates nature and goes, ‘Oh, there’s that thing and there’s another thing,’ but then the tramper and the outdoorsy person in me thinks, ‘Cool bush.’” Born and bred in ...
After a long and illustrious career as a goal kicker, Dan Carter’s favourite way to unwind is… kicking goals. Why can’t he get enough of it? And what it’s like to watch him do it for an hour straight? A semicircle of people wielding cameras and phones has formed in ...
Dame Susan Devoy takes us through her life in television, including late night ER debriefs, her proudest CTI moment and the show she watches in secret. Quite aside from her four world champion squash titles, Dame Susan Devoy will likely go down in history as one of the best Celebrity ...
Hera Lindsay Bird reveals the best places in Ōtepoti to score more for your apocalypse-prep book hoard.Sometimes I get the feeling I’ve been killed in a car crash, and this second half of my life is just the brain unspooling itself, like one of those episodes of a hospital ...
ThreeNow’s new murder mystery series takes us on a dark, damp journey into the Australian wilderness.This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. High Country is ThreeNow’s new Australian eight-part crime drama, set in a remote part of the Victorian highlands. It tells ...
Introducing a new way to read The Spinoff every weekend. After nearly 10 years of being an online magazine, we’re finally embracing the weekend liftout. Despite our best efforts to convince you otherwise, writers and editors at The Spinoff don’t work weekend. It is through the sheer power of technology ...
Tip one: let yourself be nurtured by this big old man. Tip two: don’t ask him to adopt you. So, you’ve arrived at your first session with a new therapist. He tells you to make yourself comfortable and you opt for the tweed armchair, hoping it makes you look like ...
I didn’t know books could open you back up; that there were books that stayed with you, where reading was like a chemical event. I knew nothing.The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.Not too long ago, I was listening to the American ...
Former Olympic swimmer James Magnussen has already started training for the Enhanced games, though says he won’t start taking performance enhancing substances until about nine months out from the competition. The Australian world champion was the first athlete to be announced by Enhanced, but he says the organisation has had ...
Everyone thinks he’s dead. Every day they expect his body to be washed up along the coast. Most likely up Karitane way, the way the tide’s running. But nobody’ll be too surprised if his body’s never found. Even in death he wouldn’t have wished for such attention. He would have ...
Council members voted 21 to 4 in favour of Ahluwalia returning to the Laucala campus following a much-awaited meeting in Vanuatu this week. It comes as USP and its two unions — the Association of the University of the South Pacific Staff (AUSPS) and the Administration and Support Staff Union ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nicola Henry, Professor & Australian Research Council Future Fellow, Social and Global Studies Centre, RMIT University Shutterstock Following an emergency meeting of the National Cabinet this week, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has announced a raft of measures to tackle the problem ...
Analysis - A poll showing the opposition is more popular than the government raises questions, politicians go through their 'trial by pay rise' and a Green MP loses her cool in the debating chamber. ...
The entire stretch of Tokomaru Bay on the East Coast will be subject to a joint customary marine title for two hapū, and extending up to four miles out to sea. A High Court judge has found the two groups, who during the case settled a dispute over boundaries for ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James Hall, Lecturer, Media & Cultural Studies, Edith Cowan University A longstanding feud between TikTok and Universal Music Group seems to have finally reached an end, with both parties signing a deal that will see Universal-backed music returned to the social media ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Siobhan O’Dean, Postdoctoral Research Associate, The Matilda Centre for Research in Mental Health and Substance Use, University of Sydney After several highly publicised alleged murders of women in Australia, the Albanese government this week pledged more than A$925 million over five years ...
Political parties have now fully disclosed the donations they received last year - with National getting more than double the cash of any other party. ...
A Pacific regionalism expert has called out New Zealand's Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters for withholding information from the public on AUKUS military pact. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Richard de Grijs, Professor of Astrophysics, Macquarie University Bruno Scramgnon/Pexels All systems are “go” for tonight’s launch of China’s next step in a carefully planned lunar exploration program. Placed on top of a powerful Long March 5 rocket, the Chang’e 6 ...
