Child bride activist Nada Al Ahdal aged 11 – Escaped child marriage after making a harrowing two minute video appealing against her forced child marriage that went viral on you tube. Now leads an international movement against child marriage.
However, voting – AFAIK – at 16 isn't legal in any of the countries those teens come from.
Your point seems to be demonstrating that it is perfectly possible and valid for teens to be activists – and potentially change their societies – without being eligible to vote.
Likewise, it would be perfectly possible for women everywhere to be activists – and potentially change their societies -without being eligible to vote.
"Your point seems to be demonstrating that it is perfectly possible and valid for teens to be activists – and potentially change their societies – without being eligible to vote." Belladonna
Many of the same Right Wing talking points being trotted out against enfranchising young people, are a retread of similar talking points that were argued against extending the franchise to women.
In fact you could extend these same right wing anti-democratic arguments to everyone.
If the franchise was removed from everyone, people could still potentially change their societies – without being eligible to vote.
Not really. Although there are plenty of examples both from our own history, and current events elsewhere, which actually do demonstrate that being eligible to vote is not essential for activism.
The difference between sex and age as criteria for voting, is, that one never changes [or, at least absent extensive surgical intervention, doesn't change], while the other is simply a matter of time.
Waiting a couple of years to exercise your right to vote doesn't appear to be a major issue.
And, of course, shifting the voting age, will simply create the same sense of dis-enfranchisement from the younger cohort of voters.
Given the examples above I would argue that it not be arbitrary. That the age of franchise should be set is where it is determined that social awareness and political activism generally begins.
The ability to be able to read and write and use and interact through social media might be another non-arbitrary point of reference to determine the age of franchise.
“Social media saved my life,” Nada Al Ahdal
Through the use of social medial Nada Al Ahdal escaped two wedding pacts arranged by her parents. and has since pledged to protect others from being sold 'like sheep'
She forced to sign a document banning comments about child marriage in the press or on social media.
"…..the head of the school said that I, being famous for showing social media about child marriage, would brainwash the other girls. She told me to study at home but I refused,” Nada Al Ahdal
Yes it is arbitrary. Can you point to any actual hard evidence that 16 is a more valid age than 18 (or for that matter 14)?
If you want to argue for the use of social media as a qualifying factor – then you would need to be open to 12-year-olds – and even younger – as voters. Plenty of them are very active social media users.
Your criteria is also arbitrary.
"That the age of franchise should be set is where it is determined that social awareness and political activism generally begins."
Who decides? I can assure you, that the majority of kids in my teens school, even at the senior levels are *not* particularly politically active or even politically aware. The exceptions are the outliers that we see in the media. Equally, I know of much younger children who have made moral or ethical life choices (to be vegetarian, for example), and are deeply aware of the political implications of their choice.
Your suggested additional qualifier of use of social media is also arbitrary. How much use qualifies? Do you have to be active in social areas – or does posting TikTok videos count? Who gets to judge?
Just as an aside, that criteria would also drop off voters at the other end – not many people over 70 (yes, there are some) – who are active social media users. And there are a tranche of people who deliberately choose not to engage on social media at all – should they be disenfranchised also?
Very good potted history on why we are in the situation we are with crime and poverty. A breath of fresh air cutting through all the tough on crime rhetoric
Ok, this might need a thread.
When Jenny Shipley rolled Bolger and became our first female PM, she took Ruth Richardson to her bosom (metaphorically, I assume) and began a spiteful reign of terror over the poor, solo parents and beneficiaries…
I'd query the targeting. In our local area – it's not only – or even predominantly – highly taxed pleasure shops which are being targeted – it's just ordinary run-of-the-mill ones – where, in many cases, they've taken only minor amounts of money and/or goods – while causing tens-of-thousands-of-dollars worth of damage.
The driver appears to be the thrill of destruction, combined with the excitement of notoriety (TikTok, etc.)
While I can understand (though not approve of) stealing vapes, alcohol and cigarettes – or even high-end fashion goods; there is no rational excuse for targeting the local Malaysian cafe, Subway franchise, or stationery shop (doesn't sell vapes or cigarettes).
Be interesting (if data makes it possible) to see if big excise tax increases correlate with a rise in ram raid type crime targeting Tobacco and Alcohol.
Ad, I would recomend looking at this article from the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Study. It links childhood self control (or its absence) to all sorts of negative life outcomes, including crime. Poor self control at three years of age predicts these outcomes even when controlled for socio economic status and IQ.
This in my opinion should be the basis for how to bring the crime rate down.
"childhood self-control is signficantly correlated with adult self-control but shows much more room for change. The fact that a child with low self-control can still become an adult with high self-control indicates that self-control may be a more malleable and teachable characteristic than IQ. Scores are normalized around a mean of 0"
I'd be loathe to ascribe any kind of single-factor causal relationship towards criminal conviction records. Certainly be surprised if the Dunedin study did that.
Doesn't account for the 2021-22 spike in ram raids, gun warfare, and school delinquency. But it does correlate really well with COVID and the tobacco and alcohol excise taxes going up by a big jump two budgets ago.
That would be something you would need to discuss with the researchers of the Dunedin study Ad.
I think it is hopeful that the authors acknowledge self control is malleable. It is something that can be taught, but it needs to be done early.
The Dunedin study is outstanding for all sorts of reasons including it being prospective and also having such a high retention rate.
Their self control finding is gold. A single casual factor that is found across a range of negative outcomes. I have some friends who are early childhood teachers and they haven’t heard of this study or it’s outcomes. This seems like a missed opportunity to me
No Swordfish, no ideological CRT or squeals of “its all colonisation. Just good science. These scientists found an outcome they weren’t expecting
We have known the importance of this Dunedin study for ages. Hell I think I commented on it in detail here years back. From memory they could by the age of 3 categorise children into five social styles with about 7% of children in a 'aggressive and disruptive' group who – we at the highest risk of going on to very poor outcomes with violence and crime.
The most vital stage of their lives is between age 4 – 7yrs old when they have the chance to learn how to moderate they behaviour in rough and tumble play with other children and especially their fathers. This is how they learn the boundaries of what is a good game and what is hurtful or out of bounds. They don't learn from being lectured or moralised to – they learn from the physical experience of play. They are typically very kinetic, energetic and physical kids, and if they learn this moderating ability at this age will grow into fine capable adults.
But if they lacked positively engaged fathers, siblings and others they could literally bounce off – or worse if they encountered sustained abuse of any form – their teenage and adult outcomes were almost certain to be terrible.
Requiring such young children (often boys, with tremendous amounts of physical energy) to conform to the confined and restrained behaviour expected in a classroom environment actively fails them.
Not only do they not have that level of self-management, they often gain a reputation for disruption that is difficult to leave behind.
Whoaaaaa there !!!, affluent Pakeha Woke dogmatists have assured me the neighbourhood terrorism being perpetrated by violent, out-of-control anti-socials indiscriminately dumped in Kainga Ora housing is all down to "Post Colonial Traumatic Stress Disorder"
(Admittedly the well-to-do power-wielding Critical Theory Cult members who angrily demand we all accept this theory without demur courageously ensure they're living as far away as possible from the Nightmare situations they've cheerfully facilitated … though we should, of course, bear in mind that they possess “uniquely-refined moral sensibilities”)
"Courageously ensure they're living as far away as possible from the Nightmare situations"
Yes but interestingly enough when the parliament protestors littered their work environment the howls of protest from the parliamentarians and their workforce couldn't have been louder about the "river of filth!' Where were their cries of "Post Colonial Traumatic Stress Disorder", when they called for the army and Costers force to remove these scum? And on the last day, when it was mainly Maori men left rioting in the streets of Wellington, where were the defenders of those anti social Kainga Ora tennants? Somehow the PCTSD diagnosis didn't apply then
Yeah, you are quite right, Anker … what the Dunedin study found is well-established in the international literature … after the age of 4, anti-social children (or to use a technical term: conduct-disordered children) tend to turn into anti-social adolescents who, in turn, become anti-social & criminal adults.
The literature in Psychology suggests the vast majority of those 2 year olds who are unusually aggressive (most of them male) are reasonably well-socialised / domesticated by the age of 4 (with the intervention of parents, teachers & peers) … and aided, as Redlogix says, by rough & tumble play.
They've learnt how to regulate their innate aggression.
But that minority of aggressive, anti-social kids who haven't been properly socialised by 4 tend to be hyper-aggressive for the rest of their lives.
As adults, they are generally very low in trait Agreeableness & trait Conscientiousness (in terms of Psychology's Big Five Personality Traits) … so they're bordering on Sociopath / Psychopath territory.
Characterised by Predatory Aggression (low agreeableness) in contrast to those with Paternal Sympathy (high agreeableness)
Chronically aggressive children, as they become adults, lack empathy, are suspicious, narcissistic & highly self-centered.
There is a substantial literature on trying to rectify the behaviour of anti-social children after the age of 4 … and the findings suggest it's very difficult. Few interventions are helpful.
