Ms Ardern has done more to save the lives of thousands of New Zealanders during the past two years than anyone else. You might think there would be universal thanks and praise for those efforts.
But it’s a sign of the rifts in our society that even such a no-brainer fails to resonate with those who can’t distinguish lies from the truth.
Although not a leftist by identity I agree that editorial is appropriately framed and articulated. The only bone I found to pick at was a philosophical assertion:
Truth is logical, because it is the way things actually are in the real world.
This antique view has been recycled since it achieved hegemony well over a century ago – despite Nobel-prizewinning physicists invalidating it's basis in reality a century ago. Postmodernists extended the relativity of truth view into the social sciences more than 30 years ago. Yet still ignorant opinion-leaders cling onto the myth.
"New Zealand has weathered the Covid-19 pandemic better than most countries in terms of health, fiscal, and economic outcomes," the agency said in a report.
In the context of the manipulated 'magic show' what does it mean?
After the GFC EVERY main ratings agency ,fell back on …'it's just an…opinion'!
The factors identified by the PSI as the primary causes of the GFC are … In the end, over 90% of the AAAratings given to mortgage-backed securities in 2006 and 2007 were downgraded to junk status'
Using liberal-speak, a top US liberal explains how sanctions can be made to seem tough without actually being tough:
On Thursday’s broadcast of “CBS Evening News,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken responded to a question on whether the United States will cut off purchases of oil and gas from Russia over its invasion of Ukraine by stating that we’re trying to ensure “that we inflict maximum pain on Russia” while at the same time, “minimizing any of the pain to us.”
Host Norah O’Donnell asked, “Russia’s economy’s fueled by gas, and the U.S. is a consumer. So, would the U.S. consider cutting off oil and gas purchases from Russia?”
Blinken responded, “Well, what we’re doing, Norah, across the board, is making sure that we inflict maximum pain on Russia for what President Putin has done, while minimizing any of the pain to us.”
He also stated, “We’re in full coordination with other countries, both consumers and producers alike, to minimize any impact that this may have on energy prices and on gasoline.”
An important part of US foreign policy is to create a semblance of opposing foreign invaders without actually cutting off your trade with them. Liberals know that appeasing domestic consumers is way more important – so if that means also appeasing Putin, Biden & co will do so and hope nobody notices. Hypocrisy is a basic element of geopolitical stagecraft when you're a liberal.
Labour's lunge for total control and insitutionalisation of a second class of citizens (those coerced out of their jobs) has suffered a serious set-back. The High Court has fired a shot across Labour's bow.
In a judgment released on Friday, Justice Cooke concluded "the order does not involve a reasonable limit on the applicants' rights that can be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society, and that is unlawful".
"The order… was imposed to ensure continuity of the public services, and to promote public confidence in those services, rather than stop the spread of Covid-19. I am not satisfied that continuity of these services is materially advanced by the order."
Unvaccinated police officers and NZDF staff who faced losing their jobs on March 1 after the Government determined staff needed to be vaccinated challenged the order in the High Court. One-hundred and sixty-four police staff and 115 from the NZDF were affected.
Labour could take the case to the Supreme Court but I bet they don't. Perception of Labour's intent to create a dual-class citizenry structure would snowball. Labour's poll rating would immediately head south.
There is a discussion on Convoy Protest 25/22/22 starting from 8.1 on (earlier comment 7.1.1.2.2) that discusses this limited ruling in greater depth and with knowledge of the implications for the 279 concerned of 31162 employees from Police and Defence….(from Health Act and BORA)
The decision has a specific fact situation in relation to their existing employment terms and conditions and I think it would be hard to envision other workers in NZ having this same fact situation.
I don't think that creating a second class of citizen is the government's intent, though of course that may be an unwanted side effect. One needs to focus on the main purpose before passing judgment.
The ODT editorial is overdue and very warranted. New Zealanders should be extremely grateful they live here and not in some other countries which we all know about.
There are times I am ashamed of the vitriol which gets flung at our PM. She does not deserve that.
I am not defending the repugnant end of Ardern's critics. Vitriol and criticism are hand in hand, or two sides of the same coin, with the adulation and lording she receives.
They only solution they can conceive is to put cyclists on a dedicated lane, despite it being a radically unsafe concept and done nowhere else in the country.
GreaterAuckland sometimes need to actually get behind something and stop the petulant whining.
I used to commute on my bike from the Birkenhead wharf for about 3 years on the old bow loading Blue Boats. Very chill way to start the day; shame the technocrats never tried it.
Incidentally the rain is still falling here in Brisbane and the SEQ Water system is full, and the big Wivenhoe dam on the Brisbane River is now at a nominal 100% full. Despite the control gates being opened last night it has risen 13% since 6am this morning.
Technically I think there is another 10% of headroom left before it starts uncontrolled overflow and with the amount of rain still on the radar its going to be a close run.
If you were in Birkenhead, rather than Brisbane – you could still commute with your bike on the ferry.
There are number limits (because they have a limited amount of space for cycles in the bow – without affecting the safe operations) – but it's rare for anyone to be left waiting. Almost all the cyclists are 'locals' (i.e. live within 5 minutes or so cycling distance); rather than the GA vision of people cycling for 30 minutes to get to the bridge (or ferry, in this case).
There have been a couple of instances of (I think) the Bayswater ferry, not being able to take all the cyclists in one trip. My suspicion is that these were orchestrated by GA – because they seemed to be one-offs for newspaper consumption.
Greater Auckland are totally invested in finding fault with *any* proposal other than a dedicated cycle-only lane.
They are perfectly well aware that *if* one is implemented, it will either work (and remove a large part of their demand base), or fail (and make people think the demand was never there).
The concept of 'perfect being the enemy of good' has no credence in their playbook.
And whinging about cost! I mean, really. They don't pay for cars, or petrol (and petrol tax), or road user charges. But they think they, somehow, qualify for free transport, when bus users don't….
Brisbane is laced with parks, bike lanes and paths.
My daily cycle commute at the moment consists of a 3km ride through deep bushland, 2km past and over a mangrove creek, and to a rail station. Max wait is 15min, then 20 min journey to a station nearer the city – then 10 min along a wide road with a substantial and safe bike path, one major intersection with lights and a ped phase, then another 2 km along a dedicated bike path alongside the Gateway Bridge (very similar to the AHB), then slip off to more parkland under the bridge itself and arrive at work. Total distance would be about 20km and barely 50m of it would I consider unfriendly to cyclists.
There are mornings when I literally ride in a state of astonishment at how fortunate all this is.
A while ago Weka asked if anyone was doing something about the economic and social costs of covid-19. There is a team at Victoria University doing a study on it at the moment. They want to hear from anyone who has had covid-19 – from those who are asymptomatic (why is that?) to those who have been severely effected in any way. The website talking about the study is here: https://covidaotearoa.com/
The writers' only point is that the mandates will end.
The Prime Minister has not set out clear conditions on when that will be.
Or even the conditions in which Cabinet will meet to set out the timetable for that decisions.
Is it: after Omicron peaks? After the next variant? When hospitals are full? When 80% of under-12's are two-shotted? Once she's decided to set a wedding date? When the experts agree? When she's polling into the 20s? When the government has decided the wage subsidy is too high?
There is now an extremely high chance that this government will lose the next election.
Ardern says words like "we're all over it', by really few actions to show it.
"The Prime Minister has not set out clear conditions on when that will be."
Bollocks. She has made it clear that once the peak of this Omicron outbreak has passed and the trend is tracking downwards the mandates will be removed. I suppose you expect her to know exactly when that is going to happen. Well, she is no more clairvoyant than the rest of us, and can't give an actual date but believes "it is not as far away as many people think."
She made this statement on the AM show sometime this week and repeated it this morning on TV3's The Nation. No doubt she has said it elsewhere. You can check it out for yourself.
Why do you make what are essentially false claims. You set yourself up as a strong supporter of the Labour Government and then spend most of your time slagging them off. If this is a game you like to play then grow up.
Second time Kim Hill has interviewed him. She seems to appreciate his insights. Clarifies the political motives & agenda of key forces, very informative.
Listened to it this morning. Really well-informed and credible source, who made it clear that the whole situation is complex – and there are no angels on either side; while also making it crystal clear that Russia is the aggressor, here.
He's also just released a book about the War in the Donbas – bringing together a group of experts. "The War in Ukraine's Donbas : Origins, Contexts, and the Future"
It's ridiculously expensive (small press, from Europe) – but possible that with the flurry of interest, there may be a main-stream pbk. edition released.
I find John Mearsheimer very interesting on the Russia and Ukraine.
According to Wikipedia he ‘ an American political scientist and international relations scholar, who belongs to the realist school of thought. He is the R. Wendell Harrison Distinguished Service Professor at the University of Chicago. He has been described as the most influential realist of his generation.’
I highly recommend people listen to this interview, which was recorded on Tuesday 15th February – before Russia invaded Ukraine.
Mearsheimer is critical towards basic western assumptions with regard to Ukraine.
Thanks for that Ed. Tough call @ 80 mins duration but I like the way he intros it so I'll hang in there. I was scanning the books on the shelves behind him & his young interviewer & they each produced a single stand-out title that impacted. His was Commanche Empire.