National returned a massive donation the day after a Newsroom story linked the donors to a property being investigated for operating unlawfully as a migrant workers’ hostel. The party’s 2023 donation filings, released on Friday, show it returned a $200,000 donation from Buen Holdings on August 23. That was the ...
Pacific Media Watch New Zealand has slumped to an unprecedented 19th place in the annual Reporters Without Borders World Press Freedom Index survey released today on World Press Freedom Day — May 3. This was a drop of six places from 13th last year when it slipped out of its ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Joshua Black, Political Historian and Administrator Officer, Australian Historical Association, Australian National University Australia has had its fair share of public record-keeping controversies in recent years. Some have been mere farce, as in the case of two formerly government-owned filing cabinets (containing ...
Heavenly Culture, World Peace, Restoration of Light (HWPL), a United Nations-affiliated organization dedicated to fostering peace through civilian-led initiatives, has issued a statement in response to the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran. ...
A poem by Tessa Keenan, from AUP New Poets 10. Mātou These days we are a photograph; one of a farm strewn with cows that used to be bright harakeke or swamp. The kids point at it and say the sun sits behind a smudge (left by someone at Christmas); ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan (Faber & Faber, $25)The masterful Irish writer ...
Marriage and civil union statistics record the number of marriages and civil unions registered in New Zealand each year, and divorce statistics record the number of divorces granted in New Zealand each year. Key facts Marriages and civil unions In ...
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Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lennon Y.C. Chang, Associate Professor of Cyber Risk and Policy, Deakin University Taiwan stands out as a beacon of democracy, innovation and resilience in an increasingly autocratic region. But this is under growing threat. In recent years, China has used a variety ...
In this excerpt from her new memoir, Dame Susan Devoy remembers her turn as star contestant on the 2022 season of Celebrity Treasure Island. The most anxious time of every day was pre-elimination, when you knew this could be your final day on the show. I felt such contradictory emotions, ...
A week that began in triumph ended in an all-too-familiar disaster for the Green Party. Duncan Greive asks if there’s something in the mission that breaks its best and brightest. A long, strange week for the Green party began with a fantastic poll result. On one level this is hardly ...
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What’s to blame for the coalition’s choppy start? Six months in, and the mojo meter is in the doldrums. A new poll would put National out of power and sees its leader, Chris Luxon, sliding in popularity. How much is it about policy, how much coalition management and a perception ...
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The world has been experiencing a productivity slowdown, from which New Zealand has not been exempt. COVID-19 temporarily boosted labour productivity, but more recently, productivity has retreated. The overall trend since 2007 has been one of slow productivity ...
What’s more wasteful than spending $315k on syrup and machine maintenance? Trying to drum up a controversy about it.Cast your mind back to the pre-pandemic idylls of 2019. A “rat” was a disgusting rodent and not a self-administered plague test; the sixth Labour government was in power; and the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Fitz-Gibbon, Professor of Social Sciences, Faculty of Arts, Monash University, Monash University Ken stocker/Shutterstock In the wake of numerous killings of women allegedly by men’s violence in 2024, thousands of Australians have joined rallies across the country to demand action ...
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Merry Christmas to you and yours. I know for many times are tough and I am thinking of you, hoping joy will reach you. I will be blessed with the presence of our adult children and extended family Xmas day and am very conscious of how fortunate we are. This year we gifted to the Salvation Army Christmas Appeal rather than personal gifts and know this will be distributed to some in need. I believe this will remain a future family commitment at Xmas.
Most of all I wish for 2014 to be the turnaround year.
Thank you to all who contribute here. You are very much appreciated.
And to you LynWiper! Good idea re the Sallies Christmas Appeal too 🙂
“Most of all I wish for 2014 to be the turnaround year”.
This is the biggest wish and the biggest hope of all. Imagine, this time next year we could possibly have a shiny new government. Personally, I will be playing my part to make that happen.
be very careful when listening to the weasel-words of peters vis a vis coalition options after the next election..
..peters is now saying that he could ‘never be part of a govt that sold assets’..
