No. He would like to see that investment shift from gobbling up existing homes ( some of which sit empty or have 1 student offspring in it) into new homes to create a more energised new home build market.
The Govt is also legislating against foreign ownership?
But in doing so (creating a more energised new home build market) it will be adding upward pressure, thus squeezing local buyers out. With the displacement resulting in the ripple effect.
Merely shifting demand and not ceasing it won’t prevent offshore investors gobbling up our land and homes. Albeit new ones.
Especially with limited tradesman to build more homes. If all this did was increase the numebr of homes being built great. i can’t see that happening and the price to build a new home will go up.
Allowing this upward pressure is a big mistake that will come back to haunt Labour.
It will clash with Kiwibuild.
I’d suggest they look at a form of tax as a disincentive to substantially slow this form of investment. It’s not the type of offshore investment we require.
Failing to get business leadership to harness common purpose for this country has the capacity to cripple this administration as it nearly did for the first term of Clark.
Seeing I don’t want a Depression or a Revolution, I think engaging with business
and not scaring the horses makes sense. They have a part to ply in our economy. / sarc
The breathless, sycophantic hagiography of Moir and Jenna Lynch on Newshub yesterday is sickening. They come across as National Party PR flunkies not journalists. I am not surprised but it emphasises yet again how poorly we are served by the MSM.
O’Sullivan’s piece on the other hand was worth reading.
You do wonder whether it’s a case of bias, but rather ignorance, laziness, bias and incompetence.
These people have been picked because they are cheap ad they get little journalistic training. They are obsessed with their own egos. They are in the entertainment business not news business.
They stand for nothing.
And more propaganda to be found in the Herald by Trevett.
55% of the voters in this country did not vote for the National Party.
About 70% of the adult population did not vote for the National Party.
Yet over 75% or more of the opinion pieces advocate for the right wing.
Stuart Nash has been the best MP for Napier since the 156-year-old electorate was red for all but 17 years since the first Labour MP was elected in 1922.
The only bad Labour MP Napier ever had was Russell Fairbrother who he shocked us all when he closed our Historic iconic Napier hospital and that cost labour the 2008 election.
Thank God we have re-secured Napier again as a labour strong hold.
James you have a long history of bad mouthing any other party except National, and on those grounds i have this comment here as a bad mouthing of Stuart Nash “figuratively” speaking.
We look forward to any statement from you that favours the current Government in future.
We do need to give the Labour coalition Governement a fair go, and a chance to succeed as we will all benefit from this.
To quote james;
“Shortly after, Labour MP Stuart Nash walked in trying to sell some bloody story about cops.
He looked shocked, almost offended at my face.”
“He would indulge in sexual touching while working on the set (Top of the Pops or Jim’ll Fix It) and, on at least one occasion, he was actually on camera.
“Savile would seize the opportunity for sexual contact even in public places such as corridors, staircases and canteens.”
….the honours committee advised then-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher against recommending Savile for a knighthood because of public warning signs about the presenter, even if the BBC failed to see them. ….
“GROPERS” is presented by GroperWatch, a division of Daisycutter Sports Inc.
More gropers. Collect the series!…
No.1 George Herbert Walker Bush; No. 2 Bill O’Reilly; No. 3 Al Franken; No. 4 Robin Brooke; No. 5 Lester Beck; No. 6 Arnold Schwarzenegger; No. 7 Joe Biden; No. 8 Rolf Harris; No. 9 Harold Bloom
Heh. While I really wish the Clintons would just go away and enjoy their millions away from the spotlight and we never hear from them again, I gotta admit this article makes some good points about the upsides of Hillary for 2020.
Fuckwits made up so much about her health last election, I’m amazed she’s still alive. She’d be the oldest president taking office if she won (record currently held by Trump). Put those two together, every time she clears her throat the fuckwits will be diagnosing terminal lung cancer.
Another Saturday, another confused story from John Roughan in the Herald. Seriously, does John “no will use the bus way” Roughan have a fucking clue?
I THINK his bewildering article, which starts with a sweeping anachronistic generalisation, makes an unsubstantiated assertion, creates a straw man based on a flat out wrong assumption of the past before making another tiresome declaration of the superiority of the market model is actually an inchoate attempt to address the issue of where we direct our tertiarty funding. But who knows with Roughan, the guy is a 1980s dinosaur with but a fleeting connection to the dynamics of New Zealand in 2017.
Seriously, why does the Herald cling to these old, out of touch op-ed writers? Surely they could find a young woman to write opinion pieces, or maybe an Asian bloke under 40? And surely they’d be more bracing and up to date in their views than have retreads who recycle the same predictable rubbish?
Just for the record, NZ Universities were always free, or practically free, before the government abandoned it’s core role in tertiary education. when Victoria College was established in 1899, its founding Act stated that the highest fee charged to students by the college was not to exceed the lowest fee set at any other college in New Zealand. Up until 1911, the fee set by Victoria was one and a half guineas (32 shillings, just over one and a half pounds), which was then doubled in 1912. This was when the an unskilled labourer earned on average 140 pounds a year. Based on the minimum wage that would make 1912 university fees about $1500 in todays money. Is Roughan really trying to claim the university funding system that existed before 1990s produced academically inferior universities? Because all the evidence points to the complete opposite.
Aging ideological halfwits like Roughan like to harrumph from their supposed rarified heights about the fake news and the like – but it is their obsession with ideology and their need to force every fact and every interpretation in that ideological lens, that laid the groudwork for todays fake news world.
Fuck off and retire Roughan. You’re a handbrake on the countries future.
You must be an extremely wealthy person.
Any one who can say, apparently with a straight face, that
“NZ Universities were always free, or practically free”
and follow it, a couple of lines later, that
“that would make 1912 university fees about $1500 in todays money”
is clearly a great deal better off than I am.
Are you seriously proposing the $1500 is a mere bagatelle and really not worth anything at all? Are you so rich that you consider $1500 indistinguishable from “free”?
I believe it was after WWII that tertiary education did become free. The time of the NZ,s and the West’s greatest growth and development. And then neo-liberalism got implemented around the world and things have downhill for them since.
Although, the inflation calculator says that today’s price for that one and a half pounds would be ~$250 and not $1500.
Any one who can say, apparently with a straight face, that
“NZ Universities were always free, or practically free”
Do you not recall the bursary system?.
There are, of course, various important conditions governing such matters as eligibility and tenure; for detailed information, reference should be made to the University Bursaries Regulations 1962. The following summary will, however, serve to illustrate the general purpose and nature of the bursaries.
1 Fees Bursary: This is, in general, available to all students who hold the University Entrance qualification or the Endorsed School Certificate. The bursary is tenable for the minimum period of time in which the student, pursuing his course full time, could complete that course. It provides for the payment of full tuition fees.
2 Fees and Allowances Bursary: This is available to students who have qualified for the Higher School Certificate. In addition, students who in their first year of tenure of a fees bursary have been credited with passes in three units of an arts or science degree or their equivalent may then become entitled to the fees and allowances bursary. The bursary provides for the payment of full tuition fees and a bursary allowance increasing from £40 in the first year to £100 in the fourth or any subsequent year. It is tenable for the minimum period required for the bachelor’s course.
3 Master’s Bursary: Students who have completed a bachelor’s degree course in not more than one year in excess of the minimum period and who wish to take a master’s degree may be awarded a master’s bursary for this purpose. The bursary is awarded for one year, with provision for extension. The value is the same as for the fourth and subsequent years of the fees and allowances bursary.
