The uselessness of western political leaders has been on display again. Interestingly, the Ukraine president pointed to it a week ago. Their appeasement policy!
Zelensky's closely watched address to the Munich Security Conference came just one day after President Biden warned that Russian President Vladimir Putin has made the decision to invade Ukraine, and that he plans to target Kyiv.
Zelensky said:
"The security architecture of Europe and beyond is almost destroyed. It's too late now to talk about fixing it. It's high time for a new one," he continued.
"15 years ago, it was the Russian Federation that made a statement here challenging the global security order. How did the world respond? Appeasement."
Zelensky went on to criticize NATO for claiming it has an "open-door" policy while refusing to let Ukraine in, and called for the alliance to provide a time frame for his country's eventual membership.
"Be honest about it. Open doors are good, but we need open answers. Not years and years of closed questions," Zelensky said. Ukraine will never be a "buffer" between Russia and the West, he added.
Zelensky also criticized the West for claiming that Putin has made the decision to invade, but not imposing sanctions until the attack has begun: "What are you waiting for? We don’t need sanctions after bombardment happens, after we have no borders, no economy. Why would we need those sanctions then?"
The bottom line: "Ukraine is longing for peace. Europe is longing for peace. The world is saying it doesn’t want any war, while Russia is claiming she doesn’t want to intervene. Someone here is lying," Zelensky said, before receiving a standing ovation.
Why did the US issue a formal statement to the world in 2008 that Ukraine would be joining NATO and then refuse to implement that? Putin objected, so the US caved to him. Appeasement became the norm.
The thing to notice here is that collusion between the political left and right in all western countries has been evident ever since. There has been no dissent from appeasement. All the retards were dead keen to teach Putin that he could do whatever he wanted. So he learnt the intended lesson.
Maybe as horrendous as this is for Ukraine that it proves to be the moment when appeasement finally ends.
No serious person can pretend any longer that all Putin wants is ‘respect’ and that the problem is ‘baiting bear’ (as an aside, Comrade Trotter really has lost the plot well and truly).
Putin’s played a divide and conquer game for years, sowing division in West and taking advantage of it.
Maybe this prove a massive miscalculation on his part if its turns out to be the moment he’s finally made pariah and we stop the pretence of Russia being a normal nation capable of being part of all manner of normal international activities.
It’s what the like of Kasparov has been calling for for years, that we had tools short of military one to genuinely hurt him, it just took commitment and solidarity on the grounds art of West.
If Putin has pushed even China and Hungry too far, hopefully it’ll be easier to actually follow through on serious action.
There is of course still the chance, someone blinks and let’s him off from feeling a real impact but weirdly I’m feeling a bit more positive that this could be turning point. I just hope I’m not being naïve.
You ask "Why did the US issue a formal statement to the world in 2008"?
The only statement I am aware of is one by then President Bush and the two candidates in the 2008 election, Obama and McCain that they would offer backing to Ukraine's membership of NATO. The US can't just offer membership to anyone. NATO comprises 30 states and operates by consensus. It would appear to be Germany and France who opposed the proposal at that time.
That's what I recalled from watching the interview with the professor I quoted from yesterday. According to Wikipedia it was the head of NATO who said Ukraine would be joining (not the US). Here's the key portions of their timeline:
At the June 2021 Brussels Summit, NATO leaders reiterated the decision taken at the 2008 Bucharest Summit that Ukraine would become a member of the Alliance with the Membership Action Plan (MAP) as an integral part of the process and Ukraine's right to determine its own future and foreign policy, of course without outside interference. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg also stressed that Russia will not be able to veto Ukraine's accession to NATO "as we will not return to the era of spheres of interest, when large countries decide what smaller ones should do."
In March 2016, President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker stated that it would take at least 20–25 years for Ukraine to join the EU and NATO.
A typical bureaucratic stance. Bureaucrats assume everyone else is as slow to get anything done as them & lawyers.
On 8 June 2017, Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada passed a law making integration with NATO a foreign policy priority. In July 2017 Poroshenko announced that he would seek the opening of negotiations on a Membership Action Plan with NATO. In that same month President Poroshenko began proposing a 'patronage system', tying individual regions with European States.
On the 10th of March 2018, NATO added Ukraine in the list of NATO aspiring members (others including Bosnia and Herzegovina and Georgia). Several months later, in late June, Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada passed a National Security bill: the bill defines the principles of state policy on national security and defence as well as focusing on Ukraine's integration into the European security, economic and legal system; improvement in mutual relations with other states and eventual membership in EU and NATO.
On September 20, 2018, the Ukrainian parliament approved amendments to the constitution that would make the accession of the country to NATO and the EU a central goal and the main foreign policy objective.
On 7 February 2019, the Ukrainian parliament voted with a majority of 334 out of 385 to change the Ukrainian constitution in order to help Ukraine to join NATO and the European Union. After the vote, Ukrainian president Poroshenko declared: "This is the day when the movement of Ukraine to the European Union and the North Atlantic Alliance will be consolidated in the Constitution as a foreign political landmark."
This is true, but the appeasement applies to a lot more than just NATO membership and I don’t think anyone comes out looking too good.
Germany have been pathetic regarding Russian gas, Britain has shamefully turned a blind eye over oligarchs money. One could go on and on.
It’s all helped lead us to this point.
Noam Chompsky on NATO expansion and the Ukraine….of course this part of the puzzle is never allowed even the slightest airing on any western media…wonder why that is?
You can see a version of it any time you like on Fox, but then admitting similarities between the so called ‘anti imperialist’ left and US nationalist right on Putin and Russia is somewhat inconvenient isn’t it.
I would love to see Chomsky sit down with someone from Baltic states and ask ‘Why is NATO expanding to the borders of Russia’ as they’d be able to give a simple answer as to why they were banging on the door, pleading to be let in.
Chomsky fails to mention that Mearscheimer is a ‘neo realist’ who entire outlook is based on achieving ‘balance’ and if they meant letting dictator like Putin dominate ‘his’ region then that’s what we have to accept, regardless of what they means for the aspirations of the people in Eastern Europe.
But then the cult of Chomsky just tends to take anything he says uncritically as the words of some great sage.
Pretty good picture now how little vaccination does to slow Omicron transmission. We've got one of the worlds highest vax rates and currently the highest r value as well.
The Government, the Ministry of Health and informed members of the public have known since Omicron was first identified that the current Covid vaccines were not effective against this new variant. Hence the booster injection campaign and the current race by the world's scientists to procure a vaccine that is effective. Pfizer has almost completed their trials and hopefully a new vaccine will be available very soon.
The reason we have one of the world's highest vax rates at this point is because we tend to lag behind other countries, in large part due to our geographical isolation. So, no matter what the issue may be, we are always playing catch-up.
In other words, most other countries have gone through the Omicron peak and are coming out the other side. We have yet to hit our peak, and in a few weeks time should be coming out the other side too.
So, there is nothing sinister about the present stats – something you probably know only too well. 🙄
Bloomfield pointed this week to new studies showing vaccination gives meaningful protection against contracting omicron and thus slows spread. Details in this post
Sure, but given to slow Omicron a booster is needed, to have any chance of slowing it down… the mandates and passports had to be extended to boosters immediately. We cant boost fast enough now given it takes @ 14 days forna booster to take full effect.
Hell we needed Rats ready to roll 3 weeks ago instead it's a 3 hour wait at my closest testing station plenty wont bother…
Oh I dunno. They say the R value of Omicron without any control is 10. We are around 3.5 while in the exponential growth phase, which is a huge reduction. Vaccination (especially recent boosting) will be an important part of that, given it is proven to greatly reduce transmission of omicron, which has been in the news lately. You might already know that. Ashley Bloomfield:
"One of the studies, which was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, shows that compared with being unvaccinated the odds of contracting Omicron after receiving three doses dropped by 67 percent – two thirds – and for Delta the risk declined by a stunning 93 percent."