..nor one that did not ‘support the rebuilding of the nz infrastructure’..
..so..i read that as..after the next election..should key promise not to sell any more assets in the ’14’-’17 govt..(easy for him to do..there is ‘no more worth selling’..remember..?..)
..and offer (whatever) that peters can point at and shout ‘infrastructure-rebuilding’..
..then winston peters will quite happily slide his shiny-suited arse into a key govt ministerial-limo..
..eh..?
..be in no doubt of that fact/political-reality..
..eh..?
..phillip ure..
The secret deal announced by the government today with the company James Hardie on leaky school buildings smacks of more corporate welfare.
Hundreds of millions of dollars are involved, yet it appears James Hardie will not be pursued. Another shonKey deal carefully announced on Xmas Eve so that it is brushed under the carpet.
Yep, but Leaky Building rehabilitation is providing economic growth…I reckon it is the only National Party initiative (Introducing the Building Act 1991) that is actually providing growth.
James Hardie are past masters at insulating their shareholders from liabilities like this. They were criminal in how they ring faced their Asbestos liabilities.
Letting them off on the schools scandal is an act of criminal negligence or corruption. Labour should be all over this.
Mikhail Kalashnikov, the inventor of the AK47, has died aged 94. He was a remarkably modest guy, who was genuinely saddened by some of the uses the rifle was put to, but he designed a simple, cheap weapon that is still manufactured virtually unchanged from the original plans.
While the project was not completed till after WW2, the Kalashnikov helped liberate millions from the shackles of colonialism in the decades following.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-25497013
Meanwhile…
At about 4:30 a.m. on Sept. 1, 2007, pilots wearing night vision goggles unleashed several Enhanced Paveway II smart bombs into his camp in eastern Colombia as officials in both capitals waited. Troops recovered only a leg. It appeared by its dark complexion to belong to Acacio, one of the few black FARC leaders. DNA tests confirmed his death.
[…]
Six weeks later, smart bombs killed Gustavo Rueda Díaz, alias Martin Caballero, leader of the 37th Front, while he was talking on his cellphone. Acacio’s and Caballero’s deaths caused the 16th and 37th fronts to collapse. They also triggered mass desertions, according to a secret State Department cable dated March 6, 2008, and released by the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks in 2010. This was just the beginning of the FARC’s disintegration.
To hide the use of the PGMs from public discovery, and to ensure maximum damage to a FARC’s leaders’ camp, the air force and U.S. advisers developed new strike tactics. In a typical mission, several A-37 Dragonflys flying at 20,000 feet carried smart bombs. As soon as the planes came within a three-mile “basket” of the target, a bomb’s GPS software would automatically turn on.
The Dragonflys were followed by several A-29 Super Tucanos, flying at a much lower altitude. They would drop a series of dumb bombs in a pattern nearby. Their blast pressure would kill anyone close in and also flatten the dense jungle and obscure the use of the smart bombs.
Then, low-flying, Vietnam-era AC-47 gunships, nicknamed Puff the Magic Dragon, would strafe the area with mounted machine guns, “shooting the wounded trying to go for cover,” according to one of several military officials who described the same scenario.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/sf/investigative/2013/12/21/covert-action-in-colombia/?hpid=z8
That really is amazing investigative journalism. You don’t often see that nowadays.
It is also a none-too subtle message that armed rebellion against a government that is allied to a super-power will leave you fucked.
Or stay away from peddling drugs while pretending to be a revolutionary movement.
You believe that cocaine was the deciding factor in this high level of US military involvement?
And not erosion of US power in central America?
If you are serious in your belief that drug money and not political revolution was the aim, why didn’t the FARC just sit back and let the money roll in?
Te Reo Putake
Your one line comment is direct & on target, and taken out Colonial Viper
A sentence always beat an essay.
Its a lesson of Bernay’s treatise entitled Propaganda, yes. Another lesson is that the intellectual class is often more than happy to support war for imperial aims. Notice how the US isn’t smart bombing the leadership of Mexican drug cartels?
Cheers, watching. An intellectual smart bomb?