The tenure of all these bursaries is dependent on the continued satisfactory progress of the student bursar, and there is provision in the regulations referred to above for suspension, reinstatement, and termination of any bursary.
No, I hadn’t forgotten them.
I was a recipient of that largesse. However Sanctuary described the Universities as having always been near free and then quoted numbers from 1912 which didn’t look anything like that.
It was a great deal easier to do such things in the 50s and 60s. Vic had about 3,000 students when I was originally there and there were probably only about 15,000 in the whole country. A lot of the courses, law for example, were part time.
This appears to be a reply to me.
Can you tell me what the relevance of 1977 is and who you are talking about when you say “We will see who is right.”.
The government needs to make sweeping reforms to the media so apologists for the 1% like Lynch, Roughan, Hosking, Moir, Garner, Soper, du Plessis Allen, etc have 1% of the airtime.
Roughan only has a job because he says what the owner of NZME want the public of NZ to hear.
He is a tool for the 1%.
The owners of NZME
‘he JMAD New Zealand media ownership report 2016 observes that New Zealand media institutions are facing major changes in ownership and management, but it is not clear what combinations will eventually emerge.
For the first time in six years, New Zealand media companies are exclusively owned by financial institutions. ’
Leaving aside Roughan’s twitterings, it’s my personal observation that during the period in the 80’s NZ Universities went through the transition from ‘virtually free’ to ‘fee paying’ they began to become less attractive places.
Specifically academic staff could no longer treat students purely on merit, but had to incorporate some awareness that their own salaries were now linked in some manner to their ‘clients’ success.
That and the disaster that was ‘continuous assessment’ which greatly diminished the social and intellectual life of the place … has placed our Universities on a path of decreasing global value.
Having actually lived and worked in Russia for a short period I rather wish the West would grow out of this pointless Russophobia. Ordinary Russians are a fine people pretty much just like the rest of us.
As with China, with Russia there are different political and philosophical variants in play that we need to be intelligent and discriminating about engaging with. But ultimately the West is far better served by working towards rapprochement than a reflexive isolation.
Ordinary Russians are fine people, as are ordinary Chinese, most ordinary Americans, ordinary Indians etc.
But the elites that hold the levers of power are different, and they operate in different ways. Best not to be naive about how cunning and malicious they can be in service of their long term interests.
So far as I can tell, they operate the same way in every country: with a very high degree of impunity. Once again, ethnicity has nothing to do with it.
Looking at the two pieces by Lynch and Moir again it is the relentless one-sidedness of them that is so obvious.
There is no attempt at a balanced assessment of these potential National Party leaders. No hint of the stench of corruption that hangs around Collins, or Bridge’s politicking with 10 (no) bridges for Northland, Coleman’s incompetence, any evidence of what Kaye has actually achieved and so on.
Personally I don’t care who they choose as obviously I’m not impressed with any of them and out of that lot whomever they choose will make the government look better.
Lynch:
He (Bridges) had an aggressive start to this Parliamentary term, turning the House upside down and showing Labour who is boss on the opening day. The symbolism of the show of force he exerted by making the Government question its numbers while trying to do a procedural election of a Speaker is that he is ready to take them on.
Yep, we get it. As Ed says, you think Simon is amazing.
He’s had a succession of good jobs and none of his ministerial portfolios have caused him any grief.
They’ve caused us some grief though. Building largely pointless motorways and not investing in ways to build a sustainable transport system that’s not so harmful to the environment and get more huge trucks off our over-stressed roading system has been a successful approach.
He had a regular head-to-head slot with Jacinda Ardern on morning television in his early days, so he’s proven he can match her.
At what? Appearing on morning TV?
And ever since then, like the Crown prosecutor he is by trade, he is building a compelling case.
Was he any good?
Just 12 months later he’s found himself on the Opposition benches and has launched a series of blistering attacks on the new Government, whether in the House, through brutally worded press releases or by baiting Ministers on social media.
Beneath the Brylcreem exterior lurks a nasty piece of work (much like Key).
Judith Collins – Remains a total threat, performing incredibly in Opposition.
Really? Oh, I get it. Judith is amazing too.
Amy Adams – The former Justice Minister has already landed some solid strikes on the new Government and has been given portfolios that will continue to hit where it hurts – particularly Workplace Relations. Her move on Paid Parental Leave was a masterstroke.
Masterstroke? Or just empty posturing and duplicitious points-scoring?
Paula Bennett – The job seemed hers a while ago, but at the moment, the desire doesn’t seem to be there. She seems happy taking a back seat after losing the Deputy Prime Minister spot.
Wonder why?
Nikki Kaye – Represents the future and is National’s face of Auckland. She’s also beaten Jacinda Ardern twice in Auckland Central.
One is now the PM the other an opposition MP who doesn’t seem to have achieved much.
Steven Joyce – He rose rapidly through the ranks and has done pretty much everything but.
Done pretty much everything just not very well.
Moir:
The party says it wants English in the leadership and many are still sore about how much of the vote they won and it not being enough to keep them in Government.
So they are delusional and still don’t understand MMP then. Great credentials for party that wants to govern again.
Some have taken to Opposition like a duck to water with the likes of Nikki Kaye and Judith Collins barking at everything passing by them.
Like dogs chasing cars, that’s smart.
Kaye and Bridges have been tag teaming as they create chaos for Education Minister and Leader of the House Chris Hipkins and tertiary spokesman Paul Goldsmith, almost invisible in Government, seems to be basking in his newfound Opposition freedom.
Create chaos? Really? And Goldsmith was useless as a minister but good in opposition? Yep that’s the right way round.
Both Collins and Bridges are class acts in Opposition – they’re fast on their feet and they’ve both got a bit of pitbull in them.
Class acts? Seriously, Oriveda Collins? Pitbull? Collins maybe but Bridges seems more like a yappy little terrier, one of those brainless dogs that runs along a residential front fenceline yapping at you as you walk past.
Kaye is ambitious and can dine out on the fact she beat the hugely popular Ardern in the Auckland Central seat twice.
So what? How long will this keep getting trotted out?
Coleman wouldn’t have any qualms about giving it another crack but he’s going to have to school up fast on how Opposition works.
Pity he didn’t school up on being a minister. This is the guy that ran down our health system and was pretty much a disaster as health minister.
Then there’s Amy Adams. She’s smart – don’t forget she got given just about every portfolio there was in the last government, given how competent she is.
Maybe because the others were so useless but at least she didn’t drop the ball like so many of them.
Did Lynch ask Collins orBridges to ghost write the article for her?
Trevett’s article is ghastly too. These people cannot be called journalists.
We do not have a democratic media. We have one owned by financial institutions who have a message they want the NZ public to hear. And they own some willing narcissistic puppets ( Lynch, Moir, Hosking, Garner, Roughan, du Plessis-Allan, Soper, Street, Tame) happy to peddle their lies.
I agree these people are undermining democracy Ed. I get frustratef when if you criticise someone like Hosking for some rant on TV you are told that he’s entitled to his opinion and if you don’t like it then don’t watch/listen.
That would be valid if we had a healthy media presenting balanced points of view encouraging vigorous debate. But we don’t. We have a biased media following what seems to be an orchestrated plan to present information and opinion from a very narrow perspective with very specific messages.
And when the media is owned by interests who benefit from spreading those messages then I dont know how we reform it.