Anyway he starts by saying don't blame Putin, this crisis was caused by the west. There are good guys & bad guys, we're the good guys (so the prevalent narrative goes) but
the United States and its allies are responsible for this crisis
Then he explains that by saying since 2008 the west has been trying to make Ukraine part of it and that policy has three dimensions. I know a triad when I hear one, so I know the next bit where he delineates the three parts of the framing is crucial…
3. Color revolution (orange) to turn Ukraine into a liberal democracy.
So at the conclusion of the following April summit the world was told that Georgia & Ukraine "would become part of NATO". He then explained that "Russia had swallowed the two prior NATO expansions" (1999 & 2004) but decided to oppose this third expansion. So in August 2008 Russia went to war against Georgia.
Then 8 years ago (Feb 22 2014) there was a coup in Ukraine: a pro-Russian leader got replaced by a pro-American leader, and "the US was involved in that coup." Expansion strategy apparently successful? Russia then took Crimea back from Ukraine. It couldn't let the US get control of the Sevastopol naval base therein.
The civil war ongoing in eastern Ukraine since that coup became a lever for Putin to use to prevent the US achieving control.
I found his comments about 2008 fascinating. This was when NATO membership was offered to Georgia and Ukraine. It was a turning point in Russian foreign policy as they were never going to accept that.
After 25 mins he went to questions & started to fill in gaps in his narrative with details & nuances. For instance, he explained that France & Germany were adamant that NATO ought not to expand to include Ukraine. He reckons that's due to their awareness that it would threaten Russia too much.
The declaration that it would was due to the USA acting unilaterally in defiance of the two, apparently. I suspect it had UK support though.
He said the UN was useless. Still quite rare for establishment opinion leaders to tell the truth about the UN like that. They want to keep the Security Council veto to retain the sham. They believe sufficient morons of the left & right still exist to make the sham remain viable.
Why did the crisis happen now, after 8 years? He explains that Biden is continuing Trump's policy of arming Ukraine. Obama had not done that.
He says "the Turks gave the Ukrainians drones". No surprise Putin saw this double-whammy as a threat, huh? If Ukraine's army got sufficiently strong to regain control in the east, Putin's lever would evaporate. Deferred entry into NATO then seems feasible.
Britain & America both arming Ukraine, both training their army, treating them as a de-facto ally. He said the Brits sent a destroyer into Russia's maritime zone last June, then the yanks sent a bomber into Russian air-space. Such provocative military adventuring sends a signal. Putin gets angrier.
Meanwhile, this squeeze has tanked the Ukrainian economy. He reckons the solution is for Ukraine to become a neutral state but acknowledges it lacks political feasibility at present.
Around 35 mins he's complaining that US foreign policy remains locked into NATO expansionism. Foolish, he calls that. Because "it's driving Russia into the arms of China".
The best framing for this is incompetent triangulation. Since Biden gets his strategic thinking from advisers who one would expect to have either been members of the CFR, or been briefed by CFR geopolitical analysis & strategic advisory documents, this appears to be grounds for suspecting the CFR haven't learnt how to triangulate yet. Too sophisticated for them?
This interview was done on Feb 15 before the invasion and he explains why he doesn't believe Putin will invade (costs too great). Yet Biden had been predicting the invasion for months – evidence that the CFR got that bit right. He says the unipolar thinking from 2008 no longer applies. "We now live in a multipolar world. There are two other great powers."
This is the Russian space chief, and it appears he is threatening to let the International Space Station crash into US or other countries if sanctions proceed.
For me, this is an illustration of something that is very wrong with our current justice system. If 'all' the probable perpetrators just refuse to comment, the courts can do little, except charge them with perverting the course of justice (with a minimal sentence). The criminals are manipulating the justice system for their benefit.
I'd like to see a radical change. If all of the probable perpetrators are silent, then the courts try the crime (was this man assaulted and beaten to within an inch of his life; can the police prove these people were present) – and then convict and sentence them as a group for the crime. The whole lot can go to jail for GBH.
And, it's not only (or even predominantly) gangs. We see this, time and again, in child assault and murder cases. The family clams up, and prefers the welfare of the criminal adult to the care and protection of the child. The Kahui case is an instance in point.
This news item about good invasive trees – perhaps every time a wilding pine is removed, another suitable tree replaces. Or perhaps the established roots could be left and a less flammable and shade providing type could be grafted? Shame to waste roots if they can be utilised for good. What do you think Robert Guyton?
Anyway this is a bit of farmer good news. Now to get rid of industrial farming in disgusting conditions run from comfortable temperature -controlled electronic management of unhealthy, prophylactic dairy-lactic farm slums.
…He says about 14,000 of the invasive trees have found the sweet spot on his property. "The riverbed freezes and the sunlight never reaches it during the winter so it stays frozen and then as a result, all of these cherry pips germinate."
Cherry trees have been in the area for more than 100 years, Nigel says. "A local character who owned Birch Hill Station brought some specimen trees back and planted them in his garden and the birds just went nuts. So that's how they all got here, they're spread by wild birds."
According to Nigel, it's not only the small, intensely sweet cherries that people are after, it's also the cherry wood.
"It's fantastic for furniture-making, if you're into bodgery*, the green stick style, and for barbeques as smoking wood. It's the best for smoked pork, fish or chicken or whatever," he says.
The Wilson family runs a herd of deer at the farm with 300 breeding hinds and a mixture of Wapiti and Elk stags.
Nigel also runs a timber framing and woodwork business from the former shearing shed. His most recent job was building a Viking drinking hall in Rangiora for a craft-beer fillery.
"'I do that 80 percent of the time and I farm 20 percent of the time when my Dad calls on me…It's a really good mix," he says.
*Bodgery: Bungling, botched work. Probably related to botch. The OED calls bodgery “obsolete,” and gives only one citation for the word, from the playwright Thomas Nashe, who used it in the late 16th century.6/01/2014
I expected to see headlines like "Protestors take Bridge" but the Herald seems to have struggled to bring themselves to say it straight about protestors wanting to walk over the bridge simply doing so. Or protestors wanting to walk over the bridge and authorities being powerless to stop it.
Which begs questions. Like, can I get a group of mates up and go for a walk over the bridge next Saturday? Do we have to be protesting about something? Is the focus of the protest important? Is there a certain number there have to be to bring the 'can't stop them' clause into play? (Almost said 'triggers a response' !)
Is having god on one's side a factor in allowing a walk? Does calling it a 'hikoi' have significance in the exercise being challenged?
How about doing in a Friday morning? We might prefer that day as it fits our schedule better.
Leo Molloy wants Aucklanders to vote for him for Auckland mayor. I would think a self entitled blowhard big mouth is that last thing Auckland needs. One of his campaign ads "Sort this bloody Shambles out". Would have thought he would first practise what he preaches sorting out the shambles outside Parliament which he is part of. Another says he "demands higher standards from Wellington". Obviously not from the protestors outside parliament he is involved in organising. How about first sort out the shambles and demand higher standards of the protest movement you have organised and promoted Leo.
Microwave weapons are not the only ones protestors have to be concerned about these days.
Australian Federal Police (AFP) have confirmed the use of a Long Range Acoustic Device (LRAD)—often regarded as a sonic weapon—at the massive protest against vaccine mandates in Canberra on Feb. 12, despite the AFP commissioner describing the crowd as “well behaved.”
“ACT Policing has deployed several types of loudspeakers and amplification devices to quickly and effectively convey voice messages to large, and often loud, crowds of people during the recent protest activity in Canberra,” an ACT Policingsperson spoke in a statement to The Epoch Times on Feb. sixteen.
“The [LRADs] were only used to convey spoken-word messages. The ‘alert’ function was not used.”
LRADs, also known as acoustic weapons or sound cannons, are used to project very loud sounds over long distances. While the voice function can be helpful to communicate in loud settings, the device’s most dangerous setting, the alert function, can cause brain damage, permanent hearing loss, tinnitus (ringing in the ears), dizziness, and disorientation.
The LRADs work by using hundreds of transducers to create a highly concentrated and amplified sound that can be narrowed to focus on specific targeted areas.
Photos and videos circulating on social media show the LRADs positioned at the front of Parliament House facing towards the location of tens of thousands of protesters
"For decades, London has been the most important place not only for Russia’s criminal elite to launder its money, but also for it to stash its wealth. We have been the Kremlin’s bankers, and provided its elite with the financial skills it lacks. Its kleptocracy could not exist without our assistance. The best time to do something about this was 30 years ago – but the second best time is right now."
"The committee heard evidence from senior law enforcement and security officials. It laid out detailed, careful suggestions for what Britain should do to limit the damage Putin has already done to our society. Instead of learning from the report and implementing its proposals, Boris Johnson delayed its publication until after the general election and then, when further delay became impossible, dismissed those who took its sober analysis seriously as “Islingtonian remainers” seeking to delegitimise Brexit."
There is a nice outline of the history of the Uk/Russia banking marriage,which was setup by the brits and russians to circumvent the US monopoly on US$ trades.
That meant that, if you had dollars, you kept them in the United States, where they were subject to the scrutiny of the Federal Reserve. But Soviet officials worried that, if Cold War tensions became more tense, and if their dollars were in New York, the US government might seize them, thus cutting Moscow off from international markets.
The City of London had a problem too, albeit a very different one. Britain was broke, with a huge hangover of debt left from funding its war effort. The capital flows that had sustained financiers’ incomes had shrivelled, and sterling had lost its role as the world’s leading currency. Banks were moribund, and ambitious young Brits preferred to work in academia, industry, or government.
The solution to the two powers’ problems came thanks to two banks: the Moscow Narodny (MNB), which was Soviet-owned but London-based, and the Midland, a scrappy challenger unable to attract the deposits it needed to compete with its more established rivals. MNB lent its dollars to the Midland, which used them to buy pounds, with which it could grow its UK business.