CV, what I’m saying is that FARC turned to the soft option of the drug trade, which, in turn, allowed the US to further attack them as part of the bogus war on drugs. It was a terrible strategic error on FARC’s behalf.
So you contend that if the FARC had not been linked to the cocaine trade, the US would not be providing precision munitions and intel to the Columbian Govt?
Of course, we both know that is a nonsense, given that the US does not smart bomb Mexican drug cartel leaders.
although I wouldn’t be surprised if the US were giving mexico advisors and tech support, like with pablo escobar.
Yep that would be standard, regular FDA/ATF activity.
The food & drug administration? WTF? Surely you meant DEA?
Anyway, I was thinking more the cloak&dagger crowd as well, as they occasionally do.
lolz thanks, yeah I pulled the wrong alphabet out of the soup 😀
Although I should I add that pharmaceuticals are by a very wide margin the most abused drugs in the USA, not illicit narcotics…
“So you contend that if the FARC had not been linked to the cocaine trade, the US would not be providing precision munitions and intel to the Columbian Govt?”
Nope. I contend that without the drugs, the US would have to make do with ‘unofficial’ support (ie CIA, NSA etc). With drugs in play, the US can come out of the shadows and directly support military action against them as well.
You appear not to understand how the Washington Post works.
The piece was either published with the tacit approval of the US gov in that it supported a desired narrative to be pushed out into the public sphere and hence contained a whole lot of sensitive information but via ‘authorised’ leaks.
Or the piece was published without the approval of the US gov and the journalist and editors have put together a huge and awesome piece of investigative journalism.
These two scenarios mean that your suggested conditionality around drugs allowing “out of the shadows” US direct military action is mistaken.
Again, there plenty of well armed drug cartels operating around Mexico which haven’t been blasted to smithereens by smart munitions, demonstrating that the drugs angle is merely incidental.
Yup, Alvaro Uribe and Juan Manuel Santos really are fighting a war on drugs.
/
The infamous joint US-Colombia drug eradication strategy, Plan Colombia, recently resurrected under Plan Patriota, has been embraced by the Uribe administration and referred to in the DS policy. Although most armed groups now finance their operations through the drug economy, Uribe claims to fight the “war on drugs” and the “war on terror” simultaneously. Curiously, the government “negotiates” with those most directly involved in the drug trade, the AUC, while engaging in an all-out offensive with the minor players: left-wing guerrilla groups.
http://upsidedownworld.org/main/content/view/296/1/
http://upsidedownworld.org/main/colombia-archives-61
The right wing militias that control most of the Colombian cocaine production do not pretend to be a revolutionary movement. They obviously took your advice.
Great piece documenting the Tsarnaev family.
http://www.bostonglobe.com/Page/Boston/2011-2020/WebGraphics/Metro/BostonGlobe.com/2013/12/15tsarnaev/tsarnaev.html
news story:..new pope to visit old pope to exchange xmas-greetings..
..what will they talk about..?
ed:..possible small-talk conversation/question:..
..old pope to new pope:..
“..so..how did the infallablity-transfer go..?
..eveything ok..?
..i do miss it..eh..?..”
..phillip ure..
I see old Bomber has had another brain explosion, he clearly doesn’t like the “PublicAddress gender equal person” if his (now striked out) rant was any guide. Actually as rants go it was quite funny, TBH.
I suppose that is all you can really salvage from the whole sorry carry on.
Oh dear. He doesn’t do much to promote unity and solidarity among the left does he. He has some issues to overcome I feel.
He’s made an apology now. But I agree, he’s pretty quick with the saying nasty shit about people. Quite a significant personal flaw that one.
I think Bomber’s main problem is that he’s more of a performer than a militant. If he calmed down a bit, counted to something like Avogadro’s number, and didn’t insist on having the first word, the last word, and most of those in between, he might achieve a lot more. As it stands, his contributions are not trivial and he deserves to be remembered for more than frothing at the mouth.
Xox
Interesting to see how MSM spin poverty as a worthy opportunity for ‘generosity’ from the haves.