Useful article too from our Prof Rod Jackson on the Omicron situation for NZ.
“However, what makes Omicron worse than Delta for unvaccinated New Zealanders is that almost all of them will be infected in the next few months. A significant proportion would have escaped Delta, at least until new effective antiviral drugs became widely available.”
To go from zero to boosted takes such a long time. I know a few "researchers" who aren't vaxxed, on an individual level the odds are they will be OK, but much worse odds than they needed to be!
Got covid – but was fully vaxxed, so only had a mild illness.For 5 days (s)he lay in bed, while Russia invaded the Ukraine. (S)he made a pertinent comment:
By the way, this is what ACTUAL tyranny looks like anti-vaxxers! It's not losing your job because you are afraid of a needle. It's having cluster bombs dropping on your head.
Can anyone point to one substantial achievement this achieved in either term in office?
With covid now rampant and New Zealand having one of the highest R values in the world and testing crippled, this government has failed at covid.
So all the policies that come out of covid are failures. Child poverty, suicide prevention, road tolls, homelessness, home building, mental health. All the grandiose promises and we’ve simply gone backwards on all major indicators.
You seem desperate to attack this government – I would be unsurprised if you were hoping for thousands of NZ covid deaths as it seems the governments actions in saving thousands of lives appears to greatly upset you
"Not letting covid in or flourish" was good, and all things (good and bad) end.
It's regrettable many businesses have suffered a downturn or worse during this on-going pandemic, but even if our Govt had prioritised businesses from the get-go I wouldn't have spent up big, and surging Omicron cases numbers guarantee that I'll be prioritising public and personal health a little longer.
During the first wave of the pandemic (February–July 2020), it is now well-recognized that some countries and jurisdictions in the East (Japan, Taiwan, South Korea, Hong Kong) and Southeast (Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore) Asia, and Australasia (Australia, New Zealand) reacted more quickly, comprehensively, and effectively than Western European countries and the Americas.
…
2.1. Australasia Government trust: generally high Testing capacity: initially limited, but rapidly increased Track/Isolation/Quarantine: rapid expansion of capacity, strongly enforced Compliance with social distancing restrictions: high to very high Masking: not initially universally mandated Effectiveness of SARS-CoV-2 control: very good to excellent
…
For example, the UK, Denmark, France, Germany and Sweden only compensated employees for hours that were no longer worked (capped by either a fraction of their total wages or a maximum payment limit). Elsewhere (Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Canada and the USA), all employees were given a wage subsidy if their businesses had suffered a major loss of turnover (ranging over 15–50%) during the pandemic.
Some of us still don't get how lucky we are (and were) – the "are we there yet" crowd, agitating for a return to mask-less and 'pass-less' BAU, are intent on undermining the measures safeguarding public health, but the more united we are against COVID-19, the faster we all get through this, imho.
So all the policies that come out of covid are failures. Child poverty, suicide prevention, road tolls, homelessness, home building, mental health. All the grandiose promises and we’ve simply gone backwards on all major indicators.
You made quite a few bold assertions without any support to back them up. Usually, this calls for moderation.
Now it‘s your turn to provide evidence for your assertions. Your entire comment comes across as a troll attempt at wasting people’s time in order to achieve some lazy political point scoring. However, you’ve been caught out before making up lies and other BS, e.g. https://thestandard.org.nz/everyone-is-over-covid/#comment-1866535.
PS I believe unemployment is down and at a record low.
"PS I believe unemployment is down and at a record low."
Do you accept that not everyone that find themselves out of their callings, jobs and careers are reflected in employment stats?
There are more non-travelling reserves, in Jacinda's team of 5 million than you acknowledge.
(Fun Fact: I wanted to make a reference to 1st XI or XV, but found Roman numerals only go up to 4,999, or it can be referenced as a V with two horizontal lines above it. Then it got hard and …)
Sure, I accept that. Unemployment is (also) not the same as underemployment. Anyway, any real or perceived achievement by Government can be countered and eroded to a failure if one sets their (biased-partisan) mind to it, which is what some commenters here know all too well. Hence my reply to DukeEll and before I put my Moderator hat on.
Some general principles to consider when looking at reporting of the war in the Ukraine, prompted by my re-reading Jon Sumida's "Decoding Clausewitz: A New Approach to On War" (2008) to try help work out what is going there.
Sumida says of Clauswitz: (worth quoting at length) –
"…In a war in which the objective of the attacker is the destruction of the defender’s sovereignty, the difficulties for the attacker are increased by the inherently greater strength of the defender’s political, or policy, motive. This is because the moral stakes for the defender are about existence, which is essential, whereas the attacker is concerned simply with gain, which is discretionary. Moreover, the resources available to the defense for military action can overmatch those of the attacker if the defender government’s will to resist enjoys broad internal political support. Under these circumstances, the regular forces of the defender can be augmented by the armed action of an aroused citizenry—that is, by guerrilla war—while the attacker cannot count on counterbalancing involvement from its own civilian population. A defender that has demonstrated a determination to resist even a greatly superior attacker can also expect the assistance of other powers, which are likely to recognize that their own independence is threatened by the offensive success of a state with aggrandizing or even hegemonic intentions. In short, effective defense against attack is not just about military action, but the interplay between military performance and a variety of internal and external political dynamics. This is probably what Clausewitz had foremost in mind when he stated that “war is simply a continuation of political intercourse, with the addition of other means…”
From this, we can also call into question the traditional definition of victory as being the battlefield destruction of the defenders armies, since guerilla warfare is also as much a continuation of political intercourse as a full scale conventional war.
The other thing I've been considering is I've just finished reading David Stahel's four books on the first six months of Barbarossa in conjunction with Glantz's older trilogy on the Smolensk battles of 1941 and I am struck by the similarities of this Russian army with very poor performance of the Red Army between June and November 1941. It seems to me Putin's truncated military harks back more to the Winter War than to Operation Bagration.
So far we read the Russians have commtted initially around a third of their combat units to action. That would be around 40,000 men of a manoeuvre force (not counting support units) of about 120,000. Now, if reports of 3-4000 Russian KIA (plus that implies at least 10,000 WIA) are true that would indicate that most of the Russian first wave is now incapable of further offensive operations (generally speaking 25% losses will do this) so if the Ukranian claims are true simple maths tells us the Russians must now be committing their second wave, probably designated for an exploitation phase, to try and secure first wave objectives. Clauswitz of course noted the need for strong reserves if an offensive is to maintain it's impetus after the initial attritional phase so if it passes that the Ukranians have forced the early commitment of the exploitation units then they are still in with a chance.
None of the above is based on any reality. You have just plucked numbers out of thin air
Just as 'likely' is an Ukrainian armistice when Zeleneskyy does an' Ashraf Ghani'. I have no evidence of that either but Im guessing hes already in Lviv – to continue the fight of course( just as Churchill made sure to leave London for the country as often as possible during the Blitz)
Perhaps you are right. On the other hand you are probably wrong.
The Economist posted this comment, and included a link to the video mentioned.
"ON THE MORNING of February 26th Volodymyr Zelensky posted a video of himself on Twitter. After a night of the worst fighting Kyiv had seen since the second world war, and of propaganda from Moscow claiming that he had fled the capital in fear, Ukraine’s president emerged from his office red-eyed and unshaven. He was holding a smartphone in his right hand as he filmed himself walking past the House with Chimaeras, a famous Kyiv landmark that serves as the presidential residence. He smiled at the camera and declared: “Good morning to all Ukrainians! There are a lot of fakes out there…[but] I am here.”
I'm afraid you can't read the full story. That requires that you are a subscriber to the magazine. However the time referred to is only about 12 hours before you posted your comment so I don't think he has fled.
On the 24th on OM Jenny posted an article from Stuff profiling an electric ute. Part of the thrust of her comment appeared to be aimed at the Politically motivated Groundswell group and how hard done by they are and their spurious arguments for joining the "Freedom Protest".