Having a viable, independent public broadcasting service would be a start.
We can’t ‘reform’ the media. Constitutionalism as we know it doesn’t allow that. What we do have are more and more sources of information about the things which touch us, and the opportunity to publicly lampoon. Those aghast at “social media” are lamenting their loss of control that’s all…….there’s no morality to it. It’s money/vainglory. Poor stressed darlings.
+++
A great line-by-line audit! What if TS started a regular page like this… like BLiP’s list, it could make an archive of what already looks and quacks like an orchestrated litany.
You mean the way they refer to whites as ‘European’? But of course, clearly in your eyes, only whites are racist.
Strangely enough, we refer to them as ‘Asian’ because they inhabit the continent of Asia.
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
[there was nothing in CV’s comment to suggest that he believes only whites are racist. Your supposition/accusation is exactly the kind of inflammatory comment that leads to reactionary threads. If you disagree with the points someone has made, then address those points. Don’t make shit up about what they are saying. – weka]
Way in the distant past I had a go at Fran O’Sullivan in very strong terms. Well time passes and we all change:
As Luxon said, “We will all get the country — the environment, the society and the economy — we all deserve.
“Building a sustainable and better New Zealand is a cause well worth putting all our collective efforts and energy behind as business leaders working together with government and community leaders.
“Fundamentally, business needs a strong society and society needs strong business. The two are intrinsically linked and mutually reinforcing.”
My truck purring when I found the radiator cap loose this had caused the bearing in the water pump to wear out and the temperature to spike I put black pepper in radiator to stop the bearing leaking and when I changed the water pump I found a hose clip on the bottom of the radiator lose it was finger tight
What the______. Now you people that are doing this shit why don’t you act like real Men and stop getting contracted lies whom are exactly like Frank Gallagher from the TV show Shamles who will say anything for there next drink and hit of pee real Men would arrested me and take me to court and try and confirm Your contracted lies To the hole WORLD. O THAT’S right I’m not human in your eyes Im just a Criminal Maori Iv got a good story that will piss the gisborne man off tomorrow. Kia kaha
The NZ media is totally owned by financial institutions.
This means that people relying on the NZ corporate media have no idea of what is going on in the world of economics.
They have no idea of the elite’s plan for the next financial crisis. Media and neo-liberal Governments are conspiring against their citizens in this.
The comeback of the last eight years is artificial. A crisis of even greater proportions is imminent.
Read James Rickards, Steve Keen and other independent economists.
Ignore the Herald and other media puppets of the finance industry.
Many thanks to Ngai Tahu IWI for choseing the right person for the job to lead there IWI into there bright and prosperous future who is a Maori Lady Lisa Tumahai Ka pai. My IWI have close historical ties to them and Maori always respect OUR Lady’s this changed with colonialism. Kia Kaha
I agree that there is only one race, the human race. But you say racism isn’t about race, a statement which I would imagine many people would dismiss as cloud cuckoo land stuff. (and who could blame them)
If as you stated you agree that having a shared understanding of what racism is is important and a good starting point, then perhaps you need to stop trying to change the definition that most people understand and know in order to have a definition that better suits your own opinions on racism, which are definitely not in line with the majority of people. (In my opinion)
So are you implying when you say it’s about culture and ethnicity, that a person can be a racist about a culture (amongst other things) rather than a race ??
So as an example. If I was to say that I believe female genital mutilation is a barbaric practice and I think those cultures within which such a thing is practiced should be made to abolish it. Certainly it should be made clear that it is forbidden in our country regardless of how ‘multi-cultural’ we are. Any culture which permits such a thing as far as I’m concerned is backward, uncivilized and needs to evolve.
Is that a racist statement?? (No)
By the way for those here that think Canada is a beacon of progressive success. They have their ‘multi-culturalism’ enshrined in law and according to Mr Trudeau, to criticize a culture for practicing female genital mutilation would be offensive to that culture and criminal because it is part of someone’s culture, therefore is beyond reproach and somehow acceptable. This s how warped ‘progressive’ (more like regressive) thinking is becoming. Any normal, caring, human being with any common sense would say that there are things about other cultures which are simply not acceptable in our civilized, secular, modern , ‘progressive’ society and would put their own culture ahead of that which practices such things, especially when it is that other culture coming to our country.
Dislike of, criticism of, or even complete disregard of any particular culture due to unacceptable (to any normal moral person) things, that are acceptable within that culture, are perfectly legitimate positions to take should a person choose to do so and they in no way mean that person is a racist. Not standing up for what is right for fear of offending someone or hurting their feelings about their cultural barbarity’s is a cowardly position to take.
“..it can also be unconscious…” I’ve heard this nonsense floating around, what an unbelievable claim to make. If this were true then how could anyone ever even know they were a racist, let alone stop being racist?? Maybe the ‘unconscious’ thought police could manage such a thing. Racism is something that requires conscious thought, decision making and/or action. If racism could be unconscious then for all we know, you, me and every person on the planet could be racist, it could be part of our DNA and none of us would even know it about ourselves.
(yes I know that there are tests which suggest such a phenomenon, but for every test there are plenty of experts who rubbish the methodologies and claims)
Regardless of what you think should or shouldn’t happen Weka, you can’t just redefine words to suit your worldview. The way some people throw around words like racist at pretty much anyone who brings up anything about the Chinese or Asians or any ‘non-white’ foreigners is a disgrace in my opinion. It simply cheapens the word, insults those victims of real racism and diminishes the seriousness of real racism. Some of the things you cry racism at are nothing of the sort.
I’ve lost count of the times I’ve been accused of making a racist statement for things such as simply stating an observable fact. ‘Racist’, ‘Nazi’, ‘Facist’, etc are all terms increasingly used to try and shut down discussions and debates when unable to make rational counter arguments.
It seems many people still, no matter how much information they are given, haven’t figured out why Trump won.
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
“But you say racism isn’t about race, a statement which I would imagine many people would dismiss as cloud cuckoo land stuff. (and who could blame them)”
You’re on a progressive political blog. There’s an expectation here that people get themselves up to speed on political concepts. That race doesn’t exist but racism does is neither new nor unknown. It’s a common enough idea amongst the left irrespective of whether one agrees with it or not. As I’ve said elsewhere, semantics don’t serve us very well when dealing with racism in the real world. Better to work with concept and ideas that are being used by people in their lives.
I’m not trying to change the definition of racism, I’m sharing opinion based on the various definitions of racism that exist independent of me. I’m not making this stuff up. If you are unfamiliar with it I suggest googling racism 101.
The rest of your comment is pretty far off topic especially given you are basically denying the existence of systemic racism, which is in part what the post was about. So I’m moving this one to Open Mike.
What on earth does this mean?’There’s an expectation here that people get themselves up to speed on political concepts.’-concept
ˈkɒnsɛpt/Submit
noun
plural noun: concepts
an abstract idea.
“structuralism is a difficult concept”
synonyms: idea, notion, conception, abstraction, conceptualization; More
a plan or intention.
As one grey to another, thanks for this. Very informative and helped join some dots for me. There were some very relevant echoes to our situation and it reinforced that what we’re up against is a global issue.
Thanks Grey. I get good background and reliable info here, enough to keep me informed on what is actually happening, and reciprocate. I feel we all have to be grown up birds looking for our own fodder and fly from the comforting RW nest instead of sitting there with our beaks open waiting for propaganda birds to drop in morsels they regurgitate for the dependent flock.