And if these unusually aggressive, anti-social adults (again, largely males) find themselves in the underclass, at the bottom of the social hierarchy (as they so often do), they will seek to achieve status by dominating their immediate environment – their local neighbourhood – through violence & extreme anti-social behaviour … which, of course, points to the nightmare situation dumped on my elderly parents & their neighbours & street … along with hundreds, perhaps thousands of others around New Zealand.
The article I posted is an interesting read. I am so impressed by the Dunedin Study. Ideology free. Just good science.
They do say in that article some programmes teaching self control really early on have shown promise, so I feel somewhat encouraged by this. But of course everyone is barking up the wrong tree with this. Marama Davison and the Greens for one.
The poor self control thing absolutely makes sense to me. They also found it predicted people with gambling problems in their 30s.
The sad thing is these people with poor self control show very poor parenting skills and so the circle continues (and you have spoken about this with your parents tormenter and their child apeing his behaviour). It is too late for this anti social tennant. Across NZ people like this are making other peoples lives hell. Anti social PD's are deeply problematic. But they are likely beyond help and they should be given the message that their shitty behaviour is not tolerated. This was what was lacking in their upbringing. Good clear boundaries and consequences.
I know of the OCEAN stuff. It is a great little formula.
This also applies to the assessment of the problems. We need to be able to clearly determine the factors that may lead to the current behaviour, rather than use past understanding to define the causes.
There have been significant societal disruptors over the last two decades, there should be no automatic assumptions regarding causes.
The studies do appear to show that early intervention is critical, however we appear to be opposed to intervention…go figure.
As to what to do about those beyond that point Id suggest we can neither afford to excuse the behaviour but neither do we have the resources to provide the comprehensive oversight required.
It is a question of scale and we have allowed the problem to become too large….like many of our problems.
Your lack of argument in your comment, for starters. You made the claim – the problem cannot be solved or dealt with adequately or even appropriately because it is too large – you argue for it, or not. Are you a fatalist?
ah your sensibilities are upset because you dont wish to acknowledge that there is a problem of scale and resource….this attitude is reminiscent of the 'care in the community" proponents of mental health care….great in theory and absolutely useless in practice due to the complete lack of resource able to be applied and yet the policy was rolled out anyway.
Except for a bunch of bullet points without commentary that look like they come straight from the National Party Speaking Points Sheet – Executive Summary you have offered nothing, not a single decent argument that’s worthy of debate. Your skin is apparently too thin to point out this inconvenient truth to you. You seem to think that your comments are only read by a couple of commenters on this site, which is why they often lack clarity and explanation and why you tend to resist having to explain yourself in layman terms that are easy to understand for a more general audience. If I didn’t think you couldn’t do any better I’d not even bother trying to tease out a more meaningful comment from you. Your concern for me has been noted.
This is why so much crime "debate" is offering nothing.
We instantly switch on our fixed settings, our preconceptions, to put new events in a context we understand, which is outdated.
e.g.
Long-standing assumption: crims do not want to be seen. Cameras are their enemy. Use CCTV. Makes sense.
New reality: some (especially young) do want to be seen. Cameras are their friend. Get on Tik-tok. Makes no sense.
Churning out old reckons from people who grew up before mobile phones is the opinion that dominates the "debate". Not even close to understanding what is going on, because we never imagined doing it.
there is zero causality to the 1990s structural adjustment
The "zero" is a big call – "no obvious" might be closer to the mark because there's always the argument to be made about hyper-individualism, loss of empathic community relationships etc. etc. I get though that you are trying to kick people out of helplessly whining about the past and instead thinking about action in the present.
Yes, in the old days Peter it was the children of bath tub gin imbibers, they ended up in Reform Schools or Borstals.
Now we have the children of Poverty and drink/meth intoxicated by internet algorithms and copycat behaviour. That is why it is about the act not the booty.
We've also just gone through a period in our history where a section of society, led by some political leaders, rebelled against the rule of law and society, saying 'fuck you Society and Government, I'll do what I want to do and not what you tell me, fuck off…'
It's not surprising that societal engagement rubs off on youth who say ' fuck you, I'll do what I bloody well like and take whatever I like, fuck off..'
Societal disengagement has become normalised, the kids are only following adult leadership. And having a ball.
It's one of the reasons why I believe building strong community is an imperative at this point in time, including with people who think differently from us or who we dislike. We can't mend what's happened since the Shipley years unless there is a major political shift, but we can rebuild locally.
People rebelled because among other important things, they had lost personal autonomy over their health, jobs, movement and essentially their lives. This wasn't rebelling against rules just for the hell of it.
Something tells me that school shutdowns, disrupted education, health requirements to participate in class and in school sports, are going to have a larger detrimental effect on young people. We have let down young people badly in these last few years, isn't the mark of a good society how they treat their young.
I stumbled across this graph inadvertantly in the last week or so. Passing a lot of time on line as I recover from Covid (sick for two weeks now!).
What I found fascinating was that Maori rates of child homicide shot up from 1991 onwards (they had been the same as non Maori up till then). I hadn't heard or seen this figure before (maybe it is generally known). But I think it could do with some unpicking. The obvious conclusion is that the welfare reforms and Rogernomics play a role in this statistic. I would be surprized if there hasn't been some good research methods applied to confirm if this is the case. I realize it fits with what I recall of an ever increasing number of homicide victims that are Maori children.
I don't, but I would also look at whether Māori were disproportionately affected by the mass redundancies in the 80s thanks to ACTLabour (I will guess they were). So many things took at dive at the point, and then National in the 90s just cemented the neolib project in. Mental health, job security, employment conditions, union power, benefit rates, health system, on and on. I don't think younger people can probably appreciate just how massive a societal change it was.
My mother was a social worker in the 90s and she said it would take generations to recover from what they were doing.
Yes indeed re the generations comment. I worked in South Auckland car industry for 20 years, 70s to early 90s, and the workforce was mainly brown apart from admins and managers, industry deregulated and mostly gone well before end of 90s. Provincial county councils with their own works departments–contracted out, Manufacturing had the pin pulled, including footwear, clothing and textiles. With that unskilled but full time work, there were thousands of associated support workers and suppliers.
So perhaps Rogernomics greatest shame remains discarding people via macro economic decisions that they had no immediate control over, and then abandoning them. And to rub it in–demonising them as dole bludgers, market rents for state housing and the Richardson MOAB was the final straw. If you want to know who ram raiders are–they are the grand children of Roger and Ruth.
“What Rogernomics did, among other things, was to eradicate a lot of jobs. And we know that Māori were affected more than non-Māori. Māori health deteriorated and Māori mortality rose during the Rogernomics era quite against the long term trend. Moreover the Rogernomic policies were deliberately biased against the poor and therefore disproportionally hit Māori.
So, when we get through that period, what have we got? We’ve got a large, young population — it’s younger than the national average — and it’s an unskilled population. It’s not ready for the high-skilled jobs that are being created in the economy.”
I don't, but I would also look at whether Māori were disproportionately affected by the mass redundancies in the 80s thanks to ACTLabour (I will guess they were).
The redundancies in the late 1980s pulled the 'guts out' of the ability to work for large employers in predominantly Maori communities for labouring type jobs. So Forestry went, MOW local branches went etc etc.
Local branches for many govt depts went, where these branches were located in Maori areas this meant people had less chance of being able to live locally. With all of the Govt Depts retreating from small town NZ and even small city NZ eg Napier and Gisborne had no branches left in the Govt dept I worked for, all run from Wellington as was Whanganui & Palmerston North.
In the small town I grew up in it not only destroyed jobs but what I call the Maori middle class, those whose children went away to boarding schools such as Hato Petera, Te Aute, St Stephens, Queen Vic, Hukarere just as their mothers and fathers had or to the same schools that we also went to. Some families schooled their children locally and then sent them to boarding schools in the last two years of secondary school.
After the 1987 environmental restructuring followed by that of MOW, I think it was MOW that was asked to do a social impact report on the reforms and this was hurriedly pulped/withdrawn (from my recollection) after it was clear that not much good had resulted from these reforms and huge dislocation costing $$$$, careers, loss of retirement savings, and heartbreaking mental and social effects were the main results.
EA has brought out a consultancy paper ,for the management of winter 2023 tight generation periods.
This is not because demand is behind installed generation capacity (demand is down and will be around 1500 gwh on 2021) it is by the changes in the generation mix,and the high cost imposed by the necessary use of thermal generation for peak loads.
A key reason for this divergence between available and installed generation capacity relates to the increased role of intermittent generation and the growing cost of gas, coal and carbon emissions.
Intermittency from NI wind (over 1 gw) is dependent on near real time forecasting which is constrained to 5 day windows at the 60% probability window,and 1 day at the 90%.
This is with additional lessening of load,with the closure of Marsden point,and Norsk paper (around 100mw)
Peak load demand needs to be lessened substantially North of Taupo,for the winter months.
Where is the workers central labour organisation (NZCTU) today? I checked their FB Together and www, little on the RB OCR hike. The economist is no doubt beavering away, but there should have been heavy fire back on that, and to the Natzos claims about migrant workers on RNZ this morning.
Really–there is a classic contradiction between the RB and Employers arguments. Unemployment must rise says the RB, where as employers are desperate for more workers via migrant labour and want easing up on entry and residency. Translation–break down the growing workers action for higher wages, and use cheaper imported labour. NZ National have said that migrant workers should not be paid the median wage.