There were several commenters who decided to comment on the qualities of the two wheel drive and dismissed the ute as varying degrees of rubbish.
Their arguments appeared to be based on the grunty 4 wheel drives. One suggesting they were the minimum spec for every builder. Ad apparently has several thousand of them.
So one wonders why Nissan, Toyota, Ford, Mitsubishi and others would bother producing 2 wheel drive versions of their utes or what market they are targeting with all of their models.
Electricity users on low-usage plans told their daily fixed charges are doubling
The doubling of the daily charge stems from a decision by Energy Minister Megan Woods in September to phase out the requirement for power companies to offer low-user tariffs
Woods’ expectation has been that power companies would use the extra revenues to apply an equivalent reduction in charges paid by households that use more power, meaning consumers overall would be no better or worse off on average as a result of the change despite there being winners and losers.
However, the Government did not seek a guarantee from power companies that tariff changes would cancel out on aggregate.
Will Labour now increase and extend (to all year round) The Winter Energy Payment for beneficiaries and low income earners facing the doubling in cost?
Daily charge up . The charge for power used is down.
The reasons for changing which does impact me is that 'the poor' which you are so concerned about dont benefit so much as they have older homes and larger families which use above the low user maximum
My power compnay says it will mean $38 more per year in lines charges
Daily charge up . The charge for power used is down.
Again, whether that will totally offset the increase will vary from region to region, and sometimes from home to home. Additionally, the change means power companies will be able to raise the daily charge by a further 34.5c a day, including GST next year, and again in 2024 and 2025.
The reasons for changing which does impact me is that 'the poor' which you are so concerned about dont benefit so much as they have older homes and larger families which use above the low user maximum.
Yes, we know the reasoning. However, the Government failed to secure a guarantee from power companies that tariff changes would cancel out on aggregate.
Moreover, the doubling in cost will still impact the poor currently on the lower use charge. Not all poor people have large families and stay in larger homes.
What is Labour going to do for them?
Are they going to just let them carry the full burden?
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The Government’s decision to back peddle on lowering speed limits is hitting potholes. At this stage, although it is part of the Government’s reprioritisation efforts to free up money to alleviate cost of living increases, the speed limit change looks unlikely to do that. And it appears that it ...
The University of Otago – the oldest university in New Zealand – towers over my home city of Dunedin. When classes are on, something like a fifth of Dunedin’s population are university students. It is also the largest employer in the South Island. To say that this is a ...
Last weekend brought the latest instalment in Stuff’s bravura satirical series Of course you can afford a house! Just dig deeper!I love how much their appreciation of humour has evolved in just a few short years since the days when I would get to produce, for a few meagre dollars, ...
Australia’s move to strengthen its defence capability with five nuclear-powered attack submarines underlines how relatively defenceless New Zealand is in the Pacific. Kiwis may gasp that the Labor government in Australia recognises it must outlay $400bn on the nuclear subs, but this ensures that Australia is not exposed ...
Ironically, a repurposed Auckland Ratepayers Alliance placard (with a demand for climate action on the front) featured at the recent climate march. Voting ratepayers don’t want ‘bureaucrats in cushy council jobs’ borrowing or increasing rates, even when the need for investment is becoming increasingly obvious. So is council cost-cutting a ...
The quarterly ETS auction was held today. In the past, these have seen collusion by big players to game the price and force a dump of extra credits from the cost-containment reserve (essentially, trying to pick stuff up cheap now in the belief that it will be more valuable later). ...
Buzz from the Beehive Exempting bikes, electric bikes and scooters from fringe benefit tax looked like something of a sop for a Green Party that had good grounds to grumble after a bunch of climate change measures was tossed on to the PM’s policy bonfire. The combustibles included the clean car ...
Today is a Member's Day, the first of the year. Unfortunately it also looks to be a boring one. First, there's a two hour debate on the budget policy statement (somehow inexplicably "member's business", despite it being fundamentally a government thing). Then there's a couple of "private bills" - people ...
Most days, Chris Hipkins and James Shaw seem a bit like the Seals and Crofts of the centre-left: Earnest, inoffensive, and capable of quite nice harmonies at times. They blow gently through the jasmine in your mind, but you know they’re never going to rock your world. Back in 2020, ...
The reflection gazed back at him. Pale and a little paunchy, he wasn’t a well man.He had a toga made from a fitted sheet and it kept bunching up under his armpits.His Laurel wreath was made from some Christmas tree branches he’d found in the shed, not a real pine ...
Yesterday we covered the government’s latest policy/delivery changes with a focus on light rail. But there was another important transport part of the announcement: The government will also intends to scale back its road safety plans. The programmes that are being reprioritised include: Significantly narrowing the speed reduction programme to ...
Unbridled Consumption: This civilisation we have built (we being the whole human species) is the most astonishingly wonderful thing homo sapiens has ever seen. We love it. We cannot imagine how awful life would be without it. And, we most certainly are not going to co-operate with anyone who advises ...
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 ...
Let’s start with the absolute truisms.Politics is the art of the possibleHalf of something is better than all of nothingLet us now consider these with reference to the Under New Management government.What is a supporter of progressive politics to make of the abandonment of various policies, as announced in recent post-cabinet ...
Chris Hipkins has surprised even some of his closest friends and backers with the bounce he has secured for Labour in public polls since he became Prime Minister. He has been put to the test since he took over from Jacinda Ardern in the top job, and has shown a ...
Buzz from the Beehive It was a big day for the stopping or slowing of a second tranche of government programmes, an exercise which Beehive publicists are pitching as measures to allow the Government to focus more time, energy and resources on “the bread and butter issues” facing New Zealanders. ...
Last night there was a One News political poll which was welcomed by the left and will cause some concern in the opposition camp. A poll that showed no path to victory for ACT and National and which would likely result in another Labour/Greens government, possibly with the inclusion, or ...
Our young renters can vote Labour or Green as often as they like, but will end up paying the price of more and bigger climate emergencies, while also paying most of their after-tax income on rent with little hope of owning their own homes. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR:PM ...
Dr Bryce Edwards writes – Labour’s shift in focus is working. Under Jacinda Ardern they were a party and government focused on the voters and ideologies of liberal Grey Lynn and Wellington Central. Now under Prime Minister Chris Hipkins Labour has a laser-like focus directed at ...
Labour’s shift in focus is working. Under Jacinda Ardern they were a party and government focused on the voters and ideologies of liberal Grey Lynn and Wellington Central. Now under Prime Minister Chris Hipkins Labour has a laser-like focus directed at the working class politics of places like West Auckland ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Chris Baraniuk It was an engineering problem that had bugged Zhibin Yu for years — but now he had the perfect chance to fix it. Stuck at home during the first UK lockdown of the Covid-19 pandemic, the thermal engineer suddenly had all ...
Hi,I just wanted to say hello as this week really gets going, and check in about a few things. They’re a series of fractured random thoughts, so bear with me! First up — I haven’t watched the Oscars in ages and I’m really glad I watched yesterday. It felt like ...
Yesterday the Prime Minister laid out the next tranche of plans to scale back the ambition of Labour’s policy/delivery programme – and this time the Auckland light rail project gets a mention. “I can also confirm today that we will roll out transport projects in Auckland in stages. “Reducing transport ...
The Hipkins Government revealed its true colours yesterday as it chopped a whole series of “nice to have” policies — many of them promoted by the Greens — and instead diverted the savings to relieve the impact of inflation. His approach is all about taking action; no more excuses, ...
Saving The People From ... The People: The strangest aspect of the mass Israeli protests, from a New Zealand perspective, is that the judicial reforms proposed by Benjamin Netanyahu’s government would only confer upon Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, powers which the New Zealand House of Representatives has not only exercised ...
Political parties that want to negotiate with the Green Party must come to the table with much faster, bolder climate action, co-leaders James Shaw and Marama Davidson emphasised in their State of the Planet speech today. ...
