While these events are undeniably evil and tragic, I strongly feel that any response needs to remember that at the root of the hatred that motivates them is injustice. Responding to terror attacks with defiantly pro-West rhetoric is, in my view, fuel to the extremist fire. It only deepens the spiral. I’m not sure what the alternative is, but calling the attackers “evil losers”, who must be “obliterated”, as Donald Trump has done is unhelpful to the nth degree.
…
Democracy is broken. Capitalism is broken. Their fix is not necessarily their opposite, but it’s time to stop clinging to ideologies that have clearly run their course. It is time to engage with people, and to listen – and it is time to stop ignoring the real root causes of the pain we see around us.
Well, democracy isn’t happening that well. A better version of participant democracy is needed. Capitalism is showing its inevitable downsides, and from the destruction it is causing, we need a new left way forward.
In a way it is karma
If a country makes money out of manufacturing and selling arms which it knows will be causing misery and destruction elsewhere, then that country will be perceived as being part of the problem by those who have been impacted by the weapons…… drug producers and sellers are considered to be criminals, but it seems that arms manufacturers and sellers should be seen in the same light.
TMM @ 1.1……..as in (particularly re Palestine)……..”Justice the Seed, Peace the Flower”.
Fell about laughing when I heard someone on CNN or somewhere saying Trump in his ‘best result for everyone’ line has leverage over the Palestinians on account of the $US400 million of annual US funding which goes their way (apparently).
No mention of the annual $US 3,000 million from the same source which goes the way of Zionist Israel, nor the leverage that might provide.
Ad, that photo opened up a really cool discussion on one of the game groups I’m in on facebook. A lot of republican women play the game, and for many of them the photo cut through the divide of dem/rep. They then really opened up about their disquiet about the trump administration. In the end it became about their fears around health care. Myself and a Aussie talked about our system – which they all said they liked.
@ Ad ( 2) … Looks like the Transylvanian Trump show has arrived at the Vatican. Pope obviously picked up some satanic vibes there, hence his less than happy expression! The women look very creepy indeed. The pair of them, along with the Don of course could haunt a haunted house!
BTW, why is Ivanka always there hanging out with dad and step mum?
When you buy one, you’re actually purchasing an “implied license for the life of the vehicle to operate the vehicle.“ Basically, a rental contract. With the difference being that even when the rental is paid off, you are still bound by the contract.
Yes, really.
It has to do with two things – the code that runs the tractor (yes, them too) and the ownership claims to that code asserted under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).
You may recall the ruckus that erupted about a year ago when the car companies floated the idea that even though you bought their car, it was still their code that ran the thing – and this code remained proprietary. That is, their property. To “tamper” with anything that could conceivably affect the code, their lawyers proposed, would violate both the warranty and copyright laws. Effectively making the car not your property, no matter the name on the title.
I’m surprised we haven’t seen something like ‘Apple Finance’. Miss a payment and the device shuts down until the payment + penalty is paid and an automated system boots the iwhatever back up again. Phone finance is notorious for defaulting.
Just saw the Herald on-line but won’t read it: “Mike Hosking: Dude, where’s my tax cut?
Mike Hosking wants to know why the Government can’t give us a tax cut.”
Is he starting a Givealittle because he’s on the bones of his arse?
Lovely quote from Gordon Campbell re Mr Matthews as both Auditor and as CE of Ministry of Transport failing to figure fraud out faster, and failing to acknowledge it properly when it all came out:
“…the indulgence granted to senior executives is in stark contrast to the 90 day employment rules that operate elsewhere in the labour market. If you’re being paid say, $30,000 a year, you’re out on your ear if you under-perform. Yet if you’re being paid more than 15 times that amount to lead a government department, you are not held responsible for systemic failings that flourish on your watch. If you’re lucky, you could even be promoted to a position of greater responsibility.”
The Auditor General’s role demands the highest standards of probity, judgement and widespread respect. How the hell did Mathews even get on the short list?
An interesting and well written article, covering the points that have been avoided by many – and in particular the government. It appears to have been written just before the auditor-general decided to step down while an investigation is held – perhaps prompted by the many comments similar to those in the article. It is of course the minimum response – less than the recent resignation of a lower level official from another department, but a reasonable response nevertheless. He is to be congratulated for the initiative – it does not mean that he did not make mistakes in his previous job (and as Labour has pointed out it does not constitute evidence wrongdoing and indeed there has been no evidence of fault) – but he has had the sense to see that an independent investigation was needed. Certainly the court case should have shown that there should have been at least an internal review of procedures, and the State Services Commission should also have asked questions to ensure that if there were faults they did not also apply to other departments – and whether they should have been picked up by audit. The Minister should also have been asking questions.
Now the SSC have stepped in to ‘take over’ some investigations (news reports are not clear whose investigation they are ‘taking over’) but the standing down has it appears prompted that response.
But where was the Minister in all this – hiding. There is such a willingness to separate their position from that of their department that there is no accountability at all at Ministerial level for anything – as we have seen recently with Ngaro. Coupled with a culture of bullying departments themselves, and tolerating bullying within departments (that’s how they get things done, so why wouldn’t they encourage the same behaviour in others) it is no wonder the system doesn’t question itself too deeply. So I congratulate Matthews, but ask why there has not been corresponding condemnation of those who sat back and let (encouraged!) the system degenerate to the extent that such fraud could have happened and go effectively unquestioned. This is yet another failure of government at Cabinet level. Don;t hold your breath for any Minister to even share a smidgeon of the blame . . .
“But as the horror of the attack continues to unfold, New Zealand’s thoughts are already turning to the upcoming Lions rugby tour, and whether there will be a need for increased security.”
Crime scene photographs were leaked to the New York Times, apparently after being shared with US intelligence agencies by British investigators.
The pictures were leaked despite a direct plea from Amber Rudd, the Home Secretary, to the US authorities to stop leaking information about the fast-moving inquiry.
The recent Manchester incident has prompted me to ask these questions.
1. How do I feel about the 22 Manchester killings of mainly young women?
2. How do I feel about the 225 civilians, including 36 women and 44 children killed in Syria by US Airstrikes in the month from 23 April -23 May this year.
3.Do the words “collateral damage” seem appropriate to either example above?
4. Do I think the pain of relatives of any of the above will be less?
5. How would I feel if a relative was killed by accident but the perpetrators denied it happened and tried to cover up the situation? Would the cover up increase the burden of loss even more?
6. How would I feel if I killed someone by accident and I was forced to keep the secret by others? Would this prey on my conscience? Would I be the type to be a hit-and-run driver leaving the victim or would I always stop and try to help.
7. Can I imagine the extra burden on those SAS members who carry the mental baggage from the Afghanistan raid which Jon Stephenson has investigated?
8. Where does my compassion start and end? Why? Why not?
We live in a discompassionate world. I’m using the word “world” here to refer to the contrived socio/economic paradigms we accept and live by. Every day, when we go to work or think about saving for that deposit or whatever, we are endorsing ways of life that don’t just constrain us (our ‘acceptable’ or possible expressions of humanity) but that pit us one against the other for the sake of ‘success’.
And to avoid submitting a huge comment, I’m just going to suggest those pointers tie back in with the final paragraph of carolyn_nth’s comment at the top of the thread.
Most of 1 through 7 is covered by her, I’d have thought, pretty obvious observation.
At the end of the day, it’s our world. Maybe it’s time to take it back; to wrest control of our world away from the fish eyed misanthropes and tear up their books of rules and lies. Maybe that process begins with small steps of disengagement – a growing refusal to participate in their discompassionate world…
Whadda ya mean,”maybe”? 🙂
You’ve already “begun”, Bill, as have many, many others here and elsewhere, so far as I can tell. Engaged and compassionate is the path and the direction, swelling the crowd is the action most needed now.