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Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in an exit interview with Q+A yesterday the Government can and should sustain more debt to invest in infrastructure for future generations. Elsewhere in the news in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 6:36am: Read more ...
Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. It is more than just a happy ...
TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to March 18 include:China’s Foreign Minister visiting Wellington today;A post-cabinet news conference this afternoon; the resumption of Parliament on Tuesday for two weeks before Easter;retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson gives his valedictory speech in Parliament; ...
New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Government’s key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
“I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
.“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
“It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet – is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
Bob Edlin writes – And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ HeraldThomas CoughlanSimeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
TL;DR:Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it: We want our country to be a ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading → ...
Ele Ludemann writes – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
What was that judge thinking?Peter Williams writes – That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop:Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
Buzz from the BeehiveThe text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary. It can be quickly analysed ...
For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
Questions need to be asked on both sides of the worldPeter Williams writes – The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop:The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
TL;DR:Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
Bob Edlin writes – The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
The Government has accepted Labour’s change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s fast-track legislation. ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesn’t act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
The New Zealand public voted for a change in direction at the 2023 general election and that is exactly what this coalition government has been delivering in its first 100 days. There was an immediate focus on the economy, easing the cost of living, cracking down on law and order ...
The Government has left the health system as an afterthought, announcing half-baked targets at the last minute of their 100-day plan, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
Kiwis are still waiting for their promised cost of living support after 100 days of a National Government that is taking us backwards, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
100 days of National taking NZ backwardsThe National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
The Government must commit to funding free and healthy school lunches, as thousands of people sign the petition to keep them, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti says. ...
If the Government was serious about moving families into public housing, they would build more houses so there is actually somewhere for people to go. ...
The free and healthy school lunches programme feeds our kids, helps them to learn, and saves families money – but it is at risk under this Government, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
The Government’s proposed changes to Firearms Prohibition Orders (FPO) add almost nothing new and are merely an attempt to distract from its plans to loosen gun laws, police spokesperson Ginny Andersen and justice spokesperson Dr Duncan Webb said. ...
The great Victorian era English politician Lord Macauley stood in the British House of Parliament and said, "The gallery in which the reporters sit has become a fourth estate of the realm".He understood and outlined even way back then, the significant role and influence media have in a democracy. ...
The government’s attack on Māori health this week is committing tangata-whenua to a premature death, says Te Pāti Māori. “The government have begun their onslaught on Māori health with the abolishment of the Māori Health Authority and smokefree laws in the same day” said health spokesperson and co-leader, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. ...
"The Government is moving quickly to realise an additional $46 million in tariff savings in the EU market this season for Kiwi exporters,” Minister for Trade and Agriculture, Todd McClay says. Parliament is set, this week, to complete the final legislative processes required to bring the New Zealand – European ...
New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April. ...
Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand. Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships. “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland Acknowledgements and opening Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says. “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024 Acknowledgements and opening Morena, Nga Mihi Nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country. “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week. “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee. “Over the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today. “The Amendment Paper represents ...
Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).“As it stands, SNAs ...
Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has classified the drought conditions in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts as a medium-scale adverse event, acknowledging the challenging conditions facing farmers and growers in the district. “Parts of Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts are in the grip of an intense dry spell. I know ...
The Government is helping farmers eradicate the significant impact of facial eczema (FE) in pastoral animals, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “A $20 million partnership jointly funded by Beef + Lamb NZ, the Government, and the primary sector will save farmers an estimated NZD$332 million per year, and aims to ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has completed a successful visit to India, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level. “We have laid a strong foundation for the Coalition Government’s priority of enhancing New Zealand-India relations to generate significant future benefit for both countries,” says Mr Peters, ...
Cabinet has agreed to provide $7 million to ensure the 2024 ski season can go ahead on the Whakapapa ski field in the central North Island but has told the operator Ruapehu Alpine Lifts it is the last financial support it will receive from taxpayers. Cabinet also agreed to provide ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Lower fruit and vegetable prices are welcome news for New Zealanders who have been doing it tough at the supermarket, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ reported today the price of fruit and vegetables has dropped 9.3 percent in the 12 months to February 2024. “Lower fruit and vege ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the sixty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
The coalition Government is supporting farmers to enhance land management practices by investing $3.3 million in locally led catchment groups, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “Farmers and growers deliver significant prosperity for New Zealand and it’s vital their ongoing efforts to improve land management practices and water quality are supported,” ...
Good evening everyone and thank you for that lovely introduction. Thank you also to the Honourable Simon Bridges for the invitation to address your members. Since being sworn in, this coalition Government has hit the ground running with our 100-day plan, delivering the changes that New Zealanders expect of us. ...
Recommendations from the Climate Change Commission for New Zealand on the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auction and unit limit settings for the next five years have been tabled in Parliament, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “The Commission provides advice on the ETS annually. This is the third time the ...
The coalition Government is beginning its fight to lower building costs and reduce red tape by exempting minor building work from paying the building levy, says Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk. “Currently, any building project worth $20,444 including GST or more is subject to the building levy which is ...
Proposed changes to tax legislation to prevent the over-taxation of low-earning trusts are welcome, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The changes have been recommended by Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee following consideration of submissions on the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill. “One of the ...
Assalaamu alaikum. السَّلَام عليكم In light of the holy month of Ramadan, I want to extend my warmest wishes to our Muslim community in New Zealand. Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, renewed devotion, perseverance, generosity, and forgiveness. It’s a time to strengthen our bonds and appreciate the diversity ...
Former Transport Minister and CEO of the Auckland Business Chamber Hon Simon Bridges has been appointed as the new Board Chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) for a three-year term, Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced today. “Simon brings extensive experience and knowledge in transport policy and governance to the role. He will ...
Good morning all, it is a pleasure to be here as Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology. It is fantastic to see how connected and collaborative the life science and biotechnology industry is here in New Zealand. I would like to thank BioTechNZ and NZTech for the invitation to address ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says he is looking forward to the day when three key water projects in Northland are up and running, unlocking the full potential of land in the region. Mr Jones attended a community event at the site of the Otawere reservoir near Kerikeri on Friday. ...
Associate Finance Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government has agreed to restore deductibility for mortgage interest on residential investment properties. “Help is on the way for landlords and renters alike. The Government’s restoration of interest deductibility will ease pressure on rents and simplify the tax code,” says ...
Sport and Recreation Minister Chris Bishop will travel to Switzerland today to attend an Executive Committee meeting and Symposium of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Mr Bishop will then travel on to London where he will attend a series of meetings in his capacity as Infrastructure Minister. “New Zealanders believe ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Deborah Lupton, SHARP Professor, Vitalities Lab, Centre for Social Research in Health and Social Policy Centre, and the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society, UNSW Sydney kitzcorner/Shutterstock The assertion from Queensland’s chief health officer John Gerrard that ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Shutterstock Why are musicians so keen to get played on the radio? It can’t be because of the money. In Australia they are paid at rates so low they ...
"Farmers make a point not to tell our urban cousins how to live, yet Chlöe from central Auckland is hell-bent on having her say about farmers," says ACT Rural Communities spokesman Mark Cameron. “On her first day in the House as Green ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards – Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Curran, Associate Professor of Ecology, Lincoln University, New Zealand Getty Images/Gerald Corsi In the latest move to reform environmental laws in New Zealand, the coalition government has introduced a bill to fast-track consenting processes for projects deemed to ...