This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Adam Levy. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). Climate change is everywhere. And when something's everywhere it can feel like it's nowhere. So how do we get our heads ...
Its a law like gravity: whenever a right-wing government is elected, they start attacking democracy. And now, after talking to their Republican and Tory and Fidesz chums at the International Democracy Union forum in Wellington, National is doing it here, announcing plans to remove election-day enrolment. Or, to put it ...
Yesterday Winston Peters focussed his attention on the important matter at hand. Tweeting. Like the former, and quite possibly next, orange POTUS, from whom he takes much of his political strategy, Winston is an avid X’er.His message didn’t resemble an historic address this time. In fact it was more reminiscent ...
Buzz from the Beehive A significant decline in natural gas production has given Resources Minister Shane Jones an opportunity to reiterate his enthusiasm for the mining and burning of coal. For good measure, he has praised an announcement from Genesis Energy that it will resume importing coal. He and Energy ...
“Follow the money” is the classic directive to journalists trying to understand where power and influence lie in society. In terms of uncovering who influences various New Zealand political parties and governments, it therefore pays to look at who is funding them. The political parties are legally obliged to make ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Here is my subjective ranking on a “most-left” to “most-right” scale of most of our major NZ Universities, with some anecdotal (and at times amusing) evidence to back up the claim.Extreme Left Auckland University of TechnologyEvidenceThe ...
Eric Crampton writes – I hadn’t thought about this one until a helpful email showed up in my inbox.It’s pretty obvious that income tax thresholds should automatically index with inflation – whether to anchor the thresholds in percentiles of the income distribution, or to anchor against a real ...
Jacqui Van Der Kaay writes – Parliament’s speaker had no option but to refer Green MP Julie Anne Genter to the Privileges Committee for her behaviour in the House last Wednesday evening. The incident, in which she crossed the floor to wave a book and yell at National ...
Gary Judd writes – The Dean of the law school at the Auckland University of Technology is someone called Khylee Quince. I have been sent her social media posting in which she has, over the LawNews headline “Senior King’s Counsel files complaint about compulsory tikanga Maori studies for ...
Cleo Paskal writes – WASHINGTON, D.C.: ‘Many of us have received phone calls from [the opposing camp] telling them if they join the camp they will be given projects for their wards and $300,000 [around US$35,000] each’, says former Malaita Premier Daniel Suidani. The elections in Solomon Islands aren’t ...
With hindsight, it was inevitable that (a) Hamas would agree to the ceasefire deal brokered by Egypt and Qatar and that ( b) Israel would then immediately launch attacks on Rafah, regardless. We might have hoped the concessions made by Hamas would cause Israel to desist from slaughtering thousands more ...
Placards and mourners outside the Kilbirnie Mosque following the Christchurch terror attack: MSD has terminated the Kaiwhakaoranga service, which has been used by 415 families since the attacks. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The Government’s pledge to only cut ‘back office’ staff rather than ‘frontline’ services is on increasingly shaky ground, with ...
There’s been a few smaller public transport announcements over the last week or so that I thought I’d cover in a single post. Fareshare I’ve long called for Auckland Transport to offer a way to enable employer-subsidised public transport options. The need for this took on even more importance ...
Parliament’s speaker had no option but to refer Green MP Julie Anne Genter to the Privileges Committee for her behaviour in the House last Wednesday evening. The incident, in which she crossed the floor to wave a book and yell at National Minister Matt Doocey, reflects poorly on Genter and ...
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 ...
Who likes being sneered at? Nobody. Worse yet, when the sneerer has their facts all wrong, and might well be an idiot.The sneer in question is The adults are in charge now, and it is a sneer offered in retort to criticism of this new Government, no matter how well ...
When in government, Labour pushed to extend the Parliamentary term to four years, to reduce accountability and our ability to vote out a bad government. And now, they're trying to do it through the member's ballot, with a Four-Year Parliamentary Term Legislation Bill. The bill at least requires a referendum ...
A ballot for a single Member's Bill was held today, and the following bill was drawn: Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill (Hūhana Lyndon) The bill would prevent the government from stealing Māori land in breach of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. It ...
Simeon Brown, alongside Wayne Brown, is favouring a political figleaf now in exchange for loading up tens of millions in extra interest costs on Auckland ratepayers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Ratings agency Standard & Poor’s is pushing back hard at suggestions from Local Government Minister Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown ...
Buzz from the Beehive One headline-grabber from the Beehive yesterday was the OECD’s advice that the government must bring the Budget deficit under control or face higher interest rates. Another was the announcement of a $1.9 billion “investment” in Corrections over the next four years. In the best interests of ...
Chris Trotter writes – Had Zheng He’s fleet sailed east, not west, in the early Fifteenth Century, how different our world would be. There is little reason to suppose that the sea-going junks of the Ming Dynasty, among the largest and most sophisticated sailing vessels ever constructed, would have failed ...
David Farrar writes – Two articles give a useful contrast in balance. Both seek to be neutral explainer articles. This one in the Herald on Social Investment covers the pros and cons nicely. It links to critical pieces and talks about aspects that failed and aspects that are more ...
The tikanga regulations will compel law students to be taught that a system which does not conform with the rule of law is nevertheless law which should be observed and applied…Gary Judd KC writes – I have made a complaint to Parliament’s Regulation ...
The future of Te Huia, the train between Hamilton and Auckland, has been getting a lot of attention recently as current funding for it is only in place till the end of June. The government initially agreed to a five year trial, through to April 2026, but that was subject ...
TL;DR: Hamas has just agreed to Israel’s ceasefire plan. Nelson hospital’s rebuild has been cut back to save money. The OECD suggests New Zealand break up network monopolies, including in electricity. PM Christopher Luxon’s news conference on a prison expansion announcement last night was his messiest yet.Here’s my top six ...
A homicide in Ponsonby, a manhunt with a killer on the run. The nation’s leader stands before a press conference reassuring a frightened nation that he’ll sort it out, he’ll keep them safe, he’ll build some new prison spaces.Sorry what? There’s a scary dude on the run with a gun ...
Hi,I know it’s been awhile since there’s been any Webworm merch — and today that all changes!Over the last four months, I’ve been working with New Zealand artist Jess Johnson to create a series of t-shirts, caps and stickers that are infused with Webworm DNA — and as of right ...
The OECD’s chief economist yesterday laid it on the line for the new Government: bring the deficit under control or face higher Reserve Bank interest rates for longer. And to bring the deficit under control, she meant not borrowing for tax cuts. But there was more. Without policy changes—introducing a ...
After a hiatus of over four months Selwyn Manning and I finally got it together to re-start the “A View from Afar” podcast series. We shall see how we go but aim to do 2 episodes per month if possible. … Continue reading → ...
In 2008, the UK Parliament passed the Climate Change Act 2008. The law established a system of targets, budgets, and plans, with inbuilt accountability mechanisms; the aim was to break the cycle of empty promises and replace it with actual progress towards emissions reduction. The law was passed with near-universal ...
Buzz from the Beehive Local Water Done Well – let’s be blunt – is a silly name, but the first big initiative to put it into practice has gone done well. This success is reflected in the headline on an RNZ report:District mayors welcome Auckland’s new water deal with ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate ConnectionsA farmworker cleans the solar panels of a solar water pump in the village of Jagadhri, Haryana Country, India. (Photo credit: Prashanth Vishwanathan/ IWMI) Decisions made in India over the next few years will play a key role in global ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – The Children’s Minister, Karen Chhour, intends to repeal Section 7AA from the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989 because it creates conflict between claimed Crown Treaty obligations and the child’s best interests. In her words, “Oranga Tamariki’s governing principles and its act should be colour ...
Geoffrey Miller writes – The gloves are off. That might seem to be the undertone of surprisingly tough talk from New Zealand’s foreign and trade ministers. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, may be facing legal action after making allegations about former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr on Radio New Zealand. ...
Brian Easton writes – This is about the time that the Treasury will be locking up its economic forecasts to be published in the 2024 Budget Economic and Fiscal Update (BEFU) on budget day, 30 May. I am not privy to what they will be (I will report on them ...
TL;DR:Winston Peters is reported to have won a budget increase for MFAT. David Seymour wanted his Ministry of Regulation to be three times bigger than the Productivity Commission. Simeon Brown is appointing a Crown Monitor to Watercare to protect the Claytons Crown Guarantee he had to give ratings agencies ...
The gloves are off. That might seem to be the undertone of surprisingly tough talk from New Zealand’s foreign and trade ministers. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, may be facing legal action after making allegations about former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr on Radio New Zealand. Carr had made highly ...
I could be a florist'Round the corner from Rye LaneI'll be giving daisies to craziesBut, baby, I'll wrap you up real safe Oh, I can give you flowers At the end of every dayFor the center of your table, a rainbowIn case you have people 'round to stay Depending on ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to May 12 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. Finance Minister Nicola Willis will give a pre-budget speech on Thursday.Parliament sits from Question Time at 2pm on ...
The price of the foreign affairs “reset” is now becoming apparent, with Defence set to get a funding boost in the Budget. Finance Minister Nicola Willis has confirmed that it will be one of the few votes, apart from Health and Education and possibly Police, which will get an increase ...
A listing of 26 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 28, 2024 thru Sat, May 4, 2024. Story of the week "It’s straight out of Big Tobacco’s playbook. In fact, research by John Cook and his colleagues ...