Political parties that want to negotiate with the Green Party after the election must come to the table with much faster, bolder climate action, co-leaders James Shaw and Marama Davidson emphasised today. ...
You will never truly understand, from the pictures you’ve seen in the newspapers or on the six o-clock news, the sheer scale of the devastation wrought by Cyclone Gabrielle. ...
We’re boosting incomes and helping ease cost of living pressures on Kiwis through a range of bread and butter support measures that will see pensioners, students, families, and those on main benefits better off from the start of next month. ...
The error Labour Ministers made by stopping work on a beverage container return scheme will be reversed by the Greens at the earliest opportunity as part of the next Government. ...
“Cabinet needs to do better - and today has shown exactly why we need Green Ministers in cabinet, so we can prioritise action to cut climate pollution and support people to make ends meet,” says Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson. ...
Biggest increase in food prices for over three decades shows the need for an excess profit tax on corporations to help people put food on the table. ...
The Green Party has today launched a submission guide to help Aucklanders give crucial input and prevent potentially disastrous Auckland Council budget proposals. ...
With calls growing for inquiries and action on bank profits, the Greens say the Government has all the information it needs to act now and put a levy on banks. ...
As large parts of Aotearoa recover from two of the worst climate disasters we have ever experienced, it would be a huge mistake for the Government to deprioritise climate action from future transport investments, the Green Party says. ...
The Green Party is celebrating the signing of a historic United Nations Ocean Treaty, and calls on the new Oceans and Fisheries Minister to urgently step up protection for Aotearoa’s oceans. ...
This year has seen a series of extreme weather events, unparalleled in New Zealand’s recent history. From Cape Reinga in the far north down to the Tararua Ranges, families and businesses across the country have suffered enormous loss and hardship. While the severe weather hasn’t directly affected every part of ...
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has today appointed Ginny Andersen as Minister of Police. “Ginny Andersen has a strong and relevant background in this important portfolio,” Chris Hipkins said. “Ginny Andersen worked for the Police as a non-sworn staff member for around 10 years and has more recently been chair of ...
Six further bailey bridge sites confirmed Four additional bridge sites under consideration 91 per cent of damaged state highways reopened Recovery Dashboards for impacted regions released The Government has responded quickly to restore lifeline routes after Cyclone Gabrielle and can today confirm that an additional six bailey bridges will ...
Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta departs for China tomorrow, where she will meet with her counterpart, State Councillor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang, in Beijing. This will be the first visit by a New Zealand Minister to China since 2019, and follows the easing of COVID-19 travel restrictions between New Zealand and China. ...
Education Ministers from across the Pacific will gather in Tāmaki Makaurau this week to share their collective knowledge and strategic vision, for the benefit of ākonga across the region. New Zealand Education Minister Jan Tinetti will host the inaugural Conference of Pacific Education Ministers (CPEM) for three days from today, ...
A vital transport link for communities and local businesses has been restored following Cyclone Gabrielle with the reopening of State Highway 5 (SH5) between Napier and Taupō, Associate Minister of Transport Kiri Allan says. SH5 reopened to all traffic between 7am and 7pm from today, with closure points at SH2 (Kaimata ...
Internal Affairs Minister Barbara Edmonds has thanked generous New Zealanders who took part in the special Lotto draw for communities affected by Cyclone Gabrielle. Held on Saturday night, the draw raised $11.7 million with half of all ticket sales going towards recovery efforts. “In a time of need, New Zealanders ...
The Government has announced funding of $3 million for providers to help people, and whānau access community-based Building Financial Capability services. “Demand for Financial Capability Services is growing as people face cost of living pressures. Those pressures are increasing further in areas affected by flooding and Cyclone Gabrielle,” Minister for ...
Minister of Education, Hon Jan Tinetti, has announced appointments to the Board of Education New Zealand | Manapou ki te Ao. Tracey Bridges is joining the Board as the new Chair and Dr Therese Arseneau will be a new member. Current members Dr Linda Sissons CNZM and Daniel Wilson have ...
Fifteen ākonga Māori from across Aotearoa have been awarded the prestigious Ngarimu VC and 28th (Māori) Battalion Memorial Scholarships and Awards for 2023, Associate Education Minister and Ngarimu Board Chair, Kelvin Davis announced today. The recipients include doctoral, masters’ and undergraduate students. Three vocational training students and five wharekura students, ...
High Court Judge Jillian Maree Mallon has been appointed a Judge of the Court of Appeal, and District Court Judge Andrew John Becroft QSO has been appointed a Judge of the High Court, Attorney‑General David Parker announced today. Justice Mallon graduated from Otago University in 1988 with an LLB (Hons), and with ...
The economy has continued to show its resilience despite today’s GDP figures showing a modest decline in the December quarter, leaving the Government well positioned to help New Zealanders face cost of living pressures in a challenging global environment. “The economy had grown strongly in the two quarters before this ...
Aucklanders now have more ways to get around as Transport Minister Michael Wood opened the direct State Highway 1 (SH1) to State Highway 18 (SH18) underpass today, marking the completion of the 48-kilometre Western Ring Route (WRR). “The Government is upgrading New Zealand’s transport system to make it safer, more ...
This section contains briefings received by incoming ministers following changes to Cabinet in January. Some information may have been withheld in accordance with the Official Information Act 1982. Where information has been withheld that is indicated within the document. ...
Aotearoa New Zealand Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta reaffirmed her commitment to working together with the new Government of Fiji on issues of shared importance, including on the prioritisation of climate change and sustainability, at a meeting today, in Nadi. Fiji and Aotearoa New Zealand’s close relationship is underpinned by the Duavata ...
The Government is delivering a coastal shipping lifeline for businesses, residents and the primary sector in the cyclone-stricken regions of Hawkes Bay and Tairāwhiti, Regional Development Minister Kiri Allan announced today. The Rangitata vessel has been chartered for an emergency coastal shipping route between Gisborne and Napier, with potential for ...
The Government will progress to the next stage of the NZ Battery Project, looking at the viability of pumped hydro as well as an alternative, multi-technology approach as part of the Government’s long term-plan to build a resilient, affordable, secure and decarbonised energy system in New Zealand, Energy and Resources ...
This morning I was made aware of a media interview in which Minister Stuart Nash criticised a decision of the Court and said he had contacted the Police Commissioner to suggest the Police appeal the decision. The phone call took place in 2021 when he was not the Police Minister. ...
The Government’s sharp focus on trade continues with Aotearoa New Zealand set to host Trade Ministers and delegations from 10 Asia Pacific economies at a meeting of Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) Commission members in July, Minister for Trade and Export Growth Damien O’Connor announced today. “New Zealand ...
$25 million boost to support more businesses with clean-up in cyclone affected regions, taking total business support to more than $50 million Demand for grants has been strong, with estimates showing applications will exceed the initial $25 million business support package Grants of up to a maximum of $40,000 per ...
80 per cent of 2021 Resident Visas applications have been processed – three months ahead of schedule Residence granted to 160,000 people 84,000 of 85,000 applications have been approved Over 160,000 people have become New Zealand residents now that 80 per cent of 2021 Resident Visa (2021RV) applications have been ...
The Lead Coordination Minister for the Government’s Response to the Royal Commission’s Report into the Terrorist Attack on the Christchurch Mosques travels to Melbourne, Australia today to represent New Zealand at the fourth Sub-Regional Meeting on Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Security. “The Government is committed to reducing the threat of terrorism ...
The health and safety practices at our nation’s ports will be improved as part of a new industry-wide action plan, Workplace Relations and Safety, and Transport Minister Michael Wood has announced. “Following the tragic death of two port workers in Auckland and Lyttelton last year, I asked the Port Health ...