Uber has argued it does not have as much control over drivers as the unions suggest, and wants a judgment ruling that drivers are employees and not contractors set aside and sent back to the Employment Court. The 2022 ruling followed a three-week hearing in which four drivers sought to ...
What can and can’t be purchased by disabled people or their carers has been slashed in an effort by the Ministry of Disabled People Whaikaha to save money. The purchasing guidelines, a set of rules that sets out what can be purchased using the various streams of Government disability funding, ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Tod Wright and Hien Nguyen, Fiscal incidence in New Zealand: The effects of taxes and benefits on household incomes in tax year 2018/19 . Analyses of the distributional impact of taxation and government ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Cory Davis, Boston Hart and Benjamin Stubbing, Household cost-of-living impacts from the Emissions Trading Scheme and using transfers to mitigate regressive outcomes . This Analytical Note ...
A coalition of public transport and climate organisations, united as ‘Transport for All’, is actively opposing the government’s transport proposals. The draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) includes plans for higher fares for public transport, ...
Greater Wellington is inviting feedback on proposed changes to its Revenue and Financing Policy. The Revenue and Financing Policy covers the Council’s various sources of funding, and how the cost of services is shared across the region. This includes ...
Labour has conceded it could have done more to deal with disruptive state housing tenants while in government but says the current coalition is going too far. ...
The band has asked their record label to issue a cease and desist to stop the NZ First leader using their 1997 hit to support his ‘misguided political views’. “I get knocked down, but I get up again,” blared through the speakers on Sunday as Winston Peters took the stage ...
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There’s ample evidence demonstrating free school lunch programmes provide wide benefits across schools, households and communities according to public health researchers. ACT Minister David Seymour wants to reduce the spending on Aotearoa New Zealand’s ...
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The Taxpayers’ Union is welcoming comments from Christopher Luxon this morning recommitting to ‘no new taxes’ as part of Budget 2024. “Mr Luxon’s refusal at the Post-Cabinet press conference yesterday to repeat the ‘no new taxes’ promise ...
SAFE is urgently calling on the Environment Committee to reject the Government’s Fast-Track Approvals Bill, and is urging New Zealanders to rally behind the call. The proposed Bill, currently under consideration with the Environment select committee, ...
Teammates who spend all their time picking fights with spectators are only helpful for the other team, writes Madeleine Chapman. Anyone who has ever played a team sport competitively, particularly as a child and particularly, for some reason, basketball, will know that there’s a lot of politics involved. While there ...
The long-running Wellington music festival is too focused on the Jim Beam-ness and not enough on the Homegrown-ness.There is something about Homegrown that’s difficult to place. A barely perceptible-ness. Like feeling a ghost is watching you from the corner of the room but when you look, there’s nothing there. ...
The latest Ipsos New Zealand Issues Monitor reveals that fewer New Zealanders believe crime / law and order is one of the top issues facing our country. In 2018, Ipsos New Zealand started tracking the key issues facing New Zealand. In this wave ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Griffiths, Deputy Program Director, Budgets and Government, Grattan Institute Australia’s political donations rules are woefully inadequate, but donations reform is finally on the agenda. The federal government has signalled its interest in reform and will soon begin briefing MPs on its ...
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The finance minister is denying that there’s a $5.6b shortfall in paying for the government’s campaign promises, including tax cuts. At his post-cabinet press conference yesterday, the PM refused to rule out new taxes to pay for the cuts, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s ...
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Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[quiz],DIV[quiz],A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp'); Got a good quiz question?Send Newsroom your questions. The post Newsroom daily quiz, Tuesday 19 March appeared first on Newsroom. ...
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“Mr Twyford said the new regulations will still allow investment in new homes and he hopes the effect will repeat the Australian experience.
“He said in Australia a ban on existing home purchases, effectively channelled $30 billion of foreign investment into new homes.
“That’s a problem that we would love to have here,” he told RNZ.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/344083/twyford-not-worried-about-chinese-real-estate-promo
So Labour’s housing Minister would love to have offshore investors adding upward pressure in our new housing sector, thus squeezing local buyers out?
No. He would like to see that investment shift from gobbling up existing homes ( some of which sit empty or have 1 student offspring in it) into new homes to create a more energised new home build market.
The Govt is also legislating against foreign ownership?
But in doing so (creating a more energised new home build market) it will be adding upward pressure, thus squeezing local buyers out. With the displacement resulting in the ripple effect.
Merely shifting demand and not ceasing it won’t prevent offshore investors gobbling up our land and homes. Albeit new ones.
I agree TC. This tinkering still doesn’t address the problem of escalating prices, or accessibility of housing.
Especially with limited tradesman to build more homes. If all this did was increase the numebr of homes being built great. i can’t see that happening and the price to build a new home will go up.
Allowing this upward pressure is a big mistake that will come back to haunt Labour.
It will clash with Kiwibuild.
I’d suggest they look at a form of tax as a disincentive to substantially slow this form of investment. It’s not the type of offshore investment we require.
A hefty tax on ghost houses would likely be effective in reducing
Homelessness
Rental costs
House price inflation
House banking
Any threat to kiwibuild
And so it begins…
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/opinion/99208027/bill-english-needs-to-be-more-visible-if-hes-serious-about-staying-on-as-leader
Over by Christmas?
English gone after gossip over the Xmas barbies-he’ll be out by February/March.
Adams/Bridges my pick.
Excellent post from Fran O’Sullivan critiquing the Prime Minister and Minister of Finance for not engaging hard with business:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11947706
Failing to get business leadership to harness common purpose for this country has the capacity to cripple this administration as it nearly did for the first term of Clark.
Catering to business is what’s causing the problems that we have.
Seeing I don’t want a Depression or a Revolution, I think engaging with business
and not scaring the horses makes sense. They have a part to ply in our economy. / sarc
The breathless, sycophantic hagiography of Moir and Jenna Lynch on Newshub yesterday is sickening. They come across as National Party PR flunkies not journalists. I am not surprised but it emphasises yet again how poorly we are served by the MSM.
O’Sullivan’s piece on the other hand was worth reading.
Jo Moir really does love National MPS like Collins and Bridges. Wonder if she benefits from their hard right economic philosophies?
You do wonder whether it’s a case of bias, but rather ignorance, laziness, bias and incompetence.
These people have been picked because they are cheap ad they get little journalistic training. They are obsessed with their own egos. They are in the entertainment business not news business.
They stand for nothing.
And more propaganda to be found in the Herald by Trevett.
55% of the voters in this country did not vote for the National Party.
About 70% of the adult population did not vote for the National Party.
Yet over 75% or more of the opinion pieces advocate for the right wing.
Why?
Media ownership.
We need a democratic media.
I read the Jenna lynch gush piece. A shocker. I wonder who’s pocket she is in?
She’s had it in for Labour ever since Nash asked after her health one day.
After her heath ? Trying to rewrite history there muttonbird.
Shortly after, Labour MP Stuart Nash walked in trying to sell some bloody story about cops.
He looked shocked, almost offended at my face.
“Gosh, did you have a rough night?”
James;
Showing your right wing skirt again?
Stuart Nash has been the best MP for Napier since the 156-year-old electorate was red for all but 17 years since the first Labour MP was elected in 1922.
The only bad Labour MP Napier ever had was Russell Fairbrother who he shocked us all when he closed our Historic iconic Napier hospital and that cost labour the 2008 election.
Thank God we have re-secured Napier again as a labour strong hold.
Showing you lack of reading ability’s agaim.