Yesterday I received come lovely feedback following my Star Wars themed newsletter. A few people mentioned they’d enjoyed reading the personal part at the beginning.I often begin newsletters with some memories, or general thoughts, before commencing the main topic. This hopefully sets the mood and provides some context in which ...
April 30 was going to be the day we’d be calling Mum from London to wish her a happy birthday. Then it became the day we would be going to St. Paul's at Evensong to remember her. The aim of the cathedral builders was to find a way to make their ...
Rob MacCulloch writes – Can’t remember the last book by a Kiwi author you read? Think the NZ government should spend less on the arts in favor of helping the homeless? If so, as far as Newsroom is concerned, you probably deserve to be called a cultural ignoramus ...
Eric Crampton writes – Grudges are bad. Better to move on. But it can be fun to keep a couple of really trivial ones, so you’re not tempted to have other ones. For example, because of the rootkit fiasco of 2005, no Sony products in our household. ...
A new report warns an estimated third of the adult population have unmet need for health care.Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāHere’s the six key things I learned about Aotaroa’s political economy this week around housing, climate and poverty:Politics - Three opinion polls confirmed support for PM Christopher Luxon ...
Today is May the fourth. Which was just a regular day when my mother took me to see the newly released Star Wars at the Odeon in Rotorua. The queue was right around the corner. Some years later this day became known as Star Wars Day, the date being a ...
Buzz from the Beehive Much more media attention is being paid to something Winston Peters said about former Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr than to a speech he delivered to the New Zealand China Council. One word is missing from the speech: AUKUS. But AUKUS loomed large in his considerations ...
Is the economy in another long stagnation? If so, why?This is about the time that the Treasury will be locking up its economic forecasts to be published in the 2024 Budget Economic and Fiscal Update (BEFU) on budget day, 30 May. I am not privy to what they will be ...
The annual list of who's been bribing our politicians is out, and journalists will no doubt be poring over it to find the juiciest and dirtiest bribes. The government's fast-track invite list is likely to be a particular focus, and we already know of one company on the list which ...
In the weeks after the October 7 Hamas attacks on Southern Israel I wrote about the possible 2nd, 3rd and even 4th order effects of the conflict. These included new fronts being opened in the West Bank (with Hamas), Golan … Continue reading → ...
Peter Dunne writes – It is one of the oldest truisms that there is never a good time for MPs to get a pay rise. This week’s announcement of pay raises of around 2.8% backdated to last October could hardly have come at a worse time, with the ...
David Farrar writes – Newshub reports: Newshub can reveal a fresh allegation of intimidation against Green MP Julie-Anne Genter. Genter is subject to a disciplinary process for aggressively waving a book in the face of National Minister Matt Doocey in the House – but it’s not the first time ...
The Treasury has published a paper today on the global productivity slowdown and how it is playing out in New Zealand: The productivity slowdown: implications for the Treasury’s forecasts and projections. The Treasury Paper examines recent trends in productivity and the potential drivers of the slowdown. Productivity for the whole economy ...
Winston Peters’ comments about former Australian foreign minister look set to be an ongoing headache for both him and Luxon. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for subscribers features co-hosts and , along with regular guests on Gaza and ...
These puppet strings don't pull themselvesYou're thinking thoughts from someone elseHow much time do you think you have?Are you prepared for what comes next?The debating chamber can be a trying place for an opposition MP. What with the person in charge, the speaker, typically being an MP from the governing ...
The land around Lyme Regis, where Meryl Streep once stood, in a hood, on the Cobb, is falling into the sea.MerylThe land around Lyme Regis, around the Cobb that made it rich, has always been falling slowly but surely into the sea. Read more ...
Photo by Jari Hytönen on UnsplashIt’s that new day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when and I co-host our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm. Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream for our chat about the week’s news ...
Buzz from the Beehive Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters was bound to win headlines when he set out his thinking about AUKUS in his speech to the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. The headlines became bigger when – during an interview on RNZ’s Morning Report today – he criticised ...
The Post reports on how the government is refusing to release its advice on its corrupt Muldoonist fast-track law, instead using the "soon to be publicly available" refusal ground to hide it until after select committee submissions on the bill have closed. Fast-track Minister Chris Bishop's excuse? “It's not ...
As pressure on it grows, the livestock industry’s approach to the transition to Net Zero is increasingly being compared to that of fossil fuel interests. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / Getty ImagesTL;DR: Here’s the top five news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, and a discussion above ...
The New Zealand Herald reports – Stats NZ has offered a voluntary redundancy scheme to all of its workers as a way to give staff some control over their “future” amidst widespread job losses in the public sector. In an update to staff this morning, seen by the Herald, Statistics New Zealand ...
On Werewolf/Scoop, I usually do two long form political columns a week. From now on, there will be an extra column each week about music and movies. But first, some late-breaking political events:The rise in unemployment numbers for the March quarter was bigger than expected – and especially sharp ...
David Farrar writes – The Herald reports: TVNZ says it is dealing with about 50 formal complaints over its coverage of the latest 1News-Verian political poll, with some viewers – as well as the Prime Minister and a former senior Labour MP – critical of the tone of the 6pm report. ...
Muriel Newman writes – When Meridian Energy was seeking resource consents for a West Coast hydro dam proposal in 2010, local Maori “strenuously” objected, claiming their mana was inextricably linked to ‘their’ river and could be damaged. After receiving a financial payment from the company, however, the Ngai Tahu ...
The Green Party is welcoming the announcement by the Minister Responsible for RMA Reform Chris Bishop to approve most of the Wellington City Council’s District Plan recommendations. ...
David Seymour has failed to get the sweeping cuts he wanted to the free and healthy school lunch programme, Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
Hon Willie Jackson has been invited by the Oxford Union to debate the motion “This House Believes British Museums are not Very British’ on May 23rd. ...
Green Party MP Hūhana Lyndon says her Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill is an opportunity to right some past wrongs around the alienation of Māori land. ...
A senior, highly respected King’s Counsel with decades of experience in our law courts, Gary Judd KC, has filed a complaint about compulsory tikanga Māori studies for law students - highlighting the utter depths of absurdity this woke cultural madness has taken our society. The tikanga regulations will compel law ...
The Government needs to be clear with the people of the Nelson Marlborough region about the changes it is considering for the Nelson Hospital rebuild, Labour health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall said. ...
Ministers must front up about which projects it will push through under its Fast Track Approvals legislation, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
The Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...
With Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...
The Labour Party is saddened to learn of the death of Sir Robert Martin, a globally renowned disability advocate who led the way for disability rights both in New Zealand and internationally. ...
Labour is calling for the Government to urgently rethink its coalition commitment to restart live animal exports, Labour animal welfare spokesperson Rachel Boyack said. ...
Today’s Financial Stability Report has once again highlighted that poverty and deep inequality are political choices - and this Government is choosing to make them worse. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to do more for our households in most need as unemployment rises and the cost of living crisis endures. ...
Unemployment is on the rise and it’s only going to get worse under this Government, Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said. Stats NZ figures show the unemployment rate grew to 4.3 percent in the March quarter from 4 percent in the December quarter. “This is the second rise in unemployment ...
The New Zealand Labour Party welcomes the entering into force of the European Union and New Zealand free trade agreement. This agreement opens the door for a huge increase in trade opportunities with a market of 450 million people who are high value discerning consumers of New Zealand goods and ...
The National-led Government continues its fiscal jiggery pokery with its Pharmac announcement today, Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall says. “The government has increased Pharmac funding but conceded it will only make minimal increases in access to medicine”, said Ayesha Verrall “This is far from the bold promises made to fund ...
This afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
Your Excellency Ambassador Meredith, Members of the Diplomatic Corps and Ambassadors from European Union Member States, Ministerial colleagues, Members of Parliament, and other distinguished guests, Thank you everyone for joining us. Ladies and gentlemen - In diplomacy, we often speak of ‘close’ and ‘long-standing’ relations. ...
The Therapeutic Products Act (TPA) will be repealed this year so that a better regime can be put in place to provide New Zealanders safe and timely access to medicines, medical devices and health products, Associate Health Minister Casey Costello announced today. “The medicines and products we are talking about ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop, today released his decision on twenty recommendations referred to him by the Wellington City Council relating to its Intensification Planning Instrument, after the Council rejected those recommendations of the Independent Hearings Panel and made alternative recommendations. “Wellington notified its District Plan on ...
Rape Awareness Week (6-10 May) is an important opportunity to acknowledge the continued effort required by government and communities to ensure that all New Zealanders can live free from violence, say Ministers Karen Chhour and Louise Upston. “With 1 in 3 women and 1 in 8 men experiencing sexual violence ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government will be delivering a more efficient Healthy School Lunches Programme, saving taxpayers approximately $107 million a year compared to how Labour funded it, by embracing innovation and commercial expertise. “We are delivering on our commitment to treat taxpayers’ money ...
New research on the impacts of extreme weather on coastal marine habitats in Tairāwhiti and Hawke’s Bay will help fishery managers plan for and respond to any future events, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. A report released today on research by Niwa on behalf of Fisheries New Zealand ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters will lead a broad political delegation on a five-stop Pacific tour next week to strengthen New Zealand’s engagement with the region. The delegation will visit Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, and Tuvalu. “New Zealand has deep and ...
There has been a material decline in gas production according to figures released today by the Gas Industry Co. Figures released by the Gas Industry Company show that there was a 12.5 per cent reduction in gas production during 2023, and a 27.8 per cent reduction in gas production in the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins tonight announced the recipients of the Minister of Defence Awards of Excellence for Industry, saying they all contribute to New Zealanders’ security and wellbeing. “Congratulations to this year’s recipients, whose innovative products and services play a critical role in the delivery of New Zealand’s defence capabilities, ...