Bikes, electric bikes and scooters will be added to the types of transport exempted from fringe benefit tax under changes proposed today. Revenue Minister David Parker said the change would allow bicycles, electric bicycles, scooters, electric scooters, and micro-mobility share services to be exempt from fringe benefit tax where they ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta will hold bilateral meetings with Fiji this week. The visit will be her first to the country since the election of the new coalition Government led by Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sitiveni Rabuka. The visit will be an opportunity to meet kanohi ki ...
The Government is introducing the Severe Weather Emergency Legislation Bill to ensure the recovery and rebuild from Cyclone Gabrielle is streamlined and efficient with unnecessary red tape removed. The legislation is similar to legislation passed following the Christchurch and Kaikōura earthquakes that modifies existing legislation in order to remove constraints ...
Approximately 1.4 million people will benefit from increases to rates and thresholds for social assistance to help with the cost of living Superannuation to increase by over $100 a pay for a couple Main benefits to increase by the rate of inflation, meaning a family on a benefit with children ...
$1 billion in savings which will be reallocated to support New Zealanders with the cost of living A range of transport programmes deferred so Waka Kotahi can focus on post Cyclone road recovery Speed limit reduction programme significantly narrowed to focus on the most dangerous one per cent of state ...
The remaining state of national emergency over the Tairāwhiti and Hawke’s Bay regions will end on Tuesday 14 March, Minister for Emergency Management Kieran McAnulty announced today. Minister McAnulty gave notice of a national transition period over these regions, which will come into effect immediately following the end of the ...
The Government is today delivering on one of its commitments as part of the New Zealand Government’s Dawn Raids apology, welcoming a cohort of emerging Pacific leaders to Aotearoa New Zealand participating in the He Manawa Tītī Scholarship Programme. This cohort will participate in a bespoke leadership training programme that ...
Industry Transformation Plan to transform advanced manufacturing through increased productivity and higher-skilled, higher-wage jobs into a globally-competitive low-emissions sector. Co-created and co-owned by business, unions and workers, government, Māori, Pacific peoples and wider stakeholders. A plan to accelerate the growth and transformation of New Zealand’s advanced manufacturing sector was launched ...
New Zealand will provide support for Pacific countries to prevent the spread of harmful animal diseases, Associate Minister of Agriculture Meka Whaitiri said. The Associate Minister is attending a meeting of Pacific Ministers during the Pacific Week of Agriculture and Forestry in Nadi, Fiji. “Highly contagious diseases such as African ...
The Public Transport Futures project will deliver approximately: 100 more buses providing a greater number of seats to a greater number of locations at a higher frequency Over 470 more bus shelters to support a more enjoyable travel experience Almost 200 real time display units providing accurate information on bus ...
All but six schools and kura have reopened for onsite learning All students in the six closed schools or kura are being educated in other schools, online, or in alternative locations Over 4,300 education hardpacks distributed to support students Almost 38,000 community meals provided by suppliers of the Ka Ora ...
A new health centre has opened with financial support from the Government and further investment has been committed to projects that will accelerate Māori economic opportunities, Regional Development Minister Kiri Allan says. Community health provider QE Health will continue its long history in Rotorua with the official opening of the ...
The new three year NZ UK Working Holiday Visas (WHV) will now be delivered earlier than expected, coming into force by July this year in time to support businesses through the global labour shortages Prime Minister Chris Hipkins says. The improved WHV, successfully negotiated alongside the NZ UK Free trade ...
It seems like only yesterday that we launched the discussion document Enabling Investment in Offshore Renewable Energy, which is the key theme for this Forum. Everyone in this room understands the enormous potential of offshore wind in Aotearoa New Zealand – and particularly this region. Establishing a regime to pave ...
Police has reached a major milestone filing over 28,000 charges related to Operation Cobalt. “I’m extremely proud of the fantastic work that our Police has been doing to crack down on gangs, and keep our communities safe. The numbers speak for themselves – with over 28,000 charges, Police are getting ...
The Government will provide $15 million in the short term to local councils to remove rubbish, as a longer-term approach is developed, the Minister for Emergency Management Kieran McAnulty announced today. “Several regions are facing significant costs associated with residential waste removal, which has the potential to become a public ...
$15 million of immediate reimbursement for marae, iwi, recognised rural and community groups $2 million for community food providers $0.5 million for additional translation services Increasing the caps of the Community and Provider funds The Government has announced $17.5 million to further support communities and community providers impacted by Cyclone ...
The Government’s approach of using frontline service providers to address inequities for Māori with mental health and addiction needs is making good progress in many communities, a new report says. An independent evaluation into the Māori Access and Choice programme, commissioned by Te Whatu Ora has highlighted the programme’s success ...
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Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Frank Jotzo, Professor, Crawford School of Public Policy and Head of Energy, Institute for Climate Energy and Disaster Solutions, Australian National University IISD/ENB The world is in deep trouble on climate change, but if we really put our shoulder to ...
RNZ Pacific New Caledonia’s only daily newspaper, Les Nouvelles Calédoniennes, has folded after the commercial court accepted the publishing company’s request for its liquidation. The court had deferred its decision by a day after an injunction by the public prosecutor who wanted to see if there was still a possibility ...
By Arieta Vakasukawaqa in Suva The installation of the Turaga Bale na Vunivalu Na Tui Kaba, Ratu Epenisa Cakobau, clearly indicates that Fiji’s traditional chiefly system still has a strong footing and chiefs still command respect among the country’s citizens. This is the view of Dr Paul Geraghty, the University ...
ANALYSIS:By Shailendra Bahadur Singh in Suva The long-running row between the former Fiji government and the Suva-based regional University of the South Pacific (USP) has come back to haunt former Fiji Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama, who spent a night in a police cell on March 9 before appearing in ...
By Antoine Samoyeau in Pape’ete About 3000 activists of French Polynesia’s pro-independence Tavini Huiraatira party met for six hours at the weekend with the executives insisting that they were “united’ after a recent upheaval over leadership. The party also presented a “renewed” slate of 73 candidates for next month’s territorial ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The first arrest has been made following the Brereton inquiry into allegations that Australians committed war crimes in Afghanistan. Former SAS soldier, Oliver Schulz, 41, has been remanded in custody after his arrest by ...
We have our 2023 finalists after a big Sunday double-header at North Shore Stadium. Alice Soper reviews.Matatū vs BluesMatatū have scored the first try in every match they have played this season. It looked like this streak was going to be broken as the Blues finally found ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robert Park, Judith and David Coffey Chair in Sustainable Agriculture, Plant Breeding Institute, University of Sydney Shutterstock Some 70% of the World Heritage-listed Lord Howe Island has been closed to non-essential visitors in response to a recurrence of the plant ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Suranga Seneviratne, Senior Lecturer – Security, University of Sydney Shutterstock Are you tired of receiving SMS scams pretending to be from Australia Post, the tax office, MyGov and banks? You’re not alone. Each year, thousands of Australians fall victim to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Misha Ketchell, Editor, The Conversation Thanks in no small part to the work of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), today few people would be foolish enough to dispute the scientific consensus on the climate crisis. But as ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Eric Windholz, Senior Lecturer and Associate, Monash Centre for Commercial Law and Regulatory Studies, Monash University Inadequate, inequitable, and in some cases possibly in breach of workers’ compensation laws. That’s how bad the current insurance arrangements are for Australia’s professional sports people, ...
The newly-minted Police Minister, Ginny Andersen, has been called on by the Council of Licensed Firearm Owners (COLFO) to investigate how the previous Minister allowed Police to propose extraordinary fee increases for licensed firearm owners without ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Richard Kingsford, Professor, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, UNSW Sydney Bill Ormonde, Author provided Millions of dead fish float on the surface of the river. Native bony herring and introduced young carp, as well as a few mature ...
Things make more sense when people are speaking your language! This CAB Awareness Week (20-26 March), we are celebrating diversity and multiculturalism within our service. At the Citizens Advice Bureau, we are committed to making sure our service ...