Mutton said he asked about her health.
He didn’t he was commenting on her appearance for not wearing makeup.
I was pointing out mutton bird was telling lies. Nothing to do with anything else.
James you have a long history of bad mouthing any other party except National, and on those grounds i have this comment here as a bad mouthing of Stuart Nash “figuratively” speaking.
We look forward to any statement from you that favours the current Government in future.
We do need to give the Labour coalition Governement a fair go, and a chance to succeed as we will all benefit from this.
To quote james;
“Shortly after, Labour MP Stuart Nash walked in trying to sell some bloody story about cops.
He looked shocked, almost offended at my face.”
“Gosh, did you have a rough night?”
You are an idiot – thats not quoting me – thats quoting the woman that Nash offended by commenting on her looks for not wearing makeup to work.
Edit and Muttonbird is an enabler – as he lies and calls it asking about her health.
Don’t want to add clicks so won’t ask for link.
What was the gist of Lynch’s propaganda?
Just found it.
She thinks Bridges is amazing.
He is hard right.
Bridges is a lying twerp, and yes Ed he is far right, so much that he is a bloody human disgrace.
next National Party leadet then?
GROPERS
No. 10: Sir Jimmy Savile
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-yv4Nmrwtg4
“GROPERS” is presented by GroperWatch, a division of Daisycutter Sports Inc.
More gropers. Collect the series!…
No.1 George Herbert Walker Bush; No. 2 Bill O’Reilly; No. 3 Al Franken; No. 4 Robin Brooke; No. 5 Lester Beck; No. 6 Arnold Schwarzenegger; No. 7 Joe Biden; No. 8 Rolf Harris; No. 9 Harold Bloom
Heh. While I really wish the Clintons would just go away and enjoy their millions away from the spotlight and we never hear from them again, I gotta admit this article makes some good points about the upsides of Hillary for 2020.
https://www.salon.com/2017/11/24/heres-your-leftover-turkey-the-case-for-hillary-clinton-2020/
I very much doubt Hillary will run in 2020.
Fuckwits made up so much about her health last election, I’m amazed she’s still alive. She’d be the oldest president taking office if she won (record currently held by Trump). Put those two together, every time she clears her throat the fuckwits will be diagnosing terminal lung cancer.
Another Saturday, another confused story from John Roughan in the Herald. Seriously, does John “no will use the bus way” Roughan have a fucking clue?
I THINK his bewildering article, which starts with a sweeping anachronistic generalisation, makes an unsubstantiated assertion, creates a straw man based on a flat out wrong assumption of the past before making another tiresome declaration of the superiority of the market model is actually an inchoate attempt to address the issue of where we direct our tertiarty funding. But who knows with Roughan, the guy is a 1980s dinosaur with but a fleeting connection to the dynamics of New Zealand in 2017.
Seriously, why does the Herald cling to these old, out of touch op-ed writers? Surely they could find a young woman to write opinion pieces, or maybe an Asian bloke under 40? And surely they’d be more bracing and up to date in their views than have retreads who recycle the same predictable rubbish?
Just for the record, NZ Universities were always free, or practically free, before the government abandoned it’s core role in tertiary education. when Victoria College was established in 1899, its founding Act stated that the highest fee charged to students by the college was not to exceed the lowest fee set at any other college in New Zealand. Up until 1911, the fee set by Victoria was one and a half guineas (32 shillings, just over one and a half pounds), which was then doubled in 1912. This was when the an unskilled labourer earned on average 140 pounds a year. Based on the minimum wage that would make 1912 university fees about $1500 in todays money. Is Roughan really trying to claim the university funding system that existed before 1990s produced academically inferior universities? Because all the evidence points to the complete opposite.
Aging ideological halfwits like Roughan like to harrumph from their supposed rarified heights about the fake news and the like – but it is their obsession with ideology and their need to force every fact and every interpretation in that ideological lens, that laid the groudwork for todays fake news world.
Fuck off and retire Roughan. You’re a handbrake on the countries future.
You must be an extremely wealthy person.
Any one who can say, apparently with a straight face, that
“NZ Universities were always free, or practically free”
and follow it, a couple of lines later, that
“that would make 1912 university fees about $1500 in todays money”
is clearly a great deal better off than I am.
Are you seriously proposing the $1500 is a mere bagatelle and really not worth anything at all? Are you so rich that you consider $1500 indistinguishable from “free”?
I believe it was after WWII that tertiary education did become free. The time of the NZ,s and the West’s greatest growth and development. And then neo-liberalism got implemented around the world and things have downhill for them since.
Although, the inflation calculator says that today’s price for that one and a half pounds would be ~$250 and not $1500.
Do you not recall the bursary system?.
There are, of course, various important conditions governing such matters as eligibility and tenure; for detailed information, reference should be made to the University Bursaries Regulations 1962. The following summary will, however, serve to illustrate the general purpose and nature of the bursaries.
1 Fees Bursary: This is, in general, available to all students who hold the University Entrance qualification or the Endorsed School Certificate. The bursary is tenable for the minimum period of time in which the student, pursuing his course full time, could complete that course. It provides for the payment of full tuition fees.
2 Fees and Allowances Bursary: This is available to students who have qualified for the Higher School Certificate. In addition, students who in their first year of tenure of a fees bursary have been credited with passes in three units of an arts or science degree or their equivalent may then become entitled to the fees and allowances bursary. The bursary provides for the payment of full tuition fees and a bursary allowance increasing from £40 in the first year to £100 in the fourth or any subsequent year. It is tenable for the minimum period required for the bachelor’s course.
3 Master’s Bursary: Students who have completed a bachelor’s degree course in not more than one year in excess of the minimum period and who wish to take a master’s degree may be awarded a master’s bursary for this purpose. The bursary is awarded for one year, with provision for extension. The value is the same as for the fourth and subsequent years of the fees and allowances bursary.
The tenure of all these bursaries is dependent on the continued satisfactory progress of the student bursar, and there is provision in the regulations referred to above for suspension, reinstatement, and termination of any bursary.
https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:WNJsj67B9asJ:https://teara.govt.nz/en/1966/education-special-aspects-scholarships-and-bursaries+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=nz&client=firefox-b
No, I hadn’t forgotten them.
I was a recipient of that largesse. However Sanctuary described the Universities as having always been near free and then quoted numbers from 1912 which didn’t look anything like that.
It was a great deal easier to do such things in the 50s and 60s. Vic had about 3,000 students when I was originally there and there were probably only about 15,000 in the whole country. A lot of the courses, law for example, were part time.
Because you didnt need to go to uni to get a job back then. Most white collar jobs and vocational situations had cadetships and inhouse training.
I would say that the destruction of entry level white collar jobs in this country is one of the greatest economic tragedies of the past 30 years.
I have asked Vic Uni for a schedule of all fees and charges from 1977 under the OIA. We will see who is right.
This appears to be a reply to me.
Can you tell me what the relevance of 1977 is and who you are talking about when you say “We will see who is right.”.
The government needs to make sweeping reforms to the media so apologists for the 1% like Lynch, Roughan, Hosking, Moir, Garner, Soper, du Plessis Allen, etc have 1% of the airtime.
Roughan only has a job because he says what the owner of NZME want the public of NZ to hear.
He is a tool for the 1%.
The owners of NZME
‘he JMAD New Zealand media ownership report 2016 observes that New Zealand media institutions are facing major changes in ownership and management, but it is not clear what combinations will eventually emerge.