Welcome to you all - it is a pleasure to be here this evening.I would like to start by thanking Greg Lowe, Chair of the New Zealand Defence Industry Advisory Council, for co-hosting this reception with me. This evening is about recognising businesses from across New Zealand and overseas who in ...
It is a pleasure to be speaking to you as the Minister for Digitising Government. I would like to thank Akolade for the invitation to address this Summit, and to acknowledge the great effort you are making to grow New Zealand’s digital future. Today, we stand at the cusp of ...
New Zealand is urging both Israel and Hamas to agree to an immediate ceasefire to avoid the further humanitarian catastrophe that military action in Rafah would unleash, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The immense suffering in Gaza cannot be allowed to worsen further. Both sides have a responsibility to ...
A new online data dashboard released today as part of the Government’s school attendance action plan makes more timely daily attendance data available to the public and parents, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. The interactive dashboard will be updated once a week to show a national average of how ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced Rosemary Banks will be New Zealand’s next Ambassador to the United States of America. “Our relationship with the United States is crucial for New Zealand in strategic, security and economic terms,” Mr Peters says. “New Zealand and the United States have a ...
The Government is considering creating a new tier of minerals permitting that will make it easier for hobby miners to prospect for gold. “New Zealand was built on gold, it’s in our DNA. Our gold deposits, particularly in regions such as Otago and the West Coast have always attracted fortune-hunters. ...
Minister for Trade Todd McClay today announced that New Zealand and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will commence negotiations on a free trade agreement (FTA). Minister McClay met with his counterpart UAE Trade Minister Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi in Dubai, where they announced the launch of negotiations on a ...
New Zealand Sign Language Week is an excellent opportunity for all Kiwis to give the language a go, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. This week (May 6 to 12) is New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) Week. The theme is “an Aotearoa where anyone can sign anywhere” and aims to ...
Six tertiary students have been selected to work on NASA projects in the US through a New Zealand Space Scholarship, Space Minister Judith Collins announced today. “This is a fantastic opportunity for these talented students. They will undertake internships at NASA’s Ames Research Center or its Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), where ...
New Zealanders will be safer because of a $1.9 billion investment in more frontline Corrections officers, more support for offenders to turn away from crime, and more prison capacity, Corrections Minister Mark Mitchell says. “Our Government said we would crack down on crime. We promised to restore law and order, ...
The OECD’s latest report on New Zealand reinforces the importance of bringing Government spending under control, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The OECD conducts country surveys every two years to review its members’ economic policies. The 2024 New Zealand survey was presented in Wellington today by OECD Chief Economist Clare Lombardelli. ...
The Government has delivered on its election promise to provide a financially sustainable model for Auckland under its Local Water Done Well plan. The plan, which has been unanimously endorsed by Auckland Council’s Governing Body, will see Aucklanders avoid the previously projected 25.8 per cent water rates increases while retaining ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters discussed the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and enhanced cooperation in the Pacific with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock during her first official visit to New Zealand today. "New Zealand and Germany enjoy shared interests and values, including the rule of law, democracy, respect for the international system ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop today released his decision on four recommendations referred to him by the Western Bay of Plenty District Council, opening the door to housing growth in the area. The Council’s Plan Change 92 allows more homes to be built in existing and new ...
Thank you, John McKinnon and the New Zealand China Council for the invitation to speak to you today. Thank you too, all members of the China Council. Your effort has played an essential role in helping to build, shape, and grow a balanced and resilient relationship between our two ...
The Government is modernising insurance law to better protect Kiwis and provide security in the event of a disaster, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly announced today. “These reforms are long overdue. New Zealand’s insurance law is complicated and dated, some of which is more than 100 years old. ...
The coalition Government is refreshing its approach to supporting pay equity claims as time-limited funding for the Pay Equity Taskforce comes to an end, Public Service Minister Nicola Willis says. “Three years ago, the then-government introduced changes to the Equal Pay Act to support pay equity bargaining. The changes were ...
Structured literacy will change the way New Zealand children learn to read - improving achievement and setting students up for success, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Being able to read and write is a fundamental life skill that too many young people are missing out on. Recent data shows that ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay says Canada’s refusal to comply in full with a CPTPP trade dispute ruling in our favour over dairy trade is cynical and New Zealand has no intention of backing down. Mr McClay said he has asked for urgent legal advice in respect of our ‘next move’ ...
The rights of our children and young people will be enhanced by changes the coalition Government will make to strengthen oversight of the Oranga Tamariki system, including restoring a single Children’s Commissioner. “The Government is committed to delivering better public services that care for our most at-risk young people and ...
The Government is making it easier for minor changes to be made to a building consent so building a home is easier and more affordable, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on making it easier and cheaper to build homes so we can ...
New Zealand lost a true legend when internationally renowned disability advocate Sir Robert Martin (KNZM) passed away at his home in Whanganui last night, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. “Our Government’s thoughts are with his wife Lynda, family and community, those he has worked with, the disability community in ...
Good evening – Before discussing the challenges and opportunities facing New Zealand’s foreign policy, we’d like to first acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. You have contributed to debates about New Zealand foreign policy over a long period of time, and we thank you for hosting us. ...
From today, passengers travelling internationally from Auckland Airport will be able to keep laptops and liquids in their carry-on bags for security screening thanks to new technology, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Creating a more efficient and seamless travel experience is important for holidaymakers and businesses, enabling faster movement through ...
People with an interest in the health of Northland’s marine ecosystems are invited to a public meeting to discuss how to deal with kina barrens, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones will lead the discussion, which will take place on Friday, 10 May, at Awanui Hotel in ...
Kiwi exporters are $100 million better off today with the NZ EU FTA entering into force says Trade Minister Todd McClay. “This is all part of our plan to grow the economy. New Zealand's prosperity depends on international trade, making up 60 per cent of the country’s total economic activity. ...
There are heartening signs that the extractive sector is once again becoming an attractive prospect for investors and a source of economic prosperity for New Zealand, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The beginnings of a resurgence in extractive industries are apparent in media reports of the sector in the past ...
The return of the historic Ō-Rākau battle site to the descendants of those who fought there moved one step closer today with the first reading of Te Pire mō Ō-Rākau, Te Pae o Maumahara / The Ō-Rākau Remembrance Bill. The Bill will entrust the 9.7-hectare battle site, five kilometres west ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has announced 25 new high-speed EV charging hubs along key routes between major urban centres and outlined the Government’s plan to supercharge New Zealand’s EV infrastructure. The hubs will each have several chargers and be capable of charging at least four – and up to 10 ...
The coalition Government will not proceed with the previous Government’s plans to regulate residential property managers, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “I have written to the Chairperson of the Social Services and Community Committee to inform him that the Government does not intend to support the Residential Property Managers Bill ...
The Government has announced an independent review into the disability support system funded by the Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha. Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston says the review will look at what can be done to strengthen the long-term sustainability of Disability Support Services to provide disabled people and ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Next week the government will again next try to get its legislation through to deal with non-citizens who won’t cooperate with efforts to deport them. The bill, which the opposition and crossbench refused to rush ...
A long-term project that will set out an alternative vision for Aotearoa that looks beyond the narrow confines of the policy straight jacket adopted by successive governments. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bree Hurst, Associate Professor, Faculty of Business and Law, QUT, Queensland University of Technology TK Kurikawa/Shutterstock A much-awaited report into Coles and Woolworths has found what many customers have long believed – Australia’s big supermarkets engage in price gouging. What started ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Daniel Ghezelbash, Associate Professor and Deputy Director, Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law, UNSW Law & Justice, UNSW Sydney The Albanese government wanted to avoid an inquiry into its migration amendment bill. The report, handed down yesterday by a senate committee that ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Joo-Cheong Tham, Professor, Melbourne Law School, The University of Melbourne Lobbying is at the heart of government. Who has access to and influence over key government officials shapes the decisions governments make – and how they make them. The ability to influence ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Myfany Turpin, Associate Professor, Ethnomusicology, Linguistics and Ethnobiology, University of Sydney The act representing Australia at this year’s Eurovision contest has sadly not qualified for the grand final. Yet for Zaachariaha Fielding and Michael Ross, the duo that makes up Electric Fields, ...
In announcing changes to the school lunches programme, David Seymour said kids would no longer be served ‘woke’ foods. To clear up any confusion, The Spinoff has compiled a guide to the wokeness levels of some common food items. Apple = NOT WOKE Avocado = WOKE Avocado, smashed = EVEN ...
The Minister Responsible for GCSB and the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security have been notified of this review, and have been provided a finalised Terms of Reference. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Minglu Chen, Senior Lecturer, Government and International Relations, University of Sydney Robert Way/Shutterstock As the past few years have illustrated so clearly, the Australia-China relationship is complicated. As such, it is crucial for Australians to develop a more nuanced understanding of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mariana Campbell, Research Lecturer, Conservation, Charles Darwin University Marilyn Connell Australian freshwater turtles are facing an alarming trend. Almost half of these species are listed as vulnerable, endangered or critically endangered. The Mary River turtle (Elusor macrurus) is one of Australia’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Debbie Passey, Digital Health Research Fellow, The University of Melbourne Algorithms have become integral to our lives. From social media apps to Netflix, algorithms learn your preferences and prioritise the content you are shown. Google Maps and artificial intelligence are nothing without ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Josephine Barbaro, Associate Professor, Principal Research Fellow, Psychologist, La Trobe University Unsplash We’ve come a long way in terms of understanding that everyone thinks, interacts and experiences the world differently. In the past, autistic people, people with attention deficit hyperactive disorder ...