The second week of the Auckland Arts Festivals showed the versatility of the city’s spaces, even when not matched entirely correctly with shows. Sam Brooks reviews (with assistance from Shanti Mathias).I often dismay at the lack of performance spaces we have in Auckland, and it takes something like the ...
The free and easy SMS two factor authentication (2FA) to log into your Twitter account ends today. That concerns Privacy Commissioner Michael Webster because it takes away one of the most common ways to verify who users are on their free accounts, which ...
New Zealand’s new minister of police will be one of the freshest faces around the cabinet table. Ginny Andersen, the MP for Hutt South, has been named as the new minister taking over from Stuart Nash. Andersen first became an MP in 2017 and only became a minister for the ...
The government has announced further roading reconnections, several weeks on from Cyclone Gabrielle. Earlier this morning it was confirmed the link between Napier and Taupō had been reestablished. And now, transport minister Michael Wood said another six bailey bridges would be constructed. “Our immediate priority has been to reopen lifeline ...
The Taxpayers’ Union has slammed the revelation that government agencies and State Owned Enterprises are spending hundreds of thousands of taxpayers’ dollars on lobbying firms as revealed by Radio NZ this morning. Taxpayers’ Union Campaigns Manager, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter McNeil, Distinguished Professor of Design History, UTS, University of Technology Sydney Sydney World Pride and Mardi Gras 2023 were a huge success. Sydney was activated in a way rarely seen – block and street parties, cultural festivals and dance parties for ...
For the first time since 2019, a New Zealand minister will head to China this week. Foreign minister Nanaia Mahuta will meet with her Chinese counterpart Qin Gang in Beijing. “I intend to discuss areas where we cooperate, such as on trade, people-to-people and climate and environmental issues. I will ...
The Chief Ombudsman Peter Boshier has completed his investigation into complaints about Auckland Council’s role in the National Erebus Memorial project. The complaints relate to the council’s approval and consents process for the memorial site in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Hal Pawson, Professor of Housing Research and Policy, and Associate Director, City Futures Research Centre, UNSW Sydney Pandemic-generated pressures have left our rental housing market reeling. Australia-wide, vacancy rates are at rock-bottom levels. Rents are soaring at record rates. Queensland has ...
The first edition felt like a breath of fresh, local music-filled air. This year, with many of the same headliners as 2008 (and every year since), the long-running Wellington festival has grown stale. It’s finally time to admit that on a cold night in Palmy 20 years ago, I felt ...
The first edition felt like a breath of fresh, local music-filled air. This year, with many of the same headliners as 2008 (and every year since), the formula has grown stale. It’s finally time to admit that on a cold night in Palmy 20 years ago, I felt Shihad frontman ...
The anti-transgender activist that provoked aggressive protests in Australia over the weekend may not be able to enter New Zealand. Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull, the British anti-transgender campaigner, is scheduled to visit New Zealand next weekend for two public events. But according to a new statement from Immigration NZ, her ability to ...
The New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union is pleased to hear that the Minister of Local Government, Kieran McAnulty, has invited concerned mayors to the Beehive to discuss the Three Waters reforms but believe he should meet with the country’s largest ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne Dan Himbrechts/Paul Braven/AAP The New South Wales state election will be held on Saturday. I had a preview of both ...
Whether the anti-trans campaigner can enter the country without a visa is now up in the air. Controversy surrounds the upcoming visit by Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull, the British anti-transgender campaigner on a global tour who is scheduled to visit New Zealand next weekend for two public events. During an appearance in Melbourne ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lynne Chepulis, Associate Professor Health Sciences, University of Waikato Getty Images The controversial 2021 decision by the government drug-buying agency Pharmac to prioritise Māori and Pacific patients in its funding of two game-changing new diabetes drugs appears to have paid ...
The idea of the Greens flirting with National gets an airing before almost every election. It remains as much of a nonstarter as ever, writes Henry Cooke.This article was first published in Henry Cooke’s politics newsletter, Museum Street. It’s far more reliable than clockwork. Every election cycle – often several ...
With half the value of all Lotto, Powerball and Strike tickets going to cyclone relief, the "Must-be-won" draw for $15.5 million on Saturday went to a Canterbury player. ...
Auckland’s mayor has taken aim at road closures and traffic disruption around the super city, revealing a plan to reduce road cones. Wayne Brown had previously pledged to clean up the city of road cones and set it out as an “immediate priority” for the council’s transport agency. Now, he’s ...
The name's Bond – unhedged Treasury bond. Jonathan Milne argues that bond traders have again become sexy, for all the wrong reasons.Analysis: Giant Swiss bank UBS has agreed to buy its rival Credit Suisse for 3 billion Swiss francs (US$3.23 billion) and to assume up to $5.4 billion in losses, in a shotgun ...
‘Don’t fucking come and talk to me, write a submission,’ reckons Mayor Wayne Brown. So how do you do that?Let’s be honest, most people don’t understand local politics. We know that we vote for a mayor and councillors every couple of years, and that’s about it. But local politics ...
The link between Napier and Taupō has reopened this week for the first time since it was damaged in Cyclone Gabrielle. State highway five will be open to all traffic between 7am and 7pm, with overnight closure points at Kaimata Road, Glengarry Road and Matea Road. Kiri Allan, the associate ...
Analysis by By Geoffrey Miller. Political Roundup: NZ’s Middle East strategy, 20 years after the Iraq War This week marks the twentieth anniversary of the Iraq War. While it strongly opposed the US-led invasion, New Zealand’s then Labour-led government led by Prime Minister Helen Clark did deploy military engineers to try to help rebuild Iraq ...
If you find yourself stressing about the cost of living crisis and how it will impact your home loan, talking to your bank as soon as possible is important. If you are experiencing financial challenges or think you might in the future, it’s important to reach out to your bank ...
Despite being entrenched practice in New Zealand schools, the practice of academic streaming in schools might not be around much longer. A plan launched today sets out a pathway to achieve this.If you went to school in Aotearoa, odds are that streaming was part of your experience. The numerically-inclined ...
The Paediatric Society of New Zealand/Te Kāhui Mātai Arotamariki o Aotearoa are very concerned about the high number of tamariki injured by dogs in Aotearoa. Auckland emergency doctor Natasha Duncan-Sutherland says, “Over 2800 dog-related injuries ...
MP Ibrahim Omer will replace Grant Robertson as Labour’s candidate in the Wellington Central electorate after beating former party president Claire Szabo in the candidate selection race. Omer arrived in New Zealand as a refugee and worked as a cleaner before enrolling at Victoria University in 2014. “As someone who has ...
A new report from Australia highlights the significant community exposure to alcohol advertising through social media platforms. Over a one-year period researchers observed nearly 40,000 advertisements from a subset of alcohol-related accounts on Meta platforms ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Leah Ruppanner, Professor of Sociology and Founding Director of The Future of Work Lab, The University of Melbourne pexels/tara winstead, CC BY-SA You’ve probably heard about the “great resignation” which saw large numbers of people resigning from their jobs in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emma Beckett, Senior Lecturer (Food Science and Human Nutrition), School of Environmental and Life Sciences, University of Newcastle Shutterstock You’ve probably heard about the medication Ozempic, used to manage type 2 diabetes and as a weight loss drug. Ozempic (and ...
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For the forseeable future, please comment on the Convoy protest in one of the dedicated threads so we can keep Open Mike for other discussions.
Tony and PsyclingLeft, I've copy and pasted your comments across and deleted them from here, please use the dedicated posts from now on.
oh sorry bout that Weka. I was heading off to work and didnt see a Convoy one for today at that time. Early Sunday i know. Cheers.
just use the one from the day before if there isn't a new one 👍
The uselessness of western political leaders has been on display again. Interestingly, the Ukraine president pointed to it a week ago. Their appeasement policy!
Why did the US issue a formal statement to the world in 2008 that Ukraine would be joining NATO and then refuse to implement that? Putin objected, so the US caved to him. Appeasement became the norm.