For the first time in six years, New Zealand media companies are exclusively owned by financial institutions. ’
http://www.aut.ac.nz/study-at-aut/study-areas/communications/research/journalism,-media-and-democracy-research-centre/journalists-and-projects/new-zealand-media-ownership-report
Leaving aside Roughan’s twitterings, it’s my personal observation that during the period in the 80’s NZ Universities went through the transition from ‘virtually free’ to ‘fee paying’ they began to become less attractive places.
Specifically academic staff could no longer treat students purely on merit, but had to incorporate some awareness that their own salaries were now linked in some manner to their ‘clients’ success.
That and the disaster that was ‘continuous assessment’ which greatly diminished the social and intellectual life of the place … has placed our Universities on a path of decreasing global value.
PEEOTUS and the Kremlin: the start of a beautiful friendship.
https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/11/19/trump-first-moscow-trip-215842
Having actually lived and worked in Russia for a short period I rather wish the West would grow out of this pointless Russophobia. Ordinary Russians are a fine people pretty much just like the rest of us.
As with China, with Russia there are different political and philosophical variants in play that we need to be intelligent and discriminating about engaging with. But ultimately the West is far better served by working towards rapprochement than a reflexive isolation.
Ordinary Russians are fine people, as are ordinary Chinese, most ordinary Americans, ordinary Indians etc.
But the elites that hold the levers of power are different, and they operate in different ways. Best not to be naive about how cunning and malicious they can be in service of their long term interests.
+1
So far as I can tell, they operate the same way in every country: with a very high degree of impunity. Once again, ethnicity has nothing to do with it.
Looking at the two pieces by Lynch and Moir again it is the relentless one-sidedness of them that is so obvious.
There is no attempt at a balanced assessment of these potential National Party leaders. No hint of the stench of corruption that hangs around Collins, or Bridge’s politicking with 10 (no) bridges for Northland, Coleman’s incompetence, any evidence of what Kaye has actually achieved and so on.
Personally I don’t care who they choose as obviously I’m not impressed with any of them and out of that lot whomever they choose will make the government look better.
Lynch:
He (Bridges) had an aggressive start to this Parliamentary term, turning the House upside down and showing Labour who is boss on the opening day. The symbolism of the show of force he exerted by making the Government question its numbers while trying to do a procedural election of a Speaker is that he is ready to take them on.
Yep, we get it. As Ed says, you think Simon is amazing.
He’s had a succession of good jobs and none of his ministerial portfolios have caused him any grief.
They’ve caused us some grief though. Building largely pointless motorways and not investing in ways to build a sustainable transport system that’s not so harmful to the environment and get more huge trucks off our over-stressed roading system has been a successful approach.
He had a regular head-to-head slot with Jacinda Ardern on morning television in his early days, so he’s proven he can match her.
At what? Appearing on morning TV?
And ever since then, like the Crown prosecutor he is by trade, he is building a compelling case.
Was he any good?
Just 12 months later he’s found himself on the Opposition benches and has launched a series of blistering attacks on the new Government, whether in the House, through brutally worded press releases or by baiting Ministers on social media.
Beneath the Brylcreem exterior lurks a nasty piece of work (much like Key).
Judith Collins – Remains a total threat, performing incredibly in Opposition.
Really? Oh, I get it. Judith is amazing too.
Amy Adams – The former Justice Minister has already landed some solid strikes on the new Government and has been given portfolios that will continue to hit where it hurts – particularly Workplace Relations. Her move on Paid Parental Leave was a masterstroke.
Masterstroke? Or just empty posturing and duplicitious points-scoring?
Paula Bennett – The job seemed hers a while ago, but at the moment, the desire doesn’t seem to be there. She seems happy taking a back seat after losing the Deputy Prime Minister spot.
Wonder why?
Nikki Kaye – Represents the future and is National’s face of Auckland. She’s also beaten Jacinda Ardern twice in Auckland Central.
One is now the PM the other an opposition MP who doesn’t seem to have achieved much.
Steven Joyce – He rose rapidly through the ranks and has done pretty much everything but.
Done pretty much everything just not very well.
Moir:
The party says it wants English in the leadership and many are still sore about how much of the vote they won and it not being enough to keep them in Government.
So they are delusional and still don’t understand MMP then. Great credentials for party that wants to govern again.
Some have taken to Opposition like a duck to water with the likes of Nikki Kaye and Judith Collins barking at everything passing by them.
Like dogs chasing cars, that’s smart.
Kaye and Bridges have been tag teaming as they create chaos for Education Minister and Leader of the House Chris Hipkins and tertiary spokesman Paul Goldsmith, almost invisible in Government, seems to be basking in his newfound Opposition freedom.
Create chaos? Really? And Goldsmith was useless as a minister but good in opposition? Yep that’s the right way round.
Both Collins and Bridges are class acts in Opposition – they’re fast on their feet and they’ve both got a bit of pitbull in them.
Class acts? Seriously, Oriveda Collins? Pitbull? Collins maybe but Bridges seems more like a yappy little terrier, one of those brainless dogs that runs along a residential front fenceline yapping at you as you walk past.
Kaye is ambitious and can dine out on the fact she beat the hugely popular Ardern in the Auckland Central seat twice.
So what? How long will this keep getting trotted out?
Coleman wouldn’t have any qualms about giving it another crack but he’s going to have to school up fast on how Opposition works.
Pity he didn’t school up on being a minister. This is the guy that ran down our health system and was pretty much a disaster as health minister.
Then there’s Amy Adams. She’s smart – don’t forget she got given just about every portfolio there was in the last government, given how competent she is.
Maybe because the others were so useless but at least she didn’t drop the ball like so many of them.
She’s not an obvious leader …
Bit like English then.
Did Lynch ask Collins orBridges to ghost write the article for her?
Trevett’s article is ghastly too. These people cannot be called journalists.
We do not have a democratic media. We have one owned by financial institutions who have a message they want the NZ public to hear. And they own some willing narcissistic puppets ( Lynch, Moir, Hosking, Garner, Roughan, du Plessis-Allan, Soper, Street, Tame) happy to peddle their lies.
Reform the media.
I agree these people are undermining democracy Ed. I get frustratef when if you criticise someone like Hosking for some rant on TV you are told that he’s entitled to his opinion and if you don’t like it then don’t watch/listen.
That would be valid if we had a healthy media presenting balanced points of view encouraging vigorous debate. But we don’t. We have a biased media following what seems to be an orchestrated plan to present information and opinion from a very narrow perspective with very specific messages.
And when the media is owned by interests who benefit from spreading those messages then I dont know how we reform it.
Having a viable, independent public broadcasting service would be a start.
.
We can’t ‘reform’ the media. Constitutionalism as we know it doesn’t allow that. What we do have are more and more sources of information about the things which touch us, and the opportunity to publicly lampoon. Those aghast at “social media” are lamenting their loss of control that’s all…….there’s no morality to it. It’s money/vainglory. Poor stressed darlings.
+++
A great line-by-line audit! What if TS started a regular page like this… like BLiP’s list, it could make an archive of what already looks and quacks like an orchestrated litany.
You mean the way they refer to whites as ‘European’? But of course, clearly in your eyes, only whites are racist.
Strangely enough, we refer to them as ‘Asian’ because they inhabit the continent of Asia.