To paraphrase Marx… “wage rises generally happen in the track of previous price rises” – it’s a catch-up response, not due to ‘excessive’ and unrealistic demands for higher wages by workers. Second, it is not wage rises that cause rising inflation. Many other things affect price changes, Marx argued: namely “the amount of production (growth rates), the productive powers of labour (productivity growth), the value of money (money supply growth), fluctuations of market prices which happens constantly anyway, and “different phases of the industrial cycle” (boom or slump).
The claim that there is a wage-price spiral and that wage rises cause price rises is an ideological smokescreen to protect profitability.
It takes time to write something decent and also to get it published but I'm sure it's a high priority for CTU.
The November Monetary Policy Statement (MPS) has some quite good commentary on wages from page 33 including how different Stats NZ wage measures apply to different ways of obtaining pay rises. RBNZ agree with you and Marx that wages usually catch up to CPI and are forecasting that. What they are trying to avoid isn't the catch-up to CPI in and of itself, it's going too far past that (whatever that looks like), "forcing" prices up which in turn forces wages up more etc.
Recently I commented on David Seymour using the Ellerslie jeweller's store robbery for publicity. He even stood in Parliament to announce he'd been there.
I considered posting yesterday that he'd be disappointed that the tragic Sandringham incident wasn't in his electorate. I pulled my head in.
Seymour didn't disappoint though. The headline today is "Act Party criticises PM Jacinda Ardern for not supporting local community after stabbing."
It's appropriate to mention talk about 16 year olds getting the vote. That's the level Seymour is operating at and the level of the intellectually disadvantaged in that cohort he seeks to appeal to. (With due apologies to 16 year olds with a modicum of intelligence and class.)
It's a long-running trope that they love: "PM should not be in A, she should be in B".
If she's at APEC she should be at COP. If she's at COP she should be at APEC. If she's in NZ she should be overseas, if she's overseas she should be in NZ, if she's in Auckland she should be in Wellington, if she's anywhere it's a photo op, if she's not there she's hiding … zzzzzzzz.
It's a free hit because it can't be wrong. By definition, she is not somewhere. Infantile and idiotic, but Seymour gonna Seymour, he knows his fan base and their obsessive hatred.
But the comments already aren't, and won't be (though they are usually closed/deleted later).
Any Stuff article that mentions the PM gets the same comments. Doesn't matter if the subject is rugby or water or weather or tax or music or recipes with fish.
Yes, they've closed comments, and deleted some previous ones.
The Stuff moderation policy is daft. If they don't want the comments (which as I've stated are entirely predictable) then they shouldn't open an article for them … and then close them when the predictable happens. Leave them open and allow for rebuttal and free debate. Or, don't open them. Either is fine.
The article itself is fine, an overview of Chatham Island issues, no problem.
Davids been doing this since forever. Its reminiscent of his weird election ads where he was popping out from behind bushes. Is it mostly spin? Or are the voters of Epsom regularly left wondering just how long their MP has been hanging out there.
Heather Stupidity-Allen, in her creepy voice, was asking Chris Hipkins why the PM wasn't on the street corner outside the Rose Cottage. He must have thought it was Halloween again.
I admire these ministers who have to tread so carefully through the mire of malevolent idiocy which is right wing media.
“I considered posting yesterday that he'd be disappointed that the tragic Sandringham incident wasn't in his electorate. I pulled my head in. “- what a vile thing to think – someone was murdered, and you think of this. Says a lot about your character rather than pre supposing on someone else's.
Seymour literally said that Ardern needed fear of Covid for political gain, so when he's effectively accused her of hoping for Kiwi deaths, Peter's assessment is not wrong.
Peter assessment is a pig of a thing to even consider yet alone to publish, and with NO basis. So now can we Boise and extend our thoughts and assign them to others ??
There are some unglued people out there and more than enough who totally support this site that fall into this category, and even more who find it acceptable as long as they are for Labour imo Peter is still a pig to pass on his thoughts and apply them to someone else, or can/ should we now dedicate comments in this fashion moving forward??
Perhaps if the govt had thought post announcement of the $6m with follow up question to both officials and store owners/workers then deficiencies and improvements be made. But once announced, the govt moves on to the next crisis, and now we see after this avoidable death that ministers want a review ?? Shouldn’t that have been in progress following the initial commitment to see if it was effective and fit for purpose ?? Guess such follow up is beyond these guys
The core question from this thread that I commented on is "I considered posting yesterday that he'd be disappointed that the tragic Sandringham incident wasn't in his electorate. I pulled my head in."
Why don't you address this then ?? And where can you or anyone else derive support in Peters comment this out of anything on the subject ?? There is nothing out there to suggest this. Just yours and others acceptance of CRAP behaviour.
BUT he DID post it !!!!! So your argument is negated. Still no one able to link anything that supports this …. Still waiting or is making unsubstantiated comments now accepted ???
and observer don’t look in the mirror you may not like what you see looking back. You definitely are not a green supporter, at least they know there standards and when they swallow a rat they know and admit that it is against what they stand for.
If we all got hauled over the coals for everything we "considered posting" [but didn't] there would probably be lifetime bans for all of us.
David Seymour is an MP and party leader. I'd suggest his behaviour is more relevant and worth more of your indignation than somebody commenting on a blog. But each to his own. It's Friday night, I'm out, have a good one.
Peter's comment was an opinion, a personal appraisal of David Seymour, so doesn't require a link supporting it. The evidence is Seymour's grandstanding over crime which he delights making political hay from. Peter did provide a link for that.
I don't think Seymour is disappointed it didn't happen in Epsom but if it did he'd certainly not let it go to waste.
His answers, told to his fluffer Heather Stupidity-Allen, are:
To increase hard security tech in presumably every corner shop in the country and presumably at the taxpayers' expense (hence my comment above). I think proper staff training would be far more effective. First lesson might be not to follow a dangerous individual out of the shop.
To use Oranga Tamariki to incarcerate youth offenders so they are not delivered back to the address from which they committed the offence. This would have to be a borstal or juvenile detention because how are you going to keep them there?
David Seymour is a student politician and an idiot.
Next best thing for dear David would be to get headlines in the Herald. Oh dear. He has.
The Act Party is criticising Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern for not being with members of her electorate who were grieving after a man was stabbed to death by a thief who had stolen a cash register from the dairy the man was managing.
I thought that Jacinda visited shops and spoke to the locals in Sandringham the day after the murder according to a TV news item that I caught the end of. Seymour is a dickhead BTW.
According to this article – she hasn't been (Ardern gives her reasons – but there is no claim that she's already visited the community)
"It is my local community, so I will be looking to be present there as soon as I'm able to but I'm also very aware there's a family grieving, and there's a police active investigation into a homicide," she said.
I expected Seymour to use the incident to play a vile game. It was vile thinking he would?
He did not disappoint. The reason that he does it and his particular mode of fomenting negativity and hate flourishes is that it's not called for what it is.
I know everyone has whinge hysteria mode turned up to the max – I can see the political vultures like Sunny Kaushal and David Seymour sitting on the powerlines in Fowlds Ave from my house – but from my positive RAT test to the delivery of anti-viral pills took less than two hours, whilst after registering my test result I got calls from my GP and PMO nurse within 24 hours. All free. The system does work if you want it to.
Nightime temperatures in Ukraine are below -0c and videos are emerging of entire squads of Russian mobiks huddled together out in the open or in their dugouts either dead or so hyperthermic they're unable to move.
Little wonder Poots has boosted spending on domestic security.
Could someone please explain what this black friday is all about? Are we really so dumb that we allow ourselves to get sucked into this American commercial bullshit?
Yes apparently so. We have already tucked into our Thanksgiving dinners…….what you don't celebrate Thanksgiving? For shame. /sarc
As I said last night Black Friday used to be any Friday that fell on the 13th of the month – when you didn't walk under a ladder with a black cat in your arms, or step on the cracks in the pavement, perhaps I have that a bit mixed up.
Oh yes, I remember the ladder thing. Everyone scrupulously avoided walking under the ladders. It was a good lurk to stop people being hurt from falling ladders. 😉
I thought it was the black cat walking across in front of you which was supposed to bring bad luck. Poor harmless pussy. 🙂
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Buzz from the Beehive Melissa Lee – as may be discerned from the screenshot above – has not been demoted for doing something seriously wrong as Minister of ...
Morning in London Mother hugs beloved daughter outside the converted shoe factory in which she is living.Afternoon in London Travelling writer takes himself and his wrist down to A&E, just to be sure. Read more ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – The recent announcement of the University Advisory Group, chaired by Sir Peter Gluckman, makes very clear where the Government’s focus and priorities lie. The remit of the Advisory Group is that Group members will consider challenges and opportunities for improvement in the university sector including: ...
Eric Crampton writes – The Reserve Bank of New Zealand desperately wants to find reasons to have workstreams in climate change. It makes little sense. They’ve run another stress test on the banks looking to see if they could find a prudential regulation case. They couldn’t. They ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Pundits from the left and the right are arguing that National’s Fast Track Bill that is designed to speed up infrastructure decisions could end up becoming mired in a cesspool of corruption. Political commentator ...