PNG Post-Courier Papua New Guinea’s deputy opposition leader James Nomane has accused the government of “reckless economic management” that has forced devaluation to manage loan repayments in foreign currency and placate the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Prime Minister James Marape “must stop lying to the people of Papua New Guinea”, ...
Welcome to The Spinoff Bookseller Confessional, in which we get to know Aotearoa’s booksellers. This week: Jane Arthur, author of Brown Bird, and former bookseller at Good Books.The book I wish I’d writtenI have been working on not comparing myself to others. On accepting that what I can ...
The final decision on the Wellington District Plan makes it official: High-density housing is legal across most of Wellington. Housing minister Chris Bishop has announced his decision on the Wellington District Plan, approving a series of amendments to radically upzone most of Wellington, allowing tens of thousands of new townhouses ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards – Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. “Follow the money” is the classic directive to journalists trying to understand where power and influence lie in society. In terms of uncovering who influences various New Zealand political parties and governments, it therefore pays to ...
RNZ News As Israel presses ahead with strikes in Rafah and seizing the Rafah crossing from Egypt, aid agencies are sounding the alarm of a “catastrophic humanitarian situation”. Rafah was “significant” because it was the only part in Gaza that had not been terribly damaged by the conflict, United Nations ...
With funding set to be scrapped for the Hamilton-Auckland commuter train, Te Huia enthusiast Georgie Dansey argues for it to be thrown a lifeline. It’s 5.45am and the chain of my crappy old bike falls off slugging up the one hill in Hamilton. I contemplate yeeting the bike into the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anna Cooke, Honorary Fellow, School of the Environment, The University of Queensland We feel ecological grief when we lose places, species or ecosystems we value and love. These losses are a growing threat to mental health and wellbeing globally. We all see ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Shauna Brail, Associate Professor, Institute for Management & Innovation, University of Toronto A shift to hybrid and remote work continues to affect worker presence in Toronto’s downtown.(Shutterstock) Downtown Toronto, the core of Canada’s largest city, continues to reel from the lingering ...
Responding to an Auditor-General's report slamming failures in the administration of the 2023 General Election, Taxpayers’ Union Policy and Public Affairs Manager, James Ross, said: ...
Productivity apps now make up a big chunk of the software market. But do they work? And why do they all have AI integrations?Despite being firmly on the record as a physical planner fan, I sometimes dream of something better than my pretty diary and its scrawled, ugly, interior ...
The Taxpayers’ Union says the Beehive need to lead by example, following reports of more than $50,000 spent upgrading video conferencing equipment and furniture in the Prime Minister’s office. Taxpayers’ Union Campaign Manager, Connor Molloy, ...
An objective list of the 50 most powerful people in New Zealand, as judged by the Spinoff Editorial Board. It’s power list season, baby, and we want in on the action. Sure, there’s the rich list and the powerful “c-suite” list and the young people with power (hmmm) but here, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Thalia Anthony, Professor of Law, University of Technology Sydney ShutterstockThis article contains information on deaths in custody and the names of deceased people, and describes ongoing colonial violence towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. First Nations people in Australia ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alex Simpson, Senior Lecturer in Criminology, Macquarie University Netflix Baby Reindeer’s phenomenal success has much to do with its writer and lead, Richard Gadd, who plays Donny in a tender semi-autobiographical account of sexual abuse, harassment and stalking. Gadd’s story has ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Collins, Laureate Professor in Nutrition and Dietetics, University of Newcastle KarolinaGrabowska/Pexels If you didn’t have food allergies as a child, is it possible to develop them as an adult? The short answer is yes. But the reasons why are much ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Paul Moon, Professor of History, Auckland University of Technology Ans Westra, self-portrait, c. 1963. National Library ref AWM-0705-F They try but invariably fail – those writers who believe they are capable of encapsulating in prose or verse the essence of ...
Stewart Sowman-Lund looks at the growing concern around the world in this extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. What’s all this? When Covid-19 arrived on our shores in early 2020, some argued we were too slow, or crucially, ill-prepared for a pandemic. So ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Franco Montalto, Professor of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering and Director, Sustainable Water Resource Engineering Laboratory, Drexel University Water runs into a storm drain in a Los Angeles alley on Aug. 19, 2023, during Tropical Storm Hilary.Citizen of the Planet/Universal Images ...
The inquest into the death of Gore toddler Lachlan Jones has turned up a new witness who says he saw two teenagers and a small child in a high vis vest in the area where the boy’s body was found the day he died. Lachie’s body was discovered face up ...
Stories from the tenancy trenches, featuring spider infestations, cupboard rats and same-sex discrimination. Lucy’s brother was living in a damp 1930s building in Mt Eden where “he had to tie the cupboard doors closed so the rats didn’t get in”. Although he shared custody of his six-year-old son, his property ...
Simeon Brown, Chris Luxon, and Wayne Brown climbed into a hole and announced a plan to solve Auckland’s water woes. This is how it’ll work. New Zealand’s pipes are munted. They’re cracked and leaking, and struggling to handle all the extra poos excreted by our rising population. It’s a big, ...
I knew Taika Waititi quite well when he was a kid. His mother lived in a tall narrow house in Aro St, and my youngest sister had a similar house two doors along. They were both single mums, they each had a son aged seven. Taika and my nephew Stepan ...
Opinion: “As time passes, knowledge of the circumstances of the August 2016 outbreak will fade and its immediate impact will be lost.” This statement is from the 2017 report of the Official Inquiry into the Havelock North campylobacteriosis outbreak. The then National-led government established the inquiry after the outbreak left ...
Opinion: Nicholas Khoo looks at two key points in the high-stakes foreign policy pact debate – and asks if NZ can engage with as little drama as possible. The post Where to next for the Aukus ruckus? appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A,DIV,A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp'); Got a good quiz question?Send Newsroom your questions. The post Newsroom daily quiz, Wednesday 8 May appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Opinion: ‘Reference-class forecasting’ is at the heart of improving pricing a project and identifying the expected timeframe but it doesn’t appear to be in use here The post ‘Think fast and act slowly’ is failing big projects appeared first on Newsroom. ...
What do a sombrero in Argentina and cognitive driving tests have in common? Don’t worry, we’re not setting up a bad joke. Hinengaro Clinic dementia clinician Gregory Winkelman has the answer on today’s episode of The Detail. “We ask a patient’s spouse or son or daughter: If you went to ...
Wellington long jumper Phoebe Edwards is back and she’s having fun again. Until this year, Edwards, a top athlete in her teens, had never competed as a senior athlete in New Zealand. In March, the 26-year-old won a national long jump title in a lifetime best of 6.28m after ...
After replacing a fifth of their caucus in just four months, the Greens’ opportunity to reset, reshuffle and refocus on the Government is quickly slipping away The post Persistent Green Party scandals delay caucus reset appeared first on Newsroom. ...
ANALYSIS:By Olli Hellmann, University of Waikato When New Zealanders commemorate Anzac Day today on April 25, it’s not only to honour the soldiers who lost their lives in World War I and subsequent conflicts, but also to mark a defining event for national identity. The battle of Gallipoli against ...
By Robin Martin, RNZ News reporter A New Zealand local authority, Whanganui District Council, has passed a motion calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, condemnation of all acts of violence and terror against civilians on both sides of the conflict and the immediate return of hostages. It comes as ...
Asia Pacific Report The Aotearoa chapter of the Women’s International league for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) has appealed to the New Zealand government to call out Israel over the “cruel and barbaric use of force” in Gaza and demand a permanent ceasefire. The league’s open letter was sent to Prime ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The Albanese government will invest $566 million over a decade on data, maps and other tools to promote exploration and development in Australia’s resources industry. The project will fund “the first comprehensive map of what’s ...
Asia Pacific Report Following an open letter by Auckland University academics speaking out in support of their students’ right to protest against the genocidal Israeli war on Gaza, a group of academics at Otago University have today also called on New Zealand academic institutions to “repair colonial violence” and end ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Linda J. Graham, Professor and Director of the Centre for Inclusive Education, Queensland University of Technology Ryan Tauss/ Unsplash, CC BY Two male students have been expelled from a Melbourne private school for their involvement in a list ranking female students. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University The Reserve Bank is now assuming Australians will see no interest rate cuts this year – and quite possibly none before the next federal election, due next May. That’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Hayward, Emeritus Professor of Public Policy, RMIT University The Victorian budget offered more of the same on Tuesday, with the only change being how the budget papers were packaged. The usual shrink wrap was gone, hinting at savings in the pages ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The Coalition is demanding extensive amendments to the government’s legislation targeting non-citizens who refuse to co-operate with their removal. In a dissenting report to the senate inquiry into the legislation, the Coalition says it ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Vanita Yadav, Senior Research Fellow, Urban Transformations Research Centre, Western Sydney University Brett Boardman/Belvoir The complex and grappling issue of violence against women takes centre stage in the soul-stirring solo dance drama Nayika: A Dancing Girl. During a dinner conversation ...
Disruption to patient care from a nationwide junior doctors strike is bordering on unsafe, a senior doctor claims, despite what health officials say. ...
https://www.odt.co.nz/opinion/editorial/who-wants-be-pm
Absolutely. Jacinda…you have my admiration. And Vote !
Am coming to the conclusion people don't want to be saved.