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
[there was nothing in CV’s comment to suggest that he believes only whites are racist. Your supposition/accusation is exactly the kind of inflammatory comment that leads to reactionary threads. If you disagree with the points someone has made, then address those points. Don’t make shit up about what they are saying. – weka]
You happy being called an Australasian? In fact, have you ever been called one once, twice, more?? Do tell.
Can you explain the circumstances where being white has resulted in your being discriminated or oppressed?
Way in the distant past I had a go at Fran O’Sullivan in very strong terms. Well time passes and we all change:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11947706
While I’m sure Luxon and I might quibble the shadings and weightings; this is a starting point the left could surely work with.
Biggest,beat up non story for years.
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
My truck purring when I found the radiator cap loose this had caused the bearing in the water pump to wear out and the temperature to spike I put black pepper in radiator to stop the bearing leaking and when I changed the water pump I found a hose clip on the bottom of the radiator lose it was finger tight
What the______. Now you people that are doing this shit why don’t you act like real Men and stop getting contracted lies whom are exactly like Frank Gallagher from the TV show Shamles who will say anything for there next drink and hit of pee real Men would arrested me and take me to court and try and confirm Your contracted lies To the hole WORLD. O THAT’S right I’m not human in your eyes Im just a Criminal Maori Iv got a good story that will piss the gisborne man off tomorrow. Kia kaha
https://www.odt.co.nz/opinion/true-syrian-picture-may-not-be-painted-media
From October 2012
What level of deceit is exerted throughout NZ media, and indeed [name the country] using a facade of NGO’s, and other foreign funded entities…
Observing NZ media across the spectrum, it looks as though interference is close to 100%
The NZ media is totally owned by financial institutions.
This means that people relying on the NZ corporate media have no idea of what is going on in the world of economics.
They have no idea of the elite’s plan for the next financial crisis. Media and neo-liberal Governments are conspiring against their citizens in this.
The comeback of the last eight years is artificial. A crisis of even greater proportions is imminent.
Read James Rickards, Steve Keen and other independent economists.
Ignore the Herald and other media puppets of the finance industry.
Become informed.
+1
Also, I don’t read any of that shit and refuse to watch TV, NZ TV that is, and do read Steve Keen.
Is this China’s Civic Creche moment?
Or is it just Fairfax media having another one?
Many thanks to Ngai Tahu IWI for choseing the right person for the job to lead there IWI into there bright and prosperous future who is a Maori Lady Lisa Tumahai Ka pai. My IWI have close historical ties to them and Maori always respect OUR Lady’s this changed with colonialism. Kia Kaha
Yet an awful lot of people prefer to ignore what they know.
https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/934190255753674752
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lin-a2lTelg
I agree that there is only one race, the human race. But you say racism isn’t about race, a statement which I would imagine many people would dismiss as cloud cuckoo land stuff. (and who could blame them)
If as you stated you agree that having a shared understanding of what racism is is important and a good starting point, then perhaps you need to stop trying to change the definition that most people understand and know in order to have a definition that better suits your own opinions on racism, which are definitely not in line with the majority of people. (In my opinion)
So are you implying when you say it’s about culture and ethnicity, that a person can be a racist about a culture (amongst other things) rather than a race ??
So as an example. If I was to say that I believe female genital mutilation is a barbaric practice and I think those cultures within which such a thing is practiced should be made to abolish it. Certainly it should be made clear that it is forbidden in our country regardless of how ‘multi-cultural’ we are. Any culture which permits such a thing as far as I’m concerned is backward, uncivilized and needs to evolve.
Is that a racist statement?? (No)
By the way for those here that think Canada is a beacon of progressive success. They have their ‘multi-culturalism’ enshrined in law and according to Mr Trudeau, to criticize a culture for practicing female genital mutilation would be offensive to that culture and criminal because it is part of someone’s culture, therefore is beyond reproach and somehow acceptable. This s how warped ‘progressive’ (more like regressive) thinking is becoming. Any normal, caring, human being with any common sense would say that there are things about other cultures which are simply not acceptable in our civilized, secular, modern , ‘progressive’ society and would put their own culture ahead of that which practices such things, especially when it is that other culture coming to our country.
Dislike of, criticism of, or even complete disregard of any particular culture due to unacceptable (to any normal moral person) things, that are acceptable within that culture, are perfectly legitimate positions to take should a person choose to do so and they in no way mean that person is a racist. Not standing up for what is right for fear of offending someone or hurting their feelings about their cultural barbarity’s is a cowardly position to take.
“..it can also be unconscious…” I’ve heard this nonsense floating around, what an unbelievable claim to make. If this were true then how could anyone ever even know they were a racist, let alone stop being racist?? Maybe the ‘unconscious’ thought police could manage such a thing. Racism is something that requires conscious thought, decision making and/or action. If racism could be unconscious then for all we know, you, me and every person on the planet could be racist, it could be part of our DNA and none of us would even know it about ourselves.
(yes I know that there are tests which suggest such a phenomenon, but for every test there are plenty of experts who rubbish the methodologies and claims)
Regardless of what you think should or shouldn’t happen Weka, you can’t just redefine words to suit your worldview. The way some people throw around words like racist at pretty much anyone who brings up anything about the Chinese or Asians or any ‘non-white’ foreigners is a disgrace in my opinion. It simply cheapens the word, insults those victims of real racism and diminishes the seriousness of real racism. Some of the things you cry racism at are nothing of the sort.
I’ve lost count of the times I’ve been accused of making a racist statement for things such as simply stating an observable fact. ‘Racist’, ‘Nazi’, ‘Facist’, etc are all terms increasingly used to try and shut down discussions and debates when unable to make rational counter arguments.
It seems many people still, no matter how much information they are given, haven’t figured out why Trump won.
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
“But you say racism isn’t about race, a statement which I would imagine many people would dismiss as cloud cuckoo land stuff. (and who could blame them)”
You’re on a progressive political blog. There’s an expectation here that people get themselves up to speed on political concepts. That race doesn’t exist but racism does is neither new nor unknown. It’s a common enough idea amongst the left irrespective of whether one agrees with it or not. As I’ve said elsewhere, semantics don’t serve us very well when dealing with racism in the real world. Better to work with concept and ideas that are being used by people in their lives.
I’m not trying to change the definition of racism, I’m sharing opinion based on the various definitions of racism that exist independent of me. I’m not making this stuff up. If you are unfamiliar with it I suggest googling racism 101.
The rest of your comment is pretty far off topic especially given you are basically denying the existence of systemic racism, which is in part what the post was about. So I’m moving this one to Open Mike.
What on earth does this mean?’There’s an expectation here that people get themselves up to speed on political concepts.’-concept
ˈkɒnsɛpt/Submit
noun
plural noun: concepts
an abstract idea.
“structuralism is a difficult concept”
synonyms: idea, notion, conception, abstraction, conceptualization; More
a plan or intention.
USA Trump etc – trying to make sense about it.
Thomas Frank – Listen Liberal
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZbzsSzu7rQ 9m44s
and
What to Make of the Age of Trump by Thomas Frank
1.32.22
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPYlE72OzZA
As one grey to another, thanks for this. Very informative and helped join some dots for me. There were some very relevant echoes to our situation and it reinforced that what we’re up against is a global issue.
Thanks Grey. I get good background and reliable info here, enough to keep me informed on what is actually happening, and reciprocate. I feel we all have to be grown up birds looking for our own fodder and fly from the comforting RW nest instead of sitting there with our beaks open waiting for propaganda birds to drop in morsels they regurgitate for the dependent flock.