Also how MSM spin rising interest rates as great for savers. And it’s only about 2%. It is really 2 percent on top of approx 5.5 percent, which is really about 36 percent! We don’t want the MSM to scare mortgage payers (or voters) do we?
Merry Christmas, God save the Queen, heaven help her subjects.
a wealthy cousin of mine posted on facebook that to show her children the true meaning of xmas so shes going to give poor people their old toys…but anyway, i’m looking forward to a cpl days off work & spending it with my wife & daughter. ram on!
Oh how easily the right wing slithers into hypocrisy:
“Gold Coaster” Cameron Brewer
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11177254
Then there’s “Prime Mournister” ShonKey Python. “I can’t recall but watch out for the Hone Monster……..”
And yet another……..Rodney “Love Perks” Hide.
The ease is patent but what’s really appalling is that they just don’t see it. “Who me ? No way !”
That’s exceptionalism, hubris, entitlement all wrapped up in one.
We’re supposed to respect these arseholes ???
North
” The ease is patent but what’s really appalling is that they just don’t see it. “Who me ? No way !”
True but the trouble is the NZ averages can’t/don’t see it either. The ‘Keys’ know and exploit that inability. Dunno what we can do about the average kiwi’s poor visual acuity.
I read this pathetic piece of fluff from Paula Bennett:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=11176800
Then I saw this on TV1 last night:
http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/unprecedented-demand-food-parcels-5785669?autoStart=true
Tears of anger…
From that article:
“Irreverent Cabinet Minister Paula Bennett has produced her own pink wine label on a chardonnay this Christmas called “Sip It Sweetie”.
Some will find their way into Christmas stockings, but most will be auctioned to fundraise for her campaign in Upper Harbour next year.
“A fruity little number, plenty of sass and spirit,” the label says.
“This classy chardonnay will impress at a barbecue, beach picnic or a fancy-pants dinner party. Good drinking now but even better after a third term.”
Suggest “A full-bodied plonk with a tarty after-taste. Won’t age well. Will be off within 12 months.”
How was the cat persuaded to sit on the bottle?
Festive lolz. We needz them.
Took me a few minutes to latch on to that one. lolz. Thanks TM.
“Doesn’t go well with trout.”
Snigger…
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10202601372814200&set=gm.10152223971895809&type=1&theater
Jesu H Christos – now I understand why I can’t listen to Nine-toNoon for any length of time.
The music talking-head critic sage commenting on how we CONSUME music FFS!
OFF!
Yes Radio New Zealand featured a psychologist this a.m. telling people that they wouldnt go mad if it rained on Xmas day.
???????
I was listening to RNZ Concert FM news who quoted Sara Chatwin, “celebrity” psychologist. I’m guessing this is the same one. If so, she always seems to comment on the most on the most inane non issues facing the population.
It is true, just in my observations, that folks do seem to freak and obsess about Christmas day weather, especially the newspapers and TV news, but really, to tell us not to worry about it is another thing altogether. There are far greater issues facing the national psyche than the weather.
I reckon some people would go mad without caffeine, even for a day. As for the weather it is not mid winter.
I’d be one of those people, but funnily enough only on work days. Can go without any caffeine all weekend, but have a grossly unnatural relationship with that first cup of coffee mon-fri…
as for the music on 9-no-one.
its all whining gamines, processed pap and noo noo heads who cant sing.
but the awful thing is that “THEY” think its wunnerful.
yetchhhhhhhh.
Jingle Bells – 1898
http://ia700306.us.archive.org/24/items/Voices_of_Christmas_Past_1898_to_1922/03_SleighRidePartyJingleBells_vbr.mp3
@ hook..
aww..!..c’mon..!..that elvis costello + roots song kicked arse/grooved along..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lfhafgiONU
phillip ure..
Where’d your computer come from? Government
Where’d the drugs you use come from? Most likely government.