The thing to notice here is that collusion between the political left and right in all western countries has been evident ever since. There has been no dissent from appeasement. All the retards were dead keen to teach Putin that he could do whatever he wanted. So he learnt the intended lesson.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/feb/26/the-world-shuns-pariah-putin?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
Maybe as horrendous as this is for Ukraine that it proves to be the moment when appeasement finally ends.
No serious person can pretend any longer that all Putin wants is ‘respect’ and that the problem is ‘baiting bear’ (as an aside, Comrade Trotter really has lost the plot well and truly).
Putin’s played a divide and conquer game for years, sowing division in West and taking advantage of it.
Maybe this prove a massive miscalculation on his part if its turns out to be the moment he’s finally made pariah and we stop the pretence of Russia being a normal nation capable of being part of all manner of normal international activities.
It’s what the like of Kasparov has been calling for for years, that we had tools short of military one to genuinely hurt him, it just took commitment and solidarity on the grounds art of West.
If Putin has pushed even China and Hungry too far, hopefully it’ll be easier to actually follow through on serious action.
There is of course still the chance, someone blinks and let’s him off from feeling a real impact but weirdly I’m feeling a bit more positive that this could be turning point. I just hope I’m not being naïve.
You ask "Why did the US issue a formal statement to the world in 2008"?
The only statement I am aware of is one by then President Bush and the two candidates in the 2008 election, Obama and McCain that they would offer backing to Ukraine's membership of NATO. The US can't just offer membership to anyone. NATO comprises 30 states and operates by consensus. It would appear to be Germany and France who opposed the proposal at that time.
That's what I recalled from watching the interview with the professor I quoted from yesterday. According to Wikipedia it was the head of NATO who said Ukraine would be joining (not the US). Here's the key portions of their timeline:
A typical bureaucratic stance. Bureaucrats assume everyone else is as slow to get anything done as them & lawyers.
This is true, but the appeasement applies to a lot more than just NATO membership and I don’t think anyone comes out looking too good.
Germany have been pathetic regarding Russian gas, Britain has shamefully turned a blind eye over oligarchs money. One could go on and on.
It’s all helped lead us to this point.
Noam Chompsky on NATO expansion and the Ukraine….of course this part of the puzzle is never allowed even the slightest airing on any western media…wonder why that is?
You can see a version of it any time you like on Fox, but then admitting similarities between the so called ‘anti imperialist’ left and US nationalist right on Putin and Russia is somewhat inconvenient isn’t it.
I would love to see Chomsky sit down with someone from Baltic states and ask ‘Why is NATO expanding to the borders of Russia’ as they’d be able to give a simple answer as to why they were banging on the door, pleading to be let in.
Chomsky fails to mention that Mearscheimer is a ‘neo realist’ who entire outlook is based on achieving ‘balance’ and if they meant letting dictator like Putin dominate ‘his’ region then that’s what we have to accept, regardless of what they means for the aspirations of the people in Eastern Europe.
But then the cult of Chomsky just tends to take anything he says uncritically as the words of some great sage.
Pretty good picture now how little vaccination does to slow Omicron transmission. We've got one of the worlds highest vax rates and currently the highest r value as well.
The Government, the Ministry of Health and informed members of the public have known since Omicron was first identified that the current Covid vaccines were not effective against this new variant. Hence the booster injection campaign and the current race by the world's scientists to procure a vaccine that is effective. Pfizer has almost completed their trials and hopefully a new vaccine will be available very soon.
The reason we have one of the world's highest vax rates at this point is because we tend to lag behind other countries, in large part due to our geographical isolation. So, no matter what the issue may be, we are always playing catch-up.
In other words, most other countries have gone through the Omicron peak and are coming out the other side. We have yet to hit our peak, and in a few weeks time should be coming out the other side too.
So, there is nothing sinister about the present stats – something you probably know only too well. 🙄
Bloomfield pointed this week to new studies showing vaccination gives meaningful protection against contracting omicron and thus slows spread. Details in this post
Sure, but given to slow Omicron a booster is needed, to have any chance of slowing it down… the mandates and passports had to be extended to boosters immediately. We cant boost fast enough now given it takes @ 14 days forna booster to take full effect.
Hell we needed Rats ready to roll 3 weeks ago instead it's a 3 hour wait at my closest testing station plenty wont bother…
we are slowing omicron. With all the things we do. Imagine what it would be like if we did none of those things.
Booster takes 14 days for full effect, but that doesn't mean there is no effect before day 14.
Looks like significant benefits are there before 7 days.
Chart on page 18
Oh I dunno. They say the R value of Omicron without any control is 10. We are around 3.5 while in the exponential growth phase, which is a huge reduction. Vaccination (especially recent boosting) will be an important part of that, given it is proven to greatly reduce transmission of omicron, which has been in the news lately. You might already know that. Ashley Bloomfield:
"One of the studies, which was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, shows that compared with being unvaccinated the odds of contracting Omicron after receiving three doses dropped by 67 percent – two thirds – and for Delta the risk declined by a stunning 93 percent."
Useful article too from our Prof Rod Jackson on the Omicron situation for NZ.
“However, what makes Omicron worse than Delta for unvaccinated New Zealanders is that almost all of them will be infected in the next few months. A significant proportion would have escaped Delta, at least until new effective antiviral drugs became widely available.”
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/rod-jackson-omicron-outbreak-our-time-to-vaccinate-is-running-out/LESRTJN7KDQSHNRTVCIZM7VP7I/
Thanks, very good article.
To go from zero to boosted takes such a long time. I know a few "researchers" who aren't vaxxed, on an individual level the odds are they will be OK, but much worse odds than they needed to be!
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2022/02/live-updates-latest-on-parliament-protest-covid-19-community-outbreak-sunday-february-27.html
The CDC hasn't controlled or prevented much, have they?
Just saying.
If politics is concentrated economics, war is concentrated politics.
War! Hey! What is it good for?
Business!
Follow the money
The person who hosts https://www.sorryantivaxxer.com/post/station-break-vaxman-has-covid
Got covid – but was fully vaxxed, so only had a mild illness.For 5 days (s)he lay in bed, while Russia invaded the Ukraine. (S)he made a pertinent comment:
Can anyone point to one substantial achievement this achieved in either term in office?
With covid now rampant and New Zealand having one of the highest R values in the world and testing crippled, this government has failed at covid.
So all the policies that come out of covid are failures. Child poverty, suicide prevention, road tolls, homelessness, home building, mental health. All the grandiose promises and we’ve simply gone backwards on all major indicators.
Covid deaths/million:
USA – 2910
UK – 2355
Sweden – 1677
Australia – 197
New Zealand – 11
Quite an achievement.
AND cases per million
USA. 241,000
UK – 274,600
Sweden – 239,300
Australia – 122,900
New Zealand –14,200
Not really, not in the light of covid now running rampant and all the other policy failures that came before this
You seem desperate to attack this government – I would be unsurprised if you were hoping for thousands of NZ covid deaths as it seems the governments actions in saving thousands of lives appears to greatly upset you
So no other achievement than not letting covid in or flourish, except that it is now
"Not letting covid in or flourish" was good, and all things (good and bad) end.
It's regrettable many businesses have suffered a downturn or worse during this on-going pandemic, but even if our Govt had prioritised businesses from the get-go I wouldn't have spent up big, and surging Omicron cases numbers guarantee that I'll be prioritising public and personal health a little longer.
Some of us still don't get how lucky we are (and were) – the "are we there yet" crowd, agitating for a return to mask-less and 'pass-less' BAU, are intent on undermining the measures safeguarding public health, but the more united we are against COVID-19, the faster we all get through this, imho.
What exactly is your point, that our case rate or death will catch up with the US or UK?
Because if it’s not (and there’s no credible evidence to suggest it will) then we’re still doing waaaay better than most other countries.
It's so good the approach in handling covid in this country was such that I did not die.