Looking at the headlines this morning it’s hard to feel anything other than pessimistic about the future of humanity.Note that I’m not speaking about the future of mankind, but the survival of our humanity. The values that we believe in seem to be ebbing away, by the day.Perhaps every generation ...
Swabbing mixed breed baby chicks to test for avian influenzaUh oh. Bird flu – often deadly to humans – is not only being transmitted from infected birds to dairy cows, but is now travelling between dairy cows. As of last Friday, Bloomberg News reports, there were 32 American dairy herds ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
What is it with the mining industry? Its not enough for them to pillage the earth - they apparently can't even be bothered getting resource consent to do so: The proponent behind a major mine near the Clutha River had already been undertaking activity in the area without a ...
Photo # 1 I am a huge fan of Singapore’s approach to housing, as described here two years ago by copying and pasting from The ConversationWhat Singapore has that Australia does not is a public housing developer, the Housing Development Board, which puts new dwellings on public and reclaimed land, ...
Buzz from the Beehive Reactions to news of the government’s readiness to make urgent changes to “the resource management system” through a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) suggest a balanced approach is being taken. The Taxpayers’ Union says the proposed changes don’t go far enough. Greenpeace says ...
I’m starting to wonder if Anna Burns-Francis might be the best political interviewer we’ve got. That might sound unlikely to you, it came as a bit of a surprise to me.Jack Tame can be excellent, but has some pretty average days. I like Rebecca Wright on Newshub, she asks good ...
Chris Trotter writes – Willie Jackson is said to be planning a “media summit” to discuss “the state of the media and how to protect Fourth Estate Journalism”. Not only does the Editor of The Daily Blog, Martyn Bradbury, think this is a good idea, but he has also ...
Graeme Edgeler writes – This morning [April 21], the Wellington High Court is hearing a judicial review brought by Hon. Karen Chhour, the Minister for Children, against a decision of the Waitangi Tribunal. This is unusual, judicial reviews are much more likely to brought against ministers, rather than ...
Both of Parliament’s watchdogs have now ripped into the Government’s Fast-track Approvals Bill. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMy pick of the six newsey things to know from Aotearoa’s political economy and beyond on the morning of Tuesday, April 23 are:The Lead: The Auditor General,John Ryan, has joined the ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Sarah SpengemanPeople wait to board an electric bus in Pune, India. (Image credit: courtesy of ITDP) Public transportation riders in Pune, India, love the city’s new electric buses so much they will actually skip an older diesel bus that ...
The infrastructure industry yesterday issued a “hurry up” message to the Government, telling it to get cracking on developing a pipeline of infrastructure projects.The hiatus around the change of Government has seen some major projects cancelled and others delayed, and there is uncertainty about what will happen with the new ...
Hi,Over the weekend I revisited a podcast I really adore, Dead Eyes. It’s about a guy who got fired from Band of Brothers over two decades ago because Tom Hanks said he had “dead eyes”.If you don’t recall — 2001’s Band of Brothers was part of the emerging trend of ...
Buzz from the Beehive The 180 or so recipients of letters from the Government telling them how to submit infrastructure projects for “fast track” consideration includes some whose project applications previously have been rejected by the courts. News media were quick to feature these in their reports after RMA Reform Minister Chris ...
It would not be a desirable way to start your holiday by breaking your back, your head, or your wrist, but on our first hour in Singapore I gave it a try.We were chatting, last week, before we started a meeting of Hazel’s Enviro Trust, about the things that can ...
Calling all journalists, academics, planners, lawyers, political activists, environmentalists, and other members of the public who believe that the relationships between vested interests and politicians need to be scrutinised. We need to work together to make sure that the new Fast-Track Approvals Bill – currently being pushed through by the ...
Feel worried. Shane Jones and a couple of his Cabinet colleagues are about to be granted the power to override any and all objections to projects like dams, mines, roads etc even if: said projects will harm biodiversity, increase global warming and cause other environmental harms, and even if ...
Bryce Edwards writes- The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. ...
Michael Bassett writes – If you think there is a move afoot by the radical Maori fringe of New Zealand society to create a parallel system of government to the one that we elect at our triennial elections, you aren’t wrong. Over the last few days we have ...
Without a corresponding drop in interest rates, it’s doubtful any changes to the CCCFA will unleash a massive rush of home buyers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The six things that stood out to me in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, poverty and climate on Monday, April 22 included:The Government making a ...
Sunday was a lazy day. I started watching Jack Tame on Q&A, the interviews are usually good for something to write about. Saying the things that the politicians won’t, but are quite possibly thinking. Things that are true and need to be extracted from between the lines.As you might know ...
In our Weekly Roundup last week we covered news from Auckland Transport that the WX1 Western Express is going to get an upgrade next year with double decker electric buses. As part of the announcement, AT also said “Since we introduced the WX1 Western Express last November we have seen ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 29 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. Stats NZ releases its statutory report on Census 2023 tomorrow.Finance Minister Nicola Willis delivers a pre-Budget speech at ...
A listing of 29 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 14, 2024 thru Sat, April 20, 2024. Story of the week Our story of the week hinges on these words from the abstract of a fresh academic ...
The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. The Government says this will ...
This is a column to say thank you. So many of have been in touch since Mum died to say so many kind and thoughtful things. You’re wonderful, all of you. You’ve asked how we’re doing, how Dad’s doing. A little more realisation each day, of the irretrievable finality of ...
Identifying the engine type in your car is crucial for various reasons, including maintenance, repairs, and performance upgrades. Knowing the specific engine model allows you to access detailed technical information, locate compatible parts, and make informed decisions about modifications. This comprehensive guide will provide you with a step-by-step approach to ...
Introduction: The allure of racing is undeniable. The thrill of speed, the roar of engines, and the exhilaration of competition all contribute to the allure of this adrenaline-driven sport. For those who yearn to experience the pinnacle of racing, becoming a race car driver is the ultimate dream. However, the ...
Introduction Automobiles have become ubiquitous in modern society, serving as a primary mode of transportation and a symbol of economic growth and personal mobility. With countless vehicles traversing roads and highways worldwide, it begs the question: how many cars are there in the world? Determining the precise number is a ...
Maintaining a safe and reliable vehicle requires regular inspections. Whether it’s a routine maintenance checkup or a safety inspection, knowing how long the process will take can help you plan your day accordingly. This article delves into the factors that influence the duration of a car inspection and provides an ...
Mazda Motor Corporation, commonly known as Mazda, is a Japanese multinational automaker headquartered in Fuchu, Aki District, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. The company was founded in 1920 as the Toyo Cork Kogyo Co., Ltd., and began producing vehicles in 1931. Mazda is primarily known for its production of passenger cars, but ...
Your car battery is an essential component that provides power to start your engine, operate your electrical systems, and store energy. Over time, batteries can weaken and lose their ability to hold a charge, which can lead to starting problems, power failures, and other issues. Replacing your battery before it ...
In most states, you cannot register a car without a valid driver’s license. However, there are a few exceptions to this rule. Exceptions to the RuleIf you are under 18 years old: In some states, you can register a car in your name even if you do not ...
Mazda, a Japanese automotive manufacturer with a rich history of innovation and engineering excellence, has emerged as a formidable player in the global car market. Known for its reputation of producing high-quality, fuel-efficient, and driver-oriented vehicles, Mazda has consistently garnered praise from industry experts and consumers alike. In this article, ...
Struts are an essential part of a car’s suspension system. They are responsible for supporting the weight of the car and damping the oscillations of the springs. Struts are typically made of steel or aluminum and are filled with hydraulic fluid. How Do Struts Work? Struts work by transferring the ...
Car registration is a mandatory process that all vehicle owners must complete annually. This process involves registering your car with the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and paying an associated fee. The registration process ensures that your vehicle is properly licensed and insured, and helps law enforcement and other authorities ...
Zoom is a video conferencing service that allows you to share your screen, webcam, and audio with other participants. In addition to sharing your own audio, you can also share the audio from your computer with other participants. This can be useful for playing music, sharing presentations with audio, or ...
Building your own computer can be a rewarding and cost-effective way to get a high-performance machine tailored to your specific needs. However, it also requires careful planning and execution, and one of the most important factors to consider is the time it will take. The exact time it takes to ...
Sleep mode is a power-saving state that allows your computer to quickly resume operation without having to boot up from scratch. This can be useful if you need to step away from your computer for a short period of time but don’t want to shut it down completely. There are ...
Introduction Computer-Assisted Translation (CAT) has revolutionized the field of translation by harnessing the power of technology to assist human translators in their work. This innovative approach combines specialized software with human expertise to improve the efficiency, accuracy, and consistency of translations. In this comprehensive article, we will delve into the ...
In today’s digital age, mobile devices have become an indispensable part of our daily lives. Among the vast array of portable computing options available, iPads and tablet computers stand out as two prominent contenders. While both offer similar functionalities, there are subtle yet significant differences between these two devices. This ...
A computer is an electronic device that can be programmed to carry out a set of instructions. The basic components of a computer are the processor, memory, storage, input devices, and output devices. The Processor The processor, also known as the central processing unit (CPU), is the brain of the ...