And this applies to a hell of a lot of innovation over the last few centuries. The lesson we need to learn is that the private sector doesn’t do the innovation as we’ve been told over the last 30 to 40 years. More often than not, the private sector holds innovation back through the use of patents.
http://www.ted.com/talks/mariana_mazzucato_government_investor_risk_taker_innovator.html
And the TPP is a tool of corporates designed to stifle innovation even more. Its a push by rentier corporates back to pre-enlightenment times.
Yep, from what I’ve seen out of the TPP innovation is going to become even more difficult and the patent trolls are going to be even more of a problem.
loved this:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=11177254
Brewer denies journalist prompt
The councillor caught out on a junket to the Gold Coast declared the trip to officials – but concedes he may have done so after a call from a journalist.
kind of sums up the whole odd business
Xox
Pity about the falling standards @ RNZ. Lead by Jim, and Kathryn. Hopefully Wallace will do some serious reading and thinking over the Summer break, ready to provide an informed and intelligent program. A worthy successor to Chris.
Indeed!
Just like this morning, the nicest man on Earth is about to get the OFF button. Currently playing – the most self-indulgent load of kaka you could ever hope to imagine. And if anyone ever accuses RNZ of left-wing bias, they only need check out his afternoon’s guests. The occasional leftie (for fairness and balance of course – likw Peter Elliot, maybe even Bernard Hickey) – other than that – what a pack of out-of-touch ‘experts’ ffs/
Mai: what’s the diff between living in wgtn and commuting to auckland, and living in auck and commuting to wgtn?
– Oh (to paraphrase) it’s so difficult getting the kids to school.
– It makes you realise that to win an election, you have to win Auckland.
All very twee.
There goes half RNZ’s budget on cheap Chardonnay – down the gullets of those ‘movers and shakers’ including some Squeaky Fromme TVNZ hasbeen.
Reasons given being just as valid in proposing Auckland be carved off as a separate country, and for all those Auckland expats moving to Queenstown (or Martinborough) to get away from it all (whereupon they attempt to develop, develop, develop and re-create the new wonderland).
I like Jim and Kathryn and I’m leftish thinking. They seem to be reasonably impartial to me. Middle road reasonably intelligent content except for the concessional bigotted comments of Boag or Farrar and I guess we have to put up with the silly empty rhetoric of Hooton as part of being a democracy. Often disappointed with, “i have to agree with Michelle” from Mike Williams who I guess is changing with the need to supplement his corporate retirement.
Generally I think Jim and Kathryn do a good job.
Am I missing something?
The Panel
I enjoy Kathryn Ryan too Rodel and agree she’s fairly impartial. She has regularly pulled up Hooton on his more outrageous claims and on one occasion she shouted him down and almost threatened to pull the plug on him. She also has a good sense of humour and conducts her interviews in a very professional manner. You can’t really expect any more than that…
Indeed she and Mary Wilson on Check Point keep us well served with all the information of the day.
Nah! Mary Wilson scares me!
There was an interesting opinion piece in the Dom/Post this morning by Geoffrey Palmer.
I can’t find it online so I can’t give a link to it unfortunately.
It will, I suspect attract completely opposite views from thos on the right of politics to those on the left.
Those on the right will say, about the first part the GP has finally come to his senses and that in the second part that he has reverted to senility. To the left the first part will be anathema and the second that he is finally back to his sensible self.
The first part argues that referenda endanger our democratic system. He also says that democracies where they are used extensively the results have been disastrous and that the act that allows for CIR should be repealed. Governments are elected to govern. They should decide what to do and to get on with it.
Very sensible of the man say all right thinking people.
The second part, where he relapses into drooling idiocy, calls for extending the OIA, bringing in a written, entrenched constitution, better protection for Maori values and aspirations and more safeguards against government’s abuse of power. “Bah humbug” as Ebenezer Scrooge would say, and as all right thinking people would believe..
I wonder how many people here would agree with everything, or disagree with everything, the Geoffrey says?
The first part argues that referenda endanger our democratic system. He also says that democracies where they are used extensively the results have been disastrous and that the act that allows for CIR should be repealed. Governments are elected to govern. They should decide what to do and to get on with it.
Very sensible of the man say all right thinking people.