Now I can spend my time whingeing about how bad everything is.
NSW deaths per week from Covid are 163- peaked at 240pw ( we are 63% of that states population)
NZ deaths per week from Covid , maybe under 10 currently
You made quite a few bold assertions without any support to back them up. Usually, this calls for moderation.
Let me start this off with this on child poverty: https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/127873784/child-poverty-tracks-down-but-government-doesnt-meet-key-target.
Now it‘s your turn to provide evidence for your assertions. Your entire comment comes across as a troll attempt at wasting people’s time in order to achieve some lazy political point scoring. However, you’ve been caught out before making up lies and other BS, e.g. https://thestandard.org.nz/everyone-is-over-covid/#comment-1866535.
PS I believe unemployment is down and at a record low.
"PS I believe unemployment is down and at a record low."
Do you accept that not everyone that find themselves out of their callings, jobs and careers are reflected in employment stats?
There are more non-travelling reserves, in Jacinda's team of 5 million than you acknowledge.
(Fun Fact: I wanted to make a reference to 1st XI or XV, but found Roman numerals only go up to 4,999, or it can be referenced as a V with two horizontal lines above it. Then it got hard and …)
Sure, I accept that. Unemployment is (also) not the same as underemployment. Anyway, any real or perceived achievement by Government can be countered and eroded to a failure if one sets their (biased-partisan) mind to it, which is what some commenters here know all too well. Hence my reply to DukeEll and before I put my Moderator hat on.
Some general principles to consider when looking at reporting of the war in the Ukraine, prompted by my re-reading Jon Sumida's "Decoding Clausewitz: A New Approach to On War" (2008) to try help work out what is going there.
Sumida says of Clauswitz: (worth quoting at length) –
"…In a war in which the objective of the attacker is the destruction of the defender’s sovereignty, the difficulties for the attacker are increased by the inherently greater strength of the defender’s political, or policy, motive. This is because the moral stakes for the defender are about existence, which is essential, whereas the attacker is concerned simply with gain, which is discretionary. Moreover, the resources available to the defense for military action can overmatch those of the attacker if the defender government’s will to resist enjoys broad internal political support. Under these circumstances, the regular forces of the defender can be augmented by the armed action of an aroused citizenry—that is, by guerrilla war—while the attacker cannot count on counterbalancing involvement from its own civilian population. A defender that has demonstrated a determination to resist even a greatly superior attacker can also expect the assistance of other powers, which are likely to recognize that their own independence is threatened by the offensive success of a state with aggrandizing or even hegemonic intentions. In short, effective defense against attack is not just about military action, but the interplay between military performance and a variety of internal and external political dynamics. This is probably what Clausewitz had foremost in mind when he stated that “war is simply a continuation of political intercourse, with the addition of other means…”
From this, we can also call into question the traditional definition of victory as being the battlefield destruction of the defenders armies, since guerilla warfare is also as much a continuation of political intercourse as a full scale conventional war.
The other thing I've been considering is I've just finished reading David Stahel's four books on the first six months of Barbarossa in conjunction with Glantz's older trilogy on the Smolensk battles of 1941 and I am struck by the similarities of this Russian army with very poor performance of the Red Army between June and November 1941. It seems to me Putin's truncated military harks back more to the Winter War than to Operation Bagration.
So far we read the Russians have commtted initially around a third of their combat units to action. That would be around 40,000 men of a manoeuvre force (not counting support units) of about 120,000. Now, if reports of 3-4000 Russian KIA (plus that implies at least 10,000 WIA) are true that would indicate that most of the Russian first wave is now incapable of further offensive operations (generally speaking 25% losses will do this) so if the Ukranian claims are true simple maths tells us the Russians must now be committing their second wave, probably designated for an exploitation phase, to try and secure first wave objectives. Clauswitz of course noted the need for strong reserves if an offensive is to maintain it's impetus after the initial attritional phase so if it passes that the Ukranians have forced the early commitment of the exploitation units then they are still in with a chance.
None of the above is based on any reality. You have just plucked numbers out of thin air
Just as 'likely' is an Ukrainian armistice when Zeleneskyy does an' Ashraf Ghani'. I have no evidence of that either but Im guessing hes already in Lviv – to continue the fight of course( just as Churchill made sure to leave London for the country as often as possible during the Blitz)
Perhaps you are right. On the other hand you are probably wrong.
The Economist posted this comment, and included a link to the video mentioned.
"ON THE MORNING of February 26th Volodymyr Zelensky posted a video of himself on Twitter. After a night of the worst fighting Kyiv had seen since the second world war, and of propaganda from Moscow claiming that he had fled the capital in fear, Ukraine’s president emerged from his office red-eyed and unshaven. He was holding a smartphone in his right hand as he filmed himself walking past the House with Chimaeras, a famous Kyiv landmark that serves as the presidential residence. He smiled at the camera and declared: “Good morning to all Ukrainians! There are a lot of fakes out there…[but] I am here.”
https://www.economist.com/europe/2022/02/26/how-volodymyr-zelensky-found-his-roar
I'm afraid you can't read the full story. That requires that you are a subscriber to the magazine. However the time referred to is only about 12 hours before you posted your comment so I don't think he has fled.
Here.
https://archive.li/hlzU4
Thank you. I didn't know about this site. I am an Economist subscriber so I've never needed it to read the mag.
Did you post that link from your own subscription or how does it work?
Seems to bypass most paywalls. But not the Harold's.
On the 24th on OM Jenny posted an article from Stuff profiling an electric ute. Part of the thrust of her comment appeared to be aimed at the Politically motivated Groundswell group and how hard done by they are and their spurious arguments for joining the "Freedom Protest".
There were several commenters who decided to comment on the qualities of the two wheel drive and dismissed the ute as varying degrees of rubbish.
Their arguments appeared to be based on the grunty 4 wheel drives. One suggesting they were the minimum spec for every builder. Ad apparently has several thousand of them.
So one wonders why Nissan, Toyota, Ford, Mitsubishi and others would bother producing 2 wheel drive versions of their utes or what market they are targeting with all of their models.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/127889980/electricity-users-on-lowusage-plans-told-their-daily-fixed-charges-are-doubling
Will Labour now increase and extend (to all year round) The Winter Energy Payment for beneficiaries and low income earners facing the doubling in cost?
And if not why not?
Are the poor meant to carry this burden?
The Daily charge rises but the high users pay LESS per kWhr
eg Mercury has 18.8c per kWh for all users from April which is much lower than my low user rate from April 23.84c/32.9 c kWh
Mercury says electricity and gas prices vary from region to region, and sometimes from home to home.
So while the doubling cost may not impact you personally, I'm asking what is going to be done for the poor that are impacted by this doubling in cost?
You didnt understand did you.
Daily charge up . The charge for power used is down.
The reasons for changing which does impact me is that 'the poor' which you are so concerned about dont benefit so much as they have older homes and larger families which use above the low user maximum
My power compnay says it will mean $38 more per year in lines charges
Again, whether that will totally offset the increase will vary from region to region, and sometimes from home to home. Additionally, the change means power companies will be able to raise the daily charge by a further 34.5c a day, including GST next year, and again in 2024 and 2025.
Yes, we know the reasoning. However, the Government failed to secure a guarantee from power companies that tariff changes would cancel out on aggregate.
Moreover, the doubling in cost will still impact the poor currently on the lower use charge. Not all poor people have large families and stay in larger homes.
What is Labour going to do for them?
Are they going to just let them carry the full burden?
Minimum wage up from $15.75 which was Nationals end point to $21.20 in April this year
Thats a 35% increase . benefits have also risen and a 'winter' benefit rise as well.
A friend on unemployment benefit has seen it rise from $212 to $278 before this years cost of living increase and excluding winter bump.
Too little too late.
The current living wage is $22.75 and is due to increase in September.
In 2019 the welfare expert advisory group recommended benefit levels be increased by up to 47 percent immediately.