Voice Memos is a convenient app on your iPhone that allows you to quickly record and store audio snippets. These recordings can be useful for a variety of purposes, such as taking notes, capturing ideas, or recording interviews. While you can listen to your voice memos on your iPhone, you ...
Laptop screens are essential for interacting with our devices and accessing information. However, when lines appear on the screen, it can be frustrating and disrupt productivity. Understanding the underlying causes of these lines is crucial for finding effective solutions. Types of Screen Lines Horizontal lines: Also known as scan ...
Right-clicking is a common and essential computer operation that allows users to access additional options and settings. While most desktop computers have dedicated right-click buttons on their mice, laptops often do not have these buttons due to space limitations. This article will provide a comprehensive guide on how to right-click ...
Powering up and shutting down your ASUS laptop is an essential task for any laptop user. Locating the power button can sometimes be a hassle, especially if you’re new to ASUS laptops. This article will provide a comprehensive guide on where to find the power button on different ASUS laptop ...
Dell laptops are renowned for their reliability, performance, and versatility. Whether you’re a student, a professional, or just someone who needs a reliable computing device, a Dell laptop can meet your needs. However, if you’re new to Dell laptops, you may be wondering how to get started. In this comprehensive ...
Two-thirds of the country think that “New Zealand’s economy is rigged to advantage the rich and powerful”. They also believe that “New Zealand needs a strong leader to take the country back from the rich and powerful”. These are just two of a handful of stunning new survey results released ...
In today’s digital world, screenshots have become an indispensable tool for communication and documentation. Whether you need to capture an important email, preserve a website page, or share an error message, screenshots allow you to quickly and easily preserve digital information. If you’re an Asus laptop user, there are several ...
A factory reset restores your Gateway laptop to its original factory settings, erasing all data, apps, and personalizations. This can be necessary to resolve software issues, remove viruses, or prepare your laptop for sale or transfer. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to factory reset your Gateway laptop: Method 1: ...
“You talking about me?”The neoliberal denigration of the past was nowhere more unrelenting than in its depiction of the public service. The Post Office and the Railways were held up as being both irremediably inefficient and scandalously over-manned. Playwright Roger Hall’s “Glide Time” caricatures were presented as accurate depictions of ...
Roger Partridge writes – When the Coalition Government took office last October, it inherited a country on a precipice. With persistent inflation, decades of insipid productivity growth and crises in healthcare, education, housing and law and order, it is no exaggeration to suggest New Zealand’s first-world status was ...
Rob MacCulloch writes – In 2022, the Curriculum Centre at the Ministry of Education employed 308 staff, according to an Official Information Request. Earlier this week it was announced 202 of those staff were being cut. When you look up “The New Zealand Curriculum” on the Ministry of ...
Chris Bishop’s bill has stirred up a hornets nest of opposition. Photo: Lynn Grieveson for The KākāTL;DR: The six things that stood out to me in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, poverty and climate from the last day included:A crescendo of opposition to the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill is ...
Monday left me brokenTuesday, I was through with hopingWednesday, my empty arms were openThursday, waiting for love, waiting for loveThe end of another week that left many of us asking WTF? What on earth has NZ gotten itself into and how on earth could people have voluntarily signed up for ...
Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past week’s editions.State of humanity, 20242024, it feels, keeps presenting us with ever more challenges, ever more dismay.Do you give up yet? It seems to ask.No? How about this? Or this?How about this?Full story Share ...
Determining the hardest sport in the world is a subjective matter, as the difficulty level can vary depending on individual abilities, physical attributes, and experience. However, based on various factors including physical demands, technical skills, mental fortitude, and overall accomplishment, here is an exploration of some of the most challenging ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
The Government’s newly announced review of methane emissions reduction targets hints at its desire to delay Aotearoa New Zealand’s urgent transition to a climate safe future, the Green Party said. ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order. “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions. “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today. “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale. “It is good ...
The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
“China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector. "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...
The Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra In the free-for-all between the Australian government and Big Tech boss Elon Musk this week, the government had to be on a winner. Most people would have little sympathy with Musk’s vociferous opposition to ...
Asia Pacific Report Chief Mandla Mandela, a member of the National Assembly of South Africa and Nelson Mandela’s grandson, has joined the Freedom Flotilla in istanbul as the ships prepare to sail for Gaza, reports Kia Ora Gaza. Mandela is also the ambassador for the Global Campaign to Return to ...
Pacific Media Watch Journalists who report on environmental issues are encountering growing difficulties in many parts of the world, reports Reporters Without Borders. According to the tally kept by RSF, 200 journalists have been subjected to threats and physical violence, including murder, in the past 10 years because they were ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards, Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has surprised everyone with his ruthlessness in sacking two of his ministers from their crucial portfolios. Removing ministers for poor performance after only five months in the job just doesn’t normally happen in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Hawkins, Senior Lecturer, Canberra School of Politics, Economics and Society, University of Canberra BagzhanSadvakassov/Upsplash, CC BY-SA Australia’s inflation rate has fallen for the fifth successive quarter, and it’s now less than half of what it was back in late 2022. ...
ACT's Rural Communities and Veterans spokesman Mark Cameron responds to cancellations and protests of ANZAC Day commemorations in Wellington. He says, "These pitiful attempts to detract from ANZAC Day are not at all indicative of the feelings of mainstream ...
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It was once legal for a man to beat his wife.
It was only recently that we made it illegal for parents to beat their children.
Youth are disempowered in many ways
Voting empowers
We are afraid of empowering young people, especially girls
For a reason
Climate activist Greta Thunberg aged 15 – Launched 'School Strike for the Climate' a movement that became global.
Education activist Malala Yousafzai aged 15 – Survived attempted assassination by the Taliban for demanding education for girls.
https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-24379018
Child bride activist Nada Al Ahdal aged 11 – Escaped child marriage after making a harrowing two minute video appealing against her forced child marriage that went viral on you tube. Now leads an international movement against child marriage.
https://www.thenationalnews.com/mena/arab-showcase/2022/11/24/the-yemeni-child-bride-activist-leading-the-fight-against-the-scourge-of-early-marriage/
However, voting – AFAIK – at 16 isn't legal in any of the countries those teens come from.
Your point seems to be demonstrating that it is perfectly possible and valid for teens to be activists – and potentially change their societies – without being eligible to vote.
Likewise, it would be perfectly possible for women everywhere to be activists – and potentially change their societies -without being eligible to vote.
"Your point seems to be demonstrating that it is perfectly possible and valid for teens to be activists – and potentially change their societies – without being eligible to vote." Belladonna
Many of the same Right Wing talking points being trotted out against enfranchising young people, are a retread of similar talking points that were argued against extending the franchise to women.
In fact you could extend these same right wing anti-democratic arguments to everyone.
If the franchise was removed from everyone, people could still potentially change their societies – without being eligible to vote.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tolpuddle_Martyrs
Not really. Although there are plenty of examples both from our own history, and current events elsewhere, which actually do demonstrate that being eligible to vote is not essential for activism.
The difference between sex and age as criteria for voting, is, that one never changes [or, at least absent extensive surgical intervention, doesn't change], while the other is simply a matter of time.
Waiting a couple of years to exercise your right to vote doesn't appear to be a major issue.
And, of course, shifting the voting age, will simply create the same sense of dis-enfranchisement from the younger cohort of voters.
You earlier argued that the age of franchise is arbitrary.
“Any voting age is an arbitrary cut-off point – with no way to justify it…” Belladonna
.https://thestandard.org.nz/the-politics-of-the-voting-age-change/#comment-1922761
Given the examples above I would argue that it not be arbitrary. That the age of franchise should be set is where it is determined that social awareness and political activism generally begins.
The ability to be able to read and write and use and interact through social media might be another non-arbitrary point of reference to determine the age of franchise.
“Social media saved my life,” Nada Al Ahdal
Through the use of social medial Nada Al Ahdal escaped two wedding pacts arranged by her parents. and has since pledged to protect others from being sold 'like sheep'
She forced to sign a document banning comments about child marriage in the press or on social media.
"…..the head of the school said that I, being famous for showing social media about child marriage, would brainwash the other girls. She told me to study at home but I refused,” Nada Al Ahdal
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQszkZVNeFA
Yes it is arbitrary. Can you point to any actual hard evidence that 16 is a more valid age than 18 (or for that matter 14)?
If you want to argue for the use of social media as a qualifying factor – then you would need to be open to 12-year-olds – and even younger – as voters. Plenty of them are very active social media users.
Your criteria is also arbitrary.
Who decides? I can assure you, that the majority of kids in my teens school, even at the senior levels are *not* particularly politically active or even politically aware. The exceptions are the outliers that we see in the media. Equally, I know of much younger children who have made moral or ethical life choices (to be vegetarian, for example), and are deeply aware of the political implications of their choice.
Your suggested additional qualifier of use of social media is also arbitrary. How much use qualifies? Do you have to be active in social areas – or does posting TikTok videos count? Who gets to judge?
Just as an aside, that criteria would also drop off voters at the other end – not many people over 70 (yes, there are some) – who are active social media users. And there are a tranche of people who deliberately choose not to engage on social media at all – should they be disenfranchised also?
Very good potted history on why we are in the situation we are with crime and poverty. A breath of fresh air cutting through all the tough on crime rhetoric
https://twitter.com/k_t_pi/status/1595692454686388224
If long term poverty was a crime-driver we'd see burglaries up over a decade, and ramraids of supermarkets. We never have.
Until COVID all crime was down and staying down.
Ramraiders are targeting highly taxed pleasure shops: tobacco, vapes and alcohol.
Crime especially all kinds of assault is still down. It needs its own post but there is zero causality to the 1990s structural adjustment.
I'd query the targeting. In our local area – it's not only – or even predominantly – highly taxed pleasure shops which are being targeted – it's just ordinary run-of-the-mill ones – where, in many cases, they've taken only minor amounts of money and/or goods – while causing tens-of-thousands-of-dollars worth of damage.
The driver appears to be the thrill of destruction, combined with the excitement of notoriety (TikTok, etc.)
While I can understand (though not approve of) stealing vapes, alcohol and cigarettes – or even high-end fashion goods; there is no rational excuse for targeting the local Malaysian cafe, Subway franchise, or stationery shop (doesn't sell vapes or cigarettes).
If I get a couple of hours on the weekend I'll do a post on crime.
I'm not an expert on it but the graphed public reports are solid and far and away beat the anecdotes and bleed-lead cycles.
Be interesting (if data makes it possible) to see if big excise tax increases correlate with a rise in ram raid type crime targeting Tobacco and Alcohol.
https://dunedinstudy.otago.ac.nz/files/1571970023782.pdf
Ad, I would recomend looking at this article from the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Study. It links childhood self control (or its absence) to all sorts of negative life outcomes, including crime. Poor self control at three years of age predicts these outcomes even when controlled for socio economic status and IQ.
This in my opinion should be the basis for how to bring the crime rate down.
"childhood self-control is signficantly correlated with adult self-control but shows much more room for change. The fact that a child with low self-control can still become an adult with high self-control indicates that self-control may be a more malleable and teachable characteristic than IQ. Scores are normalized around a mean of 0"
I'd be loathe to ascribe any kind of single-factor causal relationship towards criminal conviction records. Certainly be surprised if the Dunedin study did that.
Doesn't account for the 2021-22 spike in ram raids, gun warfare, and school delinquency. But it does correlate really well with COVID and the tobacco and alcohol excise taxes going up by a big jump two budgets ago.
We have known the importance of this Dunedin study for ages. Hell I think I commented on it in detail here years back. From memory they could by the age of 3 categorise children into five social styles with about 7% of children in a 'aggressive and disruptive' group who – we at the highest risk of going on to very poor outcomes with violence and crime.
The most vital stage of their lives is between age 4 – 7yrs old when they have the chance to learn how to moderate they behaviour in rough and tumble play with other children and especially their fathers. This is how they learn the boundaries of what is a good game and what is hurtful or out of bounds. They don't learn from being lectured or moralised to – they learn from the physical experience of play. They are typically very kinetic, energetic and physical kids, and if they learn this moderating ability at this age will grow into fine capable adults.
But if they lacked positively engaged fathers, siblings and others they could literally bounce off – or worse if they encountered sustained abuse of any form – their teenage and adult outcomes were almost certain to be terrible.
I'd add a further point:
Requiring such young children (often boys, with tremendous amounts of physical energy) to conform to the confined and restrained behaviour expected in a classroom environment actively fails them.
Not only do they not have that level of self-management, they often gain a reputation for disruption that is difficult to leave behind.
.
Whoaaaaa there !!!, affluent Pakeha Woke dogmatists have assured me the neighbourhood terrorism being perpetrated by violent, out-of-control anti-socials indiscriminately dumped in Kainga Ora housing is all down to "Post Colonial Traumatic Stress Disorder"
(Admittedly the well-to-do power-wielding Critical Theory Cult members who angrily demand we all accept this theory without demur courageously ensure they're living as far away as possible from the Nightmare situations they've cheerfully facilitated … though we should, of course, bear in mind that they possess “uniquely-refined moral sensibilities”)
"Courageously ensure they're living as far away as possible from the Nightmare situations"
Yes but interestingly enough when the parliament protestors littered their work environment the howls of protest from the parliamentarians and their workforce couldn't have been louder about the "river of filth!' Where were their cries of "Post Colonial Traumatic Stress Disorder", when they called for the army and Costers force to remove these scum? And on the last day, when it was mainly Maori men left rioting in the streets of Wellington, where were the defenders of those anti social Kainga Ora tennants? Somehow the PCTSD diagnosis didn't apply then
Strange that…
.
Yeah, you are quite right, Anker … what the Dunedin study found is well-established in the international literature … after the age of 4, anti-social children (or to use a technical term: conduct-disordered children) tend to turn into anti-social adolescents who, in turn, become anti-social & criminal adults.
The literature in Psychology suggests the vast majority of those 2 year olds who are unusually aggressive (most of them male) are reasonably well-socialised / domesticated by the age of 4 (with the intervention of parents, teachers & peers) … and aided, as Redlogix says, by rough & tumble play.
They've learnt how to regulate their innate aggression.
But that minority of aggressive, anti-social kids who haven't been properly socialised by 4 tend to be hyper-aggressive for the rest of their lives.
As adults, they are generally very low in trait Agreeableness & trait Conscientiousness (in terms of Psychology's Big Five Personality Traits) … so they're bordering on Sociopath / Psychopath territory.
Characterised by Predatory Aggression (low agreeableness) in contrast to those with Paternal Sympathy (high agreeableness)
Chronically aggressive children, as they become adults, lack empathy, are suspicious, narcissistic & highly self-centered.
There is a substantial literature on trying to rectify the behaviour of anti-social children after the age of 4 … and the findings suggest it's very difficult. Few interventions are helpful.
And if these unusually aggressive, anti-social adults (again, largely males) find themselves in the underclass, at the bottom of the social hierarchy (as they so often do), they will seek to achieve status by dominating their immediate environment – their local neighbourhood – through violence & extreme anti-social behaviour … which, of course, points to the nightmare situation dumped on my elderly parents & their neighbours & street … along with hundreds, perhaps thousands of others around New Zealand.
The article I posted is an interesting read. I am so impressed by the Dunedin Study. Ideology free. Just good science.
They do say in that article some programmes teaching self control really early on have shown promise, so I feel somewhat encouraged by this. But of course everyone is barking up the wrong tree with this. Marama Davison and the Greens for one.
The poor self control thing absolutely makes sense to me. They also found it predicted people with gambling problems in their 30s.
The sad thing is these people with poor self control show very poor parenting skills and so the circle continues (and you have spoken about this with your parents tormenter and their child apeing his behaviour). It is too late for this anti social tennant. Across NZ people like this are making other peoples lives hell. Anti social PD's are deeply problematic. But they are likely beyond help and they should be given the message that their shitty behaviour is not tolerated. This was what was lacking in their upbringing. Good clear boundaries and consequences.
I know of the OCEAN stuff. It is a great little formula.
It outlines the duality of the problem….the solutions for the future anti socials is at odds with the solutions for the current anti socials.
We need to stop/slow the creation of future problem while addressing the current
This also applies to the assessment of the problems. We need to be able to clearly determine the factors that may lead to the current behaviour, rather than use past understanding to define the causes.
There have been significant societal disruptors over the last two decades, there should be no automatic assumptions regarding causes.
Id suggest the problems concerning wider society are self evident even if the causes are not
@pat
I agree.
When I said problems, I meant problem with assuming causes (admittedly unclear).
If causes are incorrectly identified, then solutions may not only be ineffective now, but create issues in the long term.
In short: what you said.
Meanwhile the problems (existing) must be addressed
@pat.
I agree.
Yes Pat, I agree. What to we do to try and prevent this and if we go by the Dunedin study, it is intervene very, very early as in about 3 years old.
I am at a lost to know what to do when people reach adolecences or older. I am not up with the play about what works.
The studies do appear to show that early intervention is critical, however we appear to be opposed to intervention…go figure.
As to what to do about those beyond that point Id suggest we can neither afford to excuse the behaviour but neither do we have the resources to provide the comprehensive oversight required.
It is a question of scale and we have allowed the problem to become too large….like many of our problems.
Nope, scale is not the issue at all and you cannot argue this.
Indeed!….and your basis for that assertion?
Your lack of argument in your comment, for starters. You made the claim – the problem cannot be solved or dealt with adequately or even appropriately because it is too large – you argue for it, or not. Are you a fatalist?
8,600 in prison
5,800 electronically monitored
2,500 501 deportees
5,200 in care and protection with OT
7,700 listed gang members (not including associates)
156,000 children living in poverty
How many required to provide wrap around services for this volume of people?
@Incognito
ah your sensibilities are upset because you dont wish to acknowledge that there is a problem of scale and resource….this attitude is reminiscent of the 'care in the community" proponents of mental health care….great in theory and absolutely useless in practice due to the complete lack of resource able to be applied and yet the policy was rolled out anyway.
Nah, you don’t appreciate the nature and complexity of those societal problems which is why you need to dumb it down to: too big, too hard, can’t do.
Lol…no need to stoop to abuse. Im a little concerned about you incognito, you appear under significant stress of late.
Except for a bunch of bullet points without commentary that look like they come straight from the National Party Speaking Points Sheet – Executive Summary you have offered nothing, not a single decent argument that’s worthy of debate. Your skin is apparently too thin to point out this inconvenient truth to you. You seem to think that your comments are only read by a couple of commenters on this site, which is why they often lack clarity and explanation and why you tend to resist having to explain yourself in layman terms that are easy to understand for a more general audience. If I didn’t think you couldn’t do any better I’d not even bother trying to tease out a more meaningful comment from you. Your concern for me has been noted.
This is why so much crime "debate" is offering nothing.
We instantly switch on our fixed settings, our preconceptions, to put new events in a context we understand, which is outdated.
e.g.
Long-standing assumption: crims do not want to be seen. Cameras are their enemy. Use CCTV. Makes sense.
New reality: some (especially young) do want to be seen. Cameras are their friend. Get on Tik-tok. Makes no sense.
Churning out old reckons from people who grew up before mobile phones is the opinion that dominates the "debate". Not even close to understanding what is going on, because we never imagined doing it.
The "zero" is a big call – "no obvious" might be closer to the mark because there's always the argument to be made about hyper-individualism, loss of empathic community relationships etc. etc. I get though that you are trying to kick people out of helplessly whining about the past and instead thinking about action in the present.
The children of the 'Mother of all Budgets" are with us. They've given birth to another generation who are out and about.
We tell women to not drink alcohol while pregnant because of, amongst other things, Foetal Alcohol Syndrome.
Foetal Richardson Syndrome.
Yes, in the old days Peter it was the children of bath tub gin imbibers, they ended up in Reform Schools or Borstals.
Now we have the children of Poverty and drink/meth intoxicated by internet algorithms and copycat behaviour. That is why it is about the act not the booty.
Really?
1991 is 31 years ago.
The spike we are seeing in truancy, ram raids and gun violence is in the last 2 years.
The ages suggest most were born just after or during the GFC
Are you proposing that criminals are born because of economic crisis?
We've also just gone through a period in our history where a section of society, led by some political leaders, rebelled against the rule of law and society, saying 'fuck you Society and Government, I'll do what I want to do and not what you tell me, fuck off…'
It's not surprising that societal engagement rubs off on youth who say ' fuck you, I'll do what I bloody well like and take whatever I like, fuck off..'
Societal disengagement has become normalised, the kids are only following adult leadership. And having a ball.
It's one of the reasons why I believe building strong community is an imperative at this point in time, including with people who think differently from us or who we dislike. We can't mend what's happened since the Shipley years unless there is a major political shift, but we can rebuild locally.
People rebelled because among other important things, they had lost personal autonomy over their health, jobs, movement and essentially their lives. This wasn't rebelling against rules just for the hell of it.
Something tells me that school shutdowns, disrupted education, health requirements to participate in class and in school sports, are going to have a larger detrimental effect on young people. We have let down young people badly in these last few years, isn't the mark of a good society how they treat their young.
https://teara.govt.nz/en/graph/29237/child-homicide-rates-for-maori-and-non-maori
I stumbled across this graph inadvertantly in the last week or so. Passing a lot of time on line as I recover from Covid (sick for two weeks now!).
What I found fascinating was that Maori rates of child homicide shot up from 1991 onwards (they had been the same as non Maori up till then). I hadn't heard or seen this figure before (maybe it is generally known). But I think it could do with some unpicking. The obvious conclusion is that the welfare reforms and Rogernomics play a role in this statistic. I would be surprized if there hasn't been some good research methods applied to confirm if this is the case. I realize it fits with what I recall of an ever increasing number of homicide victims that are Maori children.
Anyone know more about this?
I don't, but I would also look at whether Māori were disproportionately affected by the mass redundancies in the 80s thanks to ACTLabour (I will guess they were). So many things took at dive at the point, and then National in the 90s just cemented the neolib project in. Mental health, job security, employment conditions, union power, benefit rates, health system, on and on. I don't think younger people can probably appreciate just how massive a societal change it was.
My mother was a social worker in the 90s and she said it would take generations to recover from what they were doing.
Weka, agree. It didn't just start with Ruth Richardson
Yes indeed re the generations comment. I worked in South Auckland car industry for 20 years, 70s to early 90s, and the workforce was mainly brown apart from admins and managers, industry deregulated and mostly gone well before end of 90s. Provincial county councils with their own works departments–contracted out, Manufacturing had the pin pulled, including footwear, clothing and textiles. With that unskilled but full time work, there were thousands of associated support workers and suppliers.
So perhaps Rogernomics greatest shame remains discarding people via macro economic decisions that they had no immediate control over, and then abandoning them. And to rub it in–demonising them as dole bludgers, market rents for state housing and the Richardson MOAB was the final straw. If you want to know who ram raiders are–they are the grand children of Roger and Ruth.
Economist Brian Easton said in 2018…(full article linked)
https://e-tangata.co.nz/korero/brian-easton-maori-have-been-trapped-in-a-poverty-cycle/
“What Rogernomics did, among other things, was to eradicate a lot of jobs. And we know that Māori were affected more than non-Māori. Māori health deteriorated and Māori mortality rose during the Rogernomics era quite against the long term trend. Moreover the Rogernomic policies were deliberately biased against the poor and therefore disproportionally hit Māori.
So, when we get through that period, what have we got? We’ve got a large, young population — it’s younger than the national average — and it’s an unskilled population. It’s not ready for the high-skilled jobs that are being created in the economy.”
thank-you, really good comment. Rage inducing stuff.
The redundancies in the late 1980s pulled the 'guts out' of the ability to work for large employers in predominantly Maori communities for labouring type jobs. So Forestry went, MOW local branches went etc etc.
Local branches for many govt depts went, where these branches were located in Maori areas this meant people had less chance of being able to live locally. With all of the Govt Depts retreating from small town NZ and even small city NZ eg Napier and Gisborne had no branches left in the Govt dept I worked for, all run from Wellington as was Whanganui & Palmerston North.
In the small town I grew up in it not only destroyed jobs but what I call the Maori middle class, those whose children went away to boarding schools such as Hato Petera, Te Aute, St Stephens, Queen Vic, Hukarere just as their mothers and fathers had or to the same schools that we also went to. Some families schooled their children locally and then sent them to boarding schools in the last two years of secondary school.
After the 1987 environmental restructuring followed by that of MOW, I think it was MOW that was asked to do a social impact report on the reforms and this was hurriedly pulped/withdrawn (from my recollection) after it was clear that not much good had resulted from these reforms and huge dislocation costing $$$$, careers, loss of retirement savings, and heartbreaking mental and social effects were the main results.
People forget what a nasty bit of work Shipley is and was.
EA has brought out a consultancy paper ,for the management of winter 2023 tight generation periods.
This is not because demand is behind installed generation capacity (demand is down and will be around 1500 gwh on 2021) it is by the changes in the generation mix,and the high cost imposed by the necessary use of thermal generation for peak loads.
https://www.ea.govt.nz/assets/dms-assets/31/Driving-efficient-solutions-to-promote-consumer-interests-through-winter-2023.pdf
Intermittency from NI wind (over 1 gw) is dependent on near real time forecasting which is constrained to 5 day windows at the 60% probability window,and 1 day at the 90%.
This is with additional lessening of load,with the closure of Marsden point,and Norsk paper (around 100mw)
Peak load demand needs to be lessened substantially North of Taupo,for the winter months.
Where is the workers central labour organisation (NZCTU) today? I checked their FB Together and www, little on the RB OCR hike. The economist is no doubt beavering away, but there should have been heavy fire back on that, and to the Natzos claims about migrant workers on RNZ this morning.
Really–there is a classic contradiction between the RB and Employers arguments. Unemployment must rise says the RB, where as employers are desperate for more workers via migrant labour and want easing up on entry and residency. Translation–break down the growing workers action for higher wages, and use cheaper imported labour. NZ National have said that migrant workers should not be paid the median wage.
To paraphrase Marx… “wage rises generally happen in the track of previous price rises” – it’s a catch-up response, not due to ‘excessive’ and unrealistic demands for higher wages by workers. Second, it is not wage rises that cause rising inflation. Many other things affect price changes, Marx argued: namely “the amount of production (growth rates), the productive powers of labour (productivity growth), the value of money (money supply growth), fluctuations of market prices which happens constantly anyway, and “different phases of the industrial cycle” (boom or slump).
The claim that there is a wage-price spiral and that wage rises cause price rises is an ideological smokescreen to protect profitability.
It takes time to write something decent and also to get it published but I'm sure it's a high priority for CTU.
The November Monetary Policy Statement (MPS) has some quite good commentary on wages from page 33 including how different Stats NZ wage measures apply to different ways of obtaining pay rises. RBNZ agree with you and Marx that wages usually catch up to CPI and are forecasting that. What they are trying to avoid isn't the catch-up to CPI in and of itself, it's going too far past that (whatever that looks like), "forcing" prices up which in turn forces wages up more etc.
Recently I commented on David Seymour using the Ellerslie jeweller's store robbery for publicity. He even stood in Parliament to announce he'd been there.
I considered posting yesterday that he'd be disappointed that the tragic Sandringham incident wasn't in his electorate. I pulled my head in.
Seymour didn't disappoint though. The headline today is "Act Party criticises PM Jacinda Ardern for not supporting local community after stabbing."
It's appropriate to mention talk about 16 year olds getting the vote. That's the level Seymour is operating at and the level of the intellectually disadvantaged in that cohort he seeks to appeal to. (With due apologies to 16 year olds with a modicum of intelligence and class.)
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/act-party-criticises-pm-jacinda-ardern-for-not-supporting-local-community-after-stabbing/6ZWMISM6TZHX3BC672R6ITRS5A/
It's a long-running trope that they love: "PM should not be in A, she should be in B".
If she's at APEC she should be at COP. If she's at COP she should be at APEC. If she's in NZ she should be overseas, if she's overseas she should be in NZ, if she's in Auckland she should be in Wellington, if she's anywhere it's a photo op, if she's not there she's hiding … zzzzzzzz.
It's a free hit because it can't be wrong. By definition, she is not somewhere. Infantile and idiotic, but Seymour gonna Seymour, he knows his fan base and their obsessive hatred.
Right on cue. Article: Chathams.
Comments on article … not. It's the Daily Cindy-Hate, given a platform by Stuff.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/130579894/jacinda-ardern-visits-the-chathams-a-less-usual-and-much-farther-new-zealand-trip
At least she didn't take Mahuta down there.
Out of curiosity what what is there about the article that leads you to call it the "Daily Cindy-Hate"?
I cannot see anything there that falls into that category. What do you see?
In the article: nothing. It's about the Chathams.
But the comments already aren't, and won't be (though they are usually closed/deleted later).
Any Stuff article that mentions the PM gets the same comments. Doesn't matter if the subject is rugby or water or weather or tax or music or recipes with fish.
Ok. I misunderstood what you were complaining about and thought you meant the article.
They appear to have cut off the comments very quickly. There are only 3 at the moment which are 2/1 against her going.
Yes, they've closed comments, and deleted some previous ones.
The Stuff moderation policy is daft. If they don't want the comments (which as I've stated are entirely predictable) then they shouldn't open an article for them … and then close them when the predictable happens. Leave them open and allow for rebuttal and free debate. Or, don't open them. Either is fine.
The article itself is fine, an overview of Chatham Island issues, no problem.
Davids been doing this since forever. Its reminiscent of his weird election ads where he was popping out from behind bushes. Is it mostly spin? Or are the voters of Epsom regularly left wondering just how long their MP has been hanging out there.
Heather Stupidity-Allen, in her creepy voice, was asking Chris Hipkins why the PM wasn't on the street corner outside the Rose Cottage. He must have thought it was Halloween again.
I admire these ministers who have to tread so carefully through the mire of malevolent idiocy which is right wing media.
“I considered posting yesterday that he'd be disappointed that the tragic Sandringham incident wasn't in his electorate. I pulled my head in. “- what a vile thing to think – someone was murdered, and you think of this. Says a lot about your character rather than pre supposing on someone else's.
Seymour literally said that Ardern needed fear of Covid for political gain, so when he's effectively accused her of hoping for Kiwi deaths, Peter's assessment is not wrong.
Peter assessment is a pig of a thing to even consider yet alone to publish, and with NO basis. So now can we Boise and extend our thoughts and assign them to others ??
There are some unglued people out there and more than enough who totally support this site that fall into this category, and even more who find it acceptable as long as they are for Labour imo Peter is still a pig to pass on his thoughts and apply them to someone else, or can/ should we now dedicate comments in this fashion moving forward??
Perhaps if the govt had thought post announcement of the $6m with follow up question to both officials and store owners/workers then deficiencies and improvements be made. But once announced, the govt moves on to the next crisis, and now we see after this avoidable death that ministers want a review ?? Shouldn’t that have been in progress following the initial commitment to see if it was effective and fit for purpose ?? Guess such follow up is beyond these guys
No one has explained why it is up to the taxpayer to provide the cost of security to private business, and follow up no less.
Surely ACT is ideologically opposed to this type of idle dependence on government? Where will it end?
David Seymour must consider it an abomination…
What has your response got to do with my reaction to or Peters VILE comment ??
And no link from Peter to support his comment. Come on, time for you and others to display some decency, if you are able to
The core question here is: what is genuine concern, and what is shroud-waving and exploitation?
There's probably not much point debating that, most of us have formed a view on Seymour based on his previous behaviour.
No the core question is not …
The core question from this thread that I commented on is "I considered posting yesterday that he'd be disappointed that the tragic Sandringham incident wasn't in his electorate. I pulled my head in."
Why don't you address this then ?? And where can you or anyone else derive support in Peters comment this out of anything on the subject ?? There is nothing out there to suggest this. Just yours and others acceptance of CRAP behaviour.
And he did say he decided not to post but laid claim to thinking about it.
People do think 'unusual' and bad taste thoughts.
What would you have been like had he posted, they'd have had to disattach you from the ceiling after being airborne in an apoplectic rage.
Seymour is depressingly persistent in saying the PM should be here, there or anywhere rather than where she is.
.
BUT he DID post it !!!!! So your argument is negated. Still no one able to link anything that supports this …. Still waiting or is making unsubstantiated comments now accepted ???
and observer don’t look in the mirror you may not like what you see looking back. You definitely are not a green supporter, at least they know there standards and when they swallow a rat they know and admit that it is against what they stand for.
If we all got hauled over the coals for everything we "considered posting" [but didn't] there would probably be lifetime bans for all of us.
David Seymour is an MP and party leader. I'd suggest his behaviour is more relevant and worth more of your indignation than somebody commenting on a blog. But each to his own. It's Friday night, I'm out, have a good one.
Herodotus what is/was the significance of the word Boise in your post? Seems to have gone now?
Is this some new urban saying, I did look but can only find a ref to Boise Idaho and Bois for trees in French.
Peter's comment was an opinion, a personal appraisal of David Seymour, so doesn't require a link supporting it. The evidence is Seymour's grandstanding over crime which he delights making political hay from. Peter did provide a link for that.
I don't think Seymour is disappointed it didn't happen in Epsom but if it did he'd certainly not let it go to waste.
His answers, told to his fluffer Heather Stupidity-Allen, are:
David Seymour is a student politician and an idiot.
Need a link for that?
Next best thing for dear David would be to get headlines in the Herald. Oh dear. He has.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/act-party-criticises-pm-jacinda-ardern-for-not-supporting-local-community-after-stabbing/6ZWMISM6TZHX3BC672R6ITRS5A/
I thought that Jacinda visited shops and spoke to the locals in Sandringham the day after the murder according to a TV news item that I caught the end of. Seymour is a dickhead BTW.
According to this article – she hasn't been (Ardern gives her reasons – but there is no claim that she's already visited the community)
https://www.1news.co.nz/2022/11/25/ardern-rejects-seymours-criticism-of-her-not-being-in-sandringham/
Apparently the people of the Chatham Islands should have suffered instead:
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2022/11/auckland-dairy-stabbing-david-seymour-denounces-jacinda-ardern-s-chatham-islands-trip-as-givealittle-page-launched-for-victim-s-family.html
I expected Seymour to use the incident to play a vile game. It was vile thinking he would?
He did not disappoint. The reason that he does it and his particular mode of fomenting negativity and hate flourishes is that it's not called for what it is.
Aeromine Industries in Texas has developed bladeless wind energy solution that makes no sound. It can be linked to existing solar energy systems.
Sounds great? Can't link as found it on my cell phone.
I know everyone has whinge hysteria mode turned up to the max – I can see the political vultures like Sunny Kaushal and David Seymour sitting on the powerlines in Fowlds Ave from my house – but from my positive RAT test to the delivery of anti-viral pills took less than two hours, whilst after registering my test result I got calls from my GP and PMO nurse within 24 hours. All free. The system does work if you want it to.
Get well Sanctuary.
Nightime temperatures in Ukraine are below -0c and videos are emerging of entire squads of Russian mobiks huddled together out in the open or in their dugouts either dead or so hyperthermic they're unable to move.
Little wonder Poots has boosted spending on domestic security.
https://twitter.com/NoYardstick/status/1595244723865804801
Could someone please explain what this black friday is all about? Are we really so dumb that we allow ourselves to get sucked into this American commercial bullshit?
Yes apparently so. We have already tucked into our Thanksgiving dinners…….what you don't celebrate Thanksgiving? For shame. /sarc
As I said last night Black Friday used to be any Friday that fell on the 13th of the month – when you didn't walk under a ladder with a black cat in your arms, or step on the cracks in the pavement, perhaps I have that a bit mixed up.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Friday_(shopping)
Typical US fashion, excuse the cynicism, it is all about shopping, money and retail.
Oh yes, I remember the ladder thing. Everyone scrupulously avoided walking under the ladders. It was a good lurk to stop people being hurt from falling ladders. 😉
I thought it was the black cat walking across in front of you which was supposed to bring bad luck. Poor harmless pussy. 🙂