I don’t see anything particularly right wing about this view, and nor, frankly, do I see his point. In NZ CIRs are not binding on the government. They are designed to be a means whereby people can determine the view of the electorate. The way politics works, that means they will usually be about expressing a view the government of the day doesn’t like. It is form of, very civil indeed, disobedience.
calls for extending the OIA, bringing in a written, entrenched constitution, better protection for Maori values and aspirations and more safeguards against government’s abuse of power.
I notice mostly that your response only amounts to a ‘humbug’. Understandably I suppose, it’s hard to argue against any of that without looking like a fuckwit.
It worked!
As I expected someone who doesn’t agree with part one, but is thoroughly in favour of part two shows up.
Referenda. “nor do I see his point”, “people can determine the view of the electorate”
Constitution “Hard to argue against any of it”.
Now is there anyone who agrees with BOTH parts of his opinion piece or, alternatively, disagrees with BOTH parts.
About the only sensible thing I can remember about Geoffrey was a proposal to put an expiration date on legislation.
Now that might be a little impractical, but at the very least (as someone else on this site suggested), it should be mandatory for anything passed under urgency.
(Besides – it’d give the delightful Mai Chen a reason to commute to Wellington and pass on her apologies to the all important “The Panel” appearances – she could probably even claim on a taxi to get the kids to and from school).
Geoffrey has a knack of romanticising everything and being a thoroughly ‘well rounded fellow’ amongst those who aspire to be his peers.
Now a far cry from the Mt Vic-living Geo of old who was far more practical and in touch with reality.
Geoffrey former Mt Vic what ? Hope he never engaged the face-first molestation of the steep Hawker Street pavement as has apparently the fulsomely reasonable closet totalitarian Stephen Franks. As mirthfully reported by someone on TS recently.
Akshully I seem to recall that hilarious story was related by you Tim. It was real LOL stuff to a former resident in that very street. Poor Geoffrey. Poor Stephen. Poor Nation.
Further hilarity – Alwyn above talks “bah humbug” as though his know-it-all right wing twittiness doesn’t define it.
Considering the shenanigans with the GCSB in NZ, think about this allegedly “benign” filter instituted by Cameron in the UK that was only supposed to filter porn and in fact, not accidentally, filters a lot more and think what could be planned here in NZ:
http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2013/12/camerons-internet-filter-goes-far-beyond-porn-and-was-always-plan
Cameron’s problem, methinks, is that he’s thinking like an old-school (literally) authoritarian whereas todays digital natives might not have heard the cyberpunk slogan “Information wants to be free” because its thoroughly ingrained in them. A lot of young people at least are going to get and damned well play on the old man’s lawn whether he likes it or not. Especially if not.
What do you mean “planned”? It’s already in operation but it’s voluntary for the ISPs to use.
Softening up
Indeed; always smiling, always waving and hoping to be always welcomed.
http://roflposters.com/fascism-you-really-think-itll-be-this-obvious-205633/
The masses always cry out for their own enslavement
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-QaBhnnSS9N8/TYRqMBmIh0I/AAAAAAAAAF8/ai57zTwFXK8/s1600/austrians.gif
The new Tsarists.
http://techcrunch.com/2013/11/22/geeks-for-monarchy/
The Harper fix.
EDMONTON – More than 75 environment officers who watched over oil industry activities left the provincial environment department this fall, to take higher paying jobs with the new industry-funded Alberta Energy Regulator. Another 75-plus are expected to leave in the spring.
In mid-November, the department also began handing over to the regulator thousands of files on oil industry activity pertaining to the Public Lands Act, according to documents obtained by the Journal.
This shift in staffing and the moving of years of files out of a government department to the new arm’s length regulator are key steps in the government’s plan, announced last spring, to create a more streamlined approval process for oil companies that wanted “one window” to get permits for new projects.
Previously, companies had to apply to the environment department for some permits and to the old regulator, the now defunct Energy Resources Conservation Board.