Sorry, it needs more thought, but I really valued Bill and Robert Guyton’s comments.
Engaged and compassionate is the path and the direction, swelling the crowd is the action most needed now:Robert Guyton
Somehow we have to show our leaders that there are better ways to deal with the issues of violence , punishment, revenge, escalation of hate, etc. If corporate media are only interested in fanning the flames of hatred, we need to overpower this with social media and public demonstrations.
While over the past few decades, workers have been increasingly shafted, poverty has exploded, and Americans continue to be bankrupted or killed by what can only generously be described as a health care “system,” Clinton couldn’t understand why people were so angry. Six months in, “she still didn’t grasp the underlying sentiments of the electorate.” “What is the appeal of a Sanders?” she wondered. Nearly a year in, she confessed to an aide: “I don’t understand what’s happening with the country. I can’t get my arms around it.”
It’s exactly why so many of us saw Clinton as such a weak candidate. She’s a political operator insulated from the real world and it showed. Trump by contrast was really good at faking it.
Yet, somehow, as flawed a candidate as Hillary was, 3.7 million more Democratic primary voters voted for her than for Sanders. Shouldn’t the clearly expressed will of the voters count for something?
Shouldn’t the clearly expressed will of the voters count for something?
But purity….
/
NEW CBO score on AHCA-23 million more uninsured-Saves $119 billion-$834 billion Medicaid cuts-$992 bn tax cuthttps://t.co/VeFPeLffEy— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) May 24, 2017
NEW CBO score on AHCA
-23 million more uninsured -Saves $119 billion -$834 billion Medicaid cuts -$992 bn tax cuthttps://t.co/VeFPeLffEy
The other way of putting it is that Sanders came within 3.7m votes despite not being the Democrat’s officially anointed candidate from the outset. Yes the will of the voters prevailed, but in hindsight everyone realises what a bungle it was.
It might be tempting to come away from Shattered viewing the Clinton campaign as a one-off aberration, a horrifyingly and uniquely misjudged series of errors that couldn’t happen again. To be sure, there’s much about Clinton’s campaign that could support this conclusion, from everything surrounding the private email server to her campaign’s disregard for traditionally blue strongholds like Wisconsin and Michigan.
But the deeper problems that plagued Clinton’s run are not necessarily ones unique to Clinton. Her lack of vision, her refusal to shift her centrist policies to the left, her campaign-for-a-campaign’s-sake, the centering of her campaign around an individual rather than a set of principles — these are all factors that could easily be repeated by the next establishment candidate.
Sorry to sound like Colonial Viper, but I think it’s worked out as nature intended.
Trump is revealing what a properly revealed Republican administration looks like,
and the Democrats have needed a lot more time to reorganise and revive.
Trump will assist the Democrats to gain a few more in the mid terms.
And will continue to drag the reputations of other Republicans down with him as the various inquiries publish their results.
Meanwhile, those democracies that have re/elected strong states and long-term revival programmes are doing just great.
or 4 years of this will leave the state electoral offices well entrenched in their disenfranchisement role so voting entitlements are rigged enough that the republicans have a straight 50 years in power.
Redistricting is only part of the issue (and can be good). Voter ID, booth locations, roadworks… Sure, the most outrageous and explicitly partisan/racist ones get smacked, but there are enough republicans smart enough to refrain from saying “we did this just to stop democrats voting” that I fear the US is committed to the downhill slope.
The thing is that there are so many ways to fuck with who can vote and how that vote is recorded, leaving SCOTUS as the only check won’t be enough by itself.
For anyone of a mind for another dive into American electoral weirdness, here’s a good piece on the the Supreme Court’s past and upcoming cases involving partisan gerrymandering (all hunky-dory and legit) and racial gerrymandering (used to be a good thing, now not so much).
“…her refusal to shift her centrist policies to the left, her campaign-for-a-campaign’s-sake, the centering of her campaign around an individual rather than a set of principles — these are all factors that could easily be repeated by the next establishment candidate.”
But the Democratic platform coming out of the convention was a long way left of Hillary’s positions going into the campaign.
Presidential campaigns are about individuals, like it or not. Policies and principles run a very distant second and third place. There remains the lesson from O’Malley’s popularity (well, extreme lack thereof). He’s a solidly competent, non-neo-liberal, somewhat generic Democrat. But just got nowhere with the electorate. Sanders had a personality that fit the moment, but when you dug down to the bones of his actual positions and history (which Hillary never did in an attack mode) there was a lot that would be unappealing to progressives.
Campaign-for-a-campaign’s-sake. Well, yeah. Bush the Elder had the same issue. I could never figure out why he wanted the presidency, except as the final flourish on a glowing CV. Fortunately all the likely prospects for 2020 at this point seem to have issues they’re passionate about. As long as Hillary doesn’t get it in her head to have another go.
As long as Hillary doesn’t get it in her head to have another go.
The dems will go with someone significantly younger. Clinton would be the oldest starting president if she ran in 2020 (72), and the trolls had more than enough fun with her health in the campaign as it was. and if Trump falls back to a non compos mentis defense like Reagan did…
Obama and Bill C were at the other end, while most started term in their 50s.
Ummm – what’s my best move to defend myself against a “witch hunt” into my links with Russia? Aha, I know. I’ll hire a lawyer with links to Russia to represent me…
Lance O’Sullivan takes on the anti-vaxxers. He’s a great guy with a long history of doing good work in poor communities, and speaking out. I agree 100% that the last thing any community needs – let alone disadvantaged communities – is harm to their health from unscientific nonsense. Vaccines are a wonderful thing and we should be thrilled to have them.
Dr Lance is a neat genuinely humble family focused guy that doesn’t talk about making a difference, he does. Same with Kelvin, he took a school that was producing the jail population of tomorrow and turned it into a state run academy of excellence.
I think Dr Lance would make one helluva Minister of Health.
BREAKING: Successful businessman Earl Hagaman, who recently sued Andrew Little, has died aged 92. pic.twitter.com/GORm3o2vNv— NBR (@TheNBR) May 25, 2017
BREAKING: Successful businessman Earl Hagaman, who recently sued Andrew Little, has died aged 92. pic.twitter.com/GORm3o2vNv
One thing it mentioned that hadn’t occurred to me (stupid, now it’s so obvious) was that the PR campaigns in the 1930s chasing bank robbers like Kelly, Dillinger, and suchlike was largely to evade comparisons with Nazi and Soviet political/secret police, even though the FBI had the bulk of its work in a substantially similar role.
A Hamilton law graduate, Sarah Thomson, is going to the High Court, requesting a judicial review of aspects of the government’s climate change policy. It’s thought to be the first case of its kind in New Zealand. The move wasn’t initially taken that seriously, with John Key dismissing the case as a “joke”.
But the case is going to the Wellington High Court next month.
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This interview on RNZ with Ross Tucker, the scientist who headed a review of transgender athletes playing in women’s rugby, discusses the findings of the review and what it means for women in sports. The review that World Rugby undertook had a broad range of independent experts and included a ...
Siouxsie WilesThe restrictions in place for metropolitan Melbourne now are in some ways stricter than those that were in force during New Zealand’s COVID-19 lockdown. A curfew is in place and most people have to wear masks when they leave their home – neither of which happened in New ...
On Friday the Hit and Run inquiry delivered a devastating report which found that NZDF had systematically misled Ministers over civilian deaths. The report called into question civilian control of the military (and indeed, military control of the military), a fundamental principle of our democracy. So you'd expect our politicians ...
Let's Do This Again: What else can Jacinda do in a political environment so bereft of imagination and courage but seek a continuance? If she trades upon the extraordinary personal qualities that she has, miraculously, carried with her into the office of Prime Minister, then I, for one, will offer ...
How corrupt are the New Zealand Police? This corrupt: On 10 February 2019, Police attended a family harm incident. The suspect attempted to run the attending officers over in a driveway with his car, narrowly missing them, before fleeing the scene. A short pursuit followed, ending when the suspect stopped ...
Parliament's triennial Review of Standing Orders was released today, and it contains a number of welcome, if minor, improvements. The ones that caught my are: A move to encourage "pre-legislative engagement" - the government consulting widely on legislation before it is introduced - by promising easier passage (e.g. with ...
The Auckland region moved to Alert Level 3 on 12 noon on Wednesday 12 August. The rest of New Zealand moved to Alert Level 2. Visit covid19.govt.nz for the latest information on alert levels, including an overview of restrictions in your area. ...
It's campaign time! The official countdown to Election Day is underway, with Labour supporters crowding into Auckland's Town Hall for our 2020 Campaign Launch. We recap some of the highlights below ...
It's campaign time! The official countdown to Election Day is underway, with Labour supporters crowding into Auckland's Town Hall for our 2020 Campaign Launch. We recap some of the highlights below ...
We've announced that we will expand the Flexi-wage programme to support up to 40,000 more people into work, or to help them start their own business. It's yet another way we're helping keep our economy moving by getting people into work and training. Read on to find out more ...
Business subsidy of on average $7500, and up to $22,000, to hire unemployed New ZealandersUp to 40,000 jobs to be supported by $311 million investment in keeping New Zealanders off the unemployment benefitRing-fenced fund to help unemployed start their own business ...
This week was the last of the 52nd Parliament: a major milestone for our Government and a great opportunity to look back at all the progress we've made for New Zealanders. This week, we increased support for businesses to take on apprentices, improved access to hospital care in Northland, and ...
Kia orana and kia ora koutou katoa. It is a privilege to be able to speak in this adjournment debate and to mark and acknowledge the fact that we are now two years and 10 months into the conclusion of a parliamentary term that has been extraordinary in so many ...
On 1 August, we marked the anniversary of Jacinda Ardern becoming the Leader of the Labour Party. On that day in 2017, Leader Andrew Little nominated Jacinda Ardern to succeed him and lead the party to victory.Now, three years on, we look back at some of the key moments ...
With the June 2020 quarter showing underemployment increasing, the Green Party is calling for a Guaranteed Minimum Income and an increase to the abatement threshold to ensure everyone has a dignified income. ...
We went hard and we went early in our health response to COVID-19, and we did everything we could to cushion the economic impact too. In fact, we can fill every letter of the alphabet with the steps we took to fight COVID-19 and ensure we were in a position ...
Investing in our people, backing businesses, and upgrading infrastructure and housing throughout the country - it's been another week of progress for New Zealanders as we deliver our plan to recover and rebuild. ...
July was another busy month, packed with key investments aimed at progressing our economic recovery as we rebuild New Zealand. We extended support for businesses, helped create jobs through local infrastructure projects, and kept working to clean up our waterways so Kiwis can access safe clean water. Check out the ...
The Green Party is calling for the Defence Force Chiefs in place between 2010-2017 to front up and explain how dishonesty, process and policy failures within the Defence Force led to ‘a series of incorrect statements in briefings to ministers and public releases’ regarding alleged breaches of international torture prevention ...
Thanks to our strong health response, New Zealand’s economy is more open than many other countries. But as COVID continues to surge around the world, the economic consequences of the virus will continue to be a challenge, which is why we have a detailed plan to help New Zealand bounce ...
Thanks to our strong health response, New Zealand’s economy is more open than many other countries. But as COVID continues to surge around the world, the economic consequences of the virus will continue to be a challenge, which is why we have a detailed plan to help New Zealand bounce ...
The Government is stepping up action to deal with environmentally harmful products – including plastic packaging, tyres and e-waste – before they become waste. ...
The Green Party are ensuring that New Zealanders who were overseas when COVID-19 hit will not be charged for the cost of isolation or quarantine if they return home to live. ...
It's been another week of creating jobs, supporting local businesses, and investing in infrastructure up and down the country - all of which are helping to keep our economy moving post-COVID-19. ...
Following the success of the phase out of single-use plastic shopping bags, the Government now has plans to phase out more single-use and problem plastics to reduce waste and protect the environment announced Associate Minister for the Environment Eugenie Sage. The proposals are to phase-out: some hard-to-recycle PVC and polystyrene ...
After 102 days we have our first cases of Covid-19 outside of a Managed Isolation or Quarantine facility in New Zealand. Shortly I will ask Dr Bloomfield to set out the details of the case. While we have all worked incredibly hard to prevent this scenario, we have also planned ...
An iwi-Crown approach programme to restore the Raukūmara forest on the East Coast of the North Island and boost employment opportunities for whānau, particularly rangatahi/young people, will receive $34 million funding, Minister of Conservation Eugenie Sage has announced. “Raukūmara Pae Maunga is a partnership with Te Whānau-ā-Apanui, Ngāti Porou, and ...
Government agencies and partners are working closer together to provide more Māori Housing through the Te MAIHI o te Whare Māori – the Māori and Iwi Housing Innovation Framework for Action (MAIHI). MAIHI is a kaupapa Māori approach that drives a system change to give effect and impact on Māori ...
Site work is soon to begin on Te Ahu a Turanga: Manawatū Tararua Highway, the project to replace the former SH3 route through the Manawatū Gorge, Transport Minister Phil Twyford said today. Phil Twyford was today in Woodville at the signing of a formal agreement by members of the Alliance ...
The Pacific Islands Forum Economic Ministers Meeting (FEMM) begins today and will focus on the major economic and social impacts of COVID-19 on the Pacific. FEMM is an important congregation of Economic Ministers and senior officials from around the region, and for the first time, the annual meeting will be ...
Cabinet has approved a formal apology and ex gratia payment to former soldier George Nepata, announced Defence Minister Ron Mark. This payment is to recognise the New Zealand Defence Force’s failure to provide Mr Nepata with a safe system of work in April 1989 when, as a result of an ...
A report undertaken by Ministerial Services into Iain Lees-Galloway’s ministerial expenditure has found no evidence of any inappropriate transactions or spending. Ministerial Services undertook a line by line review of all his expenditure, including staff and spouse expenses for the period 1 January 2019 to 30 June 2020. “I commissioned ...
Managed isolation charges for returnees will come into force from 12.01am Tuesday 11th August, after they passed their last cabinet milestone today, Housing Minister Megan Woods said. “The new charging system balances the rights of New Zealanders to return home and helps reduce pressure on the managed isolation and quarantine ...
The Prime Minister of New Zealand Jacinda Ardern and the Prime Minister of the Cook Islands Henry Puna have welcomed the completion of phase one in the establishment of a travel bubble between New Zealand and the Cook Island. Negotiations on the text of an ‘Arrangement to Facilitate Quarantine-Free Travel ...
The Government has launched a new online, phone and onsite service to help New Zealanders connect to a range of employment support and products for workers and businesses affected by COVID-19, announced Minister of Education Chris Hipkins and Minister for Social Development Carmel Sepuloni. Connected.govt.nz is a one-stop-shop for jobseekers, ...
Security guards contracted to the Ministry of Social Development will be paid at least the Living Wage from next month supporting the Government’s commitment towards fair pay and employment conditions, announced Minister for Social Development Carmel Sepuloni. “MSD was among the first government agencies to pay its employees the living ...
The Minister of Conservation Eugenie Sage today launched Te Mana o te Taiao, the Aotearoa New Zealand Biodiversity Strategy - a way forward that envisions Aotearoa New Zealand as a place where ecosystems are healthy and resilient, and people embrace the natural world. “Many of New Zealand’s plants and wildlife species ...
“Pacific languages, cultures and identity are essential to the health, wellbeing and lifetime success of our Pacific peoples and their communities in Aotearoa. The strength and resilience of Pacific Aotearoa is not only vital to their own prosperity but integral to the prosperity of all New Zealanders, and is particularly ...
· $38 million to help schools cover unexpected costs related to COVID-19 · $69 million upgrade for online learning · $107 million contingency funding to support school construction suppliers facing additional costs due to the lockdown. The Government is releasing $214 million from the COVID-19 response and recovery fund to ...
Despite the Government installing safety upgrades around the country, people should still take care around rail crossings, said Transport Minister Phil Twyford launching Rail Safety Week. Phil Twyford said installing safety infrastructure is crucial, but we are encouraging people to be more careful around trains too. “We’re making good progress ...
The Government is providing a cash injection to help Palmerston North City Council complete a programme to provide 78 social housing units for vulnerable tenants. The $4.7 million to build 28 units in the Papaioea Place redevelopment comes from the $3 billion set aside for infrastructure in the Government’s COVID-19 ...
A pest free Banks Peninsula/Te Pātaka o Rākaihautū is one step closer with a $5.11 million boost to accelerate this project and create jobs, announced Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage in Canterbury today. “This is a game changer for this ambitious project to restore the native wildlife and plants on Ōtautahi/Christchurch’s doorstep ...
A Government grant of $6.4 million will expand the Pettigrew Arena in Taradale with new indoor courts of national standard. “The project is likely to take 18 months with approximately 300 people employed through the process,” Grant Robertson said. “The expansion will increase the indoor court space up to 11 ...
The Far North tourist destination of Mangonui is to receive Government funding to improve waterfront infrastructure, open up access to the harbour and improve water quality, Infrastructure Minister Shane Jones has announced. A total of $6.5 million from the $3 billion set aside in the COVID-19 Response and Recovery Fund ...
The Government has re-affirmed its commitment to supporting the hosting of the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup, which the ICC has delayed from 2021 to 2022. “This is obviously a disappointing decision for cricket players and fans around the world and for the White Ferns and their supporters here at ...
Cyclists and walkers will now have a safer way to get around Taupō, Tūrangi, and between Hamilton and Cambridge, with funding for shared paths and Te Awa River Ride, Associate Minister of Transport Julie Anne Genter announced today. “The Te Awa River Ride is the latest part of massive growth ...
Six major cycle routes will be completed in Christchurch thanks to funding from the Government’s investment in shovel-ready infrastructure as part of the COVID-19 recovery Associate Minister of Transport Julie Anne Genter announced today. $125 million will be invested to kick-start construction and fund the completion of the following cycleway ...
Plans are underway for a brand new state-of-the-art hub for Whanganui’s justice and social agencies, following confirmation the ageing Whanganui Central Police Station is to be replaced. Police Minister Stuart Nash has announced $25 million in new infrastructure spending to improve facilities for the wider community, and for staff who ...
An adjustment payment has been made to Waikato-Tainui and Ngāi Tahu under the relativity mechanisms in their 1995 and 1997 Treaty of Waitangi settlements, Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations Andrew Little announced today. The latest payments to Waikato-Tainui and Ngāi Tahu are $2,700,000 and $2,600,000 respectively to ensure the ...
Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters and Transport Minister Phil Twyford today kicked off the start of the Auckland NZ Upgrade Programme rail projects which will support over 400 jobs and help unlock our biggest city. Both ministers marked the start of enabling works on the third main rail line project ...
The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) investment of $3.78 million in Wairoa will create much needed economic stimulus and jobs, Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau announced today. PGF projects announced today include: $200,000 loan to Nuhaka Kiwifruit Holdings Ltd (operated by Pine Valley Orchard Ltd) to increase the productivity ...
Tenants in public and Māori housing may be benefiting from their own affordable renewable energy in future – a fund to trial renewable energy technology for public and Māori housing has today been announced by Energy and Resources Minister Megan Woods and Associate Minister for Housing (Māori Housing) Nanaia Mahuta. ...
Hokianga will receive $2.7 million to redevelop four of its wharves and upgrade its water supply, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones has announced. Far North District Council will receive $1.8 million from the Provincial Growth Fund for the work on the wharves. “The work will include the construction of ...
A $350 million Residential Development Response Fund is being established to support the residential construction sector and to minimise the economic impact from COVID-19, the Housing Minister Dr Megan Woods has announced. “The Residential Development Response Fund will help to progress stalled or at-risk developments that support our broader housing ...
As part of a broader plan to divert waste from landfill, the Government today announced $10.67 million for new infrastructure as part of the Resource Recovery Network across the Auckland region. “This key investment in Auckland’s community recycling network is part of the Government’s Infrastructure Reference Group ‘shovel ready’ projects ...
The Government is investing $45 million in the first stage of an ambitious urban development project for Tauranga that will employ up to 250 people and help the region grow, Urban Development Minister Phil Twyford announced today. Phil Twyford says the funding has been allocated out of the $3 billion ...
Getting low-emission trucks on the road is a step closer with investment in infrastructure to support hydrogen vehicles, the Energy and Resources Minister Megan Woods has announced. The Infrastructure Reference Group has provisionally approved $20 million for New Plymouth company Hiringa Energy to establish a nationwide network of hydrogen-fuelling stations. ...
A new trades training centre to upskill the local workforce will be built in the South Waikato town of Tokoroa through funding from the Government’s COVID-19 Response and Recovery Fund, Education Minister Chris Hipkins and Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones have announced. The Government will contribute $10.84 million from ...
The Government has agreed to repeal part of the Oranga Tamariki Act subsequent children provisions, Minister for Children Tracey Martin announced today. “There are times when children need to go into care for their safety – the safety and care of children must always be paramount,” Minister Martin said. “But ...
A $1.5 million boost to grow primary mental health and addiction services for Pacific peoples in Auckland, Hamilton and Canterbury will lead to better outcomes for Pacific communities, Associate Health Minister Jenny Salesa says. Pasifika Futures has received funding to expand services through The Fono, Aotearoa New Zealand’s largest by ...
Twenty-two projects to boost the sustainability and climate resilience of New Zealand’s food and fibres sector have been announced today by Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor. The $18m funding will deliver practical knowledge to help farmers and growers use their land more sustainably, meet environmental targets, remain prosperous, and better understand ...
Employment Minister Willie Jackson welcomes an initiative that assists employers to get mature workers into New Zealand small businesses. The disadvantages that older people face in the workplace was highlighted in the whole of Government Employment Strategy. In order to address this, a Mature Workers Toolkit has been developed and ...
New Zealand and Australia reaffirmed today the need for the closest possible collaboration as they tackle a global environment shaped by COVID-19, Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters said. “In these challenging times, our close collaboration with Australia is more vital than ever,” said Mr Peters. Mr Peters and his Australian ...
The recovery and forensic examination of the loader driven by survivor Russell Smith means the underground team are now moving into an area of the Pike River Mine that has not been seen since the explosion, Minister Responsible for Pike River Re-entry Andrew Little said. “The fifth and last robot ...
Criticism of the Government's Covid-19 response is far from new, and has often had merit. But the new National leadership's dark mutterings of a cover-up are taking New Zealand politics in a dangerous direction, Sam Sachdeva writes."We are all sufferers from history, but the paranoid is a double sufferer, ...
Legendary press gallery doyen Ian Templeton assesses two new studies of former Prime Ministers Jim Bolger and Mike Moore As the 2020 election looms, Fridays with Jim by Wellington writer David Cohen is a timely book. Three-time Prime Minister Jim Bolger's reflections on leadership are insightful. More controversial may be those ...
An announcement on wage subsidies might be needed to avoid job losses - but not everybody agrees the Government should signal its intentions sooner rather than later, writes Dileepa Fonseka Crowds of people spilled out onto the street in Mangere East as the midday deadline for Auckland's entry into Level 3 ...
What’s the science behind the changed position on mask use? Farah Hancock reports. Auckland’s Level 3 lockdown will look different to the last lockdown. This time there will be masks. They’re mandatory for people on domestic flights leaving Auckland and “strongly urged” for everyone else when in public. The Government ...
In the first of a series on Muslim girls and women in sport in New Zealand, Ashley Stanley speaks to Noha Nasef, an ocean swimmer comfortable competing under full cover, who wants women wearing a hijab to be a normal sight in sport. Noha Nasef chose to take up open water swimming because ...
It looks like the dream finale of the Super Rugby Aotearoa season before a sellout Eden Park crowd will be off-limits for fans this Sunday, leaving Jim Kayes unfulfilled. It’s not the news a bunch of middle aged, success-starved Blues fans were hoping for. “Hi Richard,” began the note from the ...
The health workers and contact tracers are out on the front lines, but in the backrooms teams of mathematicians are running scenarios to figure out exactly what needs to be done, and how bad things could get. In big picture terms, fighting a pandemic is a numbers game, but with real ...
Yesterday’s announcement by the Reserve Bank that it will increase its money creation by an extra $40 billion dollars up to $100 billion over the next two years to buy government IOU’s off banks and rich investors sets an all-time record for money ...
The peerless Policy tool returns for its third edition, and it’s better than ever – fully geared to easily compare both parties and candidates across all the important issues.Campaigning might have been suspended for the rest of the week, along with much of normal life, but don’t let that stop ...
The novel coronavirus mutates as it travels between people and around the world. By sequencing the genome, we can try to work out which case is linked with another.As Aotearoa confronted its first cases of Covid-19 community transmission in more than 100 days, the director general of health, Ashley Bloomfield, ...
Ambiguity, uncertainty and unpredictability are three key indicators for stress, and Aucklanders in particular are going through all of those right now The late-night announcement by the Prime Minister was a blow to the pit of the stomach of many. We thought we had this, and maybe some of ...
Wellington company EightyOne has been banned from Twitter for its 'Trumbers' campaign criticising Donald Trump. To date more than 600,000 people have viewed 'Trumbers' on Twitter and it has been shared with the Republican Party and Donald Trump. As ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The Royal Commission into Aged Care put the Secretary of the Federal Health Department, Brendan Murphy, firmly in his place when he tried to make an opening statement to attack claims by the senior counsel ...
“Your post goes against our community standards on nudity or sexual activity” was the terse message that Professor David Robie, director of the Auckland-based Pacific Media Centre, RSF’s Oceania partner, received from Facebook whenever he tried to share an article about press freedom in Melanesia, especially the Indonesian provinces of ...
And is he about to launch a coup against Judith Collins? Just asking questions here.Jacindamania was meek by comparison. Just as Ardern captured a nation from the role of deputy leader of the opposition in 2017, so it is with Gerry Brownlee in 2020. Relentless grouchy, Gerrymania is in full ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kylie Quinn, Vice-Chancellor’s Research Fellow, School of Health and Biomedical Sciences, RMIT University On Tuesday, Vladimir Putin announced Russia was the first country to register a vaccine offering “sustainable immunity” against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Developed by the Gamaleya Research ...
Power Play - Warnings another outbreak was bound to happen were not enough to prepare New Zealanders for the shock of seeing the country's largest city put back into level 3 lockdown. ...
Power Play - Warnings another outbreak was bound to happen were not enough to prepare New Zealanders for the shock of seeing the country's largest city put back into level 3 lockdown. ...
At lunchtime yesterday, Jacinda Ardern was easing into full campaign mode on the main street of Whanganui. Just a few hours later, news from Auckland turned her plans, and an election campaign, on its head. Justin Giovannetti reports from Whanganui and Wellington.Jacinda Ardern’s first day on the campaign trail outside ...
One bright spot amid the grimness of the Covid resurgence: the return of our series of charts, graphics and data visualisations of the pandemic by Chris McDowall.Over one hundred days, Covid-19 slowly slipped from my attention. I was aware of new cases reaching Aotearoa’s border, managed isolation breaches, relapses in ...
By RNZ News QR app codes are now mandatory for businesses and services, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield have revealed, as they announced new covid-19 cases in New Zealand. Dr Bloomfield said there was just one new confirmed case in managed isolation recorded today, ...
Justin Latif takes the temperature of his community in South Auckland, ground zero for the latest Covid-19 outbreak.Following the prime minister’s announcement on Tuesday evening, my messenger app began pinging with pictures and videos of people at the supermarket. But it wasn’t panic buying that I was seeing, rather there ...
Odessa To’o on Selina Tusitala Marsh’s picture book Mophead, which was just named the Margaret Mahy Book of the Year. I almost didn’t read this book because of the title. Mophead. Instantly recognisable as an insult for anyone with big hair, even though I’ve never been called it myself. The kids ...
Announcing the winners of the 2020 New Zealand Book Awards for Children and Young Adults. The supreme prize of the night, the Margaret Mahy Book of the Year Award, goes to Selina Tusitala Marsh for her super-personal picture book, Mophead.Mophead is memoir and clapback and wild doodle; it’s the story of ...
Pacific Media Centre Newsdesk Human rights activist and lawyer Veronica Koman says the Indonesian government has asked her to return scholarship money amounting to 773 million rupiah (about US$70,000) which she received to undergo her master’s degree in Australia in 2016, reports CNN Indonesia. According to Vero – as she ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By C Raina MacIntyre, Professor of Global Biosecurity, NHMRC Principal Research Fellow, Head, Biosecurity Program, Kirby Institute, UNSW With mask wearing in public compulsory in Victoria and recommended in New South Wales, many Australians are buying, wearing or making face masks for the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bruce Webber, Principal Research Scientist, CSIRO Scientists have been interested in the flora of New Guinea since the 17th century, but formal knowledge of the tropical island’s diversity has remained limited. To solve this mystery, our global team of 99 scientists from ...
Photographers John Sefton, in Auckland, and Lynn Grieveson in Wellington watched the return of Level 3 lockdown and Level 2 restrictions on Wednesday, a day of masks, businesses shutting or setting themselves up for limited access, supermarket queues and people exercising their relative freedoms. As the clock ticked down, Bunnings ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alison Taylor, Teaching Fellow, Bond University The Melbourne International Film Festival is currently running online, but one movie announced at their program launch won’t be streaming. At the end of July, Sandra Wollner’s The Trouble With Being Born was withdrawn after the ...
Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield says the Government will sequence the genomes of yesterday's four Covid-19 cases to help identify how the outbreak started. What does that mean? New Zealand has found itself suddenly plunged into a dire situation: Four new cases of Covid-19 in the community with no obvious link ...
Several of National's sitting MPs have been allocated list rankings from which it will be difficult or near impossible for them to gain re-election. ...
Are you trying to wander the world with your government recommended mask while wearing glasses, but can’t stop them from fogging up? Don’t worry, we’re here to help.Today, Jacinda Ardern said that Aucklanders should wear a mask (or a face covering of some kind) when they leave the house. But ...
Responding to the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s decision to expand its Large Scale Asset Purchase programme from $60 billion to $100 billion, New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union Economic Advisor Karan Menon says: “ The Reserve Bank has just announced ...
As New Zealand braces for a return to lockdown, and parts of Australia wrestle with a recent surge in case numbers, a new study shows how we can do better in the COVID-enforced work from home (EWFH) experience. The study, by researchers at Auckland University ...
Last night Jacinda Ardern and Ashley Bloomfield announced four cases of Covid-19 in the community. Within hours the online community transmission of dumb takes was going like wildfire. It didn’t take long did it? Before the anti-Covid God squad shit the bed and started screeching about how they’ll never wear a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Geddis, Professor of Law, University of Otago The return of COVID-19 community transmission, with Auckland back in a level 3 lockdown and the rest of New Zealand at level 2, raises real questions about New Zealand’s upcoming general election. Polling day ...
Along with heightened alert levels, New Zealand has a new advisory on masks: Aucklanders should wear a face covering when outside the home, and the rest of us have been advised to wear one when in a confined public space, such as on public transport. But what kind of mask ...
As the Government mulls how the latest Covid-19 cases might affect the September 19 election, party leaders are stepping forward with their own opinions about how the news changes the campaign Political leaders have sparred over the impact of new Covid-19 community cases on the upcoming election, with claims Prime ...
The House - The dissolution of Parliament has been postponed following the discovery of Covid-19 cases in the community. What is dissolution and why is it important? ...
The Council of Trade Unions is reminding employers of their responsibilities to employees as we return to alert levels 2 and 3. "Employers need to remember that they must act in good faith with employees and their unions. Most employers ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Melissa Norberg, Associate Professor in Psychology, Macquarie University As COVID-19 quarantines and lockdowns drive up psychological distress, many people have increased their screen time, including online shopping, to cope. Like alcohol use — or overeating, watching TV or surfing the internet — ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Giselle Bastin, Associate Professor of English, Flinders University Finding Freedom was published on August 11.HarperCollins Publishers A new book about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex is generating sensational headlines about their private life, defiance of Queen Elizabeth and how Prince ...
By The Bougainvillean Bougainville is heading to the polls today amid its first case of the covid-19 in thefourth general election of Papua New Guinea’s autonomous region since 2001. While this election is critically important in the region’s push for independence from mainland PNG, it comes at a time when ...
This week, Taranaki locals stumbled across a pit full of dead dairy calves, dumped on public land nearby a waterway. Graphic images of the scene were shared with SAFE. SAFE CEO Debra Ashton says the horrific images are the reality of the dairy industry. ...
The Health Quality & Safety Commission is the latest signatory of the government Accessibility Charter - a commitment to providing accessible information and online tools to all disabled people. The charter, launched by the Ministry of Social Development ...
As Alert Level 3 restrictions come in place, please keep in mind those people who can’t leave their homes to shop or who might need help with their shopping. Do you have a neighbour you could check in with and drop items off to? Can you free ...
Tēnā koutou katoa, welcome all. The Monetary Policy Committee agreed to expand the Large Scale Asset Purchase (LSAP) programme up to $100 billion so as to further lower retail interest rates in order to achieve its remit. The eligible assets remain ...
“Today’s announcement by Associate Minister for the Environment, Eugenie Sage, to ban seven single-use plastic items is an important step in addressing plastic pollution,” says Donna Peterson, Chair of the WasteMINZ Behaviour Change Sector ...
Our Seas Our Future welcomes today’s Government’s announcement by Minister Sage of a plan to phase out more single-use and problem plastics to reduce waste and protect the environment. Our Seas Our Future Founder, Noel Jhinku, says, ...
Auckland is now at alert level three and the rest of New Zealand has moved to level two. Here’s what you need to know about what’s happened so far. Last night, the prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, and the deputy general of health, Ashley Bloomfield, announced that four people in one ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bryan Cranston, Academic Teacher, Swinburne University of Technology Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden has announced Kamala Harris as his running mate for the 2020 election — the first woman of colour to appear on a major party ticket. On the 100th anniversary ...
Latest from the Beehive While the PM has declared a renewal of the war against Covid-19 and activated the government’s resurgence plan (watch this space for more), the Greens’ Eugenie Sage is stepping up the war on plastics. The phase out of single-use plastic shopping bags had been successful, she ...
People calling New Zealand’s covid-19 healthline were facing long waits on hold today as the phone line struggles with high demand as the largest city of Auckland was poised for a three-day lockdown. This follows Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s announcement last night of four positive cases of covid-19 outside ...
What do they do? Do I really need one? And how much do they cost? Gillian Boyes from the Financial Markets Authority breaks down the basics.When it comes to important money decisions, having someone to help can make a big difference.A financial adviser can be your money coach – they ...
The September 19 election could yet be delayed, with Parliament's dissolution put on hold as health officials track the movements of our new Covid-19 cases - including one woman who visited tourist sites in Rotorua The dissolution of Parliament has been delayed after the re-emergence of Covid-19 in the community, with the Government seeking ...
In this year’s election, a party is offering a new economic model. That party is the Progressive Party and Bruce Dyer who is both its leader and Nelson candidate, said “Both Jim Bolger when interviewed for the 9th Floor TV series and Edmund Hilary ...
Visiting a brothel for the new series of Bad News helps convince Alice Snedden that sex work should be available to everyone.Beyond my teenage obsession with the movie Pretty Woman, my knowledge of the sex work industry has always been extremely limited. Like a lot of people I saw it ...
We have a caretaker government in the middle of an election campaign. Māori Party Co-Leader John Tamihere is calling on Jacinda Ardern to be up front and honest about the latest Covid community outbreak so we can all be part of the team. Level 3 lockdown ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Plank, Professor in Mathematics, University of Canterbury Auckland, and possibly other parts of New Zealand, almost certainly have more cases of COVID-19 in the community than the four new cases confirmed yesterday. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern activated a resurgence plan late ...
The New Zealand Taxpayers' Union is urging the Prime Minister to recommend that the Governor-General delay the dissolution of Parliament. Taxpayers' Union spokesperson Islay Aitchison says, "Given the considerable uncertainty regarding ...
The Māori Affairs Committee has completed its inquiry into health inequities for Māori and has presented its final report. You can read the committee’s report here . The inquiry was initiated in March 2019 and focused on cancer care. It explored ...
Back in March 17th 2020 - WHO (world health Organisation) warned the global community test, test, test, everyone suspected of COVID 19 virus infections, today our senior epidemiologist James Baker advised to test multiple times, as he states that some ...
Today at noon, Auckland moves into alert level three while the rest of New Zealand moves into alert level two. Here’s how it will affect businesses and what you can do to help.Three days at a higher alert level may not seem like much, but for many fragile businesses still ...
Greenpeace is welcoming the Government’s announcement today of a plan to phase out more single-use plastics, but is calling for the ban to cover a wider range of products, including plastic drink bottles. "The world is drowning in plastic ...
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John Bolton’s book on his time as Donald Trump’s National Security Adviser – The Room Where it Happened – is worth reading. His forensic training means he sets out clearly his own actions and their motivations. His recording of the responses of others appears scrupulous, albeit disputed. Failings of omission or ...
Parliament is scheduled to be dissolved today for an election on September 19. University of Otago law professor Andrew Geddis runs through how and under what circumstances the election will happen – or be delayed.No matter how, Covid-19 is now back in the community. How widespread, and with what consequences, ...
ACT Leader David Seymour wrote to the Speaker last night asking him to postpone the dissolution of Parliament. "Mr Speaker, Terrible news tonight. It occurs to me that Parliament does not need to dissolve before the election. I strongly urge ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jason Weismueller, Doctoral Researcher, University of Western Australia In February, major social media platforms attended a meeting hosted by the World Health Organisation to address coronavirus misinformation. The aim was to catalyse the fight against what the United Nations has called an ...
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From some quarters, incessant scaremongering. From others, it’s a full-on tilt into touching the alarmist buttons a little too readily (uncertain times make for very captive audiences with this angle of attack). The (so-called) Opposition (and merely regarding them as that seems to be a far looser term now ...5 days ago
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John Bolton’s book on his time as Donald Trump’s National Security Adviser – The Room Where it Happened – is worth reading. His forensic training means he sets out clearly his own actions and their motivations. His recording of the responses of others appears scrupulous, albeit disputed. Failings of omission or ...22 hours ago
Good article on the Wireless from an NZ journo in Manchester: on the feeling there, and on how the way to respond is from an understanding of the injustices that fuel violent attacks like the Manchester bombing:
Well, democracy isn’t happening that well. A better version of participant democracy is needed. Capitalism is showing its inevitable downsides, and from the destruction it is causing, we need a new left way forward.
+1 “the root of the hatred that motivates them is injustice. “
In a way it is karma
If a country makes money out of manufacturing and selling arms which it knows will be causing misery and destruction elsewhere, then that country will be perceived as being part of the problem by those who have been impacted by the weapons…… drug producers and sellers are considered to be criminals, but it seems that arms manufacturers and sellers should be seen in the same light.
US 1.29 billion (£848.6m) worth of bombs to Saudi Arabia
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-34838937
Blood money: UK’s £12.3bn arms sales to repressive states
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/blood-money-uk-s-123bn-arms-sales-to-repressive-states-8711794.html
TMM @ 1.1……..as in (particularly re Palestine)……..”Justice the Seed, Peace the Flower”.
Fell about laughing when I heard someone on CNN or somewhere saying Trump in his ‘best result for everyone’ line has leverage over the Palestinians on account of the $US400 million of annual US funding which goes their way (apparently).
No mention of the annual $US 3,000 million from the same source which goes the way of Zionist Israel, nor the leverage that might provide.
The Pope looks just so spectacularly unhappy to hang with Trump:
https://www.vox.com/world/2017/5/24/15684774/donald-trump-pope-meeting-vatican-photo
I understand the Pope is going to take Donald’s confession. He is expected to be back at the White House in November.
When is the pope coming here to take a series of confession from double dipper. (H’d better allow a week or two)
Appalling…….get the gawping mid-west used-car salesman. Again, it’s all about President Petulant Child.
Omen
Too far?.
Contempt.
Ad, that photo opened up a really cool discussion on one of the game groups I’m in on facebook. A lot of republican women play the game, and for many of them the photo cut through the divide of dem/rep. They then really opened up about their disquiet about the trump administration. In the end it became about their fears around health care. Myself and a Aussie talked about our system – which they all said they liked.
Just one more reason to love this Pope.
@ Ad ( 2) … Looks like the Transylvanian Trump show has arrived at the Vatican. Pope obviously picked up some satanic vibes there, hence his less than happy expression! The women look very creepy indeed. The pair of them, along with the Don of course could haunt a haunted house!
BTW, why is Ivanka always there hanging out with dad and step mum?
The Addams Family.
Bad dream.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DAnTdYpXkAAQjOh.jpg
So… you think you own the vehicle you buy?
Not if it’s a John Deere tractor.
When you buy one, you’re actually purchasing an “implied license for the life of the vehicle to operate the vehicle.“ Basically, a rental contract. With the difference being that even when the rental is paid off, you are still bound by the contract.
Yes, really.
It has to do with two things – the code that runs the tractor (yes, them too) and the ownership claims to that code asserted under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).
You may recall the ruckus that erupted about a year ago when the car companies floated the idea that even though you bought their car, it was still their code that ran the thing – and this code remained proprietary. That is, their property. To “tamper” with anything that could conceivably affect the code, their lawyers proposed, would violate both the warranty and copyright laws. Effectively making the car not your property, no matter the name on the title.
https://ericpetersautos.com/2017/05/23/nothing-runs-like-deere/
I’m surprised we haven’t seen something like ‘Apple Finance’. Miss a payment and the device shuts down until the payment + penalty is paid and an automated system boots the iwhatever back up again. Phone finance is notorious for defaulting.
Just saw the Herald on-line but won’t read it: “Mike Hosking: Dude, where’s my tax cut?
Mike Hosking wants to know why the Government can’t give us a tax cut.”
Is he starting a Givealittle because he’s on the bones of his arse?
Lovely quote from Gordon Campbell re Mr Matthews as both Auditor and as CE of Ministry of Transport failing to figure fraud out faster, and failing to acknowledge it properly when it all came out:
“…the indulgence granted to senior executives is in stark contrast to the 90 day employment rules that operate elsewhere in the labour market. If you’re being paid say, $30,000 a year, you’re out on your ear if you under-perform. Yet if you’re being paid more than 15 times that amount to lead a government department, you are not held responsible for systemic failings that flourish on your watch. If you’re lucky, you could even be promoted to a position of greater responsibility.”
The Auditor General’s role demands the highest standards of probity, judgement and widespread respect. How the hell did Mathews even get on the short list?
Yes AD. The whole item is worth a read.
http://werewolf.co.nz/2017/05/gordon-campbell-on-not-taking-responsibility-terrorism-porn-and-dylans-76th-birthday/
An interesting and well written article, covering the points that have been avoided by many – and in particular the government. It appears to have been written just before the auditor-general decided to step down while an investigation is held – perhaps prompted by the many comments similar to those in the article. It is of course the minimum response – less than the recent resignation of a lower level official from another department, but a reasonable response nevertheless. He is to be congratulated for the initiative – it does not mean that he did not make mistakes in his previous job (and as Labour has pointed out it does not constitute evidence wrongdoing and indeed there has been no evidence of fault) – but he has had the sense to see that an independent investigation was needed. Certainly the court case should have shown that there should have been at least an internal review of procedures, and the State Services Commission should also have asked questions to ensure that if there were faults they did not also apply to other departments – and whether they should have been picked up by audit. The Minister should also have been asking questions.
Now the SSC have stepped in to ‘take over’ some investigations (news reports are not clear whose investigation they are ‘taking over’) but the standing down has it appears prompted that response.
But where was the Minister in all this – hiding. There is such a willingness to separate their position from that of their department that there is no accountability at all at Ministerial level for anything – as we have seen recently with Ngaro. Coupled with a culture of bullying departments themselves, and tolerating bullying within departments (that’s how they get things done, so why wouldn’t they encourage the same behaviour in others) it is no wonder the system doesn’t question itself too deeply. So I congratulate Matthews, but ask why there has not been corresponding condemnation of those who sat back and let (encouraged!) the system degenerate to the extent that such fraud could have happened and go effectively unquestioned. This is yet another failure of government at Cabinet level. Don;t hold your breath for any Minister to even share a smidgeon of the blame . . .
Lions tour carries terror risk – English
“But as the horror of the attack continues to unfold, New Zealand’s thoughts are already turning to the upcoming Lions rugby tour, and whether there will be a need for increased security.”
Playbook.
+1
This is not good.
Crime scene pics of the bombing SHARED with US intelligence were LEAKED to the New York Times
So much for cooperation.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11862785
Crime scene photographs were leaked to the New York Times, apparently after being shared with US intelligence agencies by British investigators.
The pictures were leaked despite a direct plea from Amber Rudd, the Home Secretary, to the US authorities to stop leaking information about the fast-moving inquiry.
The recent Manchester incident has prompted me to ask these questions.
1. How do I feel about the 22 Manchester killings of mainly young women?
2. How do I feel about the 225 civilians, including 36 women and 44 children killed in Syria by US Airstrikes in the month from 23 April -23 May this year.
3.Do the words “collateral damage” seem appropriate to either example above?
4. Do I think the pain of relatives of any of the above will be less?
5. How would I feel if a relative was killed by accident but the perpetrators denied it happened and tried to cover up the situation? Would the cover up increase the burden of loss even more?
6. How would I feel if I killed someone by accident and I was forced to keep the secret by others? Would this prey on my conscience? Would I be the type to be a hit-and-run driver leaving the victim or would I always stop and try to help.
7. Can I imagine the extra burden on those SAS members who carry the mental baggage from the Afghanistan raid which Jon Stephenson has investigated?
8. Where does my compassion start and end? Why? Why not?
I guess this is just a response to no. 8.
We live in a discompassionate world. I’m using the word “world” here to refer to the contrived socio/economic paradigms we accept and live by. Every day, when we go to work or think about saving for that deposit or whatever, we are endorsing ways of life that don’t just constrain us (our ‘acceptable’ or possible expressions of humanity) but that pit us one against the other for the sake of ‘success’.
And to avoid submitting a huge comment, I’m just going to suggest those pointers tie back in with the final paragraph of carolyn_nth’s comment at the top of the thread.
Most of 1 through 7 is covered by her, I’d have thought, pretty obvious observation.
At the end of the day, it’s our world. Maybe it’s time to take it back; to wrest control of our world away from the fish eyed misanthropes and tear up their books of rules and lies. Maybe that process begins with small steps of disengagement – a growing refusal to participate in their discompassionate world…
Whadda ya mean,”maybe”? 🙂
You’ve already “begun”, Bill, as have many, many others here and elsewhere, so far as I can tell. Engaged and compassionate is the path and the direction, swelling the crowd is the action most needed now.
That would make a good Guest Post. I’d be happy to put it up as such if you are ok with that.
Like throwing in “Daddy what did you do in the war” sort of angle?
Sorry, it needs more thought, but I really valued Bill and Robert Guyton’s comments.
Somehow we have to show our leaders that there are better ways to deal with the issues of violence , punishment, revenge, escalation of hate, etc. If corporate media are only interested in fanning the flames of hatred, we need to overpower this with social media and public demonstrations.
https://www.jacobinmag.com/2017/05/shattered-hillary-clinton-campaign-defeat-trump
Good article, well worth a read I thought.
Same here.
It’s exactly why so many of us saw Clinton as such a weak candidate. She’s a political operator insulated from the real world and it showed. Trump by contrast was really good at faking it.
Yet, somehow, as flawed a candidate as Hillary was, 3.7 million more Democratic primary voters voted for her than for Sanders. Shouldn’t the clearly expressed will of the voters count for something?
But purity….
/
The other way of putting it is that Sanders came within 3.7m votes despite not being the Democrat’s officially anointed candidate from the outset. Yes the will of the voters prevailed, but in hindsight everyone realises what a bungle it was.
Sorry to sound like Colonial Viper, but I think it’s worked out as nature intended.
Trump is revealing what a properly revealed Republican administration looks like,
and the Democrats have needed a lot more time to reorganise and revive.
Trump will assist the Democrats to gain a few more in the mid terms.
And will continue to drag the reputations of other Republicans down with him as the various inquiries publish their results.
Meanwhile, those democracies that have re/elected strong states and long-term revival programmes are doing just great.
That view seems somewhat … Zizekian. But it’s starting to look like it might not be wrong.
or 4 years of this will leave the state electoral offices well entrenched in their disenfranchisement role so voting entitlements are rigged enough that the republicans have a straight 50 years in power.
Even the current Supreme Court is seeing through the overt racism that redistricting is.
It’s going to take as long for the Democrats to recover as Labour is here or in the UK.
Redistricting is only part of the issue (and can be good). Voter ID, booth locations, roadworks… Sure, the most outrageous and explicitly partisan/racist ones get smacked, but there are enough republicans smart enough to refrain from saying “we did this just to stop democrats voting” that I fear the US is committed to the downhill slope.
The thing is that there are so many ways to fuck with who can vote and how that vote is recorded, leaving SCOTUS as the only check won’t be enough by itself.
For anyone of a mind for another dive into American electoral weirdness, here’s a good piece on the the Supreme Court’s past and upcoming cases involving partisan gerrymandering (all hunky-dory and legit) and racial gerrymandering (used to be a good thing, now not so much).
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2017/05/is_anthony_kennedy_ready_to_put_an_end_to_partisan_gerrymandering.html
“…her refusal to shift her centrist policies to the left, her campaign-for-a-campaign’s-sake, the centering of her campaign around an individual rather than a set of principles — these are all factors that could easily be repeated by the next establishment candidate.”
But the Democratic platform coming out of the convention was a long way left of Hillary’s positions going into the campaign.
Presidential campaigns are about individuals, like it or not. Policies and principles run a very distant second and third place. There remains the lesson from O’Malley’s popularity (well, extreme lack thereof). He’s a solidly competent, non-neo-liberal, somewhat generic Democrat. But just got nowhere with the electorate. Sanders had a personality that fit the moment, but when you dug down to the bones of his actual positions and history (which Hillary never did in an attack mode) there was a lot that would be unappealing to progressives.
Campaign-for-a-campaign’s-sake. Well, yeah. Bush the Elder had the same issue. I could never figure out why he wanted the presidency, except as the final flourish on a glowing CV. Fortunately all the likely prospects for 2020 at this point seem to have issues they’re passionate about. As long as Hillary doesn’t get it in her head to have another go.
The dems will go with someone significantly younger. Clinton would be the oldest starting president if she ran in 2020 (72), and the trolls had more than enough fun with her health in the campaign as it was. and if Trump falls back to a non compos mentis defense like Reagan did…
Obama and Bill C were at the other end, while most started term in their 50s.
*snort*
Ummm – what’s my best move to defend myself against a “witch hunt” into my links with Russia? Aha, I know. I’ll hire a lawyer with links to Russia to represent me…
http://edition.cnn.com/2017/05/24/politics/trump-attorney-kasowitz/index.html
Lance O’Sullivan takes on the anti-vaxxers. He’s a great guy with a long history of doing good work in poor communities, and speaking out. I agree 100% that the last thing any community needs – let alone disadvantaged communities – is harm to their health from unscientific nonsense. Vaccines are a wonderful thing and we should be thrilled to have them.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/checkpoint/audio/201845029/lance-o-sullivan-lashes-out-at-anti-vaccination-film
Dr Lance is a neat genuinely humble family focused guy that doesn’t talk about making a difference, he does. Same with Kelvin, he took a school that was producing the jail population of tomorrow and turned it into a state run academy of excellence.
I think Dr Lance would make one helluva Minister of Health.
Narrow banded thinking is not something to be ‘proud’ about
The toxic poison is out of the vile, and it won’t be going back in..
Too many understand the gaping holes in the ‘argument’ …
I think you might of changed the meaning of what you wanted to say by spelling ‘vial’ as ‘vile’.
Vile, was intentional
Judge Judy of the NZ medical scene.
Is it just me, or is trying to score political points off someones death, truly vulgar?
I’d be tempted to say it a new low for NBR and hooten, but i’m sure in the coming weeks and months, they will dive for even newer lows.
Dishonest NBR. True headline would have said – “…….recently ‘unsuccessfully’ sued Andrew Little……”.
An interesting article about the history of the FBI’s political operations.
One thing it mentioned that hadn’t occurred to me (stupid, now it’s so obvious) was that the PR campaigns in the 1930s chasing bank robbers like Kelly, Dillinger, and suchlike was largely to evade comparisons with Nazi and Soviet political/secret police, even though the FBI had the bulk of its work in a substantially similar role.
Government being sued over climate targets!
A Hamilton law graduate, Sarah Thomson, is going to the High Court, requesting a judicial review of aspects of the government’s climate change policy. It’s thought to be the first case of its kind in New Zealand. The move wasn’t initially taken that seriously, with John Key dismissing the case as a “joke”.
But the case is going to the Wellington High Court next month.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/289535/law-student-tackles-govt-on-climate-change
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/afternoons/audio/201845139/government-being-sued-over-climate-targets