Yes I think so too, happy to take the gamble now that God has offered us Omicron.
Although not a leftist by identity I agree that editorial is appropriately framed and articulated. The only bone I found to pick at was a philosophical assertion:
This antique view has been recycled since it achieved hegemony well over a century ago – despite Nobel-prizewinning physicists invalidating it's basis in reality a century ago. Postmodernists extended the relativity of truth view into the social sciences more than 30 years ago. Yet still ignorant opinion-leaders cling onto the myth.
S&P reaffirms AA+ rating.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/business/462303/s-and-p-global-ratings-reaffirms-new-zealand-s-aa-rating
@ Matiri (2) … some positive news for a change in a very unsettled world
Now let's see what the 7 houses man Luxon and Seymour have to say about this. Better not hold my breath too long.
Robertson has done well.
How wonderful!
In the context of the manipulated 'magic show' what does it mean?
After the GFC EVERY main ratings agency ,fell back on …'it's just an…opinion'!
The factors identified by the PSI as the primary causes of the GFC are … In the end, over 90% of the AAA ratings given to mortgage-backed securities in 2006 and 2007 were downgraded to junk status'
Using liberal-speak, a top US liberal explains how sanctions can be made to seem tough without actually being tough:
An important part of US foreign policy is to create a semblance of opposing foreign invaders without actually cutting off your trade with them. Liberals know that appeasing domestic consumers is way more important – so if that means also appeasing Putin, Biden & co will do so and hope nobody notices. Hypocrisy is a basic element of geopolitical stagecraft when you're a liberal.
Follow the money, it's not about politics. We are screwed.
Labour's lunge for total control and insitutionalisation of a second class of citizens (those coerced out of their jobs) has suffered a serious set-back. The High Court has fired a shot across Labour's bow.
Labour could take the case to the Supreme Court but I bet they don't. Perception of Labour's intent to create a dual-class citizenry structure would snowball. Labour's poll rating would immediately head south.
There is a discussion on Convoy Protest 25/22/22 starting from 8.1 on (earlier comment 7.1.1.2.2) that discusses this limited ruling in greater depth and with knowledge of the implications for the 279 concerned of 31162 employees from Police and Defence….(from Health Act and BORA)
8.1
25 February 2022 at 2:49 pm
The decision has a specific fact situation in relation to their existing employment terms and conditions and I think it would be hard to envision other workers in NZ having this same fact situation.
I don't think that creating a second class of citizen is the government's intent, though of course that may be an unwanted side effect. One needs to focus on the main purpose before passing judgment.
Unless, of course, you are one of the newly minted second class ctizens.
Yet that is exactly what Ms Ardern conceded she has done with the restrictions on unvaccinated people-
https://www.independent.co.uk/tv/editors-picks/new-zealand-jacinda-ardern-coronavirus-vaccines-ve5572e26?amp
The ODT editorial is overdue and very warranted. New Zealanders should be extremely grateful they live here and not in some other countries which we all know about.
There are times I am ashamed of the vitriol which gets flung at our PM. She does not deserve that.
I agree about the vitriol being flung at the PM. She doesn't deserve that.
Anker and Reality.
I am not defending the repugnant end of Ardern's critics. Vitriol and criticism are hand in hand, or two sides of the same coin, with the adulation and lording she receives.
@ Reality (5)
The team over at GreaterAuckland are simply never satisfied.
They weren't happy with the original cycleway bridge. So they helped kill that.
Then when NZTA took over the idea they hated that. So they helped kill that.
Now after killing the cycle bridge, an alternative cycling ferry is also disliked. So they will help kill that.
A Ferry Impractical Idea – Greater Auckland
They only solution they can conceive is to put cyclists on a dedicated lane, despite it being a radically unsafe concept and done nowhere else in the country.
GreaterAuckland sometimes need to actually get behind something and stop the petulant whining.
I used to commute on my bike from the Birkenhead wharf for about 3 years on the old bow loading Blue Boats. Very chill way to start the day; shame the technocrats never tried it.
Incidentally the rain is still falling here in Brisbane and the SEQ Water system is full, and the big Wivenhoe dam on the Brisbane River is now at a nominal 100% full. Despite the control gates being opened last night it has risen 13% since 6am this morning.
Technically I think there is another 10% of headroom left before it starts uncontrolled overflow and with the amount of rain still on the radar its going to be a close run.
If you were in Birkenhead, rather than Brisbane – you could still commute with your bike on the ferry.
There are number limits (because they have a limited amount of space for cycles in the bow – without affecting the safe operations) – but it's rare for anyone to be left waiting. Almost all the cyclists are 'locals' (i.e. live within 5 minutes or so cycling distance); rather than the GA vision of people cycling for 30 minutes to get to the bridge (or ferry, in this case).
There have been a couple of instances of (I think) the Bayswater ferry, not being able to take all the cyclists in one trip. My suspicion is that these were orchestrated by GA – because they seemed to be one-offs for newspaper consumption.
Greater Auckland are totally invested in finding fault with *any* proposal other than a dedicated cycle-only lane.
They are perfectly well aware that *if* one is implemented, it will either work (and remove a large part of their demand base), or fail (and make people think the demand was never there).
The concept of 'perfect being the enemy of good' has no credence in their playbook.
And whinging about cost! I mean, really. They don't pay for cars, or petrol (and petrol tax), or road user charges. But they think they, somehow, qualify for free transport, when bus users don't….
Brisbane is laced with parks, bike lanes and paths.
My daily cycle commute at the moment consists of a 3km ride through deep bushland, 2km past and over a mangrove creek, and to a rail station. Max wait is 15min, then 20 min journey to a station nearer the city – then 10 min along a wide road with a substantial and safe bike path, one major intersection with lights and a ped phase, then another 2 km along a dedicated bike path alongside the Gateway Bridge (very similar to the AHB), then slip off to more parkland under the bridge itself and arrive at work. Total distance would be about 20km and barely 50m of it would I consider unfriendly to cyclists.
There are mornings when I literally ride in a state of astonishment at how fortunate all this is.
A while ago Weka asked if anyone was doing something about the economic and social costs of covid-19. There is a team at Victoria University doing a study on it at the moment. They want to hear from anyone who has had covid-19 – from those who are asymptomatic (why is that?) to those who have been severely effected in any way. The website talking about the study is here: https://covidaotearoa.com/
A J Hendy writes:
https://whenlambsaresilent.wordpress.com/2022/02/23/to-my-friends-the-peaceful-protestors-in-convoy22-a-j-hendry/
The writers' only point is that the mandates will end.
The Prime Minister has not set out clear conditions on when that will be.
Or even the conditions in which Cabinet will meet to set out the timetable for that decisions.
Is it: after Omicron peaks? After the next variant? When hospitals are full? When 80% of under-12's are two-shotted? Once she's decided to set a wedding date? When the experts agree? When she's polling into the 20s? When the government has decided the wage subsidy is too high?
There is now an extremely high chance that this government will lose the next election.
Ardern says words like "we're all over it', by really few actions to show it.
What planet are you living in Ad? Labour and the Greens are an odds on coalition after the next election.
Haven't you heard the great blatherer Luxon? Clueless.
The comment about her wedding, which has been delayed twice, says more about your perceptions than reality. Just a needlessly nasty poke.
This kind of rant is a dressed up "Are we there yet?"
She has long since worn out her social license and she's admitted it.
"The Prime Minister has not set out clear conditions on when that will be."
Bollocks. She has made it clear that once the peak of this Omicron outbreak has passed and the trend is tracking downwards the mandates will be removed. I suppose you expect her to know exactly when that is going to happen. Well, she is no more clairvoyant than the rest of us, and can't give an actual date but believes "it is not as far away as many people think."
She made this statement on the AM show sometime this week and repeated it this morning on TV3's The Nation. No doubt she has said it elsewhere. You can check it out for yourself.
Why do you make what are essentially false claims. You set yourself up as a strong supporter of the Labour Government and then spend most of your time slagging them off. If this is a game you like to play then grow up.
This turned out to be an excellent overview of the situation in Ukraine by someone who has done plenty of research: https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/saturday/audio/2018832118/prof-david-marples-putin-s-true-motives-for-invading-ukraine
Second time Kim Hill has interviewed him. She seems to appreciate his insights. Clarifies the political motives & agenda of key forces, very informative.
Yes excellent detail in there cheers.
Listened to it this morning. Really well-informed and credible source, who made it clear that the whole situation is complex – and there are no angels on either side; while also making it crystal clear that Russia is the aggressor, here.
He's also just released a book about the War in the Donbas – bringing together a group of experts. "The War in Ukraine's Donbas : Origins, Contexts, and the Future"
It's ridiculously expensive (small press, from Europe) – but possible that with the flurry of interest, there may be a main-stream pbk. edition released.
I've asked my local library to buy a copy 😉
I find John Mearsheimer very interesting on the Russia and Ukraine.
According to Wikipedia he ‘ an American political scientist and international relations scholar, who belongs to the realist school of thought. He is the R. Wendell Harrison Distinguished Service Professor at the University of Chicago. He has been described as the most influential realist of his generation.’
I highly recommend people listen to this interview, which was recorded on Tuesday 15th February – before Russia invaded Ukraine.
Mearsheimer is critical towards basic western assumptions with regard to Ukraine.
Thanks for that Ed. Tough call @ 80 mins duration but I like the way he intros it so I'll hang in there. I was scanning the books on the shelves behind him & his young interviewer & they each produced a single stand-out title that impacted. His was Commanche Empire.
Anyway he starts by saying don't blame Putin, this crisis was caused by the west. There are good guys & bad guys, we're the good guys (so the prevalent narrative goes) but
Then he explains that by saying since 2008 the west has been trying to make Ukraine part of it and that policy has three dimensions. I know a triad when I hear one, so I know the next bit where he delineates the three parts of the framing is crucial…
Okay so the triad makes perfect sense:
1. NATO expansion eastward to include Ukraine.
2. EU ditto.
3. Color revolution (orange) to turn Ukraine into a liberal democracy.
So at the conclusion of the following April summit the world was told that Georgia & Ukraine "would become part of NATO". He then explained that "Russia had swallowed the two prior NATO expansions" (1999 & 2004) but decided to oppose this third expansion. So in August 2008 Russia went to war against Georgia.
Then 8 years ago (Feb 22 2014) there was a coup in Ukraine: a pro-Russian leader got replaced by a pro-American leader, and "the US was involved in that coup." Expansion strategy apparently successful? Russia then took Crimea back from Ukraine. It couldn't let the US get control of the Sevastopol naval base therein.
The civil war ongoing in eastern Ukraine since that coup became a lever for Putin to use to prevent the US achieving control.
I found his comments about 2008 fascinating. This was when NATO membership was offered to Georgia and Ukraine. It was a turning point in Russian foreign policy as they were never going to accept that.
After 25 mins he went to questions & started to fill in gaps in his narrative with details & nuances. For instance, he explained that France & Germany were adamant that NATO ought not to expand to include Ukraine. He reckons that's due to their awareness that it would threaten Russia too much.
The declaration that it would was due to the USA acting unilaterally in defiance of the two, apparently. I suspect it had UK support though.
He said the UN was useless. Still quite rare for establishment opinion leaders to tell the truth about the UN like that. They want to keep the Security Council veto to retain the sham. They believe sufficient morons of the left & right still exist to make the sham remain viable.
Why did the crisis happen now, after 8 years? He explains that Biden is continuing Trump's policy of arming Ukraine. Obama had not done that.
He says "the Turks gave the Ukrainians drones". No surprise Putin saw this double-whammy as a threat, huh? If Ukraine's army got sufficiently strong to regain control in the east, Putin's lever would evaporate. Deferred entry into NATO then seems feasible.
Britain & America both arming Ukraine, both training their army, treating them as a de-facto ally. He said the Brits sent a destroyer into Russia's maritime zone last June, then the yanks sent a bomber into Russian air-space. Such provocative military adventuring sends a signal. Putin gets angrier.
Meanwhile, this squeeze has tanked the Ukrainian economy. He reckons the solution is for Ukraine to become a neutral state but acknowledges it lacks political feasibility at present.
Around 35 mins he's complaining that US foreign policy remains locked into NATO expansionism. Foolish, he calls that. Because "it's driving Russia into the arms of China".
The best framing for this is incompetent triangulation. Since Biden gets his strategic thinking from advisers who one would expect to have either been members of the CFR, or been briefed by CFR geopolitical analysis & strategic advisory documents, this appears to be grounds for suspecting the CFR haven't learnt how to triangulate yet. Too sophisticated for them?
This interview was done on Feb 15 before the invasion and he explains why he doesn't believe Putin will invade (costs too great). Yet Biden had been predicting the invasion for months – evidence that the CFR got that bit right. He says the unipolar thinking from 2008 no longer applies. "We now live in a multipolar world. There are two other great powers."
Is this a creditable threat?
This is the Russian space chief, and it appears he is threatening to let the International Space Station crash into US or other countries if sanctions proceed.
Why has no one made a direct link between the protesters and the unruly tourists? SSDD right?
For me, this is an illustration of something that is very wrong with our current justice system. If 'all' the probable perpetrators just refuse to comment, the courts can do little, except charge them with perverting the course of justice (with a minimal sentence). The criminals are manipulating the justice system for their benefit.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/judge-slams-hells-angels-gang-code-of-silence-after-violent-beating-in-whanganui/7VVRWNAAZZDJPCNVRLWAHCAF2Q/?c_id=1&objectid=12507129&ref=rss
I'd like to see a radical change. If all of the probable perpetrators are silent, then the courts try the crime (was this man assaulted and beaten to within an inch of his life; can the police prove these people were present) – and then convict and sentence them as a group for the crime. The whole lot can go to jail for GBH.
And, it's not only (or even predominantly) gangs. We see this, time and again, in child assault and murder cases. The family clams up, and prefers the welfare of the criminal adult to the care and protection of the child. The Kahui case is an instance in point.
This news item about good invasive trees – perhaps every time a wilding pine is removed, another suitable tree replaces. Or perhaps the established roots could be left and a less flammable and shade providing type could be grafted? Shame to waste roots if they can be utilised for good. What do you think Robert Guyton?
Anyway this is a bit of farmer good news. Now to get rid of industrial farming in disgusting conditions run from comfortable temperature -controlled electronic management of unhealthy, prophylactic dairy-lactic farm slums.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/countrylife/audio/2018832031/wild-cherry-trees-give-farmer-the-pip
…He says about 14,000 of the invasive trees have found the sweet spot on his property. "The riverbed freezes and the sunlight never reaches it during the winter so it stays frozen and then as a result, all of these cherry pips germinate."
Cherry trees have been in the area for more than 100 years, Nigel says. "A local character who owned Birch Hill Station brought some specimen trees back and planted them in his garden and the birds just went nuts. So that's how they all got here, they're spread by wild birds."
According to Nigel, it's not only the small, intensely sweet cherries that people are after, it's also the cherry wood.
"It's fantastic for furniture-making, if you're into bodgery*, the green stick style, and for barbeques as smoking wood. It's the best for smoked pork, fish or chicken or whatever," he says.
The Wilson family runs a herd of deer at the farm with 300 breeding hinds and a mixture of Wapiti and Elk stags.
Nigel also runs a timber framing and woodwork business from the former shearing shed. His most recent job was building a Viking drinking hall in Rangiora for a craft-beer fillery.
"'I do that 80 percent of the time and I farm 20 percent of the time when my Dad calls on me…It's a really good mix," he says.
*Bodgery: Bungling, botched work. Probably related to botch. The OED calls bodgery “obsolete,” and gives only one citation for the word, from the playwright Thomas Nashe, who used it in the late 16th century.6/01/2014
Word of the Week: Bodgery – Fritinancy
Gotta be careful with cherry orchards. They can cause depression, I've heard…
Seriously, though, cherry wood is pretty good to work with, I hear. Would love to play with some for my little projects.
I have plum trees, but the problem with plum (as I discovered) is that it seems incredibly prone to splitting radially, which is a bother.
Apricot is beautiful – but a bit splitty.
Banishment from the Financial System: the War on Dissent
Glenn Greenwald
A case study – WikiLeaks.
I expected to see headlines like "Protestors take Bridge" but the Herald seems to have struggled to bring themselves to say it straight about protestors wanting to walk over the bridge simply doing so. Or protestors wanting to walk over the bridge and authorities being powerless to stop it.
Which begs questions. Like, can I get a group of mates up and go for a walk over the bridge next Saturday? Do we have to be protesting about something? Is the focus of the protest important? Is there a certain number there have to be to bring the 'can't stop them' clause into play? (Almost said 'triggers a response' !)
Is having god on one's side a factor in allowing a walk? Does calling it a 'hikoi' have significance in the exercise being challenged?
How about doing in a Friday morning? We might prefer that day as it fits our schedule better.
Hey where's that commenter who used to come on in every morning and talk about ducks?
Gezza and their Pukeko. Haven't seen them for ages.
He was very ill.
Leo Molloy wants Aucklanders to vote for him for Auckland mayor. I would think a self entitled blowhard big mouth is that last thing Auckland needs. One of his campaign ads "Sort this bloody Shambles out". Would have thought he would first practise what he preaches sorting out the shambles outside Parliament which he is part of. Another says he "demands higher standards from Wellington". Obviously not from the protestors outside parliament he is involved in organising. How about first sort out the shambles and demand higher standards of the protest movement you have organised and promoted Leo.
I'd be tempted to move to Auckland to vote against Leo Malloy.
Microwave weapons are not the only ones protestors have to be concerned about these days.
https://worldnationnews.com/australian-police-confirm-use-of-lrad-sonic-weapon-at-protest-against-covid-19-vaccine-mandates/
"For decades, London has been the most important place not only for Russia’s criminal elite to launder its money, but also for it to stash its wealth. We have been the Kremlin’s bankers, and provided its elite with the financial skills it lacks. Its kleptocracy could not exist without our assistance. The best time to do something about this was 30 years ago – but the second best time is right now."
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/feb/25/boris-johnson-russian-money-britain-mafia-state-security
"The committee heard evidence from senior law enforcement and security officials. It laid out detailed, careful suggestions for what Britain should do to limit the damage Putin has already done to our society. Instead of learning from the report and implementing its proposals, Boris Johnson delayed its publication until after the general election and then, when further delay became impossible, dismissed those who took its sober analysis seriously as “Islingtonian remainers” seeking to delegitimise Brexit."
No surprises there
Kasparov knows what needs to be done.
https://twitter.com/Kasparov63/status/1496846542589902852
Certainly wouldnt do any harm….but there is a distinct lack of will and has been for years
There is a nice outline of the history of the Uk/Russia banking marriage,which was setup by the brits and russians to circumvent the US monopoly on US$ trades.
https://unherd.com/2022/02/how-britain-became-putins-playground/