To achieve the “one window,” the provincial government handed over to the privately funded regulator responsibility for administering the Water Act, Public Lands Act, and the Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act (dealing with spills) as they pertain to energy companies.
http://www.calgaryherald.com/business/energy-resources/More+than+Alberta+environmental+regulators/9318036/story.html?__lsa=d2c2-8c00
It seems that the Harper government wants to relive the Dark Ages, beginning with a real life reenactment of the burning of the library at Alexandria:
http://thetyee.ca/News/2013/12/23/Canadian-Science-Libraries/
Christmas would hardly be Christmas without this song:
To ALL Standardistas, friends and foes, have a happy holiday season, a Merry Christmas to those who celebrate it, and the best of wishes for the new year 2014, which will be highly important “DECISION YEAR” for all of us.
It was an at times stressful and difficult year that comes to an end, and the fight for social justice, and for common sense, sustainable, smart, constructive, fair and inclusive policies, will continue in 2014.
For those that suffer illness and disabilities, bear in mind, that WINZ will start a new regime in February 2014, which will include medical and work capability assessments – similar to the ones done by ATOS in the UK, for those sick and disabled on benefits. They will be using OUTSOURCED CONTRACTORS!
Remember this:
http://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/278489/tests-disabled-flawed-model
And this:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/9356043/Contractors-to-assess-sick-and-disabled-for-work
Extract from that last story at ‘stuff’:
“Private contractors will be paid $650 an assessment to get thousands of New Zealand’s sick and disabled ready to return to work.”
“From February, Work and Income will pay private “medical assessors” to scrutinise sickness and disability beneficiaries who it believes can work.”
“The medical assessors will be paid $650 per assessment, which are expected to take about three hours, and are prompted to recommend lifestyle changes to help the beneficiary get a job, such as a “positive approach to life” and more time at the gym.”
“It is expected eventually 3000 disabled people a year will have to visit an assessor, who will judge their fitness for work and report back to Work and Income.
The scheme, revealed in a tender proposal, is part of the biggest welfare shake-up in decades, with the Government aiming to have 28,000 to 44,000 people off benefits by 2017, saving up to $1.6 billion.”
Also remember this, from the NZ Herald, 18 Nov. 2013:
“Winz apologises to sick woman placed on wrong benefit”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11158863
So if some had horrific experiences with WINZ’s “designated doctors” (some are true “hatchet doctors”), get ready for the next level of harassment!
Study up the ample information offered in the following publications, to get informed what is going on, and what it is all about. Do NOT forget, the new year will bring more challenges, and the enemy NEVER sleeps (Bennett and her nasty WINZ and MSD underlings):
http://accforum.org/forums/index.php?/topic/15463-designated-doctors-%e2%80%93-used-by-work-and-income-some-also-used-by-acc/
http://accforum.org/forums/index.php?/topic/15264-welfare-reform-the-health-and-disability-panel-msd-the-truth-behind-the-agenda/
http://accforum.org/forums/index.php?/topic/15188-medical-and-work-capability-assessments-based-on-the-bps-model-aimed-at-disentiteling-affected-from-welfare-benefits-and-acc-compo/
http://accforum.org/forums/index.php?/topic/13301-what-to-do-if-you-are-required-to-see-a-winz-designated-doctor/
Feel free to copy and paste, and use the links at convenient times. Enjoy your holidays or breaks for time being, and get ready for the firestorm on the welfare and national policy front in the coming years. Every voice and body will be needed, it all leading up to the most important election in recent New Zealand history!
This is one more issue that Labour needs to take a firm position on. It seems Jacinda and whoever took her place have taken Benefat’s recommendation to heart and zipped it.
Murray –
It is “Sip It Sweetie” now:
“Bennett: Sip It Sweetie and help my re-election campaign”
That is as much as the MSM and “DA Herald” has to say to it:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11176800
I am lost for words, but who out there gives a crap, I ask?
HISTORIC:
The Scorpions, so thoughtful:
Illapu – alleged Marxists, coming home after exile, who relates to that here?
Also: Tnagata Whenua do not forget your brothers and sisters in Chile, they are called Mapuche, they have lived there for centuries, but have had their lands and rights taken away, like your people. Some take a stand at least: